Wilkerson's follow-up to "Black Cake" centers on a wealthy Black family, the Freemans, who live on the Connecticut coast. The family's prized possession is a 20 gallon stoneware pot they call "Old Mo" made by an enslaved ancestor. This jar was broken by masked intruders during a horrible home invasion which resulted in 15- year old Baz being shot to death in the presence of his 10-year old sister Ebony (Ebby). As we meet Ebby she has suffered a second trauma : In 2018, her rich White husband- to -be,ditched her on their wedding day for reasons that take a while to emerge.

20 year old Hal, was drowning in debt after her mother’s death. A glimmer of a hope came to her in the form of a letter of a lost inheritance. She thinks they have the wrong person, but she needed the money, so what is a person to do?

Insightful, uplifting and inspirational!

CLAIRE DARLING by Callie Kazumi is the story of a young woman in love. The setting is London, England; the style is a mixture of personal narrative and introspection; the time frame is a back and forth between the here and now and Claire's childhood. Not giving anything away - the first sentence on the fly leaf says "this is a story of obsession, love and murder..." - the reader is taken on a wild journey with many twists and turn. An enjoyable read, if somewhat predictable...

A young woman meets the famous artist of a painting she adores. She sees something in the painting that most people don't. She learns the story behind painting and gets drawn into the lives of the artist and his friends. I enjoyed the book.

A new senior citizens group is formed, but no one expects it to have the effect that it has on each person involved in the group and on the children in the day care that is housed in the same building. This book has many different characters with unusual backgrounds and personalities. The last ¼ of the book was very fast-paced, but the earlier part of the book was just OK.

Wild Dark Shore is a climate fiction novel that intertwines the themes of climate change with personal and emotional journeys. It is a very “heavy” novel with both environmental issues, and emotional issues. Lots of triggers in this one. It is set on remote completely isolated frozen, Shearwater Island. The Island was set up, with labs and homes, (in addition to the lighthouse that serves as home to the Salt family) to save seeds so that in case of a catastrophe they can be planted to provide food to the world. The Island is being overtaken by the ocean, the facility is decaying and no longer viable. The scientists have all left. Only the Salt family, dad and three children remain on the Island to pack these seeds to relocate them. The story explores the dynamics of the family left on the Island and Rowan, a mysterious woman who washes up on the shores. The novel explores ethical actions in the face of climate change. It also explores themes of life, death, grief, love, suicide, sacrifice and mental illness. Wild Dark Shore examines the interconnectedness of life and death, hoping, I think, to encourage readers to consider the moral responsibilities humans have towards the environment and each other.

I really loved this. I am already a big Sager fan. But I liked that this novel changed his usual formula. Normally Sager's books involve someone in an old house or area, figuring out an old mystery from their past. But in this case, this was all about knowing what happened and searching for revenge/justice. There were also the usual twists. Some were predictable (one especially so), but some were unexpected and none of them detracted to the story. It can be difficult to read a train mystery without thinking of the Orent Express but I loved this story as it showed the different ways we look for justice.

I wanted to read this book because I have in the past watched the reality show surrounding this family. I also followed news stories and social media about them and wanted to get a different perspective about events from the daughter who wrote the book.

A reread for me that I was using for the July prompt. But what a masterpiece of a series