The Memory Collectors: an intriguing premise but emotionally draining story

The Memory Collectors by Kim Neville is the story of two women. Evelyn “Ev” has a mysterious ability, one she views as more as a curse than a gift. She can feel the emotions, good and bad, left behind on objects. She believes that she must handle them very carefully otherwise she will be affected by the emotions or “stains.” The harmless objects she sells at Vancouver’s Chinatown Night Market to scrape together a living. On the other side of town, Harriet hoards thousands of “treasures” and it is starting to make her neighbors sick as the emotions attached to these objects are overpowering and seeping through the walls. From the moment they meet, Harriet knows that Ev is the only person who can help her make something safe and spectacular for her collection. As they fear the dark effects of these objects have on them, together they help each other develop and control their gift. Soon it becomes apparent that there is another with their dangerous gift, the events surrounding this person will drag them all down a path that destroyed Ev’s family many years ago and threatens to destroy what little family she has left. 

I was intrigued by The Memory Collectors as it was advertised as “Perfect for fans of The Scent Keeper” which I loved. It was a story of two women haunted by their past, buried secrets, both figuratively and literally, and bound together by a shared ability and the power to change each other’s lives for better or for worse. However, the Memory Collectors does not stand up with The Scent Keeper. The story wasn’t bad but I wasn’t wowed by it. It had a unique premise that these hoarders and trash collectors are simply hiding a secret ability in which they feel the history in an object. There was too much description with not enough character development or action until the very end and by then it felt rushed. It is an emotionally draining book. I struggled to finish it as the story moved along in a slow and moody pace. I think with the right reader, this book would be magical and inspirational. Unfortunately, for me, it fell short. I liked the idea that objects have a record of their history attached to them and there are people who can feel that history. If you are intrigued by the premise, I recommend giving it a try. 

The Memory Collectors is available in paperback, eBook and audiobook. 

Harbored Secrets: when family secrets are revealed

Harbored Secrets by Marie F. Martin is a story of family secrets on the Montana plains. Blanche “Blinny” Platt’s life has been one filled with longings, loss and betrayal. Losing her mother and newborn baby brother in a tragic house fire, Blinny heard the whispers and gossip but didn’t think of anything about her grief and taking care of her younger sister, Odette, as the family strives to rebuild their home. As the years pass and family members pass away, Blinny is finally compelled to buy her own land and build the house she always wanted. As she builds her house, she finds moments to reflect on her life since her mother’s death and the secrets revealed to her, only to find out there are still more secrets waiting to be revealed. Her sister, Odette, lives in a psychiatric home, has been begging to see her, to talk to her, and Blinny hesitates. Will Blinny see Odette? Will she hear her sister out and discover the final secret and the reasons why the family fractured long before the fire? 

Harbored Secrets is filled with descriptions. The imagery of the Montana plains and mountains are so vivid that it was easy to picture the landscape. Other descriptions left me shocked and wondering if I really read what I thought I did. It is a story of family drama, secrets, half truths and lies which affects the Platt family through the generations. As I read the book, I wasn’t sure what type of book it was trying to be. Was it a psychological thriller? Was it a family drama? I didn’t care for any of the characters. Blinny, as a child, was hard to understand and the hardened older woman she becomes is more understandable by the end as the secrets are revealed. I ended the book with the feeling of “Oh my god! What did I just read!?!” It wasn’t a bad book, it just wasn’t what I expected. I’ve read psychological thrillers before and Harbored Secrets fell short. I would say it is a multi-generational family drama. I liked it but I find it hard to recommend it. 

Harbored Secrets is available in paperback and eBook. 

Seeds of the Word: an insightful and interesting look into finding God in the world around us

Seeds of the Word: Finding God in the Culture by Bishop Robert Barron is a look into films, books, politics and society and culture as we see evidence of God and the human longing for God. Christians have searched for “seeds of the Word” in their lives and the surrounding culture. Barron is the founder of Word on Fire Catholic Ministries which includes a YouTube channel and a documentary on the Catholic faith, Catholicism. According to Barron, no matter how charred or distorted, the seeds of the Gospel are all around us, especially in the most unusual places. Seeds of the Word is a collection of essays in which Bishop Barron finds those seeds in today’s most popular arenas like superheroes, sports and social commentary. Barron also confronts the growing anti-Catholic sentiment and where atheists and the secular world get faith and God wrong. 

Seeds of the Word was given to me by cousins of mine and while I am not a practicing Catholic, my Christian faith has its roots in the Catholic Church as I was baptized as a baby and have my first communion. I have read many books which make similar assertions of finding God in the world around us, I was curious about Bishop Barron’s claims. From the opening article, Bishop Barron is clear, concise and uses evidence from each film, book and social commentary to support his claims as well as his counter arguments. I found Bishop Barron to be very insightful and interesting. From philosophy to Scripture and historical records, Bishop Barron presents the information very clearly and makes sound arguments for his theses. I highly recommend Seeds of the Word for Bishop Barron’s insights and honesty. 

Seeds of the Word: Finding God in the Culture is available in paperback and eBook

Before He Kills: a great mystery with interesting characters

Before He Kills is the first book in the Mackenzie White series by Blake Pierce. A woman is found murdered in a cornfield of Nebraska. Strung up on a pole, the victim of a deranged killer. It doesn’t take long to realize that a serial killer is on the loose. Detective Mackenzie White is a young, tough, smarter than the aging, chauvinistic men on her local force. She finds herself called in to help solve it. As much as the other officers would hate to admit it but they need her. As she begins, she realizes that this case could be an impossible riddle, a riddle that she or the police force has ever seen. As the case heats up, Mackenzie finds herself battling her own demons as the hunt for this sadistic killer takes her to the darkest places of her mind and memories. Will she find the killer before he strikes again? Or will the psychological warfare inside her head be her downfall? 

Once again, Blake Pierce did not disappoint. Before He Kills is my third book by Pierce and it was a fast-paced, hold on to your seat mystery with a great leading lady. From the get-go, Mackenzie is a strong, intelligent detective but underneath her bravado is a flawed and broken woman who is haunted by the memories of her father’s murder. She is determined to find the killer before he kills again, even risking her career and her life to stop the madman in his tracks. The story is filled with other great characters like her reluctant partner, Walter Porter, to the police chief, Clark Nelson, who hate what Mackenzie represents but can’t help but admire her skills and tenacity. At the center is a great mystery that didn’t drag on with too many twists and false leads. If you love murder mysteries and need a weekend read, I highly recommend Before He Kills. 

Before He Kills is available in paperback, eBook, and audiobook. 

Into the Blue: the emotional journey of healing and coming to terms with the past

 Into the Blue is the third and final book in Kay Bratt’s By The Sea series. Jules Monroe is a woman who isn’t afraid of hard work and, with dedication, has built a life for herself and her family. Now in her late fifties, she continues to give selflessly to her husband, her kids, her grandchildren as well as their family owned business and community. But everything comes to a halt when her body seemingly tells her enough and she must allow her mind and body the rest it desperately needs. Her oldest son, Jonah, is a veteran who continues to be haunted by a childhood tragedy in which the family lost their beloved Nama. When his sister, Kira, goes missing, Jonah must rely on the kindness of strangers to help find her. A beautiful paradise, Maui is also a place where ancient superstitions threaten to rob the Monroe family yet again of their happiness and their future. Will they be able to finally put the island spirits to rest and repair the damage done? 

The By The Sea series has been an emotional journey and Into the Blue is the final emotional battle before we say goodbye to the Monroe family and their community on the beautiful Maui. It is a beautiful story of healing. Healing from the physical, the spiritual and the emotional scars of the past and present. It is a story of family and coming together in good times and in emergencies. It was great to see all the characters from the first two books and see how they have come together as family and friends. I loved that Jules discovers to find the miracles out the tragedies. To see the renewal and growth after the hardships and heartache. It is hard to say goodbye to the Monroe family and the magical paradise where they live. But Into the Blue is a fitting and satisfying ending to a wonderful series. I highly recommend Into the Blue as well as the first two books of the series, True to Me and No Place Too Far. 

Into the Blue will be available in paperback and eBook on March 19, 2021

True to Me and No Place Too Far are available now in paperback and eBook

The Kindest Lie: when moving forward means confronting the past

The Kindest Lie by Nancy Johnson is the story of the past and a lie told to protect interferes with the present. The story opens on Election Night 2008 and Barack Obama has just been elected the new president of the United States, As his coming inauguration brings the promise of new hope for the future, Ruth Tuttle Shaw, an Ivy-League Black engineer, seemingly has it all, a successful career, a kind and successful husband, Xavier. Xavier is eager to start a family but Ruth is uncertain. She has never forgotten the baby she gave birth to at 17. She was forced to leave him behind to attend college. She promised her grandmother, the woman who raised her and she called Mama, that she would never look back. Ruth realizes that to move forward, she must make peace with the past. She returns home to the Indiana factory town where she finds the town plagued by unemployment, racism and despair. As she begins her search into the past, she befriends a young boy, Patrick aka “Midnight.” Midnight is a young white boy who desperately wants a place to belong. As Ruth begins to follow the clues to uncover the secrets surrounding her baby boy, secrets her family is desperate to leave in the past, an incident occurs which adds fuel to the town’s racial tensions. Can Ruth discover the truth? Will the truth upend the lives of all involved? 

The Kindest Lie is a powerful and revealing look into the divide between Black and White communities. Even with the election of the first Black president, many Black residents of the town were skeptical that things would change. The book is also an unwavering look of motherhood in contemporary America and the search for the American Dream. Ruth is a woman who is caught between two worlds. She doesn’t seem to belong among those she grew up with in the small town but she also seems lost in the world of the big city. As she digs into the past, she discovers more about her grandparents, her absent mother and the desire for her to become more than just a statistic in their small town. It is a story of the complicated and messy aspects of love. It is a story of how small lies can grow into bigger lies, “a lifetime of doing wrong for the right reasons. A lifetime of lies that started small, like a nick in the windshield, then eventually shattered the glass.” It is a story of the realization that there are no perfect mothers, just perfectly flawed ones who do what they can in the moment and pray it all works out. I highly recommend The Kindest Lie. It is a powerful, heartbreaking look into the lives of Americans. Black, white, poor, successful and everyone in between, we are all searching for the same things: a place to belong, a family to love and a better future than the struggles of the past. 

The Kindest Lie is available in hardcover, paperback, eBook and audiobook. 

Hello, Love: a funny, heartwarming love story

 Hello, Love by Karen McQuestion is the story of moving forward. A year after the death of his beloved wife, Christine, Dan is barely holding on. The only thing that gets him through the long and lonely nights is their cherished dog, Anni. One night, Anni is stolen from his front yard, Dan and his teenage daughter, Lindsay, are devastated and do everything they can to find her and bring her home. Meanwhile, in another part of town, Andrea Keller is recovering from the heartbreak of a messy divorce. While servicing a notice to tenants, she recuses a defenseless dog and her life changes in ways she never could have imagined. Providence causes Dan and Andrea to cross paths again and again and slowly they are drawn to each together but unable to make that final connection. Will Anni find her way home? Will Dan and Andrea find a second chance at happiness? 

Hello, Love is a heartwarming story of finding love a second time. It was an easy book to get lost in and devour in a day. I could not put it down as I waited to see if Anni would make it home and if Dan and Andrea would truly end up together. I loved the growing tension as each potential meet brings Dan and Andrea closer together. There are moments of laughter and moments of shock and tears. Dan and Andrea’s lives are filled with wonderful, colorful characters which help push them outside of their comfort zones and closer to each other. It’s not an overly complicated story and it's not a book that takes itself too seriously. It is simply a “feel-good, read in an afternoon” kind of book. If you are ready to set back and read a heartwarming, feel good story, I recommend Hello, Love. 

Hello, Love is available in paperback, eBook and audiobook.