"The worth of a book is to be measured by what you can carry away from it." (James Bryce)

Friday, August 25, 2017

THE MISSING MASTERPIECE (Jeanne M. Dams)

Dorothy Martin and her husband, retired Chief Inspector Alan Nesbitt, never fail to charm.  Their relationship is tender, respectful, and playful (not to mention realistic), their intelligence and curiosity appealing, and their travels always seem to lead them to murder and intrigue.  I just realized that I should have included a Dorothy Martin mystery in this year's upcoming lineup of Detecting Duos mysteries for Christie Capers!

This time Dorothy and Alan have plans to travel to France to attend an exhibit of art by a good friend.  When Alan breaks his ankle, Dorothy travels alone with the intention that the almost-recovered Alan will follow as soon as he gets to go-ahead from his doctor.  Most of the action takes place at Mont Saint-Michel, a wondrous former monastery in Normandy.
A young man supposedly searching for lost manuscripts, a mysterious American who claims to be researching a novel, a near drowning, and several unexplained accidents all blend together under Dams's deft hand into an entertaining and appealing mystery.  Try the whole series.  You'll love this gentle series and never be bored!

THE COTTINGLEY SECRET (Hazel Gaynor)

Back in 1917 two girls in Cottingley, Yorkshire, England allegedly took a photograph of local fairies that eventually caught the attention of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, whose great interest in magic and mysticism led him to write an article about the event.  Frances Griffiths and Elsie Wright inadvertently convince the world of the existence of fairies despite the fact that most of their "authentic" photographs are faked.

When Olivia Kavanagh inherits her Grandfather's bookshop in Ireland 100 year later, she discovers a manuscript detailing the incident and it's aftermath and realizes that there is a family connection between the girls and her grandmother, now suffering from Alzheimer's.  In the midst of planning a wedding to man whom she is not sure she loves, Olivia embarks on a new life, cleaning and renovating the shop, talking to her grandmother about the manuscript, and trying to figure out where she herself belongs.

Based on a true story, Gaynor's novel is unique in its narrative and compelling in its possibilities.  You will leave it wondering if fairies actually do exist and, perhaps, hoping that they do.  This is a novel about human relationships, grief, and hope, with the extra added suggestion of magic.  Enjoy it!

CAFE BY THE SEA (Jenny Colgan)

I know I've said it before, but I'll say it again...I love Jenny Colgan's novels!  This one is set on the fictional island of Muir, off the northern coast of Scotland.  Flora left the island after her mother's death, feeling that there was nothing left there for her.  In London, where she works as a paralegal, she "enjoys" a life of cramped quarters, noise, near poverty, and grime.  She also has a hopeless crush on her womanizing boss.  When she is assigned to travel back to Muir to convince the natives that the giant resort being planned by a multi-millionaire at the tip of the island is actually a GOOD thing, she reluctantly revisits her past and gets reacquainted with her father and brothers, whom she hasn't seen for 3 years.

Being back on the island brings back memories, bitter and good, and also reawakens Flora's passion for baking.  When she is asked to refurbish and open a cafe in the center of town, she is drawn even more deeply into the life and culture she thought she had escaped, but is this really a bad thing?

In true Colgan style, the reader is treated to whimsical, quirky characters, a heroine who manages to find herself, and a setting so breath-taking that you will want to catch the next plane to Scotland to check out its real-life counterparts.

Tuesday, August 8, 2017

PICTURE OF DORIAN GRAY (Oscar Wilde)

Most of you know the story of Dorian Gray, an absolutely beautiful young man whose portrait becomes the means by which he is able to live a life of sin and debauchery while maintaining an eternally youthful countenance.  The novel does differ from the movie, as is usual.

If you are familiar with Wilde, you know that he was famously homosexual, extremely erudite, and scathingly clever.  He was an aesthete, believing that art and beauty were of greater importance than practicality.  His works remain popular to this day, especially in film, but I don't know how many people actually read them.

Today's literary gothic and horror offerings owe much to Wilde and his talent.

HER ROYAL SPYNESS (Rhys Bowen)

Amateur sleuth Lady Victoria Georgiana Charlotte Eugenie, daughter to the Duke of Atholt and Rannoch, is known to her friends as Georgiana.  She is 34th in line to the British throne and broke.  This very humorous and entertaining historical series (this is the first of eleven) is set in the 1930's and features many real royal personages, slapstick comedy reminiscent of Lucille Ball, and a pretty good mystery.  Bowen writes 3 separate historical mystery series and they're all excellent.  I'm looking forward to reading more of this one though.  It was truly enjoyable from cover to cover!