Another First Time Author - John J. Le Beau

Charles Hirter was an American tourist. He was exploring the countryside in the Bavararian Alps region. Later we find out his grandparents had come to America from Germany. While he was here he was in a habit to hike around the countryside during the day to see everything. His last day he hiked into the mountains. When the weather started to get bad he found a hidden cave and went in for the shelter. While he was there, he made a discovery - a discovery that would result in him being murdered.

This is how Collision of Evil starts out. This book was the first novel written by John J. Le Beau. This is my first time to review a book by an author of this type. As I have said in the past, it is always good to know what you are writing about and this author definitely has a background from which he writes.

John J. Le Beau's background includes the time in the Army and time in the CIA. He has spent time in Europe as well as the Middle East. If you are interested in learning more about the author, check out this page on his website http://www.j-j-lebeau.com/Page/Biography.html.

A single word that bests describes or catagorizes this book is a thriller. A whole lots of things after the murder Charles Hirter and the discovery of his body. The officer responsible for investigating this murder is Kommissar Franz Waldbaer. He is also responsible for notifying the next of kin - Robert Hirter - the brother of the murdered tourist. Shortley after Robert Hirter arrives, the Kommissar learns he is dealing with more than a grieving brother and an unexplained murder.

Robert Hirter is very interested in learning the cause for his brother's death and getting revenge for it. And as the Kommissar is to discover, he is going to need somebody with Robert Hirter's connections to solve this mystery. Back in the states, Charles Hirter is a CIA officer - a fact he reveals after he and the Kommissar learn there is more to the murder of the tourist. The murder was to coverup what was hidden in the cave and what was in the cave was moved shortly afterwards to keep it a secret.

This secret from the past SS days is about to be brought into the present by a group of terrorists. Unless they can find this secret, a lot of people will likely die. An unofficial alliance is made to stop this from happening.

There are a lot of twists and secrets revealed in this book. It is impossible to reveal these in this short review. However, let me say I would highly recommend you read the book and make the discoveries for yourself.

NEW RELEASE by Sharon Potts - In Their Blood

COMING IN SEPT 2009. It's a new release by Sharon Potts. And you can see it is called In Their Blood.

This is a very special book for the author. The reason it is so special is because it is her first novel. After getting the opportunity to read the book before it is actually released, I must say I was impressed. The author definitely put her best foot forward and spent a lot of time getting it right. Here is the link to the author's web page - http://www.sharonpotts.com/.

Let me tell you a little about the story. First, the protagonist is Jeremy Stroeb - a son. He dropped out of college in his senior year and went travelling in Europe because he was dissatisfied. He was not ready to be responsible and live a life like his parents did. He once had a good relationship with his father but the relationship was now strained because his dad wanted him to come back home and be responsible.

His mom and dad (and sister) just return from a trip to Europe - after trying to convince him to return home. It takes the events that occur that night to bring the young Jeremy back home.

His sister, Elise snuck out of the house that night to go see her boyfriend. While she was gone, somebody came into the house and kills the parents. It was the death of his parents that makes Jeremy come back home. But Jeremy half suspects the joke is on him and that he will return to find out his parents are not dead - and this only angers him.

When he discovers his parents are indeed dead, he experiences some remorse and is determined to find out who murdered his parents and why. To top it off he learns that his Uncle Dwight has been named as the alternate guardian for his sister - provided Jeremy does not take that responsibility. Why does this frustrate him? One because his parents have placed him in this position. Also because his uncle says Jeremy can not handle the responsibility. His uncle and aunt never had kids because they chose not to. Now they are going to accept this responsibility (and the estate that come with it).

By all appearances it seems Jeremy is going to accept responsibility and his uncle vows to prove he is irresponsible. Jeremy gets a job with the accounting firm his mother had worked at and he registers for evening classes at the school where his dad was a professor at. He was intent on finding out if the murderer was somebody who worked with either his mom or dad. What he did not expect was to discover things he did not know about his parents.

Needless to say, there are a number of potential suspects. And there are a number of things Jeremy has to learn along the way.

This is all I am going to say about the story - don't want to give it away. But there is a quotation I have heard before - Keep your friends close and your enemies closer!! Good quote but sometimes it may be difficult to distinguish between the two.

A final thought - this review cannot do justice for the book - it's merits stand on it's own!!! Great job by a new author.

WORMWOOD by Susan Wittig Albert

I know ... I know. The title of this post is direct and to the point. It is the title of the book (Wormwood) I read and the author's name (Susan Wittig Albert). I usually have something different for my post title but sometimes ... what can you do.

This is the latest book in the China Bayles mystery series (number 17) and I do love this series. Yes ... Susan Albert is one of those Texas authors and China Bayles is one of those Texas characters I love to read about.

(By the way, thanks again to Meadowview Thymes for introducing me to the China Bayles series.)

I remember hearing there were some complaints about this book. I do not know specifically what the complaints were. Now that I have read the book, I have NO clue as to what the complaints might have been about.

The author did some interesting things in this book - and with China. When China goes away to get away from it all, she just finds herself in the big Middle of not just one mystery but also a mystery from the past. It was interesting to see the parallels between what happened in the past and what happened in China's present. Even China finds herself in a dream connection with the past.

I must say I was not that familiar with the Shaker culture but Susan Albert (and China) definitely gave me a taste of it. I thought the format used by Susan Albert in the book was good. There were chapters involving China (in this historic Shaker village) interspersed with chapters about the story in the past. Sometimes these chapters about the past were just letters and journal entries from the past but that made it more historical and gave it validity - since this Shaker village was a tourist attraction similar to the Alamo.

Finally, I think Susan Albert did a great job in making China a little more human - somebody we can relate to. That is why I enjoy reading mysteries - what about you?

Reading: Brought To You By ....

School starts back up REAL soon and this brings to mind a saying I have heard (or seen) somewhere. If you can read this, thank a teacher. It is a simple and short saying but it certainly does not say it all. A teacher does more than teach how to read.

Let me go ahead and say this to ALL teachers now ... THANK YOU!!! I want to share with you about two of my former teachers and then I will tell you why.

The first teacher I want to tell you about is Mrs Sullivan. She was my 4th period English teacher at Kirby Jr. High in Houston, TX. She was also the faculty person responsible for the school newspaper. One day she gave us an assignment - to write a story for the school newspaper. I do not remember the specifics but I wrote my story about the sounds of 4th period - like pencils being sharpened, the sound of the second hand on the clock, stomachs growling in anticipation of lunch. Later the teacher pulled me aside and told me she was not going to put my story into the paper yet. She told me it was a timeless story and could apply today, next week, or even next month.

The next teacher I want to tell you about is Mrs Susan Young at J. Frank Dobie High School in Houston/Pasadena TX. She was a teacher of mine in several classes. One day she was giving us instructions for a writing assignment that included typing the report - margins, spacing, etc. I raised my hand to ask a question and she recognized me. After I asked my question, she made an exaggerated look of surprise on her face and said, "He actually speaks!" Then she smiled and answered my question.

These are just two of the special teachers I had when I went to school. Now to get to my point. LISTEN ALL TEACHERS. When I said thank you earlier it may have sounded hollow to you because you do not know me. But just think of those kids you teach or have taught. It has been more than 30 years (almost 40) since I was taught by these teachers - but I remember them still. While I may not be able to tell them personally that I am grateful to them, they have still made an impression on me and for that I am thankful. We are not always timely with our thanks but it is still there. So again ... THANKS!!!

Can you imagine those former students of yours (30 years and more down the road) who will still think about you? We may not remember everything you taught us but we will remember you!!

Name Dropping - Willard Scott

Yes – I am dropping a name some people may be familiar with. But I am not just dropping his name for the heck of it. I knew Willard Scott was on television and had seen him on the today show. What I did not realize was that he was also an author of some mystery books – and I do read mysteries. I ran across one of his books at a local independent bookstore in Garland , TX – A Book Cottage. He co-authored the book with one of my favorite Texas authors – Bill Crider. The name of the book is Murder Under Blue Skies. Now I am not sure what it means when you have a co-author but this book definitely reflects Willard Scott. It is not a real complicated mystery but it definitely is FUN!!!

The sleuth is called Stanley Waters – a former weatherman himself who decided to return to his hometown and open a bed and breakfast. He had no interest in becoming a sleuth. - then a murder occurs at the grand opening party of his bed and breakfast.

He also was not expecting to rekindle a romantic relationship with a girl from his past. She is now the chief of police in his hometown. This is not a heavy romance but almost like a teenagers' first romance - very simple. He is very subconscious around her and finds his bald head getting red at times.

No more about the story now. There was one other interesting thing about the book though. At a few spots before new sections of chapters begin, the author includes little "weather cliches". Here is one he uses in this book - if trees keep their leaves until late in the fall, a bad winter will follow.