“Everyone had a reason to kill Tom” in “Inheriting Love’s Flames,” second in Cuyahoga Falls author Laura Freeman’s Second Chances historical romance-mysteries set in 1880s Ohio.
“Everyone had a reason to hate him” says Paddy Donovan, sheriff of Canal Town, who also owns the dry goods store where his cousin Caroline “Liny” Bauer works. Paddy and Liny are chatting with Paddy’s deputy Cal when a man rushes in with the news that Tom Harrington’s barn is on fire and that Tom is dead.
Everyone knew that Tom was a nasty man who beat his wife, but he’d also been known to swindle people in his business – he rented mules to canalboat operators so they could exchange their tired towpath mules for fresh. In 1878 Canal Town, close to Akron, the canal is the lifeblood of the community.
Liny’s feckless younger brothers George and Will later confess that they had accidentally started a fire in the barn with a discarded cigar but insist that they had put it out and that they hadn’t seen Tom’s body. This puts Liny in an ethical dilemma as she is not only the town midwife but serves as an unofficial secretary to Paddy.
Liny, Cal and Paddy set off to inspect the Harrington place. Tom’s widow Rachel isn’t too unhappy to hear about her husband’s death. With motives of money and revenge, there is no shortage of suspects including Rachel, a smarmy fortune-hunting minister and one of the many people Tom had cheated. “I thought this was going to be easier,” says the sheriff.
Liny has a sharp mind and Cal, with courting on his mind, feels threatened by her intellect, but he is forthright about his intentions and presses his suit more seriously.
The forensic method by which the team investigates, first determining the cause of death (mostly Liny’s work) is intriguing, as is the description of commerce on the canal, with boats bringing in merchandise and hotel guests. The complicated Ohio rules of inheritance make Rachel a guest in her own home – she has the right to live there without charge or rent it to others, but can’t sell it.
In the first book, “Inheriting Love’s Secrets,” Liny’s friend Dierdre is involved in helping abused women escape from their circumstances in an Underground Railroad type of setup. There is some crossover with Freeman’s six-book Impending Love series
“Inheriting Love’s Flames” (306 pages, softcover) costs $19.99 from Wild Rose Press. Laura Freeman, a former journalist, also is the author of the contemporary detective story “Raining Tears.”
‘Stevie Nicks in 50 Songs’
The first song in “Stevie Nicks in 50 Songs” by Cleveland entertainment journalist Annie Zaleski isn’t a Stevie Nicks song. Neither are the next four, nor the last. Rather than making a simple list of Nicks’ most representative songs, Zaleski analyzes the singer-songwriter’s influences and inspirations.
It starts with “Are You Mine,” a 1955 country duet by Red Sovine and Goldie Hill, that Nicks’ grandfather taught her. It continues with songs by the Mamas and the Papas and Linda Ronstadt before getting to the 1973 “Crying in the Night,” which she recorded with then-partner Lindsey Buckingham.
Most chapters include quotes from Nicks interviews, and there are many color photos in this large-format book.
There are sidebars about the Stevie Nicks Barbie doll, her friendship with Fleetwood Mac bandmate Christine McVie and her ever-present top hats and shawls.
Zaleski wrote the best-selling “Taylor Swift: The Stories Behind the Songs” and “I Got You Babe: A Celebration of Cher” and books about Duran Duran and Lady Gaga.
“Stevie Nicks in 50 Songs” (216 pages, hardcover) costs $30 from Running Press. Annie Zaleski also is the author of “This Is Christmas, Song by Song: The Stories Behind 100 Holiday Hits.”
Annie Zaleski will sign “Stevie Nicks in 50 Songs” from 7 to 8 p.m. May 6 at the Middleburg Heights branch of Cuyahoga County Public Library, 16699 Bagley Road. Register at cuyahogalibrary.org.
Events
Lakewood Public Library (15425 Detroit Ave.): Calliope Women’s Poetry Circle members Diana Lueptow, Haylee Schwenk, Maria Perme, Cora McCann Liderbach, Shei Sanchez, Sujata Lakhe, Lindsay Barba and Jackie Zielke read from their work, 2 p.m. May 3.
Cuyahoga County Public Library (Brecksville branch, 9089 Brecksville Road): Allan R. May talks about “The Last Days of the Cleveland Mafia, 1978-1973,” 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. May 4. Register at cuyahogalibrary.org.
Hower House Museum (60 Fir Hill): University of Akron anthropology professors Carolyn Behrman and Timothy Matney talk about “What Remains: Infirmary Burials, Memory, and Community in the Rubber City,” 6:30 to 8 p.m. May 4. Admission is $8 for nonmembers.
Cuyahoga County Public Library (Mayfield branch, 500 SOM Center Road, Mayfield Village): Bob Spitz talks about “The Rolling Stones: The Biography,” 7 to 8 p.m. May 4. Register at cuyahogalibrary.org.
Cuyahoga County Public Library (South Euclid-Lyndhurst branch, 1876 S. Green Road, South Euclid): 2026 Writer in Residence Brad Ricca (“Lincoln’s Ghost: Houdini’s War on Spiritualism and the Dark Conspiracy Against the American Presidency”) gives a “Finding the Power of Narrative Nonfiction,” talk, 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. May 5. Register at cuyahogalibrary.org.
Shaker Heights Public Library (16500 Van Aken Blvd.): Melody Chu (“Mathey Girls”) and Margaret Wong (“The Immigrant’s Way”) sign their books, 7 to 8:30 p.m. May 5. Register at shakerlibrary.org.
Cuyahoga County Public Library (Beachwood branch, 25501 Shaker Blvd.): Alan Cohen signs “Comfort Always: Healing in the Age of Technology,” 7 to 8 p.m. May 5. Register at cuyahogalibrary.org.
Cuyahoga County Public Library (Garfield Heights branch, 5409 Turney Road): Allan R. May talks about “The Last Days of the Cleveland Mafia, 1978-1973,” 6 to 7 p.m. May 6. Register at cuyahogalibrary.org.
Cuyahoga County Public Library (Middleburg Heights branch, 16699 Bagley Road): Laurie Carey signs “Resilience is a Muscle,” 1 to 2 p.m. May 8. Register at cuyahogalibrary.org.
Akron-Summit County Public Library (Northwest Akron branch, 1720 Shatto Ave.): Pickerington native Natalie D. Richards, whose “49 Miles Alone” won a 2025 Edgar Allan Poe award in the Best Young Adult category, gives a “Fanfiction to Published” workshop and talks about her teen thriller “Two Perfect Lies,” 4:30 to 6 p.m. May 7.
Akron-Summit County Public Library (Fairlawn-Bath branch, 3101 Smith Road): Clarence Bechter signs “The Time of My Life with Bubba’s Pampered Pedalers: 3000 Miles from San Diego, California, to St. Augustine, Florida,” about the 52-day bicycle trip he took in 2019 at the age of 67, 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. May 7.
Cuyahoga Falls Library: Marjan Kamali, author of “The Lion Women of Tehran,” joins the Virtual Author Chat series to talk about “On Courage, Turmoil, and the Transformative Power of Love,” 7 to 8 p.m. May 7. Register at fallslibrary.org.
National First Ladies Library & Museum: The Legacy Lecture series hosts a Mother’s Day Virtual Tea and speakers Libby McNamee, author of the “Remember the Ladies” middle grade novel series, and “The History Mom” blogger Jayda Justus, noon May 8. The Zoom event costs $9.53; go to firstladies.org.
M Italian (12 W. Orange St., Chagrin Falls): Former Beacon Journal writer Thrity Umrigar talks about her books including “Missing Sam” at a buffet lunch, noon May 8. The $70 cost includes a copy of the book. Register at firesidebookshop.com.
Learned Owl Book Shop (204 N. Main St., Hudson): Tina Toedt of North Canton signs “The Art of Retirement … Opening the Next Door,” 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. May 9.
Books a Go Go (220 W. Main St., Ravenna): Margaret Denardo reads from “Ray Ray’s Cattastic Adventure Tales,” 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. May 9.
Email information about books of local interest and event notices at least two weeks in advance to beaconbooktalk@gmail.com. I tweet at @BarbaraMcI.
This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: ‘Inheriting Love’s Flames,’ ‘Stevie Nicks in 50 Songs | Book Talk
Reporting by Barbara McIntyre, Special to USA TODAY NETWORK – Ohio / Akron Beacon Journal
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
