Charlotte's Web of Books

I hate it when I push my favorite authors to the back burner so I can read ARC's of books that are only half as good.  That is going to be one of my reading goals for the New Year.  Linda Castillo's latest book came out in June, yet it took a 15 hour car ride for me to sit down and read Breaking Silence.
Once again, author Linda Castillo, has taken us to the fictional town of Painters Mill.  Chief of Police, Kate Burkholder is baffled by the steady stream of hate crimes against the Amish in her town.  And one night it goes too far when three members of the same family are murdered.  That is when the state sends John Tomasetti in to help Kate find the people behind these hate crimes.  Together they discover that not all of the crimes are linked and there may be a more sinister force behind the murders.
Once again Linda Castillo has written a page turner.  I loved how there was a new development in the relationship between Kate & Tomasetti.  I also loved how we get to see some more of Kate's flaws. They only seem to humanize her more.  As for "whodunit" - I figured it was not as simple as it appeared, but I was a bit shocked by the twist at the end.   Overall, a great mystery.

I need to apologize to you, my readers, for my absence over the last couple of weeks.  I have been participating in my very first National Novel Writing Month and it has been sucking up all of my reading time. I was able to finish reading the newest book by Isabel Wolff, and it was enjoyable.
The Very Picture of You is a story about Ella, an artist specializing in portraits. She has several interesting clients, including the beautiful wife of a wealthy man, an elderly lady nearing the end of her life, and a politician busy with elections.  But she agrees to paint the portrait of her sister's new fiance, Nate.  A man that Ella strongly disapproves of because of a phone conversation she overheard on the night they first met.  But painting a portrait can be a very intimate thing and as the days go on, Ella starts to truly  get to know Nate and the feelings that she starts to develop are not the kind of feelings a woman should have for her future brother-in-law.  Will she be able to standby and watch the man she loves marry her sister?
The Very Picture of You is one of those darling novels set in the UK.  And you all know how much I adore books set in the UK. Ella is a wonderful character and I think the author did a fabulous job of setting up Ella's back-story, especially the relationship between her Mother & Father.  I will say it was a bit predictable, but I enjoyed the characters so much that I really did not care.  Overall a well told story and a great way to pass a rainy afternoon.

Can you believe that it is that time of year already? This years batch of Christmas novels are starting to roll out with increasing speed.  The first up for me is Paper Angels, by Jimmy Wayne.
Paper Angels is about two families.  The first is Thomas and his sister, Sarah, and their Mom.  They left his abusive, alcoholic Father a year ago and have been struggling ever since.  This year his Mom has lost her job and signed them up to receive gifts from the Salvation Army Angel Tree.  The second family is Kevin and his wife, Jenny.  Kevin's company is on the verge of going belly up and Jenny is pregnant with twin boys. Even though they face great uncertainty, Kevin feels called to take a Paper Angel.  It just so happen to have Thomas's name on it and his list is great.  A new pair of Nike basketball shoes, a digital camera, an iPod, and an autographed Michael Jordan Bulls Jersey.   Will he be able to afford all of the gifts that Thomas wants let alone find them before the deadline?
I knew that Paper Angels was written by a Country Music star, but I had no idea that the book was based on his song, Paper Angels.