Tag Archives: novel

Oct13

Review: Three Holidays and a Wedding by Uzma Jalaluddin and Marissa Stapley

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I bought this book back in July when the bookstore had a Christmas in July sale. I finally had a chance to read it and absolutely loved it.

The two main characters are Anna and Maryam. Anna was raised in a Christian household but had a Jewish stepmother. Maryam is a Muslim whose family comes from India.

Both live in Denver. Anna works for a magazine and has a boyfriend she’s been seeing for only about six months. He thinks she’s perfect, but she worries that he doesn’t know the real her.

Maryam is a pharmacist and works with her family in their drugstore. She’s always been the dutiful daughter. Her sister is a doctor with Doctors Without Borders. Maryam spends a lot of her time being the person who arranges things for her family and making sure all things run smoothly. She’s also been roped into planning her sister’s wedding during Ramadan.

Anna finds herself on a separate plane when she is to fly to Toronto to meet her boyfriend’s family for the first time for Christmas. She has to catch a later flight than him due to work commitments.

Maryam’s family ends up on the same flight as Anna. They find themselves as seat mates and when the plane hits turbulence, they each share secrets with each other.

The problem is Maryam shares her lifelong crush on a family friend, Saif. Who just happens to be seated behind them and hears the whole thing.

The plane is forced to make an emergency landing at a small airport as the snowstorm that had started at take-off has worsened. By the time their plane would arrive at Toronto, it would be impossible to land there.

They find themselves in a small town called Snowfalls.

Maryam’s sister is miserable and making everyone around her the same as she’s concerned about her wedding. Maryam has that worry as well as finding food for her family to break their Ramadan fast. She’s also concerned that her crush is staying at the same inn and is making no secret of overhearing the conversation with Anna.

Anna, on the other hand, has a boyfriend who is completely enraged that she was on a flight that was delayed. He’s making demands that she make arrangements to get to Toronto any way she can. She stops at a bar she finds open and makes the acquaintance of a man named Josh. He’s nice enough to help her find the inn where he’s staying and Maryam’s family as well.

Over the next few days, Anna makes friends with Maryam’s family as well as Josh and both women become involved with each other as well as the small town that is welcoming to all. Maryam spends time with her crush although she tries to push him away. Maryam’s sister remained self-centered and miserable for most of the book, blaming the family fixer, Maryam, for everything from the snowstorm socking them in to the fact she had to cancel the venues for her celebrations.

This book was charming and inclusive.  All three holidays were celebrated and this reader learned a bit more about Ramadan than she knew. It was interesting to learn those traditions as well as the various celebrations surrounding an Indian marriage.

The two main character women grew in themselves and faced their own faults and shared friendship and guidance with each other. One particular character this reader like a lot was the grandfather of Maryam. He was wise and warm to everyone.

The book celebrated Ramadan, Chanukah, and Christmas in a lovely way, along with the normal romantic tropes. The authors did a beautiful job merging the cultures and celebrations of the seasons of each of the holidays as well as showing growth for the two main characters. I recommend this one as a lively holiday story that could be a Hallmark movie.

BLURB:

Three times the holiday magic. Three times the chaos.

As strangers and seatmates Maryam Aziz and Anna Gibson fly to Toronto over the holidays—Maryam to her sister’s impromptu wedding, and Anna to meet her boyfriend’s wealthy family for the first time—neither expect that severe turbulence will scare them into confessing their deepest hopes and fears to one another. At least they’ll never see each other again. And the love of Maryam’s life, Saif, wasn’t sitting two rows behind them hearing it all. Oops.
An emergency landing finds Anna, Saif, Maryam, and her sister’s entire bridal party snowbound at the quirky Snow Falls Inn in a picture-perfect town, where fate has Anna’s actor-crush filming a holiday romance. As Maryam finds the courage to open her heart to Saif, and Anna feels the magic of being snowbound with an unexpected new love—both women soon realize there’s no place they’d rather be for the holidays.

Oct6

Daughter of Egypt by Marie Benedict- A Review

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Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advance copy of this book for review.

Marie Benedict has done it again. She’s written a well-researched book with dual timelines and both historical eras are realistically and accurately portrayed.

The two protagonists are the daughter of an earl and the daughter of a pharaoh who moves from princess to queen to pharaoh herself. Both are real historical characters with the daughter of the earl being one of the first people into the tomb of King Tut.

The Earl of Caernarvon was deep into Egyptology during his lifetime and collected many artifacts and participated in digs every year for a long while. He was the patron of Howard Carter, archeologist and being in the home with these two men, the earl’s daughter, Lady Evelyn, called Eve by the family, became fascinated with Egypt as well. She was very interested in the female pharaoh, Hatshepsut and dreamed of finding her tomb and uncovering why almost all of the history of this pharaoh had been wiped out.

Hatshepsut herself was a strong woman ahead of her time. Born the daughter of Thutmose I, she was the God’s Wife of Amun. When her father died, she married his heir and her half-brother, Thutmose II and ruled with him as queen. When he died in his turn, she was regent for his infant heir, Thutmose III. Eventually, she ruled with him. She dressed as a male pharaoh and became a pharaoh herself in this co-ruling era. When Thutmose III’s son became pharaoh in his own turn, Amenhotep II tried to erase Hatshepsut from history by destroying her monuments and statues. He ascribed the trade routes, buildings, and other advances she made in her reign to other pharaohs.

The novelization of these two true historical figures is very well done and humanizes the female pharaoh in a wonderful way. I admit I didn’t know much about her, if anything, but I found myself fascinated by her as written in this book.

Both women faced obstacles as females in their worlds and each were strong and fought for what they wanted even when they had to disguise their strong spines behind a gentle exterior.

This was a great set of two stories showing how women in history were able to find fulfillment despite the odds against a woman in their respective time periods.

A bit of romance was sprinkled in for the Lady Eve as well as Queen Hatshepsut.

This is a great book with a lot of interesting history along with compelling stories. It moves well and isn’t dry or tedious as one might expect with the dry, dusty setting of Egypt for a lot of the book. Two enthralling stories in one with a tie to each other, not only in the history of Egypt, but in obstacles women have faced in history with finding their place in the world against strong odds.

Five stars.

Aug19

The Glass Eel by J. J. Viertel

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I received a copy of the ARC of this book from the publisher, The Mysterious Press in exchange for an unbiased review on behalf of Rosie’s Review Team. I thank the publisher and Wunderkind PR firm for this opportunity. It comes out in September and you should have it on your list to read, for sure.

The book was quite enjoyable and even educational. I didn’t know one thing about eel migration and spawning nor did I know about how they are harvested or transported for sale. The father/Son writing team clearly are well-acquainted with the process as well as the state of Maine.

But don’t think this is some boring tale about fisheries and eels. It’s a downright interesting mystery and thriller of a novel.

There are a few chapters from the point of view of sea creatures which add to the atmosphere of the story. It’s not like they’re anthropomorphic, but more like we, the readers, are included in the biosphere of the ocean and currents and how they interact with sea life. I thought it was a pretty cool concept that added richness to the story.

Jeanette, the main protagonist, is a woman with strength and conviction. She’s brave to the point of irrationality in some places, but I never felt like she was “too stupid to live” like sometimes happens in novels. She was sensible and bright and one steady-nerved person. She didn’t hesitate to move into danger when she needed to be strong and unafraid.

The other characters in the story who were her friends and close comrades were all well-written and fully realized. I liked all of them and they each added an important element to the story telling. It’s always a good read when the protagonist’s allies are also people the reader can root for and like. This reader is very much someone who needs to care about the characters to full enjoy a story. This writing team delivers that and more.

The bad guys were also well developed and each were a different brand of evil. None were caricatures which is always a good thing.

The story is intriguing and very nicely plotted and laid out.

Environmental issues play a part as well as the treatment of indigenous people in the state historically, as well as in the modern era. The authors didn’t bang the reader over the head with any of those things, though. They seamlessly wove those issues into the tale.

The action was fast and the suspects many and varied.

I truly enjoyed this book and hope to see more from these writers. It was a quick read. Filled with action, great plot points and a satisfying ending.

Five stars

BLURB:

In this gripping debut thriller, struggling divorcée Jeanette King becomes embroiled in a criminal ring when she discovers her ex-husband’s cache of baby eels.

Caterpillar Island is off the central coast of Maine―beloved vacationland of lobster bakes and quaint fried clam shacks, kayaking and country houses. At night, though, by the light of a headlamp, the island is alive with cash, guns, and poachers. Oxy addicts, struggling retirees, and unemployable deadbeats dip their nets in the creeks to catch elvers―two-inch-long baby eels that fetch $2000 a pound on the international black market.

Into this dark and dangerous world falls Jeanette King, who has, up to this moment, been earning her meager living mainly by picking and packaging peekytoe crab meat for shipment to New York and Boston. As Jeanette gets drawn into a fast-moving story of risk and violent consequences, she enlists the aid of a local policeman and an Indigenous activist. Together they try to set things right for the people and the planet. But the deeper they dig, the more dangerous things get. An ensuing procession of colorful locals, corrupt state politicians, and treacherous outsiders weaves a tale that reveals the underbelly of a deadly business.

Aug12

The Plot Twist by Eleanor Goymer, a Review

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Allie is a romance writer with writer’s block and a book due imminently.

Martin is a famous writer of murder mysteries who hasn’t had a new book out in so many years that he calls himself a former writer.

They share a publishing house and meet in an alley at the publisher’s summer party where both are avoiding certain people at the party. Also on that alley is an attractive young man who Allie had a conversation earlier when he was passing out hors d’oeuvres.

Both Allie and Martin are in a bind. They’re required to honor their contracts or return their advances. Allie still has hers but she doesn’t want to part with it. Martin has loaned his to his daughter and he’s positive she’s spent it all. And his wife has no idea.

Each of the writers are called in to the office of the publisher to see the new guy running the place. The man with no soul. After their meetings, separately, they both head to the cafe across the street to lick their wounds. Recognizing each other from that alley encounter, they sit together to commiserate.

The conversation turns to Allie’s boyfriend who broke up with her the night of the summer party. She’s not upset as they’d drifted apart, but she did fantasize about him being the victim of a serial killer. Martin talks about needing advice from a romance writer on how to reignite the passion in his marriage.

Martin tells her she should write a murder mystery with her idea about the serial killer, but her contract is for a romance, so she tells him he can have her plot if he helps her with her writer’s block by sharing the story of how he and his wife met as well as the romantic gestures he creates in his quest to win back his wife.

The story jumps off from there with many situations that cause the reader to cheer for both of the writers as well as laugh at some of the situations Allie finds herself in.

Allie is an absolutely charming character who steps into interesting scenarios as she flirts with and sort of dates the handsome man who was also in the alley that night. She also continues to try to work through her writer’s block and finds herself telling many fibs to her editor in the process.

Martin’s journey feels a little easier but he’s not the main protagonist so that was fine with this reader.  He’s a likable character as well. There is a twist in the tale that leads to more angst for Allie.

This was a fun book and a pretty quick read. It was left in my little free library on a Friday and I finished it that weekend. I’m not one to read a lot of romance as there are certain aspects of some of them I don’t enjoy, but this was witty, charming, and somewhat unique. I recommend it.

BLURB:

This love story is a work in progress…

When romcom author Allie Edwards crosses paths with bestselling crime novelist – aka publishing dinosaur – Martin Clark at a party, they discover they both have crippling writer’s block, overdue manuscripts and precisely zero words to show to their respective editors.

With deadlines looming, Allie and Martin decide to switch plots and tell each other’s stories. In the writing process, Allie not only gains a father-figure in Martin, but also meets gorgeous events caterer Will, the answer to the leading man-shaped hole in her life and her lack of spicy material.

Caught between love and her career, what could possibly go wrong?

Jul30

Wild Instinct by T. Jefferson Parker

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Thank you to Minotaur Books and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this wonderful novel set in California. A modern-day novel with some historical factors blended into the tale.

Lew Gale is a detective in Orange County, California.  He is also part of the indigenous Acjacheme tribe. He is sent to investigate the killing of a man by a lion. What he finds is anything but a simple man vs. wild animal scenario. In addition, the victim is a prominent citizen of the county.

Things get convoluted and the trail leads Lew and his new partner in many directions, keeping the reader engaged in the mystery and the action. The new partner wasn’t someone I really could get behind based on her spying on her child and other things the character had going on in her life.

There are flashbacks to Acjacheme tribe lore which was a fascinating part of the book. Clearly, the author did a lot of research into the tribe. I had not heard of this particular tribe before picking up this book and enjoyed learning about them.

Many social issues come into play in this story, like Lew’s PTSD from his time in the military, tribal rights, the historical treatment of indigenous peoples by the church, and greed of corporations and the people who run them.

Even with the social issues raised in the story, there is no feeling of lecturing by the author. It is all seamlessly interwoven into the mystery and action. The story may have bogged down in some places, but it was still an enjoyable read.

A really good read for the fan of the genre. The reader is also educated about many things without feeling as if they are in a classroom.

Four stars

BLURB:

The hunt for the truth is the deadliest game.

Former Marine sniper Lew Gale, now a detective with the Orange County California Sheriff’s Department, is assigned to track and shoot a mountain lion that has killed a man in the rugged country east of Laguna Beach, California. The victim is Bennet Tarlow, a rich developer and man-about-town in upscale coastal Orange County.

The investigation takes a chilling turn when Lew and his new partner, Daniela Mendez, discover that Bennet was dead long before the lion got to him. And while he might have been the first to die, he certainly will not be the last.

Jul22

Measured Deception by Richard E. Kalk and T. Ann Pryor

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Thank you to the author and publisher for the opportunity to review this book for Rosie’s Review Team.

This is a story set in the 1980s mostly in Los Angeles. The two main protagonists are LAPD Detective Nick Blaine and his partner, Phillips.

Faced with solving the crime of the murder of a young man who seemed to be loved by everyone, they’re led on a quest through the gay community of Los Angeles looking for any possible motive.  Blaine pretty quickly settles on a suspect or two, but kept an open mind for a while.

Blaine eventually enters into quite a cat and mouse game with the suspect he eventually settles on. The case takes him and his partner from Los Angeles to Chicago and even to Louisiana and Mississippi.

The story was interesting and held my attention. A couple of misused words threw me out of the story a few times, such as throws for throes and taught for taut.

Other than these small nits to pick, the story held up well and I liked the tenacity of the detectives in not letting the case grow cold as it so easily could have. They persevered and worked to find proof that their suspect was the right one.

It seems this will be a series (or it may already have earlier books) and I’m sure I’ll pick up the next one as well. An enjoyable, easy read.

Four stars

BLURB:

From the real life experiences of an award winning LAPD detective comes the riveting novel Measured Deception.

Justice doesn’t always come to those who seek it. Sometimes, in this world, justice is denied…

After twenty soul bending years as a detective with the LAPD, Sergeant Nick Blaine thought he knew evil. That was until he came across the murder of Ainsley Brown, a charismatic young gay man trying to live unapologetically in 1980s Los Angeles. Popular on the social scene, Ainsley was beloved by all but one man. The man who loved him so much he would rather see Ainsley dead than with another. Yet, the murders don’t stop with Ainsley Brown. Before he’s able to catch his killer, Nick Blaine will find himself taken from the streets of L.A. to the bayou of Louisiana and back again, all while hot on the heels of a killer.

Having suffered heart-breaking loss, Blaine must not only solve the case, he must also figure out a way to find comfort and solace in a world determined to let his demon chase him. With every step Blaine and his faithful partner in crime, Detective Phillips, find themselves falling deeper into a cesspool of murder, drugs, and sex. Will they be able to stay afloat?

Jun9

The Mysterious Case of the Missing Crime Writer by Ragnar Jónasson

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Thank you to the publisher, St. Martin’s Press, for a copy of this book for review.

I’m starting this off with the thing that bothered me a lot about this book. I hate and despise cliffhangers. Hate, hate, hate them. And this book ends on one. The major story line was resolved, but the subplot was not.

In spite of my dislike for the cliffhanger, I enjoyed the book. I’m a huge fan of Nordic stories. And ones set in Iceland are some of my favorites. The protagonist, young detective Helgi, was someone the reader can root for. He was a policeman who had some secrets he didn’t want anyone to know about which added an interesting component to his personality. An unexpected dimension to how he interacted with the world.

The story centers on a writer of mystery novels, Elin S. Jonsdottir, who lives alone and has never been married. She has a group of friends who have been in her life long term and they are creatures of habit. Lunching together on certain days of the week and at the same places. She also likes to hike and spend time in the outdoors. She has form for going off on her own and not telling anyone as she is independent.

When she fails to show up for one of the scheduled lunches, one of the friends reports her missing and the investigation ensues. The investigation is on the down low as the friends as well as the police want to keep the media at bay as Elin is a very popular Icelandic writer.

Our detective protagonist is a huge fan of golden age mysteries of the 1930s. He’s excited about the case as he believes he could earn a promotion if he brings her home safely.

The story is full of nuances and a few twists. I saw one coming but I liked how the author got us there. The policeman’s personal life is also interesting with some twists there as well.

The format of the book is unique as well. It skips time periods back and forth and also has a number of scenes that are the crime writer being interviewed. These are the only times we get to learn about her personality as the book progresses. The piecemeal learning about her was enjoyable. This reader enjoys books with different time jumps. It keeps things interesting.

I thoroughly enjoyed this one and if I don’t read the next one, I’ll make up my own ending to the cliffhanger. lol

BLURB:

The next thrilling golden-age-style mystery from #1 Icelandic bestseller Ragnar Jónasson, author of Death at the Sanatorium and Reykjavík.

One winter evening, bestselling crime author Elín S. Jónsdóttir goes missing.

There are no clues to her disappearance and it is up to young detective Helgi to crack the case before its leaked to the press.

As Helgi interviews the people closest to her—a publisher, an accountant, a retired judge—he realizes that Elín’s life wasn’t what it seemed. In fact, her past is even stranger than the fiction she wrote.

As the case of the missing crime writer becomes more mysterious by the hour, Helgi must uncover the secrets of the writer’s very unexpected life.

Jun5

The Band by David Kummer- A Review

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Thank you to the author for the copy of the book to review for Rosie’s Book Reviews.

I really wanted to like this book. The premise and the cover (what a great, spooky cover!) intrigued me and I was hopeful as I began reading it. Unfortunately, it didn’t hold my attention like I would’ve wanted it to. It was a bit disjointed and somewhat difficult to get into. It took me over a month and a half to finish it reading in short sessions. It didn’t help that the formatting was terrible. I tried to overlook that as it was an ARC copy, but it made for hard reading.

The protagonist was somewhat likable but not enough for me to want to cheer for him to prevail in the situation he found himself in. When I read a book, I like to have someone to root for. A couple of the minor characters in the band were okay, but they didn’t get to do much in the plot and they thus were one-dimensional.

There were no explanations of a lot of the things that happened in the plot. There were places that motivations were hinted at, but this reader needed more than vague allusions to why certain characters acted the way they did.

Several chapters had unknown characters interacting or having horrific things happening to them and, as someone who reads a lot of suspense and horror, I presumed those would be tied in and explained before the book ended. Unfortunately, that didn’t happen.

The ultimate showdown near the end of the book was particularly dissatisfying in that many characters acted in ways that defied logic. I don’t want to put in any spoilers, but running toward danger continuously when there are opportunities to escape made no sense to this reader. 

Overall, the author has a great imagination and this story has a lot of potential, but it didn’t quite live up to the expectations of this reader.  It might be right up someone else’s alley, but it just didn’t do it for me.

Blurb:

 Because of Johnny, I went with the band. Because of Kate, I stayed. They played anywhere, all through Appalachia. They were the best show for miles around. But even I didn’t expect Oakville to be the end.

Oakville, WV. It was supposed to be a quiet place: to catch our breaths, to fall in love. It was a chance to know each other completely. As long as Johnny didn’t find out.

It would also be the last show they ever played.

In a foggy Appalachian town, one of us wouldn’t make it home. And everyone else would never be the same.

Jun3

Them Bones by David Housewright- A Review

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Mar3

The Love of My Life by Rosie Walsh

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This book was dropped off in my little free library and it looked intriguing so I took the time to read it and now I can’t decide if I should put it back in my library.  Not because it isn’t a good book, because it is entertaining, but the publisher really screwed up this paperback.  Imagine reading along, getting to the part where things are being revealed and then, suddenly, on the next page, there is no segue way, but different people in the room than were in conversation the page before. Confused, you look to the top of the page at the page numbers and the book goes from page 278 to page 311. So, you check what chapter you’re on. It’s 48. Then you skip forward to see that the next chapter is 56. So, BIG chunk missing. Vital pages are missing. But you soldier on and get to page 342. Book then reverts to page 311 again and then those pages up to page 342 are in there again. Still nothing on the chapters that were omitted.  Wild, huh? There are only 364 pages in the book in its entirety. To say the reader is robbed is putting it mildly. A big chunk of stuff is missing.

I was able to fill in most of the blanks of the story, but was disappointed to not be able to read the whole book. I wonder if all this print run was so screwed up. I’m glad I didn’t spend my money on it as I would have been really much more upset.

As far as the plot, characterization and twists, it was a well-constructed story. The author has a way with words and her prose is easy to read. The tale of Leo and Emma was complex and well-written. I enjoyed the story but am disappointed in the fact that vital pages were missing. I don’t like to downgrade a review due to things beyond the writer’s control, but I can only give this one three stars because her publisher let her (and the reader) down; otherwise, this would have been a solid four from me.  

BLURB:

Emma loves her husband Leo and their young daughter Ruby: she’d do anything for them. But almost everything she’s told them about herself is a lie. And she might just have got away with it, if it weren’t for her husband’s job. Leo is an obituary writer; Emma a well-known marine biologist. When she suffers a serious illness, Leo copes by doing what he knows best – researching and writing about his wife’s life. But as he starts to unravel the truth, he discovers the woman he loves doesn’t really exist. Even her name isn’t real.When the very darkest moments of Emma’s past finally emerge, she must somehow prove to Leo that she really is the woman he always thought she was . . .But first, she must tell him about the other love of her life.