Welcome to my weekly update for August 18, 2024! I made it back for a second week in a row! Woohoo! On Tuesday, we went to Lake George, NY. It’s a beautiful, clear lake nestled in the Adirondacks. We took a ride on a steamship called the Minne-Ha-Ha, named after a character in Longfellow’s […]
5 Stars. Sometimes it feels that everyone has strong opinions about Israel and the Middle East. Given the current war, I found myself forming my own strong opinions even though I knew practically nothing about the modern history of Israel and its relations with the Palestinians and surrounding […]
3 Stars. First of all, this is a disturbingly violent book. I didn’t have nightmares or anything but it is graphic. Horrific domestic abuse, very violent death, and a brief mention of rape. Sensitive readers should steer clear. That out of the way, there’s a lot of potential here. I really didn’t know who […]
Jana at That Artsy Reader Girl invited us to share ten travel books this week. I’ve written about Books That Awaken My Travel Bug in the past so I’m posting a topic I missed instead–ten debut novels I enjoyed. I’ve tried to mostly choose books that are older or a little off the radar. I rated all […]
Welcome to my weekly update for August 11, 2024! Well, I certainly didn’t mean to disappear for six months but, you know, life. The last time I posted, my husband, a travel nurse, was working near our home in North Carolina. We wrapped up that work assignment in May and took a couple of weeks off […]
3 Stars. When I realized this short story is a prequel to Legends & Lattes, I knew exactly which incident from Viv’s earlier life that I hope it addressed and that’s exactly what I got. Yay! It’s so strongly related to the book, that I really think it could have been edited a bit more and turned […]
4.5 Stars. To me, the plot of this book took a back seat to the characters, but that’s why I liked it. I am a very character-driven reader and Legends & Lattes gave me a whole book in which to watch a group of diverse characters develop, become friends, build a supportive community, and cheer each […]
Welcome to my weekly update for February 18, 2024! On our second day in Florida a couple of weeks ago, we just took our time driving down through the Keys. I’ve only made the trip one time and that was with my in-laws. We were able to stop and look around a little more freely this time on our […]
4 Stars. In this atmospheric mystery, I wasn’t even entirely sure who had been murdered until the end, much less who did it. I feel like I should have guessed the culprit because the clues were all there but I didn’t. The characters are largely unlikeable, even to each other. They’re that group of […]
4 Stars. I loved Jennifer Wright’s book, Get Well Soon: History’s Worst Plagues and the Heroes Who Fought Them. I loved her humor in tackling a pretty grim subject. She brings the same humor to this examination of some spectacular break-ups. She shines a light on the following couples: 1. Nero […]
Welcome to my weekly update for February 11, 2024! I missed posting the past couple of weeks because we were in south Florida to do some touristy things and then visit my in-laws. We visited Biscayne National Park and went snorkeling our first day. I would not recommend snorkeling in January, even […]