It was the worst or the best reason for a reunion. Ten years after a high school field trip goes horribly wrong, The Only Survivors get together every year on the event’s anniversary. They are sticking together to avoid the fate of two of their number. Survivor’s guilt and aContinue Reading
Veg Out is the perfect gardening book for newbies who want an edible garden (or a patio pot or two) but have never read another gardening book. It is clearly laid out with plenty of photos. The steps to proceed are easy to follow. There is an extensive section withContinue Reading
Even in suburban Ireland, stay-at-home wives with young children hide behind their Instagram filters while their real home life falls apart. Ciara and Lauren are neighbors—but certainly not friends. Lauren’s life is chaotic but is based on love. Ciara, an important, at least in her own mind, Instagram influencer, hasContinue Reading
In Fateful Words, Delaney is a Kansas expat working in an Edinburgh bookstore when her boss mysteriously disappears right before hosting his annual tour of the area. Despite her ex-pat status, Delaney steps in as head of the small global tour group. The tour relates books including The Prime ofContinue Reading
Who wants Poop for Breakfast? A surprisingly large collection of animals, birds and insects. Luckily (or maybe hopefully), humans don’t eat poop. This picture book explains the reasons why some species do, and some don’t, enjoy the culinary delights of poo. While marketed for children, I found some fascinating tidbitsContinue Reading
Sherlock Holmes—The Final Problem is a new illustrated edition of the famous short story. The illustrations are reminiscent of German woodcuts. They are beautiful. The text is abridged from the original version, which may make the story more accessible for younger readers. Though originally published in 1893, the story holdsContinue Reading
How Not to Kill Yourself attempts to give people with a suicidal mindset a reason not to do it—at least not today. Overall, I think it achieves that goal. Though obvious recommendations, like call a friend or just wait one more day, are discussed, many new ideas are also included.Continue Reading
Hiss & Tell is a cozy mystery with two timelines—the present and 1789–both set in the same location in rural Virginia. In the present day, when a man is found shot dead in a ditch with no ID and drugs in his system, the locals worry that big city problemsContinue Reading
My Review Courtney is the owner of a fairy-gardening/tea shop in picturesque Carmel-by-the-Sea. She also can see fairies around her. One fairy in particular, Fiona, is tasked with helping Courtney with any issues in her life. In A Flicker of a Doubt, Fiona’s story is told, and it is fascinating!Continue Reading
Not you see him…and now you don’t. When a dead body goes missing, Phee’s retired, but not retiring, mother Harriet insists that her amateur sleuth/bookkeeper daughter find out what happened. If only it were that easy. Will Phee Strike Out 4 Murder? Sun City West is a retirement complex inContinue Reading
Three newborn identical triplets are found abandoned in a roadside rest stop. The girls are split up by the government and grow up in multiple foster and group homes with only occasional visits with each other. Moody, Iris and Sissy reunite at eighteen. When one’s relationship goes horribly awry, theContinue Reading
Ali Reynolds’ husband B. is almost killed when traveling to the airport to attend a London business conference. The police are sure it was a planned hit. But was B. the intended victim or was he just Collateral Damage in the attempted murder of his hired driver? Disgraced ex-cop FrankContinue Reading
Mickey7 is back but he has the Antimatter Blues. Despite being an Expendable, who was previously just painfully regenerated whenever his missions were too much for his frail human body, he has been accepted into the colony on planet Niflheim. However, some of his actions to achieve that status (madeContinue Reading
Are you looking to lower your carbon footprint and save money as well as the planet by creating less food waste? The average American household throws out almost a third of the food it buys—that’s $3,000 annually right into the trash can. The Everlasting Meal Cookbook has a multitude ofContinue Reading
The God of Endings is a story about a vampire. However, it reads more like a philosophical tale weighing the pros and cons of immortality. It is slow and sometimes confusing. It is probably best for literary fiction fans rather than fantasy, horror or even historical fiction readers. Still, itContinue Reading
An improbable cartoonish plot and paper-thin unlikeable characters makes What Have We Done a miss for me. Five teenagers meet in a horrendous group home and do something drastic to save themselves from its horrors. Twenty-five years later, all five have achieved various levels of success: a judge, a techContinue Reading