The Wicked Girls by Alex Marwood

Guilty Pleasure

My "guilty pleasure" choice is suppose to be a fun read.  Not too challenging, not to deep, a book I can't wait to get my hands on and jump into.  And this one seemed a perfect choice!  Found it on display in an independent book store on Cape Cod. With tag lines like, "How well can you know anyone" "Utterly compelling" "I couldn't put it down" I thought this was a sure winner!  Wrong!

While I'm not always opposed to reading English authors, I do approach them with hesitation and I should have done so with this one.  There were constant cultural references to England that I was clueless about, English terms and vernacular that left me stymied and I got tired of having to stop and look these up in what should have been a casual cover to end read for me.

The book was also more gruesome than it needed to be - oozing brain matter was rather popular with Mr. Marwood.  I kept reading the book long after I wanted to scrap it simply because I wanted to know how the mystery end.  The last 30 pages or so did provide some thrills (and of course more brain matter), but it certainly wasn't enough to make the entire read compelling.  Very disappointed.

Burning Marguerite by Elizabeth Inness-Brown

"I" Author

When asked while reading this book if I liked it, I couldn't say if I did or didn't.  It is a fairly short, and slow moving book of character development of 2 main characters: James Jack and Marguerite in a slow moving locale.  I liked both characters, I liked their stories, but I read this book in fits and spurts; walking from work, waiting at an office, on a lunch break, etc.  It is much better suited to be read in one sitting, one weekend, with a pot of tea, cozy blanket while the brisk wind blows outside or rain pelts the windows.

Quotes:  "My mother had made quilts.  Growing up, I had taken them for granted, had slept under one as if it were any blanket, worthy of no more respect than a piece of scratchy wool..her quilts had been warm, durable, not unpleasing to the eye, but mainly frugal.  Made for the body, not for the soul.  In contrast, these quilts were works of art....I wanted to take one home with me and warp myself in it."

The Whip by Karen Kondazian

Historical Fiction

Wow!  Just Wow!  What a great piece of history made all the more readable, intriguing and inspiring by Kondazian.  Kondazian created a fictional background which gave heart and soul to the mysterious character of Charley Parkhurst.  Regardless of the truth of her past, she was still a person of remarkable strength in the times of the Wild West. Short chapters make this a quick read.

Quotes:  "Life's gonna do that to you missy.  Gonna upset your wagon, not just once but many times.  And you got to choose who's sitting next to you.  Someone you can trust...or not"

"Friendship, true friendship is a curious dance.  Why does one recognize and embrace one soul and yet not another.  What is that? That something unspoken.  Perhaps it is a long ago remembrance of another time, another place, those same familiar eyes shining out.  Always we are searching for those recognizable eyes...so that we might at last be recognized ourselves."

The Story of Edgar Sawtelle by David Wroblewski

Debut Novel

It took me awhile to finally pick up this bit of a tome (562 pgs.) but I'm glad I did.  A coming of age story, you can't help but fall in love with Edgar and the Sawtelle dogs!

The story had some suspense, or in my case, some anxiety ridden times as I kept expecting something bad to happen.  More often than not things turned out just fine during Edgar's travails.

Now excuse me while I go spend some time with my dog, Leo!

Quotes:  "Time thickened like wet cement"

"Just when normal life felt almost possible - when the world held some kind of order, meaning, even loveliness, some small thing would go awry and the veil of optimism was torn away, the barren world revealed."

The Winter Ghosts by Kate Mosse

New Author

A haunting tale (made more so by my reading it during a thunderstorm!) that did have me wondering if I could "tell true from false".

Mosse does an amazing job of describing the frost covered land without prolonging the descriptions.  There is a suspensefulness that is not like those found in suspense/thrillers, but a calm questioning of what the reader will discover upon the next page.

I will certainly seek out more books by Ms. Mosse!!

Dreaming Spies by Laurie R. King

Series

I once again fell in love with Sherlock and Mary.  Their wit, their deductive skills and their companions.  This time we traveled to Japan and the case revolves around a book.  Cherry blossoms, a tome and intrigue - how can you not be hooked!!

 
        Garment of Shadows  -  Laurie R. King

                        Series  -  #12


We are in Morocco after Mary's stint in the movies

Mary has amnesia.  She does not know who she is , where she is, or how she even got to Morocco.

Sherlock does not know where Mary is either.  So how can he help her!!!!

We meet up with some characters in past books, and some interesting new ones.  Again, Laurie describes the country as if you were there with Mary and Sherlock.   Cloak and dagger, spies,   the typical Mary Russell story.  Good read.

     The Magician's Lie -  Greer Macallister
       
                          Debut


Arden in a female illusionist.  Her speciality is being the only woman who saws a man in half.  One night after her show, a man is found murdered.  Yep, you got it,  he was cut in half by an axe!!!

Arden runs.  She is caught by a young police office and proceeds to tell him her life story.

A spoiler alert if your really like the illusion of magic.  The author tells how some of the illusions are actually done.  Bummer!!!

             Surrender, Dorothy  -  Meg Wolitzer

                        new author


Not my favorite kind of book.  Character development.  

Sara is killed in a car accident early on in the story.  The rest of the book is about how her mother and friends deal with her death.  As a mother myself, I should have had stronger feelings for this loss but the author did not make me feel any connection to the daughter or the mother.  

Oh well, on to the next book on my toppling bookpile!!

    The Last Runaway    -   Tracy Chevalier

             Historical Fiction


The year is 1850.   The place is near Oberlin, Ohio.   The main character is an English Quaker, Honor Bright.

We start in England, take a rough sea voyage to America, and travel to Ohio .   Here we encounter many differences from England,  from newly discovered birds; a hummingbird, insects ; a lightening bug, to many colorful people.

A nicely written book about the Quaker faith, early Ohio and the underground railway. Honor Bright struggles with doing the right thing and doing the lawful thing.

I enjoyed meeting Honor, Jack, Donovan, and Belle, and Mrs. Reed.  It was an enjoyable journey.

The Cure for Grief by Nellie Hermann

Debut Novel

I can't say I didn't like this book, but I can't say that I loved it.  It was very middle of the road for me.  Coming of age book centered around a young girl and the tragedy that befalls her family.

I never really connected to any of the characters, but I was interested in them enough to keep reading.  With so many other books out there to read, including many with coming of age and family tragedy plot lines, I probably would not recommend this book.

        Face of Betrayal  -  Lis Wiehl

              Guilty pleasure


I was hooked at the first paragraph.  When Katie went missing.
But the writing was rather weak for me.  It reminded me a lot like James Patterson's "Ladies Murder Club "  Three female friends, an attorney, an FBI agent, and a reporter are all working the case.

Katie is a 17 year old Senate page, home for the Christmas break. She goes out to walk the dog and doesn't return home.  The usual suspects are father, boyfriend, someone in DC.  It is an easy read with some twists and turns but it also has some irrelevant side stories that I am sure were supposed to add to some intrigue but were to weak or non-essential to the book.

Not my favorite read.

    Pirate King   -    Laurie King

             Series

I learn way more than I had any desire to learn about pirate ships!!!
Mary Russell goes undercover as firm makers assistant to try to discover why crimes are being committed.

Unfortunately, I would get so bogged down with all of the details of the masts, and riggings of the ship that I would sight of what we were looking for.   It was a little confusing when the plot was about a film director making a film about a film director making a film about pirates pretending to be pirates but using real pirates.  See, confusing.!!!!

Anyway, not one of my favorite Mary Russell stories . On to the next one!!

              Down River  -  John Hart


                         "H"  author


Adam returns home to his hometown in North Carolina.  It is not a happy homecoming.

5 years ago he was acquitted of a murder he did not commit but the people are not happy having him back.  He came back because of a phone call from an old friend who needs his help.  But once home, he can not find his friend, gets beaten up and another murder occurs.   What is going on????



Read in Feb. 2016

             Man and Boy  -  Tony Parsons

                          new author


Henry has it all,  good job, wonderful marriage, and a darling little boy.  That is until he throws it all away by one mistake.
Now he has nothing except the responsibility of a little 4 year-old son.

This is an endearing story about the character development of Henry as he learns what it means to be a parent and what the really important things in life are.  A very enjoyable read.,






Read Feb. 2016

      Pretty Little Things  -  Jillian Hoffman

                      Guilty Pleasure

Lainey feels invisible and ignored.
Mom is busy with whatever,   Step-father is busy at work,
little brother can do no wrong,  and older sister is the wild one who is never home and the family has given up on her.
So when Lainey goes missing, the family just thinks she is taking after her sister,  getting wild.

Bobby Dees,  a cop with the Crimes Against Children Squad,is not quite so sure.  His gut tells him Lainey just might not a runaway.

The storyline deals with the dangers of the internet and disposable children. There are lots of twists and turns in the book about a very difficult subject matter,  but another good read by Jillian Hoffman.
Read Feb. 2016.

Innocence by Dean Koontz

Guilty Pleasure

Starting out I did not enjoy this book as it seemed to display Dean Koontz's weird sci-fi/horror style that I don't necessarily care for, but I am glad I persevered (thanks to Bookworm's insistence).  This is a book that I can't say much about as I don't want to spoil the ending.  You spend most of the time in the book wondering what/who the heck the main character is and not finding out till the very end.  While that in itself can be frustrating, Dean Koontz's writing style makes up for the angst the reader feels in being left in the dark most of the novel.  Koontz's imagery is amazing and the depth he can reach within a reader is mind blowing and at times intensely personal.  This is a book that will stay with me for a long time and I dare say may be life changing as I will be more aware of my choices and their consequences.

Quotes:  "...the sky poured out such torrents that the city was a drum set...dumpsters throbbing like tom-toms, garbage-can lids swishing as the wind swirled bursts of rain in imitation of a drummer brush-stroking the batter head of a snare."

"His voiced sounded as though he lived entirely on mayonnaise and butter but never quite cleared his throat of them..."

"...at the first instant of the universe, all of time was present, all our yesterday and today and all our tomorrows, everyone and everything that was and ever would be existed at that moment."

"...those who loved truth even if they didn't always speak it, who struggled daily toward an ideal that they might never reach, but for which they yearned.  There was hatred among people, but there was also love, bitter envy but also gladness for the fortune of others, greed but also charity, rage but also compassion."

The Swan Thieves - by Elizabeth Kostova

Historical Fiction

On the plus side I enjoyed the art portrayed in this novel.  It made me want to visit the local art museum or take a painting class.  There were also some moments of suspense when the truth was near to being revealed.

Unfortunately, I felt much of the book was drawn out unnecessarily and I had no patience for the infidelity in the novel.

A Grave Matter by Anna Lee Huber

"H" Author

It may surprise some to know that there is a part of me that is a bit of a hopeless romantic.  Now I'm not going to start reading Danielle Steele (I did my time with her) or Nora Roberts, but give me some Sebastian Gage (swoon) and the independent, troubled and heartbroken Lady Darby and I'm all aflutter.

This has easily become one of my favorite historical fiction series.  Right up there with Sherlock and Mary Russell.

For some reason I had trouble keeping some of the characters straight in this one, but I think it was more from my unfocused mind than the fault of the author.  The scenery was well-depicted and the crime of grave robbing is disturbing and slightly fascinating.

I am still astounded by the advances we have made in so many areas, especially in criminal investigations.  Even interviewing witnesses was difficult when it had to be done by letters or traveling by horse drawn carriages!

On to the next one in the series, A Study in Death.  I can't wait!!

    The Haunting of Maddy Clare - Simone St. James

                        Debut novel

What a delicious ghost story!!!!   A little romance and mystery thrown in with the mix.

Alastair and Matthew are ghost hunters in 1922 London.  They hire Sarah,  a young girl in need of a job and travel to a small town in England to gather information and exorcise Maddy Clare.

But who is Maddy Clare???  Why does no one know her????  Where is she from????   Why did she hang herself ????   Why is she haunting the Clare property, specifically the barn???

And what happens to Alastair, Matthew and Sarah as they try to get answers to these questions and to help Maddy move on.

An enjoyable read.

        The God of the Hive  -  Laurie R. King

                             Series

And so the series continues with the conclusion of "The Language of Bees" where we met Sherlock's son Damian and his daughter .

This was an old-fashioned cloak and dagger mystery. Sherlock and Mary have been separated and even Mycroft is in some danger.  Mary is trying to protect Sherlock's granddaughter and meets some very interesting characters.  Sherlock is trying to protect is son and has some bad people after him. Mycroft has been kidnapped but we are not sure by whom or is it a hoax.

As usual, Laurie King has taken me away to hunt down bad guys and I enjoyed my time with Mary Russell and Sherlock Holmes.
So until next time,    enjoy

                  Illuminations  -  Mary Sharratt
                             
                           Historical Fiction

This book is based on the life of Hildegard von , a woman from the 1100's.  At the young age of 8, her mother 'gave' Hildegard to the church to become a companion to a 'holy' (or maybe just plain mad) women.  They were both walled up inside of a 2 cell prison.

Hildegard was called an anchorite and stayed within the confines of this cell for 30 years when she was able to ' escape' when the holy woman died.

Because Hildegard has 'visions', she is considered a visionary and a 'sinful daughter of Eve' and accused of heresy.

It was an interesting but difficult time in women's history. As usual, Mary Sharratt writes an interesting and insightful book about women's history.
                         

                          Delicate Little Birds
                               Lauren Groff

                                 "G" Author


This is a collection of 9 short stories.  I read 4 of them before I stopped reading.  I guess I am just not a fan of short stories.

So I don't feel I can give a good review since I did not read all of the stories and the ones I did read,  well I just didn't "Get"  all of them.  

If you like short stories,  give this author a try & let me know what I missed by not reading all of the stories.   I did read her novel, "Monsters  of  Templeton", strange but good.

Sworn to Silence by Linda Castillo

New Author

Yuck!  Typical suspense thriller, but with some pretty gruesome crimes!!  I wasn't surprised to discover who the killer was, but I did like the protagonist, Kate Burkholder and I did find myself holding my breath and reading faster at the climatic ending.

The novel's location is in a small Amish community in Ohio, so it was neat to read the fictional story in towns similar to those near my hometown of Madison, OH.