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Tuesday, May 22, 2018
Abduction Novel Quietly Suspenseful, Unsettling
7:01 AM
(Image from Barnes & Noble)
Keeping track of her "dreamy" daughter has always been something of a challenge for Beth Wakeford. Now that she's newly divorced, she's even more worried that something will happen to Carmel, an 8-year-old who's easily distracted. When her nightmare comes true during a trip to an outdoor festival, Beth is frantic with worry. Has Carmel just wandered off in a daze? Or has something sinister happened to the capricious child? As hours, then days and months, go by without a sighting of the little girl, the police assume the worst. Undeterred, Beth vows to find her missing child, in whose death she refuses to believe.
When Carmel is first led away from the fairgrounds, she's delighted at the prospect of a novel adventure. Soon, though, she realizes that things are not what they seem and that the likelihood of her being returned to her mother is slim to none. As Carmel slowly comes to grips with her new reality, she longs desperately for her mum. But as the years pass, memories fade, and some children forget who they really are ...
The Girl in the Red Coat, a debut novel by Welsh author Kate Hamer, tells a quietly unsettling story about every parent's worst nightmare coming to pass. It's a compelling tale that kept me riveted throughout. Although the reader knows what's happening (sort of) to Carmel from the get-go, the plot remains suspenseful because of its over-arching question: Will Beth and Carmel ever be reunited? As mother and daughter are both sympathetic narrators, the reader can't help but root for them ... but will they get the happily ever after they both desire? Nothing is for certain in this disquieting novel.
(Readalikes: Reminds me of The Disappearance of James by Anne Ursu)
Grade:
If this were a movie, it would be rated:
for language (a few F-bombs, plus milder expletives), mild sexual content, violence, and disturbing subject matter
To the FTC, with love: Another library fine find
Monday, May 21, 2018
Flight Patterns Another Compelling Southern Family Saga From An Old Favorite
8:31 AM
(Image from Barnes & Noble)
After fleeing the small tourist town of her birth ten years ago, Georgia Chambers swore she'd never return to Apalachicola, Florida. The 35-year-old has made a life for herself as an antiques expert in New Orleans, where no one knows about her wild child youth or the estranged family members she left behind. Her past comes calling, though, when a customer brings Georgia an heirloom teacup with a unique pattern she knows she's seen before. Although the bee motif doesn't appear in any antiques catalogs, Georgia recognizes it instantly—her mother owns a matching piece. The item has always been shrouded in mystery and suddenly, Georgia is intent on finding out why. Since "Birdie" no longer speaks, Georgia can't exactly call her mother up on the phone. As much as she hates to admit it, a trip to Florida is the only way she can get the answers she needs.
To Georgia's surprise, her client—a handsome New York City real estate developer named James Graf—insists on coming along to investigate the history of his teacup. Irritated, Georgia vows to make the road trip as quick as possible. Of course, fate has other plans.
As Georgia hunts for her mother's missing piece of china, she unintentionally uncovers a dark secret from her family's past. Although she's warned to leave well enough alone, Georgia won't stop until she gets the answers she seeks, even if it means shattering her mother's fragile psyche and breaking the already-frail bonds that still tie her to her family. When the shocking truth finally comes to light, Georgia will have to decide what to do with the newfound knowledge that could forever change everything, for all of them.
I've long been a fan of Karen White's Southern novels, but some of them definitely appeal more than others. Although it is compelling, Flight Patterns falls into the latter camp. Since I know nothing about beekeeping or antique china, I found those aspects of the story intriguing. The characters less so. They are sympathetic certainly, but I didn't feel a strong connection to any of them. Plot wise, the novel kept my attention, even though certain aspects of it seem contrived and far-fetched. I appreciate, though, the story's themes of forgiveness and redemption and the fact that Georgia's life doesn't wrap up in a perfect, unrealistic way. Overall, then, I liked Flight Patterns, but I didn't love it.
(Readalikes: Reminds me of other Southern novels by Karen White; also of books by Joshilyn Jackson and Dorothea Benton Frank, although theirs tend to be more R-rated than White's)
Grade:
If this were a movie, it would be rated:
for violence, scenes of peril, and innuendo
To the FTC, with love: I bought a copy of Flight Patterns from Costco with a portion of the millions I make from my lucrative career as a book blogger. Ha ha.
Friday, May 18, 2018
Cambridge Mystery/"Thriller" Just ... Odd
7:06 AM
(Image from Barnes & Noble)
Drawn together while studying at Cambridge University, Americans Polly Bailey and Liv Dahl become friends. They're both enamored of Nick Frey, a 24-year-old grad student in paleobiology. The trio bond over a shared job, which entails helping a blind professor sort the papers of her novelist mother. When Nick suddenly vanishes, however, it throws the friends' cozy relationship into a tailspin. What happened to the charismatic Brit?
When D.I. Morris Keene and his partner, DS Chloe Frohmann, start digging into Nick's strange disappearance, a tangle of secrets about all of the students start coming to light. And they aren't the only ones with something to hide. Gretchen Paul, the blind professor, will make startling discoveries about her own past, which will irrevocably change her future. As the detectives strive to sort it all out, all the players will realize how little anyone can ever really know another.
I'm not sure what to say about The Whole World, the first installment in the Keene and Frohmann series by Emily Winslow. It's a strange novel, in many ways. The characters are almost wholly unlikable, the story plods along very slowly, and when plot "twists" do come, they seem outrageously far-fetched. Unfocused and dull, The Whole World is just an odd, odd book. I finished it, but I'm not really sure why I bothered.
(Readalikes: Hm, nothing is coming to mind. You?)
Grade:
If this were a movie, it would be rated:
for language, violence, and sexual content
To the FTC, with love: I (regrettably) bought a (cheap) copy of The Whole World from Amazon with a portion of the millions I make from my lucrative career as a book blogger. Ha ha.
Wednesday, May 16, 2018
New Romantic Suspense Novel Too Meh For Me (With a Giveaway!)
1:00 AM
(Image from Barnes & Noble)
Haley Wyatt is preparing to say goodbye to Grisa, her beloved 100-year-old great-grandmother, when a phone call from Germany rocks both of their worlds. A relative informs them that a body has been found in an old, walled-in room in Baumdorf. The remains have been identified as those of Ulrich Krauss, Haley's great-grandfather. Grisa, who thought her husband abandoned her, has always told her family he died in World War II. Both Haley and Grisa are shocked by the truth—Ulrich Krauss was murdered. Desperate to honor the man she has been decrying for almost a century, Grisa begs Haley to travel to Germany in her stead and find out what really happened to Ulrich.
Almost from the moment she steps on German soil, Haley feels as if someone is watching her. Even with handsome Joshua Davison—an old friend of her brother's—by her side, she can't shake the sinister feeling. The more she learns about Ulrich Krauss' disappearance, the more certain Haley feels. Someone doesn't want her digging into the past. That someone will go to great lengths to stop her from finding out who killed her great-grandfather. The closer she comes to discovering the reason behind his death, the more dangerous her trip to Germany becomes. Can Haley find what she's looking for before it's too late? Or will she be the next victim of a killer determined to keep the secrets of the past from ever coming to light?
Romantic suspense has never been my favorite, but there are definitely things I appreciate about the genre. Like many of its fellows, Unforgettable by Ronda Gibb Hinrichsen is a quick, clean read that shies away from graphic violence, language, and sensuality. Although it deals with some disturbing subjects, overall its themes of hope, redemption, and love are what really shine through. I also find the subject of Nazi-stolen art interesting, so I enjoyed that aspect of the story. Unfortunately, Unforgettable also falls back on some of my least favorite genre staples—flat characters, insta-love, a far-fetched plot line, melodramatic prose, and contrived plot devices. I didn't feel much of a connection with Haley or any real sparks between her and Joshua. Also, because we already know "whodunit," there's not a whole lot of suspense to keep the novel interesting. These elements took away from the story for me, making it pretty meh for me overall. Still, Unforgettable is an entertaining enough tale, as long as you don't expect too much of it. If you dig this genre, you might want to give it a chance.
(Readalikes: I don't read this genre very often, so I'm not sure what would be an apt comparison. Suggestions?)
Grade:
If this were a movie, it would be rated:
for violence and scenes of peril
To the FTC, with love: I received a finished copy of Unforgettable from the generous folks at Covenant. Thank you!
--
Interested in more opinions of Unforgettable? Follow along on the book's blog tour by clicking on the links below:
*May 14th: https://brightlystreet.com/, http://mybookaday.com/
*May 15th: http://
*May 16th: http://lisaisabookworm.
*May 18th: http://whynotbecauseisaidso.
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