Book Review: “Dark River Secrets: Based on a True Story” by Don Britt

Powerful is the most singular word I have for this book. You feel the realness from the start. In fact, from the first words.

What makes this book hit its mark? The stark reality of life when things go wrong. You are on the journey of a lifetime.

Read this book and tell me your sleep is not disturbed. Read this book and tell me it did not make you look over your shoulder wondering if those two seconds are catching up with you.

*Disclaimer: I know Don Britt, the author, and am proud of him for writing this work. Knowing Don did not affect my review in the affirmative or the negative. This work stands on its own* ~kindle edition~

Dark River Secrets: Based on a True Story

Book Review: “Shivaree” by J.D. Horn

I have read J.D. Horn’s ‘Witching Savannah’ series, so when the opportunity to read/review his new book “Shivaree” came about, well I jumped at the chance.

The author has written a note before the story even begins, making you aware that this book is ‘a work of Southern Gothic fiction’. In case, you may not know what ‘Southern Gothic’ means, here is a definition: “Southern Gothic literature is a genre of Southern writing. The stories often focus on grotesque themes. While it may include supernatural elements, it mainly focuses on damaged, even delusional, characters.” Fair warning, indeed.

“Kudzu vine, rapacious and never sleeping, had nearly swallowed the old Cooper house whole.”  Shivaree has an ‘Edgar Allen Poe’ feel about it. You can feel the story beating like a ragged heart even though you do not see that heart clearly. It is in every little tidbit that you read. Each line brings you closer to knowing and understanding what lurks just out of your view. As you read deeper into the world that is Conroy, you realize that every person in the book has more than a casual knowledge of what goes on in this sleepy, dirty little Mississippi town.

“Fog, denser than any she had ever witnessed, had descended on the train, swallowing it whole.” Yes, I do recommend you leave a light on should you read at night.

If you like depth to your characters, and undercurrents that move you along at a steady

Shivaree by JD Horn

pace, read Shivaree.*I received a free, advance copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for my unbiased review*

The review is also here, GoodReads Review ~ Shivaree by J.D. Horn

Book Review: “Checked Out ~ An Aimee Machado Mystery” by Sharon St. George

Checked Out ~ An Aimee Machado Mystery by Sharon St. George.  This book is second in the series.

Paperback, 328 pages. Publication date: October 2015 by Camel Press. ISBN: 978-1-60381-225-2 (Trade paper). ISBN: 978-1-60381-226-9 (eBook).

Disclaimer:  Although this ARC book was given to me by the publisher, my opinions and thoughts are solely my own.

Synopsis:  When rodeo cowboy Cody O’Brien is found dead in his horse trailer, it appears that his horse, Game Boy, is the culprit. Aimee Machado, a health sciences librarian at Timbergate Medical Center, has no reason to doubt the preliminary finding—at first. Cody had been in the hospital awaiting an operation the night he died, but he checked himself out. Had he reason to believe his surgeon, Dr. Phyllis Poole, was incompetent? Or is his death related to his complex relationship with his family? ~ from Goodreads.

“I wasn’t surprised when rodeo cowboy Cody O’Brien vanished from Timbergate Medical Center the night before his testicle surgery,…” ~ Aimee

Okay, I have to say, the beginning sentence of “Checked Out” hooked me. Sure, I don’t have testicles but I can empathize with someone who would be concerned about having that type of surgery. As I read I agree with Aimee, ‘sure, he would be reconsidering surgery’. Now I have to read on. I have to know what happens.

I found it hard to pick just one character that I preferred over another. Each main character had their good points and their flaws as we all do. So how do you pick someone over the others?

Aimee has lots of help in this mystery. And she is such a force, you just know it will be solve. So if I choose my favorite character, it would be Aimee. You can feel her energy and her resourcefulness. Finding little-known information is every librarian’s job description but Aimee is very good at linking information. She is also good at getting into trouble.

Aimee and Cleo are such a likable pair of friends. These are people who you believe exists in life. Their attitudes, their concerns, their lives are credible. Even when they do things that might not quite be the best option, they are there for each other.

Then there’s Aimee and Nick. You want to feel for them. You will want to make them say this or that. You want them to have a romance. That is up to them.

“perfume of the barnyard” is one of my favorite phrases from the book.  No way I would think of stinky barnyard smell as ‘perfume’. This phrase made me stop and think. When someone enjoys the farm life, it would be perfume.  Another phrase that struck me was, “A lonesome cry in the night.” That sentence set the tone in that particular part of the book like nothing else could. Read the book and see if you agree.

If I told you who I least liked in the book, well that would ruin it for you. So read and make your choice.

There are many levels and layers in the book. It surprised me. I did not see how it was going to play out, and that keep me reading. I recommend “Check Out” to cozy mystery readers and mystery readers in general. And if you like llamas, you are certainly in for a treat!

~ Reviewer: Debra Saturday ~