Murder Takes the Cake by Gayle Trent

Murder Takes the Cake (Daphne Martin #1)
by Gayle Trent

Culinary Mystery
260 pages, softcover
Target reader: Adult women

Bell Bridge Books
978-0980245363
September 30, 2008



From the publisher:

Yodel Watson was dead. And some people blamed my spice cake.

When the meanest gossip in Brea Ridge dies mysteriously, suspicions turn to cake decorator Daphne Martin. But all Daphne did was deliver a spice cake with cream cheese frosting–and find Yodel’s body. Now Daphne’s got to help solve the murder and clear her good name. Problem is, her Virginia hometown is brimming with people who had good reason to kill Yodel, and Daphne’s whole family is among them.

I got this as a free book from Kindle. You have to watch out for those free books—sometimes they're good and sometimes not so much. But this was a culinary cozy, and I like those, so even though I'd never heard of Gayle Trent I thought I'd give it a try. What did I have to lose?

Well, the ebook formatting was kind of sloppy, but the story was wonderful! I loved it! It was clean, a fast and easy read, there were lots of red herrings to throw me off, and I didn't guess the real killer until the very end.

Daphne Martin is divorced with no kids. Her ex-husband is in jail. She moves to a small town where her sister lives and starts a cake decorating business. When she takes a cake over to Yodel Watson, the town gossip, she finds her dead. Poisoned. Turns out a lot of people aren't that fond of Yodel and several have good motive to kill her.

Daphne has a cute personality, and like the heroines of all culinary cozies, she can't help but get in the middle of the murder investigation. With the help of Ben, an attractive and single news reporter, Daphne starts to look for clues. Along the way, she begins to suspect that her mother may have had an affair and that she may have a half brother. There are secrets buried under secrets in this little town, and they're all starting to unravel around Daphne.

I recommend this book to everyone who likes culinary mysteries.

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Content Ratings

Language:

Violence: Some threatening remarks, but no physical violence—unless you count the murder.

Drugs/Alcohol:

Immorality: References to two affairs—her mother and the owner of the local pet shop. No description at all.

Values/Themes:

Age Appropriate:

Writing Mechanics: The cake decorating descriptions go on a little long for my taste. Could use a little more tension.

© 2010 It's a Book Affair

Am I Not a Man by Mark L. Shurtleff

Am I Not a Man: The Dred Scott Story
by Mark L. Shurtleff

Historical
534 pages, hardcover
Target Reader: Adult

Valor Publishing Group
978-1935546009
Release Date: November 3, 2009



From the publisher:

An illiterate slave, Dred Scott trusted in an all-white, slave-owning jury to declare him free. But after briefly experiencing the glory of freedom and manhood, a new state Supreme Court ordered the cold steel of the shackles to be closed again around his wrists and ankles. Falling to his knees, Dred cried, "Ain't I a man?" Dred answered his own question by rising and taking his fight to the U.S. Supreme Court.

Dred ultimately lost his epic battle when the Chief Justice declared that a black man was so inferior that he had "no rights a white man was bound to respect."

Dred died not knowing that his undying courage led directly to the election of President Abraham Lincoln and the Emancipation Proclamation.

Download the first two chapters HERE.

I do a lot of work for a private school near me—editing and typesetting their textbooks. I especially love working on their history books. So the story of Dred Scott is not new to me. If you're unfamiliar with the history, this book covers the story of Dred Scott and his fight for freedom.

What is new is this fictionalized account of Dred Scott's life, and the lives of those who helped and supported him. I've always been touched and inspired by this man and his fight for freedom. When Valor Publishing asked if I wanted to be part of their book tour, I gave them a very loud YES!

Written by Mark L. Shurtleff, who obviously researched this book very well, this is the only fictionalization of Scott of this scope and magnitude that I am aware of. (This is a big book at 534 pages!)

I want to say that I enjoyed this book but that might be a little misleading. In places, it's very hard to read because of the brutal mistreatment of Scott and his family, as well as the other slaves. Shurtleff doesn't sugar-coat it at all and it hurt my heart. But I was once again impressed and inspired by the people who faced all odds to do what was right and who made the ultimate sacrifice for freedom.

Shurtleff's treatment the Dred Scott story jumps around a bit and it might be a little hard for some readers to follow. It starts with Scott as an adult, then goes back to his childhood, then back to adult, then back to another time in his past. It also follows the story of the white families who helped him and what led them to be the type of people they were—again jumping from the current story to history and back.

It's also a tad confusing because many of the characters were named after family members, which was common for that time in our history. There's not much the author could do about that, but I wish a timeline and family trees had been included at the back of the book to help us keep the characters and events straight. (Perhaps in a future printing?)

The writing itself varies from fascinating, when Shurtleff is actually telling the story and creating a scene, to a little long-winded when we're getting a review of history. Some scenes seemed to be inserted into the book simply to give us the history of the time, and these drag a bit. However, the scenes focusing on Dred are captivatingly wonderful and realistic, and the descriptive language is often quite beautiful and touching.

Even with the slower spots and the sometimes confusing timelines, I recommend this uniquely American story to everyone. It's an important leg of our journey toward equal rights for all men and women. I believe that everyone over the age of 14 should be very familiar with the Dred Scott case and Am I Not a Man is a good way to bring that history to life.

Plot: Some parts are absolutely wonderful! Some of it is slow and feels like a history lesson.

Characters: Most of the characters, especially Dred and his family are wonderful, as are those who help him. However, some of the characters seem to be inserted merely for their ability to rehearse history.

Cover:



Content Ratings

Language: Some swearing, typical for that time period or historically accurate from various recorded accounts of the events.

Violence: This is a volatile time in American history and racial tension ran high. The mistreatment of slaves is horrendous and accurately described.

Drugs/Alcohol: Some drinking, as per historical accounts.

Immorality: Some immorality, as per historical accounts.

Values/Themes: A strong voice against slavery, prejudice and injustice.

Age Appropriate: For adults.

Writing Mechanics: Inconsistent. As mentioned before, when it's good, it's very, very good. When it's not, it's...not.

*ARC provided for review by publisher.


© 2010 It's a Book Affair

Illuminations of the Heart by Joyce DiPastena

Illuminations of the Heart
by Joyce DiPastena

Historical Romance
425 pages, softcover
Target Reader: Adult

Walnut Springs Press
978-1935217268
Release Date: June 22, 2009



From the Publisher:

Her heart is lost in that first embrace, her world shaken to its foundations. There is just one problem: her name is not Clothilde. It is Siriol de Calendri.

Trained in the art of illumination in the far-off city of Venice, she is directed by her late brother's will to the county of Poitou in France, where she enters the guardianship of her brother's friend, Sir Triston de Brielle. Once in Poitou, Siri hopes to find employment in an illuminator's shop—until Triston unexpectedly snatches her heart away with a kiss.

Triston is a man of quiet honor and courage, but the guilt he carries for the death of his late wife, Clothilde, has left him numb and hesitant to love again. Worse yet, Siri bears an uncanny resemblance to his lost love. Or does she? Her merry laughter and twinkling eyes are very different from his late wife's shy smiles and quiet ways. Yet when he gazes into Siri's face, all he sees is Clothilde.

Then Triston's past returns to threaten them both. Will his tragic life with Clothilde be repeated with Siri? Trapped between the rivalry of the king's sons on the one hand and a neighbor out for vengeance on the other, Triston realizes it would be safer to send Siri away. But how can he bear to lose her again?

Siri is determined not to be cast off and not to live in another woman's shadow. She has illuminated many a priceless book with pen and paint. But can her own vibrant spirit illuminate the darkness in Triston's soul and make his heart beat for her alone?

I first met Joyce DiPastena when her book, Loyalty's Web, was up for a Whitney Award in 2007. I like to read all the Whitney Finalists, and I thoroughly enjoyed Loyalty's Web—even though it was a romance. Medieval romances don't bother me as much as modern-day romances. In fact, I kind of like them.

So when Joyce asked if I'd like review her newest book, Illuminations of the Heart, I jumped at it. I started reading it as soon as it arrived from her publisher, Walnut Springs Press.

This is one hefty book. At 425 pages, it's a longer read than I usually enjoy in a romance, and sometimes I thought the personal issues could have been resolved a little faster, but overall, I hardly noticed the length of the book because I was caught up in the story line and the historical aspects.

For me to really recommend a historical romance like Illuminations, it absolutely must meet certain criteria:

• A believable, self-assured, strong-spirited heroine, who is likely to take matters into her own hands—Siri definitely fits the bill.
  
  
• A hero/love interest that is compelling for reasons other than his good looks—it took a while for me to warm up to Triston, but he won me over.
  
  
• A plot line that is more than just falling in love—there's some mystery, mistaken identity, some politics. Plenty more than just two people trying to get together.
  
  
• Well-written, well-researched and historically accurate—this was amazing. I felt like I was actually there.
  
• Some twists and turns that I didn't see coming—I'm not going to tell you what they were because that would ruin the fun. But it was great to be surprised.
  
  
• I must get lost in the story and forget what time it is in my real-life—uhm, yes. I was late for a doctor's appointment because of this book.
  
  
• Clean—no details from the bedroom—I could recommend this to my mother and my daughters with no hesitation.

Illuminations of the Heart met all my criteria—and more. I give it a 4 out of 5 for a romance.


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Violence: Some threatening situations but not much violence.

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*I received a review copy from the publisher.


© 2010 It's a Book Affair

Altered State by Gregg Luke

Altered State
by Gregg Luke

Medical Thriller
288 pages, 6x9 softcover
Target reader: Adults

Covenant
978-1-59811-832-2
Release Date: June, 2009



From the publisher:

Homer and Morgan Winegar believe they may have finally found happiness in the quiet college town in which they have settled. Perhaps now in their new life together with Morgan’s nine-year-old son, they can each leave a troubled past behind. But when Morgan’s psychology students begin exhibiting bizarre behavior, the couple quickly becomes entangled in an experiment headed for catastrophe.

Someone is illegally administering a mind-altering drug to unwitting students. With the potential for millions of dollars in profits on the line, the pharmaceutical designers are more than willing to set aside morals to test the limits of the subconscious and mind control. As the growing ranks of test subjects fulfill increasingly disturbing commands, Homer and Morgan race to discover who’s pulling the strings—and how they are doing it. But as the final stages of research point to a deadly calamity, events from the past threaten to shatter the couple’s fragile trust—just as they need it most.

Will they be able to overcome the forces that threaten to pull them apart and find a way to stop the impending tragedy?

This is a great suspense/medical thriller. It's set in Logan, UT on the USU campus, and although there are references to the LDS community, there is no preachy doctrine here. The characterization was good and all the characters were believable. There is a lot of science involved and even though I really know nothing about that stuff, it seemed believable to me.

I liked the idea of a mind control drug in the energy drink. I hate those drinks and think they are evil. Sort of. I give my kids a hard time when I catch them drinking them. It was vindication for me to see them used as the delivery system for the drugs. :)

I felt that the resolution, where they find the back door command to the system running the mind-control music a little to easy. I was also disappointed that we never really find out about Homer's past. I suppose it's not vital to the story, but if you're going to put it out there that he has a troubled past, I think we need some hint of what it was.

Overall, I really liked this book and think others that like fast-paced, mind-controlling, mass murderer wanna-bes will like it too.

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Content Ratings

Language: No swearing.

Violence: Fist fights, mind control, intended mass murder.

Drugs/Alcohol: The students drink an energy drink with lots of caffeine.

Immorality:

Values/Themes: An LDS book with themes on repentance and forgiveness.

Age Appropriate: For adults and older teens.

Writing Mechanics: There were several info dumps. I suppose it's necessary to give us the needed science background but I think it could have been woven in a little more seamlessly.


© 2010 It's a Book Affair