Chosen Forever
Susan Richards
Soho Press
853 Broadway, New York, NY 10003
9781569474921 $23.00 www.sohopress.com
Annie Slessman
Reviewer
Owning horses myself, it was a natural that I selected Chosen Forever from the stacks of new releases at my local B&N. The cover shows an older couple sitting in front of a barn with a horse nipping at their hair. Book covers with children or animals will sell every time.
The story revolves around a woman who teaches writing part time, has a love of animals and still, in her fifties, has problems believing in her own worth. After writing several books without publication, she finally finds the right agent and sells a memoir of her life with an exceptional horse named, Lay Me Down. It is through her book tour that she finally reconnects with her family, her friends and finds a love to enhance and sustain her life.
The book also provides some insights into the life of a writer who has published their first book. The book tour she takes at the request of her publisher not only helps to sell books but helps Susan to find herself in the process. Somewhat of a loner, the book tour was a challenge and a mentor at the same time.
The passages regarding life with her animals are particular touching. The book is well written, honest and provides the reader with the desire to keep reading. What more could you want in a book? If you plan to buy one book this year, make it this one.
The Mortal Groove
Ellen Hart
St. Martin's Minotaur
175 5th Avenue, NY, NY 10010
9780312349455 $25.95
Arlene Germain
Reviewer
The Mortal Groove, Ellen Hart's fifteenth installment in her Jane Lawless mystery series, is a complex and compelling story of political machinations, family dynamics, and the insidious effects of violence and collusion. During Jane's New Year's gathering, the festivities are interrupted by a few of Minneapolis political movers and shakers. They have come to ask Jane's father, Raymond Lawless, to run for governor. With less than a year to conduct a campaign, Lawless is eventually persuaded to come to the aid of the party. Joining him in this venture is Randy Turk, a longtime associate, who will serve as the campaign legal advisor. Turk recommends his friend from his Viet Nam War days, Del Green, to be the campaign manager. As the race gets underway, circumstances begin to present a myriad of difficulties ranging from the campaign staff's thirty-five year-old secrets threatening to resurface to the sexuality of the candidate's daughter. Further complicating matters are Jane's brother Peter who has secrets of his own and her best friend Cordelia who is dealing with a personal loss which has all but devastated her. Add to this combustible mix the strain of Jane's trying to sustain her long-distance relationship with Kenzie, and you have a very entertaining reading experience.
The Mortal Groove is Hart's most structurally intricate novel to date. The plotting is both complex and multi-layered. A hallmark of a truly masterful writer is the ability to juggle many subplots while not diminishing the main plot or creating unrealistic elements which detract from the true mystery genre. Hart deftly interweaves these seemingly disparate threads into a well-paced, cohesive, and focused storyline. She skillfully engages the reader as the various characters pursue their assigned paths toward the resolution of the varied conflicts. Too often authors get bogged down by the intricacy they believe they have created; they become so overwhelmed by the demands and requirements of genuine focused storytelling that by the conclusion of the story, the reader can only feel cheated by an inept and unsatisfying attempt. They would do well to read The Mortal Groove for it is a primer for constructing and achieving the successful multi-plot mystery.
The Mortal Groove thoroughly demonstrates Hart's ability to create and sustain believable characters. Eschewing the stereotypical and flat characterization often seen in contemporary mysteries, Hart populates her novel with characters that are imbued with such a degree of verisimilitude that the reader cannot help but empathize with those who are enduring and hoping to overcome the unpredictable events that life thrusts upon them. Through it all, Jane evinces her keen sense of logic, wit, and her unwavering loyalty to family and friends. This novel delves more deeply into Jane's relationship with her brother Peter. He too has a secret which will compel him to behave in ways he never could have imagined. The introduction of Larry Wilton, the questionable Vietnam buddy of Randy and Del, serves as the viable catalyst which propels the gubernatorial race toward inevitable scandal and mobilizes Jane and Cordelia in a search for the truth. Incisive and consummately delineated characterization is a staple of a Hart novel. However, The Mortal Groove achieves a new level of excellence for the author. It is her finest exposition of character to date.
The Mortal Groove is an exceedingly satisfying reading experience. The story, characters, plot twists and turns, and tone of the novel totally involve the reader. Hart is one of the best contemporary mystery authors today, and this latest work continues to add to her stature in the genre. To create substantially significant characters that deeply affect the reader, to invent plots which stimulate the thought processes, and to continue to elevate the standard of quality literary writing are achievements few can claim. The Mortal Groove by Ellen Hart is a testament to her having accomplished all three.
West Virginia
Che Elias, author
Michael Hafftka, illustrator
Six Gallery Press
PO Box 90145, Pittsburgh, PA 15224
9780978296292 $18.00
Christopher Wunderlee
Reviewer
How It Is, or how it was, these are impressions, minute-by-minute minute collisions, a muddle of sensations, a stream of consciousness, or in this case, a torrent of consciousness, released by trauma, caused by trauma, dripping with it, indivisible, words flung like droplets over the falls. And you, reader, are in the Niagara-barrel. Feeling brackish gusts whip bare cheeks, soaked, knee-deep, tossed fiercely, flipped, flung, within the rush, the final forevermore always foreboding, that wet edge howling ahead, bellowing, spitting up hurricane rain. There is the current, the flow of words juxtaposed with broken images, the rocks awaiting your barrel below, the kindling of others, waiting like prophetic visions in rainbow sprays. This is not a b(r)ook, it's a storm-ride, a witnessing of a drowning.
West Virginia is bounded by great streams, unbroken flows of an awakened mind unable to comprehend a trauma. Rape forces a rage, a tearing from within, an implosion; West Virginia is a squall of consciousness. If Joyce flows through they microscopic hyper-experience and Beckett floods the fringe, Che Elias surges into the personal monologue, weaving an unbearable deluge of torment.
It was William James who coined the term, stream of consciousness, in The Principles of Psychology (1890), and the study of the mind has guided its development as a literary form, from Stephen Daedalus to Septimus. The unknown, un-dead voice of West Virginia is another other, but his passage is not of awakening, of falling apart, but of internal collapse, of a rambling rhapsodic deliverance akin to darling antiheroes, but this one of the dark yawn. This one needs therapy, medication, institutionalization, a savior, a faith, a lottery ticket. Consciousness has become a racket, the stream a rapid, the waking life a ridding. That way madness lies. Voices are murdering and torturing like some Elizabethan hanging in the public square. The confessional is wrought with sin, and there's hell to pay. Like true thoughts, Elias returns and returns to the theme, which is not a literary theme, not a plot device, not character development, but the stain, the scar, the sinking of the consciousness. The bitter words flung into perked ears, rebounding off forming lips, crackling over cerebella, resonate like a true memory, a true traumatic event.
We remember the arms flailing, the screams, the way the afternoon light looked like golden shards on white-tipped surf, and the heavy burden of the afterwards, when the sunken body was brought to the shore. We replay it accidentally in our bedroom sheets or during bus rides when our minds are given little leash. Tragedies have a way of remaining. And this is the tricky cruelty of our minds, of our inner voices, because when there is brutality, when we endure its initial assault, we are left with its meaning, and there is none. Fragmented, purposeless insanity visits our order, bludgeons reason, and requires some loss of accepting the mirage of any of it. We are a step closer to the falls.
West Virginia is a man over the cataract, tumbling, those last seconds a manifesto of spiked words groping for a branch, contorting to avoid the pike rocks. Elias is plunged deep into the torrent, post-fall, all too aware of the stain of sin and the Cain solution. Ripping open West Virginia is like swimming out to get him, and we all know, when someone tries to save a drowning man, usually they both die.
Minta Forever
Jean Campion
Western Reflections Publishing Company
P.O. Box 1149, Lake City, Colorado 81235
9781932738377 $15.95 1-800-993-4490
Some authors go for the sleaze when they write on the theme of domestic abuse, dwelling on physical and sexual aspects until the reader wonders if the book's a novel or a nursing text. At the end of the story, the heroine puts all the trauma behind her and prepares to head for the altar with some handsome man who rescues her. Her abuser either languishes permanently in jail, or lies under a grave stone.
In real life, abusers destroy their victims mentally as well as physically, and the victims often have no easy way out of the situation. If they do get rid of the abuser, they can't find peace. The abuser might leave a victim alone, but there's always the fear that he might come back, because abusers do not go to jail forever. Sometimes they don't go at all, and just find another woman to batter
Southern Colorado author, Jean Campion knows this, and she recreates the real life abuse scenario in her novel 'Minta Forever,' published by Western Reflections Publishing Company.
Pushed by well-meaning parents, Ella Jane Morgan Skaggs' finds herself married to the abusive but wealthy farmer, Edmond. He does all the psychological things abusers do, including separating her from family and friends, and berating her at every chance. He brings her to his home town to live, where she knows no one. Worse, when he appears in public with her, he treats her well, so anyone she would ask for help would not believe she needs it.
When Ella decides to escape, she faces the dilemma of all abused women: where to go? Finally aided by a cousin, she gets a teaching job in a one-room school in a small Colorado town. Now the cousin and her husband are in danger of Edmond, as are the people in the town where Ella has taken refuge, under the new name of Minta Mayfield.
From page one of 'Minta Forever,' Campion sets up a cat-and-mouse game between the husband and wife, highlighting the psychological abuse, and suggesting the physical and sexual aspects just enough for the reader to grasp.
Once escaped, Ella/Minta, spends a lot of time wondering in her journal if Edmond will find her, and what that will mean to her new community Any real life abused woman faces the same questions.
Around the abuse theme, Campion presents a good picture of how one-room schools operated in Colorado in the early 1920s. She grew up in a family of educators and heard tales of one-room schools and the people who taught in them. The novel began as a research project on one-room schools in La Plata County, Colorado, and the author found plenty of descriptive material to make Ella/Minta's daily activities and surroundings believable. At no time, however, does she wallow in education history for its own sake. Every single historical mention relates to plot, action, character, or theme of the story.
Of course as Ella/Minta worries about Edmond's return, the reader does, too, and Campion cleverly creates several heart-stopping moments when Edmond might be lurking in the shadows; and an explosive scene when he finally is.
People in town react as one might expect. Some support Ella/Minta. Some want her fired as a bad example to the students. Campion explores the ideas of forgiveness as supporters outvote the non-supporters.
A final twist in the plot puts Ella/Minta in the dilemma of real life abuse victims. Is she safe from Edmond, or is she not? What decisions should she make about what she does next, based on not knowing for sure if she's safe?
'Forever Minta' raises provocative questions, and without being overly graphic, reminds everybody how hideous domestic abuse and violence is. The story also points out that there are no easy choices for an abused woman. She has make the best one with the information she has and hope it's right.
2020 Vision
Roy S. Neuberger
Feldheim Publishers
208 Airport Executive Park, Nanuet, New York 10954
9781598262131 $24.99 www.feldheim.com www.2020visionthebook.com
Fern Sidman
Reviewer
Rabbi Meir Leib ben Yechiel Michel (1808-1879), also know as The Malbim authored a commentary on Sefer Yechezel (32:17)and in it he stated, "In the End of Days, after the Children of Israel have returned to their land, the children of Ishmael and the children of Esau will unite to attack Jerusalem. They will form a world coalition against the tiny nation of Israel. But something will go wrong with their plan. The religious beliefs of the children of Ishmael and the children of Esau will clash, and the two nations will collide and destroy each other. That is what is referred to as the War of Gog and Magog. Following this cataclysmic conflict, the Final Redemption of the Jewish people will occur with the coming of Messiah, the son of King David."
It is with this prescient insight in mind does prolific author Roy (Yisroel) Neuberger begin weaving a tale predicated on the hallmarks of Jewish tradition; faith and trust in Hashem and the yearning for the Final Redemption. His recently released futuristic novel entitled, "2020 Vision" (Feldheim Publishers) represents an authentic testament to the strength and resolve of the human spirit in the face of horrific adversities and tribulations. Yet, the resounding theme of faith and trust in Hashem (G-d) and adherence to tenets of Torah against all odds have been an oft repeated mantra in Mr. Neuberger's previous writings as it permeates the pages of "From Central Park to Sinai: How I Found My Jewish Soul" (2000); his personal memoirs and recollections of his journey back to Orthodox Judaism and "Worldstorm: Finding Meaning & Direction Amidst Today's World Crisis" (2003); a history book that applies Torah reasoning to our current global situation.
While "2020 Vision" is a novel and thus symbolic of a departure from his non-fiction books, this action packed, thrill-a-minute tale retains a keen eye on the very real and often grim geo-political realities of our times. There is no question that this book can be termed a hybrid of sorts, combining compelling fiction with true to life, refreshingly honest biographical flashbacks that allow the reader a unique opportunity to get an intimate look into the psyche of the protagonist and author of this novel. While enjoying this fast paced page turner, readers should be cautioned to fasten their proverbial seatbelts because this is going to be the mother of all bumpy rides.
The trajectory of this apocalyptic sojourn begins on Sunday, July 5th in the year 2020. It is a leisurely summer day and Yisroel and his wife Leah are enjoying the simple pleasures of life at their Long Island home; a bike ride, sipping cool lemonade, watching the fireworks and taking some time to reflect on the many blessings in their lives. This was to be the last day on this earth that the Neubergers would experience a semblance of normalcy. Quite suddenly and totally out of nowhere the world is caught in the deadly grip of a global nuclear attack; planned and coordinated by a diabolical Muslim terrorist sleeper cell in the USA. The world outside their window "turned white" and their "house shook violently" while the sounds of sonic booms punctuated the air. As the author ruefully observes, "the events of July 5, 2020 made 9/11 look like child's play."
After listening to a report on an emergency radio indicating that an electromagnetic bomb detonated high above the earth's surface had destroyed communications for thousands of miles, the Neubergers decide to head off to New Jersey to locate their children and search for an escape route to Eretz Yisroel (the land of Israel) where they could be reunited with their other children and bask in the safety of the place on this earth where the Shechina (G-d's presence) dwells. The roads were immersed in snarling gridlock and supplies of gas were scarce, so the Neubergers employed some ingenuity and utilized their only viable means of transportation; their trusty bicycles to get them to where they needed to be.
Turning to each other for comfort and solace during this arduous, if not impossible trek, Yisroel queries his wife. "Leah, how will we survive?" Leah's rejoinder is clear. "We will survive, G-d will save us. You will see." It is this unshakable faith and trust in Hashem that serves as the catalyst and driving force for their journey through the metaphorical dense darkness of night to the blissful eternal light at the end of the tunnel. On their road to reunification with their children, the Neubergers confront a seemingly endless litany of harrowing and life threatening scenarios; amongst them being almost crushed to death by commercial airliners, a close call after an attempted attack by a band of deranged hooligans, and an encounter with an unscrupulous and potentially murderous, mentally unbalanced miscreant who is the only person that can transport them by boat from Brooklyn to Staten Island.
Throughout it all, Yisroel and Leah never entertain the notion of relinquishing their faith and determination to survive. Having packed his tallis, tefillin, siddur and chumash, (Jewish religious articles) Yisroel prays three times a day; beseeching Hashem for mercy while he and Leah offer succor to each other with timely Divrei Torah (words of Torah), having plumbed the depths of our holy sources for words of encouragement in times of travail. What follows is nothing sort of miraculous. Feeling the Hand of Hashem every step of the way, Yisroel and Leah meet up with their children from Lakeville (Lakewood to us laymen) on the Garden State Parkway along with a formidable chevra (group of friends) of frum (observant) Jews who have joined them. Traveling together as a group, they negotiate a strategic plan for survival and decide to head north towards New England, where they hope to catch a sea worthy vessel to take them to Europe and then to their final destination; Eretz Yisroel.
Beset by a multitude of serious dangers, challenges and difficulties they meet extraordinary people, sent by Hashem to assist them on the path to redemption. With the help of relatives Uncle Phil and Aunt Bessie, who play a critical role in the story, they manage to expedite their journey in some small measure, while other characters such as righteous gentiles also posit themselves as facilitators; offering much needed practical guidance and assistance in this heart stopping drama.
The reader cannot help but marvel at the sheer eloquence and graphic depiction of the events leading up to the coming of Moshiach and the final end of days that Mr. Neuberger describes in words that sound a clarion call to teshuvah and tug at your heartstrings. This chilling account of the dawn of the Messianic era is not for the faint hearted and those who suffer from ideological myopia. No one can deny that each one of us has deeply pondered what events would look like when Moshiach (Messiah) comes, yet Mr. Neuberger takes this to a whole new level. He offers us a unique perspective on our daily relationship to Hashem and gives new definition to our collective role in our final destiny.
A MUST READ!!! FIVE STARS!!!
When All Hell Breaks Loose: Stuff You Will Need To Survive When Disaster Strikes
Cody Lundin
Gibbs Smith Publisher
PO Box 667, Layton, Utah, 84041
9781423601050 $19.95
"If you are going through Hell, keep going." - Winston Churchill
Once upon a summer day, a Grasshopper hopped and danced and sung to his heart's content. An Ant passed, dragging a huge sack of powdered milk, beef jerky, and salt.
"Why not come and sing karaoke and do a Jell-O (tm) shot with me," chirped the grasshopper, "Instead of breaking your back, working all day?"
"I am preparing for hard times ahead," said the Ant, "and I recommend you do the same."
"Why worry about winter?" said the Grasshopper. "There's plenty of food right now."
But the ant continued his hard toil. When winter came, the shivering grasshopper had no food and found himself slowly dying of hunger. So, he kicked down the Ant's door only to find out that the Ant had completed a comprehensive martial art training regimen that focused on close-quarters combat and self-defense, and that food was not the only thing the Ant had packed away. Only then did the Grasshopper realize that…
It is best to be prepared for the days of necessity. Haven't you ever stayed awake late at night running through "what if" scenarios? Hurricanes, floods, earthquakes, tornados, zombies, asteroid strikes -- you didn't build that bomb shelter in the backyard just for the kids to use as a playhouse. Well, grab your gasmask and a copy of When All Hell Breaks Loose: Stuff You Need To Survive When Disaster Strikes by Cody Lundin.
He is not another paranoid survivalist huddled in a cave spouting Bible verses and lovingly stroking his guns. Cody Lundin and his Aboriginal Living Skills School have been featured in dozens of national and international media sources, including Dateline NBC, CBS News, USA Today, The Donny and Marie Show, and CBC Radio One in Canada, as well as on the cover of Backpacker magazine. When not teaching for his own school, he is an adjunct faculty member at Yavapai College and a faculty member at the Ecosa Institute. His expertise in practical self-reliance skills comes from a lifetime of personal experience, including designing his own off the grid, passive solar earth home.
This book is not going to teach you how to wrestle an alligator, or try to convince you that all you have to do is gaze into your backyard to find endless amounts of wild edible plants, or that wild game is there for the taking. Hunting and trapping are true arts and require practice, the right equipment, and the proper environment to be successful. What this book will do is provide the knowledge to help you survive the standard survival scenario, which lasts about seventy-two hours, in the most practical, affordable, simple and realistic way possible.
The book is divided into two parts. Part one deals with the psychological aspect of surviving. According to the author "surviving a life-threatening scenario is largely psychological on the part of the survivor(s). Get this fact into your head now that living through a survival scenario is 90 percent psychology, and 10 percent methodology and gear." He covers how to define your survival priorities with his "Pyramid of Needs" and great checklists for preparing you physically, mentally and emotionally, as well as spirituality and the equipment you are going to need. This section will give you the common-sense foundation upon which to base your survival plan.
The second part of this basic survival guide contains the information to keep your physical body alive. Specific chapters on emergency sanitation, water, food, first aid, communication, and more are presented in the most practical detail as possible. Entire books have been devoted to each of the above subjects. So, don't expect this book to cover every possible aspect of these skills, but appreciate the excellent overview.
Perhaps the greatest survival skill of all is being able to keep calm in the face of chaos. This is accomplished by being sensibly prepared and not scared. It may sound romantic to live off the fat of the land. You may have a great yearning to live wild and free. I sometimes get the urge to grow a beard, live in a cave, and become a combination of Grizzly Adams and Daniel Boone, and then I realize that many indigenous peoples died young and died hard. No one plans to find himself in a survival situation. That's part of what makes those situations so terrifying when they happen. This book can be a useful for keeping you and your family alive, or you can pray and wait for FEMA…
Hobo Finds a Home
Hobo, author
Susan Gage, illustrator
Booklocker.com
PO Box 2399, Bangor, ME 04402-2399
9781601452641 $11.95
Jen Colson
Reviwer
I first read this book because I know (and am very fond of) the author, Hobo. He is a sweet, fluffy, mostly well-behaved (for a cat) individual and I was very excited when he finally published his first book. I also was concerned, of course, because it's harder to give negative feedback about a book when you are friendly with the author but to my great relief, I found absolutely NOTHING to criticize. Instead I found "Hobo Finds a Home" to be a completely adorable book!
Written from a cat's point of view (close to the ground) with a crayon (easier for a cat's paws to handle than a pencil or keyboard would be) and using beautifully drawn pictures (which were vetted by the illustrator's child) to illustrate the text, this book is sure to captivate any child with its wonderful tale of adventure (running away from home, chasing butterflies, playing 'lion'), danger (encountering a 'spice kitty', sleeping on the cold, hard ground, having dinner stolen by a bully) and, finally, of finding the security of a warm and loving home. After all, isn't that what all children and cats and even adults really want from life?
While this book was written for children by a cat (who, as anyone who's ever shared a house with a cat knows, are perpetual children), it will also appeal to adults who are looking for the perfect book to read aloud to their little ones and to cat lovers of all ages. Believe me, being the 'pet' of three cats myself, I know what I'm talking about here. I found myself laughing along with Hobo, especially at the end when he rearranges his new 'pet's' home and takes over the entire household! Plus, as an avid reader of author bios, ever since reading Terry Pratchett's and Neil Gaiman's in 'Good Omens', I loved Hobo's – he loves fuzzy bunny slippers and prefers chicken to fish? – silly, yes, but a terrific little bonus!
In conclusion, I would recommend this book to all children, all adults who refuse to grow up, all parents of young children and cat-lovers of all ages! I would also recommend it to anyone who has read and enjoyed 'Have You Seen My Cat?' by Eric Carle, 'Broadway Barks' by Bernadette Peters and Liz Murphy or 'A Home for Dixie: The True Story of a Rescued Puppy' by Emma Jackson and Bob Carey. To put it simply, this is the purrfect book to curl up by the fire with!
The Man in the Booth in the Midtown Tunnel
Doug Holder
Cervena Barva Press
PO BOX 440357 W. Somerville, MA. 02144
No ISBN $13.00 www.lulu.com http://cervenabarvapress.com
Pamela Annas, PhD
Reviewer
Doug Holder is above all an urban poet, an observer chronicling the everyday sights and absurdities of Somerville, Boston and New York City in plain talk flavored with cool irony and sudden startling bursts of imagery. His settings include hospital rooms, bars, coffee shops, Harvard Yard, the post office, buses and subway trains, the Boston Public Library, Shea Stadium, housing projects, city streets, and the Midtown Tunnel from Queens to Manhattan which is the location of the book's title poem. His characters are bizarre and ordinary like all of us. Several of the poems are inspired by newspaper stories - about a woman who sat on a toilet for two years in her boyfriend's apartment, about an old man who murdered his equally aged wife, about a middle aged man who died on a subway train: "the Daily dropped/ From his hands. . . .The trains backed up/ From Cambridge to Dorchester."
I'm reminded in the pages of this collection of meeting, a year or two before her death, the artist Alice Neel, who painted gorgeously surreal ironic portraits of famous and ordinary people in the 1930s and 40s--and shivering as she looked me over. Doug Holder looks at the world through a similarly sharp and amused set of eyes. Yet there is no malice but a profound sympathy here - for the helplessness of aging and of poverty, for physical and mental illnesses, for the complexity of family relations - and most of all, for the isolation and loneliness lurking underneath tenaciously crowded city life. In the title poem of the collection, the man in the booth in the Midtown Tunnel "paces the perimeter/ Of his cage" while outside the cars whip by: "And we are/ Faceless and a blur,/ Behind thick plates/ Of light-bleached glass."
However, let me assure you this is not a gloomy collection of poems. There are rich nuggets of humor and wry reflection throughout this collection and, to combat the isolation of urban life, in almost every poem a relationship is forged between the observing eye and the subject of the poem. So, for example, as the speaker of the poem observes a woman nursing in a restaurant in "Private Dining Under a Blouse":
I saw
The infant emerge
Sleeping
Held in an untroubled
Dream.
I sucked on my straw
Flattening the plastic stem
Still awake
And troubled.
A few of the poems in this collection, like the one above, segue gracefully in subject from Holder's last book, Of All the Meals I Had Before: Poems About Food and Eating. Another is a poem toward the end of the book, "The Last Hotdog": "She brought it/ to his sick bed,/ He bit through/ The red casing/ The familiar orgasm/ Of juice/ Hitting the roof/ Of his mouth". And one more food-focused poem, "At the Fruit Stand," which is about bananas and melons and grapes and is too erotic to discuss in a family publication. However, you will enjoy it. And the whole collection.
The Acrylic Painter's A-Z of Flowers: An Illustrated directory of techniques for painting 40 popular flowers
Lexi Sundell
Simon and Schuster (Australia) Pty Ltd
PO Box 33, PYMBLE NSW 2073
9780731813322 $AU 34.95
Rose Glavas, Reviewer
www.astrologyrealm.com
The cover of this title is enticing enough to get my attention… the luxurious looking floral art on the front cover of 'The Acrylic Painter's A-Z of Flowers' looks fabulous.
Lexi Sundell is an award-winning artist whose subjects often are flowers: bold, dramatic and powerful. Her work has appeared in a variety of exhibitions, such as Avant-Garden at the Torpedo Art Factory, three years in a row at the Yellowstone Art Museum, and at the Museum of Arts and Culture. Sundell's paintings can be found in private and corporate collections worldwide.
The first part of this book 'Materials, Methods and Making Pictures' covers exactly these topics… and very clearly. Some of the topics covered in this section include how to sketch the various flower shapes (bell-shaped, trumpet-shaped, star-shaped, etc), basic colour theory, lighting and posing flowers, painting with an old/new brush. I liked the way the information was presented in that it provides a lot of information in a concise way that is easy to understand. It is also easy to find what you are looking for.
The instructions for painting the 40 flowers are also easy to understand and follow. For example, if you wanted to paint a begonia you would look to the contents where all the flowers are alphabetically listed. The begonia is on page 54. On this page there is a diagram showing all the various parts of this flower (in case you are not familiar with it), the palette you will need, and special details you will need to pay attention to. Most importantly there is a sequenced list of instructions on how to approach the begonia.
The painting reproductions are of an excellent quality and size, giving you a good idea of how Sundell's techniques work and the type of results you should be aspiring to using her style of painting. Of course, everyone has their own art style – but this book will give you the techniques you need to develop this.
I would recommend 'The Acrylic Painter's A-Z of Flowers' to the artist who wants to specialize in floral art, or as the perfect gift for the aspiring artist friend who has everything! This title could be used by the beginning artist but would probably be better for those with at least some experience working with acrylics.
The Confederate War Bonnet: A Novel of the Civil War in Indian Territory
Jack Shakely
Published by iUniverse
Bloomington, IN
9780595461400 $17.95
Bob Sanchez
Reviewer
Civil War buffs and historical fiction fans will enjoy this novel with its authentic and unusual take on the conflict. Based on historical incidents and real people, first-time author Jack Shakely brings us a view of the war from the point of view of Jack Gaston, a member of the Creek Nation who serves the Confederate cause. Gaston, one of two college-educated Creeks, leaves his studies at Harvard University in 1863 to serve his people, who have allied themselves with the South. For the many tribes that appear in this story - including Choctaw, Chickasaw, Seminole, Creek - the main issue is not slavery or keeping the Union together - it's survival. They must do what they can to preserve their own interests in the face of ever-increasing white encroachment.
Gaston's odyssey takes him through many of the Civil War's major conflicts. In one of his imaginative contributions, he writes a news column providing breathless accounts of one "Captain War Bonnet," who strikes terror into Yankee forces. As intended, Yankee forces read the detailed accounts that included his whereabouts, which proves to be a great waste of their time and resources.
Himself of Creek ancestry, Shakely presents a good story with a decent plot and sympathetic characters. His research helps readers understand some of the differences and conflicts among the various Indian cultures, and certainly between Indians and whites. The Confederate War Bonnet seems at times like a mix between a novel and a non-fiction history, because of Shakely's shifting point of view and the often reportorial style. It's obviously Jack Gaston's story, yet we occasionally hear from another narrator (the author) about what happens many decades later, for example:
…Maxey wrote to all the soldiers, "Your action has been glorious. You have made yourself a name in history."
This of course was true. To borrow a phrase from Franklin Roosevelt it was a name made in the history of infamy.
And on rare occasions, the author editorializes:
Nothing in American musical history is quite so cringingly, wincingly embarrassing as the minstrel show. But this phenomenon of white men in blackface was a theater tradition for more than a hundred years in this country, lasting well into the twentieth century. The vicious racist stereotyping…
Yes indeed, but passages like this can make the reader wonder whose story this is. Shakely also refers to "this Chautauqua," in the sense of the adult education movement, although the first such event didn't occur until almost a decade after the Civil War.
These are not major flaws; I take them as minor liberties that don't hurt the underlying story. Shakely states that most of the characters were real people, and the events historically accurate. The Confederate War Bonnet is a readable and well-told tale that Shakely fills with color, sensitivity, humor, and plenty of research..
Apparently, the war bonnet actually existed, with its Confederate stars and bars woven in. Too bad the author didn't have a photo of the headdress - it would have made a fine cover for a thoughtful book.
The Case of the Terrible Teacher
Rae Lowery
Publish America
Baltimore, MD
1413728030 $14.95 Amazon.com
Tobi Meyers
Reviewer
Rae Lowery is writing a series wherein the main character is an 11 year old girl who fancies herself as sort of a self-proclaimed sleuth. The series is called "The Adventures of Charlie" and it can be a bit hard to find, but if one googles the name "Rae Lowery" all three of the books can be found on the Internet.
This latest book is set in her school. Charlie has a teacher that is being mean to the kids, and she sets out to see if she can find a way to make him nicer to the students. When she finds out that he is single, she determines that finding him a girlfriend will solve all of her problems.
Rae Lowery has a way of endearing the characters to the reader. Charlie (the protagonist) is a quirky, funny, intelligent girl that not only appeals to the age group the books are written for (8-12), but younger and older audiences find it hard to put these books down as well.
On a personal note, Rae Lowery is a teacher, so she weaves moral and ethical dilemmas into the storyline, with a satisfyingly happy ending every time. There are many book clubs and READ IT FORWARD programs celebrating this book series, and for good reason. Rae Lowery is the next Judy Blume.
Ancient Laws
Jim Michael Hansen
Dark Sky Publishing, Inc.
218 S. McIntyre Way, Golden, CO 80401
0976924323, $TBA www.darkskypublishing.com
Wanda Maynard
Reviewer
Brilliant! In Jim Michael Hansen's most recent novel "Ancient Laws" snakes literally crawled out of every page. Very clever! Each scene made the action of the characters come to life even more. The chain of events, cleverly described, held me glued to the edge of my seat and kept me in wonder of what was around the next corner of this spine-tingling, sensational work of fiction.
Bryson Coventry, a hunk of a detective, along with other passengers on the flight to Cairo is in grave danger. The plane is about to crash. Will our hero be killed before he even gets a chance to catch the killer that is still at large? And what about the beautiful Paris homicide detective, Fallon Le Rue, who is assigned to the same case, will she wind up a victim of this deadly pastime even before she and Coventry get to really know each other?
When it comes to suspense filled thrillers, nobody electrifies the reader more with a crime novel than, Jim Michael Hansen, who is a Colorado attorney. His remarkable style of writing and rich use of dialogue grabbed me from his first novel, "Night Laws". He is so entertaining; he continuously leaves the reader with the fear of the unknown and yet, still wanting more.
Amy's Bookshelf
The Host: A Novel
Stephenie Meyer
Little Brown and Company
237 Park Avenue, New York, NY 10017
9780316068048 $25.99
Earth has been invaded by alien life-forms. These parasitic aliens are called Souls and live in what they consider to be a peace-loving unity, similar to the way bees live in a hive together. They require Hosts in order to survive. The centipede-like body is inserted into the Hosts brain by the Healers, then the alien takes control of all functions of that body as its own and the original occupant disappears. The Souls chose to take over Earth when they noticed the violent and barbaric tendencies of the human race. They wanted to eradicate the evil and destructive ways that the humans were destroying their own planet. They wanted to bring peace back to Earth, but the Souls could not foresee one human entity, Melanie, fighting back to gain control over her body that the alien, Wanderer (Wanda), had stole.
When Wanderer (Wanda) came to Earth and was implanted into her human Host, she had no clue as what this planet would be like. She had never had a Host that had such strong emotions and desires before. She never questioned what happened to any of the Host's original occupants that was their before her, until now. When Wanda started to receive strong, emotional images from her Host's (Melanie) memories, she tried to resist and force her into disappearing, like all the rest of her Host's she had lived in before on different planets. Melanie was extremely strong-willed, determined and frantic to get her messages across and refused to disappear. Wanda had only one choice left and it was to discard this Hosts body as faulty and acquire another one. Out of desperation, Melanie released the images she was protecting from this alien, of her younger brother, Jamie and her lover, Jared. Wanda felt the desire and love Melanie had for them, as her own, and yearned to find and protect them. Melanie remembered a secret hideout in the desert that her crazy Uncle Jeb had claimed, just incase the end of the world came. She persuaded Wanda to search for the location. After almost dying of exhaustion, hunger and thirst, a group of human rebels found her and took her prisoner back to their underground cave.
Wanda is reunited with Jamie and Jared, but even though Jamie accepts Wanda for who and what she is, Jared is enraged with hate for the alien that stole his lover's body. Wanda has to prove to them that she does not want to cause any humans harm and that Melanie is still alive inside her. With few human friends at her side that trust her, she has to find out a way to control Melanie's desire for Jared, her personal feelings for Ian (her human companion and bodyguard), give hope back to the world for the human race to survive and deal with the alien Seeker that has been tracking her from the beginning.
THE HOST is the best novel by far that I have read and will bind the reader emotionally to the pages until the end. Stephenie Meyer is a wonderful, vivid and intriguing writer. THE HOST is a beautiful and romantic love story that will take the reader above the stars and into a different universe.
Stephenie Meyer is the author of the best selling Twilight series. She lives in Arizona with her husband and three young sons. To receive more information about her, visit her web site www.stepheniemeyer.com
From Dead to Worse
Charlaine Harris
ACE
375 Hudson Street, New York, New York 10014
9780411015894 $24.95
Sookie Stackhouse is a barmaid at Merlotte's, a local bar in Bon Temps, Louisiana. She also has telepathic abilities, to be able to read other people's minds. Sookie has a very hard time with humans not accepting her because of her unique ability, until the secret underground society of Vampires decided to announce their existence when the Japanese invented "True Blood", a synthetic blood that contains all of the nutrients vampires need without the killing of people. Sookie found out she could get a little peace around the supernatural community, she could not read their minds like she could with the humans. Unfortunately, there is a lot more at stake (pun intended) in the supernatural community when several groups want to use her telepathic gift for their own evil purposes ..
Sookie has returned home to Bon Temps after the bombing of Rhodes during the Vampire Conference that killed (permanently) a lot of the vampires attending. With the combined tragedies of Hurricane Katrina and the Fellowship of the Sun (anti-vampire "church"), Sophie-Anne, Queen of Louisiana and Arkansas, is in a much weakened state. When the King of Nevada sends in a scout to their territory, there is not much Sookie can do about it, other than let Eric and Pam know about this stranger, Jonathan.
The werewolf community is also in battle amongst themselves, due to the new pack leader, Patrick Furnan. Furnan killed Alcide's father in a fight for the next pack leader. Alcide and his members are enraged when it is speculated that someone from Furnan's pack was ordered to murder Alcide's girlfriend, Maria-Star. Sookie was asked to help use her telepathic ability to sort out lies within both packs, but of course this leads to a war that Sookie can only hope to come out alive.
Amongst helping both supernatural communities with their problems, Sookie has several of her own she has to attend to. Another strange man has been popping in keeping an eye on her and she soon finds out that he is her great-grand father and also a fairy. Sookie wants to know why he decided to show up after all these years and if his intent is to bring her harm. She also finds out her cousin, Hadley, had a baby with her ex-husband before she was turned into a vamp and later murdered by the Queen's jealous companion. Things get really interesting when Octavia, Amelia's mentor and fellow witch, comes to Bon Temps to bestow punishment on Amelia for turning a human (Bob) into a cat during sex magic. With all this going on in her life, it's amazing if she will make it out alive.
FROM DEAD TO WORSE is the 8th book in the Sookie Stackhouse series. Charlaine Harris is a talented and brilliant writer. The character development grows with each book she writes. The plot keeps the reader intrigued and wanting more. I would recommend this series to anyone who loves to read about the supernatural, paranormal, mystery, romance and thriller genre(s). A definite must read.
CHARLAINE HARRIS is New York Times bestselling author. She writes both fantasy and mystery. Mrs. Harris and her family live in a small town in Southern Arkansas. The Sookie Stackhouse series will be premiering on HBO TV created by Alan Ball of Six Feet Under. The show "True Blood" will be based on this series and will be airing in September of 2008.
Amy J. Ramsey
Reviewer
Bethany's Bookshelf
An Obsolete Honor
Helana P. Schrader
iUniverse
2021 Pine Lake Road, Suite 100, Lincoln, NE 68512
9780595490882, $28.95, www.iuniverse.com
There are always dissidents – 100% agreeance in a large group of people is simply not possible. "An Obsolete Honor: A Story of the German Resistance to Hitler" is a work of historical fiction, but is quite believable. A German military offer is not pleased with the rising popularity of Adolf Hitler, disagreeing with the methods and means of the fascist government. Philip Baron von Feldberg is engulfed by the growing power of Nazi Germany from all sides, and his story of confronting harsh reality is a gripping read all the way through. "An Obsolete Honor: A Story of the German Resistance to Hitler" is highly recommended for community library collections seeking historical fiction pieces.
After Daddy Died
Naomi Roberson
Outskirts Press
10940 S. Parker Rd – 515, Parker, CO 80134
9781432719517, $14.95, www.outskirtspress.com
A father is supposed to be a provider for the family, a good male role model, someone for the family to look up to. "After Daddy Died: Portrait of a Mad Man" is Naomi Robertson's reflections on the ill doings of her father and the horrible effects they had on her family. Painting her father as a complete and utter sociopath who may have been clinically psychotic, "After Daddy Died" tells of violence, sexual abuse, kidnapping, and other atrocious acts. A saddening story of the depths a father can sink to become a blight on the family, so far removed from what a father should be. Recommended for community library memoir collections.
Nothing is Forever
Rae Ann Nargorski
Publish America
P.O. Box 151, Frederick, MD 21705
160474068X, $14.95, www.publishamerica.com
The tragedy of September 11th spawned additional evils in the form of hatred. "Nothing is Forever" follows a neighborhood as a new Muslim family moves in. The children of the town confront them, in fear for the peace of their neighborhood, in an act of horrible prejudice. The incident makes the families of the neighborhood realize that hatred and discrimination are no values to teach children. A touching novel of overcoming the dark side of human emotion, "Nothing is Forever" is a top pick for literary fiction collections.
Susan Bethany
Reviewer
Bob's Bookshelf
Spend 'Til the End
Laurence Kotlikoff and Scott Burns
Simon & Schuster
1230 Avenue of the Americas, New York, New York 10020
9781416548904 $26.00 www.simonsays.com
"Spend 'Til The End" by Laurence Kotlikoff and Scott Burns suggests ways to raise your living standard today as well as when you reach retirement.
In this book about personal finance, the authors debunk much of the conventional advice found in similar guides to financial planning. The road map Kotlikoff and Burns provide to significantly raise your living standard is definitely worth considering, but it may not be one everyone will want to follow.
The keys to "spending to end" involve maximizing your spending power, "smoothing" your living standard and pricing your love. You'll discover what this means and how you can accomplish these goals as you read this informative volume.
If you are concerned about the family finances or looking towards retirement, you might find parts of this book well worth reading. As with any book of this nature, you need to ask, "What is this author trying to sell me?" Read the introduction carefully and you'll discover the answer to this all important question.
Belong to Me
Marisa de los Santos
William Morrow
10 East 53rd Street, New York, New York 10022
9780061240270 $24.95 www.harpercollins.com
Cornelia Brown's move from the city to the suburbs means she has to forge a whole new set of friendships. In this complex novel about the interactions between Cornelia and two of the women she meets in her new community, the reader discovers that the course of establishing new relationships isn't always a smooth one.
When the new arrival meets Piper Truitt, Cornelia discovers a person who embodies everything she feared she would find in suburbia. Perfectly manicured, impeccably dressed and possessing impossible standards, Piper is judgmental woman who oversees two households, her own and that of a dying friend.
On the flip side of the coin is Lake, a woman with whom Cornelia can share her love of old movies and good literature. Lake, like Cornelia, is also a new arrival in the area but she harbors a shocking secret that may well jeopardize the bond between the two women.
As their individual stories unfold, these three women become entangled in a web of trust, betrayal, love, and loss that challenges them in ways they never imagined. For those who enjoy fascinating, complex character studies that feature individuals one can become attached to, this Book-of-the-Month Club alternative selection is a definite must-read.
Every Last Cuckoo
Kate Maloy
Algonquin Books
127 Kingston Drive #105, Chapel Hill, NC 27514
9781565125414 $22.95 www.algonquin.com
When her husband dies, seventy-five-year-old Sarah Lucas is left with a big house, plenty of memories, and an aching loneliness. Remembering how her parents opened their home during the Great Depression, Sarah also decides to invite a disparate group of people to share her rural Vermont home.
First to arrive are Sarah's rebellious teenage granddaughter, Lottie, and two of her disaffected young friends. They are followed by an Israeli pacifist in need of a retreat, a young mother and son who have lost their home in a fire and another woman and her infant fleeing a violent partner.
This unlikely flock forms a family of sorts whose members nurture and protect each other. All of them, including their hostess, not only come to face their real and imagined fears but they also discover the hidden strengths they'll need to slowly rebuild their lives.
This stunning debut introduces a new writer whose strong voice will attract readers who demand well-delineated characters and a captivating storyline. You won't soon forget Sarah Lucas, the remarkable heroine of this novel, and her household of equally engaging guests. This beautifully written and thoughtfully executed story is one you'll want to share with your friends.
Bob Walch
Reviewer
Buhle's Bookshelf
A Delicate Imbalance
Brian Snowden
Booksurge
7290 B Investment Drive North Charleston, SC 29418
9781419683701, $23.99, www.booksurge.com
Life isn't easy, but for some it's even harder. "A Delicate Imbalance" is David Lavaliere's tale of overcoming the loss of his mother. An the injury left on him as a child reduced his mental facilities, making matters even more difficult. He meets a woman who becomes the most important person in his life since his mother's death, Pamela Dorsey. His conflicts rise from there, as he reflects on his past romantic and failed endeavors. A gripping tale from first page to last, "A Delicate Imbalance" is highly recommended for community library fiction collections.
Guilty of Nothing
Kevin King
Vantage Press, Inc.
419 Park Ave. South, New York, NY 10016
9780533157136, $8.95, www.vantagepress.com
Getting pinned for murder and excelling at betting on the track should not be related items. "Guilty of Nothing" is Bill Eck's story of how that can be. Since he makes a decent living at the track, his consistent success earns him enemies. But when a serial killer strikes, and there seems to be enough circumstantial evidence to point to Bill, his enemies move to send him to jail for a crime he didn't commit. A gripping thriller, "Guilty of Nothing" is recommended for community library thriller collections and for those who visit them.
Skank-ology
Madison Swift
iUniverse
2021 Pine Lake Road, Suite 100, Lincoln, NE 68512
9780595511464, $12.95, www.iuniverse.com
Never drinking, never smoking, never kissing boys – where is all the fun in that? "Skank-ology: How I went From Brainiac to Bimbo in 10 Easy Steps (and How You Can Too!)" is a work of fiction in the form of a how-to guide. Madison Swift, the pen name of the author, used to be the perfect high school good girl. When life kicked her in the face, she embraced the "skank" culture and recorded her experiences, taking to it like fly to... you know. A parody on today's modern culture, "Skank-ology: How I went From Brainiac to Bimbo in 10 Easy Steps (and How You Can Too!)" is highly recommended for community library fiction collections.
The Sacred Sin
Estevan Vega
Publish America
P.O. Box 151, Frederick, MD 21705
1424183065, $14.95, www.publishamerica.com
To kill a man by stealing his soul – it takes a special type of killer for that. "The Sacred Sin" follows Jude Foster, a troubled L.A. Homicide detective who is faced with a unique type of murderer, one far more evil than anyone on the force has encountered before. A deftly written psychological thriller sure to grip readers all the way through, "The Sacred Sin" is highly recommended for community library thriller collections and fans of the genre.
Willis M. Buhle
Reviewer
Burroughs' Bookshelf
Six-Gun Two Step
William C. Duncan
Publish America
P.O. Box 151, Frederick, MD 21705
1424186099, $24.95, www.publishamerica.com
It's shocking how different two brothers can turn out. "Six-Gun, Two-Step" follows brothers Wade and Timmy. Wade enjoys a happy life as a successful business and family man, while Timmy has been drawn into the criminal underworld. Bonds of family brings Wade into Timmy's problems and makes Timmy's enemies Wade's enemies. Concerned for their family, they have to figure out how to set everything right without losing their lives in the process! "Six-Gun, Two-Step" is a solid thriller, highly recommended for community library collections catering to fans of the genre.
Called to Speak His Word Boldly
Roderick A. Davis, Sr.
Outskirts Press
10940 S. Parker Rd. 515, Parker, CO 80134
9781432720780, $7.95, www.outskirtspress.com
For some, their direction in life just hits them. For Roderick A. Davis, it took twenty-two years. "Called to Speak His Word Boldly" is the memoir of a man of God, and his days going through life and trying to spread God's word through the world. Following Davis' life from his start as a born-again Christian through his past twenty years preaching the Gospel, "Called to Speak His Word Boldly" is highly recommended for community library Christian studies and memoir collections.
The Modernization of Islam
Susmit Kumar
Book Surge
7290-B Investment Drive, Charleston, SC 29418
9781419682117, $20.99, www.booksurge.com
Nothing in mankind is beautiful without a lot of effort – democracy and freedom in the Islamic world is no different. "The Modernization of Islam and the Creation of a Multipolar World Order" is a look the gradually changing world with a focus on the middle east and the Muslim world. Comparing the modern conflicts of today to how World Wars I and II began to purge Europe of its absolute monarchies, "The Modernization of Islam" is a thoughtful study of global transformation, offering an optimistic viewpoint of the region for a change. Highly recommended for community library religious and political collections.
Bible of An Alligator
Alphonso Taylor
Outskirts Press
10940 S. Parker Rd. - 515, Parker, CO 80134
9781432718732, $10.95, www.outskirtspress.com
The challenges of being an urban black man are a tall hill to climb. "Bible of an Alligator" is an anthology of poetry from experienced poet Alphonso Taylor. He talks of life in general: dating, religion, war, the streets, and the problem of assumptions that he is not who he is because of how he dresses and the color of his skin. "Bible of An Alligator" is a skillfully written piece of literature for any poetry fan, and community library poetry collections in general. "Horoscopes": I Talk to horoscopes/No Need to look for hope/reading the Post/foreshadow for me what's next/from the page in the Express/separate the positive from negative aspects/Home issues and education/Social and religion/Finance to romance/I have questions that want answers/bargain pleading/Better than fortune cookies and tellers/tarot card readings/vague mind and palm readings/vague mind and palm readers/I See the bigger picture in the messages I can learn valuable lessons/the sixth zodiac sign/optimistic characteristics in the shrine/I'm a virgin to myths/psychic faith/reproductive miracles/have freedom from affliction/unity in extreme burdens/I'll adapt to the ending with no apologies/I've found my niche in the exploration of astrology.
John Burroughs
Reviewer
Carson's Bookshelf
Irene's Journey of Faith
Dave Dias
Book Surge
7290-B Investment Drive, Charleston, SC 29418
9781419683909, $19.95, www.booksurge.com
Primary Amyloidosis is something few have ever heard of, yet terrible all the same. "Irene's Journey of Faith" follows Dave and Irene Dias as they are faced with Irene's battle with this rare, untreatable, and often fatal disease. A story focusing on Irene's faith and how it enabled her to overcome her illness and get back to her life, "Irene's Journey of Faith" exhorts the moral to never give up hope. Highly recommended for community library memoir collections.
Phebe Courier For Paul
Richard H. Hagerman
Vantage Press
419 Park Ave. South, New York, NY 10016
9780533158829, $12.95, www.vantagepress.com
In the wake of tremendous despair, could hope lay in the hands of the Christians' one God? "Phebe Courier for Paul" is Phebe's story as she is left widowed, her children taken from her by the Roman Empire. When her own gods fail to grant her help, she turns to a new one, to serve the messiah. A finely written story of love and finding one's faith, "Phebe Courier for Paul" is a top pick for community library Christian fiction collections.
Into the World of Might Be
W.A. Harbinson
BookSurge Publishing
7290-B Investment Drive, Charleston, SC 29418
9781419676390, $13.99, www.booksurge.com
How much of what one sees is real, and how much is one's mind playing tricks? "Into the World of Might Be" follows two astronauts acting as guinea pigs in a study of isolation in space. When technology starts to go awry, nothing is what it seems, and the two are faced with things they can't determine to be reality or fantasy. "Into the World of Might Be" is an exciting science fiction psychological thriller, and a top pick for community library sci-fi collections.
True Detective
James A. Huebner
Outskirts Press
10940 S. Parker Rd. - 515, Parker, CO 80134
9781432717698, $21.95, www.outskirtspress.com
An expertly stuffed corpse – what in the world could that mean? "True Detective" follows two New York detectives as they search for the next plotter of a terrorist attack, desperately trying to avoid the next massive terrorist attack on par with 9/11. They find the strangest clue and suspect it may have something to do with the plot, but nothing seems to add up... at first. A good look at police work in the modern age, highly recommended for community library thriller collections.
The Unleashing of Evolutionary Thought
Oscar Riddle
Vantage Press
419 Park Ave, South, New York NY 10016
0533155975, $24.95, www.vantagepress.com
Is religion impeding the full advancement of science's drive to learn more about the world? "The Unleashing of Evolutionary Thought" believes so, and examines aspects of religion retarding scientific advancement both through society's outcry and by lobbying the government on supposed moral grounds. Tackling every subject where science and religion clash – be it stem cell research, genetic engineering, or even what can be taught in American high school biology classes - "The Unleashing of Evolutionary Thought" is a top pick for anyone who wants to see just how religion has affected science over the years and recommended for both science and religion community library collections.
Michael J. Carson
Reviewer
Charlie's Bookshelf
Blind Fall
Christopher Rice
Scribner
New York
0743293991 $26.00
Rice (son of horror novelist Anne Rice and the late poet Stan Rice; author of three previous novels, Light Before Day, A Density of Souls, and The Snow Garden) has specialized in taut thrillers that usually involve gay themes or gay characters. In an interview conducted by Josh Koll and Josh Helmin with the author did on Towleroad TV (cf. http://www.towleroad.com/2008/03/3316_christophe.html), Rice explained the novel's plot as essentially a critical examination of the military's "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy that had been implemented by the Clinton Administration in 1993. The main character, a straight ex-Marine named John Houck, narrates the story in the third person. The opening prologue sets the background and introduces the reader to the main lines of the story. While serving as a Marine in Iraq, Houck has a hallucination of his dead younger brother, Dean, while on a Force Recon Company mission; the apparition of his younger brother interferes with Houck's concentration to the point that he fails to act to protect the company leader, Captain Mike Bowers, who loses an eye.
The first chapter begins nine months later when Houck returns to the US. One of the first things he wishes to do is visit his former Captain in an attempt to make up for having failed to do his duty while on assignment in Iraq. What Houck discovers, however, is not what he bargained for. Not only has Bowers been murdered, but he had been living with another man, Alex Martin. Houck initially exhibits some fairly stereotypical homophobia having great difficulty accepting that his former Marine Captain, Mike Bowers, might have been gay. However as the plot unfolds, Houck discovers that Ray Duncan of the Hancock County, CA Sheriff's Department may have had something to do with Bowers's murder which complicates the situation. Finding Bowers's real killer would not only help Houck repay his debt of honor to his dead friend but would also offer Houck redemption and closure with the suicide of his younger brother, Dean, whom Houck caught having sex in flagrante with another man at home when Dean was eighteen years old.
The plot becomes potboilerish and predictable as the author tries to tie together Houck's search for redemption by coming to grips with the homosexuality of his good friend and his younger brother, both of whom die: Bowers is murdered; Dean commits suicide. For most of the novel, there is simply not enough action, nor sufficient subplots, nor suitably heroic characters. Houck asks his sister Patsy to help him find a safe place where he can undertake to teach Alex Martin, Mike's gay lover, to defend himself against the authorities in Hancock County who seemed to have been involved in carrying out or at least covering up Mike's death; Houck reasons that Alex will be next on their list of gay hate crimes so at least he can toughen Alex up to protect himself. When Alex escapes (after demonstrating to Houck that he can defend himself by already knowing how to fire a gun), Houck then is forced to come to grips with his attitude toward homosexuals as he is lead through an invisible gay underworld in Southern California as he seeks to find Alex.
Beginning in Chapter 14, however, the plot does take an unexpected twist with the arrival of Charlotte Martin, Alex's mother, whom Alex has claimed threw him out of the house and disinherited him. It seems that Alex was not exactly truthful with Houck about his relationship with his mother and the reason(s) for the disinheritance. In fact, Charlotte Martin informs Houck that Alex is the intended beneficiary of a $15 million inheritance from his grandmother. If Alex however is in jail and convicted of murder, then Charlotte would inherit the money. A relationship between Charlotte and Ray Duncan from the Hancock County Sheriff's office complicates the picture greatly. In the midst of all this, Houck finds a suicide note from his younger brother than explains to Houck that Dean was not being raped by the older man the day that Houck caught them but that Dean was actually enjoying himself; Dean had difficulty believing that his older brother would ever be able to accept him for who he really was.
Thus Rice's most recent novel, Blind Fall, is for the most part a pedestrian potboiler with many predictable twists and turns and stereotypical characters. Its plot concentrating on seeking redemption through acceptance of who some men really are while an important lesson is nevertheless too thin to support a 288 page thriller. In addition, it seems obvious that the author does not sympathize with those who are homophobic, particularly the military's "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy that in the author's opinion forces people to lie to themselves and others about who they really are. It may be that Rice's approach is intended to imitate real life as much as possible (as Gore Vidal tried to do in his 1949 novel The City and the Pillar) but Blind Fall is less successful than Vidal's novel because Rice does not or cannot empathize with those who find fault with homosexual behavior or the gay agenda.
Truth in advertising requires me to say that I own all autographed true first editions of all four of Christopher Rice's novels; three of them he autographed for me at an author event at Newtonville Books in Newtonville, MA several years ago.
The Story of a Marriage: A Novel
Andrew Sean Greer
Farrar, Straus and Giroux
New York
0374108668 $22.00
Don't let the brevity of Andrew Sean Greer's new work of fiction, The Story of a Marriage, fool you. It is jammed packed with unexpected ingenious plot twists and turns, unforgettable full-blooded characters, and philosophical musings about the nature of marriage, family, and commitment. Greer who has published two previous novels (The Confessions of Max Tivoli which made the best-seller lists and was very highly critically acclaimed and The Path of Minor Planets) and a short story collection (How It Was for Me) is a major new young literary talent. His current novella is told in the first person by the main character, Pearlie, whose personal experiences as a young married black woman are related against the backdrop of important events in US history in the 1940s (i.e. World War II) and the 1950s (i.e. Eslanda Goode Robeson's testimony before Senator Joseph McCarthy's Committee during which she invoked both the 5th and 15th Amendments and the execution of Julius and Ethel Rosenberg for treason).
In four sections does the author examine the relationship that Pearlie has with her childhood love and husband Holland Cook. The narrative weaves between the past and the present as Pearlie (and the reader) seek to uncover and penetrate the real truth of her marriage relationship. What is initially experienced, the author argues, may not be the truth, let alone the whole truth. We all wear masks to a certain extent. Trying to get to the real person can be an exercise in archaeology uncovering the various different layers that have accumulated over time. Many times in this exercise there are unexpected twists and turns.
In the opening sentence, the novel's entire plot is summarized in the first seven words: "We think we know the ones we love" as stated by Pearlie, the main character, whose subjective reactions to her emotional experiences of the trials and tribulations, successes and failures in her marriage with Holland Cook form the basis of the novel's plot. The first section provides the general introductory background to the plot. The reader is introduced to Pearlie, her husband Holland Cook, their son Sonny who suffers from polio, Holland's "aunts" Alice and Beatrice, and the enigmatic Charles "Buzz" Drumer. The author tells us that Pearlie fell in love with Holland twice; the first time as a teenager in their hometown in a farming community in Kentucky before and during World War II; the second time in California after her World War II job at WAVE ended and Holland had been recently discharged from a hospital.
A number of ambiguous, unexpected, or not fully explained events occur. Pearlie, for example, wants to marry Holland not only because she finds him extraordinarily handsome (as do most other people, the author notes) but also because she wants to take care of him. Holland's so-called aunts, Alice and Beatrice who are really simply older cousins, try to warn Pearlie that Holland has some form of unidentified illness which is why he had been hospitalized and so try to dissuade Pearlie from marrying him. Although Holland was drafted into the Second World War eventually, it was not via the normal course; Holland's mother kept him out of sight in an upstairs room in their home so that he would not have to enter military service where young black men were used as canon fodder for white soldiers she argues to Holland; only during an illness for which Pearlie went to seek a doctor did the military learn that Holland had not answered his draft calling. At the end of the section, Charles "Buzz" Drumer enters into Pearlie's and Holland's life. Drumer has run into Holland several times in the past; although Drumer had been a conscientious objector during the Second World War, he ended up in the same hospital as Holland yet Drumer was classified as section eight, a mental incapacity; the reader wonders as does Pearlie why were Holland and Drumer in the same room in the same hospital at the same time. Furthermore, Drumer had also been Holland's employer. Most interestingly, Drumer reenters Holland's life in an attempt to finally resolve their emotional relationship. Drumer offers to sell his company to raise $100,000 to essentially buy Pearlie off so that she and Sonny will be taken care of for life while Drumer seeks to reestablish his emotional connection with Holland.
In the next three sections, Pearlie struggles mightily with her dilemma: should she accept Drumer's word and his money letting Holland go, or should she fight for the man she loves and whose life story she has thought she understood because she had married him. How Pearlie reacts to this situation is recounted tenderly from her subjective viewpoint against the background of selected US historical events of the times; Eslanda Goode Robeson, wife of actor Paul Robeson, is introduced to highlight the plight of black identity in the 1950s; Ethel Rosenberg, who simply failed to try to stop her husband from passing on American atomic secrets to the Russians instead of actively plotting with him, metaphorically symbolizes the main point of the novel: we do not necessarily know all that we think we do about someone we love. It is Greer's great strength that as author he is able not only to sympathize with the plight of his main characters (unlike Christopher Rice, who in his recently published novel Blind Fall that is also reviewed in this month's issue, is unable or unwilling to get into the skin of his straight main character to make him more sympathetic and emotionally vulnerable) but is also able to inhabit their lives, their emotions, and their psychological battles. While Christopher Rice writes gay fiction for a gay audience (Rice's obvious sympathies lie with his gay characters while his straight characters are challenged constantly to overcome their supposed bigotry to arrive at an understanding of what being gay in America means today), Andrew Sean Greer does not seek to ghettoize himself in writing gay fiction but rather he writes – and does so very successfully -- literary fiction for a broader audience that may occasionally have gay themes but which nevertheless addresses profound, deeply moving issues that lay at the heart of the common human condition.
Truth in advertizing requires me to state that just as I own a complete set of autographed true first editions of Christopher Rice's novels, I also have a complete set of autographed true first editions of Andrew Sean Greer's books, three of which (How It Was For Me, The Path of Minor Planets, and The Confessions of Max Tivoli) he signed for me at an author event at Newtonville Books in Newtonville, MA several years ago.
In early-day America, Mathias, Marc, Luke, and Jon are Cherokee cousins who have been blood brothers since the age of eight. As young warriors, they defy their clan's rules, which results in the shamans placing a curse on the four, confining them to the area around Eternity Mountain and commanding they protect the animals they each have been given the ability to morph into, as well as care for the environment. Matt, Marc and Luke choose to remain on Eternity Mountain, but Jon lives in Asheville, where he is a veterinarian. All men have telepathic and psychic abilities, and Jon is a healer.
In present day, Jon's divorced assistant Ellen continues to be harassed by her ex-husband. Noting Ellen's stress, Jon sends her to his cabin on Eternity Mountain, hoping this respite will help her to relax. Jon telepathically requests his three brothers keep watch over Ellen during her stay there. Matt saves Ellen, who is lost and injured, during a snowstorm, and their mutual attraction cannot be denied. The two quickly fall into a heated romance, the likes of which neither has experienced before. Matt is shocked to realize he loves Ellen and wants her for his wife, but the fact that he will outlive her keeps him from speaking these thoughts. Ellen, on the other hand, thinks of herself as unattractive and something of a nut case. She feels she does not deserve a man such as Matt and, although she knows she is in love with him, resigns herself to the fact that their relationship is, at most, temporary.
Unbeknownst to both, danger and death lie in their path, but the fates intervene with a gift that can bring Ellen and Matt together and end his curse. However, a fatal pact stands in the way.
This sensual paranormal, the first in the Eternal Shadows series, will have fans clamoring for more. Matt, Marc, Luke and Jon are intriguing characters, and Hunter excels at developing a fascinating story wrapped around Cherokee history and legend. With superb visualizations, sizzling romance, gut-wrenching suspense, along with outstanding characterization, narrative and dialogue, this is one book that will attract many readers across all genres. Count this one a must-have, must-read. Highly recommended.
The Pirate and the Puritan
Mary Clayton
The Wild Rose Press
1601541198 $14.99
At a young age, Mercy Penhall witnessed her mother's hanging and has not spoken in thirteen years. While sailing from Virginia to Massachusetts, her ship is destroyed by pirates and she is taken captive. Edmund Gramercy, forced by the pirates to be a captain, remains alive only because he knows how to navigate the seas. A compassionate man, Edmund protects Mercy from the other pirates, and is intrigued by her courage. Although attracted to Mercy, he realizes he can never have any sort of life with her due to his criminal background. Mercy has never experienced the feelings she holds for Edmund and would like nothing more than to remain by his side but fears she is not worthy of his love. Edmund helps Mercy escape and, from that point, both endure numerous hardships while longing for one another. Yet fate steps in more than once to bring the two together, only to be torn apart again.
Mary Clayton's historical romance wraps the reader in an enthralling love story that moves from the high seas to colonial America. Clayton provides vivid detail of the time period with keen insight into the differences between the religious communities, the ongoing political strife, the way women were perceived, and the brutality of a pirate's life. Characterization is excellent, from Mercy, a brave, mute Puritan who questions her religion and fears she is tainted, to Edmund, a compassionate man forced to live a cruel existence, to John Hanson, the evil Puritan minister intent on exorcising the witch within Mercy. Packed with action and suspense, readers will fall in love with the characters and this excellent love story. Highly recommended.
Certain Prey
John Sandford
G.P. Putnam's Sons
039914496X $24.95
As a teenager, Clara Rinker ran away from home and an abusive stepfather. While working as a dancer in a strip club, Clara is raped but plots her vengeance and kills the man who assaulted her. This begins a long career for Clara as a hired killer. Carmel Loan is a successful defense attorney in Minneapolis, a woman who is used to getting what she wants. And she wants Hale Allen, but standing in her way is Allen's wife. Through a third-party, Carmel hires Clara to kill Allen's wife, at which point, Lucas Davenport steps into the picture. Before Clara can enjoy her new relationship with Allen, the liaison she used to contact Clara tries to blackmail Carmel, so Carmel hires Clara personally to take care of this matter. From this point, things begin to unravel, which requires Clara and Carmel to team up and commit more murders. All the while, Davenport and his crew are one step behind the two killers, with no evidence to tie either one to any of the murders.
This is the tenth book in the Prey series by John Sandford, which remains as fresh at this point as at the beginning. Lucas Davenport is an engaging character, an intelligent and intense investigator who enjoys his career chasing killers. Although there is no actual mystery to figure out here, which marks this as more of a thriller, the chase by Davenport and several strong secondary characters is fine-tuned and all the more enjoyable to follow.
The Overlook
Michael Connelly
Little, Brown and Company
9780316018951 $21.99
LAPD detective Harry Bosh has a new job in the Homicide Special division, which handles murders with political, celebrity or media connections, or those called hobby cases, which are difficult to solve and take much time. His first call out involves a doctor killed at an overlook above Mulholland Dam. Bosch and his new partner, Ignacio Ferras, are surprised when the FBI shows up at the crime scene. The dead doctor worked with radioactive materials and the FBI thinks his murder is tied to a terrorist plot to build and activate a dirty bomb in Los Angeles. When they learn that radioactive material has been stolen from the doctor, the case shifts to investigate the terrorists who took the substance instead of who killed the doctor. But Bosch thinks there's more to this murder than what's obvious.
Harry Bosch is once more at odds with the FBI and his own police department, but this relentless detective will not back down and pursues his own investigation in his own way. Bosch is an edgy man with a rebellious streak, a detective whose skills continue to keep him in good standing with the upper echelons of the police department, although he always manages to alienate most of those around him. Although this mystery is relatively easy for the reader to solve, the plot is tight and suspenseful, and takes place within a 12-hour time span.
Colin's Conquest
Lisa Rene Smith
L&L Dreamspell
9780978772314 $19.95
Colin, a centenarian vampire, marks Joanna as his future mate when she is a young girl. Years later, Joanna is compelled to go to her family's cabin deep in the Texas woodlands, where Colin claims her for himself. But Joanna isn't willing to remain captive in Colin's lair and keeps trying to escape from him. Colin is surprised by Joanna's fiery, independent nature and is baffled at the human emotions this strong woman brings out in him. Joanna is fascinated by Colin and her passion for him cannot be denied. However, few females survive the transition from human to vampire, and Colin, once he realizes he is in love with Joanna, decides that he does not want to risk her life. He hypnotizes Joanna, commanding she forget him and his young companion Ben. But Joanna's body does not want to forget, and she risks her life to find Colin, unaware that other, powerful male vampires are heading her way, each determined to have her as his mate.
Colin's Conquest is a captivating tale wrapped around a sizzling romance between characters readers will not soon forget, filled with vivid details of the sometimes brutal lives of blood seekers. Packed with suspense and rocking with action, this superb paranormal raises the bar in the romance field. Readers will be quickly turning pages, engrossed in the fascinating world Smith has created, so much so that they will be reluctant to leave it. Highly recommended.
Chaos the Vampire Child
Lisa Rene Smith
L&L Dreamspell
9780978772376 $19.95
Smith begins the second of her blood seeker series twelve years after the ending of the first. Centenarian Colin and his transformed wife Joanna remain married, residing with their daughter Chaos, Colin's neophyte Ben and Linnea, Colin's creator. Chaos enters puberty and quickly changes from child to woman in one day, sending out her siren's song. Women vampires are a rarity and much coveted by the males of their clan, who hear her mating call and hasten to find her. But Colin and his family are committed to protecting Chaos and will gladly give their lives to see that she remains safe and by their side. But there are blood seekers more ancient and much stronger than they, and death and destruction lie in their path as they seek to protect Chaos.
Smith once more delivers an outstanding paranormal. Action and adventure abound and romance is hot and sweet. Characters from the first book in the series return for a more in-depth look into their backgrounds and personas. The fight scenes are well-written and filled with suspense. Smith's visualizations are uniquely poetic and draw the reader into the story as she takes them from the piney woods of Texas to the Floridian coast. Highly recommended.
Christy Tillery French
Reviewer
Daniel's Bookshelf
One Last Scream
Kevin O' Brien
Pinnacle Books
c/o Kensington Publishing Corporation
830 Third Avenue, New York, NY, 10022
9780786017768 $6.99 www.kensingtonbooks.com 1-800-221-2647
A young women named Amelia Faraday has help from a therapist Karen Carlisle who becomes wrapped up in to attempting to prove Amelia's innocence from a series of twelve suspicious murders. The plot is devious and the author Kevin O' Brien keeps the story and twists turning, so the last 100 pages keeps the reader engrossed, and persistent to finishing a very satisfying mystery.
This story written is a complex puzzle, and a plot that keeps one guessing while reading it. I find that attribute to be the most important. The other facet of a twist that is not always so easy to detect during the unraveling of the storyline. The story begins with an abduction, which eventually multiple murders and the plot thickens to events taking place. The problem is the main character is closely tied to the events of the murders and she has vivid recollections of having committed them. The therapist and Amelia's uncle begin to investigate her past which uncovers murders in the present and the past. Everything seems to lead to Amelia.
The action, suspense, and this baffling mystery give credibility of the author to tell a scary tale of action, which keeps this reader not wanting it to end. Kevin O' Brien has written more than eight novels to date, and the best compliment to him is to look back to his earlier novels, and read them with my new found respect. I was lucky to have picked this novel by pure happenstance, and I am delighted I found this intelligent thriller mystery.
Deep Storm
Lincoln Child
Published by Anchor Books
A Division of Random House, Inc.
1745 Broadway 3rd Floor, New York, NY, 10019
9781400095476 $7.99 www.anchorbooks.com www.randomhouse.com 1-262-765-9000
I have read all of Lincoln Child's joint novels with Douglas Preston and both of their solo novels with the exception of Douglas's Blasphemy. I have been entertained throughout the years with their good stories of adventure, interesting characters, and intriguing settings. Deep Storm is a fine read of mystery, adventure, and very intense setting at the bottom of the North Atlantic ocean. Lincoln wraps up a tight story with twists and a claustrophobic atmosphere that keeps the suspense pounding. The main character Peter Crane is sent to assist into this site to investigate mysterious illnesses. He is brought into a secret research facility and allowed access to seek out to find answers to them. The book moves at page turning pace, and the author keeps the reader interested into what the problem might be and guessing to the very end. A combination of all the subplots that don't take away from the outcome.
I was not disappointed into this tale of adventure in a world one knows really little about with all the security and high technology. The setting is a place where danger creeps up within this facility, that was there to uncover answers that only raised more questions. Lincoln knows how to keep the reader informed only to the point to help find out what is truly happening below the water's surface. This gives me the nod to put a comment that it was a good intriguing yarn and an intelligent anytime read. I end it with the thoughts that I recommend it to anyone who likes to read a thriller that moves along with good pacing.
Daniel Allen
Reviewer
Debra's Bookshelf
The 731 Legacy
Lynn Sholes & Joe Moore
Midnight Ink
9780738713175 $15.95
The forces of evil are hard at work again in The 731 Legacy, the fourth installment in Lynn Sholes and Joe Moore's series featuring Satellite News Network correspondent Cotten Stone. This time, the North Koreans are plotting to unleash an Ebola-like hemorrhagic virus on the world. The virus is the dirty work of Chung Moon Jung, an embittered, Japanese-born doctor who is eager to carry on her parents' work: during World War II they had been part of Japan's covert Unit 731, which conducted research into biological and chemical warfare and, notoriously, was responsible for the deaths of tens of thousands of their human guinea pigs. The North Koreans are being helped in their gruesome enterprise by Cotten Stone's nemesis, the Dark Lord himself, Lucifer: as regular readers of the series will be aware, Cotten isn't just a reporter; she's also the daughter of Furmiel, one of the Fallen Angels, who rebelled against God but later repented of it.
As in previous installments, Cotten's relationship with Cardinal John Tyler is central to the story. The two are a couple in all but deed, devoted to one another but, his position being what it is, incapable of acting on their affection. John winds up needing saving from the bad guys more than once this time around, and Cotten risks everything to rescue him. She in fact gets herself into trouble so deep that extrication from it seems impossible.
The 731 Legacy, just as the authors' previous books, starts with a gripping first chapter. The rest of the book is good too: it's well written, and the plot keeps you reading. I have no complaints about the book at all up until its denouement: the final battle between good and evil, because it's fought on an extra-human plane rather than by the protagonists, feels remote and anticlimactic. In addition, the book's last chapter is, frankly, shocking: the plot development it announces is wholly unexpected and, I think, far too sudden. It feels, in fact, like a series-ending conclusion, but there is no indication that this is the last outing for Cotten Stone. Assuming there's a book five, it's going to be a very different animal indeed!
I'm Proud of You: Life Lessons from My Friend Fred Rogers
Tim Madigan
Gotham Books
9781592403301 $11.00
In the fall of 1995 Tim Madigan interviewed Fred Rogers for an article he was writing on TV violence for the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. It turned out to be the beginning of a friendship--mostly conducted long distance, by email and phone--that would profoundly affect Madigan and would last until Mister Rogers' death early in 2003. In I'm Proud of You Madigan discusses Mister Rogers' role in his life during their seven-year friendship, explaining how Rogers' support and unconditional love helped him through problems with his marriage and his brother's untimely death from lung cancer. Madigan quotes liberally from Rogers' correspondence and from their conversations, both of which are infused with Rogers' spirituality: Mister Rogers was an ordained minister, and references to prayer and God were a staple of his communication.
By all accounts, Fred Rogers was possessed of an otherworldly goodness. It's impossible to come away from Madigan's account or other write-ups of Mister Rogers unimpressed.
"I had always hated to swim, but didn't have the heart to say so then. So Fred led me into the club's locker room, introduced me to the attendant and a few of his other friends, found me a swimsuit that would fit, then quickly and unselfconsciously stripped off his clothes. On the way to the pool with a towel over his shoulder, he stepped on a locker room scale and smiled.
"'One-four-three,' he said. 'I've weighed exactly one hundred and forty-three pounds for as long as I can remember. Did you know that in sign language that means, 'I love you'? One finger for I; four fingers for love; three fingers for you. Isn't that wonderful?'"
He was, Madigan's book makes clear, constantly thoughtful, apparently always on the lookout for a means of expressing his support to his friends, and to their friends and family.
Madigan's life was much improved by his relationship with Mister Rogers, particularly since the friendship straddled such rough patches in Madigan's life. Madigan is honest about those difficulties, and quite willing to expose his vulnerability. Indeed, his account is so honest it sometimes feels as if the author has rubbed his raw wounds on the page. I wouldn't do it, certainly, and, truth be told, I'm tempted to feel embarrassment on his behalf. The title of the book, for example, is a reference to Fred Rogers' response to a letter Madigan wrote him in 1996, explaining how he craved acceptance from his father as a child and that he was still looking for acceptance from a father figure:
"That is the question I have of you this morning, Fred. Will you be proud of me? It would mean a great deal to me if you would. I have come to love you in a very special way. In your letters, and during our brief time together in Pittsburgh, you have done so much to teach me how to be a person and a man. And now I have this favor to ask of you.
"Will you be proud of me?"
I am of a cynical bent, and find it difficult to believe in the possibility of--or even the desirability of--unconditional love (with an exception granted for one's children). So I confess that the intensity of the relationship between these two men strikes me as strange. But the book offers an interesting look at the sort of man Fred Rogers was, from someone with a unique perspective on the subject.
Guide to Pirate Parenting
Tim Bete
Cold Tree Press
214 Overlook Court, Suite 253, Brentwood, Tennessee 37027
9781583851272 $10.95
So, a pirate walks into a bar.... As Tim Bete tells it, at least, that's how his Guide to Pirate Parenting got its beginning. A pirate, one Cap'n Billy "The Butcher" MacDougall, sat down next to him at the Crow's Nest Tavern. After an hour's worth of chit chat and one potentially fatal faux pas on Bete's part ("Do you work in a theme park?"), Cap'n Billy, having learned that Bete was a writer, demanded that he transcribe the Cap'n's pirate-themed parenting advice. Teaching parents how to raise their children as pirates, the Cap'n figured, would be good for the pirating industry, there being a shortage of pirates in the modern day. As for parents, they'll find that kids raised as pirates will have higher self-esteem and a more colorful vocabulary. And the fact that one's children are pirates is useful as a ready excuse for any behavioral issues that should come up.
Following Bete's introduction on the genesis of his book are seven chapters in which the Cap'n answers common questions--a sort of pirate parenting FAQ--on the subjects of: pirate babies, food, sleeping issues, discipline, health, converting one's minivan into a pirate ship, and the teen years. For example:
"What is pink eye and how can I treat it?
"Conjunctivitis, or pink eye, is inflammation of the conjunctiva, the white part of the eye. It is caused by bacteria and viruses and is extremely contagious. Do not let your child share another pirate's glass eye. While swapping glass eyes may seem like harmless fun, it often spreads disease. To treat conjunctivitis, get a prescription antibiotic from your child's doctor or change your child's nickname to 'Pinkeye the Pirate.'"
As for parents, they'll find that kids raised as pirates will have higher self-esteem and a more colorful vocabulary. Bete's book is cute in parts (I did laugh aloud when I read that Cap'n Billy used to call his grade school speech teacher a "speech therrrrrapist"), but the pirate jokes wear thin pretty quickly. Even at only 120-odd pages the book seems over-long. It may be that it's the sort of book one is meant to dip into rather than read straight through. That would make the salt cod jokes easier to take. Still, it's difficult to know who the appropriate audience for this book is. Kids might appreciate the jokes and the pirate-themed nursery rhymes Bete includes more than adults will, but then they're not usually in the market for parenting advice. But if you know a father-to-be with a slightly corny sense of humor, this might be just the book to get him as a gift.
Debra Hamel, Reviewer
www.buyafriendabook.com
Gary's Bookshelf
Devil May Care
Sebastian Faulks (a.k.a. Ian Fleming)
Doubleday
9780385524285 $24.95 www.doubleday.com
The intent on the part of the holders of the Ian Fleming estate was a great idea. They wanted to celebrate the 100th year of the birth of Ian Fleming by introducing a brand new James Bond novel that takes place a short time after "The Man With The Golden Gun" the last Fleming novel. But sadly that is the only good thing I can say about this novel. For starters the author should never have said he is writing as Ian Fleming because Fleming had a certain writing style that Faulks does not even try to capture. Fleming from the first novel "Casino Royale" in the first sentence described the feel of a casino at four in the morning. His description conveyed he had been to the city he was writing about and you felt he knew his subject. Here is an example from the first paragraph of "Live and Let Die" "There are moments of great luxury in the life of a secret agent. There are assignments on which he is required to act the part of a very rich man; occasions when he takes refuge to good living to efface the memory of danger and the shadow of death; and times when as was now the case, he is a guest in the territory of an allied Secret Service." I also found that in the Fleming Bond adventures the villains were larger than life, out to destroy the world. They also had memorable names. Hugo Drax, Goldfinger, Dr. No, Ernst Stavro Blofeld, and Dr. Shatterhand. I can not tell you the name of this one. Faulks also replays certain aspects of the Fleming novels. Someone is sucked out of the airplane in a fight with Bond; the villain has a disabled hand like Dr. No are two of the things I noticed. I found the two women in the novel to be a distraction and the plot is very confusing. Kingsley Amis as Robert Markham wrote "Colonel Sun" that is much closer to the original novels than Faulks. Amis was also smart to not say he was writing as Ian Fleming. Even John Gardner, and Raymond Benson in their updated versions of Bond have done a better job of staying true to the character and feel of Fleming. It is overall a total disappointment. The reason I feel this way is because unlike many readers I have read all of the Fleming novels and am very fond of them. The estate holder would have done better to find another author to have written a Bond thriller closer to Fleming. Luckily Faulks has stated that this is his only contribution to the legacy of James Bond and Ian Fleming.
The Society of S
Susan Hubbard
Simon & Schuster
1230 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY 10020
9781416534587 $14.00 www.susanhubbard.com www.simonsays.com
"The Society of S" is the first novel of two so far that are about a teenager who finds out she is half vampire and half human. I read unfortunately "The Year Of Disappearances," the second novel, first. But actually it's not a real problem. I found both books to be interesting reading that take the vampire genre into brand new territory. The writing here is very tight with a story that races along to its final conclusion in Florida. Ari is on a quest to find her mother. Along the way she meets some interesting characters and there are a series of murders that possibly can be traced to her. There are plot twists and turns in which Ari begins to learn all about herself from her father and others around her. Hubbard has given new life to the vampire story.
Sail
James Patterson and Howard Roughan
Little Brown and Company
Hachette Book Group USA
1271 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY 10020
0316018708 $27.95 www.HachetteBookGroupUSA.com
After "You've Been Warned" by these same two authors, which I thought was one of their worst so much so that I couldn't even tell you what "You've Been Warned" was about. I am happy to say "Sail" puts them back on top with a lighting quick read that explodes on almost every page with suspense and a plot that races along like a runaway train. The dysfunctional Dunne family of Dr Katherine, her daughter Carrie, sons Mark and Ernie and Katherine's former brother in-law Jake are on the sailing trip of their lives. Katherine's second husband Bailey Todd stays behind and says he will see them all in a few weeks. The bizarre beginning in which a fish is caught containing a bottle with a message to the end makes this a tale that is filled with well-defined characters and situations that have readers turning pages. This one is their best one so far.
Destiny A Love Story From the Ashes of Despair
Don Helling
Outskirts Press Inc
Denver, Colorado
9781432719920 $9.95 www.outskirtspress.com
The western novel has always been fun reading. Don Helling shows with "Destiny" why. The characters are interesting set in a time when things were much simpler. The writing conveys the feel and manner of the late 1880s set in Colorado before it became a state. The novel is also a love story between a man who carries several secrets that he is afraid to reveal for fear of losing her.
The Woods Are Dark
Richard Laymon
Leisure Books
200 Madison Avenue, New York, NY 10016
9780843957501 $7.99 www.dorchesterpub.com
At the beginning of this book there is an introduction by Richard Laymon's daughter Kelly that tells the progression of this novel to this edition.. I can see why Warner Books changed much of it for their version. Having read both printings I have to say this is the better one. The road was long to this version which is the one Laymon originally wrote It is more complete and answers a lot of questions left open from before. The story is gritty with graphic sex and just plain weird. The writing is memorable and the end is bizarre. Laymon who is no longer with us was one of the best writers of horror. We are lucky that Leisure has been printing new editions of his tales that are finding whole new audiences.
Sweet Mandarin
Helen Tse
Thomas Dunne Books
c/o St. Martins Press
175 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10010
9780312379360 $23.95 www.stmartins.com
Helen Tse has told her family story from Hong Kong to England over several generations of women. She also reveals how she and women in her family opened a restaurant in Britain. But there is more to this wonderful true story. She also shows the culture of Hong Kong that many of us have never known. Women are not just second-class citizens. They have no voice. At an early age it is decided for them who they are to marry. They own nothing. . They are to serve the needs of their husband and their education is limited. When their husband dies the property and all valuables go to the next male family member to her husband This is the society Tse's grandmother had to endure. Tse's grandfather wanted to raise the family's standard of living higher than it was so he opened a business that was such a threat to others of the same industry that it cost him his life. She was able to leave Hong Kong and live in England to start a new life. This is the story of three generations of one family. The author has done a tremendous job of showing the differences in cultures and how one family of women evolved and survived.
I Already Know I Love You
Billy Crystal, author
Elizabeth Sayles, illustrator
Harper Festival
10 East 53rd Street, New York, NY 10022
9780061450570 $7.99 www.harpercollinschildrens.com
The multi talented Billy Crystal now writes a kid's book that shows how a grandparent feels about the birth of a new child. From the point of view of the grandfather, he writes of the things he would like to tell the child, when it's a little older, of the bonding process of grandfather and grandchild. The book though short adds a new perspective and shows how important involvement with grandparents is to young children.
Welcome to Your World, Baby
Brooke Shields, author
Cori Doerrfeld, illustrator
Harper Collins Publishers
10 East 53rd Street, New York, NY 10022
9780061253119 $16.99 www.harpercollinschildrens.com
Brooke Sheilds who has entertained us in many ways now turns her attention to a kid's book. She tells the story of a child and how she prepares for the arrival of a sibling. The book is fun reading and tells children a lot of how to prepare for the birth of another child. The artwork by Cori Doerrfeld adds a great deal to the work.
There's a Yak in My Bed
K. Pluta, author
Christy Stallop, illustrator
Blooming Tree Press
P.O. Box140934, Austin TX 78714
9780976941743 $16.95 www.bloomingtreepress.com
This is one of the funniest kid's books I think I have ever read. Pluta has written a witty tale of a yak that tries to fit in to the human world. The illustrations add another dimension to this wonderful story. "There's a Yak In My Bed" is not just for little kids, it is a book that all ages can enjoy.
Patrick the Somnambulist
Sarah Ackerley
Blooming Tree Press
P.O. Box140934, Austin TX 78714
9781933831077 $14.95 www.bloomingtreepress.com
Kid's books today are filled with many messages. "Patrick the Somnambulist"is about a Penguin trying to find himself. He goes so far as to seek out therapy to talk about who he is. Sarah Ackerley who is also the artist has told a very charming tale for all ages to enjoy.
Gary Roen
Reviewer
Gloria's Bookshelf
Death Walked In
Carolyn Hart
William Morrow
10 E. 53rd St., NY, NY 10022
9780060724054 $23.95 800-242-7737 www.harpercollins.com
The newest entry in the popular Death on Demand series by Carolyn Hart returns the reader to Broward's Rock, described as the "loveliest of the South Carolina sea islands," and indeed the writer makes the town sound charming as its flora and fauna are lovingly described. The focal point of the action is the historic ante-bellum Franklin House which Annie and Max Darling are refurbishing. As the tale opens, Max is en route to the old house when he receives a call from a frightened-sounding woman seeking his help. Max runs Confidential Commissions, described as an agency devoted to assisting problems in solving problems. Insistent that it is not a detective agency, and having had a particularly nasty experience the last time he heeded a similar cry for help, he instructs his secretary to tell the woman to call the police. When the woman's dead body is discovered by Annie, his wife, shortly afterwards, he is overwhelmed with, as Annie describes it, "a good man's concern that he'd walked by on the other side of the road, leaving a helpless woman in jeopardy."
Though he might not have been able to prevent her death, Annie and Max determine to find the murderer. There seems to be a connection between the murder and the theft of some very valuable coins from the home of the dead woman's employer, the esteemed Grant family, only a few days prior. The convoluted relations between the various family members are exposed as the investigation continues, and another murder occurs. The killer appears to be "a shadowy figure who seemed to be able to move unseen leaving death behind."
The Darlings are as dogged as one might hope in their efforts to uncover the identity of the thief and the murderer [are they one and the same?]. Along the way we again meet two of the series' most delightful characters: Agatha, the elegant black cat who resides in the bookstore Annie owns, Death on Demand, described as the finest mystery bookstore north of Miami, and Dorothy L, the fluffy white cat owned by Max, named after arguably two of the best practitioners of the art of the small-town mystery, in whose footsteps this author wonderfully follows. [In debating which cat is smarter than the other, Max states "Depends on which reader you ask."] A delightful, suspenseful read.
Dead Time
Stephen White
Dutton
c/o Penguin Group
375 Hudson St., NY, NY 10014
9780525960066 $25.95 800-847-5515, www.penguingroup.com
At the outset I found the shifting points of view utilized by the author somewhat disconcerting, something I didn't remember from Mr. White's earlier books, which I have uniformly loved. The chapters written from the p.o.v. of Alan Gregory, the clinical psychologist who is Mr. White's protagonist in this series, are headed "Her Ex," while those from the p.o.v. of his former wife are "His Ex." These are in turn interspersed with a separate story line dealing with the mysterious disappearance a few years back in time of a young woman last seen on the Canyon floor at the base of the Grand Canyon, those chapters headed simply "The Canyon." These disparate lines are joined quickly enough when we learn that these latter passages are flashbacks to an incident in the life of Alan's ex's current fiance, the repercussions of which are still being felt, and in which she enlists Alan's help.
I must quickly state that the alternating p.o.v. and varying voices are handled so skillfully that they proceed swiftly and the reader becomes engrossed in the tale – or tales – being spun, and any negative reactions quickly disappear. And when another woman disappears, in the contemporaneous story, the action ratchets up, as does the reader's tension and absorption.
The action takes place variously in Boulder, Colorado, where the author and his protagonist live, as well as New York City, Los Angeles and of course the Grand Canyon, with wonderful descriptions of each. The novel deals with "buried things that refuse to stay buried," and with several parenthood issues, all engrossing. The writing contains just the right amount of humor at appropriate times to lighten the suspense-filled story, as would be expected from this wonderful author all of whose prior books – did I mention this? – I've thoroughly enjoyed. The book is hard to put down, and is highly recommended.
Easy Innocence
Libby Fischer Hellmann
Bleak House Books
923 Williamson St., Madison WI 53703
www.bleakhousebooks.com 800-258-5830
9781932557664 $24.95
Georgia Davis is the protagonist of what appears to be a new series by Libby Fischer Hellmann. A cop for ten years on the North Shore of Chicago, she has been suspended from the force and is now working as a P.I. She has been hired to investigate the death of a 17-year-old girl, a high school student who was murdered in what appears to have started as a hazing, clubbed to death with a baseball bat in a forest preserve. It seems to be a pretty cut and dried affair, with all the evidence pointing to a 35-year-old registered sex offender. The latter's sister, fifteen years his senior, is convinced that despite his history, her brother is incapable of violence.
Although the case is described as a slam dunk, even the dead girl's mother has some doubts, telling Georgia: "Things started moving so fast it made my head spin. Everything all tied up in three or four days. With a big, shiny ribbon on top." Georgia's investigation uncovers up all kinds of unexpected discoveries, all to do with "families and friendships and secrets," some of which put Georgia's life in jeopardy. Georgia is not without conflict on this case: Her former partner on the police force is in charge of the investigation into the teen's death, and his animosity towards her is palpable. Then her path crosses that of her former lover, with whom she broke up two years earlier.
This was a book I could not put down, reading it cover to cover during the course of one day. The reader is drawn into the story immediately, and the wonderful writing makes the characters come alive. The startling turn of events as the book goes on is, on reflection, not all that shocking, but it certainly seems that way at first. I loved that Ellie Foreman, the protag in Ms. Hellmann's prior series, makes a cameo appearance, and that a character is named after Ruth Jordan, she of Crimespree Magazine renown. The suspense is sustained throughout as the search for the real killer goes on, and some unexpected twists as the books races to a conclusion will keep readers off balance to the end. Highly recommended.
The book had a simultaneous release in hardcover and in paperback format.
Whitewash
Alex Kava
Mira Books, Exon House
18-24 Paradise Rd., Richmond, Surrey UK TW9 1SR
9780778302025 6.99 Brit. pounds www.mirabooks.co.uk
[This book will not be available in the US til Nov. 2008, presently only available from or through the UK or Canada]
Alex Kava has written a thriller that could not be more timely – its themes are oil and greed.
Sabrina Galloway is a 35-year-old former academic, having left her home in Chicago one year ago to work as a scientist for EchoEnergy, a Tallahassee, Florida company apparently in the forefront of the race to convert refuse and other waste material into oil, a process known as Thermal Conversion [a very real science per the author's note]. The corporation seems on the verge of landing a $140 million government contract to supply the entire U.S. military, the first time such a contract would be awarded to other than a Middle Eastern oil company.
The book, surely written before the present-day preoccupation with gas prices and the per-barrel cost of oil ascending to ever greater and previously unthinkable heights, takes place during a post-George W. Bush administration, and got this reader in its grip early on [almost surprisingly, as I did not finish the one earlier book by Ms. Kava I had ever picked up]. But all the elements are here: a suspenseful story line, fast-paced writing, and engaging characters: Sabrina; her octogenarian next-door neighbor, Miss Sadie, whose gorgeous fluffy white cat, Lizzie Borden, plays her own small role; her father, seemingly victim of dementia; and her enigmatic brother, Eric, who she has neither seen nor heard from in two years, since the tragic accidental death of their mother; and then there are the Washington D.C. players, including Jason Brill, pragmatic chief of staff to U. S. Senator John Quincy Allen, a man with special ambitions of his own, and whose support of the EchoEnergy contract he hopes will further those ambitions.
This standalone entry from Alex Kava may make me seek out her several prior books, and it is recommended.
Chasing Cans
Laura Crum
Perseverance Press
c/o John Daniel & Co.
P.O. Box 2790, McKinleyville CA 95519
9781880284940 $14.95 800-662-8351, www.danielpublishing.com
In the tenth book in her Gail McCarthy series [only the second which I have read], Laura Crum's protagonist has, at least for the moment, and with only a bit of ambivalence, left her profession as a horse vet to be a full-time mom. Now at the age of forty, married for two years, Gail has found domestic life with her husband and year-old little boy to be more fulfilling than she could have guessed. As to the ambivalence: "I struggled once again with the inevitable conflict between this overwhelming drive to mother versus my own wish, neglected but not forgotten, to continue being the assertive, professional woman I was used to being. Gail McCarthy the horse vet, that was me. Independent, strong-minded, competent, in charge - these were the words that came to mind. Not tranquil, maternal, nurturing, patient - the virtues that went with mamahood. And yet, here I was."
As the book opens, Gail is confronted by her querulous neighbor, a horse trainer, where strong feelings, all of them negative, abound. When shortly thereafter the woman dies in what seems to be a freak accident while training a horse, termed a 'horse wreck," Gail cannot ignore the feeling that something about the incident seemed wrong. The woman's enemies abound - Gail herself can be considered one of them, for that matter. But when another woman dies soon after in another horse wreck, under different but similarly 'off' circumstances, Gail cannot ignore the fact that someone may have caused these events - the second woman is left in a coma, the question of her ultimate recovery unknown. When her friend Jeri, the detective assigned to the case, asks for Gail's help, since Gail knows all of the people involved and who could be considered suspects, Gail feels duty bound to help her, to her own peril it would seem.
The dead woman, Lindee Stone, was a well-known trainer of barrel racing horses, a sport of which I must admit I'd never heard. The horse doesn't actually race or chase the barrels. As it is explained, "three barrels, essentially oil drums, are set up in a measured triangle It is a timed event wherein the horse runs a pattern that involves making a specific, ordered U-turn around each barrel and then racing back to the line where he started. The loops around each barrel look a bit like the three lobes of a cloverleaf. The horse's time starts when he crosses the line, then he runs what they call the cloverleaf pattern around the barrels and when he crosses the line again, his time stops." Fastest time wins. It's a timed event and is apparently very demanding, both of the animal and the trainer as well. And Lindee had been one of the best, apparently earning medals as well as enemies along the way with equal ease. To me, the more interesting aspect of this is its reference to the sport as "Chasing Cans." As Gail says, "I guess it struck me as some sort of metaphor for the meaninglessness of life. We chase and chase after whatever it is we think we want – money, power, status – and then, in the end, it doesn't seem to mean very much. Not while you're lying in your grave," and seems to be the author's metaphor for meaningless pursuits.
The aforementioned work/amateur sleuth/full-time mother conflict is portrayed very realistically by the author, as Gail alternately pursues the investigation and then returns home to the magnetic pull of the incredible joys of bonding with her baby. But as she ponders the question "Was pursuing the truth for its own sake enough?" ultimately the answer has to be 'yes.' The gorgeous descriptions of San Francisco's Monterey Bay area and the equine [and other assorted] animal population that abound there are wonderfully evocative of the place. The author is a fourth-generation Santa Cruz County resident who has owned and trained horses for over thirty years, and that knowledge is made evident in her writing. An enjoyable read.
Empty Ever After
Reed Farrel Coleman
Bleak House Books
923 Williamson St., Madison WI 53703
9781932557640 $24.95 800-258-5830, www.bleakhousebooks.com
Moe Prager is a complex man, and Empty Ever After, the newest book in the series of which he is the protagonist, is a complex novel. Moe is an ex-cop and currently a p.i., as well as co-owner of four wine shops in and around New York City. He adores his teenage daughter, Sarah, and has a more or less amicable relationship with his ex-wife, Katy. As he says, "Divorce, no matter how amicable, isn't easy, and Katy, Sarah and I were still in the midst of realigning our hearts to deal with the new tilt of our worlds…Divorce impacts couples in different ways. It's an equation of losses and gains. The gains, however large or small, are usually apparent early on. The losses, as I was discovering, reveal themselves slowly, in painful, unexpected ways."
Moe's marriage fell apart when the truth of Katy's brother's death years earlier became known to her, and the fact that Moe had kept that truth a secret for all that time. Moe is called to the grave of Katy's brother, Patrick Michael Maloney, when it is found to have been desecrated, and subsequent events make it apparent that someone is out to hurt, if not destroy, Moe's family. Secrets are a big part of this tale, and the harm that they can do which can far outlive the events that gave rise to them. Moe finds it necessary to search back over the last few decades of his life, and has to "focus on closing chapters in my life." [Vengeance, cemeteries, and 'ghosts' all play a part.] He tries to comfort his daughter, distraught at the awful way unfolding events have affected her mother. In the past he had always been able to provide that comfort, but now wonders "Had she finally outgrown the magic…or was it that the magic wouldn't work if the magician no longer believed in his powers?"
Mr. Coleman has written a book that is much more than a suspenseful novel – it is a beautifully written work imparting some universal truths. About truth itself, the author says "….the truth doesn't conform to the rules of Sunday school or sermons, to cliches or adages. The truth doesn't always come out in the wash or in the end and it's frequently not for the best. The truth often makes things worse, much worse. The truth can be as much poison as elixir, cancer as cure." It's often moving, and it resonated with me as much as I did partially because I, as Moe, grew up as a Jew living in Brooklyn, with the Belt Parkway part of the backdrop of my life and Shea Stadium part of its fabric, but also because of the very human and well-drawn characterizations. The book, simultaneously issued in hardcover and paperback, is highly recommended. The author has a new book coming out in October from the same publisher, "The Fourth Victim," written under the name of Tony Spinosa , and I cannot wait to read it, as well as the next book in the Moe Prager series.
Fatal Encryption
Debra Purdy Kong
Gypsy Moon Press
3313 Henry St., Port Moody BC, V3H 2K4
9780969921110 $19.95 604-469-4852
Alex Bellamy, 28-year-old Chartered Accountant and computer geek who had been working as a temp, decides against his better judgment to accept a job as systems analyst for the family-owned McKinleys' Department Stores. Three successive men had left the position or been fired, and the stores' computers have been the target of pranks. Alex decides that virtual vandalism is a worthy objective for his talents and in fact, since normally he merely sets up systems and gets rid of viruses for his clients, thinks it might be an 'intriguing challenge.' Little does he know.
No sooner does he accept the job than the family receives threats which escalate from huge ransom demands to promises of retaliation ranging from a fatal encryption of the entire computer system used by all stores in the chain [the main store plus 21 satellite stores], to the burning down of the main store. The stakes are raised when the brother of a man who had been fired from the store is murdered. Could the killer and the hacker be one and the same? The suspects are, among others, "a disgruntled systems analyst, an employer close to bankruptcy, and a controller who couldn't keep his mouth shut."
The book is all about family dysfunction, from the McKinleys themselves to Alex [who had always been made to feel like the family failure when he rejected joining the Bellamy family's successful hotel empire] and various others around whom the plot revolves. Some of the writing felt somewhat stilted, e.g., "Just as I feared. Either the culprit, or his accomplice, works among us." The plot points first to one suspect as the most likely, then to another, then to another, and so on. After a while this began to feel repetitious, and the book might have benefited from some judicious editing. But the suspense builds to an exciting conclusion.
Among other unknown-to-me facts I picked up from the novel were the distinction between a "hack" and a "cracker," the former being someone who just wants to learn, the latter someone who wants to harm, and the definition of 'encryption," i.e., converting data into code which makes it inaccessible.
Scots on the Rocks
Mary Daheim
Avon
c/o Wm. Morrow
10 E. 53rd St., NY, NY 10022
9780060566548 $7.99 www.harpercollins.com 212-207-7000/800-242-7737
This is the 23rd entry in Mary Daheim's Bed-and-Breakfast series, and the first one I'd read. This time, instead of the Pacific Northwest, Judith Flynn and her cousin, Serena [known to one and all as Renie] Jones are in Scotland, where their husbands, retired cop and psychologist, respectively, are in
