Author: carol

Book Review: The Spy Coast

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60-year-old Maggie Bird is quietly raising chickens in the seaside village of Purity, Maine. So too are several of her fellow retired CIA officers, who also like the area’s charm–but especially like to keep watch on one another. When a dead body turns up in Maggie’s driveway, she knows it’s a message from former foes, and she turns to her friends, and not Purity’s baffled, acting Police Chief Jo Thibodeau, for help.

As she tries to figure out what led to this, in alternating chapters, Maggie’s reminisces about working her most past dangerous mission, Operation Cyrano, which took her around the world and eventually, she believes forced her to become a traitor. But as ghosts from Maggie’s past continue to seek revenge, she’ll need to call on the favors of some old friends – and perhaps even the local police after all – in order to outmaneuver them.

With plenty of action and espionage, and engaging characters readers will want to get to know more, The Spy Coast by Tess Gerritsen is the perfect book for readers who enjoy spy novels, murder mysteries, and thrillers. This first novel in a planned series will also please fans of Richard Osman’s Thursday Murder Club series and the “Red” film series. Place your hold today.

-Carol

Book Review: Shutter

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A forensic photographer who works for the Albuquerque police, Rita Todacheene is good at capturing what others don’t see, through the lens of her cameras. Not only does she have a keen photographer’s eye that helps cops solve the toughest crimes, but she also has a special talent –Rita can see dead people. As a young girl, her only friends were often such ghosts, but the first time Rita confessed this, she was mostly ostracized by her fellow Navajos on the Reservation. Now she knows to keep her “gift” quiet.

While she can usually block out her visions, after Rita photographs the particularly brutal scene of a supposed suicide, the victim’s enraged ghost, Erma, begins to full-on haunt Rita. Erma insists that her death was murder, forcing Rita on a quest to find her killers and avenge her death. Unbeknownst to Rita, investigating this case gets her the wrong kind of attention from Albuquerque’s most dangerous drug cartel and the crooked cops who work for them.

Shutter by Ramona Emerson was longlisted for the 2022 National Book Award for Fiction. Not only is this a suspenseful debut crime novel, it is also a compelling coming of age tale, as Rita’s Indigenous upbringing and the history of her visions are revealed in flashbacks along the way. Filled with non-stop action, grisly descriptions of violent crime scenes and corpses, and plenty of not-so-friendly ghosts, this truly original blend of mystery and the supernatural might be just the change of pace you are looking for. And good news –its sequel, Exposure, will be published in October 2024.

-Carol



Book Review: The River We Remember

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When the body of Jimmy Quinn is found floating in the Alabaster River, it sets off an irreversible chain of events that forever changes lives in Black Earth County in southwestern Minnesota in 1958. Quinn, one of the rural county’s wealthiest landowners, was a cruel man whose death comes as a relief to most of his neighbors. But before Sherriff Brody Dern even examines the crime scene, prejudices influence townspeople to pin the murder on Noah Bluestone, a war vet, and a Dakota Sioux whose ancestor first owned Quinn’s land. As Brody continues to investigate, tensions rise and a myriad of secrets come to light about his neighbors – even as Brody desperately tries to conceal his own dark past. Can Brody get to the truth of Quinn’s death before innocent people begin to turn against one another?

With a cast of exquisitely drawn characters, most of whom are still haunted by World War II, The River We Remember by William Kent Krueger is part police procedural, part exploration of small town life in 1950’s Minnesota. With vivid descriptive and a gripping narrative that you’ll want to savor, this novel is Krueger at his most skilled. Pick up a copy today!

-Carol

Carol’s Top Ten of 2023

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It was a year packed with good reading for me. Here are my favorites:

The Guest by Emma Cline

Day by Michael Cunningham

Learned by Heart by Emma Donoghue

The Vaster Wilds by Lauren Groff

Chenneville by Paulette Jiles

Someone Else’s Shoes by Jojo Moyes

Tom Lake by Ann Patchett

Night Watch by Jayne Ann Phillips

Coronation Year by Jennifer Robson

Crook Manifesto by Colson Whitehead

Hope you’ve enjoyed everything you’ve read this year! Happy Holidays and Happy Reading in the New Year to all!

-Carol

Book Review : Mrs. Plansky’s Revenge

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Loretta Plansky is a 71-year-old widow leading the comfortable life of a retiree in Florida. For her, that includes playing weekly tennis games at the country club, now that she is post-hip replacement of course. While she doesn’t often splurge on herself, Mrs. Plansky is generous to a fault with her two adult children, and is also currently footing the bill for her 98-year-old father at his upscale assisted living facility. She is, in fact, about to make substantial contributions to both her children’s latest investment “opportunities,” when she gets scammed out of her life savings of nearly $4 Million by a caller pretending to be her grandson. Unconvinced that law enforcement will track down the perpetrators or her money, Mrs. Plansky takes matters in her own hands, setting off on a journey that takes her to Romania.

Mrs. Plansky’s Revenge by Spencer Quinn is a charming and lively cozy mystery that stars a capable, likable, and sometimes nostalgic protagonist who will stop at nothing to reclaim her money and her dignity. And, getting to know the sympathetic bad guys along the way is fun, too.

Looking to take things a little less seriously? Pick up this light and humorous read by the author of the long-running, hilarious Chet and Bernie mystery series, and get ready to smile.

-Carol

Fiction that Falls Back in Time

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Cassandra Dankworth’s day begins badly. First, she is dumped by her boyfriend of three months (her longest relationship). Later that morning, she learns she is being fired, too. If that’s not bad enough, the next morning, it all happens again! Cassie is stuck in a “Groundhog Day” time loop, and she must live that horrible, no-good day over and over and over.

A creature of habit, with atypical personality traits, including the inability to pick up on social cues, Cassie doesn’t adapt well to change and thinks she’s just descended into a circle of Hell. But when she realizes she can begin to control her time travel abilities, Cassie starts to wonder if by traveling far back enough in her past, she might just be able to change her future.

Cassandra in Reverse by Holly Smale is a contemporary romance novel with heart, well-developed characters, and laugh-out-loud humor. Clever references to Greek myths populate this time loop fantasy, that is perfect for fans of The Rosie Project by Graeme Simsion and Oona Out of Order by Margarita Montimore. Have a bit of extra time on your hands? Pick up a copy today.

-Carol

The Season of the Witch

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Martha Hallybread is a long-time, loyal hand-servant in Cleftwater, a small, seaside town in 17th century East Anglia, England. Unable to speak, Martha relies on a self-taught sign language to communicate and is well thought of in her community. When the witchfinder arrives and begins arresting local women, Martha’s hand gestures make her stand out to him as strange, but her skills as a midwife are needed to help the witchfinder search for marks of the devil. Forced to collude against her own friends and neighbors, Martha is afraid to help them and more afraid that she herself will be accused – or worse, that her secret history – and the wax poppet witching doll she keeps by her side – will be discovered and cause her to hang.

The Witching Tide by Margaret Meyer is a well-researched, atmospheric, and haunting debut that will appeal to readers of Hilary Mantel and the historical fiction of Minette Walters and Margaret Atwood. Martha’s unique way of communicating, along with her frustrations, fears, and complicated feelings about her lot in life are quietly yet intensely palpable. Think you’ve read enough books about witch trials? Pick up a copy of this unforgettably rendered read that will immerse you in 17th century and keep you guessing Martha’s fate, and prepare to be surprised.

-Carol

Fall Into a Twisty Thriller

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David Burroughs is serving a life sentence for an unthinkable crime – the brutal murder of his three-year-old son Matthew. David doesn’t believe he did it, but has no memory of that night. And, evidence was mounted against David at the trial, including testimony from an eyewitness who saw him bury the murder weapon. Broken by loss, David has resigned himself to serve out his life sentence at a maximum security prison.

Now, five years into that sentence, David gets his first visitor, his ex-wife’s sister Rachel. Rachel shows him a photograph of a group of strangers. Among them is a young boy who looks too much like Matthew to be a coincidence. How can Matthew still be alive? Hoping there’s a chance, David decides to break out of prison in search of the truth.

On the run, David relies on his wits and the few friends he has left to try and track down what could be a ghost – all the while the police and FBI remain hot on his trail. Can he find this boy, who might be his, before the law throws him back behind bars –or worse.

With non-stop, gripping action, and plenty of twists, I Will Find You by Harlan Coben takes readers on a wild ride to its satisfying and surprising ending. This fast-paced thriller is perfect escape reading for fans of the author, suspenseful thrillers, and the 1993 film The Fugitive. Get a copy and then, hang on tight!

-Carol

Book Review: Chenneville by Paulette Jiles

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Union soldier John Chenneville is a changed man when the Civil War ends. Nearly killed and suffering from a traumatic head injury, upon his return home to Missouri, he learns about the vicious killing of his sister, her husband and their infant child. Determined to seek justice and track down the killer, John must first recover his memory and strength to do so.

After a year of rebuilding, John is even more obsessed with finding this cold-blooded monster, and sets out after him on a journey deep into the lawless country of Texas. Along the way, he meets some decent folks who assist him in his quest, including Belle, a mysterious female telegrapher. Though John is drawn to Belle and longs for normalcy and a future, he cannot veer from his path until he satisfies his need for justice. Whether or not John will be punished for dispensing that justice, or even survive the eventual confrontation with his sister’s killer, bears little relevance to him.   

Chenneville by Paulette Jiles is indeed a “novel of murder, loss, and vengeance,” but it is also a lovingly rendered work of historical fiction about a desperate, honorable man. With picture perfect descriptions of the Texas landscape, impeccably researched historical details of the era, and fascinating information on the lost art of telegraphers, you’ll want to resist devouring this slim novel in a single sitting. As with Jiles’ bestseller News of the World, this reader would have liked to spend a bit more time in this book’s world. Place your hold today!

-Carol

Mystery Book Review: Augusta Hawke

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A young widow residing in the well-off “Old Town” section of Washington, D. C., Augusta Hawke is also the successful author of a long running mystery series. While she isn’t a recluse exactly, Augusta likes to spend most days writing and doesn’t socialize much. She prefers the comforts of her home, where she (is a little embarrassed to admit it) lives vicariously by watching the comings and goings of her busy neighbors. Her prime entertainment comes from Niko and Zora Norman, new parents to an infant who live across the courtyard and don’t draw their blinds. Overall, the Normans are pretty boring usually—until they go missing without a trace, leaving their child alone.

After Augusta is questioned by handsome Detective Steve Narduzzi about what she might have seen, she starts thinking like one of her characters – was the couple kidnapped? are they both dead? Augusta can’t resist an unfinished mystery, and so she gets into disguise and starts asking questions! When her investigations put her own life in danger, will Augusta regret sticking her nose where it doesn’t belong, or has she just found a new favorite hobby?

Augusta Hawke by G. M. Malliet is the witty, compelling and satisfying first entry in a cozy mystery series. Augusta is a fantastic heroine who is funny and likable and self-deprecating, with an interesting backstory that is enticingly revealed in snippets to the reader as Augusta contemplates each crime-solving move.

Book two in the series, Invitation to a Killer, is already out! Talk about instant gratification.

Until next time, keep reading.

-Carol