I tend to enjoy stories where the setting is a character on its own, if you know what I mean (think Jane Harper’s novels set in arid Western Australia. Oh, and BTW, if you enjoy mysteries, you really should check her out — start with The Dry). In Lee Goldberg’s Movieland, while Malibu Creek State …
About four years ago, I read and reviewed Fiona Barton’s The Child (four stars). I enjoyed it, so I was pleased to receive a copy of Local Gone Missing from Berkley Publishing and NetGalley in exchange for this honest review. This one features detective Elise King, who had to take a medical leave. Now, unsure …
Emily Giffin writes what i think of as sappy books (Lies That Bind, All We Ever Wanted), so I wasn’t sure how this one would go. Particularly after I read that Meant To Be followed a family portrayed as “American royalty,” featuring a son whose father is killed in a tragic accident and who feels …
James Lee Burke’s book Another Kind of Eden (reviewed in 2021) had just a bit too much of the supernatural in it for my taste…same for my husband who is the real Burke fan in this household. So I was a bit hesitant to dive into Every Cloak Rolled in Blood, described as “ his …
Although I wasn’t expecting to, I really enjoyed The Plot, so I was looking forward to her latest, The Latecomer. The story revolves around the Oppenheimer family of New York City, parents of triplets who don’t have much of a bond among themselves or with their parents. The triplets are about to go off to …
I’ve been a regular reader of Linwood Barclay’s books for several years, generally awarding 4 or 5 stars, so I was pleased to get a copy of Take Your Breath Away from William Morrow and NetGalley in exchange for my honest review. But then I looked at the last book of his I reviewed, which …
I was so eager to read this book. Partly because I am such an avid reader of true crime, and Ashley Flowers is the primary host of the wildly successful Crime Junkies podcast. When I got my review copy (thanks to Random House/Ballantine and NetGalley) which I received in exchange for my honest review, I …
I really wanted to love this book. I kept trying not to let my negative feelings about the war get in the way…alas, it was not to be. The women who served as CSTs (Cultural Support Team members) in Afghanistan are amazing. I admire their courage, ability, and willingness to serve. But the whole idea …
I love true crime, especially when it reads like fiction. I wasn’t familiar with the event described in Dead In The Water by Matthew Campbell and Kit Chellel, but the subtitle grabbed me: A True Story pf Hijacking, Murder, and a Global Maritime Conspiracy. I didn’t realize how totally ignorant I was about international shipping, …
When I got this book, I knew it was a police procedural/political thriller, but I didn’t realize it had been published in 1982, a full forty (gasp!) years ago. So I had a “hmmm” moment before I started to read. I wasn’t sure a story about a female police officer in Washington, D.C. in the …
TBH, I’d never hear of Chad Zunker before reading Family Money (which I received from Thomas & Mercer and NetGalley in exchange for this honest review). He has written a series featuring Sam Callahan and the David Adams legal thriller An Equal Justice, but somehow he was new to me. In Family Money, a man …
I’m positive I have read other books by Sara Paretsky that featured “plucky heroine” V.I. Warshawski, Chicago PI – but I couldn’t name one or recall a plot – just went into this one expecting a well-written story to take my mind off the pandemic, crime, corruption, etc. And Overboard is definitely well-written, as expected. …
I am fortunate to live in an area where we can grow food outdoors year-round…but for those in locations where there is actual winter, or those who just like the idea of growing food indoors,How to Garden Indoors & Grow Your Own Food Year Round by Kim Roman is a great book. There are four …
In 2016, Ruth Ware’s The Woman in Cabin 10 was a big hit, and I was among those who enjoyed it – a LOT. 2019’s Turn of the Key was a 3-star “meh” for me, then 2020’s One By One was a solid 4 stars. So I was eager to see whether her latest, The …
Several years ago, I became a big fan of Jason Kander, mostly as a result of hearing him interviewed and later by listening to his podcast Majority54. I was not his only fan: in President Obama’s last interview as President, Jason’s was the first name he gave when asked who gave him hope for the …
Nearly five years ago, I read and reviewed Shadow Man by Alan Drew, and I said it was “the best kind of novel: one that truly entertains the reader while making us THINK. Ben Wade is a great character, and I hope Shadow Man is the first in a series.” Then my (long) wait began, …
Last year, when I read and reviewed Chris Bohjalian’s Hour of The Witch, I wrote “I admit it: I have been a big fan of Chris Bohjalian, ever since I read Midwives several years ago. I consider Mr. Bohjalian one of the most reliable authors I read regularly, and I always look forward to his …
Christopher Reich worked at a Swiss bank for three years, which might be part of the reason why I originally thought his “insider info” would make for some really great storylines. But looking back, I only gave 3 stars to 2016’s Rules of Deception (#1 in the Ransom series) and also to 2018’s The Take …
I’ve been a fan of JohnSandford’s books for many years, and have generally enjoyed the Lucas Davenport books more than the Virgil Flowers ones…in fact, the last two Flowers books I have read, Holy Ghost and Bloody Genius, have been serious disappointments for me. So I was happy to see that the focus for Sandford’s …
OK, I admit it – the title Good Sh*t grabbed me. I have vivid memories of ““bathroom issues” going back MANY decades (missing the school bus to kindergarten because I was stuck in the bathroom, for example). And it seems that after retirement age, people’s lives way too often revolve around pooping – particularly in …