Deceiving Elvera

By: Peg Herring

Narrated by: Naomi Rose-Mock

From the author of mysteries such as Killing Silence and Her Highness' First Murder comes a new women's fiction novel, a compelling tale of friendship, love, loss, and the life-changing power of helping others. Spanning the decades from the 1960s to the present, the story focuses on Cathy Charbonneau, a rural Michigan girl, and Elvera Tharp, the child of wealthy parents from Chicago. They meet on Michigan’s Mackinac Island and over four summers become close friends.

As young women, Cathy and Elvera lose touch. They marry and face tragedy, each in her own way. Cathy goes to Thailand, where she learns that chaos in Cambodia has sent thousands of displaced Khmers to camps on the Thai border. Unable to ignore their plight, she becomes involved in people-smuggling. When she faces an impossible situation at home, Elvera eventually joins Cathy in Thailand. Her arrival mends their broken friendship but leads to terror and a desperate fight for survival on a rainy hillside.

Told in flashbacks, the story emerges as a cruise ship cabin steward Michael is assigned to serve the cantankerous, full-time passenger known as Miss E. Michael's quest to get to know the real Miss E brings him to a reckoning with his own past, leading to a suspenseful situation and a shocking conclusion.

Deceiving Elvera is a poignant, heart-warming, and heart-breaking story of friendship as how two women support each other through the hard times life deals to all of us.

©2020 Peg Herring (P)2021 Peg Herring

Excellent!

The book was a little slow to start, but once it kicked off I was hooked. A fabulous story! The narrator did mispronounce a few MI towns (from this MI native), but overall a great read. I wonder if it has any basis in real life characters?