Tara Chevrestt's Blog, page 32

Forty Days Without Shadow: A French Thriller Dramatizes The Issues of the Sami of Lapland

When I was a child my favorite book was Lapland Outlaw by Arthur Catherall which I got from the Weekly Reader Book Club.  Catherall’s children’s book may have involved some inaccuracies, but it taught me that people in other cultures have different values which need to be respected.   The sixteen year old Sami boy who was the central character had grown up as a nomadic herder of reindeer.  He felt panicked by being enclosed within four walls and fought to maintain his ancestral way of life. 

I haven’t visited with the Sami through the pages of a book for a great many years, but it was my memory of Lapland Outlaw that caused me to obtain Forty Days Without Shadow which is an English translation of the French thriller Le Dernier Lapin by Olivier Truc. 
                                                 

The protagonists are Klemet Nango and Nina Nansen who are officers of the Reindeer Police. Klemet Nango is a Sami who feels cut off from his culture because he was forced to attend boarding school where his language and cultural practices were forbidden.  This is similar to the experiences of Native Americans and other indigenous peoples.  Nina Nansen is a Norwegian woman who is a recent graduate of police academy.  She insists on being respected by other male law enforcement officers.  The Sami are very alien to her, but she makes an effort to learn their customs. The Reindeer Police are responsible for enforcing regulations regarding reindeer herding, but Klemet knows the local herders.  This is probably why he and Nina are assigned to investigate when an antique Sami drum goes missing from the museum, and a herder is stabbed to death.    
I was very interested in finding out more about the Sami.  I found it especially intriguing that the roofs of traditional Sami tents were covered with interlaced antlers that were supposed to be arranged so that you could see the sky through them.  This is similar to the huts that are constructed for the Jewish holiday of Sukkot.  My Jewish ancestors were also once nomadic herders.  Perhaps this is why I feel a connection to the Sami. 
I also found out from this novel why the situation for the Sami and reindeer in Finland is so different from Norway and Sweden.  I located additional information about Reindeer Herding in Finland from a website on the Sami maintained by the University of Texas.  The events of this novel take place in Norway where ethnic Sami still have the exclusive right to herd reindeer.   Some of the Sami depicted in this book have definitely modernized.  I got a kick out of Klemet’s uncle writing songs in the Sami language and performing them on You Tube.  Here’s a Modernized Example of a Sami Song on You Tube  and here is a More Traditional Example .
Sami drums were used in shamanistic ceremonies.  The old traditional drums that had belonged to shamans are very rare.  The drums are usually covered with symbols which have been studied by anthropologists who may or may not be mistaken in their interpretations.  Each drum is unique and the symbols may have had personal meaning for the shamans who owned them.   I found an artist’s rendering of a Sami shaman displaying his drum on Wikipedia which is in the public domain because the artist created it in the 18th century.   I wanted readers to see how amazing these drums are, so I have included the image in this review below. 
                                                   I thought the characters were well drawn and well-motivated.  I found both of the protagonists sympathetic, and although the villains weren’t at all sympathetic, they were very credible.  I appreciated the fact that Nina played an active role in the case.  Since she knew French, she went to France to interview the French collector who had donated the drum to the museum to find out more about the stolen drum and the circumstances in which he acquired it.  She also brought about a major break in the case due to her rapport with a female Sami who trusted her.   
This was an excellent novel from the thriller perspective.  There were issues involving party politics in Norway, racism, World War II and predatory behavior by mining companies.  It was a suspenseful and involving story line from start to finish.  I loved Forty Days Without Shadow.
                                                 

The Reading Radar 1/24/2015

Spotted on Amazon whilst doing my periodic "women in aviation" search, Blackbird by Dave Lowell hit the wishlist. I've been hoping someone would novelize Bessie Coleman for a while now.

A vivid story of a young woman's quest to overcome poverty, racism, and sexual abuse, only to rise above the odds to become America's first black woman licensed pilot. Her spirit of adventure, courage and pride, mixed with romance and personal tragedy, serves as a model to all humanity, and exemplifies the importance of following a dream when all seems hopeless. The novel was inspired by the life of Bessie Coleman.





***
The Salt Covenants by Sylvia Bambola caught my eye on Goodreads Giveaways. The whole "woman on board Christopher Columbus's second voyage" thing sounds intriguing.

Spain 1493: Isabel has broken her mother's heart by becoming a sincere convert to Christianity. But when she is noticed by Friar Alonso at La Casa Santa, the Holy House, she is forced to flee the Inquisition by entering into a loveless marriage and sailing with Christopher Columbus on his second voyage to the New World. But all too soon Isabel is forced to struggle alone in her new life and new faith. With all the risks and hardships how is she to survive? And will she ever find love in this strange land? And what of the dangerous Enrique Vivar? Will his hidden agenda cost her her life?


***
On Shomeret's wishlist: The Last Flight of Poxl West by Daniel Torday.

All his life, Elijah Goldstein has idolized his charismatic Uncle Poxl. Intensely magnetic, cultured and brilliant, Poxl takes Elijah under his wing, introducing him to opera and art and literature. But when Poxl publishes a memoir of how he was forced to leave his home north of Prague at the start of WWII and then avenged the deaths of his parents by flying RAF bombers over Germany during the war, killing thousands of German citizens, Elijah watches as the carefully constructed world his uncle has created begins to unravel. As Elijah discovers the darker truth of Poxl’s past, he comes to understand that the fearless war hero he always revered is in fact a broken and devastated man who suffered unimaginable losses from which he has never recovered.


***

Caught my eye and my list after seeing it on Edelweiss. Maggie Bright by Tracy Groot.

"England, 1940." Clare Childs knew life would change when she unexpectedly inherited the "Maggie Bright"--a noble fifty-two-foot yacht. In fact, she's counting on it. But the boat harbors secrets. When a stranger arrives, searching for documents hidden onboard, Clare is pulled into a Scotland Yard investigation that could shed light on Hitler's darkest schemes and prompt America to action.Across the Channel, Hitler's "Blitzkrieg" has the entire British army in retreat with little hope for rescue at the shallow beaches of Dunkirk. With time running out, Churchill recruits civilian watercraft to help. Hitler is attacking from land, air, and sea, and any boat that goes might not return. Yet Clare knows "Maggie Bright" must answer the call--piloted by an American who has refused to join the war effort until now and a detective with a very personal motive for exposing the truth.The fate of the war hinges on this rescue. While two men join the desperate fight, a nation prays for a miracle.

A Girl Who Can See the Ghosts That Were murdered by a Serial Killer - The Ghost Files by Apryl Baker

I picked up the first book in this series for 3 reasons. One, I just signed with the publisher and I wanted to check out some of their books. Two, it looked different and I needed a little change. Three, it was FREE. Who doesn't like free?

I loved this book. It sucked me in and I had to find out what happened. The heroine of the story, Mattie, is a foster kid who can see ghosts. After a near death experience as a child (her mom tried to kill her by stabbing), she has the ability to see ghosts, but she pretends they aren't there until her foster sister comes to her.

No one wants to believe her when she tells people her sister has been kidnapped because the girl has run away from foster homes before. One adult officer named Dan does believe Mattie, and together they begin to solve the crime of what happened to her foster sister and the other kids that have been coming to her. Turns out, there is a serial killer on the loose.

This is a young adult book and there is no romance in it. There is a lot of suspense, and you'll be flipping the pages to see what comes next. I will say, I had a pretty good idea who the killer was from the beginning. It could be that I'm a writer myself, so I can get into an authors head and know where they are going. The book is being made into a movie and I can see why. The author, Apryl Baker, tells a very good story. Her writing flows well. I will definitely be picking up the next in the series to see what kind of adventure Mattie has next.

Lacey's Rating:



About The Book:
Cherry blossom lipstick: check
Smokey eyes: check
Skinny jeans: check
Dead kid in the mirror: check

For sixteen year old Mattie Hathaway, this is her normal everyday routine. She’s been able to see ghosts since her mother tried to murder her when she was five years old. No way does she want anyone to know she can talk to spooks. Being a foster kid is hard enough without being labeled a freak too.

Normally, she just ignores the ghosts and they go away. That is until she see’s the ghost of her foster sister… Sally.

Everyone thinks Sally’s just another runaway, but Mattie knows the truth—she’s dead. Murdered. Mattie feels like she has to help Sally, but she can’t do it alone. Against her better judgment, she teams up with a young policeman, Officer Dan, and together they set out to discover the real truth behind Sally’s disappearance.

Only to find out she’s dealing with a much bigger problem, a serial killer, and she may be the next victim…

Will Mattie be able to find out the truth before the killer finds her?

The Curvy Girls Club by Michele Gorman

The worst part about being a fat woman isn't that people look at you with judgment in their eyes. It's that most don't look at you at all. You case to be a person for whom they need to account. They look over your shoulder, or at the ground in front of you, or they glaze their eyes and look directly through you. It's like being a ghost, but with none of the fun of haunting.

This not just a chick lit story. While full of LOL moments and humor, it has a serious theme/moral at its heart. Whether your fat or thin, tall or short, rich or poor, your heart should determine where you "fit", nothing else. And prejudice goes both ways...

The 411: Four women who attend Slimming Zone (Made me think of Weight Watchers or Curves for Women) finally decide that the meetings aren't really helping them lose weight. It has helped them make friends though...and why not start doing something with these friends besides meet at SZ, talk about their fat, weigh themselves, and leave bummed?

One theater visit later and the Curvy Girls Club is born. At its heart is the right idea: a club for the larger woman, a group of people who get together and don't judge, and even better, an organizer who takes the time to make sure the seats are big enough and all that, that every curvy girl will be comfortable.

Katie is the heroine of the tale. Katie has a lot going on, not just being president of the club. With Katie, we experience workplace drama, stress of being redundant, an office affair, weight loss, health problems, and personal growth. She discovers that being thin doesn't change much. People still judge and it still hurts. Losing weight comes with its own set of heartaches as the people around her react to it and change their attitudes toward her as a result.

I felt like this story really put into perspective just how much--too much--emphasis we put on ours and everyone else's bodies. It seems like fat or skinny, someone is judging, so we really have no choice but to just love ourselves regardless.

And oh, this was full of laughs, from "sharting" to side effects...

Jane was no stranger to unpleasant side effects. When she was on the cabbage soup diet none of us could be in the car with her unless the windows were down.

I recommend this book to all women--fat or skinny--who have ever felt self conscious or not accepted because of their body.

I loved it, all except for Pixie. I had a serious dislike for Pixie and I'd have liked the story resolved a bit different as far as that character was concerned.

I received this from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Youngest F-35 Pilot Straps Into the Cockpit...And SHE Finds Love

I had tits in a testosterone world and showing any sign of weakness was not an option.

I have some seriously good things to say about this story and some not so great. It's one of those tales that you could say has me on the fence.

First, the good: we have a totally kick-ass, feisty, strong heroine here. She's a fighter pilot--a good one--and she stands her own against all the guys and earns their respect. She must be bright too, because at just 22 years of age, the Air Force is letting her fly the brand new F35.

The group chatter/ribbing among the pilots is awesome. As a woman in a male-dominated profession, I work with guys like Mojo and the author captured this lifestyle to a T. I laughed and smiled and felt like I was there, among this easy camaraderie. I took a real liking to Ash and Mojo and Stitch.

As an aircraft mechanic who has worked on a variety of planes, I very much appreciate the little details the author put in the story about the faulty environmental systems. There were some instances I found myself nodding my head in agreement over some little technical thing.

However, the story never gets overly technical, just in case anyone doesn't like that stuff. It's "layman" speak, nothing that won't be easily understood. You don't have to be an aircraft mechanic to get it.

I also absolutely love how the heroine gets her call sign. That was probably my favorite part of the story.

What I didn't like was quickly the heroine and the hero sleep together, before 8%, before he even knows her name. And I do realize this was necessary for the rest of the storyline, for the awkward situation between them to exist, but I'd rather it have gone differently. This situation also made me dislike the hero from the very get-go because the heroine was a bit drunk. He should have known better.

I also didn't like the lack of detail about the heroine's flight history. The USAF isn't going to just let a 22 year old go straight from simulator to million-dollar jet. What did she fly before? What was her training like? Pilots must have a college degree. She did four years of college and flight school/private pilot's license by 22? Doable? Yes. But lemme have the data, 'cause I like that stuff and it would help with her background.

And hey--everyone throws up the first time. She can't be that perfect. LOL

It's a good romance if romance is what you're looking for. I just would have preferred she hook up with Ash. LOL But we're left in enough suspense that we begin to doubt that HEA will come. Good job with that! I also appreciated the theme about hurting before healing, especially in regards to the loss of a loved one.

I have a feeling this may be the first in a series.

Def an author to keep an eye on.

I received this via Netgalley.

Female Magician Ties Women's Rights into Her "Magic" Show in The Magician's Lie by Greer Macallister

This is a very unique historical novel, a historical story tying a woman's determination to be free, independent, and strong with a dark edging: a craved stalker equally determined to do her harm. And yet at the same time we follow the life of a lady magician--quite possibly what could be the first lady magician in American history. And the first is not the heroine of the story, but her mentor.

The style itself is great too, going back and forth effortlessly between 1905 when the heroine is arrested and accused of murder back to her younger days as she sits there and tells the sheriff her story...but her tale doesn't come across as TELLING. She tells her story in a way that sucks the reader into the tale, enables the reader to visualize everything.

I really, really enjoyed the period in which Arden first joins the magic show, when her mentor was the boss and Arden was learning everything. Perhaps this is because as Arden says later in the story, this was the happiest time of her life...and I guess it really comes off that way.

When Arden takes over the show, the story lost something for me. I can't pinpoint what it was...but I absolutely loved the changes she made to the show: the suffragette themes she subtly added: the women picking up the chest when men can't; the coins transferring from a husband's pocket to his wife's purse; the sawing of a man in half, not a woman.

There's also a paranormal twist involving healing and I mentioned above...a crazed stalker.

I didn't enjoy that bit so much. It's necessary to the story, but the whole Ray thing was weird and creepy. However, that's not a complaint so much as a point in the author's favor. I literally felt this guy's creepiness and feared him as much as Arden did. That made the book extremely suspenseful for me.

This one is worth the historical reader's time. Pick it up if you get the chance.

I received this via Amazon Vine.

Miss Hazel and the Rosa Parks League by Jonathan Odell

This is one of those hard-to-write-a-review-for books. The story itself would take forever and a day to summarize. There's a lot going on. There's all the white women--mostly related to the Senator--and their maids, African-American women of the south. Did I mention this is the sixties? So there's a lot of racial tension. While Rosa Parks is doing her thing, these maids are doing theirs: meeting up in a "crazy" white lady's house to gossip and more. There's voting rights issue, a missing white woman, a man wrongfully accused, a boy thought dead, an evil sheriff, and really, a LOT of really nasty characters.

On top of that there's a theme/moral about motherhood. So many women have kids right there in front of them yet for whatever reason, they fail to be mothers.

While other women deal with loss.

In this book the two come together amid the other stuff.

It's extremely well written though I did not like the poor grammar. Yes, I get this is how people spoke, but that doesn't mean I like to read it. "I swan?" Urgh.

I enjoyed the tale for the most part, but it's way too long and contains too much. There was a point I got to when Levi began all his ranting about God and stuff that I just began to skip large chunks. I'd just had enough and it was time to get to the conclusion. Funny thing is though, that's the point the book finally began to get exciting, when stuff really began to happen. But like I said, I'd had enough. I'd read over 300 pages at that point and it was beginning to lose me.

The characters, at least the main heroines, grow and change for the better as the tale comes to a close though. And the maids' conversations were quite funny and made me smile. The little boy, however, I had a hard time with his bits as he deals with death. I saw the point, but that particular side issue doesn't appeal to me. I also grew increasingly frustrated with the Senator and his "boys", how racist they were and how everyone else became racist too, just to fit in. Nothing new there, but we mustn't forget history.

I can say with all honesty that I've never read a story line like this before. The book is truly unique and that's not easy to do nowadays, what with everyone writing the same thing, it seems. And I already mentioned the writing is excellent. Yet as I closed this book--finally!--I can't say it left anything with me.

I received this via Shelf Awareness.

Almost Famous Women: Stories by Megan Mayhew Bergman

Reading the blurb to this one, I very much expected to like--no....love--it. "...a collection of stories that explores the lives of talented, gutsy women throughout history." Sadly, I didn't. While the author may have had the best of intentions, she wrote about many of the characters in such a way that I had no desire to learn about the women. I found myself asking whilst reading more than one story, "What an awful person. Why would I want to learn about this woman? She doesn't deserve to go down in history. She should stay obscure, or almost famous... Why reward people such as this?"

The first story is very cool. It's about conjoined twins, Violet and Daisy, how they were guilt tripped into believing they owed their caretaker for everything--meaning their caretaker used them for profit, putting them on display. They go on to be abused by men in a variety of ways, yet one of them, Daisy, goes down still trying to talk to that "agent", still not ready to give up on her dreams, not ready to settle for being a "nobody". There was a lot to like about this sad story. It was very insightful. I'd never heard of the twins.

The second story I didn't like much at all. It takes us back to WWII when the fastest woman on water, Joe Carstairs, has her very own island on which she treats the "natives" like crap, plays god, changes lady lovers more than some people change underwear, and has a visit from a very snotty Marlene Dietrich. The story is narrated by her current piece of meat, Georgie, who has no spine whatsoever. I didn't feel there were any strong women here. Having tattoos, being butch, riding a bike, and chewing a cigar, and treating others like crap--while it may create an intimidating appearance--does not make one strong. On the contrary, I wondered what this woman was trying to prove. She was obviously very insecure. The story also ended in an unsatisfactory manner. In real life, this woman may have been a wonderful person; this story did not depict her as such.

The third and fourth...the third hardly even stayed in my mind. Even though I read it before bed last night, this morning I had to think long and hard to remember what it was I'd read. It was some singing sisters. It made little sense to me.

The fourth was awful. Narrated by a very jealous caretaker--male--but about a former artist who has become this cranky old lady. The story wasn't necessarily about her though so much about this caretaker's jealousy and how he wants her life.

Have I mentioned there are no quotation marks surrounding the dialogue?

Hazel Marion Eaton's story could have been great, but it limited her to deathbed and all it told me was that she left home, abandoned a baby daughter, to ride bikes in the carnival. That's it. The nunnery story I skipped completely as I didn't care to read about Lord Byron's daughter, especially not as a little girl. That's not interesting to me.

Then there was a tale so short it doesn't bear mentioning.

My favorite is the story about Butterfly McQueen. It's amazing how one short conversation can stay in someone's mind forever and somewhere down the road affect their life choices. I really liked this one.

Dolly Wilde...I wasn't the least bit interested. Perhaps if the story had showed her in her ambulance-driving days rather than her drugged-up days? Again, I must point out the author seemed intent on portraying these women at their absolute worst.

I enjoyed a couple of the last ones: a very short one about the women in concentration camps and lipstick. That is a touching one that reaches deep into the soul. I also enjoyed the jazz player one. I had no idea there was a group of female jazz musicians touring the U.S. (and integrated) called the International Sweethearts. You can watch the trumpet player in the below video. And I must thank the author of this book for introducing me to this group.

I liked some of the stories, but considering I liked only 4 out of...13, I'm afraid I can't rate this very high.

Thank you to Netgalley for the digital review copy.

Murder Most Posh (Mrs. Xavier Stayton, #2) by Robert Colton

I'm enjoying this historical mystery series. In this one we follow Mrs. Stayton (I still rather think of her as a younger Miss Marple though) and her companion Lucy as they board a Titanic-like ship in the late twenties, departing England and going to America, where Mrs. X (Stayton) plans to confront a literary agent who for reasons unknown rejected her first mystery novel.

And it wouldn't be a Mrs. X book without a murder.

Think Clue but on a ship.

We know the weapon was a scarf...but was it Mr. Farquhar, with the scarf, in room B1, or Simone Wainwright with the scarf in B25? Gerald maybe, on the promenade?

The murder occurs a bit late and from that point on it's very climatic and then it's like reading a tennis match with the whodunit changing every other page, but this was done in an exciting way. Like I said, Clue.

And I was chuckling from the very first page, with her letter to the Red Star Line. What a terrific way to start a story!

The cast of characters, though unlikable, is very entertaining. There's a woman and her husband who survived the sinking of Tatiana due to her incredible grip. There's a crabby Russian countess. There's adultery, foot fetish...each page contains a surprise.

And I never figured it all out, not until Mrs. X was laying out some clues. That's when I pieced it together.

I really like these stories, the writing style, the bits of humor, all of it. I look forward to the next one. My only quibble would have to be that Mrs. X is far too perfect and nice, to the point it's not really believable. We are told one too many times how unselfish she is, like when she hands off her dresses and jewels and enjoys that fact her companions are getting all the attention. That happens like twice. Does this lady ever do anything not perfect?

Regardless, I recommend these light, fun mysteries.

I bought this on Amazon.

After the War Is Over by Jennifer Robson

I really enjoyed the first book, Somewhere In France, as it followed the privileged Lily as she became an ambulance driver during WWI, tried to escape her titled and overbearing parents and live life like everyone else, while also falling in love with an "unsuitable" man.

I was looking forward to this book. It follows Lily's strong-minded "bluestocking" former governess after WWI.

I like Charlotte, I do, but honestly, the book is really really boring. There seems to be no plot, no real goal beyond getting her in some way or form with the man she loves, and yet I wouldn't call this a romance either. We merely follow Charlotte as she lives her life. Charlotte goes to work, is irritated by her coworker. Charlotte goes to a carnival-type thing and enjoys a fun weekend. Charlotte writes a series of articles for the paper--this was cool, but didn't go anywhere really. Through Charlotte, in a few pages, we learn of the Police strikes. And suddenly out of the blue, the man she loves declares he's willing to heal his war wounds but only if she'll nurse him in a cottage, just the two of them.

And then it just gets predictable. I made it to 70% and finally just stopped. I didn't care about Edward. His character was not bad, just not interesting, not appealing. I didn't feel connected. I wasn't feeling the romance here. I think I'd have preferred the romance to have been with the newspaper editor. If it had taken that route, I would have cared.

And as for the all the things that occur before that...if the stories go nowhere, what was the point to begin with? Take Norma's near rape for example. What's the lesson in that? Don't wear shorter dresses? The men can't control themselves?

Take it somewhere, make it important to the story somehow, or just leave it out, and if you don't have anything important, if you don't have a plot, well, don't write a story!

I see some reviewers saying they appreciate the suffragette storyline... Um, where is it? So she casts a college vote in the beginning... nothing else happens that screams suffrage. If it does, it's in the last 30% all at once.

Conclusion: This didn't feel like a solid story with a plot. It felt like tiny tales of what an average life was like after the war, with little bits of history thrown in--like the Police strike--to make it interesting.

I received this via Edelweiss.