March Read: Murder Road by Simone St. James

 

Oh, Simone St. James did it again. Managed to fascinate me while giving me the creeps. She is one of my favorite authors, and I have read every one of her novels, all the way back to discovering her first paperback during my bookseller years a loooong time ago. I'm thrilled she's getting the attention she deserves and becoming more popular with every new novel. 

This one will make you unwilling to drive down a dark, empty road by yourself for quite some time. It takes place in 1995, and starts out with April and Eddie Carter; two newlyweds on their way to a resort for a short honeymoon. It's late at night, and April wakes up in the front seat and discovers Eddie has become lost, and doesn't quite know how he got lost. But lost they are, late at night, on a lonely road with no one in sight. 

Until they see a young woman running down the road, begging for help. There is something very, very wrong with the young woman, and the road. A big black pick up truck comes roaring down the road, chasing after Eddie and April and the injured young woman in the back seat. They get to the town of Coldlake Falls just in time to escape from the black truck, but unfortunately the young woman dies at the hospital. The police are looking at Eddie and April, covered in blood, and in a bit of shock. Strangers in a small town; a dying woman in their back seat. They're forbidden to leave town as the police investigate, and that's where things really take off and get interesting. 

Eddie and April's backgrounds are messy and they both have kept secrets from each other. But murderers they are not, and they become determined to figure out what happened on Atticus Line Road that night. It wasn't natural, what they saw in the back of that black truck...

This is a small town with some eerie back story--hitchhikers found dead, murders unsolved, whispers of strange occurrences on Atticus Line Road. So many unsolved murders on that road, and the police are suspicious of anyone who comes through town. 

Will Eddie and April figure it all out and stay safe and out of jail for a crime they didn't commit? As they unravel the pieces of the puzzle, it becomes clear just why they were drawn to Atticus Line Road that night. It's one heck of a twist!

Anyone who loves eerie thrillers with a definite nod to creepy ghost stories will be all on board with this latest from Simone St. James. I love how her characters are always flawed in some way, and find themselves caught up in bizarre and ghostly events that require them to be stronger and braver than they've ever been. To believe and accept the unbelievable, because it's the only explanation. 

Loved it! Not surprised. I'm never disappointed with this author. 

Rating: 6/6 for a novel that will keep you patiently on the journey with Eddie and April as pieces slowly fall into place. A great ghost story about revenge, redemption, family, and leaving the past behind for a brighter future. 

Available in hardcover, ebook, and audio. 

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March Read: Murder Road by Simone St. James

December Read: The Twelve Dogs of Christmas by Susan Wiggs

 

This is a quick, feel-good holiday romance complete with lots of doggies. The cover art is just so stinkin' cute! 

Brenda Malloy does not like Christmas. Not anything about it; especially now that she's found out her husband is cheating on her on Christmas Eve. She used to love Christmas as a child, until a family tragedy one Christmas Eve left her feeling guilty and full of grief. Now she's starting over again, and a volunteer gig with the local animal shelter is going to change her world. 

Brenda volunteers with a dog rescue organization in Houston, Texas. It's been a year since her terrible Christmas Eve, and she's divorced and moved on--kind of. A series of mishaps within the dog rescue organization give Brenda a chance to travel with twelve dogs to their new adoptive homes in Upstate New York--just in time for Christmas. Loading up the van and traveling with her friend Dolly, all seems to be going well until a snowstorm sends the van off the road and Dolly into the hospital. Now Brenda has to coordinate the delivery of all twelve dogs to their forever homes, get the van fixed, and drive home to Houston by herself. 

Enter handsome paramedic Adam Bellamy, who is immediately attracted to Brenda and is also the new owner of Olaf, a big doggie that loves to run, jump, and play. He's divorced, a single father, and ready to take a chance on a new love. If only Brenda wanted to stay in Avalon, and get into the Christmas spirit...

This was just pure fun to read. Lovely characters; the dogs are all sweet and add to the festive atmosphere. The town of Avalon is very Hallmark-ish and there are some bumps in the road to happily ever after, but it's a fun journey. If you want to read a gentle holiday romance, this is your ticket. 

Rating: 4/6 for a quick romantic holiday read chock full of dogs and holiday spirit. 

Available in hardcover, ebook, and audio book. 

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December Read: The Twelve Dogs of Christmas by Susan Wiggs

Little Souls by Sandra Dallas

 

If you've been following my blog for a long time, you know I'm a big Sandra Dallas fan. I was thrilled to finally sit down and read her new book. Reading a novel by Sandra Dallas always feels comforting to me, and this novel was no different. 

Set in Denver during the Spanish Flu Pandemic and last days of World War One, this novel is about two sisters, Lutie and Helen. With their parents dead, both sisters moved from Cedar Rapids, Iowa (always an Iowa connection in Dallas' novels!) to Denver to start fresh. Helen is a nurse and works long hours tending to flu patients. Lutie works for a department store drawing advertisements. They own a home and rent the basement out. 

The basement residents are a couple and their young daughter Dorothy. Unfortunately, Dorothy's father is a mean, nasty man-a drunk and an abuser. When Dorothy's mother ends up a victim of the flu, Helen and Lutie take her in and decide they will raise her as their sister. It's obvious her father could care less about her, and besides, he's gone for days at a time. 

Until one day Lutie comes home and finds Mr. Streeter (Dorothy's father) dead on the kitchen floor; Helen standing over him with an ice pick. Helen confesses to killing him after finding him attacking Dorothy. Afraid to call the police, Lutie and Helen's beau Gil dispose of the body and pray he'll be mistaken for a flu victim. After all, people were dying in the streets, and so many were dying it was assumed any body left outside was a flu victim. 

With that terrible secret to bear, Lutie, Helen, and Dorothy attempt to keep moving on, but bad times just aren't through with them just yet. I don't want to say what else happens, because it would spoil the whole novel. But if you've read any of Sandra Dallas' novels before, you know there are some twists and turns, some unexpected sorrows, and always sunshine after the rain. Sandra has a talent for writing a good, solid story, with women as the central characters. This story, just like her others, is about everyday people living through extraordinary times; doing their best to survive, find happiness, and have a fulfilling life. 

I loved Lutie and Helen, and their relationship with Dorothy. There are some dark, cruel things that are explained to shed light on character behaviors, but not graphically at all and tastefully done. All in all, a quick read, and a welcome return from one of my favorite authors. 

Rating: 4/6 for a novel set in troubling times; about people who form a family, love each other through hard times, and find ways to heal old wounds. 

Available in hardcover, ebook, and audio. 

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Little Souls by Sandra Dallas

The Restoration of Celia Fairchild by Marie Bostwick

 

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This was another book I saw at B&N and the cover grabbed me right away. It didn't look like a romantic comedy (it isn't), and when I read the blurb on the back cover, well, seeing it was set in Charleston had me adding it to my stack of books. I left B&N that day with a hefty bag of books and zero regret. Which, to be honest, is how I always leave B&N. 

I'll be honest again and say I started reading it and thought, uh oh, I don't think I'm prepared to read a novel about a woman who is seeking to adopt a baby. It just wasn't what I was looking to read about. However, I kept reading (it was a welcome break from The Sanatorium!) and sure enough I got past the first 50 pages and settled into a charming novel about creating a family and finding a new beginning when it seems that all is lost. 

Celia Fairchild is newly divorced and working in New York City as the popular newspaper advice columnist Dear Calpurnia. She's decided the only way to have the family she desires is to adopt a baby on her own. Marching into her boss' office, she's prepared to ask for a raise in order to help finance a new place to live-a place to raise a baby. 

However, Celia finds herself unemployed and devastated by the sudden turn of events. Soon after, she receives a phone call from a lawyer in Charleston, telling her she is the sole heir to her Aunt Calpurnia's home and she must come down to take care of it. Celia hadn't spoken to her Aunt in years, and feels horrible Calpurnia died without Celia making her peace. With no job on the horizon, she heads to Charleston.

What Celia finds is a big surprise, and the beginning of a brand new life-one that Celia isn't sure she wants. However, she's a potential match for a baby, and has twelve weeks to get the house in shape for a visit by the birth mother. And the house is a DISASTER. A host of characters enter the picture-neighbors, an ex-con contractor, a delightfully sunny young man who works at a local coffee shop; even an old high school friend. And yes, the lawyer who wears ill-fitting suits even shows up to help Celia. Little does Celia know it, but her family is taking shape and changing her life. 

As I said before, this was a charming novel. I am always up for a novel where people are starting over, changing their life in big and small ways, and discovering what makes them truly happy. Time and time again, what we think we want and what we actually need are usually two different things-and it can take big changes to recognize the difference. For Celia, it's a big change in both her attitude and her idea of a picture perfect life that generate her happily ever after. 

There are some interesting issues throughout this book: most importantly, the issues of loneliness and isolation. Family, forgiveness, doing what's right versus doing what society thinks is proper. Understanding we have a family we are born into, and a family we create from those around us who support, nurture, and love us through all the crap. 

If you're looking for a gentle read, this is it. Marie Bostwick has written many other novels, and I suspect they are also gentle reads, too. There is a letter from the author in the back, as well as reading group questions. This is the kind of novel you finish at night before you go to bed, smile, then get a good night's sleep. 

Available in paperback and ebook. 

Rating: 4/6 for a novel that surprised me with the many lively characters and their back stories, the evolution of Celia's life plans, and the happily ever after that was not a big blow out, but a soft, gentle, satisfying conclusion. Oh-there is knitting, too! 

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The Restoration of Celia Fairchild by Marie Bostwick

The End of Her by Shari Lapena

This is the second Shari Lapena novel I've read, and wow! she can really spin a heck of a domestic thriller. 

The End of Her is about Patrick and Stephanie, a happily married couple and new parents to twin girls. Patrick is a partner in an architectural company, and Stephanie has left her job to stay home with the girls. Both are struggling with having two colicky babies that don't sleep and cry all the time. Stephanie is so sleep deprived she forgets to shut off the stove, and sometimes leaves the front door wide open. She just can't remember doing those things. There's not enough coffee in the world for her to stay functioning normally. Visits to a pediatrician for help don't really go as planned; the girls' doctor simply says they will stop being colicky sometime, and it will end abruptly. Meanwhile, Stephanie, and Patrick, too, are having major sleep deprivation. 

One day, a woman from Patrick's past appears, and threatens to blackmail Patrick if he doesn't pay her off. Erica knows Stephanie has inherited a few million dollars, and she wants money. Who is Erica? She's a woman who had an affair with Patrick years before, in Colorado. She was Patrick's first wife's best friend. And that first wife? Lindsey? She died, along with their unborn child, in a freakish accident. But Erica says she knows Patrick deliberately killed her. WHAT?!

Patrick tells Stephanie about Erica, and Stephanie refuses to give her money. Things are going to get sticky for everyone...and Erica is determined to get her way. She's not afraid to make some noise, and make a whole lot of trouble for Patrick. Erica makes enemies wherever she goes. 

This was such a good thriller! I raced through it. So many twists and turns. Shari writes about seemingly average couples; however they're really hiding a lot of secrets, and capable of doing terrible things. Things they may never have imagined doing just a few short weeks before--it's amazing what people will do to protect themselves. Look a little closer at domestic bliss and you'll find it's usually pretty dark, and not so blissful. 

It's only taken me two novels to become a firm fan of Shari Lapena. Thanks to NetGalley and Viking/Penguin for the advanced ebook. This novel is out in hardcover on Tuesday, July 28th in the U.S. Shari has plenty of novels, and they are all stand alones, so you don't have to read them in order. You'll be hooked in no time!

Rating: 4/6 for a twisty-turny domestic thriller that will keep you guessing who to believe--and an ending that will leave you with just one more surprise!

Available Tuesday, July 28th in the U.S. in hardcover audio, and ebook. 

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The End of Her by Shari Lapena

The Woman in the Mirror by Rebecca James

I'll admit it was a bit odd finishing this book on a warm, sunny May day, because it's all about the Cornish coast, chill winds, a cold mansion, and a curse. 

I've been reading this book for weeks, and not because I didn't like it--actually, I really enjoyed all the elements of this novel. Gothic to the core-a windswept coast, a family curse, a witch, a handsome tormented owner, and love gone awry. The story bounces back and forth between 1947 and the present day; the link that binds the two timelines is slowly revealed and makes for a fascinating tale. 

1947: Alice is hired to be a nanny to twins Constance and Edmund at the Winterbourne estate on the coast of Cornwall. Their father, Jonathan de Grey is a wounded vet from World War 2, and his wife Laura died a few years before, after he returned from the war. Alice sees this as a chance to escape her miserable life in London, as well as her troubled past and awful secret. 

Alice immediately is drawn to Captain de Grey, and the children love her. But the  kids are a little weird, I'll admit. They seem innocent and loving, but tend to also be cruel and play malicious games on Alice. She's so desperate for a loving home she soon falls for the idea that she will be the children's mother, and Captain de Grey loves her, too. Alice is a bit unstable, to be sure. But there's dark, terrible things swirling around Winterbourne that are helping her along the road to madness. 

Present day: Rachel Wright lives in New York, and has just opened a successful art gallery. She's single, alone, and has no family. She receives a letter from a solicitor in England, telling her she is the sole heir to the Winterbourne estate. Knowing nothing about her birth parents, she's been driven her whole life by the feeling of being unloved and unwanted. This is her chance to find out who her parents were, and why she was put up for adoption. Winterbourne is the key to her mysterious past. Off she goes to Cornwall, to stay at Winterbourne, find out who her parents were, and prepare the estate for sale. 

Alice and Rachel are two women who have some similarities, but definitely Rachel is more of a solid, no nonsense person. Alice was hard to connect with because she definitely has some problems, and it wasn't much to tip her over the edge. I had a hard time feeling bad for her because she was so ready to believe her fantasy life. She was helped along by the evil that permeated the estate. That evil destroyed every woman who hoped to find happiness at Winterbourne. 

Rachel slowly digs away at the secrets of Winterbourne. She's also had a few weird experiences there, and while she is a bit freaked out by it all, she's also determined to stay and figure out her home-it's the only thing she can call her own, and the only link to her past. Will she be able to uncover the dark past and lift the curse from the de Grey family? Or will she succumb to the madness and death that has followed all the women who dared make their home at Winterbourne? 

This was definitely a thriller, and a bit creepy, too. I was a bit put off by Rachel at first, but she eventually defrosted and became more likable-and she was smart enough to dig and investigate. Alice, however, I had a hard time connecting with-mostly because she just wasn't a good person. Molded by an unhappy childhood and a cruel father, she was desperate to be loved and that was her undoing. She was also a bit unstable from the get-go. Oh, the house loved to torment her. 

This was a great read--so many people trapped by the past, and bound to suffer for it. A family curse that did, indeed, live on for generations. Will Rachel break the curse?

Rating: 5/6 for an atmospheric, dark, and creepy tale of love spurned, a family curse, and looking for identity. The last 50 pages or so really kicked in, and answered a lot of questions. 

Available in hardcover, ebook, and audio. 

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The Woman in the Mirror by Rebecca James

St. Francis Society for Wayward Pets by Annie England Noblin

My last read of January. I finished it at about 2:30 this morning, after falling asleep by 9 PM and then being WIDE awake in the middle of the night. Apparently I'd had enough sleep.  I suspect I'll be on the downslide by about 10 AM this morning. Just in time for my second round of coffee. 

This was a quick read, and I wasn't quite sure where it was headed as I was reading about Maeve and her new life in a small town. It felt like the author wasn't quite sure which themes she wanted to focus on and I just figured it would all shake out. After all was said and done, I was happy with where the author was going and satisfied with the whole shebang. 

Maeve has just lost her job as a sports journalist (and not a very good one, as she says), and her semi-famous baseball playing boyfriend has just humiliated her with a YouTube video of him smooching on another woman. Broke, she moves back in with her parents, and contemplates her mess of a life. Everything changes when she receives a call informing her that Annabelle, her birth mother, has died. 

Annabelle lived in the small town of Timber Creek, Washington, about four hours away from Maeve's life in Seattle. Maeve, at 36, never knew her birth mother and quite honestly has a big bag of complicated feelings about her. She decides to attend Annabelle's funeral, and that is the start of Maeve's new life. 

Yes, there is the ruggedly handsome and complicated Abel (I couldn't help but see Jason Momoa in this role); Alice, Annabelle's best friend and keeper of secrets; and the ladies of the St. Francis Society for Wayward Pets. They knit sweaters for cats and dogs, and Annabelle was a founding member of the group. Maeve finds out she's inherited Annabelle's house, car, and ragamuffin cat, and what was intended as a one day trip extends into Maeve deciding to stay in Timber Creek for a few weeks. After all, she's unemployed, and doesn't want to go back to living with her parents. She's also got to come to terms with her feeling about her birth mother. A major theme in this novel explores the  often complicated feelings carried around by those who are adopted. Maeve comes from a very happy upbringing, but still feels rejected and unwanted as an adult because she was given up by Annabelle as a newborn. Will she be able to find some peace and healing living in Annabelle's hometown? 

I enjoyed this novel, and realized I have Pupcakes, another novel by this author. Give me a contemporary tale that sprinkles in a few irresistible pets, small town life, and a cast of interesting characters and I'm all in. Humor, a bit of modern romance, and an underlying theme of finding and claiming your identity all came together to create an entertaining read. If you're a sucker for dog themed novels, Annie England Noblin has even more novels with equally adorable covers:

Rating: 3/6 for a quick, entertaining read about a woman's search for her past and a chance at creating a new future for herself. If you love novels featuring pets, check out this author. I plan on reading more!

Available in hardcover, paperback, ebook, and audio.

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St. Francis Society for Wayward Pets by Annie England Noblin

Seven Days of Us by Francesca Hornak

I took a break from my lighter holiday reads to read Seven Days of Us. I'm on the fence about this novel; not sure just how much I liked the novel, even after finishing it and letting it sit with me for a bit. 

The Birch family is gathering for Christmas, and it's a Christmas with a little twist.  Olivia, oldest of two daughters, is returning home from Liberia after spending weeks there treating patients of a horrible epidemic-the Haag, with a fatality rate of 80%.  Due to her return from Liberia, and possible exposure to the Haag, Olivia will require a quarantine for seven days.  This means Olivia and her family: parents and younger sister Phoebe will be in isolation over Christmas. Spending the holiday at their country home, Weyfield Hall, is something none of them are really super excited about--but it's tradition!

There's a whole lot going on in this small family.  Father Andrew is a restaurant critic who is bored with his career and increasingly fond of his days as a correspondent in Lebanon, before his growing family required he give it up. Mother Emma has just been diagnosed with cancer, and has decided to keep it a secret until after the holidays.  Phoebe, the spoiled younger sister, is newly engaged to George, and busy thinking about her wedding, but not really much about her marriage.  There's also Jesse, a young man from California who is in England searching for his biological father.  Guess who that is?

The novel covers the seven days of the quarantine, which run to just before Christmas, to December 29th.  Olivia's got a secret of her own:  she was intimately involved with another doctor in Liberia, which was forbidden.  If they are found out, it could mean a lot of trouble.  While she waits with her family, taking her temperature everyday, hoping she wasn't infected with the virus, all sorts of things are happening.  Jesse is nearby, trying to gather the courage to try one more time to meet Andrew; Andrew is trying to figure out how to respond to Jesse's emails, and explain his unfaithfulness to Emma in 1980, when they were first together.  Emma is trying to keep the whole family together by cooking a lot and forcing herself to be jolly.  Phoebe and Olivia have a less than happy relationship, and aren't very interested in getting along this Christmas, either.  But things happen, secrets are exposed, and people finally start to have conversations that help to create a lot of change not only in each person, but in the family dynamics.  I'm leaving out a big piece of the puzzle, because I  don't want to give the whole plot away.  

I read most of the novel not liking any of the characters. All, even Olivia, were self-absorbed, annoying, and one dimensional.  There is no neat conclusion, as you would expect.  Things improve, and people are changing, but the novel doesn't end with a lovely red bow.  That, I realize I like the most about the novel.  It also had me thinking about traditions, and why we keep plugging away at them, even when they just don't fit anymore, and it's time for an update.  I think traditions, like every other part of our lives, are meant to guide us, but should be able to change with the times and the people. The Birch family are trapped in their traditions.  It takes some pretty significant events to shake them up, but all for the better. 

Rating:  3/6 for a novel about family, traditions, change, and recognizing nothing stays the same.  I didn't connect with any of the characters, but I enjoyed the novel.

Available in hardcover and ebook. 

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Seven Days of Us by Francesca Hornak

The Fortune Teller by Gwendolyn Womack

Fans of M.J. Rose, Kate Mosse, and Katherine Neville have, no doubt, already discovered Gwendolyn Womack with her first novel, The Memory Painter. If you haven't, you'd better get busy and start reading.

This was one of those novels that I bought, added to my stacks at home, and forgot about for a few months.  When I finally plucked it out of a stack to read for October, I spent plenty of time congratulating myself for being smart enough to buy it and finally read it. It's exactly the kind of historical/magical/thriller/toss-in-just-a-wee-bit-of-romance novel that I relish reading. 

Two stories in one that eventually blend together.  Semele Cavnow is an expert at appraising antiquities for a very exclusive auction house in New York City.  She's sent to Geneva to appraise a rare private collection of ancient texts and manuscripts, and finds one written in Greek that is hidden from the rest of the collection.  Slowly translating it, she is a bit startled when it appears to be a written by a famous seer who was the daughter of a librarian at the great library in Alexandria. Odder still, this seer addresses Semele by name, and proceeds to foretell many big world events that won't come to pass for thousands of years, long after the seer is gone.  Semele is warned that there are people who want the manuscript.  Returning to New York with the manuscript and a digital copy (smart lady digitizes the whole manuscript and saves it to her laptop), she's aware that a man is following her, and her boss decides she will be removed from the project and sent to Beijing instead--with no explanation. Furious, Semele keeps translating the text, and learning all about the long line of women who have shared the gift of foretelling, vision, and reading a tarot deck that if found, would fetch an extremely high price. She's in danger, and forces are beginning to draw a net around her. 

I quickly became fascinated by the story about the extraordinary women who each sacrificed themselves to keep the tarot deck in safe hands, and to pass it onto the next generation.  A long, unbroken line that travels from ancient Alexandria, to Iraq, Greece, England, France, Germany, and eventually America.  But how does Semele fit into all of this?  That's part of the story.  Not only has she found out recently that she's adopted, but she is having flashes of the future, and senses that something bigger than herself is at play. 

I loved this novel!  It was all I could do to be a productive member of society last week, because all I wanted to do was sit and read it.  The end was truly not at all what I expected, but I thought the author's ability to wrap it all up, bring all that storyline together into one place, was masterful.  It answered a lot of questions.  Not only did I love the references to the great library of Alexandria, but all the reverence given to libraries, librarians as protectors of knowledge, and the awareness that we have always valued books, libraries, and those who make seeking and protecting knowledge their life's work. Our ties to the past are many and sometimes we forget that.  

Oh, I hope you read this and let me know what you think of it.  I'm a huge fan of Ms. Womack and have added her to my list of new favorite authors.  

Rating:  4/6 for an inventive novel about ancestors, an ancient tarot deck, libraries, and finding out our connections to the past.  Just enough romance, but not too much; good to read about a smart, capable woman who is an expert in a field that is usually dominated by men. 

Available in paperback and ebook. 

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The Fortune Teller by Gwendolyn Womack

The Widow's House by Carol Goodman

It's been a few years since I read my last Carol Goodman novel.  I stumbled across her while I was shelving at my bookstore, thought I'd try out her writing, and I'm so glad I did. Her contemporary gothic thrillers are just the kind of novel I enjoy.

 I would compare her to Kate Morton and Simone St. James; if you're a big fan of novels set around the Hudson Valley, you should read not only The Widow's House, but some of her other novels. She's also written a series for teens: Blythewood, Ravencliffe, and Hawthorn. She hasn't forgotten young readers, either: The Metropolitans looks like a great little mystery, and I'm adding it to my TBR list.  

Onto The Widow's House.  Jess and Clare Martin are two writers who have hit rock bottom.  Jess' first and only novel, written just out of college, was a big hit, but he's failed miserably writing his second novel.  Clare has put aside her own desire to write (she's the better writer of the two) in order to work at a publishing house to makes ends meet.  A stressed marriage and no money combine to take the Martins out of New York City and back to Concord, a sleepy village in the Hudson Valley known for its apple orchards and Apple Blossom Queen Festival.  It is where Clare grew up, and met Jess at Bailey College.  Not a place Clare was eager to return to, as her memories of growing up in a harsh household, knowing she was adopted, has left her feeling a bit adrift.  

Jess and Clare end up at Riven House, a huge mansion out in the country, where Alden Montague--their former professor at Bailey College, resides in what was once a glorious estate.  Taking the caretaker's job means they have an affordable place to stay, and the quiet Jess needs to finish his novel.  

But of course things aren't that simple.  Clare sees a young woman standing outside; hears a baby cry in the night, and is haunted by the tale of the Mary Foley, her lover Bay Montague, and their tragic ending in 1929.  Is it Mary she sees at night near the river, holding her baby?  What story does Mary want Clare to tell?

As Clare digs into Mary's story, her own novel starts to take shape at a feverish pace, and her obsession with Mary's tragic life compels Clare to start exploring the house and the secrets it holds.  Does she just have a vivid imagination, or is there evil at Riven House?  

I've got to say, I enjoyed everything about this novel except the relationship between Jess and Clare. They are obviously an unhappy pair; his treatment of Clare just had me really annoyed and wanting to smack him upside the head. Clare's high school boyfriend is the sheriff in town, and from the first time they meet again, it's obvious he's the good guy, and the man she should be with--not Jess.  That was frustrating, waiting for the story to evolve.  Other than that, there's enough history, paranormal possibilities, and backstory to make this a novel that you will carry with you everywhere, waiting to read just a few pages.  
A perfect Halloween read.

Rating:  4/6 for the atmosphere; the story of the Apple Blossom Queen is solid, and Clare is someone to cheer on in her journey to unveil the mysteries of Riven House. 

Available in paperback and e-book.

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The Widow's House by Carol Goodman

Midnight at the Bright Ideas Bookstore by Matthew Sullivan

I usually do a bit of pre-reading work before I read most of my books.  By pre-reading work, I mean that I read a synopsis, some reviews...get the lay of the land, so to speak.  
I did not do that for this novel; instead I was captivated by the title, and decided I had to read it without having much of any idea of the plot.  

It took me about halfway through the novel to finally rid myself of the idea that somewhere in the Bright Ideas Bookstore there was a mystical, magical, fantasy storyline just waiting to pop out.  Nope.  Nothing like that at all. Add in a Gas N' Donuts place, and I thought: okay, maybe I'm wrong about the fantasy part, but I bet it's quirky. Yep. A quirky bookstore novel.  

Wrong again. It's actually a crime novel, with a bookstore as a significant setting. Here's a short summary, because I don't want to give anything away:  Lydia works at the Bright Ideas Bookstore, in a part of Denver that's seeing a revitalization.  She's befriended Joey, a young man who has no one and no where to go.  He spends hours at the bookstore, reading and watching people.

One night, as Lydia is closing up the bookstore, she realizes Joey hasn't come down from the third floor.  Irritated, she goes up to the third floor, only to find Joey hanging in the history section.  Curiously, a photo of Lydia as a small child is found sticking out of his jeans pocket. Devastated by Joey's suicide, Lydia scrambles to figure out why, why?! She's been asked to clean out Joey's apartment, and while she does, she finds a box of books that are meant for her. Inside the books, Joey's cut out bit of sentences, leaving little bits of the books missing. Through some smart observation, Lydia starts putting the pieces of the book mystery together, and instead of making things clearer, it only pulls her deeper into the mystery of Joey's life, and death. And they are, somehow, linked to Lydia's past.

Lydia is an interesting character.  At age ten, she was the only survivor to a horrible murder that remains unsolved.  Her father, a librarian, moves them away from Denver, and he himself slowly changes from the loving father Lydia knows to a withdrawn, sad man who slowly closes out his daughter.  Leaving home after high school graduation, Lydia returns to Denver, and becomes a bookseller--the one place where she feels at home.  Her past remains past, as she strives to escape the "Little Lydia" nickname the newspapers gave her, all those years ago.  She doesn't talk about her past, and doesn't have anything to do with her father. 

Joey's suicide stirs things up in Lydia's life; I have to say it was a pretty good storyline that brought Joey's random, sad life and Lydia's dysfunctional adult life together.  I kept wondering just how the two would come together, and that kept me reading.  It wasn't surprising to find out who was the murderer, but it was interesting to find out why this person committed the crime. Most poignant of all was the short life of Joey.  A young man who never had a family, felt completely alone, abandoned, and lost.  A struggle for a meaningful life that ended with a final blow that he just couldn't overcome.  Joey's character is pretty powerful, even though he's dead for the majority of the novel.  

I did come around after a bit and did enjoy the novel, even though I still have a faint disappointment that it wasn't what I had hoped for.  You know how you think the cookie is chocolate chip, but instead it's oatmeal raisin?  You'll eat it anyway, and enjoy it, but darn it all, it should have been chocolate chip.  That's how I feel about this novel. Matthew Sullivan is a gifted writer, and his descriptions of Denver and the bookstore anchor you in the story.  It's a quick read, and you'll keep reading, because you want to find out what the heck is going on, and how Lydia and Joey are connected.  It all connects back to Lydia's childhood and that horrible murder.  Read it and see what you think.  

Rating:  3/6 for a well crafted crime novel that also addresses the plight of the homeless, the abandoned, and the foster care system in our country.  

Available in hardcover, e-book, and audio.

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Midnight at the Bright Ideas Bookstore by Matthew Sullivan

Wild Wood by Posie Graeme-Evans

It was a Saturday at the bookstore, and I was shelving new fiction.  Half-way down the cart, I spied this.  I'm not proud of my reaction.  I think I actually squealed and, clutching the book to my chest, I jumped up and down.  I'm relieved to say I  think only one customer saw me do this.  She grabbed the book and bought one that day.  

I've been waiting for another book by Posie Graeme-Evans ever since the wonderful Island House came out a few years ago.  It didn't matter that I was in the throes of mid-terms at school; this was my link to sanity!  And I have to say, Wild Wood delivered.  

Wild Wood takes place in the summer of 1981, just before Charles and Diana's huge wedding in London.  Jesse Marley has arrived in London from Australia with one mission:  to find her birth parents.  This decision began back in Australia, when applying for a passport revealed the truth:  Jesse had two birth certificates.  Unable to cope with the disappointment of her parents never telling her she was adopted, she leaves for London.  While in London, Jesse finds out she was born in Jedburgh, a small village in the borderlands between Scotland and England.  Before she can make plans to travel there, she's hit by a motorbike and lands in the hospital with a fractured skull and broken bones.  Floating in and out of consciousness, Jesse sees and hears things that make no sense.  Is she imaging them, or are they real?  Her doctor, Rory Brandon, asks Jesse why she drew those drawings of a castle.  Since her right hand is unable to function in a sling, Jesse thinks it's impossible.  Yet Rory realizes the drawings are of a place he knows very well:  Hundredfeld.  

Built by a Norman warlord hundreds of years before, Hundredfeld is still occupied by a descendant of the Dieudonne family.  And Rory grew up at Hundredfeld, his mother a servant on the property.  What's the connection between Jesse and Hundredfeld?  Who is her birth mother?  

Jesse travels to Hundredfeld with Rory in order to uncover the mystery of the drawings.  She finds much more than she bargains for--and it's all connected to the land, and Hundredfeld's long history.  

This is a dual history novel; you travel between 1981 and 1321, when Hundredfeld's family of brothers:  Maugris, Bayard, and Godefroi, come together at Hundredfeld to battle those who wish to see them destroyed.  Godefroi's new wife, the Lady Flore, has many believing she's evil and a witch.  Lady Flore has an otherwordly feel about her; is she there to destroy or save?  

This book was great!  Just what I needed to read in March.  Both stories are compelling, and yes, they do tie together.  The Scottish land, superstitions, folklore, and family mysteries all play together nicely and keep you turning the pages.  At first you're a bit confused, but stay with it, and it will all become clear.  

If you want to read Posie Graeme-Evans' other fantastic novel, The Island House, click here for my review.  

Fans of Susanna Kearsley, Diana Gabaldon, and Mary Stewart will love both novels.  A bit of history, a bit of folklore, a bit of romance, and a reminder that where we come from is deeply imbedded in our psyche and shapes us all.  

Rating:  8/10 for a unique story combining local history, Scottish folklore, and Charles and Diana's wedding.  Yes, all three.  

Available in paperback and e-book.

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Wild Wood by Posie Graeme-Evans

Finding Colin Firth by Mia March

Mia March has written a lovely novel about women making choices.  For Veronica Russo, it meant giving up her baby for adoption when she was a young sixteen year old mother.  For Bea Crane, it means traveling from Boston to the little town of Boothbay Harbor, Maine to find her birth mother.

How are they connected?  Well, Veronica is Bea's birth mother.  It's been 22 years, and Veronica has returned to Boothbay Harbor to face the place where she grew up, fell in love with a high school boy, got pregnant, and had her parents disown her and leave her at a home for unwed mothers.  She's always felt she did the right thing giving her baby up for adoption, but has always hoped to meet her daughter.  She's left her name, address, and phone number at the adoption agency every time she's moved around the country, but never received a call.  Now it was time to face the part of her life that has haunted her.  She's a waitress and is famous for her "elixir" pies: happiness pie, shoo-fly pie (drives someone out of your life), and amour pie.  People in town love them, and she's carving out a pretty good life in Boothbay Harbor, despite some people remembering the scandal from so long ago.

Bea finds out she's adopted a year after her mother has died, via a letter written on her mother's deathbed.  She goes through many emotions:  anger, despair, disillusionment.  Why did her parents never tell her the truth?  She's decided she has to find her birth mother and get some answers.

A film company is in Boothbay Harbor, and Colin Firth is rumored to be coming to film scenes for his movie.  Cue the crazy Colin Firth fans!  They're all gathering in town to spot a glimpse of the swoony actor.  Can Veronica find her own Mr. Darcy?  Can Bea come to terms with her true past?  And Gemma, a journalist from New York, who's come to escape a lost job and a surprising pregnancy.  How can she find happiness in Boothbay Harbor?

This was a good mental break book.  It touches on serious subjects:  teen pregnancy, adoption, and keeping secrets.  Throw in the film and all the craziness it brings to town, and the resulting references to all that is Colin Firth, and the story stays away from becoming maudlin.  It's all about embracing life, not being afraid to take chances, and knowing it's never too late to find happiness--even if you have to compromise with those you love in order for everyone to be happy.

Rating:  7/10; an enjoyable novel set in a charming small town with likable characters and tons of Colin Firth references.  From the author of The Meryl Streep Movie Club.

Available in paperback and e-book

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Finding Colin Firth by Mia March

The Union Street Bakery by Mary Ellen Taylor

The title and the cover grabbed me on this one! But the story kept me turning the pages on Sunday, and coupled with a rainy day I quickly read this and thoroughly enjoyed it.

Daisy McCrae has lost her job as an investment banker, gone through all of her unemployment, and finds herself back in the family fold:  her parent's bakery in Alexandria, Virginia.  She's even living above the bakery in the attic and sleeping on a couch.  She's about as low as she can get.  But with no where to go, and no money, she's agreed to help out her sisters Rachel and Margaret run the bakery.  When she arrives, she quickly realizes the bakery is thisclose to shutting it's doors permanently. It seems Rachel is an amazing baker, but not so good with the books.  

Daisy is a bit different from her sisters--she's adopted.  Her mother left her sitting at the bakery when she was 3 years old, and the McCraes took her in and eventually adopted her.  She's not only physically different looking from her sisters, but has always felt abandoned and lost never knowing why her mother left her.  It has  colored her world; she left the bakery and moved away as quickly as possible.  Now that she's back, she has to face her demons and learn to forgive and forget.

That's one storyline.  The other storyline involves an elderly woman, Mabel.  She leaves a  150 year old journal to Daisy, and with the help of Margaret, they start to uncover the mysteries of Susie, a slave that lived in the area before the Civil War.  She's also the ghost that Daisy has seen upstairs from the bakery since she was a child.  What's the connection?  And who's the angry man spirit that keeps showing up in Daisy's attic apartment?  

I couldn't put this one down.  It was a perfect read for a rainy Sunday.  Daisy is a bit prickly, and her relationships with her sisters are a main focus of this novel.  She's looking for answers and feels that too much is happening all at once--it's a bit overwhelming.  Enter in her ex-boyfriend Gordon, and she's got a lot on her plate.  But--I loved the cooking/baking in this novel, the family ties, and the mysterious journal.  It all comes together in a neat bow and Daisy finds closure on a lot of her issues.

Available in paperback or in e-book format

Rating:  6/10  Loved the characters--even though Daisy was a bit prickly at times and I wanted to shake her!  The bakery was a lovely character in itself and helped to shine the light on the struggles of small businesses to flourish in today's world.

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The Union Street Bakery by Mary Ellen Taylor