Introducing Joe Pickett, Season 1

Joe Pickett is the new, unassuming game warden in a remote area of Wyoming. He is a quiet man and not your typical hero. Joe is publically introduced to his neighbors in Saddle String as a push-over after a poacher holds him at gunpoint - with Joe's gun. The "bad guys" consider him to be easy-to-manage and believe he'll fall in line with the how-it's-done-here mentality of the town and surrounding public lands. But Joe is a game warden who follows the rules, and expects everyone else to follow the rules too, even if he has to give his life to protect the wildlife. In this review, I will tell you a bit more about Joe and the characters of Saddle String.

Photo Credit: By Bob Wick of the Bureau of Land Management
(public domain) 

Joe Pickett, Season 1

As a young boy, Joe decides he wants to become a game warden. The outdoors is his sanctuary and he has a caring spirit.  

Joe Pickett season 1, episode 1 opens almost immediately with a life or death situation during Joe's normal game warden business. Ote Keeley is a local outfitter and hunting guide. He needs his hunting license to make a living and support his family be he's also a poacher and Joe catches him in the act. During the confrontation, Ote taunts Joe for having arrested the Governor for fishing without a license. 

"I didn't know he was the Governor".  Joe responded. But it wouldn't have made a difference if he had known. Rules are rules. And unlike Joe's predecessor, Vern, Joe doesn't cut deals or do favors. He doesn't follow Vern's suggestion to focus on ticketing the tourists and looking the other way for the residents. 

During the confrontation, Ote takes Joe's sidearm and holds him at gun point. Even at gunpoint, Joe doesn't back down from his plan to write him up for poaching. Fortunately, they come to a sort of truce and no one dies. Not on that day.

Later, Ote's body is found, shot dead with an arrow, in Joe's yard. Joe is trying to figure out why Ote would have come to his home on horseback, with an arrow in him. While law enforcement immediately arrests a suspect - surprisingly, they don't arrest Joe for the murder - Joe begins researching the crime from the game warden perspective. Ote was killed with an illegal arrow tip. 

As the murder count increases, people seem to be falsely accused, evidence disappears, and Joe knows he's missing a piece of the puzzle. But will he, his wife, and children live through the investigation or should he give up his job and turn a blind eye to it all?

This story is a modern western murder mystery in a gorgeous mountainous setting. There were so many characters who were unlikeable in this one small town that I couldn't guess who was exactly at fault. 

Characters:

Joe Pickett (Michael Dorman) and his wife, Marybeth (Julianna Guill) are trying to raise their children in a peaceful and safe setting. Marybeth was a lawyer until she made the conscious decision to stay home and raise her children - rather than be the stressed, absent parent that busy lawyers often are.  Her mother Missy (Sharon Lawrence) frequently berates Marybeth for this choice, for being a game warden's wife, and for choosing a simple life.  Interesting that Missy feels like she's in the position to judge anyone about their life choices.

Ote Keeley (Benjamin Hollingsworth) is the "degenerate" married to April Keeley (Vivienne Guynn) and they have children. Even though Ote died at the very beginning of the series, we think about him alot. And April incites both disgust and empathy.

Nate Romanowski (Mustafa Speaks) is the prepper/recluse who is immediately arrested for the murder of Ote based solely on one incident they had in the past (Ote killed one of Nate's birds of prey) and because Nate owns a bow. Nate comes across as frightening and perhaps manipulative. He asks Joe to find the truth and Marybeth ends up being his lawyer for the murder trial.

There is a huge cast. And far too many to list. There are the rich folks, poor folks, law-abiding folks, schemers, very strange-but-harmless folks, and the killers.  Most all of law enforcement and politicians are questionable and either lazy/inept or trying to redirect. 

I enjoyed Joe Pickett, Season 1 so much that I binge-watched it one weekend. I immediately began recommending it to others. I love thriller/mysteries that are set in amazing settings. The elk, bison, and mountains are all peaceful eye-candy. The clash between the good guys, bad guys, and flawed guys is the cherry on top. 

The Joe Pickett series written by C.J. Box

This tv series is based on the books written by C.J. Box. I have book 1 in my kindle and haven't read it yet only because I've been so engrossed in several of W. Michael Gear's historical fiction series. After discovering the Joe Pickett tv series by accident, you can know that I will begin reading the C.J. Box books next.  Especially since there are many books in the written series and only 1 and 2 and the television series. 

Related Links

Joe Pickett, season 1 on Amazon Prime Video or DVD

Author C.J. Box on Amazon:   Open Season (A Joe Pickett Novel Book 1)

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Book Reviews of the ‘Tea by the Sea’ Cozy Mystery Series

Vicki Delany, a Canadian crime writer, has written a series of Cozy Mysteries. A Tea by the Sea Mystery series is one of them. It is a delightful series featuring Lily Roberts, owner of a Cape Cod Tearoom.

Continuing Characters in the Series

This series takes place on the Outer Cape of Cape Cod facing Cape Cod Bay where Lily Roberts recently opened an authentic English Tearoom in a refurbished old stone building located on the property of her grandmother Rose’s grand old Victorian B & B.  

Lily, a professional pastry chef, left the restaurant business in New York City to realize her dream of owning and operating her own tearoom she named “Tea by the Sea”. She also helps her 85-year-old grandmother run her B & B “Victoria-on-Sea” by cooking the breakfast part of the bed & breakfast early each morning before her tearoom opens at 11:00 A.M.  

Lily lives in the guest cottage on the B & B property, along with her labradoodle Eclair, so named because of the cream stripe that runs through her curly brown fur. Grandmother Rose has a spoiled cat with the Scottish name Robert the Bruce (Robbie, for short).

Other continuing characters include Lily’s best friend Bernie (Bernadette), a forensic accountant who leaves her NYC job to move to Cape Cod for the summer to write a book. Then there is Simon, the young (and good looking) Englishman who takes over his uncle’s job as gardener for the extensive gardens that surround the B & B and tearoom. Lily’s helpers in the tearoom include Cheryl & Marybeth, mother & daughter, who help run the tearoom while Lily bakes. 

Each of these characters, including the animals, appear throughout the entire series and lend importance to each storyline. 

Because each book seems to include a murder that somehow always involves Lily and her family & friends, we also get to know the crotchety old town police detective Chuck Williams - nearing retirement age and rather lazy - and his new assistant, Detective Amy Redmond, young and experienced (coming to Cape Cod from the Boston PD), but under the command of Detective Williams, who tends to narrow his focus to not investigate as well as he should. 

Synopses of this 5 Book Series

Tea & Treachery

A Cape Cod tea shop owner (Lily Roberts) must solve the murder of a local real estate developer to help her feisty grandmother,  Rose, out of a jam after Rose is accused of the murder.

Murder in a Teacup

Cape Cod tearoom owner/pastry chef, Lily Roberts, gets herself in trouble when she unknowingly serves one of her grandmother's B&B guests a deadly cup of tea. Lily has to assume her part-time sleuth role to find the real killer and save herself. 

Murder Spills the Tea

When a popular TV baking show comes to Cape Cod to film at Lily’s charming tearoom, a celebrity chef and judge is murdered at the tearoom. Having lost his temper on-camera with a member of Lily's staff, Cheryl Wainwright ends up a suspect in his murder. Now Lily must investigate to clear her friend’s name. 

Steeped in Malice

Fine English teas are always served in china teacups (never mugs), as presentation is important. Finding herself low on teacups for her tearoom, Lily attends an antique show to replace her fragile stock. There she finds a delightful Peter Rabbit-themed tea set in a wicker basket, perfect for children’s events. 

Days later, a rude woman (Kimberly) arrives at the tearoom to demand the tea set back. She wants an envelope hidden in the basket’s lining. 

Turns out, the envelope was the last will and testament of Kimberly’s mother, and changes what an earlier will decreed (leaving Kimberly out of the inheritance entirely). Meanwhile, Kimberly’s half-sister Rachel  is also looking for the new will. As is Kimberly’s new husband (who just happens to have been Lily’s former NYC chef boyfriend). 

When one of the sisters is found dead on the grounds of the B & B, naturally Lily, Rose and their friends become involved. A simple case of greed and too many suspects make for another fun cozy mystery.

Tea & Treachery (Tea by the Sea Mysteries)

Murder in a Teacup (Tea by the Sea Mysteries)

Murder Spills the Tea (Tea by the Sea Mysteries)

Steeped in Malice (Tea by the Sea Mysteries)

The latest (and last book in the series) Book Five, Trouble is Brewing, was just published in 2024. 

Trouble is Brewing

Lily’s Cape Cod tearoom hosts a bridal shower for two families who are staying at Rose’s bed and breakfast. As the gifts are being opened, a gruesome gift sends the guest of honor screaming in fear.

The shocking gift is just one of many other tensions surrounding the families of the bride & groom.  The mother’s-in-law are sniping at each other, and the groom's father, Ralph, offers his son a sizable bribe to call off the wedding. 

Then Ralph is murdered and the wedding is postponed. All the members of the wedding party seem too willing to believe the worst of each other. Since this involves Lily and Rose, plus the tearoom and B & B, of course Lily becomes involved. 

Trouble Is Brewing (Tea by the Sea Mysteries)

SUMMARY

Each book in the series is charming. We learn all about the various teas served in the tearoom, from the simple Cream Tea - Tea & Scones - all the way to the Royal Tea, which is very fancy indeed, including a three-tiered tray filled with fancy scones, delectable sandwiches and tiny tasty desserts. Each book also has recipes at the end for the various scones, tarts, cupcakes and sandwiches served for these teas.

We also get to know each character individually, including their interesting personalities, and how they interact with each other. 

I was first drawn to this cozy mystery series because of the name of the town on Cape Cod used in the stories. Author Delany calls the town ‘North Augusta’, which immediately caught my attention because I once lived in North Augusta, South Carolina. North Augusta on Cape Cod is not a real place, but it is mentioned as being close to North Truro (Cape Cod, Massachusetts) and turns out to be the perfect location for a mystery series. 

Cozy Mysteries frequently feature an ordinary person who somehow becomes involved as an amateur sleuth in a crime. They are often a known community person, such as a librarian, a book store owner, or, as in this series, the pastry chef of a tearoom, each taking place in a small community.

The Tea by the Sea Mystery Series is absolutely delightful and filled with characters you will come to love. I highly recommend this Cozy Mystery series by Vicki Delany.

*A Tea by the Sea series of cozy mysteries review is written by Wednesday Elf 

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Book Review - Spark of Revolution

 

In his series, From Peasant to Patriot, DeWayne Landwehr combines the knowledge and research he has found about his ancestors and his in-depth research into the history of the places they lived during the past several centuries and combines them into a very interesting series of historical novels. I thoroughly enjoyed reading each of these novels and look forward to continuing to follow these families on their journey to a life in the "New World".

Book Summary

The books follow two 17th century Scottish families as they move to Ireland to escape both religious and political persecution.  After only one generation in Ireland, they find that the same persecution from the English Monarchy has followed them, and they are searching for a place they can live and raise their families in peace and at least some degree of prosperity.

In the latest book "Spark of Revolution: The Reluctant Forging of a New Nation "the families make the decision to relocate to the "New World" in North America.  We follow them as they endure hardships both in their travels and their quests to carve a life in the uncharted wilderness that has with it many hardships of its own.  They are surrounded with hostile people from this land, and they find that disease, starvation and war has followed them to the New World.  They also arrive at a time when this "New World" is faced with the decisions of staying part of the British rule or carving out a new nation.  

I find it very interesting to read about the families as they are confronting many of the events that we have all learned in American History classes.  The author has done a great job of making this "Forging of a New Nation" come to life through the characters in this book.

Here is the Amazon link to the book: Spark of Revolution: The Reluctant Forging of a New Nation

Author Interview

I thought it would be interesting to get a little background on the author and hear his views on writing these novels.

DeWayne Landwehr graciously agreed to do an author's interview with me.  I sent him a group of questions and he emailed me his responses.  Here are the questions and answers.

Q. DeWayne-First of all could you tell us a little bit about your background?

A. I grew up and went to school in St. Clair, Missouri. Although I spent a lot of time helping with my father’s hatchery and feed store, I also got a job as soon as I could, working first at the St. Clair

Chronicle, and then as a pump jockey at a gas station on Route 66. Those experiences formed the basis of my first book, “Will That be Regular or Ethyl?”

After high school, I was accepted to attend General Motors Institute and graduated with an engineering degree in 1968. I followed that up in 1971 with a MBA by going to night classes.

During my sophomore year, I married my high school sweetheart, Gail Schroeder, and through the years, we had two sons.

I worked for various units of General Motors my entire career, but it was during a stint at the GM Technical Center that I discovered an interest and knack for writing. I am now retired, and have

several hobbies, including forestry, woodworking, and of course my writing.

Q.  I know this book is the third in a series.  What made you want to write these books?  Will there be others in the series?

A. I had developed an interest in genealogy along the way and had traced my family’s roots to the1500s. Those two interests came together to produce the idea for a historical fiction series that

features my family’s journey through time, starting in the 16th century.

Three books have been published in this series, called “From Peasant to Patriot”. A fourth book is in the works now, and there will probably be a fifth book as well.

Q. I love historical fiction and always wonder how much of the books are true history and what is fiction.  In your case, I know you wrote based on your own ancestors.  In particular scenes are the characters based on actual things your ancestors did or are

they fiction and based on the times and places you found in your research of your ancestors.  I was particularly interested in their involvement in the events leading up to the revolutionary war in America.

A. My books are written mainly from the perspective of the common man—particularly my ancestors. I have done considerable research to discover where they were and what was happening around them. I outline those facts, along with real historical characters and events

that I have also discovered in my research and imagine how my ancestors may have reacted and what they may have said and done. As I introduce new ancestral characters in my books, I

chart them for the reader at the head of the chapter. Occasionally, I need to invent peripheral characters to advance the narrative, and of course, I have no knowledge of individual conversations, but other than that, everything in my books is historically accurate. Many of the details included in them has been discovered in places like the Journal of the American Revolution, applications to the Daughters of the American Revolution, courthouse and church records, the National Archives, Ancestry archives and other family trees, genealogical research facilities located in some libraries, and Wikipedia. So, I like to think that, except for individual conversations, my books are as historically accurate as any history  book.

Q. Tell us a little about how you went about your research for this book.

A. The first thing I did was to assemble as much as I could of my family tree. I have done that on both my paternal and maternal sides back to roughly 1500. Then, using those resources mentioned above, namely, Journal of the American Revolution, applications to the Daughters of the American Revolution, courthouse and church records, the National Archives, Ancestry archives and other family trees, genealogical research facilities located in some libraries, and Wikipedia, I collected articles and information regarding historical

events that were occurring around them.

I assembled facts from those two steps into an outline to cover the time period for which I was writing, and then began to construct the narrative, including conversations.

As events unfolded in the story, I occasionally had to invent peripheral characters to advance the narrative. At many points in the story, I would wonder things like, “…who was it that…”, so I would query one of my resources (usually Wikipedia). There would almost always be an answer, but in the few cases when there was no clear fact to be uncovered, I invented it. In those very few cases, I tell the reader in Author Notes.

Q. I love the way you make your characters come to life in your writing.  What is your secret?

A. I have read scores of books in my favorite genres: historical fiction, medieval history, medieval fiction and family saga, and tried to pick out my favorite attributes and styles from the various

authors. I found that I like stories in which the author mixes some conversations with straight; not all one or the other. Also, I found that some authors will spend pages describing

the appearance of some character, and I found that to be tedious. I try to give the reader just enough description of a character to ignite their imagination, then let that imagination run in their own mind while the narrative unfolds.

Q. What is the main thing you would like your reader to remember from your book?

A. In every book I write, I would like for the reader to be able to imagine themselves or one of their ancestors as one or more of the characters in the book. In Spark of Revolution, I hope the reader comes away with a realization that the idea of a' United States’ didn’t arise fully formed on the 4th of July 1776. It was a result of years of

struggle and compromise, led by men and women who often disagreed, but were willing to listen to others’ views and to compromise and work with each other.

Q. Thank you so much for taking the time to answer these questions.  Is there anything else you would like the readers of Review This to know about your books.

A. The basic idea behind the creation of this series, “From Peasant to Patriot”, was to set it in the perspective of the common man of the times, and to follow a few related families as they dealt

with life and death, beginning in the 16th century, and following through to the 20th century. In creating the settings, real historical events were outlined, and real people from my family tree

were inserted in the narrative where I think they might have been as a result of my research. Consequently, excepting the individual conversations, these books are almost entirely factual

and historically accurate.

Mary, thank you for allowing me to do this.   

De

Other Books by DeWayne Landwehr

The first book in the series From Peasant to Patriot can be found on Amazon at Smoke on the Whiteadder  You can find more about this book at my review on Review This Smoke on the Whiteadder .

The second book in the series is Inside Odenwald: Courage of Survival and can also be purchased on Amazon at Inside Oldenwald

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The Truth About the Devlins - Book Review

 

A new novel by best-selling author Lisa Scottoline

Meet the Devlins. A wealthy and successful family of lawyers with a wayward son. Then a possible murder occurs (or does it?), and John, the good son, may be involved. Is the family hiding secrets, even from themselves?

Synopsis of The Truth About the Devlins

The Truth about the Devlins

The story mainly revolves around TJ Devlin, the son who is the charming disappointment in the prominent Devlin family of lawyers who work together in a highly successful firm.  TJ never finished college, much less became a lawyer. Instead, alcoholism caused his downfall and even a stint in prison. Now he’s out on parole and in rehab for alcoholism. Since TJ can’t get hired anywhere except at the firm, the family has him doing a make-work job with the title of investigator.

But then one night, the firstborn and most successful son, John, confesses to TJ that he thinks he just murdered one of the firm’s clients, an accountant he had confronted with proof of embezzlement. 

TJ immediately begins an investigation, seizing the chance to prove his worth and save his brother. But in no time, TJ and John find themselves entangled in a lethal web of deception and murder. TJ will fight to save his family, but what he learns might break them first.

Summary

I have long been a fan of author Lisa Scottoline and over the years have followed her successful series of legal thrillers/suspenseful women sleuth mysteries about a group of women who are partners in a law firm in Philadelphia. Scottoline’s series of Rosato & Associates is a favorite of mine.

In recent years, Scottoline has begun writing stand alone domestic and psychological thrillers. As the #1 bestselling author of What Happened to the Bennetts, she presents another pulse-pounding domestic thriller with The Truth About the Devlins, about family, justice, and the lies that tear us apart.

*Book Review of The Truth About the Devlins written by Wednesday Elf

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The Camino Island Trilogy by John Grisham - Book Reviews

John Grisham, well-known author of stand-alone legal thrillers, takes a departure from his usual lawyers, law office and courtroom dramas to bring us a trilogy of suspense thrillers with continuing characters in his Camino Island series. 

 

The trilogy takes place on Camino Island, a sleepy resort area off the coast of Florida.  The main characters include Bruce Cable, who owns a popular bookstore in Santa Rosa, and Mercer Mann, a young novelist.

The Camino Island Trilogy

Camino Island - Book 1

In the first book, a group of thieves steal the priceless F. Scott Fitzgerald manuscripts owned by Princeton University. Since Princeton has insured the manuscripts for twenty-five million dollars, the thieves plan to hold them for ransom. 

When investigators track the stolen manuscripts to Camino Island, and possibly to bookstore owner Bruce Cable who is suspected of sometimes dabbling in the black market of stolen books and manuscripts, they convince young novelist Mercer Mann to help them. Mercer spent many summers on Camino Island with her grandmother and knows the island well. 

Mercer’s job is to infiltrate Bruce Cable’s circle of literary friends and hopefully get close enough to him to learn his secrets.

Eventually, though, Mercer learns too much and trouble comes to this paradise island.

Camino Winds - Book 2

In Book 2, Grisham brings us back to Camino Island where you might enjoy a little sun, a little sand…. and find yourself instead with mystery and mayhem. How about murder in the midst of a hurricane.

Mercer Mann is now a best-selling author and she returns to Camino Island and Bruce’s Bay Books bookstore for an appearance on her current book tour. Then Hurricane Leo, which had been meandering all over for days with no solid land destination, suddenly heads straight for the island. There is a mandatory evacuation where most residents leave, but Bruce and a few others stay and ride out the storm.  In the devastating aftermath, one of Bruce’s friends and resident author is found dead and his injuries appear suspicious instead of storm-related.

The key to who would want Nelson dead may be in his latest novel, which, when Bruce begins to investigate, is discovered to be more shocking – and far more dangerous – than anyone could have imagined. 

Camino Ghosts - Book 3

Writer Mercer Mann returns to Camino Island to marry her boyfriend Thomas in a seaside ceremony on the beach. Island bookseller Bruce Cable performs the wedding.  Afterward, knowing Mercer is looking for a storyline for her next novel, Bruce tells her an incredible story about Dark Isle, a tiny barrier island off the North Florida coast that had been settled by freed slaves 300 years ago. 

This island’s elderly last descendant, Lovely Jackson, loves  her birthplace and it’s wonderful history and feels the island rightfully belongs to her. But a ruthless corporate developer wants to build a resort and casino on the island. Mercer and Lovely begin an enormous fight over who owns Dark Isle, taking on the developer’s corporation and all its lawyers and lobbyists, plus powerful Florida politicians.

You would think that Mercer and Lovely would not have a chance against so many powerful people, but Lovely knows the reasons the island has been uninhabited for a long time ~ the island is cursed. The island's deep secrets of the past are about to collide with the ambitions of the present, placing Dark Isle - and also Camino Island - hanging in a fateful balance.

Summary

Bookseller Bruce Cable and novelist Mercer Mann always manage to find trouble in paradise in this trilogy of stories on Camino Island.  They are a thrilling beach read for your summertime reading.

Camino Island: A Novel

Camino Winds

Camino Ghosts: A Novel

*The Camino Island Triology is reviewed by Wednesday Elf

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LOST by James Patterson - Book Review

 

Lost is a mystery novel in the police procedural, organized crime thrillers and suspense thrillers genres. 

Synopsis of Lost

Detective Tom Moon, the main character in Lost, is a Miami PD officer who is now the new leader of an FBI task force combining the FBI, DEA and Miami police. Called Operation Guardian, Moon and his team investigate International Crime.  

Lost

The Lost novel focuses on two Russian nationals - brothers Roman and Emile Rostoff unofficially known as the ‘Blood Brothers’ - who are building a powerful and deadly crime syndicate in Miami, with ties to Amsterdam.

As the story begins, Moon and his team are at Miami International Airport observing a Dutchman attempting to go through customs with six children being brought in from Amsterdam for the purpose of child sex trafficking. The man is arrested and the children taken into protective custody. 

Lost takes place primarily in Miami, Florida, with a side trip to Amsterdam when Moon accompanies the rescued children back to where the crime began. There, he meets with Marie Meijer, his counterpoint in the Dutch National Police who is working on the European end of these international crimes being organized by the Rostoff brothers. Working together, Tom & Marie discover that a large group of human trafficking victims are about to be sent by ship from Amsterdam to Miami. Now all they have to do is figure out when this will happen, what ship will be used, and in which one of dozens of Florida ports the ship will show up. 

Miami is Tom Moon’s backyard. A born and raised local, he knows the area well. But the task before him is huge. Will he be able to guess right and save the victims before it is too late?

Summary

Lost is written by James Patterson, in conjunction with author James O. Born. Born, who is a crime and science-fiction novelist as well as a career law-enforcement agent, is a native of Florida. 

I really enjoyed and readily recommend this book about Detective Tom Moon and his multi-talented team who worked to defeat an international crime ring trying to seize control over Miami.

Other James Patterson Book Reviews:

• The Christmas Mystery, reviewed by Brenda Little
• The Golf Miracle Trilogy, reviewed by Wednesday Elf
• Shattered, reviewed by Wednesday Elf
• The President is Missing, reviewed by Brenda Little

For more Book Reviews on ReviewThisReviews, 

check out ReviewThisBooks.com

*Book Review of James Patterson’s ‘Lost’ written by Wednesday Elf

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Book Review Coming of the Storm: Book One of Contact: The Battle for America by W. Michael Gear and Kathleen O'Neal Gear

Coming of the Storm: Book One of Contact: The Battle for America begins in the company of an exiled trader and his pack of dogs during their travels. Black Shell, the trader, is able to move through the lands of various Indian groups under the Power of Trade. His dogs are his family, his protection, and his pack animals. Other than his dogs, he is alone. He is trading through Florida as usual, until he meets a beautiful woman named Pearl Hand and until he hears about the Kristiano visitors; whom he is literally dying to see.

Black Shell is of the Chicaza clan but he was banished after telling others he heard the voice of a Spirit Being named Horned Serpent. His people were sure he had lied. After being banished from a people who are known to be superior warriors he could only support himself through trade and gambling. Being a trader, he was able to travel onto the lands of all Clans; even those who war with the Chicaza.

Black Shell desires Pearl Hand the moment he sees her. His desire is unlike the desire of men who wish to own her. But she is a possession of the Irriparacoxi leader of the village he has just entered. She has been the possession of a variety of different groups of people. The only way Black Shell can be with Pearl Hand is to win her in gambling.

Pearl Hand is an exquisitely beautiful woman. Her beauty makes her the target of all men who wish to own her. She wishes to leave the Timucua Irriparacoxi and the village. She wants to be free.

Even if Pearl Hand is freed from her Irriparacoxi owner will she able to be free while De Soto is alive and pillaging the area?

Read more reviews for The Battle for America; Book One on Amazon here. 

Why I Enjoy Historical Fiction Novels

My knowledge of history is limited. Native Americans in North America and Europeans did not make first contact when settlers came around the time of the Mayflower landing, as I had thought. They made first contact long before that. One of those times was when the Kristianos led by Hernando de Soto, Spain, came into Florida in 1539. That information surprised me. 

De Soto led a brutal expedition from southern Florida into Arkansas. His military was considered the most advanced at that time.  He arrived in Florida via ships and traveled across the region with a huge number of soldiers and staff. He took slaves, which he considered temporary and easily replaceable. They labored in metal collars and chains until the couldn't then they were brutally killed. His army with guns, metal swords, lances and other tools of war easily cut through the Indian warriors village after village.  De Soto decimated village after village. He was, in large part, looking for gold. 

Part love story, part epic tale of survival against the odds, part mythical miracles, and part historical lesson, this book kept me engrossed. And I learned just how little I truly know about the beginnings of the country in which I was born.

Authors W Michael Gear and Kathleen O'Neal Gear

I was introduced to author W Michael Gear when I read his western series  Saga of the Mountain Sage. I highly recommend that story. I enjoyed it so much that I recommended that series to a co-worker who is extremely knowledgeable about history and enjoys reading.  He read it and loved W Michael Gear's writing and knowledge. My co-worker then read The Battle for America series by Gear and Kathleen O'Neal Gear and told me that it is a must-read.

That was a lot of rambling to try to say that these books are written for both people like me, who know little about history but would like to know more, as well as people who are history buffs. 

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Reviewing Husband and Wife by K L Stater

I have read books by K L Slater before and really enjoyed them so when this book appeared on my Amazon recommended list with the byline 'We promised to keep each other's secrets. Until they found the body...' well I just had to read it!

This book does not disappoint. If you have yet to be introduced to author K L Slater she is a British author known for her psychological crime thrillers.

This book, Husband and Wife, is told from various POVs and also jumps timelines, but it's always easy to keep track of. The main POV is Nicola who, if I'm being honest, is a little irritating at times. Let's have a look at who is in the book:

Nicola and Cal are husband and wife, parents to Parker and doting grandparents to Barney. Cal is a self-employed plumber while Nicola is a former cancer patient who just wants to spend more time with her son and grandson.

Parker is Nicola and Cal's son and he is married to Luna and the father of Barney. Parker is in sales and very ambitious. Luna is a fashion influencer - her parents are very well to do and Parker, Luna and Barney spend most weekends at her family's estate.

Sarah is a young mother to a four-year-old daughter who went out for a night with friends and ended up being discovered dead from strangulation in an alley.

In this book Parker and Luna drop their son Barney off at Nicola and Cal's for the night as they are going into the city to an event and spending the night in a hotel. Parker also tells his mum he wants to talk to her the following morning when neither his father or his wife will be around.

During the night the police pay Nicola and Cal a visit as there's been a car accident and both Parker and Luna have been seriously injured. This is the start of a great book that will have you guessing. I was convinced I'd worked out who had murdered Sarah, I thought I had seen through the red herring and was so confident - I was also completely wrong.

The guilty party took me completely by surprise which is a refreshing change and makes me want to read it a second time to see if I can pick up on some different clues.

Let me know if you've read this book and if you have - did you guess the right culprit?

This book was free for me to read as part of my Amazon Unlimited membership which I tell people is like having a library card for Amazon!

Note: The author may receive a commission from purchases made using links found in this article. “As an Amazon Associate, Ebay (EPN) and/or Esty (Awin) Affiliate, I (we) earn from qualifying purchases.”

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Book Review of Victims by Jonathan Kellerman

An Alex Delaware Novel

To date, there are 39 books in the Alex Delaware series by author Jonathan Kellerman. Victims is book #27 in the series, published in 2012. It features child psychologist Alex Delaware who, in his spare time, acts as a consultant to the Los Angeles Police Department on difficult murder cases his best friend, homicide detective Milo Sturgis, investigates.  Victims, as well as the entire Alex Delaware series of books, takes place in Los Angeles.

Synopsis of Victims

A woman is found murdered in what becomes the first in a gruesome crime spree. The first victim, Vita Berlin, was not a very nice woman, mean and rude to everyone she met, but still…..she didn’t deserve to be murdered.

The third victim in the bloody spree was also not a very pleasant individual; yet, the second victim was considered kind, well liked and loved by all. 

With no apparent connection among the victims, Detective Sturgis is baffled with practically no clues except for a blank page bearing a question mark left at each scene. 

Milo calls in his go-to expert in hunting homicidal maniacs. But despite his finely honed skills, even Alex is baffled as each slaying occurs and a direction cannot be found toward solving these crimes.

Finally, as pieces of the puzzle begin to fit together, and a horrible portrait of a sinister mind emerges, Milo and Alex begin to see the pattern leading them to a solution found within a shuttered mental institution. 

Summary

A murder mystery not for the faint of heart, but an exciting read for long-time fans of Alex Delaware and his detective friend, Milo Sturgis. You might want to keep the lights on while you read. 

More Jonathan Kellerman Book Reviews:

• The Wedding Guest
• The Burning

For more book reviews, check out ReviewThisBooks.com

Victims: An Alex Delaware Novel

*Book Review of Victims written by Wednesday Elf

 

Note: The author may receive a commission from purchases made using links found in this article. “As an Amazon Associate, Ebay (EPN) and/or Esty (Awin) Affiliate, I (we) earn from qualifying purchases.”

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