Review: The Dead of Winter

The Dead of Winter by Rennie Airth
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

This is another entry in the John Madden series. I found it way too slow-going for 95% of the book, with too much talking and not much action. It's also a weird premise: the "hero" investigator is a long-retired and revered detective who is still friends with the current crop of detectives. He's brought into the investigation as a courteous gesture since one of the victims worked on his farm. But for most of the book, Madden is back on his farm asking productive questions. And as in previous Madden novels, there's a dicey denouement with the villain. I liked the previous books better.

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Review: B is for Burglar

B is for Burglar by Sue Grafton
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Book 2 in my re-read of this series. I had completely forgotten the entire book -- or maybe I never read it in the first place? Kinsey Milhone is investigating the disappearance of Elaine Boldt at the request of her sister Beverly. Her investigation leads her to Florida and back to CA, and a new recurring character is introduced as a possible romantic partner for Kinsey.

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Review: The Darling Dahlias and the Confederate Rose

The Darling Dahlias and the Confederate Rose by Susan Wittig Albert
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

A good cozy read for a chilly afternoon. Verna Tidwell, honest as the day is long, is suspected of embezzling $15,000 in county funds while Miss Rogers is worried about losing her job at the library. As always, the Darling Dahlias gather round their friends to help them through their difficulties.

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Review: Widow's Tears

Widow's Tears by Susan Wittig Albert
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Another cozy read by Susan Wittig Albert, this time in her China Bayles series. The story focuses on Ruby and her extrasensory perception gifts, and the Galveston Hurricane of 1900. It's a ghost story too. China is a peripheral character serving more as an observer/narrator than active participant.

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Review: A is for Alibi

A is for Alibi by Sue Grafton
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This was a re-read for me. I am waiting for Grafton's newest installment in the series, and it's been so long since I read any of the books, I decided to start at the beginning and re-familiarize myself with Kinsey Milhone. This is the first of the series, where 32 year old Kinsey Milhone introduces herself as a P.I. Kinsey is investigating an eight year old murder on behalf of the woman who had been convicted of it, and still claims she's innocent. One of the things that was really interesting to me this time around was the California territory. Since I first read this book, way too long ago to actually remember, I've actually gotten familiar with some of the setting places. While I'd completely forgotten the plot line, I knew it would involve a wrong turn or two, some close escapes, and eventual solution. On to volume 2!

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Some Knitting Projects

I haven't posted anything about my knitting in a long time.  Here are a couple of projects I've recently finished.

The most recent is this sweater, Mindy, pattern by Julia Farwell-Clay.  I had fun knitting it and I learned a new skill-the attached I-cord button band.  I used Cascade Yarns Pure Alpaca Paints which I purchased at Webs.  I think the yarn has been discontinued.  I really like the way it came out.  It took me six months from start to finish, but I admit it was on again-off again knitting!  I don't like working on sweatery projects when it's hot!

Another project I finished was one I mostly knit while I was on a bus tour in the UK.  It was fairly mindless knitting.

I used a cotton ribbon yarn called ONline Line Arona and a free  pattern I was given at checkout.  (At Webs, of course!)  I am currently using another color of this same yarn to knit Let It Go, another cowl.

In between knitting and reading, we took two big trips - one to the UK and one to Italy.  One of these days I get some pictures uploaded.  You'd think that with retirement, I'd have the time to keep this blog updated.   Hmm.

Review: Skinner's Rules

Skinner's Rules by Quintin Jardine
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

ACC Bob Skinner has a set of rules, or code that he lives by, even if doing so jeopardizes his career, and perhaps even his life. A series of brutal murders is blamed on a Japanese diplomat, but Skinner thinks they missed something. As he quietly investigates further he discovers a web of secrecy and lies that go to the very top of British intelligence. Eventually his trail puts his life and the lives of his family at extreme risk.

I really enjoyed this first in a series novel. First of all it's set in Edinburgh, one of my favorite cities, so it was fun to recognize places. Skinner is an interesting character, balancing his work and personal life, and the politics v. justice. As most good characters do, Skinner has a dark side which is uncovered as a result of his investigation. I like the other characters too. I am looking forward to reading more in the series.

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Review: Life and Other Near-Death Experiences

Life and Other Near-Death Experiences by Camille Pagán
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

This was a Kindle First book. When Libby is diagnosed with a terminal cancer, she rushes home to tell her husband Tom. Before she gets a chance to share her devastating news, Tom shares his news: he's gay. The plot follows Libby as she reacts to both traumatic events. I found the whole premise pretty unrealistic. While I liked Libby's character, I kept thinking she was pretty lucky to have enough money to act the way she did.

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Review: The Third Girl

The Third Girl by Nell Goddin
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

This was a free ARC.

This is the first novel in a mystery series set in a small French village. American Mollie Sutton, almost 40, purchases a small property with a rental cottage, after a divorce. She quickly adjusts to life in the small village and begins to make friends. A student at the local art school goes missing, and the village is upset because the missing girl is the third woman gone missing. Mollie is instrumental in solving the mystery of the disappearance.

This series has a lot of potential, but it's not quite there yet. I thought that the author did a terrific job in setting the scene. Her depiction of life in a small village was well-done. Her characters need more development however. Mollie is in her late 30's agonizing about the fact that she's unlikely to have children. Yet her behavior and reactions to events seem to be of somebody who is just out of college. She seems to lack the confidence and self-knowledge you'd expect from someone who has been in the working world and has been married for a number of years. Other characters also have potential, but need to be fleshed out. At the moment they feel more like "outlines." The plot needs to be developed a bit more too. The police and Mollie spend several weeks attempting to figure out who kidnapped the woman, yet there are few details that follow the actual investigation. Most of the investigative details were of the "today we talked to x,y,z and searched a bunch of outbuildings".

I will read the next book in the series which I've also received free, since I liked Mollie, and I do think that there is potential for the series.

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Review: Starting Now

Starting Now by Debbie Macomber
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

If you're in the mood for a completely predictable, even sappy book, than this is it. And I was in the mood for it. Definitely a quick read, and you just know exactly how it will all play out. Not the best in the Blossom St series, but a pleasant way to spend a chilly evening. Plus, it was the first PHYSICAL book I've read in ages . . .it used to be I read so few ebooks that I had a special shelf for them. I think I need to start a "real" book shelf category!

High-powered attorney Libby, expecting to be made partner, is instead laid off. She is forced to rediscover who she really is and what she really wants as she faces long-term unemployment. Knitting, babies, a pregnant teen, and a romantic interest work together to solve her problems.

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Review: Breaking Point

Breaking Point by C.J. Box
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

There's more than one breaking point in this novel. Butch Roberson is pushed to the edge when the EPA suddenly starts fining him $70,000 per day until he restores the fully permitted construction site of his dream home to pristine condition. Two EPA agents are murdered, and Butch goes on the lam into the wilderness surrounding his home. Joe Pickett is drafted by his new Fish and Game director to provide the Feds with full cooperation when they take over the local investigation. His breaking point comes when he discovers the truth behind the EPA's actions. Even Marybeth reaches a breaking point when her dream of restoring an abandoned hotel is scuttled. It's a tense plot, and the questions it raises about the reaches and limits of government power make it all the more realistic. The basic novel premise is based on a real-life case too.

I really enjoyed this installment in the Joe Pickett series, and I'm eager to discover what's in store next for the Picketts.

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Review: A Man of Some Repute

A Man of Some Repute by Elizabeth Edmondson
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

It's the Cold War era, and two important intelligence agents have just been unmasked as spies working for the Soviet Union. Hugo Hawksworth is sent to Selchester ostensibly to work as a statistician at The Hall. He is in reality part of English intelligence and has been charged with reviewing personnel files in an attempt to identify possible additional traitors. He and his teenaged sister Georgia are lodged at the Selchester Castle. Its owner, Lord Selchester mysteriously disappeared almost seven years previously, and the only family now living there is his niece Freya. When Selchester's skeleton is unearthed in an unused part of the castle, Freya and the now-deceased son of Selchester are the prime suspects. Hugo who also holds a brief to monitor the investigation into Selchester's murder is convinced that Freya and her cousin are innocent. As the truth is uncovered, long-held family secrets are revealed.

I enjoyed this first entree in this new-to-me series. I liked the characters, especially Hugo's sister Freya. I also like the way the plot was resolved, with just enough hints for continuation.

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Review: Murder at Mullings

Murder at Mullings by Dorothy Cannell
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I was surprised to discover that this is a recent novel; the style was much more that of a novel written in the 1920's or 1930's.

Florence Norris is sent into service in the early 1900's and works at Stodmarsh where she eventually becomes housekeeper. Lady Stodmarsh dies suddenly, under mysterious circumstances. However, although Florence has her suspicions, she has no proof. Lord Stodmarsh remarries, much to everyone's surprise and even dismay. When he dies, the new Lady Stodmarsh begins a new regime that incurs the hatred of the family. And then there is definite murder. Florence eventually takes her previous suspicions to the police, which helps them solve the current crimes.

I felt that this was a very slow-moving story, and while I liked the main characters, I felt that I kept at a distance from the story.

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Review: All the Light We Cannot See

All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

It's hard to describe this book. It's the story of two people, Marie-Laure and Werner who are only children when WWII starts. Marie-Laure is blind, and lives with her father in Paris. Her father is a master locksmith who works at the national museum and is in charge of all the keys and locks in the museum. He's also a genius at making three dimensional wooden puzzles, and makes a model city for his daughter. Each birthday he presents her with one of his puzzles in which he's hidden her present. She needs to figure out how to open it in order to retrieve her gift. As the Germans approach Paris, he hides what might be a mythic valuable diamond in one of Marie-Laure's houses. They make their way as refugees to St. Malo to a relative's home where he is eventually arrested. Marie-Laure stays with her great uncle for the remainder of the war, until he too is arrested. She is trapped in her uncle's home when the Allies begin the bombardment of St. Malo. Concurrently, Werner is raised in an orphanage in Germany. Because of his mathematical genius, he is sent to an elite training school where he becomes a master at building radio transceivers and transponders. His schooling is cut short when his genius is recognized and he is assigned to a team whose task it is to locate enemy radio broadcasters. The paths of both of these characters eventually cross in St. Malo.

The real story however, is much more philosophical. How does each character respond to light or to the lack of light. Marie-Laure who can see no visible light, is filled with it through her other senses. Werner, whose light is in the beauty of mathematics and radio waves, is blinded by the power of Nazi propaganda and his desire to escape the poverty of his childhood.

The author tells the story through alternating points of view, and alternating past and present. Both characters are sympathetic and compelling. This is a book I will read again.

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Review: Dead in the Water: A Marjory Fleming Thriller

Dead in the Water: A Marjory Fleming Thriller by Aline Templeton
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

DI Marjory Fleming has been asked to re-open a very cold case, one in which the investigation by now-Superintendent Bailey and her father was less than stellar. At the same time, tensions between the "townies" and a group of Polish workmen are rising and a popular TV show is filming in town. The star of the show had been accused of involvement with the cold case which doesn't help. In addition, the Fiscal, Sheila Milne, who dislikes Fleming, may have had a relationship with the show's star, and it appears that Milne has "fixed" a number of tickets for him. Once again, Fleming is forced to make some very difficult choices. Her decisions have dire consequences which impact an actor, her relationship with her colleagues, her family, and her career. Another good installment in this series.



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Review: Who Do You Love

Who Do You Love by Jennifer Weiner
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

What I like about this genre is that the endings are always predictable and satisfying. The enjoyable part of the book is the journey you go on to get to the ending.

Rachel is born with a congenital heart defect that defines her life. The daughter of a well-to-do Jewish couple, she's raised as a "Jewish princess" and enjoys the benefits of doting, if overprotective parents. Andy is the biracial son of a single mom. He grows up in a Philadelphia row house in a poor section of the city. He has anger management problems, but before this gets him too deep in trouble, he discovers his passion for running.

Rachel and Andy meet in a hospital when they are 8. They make an instant connection, but lose touch until late high school, when they both find each other again on a community service project. First love hits them both hard, until Andy sees a side of Rachel he hates. They continue to experience an on again/off again relationship throughout college. At a sorority party, Andy and Rachel break up, for good, or so they think. 9/11 brings them back to together for a while, but eventually they split up. You know that they will eventually wind up together, but it takes them several more crises to bring them together.

This was a pretty enjoyable way to spend a few hours.

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Willy-Nilly Wednesday

1.  At water aerobics this early morning (7 am), I was greeted by the other regulars and I was asked how my Labor Day weekend was.  It struck me that this was something I've missed about my job --- the collegial check ins with each other when we return from weekends, or even the daily morning updates about families, spouses, etc.  I've been attending this class now for almost a month, and today was the first time that I felt that I'd become a "regular" instead of a newbie.


2.  We did have a great Labor Day weekend.  Elder Son came home Sat. morning to pick up some items he'd had shipped here (to save sales tax!) and to help me solve a pesky computer problem.  (I was secretly happy that he had the same issues I'd been having --- it wasn't an easy fix.)  We also upgraded my computer to Windows 10.  Then the 3 of us went to a local art show and out to lunch.  On Sunday, my husband and I headed a couple hours west to Bennington,VT to attend the VT Garlic Festival.  Who knew VT had a garlic festival?  We'd been to the Gilroy Garlic Festival in CA a couple of years ago, and decided to see what New England had to offer.  It was much bigger than we'd expected, and we spend several hours tasting all sorts of garlicky treats.

We also stopped at this place:

The Bennington Battle Monument 

We've driven past the monument many many times, but had never driven up the hill to actually look at it.    I figured it was time!

3.  It's been wicked hot and humid this past week --- temps in the 90's.  We've had almost 20 days of 90+ degree weather this summer.  Normal is about 10.    I'm very grateful for the luxury of air conditioning.

4.  I've been freezing basil from our CSA and from the pot on my deck.  I think I've got plenty put away.  I was going to make pesto, but had no pine nuts or even walnuts.   I also have frozen a number of Thai chili peppers and a few jalapeños.  My cherry tomatoes are very slow.  I think it's because of the torrential rain/drought/torrential rain/drought cycles we've endured this summer.  

5.  I've been reading quite a bit, and finally figured out how to get my book reviews back on the blog in a much less cumbersome method.  

6.  I am SICK of surveys and junk phone calls. Despite the fact that we've registered our phone number(s) with the donotcall.gov, we still get them.  And one disadvantage to living in the "First in the nation" primary state are the uncountable political surveys!!  I got 3 calls yesterday afternoon in the space of an hour.

7.  I've also spent time on the phone the past few weeks --- dealing with customer service people regarding my internet service, an erroneous credit card charge, travel questions, and changing dr's appointments.  How did I ever manage to get these things done when I was working?

Review: Still Waters

Still Waters by Viveca Sten
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

This is a new author for me. The story is set in Sweden, on the island of Sandhamm. A stranger's body has washed up on shore. The police are ready to write it off as an accidental drowning, when the body of a visitor is discovered in her hotel bedroom. The two victims turn out to be cousins, so both deaths are treated as suspicious. The investigation is led by Thomas Andreasson, who has lived on the island. He is recovering from a painful divorce caused by the sudden death of his infant daughter. One of the main characters in the story is Nora Linde, Thomas' lifelong friend. She is married to a sailing enthusiast and she and her husband spend summers in her island home. She aids Thomas in the investigation even as she faces a decision about her career that threatens her marriage.

I usually steer clear of Scandinavian police procedurals. I don't know if the fact that they are usually translated into English puts distance between the reader and the characters in the book tha that make it difficult for me to get invested in either the story or the characters. I had an eaiser time with this one, but I connected more with Nora than with the lead detective. I was not happy that her story line was not resolved; perhaps it will be continued in future installments.

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Review: The Pure in Heart: A Simon Serrailler Mystery

The Pure in Heart: A Simon Serrailler Mystery by Susan Hill
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Argh!! I really liked this second installment in the Simon Serrailler series, but the ending just left me hanging. I debated giving this book only 3 stars because of that, but it was so engrossing, I couldn't. Nine year old David Angus goes missing on his way to school, and there are no clues. Serrailler and his team are at a loss. Serrailler is confused by the death of Freya Graffham, one of his officers and seems to be mourning what might have been. At the same time, his younger sister Martha, institutionalized since birth, reaches a health crisis, and his casual girlfriend Diana Mason declares her love for him. This book is less about the mystery and much more about Serrailler's attempts to deal with the turmoil in his life. I like him better in this book, than I did in the first, and I really like how DS Nathan Coates' character is developing. I am beginning to think that this series will have a very long story arc, and I'm looking forward to its development.

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Review: Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail

Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail by Cheryl Strayed
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I am a big fan of memoirs, and they don't even have to be those of traditionally famous people. I also like to read books about people who undertake "against the odds" quests. I've even enjoyed books about hiking, and my idea of a hike is out to the mailbox. This book checked all boxes.

Cheryl Strayed is grieving the loss of her mother, and in fact, is grieving her life as the dirt-poor child of a single mother. She describes herself as having a hole in her heart that she's tried to fill with promiscuity and drugs. Her mother's death propels her away from her husband, who she describes as her best friend, into a short term relationship with heroin. After an intervention, Strayed makes a rash decision to hike the Pacific Crest Trail from the Mojave Desert to Washington. She has never been a hiker, and while she does research what she needs, she does little to prepare herself physically for the trek. This book traces her physical, emotional, and spiritual journey as she travels along the difficult trail. The journey becomes one of self-revelation and self-acceptance.

She's a good writer; I read the majority of this in one day, abandoning all chores. While she did describe some of the beauty she experienced along the trail, her descriptive emphasis was on the physical and emotional experience, and I appreciated how the physical scars paralleled her emotional scars.





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