The Women of the Castle by Jessica Shattuck

I've read many books set in WWII. But, this one is different.
It isn't about the war as much as what happens before and after. What lengths would you go to for survival? What would you do to uphold the 'truth'?  What is our moral responsibility and what if that understanding is different for those around you?

Marianne made a promise to her husband and her best friend to look out for the wives and children of the resistance in Germany.  With that off the cuff statement her life took on a purpose - and a set of blinders dictated by her 'rightness.'

Marianne's first task after the war is to find the wife of her dear friend Connie Felderman - Benita, a farm girl more focused on pretty things than politics.  But as the wife of a dead soldier who was hung for his attempt to murder of Hitler - she is expected to also be politically driven. Martin, Benita's son joins Marianne's son and two daughters at the castle.

The second family that Marianne saves is Ania Grabarek and her two sons. They were discovered in a displacement camp and were not known directly by Marianne - she knew of Ania's husband that is all.

These three fatherless families figure out how to live in a castle with no running water or electricity.  And do so successfully, until they don't.  Until Marianne's clear understanding of black and white clangs against both Benita and Ania's history and reality.

But, the book doesn't end there. Rather it jumps ahead to the 1990s when the castle becomes a museum honoring the resistance.  Marianne is invited to return for a speech and friendships are reconnected in a different light.

This is a thought-provoking book of what happens after.  What are we left with as we look backwards at the war - and how does that impact our world today.

I would highly recommend this one too!!!

#summer2018book3

The Lying Game by Ruth Ware

Kate
Thea
Isa
Fatima

Four girls connected at the hip for one memorable year of boarding school.

"I need you."

And with those three words gather these women from the lives they have created apart and away in the big world and return them back to the paths of the school and the swamp and the stories and the lying game.

It seemed like a simple game - tell the lie and gain points when others believe. But, those lies had a way of digging deeply into the small village around the school with the remnants remaining years later as a scrap of graffiti on a bathroom wall or a whisper around the edges at the bar.

But there is more than just a story and a lie at the bottom of this book. An unexplained disappearance with rumors of abuse and then a body. As the police try to figure out who that body is - the women tumble to the truth as well.

I thought I had this figured out again and again. As Isa remembers and reveals the truth  - I thought I knew.  But I was left guessing until the end!!

This is great and fast read!!!

#summer2018book2

Vinegar Girl by Anne Tyler

image from LibraryThing

Kate is trying to do the right thing - but her life just isn't what she expected.  Instead she is stuck in a job she doesn't really like, in a house that she has become the caretaker of watching over her father and her younger sister who seems to be on the verge of a bigger life. 

And then her father comes up with an idea...his research assistant will soon be deported unless Kate is willing to marry him.

What?!  Kate is taken aback at her father's request and both repelled and swept up in Pytor's kindness.

This modern telling of the Taming of the Shrew has Tyler's familiar touches - a slight bewilderment at the situation and an unexpected kindness in the end.

Greatly enjoyed this!!

#summer2018book1

Road Trip

This is the first time I have used audio books-and I loved it! I was on a road trip and these books made the hours and miles fly!

Sorry to Disrupt the Peace by Patty Yumi Cottrell

Chronicle of a Last Summer by Yasmine El Rashidi

Heroes of the Frontier by Dave Eggers

I would recommend any of these books. They each had great and fully developed characters. I especially enjoyed Heroes of the Frontier. 

Good Grief

Obviously  have done  horrible job of  blogging about my reading-since there are no posts since July.
Instead of writing to catch up...
I am just going to list the books I’ve read and really try to do better in 2018!

• The Cuckoo’s Calling by Robert Galbraith
• The Silkworm by Robert Galbraith
• Career of Evil by Robert Galbraith
• Origins by Dan Brown
• The Whole Towns Talking by Fannie Flagg
• Lost And Found by Brooke  Davis
• Invisible Ellen by Shari Shattuck

Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn

I really wanted to like this book - I wanted to like the Amy especially.

image from LibraryThing

But....I didn't.

I didn't like Amazing Amy and I didn't like plain old Nick.

But - for this book that isn't really important - instead it's hooking me enough to see the story through to the very end.  And it did that very well.  There were many moments when I hoped the book would go one way - but it didn't. That kept me reading!

I did not see the movie - and I won't.

I would not want to give Amy and Nick another minute of my time - they deserve one another - but not me!!!

American Gods by Neil Gaiman

image from LibraryThing

This Neil Gaiman book was the perfect travel book - since most of this story is about traveling.  As I
flew across the country and spent time in airports I kept my eyes open for the current American gods!

This is an intriguing concept - the gods of old are being pushed aside by new gods and we creatures of earth are at all of their mercy.  It would have helped me to have a better handle of mythology - but that isn't really a requirement.

As the story unfolds - I felt 3 steps behind...and I think that is what it was supposed to be.  As Shadow is pulled and pushed along by Mr. Wednesday - the reader also is pulled and pushed along. That is an intriguing way to tell the story.  There were parts that I really didn't like - it got a bit bogged down. But - I think that also added to the overall story.

A good one for summer reading #2

The Storied Life of A. J. Fikry by Gabrielle Zevin

image from LibraryThing

This was the first of my vacation reads.  This was a comfortably predictable read...grouchy and out of touch bookseller meets unlikely love interest in his small NE shop.  I really liked all the book references scattered throughout - it drew me in to other reading adventures.  There is a baby and an island and lots and lots of books. All the elements are there!!
This was a great way to start my summer reading!

3rd Degree by James Patterson

For this third installment of the Women's Murder Club Lindsay is smack dab in the middle of the an explosion on a slow Sunday morning.  The women are drawn in to this search for the August Spies as they strike again and again.

Then the most horrible thing... August Spies becomes personal - hitting one of the team very hard.

This is another great book - enjoyed it!

The Rogue Lawyer by John Grisham

image from LibraryThing

Sebastian Rudd is one of a kind. At least I hope so!
He is the defense lawyer who takes the worst and most impossible cases - the ones that no one else will touch. And in the midst of that he knows the law deeply and clearly - better than the others. And with that knowledge he is able to seeming manipulate the outcomes.

Sebastian is not in it for the greater good or anything like that - he is in it for the $$$ and the joy of proving the big guys are wrong.

It's a fast and interesting read. The chapters loosely fit together as you walk through months of his life from case to case.

I would highly recommend this one!  I read it aloud to my husband as we traveled. It was the perfect book for that.

The Book of Speculation by Erika Swyler

image by LibraryThing

This is one of the those books that slowly grabbed my attention and held it tightly.  Simon is a reference librarian whose days are numbered living in a house on the edge of a hill whose days are numbered.  And then he receives a book in the mail.  The book tells the story of a long ago carnival.  And at that moment the book shifts between the real life story of the carnival and the present time story of Simon and his sister Enola and their oddly cursed family.

This story is filled with Tarot cards, mermaids who can hold their breath for long minutes yet are susceptible to a curse that drowns them, and a house that is slipping into the sea.

I enjoyed Simon and his odd frozen in time life.  I liked his librarian skills - searching and seeking information and sticking with a problem.  I liked the fact that the library plays such a role in his story - even as the floodwaters threaten.  And I cared about Amos and his choked off voice - he was also frozen in a completely different way.

Enjoyed this fast and interesting read!

2nd Chance (Women's Murder Club) By James Patterson

image from LibraryThing

Lindsay and her club are at it again. This time it all starts with the death of an 11-year old at a church shooting.  It looks racially motivated - but is it really.  This is a black church in a tough but improving neighborhood - and it looks random at first.  But the shooter killed only one person and that shot was pretty incredible...maybe not as random as it seemed.

The second death or maybe the first is the hanging of an elderly black woman in the basement of her apartment building.  And then a police officer is gunned down responding to a domestic abuse call in a derelict building.

Lindsay and her friends are digging.  Cindy becomes entangled romantically with the handsome pastor of that church.  Jill has a medical emergency and Claire is pulled in to this crime when the shooter attacks her home.

And then the chief of police is gunned down outside his home.

Lindsay's father makes an appearance and is somehow tied in to this whole thing. Is he there to cover his own back and make sure the investigation moves away from him - or is he there to keep Lindsay safe??

This is another page turner and a fast read.  My only complaint is the epilogue again...is this a pattern?  But that won't keep me from reading the 3rd one and then moving on to the 4th!!
I love a good series!!

Costa Rica book #4!

1st To Die (Women's Murder Club) By James Patterson

image from LibraryThing

Brides and Grooms are being murdered on their wedding day!  What a horrible way for a book to begin - but I was caught as soon as Lindsay Boxer began investigating.

Lindsay has a new partner and isn't too happy about Chris Raleigh and his PR roots.  His polish is the opposite of her gritty, tough woman persona. And then the pesky reporter, Cindy Thomas gets in the way. She is trying to make a name for herself in order to move from the Metro section to crime. And she has a way of figuring out what is going on.

So, Lindsay takes a chance.  She invites Cindy to accompany her to drinks with her biggest support network - Claire Washburn, the coroner.  And that is the beginning of the Women's Murder Club. Three ladies who are tough and smart and on top of their careers and putting their heads together helps the investigation.That would be enough for the club - but they need legal help. Bring in the assistant District Attorney, Jill Bernhardt.  And the club is complete.

The club is only one side of the story though.

This story is also told in first person by the killer - which is creepy!  And as you find in all crime shows and novels - there are missteps on who this suspect is.  All eyes focus on the author of a book about bride and groom crimes.  Is it really him though??

Then there is a final confrontation between Lindsay and the killer.
There is also a sad love story and a bunch of female bonding.

This was the perfect book to read on the beach!  Quick page turner without having to put tons of energy into figuring out the story.  I loved it!!
Costa Rica book #3

Inheriting Edith by Zoe Fishman

image from LibraryThing

Maggie and Edith are an unlikely pair.  Maggie is the cleaning lady and Edith has not been particularly close to any of her 'help.' Liza was Maggie's friend and Edith's daughter and she left a gorgeous house in Sag Harbor and Edith to Maggie in her will.  How can you inherit an elderly woman?  Well that was just a part of the package - the house and Edith.  You see, Edith was aging and had just been diagnosed with Alzheimer's.

Maggie had a decision to make.

It was actually an easy decision - carrying out the decision was not quite so easy.  Edith did not believe she needed to be taken care of by a gold-digger cleaning lady!

That is the simple premise of this story.  From the beginning you know that they will figure it out. That's a given - and actually a comfort.  You want Maggie and Edith to create a family.

The unexpected part is Edith's own story. As her short term memory fades her past becomes more and more real.  And in a brilliant moment she decides to ask Maggie to write down those memories. Stories of a dancer's life in NYC and the beauty and difficulties she hid to achieve.

This is a story of mothers and daughters and the secrets that keep them apart and draw them together. It's a story of the horror of Alzheimer's and the depth of friendship.  It's about making a new family from the friends you surround yourself with.

I enjoyed this one!  It was a great beach read - Costa Rica book #2

We Are Called To Rise by Laura McBride

image from LibraryThing

This is not the easiest story to read. It's full of heartache and hope and reality.  Reality means it's not all rainbows and unicorns. Instead, it's a hard and then it's harder and then it's wonderful!

Las Vegas is the backdrop for this story of Bashkin, 8 year old Albanian son of an ice cream truck driver.  And Bashkin's exuberant Aussie teacher decides it would be a good idea to write a letter to a soldier deployed from the nearby base.  That simple act sets in motion unexpected actions that impact all!

Bashkin's letter is filled with innocent questions of a curious and scared boy.  The letter he receives from Specialist Luis is not innocent - instead he describes how he shot a boy in Afghanistan. And Bashkin, poor Bashkin, gets terribly sick with anxiety when he reads it.

This book is not only Bashkin's story though.  It also follows Specialist Luis, recovering from a head injury that seemed to occur right after he sent off that fateful letter.  And we hear from the mother of a newly instated police officer, with her fears for her recently  returned soldier son.  And another woman who seems to be connected with the court system someway.

Each of these characters brings a piece of the story to a final culmination when their separate stories coalesce.  This is a hard story to read if you are connected to the military.  There are scars from war that affect each soldier in a different way.  The families sometimes bear those scars in hidden ways. This is not only the story of American war families - but also those scattered across the world wherever there is violence.

And at the heart of it all is a boy who only wants to fit in and do what is right for his family and himself.

This was a little deep for a beach read - hard to cry with the sun shining down on me!!
Costa Rica book #1

Memory Man and The Last Mile by David Baldacci

image from LibraryThing

 David Baldacci does not let me down!  His books are the perfect travel books - short chapters and lots of action.  These two were the perfect ones to take us from Iowa to California and back again this past August!!

Amos Decker is a man with a twisted past - pro football player for one play and then BOOM and his memory turns into a permanent file - nothing ever disappears from it.  That made him a great cop.  But when his family is murdered that never-ending memory also brought to life all his darkness.  He couldn't unsee the murders - they replayed again and again until it caused him to fall off the face of the earth.

Image from LibraryThing

Almost.

He is drawn back into solving crimes when there is a death much like his family's.  There is a school shooting and a truly twisted villian!!

So at the end he joins the FBI as a sort of quasi-cop.  And that starts the next book - where he is drawn to another ex-football player's story.  Melvin Mars is about to be executed for the murders of his parents.  Melvin was a college ball player soon to go pro with amazing talent.  When he murdered his parents and that was that - until his execution is stopped due to a confession by another soon to be executed convict.  That draws Amos' team to the site and the discrepancies start to add up - especially when the confession falls apart.

I really liked both of these books. Baldacci does a great job creating characters that I root for and I like that!  There are twists that I don't always see coming - but enough that you do see that keep you involved in solving the mystery. I REALLY like Amos. He is the anti-hero that I gravitate towards.  He is in this situation not by his own will and he would rather not be here - but there is a goodness in him that keeps him involved for those he might be able to help in spite of himself. And yes, I know that is a crazy run-on sentence - but that is exactly how I see him!!

I would highly recommend these books.

To Say Nothing of the Dog by Connie Willis

image from LibraryThing

It's been a long time since I've read a science fiction/time travel book. This one is not like anything I've read before.  It's the future in England and time travel is a thing.  But - it's not what I expect of traveling to an unknown and interesting place - instead the reader is dropped into the midst of an already moving story.

You are in England of the future and all the time traveling of the day is to learn the details of Coventry Cathedral - because it is being completely rebuilt and refurnished to the moment before it was destroyed by Nazi bombers in WWII.

And poor Ned, the main character, has been shuttling around the late 1800s trying to figure out what has happened to "The Bishop's Bird Stump." The reader doesn't even find out what in the world the bird stump is until well in to the book - a hideous vase - and that really doesn't even matter.  Because Ned pulls us in to the world of Muchings End where he is to rest up and recover from his time-lagged state.  But that isn't a Muchings End of current time, but one of the the past where men wear boater hats and float down the Thames and quote poetry to Victorian women.  Into this world the befuddled Ned falls and his quest to find the bird stump slowly begins to make sense.

I enjoyed this book - I sort of liked the off-kilter feel I had as a reader.  I felt like I had come into the middle of a movie and didn't have the energy to ask my neighbor what was going on...so I just stayed with it until it began to make sense. It's also a love story - in a very English Victorian way - and the story of a spoiled cat and a great bulldog named Cyril. By the way, there are no cats in the future.  So, Ned's first contact with a purring feline is rather funny!!

This is a good one.

Beastkeeper by Cat Hellisen

Sarah's life is not what with think of as normal. They move a lot, whenever the cold gets especially sharp and the smell of wet dog gets especially strong.  But, her mom and dad seem to figure out how to make it work, until they don't- and her mom disappears.  That is when she chances to meet Alan, the beastkeeper in the little not quite forest behind her house, and life doesn't return to normal.

This is a dreamy, dark, story woven around a fire on a winter evening of old magic and curses and pain.  It is beautifully written - lyrical and sharp at the same time.

When I finished I wanted to start at the beginning again, because I knew I had not paid attention to the right threads in this story! I have a feeling this will be a book you hear more about!

All Fall Down by Ally Carter

Grace is one messed up ambassador's granddaughter.  That seems to follow here all around Adria, the country where she lands with her grandfather.  She lived in Adria with her mother for ,any Summer's before the fire and her moms death.  Now Grace has been bumped from therapist to clinic and finally landed at the last spot available- her grandfathers house.  Grace is haunted by her moms death- she smells smoke and sees the scarred face of her moms killer everywhere. Except her mom was not killed by the scarred man, and there is a death certificate to prove it.

I had this mystery all figured out, from her moms actual killer to the shady figures appearing in the empty embassy down the road.  But, I was wrong! I love it when I am wrong!  And boy was I wrong!

This story didn't begin or end with this book.  This continues on in the next book. But there are details that are cleared up. Grace solves part of the mystery- and realizes she is not all alone. That makes a big change for her!

I liked this- it was a mini Bond-there was spy work, some acrobatics and diplomacy between embassiesand some pretty big twists. I enjoyed this quick read.

The Distance Between Lost and Found by Kathryn Holmes

Image from LibraryThing

Hallelujah, not the best name for a cool girl-so when Hallie was welcomed in to Luke's group and then his arms she as sure she had arrived.  Instead, she became the butt of harassment and ridicule. And it just wouldn't stop.  Life in school and church had deteriorated to the point that Hallie's only real wish is to disappear. And the it was time for the youth group camp out.

When Rachel, the new girl, tries to make friends Hallie one more time and Hallie snubs her- that is the end.  Rachel breaks off the hiking group and starts back to the camp . Hallie feels bad and joins her and Jonah, Hallies old friend joins them.  It should be an easy walk down the mountain.

Should be., but it isn't.  There is a rain storm, a mudslide, and that is all it takes for these three to become hopelessly lost.

So- this is a pretty predictable story.  The there have to depend on each other to make it back.  There is a bear, some unexpected injuries, no food and a bear.  The part that wasn't as predictable was their relatives bishops with God and how that is woven into the story.  I appreciated the honesty and the non- preachy attitude. I also liked that it wasn't all tied up neatly at the end. Hallies questions remained.
I would recommend this one. Survival stories are a hit, weave in a love story and a growing friendship and this was really good.