Aubrey Hamilton Reviews: Testimony by Scott Turow

In Testimony (Grand Central Publishing, 2017) Scott Turow leaves behind the familiar territory of Kindle County, the location of nine of his previous books, for the byzantine world of international diplomacy and the investigation of war crimes in Bosnia. In his early 50s, the protagonist William ten Boom is determined to make his life over. His marriage has ended, his children have launched, he’s resigned from his partnership in a solid law firm, and when he’s approached to join the International Criminal Court in The Hague, it seems to be the logical next step.

A member of the Romani, the European itinerant people we call Gypsies, has come forward and testified to the ICC that he witnessed the mass murder of an entire Roma community, 400 of his family and friends, at the height of the atrocities in Bosnia in late April 2004. A group of men dressed in Chetnik uniforms forced them all into transport vans and they were never seen again.

Ten Boom is hired to lead the investigation and to prepare to prosecute the perpetrators if they can be identified. In addition to the Serbian paramilitary, some of the rumors suggest that it was carried out at the behest of the mad President of Bosnia who plundered and terrorized the nation until he was driven into hiding. Some blame rogue members of the U.S. Army, who they say killed the Gypsies in revenge for their theft of military equipment. The Russian Mafia is mentioned. Yet other rumors said the entire community simply relocated. This suggestion is given little credence as no member of the community had been heard from in the more than 10 years since the incident.

Ten Boom is immediately plunged into a medley of cultures and the nuanced pace of global diplomacy in The Hague. His lead investigator is a heavy drinking Australian who turns out to have a doctorate in forensic anthropology. He is intrigued by the lawyer representing the lone survivor of the massacre and his relationship with her is a major thread of the story in addition to the investigation. Another thread is ten Boom’s discovery of relatives in the Netherlands.

When I need a reliably engaging read, Scott Turow is on the short list of authors I look for. I was surprised to see the subject of this book but found it interesting. It is unusually long however, nearly 500 pages, much of it due to ten Boom’s interior monologues, which are perceptive but not what I expect in a legal thriller. The ending, which has a nice twist, suggests we might see more of ten Boom in the future.

·         Hardcover: 496 pages

·         Publisher: Grand Central Publishing; 1st edition (May 16, 2017)

·         Language: English

·         ISBN-10: 1455553549

·         ISBN-13: 978-1455553549

Aubrey Hamilton ©2018

Aubrey Hamilton is a former librarian who works on Federal IT projects by day and reads mysteries at night.

Review: "Available Grace: True Short Stories of the Rewards of Intentional Living" by Marianne Cassell

The synopsis explains it best-- Available Grace: True Short Stories of the Rewards of Intentional Living is a wonderful collection showcasing moments when the author, her family, and friends experienced the grace of God in their lives.” As the Texas author explains, “Because these are true stories, I have changed the names of many people who were involved.”

Broken into six sectional chapters, the book covers 1964 to present day and relates numerous moments where God impacted the author, her family and their friends. Most of the stories involve the time period when the author was young to middle age though some are at other points.  The book was inspired by a bible study teacher who talked about sharing God’s grace with others in the class.

“Chapter One-Learning God’s Way” covers events where the author made peace with a very difficult neighbor, opened her home to a homeless couple, dealt with rumors that were not true, and other topics. Helping others and learning from them is the focus in this section.

That idea continues in “Chapter Two-Reaching Out.” This section is about taking a more active role in reaching out to others. For example, instead of waiting for the church to send a homeless couple to their door, the author and others in the church in Lubbock overcame obstacles to open a soup kitchen where it was needed. The power of faith at work in others in a very moving thing and covered in various cases in this chapter.

We all need healing in some way.  It comes in various forms in “Chapter Three- God Heals.”  From the story of her own daughter’s needs to the death of a child to many others, this chapter gives comfort and peace while showing how God can heal.

“Chapter Five- God’s Comfort and Encouragement” talks about many life problems and marriage situations. The author returns to the concept of her writing a book to make the point that this too was completed by overcoming obstacles.

 

The result of all that has gone on before is “Chapter Six-Receiving and Giving” where the author writes: “Once you give a gift without expecting anything in return there is an afterglow that occurs and makes you want to give all the time. But the reality is someone has to receive it if someone gives, and at one time or another that someone is each of us. (Page 151) The theme here is that a gift must be embraced to work its magic and this chapter details those cases. At the same time the gift is a sacrifice and one that has to be acknowledged in order for the gift to be embraced.

While the stories are separated into sections, many of these pieces share the same elements of all the chapters. Inspirational and comforting, this 283 page book is about the power of  God, faith, and the strength to deal with what comes along in life. Texas Author Marianne Cassell has created a moving testimony to her faith and the power it holds in her life and in so many others.

Available Grace: True Short Stories of the Rewards of Intentional Living

Marianne Cassell

Strategic Book Publishing and Rights Co.

http://www.sbpra.com

November 2011

ISBN# 978-1-61204-608-2

Paperback (also available in e-book)

283 Pages

$13.95

Material supplied by PJ NUNN of BreakThrough Promotions for my objective review.

Kevin R. Tipple ©2012