At 91 Margaret Riley lives a life of isolation on the shore of a small lake in the mountains of Tennessee. Across the lake is another house that has stood empty for years since its owner died but suddenly fills with life again as Jennifer and her 4-year-old son move in. The New Neighbor is Leah Stewart’s novel about Margaret and her sudden fascination with her new ... Read More...
As You Wish: Cary Elwes
Some people think of reviewing books as solitary, quiet vocation and often, they are right. How nice then, to attend a book event that ends up feeling like a movie premiere—complete with large crowds, screaming fans and people in costumes. This was the fun-filled case earlier this week when I was at the University Book Store to see actor Cary Elwes talk about his new book, As ... Read More...
The Girls of Atomic City
Yesterday was the 69th anniversary of the dropping of the first atomic bomb on Japan by the United States. Now threats of atomic war loom and fade whenever one country gets mad at another. I wondered about the path we took to making the bomb and this led me to Denise Kiernan’s book The Girls of Atomic City: The untold story of the women who helped win World War II, a highly ... Read More...
The Kingmaker’s Daughter
I’ve already professed my love for the work of Philippa Gregory so I’ll keep this brief. I reviewed The White Princess two weeks ago which chronicles the end of The Cousins’ War and the beginning of the Tudor dynasty. That was book five in the series, which I read knowing I had missed book four, but that I would return. For the last three days I did. The Kingmaker’s Daughter ... Read More...
The White Princess
I’m going to begin with full disclosure: I love the work of Philippa Gregory. I first read her novel, The Other Boleyn Girl, and from there was hooked on the early history of England. After several books she completed her narrative on the later history of the Tudors and moved to a less-known time, the Cousins’ War, which preceded the Tudor dynasty. It was also known as the War ... Read More...
Swimming at Night
By page three of Swimming at Night we have already learned of the death of Katie Greene’s sister, Mia. From that point onward, there is little opportunity to stop and catch your breath, as author Lucy Clarke neatly propels the action forward in this, her debut novel, where the mysteries pile up almost immediately. Mia was in Bali, not a country she was supposed to be in, and ... Read More...
