Walker packs so many events and plots and subplots and charm and people and places and food and wine and history, and more, into less than 300 pages, Walker packs so many events and plots and subplots and charm and people and places and food and wine and history, and more, into less than 300 pages, [The last numbered page says 287.] and still manages suspense, a fast pace, and yet a relaxing read. He really is amazing!...more
Five 8th-grade boys find the entrance to an old bomb shelter after a hurricane destroys the "fort" they were building in the woods but also washes awaFive 8th-grade boys find the entrance to an old bomb shelter after a hurricane destroys the "fort" they were building in the woods but also washes away the soil that had covered the shelter's entrance. It turns out to have been constructed by a now-dead wealthy resident during the Cold War. It becomes a safe haven for the boys. Sensitive treatment of family problems like divorce, addiction, and domestic violence, much leavened by humor....more
Narrator the Hon. Frances "Fanny" Logan, later Mrs. Alfred Wincham, includes her own courtship and marriage in this story, but it is really centered oNarrator the Hon. Frances "Fanny" Logan, later Mrs. Alfred Wincham, includes her own courtship and marriage in this story, but it is really centered on her friend Polly, a great beauty and heiress, until her obsession with her aunt's husband propels her into a scandalous marriage....more
Cute cover, but the book itself is not particularly charming, funny, or suspenseful. It did fill a Winter Reading Challenge for me, being set at a winCute cover, but the book itself is not particularly charming, funny, or suspenseful. It did fill a Winter Reading Challenge for me, being set at a winter holiday. Unfortunately, none of the characters were pleasant. Also, the book relied on a bad-old-days plot element of a female amateur sleuth stupidly putting herself in danger and having to be rescued by male characters. Ugh!...more
Actually, this is a pretty good story, and I loved many of the characters. However, I absolutely hated the way it was (dis-)organized. Also, the use oActually, this is a pretty good story, and I loved many of the characters. However, I absolutely hated the way it was (dis-)organized. Also, the use of different names for the same characters without prior explanation seems to be irritating one's readers for no good reason....more
A lightweight cozy mystery, this takes place in Yorktown, Virginia, at a Revolutionary War re-enactment-cum- craft fair where blacksmith Meg Langslow A lightweight cozy mystery, this takes place in Yorktown, Virginia, at a Revolutionary War re-enactment-cum- craft fair where blacksmith Meg Langslow has a sales booth, and her boyfriend is portraying one of Lafayette's French soldiers (wool uniforms during a heat wave). A murder takes place in Meg's booth. Mildly humorous. ...more
I usually don't like ping-pong timelines, but in this book the main plot, set back in May 1964 when Walt Longmire and Henry Standing Bear were newly gI usually don't like ping-pong timelines, but in this book the main plot, set back in May 1964 when Walt Longmire and Henry Standing Bear were newly graduated from college and on the road to basic training in Parris Island and Fort Polk, was so exciting and also interesting because of learning more about their past, that I did not much mind the back and forth. Atrocities at a Japanese internment camp in Arizona are still bearing poison fruit 20 years later when car trouble strands the pair in Bone Valley....more
Although it has romance subplots, this is basically a really good novel about the airline industry in the wake of 9/11. I learned so much and found itAlthough it has romance subplots, this is basically a really good novel about the airline industry in the wake of 9/11. I learned so much and found it fascinating. The book begins in Phoenix, includes a lot of travel, but is mainly set in Las Vegas....more
A newly unemployed bookseller in Sweden accepts her pen pal's invitation to visit her in Iowa for a few weeks, but Sara arrives in Broken Wheel just aA newly unemployed bookseller in Sweden accepts her pen pal's invitation to visit her in Iowa for a few weeks, but Sara arrives in Broken Wheel just as Amy's funeral is concluding. Amy's nephew Tom and the other villagers insist she stay in Amy's house as planned. To keep busy, Sara creates a bookshop in Amy's closed store and begins distributing Amy's huge collection of books, while falling for Tom....more
Feeling like a broken person after her last tragic case, V. I. reluctantly goes to Kansas for a sports event for her honorary goddaughter and thus getFeeling like a broken person after her last tragic case, V. I. reluctantly goes to Kansas for a sports event for her honorary goddaughter and thus gets swept into situations in which she rescues another college girl and finds a murder victim. Her investigation to clear herself uncovers corruption and a decades-old land-grab scandal....more
After a bizarrely slow start, this started coasting slightly more swiftly around Chapter 17, but it didn't really reach a normal suspenseful/eventful After a bizarrely slow start, this started coasting slightly more swiftly around Chapter 17, but it didn't really reach a normal suspenseful/eventful speed until halfway through the book. It has the same hero, John Corey, as Plum Island, but quite disappointingly, in no way the same pace....more
Sheriff Dalton and his wife, Detective Casey Duncan, have reluctantly accepted a widow and her two sons into their new town of refuge in the Yukon wilSheriff Dalton and his wife, Detective Casey Duncan, have reluctantly accepted a widow and her two sons into their new town of refuge in the Yukon wilderness. Thet are dubious when the ten-year-old boy, Max, claims to have seen a grizzly bear "with human eyes." Shortly thereafter, Max disappears into the forest, and the hunt is on. Great characters and a riveting plot make this a topnotch successor to the first book in the Haven's Rock series, which is itself an extension of the excellent Rockton mysteries....more
Eustace Scrubbs takes Jill Pole with him back to Narnia when both are being chased by school bullies. Their escape from one problem plunges them into Eustace Scrubbs takes Jill Pole with him back to Narnia when both are being chased by school bullies. Their escape from one problem plunges them into an adventure rife with dangers of its own. They undertake an arduous journey on foot to find and rescue the missing Prince Rilian. This episode was more humorous than I expected....more
The author blends wonderful characters and a heartfelt plot in an old New York setting that presents the American Revolution from a British perspectivThe author blends wonderful characters and a heartfelt plot in an old New York setting that presents the American Revolution from a British perspective. Cecilia Harcourt received a letter saying her brother had been injured just after her father's death. She sails to New York where she finds Thomas's best friend, Capt. Edward Rokesby, in a makeshift military hospital, comatose from a head injury, but no trace of Thomas. To be able to care for Edward, she claims to be his wife, which gets complicated when he wakes up with amnesia....more
Sharing a horsedrawn coach with his new bride's three cats on a journey from Kent to Edinburgh was not the honeymoon Nicholas Rokesby would have choseSharing a horsedrawn coach with his new bride's three cats on a journey from Kent to Edinburgh was not the honeymoon Nicholas Rokesby would have chosen, but then he had not been expecting to get married when his father called him home from medical school just when he should have been taking exams. Funny, feminist historical romance....more
The reader has to overlook a distressing amount of non-PC-ness in both language and attitudes, but it is worth it to enjoy this amazing espionage adveThe reader has to overlook a distressing amount of non-PC-ness in both language and attitudes, but it is worth it to enjoy this amazing espionage adventure taking Richard Hannay (hero of The 39 Steps) from London through Germany to Turkey during World War I. Very exciting!...more
Multiple anti-vampire terrorist attacks happen just when Anita's father and family are arriving in St. Louis for pre-wedding fittings and introductionMultiple anti-vampire terrorist attacks happen just when Anita's father and family are arriving in St. Louis for pre-wedding fittings and introductions to the groom, Jean-Claude and others. One villain is an ancient vampire who can shapeshift into a fire-breathing dragon. Another is Anita's abusive paternal grandmother....more
Yukon gold becomes a plot element in this series-starter that is really an offshoot of Armstrong's excellent Rockton series. Detective Casey Duncan anYukon gold becomes a plot element in this series-starter that is really an offshoot of Armstrong's excellent Rockton series. Detective Casey Duncan and her husband, Sheriff Eric Dalton, are called early to the town of refuge they are having built in the Yukon because two members of the construction crew have gone missing. The body of a murder victim they find in the woods turns out to be neither of the people for whom they are searching....more
This book is quintessential Miss Marple by the quintessential Agatha Christie. Although I felt distaste for the character who turned out to be the murThis book is quintessential Miss Marple by the quintessential Agatha Christie. Although I felt distaste for the character who turned out to be the murderer, it was not the person I suspected was the killer. I regret that there are so fewer Marples than Poirots, as she is my favorite as a Christie sleuth, but this was first published the year A. C. died, so perhaps she was in the process of evening things out....more
This charming Regency romance has skillful characterization and thoughtful treatment of elderly and disabled characters. It seems deeper and more sensThis charming Regency romance has skillful characterization and thoughtful treatment of elderly and disabled characters. It seems deeper and more sensitive than many others in the genre. ...more
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