MrsK Books: 05/01/2016

Monday, May 30, 2016

The Mountain Midwife by Laurie Alice Eackes

Title: The Mountain Midwife, Author: Laurie Alice Eakes

ISBN: 9780310333449

Publisher's Synopsis:

For nearly two hundred years, women in Ashley Tolliver’s family have practiced the art of midwifery in their mountain community. Now she wants to take her skills a step further, but attending medical school means abandoning those women to whom she has dedicated her life, the mountains she loves, and the awakening of her heart.

Ashley Tolliver has tended to the women of her small Appalachian community for years. As their midwife, she thinks she has seen it all. Until a young woman gives birth at Ashley’s home and is abducted just as Ashley tries to take the dangerously bleeding mother to the nearest hospital. Now Ashley is on a mission to find the woman and her newborn baby . . . before it’s too late.

Hunter McDermott is on a quest—to track down his birth mother. After receiving more media attention than he could ever want for being in the right place at the right time, he receives a mysterious phone call from a woman claiming to be his mother. Hunter seeks out the aid of the local midwife in the mountain town where the phone call originated—surely she can shed some light on his own family background.

Ashley isn’t prepared for the way Hunter’s entrance into her world affects her heart and her future. He reignites dreams of having her own family that she has long put aside in favor of earning her medical degree and being able to do even more for her community. But is it commitment to her calling or fear of the unknown that keeps her feet firmly planted in the Appalachian soil? Or is it something more—fear of her growing feelings for Hunter—that makes her hesitant to explore the world beyond the mountains?

"The doorbell rang sometime after midnight...

But this was the double-toned chime of the doorbell in the darkness, and that meant trouble."

MrsK's Review:
Answering the door late at night was what Ashley does. Given that generations of midwives coursed through her DNA, Ashley cared for those in need. That's what being a midwife is all about, especially in her Appalachian community and the mountains. Caught between being the community midwife and wanting to be a doctor, Ashley will be driven into decisions that will matter to so many lives.

That night, when so much went wrong was a turning point in Ashley's life. To have the safety of your home, the place where women came to deliver their in children safely, victimized and shrouded in mystery was unnerving. Add in the mysterious Hunter McDemott and his quest in finding his birth mother and sister... life as Ashley knew it was about to change forever.

In the community of Brooksburg, Hunter will discover truths about the type of life his birth mother lived, about the depths of being a son, about the blessings of family, and about trusting a woman to the point of surrender. For Ashley, love just might be knocking on her door at a time in her life when she was once again accepted into medical school.

"I was just...assaulted..."

It was like that night when the Davis' first showed up. This house was her practice, everyone knew how to find her. For now leaving to become a doctor looked better and better. That is until Hunter needed her guidance up and down the mountain. Locating a mysterious unidentified birth mother needed someone with insight, knowledge of the area, and a way beyond closed doors.

Smoothly written, the life of a midwife in the Appalachian mountains is difficult, fulfilling, maddenly-frustrating, life-threatening, and filled with moments of hope. Reading a story that isn't a normal pick often leads to a discovery beyond prior experiences, yet, linked to a familar journey within...

MrsK

"I think you'd better call the sheriff.
My patient and her baby have disappeared."

Worthy read for a lazy afternoon.

Meet the Author:

“Eakes has a charming way of making her novels come to life without being over the top,” writes Romantic times of bestselling, award-winning author Laurie Alice Eakes. Since she lay in bed as a child telling herself stories, she has fulfilled her dream of becoming a published author, with a degree in English and French from Asbury University and a master’s degree in writing fiction from Seton Hill University contributing to her career path. Now she has nearly two dozen books in print.

After enough moves in the past five years to make U-Haul’s stock rise, she now lives in Houston, Texas, where she and her husband are exploring their new neighborhood. Although they haven’t been blessed with children—yet--they have sundry lovable dogs and cats. If the carpet is relatively free of animal fur, then she is either frustrated with the current manuscript, or brainstorming another, the only two times she genuinely enjoys housework.

"I received this book for free from the Fiction Guild for this review."

Brooklyn On Fire by Lawrence H. Levy

Lawrence H Levy

ISBN: 9780553418941

Publisher's Synopsis:

Brooklyn’s most witty and daring detective risks everything to solve a dangerous triple-murder case

After closing a case with the Brooklyn Police Department, Mary Handley is determined to become an official detective in her own right. And when Emily Worsham shows up at her new office— convinced her uncle John Worsham was murdered and desperate for answers—Mary’s second assignment begins.

As she investigates the curious circumstances surrounding John’s death, Mary soon finds herself entangled in a high-stakes family scandal, a series of interconnected murders, political corruption, untrustworthy sources, and an unexpected romance with a central member of New York's elite.

Featuring historic figures like Andrew Carnegie, John D. Rockefeller, and the Vanderbilt family, Brooklyn on Fire takes Mary on a wild journey from New York City to North Carolina to uncover not only the truth of one man's death, but to unravel the mystery in three murders – with links tied perilously close to her own personal world.

MrsK's Review:

Who is Mary Handley? Well she is as clever as Sherlock. She is quite adorable. She is inquisitive and wise in discernment's concerning character. Which by the way is why she is a Consulting Detective for the Brooklyn Police Department. As a salesclerk for Lazlo's Books, she is ready to begin her investigative services in her new office. Mr. Lazlo believes that many customers will enter the bookstore in need of Mary's service, so an agreement was made that she could locate her office in the back of his bookstore since there was a possibility of "elevating someone's intellectual pursuits" as they sought Mary's services and perused the inviting titles upon his shelves (which by the way I fully agree is an excellent business arrangement).

With such outstanding traits, Mary tends to "step" into the craziest... life-threatening situations. Mary's second mystery begins when Miss Emily Worsham requests assistance in proving the murder of her great-uncle John. Solving a murder case entails so many different twists and turns, yet solving a 20 year old murder will not be completely accepted by the Police Department, relatives, nor the "elite" society that may have benefited from the murder.

Even though it is 1890, the Brooklyn Daily Eagle has failed to mention the murder of Gabrielle Evans. The Huttington's are powerful, rich, and willing to do anything to keep their status. So would murder be out of the question? Has Archer Huttington's quest for the truth about his father's death (John Worsham) set off more cover-ups? Will an attack on Mr. Lazlo quiet Mary? Will Superintendent Campbell help Mary exhume John's body? For Mary, too many strands were getting tangled, including the new attention of one George Vanderbilt!
Events unfold quickly once an actress is stabbed. Now Mary's list of unanswered questions has grown out of control, as well the list of suspects.

Nothing is as it appears, the plot continues to plummet into a depth of corruption that is mind-boggling. The one consistent thread will be found in Mary's character. As a team, George and Mary will get to the truth and untangle all of the threads. What will be revealed is the moment in which the reader realizes how entertained they have been with a read such as this!
Enjoy a mystery in which all are players...
Including the reader,
MrsK

"When traveling, dining, or really doing anything with a Vanderbilt,
there was generally only one class--the best and the finest."

An enjoyable and entertaining read!

http://www.lawrencehlevy.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/MaryHandley_Map.jpg

Title: Second Street Station (Mary Handley Series #1), Author: Lawrence H. Levy

click to read more

Meet the Author:

LAWRENCE H. LEVY is a highly regarded film and TV writer who is a Writers Guild Award winner and two-time Emmy nominee. He has written for various hit TV shows such as Family Ties, Saved by the Bell, Roseanne, and Seinfeld. Brooklyn on Fire is his second novel.

Read an excerpt

"I received this book from Blogging for Books for this review."

MrsK's Reading Bio

Reading is important! No questions asked, not even a blink of the eye from any student I grew up with. On the first day of the First grade, we were given our first books. Day two we all read aloud, round robin of course. Day three we were place in our first basal, now known as a lit circle group. Books were so important, publishers designed new curriculum so that every student was reading by the end of the first week. These early readers had images that looked like what we could see in the classroom, beyond the classroom, even on the big screen. Reading is important, throughout history every generation has believed that “Reading” opens up the world for endless possibilities.

I adore the 1950’s Dick and Jane books. Actually, most reading specialists and experienced (45+) educators believe that every student learned to read with Dick and Jane. Since these books are being re-issued, I have heard many parents, grandparents, and students claim that Dick and Jane stories of repetition does teach students to read.

Early influences from my mother influenced my desire to read. I would watch her read and we would go on “secret” excursions to the library. The library became my playground. I owned every book I could carry home, of course they needed to be taken back to their home after visiting with me for a week or two. My first book that I could pull off of the library shelf and read was, Father Bear Comes Home. I only saw my dad on Sundays for a few hours. I would pull this beginning reader off of the library shelf every week. Every week I would try to read the first chapter. Every week I got further in the story. My mom would let me check it out, only if I could read it myself (She didn’t like the illustrations therefore she didn’t want to take time to read it to me). One day, I pulled the book from the shelf and when mom came to get me from the children’s corner, I realized that I had read the whole story. I ran to the check out desk and the Librarian KERCHUNKED the checkout card. My mother, brother and neighbors read. My teachers read. We all read aloud all day long in school. The Priest read aloud every day at mass, even in Latin. Everybody in the Doctor’s office read. People on the bus read. Dad’s waiting in their cars as the Mom’s and children grocery shopped, read. In fact, once you could read and write, Sunset Magazine considered you a reader and sent you mail every day.

Reading is important; I’ve spent my life reading. I’ve traveled around the world and into space through books. My favorite genre is whichever book I have open at the time. Children’s Literature is my passion. Book clubbing is one of the best past times, especially if food is involved. In fact my friends of old are in a book club and we are about to embark on a beach trip to “read” and discuss our newest selection.

My “home-run” book story has helped every student find his or her own “home-run” reads. Every year, I have shared my, Father Bear Comes Home, and every year my students have brought in their “home-run” books. That’s the “diving board” into our Lit. Studies.

In “Growing Up Digital,” Tapscott’s insights into the new generations enthusiasm for the Net reminded me of my generation’s enthusiasm for reading, movies, TV, parties and our driving permits. The Net-Generation, as Tapscott describes, “are learning, playing, communicating, working, creating communities, and enforcing a social transformation.”
N-Geners are interactive “techies” who are always looking for a way to “work it” verses the TV Generation of “Baby Boomers” who started out looking for “how it works.” Reading development is tougher today, society moves too fast to invest their “non-working” free time into a book or even “home work.” Since I stepped into my own classroom, I have seen students being told to read, being forced to read, and threatened into reading. Homework is not any longer the vehicle for students to gain their future lifestyles or careers with. Yet, the Internet does create an enthusiasm for learning. Since I have been enrolled in these courses, I have used the computers in every subject. My students are using the newest technology in the classroom because I am giving them investigative sites to use as they learn from each other and books. I agree with Tapscott, in order to bridge the gap with this up and coming generation we must “live and learn with them.”

FTC Required Disclaimer: I receive these books from the publishers. I did not receive monetary compensation for these reviews. These reviews have been posted in compliance with the FTC requirements set forth in the Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising (available at ftc.gov/os/2009/10/091005revisedendorsementguides.pdf)