It’s been a while since I’ve read a book that elicited an emotional reaction from me as strong as this month’s CLE Read.

Given it’s a mystery novel, this surprised me even more.  When I’m reading a mystery, I care about the characters only on a superficial level. I typically have just one thing on my mind – solving the mystery.

And I’m pretty good at it. When you’ve been fed a steady diet of murder mysteries since you were 5, it’s hard not to guess whodunit anymore.

But as I dug further and further into James Renner’s The Man from Primrose Lane, I became so entranced by the drama and puzzles unfolding in the main character’s life that the murder almost became secondary.

The book opens with the story of an old man from Akron. His name is a mystery, known only as The Man from Primrose Lane.

No one really knows anything about him except that on the few occasions they see him out of the house, he’s wearing mittens – even in the sweltering heat of summer.

Then one day he’s found dead in his living room with a gunshot to the chest and all his fingers gone.

Jump ahead a few years and we meet David Neff. After writing a bestselling true-crime book about an Ohio serial killer, David is broken by his wife’s suicide. Now he lives in a world muted by medication, until his publisher brings him the mystery of the man with a thousand mittens.

As David chases down the man’s identity, he becomes wrapped up in his old obsessions and along the way uncovers a staggering truth about his own wife’s death.

It’s a dark book. And ballsy – repeatedly twisting backwards and forwards in time, hoping you stick around for the ride.

There’s a good bit of convoluted sci-fi in it, which for a moment tested even my threshold for “wibbly-wobbly timey-wimey stuff” (I couldn’t resist a Doctor Who reference).

Digging through the layers reminded me of unfurling a parachute and watching it whip in the wind – unable to grasp how immense the fabric is.

One of my favorite Cleveland landmarks, Coventry’s Big Fun, makes a cameo in The Man from Primrose Lane

However, Renner makes it easy to suspend your disbelief. Even if some of the stranger elements aren’t your thing, Renner has created such a unique premise and paints his characters so well, that I found myself incredibly invested – even obsessed – in figuring out how it would all piece together.

And then there’s the musicality to his narrative, which rewards the reader with passages like this:

“His fingers crashed upon the keys and were lost, there, in a blur of motion and noise; the clunk of flesh on wood converted to the vibration of thin strings singing the most beautiful music. It was the sound of creation, of inspiration, of spirit let loose after a long imprisonment. It was the sound David heard, sometimes, as he drifted off to sleep thinking about the structure of an article. It was the sound of human accomplishment, the sound of a voice speaking over the din of a crowd. It was the sound of a child greeting a parent at the door. It was also the sound of lover’s gentle whisper.”

It’s scenes like the one above that had me entranced while reading The Man from Primrose Lane. Even after I’d put my Nook down, I was still caught up in its dark, moody, and beautiful world.

Renner does a great job of balancing this intense world-building with the mystery. While the clues are very well-hidden, they don’t get completely overshadowed by the rest of the book.

For all of the fantastical elements, the kidnappings and murders are portrayed very realistically. They speak to the cold truth that you can’t always protect someone from a ruthless predator – no matter how hard you try.

In addition to writing The Man from Primrose Lane, Renner has authored It Came from Ohio and true crime books like Amy: My Search for her Killer.

Similar to The Man from Primrose Lane‘s protagonist, he’s dedicated a good part of his life to hunting a killer. And My Search for her Killer recounts the strange characters and circumstances surrounding Amy Mihaljevic’s murder.

I didn’t know this until after I read The Man from Primrose Lane, but I think it made me enjoy the novel more – reaffirming a notion I consider very true: although it’s not always possible to find resolution in reality, stories help us find solace by stretching our limits just a little further.

***

You can purchase The Man from Primrose Lane online from Barnes and Noble for $11.14. Or support your favorite independent bookstore.

This is the latest in my CLE Reads series. Check out some of my previous installments:

• Les Roberts’ Whiskey Island (October 2012)
• Rust Belt Chic (November 2012)
• Damn Right I’m From Cleveland (December 2012)
• Women Behaving Badly by John Stark Bellamy II (January 2013)
• The Lake Erie Monster (March 2013)

I’ll be back next month with Derf Backderf’s autobiographical graphic novel My Friend Dahmer.  And if you have any recommendations of Northeast Ohio-related books to read, please leave a comment below.

Growing up, one of my favorite trips each month would be to the baseball card store. My mom would usually take me there after my orthodontist checkup so I could pick out a new pack of Topps. And without fail, each time I’d convince her to also let me get a copy of Tales from the Crypt.

I loved these horror comics and their pun-ey GhouLunatics hosts – especially the CryptKeeper. Nothing could take my mind off another month of braces like the one-two punch of a good scare and laugh.

In the same vein comes this month’s CLE Read: The Lake Erie Monster, a Cleveland-based horror anthology comic.

The book is written and illustrated by John Greiner and Jake Kelly.

Separately, the two have created murals and posters for Cleveland indie institutions like the Beachland, Grog Shop and Melt (check out this time-lapse of Kelly’s mural for the Cleveland Heights Melt).

Then in 2011 the two collaborated on an exhibit for Heights Arts. Ten Imaginary Movies featured a series of movie posters inspired by 1970s horror films. Kelly and Greiner created fictional actors and directors, reviews and movie memorabilia.

Two pieces of this exhibit were comic book covers for film #1 The Lake Erie Monster. After the  exhibit ended, they decided to move forward with an “adaptation” of it. First published last April, each quarterly issue features the ongoing Lake Erie Monster story, followed by 2 stand-alone tales.

The inspiration for the comic – The Lake Erie Monster movie poster. www.thelakeeriemonster.com

In The Lake Erie Monster, pollution from a decaying 1970s Cleveland has found its way into the waters of Lake Erie. And something menacing has grown in the murk.

A pair of journalists, a group of nosey kids and a van of worried hippies have realized something’s up as Clevelanders are found brutally murdered by the lakeside.

It’s a campy trip – with plenty of gore rolled into a sardonic look at this era in Cleveland history.  Although the grainy illustrations and palette were a little difficult to jump into at first, I got used to it by the end of issue 1 and found its rough-around-the-edges, vintage aesthetic lent itself very well to the tale’s grislier parts.

Although I enjoy the simmering suspense of the ongoing main story, it’s the backup tales I most look forward to when I pick up a new issue.

My favorite from these has been “Greens,” which tells of a trip to the farmers’ market that turns very strange when one unsuspecting shopper picks up some mysterious vegetables.

These stand-alone stories give me that quick horror fix I seek.

Cryptkeeper fans will also rejoice that Lake Erie Monster is home to its own GhouLunatic: the fantastically frightful Commodore.

From thelakeeriemonster.com, the Commodore’s Cleveland Clippings

With a middle name like Hazard, it’s not surprising that Commodore Perry has been haunting Cleveland since the 1800s. Sure, he’s lost a few teeth (and a bit of skin), but he’s retained the same style and swagger that brought him victory in the War of 1812.

The Commodore currently makes his residence on a secret floor of the Terminal Tower where he answers fan mail and pens his one-page “Commodore’s Cleveland” story for each issue.

From the most-cursed three acres of land in Cleveland to the Tree Man of Train Avenue, you’ll learn a few tall-tales from Cleveland’s past. And the Commodore’s wise-cracks alone are worth the $5 for the comic.

The Lake Erie Monster is published once a quarter. After inquiring at Comics Are Go!, whose recommendation got me hooked on the first issue, I was told the fourth issue should be out in the next couple of months and I’ll update when I learn more.

In the meantime, though, you can purchase digital and print copies of previous Lake Erie Monster issues from the Shiner Comics online store.

The newer installments can also be found at area retailers and comic book shops like Big Fun, Joy Machines and Comics Are Go! (many of whom are also featured in the comic with hilarious ads designed by the comic’s creators).

I’ll be back in April with James Renner’s The Man from Primrose Lane. Described by the Associated Press as “a thriller and detective story, plus science fiction and romance with a little near-future dystopia thrown in,” I’m looking forward to it.

I could also use some more recommendations.  If you have any Cleveland-area books you’ve enjoyed reading, please leave a comment below.

This is the latest in my CLE Reads series. Check out my previous installments:

• Harvey Pekar’s Cleveland (September 2012)
• Les Roberts’ Whiskey Island (October 2012)
• Rust Belt Chic (November 2012)
• Damn Right I’m From Cleveland (December 2012)
• Women Behaving Badly by John Stark Bellamy II (January 2013)

I’ve been looking forward to diving into this month’s CLE Read ever since it was recommended by @bonnjill after my first book review:

John Stark Bellamy II’sWomen Behaving Badly

As I’ve mentioned before, I thrill in piecing together the puzzle of almost anything crime-related. So Jill’s recommendation was right in my wheelhouse.

However, in contrast to the other mystery books that fill my bedside table, Bellamy’s Women Behaving Badly published in 2005 are all real-life crimes – an anthology of ferocious female killers in Cleveland.

Now, I’ve been known to behave badly more than once in my life.  However, I’m happy to know it’s not as badly as some of these ladies.

In total, there are 16 essays ranging in years from 1868 to 1965 and motives from money to sibling rivalries and jilted lovers.

There is the Sarah Victor Scandal of 1868 – the collection’s oldest crime – where Sarah took in her step-brother William after he returned home from war and then was suspected of killing him for his life insurance.

Or the gothic tale of Eula Dortch, a nurse aide who was married with 7 children, killed her husband, hid his body in her house and continued to cash his checks. After all of this, she was granted a second shot at life … but did she use it wisely?

If you’re familiar with Bellamy’s other collections, you’ll see that some of these women have been featured before. However, he includes two new riveting tales in Women Behaving Badly: Bad Cinderella and the Sins of the Father.

Bad Cinderella tells of 16-year-old Catherine Manz, who in 1910 was seen walking out of her family’s home in Massillon wearing her sister Elizabeth’s best outfit – a red dress and enormous feathered hat.  Hours later, Elizabeth was discovered dead in the house, poisoned by strychnine. A far – and vengeful – cry from the Disney version.

In each essay, Bellamy tells more than just the story of the crime. He weaves together a portrait of each woman (sympathetic, even, when warranted) along with an examination of the region’s sociocultural trends at the time each crime was committed.

Bellamy was inspired to write this book when he realized while researching The Maniac in the Bushes all of his favorite Cleveland killers were female. He writes in the forward:

“Stack up virtually any murder committed by a female during those fifteen decades against a homicide authored by any mere male and you will soon discover that – and as the stories I tell indelibly illustrate – there is simply no comparison in cunning, quality, and sheer entertainment value between the shallow, predictable murders of men and the complex,  richly nuaned slayings perpetrated by women.”

Author John Stark Bellamy II. Photo © Jonathan Wayne

While some would be revolted by so much death and destruction, Bellamy’s fascination is in his blood as he’s the third generation of his family to write about Cleveland’s grisliest inhabitants.

Growing up, he was surrounded by stories about Cleveland crime and disaster, written by both his grandfather who was editor of the Plain Dealer and his father who wrote for both the Cleveland News and PD.

The former history specialist for the Cuyahoga County Public Library, Bellamy has now authored six books and two anthologies about the worst that Cleveland has seen on its shores.

Whether it’s natural, honed or both, he has a definite talent for it. While his descriptions are vivid, I enjoyed Bellamy’s straightforward layout of the facts. At the end of each essay he does provide his own speculation of guilt or innocence; however, he leaves it open enough for readers to form their own opinions.

The collection also gives an interesting peek into a Northeast Ohio foreign to most of us, one lost in the history books. As Kimberly commented: “Kind of creepy when I realized some of these things took place in my neighborhood.”

You can purchase Women Behaving Badly: True Tales of Cleveland’s Most Ferocious Female Killers from Cleveland publisher Gray & Company for only $24.95. Or support your favorite Cleveland independent bookstore. I borrowed mine from the Avon Lake Public Library.

This is the latest in my CLE Reads series. Check out my previous installments:

• Harvey Pekar’s Cleveland (September 2012)
• Les Roberts’ Whiskey Island (October 2012)
• Rust Belt Chic (November 2012)
• Damn Right I’m From Cleveland (December 2012)

I’ll be back next month with the awesome horror comic The Lake Erie Monster.  And if you have any recommendations of your own, please leave a comment below.