⋙ Descargar Gratis Holly Blues China Bayles Mystery Susan Wittig Albert 9780425232606 Books

Holly Blues China Bayles Mystery Susan Wittig Albert 9780425232606 Books

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Holly Blues China Bayles Mystery Susan Wittig Albert 9780425232606 Books

I've been reading Susan Wittig Albert's China Bayles series for several years, and, of course, since I'm an OCD reader, I read the books in the order that they were published. But in looking at a list of the books in the series recently, I realized that I had somehow managed to skip one. Horrors!

Naturally, I had to circle back and pick it up immediately. That's how I came to be reading Holly Blues, the eighteenth in a series that will soon number twenty-four.

Visiting with China is like being with an old friend, not only because she is well-known to me but also because the setting of the stories is quite familiar.

China was once a high-powered lawyer in Houston, but several years ago, she gave that life up to move to the little Hill Country town of Pecan Springs near Austin. All of this is home territory for one who has lived here for thirty years.

In Pecan Springs, China reinvented herself as an herbalist and opened an herb shop. Her friend, Ruby, opened a New Age shop next door, and over the years, both shops have prospered and the two friends have expanded their operations to other related enterprises. In the process, China has acquired a husband and a stepson and a step-dog and, now, an adoptive daughter, and Ruby has acquired a second daughter and a granddaughter.

The two have been known to dabble in the investigation of crimes, and there does seem to be an inordinate amount of crime to investigate for a sleepy little Texas town.

Holly Blues finds Sally, the ex-wife of China's husband, McQuaid, and mother of her beloved stepson, Brian, in town and in trouble. It is just before Christmas and Sally tells her sad story and appeals to China for help and a place to stay for the holidays. Generous-hearted China agrees without consulting McQuaid.

She soon has reason to regret that decision when she finds that Sally is being stalked by a shady and possibly criminal character. She regrets it even more when the dead bodies start turning up.

But is Sally involved in the murders? Was her stalker the murderer? Are the murders, one in Kansas and one in Texas, even related? McQuaid, the private investigator, is out of town, so China and Ruby decide to investigate on their own.

I do enjoy the regular cast of characters in these books, but one has to admit that the plot had a few holes. Such as the fact that evidently the police had not even visited the home of Sally's sister who had supposedly been killed in a hit and run. Had they done so, they would have found her house in a shambles and clues that the woman had been abducted. But no - they had to wait for Ruby and China to discover that for them!

Moreover, it seemed unlikely that the shady stalker could be in Pecan Springs for several days without being noticed. I mean the town is full of busybodies!

But never mind. I can forgive all that. After all, reading fiction does require a certain suspension of disbelief and a willingness to enter into the spirit of the thing. The spirit of these books is warm and loving, a paean to friendship and small-town values. Reading one is like going home again.


Tags : Holly Blues (China Bayles Mystery) [Susan Wittig Albert] on Amazon.com. *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers. <b> In a class with...sleuths V.I. Warshawski and Stephanie Plum, China Bayles deals with a most unwelcome guest... </b> China Bayles is fit to spit when her husband's troubled ex-wife,Susan Wittig Albert,Holly Blues (China Bayles Mystery),Berkley,0425232603,Bayles, China (Fictitious character);Fiction.,Herbalists;Fiction.,Women detectives;Fiction.,ALBERT, SUSAN W. - PROSE & CRITICISM,AMERICAN MYSTERY & SUSPENSE FICTION,Bayles, China (Fictitious character),Crime & mystery,Crime, Thriller & Adventure,Fiction,Fiction - Mystery Detective,Fiction Mystery & Detective General,Fiction-Mystery & Detective,GENERAL,General Adult,Herbalists,Mystery & Detective - General,MysterySuspense,United States,Women detectives

Holly Blues China Bayles Mystery Susan Wittig Albert 9780425232606 Books Reviews

As China Bayles works to get her herbal shop Thyme and Seasons ready for the upcoming Christmas holiday, she reflects on the changes to her family in the last couple of months. Her half-brother's daughter Caitlin now lives with China after Miles' unexpected death and Brian is now a high school junior with his own car.

Suddenly, Brian's mother Sally shows up at the shop desperately needing a place to stay and China's husband Mike McQuaid (Sally's ex) goes out of town days before Christmas. China ends up wondering if she can get everything together in time for the holidays. As it turns out, that is the least of her problems.

When Sally's troubles bring China and the children into danger, China starts her own investigation into why Sally's car was stolen, what brought her to Pecan Springs, and who is trying to harm Sally? Her parents were murdered years ago, and it appears their murder plays a part in Sally's current problems. When Sally's sister is found dead and Sally becomes the chief suspect, China decides to bring in the big guns - Sheila, Blackie, Justine (The Whiz) and McQuaid.

Holly Blues by Susan Wittig Albert combines a return of the regular characters, after Wormwood's departure from Pecan Springs, with a new story line involving Sally Strahorn who regular readers have rarely heard about in the last couple of books.

This offering keeps readers on their toes as they follow the clues. It is a fine who-done-it with the usual red-herrings and side commentary about herbs and life in an extended family. While it is fun to read how China and Mike are working hard to build their new family, this novel is also a sad commentary of a family unit that broke down decades ago and the resulting fallout to the children left behind.

Holly Blues (China Bayles Mystery)
I've been reading Susan Wittig Albert's China Bayles series for several years, and, of course, since I'm an OCD reader, I read the books in the order that they were published. But in looking at a list of the books in the series recently, I realized that I had somehow managed to skip one. Horrors!

Naturally, I had to circle back and pick it up immediately. That's how I came to be reading Holly Blues, the eighteenth in a series that will soon number twenty-four.

Visiting with China is like being with an old friend, not only because she is well-known to me but also because the setting of the stories is quite familiar.

China was once a high-powered lawyer in Houston, but several years ago, she gave that life up to move to the little Hill Country town of Pecan Springs near Austin. All of this is home territory for one who has lived here for thirty years.

In Pecan Springs, China reinvented herself as an herbalist and opened an herb shop. Her friend, Ruby, opened a New Age shop next door, and over the years, both shops have prospered and the two friends have expanded their operations to other related enterprises. In the process, China has acquired a husband and a stepson and a step-dog and, now, an adoptive daughter, and Ruby has acquired a second daughter and a granddaughter.

The two have been known to dabble in the investigation of crimes, and there does seem to be an inordinate amount of crime to investigate for a sleepy little Texas town.

Holly Blues finds Sally, the ex-wife of China's husband, McQuaid, and mother of her beloved stepson, Brian, in town and in trouble. It is just before Christmas and Sally tells her sad story and appeals to China for help and a place to stay for the holidays. Generous-hearted China agrees without consulting McQuaid.

She soon has reason to regret that decision when she finds that Sally is being stalked by a shady and possibly criminal character. She regrets it even more when the dead bodies start turning up.

But is Sally involved in the murders? Was her stalker the murderer? Are the murders, one in Kansas and one in Texas, even related? McQuaid, the private investigator, is out of town, so China and Ruby decide to investigate on their own.

I do enjoy the regular cast of characters in these books, but one has to admit that the plot had a few holes. Such as the fact that evidently the police had not even visited the home of Sally's sister who had supposedly been killed in a hit and run. Had they done so, they would have found her house in a shambles and clues that the woman had been abducted. But no - they had to wait for Ruby and China to discover that for them!

Moreover, it seemed unlikely that the shady stalker could be in Pecan Springs for several days without being noticed. I mean the town is full of busybodies!

But never mind. I can forgive all that. After all, reading fiction does require a certain suspension of disbelief and a willingness to enter into the spirit of the thing. The spirit of these books is warm and loving, a paean to friendship and small-town values. Reading one is like going home again.