Reviews

The Man in the High Castle by Philip K. Dick is a novel about a different world than the one we live in, a world in which Germany won World War II and now Nazis and the Japanese share the … Continued

The Illustrated Man by Ray Bradbury is coming up on its 65th year of publication.  Amazing, isn’t it? 7 out of 10 stars.  Like Martian Chronicles, some of the stories, most of the stories actually, are outdated and not that interesting.  … Continued

The Martian Chronicles by Ray Bradbury is coming up on its 70th year publication anniversary, believe it or not.  I was surprised too.  This gem was published in 1946 and it’s finally showing its age. 5 out of 10 stars.  … Continued

The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins is a murder mystery that slowly unravels in the mind of an alcoholic prone to blackouts.  She can’t remember what happened the fateful night that Megan Hipwell disappeared but something inside of … Continued

The Bottoms by Joe Lansdale is a murder mystery/thriller set in 1933 and 1934, Depression-era East Texas near the Sabine River in a town called Marvel Creek and nearby Pearl Creek. 5 out of 10 stars.  If this novel had … Continued

First Lady  by Susan Elizabeth Phillips is an old novel from the 1990s about a runaway First Lady and a runaway brother of seven sisters.  Although most of the author’s “heroes” are bullies, Mathias Jorik is probably the best among … Continued

Grizzly by Chrstine Andreae is a 1996 murder mystery that takes place in the mountains of northern Montana. 2 out of 10 stars.  This was another really bad novel.  Nothing happened in the entire first half of the book.  The … Continued

The Bear by Claire Cameron is a novel told completely from the point of view of a five year-old named Anna who tries surviving in the wilderness after her parents are brutally killed by a bear at their campsite. 0 … Continued

Southern Living Big Book of Cupcakes by Jan Moon is a sequel to her previous Big Book of Cupcakes. 0 out of 10 stars.  I was literally shocked when I opened this book.  There are supposed to be 150 cupcake recipes in … Continued

Night Fall by Nelson DeMille is one of the novels in his John Corey series.  I have not read the series before and considering how much I loathed this one, I won’t be. 1 out of 10 stars.  This novel started … Continued

Living Principal by Victoria Principal is the fourth book in the Health and Wellness series put out by Victorial Principal, the famous actress from Dallas.  Her first three books in the series were on exercising, skincare, and dieting. 4 out of 10 stars.  I … Continued

Cold in July by Joe Lansdale is a novel from the 1980s with a synopsis that makes you think it’s about revenge.  It’s totally not.  In fact, the actual plot is so very different from the synopsis, I’m going to … Continued

Put Your Heart on Paper by Henriette Anne Klauser is supposed to be a book about writing sentiments down for yourself (journaling) or for others (letters).  It is neither of those things.  It’s actually a memoir of the author’s friends … Continued

My First Sewing Book by Cico Kidz Publishing is a child’s first sewing book geared to kids 5 years old and up.  At 128 pages for $14.95, it’s a pricey book for what’s inside. 4 out of 10 stars.  I had … Continued

Something Wild by Patti Berg is a 2002 cowboy romance between a Las Vegas showgirl and a Wyoming ranch manager who is also the local pastor.  The hero I loved.  The heroine I hated.  One-quarter of the book is devoted … Continued

The Cinderella Deal by Jennifer Crusie was written back in 1996, two decades or 20 years ago.  It shows its age.  I inherited an entire Jennifer Crusie collection from my older sister and I promised her I’d read at least … Continued

Mason Jar Crafts by Lauren Elise Donaldson is a book designed to use the beauty of Mason canning jars and be crafty with them.  I wish the crafts were pretty.  They really aren’t.  I’ve found more useful things to do with … Continued

If you enjoyed A Walk Among the Tombstones, then you may like the other novels in the Mathew Scudder character series. Here they are in order: 1. The Sins of the Fathers 1975. The hooker was young, pretty…and dead, butchered … Continued

Everybody Dies is the 14th novel in the Matthew Scudder series by Lawrence Block. Although Block’s writing has significantly deteriorated (the dialogue is nothing more than sentence fragments with no subject and no verb) the plot was at least engaging. … Continued

The Devil Knows You’re Dead is #11 in the Matthew Scudder series by Lawrence Block and the ninth Scudder novel I’ve read. It is by far the worst, considerably less of a murder mystery and more of the musings of … Continued