STILL WWATERS by Sara Driscoll

STILL WATERS by Sara Driscoll #FBIK9Mystery Hawk, a scent dog, is the star of this book along with his handler, FBI Human Scent tracker, Meg. Meg and Hawk are at a training limited to only a few teams and the training crew in the Boundary Waters of Minnesota when a murder takes place in the camp. At first Meg is the lead suspect, but when weird things keep happening during the training and in camp, Meg and Hawk go into search mode. The FBI investigator sent to solve the crime was unfortunately clueless and full of himself. The training and handling of the dogs was fascinating. The description of the Boundary Waters was right on target. The characters were well drawn and believable. Unfortunately, when I finished the book - liking the story and looking forward to another by the author - I reflected on the plot and realized it was not realistic. Although great stress was put on the limited number of suspects, the ones who were important to the plot (husband, partner, brothers) should not have been in the picture at all given the original terms of the training. That aside, this was an enjoyable read. The story held my interest. The characters were likeable. A good book for a cold, rainy day, sitting by the fire drinking a cup of coffee. 4 of 5 stars for the genre.

Scatterlings Manenzhe

SCATTERLINGS by Resoketwe Manenzhe I SO wanted to like this book. The premise of the story, a racially blended family caught in the prejudice and cruelty of the Immorality Act in South Africa, is fascinating. Abram, a White, is condemned by the beloved children born to him and his Native (Black) wife, Alisa. What to do? What to do? If he stays, he will have his property confiscated, and his children taken away. If he goes, he leaves behind the work of generations on his estate and he himself and his family will become stateless. His wife makes a terrible choice and that is where the tale begins. Unfortunately, the writing style made me constantly feel as though I had missed a paragraph, or page, or even chapter, of the plot. I was constantly trying to put inferences and comments together to make sense of the story. It was very frustrating to try to follow the story line when I felt I was missing vital information. I quite enjoyed the “tales” of the Native people imbedded in the story. The descriptions of the land and people were delightful, making the reader a part of Africa. All in all, worth my time, but very frustrating. I would not recommend this title to my book group. 3 of 5 stars