MAGNIFICENT –  FIVE STARS!

When I ordered this book, I thought, “Oh, how cool. A book about Folklorico dancers.” I love Mexico’s beautiful traditional dancers. I envisioned a fluffy read, beautifully costumed. Forget that. This is a serious piece of literature set within a world of dance. It’s an ensemble work, centered on Alegria, a Folklorico dance ensemble, and a group of Latino men and women associated with the dance troop. I’m not going to go into more detail about the characters, because other reviewers have covered them thoroughly.

I recall reading an interview with one of our great living authors. He said words to the effect that making readers care deeply for intriguing characters and then doing terrible things to them was the secret of writing. Author Reyna Grande does that to the max. Her portrayals are so vivid that I almost stopped reading this book a couple of times. Watching her characters making obviously destructive life choices over and over really disturbed me. But I couldn’t stop reading. “That’s the definition of a good book,” my husband said. “You can’t stop reading.”

I read on to the end and was very rewarded. I would never use the term “chicklit” to describe Reyna Grande’s work. This is too deep and impactful and carries a compelling message for and about all human beings. The author also weaves information about Folklorico and love of dance throughout. A highly recommended book.

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A satisfying and beautiful read –– FIVE STARS!

The Lieutenant is one of the best books I’ve read in a very long time. The author uses a very simple writing style to reveal a powerful human drama. I don’t like to reveal plots in my reviews–you can get them from the book’s promotional material and other reviewers, but the emotional impact of this volume is stunning. The pacing of her story, her characters, the plot: All form a work of lasting value. This is a very fine piece of literary art that is easily understood and appreciated by everyone. I join Kate Grenville’s fans with exuberance and look forward to reading her other work.

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Delightful, wholesome, and intelligent reading for young and not-so-young adults  -  FIVE STARS!

I remain charmed and delighted after finishing Todd Fonseca’s The Time Cavern. As other reviewers point out, this is the story of two youngsters, a brilliant boy who has recently relocated from the city to the country and an adventurous farm girl. Tom Sawyer-style, they embark upon adventures that lead them to very unexpected places. I don’t want to reveal more of the story, though, given the title, it’s no surprise that a time cavern is involved. It’s a great read, and the ending is an amazing surprise.

This isn’t simply a sci-fi thriller, though both terms describe it. The author sets the tale in Amish farm country, unfamiliar territory to this reader. The gentle Amish culture provides a backdrop for the story, adding a haunting dimension. It’s also farm country–more unfamiliar territory for me. The only thing I knew about corn was how to eat it; the story teaches us about threshing and combines and other rural mysteries as part of the farm cycle.

Charming is the only word I can think of to describe this book. The Amish element, the two cute kids, their families, the old barn, and, of course, what they discover in the woods is a compelling blend. I’m looking forward to the sequel.

The values dimension of this book must be emphasized. When I was in graduate school in counseling, we counselors-to-be would sit around with our professors and talk about the decline in social values that we saw in the mass culture around us. We’d wring our hands and moan, “What’s it all about?” The state of mass culture has gotten more alarming since my school days.

This book embodies personal health. It stars two bright, inquisitive kids from intact families.

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A finely written exploration of grief  - FIVE STARS

A beautifully drawn exploration of a young man’s grief at the loss of his partner and his eventual resumption of life. Quite a few unexpected thrills and chills, which I will not reveal and spoil.

As usual, author Edward C. Patterson captures the heart of the emotions of his character and renders a finely drawn absorbing tale. This book has the extra something–magic, haunting (literally) quality–that has me giving five stars.

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EXQUISITE & SATISFYING FROM THE FIRST PAGE TO THE LAST  –– FIVE STARS!

Having read some of its other reviews, I expected to like this book. I was not prepared for the depth and power of its impact. This beautifully written tale reminds me of early books by Isabel Allende. It’s easily read and understood, setting it apart from some literary fiction. Yet the prose is so gorgeous that it’s like reading music. Every page is loaded with unexpected and scintillating analogies and descriptions. The characters ARE unforgettable, men and women of legends. I heartily recommend this beautiful work.

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I COULDN’T PUT THIS BOOK DOWN

I read this book in one day. It hooked me completely. I felt Zippora Karz conveyed her story with simplicity and elegance. I do have an intense interest in its major subject areas: ballet and diabetes. I was in love with ballet as a young person. Karz brought me back to the world of dance. I could even hear the music my teacher used to play. The Sugarless Plum beautifully illustrates the tensions and competition of the high end of dance. The book reads like a “Who’s Who” of the ballet world, with luminaries mentioned on every page. Through the author’s words, I got the sense of the ferocious drive and discipline a dancer must have to reach the heights.

Her treatment of her diabetes was just as compelling. Juvenile diabetes took my cousin’s life. After witnessing my cousin having a low sugar episode, I thought, “How could anyone live with that?” I was most interested in reading about a dancer living the grueling life demanded by her profession AND coping with diabetes.

I found her initial journey from doctor to doctor and brush with an unscrupulous practitioner riveting. Having known several people with cancer who went into denial in their own ways, I appreciated the courage with which Karz discussed her own denial and how it could have cost her life. Finding adequate medical treatment, even in a sophisticated place like NYC, proved difficult. She thought she was getting good medical advice, but it turned out not to be. The fact that she persevered until she got a correct diagnosis, then went on to dance as long as she did, is inspiring and magnificent. I felt her authenticity throughout the book.

Karz writes about her life in a clear, elegant fashion which I found very satisfactory and professional. She does not dish gossip or dirt about anyone, especially major figures in the ballet world. I found this absolutely appropriate.

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A STYLISH, UPSCALE MYSTERY

An opera singer, race car driver, and an English lord–author Eugenia Lovett West creates a compelling stew with her upscale characters and locations. The action moves from Vienna to Boston, London, and Ireland as heroine Emma Streat tries to solve two murders–and stop an international ring of traffickers in deadly viruses. I found Emma Streat a compelling heroine: an elegant, resourceful mature woman with courage and wit. I found myself thinking of another Emma, Emma Peel of the original Avengers serial, who also broke stereotypes as she tracked criminals. I can’t wait to read the next book in the Emma Streat series.

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A RAMBUNCTIOUS HOOT OF A BOOK . . .

The Barbary Pirates is not a book I expected to like. I’m not much of a swashbuckling adventure fan. But William Dietrich’s latest novel is such an engaging tale that I was captivated. I read the book in a couple of sittings, barely able to put it down.

What was so compelling about this wild, tongue in cheek yarn? Ethan Gage, the series’ protagonist, is a charming fellow, sort of an upscale Daniel Boone with his tomahawk and long rifle. He’s also something of a debonair Agent `007 of the early 1800s with his sophisticated manners and magnetic attractiveness to the ladies.

In addition to Ethan Gage, the author populates his book with historical figures, a prototype submarine, and a lost “death ray” or mirror associated with the Greek mathematician Archimedes. Characters include the hero’s lost love, a two-year-old son that he knows nothing about, and a sadistic English noblewoman. Also on hand are the promised the Barbary pirates and an evil cult bent on taking over the world.

At times, the plot moves so fast that it threatens to spin out of control, but it’s kept in bounds by the author’s fine writing and wit. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and recommend it to those liking adventure reminiscent of Indiana Jones.

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I’m very pleased to welcome guest blogger Eugenia Lovett West. Eugenia has written two enthralling mysteries. The latest, Overkill, came out in December ‘09. I don’t know many people of any age who have accomplished what Eugenia has––so let’s hear what she has to say.

Eugenia Lovett West

Hi, Sandy. Thanks so much for asking me to blog about starting a career late in life. I hope my story will encourage writers of any age.

After a publishing gap of nearly thirty years, I decided to have a go at the mystery genre. When the rejection slips made too big a pile, I switched gears and self-published the manuscript as a Christmas present for family and friends. The praise was so heartwarming that I entered it in the St. Martin’s Press Malice Domestic contest for first mysteries. Months went by. Out of sight, out of mind.

Then one beautiful morning in June 2006, I sat down at my desk and turned on the computer. There, leaping from the monitor, was an email from the renowned St. Martin’s editor, Ruth Cavin. The book was too international for the contest, but she liked it and offered me a contract for two books.

Believe me, I levitated. For a wannabe published writer with nose pressed against the glass, it doesn’t get better than that. Without Warning was published by St. Martin Press Minotaur in 2007, but I wasn’t about to advertise my age for fear of losing younger readers.

Overkill, the second in the Emma Streat series, came out in December 2009. At this point it felt comfortable to come out of the age closet and admit to being 86. (Note: my editor Ruth Cavin is even older.)

When did I start to write? There was always a fascination with words, no doubt inherited from a long line of preachers and teachers. I had two undistinguished years of study at Sarah Lawrence College, and then a short career at Harper’s Bazaar and the American Red Cross. In 1944 I married a dashing fighter pilot flying out of England with the 8th Air Force. (We had been married 60 years the day he died.) Then came four children and volunteer work.

At last the youngest child was at school all day and there was time to try putting words to paper. Feeling important, I rushed around being a roving reporter for local papers in New Jersey. Journalism was great training and great fun, but suddenly churning out three hundred words wasn’t enough. Why not three hundred pages?

The first book was a disaster. Trash. I tried again, using a sugar plantation in Jamaica WI as a setting. The Ancestors Cry out, an historical suspense, was published by Doubleday and Ballantine.

Why did I start over with mysteries? Partly because they are my favorite escape reads. We know that good will always trump evil. We feel the power of the great absolutes––death, retribution, and punishment. Often there is a nice balance of plot, background, and characters, all moving along at a fast pace, teasing the mind. But, I soon learned that there’s a vast difference between reading and writing mysteries. This is a genre with strict rules: There must be red herrings, clues dropped at strategic points, and a surprising villain.

Sandy, you ask how my characters evolve. The answer is: with a lot of angst. It was hard to create, out of thin air, the main character in a series––the one who is going to investigate the hair-raising disasters. In multiple revisions, my protagonist was named Molly, Maggie, Tory, and finally Emma. She was age 60, then dropped to a median 47. I’m an opera fan, so Emma was once a rising young diva who lost her voice. Luckily, my life (so far) has not included murders, but I knew about being a hands-on mother. And, as the wife of a CEO, I could draw on travel experience––first class or private jet to places like London and Paris.

By now I have come to love my elegant, gutsy Emma. I feel I know her as well as, even better, than my own daughters and I want readers to care about her. This woman has had to dig deep to find strengths to survive, bring criminals to justice, and work thought complicated love interests. Like Emma, we are all, I think, reaching for ways to live out daily lives with strength and courage.

What are the trade-offs of being an older writer? There are pluses to high mileage. We have been around, observed people, gained insight. After endless hours of applying the seat of the pants to the seat of the chair, a style evolves. It’s easier to sense what is wrong about a phrase or a character. He/she would never have done that. Eyes never fall to the floor. Like cooking a stew, we throw in all these experiences, stir well, and  hope it’s a winner.

The downside? Even with good health, maintenance of the aging chassis cuts down on valuable writing time. There’s a sense that every day must count. I wish I had experimented with different genres in my twenties. And––I have to keep reminding myself that Emma is of a different generation. To keep current with trends, I rely on daughters and nieces.

As for future plans, children, grandchildren, and extended family take priority, but there are two ongoing projects. One is to put the final touches on an historical suspense novel. This is set in the American Revolution, and focuses on intelligence operations, spies, and threats on George Washington’s life.

The second project is, of course, the third Emma Streat mystery. Right now, new pictures are running through my head like a film, but my goal remains the same: Story is key and it must move fast. I want to catapult readers into a world of strong people working out their problems, a global thread, and high-end settings. Escape is important. I love hearing that my books helped someone through a bad time.

It’s true, I think, that age and creativity can exist happily together, but for the older writer, creativity is a real blessing. It’s great to wake up in the morning with work to do––and it can be accomplished just sitting at a computer.

OVERKILL by Eugenia Lovett West

Eugenia Lovett West’s website.

You can buy OVERKILL, An Emma Streat Mystery, and WITHOUT WARNING on Amazon and at bookstores everywhere.