For some time now I have been
writing a monthly book review column for the Senior News
newspaper. The Senior News is aimed to the 50 and over crowd with
news relevant to seniors regarding various issues, humor pieces, and my review
column among other things. The newspaper is a giveaway at doctor offices,
stores, etc. and can be received by mail via a paid subscription. There are
multiple editions across the state of Texas and therefore there is some
fluctuation in content in each edition.
My column every month focuses on
books of interest to the Texas audience. Therefore books selected for the
column, fiction or non-fiction, are written by Texas residents, feature Texans
in some way, or would have some other connection to the Texas based readership.
At least two books are covered each month in the short space I am given.
Below is/was my December
2012 column with the addition here of the relevant book covers……
Texas author Jan Christensen is back with another mystery novel well worth your time. Set in late 1987 the book features a religious cult preparing for the end of the world, a murder mystery, and a dysfunctional family under tremendous stress. After two long years Kirk is back home though he isn’t ready to talk about why the cult, known as Celestial Village, or why he left, but they don’t care about that right now. Thanks to a murder and a kidnapping, soon Kirk is back in Texas with the cult and the future looks pretty bad.
A good story that shows the dark side of religious
extremism and mental disorders, Revelations: A Darker-Side Mystery moves
at a rapid pace to its climax. The mystery of why Kirk left is what drives the
majority of the book before being morphed into what the cult leadership is
planning for the remainder of the book. Though the novel is set in twelve days
in late 1987, this fiction read could easily happen today, next year, or at any
time.
The
Devil To Pay: A Bill Travis Mystery
George
Wier
Flagstone
Books (CreateSpace)
E-Book
Only
Estimated
print length 141 pages
The fourth book in the “Bill Travis Mysteries”
series opens with Walt Cannon needing Bill’s help. Walt is a Texas Ranger with
a thirty plus year career in the elite law enforcement agency who just might be
arrested for murder any day now. Walt swears he didn’t kill Phil Burnet, though
he certainly had a good reason to kill him. Bill Travis knows Walt is telling
the truth when he says he didn’t do it. But, something is wrong with Walt and
he won’t come clean about it.
All Walt wants is Bill’s help in clearing his
name. One thing that will help Bill is
that the guy who found the body of Phil Burnet is Perry Reilly. Bill has known
Perry since way back in the day before Bill was married with kids. Before long,
Bill and Perry are in a dangerous case that will take them back and forth
across Central Texas chasing a killer.
The
Devil To Pay is another fast moving read in the
series showcasing the obvious talents of the Texas author George Wier. While
you could read The Devil To Pay as a stand alone it would be better if you
read this series in order starting with The Last Call.
Kevin R. Tipple ©2012
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