“Groundswell”

 

Ok, this novel got me thinking…

Thinking about my brother and a relationship he had. An ex. She was a free spirit of sorts. She worked hard and played harder. As their relationship grew, a friend pointed out that my brother really wasn’t the ex’s type. Really? Why? Well, she usually goes for men who are “unattached” - no career, no real prospects, you know, the ski bum type. Well that certainly wasn’t my brother. She continued…she looks for men who can drive the boat. The boat? She loves to waterski, and needs someone to drive the boat. Men who can work around her schedule and are available whenever she wants to ski. 

That brings me back to the novel and relationships. Do we seek out people who give us a sense of safety when we feel untethered? Do we look for a partnership? Are we seeking simple companionship? Or are we happy just being the boat driver?

BUT, what if we suddenly realize we don’t want to drive the boat? Then what? What if we want to be lifted up instead of being pushed down? Where do we find the courage to flip the script? How do we know when we’ve found what we were looking for all along?

“Bonfire”

I always find it a little weird that books in my TBR pile, that date back to last year, that I find myself reading have a connection to what is happening in our world today.

Big business. Corruption. Politics. Sex trafficking. Environmental concerns.

Fighting for a community that turned its back on you, can’t be easy. Spending time with a father that you have a love-hate relationship with can't be easy either. But, what if you could save that community from corporate greed AND find a way to expel the demons of your past…would you do it? What if the past and the present become so intertwined you can’t see anything clearly?

Who do you trust?

What if you can “fix” it all? What will the cost be to you? To your relationships? To your past? Your future?

“The Maid’s Secret”

Molly Gray is an odd bird. Social cues, most times, elude her. And now that her guiding light is gone, she is left to navigate life on her own. Well, not completely on her own, she has Juan Manuel.

This installment (book 3) is written in two voices, that of Molly and her dead grandmother, via her journal. Flora Gray’s insights into her past are that “aha” moment…now it all makes sense.

The twists and turns keep moving the plot along. But what made Molly so interesting in the first two books, now feels a little stale. I’m not sure Molly will be able to have her own “aha” moment or will her character be able to grow and/or change.

Perhaps a fourth installment will provide insight into Molly’s world that we haven’t seen yet.

“Bad Blood”

 

Twenty books later and I’m still enamored with Ellison and Anarchy. I’ve put years into this relationship…while Ellison’s world moves much slower. From the moment we met I knew we were meant to be.

Love. Murder. An overbearing mother. Those are the things you can bond over with another human being.

Yet, this book had a twist. What had my BFF gotten herself into? Or was she framed? I jumped at the chance to find the killer right alongside Ellison and Anarchy. Phew, what a nail bitter.

Enough said. Time to wait patiently until Ellison calls again…

“Sea Change”

Fighting. Memories of my  own grandparents. Arguing. Nasty. Hate filled attacks. Belittling. Threats. Scars from words said in the heat of the moment. Pulling into oneself in self preservation. Trying to find acceptance and understanding in the aftermath.

And an octopus. 

Navigating an ever changing world. A future of global consequences. Climate change. Spoiled seas. Mutated species.

And an octopus.

Love. Respect. Clarity. Hope.

And an octopus.

“Home Is Where The Bodies Are”

 

Can we ever really go home? What if we never left? What about the siblings that got out? What if one of us is a bad seed? Will we see it? Will we know it? Will we all our family secrets be laid bare? How can we find our way?

Broken. Lost. Shunned. Dead. Lies. 

Time to run? To stay? How will the broken pieces fit back together? Or do they?

Told in four voices. Great twists. Death toll…?

“Carnegie’s Maid”

 

”I thought you came from a…family who cared about equality and who understood how the poorer folk are harmed when those in control - whether in business or in government - unwittingly alter the world around them.” (304)

Industrial Revolution. Robber Barons. Post Civil War. Money. Society. Charity. Philanthropy. Immigrants. Pollution. Power.

How is it that I keep drawing parallels to our country today? Monied  heartless businessmen. Power hungry politicians. Working class people bearing the brunt of decisions being made without thought for their wellbeing. Is this what our current politicians and businessmen are trying to achieve - this distorted Golden Age? Just as in the book, those who will pay the price for their greed are the working men and women. When will we reach our breaking point?