Madeleine - as the pieces start to fit in
343904
I started hearing about Madeleine being kidnapped in June of 2007 when Gerry had his wallet stolen from him.  The News stations were saying, "A very precious wallet was stolen from a man, and did that person know what pictures were in that wallet".  In the USA, we hadn't heard any thing about the kidnapping and everything I could tell from the rhetoric around the investigation, that only areas around Portugal were places of interest.  I sent emails to Gerry and Kate to please don't do this or please do that along with so many prayers to let them know the world cared about the loss of her child.  As I read the book, it seemed that the McCanns were driven by gut determination to find out where Madeleine is and what had happened to her.  I felt tense the entire time I was reading the book.  Kate only had nice things to say about the people who surrounded her, but my gosh, I can only think that by ~God's~Grace~ that she and her husband could keep moving forward with their search.  I have not the slightest doubt that the McCanns are NOT involved in their daughter's disappearance, and I wholeheartedly think that all files from Portugal to the UK need to be immediately handed over to the McCanns, without due process, so they can have every tool at their disposal for finding Madeleine.  As ~God~is~My~witness,those files could bust open wide a host of international atrocities for many other children that are missing around the world.  My heartfelt prayers are with you and your family, Kate and Gerry.  May ~God~ continue to ~bless~ you with information and keep you safe as you continue your search for your precious daughter!
1931021
A tour-de-force from a young duo as they set out on an adventure into music. From this early work to her most recent recordings one can see a brilliant trajectory. Noa and Gil started out with assuredness and have grown by leaps and bounds ever since.
1761136
This novel starts slowly with snippets of the lives of the people who make up the school community.  Each one has a compelling story but it takes time and patience to see how all these stories will fit together.  The characters in this book are not victims of random violence but act to preserve their community.  Although the story unfolds slowly stick with it and watch a group of individuals come together to form a community.
3830917
This is the fourth book in the Hanne Wilhelmsen series translated from Norwegian to English. It describes Hanne's encounter with a young boy, most likely a psychopath or sociopath, who is sent to a special home for troubled children. He is not accepted by his peers and tries to run away to his mother more than once. This does not sit well with the people at the school whose job is to teach him proper behavior. His arrival heralds the beginning of more than the usual problems within the school, including murder. Because all of them seem to occur after he arrives fingers quite naturally point to him as the guilty party. The picture Anne Holt paints of this problem child is disturbing on several levels: a social system that clearly has let mother and son down, a school that needs a good shaking, and, at the heart, a boy who may be beyond salvation. Its ending is in some ways fitting...until the reader discovers the final twist, making one wonder if justice has really been served. The plot is set against the background of Hanne Wlhemsen's growing fears of what might happen to her and her career if her colleagues discover she is a lesbian. Holt does a good job of balancing those fears with the unspoken sympathetic support of her colleagues. This may not be the best of the Hanne Wilhemsen books ( I liked "1222" the best) but it is an edge of your seat mystery.
4375461
Big changes are coming to Madronna Island and the Hart family, as it continues to expand.
A little bit paranormal, with some visions and intuition and of course a wonderful guest cat helping with the mystery. Cait is trying to figure out what is happening in the Hollow and how it is affecting her friend Tansey's health. Her guest cat this time, Apollo, helps Cait discover the body of a fellow church member who seems to have very different personalities, between church and social.
When a different person, not a long term resident, is declared missing and whose body is later discovered, Cait and crew are trying to figure out if all these events are connected. It seems too much for coincidence.

So much going on and this book kept me turning pages trying to piece the puzzle together.
Are the deaths related to each other and to the cats disappearance from the Hollow? Will the beloved trees play a major role in what happens in the future? Can brothers get along if they do into business together? I want to keep reading!
630012
I am just getting into my Nora Fleming collection. I'm so excited to have my first bottom piece. It is absolutely adorable!  I'm excited that I can use it for September October and November.
3051163
This is the 4th in the Maggie Hope series. Each one builds on the last, in the metamorphosis of an American intellectual into a British spy. This book weaves the story of Maggie recovering from trauma while behind the lines in Berlin, the build up to Pearl Harbor, and the incarceration of Maggie's mother, Clara Hess, for treason.
I like this series very much. Maggie is a full-bodied character, naive and innocent initially, and growing and maturing through the series. While this is a work of fiction, 's MacNeal has done her homework. The story lines are strongly based on factual history. I gave it 4 stars instead of 5 because some of the transitions between story lines were not very smooth. But this didn't diminish my enjoyment of the book.
2888569
Love this! The pieces don't fit in as smoothly as I'd like but I think with more use it will.
1409559
Beautiful puzzle and well made though the different patterns mean it isn't easy. Give it patience and a lot of hard work and it is well worth it. The glitter also adds a very nice touch
4644156
I love Christie's initial set-ups, and in Five Little Pigs she is at her best.  Hercule Poirot is visited by a young woman, Carla, whose mother was convicted of murdering her father.  The mother subsequently died in prison and so both of the young woman's parents are dead.  Yet the young woman - recently of age - has a letter from her mother in which that woman avers her innocence. The young woman believes her mother's letter, and asks Poirot to find out who really did it.

Poirot demurs, pointing out that a sixteen-year-old case is no easy matter, and that Carla may very well not like whatever he learns. Carla responds by flattering him - "Oh, it won't be easy!  No one but you could do it!" and insisting that she wants the truth, no matter what it is.  And so Poirot proceeds to review the elements of the case and to interview the people involved.  There are five people with memories of the events, and one of the most fascinating aspects of this mystery is how each character tells and remembers the events in his or her own way - either because of lies or simply because of character.

The book is called "Five Little Pigs" after a nursery rhyme that runs through the book (and Poirot's mind).  Although he wonders why the rhyme keeps going through his head (and so do I, as fixating on an English nursery rhyme is odd for a Belgian detective) the epithets work: "This little piggy went to market," for Philip, the business man, and "This little piggy stayed home," for Meredith, the older brother who has remained on the estate.

Eventually all of the suspects arrive for a meeting - and one feels that their lives have not moved on since the murder, for none of them seems as vibrantly alive as the victim or his convicted wife - and Poirot reveals his version of events.  His solution is simple and convincing, psychologically in line with each of the different personalities.  One of Christie's masterpieces.
175762
This is the fifth novel featuring Lady Darby, widow of an anatomist at the beginning of the series and an accomplished portrait artist, along with a valuable partner to Sebastian Gage in discreet murder inquiries. This book is set in 1831, so after the founding of the Metropolitan Police in the UK in 1829, but they play no role in it. Kiera and Gage have been on their honeymoon in the Lake District of England after their wedding at the end of the eBook novella A Pressing Engagement,  and are lazily contemplating a leisurely trip to London in a few days when an urgent message arrives from Gages father: a young woman, a cousin of the Duke of Wellington, has been found dead just outside the convent in Ireland where shes become a postulant, and murder is suspected. So instead of London they travel to the port of Whitehaven, take a ship to Ireland, and set out to investigate. All of Kieras cases so far have involved her personally; this one doesnt in the beginning although in the course of the investigation she does form friendships with some of the locals. Shortly after they arrive at the convent another nun, this one a senior one, is found killed in more or less the same manner as the postulant. Its quite a good mystery, and Kiera has become a much stronger character than she was in the earlier books, especially the first one. Huber has started another mystery series, but says in an afterword that shes working on the next Lady Darby one as well; I don't know if shell be getting two books a year in print or what. (Incidentally, Kiera prefers to be called Mrs. Gage rather than Lady Darby, since her first husband had rather abused her, but Society insists that ladies of quality be addressed by the highest rank they're entitled to, and her first husband was a knight while Gage is only the heir to a viscount, and thus a simple Mr.. If his father predeceases him, which is likely, she can then be Lady Gage.)
4343841
I found the unusual St John family and the life of Madeleine enthralling. The author vividly portrayed the sometimes irrational mood swings and manipulative character of Madeleine. I enjoyed that the author kept the reader informed of what became of the people touched by Madeleine's life. The book brought to public attention the life of Madeleine which was not widely known, largely because knowledge of her life was limited until her later years.
4201112
Fun to put together because it is so long. Recipient didn't yet know her alphabet so matched the colors for now. Some odd names N for Norwell (she will appreciate some day).but for now she decided gave it her own spin. I hope it keeps her interest till then. Sturdy, heavy pieces for little hands...large, not a choking risk.
1682971
Starts a bit slow, but builds and is a complex and well woven as her other books and the Shetland series.
3355766
(3.5 stars) This second book in the series opens with Maggie at a training camp for women spies. While she excels at the language and intellectual espionage skills, her physical skills/clumsiness keep letting her down. She is let go from camp, but goes to being placed on a special assignment. While at first reluctant and disappointed, she realizes how important her new role will be. Maggie is going to Windsor Castle, posing as a mathematics tutor to Princess Elizabeth, and is on the look-out for an inside person working for the Germans. The Germans are attempting to put Nazi-sympathizer, Prince Edward, back on the throne. In order to do this, they must control the Princesses. A separate investigation involves a spy at Bletchley Park, and when a young woman who works there is found murdered with incriminating paperwork, the case heats up. Maggie has many possible suspects, and struggles to fit in with the staff and ladies at the castle. She is also dealing with the fact that her fiance's plane was shot down, and he is missing, and presumed dead. Maggie begins to make a connection with her spy handler, but feels guilt about this. When a gruesome murder occurs on the castle grounds, Maggie knows that she must find the truth before it is too late.  This continues the drama and suspense of the prior book, and Maggie also learns more about her family.
4796227
I enjoyed seeing how all the pieces from the first two books came together at the end. There were a couple pieces of the story that left me a little confused though. But I was glad to see my favorite characters, Juliette, Lukas, and Donald all come back and even interact with each other. Charlotte's story was also quite good.
4743148
Charming was a chore to judge. I almost seemed like the first and second half of this novel was from a different writer. In the first couple novels I was excited and ready to go. The mystery accompanying Sophie's special friend was  exciting and intriguing, but it soon seems to stall. Through out the middle, the story fell into a casual life for Sophie. While I think that this was an important addition to the story I just feel that the amount of time spent here could lose readers confidence in the story. Although, as I made it into the second half of the story my confidence was reassured when the story began accelerating through the remainder of the story. In the end I settled on a four star rating due to the powerful and lovable ending, but I was recommend this story with a warning to anticipate a slow middle. In the end Charming is worth the wait, but it will take a bit of endurance to overcome.