DCL Book Chat

Colorado Springs baker Ramona Gallagher’s life is in a downward spiral. Her boulangerie is in financial trouble, she’s not getting on with her parents and her pregnant daughter’s husband has been seriously wounded in Afghanistan. When her daughter leaves for Germany to be with her husband, her thirteen year old stepdaughter has nowhere to go. So Ramona takes her in. What follows for Ramona is a summer of reconnecting – with her family, with her high school crush and with a prickly teenager who needs a lot of love. Stir in some baking tips and mouthwatering recipes and readers will discover a story with a lot of Colorado based charm.

Dedra

Corte (no first name) is an agent for an anonymous government agency who safeguards high profile citizens. His current assignment is to protect a DC detective from a man who will do anything (i.e. torture) to extract information from him. Corte has a personal reason to stop this man: he murdered his mentor. Jeffery Deaver offers plenty of twists and turns pitting two very intelligent opponents against each in an intriguing battle of wills. In addition he gives readers a thoughtful, rather scholarly hero (who doesn’t brood or overanalyze as much as Lincoln Rhyme) in what readers can only hope is the first in a new series.

Dedra

Edward Feathers is a well-regarded judge who has returned to England from Hong Kong to enjoy his retirement. Outward appearances suggest that Edward has led a staid and rather boring life, but as we learn more about his past we discover just how complex and fascinating his life has been. Like Kipling, Edward was a Raj orphan, one of a whole generation of children of officials serving in the far reaches of the British Empire. Very competent in his professional life, Edward must now come to terms with his past, readjust to life in England and deal with aging.

Don’t be put off by the title. Old Filth is actually Edward’s quirky, very British nickname and stands for Failed in London, try Hong Kong. If you like British literature, Jane Gardam is a gem. She’s created a wonderful, rich character and brought to life a little-known piece of British history.

Marsha

Tess Gerritsen takes her main characters out of Boston for this fast-paced mystery/thriller. Maura Isles is in Jackson, WY for a medical conference and meets up with an old college friend who invites her to go with him, his daughter and another couple to a cross-country ski lodge after the conference. They end up stranded in the middle of nowhere when their car goes off the road during a terrible snow storm. The story follows Maura as she and her traveling companions stumble upon a strangely deserted community and evidence of foul play while trying to find shelter. When Maura doesn’t return to Boston when she is expected, Jane Rizzoli, her husband Gabriel Dean and Maura’s lover Daniel Brophy travel to Wyoming to find her.

Gerritsen does a great job describing the isolation and fear Maura and her companions feel, as well as their growing tensions with one another about the choices they have made. The fact that the now deserted community belongs to a polygamist cult adds another facet to the story.

Allison

I loved Morton’s atmospheric novel and the unfolding life histories of the Mountrachet women. I also loved her descriptions of Cornwall, its rugged coast and hidden gardens and of late 19th century London. I’ve always enjoyed novels that intertwine stories from different time periods as this one does. Morton’s novel combines mystery, family love and hatred and a secret that begins with a beautiful book of fairy tales.

Allison

Bruce Machart’s debut novel, The Wake of Forgiveness, is a stirring and dramatic tour-de-force. Jumping between several time periods spanning 1895 – 1924, we learn the story of the Skala family. We learn how grief has distorted a father’s ability to love his sons, especially the youngest, Karel, whose birth began the cycle of anger and withdrawal. We learn how Karel resiliently manages to grab affection wherever possible. And we learn how power can mangle a relationship in the span of a midnight horse race. Like All the Pretty Horses meets East of Eden, The Wake of Forgiveness tells a tale of tough westerners living harsh lives of brutal passion. It deals with damaged relationships and heart-stopping emotional turmoil through beautifully written passages of brusque eloquence.

Laura

If you’re in the mood for an exciting legal thriller, look no further than Law of Attraction. With murder, intrigue, courtroom drama, compelling characters, a touch of romance and featuring a green, Harvard educated Assistant U. S. Attorney who prosecutes misdemeanor domestic violence cases, it has something for everyone. The author’s background as a Harvard educated former sex crimes prosecutor shows in all the details.

Dedra