The Housekeeper and the Professor by Yōko Ogawa
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I read this book a long time ago, maybe 2010, before I kept careful track. I remembered that I liked it and when the title came up at a book club discussion, I recommended it. So, I reread it.
I'm not sure what I liked the first time around. It is not my style of book, although the prose is delightful and the story is a bit enchanting.
How does one adapt to a strange malady and how do the people around the subject, adapt.
I might have missed the point of this book. It is such a simple story that I feel that I might have missed something.
I was a math teacher. That part of the book, getting excited about math, was part of what I did with my students. I'm sure that my love of baseball is tied to its unending use of statistics. But sometimes the housekeeper seemed to get it much too quickly...
All in all I was glad I read it once, the second time seemed tedious.


View all my reviews

Smolder by Brett Battles
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Some of the magic is gone. Stuart Woods and a kind of convoluted sense of humor that made me smile through most of the book. This has a bit of that but for the most part it was a little dry.
The plot was interesting but seemed a little far fetched and remote. I may read more of these, if they continue to write them, but I won't put it at the top of my list. Sixty-four good ones is a pretty good run.

View all my reviews

Her Every Fear by Peter Swanson
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Kept me glued to the book til the very end. Peter Swanson has become one of my favorite authors. He is a fit and healthy looking 56 so I expect to read his books for a long time.
This one presented some strange, yet believable characters. I did get the timeline mixed up a couple of times but he brought me back with ease. Did he mean to do that?
Cousins swap apartments... seems simple enough until he gives us their back stories and from then on the action is non-stop. Could not put it down. If you like mysteries of the murder variety, this is a must read. It is a stand alone novel.

View all my reviews

The Kind Worth Killing by Peter Swanson
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Peter Swanson is my new favorite author. I don't often read murder mysteries but I will read all of his. this story starts with a simple plot and explodes into a complex story. The characters jump out of the pages and it is almost impossible to put it down.
Without any spoilers, it is hard to imagine hating someone enough to plot their demise. That is a special kind of hate that must be reserved for some special kind of people.

View all my reviews

The Girl with a Clock for a Heart by Peter Swanson
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This is the second book by Peter Swanson that I have read. Currently working on a third. I read Eight Perfect Murders in one day, could not put it down. The same with this one.
Weird story but he holds it up very well. Well written and carefully thought out. I love it when I haven't figured a book out until the end.
Interesting characters and a strong story line. I loved it.

View all my reviews

May Books Read

A Grave Robbery by Deanna Raybourn
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Another wonderful tale about my favorite dectective characters. I kind of worried that they did not have enough to solve this one but I was wrong. In addition the author has added at least one new character that seems to fit in with the existing cast.
Great action in this one. I could almost see the action if I closed my eyes. (that does make it hard to read)
I so hope that there is another Veronica story on someone's computer some where. I want to read it.

View all my reviews

Eight Perfect Murders by Peter Swanson
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This was a book club selection that I read in 2 days. It is the definition of can't put it down. In retrospect this seems odd because the style was smooth did not seem rushed or hurried. I could not put it down. The plot, though a little convoluted, held up for the whole book. My confusion over what was exactly going on was, I'm sure, due to Mr. Swanson's fine writing.
Even if you don't usually read murder mysteries, read this one. If for no other reason than to enjoy the work of a master storyteller.

View all my reviews

City of Laughter by Temim Fruchter
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Quite an ambitious book for a first novel. The prose is beautiful and the story concept is fascinating. The idea of Jewish folklore messaging us in the modern world is fanciful to me but the execution is convincing, and at least interesting.
I often found myself confused between the time and space of the stories unfolding but in the end the author seems to have brought it together.
I seldom seek out reviews for books I am interested in reading or have read. In this case I went to the New York Times. The reviewer brought my feelings into focus:
"Like desire and secrets, “laughter is no controlled substance,” Temim Fruchter writes in “City of Laughter,” her brainy and richly textured debut novel. “It goes where it wants to go.” Grief, too, is hard to contain. In the wake of both her father’s death and a difficult breakup, Fruchter’s 32-year-old heroine, Shiva Margolin, attempts to unravel 100 years of tangled generational trauma in order to find inner peace. The more complicated fate she ultimately embraces makes this unabashedly queer Jewish family story a new take on our uncertain age."

View all my reviews

The Measure by Nikki Erlick
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

An interesting concept. I'm not sure where it could have gone but I found the plot tedious and thin. There was a lot to think about but I have personally little interest in the all over the place philosophical ideas that this story offers.
This book is read for my book club and they will probably convince me I was wrong.
In the end, for me at least, love and devotion has no sell by date. I live each day as if it might be my last and I make sure to let those who I love, respect and am grateful to are told as often as I can. Those I dislike or treat me with disrespect are not worth the time. Life is always too short.

View all my reviews

April, 2024 Books Read

 

A Sinister Revenge by Deanna Raybourn
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Ok, I figured out what I like about Deanna Raybourn. She is a master storyteller and a genius in the use of era appropriate language. Complex or not she makes the story/plot easy to follow. I'm pretty sure she does this by having Veronica explain things to Stoker, kind of womansplaining. Sometimes he is dense as rock and other times seems to get everything. Veronica on the other hand is seldom confused and often way ahead of Stoker, and me!
Whatever it is I am soon on to #9 and then we all need to pray or beg for a #10.

View all my reviews