A lightweight, innocuous narrative. For many readers, the resolution (when it finally comes) will be no great shock. Still,...
Murdered prostitutes, unsavory characters and high society provide fodder for scandal sheets—and for author Dallas (True Sisters, 2012, etc.)—in 1885 Denver.
Beret Osmundsen is upset when she receives news of her sister’s death and discovers she was murdered during a brutal attack in a high-class brothel. Beret raised her much younger sibling following their parents’ deaths, but a bitter argument led to their estrangement. Lillie moved in with their socially prominent aunt and uncle, Varina and John Stanton, in Colorado, and Beret assumed that she’d been residing in their home since she left New York. Determined to discover the circumstances of Lillie’s murder, Beret travels to Denver and teams with Detective Michael McCauley, who’s in charge of the investigation. Although sparks don’t immediately fly, the detective and Beret develop a mutual respect for each other as they question those who were part of Lillie’s circle during her final days: McCauley quickly learns that Beret has the mettle to stand up to almost anyone, and Beret discovers McCauley is a man of principle. She also slowly realizes that she never really knew her sister at all. Pretty certain Lillie’s murder was not a random act (although a second murder points in that direction), the unlikely pair pursues leads in Denver’s seediest businesses in the tenderloin district, where the least desirable prostitutes occupy cribs, men make wagers in gambling joints, and opium dens provide mind-numbing retreat; but they also pursue suspects who rank among the city’s highest social strata and occupy mansions in the best part of town. Sorting through numerous suspects—and veteran Dallas deftly offers a wide array of shady characters to choose from—Beret has a tough time eliminating anyone as she searches for a pair of diamond earrings, which she believes were stolen from her sister by the murderer.
A lightweight, innocuous narrative. For many readers, the resolution (when it finally comes) will be no great shock. Still, not a bad choice for a lazy, low-key weekend.Pub Date: Oct. 22, 2013
ISBN: 978-1-250-03093-1
Page Count: 352
Publisher: St. Martin's
Review Posted Online: Aug. 28, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2013
This is historical adventure on a grand scale, right up there with the works of Conn Iggulden and Minette Walters.
Plenty of gore from days of yore fills the 12th entry in Cornwell’s The Last Kingdom series (War of the Wolf, 2018, etc.).
The pagan warlord Uhtred of Bebbanburg narrates his 10th-century adventures, during which he hacks people apart so that kingdoms might be stitched together. He is known to some as the Godless or the Wicked, a reputation he enjoys. Edward, King of Wessex, Mercia, and East Anglia is gravely ill, and Uhtred pledges an oath to likely heir Æthelstan to kill two rivals, Æthelhelm and “his rotten nephew,” Ælfweard, when the king dies. Uhtred’s wife, Eadith, wants him to break that oath, but he cannot live with the dishonor of being an oathbreaker. The tale seems to begin in the middle, as though the reader had just turned the last page in the 11th book—and yet it stands alone quite well. Uhtred travels the coast and the river Temes in the good ship Spearhafoc, powered by 40 rowers struggling against tides and currents. He and his men fight furious battles, and he lustily impales foes with his favorite sword, Serpent-Breath. “I don’t kill the helpless,” though, which is one of his few limits. So, early in the story, when a man calling himself “God’s chosen one” declares “We were sent to kill you,” readers may chuckle and say yeah, right. But Uhtred faces true challenges such as Waormund, “lord Æthelhelm’s beast.” Immense bloodletting aside, Cornwell paints vivid images of the filth in the Temes and in cities like Lundene. This is mainly manly fare, of course. Few women are active characters. The queen needs rescuing, and “when queens call for help, warriors go to war.” The action is believable if often gruesome and loathsome, and it never lets up for long.
This is historical adventure on a grand scale, right up there with the works of Conn Iggulden and Minette Walters.Pub Date: Nov. 26, 2019
ISBN: 978-0-06-256321-7
Page Count: 336
Publisher: HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Sept. 1, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2019
A heartfelt tale of love too stubborn to surrender to human frailties.
When Chi Chi Donatelli gave famous crooner Saverio Armandonada a manicure on a 1930s New Jersey beach, little did she know that the swanky singer would change her life.
After his childhood sweetheart married another man, Saverio left the security of his job on the factory line in Detroit, earning his father’s disapproval but opening wide the door to success as a big-band singer. Along his way to stardom, Saverio changed his name to Tony Arma and discovered a talent for romancing—but never marrying—the ladies. But once he meets Chi Chi, his bachelor days are numbered. From a large, boisterous Italian family, Chi Chi is eager to have a life like Tony’s, with the freedom to sing and travel the country. She wants no part of marriage with its shackles. Soon Chi Chi and Tony are touring together, eventually developing a profitable shtick, with Chi Chi writing bestselling songs and Tony serenading them to dreamy audiences. It’s only a matter of time before Tony proposes. After all, unlike his other girls, Chi Chi offers Tony not only beauty and charm, but also the stability of a home. The lovers’ work in the entertainment industry gives way to a marriage blessed with babies yet held apart by war. Once reunited, Chi Chi’s independence and Tony’s philandering further fracture their marriage. But as Tony’s path wends from woman to woman, Chi Chi forges a new life on her own terms. A mistress of the sweeping family saga, bestselling author Trigiani (Kiss Carlo, 2017, etc.) sets Chi Chi and Tony’s lifelong love affair against the grand stage of World War II through the postwar boom years and the women’s liberation movement, tracing a society catching up with Chi Chi’s determination to control her own financial and personal freedom.
A heartfelt tale of love too stubborn to surrender to human frailties.Pub Date: Nov. 20, 2018
ISBN: 978-0-06-231925-8
Page Count: 464
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Aug. 20, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2018
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