Local bestselling author, Cathy Lamb, will be visiting Jan's Paperbacks on Saturday October 8th.  She will be discussing and signing copies of her latest release, THE LANGUAGE OF SISTERS, out now.  If you are unable to make it, or don't live in the Portland Metro area, you can pre-order any of Cathy's books on our website and she will sign and personalized your books on that day and we will ship them to you.  CLICK HERE for more details.

 

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Meet Lizzy Shannon
by Lizzy Shannon
 
“I know how to kill a man five ways with a fork.”  This sentence was a turning point in my life in the States. Before that any mention of terrorism, particularly concerning my native Northern Ireland would send me into paroxysms of PTSD. Almost daily, whether in post office, grocery store, or doctors’ offices, as soon as my Irish accent was heard I’d be asked many variables of: “So, how about them freedom fighters?  Think they’ll ever get the British out of Ireland?” 
 
At first I’d be too shocked to respond, wondering how we got from ‘gee, I love your accent’ in one sentence to discussing war and politics in the next. Then I went through a phase of quoting the much-paraphrased ‘one man's terrorist is another man's freedom fighter’ in attempt to point out that there were two sides to every conflict. This did not go down well with most Americans so I learned to become evasive. It was easier to pretend I grew up amongst tales of the Wee Folk in a picturesque thatched cottage on one of Ireland’s famous peat bogs instead of Belfast in the 70’s. No one wanted to hear about fatal shootings or that their fun sounding cocktail, an Irish Car Bomb, made light of a dreadful and cowardly way that some of my friends in Belfast had been killed. 
 
Then the fork conversation changed everything. I was a guest speaker at a women’s luncheon and during the meal a girl with a wonderful rich Georgian drawl demanded, “So, are you in the I.R.A., or what?” 
 
I gaped in disbelief, my potato salad plopping back to the plate from the fork I’d been guiding to my lips. Chattering conversation around the table was abruptly absorbed into the ensuing avid silence as all eyes focused on me. Anxious to avert such intense attention I attempted to use humor and said the first thing that came into my head.  Wielding the implement of potential destruction before me I announced, “I know how to kill a man five ways with a fork.” 
 
The women broke into laughter. I thought I’d successfully changed the subject until they began ribbing me with comments like, “We’re watching you!”  I couldn’t help but join in the fun.  Instead of heading them off at the pass I’d given them the idea I actually was involved.  And once the ice had been broken, I found people much more receptive to learning about the conflict and understanding its complexities just a little bit better. 
 
That’s when my latest book, Blood of Orange, was born. After that luncheon when I got home I wrote about the encounter in my blog. As I typed, memories good and bad that I’d long suppressed from my childhood days literally flooded me. What began as an exercise in exorcism morphed into a period thriller, complete with espionage, action, and exciting love triangle between a Protestant girl, an I.R.A. operative, and a British soldier.   Although it took me several years to work through it all and write the novel, in between thanks to America and her wonderful people challenging me to open my mind and learn new perspectives, I found myself falling in love with Ireland. Not the British part that I’d been brought up in, although it is right here in my heart too. This was a voyage of discovery for my Celtic side, and it culminated in the bestselling A Celtic Yearbook, one of the books I’ll be signing at Jan’s Paperbacks on August 27th. Blood of Orange won’t be released until November, but Time Twist, A Celtic Yearbook, and Tales of Erin will all be available at the signing. Nowadays I’m more than happy to talk about Northern Ireland and answer all those questions that I used to balk from, and conversations can get pretty lively and interesting.  I really hope to see you there!

 
ABOUT THE AUTHOR

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I just finished Endangered by C.J. Box.  It’s a Joe Picket novel.  Joe is a game warden for the state of Wyoming and loves his job.  He really cares about the wildlife in his care.

Joe lives in the small town of Saddlestring and is married to Marybeth.  They have 3 daughters, Sheridan, April and Lucy.  Joe’s best friend is Nate Romanowski, a wanted felon (long story) and master falconer.  Joe also holds the record for destroying the most Fish & Game trucks in their history.  A dubious honor at best and one he would like to get rid of.

Being friends with Nate is a problem for Joe since he works for the federal government and associating with wanted felons is not a good thing.  Due to circumstances in the past Joe and Nate have promised to look out for each other and they both take that promise very seriously.

Trouble always seems to find Joe no matter what, when he’s trying to figure out who killed a group of Sage Grouse, a protected species or who critically  hurt his daughter, April.

This book is number 15 in the Joe Pickett novels but don’t think you have to have read the other to read Endangered.  Each book can stand alone.

Since this review is for Jan’s Paperbacks, I’m pretty sure that they have some previous Joe Picket novels available if you wanted to read some earlier books and learn more about the characters and their relationships.  Just know that isn’t necessary to enjoy this story.

This book is highly recommended and so is any other Joe Picket novel by C.J. Box.

Hope you enjoy the story.  –Jack K. (Jan’s customer)

This book has been on my shelf for about 6 months and I do not know why I took so long to get to it! It was wonderful, suspenseful, engaging and just a little bit creepy in some spots. A baby, who didn’t like to sit still and was an escape artist, survived the murder of his family. He made it to a cemetery where the inhabitants decided to protect and raise him. They named him Nobody and called him Nob.  This book follows him through his teenage years and is wonderfully told, the main characters come to life and it is so easy to get caught up in the story and find yourself yelling out loud “no Nob, don’t go there!” then look around sheepishly to make sure no one heard you.  This book is suitable for ages 8 years and up. There are violent scenes and some very suspenseful moments, so be aware. I give this book 5 stars and I now understand why it won the Newberry medal.  -Jody

I read this book because I heard a description about it while I was at the RT Booklovers Convention.  It sounded intriguing.  It is intriguing.  It is suspenseful and full of teen angst.  It is in the future, not SciFi type in the future, but a future that could be… I liked the characters some more than others, but that is the sign of a good author isn’t it, that she can make you like, or hate someone or something.  This is a debut book and I cannot wait to see what she writes next.  -Debbie

Is it possible to meet your true love when you are only 8 years old?  This book follows the love story between Rachel and Andy, two people from very different worlds. 

I really enjoyed this story and following the characters through their very different life paths that, at times, brought them together, and at other times, drove them apart.  Jennifer Weiner is one of my favorite authors, and this novel does not disappoint.

Read the full book summary here

Order eBook Online ($11.99)

A good book that I have read lately is called WHERE THE RED FERN GROWS.  The reason that I liked it is because it is always set in the outdoors and this is what I love.  It has three main characters.  A boy named Billy and his two dogs, Old Dan and Little Ann.  They are very loyal to Bill.  There are some sad parts, but overall, I loved this book.  -Austin (Jan's customer, age 11)