In for a Penny

Finished November 26

In for a Penny by Kelsey Browning and Nancy Naigle

This cosy mystery has elements of humour and craziness. Set in small town Georgia, it begins with Lillian Summer Fairview dealing with the situation she discovers after her husband's death. The entirety of what she is dealing with only comes to the reader gradually. Lillian wanted to give her husband a proper funeral, and to get the money to do that she committed a crime. She is now readying herself for a trip to jail.

Part of her plan was to get her friend Maggie, also a widow, to move into her large house, a listed property that has been handed down in her family for generations. She also leaves instructions for Maggie to retrieve her car from the prison parking lot. Maggie doesn't discover the full situation until after Lillian is gone, and she tries to protect her friend's privacy and reputation.

The local police chief is a good man, but Lillian has kept him unaware of her situation as well. He drops into the house often and finds himself assisting the women with maintenance as it arises. When he is asked to move along an RV trying to camp in the local Walmart parking lot, something compels him to move them the Lillian's property. There, the RV owner Sera finds herself befriending Lillian and Maggie. When the chief is asked to intervene in another senior lady's travels, she ends up at Lillian's as well. 

There the three women look at Lillian's situation without her and determine that there is someone else involved who shouldn't be getting away scot-free, and they begin an investigation that has them determined to get their man.

I liked the characters, who started out looking like caricatures, but became more nuanced as the story unfolded. There is humour, intelligence, and southern charm here, and they all bring something to the situation.

Save the Date

Finished March 31

Save the Date by Mary Kay Andrews

This novel has romance, drama, and intrigue, all set in Savannah, Georgia. Florist Cara Kryzik is a recent transplant to the city, coming from Ohio with her now ex-husband Leo. She had been working as a florist, when the owner retired and gifted her the business and its assets. She put her own money into it, and it is now an up-and-coming favourite for weddings, thanks to a previous client. She has an assistant Bert, who she also considers a friend. 

As the book opens, there is much drama around last-minute changes and work needed for an imminent society wedding. The mother-of-the-bride, Lillian calls several times a day, and has high expectations. 

When Cara's golden-doodle Poppy slips her collar, she is searching the neighbourhood for her, and sees her with a strange man who refuses to give her back. She and Bert have to leave for the wedding venue, so she can't deal with it at the time, and the police don't seem to consider it a priority.

As is usual, Cara stays at the wedding awhile, and sees the man, Jack, who had her dog there. He turns out to be related to the groom. 

The wedding goes well, and the next day Cara is pleased to find she is one of the florists being considered for another society wedding. Her competition is new in town, recently expanding from another city. When she gets the contract, the bride insists that she do it all, and Cara is put to the test. 

And when Jack keeps showing up at the weddings she is working at, she finds him growing on her. 

Cara is tight financially, having put all her money into her business, and dealing with an unresponsive landlord, a building that needs a lot of repairs, her ex wanting her back, and a possible lawsuit over a missing decor item a client entrusted her with, so there is a lot going on. 

I liked Cara for the most part, but she definitely has some baggage, but she's also worked through a lot starting her business and really making it her own, with her own flair and style. She works hard and has a high standard that she sets for herself. She is also one who creates relationships with her clients, so there is ongoing business that comes out of the initial contract. 

I also liked Jack. He's another hard worker with high standard, but also has some baggage. I was definitely rooting for them. 

A fun read. 

Snatched

Finished June 14

Snatched by Karin Slaughter

This novella is part of the Will Trent series and begins with Will assigned one of those routine jobs that no one wants to do. He is assigned to the men's washroom at the Atlanta airport looking for those using the washroom as a sexual rendezvous location. He is about to call it a day when a man and a child enter the stall next to his, and the girl complains that she just wants to go home. 

He is waiting by the sinks when they exit, but he has no concrete reason to detain them, so decides to follow them. He is particularly struck by the anguished, yet hopeful look the young girl gives him. 

The story has elements of fast-paced action as he follows them, and slower sections as the legal sections have you in suspense. It has points of hope and points where you feel Will's second guessing of his instincts. 

A short, yet satisfying story in this series that I read in one sitting. 

With My Little Eye

Finished April 30

With My Little Eye by Joshilyn Jackson

This suspenseful thriller is centered around actor Meribel Mills, a woman who started off as Didi a side character in a sitcom in the '90s that she's still known for. She done a lot of work since then, but nothing big. So she finds it surprising that she's suddenly being stalked. After finding evidence that he'd been in her home in L.A., she needs to go somewhere else. She accepts a role in a film shooting near Atlanta, Georgia, and rents a condo there for her and her daughter Honor. Honor is adopted and on the autism spectrum. So she worries about the change this means for her and how she will adjust. 

She also worries about being back in Georgia, her home state. She'd grown up here, and got married here, and had a devastating event that led to the end of her marriage. She'd never had full closure on that and so she finds that being near her ex has made her start following his wife on Instagram as she posts a lot of lifestyle and personal stuff there. 

The stalked sends notes written in a smelly marker, and Honor has dubbed him Marker Man for this. He has also sometimes sent 'gifts' that are unsettling. His notes convey that he has an image of her that is an object to be possessed, and he makes some violent statements.

So when Meribel, having coffee with one of her new neighbours, Cooper, in the shop below the condos feels eyes on her, she immediately thinks of her stalker, and starts looking around. 

There are some other things going on as well. Meribel had started a relationship with a man back in L.A. who works in security and she ended it when she moved, but still has the feelings for him. Cooper's ex Addie also lives in the building and has a daughter Sheila and little older than Honor. Honor befriended stray cats back in L.A. and took care of them. She's found a stray of sorts here and has befriended them and is trying to take care of them in ways that she can. 

I loved Honor and her thoughts and how she made decisions and plans. 

There are some twists and turns and lots of suspenseful moments and a very dramatic ending that feels satisfying. 

Don't Know Jack

Finished February 9

Don't Know Jack by Diane Capri

I was interested when I heard about the series Hunt for Reacher, and borrowed this first book from my local library. I read it very quickly, wanting to know how it unfolded. 

The book starts with two FBI agents, Kim Otto, from the Detroit office, and Carlos Gaspar from the Miami office, being woken in the wee hours and sent on a discreet mission, meant to be off the books. They are supposed to find out as much as they can about Jack Reacher, but they are provided with very little. They are told to go to Margrave, Georgia, by a certain time, and for readers of the Jack Reacher novels, like me, this small town will immediately ring some bells. 

In Margrave, they find a female police chief, who seems like she knows more about Jack than she'd saying, but their search is interrupted when the chief is called about a murder, and they accompany her to the scene. They find a long-dead cop, a oddly calm and reticent killer, and a house that looks almost abandoned. 

As they try to pierce together the story, and make a mistake or two of their own, they find themselves under fire, mixing with questionable company, and taking way more flights than Otto is comfortable with. 

I liked both the main characters, and enjoyed seeing how their backstories unfolded, in small pieces. They both have a sense of humour and soon find a rhythm of communication that feels fun, yet not forced. They are both good agents, but their lack of knowledge creates an interesting dynamic where the reader knows more about Jack than they do. 

They're pretty sure he's a bad guy, who's killed many people after leaving the army, and this assumption means that they suspect him every time they find a crime. 

I'm definitely going to be reading more of this series to see where their search leads them, and what they learn along the way.  

All Her Little Secrets

Finished January 8

All Her Little Secrets by Wanda M. Morris

This thriller moves back and forth between the childhood of the main character, corporate lawyer Ellice Littlejohn, with occasional viewpoints of other people like her younger brother Sam. Ellice escaped her small town, and the life of poverty she lived there through scholarships. She now has an Ivy League degree, and a secret relationship with her married white superior Michael, the EVP and general counsel for Houghton Transportation in Atlanta. That's just one of her secrets. She also keeps secret her origins, passing herself off as an orphan with no family. The woman that saved her, helping protect her from that early life is now in the later stages of dementia and Ellice pays for her stay at a high-scale living facility. But she knows Vera would rather be back on her farm. 

Ellice also hides her younger brother Sam, who's had some legal issues and doesn't seem to be able to keep away from the temptations of that life. She and Sam are close, and she loves him, but she also feels guilty for leaving him behind when she escaped. 

After an episode from the early part of her life, the present-day part of the novel begins with Ellice finding her boss shot in the head when she goes to meet him for an early pre-work assignation. So she hides the fact that she found him too, and goes to her own desk and tries to get on with things. But, soon she finds that with the gossip, the police, and the sudden interest in her from the executive suite, that all those secrets are pretty hard to hide.

Ellice is also one of the very few black employees in the building. Outside of the security staff, and other low-paid workers, she is it. There have been protests outside the corporate building about the lack of racial presence and a threat of a class action suit. This is another thing looming on the horizon. 

As Ellice starts trying to figure out what happened to Michael to save her from the threats now coming at her, she finds even more secrets to deal with. 

The plot is a good one, and I found the main character interesting. The author is also a corporate attorney, so she brings in realistic elements from that life. A good read. 

Between, Georgia

Finished November 22

Between, Georgia by Joshilyn Jackson

I've enjoyed other books by this author for their strong female characters, and this is another good one. The main character here, Nonny Flett, comes into the story literally at the beginning when she is born. Her birth mother is a young teenage who doesn't want the baby and is afraid of her own mother's wrath. She has run to a nearby woman who was a former nurse, Bernese Flett.

Bernese's two sisters, Stacia and Genny, lived next door. Genny was a nervous woman, given to compulsive behaviours. Stacia was a skilled ceramacist, who was born deaf and was losing her eyesight. When they heard the ruckus next door, they came running. Stacia assisted Bernese and claimed the child as her own. Bernese made sure the paperwork was done with a local lawyer, and Nonny grew up with Stacia as her mother. 

When, after a few years, her birth grandmother, Ona Crabtree discovered that she was born a Crabtree, a war of sorts started between the families. Nonny did some visits with Ona, but was raised by Stacia, and learned sign language, later making it her career. 

After Nonny's birth, the book jumps to her adult years as she is coming up to a court date for her divorce. She had loved her irresponsible, musician husband Jonno, but something had drawn apart that love, if not the physical attraction, and she is convinced that she will go through with the divorce.

But when a emergency happens back in her hometown of Between, she must rush to the side of those who need her, find her own truth, and choose her own path forward.

Nonny is an interesting woman, with attributes from both her birth family and her adopted one, and she has an inner strength when it comes to the people she truly cares for: her mother, her aunt, and her young cousin. This is a turning point in her life, when she must make her own choices and not have others make it for her. 

A very enjoyable read.

Along the Infinite Sea

Finished August 14
Along the Infinite Sea by Beatriz Williams, tread by Kathleen McInerney

This engrossing novel follows two timelines. The first we see is in 1966, when Pepper Schuyler has just sold a car that she found in her sister's barn, and fixed back to new with the help of a friend. She has been looking for a way to ensure that she and her unborn child have enough to survive on without the help of the child's father, and now she feels she has succeeded. Except that the father still wants something from her, and all she wants is for him to stay out of her life forever. She can't believe how naive she was, falling for the moves of a well-known, and married, politician. Only one of her sister's knows her circumstances, and Pepper is too embarrassed to tell the rest of the family. But she does know that she wants this child.
But the new owner of the car, Annabelle Dommerich, has taken an interest in her, and wants to help, even though she doesn't even know her. Annabelle has her own secrets, and it is those that the other storyline reveals. That storyline begins in 1936, when Annabelle is 19, and living with her father in Paris and on the Riviera. Her father's wild life isn't hers, and she mostly keeps to herself, playing her cello, and enjoying her surroundings. She has spent the years since her mother's death in boarding school, learning from nuns, a much different life than the one she is now exposed to. She knows some of what broke up her parent's marriage, her father's philandering, and has no interest in participating in his parties now.
When her brother calls on her to use the nursing skills she learned in school on an injured friend, she finds herself in close quarters with an attractive young German Jewish man, who she finds herself developing feelings for despite herself. As Annabelle finds herself protected, both from reality, and from information that she should have been told, she finds herself making choices for her future that she may regret. From her marriage to a man who loves her well, but whom she doesn't have passion for, to the recurring appearance of the young man she fell for, she tries to find her way to a happy ending.
As we see Annabelle's and Pepper's stories converge, we see how these very different women have their inner strength in common. I really felt swept away by this novel.

Sister of Mine

Finished February 7
Sister of Mine by Sabra Waldfogel, performed by Bahni Turpin

This historical novel begins with a scene when two Union soldiers get separated from their scouting party and notice a Union flag on a well kept plantation. Approaching the house, they find a group of people gathered on the porch. A white woman and several black women and men. They are welcomed, fed, and their wounds are treated.
The story then jumps back twelve years to 1852, when Adelaide Mannheim, daughter of Mordecai Mannheim, a Jewish planter in northern Georgia was given her own maid, a slave named Rachel. The two girls become friends, much to the annoyance of Adelaide's mother, and soon realize that Rachel is also Mordecai's child, which explains Adelaide's mother's feelings toward her. Mordecai is a businessman, trading in many goods besides what he grows on his plantation, and he is pleased when Rachel shows an aptitude for figures as well, quizzing her when she has been tidying his study. Adelaide has secretly taught her to read as well.
When Adelaide gets to be a young lady, her mother insists that she leave school and travel to Savannah, where there is a large Jewish community, to find a suitor. Adelaide quickly meets a young man that she likes, but both her and Rachel discover that they are naive when it comes to relationships. When things go badly, both retire to the plantation, where Rachel learns more, and Adelaide's health suffers. A new opportunity for both leads them to new beginnings, but also more heartache and gradually they form a new different relationship.
This is a story of slavery and the realities of life in the South during the plantation era. While it is fiction, it is based in fact. Many Jews in the south did own slaves, as they adjusted to the society they moved into. As slave-owners, they ran the gamut from kind to cruel.
Many children were born into slavery despite being fathered by the white men who owned their mothers, growing up alongside their half-siblings, but with few of the advantages.
This book has depth for both the plot and the characters, and I found it enlightening.

Yankee in Atlanta

Finished September 4
Yankee in Atlanta by Jocelyn Green

This book is book 3 in the series Heroines Behind the Lines.
Caitlin McKae has followed her brother Jack into the war on the Union side, but when she is badly injured, she ends up in Confederate care in Atlanta, thought to have been fighting on the Confederate side. She keeps her own counsel, adjusts to life there and becomes a teacher at a local school, something her training prepared her for. When the war intensifies, the school is shut and Caitlin takes on the job as governess for the daughter of a fellow teacher who feels impelled to go off to war. Noah Becker is an immigrant from Germany, trained as a lawyer, and while not in favor of slavery feels the need to fight for his home. His daughter Analiese is the joy of his life and he values Caitlin's teaching skills, her emphasis on teaching responsibility, and her comforting way with children.
Back in New York, the focus is on Ruby O'Flannery, a young Irish widow, mother to a young son Aiden, and working as a domestic and seamstress. She is recently converted to evangelistic Christianity, and is visited often by a young pastor Edward Goodrich who came back from the front to tend his injured father.
The book follows the trials and tribulations of the two women. Caitlin is struggling to survive, to care for Analiese, and to eventually find her way home, Ruby is struggling to create a better life for her son, to stay on her new course despite her unhappy past, and to look for a future she is afraid to dream of.
This novel gives a good sense of the history of this time, and social situations, and the changes taking place with the war and western expansion.

Killing Floor

Finished June 27
Killing Floor by Lee Child

I love the Jack Reacher novels, but missed a few at the beginning, so going back now and catching those ones. This is the very first in the series. On a whim, Reacher decides to get off a bus on the highway near Margrave, Georgia. His brother had mentioned a long-dead jazz musician, Blind Blake, who had supposedly died in Margrave, and Reacher decided to see if there were any old folks who had known the man. It takes him few hours to walk towards the town and he stops on the outskirts to eat in a cafe. Before he can finish his breakfast, he is arrested for murder. As he tries to figure out what is going on and why the finger was pointed at him, he finds himself in a town with a secret, a secret some will go to any lengths to keep. A prominent family has build a facility there recently and offered a number of grants to the townspeople, but it isn't clear how they are profitable. A local man with a history in the banking industry seems to be tied to the intrigue, but he is afraid to talk to Reacher, even after Reacher saves his life in prison. The chief of detectives, a man relatively new to town, Finlay, believes in Reacher, and asks for his assistance. Without knowing who to trust, a small group of people chip away at the facade, looking for the truth. When Reacher discovers a personal connection to the case, he is on the case to the end.
A great beginning to the series, with lots of nice twists and turns, a bit of a romance with a local police officer, and a compelling story. I especially liked the tie-in to the musician; that seemed to draw everything to a close nicely.

Criminal

Finished December 1
Criminal by Karin Slaughter, read by Kathleen Early

This thriller takes us back and forth between the present and the summer of 1975. It also brings together two characters from previous novels, GBI detective Will Trent, and doctor Sara Linton. In the present, Will and Sara are early in their relationship, still learning about each other. Will has been sidelined to less active duty very recently by his boss Amanda Wagner, and when a college student goes missing he wonders why he isn't on the case. When he discovers there is a link to his own past, he must go through heartache and self-doubt as he faces his demons.
In 1975, Amanda is a young policewoman, facing discrimination and her own doubts in her career. When she and her partner Evelyn are sent to a housing project on what proves to be a false case, they learn about some missing women. They are intrigued by the case, despite being warned off by fellow officers, and are determined to get to the truth of the matter. The two women are tested to the extent of their ability, and put themselves in immense danger, but prove themselves as police officers in a way that changes their workplace.
This is a tale of social history, self-knowledge, and friendship.
A wonderful book, with so much more than just a good thriller case.

Charming Grace

Finished June 5
Charming Grace by Deborah Smith, read by William Dufris and Moira Driscoll

(Couldn't find an image of the audiobook, so figured this was close).
I picked up this audiobook romance novel at a recent conference. The author was new to me, but it was an enjoyable book.
Set in a small southern town in Georgia, a big movie star, Stone Senterra, known for his action movies, has come to town to film his first movie as a director. He wants to tell the story of a man who grew up there, a man who died recently in a very public act of heroism. The man's widow, Grace Vance, however, doesn't trust him, and wants to keep her husband's life private. Grace has plans to obstruct the movie and has some allies.
A twist in the story is the ex-con bodyguard of the movie star, Boone Nolene. Boone wants to go straight and set his older brother, still in jail, on the right road as well. He wants to reward the trust that Senterra places in him. But he also wants Grace. Grace, a former beauty queen and talk show host, is caught up in the past and has to be forced to look to the future.
With lots of great characters, quirky humour, and hot romance, this book will charm you.

When Sparrows Fall

Finished April 8
When Sparrows Fall by Meg Moseley
This is a novel I would classify as domestic fiction with elements of romance and Christian fiction. I received an advance copy of this book through Library Journal, and I always like to expand my knowledge of what fiction is out there. This book is set in rural Georgia, and gives us two viewpoints. One is Miranda Hanford, a young widow with six children. Miranda is part of a small leader-centred church, a church she is starting to feel uncomfortable about, especially since the pastor, Mason, is asking them all to sell up and move with him to a different state. Mason seems to have some sort of information about Miranda that he threatens her with exposure of if she doesn't comply and she feels isolated.
The other point of view is Miranda's brother-in-law, college professor Jack Hanford. Jack becomes involved in Miranda's life when she takes a serious fall and her oldest child calls him for assistance as he is listed as guardian for the children. Jack's brother, Miranda's husband, had not wanted him around and Jack is surprised and touched about being called on. He steps into the family's lives and finds that there is much more here than he knew.
We see some interesting commentary around some of the extreme Christian churches around, and the isolation that they can bring to their congregation. We also see how the community can become helpful when they are allowed to be. Lots to think about.

Another Thriller

Finished September 27
Undone by Karin Slaughter
This book takes us to one of Atlanta's busiest hospitals and merges two series by Slaughter. Sara Linton is working in the emergency department of the hospital and has been for two years. She has moved away from the house that she shared with her husband and immersed herself in this busy world as a refuge from his tragic death.
When a young woman comes into emergency, naked, hit by a car, and obviously a victim of torture, she becomes involved in a police investigation. Will Trent and Faith Mitchell of the Georgia Bureau of Investigation are also at the hospital when the woman arrives, and Will jumps into the case immediately. The local police are not cooperative, but Will makes inroads, and when a second victim is found, they start looking for connections.
When another woman is kidnapped, leaving a six-year-old child, they realize that they are working against time to save her.
The suspense is ongoing throughout and both Faith and Will have their own secrets to protect and their own weaknesses that sometimes complement each other. This story had many flawed characters with many issues and is as good as Slaughter has ever been.

Psychological Thriller

Finished July 31
Ravens by George Dawes Green
This is a suspenseful ride into the world of a sociopath. When Shaw McBride and his friend Romeo Zderko stop for a rest at a convenience store of I-95 in Georgia, they get sidetracked into a world that is a strange one indeed. Shaw overhears the news that a local family has a winning lottery ticket (for a multimillion dollar jackpot) and works out a plan to get some of the money.
Shaw visits the Boatwright family that night and takes the family hostage, while Romeo acts as the threat against other family members should anyone decide to resist.
Shaw's manipulation of both the Boatwrights and his own friend show his personality and single-mindedness.
While there are spots of humour, this is a dark novel about manipulation and the power of personality. I'm still not sure whether I liked the book, but it shows excellent writing and strong characters.

Crime Novel

Finished October 5
Fractured by Karin Slaughter
This novel features Detective Will Trent of the Georgia Bureau of Investigation.
When a wealthy woman comes home one day, she finds an apparant breakin at her house. She rushes up to her teenage daughter's room and finds a man standing over the body in the hall upstairs with a knife in her hands. As she tries to get away she ends up entangled with the man and in the struggle kills him with her bare hands. Will arrives on the scene as an observer to the Atlanta police, but when he spots something that no one else has, it ends up becoming his case. He is sure that the killer is still out there and another girl is missing.
Will ends up teamed up with Faith Mitchell from the Atlanta police and the two end up tracking down suspects at the girl's school, a nearby college and into the past. The story is a good one, with lots of interesting twists and turns, and the cops are given interesting lives as well.
Will Trent has a disability that causes him problems, but also gives him insights into some aspects of the case that are unique.