Book Review - The Secret Society of Librarians by Kate Thompson

My Review

The Secret Society of Librarians is a historical novel set during World War II.  In London, Joyce Kindred is a librarian who finds her library has been bombed.  It is during the Blitz, and she starts a mobile library with the help of a young Jewish refugee named Adela.  In Poland, Dorotha (older sister of Adela) can no longer work as a librarian in the Polish Ghetto due to the oppression of the Nazi party.  She creates a small secret library.  Dorotha and Joyce are part of a group of friends from library school, and the story involves their network of friends.

I wanted to read this book because I have enjoyed Kate Thompson's other WWII novels (especially The Little Wartime Library).  I read a lot of historical fiction, and am interested in the 1940's time period.

This novel is told in alternating viewpoints by Joyce and Dorotha.  They face struggles both personally and as librarians, but they were very committed to the motto of their group of librarian friends:

"And thanks to Virginia Woolf, it came to her. “What about ‘Libertatem per Lectio’?” Joyce asked, her eyes shining. “It stands for ‘freedom through reading.’”  (eBook location 191).

Joyce shelters in the London underground along with Adela and an older friend they look out for.  The book depicts the frightening bombing that happened during the Blitz.  In one dramatic scene, Joyce and her beau are visiting St. Paul's Cathedral with its huge and winding library passages and they leave just to find the city being bombed.

The hardships that Dorotha faces are unimaginable, and heartbreaking to read.  She loses family, work, and lives with hunger and deprivation beyond imagination.

These women hold on to their ideals - the importance of books and reading, kindness and compassion for others, and a long lasting friendship. They are truly heroic figures.

I recommend The Secret Society of Librarians for historical fiction readers, and especially for anyone with an interest in World War II fiction.

Thanks to Forever (Grand Central Publishing) and Netgalley for an advance reading copy of this book.

Book Review and Giveaway - All Aboard for Murder (A Golden Motel Mystery) by Ellen Byron

My Review

All Aboard for Murder is a cozy mystery set at the Golden Motel, a renovated retro motel in California’s Gold Country.  Dee Stern runs the motel with her ex-husband turned best friend, Jeff Cornetta.  It’s Halloween and they are anticipating a big spooky season at the motel.  They don’t anticipate murder though.  Moses Sprockles, who runs the town’s old railroad, is discovered dead.  Dee begins sleuthing, with a number of suspects, including a pair of spoiled former child stars who are staying at the motel.

I wanted to read All Aboard for Murder because I love this series.  It’s one of my favorites!  I really love the retro motel setting, and the California Gold Rush town is fun.  

This is a fast paced mystery with a lot of characters.  The author has included a Cast of Characters section listing all the characters and their place in this little corner of the world.  It’s very helpful!

I like Dee as a sleuth.  She’s smart and as she states herself, “I’m obsessed with people’s backstories.  You know, people’s pasts.” (eBook location 2760)

Her coworker Ma’am adds, “That’s what makes you a good writer.  And a good snoop.”  (eBook location 2761).

I like the extended cast that recurs in this series, including Dee’s father Sam, who plays Prospector Pete for family groups visiting the motel; her folksy older coworkers Ma’am and Mister Ma’am; her hound dog Nugget; and of course Bud the Bear!

I enthusiastically recommend All Aboard for Murder for other cozy mystery fans.  Anyone interested in Mid-Century motels or folksy American road trips will absolutely adore this mystery.  Do yourself a favor and read the entire Golden Motel series - it is great fun, and you will enjoy seeing the characters interact over the different books.

Book Synopsis

Dee Stern is starting to feel at home running her Golden Motel in the quaint California village she moved to, leaving behind her LA life as a sitcom writer. But a killer sees the town’s Halloween celebration as a golden opportunity to write a script for murder . . .

It’s October in Gold Rush country and all manner of tricks and treats are happening in the lead-up to Halloween. October also happens to be the birthday of Angus Sprockles, the man responsible for the town being designated a historic landmark, and the residents are celebrating his memory as well. His only living descendant, Moses Sprockles, runs the narrow-gauge railroad—once used to ferry lumber from the mountains to the sawmill, now a tourist attraction. The Sprockles Railroad is hosting a Halloween-themed fundraiser for the Historical Society.

But when a body is found on the tracks, it’s not a Halloween prank. It’s Moses himself, seemingly felled by a fallen tree branch. Dee’s dad Sam is convinced his friend is the victim of foul play and urges his daughter to apply her sleuthing skills. Dee’s train of thought leads her to suspects ranging from a former child star and one-hit wonder, the owner of a nail salon with her claws in everything, and even the mayor. When a self-proclaimed ghost hunter throws his hat in the ring and claims to know who did it, the investigation really goes off the rails. No matter how crazy things get, Dee is determined to blow the whistle on a runaway killer with a one-track mind.

Author Bio

Ellen is a bestselling author, Anthony nominee, and recipient of multiple Agatha and Lefty awards for her Cajun Country Mysteries, Vintage Cookbook Mysteries,  Catering Hall Mysteries (as Maria DiRico), and Golden Motel Mysteries. She is also an award-winning playwright and non-award-winning writer of TV hits like Wings, Just Shoot Me, and Fairly OddParents, but considers her most impressive achievement working as a cater-waiter for Martha Stewart.

A native New Yorker, Ellen is a graduate of Tulane University and lives in the Los Angeles area with her husband, daughter, and a rotating crew of rescue pups. Visit her at http://www.ellenbyron.com/.

Author Links

Newsletter: https://www.ellenbyron.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ellenbyronauthor/ https://www.facebook.com/CateringHallMysteries/

Instagram:  https://www.instagram.com/ellenbyronmariadirico/

BookBub:  https://www.bookbub.com/profile/ellen-byron https://www.bookbub.com/authors/maria-dirico

Goodreads:  Ellen Byron (Author of Plantation Shudders) | Goodreads
https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/19130966.Maria_DiRico

Purchase Links – Amazon – Kensington – Bookshop.org – B&N – Hudson Books – Target – Walmart 

Giveaway

Book Review - The Second Chance Trailer Park by Katie Powner

My Review

Meredith McGillicutty is 52 and life isn't going her way.  She loses out on a promotion at work, quits her job, and breaks up with her boyfriend (with very mixed feelings).  She impulsively moves to a 55 and up trailer park, intending to retire and get away from her life ... although she is only 52 and posing as someone a bit older to live there.  She gets a great deal on a trailer that comes fully furnished -- including a cat named Sir Edmund a/k/a Eddie.  She meets a wide range of people in the neighborhood, makes friends, and becomes involved in the community.  This new life makes her question her choices and think about what she really wants.

I wanted to read The Second Chance Trailer Park because it sounded so unique and charming.  It is!  This book is told with a great deal of warmth and humor, including some sly lines and a couple of situations that made me laugh out loud.  Meredith develops a great deal of affection for her older neighbors - and I certainly did too as a reader.

This is a warm book with a memorable protagonist, unlike anything else I have read recently.  I thoroughly enjoyed the author's fresh voice and some of the should-be-a-TV-series situations that Meredith finds herself in.

I recommend The Second Chance Trailer Park for fans of women's fiction, warm hearted characters, and anyone wanting to read about second chances at life.

Thanks to the author for an advanced reading copy of this book.

Book Review and Giveaway - Crying in the Chapel: A Swinging Sixties Mystery by Teresa Trent

My Review

In August 1965, Dot Morgan is planning her wedding to Ben Dalton.  She's at church, working on wedding plans, when the body of the church caretaker is discovered on the lawn.  Dot becomes involved in juggling amateur detection with wedding planning.

I wanted to read Crying in the Chapel because the Swinging Sixties mystery series sounds so appealing.  I love 1960's settings and also am a cozy mystery fan.

This was a fun mystery!  It is my first read in the series, but read fine as a standalone ... although I do intend to read future books in this series.

Dot is an interesting character.  She's a secretary, an amateur detective, and she wants to maintain her identity after marriage ... despite the wishes of her more conventional future mother-in-law.  Dot works to solve the mysteries that pop up in her small town with the help of her very pregnant cousin Ellie (who is also her future matron of honor).  I enjoyed Dot's sleuthing skills.

The mystery has a refreshing 1960's feel, something I don't see often in cozy mysteries.  I recommend Crying in the Chapel for other cozy mystery fans, and especially for anyone who also enjoys '60's settings.

Book Synopsis

It’s August 1965, and Dot Morgan is finally getting married to the dashing reporter Ben Dalton. Her wedding day, August 14th, promises to be perfect—if only it didn’t follow Friday the 13th. What could go wrong? Planning a wedding with the members of the Camden Chapel, Dot thinks she’s overwhelmed, but then it gets worse when a body is found on the church lawn. Dot decides to focus on her wedding to Ben, but when police reveal the victim didn’t jump from the belfry—he was pushed—she can no longer look away. Her suspects aren’t hardened criminals; they’re the same church members who bring casseroles and ask about her family. With her wedding day fast approaching, Dot must unmask a killer hiding in plain sight, or the secrets of Camden Chapel will remain buried in the summer heat.

Author Bio

Teresa Trent has been writing and publishing mysteries since 2011 starting with the Pecan Bayou Mystery Series and followed by the Piney Woods Mystery Series. She presently writes the Swinging Sixties Mystery Series and the Henry Park Paranormal Series. When Teresa isn’t writing novels and short stories, she spends her time creating narrated excerpts on her podcast, Books to the Ceiling, where she gets to use all that community theater experience from her teens and twenties along with a little audio editing she learned from her daughter. Teresa is a former English teacher, but also spent many years teaching music to preschoolers, working with children of all abilities. Teresa makes her home in Texas with her husband and son.

Author Links

Website:  https://teresatrent.com

Blog/Podcast: Books to the Ceiling   https://teresatrent.blog

Facebook:   https://www.facebook.com/teresatrentmysterywriter

X:   https://twitter.com/ttrent_cozymys

GoodReads:  https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5219581.Teresa_Trent

Instagram:   https://www.instagram.com/teresatrent_cozymys/

BookBub – Teresa Trent Books – BookBub

Threads – https://www.threads.com/@teresatrent_cozymys

Purchase Links

Amazon    Barnes and Noble      Kobo      Bookshop.org      Bookbub

Giveaway

 

Book Review - Lost in the Summer of '69 by Eliza Knight

My Review

Lost in the Summer of '69 is the story of three women in one family -- Leanne Miller is the perfect wife and mother, living in Ossining, New York with her husband and teenage daughter Nora.  Nora is about to go to Yale as one of the first women accepted there.  When Leanne's mother, a thwarted musician, goes missing in this summer of music festivals, Leanne and Nora take off on a long road trip to find her, traveling to old fashioned motels and festivals in their search.

I wanted to read this book because I love 1960's settings and the music festivals and summer setting sounded like a fun read.  I absolutely loved Eliza Knight's book The Queen's Faithful Companion (about Queen Elizabeth and her favorite corgi dog), so that sparked my interest in this novel as well.

The book is told in the alternating viewpoints of the three characters.  They all evolve over the summer.  Leanne and Nora are not very close initially.  Leanne is very prim and proper, the perfect 1960's housewife.  She learns over the road trip summer to be more relaxed and take life a day at a time.  Nora grows closer to her mother as they search for Eleanor, stopping at diners and reading popular paperback novels out loud in the car.  Nora also experiences first love with a young man who is writing articles about the different music festivals they visit.  I have to add that I saw some similarities between Leanne and Nora and Betty and Sally Draper from Mad Men -- down to the Ossining suburbs.

Eleanor's story is a sadder one.  She takes off because she has a diagnosis of early onset dementia.  We see her having occasional memory lapses as she travels to festivals, becoming a sort of celebrity as a grandmother with a guitar - and the voice of an angel.  She performs on stage with one of the musicians she grows close to ... but she knows she will eventually have to go back home.

This is a well written novel.  The period details were exceptional.  I enjoyed the music festivals, and hearing about the singers and bands the women encounter or hear.  I especially loved the smaller moments with Leanne and Nora, the old fashioned motels, the road trip, the diners and truck stops, the books they read aloud together.

I recommend Lost in the Summer of '69 as a summer read for anyone who loves 1960's settings, classic rock, or Americana road trips ... and especially for anyone who enjoys a multi-generational family story.

Thanks to Sourcebooks Landmark and Netgalley for an advanced reading copy of this book.