Montauk by Nicola Harrison

1938 was a tough year for women. If they were in a relationship or marriage divorce seemed out of the question, on whatever grounds. If you were in the higher income bracket like our couple here, there was no way you could walk away from a marriage. Infidelity on the part of the man seemed to be an accepted feature of life and one that would hopefully go away. On the part of the women, yes if done discreetly.

Independence, working and having satisfaction from a job well done seemed unheard by all the society women flocking Montauk. The new Florida. One in which Beatrice and her husband Harry especially had high stakes. It was very important for Beatrice to cultivate friends, something she was not very good at, especially those who would help Harry's career. It did not matter that everyone knew that Harry was a philandering so and so. It was accepted in the society they moved.

When Beatrice got attracted to someone else, not of her class and started fraternizing with employees of the hotel it did not bode well for her. It marked subterfuge on her part to cover up her tracks and for her to decide what she was going to do.

The novel as it was depicted a society that looked very attractive to outsiders but was rotten to the core. Jealousy, infidelity, greed and social climbing seemed to characterize most of the people involved. It was difficult to read and accept as being the norm.

The setting was idyllic and descriptive. The story is a harsh one of a lifestyle which is not to be admired!

Sent to me by Netgalley for an unbiased review, courtesy of St. Martin's Press. 

To The Bright Edge Of The World by Eowyn Ivey

Set in Alaska an expedition is going to set out on previously uncharted waters and territory. An expedition that is fraught with danger. Previous expeditions have failed but this is now a challenge to open the Wolverine River and get access to Alaska's rich natural resources.

Lieutenant Colonel Allen Forrester thinks of this as an opportunity of a lifetime being given the lead for such an important expedition. His young pregnant wife Sophie does not know what the future will hold when they are parted for an year.

The story said through journal entries, letters, pictures,  notes add a lot of graphic interest and strength to the story both personal and historical.

Sent to me by Netgalley for an unbiased review, courtesy of Tinder Press.

The Neglected Garden by Suzanne Winterly

Gilly and her sister Vanessa could not be more different. Vanessa is organized, methodical and has a plan for everything. Gilly is haphazard, unwilling to think things through and right now finds herself in a predicament. She has given up on her present job, walked out on it actually, is overdrawn at the bank, has no place of her own and knows she is on sufferance at her sister's flat.

A chance offer of turning a neglected garden into an oasis of tranquility serving five apartments with an employer who is not a control freak is a wonderful chance for Gilly to assert her independence and get her life back on track.

The employer himself a wealthy businessman seems to have a lot going on in his life, lots of secrets and is an enigma. It does not help that both Gilly and Marc are attracted to each other but both are wary of the future.

Involving past secrets overshadowing the present, a complicated case of revenge, abduction and over riding it all beautiful garden talk makes this book very readable! Romance with shades of suspense and mystery all evolve very nicely together.

Sent to me by Netgalley for an unbiased review, courtesy of BooksGoSocial.

The Castle Mystery by Faith Martin

This story combined two loves of mine - food and mystery! Set in a castle the story couldn't  have been more appealing to me.

One day after Jenny takes up an appointment as the cook in this castle, Ava the governess is found dead stabbed through the heart. Alibis abound, everyone is accounted for but it is an inside job. The Detective Inspector who is sent to find out who did this murder is clueless where to start but Jenny has a head start as she knows the atmosphere is not quite right and immediately ferrets out information to show that almost everyone other than her master and mistress have a reason to dislike the governess.

Whether dislike is enough to murder someone has got to be seen and methodically Jenny goes about uncovering the real culprit.

Very entertaining, very chatty and a lovely light read.

Sent to me by Netgalley for an unbiased review, courtesy of Joffe Books.

The Wrong End Of The Table by Ayser Salman

Though described as a  "mostly comic memoir" it is also a very factual account of immigrant life and how someone will cope in modern America.

Considering the "Muslim" question post 9/11 Ayser had a tough time as it is to assimilate and be part of the crowd from the time she was a little girl. She was just different and she had a tough time beginning with her name. Her parents were highly educated, modern and forward thinking but they still carried with them different ideas re women and their behaviour and this carried out in their way of thinking towards their daughters. It did change by the end of the book, but it seemed hard and this seems to be quite the form and commonplace for most immigrant daughters Muslim or not!

Taking place across Iraq their place of origin which they got out in the nick of time, then crossing over to Kentucky and then back again to Saudi Arabia in which Ayser fit in surprisingly well and then back to the States where Ayser grew up and lived her adult life. Trying to find love, life and a balance between pleasing everyone else and then finally beginning to please herself.

This memoir, bit of travel guide and biography was tongue in cheek humor and factual as well.
Enjoyable read.

Sent to me by Netgalley for an unbiased review, courtesy of Skyhorse Publishing.

Murder At The Old House by Betty Rowlands

Another superb old fashioned detective story. Though it may seem to plod along without the suspense of the more modern mystery murder thriller, the stories still feel good and the descriptiveness of both the surroundings, the incidents and the characters are all spot on.

This particular story is definitely different as it hits closer home. Melissa has just finished her last book and looks forward to a rest. She receives the news that her father from whom she has been estranged for years is dead and she now needs to get back to her mother with whom she has never had any contact since she left home and try to find out what has happened.

Frank her father she discovers has not been quite good! giving an appearance of being a church warden and a man of strict moral ethics and principles he seems to be just the opposite and her mother is quite a helpless sort of woman who has never had the courage to take a stand. When her mother is arrested for her husbands murder and (released quickly) Melissa knows she has to take the investigation under her wing to try to find out what actually happened. It does not help that she is also not very sure whether her mother is the murderer or not!

Coping with an investigation on the one hand, Melissa has also got to balance an emotional reunion with her mother who does not seem to be quite aware of the gravity of her situation.

Good reading in an old fashioned sense.

Sent to me by Netgalley for an unbiased review, courtesy of Bookouture.

A Few Right Thinking Men by Sulari Gentill

The setting 1930s Australia. A very traditional family background on the one side and someone who wants to kick up their heels on the other. Two brothers very different, different ideologies but both committed to family and loyal to each other trying to come to grips with each other's world.

Raymond Sinclair just wants to live his bohemian life the way he does. He does not intend to harm anyone by it, but his family is annoyed by it. He has a number of friends who for want of another word are hangers on, living on Raymond's wealth even at a time of economic depression with widespread unemployment.

Some of them have radical leanings and the Communist angle is not one that is popular in Australia. There is a movement on both sides of the fence to gain ascendency and how they gain it is immaterial. Unearthing a plot was by the way. Raymond's main purpose of going in as a spy was to find out how and for what reason his uncle by the same name was murdered. Uncovering a vast spy network in which he even suspects his strait laced elder brother was an eye opener for Raymond. At the same time getting out of it was equally difficult especially when you assume another person's name and identity.

A lot of Australian politics is involved in this story. I liked to follow it as it was totally new to me. May not be appealing to a lot of folk though. A bit detailed.

A big bonus for me was the author is of Sri Lankan origin. I am always looking out for authors originally from Sri Lanka.

Thanks to Netgalley for sending me this book for an unbiased review, courtesy of Pantera Press.