Book Reviews Archives - The Gilmore Guide to Books

Looking for Funny: Mini-Reviews

Catherine — Wed, 10 Jun 2026 07:24:48 +0000

Somehow, without paying attention, I read two spring releases back-to-back that were written by comedy writers and not just any comedy writers, but two who both wrote for the same show, Arrested Development, a show I loved. But while the tone and voice of both these writers was funny the plots weren’t, leading me to […]

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Ruins by Lily Brooks-Dalton

Catherine — Thu, 04 Jun 2026 07:14:37 +0000

What if there was another advanced civilization on Earth, older than ours, that has remained undiscovered? Ember is an archeologist who believes this to be true and has spent her life trying to find proof of this pre-historic society. In Ruins, after years languishing in academia, she finally receives an artifact from a colleague supporting […]

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May Reading

Catherine — Mon, 01 Jun 2026 07:12:14 +0000

Hello, lovely readers! It’s been a minute since I did one of these monthly round-ups, but I’m trying to get back on track. Or at least figure out where the track is. This year has been a sluggish one for reading, but my May reading brought two new release five star books. The […]

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The Last Mandarin

Catherine — Fri, 29 May 2026 07:08:40 +0000

Louise Penny is back with her second thriller written with a co-author. In this case it’s award-winning journalist Mellisa Fung who’s helped craft The Last Mandarin. The novel opens on a normal day when an unusual event occurs that creates immediate chaos in the world. A geopolitical terrorist attack that brings together an unlikely couple; […]

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The Tapestry of Fate

Catherine — Wed, 27 May 2026 07:05:47 +0000

The infamous pirate Amina al-Sirafi is back. She made her debut in Shannon Chakraborty’s novel The Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi, where she was brought out of retirement to retrieve a kidnapped girl. When Tapestry of Fate, the newest novel in the series, begins it is years later and she’s happily living in her isolated home […]

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I, Medusa

Catherine — Mon, 25 May 2026 07:03:38 +0000

Is there anything worse than being the ugly duckling in a family of gorgeous women? Yes. You could be mortal and they could be goddesses. That’s life for 17-year-old Meddy in I, Medusa by Ayana Gray, a refreshing retelling of the Greek myth about the monster Medusa. Meddy is a tomboy who loves books and […]

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Son of Nobody

Catherine — Thu, 21 May 2026 07:58:48 +0000

Yann Martel, author of The Life of Pi has a new novel, Son of Nobody and it’s safe to say his unique narrative style has not changed. Instead of a lone lifeboat adrift for 227 days, Son of Nobody takes place in two distinctly different settings, the Trojan War, and the Bodleian Library at Oxford. […]

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Yesteryear by Caro Claire Burke

Catherine — Mon, 18 May 2026 16:16:56 +0000

Natalie is a God-fearing women living a righteous life on a massive cattle ranch in Idaho. She is a loving wife and mother to five happy, healthy children with a sixth on the way. That she monetizes her life and that it might not be as “real” as she portrays it is the crux of […]

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Vigil by George Saunders

Catherine — Fri, 03 Apr 2026 07:48:58 +0000

In Vigil by George Saunders Jill is an angel who helps the dying transition into death. Her latest assignment is K.J. Boone, a Texan oilman. Jill’s purpose is to comfort but also to give the person an opportunity to repent, but Boone wants none of that. He has nothing to be sorry for and is […]

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Saoirse by Charleen Hurtobise

Catherine — Wed, 01 Apr 2026 07:35:16 +0000

A teenage girl in fear for her life steals both money and a passport to get out of the U.S. and into Ireland in the 1990s. This is the beginning of the novel Saoirse, but it’s nowhere near the beginning of the life of Sarah, the main character. That unspools slowly throughout the book as […]

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