Books of Note – July 2023

May and June brought more waiting rooms, surgery, and loads of sitting/lying around time. Here are a few of the books I’ve happily enjoyed instead of having to count the number of ceiling tiles.

“Burning Eden” by Sarah Bewley – Overworked and understaffed, Sheriff Jim Sheppard has three murders to solve while wildfires burn throughout the county.  A new doctor arrives in town and unwittingly becomes a factor in those murders. Bewley keeps us riveted in “Burning Eden” with a plot that delivers a surprise villain, a fabulous dog, and an annoying reporter as counterpoints to the wonderfully written, complex  lead characters. A ‘wow’ ending has me hooked and looking forward to a return to Eden County in “Frozen Eden.”  (Coming next year)

“Witch Hunt” by Cate Conte – First in the ‘spell-binding’ Full Moon Series, featuring Violet Mooney, crystal shop owner with mysterious, undeveloped powers she didn’t know she had. Murder, magical transport from spot to spot, reappearing relatives, unhappy townspeople, and other-worldly shenanigans, all play a role in this delightful series. “Witch Way Out,” book #3, is out now as well.

“The Midwife’s Touch” by Sue Harrison – Filled with wonderful descriptions of customs, food, and clothing of the period, this book combines the powerful stories of the prejudices people have against what they don’t understand, with the greed that overtakes their sanity. I turned the last page and was so disappointed that the book had ended. But, it is the first book in a trilogy, and to quote a line from the book, “We start from there.”

“Killers of a Certain Age” by Deanna Raybourn – nominated for multiple awards. 60 something,  lady assassins are betrayed and elect to get their revenge in the ways they do best. Wicked fun, clever twists. Never underestimate smart women. Ever.

“The New Girl” by Daniel Silva – #19 in the intense Gabriel Allon series. Throughout history, political leaders have made deals with the enemy in order to work on a common goal, each accepting that the other has special skills to achieve success. Now chief of the Israeli intelligence agency, Gabriel Allon is approached by a progressive leader in Saudi Arabia, a sworn enemy of Israel. They must work together behind the scenes to save the ‘new girl’ while preserving the stability of a more modern Middle East. Silva has created a riveting, complex plot, written in part because of the brutal killing of a real-life journalist as well as the deaths of more than 50 other journalists in one year.  Contains kidnapping, Middle East tensions, and the grim realities of negotiations with some not very nice people.

Happy Reading!

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