“On The Wrong Track”

The murderer is on the train...How would Sherlock Holmes solve this mystery? The characters, Big Red and Old Red, are again “deducifying”! This adventure, from Chicago to Oakland, rumbled right through my backyard. The Southern Pacific Railroad, railroad detectives, Pinkerton agents, the Give-‘Em-Hell-Boys, a beautiful woman, MURDERS, and gold. Pretty sure that covers it all. You can’t beat a great Western to escape...looking forward to the next installment in the “Holmes on the Range Mystery” series. (This was #2 of 6)

“Three Single Wives”

 

“Oh, what a tangled web we weave...when first we practice to deceive.” 

-Sir Walter Scott

I’m fine. I’m fine. I’m fine. Just saying it doesn’t make it so.

When three women find themselves wrapped in lies, secrets, and murder - they struggle to untangle themselves. Will the truth prevail, no matter how painful? Once that thread is pulled, who comes out clean? Where might that thread lead? Is anything what it seems? 

This page turner had me reading late into the night. Written as alternating chapters with the months preceeding the murder, the trial transcripts, and months after the murder kept the storyline moving. I had a feeling who the murderer might have been about three-quarters into the story, and my suspicions were proved right, in the end. Murder and mayhem...never underestimate bookclub!

“ A Splendid Ruin”

 

1904 - 1907. San Francisco. Corruption. Murder. Inheritance. Greed. Earthquake. Revenge. 

What happens when you trust unconditionally? What happens when you realize you’ve been “played”? What happens when your talents are amazing, except that you’re a woman? What happens when your naïveté lands you in an insane asylum? What happens when the 1906 earthquake presents you with an opportunity you didn’t see coming? What happens when your plans for revenge come to fruition? What happens? Satisfaction? Joy? A happily-ever-after? 

Loved the history of this novel. However, I was disappointed that the author didn’t share any of her research, or where she “re-imagined” history. 

“The Henna Artist”

 

Every time I opened this book, I was transported back to 1950s India. I was totally absorbed in the setting, the characters, the culture, the story. The rich history. The diversity. The novel left me with questions...

How do you reinvent yourself, leaving your past behind? How do you maintain your independence and not surrender bits and pieces of yourself in the process? When should you open your heart and your life to others? How do you find family, where you thought you had none? How do you find the courage to leave all that you have known and worked so hard for? How do you navigate your choices as a woman in a caste society? How will you measure your happiness? Success? How will you know if you’ve achieved your best life? How will you stay true to who you are?