Review - Tempest at Sea

 I have been a fan of this series that re-imagines the Sherlock mythos since the debut: 

1) A Study in Scarlet Women (click here)  

2) A Conspiracy in Belgravia (click here) 

3) The Hollow of Fear (click here) 

4) The Art of Theft (click here) 

5) Murder on Cold Street (click here)  

6)  Miss Moriarity, I Presume (click here) 

Author: Sherry Thomas

Copyright: March 2023 (Berkley) 364 pgs

Series: 7th in Lady Sherlock Mysteries

Sensuality:  Innuendo and mild violence

Mystery Sub-genre: Historical Private Investigator & Intrigue

Main Character: Charlotte Holmes, disgraced upper class woman who creates the Sherlock Holmes identity

Setting: 1886 Cornwall and on board RMS Provence

Obtained Through: Publisher (NetGalley) for honest review

Book Blurb: "After feigning her own death in Cornwall to escape from Moriarty’s perilous attention, Charlotte Holmes goes into hiding. But then she receives a tempting offer: Find a dossier the crown is desperately seeking, and she might be able to go back to a normal life.

 Her search leads her aboard the RMS Provence. But on the night Charlotte makes her move to retrieve the dossier, in the midst of a terrifying storm in the Bay of Biscay, a brutal murder takes place on the ship.

 Instead of solving the crime, as she is accustomed to doing, Charlotte must take care not to be embroiled in this investigation, lest it become known to those who harbor ill intentions that Sherlock Holmes is abroad and still very much alive."

My Thoughts:  This series has become an automatic read because every book in the series is well crafted and intricately plotted.  This seventh book is no exception.  I wasn't sure where the series would go after the last book, "Miss Moriarity I Presume" had Charlotte fake her own death.  I am happy to report Charlotte/Sherlock is back and what a come back it is.

I want to give particular attention to two aspect of this book.  Although this is most definitely a murder mystery, the glimpses into Lord Ingram Ashburton and Charlotte's growing love affair are pure gold and even humorous. Also of note, Charlotte's sister, Olivia, takes a stand for herself so that readers will be cheering out loud as I did.

The murder mystery is a winding and twisting road, a trademark of this series that takes the reader on a cleaver journey of intrigue.  Most of the regular supporting cast are present.  

I know there will be comparisons to Agatha Christie's Death on the Nile due to the similarities of murder on board a ship and the cloistered investigation while on board.  Sherry Thomas gives a tip-of-the-hat to Christie but puts her own flare and signature on this story as only she can, while finding the dossier and solving the murder. 

If you haven't read the prior books, this is a safe point to jump into the series.  Although much will be gained by starting at book one, A Study in Scarlet Women (check out my review).

Rating:  Near Perfect - Buy two copies: one for you and one for a friend. 

Thriller Movie Review - The Peacemaker

George Clooney and Nicole Kidman in a thriller movie, what more needs to be said.  Both bring so much to the screen on their own but together they light it up.  It is the first film by DreamWorks Pictures.  The basis for the film was the 1997 book One Point Safe by Leslie Cockburn and Andrew Cockburn about the state of Russia's nuclear arsenal.  The book got mixed reviews.

What it's about:  

 In Russia ten 550–750 kiloton nuclear warheads that belong to an Inter-Continental Balistic Missile (ICBM) are loaded onto a train for transport to a dismantling facility as part of the end of the cold war and non-proliferation.  The train is hijacked and nine of the missiles are offloaded and the one left onboard the train is setoff.

    Dr. Julia Kelly (Kidman), head of the National Security Council's nuclear watch group jumps into the case because of the explosion.  During her briefing she suspects Chechen terrorists are responsible, Lt Colonel Thomas Devoe (Clooney) of military intelligence suggests that the explosion was to cover up a theft of the other warheads. They end up working together in a race against the clock to avert nuclear disaster.  Rated R for some strong violence and language.

Cast:

George Clooney as Lieutenant Colonel Thomas Devoe

Nicole Kidman as Dr. Julia Kelly

Marcel Iureş as Dusan Gavrich 

Aleksandr Baluev as Russian Army General Aleksandr Kodoroff

Rene Medvešek as Vlado Mirich 

Gary Werntz as Hamilton

Randall Batinkoff as Ken

Rotten Tomatoes and critics reviews:

Critics didn't like the movie with Rotten Tomatoes giving it a 46%, but audiences on CinemaScore gave it a B+.  One critic said it was no worse or better than the average James Bond movie.

Trivia (from IMDB):

• While the story takes place all over the world, it was shot primarily in Slovakia with some sequences filmed in New York City and Philadelphia.

• While the story takes place all over the world, it was shot primarily in Slovakia with some sequences filmed in New York City and Philadelphia.

• George Clooney did most of his own stunts. Director Mimi Leder called him "fearless."  He even learned stunt driving for this movie.

• George Clooney learned to rappel out of a helicopter for this part. He found it "fun and weird and scary."

• Unlike their characters, George Clooney and Nicole Kidman got along very well on and off the set. In fact, Clooney, a notorious prankster, never pulled a prank on Kidman, out of respect.

• Mimi Leder secured the post as director because executive producer Steven Spielberg admired her work on the TV series ER (1994).

• One of the soldiers at the roadblock also starred in ER (1994), after George Clooney left: Goran Visnjic.

• When Defoe is leaving with the SpecOps team, Kelly calls him "a talented soldier with sloppy impulse control." George Clooney was in ER (1994) at the time, where another doctor called him "a talented doctor with sloppy impulse control."

• George Clooney dropped out of a Green Hornet adaptation to do this film. That version of Green Hornet was ultimately never produced.

• In her briefing about possible suspects behind the nuclear blast (as LTC Devoe walks in), you can hear Dr. Kelly name "Shamil Basayev" and describes him as a militant Chechen rebel leader. This is true. Shamil Basayev was suspected as the mastermind in the school takeover in North Ossetia, which captured more than 1000 hostages in September 2004. He was killed by an explosion on 10 July 2006, near Ekajevo, Ingushetia.

• The "Vienna" car chase scene, ending on a square with a fountain was actually shot in Bratislava, Slovakia. The square is in the vicinity of the American Embassy there.

My Thoughts:

This is a solid thriller with Clooney and Kidman delivering good performances.  Any downfalls are in the script that leaves some plot holes open.  But if you are looking for a good two hour break with a race against a ticking clock thrills, this is your movie.  I own this movie and every so often watch it again for pure escapism.  The music score has been particularly noted as skillful in adding to the tension and action.  

Movie Trailor:

Review - Mother Daughter Traitor Spy

Susan Elia MacNeal is the author of the award winning best selling Magie Hope mysteries.  But she has written a stand-alone novel set in 1940's Los Angeles.  I was excited to see this novel from one of my favorite historical fiction authors.  Check out the details and my thoughts on this new novel filled with intrigue but based in fact.

Author: Susan Elia MacNeal

Copyright: September 2023 (Bantam) 352 pgs

Series: Standalone

Sensuality: Innuendo, nothing descriptive

Mystery Sub-genre: Suspense Thriller

Main Characters: Veronica Grace, German-American young journalist and her mother

Setting: 1940 Los Angeles

Obtained Through: Library

Book Blurb: "June 1940. France has fallen to the Nazis, and Britain may be next—but to many Americans, the war is something happening “over there.” Veronica Grace has just graduated from college; she and her mother, Violet, are looking for a fresh start in sunny Los Angeles. After a blunder cost her a prestigious career opportunity in New York, Veronica is relieved to take a typing job in L.A.—only to realize that she’s working for one of the area’s most vicious propagandists.

Overnight, Veronica is exposed to the dark underbelly of her new home, where German Nazis are recruiting Americans for their devastating campaign. After the FBI dismisses the Graces’ concerns, Veronica and Violet decide to call on an old friend, who introduces them to L.A.’s anti-Nazi spymaster.

At once, the women go undercover to gather enough information about the California Reich to take to the authorities. But as the news of Pearl Harbor ripples through the United States, and President Roosevelt declares war, the Grace women realize that the plots they’re investigating are far more sinister than they feared—and even a single misstep could cost them everything.

Inspired by the real mother-daughter spy duo who foiled Nazi plots in Los Angeles during WWII, Mother Daughter Traitor Spy is a powerful portrait of family, duty, and deception that raises timeless questions about America—and what it means to have courage in the face of terror."  

My thoughts:

Veronica Grace and her mother Violet Grace are so real in this novel.  The author puts the reader in the middle of the intrigue and you feel the tension and fear of being discovered.  Ms. MacNeal is at the top of her writing game as the pacing kept me engrossed in the story.  1940 Los Angeles is recreated with a lot of details and care.  

The climax was suspenseful and seemingly very real.  The fact that this was based on true events makes the story even more chilling.  My heart was racing in several instances.

I so appreciate Ms. MacNeal bringing this forgotten piece of American history back to life--lest we forget.  This isn't just history placed into a fictional story, it is well written with visceral tension and heroines you hold your breath for.

Rating:  Near Perfect - Buy two copies: one for you and one for a friend. 

Here is Susan Elia MacNeal talking about how she was inspired to write this novel. 

Musings - Carnegie Libraries, What's the Big Deal?

 

Carnegie libraries are special, but few people even know what their significance is and why they were so important.  

What is a Carnegie Library?

From 1886 to 1919, wealthy American industrialist Andrew Carnegie donated more than $40 million (roughly $1,455,671,430 today--thats $1.4 billion) that paid for 1,679 new library buildings in communities large and small across America.  For many small or modest sized towns this was their only library and changed the future of those town's children let alone bolstered the nation as a whole.  He built libraries elsewhere in the world, but the majority were in America.

Nearly all of Carnegie's libraries were built according to "the Carnegie formula", which required financial commitments for maintenance and operation from the town that received the donation. Carnegie required public support rather than making endowments.

Carnegie required the local government to:

• demonstrate the need for a public library;
• provide the building site;
• pay staff and maintain the library;
• draw from public funds to run the library—not use only private donations;
• annually provide ten percent of the cost of the library's construction to support its operation; and,
• provide free service to all (at the time free lending libraries weren't around much).

As Carnegie's library building funding continued and word spread, most of the towns that requested a grant and agreed to his terms for operation and maintenance were approved for the grant. 

The last grant was made in 1919 (the year he died), and at that time there were 3,500 libraries total in the United States and nearly half of them were Carnegie libraries.  That is a substantial contribution to communities and the nation as a whole.  This was still in the era of segragation and Carnegie funds were also spent on "black only" libraries, while not the ideal solution they did make a powerful impact for POC as well.

A little about Carnegie

Andrew Carnegie (November 25, 1835 – August 11, 1919) was born in Dunfermline, Scotland and emigrated to Pittsburgh, United States with his parents in 1848 at age 12. 

Cornelius Vanderbilt (railroads and shipping), John D. Rockefeller (shipping, railroads, and oil), Andrew Carnegie (steel production), J.P. Morgan (banking), and Henry Ford (automobiles) were the top businessmen in America at the time and each were jockying to be the richest, which spurred the U.S. innovative spirit and expansion and thrust the nation to being a superpower.  

Carnegie made his fortune in the American steel industry in the late 19th century and became one of the richest Americans in history and a testament to immigrant's contributions to making the nation great.  He was not a saint nor perfect by any stretch, but he changed America with steel to build skyscrapers, cars, ships, bridges, and so much more. 

In his later years he became a leading philanthropist (an individual who sponsors initiatives for the public good, focusing on quality of life) in the United States, but also Great Britain, and the British Empire.  Many criticized his charity with claims he was seeking redemption for his business tactics while others would have preferred he paid his vast employees more.  I believe he wanted to give back in a lasting way to the nation that he benefitted so much from.

Why Libraries?

Since the largest and significant Library of Alexandria in Egypt with a reported half-a-million books, libraries have been recognized as centers for knowlege, learning, and research.

As a teen, Andrew Carnegie knew that knowledge would lift him out of poverty and he strove to find access to books that were free so he could improve his life.

During the last 18 years of his life, Carnegie gave away almost 90 percent of his fortune, to charities, foundations, and universities including funding library buildings. "His 1889 article proclaiming "The Gospel of Wealth" called on the rich to use their wealth to improve society, expressed support for progressive taxation and an estate tax, and stimulated a wave of philanthropy." Wikipedia  

Carnegie felt all personal wealth beyond that required to supply the needs of one's family should be regarded as a trust fund to be administered for the benefit of the community.  I wish we saw more of that these days.  He and Dolly Parton would probably have gotten along well in that regard. 

His philanthropic interests centered around the goals of education and world peace.  He clearly believed that funding library buildings was a long term and lasting means to improving the nation as a whole and perhaps promote some world harmony.  

Any Carnegie libraries left?

Of the approximately 1,700 libraries that Carnegie helped fund in American towns and cities, about 800 are still in use as public libraries.  

Support your local library!

Here is a short video on Carnegie and his interest in libraries:

Review - Read to Death at the Lakeside Library

I hadn't read any cozy mysteries with a lake setting and thus this lake location plus a librarian really appealed to me.  This is the third in the series, but I had no trouble picking it up and understanding the people and events.  So join me on a trip to a small lakeside town in Wisconsin. 

Author: Holly Danvers

Copyright: August 2023 (Crooked Lane Books) 288 pgs

Series: 3rd in Lakeside Library Mysteries

Sensuality: n/a

Mystery Sub-genre: Cozy Mystery, Amateur Sleuth

Main Characters: Rain Wilmot, owner of the Lakeside Library

Setting: Modern day, Lofty Pines, Wisconsin

Obtained Through: Publisher (via Netgalley) for honest review

Book Blurb:  "Summer is in full swing as tourists flock back to the Northwoods and travel to Lofty Pines, Wisconsin. For Rain Wilmot, owner of the Lakeside Library, this is the perfect opportunity to bring back her mother’s summer book club. But the summer sun starts to really heat up when one of the club’s members, Lily Redlin, is found dead in her own home not long after the first meeting.

Alongside her sidekick and neighbor Julia Reynolds and the charming Jace Lowe, Rain discovers that the murder is seemingly inspired by the book the club recently discussed Agatha Christie’s classic mystery novel, Sparkling Cyanide. But who would kill Lily, and more importantly, why?

The deeper Rain dives into the story, the more confusing and complicated the plot becomes. Was Lily murdered to cover up a tragic accident that occurred years ago involving an old classmate? Or were the rumors true—did Lily really possess a priceless original Laura Ingles Wilder manuscript and someone killed her for it? And what about the mysterious letter Lily received just before her death from a supposed long lost relative? Was it a hoax?

With a long list of suspects and motives, Rain realizes that all leads come back to people involved in the book club. Rain and her friends take a page from Agatha Christie’s book by hosting a reenactment of the club’s first meeting to flush out the killer. Will Rain’s plan succeed—or will this librarian’s book be checked out for good?" 

My Thoughts:  This third outing in the series has Rain Wilmot, the main character, is running the library this summer with the help of a small staff.  The library is a family legacy that they offer to the town.  I had not read the two prior books, but that didn't cause any issues in enjoying this book.  

BFF Julia Reynolds is a perfect sidekick and even maybe a bit of a bad influence encouraging Rain to take some risks.  Marge is a mature library volunteer with some spunk that I enjoyed.  Jace Lowe, Julia's brother and a cop, is the romantic interest just getting traction.

I had hoped for more of the lake setting to be pervasive, but it was only a backdrop in a few scenes.  It was just my hope to get more of a lake culture and feel, but it wasn't imperative.  The town of Lofty Pines seems delightful and the library is a dream.  

I enjoyed the premise of the book club reading Agatha Christie's Sparkling Cyanide book as a theme of sorts.  I will have to read that book now (how did I miss it all these years?)  

The mystery had plenty of suspects and aspects so that the killer wasn't easily figured out.  It delivered a tense and dramatic killer reveal and confrontation.  The climax left Rain and Julia in a tight spot and I would have liked to see the ladies step up a little better, but it was realistic overall. I can't say more without serious spoilers.

Rating: Excellent - Loved it! Buy it now and put this author on your watch list 

I hope your summer is filled with fun and good books!

Here is a relaxing lakeside video.