One Kick by Chelsea Cain

3.0 out of 5 stars - "Change your thoughts and you change the world."

The Beth Movies, featuring a young Kathleen (renamed Kick) Lannigan, are
"still the most downloaded child pornography on the internet." Abducted by Mel Riley when she was only 6, Kick was kept secluded and was sexually exploited until a dramatic FBI rescue brought the damaged little girl home. Now 10 years after her ordeal, Kick is 21 and has reinvented herself as a serious student of self defense. Expert with weapons of every kind and in peak physical condition, it's only her mind that still exhibits the toll though Kick has tried every type of therapy known. Estranged from her biological family, Kick and James (another abduction survivor) have used her settlement money to form a sort of investigation team using his computer skills and her insider knowledge of the child porn industry. Their goal is to try to find other missing or abducted children before it's too late. When a couple of children appear in Amber Alerts, Kick feels the familiar dread seep in, so when a mysterious man who calls himself John Bishop and says he needs her help with a job connected to the cases of Adam Rice and Mia Tuner, Kick finds herself in a helicopter back into remembered hell.

Does Kick have memories and skills that can help recover these two children and will this chance to help save some other child give her the relief she needs to assuage the guilt she feels because of what she did the night she was found. When the opportunity to see the dying Mel Riley in a prison infirmary brings back feelings she thought she had buried, she is more focused than ever on helping to make up for what she'd done and to release Mel's hold on her.

A bit uneven in pacing and with the ever popular damaged heroine protagonist, the novel moves along in spurts of present day interspersed with flashbacks that show only a little of what Kick's life was like during the years with Mel. It's quite obvious that Kick still has a lot to work through and needs much more psychological help. The relationship between Kick and Bishop is stereotypical and predictable. I never grew to develop any affinity for any of the characters despite the writing telling me I should, and never felt the threat of real evil or suspense in the story. The novel ends as you'd expect when knowing that this is the first book in a new series.

I've read all of Chelsea Cain's previous books and enjoyed part of the Archie and Gretchen story until it no longer made sense to me, so I was hoping this departure and fresh start would be a thriller in which I could rediscover some of the shock and awe that made the author's first books so addicting. Despite all the famous name gushing blurbs, this just didn't grab me or enthrall me as I'd wished. To be more specific of the ways it failed might produce spoilers, so I'll leave it to other readers to either agree with me or to have their own very diverse opinions. I'm not sure I'd read the second one.

Amazon Vine and NetGalley provided ARC copies of this book for review. 

Jul 04, 2014

A Matter of Time by Beverly Swerling

Intricate and involved, this mystery novel centers on the topic of racial memory and involves several other themes and storylines as well. Far-reaching in breadth and scope, multiple narrators race against time to recover an ancient document that may hold new truths about the state of affairs and beliefs in the period immediately following the death of Jesus Christ. The Alexandria Testament may challenge long accepted views about Christians and Jews.

Twenty-four-year-old Sarah, raised Catholic, lives in present day,1983, but she has suffered her entire life because of auditory and visual stimuli. One recurring issue is that she hears a series of music notes over and over -- do, sol, la, fa (CGAF) - but the tune is not played on any conventional instrument. She also experiences fear and great distress from these strange periods when the "visions" come. This worsens after a car accident and results in her consultation with a parapsychologist to investigate the nature of these experiences.

In flashbacks to historical periods and locations ranging from Alexandria circa mid 60s AD to concentration camps during WW II, to Rome and the Princes of the Holy Catholic Church, to Israel, to France, and parts of the United States, Sarah comes to realize that she is key to the life's work of several very concerned parties. One faction wants to obtain the secret and the other wants to suppress it.

This is a very complex and meticulously plotted novel that has many characters to keep straight and detail that once again demonstrates that Beverly Swerling does incredible research on her subject matter. Even as the reader is swept to the revelations within, the suspense and a sense of anxiety keeps one turning the pages to find out how it's all going to come together. This is an enjoyable read with mystery, romance, and intrigue at every juncture.

Read -  July 2, 2014

Cop Town by Karin Slaughter

3.0 out of 5 stars -- Gritty stand-alone depiction of harassment, racism, homophobia and misogyny in the Atlanta Police Department circa 1974.   (read June 28, 2014)

New police recruit, the widowed and beautiful upper crust Kate Murphy, is stunned and nearly ready to quit on her first day of the job. After running the gauntlet of groping hands and leering eyes on her way to the women's locker room, she wonders why she ever signed up for this and figures this will be just one more job failure in her life. The station is all abuzz that morning, however, because of the most recent cop shooting in a serial case that's about to get personal as Kate becomes involved with the investigation alongside veteran officer Maggie Lawson. Officer Lawson also has a brother and an uncle on the force, but that doesn't provide her or the other female cops with any respect. The women are all subjected to abuse and derision while the men drink, graft, and beat down suspects in a climate that is rife with tension and where everyone is suspicious of "the others" who are not "like them." Nobody "different" gets a pass from these male cops and the women are usually left out of the big cases.

Maggie and Kate start looking into the case of the Shooter and discover secrets, lies, and coverups that ultimately lead them right into danger without support from their male colleagues. Is there a place for women in the Atlanta Police Department?

I have read all of Karin Slaughter's previous books and enjoyed the Will Trent series and most of the Grant County novels. She has fantastic writing skills that usually suck me right into the plot and make me care about the characters. I just wasn't that enamored of this novel -- the setting, time period, and tone of the narrative didn't keep me locked to the pages as usual. This is a stand alone and perhaps the start of something new for the author, but I doubt I'd read another featuring these characters or the Atlanta PD in this era. I'm certain that the legion of this author's fans will disagree, but ever since Slaughter "got me" with a plot kicker in one of her Grant County books (you all know which one I'm talking about), I've been less than faithful and her books are hit and miss with me.

Thank you to NetGalley, Random House Publishing Group - Bantam Dell, and LibraryThing for the ARC to review.

The Silkworm by Robert Galbraith

3.0 out of 5 stars -- June 27, 2014 This is the second in the Cormoran Strike series and I didn't like it as much as the first one (The Cuckoo's Calling). Convoluted mystery surrounds an author's murder -- who committed the heinous and grisly crime? There are lots of suspects as there was no love lost between this man and his acquaintances and enemies. In fact, the author's newest book really embarrassed and humiliated all who were involved in his life. I like the characters of Cormoran and Robin well enough, but I'm not a fan of little tricks such as when the detective has an ah ha moment and shares it with his cohort, but the reader is left in the dark and then there is a "tell all" at the end.  Probably will read a third, but not with the same degree of anticipation and expectation I had while waiting for this one.

Daughter of the Gods by Stephanie Thornton

4.0 out of 5 stars - "Egypt will prosper, but those closest to you shall find only anguish and ruin."

This fascinating historical fiction account of the life and reign of Hatshepsut circa 1400s Egypt is rich in detail and demonstrates the author's meticulous research into a woman who would be Pharaoh. Although liberties are certainly taken with descriptions of family strife and the romance between Hatshepsut and the commoner Senenmut, the tale is rife with interesting glimpses into the social customs, religion and habits of those who lived in that period of time in the rich Nile River valley Kingdom.

I loved reading about the clothes, the food, the jewelry -- it was interesting that Hatshepsut shaved her head to wear the required wig and even had to put on a fake beard when appearing before her subjects in official capacity at times. That many had teeth worn to nubs because of the constant presence of sand even in the bread. I could almost feel the press of the relentless sun and heat in the daytime hours, and the relative coolness of the nighttime with a slight breeze wafting off the river that both gave and took life. I could see the crocodiles lazing about the banks of the Nile and appreciate the gloriousness of the shining gold and solid granite in the monuments, obelisks, palaces and temples. This type of description absolutely hooks me and I always want more of it! I would have LOVED to see a map illustrating this place during the years that Hatshepsut and family ruled the Horus Throne.

What didn't enthrall me? The romance. The "plucky" Hatshepsut at times seemed to make completely stupid decisions and choices. The development, or lack thereof, of the secondary characters. The constant reference to the many, many gods and the various names and forms of them. I realize that the ancient Egyptians had a fixation on their gods and made sacrifices and attributed everything in their lives to the gods they worshiped, but it seemed sometimes redundant how much of the book was about pleasing the gods, signs from the gods, the afterlife, spirits, etc. I'm sure it's just my own personal reaction and that other readers might not find it as irritating.

I did enjoy the book and I'd recommend it to anyone interested in how a second daughter of Pharaoh Thutmose came to such an unprecedented level of power, to become Pharaoh herself, and to bring a great time of prosperity to both Upper and Lower Egypt. Once again, this book brought out the researcher in me as I try to separate fact from fiction.

Oh -- I LOVE the look of the cover art chosen for this book. I'm a sucker for realistic depictions of characters on the front of a book -- only wish that I would have seen the kohl and the henna as described in the novel instead of the way Hatshepsut is shown without any of that.

The Distance by Helen Giltrow

4.0 out of 5 stars Intricate plotting will intrigue thriller fans...

Who is Charlotte Alton? To most in London, she's a wealthy socialite seen at all the right parties, the theater and other functions. Behind the closed doors of her high security apartment, however, she's Karla -- and in that persona is extremely involved in the keeping of secrets and exchange of information. She's not afraid of the hard stuff - and ignores the question of right and wrong - as long as the client is vetted and the money is paid. She's been able to keep her double life hidden from those who hire or work on a case for her, except for one man to whom she shows her face. Simon Johanssen, a past client, has come to her with a case she can't refuse -- he needs to get into a high security experimental prison to kill a woman on the inside. Despite her ability to ferret out information, Karla can't seem to find anything about Catherine Gallagher and the reason the hit was ordered. Despite her concerns, she sets up the scenario for Johanssen and meanwhile tries to cover him and make sure that this is not a set up because Johanssen made a critical error in the past that someone wants him to pay for.

The narrative is told in several points of view and proceeds through the ensuing days of the mission with revelations and chills coming with every turn of the page. The tension builds as things start to unravel and Karla must insert herself into the operation to save this client. Who can she trust or is everyone involved acting with other motives? What is really going on? At times the complicated separate points become confusing and the reader definitely can't predict the twists and turns the story line takes, but it all comes together in slow reveals of deftly woven threads to create a satisfying conclusion that answers most of the questions. I can see where a sequel would follow.

If you like a good thriller without a sappy romance, if you don't mind quite a bit of descriptive violence, and if you want a unique female protagonist, then this is a book you can really sink your thinking mind into. I enjoyed it immensely and would recommend it. I also suggest you read it over the shortest period of time you can manage in order to keep all the characters and action straight!

Thank you to NetGalley and Doubledday books for the e-book ARC to review.

The Silent Sister by Diane Chamberlain

 3 out of 5 stars - "Everyone has a scar."

Riley MacPherson returns to her childhood home to clear out the house and settle the estate of her recently deceased father. Her brother, Danny, injured in Iraq and living in a trailer on the fringe of the RV park the family owns, refuses to help her. He's embittered and angry because of the fallout from their sister's suicide when he and Riley were children and he never got over it. All Riley wants to do is have a relationship with her brother now that the two are orphaned and alone. But, she discovers that her father was keeping s very huge secret.

Fans of women's fiction centering on family drama will be the likely readers of this newest novel by author Diane Chamberlain. I've read every single one of her books and keep hoping for one that takes me back to the thrill and satisfaction I felt when reading THE SECRET LIFE OF CEE CEE WILKES. I keep waiting for an intense relationship story and some real intrigue and mystery, but this book is lacking both. The tale is contrived, melodramatic, predictable and filled with what I felt to be completely one-dimensional unlikeable characters. That's right -- there was absolutely no one in the book that I developed a connection with or ultimately cared what happened to them. The whole narrative seemed so ludicrous, far-fetched and filled with so much co-incidence that even my usual ability to suspend disbelief was sorely tested. The ending was so pat that it was not remotely satisfying.

I really would give this book 2.5 stars at best because I was so disappointed again, but I know that anyone who likes books by Jodi Picoult, Mary Kay Andrews, Kristen Hannah and other writers of this genre will disagree with that rating. Perhaps it is me, and I should stay away from women's fiction.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the e-book ARC to review.

I Love You More by Jennifer Murphy

4.0 out of 5 stars -- One man, three "wives", and a mystery -- who killed their husband?

This was a deliciously unputdownable novel that kept me turning the pages well into the night! The story unfolds with different points of view and moving back and forth in time. How did these women end up in this situation -- Diana, Jewels, and Bert...and why does each of them think that Oliver Lane loves her "more than life itself?" Once the women find out about each other, they meet and forumlate a plan. But, little ears hear every word as Diana's daughter, Picasso, follows them, listens to their scheme, and tries to separate truth from all the lies. Meanwhile, a very persistent pair of detectives is determined to find out just what happened on that sunny morning in the beach house.

The setting, the atmosphere, the characters, and the unfolding details are brilliantly laid before the reader in tantalizing chapters that reveal the thoughts and motivations behind the decisions and actions of each player in this drama. The writing style really gave the tale depth as the author uses Picasso's love of words and their meanings to enhance her perspective and develop her unique point of view of the situation. The conclusion is quite a revelation and I believe that book clubs and everyone who reads this book will form a special relationship with Picasso and close the book with a sigh of satisfaction.

I recommend it to those who like family drama with a unique twist and those who like a slowly unfolding mystery that's solved in a manner that begs discussion. The cover gives it a sort of noir touch and sets a mood.

Thank you to NetGalley and Doubleday Books for the e-book ARC to review. 

The Heiresses by Sara Shepard

2.5 out of 5 stars - wealthy cousins wonder if they're next on the hit list...

Poppy Saybrook, one of the fabulously rich heiresses of the Saybrook diamond fortune, is found dead after falling from her office where she was President of the family owned company. Was it suicide or murder? The other girls, Corrine, Rowan, Natasha and Aster are a bit worried that one of them will be next. Long held secrets start to surface and loyalties are tested. Can the family hold strong together or is this an inside job? Or is the family really cursed...

The best part of this book was the description and detail about the luxury and lifestyle this family enjoys. The few really thrilling moments came in spurts as red herrings were exposed and the motivation revealed. 

I'm sorry to say that the ending was quite disappointing and ended with a cliffhanger indicating that this will be "another" long series. I can't see reading the sequel and only readers with an interest in a predictable "rich girls" novel with unlikable characters might be interested. I've read a few of this author's other books and this one is basically a repeat of previous plot lines with older characters.

Amazon Vine ARC

Nightingales on Call by Donna Douglas

5.0 out of 5 stars Nursing at the Nightingale Hospital circa 1937 in London's East End.

The series continues in this 4th historical fiction novel and we reconnect with all our favorite characters, Millie, Dora, and Helen as they are finding more challenges in their professional and personal lives. Millie and Dora are finishing up their training while recently widowed Helen has moved to staff nursing. The ward sisters continue to push the students to their limits as the date of Nursing Boards grows near. Millie has set her wedding date but Dora and Nick still have many issues to resolve.

There are new faces at The Nightingale. Jess Jago is working as a maid in the student nurse home but will she have what it takes to keep Sister Sutton satisfied and be able to leave her family's reputation behind and achieve her own hidden dreams?

Kate O'Hara's younger sister, Effie, has entered training and apparently doesn't have the same dedication to learning her skills and theory that the older two O'Hara girls displayed. Can she buckle down in time or will she get the boot?

Lucy Lane is up to all her old tricks with her high and mighty rich girl ways -- but she is hiding a very deep secret that just might end her hopes and dreams.

This series is a true joy for any historical buff who is interested in what nursing was like in this time and place. I love reading about their learning process and shudder when I think of all they were asked to do. Besides actually taking care of the patients doing procedures, they're also expected to clean like servants and prepare the food the patients eat! And study all night with little time off. Definitely the practice and scope of nursing has changed in the ensuing years, and I am glad about it as I don't know if I could have made it through The Nightingale Nursing School program!

I can't wait for the next book due out in November -- A Nightingale Christmas Wish -- and it's definitely best if you read the series in order from the beginning. Highly recommended!

The series:
The Nightingale Girls (Nightingales)
The Nightingale Sisters (Nightingales)
The Nightingale Nurses (Nightingales)
Nightingales on Call

Thank you to NetGalley and Christine Melanson at Random House UK, Cornerstone for the ebook ARC to review.

Little Mercies by Heather Gudenkauf

4.0 out of 5 stars -- "You have to look for the little mercies, the small kindnesses and good that come from the terrible."

Social worker, wife, and busy mother of 3, Ellen Moore makes a dreadful, almost deadlly mistake one morning. Though she's usually the one rescuing children or removing them from abusive homes, this time she's on the defensive as she accidentally left her infant daughter inside a van on a hot summer morning in Iowa. The full ramifications of this act become a nightmare for the entire family. 

Jenny Briard is 10 years old. She and her alcoholic father are leaving town for Dubuque when he is arrested before he can get on the bus where she's saving him a seat. Jenny is so shaken that she stays on board and ends up in Cedar City, alone, but determined to find the mother who abandoned her - she has the address of her grandmother on a birthday card in her backpack. 

The story is told in the alternating points of view of Ellen and Jenny as their worlds collide. While Ellen fights the legal battles and her husband and children are in turmoil, her mother takes runaway Jenny into her home. 

A beautiful tale of healing and redemption, family bonds and strong love, it makes one grateful for any little mercy. Readers and book groups will find much to discuss while examining their own lives and actions. I recommend it. 

Thank you to NetGalley and Harlequin for the e-book ARC to review.

The Good Girl by Mary Kubica

4.0 out of 5 stars -- Creepy and suspenseful thriller told in alternating points of view and flipping back and forth in time.

Mia Dennett, daughter of a prominent local judge, meets the man at a bar and agrees to go home with him when her boyfriend stands her up. Little does she know that Colin Thatcher has been watching and following her for days as he has been hired to kidnap her. In the course of the evening, everything changes for the pair as Colin decides not to deliver Mia for the ransom and takes her to a secluded cabin in rural Minnesota. Though Mia knows him as Owen, it's clear that he is holding her prisoner in this frigid and isolated place. Inside the cabin, though, something is happening between the would-be kidnapper and Mia.

Meanwhile, her mother, Eve, and detective Gabe Hoffman are trying to find the missing Mia by tracking down the few clues they have. As days go by with no word, Eve fears the worst. They get a tip and Mia is returned to the family home but she doesn't remember anything of her ordeal, and seems emotionally fragile and physically exhausted. What happened to her? What is the extent of the damage done by this abduction and how has she suffered the isolation and trauma of being held prisoner by this man. Who is Colin Thatcher?

The story is not straight forward and the jumps between points of view and time period alternate and are a bit disorienting until the reader figures out who is speaking and if this is a "before" a "during" or an "after" time.

It kept me glued to the pages and, though the ending was abrupt and didn't seem to offer a conclusion, I enjoyed it very much.

Thank you to NetGalley and Harlequin for the e-book ARC to review.

The Gondola Maker by Laura Morelli

3.5 out of 5 stars -- the beauty of this book is not in the tale of the fictional young man, Luca Vianello, but in the detail about 16th century Venice and the life of tradesmen and artisans in the early Renaissance. I loved reading about the city and the processes involved in the construction of the gondolas - a true labor of love blended with many other skills. The canals come alive with descriptions of the gondoliers and I could all but see, hear, taste, smell and smell the glory of the city during that time and place in history.

Luca Vianello was set to become a gondola maker as heir to the family business, but he longs to be freed from this legacy and to find out what it is that he is really meant to do -- surely there is something else out there. After a fateful fire and an argument with his father, Luca is homeless on the waterways of Venice and eventually finds employment as a private boatman for a famous artist. He discovers an old gondola in storage and begins to work on it, ultimately finding redemption and purpose. A series of events once again causes him to lose everything that is valuable, until he gets a last minute reprieve from an unexpected source, bringing him full circle. Along the way, there's a girl. As I said, the weakest part of the story was Luca as it seems to me that the real beauty of this novel is the way that the people of Venice come to life in the prose and minutiae. The author did a fantastic job of putting the reader beside the characters to allow us to experience the wonder that was Venice.

I read this novel almost immediately after reading The Venetian Bargain by Marina Fiorato so the Gondola Maker was a great followup as the time period comes directly after the Black Death had again decimated the city.

I'd recommend it to anyone interested in the fine arts as well as in this period of Venetian history. Thank you to NetGalley and Independent Book Publishers Association (IBPA) Members' Titles for the e-book ARC to review.

The Venetian Bargain by Marina Fiorato

4.0 out of 5 stars -- Intrigue, danger, romance and THE PLAGUE...

A very entertaining historical fiction novel set in 1570s Constantinople and Venice that brought out the researcher in me! There's nothing I love as much as a book that makes me want to investigate details of a time and place and this one definitely does that!

The synopsis, perfectly described in the product details, tells the story of a girl from the East meeting a boy from the West. They are different in every way -- culture, religion, medical training, social standing -- but when forced to work together to stop Venice's devatasting Black Death, they find friendship and respect that grows into forbidden love.

The best part of the narrative involves the details of each city and the vivid descriptions made me feel able to see all the beautiful buildings and scenery. I could almost smell the air, taste the food, and feel the veil and the mask worn to provide protection from the miasma that surrounded the people. I love a book with any type of medical history and that both Feyra and Annibale were trained doctors during this epidemic made me reread pages again and again to compare what is known now to what was believed in the 1570s. I can't get enough of that!

The characters a reader expects and loves were all there -- in their roles of good and evil, but there is a unique perspective here with the voice of Feyra, an Ottoman in a strange world that she fears even though she is half-Venetian. I enjoyed exploring Constantinople, Venice, and the island of Lazzaretto Novo. The additional details about the building of a church, commissioned by the Doge to make a plea to heaven to stop The Plague, were fascinating as was the inclusion of Andrea Palladio as the architect who imagined the fantastic Redentore that still has millions of visitors to this day. Everything about this book made me want to travel to these cities and see them for myself.

The only weak spots for me were the romance and the sort of unbelievable ending of this otherwise very compelling tale, but I pushed through and enjoyed it very much nevertheless. I'd highly recommend this to fans of this era and setting and my next read happens to be a book set just a few years later in Venice and is about gondola builders. Enjoy!

Please send recommendations of any other historical fiction novels set in this time period in Venice or Ottoman Empire.

Amazon Vine ARC. 

The Pearl that Broke its Shell by Nadia Hashimi

5.0 out of 5 stars "The human spirit...is harder than a rock and more delicate than a flower petal.", 

Narrated in alternating points of view and shifting back and forth in time, this is a beautiful novel about the daughters of Afghanistan. Though subjected to treatment that utterly made me cringe in horror, two women manage to overcome incredible obstacles to survive. Both Rahima and her great-great grandmother Shekiba spend a few years as bacha posh -- girls who dress as boys in a custom that allows them some freedom not allowed to females to better serve the needs of their family when there are no sons. In that guise, they realize that their religion and social rules are meant to keep women as slaves to the males who steal or buy them as wives. Denied the education that they covet, each woman must find a way out of the hell she lives in.

Though separated by over a century in years, Rahima and Shekiba are abused by the men and women they live with as each experiences her own personal subjugation under the harsh rule of husband and extended family. Held in their homes without contact with the outside world, they only have value when they give birth to sons. Considered second class in all ways, women are kept ignorant so that they can be controlled. How each deals with her situation is often heartbreaking but ultimately heroic.

Although I could hardly bear to put this book down, at times I had to step away, take a deep breath, count my blessings, and be thankful that I live where I do in this time. I don't think I would have lasted more than a day or two had I faced the lives of Rahima or Shekiba. I will think about this powerful theme and the plight of any woman forced to live as a possession to her family or a man. I think this is a book that begs discussion by those of us who enjoy the freedoms we have in a world where other women do not have the same privilege and luxury to be all that they can be only because of being female.

Highly recommended.

 

Amazon Vine ARC

City of Jasmine by Deanna Raybourn

3.0 out of 5 stars - Thoroughly predictable romantic historical fiction featuring an adventurous, plucky female and the intrepid, very masculine, love interest.

This entertaining novel is about famed aviatrix, Evangeline Starke, who is flying her plane on a sponsored trip to the seven ancient seas with her eccentric Aunt Dove when she is contacted in a message from what seems to be her late drowned husband, Gabriel.

Misunderstandings, adventure, danger, double-cross, hidden treasure, and several treks in the vast desert outside of Damascus make this a fast and enjoyable read. The romance between Evie and Gabriel was quite lame, but I usually ignore that in most historical fiction as I am reading this book set in 1920s Damascus (Syria)for the details of that particular place and time. Deanna Raybourn writes so well that the reader can almost imagine herself there -- smelling, seeing, tasting, feeling and hearing all the sights and sounds of the marketplace, the baths, the dessert, or the inside of a Bedouin tent.

Recommended for the history lessons! I also read Raybourn's [[ASIN:0778314391 A Spear of Summer Grass]] and enjoyed that setting in Kenya. The author's facts seem authentic and provide a very important background for the stories she tells.

Thank you to NetGalley and Harlequin for the e-book ARC to review.

The Nightingale Nurses by Donna Douglas

4.0 out of 5 stars The third book in this engaging series is another winner!

As Millie, Dora, and Helen enter their final year of training at The Nightingale Hospital in London's east end in the mid 1930s, they will be facing critical decisions about their future.

Will Helen ever be able to escape the demands of her domineering mother to make her own choices? Will Dora manage to overcome her girlhood trauma and do the right thing in the face of heartbreak? Can Millie get her act together and figure out where her heart lies in both love and career? In the midst of all this personal turmoil, the training goes on with long busy shifts at the hospital, late night studies, and difficult ward sisters.

Meanwhile, there is menace in the streets as the blackshirts embrace fascism,threaten the Jews in the East End and the war in Europe comes closer to their doorsteps. A very challenging 6 months is ahead - and loyalties and friendships will be tested.

The reader can't but help falling in love with these characters. Though there is a lot of focus on love, the details of the hospital and the nurses training are very absorbing and interesting as well! I was laughing to myself as I sort of felt their stress as the nurses approached State Registered Nurse exams! I just found out there is to be a 4th book in this series and I can't wait to read it. Highly recommended to fans of romantic historical fiction with an interest in nursing or prewar London.

The series -- and yes, it's best to read them in order.

The Nightingale Girls (Nightingales)
The Nightingale Sisters (Nightingales)
The Nightingale Nurses (Nightingales)
Nightingales on Call

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House UK - North America for the e-book copy to review.

The Nightingale Sisters by Donna Douglas

Nurses Training -- 1930s style

I am really enjoying this romantic historical fiction set in London during the mid 1930s. In this second book of the Nightingale series, we continue to follow Dora, Millie and Helen as they begin another year of nurses training in Bethnal Green. A new character is introduced, the mysterious and secretive Violet Tanner, who is hired on as Night Sister for the Nightingale Hospital.

The young nurses are still learning new procedures as they try to improve their skills and abilities under the watchful, and often very critical, eyes of the ward sisters. I find the details of this training to be quite interesting as I'm a nurse myself and experienced a far different sort of educational process! Their days are quite long and hard, and often there's not much to be done for the patients as medical science is not very advanced at this time and place.

As in the last book, the three trainees have difficulty with their families and love lives, trying to balance their own ambition with the expected behavior of females at the time.

I can't wait to start the next -- The Nightingale Nurses -- as the three begin their final year of training!

In order:
The Nightingale Girls (Nightingales)
The Nightingale Sisters (Nightingales)
The Nightingale Nurses (Nightingales)
Nightingales on Call

Bittersweet by Colleen McCullough

Lives that are not so sweet..., May 16, 2014

This is a romance novel set in Australia during the Depression era. It features two sets of twins - 4 young women coming of age during an era when higher education and the idea of a meaningful career were not the norm. Taking advantage of a unique opportunity, they matriculate to train as nurses at Corunda Base Hospital. Though the sisters are very close, they are all quite different as far as their goals and life ambitions. Inevitably, each experiences life's requisite ups and downs as political and economic turmoil affect the dreams held dear.

This could have been a powerful testimony to the advancement of women's liberation during that time and place in history, but unfortunately the story told here was more soap opera than sweeping epic. I found the characters to be completely unlikeable, in fact, they were narcissistic and so predictable that I found myself immensely annoyed. Much of the narrative focused on each sister's problems with love -- not because they were forced to choose between it and achieving their life-long ambitions -- but because they dithered about not having any personal insight. Good decisions seemed quite outside of their capability despite the reader being assured they were all well-educated. Secondary characters got short shrift and were very one-dimensional stereotypes. The long discourses on the politics of the time mostly moved me to boredom. The reader, reminded so often of how beautiful these girls were and how much money they had or didn't have, wonders if they would have amounted to anything had they been plain and poor. How nice that they all find men willing to part with the pounds to finance them. Edda, Grace, Tufts, and Kitty. These daughters of Australia find life bittersweet.

Recommended to readers who enjoy historical fiction with a large portion of romance. Don't expect it to be THE THORN BIRDS.

Thank you to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for the e-book ARC to review.

The Weight of Blood by Laura McHugh

3.5 of 5 stars - "You grow up feeling the weight of blood, of family. There's no forsaking kin."

The Dane family has lived in Henbane, in the Ozark Mountains of Missouri, for generations. In this small town, a "dark spot on the map" of the USA as seen from space, they are old timers in a place where blood ties mean everything.

The novel opens with the discovery of a missing girl's dismembered body in a tree by the river. Cheri, with a low IQ, had looked up to Lucy and they had played together often enough as children. Though Cheri had been gone for over a year before she was found, Lucy had never gotten over it because her own mother, Lila, had also disappeared from the town. Haunted by the mystery surrounding these two women, Lucy wonders whether or not the two cases could be related. What happened to her mother and who did that to Cheri? Lucy, who is being raised in his parents' house by her father, Carl, goes to work for her Uncle Crete at the shop and restaurant owned and run by the Dane family for as long as anyone can remember. She suspects that there is something evil in the town, and is concerned that her beloved Uncle Crete may be involved. It's time to expose the secrets even if it means violating the kinfolk bond. For who really is "family"?

This was a quick read with shifting points of view and flips back and forth in time. Lila's story is revealed and Lucy gets the answers she needs. The atmosphere of the setting, both foreboding and mysterious, increases the tension though the reader never gets any true sense of danger even as Lucy does some incredibly stupid things. The conclusion seems a bit anticlimactic and Lucy's somewhat blase acceptance of the revelations seems a little unbelievable, but stays with the theme of blood being thicker than water.

This would be a great read during the heat of summer, sipping sweet tea, watching the lake or river go by from a porch swing and perhaps hearing the chorus of night sounds coming from a nearby wood.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Random House for the e-book ARC to review.

Brutal Youth by Anthony Breznican

"Catholic school - as vicious as Roman Rule." (Death Cab for Cutie)

I really liked this book though it was very disturbing and dark. As a teacher, librarian and nurse at a Catholic high school, I have heard that phrase a million times since the song with those lyrics came out ~2005. There seems to be no end to the inventive ways that students find to torment each other. Though this book was set in the 1990s, many of the behaviors and problems described exist in school settings today. Students in high school are faced with academic pressure, shifting loyalties, betrayal, bullying, and other issues that so make these NOT the best days of their lives. The students in BRUTAL YOUTH come from different backgrounds and home situations that make their ability to succeed more difficult as kids compete with each other to stand out and be different while still wanting to belong to at least one group or clique. The blind eye or ignorance of what was really happening at St. Michael the Archangel was sort of unbelievable but definitely adults don't always get the real picture because students don't often confide the complete truth. A critical conversation or intervention by an observant teacher, mentor, coach or staff might have helped immensely -- I thought most of those employees should have been fired!

I originally thought this was a YA novel but I can see that it is not as I don't feel that most high school students would read between the lines for the insight that is there in the stories of the teens at SMTA school. The lack of resolution and the missing happy endings is difficult to accept because the reader, given the benefit of knowing the real inner workings of each character's mind, has definite thoughts and feelings as to how things should end. Consequences. Punishment? The level of abuse meted out to students under the watchful eyes of equally disturbed adults was horrific. I will be thinking about this book for a long time and I hope it keeps me mindful of the myriad ways in which I personally can be empathetic and helpful to the kids I interact with each day. Observant and open. Watchful and ready to step in to prevent the bullying or the "jokes" made at another's expense. Are students more vulnerable now given the impact of social media? I think everyone is potentially a target and that learning to handle it is one of the main learning experiences of the high school years, but no student should be left unprotected by the adults given the charge to keep them safe from mental and physical harm. The adults described in the book were horrible stereotypes of all the myths about Catholic school, but demonstrate how toxic an environment can be if allowed to go unchecked. I don't care what people say, any kind of "hazing" by upper classmen is inappropriate in a school community. Adults can and should model behavior that encourages students to be kind to one another and they should be vigilant to weed out and help break the cycle of "do unto others" when that means being cruel.

I'm sure I will be thinking about this novel for a long time and would love to discuss it with others. It was disturbing but pertinent. I'd recommend it.
 
4.5 stars Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the e-book copy to review.  May 11, 2014

The Harem Midwife by Roberta Rich

3.0 out of 5 stars - Sequel to The Midwife of Venice recreates Constantinople circa 1578 when Sultan Murat III is God of the Ottoman Empire and his mother, Valide, schemes to ensure that he sires many children to continue the line of ascension to the throne.

Hannah and Isaac Levi have left Venice with their adopted son, Matteo, and set up their silk business in the city of Constantinople. Because of Hannah's reputation as a midwife, she is commanded to the palace to examine a new slave girl. This peasant Jew, Leah, has attracted the attention of the Sultan and her virginity must be assured before any "couching" can take place. The desperate young girl, abducted from her village, is not intact. Hannah decides to intervene and save Leah from prostitution and death.

In another side plot, Isaac's brother has died and a woman who claims to be Leon's widow appears at their door asking for her dowry to be returned. Because of their move and the fact that silk is not selling well, the Levis do not have the 100 ducats she is owed. Hannah and Levi are faced with Jewish law forcing them to make a huge change in their marriage to satisfy their debt.

Although the conclusions to these separate narrative lines is predictable, and Hannah's involvement a bit far-fetched, the real enjoyment of this book comes from the details about harem life and the descriptions of the palace and the city. The reader will delight in the descriptive prose and almost see, touch, smell, taste, and hear what the center of the world in Constantinople must have been like in that day and age.

I enjoyed this very fast read and quick conclusion complete with the historical information that corrects the liberties taken with fiction. I think it would be best if readers had finished the first book in the series prior to this one. I'd read another about Hannah and Isaac Levi.

Thank you to NetGalley and Gallery, Threshold, Pocket Books for the e-book ARC to review.

The Nightingale Nurses by Donna Douglas

3.0 out of 5 stars -- predictable romantic fiction set in London in the 1930s as three young women arrive at the Nightingale Hospital in London to train as nurses. Coming from completely different backgrounds, Dora, Helen, and Millie have various reasons for wanting to study at the famed hospital. Can they endure the grueling schedule and unending work in order to further their personal goals and dreams?

I found the details about the actual nurses training the most interesting aspect of all. Reminded me that, in those days, there was more emphasis on bathing and cleaning than there was on science. The nurses did few actual procedures and took care of basic needs such as preparing and serving meals. I also wasn't surprised at the level of subservience expected from them by head sisters and the medical staff! Since I'm a nurse myself, I always find these novels to be pertinent reminders of how far the profession has come in skills and knowledge while still retaining the personal care expertise to provide hygiene and comfort to the hospitalized sick and injured.

I plan to read the other two in the trilogy:
#2 The Nightingale Sisters
#3 The Nightingale Nurses

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House UK - North America for the e-book ARC to review.

Summer House with Swimming Pool by Herman Koch

3.5 out of 5 stars - I liked this novel despite the fact that I totally detested nearly all of the characters and the underlying story. I definitely would not go on vacation with these folks!   Why did I like it? Because of the author's writing style and the stream of consciousness narration by the mostly despicable protagonist -- even though he is definitely no kind of hero! Marc is a family doctor, and despite his hugely inflated sense of himself, he's not the kind of physician that you would want to see. He is judgmental and seems to despise his job and most of the patients who come to him with their ailments and complaints. Dismissing them with paternalistic platitudes and a standard prescription for this or that medication, he is almost narcissistic in the role he plays as the gatekeeper to a specialist or a higher standard of care. He is mechanical and without much empathy and he accepts their thanks and social invitations with poor grace. Many of his patients are in the "art" world, and one in particular, Ralph Meier, is a famous stage actor whom Marc eventually befriends well enough to get an invitation for their families to meet up at the Meier's summer house. The story of what happens on that vacation leads to far-reaching consequences for them all, and for one, it proves life threatening. The story has a mystery, but more than that, it begs the questions and discussion about family, fidelity, morals, parenthood, and "bad" character. I found it to be a fast and enjoyable read, an interesting point of view, and certainly a train wreck of political incorrectness at times because of the narrator. Just be glad this is not your family doctor!  I have not read his other book, THE DINNER, but I think I need to do that. Thank you to NetGalley and Crown Publishing for the e-book ARC to review.

Frankenstorm by Ray Garton

3.0 out of 5 stars -- originally released as a serial novel, this full length mix of horror, murder and mayhem is a fast-paced and entertaining tale of one terrible night in Eureka, California. Hurricane Quentin is about to make landfall and wreak havoc on the coastal town, but other factors combine to create a nightmare of epic proportions.

In an old re-purposed mental hospital, scientists have created a virus that spreads on contact. The test subjects are homeless people that had disappeared from the streets. Now they're housed in the sub-basement of the huge structure, kept locked separately in cages because the infected people are afflicted with a killing rage.

A man who is dedicated to helping the homeless has command of a militia and a plan to rescue the captives -- but he doesn't know about the virus.

In yet another narrative line, a sheriff's deputy has gone rogue and is using the storm to take advantage of his own murderous impulses and has taken a local man and his son hostage on his rampage.

Meanwhile, a radio personality who wants to uncover a conspiracy is going to get the story of his life.

All the plot lines converge in a spectacular flurry of blood and gore as the storm rages through the town. Who will live? And even more of a concern, will the virus that is spread on contact escape the confines of the hospital?

This was a fun thriller but could have gone further as it ended without completely finishing the story -- I wonder if that means a sequel? Enjoy the ride!

Thanks to NetGalley and Kensington Books for the e-book ARC to review.

The Girl in 6E by A.R. Torre

2.0 out of 5 stars -- I am clearly not the intended audience for this novel as I have read many rave reviews on other social media and blog sites and I don't think we all must have read the same book. 

I felt this attempt at a "Dexter" copycat was less than thrilling and resulted in a promising premise poorly executed. Not recommending to my friends and definitely not purchasing for library. Not my kind of book.

I was intrigued at the idea of a young woman locking herself into her apartment and living a reclusive life because of her murderous impulses. She was not guarding herself from harm, she was protecting everyone outside the door from being killed by HER.

The character's motivations and background are revealed through the narrative as she describes her life -- mainly as a web cam persona who engages with anyone who wants a private session for a price. There's no sexual fantasy she won't indulge EXCEPT that there is no physical contact ever with another being.

Then, something changes and she has an opportunity she can't resist -- to leave the confines of apartment 6E. What mission compels her out of her safe haven? And can the urges of the Demon within be denied or will she act out everything she has imagined?

Disappointed and wishing I'd read something else instead. If you're looking for a good suspense thriller, erotica, sick psycho chiller, you may want to choose something else. The author is a woman.

Review copy (e-book) provided by NetGalley and Redhook Books.

Resistant by Michael Palmer

"It is not our nature to suffer, and most of those who are offered government handouts in place of effort will take them."

My reaction to this third book in the Dr. Lou Welcome series probably was a bit affected by the fact that I had just finished watching Part I and Part II of ATLAS SHRUGGED (author: Ayn Rand) on Netflix. Both have a theme centering on political philosophy: the 100 Neighbors organization in RESISTANT want the government to end entitlement programs such as Social Security, Medicaid and Medicare and they intend to do this by holding them hostage to a lab-created organism that is resistant to any antibiotic treatment. Unfortunately, this "doomsday germ" has mutated and is now out of control, is spreading rapidly, and their scientists are unable to find a treatment. The "good guys" at the CDC haven't been able to develop an effective agent either.

Dr. Lou Welcome (recovering alcoholic and drug abuser) gets involved with the desperate search to stop the 100 Neighbors and find a cure when his best friend and mentor, Cap Duncan, breaks his leg while trail running. After a heroic mountainside save by Dr. Lou, Cap acquires the infection with the bacteria while in the hospital. The race is on to find some sort of treatment before Cap loses his leg and his life to the deadly bug.

The action in this medical thriller involves a large measure of suspension of disbelief that a middle-aged doctor who is board certified in Internal Medicine and ER - could possibly have the physical stamina and training to do all the things that he does in this novel -- in short, readers are to believe he can outsmart evil rogue FBI agents and physically outlast the homegrown terrorists in several amazing escape from death scenes. I don't think I'm telling any spoilers when I say that, despite the fact that Dr. Lou is no James Bond, he manages to outmaneuver and baffle the evil organization and save the day. Coincidences notwithstanding, he's just too clever for the 100 Neighbors and their cohort.

I've not read the first two books in this series, and since the author's unfortunate and untimely death, it's not likely that there will be a #4. As a standalone it works well enough to give fans of the suspense action novel a taste of the medical-related thrills they're looking for. Would make a great beach read!

3.5 stars - a fast, entertaining 3rd book in the series:
Oath of Office
Political Suicide

 

Amazon Vine ARC paperback.