Wednesday, March 13, 2024

The Frozen River by Ariel Lawhon

 
First Line: The body floats downstream.
 
Maine, 1789. Men trying unsuccessfully to get down the Kennebec River before it freezes find a dead man in the ice. Local midwife Martha Ballard is summoned to examine the body and determine the cause of death. Through her work, she is privy to much of what goes on behind closed doors in town, and her daily diary is a record of every birth, death, crime, and disaster in the area. 

The dead man is one of two accused of rape-- both men being prominent and well-respected citizens. When a local physician declares the man's death to be an accident, contrary to Martha's findings, she is forced to investigate the murder on her own.
 
Over the course of the winter, the trial nears, and the whispers and gossip grow louder. As Martha searches for the truth, her diary is at the center of the scandal as it implicates those she loves and makes her question her own loyalties.
 
~
 
Ariel Lawhon's The Frozen River came to my attention shortly before its release, but it wasn't until I watched the author's event at The Poisoned Pen that I knew that I had to read it. I am so glad that I did.

The Frozen River is based on the life of Martha Ballard, a midwife in Maine who delivered over 1,000 babies without ever losing a mother. Ballard is the great-aunt of Clara Barton and the great-great-grandmother of Mary Hobart, one of the first female physicians in the U.S. She is a woman who would've vanished from history if not for her diary. In Lawhon's story, Martha's voice is so real, so sure, so compelling, that I immediately fell under her spell.
 
The Frozen River is incredibly rich in historical detail: the sexist laws, the aftereffects of the French and Indian War, and the ebb and flow of life during a winter in colonial Maine. I felt as though I were right beside Martha each and every day. Occasional chapters fill in her backstory. A silver fox Martha named Tempest makes several appearances, and the relationship between Martha and her husband Ephraim is a thing of beauty. Coleman's General Store is the place where Martha barters for books and the latest gossip, and I love how she would gift newlyweds with one of her quilts: "Everyone must sleep, and to do so beneath a warm quilt, tenderly made, is the first thing that helps a house become a home."

The Frozen River is wonderfully evocative of its time and place. It's a compelling mystery. It's based on the life of a remarkable woman. Read it.

The Frozen River by Ariel Lawhon
eISBN: 9780385546881
Doubleday © 2023
eBook, 448 pages

Historical Mystery, Standalone
Rating: A+
Source: Purchased from Amazon.

Tuesday, March 12, 2024

While Miz Kittling Knits: I, Claudius

 


It's been awhile since my last knitting post, but that doesn't mean that my needles have been still. I started experiencing pain in my finger joints-- arthritis-- and my doctor recommended an ointment to apply to my hands. It seems to be working, although I think it has something to do with what I've been knitting. The pain in my thumbs in particular had grown to the point where I'd begun wearing braces on my hands, but I've been able to stop that. Why? Because I've stopped knitting big afghans all in one piece and have been spending my evenings using up yarn that I've had for years in making scarves. I think the weight of the afghans had a great deal to do with the pain. 

But I'm getting ahead of myself since I still have an afghan or two (maybe three) to show you. Let's see what's on the agenda today...






This afghan is all of my own invention. The pattern is simple: a garter stitch border framing a stockinette stitch center panel. I used US size 15 circular needles and three strands of Red Heart Super Saver 100% acrylic yarn: two strands of Bright Yellow and one strand of Mexicana. The simple pattern allows the colors to shine-- and there's just something so cheerful about yellow, isn't there?

What was I watching while my needles were clacking away? An iconic mini-series that first aired in 1976...




Synopsis from IMDb:

"Rome, 1st Century AD. Aging Emperor Claudius is writing the history of his family. He starts his recollections before he was born with the court of his grandfather Caesar Augustus. He then chronicles the goings-on in the imperial court, especially the plots and murderous machinations, that brought him to this point. "


The opening sequence and theme music are still arresting. The cast is absolutely fabulous. (Derek Jacobi, John Hurt, Patrick Stewart, among others.) I had not seen this series since it first aired, and I was gobsmacked at how much of it I remembered. I also found it amusing that my opinion of one actress (Siân Phillips as the scheming, diabolical Livia) was forever colored by her masterful performance. 

True, there have been great strides made in the makeup techniques used to age actors in their roles as well as camera lenses and film, but this mini-series stands the test of time. I watched it just as avidly now as I did over forty years ago. Now that's quality television! 

(I watched I, Claudius on Acorn TV.)

Monday, March 11, 2024

Dark Dive by Andrew Mayne

 
First Lines: Prologue. Central Florida. 11,867 BCE. She was scared.
 
Florida's Underwater Investigation Unit did its job too well, uncovering corruption at the highest levels. Political pressure disbanded the unit, but public outcry and its string of successes brought it back. Unfortunately, the UIU's first case is a personal one for Sloan McPherson and her partner, former Navy diver Scott Hughes. 
 
Longtime family friend Fred Stafford has disappeared. His truck is found near an unmarked sinkhole, and as Sloan continues her investigation, she realizes how little she knows about the missing man. 
 
In no time at all, Sloan and Scott find themselves joining a treasure-hunting band of underwater cavern divers, becoming involved in a cold case, and even looking into the buried secrets of the long-ago past. 
 
~
 
I always look forward to reading the latest Underwater Investigation Unit thriller. I've learned a lot about diving in different locations-- in Dark Dive, it's sinkholes and underwater caverns-- and about the state of Florida itself. Florida seems to be the home of abandoned "pet/monsters": pythons, anacondas, Nile crocodiles... let alone the native alligators, and Sloan has to take the wildlife into account each time she dives. 
 
The diving sequences are always riveting. You never know what's going to spring at Sloan from out of the murk, and I have to admit that I enjoy the vicarious scares. But it's not all fast-paced thrills and technical gadgetry. I wish every state in the country could have someone with the savvy of Sloan's boss, George Solar. To smooth the way for his investigators, Solar has two RVs-- one filled with lawyers ready, willing, and able to get search warrants and other legal necessities, and the second armed with CSI techs and all the lab equipment they need to avoid the interminable delays of local law enforcement backlogs. Sweet, eh?

Even sweeter is the fact that the cast of characters is just as strong as the story, the thrills, and the technology. I like Sloan's irreverent voice, and her partner Scott is increasingly figuring into the stories. In addition, there's always a one-time character whom you wish could become a recurring one. In Dark Dive, it's octogenarian Gayle Pinnesky. I just loved her to bits!

Exciting story, lots to learn, fantastic setting with a touch of the alien about it, and great characters. If you haven't already gone diving with Andrew Mayne's Underwater Investigation Unit, it's time you did!

Dark Dive by Andrew Mayne
eISBN: 9781662506451
Thomas & Mercer © 2024
eBook, 296 pages

Thriller, #5 Underwater Investigation Unit
Rating: A
Source: Net Galley

Sunday, March 10, 2024

On My Radar: Michael Bennett's Return to Blood!

 


Michael Bennett's first book featuring Māori police detective Hana Westerman, Better the Blood, was one of my Best Reads last year, so when I found out that the second in the series was going to be released, you'd better believe I went out to the driveway and did my little three-wheeled happy dance. I'm looking forward to immersing myself in the landscape of New Zealand and the Māori culture once again.

Let me tell you more about this new book!


Available May 21, 2024!


Synopsis: 

"After the perils of a case that landed much too close to home, Hana Westerman turned in her badge and abandoned her career as a detective in the Auckland CIB. Hoping that civilian life will offer her the opportunity to rest and recalibrate, she returns to her hometown of Tātā Bay, where she moves back in with her beloved father, Eru. Yet the memories of the past are everywhere, and as she goes for her daily run on the beach, Hana passes a local monument to Paige, a high school classmate who was murdered more than twenty years ago and hidden in the dunes overlooking the sea. A Māori man with a previous record was convicted of the crime, although Eru never believed he was guilty.

When her daughter finds another young woman’s skeleton in the sands, Hana soon finds herself awkwardly involved. Investigators suspect that this is Kiri Thomas, a young Māori woman who disappeared four years earlier, after battling years of drug addiction. Hana and her daughter Addison are increasingly captivated by the story behind this unsolved crime, but without the official police force behind her, Hana must risk compromising her own peace and relationships if justice is to be served.

Expanding the range of vivid characters who made Michael Bennett’s first book, Better the Blood, so appealing, and offering a shocking twist at the end, Return to Blood takes readers further into Māori culture and traditions as it engages us more deeply into the story of Hana Westerman."

 

Return to Blood sounds like another winner, doesn't it? I can't wait to get my hands on a copy! If you're an armchair traveling sleuth like me who likes to immerse yourself in another place and culture and you haven't read Better the Blood yet... now's the time. You don't want to get too far behind in this series!

Thursday, March 07, 2024

The Best Kind of Luck Weekly Link Round-Up

 


What's the best kind of luck? For a reader, it could be considered a run of "Best Reads." Four of the last seven books I've read I've rated A+. I don't remember ever having a run of luck this good. Who knows? The run could be over, but it's certainly put a smile on my face!
 
Nothing much is going on around here other than the usual. The doctor's office called to schedule my annual physical, and I'll be glad to get that out of the way before Daisy and Suzanne come for their visit at the end of the month. 
 
I definitely intend to have a talk with my doctor. Something's wrong with me that can be killed by antibiotics, but both my primary care physician and the doctor at the wound care clinic seem to be afraid of keeping me on them long enough for good-old-whatever-it-is to be killed once and for all. I know their worries about antibiotics, but I am sick to death of the merry-go-round that I'm on. It's time to get off, blast it!
 
 

 
Spring is showing itself more and more. I'm looking forward to visits to the Desert Botanical Garden to see all the blooms, and I'm hoping that Denis and I will figure out a way to discourage all these pesky starlings that won't keep all the other birds away. I wish I could train the kestrel that visits for a weekly bath to chase starlings, but I know that's a bit too much to ask!
 
Enjoy the links! 


►Books & Other Interesting Tidbits◄
 
►Book Banning & Censorship◄





►Channeling My Inner Indiana Jones◄
 
►Channeling My Inner Elly May Clampett◄
 
►The Wanderer◄
 
►Fascinating Folk◄
  • Tom Baragwanath on becoming an accidental crime novelist.
  • The true story of Pocahontas is more complicated than you might think.
  • James Cook has been using only a typewriter to create drawings for the last ten years.
  • Jon Foreman turns found stones and shells into beautiful beach installations.
  • Paul McCartney was reunited with his bass guitar that disappeared 50 years ago-- with a little help from his fans.
  • Meet Smithsonian scientist Dr. Dave Pawson who has spent decades exploring the ocean depths.
  • Anaxagoras and the eclipse: the first to get it right.
  • Mary Jackson: Black women were also lynched.
 
►I ♥ Lists◄

That's all for this week! Don't forget to stop by next Friday when I'll be sharing a freshly selected batch of links for your surfing pleasure.

No matter how busy you may be, don't forget that quality Me Time curled up with a good book!

Wednesday, March 06, 2024

The Dubrovnik Book Club by Eva Glyn

 
First Lines: Prologue. October 2021. He raises his head from the sink and looks in the mirror.
 
Long Covid took fifteen months of Claire Thomson's life. Fifteen months that she'll never get back. Staying with her grandmother in Dubrovnik, Croatia should give her a fresh start-- even though she's still very nervous about being around other people and the chance that she'll contract Covid again.
 
Becoming the manager of The Welcoming Bookshop brings Claire back to the work she loves, and it also brings her new friends. There's bookshop employee, Luna, a young lesbian who wants to become part of the gay community but isn't quite sure how to go about it. There's Claire's cousin, Vedran, branded by social media as the killer of his missing girlfriend, and there's Karmela, a history professor haunted by her family's escape from wartorn Sarajevo when she was a child. These four along with several university students form a book club that will eventually change their lives.
 
~
 
The Dubrovnik Book Club is a Harlequin romance-type book that's still an enjoyable read (even more so if you like romance novels). The old buildings and history of Dubrovnik come to vivid life, and I almost felt as though I were walking its streets along with the characters.
 
The Welcoming Bookshop lives up to its name, truly welcoming all to its door. The books the club members choose to read highlight inclusiveness and show how each of the characters grows. 
 
I found all four main characters interesting. Each one of them feels that they have good reasons to hide away from others. Luna, a young, bubbly lesbian, is nervous about coming out because she's from a very restrictive and traditional family. Claire, an Englishwoman who used to work in London's Foyles Bookshop, has to overcome her fear of a recurrence of Covid. Claire's cousin, Vedran, has been pilloried by social media after his girlfriend disappeared, and it's this disappearance that fuels the mystery that the book club members work to solve. Karmela has felt like an outsider ever since her parents took her out of Sarajevo before the city was torn apart by war. She feels that there is some sort of shame in her escape, especially since it took her away from her dearest friends. Each one of these characters fights his or her demons with the help of the other book club members. 

Each character's story is interesting, and I liked the solution to the mystery of the woman's disappearance. But, most of all, I enjoyed spending time in Dubrovnik, and I appreciated the Croatian glossary at the back of the book. If you're in the mood for a light, pleasant read in an exotic location, The Dubrovnik Book Club would be a good choice.

The Dubrovnik Book Club by Eva Glyn
eISBN: 9780008648107
One More Chapter © 2024
eBook, 384 pages
 
Contemporary Fiction, Standalone
Rating: C+
Source: Net Galley

Tuesday, March 05, 2024

A Visit to the Phoenix Art Museum, Part Four

Today marks the final stop on our virtual tour of the Phoenix Art Museum. One of my favorite parts of the museum turned out to be the Western American Art wing on the second floor. Let me show you a few of the things Denis and I enjoyed there.


As you can see, some of the paintings are quite striking. That's Denis taking a photo.


"Processing Sheep" (1976, oil on linen) by Willard Franklin Midgette.


"Desert Rain God" (2009, oil on canvas) by Louisa McElwain.


"Nuestro Señor el Desollado" (2004, acrylic on canvas) by Paul Pletka.


Detail.


"The FLamingo Gate" (1924, oil on canvas) by Theodore Van Soelen.


"Margo Phillips Beutler" (1914-1915, oil on board) by W. Herbert Dunton. One of my favorites.


"Out of the Mist" (1988, watercolor and gouache on paper) by James Boren. With unfortunate but stubborn reflection...


Detail with stubborn reflection...


Striking statue that I somehow managed not to get the name of or the artist's name.


View of Western American art gallery.


View of Western American art gallery.


I hope you've enjoyed your visit. Denis and I hope to go back soon to see the exhibits we missed. Soon, I'll share a few photos of our recent trip to the Desert Botanical Garden.

Monday, March 04, 2024

The Dead Years by Jeffrey B. Burton

 
First Line: It was the same dream.
 
After their parents' deaths in a tragic accident years ago, siblings Cory and Crystal Pratt live in the family home, and their working lives sometimes intertwine. Crystal is a detective in the Chicago Police Department, and Cory has two human remains detection dogs as well as a dog training academy.
 
Both are called in when a string of recent murders seems to be connected to a Netflix documentary, but when the pair begin investigating, the killer focuses on stopping them.  

~

I have enjoyed previous books by Jeffrey B. Burton. He has a knack for creating irreverent, sympathetic characters and pairing them with working dogs-- always a potent combination in my book. Although the same framework is present here, I found The Dead Years to be less satisfying.

The story is told from Cory Pratt's perspective, and I liked this twentysomething's voice. However, I found his angst over the deaths of his parents a bit of a yawn. (Why do so many characters in mysteries have parents who died tragically?) His canine partners, Alice the bloodhound and Rex the springer spaniel, did their jobs well, and Cory's sister, Crystal, is the more logical, grounded one of the pair. 

The serial killer in The Dead Years is a bit different, resurrecting his reign of terror after becoming incensed over his portrayal in a Netflix documentary, and he also plays a role in Cory's dreams. Readers learn the killer's identity before Cory and Crystal do, but once they do know, it's a race to the finish.
 
I did enjoy this book. It's all there: fast pace, engaging story, sympathetic characters, but I have to admit that it felt as if I'd read it all before. Even a winning formula can become tired.

The Dead Years by Jeffrey B. Burton
eISBN: 9781448312405
Severn House © 2024
eBook, 224 pages
 
Thriller, #1 Chicago K-9
Rating: C+
Source: Net Galley