Showing posts with label books. Show all posts
Showing posts with label books. Show all posts

Sunday, December 30, 2018

Last Train to Lime Street - Brian L. Porter, Author



Beef Pot Roast
(A favourite in the ill-fated Slimani household)

1 dessertspoon olive oil
1 (2kg) silverside roasting joint
1 onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 bay leaves
salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 160 C / Gas 3.
Heat a casserole pot on the hob over medium high heat. Add oil, and sear meat in the centre of the pan for 4 minutes. Turn meat over with tongs; sear all sides for 3 to 4 minutes on each side. Remove meat from pan.
Arrange onion, garlic, and 1 bay leaf in the bottom of the pan, and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Return meat to pan, place remaining bay leaf on top of meat, and cover.
Cook in the oven for 30 minutes. Reduce heat to 150 C / Gas mark 2, and cook for 1 1/2 hours. Remove roast to a platter to rest for 10 to 15 minutes. Slice, and top with onions and gravy.



Last Train to Lime Street - Review by Martha A. Cheves

The funeral of Joey Slimani was indeed a low-key affair.  The small chapel wasn't even half-full as his wife, Trixie and two ex-wives led the small group of mourners, the three women sitting together at the front of the room, with Mary-Beth and Lana flanking the widow, like a pair of personal bodyguards.  

Dressed in black business suits sat Heinrich Braun and Stefan Schmidt, the two German pron producers who'd both had the recent business dealings with the dead man.  In the same row sat Michael Powell, the dead man's solicitor, William Jennings, the Slimani's butler/manservant/part-time lover to Trixie and an unknown man who Ross surmised was Slimani's American lawyer.  On the opposite side sat half a dozen men and three women who were adult movie actors and actresses who regularly appeared in movies made by Joe Slim Productions.  Seated behind the group of porn stars was a rather stiff-looking individual, the captain of South Mersey Golf Club, Graham Bull, here to pay his last respects on behalf of the club and its members.

Joey Slimani's nude body had been tossed from a bridge to be mutilated by an oncoming train.  He had been drugged and someone had cut his throat before the toss.  Detective Inspector Andy Ross and his Special Murder Investigation Team were called in to solve the mystery of why someone would commit such a horrible form of death and mutilation.  With Joey being a porn producer who produced movies of his present wife as well as his two ex-wives, the suspect list starts to take shape and the team proceeds with the idea that someone within the industry had a real hatred for Joey.

As always, with books written by this author, it became a page-turner, with me trying to make sense of just 'who done it?'  The culprit was a bit of a surprise to me, as was the reason.  This is Book VI of the Mersey Murder Mysteries.  It is a stand alone but I suggest you consider starting with Book I and follow this team through some truly interesting mysteries.

Last Train to Lime Street

Thursday, December 20, 2018

The Songbird Girls - Richard Parker, Author



DUCK CONFIT - Serves Four

Ingredients

4 Duck breasts.
Tbsp Freshly chopped thyme
3 Cloves garlic finely chopped.
Salt.
Freshly ground black pepper
Three jars of goose fat.

Method

Sprinkle duck breast skin sides with plenty of salt and pepper Turn over and rub with more salt, sprinkle over thyme and chopped garlic. Cover with clingfilm and leave in refrigerator overnight.
Melt goose fat in a pan or slow cooker and turn heat down low.
Add a little oil to a skillet and seal duck breasts both sides.
Drop into the goose fat so they're completely covered and slow cook for four hours. 
Turn off heat and leave fat to set. You can leave it like this for a couple of days if necessary.
When ready to serve just remove breasts from fat, shake off excess and reheat in pan until hot.

Serve with red cabbage and potatoes cooked in the goose fat with a fat glass of red.

The Songbird Girls - Review by Martha A. Cheves

When steel struck the back of her head, Polly's brain briefly took her to a safe place.  She thought she was sitting at home in her armchair, the lounge quiet except for the clock ticking.  The sensation of the cushion beneath her seemed so real but consciousness and reality surged quickly back... She tried to scream, to alert the man who had got out of the Toyota but a hand was over her nose and mouth and her panicked exclamation was held inside her head.

Three years ago Detective Inspector Tom Fabian had put Christopher Wisher, infamous London serial killer, behind bars.  He'd murdered nine people.  Mutilated them in a way only he understood.  Wisher had confessed to the murders and each had his signature - a bird laying near the body with its neck broken.  This was withheld from the public so when Polly's body was found with the signature bird and Wisher in prison, Fabian could only believe this was a very well informed copycat.  And when Wisher passes on a special item to Fabian, he finds his life will be changed for a long time.

Have you ever picked up a book, started reading and decided you know the outcome after just a few pages?  That is what I thought about The Songbird Girls.  I just knew I had this book figured out from almost the beginning.  I was sure up until the last couple of chapters.  Boy was I wrong!  This book took me totally by surprise and I must say that I've finished the book and still don't know the ending.  This book is leading me into the next book that I hope will be out very soon!  I must see what I've missed and who is truly behind the story.  So, Richard Parker, please hurry and give us all the next book in this series.

Saturday, August 25, 2018

Sea Cliff - Mary Deal, Author



ZUCCHINI-TOMATO PIE

 2 cups  Zucchini, chopped
1 cup Tomato, chopped
1/2 cup Onion, chopped
1/3 cup Parmesan cheese, grated
1 1/2 cups Milk
3/4 cup Bisquick
3 Eggs
1/2 tsp Salt
1/4 tsp Pepper



Heat oven to 400 degrees.  Grease or spray 10 inch quiche dish or 10 x 1 1/2 inch pie plate.  Sprinkle zucchini, tomato, onion and cheese to cover bottom of dish.  Beat remaining ingredients until smooth (15 seconds in blender on high; 1 minute with hand beater). Pour over ingredients in dish.  Bake about 30 minutes, or until knife inserted in center comes out clean.  Cool five minutes. Serve.

Sea Cliff - Review by Martha A. Cheves

All her life, her father reminded that she didn't know how to do anything competently.  He'd painfully flick her ear, or slap or kick her when he was frustrated.  He'd use a board if he had one in his hand.  He destroyed what little self-confidence she had and denied her any opportunities to prove her abilities.  In one way or another he'd convince himself he was right...  and it wasn't just Rachael that was rewarded with his abuse... He griped about raising two kids alone.  He cursed her mother for having died, then mumbled something about it being better anyway because she was another burden to him.  He was vicious and self-serving.  Rachael's brother Brandon's grades were poor.  He had a broken arm and ended up making excuses about how it happened.  

Rachael is a writer and the book she is working on at the moment is about the life of a fictional woman who has gone through abuse as a child.  Her character finally meets a man who seems to be able to take her as she is, hang-ups and all.  But due to her abuse, the character has a hard time accepting affection of any kind... just like Rachael herself.

I don't normally read romance novels.  Most seem to be the same - girl meets guy, they have their problems, they have their heated intimate times, fight, finally get together and live happily ever after.  This book was so different.  The author talks about the abuse and the damage it can do to a child and how it carries on into adulthood.  And on top of that, she has written a beautiful story that I, who doesn't like romance novels, had trouble putting down.

Wednesday, July 4, 2018

Goodbye, My Love - Book 1 - Maggie Tideswell, Author




Traditional South African bobotie recipe
Serves up to eight people, but you can adjust it to make the recipe smaller.

Ingredients
1 fairly thick slice crustless bread (white or brown)
375 ml milk
25 ml oil
10ml butter
2 onions, sliced
2 cloves garlic, crushed
25 ml curry powder
10ml salt
25ml chutney
15ml smooth apricot jam
15ml Worcester sauce
5ml turmeric
25ml brown vinegar
1 kg raw mince
100 ml sultanas (don’t replace with raisins – they are too sweet; sultanas are much better for this recipe)
3 eggs
pinch each salt and turmeric
bay leaves

Cooking method
Soak bread in milk. Heat oil and butter in large pan and fry onions and garlic.
When onions are soft, add curry powder, salt, chutney, jam, Worcester sauce, turmeric and vinegar and mix well.
Drain and mash bread and reserve milk. Add bread to pan together with mince and sultanas.
Cook over low heat, stirring, and when meat loses its pinkness, remove from stove. Add 1 beaten egg, mix well, then spoon into a greased, 28 x 16 cm baking dish and level the top.
Beat remaining eggs with reserved milk (you should have 300ml, or a little more) and the salt and turmeric.
Pour over meat mixture and put a few bay leaves on top. Stand dish in a larger pan of water (this is important to prevent drying out) and bake, uncovered, at 180 degrees celsius for 1 hour or until set.
Serve with rice, coconut, chutney, nuts and bananas.



Goodby, My Love - Roxanne's Ghost Saga Episode 1 - Review by Martha A. Cheves

Ben dragged a breath deep into his lungs when he turned to Daemon.  "Okay, let's assume you find Roxanne and bring her home.  What form is she going to have?"  Millicent shared a look with Daemon.  "What do you mean?"  she asked.  "What I mean, Millicent, is simple.  Will she be as she was when I saw her last, or will she be a skeleton, or scarred and burned beyond recognition, or a puff of insubstantial smoke?  What form are you bringing her home in?"  He glared at his sister-in-law.  "Roxanne is dead, Millicent!" he bellowed.  "Get that into your head.  Roxanne is dead and she cannot come back, not as I knew and loved her.  Can;t you understand that?  I just want to remember he as she was, without you tarnishing my memories of her."

Jessica James has an appointment to meet with a Dr. Ben Arnold who has an Autistic child.  Her position will be the child's nanny.  From the looks of things Dr. Arnold wants to send her on her way and find someone else.  But, due to a 'pack' of dogs that greeted her she will end up having to stay at least for the night.

As the night goes on, Jess is faced with a mattress that seemed to be talking, an owl that appears to be watching over her, a physic who wears a dress, and three sisters that have come to the house insisting that  Ben's wife Roxanne isn't dead and they will be bringing her home.  On top of all that, Jess has started having her own visions of a woman named Daisy.  Did I forget to mention that this all takes place on Friday 13th?

When I started reading Goodbye, My Love I wasn't sure I would make it through to the end.  I don't really care for romantic books and this one was starting out on that line with full force.  But, I decided to give it a little longer and sure am glad that I did.  The romance turned into a full force mystery with a lot of paranormal mixed in.  Every page drug me deeper and deeper into the story, not sure what was going to happen next.  This book took me to the end and gave me no ending.  Just a promise of another book that will keep me going even deeper.


Monday, June 4, 2018

The Acorn Stories (Acorn, Texas Book 1) - Duane Simolke, Author



Chicken Cashew at Chuck’s China Town
Recipe by Duane Simolke

Ingredients:
Boneless, skinless chicken breasts, marinated in Teriyaki sauce.
Vegetable oil, just enough to brown the chicken.
Finely diced carrots and onions.
Garlic or garlic powder.
For more spice and a Texas twist, add jalapeno slices or cayenne pepper.
At least 2 ounces of cashews.
Salt and pepper.

Marinate the chicken overnight. Dice it and brown in a frying pan with the carrots, onions, and seasonings. Add more Teriyaki sauce as it cooks. Chicken should be cooked through and tender. Just before it’s all ready, toss with the cashews.
Serve over rice or pasta.

If you don’t have cashews, peanuts work fine.

The Acorn Stories - Review by Martha A. Cheves

My name is Aragon Carsons, and I'm just going to state some facts.  People tell me a little more than they should.  Well, a lot more than they should.  Actually, people tell me way too much.  Or they say too many things where I can hear them, which is just the same as telling me, as far as I'm concerned.  Do they really think I won't share what I heard with anybody?  I mean, stories like these can't just sit on a shelf in somebody's brain.

The more I think about it, the more sure I am that my neighbors want someone to tell their Acorn stories, that they don't want to be just a small part of a small town in a big state in a big country.  People aspire to leave something behind other than babies, a mortgage, and a nasty rumor or two.  And they certainly want someone reliable tell it, like what my grandmother did when she chronicled the early folks of Acorn.  

So maybe I'll serve you up a few slices of Acorn pie.  There are enough words in my kitchens, enough stories in my cupboards - I'd like to work closets into this paragraph, but I certainly wouldn't want to strain a metaphor so early in my narrative - that I could find ingredients for several pies.  But I'll be choosy an pick out some of my favorites.  

And that is exactly what Aragon does in The Acorn Stories

When I was young we lived in a small town outside of Atlanta.  Everyone knew everyone and everyone knew everyone's business.  Way back then we even had what was called 'Party Lines'.  These were phone lines where several houses had the same phone line with each having a different number of rings so you would know when the call was for you or someone else.  But... if you quietly picked up the phone you could listen to all the gossip running around the neighborhood.  This book reminds me of that time.

The residents of Acorn didn't have the party line but they did spread the gossip.  As I read each 'story' I found myself remembering people from my past that would fit perfectly into Acorn.  Even if your town is small, it's large in its problems and these problems seem to become the talk of the town.

I loved this book and the memories it brought back.  So, if you remember the 'Party Lines' you can't help but enjoy this book.  If you are a bit younger than I am but live in a small town, you'll enjoy this book.  And if you're from a large town, read it and enjoy what you have missed out on.

 
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