Cahokia Jazz

 

Cahokia Jazz by Francis Spufford 464 pages

 

I love this novel so much that I am going to claim that it will be one of the must-reads of 2024!

 

What Amazon says:  Francis Spufford’s Cahokia Jazz inhabits a different version of America, now through the lens of a subtly altered 1920s—a fully imagined world full of fog, cigarette smoke, dubious motives, danger, dark deeds. And in the main character of Joe Barrow, we have a hero of truly epic proportions, a troubled soul to fall in love with as you are swept along by a propulsive and brilliantly twisty plot.

On a snowy night at the end of winter, Barrow and his partner find a body on the roof of a skyscraper. Down below, streetcar bells ring, factory whistles blow, Americans drink in speakeasies and dance to the tempo of modern times. But this is Cahokia, the ancient indigenous city beside the Mississippi living on as a teeming industrial metropolis, filled with people of every race and creed. Among them, peace holds. Just about. But that corpse on the roof will spark a week of drama in which this altered world will spill its secrets and be brought, against a soundtrack of jazz clarinets and wailing streetcars, either to destruction or rebirth.

 

What I thought of it: This novel has it all! I was captivated by the opening scene that sets a harrowing stage of what is to come to the heartbreaking last scene. Part alternate history, part noir thriller, part mythology legends, with science, jazz, crime, mob scenes and the KKK all thrown in to make a highly readable novel.

 

Cahokia Jazz is a complicated, complex, easy to follow and fabulous novel. Therefore, it receives 6 out of 5 stars in Julie’s world.

The Anomaly

“The Anomaly” by Herve Le Tellier (translated from the French by Adriana Hunter) 400 pages

This is the weirdest book I have ever read…and I’ve read some doozies over the year. It won France’s Prix Goncourt in 2020 (a prize in French literature, given by the académie Goncourt to the author of "the best and most imaginative prose work of the year"). 

First, let’s talk about why I wanted to read it. From the back cover: “…an international phenomenon, the dizzying whip-smart novel blends crime, fantasy, sci-fi, and thriller as it plumbs the mysteries surrounding a Paris-New York flight.” I knew it could get a little weird because of the fantasy/sci-fi aspect and I was willing to accept that, but, honestly, I expected a more traditionally plotted novel. I had only a vague overarching idea of what was happening as I was reading. But I was curious as to what the fuss is all about, so I read Every. Single. Word.  All the way to a bunch of gobbled-gook that ended with

                                                                         e

                                                                         n

                                                                        d 

 

Don’t ask me what that was about. 

The novel is broken into two parts. The first part is about a large group of characters and their lives are told in flashbacks as they hurtle through the air from Paris to New York. I think. They hit God-awful turbulence that had me feeling queasy myself.  The air-traffic controllers along the way begin to show panic about the flight which only added to the uneasiness of the flight. The plane does land safely in New York. Trouble is, that same flight, with the same crew, and the same passengers landed at JFK in March. But now it’s June. 

I think the reason that it was noticed has something to do with the pilot, but I’m not really sure. The plane is diverted to a hanger where it and passengers and crew are held as the government tries to determine what the heck has happened. Can you hear the “Twilight Zone” theme playing in the background? 

It is determined that everything about this flight is identical. The passengers even have the exact same DNA, the exact same memories and the exact same physical. The second half of the book is about the passengers from the March flight meeting those who just arrived on the June flight. Government officials take to substituting the passenger’s last name with either March or June so they were easily identifiable. 

Unfortunately there is no viable conclusion to this work, and it sort of tapers off. I don’t even know how to rate this novel. Therefore, I’ll go to the middle of the rating system and give “The Anomaly” 3 out of 5 stars in Julie’s world. 

 

 

The Whole Art of Detection

The Whole Art of Detection: Lost Mysteries of Sherlock Holmes by Lyndsay Faye  352 pages

Great new Sherlock Holmes and his pal Dr. John Watson adventures.  lindsay Faye became a fan of Holmes when she was ten and began writing her own Holmes and Watson adventures.   She does an excellent job.   The stories are interesting and capture the flavor of the times they are set in and an excellent nod to Sir Arthur Coan Doyle and his iconic Sherlock Holmes character.   Well done Lyndsay Faye.   Holmes fans will love it.  I highly recommend this book for mystery loves and Holmes fans. 

The Body at the Tower

The Body at the Tower by Y. S. Lee   337 pages

From Goodreads:

Now nearly a full-fledged member of the Agency, the all-female detective unit operating out of Miss Scrimshaw's Academy for Girls, Mary Quinn is back for another action-packed adventure. Disguised as a poor apprentice builder and a boy, she must brave the grimy underbelly of Victorian London - as well as childhood fear, hunger, and constant want - to unmask the identity of a murderer. Assigned to monitor a building site on the clock tower of the Houses of Parliament, Mary earns the confidence of the work crew, inching ever nearer her suspect. But if an irresistible desire to help the city's needy doesn't distract her and jeopardize her cover, unexpectedly meeting up with an old friend - or flame - just might.

My Review:

It's been a long time since I read the first book in the series, and some references too that book in this one went over my head (but I blame myself for that), but I still remembered the sense I got while reading that first book that I really liked this world Lee has built. It's no different with this second installment of the Mary Quinn series.

Overall, if you're just picking this book up the action is slow to build, the story is revealed in fits and stars because Lee takes a good portion of time building the world of Victorian London for you, the reader who is not familiar with this time period, to enjoy. I don't mind this as I enjoy the characters and Lee's writing, but someone who only likes to read fast-paced mysteries will probably find this book boring. I think it's worth sticking it out, because who kno
ws, the next book might be different.

American Street

American Street by Ibi Zoboi     324 pages

From Goodreads:

On the corner of American Street and Joy Road, Fabiola Toussaint thought she would finally find une belle vie—a good life.

But after they leave Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Fabiola’s mother is detained by U.S. immigration, leaving Fabiola to navigate her loud American cousins, Chantal, Donna, and Princess; the grittiness of Detroit’s west side; a new school; and a surprising romance, all on her own.

Just as she finds her footing in this strange new world, a dangerous proposition presents itself, and Fabiola soon realizes that freedom comes at a cost. Trapped at the crossroads of an impossible choice, will she pay the price for the American dream? 

Wow, this book really packs a punch! I did not have any idea the book would end up where it did. Zoboi does an excellent job of slowly building tension, of taking a single issue and branching it out, weaving it into a network of issues so tangled that you, the reader, can't imagine what the best path would be to take. You can only sit back and hope that Fabiola makes it out okay, and preferably gets her mother back. The writing is excellent, every character with strong, distinct voices creating a tightly woven fabric of family, because, after all, it's what you you do for fam.

I cannot say I enjoyed reading this book because it was so sad. I don't like reading sad books. But it's an important look into immigrant life in America, and of a particular city that has suffered much at the hands of gentrification. Fabiola's story is powerful, evocative, and it demands reading.

A Spark of Light

A Spark of Light by Jodi Picoult     352 pages

The warm fall day starts like any other at the Center—a women’s reproductive health services clinic—its staff offering care to anyone who passes through its doors. Then, in late morning, a desperate and distraught gunman bursts in and opens fire, taking all inside hostage.

After rushing to the scene, Hugh McElroy, a police hostage negotiator, sets up a perimeter and begins making a plan to communicate with the gunman. As his phone vibrates with incoming text messages he glances at it and, to his horror, finds out that his fifteen-year-old daughter, Wren, is inside the clinic.

But Wren is not alone. She will share the next and tensest few hours of her young life with a cast of unforgettable characters: A nurse who calms her own panic in order save the life of a wounded woman. A doctor who does his work not in spite of his faith but because of it, and who will find that faith tested as never before. A pro-life protester disguised as a patient, who now stands in the cross hairs of the same rage she herself has felt. A young woman who has come to terminate her pregnancy. And the disturbed individual himself, vowing to be heard.

This was a fascinating story, and well crafted, as it weaves together the stories of several lives as they intersect on one particular day at a woman's reproductive health clinic.

Some are there to get an abortion, some are there to get the pill, some are there because they work there, they are the abortion doctor, or that is where they receive they're gynecological exams. Whatever the reason, on this fateful day all their lives are thrown together when an anti-abortion activist starts shooting.

This story was a bit difficult to follow, at first, as it traces the story backwards. Immediately you're thrust into the story, amongst the hostages, the negotiator, and the gunman. It's always difficult for me when a story jumps back and forth between perspec

tives, and this story followed ten different people, and it jumped rather frequently.

The thing that Picoult is so skilled at is revealing the story, bit by bit, until all the pieces begin to come together, finally, into a whole, at the very end. And when you finally get a major reveal you've been waiting for the whole time you've been reading, often you end up making some audible sound, like a gasp, because you just didn't see it coming. At least, that's how it was for me, though not as strongly this time, as I predicted the sort-of big reveal before it happened, though not until I was at least half-way done.

The parts I loved about this story were the different character's stories and how they all fit together to tell this overarching story about abortion from all sides. Going into this story, you might just think it's a pro-live vs. pro-choice struggle. But there are so many facets that make up the abortion discussion, that aren't as often brought up. Picoult makes sure to touch them all. I learned so much just reading this book - and I highly recommend reading Picoult's "Author's Note," as well, where she speaks personally about her thoughts on abortion.

That being said, what kept this from being higher rated for me were the numerous times that this story felt less like a story and more like a "covering all the bases" blanket statement about abortion. As much as I appreciated all the information about abortion, sometimes the story element was lacking and a character became a mouth-piece to tell me a specific fact or point of view about abortion rather than me feeling link this was something heart-felt by that character. This story is definitely coming in at a time where these kinds of discussions are raging and abortion is painting a wide swath in a political landscape. This notion unfortunately colors my enjoyment of the story, a bit, as it feels like a PSA rather than a story.

But otherwise, I really felt like this was well done and is definitely up there in my list of favorite Picoult books. I would definitely recommend it to anyone because perspective is necessary when it comes to topics like these. Empathy is an amazing eye-opener, and getting an idea of what someone facing such a choice might be thinking or feeling or even knowing what their life is like is important and humanizing, a point that Picoult is emphasizing, underlining, and exclaiming with every word. So read it.

The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle

The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle by Stuart Turton     521 pages

At a gala party thrown by her parents, Evelyn Hardcastle will be killed--again. She's been murdered hundreds of times, and each day, Aiden Bishop is too late to save her. Doomed to repeat the same day over and over, Aiden's only escape is to solve Evelyn Hardcastle's murder and conquer the shadows of an enemy he struggles to even comprehend--but nothing and no one are quite what they seem.

This book was amazing. I was immediately hooked, the writing was so brilliant. I didn't want the book to end, and at the same time I wanted to get to the end so I could solve the mystery. It was everything I wanted it to be and I am so, so glad this book exists. I'll definitely be reading it, recommending it to all my friends and anyone I meet because IT. IS. A-MAZING.

If you love mystery/thrillers - this is for you. If you love Agatha Christie - this book is for you. If you love puzzles, twists, or being kept on your toes - this book is for you. If you like time travel or "Groundhog Day"-esq tropes - THIS BOOK IS FOR YOU!

The Hate U Give

The Hate You Give by Angie Thomas     444 pages

Sixteen-year-old Starr Carter moves between two worlds: the poor neighborhood where she lives and the fancy suburban prep school she attends. The uneasy balance between these worlds is shattered when Starr witnesses the fatal shooting of her childhood best friend Khalil at the hands of a police officer. Khalil was unarmed.

Soon afterward, his death is a national headline. Some are calling him a thug, maybe even a drug dealer and a gangbanger. Protesters are taking to the streets in Khalil's name. Some cops and the local drug lord try to intimidate Starr and her family. What everyone wants to know is: what really went down that night? And the only person alive who can answer that is Starr.

But what Starr does or does not say could upend her community. It could also endanger her life.

This is a read that reflects the troubles of our modern times, including racial profiling, injustice, and police brutality. It was a hard read, but I am glad I did read this book. It's important to understand and to reflect on the words of those closest to these troubles, to listen and to think of ways to be a part of the solution, not the problem.

I think teens will get the most out of this novel - it speaks with a teen voice and the characters people-ing it are mostly teens. This is there story and it is a powerful one.

I think for her first novel, Thomas did very well. The story is compelling, its characters are well-rounded people who feel like they could be out in the world, living there lives right now. I appreciate that the story ends on a hopeful note, even as it challenges the reader to continue to fight: your voice is your weapon - use your weapon.

I listened to the audiobook of this story and it is read well. I very much enjoyed listening to it.

X

X by Ilyasah Shabazz     348 pages

Cowritten by Malcolm X's daughter, this riveting and revealing novel follows the formative years of the man whose words and actions shook the world.

X follows Malcolm from his childhood to his imprisonment for theft at age twenty, when he found the faith that would lead him to forge a new path and command a voice that still resonates today.

This book paints a stark picture of Malcolm X's young adult life. It delves deeply into his troubled youth, touching on drug-abuse, hustling, and a variety of money-scheming crimes that eventually land him in jail. Not knowing much about Malcolm X's early life, I'd say this book certainly doesn't paint him in a good light until the final chapter. Most of the book feels like a deep descent into darkness and you wait for the shoe to drop, except it doesn't - until the very end. This book is targeted at a teen audience, but it would be difficult for me to suggest this book to just any teen - it is certainly geared for a teen who likes historical fiction and who really wants to see Malcolm X through his life as a young adult - there are very adult themes in this book, including, as mentioned before, drug-abuse, hustling, crime, sex, alcohol, and foul language (including the n-word). It's deep stuff, and it certainly is a cautionary tale, not a story for light reading or for a general curiosity in Malcolm X's biography. The writing is very well done, but the story doesn't feel like a story (it feels plot-less for most of the book and the ending is rushed and wrapped up clumsily). It's not a book I will re-read, but I can say that it wasn't a waste of my time to read this book. Perhaps reading Malcolm X's autobiography would be, in some ways, a better option, though.

The Window

The Window by Amelia Brunskill     338 pages

Anna is everything her identical twin is not. Outgoing and athletic, she is the opposite of quiet introvert Jess. The same on the outside, yet so completely different inside--it's hard to believe the girls are sisters, let alone twins. But they are. And they tell each other everything.

Or so Jess thought.

After Anna falls to her death while sneaking out her bedroom window, Jess's life begins to unravel. Everyone says it was an accident, but to Jess, that doesn't add up. Where was Anna going? Who was she meeting? And how long had Anna been lying to her?

Jess is compelled to learn everything she can about the sister she thought she knew. At first it's a way to stay busy and find closure . . . but Jess soon discovers that her twin kept a lot of secrets. And as she digs deeper, she learns that the answers she's looking for may be truths that no one wants her to uncover.

Because Anna wasn't the only one with secrets

The premise of this story is what got me to read it - a twin dies, the living twin is sure it wasn't the accident everyone thinks it was, she goes on a stealthy detective quest to find the answers to her sister's death. Do I think that the book played this out realistically? Yes and no. I can believe Jess wanting to get to the bottom of things, especially since she has come to the realization that there were huge secrets that her sister kept from her. What I don't understand is how easily her parents went along with the accident idea, especially since this was out of character behavior for their daughter. I don't know, maybe I've watched to many crime shows where parents are always determined to know the exact reasons behind what happened to their children. This was not the case in this book.

I also didn't like how there was lots of hints brought up about how Jess was the "messed-up" twin, that she went to therapy as a child, and lots of lines were given about how she couldn't stand to be touched. I'll give the main example my confusion about Jess's character: "they'd always remember the time when someone bumped against you in the grocery store and you screamed and screamed, or how, back in kindergarten, the teacher's aide had to come with you to the bathroom so you didn't spend thirty minutes washing your hands," (p. 14). This is just dropped into the story and is never discussed again. Jess appears to have some serious mental problems, but throughout the story, the closest the author comes to reinforcing this idea is to mention how Jess doesn't like to be touched - and yet she overcomes this fairly easily at one point in the story, with no negative repercussions or thoughts. I guess I'm just confused about what the point of bringing up Jess's past issues has to do with her character, if it doesn't seem like she has these problems currently.

Lastly, it bothered me how non-teen-like the majority of the characters are. It surprised me that Anna could end up keeping so much a secret from Jess, especially since they are twins and Jess is so oblivious, believing that they have no secrets, that she had absolutely no idea that her sister had this secret other life.

Aside from all that, I did not expect the twist at the end, so hats off to Brunskill. I enjoyed the slow build of Jess's investigation. I thought, aside from the weird health inconsistencies, that Jess's character felt very real - her grief, her determination, her fierce love for her sister. She was a good narrator and I enjoyed her perspective. I feel this would make a good mini-series or movie, because the tone of it is very melancholic, but has moments of beauty and suspense wrapped up in it. I could easily picture it in my head as I was reading. So, I gave it three out of five stars. It was a good read, I enjoyed my time with this book, and I don't regret picking it up. Just a little let down by the execution. I'd recommend it to anyone looking for a suspenseful teen mystery. 

Shouldn't You Be In School?

Shouldn't You Be In School? by Lemony Snicket     325 pages

Young Lemony Snicket investigates a rash of fires that have plagued the town of Stain'd-by-the-Sea, revealing secrets that involve the Department of Education and the notorious villain Hangfire.

This is my least favorite book, so far, in the series. It's still well written, the characters are still great, developing further, a few new characters that are interesting, but the storyline, I feel, is weaker. I do like the introduction of a fragmentary plan that Snicket introduces - it is a great example of V.F.D itself, and I like certain portions of the story, especially reading about Snicket's clear adoration of food. 

But the humor was there to a lesser degree and this portion of the slowly building plot to catch Hangfire is not as enjoyable in this one. Maybe because there's more Ellington Feint than I'd like (as she's my least favorite character). But whatever the case, still good, just not as good as the other books in the series. I'm looking forward to seeing how Snicket will wrap it all up in the last installment.

Gangsterland

Gangsterland by Tod Goldberg           Audio Book:  10 hours, 30 mins      Hardback Book:  464 pages                      

I love this series.   I read, “Gangster Nation,” the second book in the series first and loved it so much I had to get the first book and read it.   EXCELLENT!    If you are a fan of, “Goodfellas,”, “The Godfather,”   “Casino” or any of the books or films regarding mobsters/gangsters  then this book is absolutely for you.     The main character, Sal Cupertine is a hitman for the mob with killing skills like you wouldn’t believe and without giving too much away I will say that there were a number of Feds exterminated in a hotel and Sal Cupertine had to disappear fast.   More of the tale details the intricacies of making a person diappear and it involves Missouri as one of the jump-offs.    After reading that chapter you will never look at a Big Mac the same way, but, the book is a terrific story and the characters that come and go (sometimes the hard way) are great.    Long story short Sal Cupertine goes underground off the radar and Rabbi David Cohen appears.    If you are at all squeamish you might want to rapidly page through some of the more graphic stuff and there is a lot of it, but, if you find that whole Mafioso factor intriguing you will absolutely LOVE this series.   It is so well written – it is a rush.   So well put together how everything connects and all the amazing ways bodies are “distributed,” and the way unlikely businesses come into play in various ways to make the process so linear – it is like a piece of perfect art – so many facets blended together you don’t see the rough edges only the smooth outcome of the crafter.    And if there is a tic something a little off, immediately kick to plan B and things still go off like clockwork.    It is a thing of beauty even if there are a lot of bodies left behind.   And you learn so much along the way.    This author has really done some extensive research on the real crime families in the U.S.,  the business end of remaining low-key while still continuing the “family” business and how those businesses have melded to meet the times and adapt over the years and the medical descriptions of things done and where and how the body reacts.    You will be so engaged in this story you literally will not want to put this book down.   It is that good.   This series should definetly be made into a film and  t.v. show with a big budget.   Fantastic.

Crooked Kingdom

Crooked Kingdom by Leigh Bardugo     536 pages

The Six of Crows team is back, this time, double-crossed and fighting for their lives, they attempt to pull off one last heist to gain back what they were promised. The crew faces steep odds and must rely on their varied strengths as the fight, not only for themselves but also the world, to destroy the secret to making jurda parem and maybe gain the lives they've always wanted.

This was a disappointing end to a very cool duology. I don't even know why I thought I could trust Bardugo after the way her last series ended. I am 100% done with her. If you can't come up with a plausible reason why my favorite character has to die, then you can't be trusted.

This story was interesting - not as well crafted as the first installment - but then she had to go and ruin it. I was right in my assumption - she loves neat, put together relationships. Each of the six paired up nicely. In this way, the characters are laughably basic YA stock characters, which is a shame, because, really, in all other respects, (with the exception of Wylan, and sometimes Jesper, who truly bored me), they were complex, well thought out characters. 

And, ultimately, I can't forgive Bardugo, EVER, for killing my favorite character (and needlessly, at that). I'm sorry. I just can't. And I vow to never let Bardugo to do this to me again. This is the end.

Six of Crows

Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo     465 pages

Set in the Grisha verse, Bardugo's story involves a heist, the highest stakes, and six very different people to pull it off. The job is to break into one of the most secure prisons in the world and rescue a certain prisoner, who holds the key to creating the worlds most dangerous drug for Grisha. Though very different from each other, each of the six main characters offers a special skill that will allow the group to potentially succeed in this mission. The stakes are high but the price is right.

Better and more interesting main characters than Bardugo's previous series. I'm glad to see the Grisha verse again, and finally with characters that are actually interesting and that I care about from Bardugo (thank goodness there are no Alina and Mal look-alikes in this book). 

The story is well crafted, the heist is exciting, the components all fit together nicely and Bardugo uses multiple pov to great effect in this area. The heist elements are nicely pared with the Grisha world and the stakes seemed real and important.

I guess my only hang up is that there are six main characters and, from what I can see, there will be six neat little pairs by the end of this series. I can understand one, maybe two bonds being formed amongst this group, but for all six of them to wind up in relationships seems so far-fetched and silly, but I guess I should expect it from Bardugo because she really likes nice, tidy romance endings. The pairing I find least believable is the one that seems to be forming between Jesper and Wylan. Their flirting feels a bit clumsy and last minute, but I guess Bardugo chose to have three couples rather than one solid couple and a love triangle. 

We'll see how things shake out in the next book, but I feel like this particular installment is very strong and I'd hate to see this short series go the way of Bardugo's previous series and fumble in the ending.

A Distant Heart

A Distant Heart by Sonali Dev     352 pages

Her name means “miracle” in Sanskrit, and to her parents, that’s exactly what Kimaya is. The first baby to survive after several miscarriages, Kimi grows up in a mansion at the top of Mumbai’s Pali Hill, surrounded by love and privilege. But at eleven years old, she develops a rare illness that requires her to be confined to a germ-free ivory tower in her home, with only the Arabian Sea churning outside her window for company. . . . Until one person dares venture into her world.

Tasked at fourteen-years-old with supporting his family, Rahul Savant shows up to wash Kimi’s windows, and an unlikely friendship develops across the plastic curtain of her isolation room. As years pass, Rahul becomes Kimi’s eyes to the outside world—and she becomes his inspiration to better himself by enrolling in the police force. But when a life-saving heart transplant offers the chance of a real future, both must face all that ties them together and keeps them apart.

In reality, I'd give this 2 1/2 stars. It was okay. As far as romances go, this was just barely one. For most of the book the two leads infuriatingly danced the "will they/won't they" while all the while being either oblivious or infuriatingly misunderstanding everything. 

So, the formatting of this book, with two chapters spent in the present, one from each of the main character perspectives, then two chapters set in the past, one each from the main character perspectives, is very tiring. It slows the advancement of the story way down. And the past seems almost no different from the present - it's just full of examples of how Kimi and Rahul continuously get angry/sad/hurt by each other's actions then make up because they're such! good! friends! Well, the present is more of the angry/sad/hurt brooding, with little to no talking about their feelings and a lot of internal monologues about how "this time, it's for real, I won't be in love with them anymore. I've drawn my line in the sand and I need to stop looking/touching/thinking about them." As a reader, you have to wade through all the "past" chapters to find out what it is "this time," that has them at odds with each other. The only reason why I wanted to finish this book was because I wanted to know what that reason was. It was as expected. Very cliched, to say the least about it.

At Bertram's Hotel

At Bertram's Hotel by Agatha Christie     272 pages

At Bertram's Hotel the intrepid Miss Marple, on holiday in London, must solve a deadly mystery at the end of a chain of very violent events.

An old-fashioned London hotel is not quite as reputable as it makes out to be....

A fun little mystery, but I didn't quite like it as much as I've liked some of the other Miss Marple books. In this one, Miss Marple is very much a periphery character, and isn't much involved in the solving of this mystery as the constable Davy. However, I always enjoy Christie's writing and her deft handling of atmosphere and suspense.

30 Red Dresses

30 Red Dresses by Johan Twiss   152 pages

Today is Veata’s eighth birthday. She hopes that her uncle remembers. Instead he sells her.

Across town, American author James Moore is on a book tour in Cambodia. He’s wildly famous there and has just finished a five-hour book signing appearance. After the event, he just wants to go to bed. Instead of taking him back to his hotel, his translator, Munny, takes him on an insider’s tour of Phnom Penh. A sudden downpour drenches him and Munny.

As hail begins to pummel the two men, who are on foot, they try to open any door along the alley they are in. When they finally find one that opens, they are some rather dangerous looking dudes inside. They want money for the two men to enter.

While they are making their way through the building, a loud roar begins to shake the walls and the floor. It’s not an earthquake. Then James realizes what it is; the new dam has burst and a wall of water is heading their way.

The water soon starts to rise rapidly. They head up the stairs, trying to race the rapidly rising waters, while trying to stay out of the way of the snake and rats that are also desperate to escape.

Saving others trapped in the building, the two men finally make it to the roof, where they find thirty women in identical red dresses, cowering near the ledge. Veata is one of those irls and one of the youngest.

James knows he must save them---from the flood and from the life they have been forced to live.

The first five chapters are harrowing. After that, the pacing slows down and the plot becomes stale and expected. Still, I was interested in what fate would be allotted to the girls, James, and Munny.

The story ends on a happy note, which was rather disappointing. I was hoping for a more realistic ending. After the end of the story, there is a short story that takes place eight years later when Venata turns sixteen. I found that confusing and awkward. Why not call it an Epilogue?

30 Red Dresses gets 3 out of 5 stars in Julie’s world.

National Geographic Kids Weird But True! Stupid Criminals

National Geographic Kids Weird But True!  Stupid Criminals            Paperback Book:  169 pages                

The illustrations alone are worth checking out every page in this book.    Similar to local St. Louis artist Julie Heller’s work, (check her out she is wonderful!) each page has an illustration created from a collage that is as entertaining as the incidents related throughout the book.    Funny, laugh out loud at times stuff here.   What were these folks thinking?   Like the crims. Who break in places then stay to cook themselves a meal or take a nap there after all their hard work plundering their victims digs or business.     Or the bank robbers who’s handwriting is so bad the teller can’t read it so the perp.  re-writes it during which time the teller has now hit the silent alarm and by the time the perpetrator hands her back the rewritten note, the policeperson standing behind the perp has the handcuffs out and ready to put on.   One ex-con liked his orange jump suit from prison so much that when he was released he wore it out under his clothes and preceded to wear it around town which caused a stir of the local residents who promptly called the police thinking he was an escapee.   Turns out he went back to jail for theft of the prison jumpsuit.    And you wouldn’t believe how many thieves end up inadvertently leaving their wallets or cellphones behind at the scene of the crime and are caught that way.   Or how about the perps. who steal vehicles then report them missing when someone else steals them from the original perp!    Perpetrators have gotten stuck in chimneys, drain pipes,  one ran away into a forest with police on his tail only to be surrounded by wild boars that left him screaming for help from the police.   On bank robber remembered his disguise, his gloves so as not to leave fingerprints and his note reading, “You know what to do!”  But when the teller asked him if he had a bag to carry the money away in, he was so depressed that he forgot that detail that he just walked away and left the building even though the teller was trying to find something to put it in for him.   Gotta love these stories, even criminals have bad days (in addition to going to jail).   So funny!

Swan Deception

 Swan Deception  by Glede Browne Kabongo    411 pages

Dr. Shelby Cooper is a scientist in the field of bioinformatics. I never did understand what that is, but fortunately, in this novel that is not an issue. It’s what Shelby does, not who she is. She is a wife to Jason, a mother to Abbie and Miles, and a best friend to Vivian, but unfortunately, she is also Alessandro’s mistress. And that’s not the only secret she’s trying to keep.

Shelby has a past that no one, except Vivian, knows about and she has perfected the lies that keep is buried way down deep.  But a mysterious stalker soon enters the picture, killing Alessandro and setting Shelby up to take the rap. And it all starts innocently enough when she is pulled over for a broken taillight.

Browne Kabongo does an excellent job in keeping the reader off balance, pretty sure of what’s going on, but not one hundred percent confident that what they are reading is the truth…or even a facsimile what they think is happening.

The screws around the deconstruction of Shelby’s life get tighter and tighter with every page. However the novel is not without its flaws. The first 178 pages have a tense problem. I t drove me nuts, but not enough to stop reading, which is an indication of how well Browne Kabongo tells a story.

Another issue is when the identity of the stalker is finally revealed, it doesn’t seem possible. If there had been more of an explanation, I probably would have bought it, but without one, I felt setup and cheated.

Then there is bombshell that Browne Kabongo drops at the very end that really ticked me off.  There was a unresolved thread that lurked, but as I got closer and closer to the end, I was willing to let it go, figuring it would be explained in a follow-up novel. There is no foreshadowing of that tidbit of information, which added to my irritation.

So, I guess you can say that this review is full of mixed emotions. Browne Kabongo obviously has talent and can write, but she needs a good editor. For this reason, Swan Deception receives 3 out of 5 stars in Julie’s world.

Lovemurder

Lovemurder by Saul Black.  345 pages

San Francisco homicide detective Valerie Hart is planning a rare weekend away from the job when she gets the call: a woman has been found brutally murdered. If that's not enough, there's also a note on the body addressed to Valerie.

And thus begins Valerie's quest to discover who is murdering women and leaving her clues with each body, taking her back to a woman named Katherine Glass who is awaiting execution for a series of gruesome murders, and who is in prison because Valerie put her there. While the last thing Valerie wants to do is talk to Katherine, it's necessary because the clues on the bodies give her no choice. Katherine holds the key to the killings and Valerie needs to find out what she knows before more women die . . . and before the murders come even closer to home.

This is the second book from this author that features homicide detective Valerie Hart. I picked up this book as a galley (it comes out in July, 2017) and had not read the first book. However, I didn't have any trouble getting in to the book or really understanding the characters. This story starts with a crime and then the tension just keeps ramping up. I found the main characters to be interesting, although at times, the sexual violence was a bit much. I don't know if I'd want to go back and read the first book with Valerie Hart or not, but this was a good read and definitely held my interest.