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The Great Famine devastated thousands of Irish families, causing widespread starvation, disease and death across the Emerald Isle.  Katie Macauley knows the horrors of that dark period only too well.  Though but a wee lass during its most miserable points, the 26-year-old can't forget the terrible losses the Famine brought to her family.  Or the suffering she herself caused them.  Her only hope is to rectify her mistakes.  The harder she works, the more money she can save to put toward that goal.  As soon as she earns enough, she will return to Ireland, buy back her father's land, and set everything she ruined to rights again.  That trip can't come soon enough for the determined Katie.

In an effort to earn money faster, Katie accepts a position as housekeeper in the home of a farmer living in the Wyoming Territory.  From the correspondence she's received from her employer, Katie's expecting to wait on an elderly gentleman.  She's shocked to discover that "elderly" Joseph Archer is less than 10 years older than she and is the father of two young girls.  She's even more incredulous when he refuses to hire her the minute he hears her broad Irish brogue.  Unbeknownst to Katie, she's landed herself in the middle of a vicious town feud between Hope Springs' American residents and its Irish immigrants.  When stubborn Katie manages to secure the position she came to fulfill in spite of her roots, she earns the ire of one side of the conflict and the respect of the other.  The Irish housekeeper doesn't want any of it—all she cares about is collecting the paychecks that will buy her passage on a ship home.

Whether she likes it or not, Katie must choose a side in the brewing battle.  It doesn't help that her heart's torn between two men, one Irish, one not.  Katie knows she can't give her loyalty to anything or anyone, not until she's paid her debt to her family in Ireland.  But, with each day she spends in Hope Springs, it becomes harder and harder to leave.  In the end, she can only follow her heart.  The question is: Where will it take her?

The second novel (after Edenbrooke by Julianne Donaldson) to be published in Shadow Mountain's new Proper Romance line, Longing for Home by Sarah M. Eden does what a proper romance should—it tells a wholesome love story in a pleasing format that's not going to make anyone blush.  It's clean, it's fun, it's readable.  The story's vintage Eden, just in a more modern setting and with a tragic back story that makes it a more serious novel than her others.  Eden's gift for writing amusing banter between her male and female characters shines especially bright in Longing for Home.  Overall, it's an enjoyable book.  I would just leave it at that, but of course, I had a few issues.  My biggest beef was Katie herself.  Although she's a sympathetic and courageous character, she's also a very self-absorbed one.  I'm still not quite sure why all the other characters loved her so much—she didn't really do anything and the things she did do mostly just benefited herself.  Add that to a few other irritants—the story's ending is pretty anti-climactic, one arm of the love triangle doesn't get any kind of resolution (I know there's a sequel in the works, but still ...), Katie's inner conflict seems really weak, etc.—and I ended up liking, but not loving this one.  I remain an Eden fan, I just hope she works out some of these story wrinkles in the next book (Hope Springs, coming in Spring 2014).  

(Readalikes:  Reminded me of Borrowed Light by Carla Kelly)  

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With two older brothers—one a super jock, the other a genius—Kyle Keeley's used to coming in last all the time.  Except when it comes to games.  In that arena, he's at least got a fighting chance.  Games are, in fact, the 12-year-old's passion.  Whether it's video games, board games, puzzles, whatever—Kyle's wild about them.  

When Kyle finds out that Mr. Luigi Lemoncello, the kooky, but brilliant man who created all of his favorite games, is designing his town's new library, he couldn't be more intrigued.  Along with 11 other kids, Kyle wins the chance to spend the night in the finished building.  The place is even more amazing than he could have dreamed possible.  But, when his incredible night in the library ends, its doors won't open.  The kids are trapped inside.  That's when Mr. Lemoncello announces his newest, most exciting game yet:  in order to escape from the library, the kids inside must compete against each other to solve a series of clues leading to the library's secret, hidden passageway to the outside.  While the contestants can bow out at any time, unbelievably awesome prizes await those who stay.  

Kyle wouldn't miss this game for the world.  He has to win, if only to prove to everyone else that he's just as capable as his brothers.  But, can he out think his classmates and solve all the clues in the library before they do?  Or will Kyle Keeley come in last place once again?

I read so many dark, depressing novels for older readers that I sometimes forget how bright and uplifting middle grade books can be.  Chris Grabenstein's newest, Escape From Mr. Lemoncello's Library, is a perfect example.  It's fun, it's fast-paced, it's quirky, it's just all kinds of delightful.  A enjoyable romp that pays homage to the power of learning, reading and thinking, this is a book that will tickle the fancies of all readers.  If you haven't read it yet, do.  Then, pass it on to your kids, grandkids, neighbors, friends, mailman, obscure relatives ...

(Readalikes:  Reminded me of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl)

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(Note:  While this review will not contain spoilers for The Kill Room, it may inadvertently reveal plot surprises from earlier Lincoln Rhyme novels.  As always, I recommend reading books in a series in order.)

When Robert Moreno, an outspoken "anti-American American" is murdered in a hotel room in the Bahamas, it's clear he's not just a victim of some random crime.  He was clearly targeted.  The question is by whom.  A million-to-one sniper shot like the one that killed Moreno couldn't have been fired by any old marksman.  Nance Laurel, a no-nonsense ADA in New York City, thinks the kill order came from the U.S. government.  All she needs is proof.  Which is why she hires an independent forensics consultant.  Not just any consultant, but the brilliant Lincoln Rhyme.  The former head of NYPD forensics, Rhyme's been wheelchair-bound since being shot on the job.  Quadriplegia notwithstanding, the criminalist always gets his man using his vast experience and tireless knowledge of forensics.  Taking on the government, though, might be a little much even for Rhyme.  

Nevertheless, Rhyme can't resist a good mystery and Moreno's murder certainly is that.  With the help of Amelia Sachs, his beautiful assistant (and lover), he starts tracking down evidence in the case.  Well, trying to, anyway.  The Bahamanian police aren't exactly helpful, not even to the great Lincoln Rhyme.  When witnesses start disappearing, he and Sachs know they haven't much time to solve the case.  If they don't find Moreno's killer soon, more people will die.  They can't let that happen.  

Even as Rhyme and Sachs work the case, they've got other problems to deal with, both of a professional nature and a personal one.  Can the dynamic duo figure it all out?  Or will this be the one case they can't solve?  

Ever since I read The Bone Collector, I've loved the characters in Jeffery Deaver's popular Lincoln Rhyme series.  Both Rhyme and Sachs are interesting, sympathetic story people whose devotion to their jobs makes them admirable as well.  Deaver's plots move quickly, making his novels fast, thrilling reads made unique by their irascible quadriplegic hero and the author's ability to explain the details of forensic science in a way that's not just clear, but also exciting.  That being said, I've been a little less entranced by recent books in the series.  The newest being no exception.  The Kill Room is still a fast, twisty read, it's just kind of generic.  The secondary characters are kind of flat and so is Deaver's prose.  Without the characters I so enjoy, this one probably wouldn't have been worth the read.  With them, it turned out to be just okay for me.  Oh well. 

(Readalikes:  Reminds me of other books in the Lincoln Rhyme series [The Bone Collector; The Coffin Dancer; The Empty Chair; The Stone Monkey; The Vanished Man; The Twelfth Card; The Cold Moon; The Broken Window; The Burning Wire; and XO] and the Tempe Brennan series by Kathy Reichs [Deja Dead; Death Du Jour; Deadly Decisions; Fatal Voyage; Grave Secrets; Bare Bones; Monday Mourning; Cross Bones; Break No Bones; Bones to Ashes; Devil Bones; 206 Bones; Spider Bones; Flash and Bones; Bones Are Forever; and Bones of the Lost)

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If this were a movie, it would be rated:

To the FTC, with love:  Another library fine find

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It must be too early in the morning for writing plot summaries, because the words just aren't coming to me today.  Luckily, someone's already done the work for me.  Here's the polished, professionally-written back cover blurb for The Kitchen House:    

Orphaned during her passage from Ireland, young, white Lavinia arrives on the steps of the kitchen house and is placed, as an indentured servant, under the care of Belle, the master's illegitimate slave daughter.  Lavinia learns to cook, clean, and serve food, while guided by the quiet strength of her new family.                                                                                                                                                                                                                               In time, Lavinia is accepted into the world of the big house, caring for the master's opium-addicted wife and befriending his dangerous yet protective son.  She attempts to straddle the worlds of the kitchen and big house, but her skin color will forever set her apart from Belle and the other slaves.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                             Through the unique eyes of Lavinia and Belle, Kathleen Grissom's debut novel unfolds in a heartbreaking and ultimately hopeful story of class, race, dignity, deep-buried secrets, and familial bonds.    

Sounds intriguing, right?  It is.  As Lavinia's pulled into the warm embrace of Belle's family (though Belle, herself, remains standoffish), the reader comes to love them as well.  It's difficult not to become absorbed in their dramas and heartaches, of which there are, of course, many.  Lavinia's stunningly naive, sometimes too much so to be truly believable, but she's also a sympathetic character whose trials are many.  The reader feels for her as well, especially when she makes disastrous mistakes that will inevitably lead to only misery and pain.  If The Kitchen House sounds like a dark, haunting tale, that's because it is.  But it's also a rich, affecting story about the true meaning of family and the desperate lengths we will go to in order to protect those we love.  I read it in one sitting; it's that compelling.  

(Readalikes:  Reminded me of other stories about slavery and class/racial struggle, like The House Girl by Tara Conklin; The Cutting Season by Attica Locke; The Help by Kathryn Stockett; and others)

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