Welcome to the latest edition of my feeble attempts to catch up on my reviews. These
catch-up reviews are going to be short and sweet, but at least you'll
have an idea of what pages I've been turning the past few months! (I'll
also provide links to Amazon in each title if you want to learn more
about any of the books.)
Let's get started!
#1 Prudence Bulstrode cozy mystery
Rating: B
My Thoughts: This mystery revolving around a murder during an English country house shooting party started a bit awkwardly, but soon hit its stride. The author is a celebrity chef, and readers certainly get an insider's look at both celebrity chefs and cooking.
One thing I liked about Prudence Bulstrode (besides her name!) was the fact that she planned all her sleuthing around the meals she had to prepare for the guests at the country house. So many times, amateur sleuths seem to forget that they have bills to pay and blithely skip away to look for clues.
Filled with interesting characters, a solid mystery, and plenty of humor, I'll be returning to see what Prudence cooks up next.
Standalone Suspense
Rating: C+
My Thoughts: Having enjoyed Millhiser's book, The Mirror, I looked forward to this tale of a woman with amnesia who finds herself thrown into one of those rich, entitled families that would put a nest of vipers to shame. Unfortunately, I found the book to be pedestrian and lacking suspense.
My advice: Skip this one, but if you like excellent time travel stories, find The Mirror.
Standalone Historical Fiction
Rating: A
My Thoughts: After watching the film, Out of Africa, I read many non-fiction books about that time period in Africa (fascinating!) One of the books that made my all-time favorite books list was Beryl Markham's memoir, West With the Night.
When I began to read Circling the Sun, I immediately fell under the spell of Markham's voice. This woman lived an incredible life, mixing the early days of aviation (she was the first person to fly solo west across the Atlantic), growing up with the Kikuyu in Kenya, African wildlife, and horse racing.
McLain's book is a tale well told, and I'll be reading more of her work.
#1 Martini Club thriller
Rating: A
My Thoughts: Maggie Bird lives in the seaside village of Purity, Maine-- along with several other retired CIA operatives. When Maggie's past rises up, she goes to those friends to take advantage of the more than 100 years of experience they share.
As Maggie showed me how careful she is with every single move she makes, I was exhausted-- and grateful that I'll never have to live that way. Local police chief Jo Thibodeau is a hoot ("Outmaneuvered by a bunch of old folks"), and I'm looking forward to seeing more of her as well as Maggie's neighbor, Luther Yount, and his granddaughter Callie.
Side note: I've learned more about the state of Maine by reading mysteries!
There you have it-- four more books that I read over the summer. When will I catch up? Your guess is as good as mine!
Have you read any of these? Which ones? What did you think? Did I tempt you with any of them? Inquiring minds would love to know!
