Infertility Brings a Marriage Crisis

Marissa wants more than anything to have a baby. It’s hard for her working in a crisis pregnancy center seeing all the women pregnant even if they didn’t want to be. She and her husband, Colin, have tried so hard to get pregnant that it has affected their sex life and their marriage.

Colin, a professor, started having an affair with a student as a release from the pressures of his marriage. Kaitlyn is desperately in love with him. She doesn’t realize he’s married and dreams that he loves her enough to marry her when she finds she’s pregnant. Kaitlyn knows Marissa, but doesn’t realize she’s Colin’s wife. When Marissa suggests that she visit the pregnancy center where Marissa works, Kaitlyn finally begins to think she’ll survive this crisis.

The story is told from three viewpoints: Marissa, Colin, and Kaitlyn. Marissa’s is first person, the other two are third person. All three characters come alive in their portrayals of their problems. Marissa seems the most wronged, but she isn’t without responsibility for her situation. She desperately wants to be pregnant and doesn’t accept the toll it is taking on her relationship with Colin. What Colin did is wrong. It’s not clear he loves Kaitlyn. She was fun and a chance to get away from the pressures of his marriage.

I found Kaitlyn naive for a woman approaching thirty. She may not realize Colin is married, but she does realize as a Christian that having an affair is wrong. She gives herself and expects the result will be marriage not an unwanted pregnancy.

I recommend this book. It is well written. The characters are believable and the ending has a surprising twist. It’s a cautionary tale for husbands and wives allowing problems to come between them. It’s also a book for single women expecting to win a man by giving their body and expecting it to result in marriage.

I received this book from Barbour Publishing for this review.

Long Held Secrets and Murder in the California Wine Country

A family saga starts in Germany and moves to the wine country of California. The Schallers and the Newmans are part of a group of German settlers who immigrate to California in the early 1900s. As a whole, the group prospers and in the present day, the town they founded, in addition to making wine, is a tourist attraction.

Nicole Schaller is the last descendant of the original Schaller family. She’s torn. She loves the valley and the vineyards, but she wants to be her own person and believes that she can’t be herself with the shadow of her family hanging over her.

She’s trying to sell the vineyards, but when showing prospective buyers the property, a skeleton is found in the wall of the barrel room. All Nicole wants is to get the police off the property so she can continue making arrangements to sell. Then if a skeleton weren’t bad enough, Lucas Newman arrives. The Newmans and the Schallers are bitter enemies. Lucas and Nicole haven’t spoken for years, but now the skeleton forces the families to face the secrets that made them become enemies.

I love the setting of this story on the central California coast near Santa Barbara. The atmosphere is perfectly rendered for both the 1900s story and the present day. The story moves back and forth between the two time periods giving us a glimpse of early California.

As usual with stories set in two time periods, one moves faster than the other. The family saga moves slowly unfolding the family feuds and hidden secrets. The present day story is a murder mystery and moves much more quickly. Both were well done, but I preferred the modern story. I thought the historical portion dragged at times.

I recommend this book if you enjoy family sagas.

I received this book from Turner Publishing for this review.

A Whole System Approach to Healing

Two of the most pervasive killers and two of the most difficult to control are stress and inflammation. Chopra and Tanzi present a well researched approach to using your mind and body, or mindbody, to heal yourself from these afflictions.

Today’s world is filled with situations that raise your stress level from traffic to despair over the world situation. In this book the authors discuss what stress is and how to move from being controlled by external stress to using your inner resources to take control of your life. Inflammation is another killer. From the American diet, heavy on sugar, fat and refined grains, to the polluted air we breathe most of us are hurting ourselves with high levels of uncontrolled inflammation.

The authors present a chapter on each of these major health concerns along with suggestions for how to get your stress and inflammation levels under control. In addition to the these two major topics, other aspects of health and wellness are discussed. The book also offers a seven day plan aimed at moving from debilitating habits and beliefs to better health.

I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in healing and maintaining awareness of the fact that our minds and bodies are integrally connected. The interaction is much more important than most of us realize and can lead to health or wellness. The choice is in how each person interacts with their environment both internal and external.

I received this book from Blogging for Books for this review.

Murder in a Haunted Girl’s School

Fiona Sheridan, a journalist, can’t get over the murder of her sister twenty years ago. Fiona keeps going back to where her sister’s body was found in the middle of an open field at the abandoned Idlewood School. Idlewood was a school where troubled girls were sent, and it’s rumored to be haunted by Mary, the ghost of a young woman, who died years before the school was founded.

The story encompasses not only Fiona’s tragedy, but tells the story of four roommates who were at the school sixty years ago. They bonded and became each other's strength until on of them disappeared returning from a weekend to visit family. The school called her a runaway, and her body was never found, but the girls didn’t give up their belief that something terrible had happened to her.

The atmosphere at Idlewood is eerie, just right for a ghost. The description of the school, even in it’s abandoned condition can make chills run up your back.

All the girls in this story are troubled from Fiona to the four roommates. Fiona can’t break free from her sister’s tragedy until she decides to take action and write about the renovation of the school. The other four are difficult girls, but I couldn’t help liking them and rooting for them to become successful women. One, Katie, was particularly resourceful and brave.

I highly recommend this book for lovers of haunting mysteries.

I received this book from Berkley Publishing for this review.

A Social, Political, and Cultural Perspective on Paul’s Mission

In this comprehensive work on Paul, we see not only the theology, but also the social, cultural, and political dynamics that helped to form his thinking. The book takes a chronological perspective starting with his Jewish upbringing, follows him through his conversion to a follower of Jesus and his journeys to the early Christian communities.

The book is well written and easy to follow even if you’re not a Paul scholar. I found the early chapters some of the most interesting. It’s easy to ignore the fact that the early Christians living in world shaped by political and social realities. Paul was raised in the Jewish tradition and the scope of that history had a significant bearing on his later writing.

My other favorite chapter was the last chapter where Wright puts the whole thing together. He emphasizes that Paul’s concept of love and the outward looking church were significant factors in the way Christian communities developed and responded to social challenges. He suggests this world view was responsible for founding hospitals to care for everyone and for the development of education.

Weaving the cultural and historical factors of the time into Paul’s story and teachings made the scriptures come alive for me. I highly recommend this book. Whether you’re a Paul scholar or even particularly religious, this book will make you think and, I hope, bring a new level of understanding to Paul’s Letters.

I received this book from BookLook Bloggers for this review.

Does More Equal Happiness or Prosperity?

We are conditioned to look at GDP (Gross Domestic Product) as a measure of economic progress for the country. The economists love this number. It gives them a standard to measure against. But, for the average person what does the GDP say about our lives? Are we happier because it’s high? Is the quality of life better? These are interesting questions tackled by The Growth Delusion.

This book, while examining difficult economic concepts, is written for the average person to understand. This may not be appropriate for experts, but it gives the average person insight into what the experts are talking about. Economists are traditionally caught up in looking at the wealth of nations and ranking countries on their economic progress. They believe that they understand the workings of the economy and are therefore justified in telling people whether they should be happy with the way the country is going.

In this book, the author discusses three major areas: the problems of growth; what growth tells us about ourselves and the developing world; and finally a look at the factors that relate to happiness and well-being. Although I enjoyed the first two sections, I found the last section most persuasive. The Industrial Revolution was great for the wealthy, but the poor suffered mightily. Are we heading for the same problems with our emphasis on growth? The poor and middle class plus the environment may suffer most for our emphasis on growth.

I received this book from Blogging for Books for this review.

Religion, Philosophy and Romance

After an unsettling meeting with an old friend from seminary, Father Kavanagh wanders through Central Park. To escape the rain, he takes shelter in The Cloisters. He’s hoping to be alone, but Rachael Vedette, a museum guide, wanders into his sanctuary. Their unexpected conversation changes their lives.

Rachael is a survivor of the Holocaust in France. Her father, a Medieval scholar, studied Abelard in the hope of bringing Abelard’s ideas to the modern era and garnering him the honor he deserves. Rachael protected her father’s work throughout her own ordeal, now she feels compelled to share it with Father Kavanagh.

The novel revolves around the story of Heloise and Abelard, an iconic love story that echoes through the centuries. It is also the story of Rachael and Kavanagh and the struggle to bring the story of the Jews into the rightful place in philosophical thinking, a task that Abelard paid dearly for.

This is a beautifully written book. It’s a book to be savored, not read quickly. The love story and the foray into philosophy and religion present much food for thought. The characters are real people struggling with mighty issues. The author did an excellent job of making both the middle ages and the modern era into backgrounds that enhanced the novel.

I enjoyed both the romance and the philosophy. It’s a book worth reading more than once.

I received this book from Net Galley for this review.

A Mathematical Puzzle and Murder

Hazel, adopted granddaughter of mathematical genius, Issac Severy, is devastated to learn of his suicide. She is even more startled when she receives a letter from him written before his death. In the letter, he entrusts her with finding and delivering his final equation to a colleague he believes will use the equation for good.

In the letter he tells her that he is being followed by a shadowy organization that wants control of the equation. He doesn’t trust them and doesn’t want the equation to fall into their hands. Hazel feels she is the least likely member of this family of geniuses to carry out the task, but Isaac has told her he respects her logical mind and is sure she can do the job.

After the funeral, Hazel’s task starts, complicated by the family of eccentric geniuses and her brother, who is a police officer. The book follows Hazel’s quest, but also explores the lives of the other Severys particularly Philip, Isaac’s theoretical physicist son.

If mathematics is not your thing, don’t worry. Math is the background for an engrossing mystery. The characters are well drawn. Although they are unusual and bedeviled with the problems of being a member of a family of geniuses, it’s easy to relate to them. The action moves moderately fast, but there are a number of chapters where the family members expose their insecurities and the backstory of how Hazel and Gregory became members of the family is explained.

I enjoyed the book. The plot was well constructed and the ending a surprise. It was hard to guess until you got to at least the middle of the book. If you enjoy a mystery with quirky characters and a reluctant heroine who realizes her potential, this is a good book.

I received this book from Eidelweiss-- Above the Trees for this review.

A Terrifying Evening Gets Worse

Melanie is late again picking up her baby, Alex. The babysitter is a stickler for punctuality. Worried, she pounds on the babysitter’s door, only to be told that Social Services has taken the baby. How can that be? She was only two minutes late.

When she arrives home, it gets worse. Crime scene tape is stung across the porch and inside her house is a shambles, raided by the sheriff’s deputies. They found cocaine. Melanie knows she’s clean, but the evidence is stacked against her. She could lose Alex and go to jail for years.

Amy Kaye, the assistant commonwealth’s attorney, is assigned to Melanie’s case. She's working the case or a serial rapist who has been operating in the county for years. Shockingly, Melanie was one of his victims. Amy can’t get cooperation on the rapist case. She feels that Melanie’s case is more complex than it appears,

perhaps related to the rape, but again she gets little cooperation.

Two women from different perspectives battle law enforcement. The book is skillfully written. You can feel Melanie’s desperation and Amy’s frustration. The pace is fast with hardly any breathing room. All the characters are well defined. People you can connect with. I enjoyed the fact that chapters were written from both Amy’s and Melanie’s point of view.

This is book is so closely written that taking in all the problems Melanie is facing can sometimes seem overwhelming. It’s also a good reminder that law enforcement people are not without their own issues. It makes you hope that you never get caught in the kind of trap Melanie is in.

I received this book from Dutton for this review.

B&B Owner Solves a Murder in Savannah

Quinn Bellandini loves Savannah, Georgia and the B&B she and her sister, Delilah, run for her grandfather. Life is good except for her new next door neighbor. On a surprise visit to her friend, Drew, who runs a restaurant with his brother, she stumbles on his brother’s corpse. Life gets much more exciting from there, especially since the police think she might have had something to do with the murder.

The police are not really serious about Quinn. They’ve transferred their interest to Drew. This is not a good situation since Drew and his brother, a difficult person at best, did not get on well. Worried that he might be tagged with the crime, Drew convinces Quinn to help him solve the murder.

This is a new series by the author of Java Jive and has many of the interesting features of the other series. I enjoyed the setting in the B&B and the city of Savannah is delightfully described. Quinn loves to make breakfast for her guests,with grits and scones. Some of the recipes are included. They make your mouth water.

I found Quinn a much harder character to connect with then Jules, main character in the Java Jive series, but she may get more interesting as the series progresses. The pace was moderately fast and there is a love interest, in fact, more than one.

If you enjoy cozy mysteries this is a good one.

I received this book from Net Galley for this review.

A Haunting Mansion on the Moors, a Missing Cousin, and Murder

Kiera, Lady Darby, and her husband Sebastian Gage are finishing a case in Ireland when Gage receives an urgent summons from his grandfather, Lord Tavistock. Gage has no desire to return to Langstone Manor where he has nothing but unhappy memories of his mother’s death and the constant baiting by his cousins, Albert and Rory.

Despite his misgivings, Kiera convinces Sebastian to go. From her first sight, Kiera, feels the ominous presence of the manor house. Lord Tavistock does nothing to make them feel at ease. Albert is missing and the moors are dangerous, but he tries to convince himself and them that Albert has simply gone off and will return. When Rory, his younger brother, also disappears the family must take Albert’s disappearance seriously.

The story is told though Kiera’s eyes. She is a perceptive and intelligent narrator. Her observations of the other characters make the plot believable. The description of the moors and the manor house draw you into the period adding a haunting backdrop to the action. I found the intricate descriptions of the setting, particularly the moor and the interior of the mansion, mesmerizing.

This is the sixth book in the series, but I had no trouble getting into the story. The backstory is kept to a minimum so the novel can be read as a stand alone. The action is moderately paced and the twist at the end, when the villain is revealed,

is a complete surprise.

If you enjoy romantic, historical mysteries. This is a good one.

I received this book from Net Galley for this review.

Murder Haunts the Tea Shop Duo

Theo, owner of the Indigo Tea Shop, and Drayton, tea blender extraordinaire, are attending a party at Timothy Neville’s Charleston Mansion, to view the Gaslights and Galleons Parade. Theo is enjoying the parade until a local banker, Carson Lanier, appears to fall from the balcony landing three floors below. Carson is dead, but not from the fall. He was shot with an antique crossbow bolt.

Timothy is appalled by the accident and begs Theo to investigate. She agrees even though it will bring her into conflict with her old nemesis, Detective Tidwell. There are plenty of suspects and fast paced action.

The descriptions of old Charleston are a delightful background for the sleuthing. The food and tea served in the tea shop are mouth watering. As a treat, the recipes are included at end of the book. There are also suggestions for special teas that would be fun to host.

This book is part of a much longer series, but I found it easy to read as a standalone. If you enjoy cozy mysteries in beautiful settings, this is a good one.

I received this book from Net Galley for this review.

The Chilling Words No Parent Wants to Hear: Your Children Have Been Taken

Judge Scott Sampson is miffed when he receives a text from his wife telling him their twins have a doctor’s appointment, and she’ll pick them up. He looks forward to his time swimming with them on Wednesday afternoons. When his wife, Alison, arrives home, the horror begins. She didn’t pick up the twins. Then the phone call comes. The twins have been kidnapped.

The kidnappers don’t want money. They want to be able to control the Judge’s rulings. Scott and Allison are terrified. They’ve been told not to contact the police or tell anyone. They’re agreed that they’ll do anything to get the twins back, and so Scott puts his career and reputation on the line. But the nightmare is only beginning.

If you’re a parent, this book can be extremely hard to read. Parks does an excellent job showing how distraught the parents are and how, even though they love each other and want to support each other, their marriage starts to unravel under the strain.

The novel is filled with suspense and a serious look at the workings of the legal system. The courtroom scenes are vivid and done without too much legal jargon. The pace is fast and the twist at the end is a surprise. If you enjoy legal thrillers, you’ll enjoy this book.

I received this book from Dutton for this review.

Five Sisters Embark on a Hazardous Journey to Save Their Dying Father, the King

Gudrun, King Athelrick’s second wife, is distraught. She’s afraid he’s dying. His five daughters hate her, so she sends for her son, Wylm. Bluebell, the kings eldest daughter and heir, is told that her father is dying and that her stepbrother is on the way to him. Fearing that Wylm will try to seize the crown, Bluebell, a warrior princess, rides hard and overtakes him. At least he won’t arrive alone.

When she arrives at home, Bluebell realizes that her father may well be dying, poisoned by undermagic, and sends for her four sisters. Not all the sisters are enthusiastic about the proposed journey, but they realize that they must find a powerful undermagician to cure him. The sisters are very different people with their own problems and personalities. As the journey unfolds, they learn more about each other for good and bad.

This fantasy novel, the first of a trilogy, is set in a kingdom that resembles England during the Viking raids. The time and area are beautifully described giving a tapestry like backdrop to the story. However, perhaps the best thing about the novel is the characterization of the sisters. Bluebell, the eldest, is a tough warrior; Rose, the wife of the king of a neighboring kingdom, is romantically involved with a man who is the father of her daughter; Ash has a gift for magic and shows the ability to be a seer; Willow, one of the twins, is a religious mystic, but defies the traditional religion of her country; and Ivy, the other twin, chases men looking for love and attention.

The book is beautifully written. The prose pulls you along moving swiftly among the main characters. Although at first it may be difficult to become engaged with so many characters, I thought the chapters devoted to the viewpoint of each sister gave the reader a chance to know these interesting women. They are not perfect people, which makes them very real.

If you enjoy fantasy, this is a good book. The twist at the end will leave you looking for the next volume.

I received this book from Random House for this review.