Review: "Most Blessed of the Patriarchs": Thomas Jefferson and the Empire of the Imagination

"Most Blessed of the Patriarchs": Thomas Jefferson and the Empire of the Imagination by Annette Gordon-Reed
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

If you're looking for a biography in the strictest sense of the word, this is not the book for you. But if you would like to delve deeper in the dichotomy that was Thomas Jefferson -- dig in!

It goes well beyond what we've read in history books, and devotes one of its three parts to the time he spent in Paris after his wife died.
The books also explores his views on, among other things, slavery and how he could write "all men are created equal" and justify having slaves himself.

Any history lover should like this book.

*I received this book as a Goodreads Giveaway in exchange for an honest review.*

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Review: The 14th Colony

The 14th Colony by Steve Berry
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

In exchange for getting an ARC of this book in preparation for an author interview I agreed to not post a review until the book's release date. But I think a simple "WOW!" wouldn't be considered an actual review.

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Review: All Dressed in White

All Dressed in White by Mary Higgins Clark
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Adding new authors to my list of favorites is one of the exciting aspects of my life. More people on the list means more satisfying reads and less disappointment, especially if I’ve “discovered” an author who is a few books into a series because I have to catch up.

But sometimes I don’t want excitement. Sometimes I want to be in my most comfy pjs with my favorite tea and a warm blanket around my shoulders reading an author I know will deliver.

That’s Mary Higgins Clark. Reading her – after finding so many new people to read – is like coming home.

“All Dressed in White” is the second book in her “Under Suspicion” series written with Alafair Burke.

“Under Suspicion” is a TV show that’s something like a cross between “Unsolved Mysteries” and “Dateline.” Laurie Moran is the producer and, when the mother of the media-dubbed Runaway Bride shows up in her office, she’s intrigued but not quite sure the case fits their criteria. The show needs a crime to solve, not a search for a young woman with cold feet.

The mom eventually does convince Laurie that the case would be perfect for the show – after Laurie does a little sleuthing on her own.

During the filming of the show almost the entire wedding party – especially the almost-groom – and a photographer are considered suspects at one time or another. And for good reasons, not some contrived plot mover.

“I couldn’t turn the pages fast enough” has become such a cliché in book reviews but – I’m tellin’ ya! – the last hundred or so pages were enthralling and I couldn’t turn them fast enough.

After 40 years, Mary Higgins Clark has still got it.



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Review: Ten Prayers That Changed the World

Ten Prayers That Changed the World by Jean-Pierre Isbouts
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

You don't have to be religious, or even spiritual, to love this book. It's really a history lesson surrounded by 10 prayers just about everyone knows.

They include "The Prayer of St. Francis" (Make me an instrument of your peace ...) as well as prayers from Ghandi, George Washington, Mother Teresa, Martin Luther and even Jesus.

I'd recommend this book to anyone who wants to look at history from a different perspective.

I received a free copy of this book in preparation for an interview with the author.

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Review: Imbeciles: The Supreme Court, American Eugenics, and the Sterilization of Carrie Buck

Imbeciles: The Supreme Court, American Eugenics, and the Sterilization of Carrie Buck by Adam Cohen
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This is a fascinating book, not just for the Carrie Buck aspect of it, but for the interrelated history.

With the controversy and debates over immigration today, it's interesting to take a look back to the early 20th century when there was a move to keep Italians, eastern European Jews and other "undesirables" from entering the U.S. because they were inferior in a number of ways, and they may even manage to pollute the US gene pool.

Did you know that during the Nuremberg Trials the Nazis used policies in the US -- and the Carrie Buck case itself -- to justify their crimes?

And, unless you've done extensive research on him, throw out everything you think you know about Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr. This may make you think even more about how important the choice of a Supreme Court justice really is.

Adam Cohen explains these and many more related issues so well it's almost like reading a novel. It shines a light on a very dark time in US history that should be a must-read for people interested in history, and especially human rights.

I received a copy of this book from the publisher in preparation for an interview with the author.

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Review: The Love Song of Miss Queenie Hennessy

The Love Song of Miss Queenie Hennessy by Rachel Joyce
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Sometimes I love a book. On rare occasions I fall in love with a book. "The Love Song of Miss Queenie Hennessy" is one of the rare books, and its characters will be with me for a long time.

It goes from being laugh-out-loud funny to tear-jerkingly sad -- sometimes on the same page! -- and everything in between as Queenie, who is dying of cancer in a hospice run by nuns, writes a letter to man she's in love with, although she hasn't seen him in 20 years. When he says he's going to walk across England to see her, she realizes she must confess something to him regarding the relationship she had with his son. The letter includes how and why she fell in love with Harold; how she got involved with his son, David; why she left town; why she started her beloved sea garden; and the relationships she has with the other patients in the hospice, as well as the nuns.

Every page is filled with such emotion. I could not put this book down! OK. I did a couple of times, but I couldn't wait to get back to it when I did.

I have about 500 books in my home. Before this morning I had six on my "I'm love with this book shelf." Now I have seven.

I received a free copy of this book from Goodreads giveaways and Random House in exchange for an honest review.

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Review: Cross Justice

Cross Justice by James Patterson
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I didn’t get into this latest installment of the Alex Cross series as quickly as I usually do, and it took me longer to read than usual. But it was Alex Cross, after all, so I stuck with it and the reward was worth the journey.

The story starts with Alex and his family heading to his hometown in North Carolina, where he hasn’t been for more than 30 years. He’s agreed to help his niece Naomi, a lawyer, work on a murder case. Alex’s nephew Stefan Tate is accused of brutally – and I mean brutally! – raping and killing a teenage boy. It’s clear fairly early on how the case will turn out but the “how” and the “why” remain the big questions.

While Alex and his wife Bree are investigating the murder case (unofficially, of course) Alex also learns things about his parents and their deaths that he didn’t know before, and it really shakes him up. If you don’t cry when this part of the story reaches its conclusion there’s something wrong with you. (Not really, but it is very emotionally charged.)

While Alex is looking into the circumstances surrounding his father’s death in Florida he also runs into a couple of cops working on a bizarre murder case and helps them with that.

Also, Alex’s 15-year-old daughter Jannie gets a bigger role in this story than she’s had in quite a while. She’s a budding track star being courted by at least one college already. Something that happens to her ties into the Stefan Tate case, and goes a long way toward the solving of it.

As I said, I didn’t get into this book as quickly as I usually do. Patterson usually grabs me on Page 1 and I’m hooked until then end – more often than not staying up all night to finish. I’d say I didn’t really start getting into this one until about Page 120. But I’m so glad I stuck with it, and now I’m anxiously awaiting the next Alex Cross book.


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Review: The Vanishing of Flight MH370: The True Story of the Hunt for the Missing Malaysian Plane

The Vanishing of Flight MH370: The True Story of the Hunt for the Missing Malaysian Plane by Richard Quest
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Fascinating! Richard Quest is CNN's Aviation Correspondent and followed the story of Malayasian Airlines flight 370 from the very beginning. He details everything that happened from the plane's disappearance to the search effort (to the time of the printing. But I interviewed him the day after it was revealed that a search team may have found part of the plane. Very interesting!) and everything in between.

He describes the scientific parts of the search in layman's terms so it's very easy to understand. As he told me in the interview: His job to help people understand difficult issues.

His descriptions of how the families of the plane's passengers were treated are so good that it brought make most of the feelings I had two years ago. I couldn't imagine how they felt then. Now, two years later, it's unfathomable that they still have no answers.

Quest also writes about his experiences with CNN, which is very interesting as well. And, yes, he explains why the network wanted to "own the story."

Now, even more than I did two years ago, I hope they find out how and why this plane disappeared.

I received a copy of this book from the publisher in preparation for a interview with the author.

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