THE HAUNTING OF H. G. WELLS by Robert Masello

October 25, 2020
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From the publisher:

A plot against England that even the genius of H. G. Wells could not have imagined.

It’s 1914. The Great War grips the world—and from the Western Front a strange story emerges…a story of St. George and a brigade of angels descending from heaven to fight beside the beleaguered British troops. But can there be any truth to it?

H. G. Wells, the most celebrated writer of his day—author of The Time Machine, The War of the Worlds, The Invisible Man—is dispatched to find out. There, he finds an eerie wasteland inhabited by the living, the dead, and those forever stranded somewhere in between…a no-man’s-land whose unhappy souls trail him home to London, where a deadly plot, one that could turn the tide of war, is rapidly unfolding.

In league with his young love, the reporter and suffragette Rebecca West, Wells must do battle with diabolical forces—secret agents and depraved occultists—to save his sanity, his country, and ultimately the world.

Robert Masello is an author who has published historical novels with a decidedly surreal twist involved in them. This current novel is written around H.G. Wells, an author who wrote many books involving a vision of the future that projected what later became real-life happenings. These included “War of the Worlds”, “Things to come” “The Invisible Man” and the “Time Machine.” Wells must be considered as one of the first authors writing what then became Science Fiction, and a man that knew fame in his own lifetime.

The novel begins in England during the first few months of World War I. A legend arose that ghosts of English bowmen and archers appeared magically at the western front and fought on the British side. This was conceived that the Gods were on the side of the English and used to buoy up the country in the face of war.

H.G. Wells, at the peak of his fame, is called into the war office and Winston Churchill the man in charge asks him to travel to the western front in Belgium in order to investigate the truth of the advent of the archers. Wells acquiesces and does so in the care of an experienced soldier.

Masello’s descriptions of conditions at the western front are very vivid and well done. He describes a group of men called ghouls that have deserted their armies and live underground at the front stealing food from the dead in order to survive.

In an attack by the English against soldiers of the German army Wells is propelled into an underground nest of the so-called ghouls who save his life. In later dispatches written by him when he returns to England Wells writes what he is told to by the war office.

In further adventures of the famed author, Wells meets a young lady, Rebecca West who becomes his lifelong mistress. Masello indicates that Jane, H.G. Wells wife knew of his philandering and allowed it to happen, understanding her husband’s needs to do so.

The last half of the novel becomes involved with two events that the author makes up. The first is the survival of a wounded crew member of a downed German airship that had attacked London, and Mrs. Wells caring for him against all regulations. The second is the description of a planned chemical attack by a German agent living in England and action against him by Wells with the aid of Ms. West.

It goes without saying that literary license is used by Masello, as it has been in previous successful novels aiding in providing a very readable novel and one that further enhances his reputation and piquing the interest of his readers who await his next work.

10/2020 Paul Lane

THE HAUNTING OF H. G. WELLS by Robert Masello. 47North (October 1, 2020). ISBN: 978-1542093781. 397 pages.

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ALL SCOT AND BOTHERED by Kerrigan Byrne

October 5, 2020

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Devil You Know, Book 2

From the publisher:

All Scot and Bothered is the second book in the stunning Devil You Know series by USA Today bestselling author Kerrigan Byrne!

They are a dangerous duke, a fierce lord, and an infamous earl―dark, bold, brave men who know exactly what they want. And there is only one woman who can bring them to their knees…

He is first and foremost―at everything. A man who’s made his own way through ruthless cunning and sheer force of will. A strong and imposing Scot who can turn on the charm but does not suffer fools. His title: Lord Chief Justice of the High Court. His name: Cassius Gerard Ramsay. His mission: To investigate the goings-on at London’s most notorious gaming hell, owned and operated by one of the most intriguing and desirable women he’s ever met.

IN THIS GAME OF LOVE, THE RULES DO NOT APPLY

Cecelia Teague was an orphan facing a rather dire future―until a secret benefactor from her mother’s scandalous past swept into her life. Sent to a prestigious boarding school and later to university, Cecelia believed high society was at her fingertips…Then, from out of nowhere, she became the inheritor of a gambling establishment. Now Cecelia must live two lives: one as a proper lady who finds herself undeniably drawn to Lord Ramsay and the other as a savvy gaming hell owner trying to save her business from the very same man. He has no idea she is both women…and Cecelia would like to keep it that way. But what happens when consuming passion and escalating danger threaten to reveal the truth?

This was my first book by Byrne, and now I’m hesitant to read another. For me, the best thing about this book was the title. As to the story itself, it was so muddled and illogical that I just couldn’t get into it. It may be because this is part of a series and I did not read the first book, but I don’t really think that is it.

Cecelia was a mess of a character. One minute she’s hot for the Lord Chief Justice and the next she is afraid of him. He is supposed to be so good at his job but doesn’t realize that Cecelia and the Scarlet Lady are one and the same person. No one questions the parentage of the child Cecelia has inherited. She staunchly defends her establishment at the accusation of being in the child trafficking business, yet literally knows nothing about the business or the people who are running it. Like I said, it was just an unbelievable mess. I’m sorry to say this book left me all “scot and bothered.”

10/2020 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch™

ALL SCOT AND BOTHERED by Kerrigan Byrne. St. Martin’s Paperbacks (September 29, 2020). ISBN 978-1250318862. 416 pages.

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THE ABSTAINER by Ian McGuire

September 22, 2020

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Roland Ford Series, Book 4

From the publisher:

An Irishman in nineteenth-century England is forced to take sides when his nephew joins the bloody underground movement for independence in this propulsive novel from the acclaimed author of The North Water.

Manchester, England, 1867. The rebels will be hanged at dawn, and their brotherhood is already plotting its revenge.

Stephen Doyle, an Irish-American veteran of the Civil War, arrives in Manchester from New York with a thirst for blood. He has joined the Fenians, a secret society intent on ending British rule in Ireland by any means necessary. Head Constable James O’Connor has fled grief and drink in Dublin for a sober start in Manchester. His job is to discover and thwart the Fenians’ plans whatever they might be. When a long-lost nephew arrives on O’Connor’s doorstep looking for work, he cannot foresee the way his fragile new life will be imperiled—and how his and Doyle’s fates will become fatally intertwined.

In this propulsive tale of the underground war for Irish independence, the author of The North Water once again transports readers to a time when blood begot blood. Moving from the dirt and uproar of industrial Manchester to the quiet hills of rural Pennsylvania, The Abstainer is a searing novel in which two men, haunted by their pasts and driven forward by the need for justice and retribution, must fight for life and legacy.

Ian McGuire brings us into the mid 19th century in a very well-done novel set during a period just after Ireland had suffered through a potato famine with consequences of depressed economic conditions. Land was mainly owned by transplanted British nobility and the Irish were focused on winning their liberty and their land back from England. A secret society termed “Fenians” waged underground war against England and their military and police based in Ireland to enforce British rule. Most of the population lived in abject poverty with roots in the potato famine. The story opens with the hanging of three Irish rebels for the crime of killing a police officer. The Irish underground is already planning a campaign of retaliation against British authority with the author introducing persona from both sides of the conflict and allowing their views to be aired as a necessary adjunct to the story.

Stephen Doyle, an Irish American who had lived in the U.S and had served with the Union army during the American civil war, returns to his native country filled with rage and anxious to shed blood. He moves into the city of Manchester and quickly joins the Fenians with the idea to cause havoc among the British. At the same time, head constable James O’Connor enters the scene. He had worked in Dublin but had become an alcoholic to escape the trauma of his young wife dying. He is sent to Manchester as a last chance to redeem himself and is determined to do so. When a long-lost nephew shows up at his house looking for work it creates a conflict that will put O’Connor and Doyle against each other in a situation that only killing will solve.

The novel is definitely enhanced by the author’s knowledge of and descriptions of the economic and political conditions in both Ireland and the United States in a period after the Civil War. The reason that O’Connor and Doyle became deadly enemies is logically tied into the conditions both men faced in their lives and in the areas they lived in during the action. Definitely, a novel that will capture its readers causing a good deal of loss of sleep and the obvious desire to pick up McGuire’s next novel.

9/2020 Paul Lane

THE ABSTAINER by Ian McGuire.  Random House (September 15, 2020). ISBN: 978-0593133873. 320 pages.

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REMEMBER ME by Mario Escobar

September 12, 2020

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From the publisher:

Amid the shadows of war, one family faces an impossible choice that will change their lives forever.

Madrid, 1934. Though the Spanish Civil War has not yet begun, the streets of Madrid have become dangerous for thirteen-year-old Marco Alcalde and his younger sisters, Isabel and Ana. When Marco’s parents align themselves against General Franco and his fascist regime, they have no inkling that their ideals will endanger them and everyone they love—nor do they predict the violence that is to come.

When the Mexican government promises protection to the imperiled children of Spain, the Alcaldes do what they believe is best: send their children, unaccompanied, across the ocean to the city of Morelia—a place they’ve never seen or imagined. Marco promises to look after his sisters in Mexico until their family can be reunited in Spain, but what ensues is a harrowing journey and a series of heartbreaking events. As the growing children work to care for themselves and each other, they feel their sense of home, family, and identity slipping further and further away. And as their memories of Spain fade and the news from abroad grows more grim, they begin to wonder if they will ever see their parents again or the glittering streets of the home they once loved.

Based upon the true stories of the Children of Morelia, Mario Escobar’s Remember Me—now available for the first time in English—explores the agony of war and paints a poignant portrait of one family’s sacrificial love and endurance.

The publisher provided additional historical information – scroll down for the info and some pictures.

Mario Escobar lives in Spain and writes in Spanish. This book was translated by a professional translator and it was the novel in English that I read. It was still one of the most hard-hitting books I have enjoyed. I emerged from a continuous read emotionally spent and attempting to see how more than five stars could be given to what I had just finished.

The novel begins with a family of five living in Madrid in 1936; one that is closely knit and happy with their lives even though they are not wealthy. Life than changes abruptly for them when a civil war breaks out in Spain. The first phase began with a military revolt in Morocco triggered by events in Madrid. In a short time, Spain became an armed camp with Loyalists on one side and Nationalists on the other. The Nationalists soon became followers of General Francisco Franco who is described as a mass murderer. The author describes the situation as the two sides square off against each other. Atrocities occurred committed by both armies and Escobar describes a scenario when mass murders are the norm.

Marco Alcalde and his sisters Isabel and Ana are the three children of the family living in Madrid. Their father takes an active role on the side of the Loyalists taking part in several pitched battles. Based on their parent’s views of the blood bath they live in with the definite possibility that all will be killed if the Nationalists take Madrid it is decided to send the children to Mexico. The Mexican president has taken an interest in helping children caught up in the war to come to Mexico for refuge.

Marco and his sisters are smuggled out of Spain by their mother, taken by ship to Veracruz, Mexico and from that port sent on to Morelia a city on the western side of the country. A school and living facilities have been prepared for them paid for by the Mexican president. Unfortunately, the heads of the school have taken the opportunity of administering it to steal as much as possible from the budget leaving only a subsistence amount to pay bills such as feeding and properly clothing the residents.

Mexico during the course of the civil war allows many Spaniards to emigrate and settle in their country. The author, though, has written the novel to fully go over the plight of the children and the forming of a group that became known as the Children of Morelia.

Marco and his sisters decide to try and return to Spain after several years in Mexico. They, of course, want to reunite with their parents and return to their previous lifestyle. The ending of the novel is a description of their search and the horrors they are forced to endure in both Mexico and Spain,

The author’s style is blasé, but in a manner that helps the reader to get into the atmosphere of a novel that features scenes of combat, horror, and the inhumanity of ordinary people caught up in wholesale killing. A very well-done story about ordinary people and what they turn into in the face of war.

Also from the publisher:

Historical Background on the Children of Morelia and the Spanish Civil War

In the great wars of the 20th century, an entire generation of Europeans sought refuge in the Americas. They were displaced first by the Spanish Civil War, which was the first modern war of the 20th century, then by the terrible World War II. Just over a quarter of a million people died directly in the conflict, including a large number of children. Some 456 sought refuge in Morelia, invited by Mexican President Cárdenas.

We live in a moment of history with more and more people displaced from their homes. After the Spanish Civil War, just over 440,000 people escaped from the fascist repression. A large part took refuge in the Americas. Especially in Mexico, Cuba, and Argentina. Currently, an estimated 65 million people have had to leave their homes and find a new place to live.

Remember Me narrates the consequences of the Civil War and the relationship of the Spanish Republic with Mexico, from the first days of the conflict, the exile in France and Mexico of many refugees, the Francoist repression and the mistreatment of children after the war.

In a world like the current one, in which more and more barriers and walls are being erected, Remember Me tells us about the struggle of refugees to survive and the harshness of life in a new country, but it is also a song of hope and solidarity.

The Children of Morelia seek refuge

Some 456 minors, between five and twelve years old, were sent from Spain to Mexico to try to escape the terrible ravages of the Spanish Civil War. The children traveled in very harsh conditions during a long journey to Veracruz in the summer of 1937.

9/2020 Paul Lane

REMEMBER ME by Mario Escobar. Thomas Nelson (September 15, 2020). ISBN: 978-0785236580. 384 pages.

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MY HIGHLAND ROGUE by Karen Ranney

August 17, 2020

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Highland Fling, Book 1

From the publisher:

New York Times bestselling author Karen Ranney takes readers back to beautiful Scotland in the first novel in her breathtaking new series.

Since she was a little girl, Jennifer Adaire, daughter of the Earl of Burfield, has loved Gordon McDonnell even though his station as the gardener’s son made him strictly forbidden to her. After Gordon was forced from Adaire Hall, taking Jennifer’s heart with him, he headed for London, intent on making a better life for himself. Though they’ve kept in touch through letters and Jennifer has waited patiently for him, it’s taken Gordon five years to return to Scotland. Now Jennifer doesn’t know if she can manage seeing again the man she loves—but can never have.

In the time since his departure, Gordon has achieved the success he’s always sought. When he learns that his father is dying, he returns home and discovers much to his surprise that the feelings he’s always had for Jennifer burn ever stronger.

But when a family secret surfaces, Jennifer and Gordon’s chance at a future together could be threatened…

So many secrets! Jennifer and Gordon fall in love but she is the Earl’s daughter, and he is the gardener’s son. That is no parent’s idea of a match, and Gordon disappears. Jennifer is heartbroken but doesn’t know her mother paid him to leave. He takes that money and goes to London where he parlays his windfall and becomes very successful.

A couple of years later he learns his mother Betty has died. They weren’t close, and he doesn’t see any reason to return. But a few years after that his father Sean is dying, and this time when Jennifer writes to let him know, he returns home.

Jennifer and Gordon soon realize that they were lied to and are still in love. The years didn’t seem to matter much. But as Sean is moments away from death, he reveals a shocking secret he learned about right before Betty died. Gordon is devastated, and once again disappears. Just when you think there is no way for this couple to ever get together, another secret is revealed.

This was a really good romance. I am very sorry to say that the author, Karen Ranney, passed away in June, so there may be one more book in this series or not. Only time will tell.

6/2020 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch™

MY HIGHLAND ROGUE by Karen Ranney. Avon (July 28, 2020). ISBN 978-0063019928. 384 pages.

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AN HEIRESS TO REMEMBER by Maya Rodale

August 13, 2020

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The Gilded Age Girls Club, Book 3

From the publisher:

Can a scandalized heiress…

Beatrice Goodwin left Manhattan a duchess and has returned a divorcée, ready to seize control of her fate and the family business. Goodwin’s Department Store, once the pinnacle of fashion, has fallen from favor thanks to Dalton’s, its glamorous competitor across the street. But this rivalry has a distinctly personal edge…

And a self-made tycoon…

For Wes Dalton, Beatrice has always been the one—the one who broke his young heart by marrying a duke, and now, the one whose cherished store he plans to buy, just so he can destroy it. It’s the perfect revenge against a family who believed he’d never be good enough for their daughter—until Beatrice’s return complicates everything…

Find happily ever after at last?

While Goodwin’s and Dalton’s duel to be the finest store in Gilded Age Manhattan, Beatrice and Wes succumb to a desire that has only deepened with time. Adversaries by day, lovers by night, both will soon have to decide which is sweeter: winning the battle or thoroughly losing their hearts…

This is not a unique plot; lovers to enemies to lovers definitely makes its way through many a romance, historical and contemporary. In fact, I had just finished reading this book when I saw the beginnings of this same plot on a TV show I recently started streaming on Netflix, “Reign.” It was a CW show but I had never heard of it until someone recommended it to me. It’s my husband who loves anything historical on TV, I generally sort of watch while reading. “Reign” is very loosely based on the life of Mary, Queen of Scots, plus a lot of sex and sexy costumes that are definitely not of the time period. The music is modern, which at times feels jarring. But in these days of quarantine, we are watching more TV than ever so we just finished the first season, at the end of which arises a subplot much like the one of this book. And here we are.

This is also a book about women and how they are treated and it pushes the boundaries of historical romance about as far as it can get. Beatrice and Wes were childhood friends who eventually fall in love. But Wes works as an assistant in Beatrice’s father’s Manhattan department store, so no way can she marry him. Her parents have arranged a marriage with an impoverished Duke for her, and he whisks her away to England and his big old estate. Better to marry a poor man with a title than just a poor man. But Beatrice is miserable there. The Duke and his mother treat her abominably, and after not producing an heir for several years, she seeks a divorce. He is thrilled to be rid of her and ready to marry any younger, wealthy woman who can hopefully produce the requisite heir and a spare. Beatrice returns to America.

Once home, she visits the family store and is shocked to see it is full of out of date merchandise and empty of shoppers. Since her father’s death, her brother has been running the store into the ground. Meanwhile, across the street, is the trendiest, most successful store in NYC. It is so successful it doesn’t even have its name of the building; everyone knows it’s Daltons. Yes, that Dalton, Beatrice’s childhood friend, and teenage love.

Wes has been extremely successful. After Beatrice married the Duke, her mother paid him a few thousand dollars to keep away from Beatrice. He took that money and turned it into a fortune, one of New York’s richest men. He has been driven for years with revenge as his goal. But when Beatrice returns home, Wes is having second thoughts.

Beatrice takes over the store after her drunk brother is sent out to Long Island to dry out. She also joins a women’s group and they help support her and raise money for her. It’s all sort of fantastic but I went with it. She also gets her mother on board and tries to turn the store around.

Wes and Beatrice realize the old flame is still strong but a lot has to happen before they can reach their happy ending. This was a fun and sexy read with enough drama to keep the pages turning. I don’t think I’ve ever read a Maya Rodale book I don’t like, and I liked this one a lot.

8/2020 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch

AN HEIRESS TO REMEMBER by Maya Rodale. Avon; Reissue edition (March 31, 2020). ISBN 978-0062838841. 368 pages.

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A GOOD DUKE IS HARD TO FIND by Christina Britton

August 3, 2020

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Isle of Synne, Book 1

From the publisher:

Get swept away by a Regency romance of broken engagements, second chances, and stolen kisses from the author whom Publishers Weekly calls “irresistible”.

After her third fiancé leaves her at the altar, Lenora Hartley is beginning to think she’s cursed. One thing’s for certain: she needs to escape London and her father’s tyrannical attempts to find her yet another suitor. The Isle of Synne, an isolated and idyllic retreat off Britain’s northern coast, is blessedly far from society’s gossip, but it also carries haunting reminders of her first fiancé. Letting go of the past to find happiness seems impossible — until Lenora is thrown in the path of a gruff, mysterious blue-eyed man who makes her pulse race.

Next in line for a dukedom he doesn’t want to inherit, Peter Ashford is only on the isle to exact revenge on the man who is responsible for his mother’s death. Once he’s completed the task, he’ll return to America where his life can finally be his own. Yet when he meets the beautiful and kind Miss Hartley, he can’t help but be drawn to her. Can Peter put aside his plans for vengeance for the woman who has come to mean everything to him?

Sometimes you can judge a book by its cover. I loved this cover and thoroughly enjoyed this book. It harkens back to a time when the best option for women of the upper class was to marry, and being jilted was quite the scandal. So losing three fiancés was really something. But what I liked about Lenora was that even though it was scandalous, she held her head up high and was still determined to do her best.

Her father, on the other hand, was busy lining up yet another prospective husband. Lenora takes a trip out to the country to heal her wounds. But there she meets the new Duke next door and there is definitely chemistry there. But he has his own agenda and it doesn’t involve marriage, to say the least.

This book was a lot of fun to read, I cared about these characters and was very glad to see them find their happily ever after. There is a bit of sex, lots of laughs, and some drama; all these ingredients add up to a terrific romance. I’m looking forward to the next book in the series.

8/2020 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch

A GOOD DUKE IS HARD TO FIND by Christina Britton. Forever (June 30, 2020). ISBN 978-1538717493. 384p.

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THE REQUEST by David Bell

July 15, 2020

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From the publisher:

When a man agrees to do a favor for a friend, he gets more than he bargained for as he becomes embroiled in a woman’s murder in this new thriller from the USA Today bestselling author of Layover.

Ryan Francis has it all—great job, wonderful wife, beautiful child—and he loves posting photos of his perfect life on social media. Until the night his friend Blake asks him to break into a woman’s home to retrieve incriminating items that implicate Blake in an affair. Ryan refuses to help, but when Blake threatens to reveal Ryan’s darkest secret—which could jeopardize everything in Ryan’s life—Ryan has no choice but to honor Blake’s request.

When he arrives at the woman’s home, Ryan is shocked to find her dead—and just as shocked to realize he knows her. Then his phone chimes, revealing a Facebook friend request from the woman. With police sirens rapidly approaching, Ryan flees, wondering why his friend was setting him up for murder.

Determined to keep his life intact and to clear his name, Ryan must find the real murderer—but solving the crime may lead him closer to home than he ever could have imagined.

I began reading this novel at 11:00 pm. Several hours later I was able to put it down for the very good reason that I had finished it. The book was mesmerizing, completely compelling, and one fantastic read.

Ryan Francis and his best friend Blake had a close relationship for many years taking them through college and then out into the business world. Ryan married Amanda and in due course, the couple had a son they named Henry.

Blake came to visit them and see the baby but committed an error. Holding Henry up he allowed the child’s head to be hit by a decoration causing a red mark. The protective Amanda was angered and practically threw Blake out of their house stating that he should not return there.

Rushing home as was normal, one evening Ryan was called by Blake and asked to do a big favor for him. He asks that Ryan break into a girl’s house and retrieve a packet of incriminating letters that Blake had allowed her to get while they were going together. During their college years, Ryan had committed a crime when driving drunk and had killed a young girl. Blake, driving with him prevented Ryan from being arrested by changing the setup of the drivers in the then wrecked car and putting another man who was with them into the driver’s seat. Blake indicates that he had been going with the girl and inadvertently given her letters outlining Ryan’s crime during their relationship. Blake met another girl, fell in love, and told girl that he was leaving her to get married. He did not get the letters held back, for some reason could not reenter her house and convinced Ryan that it was in his interest to break in and get them.

Ryan had to agree, but when he entered the girl’s home he found her dead on the floor, obviously a murder victim. Ryan flees the scene, realizes that he has probably set himself up as the murderer and makes the determination that it is up to him to find the real killer.

Bell, in a fine piece of writing, takes his readers through a series of events that will cause them to constantly change their minds about who the killer is, and arriving at a logical ending drained. I’m sure that readers of this book will be lined up like I am awaiting David Bell’s next novel and just keep a pot of coffee boiling for that occasion.

7/2020 Paul Lane

THE REQUEST by David Bell. Berkley (June 30, 2020). ISBN: 978-0440000907. 416 pages.

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THE BLACK SWAN OF PARIS by Karen Robards

July 13, 2020

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From the publisher:

From New York Times bestselling author Karen Robards comes one of the most anticipated novels of the summer…

A world at war. A beautiful young star. A mission no one expected.

Paris, 1944

Celebrated singer Genevieve Dumont is both a star and a smokescreen. An unwilling darling of the Nazis, the chanteuse’s position of privilege allows her to go undetected as an ally to the resistance.

When her estranged mother, Lillian de Rocheford, is captured by Nazis, Genevieve knows it won’t be long before the Gestapo succeeds in torturing information out of Lillian that will derail the upcoming Allied invasion. The resistance movement is tasked with silencing her by any means necessary—including assassination. But Genevieve refuses to let her mother become yet one more victim of the war. Reuniting with her long-lost sister, she must find a way to navigate the perilous cross-currents of Occupied France undetected—and in time to save Lillian’s life.

For fans of The Nightingale, The Women in the Castle and The Lost Girls of Paris, this exquisite novel illuminates three women’s strength, courage and capacity for unconditional love.

Karen Robards turns her attention temporarily away from the successful contemporary suspense novels she normally writes in order to give her readers a war story. The book gives the reader many stories in one. It is about war – a bloody one – World War two. It tells the story of the French resistance to Nazi occupation braving the horrors of absolute repression practiced by the German conquerors. It takes place during the last period of the war at a point where an allied invasion is planned and both the Germans and allies are working to bestow their own ending on it. The Germans to find out where it will take place in order to turn it back, and the allies to hide it, surprising the enemy and making it into the final stage against the third Reich. Most importantly, the novel does not detract in any way from the author’s ability to mesmerize her readership and serves only to increase her range with those enjoying her books.

Genevieve Dumont is a singer that has created herself as a persona with an exceptionally good voice, a marvelous stage presence, and the ability to take charge of her audience. She is the daughter of French upper-class people, but has had a falling out with her mother Lillian de Rocheford, and has fled from her family and ending up in Casablanca, Morocco eking out a living singing in various venues to earn some money to live on.

Discovered there by Max, a British officer seconded to the French resistance movement, she is molded by him into a spy and guided into creating scenarios that allow her group to obtain information important to the French Partisans. Over the years they work together their emotions are kept in check, but the author creates a very plausible situation leading to the couple falling in love. The final section of the book finds that Lillian de Rocheford has been captured by the Germans and is being subjected to torture in order to force her to release the location of the coming invasion. Lilian knows the site due to the fact that the allies have given her an important role on the day of the invasion.

Family is family and Genevieve gets Max and her group to try and effect her mother’s release in order to carry out her assigned mission. That the book grabs hold of the readers and doesn’t let go until the end is a given. It is indicative of the literary talent that is Karen Robards and her ability to capture and keep her readers fixed on the book as well as looking for the next one.

7/2020 Paul Lane

THE BLACK SWAN OF PARIS by Karen Robards. MIRA; Original edition (June 30, 2020). ISBN: 978-0778309338. 480 pages.

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PEOPLE OF THE CANYON by Kathleen O’Neal Gear & Michael Gear

June 26, 2020

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A Novel of North America’s Forgotten Past, Book 26

From the publisher:

In People of the Canyons, award-winning archaeologists and New York Times and USA Today bestselling authors Kathleen O’Neal Gear and W. Michael Gear bring us a tale of trapped magic, a tyrant who wants to wield its power…and a young girl who could be the key to save a people.

In a magnificent war-torn world cut by soaring red canyons, an evil ruler launches a search for a mystical artifact that he hopes will bring him ultimate power―an ancient witch’s pot that reputedly contains the trapped soul of the most powerful witch ever to have lived.

The aged healer Tocho has to stop him, but to do it he must ally himself with the bitter and broken witch hunter, Maicoh, whose only goal is achieving one last great kill.

Caught in the middle is Tocho’s adopted granddaughter, Tsilu. Her journey will be the most difficult of all for she is about to discover terrifying truths about her dead parents.

Truths that will set the ancient American Southwest afire and bring down a civilization.

The authors are professional archeologists and have carried their professions into their many books depicting life in bygone eras and places. Their forte is the ease in which they bring characters used in their novels to life; speaking and acting as they might have done based on the author’s knowledge of the time and place. The current book is set in the little-known Fremont culture that existed millennia ago in the American great Southwest.

A young girl is cast into the position of saving her people from falling into the hands of a despot using the area of religious beliefs to keep control of the people. Bringing out the beliefs of those living in the area and in the prehistoric time depicted the authors bring to life a society growing from hunter-gatherers to the evolution of living in towns and building cities. Their beliefs include the view of inanimate objects containing spirits that control life and death and death involving a journey to a central place where they meet with those that predeceased them and a hierarchy of shamans that can both kill and bring life back to people.

The shaman looking for consolidation of his power is seeking a pot that is reputed to contain the spirit of the most powerful witch that ever lived. Once he has this artifact, he plans to use the witch to obtain control of the people. Opposing him is Tocho, an elder who is aided by the daughter of the deceased rulers of the area. She has the legal claim to take over as ruler due to her being the rightful heir to the position.

The plot is aided by the discovery by the girl of terrifying truths about her parents. At the same time, the authors’ professional work as archeologists allows them to shape the actions and conversations of the characters in a manner that has a good possibility of being closer to the likelihood of being accurate.

6/2020 Paul Lane

PEOPLE OF THE CANYON by Kathleen O’Neal Gear & Michael Gear. Forge Books (June 23, 2020). ISBN: 978-1250176202. 320 pages.

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Comments Off on PEOPLE OF THE CANYON by Kathleen O’Neal Gear & Michael Gear | Book Reviews, Fiction | Tagged: | Permalink
Posted by Stacy Alesi

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