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.

Garment of Shadows by Laurie R. King

Series

Sadly not every book in this series grabs my interest.  I had high hopes as the story started out with a case of amnesia after the cliff hanger ending of Pirate King, but it led into quite a bit of the political turmoil of Moroccan history during the struggle between France and Spain's control over Morocco.  It did not hold my interest and quite often I found myself mentally drifting away and losing track of the plot.

The 13th book in the series, Dreaming Spies takes Russell and Holmes to Japan - maybe the change of scenery will have me intrigued again!!

                 The One True Ocean - Sarah Beth Martin

                          New Author


Secrets, love and loss, suicide and lies.

Jenna loses her husband, her mother is and always has been distant.  To try to understand her life, Jenna goes back to her childhood home in Maine and uncovers some of her mother's secrets, the truth about her biological father, her aunt's accidental death or suicide.

Not as psychologically dark as I thought it would be but maybe I just wasn't able to really get into the story line.  As usual, I came away with the feeling that keeping secrets that affect other people's lives should be told , not kept.

The Supremes at Earl's All-You-Can-Eat by Edward Kelsey Moore

Debut Novel

I find myself drawn to books that center around a group of Southern black women (Secret Life of Bees, The Help).  They are strong, funny and have a bond like no other!  While this novel didn't have the depth of Bees or the Help, it was still a fun and touching read.  I would love to walk into Earl's and sit and chat with the Supremes!

Quote:  "She thought to herself that if this was what it was like to have a mistress  - a night of thoughtful gifts and good sex, then your lover is out of your hair by breakfast time - ..."

                      Day after Night - Anita Diamant

                           Historical Fiction

Based on actual events that occurred October of 1945.
Told by 4 Jewish girls , all who have different, horrible experiences during the persecution of Jews in many countries across Europe. Here they all are in a detainment camp in Israel for "illegal" immigrants run by the British.  This camp is just a little better than a concentration camp but still surrounded by fencing and barbed wire.

Little by little we learn what Shayndel, Tedi, Leonie, and Zorah, all Holocaust survivors, had to do to survive. And how it might have been for them after they thought they had escaped.

Once again Ms. Diamant brings to life these characters in such a way that the reader feels like she is right there with them.