Bells, Tails & Murder, by Kathy Manos Penn

 AUDIO VERSION   6h 29m

Available April 15, 2025

I'll won't belabor the plot as I'm pretty sure I reviewed the book when it was first published. Loved it then, love it now. I was seriously impressed with narrator Alex Picard. She does a wonderful job not only differentiating voices but adding emotion and capturing the tenser scenes. Heck, she even brings Dickens the dog and the feisty, often cranky cat Christie to life. Yes, the animals talk but it's just an accepted fact in this series and not seen as magical or odd. Works nicely, too, and I adore these two talking critters. 

You'll meet and surely like the regular characters. I'd sort of forgotten where Dave came into the picture, so this was a nice refresher for me. It's already obvious he's going to play an important role in the series although he still lives in the US while Leta has moved to the Cotswolds, England. Lots of book talk and literary references and you'll pick up quite a bit about collecting old books in the process of reading. I won't spoil the rest of the series for you but do pay attention to the stories of the author with ties to Peter and Wendy. Gee, bet their names give you a big hint, huh? In any case, the story revolves around Leta stumbling across a body and how her friends circle about to help her solve the crime. 

As is true in real life, everyone seems to have secrets. Leta makes many of the typical rookie amateur sleuth mistakes, such as jumping to conclusions and not sharing info post haste with the police, but it's also obvious she's a caring, intelligent woman. I liked the fact she's a columnist and hadn't quite realized how quickly she'd settled into the regular themes used until now. Rather fun to take a look back and see things you missed first time through, especially while enjoying Picard's excellent narration. Thanks #TantorAudio for gifting me the advance look back, so to speak. It was fun to be reminded why I've come to enjoy this series so much.

John & Paul: A Love Story in Songs, by Ian Leslie

 

Publication April 8, 2025

It's hard to remember a time when the Beatles weren't part of our lives. It seems like we went from listening to our big sister's records of Pat Boone and Perry Como to wanting to hold your hand. Author Ian Leslie does an excellent job taking us along on the ride, introducing pivotal characters like Brian Epstein, Derek Taylor, and all things hippy and New age. It's a deep dive into the shadows, not to mention the uneasiness of the spotlight. It was a time that changed us and the world forever.

 While I'll admit upfront to not being familiar with many of the musical terms tossed about -- aclion cadence, anyone? -- after a few pages they seemed to just waft right on over my head without demanding I stop to figure out what they actually meant. What can I say? I tend to be one of those who enjoys the music without knowing every little detail in it. That said, I'll certainly never listen to a Beatles tune again the same way. At the same time, we're taken into the psyche of both John and Paul as individuals as well as the singular entity of Lennon-McCartney. Despite the labels rabid fans were eager to attach to them, the four Beatles were complicated individuals. They went through incredible highs and lows together, certainly being prisoners of their own success and images.

I can't even begin to summarize the book. It's lengthy but don't let that daunt you. For the most part, it's an easy read and most of the names you encounter will be familiar. Actually, much of the material was familiar to me although I was delighted to discover John's discovery of a new sport in his latter days. I definitely don't want to give away that story but it was somehow comforting to know he had that in his life before his tragic death. I also came away with even more respect for actress and former McCartney girlfriend Jane Asher for not allowing herself to be pulled into Paul's life to the detriment of her own hopes and dreams. Even better, she's never written a tell-all book, not true of many.

Bottom line, I could go on and on or list countless descriptive words and phrases that popped into my head as I read but will simply wind this up by saying music and Beatles fans will enjoy this read. Those who devour every tiny mention of anything Beatles will definitely find much to ponder within. Will they agree with it all? Surely not, but that's part of the fun, isn't it? The Beatles were something different to everyone. For fans like me, who enjoyed their music and the rush of Beatlemania, it was fun. You don't have to understand the musical references or even agree with Leslie's comments to enjoy hanging out like that proverbial fly-on-the-wall as John and Paul created something magical out of a boyhood meeting. I simply didn't have the time to do so but would strongly recommend you call up the various songs as discussed and listen to them as you read, too. Since this is a book that just begs for a re-read, that's my plan for my next visit. As it is, my thanks to #CeladonBooks for sending me this advance invite for my own trip back to "Yesterday". It was magical.