by Claire Avery

A Tom Doherty Associates Book, 2010

My Rating: A

My Synopsis: Two sisters, Rachel and Sara, share the same father. Rachel’s mother is the first wife and Sara’s mother is his second wife. There are two more wives and numerous children. There is no divorce. They all live in the same house. This is a polygamist’s family.

Rachel and Sara’s family are a part of a secret polygamist community in Utah. Rachel and Sara are both fifteen-years-old and are actually considered spinsters since they should have been married at thirteen.

Their father takes the girls to a meeting with the prophet who will decide who it is they will marry. The prophet decides that Sara will become the fifth wife of her fifty-year-old uncle. The prophet tells them he has sixteen proposals of marriage for the beautiful Rachel so he will have to pray further about it.

The book revolves around the events in Rachel and Sara’s lives. As soon as the girls are home from the meeting, their father severely beats Rachel. She must be a slut to tempt so many men into proposing marriage.

From this point on in the story the girls begin to question the faith and way of life they’ve been taught is the only right way. Sara is the first to closely examine everything she knows. Rachel continues to cling to the faith she has blindly followed in spite of everything that happens to her.

Everything changes, however, when Rachel’s future husband is announced.  Violence erupts and the girls decide they must escape or be trapped in that community forever.

My Evaluation: This is one of those books people may not want to read because of the subject matter, but they should read it. That’s what I told myself.

I became very angry on behalf of the young girls and  the women in the story. Forced marriages of children, bigamy, rape, violence, mental and psychological abuse – it’s all a part of the lives of the females in this story. Unfortunately, this is not a made up story but one based on real life. The good thing is that the book is very well written. It is a heart-wrencher but I’m glad I read it.

About the author:  Claire Avery is a pseudonym for the writing team of two sisters. Mari Hilburn, an attorney, and Michelle Poche, a screenwriter. The two were raised in a cult-like environment that is a story all it’s own. Their childhood was unusual but nothing like the forced marriages in the polygamist group in the book. For an account of their lives and more information about them, visit their website here.

I’m honored to be a part of the blog tour for Hidden Wives. If you’d like to see the other stops on the tour, visit TLC Book Tours. To purchase a copy, visit Hidden Wives on Amazon. (I’m an Amazon Associate.)

GIVEAWAY: I liked this book so much I’d like to give away my copy of the book plus one from the authors. Please leave a comment indicating your interest. I’ll hold this open for a week. (US and Canada only.)

That’s two copies of the book. Giveaway closes August 5.

I thought you might like to see a trailer for the book. It’s a short discussion by the two authors.

by Nora Roberts

Berkley Books, 2010

My Rating: A

Laurel McBane is the pastry chef at Vows, the wedding planning company she co-owns with her three best friends. The four friends have been close since childhood. In fact, one of their favorite childhood games was playing Wedding Day. Now, as adults, they manage to execute perfect weddings for a growing group of clients.

I’ve already met two of the four friends. In Vision In White I met Mac, the photographer. In Bed of Roses I met Emma. Savor The Moment is Laurel’s story.

Laurel has a passion for food. She’s responsible for the lavish wedding cakes and other pastries at each of the weddings, anniversaries, and other exclusive events. Here’s Laurel’s take on food:

Laurel understood the need to feed, the desire –even the passion– to put food in front of someone and urge them to eat. It was life and comfort, authority and satisfaction. And if you’d prepared that food with your own hands, your own skills, it was, in a very real way, love.

Her contribution to the business was as important as all the other parts. Laurel does it well and her career is soaring.

The only touchy part of Laurel’s life is the modern dating ritual. It’s left Laurel disenchanted and she’s declared a moratorium on dating and sex for herself.

For most of Laurel’s life she’s been secretly in love with the brother of one of her partners but she’s never done anything about it. He treats her like one of his sisters. But after a couple of confrontations, they agree to date for thirty days. Only dating. No sex. You’ll have to read the book to see if they make it.

I’m loving this series. I’ve always loved the author for the characters she creates. With four books in a series it’s given Ms. Roberts plenty of room to explore  and expand on all of the characters. Each one of the characters has flaws and each one is unique. All four women, all four men as well as other assorted characters appear in all four books.

There are other things I like about a Nora Roberts’ story. Her dialogue can’t be beat, but more than that, I love how her stories go deep. In this book we see how friendship is so multi-layered. The friends literally form a family.  This is a romance novel but it’s not fluffy or silly. It’s solid.

If you are a lover of modern romances, this is a series not to be missed. The fourth book will be published in November. I am so looking forward to that one.

Check your local library or you can also find them at Amazon. (I am an Amazon Associate.)

Book 1: Vision in White

Book 2: Bed of Roses

Book 3: Savor the Moment

Lorna Barrett is the pen name of Lorraine Bartlett (also known as L.L. Bartlett). As Lorna Barrett, she is best known for her Booktown Mysteries – three of them so far with the fourth coming out in August.

Murder Is Binding is Book 1 of the series. The setting is a small town in New Hampshire. The old downtown area has been redeveloped into a haven for bookstores selling new and used books in a wide variety of genres. It’s modeled after the Welsh town of Hay-on-Wye.

Tricia Miles is the owner of the mystery bookstore called Haven’t Got A Clue. Although Tricia is new to store ownership (five months), she’s not new to mysteries. She’s been reading them since childhood. She’s widely read in the genre and her store reflects her good taste. The bookstore is also home to her ever-present cat, Miss Marple. Isn’t that perfect?

All of the bookstore owners are outsiders and there is some conflict between the locals who have lived there forever and the newcomers. The locals resent all the tourist buses who bring in daily business for the bookstores.

Everything heats up when the owner of the cookbook bookstore is murdered. Tricia is the one who discovers the body. Because the sheriff is a local and has never investigated a murder, she decides Tricia is the best one to accuse of murder.

Since Tricia has read so many mysteries and crime procedurals (a lot more than the sheriff), she sets out to investigate the murder. Her goal is to clear her name. Tricia has plenty of suspects: the super-agressive real estate developer, a super-good looking insurance salesman, and the murdered woman’s twin sister. Tricia also has plenty of help: her sister and her two employees.

I liked the story and the way it was written. At first I didn’t like the main character, Tricia. I thought she was sometimes rude to people and cold. The first four or five chapters she didn’t like anyone. But, once the mysteries started piling up and the story started rolling, I was really into it. And, I saw the character of Tricia change a bit and I soon warmed up to her.

I also liked the numerous references to mystery books and authors. It felt good when I recognized authors and books I’ve also read. I’m ready to go on to the next book in the series, Bookmarked For Death. I’d like to see if/how her character develops and, hopefully, read of more good mystery books in Tricia’s bookstore.

The library here has the whole series but they are also available at Amazon. (I am an Amazon Associate.)

While doing some research on Three Act Tragedy, I discovered that I was missing several volumes of short stories. As a matter of fact, I’ve missed adding twenty-one short story collections to my list!! I discovered my discrepancy when I learned one of the characters in Three Act Tragedy made his debut appearance in a series of short stories, The Mysterious Mr. Quin (1930).

So, I’ve been in a quandary as to whether to add the short story collection to my list or leave them out. On the one hand, I could sail through Ms. Christie’s works faster if I skipped the short stories. On the other hand, I’d be missing out on some key characters, like in the case of Mr. Quin.

I went back to my list of novels and, for some reason, I started counting them. It turns out there are only sixty-six novels, not the eighty-seven I thought. If I add the twenty-one short story volumes, that equals eighty-seven. Therefore, I’m sticking to my original goal of eighty-seven books which I now know is sixty-six novels and twenty-one short story collections. I probably could have figured this out by asking Kerrie of Mysteries In Paradise, the sponsor of this challenge. But, you know, sometimes it’s more fun to just bumble along.

I’m going to go back and pick up some of the short story collections and I’ll fit them in between the novels I planned to read. I’ll do that until I catch up. Then I’ll keep on moving through the decades.

Partners In Crime (1929) is one of the short story collections. I’ve been reading it a little bit at a time and decided to finish it so I can tell you about it today.

These stories all feature Tommy and Tuppence Beresford. I first met them in The Secret Adversary, Ms. Christie’s second novel. They are a savvy and witty young married couple in London in the 1920s. They love detective novels as well as “real life” crime and detection. They love it so much they purchased a nearly bankrupt detective agency.

Each of the sixteen short stories is one of Tommy and Tuppence’s cases. The stories are all light and fun, nothing violent or gruesome. There are numerous reference to fictional detectives. If you are up on your classic early detective fiction, you’ll like this one.

Partners In Crime is my 17th Christie read. Only 70 to go. If you are interested in joining the Agatha Christie Reading Challenge, visit Kerrie by clicking on the button above or going here.

The result is Hide In Plain Sight. This is Book 1 in The Three Sisters Inn series. All three stories are set in the Unger family mansion in Pennsylvania Amish country. Grandmother Unger is alone in the mansion and having a hard time financially. Granddaughter Rachel has the idea to turn the mansion into a bed and breakfast. The other two sisters, one at a time, join in to help.

My Synopsis: Hide In Plain Sight features the oldest sister, Andrea, and Cal, the man who is renting the barn for his hand-made furniture business. Andrea has a corporate job in the big city but is called home when her sister Rachel is injured in a hit-and-run accident. Rachel and Grams were within weeks of opening the Inn when the accident occurred. Grams is not physically able to get it all going on her own.

While Rachel is recuperating in the hospital Andrea takes a look at what needs to be done and sets to it. Within days of her arrival there are numerous acts of vandalism that tell Andrea and Cal that someone is trying to sabotage the opening of The Three Sisters Inn.

My Evaluation: Overall, I liked the story. The plot was simple and the story moved quickly. I liked the characters of Andrea and Cal although I would have liked to know more about Cal. I didn’t learn a lot about Grams but I’m assuming there will be more in the next two books.

As far as the mystery of the vandalism, the author gave me enough reasons and suspects. I’m happy to say that, in the end, I picked the right guilty person and why they did it.

Although minor, this is a story of faith. It’s not preachy or overdone at all. It’s just a natural part of the story. This is Amish country but, except for the housekeeper and her family, the characters are not Amish. I liked this book enough to consider it a teaser for Book 2 and 3. I’ve already downloaded those two to my Kindle. (Not free, but only $3.96 each.)

About The Author: Beth Fish Reads featured Marta Perry in a recent guest post. It was a super post in which she tipped her hat to William Penn and the value of living in Pennsylvania. In that guest post Ms. Perry offered a brochure of her Favorite Pennsylvania Dutch Recipes. It just came yesterday and I’m already planning a special meal.

Marta Perry is a very prolific writer and has a huge list of books to her credit. There’s a new suspense series I’d like to try and an older series that looks very good. For more about Marta Perry, visit her website.

I’ve seen Marta Perry’s books at WalMart, Target, the library and, of course, Amazon. If you are interested in the free download of Hide In Plain Sight, it is here.

Hide In Plain Sight (The Three Sisters Inn, Book 1) by Marta Perry / Steeple Hill, 2007 / My Rating: B+

by Emily Brightwell

Berkeley Publishing Group, 2007

My sister has been telling me about the Mrs. Jeffries mystery series that she has been enjoying for a while. Kaye gave me book number twenty-three in this twenty-seven-book series to see what I thought.

I know what you are thinking: twenty-seven is a lot of books and to start a series at number twenty-three is crazy. That’s probably true but let me assure you that this particular book, at least, stands alone quite nicely. The author did a superb job of letting me know who’s who without making it seem like she was repeating herself. Let me tell you what the story is about.

The series, set in England in the late 1800s, centers around Inspector Witherspoon and his household of servants. The Inspector has become known for solving tough murder mysteries but it’s actually his household staff plus assorted frieds working behind the scenes who snoop out most of the details of the crime.

Mrs. Jeffries is the housekeeper and she’s the master of organization as well as detection. For background information on victims and suspects, Mrs. Jeffries relies on the elderly cook who has an extensive network of delivery men, vendors and others.

The maid, the footman, and the coachmen are skilled at getting information out of various sources. They’ve also learned to follow people without being seen. There is also Constable Barnes who helps the Inspector with the official police business. Doctor Boswell is a police surgeon on good terms with the household and he shares his information. Together they are all a good team.

In this particular book, The Feast of St. Stephen, a rich gentleman has been poisoned during a dinner party. It looks like the poison was in a bottle of wine brought by two of the guests. But any of the other five guests and members of the rich man’s staff could have slipped the foxglove into the wine.

The story moves nicely through all the gossip and little clues surrounding the victim and the numerous suspects. It turns out the Inspector is not a bumbling comic figure at all. He can manage himself quite well. He sees to be very good at interviewing suspects. He’s just not that good at the detecting part of the job. But that’s okay because he has plenty of help. It is Mrs. Jeffries who guides the inspector toward the final solution.

The books are billed as “Mrs. Jeffries is the Miss Marple of Victorian Mystery.” My sister (also a big Agatha Christie fan) and I agree that this book has the same sort of homey feeling you’ll find in a Miss Marple story. It’s that understanding of village life and the behavior of people that we find so appealing. I like the way Mrs. Jeffries manages the case and orgnizes her little band of detectives and then subtly maneuvers the Inspector. I will definitely read another book in this series, although probably not all twenty-seven.

I was curious about the author, Emily Brightwell. It turns out she is really Cheryl Arguile who lives in Orange County, California. That’s the same area in which my sister lives. The author has dabbled in romances and young adult novels but none are in print right now. If you are interested, her website is here.

Thanks to my sister Kaye for urging me to read this one. Most of the books are available at the library. This one is available also at Amazon. (I am an Amazon Associate.)

Has anyone else read this series?

Eight Cousins

And then one day, things begin to change for Rose. First, she meets a new housemaid, Phebe. Phebe is just a few years older than Rose’s 13. Phebe’s parents are also dead but Phebe is from the poorhouse and must work hard to earn her way. In spite of all that, Rose finds Phebe singing, with a cheerful outlook on life.

The second change is that Rose spend an afternoon with her cousins. They are all boys from ages 10 to 16. Each one is different but they are all full of fun, imagination and adventure.

The third change for Rose is the arrival of Uncle Alec. Uncle Alec is a doctor but he’s been traveling all over the world. He is her legal guardian and has come to oversee Rose’s care. Uncle Alec is disheartened when he sees Rose and immediately sets out to make positive changes in her life even though The Aunts will not like his methods. But Uncle Alec is determined. His goal: “to turn pale-faced little ghosts into rosy, heart girls.”

Rose is such a lovable character that it’s easy to root for her and for Uncle Alec’s efforts to improve her health and her spirits.  I will admit to liking this book almost as much as Little Women.  It ranks a very close second, in my opinion.

Eight Cousins was written following the success of Ms. Alcott’s Little Women series in 1876. So many young people (primarily girls) loved all the Little Women books that Ms. Alcott’s publishers urged her to continue in the same mode. Eight Cousins is followed by the sequel Rose In Bloom.

I read this book as part of my All Things Alcott Challenge. It’s not too late to join in. If you are an old fan of Louisa May Alcott, or if you’ve just discovered her, this challenge is for you. Click the All Things Alcott button below.

by Kris Radish

Bantam Books, 2010

My Rating: B-

My Synopsis: Five women, complete strangers meet in an airport restroom when one of them accidentally drops her cell phone in the toilet. They instantly band together to keep everyone out of the restroom until they are able to recover the phone.

About the time they are accomplishing that feat, an airport announcement informs everyone that all flights are being cancelled due to an on-coming storm. The airport is shutting down. Immediately, one of the women dials the hotel she just checked out of and re-books the same two bedroom suite. She invites the other four women to join her. Although each one has strong reservations about staying with strangers, they each decide this is a better choice than spending the next several days on a plastic airport chair.

The first half of this story is a look at each one of the five women. It’s a look at how they, and women in general, get along, communicate, and bond with each other. As the storm raged outside their Florida resort hotel, there were often storms raging between the women inside. Gradually, the women shared various details about their lives until finally the major secrets were spilled. As that happened, the women became united in their support of each other. They became more than friends. They became a real unit.

Nan, Cathy, Patti, Holly, and Margot – “women who fed off of one another and seemed to grow bolder and occasionally stronger when in one another’s company.”

My Opinion:  I nearly gave up on this story as it seemed to drag during the first half. Many of the concepts and thoughts were repeated several times. I found the story believable as I recalled a time I was stranded in an airport during a snow storm. Women have a remarkable ability to bond with each other, especially during times of crisis.

The second half of the novel was full of action and, for me, the heart of the story. In the second half we finally had some mystery and some thrilling moments. There were several great surprises. I loved the way the novel ended. If you  have a chance to read this book I would suggest skimming the first part of it.

It’s always a pleasure to be a host for TLC Book Tours. For other tour stops for Heart On a String, visit the TLC website here: TLC Book Tours.

by Raymond Briggs

Alfred A Knopf, 1998

Ethel and Ernest is a lovely tribute to the author’s parents. Told in graphic novel form, the story stretches from the time they met until their deaths. The story takes place in London and covers the enormous changes that happened in the world from the 1930’s to the early 1970’s.

Ethel was working as a maid and Ernest as a milkman when they met. It was love at first sight. We follow them as they marry and set up housekeeping and eventually welcome their son, Raymond, into the world. The story moves through the decades via the conversations between Ethel and Ernest with some comments from their son.

Times were not always easy, especially during World War II. They saw so many changes during their lifetime – things we don’t even think about today. The addition of the radio, telephone, television and washing machine were major events in their lives.

Ernest was an avid newspaper reader and he loves to tell Ethel about the changes within government and society. Those exchanges are the most humorous of the book.

I took this sample of the book from the publisher’s website so you can see how charming the drawings are. As you can see the writing is clear and easy to read. I especially love the expressions on their faces. I also like the way the author/illustrator depicted his parents as they aged.

I’m very grateful to all my blogging friends who recommended this book. There’s no turning back now. I’ve become a avid graphic novel fan. [And some people are saying, “Imagine that, at her age!”

by Christine Coleman

Transita, 2005

My Rating: A+

I want you to meet my new friend, Agnes. When I first met Agnes, I felt sorry for her. She’s a nice enough person, but she was stuck in a bad situation. Had I been her, I would have been screaming and scratching. It didn’t take long until Agnes became downright gutsy. By the time we parted, I liked Agnes so much that I want you to meet her too.

I tried to find a good picture of Agnes but I couldn’t find one that matched exactly. The ones you see here I borrowed from Google Images (using some rather insulting search terms). The faces of the women you see here are very similar to Agnes. But they are all missing Agnes’ new orange hair.

Anyway, Agnes is a 75-year-old widow. Her vicar husband left her not well-off financially so Agnes was forced to move in with her son, Jack. Jack is divorced and living with a witchy woman and her two teenage daughters. The witchy woman manipulated Jack into moving Agnes to a place called Harmony Home. I’ll spare you the description of that boring place.

It has been almost a year since she’s seen her grandchildren. That fact alone had me up in arms. Imagine! Not being able to see your grandchildren for such a long time is criminal. Agnes felt the same way. She set in motion a plan to get to them. This plan is what totally motivated Agnes to action, to make changes, and to take control of her life again.

This novel is actually an adventure story. It was loads of fun to follow Agnes as she escaped from Harmony Home, donned her new disguise (hence the orange hair) and her unconventional travels toward her grandchildren.

Along the way Agnes met a wonderful, although a little quirky group of people of all ages. Spending time with all of them was actually the heart of the story. I don’t want to give away the details of these people as it would spoil it for you. Just let me assure you that you will love Agnes and her new friends.

The story also contains some good messages. One message, never spoken out loud, is that it’s never too late to re-invent yourself. Agnes called upon a wealth of courage, creativity and a sense of adventure that had been lying dormant for decades.

I hope that you enjoyed your brief introduction to Agnes. I’d love for you to make her your friend too. This book is available at Amazon but you can find it cheaper and get it faster from Book Depository.

UPDATE: I’ve learned from the author you will probably not be able to buy it from The Book Depository. The publisher has gone out of business. The author still has about 100 copies that she will sell (free postage) via PayPal. Visit her website HERE.

Thanks so much to Jill for this book. You are right, Jill, this book is perfect for all of us “wrinklies.”  (See Jill’s review at Rhapsody In Books.)