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Devils Island
By Midge Raymond & John Yunker
Oceanview Publishing,9781608096145, September 3, 2024, 320pp.

The Short of It:

Adventurous and suspenseful.

The Rest of It:

*No Spoilers*

Six people depart for an island tour. The island in question happens to be the home to endangered Tasmanian Devils. Not typically known to be a threat to humans, but when one of the guests go missing, Kerry, the tour lead can’t help but think the worst.

If you enjoy locked door mysteries then you are in for a treat. Stuck on a remote island, bad weather forcing them to remain together, and then the unthinkable, a missing person. That’s enough to satisfy, but then add long-time friends reconnecting after a significant break, married couples that are not so happily married, a rather juvenile assistant tour lead, and the flora and fauna of this isolated island with no other human inhabitants, and you’ve got a VERY satisfying read!

While Kerry attempts to hold it all together, her job depends on it, she’s doing what she can to not lay blame where it doesn’t belong. Blaming an endangered species, can only hurt their chances of survival. From a naturalist’s perspective, we experience the beauty of the island even though there is death and danger at every turn.

If you think you know where the story is going, then you’d be wrong. There are a lot of plot twists that keep you guessing and not the kind just thrown out there to throw you off. Plausible twists that will have you flipping those pages. We get to know each character intimately as we spend time with them on that island. I really liked Kerry. Wouldn’t mind a sequel at ALL.

I love to read but some books you just want to spend time with and that is how I felt with Devils Island. Armchair travelers will rejoice. Mystery lovers will find themselves completely captivated. And you outdoor types, rock climbers, hikers and the like will find something to love here as well.

Devils Island will be on my fave list at the end of the year. You should know that it comes out September 3rd, but waste no time, pre-order now.

Source: Sent to me by the author.
Disclosure: This post contains Indiebound affiliate links.

The Mothers
By Brit Bennett
Riverhead, 9780399184529, 2017, 304pp.

The Short of It:

Rich and full bodied. Like a fine wine but better.

The Rest of It:

It is the last season of high school life for Nadia Turner, a rebellious, grief-stricken, seventeen-year-old beauty. Mourning her own mother’s recent suicide, she takes up with the local pastor’s son. Luke Sheppard is twenty-one, a former football star whose injury has reduced him to waiting tables at a diner. They are young; it’s not serious. But the pregnancy that results from this teen romance–and the subsequent cover-up–will have an impact that goes far beyond their youth. ~ From the publisher

I have had this book on my TBR list since reading The Vanishing Half. But it wasn’t until I listened to a podcast by From the Front Porch, that I really took note of The Mothers. This book has everything. Nadia is beautiful and flawed and caught in a world of hurt over her own mother’s suicide. Although she comes from a very religious family, and attends church on a regular basis, she doesn’t make the best choices when it comes to love and friendship.

Nadia navigates life in a precarious way. She is her father’s daughter, loyal to a point but when he chooses to remove the memory of her mother from her childhood home, she strikes out in ways that can only come from pain. Her deep need for belonging leads her to Luke but her relationship with Luke is complicated by life. Life, in the form of an unwanted pregnancy.

What does it mean to love and be loved? How does that look for you or me? Nadia’s definition of love swings from one extreme to another and yet she is wise beyond her young years, intelligent and driven. I won’t lie, there were times when I wanted to slap some sense into that girl but at the same time I wanted to just hold her.

The BEST part of this novel is the group of church ladies who function as a Greek chorus of sorts. Always chiming in, providing additional information and once or twice providing nothing but fodder to chew on. I did not grow up with a lot of women around me, I would have loved to have this group of women looking out for me. Nadia sees the value to knowing them, but also knows when to pull away.

This was an incredibly satisfying read. Anyone would be hard-pressed to not relate to Nadia in some way. Highly recommend.

Source: Borrowed
Disclosure: This post contains Indiebound affiliate links.

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