Romance

Remembering Barbara Mertz

/ Sharon Tyler / Leave a comment
Image of Elizabeth Peters

Barbara Mertz

Barbara Mertz might not be a name that you immediately recognize, but you just might recognize her pen names. She was the best-selling mystery writer who wrote dozens of novels under the pen names of Elizabeth Peters and Barbara Michaels. Sadly, she passed away in her home on the morning of August 8, 2013.  Mertz is survived by her children, Elizabeth and Peter, and six grandchildren.

Barbara Mertz earned a PhD from the University of Chicago in Egyptology at the age of 23. She first became a published writer in 1964 and authored two books on ancient Egypt, (Temples, Tombs, and Hieroglyphs (1964 with a revised edition in 2007) and Red Land, Black Land (1978 with a revised edition in 2008) Both books have been continuously in print since their first publication.

Mertz used the pseudonym Elizabeth Peters to pen more than 3 dozen mysteries. Several are stand-alone novels, including Summer of the Dragon (1979), and The Copenhagen Connection (1982), but she is perhaps best know for her series mysteries.

One series dear to my heart is about Jacqueline Kirby; who just happens to be a librarian with a very large purse and a knack for solving mysteries. Jacqueline makes her first appearance as an unwilling detective in The Seventh Sinner (1972).

Another Elizabeth Peters series is the Vicky Bliss Mysteries,  which follows the adventures of an American art history professor who keeps getting involved in international crime and her love interest, a charming art thief known as Sir John Smythe.  The first book in this series is Borrower of the Night (1973).

As Elizabeth Peters, Mertz may be best known for the 19 book Amelia Peabody series, the last of which was published in April of 2010. The heroine is an Egyptologist and the stories all relate to the “Golden Age” of Egyptology, spanning the 1880s to 1922. The first book in the series is Crocodile on the Sandbank, first published in 1976. There is also a companion book, Amelia Peabody’s Egypt: A Compendium, published in 2003.

As Barbara Michaels, Mertz wrote primarily Gothic and supernatural thrillers, including twenty four stand-alone novels including  Be Buried in the Rain (1985), Search the Shadows (1987), Smoke and Mirrors (1989), Into the Darkness (1990), Vanish with the Rose (1992), Houses of Stone (1993), The Dancing Floor (1997), and Other Worlds (1999).

You can find more information about Barbara Mertz and her books on her website http://www.mpmbooks.com/, which sadly does not seem to have been updated since last fall, but still has the most comprehensive information about her body of work.

Linda reads : Wind Chime Point and Sea Glass Island by Sherryl Woods

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Wind Chime Point is book two of the Ocean Breeze Trilogy.  It would be helpful to read the first book, Sand Castle Bay, although the author does a wonderful job of tying in book one’s story.

Hardworking, ambitious, and independent Gabriella Castle is facing personal and professional challenges that prove too daunting for her to handle alone.  She retreats to her grandmother’s home in Sand Castle Bay, NC. and the welcoming arms of her family.

Wade Johnson is a cabinet-maker and wood-carver with a tragic and secret past.  He’s been intrigued by Gabriella whenever she’s visited and is happy when she returns to town.  He’s also a friend of Emily’s finance, Boone.

Gabi is having a lot of trouble deciding what to do about her future.  For the first time in her life, she is plagued with doubts and uncertainty.  She finds a friend in Wade and his easy-going style and good listening skills are both helpful and comforting.  She didn’t expect or plan for her feelings for Wade to blossom into love.  Wade knew he had strong feelings for Gabi, but he is unsure if he’s ready to take the next step.

Although this book focuses mainly on Gabi and Wade, the secondary characters play an important part in the story.  Gabi’s sister Emily is busy planning her wedding and her other sister, Samantha is facing her own crisis about her           career.  Grandmother Cora Jane is still playing matchmaker and the sister’s  father, Sam, has an expanded role in this book.

Sea Glass Island is the third and final book of the trilogy.  Samantha has been living in New York City pursuing her dream of being an actress.  But lately, the parts she auditions for are all going to younger actresses.  She goes home to North Carolina for her sister’s wedding and to reflect on what to do with her life.

Ethan Cole is a doctor at the local clinic in town.  He lost a leg while serving in Afghanistan, and his fiance dumped him shortly thereafter.  He’s having a hard time overcoming the hurt caused by his finance.  He doesn’t know that Samantha has had a crush on him since high school, or that her family is relentless on their determination to get them together.

There are several interesting subplots in this book and plot lines from the previous two books are tied up quite nicely.

These are  captivating, realistic, heartwarming romances.   The setting is a place you want to visit and the characters are people you want to know.  This is a character-driven trilogy with witty dialogue, beautifully descriptive scenes, warm and loving family interactions, and sweet love stories.  This trilogy is Ms. Woods best work yet.

Anticipated Erotic Literature – My Education by Susan Choi

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Susan Choi

One of the most anticipated books of 2013 is My Education by Susan Choi.  Susan is the author of three previous novels.  Her first novel, The Foreign Student, won the Asian-American Literary Award.   American Woman was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize and A Person of Interest was a finalist for the PEN/Faulker Award.

My Education is a steamy, but very well-written book.  It’s about Regina, a graduate student, who is warned about a notorious professor who sleeps with students.  She becomes his teaching assistant and, in a surprising twist, has an affair with the professor’s wife.  The story spans fifteen years of Regina’s misadventures that are both erotic and catastrophic.

This novel is Amazon’s best book of the month – July 2013.  It has received rave reviews from many sources, including Publishers Weekly, Kirkus,  the Boston Globe, Vanity Fair, The Los Angeles Times, and The Washington Post.

Available at the Cheshire Library.

Note:  For sensitive readers, this book contains profanity, sexual references and overt sexual scenes.

Sharon Reads: Grave Mercy by Robin LaFevers

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Grave Mercy

Grave Mercy by Robin LaFevers is the first book in a new young adult series, His Fair Assassin. The main character is seventeen-year-old Ismea, who has been feared and shamed her entire life because of scars she bears from her mothers attempt to abort her. She escapes an arranged marriage and dedicates her life to the god, or saint, Mortain who rules death. The convent that takes her in and trains her requires complete obedience, but her skills and safety of the convent help Ismae grow and thrive. During her third assignment, she discovers that the outside world is much more complicated than she had ever imagined. She finds herself under prepared as she tries to protect the duchess, and the country, amid traitors and plots that seem to become even more tangled as she loses her heart to her partner, and potential target for death.

Let’s start with the obviously fantastic reason everyone is interested by this book, assassin nuns. It could not be anything other than awesome. Ismea is saved from being further beaten, and most likely killed, by the man her father sold her to as a wife by a local priests and hedge witch that follow the old ways. She is taught to kill, to serve a dark god or saint and to protect her country. She learns to obey, and in turn to question the orders and plots that are driving her hands in death. Ismea becomes a strong, smart woman. Her partnership with Duval is far from insta-love, and develops slowly and will the appropriate amount of doubt and mistrust. However, I will say that I was occasionally annoyed with her jumping and being startled every time he touched her or looked at her a certain way. The court intrigue was well done, and held some surprises for me. I fully expected some of the players to be exactly who they turned out to be, but I was glad to find a couple unexpected twists and turns.

I recommend Grave Mercy to fans of historical fiction, court intrigue, and heroines that take charge of their destiny. There are some mystical elements and significant romance, but neither overwhelms the historical mystery that carries throughout the story. Some might be worried about the mystic elements or take on religion. I think most interested in the book, especially by the thought of assassin nuns, will be just fine. Those that are offended by the very idea of old gods and the way pagan religions were transformed to be part of Christianity through force, and the idea that the pagan community could have had (or still have) some things right, might want to skip it.  It is a four star book in my opinion.

Dark Triumph

The sequel, Dark Triumph follows fellow assassin nun Sybella on her own heart wrenching journey.

This review was originally published on Sharon the Librarian.

Linda reads: Barefoot In The Sun by Roxanne St Clair

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This is book 3 of the Barefoot Bay series.  You do not have to read them in order, however if you would like to, the first book is Barefoot in the Sand, the second book is Barefoot in the Rain.

Zoe Tamarin has been on the run since she was a child when her neighbor, Pasha, rescued her from a nightmare foster home.  They’ve lived in the shadows, never staying in one place too long, not being able to live any sort of normal life.  Zoe did manage to fall in love along the way, however, with Dr. Oliver Bradbury and decides to confess that she’s really not who he thinks she is.  The confession and Oliver’s reaction go very badly and Zoe, once again, disappears.

Oliver marries another woman, has a child, divorces the woman, and moves to Florida with his son to start a new life in a new medical practice that helps cancer patients with new, experimental techniques.  It is a coincidence that both Zoe and Oliver end up in the same Florida town.

When Zoe discovers that Pasha has terminal cancer, she seeks out Oliver to see if he will help (albeit, under the radar as Pasha cannot reveal her true identity).  This proves to be a difficult task, as Pasha is too frightened her past will be discovered, and Oliver and Zoe do not trust each other.

The chemistry between Zoe and Oliver is explosive, but their resentment and outside influences interfere with their quest to reconcile.  Both have heart-wrenching secrets that each needs to help the other overcome.   Will Zoe run again or stay and fight for the life and love she yearns for?

This is a heartwarming, emotional story of love, loss and the quest for happily ever after.