Final Voyage

The Lusitania was the luxury “greyhound” ocean-liner of its time. While traversing the Atlantic between New York City and Liverpool, passengers enjoyed every amenity. The May 1, 1915 voyage was different. War has taken hold of Europe and Great Britain and the seas are dangerous. German U–boats have been sighted off the Irish coast and merchant vessels have to be wary. Dead Wake: The Last Crossing of the Lusitania by Erik Larson takes the reader on a voyage like no other. He reports on every possible detail that effects the great ship during this fateful crossing. A truly fascinating read! DB.  

It's cold in Shetland!

The Shetland Islands off the coast of Scotland are where the mysteries of Ann Cleeves take place. Dark and moody with a great sense of place, they feature Jimmy Perez as Detective Inspector and a native of the Shetlands. Cold Earth, the seventh in the series, opens during the graveside service of his friend Magnus, Insp. Jimmy Perez  watches as a heavy storm initiates a mudslide that damages part of the cemetery, the main road, and an empty rental cottage. Jimmy checks out the cottage and discovers the body of a woman wearing a red silk dress. He's determined to uncover her identity and solve her murder. The potential for the professional relationship between Jimmy and fellow detective -Willow Reeves to become more personal will intrigue series regulars. Plenty of suspects on a remote Scottish island mixed with the high quality of Cleeves's prose make this a solidly plotted whodunit for procedural and traditional mystery readers.ML

Million Dollar Cowboy

Million Dollar Cowboy by Lori Wilde is a heartwarming story that will have you melting for Ridge Lockhart. He grabbed my heart as the little boy abandoned by his mother and raised by a man who never accepted him. Ridge was the illegitimate son who butted heads with his macho father, a father who betrayed him in such a personally hurtful way. This gave him a goal to leave and to make himself more successful than his father ever could be. Ten years later he reluctantly comes home to prove it to the old man.

The whole setting of the story is rich with description, but also with the inner dialogue of both main characters. You read about their inner struggles to find a good balance of work, family and love. Ridge is a complex character because he doesn't know what it is to have love in his love and doesn't recognize it. I loved his journey and how it wasn't easy to let go of the past and move forward. This was a very well written story. *JK*

An exciting life!

 In Peter Heller's new novel Celine, the elegant Celine shows us her charms and quick shooting. A licensed PI, she lives near the Brooklyn Bridge. She and her partner/husband, Pete, specialize in finding missing persons, with a success rate higher than that of the FBI. The main plot centers on a daughter's quest for her father, who "disappeared" at Yellowstone many years back, supposedly mauled by a grizzly.  Hired by the desperate daughter, Celine learns that local trackers and lawmen doubt the bear story, and as she and Pete approach the park, they realize they're being shadowed by an FBI sniper. The missing father was a charismatic, world-famous National Geographic photographer who had been in Chile during the overthrow of President Salvador Allende; eventually we learn that he had pictures that compromised the current government. Near the conclusion, the G-man tries to take them out, but the 68-year-old asthmatic Celine is also a quick draw. Fun and exciting! ML

A Lady's Code of Misconduct

A Lady's Code of Misconduct by Meredith Duran was surprisingly good! In this historical romance, I love that we have a female character with brains and it's not someone who is weak that minces words with men, looking for her strength. But a woman that takes the bull by the horns and makes life happen for her.

Crispin, the male character is so different too! He started off an unlikable jerk but ended up being an amazing man. I love his passion for life and for Jane.

The author has created a perfect love story. From sparks flying at the beginning to a slow growth of respect, protection, care, consideration, and love, the perfect couple is brought together as one. It's such a beautiful and interesting historical story. *JK*

A Story of Siblings

How would you feel if your family’s story was made into a novel and then became a motion picture? This is exactly what happens to Franny Keating when she becomes involved with a best-selling author who is searching for ideas for his new book. Franny’s family life is complicated. It begins at Franny's Christening party when an uninvited guest arrives with a bottle of gin. After her folks divorce, she becomes part of a blended family. Franny and her sister Caroline go to live in Virginia with their mother and her new husband, Bert. His four children come out from California every summer. The kids are left on their own much of the time. The adventures and tragedy that happen to this clan are strange and understandable at the same time. If you like family dramas, Commonwealth by Ann Patchett is intriguing. DB

Welcome to Elmwood Springs

Fannie Flagg, celebrated author of Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle-Stop Café, charms readers again with her new book—The Whole Town’s Talking.  She tells the history of a tiny town in Missouri founded by Swedish dairy farmer Lordor Nordstrom and his mail-order bride Katrina. Nordstrom and the other early settlers were definitely far-sighted when they started Elmwood Springs in the 1800’s. They even dedicated a lovely quiet spot for the town cemetery--Still Meadows. The book takes us from the town's early days up to the current time, noting how things change yet also stay the same. If you enjoy simple things, this sweet tale of generational life in small-town USA is great. DB