Totally Psychic

Totally Psychic by Brigid Martin 320 pages

 

Paloma Ferrer is twelve years old. Her world has been turned upside down with an abrupt

 move from Miami to Los Angeles for her father’s job. She hates being taken away from her abuela (grandmother) and the rest of her large Cuban family. S

 

Her abuela is a famous psychic, that is more popular than any movie star. She cannot go anywhere where people do not recognize her (think “The Long Island Medium” Theresa Caputo). Paloma cannot wait to go to develop her “gift” and go on tour with Abuela.

 

Life is tough for a new tween in a new school. She easily makes new friends. Since her mother has rejected her psychic gift and insists that Paloma abandon her gifts. Then Paloma has a brilliant idea: To start a podcast to host seances at school. By accident, she rips a hole in the spiritual portal, leaving her with supernatural mess to clean up that is often comical.

 

I loved this book with the exception of one thing. When Paloma used Spanish words, I either had to figure them out in context (not hard to do in this book) or Google them.  I wish there had been a glossary, but I probably learned more without it.

 

Totally Psychic gets 4 out of 5 stars in Julie’s world.

The Wishing Bridge

The Wishing Bridge by Viola Shipman 368 pages

 

When Henrietta “Henri” Wegner was a child, she and her parents lived with grandparents. Her father started a small handmade Christmas business in the basement. It was his dream to own a store that celebrated Christmas all year long.

 

Fast forward a few decades. In Detroit, Henri is now 52 years old and a hotshot with a mergers and acquisitions corporate giant, Tolliver & Co. Their goal is to go after small businesses and sell them to larger companies. When the owner of Tolliver’s has a massive heart attack, his son, Benji, takes over.

 

It’s been a rough couple of years for Henri because she could not meet her goals. Henri sees the writing on the wall, the new kids coming in are hungrier, greedier, and less caring than ever before. They do not mind tearing people’s lives apart.

 

In desperation, Henri promises that she can get her parents to sell their store, Wegner’s, before Christmas. If she doesn’t come through, Benji will fire her in the new year. So, Henri heads back to Frankenmuth, Michigan, her hometown, to convince her parents to sell.

 

Wegner’s has indeed become the Christmas store capital of the world. Visitors come by the busload all year to enjoy the handcrafted items and experience the Hallmark-like-town Bavarian town.

 

When Henri arrives, memories flood back, and as the season progresses, she’s finding it harder and harder to discuss the store sale with her parents. Benji, the spoiled brat that he is, bullies her with texts about losing. And to top it off, her high school sweetheart, the one who proposed to her, is also back in Frankenmuth after a divorce.

 

I love Viola Shipman’s novels. They speak to a woman’s heart. This one was not as good as his other novels*, but I can’t put my finger on what the problem is. I do think that “The Wishing Bridge” would make a wonderful Hallmark movie.

 

The Wishing Bridge gets 4 out of 5 stars in Julie’s world.

 

*In case you didn’t know, Shipman is the pseudonym of Wade Rouse. It was his grandmother’s name.

 

The Fiction Writer

The Fiction Writer by Jullian Cantor 304 pages

 

Sometimes you just shouldn’t mess with the original. Olivia Fitzgerald’s first novel was a massive success. Her second, a retelling of Daphne du Maurier’s “Rebecca,” (titled “Becky”) was not. It flopped. Big time. “Last night I dreamt I went to Malibu again” just doesn’t have the same sinister overtones as the original sentence, “Last night I dreamt I went to Manderley again.”

 

When I read author Cantor’s first line, I almost put it down. Then I remembered that this story is about a contemporary re-telling, and a re-telling itself, of du Maurier’s classic novel. With that in mind, I plunged ahead.

 

Olivia’s having a bad year. “Becky” was a disaster, her boyfriend of nine years dumped her, and she has no clue what her next book will be about, if anything. Even her agent doesn’t want to talk with her. But he does call with a lucrative ghost-writing offer.

 

“Henry ‘Ash’ Asherwood, a reclusive mega billionaire, twice named People’s Sexiest Man Alive,” wants to hire her, for $50,000, to ghost-write a book for him. He simply adored “Becky.
It seems, according to Ash, that there is a connection between du Maurier and his grandmother and a salacious claim. He insists that Daphne stole his grandmother’s manuscript and published it, the manuscript that became known as “Rebecca.”

 

At first, Olivia doesn’t want the gig, but her curiosity gets the best of her, and she hops on a plane for California. When she arrives in the land of the rich, famous, and beautiful, she is treated like royalty, but Ash never seems to want to get to work on the book. First, he claims the story and proof are in his grandmother’s journals, which he has sent out to be translated from their original French.

 

That is the first lie that Ash tells her about the journals. Again, Olivia’s curiosity gets the best of her, and she starts researching Ash’s grandmother and wives. She cannot find a trace of them anywhere online.

 

Sometimes it is hard to keep up with what is happening, and the people in Ash’s life. The housekeeper was also a bridesmaid from his marriage to Angelica; the discovery of Rose, the third Mrs. Ashwood; the fire at Malibu Lake, eerily reminiscent of the fire at Manderley. And much more.

 

Taut, tense, and creepy, “The Fiction Writer” is a perfect read for a stormy afternoon. The Fiction Writer gets 5 out of 5 stars in Julie’s world.

 

Long Way Home

Long Way Home by Lynn Austin 400 pages

 

This is a story of the Greatest Generation---both on the war front and the home front. Most of the men who fought never talked about their experiences. Through a dual narrative, we get to explore how two men suffered from battle fatigue, or as we know it, PTSD and one woman’s fight to stay alive and find her love.

 

Hudson Valley, New York. Jimmy Barnett is not the same person he was when he came home from the Europe theater. Before, he was outgoing, funny, handsome and had plans to be a veterinary like his father. Now, in 1946, he just sits on his bed and stares out the window. No one seems to be able to help him find his way back home. When he attempts suicide, his parents check him into the nearest VA hospital, an hours away where they can only visit him once a week.

 

Motherless Peggy Serrano lives across the road. Her father is a mechanic and doesn’t pay much attention to her, especially since he has a new live-in girlfriend, Donna. Peggy helps Mr. Bennett in his practice and has a special touch. She is so excited when Jimmy comes home, but so sad when the old Jimmy is gone.

 

All three think the arrival of an old Army buddy, Sam, will help bring Jimmy around. But the physically wounded Sam may as well be invisible. However, Sam finds comfort in the Serrano and Bennett families. He shows up, and when his own battle fatigue gets too much, he takes off on his motorcycle.

 

At the VA hospital, Jimmy goes through some awful treatments, like an insulin coma and electric shock therapy. Then Peggy gets an idea: maybe if she could find more of Jimmy’s Army pals, knowing how much Jimmy helped them (he was a medic), that might bring him around. As Peggy is rooting around in Jimmy’s duffel bag, looking for clues, she discovers a picture of a beautiful woman with only the name Gisela written on the back. Could she be the key to unlocking Jimmy’s mind?

 

Berlin, Germany, 1938. Gisela Wolff and her family know it is time to leave Germany. Her father has worked hard to obtain the visas and passports that will allow her family to flee the Nazis. They board the luxury liner, SS St. Louis, and head for Cuba. Cuba denies the 900 Jewish passengers’ entry. The ship then tries to enter America, but again they are turned away (true story) and sent back to Europe.

 

One bright light in Gisela’s light is the young man she meets about the boat, Sam Shaprio. The two quickly fall deeply in love. They are separated and Gisela must make her way through the war. She ultimately winds up in one of the concentration camps.

 

Don’t want any spoilers, so I better stop now. However, grab your hankies, ‘cause when Jimmy and Gisela’s stories converge, you’re gonna need them.

 

Long Way Home gets 6 out of 5 stars in Julie’s world.

 

If the Tide Turns

If the Tide Turns by Rachel Rueckert 384 pages  

When Kensington Books asked me to write a blurb for Rachel Rueckert’s debut novel, I jumped at the opportunity. Although I don’t read many romance novels, I do enjoy stories that take place in or near the water. The feel of the salty breeze and the mist stinging your face---that sort of thing. Set during the waning days of the Golden Age of Pirates (1689-1718; who knew there was such a thing?), If the Tide Turns is the “captivating true story of real-life pirate Samuel Bellamy, combining high seas adventure, star-crossed longing, surprisingly timely questions about social justice and freedom, and the emotionally satisfying tale of one strong-willed young woman determined to choose her own path.”

This is the blurb I wrote: “Two lovers, separated by their stations in life, fight their way back to each other’s arms. On land and on the sea, Sam and Maria overcome the hardships of the mid-1700s. Rueckert’s new novel is a tale of daring, courage, aching loneliness and two people willing to face any obstacles to be together.”

 

It’s 1715 in Eastham, Massachusetts. Maria Brown is the beautiful, hard-headed daughter of a wealthy family who has arranged a marriage for her. She doesn’t want any part of the much older (shall we just say old?), also wealthy and abusive John Hallett.

 

Maria has her heart set on a young, orphaned sailor, Sam Bellamy. They met as Sam had been laid-off (yes, laid-off from his previous ship when it docked and no longer needed his services) and searched for another ship. The two are drawn together. Sam to Maria for her beauty and her self-determination. Maria to Sam for his idealistic opinions. The two are smitten with each other. Sam wants to marry her, but her father forbids it, in fact banishing him from their home. Maria, characteristically, vows to wait for him, to wait until he can make his fortune and offer everything her father deems, she should have.

 

Eager for success, Sam becomes involved with a pirate ship. But Sam isn’t your ordinary run-of-the-mill pirate. He is only interested in taking other ships’ bounties, not lives nor ships. His reputation as a “nice” pirate precedes him.

 

Maria leaves home, bent on following him from port to port. It’s a dangerous path she has chosen--- a woman traveling alone.

 

If the Tide Turns has all the aspects of a swashbuckling delightful read as Sam and Maria fight for their love. If the Tide Turns gets 6 out of 5 stars in Julie’s world.

The Good, the Bad and the Aunties

 The Good, The Bad, and the Aunties by Jesse Q. Sutanto

200 pp

The Aunties are back for a third madcap adventure.  Meddy and Nathan are on their honeymoon after successfully getting married in Four Aunties and a Wedding. They join the family in Jakarta for Chinese New Year where the aunties are in fine form.  Meddy’s mother won’t stop talking about grandchildren. During the party, Abi Lincoln shows up (having been invited by Fourth Auntie) to proclaim his love for Second Auntie.  Unfortunately, while giving out the red packets (envelopes with money in them) to the children, an important document intended for another person is given to someone and Meddy and the Aunties must figure out who received it. When they visit the important business woman who it’s destined for, she decides to keep Nathan as collateral until they can retrieve it. Meddy and the Aunties go to great lengths to recover it and get Nathan back. Then, Second Auntie is kidnapped and the Aunties, Meddy and Nathan must go all out to get her back.

For those who love the Aunties, The Good, The Bad, and the Aunties will not disappoint.  There were several times when I laughed out loud.  For the craziness, I am glad they are not my relatives.  For the loyalty, anyone would be lucky to have them.  I give it four out of five stars.

The Mystery Guest

 The Mystery Guest by Nita Prose

230 pages

Molly the maid and the Regency Grand are back with a whole new murder.  Molly is stepping out of her comfort zone for the Grand Opening of the Regency Grand tearoom.  She made sure the room is just so for the special event—a special announcement by mystery author J. D. Grimthorpe to his biggest fans.  Unfortunately before he makes his announcement he falls to the floor dead. Barmaid Angela is a true crime expert so she enlists Molly in interviewing some of those fans which include the Ladies Auxiliary Mystery Book Society (known as the LAMBS). Molly’s definitely not his biggest fan since her Gran worked at Mr. Grimthorpe’s house and Molly met him when she was young. Inspector Stark is back as is doorman Mr. Preston.  Of course Molly’s attention to detail solves the crime.

I loved the back and forth between time periods to get the true background of the author and her relationship with her maid in training Lily.  I also enjoyed that a mystery book group was part of the story since I run one myself. My only quibble is that Molly has lost so much of the social awkwardness she once had. I thought this was an excellent follow up to The Maid and a great sophomore effort.  Four out of five stars.

Flipping Boxcars

Flipping Boxcars by Cedric “The Entertainer” Kyles with Alan Eisenstock 336 pages

 

I admit it; I only picked this book up to see how bad it was.  I’m a fan of Cedric television shows but wasn’t sure he had the chops to pull off a mystery novel, especially a historical fiction one.  However, I was hooked from the first page and enjoyed every bit of this thriller. I love the double entendre of the title, even if it did take me half the book to figure it out.

 

The main character is Floyd Bates Sr., better known as Babe. Babe, an Army Veteran, is a gambler. The story is set in Caruthersville, Missouri, in 1948. The first chapter/introduction sets the mood for the novel. It’s foreshadowing at its best.

 

Babe is first and foremost a family man. He deeply loves and respects his wife, Rosie, and adores their four children. He will do anything to keep them safe and secure. Anything. Everyone in town loves the Boyce family.

 

Babe has two special gifts. He can talk his way out of, or into, any situation. The second is that he never loses. Never. He runs a back-alley gambling casino outside of town that reaps huge rewards for Babe.

 

The Fourth of July is a big event in Caruthersville. As the calendar days are peeled off, Babe finds himself needing something that only a gangster can get for him: more liquor. Unfortunately, the foreshadowing that is the first chapter/introduction comes true, and Babe must use all his connections and resources to get himself out of this mess.

 

I so enjoyed this novel.  Babe and all the other characters are wonderful, and I hope that Cedric writes another novel with them.  I admit that I expected much, much more profanity in the novel than there was (thank you, Cedric), it was fast paced thriller that is also sweet.

 

Flipping Boxcars gets 6 out of 5 stars in Julie’s world.

 

Broadway Butterfly

Broadway Butterfly by Sara Divello 432 pages

 

And here’s yet another book that I picked up because of its cover. It is set in Manhattan from 1923-29 and is based on a true cold case that still lingers in the NYC police’s files. Author Divello does not solve the crime, but she brings its sordidness to the page.

 

Divello wastes no time in getting to the murder; it’s the first thing we learn in this juicy tale. Twenty-three-year-old Dot King enjoys life. Although it was never clear if she was a Broadway star, it was clear that she did enjoy the attention of several, shall we say, gentlemen (in the voice of the book.). She also made the papers so often that she became known throughout the city as “The Broadway Butterfly.” One morning when her housekeeper reported for duty, she found Dot dead on her bed with an exceptionally large bottle of chloroform next to her rapidly stiffening body.

 

The cops were called in and the list of possible suspects is rather large but is quickly whittled down to four:  A “volatile a politically connected Philadelphia socialite, Atlantic City bootlegger, Dot’s dicey gigolo lover, a sultry Broadway dancer, and a cagey sugar daddy guarding secrets of his own.” Sometimes it was hard to keep them all straight.

 

In an interesting use of character and structure, Divello uses a girl reporter, Julia Harpman of the Daily News, to cover the case and help keep the reader on what’s happening with the investigation. Julia is the lone woman in an otherwise male-dominated industry, but she is ambitious, strong, and follows the trail…and her suspicions…in the search for justice for Dot King.

 

As I mentioned sometimes it was hard to keep the cast of suspects and Dot’s friends straight, but it makes an interesting read. Also, Divello takes readers behind the scenes of the murder investigation and the world of news reporting that keeps readers glued to the story.

Broadway Butterfly gets 4 out of 5 stars in Julie’s world.

Murder at the Flamingo (A Van Buren and De Luca Mystery)

Murder at the Flamingo (A Van Buren and DeLuca Mystery by Rachel McMillan 485 pages

 

I love the cover of this book; it is what enticed me to read it. Set in 1937 in Boston, author McMillian paints a vivid picture of what Boston mut have been like, If only we could time travel!

 

Hamish DeLuca, originally from Toronto, has made his way to Boston to work with his cousin, Luca Valari, in the opening of the nightclub, the Flamingo. I can’t help it, when I hear flamingo used with a nightclub, I think Las Vegas, not Boston, so that was a stumbling block for me throughout the entire book.

 

Hamish was top in his class at law school and, thanks to his father, was set on a brilliant career path. Unfortunately, Hamish suffers from crippling anxiety and can barely make it through the trials he has been assigned. When he learns that his father got him the job as a “favor,” he heads to Boston to visit his favorite cousin. Luca takes him on as Hamish has a great head for business.

 

Meanwhile, Regina “Reggie” Van Buren has come to Boston to escape the humiliation of a marriage proposal she had no inclination of accepting. She also goes to work for Luca as his secretary and right-hand man, although she has no experience in either profession.

 

Hamish develops a love-interest in Reggie as the two learn to navigate a world where they are no longer rich and have servants to wait on them and Boston’s underbelly.

 

Reggie was my favorite character. She is a fan of the Nick & Nora/Thin Man detective series and is constantly referencing them.

 

The book gets off to a slow start and stays that way. There is too much detail. It’s more of a romance/cozy mystery, but I had to finish in order discover the murderer. This is a two-book series, but I won’t be reading the second volume.

Murder at the Flamingo (A Van Buren and DeLuca Mystery) gets 3 out of 5 stars in Julie’s world.

 

Being Henry: The Fonz...and Beyond

Being Henry: The Fonz …and Beyond by Henry Winkler   265 pages

Henry Winkler, a Yale School of Drama, was a struggling actor in New York when he decided to try Hollywood. It was there, in 1973, that he landed the role of a lifetime and became a television icon when he was cast as Arthur Fonzarelli on the TV series, Happy Days.  And he made it look easy.

Henry had a hard time at Yale and in New York, not because he didn’t land the roles he wanted, but because he suffered from severe dyslexia. It was that dyslexia that made his father, a wealthy man in the lumber business, think he was stupid and lazy. He always felt not good enough, and it wasn’t until his later years that he found help.

In fact, Henry had to work twice as hard and twice as long to learn his lines as other actors, but he persevered. The scenes where he tells the readers how “the Fonz” was born, was like peeking behind the curtain. In fact, this entire memoir is like that. I feel like I’ve this guy like a close cousin.

Now 78, Henry tells his stories of struggle and achievement in a memoir that sounds like he is sitting in your living room telling you his life story. I had no idea that after Happy Days, he struggled due to typecasting. When an audience looked at him, they saw “the Fonz.”  But when I thought about it, I wasn’t surprised. “The Fonz” is a legend.

I didn’t know that he went on to become a director to some hit movies, a producer and a co-author of more than thirty books for kids including Alien Superstar Trilogy and a twenty-eight-book series starring Hank Zipzer: The World’s Greatest Underachiever.”

I really like the structure of Being Henry.  It is tales of his days as “The Fonz” and Happy Days interspersed with tales of his forty-five, and counting, year marriage to Stacey, his kids, the other roles he has played, his famous friends. And yet through it all, he seems like a down-to-earth nice guy who doesn’t live in a billion-room mansion, but a nice house in Los Angeles.

I always like “the Fonz,” but now I have a deeper appreciation for Henry.

Being Henry: The Fonz …and Beyond get 5 out of 5 stars in Julie’s world.

 

Veil of Doubt

Veil of Doubt by Sharon Virts 410 pages

 

Set in Virginia in 1872, “Veil of Doubt” tells the story of Emily Lloyd, a widow who is accused of murdering her youngest child, three-year-old Maud. Her death is gruesome and hard to watch. And what’s even more ghastly is that Maud’s autopsy takes place on her deathbed, right in front of Emily. (I admit I gagged a couple of times.)

 

Unfortunately, Emily is no stranger to death. Her other three children, her aunt and her husband have all mysteriously died. Maud’s death is the last straw. The authorities, and indeed the entire town, are convinced that there is something deeply wrong with the woman.

 

Her lawyer is Powell Harrison, a family who has recently returned to help his brother run his father’s law practice. When Powell is approached to defend Emily, he initially declines. He wants no part of it. But he relents, believing his strategy will be insanity. But as the investigation dives deeper and deeper, Powell is not so sure that she is insane. He believes that a prior traumatic event muddled her brain. It’s a slippery slope, but as his brother tells him, “you promised to defend her. You made no promise to defend the truth. It's not up to you to prove she is responsible for the deaths of her children or not.” 

 

“Veil of Doubt” got off to a slow start for me. Watching Maud die and Emily’s time in prison made for some difficult reading. But as the book progressed, I found it harder and harder to put down. As facts and the truth are uncovered, it’s obvious that Emily is not in her right mind. Or is she? I’m glad I was not one of the jurors; I vacillated between guilty and innocent from one page to the next. There are shocking and more shocking revelations as the story progresses. A shocking surprise ending made this novel worth the read. I think I gasped at least once every page of the trial. So many surprises and twists. And it was worth it!

 

“Veil of Doubt” receives 5 out of 5 stars in Julie’s world.

 

 

NOTE: “Veil of Doubt” is based on a true crime.

 

 

September/October totals

 

In September and October, SLPL staff read 21 books with 2774 pages.  Shirley read the most books with 16 total, but Julie read the most pages with 1632 total.  Congrats to everyone for reading the past two months.

Hannukah Baby!

 Shirley J.        Juvenile E Book         This book is part of the indestructibles series for babies & newborns

Hannukkah, Baby! by Ektarine Trukhan  12 pages        

This book/series is totally made for babies who like to chew on their books, they sort of absorb their reading material.   The books are waterproof, drool all you want babies!  They can be washed off - no germs for next time!  They are rip proof hence the name indestuctibles.    Big bright pictures and few words allow parents/baby sitters to add their own words/descriptions for baby or just go with the pictures and one word pages.  The babies will get it.  Cute book to share Hannukah with baby.

Fun and Games for Cats

 Shirley J.                   Adult Non-Fiction        Teaching and recreational games to play with your cat(s)

Fun and Games for Cats by Denise Seidl   128 pages

A fun book to read and look at as there are illustrations on every page showing and explaining different cat personalities and how best to engage them in play.  Play involves a cat's predator response and they love that.  Some cats are shy and need a little one on one and patience to becoe interested in play time, the author shares various tacks for appealing to even the most finicky of felines.   There are personality tests and tests  that will measure your cat's intelligence.  The play time is especially necessary for house cats but outdoor or indoor/outdoor cats will love the attention, too and it becomes a beautiful way to bond with your cat.   Cats tend to have a 10 minute attention span akin to a 2 year old child so keep loads of different toys, crinkly paper, and boxes to keep kitty interested.    A good way to work off some energy before bed so kitty isn't climbing the curtains while you sleep.    A fun read with good ideas for cat lovers.  I recommend it to people who want to spend time with their cats. 

One Small Step Can Change Your Life: The Kaizen Way

 Shirley J.              Adult Non-Fiction              How to make great changes by taking miniscule actions

One Small Step Can Change Your Life: The Kaizen Way by Dr. Robert Mauer    228 pages

Excellent book explaining change and accomplishments do not have to be hard by following the Japanese method of Kaizen which is essentially climbing a mountain by taking that first step up.    The book cites examples of how to apply kaizen to your own life - what is it you want to accomplish in your personal life?  Your work life?  Instead of taking on the whole overwhelming project at once start by taking a ridiculously small first action toward it.  Something so small and easily completed it seems sort of absurd but the good news is once you do that first small act, you are on your way.   No matter what it is you want to do it can be done with surprising results.   A great way to look at how to make huge problems into bite size tolerable actions that accomplish anything you never believed you could.   Very good book.

Contenders: Two Native Baseball players, one world series

 Shirley J.            juvenile literature      The story of two native americans who rose to fame in sports        

Contenders: Two Native Baseball Players, One World Series by Traci Sorell   48 pages

Two native baseball players who were taken from their families by government programs set up to indoctrinate native children from their cultures into living the life of white people.  Native children were torn from their families and  forced into boarding schools that strove to take their true identities from them, to strip them of their culture, their language, cut their hair force them to wear the white man's clothes and follow the white man's ways treating them like second class citizens while praising the white lifestyle.  This is the story of two of the captives at the orphanage who grew up playing baseball and who were discovered for their excellent skills at the game and who went on to play for different teams who eventually face each other in the world series.   A good story showing the cruel reality of early native life after the white man took over to the prejudices they grew up facing and even in adulthood continued to deal with even as professional baseball players.  

 

Barbie Developer: Ruth Handler

 Shirley J.            Juvenile literature                                 The story of the woman who invented Barbie

Barbie Developer: Ruth Handler by Lee Slater   32 pages    

The biography of the woman who invented the Barbie doll and became co-owner of the Mattel Corporation and president of Mattel from 1945 to 1975.    Excellent story of achieving success and introducing the world to a toy phenomenon that outlived its maker and is ever more popular as time goes on.  Enjoyable read.

Barbie in a Christmas Carol

 Shirley J.              Juvenile literature                               Barbie does a version of Dicken's carol

Barbie in a Christmas Carol by Mary Man-Kong    32 pages

A cute story, but, different from the dickens version.   In this version Barbie is Eden Starling, owner of a theater with a small company of actors and a costumer.   Barbie is scrooge like, hates Christmas, hates giving her actors and seamstress time off for Christmas.    She is visited by her evil aunt who taught her to hate Christmas and set the example to be mean to people even though the ghost of Christmas past shows Eden had been a loving child with a best friend Catherine who was still her friend trying to bring back her loving side.  Her Aunt's ghost comes back in the Jacob Morley role warning her to change her ways or end up bearing the awfulness that became her afterlife.   The ghost of Christmas present finds Eden's employees grousing and mutinying to go home for Christmas and of course the ghost of christmas future showing Eden broke because she alienated her actors and seamstress and her hatefulness finally turns her friend Catherine hateful and hating Christmas, too.   Barbie/Eden wakes up and doesn't want this to be her fate nor Catherine's either so like Scrooge she mends her ways gives her staff time off for the holidays gets in the giving spirit and does her best to make the world a better place.   A good story for young and old.

The Mystery Writer by Sulari Gentill

 The Mystery Writer by Sulari Gentill  286 pp

After dropping out of law school, Theo heads to her brother's house in Lawrence, KS to write a novel. Theo and her brother Gus are originally from Australia. While looking through the town for a good place to write, she finds a combination bar/coffee house called Benders.  While writing there, she meets Dan Murdoch, a fellow author who has already been published, and they become friends. When she finishes her novel, she begs Dan to introduce her to his agent and to submit her novel.  He originally says "no."  Not finding Dan at Benders one day, she heads to his house to look for him.  When she enters, she finds Dan dead.  Of course she touches him and gets blood on her so when the police come and she's washing her hands she looks suspicious.  Enter Gus who is a lawyer and his friend Mac, an investigator (who has a bunch of end-of-the-world preppers as family).  What happens next is a combination spy/assassin/conspiracy theory story including a cult like following of Dan Murdoch who blames Theo for his death.  Each chapter begins with a conversation between conspiracy theorists that is very 1/6.

This is a totally different type of story than The Woman in the Library but still about books.  I really had to take time to think about this before I gave it any type of rating on either Goodreads or in Net Galley.  There were many clever ideas in this story (which I can't talk about or you would be spoiled).  Some might say these were too cute.  In the US where January 6 will be talked about for years, the conspiracy theories will ring true.  While I know "preppers" exist, it is interesting to think of people who are so crazy about an author that they would become violent upon hearing of their death (even in the case of murder).  While I enjoyed this story, I would say there may have been too many weird things piled up on each other for me to love it as much as The Woman in the Library.  3.5 stars rounding up to 4 for creativity.