Love Mercy

Love Mercy presents another stellar cast of characters with an intriguing plot. Three women in different seasons of life, ensnared in such different circumstances, join forces and face their problems head on. Thanks go out to the author for including our familiar family. It's an extra thread which Benni Harper fans will love. Love Mercy Johnson: we'll want to see more of her!

Love Mercy is an intriguing new series by Earlene Fowler, one of my favorite writers (and favorite human beings). Years ago when I was lucky enough to read Earlene's very first chapter to Fool's Puzzle, I knew I had found a writer who would provide me with stories I could enjoy over and over again until I was an old lady dipping my Nilla Wafers in milky tea. If you haven't read her mystery series, I urge you to. The crimes are secondary to her wonderful characters, whose stories are the heart of the books. In Saddlemaker's Wife, Earlene gave us a story of the politics of family, and in Love Mercy, she manages to deliver the entire town. I wish I could have breakfast at The Buttercream Cafe and visit with everyone in this novel. Read it and share it with people you love.

In Morro Bay, California, Love Mercy Johnson has taken in stride recently becoming a widow as she is generally contented with her life though she still "talks" with her Cy and misses his foghorn laugh. She enjoys writing a column and taking photos for a magazine, working on her in-laws' cattle ranch and co-owning the Buttercream Café except for balancing the books. Her only regret is her rift with her grandchildren; she wishes she could patch things up with them, but they have long memories. Out of the blue, her eighteen years old granddaughter, Loretta Lynn "Rett" arrives in Morro Bay after hitching across the country to escape from a relationship that turned ugly. Whereas Rett dreams of making it as a song writer or as a truck driver, Mercy wants her granddaughter in her life. Still they struggle to make amends, but the divide remains wide until a crisis forces grandma and grandchild to decide to unite or remain apart. This is a profound character study of two women divided by a family feud that keeps each from reaching out to the other; something both emotionally need and want. Readers will admire Mercy, whose asides to Cy enable readers to understand her. Rett brings the youthful enthusiasm that anything is possible. Rotating perspective with Benni Harper playing a minor role, Earlene Fowler proves Rett's theory of life and relationships as she and her grandma hold the engaging plot together. Harriet Klausner

I love Earlene Fowler's books. Her characters are so real they become friends. It is always hard for me to miss Benni and Gabe but her Saddle Maker's Wife was wonderful so I knew this one would be too. This is the story of three women, one young, one not yet middle aged, and one older. Their relationships are the basis of the story and all the people they interact with. The story is compelling and the characters as always so very real. But what I got from this book more than any of her others is an amazing appreciation of how well she writes. I'd be reading a passage and stop to marvel at how beautifully it was written. Her descriptions are particularly apt whether describing Love's photos or her dog, or the ups and downs in the lives of the characters. Morro Bay is a character in itself. I rarely tell what the story is about in my reviews, that's what reading is for but I will tell you whether it's worth reading and why you might like it. This book is definitely worth reading if you like great writing, full characters and a good story. There are perils in store, and growing to do for the women involved but it is wonderful to travel their road with them. I miss Benni and Gabe, although they are there, as is Hud, but I will be glad to follow these characters as they go forward and to share them with my reading friends. I know Earlene, I've told her I don't think she can write a bad book, but with this one she proved to me she can write and amazing one. I love, Love Mercy, I hope you do to.

To start, I will make an unabashed admittance that I am a big fan of Earlene Fowler's Benni Harper mystery series. I'm such a fan that's it is hard to be objective about Fowler's books. However, after a long wait, I was disappointed that Fowler's new release was not going to be about Benni and company. I was a little reluctant to read this new book, afraid I would perhaps like the characters, as I did in Fowler's stand-alone, The Saddlemaker's Wife, but not come to love them. I was wrong. Love Mercy, the titular character, is one of three main characters who live in Morro Bay, California. The story switches points of view between Love, her granddaughter Rett, and Mel, a close family friend. All three perspectives are interesting with each woman holding her own in their stories that weave together into the whole. This is not a murder mystery although there are some suspense and law enforcement elements to the novel. Overall, it's a story about women surviving, living happily, despite loss and suffering while surrounding themselves with a network of friends and family. It provides hope without being preachy or overly sentimental, a nice balance. This novel stands well on its own and should appeal to a broader audience, not just one that likes Fowler's mysteries. For example, I think my mother-in-law would enjoy this one while I'm not sure she would love the Benni series as much as I do. Fowler tells a good story and writes relationships and emotions very well, without descending into the trite or melodramatic. She can write about death and grief, capturing all the emotions that accompany trying times, without being depressing. She writes about happier times as well, often pulling back and avoiding overly sentimental or sappy moments. Her deft hand in portraying Benni and Gabe's relationship has made me a fan, but this new novel shows that she can excel with other characters and plots just as well. Another bonus for Fowler's fans is that Benni and company make appearances in this novel in smooth, understandable ways and without feeling like cameos written just to appease us. They are part of the supporting cast of characters, introduced in such a way that first time readers who don't know the characters may never know that they appear in an entire series of books. More interesting is that while the Benni Harper Ortiz series is set in the 1990s, Love Mercy is set in 2008, so we are learning about these characters' lives roughly fifteen years later. No spoilers, but Hud figures strongly in this novel for those who are particular fans of his. So while I may miss Benni and Gabe's stories and hope for a new one in the near future, I am more than satisfied with this novel and hope we will see these characters again, even if it means more than a year's wait between Benni's stories.