Kim Wright

The title City of Light is a reference to Paris, France, which is the primary setting for the novel. Paris has a magical quality, but also a mysterious quality. Of course, I've never been but this is the rumor confirmed by the many novels I've read set in ol' Parie...

Once again we are plunged into the lives of criminal experts Trevor Welles and Rayley Abrams. With the Jack the Ripper all sewn up case (do you see what I did there? :-), or gone cold for the cynics, Rayley has been invited to show more Paris to learn more about the art of forensics. Staying behind awaiting good word is Trevor Welles - the head of the first Forensic Division of Scotland Yard appointed by Queen Victoria herself, Tom Bainbridge - a medical student, Davy Mabrey - a "bobby" with a keen eye and good sense, and off the record, Emma Kelly, the sister of the last victim of the Ripper. Their team is set to work on a case involving an underage male brothel. But, it seems brothels for the English and business deals for the Parisians are better acquainted than one might assume. Centered around the reveal of one of the Seven Wonder of the World, the Eiffel Tower, Welles and his team discover themselves in the the thick of cross-ocean crimes with one of their own fighting for life. Will the team connect all the clues in time?

Wright has a wonderful dynamic between her characters. I love that Emma Kelly is often one of the most intriguing and ingenious members of the team, even if she's not allowed to be on the official payroll. Wright makes a statement by having Emma be such an integral part of the criminal investigations. As one would assume, women could not be a part of such an organization during this time period.

And Emma Kelly is not the only daring female in the tale. I think Wright makes a solid point about being a woman when she writes, "Beautiful and smart. A woman should be one or the other, not both, or she is in an impossible situation - attractive enough to draw men, be shrewd enough to see through them."

Keeping with wonderful British charm, "And here's another one for you to stir into your tea..." and true to the personas created in book one, City of Darkness, City of Light continues to embed the reader in the lives of each personality. From beginning to end one roots for Trevor and his team to flesh out the bad guy and always, always get their man. show less

Being a member in good standing of the ‘He Man Woman-Haters Club’ I don’t usually stoop to reading that subgenre commonly referred to as chick lit but after corresponding with author Kim Wright and finding her to be delightful and funny, I figured I would go ahead and give her newest book a try, so I ordered a copy. My resolve waivered a bit when it arrived and I found the cover to be pinker than a flamingo’s tutu but Kim assured me that as the author she had no say in any decisions show more regarding cover color so I braced myself, wrapped the book in a brown paper cover like mama used to do in grade school, and gave it a go.

It was actually pretty good. For starters, it’s about a road trip. For some reason 2016 seems to be my ear for southern road trip books, what with Carrying Albert Home, Fallen Land, Rivers and Absalom's Daughters: A Novel, and I’ve found that I’ve come to enjoy the way they flow with new adventures arising at every bend in the road. LTtG has the advantage of including one of the coolest cars in existence, a 1973 Stutz Blackhawk, the last car that Elvis Presley (pause for moment of reverent silence) ever drove. Before I started this book my only knowledge of the Stutz Motor Company came from building a model of a 1913 Stutz Bearcat, the stripped-down models with the cylindrical gas tank behind the seats. I didn’t even know the company still existed into my lifetime. But this car is amazing. It’s like if a Lincoln Town Car and a Jaguar got together and had a shiny black baby.

I digress. In short, Cory finds a car that once belonged to her mother, once a back-up singer for Elvis, and set off on a four-state ramble to discover just who she was, or so she thinks. Over the next few days she meets several people who share with her the story of her mama’s trip from Graceland on that fateful night in August 1977.

Ms. Wright spins an imaginative tale full of well-developed characters and does it in a manner that would make her story-telling southern ancestors proud. show less

Last Ride to Graceland by Kim Wright by Kim Wright is a 2016 Gallery Books publication. I was provided a copy of this book by the publisher and an XOXpert, the official street team of XOXO After Dark.

“It was like he came along and whispered some dream in everybody’s ear, and somehow we all dreamed it. - Bruce Springsteen

This is an engrossing story, steeped in whimsical history, featuring the King of rock -n- roll, and the story of Laura “Honey” Berry and her daughter, Cory.

The rich show more atmosphere of a good old fashioned southern road trip, peppered with history and sprinkled with a colorful cast, all works together to generate a poignant tale which connects a mother and daughter, on the ultimate journey of self-discovery.

Cory Ainsworth, a blues musician, at the age of thirty-seven, has never seemed able to settle down. With her mother’s recent death, Cory feels as though the time is long overdue for her address the issue of her biological father, because it is most certainly not Bradley, the man who raised her as his own.

Laura Ainsworth, nee’ Berry, also known as “Honey”, was a backup singer for Elvis in the last years of his life. She lived at Graceland, fell in love, then soon finds herself ‘in trouble’. She makes the long sojourn back home to South Carolina and immediately married her high school sweetheart, gave birth to Cory seven months later, and continued on with life with little mention of her past and certainly not Elvis.

Now, all these years later, Bradley sets things in motion for Cory by sending her on an errand which leads her to the discovery of a 1973 Stutz Blackhawk automobile, that has been literally entombed since 1977. There is no doubt this car belonged to Elvis and Cory intends to return it to Graceland and retrace her mother’s journey in reverse from South Carolina to Memphis, hoping to prove Elvis was her real father.

Along the way, Cory picks up a fellow traveler, a coon hound, she names Lucy and the two become inseparable, which convinces me this trip is karma at its finest.

While Cory’s focus is on finding her father, what she discovers is how complex her mother really was. Honey was not the Laura Ainsworth that Cory grew up with. She is certainly remembered by many, but each person seems to have a different take on her character, making her a bit of a mystery to Cory.

Via Honey’s diaries, we are privy to Honey’s version of events, which, coupled with the retelling of Elvis’ last days adds a bittersweet quality to the tale.

Cory’s journey opens her eyes to many things, as the past merges with the present, and she discovers she is more like her mother than she ever thought possible. All the characters she encounters are unique, all of them giving Cory a little insight into her mother’s past. Some of these characters are likeable, some not as much., but in their own way, I think they all felt a sincere fondness for Honey and for Cory, even those who were full of it.

I have to admit, I was never a huge fan of Elvis, but I did find the passages highlighting conversations between him and Honey to be interesting, and I do believe Honey and Cory had him pegged pretty good, but of course, he did show Honey a great kindness, and for that reason, he is a redeemable character in the story.

This journey will resolve many of Cory’s lingering and burning questions, the most important of which is the discovery of the real Laura Ainsworth, and in the process, the discovery of her own self, which gives her the courage to grab hold of a promising future with both hands, which I am sure would make Honey, and maybe even Elvis, very proud.

I enjoyed this story very much, thought it was poignant, humorous at times, bittersweet, but ultimately a heartwarming story that left feeling like Cory has finally gotten her footing and will become the success she was destined to be. show less

Last Ride to Graceland by Kim Wright is a very highly recommended road-trip novel of self-discovery. I loved it.

Cory Ainsworth thought she was just going to get her father's hip waders out of the fishing cabin, but she just had to look in the shed, especially after she was repeatedly told not to. What she finds wrapped in bubblewrap is Elvis Presley’s Stutz Blackhawk. While it is shocking, it's not unbelievable since her mother spent a year as a back-up singer for Elvis just before he show more died. The big question on her mind now is this: is Elvis Presley her father? The inside of the car is a time capsule, with receipts and food bags, which must show where her mother was and where she stopped on her way home.

Cory knows someone besides her dad is her biological father. After all, she was a 9 pound premature baby, arriving seven months after her parents were married. They were married immediately after her mother came home from her year with Elvis. She decides that she is going to drive the Stutz Blackhawk back to Graceland along the back roads, retracing the route her mother took when she left, based on what was left in the car from 1977. Cory learns that her mother, Laura Berry Ainsworth, was known as Honey Bear when she was a backup singer. Her road trip uncovers part of the truth about her mother's past, her one rebellious year that she hid from Cory.

This delightful, smart, touching, and humorous southern novel alternates narrative voices between Cory in the present day and Honey (her mother, Laura) in the past. As Cory uncovers some of her mother's story, or what she thinks is the story, we hear from her mother, back when she was 18, what was really happening during that time. The different voices of the two women and the story they are telling is compelling and engrossing, with sharp contrasts and parallels between the two. Seriously, Cory is a great character.

If you are an Elvis fan this would be a great choice, but I'm not a fan and I enjoyed every minute of Last Ride to Graceland. It is an ultimate novel of self-discovery all wrapped up in encounters with great, fully realized characters and settings. The trip will keep you interested, especially as Cory narrates it. It's also a novel about mothers and daughters - and what they leave behind or try to hide about their past.

The writing is exceptional and Wright held my rapt attention from beginning to end. This is the perfect summer read!

Disclosure: My Kindle edition was courtesy of Gallery Books for review purposes. show less