Book Review: Lincoln's Melancholy: How Depression Challenged a President and Fueled His Greatness by Joshua Wolf Shenk *****

Lincoln's Melancholy: How Depression Challenged a President and Fueled His Greatness: How Depression Challenged a President and Fueled His Greatness by Joshua Wolf Shenk
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

A wonderful look at how depression shaped Lincoln's life and how his struggles with it, painful as they were, helped make him the great man the US needed to bring us through our darkest hours. Not only did it provide extraordinary detail about his life and personality, mostly but not entirely through that lens, but there was also quite a bit of context provided, such as how people of that era saw strong emotions in men, as well as some of the intellectual currents in which he was immersed.

Richard M. Davidson, the narrator, was also a pleasure to listen to and enhanced my enjoyment of the book.

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Book Review: Murder at Black Oaks by Philip Margolin ***1/2

Murder at Black Oaks by Phillip Margolin
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I had often considered trying one of Philip Margolin’s books and this one looked intriguing, so I figured I would give it a shot. A creepy, isolated mansion with a curse on it, a group of near-strangers gathered together when the roads are washed out by a storm, a murderous escapee from a nearby mental hospital on the loose - what’s not to like? Thankfully, although Robin Lockwood is a series character, that didn’t affect my ability to get up to speed, possibly a benefit of taking her out of her regular surroundings.

Robin is originally contacted by Frank Melville, a former prosecutor who had put college student Jose Alvarez on death row for the murder of his girlfriend. Then, years later, the real killer confessed to him but made it impossible for him to bring justice to the wrongly convicted man. Now circumstances have changed, and he wants Robin to take on the case. After Jose is freed, Frank invites him and Robin to his house, a transplanted (or recreated - I wasn’t clear on which) English mansion, complete with a rumored curse - featuring werewolves, yet! The other elements of the classic “country house mystery” fall into place in quick succession, and soon after that the first murder happens, in a novel twist on the classic “locked room.” Finally, after several tense hours, the party is put back in touch with the rest of the world, but it is only some time later that Robin manages to pull all the threads together and expose the killer.

I had slightly mixed feelings about this book. On the whole, I enjoyed it and I didn’t guess the killer, which I see as a positive as long as I feel like I had a decent chance, but I'm not sure how well the plot fits into the Christie-esque framework. It also seemed amazingly coincidental that everything (most of which was beyond the killer’s control) came together as it did, but then Margolin does have a short blurb offering this book up as a homage to Golden Age mysteries. I’ve been reading quite a few of those recently and it’s amazing how much coincidence features in those, so intentional or not, I suppose that gives it authenticity. One thing that I did feel weakened it slightly right at the start was beginning with Frank’s story in Chapter One and then having him retell the same story to Robin when he talks to her, but that was a pretty minor detail.

Final verdict: If I could, I would give this book 3-1/2 stars, but I will round up and give it 4

I received a copy of Murder at Black Oaks from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

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