If You Tell: A True Story of Murder, Family Secrets, and the Unbreakable Bond of Sisterhood by Gregg Olsen

"Enduring their mother was what bound them together. And while they might have had three different dads, they were always 100 percent sisters. Never half sisters. Their sisterhood was the only thing the Knotek girls could depend upon, and really, the only thing their mother couldn't take away. It was what propelled them to survive."
                  -from the Prologue

Oh, my goodness!! I hardly know where to begin! This is a story about the ultimate dysfunctional family. I have read some memoirs that made me cringe: The Glass Castle, Educated, Hillbilly Elegy and Angela's Ashes, but this one made those narratives look like a walk in the park! I am hooked on TV series like "Criminal Minds" and "Law and Order: SVU" so I can tolerate exposure to evil people and ugly things they do but nothing really prepared me for this book! When I read The Devil in the Grove by Gilbert King a few years ago, I described it as a real-life horror story. If You Tell... is the same except the perpetrator is a mother, which makes it even more appalling!

There was evidence that Michelle "Shelly" Lynn Watson Rivardo Long Knotek was a bad seed from childhood. Her stepmother, Lara, and siblings learned the hard way. As she married 3 times, had 3 daughters and took in boarders, she took her manipulative tactics and torture methods to the Nth degree. I was shocked at the way she treated her own family and later, so-called friends that she took in. And it was amazing that Shelly's third husband, Dave, a spineless individual I must say, was an accomplice for 15 years. He was either in denial or just plain stupid!

The upside is that the 3 daughters---Nikki, Sami and Tori---survived "Psycho Shelly" and lived to tell their story to Gregg Olsen. Unfortunately, others who crossed paths with this sadistic woman were not so lucky. The Afterword was especially interesting---written by a professor of forensic psychology, Katherine Ramsland, who sheds light on the making of a monster such as Shelly Knotek and explains some reactions of their victims.

At times, the cruelty almost took my breath away but my morbid curiosity kept me reading. I could hardly put the book down before knowing there would be some justice. If You Tell.... was a riveting story, though definitely not recommended for the faint of heart. My rating is 5.

The Forgotten Hours by Katrin Schumann

"She'd started to understand there was a chasm between how people saw their lives, how they wanted others to see them, and how they really were. A chasm that was too deep and dark to explore."
                              -Katie's musings, from the novel

This was another free book from Amazon First Reads which happens to be the debut novel for this author. Not long ago I read This Terrible Beauty by the same author; I liked it better than this one, perhaps because of the historical aspect.

The Forgotten Hours begins with the summer of 2007 and moves forward to 2016 where characters are still consumed by what happened 9 years before, especially Katherine "Katie" Amplethwaite nee Gregory, our protagonist. Katie's family was summering at Eagle Lake in June of 2007 as they had done regularly. Katie has great memories of times with best friend, Lulu Henderson, and falling for Jack Benson while all were in their teens. But something happened that shook those relationships to the core. Lulu accused Katie's father, John Gregory, of rape and he was tried and sent to prison for 6 years.

As the story begins, John is soon to be released from prison and Katie is still as convinced as ever that her father was innocent. Her relationship with Lulu ended when charges were brought and Katie cannot forget her betrayal. Issues of loyalty and a restlessness of spirit keep Katie from being able to move forward. She begins to dwell on "forgotten hours" and jumps into a search for the truth of what really happened that summer.

I give this novel a 3----liked it, didn't love it. It was compelling enough that I wanted to finish it. There was a lot of introspection and not much action and the time transitions could have been smoother. The title is a bit of an enigma because the "forgotten hours" seemed not to have been  forgotten at all.

The Winemaker's Wife by Kristin Harmel

"When you're young, you see only the future. When you grow older, you see the past. And the past has a way of showing you things clearly, whether you like it or not."
                        -Grandma Edith, from the novel

Kristin Harmel is a local author and an article about her visit to a nearby bookstore was the impetus for the selection of this novel for the Page Turners. Our plan was to ask her to join us for our meeting to discuss her book. Sadly, with stay-at-home orders in place currently, that will not be possible. We have held a couple of Zoom meetings so perhaps we will invite her to join us virtually. I am hoping!

Those who follow my blog know that historical fiction is my favorite genre. I have read many novels set during or just after WWII and almost always find them intriguing. I think I love reading about heroes and survivors. I found The Winemaker's Wife to be a fascinating story of the French resistance movement during Nazi occupation.

In 2019 Liv Kent is dealing with a personal crisis as her husband of 12 years has left her. Just as Eric has moved his things out, Liv's 99-year-old Grandma Edith shows up unexpectedly with airline tickets for Paris and insists they leave immediately. Liv is confused but Grandma Edith is unwilling to explain her reasoning.

Periodically the reader is sent back in time to the 1940's in the Champagne region of France where much of the plot takes place among vignerons or winegrowers. The Maison Chauveau is owned by Michel Chauveau, married to Ines. The chef de cave, Theo Laurent, and his wife, Celine, are invaluable employees in the winemaking operation and significant to the plot. (Chef de cave is French for head winemaker or cellarmaster.) Other important characters are Edith and Edouard Thierry, owners of a brasserie in Reims. Several of these characters, courageous and patriotic, are involved in La Resistance, at great peril to themselves.

Back to 2019 Paris---Grandma Edith has Liv meeting a family lawyer but still refusing to tell her why they are in France. Later they visit Maison Chauveau and the truth eventually comes out. 

A story of secrets, danger, romance, betrayal and attempts at redemption---all the elements of a page-turner, The Winemaker's Wife gets a 5 rating from me! By the end of the month we will see what the group thinks.

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We had hoped to have our meeting outdoors with a champagne brunch. With current stay-at-home orders, that wasn't possible so our group met virtually via Zoom to discuss The Winemaker's Wife.
The author, Kristin Harmel, who lives in our area, joined us for a while. What a treat that was! Everyone liked the novel to some degree. The average rating was 4. Some liked the characters while others thought they were not developed fully. Some thought Ines was immature and self-centered but others thought she was more interesting because she was imperfect. Most of us appreciated the writer's style and a satisfying ending.

Vineyards, Reims, France

Notre-Dame de Reims

This Terrible Beauty by Katrin Schumann

"That woman's days were spent   

In ignorant good-will,

Her nights in argument

Until her voice grew shrill.

What voice more sweet than hers   

When, young and beautiful,   

She rode to harriers?

This man had kept a school   

And rode our wingèd horse;   

This other his helper and friend   

Was coming into his force;

He might have won fame in the end,   

So sensitive his nature seemed,   

So daring and sweet his thought.

This other man I had dreamed

A drunken, vainglorious lout.

He had done most bitter wrong

To some who are near my heart,   

Yet I number him in the song;

He, too, has resigned his part

In the casual comedy;

He, too, has been changed in his turn,   

Transformed utterly:

A terrible beauty is born."

                      -excerpt from "Easter, 1916" by William Butler Yeats

Another novel from Amazon First Reads and a lucky choice! I get the impression the author is fairly
new but I like her style very much. In looking through my Kindle library I find I have another by
Schumann called The Forgotten Hours. I will likely read it soon.

In 1961 Bettina Heilstrom, a celebrated photographer, meets a figure from her past who has news
from the Old Country that gives her hope of reuniting with important people she was forced to leave
behind years before. The flashback takes us to the spring of 1943, to Rugen, Germany, an island in
the Baltic which becomes part of East Germany under Russian control post WWII. Though I have
read a number of novels set during WWII, this was a place and time period with which I was
unfamiliar. In Rugen, as an 18-year-old orphan, Bettina meets and marries the much older man,
Werner Nietz, who is climbing the ladder of leadership in the new government. This political regime
seems just as oppressive and frightening as the Third Reich.

The reader learns in the prologue that Bettina has a daughter she has been separated from for many
years but one must read further to find out why and in so doing, unveil her tragic past. It made me
think of "Sophie's Choice." When Bettina returns to her homeland, she finds some satisfaction but
learns she cannot fulfill all of her dreams. More than this I dare not say---I try to never spoil the plot.
If you enjoy historical fiction, I think you will like this one! I am rating This Terrible Beauty a 5.

Saving Faith by David Baldacci

"Amateurs  didn't find ways to pay off veteran FBI agents. They didn't hire hit men who lurked in the woods waiting for their prey. They didn't impersonate FBI agents with credentials so authentic they had scared off the cops. Sinister theories of conspiracy swirled in her head, sending a shiver of fear down her back. No matter how long you did this, the fear was always there. To be alive was to be afraid. To not be afraid was to be dead."
                       -thoughts of FBI agent Brooke Reynolds from the novel

I like Baldacci so when I found this one, a used paperback at a tiny cost, I brought it home. You could call it a political thriller or a suspense or spy novel.  After reading several chapters, I was very confused---so many characters chasing other characters. I was still trying to figure out who the good guys were. I figured Faith must be OK because of the title of the book. By the halfway point, I was pretty much hooked.

It soon becomes clearer that Faith Lockhart, a lobbyist and whistle-blower, is on someone's hit list. When the assassins blow their first chance to take her out, they end up killing an FBI agent and sending Faith on the lam with Lee Adams, a PI who had just happened to be looking for her, too.

A secondary plot has veteran FBI agent Brooke Reynolds losing her job over an unauthorized search and later,  hunting for Faith in an apparent attempt to save her life. The story involves some serious animosity between FBI and CIA to the point of violence. I wonder if any of that competitiveness is true in real-life Washington, D.C.

I probably can't say much more without spoilers. I will rate this one a 3.5, not the best by this author, but after reading The True Jesus, it was quite entertaining.

The True Jesus--Uncovering the Divinity of Christ in the Gospels--by David Limbaugh

¹³ When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say the Son of Man is?” ¹⁴ They replied, “Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets." ¹⁵ “But what about you?” he asked. “Who do you say I am?” ¹⁶ Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God. "                           -Matthew 16:13-16(NIV)

I had this book on my list for Page Turners for a while but I have forgotten why. When I announced it as a March selection, I got the feeling some folks were less than thrilled. Now I may know why...more later.

Limbaugh begins Part I with explanation of the intertestamental era, which I learned is the 400 or so years between the end of the Old Testament and the beginning of the New Testament. That was a new word for me. Also in Part I he describes the Gospels as 4 perspectives but one message, Jesus Christ as the Son of the Living God, the promised Messiah. It was interesting to read his ideas on the backgrounds of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John and how it affected their accounts. 

In Part II the author uses a format I haven't seen before. He tells the story of Jesus life as chronologically as he can, for example starting with Jesus' genealogies and birth in Matthew and Luke and moving to His baptism in all 4 Gospels and turning water to wine and cleansing the temple in John. It is probably something like a parallel version of the New Testament but with much commentary on the events. I must give Limbaugh credit for a great deal of research since he includes 72 pages of notes and citations. (I didn't read them!)

In my reading of The True Jesus  I learned some new things and was reminded of even more that hadn't crossed my mind in a while, especially the numerous OT prophecies of the coming of the Messiah.

This book was not a page-turner, far from it, but it was a very timely choice for me for a few reasons. First I was reading it during Lent and, of course, with its concentration on the Gospels, I was powerfully reminded of Jesus' last days and His supreme sacrifice. Second, since January 1, I have been reading The Bible in One Year with Nicky Gumbel on the Holy Bible application on my phone and so far, we have covered Matthew and Mark and are currently in Luke, so I could remember some of the scriptures vividly. Last, our pastors have been preaching on the Gospel of John during Lent so the stories of the temptation of Christ, the interaction with Nicodemus and the woman at the well were repeated with different perspectives.

I will rate The True Jesus a 3. It was very dense and not exactly entertaining but I am glad I read it. And it is good that I read it before knowing about the author who, it turns out, is Rush Limbaugh's younger brother and apparently just as rabid of a conservative political commentator and author, judging by the titles of other books he's written including two about Barack Obama, with very disparaging titles. ( I greatly admire the former president.) I should have suspected from his last name but when I saw a YouTube interview with Sean Hannity on FOX, the handwriting was on the wall! At least this book was not at all political. But I could guarantee you I won't look for another by this author!

Maybe a bit more to wrap up after our online meeting Thursday...
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Facebook Live Page Turners was broadcast as promised with varying levels of success. Several people viewed and most had not read the book and so had little to say. One of our members, a retired pastor, had this to say: I bought the book, Anne and read the intro.  The author describes a blending of the four gospel narratives to discover the true Jesus.  I was taught that that approach is more isogesis than exegesis,  that is reading into the text rather than critically interpreting what is in the text.  The four gospel writers wrote to different audiences to offer them the truth of faith in language they could understand.  They weren't offering a biography but rather a declaration of faith, a witness by each to his own experience of Jesus.  Many Christians approach Scripture as David Limbaugh does.   For personal devotional use, I can understand looking for the common threads to catch a glimpse of the man, Jesus, but it does tend toward trying to make the Bible say what we want rather than looking for what's there.
Food for thought, I would say.
Only a few members felt they had read enough to rate the book. The average of 4 ratings is 2.5.

Hillbilly Elegy: A Memoir of a Family and Culture in Crisis by J. D. Vance

"It would be years before I learned that no single book, or expert, or field could fully explain the problems of hillbillies in modern America. Our elegy is a sociological one, yes, but it is also about psychology and community and culture and faith."
                     -J.D. Vance, Hillbilly Elegy

I had wanted to read Hillbilly Elegy for some time, since it was on the NYT best-seller list. The title intrigued me since I have often considered myself a hillbilly, having been born in East Tennessee. When I found I could check out 10 copies from our library, called a Book Bundle, I selected it for Page Turners.

I found Vance's memoir compelling. He describes his life among the working class in the Rust Belt town of Middletown, Ohio, but with family roots in Appalachia. A self-proclaimed hillbilly, Vance was able to survive a dysfunctional family, become a U.S. Marine, graduate from Ohio State and Yale School of Law. He gives his grandparents, Mamaw and Papaw, and his older sister, Lindsay, a great deal of credit for his eventual success in life.

Mamaw is a fascinating character, a force-to-be-reckoned-with, especially if someone crossed a family member. She added much humor to the story.

I thought Hillbilly Elegy might be comparable to Educated, also a memoir but that's probably where the likeness ends. Tara Westover had to become educated in spite of her upbringing while, at least, Vance was encouraged in his education by several family members.

Hillbilly Elegy is somewhat political and has been met with controversy as Vance discusses the problems of this [hillbilly] culture in crisis and what he sees as causes and suggested solutions.

I rate the book a 4. I thought it was well-written and educational. For one thing I learned I must not be a hillbilly; my life was surely nothing like he described!

I look forward to discussing the book at our meeting later this month. More after that....

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Nineteen members attended our February meeting---a larger group than in the past few months. The book's rating by the group was 3.5 with no 5's and no 1's. I believe everyone learned some things by reading Hillbilly Elegy and some had very personal reactions to the book's content. Our discussion was lively, and as I hinted, somewhat emotional. Some found the author a bit self-serving but most agreed it was likely the encouragement of family members that helped him rise above his hillbilly roots.