NO ORDINARY NOEL by Pat G'orge-Walker

First, let me say that Pat G’orge Walker is a funny lady.  I’ve had the pleasure of seeing her perform her one woman comedy act playing the character of a church lady named Sister Betty.  She brought down the house.  Her observations about the absurdities associated with some religious institutions are right on point.  When G’orge-Walker really gets going the results can be hilarious, whether it’s on stage or in print.  Her latest book, No Ordinary Noel, is an excellent example.

In No Ordinary Noel, Crossing Over Sanctuary church in Pelzer, South Carolina is facing a crisis.  The local bank is calling in a multi-million dollar loan on a development that the church calls The Promise Land.  Needless to say Crossing Over doesn’t have the money.  Its pastor; Reverend Leotis Tom doesn’t know which way to turn.  That is until Deacon Freddie Noel makes an unexpected offer.

Noel has won the mega-lottery and he wants to pay the loan off with his winnings, but the pious Reverend Tom refuses the generous gesture because the money was obtained through gambling.  When his congregation finds out about his refusal all hell breaks loose.

I won’t divulge some of the highlights of this delightful comedic romp.  All I’ll say is that the reactions of some of the colorful church members to their pastor’s insanity are priceless, as is the description of the shenanigans that goes on at the Senior Prom, a fund raiser for the mature residents in the area.  These scenes alone are worth the price of the book.

 My only problem with No Ordinary Noel is that there are a lot of stereotypical depictions of aging applied to many of the book’s main characters.  Walking canes and physical infirmaries abound, and the characters are only in their sixties.  All I could think of was that the town of Pelzer must be one unhealthy place to live!  Nevertheless, No Ordinary Noel is a funny read. 

I GIVE THE BOOK A THUMBS UP.

Review by C.V. Rhodes

Looking for Books with Mature Characters!

 

Okay Folks!  Surely there are other novels out there with characters age 40 and up!  We're looking for you to send them in for our review. Meanwhile, here's our last review again and it is worth the continuing post.

GOING HOME By Evelyn Palfrey

In her latest novel, Going Home, author, Evelyn Palfrey introduces Talia Allen, who after thirty years on the job, is now retired and enjoying a busy life as she raises her fifteen year old granddaughter, Mishay.  Enter Joe Lambert, a Hurricane Katrina survivor, who Talia meets while volunteering at the city’s evacuee shelter.  After hiring Joe to do some handyman jobs around the house, on an impulse, she invites him and his troubled teenage nephew, Kyobe, to move into a spare room in her home until they can get back to New Orleans.

Everyone she knows, including Talia, thinks that she is crazy to open her home to a complete stranger, but Christian charity has propelled her decision and it proves to be the right one.  Joe turns out to be a hardworking, honorable man, and the unconventional alliance between these two people becomes a positive force not only in Talia and Joe’s lives, but in those of the two impressionable teenagers under their care.

Going Home is a love story about the relationship that evolves between four people who need each other.  As I read the story I noticed that the ages of the two main characters weren’t mentioned and their physical descriptions were minimal.  In this narrative, neither of these societal parameters was as important as the kind of people that they were.  I found myself becoming entwined in the lives of Thalia, Joe, Mishay and Kyobe.  I rooted for them.  I cared about them.  Reading Palfrey’s work was like visiting old friends.

There is a reason why Palfrey was named as the 2012 Emma Award Author of the Year at this year’s Romance Slam Jam.  Evelyn Palfrey is a master at her craft.  She knows how to write a story and she does it well.  Palfrey’s Going Home is a treasure, a real love story that is satisfying to the very end.

I GIVE IT A THUMBS UP!

Review by C.V. Rhodes

GOING HOME by Evelyn Palfrey

In her latest novel, Going Home, author, Evelyn Palfrey introduces Talia Allen, who after thirty years on the job, is now retired and enjoying a busy life as she raises her fifteen year old granddaughter, Mishay.  Enter Joe Lambert, a Hurricane Katrina survivor, who Talia meets while volunteering at the city’s evacuee shelter.  After hiring Joe to do some handyman jobs around the house, on an impulse, she invites him and his troubled teenage nephew, Kyobe, to move into a spare room in her home until they can get back to New Orleans.

Everyone she knows, including Talia, thinks that she is crazy to open her home to a complete stranger, but Christian charity has propelled her decision and it proves to be the right one.  Joe turns out to be a hardworking, honorable man, and the unconventional alliance between these two people becomes a positive force not only in Talia and Joe’s lives, but in those of the two impressionable teenagers under their care.

Going Home is a love story about the relationship that evolves between four people who need each other.  As I read the story I noticed that the ages of the two main characters weren’t mentioned and their physical descriptions were minimal.  In this narrative, neither of these societal parameters was as important as the kind of people that they were.  I found myself becoming entwined in the lives of Thalia, Joe, Mishay and Kyobe.  I rooted for them.  I cared about them.  Reading Palfrey’s work was like visiting old friends.

There is a reason why Palfrey was named as the 2012 Emma Award Author of the Year at this year’s Romance Slam Jam.  Evelyn Palfrey is a master at her craft.  She knows how to write a story and she does it well.  Palfrey’s Going Home is a treasure, a real love story that is satisfying to the very end.

I GIVE IT A THUMBS UP!

Review by C.V. Rhodes

RETIREMENT CAN BE MURDER, by Phil Edwards, is the first book in the Jake Russo mystery series.  Newspaper reporter, Jake Russo finds himself transferred from New York City to Sarasota Florida where he covers the less than exciting world of retirement communities.

Jake is an ordinary guy; he’s not that thrilled with his job; he berates himself for his lack of aggression and believes, with some justification, that his editor doesn’t listen to him.  He is not the only one with issues.  His photographer, Gary, has issues of his own.  After 45 years on the job he should be looking for a retirement community himself—or a mental institution.

When Jake reports to the retirement community of Sunset Cove for a follow up story, he is approached by Charlotte, one of the residents who insist she has a “scoop” for him.  At the appointed time Jake arrives with notebook in hand to question the elderly lady.  He has no expectation of a “real story” and it seems that he is right.  After swearing him to secrecy Charlotte reveals that she has been banned from the weekly bridge card games.  Even more mysterious she is the only member of the retirement community’s board that opposes a new charity being championed by the board president, Sheryl Goldfein.   Charlotte is afraid because she has received a threatening phone call that she’s being watched.

It’s not much of a story until Charlotte is found dead.  Foul play?  If so, to what end—to stop her from playing bridge?

Jake is sure that there is more to Charlotte’s web of intrigue and he is determined to get to the bottom of it.  He learns more about Goldfein, her questionable charity, and the ugly rivalry between the two retirement communities, Sunset Cove and Palmstead Homes.  He is convinced that he has uncovered a real mystery.

RETIREMENT CAN BE MURDER stands out as a crisp story whose characters are very intriguing and definitely funny.  The book is available on Kindle and in print.

I GIVE IT A THUMBS UP!

Review by L. Barnett Evans