Storms of Malhado by Maria Elena Sandovici

I read this excellent book, Storms of Malhado, this month. The author, Maria Elena Sandovici, is new to me and very interesting. She is a person of many talents.

First the book. If you are someone who likes historical fiction with some mystery, romance, a supernatural twist, experienced a hurricane or two, (or not)  and like "Wait...what just happened here? Oh... moments, I think you will like this book.



About:

"Galveston Island, Texas, September 2008

As even die-hard islanders evacuate, Katie and her parents await Hurricane Ike in their old mansion on Broadway. The house has survived many storms, even the deadly 1900 one – the greatest natural disaster to befall the United States, putting an end to Galveston’s Golden Age – but some of its past inhabitants are rumored to have lost their lives in hurricanes. Katie doesn’t believe in ghosts, past lives, or reincarnation. She is, however, afraid of the monster storm approaching. Her fear mixes with anxiety over George, her elusive boyfriend. Painting offers an escape, but Katie is as unsure of her talent as she is of her flailing relationship. The same has been true for two of the women who inhabited the house in different eras. Suzanne, killed in the Storm of 1900, struggled with her own artistic and romantic difficulties, as had Betty, who died in Hurricane Carla in 1961. Will Katie’s fate be similar to that of Suzanne and Betty? Does she have the power to change it?
Through three different timelines, this paranormal historical novel weaves a story of Galveston’s past, underscoring its danger and isolation, as well as its remarkable resilience, its capacity for both nostalgia and reinvention. Full of contradictions, at once insular and open to the world, magical but stifling, stuck in the past yet determined to overcome, Galveston Island is as much a character of the novel as Suzanne, Betty, Katie, their lovers, and their confidantes."

I really liked the different time lines and the stories of Suzanne, Betty and Katie, and how they all converged into one. The writing is so good you can feel the young women's anxiety, their obsessions and also the oppressive summer heat and humidity of the Texas Gulf. The suspense builds as we go back and forth between the timelines. It is a story of breaking patterns.  I so wanted to tell these three women "no don't do that". The ending is great. You will want to read this in one sitting.

As I mentioned, the author has many talents. She has written several other books, she paints and has an art gallery, features her artwork on her blog daily and an online store.

Here is her biography that is posted on Amazon.

"Maria Elena Sandovici was born in Bucharest, a city she loves, and can never stay away from too long. In the pursuit of international adventures, she left Romania to attend college, then graduate school, in the United States. She has lived in many places including New York City, Barcelona, Trondheim, Norway, and Galveston, Texas. Her first novel, DOGS WITH BAGELS is loosely inspired by her own detours as a young foreign woman navigating the emotional potholes and financial pitfalls of Manhattan. Her second novel, STRAY DOGS AND LONELY BEACHES addresses the need to flee from one's problems and seek new adventures in a remote corner of paradise. But can one really get away? LOST PATH TO SOLITUDE revisits the cast of characters from DOGS WITH BAGELS a decade later, facing new problems - or perhaps being stuck repeating old patterns and mistakes. THE ADVENTURES OF MISS VULPE is a playful yet bittersweet mystery featuring a troubled teenager bent on messing with people's minds, stealing sugar bowls, seducing grown men, but mostly trying to understand the circumstances of her mother's untimely death. STOP AND SMELL THE GARBAGE is poetry in the voice of Holly Golightly, the feisty Boston Terrier in charge of the Sandovici household, a huge beast bent on world domination. LONE WOLF is a novel about an author who takes a road trip in order to overcome writer's block. Featuring hurricanes, ghosts, and forbidden love, STORMS OF MALHADO weaves a story of Galveston Island's past through the perspective of three different characters bound to repeat the same tragic fate unless they find a way to break the cycle.
Sandovici is also the author of the daily blog Have Watercolors Will Travel, and an artist who runs her own gallery in Uptown Houston."

I did check out her blog and the online story and am awaiting a couple of prints of her artwork to brighten up my home office, that it looks like I will be working from indefinitely.

Here are links to check out Elena's books and artwork.

An article written about Elena and this book:

https://theleadernews.com/art-valet-sandovici-storms-readers-with-novel-about-galveston-hurricanes/

Goodreads list of books by Elena:

 https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7768343.Maria_Elena_Sandovici

Elena's blog: Have Watercolors Will Travel

https://havewatercolorswilltravel.blog/

Online shopping:

https://havewatercolorswilltravel.blog/shop/

Enjoy checking out Elena's book and her artwork! I did.

I received an ARC and voluntarily provided this review.

A Better Man by Louise Penny

I listened to the audio book of A Better Man by Louise Penny this week. I don't think there is a Gamache story I have not liked. I also thought the narrator of A Better Man, was really good.

This is Inspector Gamache book #15.



About: " It's Gamache's first day back as head of the homicide department, a job he temporarily shares with his previous second-in-command, Jean-Guy Beauvoir. Floodwaters are rising across the province. In the middle of the turmoil, a father approaches Gamache, pleading for help in finding his daughter.
It'sGamache'sfirstdaybackasheadofthehomicidedepartment,ajobhetemporarilyshareswithhisprevioussecond-in-command,Jean-GuyBeauvoir.Floodwatersarerisingacrosstheprovince.Inthemiddleoftheturmoil,afatherapproachesGamache,pleadingforhelpinfindinghisdaughter.

Ascrisispilesuponcrisis,Gamachetriestoholdofftheencroachingchaos,andrealizesthesearchforVivienneGodinshouldbeabandoned.Butwithadaughterofhisown,hefindshimselfdevelopingaprofound,andperhapsunwise,empathyforherdistraughtfather.

Increasinglyhoundedbythequestion,howwouldyoufeel...,heresumesthesearch.

Astheriversrise,andthesocialmediaonslaughtagainstGamachebecomescrueler,abodyisdiscovered.Andinthetumult,mistakesaremade.

Inthenextnovelinthis"constantlysurprisingseriesthatdeepensanddarkensasitevolves"(TheNewYorkTimesBookReview),Gamachemustfaceahorrificpossibility,andaburningquestion.

Whatwouldyoudoifyourchild'skillerwalkedfree?As crisis piles upon crisis, Gamache tries to hold off the encroaching chaos, and realizes the search for Vivienne Godin should be abandoned. But with a daughter of his own, he finds himself developing a profound, and perhaps unwise, empathy for her distraught father.
Increasingly hounded by the question, how would you feel..., he resumes the search.
As the rivers rise, and the social media onslaught against Gamache becomes crueler, a body is discovered. And in the tumult, mistakes are made.
In the next novel in this "constantly surprising series that deepens and darkens as it evolves" (The New York Times Book Review), Gamache must face a horrific possibility, and a burning question.
What would you do if your child's killer walked free? What would you do if your child's killer walked free?"

 Louise Penny never disappoints. Her writing is melodious. Her descriptions of the scenery, weather and emotions are wonderful. We are very happy to see Gamache back in Three Pines and back at work. There are many very funny interactions between the friends in Three Pines, many laugh out loud moments in between the darkness of the story and the cold of the winter. The story is very complex and multilayered. We get to follow Gamache and Jean Guy as they together tweeze apart who the murderer is. There are plenty of suspects and misdirection leading us to the murder being solved.

I just love visiting Three Pines and the interactions between the characters. There are changes taking place which makes for a bitterweet ending.

Louise Penny hosted a Q&A this week on Goodreads. Here was one thing that she wrote about that I did not know about the series. 

"It’s funny how we pick up ideas, isn’t it? I sat beside an elderly stranger at a social, in a church basement, and she told me the story of the three pines. She had them planted in front of her house. Had been there for more than a hundred years. And that they were a signal to those loyal to the British crown, flooding across the boarded during the War of Independence, that they were safe in Canada. I heard that story years before starting to write, and always loved the symbolism of it. The kindness of the act, the awareness of how weary and confused and frightened those immigrants must’ve been. And then, the unimaginable power of knowing they were safe. Unbeknownst to me, in the church basement over dinner with a stranger, the seeds not just of the village, but the themes of Three Pines were planted." All The Devils Are Here is due to be out December 1, 2020.

Hallmark Movies and Mysteries coming up

Not sure how the movie and T.V. show productions are going with this virus thing, but I know many have been suspended. Nancy Drew ended rather abruptly because of it.

But good news if you like Hallmark Mysteries, there is a new Aurora Teagarden showing this Sunday, 5/17/20.

Heist and Seek 8 p.m. CST

About:

"When a priceless crown is stolen during a benefit gala held by the Lawrenceton library, Aurora and the Real Murders Club must investigate who would kill to get their hands on it. Starring Candace Cameron Bure, Niall Matter and Marilu Henner."

Hallmark is also featuring an Aurora Teagarden movie marathon on Sunday leading up to the new movie, starting at 8 a.m. CST.

Mystery 101: An Education in Murder is showing 5/31/20 at 8 p.m. CST.

About:

"A young writer's research prompts the police to revisit a famous murder case that convicted Amy's colleague at Elmstead, so Travis and Amy get a second chance at clearing the professor's name. Stars Jill Wagner and Kristoffer Polaha." 

There will be a Murder She Baked marathon on 5/30/20 starting at 10 a.m. CST. I liked that series and wish they would do more of those.

Picture Perfect Mysteries will be back in Summer 2020 with:

Exit Stage Death

About: 

"While backstage on opening night of a new play by celebrated murder mystery author/director Neil Khan, photographer Allie Adams discovers the body of the show’s leading lady, murdered before the curtain went up. As Willow Haven PD Detective Sam Acosta launches his investigation, he invites Allie – who has been helpful in solving his first two murder cases since joining the force -- to unofficially assist him on the. case. However, Allie’s involvement makes her a target for murder herself when she gets too close to the truth. Starring Alexa Pena Vargas, Carlos Pena Vargas, and Willie Adams."

Gotta get my DVR player set up...

Shredding the Evidence by Daryl Wood Gerber and a new series by Carolyn Ridder Aspenson

Hi all. Still working at home. It is becoming pretty clear as we listen between the sentences in our virtual meetings, we will not be going in the office this summer. We seemed to have gotten the kinks out of the virtual meetings, learned to put fake "backgrounds" up so we don't have to straighten up the room when we meet (or turning off video works), and our Yoga instructor is offering our classes we used to have at work, via Zoom. Had three classes so far and they have worked pretty well.

Meanwhile this week I finished:

Shredding the Evidence by Daryl Wood Gerber. It is Cookbook Nook Mystery #9. I love the cover. Cats, books and food. Three of my favorite things. It is a cozy.



About: "The Agatha Award–winning author of Sifting Through Clues returns to the Cookbook Nook, where a combative food reporter gets her just deserts . . .

The denizens of Crystal Cove are salivating over the upcoming Food Bowl Week, when local chefs offer some of their best and most imaginative creations in bite-size portions all over town. Bookstore proprietor Jenna Hart is hungry to sample as many of the delicacies as she can, but when she stumbles onto the dead body of a local food reporter and learns that her best friend’s husband is the primary suspect, she’ll have to summon the appetite for a side dish of sleuthing to prove his innocence.

Jenna knows the ambitious and aggressive reporter, who was strangled at a fitness center with her shredded restaurant reviews scattered around her, left behind a long list of potential suspects. As she begins piecing together the scant clues, she uncovers illicit ties between the victim and a local newspaper owner, a spurned would-be lover, and a host of disgruntled restaurant owners not a bit torn up by the critical reporter’s demise. And with a solution so close she can almost taste it, Jenna turns up the heat on the culprit, realizing too late that she’s the next course on the murderer’s menu."

Although I have not read every book in this series, I thoroughly enjoyed it. I like the small town setting with the continued development of so many of the characters. You feel like you are right there in Crystal Cove.

Just another day in Crystal Cove for Jenna; running her bookstore, getting ready for Food Bowl, wedding planning and finding a dead body. Jenna has a personal interest in finding the killer because her best friend's husband is the main suspect. Really good story as we follow step by step as Jenna uses her amateur sleuthing skills, to question citizens of Crystal Cove to try to solve the murder. As if that isn't enough, she is planning her wedding to Rhett, but he seems to be unavailable more that usual. 

I like how Jenna brings her cat to her bookstore everyday while she works. I am intrigued by it because I have two cats and they are not going anywhere, thank you very much. There are several great sounding recipes at the back of this book. They actually look like things a real person could make. There is a grilled cheese sandwich on my TBC (to be cooked) list.

I have talked about Daryl Wood Gerber last April. She writes several series and has a new one coming out 6/30/20. A Sprinkling of Murder - A Fairy Garden Mystery. I really like her Aspen Adams series which is a suspense series. 

Here is her website: https://darylwoodgerber.com/

Another book I had read a couple months ago as a part of an ARC group, came out yesterday, 5/14/20.

Spooks for Sale by Carolyn Ridder Aspenson - Magical Real Estate book 1

About: "My name is Alyssa Grey, and I have no idea what I’m doing… in life, love, with my magic powers—you name it.

Working as a personal assistant to the busiest realtor in the small Southern town of Swan Hallow always kept me plenty busy, but then my boss’s partner died and I got a promotion... Just without the extra pay.

Now I’m showing old homes, and every single one of them is haunted. As a witch, I’m not supposed to be able to see ghosts. But I do. And they know I do. And I know they know I do. And, oh boy.

Worse yet, an apparition that looks an awful lot like my boss’s dead partner has come knocking, and demanding I solve her murder. I’ve been given an ultimatum: help or die. It looks like I can’t really trust anyone any more. Will my cat, mouse familiar, and a new shapeshifter friend be enough to help me get the job done in what little time I have left?"

I enjoyed this book too. Supernatural cozy, short, quick read, light, and fun to read. Not a spooky ghost story. Just a light, magical mystery.

I like the concept of the town of Swan Hallow, where magical people i.e. witches, shapeshifters, live amongst the humans. Alyssa is a witch trying to make a living. Her realtor boss asks her to try to figure out why a house isn't selling. It happens to be the house where their coworker Holly died. When Alyssa visits the house, Holly's spirit appears and asks her for help. Alyssa makes it her mission to find out what happened to Holly. As the investigation unfolds, Alyssa gets her "familiar" which I love. She also finds some things about her past. If you like magical, supernatural but light stories, you will like this. I was reminded of Bewitched and Harry Potter. I absolutely loved the ending.

Carolyn also rights several cozy mystery series, and is working on a suspense novel.

Here is Carolyn's website: https://carolynridderaspenson.com/

I received ARC's for both of these books and voluntarily provided these reviews.

I am currently listening to A Better Man by Louise Penny and reading a book by a new author to me.

Until next week... 

Let's take a look at some of the Award Winners for 2019

We are starting to "reopen" here in Central Texas, but it doesn't feel much different. 
I hear the grocery store is getting easier to manage. (Will see tomorrow.) Restaurants can now allow 25% capacity. (I am not standing in that line. I will wait for awhile, thank you.) Hair salons can open. (Mine has not opened yet but has been in touch.) Libraries can open. (Mine has not yet. Can you imagine how to manage that? A place where people take books off the shelf to look at them, then put them back? The children's area? The community computers?) Health clubs can open at 25%. (I can wait. The weather is good here so I have been bike riding and walking. My yoga teacher from our work class is going to do a virtual class on Saturday via Zoom and I am excited for that.) Although my place of work could open in some capacity, they have chosen to wait another month since we are mostly working from home, successfully. I never thought I was that much of a social person, until I couldn't be. :/

Even the annual book conferences have been affected by the virus. Several conferences that were scheduled recently had to be cancelled. It looks like others scheduled well into the summer and fall are also cancelled. Those that were held, were held virtually this year. For our Mystery Book Club June meeting, we always read Award Winning Books. We will push that meeting to July, but I wanted to take a look at the winners, so thought I would share some here. 

I am only going to feature the few that have been completed so far this year. Many of them have not happened yet but you can see the nominated books and authors. Some have not been done for a couple of years. I will share four categories within an award because some have several categories. I will give you the link at the end to look at all of the awards.

Agatha Awards: The Agatha Awards honor the traditional mystery—books best typified by the works of Agatha Christie. The genre is loosely defined as mysteries which contain no explicit sex or excessive gore or violence; and usually (but not limited to) featuring an amateur detective, a confined setting, and characters who know one another.

Best Contemporary Novel

The Long Call by Ann Cleeves Best First  Novel  One Night Gone by Tara Laskowski Best Historical Novel Charity's Burden by Edith Maxwell Best Short Story The Last Word by Shawn Reilly Simmons Edgar Awards: The Mystery Writers of America give these awards to honor the best in mystery fiction and nonfiction produced the previous year. The awards began in 1946 and are named in honor of Edgar Allan Poe. Best Mystery Novel The Stranger Diaries by Elly Griffiths Best First Novel by an American Author Miracle Creek by Angie Kim  Mary Higgins Clark Award The Night Visitors by Carol Goodman Sue Grafton Memorial Award Borrowed Time by Tracy Clark Left Coast Crime "Lefty" Awards: The Lefty Awards are presented annually by Left Coast Crime. Lefty for Best Humorous Mystery Novel Scot and Soda by Catriona McPherson Lefty for Best Historical Mystery Novel The Satapur Moonstone by Sujata Massey Lefty for Best Mystery Novel Lost Tomorrow by Matt Coyle Lefty for Best Debut Novel Murderabilia by Carl Vanderau I can't say that I have read any of the books above, but have read others by some of the authors. I have read some that were nominated this year too. Here is the link to peruse the full list. The go to Book Awards in the left column. www.stopyourekillingme.com/ Take a look!