The Shoemaker's Wife by Adriana Trigiani pg 784

The Shoemaker's Wife  by Adriana Trigiani  pg  784

This beautiful story is inspired by Trigiana's own family history.  The story starts in the Italian Alps where Ciro, a strong mountain boy, meets Enza, the oldest daughter of a large village family.  When a situation arises in the Ciro's tiny village, he is forced to hide in America.  Disaster also comes to to Enza's family and she also must go to America to help provide for her family.  Fate intervenes, Ciro and Enza are reunited in New York City, but it is too late.  Over time the star crossed lovers meet again and the power of their love changes both their lives.  They marry and move to Minnesota, have one son, and have a happy married life, which ends too soon.

Foul Play at Four by Ann Purser pg 374

Four Play at Four  (Lois Meade Myster)
by Ann Purser   pages 374

Mrs. Tollervey-Jones is the upper class of the village.  Her family has run the estate and cared for the villagers for generations. She now lives alone and may have to sell the estate.  Lois Meade's cleaning company visits Mrs. TJ at Farnden Hall twice a week.
A series of robberies begin to plague Long Farnden village. Lois' help is needed to solve the mystery of who is committing these crimes. Josie, Lois' daughter, has a robbery at her shop, and Derek, Lois' husband gets knocked in the head.  Lots of interesting things going on in this little English village.
I love these easy going British cozy stories.  This is wonderful reading for a lazy, quiet afternoon.

Echo Burning by Lee Child

Echo Burning  by Lee Child   pages 519

Jack Reacher is at again!  Jack is a former military police detective, now he is a loner and a drifter.  He hitches a ride with a beautiful young woman in Texas.  She is the mother of beautiful little girl... and she has quite a story to tell. She married into the wrong family, they're a bitter and miserly clan. Now her husband is getting released from prison.  She needs help and she asks Reacher to help her and her young daughter.  This story has twists, turns, good guys and lots of bad guys.  Reacher is such an awesome, tough, honest character and in my minds eye, very handsome!!

Threats at Three (A Lois Meade Mystery by Ann Purser

Threats at Three (A Lois Meade Mystery)
 by Ann Purser  pages 346

Lois Meade, owner of New Brooms Cleaning Service, is at again!  Mrs. M,  as her cleaning team calls her, moonlights as a secret sleuth in her village of Long Farnden and surrounding areas.  A dead body turns up in the canal, Inspector Cowgill, turns to Lois to help him sort out the clues.  There are several story lines in this book-murders, soap box grand prix, village committee meetings, Lois' mother-Gran, Lois' grown children and their families, a teenage boy who is always in trouble, and the underlying vibe of Inspector Cowgill being in love with Lois, a happily married woman.  Great fun and easy read.

Robert B. Parkers Ironhorse by Robert Knott

Robert B. Parker's Ironhorse  Robert Knott  pgs. 374

"For years, Virgil Cole and Everett Hitch have ridden roughshod over rabble-rousers and gun hands in troubled towns like Appaloosa, Resolution, and Brimstone.  Now, newly appointed as Territorial Marshalls, they find themselves traveling by train through the Indian Territories.  Their first marshaling duty starts out as a simple mission to escort Mexican prisoners to the border, but when the Governor of Texas, his wife and daughters climb aboard with their bodyguards and $500,000 in tow, their journey suddenly becomes a lot more complicated." From Amazon.com

 This is another great Virgil Cole and Everett Hitch story! Robert Knott has got the dialogue of these two cowboys down pat. Great story, awesome shoot-'em-up scenes, mean bad guys, kidnapping beautiful women for ransom, all the things that you need in a wonderful  western story.