Even with the lack of snow in my neck of the woods this season, I’m more than happy to relish a Winter’s Respite of reading this upcoming February.
The first readathon of the year from Seasons of Reading (hosted by the excellent Michelle Miller) is really a nice way to get the bookish ball rolling there. You are free what you want and the company kept there is always awesome.
When it comes to readathon TBR piles, I find that the rule of three works the best for me and to top my trio of sweet reads here is Donut Disturb, the fifteenth entry in Ellie Alexander’s Bakeshop Mystery series.
Our leading lady Juliet “Jules” Capshaw is busy catering the wedding of her friend and police detective Thomas to his fellow partner in crime fighting, Kerry. Jules is thrilled to be a part of this big day for her friends, especially since Kerry requested a wedding cake made up of donuts!
However, the wedded bliss is marred by the unexpected arrival of Kerry‘s father(who she hasn’t spoken to in years) and the sudden demise of the bassist from the music band hired for the reception. Can Jules save the day on more than one frosted front or will this ceremony be the ultimate “I don’t ?”
It’s funny that I’m going to be reading this right after finishing the latest book in the series, Muffin but the Truth, thanks to NetGalley the other night. Fortunately , I am so caught up with these charming culinary capers that taking a step back isn’t a setback at all.
Plus, Valentines Day is next month and what could be more romantic than reading about a wedding, with donuts to boot?:
Next up on my page turning playlist is the second book in the School for Good and Evil series, A World without Princes by Soman Chainani.
While formerly mismatched magical students Agatha and Sophie are glad to be returned to their regular lives, a regretful wish brings them back to the title educational institute that has undergone some changes to say the least.
Instead being trained as either witches or princesses, the girls are taught to battle the boys in more ways than one. With the two sides on the brink of all out war, can Agatha and Sophie restore some semblance of order before there’s no happy ending for anyone?
I did enjoy the first book as well as the Netflix adaptation, which may have this sequel on screen very soon, and the tweaks given to the fairy tales tropes within these stories are good to see.
Not sure how far I’ll get into this YA fantasy series but so far, these happily ever afters are only the beginning of new adventures for readers and characters alike:
To round things up, my third pick is one of my newest Book of the Month Club selections, Kayla Olson’s The Reunion.
Liv Latimer and Ransom Joel were once the biggest teen stars on TV due to their lead roles on the hit show Girl on the Verge.
While some of their fictional romance blend into off screen love, a major misunderstanding ultimately drove them apart.
Brought back together for a twentieth anniversary special, Liv and Ransom are in very different places both personally and professionally from those small screen days of yore. Ransom is an A list action movie star while Liv is an indie film darling who holds on to her privacy as tightly as she can.
As the sparks between her and Ransom seem to be reigniting, Liv wonders if pursuing this potentially rocky path to a renewed relationship is worth the trouble (not to mention the media attention). Is Ransom considering a reboot of romance as well or is Liv’s heart stuck in development hell?
Pop culture themed romances are my personal catnip and this one sounds like must-read TV to me! Plus, with Olson being inspired by beloved teen shows like Boy Meets World, the nostalgia energy levels are pumped up indeed:
There is plenty of time to sign up for the readathon if you’re interested in joining us for a good curl up by the fire with a good book bit of fun. Even without those flakes of snow a-falling, keeping warm by a reading lamp is perfectly suited for this time of year.
As for me, my set of three should put me in the right frame of mind, a Rory Gilmore mode if you will. I really should treat myself to a Gilmore Girls binge watch; it’s been awhile since I went to Stars Hollow and it’s the perfect reading haven, if you ask me:
With a new year comes many more opportunities to pile up more books for reading and already my TBR stacks have started to get a bit steep there.
So, let’s begin with my Christmas book haul, which was comprised of my December BOMC box(just easier that way).
Under my holiday tree we’re two more Evie Dunmore titles(A Rogue of One’s Own, Portrait of a Scotsman) and R. F. Kuang’s Babel, the latter that I’m making a leisurely but steadfast progress through.
Set in pre-Victorian England, a young man who has named himself Robin Swift is entering the title institute for advanced studies in translation.
Robin was brought to Britain as the ward of Professor Lovell as a boy due to his mother’s death in Canton from a raging epidemic of cholera. Robin’s skills at multiple languages are impressive as well as his talent for tapping into the magic of silver bars, a much sought after power source dominated by the British empire.
Adjusting as well as he can to another new life, Robin makes a few friends who are considered outsiders much like himself and who are equally excited to increase their linguistic abilities.
However, Robin discovers a group of rebels known as the Hermes Society who seek proper redistribution of the silver bars for those unable to use their powers for the betterment of the less fortunate. He also learns a few secrets about his benefactor that tips him further towards a set of divided loyalties that could change not only his future but the world itself.
So far, this story is incredibly engaging, the kind of book that you need to force yourself to slow down and savor. Kuang’s world building is as elegantly designed as a Christopher Wren piece of architecture and this tower of knowledge is well worth climbing indeed:
Meanwhile, my January Book of the Month Club picks have been delivered and it’s a tempting trio to be sure.
One of the headliners here is Queen of Thieves by Beezy Marsh, which chronicles an underworld gang of female criminals in post-WWII London.
Ruled by the infamous Alice Diamond, this select set of high class shoplifters regularly rob the top department stores of thousands of pounds worth of merchandise. Least you think these ladies are the meek and mild sort, Alice arms herself with a razor at the ready and uses her often worn diamond rings as a set of brass knuckles.
Entering this ruffian realm is Nell, hoping to better her already unfortunate circumstances by making some needed coin but soon enough sees a chance to move up this precarious ladder. Can she join the inner court of Queen Alice without stepping on too many toes or better still, make a play for this criminal throne herself?
I do like historical fiction set within a time frame of social upheaval, which was a significant part of this era in England, and Alice Diamond is definitely a crown princess of crime that I would love to get more acquainted with:
While I’m saving my other recent BOMC pick for an upcoming readathon (more on that soon!), I did round my selections out with a much talked novel from last year-Lessons in Chemistry
by Bonnie Garmus.
Our leading lady is Elizabeth Zotts, a chemist in the 1950s who is unceremonious drummed out of her job at a research laboratory due to the rigid moral code placed on women in those days(which haven’t changed enough, some would say).
Nevertheless, she manages to find work as the hostess of a TV cooking show called Supper at Six. As it turns out, Elizabeth is deftly able to mix in a few chemistry tips during her culinary lessons that appear to go under the radar of the men in charge.
While she enlightens her home audience in more ways than one, Elizabeth does her best to find her own way to personal happiness with the help of some good friends and a clever dog named Six Thirty.
This book has made quite a few Best of the Year lists and the word of mouth praise has been abundant to say the least.
However, I am intrigued by the whole cooking show/chemistry education angle of the story here as modern cuisine has taken up this combo strongly with the past several years and checking this concept out from the Julia Child era of televised culinary fare sounds delicious to me:
In between all of this, I was able to make a quick trip to the library (mainly to return an overdue book but trust me, The Hacienda was worth taking the extra time with!).
My library haul was rather small but as it happened, there were two books by the same author that were side by side on the shelf that I have wanted for a long while and couldn’t pass up the opportunity in front of me.
J. Ryan Stradal got a nice bit of notice from his novel of interconnected stories entitled Kitchens of the Midwest but his next book after that, The Lager Queen of Minnesota , did make folks sit up and notice there.
It’s a tale of two sisters, Edith and Helen, who made a decision regarding their father’s inheritance that not only changed their lives but broke them apart as well.
Decades later, Edith is content with her quiet life of baking pies and taking care of her teen granddaughter Diana despite their difficulties in making ends meet.
Helen, on the other hand, has prospered by investing fully into her husband’s brewery and making his brand a household name.
She refused to mend the breech with Edith but when Diana starts becoming a rising star in the brewing business, a chance for the sisters to reconnect bubbles up to the surface. Will they take it before the foam of a new found friendship dissolves for good?
Food themed fiction is my weakness (drinks included sometimes) and this quietly told story of savory emotions seems like the perfect comforting meal of the heart for these cold winter days ahead:
A new year of books is a welcome sight indeed and even with the all too real headlines these days, we still have much to look forward to.
Plenty of new movies and returning TV shows like Abbott Elementary (which is so good!) are just some of the pop culture delights that await as we wait for more new books to be claimed for the literary good.
Also, lots of readathons need to be prepared for as well, so taking a TV break is just fine to rev up those reading engines for the bookish road trip ahead of us:
Welcome back to a brand new year of Series-ous Reading as well as a Happy New Year for all of us to enjoy some more good books together.
Before we can go forth with our new theme of Triple Play, last year’s Sisterhood of Sleuthing must be completed with a look at Kate Carlisle’s If Books Could Kill , the second volume of her Bibliophile Mystery series.
Our leading lady Brooklyn Wainwright is pleased to be getting back to her work as a bookbinder by attending the annual Edinburgh Book Festival both as a speaker and participant in a restoration workshop.
She runs into plenty of old friends such as Helen, who is on the verge of divorce from her dreadful husband Martin, and a very special former friend, Kyle McVee.
Kyle was Brooklyn’s boyfriend at one time but his roving eye ended that romance for good. Nonetheless, they remained bookish pals and their reunion at this event gives him the chance to ask her for help in authenticating a rather unique book of poems.
The tome in question is a rare edition of Robbie Burns poems that tell a tale of forbidden romance between himself and an English princess. While Brooklyn isn’t a historian, she’s willing to assist Kyle but little does she know what a world of trouble that she’s stepping into:
Not longer after Brooklyn takes the book into her keeping , Kyle is found dead at a tourist attraction and the murder weapon is one of her own bookbinding tools.
Fortunately for Brooklyn, former MI-6 agent Derek Stone who helped to clear her name before from a murder charge is on hand here to lend a hand. It’s a good thing that he and the lead detective Angus MacLeod are both colleagues in crime solving and willing to look at other suspects.
Plenty of those abound, such as a persnickety bookseller offended by the very idea of an illicit royal love affair, a woman claiming to be Kyle’s wife and a band of men who profess to be members of The Robert Burns Society determined to protect their countryman’s name.
Brooklyn also becomes the target of several attacks, including a raid of her hotel room (awakening her in the middle of the night!) and a library incident that rivals a certain scene from 1999’s The Mummy, which is quite the close call indeed:
When another body turns up, the list of suspects grows shorter yet the threat level for Brooklyn keeps going up higher. Can she find the killer and keep the book safe from those on either side who want it to vanish from public sight?
Having read later books in this series, it’s fun to catch up with Brooklyn’s past adventures and see how her relationship with Derek develops, not to mention appearances by the mysterious Gabriel(a rogue book buyer) and even the arrival of Brooklyn’s offbeat parents, especially her flighty but feisty mom who is eager to recommend all sorts of herbal cleansing to cure what ails you!
The book lore is charmingly entertaining as well as educational (the Robbie Burns secret romance being truly a work of fiction there). All in all, a true delight with an additional mystery that gave a James Bond flair to the proceedings rather well:
Now for our 2023 theme known as Triple Play, where I cover three books in a row from the same series and author.
We begin with Ellery Adams’s Book Retreat Mysteries, the first book being Murder in the Mystery Suite.
Widowed mother Jane Steward runs Storyton Hall, a resort dedicated to the love of books , and to that end she plans a Murder Mystery week long event to drum up some much needed new business.
All goes well until one of the guests winds up as an actual corpse and it’s up to Jane to solve this all too real mystery before the final page is turned for a fatal finale. So far, it’s a welcome romp into a reader’s wonderland with touches of warmhearted humor and heart that I look forward to more and more:
As we prepare for both the Christmas holiday-while in the midst of Hanukkah and close to Kwanza-plus New Year’s Eve, looking forward to what lies ahead ought to be a good thing.
With that in mind , I thought that the best way to wrap up this year and get ready for the next is to highlight some upcoming book based TV in 2023.
First up is the third season of All Creatures Great and Small,beginning on January 8. This time around, our leading man James is getting ready to marry the love of his life Helen, joyous times indeed.
However as the start of WWII hovers over Britain, even the quaint corner of their world is about to be affected. This latest PBS incarnation of the beloved James Herriot books is charmingly good without being total brain candy, a rare treat not to be missed there:
Speaking of PBS, the third and officially final season of Sanditon will be making weekly Sunday visits in March.
Hopefully, this last look at this cast of characters from Jane Austen’s final unfinished novel will find a happy ending or two as Charlotte Heywood is preparing to marry one man while in love with another.
What many of us have a keen interest in seeing is Georgiana Lambe finding her true happiness as well as a major love interest! Despite both of these leading ladies having trouble in that department, this season ought to give them a proper send-off in that regard.
I do admit that I was surprised to see the revival of this show after the chaotic reception of Season One but it was definitely worth all the fuss to get it back, I suppose (some of that fuss we could’ve done without from certain folk but not even they got everything they particularly wanted).
The best benefit of this series was a fresh look at Jane Austen’s world for fans of long standing and newly interested alike and saying goodbye here may lead to a hello to more such material in the future:
Meanwhile, heading to Netflix, not only are we getting a season three of Bridgerton, a spinoff series is awaiting us in the wings.
Bridgerton: A Queen’s Story is a prequel that focuses on how Queen Charlotte met and married George III. We will also get a look at the younger version of the indomitable Lady Danbury here as well as the future matriarch of the Bridgerton family to boot.
How much of this eight part series will be connected to the original Julia Quinn novels that inspired the show, I do not know. There isn’t a official release date for either incarnation as of this writing either.
What I am certain of is that the powers that be for Bridgerton are smart enough to see that the strength of the show is firmly rooted in its vibrant female characters and this early glimpse into their past experiences is a bonus for all concerned:
Now for something completely different, AMC is continuing their Anne Rice related projects with Mayfair Witches in January.
Based on a series of novels from the late Anne Rice, we begin with Dr. Rowan Fielding whose every day life and flourishing medical career is being upended by a family legacy of magic. Particularly by the growing presence of a guardian spirit known as Lasher who is bound to guide the latest heir to the mystical dynasty.
Just how good this show may be is yet to be determined but judging on the positive word of mouth from AMC’s renewed look at Rice’s Vampire Chronicles, I say that we’re in for quite the grand ride:
With that, I wish everyone a very happy holiday season and hope to see you in the new year. 2022 has been one for the books, as they say , and with any luck, 2023 will bring us better times for all.
Despite the challenges ahead of us, I do feel that we can get through such trying moments and strive forward with our heads held high to brave the worst of it together. I have no solutions for how yet a knowledge that such things can be weathered does encourage me to do my small bit to uplift our collective spirit.
Yes, I will be back with more reading challenges to join in(ready for the next Seasons of Reading readathon to be sure!),more of my Series-ous Reading to focus on and perhaps make a few more bookish friends along the way.
Meanwhile, folks, stay safe and enjoy a good book or two as you take a wintery sleigh ride into the new year:
We’re near the end of my run of Series-ous Reading for 2022 and I have to say that it’s been a pretty good romp of page turning here.
My theme for this year, Siaterhood of Sleuthing, has taken me back and forth in time and some places in between. However, these last two titles have brought me to a spot both familiar and yet brand new all at once.
After reading Kate Carlisle’s Bibliophile Mystery books out of order for awhile now, it was my pleasure to finally get to the one that started it all, Homicide in Hardcover.
Brooklyn Wainwright is a successful bookbinder in San Francisco, mostly happy in her work and life. The few not so bright moments include a rival in her personal and professional paths named Minka as well as an abrupt parting of the ways with her mentor Abraham.
One of those issues is remedied when Brooklyn attends a celebration at the Covington Library in honor of an upcoming rare book exhibit. Abraham is not only pleased to see her but more happier than he’s been in years with the world in general.
Sadly, that reunion is literally short lived as later in the evening, Brooklyn discovers Abraham in a library workroom as he takes his last breath which includes a warning to her “Remember the devil!”
That cryptic sentence seems to refers to his last book restoration commission, a rare bejeweled edition of Faust by Goethe, said to be cursed. While she has serious doubts about the book’s curse, it becomes hard to deny that this particular volume is the source of very direct malevolence towards those who keep it in their possession:
As Brooklyn takes over the restoration of Faust, she finds herself the target of several strange attacks, not to mention the unwelcome scrutiny of Derek Stone, a private security agent with ties to MI-6.
Determined to get justice for Abraham(as well as take her own name off the list of suspects) she sets forth to find the real killer , only to encounter a secret about her mentors past that could alter the present in more ways than one.
Having already enjoyed this series with it’s literary lore and lively characters (one of the strengths of Carlisle’s writing is how she catches you up quickly with the overall backstory of all assembled), my main purpose was to have that “see where it all began “ vibe and in that, this book was a warm welcome indeed.
Carlisle not only creates an engaging heroine in Brooklyn, armed with book knowledge and candy treats to sustain her during long bouts of restoration, but makes both her friends and enemies equally as compelling themselves.
Of course, seeing Brooklyn and future love interest Derek tackle their first mystery together was the ultimate sweet treat in this bookish box of chocolates. Their repartee reminds of detective TV shows such as Bones, Castle or that old school classic Remington Steele with partners in crime solving and romance working to save the day or their next date-which ever comes first!:
That leads to my current and last for this year’s Series-ous Reading which is the second book in this series, If Books Could Kill.
In this entry, Brooklyn has just arrived at the Edinburgh Book Festival where she runs into several old friends (and her arch nemesis Minka to boot), plus Kyle, a former boyfriend and book dealer.
He asks her to help him verify a collection of poems by Robbie Burns, with this particular edition being seen as seditious due to Burns alluding to a romantic dalliance with a member of the Royal family. Finding it hard to believe that anyone would be hunted down over a three hundred year old rumor, Brooklyn nonetheless decides to assist him in this matter for old times sake.
That decision is regretted swiftly as Kyle is found dead at a tourist attraction with the murder weapon being one of Brooklyn’s bookbinding tools. Who would both want to kill Kyle and frame her as well in such a short amount of time? Lucky, Derek is on the scene but can Brooklyn fully trust him after seeing him at the airport with what appears to be his wife and child?
So far, this story is engrossing but I’ll have a fuller review in the new year, along with the beginning of a fresh round of Series-ous Reading. The theme for 2013 is Triple Play, where I will be reading three mysteries by the same author in a row.
For example, in January,February and March, I will be reading and reviewing three of Ellery Adams’ Book Retreat series: Murder in the Mystery Suite, Murder in the Paperback Parlor and Murder in the Reading Room.
Just like Carlisle’s books, I’ve already read one of the latest titles in this series and wish to go back for more.
Other authors on this lineup include Stephanie Barron(Jane Austen Mysteries), Rhys Bowen (Her Royal Spyness) and Julie Hzny(White House Chef Mystery). Not only a fun way to catch up on my many TBR piles but to get a better sense of continuity within each series.
It’s also the best form of entertainment binging and as they say, three is the magic number there. Hope you all will join me next year for these extended visits with these modern day queens of mystery:
One of the things that I’m grateful for this year is being able to make regular trips to my local library.
Granted, due to time and current circumstances, my visits have become bimonthly at best yet just having that brief break in my daily routine to pick up a few new(to me) books is such a joy that I treasure each and every chance I get.
For this last library haul of the year, my luck was good as the third book in Marty Wingate’s First Edition Library Mystery series , The Librarian Always Rings Twice, was right on the shelf.
Set in Bath, England, our leading lady is Hayley Burke, the curator of Middlebank House, a small private collection of Golden Age mysteries by the late Lady Georgiana Fowling, who fancied herself a mystery writer as well.
Hayley has just convinced the board of directors,along with the indomitable Mrs. Woolgar, to allow once a week public viewings of Her Ladyship’s library and while that plan seems to be going well despite frequent questions about whether they have a tea room available, a couple of unexpected visitors cause some unwelcome ruckus indeed.
One of those visitors is John Aubrey, who claims to be Lady Fowling’s grandson, the result of a secret affair between her and his late grandfather. While his evidence of such lineage is rather vague, John is very familiar with Lady Fowling’s detective novels, which were privately published and given to only a select set of people.
This new arrival angers Charles Henry Dill, the obnoxious nephew of Lady Fowling who has wormed his way into a “personal assistant “ job at Middlebank. He takes the first chance he gets to physically attack John during one of the open to the public sessions, an act he’ll soon regret.
When a friend of John’s is found dead in front of Middlebank, his resemblance to John Aubrey becomes a motive for murder with Charles Henry a prime suspect in the case.
As much as she dislikes Charles Henry, Hayley knows that he’s not a killer and reluctantly but reliably takes up a sleuthing role to clear his name. She also wants to find out the truth about John Aubrey as well, perhaps solving two mysteries for the sad price of one fatality.
I do enjoy this series, with such delightfully literate and quirky characters and since I did visit Bath many years ago(including the Jane Austen Center, where Hayley used to work!), these cozy capers are a great way to go back.
Although the title of this particular entry references a James M. Cain novel and film, the book most referred to within the story is a Daphne Du Maurier work entitled Frenchman’s Creek. I’m a hundred pages into the book right now so perhaps by the end, both of these references will connect themselves:
Interestingly enough, my next selection has drawn comparisons to Du Maurier’s classic Rebecca as well as Silvia Moreno-Garcia’s Mexican Gothic, a great read indeed.
The Hacienda by Isabel Canas takes place after the Mexican War of Independence, which leaves young Beatriz Hernandez and her mother in serious need of a safe haven. By marrying widower Don Rodolfo Solorzano and retreating to his estate known as the Hacienda San Isidro , she appears to have a chance to start a new life.
However, a number of strange events, along with the ominous attitude of the family housekeeper, give Beatriz some suspicions regarding how the first wife of Don Rodolfo died.
Her only ally is Padre Andres who, against his better judgment, is willing to cleanse the house via exorcism. However, the spirits that haunt San Isidro may be aided by more corporal entities, who would do anything to protect what secrets may be hidden upon such less than hallowed grounds.
I’ve heard good word of mouth about this debut novel and even though scary stories aren’t usually considered seasonal fare this time of year, it’s more than worth it to dive into these new creative waters.
With the likes of Du Maurier and Moreno-Garcia as muses for this gothic tale, no doubt that I am in for a real treat here:
To round things out, my last pick was Amor Towles’ The Lincoln Highway, a book that I hope spurs me into finishing another title by this author.
The plot of this set in the 1950s novel is focused on newly released prisoner Emmet Watson, who finds no better choice than to leave his hometown with his younger brother Billy in search of a new life in San Francisco.
Billy believes that their mother, who left their Nebraska farm years ago , is out there and with their father dead, is the only chance at family either of them has left.
That journey becomes plagued with obstacles such as a pair of former acquaintances of Emmet’s deciding to “borrow “ their car, forcing the brothers to hop trains in order to travel. Along the way, they met various friends and foes who show them the best and worst that life has to offer, hoping to ultimately find a place to truly cal home.
Towles is best known for his novel A Gentleman in Moscow, a book that I did enjoy yet didn’t quite finish at the time(I got distracted to say the least on that). Nevertheless, the whimsical energy of that story left such a pleasant memory that I do want to try again anew here.
While A Gentleman in Moscow had some Wes Anderson movie vibes for me, The Lincoln Highway feels more like O Brother, Where Art Thou? in nature which is good because the Coen Brothers are grand masters of offbeat storytelling and that sets a fine template for this engaging adventure to be sure:
Well, I do plan to take my time with this trio of reads and hope to have completed all three in the early days of the new year soon to be. Nothing like a good book to snuggle up with during the bleakness of winter there!
I look forward to find more such paperbound gems in 2023 and if all goes well, to visit my local NY Public Library branch more often. In such troubling times as these, our public libraries are becoming targets of ignorance and abuse, something that we need to hold strong against now more than ever.
One sure thing about libraries is that despite the odds, they fight hard to be the welcoming refuge of knowledge and art that people need in times like this. Also, there is plenty of bookish joy to be found for those who seek it there and let’s resolve to engage in that as well next and every year:
With the last month of this year officially upon us, it’s time for me to reveal my picks for Best Books of 2022.
This is a Top Five list but rest assured, there were many other great books that I throughly enjoyed and wholeheartedly recommend (a shout out to some of them will appear at the end of this post).
To start things off, Gabrielle Zevin’s Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow is making the rounds on many a best of list and for good reason. While this novel focuses strongly on the development of video games from the eighties until now, the central theme here is far from a game.
When Sam Masur reconnects with Sadie Green in college (their initial friendship started in a children’s hospital over multiple games of Oregon Trail), their mutual love of video games, particularly role playing ones, not only sparked up a new bond, it lead to them becoming major creative forces within this growing industry.
Aided by their friend Marx, Sam and Sadie made some of the most imaginative games ever that ignited generations of fans. However, obstacles such as sexism and egotism were harder to dodge than any pixel made menace.
All in all, T&T&T is a tale of love and friendship, which lasts longer than any online challenge or real world difficulty in the end. This may be Zevin’s masterpiece and I don’t say that lightly:
Another out of this world read that’s rightfully on a number of best books as well is Sea of Tranquility by Emily St.John Mandel.
This is one of those “don’t know too much before reading “ type of books but I can safely say that this is a time travel story that has several different people sharing a strange moment of music and sound together across multiple realms.
The one person meant to simply observe it all decides to make a choice that does and doesn’t affect these realities and the price paid is heartbreakingly beautiful indeed.
I know this sounds like a complicated story yet it’s easy to get into and almost hypnotic in it’s pacing that compels you to stay up as late as possible to see what happens next. Such a treasure is worth diving into at least once:
For something completely different, Deanna Raybourn gives us Killers of a Certain Age as four retired hit women find out that their professional career departure is meant to be permanent.
This quartet of seemingly meek and mild older ladies, lead by the boisterous Billie, are set up as pawns in a power struggle from their former employers but despite what the younger generation thinks, these women, who cut their teeth on hunting down Nazis, are far more formidable than they appear.
For those looking for less than likely leading ladies in an action packed drama with some humor and heart, this novel is all and a slice of cheesecake:
Natalie Jenner followed up her charming debut novel, The Jane Austen Society, with another literary themed tale of books and people connecting in Bloomsbury Girls.
Set in post WWII London, the trio of women who work at this previously all-male bookstore are doing their best to match their colleagues in making the shop more appealing to a wider set of readers(which the business financially needs ).
Despite the individual efforts of shy Evie, modest Grace and the dynamic Vivien, their attempts to improve the shop and their personal lives keep being held back from true success. Only by working together can these women find a way towards a better bookish tomorrow.
You don’t have to have read The Jane Austen Society first(even though there is a shared character) to appreciate Bloomsbury Girls, although the two books do make for a lovely literary pairing for any true reader indeed:
For my nonfiction selection, Not All Supermen by Tim Hanley continues the author’s winning streak of engaging in depth looks at the comic book industry.
Hanley chronicles the development of male and female archetypes within the pages of both Marvel and DC Comics from Superman to the X-Men and how the current and changing times have been reflected in these iconic characters.
Hanley also looks at the behind the scenes office politics that allowed for rampant sexism and other bias based attitudes to flourish over the decades. Despite these challenges, inspiration and hope to create a better world both on and off page is still a solid reason to keep this format going by bringing much needed change and representation to the forefront.
You can still love a genre and be able to criticize it as well as encourage those involved to do better, which Hanley does brilliantly here and in his other works that focus on the likes of Lois Lane, Betty and Veronica, Wonder Woman and even Catwoman. By flipping the script and using our real skills against the naysayers can genre fare strive to be the heroes that we all long to be:
Like I said before, there were so many great books to highlight this year and while it would take way too to list them all, I do want to salute these particular authors for their fine work in 2022:
Love and Other Disasters by Anita Kelly: A cooking competition romance that celebrates more than one form of love. This is a delicious dish of a read to slowly savor.
A Lady’s Guide to Fortune Hunting by Sophie Irwin: Fans of Mr. Malcolm’s List(great movie,btw!) will rejoice in this clever bit of romance and social satire in Regency England.
The Murder of Mr. Wickham by Claudia Gray: A delightful blend of Jane Austen characters dealing with an Agatha Christie mystery in the midst of their house party. A good time to be had by all here!
I hope that this list is useful for your holiday shopping as well as your personal TBR piles for next year. Reading is definitely the gift that keeps on giving all year round but it is nice to have a proper excuse for getting and giving more books, that’s for sure:
In these troubling times, we find comfort in many things and one of the best sources for that is in the classics; especially in those we know so well.
For Jane Austen fans, regardless of which book is our personal favorite, Pride & Prejudice is the preferred go-to in this category and like any good recipe for greatness, the best one for newcomers to add their own imaginative ingredients to create a delicious read.
Pride and Protest by Nikki Payne introduces us to Alize”Liza” Bennet, who hosts her own radio show as “the DJ who gives a jam”, particularly when her family’s home at Longbourne Gardens in DC is about to be taken over by the Pemberley corporation.
While Pemberley is promising the community that their Netherfield Court will be beneficial to all, Liza is ready to raises her voice against the potential gentrification at the first chance to do so, namely the opening reception being given by the company.
As she arrives at the party with a batch of protest signs to slip into the back door, Liza thinks she has an instant ally in a waiter for the event and asks for his help.
Turns out, he’s not who she thinks is he-Dorsey Fitzgerald, the adopted son and heir to the Pemberley corporation has enough trouble getting the board of directors to take him seriously without adding some social activism to this media event(even if he finds this particular protester to be incredibly beautiful).
Liza discovers her mistake soon enough and despite Dorsey’s efforts to throw her off her game, does manage to stir up some attention for her cause that night. She would prefer to stay enemies but when her sister Janae starts to fall for David Bradley, one of Dorsey’s good friends, she finds herself stuck in that social orbit yet refuses to censor her true thoughts about his company’s agenda:
While Dorsey is also trying be accommodating for his friend as well as his business interests, his attraction to Liza pulls him firmly in her direction.
While being on the opposite sides of just about every argument, the mutual passion between them creates a slow but steady smolder that grows hard for either of them to resist.
As Liza and Dorsey attempt to simply be the best of frenemies , that spark keeps on growing. Can they become more than that or will their opposing goals in life force them apart?:
I do love a good Austen retelling and Payne gives us a delightfully engaging modern twist to this pivotal story amongst Jane’s celebrated works.
The blend of lively humor and emotional depth given to the characters makes this book more than just another literary remix. Payne creates a romance that doesn’t overly rely on the source material; rather she gives the reader a pair of relatable people who we root for in more ways than one.
Her writing reminds me of a combination of Jasmine Guillory with Uzma Jalaluddin but make no mistake, Payne is her own literary woman who I hope to read more of as time goes by.
Books as good as Pride and Protest not only have me reading it slowly in order to savor the page by page moments of pleasure, they also make me thankful for writers who create these wonderful stories that help us take a break from the real world when needed.
Even with the challenges that lie ahead for all of us, it is a great comfort to know that we have plenty of excellent authors out there to make these times a bit better and perhaps, give us a happy for now ending to inspire us along the way.
I have no doubt that Miss Austen would be proud in the best sense of such fine writing here:
As this year is quickly coming to a close, my Series-ous Reading feels a bit rushed there.
However, some things are worth taking your time with and a Maggie Hope mystery by Susan Elia MacNeal certainly falls into that category.
Mrs. Roosevelt’s Confidante brings our leading lady Maggie back to America as part of Winston Churchill’s official entourage upon the US entering WWII.
While seeing her aunt(who raised her after the alleged death of her parents) again as well as possibly patch things up romantically with former beau John Sterling are key priorities for Maggie, those focuses are shifted as the First Lady is in need of someone with spy skills to solve a potential murder.
When Mrs. Roosevelt’s current secretary, Blanche Balfour, goes missing at work , Maggie joins the First Lady in checking in on the young woman personally. To their mutual shock, Blanche is found dead in what is meant to be seen as a suicide but evidence casually left behind makes it clear that this was not the case.
While discreetly looking into the matter, Maggie learns that Blanche’s demise is part of an overall scheme to discredit Mrs. Roosevelt, who is trying to get her husband to stop the unjust execution of a young man named Wendell Cotton.
Wendell’s trial and soon to be carried out death sentence was railroaded through the system as a political gain for the governor of Virginia, which makes FDR somewhat reluctant to get involved due to needing support form the southern states to fund the new war effort.
Maggie is willing to help on more than one front here, particularly since this sinister campaign against Mrs. Roosevelt could affect both England and the US in working together to fight the Axis powers.
Not to mention that Eleanor herself is such an inspiration to the many causes for the betterment of others that Maggie consider it her duty to assist her as best she can:
I’ve compared these books to watching a great TV series like Agent Carter(which should’ve lasted longer than two seasons!) and that standard still holds true in this fifth entry.
MacNeal’s cast of characters, from historical figures like the Roosevelts and Walt Disney (who plays a pivotal part in Maggie’s renewed relationship with John) to her fictional folk, are vividly created enough that their own story lines are just as engaging as the main mystery of the book.
We also get welcome moments of amusement as Maggie gives one of her British friends a copy of Little Women for Christmas and his first time reading reactions are fun to say the least-reminds me of that book swap between Rachel and Joey on Friends that time!
MacNeal also keeps continuing plot points going on that don’t directly affect the central action yet are definitely important to keep an eye.
The escape of a persistent nemesis occurs towards the end of the book(semi spoiler alert) and while it may be awhile before I get back to this series, I am most intrigued to see what trouble this particular shady lady causes for Maggie and company in the books to come:
Meanwhile, my next to last selection for Series-ous Reading is Homicide in Hardcover , the first title in Kate Carlisle’s Bibliophile Mystery books that I am finally reading for the first time!
After reading this series out of order for quite awhile now, it’s great to now get to where it all started for Brooklyn Wainwright, a bookbinder who literally faints at the sight of blood, on her sleuthing side hustle so to speak.
With Brooklyn reuniting with her mentor Abraham at a library event celebrating the restoration of a rare edition of Faust, finding him dead before the book is fully repaired is startling in more ways than one.
While she does want to find the killer and make sure that Faust is ready for display, Brooklyn is up against challenges from friends as well as foes. Plus, this particular edition is supposedly cursed to boot, which is fitting for anything to do with Faust, if you ask me:
It’s been quite the week, with a lot of uncertainty both online and in the real world there. While things may not be as bad as they first seemed, the chaos is still too close for comfort.
Fortunately, the one constant that remains for me(other than family) is my ever expanding TBR pile.
For example, my latest Book of the Month Club selection was a pair of backlisted titles, the most recent being Helen Hoang’s The Heart Principle.
Anna Sun is a violinist who is feeling burnt out after a tour fueled by extra attention from a viral video. Upon hearing a mental health diagnosis that her relatives object to and her current boyfriend wanting an open relationship (on his terms), Anna decides to make a major change in her personal life.
She meets Quan, the owner of a clothing line who is recovering from cancer, on a dating app and even tho neither of them are looking for something serious, their connection promises to be more than casual. Especially when Anna’s father experiences a severe physical crisis that challenges them all.
I know that some readers found the switch in gears in this book to be off putting since her earlier works were very romance focused. Yet, I’m fine with a writer wanting to add some additional nuance to their work and Hoang’s prior novels with their engaging down to earth energy certainly make her future books worth checking out.
My other BOMC pick was a new edition of Little Women, a childhood favorite of mine that keeps popping up in some of my current reads lately.
With that in mind, I went to Better World Books for a copy of Beth and Amy by Virginia Kantra, the follow up to her modem take on the Alcott classic Meg and Jo.
Here, Beth is an aspiring country music singer struggling with an eating disorder and Amy is a designer of fashion accessories who once had a brief fling with Jo’s best friend Trey(who was still carrying a torch for her sister).
With Jo about to get married, all four sisters are reunited for the first time in a long while. This allows them not only a chance to reconnect but to face a few hard truths, particularly when it comes to Beth’s health and Amy’s love life with Trey being back in the picture due to Jo’s impending nuptials.
I did enjoy Meg and Jo(will probably reread that one) and this companion piece should make a nice set of satisfying reading with my brand new edition of LW. I do hope that Beth does better here than in the original as the idea of her sharing her talents with a wider audience is the best update for this character that I can imagine:
I paired that book with Jennifer Ryan’s The Kitchen Front, a WWII in England set novel about a cooking competition.
The big prize here is to be the co-host of a BBC radio show devoted to teaching British housewives frugal recipes for the war effort.
Anxious to do their part as well as take a much needed chance to change their lives, a group of four women from very different backgrounds find themselves in direct culinary competition with one another.
Will it be Audrey, a widow trying to get her bakeshop going or her sister Gwendoline, who thinks she’s above it all as the wife of a major manufacturer? Could the gently spoken Nell rise from her housemaid station with such a win or perhaps Zelda, the upperclass chef can claim victory despite the secret that threatens to destroy her personal and professional life?
Author Ryan does have a flair for making such women on the home front stories engagingly compelling without being overwhelmed by the standards of the genre, so I do look forward hungrily to this one. Plus,a cooking contest amongst the British is culinary catnip to me:
And yes, I did pick up a new release for my cozy mystery collection.
Donut Disturb is the latest in Ellie Alexander’s Bakeshop Mysteries series that has leading lady Juliet Capshaw preparing a specially requested wedding cake for her good friend Thomas and his bride/coworker Kerry.
Things get tense when an unexpected guest in the form of Kerry’s estranged father shows up but even more troubling is the sudden demise of the bassist from the band hired for the reception. Can Juliet lend more than her pastry prowess to the occasion to protect her friends from the “til death do us part” portion of the marriage vows?
Alexander is amazing at whipping up these tasty detective desserts and I hope to finish this book before her next one comes out later this year( Muffin But The Truth, another win in the punny title game there!). Plus, a donut wedding cake sounds awesome!:
No matter how wild the world around us can get, some ports in such storms are worth holding on to like family/friends, a good meal and a great read.
That’s probably why I like Thanksgiving so much. Yes, the origin story of this holiday is troubling to say the least(the Wednesday Addams speech in Addams Family Values is more historically accurate than some textbooks, sad to say) but the pilgrim pageantry is not what interest me.
It’s the concept of gathering together with loved ones to celebrate the good in our lives that is of real and lasting importance, if you ask me. A good dinner can’t solve all of our differences yet it’s a good place to start as any. After all, kitchen tables do make for welcome conversation for a reason:
We are definitely into autumn now, with plenty of leaves on the ground and pumpkin spice scenting the crisp cool air.
Another sign of the season is the FrightFall readathon, which fitfully ended on Halloween. Out of my original TBR, I made one switch and completed two and a half books(am into the latter half with the last one), so a pretty good reading run here.
My first FrightFall read was Deanna Raybourn’s Killers of a Certain Age in which a set of four older female friends on a retirement cruise are not what they seem.
The ladies in question-Billie,Helen, Natalie and Mary Alice-were recruited in their youth by a secret organization dedicated to tracking down former Nazis and other bad guys for elimination. Now in their advancing years, this trip was meant as a peaceful last hurrah.
Instead, the cruise was a ruse to take them all out at once, a fatal mistake for those who set them up as pawns in a power grab. Despite their being caught off guard at first, Billie and her friends manage to turn the tables but the endgame is more complicated than any involved could have imagined.
This is just a grand roller coaster ride of a book as Raybourn weaves a smartly savvy web of engaging intrigue with dashes of humor and heart.
I really hope this becomes a movie at some point because the level of awesomeness on the page needs to be shared on more than one media platform. A great testimony to how foolish it is to underestimate older women indeed:
While I did intend to stick to lighter mysteries for the rest of this readathon, my snagging of The Kiss Curse from the Book of the Month Club before it quickly sold out was a sign unto me to make a switch in my literary lineup.
This follow up to The Ex-Hex by Erin Sterling gives Vivi’s cousin Gwyn a chance at magical romance via a professional rivalry with Llwellyn aka Wells Penhallow, the brother of her cousin’s new husband Simon.
Wells has moved to the town of Graves Glen to find a fresh start and part of that includes setting up a magic shop right across from the one that Gwyn and her family have run for years. Never liking Wells to begin with(based on a past encounter), Gwyn is eager to fight back, retail style.
However, a strange set of circumstances forces them to team up in more ways than one. Even with a mix of magic and romance around them, can these two discover their true enemy before the last stroke of midnight on Halloween?
Much like Sterling’s earlier book, this story is a fun bit of storytelling magic that completely enchants you all the way.
The addition of new characters (the trio of young apprentices that Gwyn takes on, plus the adorable talking cat known as Sir Purricval) and enhanced family drama works out great and encourages more stories to come from the good witches of Graves Glen:
At the moment, I’m finishing up The Grim Reader by Kate Carlisle, one of her most recent entries in her Bibliophile mystery series.
Her leading lady Brooklyn Wainwright is happy to visit her family at their wine making hometown of Dharma with new husband Derek Stone by her side for many reasons, especially since her mother Rebecca is leading the committee for Dharma’s first book festival.
For a dedicated bookbinder like Brooklyn, such an event is pure joy but there are unexpected pitfalls that mar the way such as an obnoxious newcomer trying to literally force his way into the festival, the shocking death of a committee member and missing funds discovered just before things are ready to begin.
While she’s determined to help out(not to mention protect her mother from harm), Brooklyn soon learns that the copy of Little Women she was asked to restore may be a pivotal key to unlocking this case. Can her bookbinding skills save the day or bring on more disaster?
I do enjoy this series with it’s bookish energy and welcoming set of characters who make you feel right at home with every page turn. Plus, all of this talk about Little Women is just pointing me towards a reread of that iconic book as soon as I’m done here:
My thanks to Michelle Miller at Seasons of Reading for hosting these wonderful readathons and while I’m not sure if I will take part in the upcoming Christmas Spirit one, I hope everyone has a wonderful bookish time.
Some sad news to report: the author Julie Powell has recently passed away at the far too soon age of 49. Her yearlong challenge to make every recipe in the first volume of Julia Child’s Mastering the Art of French Cooking began as a blog and then became a book which lead to a film adaptation starring Amy Adams and Meryl Streep.
While Julia herself wasn’t thrilled with Julie’s project(they never met in real life), these two had much in common.
Both women struggled to find what ultimate purpose they had to offer the world and found it through food and writing. Each of them received equal amounts of admiration and criticism for their professional and personal choices yet firmly marched to the beat of their own drummers.
I first read Julie and Julia in reader’s advance copy form(still have that edition) as a bookseller and Powell’s lively energy not only introduced me to the wonders of Julia Child and food writing in general, she inspired this very blog that I still keep pecking away at today.
I recently reread J&J as part of my “Julia journey “ this year and yes, it does hold up. Powell’s emotional honesty and ability to look back with a laugh or two at times , plus her love of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, is the spine of this internet age meets culinary classic story.
She also wrote a memoir,Cleaving, about learning the art of butchering that is in a very different tone from J&J but definitely worth checking out. However, Julie will be forever linked with Julia and that’s a damn good legacy to have, if you ask me.
My deepest condolences to Powell’s friends and family, especially her beloved husband Eric. Truly gone too soon yet destined to be remembered always:
