Chanticleer Book Reviews

Category: Reviews

SURRENDERED II: PRIDE by Peggy Patrick – Romance, Western Romance, Christian Romance

Laura Parker struggles to take responsibility over her life after the death of her husband in Peggy Patrick’s romance novel, Surrendered II: Pride.

Since her husband Matt died last year, Laura Parker can’t move on. He made every important decision for her and their five-year-old son, Andy. When Laura finds a brochure for Wyoming’s High Point Dude Ranch among her husband’s things, she takes a chance. Laura books a trip for her and Andy in the hopes that some time in the wild will begin restoring her son’s joy.

Andy quickly takes a shine to the ranch ramrod, Jesse Brandon, who doesn’t seem to mind letting the boy tag along. But he surprises Laura with his rude, confrontational attitude. When he kisses her, Laura’s pain turns to utter confusion. She begins to question everything she thought she knew about her marriage and herself, and she has to choose whether to draw closer to Jesse or to escape.

Jesse has more than one secret, and little does Laura know, he’s about to turn her world upside-down.

Laura searches for her own identity. Having married at eighteen, she has experienced very little of the world on her own. She saw Matt as the savior who rescued her from extreme poverty and emotional abuse, and gave her the middle-class life she always wanted. However, over the course of the book, Laura realizes that Matt wasn’t “taking good care of her,” but keeping her trapped in a much darker relationship. Laura comes to terms with this reality in a journey that, unfortunately, many women will find all too real.

Simply driving to the ranch opens Laura’s eyes to how much her sheltered life has taken away her freedom. But Jesse has a much bigger impact on her, forcing Laura to face the hard truths beneath the surface. She had stopped really living even before Matt’s death. Jesse helps her wake up, and though his manner is sometimes harsh, Laura starts to to understand how much she has missed, and how much more her life–and Andy’s life–can be.

Laura and Jesse develop a complicated and dynamic relationship.

Jesse’s early hostility shocks her to the point of crying more than once, but he dances between harsh and distant to gentle and attentive in the span of minutes. He even accuses her of being a bad mother, and trying to seduce his younger brother as a replacement father for Andy. Will Jesse’s harsh treatment push Laura to see that she’s hurting Andy and herself by allowing fear and grief to consume her? His dedication to showing Laura a life beyond survival makes their eventual love story even more endearing.

Faith plays a major role in Laura’s journey.

Jesse has spent the past three years forming a strong bond with God, but his ranch’s financial struggles test that faith. With Laura’s arrival, his long-suppressed physical needs are fighting what little control he has left. They clash on the idea of faith; Jesse sees God in every facet of his life, but Laura is a self-proclaimed atheist. She refuses his beliefs from the outset, and Jesse cannot understand why God would bring Laura into his life and give him such strong feelings for her. However, when Laura witnesses a true miracle, she must come to terms with this new idea that God might, in fact, be real.

Surrendered II: Pride by Peggy Patrick won 1st Place in the CIBA 2014 Chatelaine Book Awards for Romance.

February 9, 2022
Montana Mustangs: Book 2 of the Nymph Series (Nymph’s Curse) by Danica Winters – Paranormal Romance, Mystery, Family Relationships

Aura Montgarten needs to find her sister, Natalie, in Danica Winters’ paranormal romance, Montana Mustangs.

At first, Aura hopes that Natalie just went off with friends and didn’t bother to call. But the silence continues for more than a week. Aura jumps in her truck to search the last place Natalie’s cell phone had been used, a mountain near Somers, Montana, behind a place called the Diamond Ranch. Before she can get onto the mountain to search, Aura becomes embroiled in a darker mystery when she finds a mutilated hand near where Natalie had been staying. With the gruesome discovery, she fears that Natalie ran into more serious trouble than she had first suspected.

When a handsome sheriff’s deputy questions her, Aura feels a stirring she hasn’t ever experienced.

Dane Burke, a no-nonsense lawman, has a case to solve. He shouldn’t be thinking about the mysterious, beautiful drifter in any way except as a possible suspect. With one failed marriage and a non-existent relationship with his estranged brother, he can’t allow himself to feel anything, not even lust. Little does he know, Aura feels much the same, but for very different reasons. Aura keeps her true identity hidden: a shape-shifting nymph. As part of her supernatural nature, any man who loves her or that she loves will die. The two delve deeper into the mystery and the search for Natalie, and their feelings become impossible to deny.

Dane and Aura have juxtaposing relationships with their respective siblings.

Aura and Natalie couldn’t be closer. As demigods, the two nymphs have lived for over five hundred years. They share the same curse, connecting them by something else–the need, but inability, to love. Because they cannot allow themselves to find love in a mate, they only have each other. Though Natalie has often “gone wild” and let her Mustang side free for days or weeks at a time, she always returns to her sister who hasn’t shifted in many years. In fact, the two have never gone seven days without speaking before. Aura will do anything to find her sister, even if it means using her nymph powers of seduction to force Dane to help her.

Dane and his brother, Zeb, couldn’t be further apart. For over twenty years, Dane has stayed away from the Diamond Ranch, once his childhood home and owned now by Zeb. Dane vowed to never return to the ranch when he caught his wife in the arms of his brother. Absence has not made their hearts grow fonder. When Dane shows up at the ranch to question his brother, Zeb meets him with a shotgun, and when Dane releases Zeb from custody, the two brawl in a parking lot. Aura can’t understand their interactions because of her closeness with Natalie.

Aura and Dane must both face their fear of love.

Dane was hurt before, however Aura knows that for her, life and death hang in the balance of her love. She wants to protect Dane from her curse. This presents an ironic twist considering Dane, the consummate protector, has sworn to save lives even at the cost of his own. Aura seems fearless, but in truth her fear of love controls her to the point she has never shared her secrets with any man. She uses her hundreds of years of watching humans cruelly hurt animals as part of her excuse—how could she possibly love them?

Despite her fear, Aura can’t deny she actually enjoys Dane’s controlling nature, the predator and prey feelings that excite her nymph nature. Her feelings go beyond lust, though, coming from “somewhere hidden,” a place no man has ever touched. These new feelings make her consider allowing herself to love and be loved. Though she has always prided herself on being free, she knows she has never truly been so because of her fear of love. Dane’s love becomes the very thing to break her from the bonds of that fear.

Danica Winters’ Montana Mustangs won 1st Place in the 2014 CIBA Chatelaine Book Awards for Romance Fiction.

February 7, 2022
HOT HOUSE: Book 1 of the E & A Investigation Series by Lisa Towles – Psychological Thriller, Mystery, Crime Thriller

Two private investigators find themselves reluctant but effective partners in Lisa Towles’ fast-paced psychological thriller, Hot House, Book 1 of the new E & A Thriller Series.

Two separate cases start to merge in a very murky middle. Mari Ellwyn unravels an attempt to blackmail a federal appellate court judge. Derek Abernathy looks into the mysterious death of a college student. He also investigates the death and disappearance of two of the reporters covering her case.

The reporters pursued the trail of a story involving the judge with whom Mari works. It seems the judge had a connection to the dead college student in Derek’s case. As they dig deeper into the joined cases, threats against Mari start to come from all sides, even from her former handlers at the CIA.

But the secret buried, literally, at the heart of this case comes with a shock. Because the victim was not who she seemed. At least not all of the time.

Hot House delivers a dark, edge-of-the-seat thriller. It begins as a relatively straightforward investigation into seemingly unrelated mysteries. But as the story follows the investigation, especially Mari Ellwyn, two levels of mystery open up.

On the surface, Ellwyn and Abernathy are dogged and determined investigators who mostly follow the rules, if only because they want to make sure that the case will hold up for their mutual frenemy, Ellwyn’s ex-lover and Abernathy’s former boss, Ivan Dent, Chief of Detectives for the LAPD.

Not that they don’t play a bit fast and loose at the edges of those rules. After all, sometimes in the pursuit of truth, the investigators have to step outside the lines.

Everyone involved in this mystery seems to have deep, dark and often deadly secrets. It’s clear from this new investigation that Dent’s detectives missed way too much in that initial search. Abernathy won’t talk about his firing from the LAPD. Ellwyn keeps her real motive for pursuing this investigation under wraps.

But Sascha Sophie Michaud had the most secrets of all – some of which she kept even from herself. And Michaud’s secrets provide the threat to the investigators – along with making the case so difficult to solve.

Readers will easily put themselves in Mari Ellwyn’s shoes.

She loves her dog, she’s not so sure about relationships – she even has a strained one with her family. But her few friends will ride or die with her. As capable as she is – and she is very capable – readers will shake in their shoes as this mystery threatens Mari’s life.

The resolution of the case is marvelously done, managing to be both expected and unexpected at the same time. Not that the reader will see any of it coming.

In the final pages, while the disparate cases that Ellwyn and Abernathy began with have wrapped up very satisfactorily, it’s clear that Mari Ellwyn has just pulled another thread on a case she’s been following for over a year. Hot House ends with the sense that there’s more for Mari to uncover in her own personal quest.

Readers will be left hoping and looking forward to Mari Ellwyn’s future investigations.

February 5, 2022
FIND ME in FLORENCE by Jule Selbo – Women’s Divorce Fiction, Romantic Fiction, Literary

Thirty-five-year-old Lyn Bennett explores the life of her late mother before she was married, in Jule Selbo’s romance novel, Find Me in Florence.

In 1966, Jenny, a Mud Angel, dropped everything to fly to Florence, Italy, in search of treasures buried in mud and water after the Arno flooded. She worked tirelessly alongside her fellow Mud Angels to rescue these priceless works of art and ancient books.

For all of Lyn’s life, she heard her mother’s stories until they became mundane and commonplace. But before Jenny passed away, she gave Lyn instructions on where to find her precious journal from her time in Italy. She left the cryptic message “Find me in Florence,” so when Lyn, an up-and-coming writer, has a chance to teach at a writer’s retreat in the city her mother loved, she jumps at the opportunity. Three years later, she still journeys there yearly for one month to explore Florence. With her latest book under her belt, Lyn decides to tell her mother’s story.

Lyn’s life shifts dramatically, and she soon searches for more than her mother’s history.

When she arrives in Florence, Lyn’s life seems on the upward swing. She put her writing back on track after the death of both of her parents, married a successful lawyer, and hopes to begin a family soon. However, all of that vanishes when Stan, her husband, surprises her not long after her seminar in Florence begins. Stan and Susie, Lyn’s best friend since junior high school, had an affair. The two followed Lyn to Florence to deliver the news in person, thinking her love of the city might lessen the blow of utter betrayal. Lyn’s true journey begins with this revelation. Suddenly, Lyn loses her hope as the people of Florence must have lost when her mother volunteered fifty years ago. But like the city, Lyn must endure.

Soon following the bombshell announcement, Lyn struggles between what she “should” do and what she “wants” to do.

She should accept this betrayal like an adult, negotiate reasonably with her cheating husband, forgive her BFF, and move past all of her pain. But surrounded by Florence, a city that called to her mother to leave her normal life, Lyn learns not to follow “the should” but to chase after “the want.” The vitality and passion of the Florentines give Lyn the strength she needs to “shed [her] skin.” Lyn rids herself of a life lived in fear of taking chances. Her mother’s own rash decision to become a Mud Angel and experience the adventure of a lifetime propels Lyn to stop accepting the expectations of everyone else. Perhaps Jenny meant for her daughter to learn this very lesson. As Lyn explores her fledgling confidence, she begins to realize all her mother gave up by returning to the US to fulfill her promise to marry Lyn’s father. She feels the life her mother could’ve lived if she had followed the “want” rather than the “should.”

This clash of responsibility and desire extends beyond Lyn’s story. Matteo, a man Lyn grows to care for over the course of the novel, wrestles with his wants as well. His responsibilities weigh on him, coming from a proud Italian family with a lineage and family home dating back four hundred years. They hope–expect–him to marry a woman closely connected to the family business. But after a chance meeting, he draws closer to the American with the broken heart. He should stay away, give her time to mourn the loss of her marriage and best friend, but he wants more from her. Though Matteo should pursue the woman his family has chosen, he wants the woman he shouldn’t, and like Lyn, he will have to decide whether to follow his heart or his head.

This novel celebrates Florence, its people, and its customs.

Any lover of Italy will enjoy the history included in Lyn’s story. With the detailed descriptions, readers come along on the journey to this beautiful city, eating at its most celebrated restaurants, and walking its ancient streets. Florence shows Lyn her innermost feelings and surrounds her with passion and acceptance. Embracing and appreciating Florence makes Jenny’s story alive, rather than just a dusty story from half a century ago.

Jule Selbo’s Find Me in Florence won 1st Place in the 2019 CIBA Chatelaine Book Awards for Romance and Romantic Fiction Novels.

February 4, 2022
LOVE THAT MOVES the SUN by Linda Cardillo – Historical Fiction, Literary Fiction, Renaissance Fiction
Linda Cardillo debuts triumphantly into historical fiction with her novel, Love That Moves the Sun.

Vittoria Colonna, an Italian noblewoman and poet born in 1490, lives with grief and isolation. As an adult, she meets and forms a deep friendship with the revered painter and poet Michelangelo. This meeting forms the center point of the novel that takes readers back and forth through time. The story traces Vittoria’s life from her childhood and betrothal to her future husband Ferrante, to her later years with Michelangelo.

As a child, Vittoria leaves home for the island of Ischia. There, she lives with her betrothed Ferrante and his aunt Costanza d’Avalos.

Vittoria and Ferrante’s future union will strengthen political alliances. Later, Vittoria becomes a widow and withdraws from public life for several years. One day, she meets Michelangelo, while he paints The Last Judgement in the Sistine Chapel. Their friendship changes each other’s lives forever.

Cardillo takes great care with the novel’s front matter. She includes lots of material to help the reading experience.

In the front sections of the book, readers will find a timeline, to help as the novel shifts around. The author also provides a list of historical figures, and fictional characters added for entertainment value. In her author’s note, Cardillo adds that while she followed facts as much as possible, she filled in the gaps with fiction. This shows respect to the life of Vittoria Colonna. Cardillos brings her to life in fiction as Vittoria did for her husband in poetry.

A theme of polarity shapes Love That Moves the Sun.

Michelangelo, an artist of paint and of words, “Sees humanity’s secrets and brings them to life on the page.” But the unwavering expectations of the public burden him. Vittoria struggles between staying in her self-imposed seclusion to pray and write, and the powerful pull towards rejoining society and her bond with Michelangelo. The events of the past and present also mirror each other. Events have a subtle organization that sees them building off the context of what happened before. As the past meets with the present, the gaps in Vittoria’s story come together. Readers get the full picture of her life and feel like they know her strongly.

Linda Cardillo’s Love That Moves the Sun keeps alive the memory of Vittoria Colonna’s life and work, as a woman who struggled between being a woman of God and a woman in love. Readers of historical fiction and romance should not miss Love That Moves the Sun.

Love That Moves the Sun by Linda Cardillo won 1st Place in the 2019 CIBA Chaucer Book Awards for Pre-1750s Historical Fiction.
January 31, 2022
The VALLEY (The Druid Chronicles Book Two) by A.M. Linden – Medieval Historical Fiction, Alternate Religions Historical Fiction, Ancient Civilizations Historical Fiction

Herrwn, Chief Priest of a secret Druid community, has spent his entire, privileged life in Llwddawanden, a secluded valley kept separate from the spread of Christianity from both Saxon and Celt alike, in A.M. Linden’s The Valley (The Druid Chronicles, Book Two).

Nonbelievers of the Great Mother Goddess threaten inevitable persecution. But Herrwn has maintained the traditional practices passed to him by his own father. As an orator in charge of repeating the legends and beliefs of his people, he knows the importance and the heavy responsibility required by his sacred office. With the decrease in believers outside of the valley, he understands the precarious position of the community and the difficult balance he must maintain.

Over the course of his long life, he has come to rely on his cousins, Olyrrwd (Chief Healer) and Ossiam (Chief Oracle). Still, as the years pass, his loyalties become torn when what starts as simple gibes between the two priests morphs into unspoken fear of what the other might do to gain favor with the various priestesses chosen as the Goddess Incarnate. Having lost his beloved wife and young child, Herrwn grows closer to Olyrrwd and becomes the peacekeeper between the priests to keep what remaining family he has left.

When a promising young man, Caelym, the son of a former Goddess Incarnate, becomes the sole priest-in-training, the cousins further divide on the right course of action for the clan. At each turn, dissension and sedition threaten every belief and tradition that holds the people together, and Herrwn will have to make decisions that could change the course of his community forever.

One notable strength of this prequel lies in Linden’s character development.

Herrwn becomes real as his life story unfolds. The tragic loss of both Lothwen, his consort, and Lillywen, his young daughter, forge him into a contemplative and thoughtful character. The reader will feel his grief through his shared memories of their time together and the depth of the love that ran deep enough to keep him from ever becoming the consort of any other woman nor the father of any more children.

The remembrance of his doting and proud father’s advice and the love of a mother long gone will resonate with readers. We witness his strength and forethought as he tries to soothe the growing tensions and tread the choppy waters of change surging through his once-tranquil life. However, Herrwn is only one of many such characters so well developed that they seem to leap from the pages into real life.

Olyrrwd, the physician combining herbal and ritual healing, is another such character.

His charm and humor will make him a reader-favorite with his sarcastic, albeit pithy comments. As the novel continues, the two become closer than just their familial bonds of cousins. Each is a sounding board for the other, and their relationship is reminiscent of that one friend every person has–the one who understands without words and knows us better than we know ourselves.

However, the mixture isn’t complete without a bit of chaos, and that is where their cousin Ossiam takes the stage.

The reader will love to hate him as much as Olyrrwd does in that classic villain way, second-guessing his every move and questioning his every motive. With his charismatic control over the young Goddess Incarnate and his scheming to gain more than her favor, he is a perfect catalyst to the majority of the boat-rocking that disturbs both cousins’ lives. This collision of values causes Herrwn’s peacemaker qualities to emerge.

The ongoing battles between Olyrrwd and Ossiam create a palatable tension and serve to drive the force within the plot itself. It also reminds the reader that although millennia separate Herrwn, Ossiam, and Olyrrwd from the modern world, people are essentially the same. Fear, anger, love, hate–the emotions that make us human are the same as those of every human, creating a surprising connection to these pagan Druids.

A theme within this frame story prequel revolves around change and its impact on human relationships and cultures.

Right from the start, the Druid clan fights a dramatic shift within the Saxon kingdoms surrounding their valley. Set during the spread of Christianity and the turning away from pagan gods and goddesses, the sacred shrines and villages retreated into an even more secluded region.

For many years, their isolation kept away the influences brought by Roman occupation; however, as more and more Saxons converted, the worshipers of the Mother Goddess began to follow suit, including members of Herrwn’s own family. Believers begin to defect and lose faith.

For a Chief Priest set to educate future priests to pass on their very heritage, these changes literally show the end of an ancient religion. He must watch the foundation of his life shift and begin to crumble.

Every choice and every thought is consumed with rituals that are fast becoming meaningless. Reconciling–much less accepting–these changes will cost Herrwn more than a sleepless night. Not only is the clan facing a loss of faith, but the mature priest must also learn to live with a younger generation that seems to disregard many of the traditions he is fighting so hard to save.

From a Goddess Incarnate chosen for her beauty rather than wisdom to her blood-thirsty consort challenging better trained and better equipped Saxon enemies, the generation set to lead poses a change to the somber, thoughtful people of Herrwn’s youth.

With the attention to detail, explanation of ancient rituals, and the mythology within the clan’s legends, this novel builds a community, exploring a people about which little is actually known. It’s an extraordinary portrayal, breathing life into a long-dead civilization. Readers feel Herrwn struggle as he endeavors to keep a secret Druid community alive, fracturing from within, persecuted from without by the spreading Christian church. Highly recommended!

January 28, 2022
EVEN the MONSTERS. Living with Grief, Loss, and Depression: A Journey through the Book of Job (2nd Edition) by Daryl Potter – Personal Transformation, Coping with Grief, Christian Studies

Meticulously researched and written, Even the Monsters. Living with Grief, Loss, and Depression: A Journey through the Book of Job (2nd Ed.), by Daryl Potter, goes well beyond a self-help book, a religious treatise, or an evangelical statement of faith.

Linguists, historians, philosophers, geographers, sociologists—the list goes on—will find Even the Monsters… fascinating. In addition to appealing to a plethora of interests, the book also serves as a memoir of sorts. The author has interwoven biographical information regarding seemingly overwhelming, ongoing challenges to which the wisdom he found in Job was applicable, enabling his family to survive intact.

Almost immediately, when beginning Even the Monsters. Living with Grief, Loss, and Depression…, the reader is captured by the voice. Potter’s attention to the details of Job’s life, considered in light of the customs and values of the society in which he lived, establishes a setting and mood to which the reader can relate. Each of the 1,070 verses in the book of Job are presented, parsed, and discussed in light of Job, the man.

The author’s stated rationale for this approach makes perfect sense:

“… when it comes to books about the Bible and personal spiritual growth, the scholarly and the practical are separated by an unacceptable divide. The depth in the academic literature is obtuse and inaccessible to the nonacademic [sic]. Accessibility in the more personal accounts often sacrifices accuracy [sic], richness, and lasting meaning by mainly focusing on emotional and subjective material. The scholarly cannot be easily digested, and the popular supplies inadequate nutrition.”

The reader comes to know this man personally. Potter takes the time to explore Job’s life as if in real time. How must he have felt when each tragedy befell him and his family? How might he have reacted? What did those in his social circle think of his misfortunes? Potter asks the kinds of questions people today ask themselves when struck by unexpected or unwarranted adversity and extrapolates from the “what happened next.”

In this process, along with revealing Job, the man, the author also reveals and reaffirms those qualities, often unrecognized or untapped, which are uniquely human. Having faith, exercising bravery in the face of adversity, and having the determination to prevail are among these gifts, which often lie dormant and unused by virtue of the individual’s ignorance of their existence.

With this revelation, while the reader will not find pat answers or solutions to her personal dilemmas within this narrative, she may discover her unused and perhaps unrecognized inner resources that can help.

Even the Monsters. Living with Grief, Loss, and Depression: A Journey through the Book of Job (2nd Ed.), is not a difficult read in terms of language and writing style, but it’s not a book one can hurry through. It is long, by nature of the care with which it was written, and rich with food for thought. Not just a book for Christians, it’s a book for humankind—well worth the time and consideration it demands, one we can highly recommend.

January 26, 2022
The BARABBAS LEGACY by M.D. House – Christian Historical Fiction, Historical Fiction, Ancient World Historical Fiction

The Roman Empire rules much of the world but faces unrest in its leadership and opposition from the growing movement of Christianity, in this conclusion to the Barabbas Trilogy, M.D. House’s historical fiction novel, The Barabbas Legacy.

God has a plan for the Barabbas family, and their travels have only just begun. The tense conflict between Roman forces and the Jewish community in Jerusalem comes to a head. Leaders of Christianity rush to help their Jewish brothers and sisters.

Cornelius, a once-celebrated centurion of the Roman army, stands on trial for believing in God over the Roman Empire. Emperor Nero shows uncharacteristic leniency and exiles Cornelius from the Empire. Cornelius flees before any senators have him assassinated. Once out of Rome’s reach, Cornelius feels called to help grow the Christian community.

In the introduction to the novel, M.D. House recounts his writing journey.

He explains how he came to write about a biblical figure we know very little about. Initially wanting to write science fiction and fantasy, House shifted to Historical Christian Fiction after reading a particular bible story. House wondered about the life of Barabbas. He imagined what had led the man to become a prisoner and how his life changed after being freed.

Very little knowledge of Barabbas has survived, which opens the opportunity for House to create Barabbas, the character. House builds a whole life by using his few brief mentions in the gospels as a jumping point. He developed his protagonist so well that an entire trilogy was needed to tell the complete story.

The Barabbas Legacy sees Barabbas as an older man with his children grown. Some start families of their own, while others help the evangelical efforts of Christianity in its infancy.

M.D. House’s The Barabbas Legacy, as well as the first two books in the series, I Was Called Barabbas and Pillars of Barabbas, will appeal to readers of historical fiction and general readers of Christian fiction. The Barabbas Legacy could also be a good book for a Christian book club or Bible study. It features themes about the relationship between people of different faiths and the importance of bravery in one’s beliefs.

The Barabbas Legacy concludes Barabbas’ tale that started with curiosity and grew into a complete series. M.D. House succeeds in telling the story of Barabbas, a rebel and murderer turned strong follower of Jesus.

January 24, 2022
SAXON HEROINES: A Northumbrian Novel (Women of Determination and Courage, Book 3) by Sandra Wagner-Wright – Medieval Historical Biographies,

Sandra Wagner-Wright’s Saxon Heroines is a three-part historical fiction work that transports readers to seventh century Northumbria, exploring the lives of several women and their important title roles in recorded history. Here she uncovers the powerful influence of queens over kings, their relationships with sons and daughters, the movement of Christianity across the region, and the significant role of abbesses and their religious holds throughout the land.

Whether Queen Ethelberga intent on converting her husband King Edwin to Christianity; her daughter, Enfleda, who must accept marriage to King Oswy; or granddaughter, Elfleda, who will be trained to become an abbess, following in the footsteps of Hildeburg, the king’s niece; such women, capable of negotiating a united church between royalty and religious leaders, prove decisive and dedicated contributors to a traditionally male-dominated society. Wagner-Wright gives each woman a voice in important matters.

In the audio version, Deepti Gupta’s mildly accented narration sets the stage for an ancient, medieval storyline capturing a particular time frame (624 – 706 AD). Her diction is well-suited to the material in a mixture of quiet tones and firm directives.

In a chronological format, events of the day are intricately detailed. Against a landscape where Anglo Saxon states attempt to assert dominance and gain power, listeners will absorb and visualize the likes of plans against the enemy, illustrious banquet halls, wedding celebrations, marital beds, the use of a birthing chair, baptisms, battles, and death.

While the narration informs us of character changes, and vocal inflections help distinguish the individuals, these can sometimes be a bit too subtle. Some listeners may be challenged with key character names, which are pretty similar. This often occurs within a family lineage, thus making it particularly hard to distinguish within the realm of a generational saga. Name pronunciation, itself, can also prove a tricky.

As chapters play out in a timely fashion, the title notations provide the year and the focal event happening within that time frame.

While listening time is nearly 8 hours (7 hours and 57 minutes), pausing throughout the narrative will help listeners absorb the information, allowing them a chance to recognize and place characters within the context of the story. Wagner-Wright’s final notes include facts about the characters and subsequent eighth-century events in Northumbria. An initial visual reference chart of names, places, and dates that a listener could access on their device would be of tremendous use.

Saxon Heroines audiobook will greatly appeal to those who enjoy the medieval history of the mid to late seventh century, including its religious conflicts, and particularly those interested in the role of critical female figures involved in the spreading of Christianity. While primarily research-based, Wagner-Wright aptly weaves human interest elements into the story and laces the narrative with descriptive characteristics that color and bring life to these inspiring heroines in history.

Sandra Wagner-Wright is an impressive historian who brings these forgotten women into the 21st-century limelight. For those who wish to read the book along with the audiobook, follow this link to our review of Saxon Heroines.

January 21, 2022
A DREAM to DIE FOR by Susan Z. Ritz – Mystery, Supernatural, Amateur Sleuth

Some dreams delight. Some terrify. Celeste’s dream haunts her in Susan Z. Ritz’s supernatural mystery, A Dream to Die For.

Celeste wonders why she would dream of a woman in danger. After all, it seems like someone else’s dream. As Celeste reflects on what she remembers, indistinct features begin to focus, revealing details. Celeste’s concerns for the unknown woman grow.

That dream, so tangible in the moment, refuses to leave her. How could it, with the woman in imminent danger? Celeste doesn’t realize that this dream will put her in peril. Can she find the answers she needs before a killer switches his target? Can Celeste and the unknown woman be saved?

Celeste rushes to the office of Larry–her therapist and Riverton’s acknowledged cult leader.

Despite her fiancé’s demands that she stop seeing Larry, Celeste hopes she’ll find the support and help she needs at his office. Instead, Larry convinces her to break up with her future husband. As for her beautiful engagement ring, well, that, of course, goes to Larry.

But when she describes the troubling dream to him, Larry trembles in fear, or was that fury? He throws her out of his practice. Later, Celeste returns to find Larry dead, murdered. The police are looking at Celeste as their primary suspect. Someone else’s dream becomes her nightmare.

In immediate need of a savvy defense attorney, Celeste pleads for help from an old friend.

Together the accused and her lawyer begin a fantastic, desperate, and risky investigation to find Larry’s killer. That strange dream, and the woman in it, become a surprising key to proving Celeste’s innocence.

Through their analysis of clues and suspects, they plunge into the depths of Larry’s cult, now in disarray. Both cult followers and doubters reveal many surprises. These two groups struggle against each other, but they may need to find a way to cooperate to expose the events that led up to Larry’s murder – and who did it.

A chilling mystery, author Susan Z. Ritz has filled her book with intrigue and subtle clues.

A variety of suspects hide the most compelling motives. Which of these Riverton characters, including Celeste’s intended, killed Larry? Can Celeste trust the guy, despite his questionable actions? This investigation puts her love for him to an extreme test. Can she live with him? Will she live without him? Should she fear him?

Ritz weaves a clever plot, set in a plausible contemporary social issue of a cult that demands complete loyalty and dominates every aspect of its followers’ lives.

How could Celeste prove her innocence and name the one who killed the cult leader? Celeste and others struggle to break the cult’s puzzling and psychological hold on them and learn to live free of it. Will the truth of the murder and the cult be discovered? Can Celeste save the woman in her dream? Will she find the killer before another person succumbs to A Dream To Die For?

A Dream to Die For by Susan Z. Ritz won First Place in the 2019 CIBA Mystery and Mayhem Book Awards for Cozy and Not-So-Cozy Mysteries.

January 19, 2022