Three Sister, a Forbidding Mansion, and a Secret

 

Flora, Kat and Lauren are three sisters with three mothers. Charles Finch, the girls’ father, is a famous artist who had overlapping relationships that produced the daughters. For years each daughter has been busy with her own life. Now Lauren’s mother, Dixie, is dead and Charles has asked them all to come back to Rock Point for an important announcement.

The sisters have not been back to Rock Point since 1999 and the night of the eclipse. Things happened that night that they’re all desperate to forget most of all Lauren the youngest and the most disturbed by the events of that night. Once back, the story starts to come out and nothing anyone can do will stop it.

This is a wonderfully atmospheric novel. The old house situated on the rocky coast of Cornwall is forbidding. It adds the perfect touch of menace to the evolving story. I loved the descriptions of the coast. It made the atmosphere perfect.

Flora, Kate, and Lauren are good heroines. Despite having three different mothers, the sisters have managed to bond. Lauren has the most trouble returning to the house remembering that her older sisters seemed fierce and somewhat threatening when she was a child.

The mystery is revealed in tantalizing glimpses throughout the novel. It keeps you reading to find out what happened so long ago. If you enjoy romance and mystery with a Gothic flair, you’ll enjoy this book.

I received this book from Penguin Random House for this review.

When You Can’t Lie

 

Lucy Green, a celebrity publicist, thinks she has a good life. She’s turning thirty the next day, but she’s hoping for a job promotion and a proposal from her boyfriend. The night before in a bar waiting for her boyfriend, who again doesn’t show up, she asks the bartender to mix her a special drink, and she wishes for a perfect birthday.

When she wakes up on her birthday morning, she finds she can’t lie: not about her fitness routine, or the power clothes she hates, or the problems with her boss. Facing the truth can be life-changing, and it could result in a disastrous day for Lucy, but in the end telling the truth can make life better.

This is a fun read. Lucy is an engaging character that many people can relate to. Too many of us are caught in situations that are not right for us, but we lie to ourselves to keep going. I cheered for Lucy.

Not only is Lucy a good character, but her quirky friends add to the enjoyable atmosphere of the book.

The only problem I had with the book was that it became a little too preachy for my taste at the end. We know life isn’t fair and hostile work environments are a fact of office life for some. I thought the author showed this in a lighthearted way with the story we didn’t need extra reminder at the end.

I received this book from Dutton for this review.

Roman Emperor and Stoic Philosopher

 

Marcus Aurelius grew up knowing he would be emperor. He also wanted to be a good man. He knew that those two paths would not always easy to follow at the same time, particularly since he was well aware of his faults, like a terrible temper.

This graphic novel follows Marcus Aurelius’ life from his childhood through he time as emperor. The pictures are stunning and do an excellent job of telling the story. The author not only tells the story from an historical perspective, but he includes quotes from the Meditations, Aurelius own writings.

Aurelius is perhaps even more famous for his Stoic philosophy than his reign as emperor. Today many people are interested in Stoic philosophy, but know little about the man. I thought the book did an excellent job of tying the two together. Knowing who he was and what his trials were made more sense to me of his philosophical writings.

I know the history of Aurelius reign and have read the Meditations. I think this book pulls the two together beautifully. Being a graphic novel it is also a delight to read. If you’re interested in Roman history, or Stoic philosophy, I highly recommend this book.

I received this book from St. Martin’s Press for this review.

The Murder of a Respected Amish Biship with a Darker Side

 

Kate Burkholder, Chief of Police in Painter’s Mill, Ohio, is surprised to receive a visit from two of the elders from the Amish community in the town of Belleville, the town where Kate grew up. Kate grew up Amish, but she left the community long ago and wonders why the elders are looking to her for help.

Ananias Stoltzfus, a respected bishop, disappeared over a decade ago. Now his skeleton has been recovered along with a rifle that points to Jonas Bowman as the killer. Jonas blamed Ananias for the shunning that he believes caused his father’s heart attack. That Jonas has been accused of the murder complicates the investigation for Kate. When she was a teenager in the Amish community, he was her first love.

This is another excellent Kate Burkholder mystery. It’s the fourteenth book in the series, but it can be read as a standalone. I think Kate is a great character. She’s tenacious and unafraid of danger. In fact, when someone breaks into her room, instead of being intimidated, it encourages her to pursue the case. I also liked Jonas. He seemed like such an upright person. I was glad Kate chose to help him.

I enjoyed the background of the Amish community. The enclosed nature of the community and the fact that secrets are kept for years made a perfect background for the long ago murder. The fact that Kate had once been Amish and left the community added to the interesting details of life in the sect.

I received this book from Net Galley for this review.

A Precious Possession: Your Reputation

 

Emma Webster, a Labor MP, has a reputation for taking on moral issues. She is pushing a bill to make revenge porn illegal. Emma’s career has forced her to sacrifice her marriage, and it has troubled her relationship with her daughter Flora.

Being trolled on social media is the nightmare of politicians and Emma is no exception. Then her daughter becomes involved in a similar scandal. After being involved in a bullying incident, Flora takes to social media in a poorly chosen bid for revenge.

With her daughter’s situation becoming known, Emma’s life begins to fall apart. She finds herself under fire in the press. Then the journalist who threatens to expose her is found dead in her house. Now she must defend her reputation in the court of law.

If you like courtroom drama, which I do, this is a terrific book. The lead up to the trial is slow, but once the action starts this is a difficult book to put down. I found the use of the dangers of social media an excellent choice for the underlying action. Emma’s problems showed how public figures are constantly under the threat of having their reputation destroyed by an anonymous person hidden behind a computer screen. It’s a very timely plot.

The story is told through multiple narrators. Emma is the major voice, but other characters such as her husband’s new wife, also give their viewpoint. I can’t say I warmed up to Emma. She is a very strong character and hard to get close to, but I did admire her. Flora, however, was my favorite. She added a touch of the real life problems of teens growing up with famous parents.

I received this book from Atria Books for this review.

Complicated Relationships

 

Hazel and Alfie are attracted to each other and sleep together. The complication is that they share an apartment. Now they don’t know how to behave, and this makes it awkward. Then Emily, Hazel’s sister. and her wife Daria come to visit. This married same-sex couple is deciding whether to have a baby. Emily desperately wants one, but Daria isn’t convinced. Of course, the donor they decide on is Alfie which adds to the already complicated relationships.

On the good side, I liked Hazel and Alfie and the writing has amusing scenes. However, it’s not enough to carry the novel. The relationships are complicated and poor decisions make things more difficult, Hazel linking up with Max, who is an unattractive character, is one example.

The epilogue turned me off the book. Covid19 was a difficult time for many people. Now a lot of us, me included, would like to move on. Using Covid19 as a setting to resolve the issues of the novel seemed a poor choice. It changed the feel of the novel from mildly amusing, to frustrating.

I received this book from Dutton for this review.