As you know, I love a good mystery. I also love a mystery with a great “I didn’t see that coming” moment. My latest read had both, and when the “I didn’t see that coming moment” came I was truly floored.
Here is the Goodreads synopsis:
“I’ll be dead in three months. Come tell my story.”
So writes Sebastian Trapp, reclusive mystery novelist, to his longtime correspondent Nicky Hunter, an expert in detective fiction. With mere months to live, Trapp invites Nicky to his spectacular San Francisco mansion to help draft his life story . . . living alongside his beautiful second wife, Diana; his wayward nephew, Freddy; and his protective daughter, Madeleine. Soon Nicky finds herself caught in an irresistible case of real-life “detective fever.”
“You and I might even solve an old mystery or two.”
Twenty years earlier—on New Year’s Eve 1999—Sebastian’s first wife and teenaged son vanished from different locations, never to be seen again. Did the perfect crime writer commit the perfect crime? And why has he emerged from seclusion, two decades later, to allow a stranger to dig into his past?
“Life is hard. After all, it kills you.”
As Nicky attempts to weave together the strands of Sebastian’s life, she becomes obsessed with discovering the truth . . . while Madeleine begins to question what her beloved father might actually know about that long-ago night. And when a corpse appears in the family’s koi pond, both women are shocked to find that the past isn’t gone—it’s just waiting.
Online reviews of the book are mixed. I had to laugh when one complained that it had 100 chapters. Some of the chapters were short, so I wonder why that reviewer even mentioned it!
The book had me asking questions throughout the read. Was it him? Was it her? Do they know more than they are saying? Why are they acting that way? Even in the slower moments there were things that made me think. When it all falls into place, all of those questions had answers.
Today is June 1 and it is National Game Show Day! It is a day for celebrating all timeless game shows, past and present. National Game Show Day honors one of the oldest and most cherished genres of TV.
According to the National Day Calendar: Game Shows are watched by millions of Americans every single day and are a staple in most American homes. Viewers can engage by cheering contestants on and playing along from home. National Game Show Day honors vintage and current game shows, their hosts, and the fans of yesterday and today.
The first TV game show in the U.S. was Truth or Consequences, which began in 1940 and was hosted by Ralph Edwards. The show consisted of contestants being asked to answer trivia questions correctly or face the consequences by performing a zany stunt.
I would say that my love of game shows came from my grandparents. On days where we were sick and had to stay home from school, we’d occasionally have to spend the day with them. Game Shows were a staple at their house (sadly, so were soap operas). The Price Is Right was always on at her house.
The Price is Right originally aired on TV in 1956, with Bill Cullen as the host. In 1972, the show reintroduced a new host. Bob Barker became the face of The Price is Right and served as host for 35 years, with Drew Carey taking over the reins in 2007. The Price is Right is the longest running game show in television history, with Carey continuing as host today.
Another grandma favorite was Let’s Make a Deal with Monty Hall. She’d laugh at the ridiculous costumes that people would wear. We’d laugh when they picked something that a booby prize.
Game shows seemed to be on at all hours of the day growing up. Many of them were on during the day. I loved watching Dick Clark on the $20,000 Pyramid. As years went on the amount of money increased, too.
I used to love guessing whether the next card was higher or lower when we watched Jim Perry on Card Sharks. I wanted a deck of those huge playing cards!
Long before Jeopardy, I remember watching Alex Trebek on High Rollers. I really don’t remember what the game was, but I sure do remember those big fuzzy dice! Come to think of it, his hair and mustache were a bit fuzzier back then…
Another show I remember was hosted by Bert Convey and featured celebrities and their spouses. I remember that they’d always show the contestant’s who were not on stage wearing these huge headphones!
I was always amazed at how a contestant could name a tune in one note when I watched Name That Tune. Obviously they got some clues ahead of time, but as a kid I was in awe.
There were two game shows that I remember watching that seems to go away fairly quickly. One was called Sale of the Century, again with Jim Perry.
The other one that went away fast was Treasure Hunt. What kid doesn’t like presents?
The first time I ever heard the phrase Makin’ Whoopie …. The Newlywed Game. Did I know what it meant? No. But it was fun to watch couples argue over answers.
Another daytime game show I remember was Tic Tac Dough. As a kid I loved the fact that it was Tic Tac Toe and that the host’s name was WINK!
Tic Tac Toe with celebrities and a whole lot of funny ad-libs made Hollywood Squares another favorite.
There have been many incarnations of Family Feud, but to me the BEST version was when Richard Dawson hosted.
Night time game shows were always on at grandma’s, too. Of course everyone still watches Wheel of Fortune and Jeopardy!
Before the return of Jeopardy at night, Wheel of Fortune was paired with Jack Berry and the Joker’s Wild.
I could go on and on with games shows I loved, but I will spare you my rambling and wrap with my all time favorite – The Match Game.
Gene Rayburn was so good at interacting with not only the celebrities on the panel, but the contestants. It was like a half hour party. We always watched it when my dad had band practice and my brother and I were in front of the TV. What a hoot to watch this show! It was years later when I found out that they would break between shows and have dinner and drinks which led to “looser” celebrities and more humor.
Did (Do) you have a favorite game show or host? Tell me about it!
There is plenty to dislike about social media. I know many people who have deleted accounts because of things like political posts, advertisements, censorship of their posts and stuff like that. I, on the other hand, really enjoy social media.
One of the reasons I love it is that I get to share in the excitement of my friends as they post first/last day of school photos, birthday and anniversary posts, as well as achievement and event posts for their children. As another school year winds down, there have been plenty of senior pictures, photos of last concerts, last ball games, club banquets, and this week a whole lot of prom pictures.
I remember my prom night like it was yesterday, despite having very few pictures from the evening. It is not because I didn’t take any, we certainly did. We even had professional ones taken. The problem is that they … let me say “disappeared.” I have a feeling a certain someone from my past decided to MAKE them disappear. She never cared that I was still friends with my date’s family.
I was lucky enough to stumble on one prom picture among a pile of photos I have in a box. I have to chuckle a bit as I look at my younger self.
The gal standing next to me was my date – Karen. She was the same age as my younger brother (A freshman). I knew her older sister really well as she was a year younger than me. For some reason, in our marching band parade set up, they put her next to me. She played flute and I played trumpet. I never understood why, but I’m glad she was there.
Throughout the marching band season, we chatted a lot. We made each other laugh and I genuinely enjoyed being with her. I don’t recall when I decided to ask her to prom, but I did and she said yes. I remember her asking if I was serious about taking her. I assured her I was. I am sure that her folks must have had a lot of reservations about a senior taking their freshman daughter to the prom!
My buddy Joe and I got a limo for the night, but only for after the prom. If I remember right, my dad drove us all there. It was at this beautiful golf course. I’m sure we danced, but I think we walked around the grounds a bit, too. After the prom, we drove around until all hours of the night. We had nowhere to go, but we drove around Detroit, along the water on Jefferson Avenue, I think we went over the Ambassador Bridge, we just drove around.
When I look at the picture above, I laugh at the fact that I had to have tails, a top hat, gloves and a cane! Could I look any more ridiculous!? Karen’s mother made her dress and I remember having to know what color it was to make sure my tie and cummerbund matched it. I remember how stunning she looked and being so excited to be taking her to the prom.
She may never read this, but if she does, she can correct me if I am wrong, but I believe when we decided to go to the prom it was an agreement that we were going just as friends. I am sure that is what both of us had in mind. As we drove around in the limo and talked, I noticed that Joe and his date had both fallen asleep. I do not recall if I had held her hand prior to this or not. What I am sure about is that when I took her hand in mine she didn’t push it away, and we held hands for some time.
At some point, we sat close to each other and just kind of held each other. My 18 year old heart was probably beating through my chest. I was single at the time and I really truly enjoyed her company. She had become a wonderful friend and I liked being with her. I’d like to believe that the first kiss we shared was a magnetic sort of thing that we both eased into, but I’m sure I was the one who instigated it. It was a pretty amazing moment and I kept hoping that our limo-mates would not wake up, so we could keep kissing.
It is sad to say, but I don’t remember if the limo dropped us off at Joe’s house and I took her home or if the limo took her home. What I do remember is thinking about her all night and well into the next day. At some point we decided to date and we did for some time after that.
She will always be a special friend to me and her family is like family. I have fond memories of that day, the dance, our relationship, and her family. I was lucky enough to DJ some of their family events and even officiated her older sister’s wedding.
They say every decision you make leads to an outcome. This was sort of the plot of the book the Midnight Library by Matt Haig. As a senior, I remember not really wanting to go to prom. It was the most expensive dance after all. Then there was the cost of a tux and such. I was barely making any money at the time, so I really was set on not going. The more she and I talked and laughed, the more I thought about asking her to go. I almost didn’t ask. I’m glad I did, though.
I’m not familiar with Cody Bret, but when I came across this, I knew I had to share…
The way people view you….
Sometimes I think about the different characters I play in everybody’s story. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ I’m a terrible person in some people’s narratives and a Godsend in others. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ And none of it has anything to do with the person I truly am. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ The lens that others view you through is coloured by their upbringing, beliefs, and individual experiences. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ Some people see your bright personality as endearing and others see it as annoying. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ Some people think you’re weak and emotional and others feel safe to be themselves around you. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ Some people think you’re rude and selfish and others respect the way you stand up for yourself. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ Some people admire the way you take pride in the way you look and others think you’re conceited. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ And none of it has to do with who you truly are as a person. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ What you have to understand is that you have no authority over how people view you so never try to control the way others see you because the only thing that truly matters when the dust settles down at the end of the day is what you genuinely see in yourself.
Welcome back to The Music of My Life, where I feature ten songs from each year of my life. In most cases, the ten songs I choose will be ones I like personally (unless I explain otherwise). The songs will be selected from Billboard’s Year-end Hot 100 Chart, Acclaimed Music, and will all be released in the featured year. I turned two in 1972, so what songs were influencing my tiny ears? Let’s find out.
By March of 1972, Badfinger was enjoying the success of their fourth album, Straight Up. Baby Blue was their last top 20 single. It reached number 14 on the charts. Todd Rundgren produced the song. Younger folks remember this song from the 2013 series finale of Breaking Bad.
Baby Blue
In April of 1972, the Hollies had a hit that was a film noir story set to music. Long Cool Woman in a Black Dress features an FBI agent, a bar filled with criminals and a 5’9″ beauty. Songfacts.com says: This tale of a government agent and a femme fatale contains one of the classic indecipherable lyrics in rock history. The part after “she was a long cool woman in a black dress” is “just a 5′ 9″ beautiful tall.”
The song should have been a number one, but Alone Again Naturally by Gilbert O’Sullivan prevented it from grabbing the top spot.
Long Cool Woman in a Black Dress
One of the biggest films of the year was The Godfather. The Love Theme from The Godfather is instantly recognizable. The music was composed by Nino Rota and most folks are familiar with the instrumental version. A lyricist named Larry Kusik actually wrote words to the song and it was recorded by Andy Williams under the title Speak Softly Love.
While it only reached number 34 on the charts, personally, I found the arrangement of this simply beautiful. Andy’s vocal is great, but give it a listen and just focus on the instrumentation of the orchestra.
Speak Softly Love
Three days after my second birthday, The Looking Glass released Brandy (You’re a Fine Girl). The story of the barmaid who serves the many sailors was from the band’s debut album and the song went to number one. The song was so popular that the US Social Security Administration saw a large increase in baby girls with that name in 1973.
This was not typical of the band’s sound, which caused a problem at concerts. While audiences expected pop songs like this one, the Looking Glass played rock, which left the crowds disappointed. The band broke up less than two years later.
Brandy (You’re a Fine Girl)
Also in May of 1972, the world was introduced to a little band known as The Eagles. The story behind their debut single Take it Easy is a great one. Here is the short version from Songfacts.com:
Jackson Browne started writing “Take It Easy” for his first album, but he didn’t know how to finish it. At the time, he was living in an apartment in the Echo Park section of Los Angeles, and his upstairs neighbor was Glenn Frey, who needed songs for his new band – the Eagles.
Frey heard Browne working on the song (he says that he learned a lot about songwriting by listening to his downstairs neighbor work), and told Jackson he thought it was great. Browne said he was having trouble completing the track, and played what he had of it. When he got to the second verse, Frey came up with a key lyric: “It’s a girl, my lord, in a flatbed Ford, slowing down to take a look at me.”
Browne turned the song over to Frey, who finished writing it and recorded it with the Eagles, who used it as the first song on their first album, and also their first single. Frey says Browne did most of the work on the song and was very generous in sharing the writing credit. He described the unfinished version of the song as a “package without the ribbon.”
Take It Easy
1972 introduced us to another new artist – Jim Croce. “You Don’t Mess Around With Jim” was his first single. After several years struggling for success and battling music industry politics, the song got the promotion it deserved when a rep at ABC/Dunhill named Matty Singer visited radio stations in the Philadelphia area to promote the song. It got solid airplay and national attention, which was followed by lots of positive press for the album. You Don’t Mess Around With Jim wasn’t released until nine months after it had been recorded, so Croce and his musical partner Maury Muehleisen had perfected the songs in performance, earning rave reviews.
You Don’t Mess Around With Jim
Here’s a story for you – The King of Rock and Roll was actually prevented from hitting the number one spot in 1972 by the Granddaddy of Rock and Roll. Yep, Burning Love reached number two on the charts while Chuck Berry held the number one spot with “My Ding-A-Ling!” Urgh!
Burning Love was the final Top 10 hit in the American Hot 100 or pop charts for Elvis. The electric guitar opening and riffs were overdubbed and played by Dennis Linde, the writer of the song. He performed the song in the concert movie Elvis on Tour, and because the song was still new to him, you can see him holding a sheet of paper with the lyrics on it.
Burning Love
In October of 1972, Motown’s of Stevie Wonder released on of my all time favorite songs. When some music bloggers were doing a “Song Draft” I actually picked Superstition as one of my songs. You can read that blog here:
In September of 1972, Johnny Rivers released a cover of Huey “Piano” Smith’s 1957 song, Rockin’ Pneumonia and the Boogie Woogie Flu. In the late 50’s the country was hit with the Asian Flu, also called the “walking pneumonia.” The title of the song is a play on this. Johnny’s version did much better than Huey’s version. Huey didn’t even get into the top 40 (it peaked at 52), while Johnny had a top ten (peaking at 6). Playing piano on Johnny’s version was none other than the Wrecking Crew’s Larry Knechtel.
Rockin’ Pneumonia and the Boogie Woogie Flu
My final song from 1972 is a funky jam. There is so much that I love about Use Me by Bill Withers. The song was released on his Still Bill album. It has such a neat syncopated percussion line that interplays with the rest of the instruments and Bill’s vocal. Again, there is a great story about the writing of the song. It seems a lot of women were telling him he was just “too nice” and he wanted to change that. Bill said in an interview:
That’s fun stuff. That’s just talkin’ trash. That’s just a song about being a little playful, a little arrogant and a little cool. Unless you were one of those people that were born popular, I was a chronic stutterer until I was twenty-eight. I avoided the phone. So I wasn’t this popular guy. I remember being young and I would have girls tell me, “You’re too nice.” I didn’t understand that.
What kind of twisted world are we in? Women like bad boys, I guess. There is no more confusing form of rejection than for somebody to tell you that you’re not interesting to them because you’re too nice.
So over the course of time, you say okay, you wanna play, okay, let’s play? Use Me taps into that. I tried to be nice, now let’s get nasty. That song came quick. I was working in McDonnell Douglas out in Long Beach and the noise of the factory, they had some women working there. I crossed that line there thinking, “You all want a nasty boy? Well here I come.” [laughs]
Use Me
I hope you enjoyed my picks. What 1972 tunes were your favorites?
Having been able to get out and help with my daughter’s T-ball games over the past couple weeks has me in a baseball mood. My Detroit Tigers are not doing as well as I had hoped, but there is a lot of baseball left in the season.
For Tune Tuesday, I picked a great baseball song that is played in stadiums all over the country. “Centerfield” by John Fogerty, who coincidentally turns 79 today.
Fogerty took quite a bit of time off after leaving CCR and two solo albums. When it was time for his comeback, he called the album Centerfield before he’d even written the song. He says the song basically wrote itself. “I was practicing a song, and I came up with that guitar riff that starts the song,” he said. “I went into the studio, playing the guitar with a drumbeat and it just came out.”
The song was the B-side of “Rock and Roll Girls,” and only reached #44 on the charts. However, because of the play it gets at ball games, it certainly has become well known!
In 2010, John Fogerty became the only musician to be celebrated at the Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony when “Centerfield” was honored by the National Baseball Hall of Fame. It is a baseball classic.
Admittedly, today I present a song that is probably unfamiliar to you. It is a truly amazing love song by Don Williams, who was born on this day in 1939.
In 1980, Burt Reynolds, Jerry Reed, Jackie Gleason and Sally Field teamed up together again for the less than stellar “Smokey and the Bandit II.” While it was not anywhere near as good as the original, it did have a few funny scenes and some classic country songs.
Don Williams earned the nickname “The Gentle Giant because of his smooth baritone/bass voice and his height. Over his career he had seventeen number one records. His hits include Tulsa Time, Lord, I Hope This Day is Good, I Believe In You, It Must Be Love, and Some Broken Hearts Never Mend.
Don played himself in Smokey and the Bandit II. In the story, Don is playing at a club nearby and Bandit and his friends go to hear him. As they walk in to the club, he is playing his hit Tulsa Time. From the stage he introduces the Bandit and dedicates To Be Your Man to Bandit and Frog (Sally Field). For years, I looked for the song on Don Williams collections, but I could only find it on the soundtrack for the movie. (That’s not necessarily a bad thing as there are great songs from Tanya Tucker, Roy Rogers, The Statler Brothers, Mel Tillis, and of course, Jerry Reed on the album as well.)
I guess what I love about this song is (1) Don’s vocal (2) the simple, yet powerful lyrics, and (3) the fact that I could have easily written these words to my wife.
To Be Your Man
Be my love, be my friend Help me grow, help me bend Understand, now and then When I do wrong
It’s for you that I try I will live ’til the day I die Givin’ all, all that I can To be your man
High on a hill, standin’ alone I’ll tell the world everythin’ I’ve done Raise my hand, testify My love is real
When I laugh, when I cry I would never, never lie I’ll do all, all that I can To be your man
So, be my love, be my friend Help me grow, help me bend Understand, now and then When I do wrong
Well, it’s for you that I try I will live ’til the day I die Givin’ all, all that I can To be your man
When we’re old, old and gray And the children have moved away And it’s time, our time again For being alone
Then you’ll look, look and see Love’s been good to you and me Understand, it’s my plan To be your man
So, won’t you be my love, be my friend Help me grow, help me bend Understand, now and then When I do wrong
Well, it’s for you that I try I will live ’til the day I die Givin’ all, all that I can To be your man
Dabney Coleman passed away recently at the age of 92. He was one of those great actors who always seemed to be playing a jerk in the movies. He played those characters so well, it is hard to believe that he was actually the opposite of that in real life.
As an actor, he appeared in so many great classic TV shows. He was in The Naked City, Ben Casey, Dr. Kildare, The Outer Limits, Hazel, The Donna Reed Show, The Fugitive, That Girl, I Dream of Jeannie, The Mod Squad, Bonanza, Ironside, Kojak, Mannix, Cannon, Police Story, Mary Hartman Mary Hartman, Quincy ME, The Love Boat, Columbo, Different Strokes, Boardwalk Empire, Yellowstone, and so many more. He starred as the lead character in Buffalo Bill and The Slap Maxwell Story. His movies included Midway, North Dallas Forty, War Games, Tootsie, Dragnet, The Beverly Hillbillies, Modern Problems, and of course, 9 to 5.
I always liked him as an actor, and it is 9 to 5 which brings about the lesson learned. That lesson is something that I can relate to right now in my life. For those not familiar with 9 to 5, let me give you just a brief overview of the plot from IMDB:
“Three female employees of a sexist, egotistical, lying, hypocritical bigot find a way to turn the tables on him.:
Yeah, that’s pretty much what happens. Dabney plays the hard-ass, no nonsense boss, Franklin Hart. He is the stereotypical bad boss. He is exactly how he is described by IMDB. Long story short, working for him sucks. The workplace is a hell hole where the employees are basically slaves to his rules and statutes. The employees can’t even put pictures up at their desks!
I won’t give away too much of the plot, but the three ladies played by Lily Tomlin, Dolly Parton, and Jane Fonda wind up holding him against his will and run the company while he is “away.” During that time, the girls change things up a bit, well, a lot. They add flex shifts for workers, a daycare, plants and pictures can adorn desks, rehabilitation programs, and a whole lot more. Employee morale goes through the roof!
As for how the movie ends, you will have to watch for yourself, but here is the lesson and how it applies to me and my work life. We recently had a merger. As that merger continued to be finalized, there were a lot of unknowns. A few weeks ago, our director was let go along with many others. No one knew what was going to happen.
Shortly after an introductory e-mail, our interim manager was named manager, much to our delight. We all like her. She was one of us techs, so she knows all our concerns and the things we deal with on a daily basis. We then had a meeting via Zoom/Teams where all of us were told of the plans going forward. This was scary for us – we had no idea.
What happened during the meeting was nothing short of amazing. Ideas that had been thrown around years ago and shot down, were suddenly a possibility. Many concerns were addressed and tentative plans to correct them were presented. Over and over again we were given things that were being discussed for our workplace that would make things so much easier for all of us. The future looks bright!
I won’t lie to you, a couple years ago, I was on the job hunt. I had interviews, but nothing really panned the way I had hoped. Places I thought were the answer gave off bad vibes. People I met didn’t give me a good feeling, etc. So I stayed and did my job. (It is always easier to find a job while you still have one.) I was so unhappy about things. I was miserable. I wasn’t sure how much longer I could do it. My health was bad, my blood pressure was up, my sleep was nonexistent, and my home life was tense. Stress was an understatement.
When the interim manager took over, she presented me with an opportunity to go to second shift. I jumped at the opportunity. Almost immediately, my demeaner was better. I was happier. I saw more of my family. My stress level dropped – and so did my blood pressure. My doc was so impressed with my blood pressure that she wrote a note saying that for my health’s sake, I should not be allowed to work midnights.
Anyway, after that meeting, I got a sense that our new leaders really wanted to (1) help our lab grow, (2) help get us what we needed to be the best for our patients, and (3) make us employees happy. Just like in the movie 9 to 5, I see these things being implemented and the morale becoming better. I see good things to come. The leaders truly make me feel appreciated and I think that’s amazing.
When I was a boss in radio, I always said if you make your employees happy, they will follow your leadership. I hope that the vibe that I am feeling is right and we see happy employees and a great work environment.
They kids are all set for summer. Sam and I got them a huge inflatable water slide a few months back and we finally got the chance to put it up. We’ve had some summer-like weather and we’ve all had some fun with it.
This thing is really cool. There is a shower at the top of the slide that keeps water on the slide itself. Then at the bottom there is a water cannon that shoots water on the end of the slide. There is a “tunnel” with a sprinkler you can walk or run through, as well.
At some point Sunday, Sam decided that she was going to sit in the water with the kids, which led to a whole lotta splashing.
The asked me to come over, so I put my phone down and next thing I know, all of them were splashing me. The water was from the hose and it was freezing! But after about 30-40 minutes playing in the water as a family, I can honestly say it was a blast and worth every second.
Even Daisy found it fun to play …
The kids kept shooting her with the cannon and she kept biting at the water.
I will be sure to remind my wife of the fun we had when the water bill shows up!!
A few weeks back, I was a lucky winner of a Goodreads Giveaway. I received Under The Paper Moon by Shaina Steinberg and I have just finished it.
My first thought when I saw the cover was “Film Noir.” It had that 1940’s look about it and after reading the synopsis, I was excited to read it:
Mr. and Mrs. Smith meets The Thin Man ’s Nick and Nora Charles in this intrigue-filled debut from film and television writer Shaina Steinberg, as two former spies who shared more than just missions during WWII reunite in 1948 Los Angeles. Can they let go of heartbreak long enough to team up for one last operation?
It’s 1942, and as far as her father knows, Evelyn Bishop, heiress to an aeronautics fortune, is working as a translator in London. In truth, Evelyn—daring, beautiful, and as adept with a rifle as she is in five languages—has joined the Office of Strategic Services as a spy. Her goal is to find her brother, who is being held as a POW in a Nazi labor camp. Through one high-risk mission after another she is paired with the reckless and rebellious Nick Gallagher, growing ever close to him until the war’s end brings with it an act of deep betrayal.
Six years later, Evelyn is back home in Los Angeles, working as a private investigator. The war was supposed to change everything, yet Evelyn, contemplating marriage to her childhood sweetheart, feels stifled by convention. Then the suspected cheating husband she’s tailing is murdered, and suddenly Evelyn is back in Nick’s orbit again.
Teaming up for a final mission, Evelyn and Nick begin to uncover the true nature of her case— and realize that the war has followed them home. For beyond the public horrors waged by nations there are countless secret, desperate acts that still reverberate on both continents, and threaten everything Evelyn holds dear…
It really did have that “Film Noir” feel to it at times and wasn’t really a bad read. I enjoyed how the author gave us a look at the present and some events in the past that helped to move the story line and the mystery along. It all fits together by the end.
Honestly, whenever I read a spy novel set in this period of time, it is hard for me to not read the dialogue like something out of a movie. That being said, I always read the character of Nick like a Humphrey Bogart sounding guy. Evelyn was Veronica Lake-ish to me. The character, Katie, I read like an annoying school girl because that what she reminded me of.
The story took a minute to get going, but when someone is killed it begins to move at a pretty decent pace. There were some twists in the story that I didn’t see coming and I probably would have rated it a bit higher if I hadn’t been put off by some “over the top” and almost unbelievable things that happen toward the climax of the story. That was the only downfall to the story for me.
Over all, it was a nice Historical Fiction read. The overall rating on Goodreads is 4 stars, I gave it 3.5 stars.
Thanks to the folks at Kensington Publishing for choosing me as a winner on Goodreads and sending me a copy.
Various Ramblings of a Nostalgic Italian 