Dear Girl,

Dear Girl. Amy Krouse Rosenthal and Paris Rosenthal. Illustrated by Holly Hatam. 2017. [December 2017] HarperCollins. 40 pages. [Source: Library]

First sentence: Dear Girl, Keep that arm raised! You have smart things to say!

Premise/plot: Each spread in this picture book is a short message, a letter, if you will addressed to Dear Girl.

Dear Girl, Find people like you. Find people unlike you. 

Dear Girl, You won't be invited to every single party on the planet. (Which is really okay--can you imagine how exhausting that would be?)

Dear Girl, Sometimes you've just gotta stop...and DANCE! 

My thoughts:  This picture book is for readers of all ages. The messages are geared towards girls, but most of the advice is relevant to everyone. It would be fun to extend the experience by writing and illustrating letters of your own.

Text: 4 out of 5
Illustrations: 4 out of 5
Total: 8 out of 10

© 2018 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

Train I Ride

Train I Ride. Paul Mosier. 2017. HarperCollins. 192 pages. [Source: Library]

First sentence: The train I ride is sixteen coaches long.

Premise/plot: Rydr is our young heroine. After the death of her grandmother, she finds herself on a train heading east to live with her great uncle. Readers learn what happened before in a series of flashes, memories. The novel ends when she arrives in Chicago; it ends before she meets her new guardian. So readers are left with a bit of uncertainty. Rydr's story is revealed as she interacts with fellow passengers on the train--both children and adults.

My thoughts: I didn't expect to love, love, love this one. But I did. Rydr is a vulnerable young girl with a big heart. Her heart may not be trusting, and, she may have more than a couple of schemes always in place. Yet how could you say she isn't compassionate?! I'm thinking of the scene where she spends what little money she has--five dollars--buying a hand-made bracelet from a young girl who is just as desperate for money as Rydr is. I have many, many favorite scenes in this one. I loved Rydr's friendship with Tenderchucks, a young boy scout. These two are so good for one another. Another relationship I loved to see develop through the course of the novel was that of Rydr and Neal.

What I loved about this one: the writing, the coming-of age elements, the relationship-building, the characterization.

Favorite quotes:

If a poem is using words in a way that isn't quite what you're accustomed to, don't think that there's something wrong with you or your ability to understand them. They're just art objects painted with words. Sometimes they look like things you recognize, and sometimes not. (65)

"We should make a pact," he says. "A non-cruelty pact." "Between us?" "Between us. And everyone we meet. Until it extends to everyone." (93)

The people sitting at the table with me feel like a family. My family. If I could choose my family they'd be just like this. (113)

Carlos folds and unfolds his hands. "The best kind of people are people who feel, and who hold hope in their hearts. Even if it sometimes means being hurt and disappointed. Even if it means always being hurt and disappointed." (161)

© 2017 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

Eight Hands Round

Eight Hands Round: A Patchwork Alphabet. Ann Whitford Paul. 1991. HarperCollins. 32 pages. [Source: Library]

First sentence: Patchwork is pieces of fabric cut into different shapes and sewn together into patterns. During the first one hundred years after the signing of the Declaration of Independence, many women and girls--and even a few men and boys--sewed patchwork.

Premise/plot: It is an alphabet book, but it is an alphabet book for older readers. The goal isn't to teach little ones the alphabet. Each letter of the alphabet shares information about a particular quilt pattern. Information is included providing background on how people lived and showing that how they lived influenced the name of the pattern. (Churn Dash, Grandmother's Fan, Log Cabin, etc.)

My thoughts: My mom is the quilter of the family. She loves to sew quilt blocks by hand. She has books of patterns. She is always looking for new books on quilting at the library. I shared this one with her. I wanted her perspective. She had opinions! What we both loved was that we get to see in each pattern both the one block AND the whole quilt. Not all quilt books include this 'big picture.' There were some letters where she was, "I wouldn't have chosen that block for that letter...."

Overall, I liked it well enough.
© 2017 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

No More Bows

No More Bows. Samantha Cotterill. 2017. HarperCollins. 40 pages. [Source: Library]

First sentence: Hugo and Milly had been playing tea party...and dress-up...and house...all morning. So when Hugo heard: "Time for a walk!" he was ready to go.

Premise/plot: Hugo is most unhappy when his owner, Milly, starts making him wear BOWS on their daily walks. He's being humiliated in front of all the other dogs. Something must be done?! Why is she doing this to him?! One thing is certain: NO MORE BOWS.

My thoughts: I thought this was a very cute, very funny dog story. I really enjoyed the repetition in it.

Hugo was not amused. But the neighborhood dogs sure were.

The writing was well done. And I thought the illustrations were very expressive. I loved the red-haired girl's pigtails! Very cute and adorable.

Text: 4.5 out of 5
Illustrations: 4.5 out of 5
Total: 9 out of 10



© 2017 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

Little Miss, Big Sis

Little Miss, Big Sis. Amy Krouse Rosenthal. 2015. HarperCollins. 40 pages. [Source: Library]

First sentence: The big news is this: Little Miss will be a big sis. Will be a big sis? Will be a big sis! Waiting and waiting. Anticipating. Then... Ow. Now! Wow! What now? Sleep. Fuss. Eat. Repeat.

Premise/plot: Little Miss, the heroine, is excited to become a big sister. What's it like to have a newborn in the house?! Little Miss provides readers with a behind-the-scenes glimpse into life as a big sister. It doesn't just cover the first few weeks. By the end of the picture book, he's walking, talking, and HUGGING.

My thoughts: Very sweet. I expected it to be SWEET and ADORABLE. I will definitely miss Amy Krouse Rosenthal.

Text: 5 out of 5
Illustrations: 4 out of 5
Total: 9 out of 10

© 2017 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

What This Story Needs Is a Bang and a Clang

What This Story Needs Is a Bang and a Clang. Emma J. Virjan. 2017. HarperCollins. 40 pages. [Source: Library]

First sentence: What this story needs is a pig in a wig, building a stage, arranging a stand, and getting set to conduct the Pig in a Wig Band.

Premise/plot: Pig in a Wig has a band now in her latest book. As more and more animals and instruments join in, the chaos increases. Will They make beautiful music together?

My thoughts: I like this one. Perhaps I don't love, love, love it. But this series has a just right feel to it. Much like Mo Willem's series starring Gerald and Piggie. I would definitely recommend this series to parents, teachers, and librarians.

© 2017 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

What This Story Needs Is a Munch and a Crunch

What This Story Needs Is a Munch and a Crunch. Emma J. Virjan. 2016. HarperCollins. 40 pages. [Source: Library]

First sentence: What this story needs is a pig in a wig, baking bread, pouring punch, and meeting a friend for a picnic lunch.

Premise/plot: The Pig in a Wig is meeting her friends for a picnic lunch!

My thoughts: This one might be my favorite of the three I've read. The story is packed with fun. I would love to be there with them at the picnic! The book is just joyful!  

© 2017 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

The Quilting Bee

The Quilting Bee. Gail Gibbons. 2004. 32 pages. [Source: Library]

First sentence: A group of quilt makers have come together to share their time and many talents piecing together a beautiful quilt.

Premise/plot: The Quilting Bee is a nonfiction picture book by Gail Gibbons. This book seeks to introduce the subject of quilts to young readers. It covers the basics as to what quilts are, how they are made, who makes them and reasons why people might make them, etc. We're talking basic. "A quilt is a warm bed covering made up of three layers. There's the top layer that usually has a colorful design, the cotton padding in between, and the quilt's backing."

My thoughts: My mom quilts. I always preferred sewing doll clothes because of instant gratification. I could finish a doll outfit within an hour or maybe two hours. A whole quilt takes much, much, much longer. But I think my mom would argue that they are MORE satisfying to make because of the investment. The planning, the preparation of cutting blocks, laying them out, sewing them together, sewing blocks into rows, sewing rows together, laying everything out at last and quilting. This book covers the basics. The text isn't thrilling necessarily, but, it's packed with basic information.

Text: 3 out of 5
Illustrations: 2 out of 5
Total: 5 out of 10

© 2017 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

I Am A Story

I Am A Story. Dan Yaccarino. 2016. HarperCollins. 40 pages. [Source: Library]

First sentence: I am a story. I was told around a campfire, then painted on cave walls. I was carved onto clay tablets and told in pictures. I was written on papyrus and printed with ink and woodblocks, then woven into tapestries and copied into big books to illuminate minds.

Premise/plot: The story's autobiography. The concept of 'story' is personified and communicated in very simple, basic terms that readers of all ages can appreciate.

My thoughts: LOVED it. Loved, loved, loved, LOVED it. It's so simple yet so brilliant. Would recommend to anyone and everyone who loves stories and storytelling. It's not just for people who love books and libraries, but, for anyone who celebrates storytelling and communities.

Text: 5 out of 5
Illustrations: 4 out of 5
Total; 9 out of 10

© 2016 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

Bread and Jam for Frances

Bread and Jam for Frances. Russell Hoban. Illustrated by Lillian Hoban. 1964/1992. HarperCollins. 32 pages. [Source: Library]

First sentence: It was breakfast time, and everyone was at the table. Father was eating his egg. Mother was eating her egg. Gloria was sitting in a high chair and eating her egg too. Frances was eating bread and jam.

Premise/plot: Is Frances an adventurous eater or a picky one?!

My thoughts: Frances just LOVES, LOVES, LOVES bread and jam. She wants to eat it for breakfast, lunch, dinner, and snack. She doesn't want to try new foods. She doesn't want to eat anything BUT bread and jam. Other people in her life--like her good friend, Albert, may have more interesting lunches, but is anything as good as her favorite comfort food?! Will Frances, the badger, ever tire of bread and jam?! Read and see in one of my favorite, favorite picture books! Frances makes up so many lovely songs in this one! And readers get to meet Albert--I've always liked Albert very much!

Here's one of the songs she makes up in the book. I'll also give a little context:

"What a lovely egg!" said Father.
"If there is one thing I am fond of for breakfast, it is a soft-boiled egg."
"Yes," said Mother, spooning up egg for the baby, "it is just the thing to start the day off right."
"Ah!" said Gloria, and ate up her egg.
Frances did not eat her egg. She sang a little song to it. She sang the song very softly:
I do not like the way you slide,
I do not like your soft inside,
I do not like you lots of ways,
And could do for many days
Without eggs.

Text: 5 out of 5
Illustrations: 5 out of 5
Total: 10 out of 10
© 2016 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

Waiting

Waiting. Kevin Henkes. 2015. HarperCollins. 32 pages. [Source: Library]

First sentence: There were five of them. And they were waiting....

Premise/plot: A collection of toys sit on a window sill and wait. Most toys are waiting for something specific, but, not all. Some just like looking out the window at anything and everything. There is some sense of companionship among the toys, but, I wouldn't necessarily call this one friendship-themed.

My thoughts: Unique, yes, I think it is. Simple too. But at times, I found it charming and sweet. This is sometimes conveyed by the text of the story. One of my favorite lines is, "When it finally snowed, the puppy was happy. He'd waited a very long time." But I'd say that most of the charm is conveyed by the illustrations. (Both text and illustrations are by Kevin Henkes.) One of my favorite scenes is when the toys are all shown "sleeping" on the sill. And in another scene, the toys are shown huddled together--afraid--because of the storm outside. It is more expressive than you might at first think.

I'd recommend it easily to anyone who enjoys Henkes' work. Is it my personal favorite by him? I'd say no. It is not an action-packed, make-you-laugh-out-loud book to share with children. It is a quieter, subtler read instead. Nice doesn't have to be a bad thing in terms of describing a book.

Text: 4 out of 5
Illustrations: 4 out of 5
Total: 8 out of 10
© 2016 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

Harold and the Purple Crayon

Harold and the Purple Crayon. Crockett Johnson. 1955. HarperCollins. 64 pages. [Source: Library]

First sentence: One evening, after thinking it over for some time, Harold decided to go for a walk in the moonlight. There wasn't any moon, and Harold needed a moon for a walk in the moonlight. And he needed something to walk on.

Premise: Readers meet Harold, a young boy with a purple crayon. Harold is always finding himself in the middle of adventures. He can draw his way in and out of those adventures. For example, his shaking hand causes the purple crayon to make waves and he finds himself drowning in the ocean. No cause for fear though, just draw a boat and get inside.

My thoughts: I really love Harold and his purple crayon. I found the book playful and fun and simple and wonderful. Have you read Harold and the Purple Crayon? What was your favorite scene? I love Harold's picnic with the nine kinds of pie!!! I like how he draws animals to finish the pies. The picture of the porcupine is so cute and adorable!

Text: 5 out of 5
Illustrations: 5 out of 5
Total: 10 out of 10

© 2015 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

Pete the Cat and the Bedtime Blues

Pete the Cat and the Bedtime Blues. James and Kimberly Dean. 2015. HarperCollins. 40 pages. [Source: Library]

First sentence: Pete and the gang had a great day! They'd been at the beach. Surf and sun and tons of fun.

Premise/plot: After a super-fun day, Pete and his friends (Gus, Alligator, and Toad) decide to continue the fun into the night by having a sleepover at Pete's house. The fun does continue, but, they have to go to bed eventually, right?! Can Pete get his guests to quiet down and go to sleep?

My thoughts: I liked it. I like the earlier Pete the Cat books better, but, the newer ones are okay too. Do you have a favorite Pete the Cat book?

Text: 3 out of 5
Illustrations: 3 out of 5
Total: 6 out of 10

© 2015 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

The Great American Mousical

The Great American Mousical. Julie Andrews Edwards. 2006. HarperCollins. 160 pages. [Source: Library]

I really found The Great American Mousical to be charming and delightful in all the right ways. I'm not quite sure why I tend to like books starring talking mice, but I do, I really do. And if you do too, then this one is a must-read. It is set in New York, in a theatre, in an about-to-be-demolished theatre that has seen better days. The truth is, the mouse theatre hidden within the human theatre is probably in better shape. Readers meet dozens of characters, all of them involved in the theatre. After setting the scene, things really get started after the star of the show, Adelaide, is trapped in a mouse trap and is "kindly" disposed of by one of the human construction workers. (It could have been so much worse!)

Several things keep this story going: will the mice find a way to save the theatre? will they be able to go on with the show without their big star? will Adelaide, the star of the show, make it back to the theatre in time?

The book is a very satisfying, very quick read. 

© 2015 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

Arthur, For The Very First Time

Arthur, For The Very First Time. Patricia MacLachlan. Illustrated by Lloyd Bloom. 1980/2002. HarperCollins. 128 pages. [Source: Library]

I enjoyed reading Patricia MacLachlan's Arthur, For the Very First Time. Readers meet a young ten-year old boy, Arthur, and journey with him to his aunt-and-uncle's farm for an eventful summer. Arthur is a somewhat troubled young boy. Troubled being VERY relative of course. He's having trouble communicating with his parents. They still haven't told him that he's to have a little brother or little sister. Though he has figured it out himself. He hasn't exactly told them he knows or how he feels about this "happy" event. Arthur definitely spends time wishing things were different but believing that they can't be different. So how does Arthur spend his time? Well, before visiting Aunt Elda and Uncle Wrisby, he spent most of his time writing in his matter-of-fact journal. He spent a lot of time OBSERVING the world around him, but, not necessarily taking part of it. During his summer vacation, however, things will change for the better. Arthur will start living a little bit more--in some cases, a LOT more.

The book is definitely character-driven. I loved that. I loved meeting Arthur, his aunt and uncle, his new friend Moira. I loved meeting some of the animals as well. Like the chicken, Pauline, whom everyone speaks to in French! It was just a very satisfying read.

© 2015 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

A Bitter Truth

A Bitter Truth. Charles Todd. 2011. HarperCollins. 352 pages. [Source: Library]

I am continuing to love the Bess Crawford mystery series by Charles Todd. Bitter Truth is the third book in the Bess Crawford series. The book opens with Bess on leave--once again. Bess takes pity on a woman, a stranger, named Lydia. She's distraught and she's clearly been beaten. For better or worse, Bess becomes very involved in a family matter. Good will come out of it perhaps, but, not without sacrifice and risk. For Bess says yes to Lydia's pleas to come home with her, and agrees to pretend to be her long-time friend in front of Lydia's family including her husband, Roger. How will Lydia's in-laws react to her bringing someone home? Surely Roger will mind the interference, right?

The family Bess meets is a strange one in many ways--dysfunctional certainly. But is anyone in the family capable of murder? For that is what we all know it will come down to...a mystery is almost always a murder mystery.

I felt Bess's discomfort throughout the novel. She's witness to some very awkward family scenes. And strangers are confiding in her things that are very personal, almost intimate. Every time Bess tries to leave the family--something happens to prevent it. Though of course, eventually, she does HAVE to leave because she's a nurse stationed in France. Still the family haunts her a bit...

A Bitter Truth is a well-written historical mystery. It wasn't one that I "enjoyed" particularly because enjoy is the wrong word. There was nothing "fun" or "light-hearted" about it. But it was certainly compelling and intense.

© 2015 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

Walk Two Moons

Walk Two Moons. Sharon Creech. 1994. HarperCollins. 280 pages. [Source: Bought]

Gramps says that I am a country girl at heart, and that is true. I have lived most of my thirteen years in Bybanks, Kentucky, which is not much more than a caboodle of houses roosting in a green spot alongside the Ohio River. 

Did I love Sharon Creech's Walk Two Moons? Yes and no. On the one hand, it's a book that I know I would have either--as a kid-- avoided at all costs (if anyone had dropped hints of how sad it was) OR found myself hating, bitterly regretting having picked it up in the first place. There was a time I thought all sad books should be labeled. So at least you were making an informed decision before you got swept up in the story and invested a part of yourself in it. On the other hand--as an adult--I couldn't help finding it a beautiful and compelling story.

Sal--the heroine--is on a road trip with her grandparents (Gram and Gramps). They are on their way to "see" Sal's mother. That's what readers are told, and, as an adult I connected the dots early on. (Sal's world is upset when her Dad moves them to a new town after learning that the mom wouldn't be coming back.) But much is left a mystery for the reader. I can't honestly say how I would have interpreted the text as a kid. It doesn't really matter. The trip is enlivened by Sal's storytelling. She is telling the story of her new friend, her classmate, her almost-neighbor: Phoebe. (Readers also hear of other friends--classmates--including a boy named Ben.) Phoebe's life is also becoming something of a mess. Though Sal is better at spotting the signs than Phoebe herself. The book alternates between focusing on the past--Sal's new life, her friendships, her memories, her emotions--and the present, the road trip. Both stories are compelling. Mainly through dialogue, the grandparents become fully fleshed characters that you can't help loving and admiring. The way they love Sal, and, cherish her. There is just something sweet about this family. And readers do get to know them better than any other adult in the novel. Unfortunately, I think that is why the book left me angry. Part of me angry anyway. THE ENDING. I did not see it coming. And it was beyond cruel to this reader. Was it realistic? Yes. Looking back were their signs that it was coming? Probably. But though I guessed one reason why the novel was one of those dreaded SAD books. I didn't the second. And the second HURT so much.

Walk Two Moons is the 1995 Newbery winner.

Have you read Walk Two Moons? What did you think? Like it? Love it? Hate it? Do you like sad books? Or do you avoid them when you can?

© 2015 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

An Impartial Witness

An Impartial Witness. Charles Todd. 2010. HarperCollins. 352 pages. [Source: Library]

An Impartial Witness is the second book in the Bess Crawford mystery series by Charles Todd. I love that the series is set during World War I; An Impartial Witness is set in 1917. Bess Crawford is a nurse, and, she's nursing wounded soldiers both abroad and at home. (Bess spends a good amount of time in this novel in France, very close to the front.)

The book opens with Bess arriving in London on leave for thirty-six hours. She's just spent time on a convoy with a wounded soldier--a pilot with severe burns. He keeps holding on because he loves his wife. Her photograph is something he always has close by. She would recognize his wife anywhere she's seen it so often the past few days. But she didn't really expect to see her--this wife--at the train station seeing another soldier off. The scene was VERY emotional, and quite inappropriate if she's the wife of another man. The scene haunts her.

And with good reason, it turns out! For she soon learns that this woman--this wife--is found murdered that evening. She tells what she saw at the train station--several hours before the crime. She describes the man--the soldier--with her. That might have been all...except that she can't stop thinking of the case, of the tragedy of it, and she keeps talking with Scotland Yard about what she learns...

A man is arrested. But is he guilty? She doesn't think so. She really, really doesn't think so. For could she be falling in love with him?! Michael Hart isn't capable of murdering the woman he was supposedly in love with for years, is he?

Can Bess find the real murderer?!

I love, love, love this series. I love the characterization. I love the historical setting. I love the mystery itself. It's just a fabulous read.
© 2015 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

Seuss on Saturday #28

I Can Lick 30 Tigers Today And Other Stories. Dr. Seuss. 1969. HarperCollins. 64 pages. [Source: Library]

First sentence of I Can Lick 30 Tigers Today: I can lick thirty tigers today! Well... Maybe twenty-nine. You! Down there! With the curly hair. Will you please step out of the line. I can lick twenty-nine tigers today...

Premise/plot: Another Seuss title about boasting. The narrator of this one boasts that he can 'lick' thirty tigers? Can he actually lick even one? Probably not. The illustrations reveal just how intimidated he becomes as the tigers come closer and closer. It's not so easy to keep a big ego when you're face to face with a couple of tigers!

My thoughts: I liked this one fine.  How does it compare to The Big Brag or Scrambled Eggs Super other Seuss stories with bragging or boasting? I probably like this one more.

First sentence of King Looie Katz: Way back in the olden, golden days (In the Year One Thirty-Nine) A fancy cat named Looie Was the King of Katzen-stein. King Looie was a proud cat, Mighty proud of his royal tail. He had it washed every morning in a ten-gallen golden pail.

Premise/plot: This story is so silly and oh-so-predictable. Looie has to have someone start carrying his tail, and then his tail-carrier has to have someone carry his tail, and then his tail-carrier has to have someone carry his tail, and on and on it goes. It's a relief when one cat says NO and stops the nonsense.

My thoughts: I wasn't a big fan of this story. But it was okay.

First sentence of The Glunk That Got Thunk: A thing my sister likes to do Some evenings after supper, Is sit upstairs in her small room And use her Thinker-Upper. She turns her Thinker-Upper on. She lets it softly purr. It thinks up friendly little things With smiles and fuzzy fur. 

Premise/plot: The sister gets in BIG, BIG trouble when her Thinker-Upper thinks up a Glunk. This Glunk is TROUBLE and then some. She really tries to un-think him, but, she learns you can't unthunk a glunk.

My thoughts: I liked this story the best of the three. It was silly and over-the-top, but I really liked it.

Have you read I Can Lick 30 Tigers Today! And Other Stories? Did you like it? love it? hate it? I'd love to know what you thought of it!

If you'd like to join me in reading or rereading Dr. Seuss (chronologically) I'd love to have you join me! The next book I'll be reviewing is Mr. Brown Can Moo.


© 2015 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

Meet Bess Crawford

A Duty To The Dead. (Bess Crawford #1) Charles Todd. 2009. HarperCollins. 336 pages. [Source: Library]

Bess Crawford is a war nurse during 'the Great War.' One of her dying patients, Arthur Graham, asked her to give a message to his brother, Jonathan. The message made little sense to her personally. Something about him being sorry for having lied, and, how it was to protect their mother. She doesn't know for sure if he'll understand it either, but, a promise is a promise. So several months after his death, and, just a little bit after her own close call--the ship she was on sank--she sets out with her message to visit the Graham family.

I loved, loved, LOVED A Duty to the Dead. I loved it for so many reasons. I think Bess Crawford is a great heroine--narrator. She's sympathetic, patient, and observant. She has a way of seeing right into people, and, not jumping to conclusions in the process. Always one to give the benefit of the doubt, I suppose. She has seen a lot, heard a lot that's for sure. But Bess isn't the only reason I loved the book. Far from it. For having a good "detective" only takes you so far. What I appreciated was the depth of the characterization of the other characters. Primarily of the Graham family, but, also of others in and around that community and her own. We briefly get an idea of what her own family is like. How much she loves her father, and, appreciates a close friend of the family, Simon.

So. The mystery itself I loved. It begins, of course, with her delivering the message to the Graham family. But that is just the start. She doesn't deliver the message and go, no, it turns into an at-times-very-awkward social visit. Soon Bess finds herself piecing together all the clues of a HUGE family secret. And she can't leave it alone because it's so outrageous...

The writing was excellent. I loved the setting and tone. I appreciated the characterization even if some of the characters were super-creepy. It is a great start to a series I'm eager to read all of!!!

Have you met Bess Crawford? I'd love to know what you thought!

© 2015 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews