Book Review: Past Crimes by Glen Erik Hamilton (Van Shaw #1)

Stars: 4 out of 5

Pros: Strong characters, engaging plot

Cons: Flashbacks, slow pacing early on

The Bottom Line:

Ranger returns home

Finds himself in mystery

Slowly builds suspense

Captivating Debut

I’ve had the pleasure of meeting Glen Erik Hamilton at several local book events over the last couple of years.  He’s a very friendly guy, and that coupled with raves about his books made me buy his first book, Past Crimes.  Like many books I buy fully intending to read, it sat while I waited to find time in my schedule to read it.  I finally hit upon the idea of getting it from the library on audio, and I’m glad I did.

Army ranger Van Shaw hasn’t been home in ten years, and he has no intension of going home.  He was raised by his grandfather, Donovan, to be a thief, and Van has completely turned his back on that life and all it means.  Not to mention that he and his grandfather parted under less than ideal circumstances.  But when he receives a note from his grandfather asking if he’d come home, he heads back to Seattle.

When Van arrives in the early morning hours, he finds Donovan lying on the floor bleeding from a very recent gunshot wound.  Van hasn’t had any contact with his grandfather, but he is sure that his grandfather has continued his life of crime.  Van suspects that someone Donovan knows shot him, and Van knows he will be the best person to investigate and figure out what happened.  Was it a past crime that caught up with Donovan?  Or was a more recent caper the motive for the crime?

Before we got any further, let me be clear – this is not one of my normal light cozies.  This is a serious book with dark twists and turns.  That also means it has more violence, sex, and language than the books I typically read.  I found that the violence and sex was still subdued.  Oh, it was there, but it served the story and never got too explicit.  Honestly, the language felt over the top and excessive, however.  But I know that is part of the hard-boiled genre.

The story was good.  I will admit, it took a bit to hook me since it takes some time introducing us to the characters.  But once it truly got going, it was quite a ride.  I was on the edge of my seat listening to the final third of the book, the suspense was that good with a fantastic action sequence.  There are plenty of twists as well, so the set up was well worth it.

One thing that did slow things down was flashbacks to when Van was growing up with Donovan.  Honestly, I could have done without most of these.  Yes, they helped establish character and especially Van and Donovan’s relationship, but they also slowed down the present-day story.  Or maybe I’m getting very tired of the flashback technique since it’s been overused on several TV shows I’ve watched over the last decade.

The characters really are good.  I normally don’t like rooting for criminals, but these characters are so well developed you can’t help but care.  Of course, it helps that Van is trying to live on the correct side of the law, so I had no qualms rooting for him.  Even so, his old friends and Donovan’s friends all come across as real.  And everyone is upset by Donovan’s shooting, which helps make the criminal characters more human.

Normally, I don’t adjust my star rating for the audio version.  While I will talk about it in my review, I want my review, and especially the rating, to reflect the book itself and not the audio version since the author has no control over that.  However, if I did, I’d be taking off at least one more star for the audio version.  Jeff Harding is the narrator, and he does a very poor job.   Most of his voices sound cartoony, and it’s really hard to listen to them.  I thought I’d adjust as the book went along, but that never happened.  Fortunately, this is the only book in the series he has narrated, and I’ve heard the second narrator is very good.  I hope that is true since I do plan to continue on with the series.

Van’s debut may be darker than I normally read, but it is good.  Past Crimes will slowly draw you in until you can’t put the book down while you race for the end.

Once you've met Van, you'll want to read the rest of the Van Shaw Mysteries.

Book Review: Microphones and Murder by Erin Huss (Podcasting Sisters Mysteries #1)

Stars: 5 out of 5

Pros: Great characters, twisty story, laughs and fun

Cons: A couple of scenes I could have done without, but they are minor

The Bottom Line:

New true crime pod cast

Featuring missing person case

Fun fiction debut

Don’t Miss This Debut

I have recently confessed that I am late to podcasts, but I’ve enjoyed the ones I’ve found.  When I spotted Microphones and Murder, the first in the new Podcasting Sisters Mysteries from Erin Huss, I decided I had to give it a try.  The true crime podcasters hook definitely worked on me.  I’m glad it did because I really enjoyed this debut.

After several years working as an engineer on a popular true crime podcast, Liv Olsen has decided to launch her own.  She’s risking quite a bit as she’s used all of her savings to purchase the equipment she needs.  Liv teams up with her younger stepsister Camry Lewis, and the two travel to Santa Maria, on the central California coast, to tackle their first season of Missing or Murder.

Just over ten years ago, Amelia Clark vanished a week after an embarrassing video of her went vial on YouTube.  Her car was discovered at the head of a local hiking trail a few days later, but no sign of her was ever found.  The retired detective who handled the case originally has asked Liv and Camry to devote their first season to this case in hopes that public pressure will force the police to reopen the case and finally solve things.  However, the detective’s notes prove to be less useful than Liv hoped they would be.  As she begins to interview the people who knew Amelia back then, she feels like everyone is hiding something.  After ten years, can Liv and Camry generate enough interest to reopen the case?  What happened to Amelia all those years ago?

With all the murder mysteries I read, it is always nice to find a book that starts off with a different kind of mystery for the sleuths to solve.  And just because the book doesn’t start off with a murder doesn’t make it any less compelling.  As I teased, Liv quickly begins collecting a large group of suspects, and it seems that each interview leaves her with a new question that needs to be answered.  Don’t worry, everything is answered before the book is over, and we get a satisfying ending.

I also came to really love the characters.  Not that it took much.  Everyone comes across as warm and friendly from the moment they step on the page, and I enjoyed every minute I got to spend with them.  Liv and Camry have quite the crew by the time the book ends.  I did find one of the characters, who speaks with a stutter, a bit annoying to read because of that, but it was a minor complaint.  All of the main characters grew as we spent more time with them, and I am anxious to see where their relationships go as the series progresses.  The suspects are just as real.  They might not always be warm and friendly, but they are suspects, so they should make us question whether they are hiding a deep secret, right?

I did find a smattering of mild foul language in the book, but that’s often true for books from Henery Press.  There are also a couple of conversations I could have done without, but both of these are worth noting only in passing.

Have I mentioned this book is funny?  No, it’s not a laugh on every page kind of book, but there are some very funny scenes that definitely made me laugh out loud.

Microphones and Murder is a delightful debut.  I’m so glad I gave it a chance.  I will definitely be back when the sequel drops.

NOTE: I received an ARC of this book.

Music Review: The Story's Not Over by Jeremy Camp

Stars: 4 out of 5

Pros: Strong lyrics and (mostly) catchy rock music

Cons: At the edges of the musical style I like (which is a personal con)

The Bottom Line:

Songs of faith and hope

And filled with a great rock beat

For all of his fans

Great New Disc from Jeremy Camp

Somewhere along the way, Jeremy Camp kind of fell off my radar.  Honestly, I’m finding it hard to keep up with Christian music in general these days, but that’s another issue.  Anyway, I have several of his early releases, and, while they never got a lot of play time, I always found a couple of songs that really spoke to me.  As soon as I heard about Jeremy’s new release, The Story’s Not Over, I knew I wanted to get it.  And I’m glad I did.

Listening to the disc, I was reminded of one reason I don’t pull out Jeremy’s discs super often.  His rock style isn’t always something I appreciate.  That’s on me; I get it.  And things like the rap ending from Social Club Misfits on “You Don’t” doesn’t help matters either.  Now, I’m not saying the music is bad.  Please don’t misinterpret it that way at all. It’s just harder rock than I usually enjoy.  He’s built a career with a very loyal fan base, so there are plenty of people who do appreciate it.  I enjoy it is smaller doses, so again, I’m not saying it is bad at all.

But here’s why I am happy I got the disc – there are some great lyrics here.  Most of these songs are great, but some of the songs really stand out to me.  Take the title track.  “The Story’s Not Over” is an upbeat reminder that God is in charge of everything that happens, so when life is hard, we just need to remember that there is more to the story.  It’s got a great beat and melody, and is easily one of the songs from the disc I get stuck in my head.

The other song most likely to get stuck in my head is the last song on the disc.  “Wilderness” is a song of trust during hard times.  “If You’re God in the good, in the Promise land/You’ll be God, God in the wilderness.”  It is one of the slower songs on the disc, but it is still a midtempo upbeat track.  While I feel like it was written in a time of wilderness, it really is a declaration of faith more than a song of struggle, and I absolutely love it.

Honestly, there really are no slow tracks on the disc.  But even so there is enough variety that the songs don’t sound the same as you listen to the disc.

Other topics covered in these songs include recognizing the punishment we deserve for our sins (“Should’ve Been Me”) while also celebrating the new life we have because of Jesus’s sacrifice for us (“Dead Man Walking”).  He reflects on how quickly time goes (“Keep Me in the Moment”).  Another powerful song is “Father,” a song that celebrates how God takes us in our weak, sinful state and loves us anyway.

Jeremy Camp’s fans have really fallen for this disc, and it is easy to see why.  If you love his music, you need to get The Story’s Not Over.  Even if you are a casual fan like me, you’ll enjoy this release.

CD Length: 37:31

Tracks:

1. Only You Can

2. Still Alive

3. Dead Man Walking

4. Should’ve Been Me

5. Father

6. Keep Me in the Moment

7. Out of My Hands

8. The Story’s Not Over

9. Indestructible Soul

10. You Don’t (Featuring Social Club Misfits)

11. Wilderness

Disney Pin Review: Aurora - Windows of Magic - 2019 Release

Stars: 5 out of 5

Pros: Creative touches make this Aurora pin fun

Cons: None

The Bottom Line:

Aurora smiles out

Color battle continues

This pin makes me smile

Everything’s Coming Up Roses for Aurora’s Window

It’s the little touches that make the Windows of Magic pin series from Disney so much fun.  In the case of Aurora, those details might not be so small, but they are enough to make any fan of Sleeping Beauty smile.

This series features classic Disney heroes and heroines in stained glass windows.  Okay, so they are pins, so the back in solid and light can’t really shine through, but the effect is pretty remarkable.  It helps that the fronts of the pins are made from clear plastic and there are silver lines just like in real stained glass.  These pins were released one a month throughout 2019, each character selected to counter a villain from the Windows of Evil pins that had been released the year before.  Naturally, Maleficent was part of that series, so Aurora was the complement.

At first glance, this window is no surprise.  We’ve got Aurora smiling out at us from the window.  The border of her window has vines wrapped around it, and there is a rose up on the top.  In the very bottom are three bursts of color – green, pink, and blue – to represent the three fairies who raised her.

I love the touches in the frames in these pins.  They are part of what makes them special.  However, that isn’t the best feature of this pin.  No, it’s the fact that Aurora’s dress is two different colors.  On the right, her dress is pink.  On the left, it is blue.  And the background is also pink and blue.  It looks like Disney let two of the fairies lose in their pin storage area unsupervised, doesn’t it?

And it’s that little touch that makes me smile when I look at this pin.  It’s absolutely fabulous, and something I never would have thought of.  That’s why I admire the pins instead of trying to design any of them.

Since these were limited edition pins, they are hard to find now.  But if you enjoy Sleeping Beauty, you’ll be happy to tracked down Aurora.

Interested in seeing the pin?  Here's a link to my picture on Instagram.

Disney Pin Review: Maleficent - Windows of Evil - 2018 Release

Stars: 2 out of 5

Pros: Nice touch in the frame

Cons: The picture is too impressionistic.

The Bottom Line:

Maleficent pin

Captures the stained-glass feeling

But doesn’t look good

Evil Misses the Mark

Being the completest I am, I had to buy all of the entries in Disney Windows of Evil series.  However, I find myself questioning the decisions made when they designed the Maleficent window.

I’m not surprised that they created a window based around Maleficent.  She is an extremely popular villain, so it makes complete sense to me.  And I get that they were trying to do something a little different.  But it is much more impressionistic than the rest of the windows in the series, and it doesn’t really work as a result.

What am I talking about?  Each pin in this series creates a faux stained-glass window around a famous Disney villain.  I saw faux because it is a pin, and each pin has a solid back, so you can’t actually shine light through it.  The design has a silver colored frame, and silver lines through it, to help capture the look and feel of stained glass.  That is all done well here.

The problem comes with the picture they decided to create in the middle.  Against a red and green background we’ve got a dragon’s head with Maleficent’s horns.  Down near the bottom, we’ve got what looks like Maleficent’s silhouette from the back facing the dragon.  It’s different.  Honestly, if I didn’t know who or what this was supposed to be, I’m not sure I would have been able to guess.  And, considering that just about every other Window of Evil or Magic (the companion series) features the hero or villain taking up most of the frame, I’m confused as to what they were trying to do here.

I do enjoy the touches this series of pins have in the frames.  While most of the frame here is classy looking straight lines, there is a spinning wheel up on the top of the frame.  I love that.

Maleficent has a very passionate and loyal fan base.  Even though this pin is the weakest in either of the pin series, it is one of the most expensive on the secondary market.  Just say Maleficent, and it becomes extremely popular.

However, that doesn’t keep me from finding this particular pin disappointing.  Unless you must have everything Maleficent or in a series once you start collecting it, there is no reason to track down this pin.

Interested in seeing the pin?  Here's a link to my picture on Instagram.

February 8th's Weekly TV Thoughts

Two shows may have ended forever last week, but I started two new shows this week.  Okay, they are both reality competition shows, and I expect they will only last a few weeks, but they were both still fun.

Girl Scout Cookie Championship – I heard about this show a couple weeks ago, and I had to give it a try.  Creating other desserts using Girl Scout cookies intrigues me for sure.  I’m surprised it looks like we will have different contestants each week.  When I saw the one woman was going with an environmental theme, I knew she’s win.  But I have to say her cake looked the best of the three, and it sounds like it tasted the best or pretty much close to the best.

The Flash – Giving Barry a little more time off post crisis, I see.  Really, the episode was all about Iris and her new storyline/mystery, which sounds like it will be driving much of the back half of the season.  That last scene?  Creepy and an effective cliffhanger.  But I would like to know how long Cisco will be gone.  I’m going to miss him for sure.

Legends of Tomorrow – Better than last week’s episode, but still not quite the humor powerhouse the show can reach.  Zari’s going to be very interesting this season.  How long before everyone’s memory comes back.  And what will happen to her brother when people can remember the truth.

Survivor at 40 – No wonder I can’t remember all the contestants.  Almost 600 players?  That’s insane?  I had forgotten about half the moments they highlighted, but others I remembered clear as could be.  Fun to see them again.  And I am jazzed about the Winners at War season starting next week.

LegoMasters – This show sounded like fun the instant I heard about it, and I wasn’t disappointed.  It’s hard to go wrong with a theme park theme, but some of those were amazing.  I’m kind of glad no one went home right away.  It would take a bit to figure out what you need to do, so a second chance is nice.  Not that I can say much.  Every thing they were doing is well beyond my capabilities.

Carol’s Second Act – Don’t these characters realize they are on a TV show?  All secrets come out eventually, and in the worst possible way.  Still, that was actually a fairly funny episode.  The subplot with the wheelchair was predictable but funny as well.  Curious where the relationship will go in the future.

Book Review: A Simple Murder by Eleanor Kuhns (Will Rees #1)

Stars: 4 out of 5

Pros: Strong mystery, characters, and sense of time

Cons: Pacing did seem off; hard to remember character relationships

The Bottom Line:

Will finds murder in

A Shaker community

Good historical

Simple Time but Complex Murder

I say I enjoyed historical mysteries, but I don’t read that many of them.  So when the Will Rees mysteries series crossed my radar, I was immediately intrigued.  Will is a traveling weaver in 1795 Maine.  I picked up the first book, A Simple Murder, and prepared to get lost in the past.

It’s been several years since Will’s wife died.  Always a wanderer at heart, Will set out as a traveling weaver, leaving his son and his farm in Maine with his sister and her husband.  He’s returned home occasionally over the years, but on his most recent visit, he discovers that his son has fled and joined a sect of Shakers who live over a day’s journey away.  Upset, Will rushes down to talk to his son, David, and hopefully make amends.

His reunion with David doesn’t go well.  He’s trying to figure out how he can go about rebuilding their relationship when word reaches him that one of the women in the Shaker community has been murdered.  Will has found himself stepping in to solve a few crimes over the course of his travels, and it is actual David who suggests to the elders that Will might be able to help figure out what happened.  Can Will overcome his status as an outsider to gather the clues he needs to solve the case?

I must admit, I know very little about the Shakers, so this was an eye-opening book in that regard.  Will spends quite a bit of time in the Shaker community, so we get to learn about this sect.  It’s made me curious enough to want to learn more about their beliefs and how they live.

I’m torn on the mystery.  There are plenty of suspects and twists and turns.  But at the same time, the pace seemed slow.  I suspect that was a result of the historical setting.  When Will had to travel to talk to someone, it would take up most of the day.  As a result, he could only talk to a few people each day, and the time slipped away.  I suspect that crept into my mind as I was reading and it felt like we weren’t making any progress when in reality we were.

The characters were certainly strong.  I loved watching Will’s growth as well as his relationships with several characters grow.  I really fell in love with these characters and I want to see them happy.

As the book progressed, Will uncovered quite a few family connections, and I had trouble keeping all of those straight.  While putting a list of characters or a family tree in the book would certainly help, it would have also constituted spoilers for the story.  I was still able to follow the story, but this might have also helped me feel like the plot wasn’t as strong as it could be.  And none of this is to say the suspects weren’t strong.  I could easily remember who all of them were, I just could remember as easily how they were all connected to each other.

Author Eleanor Kuhns did a good job of bring life to 1795 for us.  There are only marginal references to real history, but it was in the everyday details of life that I felt like I was back in time.

A Simple Murder proves to be anything but simple.  This was a good debut.  I am definitely planning to visit Will again to find out what happens to him next.

This review is part of this week's Friday's Forgotten Books.

Movie Review: Batman (1989)

Stars: 4 out of 5

Pros: Action, Jack Nicholson as Joker

Cons: Romance, Batman needed more development

The Bottom Line:

Batman on big screen

Dated effects and action

But still entertains

“Can Somebody Tell Me What Kind of a World We Live in Where a Man Dressed Up as a Bat Gets All of My Press?”

I never watched Tim Burton’s Batman movies.  Granted, I didn’t watch many movies growing up, but even as an adult, I never wanted to go back and watch them.  (I’ve seen the final two sequels these spawned.)  I’d heard they were dark, and, considering my reaction to some of the darker DC Comics movies, that was enough to make me stir clear.  When I saw that TBS was showing them back in December, I decided it was time, and I recorded them all.  Now that I’ve seen Batman, I found that I enjoyed it overall.

This movie doesn’t waste much time with backstory.  Instead, it throws us right into a scene of Bruce Wayne (Michael Keaton) as his nightly alter ego, Batman.  He’s begun to fight crime as Batman, but he is just a rumor.  The public doesn’t believe he is real, but criminals are beginning to become afraid.  While Commissioner Gordon (Pat Hingle) and new DA Harvey Dent (Billy Dee Williams) deny his existence, reporter Alexander Knox (Robert Wuhl) is on the trail of the story.  When award winning photo journalist Vicki Vale (Kim Basinger) comes to town, she joins Alexander’s attempts to learn the truth about Batman.

However, things are about to get even more dangerous.  Mobster Jack Napier (Jack Nicholson) is only mid-level in his organization, if that, but a bath in chemicals turns him into The Joker, and he has plans for Gotham City.  As Bruce and Vicki become close, will Joker’s reign of terror come between them?

The first thing I noticed about this film is how dated it is.  No, I’m not talking about content, although the music, hair, and costumes do show their age a little.  I’m talking about staging and effects.  Even the action sequences feel a bit dated.  Then again, the movie is over 30 years old, so it isn’t that surprising when you stop and think about it.  And, it adds a bit of charm to the proceedings, as long as you know to expect it.

As to the tone, it is certainly darker than the campy 1960’s Batman TV show, but it isn’t nearly as dark as the Batman or DC movies we’ve gotten in the last 15 years.  The PG-13 rating is right, but if you enjoyed recent films, this one won’t be an issue for you at all.

We get quite a bit of backstory on The Joker here, but not quite as much on Batman.  Yes, his backstory eventually comes into play, but it isn’t as heavy as in most recent comic book movies, which feel they need to give us an origin story for each character.  I really appreciated that since I already knew the story.  Joker’s backstory does slow things down a bit early on, but it also helps us understand some of his actions once he’s transformed.

Jack Nicholson is fantastic as Joker.  He’s clearly the star of the film and clearly have a blast hamming it up.  No, he never goes over the top, but his performance is the star of the film, and he gets all the best lines.  I must say I actually found Michael Keaton a little forgettable as Batman.  I know it’s his story, but the script doesn’t give him as much to do, so it is probably the script’s fault more than his.

Or maybe it’s the fact that I was rolling my eyes at the cliché his relationship with Vicki Vale turned into.  Seriously, the romance is the worst part of the film.

Being a superhero movie, you expect effects and action.  As I mentioned earlier, they are a little dated by today’s standards, but most of them hold up well.  The climax certainly had me on the edge of my seat, which means I was buying into the story.

The biggest surprise to me was Billy Dee Williams as Harvey Dent.  Obviously, they recast the character later in this run of movies.  I’m a bit disappointed since I’d like to know what he would have done with the character in the later movies.

I guess, for me, I wanted a bit more development for Batman here, and felt the movie focused more on Joker.  I’m looking forward to moving on in the franchise.  If you haven’t seen Batman and you enjoy superhero movies, definitely give this one a watch.

Buried to the Brim Winner

Well, I am very late in picking the winner for Buried to the Brim, but let's do it.  That winner is...

... Linda Herold.

I just sent you an email, so be sure to watch for it and get back to me so I can make sure you get your prize.

Ornament Review: Sweets for My Sweet - Season's Treatings Special Edition #1 - 2020 Ornament

Stars: 5 out of 5

Pros: Valentine’s sweets in decorative form

Cons: Too busy drooling to list cons

The Bottom Line:

Valentine’s Day treats

Displayed on many levels

Sure to make you drool

Chocolate and Cookies to Celebrate Valentine’s Day

Holidays are just an excuse to eat sweets.  Oh, that may not be the official reason for them, but think about a holiday that doesn’t involve a sweet treat.  It’s hard to come up with one, isn’t it?  So the only surprise to me when Hallmark announced they would release four special edition ornaments to add to their Season’s Treatings ornament line was that they hadn’t done this sooner.  The first of these four ornaments is Sweets for My Sweet, which revolves around this month’s holiday – Valentine’s Day.

Someone must be loved because this ornament features a three-tiered platter of sweets for Valentine’s Day.  Yes, I most often think of chocolate when I think of this holiday, and two of the three levels are developed to it.  The very top platter has chocolates from a fine chocolatier on it.  On the next level is something slightly healthier – chocolate covered strawberries.  (I said slightly.)  Finally, if you want something in addition to chocolate, we get three sugar cookies topped with frosting.  The display itself has three platters that get smaller as they go up with a silver pole in the middle and a heart up on top.  The edges of the platter are decorated in red.

Like the ornaments in the official series, just looking at this ornament is enough to make my mouth water.  They look good enough to eat.  So if you are sticking with your New Year’s resolution to watch what you eat, you won’t want to put this ornament out.  (And could you send me some of your self-control while you’re at it?)  However, if you’ve already fallen off the wagon, you’ll love this one.  I’m not much of a sugar cookie person, but I do love chocolate, so those top tiers are definitely calling to me.

Most of the time with this series, I recommend against setting the ornaments out to be displayed.  I’m going to make an exception in this case.  This is a tiered platter.  It’s whole purpose is to be set out to be displayed.  Of course, my usual reason for recommending against setting the ornaments out is because they are mostly flat and you won’t see what is on them.  Obviously, that isn’t the case here.

That’s a good thing since I don’t have much to hang non-Christmas ornaments on.  However, if you do hang ornaments for Valentine’s day, you’ll appreciate the loop at the top of the ornament.  You’ll find that ornament hangs straight.

Some of these series Hallmark has done that take their popular Christmas ornament series and use them for other holidays have had series markers on them and been treated as their own separate series.  That’s not the case here.  You won’t find a series marker as these are considered special editions of the regular Season’s Treatings series.

No matter what they call it, I’m delighted with Sweets for My Sweet.  I’ll enjoy drooling over this ornament for Valentine’s to come.

Enjoy more seasons treats with the rest of the Season's Treatings series.