The God of the Woods by Liz Moore

  

The God of the Woods is a novel that pulls you into a community and lets you live there for a good length of time. In this case, it is the young campers and counselors at a summer camp in upstate New York, along with the members of the family who own the camp and the police called in to look for a missing person.

The event at the heart of this story is the disappearance of a camper, the daughter of the camp's owner. She is also the sister of a boy who disappeared in a similar fashion years earlier. Police are brought in to look for the missing girl and everyone in the community begins to rethink the earlier tragedy.

Points of view and time frames switch around from chapter to chapter as the mystery unfurls, allowing readers to get to know all the characters simultaneously, even when they are from different generations.

I listened to the audio which I would recommend for anyone looking for a good listen on a long ride.

Becoming Catherine by Jane C R Reid

 

The plot of Becoming Catherine combines time travel with hints of reincarnation and karma to make a story I looked forward to reading every time I picked up the book. It's about a young woman named Kate who contracts the flu and falls into a deep sleep. When she wakes, she's back in time, in the body of Catherine, the sister of Kate's ancestor Byron.

Byron and Catherine are the children of Bertrand Lloyd, a famous nineteenth-century opera singer whose career plummeted when he lost his voice. This “new” Catherine has to adjust to a different era with old-fashioned societal norms while dealing with Bertrand, who has a dark side, and with the fact that she doesn't know the “old” Catherine's history.

Jane C R Reid's writing and characters are excellent. I recommend this novel to anyone who enjoys paranormal stories centered on a dysfunctional family.

The Shroud by George Bachman

 

The Shroud is an interesting combination of historical and mystical fiction. George Bachman apparently researched sixteenth century England thoroughly. I read the Kindle version. It gave me the opportunity to highlight names of people and groups, so I could check their Wikipedia entries.

Bachman also gives us an occult side from that era, through the perceived powers of the Shroud and the appearance of characters such as a cherub who arrives from out of a mirror, “as if through a window.”

The core of The Shroud's plot is the desire for multiple groups to possess the real Shroud of Turin.  It exists and so do the groups who are trying to steal it. But there are several fakes. The thieves represent interests such as Pope Sixtus V, Queen Elizabeth the First, and “Philip, king of Spain and Portugal and rightful ruler of England.”

This is a novel I would recommend to people who have an interest in the history of sixteenth century England, but also enjoy stories with mysticism.

Sarah's Secret Christmas Wish by Kerisma Vere

 

Sarah’s Secret Christmas Wish is a short fun read. There is a note on the cover saying it is “A Hallmark holiday romance…just a little gayer.” I can say that's a valid comparison. Its plot is easy to predict, but it’s fun to follow the path the characters take to the ending. Although it bills itself as an LGBTQ novel I feel it is more about good versus bad relationships, no matter what the sexual preferences are. One thing I want to mention. The ending has an odd structure. There is an epilogue followed by two chapters labeled as bonus scenes. They are important, so be sure you read to the end. I recommend this book to anyone who wants to read a story that leaves you feeling good.

 

The Room Next Door by Wendy Walker

 

Brooke, Carrie, and Eve did everything together when they were in high school, until Eve disappeared. Despite the fact that Eve's body was found and her death was ruled an accidental drowning, Carrie, now the chief of police of a small town in the East Bay region of Rhode Island, is still burdened by the case. When another body washes up in the harbor, Carrie finds connections and new ways to look into her friend's death, including ways that involve Brooke. This audio was very well produced. I enjoyed the story, but I did not like the way it ended.