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Serial Killers: Mini-Reviews

October 30, 2025

deadly animals

Happy Halloween Eve! I thought I’d pre-game tomorrow night’s creepy mood by sharing two reviews of novels about serial killers. You know, the kind of books you want to read with the lights on. In the middle of the day. And not alone.     Marie Tierney’s Deadly Animals is set in a small town near Birmingham, England. Ava is a teenage girl with a troubled family, ... Read More...

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Filed Under: Book Reviews, Fiction Tagged: suspense, thriller, vacation reading

Guilty by Definition: A Novel

October 1, 2025

guilty

A love of words, academia, and mystery are all that’s needed to fall in love with Susie Dent’s novel, Guilty by Definition. Editors of the Clarendon English Dictionary start receiving cryptic letters hinting at a mystery and the recovery of a possible item of great significance. The letters indicate the  timeline coincides with the disappearance of one of the dictionary’s ... Read More...

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Filed Under: Book Reviews, Fiction Tagged: mystery, vacation reading

Starter Villain

September 29, 2025

starter

Hello, lovely readers! You may have noticed that The Gilmore Guide to Books doesn’t look the way it usually does. Instead of brief excerpts of the books I’ve reviewed, the landing page now contains the full review for every book. It is clunky and not how I like things to look. Sadly, it’s been almost ten years since I’ve had to dive into the code that makes this blog work so my ... Read More...

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Filed Under: Book Reviews, Fiction Tagged: fantasy, humor, vacation reading

Spy novels: Mini-reviews

September 11, 2025

red

Given that thrillers have been such fabulous reading for me lately, I thought it was worth sharing two more this week. Author Alma Katsu worked in the world of U.S. intelligence at the CIA and NSA for 29 years imbuing her Red Widow series with an authenticity that makes both novels, Red Widow and Red London, hard to put down.   Lyndsey Duncan had been a rising star ... Read More...

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Filed Under: Book Reviews, Fiction Tagged: mystery, thriller, vacation reading

Her Many Faces

September 9, 2025

many faces

When four wealthy, prominent men are found poisoned at their exclusive club the police waste no time in apprehending the killer. Katherine Cole was the server at their private party and the last one to see them alive. She was also caught at the train station trying to leave London and when detained incriminated herself. With all these facts it might seem there’s no mystery, but ... Read More...

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Filed Under: Book Reviews, Fiction Tagged: book clubs, mystery, suspense, vacation reading

The Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi

September 1, 2025

adventures

Sometimes all you need in your reading is a raucous tale of adventure and fun and I found it in Shannon Chakraborty‘s novel, The Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi. Amina is a middle-aged woman, a mother, a former pirate who once captained the ship that terrorized merchants and the wealthy alike throughout the Indian Ocean. After a catastrophic trek she retired to her home village ... Read More...

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Filed Under: Book Reviews, Fiction Tagged: fantasy, vacation reading

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