Becoming Lady Lockwood by Jennifer Moore

     Coerced into a marriage by proxy that she never wanted by her absentee father, Amelia Beckett is pleased to be a widow.  Now she can run her sugar plantation without the interference of  chaperones and with the validity her new title, Lady Lockwood, gives her in a man's world.
      Captain Sir William Drake has crossed the Atlantic with a single desire. Haul his brother's widow, Amelia Beckett, back to England to face his charge of fraud, and he has the power to do it.
       At cross purposes, Amelia and the Captain clash immediately upon introduction, and their animosity sets the stage for love, as all good Regency Romances do.  Aboard ship, they cannot completely avoid one another.  Through tempest, battles, and the demands of daily life aboard ship, the two gain respect and even admiration for one another.  But, forces are at work against them and a future together looks bleak upon their arrival in London.
       Hopefully, someone drawn to such a romance does not have grand illusions of a deep philosophical read because disappoint would surely result. 
       Becoming Lady Lockwood entertains and delights.  The characters are clever, flawed, and go far beyond the stereotypical romance characters.  I liked Amelia. She is kind and willing to work, characteristics that are developed from the start of the novel, as is her singular, even naïve outlook on life.  I liked the Captain.  Tending to be a tad arrogant (not unusual for a Sir and a Captain), he is brought back to reality by his best friend and first mate on a regular basis through good humor. Careful attention is paid to the details in the story greatly improving the believability.
     I enjoyed thoroughly this escape novel.  A perfect read for spring break.
   

The Girl on a Train by Paula Hawkins

     Rachel follows the same routine every week day.  She boards the train for London and comes home every evening warmed by some form of alcohol.  She mourns the life she lost, the ex-husband who has moved on and created a new life. So what's wrong with slipping into the life of the perfect couple, for a moment as her train pauses daily where Rachel can watch that couple cozily sharing breakfast on their deck. 
     Nothing is really wrong with that until it is wrong, very wrong.  Rachel sees something she wasn't meant to see as she gazes for a moment at her perfect couple.  Suddenly, she is mixed up in a mess she really can't comprehend, and as she trips, stumbles, blunders about in other people's lives and a police investigation, she only manages to makes things very dangerous for herself.
     Frequently I avoid books that come with front loaded expectations because others have raved about how awesome sais book is, but The Girl on the Train intrigued me.  Well written, painful, and even exciting, ultimately this novel failed me because I caught on quickly who the bad "guy" really was.  I'd still recommend the novel for those who love a good thrilling mystery.  Most people I know who read it loved it.

Taken by Dee Henderson

At sixteen Shannon Bliss was abducted, now eleven years later she turns up in the hall outside private investigator, Matthew Dane's hotel door with a crazy story about being coerced into assisting the Jacoby crime family.  A normal life is all that Shannon desires, but she has a list, a list of things she must do to set things right and Dane is determined to help her.


Perhaps I was expecting this novel to be a thriller, and it certainly sounds like a thriller, but it isn't, which left me disappointed.  When I examine it as a different genre, such as a survival-faith book, I can appreciate how deeply the author understands the complexity of her characters as well as the intricacy of the plot.  Over all it is a well written novel within that context, just don't expect a suspenseful thriller and then you won't be disappointed.

Still Life by Louise Penny

     Jane Neal, retired teacher, private artist, and loving friend, is not the type of woman to be murdered, even an accidental hunting death seems unlikely, but murder in the form of a hunting arrow straight through the chest is exactly how she dies.  The quiet village of Three Pines simply can't imagine anyone wanting to harm Miss Neal and believing it is someone they know in the village is beyond acknowledgement, until Chief Inspector Armand Gamache begins to pry into their lives and their secrets.
     Loaded with suspense, Still Life, oozes tension.  The depth of the forest, the inflection of each voice, and the potential significance of a scrap of conversation, infuse the novel, teasing the perfect puzzle piece forward.  One, that  in the end, does not fit. 
    Crafted so carefully and perfectly, it is hard to imagine the possibility of future Armand Gamache novels measuring up. 

Mr. Darcy's Secret by Jane Odiwe

Elizabeth Bennet, blissfully married to Mr. Darcy, arrives at Pemberley confident that she will manage her new home and husband with aplomb.  Then her sister-in-law falls for the wrong man, Lady Catherine de Bourgh arrives unannounced and secret, passionate love letters apparently from Mr. Darcy to a mysterious Viola are discovered. Suddenly, she realizes that she truly knows very little about her proud and prejudiced husband.


Odiwe captures the essence of Austen, which means one must slow down and enjoy the complexity of the society, the details of the setting, and the pace of a story that unfolds more through its characters than its plot.  Mr. Dary's Secret is perhaps one of the best "sequels" to Pride and Prejudice that I have read.

Everything, Everything by Nicola Yoon

Diagnosed with a rare disease, Madeline lives in her home and only her home to protect her from everything because everything will make her sick.  The only people she ever sees are her nurse, Carla and her mom, who is also her doctor.  Then one day, a moving truck shows up across the street and she falls in love.  Olly is tall, dark and handsome, and falling in love with Olly dramatically changes her life.  She will risk everything, including her life, to be with him.


Everything, Everything is a dynamic story of self discovery and the power of love, both good and bad.  Maddy and Olly are well developed characters with authentic voices and complex issues that mirror much of what teens feel and experience.  Tragic, yet resilient, these young people forge forward, true to who they are, supportive of one another even as they discover truths that are increasingly difficult and painful.


Love, love, love this story and the end was not only completely surprising, but perfectly matched to essence of the book.

Silent in the Grave by Deanna Raybourn

Julia Grey's husband Edward, collapses and dies at a dinner party they are hosting.  While she is ready to accept his death because of an ongoing family physical infirmity, she is outraged when Nicholas Brisbane introduces the possibility of murder.  Brisbane, a detective to the wealthy Victorian class, claims to have been working for Edward, employed to discover the author of some very frightening letters.  Having no physical proof, Julia dismisses the charge completely, until she finds the proof in the form of a letter, and sets off determined to find Edward's killer placing herself in the path of a murderer.     

To try and delineate the good and evil or right and wrong in this novel is difficult.  Love and lust mingle with revenge and tolerance creating quite a surprising ending.    Definitely a murder mystery over a romance, readers need to be prepared for just about anything.  Even though it was bit slow to start, I really liked Rybourn's style including the mix of suspense and drama as well as the exquisite atmosphere.  Occasionally, the characters come off a bit modern, but overall they are complex personalities that progress and develop throughout the story.                                                    

Readers should be aware that the complexity of relationships include all aspects of sexual preferences dealt with in a very Victorian manner.