Book Review: Deception Past by Franki deMerle

Deception Past – Review by Martha A. Cheves, Author of Stir, Laugh, Repeat

‘Growing up, Sand was confused by the two recurring nightmares. The dream about the house with the black cloud was vague and what preceded and followed it changed each time, but the other nightmare was a vivid memory that repeated itself exactly the same way each time. She was in an adult body, naked and being dragged by men in black uniforms toward a brick building. To the right of it next to the wall was where they let go of her, and she sank to her knees onto the ground with her head tucked under her body. There was a loud bang. She felt even more pain searing through her upper body and neck, and she knew she’d been shot from behind, but she was still conscious. Then the uniformed men picked her up and carried her into the brick building toward the left side of the room. It was a room with the ovens.’

Sandra Strasberg, called Sand by her friends, was born the day after Thanksgiving in 1953. She was born to normal, southern parents who showed very little affection between themselves much less Sand and her older brother Jody. Due to her mother being Catholic, she attended the local Catholic school and live went on smoothly, but the times were on the verge of changing.

At the early age four Sand would dream of living in another life during another time. For most of her life she had no idea of what could possibly be causing this disturbing dream. As Sand will later learn, her dreams seem to follow the life of Nadia Narim who was arrested in 1943 by the Nazis. Could she possibly have been reincarnated? I’ll let you be the judge of that.

Being born as a baby-boomer, Sand grew up with many changes going on throughout, not just America and the south but throughout the world. She lived through segregation in the schools, Alabama governor Wallace being shot, Dr. Martin Luther King’s assassination, the Viet Nam war, and even a few disasters involving the race to the moon. What made Deception Past so interesting to me was that I too lived through these times and events. Reading Deception Past was like reading the “cliff notes” of American history from 1953 to 2006. I found myself pausing with each new occurrence to remember where I was and what I was doing at that time. It was a sometimes very enjoyable sometimes not so enjoyable walk down history lane for me.

If you’re a baby-boomer, like myself, I feel sure you will enjoy following the life of Sand, her family and friends as they travel through this time period in history. I have no doubt that you too will be sent down a road of memory. If you aren’t a baby-boomer, give our history a try to see how it stacks up with your own.

2010

213 pages

iUniverse

ISBN# 978-1-4502-1473-5

Available at Amazon.com & Barnes&Noble

IAN Member Page

Book Review: The Spruce Gum Box by Elizabeth Egerton Wilder

The Spruce Gum Box – Review by Martha A. Cheves, Author of Stir, Laugh, Repeat

“Jedediah! You and your bastard had better run like the wind and don’t look back!” screamed Benjamin Wingate as he picked up the bench and tossed it into the growing inferno. The baby started to cry, adding to the turmoil of the scene. Jed stumbled a bit, but managed to swing the pack onto his back as he ran for the door. On his way past the little table he grabbed the lock and key and stuffed it in with his mittens. He hesitated for a second to trace his hand over the carved memories of his childhood; the teakettle just missed his head as it flew out the door. He ran north to the woods, doing his best not to slip on the scattered patches of snow and ice. When he reached the bend in the river, he took a breath and looked back at his cherished cabin, fully engulfed in flames, sparks reaching the top of the tallest pines. He could still hear Mr. Wingate screaming obscenities and raving, “Don’t you ever come back! No owner will hire you; count on it! Don’t you ever tell anybody about that bastard! Don’t you ever break our secret! Don’t you ever link that child to my family and me! Do you hear?”

This was the scene that played out as Jedediah Smythe took his son and fled for their lives as they escaped the wrath of Adelaide Wingate’s father. Jed was a walking boss for Wingate as he harvested the timber along the Aroostook River in a land that was claimed by both Canadian and Maine. He had met Addie and the rest of her family upon his arrival from England. Wingate had met young Jed while visiting his own home in England and saw his knack for numbers and business and talked his parents into letting Jed accompany him to this timber wilderness. He just didn’t anticipate he and his daughter Addie falling in love. He especially didn’t expect her to present him with a grandson and shortly after the baby was born he delivered it to Jed and sent Addie back to England.

After the delivery of Benjamin Wingate Smythe to his father, the story takes us to a settlement of Micmac Indians. Jacob and Jed had met some time before when Jacob served as a cook for Wingate’s crew. They hit it off and Jed had no doubts that he would find comfort and help for himself and his son if he could make it to Jacob’s settlement. And as he had expected, he was greeted by everyone with open arms and a promise of protection.

The Spruce Gum Box is one of the most beautiful stories I’ve ever read. The love between Addie and Jed was beautiful but the love between Jed and Ben was so strong that nothing could separate nor pull them apart. To top it off, the love and friendship between the Micmac Indians and their two new found family members became a bond for life. And this bond will continue and strengthen as it goes into hardships and even into death.

In school we are taught the basics in history. We aren’t taken into many of the hardships that were involved in creating what we now have. Author Elizabeth Egerton Wilder, through The Spruce Gum Box, has given us a lesson in history that has me wanting to know more. I want to learn more about the Micmac Indians who I’ve never even heard of until now. I want to learn more about the treaty and land grants that took place between the squatters, England and the US. She has made this part of history very interesting and fun to learn.

2010

Red Dobie Press

269 Pages

ISBN# 978-0-9815954-4-3

Available in print and ebook/Kindle at Amazon.com

Indie Bound Bookstore

In NOOK at Barnes&Noble.com

Smashwords

Book Review: a season for redemption by Ronald S. Barak

2010
http://aseasonforredemption.com
509 pages
Gander House Publishers
ISBN# 978-0-9827590-0-4

a season for redemption – Review by Martha A. Cheves, Author of Stir, Laugh,

Repeat

Thwap. Thwap. Mmm, the silencer worked great. In one clean move, he pocketed his gun and caught her before she fell to the ground. He also managed to get her keys, open the door, and quickly get the two of them inside the townhouse. He set he down. No pulse. He went back outside, turning on a flashlight he extracted from his pocket. No blood that he could see anywhere. He picked up her briefcase, went back inside, closed the door and confirmed that it was locked. He put the briefcase on the entry table. He then picked Alistair up, carried her into the bedroom and set her down on the bed. Now I know where they got the expression dead weight. He undressed her, scattered her clothes about the room and went about his business. Twenty minutes later, satisfied with the way things looked, and how smoothly this had gone, he quietly took his leave. Perfect. If I don't dawdle, I can still catch the second half of the Lakers-Wizards game. And it would have been "perfect," too. If not for the one slight drop of blood on the front porch he had missed - and the pair of eyes that peered out at him from the nearby shadows as he departed.'

It's early 2009. DC Detective Frank Lotello has just been informed that U.S. Senator Jane Alistair has been murdered and raped, in that order. Within just a few short days he will learn of the murder and rape of Dr. Jody DiMarco, Deputy Secretary of the Treasury, and the murder of Derrick Johnson, Chairman of the Securities Exchange Commission. As the task force is formed and proceeds to put the evidence together, one person speaks out, giving the force and the DA the perfect person to pin the murders on. That person is Cliff Norman.

Norman built his small electronic business from just he and his wife into a company employing around 100. He bought his wife a beautiful home and the two decided to start a family, their first child being a baby boy they named Ryan. Then the recession hit. Norman lost his business, his home and due to an illness whose treatment was not covered by his insurance, he lost his son. This literally drove Norman into an apparent state of off-balance. He took his frustrations outside Capitol Hill, yelling to anyone and everyone who would listen, exactly what the corrupt politicians had done to him - and what he has now done to them. This is what the DA perceived as Norman's admission to the murders giving him what he believed would be an open and shut case. Public Defender Leah Klein believes different and with the help of Lotello she hopes to prove Norman either innocent or guilty of justifiable homicide.

As I read a season for redemption I found myself actually picturing some of the characters as real people. Ronald S. Barak has given them the personalities that even seem familiar opening my eyes to the real possibility that the events that take place in this story are not only possible but also probable (sadly, Gabby Giffords and Jared Loughner). And I loved his honesty in his "Author's Note" which says "While to some extent derived from real-world facts, events, conditions and principles of law, as to which the author has taken certain liberties, this is strictly a work of fiction - more or less. Except of course if the satirical shoe fits, resemblance to any real persons is purely coincidental. The names of characters have been changed to protect the innocent - and the guilty." As you read a season for redemption, I feel sure you too will be able to relate to the characters.

This is also a very educational book. I've never been a juror for a murder trial and pray I never have to be, but if that situation ever comes up, I want to re-read a season for redemption in hopes of understanding the true meaning of `beyond a shadow of doubt' and even possibly `justifiable homicide.' This is a book that I feel everyone who is being affected by the recession - and feels any disdain for our political representatives - should read. Just maybe it will help us all pull together to make a difference and have some of the corruption removed from our government.

by Martha S. Cheves

Stir, Laugh, Repeat Reviewed by Mary Deal

“Stir, Laugh, Repeat” by Martha A. Cheves is not only a great cookbook, it is a fun read. The first day I received the book, I perused it to find a recipe to sample. In reading, I found these recipes, some for all meals and snacks, easy and quick. A recipe that takes only one paragraph to tell how to throw all the ingredients together for a scrumptious dish is my kind of book. Then Martha gives a little history for each recipe about how that food was used in her own cooking at home. But that’s not all. Following every recipe is a Tip for the cook. One of my favorites was:

“When my three kids were young, we would have a Mystery TV Dinner Night. Each night when I cooked dinner, before it went on the table, I would take a plastic sectioned plate and put a full serving of everything on the plate, wrap it in plastic wrap and then tightly wrap it in foil and put it into the freezer. On Mystery Night, everyone would go to the freezer and take out a dish. You couldn’t peek. Each plate would be microwaved and that was your meal for the night. You may have country fried steak, spaghetti, fish, even chili. It was fun watching the kids open their meals. They were never disappointed because I would make sure it was filled with food they liked.”

Martha Cheves knows how to feed her family and have fun too, and now shares her recipes with us. Oh yes, the recipe I chose to make first was the Strawberry Nut Crunch. I made it with Macadamia nuts. It was so delightful, I will make it again, and enough of it for about 50 people at a big celebratory potluck. I’ll also be taking this delightful book to share with others.

by Mary Deal

Martha A. Cheves at IAN