The Closer You Get: A Novel by Mary Torjussen

The Closer You Get: A Novel. Mary Torjussen. She Writes Press. April 21, 2020. pb, 368 pp.; ISBN #: 9781984804587.

Ruby leaves her husband, Tom, on a Friday night.  She’s uptight about it but determined!  She’s determined and he’s cooperative.  But she’s in for a shock when she gets to her hotel and her lover, Danny, doesn’t show up.  It gets worse when on Monday she discovers she’s got no job.

As the story is told from two points of view, Ruby’s and Emma’s (the wife of Danny) one begins to find feelings of compassion for Ruby.  But really?  Tom is sending her notes throughout the weekend including that he’s left her some extra money in her bank account.  Really?  She doesn’t respond and say thanks until later but isn’t this the opposite of what you’d expect?

Emma is interested in breaking this woman who doesn’t think twice about breaking up a marriage.  She even says it, so we think it’s her when the notes and follow through, things start happening.  It’s a good premise, really, except are you sure? 

The notion that she’s now single and is being stalked isn’t so far from reality.  She certainly deserves no less, doesn’t she?  Pages and pages follow filled with elements of this stalking and she’s no less than one very afraid woman.

Anyway, she’s out of a job and heck, out of everything.  Now she’s being stalked.  There are notes that someone is leaving in her hallway and phone messages.  Who’s behind this?  You may think you’ve got this figured out but you’ll be wrong.

For a “who done it?” it’s a thriller.  By the end of the novel, you’ll wonder who is the stalker and who’s out for Ruby?   Interesting read and recommended!

Beyond the Ghetto Gates - A Novel by Michelle Cameron

Beyond the Ghetto Gates: A Novel. Michelle Cameron. She Writes Press. April 7, 2020. pb, 456 pp.; ISBN #: 9781631528507

The ghetto isn’t any nicer in the late 19^th century than it was later on.  This is the time when Napoleon’s French troops have invaded the Italian city of Ancona.  They’ve taken down the wall that separates Jews from Christian, but that’s about it.  Mirelle is the heroine of this novel and she’s got to make a decision that will have life changing ramifications. She’s a talented woman who is gifted in her father’s business.  But now she is told that she should not be working there because she’s a woman. Should she marry the older man who can give her everything or marry the Christian soldier who has made such a dashing appearance. 

There’s a picture of Mary that’s become everything to Italians.  It has been seen to be weeping, smiling, and when its gazing at Napoleon scowling.  Francesco, the wife of a man who is murdered for his hatred of Jews, is determined to steal the statue and blame them. What does it mean, vowing to stand by the theft of this picture?

Mirelle is a normal human being who loves being outside, who is happy being outside where she can smell the sea nearby.  But all of that changes when her father dies.  Her home is no longer hers but her aunt who hates her and her work.  How will she move past this barrier and both marry for love and keep her passion for business?

Beyond The Ghetto Gates is a book for women.  It raises this problem about woman in an age when things were mired in tradition.  Read it and celebrate! 

This is historical fiction that is memorable and life-changing!  It’s about the love that goes beyond words to bring change that is meaningful!