The Wishing Game by Meg Shaffer (2023)

 

Debut author Meg Shaffer has written a truly entertaining book about the power of reading and hope. Lucy Hart, a teacher’s aide, knows what it is like to grow up with parents who don’t love her. She sought and found solace in the Clock Island books authored by Jack Masterson, excerpts of which appear throughout her story. Adult Lucy wishes more than anything to have the finances necessary to foster and adopt seven-year-old orphan Christopher Lamb, a student she has taken under her wing and shared the gift of reading. Together they’ve read all of the Clock Tower books and one of their favorite things to do is play the wishing game introduced in the Clock Island books.

Jack Masterson lives on the actual Clock Island in Maine, along with his grumpy but handsome illustrator Hugo Reese. When Jack writes his first book in five years, he decides to hold a contest on Clock Island with the prize being the one and only copy of the manuscript. Lucy is thrilled to be one of the four chosen contestants; if she could win the manuscript, life for her and Christopher would change dramatically.

The book, reminiscent of Willie Wonka and the Chocolate Factory and Harry Porter, will make you laugh, cry, and jump for joy. The characters are complex, yet loveable. The description of the island, the riddles and games in the story show off the powerful imagination of the author. This is one of the best books I have read in a good while.

 4.28 stars on Goodreads, 4.5 on Amazon

Curiosity Thrilled the Cat (Magical Cats Mystery #1) by Sofie Kelly (2011)

I have read many cozy mysteries over the years but none I enjoyed as much as Curiosity Thrilled the Cat. Sofie Kelly adds whimsy and magic to the elements one would expect to find in this kind of mystery which made for a very charming story.

Kathleen Paulson has recently moved to Mayville Heights, Minnesota to oversee the renovation of the town’s Carnegie Library. Unfortunately, the project is moving slowly due to a series of accidents. Kathleen shares her home with her two adopted cats, Hercules and Owen, each with a distinct personality and talent. As the town prepares for the annual Wild Rose Summer Music Festival, Kathleen discovers a dead body and becomes the primary suspect of a murder investigation as the evidence against her mounts.

Unlike most cozy mysteries, it is the cats who are the amateur detectives, bringing Katherine “gifts” that somehow provide clues to solving the mystery. It is up to Kathleen to interpret what the items mean and how they fit into the case.

Like the first book in any series, Curiosity Thrilled the Cat sets the stage for future installments, providing the necessary background information about the town and its residents.

Eastpointe does not own any of the titles in this series.  If you are interested in reading this or any of Sofia Kelly’s other books ask a reference librarian to get it for you from an area library.

3.9 stars on Goodreads, 4.5 on Amazon

 This book is not available at EPL. Ask any of the reference librarians to get it for you from an area library.

The House in on Fire by Rachel Beanland (2023)

The House in on Fire is the story of the Richmond [Virginia] Theater fire that took place on December 26, 1811. The theater burnt to the ground, the worst disaster in history at the time. The book follows Jack, Sally, Cecily, and Gilbert through the fire and the subsequent three days. Although this is a work of fiction, the fire did actually take place and the story for three of the four characters is historically accurate. Even their names haven’t been changed. (The Author’s Notes at the end of the book are well worth reading.) Fictional characters are added to provide the reader with a better window into Southern society in the early 1800s.

All four characters are forced to make split-second decisions that will affect not only their lives but those of many in their community. The fire begins when a young stagehand, Jack Gibson, raises the stage chandelier to the theater rafters even though the candles remain lit and the backdrops catch file. Mass panic follows as the audience of 600+ attempt to exit before the fire consumes the entire three-story wooden building. Sally is a young widow trapped on the third floor, Cecily is a slave seated in the “colored people’s gallery” on the first floor, and Gilbert, is an enslaved blacksmith who offers assistance to the victims.

The theater company, knowing that actors are not held in the highest regard, blame the blaze on an imaginary slave revolt that many in Richmond are quick to believe and even quicker to action. Jack wants to tell the truth and finds his life threatened as a result.

This book has it all - heroism, bravery, cowardice, villainy, love, sacrifice, and suspense. The characters and the story are so fully developed, I felt like I was watching the events unfold in front of me. The class and gender distinctions and hatred of the time are also well represented. Many similarities to 9/11 can be found.

In the end though, The House in on Fire is the story of honorable people who rise above the tragedy to do what needs to be done.