Review: The Black Donnellys by Thomas P. Kelley

"When that Donnelly glares at you, you hear the sound of shovels digging your grave." -- Donnellys first victim 

How could one family -- mom, dad, and seven sons -- terrorize an entire Canadian community for 33 years?

The Black Donnellys is the classic account of how James, Johannah and their sons used brute force to brawl, steal, burn, and murder their way into the dark side of Canadian history. A popular bestseller since 1954, this gripping book covers the family's horrific crimes in unflinching detail through to their decimation at the hands of a murderous vigilante mob.

Mass Market Paperback, 158 pages

Published August 1982

by Pagurian Press Limited

(first published August 1st, 1955)

***

The Hatfield and McCoy’s have nothing on the Donnelly family of Southern Ontario. Their reign of terror from 1850-1880 in the little town of Lucan, Ontario (just north of London) was vividly portrayed in this little book. I picked it up at a used bookstore out of curiosity, I’ve heard the name but didn’t know the story. Now that I know it I struggle with how this family got away with some much during that time. To put it very mildly they were a brash, arrogant and violent family - seemly lead by their mother, and it all started within days of setting foot on Canadian soil.

Arriving from Ireland in 1850 this family of consisted of parents, 7 sons and a daughter. They did as they pleased, took what they wanted and appeared to take pleasure in the suffering of others. This little book didn’t hold back but told the story from an outside point of view. I would really have loved to hear what the Donnelly’s had to say, what motivated them to me so nasty - and that’s putting it very mildly.  Because really there are always two sides to every story.

This book read very much like a textbook, matter of fact in tone.  Jumping back and forth in time was a little distracting at times.

There is another book on my shelf, Vengeance of the Black Donnelly’s, a fictional account of those that got away with murder. Sounds like it could be interesting reading.

I read this as part of my own Reading My Shelf Challenge

Review: Beyond the Orchard by Anna Romer

A haunting story of yearning, love and betrayal from the bestselling author of Thornwood House

 Lucy Briar has arrived home in turmoil after years overseas. She’s met her fiancé in London and has her life mapped out, but something is holding her back.

 Hoping to ground herself and find answers, Lucy settles into once familiar routines. But old tortured feelings flood Lucy’s existence when her beloved father, Ron, is hospitalised and Morgan – the man who drove her away all those years ago – seeks her out. Worse, Ron implores Lucy to visit Bitterwood Estate, the crumbling historic family guesthouse now left to him. He needs Lucy to find something– an old photograph album, the very thing that drove Ron and his father apart.

 Lucy has her own painful memories of Bitterwood, darkness that has plagued her dreams since she was young. But as Lucy searches for the album, the house begins to give up its ghosts and she is driven to put them to rest.

 And there, held tightly between the house, the orchard and the soaring cliffs, Lucy uncovers a long-hidden secret that shattered a family’s bond and kept a frightened young girl in its thrall ... and Lucy discovers just how fierce the lonely heart can be.

 Paperback, 464 pages

Published November 1st 2016

 by Simon & Schuster

**** 

 I always cringe when an author is compared to Kate Morton, those are mighty fine boots to fill and to me it’s just a setup for disappointment. That being said Australian author Anna Romer did not disappoint, this is her third book and I've loved the previous two, The Thornwood House and Lyrebird Hill.

Beyond the Orchard is a dual time period book, with an Australian setting - one of my favourite places (and on my bucket list). With an old house set high on a cliff there is a mysterious ice house that sets the tone, the opening chapter was enough to suck me right in.

Weaving back and forth in time, from the 1930’s and current day, the different characters come to life. There are a number of characters and many layers here but they all work well together with no problem keep track of the story. If anything I was so engrossed that I didn’t realize this until I started writing this up.

Beyond the Orchard is a story of guilt, hidden secrets and family dynamics. It had that Gothic and fairy tale feel that I love. The story unfolded at a great pace it kept me captivated and curious with its twists and turns.

Definitely one of my favourite authors that I discovered when searching Australian settings.

Beyond the Orchard is from my personal library (hard to find in Canada but audible has Anna Romer in audio format) and part of my ‘reading my shelf challenge’

click on cover to take you to may review

Review: A Court of Thorns and Roses (A Court of Thorns and Roses #1) by Sarah J. Maas

Feyre's survival rests upon her ability to hunt and kill – the forest where she lives is a cold, bleak place in the long winter months. So when she spots a deer in the forest being pursued by a wolf, she cannot resist fighting it for the flesh. But to do so, she must kill the predator and killing something so precious comes at a price ...

Dragged to a magical kingdom for the murder of a faerie, Feyre discovers that her captor, his face obscured by a jewelled mask, is hiding far more than his piercing green eyes would suggest. Feyre's presence at the court is closely guarded, and as she begins to learn why, her feelings for him turn from hostility to passion and the faerie lands become an even more dangerous place. Feyre must fight to break an ancient curse, or she will lose him forever.

Paperback, 416 pages

 Published May 5th 2015

by Bloomsbury USA Childrens

****

This year I am challenging myself in many areas, with my reading I am stepping out of my comfort zone with genres I usually steer away from. YA fantasy is one such genre. When a reader friend raved about this series I knew it was where to start.

Feyre is a teen who supports her family or make that takes care of them, they fell from the high life and must fend for themselves. It’s a mistake that changes everything for Feyre. It’s a world divided between human and almost fairy talish (I think I made that word up). Some aspects reminded me of Beauty and the Beast.

I surprised myself by how much I enjoyed this book. The characters were likeable, though I didn’t always like them. The plot complex and intriguing. I was right in the setting with all the mystical and fantasy elements.

Yea I will continue with this series, maybe not right away, the next book A Court of Mist and Fury comes in at 626 pages (over 200 pages more then Thorns and Roses).

Book from my personal library and part of my Read TBR challenge.

Review: The Hazel Wood (The Hazel Wood #1) by Melissa Albert

Seventeen-year-old Alice and her mother have spent most of Alice’s life on the road, always a step ahead of the uncanny bad luck biting at their heels. But when Alice’s grandmother, the reclusive author of a cult-classic book of pitch-dark fairy tales, dies alone on her estate, the Hazel Wood, Alice learns how bad her luck can really get: her mother is stolen away―by a figure who claims to come from the Hinterland, the cruel supernatural world where her grandmother's stories are set. Alice's only lead is the message her mother left behind: “Stay away from the Hazel Wood.”

 Alice has long steered clear of her grandmother’s cultish fans. But now she has no choice but to ally with classmate Ellery Finch, a Hinterland superfan who may have his own reasons for wanting to help her. To retrieve her mother, Alice must venture first to the Hazel Wood, then into the world where her grandmother's tales began―and where she might find out how her own story went so wrong.

 Hardcover, 368 pages

Published January 30th 2018

by Flatiron Books

***

When I saw this book’s heavy presence on Instagram I caved to peer pressure, especially when I read the blurb. A book about fairy tales, the recluse and mysterious author and a place called Hinterland. The cover kinda clinched the deal.

This book grabbed me right away, with its lyrical telling I settled in for this adventure. The pacing was great, the characters likable (well sort of) and the story intriguing. But then I hit the half way point and bam! The writing changed, it was almost like another writer took over and everything changed. My interest weaned and disappointment took over when I lost interest in this story.
All of a sudden there were many new characters and a different vibe.

I realize that I am going against the flow and most loved it, I really wanted to and sadly I am not sure I will continue with this series.

Originally I was leaning at 2 stars but bumped up to 3 for the awesome beginning.

Review: I'll Be Gone in the Dark: One Woman's Obsessive Search for the Golden State Killer by Michelle McNamara

The haunting true story of the elusive serial rapist turned murderer who terrorized California during the 70s and 80s, and of the gifted journalist who died tragically while investigating the case—which was solved in April 2018.

 Introduction by Gillian Flynn • Afterword by Patton Oswalt

 “A brilliant genre-buster.... Propulsive, can’t-stop-now reading.” —Stephen King

 For more than ten years, a mysterious and violent predator committed fifty sexual assaults in Northern California before moving south, where he perpetrated ten sadistic murders. Then he disappeared, eluding capture by multiple police forces and some of the best detectives in the area.

 Three decades later, Michelle McNamara, a true crime journalist who created the popular website TrueCrimeDiary.com, was determined to find the violent psychopath she called "the Golden State Killer." Michelle pored over police reports, interviewed victims, and embedded herself in the online communities that were as obsessed with the case as she was.

 I’ll Be Gone in the Dark —the masterpiece McNamara was writing at the time of her sudden death—offers an atmospheric snapshot of a moment in American history and a chilling account of a criminal mastermind and the wreckage he left behind. It is also a portrait of a woman’s obsession and her unflagging pursuit of the truth. Utterly original and compelling, it has been hailed as a modern true crime classic—one which fulfilled Michelle's dream: helping unmask the Golden State Killer.

 Paperback, 352 pages

 Published February 27th 2018

by Harper

****

I caved to social media pressure to read this one, everywhere I looked I saw this book. Especially when news reports of an arrest started coming through.

Michelle McNamara had a blog called TrueCrimeDiary and had a fascination (to put it mildly) with unsolved murders and the EAR/Golden State Murders is the focus of this book. She writes with grace and respect for the victims, she didn’t glorify the acts but protected the innocent. Her research is almost obsessive and it’s sad that in her passing she was not able to see his arrest.

This book presented the era, the various locations with detail as well as the criminal procedures in a time before DNA testing. This is a gripping story and for those that sleep uneasy you might want to have your dog close by, I read a lot of this while alone for a weekend and I think I even made my dog nervous. But really what did I expect, it’s a book about some absolutely horrible crimes.

I don't read a lot of true crime, nonfiction book and am trying to rectify that this year.  My copy was from my personal library.

Audio Review: Into Africa: The Epic Adventures of Stanley and Livingstone by Martin Dugard

With the utterance of a single line—“Doctor Livingstone, I presume?”—a remote meeting in the heart of Africa was transformed into one of the most famous encounters in exploration history. But the true story behind Dr. David Livingstone and journalist Henry Morton Stanley is one that has escaped telling. Into Africa is an extraordinarily researched account of a thrilling adventure—defined by alarming foolishness, intense courage, and raw human achievement.

 In the mid-1860s, exploration had reached a plateau. The seas and continents had been mapped, the globe circumnavigated. Yet one vexing puzzle remained unsolved: what was the source of the mighty Nile river? Aiming to settle the mystery once and for all, Great Britain called upon its legendary explorer, Dr. David Livingstone, who had spent years in Africa as a missionary. In March 1866, Livingstone steered a massive expedition into the heart of Africa. In his path lay nearly impenetrable, uncharted terrain, hostile cannibals, and deadly predators. Within weeks, the explorer had vanished without a trace. Years passed with no word.

 While debate raged in England over whether Livingstone could be found—or rescued—from a place as daunting as Africa, James Gordon Bennett, Jr., the brash American newspaper tycoon, hatched a plan to capitalize on the world’s fascination with the missing legend. He would send a young journalist, Henry Morton Stanley, into Africa to search for Livingstone. A drifter with great ambition, but little success to show for it, Stanley undertook his assignment with gusto, filing reports that would one day captivate readers and dominate the front page of the New York Herald.

Tracing the amazing journeys of Livingstone and Stanley in alternating chapters, author Martin Dugard captures with breathtaking immediacy the perils and challenges these men faced. Woven into the narrative, Dugard tells an equally compelling story of the remarkable transformation that occurred over the course of nine years, as Stanley rose in power and prominence and Livingstone found himself alone and in mortal danger. The first book to draw on modern research and to explore the combination of adventure, politics, and larger-than-life personalities involved, Into Africa is a riveting read.

Narrated by: John Lee 

Length: 11 hrs and 30 mins 

Unabridged Release date: 12-11-03 

Publisher: Books on Tape

****

I’m always fascinated with explorers, those that go out into the world who are brave enough to risk so much in their search. Stanley and Livingston are names I heard all through school, famous explorer and famous statement 'Dr. Livingston I presume' has stayed with me and left me wondering about their stories. I went with the audio version,  the reader was someone new (to me) so he did a fantastic job.

 The author doesn’t hold back as he describes this journey and the hostile environment Africa was during that time. This books isn’t just about finding Livingston but it gives the background information on both these men, the time period as well as what happens after their meeting. I grew up thinking Livingston was a missionary however this book doesn't really get into that aspect of his life but centered on his search for the source of the Nile.  History classes had me assuming the search for Livingstone was straight forward but as shown here it was anything but.  Disease was a daily concern, violence and desertion a common occurrence.  The weather was scary and the bugs/insects even more so. How these 2 managed to meet up was amazing and it took years.

There is a wealth of information here and I am glad to have gone the audio way this time around.  Nonfiction leans itself well in that direction.  My copy was from my personal library (via Audible). 

Review: The Child Finder by Rene Denfeld

A haunting, richly atmospheric, and deeply suspenseful novel from the acclaimed author of The Enchanted about an investigator who must use her unique insights to find a missing little girl.

"Where are you, Madison Culver? Flying with the angels, a silver speck on a wing? Are you dreaming, buried under snow? Or—is it possible—you are still alive?"

Three years ago, Madison Culver disappeared when her family was choosing a Christmas tree in Oregon’s Skookum National Forest. She would be eight-years-old now—if she has survived. Desperate to find their beloved daughter, certain someone took her, the Culvers turn to Naomi, a private investigator with an uncanny talent for locating the lost and missing. Known to the police and a select group of parents as "the Child Finder," Naomi is their last hope.

Naomi’s methodical search takes her deep into the icy, mysterious forest in the Pacific Northwest, and into her own fragmented past. She understands children like Madison because once upon a time, she was a lost girl, too.

As Naomi relentlessly pursues and slowly uncovers the truth behind Madison’s disappearance, shards of a dark dream pierce the defenses that have protected her, reminding her of a terrible loss she feels but cannot remember. If she finds Madison, will Naomi ultimately unlock the secrets of her own life?

Told in the alternating voices of Naomi and a deeply imaginative child, The Child Finder is a breathtaking, exquisitely rendered literary page-turner about redemption, the line between reality and memories and dreams, and the human capacity to survive.

 Paperback, 288 pages 

Published September 5th 2017 

by Harper
****

I have a confession to make, I read this book without any knowledge of what it was about, caving to peer pressure. I have many likes on Facebook of various book clubs and reading groups, this book has been talked about a lot. When the opportunity came to purchase for only a couple dollars at a local thrift store I jumped at the opportunity, and last week I dove in.

I don’t usually read reviews of books until after I have written my own but in this case I took a peek. While most of the reviews are five star there are some one stars and I can see their point. Given the subject matter and the possibility of some disturbing scenarios I did proceed with caution, there was nothing graphic and I can honestly say I was glued to the pages.

The story begins with the disappearance of five-year-old Madison in Oregon’s wild wilderness and that was three years ago. Naomi is a private investigator with a passion for searching for lost and missing children, sometimes the endings are happy and other times not so.

What can I say here that won’t reveal the outcome? Alternating between Naomi and Madison I was given a real sense of the emotional state, circumstances and the mystery here. There are many layers to the story that are emotional (how can they not be with this subject matter ), but I found the descriptive writing very hypnotizing. It flowed smoothly with insight into the characters background revealing why Naomi is not without scars herself.  The scenery was vivid, the harshness of the North Pacific just added to the story.

Taking only a couple days to read this one, this is one I recommend, it has the right blend of mystery, suspense and an added fairy tale feel to it.

Review: A Girl Like You (Henrietta and Inspector Howard #1) by Michelle Cox

Henrietta von Harmon works as a 26 girl at a corner bar on Chicago's northwest side. It's 1935, but things still aren't looking up since the big crash and her father's subsequent suicide, leaving Henrietta to care for her antagonistic mother and younger siblings. Henrietta is eventually persuaded to take a job as a taxi dancer at a local dance hall - and just when she's beginning to enjoy herself, the floor matron turns up dead.

When aloof Inspector Clive Howard appears on the scene, Henrietta agrees to go undercover for him and is plunged into Chicago's grittier underworld.

Meanwhile, she's still busy playing mother hen to her younger siblings, as well as to pesky neighborhood boy Stanley, who believes himself in love with her and keeps popping up in the most unlikely places, determined to keep Henrietta safe even from the Inspector, if need be. Despite his efforts, however, and his penchant for messing up the Inspector's investigation, the lovely Henrietta and the impenetrable Inspector find themselves drawn to each other in most unsuitable ways.

Paperback, 288 pages 

Published April 19th 2016 

by She Writes Press
*** (I liked it)

A Girl Like You is the first book in series, with book 2 (A Ring of Truth) available and book 3 coming soon.  The time period here is one I read a lot of but usually pertaining to the war, this was a refreshing change to get a glimpse of the seedy side of Chicago.  A learning experience also since I have never heard of a '26 girl' or 'taxi dancer'.  

Henrietta is a likable character, in her late teens I found her to be somewhat naive even though taking jobs at disreputable places.  But her desire to take care of her family is what drove her there.

The author painted a picture of the struggles society faced post depression and it wasn't hard to sympathize with Henrietta and her family's plight.  The mystery was interesting with a few twists and turns, even though I figured some things out the unveiling kept my attention.  I will continue with this series and will recommend this book to those that like a quick read with suspense and mystery.

This book is from my personal library.