The Land and Its People by David Sedaris

 

In this latest collection of searing and oftentimes funny twenty-eight essays, Sedaris captures everyday life in the simplest yet most hammering-the-nail-on-the-head way.  For example, he sees a hotel owner demand that a patron remove his feet from the table in front of him.  Sedaris wishes that action could be taken elsewhere, like on trains, when a patron is playing music too loudly; shoot him in the face if he doesn't comply.  This, from a man who opposes the death penalty, but apparently only in certain situations.  In another essay, Sedaris's friend has a ChatGPT write a story based on Sedaris's work.  What comes out is a tale of Uncle Melvin who gets stuck in a bathroom.  Sedaris thinks this essay is nothing like what he would write, so he writes his own version of that story the way he would have actually written it.  

He also writes about topics like traveling to different places and dealing with dumb questions, going to a new country for only one night to check it off his list, or going on a safari with Hugh in Africa.  He writes about his relationships with his husband (he prefers to call him his boyfriend), his sisters and brother, and close old friends. These vignettes really touch home with his readers, and you'll find yourself nodding along in agreement with the quirks of fate that make you smile and laugh out loud.  This is David Sedaris at his best.

Quotes

Hugh became a nonstop grouse. Ghosts in movies moan less than he did.

David Sedaris (The Land and Its People, p 4)

You donate money to charity, and they spend it all trying to get you to donate more.

David Sedaris (The Land and Its People, p 36)

She was so close I could see the craziness in her eyes, could see how completely unpredictable she was, the sort who could either shake your hand or slash your face with a razor blade.

David Sedaris (The Land and Its People, p 47)

Also, I wasn't bothered by the pope's use of faggotry because I'm not queer; I'm gay. The difference is that queer people are offended by just about everything. They have the rest of us walking on potato chips, afraid we're using the wrong pronoun or saying "motherfucker" instead of "mothering person fucker."  Gay people just wonder what they'll wear to the Vatican at the crack of dawn and what the proper etiquette is.

David Sedaris (The Land and Its People, p 86)

Who are these hothouse flowers, all so easily and constantly wounded? People whose parents never hit them, that's who.  People who don't know what real pain is but still wants to throw the word around.

David Sedaris (The Land and Its People, p 98)

A child needs brothers and sisters; the more the better. Good siblings will press your favorite doll's face into a red-hot barbecue, then steal the money the tooth fairy left under your pillow. They'll deposit things inside of you when you're four, then sleep with your boyfriend twelve years later--will, in short, prepare you to live in the real world.  Better still, they'll dilute the Eye of Sauron-like attention given to an only child.  My mother couldn't remember our names half the time, much less care whether we felt anxious or depressed.

David Sedaris (The Land and Its People, p 99)

One of [Jean] Stafford's book ideas--never realized--was Cooking For One While Drunk.

David Sedaris (The Land and Its People, p 110)

Being a cool mom is like being a folk artist---defining yourself as one is all the proof the world needs that you're a fraud.

David Sedaris (The Land and Its People, 113)

When we were fourteen, for example, we had to find volunteer jobs. Mine was at Dorthea Dix, the state psychiatric hospital...I was regularly threatened by patients. I was cornered and shouted at, accused of everything you can imagine. It was excellent training for my later life in New York City.

David Sedaris (The Land and Its People, p 117)

Duolingo was seemingly designed for people with an obsessive-compulsive disorder.  The same could be said for my fitness-tracking Apple Watch. And so I had combined the two and was walking my minimum of ten miles per day while pointlessly reading sentences out loud in Japanese, German, Spanish, and French.

David Sedaris (The Land and Its People, p 147)

I'm in the hard part of getting old--the part where everything irritates you.  The easy part comes a little later, when my short-term memory disappears, and I forget I've heard "perfect" two hundred already that day.  Each occasion will be the first. Then I'll die and go to Heaven, where Saint Peter will say, "Welcome in! How were your travels?" and I'll realize I'm actually in Hell.

David Sedaris (The Land and Its People, p 218)

I've often spent an afternoon with my friend Ronnie, then come home and wonder the same thing: what did she and I talk about? When it's effortless, you don't really think about it.  At the end of the day, you're left with a feeling — of contentment or comfort — but rarely any specifics.

David Sedaris (The Land and Its People, p 245)

Link to Amazon:https://www.amazon.com/Land-Its-People-Essays/dp/0316264830/ref=tmm_hrd_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&dib_tag=se&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.Uj2HdLlqCSECEgGGuR2iYv_0t1uwJWJCNAmUgJh57bx3jTP31HdJCpyMLLhV54j3BUGjV00YpUY-2HXbxDNScuLddtv0qkY0B-zGldz-ebgWeXrGB7XFrMIa-grZQrmb6nJk0cEzTAHyT0vR2lmAwd94K-S8407m4PWn_Onh8qdG3beJf3VJUJiIBiF74RdD.Yhprj4MYVgU-_H6DGFC7D8wc9knqt2bFhmdO8nP4Jcg&qid=1782661295&sr=8-1

Link to ThriftBooks: https://www.thriftbooks.com/w/the-land-and-its-people-essays_david-sedaris/57632630/#edition=74787256&idiq=87548946

Independent Hearts by Kiva Hart

 Zoey runs the historical society in Whispering Falls, Arkansas. She inherited the job from her father, deceased, who started the society and museum years ago. The society is quickly running out of money, but Zoey was hired as a tour guide for a documentary filmmaker named Nick and his on air talent, Damian. The studio also provided money that Zoey is using to celebrate the town’s 200th anniversary on July fourth. 

Damian lets it be known from the start that he has no interest in being there. Nick, however, finds the town fascinating and Zoey, in particular, the best thing about the town.  When Damian books a better gig in Houston that will go nationwide, he leaves and expects Nick to come with him. Nick knows that it will really boost his career, but he is starting to feel a connection with Zoey and the town. If he doesn’t go, the studio will fire him, and if the documentary on Whispering Falls is not made, then Zoey will have to close the historical society and museum.

This next book in the Holiday Hearts series by Kiva Hart was a delightful read and the two characters were engaging and fresh. This is a sweet romance that nonetheless explores the relationship between Nick and Zoey who are possibly falling in love and are afraid to commit due to Nick’s job.

*Only available as an ebook.  Free for those who have Kindle Unlimited.

Link to Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Independent-Hearts-Romance-Little-Holiday-ebook/dp/B0H2C8ZKCN/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&dib_tag=se&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.X_8f4iRvA6YW7h2YCLeaIQVVlSjqS9oQtVfD-wmpBWjUD7_gqeYOSYn68zSFJdbHWk2vz44E8DLwvR8BAv3aAbNMBAQDLvIHHynxjWyJhr1l_OqG0YVECJ1vLM3rwlHj6YtTePIKrJcxwZoQebg4aZWsiUt0FkKYl0wfM-WZuKLUu7OTvx9r1HSj6mouOBLJlGH6kmrMNq8aWHvVdr0GzF8XkHXkZ44IuafedP1Avj4.7iISxP-SJ48KTQTK76lHlkV5YGPtrWGuiobFL6zyLwc&qid=1782687849&sr=1-1

Spider-Gwen: Shadow Clones by Emily Kim (Writer), Triona Farrell (Colorist), VC's Ariana Maher (Letterer), and David Nakayama (Cover Art)

 

Spider-Gwen goes to a lab run by a doctor named Lyla and her husband Lee to fight the Sinister Six from Earth-616.  In the process, Gwen sends the Sinister-Six back and causes the lab to blow, killing Lee and injuring Lyla.  Lyla uses her work to clone a Spider-Gwen with each member of the Sinister Six and bring Spider-Gwen to Lyla along with a quantum box.  When Gwen meets up with Gwen Ock, she realizes she isn't from another Earth, but a clone being controlled by a halo on the back of her neck.  Gwen removes the one on Gwen Ock, along with Sand Gwen, whom she meets later.  With the help of twelve-year-old Reed Richards, they discover that someone is cloning Gwens for a reason that is a mystery to them.   

I really enjoyed this book, which featured so many cool Gwens.  Gwen really feels like she can't get close to anyone, lest they get hurt because of her, even the cloned Gwens. She's been avoiding dating a guy she really likes.  She's keeping her distance from her roomie and former bandmate, MJ.  Emily Kim has written an interesting story that entangles you in its web.  The artwork is stellar, as each Gwen is created to be a mix with the Sinister Six, so it's like a new Gwen Stacey, with Gwen's memories.  There is another graphic novel featuring Gwen fighting variants, called Gwen-Verse.  It was published before this one and is mentioned. After this book, I'm eager to read it too.

Link to Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Spider-Gwen-Shadow-Clones-ebook/dp/B0CCZN3ZMM/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2NW0WHEYS5AGQ&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.FGwScM038TIoX3RnoQXVwGGyC3afowS_eMfMtRId-wDrum-4uKTsJ48miWS_GUIJbCqFPKu7Denze-9eMLBf9ut6xojnq5tv-4liV_pfx-sGb0SZY-CrrX0-BObvdZ-FV-y_WQiWk3cwgRJxbImYM84M2itPBiIeJVBDG0_ozlekVPUHCwNuLF9Vpb5v5odnNYajUPnNbUnrY1_NLylKnXTuUIvvEhdkP4yPVZGujW0.sjUQDnk3nhVzzMOBVswTVw-do_zdUReY4oin_f9luUY&dib_tag=se&keywords=spider+gwen+shadow+clones&qid=1781982000&sprefix=shadow+clones%2Caps%2C218&sr=8-1

Brave Hearts: A Grumpy/Sunshine Romance With a Little Bit Of Father's Day Magic by Kiva Hart

 

This is a new book in the Holiday Romance series, which now contains thirteen books, by Kiva Hart.  It opens when Beth, a professional guitarist and singer who has been on the road for the last five years, is making cupcakes for her niece.  She forgets to get them out of the oven, and her fire alarm goes off.  While she is emptying the burnt cupcakes into the sink, she hears a knock at the door.  It is the one and only local fireman, Leo, checking to see that there isn't a major fire.  He proceeds to give her a lecture about kitchen fires and paying more attention to what you have in the oven.  This really ticks Beth off.  So the two are off to a rocky start.

Leo helped put out a fire in the next town over years ago.  The only survivor of the family was a toddler named Danni.  He adopted her and has been raising her ever since.  She is ten, the same age as Beth's niece, Matty.  The two girls are school friends.  At the last concert of the school year, Beth sings and plays a song, inspiring Danni to take lessons.  Beth, with nothing to do until the next tour, which could be a while, agrees to teach her.  As the two get closer, Leo backs off because he is scared of her going on the road, leaving him and Danni behind.  

Leo is so serious and Beth is so flighty.  Can the two make a match of it before Father's Day?   This is not a bad novella that can be read in a few hours.  It's a nice way to spend your lazy summer afternoon on something that is a very light and easy read.  On top of that, it gets you in the mood for the holiday approaching on Sunday.  

Link to Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Brave-Hearts-Sunshine-Romance-Fathers-ebook/dp/B0GT287Y5X/ref=sr_1_1?crid=1O9SPYX0FT7NA&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.W4XK9ada0B5pOUcud19kOqV_Khvw5E4q-4LF6eqJW8zRPXiz72RlznYV8i3EtC7_uDqdqgNfLzaQ9OF0D13gseb-V_Fn1is_-7-9MaxuKwVM874_XLYqkPtqyXmqGoELfA-qumY7_th7rnvF_cQo7ak9-GZphP3yaTtvOgUKlC3ajrgnCqfyw9PtW9iw5CzwZlHFLXV5rW_G_ykZsMFy6ixRdeLB3hqViL0Q_7eIhvk.hfdGrYTxGN3c9WIYssZZedINRd2V4BLGvJaqshd83hk&dib_tag=se&keywords=brave+hearts+book&qid=1781635233&sprefix=brave+hearts%2Caps%2C299&sr=8-1

How To Kill a Guy In Ten Dates by Shailee Thompson

 

How To Survive a Slasher

1. Don't Have Sex

2.Always Hide For Longer Than You Should

3. Find a Weapon

4. Turn on the Light

5. Don't Split Up

6. Watch Your Back

7. Don't Run Up the Stairs

8. Don't Say "I'll Be Right Back."

9. Sobriety Equals Survival

10. Down Doesn't Mean Dead--Double Tap

 

Jamie is a grad student in film studies, and her dissertation is on the rules of horror and rom-coms. Jamie's best friend and roommate is Laurie, a documentary filmmaker who makes her watch boring documentaries in exchange for one of Jamie's horror flicks.  They also watch true crime stories and have been following in the news the stories of a man who is killing women.  

Laurie also convinced Jamie to do one in-person event where you could meet men.  Both are sick of swiping left. That month, they are going to a speed-dating event at a club called Serendipity.  Ten men, ten women, a ten-minute date. When they get there, everyone must turn over their phones and smartwatches.  

Jamie makes an enemy of one of the guys, Stu, who is more Laurie's type, meets John, her type, and is instantly attracted, then meets Wes, a mysterious man.  Her date with Wes starts out well, but takes a nosedive at the end when she goes off on her favorite subject, horror.         

Curtis, the next-to-last date of the evening for Jamie, comes across as a Neanderthal whom she must put in his place.  Then the lights go out for a short while, and when they come back on, Jamie stares at Curtis, unable to figure out what is wrong with him, as he stares straight ahead.  When she notices the bloody swipe across his throat and the blood coming out of his mouth, she screams.  Then the lights go out again, and Jamie can hear others getting killed. Over half of the daters make a run for it, while Jamie and Laurie find a place to hide with a weapon, just like the rules state to do.  

Those who hid in the basement of Serendipity, where the event takes place, decide to head up to the ground floor and look for the others and a way out.  When they make it out of the basement, Stu suggests that they split up and search for an exit.  Jamie is against this as it goes against the rules, and eight people against one is better than one against a man with a knife.  Laurie gets them to compromise by breaking them into two groups of four.  John, Dani, Jennifer, and Stu are in one group, while Jamie, Laurie, Wes, and Campbell are in the other group.  Billie, who gets along with no one, has gone off on her own.  

It soon becomes obvious that this is not just a slasher film come to life, but also a rom-com where the killer is searching for his/her Leading Lady, not just a Final Girl.  The killer leaves out scattered rose petals, roses, a note saying "You belong to me", and intestines spelling out someone's name.  Jamie tries to follow the rules, but soon finds that even the easy one, don't have sex, is difficult with John and Wes around.  

This book has secret Easter eggs. If you look at the characters in this story, you find links to films. For instance, Jamie Prescott, the lead character in this book, is also the lead character in the Scream series. Wes Craven, one of her love interests, shares a name with the director of the Nightmare on Elm Street and Scream series. John could be John Carpenter, who directed such horror classics as The Thing. At the beginning of each chapter is an altered quote from a romance movie.  An example from Dirty Dancing is, "I'm scared of walking out of this room and never killing the rest of my life the way I kill when I'm with you." I spent the whole book praying that it wouldn't be Wes, John, or Laurie.  Honestly, I wanted it to be Stu.  He's such a pain in the ass, the person who keeps splitting up the group, and is the least likable character. Jamie is a sarcastic, powerful woman who can hold her own against a killer and a club full of suspects.  Also, who knew that a dissertation could be useful in a speed-dating situation that has gone tragically wrong? I sprinted through this darkly humorous romance/slasher story, which is so well written with catchy quotes and pithy observations of the event. I promise you, you won't regret reading this novel. It's the best I've read in a long while.

Quotes

Yeah, she still watches the news.  I think it's a guilty pleasure, the closest thing to fiction she'll view willingly.

Shailee Thompson (How to Kill a Guy in Ten Dates, p 6)

It seems more likely you'll get murdered rather than finding love through Tinder these days.

Shailee Thompson (How To Kill a Guy In Ten Dates, p 7)

It is familiar in that fuzzy 'this place is the reason I don't drink Kamikazes anymore' kind of way.

Shailee Thompson (How To Kill a Guy In Ten Dates, p 11)

Once we get inside, I realize the cool blue signage above the doors was a ruse because the interior of Serendipity is red.  Like Susperia red. Carrie red.  The iconic river of blood spewing out of the elevator in Stanley Kubrick's seminal masterpiece, 'The Shining' red.  Serendipity looks like the set designer of Moulin Rouge! took LSD and cleaned out every velvet and gas lamp supplier in the state.

Shailee Thompson (How To Kill a Guy In Ten Dates, p 12)

The interaction--if we can call it that--is brief, but that doesn't stop the self-conscious thoughts from arising, popping up stronger than Michael Myers after being shot six times in the chest.

Shailee Thompson (How To Kill a Guy In Ten Dates, p 18)

I'd even go so far as to say Curtis falls into a specific category of men who only appeal to a very small group of women who haven't discovered therapy, the concept of gender equality, and are color-blind in a way that prevents them from seeing glaring red flags.

Shailee Thompson (How To Kill a Guy In Ten Dates, p 39)

If you find yourself in a situation where it seems like you're surrounded by an unusually high number of bitches, there's a really good chance you are probably being an asshole.

Shailee Thompson (How To Kill a Guy In Ten Dates, p 40)

"When a woman doesn't appreciate your 'compliment', don't blame her for your inability to read the room." I make my voice softer, lighter, and enjoy his confusion at the contrast when I said, "Shut your fucking mouth and stop talking."

Shailee Thompson (How To Kill a Guy In Ten Dates, p 41)

I could live with the idea of him thinking I'm a bitch. I'm starting to accept that he thinks I'm a ntcase. But I draw the line at him believing I'm both.

Shailee Thompson (How To Kill a Guy In Ten Dates, p 57)

Keep us alive.  That's the goal of every survivor in a slasher, isn't it?  I've seen enough of them to know that the choices characters make either lead to their demise or land them a spot in the sequel.

Shailee Thompson (How To Kill a Guy In Ten Dates, p 58)

If you say I’m cute, it won’t be the killer you have to worry about.

Shailee Thompson (How To Kill a Guy In Ten Dates, p 75)

If we were in a slasher, or even a rom-com, this would be the part where he tells me I don’t have to be scared because he’s not going to let anything happen to me. Then there’d be a series of events that would leave him to being disemboweled by an ice hook and leave me incapable of trusting men at their word.

Shailee Thompson (How To Kill a Guy In Ten Dates, p 92-93)

When I turn to glare at her, she has the most serious face on. The one she usually reserves for when I try to girl math my way to dropping two hundred dollars on skin care.

Shailee Thompson (How To Kill a Guy In Ten Dates, p 108)

This is not exactly what I had in mind when I said I wanted a man to go the extra mile for me. I meant unprompted good morning messages, noticing I’ve done something special with my hair, buying tampons every now and then. Not slowly but surely, knock off complete strangers in creative and gruesome ways.

Shailee Thompson (How To Kill a Guy In Ten Dates, p 166)

For the first time ever, I disagree with Kate Winslet. I don’t want to be the Leading Lady of my own life if this is what my life has led to.

Shailee Thompson (How To Kill a Guy In Ten Dates, p 168)

But it’s too late, she’s going into the vent if I have to shove her into it like an uncooperative tampon.

Shailee Thompson (How To Kill a Guy In Ten Dates, p 190)

Hitchcock once said that blondes make the best victims because they make the blood show up better on screen. “Like virgin snow that shows up the bloody footprint” is the exact quote.

Shailee Thompson (How To Kill a Guy In Ten Dates, p 197)

I interpret that as him accepting he can’t bring a knife to a machete fight and expect to win.

Shailee Thompson (How To Kill a Guy In Ten Dates, p 216)

The air is so thick with tension I’m surprised it doesn’t bleed.

Shailee Thompson (How To Kill a Guy In Ten Dates, p 237)

His voice is deep, breathless, rougher than the first cut of a student film.

Shailee Thompson (How To Kill a Guy In Ten Dates, p 251)

My anger vanishes like the body of a villain at the end of a slasher.

Shailee Thompson (How To Kill a Guy In Ten Dates, p 246)

My therapist is very proud of me, and really, that’s the whole point in therapy, isn’t it? To pay a stranger hundreds of dollars so the eye can show you how to deal with your demons and then tell you you’re doing a good job at it. And after all of the sessions and exercises and strategies and support people, I feel okay.

Shailee Thompson (How To Kill a Guy In Ten Dates, p 344)

Link to Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/How-Kill-Guy-Ten-Dates/dp/1668206714/ref=sr_1_1?crid=173VINTT6OSHJ&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.Wvoi6Up3-4Jji-WGPbvBqsuOZH5_80TxHjbPQJwgpKtu6-CWDDM3M3-aw4a2yOxwNDV4zi8r82mzJhBUHKbNUHrf3B3b4yhvYWralpSXsdm427aWt2W6GZC53U2OcaB9.vlBXkS6GHXgFBd8s-N9hjZi4hzIH8cwkzIs1YXyshEw&dib_tag=se&keywords=how+to+kill+a+guy+in+10+dates+book&nsdOptOutParam=true&qid=1780516013&sprefix=how+to+kill+a+guy+%2Caps%2C279&sr=8-1

Link to ThriftBooks: https://www.thriftbooks.com/w/how-to-kill-a-guy-in-ten-dates-a-novel/55858176/?resultid=2d26bc60-2989-441e-8010-e247fb6b6646#edition=73595376&idiq=85374783

The Death of Doctor Strange by Jed MacKay (writer), Lee Garbett (artist), Antonio Fabella (colorist), and VC's Cory Petit (letterer)

This graphic novel opens with Doctor Strange thinking about why he went into medicine.  He wanted to cheat death.  In his studies, he came across a myth about a man named Koschei. Koschei found a way to live forever.  He hid his soul in a secret place that none would find. It’s sort of like Voldemort and the Horcruxes.  Strange is living a good life, until he goes to answer the door and is stabbed and killed by someone.  

He kinda did what Koschei did, but a version of himself from years ago, when he called himself The Master of Black Magic, that will last only a week.  Long enough to solve his murder.  His death is known immediately when the magical forcefield comes down around the earth and lets in such baddies as Aggamon, Tiboro, Mordo, Umar, and Kaecilius who was already on earth working for Mordo.

These formidable magical forces have come to Earth seeking shelter from three warrior queens who are traversing the universe to find magic to feed the Perrigrine Child, a thaumovore who is always hungry. The X-Men, The Fantastic Four, and The Avengers all come out to fight them, but they are no match for the women.  It will take Doctor Strange teaming up with all those who hold magic that are on the planet Earth, which include: Aggamon (Sorcerer Supreme of the Purple Dimension), Tiboro (Sorcerer Supreme of the Sixth Dimension), Clea (Sorcerer Supreme of the Dark Dimension), and Illyana Rasputina (Sorcerer Supreme of Limbo).      

It is hard to believe that a simple stabbing with a knife by an assailant, which Strange will soon discover, could kill him.  It was nice to see all the characters who showed up for the fight, including his wife, Clea. The story by MacKay is interesting and excellent.   The art is typical Strange. I really enjoyed this graphic novel and can’t wait to see in what direction MacKay takes the series into.

Link to Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Death-Doctor-Strange-2021-2022-ebook/dp/B09NL6Y6Q5/ref=sr_1_1?crid=3RQZ8TSF9RMO0&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.W8KGMJTsFZ6q0xuqrTKsAiVbzhkPPN66eZdWQt7J-Q5JHOYmL4Oz0-fFh4X-yXtdZOsUccydzSYy6c73kQGAp4EmwgMVwsSm1Ti8-znqJyZlVHEtkmDZ8yy689gr92AXI3jKEvds9x3T9eMWdGO3O0sNIiai3uCxw_Wu8i7YW4kE59cjqttL91UE-7jkezqsdPWJLGPmfl8hXdNT5zKIgVgZ7pJ6SvHhC5HkivzShbw.sZuCB4tKf_jl_fZiq2Ry0ANok4p9axgIhjQ8EsI6Dpk&dib_tag=se&keywords=the+death+of+doctor+strange&qid=1780938334&sprefix=The+death+of+doc%2Caps%2C298&sr=8-1

Link to ThriftBooks: https://www.thriftbooks.com/w/death-of-doctor-strange_jed-mackay/29242256/?resultid=7c2713af-1e25-4386-afb6-2be269273809#isbn=1302930222&edition=60290481 

Cherry Baby by Rainbow Rowell

 

Cherry is in management, working her way up the ladder at a big train company.  Cherry is a fat woman who comes from a family of fat women, including her four sisters named Hope Honesty (Honny), Cherity (Cherry), Faith, and Joy.  Her mother is deeply religious, as are some of her sisters, but Cherry isn't.  The sisters have texting threads where they talk to each other.  Recently, they started one without Hope, whom Honny believes has committed the unforgivable sin of going on Ozempic.  The sisters believe that it is alright to be fat because they cannot lose the weight, no matter how hard they try, and that Ozempic is cheating and denying who they are.  

Her husband, Tom, worked for an ad agency that did a lot of work for the train company, and that was how they met.  They both studied art in college, but Tom was the real talent of the two.  Tom has been writing a comic strip since before he met Cherry.  The main character is 'The Guy, and Tom adds Chery as the character Baby.  He posts the comic, as a kind of diary of his thoughts, online, where no one really notices it for a long while, until they do.  A publisher of graphic novels offers Tom a contract, and Cherry encourages Tom to take it.  Cherry is the driving force behind Tom, who can't seem to make decisions.  The graphic novel becomes a hit, and Hollywood wants to make a movie out of it with Tom as screenwriter.  Tom goes to L.A. and ends up staying there for a year.  All the traveling for the book and writing the screenplay have put a strain on their marriage. Cherry tells him she wants a divorce when she catches him with another woman via FaceTime.

It's been a year, and Cherry is going to a concert by a much-beloved band from her youth.  While there, she meets Russ, a guy she fell in love with in college, but who decided to date her skinny, beautiful friend.  They leave the concert early and go home together.  Pretty soon, they are dating. Russ is very different from Tom, and he makes her happy.  Then Tom comes back from L.A. to pack up his stuff to move to California.  Cherry hasn't spoken to him in a year, so things are a bit awkward between them, though they accidentally share a kiss.  

Cherry is under a lot of pressure because of the movie, and everyone sees her as Baby, not Cherry.  Russ has some problems with it too when he sees the trailer by accident, and begins to think he may be dating Garfield.  Cherry invites Russ to Thanksgiving and Tom to Christmas with her family.  Two men can possibly make her happy, but both must accept Cherry as she is.  I loved this book, and I loved Cherry, who is confident, except in certain situations, like her job, but less so in her private life.  This is a very interesting, well-written read, as evidenced by the quotes I took from it. The book goes back and forth in time, examining her relationships with Tom and Guss from the beginning to the present, and leaves you rooting for both.  They've both made mistakes with Cherry and want to make it up to her.  Rowell is known for her young adult novel "Eleanor and Park," which I reviewed here https://nicolewbrown.blogspot.com/2019/08/eleanor-and-park-by-rainbow-rowell.html)

Quotes

Anytime Cherry had tried to take Tom to a concert, he'd spent the whole night frowning at everyone, and he didn't even realize he was doing it.  Tom had resting uncomfortable face.

Rainbow Rowell (Cherry Baby, p 3)

Cherry watched them for a while-- then realized she was staring at people like some sort of twentieth-century weirdo. She should stare at her phone like a normal person.

Rainbow Rowell (Cherry Baby, p 7)

He looked like the token Irish actor on a BBC drama--a little flintier than everyone else and a little more alive.

Rainbow Rowell (Cherry Baby, p 10-11)

Goldenrod was the band that made "Omaha emo" a thing.  Simple, pretty guitars, whiny, breathy vocals. Base-level unhappiness. All of Goldenrod's songs were about being lonely or feeling guilty. The lead singer was a famous depressive.

Rainbow Rowell (Cherry Baby)

Everybody was going to the Galway that night.  They were twenty-two and still feeling like they had to go out and drink legally every weekend just because they could-- because it's what adults did.  Adults drank in bars, not in dorm rooms and basements.

Rainbow Rowell (Cherry Baby, p 15)

All Russ had told Cherry about his ex-wife was, "I think she always kind of hated me, and I mistook that for 'interesting.'"

Rainbow Rowell (Cherry Baby, p 91)

Cherry parked her used Hyundai at the end of a long line of black SUVs (Railroad execs drove the same cars as rappers).

Rainbow Rowell (Cherry Baby, p 125)

If you charted Tom's attractiveness to Cherry over these first few weeks, it would have looked like runaway inflation.  

Rainbow Rowell (Cherry Baby, p 140)

It was chilly, but Cherry wasn't wearing a coat over her baby blue angora cardigan.  It would spoil the effect.

Rainbow Rowell (Cherry Baby, p 146)

She thought about texting someone, but there came a point when you'd been so sad for so long, and so repeatedly, that you could not actually bear telling people anymore. When it felt like you were telling the same story.

Rainbow Rowell (Cherry Baby, p 234)

I'm very pretty for a fat girl. It's like being very pretty for someone with three eyes or no nose, or very pretty for a malamute.

Rainbow Rowell (Cherry Baby, p 241)

Dimples and freckles, that shouldn't be legal.

Rainbow Rowell (Cherry Baby, p 269)

Women are born with clocks in their hips and calendars in their bodies, and Cherry's brain never stopped ticking.

Rainbow Rowell (Cherry Baby, p 276)

Cherry's mom ignored everything that she possibly could, and forgave everything that she couldn't.

Rainbow Rowell (Cherry Baby, p 365)

Link to Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Cherry-Baby-Novel-Rainbow-Rowell-ebook/dp/B0FCS6PL5X/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2M3FX7HN0A3O5&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.ueg-2DZkrA0ePm-DcnlsV42b9C9sPsohSHTxzkGX-3H33FOIo74wndi9DrDj7jkxi8YXbGO_k2HabVPwn1ehgCo6BTWBf207p7dLo5G0hbGpPhDXrFDjoU9v3-QKlr2G.RVuLUOubeIVWVL9xKOmMafDj5WSLvKInHZ2_xfQ9RhI&dib_tag=se&keywords=cherry+baby+rainbow+rowell&qid=1780498280&s=digital-text&sprefix=cherry%2Cdigital-text%2C334&sr=1-1

Healing Hearts : A Workplace Romance With A Little Bit of Mother's Day Magic (Holiday Hearts) by Kiva Hart

 

This is one of the latest novellas in the twelve-book series centered on the holidays.  Alyssa is a single mother and a nurse on the pediatric ward of the hospital in Whispering Falls, Arkansas.  Her child's father left around the time Cathy was born.  Alyssa's parents help out, but it's hard to hold down a demanding job and raise a five-year-old.  Matthew is a new doctor taking over her ward, and is from Oklahoma City, and thinks they should keep talking to the patient at a minimum, asking only questions about the injury, and quickly move on to the next patient.  That was how things were done when he ran the emergency room in Oklahoma City.

Alyssa despises him right off the bat.  She believes in getting to know the kids and the families.  Matthew keeps screwing up with what he says to her.  Back in Oklahoma City, his job had a very high turnover rate as doctors burned out.  His boss insisted that he take this position in a small town where the pace is slower and he can learn to relax and think of things other than the hospital.  Alyssa believes that he wants to return to his emergency room job, but the truth is, he is beginning to fall for her and the way of life in Whispering Falls.   

This sweet romance tells the story of a single mother who does not feel she can trust the doctor with her heart and the heart of her daughter.  This is one of the better novellas of the series.  Alyssa is a character easy to fall in love with.  Matthew grows on you until you realize that he is perfect for Alyssa, if only she could discover this herself.  These characters will stay with you long after you put this book down.

Link to Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Healing-Hearts-Workplace-Romance-Mothers-ebook/dp/B0GGX9XTZB/ref=sr_1_2?crid=73659DW7XTWL&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.D-rYLR-fB9FUdX_uGeNdWDLwZGhv7Nj0RCQgAy3NVRwPC9NDgyByifMavox7E-_Jdi8WOXlCJcjeuCvgqjPhnLb11aCf1NPee03EMPC4IYKWDPAF04roMEaCDHFtqHDcAHPjwnHTjAlIpVwS0r2mqTZiljngKvOu_N0RYzBATUA9B0oCyD-rVrJpwXCywc4RaO7ee4J_HwK3ojWVVIQzrWxkMe2HtO9SckkwUCoOss8.ESF-_HKzgzS0BpWj8keS5JuT80GA3ZCs-EohOUuB7TY&dib_tag=se&keywords=healing+hearts&qid=1780242573&s=digital-text&sprefix=Healing+hearts%2Cdigital-text%2C304&sr=1-2

Postmortem by Patricia Cornwell

 

Dr. Kay Scarpetta is the Chief Medical Examiner for the state of Virginia. She has taken over the cases of a serial killer in Richmond who ties women's hands behind their backs, then uses an electrical cord from her bedroom to tie her up so that the cord is wrapped around her throat and will strangle her if she tries to straighten her legs out from being bent.  The killer rapes them multiple ways and lets them strangle and die, leaving behind a substance from his hands and body that sparkles like the Fourth of July under the laser, which is used to pick up on fibers and other trace elements missed by the eye.   The book opens with the fourth killing, a young surgeon whose husband spends the week away at school and comes home for the weekends.  All the other women lived alone, and if the killer was staking out their houses, he would assume that the surgeon also lived alone.  But nothing else connects the women; they are different sizes, different hair colors, and even different races, as in one case where the woman was African American.  

Detective Marino, who is running these cases, strongly believes the fourth victim's husband killed her because she found out about him raping and killing these women.  He does have greasepaint on his hands from acting in a play and was once accused of rape years ago.  The charges were dropped for whatever reason.  Marino does not want to let this go.  This is your first meeting with him, and you tend to want to hit him.  He is so annoying.  He is a man of the streets from a working-class background who feels threatened by those who have higher degrees.  Bill Botz, the Commonwealth Attorney (CA), is seeing Kay in secret (according to her wishes) and finds himself a suspect when someone comes forward to say he has roofied them.  Kay doesn't know what to think, and Bill leaves for vacation to avoid talking to her, which is a rather guilty response.  

Kay's niece, Lucy, is staying with her for vacation at her sister's insistence; then the sister runs off to travel with her new husband, the illustrator of her children's books. Lucy is a precocious ten-year-old with a very high IQ and knows how to work computers.  Kay feels guilty that the cases keep her from spending time with her niece.  When it appears that someone has tried to get into the computers at work, looking for information on the fourth case, which hadn't been entered in yet.  Kay doesn't want to suspect Lucy, but it's the better option when otherwise it's possibly the killer or worse, a reporter.  

Kay is also having trouble with Dr. Amburgey, the commissioner and her boss.  She is summoned to his office, and her office is accused of leaking information to the press.  From now on, she is not to release a press release.  Instead, it will come from Amburgey's office.  He has never cared for Scarpetta, and it shows in how he treats her.  Kay feels as though her legs have been cut out from underneath her and that she may be set up to be the scapegoat.  

This book is a hard-driving mystery that could have used a little more editing.  It's a little long at 440 pages.  Cornwell explains everything in depth, considering it was all new when this book was written in 1990.  DNA, for example, only tells you so much, considering that the human genome hasn't been mapped yet.  It also takes 4-6 weeks to get results at a lab in New York.  Today's reader knows how lasers work and doesn't need a tutorial.  But overall, it's a great read, and Dr. Kay Scarpetta makes a great detective, solving the case with a little help from Marino.  

Quotes

I assumed when she came home from school most days, she walked into a quiet, indifferent house where dinner was a drudgery to be put off until the last minute. My sister should never have been a mother.  My sister should never have been Italian.

Patricia Cornwell (Postmortem, pp. 164-5)

Link to Amazon

; https://www.amazon.com/Postmortem-Kay-Scarpetta-Book-1-ebook/dp/B002YPORR6/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2E38Q2TV1YBMX&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.RcCAFfby4bTxtwYQRImay46Rq8Tymo6ICHK8nd4fdGuVq6MR6mhMEasEKd_8ceSYCSm4Tu7lS2jQpd3PCP4-5x9mBd8NtBn6dH1VXdjtb46lGXKuZnvHmhqNiPCUfHu3wEae9mLCm4YyLQQ6AaGPG-b5YE8H8vskWVayyJkAnSEsIIMcJkWT5AIeo7Svq36wcd-vnUNp-WzXKvmHz4wUKMrOVT1qH_sK4_GSiMZ4TzM.A9nsafZDg61Tu4JKzeAkVo7tjkINTB5vpAczHXamcz4&dib_tag=se&keywords=postmortem+patricia+cornwell&qid=1780163259&s=digital-text&sprefix=post%2Cdigital-text%2C259&sr=1-1

Link to ThriftBooks: https://www.thriftbooks.com/w/postmortem-by-patricia-cornwell/245820/?resultid=46ad0699-e8d6-49eb-bfd1-a6161f4c5f3e#edition=2377084&idiq=888689

Entwined Hearts by Kiva Hart

 

Mia is the owner of an Italian restaurant that her late mother started up.  The restaurant is a real place for the community, where they hold events like a book club.  Mia's life is the restaurant, and because dates get canceled and she has little free time, her dating life is nonexistent.  Thom is from Dallas, Texas, and is a businessman who, after meeting her at the wedding of Mia's last single friend and sharing a memorable kiss with her, decides he wants to franchise her restaurant across the state.  Mia doesn't think he could possibly be serious, or he might be interested in her romantically, and she knows how that will end and doesn't want to go there.  The two make a deal where Thom will work at the restaurant doing what she tells him to do for two months.  At the end of the two months, will she be able to say goodbye to him?  

This book is part of the twelve-book Holiday Hearts series.  This one is for Wedding Magic.  They are sweet romances that are better written than they have a right to be.  This one, however, wasn't as well written as Lucky Hearts, the St. Patrick's Day book.  This is supposed to be an opposites attract book, but it doesn't come off that way.  The only thing standing in their way is Mia, who feels the relationship is doomed from the start.  Parts of this book were good, like when Thom is working at the restaurant and convinces everyone there to order less sought-after meals, and when he goes to the all-female book club.  I give it three out of five stars.    

*Only available as an E-Book or on Amazon Kindle Unlimited for free.

Link to Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Entwined-Hearts-Opposites-Attract-Romance-ebook/dp/B0D46NQGHY/ref=sr_1_2?crid=N8S5JOGNIFK3&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.g9vHDQiO-weptd0sABe06OzFLBeqNhPvAGwU_9364_E_rKNRug_xl4t78RdJOf6ViqiPy-_VqJV6KJmJiGYAyuEDHStbqBEwN9uzXVUJMVSFw6l_V6xZ_3Ulw_BRdoEHXSMaMi4B-yXww8N5RAnN-IRI78TINfwDsvumSj7iK2L5iWlbJ6SJ72nbOn3iA3jbR84gDkaOEeQ_aEf9s5733ejS1lFFWfnGF2IYajJHszQ.84gHi5zfSwY0nDBCqLPrORukrBygz0B-xUesr5wJrHg&dib_tag=se&keywords=entwined+hearts&qid=1779985036&s=digital-text&sprefix=entwined+hearts%2Cdigital-text%2C250&sr=1-2

The Variants: A Jessica Jones Mystery by Gail Simone (writer), Phil Noto (artist), and VC's Cory Petit (letterer)

 

This collection of comics picks up where the last Jessica Jones book left off, with Jessica marrying Luke Cage when she finds herself pregnant with the Purple Man's child. Matt Murdoch has a client who was the first victim of the Purple Man, who takes over people's minds and control of their bodies.  He left this victim alive but promised to return.  Ten years to the date, she kills her entire family while under his control. Jessica talks to her and realizes that it will be ten years for her the next day.  She sends Luke and their child away for their protection.  Every time she gets a massive migraine, a variant of her shows up.  They include Captain America, Omega, Jewel, and Knightress. At first, she tries to fight them, but realizes that they are from other universes.  What these variants are doing here and how to prevent the Purple Man from taking over Jessica again.

Gail Simone, known for writing graphic novels with strong female characters, such as Wonder Woman, takes Brian Bendis's series and expands on it.  Phil Noto, known for his art on several Star Wars books, keeps up the watercolor look started by David Mack.  The art is well done and muted in tone.  My only complaint, and this after reading an incredible story with vivid characters, is that the very end of it, the answer is a little lame.  But this book is still worth reading for the strong female characters and storyline.   

Link to Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Variants-Gail-Simone-ebook/dp/B0BQJTC8XB/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2UFIYP0H3KKV5&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.VNSToxnQ1_OWPUwaH2Dl15Rwz7l1s_2LVgpvntNzNJtLiB6Ilv0zhjG2qNhqQX-r40a2BmYtpgreiPjwvDhZrGMKisODZJzEmoBMRIomHezKYOXYtujGl9f8qF6WoJ6viXrRbttwCDdTV0AwSFSTpTVmI5__onk5B2jyefP_RzMwPDtCsB5kKKnOqR3zqwVcL4db2rS9Bfsh4Xl5rVJ6I1_gju-SKsJ96RQNtgpntvA.OfMfX-mhXEZfrYtZXubvduEN5yxc0Q-60cqGJzmD2hg&dib_tag=se&keywords=variants&qid=1779816890&s=digital-text&sprefix=variants%2Cdigital-text%2C210&sr=1-1

Fatal Voyage by Kathy Reichs

In this third installment of the Dr. Temperance Brennan series, Brennan, a well-respected forensic anthropologist, finds herself called to a plane crash in the mountains of North Carolina.  A girl's college soccer team was on board, as well as her partner from Canada, Chief Inspector Ryan's fellow officer, who was escorting a dangerous criminal back to Canada.  The NTSB believes the plane fell apart in midair due to an explosion.  There are plenty of people on the plane who could have been the intended victim.  

Brennan finds a foot that doesn't belong to the plane crash victims.  It seems to be from a Native American who was quite old.  Brennan goes out to where she found the foot and looks for more body parts with the lone foot. She stumbles upon a lodge where no one seems to live and no one seems to know about.

Suddenly, Brennan finds herself in the crosshairs of the Lieutenant Governor, who has set out to destroy her reputation and career.  Brennan is then kicked off the plane crash investigation, but this doesn't stop her from continuing her investigation into the foot and the mysterious lodge, where a spot against the wall has soil with human remains in it.  The material from the soil matches the foot, but where is the rest of the body, and why is someone trying to stop her from investigating the lodge?  

The ending of this mystery goes far into left field, but you feel confident of going there with Brennan, who is a strong character who refuses to back down from those who seek to destroy her.  Warning, though, when you get into the last third or fourth of the book, you won't be able to put it down, so plan for that contingency.  Brennan must also choose between her estranged, philandering husband and Ryan, who is a mystery and seems to be seeing someone.  

Quotes

Look at you, you're thin as the broth at a homeless shelter.

Kathy Reichs (Fatal Voyage, p 48)

A poster had decorated Pete's office during his stint in uniform, guiding words embraced by JAG attorneys uncommitted to the military system: Indecision Is the Key to Flexibility.

Kathy Reichs (Fatal Voyage, p 221)

Link to Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Fatal-Voyage-Novel-Temperance-Brennan-ebook/dp/B000FC0OCC/ref=sr_1_1?crid=193P2IFQNJZI6&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.m4HgTirQDHstBrTd_mjpT0U09RRH1vNxYZ_zMiM8e7faiYo2xJL9UwrRbQjWe58ixSsJYoHuVOxKIFu3DqHxUlZQrQdP2M8DNP2Yw1SCEMuCvsn9Qw4NRaW9FqgQy597W22Ogq_teGvzsZavAzaVIhzl-f0FYWYkwDMqDsdsqHVNtAKM-Q5_bP5F79oMZ6fx54ouD1_CdwYJu9FimWxgc1w1qDctj6yla3OwMPfN4bs.YJlFwCZdRk4wl50gWrM6yQk_Wk9ihkwkjOpRlwv7iO8&dib_tag=se&keywords=fatal+voyage+kathy+reichs&qid=1779034635&sprefix=fatal+voya%2Caps%2C479&sr=8-1

Link to ThriftBooks:https://www.thriftbooks.com/w/fatal-voyage_kathy-reichs/260527/?resultid=2a43a0dd-e7ae-4303-a6d1-d4e129048be4#edition=2278546&idiq=489659

Cut Off From Sky and Earth by Melissa F. Miller

 

Emily is a women's fiction writer who has been asked to write one of a twelve-book series that features retellings of fairy tales.  She has chosen the Grim tale, Maleen the Maiden, in which a princess defies her father by wanting to marry whom she wants to marry.  Maleen and her hand servant are locked up in a windowless tower for seven years, only to realize no one is rescuing them, and they must break out on their own.  Seven years ago, Emily walked into her apartment to find her roommate dead from a stabbing.  Emily is a readhead and believes that she was the intended target. She hasn't told her husband any of this. Tristan, her husband, works as a forensics expert.  He also knows about Emily's past and believes that the recent stabbing death of a local redhead is connected to what happened to her.  He believes that there is a serial killer who may want to circle back and kill his intended victim, Emily.  Tristan is keeping all of this from Emily due to her anxiety and panic attacks.  He's also hiding the fact that he has an evil brother and a father who committed suicide.   

Tristan's therapist (also Emilly's therapist, though she does not know this) suggests a cabin retreat to get away from all his problems.  Triston sees this as perfect for Emily, who has writer's block and a deadline looming.  The cabin is owned by Alex Liu, a woman running from her own past, who is married to a military man and lives on a farm in the Blue Ridge Mountains.  When Tristan and Emily drive down from Pennsylvania and meet Alex for the first time, she tells them that she was born and raised in a small town in Maine, where Tristan lived until he was nine.  Tristan recognizes the redhead as the woman who was stabbed but survived.  He realizes that her stabbing fits in with the others, and the serial killer seems to strike every seven years.  There is a massive snowstorm coming, and Alex and Emily will find themselves all alone with the sense that someone is watching them.

I enjoyed this book that entwines sections of Emily's book with what is going on.  It is a true page-turning thriller.  But as with books of this nature, there is a real twist at the end that doesn't make a lot of sense.  The ending is not as good as the rest of the book, but I'm still going to recommend it because it is a very enjoyable read with interesting characters, including a marriage where both parties are keeping major secrets from the other and believe they have a great marriage.  They love each other incredibly, but do not really know each other.  This book has a great start to it, but fizzles at the end.  I give it three out of five stars.

Link to Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Cut-Off-Sky-Earth-Novel-ebook/dp/B0FCCMLW8T/ref=sr_1_1?crid=10V5AG59VF87O&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.SOo_z3jGgQ2d6P2Qh6aXSEGsJgPYnEIdpjiSEEAAjCruAeRYE55nnfQloSgTgxUvyfkdr2ox9A6YNLZTiKP37_vIquUXRxFuklmhVjoW5p4.ElG-pzfbEoCJU-_r6hIhOkWNdp7IbKVjbGQAQQKdhCc&dib_tag=se&keywords=cut+off+from+sky+and+earth&qid=1779030880&sprefix=cut+off+from+%2Caps%2C189&sr=8-1

Ruby Red by Kerstin Gier and Anthea Bell

This is a fantasy story about time travel.  The rules of time travel in this book are: You cannot go back in time to a point where you are still alive, you cannot take a human or an animal to the past or back to the present, you are not allowed to bring modern things to the past, you can only go five hundred years in the past and you need a chromograph to guide you to a specific time, otherwise you will flash back on your own.  Gweneth's cousin, Charlotte, has been raised to be the special person with the gene to go back in time.  Sir Isaac Newton predicted that a child born on a certain date would have the gene.  But Gweneth starts to feel nauseous and has headaches.  She soon finds herself being thrown back in time.  Unlike Charlotte, Gweneth has not been trained in history and the million other things you need to know for time travel.  Gweneth's knowledge comes largely from films that she and her best friend, Leslie, watch.  Leslie knows everything about Gweneth's family, including Gweneth's ability to see ghosts.  

Gwenth's mom, Claire, lied about when she was born because she didn't want her daughter to lose her childhood to being prepared to lead a life of danger. Now that Gweneth is traveling back in time willy-nilly, Claire takes her to The Guardians for help.  The Guardians are an ancient order of men who control the chromograph and have spent centuries studying time travel.  Back when Claire was young, her little sister, Lucy, believed that the completion of the twelve time travelers' blood being put in the chronograph would lead to destruction, not the release of a secret.  So, Lucy steals the chronograph with Paul and hides in history with it.  Then the Guardians fix a chronograph that appears in the past.  One of the twelve, Count St. Germain, is the one who provides the new chronograph.  After Lucy, the Guardians had to wait for another time traveler to be born.  This would be Gideon, who trained with Charlotte.  Gideon has been going back in time to collect the travelers' blood for the new chronograph.  When they go back in time to visit St. Germain in the late 1700s, Claire wants to keep Gweneth from seeing Count St. Germain because he is dangerous, and she is right. He can read minds and does a force choke on Gweneth for bringing her cellphone and using it to take a picture of two of the Count's friends to try to impress them.  

While Gideon is handsome, he is also bossy, controlling, and thinks he is better than Gweneth. She wants to prove him wrong by taking this life that has been thrust upon her, and learning all she can from the ghost that haunts the school, Leslie, and her Google searches, and others.   If she has to do this, then she will do it to the best of her ability. Gweneth is utterly believable as a teen who knows little history and a lot of pop culture.  She is viewed as the weird girl among her classmates.  Leslie is the best friend we all wish we could have, and Claire is the best mom.  This book isn't nearly as complicated as it seems.  From the first page, this novel snagged me and reeled me in so that I didn't want to put it down.  The last page of the book ends on a cliffhanger, which left me dying to read the next book in this trilogy. All three books are available for free with Amazon Unlimited.

Quotes

The past would have been awful, no matter what period you landed in. There was always some horrible thing lurking there--war, smallpox, the plague. If you said the wrong thing, you could be burnt as a witch. Plus, everyone had fleas. You had to use chamberpots, which were tipped out of upstairs windows in the morning--even if someone was walking along the street below.

Kerstin Gier and Anthea Bell (Ruby Red, p 19)

Kissing, said Leslie, ought really to be taught as a school subject. Preferably, instead of religious studies, which nobody needed.

Kerstin Gier and Anthea Bell (Ruby Red, p 97)

"Will he die?'

Gideon shrugged. "Not if it was a clean wound.  But 18th-century surgery can't really be compared with an episode of  'Grey's Anatomy'"

Kerstin Gier and Anthea Bell (Ruby Red, p 248)

Link to Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Ruby-Red-Trilogy-Book-ebook/dp/B004GHN2JY/ref=sr_1_1?crid=ZV6U9EC9PK8F&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.i0KBo1oz0QWr2m-aPn-wEsR6zJ9B0hVnXW_b27tleftuwlkgsPPRSVBIFFhESfrbo-n4wPj8YTMVrXU-89OOM6ZU3cpOle82UMwVBQsCfHEk9h0ZJWCE3c9vxnBCczVeQuwBGrGKGpNlrCTJ_trj2cjha6VuDQamaGgoFCakM21w8EH8GMoMO3Xt6aBvyfAGZkXWX6hqtB0lFxzIg66YykZv7S9uyoSmFf7tFC-kfF4.KT8U1TuKFQXODUDQjbTyfUkZsl4Q7-x-l0tlJfTQ8ek&dib_tag=se&keywords=ruby+red+trilogy&qid=1778702720&s=digital-text&sprefix=ruby+red%2Cdigital-text%2C232&sr=1-1

Link to ThriftBooks: https://www.thriftbooks.com/w/ruby-red_kerstin-gier/308275/?resultid=d870ce1b-914d-49b2-9d36-73c9a8c6f80c#edition=5802630&idiq=4656503

Winning the Wallflower by Eloisa James

​

This delightful novella is part of the Fairy Tales series, but it is a side story, so you won’t get lost or feel left behind. The wildflower in this book is Lady Lucy Towerton, or Tower as some mean people call her due to her height. Lucy is engaged to marry Cyrus, a man of great wealth, who doesn’t have a title but desperately wants one, and believes that marrying a titled woman will give him a better chance of winning one. 

Cyrus’s mom went against her family’s wishes and married the family solicitor at Gretna Green. She has been shunned by her family and society as a result. Cyrus wants a wife who is above reproach and who won’t cause a scandal. It doesn’t hurt that Lucy has been in the market for three years. Her family is desperate to see her married.

Then Lucy inherits a fortune from an aunt and can now marry someone with a title. She wants to marry Cyrus, but he has yet to woo her or ask her, not just her father, for her hand in marriage. She wants a marriage that will lead to love.

James has done it again! This is one steamy romance! This novella is four out of five on the hot pepper scale. Cyrus is quite attractive, and while he has a ten-point plan for success in his future, Lucy surprises him by not being the woman he thought he was getting. Filled with witty banter, because Lucy is fond of being bluntly truthful and insists that Cyrus be as well. Whether these two know it or not, they are perfect for each other, and it’s a wild ride watching them get there.

Quotes 

Most men don’t like poetry. It’s a defect in the sex.

Eloisa James (Winning the Wildflower, p 8)

Not only has Rupert turned eighteen, but he’s learned to dance. Surely that signals a man is ready for marriage.

Eloisa James (Winning the Wildflower, p 9)

*This novella is only sold as an E-Book.

Link to Amazon:https://www.amazon.com/Winning-Wallflower-Novella-Fairy-Tales-ebook/dp/B00655KHQG/ref=sr_1_1?crid=20C2Y6WSQ6A82&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.IU6XXB8DTbx7P7DKj8T3LH_r-dijJUQQN-PxGNg9_xjGVVZtXaz6c-sSRx0P5kGYvJg8Z8Nh7PWfmQPJzPlGEc1mw5sWJ3gd7qyPmXLu8T4SS8kJXpTDWWGdfb8ADRNrW9Sgy0LrZsMx1rRCPoXZ3VbyPMim66E9NV9uo6U7eJIcmk6YgTrOxRDY5LuMa9Ce.8eGso-RhI3KyqnWfb07VA4F-v4X-DsfnuIAEgeGv70I&dib_tag=se&keywords=winning+the+wallflower&qid=1778702388&s=digital-text&sprefix=Winning+the+wall%2Cdigital-text%2C178&sr=1-1

The Irish Goodbye by Heather Aimee O'Neill

 

Set in Port Haven, Long Island, this novel is about three sisters who have a sometimes complicated relationship.  Each is holding a secret from the family.  Over a Thanksgiving weekend, these secrets will come out, and the pieces will fall where they will.  

The family never got over the death of the oldest, Topher, who committed suicide about ten years after a tragedy where a teenage boy died in a boating accident that seemed to be Topher's fault.  The boy's parents sue Topher for a large settlement, which means his parents had to take out a mortgage on the house.  Cait, the eldest sister, and Luke, the boy's brother, were there and blamed themselves for what happened.  This is one of the secrets Cait is holding on to, as well as what happened the last time she saw Topher. Cait is a divorced corporate lawyer living in London with her uncontrollable twin children, Poppy and Augustus.  

Alice, the middle child, is married with two boys and has just started back to work.  After the birth of her second child, in which she almost died from preclampsia, she and her husband decided not to have more children.  Now, Alice finds herself pregnant and doesn't want to tell anyone, because she's not sure if she wants to keep it.  The family is Catholic, and her husband and mother are devout.  She has plans for herself, for a change, to go to college and get her degree in business and interior design.  Since she didn't move away, she finds herself taking care of her parents as well as her own family.  She'd really like to think of herself first for once.

Maggie, the youngest, came out to her family in college, but her mother has never really accepted it.  Her ex, who is married to a board member of the private school where Maggie teaches, wanted her to come over when Maggie was in Boston.  Maggie thought this was a chance to get some closure, but the other woman had different ideas.  Now, Maggie is worried that the woman’s husband might have discovered their secret affair and told her principal, who wants to have an important meeting with her after the holiday.  Maggie has a new girlfriend, Isobel, whom she hasn't been all that open with.  Not wanting to be away from her that long, Maggie invites her to the family's Thanksgiving/Reunion party.   

This book is one of Jenna Bush Hager's picks for her book club.  The narration alternates between the sisters as you discover all their secrets and what they are hiding, including the truth of that day on the boat and Topher's suicide,  which all three blame themselves for.  An Irish goodbye is when you leave without saying goodbye. 

 I truly enjoyed this page-turner that grabs you from page one and never lets you go. Reading about this family was a real treat as they try to hide their secrets and figure a way out of them, by themselves, but fail because none of them wants to admit they are in over their heads. 

Quotes

Nora's power of persuasion had never been in a raised voice of threat of punishment. It was in her sadness, her disappointment.

Heather Aimee O'Neill (The Irish Goodbye, p 98)

Desire makes everything clear.

Heather Aimee O'Neill (The Irish Goodbye, 99)

Link to Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Irish-Goodbye-Heather-Aimee-ONeill-ebook/dp/B0DQJ6ZM36/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2R01N156FPZ1M&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.1qHtZdZ7-yWjwIhLHwPv7igItkTQbKstQbrkt6V7glLAyCXdDSEu8P3eqog0UTTMRRZYnNEg7A925CXlpw1h8TNfoV8gUSpgYB_tICfJNPwdjJiKzbp2_W2aqp91JEySoxZTKSD9OPd8J7taLO3LwiVkKqX8sRujkbpczsawymtPRKvWvpYDj3yaBYhocqrYWj111WKGLs3uQsDZWUW0bsqIDi_Rc_EdpnnjsyVnUQI.Mn1Chk10jFkJGQgKvJ-71cH63xjgqjx4sfKewdO-nKU&dib_tag=se&keywords=the+irish+goodbye&qid=1777826701&s=digital-text&sprefix=the+irish+goodbye%2Cdigital-text%2C196&sr=1-1

Orchid Beach by Stuart Woods

Major Holly Barker is the head of a platoon of MPs.  She and another young woman lost in court trying to charge a commanding officer with sexual harassment and attempted rape.  She knows she won't be able to advance further, and she plans to retire with her twenty years in and look for something else.  Along comes Chet Marley, an ex-Army soldier who fought in Vietnam with Holly's father Ham, who's still in the Army.  Chet offers her a job as his Deputy Chief of police at Orchid Beach in Florida, about an island about an hour away from Vero Beach and Fort Pierce.  Chet suspects that someone from his department is feeding information to others.  He didn't make Hurd Wallace Deputy because he doesn't trust him.  

When Holly arrives at Orchid Beach, she calls Chet to let him know she is here, and he tells her he had a meeting with someone about the corruption in the force and will tell her about it first thing in the morning.  Holly goes to work the next day to find that Chet has been seriously shot and in a coma.  Later that day, Chet and Ham's friend from the war, Hank Doherty, is found with a shotgun blast through his head. Hank was the one person Chet would have trusted with what was going on and any evidence there would be for the investigation. 

Another person Chet, Ham, and Hank fought with is the head of security at an exclusive housing development where no one enters without an escort—even Holly. The guards have machine guns and a lot of the staff carries guns. 

As Holly searches for a killer, she finds the one person she can confide in, Jackson Oxencart, a public defender. Holly also picks up a pal in Daisy, Hank’s specially trained Doberman.  Holly also has to find a way to keep the city council happy so she can keep her job.

This mystery is an edge of your seat adventure ride. You don’t know who to trust. It’s a real page turner. Holly is a tough woman in two male dominated fields who must fight to win respect. Jackson is an interesting character with a backstory that matches Holly’s braveness. Daisy is an awesome character and sticks to Holly and protects her. Ham is his own man and cannot be told what to do. This cast of characters really clicks together and forms a team ready to take on anything. I can’t wait to read the next book in the series.

Quotes

The airplane is a great seduction tool: by the time you get them back down, they're so grateful to be alive, they just fall right into bed with you.

Stuart Woods (Orchid Beach, p 156)

  

Link to Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Orchid-Beach-Holly-Barker-Book-ebook/dp/B0013FO5T8/ref=sr_1_1?crid=166W5UZE34KCX&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.apQUb7knEEYvnDMoyLcFPNbZe-ts3OPwmjGy35B3wRg.ehlJcFCv0-CHmZuMUuKH9dbUoFmSRJ9j1IgVQB3kBFU&dib_tag=se&keywords=orchid+beach&qid=1777825988&s=digital-text&sprefix=orchid+%2Cdigital-text%2C280&sr=1-1

Link to ThriftBooks: https://www.thriftbooks.com/w/orchid-beach_stuart-woods/278124/?resultid=5da5d46d-225b-4859-a9c9-0e954d26c782#edition=2334047&idiq=24226208

 

Shadow Prey by John Sandford

 

This mystery is the second in the Lieutenant Lucas Davenport series. Davenport is a Minneapolis cop who skirts the outside of the law and does as he pleases.  Davenport has a strong and vast network of confidential informants. 

Jennifer, his girlfriend, has had their baby and so far Lucas, the hound dog, is still faithful to her and is helping raise their daughter, Sarah, though they both still have their own places. 

The book opens up with two police officers raping a young girl who needed a ride home because she had been drinking. This is a regular thing for the police in Arizona. The main one, Clay, gets beaten half to death by a group of Native Americans for this. 

This book was written in 1990, so Sandford uses the term Indians. There is also no cell phones, which means that they are constantly looking for a pay phone. There is also no DNA analysis. 

Over a decade later, two Native American men who were involved in the attack, are now hoping to bring attention to the injustices against their people by assassinating those who have harmed them.  They start off small with a slumlord who was also a loan shark to Native Americans. One of them arrives at his place of business and points a gun at him before managing to slice his throat with an onyx knife. 

Three men are behind this: the Crow cousins and their son Shadow Love, who is a very dangerous man, because he doesn’t care who he kills and he has some mental problems that urge him to kill. 

After a big shot New Yorker is murdered, a lieutenant in the NYPD, Lily, arrives in Minnesota to hook up with Davenport and the other officers investigating these Native American crimes. Lucas becomes quite tempted by Lily, who is married. 

Lucas and his family are put in harms way by Shadow Love who is set on killing those he feels betrayed his people, whether they did so, or not.  This book is action packed and full of adrenaline. It’s a heart stopping race in the last several chapters as you are glued to your seat reading as fast as you can til the well-worth-it climax that will blow your mind. 

Quotes

Before she’d always worn soft pink lipstick, and just a touch. This morning, her lipstick was hard-hearted-red, the color of street violence and sex.

John Sandford (Shadow Prey, p 337 *)

It’s a game. And you can’t back off in a game and win. You either go balls to the wall, or somebody takes you out and you’re no goddamn more.

John Sandford (Shadow Prey, p 396)

Oil stains marked the driveways like Rorschachs of failure.

John Sandford (Shadow Prey, p 405)

Nothing happens in the morning, so why get up? All the bad people are out at night. And most of the good ones, as far as that goes.

John Sandford (Shadow Prey, p 412)

* I read a book that contained the first three novels by John Sandford, so the page numbers are different.

Link to Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Shadow-Prey-Book-2-ebook/dp/B000QUCO6M/ref=sr_1_1?crid=236Z7B44B0YQ4&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.Q-qjqpUfBTIPtQ68qioQatl-3CXUcd37hYBpwCbFij7zr4FLPxf88PBZI5M22xcaOqha-ft3ePGVDf1Dh72Z4q1NOzCvaWcWOqgfDRPHFUTBk9DXIrosHBp5L-7JpcFLNk0HNVcjbOziIpPftjq4s9gYLihtJgcqBkqCu93jvKwtP3q-c8uGjZ_SKiJ_FLTUQZkB2Zj3rVXXFDyt-NeDlwP2p9OG7CattKeZC1nCyro.88w6YZ1vdCVNmY9ShWJ-TbVVCssP4-LrKZ_vn1i6ut0&dib_tag=se&keywords=shadow+prey&qid=1777826303&s=digital-text&sprefix=shadow+p%2Cdigital-text%2C206&sr=1-1

Link to ThriftBooks: https://www.thriftbooks.com/w/shadow-prey_john-sandford/248699/?resultid=f57b04d6-43ba-49e8-b748-7e5ea8575ff7#edition=23119501&idiq=41343092