#bookrecommendation – Page 92 – Rosepoint Publishing

Aftermath by Terri Blackstock – #BookReview – Christian Mystery & Suspense Romance

Rosepoint Publishing: Five Stars

Book Blurb:

A devastating explosion.

Three best friends attend a concert. Only one makes it out alive.

A trunk full of evidence.

When police stop Dustin Webb with a warrant to search his trunk, he knows there’s been a mistake. He’s former military and owns a security firm. But he’s horrified when the officers find explosives, and he can’t fathom how they got there.

An attorney who will risk it all for an old friend.

Criminal attorney Jamie Powell was Dustin’s best friend growing up. They haven’t spoken since he left for basic training, but she’s the first person he thinks of when he’s arrested. Jamie knows she’s putting her career on the line by defending an accused terrorist, but she’d never abandon him. Someone is framing Dustin to take the fall for shocking acts of violence . . . but why?

His Review:

Three young aspiring politicians attend a political rally and as the candidate comes onto the stage, the Trudeau Hall auditorium explodes. Taylor Reid scrambles to exit bloody and bruised but alive. Outside she looks for her friends. They do not show up so she tries to call them. There is no answer.

Ms. Blackstone writes a very compelling tale of the aftermath of a bombing. Guilt envelops Taylor as she wonders why she did not try to help her friends. Fight or flight had overtaken her. She was one of the few survivors. Guilt follows for not trying to rescue her friends.

Dustin Webb is driving along the highway when he is suddenly pulled over. Why? The police ask to check his car including the trunk. He inquires if they have a warrant and why they want to search his trunk. Being confused and knowing there is nothing in the trunk he allows them to search. He is arrested after 4 boxes of highly explosive RDX is found in his trunk. How could that be? They explain they had an anonymous tip which motivated them to pull him over.

His best friend, Travis Grey, is at a hospital where his wife, Crystal, is dying from inoperable cancer. Together he and Dustin started a building security firm called Grey Webb Security. He is unaware that his business partner has been arrested and charged with the crime of domestic terrorism for planting the bomb.

The intricacy of the plot and the interweaving of the lives of the characters kept me glued to the pages. The conclusion is surprising and convoluted as Taylor decides to take matters into her own hands because of the death of her friends.

An old flame of Dustin, Jamie Powell, Attorney at Law, decides to help him. She simply cannot believe he would ever commit such a terrible crime. The twists and turns kept me guessing. 5 stars – CE Williams

Book Details:

Genre: Christian Mystery & Suspense Romance, Christian Suspense
Publisher: Thomas Nelson
ASIN: B08BZ14BV7
Print Length: 332 pages
Publication Date: May 11, 2021
Source: Publisher and NetGalley
Title Links: Aftermath [Amazon]
Barnes and Noble
Kobo

The Author: Terri Blackstock is a New York Times best-seller, with over seven million copies sold worldwide. She has had over twenty-five years of success as a novelist. Terri spent the first twelve years of her life traveling in an Air Force family. She lived in nine states and attended the first four years of school in The Netherlands. Because she was a perpetual “new kid,” her imagination became her closest friend. That, she believes, was the biggest factor in her becoming a novelist. She sold her first novel at the age of twenty-five, and has had a successful career ever since.

In 1994 Terri was writing for publishers such as HarperCollins, Harlequin, Dell and Silhouette, when a spiritual awakening drew her into the Christian market. As she was praying about her transition, she went on a cruise and noticed that almost everyone on the boat (including her) had a John Grisham novel. It occurred to her that some of Grisham’s readers were Christians, and that if she wrote a fast-paced thriller with an added faith element, she might just find her niche. As God would have it, Christian publishers were showing interest in the suspense genre, so she quickly sold a four-book series to Zondervan. Since that time, she’s written over thirty Christian titles, most of them suspense novels.

Terri has appeared on national television programs such as “The 700 Club” and “Home Life,” and has been a guest on numerous radio programs across the country. The story of her personal journey appears in books such as Touched By the Savior by Mike Yorkey, True Stories of Answered Prayer by Mike Nappa, Faces of Faith by John Hanna, and I Saw Him In Your Eyes by Ace Collins.

May Rosepoint Reviews Recap—Welcome June Promise

June is always so full of promise. Weddings, sunny and warm outdoor activities, gardening and around here, birthdays. My head fills with visions of a full, healthy garden just about the bunnies and deer line up for fresh, sweet seedlings. This year I armed myself with miles of stretchy netting. It took me two times to figure out how to contour it up and over my veggie patch (about 10’ x 20’), work on the fairy garden, and the flower bed (much smaller). I’m still taking inventory of the plants lost in the fairy garden during the winter. Not so much snow or ice, or even February/March rain, so I’m not sure why some plants didn’t make it back. Many volunteer tomatoes, I’ve had to do some heavy culling.

To make the schedule just a little more hectic, I decided to tackle some stair-steps down the slight slope between the veggie and flower bed and discovered, as usual, it took at least twice as long and again more materials than I’d calculated. Hauling the pavers in the trunk of our little car was an experience. Still, it’s done, and while not quite the vision I’d had, doesn’t look too bad. In the meantime, the mallard pair were back to check on the birdseed scattered by the birds at the bird feeder.

We are continuing to look for homes with our daughter. Haven’t found one yet but the target is June, July being too hot to move. Gees, so when did I have a chance to read? (Well, not as much as usual!) The CE’s reads and reviews are getting mighty handy!

We posted sixteen book reviews for May, half from the CE that included ARCs from NetGalley, author requests, and audiobooks from our local library.

A Trail of Lies by Lylie Logan
TV Netflix Movie-The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society vs Audiobook
Pieces of Home by Tammy L Grace
The Big Gamble by Mike Faricy – CE review
Hell’s Half Acre by Jackie Elliott – CE review
The Searcher by Tana French – audiobook
Elizabeth and Monty by Charles Casillo
The Cuts That Cure by Arthur Herbert – CE review
The Decagon House Murders by Yukito Ayatsuji – CE review
The Arrangement by Robyn Harding – audiobook
Once Upon a Rhyme by Antony L Saragas – CE review
Gone Too Far by Debra Webb – CE review
Key West Dead by Mark Nolan – CE review
Track of the Cat by Nevada Barr – audiobook
Money Bear by Kerry K Cox
Hellhound, Take Me Home by Stu Lane – CE review

NetGalley – Still running about 95% on NG, but at 43 will need to do some hustling if I’m to make the goal of 75.

Goodreads has me at 85 towards my challenge of 175.

Four books for the Audiobook challenge bringing the total to 21.This one will be no sweat.

Historical Fiction – One book in May—ten total–which means this goal is completed.

You can check out my challenges progress by clicking on my Reading Challenges page.

Hope all of you in the US had a safe Memorial Day Weekend, always tough for me as I remember my brother.

And again, a welcome to my new followers—and I so appreciate all my active followers, your likes and comments. Thank you—have a wonderful and happy, hopefully COVID free June—finally!

Money Bear: A Nick Tanner Crime Thriller by Kerry K cox – #BookReview – #crimethriller

Rosepoint Rating: Five stars

“…the lowest branch on a big redwood is higher than the tallest branch of almost any other tree, in any other forest, on the planet?”

Book Blurb:

When Redwoods Park Enforcement Ranger Kathleen Shepherd finds a third dead bear in the forest, its paws and gallbladder harvested, she contacts U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services for assistance. They send Nick Tanner, one of an elite cadre of undercover USFWS Special Agents.

Highly valued in Traditional Chinese Medicine, bear gallbladders fetch the type of money that attracts dangerous and desperate criminals. When the killing of bears escalates to a series of equally macabre human murders, Nick and Kathleen follow the clues that lead them into a lethal trap—all under the darkly surreal canopy of the world’s oldest known living organisms, the old-growth redwoods.

My Review:

Orick Enforcement Ranger Kathleen Shepherd gets in over her head when she finds the third bear killed for its gallbladder and paws. It’s obvious they have poachers harvesting bears for their valuable gallbladders used in TCM, Traditional Chinese Medicine. Unfortunately, the killing has extended into human murders and Shepherd contacts the US Fish and Wildlife Service. They send Nick Tanner, a USFWS Special Agent.

Love the location of Northern California, the redwoods, the coast, such a gorgeous, uniquely wild area. The atmosphere is palpable; the well developed characters (both sides of the law) are engaging.

Gripping out of the gate, the author introduces information woven through the well-plotted narrative that is both fascinating and startling leading to the underbelly of Chinese medicine in Hollywood. The primary characters are super and I loved Tanner’s “kitty,” a blind bobcat he named Ray Charles. The prose is crafty, strongly masculine appropriate to the wild area of California, mules, wild animals. There is action, humor that lightens just a bit of the gravity, suspense, and an immersive storyline right to the conclusion. A great start to a new series and I’m looking forward to Book 2!

FTC Disclosure: I received a complimentary review copy of this book from the publisher and NetGalley. These are my honest thoughts.

Book Details:

Genre: Crime Thrillers, Suspense
Publisher: Level Best Books
ASIN: B08WBXGHKT
Print Length: 323 pages
Publication Date: February 23, 2021
Source: Publisher and NetGalley

Title Link(s):

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Kobo

The Author: [Kerry K Cox] When I was a kid, I didn’t want to be a policeman, or fireman, or astronaut, or major league third baseman. I wanted to be a forest ranger.

Okay, also a major league third baseman. Y’know, as a summer job.

But it turned out my inability to comprehend biochem made a career in wildlife management as realistic as my chances of starting for the Dodgers.

So, after four years at Oregon State University I declared myself graduated, and returned home to Southern California. There I taught swimming, karate, and pre-school while I sold articles to various magazines, wrote children’s shows for The Disney Channel, and eventually became a full-time writer.

And because one of my childhood dreams lives on, I now write novels focused on the dark underworld of wildlife trafficking, and work with various wildlife, marine mammal, and feral cat/kitten groups as a rescue volunteer along California’s Central Coast.

I’m still waiting on that call from the Dodgers.

I live by the ocean in Cambria, California with my wife and a clowder of cats.

Once Upon a Rhyme: One Week-Three Lives-Three Deaths-a Lifetime in Limericks by Antony L Saragas – #BookReview

Book Blurb:

This book is not about poetry, even though the title and limericks sprinkled within might lead you to that notion. This book is not about sports, though many of the characters connect as coaches or teammates. This book is not even about a father and son, even though it deals with a man and his recently deceased father.

This is a familiar tale of family, friendship, community, loss, and the renewal of faith. Even though the book takes place over the course of only one week, its message delves deeply into life and living.

We all question the usefulness of our past, the course of our present, and—on our more challenging days—the point of our future. We wonder about the significance of our efforts. In other words, this book poses the question we often ignore through activity, defy with arrogance, or accept as unanswerable: “What’s the point?” In the vein of film classic It’s a Wonderful Life, author Antony Saragas reminds you that life is worth living and that sometimes your friends and family are your angels.

His Review:

Dylan nicknamed Oskie is a budding baseball star. His father is the coach. Each of the characters in this novel went by a different nickname. The coach meant well but the overall presentation left a lot to be desired. The cover alludes to “One Week, Three Lives, and Three Deaths,” not a happy premise going in.

Each of the chapters ended in small poems or more accurately simple rhymes. I wanted to get more enthusiastic about the book but the entire presentation seemed rudderless and scattered. The development of young men with a strong character in their lives is important. Team sports certainly helps to develop those characteristics but I felt the thread of that development was broken in many places.

As the book rambled through many phases of the young players’ development I was hoping for a more concrete plot. I was hoping that a couple of them would join the military and have further direction in their lives. This didn’t happen and the lives lost were avoidable. 3.5 stars-CE Williams

Rosepoint Publishing: Three Stars

Book Details:

Genre: Limericks and Humorous Verse, Literature and Fiction
Publisher: Archway Publishing
ASIN: B08K3VZYX6
Print Length: 136 pages
Publication Date: September 10, 2020
Source: Author requestTitle Link: Once Upon a Rhyme [Amazon]
Barnes and Noble
Kobo

The Author: [Goodreads] Antony L. Saragas is a father, coach, attorney, judge, and writer. He has worked as a sports journalist and radio broadcaster and founded the Harlan County Boys & Girls Club in his hometown of Harlan, Kentucky. He now lives in Savannah, Georgia, where in addition to his career and writing, he enjoys any time with his kids, any nearby weight room, and any sunrise at the beach. His newest venture is The Average Man’s Adventures podcast. He is the author of Tales of a Small-Town King, which was published in 2018. –This text refers to the hardcover edition.

©CE Williams – V Williams

The Arrangement by Robyn Harding – #Audiobook Review – #psychologicalthriller – #TBT

Book Blurb:

A Pretty Woman tale turns toxic and deadly in this provocative thriller of sex, obsession, and murder from Robyn Harding, the “master of domestic suspense” (Kathleen Barber) and the USA TODAY bestselling author of The Swap and Her Pretty Face.

Natalie, a young art student in New York City, is struggling to pay her bills when a friend makes a suggestion: Why not go online and find a sugar daddy—a wealthy, older man who will pay her for dates and even give her a monthly allowance? Lots of girls do it, Nat learns. All that’s required is to look pretty and hang on his every word. Sexual favors are optional.

Though more than thirty years her senior, Gabe, a handsome corporate finance attorney, seems like the perfect candidate, and within a month, they are madly in love. At least, Nat is…Gabe already has a family, whom he has no intention of leaving.

So when he abruptly ends things, Nat can’t let go. But Gabe’s not about to let his sugar baby destroy his perfect life. What was supposed to be a mutually beneficial arrangement devolves into a nightmare of deception, obsession, and, when a body is found near Gabe’s posh Upper East Side apartment, murder.

Emotionally powerful and packed with page-turning suspense, The Arrangement delves into the sordid, all-too-real world of shadowy relationships between wealthy, powerful men and the young women who are caught in their web.

My Review:

How do you spell naïve?

S t u p i d

Pretty woman meets Richard Gere(?). Nope.

But wait, this is a thriller. I suspect something will go wrong. And indeed it does. Natalie is a struggling art student in New York. She is clear across the country from her family and funds are running out. So is the patience of her two roommates. School fees are coming too. She can’t go asking for her mother’s help—her mother remarried and started a new, young family. No way to help with New York expenses. So when a classmate suggests the Sugar Daddy website, she is that desperate.

A Sugar Daddy site! Take a pic, write a bio, upload. She hasn’t taken the time to research the whole thing and with only the instructions, suggestions from her knowledgeable school friend, meets Gabe. Thirty years her senior. She is now an official Sugar Baby and the fun begins.

Food, drinks, plays, a limousine complete with chauffer and eventually, she and Gabe enter into an exclusive “arrangement.” (Of course, he fudged just a bit on his bio too. He’s married.) And right off the bat she makes the very mistakes she is warned against. ARGH! At this point I’m arguing with the narrator. GEES! How stupid can you be?!

Now she visualizing a life with Gabe—it’s not the money—nooo–they are in loooove. But he’s done this before and when push comes to shove—he shoves. She’s out. No, wait! That can’t be! She is sure he can’t be serious, but he is oh, so deadly, serious. Still, she refuses to give up. I am SO losing patience at this point. She goes from being naïve to obsession and revenge. He has no clue just how far off the rails she’s gone, but he’s getting the idea and he’ll put a stop to it. Uh oh.

Oh the conclusion, perhaps a bit of disbelief, but bad-ass Gabe can’t always be the victor and Natalie can’t be a winner. This went too far. But that little twist at the end—you know, the one you don’t see coming? You won’t see this one either, but it is, oh so sweet.

This one should be in your library by now. Quirky, maddening, might just be that weirdy you’ve been looking for.

Book Details:

Genre: Psychological Fiction, Psychological Thrillers, Women’s Fiction
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio
ASIN: B07NHT69CY
Listening Length: 9 hrs 15 mins
Narrator: Amanda Dolan
Publication Date: July 30, 2019
Source: Local Library (Audiobook Selections)
Title Link: The Arrangement [Amazon]

Rosepoint Publishing: Four of Five Stars

The Author: [Goodreads] Robyn Harding is the author of several books and has written and executive produced an independent film. She lives in Vancouver, BC with her husband and two children.

To learn more about Robyn’s books visit: http://www.robynharding.com. Or follow her on Instagram: @rhardingwriter
or on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AuthorRobynH…

The Narrator: [Goodreads] Amanda [Dolan] is a New York City based actor, improvisor and voiceover artist, who has recorded over 100 audiobooks. She has an MFA in acting from Brown University, and is a member of Actors’ Equity.

Born in Astoria, New York, but lucky enough to have been transplanted to sunny Orange County, CA, Amanda’s upbringing was a perfect mix of East meets West (And by East she means bagels, not sushi).

Amanda loves to develop new plays and musicals. She has workshopped new work with Trinity Rep, Pipeline Theater Company, Soho Rep, Marginal Man Theater Company, The Lark Play Development Center, Playwrights Rep, Brown University and many more.

In addition to stage and film work, Amanda can be heard voicing hundreds of characters in over 100 audiobooks for Audible, Inc., AudioGo (BBC Audiobooks America), Blackstone Audio, John Marshall Media, HarperCollins, and Tantor Media.

Banner photo background attribute: Shutterstock.com

The Decagon House Murders (Pushkin Vertigo Book 32) by Yukito Ayatsuji – #BookReview – #TuesdayBookBlog

Book Blurb:

A hugely enjoyable, page-turning murder mystery with one of the best and most-satisfying conclusions you’ll ever read: clever enough that you’re unlikely to guess it, but simple enough that you’ll kick yourself when it’s revealed. That’s what has made it a classic in Japan, and what readers of this first ever English translation will love too.

The members of a university mystery club decide to visit an island which was the site of a grisly, unsolved multiple murder the year before. They’re looking forward to investigating the crime, putting their passion for solving mysteries to practical use, but before long there is a fresh murder, and soon the club-members realise they are being picked off one-by-one. The remaining amateur sleuths will have to use all of their murder-mystery expertise to find the killer before they end up dead too.

This is a playful, loving and fiendishly plotted homage to the best of golden age crime. It will delight any mystery fan looking to put their little grey cells to use.

His Review:

The island is a perfect getaway for 7 members of a murder solving group. Isolated from the mainland, accessible only by boat and uninhabited. A large blue mansion once stood on the island but was destroyed by fire. The only structure remaining is a decagon shaped building with seven bedding areas and a kitchen, store room and restrooms. It’s a perfect place for a group of university students to spend a week and solve some mysteries.

The students have taken the names of famous English mystery writers; Poe, Ellery, Orczy, Carr, Agatha, Van Dine and Leroux. Two of the students are females including Agatha and Orczy and the remaining are males. Leroux prides himself as the best of the mystery solvers. They begin the task of solving some of the worlds’ great mystery crimes. They are all fairly competitive and set out on their tasks with gusto. Except their first problem is the death of one of them. Two deaths quickly follow.

I found the read entertaining but also a bit perplexing. Why would a group of students stay on the island when even one death occurred? Each of them work individually to try to figure out who is the culprit. This was my first problem with the writing. An isolated island with someone being murdered would be the last place where I would stay. Rather than work together they individually try to solve the crimes. Who would continue to act this way when people are dying around you?

They suspect each other and lock their doors and windows and yet the murders continue. Red herrings abound as the author leads the reader down false trails. I found the overall writing to be a bit frustrating in the way the group reacted. Self-preservation dictates that an immediate distrust of everyone would prevail, certainly as the murders are not all done in the same way. This adds to the complications of solving the mystery.

I can recommend the book to those who enjoy a good puzzle. 4 stars – CE Williams

FTC Disclosure: I received a complimentary review copy of this book from the author and these are my unbiased opinions.

Rosepoint Publishing: Four Stars

Book Details:

Genre: Amateur Sleuth Mysteries, Psychological Thrillers
Publisher: Pushkin Vertigo
Print Length: 234 pages
Publication Date: May 25, 2021
ASIN: B08H16VR2L
Hong-Li Wong (Translator)
Source: Publisher and NetGalley
Title Links: The Decagon House Murders [Amazon]
Barnes and Noble
Kobo

The Author: [Goodreads] ‘Yukito Ayatsuji‘ is the original creator of Another. He is a famous writer of mystery and Japanese detective fiction. He is also one of the writers that demands restoration of the classic rules of detective fiction and the use of more self reflective elements. He is married to Fuyumi Ono, author of The Twelve Kingdoms and creator of Ghost Hunt, Juuni Kokuki, and the author for a few other manga.

►●

The Decagon House Murders is a milestone in the history of detective fiction. Published in 1987, it is credited with launching the shinhonkaku movement which restored Golden Age style plotting and fair-play clues to the Japanese mystery scene, which had been dominated by the social school of mystery for several decades. It is also said to have influenced the development of the wildly popular anime movement.

This, the first English edition, contains a lengthy introduction by the maestro of Japanese mystery fiction, Soji Shimada.

The Cuts That Cure by Arthur Herbert – #BookReview – #medicalfiction

– in Western Horror Fiction

Book Blurb:

From its attention-grabbing first sentence, The Cuts that Cure is a truly extraordinary novel as Arthur Herbert- a surgeon himself- shows why he is one of the most exciting new voices in the suspense genre.

Alex Brantley is a surgeon whose desperation to start a new life outside of medicine leads him to settle in a sleepy Texas town close to the Mexican border, a town that has a dark side. Its secrets and his own past catch up with him as traits he thought he’d buried in the deserts on the frontiers of the border rise up again to haunt him.

To the citizens of Three Rivers, Henry Wallis appears to be a normal Texas teenager: a lean, quiet kid from a good family whose life seems to center around running cross-country, his first girlfriend, and Friday night football. That Henry is a cultivated illusion, however, a disguise he wears to conceal his demons. Both meticulous and brutally cruel, he manages to hide his sadistic indulgences from the world, but with that success, his impulses grow stronger until one day when a vagrant is found murdered.

When Alex and Henry’s paths cross, it starts a domino effect which leads to mangled lives and chilling choices made in the shadows along la frontera, where everything is negotiable.

His Review:

Most of us wish the best for our families. The Brantley family was no exception and when their son Alex graduated from medical school they were overjoyed. Being a doctor, especially a surgeon in the United States, usually means a prosperous life for the graduate. The problem is that the work is not always glamorous.

Alex Brantley has discovered that his chosen profession is a continuous grind. Working in the emergency room of a major metropolitan hospital means working with anyone who comes in. Gunshot wounds and children with broken bones who apparently “are accident prone,” begin to take a heavy toll on ones’ mental stability. Saving the victim is often met with disdain because you could have done better.

The tipping point comes when a particularly battered boy comes into the emergency room and Dr. Brantley is faced with sewing him up. X-rays show old healed fractures and broken bones. The parents explain that he is accident prone and they do everything to protect their boy. One particular bruise is of a steel toed cowboy boot at the point of impact causing the injury. Alex is furious. Vandalizing the fathers’ car gets him arrested and his license is suspended.

He has had all he can take as a surgeon. He applies for a job as a science teacher in a small Texas town. They are happy to have him as the new teacher but his duties will also include assisting with the cross-country track team. Far away from the rigors of twelve-hour surgery shifts Alex starts his new life. His best runner is a young man named Harvey Wallis. Harvey is a loner but an excellent runner.

Sociopaths take many forms and sometimes start at a very young age. Harvey’s parents find him with a young rabbit over a campfire. He is enjoying watching the poor animals’ struggles as it tries to flee the terrible heat. Harvey is required to get help from a psychiatrist but there is little progress made. Harvey has no moral compass and simply revels in watching others in pain.

Medical school is very expensive and Alex has been left with a $350,000 student loan debt. As a teacher he will never be able to service the debt. How can he get by with the debt and low salary? One of the towns’ successful businessmen decides to help Alex and takes him under his wing. The source of the cash flow enjoyed by this businessman is remarkable.

This well written tale is a roadmap for life’s trials and obstacles. Enjoy the narrative and experience the twists. 5 stars – CE Williams

FTC Disclosure: I received a complimentary review copy of this book from the author and these are my unbiased opinions.

Rosepoint Publishing: Five Stars

Book Details:

Genre: Western Horror Fiction, US Drama and Plays, Medical Fiction
Publisher: White Bird Publications, LLC
ASIN: B08XYR3TQG
Print Length: 298 pages
Publication Date: May 11, 2021
Source: Author
Title Link: The Cuts That Cure [Amazon]
Barnes and Noble

The Author: Arthur Herbert was born and raised in small town Texas. He worked on offshore oil rigs, as a bartender, a landscaper at a trailer park, and as a social worker before going to medical school. He chose to do a residency in general surgery, followed by a fellowship in critical care and trauma surgery. For the last seventeen years, he’s worked as a trauma and burn surgeon, operating on all ages of injured patients. He continues to run a thriving practice.

His debut novel, The Cuts that Cure, launched on May 11, 2021 through White Bird Publishing in Austin Texas. He’s begun work on his second novel.

Arthur currently lives in New Orleans, with his wife Amy and their dogs.

Arthur loves hearing from readers, so don’t hesitate to email him at arthur@arthurherbertwriter.com.

Elizabeth and Monty: The Untold Story of Their Intimate Friendship by Charles Casillo – #BookReview – #Biographies of the Rich & Famous

**“Monty, Elizabeth likes me, but she loves you.”
—Richard Burton**

Book Blurb:

When Elizabeth Taylor was cast opposite Montgomery Clift in A Place in the Sun, he was already a movie idol, with a natural sensitivity that set him apart. At seventeen, Elizabeth was known for her ravishing beauty rather than her talent. Directors treated her like a glamorous prop. But Monty took her seriously, inspiring and encouraging her. In her words, “That’s when I began to act.”

To Monty, she was “Bessie Mae,” a name he coined for her earthy, private side. The press clamored for a wedding, convinced this was more than friendship. The truth was even more complex. Monty was drawn to women but sexually attracted to men—a fact that, if made public, would destroy his career. But he found acceptance and kinship with Elizabeth. Her devotion was never clearer than after his devastating car crash near her Hollywood home, when she crawled into the wreckage and saved him from choking.

Monty’s accident shattered his face and left him in constant pain. As he sank into alcoholism and addiction, Elizabeth used her power to keep him working. In turn, through scandals and multiple marriages, he was her constant. Their relationship endured until his death in 1966, right before he was to star with her in Reflections in a Golden Eye. His influence continued in her outspoken support for the gay community, especially during the AIDS crisis.

Far more than the story of two icons, this is a unique and extraordinary love story that shines new light on both stars, revealing their triumphs, demons—and the loyalty that united them to the end.

My Review:

Classic Hollywood—the era of the huge stars—beautiful and tragic. Guess that would describe both of these Hollywood legends.

Holy smokes! I certainly remember Liz Taylor and all her men but only a scant recollection of Montgomery Clift; saw few of his movies. (We never had money for movies back then.) Still, I might have lived the rest of my life not knowing the madness of Clift. Taylor was pretty much a headline ALL the time.

“Sexually, she was every man’s dream. She had the face of an angel and the morals of a truck driver.” – Eddie Fisher

I have to give it to author Casillo for all the research that went into this biography. Monty Clift was a successful Broadway actor when sixteen year old Elizabeth met him. Two polar opposites drawn to each other initially by their common experience of having been thrust into the spotlights by stage mothers.

“Before forty you have the face you were born with; after forty you get the face you deserve.” – Elizabeth Taylor

“If someone’s dumb enough to offer me a million dollars to make a picture, I’m certainly not dumb enough to turn it down.” – Elizabeth Taylor

The chapters trade off alternately Taylor’s experiences and then Clift’s experiences. There was a LOT of name dropping, most names easily recognizable, as well as some fascinating behind the scenes tidbits about films, particularly those in which both starred.

There is a great deal of description which is then repeated, portions spun, rinsed and repeated. With so many names involved in the narrative perhaps dropping a name more than once was appropriate. However, I got the point the first time.

We knew about Elizabeth’s penchant for men, for excitement, the thrill of the conquests and affairs (eight marriages), her tragedies, the drinking, the pills. We knew that Monty Clift was gay when it was dangerous to be so. We didn’t know of his destructive nature, the booze, the drugs, the pills and his propensity to go off the deep end into unnaturally offensive behavior, swiping dishes off the table in well-known expensive restaurants and then eating off the floor. Spinning into alcoholic, drug induced days, it became impossible to insure him for films, but he was already exhibiting self-destructive behavior before that horrific accident that changed forever that beautiful face. Currently on pre-order.

FTC Disclosure: I received a complimentary uncorrected review copy of this book from the publisher and NetGalley. These are my honest thoughts.

Rosepoint Rating: Four stars

Book Details:

Genre: LGBTQ, Biographies of the Rich & Famous
Publisher: Kensington Books

ASIN : B08GYBH611

Print Length: 352 pages
Publication Date: May 25, 2021
Source: Publisher and NetGalley

Title Link(s):

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Kobo

The Author: Charles Casillo is the author of the novels “The Fame Game,” and “The Marilyn Diaries,” the biography, “Outlaw: The Lives and Careers of John Rechy” (the authorized life history of the legendary writer and hustler), and a collection of stories “Boys, Lost & Found.” His latest book is a serious and comprehensive biography of Monroe: “Marilyn Monroe: The Private Life of a Public Icon.” The author says, “It will introduce you to the Marilyn Monroe you always wanted to know.”

Casillo’s profiles, short stories, articles, and reviews have appeared in The New York Times, The Los Angeles Times, New York Magazine, The Los Angeles Review of Books, The Washington Post, Vice, Interview, and many others. He has appeared in Monroe documentaries “Behind the Headlines: Marilyn and Her Men,” on Lifetime, and “Whatever Happened to Norma Jeane,”

His movies include “Let Me Die Quietly,” a neo-noir thriller and the dark comedy “Fetish”(with Joan Collins.)

Casillo was born in New York City. He has spent many years exploring and documenting his interests and obsessions, such as exceptionally talented people, strange encounters in various bars, Marilyn Monroe, eccentrics, sex, tragic figures, and antidotes to insomnia, insecurity, and loneliness. He has written about these and other subjects in his works. He divides his time between New York, Los Angeles, Palm Springs and other places where he hangs his hat.