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Network of Deceit
Network of Deceit
Tom Threadgill | 2021 | Crime, Mystery
9
9.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Great Deductive Reasoning
Detective Amara Alvarez from the SAPD (San Antonio Police Department) Homicide brings us a great new case in Network of Deceit. From the first page, I was hooked on this story. I was a big fan of Collision of Lies the first book in this stand-alone series, for the character development Tom Threadgill uses, and how he walks us through the case just as if we were there asking the questions to figure out the case right along Detective Alvarez. Detective Alvarez has a light sense of humor, and she is a bit of a quirky character take this for instance: “[Detective Alvarez] heading home to Larry, her three-foot-long pet iguana”. I also love Tom Threadgill’s use of dry sarcastic humor and wit in the conversations between Detective Alvarez and Detective Jeremiah “Starsky” Peckham is it fun to read and adds another layer to the story.

This particular case was rife with speculation, suspense, and unanswered questions that left me guessing until the end. A true mystery in every sense of the word. We are shown every step in the case and it is not tv fast paced, it is realistic. Tom Threadgill gives accurate timelines for the turnaround on things like autopsy reports and toxicology reports, unlike most tv shows. I also really enjoyed the cybercrime aspects of the story and I thought that it was explained in an easy-to-understand way for anyone, even if you do not have any previous knowledge of cybercrimes.

I would suggest that you go back and read Collision of Lies before this one as it gives you more background on the characters and you would have a better understanding of the case the previous book covers that is mentioned a few times in this one. But this one can be read as a stand-alone since the whole case is started and wrapped up in this book. Overall, I truly loved this book, and the way Tom Threadgill moved the case along, and I am looking forward to what other adventures that Detective Alvarez takes me on. 5 out of 5 stars.
  
The Magnificent Ambersons (1942)
The Magnificent Ambersons (1942)
1942 | Drama
(0 Ratings)
Movie Favorite

"Well, it has a lot of what makes Citizen Kane amazing; you know, the incredible camera angles and perspectives, and the sense of history — American history — great performances. But to me, it’s a much juicier story. So it’s from a Booth Tarkington novel — which I’ve never read — and it’s the story of a young man who’s played by Joseph Cotten — who you know is also in Citizen Kane — who will go on to become the man who invents the automobile. But at the time, he is the ruler of our heroine, and he does not win her hand because he’s not a big deal enough — not from her point of view, but from her family’s point of view. Because they are the magnificent Ambersons; they are the richest, most important family in town. And instead she marries someone that she doesn’t love and who’s not as impressive a person. So she takes all that love she doesn’t really have for her husband, and pours it onto her son, who becomes a spoiled nightmarish brat. And it is the downward trajectory of the Ambersons — as Joseph Cotten’s character, in his ingenuity, makes all these important scientific advances, and he gains money. And the Ambersons spend their money terribly and they’re dissolute. And all this tragedy ensues — finally, finally, finally at the end. When he’s a baby — when he’s a young boy — he’s so spoiled. And they’re all waiting for the day when George Amberson will get his comeuppance. And finally, everything horrible that could happen to a person happens to him. But by the time George Amberson got his comeuppance, the people who had so longed to see it were no longer around. And in the end, he finally, finally, finally comes to his senses and embraces his mother’s true love and accepts help. It’s just a beautifully told story of star-crossed lovers; but also how when everything is going for you — and you think you’re so great, because you come from people who’ve told you that you’re great — but actually, if you can’t fend for yourself you’re gonna float to the bottom pretty quickly."

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Under the Southern Sky
Under the Southern Sky
Kristy Woodson Harvey | 2021 | Contemporary, Fiction & Poetry, Romance
7
7.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
A heartfelt romance set in North Carolina
Amelia Saxton, a journalist, has just published a personal story in "Modern Love" discussing her own modern marriage with her husband Thad, talking about how happy they are in their life filled with travel and their decision not to have children. That same day she discovers Thad is cheating on her--with another man. Devastated, Amelia's life is completely upended and she wonders if she can ever trust again. While researching another story, she finds out that some embryos belonging to her childhood friend Parker and his late wife, Greer, have been deemed "abandoned." Parker had a love for the ages with Greer, but Amelia--the literal girl next door--was his first love. He had forgotten about the embryos, but once he hears Amelia's news, he wants to become a single father via surrogate. As Amelia and Parker each return home to Cape Carolina to deal with their own grief, they find comfort in their friendship.

"People always think being loved will change them. But that's not true. It's really, truly loving--with the kind of love you couldn't take away even if you wanted to--that turns you inside out."

This book had an interesting plot idea--the whole embryo idea has the possibility to become icky, but overall Woodson Harvey pulls it off. I have been through IVF and dealt with frozen embryo decisions myself, so the book certainly hit home. The story is told via Parker and Amelia's present-day perspectives and interspersed with excerpts from Greer's journals. The North Carolina setting is atmospheric and takes on a life of its own.

At times, this tale is kind of silly and all over the place, but it's a very easy read. The characters are also easy-to-like, and I grew to care a lot about both Parker and Amelia. It's a fun and romantic tale, with just about everyone tied together in various ways. There are meddling moms, family secrets, and drama with Parker's brother. All of this makes the book quite a page-turner, which is at turns sweet and heartbreaking. 3.75 stars.