Scent of Rain and Lightning by Nancy Picard

One beautiful summer afternoon, from her bedroom window on the second floor, Jody Linder is unnerved to see her three uncles parking their pickups in front of her parents’ house—or what she calls her parents’ house, even though Jay and Laurie Jo Linder have been gone almost all of Jody’s life. “What is this fearsome thing I see?” the young high school English teacher whispers, mimicking Shakespeare. Polished boots, pressed jeans, fresh white shirts, Stetsons—her uncles’ suspiciously clean visiting clothes are a disturbing sign.

The three bring shocking news: The man convicted of murdering Jody’s father is being released from prison and returning to the small town of Rose, Kansas. It has been twenty-six years since that stormy night when, as baby Jody lay asleep in her crib, her father was shot and killed and her mother disappeared, presumed dead. Neither the protective embrace of Jody’s uncles nor the safe haven of her grandparents’ ranch could erase the pain caused by Billy Crosby on that catastrophic night.

Now Billy Crosby has been granted a new trial, thanks in large part to the efforts of his son, Collin, a lawyer who has spent most of his life trying to prove his father’s innocence. As Jody lives only a few doors down from the Crosbys, she knows that sooner or later she’ll come face-to-face with the man who she believes destroyed her family.

What she doesn’t expect are the heated exchanges with Collin. Having grown up practically side by side in this very small town, Jody and Collin have had a long history of carefully avoiding each other’s eyes. Now Jody discovers that underneath their antagonism is a shared sense of loss that no one else could possibly understand. As she revisits old wounds, startling revelations compel her to uncover the dangerous truth about her family’s tragic past.

This stand alone novel by Picard immediately drew me in and I wanted to know what really happened that fateful day.  I've enjoyed her Jenny Cain mystery series and especially her Eugenia Potter series that she finished for Virginia Rich.  I need to read more books by her.

Plugged by Eoin Colfer

Daniel McEvoy is an Irish ex-pat and now a bouncer at seedy Slotz, a New Jersey casino. McEvoy's friend, Zeb Kronski, has medical aspirations but no degree. That doesn't stop him from injecting fake Botox or performing liposuction. It's where Zeb injects the unwanted fat that magnifies the sassy, irreverent tone of this novel. Always a step ahead of the law, Zeb now transplants hair plugs for McEvoy and others.
Connie DeLyne is a hostess in the casino Dan works in and he has always had a soft spot for Connie.  But when he finds her dead with a dime-sized hole in her head, he becomes the prime suspect.  Detective Ronnie Deacon, investigates the homicide but McEvoy finds himself in an epic battle with her and her partner.

Now, Zeb has gone missing, but McEvoy finds himself having conversations with him and wonders if he is now a ghost or if they have some psychic connection.  Complicating matters is Irish Mike Madden, a fake Irishman as he has never been to Ireland, but controls rostitution, protection and a burgeoning crystal meth business" personify the Irish mafia.

If this story sounds complicated it is!  But I did find myself getting into the story and enjoying this crazy ride.

Kill time by T.J. MacGregor

Nora's mother disappeared when she was a child. Now, as she prepares to tell her husband that she wants a divorce, her childhood fears come back to haunt her as her husband is taken away from her right in front of her in a restaurant by FREEZE (Freedom and Security). Labeled as a terrorist, there is no recourse and her attempts to find out the charge become much too similar to a Kafka novel. As she traces a trail of clues left by her husband, she uncovers medical research gone awry, disappearing dissidents, political corruption and power brokering, greed run rampant and an eerie connection to a television show from the past.

With some interesting references to Rod Sterling of the Twilight Zone and Jerry Garcia as the story travels between 1998 and 1968.  Not the best time travel book I've read but it was fun.  I did a get fed up with all the sex swapping that seemed to be going on.  It is obvious from the ending this will become a series, but I don't think I'll look for others in the series.  Connie Willis is much better writer of time travel.

Redbreast by Jo Nesbo

Featuring Harry Hole

Shifting effortlessly between the last days of WWII on the Eastern front and modern day Oslo, Norwegian this is a complex tale of murder, revenge and betrayal. A recovering alcoholic recently reassigned to the Norwegian Security Service, Insp. Harry Hole begins tracking Sverre Olsen, a vicious neo-Nazi who escaped prosecution on a technicality.

But what starts as a quest to put Olsen behind bars soon explodes into a race to prevent an assassination. As Hole struggles to stay one step ahead of Olsen and his gang of skinheads, Nesbø takes the reader back to WWII, as Norwegians fighting for Hitler wage a losing battle on the Eastern front. When the two story lines finally collide, it's up to Hole to stop a man hell-bent on carrying out the deadly plan he hatched half a century ago in the trenches.

I really enjoy these books from another land but I get frustrated when the books are not translated in order.   This is book 3 in the series but the first 2 are not yet available in English.

Limpopo Academy of Private Detection by Alexander McCall Smith

Book 13 in No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency series

In the latest collection there are several storylines to keep track of.  Mma Potokwane, the matron of the orphans farm, is facing dismissal from her job. Add to this Phuti Radiphuti and his new bride, Grace Maskutsi are having a house built by a contractor who isn't quite following the rules. I raced through the book, hoping that all would come out well in the end.


But the most interesting addition is the arrival of Clovis Andersen, whose book The Principle of Private Detection has been the guide for the No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency since day one. Plus Fanwell (one of the apprentices at the garage) finds himself in legal trouble, by helping a friend fix a vehicle that ends up being a stolen vehicle.  So Mma Ramotswe has her hands full dealing with all these issues.

Happily in the end all the issues are resolved in a satisfying manner.  I really enjoyed the addition of Clovis to the story as both Mma Ramotswe and Mma Maskutsi try to impress him with their knowledge and use of his book.