Grandma Yogini

by

Raven Howell

Illustrated by Alexander Santos

This talented grandma is full of surprises!

Grandma Yogini is a new children’s picture book by Raven Howell and illustrated by Alexander Santos and would be a perfect story for grandma to share with her young grandchildren. Visits from your grandmother are always a special time, but Meredith and Henry’s grandma is extra special and full of surprises! 

While their friends’ grandmothers all have their specialties, for example, Anthony’s grandmother bakes cookies, Henry and Meredith’s grandmother is unlike all the others. Even though she’s white-haired, the older woman surprises the kids right from the start by arriving on her bright red motorbike. Grandma is lively and vibrant, her personality brought to life by the vivid drawings of Alexander Santos. Grandma delights her grandchildren and their friends with enthusiastic attention and by introducing them to her practice of yoga. Grandma is a yogini, another name for a yogi or practitioner of yoga. She engages their imaginations with some simple yoga poses that mimic creatures familiar to the children, such as a butterfly, cat, and even a kangaroo. 

With its clean, clear illustrations and engaging story, I recommend GRANDMA YOGINI to young-at-heart grandmothers for sharing with their young grandchildren. 

I voluntarily reviewed this after receiving an Advance Review Copy through WOW! Women On Writing Book Tours.

To Condemn a Witch

Tales of the Witchborn, #1

by

Lisa A. Traugott

A gripping but grim tale of witches pursued by evil men in search of wealth and power.

To Condemn a Witch, although the second book published in author Lisa A. Traugott’s gripping Tales of the Witchborn series, is chronologically a prequel to last year’s To Rescue a Witch. This complex novel tells the backstories of many of the main characters of the earlier book, most specifically that of Eleanor, the Scottish orphan who went from the workhouse to the arms of a handsome married nobleman to banishment and a difficult life in the Virginia colony. Due to the complex nature of the plot, this proves to be a massive undertaking. While sounding like a romantic cautionary tale of historical fiction, the story takes a different, darker, and much more intriguing path, combining the political power gaming of rich nobles with the presence of witches and witchcraft. 

For the most part, all the main characters are surprisingly unlikable creatures. Eleanor, while a tragic figure on the one hand, is immature and manipulative on the other. Her paramour, Lord George Hallewell, who has also risen from the ashes of family tragedy, is weak, needy, disloyal, and greedy, while his wife, Lady Margaret Hallewell, is grasping, greedy, bored, and cruel. William MacLeod, the Scottish laird and attorney I so wanted to be the steadfast hero of the piece, while a strong figure, is a “fixer” for the noble privileged and often resorts to violent means to achieve his ends. His loving marriage to Fiona, a natural witch, is laced with neglect, arrogance, and mixed signals as he backslides on the promises he made her at their handfasting. Fiona is inconsistent in her willingness to stand up to William at times and keeps secrets from him that she shouldn’t. Fiona’s Aunt Matilda is a doubly intriguing character, burned at the stake as a witch 20 years earlier than the events in the book, appears as a ghost, and only during the local fire festivals, when the veil between the living and the dead is thinnest. A bitter, drunk of a woman when alive, her mood hasn’t improved over the course of her half-life as it is, stuck between the physical world and the realm of the “Otherworld.” Still, she’s entertaining during her quick appearances, especially when she leaps from the ethereal to a physical presence when she occupies the body of Fiona’s poor, confused cat, Pooka. While these people may sound like terrible individuals (and some are), they are a delight when compared to the story’s villains: the aforementioned Lady Hallewell, Elspeth, Matilda’s former friend and coven sister, and the vicious witch hunter named Lord Blackmere. 

Set in Kirkhaven, Scotland, and London, England, in the early 1700s, the author crafts such descriptive and realistic backdrops for the events of the story that I felt I was there. From the glittering ballrooms of the Ton to rural Scotland’s villages and manor homes to rat-infested alleyways and hovels in London or the harsh wilderness of the Virginia colony, Traugott paints living, breathing pictures of what conditions were like 300 years ago. Of course, the time period, with its vast discrepancies between classes and genders, also informs the attitudes and, therefore, many of the actions, of the main characters. The lives of the poor and working classes, and all women, held little value for the ruling class of white noblemen, so many of the characters are treated as disposable or property. 

While the main characters may have low charisma scores, their stories were engaging, and I wanted to know how things resolved. However, some aspects of the characters’ histories were only hinted at for so long before they were revealed, and I began to feel like I’d missed a prequel to the prequel. Another issue that bothered me was the depiction of three-year-old Broderick MacLeod. While I realize children were expected to grow up much quicker then, I still felt Broderick seemed a couple of years more developed in his thinking, skills, and especially William’s treatment of him. 

TO CONDEMN A WITCH fills in or expands on much of the previously untold pasts of the characters in the series debut. I recommend it for readers who enjoy a gritty historical fantasy featuring tales of political power seeking, witches, and witchcraft. 

I voluntarily reviewed this after receiving an Advance Review Copy from the author through Lone Star Literary Life Book Campaigns.

Murder, She Wrote: Murder Backstage

by

Jessica Fletcher and Terrie Farley Moran

A family reunion turns sour when there’s a murder backstage.

Murder, She Wrote: Murder Backstage is the 58^th book in the popular Murder, She Wrote cozy mystery series based on the long-running television series of the same name. When Jessica and her Cabot Cove friends, Dr. Seth Hazlitt, Sheriff Mort Metzger, and his wife, Maureen, travel to Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, to meet up with Jessica’s cousin, actress Emma Macgill, they are anticipating a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to meet the men’s childhood film idol, Derek Braverman, whom Emma is preparing to co-star with in his final musical revue before retiring. However, instead of a warm family reunion and a special visit with the star, they have a close encounter with death when a member of the company is found murdered backstage. 

As on the television show, Jessica can’t escape murder, even while on vacation and with family and friends. She, Emma, and the folks from Cabot Cove are pulled into the investigation, especially when they witness suspicious behavior by some of the theatre staff. Jessica, in her usual manner, is blunt and persistent in her pursuit of answers and uncovers secrets in places the police never thought to look, while Seth and Mort realize that it’s often best never to meet your idols. I was stumped on the who and why until the final reveal, but there were plenty of red herrings to keep me guessing one possible suspect and another. 

I recommend MURDER, SHE WROTE: MURDER BACKSTAGE to cozy mystery readers, especially fans of the book and television series. 

I voluntarily reviewed this after receiving an Advance Review Copy from the author through Great Escapes Virtual Book Tours.

Death at Rock Bottom

Reluctantly Psychic Murder Mystery, #2

by

Kris Bock

The museum crew is back in action, investigating the death of an old friend.

Death at Rock Bottom is the second book in author Kris Bock’s clever and unique Reluctantly Psychic Murder Mystery series featuring geologist and rock collection curator Petra Cloch and her new friends and colleagues at the quirky Banditt Museum in small Bonneville, New Mexico. When Petra’s colleague, Liberty, suspects the death of her old friend, petroleum engineer Frank Underwood, is no accident, the two enlist the help of their coworker, Haven, and the women of their monthly book club to investigate the circumstances. 

Petra Clock is a likable and unique protagonist with her unusual gift and the struggles it has caused her to engage socially with others. She gets visions or impressions of a person from touching their belongings or things they’ve handled. Complications from her past have Petra in a perpetual state of anxiety, and interactions with others literally exhaust her. She’d previously discovered that the man she’d replaced at the Banditt Museum had been murdered when she’d inadvertently picked up the mineral formation that had been used to kill him. In this latest adventure, Petra uses her gift to help Liberty get to the truth behind the death of her friend, fellow rockhound and veteran desert hiker Frank Underwood. 

The story moves at a fast clip as the two enlist the aid and skills of the women in their monthly book club. The investigation becomes an interesting and well-coordinated ensemble performance as each woman brings their special skills to the table. With a number of people set to benefit from Frank’s death, there is plenty of work to divvy up to eliminate suspects. While I had my eye on a particular individual, it wasn’t until the unusual final reveal that I knew for sure who the murderer was. As in the previous book, the dialogue and narrative are clever. However, there were incidents where details were repeated again and again. Readers new to the series should be able to pick up the story in this latest volume, but the first book is really an entertaining ‘must-read’ as well. 

I recommend DEATH AT ROCK BOTTOM to cozy mystery readers. 

I voluntarily reviewed this after receiving an Advance Review Copy from the author through Great Escapes Virtual Book Tours.

More Than Ivory

by

Gina Augustini Best

Riveting young adult thriller!

More Than Ivory by Gina Augustini Best is an absolutely riveting young adult thriller about a teenager whose mother, a well-loved local teacher, is forcibly abducted by two ski-masked men as she withdrew money from an ATM one morning before school. With its wonderful characters and the unrelenting tension of time running out for this single mother’s safe return, once I started reading, I couldn’t put this book down. 

Mireya Torres is the relatable young main character, the only child of Ana María, the woman who has been taken, and at 17 years of age, she is beginning to build a life separate from her mother. She likes a boy on her debate team at school and, naturally, wants to spend some free time hanging out with her friends and, hopefully, get to know and develop a closer relationship with Luke, the object of her affections. However, her mother is unnaturally protective and, predictably, would squelch any such plans, so Mireya has been lying about where she is going and what she’s doing after school. While her afterschool pursuits are innocent enough, the last words she will have said to her mother will turn out to be lies, and this knowledge haunts her for the entirety of the look. 

Mireya’s Uncle Angel, Ana María’s brother, is a DEA agent, and he takes an active role in the investigation, but she knows he’s hiding critical information from both her and the police. She is wracked by suspicions that this man, who has always cared for her and her mom, may have had a hand in her abduction. As the police appear to be dragging their feet and going off in the wrong directions, and Uncle Angel refuses her help in finding her mother, Mireya takes matters into her own hands. Helping her in her hour of need is her best friend, Cici, and a more “ride or die” partner would be difficult to find. 

The author’s storytelling is mesmerizing, totally captivating me from the first scene, and completely immersing me in her narrative. I couldn’t delay seeing this story through to its resolution and stayed up almost all night to do so. The mysterious plot takes some shocking twists and turns as family secret after family secret comes to light, and the suspense mounts as Ana María’s abduction shifts from being a random act of opportunity to a targeted operation. The plot addresses tough, realistic issues that readers sensitive to these topics may find difficult to read. Others, however, may gain valuable knowledge and take heed. The action swiftly moves from Mireya’s quiet north Dallas suburban community to the prairie farmland west of Fort Worth to the Pineywoods of East Texas to the eerie, otherworldly deserts of West Texas as the author uses the ecological diversity of the state to her spectacular advantage. 

I recommend MORE THAN IVORY to readers of young adult mysteries, thrillers, and family dramas. 

Content warning: Discussion of sex trafficking, sexual abuse, missing children, abduction, murder, cartels and gangs

For this and more book reviews, visit Boys' Mom Reads!