Spying on the South

Finished October 21

Spying on the South: An Odyssey Across the American Divide by Tony Horwitz

I've read one of his previous books about his travels in the Middle East, and enjoyed his writing, but what led me to this book was his wife Geraldine Brooks' book Memorial Days, about Tony's death and how his family coped. The death was sudden and occurred in 2019 while he was on tour for this book.  

Much of his travels for this book were in 2015 and 2016, just before Donald Trump was elected for the first time, and the state of the feelings about the United States situation and future were one of the things that this book looked at.

In terms of structure, Tony decided to follow, as much as possible, the second trip Frederick Law Olmstead made to America's south in a time where the country was also divided, just before the Civil War. Olmstead wrote articles under the name 'Yeoman' for the New York Daily Times, about his travels and the feelings about the country by the people he met then. Slavery was naturally one topic that came up often, and Texas had not yet decided on its future regarding this practice. 

The trip started in West Virginia, went along the Ohio river past Kentucky, made a sidetrip to Nashville, then back to the Mississippi river past Mississippi, and down to New Orleans. Olmstead then went by horse through Louisiana, across Texas, and into Mexico, returning through southern Texas. He travelled with his brother John

Tony followed the same route, mostly on his own, but sometimes with a friend, and did most of the land portions by car. He did have one brief excursion by mule in West Texas, but it didn't go well, and he resumed his trip a few months later in the fall of 2016. He had similar experiences in some places as Olmstead, and quite different in others, such as going into Mexico. The land itself has changed little, except what man has built upon it, and Tony has a knack for being able to gauge situations well, and talk with most people. He engaged with people at many levels across the trip, from barge workers to tour guides, chemical plant workers to farmers. I learned a lot and found his conversations eye-opening and in light of where we are today, sometimes haunting. 

A fascinating book about two interesting men nearly 175 years apart. 

Get Back Jack

Finished March 2

Get Back Jack by Diane Capri

This is the second novel in the series Hunt for Reacher, where FBI agents Kim Otto and Carlos Gaspar are on an off-the-books case to discover more about Jack Reacher as part of a supposed background check. Here, there are trying to talk to the surviving members of his core team from his army days. There aren't a lot of them left, and they find that suspicious in and of itself. When they arrive at the office of one of them and find a crime scene being processed, they get worried about the remaining members of the team. 

This book features one of my favourite recurring characters from the Reacher novels, Frances Neagley, a woman that he often relies on for assistance, but who also has her own issues. 

We actually get a deeper glimpse into her life here, and also find that Otto and Gaspar encounter move danger than they expected. When women and children connected to Reacher are kidnapped as leverage against some of the members of Reacher's team, Otto and Gaspar find themselves teaming up with Neagley and learning a little more about Reacher. 

I enjoyed how this book, brought in characters from Child's books, but let us see a different aspect of them. I'm enjoying this series. 

Better Off Dead

Finished November 2

Better Off Dead by Lee Child and Andrew Child

The book opens with a man that seems to be Reacher waiting for a rendezvous near the Mexican border. When the car that approaches him has more people than he expects, and he finds himself up against four men, some of them with weapons, we know that things might go badly. As this prelude ends, the man is in a morgue and we are left hanging.

We go back to two days earlier, where Reacher is approaching a town near the Texas border when he comes across a Jeep that appears to have been in an accident. When he approaches the vehicle, he is surprised to have a weapon aimed at him. As he backs off when they hear another vehicle approach, and witnesses a deadly encounter, he finds himself wondering just what is going on. 

He finds himself drawn into a woman's search for her missing twin brother, both of them military veterans. She gets him up to speed quickly on the situation, but she might not be telling him everything, and he keeps pushing as things move along to ensure he's not missing anything important. 

He comes up with a plan to get the man behind it all, but unexpected people, events, and devices come along to alter what Reacher has to deal with.

As always, a fast-moving plot, with lots of action, suspense and interesting characters. 

Tomb Song

Finished July 29

Tomb Song by Julián Herbert, translated by Christina MacSweeney

This novel, a debut novel from this Mexican author, is a tale told in first person by a narrator by the same first name as the author. It moves back and forth in time, between the present, the narrator's childhood and other earlier times in his life. 

Julián's mother Guadalupe, was a prostitute, although she tried to shield her children from much exposure to this life. To escape debt, they moved often, and each of the four children has a different father. In the present Guadalupe is in hospital, near death, and he finds himself resurrecting memories from his past, grappling with his own identity, and dealing with anxieties around being a writer. 

This is a book about the margins of Mexican society, along with the darker issues of sex, drugs, violence, and poverty. Julián is also about to be a father himself, and this adds to his feelings. He talks not only of his life, but also of strange dreams that he has had. 

This is not an easy read, or a happy one, but it is one that is well written and has the feel of experience in his in the author's knowledge of his subject matter. A very original work. 

The Rogue Wave

Finished December 12

The Rogue Wave by Paul Nicholas Mason

This short novel mixes mystery and the paranormal in a battle of good and evil. The main character here is Matthew Harding runs a detective agency in Toronto where he handles cases with a metaphysical dimension. A young man, Andrew, comes to him regarding the recent disappearance of his fiancee Hannah. The two were on a tour boat in Nova Scotia when a sudden and huge wave swamped the boat, taking several people, including Hannah overboard. Some people were rescued, some bodies were found, and Hannah remained missing. An acquaintance of Andrew's has recently sent him a picture taken at a wedding in Mexico where a woman who looks very like Hannah is sitting with a man that she looks to be scared of. Andrew is sure that something else is going on, and Matthew takes the case. 

This is when the paranormal starts raising his head. Matthew has a near miss with a vehicle hit and run accident on the street near his office and receives a disturbing text message following that. Throughout the case a combination of threats, accidents and disturbing messages continues to follow him. When he goes in person to Nova Scotia, he finds that there were other weird happenings around the boat incident, and he goes on to Mexico to follow the lead of the photograph. 

Besides the disturbing incidents and the threatening messages, Matthew also encounters some other more benevolent people, who offer help and advice. 

I liked the paranormal or metaphysical side in this struggle between good and evil. and would have liked this book to be longer, going into more detail around some of the characters, like Hannah, and their feelings during this time, and Andrew and his paintings. I'd also like to know more about what happened to some of the people he encountered, like the translator in Mexico. 

This is definitely a unique type of mystery read that may appeal to a different audience than just mystery readers. 

Evil in All Its Disguises

Finished August 5
Evil in All Its Disguises by Hilary Davidson

Lily Moore is back again, this time invited to Acapulco by a travel PR agent to write up the area. But Lily's first encounter besides the hotel staff is another travel writer, Skye McDermott, who is very unhappy and not like the Skye Lily is used to. In the middle of a discussion Skye excuses herself and never returns, leaving Lily with her purse and all its contents.
The next thing Lily discovers is the hotel has changed ownership, a fact that would have changed her mind about coming on the trip had she known. As Lily starts to question Skye's disappearance and the hotel's lack of guests, she gets more and more worried, and not just for Skye.
Even if she makes it out of Acapulco, will she be safe? There seems to be a lot at stake here and Lily is a good investigator, but she doesn't always make the right choices of who to trust.
A good plot with a fast pace that will keep you reading.

Irma Voth

Finished August 1
Irma Voth by Miriam Toews
Irma is 19, lives in a rural Mennonite community in Mexico, and has been ostracized by her father for marrying a young Mexican man. Her father has expected her to live in another house on the property in exchange for work. Her husband, Jorge, sticks around for a while, but then tells her she asks too many questions, and makes himself scarce.
When Irma's father rents the remaining house to a film crew making a movie, Irma is intrigued and finds herself working as a translator between the director and a German actress. Meanwhile Irma's younger sister Aggie is finding life under their father's rules unbearable and wants to run away.
As the situation deteriorates, Irma finds she must make a choice and face the past she has always denied. This is a strong story with elements of coming-of-age and independence. The characters are complex and interesting. A great read.

Modern Classic

Finished September 25
Into the Beautiful North by Luis Alberto Urrea
I got this book through my Indiespensable subscription, and have been reading it slowly before sleep most evenings. I wanted to savour every bit of it.
Urrea is a real storyteller and this story flows so beautifully it is hard to put down (but I made myself!) I reread passages to see how he had used language to convey so much.
The story is a quest, an adventure, a coming-of-age. It has elements of magic realism and folk tales, and feels like a story that is timeless.
Nayeli is 19 and works at a taco shop in the small village of Tres Camarones in Sinaloa. She often thinks of her father who left to find work in the United States (Los Yunaites). He sent a postcard to her once from there, from Kankakee, Illinois. As she thinks, she realizes that most of the men from the village have left for the north. Unfortunately this has also been noted by a gang of drug dealers, who decide to take over the village.
Nayeli sees the movie The Magnificent Seven at the village theatre and decides that she will go north and find seven men to protect and revitalize her home. Joining her are her girlfriends Yolo and Vampi and her friend Tacho. As they make their way north they encounter many interesting characters, and some of these, like Atomiko, join their group. The U.S. is portrayed as a kind of dreamland, a place where the men went to and never came back from.
There is hope, humour, and a wonderful story here. The characters are great, each with their own defining personalities and idiosyncrasies. Nayeli finds more than she expects, and with the help of her friends and her aunt Irma, finds more than the seven men she went looking for.
Highly recommended.

Mystery in Series

Finished June 10
Borderline by Nevada Barr
This is the latest in the series featuring Anna Pigeon. After the events in Isle Royale, Anna is suffering from post-traumatic stress and she and husband Paul take an excursion in Big Bend National Park on the border of Texas and Mexico. This excursion includes whitewater rafting and Anna is able to use the beauty of nature to take her mind off her problems and participate in the social life of the guided trip. Then the raft is lost and the bedraggled group come across a pregnant woman in bad shape, caught up in debris in the river. They manage to bring her to shore, but things only get worse from there.
Elsewhere in the park a conference on border issues is going on. The conference includes academics and politicians, including the charismatic mayor of Houston, who is aiming for higher office. As the events on the river unfold, the mayor involves herself in this ongoing drama and Anna finds herself less able than usual to stay in control.
This is fast-moving and has lots going on, including some interesting personalities. I particularly liked the college students on the rafting expedition. Barr makes them come alive for the reader.
A great escape read, with real social issues as well.