#NetGalleyreviewer – Page 15 – Rosepoint Publishing

Rosepoint Reviews – September Recap – Welcome October Autumn

Rosepoint Reviews - September Recap

Yes, September brought our long-awaited East Coast trip! While I did get some reviews scheduled, I relied on my little tablet and the “stick” to which I’d downloaded the activity for the month. Unfortunately, it didn’t work although I’d tried, tested, and thought I had it before we left.

Lincoln Memorial - DC — Lincoln Memorial

Our timing landed us in DC during their record-setting heat wave where walking the National Mall was a major test of the constitution of the physical kind. We planned to hit Philly, New York, Boston, Bar Harbor (my personal designation), Nova Scotia (the CE’s personal designation), Montreal (Canada), and Toronto (Canada). Hurricane Lee knocked Bar Harbor out, however, and we diverted to Plattsburgh IL, and a ferry ride—thence a quick and easy cross at the border into Canada.

Scaddabush Front Street Italian Restaurant, Toronto, Canada — Scaddabush Front Street Italian Restaurant in Toronto. So good we went back a second time.

We did experience a major downpour but nothing like New York just experienced with flooded subways. Our son did all the driving, the scenery was beautiful—much of it looked like home actually—except for the majestic skylines of the massive cities. My personal daily walking goal is 3,500 steps. Walking those cities achieved more than 21k steps one day, my equivalent of…10 miles? And there was always a lot of walking! Do you use a FitBit or equivalent; chronicle your steps? You’d think with all that walking I’d have shed some pounds. Nope. One—it was just one.

I mentioned last month our puppy adoption failure. Even with a lot of steps, could not keep up with a puppy. Still, back home and missing a dog’s joyous grin when we return home and a little couch buddy. I shouldn’t, but can’t help looking for an adult rescue.

If I was looking for some downtime, walking miles every day for almost three weeks wasn’t it, nor the backlog faced when we returned. Still trying to play catch up.

So a slow reading month—we read (or listened to) twelve books in September. These are still predominately from NetGalley, but more now from a variety of sources as we search for good, easy reading. (As always, links below are to my reviews that include purchase info.)

September Recap

The Dog Stars by Peter Heller (CE review)
Dying for a Daiquiri by Cindy Sample
A Superior Death by Nevada Barr (audiobook)
The Woman with a Purple Heart by Diane Hanks (5* CE review)
That Others May Live by Sara Driscoll (5* CE review)
Three Wise Men by Lou Bavou (CE review)
The Sorrowful Girl by Keenan Powell (5* CE review)
Tangled Webs by Maria McDonald
A Beautiful Ferocity by Jean Grainger (5* review)
One Last Kill by Robert Dugoni (5* CE review)
The Women by Kristin Hannah (5* review)
The Storyteller’s Death by Ann Dávila Cardinal

These included historical fiction, literary fiction, cozy mystery, and paranormal.

Favorite Book of the Month

Sorry, not sorry, but there is no contest here. Hands down, this month’s favorite (and will likely be the favorite of the year is The Women. Okay, you might accuse me of prejudice because we lived through that time—spent in nearby support—and heard that protest music echo in my head as I read. But I’d argue that the well-developed main character nailed the reality of the time—and perhaps could be applied to the present as well. Not due to release until February of 2024; I’d urge you to put it on your must-read list.

Book of the Month for September—The Women by Kristin Hannah.

My Reading Challenges page… I have 110 books of a goal of 145 in Goodreads (at this point one book ahead of schedule) and still riding at a 97% feedback ratio in NetGalley. Haven’t even looked at the Reading Challenges page. Soon…

Autumn is making herself known in crisp morning temps, changes of weather from erratic warm to very cool and back again. (In our neck of the woods, 80 will plummet 20 degrees shortly.) I do enjoy leaf peeping and did see the start of it on our trip. For me, though, it’s a harbinger of winter and I’m not a fan. As pretty as those northern states were, I couldn’t help but visualize and feel the snow and cold. I’ll proudly wear my Toronto sweatshirt, but I’ll be glad I’m no longer there.

Welcome, as always, to my new subscribers. I always appreciate those who read and comment.

The Women by Kristin Hannah – #BookReview – #TuesdayBookBlog

Rosepoint Rating: Five Stars

Book Blurb:

The missing. The forgotten. The brave… The women.

From master storyteller Kristin Hannah, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Nightingale and The Four Winds, comes the story of a turbulent, transformative era in America: the 1960s. The Women is that rarest of novels—at once an intimate portrait of a woman coming of age in a dangerous time and an epic tale of a nation divided by war and broken by politics, of a generation both fueled by dreams and lost on the battlefield.
“Women can be heroes, too.”

When twenty-year-old nursing student Frances “Frankie” McGrath hears these unexpected words, it is a revelation. Raised on idyllic Coronado Island and sheltered by her conservative parents, she has always prided herself on doing the right thing, being a good girl. But in 1965 the world is changing, and she suddenly imagines a different choice for her life. When her brother ships out to serve in Vietnam, she impulsively joins the Army Nurse Corps and follows his path.

As green and inexperienced as the men sent to Vietnam to fight, Frankie is overwhelmed by the chaos and destruction of war, as well as the unexpected trauma of coming home to a changed and politically divided America.

The Women is the story of one woman gone to war, but it shines a light on the story of all women who put themselves in harm’s way to help others. Women whose sacrifice and commitment to their country has all too often been forgotten. A novel of searing insight and lyric beauty, The Women is a profoundly emotional, richly drawn story with a memorable heroine whose extraordinary idealism and courage under fire define a generation.

My Review:

This one has got to be the author’s best and I’ve read many of them. Absolutely gripping from the beginning, the hook is there and no way can you put the book down.

While neither my hubby nor I were “boots on the ground” in ‘Nam, my hubby chose the Navy rather than be drafted into the Army as he would have landed into the middle of the jungle over there very quickly. The draft was an unwelcome interruption to our university plans and landed him instead in a support location close by where I was later allowed to join him. We met many nurses. And, yes, the reception when we finally got back home April of ’70 was unkind (to say the least).

OMG, the memories this brought back! We were there when the Pueblo was captured, when Bob Hope entertained the troops, and the Stars and Stripes gave little indication of the turmoil back home. The change in our country when we returned was shocking.

So this novel, immersive from a woman’s point of view, the nurses who saw and saved the casualties (that they could), both reminded me of the military I witnessed and informed as well in graphic descriptions the trauma both men and women were experiencing.

The main character, twenty-year-old Frances (Frankie) McGrath, has seen her affluent family send her brother to war, earning his place in her father’s study, the “Wall of Heroes.”

She decides she must go as well, serve with her newly minted nurse’s degree and license but is wisely refused in the Navy and Air Force. No problem with the Army who promptly delivers her with little training into the thick of it where she discovers it was not the Army she signed up for. Horrific casualties; sights, smells, sounds never-ending.

Hannah paints an accurate picture of the desperate understaffed situation, the shocking living conditions, the lack of adequate equipment, and the appalling weather.

Her hooch is shared by Ethel and Barb who become close-knit friends and allies throughout the remainder of the narrative. Together, in country, they handle the artillery fire, heat, casualties, and sexism.

“…We age in dog years over here, Frank…”

The nurses work through exhaustion, deplorable conditions, save those they can and when not actively in the OR, share their nursing skills in villages. They work tirelessly, doing what they can, and learn to cope through whatever means possible.

Exposed to the same Agent Orange the men are will have catastrophic effects on the women as well.

After two tours, her welcome home didn’t happen. She was met with derision, a nation sharply divided, a shocking atmosphere. Even her own family appeared to be ashamed of her service. Assimilation did not go well. She is left with severe PTSD and told by the VA that there were no women in ‘Nam.

“Some women had worn love beads in the sixties; others had worn dog tags.”

The characters felt real, the scenes so graphic you could smell them, choke from the clouds of napalm, smell the blood. I heard those songs of protest again. So powerful. Try as I might, could not stop the tears.

The horrible loss.

I received a complimentary review copy of this book from the author and St. Martin’s Press through @NetGalley that in no way influenced this review. These are my honest thoughts. I really enjoyed the last Hannah book I read, The Great Alone, but this powerful book will go to the top of my favorites list for the year.

Book Details:

Genre: Family Life Fiction, Women’s Domestic Life Fiction
Publisher: St Martin’s Press
ASIN: B0C1X97LW7
Print Length: 480 pages
Publication Date: February 6, 2024
Source: Publisher and NetGalley

Title Link(s):

Amazon | Barnes & Noble

The Author: Kristin Hannah is the award-winning and bestselling author of more than 20 novels. Her newest novel, The Women, about the nurses who served in the Vietnam war, will be released on February 6, 2024.

The Four Winds was published in February of 2021 and immediately hit #1 on the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, USA Today, and Indie bookstore’s bestseller lists. Additionally, it was selected as a book club pick by the both Today Show and The Book Of the Month club, which named it the best book of 2021.

In 2018, The Great Alone became an instant New York Times #1 bestseller and was named the Best Historical Novel of the Year by Goodreads.

In 2015, The Nightingale became an international blockbuster and was Goodreads Best Historical fiction novel for 2015 and won the coveted People’s Choice award for best fiction in the same year. It was named a Best Book of the Year by Amazon, iTunes, Buzzfeed, the Wall Street Journal, Paste, and The Week.

The Nightingale is currently in pre-production at Tri Star. Firefly Lane, her beloved novel about two best friends, was the #1 Netflix series around the world, in the week it came out. The popular tv show stars Katherine Heigl and Sarah Chalke.

A former attorney, Kristin lives in the Pacific Northwest.

©V Williams

#TuesdayBookBlog

One Last Kill by Robert Dugoni – #BookReview – #womensleuths

Tracy Crosswhite Book 10

Rosepoint Publishing: Five Stars

Book Blurb:

An Amazon Charts and Wall Street Journal bestselling series.

Detective Tracy Crosswhite draws a long-dormant serial killer out of hiding in a nerve-shattering novel by New York Times bestselling author Robert Dugoni.

Tracy Crosswhite is reopening the investigation into Seattle’s Route 99 serial killer. After thirteen victims, he stopped hunting and the trail went cold, stirring public outrage. Now, nearly three decades after his first kill, Tracy is expected to finally bring closure to the victims’ families and redeem the Seattle PD’s reputation. Even if it means working with her nemesis, Captain Johnny Nolasco.

Lead detective of the original task force, Nolasco dares Tracy to do what he failed to: close the case. Forming an uneasy alliance, Tracy and Nolasco revisit old leads and pursue new evidence only to unearth high-level corruption and cover-ups as dangerous as the elusive killer himself. At the risk of being exposed, such deadly and powerful forces will go to extremes to stay in the shadows.

That’s just where Tracy and Nolasco are headed—to find the twisted truth behind a killer’s motives, his disappearance, and his chilling comeback.

His Review:

Tracy Crosswhite has risen quickly through the ranks of detective in Seattle. To be sure, the men in the department are not always supportive of fast-moving women. To level the playing field, she has been assigned to review old cold cases that were not solved. One case in particular regarding eleven hookers was never solved. There is a similarity between all of the deaths, a carved set of “Angels Wings” on the left shoulder of the victim.

The case is over 25 years old and suddenly the killer is striking again! This time the victims are middle-aged ladies who work in governmental positions in Seattle. They are no longer part of the marginalized segment of society. Their deaths are affecting the community in general and everyone is on edge. Tracy is pulled into the problem and is working with a senior detective who worked on the case over 25 years ago. His name is Johnnie Nolasco.

This criminal has been very careful and thorough! Why would he deviate from his former modus operandi and start killing middle-aged or retired former city employees? There is no apparent DNA material to help identify the killer. Tracy starts by going through the boxes of evidence collected on each of the murders and in one of the boxes makes a surprising find!

Working together Tracy and Johnnie slowly follow the evidence and develop a possible identity for the killer. The investigation is stymied at every turn by the lack of speed from various departments within the Seattle Police Department. They feel they have found a viable individual but are reluctant to name the person who is a bit too close to home.

Dugoni does not disappoint. The trail is convoluted and has more twists and turns than the road to Pike’s Peak. Read and enjoy this novel! 5 stars – CE Williams

[Note: The CE and I have shared a number of Dugoni’s books, including most recently Her Deadly Game, and greatly enjoyed it. As I’ve said before, around this house we like to say, “Of course it’s good, it’s a Dugoni.” They are consistently engaging, well-crafted, and well-plotted with relatable characters. This one is no exception. VW]

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing us with the opportunity to read and review this book.

Book Details:

Genre: Serial Killer Thrillers, Women Sleuths
Publisher: Thomas & Mercer
ISBN: ‎ 1662500211
ASIN: B0B9T7K1F3
Print Length: 351 pages
Publication Date: October 3, 2023
Source: Publisher and NetGalley
Title Link(s):

Amazon | Barnes & Noble

The Author: Robert Dugoni is the critically acclaimed New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Washington Post and #1 Amazon bestselling author of the Tracy Crosswhite police series set in Seattle, which has sold more than 8 million books worldwide. He is also the author of The Charles Jenkins espionage series, the David Sloane legal thriller series, and several stand-alone novels including The 7th Canon, Damage Control, and the literary novels, The Extraordinary Life of Sam Hell – Suspense Magazine’s 2018 Book of the Year, for which Dugoni’s narration won an AudioFile Earphones Award and the critically acclaimed, The World Played Chess; as well as the nonfiction exposé The Cyanide Canary, a Washington Post Best Book of the Year. Several of his novels have been optioned for movies and television series. Dugoni is the recipient of the Nancy Pearl Award for Fiction and a three-time winner of the Friends of Mystery Spotted Owl Award for best novel set in the Pacific Northwest. He has also been a finalist for many other awards including the International Thriller Award, the Harper Lee Prize for Legal Fiction, the Silver Falchion Award for mystery, and the Mystery Writers of America Edgar Award.

Robert Dugoni’s books are sold in more than twenty-five countries and have been translated into more than thirty languages.

Visit his website at http://www.robertdugoni.com, and follow him on twitter @robertdugoni and on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/AuthorRobertDugoni

The Sorrowful Girl by Keenan Powell – #BookReview – Historical Irish Fiction

A Liam Barrett Gilded Age Novel

Rosepoint Publishing: Five Stars

Book Blurb:

Liam Barrett embodied the hopes and dreams of his family, bound for Harvard Law School. When his father unexpectedly dies, he gives up his plans and goes to work providing for his family in Adams, Massachusetts. As a policeman who abhors violence and who possesses an ability to calm agitated people, he strives to mediate disputes and keep peace in his community.

When a young Adams woman is found murdered near the estate of mill owner Alistair Cunningham, Cunningham pressures Liam to make a quick arrest. But Liam wants justice. As he fights to ensure that an innocent man is not railroaded, Liam uncovers a sinister plot forcing him to choose between his pacifist conviction and his duty to protect his town.

His Review:

Owen Sweeny comes into the local police office to report the finding of a young girl’s body found in the nearby woods. A good deed never goes unpunished. He is immediately thrown in jail as the prime suspect in her murder. The townspeople are expecting a lynching.

Liam Barrett is the local policeman appointed by the owner of the town’s factory to investigate the murder and hang the culprit. There is no evidence that Owen is the killer and he has a solid alibi. The plot thickens and the town’s tension is amplified as the investigation seems to stall.

This writer has devised a well-conceived crime with many false leads. The guilty party is not exposed until the end and I found myself totally in the dark, unable to guess the perp. I was impressed by the myriad of false leads leading to the climax. I heartily recommend this read to everyone who enjoys a good mystery. 5 stars – CE Williams

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with the opportunity to read and review this book. I thoroughly enjoyed it and these are my own opinions.

Book Details:

Genre: Historical Irish Fiction, Historical British & Irish Literature, Traditional Detective Mysteries
Publisher: Three Hooligans Press
ISBN-13: ‎ 979-8987149553
ASIN: B0C81KGNW3
Print Length: 271 pages
Publication Date: June 14, 2023
Source: Publisher and NetGalley
Title Link(s): The Sorrowful Girl [Amazon]

The Author: Keenan Powell is the Agatha, Lefty, and Silver Falchion nominated author of the Maeve Malloy Mystery series.

Despite being one of original Dungeons and Dragons illustrators, art seemed an impractical pursuit – not an heiress, wouldn’t marry well, hated teaching – so she went to law school. The day after graduation, she moved to Alaska.

She is the author of the Maureen Gould Legal Thrillers, the Maeve Malloy Mysteries and numerous short stories.

Stretch out and relax--Enjoy your day.

That Others May Live by Sara Driscoll – #BookReview – #TuesdayBookBlog

An FBI K-9 Novel, Book 8

Rosepoint Publishing: Five Stars

Book Blurb:

A treat for dog lovers, this latest novel in the only mystery series that revolves around a K-9 search-and-rescue unit is gripping, timely, and “wonderfully readable” (Publishers Weekly), with a gutsy heroine and an authentic, harder edge that will appeal to fans of harder-edged mysteries.

There are situations that fill even the most seasoned FBI K-9 handlers with shock and horror. Meg Jennings is preparing for another work day when she gets words of a catastrophic scene in downtown Washington, DC. Part of a twelve-story condo building has collapsed, and the rest of the structure could soon follow. Every search-and-rescue worker and K-9 team is needed on-site immediately to find survivors—and assess the casualties.

Putting aside her fears for her firefighter fiancé, who’s already inside the unstable building, Meg turns to the task at hand. If anyone is still alive within the rubble, she and Hawk, working alongside other K-9 teams, must find them. Every hour, every moment counts—and a wrong move could trigger a deadly chain reaction for those buried beneath. But beyond the present danger is a deeper threat, as evidence indicates that this wasn’t a random tragedy, but an act of domestic terrorism. And identifying the culprit and motivation, in time to stop another attack, means taking on an enemy with terrifying skills—and nothing left to lose.

His Review:

The call came in and Meg and Cody, a canine disaster recovery team, were called in to put their rescue efforts to the test. How could a building just over 30 years old collapse? Talbot Terrace at the corner of I and 9^th streets collapsed.The event was so sudden that families getting ready for their days were trapped in the collapsed building. The 12-story building had collapsed into a little over three stories high.

Rescue teams were called in including some of the finest from all over the Eastern seaboard. Meg with her rescue dog Cody began at the top of the pile looking for survivors. It seemed impossible looking at the pile of rubble that anyone could have lived through the catastrophe!

Finding a young man near the top floor felt like a major accomplishment. The F.B.I. and other teams were called in because the smell of explosives gave away the cause of the collapse. Was someone trying to kill a high-level diplomat or someone else in the melee? Meg and Cody were able to find a few survivors but the less than four feet between floors left a grim cleanup.

Sara Driscoll writes with clarity and authority. I felt like this book gave me an introductory primer to the construction of high-rise buildings. The description of the building methodology made it seem that there was little chance of a collapse but the investigation pointed pretty quickly to sabotage.

Could it have been a foreign power or enemy of the United States? This book explains the investigative process and subsequent means of identifying the culprits. Enjoy! 5 stars – CE Williams

Note: I read Before It’s Too Late in June and love the Sara Driscoll series. The crunch of time had me reluctantly sharing this book with the CE. You can see he enjoys the K-9 series as much as I. vw

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with the opportunity to read and review this book.

Book Details:

Genre: Terrorism Thrillers, Conspiracy Thrillers, Serial Killer Thrillers
Publisher: Kensington Books
ASIN: B0BZBK2PW1
Print Length: 352 pages
Publication Date: November 28, 2023
Source: Publisher and NetGalley
Title Link(s): That Others May Live

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Kobo

The Author: Sara Driscoll is the pen name of Jen J. Danna, coauthor of the Abbott and Lowell Forensic Mysteries and author of the FBI K-9s and the NYPD Negotiators. After over thirty years in infectious diseases research, Jen hung up her lab coat to concentrate on her real love—writing “exceptional” thrillers (Publishers Weekly). She is a member of the Crime Writers of Canada and lives with her husband and four rescued cats outside of Toronto, Ontario. You can follow the latest news on her books, including the FBI K-9s, at http://www.saradriscollauthor.com.

©CE Williams – V Williams

#TuesdayBookBlog

The Woman with a Purple Heart by Diane Hanks – #BookReview – #HistoricalWorldWarIIFiction

Rosepoint Publishing: Five Stars

Book Blurb:

Based on the real life of Lieutenant Annie Fox, Chief Nurse of Hickam Hospital, The Woman with a Purple Heart is an inspiring WWII novel of heroic leadership, courage, and friendship that also exposes a shocking and shameful side of history.

Annie Fox will stop at nothing to serve her country. But what happens when her country fails her?

In November 1941, Annie Fox, an Army nurse, is transferred to Hickam Field, an air force base in Honolulu. The others on her transport plane are thrilled to work in paradise, but Annie sees her new duty station as the Army’s way of holding the door open to her retirement. But serving her country is her calling and she will go wherever she is told.

On December 7, Annie’s on her way to work when the first Japanese Zero fighter plane flies low over Hickam’s Parade Ground. The death and destruction that follow leave her no time to process what’s happening. She rallies her nurses, and they work to save as many lives as they can. But soon their small hospital is overwhelmed. Annie drives into Honolulu to gather supplies, nurses, and several women who will donate blood. However, the nurses are Japanese Americans, and the blood donors are prostitutes.

Under Annie’s leadership and working together in unexpected ways, they make it through that horrific day, when one of the Japanese American nurses and Annie’s friend, Kay, is arrested as a suspected subversive. As Hickam tries to recover, Annie works to find her friend and return Kay to her family. But Annie’s love for her country is put to the test. How can she reconcile the American bravery and resilience she saw on December 7 with the prejudice and injustice she witnesses just a few months later?

His Review:

Many of the people at Pearl Harbor during the Japanese attack saw an angel in their last moments. Lieutenant Annie Fox was a Canadian who volunteered during WWII and helped the wounded in France. Realizing that the wounded had no chance for survival, she held their hands and promised to write home to their parents.

She stayed with the U.S. Military and found herself at Hickam Field hospital near Pearl Harbor.

On December 7, 1941 the Japanese attacked the U.S. at Pearl Harbor and Hickam Field. Totally unprepared for the attack, over 2400 soldiers and sailors were killed and nearly 11,000 wounded in the melee. Lieutenant Fox was the last person many of them saw.

Lieutenant Fox was a Canadian who provided excellent nursing skills for the wounded during the war and was awarded the Purple Heart. However, she was not injured and so the award was rescinded in 1944 and replaced with a Bronze Star for meritorious service. Fox was the first woman awarded the Purple Heart. She retired in San Diego, California and died at the age of 93. She never married.

This story is extremely well written and reminded me of the wonderful nurses I met while stationed overseas in Japan and Taiwan. I also felt empathy for the Japanese who were sequestered in internment camps during WWII. Loyal Americans whose only crime was their ancestry. Read and enjoy this fabulous book. 5 stars – CE Williams

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with the opportunity to read and review this book. These are my own opinions

Book Details:

Genre: Biographical Historical Fiction, World War II Historical Fiction, Women’s Literature & Fiction
Publisher: Sourcebooks Landmark
ISBN-10: ‎ 1728265118
ISBN-13: ‎ 978-1728265117
ASIN: B0BT8GTXTR
Print Length: 352 pages
Publication Date: November 7, 2023
Source: Publisher and NetGalley
Title Link(s):

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Kobo

The Author: Diane Hanks has a BFA in Creative Writing from Roger Williams University and an MA in Professional Writing & Publishing from Emerson College in Boston, Massachusetts. A medical writer by day, she has written numerous screenplays and recently returned to her first love—writing novels. Diane also is a mentor for the Writers Guild Initiative, which makes the art of storytelling accessible to underserved populations. When not writing, she enjoys walking by the river near her home.

Rosepoint Recommended-5 Stars

The Rotting Whale by Jann Eyrich – #BookReview – #TuesdayBookBlog

A Hugo Sandoval Eco-Mystery Book 1

Book Blurb:

When a blue whale is struck by a research vessel off the north coast of California, San Francisco’s eccentric building inspector Hugo Sandoval is catapulted from his precious San Francisco waterfront nearly two hundred miles north to the headlands of a troubled sheep ranch in response to a call for help from his cetologist daughter.

This episode is set on the turbulent Mendocino Coast against the backdrop of a failing fishing fleet, illegal cannabis grows, and the struggling town of Fort Bragg. At the precarious Chicken Cove, he grapples with the connection between a red tag posted on the historic ranch and the decomposing marine mammal at the foot of its cliffs.

The new eco-mystery series tracks the collision of the man-made environment and nature while simultaneously charting Hugo’s own personal evolution as a husband, father, and native son.

A charming cast of secondary characters who revel in the unassuming man’s perceptive abilities, while overlooking his many idiosyncrasies, provide assists in solving the mysteries. We meet Carmen, his corporate lawyer ex-wife; T. Ray, his best friend and fellow sleuth; his intuitive assistant Mrs. Dunne who steers their office on Otis Street, as well as the many regulars who populate Sandoval’s San Francisco.

Immersed in the noir of The City, the resistant Hugo Sandoval is a media darling, reluctant bachelor, and people’s hero fighting the good fights in a modern era that—with each requested permit—attempts to eclipse the old San Francisco Sandoval loves.

My Review:

Ah, Fort Bragg, that little northern California coastal town has a special place in my heart as I remember those special summer camping trips to Wages Creek. Rustic campsites, cramped facilities, and freezing winds made for very uncomfortably frigid nights at the Pacific but so worth it for the fresh abalone that “the boys” dove for and pulled back up for dinner…an exotic and expensive “steak of the sea.”

So it didn’t take long for me to realize the setting of this novel is one of my favorite places on the California Pacific Ocean shoreline. Unfortunately, as noted in the narrative, Fort Bragg has seen more prosperous days.

The storyline follows a San Francisco building inspector called to the northern coastal area by his daughter to investigate a blue whale that washed up on the shoreline. Forensics shows the pregnant blue whale was hit by a boat and headed to shore but there is the question of how she ended up in that cove.

Hugo meets up with his daughter, camped on a long-established local ranch, and soon his ex arrives as well. His old buddy, T Ray joins them, all eclectic support characters with different agendas.

Difficult for me to invest in either the main character or support characters and I floundered a bit trying to figure out the main mystery as it seemed to blur a bit. Blue whales (their hearts the size of a small car) are a protected species but are not the entire focus of the plot.

Certainly I enjoyed the descriptions of the area and information regarding the whales and the clash between man and animals in their own habitat.

I was introduced to something called “sinkers” or “timber fishing” which is apparently logs dumped into the Pacific. Over time, this cargo being carried from the vast forests of northern California south that were dumped around the area became valuable.

I received a complimentary review copy of this book from the author and publisher through @NetGalley that in no way influenced this review. These are my honest thoughts. It’s an interesting first installment and I’ll be looking for growth in relationships as well as more mystery.

Rosepoint Rating: Three point Five Stars

Book Details:

Genre: Private Investigator Mysteries
Publisher: Sibylline Press
ISBN-10: ‎ 1736795430
ISBN-13: ‎ 978-1736795439
ASIN: B0C65Z3PXV
Print Length: 212 pages
Publication Date: September 26, 2023
Source: Publisher and NetGalley

Title Link(s):

Amazon | Barnes & Noble

The Author: Working as a hands-on, independent woman contractor in San Francisco for twenty years, Jann Eyrich resided in the legendary shacks of Telegraph Hill where the writer was gifted anchorage to the City, along with insight into the lives of the characters she continues to create. First as a documentary filmmaker, then as a screenwriter, Eyrich’s stories always seem to be set within an environmental footprint. Later, as a writer and an activist in Sonoma County, Jann heard about a real blue whale stranding itself on the Mendocino Coast in 2009 and, with that, the adventures and character of Hugo Sandoval were born.

#TuesdayBookBlog

No Mistaking Death by Shelley Costa – #BookReview – #TuesdayBookBlog

A Marian Warner Mystery–Book 1

Book Blurb:

When an old Jesuit Mission House in Carthage, Ohio, is nominated for National Landmark status, the committee sends a private investigator to get to the bottom of the hostile letters they’ve received. Arriving in Carthage is Marian Warner, a New York PI whose life was dented by the bombing death—years ago—of her radical boyfriend. The only man with any staying power in her life is Charlie Levitan, the editor of the Carthage newspaper, whose relationship with her includes a long personal history. The day before Marian arrives, an older man nobody in town recognizes turns up dead in the Mission House.

Soon Marian discovers that the identity of the murdered man implicates every key player in the fight over the fate of the Mission House. But for her it gets personal when Charlie’s lover, a local jazz singer, is found murdered on the property of a powerful landmark preservationist, Jack Girard. What connects the two deaths? Why is a key witness avoiding her? How can she discover the truth in a town where hostilities go public, but secrets are so closely guarded? When Marian finally unmasks a cunning killer, it’s at the expense of the defenses it’s taken her years to erect.

My Review:

Well, you can’t say this one wasn’t different! Marian Warner is a NY PI—been there, done that now for fifteen years, so she has no problem taking on an investigation into reasons for hostile letters against the nomination for the Jesuit Mission House in Carthage, Ohio for National Landmark status. And yeah, the place is a mostly unremarkable mess.

It’s no coincidence then that the only man still of close acquaintance is Charlie Levitan, the editor of the local Carthage newspaper. Unfortunately, the body of a man is found in the Mission House just before she arrives. It’s also no coincidence that the murdered man is linked to those associated with the Mission House. Further complications ensue when a second body turns up, Charlie’s lover.

The author definitely has some interesting prose and turns of phrase to keep the storyline interesting.

“…leaving Marian five minutes to throw on the brown velvet tank top and wheat silk trousers—the theory being, if it’s pleated, it’s dressy.”

Embroiled in the proof of deciding whether or not the first Jesuit mission in the Northwest Territories has historic significance necessarily includes the identity of the man and the later victim as well.

The plot goes rather convoluted and lost me a few times, not sure where it would pop up next. The narrative is intriguing, but baffling in trying to figure out the author’s dip into rambling. Not exactly a page turner, but still inexplicable enough to hold interest. And it is difficult to become engaged in the main character.

You can’t tune out but even tuned in can get you lost. She sprinkles in the twists and turns. There are compelling reasons to finish the book which has to be down to the author’s deft writing style, but you may be scratching your head at the conclusion.

I received a complimentary review copy of this book from the author and publisher through @NetGalley that in no way influenced this review. These are my own opinions and honest thoughts.

Rosepoint Rating: Three point Five Stars

Book Details:

Genre: Private Investigator Mysteries, Amateur Sleuths
Publisher: Level Best Books
ASIN: B0C86N9TGR
Print Length: 311 pages
Publication Date: July 11, 2023
Source: Publisher and NetGalley

Title Link(s):

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Kobo

The Author: A 2004 Edgar nominee for Best Short Story, Shelley Costa is the author of You Cannoli Die Once (Agatha nominee for Best First Novel) and Basil Instinct. Practical Sins for Cold Climates (Henery Press, January 2016), is the first book in her exciting new mystery series featuring New York editor Val Cameron, who is sent to the Canadian Northwoods to sign a reclusive best-selling thriller writer. Murder ensues. Shelley’s stories have appeared in Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine, Blood on Their Hands,The World’s Finest Mystery and Crime Stories, and Crimewave (UK). Although she reads across the mystery genre, in her own work she especially likes writing an amateur sleuth with a lot of heart who investigates a murder – it’s so utterly outside the comfort zone. Shelley Costa is on the faculty of the Cleveland Institute of Art, where she teaches fiction writing. http://www.shelleycosta.com.