Unquiet by SE Meyer

 

 

One dance with a serial killer should be enough, but sometimes survival means you will fight for survival until you or the killer are dead. Unquiet by S.E. Meyer is a mystery/thriller/love story that does keep the reader interested from the beginning. 

Mia is a crime podcaster. She survived an attack ten years prior to the time of this story. Her brush with death opened her advocacy for victim rights and the problems with the criminal justice system. In Unquiet, her voice resonates with many that have themselves found flaws in the system and those flaws leave many with heightened feelings that lead to actions that could be considered criminal but justified. 

The players in her original case begin to be attacked and several are killed. She herself is attacked which lands her in protective custody. The original detective on her case and the officer that she has often villainized on her podcast becomes her protector. Being in such close proximity, a relationship blooms leaving her guessing her judgement on most areas of her thought process. She is cut off from contact with anyone other than law enforcement and her therapists. The suspect list is continually changing making for a deeper story.

I would recommend Unquiet by S.E. Meyer to the reader that enjoys mysteries and thrillers, stories that may or may not have obvious villain's. I had two negatives. First, the love story was too shallow, it happened too quickly. I would have enjoyed more depth and lead up. The second issue was the villain. I had it figured out a little faster than I would have hoped. 

The Little Lost Library by Ellery Adams

 A book about books. Could life be any better? I would have chose Ellery Adam's book The Little Lost Library by title alone. But I was pleasantly surprised by the mystery within the pages.  A very enjoyable read. This is the seventh book in the installment. I had no problem jumping in on this book without knowing the others. I will be reading the others.

Nora, the main character, owns a bookstore in Miracle Springs, NC. She also lives in an old train car, which I just thought was cool. One of her customers is a customer named Lucille. Because Lucille doesn't leave her home, Wynter House, Nora makes regular visits to deliver books. They have created a special readers bond, but there is a lot of mystery surrounding Lucille. Lucille does pass and her children enter the picture. It is then that Nora realizes that Lucille was a book hoarder and the family enlist her help in getting rid of the books so they can sell the house and get on with their lives..

In the mix of all of this, Lucille had left Nora a book, The Little Lost Library. There has long been a myth that a little library of great value exists but no one has found it. Within the gifted book are clues to the whereabouts of that library. Nora and her friends put on their investigator hats and begin the search. The more the searches the more her life becomes affected by mysterious and dangerous acts that threatens her very life.

I would recommend The Little Lost Library by Ellery Adams to readers with an affection for a clean mystery.  

Obitchuary by Spencer Henry and Madison Reyes

Ever considered having your body donated to science (only if I can be in the room when they see what they have gotten themselves into) or have a doll made in your likeness to leave for your loved ones as a memorial (I'm imagining the light bulb going off in my sisters head)? What happens surrounding death can be strange and funny. Seriously, that is what Spencer Henry and Madison Reyes shows the reader in Obitchuary.

When I first opened the book I thought it wasn't for me. I don't usually like the macabre, but it hooked me. Obitchuary gives a unique perspective to the process of dying. Literally! The book explains the bodies death process, even the things that are not to pretty to imagine. From there the discussions are about different ceremonially, traditional and religious aspects of death and what people do as a response to death. Then there are the actual obituaries. Some are funny, some loving and some downright mean. You really get to see how loved ones felt about the dead.

Thanks to this book I have done hours of internet searches. I find Louisiana to be particularly interesting in regards to death. I don't think I will actually be stood up at my funeral, but I have some good ideas now. 

I would recommend Obitchuary to those with an open mind, those that can find humor in an otherwise somber subject. It is entertainment, it is not meant to be a guide. Although, it did show that we maybe should take control of our final planning if we don't want the mischievous sister (like mine) being in charge of how your end is perceived.

The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot

 

In The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks, Rebecca Skloot introduces the reader to the one person that has arguably had the greatest impact on modern medicine. Ironically, it is possible that without Skloot working endlessly to get the characters to cooperate, the name Henrietta Lacks and the silent contribution she made may never had been announced to the public. 

The story begins with the illness of a young black woman in Memphis, Henrietta Lacks. While undergoing treatment for an aggressive cancer, tissue is removed for testing and at the same time a portion is sent to the lab for research. Those samples would change medicine forever. Henrietta never gave explicit permission for those samples to be used and through the story we learn this is a normal circumstance. 

While Henrietta is central to what would become know as the HeLa cells that have made so many contributions to medicine, her daughter Deborah is vital to the story. She was a small child when her mother died and had no memories of her. She was somewhat obsessed with knowing her mother and more importantly with protecting her memory. The search for answers brings together an author and a daughter on a quest to really know who Henrietta was. The research introduces readers to other members of the family. The family is under educated and often don't understand the terminologies of the circumstances of Henrietta and her cells. It's interesting to read what they envisioned about the cells and how those cells were used. 

I thought this was an incredibly important story. I wondered as I was reading what role her race placed in her story. Would she have gone unknown for as long as she had if she were a white woman? Was the family treated negatively because they were black? Would more information had been forthcoming if they were educated enough to know what questions to ask. I also considered how their lack of education had made it difficult for them to understand the vastness of medical progress that was a result of Henrietta. Her name should be known.

I would recommend The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot to readers of nonfiction, the sciences and family dynamics. It is a beautiful story of what one woman can do, even if by accident and through tragedy.

The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls

 In all darkness there is light. Few stories can prove that out as well as Jeannette Wall's The Glass Castle.  This memoir of childhood draws a thin line between disappointment and acceptance, between love and hate, between success and failure.

The Glass Castle is a family reflection from the time Jeannette is three years old through to adulthood. There are many homes as the family is consistently uprooting as life becomes negative. This could be for financial reasons, because they have worn out their welcome in whatever location or simply because her parents thought it was time. Her father was a dreamer and an alcoholic. He struggled to hold down even the most menial jobs. Her mother was an unemployed teacher throughout a great portion of her childhood as well as a struggling artist. The story revolves around the poverty of the choices made by these two adults that rarely put the family ahead of their own wants and beliefs. It is important to point out that these parents were highly intelligent and could have done much more with their lives than they chose. I believe that is a key point in the story.

Jeannette wasn't alone. She had three siblings that suffered the same circumstances. Each reacted to their parents in very different ways but they were close to each other. Often being the strength they each needed. They were all hungry, all dirty and all put in situations that stable parents would never put them in. If the story played out today, I highly suspect the children would have been put "in the system".

 While reading I would find myself angry one minute when one of the parents had pulled a selfish stunt, but then the next minute I would be smiling when they would be thoughtful and caring. As much as I didn't want to, I fell in love with the parents. What they wanted was a simple life in a world that put material ideology ahead of the natural beauty we can all have. It is the way in which they went after those dreams that made the dreams dark. I also found the level of love the children had to be particularly unique. It showed the character they had, even when there was no logical reason for that character.

I would recommend The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls to any reader that enjoys a story of survival. It is a story that makes one think about how we turn into the people we are.

After the Ocean by Lauren E. Rico

 Imagine awaking on a cruise ship in the middle of the ocean. You realize you are alone, where is your new husband? You've been married only hours and he's gone. You do what you should. You go for help. Instead, you are now accused of something unimaginable. You become the criminal. This is the opening  Lauren E. Rico gives the reader in After the Ocean.

Emilia and Paul, married a very short time, are on the honeymoon cruise when he disappears. She is then thrown into a maze of confusion and sorrow. Her only hope is a Puerto Rican detective, Miguel, that really has no jurisdiction in international waters making the situation increasingly suspicious. Why has he been called in to a situation typically handled by the FBI? It doesn't take long for the reasons to become apparent and swift decisions have to be made before someone else becomes a victim.

Paul comes from a wealthy and powerful family. In the families mind, Emilia simply isn't worthy of him. This realization starts a 30 year mystery that will bring forward the ugliness of family disputes, the harm of secrets, the difficulty of forgiveness, and the undying power of love.

Rico tells the story through multiple key characters, each having a solid base the reader can relate to and understand. Even though there are several voices, each voice has its own personality that can be followed with ease. The timeline is over 30 years so the chapters go back and forth. The flow of the story allows for the transitions in time. In fact, these transitions are necessary to make the story as interesting as it is.

I would recommend Lauren E. Rico's After the Ocean to readers that enjoy mystery/thriller. It is also a good story for readers that enjoy family dramas that can work out even when horrible events plague the past.

A Slash of Emerald by Patrice McDonough

 When envisioning 1860's Victorian London one might see a setting of elegant women with parasols and petticoats and proper men newspapers tucked under their arms. An era in which society is beautiful and non-threatening. Patrice McDonough dispels that myth in A Slash of Emerald. In this Victorian story, prostitution and sex trafficking of the lower members of society are mingled with the wealthy and powerful with murderous results. 

The story opens with a young hat maker being arrested for violating the "Contagious Diseases Act". (syphilis was prevalent at this time) Bring in Dr. Julia Lewis, the first female medical examiner at Scotland Yard. Dr. Lewis examines the young "criminal", Annie O'Neill only to find that she is not only innocent of the violation, but is also a virgin. Dr. Lewis's encounter with young Annie will play an important role throughout the story.

Following the encounter with Annie, Dr. Lewis stumbles across a scene in which a break in pond ice has left dozens fighting for their lives in frigid water. One of the victims is Charles Allingham that she treats on the site of the incident. Charles is an art dealer and collector married to Louisa. The couple are prominent members of London society. Charles Allingham, his wife Louisa and his sister Mary, an artist in her own right live together at Blenheim Lodge. The lodge is host to many acts in the story involving clues that will lead to the murderer. 

Bring in Dr. Lewis and Scotland Yard Detective Tennant, they will take a journey through the underbelly of London. The travel will link a poor hat maker with a wealthy art collector and eventually solve a group of murders that have defined the social fabric of 1860's Victorian London.

From the start, the reader is pulled in. The story moves quickly and flawlessly. The history is interwoven in such a way the reader is unaware that a powerful history lesson is playing out parallel to the plot. Victorian London was an era not always friendly to the poor, especially the female sector of the poor. The women were often victimized by those of power. They could easily be proven to be the criminal when men of fortune were involved. Female paupers were easily thrown away and forgotten. This was a social epidemic. In A Slash of Emerald, McDonough shows how the prejudices can be used to create alternate realities even in the view of officials meant to protect society as a whole.

A second important societal darkness if that of women in places typically designated for men. Dr. Lewis, as a female, is portrayed throughout the book as a professional that isn't taken seriously in most situations. People do not believe she can be a "good" doctor because she is female. Mary too has to battle the sexes in the art world. Women often were passed over in gallery showings due to sex. 

I would recommend A Slash of Emerald to readers that enjoy mystery and second guessing your suspects. Literally, every time I thought I had it figured out, something would happen putting me back at square one. This is also for those enjoying history as a back drop. While I knew there was darkness in London at this time, this is around the time of Jack the Ripper, I had never really considered the prevalence of prostitution and sex trafficking. I closed the book having enjoyed a great story, as well as, getting a history lesson.

Review by,

Tanya Meehan