"Traces of Guilt" Book Review

Oh Man! Was my mystery loving teen daughter excited to see this one arrive on our doorstep. Fortunately I read it first because she's not. No it isn't gruesome. No it isn't smutty. But it does deal with sexual child abuse and, for better or for worse, I don't want my 13 year old to have to deal with that any more than necessary.

In truth, I thought author Dee Henderson did a good job of dealing with the subject without going into detail. However, I didn't like how it was stated over and over that the victim (who is now an adult) needed other people protecting them - as though they can't think for themselves. Victims of abuse have often been told what to think and how to act - against their will. They don't need us to continue on making their decisions. What they need is for us to support them in their decision making, not treat them like a porcelain doll.

I must say "Bravo!" to Ms. Henderson for writing a mystery with many false starts and mis-turns. This book kept me guessing and I didn't see the ending coming. The characters were believable and the plot moved along nicely.

Unfortunately, there is one aspect of Ms. Henderson's writing that grates my nerves. The characters say each other's names too often. No one talks like that in real life and it makes for every conversation sound harsh - like they are being taught or reprimanded all the time. (Ha, I bet if you didn't notice it before, it'll annoy you now.) My daughter asked how I was liking the book and I mentioned this to her and for fun we spoke to each other, throwing in each other's first name as often as the book does. Hilariously rude sounding. It sounded like we were ordering each other around.

All in all I enjoyed this mystery.

Book has been provided courtesy of Baker Publishing Group and Graf-Martin Communications, Inc.

"The Domino Effect" Book Review

Author Davis Bunn uses "The Domino Effect" to bring to light questionable practices financial institutions follow in their never ceasing quest for the next big payoff.  Admittedly, I'm not a numbers guru. My money expertise ends at the age old wisdom of "Pay off your credit card every month."  And truthfully, real life news of Wall Street rarely captures my attention. However, the way Mr. Bunn tied real life events, such as the lead up to the 2008 crash, had me continually having to remind myself that this was indeed fiction.

On the back cover, "The Domino Effect" is categorized as suspense. Umm, I'd say that's a bit strong of a word. In other write ups, it's described as a thriller. Nope. I kept waiting for the action to start and, well, it never really did. That's not to say it was boring. The first two chapters took a mild level of determination to get through. (Again, because I'm not easily engrossed by banking terms.) But I'm not sorry for having read this book. In fact I think I accidentally learned some stuff.  It's just that it's an over sell to call it a thriller. It would be better classed as a financial fiction based on reality-ish.

The writing is clean and the characters memorable though the plot is, well, slightly contrived. The main character's allies are a tad too able. That's okay. Lately I've been needing more sleep so the last thing I need it to get worked up over a fantasy person right at bedtime.

I would give this book 4 stars except that, again, it is being over sold. Just don't go into it thinking it's going to get your heart pounding and I bet you'll like it.  Oh, and for the record, there is no sexual content, course language or violence. However, there is the threat of violence

"Book has been provided courtesy of Baker Publishing Group and Graf-Martin Communications, Inc."