Tag Archive | Rachels Random Resources

Dark Is The Night by Rachel Evans

Jan24

The War Of The Dutch

Dark Is The Night by Rachel Evans is a powerful historical novel that consumed me from the start.

This is a story of Dutch resistance during World War II. The novel alternates between a mother on a small island, and her son who is training to be a doctor in Amsterdam. They have similar but different wars. Both are spurred on by a tragedy that occurred.

The mother helps young men and downed airmen to escape across the sea. She provides a safe haven. She is a beacon of light shining and bringing hope at a dark time.

Her son uses his doctoring skills and also works on type-setting documents and leaflets for the resistance. “Words are a way to fight back.” As the war progresses, he needs to do more. He then helps Jewish people to move into hiding places either within the city or just outside it.

Both mother and son put their personal safety on the line. They find it more important to help others than to just sit idly by. Bonds formed in war will remain.

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The Arctic Cruise by Caroline James

Jan24

The Arctic Cruise by Caroline James

The Arctic Cruise by Caroline James is a delightfully fun novel that entertained me from the start.

A Christmas cruise is very charming. Along with the traditional festivities, we see the rather energetic Santa who wears swimming trunks on board ship; and we travel ashore to take in the delights of Norway.

The cruise is made up of an eclectic bunch of people – those who brave the ice-cold swimming pool for a daily swim, and those who prefer food, drink, and more leisurely activities. There is something for every taste.

We drop in on a small group of six guests – a couple where the husband has terminal cancer and who are determined to make memories while they can. “When the Beast [cancer] came back, it would be hungry…Her husband’s decline would be rapid… In the meantime, their lives were for living.”

There is a retired school master from Skipton, and a new widow from Lancashire. She was “in a widowed world she hadn’t been ready to enter.”

The final pair are a loud, showy couple determined to be the centre of attention.

We see the generosity of hearts who want to help those less fortunate. They are angels in disguise as they see those who are invisible to others.

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The Colletta Cassettes by Bruno Noble

Jan21

Intrigue, Truth & Lies

The Colletta Cassettes by Bruno Noble is a powerful tale set in Italy in 1978. It is a story of intrigue, truth and lies that consumed me from the start.

An American veteran of World War II has finally decided to tell the truth about the USA and their politics with Italy since World War II. It is dangerous for all, including the journalist and his family. There are powerful people on both sides of the Atlantic who want the truth to remain buried.

After World War II “the driving motivation behind the politics of the US… would be ‘fear of communism.’” This fear of the red in the bed would dictate policies and politics for many decades. Alliances would be made, and terrible actions done, all to stop the spread of communism. “You’re telling me that the US used the CIA, NATO, the Nazis, the Vatican and the Mafia in the fight against communism.” The means were believed to justify the end.

The whistleblower needs to get his story out there. “He had to have answers… of why… he was lifting the lid on a box of secrets, why he was bringing to light a forty-year career that had been pursued in the shadows.” The price for the truth is high.

The reader follows the journalist and his family to Italy. We are treated to the sights and sounds of the country. The action is set during the football world cup, and the games are watched in the pub courtyard, uniting fans of many nations.

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Voices From The Dead by Tony Bassett

Jan10

Highly Entertaining

Voices From The Dead by Tony Bassett is a marvellous contemporary crime novel that I really enjoyed. It is the eighth book in the Detectives Roy & Roscoe series but can be read as a stand-alone. I enjoyed meeting up with familiar faces as once more, the Central England police force is taxed with solving a double murder.

Tony Bassett has created a fabulous plotline with small branches sprouting from the main trunk. The reader is thrown the same crumbs as the detectives as we all try to guess the perpetrator. I fell for a few red herrings along the way.

All the characters were well drawn and realistic. The villains were definitely shady. The police force was relentless in its’ pursuit of justice.

Characters’ lives had inter-connected with others over the years. There were definitely some shady characters to contend with.

I thoroughly enjoyed Voices From The Dead. It was a highly entertaining novel that kept me glued and guessing.

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