Once We Were Brothers

 Once We Were Brothers

Author: Roland H. Balson 

Publisher: St, Martin’s

Year: 2013

⭐️⭐️⭐️

Synopsis: Elliot Rosenzweig, a respected civic leader and wealthy philanthropist, is attending a fundraiser when he is suddenly accosted and accused of being a former Nazi SS officer named Otto Piatek, the Butcher of Zamosc. Although the charges are denounced as preposterous, his accuser is convinced he is right and engages attorney Catherine Lockhart to bring Rosenzweig to justice. Solomon persuades attorney Catherine Lockhart to take his case, revealing that the true Piatek was abandoned as a child and raised by Solomon's own family only to betray them during the Nazi occupation. But has Solomon accused the right man?

I liked the basic plot of this story, but there were some things that just bothered me. Elliot and Ben lived in the same city for decades after the war. Elliot is a big wig with his picture regularly in the newspapers and on television, yet Ben had never heard of him or seen him in all the intervening years? It takes over two weeks for Ben to tell Catherine his story. I know Ben is an old man and it’s an emotional story, but that seemed like the author was just stretching it out to fill the plot. It only took Elliot’s wife three hours to tell her story of what happened during the war and emigration to the US. And at times, the author gave a history lecture instead of letting the historical facts smoothly integrate with the story. 

Overall, the story is good with likable and interesting characters. I just thought the execution of it could have been better. 

The Girl in the Mirror

 The Girl in the Mirror

Author: Rose Carlyle

Publisher: William Morrow Books

Year: 2020

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

This is next level sibling rivalry!

Summer and Iris are identical twins. Iris has always been jealous of Summer’s friendliness, inner beauty, and easy going personality. Summer is seemingly perfect with a charmed life that includes Adam, her handsome husband, and her stepson. 

When Summer calls Iris to Thailand to help sail her family’s yacht to the Seychelles, Iris agrees to help. After all, she is a much better sailor than Summer. Iris wakes up one night alone on the yacht in the middle of the Indian Ocean. 

What happened to Summer and Iris’s decisions afterward make for a twisted tale of family secretes, lies, and greed. 

I can definitely see this being made into a movie. This was a well plotted and intriguing thriller. 

Mycroft Holmes

 Mycroft Holmes 

Authors: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Anna Waterhouse

Narrator: Damian Lynch 

Publisher: Audible Studios

Year: 2015

⭐️⭐️⭐️

Mycroft Holmes, Sherlock’s older brother, has his life planned out. He’s rising in the ranks of his civil service job and engaged to the beautiful Georgiana. But his life plan goes awry when his best friend Cyrus Douglas receives troubling news from his family in Trinidad. Mysterious disappearances have been taking place and children have been murdered. Georgiana, also from Trinidad, announces she’s going to back to Trinidad at once. Mycroft and Douglas head off to the island too and become embroiled in a sinister plot. 

Author and NBA great Kareem Abdul-Jabbar gives Mycroft the star treatment here instead of younger brother Sherlock. Mycroft is just as complex a character as Sherlock. But the more interesting character is Cyrus Douglas, a Black man who is ten years older than Mycroft. Douglas has the maturity and life experience that young Mycroft lacks. Their friendship is a wonderful dynamic. 

Narrator Damian Lynch does a superb job bringing Mycroft and Douglas to life. The story itself is good and very well written, but it dragged a little too much for for me. While I loved the characters, the story didn’t always keep my full attention. However, my husband loved it and the loved the sequel. This is a welcome edition to the Sherlock canon. 

Admission

 Admission 

Author: Julie Buxbaum

Publisher: Delacorte

Year: 2020

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

This is a "ripped from the headlines" fictional account of a family caught up in a college admission scandal. Chloe is a mediocre student from a privileged  upper class white family. Her mom is a popular actress and her dad runs a venture capital firm. They live in Beverly Hills and seem to be the perfect family who has it all. She's just not interested in school and doesn't put in any hard work to make good grades. Of course, her parents want  the best for her and have the means to pay. They hire a college admissions coach to help her get into her dream school. Cheating, bribes, and lies lead to her mom getting arrested by the FBI.

It was interesting to see Chloe change over the course of the story. She’s smart but doesn’t think she is. Her family is rich but most of the time she takes that for granted. She’s a lazy student and it takes her awhile to realize that. But she has a good heart. She forms a real bond with a little boy she tutors after school and that helps her see how privileged her life is. As the scandal engulfs her family, she questions her decisions and her complicity. She realizes that she must choose her own path to her future and do what’s right for her, even if it differs from her parents’ expectations. 

I loved Julie Buxbaum’s debt novel Tell Me Three things so I was very excited to read this. Thank you to NetGalley, Random House Children’s, and Julie Buxbaum for the review copy.  Admission publishes on December 1, 2020. 

The Alice Network

 The Alice Network

Author: Kate Quinn 

Narrator: Saskia Maarlveld

Publisher: Harper Audio

Year: 2017

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 

Synopsis: 1947. In the chaotic aftermath of World War II, American college girl Charlie St. Clair is pregnant, unmarried, and on the verge of being thrown out of her very proper family. She's also nursing a desperate hope that her beloved cousin Rose, who disappeared in Nazi-occupied France during the war, might still be alive. So when Charlie's parents banish her to Europe to have her "little problem" taken care of, Charlie breaks free and heads to London, determined to find out what happened to the cousin she loves like a sister.

1915. A year into the Great War, Eve Gardiner burns to join the fight against the Germans and unexpectedly gets her chance when she's recruited to work as a spy. Sent into enemy-occupied France, she's trained by the mesmerizing Lili, the "Queen of Spies", who manages a vast network of secret agents right under the enemy's nose.

Thirty years later, haunted by the betrayal that ultimately tore apart the Alice Network, Eve spends her days drunk and secluded in her crumbling London house. Until a young American barges in uttering a name Eve hasn't heard in decades, and launches them both on a mission to find the truth...no matter where it leads.

I loved this audiobook! It is a multi-genre story that alternates between World War I and a few years after World War II. The two main characters are memorable and complex. Charlie is a young American woman with her own heartache and a “little problem.” She is desperately searching for her beloved cousin Rose after WWII. Eve agrees to help Charlie look for Rose. But Eve has her own agenda and the story of her bravery and life during WWI unfolds as they search for Rose. Eve is a character who will stay with you for a long time. 

Beautifully written and well paced with the alternating timelines, this is engrossing story of friendship, courage, love and forgiveness. Narrator Saskia Maarleveld’s performance is excellent. This is definitely one of my top ten favorites of the year! 

Safe

 Safe

Author: S.K. Barnett

Publisher: Dutton

Year: 2020

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Synopsis: Jenny Kristal was six years old when she was snatched off the sidewalk from her quiet suburban neighborhood. Twelve years later, she's miraculously returned home after escaping her kidnappers—but as her parents and older brother welcome her back, the questions begin to mount. Where has she been all these years? Why is she back now? And is home really the safest place for her . . . or for any of them? 

This is a twisted spin on a missing child story. Jenny reruns home after being missing for 12 years, but her homecoming  raises more questions than answers. 

The characters aren’t complex, but in this case they don’t have to be. This isn’t a character driven novel. Jenny is smart, tough and resilient. Her mom and dad are thrilled that she’s back. Her older brother is a stoner and seems skeptical of the whole situation. Jenny’s story unfold between past and present and the pace of the book moves along at a fast clip and never gets bogged down. My only complaint is the characterization of a public librarian as being a doddering old crank lording over a dusty library. Get out of here with that tired old cliche! I suggest the author spends some time in some libraries. Other than that, this was a great mystery. (TW: child sexual abuse). 

The Sentinel

 The Sentinel 

Author: Lee Child and Andrew Child

Publisher: Delacorte Press

Year: 2020

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Sentinel is the 25th book in the long running Jack Reacher series. This is the transition book because series creator Lee Child co-wrote it with his brother Andrew who will take over the writing going forward. 

Has anything changed with a new author? My short answer: nope. Reacher is still hitchhiking or taking a bus around the country. He’s still finding trouble. He still loves coffee. He’s still adverse to technology. He still likes a good fight. And yet, I thought there were subtle changes. He seemed more talkative in this book. I also thought there was a bit more humor in the book. Maybe not laugh out loud humor but somethings made me smirk. 

How does it compare? The last few Reacher books were just okay for me. Not great, but I read them because I’m a long time fan. This one was good- better than the last few. I’m optimistic about a new author taking over. 

The story itself is timely, although it did seem to take awhile for the villains’ caper to unfold. But there were some twists and turns and a lot of fistfights and coffee along the way. It was a fun and fast read for me and I think Reacher fans will enjoy it. 

What book are you reading to kick off November?