Chanticleer Book Reviews

Author: J. Mach

THIRTIES: The Album in Portrait and Prose by Jill Andrews – Actor and Entertainer Biographies Actor and Entertainer Biographies, Photo Essays, Composer & Musician Biographies

Thirties: The Album in Portrait and Prose is a companion book to the album “Thirties” by Indie-folk singer Jill Andrews and both are very personal and poignant.

Thirties: The Album in Portrait and Prose features lush photography that illustrates the prose as any good coffee table book should. But it is more than a book of pictures and writing to add to your décor. The album was written during Jill’s transformative third decade of challenge and change, of love and loss. The book came from the feeling that there was more to tell that would “go deeper than a three-minute song” could take the singer/song writer and the listener and so the book idea was born to share the journey. There are times it feels like we are reading a personal journal as Jill struggles to come to terms with the ideals and dreams of her younger years, that in her “thirties” she would have all those things one imagines should be in place as an adult, a family, career, and a loving relationship.

The cover of both the book and the album hint at what is to come, a picture of Jill dancing, her arms around no one, but her shadow silhouette dancing with a partner.

The book starts after the birth of a new baby girl with a second partner, and the growing dark clouds of alcoholism and absence that are threatening to end this relationship. “He sleeps when it’s bright and beautiful outside, long after the baby’s first morning cry for milk.” As Jill navigates her journey through this crumbling relationship and all of the pressures of, once again, being a single mom, her joy and sadness are tangible.

Each chapter corresponds with a song on the album and lyrics are sprinkled throughout. The photographs are both glossy color and brilliant black and white, each choice enhancing the chapters they illustrate. Some of the photos harken back to a bygone era, with Jill in Vintage Riding clothes astride a beautiful horse (My Own Way) or in a 40’s style polka-dot two-piece in the river with dazzling red lipstick (River Swimming) to a haunting “evolution” photo of infant girl to Jill now (The Way to Go). Although the book is about separation and loss, readers (and listeners) will also find a deep longing and hope for the future, hope that there is still a chance for love.

Fans of Jill Andrews will find this book to be a perfect companion to the album and find the same hopefulness in the book as in her lyrics and those who pick up this book to read it may find themselves going to the “book extras” on the web page to listen to samples of the album and find a richer experience for it.

March 23, 2021
The BLACKBIRD by Kristy McCaffrey – Western, Historical, Romance

An historical sensual romance set in the rustic Arizona territory of the late 1800s, the fourth in the Kristy McCaffrey’s Winds of the West series, The Blackbird hits the mark. It brings together two tortured souls who also have deep insights and gifts that may help them find their way to each other.

Tess Carlisle is a spirited but wounded young woman who suffered an assault by one of the men in her father’s gang that left her leg wounded and her soul scarred. Tess’s life was already tough when she began to ride with her father and his band of bounty hunters. She lived with her alcoholic mother and her beloved Abuela (grandmother) until the two older women died in a house fire, brought on by her mother’s depression and drinking. Tess has the ability to tell stories, a gift she learned from her grandmother and Tess knows this ability ties her spirit to the greater world. She sends word to Cale Walker, a man who used to ride with her bounty hunter father, to help her find Hank Carlisle, to find out answers to why her papa would allow one of his men to assault her and then abandon her.

Cale Walker joined Hank with his band of bounty hunters after a stint in the Army until he had a falling out with Hank over the ruthlessness of some of the other members “methods.” On his way from leaving Hank, Cale was attacked by a mountain lion and rescued by an Apache tribe, such as those that Hank and Cale hunted. During Cale’s time with a tribe of the Nednai, he learned their healing ways and became a di-yan (medicine man). Cale also has unresolved issues with Hank.

Cale and Tess are introduced to each other at the very beginning of the novel, when Cale arrives at Tom and Mary Simms’ home, having been summoned there by a letter from his half-sister, who also is Mary’s half-sister. Yes, there are a lot of names that are mentioned at the beginning of this story, and, as the fourth in a series, reading the first one helps set all the other characters in their proper place.

When Cale and Tess meet, there is an instant connection, one that Tess tries hard to ignore given her past, and one that Cale wants to suppress, because of the wounded spirit he senses in Tess. He wants to protect and help her. As they travel together to find Hank, Tess and Cale are wary of the growing feelings between them. It’s an unforgiving land, and they are both unsure who to trust, including themselves. When Tess is hurt in a fall during an attack, Cale finds his way to Vern, a rancher in the Dragoons where Tess allows Cale to use his healing knowledge to help her leg get strong, and she nurtures a wounded blackbird, aware of its connection to her, wounded and in a cage to heal, but wanting to be free. Can Cale bring her the same kind of healing?

Blackbird is a sensual romance and has all the aspects one might expect for the genre – and receives high marks as being a keenly written historical novel. The author’s attention to historical detail is evident in the use of traditional Apache terms and realism of the time. Tess’s storytelling ability and memories of her grandmother also add to the flavor of the novel as she sprinkles her stories and conversation with Spanish phrases. But it is the story of two wounded hearts finding each other in the hardscrabble environment of Arizona during the time of Geronimo that makes The Blackbird go beyond “romance.”

The storyline is so engaging and intense, it is difficult to put down. The description of the Arizona desert, such as the otherworldly look the Dragoon Mountains, as well as the brutality of both the bounty hunters and some native war parties, show the realities of what life was like during those time, for both the settlers and those Apache tribes that wanted to live at peace without government interference.

The Blackbird by Kristy McCaffrey won First Place in the 2015 LARAMIE Awards!

August 31, 2018
SECRETS REVEALED, Cedar Islands Tales Book 4 by Kate Vale – Contemporary Romance, Mystery, Women’s Fiction

Owen Haskins is returning to his childhood home on fictional Cedar Island (which has an uncanny resemblance to Whidbey Island for those readers in the know) with his seven-year-old son Ian so they can have a new start. Ian has had trouble being bullied in his old school, and Owen is worried that new teacher, Faith Russell, may not be up to the job of helping his vulnerable son. Of course, Faith and Owen clash, while simultaneously being attracted to each other, but painful experiences in their past initially keep them from acting on their growing feelings for one another.

Secrets Revealed by Kate Vale is the 4th book in her Cedar Island Tales series, and it is not necessary to read the previous tales to jump right into this heartwarming romance. Each of the main characters has their own secret that affects their relationship. Faith is an accomplished teacher but is distrustful of men. She dresses in clothes that used to fit but now are worn and oversized, almost as a shield to keep people at bay, something her mother (who shares the other side of a duplex with her) constantly harps about.

Owen left his hometown due to a very difficult relationship with his abusive father. He didn’t return until after his mother’s death—something he regrets.

Ian is withdrawn, possibly from the bullying he endured at his old school, but he has a secret as well, one that goes back to the tragedies of losing both his mother and grandmother in Idaho while still a young boy.

As Owen and Faith interact, they can’t ignore the attraction between them, and they begin a sensual relationship but agree not to become “serious.” Faith can’t help but fall in love with Owen, but their relationship is complicated by misunderstandings and young Ian’s desire to have Miss Russell become his new mom. These secrets have a lot of sway over the lives of those keeping them, and the story is a good reminder of the power of secrets and words in our lives.

A nice twist in the romance genre, Vale tells her story from not just the point-of-view of the two romantic leads, but also from the viewpoint of young Ian, a character whom readers will care about from the very beginning of the novel.

Secrets Revealed won First Place in the 2016 Mystery & Mayhem Awards for Kate Vale.

August 1, 2018
ZILLY: A MODERN DAY FABLE by Kelly Parks Snider – Children’s/Middle Grade, Anti-Bullying, Self-Esteem

Children’s books fall into many categories: picture books, early readers, books that teach the alphabet, colors etc. Zilly is a message book, presented with a poignant story, engaging artwork, and timely message.

Zilly is an “out of the ordinary flyer” whose bumpy, flip-flop flying style garners criticism from the other flyers. It doesn’t help that her best friend who is always on the scene to offer support and encouragement, happens to be a goat named Mingle.

When Zilly sees a large billboard that announces, “flying lessons for flyers who want to fit in” Zilly wants to try out. But this will require her to change from her free-spirited flips, zips, and bumpiness. The billboard also says: “no goats allowed.”

Zilly falls for the message that she needs to conform to be beautiful like the other flyers and even snubs Mingle in order to fit in. But, on the day of her try-outs, she doesn’t measure up and Zilly is ready to hide away until she hears the voice of her best friend cheering for her.

In Zilly, Parks Snider presents a positive message of being yourself when our society, through constant media messaging and peer pressure, attempts to get young people to be anything but themselves. Zilly has a timely theme and comes with discussion questions that children will benefit from considering – some questions may have to be modified for younger children.

Kelly Parks Snider has created a colorful, thoughtful book that has the power to teach children of all ages that most important lesson we all need to learn: being yourself is good enough. The artwork in it is mixed media, with visual textures and eye-catching colors that will catch – and keep – readers’ attention. Parks Snider adds that her decision to create the book “… on old paper bags – allow[s] for additional discussions about creativity, repurposing stuff and that being creative and innovative doesn’t have to be expensive.”

Kelly Parks Snider is passionate about this message and channeled her passion and artistic vision into a wonderful project called the Project Girl workshops in Madison, Wisconsin, aimed at tween and early teen girls. The workshops combined art, media awareness, and activism. It culminated in The Project Girl Exhibition which was accompanied by the publication of The Project Girl Workbook-A Guide to Un-Mediafying Your Life. which includes art and stories from Snider and artwork from some of the workshop participants whose works were in the exhibition.

Find out more about this 2012 initiative and follow the author at projectgirl.org, www.zillybooks.com, and www.kellyparkssnider.com

January 6, 2018
UNDER an ENGLISH HEAVEN by Alice Boatwright – Cozy Mystery, Amateur/Woman Sleuth

Can a Californian College Professor find true love with her English Vicar husband while under suspicion of murder in his small town?

Under an English Heaven – An Ellie Kent Mystery by Alice K Boatwright is a cozy mystery with a very American protagonist set in a very English village. Ellie Kent is said American, newly married to the village Vicar, Reverend Graham Kent. It’s the second marriage for both of them. Ellie is a former University English Classics Professor from California and her husband, Graham oversees St. Michael’s and All Angels’ Church in Little Beecham and is the widowed father of a college-age daughter.

Ellie is also a skeptic about faith, something her new husband seems bemused by. Although she has taken to wearing tweeds and walking the Jack Russell named Hector, Ellie can’t help but feel out of place in the shadow of Graham’s first wife, Louise, whom all the village seemed to hold in the highest esteem. Louise also was the one many of the congregation turned to with their secrets. As Ellie says to her new husband in the very beginning of the novel “No matter what I wear I’ll never be Mrs. Vicar of Little Beecham. People will always think of me as the young wife who snared you on that unfortunate sabbatical in California”.

Ellie is just settling in when she finds a body in the graveyard next to the vicarage after some mischief in the church on Halloween Night. No one in town seems to know the man, but his new British clothes are at odds with his worn Italian underwear (this is important to the plot…I promise).

As with most cozy mysteries, the police suspect Ellie for the simple reason that her first husband was an Italian-American poet and they once lived in Italy, and she is a “foreigner”.

When another death occurs, and Ellie is given a found book of Italian poetry written by the first victim, the mystery deepens and Ellie finds herself trying to figure out who the killer is while also trying to figure out her place in the village, the church and in her marriage, while also trying to stay out of jail.

The events of the novel start the day before Halloween and extend to Remembrance Day (November 11^th) including All Saints Day, All Souls Day, and Bonfire Night-a tribute to the failed gunpowder plot of Guy Fawkes (made famous in the graphic novel and film “V for Vendetta”). Each of these days are unique celebrations for an American experiencing them for the first time.

Twists and turns a plenty, along with great pacing and quirky characters, make Under an English Heaven an entertaining classic cozy mystery. Boatwright adds just the right amount of descriptions of the bucolic village landscape and teas to make any one who loves all things British happy juxtaposed against an adventuresome contemporary American amateur sleuth. A second delectable Ellie Kent Mystery is promised sometime this year.

August 23, 2017
Don’t Cry Over Killed Milk: A Damon Lassard Dabblin Detective Mystery by Stephen Kaminski – Cozy Mystery/Amateur Sleuth

Amateur sleuth, Damon Lassard, has earned enough money in the Japanese professional baseball league that he retired at the age of 31. He now finds himself volunteering at the library, hiking around Tripping Falls State Park, and dabbling in solving mysteries much to the chagrin of the local law enforcement.

And, yes, the title is a pun, and there are plenty more throughout this quick and entertaining read.

He has the requisite female friend who would like to be more than friends but settles for being a sounding board for now, a love interest that is not interested in him, a police detective friend who would prefer Damon not get him into trouble any more by investigating crimes around town, and a keen knack for figuring out murders.

The victim in this book is Jeremiah Milk, Damon’s hermit of a neighbor who suffered the tragic loss of his wife and infant son within hours of each other one fatal night.

Damon first gets involved when Jeremiah comes to him at the library to get help for a suspicious recurring insect infestation of his and others neighbors’ crepe myrtle trees. Not much of a mystery to solve, but when Jeremiah’s body is found at Tripping Falls State Park where he worked, Damon starts his dabbling into the mystery even though his police friend – and his friend’s boss, Lt. Hobbes, have strongly forbidden Damon’s involvement. Well, any cozy reader knows that those kinds of instructions are meant to be ignored.

The story takes several interesting turns that eventually lead to an unexpected ending. The writing is fast paced and the supporting characters all contribute to the realistic feel of the town of Hollydale near Arlington, Virginia. Many of the clues are extremely subtle and some didn’t come into the story until much later, requiring careful attention to all the details throughout the book.

Because this book is the second in a series, some of the details about Damon, his friendship with Gerry, and his tense relationship with Lt. Hobbes may have been covered in more detail in the first book. Regardless, these missing details do not take away from the quick pacing and clever tone of Don’t Cry Over Killed Milk a satisfying cozy mystery read..

“Who knew insect infestations lead to murder? But they can – especially if you’re Damon Lassard – amateur sleuth – with plenty of time on your hands to figure it all out. Don’t Cry Over Killed Milk by Stephen Kaminski will have you in tears – from laughter!” – Chanticleer Reviews

March 11, 2017
THE UGLY by Alexander Boldizar – Contemporary Satire

Words thrown as hard as boulders are easy to catch – if you’ve had practice. Just ask our hero, Muzhduk the Ugli the Fourth in Alexander Boldizar’s new release, The Ugly.

In the great tradition of existentialism, Boldizar brings us a book that is hard to classify. It has aspects of the existential with a fair amount of satirical wordplay and a bit of theater of the absurd thrown in.

An interconnected story of a Siberian Slovak tribal leader looking for a way to save his land and his people, via Harvard Law School and the Tuareg uprising in Africa. Oh, and there’s dark magic and Winnie the Pooh thrown in as well.

Muzhduk the Ugli the Fourth is a mountain of a man who comes from a tribe of Siberian Slovaks where honor is found in throwing boulders-yes, actual boulders-and either causing great damage to one’s opponent or catching said boulders without physically breaking.

When his tribe has their land taken through the clever use of legal wrangling by an American lawyer, Muzhduk heads (on foot) to Boston to attend Harvard Law School. On the way, he floats on an iceberg to the Bering Sea, plays rugby for a college in Canada, and gets a perfect LSAT, which ushers him into Harvard where he hopes to learn the words that will help him win back his land for his tribe.

It is during this part of the story that the wordplay and Muzhduk’s obvious lack of “sophistication” are most enjoyable. In this first year in law school, Muzhduk observes how words are used to challenge and crush the students, much like the boulder throwing at home. This extended metaphor of words as boulders that can be thrown and cause damage, especially in the world of law where words can be twisted and used within the multiple connotations, is where the book finds its best rhythm and is most enjoyable. It is also where Muzhduk meets an odd assortment of professors and students.

Interspersed throughout the third person, past tense narrative of Muzhduk’s first year as a One-L at Harvard, is the first person account of his travels in Africa, looking for Peggy, his American girlfriend who has been kidnapped (or perhaps not) by the Tuareg in their war with the government.

This part of the novel unfolds like layers of an onion. As the One-L year continues chronologically, Muzhduk’s journey in Africa and his reason for being there unfolds with new layers of complexity. Even now, Muzhduk discovers that the dangerous game of words as crushing boulders still is in play, but there are added dangers as well.

There were times in this novel that it felt reminiscent of Heller or Beckett, as Muzhduk is challenged to understand the strange culture of Harvard Law and also navigate his way through a tribal uprising to accomplish his goals. In both places, Harvard and Africa, the story abounds in wordplay and existential ponderings. Just like reading Beckett or Heller or Buber (there’s a reference to his I-Thou theory in the book), or any other existential writer, The Ugly isn’t for everyone and it’s not an easy read. This eccentrically irreverent work, absurd in the very best sense of the word, will amuse and enlighten.

Alexander Boldizar is the first post-independence Slovak citizen to graduate with a Juris Doctor degree from Harvard Law School. Born in Czechoslovakia (now the Slovak Republic) in 1971, he resides in Vancouver, British Columbia Canada where he writes, works his mad skills in the economic community of Wall Street, and brings meaningful commentary as an art critic. His writing has won the PEN / Nob Hill prize, represented Bread Loaf as a nominee for Best New American Voices, and been shortlisted for a variety of other awards. He has published over one hundred articles in a variety of venues. He states that his freelance writing pays for his son’s circus school.

January 9, 2017