Invisible by Lorena McCourtney

Ivy Malone is an elderly widow who lives along and goes to church. She lives in a comfortable neighbourhood with life- long friends surrounding her. Life is good if a little dull until her best friend passes away and she finds herself involved in a couple of mysteries.

Mystery #1 involves vandalism in the cemetery where her friend is buried and Ivy decides to do some midnight reconnaissance to see if she can find out what’s happening.

Mystery #2 involves her friend’s renter Kendra who disappears. Eventually as in all good stories the two mysteries appear to be related and Ivy is hot on the trail of would be killers, thieves and vandals. Her faith in God is a strong part of the story and the ensuing discussions about faith are very natural.

This is a good story. Think Agatha Christie’s Miss Marple with an evangelical bent. It’s the type of book where you don’t have to worry about the language or inappropriate scenes. This is Book #1 in the Ivy Malone series and I’ve already downloaded Book #2.

PUJOLS MORE THAN THE GAME BY SCOTT LAMB AND TIM ELLSWORTH

I’m not a sports fan; nor am I a fan of biographies. So it was a little strange to me that I chose to review the book about Albert Pujols. If you’re a baseball fan you know who he is. If you’re not then you might be forgiven for not knowing that he is said to be on his way to being one of greatest baseball players ever. In just over 10 seasons of playing he has hit more home runs than Babe Ruth and has more RBI’s than Hank Aaron and more hits than Pete Rose did at the same age. He is 31 years old.

Besides being a great baseball player, Albert Pujols is also a Christian. And that’s why I wanted to read the book. Professional athletes with a good reputation are getting harder to find so when someone like Pujols comes around he is worth reading and writing about.

This is definitely a book about baseball. It’s a chronicle of his years playing with the St Louis Cardinals. It is heavy on stats; but people who like sports love stats! Woven among the baseball stats are stories about Albert’s life and faith. He is a strong believer who is actively sharing his faith, even to the point of witnessing to players who stand on first base with him.

The book portrays the good and bad. It doesn’t sugar coat his moodiness and ability to annoy people. It does give us a glimpse into a life lived in a fish bowl. It addresses the steroids issue going so far as devoting a whole chapter as a defense of Pujols and insisting that he is clean.

One quote attributed to Albert shows the kind of player he is. He said “This is my job, I get paid a lot of money to play this game, and I know the people expect a lot from me” (pg. 187) Another quote shows the kind of Christian he is. He says, “I don’t want to be remembered as the best baseball player ever. I want to be remembered as a great guy who loved the Lord, loved to serve the community and who gave back.” (pg.189)

I really wanted to like this book but I did find it a little dull. I think if you are a true sports fan and like all the stats and rehashing of games played then you will enjoy this book.

A River in the Sky by Elizabeth Peters

Elizabeth Peters is a prolific author who is at her best when writing archaeological mysteries. She has several series of books but my favourite is the series that stars Amelia Emerson and her family.

Generally the books are set in Egypt and over the years the family has had many adventures while excavating different archaeological sites. This book is in a different setting, Jerusalem.

Early in the 1900’s, Amelia’s husband is asked by the British Government to go to Israel and stop someone who is attempting to locate the Ark of the Covenant. The Government is afraid that a sloppy excavation could cause an unstable political situation to become worse and the Emersons are asked to use their considerable knowledge and skill to prevent any trouble.

Never ones to travel lightly, the whole family and some extras are brought along for the adventure. As is typical of the Emersons murder, kidnappings and general mayhem quickly ensue.

It was nice to have a change of setting. One of the things I enjoy about these novels is the bit of historical facts that are included. The Biblical setting and ensuing discussions were also an interesting addition to this novel. This was an enjoyable addition to the Ameila Peabody Series.