Storm

The last few days have been full of dramatic weather.  There has been thunder, lightning and near constant rain.  This has resulted in some flooding in our small town of Buchanan. 

Buchanan's famous swinging bridge may soon be a floating bridge.

 

It is not the worst flooding Buchanan has ever seen.  We weren't here, but have heard 1985 was a bad year for that.  But the James River is coming up pretty high and worrying some of the people on Lowe Street.

 

This picture was taken five minutes later and the water is still rising.
 
 

The road in front of the Twin River Outfitters has flooded and they are moving their boats to higher ground.  Parts of the carnival grounds and the park are under water.

 

The James is swift and brown with lots of muddy water, trees and debris racing down river.  Not a good day for river travel or a leisurely boat ride.

I contacted a future B&B guest who is staying with us and then going out on the river, to make sure the Outfitters will be taking out boats next week and they assured her that things would be back to normal on Monday.

 

The Buchanan Carnival starts next week.  The water should have receded by then, but it may be quite muddy the first few days.

 

The closest tree line is normally at the edge of the embankment down to the James River. 

 

The gazebo in the park is partly underwater.

 

 

The north end of Pico Road is flooded.

 


The people of Buchanan have been through all this before.  Now that the rain has stopped the river will crest and start to recede.  And life will get back to normal!

After The Storm

 

I recently read the latest Linda Castillo book.  She is one of my favorites authors and I look for her latest book each year.  I hate it when an author takes more than a year to finish a book.  Don't they know I am waiting impatiently?

Castillo writes a series about a former Amish who is also Chief of Police in Painter's Mill.  That is a blessing and a curse when dealing with the local Amish population.  She can speak Pennsylvania Dutch and understands the culture, but a lot of them don't trust her because she left the church and even some of her family still shuns her.  When she comes around as a detective, they are obligated to speak to her.

I recommend starting with Sworn To Silence, Castillo's first book in the series.  It helps to see the progression of her character development as Burkholder works her way through some traumatic events in her past that lead her to leave the church.

After The Storm takes place after a tornado roars through Painter's Mill.  During the clean up a body is found.  The Amish are generally a peaceful people, but they have the same human emotions and fears of all people and someone is trying to stop Burkholder from discovering the truth about the dead body. 

At the same time the investigation takes place there is a disruption in her personal life as she and State Agent Tomasetti hit a bump in the road.

I prefer a novel to have some emotional depth and not just be a police procedural.  Castillo excels at this and her books never disappoint.