Book Beginning

From Miss Boston and Miss Hargreaves, by Rachel Malik:  

"She stood at the window, looking out at the fields beyond, her fields.  The calves were up by the gate, nosing each other, waiting for her - still unsure of their new routine.  The great horse chestnut tree was swaying, she could hear it from here, feel the cool of its shade.  In Fair Field, the oats were just starting to pale - her oats.  The rest of the view was blocked by the tallboy.  She had dragged it in last night.  It was badly splintered at the back, but at least it was empty.  She carried on standing at the window, looking out, waiting."

This is the wonderful opening sentence to an excellent novel.  The lovely descriptive writing is found throughout the book.  And we know that "she", whoever she is, has a strong sense of ownership over everything she's looking at, new though it may be to the cows (and to her?).  And then there's that tallboy.  Why is she dragging it in?  That phrase, "badly splintered" is going to be a theme of this novel, in the material poverty both characters endure.  "She" is Miss Boston, and she is waiting for Miss Hargreaves to join her on her English farm during WWII.   Read on for a beautifully written character study.  



Book Beginning is courtesy of Rose City Reader

Were the Good Old Days All That Good?

Title:  An Old, Cold Grave

Author:  Iona Whishaw
Edition:  Touchwood Editions, 2017
Setting:  A Village in British Columbia, Canada
Genre:   Mystery

Were the "good old days" really all that good?  That's one of the questions Lane Winslow, a former British spy living in a village in rural British Columbia in the aftermath of World War II is asking herself.  Sure, the villagers have electricity now, and running water and telephones, but back in 1910 when the village was new, it was a different story.  Life was hard, especially if you were a young child or a poor family.  

Lane has other questions, too.  What is the identity of the skeleton found buried in her neighbor's root cellar?  How did the person die and why?  And who buried the body there?

And then there's Inspector Darling.  He and Lane definitely have chemistry, but they've both been quite literally through the war.  Should she open up to him?  Or is she better off living the quiet country life she has planned?  Lane finds herself wondering:  "There was simplicity in her existence now. Just her, her house, this green valley and cool lake, and a few friends who would make no inroads into her deeper self.  The utter quiet." 

Those who enjoy a strong female protagonist will greatly enjoy Lane Winslow.  She's an independent woman who nonetheless has forged strong relationships with the very interesting cast of characters who live in the village of King's Cove.  King's Cove itself is a character in this series, and Whishaw writes vividly about its charms: " It was a fine day, the air redolent with the green smell of earth and new growth, and she relished walking along the paths and byways...".

Of course, in any mystery story, you want a strong mystery.  And this is where this novel shines.  It's hard to imagine the villagers being involved in the death and burial, and indeed, they pull together with Lane and Inspector Darling to try to figure it out.  There are a few twists, some tense, suspenseful action, and the resolution is both strong and interesting.

This is the third in a mystery series featuring Lane Winslow, and it is the best.  The story is deeper, with themes of identity and belonging and survival in hard times that are quite moving.  I look forward to reading the next Lane Winslow mystery and can wholeheartedly recommend this to those who enjoy the cozy mystery genre.

Who Doesn't Love a Gothic Novel?

Title: The Wildling Sisters

Author: Eve Chase

Edition: G.P. Putnam and Sons, 2017

Setting: Britain, 1950s

Genre: Gothic, Dual Timeline

Perhaps it’s because I read "Rebecca" at an impressionable age, but a juicy, well-written gothic novel set in a British country house? Sign me up!

The Wildling Sisters is a dual timeline novel set in the lovely English countryside in an old manor house called Applecote. In 1959, four sisters, Flora, Pam, Margot, and Dot Wilde, are sent there by their flighty and glamorous mother to spend the summer with their aunt and uncle. Of course, there’s a snake in the lovely Eden of Applecote; their cousin Audrey disappeared several years before, never to be seen again. The sisters spend the stifflingly hot summer dealing with the emotional wreckage of their aunt and uncle, flirting with two upper-class neighbor boys, and coping with the rivalries that come with that.

In the present, Jesse and her husband Will move into Applecote, along with Bella, Will’s daughter from his first marriage, and Jesse and Will’s baby daughter. Bella, filled with grief from her mother’s death and general teenage angst, is not happy with the move.

This is a lush, atmospheric novel with descriptive, suspenseful writing and memorable characters. Secrets, jealousies, and mysteries abound. The conclusion to both timelines is satisfying, although I felt that the story of the four sisters was compelling enough to stand alone – in these dual timeline novels, one always seems much more interesting, and for me it was the sisters.

This is the second book by Eve Chase that I’ve read and greatly enjoyed (Black Rabbit Hall was the first). If you enjoy a good atmospheric, gothic novel or books by Kate Morton, Rachel Hore, or Katherine Webb, this is probably one to seek out.