And They Called It Camelot: A Novel of Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy Onassis by Stephanie Marie Thornton

And They Called It Camelot: A Novel of Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy Onassis. Stephanie Marie Thornton. Penguin Publishing Group. March 2020. pb, 480 pp.; ISBN #: 9780451490926.

Welcome to the world of Jack and Jackie – a romance beyond romance!  It’s a world where we see Jackie’s sense of humor and mostly grit.  She knew what she was marrying into but she married Jack Kennedy anyway. She knew he was a womanizer but he swore she was his only woman and proved it. It reads like an intimate memoir.  It brings the reader to share in her tears and deepest fears.

She met his family and got along with everyone of them.  She had miscarriages and trials but kept her chin up until she had her children, Caroline and John.   When she drives through Texas with Jack, we know how mind-numbing his assassination is and what it does to her.  It takes her to levels of grief and yet it is her family and his that offer the support that keeps her going.  Yes, it is Bobby who is there for her and gives her strength that she takes time to turn into her own.  From then on, her stoicism guides her through the tragedy of Bobby’s assassination. 

From then on, she gets to raise her children and decides to travel to Greece.  There she eventually marries Aristotle much to the chagrin of the Kennedy clan and Aristotle’s children.  She does this for her children’s safety and it works.  But marriage to Ari isn’t what she had hoped and she is hopelessly entangled in a stay at home, European style marriage and it isn’t until his death that she feels free. 

She then has the money and the dreams to become an editor, a successful one at that.  Jackie has been married three times and spends the rest of her life doing what she loves.  Throughout the book she shares her love of poetry and prose in small ways with each of her families, but only after life has taught her through joys,  pain and trials does she celebrate her literary life with the world.

Many readers do not know Jackie’s life but now they can get to know her intimately in a way that gives her reality a way to remember the days of Camelot – and beyond.  Wonderful historical fiction!

A Murderous Relation: A Veronica Speedwell Mystery #5 by Deanna Raybourne

A Murderous Relation: A Veronica Speedwell Mystery #5. Deanna Raybourn. Penguin Publishing Group. March 2020. pb, 320 pp.; ISBN #: 9780451490766.

Veronica Speedwell is asked to recover a beautiful piece of jewelry that has been given to a rich courtesan in a high-class bordello for the aristocracy.  The jewelry is to be used to unite a Prince of the British Kingdom to a woman he admires.  However, the Royal Family has other plans for his future marriage.  Left alone the passing of this jewelry will cause a scandal that would destroy the monarchy.  Veronica, as the unrecognized daughter of the ruling Prince, agrees to carry out this task.  She protects the Kingdom even if her shameful status remains unacknowledged.

The pages that follow will put the life of Stoker, a natural history colleague, and Veronica at risk since they are kidnapped as part of a plot to remove the remaining Germanic people from the Royal Family and begin a new reign supposedly ruled by Veronica but in reality dictated by a failing police officer and an anarchist. 

In the process readers will meet some of Stoker’s dead animals ready to be mounted, will see how Stoker and Veronica will survive being wounded several times, and will meet Eddy, a Prince, who is spoiled but wants to leave a good mark on the people of his Kingdom but is clearly unprepared to do any ruling. 

Meanwhile Veronica has finally realized how much she loves Stoker and is resolved to be united with him but is stymied by circumstances which leave the two closer to dead than alive and passionately connected.  However, determination may eventually pay off which would definitely change the nature of their future sleuthing activities.

You will also meet a journalist and the head of police who care about the poor and homeless individuals who wind up in lives of prostitutes and thieves.  The social connection is touching although these characters seem powerless to change the lives of those they most pity.  This situation makes the Jack the Ripper murders to which their plight is connected all the more devastating!

A Murderous Relation… is a fun read, full of adventure, danger, mystery and passion! Enjoy the great read!

Where the Sun Will Rise Tomorrow by Rashi Rohatgi

Where the Sun Will Rise Tomorrow. Rashi Rohatgi. Galaxy Galloper Press, LLC. March 2020. pb, 270 pp.; ISBN #: 9781733233293.

In 1905 Nash returns home to India after having spent time studying engineering in Japan, which has just won a war against Russia.  India is now feeling they will unite and so have Great Britain leave their country.  So it’s a time for protests and petitions to local and national politicians to win battles against segregation. Nash asks his fiancé Leela to get signatures for the petition ending segregation in Chadrapur’s local schools, Leela needs to take time to process such an action.  She is definitely for the old ways and somewhat up for change into new ways.  For now she is obsessed with her love for Nash and how his occasional kisses spark her love and desire for more.  She wonders how such changes will affect families.

Things, however, are complicated.  Nash and Leela are expected to marry and live in Nash’s small village.  Nash however now wants to become a lawyer and not an engineer.  Leela’s sister, Maya, has fallen in love with a Muslim, a union that would be forbidden and ostracized by their present neighbors.  Maya believes that such a change must happen along with all of the other changes that are hopefully looming in the near future.  Love to Maya is stronger than prejudice and segregation of religions.

There are multiple scenes where Leela, Maya and their father meet with Nash’s family.  During these visits, much is mentioned that gives Leela and Maya food for thought and discussion.  However, discussions never seem to resolve in a shared agreement about the future.  Leela and Maya read many books as they prepare to teach in a local school.  However, no one fully expects them to teach once they are married for social norms put marriage and becoming a parent over and above being a working woman. 

This is a novel about the journey to change.  Leela will commit an act at the end that totally changes her world and mandates she must embrace change even if she acts like it is all accidental and not part of a revolutionary plot.  Reference is made to Buddhism and the beginning teachings of Gandhi. 

Interesting historical read that contemplates how change demands different thought, feelings and actions in the midst of a traditional society.  Fascinating reading!

No Truth Left to Tell by Michael McAuliffe

No Truth Left to Tell. Michael McAuliffe. Greenleaf Book Group Press. March 2020. pb, 320 pp.; ISBN: 9781626346970.

Adrien Rush is a federal civil rights prosecutor and is called to investigate and prosecute the criminals responsible for burning crosses on the lawns of private and public citizens in Lynwood, Louisiana.  The Ku Klux Klan is responsible and is proud of their actions.  However, one elderly lady, Nettie Wynn, suffers a heart attack on the night of the attack on the front lawn of her home.  She lives in an area of Lynwood that is home to a predominance of people of color.

Rush and an experienced FBI investigator, Mercer, continue their work and after a local police detective brings in one of the responsible persons, they manage to have the perpetrator judged guilty by a grand jury.  Nettie’s nice and Rush hit it off but their relationship is about to become complicated by the crime’s process. 

What happens if the means by which evidence is obtained turns out to be tainted?  Does that mean the rights of the accused become more important than the commission of a crime?  Such is the dilemma posed in this tense, controversial plot. 

It will leave readers with many confusing and complex questions about justice’s processes and the results obtained.  Who or what is the victim of such civil rights crimes and violations?  Who deserves a “fair” trial?  How are rights protected and guaranteed?  What will it take for prejudice and civil rights crimes to be abolished forever?  When does the behavior of police become excusable or inexcusable?  How many innocent people are sitting in jail because of a perversion of justice?

Rush is a cop with integrity. It’s because of that sense of fairness that the simple plot becomes so fraught with problems that challenge his relationship with both the people in town and the families of victims.  There also seems to be a well-known tension between federal and civil authorities.  Everyone wants to be top man on the totem pole and somehow justice and fair play are in danger of being obliterated.

No Truth to Tell is a fascinating read that is sure to please those who love crime novels and the stories therein.  Nice writing, Michael McAuliffe!  Look forward to more of same!

Who Slays The Wicked? by Sebastian St. Cyr C. H. Harris

Who Slays the Wicked? – Sebastian St. Cyr. C. S. Harris. Penguin Publishing Group. April 2019. pb, 352 pp.; ISBN #: 9780399585654.

A very evil nobleman who is married to Sebastian’s niece, Stephanie.  This quickly turns into a “was” married when he is found murdered in the most foul manner possible.  Years ago, he was responsible for a string of murders of young boys.  Lord Ashworth has some deviant sexual habits and is a very nasty individual with a habit of not paying his bills and sneering at those who demand payment.  When Sebastian asks who would want Lord Ashworth dead, the answer is obviously anyone and everyone who knew him. Although this is the 14^th St. Cyr novel, it’s a stand-alone that’s so very well worth reading.

So does one go after the poor vagabond prostitutes in the neighborhood or the other noble lords and ladies in London, especially quite a few from Russia here to encourage and celebrate a wedding of their own arrangement?  All have a reason to hate Lord Ashworth’s dead or alive guts.  The size of a blood stain even suggests that a small woman committed the gruesome deed, maybe even his wife Stephanie whom the Lord had married only to get an heir or he would have been cut off from the family money. 

What’s most interesting about this novel are the potentially guilty characters who carry an obvious hatred of the dead victim but also have a coldness about them that wouldn’t think twice about killing a person.  Motives boil down to they would just plain like to do it and no you wouldn’t get a smile with that verbal admission.

There’s a double whammy message here about how the aristocracy couldn’t care less about the suffering and cruel circumstances of the poor beggars, prostitutes, and local ragpickers, of whatever age.  St. Cyr has an obvious caring heart and this makes him sensitive to the suffering around him, a trait his beloved wife also shares.

One also gets a good picture of the politics of the time.  Politicians are out for money and not the good of their constituents.  Covering up evil deeds is par for the course.

This is a grand read with plenty of rumors, hints, scandals, etc. for those trying to figure out the mystery before the main character does.  Fine crime novel that will keep you enraptured for hours and hours – enjoy and then go for the other St. Cyr novels – all masterfully crafted!

Red Letter Days by Sarah Jane Stratford

Red Letter Days. Sarah Jane Stratford. Penguin Publishing Group. February 2020. pb, 400 pp.; ISBN: 9780451475572.

In the late 1950s Senator Joe McCarthy began what came to be known as the “Red Scare.”  Halfway through that period, even after Senator McCarthy had to withdrawn from the HUAC or House of Un-American Activities Committee, the Committee was still holding trials of those who were blacklisted for an association with either the Communist or Red Party others associated with the same party.  The source of most of their information were lists of people who named others so that they would be released and cleared of being a Red.  This is the story of two women writers who were blacklisted, one (Phoebe Adler) of whom had escaped a subpoena by fleeing to England.  Phoebe must work as a script writer in order to financially support her very ill sister living in a health sanitarium.  After she gets blacklisted based on someone else’s false confession, she leaves for England and begins, thanks to the helpfulness of Hannah, a woman who has hired several blacklisted writers and producers.  The choice was this escape or trial and jail plus heft financial fines. However, note that Phoebe and Hannah are very good writers!

The travesty of those who did not escape is that their careers were totally ruined.  But thee exiles got a second chance.  Eventually some were arrested in England, brought back to American and made to appear before the HUAC.  Some thanks to strong supporters made it through and returned to England but the story still needed to be told because of the hell they went through, like Phoebe, in the long anxiety-producing, fearful process or journey.  Sarah-Jane Stratford has certainly done a great deal of research and this novel is a poignant account of that experience for far too many writers, actors, producers and directors accused of being Communists.

There is also a subplot of the role of married women who chose to work after the war and who therefore were considered to be unfeminine.  Some stuck it out; some wound up divorced.  These women were assuming roles for the first time that Americans were not always willing to accept.  The novel also contains some very funny moments as scripts are being prepared for the TV production of Robin Hood and another for The Legend of Lancelot.

Remarkable, intelligent, adventurous, and engaging historical fiction that is well-crafted, fascinating and highly readable.  A must read! Enjoy!

The Antidote for Everything by Kimmery Martin

The Antidote for Everything. Kimmery Martin. Penguin Publishing Group. February 2020. pb, 384 pp.; ISBN: 9781984802835.

Dr. Georgia Brown is a urologist and Dr. Jonah Tsukada is a family medicine physician.  Both work in a hospital in Charleston, South Carolina.  The journey both are about to begin is a very painful one as the Director of the hospital and a group of local citizens have decided that Jonah’s treatment of LGBT patients is immoral and therefore unacceptable as hospital policy.  So he is accused of that and also of stealing drugs from the hospital pharmacy.  Georgia stands by his side through the thick and horrendous journey of these accusations as well as when he is fired.  At the same time, Georgia has finally met and fallen in love with a businessman, Mark.  All three of these characters have experienced devastating loss and know what it takes to survive and even surpass these tragedies.  Their friendship is engaging and admirable to the uppermost degree.

Unfortunately, Jonah makes a choice that puts his life in jeopardy.  It is while he is suffering from that choice that the truth about the whole hospital situation is exposed, through the work of a very savvy lawyer and the confession of an addictive physician.  Georgia had contemplated doing something wrong in order to make the situation right but never implements that plot.  During that time of innocence, all come to understand what they want to do in medicine and make new decisions to honor that dedication.  They are stronger for the experiences.

The Antidote for Everything will leave readers thinking about opinions and prejudices.  It will also hopefully make readers think twice about the quick judgments the public and individuals make after accusations are published or splashed through the news.  The plot condemns the notion that once alleged means guilty.  It also invites readers to see all patients as equal and deserving of fairness and compassion.

This is finely crafted contemporary fiction with real characters worthy of respect and honor.  Nicely fashioned, Kimmery Martin and highly recommended reading!