Today I am sharing my Feature Post and Book Review for EMPEROR by John Fullerton on this Black Tide Book Tour.
Below you will find a book description, my book review and the author’s bio and social media links. Enjoy!
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Book Description
Can ex-NSA agent Ava stop the Emperor’s war plans before he kills millions – and her?
There’s a new Cold War…and it’s about to erupt into World War Three.
Emperor Qin – absolute ruler, dictator for life – has one task before he succumbs to brain cancer, and it means war. Can ex-spy Ava stop him in time to save millions – and survive?
Qin will ‘unify’ China by ordering the conquest of Taiwan, a democratic nation of 23 million people just 100 miles off the mainland, a pledge the Chinese Communist Party has made every year since the 1949 Revolution.
But there’s a leak, a flood of state secrets.
They land in the lap of the former NSA analyst in Washington DC. Ava Shute hasn’t sought the material. On the contrary, she’s a most reluctant recipient.
One thing keeps Ava going: the prospect of a nuclear Armageddon. The clock is ticking as Chinese agents hunt Ava down with orders to kill.
EMPEROR by John Fullerton is a twisted espionage thriller that immerses you in a fictional and yet realistic game of politics, propaganda, and spies from the point of view of the Chinese Supreme Leader Qin and American former NSA analyst, Ava Shute. This is a standalone novel.
Qin is the type of totalitarian leader most westerners picture as the leader of China. Qin is isolated, ruthless, and even with a brain tumor able to outwit any opposition. Before his tumor kills him, the legacy he wants to leave is the reunification of China and Taiwan.
There is a leak of Qin’s military plans and Ava Shute is the recipient of the information. The informant wishes to remain secret and have their information released to the press rather than government agencies so that it cannot be buried. With Chinese agents out to shut down the leak permanently, Ava must trust an old acquaintance from her NSA past with her life.
This is such a great thriller. It does not rely on fast action scenes to carry the story, although they are there, it is more of game of political chess. There are in depth descriptions of military equipment and maneuvers beside the examples of types of espionage which show a voluminous amount of research and knowledge. While the plot keeps you on the edge of your seat about whether there will be a world war or not, whether the leaker will be unveiled or not, or if Ava will survive, the author brings the reader to a brilliantly executed, twisted, and yet believable climax. Sorry, no spoilers here. You have to read this book.
I highly recommend this espionage thriller!
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Author Bio
John Fullerton worked briefly during the Cold War as a ‘contract labourer’ for Britain’s Secret Intelligence Service, also known as MI6, an episode that fired up his interest in fictional espionage. He failed spectacularly in his efforts as a farmer in Zimbabwe and as a trainee financial manager in Cape Town.
All told, he’s lived or worked in 40 countries as a journalist and covered a dozen wars. For 20 years Fullerton was employed by Reuters as a correspondent and editor with postings in Hong Kong, Delhi, Beirut, Nicosia, Cairo, and London.
His latest thriller, Emperor, was published in 2022. He has an MA with distinction in Buddhist Studies and was appointed a Fellow of the Royal Literary Fund at Roehampton University in 2006/7.
THE SOUND OF LIGHT by Sarah Sundin is a suspenseful inspirational historical fiction story featuring two memorable main characters in Nazi occupied Denmark during WWII. Make sure you have plenty of time when you start this standalone story because I found it impossible to put down.
American physicist Dr. Elsebeth “Else” Jensen is working under the famous physicist Niels Bohr when the Germans march in to occupy Denmark. She has dual American and Danish citizenship and refuses to leave her work at the Institute. Her best friend, mathematician Laila who is Jewish and lives with her in a boardinghouse asks for her assistance in printing resistance papers. Also living their boardinghouse in the quiet giant Hemmey who works at the shipyard and befriends Else.
Hemmy is actually Baron Henrik Ahlefeldt who until the Germans came lived his life as a spoiled aristocrat. Now he risks his life and keeps a secret as the people whisper of the legendary Havmand (Merman) helping the Danish resistance by rowing messages to Sweden across the sound. As acts of sabotage occur in the shipyards and town, the Germans declare martial law and begin to round up the Danish Jews. Henrik and Else have become close and are determined to help Jewish families escape to Sweden.
As the danger increases, Henrik and Else respond to their extraordinary circumstances with their strength of faith and love. They continually face the question of following the laws of man or the morally just laws of man and God as they risk their lives.
This is a suspenseful story of resistance during war and an inspirational romance that are perfectly intertwined. I could not stop turning the pages. Else and Henrik are courageous, strong, and memorable characters. Henrik’s character is based on an actual Danish Olympic rower who helped get Jewish people to Sweden in his boat during the war. All the secondary characters are realistic, both good and bad. The author brought the Danes of Copenhagen during WWII to life in this story with scenes of bravery and courage as well as treachery. The historical research is evident. The inspirational elements of faith, redemption, and forgiveness are believable without being preachy. I did not want this book to end.
I highly recommend this inspirational historical fiction story!
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About the Author
Sarah Sundin enjoys writing about the drama and romance of the World War II era. She is the bestselling author of The Sound of Light (February 2023), Until Leaves Fall in Paris (2022), When Twilight Breaks (2021), and four WWII series. Her novels have received starred reviews from Publishers Weekly, Library Journal, and Booklist. Until Leaves Fall in Paris, received the 2022 Christy Award, When Twilight Breaks and The Land Beneath Us were Christy Award finalists, and The Sky Above Us won the 2020 Carol Award.
A mother of three, Sundin lives in Southern California and teaches Sunday school and women’s Bible studies. She enjoys speaking to community, church, and writers’ groups. Sarah serves as Co-Director for the West Coast Christian Writers Conference.
When the Germans march into Denmark, Baron Henrik Ahlefeldt exchanges his nobility for anonymity, assuming a new identity so he can secretly row messages for the Danish Resistance across the waters to Sweden.
American physicist Dr. Else Jensen refuses to leave Copenhagen and abandon her research–her life’s dream. While printing resistance newspapers, she hears stories of the movement’s legendary Havmand–the merman–and wonders if the mysterious and silent shipyard worker living in the same boardinghouse has something to hide.
When the Occupation cracks down on the Danes, these two passionate people will discover if there is more power in speech . . . or in silence. Bestselling author of more than a dozen WWII novels, Sarah Sundin offers pens another story of ordinary people responding to extraordinary circumstances with faith, fortitude, and hope for a brighter future.
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Elise’s Thoughts
The Sound of Light by Sarah Sundin shows why her name has become synonymous with captivating and historically accurate World War II books. This novel has ordinary people responding to extraordinary circumstances using their courage, faith, fortitude, and a bit of hope.
The story shows how the Nazi occupation was different with Denmark. After the Germans occupy Denmark during WWII, they treat the country as a “model protectorate”. They didn’t enforce the same antisemitic laws as they did throughout Europe, allowing the Danes to self-govern and keeping the power of King Christian intact. For a while, things remained very much the same.
But when the plot fast forwards to 1943 everything changes. Baron Henrik Ahlefeldt exchanges his nobility for anonymity, so he can secretly row messages for the Danish Resistance across the waters to Sweden. He had three personas. Havman is the name chosen for helping the Danish Resistance. The “Merman” is based on the Hans Christian Anderson story The Little Mermaid. As a former Olympic rower, he volunteers to row vital intel across the Sound to the allies in Sweden. There is also Hemining chosen by Henrik to be the opposite of the Baron, portraying an illiterate silent ship worker.
As Hemining, he meets Dr. Else Jenkins, an American Physicist who decides to stay in Denmark even after the Nazi occupation. But she is also working for the resistance, helping to publish a resistance newspaper for her friend Dr. Laila Berend, a mathematician. Neither Else and Laila know Hemining’s identity and resistance activities, and he does not know of their resistance activities. This changes in 1943 after the Nazis decide to round up the Danish Jewish community. Together along with most of Denmark, they hide and then transport most of the Jews to safety in Sweden. They face the constant danger of getting arrested, tortured, and executed.
The themes of the book are bravery, forgiveness, heartbreak, and horror along with the resilience of the Danes. Sundin has a way of bringing to life the true history in a fictional story.
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Author Interview
Elise Cooper: Idea for the story?
Sarah Sundin: It came from historical research. Since this is my fifteenth WWII novel, I find new stories that piqued my interest through my research. I came across the amazing things Denmark did during the World War, especially how they rescued the Danish Jews.
EC: The Nazis were uncharacteristic the way they treated the Danes?
SS: My last book was set in France, previous ones set in Germany. Yet, how the Nazis treated the Danes goes against everything learned about the Nazis. When the Germans occupied Denmark, they made the country a “model protectorate.” They allowed the king and the government to remain in place, and they gave the Danes, as “fellow Aryans,” freedoms unheard of in the rest of Europe. For that reason, resistance was slow to develop in Denmark, but it did develop. In late 1943, the German crackdown on the Danish Jews dramatically fueled the resistance, and the various groups united to form the Freedom Council to coordinate their efforts, not only with each other but with the Allies.
EC: How would you describe Else?
SS: She is a nuclear physicist. She is very sweet natured and hates to confront people. She learns how to speak up for herself, developing a backbone.
EC: What role did Professor Mortensen play?
SS: He is a chauvinist pig, condescending and rude to her, treating her as more of a secretary than a scientist. He basically humiliated Else. He is arrogant and dismissive. He forces her to speak up to save her career, which means everything to her. She needs to learn the difference between being nice and kind. Niceness is giving in on everything whereas kindness is respecting someone and being considerate.
EC: The other physicist Bohr was a contrast to Mortensen?
SS: He is a real person, while Mortensen is fictional. I was so impressed with Bohr. He truly cared for those he worked with, nurturing them, and bringing out their brilliance. He used his brilliance to help others. Mortensen never cared about others. I chose to make Else a physicist after hearing about Nobel Laureate Niels Bohr’s institute in Copenhagen and the role Bohr played during the war.
EC: How would you describe Henrik?
SS: A nobleman who led the playboy life until the Nazi occupation. He was an Olympic rower and used those skills for the resistance, rowing to Sweden to give messages. Henrik’s character was inspired by Knud Christiansen, a Danish Olympic rower who rowed Jews to Sweden. He is bold and outspoken until after he took on his secret identity where he becomes a shipyard worker, appearing to be all muscle and very silent.
EC: What are the similarities and differences between Henrik, Havmand, and Hemining?
SS: He took on all three personas. Henrik was a nobleman with daddy issues. His father had high standards for his son, causing Henrik to rebel. Havmand was the rower, a code name. In Danish it means Merman. He took inspirations from The Little Mermaid story since she gives up her voice to have legs. He basically did the same thing, giving up his voice to be mobile for the resistance. Hemining was the ship worker. Else describes all three: Hemining was noble in character, Henrik noble in birth and upbring, and Havmand is noble in his deeds.
E: How would you describe them:
SS: Henrik was a leader, stubborn, direct, determined, protective, wants to be a warrior, and courageous.
Hemining was level-headed, responsible, considerate, thoughtful, hard-working, stubborn, direct, determined, protective, humble, and courageous.
Havmand was level-headed, responsible, considerate, stubborn, direct, determined, protective, humble, a warrior, and courageous.
EC: How would you describe the relationship between Hemining and Else?
SS: Henrik pretends to be someone else in her presence. He is trying to restrain himself to make sure he does not reveal his identity. She on the other hand is confronting her prejudices. She is a scientist who falls for someone who can barely read, Hemining. She is drawn to his kindness and decentness. She becomes more attractive to him and realizes that what is more important is someone’s character, not the letters after their name.
EC: What was the role of Leila in the book?
SS: She is spunky, fun, persistent, and a good foil for Else. She was Else’s best friend. She quits her job as a PHD mathematician to join the resistance. Leila is Jewish and needed the help of Else and Henrik to escape the Nazis. She symbolized in the story the persecution of the Jews and the courageous acts of resistance. The Danes managed to save almost all the Jews in Denmark by ferrying them across to Sweden. I wanted to tell these stories.
EC: Next book?
SS: It is coming out in February 2024 and set in London during the Blitz. A Dutch refugee is separated from her son who is sent to London as they both flee the Nazis. She enlists a BBC radio correspondent to help find the son. In the flames of the city a bunch of murders pop up. This one will be a mystery and thriller.
THANK YOU!!
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BIO: Elise Cooper has written book reviews and interviewed best-selling authors since 2009. Her reviews have covered several different genres, including thrillers, mysteries, women’s fiction, romance and cozy mysteries. An avid reader, she engages authors to discuss their works, and to focus on the descriptions of their characters and the plot. While not writing reviews, Elise loves to watch baseball and visit the ocean in Southern California, with her dog and husband.
Today I am sharing my Feature Post and Book Review for CODE NAME SAPPHIRE by Pam Jenoff on the HTP Books Winter 2023 Historical Fiction Blog Tour.
Below you will find a book description, my book review, an about the author section and the author’s social media links. Enjoy!
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Book Description
A woman must rescue her cousin’s family from a train bound for Auschwitz in this riveting tale of bravery and resistance, from the bestselling author of The Lost Girls of Paris
1942. Hannah Martel has narrowly escaped Nazi Germany after her fiancé was killed in a pogrom. When her ship bound for America is turned away at port, she has nowhere to go but to her cousin Lily, who lives with her family in Brussels. Fearful for her life, Hannah is desperate to get out of occupied Europe. But with no safe way to leave, she must return to the dangerous underground work she thought she had left behind.
Seeking help, Hannah joins the Sapphire Line, a secret resistance network led by a mysterious woman named Micheline and her enigmatic brother Matteo. But when a grave mistake causes Lily’s family to be arrested and slated for deportation to Auschwitz, Hannah finds herself torn between her loyalties. How much is Hannah willing to sacrifice to save the people she loves?
Inspired by incredible true stories of courage and sacrifice, Code Name Sapphire is a powerful novel about love, family and the unshakable resilience of women in even the hardest of times.
CODE NAME SAPPHIRE by Pam Jenoff is a historical fiction story of two cousins set in Brussels during WWII. It is based on the true story of Belgium resistance fighters stopping a train bound for Auschwitz and assisting in the escape of Jewish people from the cattle cars. It also begins with the fictionalized, but true story of a ship of Jewish refugees refused landing in Cuba and returned to Europe.
Hannah Martel has lost everything. Her fiancée is killed by the Nazis, she has miscarried their baby, and she is wanted for her drawings of seditious cartoons. When the ship to Cuba she is on is refused landing, her hoped for salvation disappears. Her last hope is her cousin, Lily who lives with her surgeon husband and young son in Brussels. While she is happy to be reunited with her cousin, the Germans have recently invaded Belgium and Hannah is afraid for her life and wants to leave Europe.
Hannah is able to make contact with a resistance network called the Sapphire Line, run by Micheline and her brother Matteo. She joins the group with the promise from Micheline to get her out of the country for her help. When Lily and her family are arrested and slated for deportation to Auschwitz because of a mistake on Hannah’s part, Hannah must decide how much she is willing to risk and sacrifice to save those she loves.
This is a story with so many plot twists and harrowing circumstances that I just kept turning the pages. The historical facts that this novel is based on were well researched. Hannah and Lily at first represented the two differing lines of thought for Jewish people during the German occupation, those who wanted to or tried to leave and those who thought they could ride out the occupation in their homes, but none were safe. While I liked Hannah and Lily, I was really drawn to Micheline. I usually love a romantic element in a story, but the triangle in this story I could have done without. This is still a book I read from start to surprising conclusion.
I recommend this gripping historical fiction tale.
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About the Author
Pam is the author of several novels, including her most recent The Woman With The Blue Star, as well as The Lost Girls of Paris and The Orphan’s Tale, both instant New York Times bestsellers. Pam was born in Maryland and raised outside Philadelphia. She attended George Washington University in Washington, D.C., and Cambridge University in England. Upon receiving her master’s in history from Cambridge, she accepted an appointment as Special Assistant to the Secretary of the Army. The position provided a unique opportunity to witness and participate in operations at the most senior levels of government, including helping the families of the Pan Am Flight 103 victims secure their memorial at Arlington National Cemetery, observing recovery efforts at the site of the Oklahoma City bombing and attending ceremonies to commemorate the fiftieth anniversary of World War II at sites such as Bastogne and Corregidor.
Following her work at the Pentagon, Jenoff moved to the State Department. In 1996 she was assigned to the U.S. Consulate in Krakow, Poland. It was during this period that Pam developed her expertise in Polish-Jewish relations and the Holocaust. Working on matters such as preservation of Auschwitz and the restitution of Jewish property in Poland, Jenoff developed close relations with the surviving Jewish community.
Having left the Foreign Service in 1998 to attend law school at the University of Pennsylvania, Jenoff practiced law at a large firm and in-house for several years. She now teaches law school at Rutgers.
Today I am sharing my Feature Post and Book Review for THE BONE RECORDS by Rich Zahradnik on this Partners in Crime Virtual Book Tour.
Below you will find a book description, my book review, an excerpt from the book, the author’s bio and social media links, and a Kingsumo giveaway. Good luck on the giveaway and enjoy!
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Book Description
NY Police Academy washout Grigg Orlov discovers an eerie piece of evidence at the scene of his father’s brutal murder: a disc-shaped X-ray of a skull. It’s a bone record–what Soviet citizens called banned American songs recorded on used X-rays. But the black-market singles haven’t been produced since the sixties. What’s one doing in Coney Island in 2016?
Grigg uncovers a connection between his father and three others who collected bone records when they were teenage friends growing up in Leningrad. Are past and present linked? Or is the murder tied to the local mob? Grigg’s got too many suspects and too little time. He must get to the truth before a remorseless killer takes everything he has.
Genre: Mystery Published by: 1000 Words A Day Press Publication Date: November 2022 Number of Pages: 338 ISBN: 9798985905649
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My Book Review
RATING: 4 out of 5 Stars
THE BONE RECORDS by Rich Zahradnik is a non-stop fast paced thriller filled with Russian mobsters and government agents, corrupt NYPD police, and FBI agents, good and bad, all after a young protagonist caught up for unknown reasons in international intrigue.
Grigg Orlov has never felt he belonged in his neighborhood of Little Odessa. Born of a Russian immigrant father and a Jamaican mother, he is plagued with prejudice his entire life. His father reappears after a six-month absence only to have both chased and his father killed. Grigg finds a disc shaped x-ray of a skull on his father’s body. It has an individual old song recording on the opposite side. He learns the discs were called bone records which in the old Soviet Union were sold on the black market with banned American music, but what does this have to do with his father?
Grigg and his ex-girlfriend, Katia, discover an old connection his father had to a group of friends in Russia and bone records, but what does that have to do with the present day run for his life from Russian mobsters and government spies? With no help from law enforcement, Grigg must find the truth before he and Katia end up dead.
This is a thriller with a stubborn and flawed young protagonist that the author is able to make me still care about and follow on this harrowing investigation and run for his life. The history of the bone records was interesting and new to me. The vivid descriptions of the neighborhood of Little Odessa and Coney Island made both feel real and integral to the story. I felt at times the number of mobsters, spies and corrupt law enforcement officials was over the top, but it certainly kept the action and Grigg moving. Every plot thread is tied up at the climatic ending, I just wish a few were answered sooner in the story because for me, all the solutions were rushed into the last chapters with much of the story being threat and chase.
I recommend this entertaining thriller with its unique protagonist and plenty of action and suspects.
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Excerpt
Chapter 1
Friday, August 19, 2016
Grigg’s reunion with his father was brief—eight minutes to be exact—and ended when a man with a nickel-plated revolver shot Dad twice.
Three hours before the violence began, Grigg struggled through the crowd on the Coney Island subway platform. He was the last to reach the stairway to the station’s exit. Again. Even the old folks were gone. His wrecked knee held him back.
Outside the station, Deno’s Wonder Wheel turned slowly, towering over the amusement park that took its name from the ancient fifteen-story ride. The wheel’s spokes glowed a hot neon white. Hazy coronas surrounded all the lights.
Tick-tick-tick-tick.
Grigg had started wearing his father’s Timex soon after he had gone missing. He put the watch up to his ear, as he’d done too many times before. It wasn’t loud enough to be heard. The clockwork noise was in his head. Maybe a reminder to keep looking. Maybe a reminder that six months was already too long in missing persons cases.
His father’s watch read 8:18 p.m.
He limped away from Coney Island’s amusement parks toward his house on West 28th off Mermaid Avenue. As he did, the street darkened. He checked behind him more than once. The neighborhood became far less amusing as night came on—and the farther you went from the fun parks. Mugging wasn’t the thrill ride Grigg needed. He didn’t want any more trouble. He had a lifetime’s supply. His long days pinballed him between two jobs and the search for his father.
But despite Grigg’s best efforts, the minutes and hours and days kept spinning off the Timex, found by the police in a Howard Beach motel room, the last place his father was seen before he vanished into the thin March air. Their empty house waited to reflect Grigg’s loneliness back at him. His mother had died when he was eighteen months old. His boss at the city’s claims adjustment office rarely talked to him outside of giving orders. All of his connections—he couldn’t really call them friends—in the neighborhood he owed to his father. Dad, like the rest of them, had immigrated from Russia. Unlike the rest of them, he’d married a woman from Jamaica, a union that guaranteed Grigg would always be on the outside in Little Odessa.
The rubber soles of his cheap dress shoes slapped the wet pavement. A thunderstorm had blown through while he was on the subway, leaving behind the sticky-thick humidity. His messenger bag tugged on his shoulder.
He went over the lead he’d uncovered tonight. Going door-to-door in a Midwood apartment building full of Russians, he’d talked briefly to a tenant named Freddy Popov, who recognized Grigg’s father when shown a photo. Popov said a man—maybe a cop—had been canvassing the building with a picture of Grigg’s dad four weeks earlier. Inside the man’s apartment and shielded by Popov, someone said something in Russian. Popov got hinky, then said he didn’t know anything more and slammed the door. Grigg banged on it until a woman across the hall threatened to call the cops. He left with only the knowledge that someone else—maybe a cop?—was also searching for Dad. Still, that bit of info was his biggest lead to date.
Grigg limped up to the small, two-story brick house—kitchen, living room, two bedrooms over a garage—a duplicate of the other attached homes on the street. He unlocked the steel gate, then the front door, and stepped inside.
The thunk of the door closing echoed through the house. Two days ago, Grigg had moved everything out except for the sleeping bag in his bedroom of twenty-seven years and a blue duffel, readying the old house for its new owners. He turned the deadbolt.
He shouldn’t be staying here tonight. He’d spent all his free time on the search for Dad, right up until the closing on the sale of the house. Even at the end, he’d hoped for a breakthrough that would save him from selling. He’d signed the papers yesterday, writing a check for $1,650—most of his savings—because the house was underwater on a second mortgage his father had taken out. Grigg knew the out-of-state buyers wouldn’t be moving in for three weeks, so he’d kept a copy of the key.
Trespassing in my own house. Inviting trouble when I already have too much.
The plan was to use the next three weeks to find an apartment share, but the lead from Popov tugged at his thoughts. Would it pull so hard that he’d spend his free time searching for Dad and end up homeless? He ducked his own question and instead pictured going back to demand Popov tell him more. He shook his head. He could barely keep his mind on his housing problem for the space of a single thought. He took a beer out of the refrigerator, went up to his room, and rolled his sleeping bag into a fat pillow to lean against.
Grigg popped open the 90 Years Young Double IPA. Nine percent alcohol. The strong stuff he’d dubbed “floor softener.” He downed two sixteen-ounce cans, and the ache faded from the muscles in his damaged leg.
He took out his phone. He’d run through his data allowance last week. Three days until the new billing cycle. At least he had his music. He played the Decembrists, their songs about revenge and ships at sea set to jangly indie rock. He followed with the Killers, then Vampire Weekend.
Tick-tick-tick-tick.
His father’s watch read 11:20 p.m.
He opened his notebook and wrote down “Day 191” along with what he’d learned. It was longer than any previous entry—yet not long at all. So many days. The silence in the house chilled him, sending goosebumps in waves over his arms and thighs. He got up and turned down the air conditioner. It wouldn’t help. He missed his father’s voice, the way it had warmed their home. They could talk about everything and anything, a lot of anything, but such interesting anything. Dad was always there with his questions, his curiosity, and his deep interest in whatever Grigg was up to. There were days his father was more intrigued by Grigg’s job than Grigg was. Even that helped.
A fourth beer. He floated on the wood floor of his empty bedroom. Slept.
A thump. The floor hardened underneath him. Another thump. Half buzzed, halfway to a headache, Grigg opened his eyes. He heard it again. Not a dream. On the roof. He followed the steps above him to his father’s empty bedroom. He was about to switch on his phone’s flashlight when legs—silhouetted by the glow from the street across the way—dangled over the room’s tiny balcony. They descended slowly, inching, hesitating, as if the intruder were no expert at this sort of move. The toes stretched to touch, and finally, the person dropped, stumbled, and landed on their knees.
Grigg didn’t know whether to laugh or arm himself. If this was a robbery, then the joke was going to be on a thief who’d picked a house with nothing in it. Grigg decided discretion was the better part of whatever, returned to his bedroom, and pulled the stun gun from his messenger bag. Ever since he’d been attacked when he was in the police academy—suffering the knee injury that forced him to drop out—he hadn’t felt safe unless he carried the weapon.
He placed the messenger bag next to his duffel in the hallway in case he needed to get out fast. In the kitchen, he grabbed his second six pack as a backup weapon.
Of course, he could escape by the front and leave the intruder for the police to deal with. But if he did, then the buyers would be notified, and he’d lose the three weeks of temporary housing he’d been counting on.
He crept through the doorway into the main bedroom.
The figure, whose face remained in deep shadow because of the streetlight glow from behind, rattled the handle to the single balcony door, used his elbow to smash in the square pane nearest the knob, reached in, and turned the simple metal lock. As he pushed the door open, Grigg stepped forward, hit his phone’s light, and thrust forward the stun gun.
“Get the fuck out of my house!”
The figure froze. “I’m not going to hurt you, Grigg.”
Grigg moved closer.
“Dad? Dad!”
Full beard and longer hair, but it was him.
Grigg didn’t know whether to hug his father or scream at him.
“I came to say goodbye,” Dad said.
“Goodbye?”
“I’m leaving. For Russia. I don’t know when I’ll be able to return. It’s the only way.”
“I don’t understand.” Any of it. “You said you’d never go back.”
“It’s the only way to fix things.”
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Mystery writer Rich Zahradnik
Author Bio
Rich Zahradnik is the author of the thriller The Bone Records and four critically acclaimed mysteries, including Lights Out Summer, winner of the Shamus Award. He was a journalist for twenty-seven years and now lives in Pelham, New York, where he is the mentor to the staff of the Pelham Examiner, an award-winning community newspaper run, edited, reported, and written by people under the age of eighteen.
When car failure stalls Englischer Ruth Wengerd’s impulsive cross-country trip, she doesn’t expect to be rescued by a horse and buggy—or to suddenly become a nanny for widower Adam Chupp’s son. Helping the sweet family reminds Ruth of her Amish upbringing and the shameful secret she’s hiding. But when the temporary job begins to feel permanent, can she face up to her past…for a future she left once before?
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Elise’s Thoughts
The Mysterious Amish Nanny by Patrice Lewis is a very uplifting book. It has readers understanding how someone needs to change their lifestyle for their emotional well-being, preferring to have family come first.
The heroine, Ruth Wengerd, quits her lucrative job on Wall Street and impulsively leaves behind everything to go on a cross-country trip. Unfortunately, her car breaks down in the middle of nowhere and she needs to be rescued by an Amish man and his son. Because she needs money, she agrees to be the nanny for Lucas, the son of Adam Chupp who is a widower. She begins to fall for this family, bringing back memories of the time she was part of an Amish community as a young child.
Adam is also a contrast for Ruth. He shows her the importance of family, and that money should be for support not for ambition. While Ruth makes Adam understand the importance of having a partner, he shows her the importance of family.
As with all of Patrice Lewis books readers get a heartfelt story with some mysterious plotlines that will keep people turning the pages.
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Author Interview
Elise Cooper: The idea for the story?
Patrice Lewis: I had this story in my head years ago. I wanted to write someone snaping emotionally, where they leave their job, and then have their car break down in the middle of nowhere after going on a cross country trip. I had read about the pressure cooker environment of Wall Street, contrary to the lifestyle I have. I based some scenes in the story from the book Young Money by Kevin Roose. Where my routine is deliberately slow and unpressured this is contrasted by the intense Wall Street environment that sucks employees every hour of someone’s life. This was the theme I wanted to explore.
EC: What is the mystery of the story?
PL: There are several little mysteries woven through it. First, why did the heroine’s parents leave the Amish when she was a ten-year-old? There is also how Adam tries to figure her background out after seeing a missing flyer of Ruth. Besides those there was why Ruth left a successful job on Wall Street, what had she done to become so ashamed?
EC: You explore some traditions of the Amish?
PL: I wrote in the story how they sing hymns. On YouTube I came across a couple of Amish girls, one playing the guitar and the other singing a particular hymn.
EC: How would you describe the heroine, Ruth?
PL: She is impulsive and ambitious. She is also impetuous, affectionate, kind, and tender, which comes out in her love of children. She is searching for a “home.”
EC: How would you describe Adam?
PL: There is a lot of my husband in him. We have a woodcraft business for several years. It can leave someone very frazzled which is how Adam reacts. He is lonely, caring, kind, and worried about his hyperactive son. He left behind his support structure after his wife passed away. He was a single dad.
EC: How similar is the relationship between the four-year-old child Lucas and Ruth?
PL: Both are impulsive, enthusiastic, energetic, and firecrackers. Ruth understood Lucas. I based the story where Ruth became Lucas’ nanny on my daughter. She was a professional nanny and learned how to deal with these overly active children by keeping them occupied. Lucas adored Ruth and always wanted to impress her.
EC: What about the relationship between Adam and Ruth?
PL: She still has the Wall Street mentality that money is everything, while he just wants to earn enough to support, himself and his son. Ruth is vulnerable. The relationship started with the young boy’s feelings for Ruth. She remembers the fond memories of the Amish view of community and family since in her early life she was raised Amish. They both realize what they are missing: her a family, and he a solid home life.
EC: How did the financial end affect the relationship?
PL: Adam and Ruth became a team first, as she helped him with his finances. Ruth was able to keep track of his finances, write proposals, write estimates, and do the billing and payroll. This freed him up to build, construct, and supervise. This is also based on how my husband, and I handled our business. He can create and build, while I do the numbers and taxes. Just as with us, with Ruth and Adam, one person’s weakness is the other person’s strength. They balance each other off.
EC: Next book?
PL: The title is The Quilter’s Scandalous Past. It is based on a huge Amish store in Ohio called Lehman’s. The heroine, Esther, manages the store for her aunt and uncle. She works with this prospective buyer who knew her as a teenager. It is probably coming out in June. The third story in this series has a “Beauty and the Beast” theme.
THANK YOU!!
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BIO: Elise Cooper has written book reviews and interviewed best-selling authors since 2009. Her reviews have covered several different genres, including thrillers, mysteries, women’s fiction, romance and cozy mysteries. An avid reader, she engages authors to discuss their works, and to focus on the descriptions of their characters and the plot. While not writing reviews, Elise loves to watch baseball and visit the ocean in Southern California, with her dog and husband.
