March 2022 – Looking For a Good Book

March 30, 2022

THE COWARD – Stephen Aryan

Kell Kressia is a living legend. A hero about whom tales are told. This stems from an incident when Kell joined a band of rugged warriors to slay the Ice Lich. The Ice Lich was killed, thereby saving the world, according to legend, but Kell was the only human to return. Since then, he’s tried Continue reading

SF/FANTASY

2 Stars, Book Reviews, Books, Reviews, SF/Fantasy

March 28, 2022

SUMMER OF LOVE AND EVIL – Michael Kinnamon

It is 1967 and drugs, Vietnam, and family farms giving way to corporate farming are the topics of conversation in many Iowa communities. Charles Weaver is graduating from his small, Iowa farming town high school as the valedictorian. He has great plans for his last summer in town before going off to Des Moines to Continue reading

OTHER, Uncategorized

5 Stars, Book Reviews, Books, Literature, Reviews

March 24, 2022

SHE WHO BECAME THE SUN – Shelley Parker-Chan

Oh, wow. This is phenomenal. It is 1345 China and the Mongol’s rule with an iron fist. Out in the Central Plains of China, peasants toil away and only dream of the possibilities of greatness – something found in prophesies but not real life. Until, that is, the eighth-born son of the Zhu family, Zhu Continue reading

OTHER, Uncategorized

5 Stars, Book Reviews, Books, Mythology/Legend, Reviews

March 22, 2022

THE BOOK OF ACCIDENTS – Chuck Wendig

I’ve thought, longer than usual, on how to start this review. Often I’ll start with a plot description — too difficult with this book. Sometimes I’ll start with some general comments about other books I’ve read by the author — been there, done that already with Wendig. And sometimes I’ll dig right in and talk Continue reading

Dark Fantasy/Horror, Uncategorized

4 stars, Book Reviews, Books, Horror/Dark Fantasy, Reviews, SF/Fantasy

March 18, 2022

TOGETHER WE WILL GO – J. Michael Straczynski

Things haven’t gone well for Mark Antonelli, a failed young writer with a grim future. So he puts together a plan…. Mark buys a beat-up old tour bus and hires an ex-vet to be the driver, and he plans to drive/ride across the country. He places ads in newspapers along the route and will pick up Continue reading

OTHER, Uncategorized

4 stars, Book Reviews, Books, general fiction, Reviews

March 16, 2022

SOUL SERENADE – Rashad Ollison

I was 100% attracted to this book because of the sub-title: Rhythm, Blues & Coming of Age Through Vinyl. The effect of music, particularly in the age of vinyl, holds a lot of interest to me. What I was expecting, then, was a memoir addressing the role music played in the life and growth of Rashod Continue reading

MEMOIR, NON-FICTION, Uncategorized

2 Stars, Book Reviews, Books, Memoir, Music, non-fiction, Reviews

March 14, 2022

FUGITIVE TELEMETRY – Martha Wells

This is not my first Martha Wells book, but it is my first foray into The Murderbot Diaries, despite this being book number six. A quick background … “Murderbot” is the name a self-aware robot has given itself, though it doesn’t refer to itself that way out loud for fear of scaring off the humans Continue reading

MYSTERY, SF/FANTASY, SHORT FICTION, Uncategorized

3 Stars, Book Reviews, Books, Mystery, Reviews, SF/Fantasy

March 11, 2022

THE KAIJU PRESERVATION SOCIETY – John Scalzi

John Scalzi is writing a sci-fi novel with dragons?! Hell, yeah! WARNING – POSSIBLE SPOILERS AHEAD!! Jamie Gray is a delivery driver for a food delivery app. It’s a dead-end job for a man with Jamie’s skills, but what with the pandemic, any job is a good job. But things aren’t going well and Jamie Continue reading

SF/FANTASY, Uncategorized

4 stars, Book Reviews, Books, Reviews, SF/Fantasy

March 10, 2022

PRIESTESS OF MORPHINE – Marie Madeleine

Whoa … where did this come from?! ‘Discovering’ a book like this is one of the joys of reading to review. Marie Madeleine was not likely to be on my radar, but I found her work to be significant. Baroness Gertrud Freifrau von Puttkamer (born Gertrud Günther) was a German writer of lesbian-themed erotica. She Continue reading

NON-FICTION, OTHER, Uncategorized

5 Stars, Book Reviews, Books, non-fiction, Poetry, Reviews

March 8, 2022

RHAPSODY – Mitchell James Kaplan

Katharine “Kay” Swift was a young woman – a socialite – married to a wealthy banker but frustrated because she wished to be taken seriously as a concert pianist. In one night her life will change when she attends a concert and hears a stirring new piece. She is determined to meet the brash young Continue reading

HISTORICAL FICTION, Uncategorized

2 Stars, Book Reviews, Books, Historical Fiction, Reviews

March 4, 2022

BEATLES WIVES – Marc Shapiro

Let’s see… The Beatles reached their peak as a working band almost 55 years ago and still we can’t seem to get enough of them. I wonder how many new Beatles-related books are still published each year. They broke up as a band well over 50 years ago, never had a reunion tour, two of Continue reading

ENTERTAINMENT, NON-FICTION, Uncategorized

4 stars, Biography, Book Reviews, Books, Entertainment, Music, non-fiction, Reviews

March 2, 2022

THE UNWINDING AND OTHER DREAMINGS – Jackie Morris

What kind of book is this? The drawings and narrative feel like a poetic children’s book. But the creator suggests it’s more of a meditative book … something to put on the night stand and read a couple of pages before bed after a long day? Whatever it is, it’s pretty to look at. These Continue reading

CHILDREN’S, OTHER, Uncategorized

3 Stars, Book Reviews, Books, Children’s Books, Picture books, Reviews