Murder Over Easy by Marshall Cook
My rating: 1 of 5 stars

This was a free ebook I downloaded from Barnes and Noble to my Nook. It could have been a mildly entertaining cozy mystery. However, I was annoyed by the many formatting errors that included entire conversations written in a single paragraph. I do not recommend it to anyone.

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New Zealand by Mary Virginia Fox
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This is the fourth book I requested from the library to learn more about New Zealand, and all four have been dated young readers or juvenile books suitable for helping with Social Studies reports. This is the most recently published book, and this edition was published 23 years before I read it.
All four have had interesting pictures and similar facts in the texts. I gave this one the fourth star because there is more content about the people and their everyday life, at least the way it was in 1991.

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The Care and Management of Lies LP: A Novel of the Great War by Jacqueline Winspear
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I am acquainted with this author's work from the Maisie Dobbs mysteries, and I eagerly anticipated this novel about a different perspective of the time in history Winspear where Winspear began her series.

I kept reading because I wanted to read the stories of Kezia and her schoolfriend Dorrit, who now prefers to be called Thea, as they mature from schoolgirls to their disparate adult roles. Kezia marries Thea's brother Tom and becomes a farm wife in Kent. Thea demonstrates for women's suffrage and then for pacifism as the war with Germany begins. Tom enlists, thinking the war will be over before spring planting.

Winspear's mysteries were always more than most cozy mysteries with themes and echoes of our own history showing in the time period about which she writes. This stand alone novel lets her more fully explore customs, forms and ceremonies we all rely on to bring comfort and to keep our lives from unraveling. I recommend this book to all readers.

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New Zealand in Pictures by Michael Robson
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

My only objection to this library book is the edition I read from my library is 24 years old. It contains more text that a young reader book, and it is still suitable for preparing a Social Studies report.

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Four Roses: The Return of a Whiskey Legend by Al Young
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I received this book as a promotional souvenir after a bourbon tasting on a Bluegrass and Bourbon Tour on the sternwheeler American Queen.
I enjoyed the history of the Jones family as this was a family business for four generations until the death of Lawrence Lavalle Jones in 1941. The remaining heirs sold to Canadian Samuel Bronfman, owner of Joseph E. Seagram's and Sons, Inc in 1943. It went from a straight whiskey to a spirits blend. It was very popular in the 1950s, and the story behind its advertising is included in this book. However, 4 Roses Whiskey declined in popularity in the 1960s. It was a brand in decline from 1971-2000 until it only thrived in Japan. Corporate decisions put it under the ownership of the conglomerate Vivendi Universal. The brand and quality were often ignored except for efforts of The Master Distiller Jim Rutledge. Since 2002 its parent company is Kirin, and they are making a better product and marketing once again the US.
I recommend this book to readers of corporate history, or use it for a coffee table book.

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Her Restless Heart by Barbara Cameron
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This book was free when I downloaded it from Barnes and Noble to my Nook library. It is the last book in my Nook library by Barbara Cameron, and maybe I have been reading too many of her books consecutively for her plots and her style has become too predictable to be entertaining for me. It still gets its fourth star for I can recommend it to family and friends who enjoy the Amish-Christian-romance genre.

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Take A Trip To New Zealand by Geoff Burns
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Take a Trip to New Zealand is a young reader book for use as a resource for a Social Studies report. While facts such as "No part of the country is more than 112 km (70 miles) from the coast" will not change, this book is 31 years old. It is the second of four books I borrowed from my library about the topic of New Zealand.

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New Zealand by Ronda Armitage
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This is the first of four books I borrowed from the library on the topic of New Zealand. It is a young reader book with plenty of information necessary for a Social Studies report. The information is 26-years old by the time I read it.

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A Time for Peace by Barbara Cameron
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

A Time for Peace was free from Barnes and Noble when I downloaded it to my Nook library. This is a third book of the trilogy "Quilts of Lancaster County," and it is an entertaining read. I recommend it to fans of the series who are willing to read again much of what happened in the last two books in the author's attempt to make the story a stand-alone novel.

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The Witness by Dee Henderson
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

The Witness was free from Barnes and Noble when I downloaded it to my Nook library. The start was suspenseful and I had high hopes for this suspenseful mystery. My rating declined all the way to two stars for it was uneven as it switched to and from mystery, romance, and professing a Christian faith just to make sure it had each of these genres covered. Two big annoyances for me were (1) the use of the names Amy, Amanda, and Mandy to name the same character even after her identity was established, and (2) the use of the terms flashbulb and flashbulb poppings at a time when professional photographers who hoped to sell candid photos would be more likely to use electronic flash units.
If you have not read it yet and are not yet fans of the works of Dee Henderson, don't start with The Witness.

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A Time to Heal by Barbara Cameron
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

A Time to Heal is the second novel in the "Quilts of Lancaster County" trilogy. The emphasis is no longer on Jenny and Matthew; this is the story of Chris Matlock and Hannah Bontrager. This book needs the first book for without Jenny to vouch for Chris the book could have ended in the first chapter.
I recommend it to readers who enjoyed a Time to Love.

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Relentless by Robin Parrish
My rating: 1 of 5 stars

This book was free from Barnes and Noble when I downloaded it to my Nook. I was glad I did not pay money for it because I did not enjoy it and I would not recommend it to anyone.
I did read the entire book because I wondered when the author would ever get to sufficient exposition to explain the concept of the trilogy. There was some about 40% of the way through and more at 90%.
My recommendation is do not waste your time or storage space, delete this from your elibrary.

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A Time to Love by Barbara Cameron
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This book was free from Barnes and Noble when I downloaded it to my Nook library. I would classify it as Amish-Christian romance.
The story is entertaining, and it may be quickly read for it holds your interest in the characters to this book's conclusion. I noticed the author does not name the place where Jenny was injured while reporting on the plight of children in war regions. This allows a new reader to her trilogy to believe this setting could be current for there are places in our world where children could have been injured or orphaned and where journalists could have been injured for many years, and likely many years to come. A recurring theme to this book is the lesson worrying is arrogant for the act of worrying shows a lack of trust in God's plan for you.
I give a four star rating when I might recommend a book to friends, and I recommend this to readers who enjoy reading books from the Christian fiction genre. I think all readers might enjoy the book too.

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