The Only Woman in the Room

Title: The Only Woman in the Room
Author: Marie Benedict
Published: January 8th 2019 by Sourcebooks Landmark
Format: Hardcover, 256 pages
Genre: Biographical Fiction

When you begin this book and realize that it is not a biography or memoir -- the telling of the story in the first person will be a bit off-putting.

Part one drags on with an in-depth history lesson and a look at Hedy (Hedwig Eva Maria Kiesler) Lemarr’s early life as a stage actress who is in hiding after appearing in a scandalous film. At nineteen, to appease her family, she becomes the wife of an influential armaments dealer known as the Merchant of Death. Outsiders do not see him for the angry controlling man that he is, yet Hedy knows all too well who this man is behind closed doors and if she does not use her manipulative mind, she will forever be trapped by his brutality.

As the second part of the book rushes to its conclusion, including a perfunctory and downplayed semblance of a “gee-I-have-an-idea for an invention” dialog. An idea comes to Hedy that involves an untrackable or jammable frequency-hopping signal that could guide torpedoes during wartime. An idea that could save countless innocent lives if only the men, who made the decisions, did not discount it solely on the basis that a woman had come up with it. A discovery that was so revolutionary that it was an impetus to today’s cellphones (wi-fi). As I finished the book, I felt that author Marie Benedict did as much disservice to Hedy Lemarr, by toning down this innovative idea, as any man that refused to see beyond her looks.

To be honest, I do not know what point the author was trying to make. Was Hedy Lemarr a beautiful woman that might have also been intelligent? Or was a gifted intelligence hidden behind a silver screen-worthy face? Why were more comments made about her looks than there were about her brains? Beauty was the foremost concern in this book and not once was there a real or imagined character willing to see beyond the façade that paid the bills.

Things My Son Needs to Know about the World

Title: Things My Son Needs to Know about the World
Author: Fredrik Backman
Expected Publication Date: May 7th 2019 by Atria Books
Format: eBook, Hardcover, 208 pages
Genre: Essays
Source: My thanks to Netgalley and the Publisher for an opportunity to read an advanced copy of this book.

How can you not appreciate the jumbled and convoluted mind that is Fredrik Backman? His way of looking at the world through his eyes, his wife’s eyes, and that of his child, will make you laugh and reflect on your own years of parenting and nodding in agreement at all the ridiculous good intentions that you had.

Child rearing is universal and Swedish author Fredrik Backman hits childrearing squarely on the head. With his witty and touching essays, there is no subject that he does not tackle, and in doing so, answers life’s questions and possibly causes his son years of therapy.

At times you are going to laugh out loud and others you may have a tear, but it is all good. No one prepares you for this path in life, but once you can make it through the hard years, ok, all the years are hard, and can look back, you realize that the most stressful times also contained the best stories.

So, curl up, read, reflect, read again, share the best parts with your friends, then swear that you will buy this book for the next baby shower that you are invited to since dad’s need a gift too.

Angel's Peak

Title: Angel's Peak
Author: Robyn Carr
Published: January 26th 2010 by MIRA
Format: Paperback, 373 pages
Genre: Romance
Series: Virgin River #9

There are so many storylines going on in a Robyn Carr book that I have no idea where to start.

Franci Duncan and Sean Riordan met when they were both in the Air Force. Franci wanted Sean to commit to settling down and starting a family. That was the last thing that Sean wanted and in a less than mature way, he said good-bye. Four years later, they run into each other and before she can break the news to him, her “wild-Irish-Rose” comes bounding into the room. Caught off guard and not prepared for instant fatherhood, he does the best that he can, but first, he must break the news to his strict Catholic mother.

The five Reardon brothers have a way of bringing shock and surprise to their mother’s life, but she is the one that will shock them all when she responds to the interest of Presbyterian minister. Their burgeoning relationship, though fast, is cute. There is another marriage in Virgin River and a new pregnancy that has a young couple scared, but when the people of the community come together, nothing can stop this town.

This was not my favorite of the books. The Franci/Sean storyline runs too long, the Maureen/George story seems underdeveloped, and then there is a near death at the river that seems to have been thrown in because there was nowhere else to go.

Those that are invested in this series, will continue to the next book. If this is your first book, since each book in this series can be read as a stand-alone, it might turn off new readers.

A Dangerous Collaboration

Title: A Dangerous Collaboration
Author: Deanna Raybourn
Published: March 12th 2019 by Berkley
Format: eBook, Hardcover 333 pages
Genre: Historical Fiction
Source: My thanks to Netgalley and the Publisher for an opportunity to read an advanced copy of this book.
Series: Veronica Speedwell #4

Having enjoyed the previous offerings in this series, I was a bit disappointed in this book. For me, the wit was missing. Yes, there was a pointed jab or two, but for the most part, the usual banter between Veronica and Stoker either missed the mark or was completely toned down.

Veronica Speedwell, a well-traveled and independent woman, has agreed to accompany Stoker’s brother Tiberius to a Cornish isle known as St. Maddern’s, in search of a rare butterfly. Veronica soon learns that decorum dictates a woman traveling without a maid was considered scandalous so she must be presented as Tiberius’s fiancé. Tiberius, knowing that this information would quickly reach and irritate Stoker, was not surprised when his younger brother suddenly appears at the train station and joins the traveling pair.

Upon their arrival, the three grasp the importance behind their invitation when Malcolm Romilly requests that the brothers and Veronica partake in their own investigation into the disappearance of Malcolm’s bride Rosamund, who disappeared three years prior on their wedding day. Malcolm has gathered all that had attended the wedding and, in an Agatha Christie meets Sherlock Holmes setting, the trio plots and examines all that could have happened to Rosamund. Not surprisingly, each guest on that day had secrets, or desires, or ulterior motives and as each is revealed, and the Templeton-Vane brothers battle, truths come to light and we are not just talking about the facts surrounding Rosamund.

Freaks

Title: Freaks
Author: Tess Gerritsen
Published: May 18th 2011 by Ballantine Books
Format: Kindle
Genre: Police Procedural
Series: Rizzoli & Isles #8.5

I’m not sure that I like the idea of half-books so an author can give you a taste of an upcoming book. That is exactly what Freaks is. A simple little story with no real substance, a little attention-grabbing creepy factor, and over too soon. Involving a homeless boy who thinks that he is a vampire and a dead girl that appears to have fallen out of a coffin only to have the truth a little more ordinary.

The Death Factory

Title: The Death Factory
Author: Greg Iles
Published: July 8th 2014 by William Morrow Impulse
Format: Paperback, 87 pages
Genre: Ficton
Series: Penn Cage #3.5

I want to call this a middle ground short story, the type that bridges the gap between where Penn and his family were and the new leaping off point that will be the next part of Penn's story.

The Death Factory fills in some of the missing parts of Penn Cage’s life. Told as a long narrative to his visiting uncle, Penn goes into detail about his father’s heart attack, his wife’s cancer, and a criminal investigation that still haunts him.

The Houston DA’s office, known as the death factory since it has sent more killers to death row than another other in America, depends on the work of a forensic lab. When the chaos of the lab is brought to light by a technician terrified of losing his job, Penn must fight for the truth even if that means he could be throwing previous convictions away.

What goes unanswered in this novella is why Tom Cage called Penn to his bedside in the first place. What was the secret that Tom wanted to tell his son only to have conveniently forgotten when Tom realized that he wasn’t going to die after all?

Murder Theory

Title: Murder Theory
Author: Andrew Mayne
Published: February 5th 2019 by Thomas & Mercer
Format: Paperback, 318 pages
Genre: Thriller
Series: The Naturalist #3

When I read a book in the Naturalist series, I find myself not caring if the science is accurate since that is not what I am here for. Though presented in a believable and captivating way, science is only a small part of what draws me into the dark and twisted world of Dr. Theo Cray.

Dr. Cray is a computational biologist, which is the science of using data to understand biological systems and relationships. In other words, the woo-woo that brings out-there ideas together and leave us normal people scratching our heads. More than once, you will find yourself rereading sections as if studying for a final only to remind yourself that this is a book of fiction and that there will not be a quiz at the end.

As Theo continues to reel from his last encounter with the Toy Man, we now find him in his government-funded lab tasked with developing technology that will determine if a “terrorist gene,” exists. Thinking that this is pseudo-science at best, he will continue the charade if the government wants to fund this rabbit hole, but since there are others with their own agendas to do the work, it will leave him time for his specialized research projects.

His curiosity has peeked when technicians working on samples from the Toy Man case are dying or missing. A situation where normal stressors are turning some into killers. This is forcing Theo to revisit the location of his waking nightmare, but only his skills will be able to bring an end to this terror. An end that will involve discovering if there are more killers in the making, who the puppet master is, how is he creating these killing machines, and what is the end-game of this inhumane experiment.

Andrew Mayne’s books build on each other. Though there are some that say his books can be read as a stand-alone, I disagree. You need to know who Theo Cray is. The first book fleshes out his quirkiness, the second book makes him more human, and this most recent book brings the man into full focus.

Mother's Day Mayhem

Title: Mother's Day Mayhem
Author: Lynn Cahoon
Published: April 2nd 2019 by Lyrical Press
Format: eBook, April 2nd 2019 by Lyrical Press
Genre: Cozy Mystery
Source: My thanks to Netgalley and the Publisher for an opportunity to read an advanced copy of this book.
Series: A Tourist Trap Mystery #10.5

Continuing with her holiday-themed short stories, Lynne Cahoon takes on the joys that can only be called Mother’s Day. Whether you love it or dread it, Ms. Cahoon takes the reading on the rollercoaster of meeting a mom for the first time. Hard to believe that local detective Greg, the boyfriend of main character and coffee shop owner Jill Gardner has never had a meet-the-mom before now. What does tug on the heartstrings is the story of Kyle who is desperate to find again the mother that had abandoned him when he was only five-years-old.

Unless you have been following the Tourist Trap series, this book is not going to keep your interest. You needed a background history of South Cove and its people. The understanding that they take care of their own and that once they accept you, you will always have a family.