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; a known political activist and her ... Read More...
January Reading Wrap-Up
Wrap-up is the perfect word for this January. One, it is COLD here in Seattle. Flannel sheets cold which makes for cozy reading. Two, for the first time in a very long time a month has felt like it lasted a year. I went from my normal head shake over "where did this month go" to holding my head in my hands and asking "how can this still be January?'. From a friend who lost ... Read More...
A World of Curiosities by Louise Penny
I’ve had my ups and downs with the Chief Inspector Gamache series by Louise Penny, but I’m beginning another week with another big claim: her latest, A World of Curiosities, is the best one yet. In it, Penny mashes up the past and the present to reinforce the history of friends and foes alike. The past is represented by going back to the scene of a woman’s murder, when Chief ... Read More...
October Reading Wrap-Up
My October reading was as mercurial as the month itself. Here in Michigan we had high humidity, heat, and mosquitos right up until last week, meaning I was cranky and battling hair frizz that made me look like the bride of Frankenstein. Now, I’m bundled up in fleece and socks. In the same way that the weather was unpredictable my reading ping ponged between wonderful ... Read More...
State of Terror by Louise Penny and Hillary Clinton
We’ve all heard of crossover artists. Singers who become actors. Actors who become writers. But politicians? Not so much. Politicking is a skill that doesn’t often translate to other arenas. I tried reading fiction by a politician that I admire tremendously and I quit at 10%. So, it was with great trepidation that I decided to read Hillary Clinton’s fictional debut, State of ... Read More...
September Reading Wrap-Up
I’ve been tired of 2020 in virtually all my end-of-month posts, but Justice Ginsburg’s death in September pretty much broke me. I found some solace in reading, but some of my nonfiction choices indicate just how far this year has pushed things. There is no ‘normal’ in my reading right now as shown by my September stats: 15 books read, 7 of which I rated as great or ... Read More...
