Joyce's mystery and fiction book reviews with some non-fiction too!

Kudos to Anne Perry! She is not an author who rests on her laurels. Ms. Perry recently started a series with Daniel Pitt, son of long-term series regulars Thomas and Charlotte and now, she has started a series featuring Elena Standish. This novel takes place as Hitler is rising to power in Germany.

The characters in the family…Elena is an aspiring photographer. Her sister Margot was widowed shortly after marrying during WWI. Grandfather Lucas was in MI6 during WWI and maintains his connections. His wife, also was active in the war. Then there are Elena’s parents Charles and his wife Katherine. He is a diplomat; she is American. There are many characters not in the family, from the Jewish population in Berlin to the Brownshirts to those who are busy plotting and to Cordell at the British Embassy.

The settings in the novel are vividly described. The book opens in the shadow of Vesuvius where tourists are creating their reality, away from their daily concerns. It is here that Elena meets Ian, a man who sets her on a perilous mission. Thanks to Ms. Perry, i felt like I was on the train with them, right there in the compartment as the talked about themselves. There are so many equally vivid scenes. To mention a few, a British diplomat goes to lunch with Hitler and t he reader feels him sweating; a book burning takes place and the crowd watching is alive in the reader’s mind, a train hurtles toward Paris from Berlin and the reader feels the anxiety of the characters who need to escape quickly.

There are murders and conspiracies and Elena is clearly in peril. The plot does center on some coincidences but I was willing to accept that. The ending of the novel is a crescendo of events with a clear sense of unresolved issues for future novels or at least that is my hope.

I loved Death in Focus, a novel with rich and vivid characters who are trying to make their way in a world that was for ever changed by WW I and is now hurtling toward another war. There are some parallels to our world today in terms of the author’s description of how people who feel they have nothing, feel better when they have a group to hate.

I highly recommend this novel. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this e galley in exchange for my honest review.

 

This gleefully illustrated book offers four interrelated stories. There is one about Cinderella, another about “Sleepy Beauty,” one about Jack and the Beanstalk, and finally a story featuring Snow White. Each tale is centered on a virtue; included are kindness, responsibility, honesty and teamwork. At the end of each story is a section with questions and activities.

The stories here are not really twisted. They are more updates and lessons in citizenship for preschoolers that are told without preaching. I can easily imagine them being ready during “circle time.”

Both children and adults who are familiar with the original fairy tales may enjoy this update. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the e galley in exchange for my honest review.

Two examples….

 

In this picture book, a young girl looks all around her and sees the wonder in her world. She uses her lively imagination to expand on what she sees; for example, after noticing a fly on the ceiling, this child wonders what it would be like to be able to walk upside down. At the end of this simple story, our narrator comments that everything that she needs to make her happy is right in front of her…and how uplifting is that.

The illustrations have bright colors and are the perfect accompaniment to the text. Young children will enjoy this story of noticing the amazing things in their daily lives.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this read in exchange for an honest review.

An interesting mix.  Hope there is something for you.  A word on The Peabody Sisters.  This is a really interesting biography because of, not only the book’s subjects, but the people they knew.  For example, one sister was married to Nathaniel Hawthorne.

For the school performance, each child is going to dress up as a favorite food.  There is a wonderful array of choices.  The only one who cannot decide is Frankie because he likes so many things!  His teacher is not in favor of some of his amusing combinations.  She suggests that instead he help with the costumes.  As a reader, I was not sure that I agreed with the message that sent as it seemed to discourage Frankie’s creativity.  But..wait until the end to see what Frankie does.

This is a book with very cute illustrations.  I did not completely agree with the teacher offering Frankie an option other than being a food, even though Frankie did not mind.  If you read this one, let me know what you think.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for this read in exchange for an honest review.

This book combines fact and whimsy to amusing effect.  The story is about human boy Leo who will be having a tonsillectomy.  He goes to the hospital with his parents only to find that it is run by animals.  Some of the staff treat Leo like an animal, asking things like if he was the runt of the litter and when he had his last rabies shot.  He is given a cone collar after surgery until he assures the staff that he will not eat from the floor or chew on his leg.  Mixed in with the vet facts is information on what happens when a child’s tonsils are removed.  Young children and parents may well enjoy this entertainingly illustrated effort to demystify and find fun in a situation that children do not tend to see as funny.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for this read.  All opinions are my own.

Below is the summary of this novel from Goodreads.  It very clearly gives the sense of what this book is about.  I listened to the audio book which I found delightful, especially because of the combination of British and French accents.  This is a good, light mystery.  There will be a second in the series next year.  The author’s name here is a pen name.  The book is written by a husband and wife.

The first entry in a clever, lighthearted mystery series set in modern Provence—a delightful blend of Agatha Christie and Peter Mayle—featuring the irrepressible Penelope Kite, a young-at-heart divorcee with a knack for stumbling across dead bodies.

It’s love at first sight when Penelope Kite sees Le Chant d’Eau—The Song of Water—the stone farmhouse tucked high in the hills above the Luberon valley, complete with a garden, swimming pool, and sweeping mountain vistas. For years, Penelope put her unfaithful ex-husband and her ungrateful stepchildren first. Since taking early retirement from her job in forensics at the Home Office in England, she’s been an unpaid babysitter and chauffeur for her grandchildren. Now, she’s going to start living for herself. Though her dream house needs major renovations, Penelope impulsively buys the property and moves to St. Merlot.

But Penelope’s daydreams of an adventurous life in Provence didn’t include finding a corpse floating face down in her swimming pool. The discovery of the dead man plunges her headlong into a Provençal stew of intrigue and lingering resentments simmering beneath the deceptively sunny village. Having worked in the forensics office, Penelope knows a thing or two about murder investigations. To find answers, she must carefully navigate between her seemingly ubiquitous, supercilious (and enviably chic) estate agent, the disdainful chief of police, and the devilishly handsome mayor—even as she finds herself tempted by all the delicacies the region has to offer. Thank goodness her old friend Frankie is just a flight away . . . and that Penelope is not quite as naïve as her new neighbors in St. Merlot believe.

Set against the exquisite backdrop of Provence, steeped in history, atmosphere, and secrets, Death in Provence introduces an irresistible heroine and a delightful new mystery series.

A fine mix of mystery, suspense and literary fiction.  Enjoy!