WHAT ARE WE READING & REVIEWING IN JANUARY 2023?

Tell us what you plan to read in January.

Carol's January Reding Plans
🍷 - ★
45/45
🍷How to Howl at The Moon - Eli Easton - 5★ - (Friend #5)
🍷The Lantern Men - Elly Griffith - 4.5★ - (Group Read)
🍷Never Been Kissed- Timothy Janovsky - 4.5★
🍷You're a Mean One Matthew Prince - Timothy Janovsky - 5★
🍷The Weight of It All - N R Walker - 3★
🍷Will & Patrick Wake Up Married - Leta Blake - 4.5★
🍷Promises - Marie Sexton - 4.5★
🍷Save the Date - Annabeth Albert - 4★
🍷First Impressions - Jay Hogan - 4★
🍷Up Close and Personal - Jay Hogan - 4★
🍷Ben's Boss - K C Wells - 5★
🍷Dylan's Dilemma - K C Wells - 5★
🍷Shaun's Salvation - K C Wells - 5★
🍷Axel's Pup - Kim Dare - 4★
🍷Never Say Never - Felice Stevens - 4.5★
🍷2 Dead Fish Named Kevin - L A Witt - 5★
🍷Unguarded - Jay Hogan - 4.5★
🍷Booklover - J. E. Birk - 4★
🍷Whatever It Takes -Max Walker - 5★
🍷Ride the Wreck - Max Walker - 4★
🍷Transposition - Gregory Ashe - 4★
🍷Play By Heart - Ariella Zoelle - 5★
🍷 Before You Break - K. C Wells & Parker Williams - 5★
🍷 An Unlocked Mind - K C Wells & Parker Williams- 5★
🍷Threepeat - Parker Williams & K C Wells- 5★
🍷On The Same Page - K C Wells & Parker Williams - 4.5★
🍷Bad at Love - Aimee Nicole Walker - 4★
🍷Principles of Spookology - S A Harmon - 4.5★
🍷Subway Slayings - C S Poe 4.5 ★
🍷Any Given Lifetime - Leta Blake - 5★
🍷Sir -N. R. Walker - 4★
🍷Seven Sins - Miguel Estrada - 4★
🍷The Lighthouse Witches - C. J. Cooke - 5★
🍷Whispering Corner - Marc Alexander - 4.5★
🍷The Overnight Guest - Heather Gudenkauf - 4★
🍷Sleeping Dolls - Helen Pifer -5 ★
🍷Runner - Tracy Clark - 4.5★
🍷The Snow Killer - Ross Greenwood - 5★
🍷You Have to Believe Me - Sunday Tomassetti - 3★
🍷The Saturday Night Ghost Club - Craig Davidson- 4★
🍷We The Jury - Robert Rotstein - 5★
🍷Kin - Kealan Patrick Burke - 2.5★
🍷Mrs. Martin's Incomparable Adventure - 2★ Courtney Milan
🍷Not A Happy Family - Shari Lapena - 4.5★
🍷Snow - Ronald Malfi -4★

How to Howl at the Moon - Eli Easton - (California)
5★
Sheriff Lance Beaufort is not going to let trouble into his town, no sir. Tucked away in the California mountains, Mad Creek has secrets to keep, like the fact that half the town consists of ‘quickened’—dogs who have gained the ability to become human. Descended on both sides from border collies, Lance is as alert a guardian as they come. Tim Weston is looking for a safe haven. After learning that his boss patented all of Tim’s work on vegetable hybrids in his own name, Tim quit his old job. A client offers him use of her cabin in Mad Creek, and Tim sees a chance for a new start. But the shy gardener has a way of fumbling and sounding like a liar around strangers, particularly gorgeous alpha men like Sheriff Beaufort. Lance’s hackles are definitely raised by the lanky young stranger. He’s concerned about marijuana growers moving into Mad Creek, and he’s not satisfied with the boy’s story. Lance decides a bit of undercover work is called for. When Tim hits a beautiful black collie with his car and adopts the dog, its love at first sight for both Tim and Lance’s inner dog. Pretending to be a pet is about to get Sheriff Beaufort in very hot water.

I have decided that if there is anything to reincarnation I am coming back as a dog and I am diffidently moving to Mad Creek, California! What a super cute, sweet story this turned out to be. I hope the rest of the year's reads are like this. It's a warm, emotional, story that is filled with gentle humor. Meet Lance: He's the sheriff in human form and Pack leader of the "Quickended" in his doggie form. He takes both roles very seriously...maybe too much so. As a result, he's intense, socially inept to say the least, and not much fun at all. Fun? What's that? He has no time for it. The pack has a monthly "Howl at the Moon" on the full moon, no time for that either. Nothing and no one can deter him from his job. You have to remember that he is mostly Border Collie, so what would you expect? No sir...he has a pack and an entire town to protect. No way will he trust his duties to anyone else...especially if they aren't "pack". Now we meet Tim who is SOOO NOT PACK.

Tim just wants a place to hide and lick his wounds, a place to prove that he is none of the terrible, hurtful things that both his father and his former boss said to him. Instead of the quiet place he so badly needed he found that he had been sniffed out by the cold, wet nose of the sheriff. He found Tim to be more than mildly suspicious and less than lacking in every way... just as everyone else in his life had always found him. Tim had a "magic" with vegetables that had suddenly disappeared, and Tim was determined not to let hunger, lack of sufficient funds, the proper tools, or nosy town in either people or doggie form, keep him from getting it back. What he didn't count on was making a new canine friend, some plants mysteriously going missing and the tenacity of the sheriff...or, Heaven forbid... his mother!

It's not your standard M/M Romance or your usual shifter story. How to Howl at the Moon is a perfect, quirky, sometimes funny, feel-good romance and the absolutely perfect start to the New Year's reads.

Unguarded - Jay Hogan - (Vermont)
Vino and Veritas series Book #10
4,5★
fled Boston and my cheating jerk of an ex with three hundred dollars and a lip gloss in my pocket. Waking up the next day in Burlington, Vermont, with a crick in my back and a frozen ass wasn’t exactly in the plan. If there was one. Which there wasn’t. Story of my life. Three hours later and I’ve been hired as temporary help in the local veterinary and grooming clinic, which is kind of impressive since I know zip about animals and even less about grooming. But one thing I do know—I’m crushing hard on the sexy, absent-minded vet I work for. My life is a hot mess. The last thing I need is another relationship. Emmett pushes all my buttons, but he isn’t out. He's overwhelmed with a business to run and a son to look after and the kind of domestic life I never thought I wanted. I should walk away. But Emmett believes in me, and I might just be starting to believe in myself. As different as we are, is it possible we're exactly what the other needs?

I liked the characters of Emmett, the vet and Tai. Tai was from New Zealand and was proud, sexy, sassy and snarky and had more sense than many of the characters in these books. He was smart to leave his horrible, controlling ex..., should have done it sooner... but he made some mistakes. He didn't take the time to close out his bank account or cancel ALL his credit cards. His ex-boyfriend had full control of his assets and made quick work of bankrupting him. It was way too easy for the jerk to track him down also. Emmett, the vet had lost his wife in a traffic accident several years ago and was raising his young son. He was a big softie and was just what Tai needed at that time in his life, and Tai fit in like the preverbal glove. I loved the cat and all the other animals that came through the clinic and how the people interacted with them. There were times that the situations they found themselves in was very funny, but anyone that reads these type books knows that something or someone is going to soon come along and upset the apple cart. Fortunately, this didn't happen until almost the end of the story. These books that are part of the Vino and Veritas series and are written by different M/M romance authors and fairly short...but all take place in Vermont. Some of the characters cross over which is something else I like. This is such an intense and captivating story that deserves to be read time and time again, which I certainly will do. Another amazing author that I will be following.

Beyond the Wand: The Magic and Mayhem of Growing Up a Wizard
Tom Felton
4/5 stars
Tom Felton relates his acting career and the ups and downs of being a child actor, especially being in one of the most popular movie series of all times. Nicely written and very interesting!

Before You Break - K C Wells & Parker Williams - (England)
Secrets Series Book #1
Genera: M/M Romance
5★
Six years ago Ellis walked into his first briefing as the newest member of London’s Specialist Firearms unit. He was partnered with Wayne, and they became fast friends. When Wayne begins to notice changes―Ellis’s erratic temper, the effects of sleep deprivation―he knows he has to act before Ellis reaches his breaking point. He invites Ellis to the opening of the new BDSM club, Secrets, where Wayne has a membership. His purpose? He wants Ellis to glimpse the lifestyle before Wayne approaches him with a proposition. He wants to take Ellis in hand, to control his life because he wants his friend back, and he figures this is the only way to do it. There are a few issues, however. Ellis is straight, stubborn, and sexy. Wayne knows he has to put his own feelings aside to be what Ellis needs. What surprises the hell out of him is finding out what Ellis actually requires.

I've read nearly everything that K C Wells & Parker William has ever written, either together or individually. No matter which they are great either way. This series could be entitled "Collars & Cuffs" part 2, but it's a new club owned by two characters from the last book in the Collars and Cuffs series, called "Secrets" and located in London instead of Manchester. It doesn't keep the friends from Manchester from visiting though, for which I am extremely grateful. Eli & Jarod have started their new life here and of course with new group of members. Wayne became a member almost immediately but his best friend, Ellis took a bit more convincing. Life happened to this couple in ways they could never have imagined, but they faced it together and worked it out, thanks to Wayne's belief and love for Ellis and him never giving up showing him that life is what you are willing to make it. There are many ups and downs on their journey, but these authors have created a trip that fans of the Collars and Cuffs series will love taking and meeting the members of Secrets.

An Unlocked Mind - K C Wells & Parker Williams - (England)
Secrets series Book #2
Genera: M/M Romance
5★
Rob Daniels is determined to prove to himself that his brother Alex got it wrong. Alex believes he found love through BDSM; Rob is certain that’s not possible. He even makes several visits to a London club to prove his point. But when he attends the grand opening of Secrets, Rob gets a shock, one that has him fleeing, vowing never to return―until he does… and runs into the brick wall that is Dom Vic Prentiss. As first meetings go, theirs is a disaster. The more time he spends around Rob, the more convinced Vic becomes of two things―one, something is eating away at Rob, and two, he’s looking for something. Every instinct tells Vic to help him but trying to unlock the secrets hidden in Rob’s mind requires a key. All Vic has to do is find it. Because maybe then he’ll get to see the real Rob, the man who’s scared to let go.

This was a reread, and it won't be the last. Vic and Rob have a special place among my favorite characters. I wish I could say that it's not true that parents can treat any child of theirs like Rob was treated...but unfortunately, it's not fantasy. Rob's mother should have been shot.... slowly. Who turns their children away for any reason? Rob makes for a very unlikely sub with his cocky attitude, which I'm happy to say he never loses. That’s one of the reasons why I simply adore him. He's vulnerable, but he tries to hide it behind his bravado, He also struggle with the guilt for his past treatment of his brother, Alex who is Leo's sub from "Collars and Cuffs". Rob grows immensely throughout this story, while trying so hard to redeem himself, but sometimes stumbling along the way. It's okay because Vic is there to catch and support him. New friendships are made, and old friends come forward to lend support when some characters from the "Collars and Cuffs" series and the "Secrets" series come together to help Rob become the man he always wanted to be but thought he never would be. Come on K C & Parker...just keep writing more stories into these two series. There are now two clubs with members that need to have their stories told.

Flower Net – Lisa See
Digital audiobook narrated by Elaina Davis (abridged)
3***

From the book jacket: In the depths of a Beijing winter, the U.S. ambassador’s son is found dead – his body entombed in a frozen lake. Around the same time, aboard a ship adrift off the coast of Southern California, Assistant U.S. Attorney David Stark discovers the corpse of a Red Prince, a scion of China’s political elite. The Chinese and American governments suspect that the deaths are connected, and they join forces to see justice done. In Beijing, David teams up with the female police detective Liu Hulan, in an investigation that takes them to every corner of China and sparks an intense attraction between the two.

My reaction
Before she rocketed to fame with Snow Flower and the Secret Fan See wrote a short series of mysteries, of which this is the first. What I liked most about this book was the look at China – from karaoke bars to the neighborhoods housing the working class, from high-powered businessmen to prostitutes, See gave the reader a look under the blanket of the typical tourist-friendly experience. The plot is convoluted and full of twists and turns, as much political intrigue as murder mystery.

Liu Hulan is an interesting and conflicted character. Having been educated in the U.S. she seems a logical choice to partner with the U.S. attorney for the investigation. But their previous relationship and the personal issues between them kept distracting me from the central mystery.

Elaina Davis does a good job of narrating the audiobook, but it wasn’t until after I had listened to about half of it that I realized it was an abridged version. Fortunately, I had the text as well so could read the full book, which meant I got much more of Liu Hulan explaining Chinese culture to David than action.

We The Jury - Robert Robstein - (California)
Genera: Crime, Mystery & Suspense
5★
On the day before his twenty-first wedding anniversary, David Sullinger buried an ax in his wife’s skull. Now, eight jurors must retire to the deliberation room and decide whether David committed premeditated murder -- or whether he was a battered spouse who killed his wife in self-defense. Told from the perspective of over a dozen participants in a murder trial, We, the Jury examines how public perception can mask the ghastliest nightmares. As the jurors stagger toward a verdict, they must sift through contradictory testimony from the Sullingers' children, who disagree on which parent was Satan; sort out conflicting allegations of severe physical abuse, adultery, and incest; and overcome personal animosities and biases that threaten a fair and just verdict. Ultimately, the central figures in We, the Jury must navigate the blurred boundaries between bias and objectivity, fiction and truth.

This is miles different from the usual courtroom fiction novels in that it allows the reader to be a witness to the entire process. We see it through the eyes of the judge, the bailiff, the court clerk, both lawyers, and of course, as the title suggests...the jury. A man is on trial who admits that he did indeed kill his wife, but he swears it was in self- defense, so his case is totally based on the battered spouse defense. Some of the jurors of course had trouble believing that a man would dare offer this as a defense, so I knew that he was more than likely going to have more trouble getting out the trouble he was already in. After weighing the evidence presented, the jurors begin deliberations. I really like court room dramas...ate up Perry Mason and >i> Matlock episodes. I find that I am engrossed in the legal jockeying between the lawyers. However, the most interesting and exciting part of this book, at least for me, was the deliberations and the careful journey that the jurors took in finally arriving at a unanimous verdict. The book is so realistic, that I sometimes had to check again to be sure that it wasn't based on reality and remind myself it was an actual work of fiction. More difficulties came in yet another form that could have greatly affected the case when we learned that even though the judge was likeable, circumstances may have caused her to no longer be fit to do her job. That was at once terrifying and very poignant. The real drama takes place during jury deliberations. The jurors came from all walks of life. One was a member of the clergy, another a housewife, a retired school principal...all had a voice, all went in with an opinion, some more than others, that was also realistic. I liked the majority of them, but as someone who has served on a jury, I found that this jury was extremely realistic. One comment from the book that has stuck with me sums it up pretty well..."Sometimes when the law tries for fair, it misses right". The author did a terrific job with this one.

The Sweetness of Water – Nathan Harris
Book on CD performed by William DeMerritt
5*****

In his debut work, Harris explores rural Georgia shortly after the end of the Civil War, when slaves had been emancipated and Union soldiers moved in to enforce the terms of surrender and “reconstruct” the South. Prentiss and Landry are freedmen, brothers released from the only home they’ve ever known. On leaving the plantation where they were born and raised, they find refuge with the neighboring landowner, George Walker. George and his wife, Isabelle could use the help of two able-bodied men. So, they agree to hire the brothers, and allow them to live in the barn.

This is a marvelous debut. Full of complex characters and gripping scenes that move the plot forward. Harris explores moral dilemmas and the difficulties of trying to do the right thing against a post-war upheaval and tension. He gives us characters with strong principles who can be blind to their flaws, some of whom overcome and some who give in to those weaknesses.

If I have any complaint, it’s that the villain(s) in the piece are so obviously villainous. But that is a quibble. I loved George, Landry and Prentiss. I came to appreciate Caleb and his struggles. And Isabelle … this is one strong woman.

William DeMerritt does a fine job performing the audiobook. He has a lot of characters to handle and he gives each a unique voice. Unfortunately, two of his voices sound remarkably like real persons – one sounds like former President Bill Clinton, and another like John Wayne. This was definitely a distraction as I could not help but picture those famous persons in these roles. Harris’s writing still shone through, and I may re-read it in text format.

Deal Breaker / Harlan Coben
4 stars

Myron Bolitar is a sports agent, and he represents Christian Steele. Christian’s girlfriend disappeared over a year ago and was presumed dead, when Christian receives a phone call supposedly coming from her, so Christian calls Myron for help. It appears that her naked body is also now in an ad in a porn magazine with very low circulation, and this magazine has been sent to Christian and a few others. Myron also used to date Kathy’s sister, Jessica. More recently, Kathy and Jessica’s dad was murdered, but the police have chalked that up to a robbery and not related.

I had forgotten that I’d already read one other book in this series, although this is the first in the series (unusual for me to read out of order). I wasn’t sure I’d like it with all the references to sports, but I still did. And there were a lot of sports references. But the mystery and what happened to Kathy kept me interested. And even the sports negotiations and such were interesting (there was another story thread about another one of Myron’s clients, as well) – or more likely, what was happening around those negotiations was interesting. I liked Jessica and her relationship with Myron; not too sure about Myron’s friend, Win, though – he’s a bit scary! I’m still not convinced this series will be nearly as good as Coben’s standalones, but I will definitely continue this series to see where it goes.

Never Been Kissed - Timothy Janovsky - (Pennsylvania)
Boy Meets Boy Series Book#1
Genea: M/M Romance / Romantic Comedy
4.5★
Dear (never-been-quite-over-you) Crush, It's been a few years since we were together, but I can't stop thinking about the time we almost...Wren Roland has never been kissed, but he wants that movie-perfect ending more than anything. Feeling nostalgic on the eve of his birthday, he sends emails to all the boys he (ahem) loved before he came out. Morning brings the inevitable Oh God What Did I Do?, but he brushes that panic aside. Why stress about it? None of his could-have-beens are actually going to read the emails, much less respond. Right? Enter Derick Haverford, Wren's #1 pre-coming-out-crush and his drive-in theater's new social media intern. Everyone claims he's coasting on cinematic good looks and his father's connections, but Wren has always known there's much more to Derick than meets the eye. Too bad he doesn't feel the same way about the infamous almost-kiss that once rocked Wren's world. Whatever. Wren's no longer a closeted teenager; he can survive this. But as their hazy summer becomes consumed with a special project that may just save the struggling drive-in for good, Wren and Derick are drawn ever-closer…and maybe, finally, Wren's dream of a perfect-kiss-before-the-credits is within reach.

Wren, a Film Studies graduate has had dreams his first perfect kiss. But he has sense enough to know that people don't normally dream of having the perfect first kiss...like in the movies, that is...when he's sober. After his 22nd birthday celebration with his friends, he unfortunately is no longer sober and goes home and drunkenly sends emails that he wrote to the four boys he had his "almost first kiss" with. Derick, one of the "almosts" gets one of the emails. Again, unfortunately, Derick is the new Social Media manager, and as such, he will be working with Wren for the summer. Wiley's Drive -in is in financial difficulty, so Wren has started working on a plan to save the drive-in theatre, while trying to decide what is going on with Derick. A portion of Wren plans to help the drive-in is by tracking down a reclusive local movie director, Alice Kelly, for a special showing of her one and only film, which hasn't been seen in years. All of the characters have their own charm, but I thought Alice was really special. The story has humor, heartbreak, anticipation, and suspense and a really cute couple. It's a light read in the M/M romance genera, especially for anyone struggling with their own sexuality and identity but also for those who just want a really sweet read with two characters who find each other again. I really enjoyed the nostalgic aspect as well. I spent a lot of my youth in the drive-in in my hometown. There are people, maybe even some reading this, that have no idea even what a drive-in is. Another piece of American nostalgia gone.

Button, Button - Uncanny Stories
Richard Matheson
I have always enjoyed Matheson's eerie stories and this one does not disappoint. This book is a compilation of dark short stories, one which became a film and a Twilight episode. Very enjoyable! 1970

Runner - Tracy Clark - (Illinois)
Cass Raines Chicago Mystery Series Book #4
Genera: Mystery & Suspense Thriller
4.5★
Chicago in the dead of winter can be brutal, especially when you're scouring the frigid streets for a missing girl. Fifteen-year-old Ramona Titus has run away from her foster home. Her biological mother, Leesa Evans, is a recovering addict who admits she failed Ramona often in the past. But now she's clean. And she's determined to make up for her mistakes--if Cass can only help her find her daughter. Cass visits Ramona's foster mother, Deloris Poole, who is also desperate to bring the girl home. Ramona came to Deloris six months ago, angry and distrustful, but was slowly opening up. The police are on the search, but Cass has sources closer to the streets, and a network of savvy allies. Yet it seems Ramona doesn't want to be found. And Cass soon begins to understand why. Ramona is holding secrets dark enough to kill for, and anyone who helps her may be fair game. And if Ramona can't run fast enough and hide well enough to keep the truth safe, she and Cass may both be out of time.

Dangerous secrets are uncovered by Cass Raines as she helps a recovering drug addict find her missing teen daughter. We visit the dark side of the city of Chicago and the equally dark side human nature in a novel that is well written and shiveringly exciting. A 15-year-old girl from foster care is missing and a Chicago winter is no time to be on the streets. Cassandra Raines is a former police officer with the Chicago Police Department, who after a horrific incident resigned from the force and became a Private Investigator. This is the fourth book in the series but it's the first time I’m meeting Cass Raines. Even though the book is the fourth series, if this one is any indication, they read well as standalones. The book was a page-turner. Tracy Clark allows Cass to completely take the lead, guiding readers through the investigation and allowing us to solve the case with her. The further I got into the story, the more invested I became into finding the missing Ramona and learning why she ran away at all much less during a brutal Chicago winter. When we do find out, the reason leads us to even more questions. Ramona is holding secrets... some dark enough to kill for.

First Impressions - Jay Hogan - (New Zealand)
Auckland Med Series Book #1
Genera: M/M Romance
4★
Michael: Two years ago, I made a mistake, a big one. Then I added a couple more just for good measure. I screwed up my life, but I survived. Now I have the opportunity for a fresh start. Two years in New Zealand. Away from the LA gossip, a chance to breathe, to rebuild my life. But I'm taking a new set of rules with me. I don't do relationships. I don't do commitment. I don't do white picket fences. And I especially don't do arrogant, holier-than-thou, smoking hot K9 officers who walk into my ER and rock my world.

Josh: - One thing for certain, Dr. Michael Oliver is an arrogant, untrustworthy player, and I barely survived the last one of those. He might be gorgeous, but my daughter takes number one priority. I won't risk her being hurt, again. I'm a solo Dad, a K9 cop, and a son to pain-in-the-arse parents.
I don't have time for games. I don't have time for taking chances. I don't have time for more complications in my life. And I sure as hell don't have time for the infuriating Dr. Michael Oliver, however damn sexy he is.

I love Gary Furlong's voice, the reader of this one. He has done all of Jay Hogan's books that I have listened to thus far, and he could read to me all day if he wants. I liked the story, but I had some problems with it also. The book is full of the things that I don't particularly care for in any genera.... especially romances, no matter if they are M/M, or M/F. I have no patience with characters that can't seem to get their act together and just let something grow or even admit that there even is something to grow. I don't like long separations and especially characters that won't just say to one another, "Let's talk about it and see if we can't work it out". These two, Michael and Josh, just let life run over them and nearly completely past them. Michael was willing to take homophobic comments from his parents with a grit of his teeth and a grain of salt. I felt sorry for Josh's daughter and even his dog. They were caught in the middle of Josh and his parents, and no one was listening to the kid saying she wanted no part of listening to her grandparents run down her dad. It did level out and the pros outweighed the cons in the end. It eventually became a beautifully written love story even if it does contain all of the mistakes people can make that can grow into a two-headed monster, by not talking about what's bothering them, what they're uncertain about, and what they really want with, and for. one another. There was a criminal element side story going on, Josh is a cop... that adds to the plot, but it was so spaced out that I almost forgot it was there until something bad nearly happened.

Halfbreed / Maria Campbell
3 stars

The author grew up in Saskatchewan; she is Metis (or “halfbreed” is the word she uses: part Cree (indigenous), and part European), descended from Gabriel Dumont. Her family was poor and she never really got out of the poverty, even as she married, had kids, moved to B.C. and Alberta, etc. She also ended up drinking, doing drugs… I think prostitution, too, but (unless I missed it), she only hinted at it.

I maybe made a mistake in listening to the audio. Maria herself read it, but she has a very monotone voice. I thought that I was still able to focus in the first half or so of the book, but I did miss things as the book continued, and I suspect I missed more earlier in the book than I originally thought.

Ride the Wreck - Max Walker - (New Hampshire)
Stonewall Investigations: Blue Creek - Book #2
Genera: M/M/Romance, Mystery
4★
Elijah Roberts: I’m a grumpy ass drag queen who loves what I do and never wants to stop. Drag gives me an escape, a way to embody the star inside me. A way to be happy. Imagine how pissed I get when a stalker pushes me to quit drag after an extra spooky message is left on my mirror in red lipstick. Truly, my life couldn’t get any worse. Enter Ryan Diaz, a smoldering and perma-smiling detective at Stonewall Investigations. He offers to take my case, which isn’t the only thing I want him to take… What? I’m talking about my number. How else am I going to get him to come over and take my—

Ryan Diaz: My life followed a simple routine: work, friends, time with dad on his farm, and getting my heart tied up by another smooth-talking guy who promised the world on a plate only to cosplay as Casper the duchy ghost a few days later. Predictable was fine. Boring, but fine. Everything changed the night I watched Elijah perform as Blue Divine. From then on, my life became anything but predictable. Electric. Exhilarating. Exciting. All because of Elijah Roberts. Finding him was the easy part. Now I needed to keep him safe from his stalker, help bring back his love for drag, and get him to continue spending every night with me until the end of time. Shouldn’t be too hard… right?

I have read and own almost everything that Max Walker has ever put to paper. I loved the original Stonewall Investigations series so when they opened an office in the small New Hampshire town of Blue Creek, I packed up and happily moved along with them. This one was okay, but not my favorite in the series. It was a good story as they all are, and I loved the character of Ryan Diaz, but the lifestyle depicted in this one was one that I just don't have much interest in. I'm not coming down on it...and will defend their right to embrace it... but I just don't understand it. There was a mystery for them to investigate but the drag scenes over ran it. The lifestyle was okay for Elijah. I knew from the start that this was his choice, but Ryan always seemed an unlikely candidate and it seemed that he allowed Elijah to take him into it way to easily. There are plenty of laughs, smiles, heartache, and suspense along the way. Max Walker is one of my favorite authors. He has a real talent for telling a captivating story, with characters that you just want to get to know better. This one is still worthy of 4 stars for the character of Ryan Diaz alone.

The Highway
C.J. Box
4/5 stars
Cassie Dewell, investigator, is on the lookout for 2 girls who have disappeared driving on a Montana highway. Can she find them and her ex-partner Cody Hoyt? I really enjoyed this and I look forward to the rest of the series.

Whip Hand – Dick Francis
3***

Book # 2 in the Sid Halley series. Sid’s career as a top-rated jockey ended when a horse rolled over onto him, crushing his left hand. The hand was later amputated, and he now wears a state-of-the-art prosthesis, but he cannot be a jockey.

The plot is intricate and includes a couple of different mysteries, both of which involve unscrupulous business dealings and which involve Sid’s two loves: his ex-wife Jenny and thoroughbred racing. One of these will seriously threaten Sid’s life and his psyche. Both are complicated and require all his skill to ferret out the truth and bring the perpetrators to justice. Sid is forced to face his greatest fears and answer for himself: Is there anything you’re afraid of?

I love Sid. He’s determined, inquisitive, courageous, and principled. He’s got a great sidekick in Chico, as well; and his father-in-law has his back, too.

The Snow Killer - Ross Greenwood - 5★ - (England)
D I Burton series Book #1
Genera: Mystery & Suspense
5★
"Fear the north wind. Because no one will hear you scream…" A family is gunned down in the snow but one of the children survives. Three years on, that child takes revenge, and the Snow Killer is born. But then, nothing - no further crimes are committed, and the case goes cold. Fifty years later, has the urge to kill been reawakened? As murder follows murder, the detective team tasked with solving the crimes struggle with the lack of leads. It’s a race against time and the weather – each time it snows another person dies. As an exhausted and grizzled DI Barton and his team scrabble to put the pieces of the puzzle together, the killer is hiding in plain sight. Meanwhile, the murders continue.

Fifty years ago, a family of four is brutally gunned down in the snow. One child survives and then disappears from hospital. The killer is never found and earns the nickname of "The Snow Killer". Then fifty years later, a series of murders occur that just happen to also take place in the snow. Is the killer back? chapters that alternate between the guilty party and the police who are investigating a series of murders, Ross Greenwood takes us on a journey that is both full of thrills and emotion. The book opens in the past when a young child witnesses the murder of their sister and parents and is themselves left for dead. But nearly dead is not really dead now, is it? Soon revenge becomes the only item on the surviving child’s personal agenda. Now we fast forward fifty years and we are faced with a brand-new series of murders in which the victims are not the most sympathetic and the motive is unclear to say the least. The killer continues to reveal moments from the past, offering more insight into their present which really adds to the story. It surprised me that I began in some respects, to empathies, with the killer. It was a story that gripped me from the start and kept me glued right to the end. A real one-day kind of book. It had a feeling of reality about it and was filled with surprises and emotion.

Lady In Waiting– Anne Glenconner
Book on CD narrated by the author
3.5***

Subtitle: My Extraordinary Life In the Shadow of the Crown

Glenconner has spent her life as an intimate friend of the royal family. As a child she played with Princesses Elizabeth and Margaret, her family estate (one of the grandest in England) being next door to the Royal Family’s country retreat, Sandringham. She served as a Maid of Honor for Elizabeth II’s Coronation, and as Lady in Waiting to Princess Margaret.

Her life has been full of ups and downs, including a broken first engagement, followed by marriage to the Colin Tennant, Lord Glenconner who exhibited violent outbursts, engaged in extramarital affairs, and bought an island on a whim. That was Mustique, which became THE place where Jet-Setters escaped in the 1970s – ‘80s. Despite the volatility of her marriage, Anne stayed by her man; it was what was done in their set.

This is quite the autobiography, and Glenconner reads the audiobook herself. It took me a bit to get used to her delivery, but I cannot imagine anyone else (well, maybe Maggie Smith) doing a better job of it.

Transposition - Gregory Ashe - (Missouri)
Hazard and Somerset Mystery Series, Book #2
Genera: M/M Romance, Mystery, Police Procedural
4★
Emery Hazard and his partner, John-Henry Somerset, have solved their first case together. The brutal murders that rocked the quiet town of Wahredua have been put to rest. Hazard, however, finds his life has only grown more complicated as he adjusts to his new home. Living with Somers, whom he has been drawn to since high school, makes "complicated" the understatement of the year. The turmoil of living together spills over when Hazard and Somers find themselves trapped by the weather in an old mansion and, against Hazard's better judgment, sharing a bed. Strictly as friends, of course. Just when things can't get any more confusing, the next morning brings a worsening storm - and a murder. Cut off from the outside world, Hazard and Somers must face a clever, determined killer who is hiding among the mansion's guests. Without backup, they can only rely on their wits - and on each other - to survive. And as the snow falls and the mansion's guests continue to die one by one, solving the string of murders becomes secondary. First, Hazard and Somers have to survive.

Hazard and Somerset, as detective partners and having worked out some of their issues from the past, drop into an Agatha Christie like setting outside Wahredua in the middle of a fierce snowstorm just before Thanksgiving. Bodies gradually start to deplete the strange, assembled group that have come together to participate in “trust building” murder mystery solving in a staged setting on the ground of a huge Victorian manor. I really like the characters of Hazard and Somerset. Both men could use a good shake or a solid slap up the side of the head every now and then, but they both have their reasons for their defense mechanisms. One has a nice boyfriend and the other a wife that he's working on patching a strained marriage up with...but they are still making advances to one another, without much success. I really don't feel that I fully understand what makes them tick but I know I'm going to read the next book in the series to see what happens next. Overall, a really good addition in the series.

On the Same Page - K C Wells & Parker Williams - (England)
Secrets series Book #4
Genera: M/M Romance
4.5★
When a Dom invites a shy bookstore owner to live out his fantasies, more than one life will be transformed. Words are Heath Snow’s life. He can’t remember a time when he didn’t have his nose buried in a book. He couldn’t make a living as a writer, so he did the next best thing―he bought a bookstore. But when he’s not selling books, he’s living vicariously through the characters he encounters. Real men can’t hold a candle to the hot men in his favorite genre. The Pride display in the bookstore window may be what captured Xavier James’s attention, but the man enthusing about books interests him more. The BDSM book lying next to the cash register is a pleasant surprise, and when he draws attention to it, Heath’s flushed cheeks and bright eyes pique Xavier’s curiosity even further. Xavier is about to learn that some things are more important than work, and Heath is about to step out of his comfort zone, into a place where fantasy and real life coexist.

I loved these two characters of Heath & Xavier. K C Wells and Parker Williams know how to put together a romance, and that is 100% what this is. A true honest, romance. Xavier was a good honest man that tried to do the right thing...but his job, without him realizing it before it was too late, put everything that he loved and wanted in jeopardy. Heath was a bookstore owner that never thought he would find anyone to love or someone to love him...and then one night Xavier came to the shop door in the pouring rain and changed Heath's entire life...until Xaviers job threatened everything and everyone that Heath cared about. The thing about this series that I really, really liked was how characters from the other three books appear and how they work to help one another. Xavier has a huge conflict between his job and his relationship with Heath. He doesn't want to lose either one. I wish that he had been more open with Heath to begin with, but I think Xavier was himself, blindsided by the scope of the project that he was asked to work on. The question actually becomes which one will he choose? Sorry to see this series end, but I own the 4 books, so I'll be visiting with Heath and Xavier and the guys at Secrets again ad again.

Booklover -J E Birk - (Vermont)
Vino and Veritas series Book #6
Genera: M/M Romance
4★
Two guys meet over a stack of romance novels. Soon they're turning pages late into the night. Jamie Morin’s college GPA drops every time a cow breaks through a fence, but he’s determined to get his degree and keep his parents’ Vermont dairy farm afloat. He’d rather be reading than milking, but he can’t let his family down…not the way his brother did. So the last thing he needs is distraction in the form of an irresistible bookseller with a mysterious backstory.

Briar Nord has a lifetime of experience proving that happily-ever-afters only happen in his favorite books. But his luck might be changing. He’s got a great job at a bookstore, and he lives in a city that puts maple syrup on everything. But Briar knows not to trust anything or anyone. And that includes a gorgeous farm boy with soulful eyes and too many obligations. When Jamie joins Briar’s romance novel book club, they both feel an instant connection. Soon they’re turning pages long into the night. But Briar’s past was bound to catch up with him. Sometimes, though, it takes two heroes to write a new ending.

I felt sorry Briar. He tried to tie his families dairy farm, his college classes, and his job in the bookstore together and still have time to be a decent boyfriend to Jamie Morin. Jamie and Briar met in the bookstore at the romance book club that Jamie started. They were perfect for one another even though their plans often got waylaid by cow that escaped the broken fence or something else that his father thought he should drop his life for and come help to fix. Jamie had spent a great many years of his life in the system going from one foster system to another. One of the boys he met in the system was destined even in his early years for a long stay in prison and he always talked Jamie who was desperate for a friend, to help him pull off small thefts. When Jamie moved to Vermont, he thought he had lost contact for good. No such luck. Now he's back and he wants Jamie to help him rob the bookstore. The story is emotional and lighthearted at times while being frustrating and heartbreaking in the next instance. The chemistry between Jamie and Briar is fantastic.

Ivan: the Remarkable True Story of the Shopping Mall Gorilla / Katherine Applegate
4 stars

This is a picture book about Ivan, a gorilla poached as a baby and brought to the U.S. to live, first with a family until he was too big, then he lived for almost three decades in a mall by himself. From there, he was taken to a zoo to live the rest of his life with other gorillas in a more natural habitat.

I loved the YA book “The One and Only Ivan”. This is a really nice children’s story about the same gorilla with such a sad life. There are some really great illustrations. Despite it being so short and succinct (it’s a kid’s book, and no surprise, really), this one still had me crying a couple of times. There are a few pages at the end with a longer textual summary of Ivan’s life and a note from one of the zookeeper’s who took care of him in his last decade of life.

Pride & Prejudice & Zombies / Seth Grahame-Smith, Jane Austen
3.25 stars

I don’t think a summary is really needed for this one, but not only are the Bennett sisters looking for husbands with the help of their mother, but the girls in this book are also all trained (they’ve been to the Orient and have a dojo for further training) to fight zombies – those with the “plague”.

This was ok. It does surprise me that I rated the original so high, as on parodies such as this, the story itself seems so slow and not something I would usually like. I suppose I was in the right frame of mind when I first read it? Anyway, with the addition of the zombies, a couple of big fight scenes livened things up a bit! I was also amused with Charlotte’s illness. The zombies did seem quite out of place in the book. The notes at the end of the book were interesting and one did touch on how it might not have been so out of place to add zombies into the book with the popularity of gothic fiction at the time it was written. The other fun extra at the end was a list of “discussion” questions – now those were amusing!

Lighthouse Witches -C J Cooke - (Scotland}
Genera: Paranormal, Horror, Fantasy
5★
When single mother Liv is commissioned to paint a mural in a 100-year-old lighthouse on a remote Scottish island, it's an opportunity to start over with her three daughters--Luna, Sapphire, and Clover. When two of her daughters go missing, she's frantic. She learns that the cave beneath the lighthouse was once a prison for women accused of witchcraft. The locals warn her about wildlings, supernatural beings who mimic human children, created by witches for revenge. Liv is told wildlings are dangerous and must be killed. Twenty-two years later, Luna has been searching for her missing sisters and mother. When she receives a call about her youngest sister, Clover, she's initially ecstatic. Clover is the sister she remembers--except she's still seven years old, the age she was when she vanished. Luna is worried Clover is a wildling. Luna has few memories of her time on the island, but she'll have to return to find the truth of what happened to her family. But she doesn't realize just how much the truth will change her.

When we think of witches most of us think of black cats, broomsticks, pointy hats and women in black robes. Even these folks are stereotyped to fit what we have been fed from the time we first donned a Halloween costume. The truth is...witchcraft is a religion and a craft that can be practiced by perfectly ordinary looking people of either sex. What Liv found was that when she took the commission to paint the mural in the old lighthouse was that under her feet was the dungeon prison where 100 years past. women had had been imprisoned for fitting the stereotype, be they guilty or innocent. 100 years ago, no one really cared one way or the other. In the timeframe that this story is set nothing much has changed. Mass hysteria again is rampant in the small village, as is the same belief that led to the majority of witch trials in history throughout the world. An unfortunate, natural tragedy that befell a group of people, without any understanding of why it happened. This same type of group is looking for a scapegoat, typically someone who doesn’t conform to society’s expectations at whatever time period. What’s unique about this book is how this group of women in the ‘present day’ storyline is characterized. They appear as though they may be type cast as the witches of their town. They meet secretly by candlelight. They actually whip up the unnecessary hysteria that’s typically used against witches. This story has a mix of fantasy and truth, paranormal and normal, everyday hysteria that can be stirred up by ignorance and misunderstanding. There are witches... both of the actual, magical variety and of the ordinary women prosecuted by insecure men on power trips variety. There is magic. There is folklore and mysterious creatures known as Wildlings. There are shady, untrustworthy characters with unclear motives. the lighthouse setting was creepy and gave the story the proper atmosphere. The history of the land that the lighthouse stands on is spooky enough to give the reader plenty of goosebumps and chills and it grows in importance as the story continues, but not in the ways in which you originally might believe. I think my favorite part of this book was the author’s ability to just keep me guessing, and the general atmosphere of unease she so cunningly delivers. Sometimes it's hard to remember that hundreds of years divide this storyline. Strange appearances, elements of folklore, superstition, and love that extends through generations come together to create a both classic and modern tale of witchcraft.

This Time Next Year We'll Be Laughing – Jacqueline Winspear
Digital audiobook read by the author
4****

Jacqueline Winspear, perhaps best known for her Maisie Dobbs cozy mystery series, turns to autobiography / memoir in this wonderful work. With honesty, humor, tenderness and compassion she explores her family background and her own childhood in the English countryside.

Winspear’s paternal grandfather served in “The Great War” and suffered from “shell shock” (today, recognized as PTSD) the remainder of his days, sometimes leading to behavior that others were unable to explain. She explores her parents’ experiences in WWII; her mother was evacuated from London during the Blitz, while her gentle, animal-loving father was assigned to an explosives team during the war. No wonder, then, that once married, her parents sought a quieter life outside London, and spent years living among the Romany people in rural Kent. Winspear recounts childhood memories of picking hops and fruit on farms, while she dreamed of being a writer.

I doubt I would have picked up this heartfelt and touching memoir were it not a book-club selection. I’m so glad I read it, and I think knowing Winspear’s own background will give me additional insight into her characters in the Maisie Dobb series.

Winspear read the audiobook herself. I cannot imagine anyone else doing a better job.

The Boxcar Children– Gertrude Chandler Warner
4****

This is the first in a very popular series for children. First published in 1924 it introduces readers to the four orphaned siblings: Henry, Jessie, Violet and Benny. Nothing is said about how they came to be all alone, but they do have a grandfather whom they believe does not like them, since he never came to see them.

But they are very resourceful and work well as a team. They find an old boxcar on a section of abandoned railway, which is near a running brook and not too far from a town. Henry, the oldest finds work mowing the lawn and doing other chores for a doctor and his mother, while Jessie and Violet work to make a “home.” It’s a grand adventure and a charming story with a happy ending. Perfect for the intended audience.

I can certainly see why the books are so popular and wonder why I never read them as a child. I think I would have loved them. (And I may read more of the series.)

Neither Here Nor There – Bill Bryson
Audiobook read by William Roberts
2**

Subtitle: Travels in Europe

First published in 1993, this is not aged well. Bryson had fond memories of his youthful adventures when he backpacked around Europe, one summer solo and the next with his friend, Katz. He attempted to re-create those magical summers, though this time having traveler’s checques, a travel agent, and full-service (mostly) hotels.

I’ve read several of Bryson’s books and found some of them hugely entertaining. But not this one. He seems far too snide and complaining, the “Ugly American” come to life.

Now, there are a few interesting and engaging scenarios when he’s not being a pain-in-the-a** complainer, and for that I give him two stars.

The audiobook is read by William Roberts, who, if possible, makes Bryson sound like even more of whiner than he is in print. There is also an Abridged audiobook, read by Bryson himself. I wonder if I would have enjoyed that more …. I guess that would depend on whether he cut the complaining part in favor of the nicer interludes, or vice versa. But I’m not going to bother to find out myself.

Empire of Pain by Patrick Radden Keefe
5*****

The Sackler name adorns the walls of many storied institutions--Harvard, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Oxford, the Louvre. They are one of the richest families in the world, known for their lavish donations to the arts and the sciences. The sources of the family fortune was vague, however, until it emerged that the Sacklers were responsible for making and marketing a blockbuster painkiller that was the catalyst for the opioid crisis.

This is a remarkable book for its scope and its readability about a very dark part of modern life: the opioid crisis. Rather than taking facts and figures, death counts and dysfunction, as his focus, he takes Story. The Story of Mary Jo Howard, defense counsel for the Sacklers during lawsuits. The Story of Arthur Sackler and his two brothers, Raymond and Mortimer. The boundless energy of Arthur Sackler is an interesting Story, as is his decision to create a magazine full of his writings, marketed to doctors. The Story of Valium and the Stories that supported writing prescriptions for it, back in the 60's and 70's.

One very interesting Story for me was that of Richard Sackler, son of Raymond and one of the family members who ran Purdue Pharma, told by his college roommate and friend. How Richard was oblivious to social or emotional or spoken cues from others that resulted in broken ties and hurt feelings. Applying that Story to Richard's leadership in a company that chose to reward doctors for writing more and more prescriptions for an addictive substance, and rewarding company sales reps for finding these doctors who would write more prescriptions because the company would have higher sales. The sense of preserving the company's (and family's) wealth through greater sales, instead of looking at the harm of opioid addiction, was a stark Story of how the opioid crisis has worsened due to one man's emotional abyss.

And on, and on, and on. And it is really, really hard to put down. Or decide to stop at a chapter when another chapter is just one page away. And yet, sometimes I just had to because we all know where this story ends (finished in 2020 and published in 2021, so pending lawsuits). My hat is off to Keefe for writing such a readable and necessary book.

Whispering Corner - Marc Alexander - (England)
Genera: Paranormal, Horror
5★
Estranged from his family and down on his luck, author Jonathan Northrop is at a turning point in his life when he purchases Whispering Corner, a beautiful old house in a remote Dorset setting. When strange whisperings and invisible presences begin to invade the house Jonathan draws on these as inspiration for his new novel. But, frighteningly, the characters in his book start appearing in his life and he fears he may have awakened some ancient psychic presence. Amidst increasing supernatural activity, real life and fiction begin to intertwine to lead to a horrifying climax.

An interesting plot concept...the story of a writer writing a book or a book within a book. The entire story was well thought out and well written, and best of all...it kept me guessing... as well as having lots of unexpected twists and turns. What more could you ask from a book? It was based on a timeline before everyone had a laptop...and some of Jonothan's neighbors didn't even have a phone. Our Jonathan had more problems in his life than the lack of a best seller. His son taken off to college and his wife has trapsed off to America to "find herself". Since Jonothan's first book was not at all what he had hoped for, being a best seller...he thinks what he needs is a fresh view and inspiration... so he bought the stately old house, called Whispering Corner, hoping it would provide him peace, and inspiration for his next book and maybe help him sort out his less-than-ideal life. He got well more than he bargained for when he finds that the house somehow makes his fictional characters manifest themselves into his real life. Now here is what really made this a 5-star book for me... the most unique paranormal experience I have ever encountered...what if instead of the house being haunted, Jonathan is the one doing the haunting? Think about that for a while and enjoy discovering the answer. Note: This author also writes under the name of Mark Ronson & Alexander Marc

Being Dead Is No Excuse – Gayden Metcalfe and Charlotte Hays
3***

Subtitle: The Official Southern Ladies Guide to Hosting the Perfect Funeral
I first read this in 2008 and my review was succinct: "The Official Southern Ladies Guide to Hosting the Perfect Funeral" is charming and has some great casserole recipes.

I re-read this sort of by accident. I was visiting my brother in Tennessee and he handed me the book because so many of the ladies he knew had remarked about how much fun it was. I had just finished a heavier tome and really didn’t feel up to another dark read, so I started reading it, and quickly realized I had read it before.

But Metcalfe and Hays drew me in and would not let go. They have crafted a charming book on the etiquette of funerals in the South, specifically in the Delta, from the proper hymns to sing (depending on whether you are Episcopalian or Methodist), to the use of Cream of Mushroom soup, to the power of the restorative cocktail. They sprinkle in a wealth of anecdotes on colorful friends and relatives who have had proper send-offs and give us the recipes to create our own funeral masterpieces.

It's the prefect little book to keep handy around the house, where you can read a chapter or even just a couple of recipes now and again. It’s both funny and informative.

>34 BookConcierge: I love both titles. My mother would have really enjoyed this one.

The Saturday Night Ghost Club - Craig Davidson - (Canada)
Genera: Horror, Mystery, Young Adult
4★
Growing up in 1980s Niagara Falls - a seedy but magical, slightly haunted place - Jake Baker spends most of his time with his uncle Calvin, a kind but eccentric enthusiast of occult artifacts and conspiracy theories. The summer Jake turns twelve, he befriends a pair of siblings new to town, and so Calvin decides to initiate them all into the "Saturday Night Ghost Club." But as the summer goes on, what begins as a seemingly light-hearted project may ultimately uncover more than any of its members had imagined. With the alternating warmth and sadness of the best coming-of-age stories, The Saturday Night Ghost Club is a note-perfect novel that poignantly examines the haunting mutability of memory and storytelling, as well as the experiences that form the people we become, and establishes Craig Davidson as a remarkable literary talent.

It really isn't a ghost story as the title would have you believe and that in itself was a bit of a disappointment. It's a moving tale about loss, haunting, and regret. It's also a beautiful coming of age story which, in many ways, is a bit like The Body by Stephen King, though more lighthearted and wistful. The ending is profoundly touching and sad, but also hopeful. At the same time, we have a love affair with the weird and the strange. So, without any overtly supernatural events, what is the "ghost club"? Narrator Jake Baker tells us about the summer he turned twelve, during which he becomes a charter member of the Saturday Night Ghost Club. It was founded by his kindly eccentric uncle, Calvin. Calvin is a little bit older than middle-aged, and he is obsessed with the supernatural. He runs an odd little shop called the "Occultorium", which specializes in the weird, the strange, and the bizarre. He feeds on conspiracy theories like a child would on cotton candy. He is, for the most part, harmless. A man who loves to tell the children stories of the bizarre and the supernatural. Throughout the story, Jake notices that his parents, while not leery of Uncle Calvin, seem to be guarded about his past, and his actions...so it's best the Ghost Club remains a secret. We learn that Uncle Calvin believes their small town of Cataract City is a very haunted place. Over the summer he takes Jake and two other kids in town on expeditions to explore these haunted places. Uncle Calvin become stranger as the summer goes on. He has terrible nightmares...draws strange and disturbing pictures in his sleep. Are these "haunted places" the cause and exactly what is the purpose of the Ghost Club"? The ending is profoundly touching and sad, but also hopeful.

Cooking With My Sisters – Adriana Trigiani & Mary Yolanda Trigiani
With contributions by Lucia Anna, Antonio, Francesca and Ida Trigiani
3***

Subtitle: One Hundred Years of Family Recipes from Bari to Big Stone Gap

Trigiani is well-known for her fiction, frequently drawing from her family history to draw her characters and launch her plots.

This book is a combination of memoir and cookbook, in which she relates many family stories from how her grandparents met, to Easters spent on her grandfather’s farm, to raucous family gatherings, to her parents’ words of wisdom, and that special time of year when she and her siblings and cousins would be sent out into the fields to pick the dandelion greens for a special dish. (Note: My own “adopted” Sicilian grandmother made delicious “dandelion patties” each spring, making sure the greens were harvested before her sons came to treat the yard with weed killer. I really miss that dish!)

I like how there are asides by her sisters sprinkled throughout, adding bits of advice or alternate ingredients for a particular dish.

This is a delicious treat. It's a fun read and has some great recipes, some of which are simple for even a beginning cook, and others of which are quite complicated and best done with an assembly line of helpers. One thing is clear, though, the main ingredient in any good family kitchen is love.

The Boy / Betty Jane Hegerat
4 stars

This book is a combination fiction, memoir, and true crime. The author goes back and forth between telling her fictional story… which (in some ways) mimics the true crime portion of the story as she writes about her research into the crime. The chapters alternate between the fiction and the memoir.

The fictional story is set in the 90s, and is from the POV of a woman, Louise, marrying a man, Jake, who has a 12-year old son, Daniel. Louise is a teacher and knows that Daniel often gets into trouble, so she is concerned about how this will go as she becomes his stepmother. The true crime portion of the story is about a boy (Bobby Cook) in small town Alberta who, in his 20s, was convicted and hanged in 1960 for murdering his family: his father, stepmother, and five younger half-siblings. This was the last execution in Alberta.

It seems kind of an odd mix, but it worked really well for me. I liked that the character Louise would “talk” to the author, usually in between chapters, but occasionally in the memoir chapters, as well, as Louise and the author Betty figured out what the fictional Louise’s story would be and how similar it would be to Bobby Cook’s story. I liked both the fictional story, and I found the true crime portion of the story quite interesting, as well. Might have to look further into Robert Raymond Cook.

Whatever It Takes - Max Walker - (New Hampshire)
Stonewall Investigations, Blue Creek Series Book #3
Genera: M/M Romance, Mystery
5★
Jason Quill: I left the FBI because of a personal relationship that blew up in my face. He was the one and I let him go… pushed him away. I knew my brother—his best friend—had feelings for him, and I couldn’t get in the way of that. Now, I’m living in a small town and working for a detective agency trying to stop a serial killer before they strike again. I focused everything on my job and let my love life wither in the process. But the case is a hard one to crack and backup is called. That backup? Matthew Hale, FBI agent, behavioral analyst, and my first ever true love and real heartbreak. This was about to get very interesting.
Matthew Hale: I loved working for the FBI. It was a childhood dream come true, a job that took me all over the country and helped me make a positive difference in peoples’ lives. I felt fulfilled. Mostly. I was still missing something—someone. Jason Quill, a man I expected to stay in my past and who surprised me by showing up in my present after I accept a serial killer case in Blue Creek, New Hampshire. It was just like old times, and just as complicated. One thing I was certain of: we were going to figure this all out, whatever it took, once and for all.

Stonewall Detective Agency has opened an office in a small town in New Hampshire and finds they are handed a serial killer case right away. If anyone has read the original Stonewall Agency series, you will remember that Jasona and Matt had broken up...well now they find they are back together...at least at work. Will their breakup keep them at odds with one another while trying to find a killer or will they make it back together? Matt and Jason were the perfect people to have finish this case. Their pain and happiness, the way they worked so well together, and how the series ends was just perfect. I have so enjoyed both the Stonewall series and all of the detectives. I have found that anything that Max Walker writes is an awesome experience.

Save Me The Plums: My Gourmet Memoir
Ruth Reichl
5/5 stars
I love Ruth Reichl and this book doesn’t disappoint. Ruth relates her life at Gourmet magazine from her beginnings there to when the magazine closed. The funny thing is that I remember when that happened because I was in charge of the magazine department at my library around that time. Gourmet was not the only serial to fold and we have lost a lot of magazines and it continues on as a lot of magazines have reverted to being online only. Reichl is an amazing author and I highly recommend her books!

Bad at Love - Aimee Nicole Walker - (Georgia)
Sinister in Savanna series (Standalone)
Genera: M/M Romance, FBI
3.5★
Bad at making decisions or bad at love? Either way, Kendall Blakemore doesn’t trust his judgment. He falls too hard, too fast, and always for the wrong guy. Needing a major shakeup, Kendall moves into his own place for the first time and seizes a new career opportunity. But everything he thought he wanted turns out to be the last thing he needs. When loneliness threatens to derail Kendall’s good behavior, he decides to rent out his spare bedroom. What could go wrong? Try a tenant whose temptation incarnate. Bad at commitment or born to roam? Either way, US Deputy Marshal Kurt Dandridge feels trapped. Maybe staying in one place for too long is the source of his unhappiness, or maybe it’s because he’s engaged to the wrong person. Finding his fiancé in bed with another man takes care of one problem but creates another. Ridge needs a place to live. He’d leave Savannah altogether if not for his vow to apprehend an elusive fugitive. Renting a room from Kendall Blakemore seems like the perfect solution until Ridge finds himself falling for the alluring man. Would one kiss derail his course? And could he stop at just one? Hurts so good. Chemistry burns between them—hot, consuming, and impossible to ignore. And why should they? Kendall and Ridge are consenting adults who know the score. Being bad has never felt so good, but it’s a slippery slope to navigate. One misstep could have disastrous consequences for both men.

This is a spin off that gives us the story of Kendall who we met in the Zero Hour, Matrimony & Mayhem and Sinister in Savannah. I loved both the characters of Kendall and Kurt Danridge in this and the other books in the series. Who wouldn't love someone that had a big fat spoiled cat? Kendall doesn't know what he wants to do with his life. Kurt, (Ridge), is a U.S. Marshall and doesn't stay in one place for long. Kendall wants a forever guy, but Ridge just got out of a bad relationship. Despite the action in the story, things really do revolve around their relationship and growing feelings, making this a surprisingly sweet love story punctuated with select moments of heat. Also, what sounds like some pretty good chicken wings, with wind sauce. Kendell shares his wind sauce recipes and how he comes up with the names for them. It's just a fun, action packed book. I am a big fan of happy endings and this one has a 100% plus happy one.

Bad at Love - Aimee Nicole Walker - (Georgia)
Sinister in Savanna series (Standalone)
Genera: M/M Romance, FBI
4★
Bad at making decisions or bad at love? Either way, Kendall Blakemore doesn’t trust his judgment. He falls too hard, too fast, and always for the wrong guy. Needing a major shakeup, Kendall moves into his own place for the first time and seizes a new career opportunity. But everything he thought he wanted turns out to be the last thing he needs. When loneliness threatens to derail Kendall’s good behavior, he decides to rent out his spare bedroom. What could go wrong? Try a tenant whose temptation incarnate. Bad at commitment or born to roam? Either way, US Deputy Marshal Kurt Dandridge feels trapped. Maybe staying in one place for too long is the source of his unhappiness, or maybe it’s because he’s engaged to the wrong person. Finding his fiancé in bed with another man takes care of one problem but creates another. Ridge needs a place to live. He’d leave Savannah altogether if not for his vow to apprehend an elusive fugitive. Renting a room from Kendall Blakemore seems like the perfect solution until Ridge finds himself falling for the alluring man. Would one kiss derail his course? And could he stop at just one? Hurts so good. Chemistry burns between them—hot, consuming, and impossible to ignore. And why should they? Kendall and Ridge are consenting adults who know the score. Being bad has never felt so good, but it’s a slippery slope to navigate. One misstep could have disastrous consequences for both men.

This is a spin off that gives us the story of Kendall who we met in the Zero Hour, Matrimony & Mayhem and Sinister in Savannah. I loved both the characters of Kendall and Kurt Danridge in this and the other books in the series. Who wouldn't love someone that had a big fat spoiled cat? Kendall doesn't know what he wants to do with his life. Kurt, (Ridge), is a U.S. Marshall and doesn't stay in one place for long. Kendall wants a forever guy, but Ridge just got out of a bad relationship. Despite the action in the story, things really do revolve around their relationship and growing feelings, making this a surprisingly sweet love story punctuated with select moments of heat. Also, what sounds like some pretty good chicken wings, with wind sauce. Kendell shares his wind sauce recipes and how he comes up with the names for them. It's just a fun, action packed book. I am a big fan of happy endings and this one has a 100% plus happy one.

Anxious People – Fredrik Backman
Book on CD performed by Marin Ireland
3***

It starts with a really bad idea born of desperation, follows a group of strangers at an apartment viewing who are now hostages, and the two police officers (father and son), who are trying to find the truth.

Backman moves the story back and forth in time, and tells it from various characters’ point of view. Some chapters are written as the recorded notes of a police interview. Others give a glimpse into one character’s sessions with a psychologist. And others relate what is happening inside the apartment where the bank robber realizes these people are “the worst hostages, ever!” There are moments of humor and moments of great tenderness.

It's a bit chaotic, as this scenario would be in real life, and the reader is kept guessing as to what really happened for much of the book. The ending is completely unrealistic but still satisfying, as most fables are.

Marin Ireland performs the audiobook and she does a marvelous job of it. She has a lot of characters to deal with and gives them all unique voices, so it is very easy to understand who is speaking. I particularly liked the way she interpreted Zara and Estelle.

>40 JulieLill: Totally agree. Love Reichl's writing. I think I gain 10 pounds just reading one of her books!

Cathedral Of the Sea – Ildefonso Falcones
4****

Spanish journalists / reviewers have called Falcones the “Spain’s new Dan Brown” or proclaimed “A new Ken Follett is born!” I can certainly see why those comparisons are made.

This is an epic historical novel set in 14th-century Barcelona and focusing on one (fictional) bastaix (a laborer who loaded/off loaded cargo from ships, but also carried the massive stones used to construct the Basilica from the quarry to the construction site). Arnau is motherless due to a cruel feudal system, but he has a loving father. When he and his friend / “brother” Joan (a street urchin who is also motherless) stumble upon the site of the church, Arnau becomes devoted to the Virgin Mary, praying to her and devoting his life to seeing that she is honored with a church worthy of her. He’ll need those prayers, and Joan (who becomes a Dominican and an Inquisitor) to survive what the years have in store for him.

My, oh my, but the medieval era was hard to survive! As if plague, poverty, wars, and a feudal system that virtually enslaved the peasants wasn’t enough, the people also had to deal with the Spanish Inquisition and the hysteria engendered by the Church.

I was perturbed by the way Falcones treated the women in the novel. I fully understand that this is the 14th century and that the system in place did not value women much, but I got the distinct impression that the author shares that sentiment. Perhaps I’m being unfair, but that was the feeling I got. There were only a couple of “good” women; mostly they were immoral, conniving, cruel, and self-centered.

Still, this was an engaging story that kept me turning pages … all 611 of them.

Afterwards I looked up the Cathedral of the Sea and found that its location in Barcelona is one I must have passed several times when I visited that city. Yet, I have no memory of it. Having read this book, I really want to go back to Barcelona and spend time marveling at the feat of medieval engineering and thinking about the many bastiaxos who toiled to bring the architect’s design to life.

#3 mostly green cover

You're A Mean One, Matthew Prince - Timothy Janovsky - (Massachusetts)
Boy Meets Boy series Book #2
Genera: M/M/Romance
5★
BRING A LITTLE JOY TO THE WORLD? NOT TODAY, SANTA. Matthew Prince is young, rich, and thoroughly spoiled. So, what if his parents barely remember he exists, and the press is totally obsessed with him? He's on top of the world. But one major PR misstep later, and Matthew is cut off and shipped away to spend the holidays in his grandparents' charming small town hellscape. Population: who cares? It's bad enough he's stuck in some festive winter wonderland―it's even worse that he has to share space with Hector Martinez, an obnoxiously attractive local who's unimpressed with anything and everything Matthew does. Just when it looks like the holiday season is bringing nothing but heated squabbles, the charity gala loses its coordinator and Matthew steps in as a saintly act to get home early on good behavior…with Hector as his maddening plus-one. But even a Grinch can't resist the unexpected joy of found family, and in the end, the forced proximity and infectious holiday cheer might be enough to make a lonely Prince's heart grow three sizes this year.

This author is fast making a space of his own on my "want to buy...must own so I can read it again and again" list. This story is sweet and touching, but there is definitely some spice in there too. I loved the character growth that Matthew experiences as well as the chemistry he has with Hector. Hector would fit my grandmother's description of people she adored as "a pure soul". Matthew, on the other hand, had some personal "basic character issues". He was a rich guy who is sort of rude but undergoes a transformation of the heart after his parents give up on him and send him to live with his grandparents. I don't want to give too much away, and it would be so easy to do with this one...so I'll just sum this up with saying that Matthew learns some lessons about life, himself, and the meaning of Christmas with the help and support of his new "more than just a friend", Hector. Words from Matthew... “You helped me see that home is not a place. It’s people. It’s the people you choose to invest in, believe in... the people you let hold your heart. I’ve long believed family is not necessarily blood relations, but those we love and those who love us."

Mrs. Palfrey at the Claremont
Elizabeth Taylor
4/5 stars
Mrs. Palfrey has decided to move into a senior housing at her age. Her son and daughter live nearby but never seem to come and visit her. Fortunately, she meets a young man named Ludo when she was shopping at Harrods and he starts to visit her. Her friends from the home all seem to think he is her son but she doesn’t dissuade them either way. This was a sweet, sad novel and I enjoyed Taylor’s writing. I would read more of her.

Subway Slayings - C S Poe - (New York)
Memento Mori series Book #2
Genera: M/M Romance (very mild), Police Procedural, Murder Mystery
4.5★
Detective Everett Larkin of New York City’s Cold Case Squad has been on medical leave since catching the serial killer responsible for what the media has dubbed the “Death Mask Murders.” But Larkin hasn’t forgotten that another memento—another death—is waiting to be found. Summer brings the grisly discovery of human remains in the subway system, but the clues point to one of Larkin’s already-open cases, so he resumes active duty. And when a postmortem photograph, akin to those taken during the Victorian Era, is located at the scene, Larkin requests aid from the most qualified man he knows, Detective Ira Doyle of the Forensic Artists Unit. An unsolved case that suffered from tunnel vision, as well as the deconstruction of death portraits, leads Larkin and Doyle down a rabbit hole more complex than the tunnels beneath Manhattan. And if this investigation isn’t enough, both are struggling with how to address the growing intimacy between them. Because sometimes, love is graver than murder.

For those that are not fans of M/M Romances will find this series on the very mild side with a great deal of emphasis on the murders and the professional levels of the two main characters. From the first book I found the capabilities of the Forensic Artist Unit to be fascinating. The characters of Everett "Evie" Larkin and Ira Doyle are so unusual from the characters of most mysteries. Everett “Evie” Larkin is an expert in the Cold Case Squad for the NYPD. His confidence and HSAM (highly superior autobiographical memory), works against him at times, and it doesn’t help that he always feels that “no one wants to know or care.” He's not great at socializing or schmoozing, and while he can be very direct, it’s never his intention to be mean. He’s in the middle of a divorce from Noah Rider. Noah has been mentally abusive, and it has destroyed their relationship. He never really accepted Evie's HSAM, nor does he try very hard. I didn't like Noah from the start. Couldn't even work up a smidgen of "sorry" for him. The HSAM gives Evie an almost flawless memory. He is doomed to always remember every tragedy of his past as well as instant recall of every date and occurrence. He's respected by his co-workers but not especially liked. That's okay with Evie...the only one he cares about "liking" him is Ira Doyle. Detective Ira Doyle is just simply a great guy. He’s got a good personality, is very friendly and likes to joke. He’s also an expert Forensic Artist. Each profile sketch is important to him and must be exact. He’s battling his own grief and guilt from the past, and there are still things that he will not speak of. He opens his home and his heart to Everett, (he's the only one that calls him "Evie) and gradually they start to build a relationship. A cold case falls in their laps that’s twenty-three years old. A young man at the time, Marco Garcia, was killed in the NY subway and the case was never solved. More unsolved subway deaths are soon showing up. way. This series is a very precise and well-plotted mystery that opens up information about a part of police work that I was completely unaware of. I can’t wait to see what is in store for the third novel, Broadway Butchery.

Sleeping Dolls - Helen Phifer - (England)
Detective Morgan Brookes Book #6
Genera: Mystery/Suspense
5★
The beam shines around the dark room, lighting up the woman in sky-blue pyjamas lying on the couch. But she doesn’t wake under the bright glow, she isn’t sleeping at all…When a concerned Neighbour reports a woman missing, Detective Morgan Brookes squeezes through the stiff front door to find the woman dead. At first, the case appears unsuspicious, but something about the scene unsettles Morgan. Every clock in the house has been stopped, every mirror covered, and the woman seems physically unharmed except for one missing lock of hair. Shirley Kelly was loved by her friends and hated by her ex-husband and his new wife, but they have an iron-clad alibi, and Morgan is certain that the scene-staging holds a vital clue. She’s devastated to be proved right when another woman is killed, and her home arranged in the same way. The only difference is that the second victim has been stabbed, using a knife from Shirley’s own kitchen…The team can’t find a connection between the two women, but Morgan is sure that there is a deadly pattern to the killer’s actions. She hunts through each woman’s past until she finds the link: years ago, they both worked for a woman called Evelyn Reynolds, before tragedy struck her young family. But what has made them targets now? Morgan knows this twisted case is far from over, can she find the final clue before the clock stops for the next name on the killer’s list?

When Shirley Kelly's body is discovered, only Detective Morgan Brookes thinks there is more to the crime scene. The entire scene seemed to be a clever, macabre set-up...stopped clocks, covered mirrors, even the missing hair. When a second body is found set-up the same way...Morgan's theory is given a lot more credit. This a thriller that moves along rapidly with the clues carefully handed out as the book moves forward. At no time does the story provide an easy to solve mystery. I spent most of the book thinking that I knew who did it and what the plot twist might be, only to find out everything I believed was...you guessed...WRONG. I really like when that happens because it keeps me trying again and again. I don't want to solve the mystery myself halfway through the book and this author at no intentions of allowing that to happen. This was yet another great book by an excellent author, and I enjoyed every single page.

The Lincoln Highway – Amor Towles
Book on CD performed by Edoardo Ballerini, Marin Ireland, and Dion Graham.
4****

This is a quest and a road trip, a saga of family and friendship, an exploration of morals and principles against temptations which are seemingly impossible to resist.

Emmett Watson is an 18-year-old who’s been released from his term at a youth correctional institution. But his father has died and during his long illness he’d lost the family farm. So now Emmett and his younger brother Billy decide to set out for California and a new start in life. But their plan gets derailed when two friends from the juvenile center show up and suggest that they first go to New York, where they can collect a large inheritance. The result is an odyssey worthy of Homer, but rather than ten years, THIS odyssey takes only ten days.

Towles structures the book with alternating points of view, so we hear from Emmett, Billy, Duchess, Wooley, Sally and Ulysses (and a few other minor characters) in sequence. Frequently the same scenario is related by different characters, switching points of view at a critical juncture and sometimes going back in time to explain how we got to this point.

I loved these characters, though I was wary of Duchess from the outset. What a snake oil salesman! But I have to admit he’s a charming bandit. I couldn’t figure out why Emmett didn’t just say “No,” but of course, he had to think of eight-year-old Billy who was beguiled by Duchess and Wooley and excited by the possibility of starting the Lincoln Highway from its beginning in NYC. And Billy, with his beloved Professor Abacus Abernathe’s Compendium of Heroes, Adventurers, and Other Intrepid Travels has the naïve trust of a child, but wisdom far beyond his years. He’s a keen observer and an astute judge of character.

Towles ends the book with a bit of a puzzle. Leaving the reader to imagine what will happen next, and hungry for more details of future adventures. I’m not sure I liked the ending; I’m left with a huge question about how Emmett can possibly get away from the law now that there is no one left to actually explain that he wasn’t involved. But it’s a fable, after all, and I guess I just have to take it on faith.

Edoardo Bellarini does the lion’s share of the narration on the audiobook, with Marin Ireland taking on the role of Sally and Dion Graham bringing Ulysses to life. It’s a marvelous, 5-star performance by all three!

#1 -A book that someone is overweight

The Weight of It All - N R Walker - (Australia)
Genera: M/M Romance
3★
After being dumped by his long-term boyfriend for being overweight, Henry Beckett decides to make some drastic changes. In a vain attempt at getting his boyfriend back, Henry does the most absurdly frightening thing he can think of. He joins a gym. Reed Henske is a personal trainer who isn't sure he'll ever be ready to date again. He's sick of guys who are only interested in the perfect body image, never seeing him for who he really is. As Reed tortures Henry with things like diet and exercise, Henry enamors Reed with recipes and laughter. As the friendship lines start to blur, Henry is convinced there's no way Thor-like Reed could ever be interested in a guy like him. Reed just has to convince Henry that life isn't about reaching your ideal bodyweight. It's about finding your perfect counterweight.

Whoever would have thought anyone could even write a book about this subject, let alone actually sell it? If anyone can do it N R Walker would be the one. You can honestly feel Henry's heart breaking from the start of the story. Everywhere he looked in the house, he was reminded of the breakup.... the feeling of not being "good enough". But it came to him again and again by just looking in the mirror. I felt sorry for Henry for being faced with the reality that he had allowed his body to get away from him over the years. While Henry was coming to terms with this reality and actually thinking the word "gym" ...I was wondering why his "long term" boyfriend didn't, long before it came to this, care enough about him to sit down and talk about the weight before it became the main focus of their lives together. He obviously was in the relationship for how it benefited him and cared little or nothing about Henry...which in itself was heartbreaking. The gym was the best idea that Henry ever had because he met Reed, his new trainer. Reed is nothing like Henry had had in his life in like forever. Reed laughs at Henry's jokes...encourages him to work on himself... boosts his self-image and... above all, BELIEVES in him. Not surprisingly Henry starts to lose weight and feel more confident about his appearance. Reed and Henry build a solid relationship and they become good friends. It’s a slow story but covers a variety of pitfalls and successes that sometimes are not thought about or spoken by people trying to improve their images. The book does include some body shaming and other triggers that may affect some readers, but most will cheer for Henry.

The Homesman by Glendon Swarthout
257 p. - ★ ★ ★ ★

In the late 1850's, Mary Bee Cuddy, a single woman living on the Nebraska prairie, steps in for her neighbor to transport his wife and three other women who have had mental breakdowns during the long winter to transport them to a church in Iowa so they can be returned to their families. The women's stories are heartbreaking: one was terrorized by wolves during a snowstorm, one tried to kill her husband, one killed her new baby because she couldn't abide the poverty and hunger in which they lived, and the last one, nineteen-year-old Arabella Sours, lost all three of her children to diphtheria. Cuddy finds a man trying to avoid a hanging (his own) who agrees to help her. The novel tells their stories as they head east with their odd "cargo."

Wow - this one was very good! In as afterward, Miles Swarthout, son of the author Glendon Swarthout, tells how his parents wanted to tell the stories of "the losers" - the people who went west and weren't the heroes or were the ones beaten down by life.

I really was most interested in the stories of the women who suffered the breakdowns. My own great grandmother suffered a breakdown in the 1880's after her little girl died (little Minnie died after drinking milk from the milch cow that no one realized had eaten some poisonous weeds.) She sat in her rocking chair holding a doll for a few years. She eventually got better and went on to have my grandfather and great aunt.

Stuffed and Starved / Raj Patel.
3.5 stars

The title of the book comes from the fact that as more and more people are becoming overweight, there is also a larger number of people who are starving. The author has done a lot of research for this book, looking at our increasingly corporate food system, where so much of every step of our food is produced and brought to our plates via businesses in it for the profit only. There is a lot of focus on the farmers (many commit suicide as it’s harder and harder to make a living) around the world. There are chapters on genetically-modified foods, on the supermarket, Mexico, Brazil, corn, soy, and much more.

The author has actually worked fro the WTO (World Trade Organization) and the World Bank, both are mentioned (generally, not in a good way) in this book. There is a lot to take in in this book. Mostly interesting stuff here. He does end with some suggestions to try to make things better, but the sad part is corporations that make a lot of money won’t go for it, and though you’d like to think governments will step up, over and over that doesn’t happen with money from those large corporations funding the politicians.

The Overnight Guest - Heather Gundenkauf - (Iowa)
Genera: Mystery & Suspense Thriller
4★
woman receives an unexpected visitor during a deadly snowstorm. True crime writer Wylie Lark doesn’t mind being snowed in at the isolated farmhouse where she’s retreated to write her new book. A cozy fire, complete silence. It would be perfect, if not for the fact that decades earlier, at this very house, two people were murdered in cold blood and a girl disappeared without a trace. As the storm worsens, Wylie finds herself trapped inside the house, haunted by the secrets contained within its walls—haunted by secrets of her own. Then she discovers a small child in the snow just outside. After bringing the child inside for warmth and safety, she begins to search for answers. But soon it becomes clear that the farmhouse isn’t as isolated as she thought, and someone is willing to do anything to find them.

When Wylie is snowed in at the old farmhouse, she never imaged that she would be getting much more than just a shelter from the storm... she would unlock a 20-year-old murder and abduction case. When she takes her dog outside, she is shocked to find a child in her yard, a young boy who is nearly frozen. The little boy shows signs of having been traumatized and suffering from shock and exposure, so Wylie wonder if maybe he's the victim of an accident. She soon finds a truck in the ditch containing yet another body, an injured woman who is nearly frozen to death. Who are these two strangers? Are they running away from something or from someone? This changes into another mystery that had taken place 20 years ago in the same small Iowan town. A family was murdered, their daughter was the only survivor, and the daughter’s friend went missing that same night to never have been found. Here's where it gets complicated and lost it the 5-star rating that it started out to receive. The author throws in a third narrative strand, being told from the perspective of a young girl who lives with her mother and fears the occasional visits of a brutal, abusive father figure. Of course, all of this will share a solution in the end. Up to this point, the suspense that has been created and built into each separate story is well done...terrible, but yet addicting. The problem arises in the solution that feels arbitrary and ultimately, disappointing. There are no clues to lead reader to the answer, just the author’s seemingly desperate attempt to keep it going forward, and despite a good beginning toward a believable ending once the truth comes out, she lets it run out of energy and originality, taking most of my interest with it. I gave it 4 stars because I have always liked this author's works, and up until about the last two chapters the story was satisfactorily tense and terrifying.

The Big Door Prize – M.O. Walsh
3***

From the book jacket: What would you do if you knew your life’s potential? That’s the question facing the residents of Deerfield, Louisiana, when the DNAMIX machine appears in their local grocery store. Its promise is amazing: with just a quick swab of your cheek and two dollars, the device claims to use the science of DNA to tell you your life’s destiny. With enough credibility to make the townspeople curious, the machine soon has the teachers, nurses, and shopkeepers of Deerfield abruptly changing course to pursue their new destinies – including Douglas Hubbard and his wife, Cherilyn, who both believed they were perfectly happy until they realized they could dream for more…

My reactions:
My F2F book club chose this book for discussion; I doubt I would have picked it up otherwise. I knew nothing going into it and expected a charming, quirky character-driven ensemble of small-town Southern America. I got some of that, certainly, but so much more.

There are some pretty heavy issues here, including unrealized dreams, peer pressure, drug abuse, grief, suicidal ideation, and domestic terrorism. The characters weren’t all fully realized, with some being little more than stereotypical sketches.

I came to really like some of these characters; Douglas, Cherilyn, Father Pete, and Principal Pat stand out. My heart broke for Trina and Jacob who cannot see a way to process their trauma and grief, and like too many teenagers, struggle alone.

There are scenes that are introspective and give the reader some insight into what these characters are thinking (whether or not they’ve used the DNAMIX machine to reveal their potential). Other scenes are light-hearted and break the tension. And there are very dramatic scenes that made me afraid to look, and more afraid to look away. There were enough plot points left hanging that several in my book club suspect a sequel in the works.

The Lantern Men - Elly Griffith - (England)
Ruth Galloway Series Book #12
Genera: Mystery, Police Procedural, Historical Fiction
4.5★
Forensic archaeologist Ruth Galloway changed her life—until a convicted killer tells her that four of his victims were never found, drawing her back to the place she left behind. Everything has changed for Ruth Galloway. She has a new job, home, and partner, and she is no longer north Norfolk police’s resident forensic archaeologist. That is, until convicted murderer Ivor March offers to make DCI Nelson a deal. Nelson was always sure that March killed more women than he was charged with. Now March confirms this and offers to show Nelson where the other bodies are buried—but only if Ruth will do the digging. Curious, but wary, Ruth agrees. March tells Ruth that he killed four more women and that their bodies are buried near a village bordering the fens, said to be haunted by the Lantern Men, mysterious figures holding lights that lure travelers to their deaths. Is Ivor March himself a lantern man, luring Ruth back to Norfolk? What is his plan, and why is she so crucial to it? And are the killings really over?

This was the January group read for a group that I belong to on LibraryThing. A small group of us has read a different book each month for several years, and a with a series of questions that are formatted by the administer of the group we are encouraged us to discuss our opinions. We were on the 12th of 15 books in the Ruth Galloway series. Dr Ruth Galloway has a new job and a new life in Cambridge. But a murderer’s confession drags her back to north Norfolk to work again with DCI Harry Nelson, the father of her young daughter. The author, Elly Griffiths’ does a magnificent job of writing this series. Reading is thoroughly enjoyable. The books are rather like a classy soap opera. In number 12 in the series, it seems that the only character without a tangled love life is the cat. There’s a two-year time lapse between this one, The Lantern Men, and the previous book, and we find that Ruth has left the University of North Norfolk for a new job at the University of Cambridge and is now living in the city with her American suitor, Frank and her daughter, Kate who is now nine years old. Ruth had good intentions of putting some distance between herself and the real love of her life, DCI Harry Nelson though she knows there is almost no chance of making a life with DCI Harry Nelson, who is also the father of her daughter, Kate. Harry is determined to concentrate on his marriage to Michelle, the mother of his two grown daughters and baby son, George. In spite of their determinations, a new enemy will bring Harry and Ruth together again. In this case the enemy is Ivor March who has been convicted of the murders of a number of women, though Nelson is convinced he has killed many more. March says that this is true and that he’ll tell the police where the other bodies are just as long as forensic archaeologist Ruth Galloway, does the digging. I liked the series more when Ruth was on her home ground, and the history and legends of the area are more in the forefront. This story is based on the sinister legend of the "Lantern Men"...and gives the book its title. Griffith's plots are never less than fascinating and the way she blends the atmosphere of the area into the story makes the reader feel that they are a part of the book...but it is the return of much-loved main characters that make this a series a joy to read. The books can be read as standalones, but you will enjoy the entire series more if you take the journey in order.

You Have to Believe Me - Sunday Tomassetti - (Michigan)
Genera: Mystery/Suspense
3★
She has every reason to hate her ex … it doesn't mean she wants him dead. Every day on her way home from work, Dove Damiani drives past her ex-house, where her ex-husband lives with her ex-dog and her ex-yoga instructor, next to her ex-neighbors and the ex-life she once affectionately described as “frighteningly perfect". To outsiders, Dove is bitter and resentful. The divorce left her alone, with nothing but a set of car keys and 50% of a paltry savings account. So when the lifeless body of her former husband is discovered in the birch grove outside Dove’s apartment on what would have been their fifth wedding anniversary, investigators waste no time making Dove a person of interest. She swears she didn’t do it. She’s never so much as killed a spider in her thirty-four years. But as evidence mounts against her, Dove finds herself questioning her memory, her sanity, and finally—her innocence.

I didn't really care much for Dove, the wife and the main character. From the beginning of the story, I found her "lacking" in a lot of things...and it seemed the police did also. I admit that she was faced with a tragic situation...her ex-husband is found dead near her apartment and all evidence is points in her direction. She, of course. pleads her innocence as detectives try to paint her as the jilted ex-wife who wanted revenge. When the police first told her that Ian was dead, she vowed to find his killer. What is with these civilians that want to chase after killers? Ian and Dove were married for five years, but they knew each other for twenty. Ian Damiani was a high school history teacher that had been awarded several high honors in his profession. One day out of the blue he announced that he wants a divorce. Dove hoped he just needed some time and would change his mind, but she had no idea he would hook up with her friend Kirsten. It was unfortunate that the character of Dove, was defined by her mood disorder. I could understand why the police would look at Dove as their #1 suspect, but they made this discission known way too quickly. I’ve read a lot of psychological thrillers and know when a trick is being planted in a story, and it was way too easy to fall for the old "the wife is obsessive" motive, especially when it was planted so early in the book. The story is repetitive in nature rehashing the same scenes just with different characters. When more characters are introduced, it produces a long list of speculations. Rather than this being about the detectives solving the crime, it becomes about questionable motives between the ex-wife and the girlfriend.

Stay Where You Are, Then Leave – John Boyne
Book on CD read by Euan Morton
3.5***

The Great War (WWI) began on Alfie Summerfield’s 5th birthday, with the result that few people attended his birthday party. That was okay … more cake for Alfie! At least his Dad, Georgie, was home from his job driving the milk delivery cart. But within a few weeks, Alfie’s father joined the fight, and although everyone said “It will be over by Christmas” they didn’t specify WHICH Christmas. Now, four years later, nine-year-old Alfie is doing all he can to help his Mum survive until his father can get home.

This is a book suitable for middle-school children, but deals with some serious issues, including poverty among the families of fighting men, conscientious objectors and “shell shock” (now called PTSD).

Alfie is a marvelous character. He’s curious, intelligent, a hard worker, resourceful and tenacious. Of course, although he’s been forced to take on more responsibility due to the war effort, he is only a child, and he doesn’t fully understand all that is happening. The fact that his mother tries to shield him from adult troubles leads him to draw his own conclusions, and, ultimately, to take action to fix the problem as he sees it.

Euan Morton does a fine job of narrating the audiobook. He gives us a believably young Alfie, and I loved the voices he used for Grannie Summerfield and Joe Patience.

Mrs. Martin's Incomparable Adventure - Courtney Milan - (England)
Part of the Worth Saga
Genera: F/F Romance/Comedy(??)
2★
Mrs. Bertrice Martin—a widow, some seventy-three years young—has kept her youthful-ish appearance with the most powerful of home remedies: daily doses of spite, regular baths in man-tears, and refusing to give so much as a single damn about her Terrible Nephew. Then proper, correct Miss Violetta Beauchamps, a sprightly young thing of nine and sixty, crashes into her life. The Terrible Nephew is living in her rooming house, and Violetta wants him gone. Mrs. Martin isn’t about to start giving damns, not even for someone as intriguing as Miss Violetta. But she hatches another plan—to make her nephew sorry, to make Miss Violetta smile, and to have the finest adventure of all time. If she makes Terrible Men angry and wins the hand of a lovely lady in the process?

This was like a Tom & Jerry cartoon and the entire Sesame Street cast got together and decided to have a baby, and this was their offspring. I read M/M romances all the time, so when this showed up on the "bargain books" table...I thought okay. How different can it be? Well... let me tell you... about 500%. It was supposed to be humorous...but it was instead, more than a little redundant. At one-point these two looney tunes women actually sent an entire flock of geese into the deadbeat nephew's room. If the landlord wasn't concerned about the guy living, there rent-free...and I'm betting he was paying something in some form...why should his aunt and her friend give two figs about it? I've learned my lesson and I think I'll just stick with the "hot, sexy" guys. I know I'm probably sitting in the top row, of the minority grandstand with this one... all by my lonesome, but I've sat there before...and I know that we can't, and don't, all like the same things. I'm sure the rest of the grandstand is saying, "She didn't like this??? What on Earth is wrong with her?" NOTE:I do feel that I should add that Courtney Milan is a wonderful author, and this is NOT a good representation of her talents. I have read several of her other books and really enjoyed them. This just didn't happen to be one of them.

Principles of Spookology S E Harmon - (Florida)
The Spectral Files Series Book #2
Genera: M/M Romance/Police Procedural/Paranormal
4.5★
No one said being a medium would be easy. Rain Christiansen, former FBI agent and current cold case detective, is starting to think it's the hardest job he's ever had—and the most important. He's determined to accept all the changes in his formerly well-ordered life, but that means embracing a whole lot of weird. There's no instruction manual for meshing his work with his medium duties, and he's painfully aware that he's flubbing the job. So are the ghosts, who are becoming increasingly impatient. And stronger.To complicate matters, he's not sure what these spooktacular developments mean for his relationship. It certainly seems like Daniel McKenna, his partner in work and life, is in it for the long haul. But Rain can't help but wonder how long that patience will last...and what he'll do if Danny decides the intrusive ghosts are just too much. Rain thought accepting his supernatural gifts would be the solution to his troubles. But he's starting to realize his problems are just getting started.

It's a perfect melding of three storylines. It’s the straightforward detective story with catching the murderer...okay, as straight forward as a cold case investigation relying on the paranormal abilities of one of the investigators can be. Then it’s the way Rain’s trying to cope with his ghostly sightings, how it’s affecting him and the people around him... and finally, it’s the story of Rain and Danny. Rains mother must have been a 'flower child" in her youth to have named her son Rainstorm, but everyone, except her, just calls him Rain. Rain and his partner...in more ways than one...are simply amazing together and the story, though mostly about catching a serial killer, is filled with funny and clever "one liners" that catches you unexpectantly. Rain and Danny are still a work in progress, but together...they are warm fuzzies and perfection personified. The story would have received a 5-star rating except I found that the storyline kinda wanders off into realms of its own at times. Other than that, there were ghosts, a murder to solve, humor and love...what more could you ask for? I'm looking forward to more Rain and Danny in book 3.

Save The Date - Annabeth Albert - (Oregon)
Genera: M/M Romance
4★
Randall Young has one duty as his sister’s “man of honor”: to ensure she has the best wedding ever. That includes an epic bachelorette pub crawl, leading him to Portland’s most popular gay bar… and into Hunter Mitchell’s well-muscled arms. A one-night stand with a sexy soldier is the perfect way to ditch that pesky V-card and get himself in the mood for a weekend of flowers, cake, and nuptials. Hunter wants to blow off some steam before he stands up as his best friend’s best man. He's already married to his military career, not looking to settle down. He certainly doesn’t intend for the one guy he met (and, okay, got off with) in Oregon to be his counterpart in the wedding party. Definitely wasn’t intending that. Luckily, they have the rest of the weekend for Hunter to show Randall what he's been missing. The more they’re thrown together by the wedding, the more Randall and Hunter grow together outside the bedroom… which is dangerous because there’s a lot more than 2500 miles standing between them and a happily-ever-after. If they want a future beyond their wedding weekend hookup, both must find the courage to take a chance on love.

A short, (156pages), story of how when it's least expected, opposites sometimes diffidently do attract, and how they can find happiness if they just let it happen. Their relationship is supposed to be temporary, but you can imagine how that turned out. These two couldn't be more different from one another. One was a military man; the other had spent years of his life in school...they don't even live in the same state.... but hey, isn't that why the Wright Brothers gave us the first thing that could actually be called an airplane. While enjoying their time together both Randall and Hunter have time to consider what they want from one another and more importantly if they are brave enough to take a leap of faith and listen to their hearts. I really enjoyed this one. The pace was perfect... their banter was smart and sexy, and in the end, though they seemed so different it was obvious they simply "worked".

Badlands
C.J. Box
4/5 stars
Cassie Dewell, investigator is on the job again as the new deputy sheriff in Grimstad, North Dakota. The story surrounds a twelve-year-old named Kyle who is the slow kid and has no friends. One day while riding his bike on newspaper route, he sees a car crash and finds a package on the ground which he takes with him. Unfortunately, the package is filled with drugs and his life is going to be a lot different now and more dangerous as the owners of the package try to find it. I enjoyed this! Cassie Dewell Series - Book #2

Kin - Kealan Patrick Burke - (Alabama)
Genera: Horror/Suspense Thriller
2.5★
TRIGGER WARNINGS: Rape, Child Abuse, Murder & Cannibalism

On a scorching hot summer day in Elkwood, Alabama, Claire Lambert staggers naked, wounded, and half-blind away from the scene of an atrocity. She is the sole survivor of a nightmare that claimed her friends, and even as she prays for rescue, the killers -- a family of cannibalistic lunatics -- are closing in.
A soldier suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder returns from Iraq to the news that his brother is among the murdered in Elkwood. In snowbound Detroit, a waitress trapped in an abusive relationship gets an unexpected visit that will lead to bloodshed and send her back on the road to a past she has spent years trying to outrun. And Claire, the only survivor of the Elkwood Massacre, haunted by her dead friends, dreams of vengeance... a dream which will be realized as grief and rage turn good people into cold-blooded murderers and force alliances among strangers. It's time to return to Elkwood.

It's brutal, bloody, and gory and contains acts of cannibalism. It was almost too much for me...but it began to drag me into the story, and I had to see if any of the characters survived, so I kept reading. This book may well have created a genera of its very own...called "Hillbilly Terror". Think Texas Chainsaw Massacre, The Hills Have Eyes, and Wolf Creek. If you are familiar with any of these books...compared to this one, they are bedtime stories. In spite of the terrible topics covered in the story, it is well written with interesting characters and good dialog. The Merrill family are the antagonists of the story. They are in equal parts both terrifying and fascinating. The story takes place in Alabama. I was born raised in the south, (Florida), and while reading this I had thought to myself that I sincerely hope that no one believes for a minute that southerners favorite pass time is attacking and eating people. It's a story that could easily give an area a bad name. Seriously...if you are prone to nightmares...skip this one.

Will and Patrick Wake Up Married - Leta Blake - (Nevada)
Genera: M/M Romance
4.5★
Episode One: Will & Patrick Wake Up Married:
After a hot and drunken night in Vegas, strangers Will Patterson and Dr. Patrick McCloud wake up married. A quickie divorce is the most obvious way out—unless you’re the heir of a staunchly Catholic mafia boss with a draconian position on the sanctity of marriage. Throw their simmering attraction into the mix and all bets are off!

Episode Two: Will & Patrick Meet the Family:
Meeting the family is challenging for every new couple. But for Will and Patrick, the awkward family moments only grow more hilarious--and painful--when they must hide the truth of their predicament from the people they care about most. Throw in the attraction between them and you've got a recipe for madcap laughs and surprisingly heartwarming feels.

Episode Three: Will & Patrick Do the Holidays:
A couple’s first holiday season is always a special time. Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year’s Eve are magical when you’re in love. Too bad Will and Patrick’s marriage is a sham and they’re only faking their affection for each other. Or are they? Sparks fly in this episode of the Wake Up Married serial. Will the attraction between Will and Patrick finally explode? Or will they continue to deny their feelings?

The premise of the story is that Will and Patrick get married after a drunken night and must find a way to void it to keep a contract Will’s in from being broken. The two major characters are Will, a mafia tied man who uses his family’s evil money for good and Patrick, a neurosurgeon with a bad past, blunt personality, and a very large ego. Will’s grandmother sets to work to find a work around for the contract Will is in to keep the money coming to his charity and not revert to the mobsters, as they keep up the idea that theirs was an intentional union, because if the marriage ends in divorce, then the charity loses out. The story places the two guys in the ridiculous situation of needing to pretend to be happily married. That is okay and fits in well, because that’s the whole point of the story and what makes it fun. The characters make a cute couple even as they to resist falling for each other.

This House Is Haunted – John Boyne
3***

It is 1867 and Eliza Caine, whose father has just died and left her virtually penniless, responds to an advertisement for a governess position at Gaudlin Hall in Norfolk, England. When she finally arrives, after a frightening incident in the thick fog, she’s greeted by the two children for whom she’ll care, Isabella and Eustace. But there is no adult present, and the children offer no explanation. Later that night in her room a second terrifying incident occurs and Eliza begins to question whether she should have taken this assignment.

In this work, Boyne focuses his considerable talent on writing a classic gothic ghost story. The writing style is reminiscent of Dickens and Bronte; I definitely pick up echoes of Jane Eyre. The reader learns pretty quickly that there is something not right in this house, but Boyne takes his time building suspense before letting us know definitively what is going on. I felt Eliza’s frustration when no one in town would tell her the full truth, cheered her on as she stiffened her spine and decided to take matters into her own hands, and I applauded her dedication to the children when she refused to leave them alone despite any danger to herself.

The big climax is somewhat overdramatic, though typical of the genre. But the ending is downright chilling.

The Exiles – Christina Baker Kline
Digital audiobook performed by Caroline Lee
3.5***

Historical fiction that looks at the issues of “transport” wherein women convicted of crimes were sent to Australia territories to “work off” their sentences. Kline also deals with the issues surrounding colonialist’s treatment of the indigenous population, with the story of Mathinna, the orphaned daughter of an Aboriginal chief, who is taken in by the new governor of Van Diemen’s Land (now known as Tasmania).

Evangeline, a governess in a “respected household”, is arrested on a trumped-up charge when her pregnancy is discovered. Hazel, a skilled midwife and herbalist who has had to live by her wits from a young age, is arrested for stealing a silver spoon. Hazel is canny and a seasoned survivor, while Evangeline is naïve despite her education, and unprepared for motherhood. On the journey aboard a former slave ship the unlikely pair form a friendship.

Meantime, Mathinna is being educated to be shown off to the governor’s associates as a “triumph” of Western education and values. She is little more than a living doll to the governor’s wife. But she never loses sight of her origins.

Eventually these two storylines intersect. The treatment these women endured was brutal and dehumanizing, but Kline’s characters band together to support one another and triumph. I was interested from beginning to end and learned a bit more about this episode in history.

Caroline Lee does a fine job of narrating the audiobook. There are a lot of characters to handle, and she was up to the task.

>65 BookConcierge: Oh, this made my favourites the year I read it! I think I gave it 4.5 stars.

Lethal White / Robert Galbraith
4 stars

Robin is just married and away when a man who is obviously having a psychotic episode comes in to Cormorant Strike’s office saying he saw a little kid murdered years ago when he himself was younger, but the man soon disappears. Meanwhile, a politician comes to Strike to help him find “dirt” on someone the politician says is blackmailing him.

I listened to the audio and thought it was really good. I did miss a couple of things near the beginning, I think, so I was briefly confused, but I got past that. And for the most part, I really liked it and wanted to know how this was going to play out (and how are these two stories connected?). Although I have to admit sometimes I find the personal stuff going on in these books to me just as interesting or more interesting that the mystery itself!

Seven Sins - Miguel Estrada
Genera: Mystery/Suspense Thriller/Horror
4★
If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. Several individuals connected through a series of unfortunate events find themselves as participants in a twisted game of trials set up by a hacker who has chosen them based on their cardinal sins. This group of misfits will do anything in their power to survive and return any semblance of normality to their lives, even if it means destroying each other. Seven Sins is an action-packed, thrilling horror that will have you on edge on every page. Grab it now to see who will survive the night!

This is listed as horror, but even though it bordered on the paranormal with some really "out there" characters, I would have to say this is more suspense/thriller territory. Those that don't want to be scared to death, will more than likely be intrigued by the "what's going to happen next"... that can't possibly happen, I hope", aspect. It's filled with suspense that will keep you guessing right up to the very end, and what an end... total shock. I didn't expect it and certainly never even thought of it. It out starts a little slow but then really takes off.

Promises - Marie Sexton - (Colorado)
Coda series Book #1
Genera: M/M Romance
4.5★
Can a man who loves his small hometown trust it to love him back? Jared Thomas has lived in the mountain town of Coda, Colorado, his whole life. He’s never hidden his homosexuality, but he’s never exactly flaunted it either. He never had reason to. The only other gay man in town is twice his age and used to be his teacher, so staying single seemed like Jared’s only option. Then police officer Matt Richards moves to town. Matt claims he isn’t into guys, but he doesn’t care that Jared is. A summer camping and mountain biking together cements their friendship, but in a town as close-knit as Coda, it doesn’t take long for rumors to start. Facing small-town gossip, Matt’s affair with a local woman, his disapproving family, and harassment from Matt’s coworkers, Jared fears they’ll never find a way to be together… assuming he can even convince Matt to try.

I liked both Matt and Jared and their story was interesting and engaging. This is the first story I've read by this author, and I I'm planning to read more of her books in the future. Matt is straight...or at least he believes he is. He's a cop that just moved to the small Colorado town of Coda. Matt grew up with an ex-Marine for a dad who always was on to him saying that he didn't do anything good enough and didn't hold up his "duty" to his family. Matt had tried dating girls but found it to be more trouble than it was worth and began to think that something must be wrong with him. Unfortunately for him, when he moved to a new town all the single women simply saw a new bachelor in town that was ripe for the picking and to make matters worse Matt's coworkers went overboard trying to set him up with dates. Then Matt met Jared. They started out as friends but that soon developed into something else. Not everyone is ready to accept their relationship, and of course, some people never will. but Matt and Jared cared for one another enough to work on finding a place for themselves together and received some support and acceptance from some unexpected people. Marie Sexton spends just the right amount of time on the events and the scenes, to make the story flow smoothly from beginning to end. She makes the characters seem believable and real.

Neighbors to the Birds / Felton Gibbons, Deborah Strom.
3 stars

There is more than a history of birdwatching here (as described in the subtitle). Much of the first part of the book includes biographical information about many naturalists and birdwatchers from the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Other chapters include artwork of birds (not on-the-wall art, but artwork in publications and field guides), women naturalists/birdwatchers, the Audobon “movement”, conservation, literature, and more.

This was ok. Although I do also like biographies and history, some of this was a bit dry and didn’t hold my attention. It was the biographical parts that were of less interest to me, though the rest was a bit more interesting. I quite enjoyed the art chapter with all the pictures included. Really, this book wasn’t so much about the birds themselves – a bit, but maybe more about the people who watched and/or studied them.

The Ministry for Ignoring Climate Change by David Millar
Genre: part political satire, part romance
4.5*

This novel is an odd mix of political thriller and climate change explainer for sceptics. The premise is that an island offshore western Canada which depends on its annual salmon run has fallen on hard times because climate change has warmed the ocean and sent the salmon further north (this part is true). The islanders call on the government to help but they are too obsessed with international agreements and carbon tax to do anything (this is probably also true). So the islanders come up with a scheme to attract their salmon back by seeding the ocean with iron filings to create a plankton bloom which the migrating salmon feed off (this part is fiction, but loosely based on science). Their actions finally spur the government into action, threatening to sue them for “interfering with the weather”.

However what made the book so interesting for me are the tensions between the islanders in their attitudes to climate change, some openly deniers, some don’t care but see it as an opportunity to make money, some just passionate to try anything that might save their community. There are also engaging subplots about a mother’s search for her long-lost daughter, a well-meaning eco-warrior couple who are their own worst enemies, and the tensions within the government department – some of whom are genuinely trying to do the right thing and some who see the islanders as a nuisance that they want to sweep under the carpet. Actually a pretty accurate reflection of our society as a whole.

Overall I found this an engaging adventure about whether the community would succeed (lots of pitfalls on the way but eventually they do), a very funny political satire (the govt keeps shooting itself in the foot, but so believably that its laugh-out-loud funny), and a romance about the two main characters, who are mother and daughter but don’t know it until the last chapter. This would be a great gift for any climate-sceptical friends you may have.

>72 novels4nat: Welcome to the group. Nice review. Looking forward to reading more.

An Elderly Lady Is Up To No Good – Helene Tursten
3***

From the book jacket: Maud is an irascible 88-year-old woman with no family, no friends … and no qualms about a little murder.

My reactions:
One Goodreads group had a prompt for this month for a “translated short stories” and this was the book the group selected. I hadn’t bothered to read the blurb on the book jacket. I also, apparently, didn’t pay any attention to the cover (skull and crossbones), so I was expecting a fun romp of a story, and was surprised by the murder.

The book is actually a series of short stories, all featuring Maud and her interactions with various neighbors in her apartment building. Over the course of the work, we learn about her background and how she comes to be living rent-free. We learn of her lost love, her relations with her family, her astute business sense, and her many travels around the world.

The third story in the book was actually the first one written by Tursten. One story very suddenly switches from Maud’s point of view to that of a neighbor in the building. And a subsequent story deals with the same episode but from Maud’s point of view. It’s in interesting juxtaposition, though any possible suspense is removed in the second telling.

This is the first in a series, and I would consider reading more of Tursten’s works, if they are available in English.

>72 novels4nat: Oh, this sounds really good! It's a BB for me!
(BB = book bullet - I'm adding it to my tbr)

All My Friends Are Going To Be Strangers
By Larry McMurty
3.5/5 stars
Danny Deck is going to have his first book published but his female relationships are not going as well as he planned. On top of all this turmoil he takes off, leaving Houston to hopefully get his life back on track.
Nicely written! 1972

The Lantern Men by Elly Griffiths
4 1/2 ****

Everything has changed for Ruth Galloway. She has a new job, home, and partner and she is no longer North Norfolk police's resident forensic archaeologist. That is, until convicted murderer Ivor March offers to make DCI Nelson a deal. Nelson was always sure that March killed more women than he was charged with. Now March confirms this and proposes to show Nelson where the other boddies are buried--but only if Ruth will do the digging.

My first book read by Elly Griffiths and I enjoyed it very, very much. It is a murder mystery with an ongoing cast of characters, set mostly in the marshes of Norfolk and partly in Cambridge. One of the main characters, Ruth Galloway, is now living and teaching archeology in Cambridge and happy with her new life. Her former lover, Harry Nelson, is working a case involving the murder of two women by Ivor March, who is found guilty at the start of the book.

Yet as Ruth is pulled into this case due to her previous work in Forensics in Norfolk, and more intrigue surrounds where the bodies were found (the garden of a former partner of Ivor March), there also comes to light additional bodies and March knows where they are buried. And at the center of all of the intrigue is the house introduced at the beginning, where Ruth finishes the manuscript of her third book at a writing retreat. A cast of characters seems to swirl around this house and its visitors, several of whom have wound up dead.

A very quick read, and easy to dance into this mystery series due to the author's skill at providing bits of the backstory of each character without sounding patronizing or repeating character stories too often told.

Sugarhouse / Matthew Batt
3.5 stars

Matthew Batt and his wife Jenae are in Salt Lake City and looking to buy a home. Unfortunately, they can’t afford what they really want, so they end up with a (huge!) fixer-upper. It is only after they are renovating they find out that the house used to be a crackhouse. Oh, and they aren’t particularly handy people, but do the bulk of the work themselves.

Interspersed with their house dilemmas, Matt’s grandmother passes away, so Matt and his mom have to help out Matt’s grandfather, a playboy who really just wants to be with Tonya, the home care nurse who took care of his wife when she was alive.

It maybe doesn’t sound like the more interesting part of the story, but I liked the renovating of the house portions of the story better. I’m actually not quite sure how the two stories fit together, except I suppose that the things that happened with Matt’s family really were happening at the time. There were plenty of humourous bits, maybe more humourous because super-non-handy me could relate. I’m sure they managed to do a heck of a lot more than I ever could have, even with help from friends! Overall, I liked it.

Never Say Never - Felice Stevens - (New York)
Lost in New York series Book #3
Genera: M/M Romance
4.5★
One taste leaves them wanting more…INGREDIENTS: Francisco “Frisco” Martinelli. Hot and spicy. Beautiful on the outside, dark and damaged on the inside. Handle with extreme caution. Salvatore “Torre” Rossi. Sweet with a kick of spice. Gentle at first, can become swiftly and irrevocably addictive to the heart. A RECIPE FOR ROMANCE. One snobby food critic who doesn’t believe in love. One down-to-earth food blogger who does. Add a touch of suspicious brother. A heaping serving of best friend who’s been waiting for this to happen. Blend with secret identities, past hurts, and judgments. Stir in equal portions of desperate longing, desire, fear, and snarky humor. Set over open flame, step back, and wait for sparks to fly. Serve as is for an explosive love story that will leave you with a full heart and a ridiculously happy smile at the end.

I loved Frisco and Torre. Frisco had a horrible family and a more horrible upbringing. Things from his past has molded him into the man he is today, unfeeling, and untrusting. Torre was perfect for Frisco. He was sweet, caring and strong in the ways that Frisco was weak. They fit like the proverbial glove. Felice Stevens has a knack for bringing out the both the worst and the best in her characters. She allowed us to see into Frisco’s back story so we would know and understand why he turned out the way he was. Torre’s family was such an integral part of the story. Frisco didn't that know he needed them and was unprepared and slightly confused by their love and accepatance that made him want to be "worthy". We got to see more of Presley and Nate from book #2. I'm looking forward to reading the next book in the "Lost in New York" series. Too bad it's the last but I'm sure Felice Stevens will introduce us to more loveable characters in future series.

2 Dead Fish Named Kevin - L A Witt - (California)
Genera: M/M Romance/Comedy
5★
“Help raise money to improve our habitat! For a small donation, we’ll name a fish after your ex and feed it to the bears on Valentine’s Day!” For Garrett Mitchell, who just found out his butthead of an ex-boyfriend cheated on him, that donation is money well spent. And Tristan Waverly was just unceremoniously dumped by a man who is absolutely worthy of being tossed to hungry bears, so he’s more than happy to buy a fish. As the bears chow down, though, everyone’s wondering the same thing—is it a coincidence, or are both fish named after the same guy? There’s only one way to find out. But when Garrett and Tristan come face to face, suddenly the last man wants to think about is Kevin.

The entire little book is only 85 pages...but I read everything that this author produces, and I loved the title...so, need I say more? Tristan and Garrett have something in common...the same cheating ex-boyfriend although they weren't sure at the time, they made the donation...and they didn't know one another from "Adam's house cat". They each did wonder what they chances were ...how many cheating, slimy, worthless ex's named Kevin could there be? When they saw the chance to help the environment AND watch their ex's, (even if it was only one), be eaten by hungry bears, they jumped on it, figuring even though it wasn't exactly the cheating ex the bears were snacking on...it was the next best thing, and it gave them each some satisfaction. Well, actually a great deal of satisfaction. In the end, both Tristan and Garrett got old Kevin off their minds and found something much more gratifying than constantly think about him...but watching him symbolically being devoured by the bears is something they would happily pay again and again to see. Cute little book by a really, really good author.

The World According to Bertie – Alexander McCall Smith
Book on CD performed by Robert Ian MacKenzie
3***

Book four in the 44 Scotland Street series continues the varied stories of the current (or former) residents of the apartment complex. Bertie has questions about his new baby brother, Ulysses. Angus is frantic after his beloved Cyril is “incarcerated” on a charge of biting. Bruce, Big Lou and Matthew find new love interests. And Domenica is not so sure that her friend Antonia is really a friend after the latter moves in across the hall.

What I love about the ensemble series is that each book gives us just a glimpse into their lives. We pick up where the last book left off, and end with many issues still unresolved. It’s the same way we encounter casual friends, catching up when we see them, but not knowing how things will turn out once we depart. And yet, happy to see them again and catch up once more.

Robert Ian MacKenzie does a marvelous job of narrating the audiobooks. He really brings all these characters to life. I particularly like how he voices Bertie. How I love that kid!

Play by Heart - Ariella Zoelle
Harmony of Hearts Series Boo #1
Genera: M/M Romance
5★
Iason Leyland -- My love songs may have made me famous, but they were beautifully written lies that hid the fact I’ve never loved anyone. I had almost given up hope of finding true love, but then I meet him. Orion is all my wishes on stars who can make my dreams come true. He’s my perfect partner in every way except one: he’s straight. Why, universe? Why? But the cosmic force that brought us together apparently knows what it’s doing based on the sweet way Orion blushes every time we’re together. Can I convince him that we could make beautiful music together that will be worthy of my most romantic ballad yet?

Orion Donati:-- I’ve been a fan of Iason and his beautiful voice and lyrics for years. I never expected him to know I even exist, let alone fall in love with me. But regardless of that impossibility, he looks at me like I’m the sun, the moon, and all the stars in his universe. As a straight man, I probably shouldn’t be interested, much less tempted by his flirtations. But despite that, everything in me wants a chance to be his magical muse for the songs I love so much. Meeting him makes me realize that I’m not quite as straight as I thought. The most unbelievable thing of all is that someone as amazingly famous as him could ever want a shy nobody like me. But I don’t want to doubt his sincerity. I want to be brave enough to believe he’s interested in me for real. Maybe I don’t have to settle for being a fan who adores him from afar. What if I dare to dream that I could be his boyfriend who loves him with all my heart instead?

This was one with absolutely not a drop of angst. It's simply a sweet love story. I did think that they hooked up a bit too fast but both Iason and Orion thought they had found everything they could or would ever want in one another, and I soon found that I would have to agree. Orion and Iason have incredible chemistry from the start. Another thing that made it a perfect story was Orian's protective friends, and his lovely, quirky family. Every gay person should be so lucky to have a family half this understanding and supportive. Loved his mother from the start. I could have done without Orians "head over heels" in love with Iason", younger sister. She has a lot to learn about life. Overall, it's Just a lot of love and laughter...and diffidently going on my reread shelf.

Ben's Boss - K C Wells - {Maine)
Men of Mane series Book #2
Genera: M/M Romance
5★
Walking into the job interview confirms Ben White’s worst fears. It’s been eight years since high school, yet he can still recall Wade Pearson’s taunts. There’s always a chance Wade isn’t the same homophobic asshole Ben knew. Yeah right. Except the boy Ben remembers has grown into one seriously hot, brooding man. In another life, Ben would have climbed him like a tree. Wade’s gaze still makes Ben shiver – although now for entirely different reasons.
As soon as Wade read Ben’s application, he knew he had to see him. Ben’s still as gorgeous as Wade remembers. It’s obvious he doesn’t expect to get the job, given their history. But Wade has an agenda. He has to make it up to Ben for treating him so badly – not that Ben will ever know why he acted like he did. Seeing him every day only heightens Wade’s regret. If he’d had more courage back then, maybe he and Ben could have been something. The least he can do is show Ben he’s changed. There’s no way Wade can get what he really wants – Ben’s heart.

This series has been one of my favorites but then I like everything that K C Wells writes:) The guys are all friends that first met in high school and have remained friends throughout the years afterwards. Each has his own story in the 7-book series ...which by the way Ms. Wells, is WAY too short. Ben finds that the gift shop where his interview is taking place is managed by his crush in high school that turned into his worse bully. Ben's feelings haven't changed for Wade and he's sure Wades opinion of him is also the same...but he's going to show Wade that he's a better man and go to the interview. This is a beautiful love story between two very different individuals who decide to leave the past in the past and move forward with one another. It is a happy ever after and an enemy to lover’s story. I enjoyed Ben and Wade’s story and could truly feel their connection.


Dylan's Dilemma - K C Wells
Men of Maine series Book #4
Genera: M/M Romance
5★
Dylan Martin has worked in the same Ogunquit hotel since he was eighteen, and he knows the drill: anything that might damage the hotel’s reputation has to be reported. So telling the uptight manager there’s a gay porn shoot about to take place should be a no-brainer. Except Dylan recognizes one of the performers. He’s been watching Mark Roman’s scenes for so long, he could describe every inch of Mark’s ripped body, from the silver at his temples and in his beard, right down to the tattoo on his ass. Not to mention Mark’s sexy smile that sends heat hurtling through Dylan every time he sees it. But if Dylan says nothing, it’s his job on the line. And then his hand is forced… Mark’s shoot is a bust but there’s a silver lining, in the shape of a cute, sexy guy in the local bar. Except the guy seems familiar—and nervous—and suddenly it’s clear who let the cat out of the bag. When Mark jokes that Dylan owes him a scene to make up for it, Dylan refuses point blank, but the longing in his eyes is hard to ignore. Dylan obviously wants him, even if he can’t bring himself to say it. Mark wants to be the one to undress him, to show him how sensual a man’s kiss can be. He wants to set Dylan on fire, to make him shudder with pleasure. Most of all, he longs to hear his name on Dylan’s lips when Mark brings him to the edge. It won’t be any more than that. Mark’s ‘career’ has proved a stumbling block in the past, and he doesn’t expect Dylan to be any different. Mark may know a lot about desire, but Dylan’s about to give him a lesson in love.

A really sweet story. I love the vulnerability the characters show with each other. I like that the story is happy without being perfect. It's also an interesting story combining Mark a porn star and Dylan a hotel supervisor. Dylan has dreams and hopes but has never had the chance to fulfill them. He's watched the porn sites that Mark is on and he finally meets him when Mark checks into the hotel to film a scene and gets kicked out. Mark is different than Dylan thought he would be and strts to get to know the real Mark. Dylan's life will never be the same, and he doesn't want it to be.


Shaun's Salvation - K C Wells
Men of Maine series Book #5
Genera: M/M Romance
5★
Romance is the last thing Shaun wants, but what if it’s exactly what he needs – and deserves? A selfless son barely holding on...Shaun doesn’t have much of a life. When he’s not working in the restaurant in Portland, Maine, he’s home looking after his dad, who has dementia. The only people he sees on a regular basis are his coworkers, and Nathan, his dad's in-home nurse, except he and Shaun are like ships that pass in the night. And on those dark nights when Shaun feels so alone, thoughts of Nathan are all he has to cling to. A caring nurse...It didn’t take Nathan five minutes to know Shaun is a special guy. He’s dealt with enough indifferent families to recognize Shaun has and will always put his dad first. That’s why Nathan is willing to go above and beyond – Shaun is worth it. Nathan’s attraction to him has to go on the back burner, not that Shaun has noticed: Shaun’s focus is all on his dad. Maybe it’s time for Nathan to convince Shaun he can keep that focus and still have a life – a life that includes love.

Really different storyline than the other 4 books. Shaun was obviously a dedicated son that was working and trying to help his father through later stage Alzheimer's. It had only been a short time since his mother had died so Shaun was barely holding on...and then he gets some help when Nathan, a nurse, is sent to help while Shaun works and continues to spend what he knows will soon be the last days with his dad. It's a very sad story since you also know how Shaun's dad's story is going to end...you just don't know when. K C Wells has done a phenomenal job of making Shaun’s story come to life and making us...the readers...care. Nathan is 43 to Shaun's 26. He's a "Gentle Giant". Big, beautiful and black and has seen the price Shaun pays for his dedication. There were lots of tears on both sides on the printed page but there were also moments of laughter. Nathan's mother was a riot! Loved that woman. "Cat", Nathan's big yellow kitty also provided some moments. As in all the books, Shaun's friends from the other 4 books came through for him. This is one special group of men that K C Wells has gifted us with.

Rubyfruit Jungle
Rita Mae Brown
3.5/5 stars
This is a coming of age story about Molly Bolt, a young woman adopted by a poor couple, living in the South who vows to go her own way and forge her own path and loves who she wants to without any regard to what her family and friends want for her. I have never read anything by this author but am looking forward to reading more of her and I feel this book though written in 1973 still holds up!

The Reading List – Sara Nisha Adams
Digital audiobook performed by Tara Divina, Sagar Arya, and Paul Panting
3.5***

Aleisha is a teen struggling with family issues and working a summer job in the library. Mukesh is an aging widower who still feels lost without his wife, despite his loving daughters and granddaughter. These two very different souls forge an unlikely alliance based on a reading list found tucked into a copy of To Kill a Mockingbird.

This is a very good debut for Adams. The characters are complex and have a variety of issues. On the surface one wouldn’t expect them to have anything in common or to be able to relate to one another at all. But Adams brings them together, first by happenstance, and slowly by shared experiences and their individual needs for human connection.

My heart went out to Aleisha, whose mother suffers from clinical depression and who is shouldering more than any teen should have to shoulder. Mukesh has more of a support system in place, but he is missing the connection to his wife that he cannot get over losing. The possibility of sharing a book with his book-loving granddaughter is what first takes him to the library where he and Aleisha cross paths.

There are serious issues involved here, from grief to mental illness to loneliness. But Adams gives us moments of tenderness and love and humor that nurture both her characters and the reader. The supporting cast of characters are equally rich and interesting.

I loved how this varied list of books brought all of them together. One of her characters says it best: “…the books that had found her at the right time, that had given her comfort when she needed it, had given her an escape, an opportunity to live beyond her life, an opportunity to love more powerfully, a chance to open up and let people in.“ And at the end of the book, Adams gives us a bonus list of books that entered her own life “at just the right time” to inspire, motivate and teach.

The audiobook is performed by a talented group of voice artists: Tara Divina, Sagar Arya, and Paul Panting. They really bring these characters to life.

Trigger warning: suicidal ideation

Any Given Lifetime - Leta Blake - (California)
Genera: M/M Romance/Reincarnation
5★
He'll love him in any lifetime...Neil isn’t a ghost, but he feels like one. Reincarnated with all his memories from his prior life, he spent twenty years trapped in a child’s body, wanting nothing more than to grow up and reclaim the love of his life. As an adult, Neil finds there's more than lost time separating them. Joshua has built a beautiful life since Neil’s death, and how exactly is Neil supposed to introduce himself? As Joshua's long-dead lover in a new body? Heartbroken and hopeless, Neil takes refuge in his work, developing microscopic robots called nanites that can produce medical miracles. When Joshua meets a young scientist working on a medical project, his soul senses something his rational mind can't believe. Has Neil truly come back to him after twenty years? And if the impossible is real, can they be together at long last?

Neil remembered every detail of his life...HIS PAST LIFE! The thing that he remembered most was the love that he and Joshua had shared before he was killed by a truck...20 years ago. When Joshua returned to the research that he had spent his life dedicated to after his husband's death...he met the young researcher on a project that he was possibly going to fund. Joshua was stunned, but it was undeniable... he had not only found someone that looked like his Neil...sounded like his Neil...remembered things about him that only his Neil would know...but 100%, as impossible as it seemed, WAS HIS NEIL! There is now a 20-year difference in their ages, but neither man cared. There are so many things I loved about this story Joshua learned to love himself and accept himself, he learned not to wait. Neil was so much the past Neil even as a child, but he had never stopped loving Joshua or wanting him happy even if it meant that Joshua had married and lived his life with someone else. Now fate had given them another chance, and they were nor going to question it or waste one single moment. It doesn't matter if you believe in reincarnation or not, it still made for a fabulous love story with all the elements of wishful thinking with a dash of angst, and a lot of humor and ecstasy.

Ghostbuster’s Daughter - Life With My Dad Harold Ramis
By Violet Ramis Stiel
4/5 stars
This was a very interesting book on her family and her father Harold Ramis who was probably best known as one of the Ghostbusters but was also involved in writing and directing. She relates her unusual rearing and also talks about her children and partners along with talking about her father’s many films. Film/Television

Horrorstor / Grady Hendrix
3.75 stars

Amy works at a big box furniture store called Orsk. Odd things have been happening in the store overnight – vandalism and such. Amy is asked, along with another employee, Ruth-Ann, to stay overnight to keep watch with their supervisor, Basil, to see if they can find out what’s happening. Things take a bad turn…

Extra ¼ star for the audio – loved the Orsk “ads”, and they got better as the book went along (to kind of fit what was happening in the book). I particularly liked the last ad, and it was Bronson Pinchot doing those. The story was less horror in the first half, more mystery? And humour. I really liked how it ended.

By Book or By Crook / Eva Gates
4 stars

Lucy has left her family and former fiancee behind in Boston, as well as her librarian job at Harvard. She is thrilled to be the new (assistant) librarian at a lighthouse library in a small town in North Carolina. But while at a party to open a Jane Austen exhibit when Lucy is just starting to meet people, the chair of the library board is murdered. He seemed to be arguing with a lot of people at the party, including Lucy (he didn’t think another librarian was needed) and the head librarian, who of course, had hired Lucy. Bertie, the head librarian, was found in the room with the murdered man and the murder weapon in her hands by Lucy. Lucy is convinced Bertie would never do such a thing.

I really enjoyed this. Loved the setting of the library inside the lighthouse. I also liked (most of) the characters. I will absolutely be continuing this cozy series. I want to see what happens with Lucy and Butch… or Lucy and Connor! And, of course, I loved Charles, the library cat.

Axel's Pup - Kim Dare - (Wales)
Part of the Werewolves & Dragons series
Genera{ M/M/Romance/Shifters (werewolves)
4.5★
As the landlord of The Dragon’s Lair and leader of The Black Dragons Motorcycle Club, Axel Carmichael has seen it all and done it all. He’s a respected and experienced dom. Nothing shocks him anymore, and nobody catches him off guard. When Bayden rides up to The Dragon’s Lair on a bike worth more than most men earn in a year, and immediately demonstrates that he has far more attitude than sense, it’s easy for Axel to write him off as a silly little rich boy who’s about to get himself killed. But there’s more to Bayden than meets the eye. He’s no silly little boy, rich or otherwise, and werewolves aren’t easy to kill.

I don't know how I can say a book with 615 pages was too short...but this one certainly was. I just didn't want Axels and Bayden's story to end. They were such a cute couple, but they didn't have much chemistry going on between them...yet they worked. I also don't usually read biker books or shifter books... with the exception of Morgan Brice's Fox Hollow series. Somehow the two genres together often become complicated, but somehow that didn't happen here. If you like Shifter/human stories, M/M romances with some BDSM, and strong, believable main characters you will find it all here.

Great Or Nothing – Joy McCullough, Caroline Tung Richmond, Tess Sharpe, Jessica Spotswood
3***

This re-imagined Little Women set during World War II began when Jessica Spotswood posted a story idea she found daunting on Twitter. Her fellow authors joined with her to flesh out this story where Jo is queer and working in a factory, Amy has run away to join the Red Cross in London, Meg is a teacher and living at home with Marmee, and Beth watches over them all.

Each of the four authors assumed the story line of a different March sister. Spotswood wrote Meg’s chapters, Sharpe wrote Jo, Richmond followed Amy, and McCullough gave voice to Beth. I particularly liked how McCullough used poetry to show Beth following her sisters’ exploits.

With four authors, the four sisters had more equal roles than in the original work, which really focused on Jo. Having them each in a separate location helped, as they had fewer shared experiences. This was especially true for Meg and Amy.

And, while the time frame is World War II, this is NOT a soldier’s story, but more a story of how the women left behind dealt with their fears, and rose to the challenge of supporting those fighting overseas.

A favorite quote: A woman with ideas is terrifying to a certain kind of person.

Some libraries, including mine, have shelved this in the Young Adult section, others, as adult fiction. Jo’s relationship is depicted in way that is not at all graphic, but deals more with the feelings of love and connection between the characters.

White Chrysanthemum / Mary Lynn Bracht
4 stars

It is during WWII, and 16-year old Hana is a haenyeo with her mother in he water on Jeju Island in Korea when she is stolen from the beach in an effort to protect her younger sister from the soldier Hana spotted. She is taken with other young girls to a brothel in Manchuria to “service” the soldiers (these girls/women are later known as “comfort women”). In 2011, an older woman, Emi, is still haenyeo, but has two middle-aged children in Seoul. Emi has kept plenty of secrets from her children about her life when she was younger.

I was not prepared for the amount of violence and rape. I must have known that would be the case when I added it to my tbr, but often, between the time of adding a book to my tbr and actually reading it, I forget what the book is about. I only remembered it being about haenyeo (women divers in Korea). That being said, although I learned about haenyeo in Lisa See’s book, I didn’t know about “comfort women”; the two books have a different focus.

I often like one storyline more than the other in these dual timeline books, but although Hana’s story is the more jarring and powerful of the two (I often “like” those better), I think Emi’s story gave me a bit of a break from Hana’s abuse. Oddly, although I often don’t like unrealistic endings, this one didn’t bother me (and the author explains in her note why she ended it this way). Overall, I thought this was very good.

Not A Happy Family - Shari Lapena - (New York)
Genera: Murder Mystery /Suspense Thriller
4.5★
Brecken Hill in upstate New York is an expensive place to live. You have to be rich to have a house there, and Fred and Sheila Merton certainly are rich. But even all their money can't protect them when a killer comes to call. The Mertons are brutally murdered after a fraught Easter dinner with their three adult kids. Who, of course, are devastated. Or are they? They each stand to inherit millions. They were never a happy family, thanks to their vindictive father and neglectful mother, but perhaps one of the siblings is more disturbed than anyone knew. Did someone snap after that dreadful evening? Or did another person appear later that night with the worst of intentions? That must be what happened. After all, if one of the family were capable of something as gruesome as this, you'd know. Wouldn't you?

To say this family was not happy is the understatement of the year. We meet them at a family dinner that was more like World War III. The entire Merton family is dysfunctional as well as extremely wealthy. The parents, Fred and Sheila Merton were brutally murdered in their home the night after this disastrous Easter dinner with their adult children, Catherine, Dan and Jenna. The police begin their investigation, and of course they obviously start with the children, who stand to inherit millions and who each had a motive for wanting their parents dead. Catherine is the oldest and knew that she would be inheriting the family home one day, that is until their father announced at Easter dinner that he was selling the house. Dan has never had a good relationship with his father. He expected to take over the family business, that is until his father sold it because he didn’t think Dan would be able to run it. Dan has made a few bad investments and now needs money. Dad says no way to his request for a loan on the night of the dinner. Jenna is an artist that likes to sculpt images of women’s anatomy, much to her parents’ disapproval. She gets a monthly allowance from her parents...but you guessed it...not anymore. The father and the mother were never going to win "parent of the year". Fred, the father, got a great deal of pleasure in causing emotional pain to his children, and Sheila, the mother, was a mother in name only and left the "mothering" task to their housekeeper, Irene. It was not very surprising that the children were not overly devastated by their parents’ death. All three had alibis...well according to each of their spouses, but those alibis are soon unraveled. I really liked how Shari Lapena ended the story. If you like murder mysteries and stories that keep you guessing, then this will be perfect for you.

The U.S. National Figure Skating Competition has been on all week. Thought this was appropriate ...


Beautiful On the Outside – Adam Rippon
Book on CD performed by the author
3.5*** rounded UP

Memoir of Olympic medalist and self-proclaimed America’s Sweetheart Adam Rippon.

Gosh this was fun! Rippon details his life growing up as the oldest (and obviously most responsible) of six children, and the sacrifices his mother made to help him achieve his dream of being a competitive figure skater and making it to the Olympics. From his childhood in Scranton, Pennsylvania to the years he spent living with a Russian coach in Toronto to the independent Adam being too poor to eat anything but the free apples at his gym, he covers it all with grace and humor, while sharing the life lessons he learned.

But Rippon is more than just a pretty face (and the world’s BEST spinner), he’s also a thoughtful and assertive spokesperson for LGBTQ rights.

I’ve always loved his skating, but now I love HIM even more! (And to make up for those judges who marked him down … I’m rounding UP! So there!)

He narrates the audiobook himself, and I cannot imagine anyone else doing a better job of it. I mean, NO ONE can deliver those snarky quips better than Adam, himself.

>94 BookConcierge: All my figure skater biographies are from the 80s! Brian Orser, Elizabeth Manley (that one is signed) and Ekaterina Gordeeva.

ETA: But then, I've also stopped watching the past 10ish years or so - that timeline is a guess, I can't remember), so I don't really know who the younger skaters are, anymore beyond the huge ones, and obviously I know more Canadian skaters than those from other countries.

Sir - N.R. Walker - (Italy)
Genera: M/M Romance/BDSM
4★
Founded over four hundred years ago, Sanctus Infinitus Redemptio is a private and very elite society where dominance and submission are revered. Steeped in tradition and excellence, every Dominant and every submissive, and their pairing, are selected with great care. When Hunter Vargo is brought into the Sanctus, his need for strict dominance sees him paired with the wrong Master. But only a short time later, mistreated and his trust broken, he's recalled, his collar removed. The Grand Master knows it will take a special kind of Dominant to restore the sub's faith and trust. Sig Bruckner's world is perfect. He has a great job, he has high standing within the Sanctus, and he has Levin, the very best submissive. When he's asked to take on a second sub, a young man with issues and a rule not to touch him, Sig's world is turned upside down. When his dominance, his patience, and self-control are tested, and when Sig's relationships with both subs are pushed past his limits, everything begins to unravel. Yet Sig knows every good Dom learns from their subs, and he's no exception. He might not be able to fix everything on his own, but perhaps the three of them together can.

This is a real departure from what NR Walker usually writes. It's an interesting story...as well written and just as wonderful as any other N.R. Walker book. I was intrigued by this world she wrote about. She brings us on the journey of these two young men and their Dom, even if it is a world that is not even remotely familiar to most people. We learn of a secret society deep in the Italian mountains, formed 400 years ago. As we learn more, we find you can at least respect, if not like or want to participate in the chosen world of these characters. We enjoy watching as they grow together to form a bond that can, if carefully tended, will last a lifetime. There is also a love story.... although different then the norm, it's every bit as beautiful. I've never given a book by N.R. Walker less than 5 stars...she's a keeper for me, but the one thing that I kept going back to throughout the book was why the "Headmaster" that placed the Hunter with Sig and his sub, Levin, hadn't allowed Sig to show how much this young man had come to mean to him? Sig, Levin and Hunter all three knew that this was a learning, healing and trust placement for Hunter. They all knew that at the end of Hunter's time with them that he, and he alone had the choice if he wanted to stay permanently with them. Sig should have been allowed to show Hunter how much he had grown to love and care for him so that Hunter understood how much Sig and Levin actually wanted him to stay. Hunter needed to know right off that Sig was a Dom that was in no way like his last one. Great ending...although it was very emotional, and I had my doubts how it was going to work out.

The Secret Life of Albert Entwistle – Matt Cain
3***

Adapted from the book jacket: 64-year-old Albert Entwistle is a postman with a regular route. Each day he walks the streets of his small English town, delivering letters and parcels, and returning greetings with a quick wave. Albert lives alone with his cat, Gracie; his work is his only interaction with people, limited as it is. And then the letter arrives telling him that mandatory retirement will come with his 65th birthday in three months. Without the work that fills his days, what will Albert do? He has no family, no friends, no hobbies, just a past he never speaks of and a lost love that fills him with regret.

My reactions
This was just delightful. My heart went out to Albert, who, like so many young gay teens, felt compelled to hide his nature and resign himself to a life of loneliness. His story is tragic and all too common, with parents who berated him for who he was and forced him to hide his true nature. And now that they are gone, he has no one but his cat.

I loved watching Albert bloom as he slowly made efforts to truly connect with the people on his route, and to begin searching for George, hoping against hope that he’d find him and, if nothing else, at least be forgiven. It’s a wonderful journey and Albert finds surprising connections, from the elderly (and similarly lonely) Edith to young single mom Nichole, and even the blustery Jack.

Cain also gives us insight into many of the other characters, chiefly Nichole and Marjorie (Albert’s boss). Once Albert comes out of himself a bit he learns that many other people have struggles and face heartaches of their own. He learns much about compassion and friendship and learns to open up and live rather than just exist.

There are a number of rather unrealistic plot points, but who cares. Albert certainly deserves his HEA!

Don't Throw It Out: Recycle, Renew, and Reuse to Make Things Last / Lori Baird
3 stars

The title of the book kind of says it all. It’s more of a reference book to check when you have something you might need to fix or if it’s time to get rid of, you can look up some alternate ways to use those things.

There are lots of suggestions in the book, some of which I already know about or do. Many, though, (especially the fixes, but even some of the maintenance to help things last longer) require someone handier than I. I am not handy at all. That being said, I do plan to hold on to the book so I can check if there is something I might be able to do with something when it’s time to get rid of it. I already try to use most things until they die.

Snow - Ronald Malfi - (Iowa)
Genera: Horror
4★
They come in with the snow. They are the snow . . .The blizzard begins pummeling the Midwest on Christmas Eve, leaving hundreds of passengers stranded at Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport. Todd Curry doesn’t need another reason to disappoint his son, so he joins three other people in renting the last four-wheel drive available and they set out into the blinding snow. Only two hours into the treacherous trip west, Todd swerves to avoid a man in the middle of the highway. The stranger claims his daughter is lost somewhere out in the snow. Though his odd demeanor and ripped clothes make Todd and his group uneasy, they agree to take the man to the nearest town—if the now-damaged car can make it. What awaits them at the next exit, however, is nothing they could have imagined. Around an empty town square, fires burn, cars are abandoned, storefronts are smashed. And there is no one to be seen—for now. But soon the shadows lurking on the edges of their vision will step into the light, and Todd and his fellow travelers will find themselves facing a sharp-scythed evil shaped from the snow, tearing its way into human form—and taking the neighborhood by storm.

This is the 2nd time I have read this book and I enjoyed it as much if not more than the first time around. It's a story of a town besieged by mysterious beings in the form of snow. While this type of set-up is not anything new, given predecessors such as "The Bodysnatchers", it was engaging enough to set an eerie tone from the moment we first meet Eddie Clement, a man our main character, Todd Curry encounters in the middle of a snowstorm. Todd Curry is a recovering gambler determined to visit his son for Christmas. Unfortunately, a snowstorm cancels his flight, and in his desperation to be with his son, Todd agrees to share a rental car with Kate, a cynic who is meant to be engaged to what she describes as a loving, understanding man. Good thing he's understanding since it read as if Todd and Kate wanted to share more than just a ride. I didn't care much for Kate. She was a nitwit that constantly babbled on about nothing and tossed her red curls. I think it would have been better to keep the mysterious snow beings mysterious for longer. After all, the thrill of Todd going back for a laptop wasn't really worth it. If you are a fan of horror, which I am you will find the story worth reading. Just suspend judgement and take the story for what it is...mayhem and creepiness of a snow bound town.

Chomp / Carl Hiaasen
4 stars

Mickey and his son Wahoo take care of animals that are used on screen. When reality survival star Derek Badger wants to hire their alligator, Alice, to “wrestle” with for his tv show, Mickey is not impressed with Derek. Even “better” is when Derek decides he wants to really head to the wild in the Everglades to do some filming. Wahoo’s friend, Tuna, who is running from her abusive father, comes along with them.

Ah, plenty of humour here, but also frustration with the idiot Derek! (And how he treats the animals… I was right there with Mickey with regard to the annoyance/frustration on that!) Enjoyed the read about how scripted reality shows can be, too. I would actually love to read about these characters again – Mickey and Wahoo, anyway. I really liked them (and how they are with the animals). I listened to the audio narrated by James Van Der Beek, and it was done very well.

Bringing Columbia Home by Michael Leinbach and Jonathan Ward
5*****

An astounding book, written by a former NASA launch commander and an Ambassador connected with the Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Both authors combine their skills to create a history of the shuttle Columbia as the backdrop to the awful events of that day. They also include a well-described layout of Kennedy Space Center (and the photos help tie all that in) with brief bios of the crew and their mission. Interspersed were detailed "what-ifs" that show, from the moment of the launch, what went wrong and how. Such as pictures from the launch that were never downloaded; had they been, the ground crew would have seen a large chunk of foam missing from the left-hand side of the rocket.

I also found invaluable the minute-by-minute events of that morning, with both shuttle mission information (what happens normally) and what people saw when. As Columbia began her entry, she was last seen zooming past California towards Nevada and Utah. Then, suddenly, the sensor readings begin to look different and temperatures go up. And then eye-witness accounts from Dallas and eastern Texas, along the path that Columbia broke up and the sonic booms that everyone in east Texas heard. What their reactions were. What caused them. Where debris landed. All of that, answering the "What happened?" questions not just from a mission normal narrative, but also the people who saw it disintegrate. And the reader who remembers the glowing streak across the sky and where I was that day.

The other thing I appreciated was that while there were scientific explanations, the story does not bog down into great scientific formulas. I did have to look up a few flying terms but that was all. And also that authors described the great outpouring of help and support from the people in east Texas who helped with setting up command centers, finding hotels, and feeding everyone who came out. There were as many as 22,000 people who helped with the recovery effort.

Also interesting was the help from all facets of the US Government. The Texas Forest Service brought in wildfire crews: they bring their own camp, tents, cooking, all that gear, and they are used to working on all kinds of tough terrain. And many of them are Native American tribes members. Or the National Transportation and Safety Board, who dispensed the advice, "Let the evidence show the cause of the accident; don't try to make the theory fit the evidence." Much praise is given to these agencies, and conversely sufficient blame is laid where it is deserved.

As with the Challenger disaster, improvements were made to launches, and with one visit to the Hubble Space telescope, all future missions included docking with the International Space Station in order to ensure that the shuttle was safe for the return flight, and to provide future shuttle astronauts safe haven in case the shuttle was not capable of returning back to Earth.

Two Years Before the Mast by Richard Henry Dana, Jr.
4****

At 22, Richard Henry Dana, Jr., left school to join the crew of the brig "Pilgrim" and sail from Boston, around Cape Horn, to San Francisco. "Green" to the demands of being a sailor, he did not know what to expect. But he soon discovered that hard work, high seas, and harsh punishment were going to be the new elements of his next two years of life; and he carefully recorded every action-packed minute of it in a personal diary.

A very, very good book with such detail about ships and sailing and masts and jibs and what-not. Young Richard Dana find that his life has left him with no choice but to enlist in the Merchant Marines. I've heard that term and never really understood what it meant until now. The ship to which he signed sailed cattle hides from California to Boston. And it sailed out of Boston in 1834, before the railroads were built.

Dana was college-educated and kept a detailed diary on which he based this book. He does not shy away from his first days with sea-sickness, to the quarters where he and his shipmates lived and slept on hammocks, to the times of watches and what was expected, to the perils they encountered bringing hides from one port of California to the other where they were stored prior to shipment. His descriptions as well of how a sailing vessel was laid out, the masts, the work of furling and unfurling sails in all kinds of weather (such as rounding Cape Horn in the Antarctic winter), keeping watch, and how sailors ate were exacting and well-written.

He also goes into great detail about how the hides were "droughed" (carried on the head) to the rowboats from the various ports to the ship, transported to port where they were again off-loaded to be stored until a certain tonnage was achieved. The tonnage was determined by the company to whom Dana and the ship were contracted for the duration of the voyage; hence the "Merchant Marines," as they were sailing from the port of Boston to ports in California, in order to provide goods (in this case, hides) for the company that owned the ship and saw to their pay.

And yes, there is a flogging on board the ship, as is an attempt to force Dana into greater time on board his old ship from his new one, leading to a life of sailing instead of a point in time worked as a sailor. The descriptions of California and its coast, when it was still a Mexican territory, are fantastic and make me a bit sad for what we have lost over the centuries with Development and Progress.

The troubling parts of this book, though, are the ethnocentrism. He refers to the inhabitants of the various coastal cities, both Mexican and Native Americans, as lazy, as half-hearted in their work (which, yes, means the same thing), and as something wholly "other" than his Yankee work ethic. He makes a distinction between the Mexicans and the Spanish, giving a bit higher recognition to the Spanish, who had colonized California originally. Strangely, though, he has good rapport with the Sandwich Islanders (modern Hawa'ii) and even helps save one from the disease that they too often caught from interaction with the White voyagers (the disease is not named but was probably not smallpox by the description).

All in all most deservedly a classic of literature.