The Rules of Magic by Alice Hoffman

Set primarily in the late 1950s and early 1960s, Alice Hoffman's novel is a coming of age story about three siblings who can trace their ancestry back to the 1600s and a woman deemed a witch in Salem, Massachusetts. This 2017 novel, a prequel to Hoffman's 1995 book Practical Magic, puts a witchy spin on themes such as parents trying to do their best and young people coping with new experiences in love and launching their adult lives. The Rules of Magic is an easy to read and entertaining novel.

Clever Plot in The Promise by Robert Crais

In The Promise, private detective Elvis Cole is hired to find a missing woman who allegedly embezzled money from her employer. As he delves into the job, he finds that the missing woman is involved with bad guys and may be selling plastic explosives to terrorists. Cole also finds that nothing is what it seems to be, except for his regular crew: Joe Pike and Jon Stone.

Is this the greatest Robert Crais book ever? No. It's fun to read, but a little thin. A number of chapters are told from the perspective of a police dog, who is a key character in the story along with her human partner. Additionally, lots of information about what makes dogs so effective in military and police work is woven into the book. This is an entertaining plot element, but it is not one rich in story, language or humor. Still, I enjoyed The Promise. The plot has many intriguing twists and turns. If you are putting together books for a vacation read, add this to the stack.

"Delicious: A Novel" by Ruth Reichl

Delicious: Girl moves to New York, finds her niche, gets a makeover, gets a new boyfriend, solves a mystery, and comes to terms with a sorrow from her past. Food is involved.

This plot appears to make Delicious what they call "women's fiction". I found it to be a perfectly fine beach or airplane read from Reichl, who is a food writer, the last editor-in-chief of Gourmet, and author of numerous memoirs including the excellent Tender at the Bone.

"The Darlings" by Cristina Alger: Because white-collar criminals have family, too.

The Darlings by Cristina Alger is an entertaining and suspenseful read.  Set aside your skepticism about reading a novel concerning a wealthy, society family brought down low by its patriarch's criminal involvement in a Bernie Madoff-style Ponzi scheme.  Set aside your skepticism about toting around a book called "The Darlings".  If you are looking for a good airplane read, beach book, or snowy-winter weekend escape, check out this novel.

Events in The Darlings take place in New York City over Thanksgiving weekend.  The Darling family learns that Morton Reis is dead. Morty, the book's Bernie Madoff figure, was the head of Reis Capitol Management and a close friend and business associate of Carter Darling.  Carter Darling and his partners run Delphic, a Wall Street investment firm.  Morty's death will, as Carter's lawyer cautions Carter, have fallout.  And indeed it does.

Carter's firm is deeply involved in Morty's phony finances.  With Morty gone, the scheme is over and Carter will inevitably face the consequences. The tension in the story builds as the Darlings' legal strategy develops over the weekend.

One person Carter could set up as a fall guy is Paul Ross, Delphic's General Counsel and Carter's son-in-law. Although Paul has worked at Delphic only for a short time, he quickly recognizes his jeopardy.  What he doesn't know is the scope of felonious behavior that has been going on.

Will the Darling family stand together or are the long knives out?  Who will be the first one through the door, cutting a deal with prosecutors and regulators?  This is the engaging story line in The Darlings, a novel that starts slowly but builds up steam, and has many surprising twists and turns all the way to the last page.

"Gone Girl" by Gillian Flynn.

I've finally gotten around to reading Gone Girl.  I put it off because, really, who wants to read about marriage on the skids, a missing-presumed-murdered young wife, bad adult behavior, and borderline sociopaths?  Isn't this the kind of story that television is there to supply?

Well, it turns out that lots of people have wanted to read Gone Girl.

Gone Girl is one of Amazon's biggest sellers this year.  Checking today, it ranks at number 12 after the clutter of Fifty Shades and Hunger Games titles.  So, I gave the book a turn.  And admittedly, it is entertaining reading.

The book is about Nick and Amy, a married couple in their mid-30s.  After both lose their job in New York City, they move to Nick's hometown in Missouri.  Things don't go well.  Amy, a native New Yorker, isn't thrilled with her new life.  Money is tight.  The last $80,000 from her trust fund is used by Nick to purchase a bar.  But their fifth wedding anniversary is coming around and it is an opportunity to get on track.

However, Amy disappears on the day of their anniversary.  The police investigate.  Soon Nick becomes their primary suspect for being the cause of that disappearance.

Did Nick do something irrevocable?  Did Amy?

Gone Girl is easy to read, occasionally funny, and often insightful about people and what motivates them.  The plot is nicely put together to build interest and some suspense.

Don't fear the grim subject matter.  If Gone Girl were a cocktail, it would be a Diet and Jack:  Easy to consume and providing a little jolt of entertainment.  If that's what you like, or are looking for on occasion, check it out.

Book Snapshots: "Nobody Move: A Novel" by Denis Johnson

Nobody Move: A Novel by Denis Johnson. Good writing. Fast read. Crime, corruption, gamblers, bikers, hit men. A bit raunchy; the material first appeared as a number of short stories published in Playboy. Airplane book.