Chanticleer Book Reviews

Category: Reviews

FAIRFIELD’S AUCTION: A Witherston Mystery by Betty Jean Craige – Animal Cozies, Women Sleuths, Cozy Mystery novels

There is a point in time when what is done cannot be undone. That’s a tough lesson to learn for the attendees at Fairfield’s Auction. Most of them are residents of Witherston, a rural town in Georgia. The items up for auction represent the history of a divided community. After all, what is the community? Is it property to be bought and sold and owned, as the white settlers viewed it? Or is it land not to be divided but shared as the original Cherokees believed? And the historic items that are on display to be auctioned, is it right that the tomahawks and Cherokee blowguns stolen from the tribes be sold at high prices by the settlers’ descendants? Who really owns the history that is on sale? And is ownership worth killing for? Disagreement can lead to murder.

Mr. Hempton Fairfield is an antique dealer of Cherokee artifacts. His auction is enthusiastically attended. As the character, Neel points out, “ ’Lots of people like history . . . We want to know our ethnic and cultural roots.’” But not everyone supports this sale of historic items. There are protestors with signs saying the Cherokees were robbed. Tension is high as the bidding proceeds. The final surprise for sale is an African Grey parrot. Outrage ignites again. Residents are appalled to see for sale an apparently abused, talking, living animal being. Charlotte Byrd is herself determined to save this bird named Doolittle, and take the saucy animal home with her.

After the auction, the police are kept busy as threats are made and then bodies begin to turn up in the town. Who could be the killer in their midst? There are ominous text messages to investigate a suspenseful hunt to match specific Cherokee artifacts to descendants’ families, and what follows is one wild. It seems that no one knows anything, and no one is talking, except the African Grey Parrot. With the abuse that bird has seen, those comments are certainly alarming. Charlotte’s family and friends are tenderly training Doolittle to see a bright future for himself. And then there are the chickens. Lots of chickens. Everywhere. This mystery is filled with humor and passion, and an urgency to bring the killer to justice before another person, or animal, is murdered.

Craige challenges her readers to track physical clues, to follow tech clues through texts and blogs, and also to re-examine preconceptions and perspectives. It’s a soulful glimpse into a time and history of rural Georgia, and how the deeds of yesteryear impact the populations of today. History cannot be undone. It’s what you do with today that will create tomorrow’s history. How will you affect your descendants? That is the question that Witherston will face.

Fairfield’s Auction: A Witherston Mystery won First Place in the CIBA 2017 M&M Awards for Mystery novels.

June 17, 2020
FORGOTTEN RAGE: Never Forgive. Never Forget (Book One in the Forgotten Series) by Melodie Hernandez – Serial Killers, Detective, Mystery/Thrillers, Pacific Northwest

In Forgotten Rage: Never Forgive. Never Forget, Melodie Hernandez introduces Detective Luz Santos. Young, attractive, and smart, Santos works in Seattle, Washington, a city known for dark, rainy days. Hernandez sets the stage for a serial killer whose victims are not the rich and famous, but the homeless.

Detective Santos rushes to the first murder scene, and soon, we are embroiled in the professional and personal life of one tough cop. Santos’ heart belongs to Cheech, her Chihuahua, but Santos holds out hope, after several failed relationships, of finding the elusive partnership she’s always hoped for.

Ms. Hernandez filters the story through the lens of savvy Latina cop, Detective Santos, who is hell-bent on finding this killer before the killer finds her. As she works to exhaustion, she also struggles with her own demons and nightmares.

But Santos is relentless, and when she arrives at the scene of the second murder victim, the potential killer is found asleep nearby with the murder weapon on him. But Santos isn’t convinced.

Meet Nick Mason, a former attorney turned homeless guy. After his arrest for the murder of victim number two, he knows enough about the law to keep his mouth shut. Once Santos discovers his pre-homeless-identity and the reason he’s on the streets, the two become embroiled in a race to find a ruthless killer who is spiraling out of control. Luz stays ahead of the killer by a hair. As the bodies pile up, the clues come in too few and too almost too late.

Hernandez weaves lines from her original poem through the book to introduce chapters. The lines are from the killers POV, and they are chilling, to say the least. Another stroke of genius comes when Hernandez inserts chapters written in the first person from the killer’s POV, which brings us up close and personal with a deranged killer. But Santos is far from understanding the basics, for example, is the killer male or female? Hernandez keeps us guessing to the end when they find the last clue.

Hernandez presents a protagonist both human and relatable with a satisfying ending that ties up all the loose ends just enough for her fans to beg for book two. This fast-paced mystery will have you reading into the night to find out what happens next. A page-turner extraordinaire, one that we highly recommend diving into.

Forgotten Rage won First in Category in the CIBA 2018 CLUE Awards for thriller novels.

June 12, 2020
The FORTUNE FOLLIES by Catori Sarmiento – Dark Fantasy/Horror, Alternative History – Sci-fi, Romance

In a dystopian future, two young women struggle for livelihood, love, and a better future in the very altered city of Seattle.

Sarah Igarashi came to Seattle out of desperation in 1949. World War II has ended, but not as described in our history books. It was won through the invasion of Japan by American military aided by metal robots known as Iron Boys, an invention of a manufacturing genius, Robert Sinclair. Sarah sees in the lights and new transportation systems of Seattle while she attempts to reunite with her cousin Penelope.

Both young women survived the internment camps during the war, but Penny, receiving the bulk of the family inheritance, lives in a large house shared by other relatives – a luxury compared to anything Sarah has ever known. She will have to work and pay rent to Penelope, which will mean long, dreary shifts in a Sinclair factory for pennies a day.

As Sarah begins to see what America has become, she longs for something better. Forced out on her own, she discovers that immigrants like herself are targets of violence and oppression. But a group calling itself the Patriots is quietly initiating a rumble of rebellion, speaking out for equality in a society that has become increasingly stratified. Sarah is gradually drawn to them despite the danger of involvement and the over-reaching power of the Sinclair-dominated system.

Awarding winning author Sarmiento was raised in the Pacific Northwest and has lived in Japan, so the settings and the diverse cultures of this fascinating fantasy are well within her ken. The most curious and attractive feature of her novel is that the plot is based around family failings and restarts, with the futuristic twists serving more as background and color for the personalities and their clashes and reconciliations. Instead of being “about” the new technologies that have changed the world for better or worse, as is generally the case in future fiction, The Fortune Follies is about people seeking comfort, safety, and some hope of success in an unpromising atmosphere of gloom and overarching avarice.

Japanese speech, characters, and culture provide a further layer of interest. The reader will see Penny’s search for love, slowly warming her cold, arrogant exterior, while Sarah’s determination to stop the greed machine will overcome her need for personal security. Though their differences are notable and a source of constant tension, both women find solace in music.

Sarmiento’s broad vision makes this novel work, with careful and smart details as the treatment of immigrants and the poor still rankle in today’s real America. The reader could envision a sequel involving a war between people and machines, but that, of course, if up to the author.

The Fortune Follies won First Place in the CIBA 2018 CYGNUS Awards for Science Fiction novels.

June 10, 2020
KLEE WYCK JOURNAL (The Making of a Wilderness Retreat) by Lou McKee – Small Homes & Cottages, Canadian Exploration History, Pre-Confederation Canada, Pacific Northwest

Lou McKee’s Klee Wyck Journal is a beautiful sharing of a bold adventure played out in the wilds of Canada’s West Coast. Here the love of kayaking and the outdoors leads to a dream fulfilled and a revealing memoir that artfully showcases the building of a remote cabin retreat, the power and beauty of nature, the love of family and friends, and the value of self-discovery.

As an avid kayaker and camper, Lou McKee often explored the coastal areas of Washington and British Columbia. A trip to Vancouver Island ultimately turned into a yearly tradition. Lured by one particular stretch of beach, Lou and her fellow travelers decided to stake their claim on an area they affectionately christened “Klee Wyck.” The moniker was an homage to noted Canadian artist and writer Emily Carr, whose work was inspired by the natural landscape and indigenous people of the Pacific Northwest coast.

While the wild and pristine setting was clearly a draw for tent camping, overcast skies and torrential rains eventually forced Lou’s spirited clan to consider more secure sheltering. Over the next several years, a practical and cozy little cabin in the woods begins to take shape. In this naturalist’s playbook the homey structure evolves through a combination of brains and brawn, as well as the creative use of cedar beach logs, reclaimed wood, prefab materials imported from the city, and numerous found objects. Amidst the likes of an artfully designed mosaic-type floor featuring cedar rounds and beach gravel filling, a sacred lookout and miniature garden created in memory of a friend’s deceased daughter, a rare glimpse of ethereal white rainbows or “spy-hopping” whales, each subsequent year brings together McKee, family members, and friends for shared work and play, stories, celebrations, mouth-watering innovative meals, and the continuous expansion of the charming wilderness dwelling.

In this captivating blend of words and imagery, McKee’s colorful first-person narrative documents daily happenings, observations, and continuing work on the cabin. It renders intricate sketches of the local flora, fauna, and a bounty of natural treasures gathered from the beach. McKee’s background as a painter, illustrator, greeting card artist, and designer translate as an integral part of this journal. Whether a favorite piece of camping gear, like the candle lantern that served as a welcoming front porch light, the humorously adorned “hoo-hah” sculptures created at the shore, intricate seaweed ruffles, or smoothly polished sea stones ultimately interpreted as powerful, enlarged pastel paintings, the finely detailed ink and colored pencil drawings provide an ideal visual complement to McKee’s remarkable unfolding story.

Each chapter covers a new season at the family compound and lists a new roll call of visitors. Here ages range from a visiting 6-year-old granddaughter to an active 80-something-young friend. McKee’s well-crafted work effortlessly chronicles the wild curiosities of this coastline neighborhood. McKee’s journal entries always speak to her core sentiments from the flight of kissing ravens or confrontations with roaming bears to hidden places for gathering mussels and clams for the steamy chowder pot. We agree with her when she says, “This experience should be everybody’s accessible right…. Nature is still the most healing entity.”

The far-reaching sea is a constant presence in McKee’s writing, commanding respect with both its lulling tranquility and rolling intensity. While a knowledgeable seafarer, weather, winds, and white-capped waves can give rise to concern from even the most experienced of kayakers, facing down such fears proved a crucial component in McKee’s Klee Wyck experience.

This is more than a memoir relating a vacation retreat; this is the story of a woman going after her dream with vision, determination, ingenuity, imagination, and purpose. McKee not only brings family and friends along for the ride, but the resulting Klee Wyck Journal is like a personal invitation for readers to journey into the Canadian wilderness and experience coastal life through an artist’s keen eye. This unique takeaway of being in a homespun cabin by the sea is lovely, heartfelt, and inspiring.

Klee Wyck Journal (The Making of a Wilderness Retreat) won First Place in the CIBA 2018 Instruction & Insight Awards for Non-fiction work.

June 3, 2020
The SUBURBAN MICRO-FARM: Modern Solutions for Busy People by Amy Stross – Fruit Gardening, Sustainable Gardening, Garden Design, Gardening & Horticulture Reference

Author, educator, and urban farmer Amy Stross offers a comprehensive look at how to repurpose a small yard in the city for basic sustenance and so much more.

Award-winning writer Stross has composed a thoroughly practical guide to everything a reader would need to know to do what she did: transform a yard into a farm. Acknowledging that the ground surrounding a town dwelling is hardly what one thinks of when one thinks farmland, Stross draws from her personal experience to show precisely how the transformation can take shape. Her colorfully illustrated manual gives the basics for managing an ample garden space, or micro-farm, almost down to the minute (in fact, seven minutes twice a day).

Stross was caught between jobs and challenged to make the best use of time and space. Growing the kinds of foods her family liked to eat on a tenth of an acre, preparing and preserving them and, at times offering produce for sale became her grand quest. She shares the wisdom she gained as she gradually moved from beginner to experienced farmhand, to teacher of others. She tells readers what, why, and how to grow sustainable crops from the depths of the soil on up.

One bias Stross invites us to overcome is that gardens are ugly and should be hidden. She blasted that notion by using the “parking strip” – that piece of land between the sidewalk and the street – for cherry trees, providing not only the beauty of the spring blooms but, after a few years, an abundance of cherries for jams and preserves. She makes useful suggestions about how to explain one’s project to perhaps skeptical or critical neighbors. She recounts our American history of Victory Gardens as a success story supporting the home garden venture. If we can, why should we not provide a good portion of our edibles by our own labor? Later, the author became involved in community gardening, learning from, and helping others in a socially responsible setting.

Stross’s book combines memoir and good humor with an encyclopedic knowledge of the subject. She starts with soil with composting readily available substances like coffee grounds and eggshells, then covers annual plantings and planning with a micro-farm calendar. Instead of seeing hills, rocks, and other barriers as problems, Stross shows how these can be utilized in the overall strategy of garden planning. Stross goes on to recommend specific plants for specific purposes such as hedgerows, shady areas, and saleable products like cut flowers and homemade soaps. Following her example, readers can become writers, teachers, and sharers of the vast body of information she presents. The Suburban Micro-Farm projects Stross’s personal win-win-win-win: readers will learn, learners will do, doers will share, and all will be the better for it.

The Suburban Micro-Farm: Modern Solutions for Busy People won First Place in the 2018 CIBAs for Instruction and Insight.

June 1, 2020
The SECRET of the MOON by Anthony Allaway – Metaphysical Sci-Fi, Fantasy, Myths & Legends

In a world once nearly obliterated by war, mankind has been put under the control of powerful religious forces. However, not all humans are convinced of the beneficence of their rulers. A young man named Axel is destined to combat the evil that pervades his realm.

Axel is an introspective young man, partner to Val, his beautiful true love, with whom he shares many secrets from childhood. He questions the meaning of life, the mysteries of the cosmos, even the works of God. His nemesis Lucinder is the offspring of a mother raped and savagely beaten by his priest father, leaving him with no feelings of love or compassion, only hatred underpinned by a deep cynicism. Now known as the Serpent Priest, Lucinder and his goddess-like lover Shira hold thousands in thrall, promulgating rigid religious doctrine. When Axel learns that Lucinder is planning a global upheaval, he knows he must act before Lucinder has a chance to exact his wrath.

First, Axel urges his little band of loyal companions to retreat by entering the Enchanted Forest.

The forest is seen as a mysterious, dangerous place, but Axel reveals that he spent time in the forest as a child and that there are forces of good within its shadows. From a Buddha-like human figure and heavenly visions, Axel will learn why he has been chosen and what sacrifices he will make in an epic battle against evil.

In this engaging debut fantasy, Anthony Allaway writes with an undeniable flair for the genre with tropes reminiscent of Tolkien and C. S. Lewis.

He uses Biblical lore, European mythology, and ancient folklore in his story, though all are clothed in illusion and metaphor. One example is the fruit tree that stands in the middle of the Enchanted Forest, the tree from which Axel and Val eat the fruit. As a consequence of taking and eating the fruit, the children are banished from the Temples of Avalon, where the monks reside. But from the fruit, in Allaway’s mystical depiction, Axel is given revelations about the powerful secret of the moon.

The author has created vibrant characters: innocent children; nefarious priests; memorable females like the generous-hearted Grace and the nasty-minded Shira; and angelic beings who seem a cross between the pure spoken of in religious literature and the all-seeing but humanly flawed celestial overseers described in Greek mythology.

The blend of heady philosophy and an action-packed plot forms a colorful, page-turner-of-a novel. Allaway’s story is the stuff dreams are born out of, easily envisioned in cinematic images that will appeal to all imaginative readers.

May 29, 2020
TOKYO TRAFFIC by Michael Pronko – International Crime Thriller, Detective Story, Crime Thriller/Suspense

Michael Pronko’s novel, Tokyo Traffic, the third book in the Detective Hiroshi Series, will pull you in from the first page and keep you turning to the final word. He develops a mystery/thriller that gives nothing away while leading us down dark back alleys in his exotic Japanese Tokyo Prefecture setting.

The title, Tokyo Traffic, catches our imagination, as though the book might explore densely populated Tokyo and the traffic that gets snarled on freeways and down narrow dori’s, or the pedestrian traffic that surges through Shinjuku and down crowded sidewalks almost shoulder to shoulder in a sea of humanity. And actually, he captures both of those meanings in his book, but he also explores the underlying theme of human trafficking, especially of underage girls.

Pronko develops a rich cast of characters and builds a dangerous and evolving world in which they play hide and seek. Sukanya, a fourteen-year-old Thai girl and overall kickboxing badass, is our first point of view character. She escapes a murder scene with clothes she scavenges, a wad of bills, a laptop, an iPad, and thus begins the wild ride, Tokyo Traffic.

Sukanya runs from Kenta, another badass, but one who finances the porn and human trafficking, while racing his Nissan GT-R down Tokyo’s highways and byways, avoiding the law and Kirino. Kirino would like to teach him a lesson, the hard way.

Our hero, Detective Hiroshi, finds himself in the middle of a Tokyo that most tourists never see. Hiroshi chases Kento and Kirino, a larger fish in the human trafficking pond. They race from the docks of Yokohama to hard porn studios in downtown Tokyo. Hiroshi follows the money, and Pronko gives us the world of crime using cryptocurrency and blockchain technology.

This is a convincing backdrop that doesn’t overpower us with corruption and porn but focuses on the characters and their struggle to survive. Pronko handles his plot and world-building deftly and creates a sympathetic vehicle to explore and bring light to the horrors of what it might be as a child caught up in the drug-addled world of human trafficking and child porn.

Tokyo Traffic is a fast-paced thriller that introduces us to a world we might have heard about on the news. Pronko develops characters that leap off the page. We want them to escape, we want them to get caught, we want them to solve the case, and Pronko keeps us guessing right to the end, as we wonder who will eventually win in this high stakes game of humans for sale.

This book will not disappoint, in fact, you won’t be able to put it down.

(Find a link to The Moving Blade, review here)

May 27, 2020
DEATH and DISORDER: A Vivian Wexler Galactic Mystery by Patricia Crumpler – Science Fiction/Space Opera, Mystery, Female Sleuth

Get ready for an uproarious galactic adventure in Patricia Crumpler’s Death and Disorder: A Vivian Wexler Galactic Mystery. The titular character Vivian Wexler gets to the bottom of every mystery that comes her way. The adventure starts with Vivian in transit to the planet Sorasol, home to a peaceful species that has recently seen a string of murders and suicides.

Aboard the transportation ship, she runs into her old school flame Douglas (Dee) heading to the same planet as a translator, but after Vivian masterfully solves the case, all is not as well as it seems. A talent-enhancing parasite, lurking inside Vivian’s bosom, feeds off of what humans and many other species in the galaxy crave, coffee. Who could blame them? When Vivian is offered a position as a Galactic Agent, can she keep the coffee hungry creature at bay long enough to solve the mystery at hand?

The cover design of Death and Disorder suggests that the story will be a wild space adventure, and it does not disappoint. Patricia Crumpler establishes the world quickly within the first chapter through descriptive details of all the sights, sounds, and smells that Vivian is experiencing, which will make the reader feel like they are right alongside for the ride. Humor is also another thing that Crumpler does well. There is a lot of humor and even laugh out loud moments sprinkled throughout the novel, which keeps the tone of the book more fun and adventurous.

Crumpler packs a lot of story into this short novel, and that leaves a few things unexplored. The plot takes a sharp right turn, and the story-telling prowess of Crumpler will have readers happily following along. The sudden shift in the plot makes Death and Disorder feel like a collection of interlocking short stories featuring the same character put together rather than a start-to-finish novel. That being said, the story holds and does a fantastic job keeping its humor and sense of adventure strong until the end. Death and Disorder is sufficiently wrapped up by the closing page but leaves just enough unsaid and unanswered things to suggest Vivian Wexler’s series of galactic shenanigans will continue. And we are so glad they will!

A space opera that never really takes itself too seriously Patricia Crumpler’s Death and Disorder is a fun, action-packed adventure across the galaxy absolutely worth going on.

May 25, 2020
STORM ISLAND: A Kate Pomeroy Mystery (The Kate Pomeroy Gothic Mystery Series, Book 1) by Linda Watkins – American Gothic, Amateur Sleuth Mysteries, Horror/Suspense

Mayhem, murder, and magic—Linda Watkins’ thriller, Storm Island, is a 21st-century gothic mystery replete with a damsel in distress, villains, romance, and inexplicable, supernatural happenings. And, of course, a spooky old mansion on an island off the coast of Maine provides the perfect setting.

The story begins with “just another day at the office” for Katherine Pomeroy, daughter of the Chief of Staff at Memorial Hospital in Los Angeles, where she is a second-year surgical resident. Although she is a stereotypical privileged California girl with a prestigious pedigree, budding career, powerful lover, and trust fund on hold as she is not a product of nepotism. Katherine is smart, savvy, and hardworking, making her bones on her own behalf. Overall, her life can’t get much better.

Until the day Katherine ducks into the quiet refuge of a hospital laundry supply room for quick a catnap to refuel, and everything changes. Shortly after dozing off, Katherine is awakened by a private conversation between Dr. James Conway, Assistant Chief of Psychiatry at Memorial, and a rough-looking stranger. The men are arguing—and not over a tee-time.

The die is cast.

Katherine dismisses the incident as none of her business—but not Dr. Conway.

Later in the day, while prepping for surgery, Katherine suffers a seizure-like episode resembling a bad acid trip. Her next lucid moment is awakening in the hospital’s Emergency Room being treated by Dr. Conway, who has sedated her. He orders tests and ultimately diagnoses her as having a psychogenic disorder. By virtue of her father’s position and the fact that her aunt, a renowned psychiatrist, is willing to treat her, Katherine dodges commitment to a long-term psychiatric facility. Instead, she’s sent to her aunt’s summer home on Storm Island off the coast of Maine—a familiar place filled with memories.

Katherine, who learned, with the help of a loyal friend on staff, that she was being drugged, arrives on the island with mixed emotions and finds it fraught with physical, psychological, and supernatural landmines, forcing her to continue the fight for her life and sanity.

Storm Island is an entertaining read with smart, relatable characters in a setting that is dark and mysterious. A good mixture that will leave readers feeling comfortably sated.

Linda Watkin’s won First Place in the CIBAs 2018 Paranormal Awards for Storm Island.

May 21, 2020
POSTHUMOUS by Paul Aertker – Children’s Death & Dying Books, Children’s Books about Death, Grief & Bereavement, Children’s Books about Libraries & Reading

Can a book about a loved one’s death be life-affirming and uplifting? If it comes from the award-winning, middle-grade author, Paul Aertker, the answer is a resounding yes.

Sometimes, occasionally, life is perfect. So it is for 12-year-old Ellie Kerr who lives with her mother and father in a Paris apartment with a view of La tour Eiffel and attends an international school. Her wealthy, well-connected father manages the vast financial interests of a former King of France. Her talented, glowing mother, a writer, has an ambition to see her little novels called “Explore the World” published. The household is completed with Munda, their Au pair/nurse from the French West Indies whose charm and worldliness adds additional warmth to the already close family.

A perfect life indeed, until the mother is diagnosed with incurable ovarian cancer.

From the beginning, we know about Ellie’s mother’s condition, but this is not what the book is about. Instead, it’s the story of how Ellie deals with her mother’s illness and her commitment to seeing her mother’s books published posthumously, a promise that is central to the strength and wisdom of Paul Aertker’s latest middle-grade novel.

After the death of her mother, the family moves from Paris to the other side of the Atlantic. Ellie’s mission to get her mother’s books published become central to her ability to heal from the devastating loss. Few words are wasted on the process of healing itself. Aertker focuses his attention on Ellie’s quest to recover her mother’s books from a password-protected computer. Thankfully, she doesn’t have to do this alone. The friendship from Ellie’s classmates in her new school helps her find the courage to get the book published. This is ultimately a celebration of one mother’s life and the fire she lit in the mind and heart of her remarkable young daughter.

Reading about the death of a loved one, much less writing about it, can be painful. Posthumous succeeds admirably in its depiction of that process by telling it straight-forward with little gush or unwarranted drama. Aertker tells Ellie’s story with exactitude and dignity, honoring his audience with the handling of a very difficult subject. The details of how, and how well, the family copes with the loss of life are keenly drawn in a manner that celebrates the life of the mother while pointing out the path through life that her daughter will follow.

May 18, 2020