Sunday, June 18, 2023

Risé Recommends ~ another couple of books

The Scent of Rain and Lightning ~ by Nancy Pickard, 2010, murder mystery (Kansas), 337 pages

One beautiful summer afternoon, Jody Linder receives shocking news:  The man convicted of murdering her father is being released from prison and returning to the small town of Rose, Kansas.  It has been 23 years since that stormy night when her father was shot and killed and her mother disappeared, presumed dead.  Neither the protective embrace of Jody’s three uncles nor the safe haven of her grandparents' ranch could erase the pain caused by Billy Crosby on that catastrophic night.

Now Billy Crosby is free, thanks to the efforts of his son, Collin, a lawyer who has spent most of his life trying to prove his father’s innocence.  Despite their long history of carefully avoiding each other in such an insular community, Jody and Collin find that they share an exclusive sense of loss.  As Jody revisits old wounds, startling truths emerge about her family’s tragic past.  But even through struggle and hardship, she still dares to hope for a better future — and maybe even love.

Never Come Back
 ~ by David Bell, 2013, 
psychological mystery, 448 pages

Leslie Hampton always cared for her troubled son Ronnie’s special needs and assumed that her daughter Elizabeth would take him in when the time came.  When Leslie dies unexpectedly, Elizabeth is consumed by grief.  Then police discover that Leslie was strangled, and they immediately suspect that one of Ronnie’s outbursts took a tragic turn. Elizabeth can’t believe that her brother is capable of murder, but who else could have had a motive to kill their quiet, retired mother?

More questions arise when a stranger is named in Leslie’s will:  a woman also named Elizabeth.  As the family’s secrets begin to unravel, a man from Leslie’s past who claims to have all the answers shows up, but those answers may put Elizabeth and those she loves most in mortal danger.

Risé Recommends

It's been awhile since I shared books that my friend Risé recommends, so here are two more from her list.  I have not read either of them, so I'll see if my library has copies.

Deb Nance at Readerbuzz
hosts The Sunday Salon.

2 comments:

Mark Baker said...

Sound like a couple of good books. Thanks for passing on the recommendations.

Deb Nance at Readerbuzz said...

I would never find good books on my own. It is thanks to all my great fellow readers out there that I have read the books I've read.

Thank you for passing on the recommendations of your friend.