Wayward Saints by Suzy Roche

When you get past the musical references and all of the anger associated with the genre that the author is referring to in the book, this is a really great read. At it's heart it is a love story about the most difficult relationship any woman will have in her life; that is the relationship with her mother. The story of Jean Saint, the mother, and Mary Saint, the daughter is a warm and well told and should touch you deeply. Mary is the epitome of a rebellious daughter who makes the big time in spite of herself. Her fame does nothing to solve her problems with the people in her life and her life in general. In fact, her fame accentuates the problems and the methods that Mary chooses to solve them only add to her destructive modus operandi. While Mary struggles with her own demons, her mother Jean, struggles with her own. Mother and daughter are very much alike. Mary is flamboyant while Jean is passive aggressive in dealing with the life that that share. Both women are at a crossroads in their lives and both will need to chart out a course for the future.

Suzy does an excellent job of weaving the two stories together. The supporting characters that Roche has created to flesh the story out are also amazing and the sub plot that she created is worth a book of its own. Thaddeus is so real and adds so much to the story that I hope he appears in Roche’s future works.  This book will be enjoyed for a long time. I know that I will recommend it to my friends and my book club.

Wayward Saints by Suzy Roche

When you get past the musical references and all of the anger associated with the genre that the author is referring to in the book, this is a really great read. At it's heart it is a love story about the most difficult relationship any woman will have in her life; that is the relationship with her mother. The story of Jean Saint, the mother, and Mary Saint, the daughter is a warm and well told and should touch you deeply. Mary is the epitome of a rebellious daughter who makes the big time in spite of herself. Her fame does nothing to solve her problems with the people in her life and her life in general. In fact, her fame accentuates the problems and the methods that Mary chooses to solve them only add to her destructive modus operandi. While Mary struggles with her own demons, her mother Jean, struggles with her own. Mother and daughter are very much alike. Mary is flamboyant while Jean is passive aggressive in dealing with the life that that share. Both women are at a crossroads in their lives and both will need to chart out a course for the future.

Suzy does an excellent job of weaving the two stories together. The supporting characters that Roche has created to flesh the story out are also amazing and the sub plot that she created is worth a book of its own. Thaddeus is so real and adds so much to the story that I hope he appears in Roche’s future works.  This book will be enjoyed for a long time. I know that I will recommend it to my friends and my book club.

BEFORE SHE DIES

By Mary Burton

To be Published in February 2012

This is the first book I have read by t his author and I was not disappointed! Before she dies is the story of serial killer set against a carnival background. The characters that Burton developed are believable.

The book opens with a murder that occurred eighteen years before the story starts. It portends what is to come.  This is one seriously twisted soul and he will haunt the book.

When the story starts, we are introduced to all of the main players. Charlotte Wellington, Detective Daniel Rokov, his partner Jennifer Sinclair, Charlotte’s partner, Angie Kier and the cast from the carnival. The story moved quickly and we are allowed glimpses of the past as they interweave with the present. This technique works well for the story.

This is really a story about survival, re-invention, atonement, and letting go of a past so that the future can take place. Charlotte Wellington grew up a carnival worker, a past that she had no control over; however, she is determined to have control over her present life. She has so much control that the future is also butting up against both the past and present, not a good thing to happen. She reinvents herself so much that at times, even she doesn’t quite know who she is. Charlotte grew up as Grace Tate, with a sister, Mariah and a baby, named Sooner in her past

 We are introduced to her nemesis, Grady Tate, who is determined to make amends for his role in Charlottes past. Grady is a wonderfully written character, one you both like and dislike. He is a hardnosed carnival owner who works very hard at hiding his soft side. Grady is full of bluster, broken promises, and paths not taken. I would have liked to have read more about Grady, maybe in another book.

The main detective, Daniel Rokov, is a man looking to settle into a relationship with someone whom he considers an equal, he finds this. The killer is also out to  make amends for what he believes to be an affront to God.

The mystery in the story is really well developed and will hold you until the end. The surprise is the killer. I am looking for other books by this author and know that I will read her in the. The book is listed as a suspense/romance, I found more suspense and thoroughly enjoyed it!

One Foot in the Gravy

 by Delia Rosen

Let’s face it, who doesn’t like to hunker down with a good book and a snack and if the book is a mystery all the better! Rosen has a hit with this one. Gwen, “Nashville” Katz has inherited her Uncle’s deli and has decided that maybe her life needs a little more spice, mustard goes with anything? Oh well, so much for my humor.  Along with the deli, she inherits the staff, and they are nothing like she is used to!

The murder occurs at the very first party, an audience participation murder mystery, that Gwen is catering, and her staff is not pleased with any of it. In her case the murder is real and Gwen is an amateur detective. Gwen is a forensic accountant by training so solving mysteries comes easily to her. Her social position, as a deli owner allows her access to all of the suspects because, well frankly, who doesn’t like a good meal? And who doesn’t like to dish about someone else?  While the story is good, it suffers from a little too much stereotyping, the wealthy southern ladies, ladies who lunch, Jewish deli owners, southern lawyers, and cops as love interests are but a few examples. However people open up and talk to her, which moves the story along nicely. Rosen uses the stereotypes as foils and some of the funniest parts of the book involve these characters.

Rosen relies on the reader “getting” the Brooklyn Deli humor and Yiddish phrases, which she peppers the book with. There is a fine line between humor and caricature and sometimes I found myself annoyed by her humor. In her humor however is buried a terrible secret, one that explains the murderer and the reason for the crime

Rosen includes recipes at the end of the book which sound wonderful and add a little something to the book. Overall the book is a fun fast read that I will be passing along to my friends when they are hungry or in need of a mystery !

Shea Vaughn’s Breakthrough :The 5 living Principals to defeat Stress, look Great and Find Total Well Being

Shea Vaughn 

This is an interesting book and one that I really enjoyed. Shea has an incredible story to share and does it on a way that is inspiring and uplifting. Shea uses her story and those of people who have been helped by her living principles. Her basic them is a blend of Eastern and Western philosophies and approaches to all aspects of our lives. Her main focus is on the Mind-Body Connection that touches every aspect of our lives.

There is nothing really new in this book except for the way that the author puts together a total package for health and well being. It is her passion for what she does that shines through each chapter and makes you realize that there are things that you are not accomplishing that you could and should be accomplishing. Her greatest contribution is that first you need to love yourself and come to grips with what you are presently and what you want to be in the future. Shea will show you how to get there.

Anyone who has tried dieting, self help books, motivational tapes etc. will love this book. Shea never once preaches to or talks down at you. That in itself is a wonderful gift.  Women need more positive approaches to every aspect of their journey and Shea gives us positivity.

Read the book and then share it with a girlfriend who is on the same journey that you are on. You’ll both benefit from the experience.

To Nourish and Consume

Ryan O’Reilly

Did you ever what the story line of Sex and the City might be like if the story had been told from a make point of view? It would definitely be different, but would it be better?  I don’t really know, I do know that this story is better because it is told by the lead male character, Brian Falk.  When I first started the book, I kept going back to the beginning to be sure that it was being told by a man and not a woman. I kept thinking that I was reading a coming of age story form a female point of view.  This didn’t matter once I got into the story. The story held my interest,  it didn’t matter which voice it was being told in.

Brian Falk returns to his adolescent home to try to discover what shaped and made him that man that he turned out to be. Brian fled his home town after his high school graduation and spends the next ten years agonizing over what might have been. He is part of a trio of friends that shaped him more than he shaped them. He falls in love with both of his friends bit in different ways. He is warned by the grandfather of one of them, that he will never be right for his granddaughter. Brian is very human at this point; he hears what he thinks is being said, not what is really being said. He is also very much a teenager. He reacts by running away, not by staying and questioning or fighting. His two friends, Jackie and Dabney, grow up and apparently forget about him. They marry each other, make a life and make a mess of it. Jackie is cold and manipulative; Dabney has anger issues and is explosive. Brian also makes a mess of his life.  Brian’s mess is that he can’t get over either of them, and can’t form meaningful relationships because of them. He carries the past with him and always wonders what if. He is successful in other parts of his life, and hopes that by returning to the scene of the crime, so to speak, he can make peace with his life and move on. No more spoilers here, you need to read the story to find out what happens. Is he successful or is he pulled back into his old life?

Reilly has created a wonderful character in Brian Falk, sensitive, perceptive and caring. On the surface, he is the kind of man that every woman is looking for. Brian is also quite capable of being a “bad boy”, also what some women look for in a man. The underlying story revolves around Brian’s questioning of all the “what if’s” in his life. What if he and Jackie could have had a romantic future? What if he could have been a better friend to Dabney ? What if he had stayed and taken over the family business? The what if’s go on and on and held shape the story.  I’m not sure how many writers can pull off developing a character this way without destroying the character; I know that Ryan O’Reilly pulled it off.  In the end, all of the characters realize  that they shape their own future and Brian realizes that he has come to a good place in his life.

I also learned that a story of self discovery and growth can be told equally well by a male voice.

This is a book that I will recommend without reservation. I give it 5 stars !

Luck of the Devil by Patricia Eimer

What a hoot! We are introduced to Faith and Hope Bettincourt, the half human, half demonic daughters of Lucifer himself. We meet their Mother Roisin, her brother Tolliver, his girl friend Lisa, a newly made succubus and a whole host of minor deity’s. Along with hell’s denizens we also get to meet Matt, a half human and half angel  , the Lord Almighty and his son Jesus.

The story takes place in Pittsburg Pennsylvania, who knew that will become a portal to hell. I know that there are probably some people who consider Pittsburg hell, but in this book, it really will turn into a way to the dark side. Faith is the youngest of Lucifer’s half daughters and turns out to be his favorite! In the story she is just trying to lead a normal human life away from the family. Normal for Faith turns out not to normal for the rest of us. Turns out that Matt, her neighbor, is trying to do the same, hide from his family. When the story opens, all Faith Wants to do is enjoy a vacation from her nursing job and watch reality TV. Instead she needs to deal with murder of her boss by her roommate Lisa, a visit from her sister and her brother in law, and a visit from her parents. As she says, she’ll need a vacation from her vacation !

This is a laugh out loud book. The descriptions of how Hope and her husband Boris, managed to lose control of an entire cult will have you thinking and laughing at the same time. Thinking because many the extremist form of any religious practice is controlled by the Devil, or his minions, and laughing because Ms Eimer knows how to tell a story. The scenes with Faith, and everyone else in the book, especially in the hospital’s ER will make you realize that the line between  good and evil is very fine and can be easily crossed.

At it’s heart this is a love story. Faith, for all of her evilness, loves her family and would like to find a love of her own  that would not be frightened by what she is. The same is true for Matt. Her sister Lisa looses the cult because she has fallen in love with her husband and will do most anything for him. Now doesn’t this sound like some people you may know? The book gets a little complicated at times, but then so does life.

With a little help from her father, the Devil, and Matt’s father, the Lord almighty, these two fall in love and in the end, the Lord makes  things right !

A good read and an author that I will look for more stories from.

Domesic Violets

What a hoot ! Everybody in this book is having some ind of mid-life crisis, except Tom's daughter ! (She’s too young for one !) The main character is in the middle of deciding what to do with his life. He is fantasying about a co-worker, suspecting his wife of having an affair and is trying to keep up with his father ! His wife is debating whether or not to start an affair and his father is ending a marriage and he is starting an affair !
Tom Violet writes press releases for a company that he loathes. He is in an office "romance " with a much younger co-worker, which you just know is going to lead to trouble. The highlight of his day is verbally tormenting a co-worker. These are among the funniest lines in the book. When his tormentor is promoted and becomes his boss, Tom writes a press release that goes viral. Anybody who has ever had a bad boss will love this piece of writing.
Tom's father, Curtiss Violet, is a n aging literary star who has just been diagnosed with a terminal illness. Even though he has just won a Pulitzer for one of his books, he is suffering from a major case of writers’ block. In addition to the writers block, he is also reviewing his life and all the regrets that go with a life spent in the fast lane.
Tom and his wife are trying to get pregnant and each of them is equally of emotional infidelity. This story is also well told and has some twists that will surprise you. Norman also develops some supporting characters that are so likeable that you find yourself wanting to know more about them.The author writes that "domestic violets are more fertile" This story is fertile in imagination .
All of this makes for a really good read. The book is well written and the story flows. Book clubs should enjoy this book, I know that I will recommend it for mine when it comes out because there is so much to discuss and enjoy.
This review is available on my blog http:janiesreads.blogspot.com

Odds and Ends

Well, it has been a summer for reading and listening to books. The weather is hot and therefore I am lazy but I really enjoy this weather for reading. Movies are geared toward remakes of comic books or just light romances so I find that when I ignore them, I don't feel bad. I am reading a book about film making, more on that in a  later post, which is giving me a whole new appreciation for the movies. I've discovered the Bernie Gunther mystery series by Phillip Kerr as a result of the my local Marvelous Sleuths Book Club, which I happen to lead and really enjoy it. I fell in love with A Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness. This is the first in a series and I cannot wait for the next one ! 

In the audio world I have been enjoying  Steve Berry's The Jefferson Key. He did a great deal of research for the book and it makes for a good read. A book that I found myself arguing with was titled  I Though You Were Dead  by Pete Nelson. The main character here is a guy who has no sense of self. The other main character, his dog Stella, is the one who trully makes the book worth reading or listening to.


Well the porch and a book are calling, so more later. Happy reading !

Maria Juana's Gift

I finished a book several weeks ago titled Maria Juana's Gift by  T. Lloyd Winetsky. The book is published by www.booklocker.com. The story is simplicity in itself, a story as old as time. It is the story of a young couple who are the victims of  both prejudice and medical malpractice. Winetsky's writing is clean and the way the story is told broke my heart. I was in healthcare for a very long time and saw first hand many of the stereotypes that are portrayed in this book. I know that in many ways, the healthcare industry has come a long from the simple times portrayed in this book. I also know that in many ways, the industry has not. Poor people, people with disabilities , people who are overweight, and people who don't fit the norm  whatever that may be, still suffer from labeling and prejudice. I wonder how many mistakes are made just from these practices alone. In this story, the result is tragic. Winetsky simply tells a wonderful story and the story will guide you to the obvious conclusion. I will be looking for more from this author. But no more spoilers, read the book, I guarantee that it will make you think for a long time after you put it down

The Things We Cherish

The Things We Cherish  by Pam Jenoff  

This is a story about the human cost of World War 11. It is a story as old as time. One brother falling in love with another brother’s wife, the other brother in love with mankind in general but can’t find time to show his love for his family. Jenoff tells the story by moving back and forth through time and does it beautifully. She uses the dynamics between brothers to move the story along. She goes back to the turn of the 20^th century to create the setting that will eventually lead to the story’s conclusion.  Her writing is clean and easy to follow.  Jenoff demonstrates that things are not always what they appear to be, both in the past and in the future, and it is always foolish to jump to quick and easy conclusions based on appearances.  This is a simple story told with tenderness and in the end, broke my heart. I enjoyed it.