I was eagerly anticipating Wendy Webb’s novel, The Tale of Halcyon Crane, since I first began reading the pre-pub buzz earlier this year. When our library copy arrived, I snatched it up before it even had a chance to hit the shelf.

Hallie James is living in the Pacific Northwest, mourning the recent death of her father, with whom she had a close relationship since her mother died in a fire when she was very young. Only she didn’t. In fact, what Hallie learns just days after her father’s death, is that her mother, up until just weeks ago, was alive and well. Hallie travels to Grand Manitou Island (a fictionalized Mackinac Island), her birthplace, to uncover the secrets of her past. Hallie (or rather, Halcyon) has the ability to see ghosts, and she encounters a few on the island, spirits who seem to either be warning Hallie or trying to harm her.

A tale with all the hallmarks of the classic gothic ghost story, I had high hopes for this one. Unfortunately, they didn’t pan out for me. I don’t want to give anything away for those of you who may read it, as it’s certainly an easy and quick read, but I found it unsatisfying. There were fleeting moments of real suspense and and spooky atmosphere, but those were bogged down by various elements that didn’t seem plausible, others that were too predictable, and weak character development along with questionable actions on the part of certain characters in response to situations or events. The ending was anticlimactic and in fact, I didn’t realize I’d finished the book until I turned the page, expecting to read more and discovered I’d come to the end of the story. All in all, an okay but disappointing read.

Last summer, Joshilyn Jackson visited our library and spoke about her books and the writing process. Her personality was a pleasant mix of Southern charm and wit, and the crowd frequently erupted into laughter at one or another of her anecdotes. I bought a couple of her books but never got around to reading them, so this year when our book club chose her debut novel, Gods in Alabama as one of its reading selections, I was pleased to be able to remedy that. Unfortunately, it wasn’t one of the books I purchased, so I ended up having to borrow a copy from the library, so I still have yet to read one of the books I own. Still, no big deal, and I was looking forward to seeing how much of Jackson’s personality came through in her writing.

As it turns out, quite a bit. One of the things she discussed during her visit was how the first draft of her book was critiqued by a fellow writer as being too safe. She didn’t allow her characters to get mired in their own muck, so to speak. Well, she went back to the proverbial drawing board and rewrote the book from scratch. The result is a novel with elements of chick lit, black comedy and southern gothic, all rolled together.

Arlene Fleet is living in Chicago, having left her native Alabama a decade ago after making a promise to God that she would leave and never return. She also promised never to lie nor to fornicate, two activities she had up to that point, engaged in with regularity. In return, God would let the body of the man she murdered remain undiscovered. But Arlene’s past comes calling and she’s forced to rescind on her part of the bargain. What follows is a cautionary tale for letting the past dictate your future and proof that we are only as sick as our secrets – and that eventually, the truth (or most of it, at least) will come out.

Although I didn’t love this book, I did like it well enough to want to read her other books, particularly her newest book, Backseat Saints, which focuses on one of the secondary characters from Gods in Alabama.

Until I started training for my half marathon this past spring, I’d never heard of John ‘The Penguin’ Bingham. But when I went to a pre-race expo, his quotes (one of my favorites: “The miracle isn’t that I finished. The miracle is that I had the courage to start.”) and trademark waddling penguin were all over the place. So I put a request in at the library for one of his books, No Need for Speed, and read it over the course of a few weeks, in between other books and when I could spare a few moments from training for my next event, an Iron Girl sprint triathlon (which is coming up next week – ack!). A mix of practical and inspirational advice, Bingham focuses on people who, like myself, discovered their inner athlete rather late in life – the ‘adult onset athletes’ as he terms them. Rather than an elitist sport, Bingham sees running as an activity for the masses – one that requires virtually no special equipment and only the momentum of our own bodies to work.

I think I would have gotten the most value out of this book if I’d read it a year ago, as much of it was either reaffirming things I already knew and believed, or he was ‘preaching to the choir,’ as they say. For people who are considering running but intimidated by the sport, or who think that they have to run like a Kenyan in order to qualify as a runner, Bingham’s book will enlighten and inspire them to move. As one of my favorite adages states, “You don’t have to go fast, you just have to go.”