Weekend Cooking (14): Review

ENGLISH TEA MURDER by Leslie Meier

My rating: 3.5 of 5 stars

It has been a while since I picked up a Lucy Stone mystery. Years ago, I read a number of books in this cozy mystery series, mostly holiday-themed entries. As these things go, I drifted away from the series, not for lack of enjoyment, but just because other series moved into the forefront, and one can only read so many cozys…or at least I can. This new offering still stars Lucy Stone, but missing is the ambiance of a small Maine town, and the family dynamic so integral to the series. I liked both those elements, and in fact, that was what made the series special for me. In the current installment Lucy travels to London, a far cry from Tinkers Cove, although she does take a few familiar friends with her, and her family’s travails make periodic appearances via e-mail.

That said, I did like this book. The Lucy Stone character has always been a favorite of mine. She is authentic: a caring wife and mother who has her foibles just like the rest of the world. She’s smart, but not to the point of being an unbelievable Sherlock Holmes clone, and Leslie Meier has had Lucy grow with the series, going through the various stages women pass through as their children and marriages age.

I have never been to London, so I enjoyed the mini-tour the book provides. I even learned a few things about British cuisine -- mushy peas? Beans for breakfast? Meier’s description of afternoon tea had my mouth watering: scones and cream are a huge favorite of mine. The mystery was interesting as well. Thirteen people are on the tour, the tour leader dies en route, and a cursory investigation by Scotland Yard rules the death the result of an allergic reaction. When two other tour members are placed in jeopardy, Lucy becomes concerned that there was more to the tour leader’s death than originally thought. While the charm of the Tinker’s Cove setting and its residents was absent from English Tea Murder, the book was still a good read, and in fact, in somewhat of an unusual ending for a cozy mystery, Meier does not neatly tie everything up in a clear black/white resolution of the question of guilt.

I am glad I have returned to the world of Lucy Stone, and I look forward to the next installment. First, I want to go back and read Wicked Witch Murder, as it is getting to be that time again.

I received a copy of English Tea Murder from Kensington Publishing Corp., through the Library Thing Members Giveaway Program. 



Weekend Cooking is a fun event hosted by Beth Fish Reads in which bloggers share food-related posts.  Stop by and see what's cooking this week!

Some giveaway winners

I am happy to announce the winners of my most recent giveaways:

Kathy from BermudaOnion's Weblog won a copy of Under Fire by Margaret McLean

Brenda from WW Stitcher won an ARC of Only Time Will Tell by Jeffrey Archer.

Congrats to Kathy and Brenda!

There's still time to enter the giveaway for Super Immunity by Joel Fuhrman, M.D.

Weekend Cooking (13): Review and Giveaway

SUPER IMMUNITY by Joel Fuhrman, M.D.

My rating:  3 of 5 stars

Is 90 is the new 70?  Perhaps.  One thing is certain -- if we are living longer, we want to be healthy for as long as possible, and as a result, there is a seemingly never-ending demand for "new" nutrition and diet books that help us get there. 
Super Immunity is not a "diet" book in the traditional weight loss sense.  It is a book about diet -- specifically, how to maximize your nutritional intake while keeping your caloric intake low.

Dr. Fuhrman promotes the "nutritarian diet" which is defined as a diet high in micronutrients per calorie. Macronutrients are the ones limited by traditional diets:  fats, proteins, and carbs.  "Micronutrients" refer to antioxidants and phytochemicals, the plant-derived immunity building substances which contribute to essential cell function in the human body.  These vitamins, minerals and enzymes found in fruits and vegetables all go to strengthening the body's immune system.   A side benefit of the nutritarian diet is that you will naturally lower your weight, as what you consume will truly satisfy your body's real appetite.

At times, I felt that this book was making some rather weighty claims (pun intended).  Dr. Fuhrman contends that his way of eating may result in less illness, faster recovery time, protection against certain cancers, and a longer, more vigorous life.  He advocates five "rules" as the bedrock of his plan:  a raw green salad and a serving of cooked/greens, mushrooms and onions daily, sufficient vitamin D intake, exercise, and avoidance of all processed foods.  The eating plan is generally a vegan one, with protein coming from nuts, beans and seeds; in this regard, he equates the nutritarian value of a piece of chicken to that of a cookie in that neither supply antioxidants or phytochemicals (p. 20).  He also stresses that many medications in widespread use for blood pressure, infections and pain may be doing more harm than good. Dr. Fuhrman includes sections on the current debates over the health effects of salt, coffee, soy and omega 3s, as well as the extent to which veganism should be deemed the best eating style.  There is a nod to the practical in that the plan allows for 10% of one's total caloric intake to be items that are low on the nutrient dense scale.  So you can have your oreos -- just not more than one or two a day.  Finally, there is a 65 page section at the end of the book dedicated to menus and recipes designed to make adopting this eating style palatable and fun.

What makes Super Immunity different from some of the more popular nutrition releases out there is its abundance of scientific explanation, which is only fitting, I suppose, given the significant medical benefits Dr. Fuhrman claims can result from this lifestyle.  I will admit that at times the minutiae of the biology, physiology and scientific research studies caused my eyes to glaze over.  For that reason, if you are new to this area, this might not be the book to start with.  On the other hand, if you are not a novice in the living better through nutrition arena, and you are looking for an in depth look at how nutrition affects the body's functioning, this is the book for you.  Dr. Fuhrman has made a compelling, thorough, and well-researched case for using nutrition as a bulwark against illness by targeting foods that strengthen the immune system.

I received a copy of Super Immunity from the publisher, HarperCollins, through TLC Book Tours.  Super Immunity was released in September 2011.

For bonus content you can text keyword “SUPERIMMUNITY” to READIT (732348)

Thanks to the generosity of HarperCollins, I have one copy of Super Immunity to give away to one lucky reader of this blog. To enter, please leave a comment on this post stating your favorite green vegetable. Entries must include an e-mail address either in the comment, or by e-mailing me at Bookgirlblog@hotmail.com. No e-mail address, no entry.  Followers of this blog will receive an additional entry. Entries limited to US/Canada only and no P.O. Boxes please.  The winner will be selected using random.org and the book will be mailed by the publisher. Winner will be notified by e-mail, and will have 72 hours to respond. If the winner does not respond within that time, another winner will be selected. Contest ends at 11:59 p.m. e.s.t. on October 4, 2011. Good luck to all!

Weekend Cooking is a fun event hosted by Beth Fish Reads in which bloggers share food-related posts.  Stop by and see what's cooking this week!

Two Winners

I'm happy to announce the two winners of recent giveaways:

Books Can Be Deceiving by Jenn McKinlay goes to Carol Wong

Turn of Mind by Alice LaPlante goes to Eliot's eats.

Congratulations to the winners!

There is still time to enter the giveaway for Only Time Will Tell, and stay tuned for a new review and giveaway coming Thursday!

Storyteller extraordinaire - GIVEAWAY

ONLY TIME WILL TELL by Jeffrey Archer

My rating:  4 of 5 stars

Many years ago I read a novel about a boy from the English slums who manages to become a wildly successful entrepreneur.  The book was a sweeping generational saga that captured my attention and kept me reading late into the night.  The name of that book was As the Crow Flies, and the author was Jeffrey Archer.  Since then, I have read a number of Archer's books, and every time, I have been treated to a wonderful story that I can dive into, with vibrant characters that seem to jump off the page.  His are the kind of books that you can sink into after a long day and lose yourself for hours, reluctantly coming up for air only when duty calls, in one form or another. 

With that sort of track record, I was thrilled to see that Jeffrey Archer had a new book out that would be the first in a multigenerational saga spanning three volumes.  The only real complaint I have with Only Time Will Tell is that at the moment the projected release date for the second volume, The Sins of the Father, is April 2012.  I wish I could start the second book today.

Harry Clifton never knew his father.  He was told that his father died in the First World War, though he knows early on that that was not possible.  Harry's working class mother, Maisie Clifton, is a gutsy woman who works hard to make ends meet, and manages to send Harry to an exclusive boarding school.  There, Harry meets son of privilege Giles Barrington, and academic superstar Algernon Deakins.  The three boys become fast friends, supporting each other through the school years and beyond. 

Fairly early on, it is clear that Giles father, Hugo Barrington, has a connection with the Clifton family that he is desperate to keep hidden.  As the story unfolds, Hugo becomes the villain you love to hate as he descends further and further into the land of the loathsome.  Watching over Harry is an enigmatic older man, Old Jack Tarrant, a shadowy presence who lives in an abandoned railway car, and yet seems to know all about the Barringtons. Eventually, a long-held family secret upends Harry's life as he is about to be married and enter the hallowed halls of Oxford.  The revelation sets in motion Harry's quest to avenge Hugo Barrington and all that he has done to affect his life.

Because this novel is so plot-driven, I am hesitant to reveal further details of the narrative for fear I might spoil the fun.  Suffice it to say that there is a little bit of everything here:  intrigue, suspicious death, lovers of the spurned and star-crossed variety, heroism, pathos, and twists and turns culminating in an ending that lofts a major curveball on the very last page.

What I will say is that Archer uses a most interesting narrative device.  The book is divided into large sections told from the perspective of each of the prominent characters:  Maisie, Hugo, Old Jack, Harry, and Giles.  The sections cover, in part, some of the same events through different eyes.  You would think that this would be redundant, but on the contrary, it adds to the suspense, because each person's story fills in facts that were deliberately left out in the previous recounting.  I will admit that there were times when I found myself thinking that I had missed something, only to realize in the next section that it was an intentional omission,not my lack of concentration.  Once I recognized the storytelling pattern, I looked forward to seeing what I would discover in the next person's interpretation.  I will say, though, that this device might become tedious if it is carried into the next two entries in the series:  too much of a good thing, and all that.

For all you readers out there who are looking for a good, old-fashioned saga, an earnest protagonist,  a formidable mother that has a heart of gold that you can't help but root for, and a detestable foil whose downfall you eagerly anticipate, look no further than Only Time Will Tell.  Jeffrey Archer has done it again.  Let's hear it for the British!

I received an advance reader's edition of Only Time Will Tell from the publisher, St. Martin's Press.  Only Time Will Tell was released in September of 2011.

Thanks to the generosity of St. Martin's Press, I have one advanced reader's edition of Only Time Will Tell to give away to a lucky reader of this blog. To enter, please leave a comment on this post. Entries must include an e-mail address either in the comment, or by e-mailing me at Bookgirlblog@hotmail.com. Followers of this blog will receive an additional entry. Entries limited to U.S. residents only and no P.O. Boxes please.  The winner will be selected using random.org and the book will be mailed by the publisher. Winner will be notified by e-mail, and will have 72 hours to respond. If the winner does not respond within that time, another winner will be selected. Contest ends at 11:59 p.m. e.s.t. on September 27, 2011. Good luck to all!

Gripping courtroom fiction - GIVEAWAY

UNDER FIRE by Margaret McLean

My rating:  3.5 of  5 stars

In this third novel by former Boston prosecutor Margaret McLean, readers are drawn into the worlds of arson investigation and criminal defense through the human story of an immigrant victimized by the predatory actions of a large developer.  Amina Diallo, a Senegalese woman, is charged with setting fire to her food market in order to avoid losing it to foreclosure proceedings, and with the murder of a fireman who was shot as he tried to rescue Diallo and her son.  From the outset, it is clear to the reader both that Diallo knows more about the events than she is willing to say and that there was someone there the night of the fire who intends to do her harm.

Given the author's background, I expected the courtroom scenes to be interesting and authentic, and I was not disappointed.  The surprise for me was her wonderful characterizations:  this novel is peppered with vibrant, likeable personalities.  There is Buddy Clancy, the charming and sharp as a tack defense attorney who wears bow ties that convey subtle messages to the jury, and his co-counsel and niece Sarah Lynch, a former assistant district attorney who is still suffering guilt over the death of her boyfriend and colleague four years earlier in a witness interview that went bad.  Lynch's interactions with her uncle Buddy and his dog Rehnquist are heartwarming, and offer welcome moments of comic relief in an otherwise intense and dark narrative.  McLean has also created a fascinating character in Sgt. Frank Brady, the state police fire investigator, who has a thing for Sarah, and must wrestle with his feelings when he learns that she has traded on their friendship to get evidence to help Diallo.

There are multiple threads to this story, and at times the plot line becomes somewhat convoluted because there are so many possible angles to the story.  That minor quibble aside, I thoroughly enjoyed reading about the intricacies of fire investigation and the machinations underpinning the trial proceedings.  I particularly liked the author's innovative choice to convey the trial action, at times, through the voices of individual jurors.  Not only was this an interesting way to move the action along, but it also powerfully illustrated how a juror's perception of trial evidence will inevitably be shaped by his or her own personal history.

If you like courtroom thrillers where the characters are as equally important as the action, I recommend you give Under Fire a try.  I myself am looking forward to seeing Buddy and Sarah in action again.  And Rehnquist too, of course.  

I received a finished copy of Under Fire from the publisher, Forge/ Tom Doherty Associates.  Under Fire was released in June of 2011.

Thanks to the generosity of the publisher, I have one copy of Under Fire to give away to one lucky reader of this blog. To enter, please leave a comment on this post. Entries must include an e-mail address either in the comment, or by e-mailing me at Bookgirlblog@hotmail.com. Followers of this blog will receive an additional entry. Giveaway limited to US/Canada residents only, and no P.O. Boxes please.  The winner will be selected using random.org and the book will be mailed by the publisher. Winner will be notified by e-mail, and will have 72 hours to respond. If the winner does not respond within that time, another winner will be selected. Contest ends at 11:59 p.m. e.s.t. on September 20, 2011. Good luck to all!

Another 2011 Five Star Read -- GIVEAWAY

TURN OF MIND by Alice LaPlante

My rating:  5 of  5 stars

Finishing this book, I was speechless. This profoundly moving debut novel is the second book that I have read this year that I know will be in my top ten of 2011.  Alice LaPlante has done something truly amazing in Turn of Mind. 

Like peering through rheumy eyes, the world fades in and out. For the moment, the veil lifts, and all is clear and in focus. And then the veil descends, and the world is obscured. That's the world that former orthopedic hand surgeon Dr. Jennifer White lives in as she falls deeper into the abyss that is Alzheimer's. Just how far removed from reality Dr. White is becomes the issue when her best friend Amanda is found dead, her fingers neatly severed. Could Dr. White be responsible?

I picked this one up primarily because of the "murder mystery," but the truth is that the "did she kill her?" angle is not really the point or the focus of the book.  The revelation of the truth surrounding Amanda's death is somewhat of a twist, but not really such a surprise.  Instead, the  devastating impact of the novel is in its heartbreakingly accurate portrayal of how life will end for this esteemed doctor tormented by the fragmentation of her jumbled mind.

There are no chapters in Turn of Mind. Instead, the narrative moves along through free flowing conversation, journal entries, and observations of Jennifer and those around her. This structure allows LaPlante to have Jennifer fade in and out of lucidity, in a narration that perfectly suits its subject.

Describing the decades long relationship that Jennifer and Amanda have as a friendship seems a bit of a stretch -- do friends do the things these two do to each other? I think not.  Neither of these women is particularly appealing. Jennifer is manipulative, harsh, and at times, terrifying, but she is nuanced as well.  For example, playing to stereotype, one might expect this accomplished surgeon to be intimidating, but in fact, over the years, Jennifer is repeatedly intimidated by the older Amanda. While the reader never hears from Amanda --she is dead when the book opens -- LaPlante skillfully manages to create a character that engenders an abundance of feeling. Amanda is in a word, despicable.   What is so unique about this novel is LaPlante's adeptness at bringing a character to life solely through the recollections of another. The fact that the recollector is such a fragmented character herself is what makes the manner in which Amanda is portrayed all the more wondrous.

LaPlante's depiction of what it is like for someone suffering from Alzheimer's puts me in mind of the stunning portrait of autism contained in House Rules.   With the help of ancillary characters, LaPlante shows how this horrific disease touches the surviving family members -- how it is not just dealing with forgetfulness, but the fact that a loved one, who looks the same, is in fact a different person, and often one that is hard to control.

I am simply floored by this book.  Truly in awe of what she has created here.  Her next book cannot come fast enough for me.

I received an advance reader's edition of Turn of Mind from the publisher, Grove/Atlantic.  Turn of Mind was released in July of 2011.

Thanks to the generosity of Grove/Atlantic, I have one copy of Turn of Mind to give away to one lucky reader of this blog.  To enter, please leave a comment on this post.  Entries must include an e-mail address either in the comment, or by e-mailing me at Bookgirlblog@hotmail.com.  Followers of this blog will receive an additional entry.  Entries limited to U.S. residents only and no P.O. Boxes please.  The winner will be selected using random.org and the book will be mailed by the publisher.  Winner will be notified by e-mail, and will have 72 hours to respond.  In the event the winner does not respond within that time, another winner will be selected.  Contest ends at 11:59 p.m. e.s.t. on September 17, 2011.  Good luck to all!

Some winners

Congratulations to the two winners of An Accident in August by Laurence Cosse

Julie from Knitting and Sundries

Audra from Unabridged Chick

And congratulations to the winner of Ellis Island by Kate Kerrigan

kimyunalesca from In times like these

There is still time to enter the giveaway for Books Can Be Deceiving, and stay tuned for a giveaway of what will surely be one of my top ten reads of 2011.