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Book Review | The Forever Witness — Edward Humes

Published on by admingale

From the publisher: A relentless detective and an amateur genealogist solve a haunting cold case — and launch a crime-fighting revolution that tests the fragile line between justice and privacy. Genetic genealogy, long the province of family tree hobbyists and adoptees seeking their birth families, has made headlines as a cold case solution machine, capable of exposing the darkest secrets of seemingly upstanding citizens. But as this crime-fighting technique spreads, its sheer power has sparked a national debate: Can we use DNA to catch the murderers among us, yet still protect our last shred of privacy in the digital age—the right to the very blueprint of who we are?

I’ve been reading a lot of true crime, and The Forever Witness is a great example written by an experienced and talented writer. Edward Humes is a Pulitzer-Prize winning journalist who pays extreme attention to detail and can really turn a phrase. This book weaves together multiple cold case murders with fascinating information on how far genetic genealogy has come. It challenges us to think about the ramifications of using genetic genealogy to uncover criminals using the DNA of innocent relatives.

The story focuses on the murders of two young Canadians, Tanya Van Cuylenborg and Jay Cook, who travelled to the US in November 1987 to pick up a furnace for his father’s service and repair business. Their bodies were found in two separate remote locations a few days after they disappeared, and they had been killed in very different ways. Thirty years later, the crime still had not been solved; then came new developments in genetic genealogy.

The author does a great job helping us get to know the young couple by presenting little details about their lives. He sympathetically presents the anguish of their friends and relatives. As fascinated as he is by the science used to uncover the truth, he is sensitive to the fact that he is writing about real people.

The segue into discussion about genetic genealogy was technical but also fascinating. I learned a lot. In 2016, a company called Parabon NanoLabs introduced cutting-edge DNA technology called Snapshot that can generate a composite sketch of a suspect from DNA trace evidence. A couple of examples are included in the book, of Snapshots and the actual killers, and the similarities are striking.

In the end, a true crime novel that reveals a killer is both sad for the victims and satisfying when justice is done.

I read an advance reader copy of The Forever Witness from Netgalley.

The Forever Witness adds a riveting layer of science to the true crime template. If you enjoy true crime works that also cover science and discuss pressing social issues, you may enjoy The Forever Witness. The Galesburg Public Library will own it once it is released in late November.

Book Review | The Belle of Belgrave Square by Mimi Matthews

Published on by admingale

From the publisher: A London heiress rides out to the wilds of the English countryside to honor a marriage of convenience with a mysterious and reclusive stranger.

I’ve read all of the novels by Mimi Matthews, and this is one of her best. If you are already familiar with her work, this book is reminiscent of The Matrimonial Advertisement. It also reminded me of one of my favorite books, The Blue Castle by L.M. Montgomery, and I was pleased to read in the Author’s Note that this was intentional. This is very much a Victorian romance fairy tale. It’s got echoes of the stories of Beauty and the Beast and Bluebeard.

Julia Wynchwood has a reputation in society as a sickly spinster, left on the matrimonial shelf after several seasons. It is in fact her parents who are sickly, and unknown to her, her father has turned away all her suitors because they did not live close enough for Julia to devote her life to caring for her selfish parents. Captain Jasper Blunt, badly scarred from battle, has a reputation as both a war hero and a cruel man with a houseful of bastard children born to him by his dead mistress. She needs escape from her parents. He needs a wife with money to repair his remote decrepit mansion and to help him raise the bastard children.

But of course, all is not as it seems on the surface. There is a lot more to both Julia and Jasper than society knows. Julia sees something in him that offers protection from her parents; she proposes marriage and off they hie to the remote mansion. The author is not coy about the surprises that await the reader. She drops a lot of clues and hints that ratchet up the interest rather than spoiling the plot.

I really love sitting down to a new book by Matthews. Her love of horses and stories shines through every novel she writes. Her character Jasper says:

“Stories like the ones we read in novels help us understand the human condition. … They teach us empathy. In that way, they’re more than an escape from the world. They’re an aid for living in the world. For being better, more compassionate people.” (ch. 24 of the advance reader copy)

I read an advance reader copy of The Belle of Belgrave Square from Netgalley.

It is scheduled to be published on October 11, and the Galesburg Public Library will own it. The Belle of Belgrave Square is the second book in the author’s Belles of London series, and the library already owns the first, The Siren of Sussex, in regular and large print and as an ebook.

Book Review | The Letter From Briarton Park — Sarah E. Ladd

Published on by admingale
From the publisher: In Regency England, one letter will alter a young woman’s fate when it summons her to Briarton Park—an ancient place that holds the secrets of her past and the keys to her future.
 
The Letter from Briarton Park is a sweet, predictable clean romance set in Regency era England. Our heroine is plucky Cassandra Hale, a pretty and intelligent young woman who teaches at the Denton School for Young Ladies and knows nothing about her parents as the narrative opens. Mrs. Denton has been like a mother to Cassandra, but Cassandra finds out that she has been lied to her entire life. Mrs. Denton not only knows more than she has said about Cassandra’s family, she has kept a mysterious letter from her for two and a half years – a letter filled with money. Mrs. Denton gives the letter to Cassandra, and then she dies.
The letter invites Cassandra to visit Briarton Park in Northern Yorkshire, and thus Cassandra’s adventure begins. After she travels to Briarton Park, Cassandra finds not the writer of the original letter but James Warrington – a handsome and widowed mill owner who purchased the estate from the letter’s now deceased author.
Also in the mix are a sister, a mother-in-law, and two adorable small girls. (I was a little surprised no mischievous dog appeared as part of the family.) As a beautiful newcomer, Cassandra has her share of admirers – including the local vicar – as she attempts to solve the mystery of her parentage.
I’m no Regency expert, but the historical details didn’t jump out at me as being untrue to the times. The hero’s own lack of a pedigree allows the moneyed orphan to pursue romance. There were some plot points that I thought would play a bigger role in the story but didn’t (spoiler: like the little hiding places all over the house that were apparently just there to add Mysterious Details).
I read an advance reader copy of The Letter from Briarton Park from Netgalley
The Galesburg Public Library will own it once it is released on March 1. It is the first book in a series. The library owns three other titles by author Ladd as well. 

Book Review | The Other Dr. Gilmer by Benjamin Gilmer

Published on by admingale

From the publisher: The Other Dr. Gilmer takes readers on a thrilling and heart-wrenching journey through our shared human fallibility, made worse by a prison system that is failing our most vulnerable citizens. With deep compassion and an even deeper sense of justice, Dr. Benjamin Gilmer delves into the mystery of what could make a caring doctor commit a brutal murder. And in the process, his powerful story asks us to answer a profound question: In a country with the highest incarceration rates in the world, what would it look like if we prioritized healing rather than punishment?

You may already be familiar with the story of Dr. Vince Gilmer. His story was told on an episode of NPR’s This American Life and on CNN. In 2004, Gilmer, a doctor who worked at a clinic in rural Appalachia, killed his father. In 2005 he was sentenced to life in prison. I was not acquainted with the story. I heard Dr. Benjamin Gilmer, the author of this book, speak during a publisher’s webinar presentation about upcoming books and was intrigued.

This is an unusual true crime novel. There is a crime – Dr. Vince Gilmer strangled his father – but that’s not the focus of the story. There was no question that Vince Gilmer murdered his father. Even if you have not heard about Vince Gilmer, the author spoils the Big Reveal about the crime by mentioning mental illness in the dedication. Nonetheless, I found the story gripping. Benjamin Gilmer is a good writer and had a good editor.

My family is from the Appalachia region, and this passage struck me: “In Appalachia, everything was defined by the mountain. You were going up the mountain, you were going down the mountain; you were from this side of the mountain or the other side.” (p. 30 of the advance reader copy) Benjamin Gilmer comes across as empathetic and a good observer.

Benjamin and Vince Gilmer are not related. After Vince Gilmer was found guilty of murder, Benjamin Gilmer just happened to begin work at his old clinic. Many people commented on the coincidence. It led many of his patients to muse on how much they loved the old Dr. Gilmer. The picture they painted was very different from what Benjamin Gilmer imagined of a man who could brutally murder his father. Benjamin Gilmer became obsessed with Vince Gilmer and began to worry excessively that Vince would get out of prison and come after him for “stealing” his life. I was surprised at how obsessive Benjamin became. It must have been quite trying for his wife. Eventually Benjamin Gilmer met Vince Gilmer and realized there was much more to the story. Benjamin Gilmer’s book is sad, touching, and infuriating.

This is the first memoir I’ve read since the news broke about Alice Seybold’s Lucky (the book is her memoir about being raped as a college student; the man found guilty of Seybold’s rape 40 years ago was recently exonerated). I have to admit I found myself questioning whether everything was ‘true” or perhaps manipulated to make a better story. But although the narrative is riveting, it does not (spoiler alert) have a happy ending. This book is part of a long campaign to get clemency for Vince Gilmer, and to get him out of prison and into a hospital. It also advocates for changes to how we treat the mentally ill, especially if they end up in prison.

If you liked Bryan Stevenson’s Just Mercy or The Sun Does Shine by Anthony Ray Hinton, you may find The Other Dr. Gilmer as captivating as I did. I read an advance reader copy of The Other Dr. Gilmer from Netgalley.

The book is scheduled to be published on March 1, 2022, and will be available at the Galesburg Public Library.

 

Book Review | A Duke Worth Fighting For — Christina Britton

Published on by admingale

From the publisher: Daniel Hayle, Duke of Carlisle, returned from Waterloo a hero, and he has the wounds to prove it. But he dreads the coming London season as he never did the battlefield, where his lack of social skills is certain to make it difficult to find a wife. What he needs is someone to help him practice socializing with the ton. Someone who isn’t frightened away by his scars . . . . Margery Kitteridge is still mourning the loss of her husband. So when she receives a blackmail letter accusing him of desertion, she’s desperate to protect his reputation. The answer to her troubles appears in the form of a damaged, reclusive duke in need of a wife. She proposes an alliance: she’ll help him find a bride, in return for the money to pay off the blackmailer. But working so closely together awakens passions they never Read more »

Book Review | The Matchmaker’s Lonely Heart by Nancy Campbell Allen

Published on by admingale

From the publisher: London, 1885. A romance develops as a detective partners with a lonely-hearts columnist to solve a murder mystery.

The Matchmaker’s Lonely Heart is an entertaining clean historical romance. It has strong, interesting female characters and a sympathetic hero. The plot takes some unlikely twists, but nothing struck me as outlandish. The book pushes the edges of acceptable behavior for women in 1885 in a believable way and introduces societal issues like street urchins and the institutionalization of people with intellectual disabilities. The bad guy is stereotypical with no nuance, but I didn’t mind too much since the story flirts with being a gothic romance.

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Book Review | Holdout by Jeffrey Kluger

Published on by admingale

From the publisher: When evil forces are going unchecked on Earth, a principled astronaut makes a spilt-second decision to try to seek justice in the only place she knows how—the International Space Station.

The science in Holdout is good; Jeffrey Kluger is also the co-author, with astronaut Jim Lovell, of Lost Moon: The Perilous Voyage of Apollo 13, which was the basis of the Apollo 13 movie released in 1995, and nine other books. The author worked fictional versions of real space incidents into the plot. I really enjoyed the descriptions of life and work in space, and the relationship between the Russian and American astronauts. Although it’s a minor plot point, I also liked the main character’s concern for the mice that were in space with her.

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Book Review | Raybearer by Jordan Ifueko

Published on by admingale

From the publisher: Fans of Sabaa Tahir and Tomi Adeyemi won’t want to miss this instant New York Times bestselling fantasy from breakout YA sensation Jordan Ifueko! Nothing is more important than loyalty. But what if you’ve sworn to protect the one you were born to destroy?

Raybearer is the story of Tarisai, a girl raised in an invisible home with no one but private tutors and a mysterious mother known as the Lady, who she sees only once or twice a year. One day, the Lady tells Tarisai that she being sent to the capital of the empire to meet Crown Prince Ekundayo, where she’ll have a chance to join his Council of Eleven, the children who will make up his future ruling council and whose magical bond protects the…

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Book Review | While Justice Sleeps by Stacey Abrams

Published on by admingale

From the publisher: From celebrated national leader and bestselling author Stacey Abrams, While Justice Sleeps is a gripping, complexly plotted thriller set within the halls of the U.S. Supreme Court. Drawing on her astute inside knowledge of the court and political landscape, Stacey Abrams shows herself to be not only a force for good in politics and voter fairness but also a major new talent in suspense fiction.

While Justice Sleeps is an intricately plotted thriller. Sharp and fast paced, it covers a lot of ground. The author clearly knows her way around DC, the federal government, and the Supreme Court. Main character Avery Keene is biracial and has a drug addict mother, allowing Abrams to touch on issues of race and family, addiction and loss. Avery is smart…

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Book Review | Fugitive Telemetry by Martha Wells

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From the publisher:  The New York Times bestselling security droid with a heart (though it wouldn’t admit it!) is back in Fugitive Telemetry! Having captured the hearts of readers across the globe, Murderbot has also established Martha Wells as one of the great SF writers of today.

Murderbot is a rogue cyborg Security Unit doing adventures in space. I love Murderbot and eagerly look forward to each new adventure. I started Fugitive Telemetry, then I put it down and re-read the first four Diaries before continuing. I didn’t love Fugitive Telemetry quite as much as I did Rogue Protocol and Exit Strategy, but it’s a solid 4.5 stars for me. Not enough interaction with SecUnit’s “human friends” for my liking, but I especially…

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