A Medieval Mystery

by Carol13 Comments
Now wide-eyed and fully awake, Crispin measured his predicament. Dead of night, floating in the Thames, and bound. (pg. 96, Veil of Lies by Jeri Westerson) I'm about halfway through this mystery and really enjoying it. It's a dark, gritty version of 14th century England, not romanticized. I can't really say if it's historically accurate, but it's very readable. Teaser Tuesdays is hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Play along. The rules are easy and I only cheated a little. Grab your current read, open to a random page, and give us two teaser sentences. Remember, no spoilers. I borrowed my copy from the library and the above is my honest opinion. I am an Amazon associate....
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Game Night – Hey! That’s My Fish! Deluxe!

by Carol2 Comments
Hey! That's My Fish! Deluxe! Designers: Guenter Cornett, Alvydas Jakeliunas Manufacturers: Phalanx Games, Mayfair Games Artist: Francois Bruel Year: 2008 Players: 2 - 4 Time: 20 minutes Ages: 8 and up Maybe I'm looking ahead to cool weather. Maybe I just want to talk about a fun little game. You're a group a penguins at the pole, jumping from ice floe to ice floe, tile to tile, hunting fish. The setup varies each game, and some tiles have one fish, some two, some three. Your goal is to collect as many fish as possible, by making strategic moves, blocking other players, and staking the best areas for yourself. Most fish wins. I love the penguins. They're adorable 3-D resin figures who actually look like smart alecks. It's a fun family game, easy to learn, but you can plan ahead and with some smart moves ensure that you get a good fishing spot. As the penguins move over the hexes,the player takes away the hex where the penguin...
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Alice in Wonderland

by Carol7 Comments
Lewis Carroll's Alice in Wonderland retold by Jane Carruth I've come to a conclusion. I don't like Alice in Wonderland. I enjoy it in theory. The curious young girl follows a rabbit down a hole, landing in a magical land full of strange, wonderful creatures and people. But then I sit down and actually read it. Last time I read it in Spring of '08, I read Carroll's version aloud with Amber and I remember expecting to enjoy it more than I did. This time I read the book I have had since I was about 7, thinking that maybe a retold version, complete with beautiful full color illustrations would bring back the childhood wonderment. It didn't. I don't even think I can summarize the story. Alice falls down the rabbit, there's a hall full of doors, she gets smaller and bigger and smaller, there's a flood and Alice insults some of the other animals that become stranded on the shore....
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Death Qualified by Kate Wilhelm

by Carol10 Comments
Death Qualified by Kate Wilhelm I listened to the audio version of this, read by Anna Fields.  I chose it because I had enjoyed one of Wilhelm's standalones The Deepest Water and wanted to give this series a shot. I was not disappointed, at the same time it wasn't what I expected. Five years ago Barbara Holloway gave up practicing law, disillusioned with a profession that put politics before justice. Then she receives a phone call from her father, with a simple message: "I need you." Her father, a lawyer himself, has been asked by a neighbor Nell Kendricks to defend her. Nell is accused of killing her husband Lucas, who she hadn't seen for seven years, until the day he arrives at the edge of her property and is shot, instantly killed. Despite her vow, Barbara finds herself drawn to the case. It's not a simple courtroom drama though. It's a mystery, who actually killed Lucas and why. It...
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