Shadow Prey by John Sandford

Thanks to my mother-in-law, I have discovered John Sandford’s Lucas Davenport series. My mother-in-law reads different types of books than I do, so reading her cast-offs is a great way for me to learn about authors I normally wouldn’t read. She introduced me to Evanovich’s Stephanie Plum series, which I love.

Shadow Prey is apparently the second Davenport book. Men across the United States are dying in what looks like ritual slayings. As Davenport soon learns, these killings are a statement. Two Mdewakanton Sioux, Aaron and Sam Crow, are protesting the treatment of Native Americans in the United States by ordering the killings of men known to prey on Native Americans. Their goal is to lure in bigger prey, a prominent politician with a penchant for underage girls. However, the Crows soon lose control of the protest when their son decides to help things along. Davenport loses control as well when the FBI becomes involved and really screws things up. In the end, law enforcement never truly understands what was going on, even after the killings stop. Fortunately, the reader gets both sides of the story. For this reason, I found myself rooting for the “villains” in this novel. I don’t know if I was supposed to root for them. Maybe this is a Sandford trademark. I suppose I’ll find out after reading more of his books. All in all, a fascinating read. Four out of four bookworms.

Stephanie Plum Rides Again

Can’t wait for the paperback release of Lean Mean Thirteen? Can’t wait until it hits the used book store? Can’t wait until your name pops up on the waiting list at your local library? Yesterday, I picked up the hardback at Target for $20.00 ($19.56) AND received a $5.00 Target gift card with my purchase, effectively bringing the price down to $15.00 ($14.56). Amazon.com has Lean Mean Thirteen for $16.77, a good deal if you buy enough ($25.00 in qualified purchases) to qualify for free shipping, but if you have to pay for shipping . . . . I also picked up the paperback of Twelve Sharp for $5.99, a two dollar discount. I’m sure that longtime Plum fans have already read the hardback of Twelve Sharp. But if you’ve just recently discovered this tenacious bond enforcement agent, this is a good deal on a new book.

I haven't read either, yet. I'm trying to save them for vacation. I love summer!!!

Hot Dish by Connie Brockway

Connie Brockway's first contemporary romance has a promising start. Jennifer Hallesby desperately wants to win the title of Buttercup Queen so she can get out of small town Fawn Creek, Minnesota and back to her home state of North Carolina to go to college. Unfortunately, a technicality brought to light by one of her high school rivals gets her disqualified. Still she must have her likeness sculpted in butter by Steve Jaax, an up and coming artist currently hiding from the law. The law catches up with Steve just as he hides the key to his best work (hidden in a mausoleum to escape the clutches of his soon-to-be ex-wife) in the butter sculpture of Jennifer. Steve goes to prison, gets out, and becomes a famous artist. Jennifer becomes even more determined to get out of Fawn Creek. Twenty years later, all of her dreams are coming true. She is set to become the next Martha Stewert when she is forced to return to Fawn Creek’s sesquicentennial celebration where she once again runs into Steve Jaax. Steve wants to retrieve the key from the butterhead which he thought had been destroyed 20 years ago. Jennifer just wants to get in and out of Fawn Creek with all of her secrets in tact. The story becomes a Keystone Cops plot of people trying to take possession of the butterhead anyway they can.

As with all Connie Brockway novels, I was immediately drawn into the story. However, with all of the back story, my interest waned as I read. Other than her writing style, I love the sensuous romance in Brockway’s novels. I found that sensuousness missing in this novel. I didn’t feel any connection or sexual tension with Jennifer and Steve. Their romance seemed incidental to the story. I also had some problems with the plot. At the end of the story, Jennifer is playing Texas Hold ‘Em in a poker tournament. We are aware that there are five kings in play, yet we don’t know who is cheating—Jennifer or her opponent. I assumed it was her opponent, but I don’t know for sure. Jennifer knows there are five kings in play, but we don’t get any indication from her that this is even an anomaly. Of course, everyone lives happily ever after, but I really didn’t care. I finished the book, but will stick with Connie Brockway’s historical romances from here on out. I hope she keeps writing them. I hate it when my favorite historical romance writers abandon historical romance for contemporary mainstream! Two out of four bookworms.

The Taming of the Duke by Eloisa James

Yes, I’ve been reading a lot of romance lately. I’ve been in the mood. The Taming of the Duke is another Essex sister romance, one I’ve been wanting to read so I could find out what happened to the Essex sisters' guardian, the Duke of Holbrook.

Imogen, Lady Maitland, has decided that she has mourned the death of her husband long enough. She is determined to have a very brief, very discreet affaire. She finds the perfect man in her guardian’s illegitimate brother, Gabe Spenser. Gabe has other ideas. So does Imogen’s guardian who has secretly carried a torch for Imogen since he first met her just weeks before she eloped with Draven Maitland. A comedy of disguised identities ensues. I like Eloisa James’s sensuous writing style and quick dialogue. Although I enjoyed this book, I had some problems with it. I found it difficult to believe that Imogen, the heroine, couldn’t tell the difference between Rafe (the Duke) and his brother, Gabe, when they decide to switch places. After several passionate encounters with the Duke posing as Gabe, she still doesn’t get hot and bothered by the Duke when he is himself. Wouldn’t she still feel the sexual attraction? The writing, as always, is excellent and James includes a secondary romance, two for the price of one. Three out of four bookworms.

The Prince Kidnaps a Bride by Christina Dodd

The last book in The Lost Princesses series doesn’t disappoint. Dodd once again brings sexy and funny to the table with a hero who isn’t afraid to let a woman “do a man’s work.” Prince Rainger trusts no one, with good reason. Those reasons are revealed a little too late in the story for my tastes—my only complaint. Princess Sorcha trusts everyone. Her intelligence and openness charm not only the prince, but the reader. Can they overcome their differences, fall in love, and save their country? Of course, but with all of Dodd’s romances, getting there is all the fun! A nice ending to the trilogy. Four out of four bookworms.

The Witch of Blackbird Pond by Elizabeth George Speare

My daughter and I recently read The Witch of Blackbird Pond, a Newberry Medal winner. Set in 1687 in the Connecticut Colony, this is the story of Kit Tyler who has come from Barbados to live with her aunt and uncle after her grandfather’s death. After a life of education and freedom in Barbados, Kit is woefully unprepared for the restricted lifestyle of early Puritan settlers. Predictably, her freethinking ways result in accusations of witchcraft. Fortunately, this book isn’t just about witchcraft, but of colonists first uprisings against British rule, the very beginning of the American Revolution. Speare wraps a compelling story in interesting lessons of early American history, the harsh lifestyle of early colonists, tolerance for those with different values and backgrounds, and adaptability. Full of adventure and sweet romance. My daughter couldn’t put it down. Four out of four bookworms.

One Thousand White Women: The Journals of May Dodd by Jim Fergus

One of my husband’s coworkers loaned me this book when she learned that I like historical fiction. The premise intrigued me. History notes that the Cheyenne Chief Little Wolf asked the United States government to send 1000 women to marry Cheyenne men and teach them how to live in the white world. The United States government declined. In One Thousand White Women, Jim Fergus poses the question, “What if the government declined publicly, but secretly sent 1000 women to marry Cheyenne men?” Thus begins an exploration of cultures. Through May Dodd, one of the white women who volunteered to marry an unknown Cheyenne man, we live the atrocities committed by Cheyenne and white, men and women, rich and poor. We also live their compassion. Although I had trouble accepting the premise, I eventually released my doubts about white men sending their white women to mate with “animals.” Those doubts were never overcome, but I became so engrossed in the story that I simply didn’t care any longer. Other than that, I only had one problem with the novel. Midway through the story, the white women are kidnapped by an enemy tribe. They are raped before their husbands rescue them. During the rescue the women kill and scalp their kidnappers and glory in their revenge. Fair enough. But later, the white preacher, sent with the women to help “civilize” the Cheyenne, rapes a Cheyenne boy. The boy’s family beats the preacher. The white women feel pity for the preacher, tend his wounds, and try to comfort him. When they were raped they wanted revenge, but when a child was raped they didn’t. This happens after the women have come to see the Cheyenne as people and not animals. Their sympathy for the preacher isn’t logical. If anything, the women would have been more outraged at the child’s rape than their own. Three out of four bookworms.


Disclaimer: My great great grandmother was Cherokee. I wear a t-shirt with a photo of Geronimo and company that says “The Original Department of Homeland Security: Fighting Terrorists since 1492.” No, I didn't design it, but you can get your own. Just click on the t-shirt at the left.