Forgotten Boxes

I hope everyone has had a good Sunday.  I spent the afternoon changing the battery in our car.  The job took longer than expected because of tool issues.  I had to hunt for the right tools (I really wish my father had labeled his tool drawers).  In the end, though, a brand new battery is in the car and the car works!  I am celebrating with my favorite chocolates.

Forgotten Boxes is a suspense novel written by Becki Willis.  Charity Gannon lives in Maryland where she has a freelance graphic design business.  Charity has come to Vermont to claim her inheritance from her aunt, Nell Tillman.  While cleaning out the shed behind the house, Charity discovers a black garbage bag with four boxes inside.  The boxes all of labels of Kingdom Parcel with the date of March 14, 1984.  March 14, 1984 is the date her uncle, Harold Tillman, was found dead in his delivery truck by the side of the road.  His death was declared a suicide.  Nell kept the clothes that Harold wore the day he died in her bedroom on a hall tree.  The shirt has a bullet hole surrounded by blood.  Charity has never been able to get the complete story of her uncle’s death.  Kingdom Parcel was the company her uncle started with two investors.  Charity decides to deliver the boxes to their intended recipients.  The first box provides a heartwarming love story, but the second undelivered box resulted in a terrible tragedy.  The final two boxes lead Charity to Tarn Danbury, the sugarmaker and his parents.  Charity had encountered Tarn at Dan’s Market in town.  He introduced Charity to the delights of Vermont maple syrup and maple cream.  These two boxes will provide the answers to a thirty-one year old mystery.  But someone else wants those boxes and will do anything necessary to get them. 

Forgotten Boxes is nicely written and is easily read.  The pace does get a little slow at times especially during the descriptions of the scenery, food, and Tarn.  The author likes to be descriptive in her narratives of nature and Tarn (I think she used every adjective available to describe him).  The whirlwind romance between Charity and Tarn is very much in the forefront of the book, and I found it to be just plain sappy (I skimmed through the sections on their attraction to each other).  I give Forgotten Boxes 2 out of 5 stars.  The mystery can be figured out early in the book (it is obvious from the moment Harold goes into business with the two men).  The reader will easily figure out what happened to Harold and the business long before it is revealed in Forgotten Boxes.  I did not feel that this was a suspense novel (there is no thrill or trepidation at all).  I thought the characters lacked development (they are superficial).  We never get many details on Charity or her past (though we certainly know what she thinks about Tarn).  The author does provide many detailed descriptions on Tarn’s appearance.  If you enjoy sentimental romance novels, then you will like reading Forgotten Boxes.  If you are looking for a good mystery or suspense novel, skip Forgotten Boxes.  Forgotten Boxes is a part of the Kindle Unlimited program on Amazon.  You can follow Becki Willis on Facebook and you can check out her other novels on her website.

I will see you tomorrow when I return with my thoughts on A Fatal Twist by Tracy Weber.  I am going to spend my evening relaxing with Beyond the Carousel by Bette Lee Crosby.  I will be watching The Librarians, Conviction, and Garage Sale Mystery:  The Art of Murder. Take care, stay warm and Happy Reading!

Kris

The Avid Reader