Peachy Reads

In this period piece, which takes place in London just after the Great War, Frances and her mother grapple to make ends meet   in their once-respectable home in a well-heeled neighborhood.   Their struggle in “keeping up appearances” is made worse by the war deaths of the two sons of the family and the demise of the father, who left them with more debts than investment income.   In order to hold onto the house they take in a married couple as “paying guests”.   Frances falls in love with Lilian and then Lilian’s husband Leonard is murdered.   Will their love survive the police investigation and the trial at the Old Bailey, which becomes the talk of the town? I downloaded this for free from the library’s subscription to Overdrive.

A mysterious robed figure appears in the sleepy Quebecois town of Three Pines, where Chief Inspector Gamache has his primary residence.   The dark figure stands and waits on the town green, bringing dishonor, in the tradition of a Spanish medieval custom, to an as-yet unnamed inhabitant who has a shameful secret to be revealed.   When the figure abruptly vanishes and a body is found, Gamache begins to pursue lines of inquiry that lead him to a drug smuggling ring.   During the course of a legal trial, elements of the back story emerge, and Gamache’s gamble with bringing justice in a decidedly unorthodox manner teeters on the brink of failure. I downloaded this for free from the library’s subscription to Overdrive.