A Catch of Consequence by Diana Norman - 3 stars

This was not a romantic book.  I'm not sure whether it was proffered as such when I first came across the overview.  The writing is excellent, but I gave it only 3 stars because it is ridiculously depressing.  I cried a good deal through the second half.  The ending is bittersweet, and there is a moral to the story.  As soon as I finish blowing my nose and drying my eyes, I'll try to figure out what it is.

A Catch of Consequence is about a Bostonian tavern owner, Makepeace Burke, who saves an English lord from drowning after being chucked in the river by some Patriots.  She nurses him back to health only to become the target of civil unrest.  The English lord, Phillip Dapifer, had come to America to get a quiet divorce from his adulterous wife, Catty.  Phillip doesn't feel right leaving Makepeace in Boston after her tavern is burned, and he takes her to England.  They get married on the ship, and land in serious drama in London.  Even though she has received a very generous divorce settlement, Catty sues Phillip for divorce on the grounds of bigamy, alleging that he was still married to her when he married Makepeace.  Makepeace gets pregnant, and in a ridiculously unwise move, tries to make peace with Catty.  In an intemperate move, Makepeace reveals that she is pregnant, and oh, do the games begin.  I won't give any more of the story away, mostly because it is just too depressing.  I can say this for certain though - Update your wills, including guardianship of any children you may have, every YEAR, and keep them in a safe deposit box where no conniving ex can get to them.  Seriously.  The ruination faced in this book by the characters could have been completely avoided, but such is the nature of stories with morals behind them.  There are things to learn here, and not all of them are pleasant.

This book is appropriate for those 16+ because of thematic elements.  Other than some occasional language that would make this a rated R film, it is relatively clean.

The Spellman Files by Lisa Lutz - 4 stars

OK, so here is a review of a non-romantic drama.  This book is actually better described as a dark comedy.  The writing is witty and the characters do funny things, but if you take a step back, you realize how dysfunctional the Spellman family is.  I give it 4 stars instead of 5 because the ending felt a bit abrupt, and it definitely was not the happy ending I desired after the rest of the sadness in the book.  If this were a movie, it would be rated R for language, thematic elements and some sensuality.

The Spellman Files is about Isabel Spellman and her family, all private investigators except for her brother, David, who is a corporate attorney.  The story is told in a manner similar to the Lost TV series - you get a bit of present day drama and then a lot of back story/ family history.  Ultimately, the big mystery is what happened to the 14 year old Rae Spellman.  She is missing, and in order to find her, Izzy recounts the family's history to the detective investigating her little sister's disappearance.  I won't spoil the book for you, but let's just say that the writing is real.  This is no fluff piece that you read when you want to feel good, but as I said earlier, the book is also funny.  The characters' dialogue is witty and sharp, and some of the things they do are outrageous.  I enjoyed this book immensely, but would have preferred a happier ending.

The World from Rough Stones by Malcom Macdonald - 1 star

NO EASY READ - More Difficult Than Shakespeare!

This book is for adult men who are in love with engineering, railroads, mining, or any other profession that deals with digging in the dirt. Be prepared for pages and pages of how to build a railroad tunnel. This book did not sell itself as a "how-to" book, and i found myself skipping large portions of the book when it launched into the characters' daily employment. On the nook, it is 600+ pages long, but if all of the ridiculous MINUTIAE of building a railroad tunnel were removed, it would probably be about half that length.

Still, removing the railroad building descriptions would not fix things here. The characters speak in rural English dialects that are VERY difficult to understand - even more difficult than reading Shakespeare!

The characters lead difficult lives with much sadness and tragedy. There is no happy ending here. The only redeeming quality is the ingenuity of the protagonists. Watching them lie, manipulate, and work their way up in society is disturbing albeit, at times, entertaining.

The Abbey by Chris Culver - 3 stars

This paranormal suspense was: Ultimately a Good Read, But Started Slow.

This story about a police detective whose niece is murdered has interesting plot twists and unexpected intrigue. It was a bit slow in the beginning, and has a lot of details, most of which surround police work. I had to put it down and pick it back up several times, and in the end, I'm glad I persevered through the lengthy setup. The book was well written - you actually feel for the main character at times, and also has some unexpected humor, which any lawyer or law student would appreciate. I saw a description that indicated this was a "paranormal" suspense thriller, but that is not the case.

I know this blog is dedicated to Romantic Dramas, but occasionally I'll throw in something different.