THE WORKING DEAD by David Thayer

August 29, 2014

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Thayer has written several other books featuring his detective Armond diPino who operates in New York.  This novel opens with DiPino working in a relative’s store in San Francisco in order to fully recover from a gunshot wound received in another book.

Why in San Francisco and working in a relative’s store is beyond me but there he is.  He has relatives conveniently living in Frisco and gets involved in helping them out of a criminal conspiracy involving human trafficking.  Along the way he meets several women including Emily, an ex-love who is filthy rich and involved with the family in the plot.

Perhaps if I had read the other DiPino books I might have a better understanding of what is going on in this one.  But I didn’t and won’t.

This novel is helter skelter and leaves the reader pretty confused with what is going on, epecially when DiPino’s partner from New York appears in California to help out.  Wonder if his supervisors know that he is not in New York during these trips. Does he magically have jurisdiction in San Francisco?

8/14 Paul Lane

THE WORKING DEAD by David Thayer. David Thayer Consulting; 1 edition (December 28, 2013). ASIN B0095ZJS2W. Print Length: 228p.

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Posted by Stacy Alesi

TRAITOR’S BLADE by Sebastien de Castell

August 28, 2014

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The death of their king has left the once proud Greatcoats in ruins. Brought together by an idealistic monarch and tasked with upholding his law, they were the keepers of peace and justice in an otherwise dark and lawless land. But the various dukes, landed gentry throughout the kingdom, banded together to bring down the Greatcoats’ king.

They’re considered the lowest of the low now. Looked down on by the very people they once protected, believed to have failed their king. Since Paelis’s death, Falcio, Brasti, and Kest have been forced to take work where they can. Their latest is the protection of a tradesman who may just be able to bring the Greatcoats together once again. But when their employer is murdered under their watch, they find themselves on the run.

They win positions as guards for another caravan but soon find that their new charge is at the center of another of the dukes’ plots. If the dukes succeed, it would mean chaos for the kingdom as a whole.

This first in Sebastien de Castell’s new series is a swashbuckling fantasy clearly inspired by classic adventure tales the likes of The Three Musketeers. It’s a fun start to what promises to be an exciting series full of action, intrigue, magic, and dirty political plotting.

8/14 Becky Lejeune

TRAITOR’S BLADE by Sebastien de Castell. Jo Fletcher Books (July 15, 2014). ISBN 978-1623658090. 384p.

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Posted by Stacy Alesi

HEROES ARE MY WEAKNESS by Susan Elizabeth Phillips

August 27, 2014

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Phillips is my favorite contemporary romance writer and I always look forward to her books. That said, if this was written by any other writer I probably would have put it down 10 pages in. The main character is Annie, a ventriliquist, and the book opens with Annie conversing with her puppets. Not my thing but since it was Phillips, I kept going and I’m very glad I did.

This book is a bit of a departure for Phillips.  Our hero is Theo Harp, a young widower returned to hide away in his childhood home, a spooky mansion on an isolated island off the coast of Maine.

Annie’s childhood friend Jayce is keeping house for Theo. Jayce is a single mom with a mute 4 year old daughter and Annie tries to rekindle their friendship.

Annie has recently lost her mother, who had a vacation home down the hill from the manse that she inherited along with an unusual deed restriction. Annie must stay on the island for the requisite number of days, or the property reverts back to the original owner, Harp’s family. Annie has returned to the island, a failed actress, destitute, and recovering from an illness that has left her having trouble breathing.

Annie and Theo grew up together, but had a major falling out as teens. Theo appeared to turn violent and frightened Annie badly. She’s still somewhat frightened of him, but also strangely attracted to him. Then sinister things start happening. Her cottage is trashed, a threatening warning is written on her bathroom mirror, and a gunshot narrowly misses her.

Eventually the romance kicks in but the gothic atmosphere is pervasive throughout, an obvious nod to one of the original Gothic romances, Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier. The requisite happy ending had even the puppets finding a higher purpose. Bottom line? Phillips is a great storyteller and has penned another winner.

 

8/14 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch

HEROES ARE MY WEAKNESS by Susan Elizabeth Phillips. William Morrow (August 26, 2014). ISBN 978-0062351128. 384p.

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Posted by Stacy Alesi

ABROAD by Katie Crouch

August 25, 2014

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A year in Italy as part of the renowned Enteria program offers Tabitha Deacon her first opportunity for adventure. A smart girl who’s had relatively little experience of the world, she approaches her year abroad with careful attention and focus. But that doesn’t mean she won’t have time for fun. Taz joins up with a group of three other students from the UK and suddenly has an in to every elite party and club in Grifonia. For the young twenty-something it’s a dream come true in every way – until it ends in tragedy.

Katie Crouch freely admits that Abroad is inspired by the Amanda Knox case. Inspired by being the key – Abroad is not a fictionalized version of the case. Taz’s story is very much Crouch’s own creation, but her various essays and articles on the case do provide interesting insight into the shape Abroad would eventually take.

The story unfolds through Taz’s eyes, told after her own death. As her tale hurdles to its dreadful conclusion, Crouch introduces various other murdered girls throughout Grifonia’s history. Their stories and the history of the city provide a unique framework, further setting the story apart from its true inspiration.

I thought Abroad was a bit unnerving – it stuck with me well after turning the final page. And yet I have to say it was brilliantly paced and excellently executed. A definite favorite of mine for the year.

8/14 Becky Lejeune

ABROAD by Katie Crouch. Sarah Crichton Books (June 17, 2014). ISBN 978-0374100360. 304p.

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DEAD LINE by Chris Ewan

August 24, 2014

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Daniel Trent and his fiancee are partners in the unusual business of guiding families of kidnapped victims when dealing with the kidnappers. They have the expertise to help the families understand what the kidnappers really want, and what amount of money they will accept to return the victim unharmed.

The action of this very fast and taut novel is set in Marseille France.

Aimee, Daniel’s fiancée,  has just advised him that she is pregnant when she mysteriously disappears. Daniel knows that she has been in contact with Jerome Moreau to sell him a policy to protect him and pay a certain amount if he is kidnapped. Daniel proceeds to follow Jerome to find out where his fiancee is when he witnesses to Jerome being kidnapped as he is driving to his home with his wife.

Daniel contacts the wife indicating that he knows about the kidnap policy and is obligated to help them recover Jerome. Events move rapidly as clue after clue to Jerome’s location surface with no success.

Ewan is a master at keeping the reader up all night biting his or her nails while devouring the book. The ending may allow the situation to allow a followup book to appear, and if so I would expect anyone reading this to grab it and get into it immediately.

8/14 Paul Lane

DEAD LINE by Chris Ewan. Minotaur Books (August 5, 2014). ISBN 978-1250047076. 352p.

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THE PROPOSAL by Mary Balogh

August 23, 2014

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The Survivors Club series, Book 1

So I committed the cardinal sin – I started reading this series with the second book, The Arrangement. I liked it so much I went back and found book 1. Happily, the third book in the series, The Escape , is also available.

This series focuses on a group of men who all sustained injuries during the Napoleonic Wars. The Duke of Stanbrook, having lost his son in that war, had invited this group of five men with various serious injuries, and one woman who had the misfortune of seeing her husband tortured and killed, to recuperate at his estate. They form an eternal bond, and after they have healed enough to return to the world, they meet up once a year at the estate to renew their bonds. And apparently each year, one of them will marry.

This book centers around war hero Lord Trentham, who suffers from what today would be called post traumatic stress disorder. He is of the middle classes, but received his title from the King for his heroism during the war. He has arrived for their annual retreat and is walking on the beach when he finds a young woman who has trespassed, and seriously sprained her ankle. Lady Muir is a young widow and is terribly embarrassed to be carried back to the manse. The chemistry between them is palpable.

They both have lived through violence and death, and their differences seem too much to overcome. Meanwhile Lord Trentham’s young half sister needs his help to find a husband, and he needs Lady Muir’s help to that end. After much soul searching, eventually they all find their happy ending.

Balogh creates interesting characters with real depth, and we can’t help but root for them. This is a fast read and a good one.

8/14 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch

THE PROPOSAL by Mary Balogh. Dell; Reprint edition (May 28, 2013). ISBN 978-0440245308. 384p.

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THE APPLE ORCHARD by Susan Wiggs

August 22, 2014

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Bella Vista Chronicles, Book 1

This series is set at the Bella Vista apple orchard in Sonoma County, California, in the small town of Archangel. I read these out of order, starting with book 2, The Beekeeper’s Ball, which I liked so much that I immediately ran out and got this book. They don’t have to be read in order, but probably is better to do so.

This story centers around Tess Delaney, an antiques appraiser working for a prestigious California auction house like Sotheby’s. She grew up in Dublin with a single mom who travelled a great deal, so really her grandmother raised her.  The grandmother had an antiques store and Tess loved being there with her, and learned a great deal that helped her in her career. Her mother told her that her father was a one night stand and she didn’t even know his name.

Tess is on the verge of a big promotion and move to New York when Dominic Rossi enters her life. She originally believes he’s come to her for an appraisal, but is shocked to discover that he’s there to deliver some bad news. Her grandfather, Magnus,  has taken a tumble and is in a coma. The news would be devastating to anyone, but the real shocker is that Tess never knew she even had a grandfather. Then she comes to find out that she also has a half-sister.

Dominic is divorced with two kids and dogs and is the executor of Magnus’s estate, and tells Tess that the two granddaughters are equal heirs. Stunned to learn she stands to inherit an estate, Tess decides she had better go meet her half sister, Isabel, and find out more. Along the way she falls in love with the area, and with Dominic, but the estate is on the verge of bankruptcy. Dominic works for the bank that holds the mortgages, but try as he might, the conglomerate that owns the bank won’t budge – until Tess ferrets out a rare antique that is worth millions.

The backstory here is a complicated family one, with some really interesting flashbacks to World War II in Copenhagen, and the Danish resistance. A very fast read with characters that come alive on the pages, and I truly hope there are more books to follow.

8/14 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch

THE BEEKEEPER’S BALL by Susan Wiggs. Harlequin MIRA; Reprint edition (April 29, 2014). ISBN 978-0778314967. 448p.

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DON’T LOOK BACK by Gregg Hurwitz

August 21, 2014

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Eve Hardaway, mother of one, and just left by her husband decides to take the trip of a lifetime. She goes to Oaxaca in the southern part of Mexico to enjoy rafting and hiking in company of a few other tourists to a small resort run by a Mexican couple.

She is immediately flung into the adventure of her life when she spots a man living alone in the Jungle near the resort area. While peering at him, she finds a camera, picks it up and takes it with her back to her group. She also finds a prescription bottle with the name Teresa Hamilton on it.

From this chance sighting and the picking up of Hamilton’s property Hurwitz accelerates the pace of the book to breakneck speed. The man she sighted does not want to be seen by anyone and begins a campaign against Eve’s group involving murder and terror. A sudden violent storm wipes out all roads and in effect closes down the area leaving Eve and her group at the mercy of a dangerous predator who proves that he will stop at nothing to keep his presence there a secret.

The group realizes that he has already killed Teresa Hamilton and they are at his mercy with no way out or any means to call for help due to the damage caused by the storm. The book leads the reader through a maze of secrets and terror. A definite all nighter with answers seeming to elude everyone and leading to mayhem and all powering fear.

Who is the man living there? What does he want to do? Questions that Hurwitz answers logically and keeping the reader pasted to the book.

Good book, great plot, well fleshed out characters and Greg Hurwitz continues his record of engrossing fiction.

8/14 Paul Lane

DON’T LOOK BACK by Gregg Hurwitz. St. Martin’s Press (August 19, 2014). ISBN 978-0312626839. 400p.

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Posted by Stacy Alesi

THE BEEKEEPER’S BALL by Susan Wiggs

August 20, 2014

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Bella Vista Chronicles

This was the first book I’ve read by Susan Wiggs, and as soon as I realized it was the second book of a series, I went and got the first – this is the sequel to The Apple Orchard . Hopefully, there will be more to come.

This story is set at Bella Vista farm in Sonoma County, California, in the small town of Archangel. Isabel Johanson is a culinary school dropout but a gifted chef, and she is converting the large hacienda where she grew up into a farm-to-table cooking school. She is also busy helping her half sister Tess plan her wedding, which will be held at the recently converted barn on the property.

Bella Vista is home to a small apiary, and Isabel is determined to expand it. She leaves a message for a local beekeeper and is waiting for some help, but her bees have minds of their own and start swarming, looking for a new home. As she tries to capture the swarm, a young man stops, who she assumes to be Jamie, the beekeeper. But he knows even less than she does about bees, and gets stung, triggering a life threatening allergic reaction.

Turns out he is Cormac O’Neill, a famous journalist who is on his way to Bella Vista to work on a book about Isabel’s grandfather, Magnus, who worked with the Danish resistance during World War II. This is a family with a lot of secrets, and having the writer there helps them all come out.

There is obvious chemistry between Cormac and Isabel, but she is hesitant about getting involved. She had a bad experience in culinary school and hasn’t really come to terms with everything that happened, but she is forced to when her ex shows up in town to open a restaurant.

There are a lot of threads to this story, and Wiggs masterly weaves them all together seamlessly, creating an engaging page turner with historical significance – I learned a lot about about Denmark’s role during the Holocaust. Her characters are skillfully brought to life, and the setting becomes another character here. There are a few honey based recipes included as well, and I’m dying to try the Bee Sting Cake, a sort of breakfast sweet bread.

If you liked The Storyteller by Jodi Picoult, try The Beekeeper’s Ball – I liked it even more.

8/14 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch

THE BEEKEEPER’S BALL by Susan Wiggs. Harlequin MIRA; First Edition edition (June 24, 2014). ISBN 978-0778314486. 368p.

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SHARK FIN SOUP by Susan Klaus

August 19, 2014

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The young, rich, and good-looking Christian Roberts sails off aboard his luxury yacht on an idyllic Bahamian vacation with his beloved wife, Allie. When they stumble upon long line fishermen illegally killing sharks to harvest their fins, Christian goes after them, freeing the sharks from their lines.

But the anglers respond by killing Allie, and with her last breath, she asks Christian to “save the sharks.” The fins are being harvested for export to China, where shark fin soup is in great demand.

The husband is always the first suspect, and F.B.I. agent Dave Wheeler is called in to help the limited Bahamian police department. Christian takes a polygraph, which is inconclusive, and Wheeler decides to keep a close eye on him.

Christian is heartbroken and depressed about his wife, but determined to save the sharks for her, turning into eco-terrorist “Captain Nemo.” He is helped by retired mob boss Vince Florio, who has no problem with mass murder and arson for a good cause.

Klaus is obviously passionate about her subject, but unfortunately, pedestrian writing and a vigilante hero are unlikely to gain her any support.

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8/14 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch

SHARK FIN SOUP by Susan Klaus. Oceanview Publishing (August 19, 2014). ISBN 978-1608091232. 340p.

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