Books! I read books!

From Salzburg symphonies to spiritual warfare

I was privileged to receive an advance copy of Nancy Moser's Mozart's Sister. I was delighted to be able to offer some endorsement comments prior to the book's September 1st release.

I plan to review the book shortly, but in the meantime, let me tell you it's well worth reading.

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart is fascinating anyway--composing his first pieces for the keyboard at the age of 5! But I had never realized that his sister Nannerl was also extremely talented, but forced to take a back seat to her brother because of her gender.

The book makes compelling reading, and Nannerl's longing for affirmation and fulfillment is something to which we all can relate.

This book marks a real change for Nancy Moser, who has previously written only contemporary fiction. She initially resisted writing the book, but she's glad now that she did.

And am I the only one noticing that Nancy and Nannerl share the first two syllables in their first and last names? Cool.

Stuff you may want to check out:

My interview with Nancy Moser
My review of Nancy Moser's "The Seat Beside Me"
My review of Nancy Moser's "Time Lottery"

And when I finished "Mozart's Sister"...

...I hopped into When the Day of Evil Comes, by Melanie Wells.

What a leap--from the sedate parlors of eighteenth-century Austria, to present-day Dallas, Texas, where psychologist Dylan Foster is finding her world unraveling in the shadow of evil forces.

I'm OK with spiritual warfare novels, but they aren't my favorite genre. And I'm spooked fairly easily, especially because I totally believe in angels and demons. And to be honest, I don't think I would read this book if I was going to be alone during the night!

But it's to Melanie Wells' credit that she balances the novel's darkness with plenty of light--including the pleasant, humorous personality of her protagonist. Dylan's personality (and the story is told in the first person) actually reminds me a little of one of my favorite characters, Kinsey Milhone of Sue Grafton's alphabetized murder mysteries.

Another guarantee that a book has me fascinated: I stayed up WAY past my bedtime because I had to finish it. All in all, a terrific read. And I'm happy that I already have the sequel, Soul Hunter, because I plan to delve in as soon as possible!