This author participates in the Readers' Favorite Free Book Program, which is open to all readers and is completely free. The author will provide you with a free copy of their book in exchange for an honest review. You and the author will discuss what sites you will post your review to and what kind of copy of the book you would like to receive (eBook, PDF, Word, paperback, etc.). To begin, click the purple email icon to send this author a private email.
This author participates in the Readers' Favorite Book Review Exchange Program, which is open to all authors and is completely free. Simply put, you agree to provide an honest review an author's book in exchange for the author doing the same for you. What sites your reviews are posted on (B&N, Amazon, etc.) and whether you send digital (eBook, PDF, Word, etc.) or hard copies of your books to each other for review is up to you. To begin, click the purple email icon to send this author a private email, and be sure to describe your book or include a link to your Readers' Favorite review page or Amazon page.
This author participates in the Readers' Favorite Book Donation Program, which was created to help nonprofit and charitable organizations (schools, libraries, convalescent homes, soldier donation programs, etc.) by providing them with free books and to help authors garner more exposure for their work. This author is willing to donate free copies of their book in exchange for reviews (if circumstances allow) and the knowledge that their book is being read and enjoyed. To begin, click the purple email icon to send this author a private email. Be sure to tell the author who you are, what organization you are with, how many books you need, how they will be used, and the number of reviews, if any, you would be able to provide.
Reviewed by Jamie Michele for Readers' Favorite
For the Minds and Wills of Men by Jeff Lanier is set in Cold War America and revolves around a WWII veteran and insurance agent named Will Oxley. Will specializes in art insurance and is drawn into a perplexing case when a privately owned Jackson Pollock painting lent to New York's Museum of Modern Art disappears. Famed as he is in the 21st century, the 1950s Pollock was an outsider to the mainstream public consciousness. His work is also physically oversized, making Will’s investigation stranger still. Will's relationship with the daughter of the painting's owner flourishes but the few clues he has point to Cold War politics and the woman he may be falling in love with.
Jeff Lanier constructs a wonderfully deep set of layers that intrigue and entertain in For the Minds and Wills of Men. I loved the complexity of Will’s character, whose memories of war still haunt him and whose PTSD, which was then unknown, drives his immersion into the art scene. More than just a clever play on words, the title acknowledges this and reminds readers that the space between what we want to do, can do, and must do is extremely hazy. Liz Bower and the family business feed into this brilliantly; her character quickly earns the distrust of readers who still hold hope. There is only so much crushing of the heart and soul that Will can take. So whichever way her fortune falls, we want it to turn out positively. From a literary standpoint For the Minds and Wills of Men is written beautifully, and I would give it a whole bucket of stars if I could. I very highly recommend this story.
