Death and Transfiguration
A Daniel Jacobus Mystery
Gerald Elias
Minotaur Books
New York, New York
ISBN: 978-0-312-67835-7
Hardcover
$ 34.99
2012
322 pages
"Management gave me a week for my eyesight to come back. The doctors called it fovea macular dystrophy, a swanky term for sudden blindness. They always have fancy names for diseases they can't cure. They said, Yeah, it's possible it'll come back. But it didn't. And I had to give back no only the concertmaster position but my job in the orchestra as well."
These words belong to Daniel Jacobus, who is an incredibly talented violin concertmaster.
Daniel Jacobus is a crusty grumbling soul, but no one can doubt his genius when a violin is in his hands. That is when the magic of music happens.
Daniel has reasons that for his crustiness. Years ago when he was auditioning to become the concertmaster, he lost his sight. Sudden blindness. Yes, he could and would continue to play beautifully from memory, but how can he watch a conductor? Can anyone be successful as a blind concertmaster?
Now he still spends his days with his music but works as a teacher, sharing his musical gifts with the younger generation. That is if they can tolerate his nasty disposition.
Scheherazade "Sherry" O'Brien is likely to become the next concertmaster of Harmonium, an outstanding highly regarded world-class touring orchestra direct by the legendary musical director, Vaclav Herza. She has the position temporarily but dreams of it being permanent.
Sherry calls Jacobus requesting a private lesson before her audition. When she asks about the fee, Jacobus simply states, "Incalculable," and hangs up.
Daniel also feels a little conflicted with this contact since his former student and surrogate daughter; Yumi Shinagawa is also trying out for this position. At least this will allow him to judge Yumi's competition.
When Daniel hears her play, he knows that Sherry should be the concertmaster. Apparently, she has a problem with the conductor.
World class conductor Vaclav Herza is a combination egomaniac and sociopath. The audiences around the world love and respect the musician. The people who know him realize that he is both unpredictable and dangerous.
What is unusual about this book about the inside of the music business is how closely the story parallels the music "Death and the Transfiguration" by Richard Strauss. Few people understand the behind the scenes reality of the music world which is not glamorous. This book continues the insight into diligence, perseverance, talent and leadership all combining into genius.
Gerald Elias creates his stories from his life as a violinist with the Boston Symphony, Associate Concertmaster of the Utah Symphony, adjunct professor of music at the University of Utah, first violinist of the Abramyam String Quartet, and Music Director of the Vivaldi Candlelight concert series.
Death and Transfiguration is the fourth in the Daniel Jacobus series following Devil's Trill, Danse Macabre, and Death and the Maiden. Another book in the series, Playing with Fire, which should be released September 1st.
Death and Transfiguration is a well-written mystery plopped into the world of professional musicians revealing their flaws and the joy of creating voices that cannot be described in words.
Saturday, July 9, 2016
If I Run
If I Run
Terri Blackstock
Zondervan
Grand Rapids, Michigan
ISBN: 9780310332435
Trade Paperback
2016
$ 15.99
352 pages
"We've logged all the evidence against the girl. We have a rock-solid case. Her DNA is all over the place. Shoe prints, finger prints, the weapon...She did it."
The police said that she is the "person of interest," the one in their mind who committed the crime. But she is innocent.
Casey Cox is the type of person most of us would enjoy knowing. She's kind, considerate, and is driven to help people. Thirteen years ago when she was twelve-years-old, her father died. The police investigation concluded it was a suicide, but Casey never believed it. Her father as a police officer had been investigating dirty cops. Strange that he died just as his findings were to be revealed.
What do you do when you happen across a murder scene?
Casey's good friend Brent is an investigative reporter. He knows that Casey is haunted by her past, and he agrees to look into her father's death. Brent is developing a solid case revealing corruption in this police department and collecting evidence.
Casey innocently goes to Brent apartment only to discover him what appears to be dead. Naturally, she feels for a pulse which places her feet in his blood. She is a frequent visitor at Brent's home, so she knows her DNA is everywhere.
Believing that the police who were her father's comrades were dirty, she can't go to them now.
"Don't do stupid."
"I can't promise that because I know myself, and I've already 'done stupid' since finding Brent dead."
What do you do? Run, leave town, go somewhere while the investigation proceeds. Who is the logical criminal? Casey.
Dylan Roberts has returned home from three deployments, two to Iraq and one to Afghanistan and suffers from PTSD. He earned an honorable discharge from the Army as part of the Criminal Investigations Division. However, no one will now hire him.
Brent was a childhood friend of Dylan's. The police do not have the resources to find Casey outside their immediate area, so Brent's family hires Dylan to bring Casey back.
If I Run is a fantastically written gripping tale. What do you do if you are accused of a crime that you did not commit? How do you be smart, honest, and survive when you are being hunted as a murderer?
The characters are always struggling with the challenges of everyday life while still desiring justice for their past.
Terri Blackstock is a Christian writer of many bestselling series, Moonlighters, Cape Refuge, Newpointe 911, the SunCoast Chronicles and Restoration as well as her novels Intervention, Vicious Cycle, and Downfall.
If I Run is a fast-paced story to read even for those of us who don't plan to be accused of murder. The smart and honest characterization of Casey is a remarkable role model for all adult readers. The book does incorporate Christianity into the story elegantly and naturally. My only criticism of If I Run is that it ended, but I do see the possibility of Casey appearing in a future Blackstock novel.
Terri Blackstock
Zondervan
Grand Rapids, Michigan
ISBN: 9780310332435
Trade Paperback
2016
$ 15.99
352 pages
"We've logged all the evidence against the girl. We have a rock-solid case. Her DNA is all over the place. Shoe prints, finger prints, the weapon...She did it."
The police said that she is the "person of interest," the one in their mind who committed the crime. But she is innocent.
Casey Cox is the type of person most of us would enjoy knowing. She's kind, considerate, and is driven to help people. Thirteen years ago when she was twelve-years-old, her father died. The police investigation concluded it was a suicide, but Casey never believed it. Her father as a police officer had been investigating dirty cops. Strange that he died just as his findings were to be revealed.
What do you do when you happen across a murder scene?
Casey's good friend Brent is an investigative reporter. He knows that Casey is haunted by her past, and he agrees to look into her father's death. Brent is developing a solid case revealing corruption in this police department and collecting evidence.
Casey innocently goes to Brent apartment only to discover him what appears to be dead. Naturally, she feels for a pulse which places her feet in his blood. She is a frequent visitor at Brent's home, so she knows her DNA is everywhere.
Believing that the police who were her father's comrades were dirty, she can't go to them now.
"Don't do stupid."
"I can't promise that because I know myself, and I've already 'done stupid' since finding Brent dead."
What do you do? Run, leave town, go somewhere while the investigation proceeds. Who is the logical criminal? Casey.
Dylan Roberts has returned home from three deployments, two to Iraq and one to Afghanistan and suffers from PTSD. He earned an honorable discharge from the Army as part of the Criminal Investigations Division. However, no one will now hire him.
Brent was a childhood friend of Dylan's. The police do not have the resources to find Casey outside their immediate area, so Brent's family hires Dylan to bring Casey back.
If I Run is a fantastically written gripping tale. What do you do if you are accused of a crime that you did not commit? How do you be smart, honest, and survive when you are being hunted as a murderer?
The characters are always struggling with the challenges of everyday life while still desiring justice for their past.
Terri Blackstock is a Christian writer of many bestselling series, Moonlighters, Cape Refuge, Newpointe 911, the SunCoast Chronicles and Restoration as well as her novels Intervention, Vicious Cycle, and Downfall.
If I Run is a fast-paced story to read even for those of us who don't plan to be accused of murder. The smart and honest characterization of Casey is a remarkable role model for all adult readers. The book does incorporate Christianity into the story elegantly and naturally. My only criticism of If I Run is that it ended, but I do see the possibility of Casey appearing in a future Blackstock novel.
Tuesday, July 5, 2016
The Death Chamber
The Death Chamber
Sarah Rayne
Felony & Mayhem Press
New York, New York
First U.K. Printing 2008
Simon & Schuster
ISBN: 978-1-63194-050-7
Trade Paperback
2015
$ 14.95
491 pages
Georgina Grey received an unusual letter. Apparently, she is the recipient of the Caradoc Society's assets. Her great-grandfather had made a generous bequest to this group back in 1940. Now that the group is has dissolved Georgina seems to be the only surviving heir.
For Georgina, this possible treasure could be the answer to her prayers. Recently her boyfriend left with her bank account along with her business partner.
Chad Ingram is always on the lookout for a story. He is a television producer and his special is going to focus on Calvary Gaol. Now abandoned, Calvary was the final destination for numerous British criminals since World War I. The team is doing research on evidence of an afterlife and what better place to look than an execution chamber where many met their maker through being hung.
Chad wants an unbiased perspective of the execution chamber. A friend of his, Jude Stratton is chosen to spend some time alone in what they believe could be a nest of spirits. Jude is the perfect person for this choice since he was a freelance journalist. He is blind from covering a story while in the Middle East, and a bomb blinded him. Jude would not know where he is, and this would be perfect for the show.
The Death Chamber is an unusual novel. The first half of the book is the groundwork for the rest of the story, similar to unpacking a jigsaw puzzle. There seem to be numerous unrelated pieces which need to constructed into a frame and then filled-in one piece at a time.
The second half amazingly connects almost to being contrived. The coincidences and relationships are shocking as each page is revealed.
Sarah Rayne has written many psycho-logical suspense novels including Ghost Song and A Dark Dividing. She resides in London.
Surprisingly, I thoroughly enjoyed Rayne's writing style. I was amazed to analyze that in the first half of the book, nothing happened. Even then, it did keep my interest. The second half made me feel that I had to read each page faster. There was an anxiousness to discover how the characters were related, what secret crimes are found, and how all this is relevant to Calvary.
The Death Chamber is for adult readers who enjoy intricately woven tales.
Sarah Rayne
Felony & Mayhem Press
New York, New York
First U.K. Printing 2008
Simon & Schuster
ISBN: 978-1-63194-050-7
Trade Paperback
2015
$ 14.95
491 pages
Georgina Grey received an unusual letter. Apparently, she is the recipient of the Caradoc Society's assets. Her great-grandfather had made a generous bequest to this group back in 1940. Now that the group is has dissolved Georgina seems to be the only surviving heir.
For Georgina, this possible treasure could be the answer to her prayers. Recently her boyfriend left with her bank account along with her business partner.
Chad Ingram is always on the lookout for a story. He is a television producer and his special is going to focus on Calvary Gaol. Now abandoned, Calvary was the final destination for numerous British criminals since World War I. The team is doing research on evidence of an afterlife and what better place to look than an execution chamber where many met their maker through being hung.
Chad wants an unbiased perspective of the execution chamber. A friend of his, Jude Stratton is chosen to spend some time alone in what they believe could be a nest of spirits. Jude is the perfect person for this choice since he was a freelance journalist. He is blind from covering a story while in the Middle East, and a bomb blinded him. Jude would not know where he is, and this would be perfect for the show.
The Death Chamber is an unusual novel. The first half of the book is the groundwork for the rest of the story, similar to unpacking a jigsaw puzzle. There seem to be numerous unrelated pieces which need to constructed into a frame and then filled-in one piece at a time.
The second half amazingly connects almost to being contrived. The coincidences and relationships are shocking as each page is revealed.
Sarah Rayne has written many psycho-logical suspense novels including Ghost Song and A Dark Dividing. She resides in London.
Surprisingly, I thoroughly enjoyed Rayne's writing style. I was amazed to analyze that in the first half of the book, nothing happened. Even then, it did keep my interest. The second half made me feel that I had to read each page faster. There was an anxiousness to discover how the characters were related, what secret crimes are found, and how all this is relevant to Calvary.
The Death Chamber is for adult readers who enjoy intricately woven tales.
Saturday, July 2, 2016
Though Heaven Fall
Though Heaven Fall: A Medieval Parable
Jeri Westerson
Old London Press
Menifee, CA
ISBN: 978-1502466280
Trade Paperback
October 2014
$ 13.99
254 pages
"The sins we commit on earth are like pebbles upon a scale, each weighing a man's soul heavier and heavier. If his soul is too heavy, you see, it cannot soar aloft to God. Bus when we pray and atone, only then may we lift each pebble--one by one--free of this scale."
In the thirteenth century in England, life's hard.
For Edric, he is barely surviving. He is a cripple with a clubfoot who roams the streets of England, begging and or stealing and even occasionally earning a little money playing music on his pipe.
As fate would have it, Edric unwittingly saves someone's life who just happens to believe that he is an angel. Yes, Edric saves an angel, Azriel.
Who is Azreil? He could be Brother Peter, the missing "Mad Monk" from a nearby monastery. Brother Peter is mentally ill. Could Azreil be Brother Peter? Can a mentally ill person be an angel from heaven?
Azreil believes that God has sent him to earth on a temporary quest as punishment. He can't remember what was the wrongdoing. He does remember his feelings of shame and regret.
When Azreil and Edric join in song, the twosome attracts the attention of the commoners and money. Azreil does sing like an angel. Even Edric begins to question whether he is one.
At the monastery, Brother Latimer is extremely concerned about Brother Peter's disappearance. He is well aware that the world does not treat mentally ill people fairly.
Sir Hugh Varney is assigned the task of finding Brother Peter. Remember there is only a description of him at this time in history. Added to this, Sir Hugh has cancer and is looking for spiritual answers to his destiny.
Somehow all of these characters interact in discovering their answers in a type of quest.
The characters in Though Heaven Fall excel in Westerson's tale with the reader recognizing each ones' strength and short-comings. The action is fast-paced, and a slightly resembles Don Quixote in the adventures. There is murder, humor, compassion, unfairness, in this tale that searches for justice.
Jeri Westerson has written numerous historical adventures in her Crispin Guest Medieval Noir series. She is a native of Los Angeles, California. Some of her previous novels are Veil of Lies, Serpent in the Thorns, The Demon's Parchment, Troubled Bones, Blood Lance, Shadow of the Alchemist, and Cup of Blood.
Westerson is a master storyteller with the exceptionally well-developed characters in Though Heaven Fall.
The Lost Concerto
The Lost Concerto
Helaine Mario
Oceanview Publishing
Longboat Key, Florida
ISBN: 978-1-60809-151-5
2015
$ 27.95
435 pages
"Where words leave off. music begins."
Why would Sofia Orsini grab her young son and hide at a convent on a remote island off the coast to France? Unfortunately, Sofia was died in a tragic accident there and her son, Tommy disappears.
The boy's godmother, Maggie O'Shea is haunted by the woman's death. She had been her best friend. Isn't is her responsibility now to find the boy?
Magdalena O'Shea who goes by the nickname Maggie owns Stewart's Music Shop, which she renamed The Piano Cat. She doesn't make much money selling sheet music, her main source of income is being a concert pianist playing classical music.
Raising a son alone for twenty years, the shop and professional music performance fees allowed her the much-needed extra income to raise a family. Sometimes her joy revolved around her t-shirt collection with musical inspirations such as, "You are the music while the music lasts. T.S. Eliot."
At a Red Sox game, their lives changed when the two met John Patrick O'Shea. His work as an award-winning investigative reporter was fascinating as well as his gift of bringing joy into their lives.
With no answers as to her friend's death and the location of her godson, John chose to visit the island and to use his personal and professional skills to find the truth.
Now Maggie is in mourning. She doesn't think she will ever play professionally again. Johnny died while on this quest for Maggie.
Someone then breaks into her store and home, stealing Johnny's computer files. The loves in her life are gone.
Her only happiness is thoughts of her soon-to-be-born grandson.
All that changes when she hears a recording. This music haunts her. This composition was written by her former love, the father of her son, but could never be finished. Zachary Law was missing in action with his body never found after he had volunteered for a special mission in Lebanon years ago. He never knew he had a son.
Colonel Michael Beckett has an agenda which coincides with Maggie's healing to again learn the past and how to live and love life and music.
The author, Helaine Marion is the founder and president of The SunDial Foundation, which is related to numerous nonprofit charities in the Washington D.C. area. She resides in Arlington, Virginia, and Sarasota, Florida. She has previously written the novel, Firebird.
The Lost Concerto is a unique mystery intricately entering the world of professional musicians while still maintaining the passion for the music, her loyalty to her godson and friend, and the story. Each page masterfully unfolds to reveal a small piece of this intricately woven puzzle into an outstanding novel with realistic characters who are driven to their limits in achieving what they believe is right.
This is unquestionably one of my favorite books of the last few years from a little-known author. I am looking forward to reading more of Helaine Mario's future books.
Helaine Mario
Oceanview Publishing
Longboat Key, Florida
ISBN: 978-1-60809-151-5
2015
$ 27.95
435 pages
"Where words leave off. music begins."
Why would Sofia Orsini grab her young son and hide at a convent on a remote island off the coast to France? Unfortunately, Sofia was died in a tragic accident there and her son, Tommy disappears.
The boy's godmother, Maggie O'Shea is haunted by the woman's death. She had been her best friend. Isn't is her responsibility now to find the boy?
Magdalena O'Shea who goes by the nickname Maggie owns Stewart's Music Shop, which she renamed The Piano Cat. She doesn't make much money selling sheet music, her main source of income is being a concert pianist playing classical music.
Raising a son alone for twenty years, the shop and professional music performance fees allowed her the much-needed extra income to raise a family. Sometimes her joy revolved around her t-shirt collection with musical inspirations such as, "You are the music while the music lasts. T.S. Eliot."
At a Red Sox game, their lives changed when the two met John Patrick O'Shea. His work as an award-winning investigative reporter was fascinating as well as his gift of bringing joy into their lives.
With no answers as to her friend's death and the location of her godson, John chose to visit the island and to use his personal and professional skills to find the truth.
Now Maggie is in mourning. She doesn't think she will ever play professionally again. Johnny died while on this quest for Maggie.
Someone then breaks into her store and home, stealing Johnny's computer files. The loves in her life are gone.
Her only happiness is thoughts of her soon-to-be-born grandson.
All that changes when she hears a recording. This music haunts her. This composition was written by her former love, the father of her son, but could never be finished. Zachary Law was missing in action with his body never found after he had volunteered for a special mission in Lebanon years ago. He never knew he had a son.
Colonel Michael Beckett has an agenda which coincides with Maggie's healing to again learn the past and how to live and love life and music.
The author, Helaine Marion is the founder and president of The SunDial Foundation, which is related to numerous nonprofit charities in the Washington D.C. area. She resides in Arlington, Virginia, and Sarasota, Florida. She has previously written the novel, Firebird.
The Lost Concerto is a unique mystery intricately entering the world of professional musicians while still maintaining the passion for the music, her loyalty to her godson and friend, and the story. Each page masterfully unfolds to reveal a small piece of this intricately woven puzzle into an outstanding novel with realistic characters who are driven to their limits in achieving what they believe is right.
This is unquestionably one of my favorite books of the last few years from a little-known author. I am looking forward to reading more of Helaine Mario's future books.
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