Lavender House By, Lev AC Rosen

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This was a twisty, quirky madcap mystery through the Lavender soap world, in an engaging, thoroughly enjoyable read.

Lavender House 1952: Irene Lamontaine, matriarch to the Lamontaine Soap empire, has died. The gated house she lived in with "invited" guests and family only. All the inhabitants are queer and to keep their secrets guarded, they keep others out. So, did Irene die unexpectedly or was she murdered?

Irene's widow suspects murder. She hires Evander Mills, a disgraced Gay police officer who was fired, due to a raid in a gay bar, where he was a customer. Left without a job, he accepts the position knowing, he may be living in a secluded house with a potential murderer. 

The book has been described as a "Gay-Knives Out". Add to that, an Agatha Christie flair of eccentric, egotistical, narcissistic characters who seem oblivious to a possible murder in a locked, secluded house?! The Auhtor did an excellent job, developing the characters, and the daily musings of these eccentric people, who are aghast that a detective has been brought in to investigate their 'clean' soap world.

Other Books by this Author:

The Bell in the Fog - Release Date 10/10/23

Depth 2015

All Men of Genius 2012

Heaven, My Home By, Attica Locke

Attica Locke can spin a literary mystery tale. She is a master at creating well rounded, complex characters in which she provides vivid descriptions and details that bring the characters to life. She is an award winning screenwriter, who was born in Houston, where the book takes place. She has written scripts for HBO, Disney, Warner Brothers, 20th Century Fox and Dreamworks. 

In this book, once again Darren Matthews is brought back to life and he is on the hunt for a missing 9 year old boy, Levi King. Darren is a Texas Ranger, which is an elite investigative division of the East Texas police force. Darren's problems continue, he has a tenuous relationship with his wife, boss and Mother. He continues to struggle with 'doing the right thing' and seems to be drawn into situations, that he should avoid.

The book opens with young Levi out in a boat alone on Caddo Lake and the motor dies. He is distracted by a noise and then....darkness. Once again, Attica draws you in and you are unsure if Levi is alive or dead. The Aryan white supremacy community is alive and well in Hopetown, a small community in east Texas, where the novel takes place. The child's disappearance is linked to Darren's last case, and as the book evolves, the reader is left wondering if the child is dead or alive. 

Its a tangled web of suspects which include the child's grandmother, father and an elderly black man who was the last to see him. Or, did he die in the lake?? It is a tangled, pleasurable journey that will take you on a whirlwind of reading pleasure, in anticipation of the next book in the series. I look forward to reading and reviewing it!

Other books by Attica Locke:

Bluebird, Bluebird 2018

Pleasantville 2016

The Cutting Season 2013

Black Water Rising 2010

Bluebird Bluebird By, Attica Locke

Winner of the 2018 Edgar Award for Best Novel
A NY Times Book Review Editors Choice
A Finalist for the LA Times Book Prize
A Washington Post 10 Best Thrillers & Mysteries 2017
Kirkus Best Mysteries & Thrillers 2017
Best Book of the Year-Vulture, Strand magazine, Southern Living, Book Riot, The Guardian, The Boston Globe, Lit Hub, Dallas News. Minnesota Public Radio, The Daily Beast & Texas Monthly.

Coming Soon to FX as a Television Series

This Book is 1 of 2 in the Highway 59 Series. Book 2 of 2, Heaven, My Home will be released September 17, 2019.

This book will stay with you.The author draws you in from the first page to the last. Ms. Locke, paints a vivid picture of the hard scrabble life of Geneva Sweet, who opens the story visiting the grave of her late husband, and son.

"Geneva opened the shopping bag and pulled out a paper plate covered in tin foil, an offering for her only son. Two fried pies, perfect half moons of hand rolled dough filled with brown sugar and fruit baptized in grease-Geneva's specialty and Li'l Joe's favorite."

I can taste the fruit pies 'baptized in grease'. The author takes you to Texas, and you feel the weight of the drama unfolding. Its a collective narrative of sights, sounds, smells, simmering racial divides, poverty, drugs, guns and the Aryan Brotherhood fraying the edges.

Darren Mathews, a black Texas Ranger is under investigation and possibly suspended from the force. Rather than remaining on the sidelines, to await the outcome of the investigation, he travels to Lark Texas, to 'look around' as a favor to a friend. Once there, he begins to unwind the back story behind two murders; a black lawyer from Chicago and a young, white local woman.

As Darren Mathews inserts himself in the thick of the drama, the locals, most notably Geneva Sweet are skeptical. The people of Lark Texas, are life long inhabitants, and the bloodline is generational. They are not comfortable, feeling the weight of a scrutinizing eye of a black Texas Ranger. As he untangles their secrets, with the intention of fully understanding what happened. Some things are better left "unsaid."

This is a rare book that combines the wealth of an engrossing read- a Literary-Mystery-Thriller-all in one, unforgettable read.

Other Books by Attica Locke:

Pleasantville 2015
The Cutting Season 2012
Black Water Rising 2009

The Other Wife By, Michael Robotham

Wow! I read this book in one sitting. If you are looking for a gripping, psychological-mystery-thriller, I recommend this author and book. Michael Robotham is a former investigative journalist. He lives in Sydney Australia.


Joe O'Loughlin describes his parents, William and Mary as childhood sweethearts, who have been married for 60 years. But, when Joe learns his father has been brutally attacked, his world as well as his family's are turned upside down. Joe arrives at the hospital to find a strange woman, covered in blood consoling his father, who he does not recognize.
There are many twists and turns throughout this novel, that will keep you, turning the page. 


I find it hard to find books in this genre that I enjoy. Many of them have predictable plots or I can't relate to the characters who are one sided and bland. You can tell the author was an investigative journalist,we follow the story, like a detective would, with clues that aren't obvious, but simmer with sparks throughout the novel. He inner weaves characters, and introduces family dynamics through time, as we follow the family and are left thinking, what happened?


Other Current books by this Author;

The Secret She Keeps
Good Girl, Bad Girl
Close Your Eyes