Beauty on the Backroads

Stories of grace for life's unexpected turns

Fiction

A strength that bends, not breaks: Review of The Feathered Bone by Julie Cantrell

New Orleans is known for a lot of things: Mardi Gras, the French Quarter, Hurricane Katrina, to name a few. But human trafficking? I would not have linked the two.

feathered boneIn The Feathered Bone, author Julie Cantrell does. She also tackles such subjects as domestic abuse, grief, suicide, natural disaster, and divorce. When I think about the number of “heavy” issues in this novel, I’m surprised at how uplifting the story is. That’s the beauty of Cantrell’s storytelling for me. (Disclaimer: I received a free copy of the book in exchange for my review.)

But The Feathered Bone is all about holding on to hope, no matter the circumstances. And the analogy of hope being like a feather, a strong, bendable support that doesn’t break under pressure, is a beautiful reminder that pain and suffering don’t have to be the end of the story.

Cantrell starts the story pre-Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans, where a class field trip ends tragically after one of the 12-year-old girls goes missing. What follows is a heart-breaking chronicle of grief and enduring hope. This is no fluffy escapist read. Some of it is shockingly difficult to process.

But it’s an important story, one of the best I’ve read recently. Take your time with this one and proceed with caution. The journey is worth it. Hope is its promise.

Page-turning CSI-style adventure: Review of Cold Shot by Dani Pettrey

Dani Pettrey’s writing hooked me from book one of her Alaskan Courage five-book series, and the first story in her new Chesapeake Valor series sets the scene for another hard-to-walk-away-from lineup of characters.

cold shotCold Shot introduces us to a group of friends working in the Chesapeake Bay area, who are brought together on a crime investigation when a body is discovered in Gettysburg National Park. (Disclaimer: I received a free copy of the book in exchange for my review.)

Ranger Griffin McRay interrupts what he thinks are opportunistic grave robbers but soon discovers the body is a more recent death. He calls on attractive forensic anthropologist Finley Scott to help with the investigation. Griffin is soon reunited with childhood buddies Declan Grey, now with the FBI, and Parker Mitchell, a crime scene investigator. The three friends used to be an inseparable foursome, but they’ve been driven apart by a circumstance no one talks about and the disappearance of the fourth friend, Luke Gallagher.

That all sounds complicated, but Dani peppers the murder investigation with the friends’ history in a palatable way, so readers aren’t overwhelmed with the setup of a new series.

If you’re a fan of crime scene investigation shows on TV, I think you’ll like this book. I personally don’t watch them, but I read this book in less than 7 hours. It’s fast-paced adventure and I already look forward to the next one. (If there’s any downside, it’s that I finished so quickly and now have to wait!)