Darian North

Iris Lanier is an anthropologist - an independent woman with a mission for uncovering history. She's in the jungles of Guatemala when somehow a telegram gets to her that her father is in the hospital in New York. She hurries to his side to find him in a coma. She has no idea why he is even in New York as he rarely ever leaves his California orchard. Her history problem solving skills are only partially useful as she starts digging into what happened to her father. This is the second Darian North I have read. While it wasn't quite as good as the first, it was still way excellent. And, I still know nothing about this author and don't even have a guess as to whether she's a she or a he. But, no matter, I'm off to find another Darian North.… (mere)

This is another one I picked because it was fat. I'd never heard of this author and after having read it, I know my pick-by-girth system is a good one. This is a great book - fascinating plot, fabulous characters and beautifully told. Owen Byrne is a cattle farmer in Kansas. He's working hard to make his family farm work with his father and two sisters and he needs cash. Plus, he's always liked to write. Nearly by accident he gets a chance to write a true crime book on a murder trial being held in a suburb of New York City. A famous but mysterious author has been murdered and his equally mysterious wife is the accused. And Owen gets mired in the middle of it all.… (mere)

This is my second Darian North novel and I'm off to find my third. She has the magic for sucking the reader in from the first word to the last. Daniel Behr has a great life. He has a good job as a draftsman at an architectural firm, a wife he cherishes and a five year old daughter who means the world to him. The story follows his life as it falls apart and has to be rebuilt again. It starts when he goes to pick up his wife at a weekend retreat and not only is she not there, he can't find her anywhere. It's a fabulous story.… (mere)