The Third Angel ~ Alice Hoffman

  Written chronologically in reverse, this new novel by one of my favorite authors keeps the reader guessing.  It begins with the wedding preparations of Allie a transplanted American in London.  She’s invited her sister to be her maid of honor. Maddy has always been jealous of her sister, but agrees to be a part of the wedding. The one thing she didn’t plan on was falling in love with her future brother-in-law. The reader is introduced to the parents of the bride and groom, and subtle hints lead one to think there is more here than meets the eye.  The following sections go back in history and reveal the past secrets of several of these characters.  When you reach the end, you will undoubtedly want to revisit the beginning.

Gardening at the Dragon’s Gate: At Work in the Wild and Cultivated World ~ Wendy Johnson

At night the garden drops below daylight language and murmurs in an older tongue, in voices of wormwood and rue, black cohosh and henbane, reminding me that the plants of the garden attend to me as well as allowing me to attend to them. In the berry patches, orchards and vegetable, herb, and flower beds that surround our homes, medicine, food, and poison abide together in a deep-rooted tangle.

Wendy Johnson was the head gardener at the Green Gulch Farm Zen Center, “where the fields curve like an enormous green dragon between the hills and the ocean.” Gardening at the Dragon’s Gate conveys the fundamentals of gardening told through stories and spiritual lessons accompanied by beautiful illustrations. Stories about gardening become something more - something that reaches beyond the flowers and vegetables into the roots. For those who want to dig in, there is a fantastic list of resources for each chapter. After many stories in the book, I would find myself daydreaming or making plans for my own garden. Reading it was a little bit like meditating. Johnson makes you slow down and look at the little things. As a gardener, this was a special treat.

White Company ~ Arthur Conan Doyle

Best known as the creator of Sherlock Holmes, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle was also a passionate historian, and The White Company was his favorite among his own works. This spirited account of the exploits of a crew of Saxon archers during the Hundred Years War features cameo appearances by historical figures such as Edward III and the Black Prince. Flavorful and realistic in its depictions of medieval life, the novel combines the excitement of a rugged adventure with the romance of chivalry.

Our favorite reader of adventure classics found this book a real treat. It shares some similar plot lines with the Lord of the Rings. Doyle’s book of chivalry also illustrates some of its ridiculousness. It starts with intrigue at a monastery and there is plenty of swashbuckling.

So Brave, Young and Handsome ~ Leif Enger

The author of Peace Like a River has written another well-crafted novel.  Monte Becket is an author whose one book was a huge success. He is under great pressure to write another blockbuster, but has a severe case of writer’s block.  His story starts in Minnesota in 1915 when a white-haired stranger rows by on the river near his property. Thus starts a long, strange journey for Monte that will involve outlaws, a Pinkerton detective and a circus.  Part western, part historical fiction, this novel is so well written readers will find the end sooner than they would like.

Unaccustomed Earth:stories by Jhumpa Lahiri

This book contains eight short pieces of fiction with a common theme. The characters are all immigrants from India living in the United States. Very smoothly written, the topics include dealing with aging parents, marital infidelity, breast cancer, alcoholism, family bonds and trust.  Reminiscent of O’Henry’s stories, many end with a touch of irony.

The Mozart Question ~ Michael Morpurgo

“Like any young boy, Paolo becomes obsessed with what he can’t have — in his case, a violin. Hidden away in his parents’ room, it beckons the boy to release the music inside it. The music leads Paolo to a family secret, a story of World War II that changed the course of his parents’ lives. But once the truth is told, the family is reunited in a way no one had thought possible.”

Though this book is geared towards younger readers, it would be a shame to pass it up based on that. The Mozart Question is a wonderful, affecting story of musicians who survived the Nazi concentration camps, and how the music they played there changed the rest of their lives. But instead of trying to form a semblance of a review on this one, I’d rather include a snippet from the Author’s Note regarding this time in history, and what prompted to tell this story:

“For me, the most haunting image does not come from literature or film but from music…I wondered how it must have been for a musician who played in such hellish circumstances who adored Mozart as I do - what thoughts came when playing Mozart later in life. This was the genesis of my story - this and the sight of a small boy in a square by the Accademia Bridge in Venice, sitting one night in his pajamas on his tricycle, listening to a street musician.”

The book is beautifully illustrated by Michael Foreman; the scenes of Venice, splayed over two pages, are stunning. If for the art alone, I would have enjoyed The Mozart Question; luckily, the story is just as moving.

Two True Thieves

One of our avid senior readers had this to say about the stories of two
master criminals:

Catch Me If You Can by Frank Abagnale, Jr.

Don’t let the fact that you’ve seen the movie stop you from reading this fast-moving and fascinating story. It’s a much more comprehensive and exciting account of Frank Abagnale’s capers as one of the youngest and most successful con-men in history.
He is a guy who if he didn’t come from a traumatic and broken home could have mastered any profession. But over five years, a young Frank
Abagnale passed $2.5 million in fraudulent checks in every state and 26
foreign countries as he brazenly impersonated a Pan Am pilot, hospital
resident supervisor, college professor and attorney. An adventurous and
very interesting story.

Confessions of a Master Jewel Thief by Bill Mason
A good companion book to “Catch Me If You Can.”

In the 1960s, Bill Mason found great success stealing jewels from the rich and famous. In this memoir, he reconstructs, in captivating detail, the extensive planning and research he undertook to foil the best of security systems - sometimes by merely stumbling upon an open window. I never imagined there was so much to know about diamonds!

The Study Series ~ Maria V Snyder

I’ve put off this post for weeks upon weeks now for two reasons:

• I love Maria V. Snyder’s Study series; we’re talking serious love here.
• I can never write about books/series I love because I can never adequately express just why it is that I do love them. (Who am I kidding? Sometimes I can’t even write about books that I have a crush on.)

So, I’ll try to put into words what, in my opinion, makes these books so great, but by all means, see for yourself…

About Poison Study…
About to be executed for murder, Yelena is offered an extraordinary reprieve. She’ll eat the best meals, have rooms in the palace–and risk assassination by anyone trying to kill the Commander of Ixia.

And so Yelena chooses to become a food taster. But the chief of security, leaving nothing to chance, deliberately feeds her Butterfly’s Dust–and only by appearing for her daily antidote will she delay an agonizing death from the poison.

As Yelena tries to escape her new dilemma, disasters keep mounting. Rebels plot to seize Ixia and Yelena develops magical powers she can’t control. Her life is threatened again and choices must be made. But this time the outcomes aren’t so clear…

Poison Study is all about characters. Yelena is intelligent, brave, and has an underlying strength that rallies support; she is also naive and cynical, occasionally acts without thinking, and is often vulnerable. She’s a dynamic character that inspires sympathy and the desire to follow her on any journey she undertakes. And she’s not the only one. Don’t get me started on Valek, the Commander’s chief of security, or, for that matter, on Ari and Janco, two of Yelena’s most vocal allies. Each individual that populates Ixia and Sitia was given Snyder’s undivided attention; all are multidimensional, adding something valuable to the exciting story lines in the Study series.

This time around, Yelena lives every day not knowing if it will be her last. Along the way she runs into magic and trouble - often both at the same time - and finds a family where she least expected to.

Even if you are not typically a fan of fantasy novels, this story just might appeal to you. There is magic involved, but there’s also intrigue, action, and suspense. I couldn’t turn the pages quickly enough and the hours I spent absorbed in Yelena’s world were more than pleasant. In fact, I was kicking myself (literally, had I been able to) for not having the next book within reaching distance. A mistake I remedied in short order. And so I moved on to Magic Study and once again fell under the Study series’ spell.

…About Magic Study
With her greatest enemy dead, and on her way to be reunited with the family she’d been stolen from long ago, Yelena should be pleased. But though she has gained her freedom, she can’t help feeling isolated in Sitia. Her Ixian background has changed her in many ways — and her newfound friends and relatives don’t think it’s for the better . . .

Despite the turmoil, she’s eager to start her magic training — especially as she’s been given one year to harness her power or be put to death. But her plans take a radical turn when she becomes involved with a plot to reclaim Ixia’s throne for a lost prince — and gets entangled in powerful rivalries with her fellow magicians.

If that wasn’t bad enough, it appears her brother would love to see her dead. Luckily, Yelena has some old friends to help her with all her new enemies . . .

Book two in the Study series, Magic Study, maintains the level of solid storytelling that took root in Poison Study while amping up the fantasy elements. Yelena makes her way to Sitia, the Southern territory known for its magicians, but the magic never overshadows the story. Because of events that unfolded in book one, this one is perhaps even more exciting, wrapping the reader up in the tale.

I can’t recommend this series highly enough. I love it so much that I refuse to read the third book, Fire Study, for awhile because I don’t want the magic to conclude any time soon.

Skeletons at the Feast by Chris Bohjalian

Like his other books, this novel is wonderfully descriptive both in plot and character. The subject matter is very depressing, and true to form, the author depicts a very real picture of the horror of living in Nazi Germany. The storyline starts with the characters of a Prussian family and Scottish POW who are fleeing Germany. They meet up with a Jewish refugee who disguises his ethnicity. A subplot of a group of Jewish women leaving a concentration camp with their tormentors eventually intertwines with the main plot. Like his other novels, the author manages a few unexpected twists and surprises. The gruesome details are a grim reminder of this horrific time in history.

The Nightrunner Series ~ Lynn Flewelling

Lynn Flewelling’s Nightrunner Series is a wonderful addition to the high fantasy/sword and sorcery genre. Though I came to the books late, I’ve found that it was in actuality an opportune time to meet Seregil and Alec as their adventures will continue this June with the fourth book in the series, Shadows Return, which comes to loyal readers after a nine year hiatus.

Luck in the Shadows, Book 1:

When young Alec of Kerry is taken prisoner for a crime he didn’t commit, he is certain that his life is at an end. But one thing he never expected was his cellmate. Spy, rogue, thief, and noble, Seregil of Rhiminee is many things–none of them predictable. And when he offers to take on Alec as his apprentice, things may never be the same for either of them. Soon Alec is traveling roads he never knew existed, toward a war he never suspected was brewing. Before long he and Seregil are embroiled in a sinister plot that runs deeper than either can imagine, and that may cost them far more than their lives if they fail. But fortune is as unpredictable as Alec’s new mentor, and this time there just might be…Luck in the Shadows.

A compelling introduction to all the important players, Luck in the Shadows draws on many tried and true traits of high fantasy while maintaining a fresh voice. Similar to Tolkien’s masterpiece, we find a fellowship forming in this first book, a group of four that will eventually be instrumental in stopping a great evil that would bring forth havoc and destruction if let loose.

There is plenty of action and intrigue in this installment to keep you reading into the night, and it’s ending, which finds no true resolution, will leave you wanting to pick up the next book as soon as possible.

Stalking Darkness, Book 2:

Seregil’s friend and Mentor, the wizard Nysander, has long been the guardian of a deadly secret. In a secret, silver-lined room hidden well beneath the Oreska, he has served for most of his 300 years as the keeper of a nondescript clay cup. But this cup, combined with a crystal crown and some wooden disks, forms the Helm of Seriamaius, and any mortal donning the reconstructed Helm will become the incarnation of the god on earth. Threatened under pain of death by Nysander to keep his quest a secret even from his loyal companion, Alec, Seregil is dispatched to find the last missing piece of the Helm so that he and Nysander can destroy it. But this is only the beginning of one of his deadliest journeys ever, for the prophecy also holds that four will come together in a time of darkness, and gradually all that Seregil values is placed at risk as he, Alec, Nysander and Micum are drawn into a deadly web of terror and intrigue.

Stalking Darkness further delves into the relationships that fortifies the depth of this series, enriching the reading experience, while forging an emotional connection to the characters that populate Flewelling’s fictitious world. While the books maintain a strong historical atmosphere, there is a definitive modern perspective that is at once rewarding and refreshing.

I’ve been holding off on the third book, Traitor’s Moon, so that I can read the fourth book on its heels, but I hope that Flewelling has plans to continue on with these characters. Weighing in at close to or over five hundred pages apiece, they provide hours of magic and action that you won’t soon forget.