Marmalade Murders
The Marmalade Murders is an enjoyable cozy mystery set in a small North Wales village. Penny and Victoria are partners in the village spa. When they get roped into checking in contestants for the local food competition, they discover some irregularities. Why did someone call Florence telling her to checkContinue Reading
SHOCK Anthology
SHOCK Anthology is a collection of 21 completely different stories from Aftershock Comics. Fluctuating genres and art keep any one person from liking all the stories. However, there is something for everyone within: horror, sci-fi, memoir, adventure and some with apparently no plot at all. The new Neil Gaiman isContinue Reading
Strategy Strikes Back
Military strategies compared to Star Wars are the theme of the 28 essays within Strategy Strikes Back. Focusing on both past warfare and the wars to come, it is comprehensively researched and annotated. I have to say that only reviewers will have the patience to read a foreword, a prefaceContinue Reading
80s Redux
Beautiful photographs of 80s music industry veterans and short summaries of their life now fill 80s Redux. 46 people are profiled. Most are lead singers but other musicians and a few complete bands are included. Here are the artists and/or bands included: Dave Wakeling, The English Beat Martha Davis, TheContinue Reading
Great American Outpost
The Great American Outpost is a scattershot memoir of the North Dakota fracking oil boom and its impact on local residents. In 2011, the first horizontal fracking oil well was drilled in North Dakota. What followed totally changed the laid back farming vibe of the state. Out-of-state workers flooded theContinue Reading
Baker Street Irregulars The Game is Afoot
Only Sherlock Holmes unites the unique and disparate tales within Baker Street Irregulars The Game is Afoot. The 13 stories within this collection take wildly different approaches in their homages to Sherlock Holmes. Sherlock is a girl, a native American, a student, a teacher, a librarian, a rabbi and aContinue Reading
Beyond the Map
Eclectic mix of essays in Beyond the Map is sure to have something for everyone. How unique islands are formed and claimed is described in Part I. Part II is about how some small nations and communities were developed. Part III describes utopias of religion, lifestyle, or technology. Part IVContinue Reading
The Leavenworth Case
Not for modern readers, The Leavenworth Case will made the reader appreciate Sir Arthur Conan Doyle all the more. Bestselling 1878 amateur detective mystery. It sold 750,000 copies in the 15 years after its publishing. Arguably the first full length mystery written by a woman, The Leavenworth Case is narratedContinue Reading
Charity Ends at Home
Fifth in the Flaxborough Mystery series, Charity Ends at Home is another late Golden Age small English village cozy. The village coroner, constable and editor of the local paper each receive an identical unsigned note stating that the writer is fearful of being murdered. The note references a photo ofContinue Reading
The Big Ones
A history of disasters and a prediction of The Big Ones fill Dr. Jones’ book. Containing a wealth of information about the science underlying disasters, The Big Ones is written in an informal and non-technical manner. From Pompeii and Iceland’s volcanos, to California’s 1861 floods, to earthquakes in 1775 Lisbon,Continue Reading
The Bridge: How the Roeblings Connected Brooklyn to New York
Fourteen years, deaths, illnesses, corruption and kickbacks! Who knew a history of the construction of the Brooklyn Bridge could be so interesting? It takes a family (and a lot of immigrants) to build the Brooklyn Bridge in The Bridge: How the Roeblings Connected Brooklyn to New York. The story beginsContinue Reading
Then She Was Gone
Then She Was Gone is recommended to thriller rather than mystery readers. Mothers especially will relate to this moving family story. Fifteen-year-old Ellie Mack disappears one day. Did she run away or was she kidnapped? Her disappearance tears apart her family. Laurel, Ellie’s mom, has two older children and aContinue Reading
The Family Trade Vol 1
The Float is a city floating on the sea of an alternate version of Earth. It originated with a rebel armada from an England-like land. The Float is ruled by the Clans, who are descendants of the original ships’ officers. The Family, descendants of the original crews, keeps the ClansContinue Reading
After Anna
Maggie and Noah were married and happy as they could be After Anna arrived, chaos occurred as all will agree Range Rovers, sexual allegations Inappropriate pics on vacations Within the court and out, there are two sides to the couple’s tale Hopefully this one won’t end with Noah locked upContinue Reading
Make Manga!
Focusing on composition and coloring, Make Manga! is a great next step for pencil artists. While sketching is almost a sixth of the book, it seems too brief for most beginning manga artists. The inking and especially coloring sections are extremely well done. Most pages explain both what to doContinue Reading
The Sixth Day
A complicated and engaging thriller incorporating modern technology, a real-life unreadably manuscript and Romanian legends. The fifth in the Brit in the FBI series, The Sixth Day brings together a serial killer, drones, computer viruses, falconry and Dracula. Nicholas, Mike and the Covert Eyes team return in the latest BritContinue Reading