Review of "What Lies In The Woods: A Novel of Suspense" by Kate Alice Marshall

Thirtysomething Naomi Shaw is a wedding photographer living in Seattle, Washington.

Naomi has scars on her face and a tendency to hook up with the wrong men, partly because of a horrific childhood incident. Twenty-two years ago, when Naomi was eleven-years-old and living in Chester, Washington, she was attacked by a serial killer and stabbed 17 times. Naomi was traumatized and has been struggling to cope ever since.



Now the serial killer, Allan Michael Stahl, has died in prison, and Naomi is drawn back to Chester, where her childhood secrets reside.



Naomi's life in Chester was never easy. She was brought up by an alcoholic father whose hoarding filled the house with junk. Moreover, Naomi's dad couldn't keep a job or put food on the table. So Naomi often stayed at the homes of her two best friends, Cassidy (Cass) and Olivia (Liv), where she ate, slept, and often found a five-dollar-bill stuffed into her coat pocket.



Unfortunately, Naomi also had to deal with Cass's brother Oscar, a teenage bully who thought he could get away with anything because his father was the mayor.



When Naomi, Cass, and Liv were eleven they became enthralled with mysticism and spent most of their free time playing 'The Goddess Game.'



The girls pictured themselves as Greek goddesses, and they'd ramble through the woods and leave offerings in 'magical places.' One such place was a small hidden cave where the girls had found something (they thought) worthy of their gifts - something they SHOULDN'T have kept secret, but they did.



One night, when the girls were near the secret cave, Naomi was attacked by a man with a knife. Cass and Liv saw the event from a short distance, but could do nothing to stop it. Naomi - who was left for dead - was rescued by a local teenage boy and taken to the hospital.

The sheriff was sure the perpetrator was the serial killer Allan Michael Stahl, and when the cops showed Stahl's photo to Cass, Liv, and Naomi, they agreed he was the attacker. In the end, the girls' testimony at trial - especially Naomi's - sent Stahl to prison for life.



Now, 22 years later, Stahl is dead and Naomi isn't certain he was the perpetrator. Naomi's memories of the attack are extremely hazy and she may have 'gone with the flow' when Stahl was accused of the crime. Naomi's friend Liv has doubts as well, and hints she has more to say about the incident.

Naomi decides to reinvestigate the stabbing, and forms an alliance with a true crime podcaster named Ethan Shreiber to do just that.



As Naomi goes about her inquiries she comes across many residents from her previous life in Chester, and suspects one of these people may have tried to kill her. Another death complicates matters, as does the secret that's been kept by Naomi and her friends for decades.



As it turns out secrets abound in Chester, and some ot them are quite surprising.

The author has put together a good cast of characters and a fine plot. My major criitcism of the novel lies with the climax, which is too long and drawn out. When the killer is revealed, I like it to be quick and concise, without a lot of excessive blathering.

Still, this is a good mystery that would appeal to many fans of the genre.

I listened to the audiobook, narrated by Karissa Vacker, whose recital is appropriately whispery and sinister.

Thanks to Netgalley, Kate Alice Marshall, and Macmillan Audio for a copy of the novel.

 Rating: 3.5 stars

Review of "Mad Honey: A Novel" by Jodi Picoult and Jennifer Finney Boylan

This book is a collaboration between co-authors Jodi Picoult and Jennifer Finney Boylan.


Jodi Picoult (left) and Jennifer Finney Boylan

Jody Picoult's novels always feature a 'big topic' - such as racism, the Covid pandemic, elephant intelligence, etc. In this book the topic is beekeeping, and the book provides a fascinating picture of this profession as part of the story.

*****

Olivia McAfee left her abusive husband - a successful cardiac surgeon named Braden Fields - when she feared his violence might spread to their six-year-old son Asher.





Olivia and Asher fled Boston and moved to Olivia's hometown of Adams, New Hampshire, where Olivia took over her late father's beekeeping business. Asher is now a senior at Adams High School, a star athlete, and a good student.

Ava Campanello and her daughter Lily also moved to Adams, New Hampshire to get away from an abusive husband and father. Ava is a Forest Ranger, and had to sacrifice some of her beloved field work for a desk job, but was happy to do it for Lily's well-being.



In New Hampshire, Lily enters Adams High School as a senior, and plays cello in the school band. Lily and Asher Fields soon meet and start dating.



Asher and Lily become a couple, and engage in the usual behavior of teens in love. Both adolescents harbor secrets, however, which leads to the occasional misunderstanding and disagreement. Then one day Lily is found dead at the bottom of a staircase, and Asher is arrested for her murder.



Asher insists he's innocent, but the authorities accumulate enough evidence to take him to trial. Olivia's brother Jordan McAfee, a renowned defense attorney, takes Asher's case and carefully crafts a trial strategy for his nephew. Thus part of the book is a courtroom drama, and I enjoyed the parrying between the prosecution and defense.



Meanwhile, the residents of Adams see Olivia as 'the mother of the murderer', and Olivia experiences vandalism as well as public disapprobation and abuse.



The story is told in the alternating voices of Olivia and Lily, with Olivia's story going forward from 'the day of the incident' and Lily's story proceeding backward from 'the day of the incident.' This might seem confusing but it works well. We experience Olivia's angst and trepidation for her son.....



.....and relive Lily's experiences at Adams High School and her memories of a fraught childhood.



We also learn everyone's secrets, and one of these forms the heart of the novel.

The story is interspersed with scenes of Olivia tending her beehives, which provides a fascinating peek into this line of work. It's fun to learn that Olivia names all her queen bees after female divas: Adele, Beyoncé, Lady Gaga, Whitney, Mariah, Taylor, Britney, Miley, Aretha, Ariana, Sia, Dionne, Cher, and Katy.



My major cavil is that the novel is repetitive and overlong. Nevertheless, the story addresses current topics of interest with sensitivity and is well worth reading.

Rating: 3.5 stars

Review of "All The Dangerous Things: A Psychological Thriller" by Stacy Willingham

Freelance writer Isabelle Drake thought she had the ideal life.

A wonderful husband Ben;



a beloved 18-month-son Mason;



a beautiful home in Savannah, Georgia, etc.



Then one year ago, when Isabelle and Ben were sound asleep, little Mason was taken from his crib....and Isabelle's life spiraled into despair.



Since Mason disappeared, Isabelle's only sleep has been brief catnaps, and her days have been consumed with searching for her son. Savannah Police Detective Arthur Dozier appears to be making no progress with the case.....



....so Isabelle takes it upon herself to speak at true-crime conferences, her only recompense being a list of attendees....which might include the kidnapper.



Isabelle's dining room wall resembles a police whiteboard, with photos of friends, acquaintances, neighbors, sex offenders, crime conference attendees, and other people of interest - including information about them from the internet, newspapers, social media, and so on. Isabelle obsesses over her 'research', in hopes of identifying the perpetrator.



Both the police and Isabelle's husband Ben urge her to move on, and Isabelle's marriage has fallen apart. Ben is now living elsewhere and dabbling in the dating scene.

Isabelle feels she has no supporters until she meets a true crime podcaster named Waylon Spencer. Waylon once solved a cold case, and he and Isabelle form an alliance in hopes of discovering what happened to Mason.



The story skips back and forth between the past and present, and we learn that young Isabelle lived in Buford, Georgia with her parents and little sister Margaret. As a youngster, Isabelle was a sleepwalker who could never recall her nighttime ramblings.



We also discover that Isabelle's romance with Ben started as a sort of 'platonic affair' when he was married to his first wife.



The book is full of twists, most of which I didn't anticipate. So well done Stacy Willingham.

This is a gripping psychological thriller that would appeal to many fans of the genre.

Thanks to Netgalley, Stacy Willingham, and Minotaur Books for a copy of the novel.

Rating: 4 stars

Review of "The Favor: A Novel of Suspense" by Nora Murphy

 Leah Dawson, a lawyer.....

.....and McKenna Hawkins, a pediatrician, are well-educated women who never imagined they would be the victims of domestic abuse.



However both women find themselves in toxic marriages, and they don't see a way out.

Leah's husband Liam is a successful attorney.....



.....and McKenna's spouse Zackary is a flourishing psychiatrist. During the courtship period both men seem ideal: handsome, thoughtful, caring, successful; etc.



After Leah and Liam marry, however, Liam proceeds to isolate his wife from her family and friends; gets Leah fired from her job; relegates Leah to a locked bedroom in the basement; tracks Leah's activities; limits Leah's access to money; and finally becomes violent.



To cope with the terrible situation Leah drinks vodka all day long, and there's barely a moment when she's completely sober.



McKenna and Zachary's union follows a similar path. After McKenna suffers a miscarriage early in the marriage, Zachary - whose self-image requires 'the perfect family' - segregates McKenna from her friends and relatives; makes McKenna quit her job; installs an app to track McKenna's phone; takes complete charge of the couple's finances; and so on - supposedly to insure a successful pregnancy next time.



Leah and McKenna each think about divorce, but they know their attractive, successful, husbands - who are well-liked in the outside world - can 'gaslight' people to make their wives look bad (if not crazy). Moreover, the men have the resources to make divorce proceedings extremely difficult. In addition, Liam shows his wife a gun, and threatens to kill Leah's mother if Leah leaves him.



Though both couples live in the same Maryland suburb, Leah and McKenna don't know each other. Serendipitously, however, Leah is making her usual liquor store run when she happens to see McKenna in the same shop. Leah - who's puffy and disheveled from drinking - notes that McKenna, who's svelte, well-dressed, blonde, and blue-eyed, looks like a previous incarnation of Leah herself.....in her happier days.

Leah impulsively decides to follow McKenna home, and she parks where she can see into McKenna's house. This activity becomes an obsession for Leah, and she repeatedly spies on the other woman.



To make a long story short, Leah - who knows the signs of domestic abuse from her own sorry situation - notes that McKenna is being bullied by Zachary..... and Leah impetuously takes action.

That's all I can say without major spoilers.

At the end of the book the author Nora Murphy - who's a family law attorney - notes that domestic abuse is endemic, and not confined to people of low socioeconomic status. Murphy observes, "abuse also occurs in many relationships marked by high levels of education and affluence....For these types of relationships, financial and psychological abuse may be more common than physical abuse, sexual abuse, or stalking. Thus it may be more hidden, more difficult to prove." Thus springs the idea for this book.

The story is a fast-moving page-turner, recommended to fans of domestic thrillers.

Thanks to Netgalley, Nora Murphy, and Minotaur Books for a copy of the novel.

Rating: 3.5 stars

Review of "Clouds Without Water: A Novel" by Garry Harper

 

It's the mid-19th century and Calvary, New York is a farming town with God-fearing residents who attend a Baptist chapel called Calvary Church every Sunday.



The church was founded by Reverend Samuel Miller.....



......whose designated successor is his son William.



William leaves Calvary to attend the seminary, and - after the death of Reverend Samuel - the church is temporarily led by Brother Thomas Aleman. Meanwhile, William studies the scriptures for two decades, then returns to Calvary in 1844 to take his rightful place as head of the congregation.

Brother William's biblical studies convince him the End-of-Days is imminent. He preaches that every moment leading up to the End-of-Days is captured in the scriptures, and the Second Coming of Jesus will be preceded by horrors and havoc.



The pastor goes on to say he's calculated the exact date of the Second Coming, which will occur in six months.....on October 22, 1844. This gives Calvary citizens a mere half-year to prepare their souls for salvation.



Some residents of Calvary subscribe to Brother William's proselytizing, while others are skeptical. Doubters include Pastor Thomas Aleman - who clandestinely tries to get the Baptist Convention to censure Brother William;



Henry Smith - a widowed farmer raising three children, one of whom has severe breathing problems;



and Helen Chandler - the oldest woman in Calvary and a descendant of the town's founding familes. In fact Helen declares to the congregation that Brother William is a charlatan.



Brother William's advocates feel vindicated when 'calamities' start to descend on Calvary. First, non-believer Helen and her daughter are walking down the street when lightning strikes Helen and she's killed, her flesh burned away. Champions of Brother William believe this is a sign from God.



The believers' feelings are reinforced when a torrent of locusts sweeps across Calvary, devouring all the grain fit for human consumption. This leaves many residents impoverished and struggling to feed their familes.



As time passes, Brother William attracts more and more followers, especially after Josiah Young - owner and editor of a struggling newspaper called the Calvary Crier - devotes his paper to the Second Coming;



and the schoolmarm Mrs. Edwards begins to exclusively teach Brother Williams sermons.



The pastor's followers develop a cult mentality. Many start dressing in long white robes with hoods that shroud their faces. They also give up their usual activities to pray at church all day, hoping God will deem them worthy of saving.



Followers of Brother William are absolutely convinced about their beliefs, and NOTHING will dissuade them. Believers will say and do anything to prove they're right, and the situation in Calvary grows dark.

The author seems to be very familiar with the scriptures, and the novel contains MANY pages of sermons and biblical chatter. This gets tedious and slows down the story.

Still this is an interesting novel, well worth reading, especially in the current climate, where huge lies are disseminated as truth.

Thanks to Netgalley and Garry Harper for a copy of the book.

Rating: 3.5 stars