Literary Criticism
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Take Two Review: The Art of Theft (Lady Sherlock #4) by Sherry Thomas
I read this book last October and at that time, I was not really into the Lady Sherlock series. I just couldn’t get into the first book but then this one came up and I was intrigued and wanted to give it another go. When I read it, I really enjoyed it much more than the first book. While I hadn’t read the other books in the series, I didn’t feel overly lost and thought it was a fun diverting mystery. I ultimately decided to go back and re-read the series, but it wasn’t too high up on my reading priority list but then I read the fifth book this…
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Review: The Hollow of Fear (Lady Sherlock #3) by Sherry Thomas
I am 100% a mood reader and when I started this series I just wasn’t feeling it at all, which bothered me. By all accounts this should have been a series that I would love and I just didn’t when I read the first book the first time. But I decided after reading one of the later books in the series, that I maybe hadn’t given this series the chance that it deserved. So I went back and re-read the first book and for whatever reason, found it much more enjoyable this time around. So here I am on the third book in the series and I am 100% hooked…
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Review: Poppy Redfern and the Fatal Flyers (A Woman of WWII Mystery #2) by Tessa Arlen
It’s been a while since I have read anything by Tessa Arlen but I have loved her Lady Montford mystery series and I was excited to start her latest series featuring new heroine, Poppy Redfern. I started reading the first book when it first came out but then something happened to my copy and I couldn’t locate it for months. I have a feeling mom or sister took it off my nightstand but I have yet to discover incriminating evidence. Sadly I picked up something else and got distracted and never went back to Poppy Redfern but with this one coming out, I was really excited to dive back into…
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Review: Love Poems for the Office by John Kenney
John Kenney’s quick little ‘Love Poems’ books have been a bright spot in my reading calendar over the last few years. While not quite a ‘poet’ Kenney never ceases to connect with his audience in an unexpected way. I laughed out loud at a number of this poems over the years and have enjoyed giving these little books to friends and family throughout the years, especially for stocking stuffers. He has a wonderful comedic voice. When this one came up for review, I was excited to read it because I know that he has rarely written a poem that I don’t find humor in, in at least one way or…
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Review: Lust Killer by Ann Rule
For ‘Non Fiction November’ my book club really wanted to read a true crime novel. And seriously, is there anyone better than Ann Rule?! The answer is no….no there is not. I absolutely love all of her novels and have read so so so many of them. However, it’s been years since I have read one of her novels. Like at least 15+ years. I went through a big true crime phase back in the early 2000s and a devoured many of her books but for some reason I didn’t read this one and I am shocked because I have an intimate connection with this book. My uncle was one…
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Review: A Conspiracy in Belgravia (Lady Sherlock #2) by Sherry Thomas
After reading the first book in the series a few years ago, I didn’t care for it and didn’t want to continue the series. But I have been so bothered by the fact that I didn’t like it. Finally I broke down when the publisher asked me to read the fourth book in the series. I really enjoyed the fourth book, a lot more than I was expecting, and finally decided that I needed to go back and read this series again from the beginning to see if maybe it was just the mood I was in at the time or if I truly didn’t love the first book. Well…
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Take Two Review: A Study in Scarlet Women (Lady Sherlock #1) by Sherry Thomas
When I first picked up this book, I didn’t love it. I don’t even think I made it 20% of the way through before I sat it down, though I did force myself to finish it but I just didn’t love it. I decided NOT to read any of the other books in the series but at the same time, I lamented the fact that I didn’t love this series. I mean it’s been everywhere and lots of people loved it but I just didn’t. But it started to bug me that I didn’t love it. Because by all accounts I SHOULD have loved this series. I finally gave in…
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Review: When We Were Young & Brave by Hazel Gaynor
I have been a long time fan of Hazel Gaynor, I have loved all of her books and was thrilled to see this book coming up for release. This one sounded a little different than her typical books, but still a similar time period just a different location. I couldn’t wait to see how that all translated in this story and was thrilled when I was asked to review it! Earlier this year I read a novel set during the Japanese occupation of China in WWII which was a very new piece of history for me and I was eager to read more and this book sounded like it would…
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Review: Murder in Old Bombay by Nev March
The cover of this book screamed adventure and oozed exotic atmosphere so I couldn’t wait to check it out as soon as it came in the mail. This is the author’s debut novel and it promised a far away land with a tantalizing murder mystery plus a little romance. I haven’t read anything set in India in quite some time. Not to mention something that sounded so fresh and different but yet familiar and comforting like a historical mystery is. This book came in at 400 pages so a little longer than a typical historical mystery but considering the setting, I was looking forward to what I hoped would be…
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Review: Dark Tides (The Fairmile #2) by Philippa Gregory
When I saw Tidelands was coming out, I was so excited. I wanted to read something by Philipa Gregory so badly and I jumped at the chance to read Tidelands. But I came away feeling a little underwhelmed. Most of the time, I love Gregory’s novels and have really enjoyed how rich and nuanced her history, characters, and romances are but in this one, I just felt like the story itself was cumbersome and dry. However, at the end of Tidelands I felt invested enough in the characters and the story to continue reading the series, in hopes that it would get better and the characters more exciting along with…