The Disappearance of Alistair Ainsworth, by Leonard Goldberg

Leonard Goldberg gives us a fantastic "Sherlock Holmes" story without having Sherlock Holmes as the main character. Sherlock has passed on, but his daughter, Joanna, continues his sleuthing ways in the same tradition as her father.

She has the help of Dr. Watson, but even more help from Watson's son, whom she spends a great deal of time with.

In this installment we find ourselves in WW1 and have the disappearance of a man who is one of the most brilliant of men in England. Alistair Ainsworth is the top cryptologist the English have and he with three other people is decoding all of the German communiques. But we have a problem.

The German's have captured him. He is still in England, but if not found before they can break him the war effort may well be lost.

Joanna has an exceptional mind and is able to decipher even the smallest of clues to put together a search and rescue effort for the Admiralty to find Alistair Ainsworth.

You will love the way she comes about her deductions and will see how she is just like her father. She is a woman of great thoughts, wonderful disguises, and a heart to find the truth while also teaching others, her son included, how to go about this business.

I believe we have found a new heroine to fall in love with and she brings back fond memories of every Sherlock Holmes adventure we have ever read.

Enjoy!

Flights of Fancy, by Jan Turano

Isadora Delafield has a problem! She is single, an heiress of a great fortune, and her mother wants her to be married to someone with a Title. Enter the Duke of Montrose, from England, on the American Continent to procure himself a wife. So, what's the problem?

The problem is this, the Duke is an oaf, and also disgusting, and also the most boring man alive. He believes himself a fine catch and "always" gets what he wants. But Isadora is turned off by his lack of manners, his bad breath, his terrible self aggrandizement an just down right unsuitability as a husband as far as she is concerned. But her mother and society will push her to marriage.

Instead, Isadora runs away. She leaves New York to become a housekeeper for an estate in Pennsylvania. The only problem is, it is not an estate but a working farm. So, think of the story like this, Green Acres meets Jane Austen.

Isadora is intrigue with life on the farm. She is intrigued with life in small town America. She falls in love with children, animals and a man who is a true rags to riches American story. Ian MacKenzie has gone from being a poor young man abused by his father to a man possessed of a excellent business mind and one who has climbed the business and social ladders of Pittsburgh. He is wealthy now and well respected by the local elite.

But he owns this farm that his adoptive parents run. He keeps it well maintained because of his love for them. But his desire is to climb higher up the social ladder in Pittsburgh. To do this he needs the correct wife to help him in that endeavor.

Enter Isadora. She is pretty, she is smart, she is a hired servant! How can he fall in love with her? She will not help his social standing. For her part she meets Ian and he is handsome, kind, generous and a man to love, but he is a farmer.

The story is well written. It is fun. It is laughable. It is intriguing. I must admit that at first I wasn't sure whether I would like it or not. But then, the story unravels, and being a Jane Austen fan, I fell in love with the American Heiress and Ian MacKenzie. Once you start the story you won't be able to put it down.

Jen Turano is a wonderful writer who weaves a beautiful story along with countless concepts of society, love, expectations and, well, just how love wins out in the end.

Enjoy!

That Old Scoundrel Death, by Bill Crider

Sheriff Dan Rhodes is back in the final book of the series. We have come to love this series and we hate for it to end, but with this final farewell from our beloved author, we have a real treat.

Sheriff Rhodes is caught in a bewildering murder investigation as a young man if found dead in the old schoolhouse. The interesting aspect is that everyone seems to know this young man by a different name. He always used a historical name when introducing himself to others, so that makes identification a challenge and the reason for his murder even more challenging.

But Sheriff Rhodes never lets obstacles get in his way. He also never lets other peoples agendas hinder his own, and that is to find a killer.

I don't want to give up any info about the crime and the outcome, but it is a very fitting end to a series that many have come to love. The story is fun and the characters are so eclectic that we can't help but love them.

This is a fitting final book and I am so glad that the family of Bill Crider decided to share it with his fans.

Enjoy!

Breach of Trust, by Rachel Dylan

Mia had a touch life growing up. Raised by a single mom who was also a drug addict didn't give her a lot of chances to make something of herself. But she fought hard, went to law school and now works for a large law firm and is "living the dream." Or is she? Trying to pay off her school loans she actually is at a large firm that pays well, but doesn't necessarily mean that she is doing what she wants.

Then the unthinkable happens. Her good friend and associate, Chase, is brutally murdered. Mia finds his body and the intrigue starts. She is determined to see the man who killed Chase put on trial and convicted. But at the same time the law firm gives her control of the Corporate Case that Chase was working on. It is a Breach of Contract. But as she digs into the case she finds that there are some major problems of corporate espionage. 

The storyline will deal with issues of Trust, Forgiveness, Deceit, Truth and Honesty as well as Integrity. The author weaves a wonderful story but also deals with issues that each of us face in real life, just maybe not to this depth. At the same time Mia is struggling with her new faith, one that leaves her questioning the goodness of God.

There are so many dialogue lines and issues that will keep you and your book club talking about this wonderful novel for weeks. I couldn't put it down and can't wait to talk to others about some of the issues that are addressed.

Oh, and just when you think you know "Who did it," you realize that you were completely wrong. So, don't make assumptions until you completely finish the story.

Enjoy!

Lethal Target, by Janice Cantore

Police Chief Tess O'Rourke has a problem brewing in her small town community, Drugs! With the legalization of marijuana she has pot growers moving into the area and they are not settling in well with the rest of the community. As a matter of fact they are rude, pushy, and demanding. They want people to see things their way. They are not tolerant of those who see things differently.

On top of that Tess has a teenager's death to deal with. Was it drug related, medically related or maybe something more sinister?

Add on to this her own personal issues to deal with and her anger at God and you have a very compelling an interesting story. Tess will have to grapple with her feelings about the young widowed Pastor who lives in her community and deals with loss and tragedy much differently than she does.

While she harbors bitterness and anger over her loss, Pastor Oliver moves on with life through his trust in Christ and belief that God is good. How will these two attitudes clash? How will they drag two people together?

Add on to that more criminal elements moving into her community and you have an excellent story line and a good book to add to your book club because you definitely will have issues to talk through. This is a great study in human interaction, peoples reactions to loss and how they reconcile their loss with their view of God.

Enjoy!

12 Faithful Men, Edited by Collin Hansen

These are twelve short biographical studies about Pastors who faced a degree of suffering in their ministries. Some were specifically targeted by opponents, some were jailed and beaten, some struggled through personal tragedy.

The premise of the book is to help those who are "called" into ministry to understand that they will face struggles and trials, that is pretty much a given. It follows some of the Apostle Paul's thoughts from Philippians when he states that a believer is Christ must suffer for the sake of Christ. That sounds downright unpleasant. Why would anyone want to suffer for a ministry?

But these twelve bio's give us a glimpse into the hearts of men who did suffer for the "sake of Christ," and how that effected their lives and their ministry. 

This book is intended to be an encouragement to those of us in ministry, but again, just understand that it gives us the perspective that we will be hurt in ministry, torn down, dragged through the mud, etc. While that may hurt the rewards that come out in the long run are what is worth the price we will pay.

Enjoy!

Daughters of Northern Shores, by Joanne Bischof

The story is about the Norgaard family living in the Appalachian mountains. It is the second in the series. Our main character is Haakon Norgaard who has fled the family because of a situation with his brothers new wife Aven. Aven is our secondary main character as she is the one who will need to extend forgiveness to Haakon. Then there is Haakon's brother Thor who is deaf and mute. Living in the late 1800's was not a good time to be deaf.

Haakon will be coming home to seek forgiveness. He will also be seeking to restore his relationship with his brother, other family members and especially Aven, whom he has wronged.

To further punctuate the issues there is a group of Klansmen who are tormenting the family because of their acceptance of Negro's into their family and lifestyle.

Biblical issues addressed in the book will be:
Forgiveness
Bitterness
Anger at God
Loyalty
Family dynamics
Salvation

The story is well written and delves well into these topics. 

I was given an Advance Copy to read so it did not have the discussion questions written yet, but I am sure they will only add to the ability to discuss and negotiate the topics that are being written about.

Enjoy!