Author Archives: beckylindroos

The Miniaturist by Jessie Burton * 2014 / 421 pages * read by Davina Porter 13h 17m rating:  7 / historical fiction I had a very hard time coming up with a review or a rating for this book.  I was … Continue reading →

The Son by Jo Nesbø  (Norway – translated) 2014 / 417 pages narrated by Gildart Jackson 17h 28m rating:  B / crime I’ve upgraded the rating by a grade – on thinking about the book I really did enjoy the … Continue reading →

Manon Lescaut by Abbe Prévost 1731/ 174 pages (Kindle) rating 8 / classic French novel Manon Lescaut was written a full 100 years prior to The Red and the Black by Stendhal (1830),  but only another 50 years prior to The Ladies’ Paradise by Emil Zola.  Oh, … Continue reading →

We Are All Completely Beside Ouselves by Karen Joy Fowler 2014 / 320 pages read by Orlagh Cassidy 8h 57m rating 7 /  contemp fict. Rosemary Cooke, the  daughter of a professor and his wife is telling her life story – she is … Continue reading →

Lawrence in Arabia: War, Deceit, Imperial Folly and the Making of the Modern Middle East by Scott Anderson 2013/618 pages (Kindle) rating 8 / history-bio I knew precious little about T.E. Lawrence (Lawrence of Arabia)  prior to reading the book – I … Continue reading →

Skippy Dies by Paul Murray 2010/672 pages read by a cast – 23h 41m rating 8.5 / contemp fiction – Australia Yes,  this book seems silly at first but it contains an incredibly well developed theme  around reality vs history or … Continue reading →

The Sound of One Hand Clapping by Richard Flanagan 1997 / 425 pages rating  8.5 / contemp fict – Australia With this novel I’ve read all of Flanagan’s books except Death of a River Guide – my favorite by far … Continue reading →

Colorless Tsukuru Tazaki and His Years of Pilgrimage by Haruki Murakami 2014/ 402 pages read by Bruce Locke – 10h 9m rating: 8 / contemp. fiction – Japan My old favorite authors have certainly been going for the gusto. David … Continue reading →

My Son’s Story by Nadine Gordimer 1990 / 272 pages rating 8.5 / contemp fiction (South Africa) At first I was thinking this might be an easier book to read than either The Burgher’s Daughter (about a white woman joining the … Continue reading →

The Peripheral by William Gibson 2014 / 486 pages read by Lorelei King 14h 5m rating: 4/10 / sci-fi This book is very disappointing in general and at close to 500 pages it’s way too long.   I love Gibson’s … Continue reading →

The Handsome Man’s Deluxe Café by Alexander McCall Smith 2014 / 257 pages read by Lisette Lecat / 9h 55m rating A++ (for enjoyment) / contemp fiction / Botswana Aaaaahhhh!   A fix from the war-filled, depressing books I’ve been reading … Continue reading →

The Bone Clocks by David Mitchell 2014 / 640 pages read by Jessica Ball, Leon Williams, Colin Mace, Steven Crossley, Laurel Lefkow, Anna Bentinck – 24h 30m rating: 7  / sci-fi- fantasy Oh what can I say about a genius author whose latest book does not live … Continue reading →

Guilt by John Lescroart 1996/ 656 pages read by David Colacci 18h 10m rating: A / crime I think I’m finishing up novels of John Lescroart – the ones which are available in audio format and read by Colacci, anyway.  I’m going slowly … Continue reading →

A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier by Ishmael Beah 2007 / 229 pages read by Ishmael Beah – 7h 48m rating 7 / memoir Beah’s book is a memoir,  but it appears that discrepancies have been found and … Continue reading →

The Luminaries by Eleanor Catton 2013  / 834 pages read by Mark Meadows 29h 14m rating – 9 / historical fiction >>>>NOTES>>>> I read this first right after it won the Man Booker Prize in 2013 and loved it.  (The review … Continue reading →

The Map Thief: The Gripping Story of an Esteemed Rare-Map Dealer Who Made Millions Stealing Priceless Maps by Michael Blanding 2014 – 320 pages read by Sean Runnette – 8h 35m rating – 7.5  – history/crime I’d never heard of Forbes … Continue reading →