Virginia Books

Wounded after intervening in a student's life, Faye Harper retreats to a childhood haunt to find respite. Rather than the expected peace, however, she quickly finds herself in the midst of a criminal investigation. Detective Aleksy Denko, also from Chicago, unofficially seeks answers in arms deal gone wrong that left a former partner dead.

Aleksy underestimates Faye's resilience, viewing her as a cream puff. Cute like Faye is not his type, although she can make him understand its appeal. What he really needs is a cover, and Faye can provide it. Unfortunately, Faye has to get involved with anything that involves risk. Too bad her own actions have already put her in danger.

A faced paced, heart pounding read, ALL A MAN CAN ASK provides unexpected twists that makes author Virginia Kantra's novels a must read. Unexpected courage and surprising compassion bring these characters vividly alive, even as drug addicted teens, stretchy bras, and romantic entanglement also intriguing elements that prove these character's all too human flaws. Indeed, the fast paced plot and the strong characterizations are nicely balanced, resulting in a tale that is at once deadly yet richly balanced by powerful emotions and physical attraction. ALL A MAN CAN DO comes very highly recommended.

Jarek Denko gave up his big city job as a detective and took a job as a chief of police in a small town for his daughter's sake. But big crime follows him to town and Jarek has a criminal to catch.

Tess DeLucca's brother might be a suspect, but she knows he's innocent. As she tries to not only report on the story, but protect her brother, she finds hereself drawn to the new chief. He's not what she expected...and falling in love with him wasn't what she expected either.

Jarek and Tess work together to catch their criminal, even as they see just where their feelings will take them.

Virginia Kantra writes a rich, emotionally packed story!

Jarek Denko didn't want to raise Allie, his ten-year-old daughter in the city, so he left Chicago, accepting a job as chief of police in small town Eden. He hopes this will be a better environment for Allie who lost her mother only a year earlier and is still worrying about losing her dad. However, when they get to Eden, Jarek finds that there are those on the force who are not overjoyed with the fact that someone from out of town has been hired as their superior, they would have liked it better if the new chief had been promoted from within.

Tess DeLucca is a local reporter, born and raised in Eden. She more or less had to raise her younger brother Mark, because her father took off when she was nine years old and her mother took refuge in the bottle. Time has moved on, but Tess is still looking out for Mark, now an ex-Marine and her mother, now a recovering alcoholic.

One night a nineteen-year-old girl is raped and Mark is one of the prime suspects as he had been seen with the victim. Tess is convinced of his innocence and Jarek doesn't want anyone butting into his investigation, but there is just something about this lady reporter.

So do they team up and prove the brother's innocence and catch the real rapist before he attacks again? And do they team up in a different kind of way, you know, like in a romantic way? Well, I suppose it's not that hard to figure out, but the story is told very well and it is a pleasure to read. Ms. Kantra is one fine writer and I'll be coming back for more.

A Harlequin Dreamers Review by Lori Napier Mayer

Jarek Denko gave up the big city streets to become a police chief in the backwater town of Eden. He hopes the small community can fill whatever is missing from his daughter's life. Then a red light assault casts suspicion on his department, and Jarek does not know who he can trust. His controlled demeanor has earned him the nickname Ice Man, but reporter Tess DeLucca easily sparks an inconvenient attraction. Worse, his best suspect happens to be her brother. Moreover,

Tess does not believe in the police keeping secrets and he does not believe in anyone getting in the way of his investigation. Tess questions why Jarek refuses to talk about his failed marriage or young daughter. Tess does not do cops, and she does not do families. She already raised her brother Mark, who is often irresponsible, unreliable and infuriating. For years she cared for her alcoholic mother as well. She does not need another family to add to her responsibilities. Unfortunately, Jarek's kisses can make her shudder and melt, causing her to forget her plan to remain dispassionate, objective and in control.

Author Virginia Kantra begins her miniseries Trouble in Eden with ALL A MAN CAN DO. While they might not have much else in common, Jarek and Tess share a profound need to protect their personal lives. I admit to thoroughly enjoying this mature hero and heroine who struggle with the emotional baggage that comes with age. Indeed, author Kantra deftly captures the deepest and most intense emotions with grace, exposing the most profound moments of living with compassion and intensity. Despite the gravity of personal challenges, however, the beauty of the growing romance between Jarek and Tess adds a sparkling hope and joy to Kantra's novel that makes these characters uniquely memorable. Add a suspenseful plot and the result is a highly entertaining read.

This gorgeous novel reflects many of the ideas found in "A Room Of One's Own" by Virginia Woolf, with whom Vita had a famous affair. After the death of her husband, the Earl of Slane, Lady Slane shocks her staid family by asserting her own will, leaving the house she kept with her husband, and settling into a small house in the countryside. Finally after seventy years, Lady Slane is determined to live as she chooses, with a life full of contemplation, dreams, and memories. She reflects on her lost ambition to be a painter, but knows that the life she lived was not without merit or value. She finds passion in the freedom to choose, and this gift she bequeaths to the one member of her family who understands its importance.

This curiously overlooked novel was revived by a Masterpiece Theater production starring Dame Wendy Hiller, which like this novel was superb. The gentle story of an elderly woman's retirement while her forceful children squabble over unimportant matters is at once comic and poignant. The author has peppered the tale with curious, memorable characters, among them the eccentric art collector who is allowed to eat in portrait galleries because museums hope he will donate to them when he dies; the benign landlord Bucktrout, who sees Lady Slain's desire for peace at home; and the coffin maker who pictures people dead to reveal their true characters. This fine little masterpiece deserves to be read today.

I meandered my way to this book through Sarah Ban Breathnach's treasure of self-excavation, Simple Abundance. I had read Anne Morrow Lindbergh because of her recommendation too. AML & Charles Lindbergh were good friends with Vita Sackville-West & her husband, Nigel Nicholson. So I finally got around to Vita Sackville-West & this book. It was so moving, wonderful, unforgettable, that I will reread it. I laughed & cried. I will try to find older copies of this to give away to dear friends, old & new. It's one of those books. I'm 41 & have sacrificed much for the men & children in my life that I nonetheless love so dearly. This book helped me bring those feelings of ambivalence into focus. It also helped me realize I'm relatively young & still have time to live the life I've dreamed of since I was a little girl. Maybe this "child-bearing years" thing was just a detour.

How effortlessly Ms. Sackville-West spins her surprisingly moving story of an aging aristocrat who, near the end of her life, decides to do those things she could never do before as she sublimated herself to her strong, successful and controlling husband. This classic British diplomat, who expected to be obeyed because such were the times, was, after all, so much more important than she was and what an interesting life she had in his shadow, didn't she - so conscientious and such a good wife and mother. What she does when he dies, how she perceives her existence and her place in her family - and how they respond - will catch you up in its wake and carry you to the ending, which is perfect and thus bittersweet. I found this a memorable novella.

This was a very touching book, hitting the most emotional parts of the heart. A must-read for all who enjoy reading about our history. A very inspiring story that says it all: God wasn't gone, He was with them on the planes.

I'm not sure how it happened, but somehow this book didn't find its way onto my reading list until recently. If, like me, you somehow missed this one, don't wait another day to read this book. AMERICA OUT OF THE ASHES by Jeff O'Leary is a book you don't want to miss.

The book begins by asking the question, "where was God on September 11, 2001" then it goes about the business of telling exactly where God was on the fateful day. Many of the miracles of that day are chronicled here. The subtitle tells us these are stories of heroism and courage, but it is far more than that.

Indeed, many individual acts of heroism are told here. These are acts performed by people never before heard of. They were everyday people who did not set out to be heroes, but they found themselves in circumstances which warranted drastic measures.

This book is, at times, very difficult to read. Not so because of any fault of the writers. The sentence structure is fine and the prose hold no difficulty. This is difficult to read because it is very hard to focus with tears welled up in your eyes. At times, this book will tug at your very soul.

Add this book to your shelf. Read it with your children, and often. Remind them that heroes are not sports figures or Hollywood actors, but that heroes are everyday people who had the courage and the discipline to make impossible decisions and ultimate sacrifices.

Monty Rainey
[...]

Originally I purchased this book, as my brother's firehouse is in the book "Company of Heroes" pgs 59-66. My brother's name is also mentioned in the book. John Santore, FDNY, he was one of the firefighters who died on Sept. 11, 2001.

After reading the book, I felt it was well written and very touching to he heart.

Thank you to the publisher for printing such inspirational stories.

Awesome book! Chock-full of great stories, prayers, and quotes. Has an excellent section of color photographs as well as a timeline of events. This is more than just a simple book on the tragic events of Sept. 11, 2001. It is a keepsake, a reminder to all Americans who own this book, of what happened and our hope for the future. America Out of the Ashes has already hit the New York Times Best-Seller list within one week of its release!

I am the Grand daughter of Bernard Martof!!!! I have liiked a the book. It has beautiful photographs. Great facts too!! If you need a reptile question answered you should look at this book!!! If I ever do a reptile study I think I will look in this book. I like the frog on the cover too!

Excellent book! It's a little more detailed that a typical field guide but what I like most about it is that its specific to our area. So, while I have a larger field guide (for the region) I also really love having this one because it's more focused. In the beginning of the book there's an introduction to habitat with great pictures showing what the habitats look like. The book then goes into the specific species - I was particularly interested in the salamanders and amphibians but the sections on snakes, turtles and lizards are super too. The pictures are great, descriptions cover approx. size, colors/patterns, species that they could be confused with, habitats, and egg laying (timing, incubation etc). Great book to have on hand.

I've had and used this book since it came out in 1980. I always recommend it to all of the classes and seminars I give on reptiles and amphibians and to all of the people who ask for a good field guide because, for the size and cost, there are none better for this part of the country. Well worth the money if a handy, accurate, well-done field guide with great photos and range maps is what you want.

I love this book. We see a snake in the woods, and take note of as many characteristics as we can, then look it up later to learn more about it. Same with frogs, toads, lizards, skinks! The actual information provided for each reptile is slim but very interesting. This is a great book to have if you spend any time in the wild in Virginia.

This important study is highly astute in its analysis--and very accessible. Ratcliffe is a first-rate thinker and writer.

Three great geniuses are presented here. Where would we be without the unbelievably courageous Mary Daly? And Virginia Woolf is still an important early voice, especially as presented by Jane Marcus and other brilliant radicals. As for Rich, is there a more brilliant writer in "America" today? I think not.

This book dares to include three of the very greatest writers of the century. Mary Daly is the incredibly courageous voice of contemporary radical feminism, Woolf is still valuable for her essays, and Adrienne Rich is a truly visionary poet who has changed the way contemporary discourse is conducted. A wonderful book.

It's a little hard to see how Mary Daly can even be mentioned with a great genius like Virginia Woolf, especially when one considers that Woolf was able to make a new rhetoric apart from patriarchal language, while "theorists" like Daly have only succeeded in questioning contemporary discourse. Nevertheless, a worthwhile book that, when dealing with a major figure like Virginia Woolf, deserves to be read.

This really useful field guide has great drawings of over 100 species found in neighborhoods in US and Canada. Has a simple system to instantly tell you the region and feeding preferences of birds, in other words, where you are most likely to find them. The drawings are beautiful, colorful and accurate, clearly showing the difference between male and female, and defining markings. I've enjoyed mine thoroughly!

My girls and I love this book! What a pleasure to be able to look out our window and now be able to identify the types of birds that live among us. We even now can recognize a bird by sound.

This book includes wonderful pictures with easy to read descriptions of the birds and their habits.

What a great way to spend time with each other having fun exploring and learning.

A book that can be enjoyed at any age.

Excellent photographs of Midwest Birds that will allow you to identify the bird that you see....quickly.

The Peterson guides are a well established in the birding world. I was looking for a good basic introductory book for my young daughter who, like me, enjoys bird watching. This book has a list of the most common birds that we're likely to see in our backyard. I like the way it's divided by feather coloration rather than by species or group of species. This makes it easier for a child to learn to identify the birds in a non-overwhelming way. I plan to buy the rest of the series for our family's field library.

This book was displayed in the Welcome Center at the Virginia State line.
I looked through it and decided it was one I HAD to have. I made note of it in my little "black" book and when I returned home to the Northwest I knew I could count on Amazon.com to get it to me.

This is a wonderful book loaded with recipes, pictures and Virginia history.I ahve tried many of the recipes and they are delicious. This is a great book to give as a gift to everyone you know.

I rarely buy cookbooks, and I was glad to have purchased this one. Not only are there a variety of recipes, but there is also lots of Virginia-related history and information to read as well. I think this will be the first cookbook that I actually read cover to cover!
If you are familiar with Virginia restaurants, there are recipes from places like Baliwick Inn and Shields Tavern.
The one thing I wish was different about this book is the way it's organized. For example, there is a chapter on cheese and eggs. There could be a variety of recipes in this chapter, from quiche to creme brulee.

Much more than a cookbook, The Best of Virginia Farms contains intriguing automobile tours to plantations and historic farm sites in the Old Dominion, some I didn't know existed and most I hadn't visited but will now. There are 8 (36 by 12-inch) full color foldout panoramic photos of Virginia, interesting interviews of Virginians who had a great impact on agriculture, and so many interesting facts I didn't know -- either about food, agriculture or Virginia history. Best of all, the recipes are delicious and easy to make with clear directions and background information about the Virginians who created them. Anyone who likes good food and likes to learn will really enjoy this book about America's first farm state.

Blind Singer Joe's Blues is a novel set in the birthplace and time of modern American music. The complex and all-too human characters whose live play out against this backdrop are the musicians who create what we now call blues, rag-time and country music.

The author's deep knowledge of the music of that era is obvious throughout. It complements his ability to draw strong portraits of the characters and an engrossing story line.

I enjoyed this book immensely. Highly recommended.

I couldn't put this beautifully-crafted book down once I started it. Robert Love Taylor's masterful handling of perspective and dialogue, his insightful and sympathetic development of characters, and the precise perfection of the language throughout make this a rare gem. You won't find its match in evoking the feel of music. I loved it.

More truth in reviewing: I know the author too, and I knew he could make a fiddle sing like God's choir of spring-morning birds -- but I had no idea he could do the same thing with mere words of clay. Blind Singer Joe's Blues sings through hard-bitten characters and hard times; through soul-searching, generosity, orneriness and forgiveness; and through the greenbrier thicket of family ties.

Taylor eases the reader through viewpoint, time and place, just as a tune effortlessly weaves from chorus to verse and back again. The plot unfolds so sparely that you wonder at how he creates such a complex tapestry in such a small space.

His characters -- Hannah Ruth, Pink Miracle, Dudley Crider and his mama Pearlie, Mama Bayless, Emmett and Amelia Holt -- reveal themselves, their stations, their hopes and beliefs through their language, all of it sounding as true as a tuning fork, as when Dudley gives a piece of his mind to the toddler, Singer Joe: "We are Criders and don't have no fear, he told the boy, and he imagined some of O.T., some of Uncle Crockett and Uncle U.S., some of Daddy, some of himself, yes, and then all the Criders before them, grandaddies and grandmamas by the score, crowded up in Singer Joe's veins."

Religious passion and personal passion meet sorrow and self-denial and all of it makes up the blues that are the fabric of Singer Joe's life.

Start this book on Friday night; you'll want the weekend to finish it.

Truth in reviewing: I am acquainted with the author, but haven't seen him in ages. Years ago he promised another novel with the old-time fiddler character Pink Miracle from his earlier book, THE LOST SISTER, and he has finally delivered. It is well worth the wait: it is highly readable and atmospheric, filled with memorable people. It's about souls who may seem kind of marginal in global and universal schemes but who find a way to be heard, to matter in the middle of it all.

Taylor has drawn on family history and legend out of his ancestral territory of Oklahoma and the mountains of eastern Tennessee for his past books. In this new work, in which he is at the top of his powers as a storyteller and fiction stylist, he looks at the early 20th century country folks who poured their lives into the songs that became the modern bluegrass, jazz and folk traditions. The jazz musician of the title and his blues are the legacy of the stories that flow together in this narrative, swirling around a restless songbird teenage mother who deserts him as well as everyone else in her life.

I confess to having been haphazardly acquainted with bluegrass music through occasional street festivals and local arts events. Coincidentally, as I was reading BLIND SINGER JOE'S BLUES, an Alison Krauss concert video was brought into the house. Listening and reading at the same time, I realized just how much Taylor's novel is alive with the music and explains how it got that way; and Krauss, well, she and bluegrass have a new fan.

There are very few books on the market about this subject. Luckily, this one is excellent. The author covers all topics very extensively-- supplies, techniques, color theory. The variety of flowers is phenomenal, and the directions are easy to follow. Many of the illustrations are in black and white, but the color plates (there are 21 of them) are beautiful. If you are at all interested in creating lovely flowers from beads, you need this book.

This is a phenomenal book for the beginner or intermediate flower beader! I tried other "newer" booklets when I first started beading and was so confused. This book is very easy to understand with concise illustrations and instructions. This is a must have if you want to learn the beautiful Victorian craft of beaded flowers! Happy beading!

This book is a huge help with color, design and balance. Thanks.

Although it is dated from the 1960's nothing about this forgotten craft has changed. The instructions are clear and easy to follow. The pictures, although mostly in black and white, are large, and show what the flower is supposed to look like when you are done. Each and every phase of the process of making French Beaded Flowers is discussed in detail. There is a section on arrangement and the kinds of containers you can use. I bought this book to add to my collection of books on this subject and was pleasantly suprised by how good it was.

this good is so good. it's about a 16 year old girl name Kitty- Lee Carter who needs money, so she gets a summer job at DQ. Kitty Lee lives in a small not wealthy town and when a man w/ a nice car pulls up and askes for her to baby sit his 3 kids b/c the mother is ill. Kitty- Lee doesn't want to leave her friend but when he offers her dubble what she gets @ DQ she takes it. Then she finds out he likes her!! well u gotta read the book for the rest but it's so good!

This was the cutest book I have ever read! The author did a marvelous job at writing the story! It made me wanna keep on reading and readin! I thought this was a great book!!!!!!! The ending was really nice and I like the way the book was foreshadowing! I thought the cutest part was the love part at the end!

The novel The Brightest Light was a heartwarming book. It had its sad times like when Kitty's (main character) grandma was talking to her about how her mother died in a car accident.I love how the author kept me hanging at the end of each chapter. It made me want to read the book all at once. The author did an excellent job in describing the characters' feelings. This is a great love story. I recomend this book big time.

Have you ever faced confusion, disapointment, and excitment at the same time? In The Brightest Light by Colleen McKenna, a 16-year old tells her story of a time that her childhood friend is abandoning her, her "cousin" seems to hate her, and a very handsome, older man doesn't discourage her liking him (not to mention he has a wife and three small children). My discription may not impress you, but the book is just indescribable. I hope that you will purchace this wonderful and unexpensive book that you will enjoy over and over again.