Category: Book Review

Posted on

#BookReview: Pity Present by Whitney Dineen

Solid “Secret Identity” Romance Where Side Character Nearly Steals Show. This is one of those romances where there are a lot of instances of “oh, you happen to be here and look who else happens to be here” bits, particularly in the setup. Which leads to a lot of miscommunications and assumptions, and you know what they say about “assume”. Still, it totally works in the usual Hallmarkie and zany way, and if you’re down for that kind of story, you’re going to enjoy this one. If the secret identity/ happenstance/ assumption setup isn’t your bag… eh, you probably won’t enjoy this one as much.

And then… one particular side character. Not going into this character at all other than to note that this character does in fact nearly steal the entire damn book, and indeed, it almost feels like there are more “real” emotions as our main characters interact with this character than with each other. Which is probably not the best thing in a romance book, but hey, at least there are “real” and touching moments *somewhere*, right?

As to spice level… this one is far closer to a warm glass of milk than a Carolina Reaper. So there again, know that up front and read (or not) according to your own tastes there. For those that *must* have sex of some form (open door/ closed door) in their romance books… eh, I think that speaks more to you than the author, but just know that this is NOT present in this book.

Overall I think the book worked well as a continuation of its series, including having a few characters from earlier books come back and play pivotal roles (and, for those that despise spoilers of any form, absolutely read the earlier books in the series before getting to this one).

Very much recommended.

This review of Pity Present by Whitney Dineen was originally written on December 5, 2024.

Posted on

#BookReview: A Wood-Fired Christmas by Maddie Evans

Heart Filled Novella Packs A Compelling Story In Short Form. This is one of those novellas that by the time you’re finished, you’re going to *think* there *had* to be at least twice as many pages given just how much story Evans manages to pack in here. And yet because it *is* barely 100 pages, its *actual* brevity makes it a great holiday read while you’re waiting for things to cook or you’re waiting the 5 minutes of commercials between every possession in a football game or you’re needing five minutes of peace from the chaos of so many family and friends around or… you get the idea. Quick books make great books to read in limited time slices, and this is absolutely that type of tale. Also great for those looking to add a quick easy read (with a lot of heart) to help with those annual reading goals.

Oh, and Evans shows a love of pizza here I honestly didn’t know she had. This entire novella is almost as much a love story for the hole in the wall pizzeria our couple winds up working together at as it is a romance between the couple themselves. Both play off each other well in all the best ways, and along the way everyone from foodies to Hallmarkie types will be quite pleased with the results.

Very much recommended.

This review of A Wood-Fired Christmas by Maddie Evans was originally written on December 4, 2024.

Posted on

#BookReview: Sea Of Grass by Dave Hage and Josephine Marcotty

Seemingly Comprehensive Review Of Its Field Marred By Dearth Of Bibliography. This is one of those books you pick up randomly because “hey, I don’t actually know more than the very rough basics about the American Prairie”, and it will actually give you a largely well rounded view of the entire topic, from its ancient origins and pre-European development through the Indian Wars/ Manifest Destiny era and through the Dust Bowl years all the way up to mostly current farming tech/ practices in the region. Yes, the commentary is titled perhaps a touch toward the left side of the dial, but honestly it wasn’t anywhere near as pervasive or preachy as some other similar texts tend to get, so eh, it was enough to mention here but now I’m moving on.

No, the real problem, at least with the Advance Review Copy edition I read roughly 6 months before publication, is the dearth of a bibliography, clocking in at just 7% of the overall text – a far cry from even the 15% of my newly relaxing standard for bibliography length, much less the 20-30% of my former standard. So that’s the star deduction – for all of the facts presented, there simply isn’t anywhere near enough bibliography to back them up – much less the more editorial commentary.

Overall a seemingly strong primer on the topic, I know I learned a lot about a lot here, and I suspect many will as well. I simply wish it had been better documented.

Very much recommended.

This review of Sea Of Grass by Dave Hage and Josephine Marcotty was originally written on December 3, 2024.

Posted on

#BookReview: Waste Wars by Alexander Clapp

Anti-Western Ideology And Dearth Of Bibliography Mar Otherwise Solid Enough Examination Of The Topic. This is one of those books that has a lot of great information… and then doesn’t really document where that information came from. Clearly, Clapp traveled extensively and did a lot of first hand observations – which is clear from the narrative. And yet there is also quite a bit of discussion of histories old enough (yet still modern enough) that Clapp could not possibly have conducted such interviews himself, such as one comment from a letter from an activist in 1992 Guatemala regarding the trade in trash being more lucrative at the time than the drug trade! Thus, there is enough that wasn’t directly observed that the bibliography should have been longer than the 13% the Advance Review Copy form of this book I read a few months before publication had. Still, that was only call it a half star deduction, as 13% is really close to the 15% that I’m trying to relax my standard to (from 20-30%).

The other half star deduction is from the explicit and pervasive anti-Western commentary – at one point going so far as to claim that “Indigenous societies were in greater touch with Earth’s natural rhythms than white settlers. They had a more profound sense of moral purpose.” While this statement was perhaps the single worst in the narrative, there were numerous similar comments spread throughout the entirety of the text, enough that some may wish to defenestrate this book early and often.

But don’t. Read the book. There really is quite a bit here, and while some of it is included in other works on the trash trade and trash life cycle – such as Year Of No Garbage by Eve Schaub, Worn Out by Alyssa Hardy, and Wasteland by Oliver Franklin-Wallis – Clapp manages to go to other areas (such as Indonesia) not covered in these other works and show their own problems and opportunities in stark clarity. Indeed, remove the blatant anti-Western bias, and this is truly a solid work in the field, showing a wide breadth of the overall problem of the life of trash after it is thrown away and now nothing ever really solves this particular problem… in part due to the classic peril of there being too much money to be made by *not* solving it.

So read this book. Maybe you agree with the author’s biases, maybe you’re vehemently opposed to them. Either way, I’m almost 100% certain that even if you happen to be an actual expert in the global trash trade… you’re *still* going to learn something from having read this book.

Recommended.

This review of Waste Wars by Alexander Clapp was originally written on December 2, 2024.

Posted on

#BlogTour: The Greatest Lie Of All by Jillian Cantor

For this blog tour, we’re looking at . For this blog tour, we’re looking at The Greatest Lie Of All by Jillian Cantor.

First, the review I posted to the book sites (Hardcover.app / BookHype.com / BookBub.com / TheStoryGraph.com / Goodreads.com):

Never Meet Your Heroes – You Might Find Out More Than You Wanted To. Seriously, this book takes that age old saying to heart in its basic premise… and then spins it on its head in the actual execution of the tale at hand and in showing all that has transpired in these characters’ lives.

This is one of those inventive enough tales that it seems almost completely implausible… and yet real enough that it feels all too real at the same damn time. Surely, *nothing* could be *this* convoluted, right? (Says the guy whose mother in law is best friends with her husband’s ex-wife and whose grandparents lived together on the same property – at times even in the same house – even after they divorced and remarried.) In other words… yes, life can get quite messy at times, and this book does a tremendous job of showing this to great dramatic effect.

This is one of those women’s fiction/ romance genre benders that actually has the *cajones* to walk right up to the RWA/ RNA gatekeepers and say “Really? You’re going to try to tell me that *this* isn’t a romance for the ages?”. There is even at least one element of this book that will certainly, if the book reaches enough people, prove quite controversial indeed, and while I know *exactly* what those arguments will be and who (in general) will be making them, revealing even the specific nature of that particular debate pretty well spoils what this element is, so this is about as close as I can get to noting its presence without spoiling it.

Releasing late in the year when Yankees are seemingly already snowed under and largely inside their might-as-well-be Igloos for the winter and thus needing much reading material (at least that is how this Southern boy who has never lived any further north than the Atlanta exurbs tends to look at these things), this is going to be one of those great ones to read while huddled up trying to stay warm. Yes, even for us Floridians in our heaviest Arctic gear getting ready for temperatures that begin with “5” for a few days.

Very much recommended.

After the jump, an excerpt from the book followed by the “publisher details” – book info, description, author bio, social links, and buy links.
Continue reading “#BlogTour: The Greatest Lie Of All by Jillian Cantor”

Posted on

#BookReview: How To Get A Life In Ten Dates by Jenny L. Howe

Bi Romance For The Younger Millennial / Zoomer Set. If you have an ounce of work ethic in your pinky finger, you’ve got more than our female lead and narrator of this tale. Which means you’re likely going to find her quite annoying, at the very least. If you’re not a fan of bisexual women or the term “cishet” (to be clear, the second thing there is only used a time or two that I noticed), maybe skip this book. If you need the spice of a Carolina Reaper or at least a Scotch Bonnet… eh, you’re not going to like this one much either. If you’re not a fan of romance novels that could have been a five minute mature conversation a decade ago… you’re probably not going to like this book. If you’re not a fan of trigger warnings at the front of books… well, this one has a couple of pages of them.

With all of *that* dispensed with, welcome. If you’re still here and still interested in this book, know that for what it is, it is reasonably solid. Maybe a touch squishy in some areas and maybe rolling a bit after the rest of it has stopped moving a time or two, but good enough to be enjoyable for those that can suspend their disbelief for a few hours and just go with the story as presented.

And the story as presented *is* a fat bi chick version of a fairly standard plot device in romance books – multiple dates with different people set up by some friend/ family group, except the best friend winds up inserting himself into them and… well, like I said, its been done more than enough for you to know exactly how this goes. While there is more spice than the “clean” / “sweet” crowd will likely prefer, there also isn’t really enough to “give them the vapors” either, so on that point it is somewhere in between. The romance itself, as a form of second chance / these kids should have had a mature conversation a decade ago and could have been together this entire time, still works for what it is.

Really the areas that this book – and all of Howe’s books – break a bit of ground is their acceptance of “larger bodies”, but Howe openly notes in that same trigger warning at the front of the book that in order to make this particular story work, she had to trim down the more typical nearly screaming from the rooftops level of “fat pride” / “fat acceptance”/ however you want to phrase that… and yes, to an extent, it shows in the way the story is told and ultimately in how the story flows.

And yet, with all of this noted, there really were no technical errors noted here, and thus this book could work well for someone looking for something atypical during the Holiday season that isn’t a “holiday book”.

Very much recommended.

This review of How To Get A Life In Ten Dates by Jenny L. Howe was originally written on November 19, 2024.

Posted on

#BookReview: Falling Into Forever by Denise Keiser

Short. Clean. Innocent Fun. This is one of those romances that is *so* innocent and playful that you almost begin to question just how old these characters are. And to be clear, they are very clearly adult characters… but the fun and pranks here are so innocent as to be juvenile, making you think that these characters had been playing these same games for many, many years… despite having just met.

The epilogue(s) here – one official and yet the chapter *before* it taking place a year after the main events of the book, usually denoting a form of epilogue even if it isn’t labeled that – feel perhaps a touch tacked on, particularly given some of the revelations therein as they relate to the overall main story, but that is one where your mileage may absolutely vary.

Overall this was a fun, quick read (a couple of hours or so for me), great for those times in the holiday season when maybe you only have a few minutes between doing things to get any reading in, but perhaps are actively looking for a shorter-ish book that won’t make you think too hard about things.

Very much recommended.

This review of Falling Into Forever by Denise Keiser was originally written on November 18, 2024.

Posted on

#BlogTour: The Maui Effect by Sara Ackerman

For this blog tour, we’re looking at an interesting departure for an established author that still reads like a love letter to the author’s homeland. For this blog tour, we’re looking at The Maui Effect by Sara Ackerman.

First, the review I posted to the book sites (Hardcover.app / BookHype.com / BookBub.com / TheStoryGraph.com / Goodreads.com):

Interesting Departure, Still A Love Letter To The Author’s Homeland. Ackerman, at least in my time reading her works, has been a historical fiction writer before this tale. While there were generally some elements of romance to her tales that have always featured a female lead, that was seemingly almost there for realism and impact as much as trying to add in a romantic subplot.

Here, Ackerman goes instead for a more full-bore romance, still set in her native Hawaii. While not as impactful as some of her more recent historical fiction work, it still works well for what it is – a drama-filled romance tale set against the backdrop of a native Hawaiian and a mainlander surfer trying to become a surfing legend. Fans of most anything to do with Hawaii and/ or surfing will enjoy this work. Fans of the early 2000s era movie Blue Crush, since it just came up this week (great timing for Ackerman!) with the Weds, November 13, 2024 airing of The Masked Singer in the US and specifically who was revealed that night (though this is all I’m saying… it is likely still too much to avoid spoilers of *that* show… which I never guaranteed) will enjoy the callbacks to both the tropical scenery and the surfing competitions and their dangers.

More interesting, at least to me, are all the connections to the Avatar scifi franchise. Our female lead here is named Iwa Iwa, apparently for a native Hawaiian plant – and yet Eywa (which sounds similar to this Southern United States boy’s ears) is the Na’vi goddess in the Avatar franchise. Similarly, when Iwa begins praying to the various natural gods early-ish in the book, the language sounds remarkably like the language spoken by the Na’vi in the movies (and in the Pandora world at Walt Disney World’s Animal Kingdom, for that matter). Which shouldn’t come as *too* much of a surprise, since James Cameron and staff openly admit they were inspired by Pacific Islander culture – including Hawaiian culture – in the creation of the Na’vi. Still, this is the first fiction book I’ve ever seen with such a clear and pervasive connection, and it was both interesting and jarring. Then there are the conservation connections, as both storylines feature at least some level of fighting to preserve nature from “greedy developers”. (So yes, the anti-capitalist themes are there to a degree, but I personally didn’t find them too be too preachy or overbearing here. Avatar is certainly *far* worse in that regard.)

This isn’t a light romcom by any stretch, there are absolutely some very weighty subjects dealt with herein – including a serious injury that leads to opioid addiction – and this may hit harder for some readers than others.

Overall it really was an interesting departure from Ackerman’s norm (again, at least in my own experience with her books), but one that shows that Ackerman is a strong enough storyteller that she will be able to give us a compelling story in any genre she chooses while also still allowing for some growth in these new adventures.

Very much recommended.

After the jump, an excerpt from the book fo
llowed by the “publisher details” – book info, description, author bio, social links, and buy links.
Continue reading “#BlogTour: The Maui Effect by Sara Ackerman”

Posted on

#BookReview: Political Survival 101 by Adam Marky

Pessimistic Satirical Look At Politics For The Millennial And Younger Crowds. First, let me address why I specifically say this is for the younger crowds: Every chapter ends with an image that, in the print edition at least, is a coloring sheet. Yes, you read that right. This is, partially and only in the print edition, a coloring book. Even the last text section before the coloring sheet is a suggestion of how you might want to color it, based on the image at hand and the commentary of that particular chapter.

As to the actual text, it is exactly what I said above – a satirical, if perhaps a touch pessimistic, look at all things politics, including how so many stereotypical politicians act so much of the time. Which means that at least in a certain vein, it absolutely does ease political stress with a bit of humor – if perhaps landing a touch close to one’s actual views of the subject.

The coloring sheets, while infantilizing – arguably one of the *last* things we need to be doing with this set of younger adults (to be clear, including those of even my own Xennial generation) – are at least a solid attempt at humor whose landing will depend more on personal taste.

Overall a fun, light, funny-enough book that never takes itself to seriously and is in fact a good way to try to have a laugh.

Very much recommended.

This review of Political Survival 101 by Adam Marky was originally written on November 16, 2024.

Posted on

#BookReview: The Cruise by Christina Delay

Down Down Deep, Indeed. For those unaware, this book was previously titled Down Down Deep, and that may actually be a superior title to its more generic one it currently has (The Cruise).

Here we get a psychological, almost supernatural, thriller that becomes all too human indeed. The tension ratchets up as weird things start happening on this sailing of this cruise ship, and there are quite a few even horror elements to be had here.

There are twists a plenty, so much so that it sometimes feels like you’re on Velocicoaster – they’re coming so hard and so fast, and yet you’re enjoying every freaking second of it. And, like Velocicoaster, as fun and intense as this read is… it is also fairly shortish, at just around 250 pages. Meaning it is yet again great for those with limited amounts of reading time.

Definitely one of the more inventive books within its space I’ve encountered, so much so that when I saw that this is actually in a series of sorts and that the other book is currently, as I write this review on November 14, 2024, just $0.99… yeah, I picked it up immediately just on the strength of this book. (Fwiw, that book – The Best Friends – is also a reprint/ retitle, formerly called Truth Truth Lie.)

One warning: There is a fair amount of pretty brutal action in this book at times, and it *does* deal in certain assaults that some may find more troubling than others. So be aware of that going in… and read it anyway. Yes, it really is that good.

Very much recommended.

This review of The Cruise by Christina Delay was originally written on November 14, 2024.