Reviewing....Murder At the Courthouse!

If you are looking for that story of a crime most inconvenient look no further than between the covers of  Murder At The Courthouse.  A.H. Gabhart's latest novel set in the heart of the south begins as slowly as the old lady who mistakes a body for a drunkard asleep on the courthouse steps. What follows picks up to be a page turner that kept me up past my bed time on Wednesday night!

You'll get no spoilers from me but this first in the new Hidden Springs Mystery series kept me guessing close to the end. It wraps up to a neat ending of a web of deceit nobody in Hidden Springs could have imagined.

Former Columbus police officer Michael Keane has returned home to Hidden Springs for a quieter lifestyle. That all changed when a deputy finds the identity of the corpse who died on the courthouse steps. that identity leads Michael on search fare greater than he bargained for.

A good plot with good characters in a sleepy little town make for one good book. Add this one to your list, I think it will be a hit.

Tuesday Tales: Reviewing The Innocent

I have read a few of Ann H. Gabhart's books and I have to say that The Innocent is quite a change for me from Summer of Joy or Love Comes home. Imagine you are a young woman waiting two years for the return of your missing husband from the Civil War. Although the war is long over, she keept alive the hope thathe is still alive.  After all, He was eported only missing, not dead. Barely able to survive on her own and care for their farm, she persisted in working hard only to lose her home.

The story unfolds into a bittersweet tale of one lone woman against the odds. Unable to support herself after losing her farm, Carlyn Kearney makes a decision to join the Shakers at Harmony Hill.  I was surprised to learn everything she had to give up to to move into the quiet, secure Shaker community, including her dog.  Life is peaceful there until strange, unsettling things began to happen within the village that cast newcomer into a Carlyn a natural suspect.

Sheriff Mitchell Brodie knows that there are strange things happening at Harmony Hill and he believes everything goes much deeper than the arrival of a young, beautiful widow. He is determined to solve the mysteries, prove her innocence and, hopefully, safe.

I have been  having a hard time not spilling out the whole story but you will want to read it yourself. I read it in two days with a lot of interruptions. Ann is a master at hooking you into a story and tackling difficult topics. I have no prior knowledge of the Shaker lifestyle and associate them with beautiful wooden boxes and a calm demeaner. I believe a good witer influences us to dig deeper into part of the story. I plan to do a little research on the Shaker lifestyle.

Reviewing Love Comes Home

Love Comes Home is the second book by Ann Gabhart that I have read this year. I love how she takes you back to ways of life that are forgotten or unimaginable by our young people today. Love Comes Home is the third book in the Rosey Corner series. It is set after World War II when the world anxiously waits to welcome home their soldiers. The Merritt sisters are going to breathe again when two or their three men return to adjust to life after the war.
For Kate, who married just before her husband Jay went overseas it would be a test on whether she married in haste. For Evie, whose husband, Preacher Mike was a prisoner of war, life should go on as though the war didn't exist. Or did it? For Tori the return of her sisters' husbands is a reminder that her Sammy will not be returning. Can she give her daughter Samantha a good life and honor her husband's memory? Can she learn to let go and love again?

Lorena Birdsong, beloved youngest sister, left on the church steps until found by Kate has given much joy in the Merritt family. She is a favorite and wise beyond her fourteen years. Still, she longs to know what happened to her other family. I feel she is central to the family with all the bridges she built between the community, her family and intriguing characters that make small towns buzz with lazy excitement.

I like the story for the rich character development and moments of surprise as the story grows. In the midst of it all we find God's love and faithfulness in the heart of Rosey Corner. We hear about Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome today but it wasn't considered out loud in the 40's or 50's. Men didn't share their burdens of war and adjusting to the sights and sounds of home must have taken a lot of patience and love on the part of those welcoming loved ones home.

I recommend this book to anyone who enjoys studying people and the insight it brings. The story is not a mystery but I don't want to spoil a thing about Ann's tale of love, patience and faith. I am inspired to look at people more closely and see who they really are. Thank you Ann Gabhart for a delightful book.

 

Ann H Gabhart's Summer of Joy...A Novel

I read Summer of Joy by Ann H Gabhart while recovering recently from foot surgery. It kept me company as the days filled with ice and elevation grew long and lonely. I felt myself becoming one with the staff of the Hollyhill Banner, a weekly paper for the folks in the small town of Hollyhill, Kentucky. David Brooke is pastor of the Mt. Pleasant Church and newspaper editor. His daughter Jocie helps out at the paper while sister Tabitha is single mother to Stephen Lee, a bi-racial baby boy.

Gossip and speculation abound in the story but as David Brooke teaches his daughters you just have to put things out there and eventually any talk that may come will fade away. He knows this to be true from experience when his first wife walked out one night when Jocie was little.  Now, all these years later, David is ready to love again and marry Leigh, who is loved by both Jocie and Tabitha. Before this can happen though, we meet with some unexpected suspense in the story that will keep you turning pages!

 Small town life in the south during 1964 seems like a idyllic setting and that is not the case with Summer of Joy. For that matter, some of the story is not joyful at all but like all life there is a story here to be shared.