First off, let’s get clear on one thing: I feel like I need a shower, or something, after reading Ken Auletta’s book about Harvey Weinstein. Interestingly titled Hollywood Ending, I received a copy of it from Penguin Group/Penguin Press and NetGalley in exchange for this honest review. Mr. Auletta wrote an article for New Yorker …
Author Karen Cleveland has a solid background for writing thrillers that revolve around intelligence agencies and personnel: she was a Fulbright Scholar, earned a master’s degree from Trinity College in Dublin and Harvard, and was a CIA analyst for eight years, focused on counterterrorism – and she also worked with the FBI. So, bottom line: …
Publication Date November, 2021 Karen McManus has exceptional talent when it comes to writing books about high school students and their various escapades, as shown in her previous books including One Of Us Is Lying, One Of Us Is Next, and Two Can Keep A Secret. Yes, these are probably marketed as YA books, but …
Author Karen Winn has a doctoral degree in nursing and an MFA from Fairleigh Dickinson, and she can definitely WRITE. Her first book (hard to believe) is Our Little World, and it grabs the reader instantly and is memorable on so many different levels. Set in 1985, it follows the lives of Bee (full name …
I have loved Chris Pavone ever since I read The Expats, and was beyond happy to receive a copy of his latest, Two Nights in Lisbon, from FS&G and NetGalley in exchange for this honest review. And I cannot WAIT for this one to be published so I talk to someone about it and can …
Sharpe’s Assassin is the twenty-first historical novel in the Richard Sharpe series by Bernard Cornwell prisoner ll. It is set in June 1815, immediately after the Battle of Waterloo, and during the occupation of Paris. Now a Lieutenant Colonel, Sharpe needs to free an English spy being held prisoner, then get him to Paris. The …
David Baldacci’s series featuring FBI agent Atlee Pine began in 2018, with Long Road to Mercy. Subsequent titles included A Minute to Midnight and Daylight, continuing the story of Atlee’s search for her twin sister Mercy. I was pleased to receive a copy of Mercy, #4 in the series, from Grand Central Publishing and NetGalley …
Isabel Wilkerson’s Caste is an important book, popular among book clubs (HOORAY!) and this guide will definitely enhance any discussions of this timely subject. I appreciate having the opportunity to receive this prior to my. February Book Club meeting!
John Feinstein has been a sportswriter for many years–long enough to know both the players and the coaches and the owners. Plus, he is a true sports fan and doesn’t seem to be a lunatic like many with strong opinions about sports. And I am old enough to remember the iconic raised fist salute at …
7 Minute Fitness Strength Training for Seniors and Over 60+ by Liam Owen is a clearly written, easy to follow and seriously motivating set of instructions for anyone of “a certain age” who wants to work on getting more exercise without hurting themself…perfect for me, as I have a tendency to dive into an exercise …
I’ve always loved stories that remind us of the way that art can change lives, especially things like the tales of prisoners banding together to create music, art, etc. I was pleased to receive a copy of A Play for The End of The World by Jai Chakrabarti from Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group and NetGalley …
Dave Pell’s “Please Scream Inside Your Heart: Breaking News and Nervous Breakdowns in the Year That Wouldn’t End” is a kind of time capsule of the year 2020, month by month, by the man who calls himself the managing editor of the internet. Pell’s newsletter, NextDraft, is apparently well-known, but I admit I went into …
I’ve generally enjoyed J.A. Jance’s mysteries, although I have always preferred the series featuring J.P. Beaumont (Seattle-based detective) to those with Joanna Brady or Ali Reynolds (which kind of surprises me, given my usual preference for well-written female protagonists). Possibly it’s the fully developed, well-rounded though flawed character of recovered alcoholic Beau and my relating …
Another librarian’s review summed this one up perfectly: “Horrifyingly thorough!” This book was written by two “superfans” who watched every season of the Bachelor — so we dont have to! Despite the subtitle referencing the “secret to finding love and fame on America’s favorite reality. show.” they really don’t focus all that much on finding …
Wikipedia defines cryptocurrency this way: “A cryptocurrency, crypto-currency, or crypto is a collection of binary data which is designed to work as a medium of exchange.” Um, OK. But it’s never made sense to me. If I have a Bitcoin, or some Bitcoin, what do I actually HAVE? And how can I “spend” it? And in …
Back when I had just received a cancer diagnosis, I found Kate Bowler’s book Everything Happens For A Reason to be entertaining, inspiring, comforting– all the things you want from a book at a time like that! Recently, I read her follow-up book, No Cure For Being Human, in which she addressed the fact that …
Apparently I am in the minority, at least among my friends (both IRL and online) — I haven’t read either of Elizabeth Srout’s books featuring Lucy Barton: 2016’s My Name Is Lucy Barton or 2018’s Anything Is Possible. So when I began her eighth book, Oh William!, I lacked any familiarity with Lucy, a plainspoken …
As a child, I took ballet for several years. I am pretty sure my parents were trying to find some way to make me graceful…oh well. I do enjoy stories and films about ballet and ballerinas, and love watching dancers perform well. In any case, the premise of Rachel Kapelke-Dale’s The Ballerinas sounded like just …
If asked whether I was a fan of Diane Chamberlain’s books, my instant response would be yes…thinking of Necessary Lies, the first book our neighborhood read together. Looking back, I realize I have found her inconsistent (The Dream Daughter was only 2 stars, but I’m not much of a fan of time travel stories). But …
In 2018 (coincidentally, the year I received an unfortunate medical diagnosis), I happened to read Kate Bowler’s Everything Happens For A Reason (And Other Lies I’ve Loved). It hit me at just the right time, as her ability to describe the experience of battling cancer helped me face my own journey. Described as a “Christian …