Meteor Men - A Review

 

Meteor Men

by

Jeff Parker

Sandy Jarrell

A Review

The authors have combined science fiction and a graphic novel into an interest story of an alien visit to our planet. The story is well-written, the graphics are colorful and easily seen, and the lettering is easily read. My only concern is the slightly dystopian ending which leaves the future of humanity in question. I give the book four-stars.
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This review is based on a free electronic copy provided by the publisher for the purpose of creating this review.  The opinions expressed are mine alone.  

Front Page Murder - A Review

 

Front Page Murder

by

Joyce St. Anthony

A Review

The United States had just committed itself to fighting Germany and Japan in WW II; the Duquesne Spy Ring had been captured, tried, and convicted. At the same time men were joining the war effort leaving women to work the factories and edit the local papers. It was true not only in the big cities, but in the small towns as well. Progress PA was no exception. Irene Ingram had assumed the position of Editor at the Progress Herald when her father departed as a war correspondent in the Pacific Front. Women were filling positions on all 22 lines at Tabor Ironworks.

But when reporter Moe Bauer was found dead, small-town Progress was shaken to the core. The police chief, Irene’s future father-in-law, was convinced it was an accident. Irene was not so sure. When more “accidents” occurred at the Tabor Ironworks’ plant, additional questions were raised. Irene and her staff of reporters would need to dig for the details as they began to report on the changes around town.

The resulting story, though fiction, gave this reader the opportunity to learn a bit about the history of America’s involvement in WW II - both at home and abroad. It provided an intriguing plot that made the reader guess who was fighting for and fighting against American interests. Each chapter begins with a headline from the news - some from history, some from the book itself. If I had any concerns about the book, it was its tendency to weave these stories into the text and then repeat them as a headline at the beginning of the next chapter. But even with that question, I give the book five-stars.
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This review is based on a free electronic copy provided by the publisher for the purpose of creating this review. The opinions expressed are mine alone.

Poems of Faith - A Review

 

Poems of Faith

Edited By

Bob Blaisdell

A Review

Bob Blaisdell has republished his collection of 100 poems selected “from five hundred years of English verse”. Some of the authors are well-known (e.g. Charles Wesley and and John Donne), but many are less well-known. Coming from so many sources and over so many years, this collection of poetry seems less connected than other works that have crossed my path this past year.

Many of the selected works spoke to this reader; but it seemed, at times, easier to find pieces that were either so generic that they might apply to everyone or disconnected to this reviewer's life. I might be more likely to leave this book sitting on my coffee table than to use it as part of my daily spiritual reflections. I give this book three stars.
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This review is based on a free electronic copy provided by the publisher for the purpose of creating this review. The opinions expressed are mine alone.

Murder at the Summer Fete - A Review

 

Murder at the
Summer Fete

by

Victoria Walters

A Review

Being a fan of BBC mysteries, I felt right at home in Dedley Endings, a small village set in the midst of the Cotswold countryside, and the scene for a new, interesting, and sufficiently complicated, cozy mystery. Though this story is set in the current day, it has its roots thirty years in the past.

The story is particularly interesting in that it takes two distinct phases. The first phase is discovering the person responsible for the murder of Michael Jones. Phase two involves exposing the criminal to an unbelieving world. Both parts of the story are intricate enough to hold the reader’s attention from the Prologue to the final pages of the book. The story becomes more complicated when Nancy Hunter and her family and friends must stumble on the truth while having little trust in the local police force.

While thoroughly enjoying the book, there was one (two?) concerns - the current book is closely tied to the previous (i.e. the first) book in this series and to the next book (i.e. the third) book in the series. From a publisher’s and writer’s perspective, this will encourage purchase of more books; from a reader’s perspective, this is distracting and unneeded for the enjoyment of the current story. For this, I give the book 4-½ stars.
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This review is based on a free electronic copy provided by the publisher for the purpose of creating this review. The opinions expressed are mine alone.

Malivious Intent - A Review

 

Malicious Intent

by

Lynn H. Blackburn

A Review

Ivy sat behind her desk and dropped her head against the high back of her seat. Lord, I don’t know what to do. I don’t know what to do. It took her several minutes before she managed to whisper, “...but my eyes are on you.”

Lynn Blackburn has a record of combining faith, suspense, and romance, into believable stories that will hold most reader’s interest from the first pages to the very last page of the book - while still leaving the reader wanting more. She has done it again.

From the pile of counterfeit cash found in chapter one to the grenades tossed in the final moments of the book, we get a glimpse of Gil Dixon and Ivy Collins working to discover who is trying to destroy her business and her life. In the process Ivy will need to rebuild a 15 year-old dead relationship with Gil that may or may not be refreshable.

This satisfying book is worthy of all five stars I am giving it.
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This review is based on a free electronic copy provided by the publisher for the purpose of creating this review. The opinions expressed are mine alone.

Caramel Pecan Roll Murder - A Review

 

Caramel Pecan
Roll Murder

by

Joanne Fluke

A Review

I quickly became confused as I began reading this cozy mystery. Was I reading a cozy mystery loaded with recipes or was I reading a cookbook with a side of cozy mystery. I first stumbled on a couple of recipes in the last few pages of the book - they sounded good and there were not too many. But as I began to read the mystery from the beginning of the book, I found myself inundated with more and more recipes. Some chapters (note: not every chapter has recipes) seemed to have more pages with recipes than mystery. What made this discovery even more discouraging was that a vast majority of the recipes would not be allowed to be a part of my diet by my physician - they looked good, but they would not be allowed . There were exceptions - Reuben Omelets, Baked Scotch Eggs, and Wild Rice Soup, would all pass muster, but the vast majority of recipes were sweet treats and/or desserts.

The mystery itself was well written. The Walleye fishing tournament brought some of the best fisherman out for the week as well as many of the locals. Hannah Swensen was a local pastry chef (and source for many of the recipes) and a helpful amatuer detective. The story held my interest as I wandered through the recipe collection. I really thought I had figured out the guilty party early on, but I was caught off guard. Despite misreading the clues, I still found the culmination of the mystery to be satisfying. 

The mystery will receive 4-½ stars; the book as a whole will receive only three stars.
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This review is based on a free electronic copy provided by the publisher for the purpose of creating this review. The opinions expressed are mine alone.

Elephant Wisdom - A Review

Elephant Wisdom

by

M. Gail Grant

A Review

Remembrance of Him

  

 You are never alone,

 even in the absence of another soul.

 When stillness fills the air,

 and the deafening sounds of despair sing,

 remember inside of you,

 lives the Holy King.

As I learn to re-appreciate poetry, something four years of high school and five years of college stole from my soul fifty years ago, I have stumbled on another collection of free verse that has touched my heart.

Many of these pieces remind me that there is pain in loss - whether it be for a short while or for longer periods of time. The pain is real, but at the same time we are reminded that when one has left, they have also returned home.

If the reader is looking for a rhythm or a rhyme, these poems will (mostly) not provide those elements. But if the reader is looking for pieces that will touch the heart and help them find feelings they may have lost. this collection of poetry will do that. They will take the reader through their pain to the throne of God while preparing the reader for another day. For this, I give this 150-page book five stars.
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This review is based on a free electronic copy provided by the author for the purpose of creating this review. The opinions expressed are mine alone.

 

Sleep Deprived - A Review

 

Sleep Deprived

by

Therese Heckenkamp

A Review

This faith-based story sees the lives of three missing babies intersect to save a marriage and destroy the life of one young man. Two of the children have died, one has been kidnapped.

Mea has lost a child and seeks to help another – but something backfires. She is accused of kidnapping and is set to spend the rest of her life in prison. The love of her husband and God’s answered prayer begin to rebuild her faith and allow her to regain her life.

This short novella served as a reminder of the pain of loss and the presence of God’s grace through that pain. I give the book five-stars.
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This review is based on a free electronic copy provided by the publisher for the purpose of creating this review. The opinions expressed are mine alone.

#Follow Me for Murder - A Review

 

#Follow Me
for Murder

by

Sarah E. Burr

A Review

The author has created a modern cozy mystery that combines the tech of Dick Tracy and the fashion sense of Glamour Magazine as she begins a new series of books featuring blogger and PR consultant Cordelia (aka Coco) Cline.

Cordelia’s current clients are Sean and Olivia Chen, owners of the soon to open Once Used, Twice Buy antique store. One morning Coco walks in and finds Stacy Lockner, a young woman hired to help set up the store, lying on the store floor, dead. The police originally set out to prove that Sean and Olivia are responsible for her death. Coco makes it her job to find the real killer and to salvage the reputation of the soon to be opened store. Cordelia takes a liking to Stacy and doubles down to find her killer.

The result is a story with enough turns and suspects to hold the reader’s attention from beginning to end. Coco and her friend feed bits of evidence to the local police and the county crime lab - some evidence sends the cops chasing the wrong suspects, but the clues that are discovered will eventually disclose the person responsible for the crime. I found little wrong with this title and easily give it five stars.
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This review is based on a free electronic copy provided by the publisher for the purpose of creating this review. The opinions expressed are mine alone.