Two years ago, I read and reviewed Who Thought This Was a Good Idea? And Other Questions You Should Have Answers to When You Work in the White House. I admitted I wasn’t very familiar with author Alyssa Mastromonaco prior to 2017, but after Obama left office, I began to hear her on the podcast …
Another psychological thriller, unreliable narrator, woman in danger, etc. And, you know, there are certain clichés, motifs, tropes, call them what you will, true crime fans know these to be true, with one being that if a husband goes missing, it’s ALWAYS the wife (or vice versa). So when I started reading Goodnight Beautiful by …
Living in the Santa Cruz area, I’ve long regarded Rocky Snyder (owner of local fitness center “Rocky’s) as a local treasure, knowing him as the owner of a local gym/fitness center that offers a variety of options/trainers for people interested in improving their health and fitness. Rocky definitely has the credentials: he is a “Certifed …
I’ve read several books in the Jonathan Stride series by Brian Freeman…although I tend to think of them as the Duluth series, because Freeman has done such a good job with the setting in this series, the city of Duluth and “the Point” in particular have become fixtures for fans of these books. Thanks to …
It was a dark and stormy night…but wait, some background. A family has experienced an extremely traumatic incident that has deeply affected Molly Clarke, her (just barely) adult daughter Nicole, son Evan, and forgot-his-name-husband. It’s gotten so bad Nicole has told Molly she hates her, Evan refused to acknowledge Molly’s presence at his school’s football …
The United States in the mid-19th century was wild, filled with social upheaval, political corruption, and people migrating west in search of a better life. (Except for the migrating westward part, this reminds me of the U.S. today.) Another parallel between the antebellum period and the present-day U.S. is the fascinating emergence of leaders whose …
EXACTLY what you would expect. A treasure trove of snark, pointing out some of the more obvious character traits of the man currently in the White House. If you love Doonesbury, you will love Lewser. If you love Trump, you will hate Lewser. Thanks to Andrews McMeel Publishing and NetGalley for a copy in return …
After a few months of pandemic isolation, true crime books and podcasts, mystery/thrillers, and a double binge of Ozark (yes, all three seasons TWICE through), I needed a break. I needed something that wouldn’t require much if any intellectual exercise, and hopefully didn’t have any major characters with cancer…okay, that last one was a bridge …
My familiarity with the “Varsity Blues” college admissions scandal was pretty much limited to what I had seen in People magazine (Aunt Becky and one of the Desperate Housewives on the cover) and during late-night television (think SNL as well as monologues by various hosts). And as a former college instructor and a fan of …
My introduction to Sue Miller was nearly 20 years ago, when I read The Good Mother. It was one of those domestic dramas that grab something in your heart and won’t let go. Since then, I’ve read some others, but can’t recall them, so I was definitely hoping for another heart-grabber when I got a …
The Dead Don’t Sleep, by Steven Russo, is perfect for readers who enjoy an action-packed story with complex characters and a moral dilemma or two thrown in. I happen to be married to just such a reader, and before I had a chance to begin the book, my husband picked it up and was INSTANTLY …
I was looking forward to reading Eric Bovim’s book Around The Sun after reading some very high praise for its “lush graceful prose, a portrait of grief and hope in the age of social media, globalization, and artistic decadence.” I came away with mixed feelings about it, as I appreciate the author’s skill in drawing …
Heather Gudenkauf is one of those authors whose books generally fall into my “one-night-stand” pile…often with the woman-in-danger component. I have enjoyed some of her earlier books (Before She Was Found, The Weight of Silence) so I was pleased to receive a copy of This Is How I Lied from Harlequin/Park Row and NetGalley in …
Thanks to IDW Publishing and NetGalley, I received a copy of this guide to election 2020 in exchange for my honest review…no wait, this isn’t actually a guide to the election, it’s something to help us survive the next several months… Full disclosure: I think the current President is the most corrupt, incredibly incompetent, racist, …
As a San Francisco Giants fan, I have enjoyed reading Joan Ryan’s work for years, so I was particularly excited to get a copy of Intangibles from Little, Brown & Co and NetGalley in exchange for this honest review. The subtitle is “unlocking the science and soul of team chemistry,” a concept which I find …
I remember the movie Same Time Next Year for a couple of reasons: it was filmed at a beautiful part of the Northern California coast where we used to vacation, and I just liked the acknowledgment that it is possible to love more than one person at a time. So when I read that Elin …
Full disclosure: I finished this book yesterday and when I finished I was glad it was over. But I kept thinking about it, so clearly it was a positive experience just to read it (I want books that make me THINK, after all!). But I just can’t decide on a rating. Did I love it? …
Shiner was a DNF for me. I read about half, and was impressed by some beautiful writing, and the characters were fascinating…but I swear I just kept thinking about a video I saw recently, interviewing people at a diner in WV, and they went around the table talking to these nice folks who were nearly …
I’m a big Michael Connelly fan, starting with the Harry Bosch and Mickey Haller books, then most recently the stories of police officers Jenkins and Ballard (The Late Show, 2017). I hadn’t read either The Poet or The Scarecrow, so I wasn’t familiar with protagonist Jack McEvoy, but was happy to start to get to …
As an adult, I’ve never had a very healthy relationship with food (and I’m totally aware what a first world problem it is to be concerned about how to lose weight when so many people have so little). But I’ve been there, sitting in the green chairs, and being a Lifetime member of Weight Watchers …