Category: Book Review

Book Critic, Book Review, Books, Literary Criticism, Reading

Review: One Day in December by Josie Silver

by The Lit Bitch1 Comment on Review: One Day in December by Josie Silver

One of my absolute favorite holiday movie is Love Actually. I watch it every year and it never gets old no matter how cheesy and unrealistic is it.

My favorite couple David (Hugh Grant) and Natalie (Martine McCutcheon) followed closely by Juliet (Kira Knightly) and Mark (Andrew Lincoln). So when I saw this book so heavily compared to Love Actually and the Juliet/Mark couple, I was eager to read it.

It was my December Book of the Month pick and truth be told I almost passed on all the books for December on BOTM but, I saw so many excellent reviews about this one and decided at the last minute…..why not?

Laurie is pretty sure love at first sight doesn’t exist anywhere but the movies. But then, through a misted-up bus window one snowy December day, she sees a man who she knows instantly is the one. Their eyes meet, there’s a moment of pure magic…and then her bus drives away. Continue reading “Review: One Day in December by Josie Silver” →

Book Critic, Book Review, Books, Literary Criticism, Reading

Review: Hall of Mirrors (Bryant & May #15) by Christopher Fowler

by The Lit BitchLeave a Comment on Review: Hall of Mirrors (Bryant & May #15) by Christopher Fowler

I happened to pick up the first book in the Bryant and May series a couple of years ago at my local used book shop. The first thing that caught my eye was the interesting and quirky cover.

In a sea of mystery novels the early Bryant and May covers really caught my eye. I would probably have never picked up the books had I not seen these lovely covers.

When I read the first book, the one thing that stood out head and shoulders above the rest was the dead pan banter between the two detectives—they had so much chemistry and it made the story fun to read and the shifting between the younger Bryant and May characters and the now older Bryant and May.

As soon as I was done I went out and bought the next four books in the series because not only did I love the covers but I loved the two detectives. But sadly that’s where things ended for me. I got caught up in other books and other series and just didn’t make my way back to this one for some reason.  Continue reading “Review: Hall of Mirrors (Bryant & May #15) by Christopher Fowler” →

Book Critic, Book Review, Books, Literary Criticism, Reading

Review: Murder at the Mill (An Iris Grey Mystery #1) by M.B. Shaw

by The Lit Bitch1 Comment on Review: Murder at the Mill (An Iris Grey Mystery #1) by M.B. Shaw

I love discovering new mystery series and new to me authors. M. B. Shaw is not a new author, but she is new to me and I was eager to check out a book that sounded like an Agatha Christie mystery.

An quirky protagonist solves crime at a country house party…..at the holidays? Yes and double yes! I was so excited to read this one, especially during the holiday season!

A picture hides a thousand lies . . . And only Iris Grey can uncover the truth

Iris Grey arrives at Mill Cottage in a picture-perfect Hampshire village, looking to escape from her crumbling marriage. She is drawn to the neighbouring Wetherby family, and is commissioned to paint a portrait of Dominic Wetherby, a celebrated crime writer.

At the Wetherby’s Christmas Eve party, the mulled wine is in full flow – but so too are tensions and rivalries among the guests. On Christmas Day, the youngest member of the Wetherby family, Lorcan, finds a body in the water. A tragic accident? Or a deadly crime? Continue reading “Review: Murder at the Mill (An Iris Grey Mystery #1) by M.B. Shaw” →

Book Critic, Book Review, Books, Literary Criticism, Reading

Review: Judah’s Wife: A Novel of the Maccabees (The Silent Years #2) by Angela Elwell Hunt

by The Lit Bitch3 Comments on Review: Judah’s Wife: A Novel of the Maccabees (The Silent Years #2) by Angela Elwell Hunt

I happened to see one of this author’s books up for giveaway on Goodreads and I was intrigued by the sound of her ‘signature style’ which seems to be women in the Bible. I didn’t win the giveaway but I did pick up one of her books the next time I was at my library.

This book stood out because of the beautiful cover and I know next to nothing about the Maccabee rebellion so I thought—-why not?

Seeking peace and safety after a hard childhood, Leah marries Judah, a strong and gentle man, and for the first time in her life Leah believes she can rest easily. But the land is ruled by Antiochus IV, descended from one of Alexander the Great’s generals, and when he issues a decree that all Jews are to conform to Syrian laws upon pain of death, devout Jews risk everything to follow the law of Moses. Continue reading “Review: Judah’s Wife: A Novel of the Maccabees (The Silent Years #2) by Angela Elwell Hunt” →

Book Critic, Book Review, Books, Literary Criticism, Reading

Review: The Blue by Nancy Bilyeau

by The Lit Bitch2 Comments on Review: The Blue by Nancy Bilyeau

I’ve only read a couple of Nancy Bilyeau’s novels, which was a good read but for some reason I didn’t get back to any of her other novels. I saw this one floating around various book sites and was intrigued.

I was interesting in this book because I thought it was going to be about china and porcelain and somehow circle back and become a historical thriller. In sort, that’s exactly what I got with this one—-porcelain and a little bit of suspense.

In eighteenth century London, porcelain is the most seductive of commodities; fortunes are made and lost upon it. Kings do battle with knights and knaves for possession of the finest pieces and the secrets of their manufacture.

For Genevieve Planché, an English-born descendant of Huguenot refugees, porcelain holds far less allure; she wants to be an artist, a painter of international repute, but nobody takes the idea of a female artist seriously in London. If only she could reach Venice. Continue reading “Review: The Blue by Nancy Bilyeau” →