Gone Hiking

The Ninja Librarian is out hiking and camping. I have prepared a few posts during this 2-week period, but won’t be around much as wi-fi is hard to come by.

Meanwhile, check out the IWSG Anthology blog for some nice resources for writers.
Part 1
Part 2

And a picture:

Mystery Monday: Love and Death Among the Cheetahs

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Publisher's Blurb (per Amazon):

Georgie and Darcy are finally on their honeymoon in Kenya's Happy Valley, but murder crashes the party in this all-new installment in the New York Times bestselling series.

I was so excited when Darcy announced out of the blue that we were flying to Kenya for our extended honeymoon. Now that we are here, I suspect he has actually been sent to fulfill another secret mission. I am trying very hard not to pick a fight about it, because after all, we are in paradise! Darcy finally confides that there have been robberies in London and Paris. It seems the thief was a member of the aristocracy and may have fled to Kenya. Since we are staying in the Happy Valley—the center of upper-class English life—we are well positioned to hunt for clues and ferret out possible suspects.
 
Now that I am a sophisticated married woman, I am doing my best to sound like one. But crikey! These aristocrats are a thoroughly loathsome sort enjoying a completely decadent lifestyle filled with wild parties and rampant infidelity. And one of the leading lights in the community, Lord Cheriton, has the nerve to make a play for me. While I am on my honeymoon! Of course, I put an end to that right off.
 
When he is found bloodied and lifeless along a lonely stretch of road, it appears he fell victim to a lion. But it seems that the Happy Valley community wants to close the case a bit too quickly. Darcy and I soon discover that there is much more than a simple robbery and an animal attack to contend with here in Kenya. Nearly everyone has a motive to want Lord Cheriton dead and some will go to great lengths to silence anyone who asks too many questions. The hunt is on! I just hope I can survive my honeymoon long enough to catch a killer. . . . 


My Review: 
This is a series I have been enjoying from the beginning. In this book, Bowen ventures into perhaps more complex territory, as British colonial life in the 20s and 30s is fraught with racism, not to mention environmental destruction. I think the author handles this matter well, but it does (for me) detract a little from the delightful lightness of the series in general, a lightness with which the book nicely opens.

Or maybe it's the mood of the moment. For whatever reason, though I was happy to see the couple moving ahead with their life together, the mystery itself felt a bit rushed and not as satisfying as some. Not a bad yarn, but not quite what I hoped, either.

On the other hand, the look into colonial life in Kenya (which the author's note assures us is pretty accurate) is eye-opening, to say the least. And I'm grateful that she perhaps moved a little away from reality to have our heroes enjoy photographing, rather than hunting, the local fauna.

My Recommendation:
Not a bad read at all, and certainly nothing to put me off the series. I don't recommend starting here, but this is a series that I think benefits from being read in order in any case.

FTC Disclosure: I checked Love and Death Among the Cheetahs out of my library, and received nothing from the writer or publisher for my honest review. The opinions expressed are my own and those of no one else. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising." 

Photo Friday: Mt. Lassen National Park

Before I let you look a the pretty pictures, I have a request. It's come to my attention that my main characters are women who are pretty good at hiding their feelings. In fact, they seem to have some issues with admitting they have them at all. When I started thinking about writing a character who is more open, I realized how pervasive this attitude is in our American culture (and British too, I think). So here's what I'm looking for: books with main characters who are unafraid to have and express their feelings. Whatever the heck that looks like.

Okay, leave your suggestions in the comments, and enjoy the photos. Oh, and to see what I mean about my books, head over to the Smashwords sale and nab my books before the prices go up more!

Last weekend the "Land of Way Too Hot" (as I called Chico last week) was too much, and I headed up to Lassen with one of my sons for an overnight backpack trip. The scenic highlight was the comet, though we weren't able to get any photos of that. I have a few pictures from the hike, which was a good chance to refresh my son's skills (it's been several years since he backpacked with us), and to see how it felt. I missed my husband fiercely, but proved to myself that the wilderness is still where I need to be.

I'll start the photos this time with an abstract. The Impressionists would be proud of the lake's artistry.

Our trip was a rather modest hike in Lassen National Park, from the Juniper Lake trailhead to Snag Lake and back. Since we got a rather late start, the 3 1/2 to 4 mile hike in was about perfect.

 A brief hunt along the shore found us a site well away from other hikers--of which there were quite a few on this beautiful weekend.

The main feature of Snag Lake (besides water that wasn't half bad for a swim) is a view of the Cinder Cone. We'd thought to climb it, but didn't want to hike that far, especially as we ended up finding a camp on the opposite side of the lake! Below are a few views of the cone and the Fantastic Lava Beds (yes, that's the real official name).

It was breezy in the afternoon and evening--good for keeping bugs away--but very calm in the morning, good for reflections, even as the breeze picked up again.

On the way out we took a detour and visited Horseshoe Lake, which offered a hint of a peek at the peak. Mt. Lassen was just visible over the ridge there, unlike at Snag Lake.

As we climbed the ridge between Horseshoe Lake and Juniper, we got further glimpses of the volcano, but never a clear view.

When we drove down from Seattle a couple of weeks ago we got views of all the Cascade volcanoes from Rainier south (well, we weren't sure we saw St. Helens. It has gotten rather short and hard to sort out from the other hills). Lassen is the last of the Cascade range, and being both well south and not very tall, it had the least snow, on this southeast face anyway.

We enjoyed our 24-hour trip, and I hope you enjoyed the photos!

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All images and text ©Rebecca M. Douglass, 2020, unless otherwise indicated.
As always, please ask permission to use any photos or text. Link-backs appreciated!