Shelterwood by Lisa Wingate

 

Lisa Wingate has done it again! After her best-selling book “Before We Were Yours," comes another fascinating story of greed, corruption, and the children who were the victims. This time, the setting is Oklahoma, where children are being exploited for their land and mineral rights. This is another sad chapter in American history that is now being revealed.

It's 1909, and eleven-year-old Ollie Radley and two Choctaw girls, Hazel and Nessa, orphan wards of her parents, are at the mercy of their pedophile stepfather. When Hazel disappears, Ollie, fearing for their safety, flees with six-year-old Nessa into the wilds of the Oklahoma mountains and the safety she seeks at an old homestead.

In 1990, park law enforcement ranger Valerie Boren-Odell was appointed to the newly created Horsethief Trail National Park. She was met with a missing person, a mysterious death, an old burial site, and local resistance to the freshly minted park. Still grieving over her husband's death and adjusting to being a single parent, Val must prove herself to her fellow rangers and the local community. Her only allies are the twelve-year-old sister of the missing person, who has a history of "telling tall tales," and a fellow law enforcement officer from the Choctaw Tribal Police. Facing adversity at every turn, they unite to try and find answers.

This story is rich in historical information about the early days of the Oklahoma land grab and the injustices done to the native tribes. This topic was also explored in "Killers of the Flower Moon,” but Wingate's fictional characters show how the exploitation occurred on a large scale and zeroes in on the plight of the children. Using the two timelines and two strong females, Wingate adeptly weaves a historical fiction and a mystery novel that both informs and entertains. The story is told with empathy and hard facts that tugged at my heart and kept me wanting to know more. I highly recommend this book. 

5/5 stars.

Thank you, NetGalley and Ballantine Books, for an advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own. The publication date is June 4, 2024.

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Close to Death by Anthony Horowitz

 

I enjoy Anthony Horowitz's Magpie Murders and his Hawthorne & Horowitz series. I even liked the TV adaptation of the first Magpie Murders book, and I seldom prefer a movie or series adaptation to the book. With this latest book in the H&H series, he has outdone himself. This book is both mind-bogglingly complex and ingeniously crafted.

All is not as idyllic as it once was in Riverside Close. A new neighbor has bought into this close-knit, six-home community, and the residents are up in arms about the noisy children, loud music, and plans for a swimming pool the Kentworthy family have brought with them. And when Giles Kentworthy is found murdered, suspicion immediately falls on the neighbors. The problem is which one. The police reluctantly call in Daniel Hawthorne and his assistant to help in the investigation, but when one of the neighbors kills himself and leaves a note confessing to the murder, it appears the case is closed. However, Hawthorne is unconvinced and continues investigating--much to the chagrin of the police and the residents.

In a nod to Agatha Christie, this is an excellently plotted and clever locked-room murder mystery with a suspect pool teeming with motives. It is a twisty whodunit that kept me guessing. Although this is the fifth book in the series, it can be read as a standalone. 

5/5 stars.

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If Something Happens to Me by Aex Finlay

 I read and enjoyed two of Alex Finlay's previous books, "The Night Shift" and "Every Last Fear," so I was looking forward to another good psychological thriller with "If Something Happens to Me." I wasn't disappointed. If anything, I think this is Finlay's best book yet.

Five years ago, while Ryan Richardson and his girlfriend, Ali, were at a secluded place, Ali was abducted. Both she and the car vanished that night, and Ryan became a person of interest in her disappearance. Ryan was never charged, but the suspicion and notoriety has haunted him. Now a law student with a different name, Ryan's past comes back to haunt him when Ali's car is recovered from a lake with two dead men in it, but still no trace of Ali, just a coded note with the words "if something happens to me" on the envelope.

Newly appointed sheriff's deputy Poppy McGee is assigned to the task force attempting to figure out who the two dead men are and what is in Ali's note. As Poppy digs into the old case about Ali's disappearance, she doubts the quality of the investigation and suspects a coverup--but why?

The story, told by several characters simultaneously, combines a classic psychological thriller and a twisty, suspenseful murder mystery. Finlay deftly intertwines the characters' lives with plot twists into a seamless story of love and revenge. It is a fast-moving and engaging read that never disappoints. 

5/5 stars.

Thank you, NetGalley and Minotaur Books, for an advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own. The publication date is May 28, 2024.

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The Women by Kristin Hannah

I liked Hannah's "The Nightingale" and "The Great Alone." Both were terrific character studies. Based on the marketing copy for this book, I was hoping for the same, but I couldn't get past the brutality of war, which was so graphic in parts that I found myself skimming.

Sheltered Frankie McGrath follows her family's tradition of serving their country during wartime. She intends to use her nursing degree by volunteering for a tour in Vietnam in 1965. However, she encounters a challenge she doesn't know if she can meet in the front-line trenches of a hospital dealing with extreme casualties. With the support of her fellow nurses and sympathetic doctors, Frankie rises above her self-doubts to become a first-rate surgical nurse.

Robert Dugoni's amazing "The World Played Chess," set mostly in Vietnam, made me think I could tackle another Vietnam-era book. I was wrong. While Dugoni's book did contain graphic war scenes, the characters were more realistic and I cared more for them than the characters depicted in this book. I'm not a fan of books set during wartime; I thought the overarching story in "The Women" would carry me through, however, but it did not. I liked Frankie and the graphic scenes were not extraneous, but I couldn't stomach it. I DNF at 50%. 

3/5 stars.  

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Normal Rules Don't Apply: Stories by Kate Atkinson

 I like almost everything Kate Atkinson has written, and I especially like her books featuring the Jackson Brodie character. These eleven short stories are classic Kate Atkinson: light-hearted, engaging stories that captured my imagination.

These stories are interconnected, with the main characters being a queen in a fable, a man who works on a soap opera, and a recently deceased secretary, among others. Although they don't sound like they could work together, trust me, they do. Atkinson skillfully intertwines these lives interestingly and imaginatively to produce a satisfying read.

4/5 stars.

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Southern Man by Greg Iles

 

This seventh Cage Penn book is the icing on the cake following Iles' amazing Nachez Burning trilogy (Nachez Burning, The Bone Tree, and Mississippi Blood), which also features Penn Cage. Set fifteen years after Mississippi Blood, in 2023, on the eve of the presidential election, it is a microscopic look at the state of US politics, race relations, and the nature of the unrest we are currently experiencing.

When a rap concert turns bloody at the hands of the Sheriff's Department in Bienville, Mississippi, two figures emerge as leaders: one, a Black tourist guide, and the other, a White third-party presidential candidate who has the best chance of winning since Ross Perot. One hopes to quell the retaliatory mood of the crowd, and the other hopes to raise his political aspirations to a national stage. At odds, the stage is set for a confrontation with far-reaching consequences.

This looks like it will be the final Penn Cage book, as it is revealed early on that Cage's cancer is no longer in remission. That's sad news for fans of the series, myself included, but Iles does a good job of handling the characters and dealing with the life-threatening situation. This fast-moving story weaves together today's political climate and Civil War-era slavery issues. It is sometimes uncomfortable to read, but it is a story that needs telling. This political and historical thriller shines a light on corruption, race relations, and family relationships, both past and present. It is an excellently written book that can be read as a standalone--although the other books in the series are so good, I recommend reading them all. 

5/5 stars.

Thank you, NetGalley and William Morrow, for an advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own. The publication date is May 28, 2024.

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Stories of Your Life and Others by Ted Chiang

I don't usually care for short stories, but a friend whose opinions I trust suggested this collection. I did like it, and although it didn't change my mind about short stories—they're too choppy; I like a continuous story—I was engaged with most of the stories.

These are stories previously published in magazines, mainly in the 90s, but they have held up well. All are character-driven and deal with various topics, including what it means to be human. Most stories have intriguing premises, are excellently written, and captured my imagination. The author delves heavily into math and physics in several stories that I found hard to comprehend. I admit to having to skim parts, but that didn't detract from the overall readability of the stories. All-in-all, this is an interesting read. 

3.5/5 stars.

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