Captains Augustus McCrae and Woodrow Call have retired from active duty in the Texas Rangers and tried to settle in to life as ranchers. When an old buddy shows up talking about how beautiful Montana is and how much land is available for ranching, Captain Call is seized with the idea of being the first […]
Between Shades of Gray by Ruta Sepetys: Book Review
4.5 Stars. Oh my goodness. How did I not know about this? I’ve come across vague statements about how many millions of people died under Stalin’s regime in the past. I didn’t realize the scale of it, if that makes sense. I somehow thought it was smaller groups of “dissenters” killed across many, many years and across a vast […]
The Story of Beautiful Girl by Rachel Simon: Book Review
On a dark and stormy night in 1968, a widow is alone at home, as she usually is. She hears a knock on her door. She isn’t expecting anyone, but, these being simpler times in many ways, she answers anyway. A young black man and white woman are outside, drenched, in obvious need of help. […]
Gone With the Wind by Margaret Mitchell: Book Review
This sweeping epic portrays life during the Civil War and Reconstruction through the eyes of Scarlett O’Hara, a young Southern belle who has a stubborn streak a mile wide. She’s in love with the wrong man, marries the wrong men, and is irredeemably selfish, but she’s a survivor. Through it all, she steadfastly refuses the […]
Cutting for Stone by Abraham Verghese: Book Review
Twins Marion and Shiva Stone are orphaned when their mother, a nun, dies in childbirth and their father denies them. They are blessed to be taken in and raised by an Indian woman who loves them with every fiber of her being. Cutting for Stone primarily follows Marion as he grows up in Ethiopia and […]
The Thorn and the Blossom by Theodora Goss: Book Review
I have to start with this actual physical book. If you read my blog, you might be aware that I don’t accept books for review. Reading on a schedule was starting to feel like work, so I decided to just say no to free books and read what I want when I want. It works […]
Major Pettigrew’s Last Stand by Helen Simonson: Book Review
Major Ernest Pettigrew is literally reeling around his house in shock on the morning his younger brother dies. A knock comes at his door and it is the lady from the village shop–Mrs. Ali. Mrs. Ali is there to collect money for the paper boy, but she takes one look at the Major and decides […]
Daughter of the Blood by Anne Bishop: Book Review
In a society that seems to be loosely based on the habits of black widow spiders, the strong females have eliminated all but the weakest males and females, leaving only a few strong males to strengthen their bloodlines. This has been going on for centuries. But the coming of a female with power that has […]
The Goose Girl by Shannon Hale: Book Review
I loved this. I finished it with a huge smile on my face and that contentment that comes from a story well told. It’s like enjoying a feast for the reader’s soul. I had heard so many good things about this book, I went into it with very high expectations. I have to admit that I wasn’t too sure what to think at first. The…
The Lincoln Lawyer by Michael Connelly: Book Review
Mickey Haller is a criminal defense attorney living in LA. His bail bondsman calls him up one day with a “franchise” case. A young man with money to burn has been charged with a whole list of crimes, ranging from something like attempted rape to assault with a deadly weapon. Don’t quote me on that. […]
The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss: Book Review
Kvothe is an innkeeper in a little out-of-the-way village. Or is he? One day a story-gatherer finds him and guesses that there is more to the innkeeper than meets the eye. He asks Kvothe to share his story. Kvothe agrees, but tells Chronicler that it will take three days to tell the story. This book […]