MEANDER SCAR, by Lisa J. Lickel

Lickel's third novel, Meander Scar, weaves a tale of surprises and heart-wrenching emotional dilemmas. The term, "Meander Scar" refers to scars on the landscape left after high water causes a river to temporarily change course. When the overflow evaporates, a scar is left in the place where the river once ran.

Meander Scar uses this as a metaphor for protagonist, Ann Ballard's, life. Ann is a forty-something woman who lives alone when Mark Roth, who lived next door as a boy, shows up on her doorstep. At first she believes he’s there to visit his old neighborhood and contact his boyhood friends. But there’s a deeper reason for Mark’s appearance. As the story progresses, Mark’s history makes it clear why he’s come seeking Ann.

Although Ann is attracted to his dark good looks, she reminds herself that Mark is eleven years younger than she is. As he overcomes her initial doubts about his motives, more serious complications come to light from Ann’s own background. Some of the most profound questions raised in this book arise from Ann’s reactions to discoveries about her past.

Lickel has written a convincing novel about love in all its forms. If you want to be intrigued by an unusual plot, Meander Scar is for you.

TEA TIME FOR THE TRADITIONALLY BUILT, By Alexander McCall Smith

Tea Time for the Traditionally Built is McCall Smith's tenth novel in the No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency series. I have the whole series, and can think of no better books to read when I want something peaceful and reassuring.

In the case of Tea Time for the Traditionally Built, "traditionally built" refers to the protagonist in all of these novels, Precious Ramotswe of Botswana, Africa. Mma Ramotswe prefers to think of herself as traditionally built, rather than fat, as she is sometimes referred to by unkind persons.

Mma Ramotswe is a staunch defender of all that is traditional about Botswana, and often muses on the old ways she remembers from her childhood. Each of the No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency novels involves cases to be solved by Mma Ramotswe’s agency. In the case of Tea Time for the Traditionally Built, the cases include discovering who might be throwing the games of the local football team and advising a woman who is juggling two boyfriends.

While she works her inimitable way through these mysteries, Mma Ramotswe is struggling with worries of her own. Her tiny white van is on its last legs (wheels?) and she is trying to hide the fact from her husband, Mr. J.L.B. Matekoni, a mechanic, for fear he’ll send her much-loved vehicle to the scrap heap.

If you haven’t discovered this series yet, I recommend you start with Book One, The No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency, and prepare yourself for hours of delight.

The Choice, by Suzanne Woods Fisher

I've read very little Amish fiction--no small feat, considering how many Amish novels are out there right now. The Choice is the riveting story of Carrie Weaver, an Amish girl torn between two worlds. When the novel opens, she’s planning to run away with her boyfriend to live in the "English" world. In a sharp turn of events, her plans are thwarted by tragedy.

Fisher opens the world of the Amish and their beliefs to the reader with her skillful and gentle prose. She’s uniquely qualified to so do, as her grandfather was raised in the Old Order German Baptist Church in Pennsylvania.

The situations that arise in Carrie’s life twist and turn to the point where the reader can’t see how she will find her way to forgiveness and reconciliation with God. The Choice had me reading "just one more chapter" to find out how the story would end.

The Choice is beautifully written--I loved Fisher’s similes. Here’s one I thought was exceptional: “Emma hovered over Vonnie like a bee over blooming lavender . . . “ Here Fisher not only captures the essence of Emma’s hovering, she does it in a way that reflects the simplicity of the Amish world.

I thoroughly recommend The Choice. I’ll be looking forward to Fisher’s next book in the Lancaster County Secrets series.