Hello, everyone. Today I am reviewing Drift by Jon McGoran for TLC Book Tours. As always, I am provided with a copy of the book in exchange for my honest review.

About the book:  When Philadelphia narcotics detective Doyle Carrick loses his mother and step-father within weeks of each other, he gains a twenty day suspension for unprofessional behavior and instructions to lay low at the unfamiliar house he’s inherited in rural Pennsylvania.

Feeling restless and out of place, Doyle is surprised to find himself falling for his new neighbor, Nola Watkins, who’s under pressure to sell her organic farm to a large and mysterious development company, and under siege from the genetically modified crops growing nearby. He’s more surprised to see high-powered drug dealers driving the small town roads – dealers his bosses don’t want to hear about.

But when the drug bust Doyle’s been pushing for goes bad and the threats against Nola turn violent, Doyle begins to discover that what’s growing in the farmland around Philadelphia is much deadlier than anything he could have imagined.

My review: I must admit that I love a good thriller. I am also someone who is very concerned about genetically modified foods. So I was very intrigued by the subject matter of this eco-thriller. The author has written about food and sustainability for a number of years and his knowledge and passion about that subject runs throughout the pages of this book. Taking that wealth of knowledge and honing in on the highly questionable practice of genetically modifying foods, adding some drug dealers, some great characters and a complex plot, McGoran has given us a really compelling thriller with all sorts of twists and turns. Doyle Carrick is an engaging and somewhat hard-boiled detective with a sarcastic sense of humor. The cast of supporting characters is richly drawn. The setting was so well written that I could picture the topography, the small town, the crops – everything.

I don’t like to give away any plot points, you know. Mysteries are such fun to read that I want you to have the pleasure of reading this one without me giving too much away. A bit noir, a lot thriller, and with a nice injection of wit, Jon McGoran has written a page-turner for our time, a cautionary tale that is riveting and timely.

About the author: Jon McGoran has written about food and sustainability for twenty years, as communications director for Weavers Way Co-op in Philadelphia, and now as editor of Grid magazine. During that time he has also been an advocate for urban agriculture, cooperative development, and labeling of genetically engineered foods. He is a founding member of the Philadelphia Liars Club, a group of published authors dedicated to promotion, networking and service work. In Drift, he combines his interest in the increasingly bizarre world of food today with his love for the thriller.

One of you will be the lucky winner of a copy of this book! Just leave a comment on this post and I will draw a winner on Sunday night.

Happy Wednesday.

Hello, everyone. Today I am reviewing The Last Camellia by Sarah Jio for TLC Book Tours. As always, I am provided with a copy of the book in exchange for my honest review.

About the book (from the publisher): On the eve of the Second World War, the last surviving specimen of a camellia plant known as the Middlebury Pink lies secreted away on an English estate. Flora, an amateur American botanist, is contracted by an international ring of flower thieves to infiltrate the household and acquire the coveted bloom. Her search is at once brightened by a new love and threatened by her discovery of a series of ghastly crimes.

More than half a century later, garden designer Addison takes up residence at the manor, now owned by the family of her husband, Rex. The couple’s shared passion for mysteries is fueled by the enchanting camellia orchard and an old gardener’s notebook. Yet its pages hint at dark acts ingeniously concealed. If the danger that Flora once faced remains very much alive, will Addison share her fate?

My review: This is the first book I have read by Jio. And I love a good mystery, as you well know. Jio spins a pretty neat tale with lots of twists and turns and that’s what we all want when reading a mystery. I liked the premise very much – a rare flower that is so rare that some people will do anything to protect or steal it. That’s intriguing.

I’m going to call this book a good beach read. Beach reads, by my definition, are books that are compelling enough to hold your interest but are also all about relaxing and don’t require too much of you, the reader. Beach reads are a whole genre in themselves. We’ve all packed a few books to take along to the beach, or the lake, or on a camping trip. This is one of them.

It reminds me of the Gothic Novels I used to read as a teenager. All the elements are there: the big estate in the country (in England, of course,) the mysterious housekeeper, the extensive grounds that one can wander through and that just might be dangerous, the handsome leading man who just happens to be really rich, the mysterious stranger. It’s all there. I used to love reading those books when I was younger.

Here’s what I had trouble with. The plot elements can be simplistic and clunky. Flora just happens to meet a handsome stranger within about two minutes of boarding an ocean liner. Addison, who has a mysterious past, just happens to have married a wealthy Brit whose parents have bought this fabulous estate as a weekend getaway. Flora, who works in her family’s bakery in NYC, just happens to be approached by the ringleader of a gang of flower thieves, in the bakery. I had trouble believing any of that. Things happened too quickly, there wasn’t enough writing space given to a more believable progression between, say, boarding an ocean liner and, bam!, meeting a handsome stranger. Or working in a bakery and, in the very first scene where we meet Flora, immediately being approached by the ringleader. I would have liked to have seen more time given to character development, as well.

Perhaps because I have been immersed in reading a series of mysteries written by two amazing writers who do just that, this clunkiness sticks out more than it might have otherwise. I’m not sure. I found the believability factor to be wanting. It just may not be my cup of tea. But that doesn’t mean it isn’t your cup of tea.

Having said all that, this book is a good beach read. If you want a bit of light fare (and don’t we all at times?) you will enjoy this mystery. I’ve decided that it is a Gothic Novel, with all the elements that type of novel contains. If you are a reader that is drawn to that genre, you’ll have a good time reading The Last Camellia.

About the author: Sarah Jio is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of Blackberry Winter, The Violets of March, and The Bungalow. She has written thousands of articles for magazines such as Glamour, SELF, Health, Redbook, Cooking Light, O, The Oprah Magazine, Woman’s Day and many other publications. She lives in Seattle with her husband and three young children.

Good news! I can give away up to 5 copies of The Last Camellia. So leave a comment here and I’ll draw the winners on Sunday evening. Good luck!

Happy Thursday,

Today I am reviewing The Execution of Noa P. Singleton by Elizabeth L. Silver for TLC Book Tours. As always, I am provided with a copy of the book in return for my honest review.

About the book (from the publisher): The Execution of Noa P. Singleton is a clever, gripping and psychologically astute novel about a young woman on death row, what she did to get there, and why she may never share the truth with a living soul. It is unapologetic, unpredictable and unforgettable. It begins with Noa’s imminent death in a Pennsylvania penitentiary. Incarcerated at the age of twenty-five for the murder of Sarah Dixon and having served ten years with little hope of appeal, Noa Singleton is ready to die. Yet, six months before her execution date, she has an unexpected visitor, high-powered attorney Marlene Dixon. Marlene, the mother of Noa’s victim, has initiated a clemency petition on Noa’s behalf. But why would Marlene change her mind, and what does she want from Noa? As Noa’s prison memoir unfolds, we learn about the events leading up to Sarah’s murder, as well as the links binding Noa, Sarah, and Marlene’s fates. Interspersed throughout the novel are Marlene’s confessional letters to her daughter that reveal clues exposing a past filled with love, anguish and deception. But which story is sincere? As Noa’s execution date looms large, we are faced with truths just as sinister as the crime of which she has been accused.

My review: I read this book during the course of one day. I rarely do that, but I couldn’t put it down. What a powerful debut novel from the author! Silver is a gifted writer who takes us on a journey through the mind and memories of Noa P. Singleton, as well as Marlene Dixon, slowly revealing a ‘truth’ here, dropping a hint there. This ‘reveal’ is done so artfully that it will keep you guessing right up to the end.

The character of Noa is vividly drawn, her voice unmistakeable. Through her words, we get a detailed picture of the trial process, legal maneuvering and the prison system. The author studied and practiced law and her knowledge of the system contributes mightily to this novel. Encouraged to tell her story by Oliver, the young idealistic lawyer who is assisting Dixon on the plea for clemency, Noa gives us bits and pieces of her past that flesh her out – but she holds some things back.

Marlene’s letters to her dead daughter also give us tantalizing clues about her motives and her feelings about Noa, her daughter and the legal system. The death penalty looms throughout the book; is it morally conscionable? What about the legal system, does it serve those accused of crimes? Is the issue black and white or are there shades of gray?

Here’s what I loved about this book. There are so many twists and turns, so many supposed facts based on a character’s perceptions, so many missing puzzle pieces that are not found until the very end. The publisher uses the word ‘unapologetic’ and I can’t think of a better way to describe this book – it’s a complicated and complex book that is riveting. You can’t help but ponder the moral issues here and you can’t help but be caught up in Noa’s story. She serves it up in bits and pieces; she’s unwilling to reveal her final secrets until the end. I haven’t  seen a more compelling character than Noa in a long time.

I still can’t stop thinking about the story and about Noa herself. And though I pride myself on being able to figure out the way a complicated plot will end, I was completely surprised by the secrets that are revealed toward the end of this book. Silver is an amazing writer and this novel is one I would urge everyone to read – not just for the characters and plot but for the issues it raises, the questions that linger.

About the author:  Silver, a writer, attorney and former English teacher, is a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania, the MA program in Creative Writing from the University of East Anglia in England, and Temple University Beasley School of Law. She studied capital punishment with some of the nation’s leading anti-death penalty attorneys at The University of Texas School of Law at Austin, where she worked on a clemency petition, and later worked as a Judicial Clerk for the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals. As part of the clemency investigation, she visited death row, interviewed inmates and met with victim family members. While exploring the provocative and polarizing issues of the death penalty, Silver wanted to explore both sides of the issue, and thus her novel was born. Silver’s taut writing, which has brought recognition from Glimmer Train, funding from the NEA, and writing residencies in Spain and France, carries the reader forward to the story’s shocking end.

One of you lucky readers will win a copy of this book. Just leave a comment on this post and I will pick a winner on Sunday night. Good luck!