Blood Orchid

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Blood Orchids (Lei Crime #1)

Toby Neal

Self-Published sold by Amazon Digital Services: 2011, 314 pages

Reviewed by Jessie Park

Blood Orchids is the first of Toby Neal's series that focus on Hawaiian policeman Lei Texeira.  Lei had a very troubled past but is trying to move forward, even if she still has some spells that she'd rather keep on the down low.  On patrol, she and her partner find two murdered teenage girls and she wants in on the investigation, even if she hasn't been promoted to a detective just yet.  Adding to the stress is that fact that she is being stalked.  But working with the lead detective has been pleasant, even with all the chaos around her.  Readers should be aware that certain scenes can be triggers; there is sexual assault (adult and child) and some violence.

And Then There Were None

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And Then There Were None

(Also published as Ten Little Indians)

Agatha Christie

Bantam Books: 1983, 194 pages

(Originally published by Collins Crime Club: 1939, 272 pages)

Reviewed by Jessie Park

And Then There Were None is Agatha Christie's best-selling novel and also one of the best-selling books of all time, and for a good reason.  This mystery will leave you guessing until the very end.  A group of ten seemingly random people from all backgrounds are invited to spend time on Indian Island in England, all under different pretexts.  The real reason for their visit is to fulfill someone's sick sense of justice.  All of the people are charged with killings from their past but were never convicted or had to undergo any legal proceedings.  Stuck on the island with no way to leave, one by one the guests are killed off and the group realizes that the killer is one of them.  But who among them is the twisted killer?  Can they trust anyone?  Or even themselves?    

Bettyville

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Bettyville

George Hodgman

Viking: 2014, 279 pages

Reviewed by Tori Lyons

In this memoir, author George Hodgman describes the time spent with his elderly mother at his childhood home in rural Paris, Missouri.  George took a break from his life as an editor in New York to attend a funeral with his mother in Paris. However, once he sees that Betty needs more help than he realized, George becomes her unlikely caretaker. Throughout the book, the author blends in background and anecdotes from both his and Betty's lives, particularly those that highlight the fact that Betty has never really acknowledged the fact that George is gay.  Overall, the book kept my interest, but the narrative at times felt meandering and unfocused.  I would recommend this to fans of family memoirs as well as those who are currently or anticipate caring for an aging parent.

The Pericles Commission

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The Pericles Commission (The Athenian Mysteries #1)

Gary Corby

Minotaur Books: 2010, 352 pages

Reviewed by Jessie Park

Nicolaos is the son of a sculptor in Ancient Greece, during the time when democracy is still young and in danger.  The statesman Ephialtes, the father of democracy in Athens, has been murdered and the city is in chaos.  Nico has been given a commission by the young politician Pericles to find out who killed Ephialtes.  Nico works with Diotima, a virgin priestess of Artemis (much to Nico's chagrin) and occasionally with his often annoying younger brother Socrates.  Nico wants to be a politician and sees this commission as his way in but will he even be able to survive the investigation?  This is the first of six mysteries in the series by Gary Corby.

Nature Girl

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Nature Girl

Carl Hiaasen

Alfred A. Knopf: 2006, 306 pages

Reviewed by Tori Lyons

Nature Girl is a satire set in Florida that features a comical cast of bizarre characters.  After being interrupted at her dinner table by a sales call one too many times, Honey Santana goes to extreme lengths to teach the uncouth telemarketer, Boyd Shreave, a lesson.  Certainly her obsession has nothing to do with the fact that she's off her meds.  Meanwhile, Sammy Tigertail, a one-half Seminole Indian, is on the lam after a tourist dies of a heart attack while on Sammy's airboat tour of the Everglades.  Add in Honey's stalker, Louis Piejack, and her ex-husband, Perry Skinner, set the whole thing on a remote Everglades island, and you've got the makings of a standard Hiaasen story.  While the story was definitely over the top at times, it was entertaining, and I will definitely keep the author in mind next time I'm looking for a light beach read.

The Girl Next Door

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The Girl Next Door

Jack Ketchum

Leisure Books: 1989. 370 pages

Reviewed by Tori Lyons

When Meg and Susan's parents die in an accident, they are sent to live with their aunt Ruth in New Jersey in the 1950's.  Ruth, a single mother who has three sons of her own, is none too happy with having to take in the girls.  Ruth's pathological hatred of Meg steadily increases, and she enlists her sons and other neighborhood children to help her in teaching Meg a lesson about what it means to be a woman.  This book is definitely not for the faint of heart, as it graphically depicts torture and abuse, both physical and psychological.  Perhaps most disturbing is that this book is based on the true story of Sylvia Likens, a 16 year old girl who was tortured and murdered by her caretaker in Indiana in 1965.  I hesitate in recommending this book, as it is truly horrifying, but it does provide a thought-provoking portrait of true evil.  

The Inner Circle

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The Inner Circle (Culper Ring #1)

Brad Meltzer

Grand Central Publishing: 2011, 449 pages

Reviewed by Ellen Dickman

This book was an enjoyable read if you like suspenseful action.  Beecher White, the main character, is an archivist who has a passion for his work in the National Archives, but it would probably be described as an ordinary, if not typically boring, job.  His life is turned upside down when an old friend, Clementine Kaye, asks him for assistance locating an archival file.  In a mishap, Beecher is thrown into a national security issue that has him solving messages and codes in an effort to protect his own life as well as creating new and unexpected alliances.  The story has many twists and turns and unexpected outcomes as Beecher questions friendships, co-workers, and even the President of the United States.