Monthly Archives: December 2021

I did not like this book one bit. It’s dated and I disagree with Bettelheim on so many things.  This is kind of a shame because it’s one of the books I’d never read, but always wanted to. It was … Continue reading →

I’m not sure but I really don’t get the hype on this one. My own mother passed away a couple months ago and Crying in H Mart had been on my wish list for several months. It got great reviews … Continue reading →

The Walkaway is both a prequel and a sequel to The Ice Harvest (my review), which I just finished a couple days ago and very much enjoyed. Yay!  Both books were on sale in one way or another so it … Continue reading →

Going through my mail I saw that carl batnag at Pine Scented Blog, one of the blogs I follow, did a very nice job chiming in on the Christmas Song Book Tag which he got from Words About Words but … Continue reading →

I hate it when I get suckered into reading a romance.  And this sounded so good.  (I think I might have a better Christmas read coming up and I’ve already finished two better ones so I’m not doing badly for … Continue reading →

Onward with my Christmas “mysteries.”  The Ice Harvest was a freebie with my Premium membership at Audible.   It’s not a new book but, even as noir as it is, it got some excellent reviews back in 2000 and it’s … Continue reading →

I’ve been reading the Christmas books in the Andy Carpenter series by David Rosenfelt for a few years now and very much enjoyed them.  I haven’t gone back to the beginning of the series because I’m just not that fond … Continue reading →

From https://citylights.com/staff-picks-archive/adventures-of-china-iron-tr-fiona-macin/“This subversive retelling of Argentina’s foundational gaucho epic Martín Fierro is a celebration of the colour and movement of the living world, the open road, love and sex, and the dream of lasting freedom. With humour and sophistication, Gabriela Cabezón … Continue reading →

I enjoyed Colson Whitehead’s two earlier novels, The Underground Railroad (2016), and The Nickel Boys (2019),  both of which won Pulitzer Awards.  So I was looking forward to Harlem Shuffle.  Too bad. I found it available at the library,  but when I … Continue reading →

This is the first book in “The Women’s Mystery Club” series by James Patterson and co-authors.   The first book though was written by him alone.  For the record, these books are usually sexually graphic and excessively violent with what … Continue reading →

Deborah Devonshire was the youngest and last-surviving  of the Mitford sisters I read about in the book Sisters by Mary S. Lovett. That caused an interesting discussion on the All-nonfiction reading group so I pursued it a bit by delving … Continue reading →

This is definitely one of the best books I’ve read all year – all decade? . It’s been in publication for 9 years and remains at numbers 1 and 2 on the New York Times and Washington Post Paperback Best … Continue reading →

I’ve been reading the books of Ronald Balson since Once We Were Brothers in about 2014. That was his first which was published in 2010 and this is my 6th novel out of 7.  Eli’s Promise is an older stand alone … Continue reading →

I really enjoyed The 19th Christmas which I only read about 10 days ago,  so after a couple other books, I headed into The 20th Victim.  These are the first James Patterson books I’ve read since that book he did … Continue reading →

I was writing up my list of favorite books this year and came across Blacktop Wasteland by S.A. Cosby but I remember reading Razorblade Tears by the same guy and thinking it was better. So where is my review? I … Continue reading →

I enjoy the Christmas books of David Rosenfelt but I should try some of the others in the series, too.  I started them a  years ago but gravitated to the Christmas books only and then only in season.  I’m not … Continue reading →

Set in Reykjavik this is the most gritty Christmas novel I’ve ever read.  Still, there’s a gentleness to it which moves that around so in a way it’s more like Shuggie Bain by Douglas Stuart.  It’s about drug addition and … Continue reading →