8 minute read
Joyce's Choices
A Novel Way to Travel this Winter
BY JOYCE B. WILCOX
Whether you’re addressing Christmas cards, baking cookies, or wrapping presents, remember to take some time to relax and read, before and after the holidays. It doesn’t matter if you’re a snowbird at the seashore or a Canadian Laker on a lounger, there’s always an enjoyable book to transport you somewhere. Th e fi ve books selected for this issue have just the right genres for your journey: two Christmas novels, an action-thriller, an historical fi ction, and a delightful, surprisingly humorous murder mystery. With settings from Louisiana to Texas, or from England to Australia, or to Eastern Europe, these novels will make your reading excursion memorable.
Christmas at Little Beach Street Bakery
by Jenny Colgan
Th e expectations which come with a good Christmas story are usually of a warm-schmaltzyromantic nature with dashes of humor, hope, and Hallmark. Because this one was penned by Jenny Colgan and is about a bakery, while it may be a little sugarcoated, it also comes with a bite. Th e author’s cleverly crafted narrations set the scenes and tones of each chapter, proving once again that she can dish out desserts and serve up the sass. I’ll be the fi rst to admit that Colgan’s Christmas at Little Beach Street Bakery snagged me early on with all of the delicious descriptions of yummy treats and recipes. It was her ability
to speak directly to the reader with her skillfully placed asides, however, which made the read all the more palatable.
With a picturesque fictional setting of the tidal island of Mount Polbearne in the British Isles, Jenny Colgan brings the actual Cornwall County into clear focus in Christmas at Little Beach Street Bakery. The reader is instantly amused and entertained by this quirky tale due to the quaint cobblestone streets, an aging historic lighthouse residence, a gourmet bakery with mouth-watering delicacies, and a charming cast of diverse characters always tripping over problems and concerns. Polly grapples to resolve her worries with her live-in fiancé, her struggling new bakery business, her recluse aging single mother, her friends with their own relationship difficulties, and a struggling town in need of a little hope. Sprinkle the story with a little romance, festivities of the Christmas season, revealed family secrets, and a perpetually playful pet puffin for added humor, and you have a unique tale worth reading.
Hello from the Gillespies
by Monica McInerney
Always cheery, always bragging, always detailing the best of the best, as Angela Gillespie sits down to compose her annual Christmas email one year, she decides to dig deeper and tell the truth. To expunge her troubles, she utilizes her computer as her therapist and unloads, never intending to push send. In place of the fluff, she writes of troubled marriages, failing careers, excessive debt, and emotional turmoil in each of their lives. And yes, the email is sent accidentally to the one hundred recipients. Needless to say, her husband and children are horrified and blame Angela for writing it. She struggles to make amends and patch the family together. Everyone’s world is taken to a different level when Angela is in a dreadful car accident and the entire family is forced to envision life without her. Hello from the Gillespies is a ‘from the heart’ redemptive story with a message about what’s really important in life.
This book caught my attention because like the protagonist of Monica McInerney’s novel, I too have written a Christmas newsletter for over thirty years. I was curious about the story behind the story of Angela Gillespie’s Christmas newsletter and her motivation for writing it. I was not disappointed. McInerney digs deep into the trials and tribulations of family life and tells a heartfelt tale of the highs and the woes laced with surprises, wit, and the endless complications which come with everyday life.
The Bounty
by Steve Hamilton & Janet Evanovich
On a quest to recover $30 billion in Nazi gold before an emerging new Third Reich discovers its location, FBI agent Kate O’Hare once again teams up with former world-renown-thief-turned-FBI-aide-decamp, Nick Fox. The two work together solving complex riddles and clues in order to find sections of a treasure map hidden in bizarre, dangerous and isolated locations throughout Eastern Europe. Of course, all of this cannot be accomplished without the assistance of both of their fathers: Jake O’Hare, retired military, and Quentin Fox, con man extraordinaire. And why not toss in a rather quirky professor for good measure? This intriguing combination of characters results in a blending reminiscent of Christine Cagney (Cagney & Lacey) meeting the Pink Panther, with two dashes of semi-retired Columbo’s and a splash of Hercule Poirot. Adding to the mix are a monastery, some hangry polar bears, and a never-ending stream of villains. In other words, the story is not only compelling, it’s engrossing and entertaining.
Why prolific and NYT bestselling suspense writer Janet Evanovich waited so long to team with Steve Hamilton, the gifted multi-award-winning private eye writer, is a mystery to me. But the mystery which lies within this novel is solved as characters hunt for treasure with unending action, douses of humor, and just the right amount of sparks of romance. Kate O’Hare is as strong, determined, and independent as ever and her encounters with villains, as well as with Nick Fox, make for some riveting reading.
The Book of Lost Friends
by Lisa Wingate
With a novel that’s set in Louisiana and Texas in both 1875 and 1987, Lisa Wingate manages to connect her subplots and characters as she expertly draws in her readers in the process. As information trickles in through alternating chapters and centuries, the amazing stories of siblings and strangers are unraveled. There are broken hearts and broken promises, counterbalanced by warmhearted moments and acts of persevering courage. Just as the characters are unwavering in their journeys and quests, so are readers compelled to complete the chronicles of each character’s life story.
Three women set out to travel together during the Reconstruction of the 1870s in order to save their lives and their livelihoods: an heir to a failing southern plantation, her Creole servant, and a freed slave. They are reluctantly and forever tied together as they battle vigilantes, soldiers, and the secrets of their pasts. Fast forward to 1987 when a first-year teacher takes a job in a poor rural school in Louisiana, and she slowly uncovers bits and pieces of the town’s century-old history. But the town folk are old-fashioned as well as suspicious of this new teacher and don’t want their secrets revealed. These two storylines twist, turn, and unravel as the lives of these brave women are united across the centuries. Rest assured, your interest will be piqued and not lost on The Book of Lost Friends.
The Thursday Murder Club
by Richard Osman
Many of the books that I’ve previously reviewed have been selected from my book club picks, or have been the result of fabulous finds from area libraries, bookstores, garage sales, and semiantique shops. Such is not the case with The Thursday Murder Club. I’m thrilled to have stepped out of the box in my quest for a good book. No, I stumbled upon this gem this past fall as I walked to my table at the Panera in Mt. Pleasant to share a cup of coffee with my daughter. I noticed that a woman who was dining alone at an adjacent table was totally and laughout-loud engrossed in her novel in hand. I knew then and there that I’d better find out who and what she was reading. Yes, I’m guilty of starting a conversation with a complete stranger; but I had to know about her book. She raved about The Thursday Murder Club. Upon returning home I went on-line, ordered the first book of the series and Richard Osman now resides on one of three bookcases in our bedroom which my husband refers to as Joyce’s Library.
Having personally written several short stories and poems about seniors, I was head-over-heels thrilled to read this murder mystery set in a retirement village with senior citizen residents as the amateur crime solving team. The fearsome foursome of retired friends consists of the following: a former nurse, a psychiatrist, a trade union leader, and a woman who worked in the secret service. The group meets weekly in the Jigsaw Room of their clubhouse to look through news clippings and old files as they search through unsolved crimes for clues. When a local developer is found murdered on the village grounds, the four switch from perusing papers to pursuing perps. As most of the village is under suspicion, Osman introduces the reader to a delightful cast of seniors full of all the quirks and quacks beyond your imagination. Like a good stew simmering in a senior citizen’s crock pot, the plot thickens.
Living in the Sunset Shores’ community of Canadian Lakes for the past fifteen years, I related first-hand to the people, places, activities, and mishaps of the retirees in this novel. Osman certainly knows how to hook a reader and also how to catch a murderer. Oh, did I mention that the main character’s name was Joyce? And when I had read three quarters of the way through the book, I discovered that this same Joyce was asked to write an article for the local community newsletter. Yes, it was entitled Joyce’s Choices. Needless to say, I’ve already ordered Osman’s next two books in his New York Times’ bestselling series, The Man Who Died Twice and The Bullet That Missed.
Happy holidays! Have a good read and enjoy your journey this winter!
