The End of The Road

September 28, 2009
In Anthony-winner Henry's so-so fourth whodunit to feature Alaska widow Maxie McNabb and her dachshund, Stretch (after 2007's The Refuge
), Maxie and Stretch befriend John Walker, a lonely tourist. Later, in the room of the inn where he's staying in Homer, John apparently shoots himself in the head with a pistol. Earlier, John attended a supper party at Maxie's, where he'd shown no signs of being suicidal, though Maxie's visiting son had found him a little too vague about his past. Alaska state trooper Alan Nelson confirms that the victim was using a false name and enlists Maxie's skills in figuring out his true identity. The plot thickens after Maxie discovers someone broke into her home while she was visiting Anchorage, and a stranger shows up claiming to be John's sister. While Henry does her usual fine job of depicting the lovely Alaskan landscape, the rushed resolution and not knowing enough about John to care about his fate will dissatisfy some readers.

November 1, 2009
Maxie McNabb and Stretch, her faithful miniature dachshund, stay home for the winter and find another mystery to solve when they give a stranger a ride into Homer, AK, as a storm threatens. Soon the man is dead, but no one knows who he is or why he was in Homer. VERDICT The focus in this fourth entry in Henry's award-winning series ("The Serpents Trail") is more on Maxie's daily life than the mystery. Readers looking for a gentle story la Carolyn Hart will be pleasantly rewarded. [See Prepub Mystery, "LJ" 12/08.]

Copyright 2009 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

November 1, 2009
The third Maxie and Stretch mystery finds the retired widower and her mini-dachshund spending the winter in Homer, Alaska, instead of taking their usual RV trip to the Southwest. As winter sets in, Maxie and Stretch meet a lonely man at the end of Homer Spit, known to tourists and locals as The End of the Road. After inviting the man, John Walker, to join her dinner party, generous Maxie is dismayed to discover that, only a few hours after leaving her house, he killed himself in his hotel room. The only clues to his death are the package of books he left on Maxies doorstep sometime in the night and a belt buckle Stretch discovers near where they first met the mysterious gentleman. As usual, Maxies investigation is assisted by her circle of loyal friends and gossipy locals, including the police and state trooper assigned to Homer. An entertaining mystery, certain to be enjoyed by cozy fans.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2009, American Library Association.)