Anahera returns to her home town of Golden Cove after the death of her husband. She comes back full of rage and bitterness but hides it well. When Miriama, a local girl, goes missing the town looks for her. Anahera becomes close to the cop in the town, Will. The two are attracted to each other but because of their pasts they try to deny the attraction. Both are broken but with Miriama missing other pasts come up in the town including the town's past. Anahera gives information to Will and together they try to piece the town's pasts, residents' pasts, and current events to find Miriama.

I enjoyed this story. There is a lot of pain in the town as well as both Will and Anahera's life. I was glad that Anahera was able to fit back into Golden Cove although she knew she could not stay. I liked that she was able to befriend Jemima, the wife of a childhood friend. The friendship caused both to be able to say things that others would not have understood since they had not gone through them. Both needed a friend.

I appreciated that Will was flawed. He had his own baggage and was able to handle Anahera's anger and rage and understand it. Golden Cove had its secrets but also gave up the secrets.

I have to admit I did not anticipate the ending, was actually surprised by part of it. A good story that kept me interested and not wanting to put it down.

99¢ BOOK OF THE WEEK

FOREST – Love, Loss, Legend

‘til Aug. 31 at

https://www.amazon.com/-/e/B003DS6LEU

Matthew and Raminder are young, idealistic and in love.

As soon as they can they plan to leave behind the small town and small minds of Pitt Landing. They will embrace life and experience the world, maybe even change it.

Man plans, God laughs. Raminder’s father has a stroke and her commitment to her family means she must postpone her plans and stay in Pitt Lake. It’s just the opposite for Matt. A family tragedy leaves irreconcilable differences between him and his father and forces him to leave.

They promise to reunite, but life happens.

Twelve years later, Matt is an acclaimed war correspondent. He’s seen it all and it’s left him with post-traumatic stress, a gastric ulcer, and an enlarged liver. He’s never been back to Pitt Landing though the memory of Raminder and their love has more than once kept him sane.

He’s at his desk in the newsroom, recuperating from his last assignment and current hangover and reading a letter from his father, the first contact they’ve had in over a decade. It talks about a legendary lost gold mine, a map leading to it, and proof in a safety deposit box back in Pitt Lake. He’s sent it to Matt in case something happens to him and cautions his son to keep it a secret.

Matt is about to dismiss the letter when the telephone rings. It’s Raminder telling him his father has disappeared somewhere in the wilderness that surrounds Pitt Lake.

Lost gold, lost love and lost hope compels Matt to return home to a dying town on the edge of the wilderness.

The forest is waiting.

★★★★ FOREST...neatly encapsulates the battleground of humanity’s greed for natural resources versus the cost to the environment... a compelling story, studded with evocative detail and under laid by a very real question – definitely worth the read.

- Readers’ Favorite Book Reviews

★★★★ Definitely worth reading!

“Intriguing story about a man's quest. Searching for a father, gold, peace of mind, love”
- e.memelink, reader review

★★★★★ Wow! A very well written mystery, suspense book.

 Lots of exciting scenarios, with several twists/turns & a great set of unique characters to keep track of. This could also make another great foreign film adventure movie, or mini TV series. There is no doubt in my mind this is a very easy rating of 5 stars.
- Tony Parsons, reader review

★★★★★ A search for true love and meaning in life

I truly enjoyed reading this book and would definitely recommend it. If you are looking for something meaningful, you'll certainly get a lot of true love, trust, relationships, friendship, childhood memories, and a lot more in this excellent book.

★★★★★ A fantastic nature adventure. The author has a great writing style that is easy to read and very enjoyable.

- Jack Anderson

★★★★ A strong character driven novel

“… a snapshot into so many lives and somehow the author was able to create a believable story behind all this was spot on. I would recommend it to anyone looking for a deep character driven novel.”

★★★★ “The author did a wonderful job of pulling me in and caring about these people. This is the second book I have read of Rod Raglin. Both times I have been impressed with his work. I'm happy I came across this one.”

- Bryan Fagan, author of Dempsey’s Grill

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99¢ BOOK OF THE WEEK

LOCAL RAG – News to Die For

til Aug. 26 at

https://www.amazon.com/-/e/B003DS6LEU

Do you believe everything you read in the newspapers? Jim Mitchell doesn't.

He's a journalist and the publisher and editor of a community newspaper, The Sentinel. He gave up a career with big media because he couldn't justify their choice of what to cover, couldn't tolerate the way they edited his stories and would not be implicit in misleading the public to benefit some hidden corporate agenda.

When he bought The Sentinel, he thought all that would end. Being owner of "the local rag," he could select the stories, edit the copy and make sure the interests of the community were served. He would print the truth - no slant, no bias, no spin, and he'd make a living doing it.

He was wrong.

From the beginning, Jim's brand of reportage rankles some powerful people, people who pay his bills. Then there's the new competitor, a multinational media conglomerate that's expanding its generic community newspaper format into The Sentinel's market area. Soon it's a struggle for The Sentinel to make a profit and for Jim to keep true to his uncompromising ethic.

When his best friend, Anthony Bravaro decides to run for mayor Jim hopes he'll be an honest politician. Hope turns to dismay as Jim watches the quest for power turn a good man bad. Tony's campaign tests Jim's professional objectivity and personal integrity. When Jim confronts his friend with damaging information that could end his run for public office he finds out how far Tony's prepared to go to win the mayor's seat - farther than he could ever have imagined.

- 5 STARS for having given his readers a story which pits an individual trying to do what's right when it comes to reporting the news against those who would rather keep the status quo in keeping what happens somewhere stays there.
 
... a dose of reality not seen on most major media. His story highlights the control over the minds of the public by special money factions. Readers have only to see similarities with today.
 
... engrossing and exciting story that moves quickly. The narrative comes alive because the characters are three dimensional. This is a novel well worth reading. Highly recommended.
 
Raglin ... grips the readers' attention from the very first page. He managed to put so many levels in this book - corruption, drugs, murder, threats, politics. Yet, there is also place for love and friendship ... he challenges his readers to get actively involved, to start asking questions and reconsidering their own life decisions.
 

...a well-designed, masterly written, and realistic murder mystery. (5 STARS)

Local Rag should appear to the careful reader much more than a well-designed, masterly written, and realistic murder mystery.

Local Rag is, in my opinion, a philosophical parable on the ultimate meaning of truth in our earthly lives. The last pages will clarify the individual relevance of the initial Aurelian quote in this story.
By the way, the closing image of the book is a powerful visual allegory about where humanity as a whole is heading fast, if not for a sharp change of route.
- Thomas Dalcolle, Author of Five Urban Stories - And Something Better

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When Cody Blaze meets his father, Russell, for lunch he has no way of knowing it will be the last time he sees him alive. A few days later, Russell is killed. It appears he fell asleep while returning from some out-of-town business and drove off the highway.

After the funeral, Cody is at the family home consoling his mother when he discovers a letter addressed to him in his father’s home office. The letter is written by Russell and discloses that if Cody is reading it, he didn’t die accidentally as it may appear. He’s been murdered.

In the letter, his father entreats Cody to read his unfinished memoir not with the intention of discovering “the motive for my death and the probable identity of my murderer”, but because “there’s so much about my life you never knew about, much of which leads up to this moment of my demise”.

As Cody begins to read the memoir, he discovers he never knew the details about his father’s early life, a life filled with violence and tragedy.

Russell Blaze grew up in the sixties and his memoir is steeped in the hippy counter-culture of the time as well as the eras’ turbulent politics. But it’s his own family members who are the most troubling including his younger brother, Leo, who when still a juvenile murdered their abusive stepfather.

Russell goes on to become a successful journalist, marry a black woman and have a child, while his brother, once out of prison becomes a proponent of white supremacy and lives a marginalized life of hate and violence.

Fate sets the two of them on dramatically different journeys only to converge with deadly consequences.

On the surface, Words Kill is a murder mystery and, in that regard, its plot is somewhat contrived. However, author David Miles Robinson has offered

us much more than a whodunnit. He’s written a book that showcases the big issues of that time in American including the War in Vietnam and others that still resonate today including the prevalence of post-traumatic stress syndrome among veterans, alcohol and drug addiction, and particularly racism. He also digs deep into a dysfunctional family dynamic and reveals how damaging events in early life can manifest into catastrophic results years later.

I particularly enjoyed this book because of Robinson’s realistic take on interracial relationships as well as his authentic depiction of the dark side of the hippy lifestyle. It wasn’t all sunshine peace, and flowers during the Summer of Love.

Pauline is burned out as a nurse so she quits and finds a job as a medical fraud investigator. She is sent after a woman she went to school with who is suspected of faking an injury to collect worker's comp. She is to follow and get pictures of her doing things that will negate her worker's comp claim. She is quickly taught how to do the job by Goldie. Then Jagger turns up and takes over her training including getting her involved in his case. Will she succeed? Will they trust each other? Will they solve their cases?

I had a blast with this book. I plan to read others in this series. Pauline is funny. She is in over her head and reminds you of Janet Evanovich's Stephanie Plum but she has managed not to blow up a car yet. She is smart and it takes her some time, at times, to understand what she is to do but once she does she is off and running Jagger is mysterious and sexy. He always turns up when Pauline needs him but he gives nothing away. She is always questioning and receiving no answers from him. But somehow they seem to come together. I am going to enjoy watching them.

The story was funny. Watching them work the case is a riot because Jagger knows what is going on but Pauline is operating in the dark most of the time. The world building is good and I look forward to more of Pauline and Jagger.