Rakes and Roses by Josi Kilpack

Harry Stillman is the most profligate of Lord Elliot's nephews. When Lord Elliot presents to him the marriage incentive and refuses any more support until Harry cleans up his life, Harry is angry and defiantly continues his dissolute practices. A gambling habit soon leads to trouble with a loan shark and between that and a drinking problem he hits rock bottom.  When he hears of a benefactor, Lord Damion, who helps undisciplined young men like himself improve their lives, he hopes he has found a way out of his troubles.  Little does he know that Lord Damion is just an alias for a very wealthy widow, Lady Sabrina. Having escaped an abusive marriage by the timely accidental death of her husband, she seeks to use her inherited wealth to help others.  She tries to stay emotionally unattatched from the men she helps, but that doesn't work so well when she find Harry beaten half to death and takes him to her own home to recover.  She has secrets, he does too, and both have prejudices about the other that only time and hard won mutual respect will overcome.

Here is the third in the Mayfield Family series.  It is much like the others.  The heroine is a pargon of moral rectitude, and the hero is burdened with challenges and hangups that only the love a good woman can overcome.  It is cotton candy literature, but some weeks that just what I want.  I can't say the Kilpack is my favorite historical Christian romance writer, but I like her well enough I will probably return to her the next time I am having a stressful week or am waiting for another book that I have on hold to come available. (320 p. 2020)

Charlie Thorne and the Last Equation by Stuart Gibbs

 Charlie Thorne is a 12 year-old-genius with an IQ over 200.  She is already in college, but often skips class out of boredom.  She is, rather dramatically, "recruited" by the CIA to help solve a 70 year mystery about an equation Einstein revealed right before his death that could bring prosperity or distruction to the whole world. As she joins a small elite group of agents on a quest that will lead them across the globe, she wonders if the secret Einstein so carefully hid would be safe in anyone's hands. 

Ok, this is my new recent favorite in the Kid's Lit category.  I have been a great fan of Stuart Gibbs for a while.  His action sequences are wonderfully written.  He adds thrills and humor in generous helpings.  What I like most, though, is the intelligence of both his plot and his characters.  Charlie is an interesting mix of adolesence and genius.  She sees through complicated issues quickly, but isn't above sticking her tongue out at someone. The other characters are nicely filled out as well.  As with his other books, Gibbs doesn't shy away from ethical questions, and doesn't give in to easy answers. Smart writing for smart kids.  (I just put the second in the series on hold :) (2020, 416 p)

Ronan Boyle and the Bridge of Riddles by Thomas Lennon

 Ronan Boyle is the son of two Irish scientists who have been wrongfully convicted of stbrealing a valuable artifact.  Ronan, though just 15, joins the Irish secret police as an intern, hoping that from that position he can find evidence to prove his parents' innocence.  He is surprised when he is recruited into special forces that are charged with monitoring fairy influence in the human world. As he bumbles his way through his first case, he learns information that could help his own investigation.

That plot summary sounds super serious, but there is very little about this book that is serious.  It is very silly and full of slapstick and potty humor. I think that 8 to 10-year-olds of a certain disposition would really love it.  I enjoyed it myself.  It brought many smiles to my face and maybe I even chuckled outloud once or twice.  I also enjoyed the references to Irish folklore. I had recently done some research about Irish fairy folklore for a project at work, and it was fun hear references to the creatures I had learned about.  A note about the audiobook.  It is read by the author.  At first I assumed he was an native of Ireland, but when I looked him up he isn't.  He is an actor who has done a lot of voiceover. He is also the screenwriter for Night at the Muesum. He has played several Irish roles before so I wonder if it is in his cultural heritage. (305, 2019)

Rules of Civility by Amor Towles

 On New Year's Ever 1937 Katy Kontent is hanging out at a two-bit Jazz bar with her effervescent roommate, Eve, when a handsome and eligilble social climber, Tinker Gray, walks in.  This chance meeting catapults the two women into the amoral arms of New York's high society from which neither of the girls will escape unscathed. 

I read this book because I enjoyed A Gentleman of Moscow so much.  This one was actually Towles' earlier work, and I didn't end up liking is as much. Granted, it has the amazing atmostpheric detail the later book has that makes the reader feel like they understand what it was like to live in another place and time.  This is definately a great choice for anyone who is a lover of New York or of the late 30's in America.  What I didn't like as much is that the main character had a fairly weak moral compass.  Her main goals in life seemed to be to enjoy social status and drink as much as she could.  As I read I wondered if some readers would actually envy Katy and the way her life ended up.  I wonder if they would consider it glamorous. I mostly considered it dissapated.  The characters who do show some moral backbone don't fare well. I guess a character doesn't have to be morally strong to be a good literary character, but maybe I just like my main characters to be so.  One thing the book does present is a bunch of interesting ethical questions.  It could be the kind of book-club book that people didn't really enjoy reading that much, but they enjoy discussing.  (368 p. 2012)

To Have and to Hold: Three Autumn Love Stories by Betsy St. Amant, Katie Ganshert and Becky Wade

As the title suggests, this book contains three novellas by three Christian romance writers. In each one a 30-something woman thinks love has passed her by until an incredible guy comes into their life.  There are bumps along the way, but in the end, true love and God's will win out. 

So, these are formulaic and not very deep, but they were clean and pleasant enough to listen to.  They served the purpose of filling a gap while I was waiting for something else I had on hold. This is part of a series published by Zondervan of Christian romances set in different seasons of the year.  Another unifying element is that in each story the heroine has some role in wedding planning, and the whole romance takes place in the midst of plans for someone else's wedding. It is in interesting ploy.  This way the reader gets to enjoy hearing about the dress, the decorations, and the desserts (the three D's of any wedding senario) while the fate of the main character's relationship is still in limbo.  (363 p. 2016)