Tuesday, February 25, 2014

Apple Tree Yard by Louise Doughty

Apple Tree Yard by Louise Doughty

Yvonne Carmichael is a successful consultant with a large biotech firm and for various government committees in Britain.  She is content with her life for the large part, but excitement is non-existent.  Until she meets him, the man who will convince her to do things she would have never considered before he came into her life.  They always meet on his terms, but when she needs him most he is there.  That is when Yvonne unknowingly becomes complicit in a murder investigation and trial.

Once I got over reading about a person with my name (it’s odd seeing my name in print since it happens so infrequently) I was thoroughly involved in the story.  You can identify with Yvonne, even though you may not make the bad choices she did, you can see how a perfectly reasonable and intelligent woman would be swept up in her affair and make the assumptions she does.  Most fascinating to me was the third section of the book: the trial.  The British courtroom is so different from ours and the timing and rules are almost opposite in some ways from the American way of doing things. And, since this is a psychological thriller, you just know there is going to be a knife twist to the gut at the end. All I can say is, ouch.   

Under the Wide and Starry Sky by Nancy Horan

Under the Wide and Starry Sky by Nancy Horan

Are you a fan of Treasure Island or Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde?  Meet the man behind the fiction and the woman who stood behind him.  Robert Louis Stevenson is a humorous and delightful man, full of life and ready for a laugh.  At least until his chronic illnesses bring him down yet again.  Fanny meets Louis in France with her two children, an older daughter and young boy in tow.  She is recuperating from the devastating loss of her youngest son to tuberculosis.  She is also in France to get away from her philandering husband.  Despite everything Louis and Fanny fall in love and struggle to create a life with each other.  So begins their married life and the trials and tribulations of illness, artistic temperaments and ocean voyages eventually leading to a life in the South Pacific.

I was doubtful about Loving Frank when it first came out and only reluctantly picked it up when my book club chose it one month.  I was thoroughly surprised by how much I enjoyed that read.  While this book is a good read, it is not as gripping as Horan’s first outing.  The two main characters, Fanny and Stevenson are both interesting in their own right; it is the relationship between the two that makes the story.

I listened to this story and it is a good one to listen to while doing other things.  If your mind wanders, or you wander out of the room, and miss a couple of minutes it isn’t a problem.  Like any life there are ups and downs; at times life moves at a whirlwind and at others a crawl and Horan captures the everyday as well as the pivotal events in the lives of this couple.

Friday, February 21, 2014

The Weight of Blood by Laura McHugh

The Weight of Blood by Laura McHugh

Lucy lives in Henbane, nestled in the Ozark Mountains.  Her mother disappeared when she was young and was never heard from again.  Now a teenager, Lucy lives with her father and is watched over by her neighbor when he is away from town.  Lucy’s falling in love, getting her first job and missing her friend Cheri who disappeared a year ago.  But now Cheri’s body has been found and there is no question that someone killed her.  Where has Cheri been?  And did Lucy just find evidence to tie someone she loves to the crime?

This book keeps you guessing.  You wonder if the disappearances of Lucy’s mother and Cheri are connected and how they could be after such a long period of time between them.  And you also wonder if Lucy is safe since her story seems to parallel her mother’s in so many subtle ways. 

The storytelling is engrossing.  It is told in alternating points of view between Lucy and her mother at Lucy’s age, so you get two time periods and two perspectives of Henbane.  Then, after the second part of the story starts, you begin to get other points of view.  This gradual introduction of other voices works well because you have already “met” these characters and want to know what they have to say.  More than a murder mystery, and more than a thriller, this is also the story of a town and how small towns can hide huge secrets.

I know it is only February, but I’m pretty confident that this book, along with the book I blogged recently, The Winter People, will be on my best of 2014 list at the end of the year.  Reserve your copy now -- it is released on March 11th.

Tuesday, February 18, 2014

The Winter People by Jennifer McMahon

The Winter People by Jennifer McMahon

If there is another snow storm (perish the thought!) you may want to make sure you have this book on hand.  Then again, if you are even slightly creeped out by things that go bump in the night you may want to read this one in the middle of summer, on a beach, anywhere but near woods, especially those of Vermont.
This is the story of Sara Harrison Shea who was found brutally murdered in 1908 behind her farmhouse in West Hall, Vermont.  Many suspected her husband, who committed suicide soon after being discovered covered with his wife’s blood, killed his wife.  Many others think that someone, or something else, was responsible.
The rock formation behind the Shea farmstead known as the Devil’s Hand has spawned rumors of sleepers, creatures, and aliens for a hundred years.  The number of people who vanished over the years add fuel to the fire.  Could there be any truth to the rumors?
Add Sara Harrison Shea’s journal and the belief that there are missing pages.  Pages with detailed instructions on how to create a sleeper; making a dead loved one walk the earth again for seven days, information that is worth everything to a lot of people.
In the present day Ruthie and Fawn awaken in the Shea farmhouse alone.  Where is their mother?  What are those items found under the floorboards?  And why is her closet door nailed shut? 
I devoured this book despite being thoroughly disturbed by it.  It has all the elements of an old fashioned campfire story complete with twists, turns and jumps.  If you like being scared a bit, and a story that unfolds layer by layer, do not miss The Winter People.

Wednesday, February 12, 2014

Midwives by Chris Bohjalian

Midwives by Chris Bohjalian

I’m sure we all have lists of books that we’ve been meaning to get to for years.  I’m a fan of Bohjalian’s newer books, and because of that I have always wanted to read this one.  Finally I have, and I wasn’t disappointed.
This is the story of a birth attended by an experienced midwife going tragically wrong.  The story revolves around the incident, the trial, and the immediate aftermath.  This is definitely a “moral story” where a series of decisions can be considered from many different angles and the lines between right and wrong are extremely blurry.

I enjoyed the point of view of the story – all is told by the daughter of the midwife.  She is especially nosy, which is a wonderful thing for us, because we know all that she knows, and she knows quite a lot. 

If you are a fan of Bohjalian, Picoult or any other writers in which moral choices are the focus of the tale, this is one not to be missed.

Friday, February 7, 2014

Purity of Vengeance: A Department Q Novel by Jussi Adler-Olsen

Purity of Vengeance: A Department Q Novel by Jussi Adler-Olsen

Denmark’s Department Q, the Department which re-opens cold cases and has solved all the cases pursued thus far, looks into the disappearance of a number of people on the same day back in the 80s.  The odds that all these people went missing on one day is astronomical, finding out that most of them seemed to know each other makes it sinister.
If you are fan of traditional mysteries with red herrings and lots of legwork, you’ll enjoy this series.  You don’t need to read them in order, but it helps to know the background of all the main characters because their stories develop over time.

This is the fourth entry in the series and the fourth I have listened to.  It is one of my favorite series on audiobook and this entry does not disappoint. 

Thursday, February 6, 2014

This Dark Road to Mercy by Wiley Cash

This Dark Road to Mercy by Wiley Cash

Easter and Ruby have been living in a foster home in the mountains of North Carolina since their mother died of an overdose.  There are whispers that they will be adopted by their maternal grandparents, people they have never met, and are scared will not even like them.  Scariest of all, they live in Alaska, far from everything they have ever known.  Wade, their dad, gave up his legal rights to the sisters years ago and claims he didn’t understand the papers he signed and wants to do right by them now.  The law is not on his side so Wade takes Easter and Ruby one night and they set off on an adventure, which eventually leads to the promise of witnessing baseball history.  But will the trio make it with Social Services, the police and a very dangerous man on their trail?
I really enjoyed Cash’s A Land More Kind Than Home and was looking forward to his next novel.  It has that southern flair of language and description but with very spare, concise writing.  A mix I really enjoy.  While this novel could have taken some dark(er) turns, things progressed, at least in my opinion, very realistically.  A novel of family, home and redemption.

North of Boston by Elizabeth Elo

North of Boston by Elizabeth Elo

Pirio Kasparov decides to set out to sea to help a friend on his new lobster boat in Boston Harbor (just a touch different then her career as an executive with her family’s successful perfume business) and miraculously survives four hours in the frigid North Atlantic after their boat is rammed by a large ship.  The Navy is anxious to test Pirio – how did she survive in 40 degree waters for so long?  Pirio wants justice for her dead friend and for his son, her godson, and begins to poke around the port trying to identify the ship that rammed them.  As she investigates the collision and digs into her friend’s recent business dealings, she realizes that this may not have been an accident at all.
This novel is dark and layered – you never know who to trust or who is telling the truth.  Pirio is a really interesting character.  She is a driven businesswoman and a caring godmother, yet her history as a trouble-making teen that hung out in seedy bars with her best friend allows her to blend into the fishing community.  Add her reputation as “The Swimmer” who survived in the sea like she did and doors and mouths open before her.  But she may have wanted some of those doors to remain shut since by the end of the book she’s in danger at every turn.

I’m hoping this is the first in a series because I enjoyed Pirio, but it is a great standalone thriller.