This us the second of the series. Part of the inspiration came from a friend who plays the organ. I often enjoyed spending time listening to his mastery of music. He's nothing like the character of the book except for being an excellent musician.
My Places
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Shades
of Persephone
https://books2read.com/Shades-of-Persephone
Shades of
Persephone is a literary mystery that will entertain those who delight in exotic
settings, foreign intrigue, and the unmasking of mysterious characters. Crete
in 1980-81, more specifically the old Venetian harbour of Chania, provides the
background against which expat Canadian Steven Spire labours in pursuit of
David Montgomery, his enigmatic and elusive mentor, who stands accused in
absentia of treachery and betrayal. The plot has many seams through which
characters slide, another of them being the poet Emma Leigh, widow of
Montgomery’s imposing Cold War adversary, Heinrich Trüger. In that the setting
is Crete, the source of light is manifold, but significant inspiration for
Steven Spire comes from Magalee De Bellefeuille, his vision of Aphrodite and
his muse. “Find Persephone,” she directs him, “and you’ll find David
Montgomery.” Her prompts motivate much
of the narrative, including that of the Cretan underground during the Nazi
occupation, 1941- 45.
Shades
of Persephone presents a story of love and sensuality, deception and war, spiritual
quest and creative endeavour. The resolution takes an unanticipated turn but
comes as no surprise to the discerning reader. Like Hamlet who must deal with
his own character in following the injunctions of his ghostly father, Steven
Spire discovers much about the city to which he has returned, but much more
about himself and his capacity for love.
The
Palimpsest Murders
https://books2read.com/The-Palimpsest-Murders
Day
one: check-in on the Iphigenia, a
Boat & Bike home for thirty guests of diverse backgrounds on a one week
excursion through Holland and Belgium. Personalities clash, conflicts arise.
Day
seven: a body is found in canal waters at the stern of the boat. And then a
second body is discovered.
Many
questions are asked, but few answers truly satisfy collective curiosity. Why in
the canal? Why two coins for the ferryman? Who among the cyclists is hateful
and motivated enough to kill? Twice. In what ways are the two murders related?
Is the ugly jug, both admired and derided, merely symbolic? How does the gold
death mask of Agamemnon lead to resolution?
`Determining
truth entails travelling from Amsterdam to Bruges to Paris to the ancient site
of Mycenae in Greece where what’s past is shown to be prologue.
Lighting the Lamp
https://books2read.com/Lighting-the-Lamp
Lighting The
Lamp dramatizes the efforts of Terry
Burke, a sympathetic, at times critical, but ordinary old guy, to come to grips
with what his life has been. His struggle to accept retirement
spreads to concern over the mysterious death of a wanderer in Cowichan Bay. Terry’s obsession to solve the mystery fuses
directly with his personal history and leads him in and out of fascinating,
half-remembered mythological landscapes. Family dynamics of the present,
mirrored in Irish heritage of the past, come into play as do contrarian
opinions encountered among cronies, distant friends, and lost loves. Motivated by his muse to tell all, what he
seeks in addition to understanding is truthful voice and the purest possible
point of view.
Blurb:
When the mayor declares there will be no Halloween parade, a village tradition, Kate and her friends are surprised by the announcement. Sarah, Kate’s neighbor and friend is furious and she vows there will be a Halloween parade. A chance meeting with the mayor on Labor Day, also a no parade day sets Sarah and the mayor at odds. What can be done? There should be a parade, since there hasn’t been one since the start of the COVID epidemic.
Sarah gathers signatures on a petition she presents to the mayor. Mayor Bloom, refuses to acknowledge the gesture. Sarah vows she will find a way to thwart the over-weight man she calls Mayor Lard.
Kate receives a phone call from a friend in Vermont. The town where her friend lives has recently purchased some lamp post decorations that look like those she remembers from the Hudson River village. Are they the same. Kate sets out to learn.
While exploring the basement storage room at the town hall, Kate discovers the decorations for all the holidays are gone. She also discovers the body of the mayor. He has been hit over the head and also stabbed. Kate wonders who was so furious. Suspicion falls on her friend, Sarah. Kate sets out to find the killer and prays it’s not her friend.
Excerpt:
Maude, There’s A Body on The Lawn
“What’s a nice girl like me doing in a dump like this?” Maude Forest laughed. At her age, thinking of herself as a girl was foolish, but describing her present domicile as a dump said it all. She shifted position on the moth-eaten sofa and grabbed her cell phone. Maybe her best friend had returned from her latest jaunt. Maude was in dire need of diversion. Why would a self-made millionaire want to find his roots? She looked at the faded, water-stained wallpaper and prayed her husband of thirty-five years would come to his senses. He’d dragged her to this farmhouse on the edge of nowhere because his father, grandfather, and who knows how many greats had lived here. What was wrong with a cruise or a visit to Broadway? Even a golfing vacation would have been more fun. No, George had to see the home of his ancestors, his unexpected inheritance and the place his mother had fled when he was a few months old.
She dialed a familiar number and heard her friend’s voice. “Sue Ellen, regale me with tales of civilization.”
Sue Ellen Pinewood laughed. “The Parker wedding was a gross extravaganza.”
“Was I missed?”
“Absolutely. Without your caustic comments, I was bored. Let me tell you about the dust-up at the Women’s Club luncheon.”
The phone crackled. Maude couldn’t hear her friend.
“Sue Ellen, are you there?” “Sorry. My driver hit a rut. Where was I?”
“At the Women’s Club.”
While Sue Ellen gave a blow by blow, Maude felt envy blossom like the roses on the trellis outside the window. She’d give almost anything to walk on concrete instead of dirt, but budging George was impossible.
“Ma, Ma, git out here,” George bellowed.
“I’m not your mother.”
Sue Ellen chuckled. “Is Ma his new pet name?”
Maude sighed. “Since he’s in the hills, he’s turned us into Ma and Pa Kettle.
“Where are you?”
“Midway between Luke and Stumpy Point.”
Sue Ellen giggled. “So when will you be home?”
“Who knows when Pa Kettle will find the roots his mother severed when she left his father.”
“Have you done anything interesting?”
Maude rolled her eyes. “We appeared at a strawberry festival. Shame I’m allergic.”
My Places
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http://wwweclecticwriter.blogspot.com
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Buy
Mark My Places
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Sunlight streamed through the kitchen window and the glass panel of the door, brightening the room. The yellow walls glowed and made me happy. I stared into the garden and noticed how the mints had spread. The three and a half years since Lars and I had married, sold our houses and purchased this four bedroom ranch as our home had been happy but because of the COVID epidemic, quiet.
“Meow.” Robespierre emerged from the cat door and padded to his food dish. He stared and called again.
I grabbed a box of dried food from the huge pantry closet and shook a minor shower of granules into the bowl. The brown and black long-haired Maine Coon cat attacked the offering. A few bites later he settled on the floor and stared Sphinxlike at me.
I glanced at the kitchen clock above the small antique table and chairs. Time to pack my contribution to the neighborhood Labor Day gathering. From the pantry, I removed the largest cake holder. After opening the lid, I took the three tiered chocolate cake from the chest freezer and fitted the pastry into the holder. One down. I reached for my glass of iced mint tea and sipped.
When I thought of how Sarah’s boys would crow with delight over the cake, I chuckled. Even though the pair had recently become teens, they remained suckers for the cake. I hoped Lars would soon return from his golf game with his son. I wanted to reach Sarah’s yard in time to help set up the food.
Today we celebrated the end of selfquarantining for COVID. The past three years had meant that in person gatherings were only with immediate family. During the early hectic days, over Lars’ protests, I’d returned to the hospital to help with the influx of patients. The families in my neighborhood had been fortunate. Though many of my friends had developed the disease, no one had become seriously ill.
As I opened the refrigerator, Robespierre stirred. He prowled to my side and stared at the jars I removed. Pickled shrimp, one of my special appetizers and one my allergy to the shrimp protein kept me from tasting.
“Merrup.”
I looked down at Robespierre. “You wouldn’t like them.” The huge cat’s expression marked my words as lies. I scratched his head. “I should give you a taste but I’m not cruel.” Who knew what effect vinegar and herbs would have on the cat. After finding a small cooler, I poured ice into the bottom and fitted a plastic bag inside. I decanted the jars of shrimp into the cooler, closed the bag and added it to the sides and top.
I had just closed the cooler when Lars entered the kitchen. He brushed a kiss on my cheek. “I’ll shower and change. Then we can leave.” He strode away.
Robespierre stretched in that feline way of denying he had a rigid spine. The cat wound circles around my legs before exiting the kitchen via the cat door. I stood at the kitchen door and watched his antics. First he chased a butterfly and leaped onto the wall. There he chose a sunny spot. After adding tea to my glass, I sat at the kitchen table to wait for Lars.
My Places
https://www.facebook.com/janet.l.walters.3?v=wall&story_f
http://wwweclecticwriter.blogspot.com
https://www.pinterest.com/shadyl717/
Buy
Mark My Places
https://bookswelove.net/walters-janet-lane/
