Book Reviews – Carol's Notebook

Murdered on Halloween by Daisy Landish

October 31, 2025October 31, 2025 by CarolNo Comments

This is a short read at only 50 pages, so not much time to develop the characters or plot. Jane and Kennedy attend a fancy Halloween party and someone wearing a similar costume to Kennedy is killed. Kennedy is later attacked and realizes who the culprit is. My main complaint is that I wanted it to be longer. I wanted to get to know Jane and Kennedy better and have an actual mystery rather than Kennedy just recognizing them. Also, while it was set in London, its language is very American....

Hallowe’en Party by Agatha Christie

October 31, 2025October 31, 2025 by CarolNo Comments

This is at least the third or fourth time I've read Hallowe'en Party. Christie books are my comfort reads and this one is perfect for October. A girl is drowned in the apple bobbing bucket at a Halloween party after declaring that she once saw a murder. Ariadne Oliver, a guest at the party, turns to Poirot for help. Poirot begins with the question of what murder the girl could have witnessed, and turns up several potential cases. The plot moved along at a good pace and there were several turns. I knew the who the killer was, but it was fun getting there. I love the dialogue between Ariadne and Poirot....

A Night in the Lonesome October by Roger Zelazny

October 30, 2025October 31, 2025 by Carol2 Comments

I loved A Night in the Lonesome October. It's the late 1800s and a group of strangers have gathered in a village outside of London for The Game. We know them, of course: Jack (the Ripper), Larry Talbot (The Wolfman), the Great Detective (Sherlock Holmes), the Count (Dracula), the Good Doctor (Frankenstein) and others, along with their familiars. Our narrator is Snuff, Jack's mathematically-inclined dog, who is a very good boy. There are 31 chapters, one for each day in October, but I listened to most of it on a long car ride. We are dumped right in the middle of the action and left to kind of figure stuff out on our own. It's a light, fun book, but chockful of literary and cultural references and amazing dialogue. It's clever and funny and the characters, including the critters, are so well drawn. And the showdown at the end is fabulous. I will say i should have boned up on...

Play Nice by Rachel Harrison

October 29, 2025October 29, 2025 by Carol3 Comments

I don't read a lot of horror, and when I do, I tend to prefer the lighter side, and the horror aspect of Play Nice was fairly light. The family drama and unresolved childhood trauma were the heavier parts here. Clio is an influencer who seems to have the world at her feet. When she and her two sisters inherit their mother's house after her death, Clio insists on taking on the rehab and selling of the property, a house their mother always insisted was demon-possessed, thinking it will make great content. Clio is a difficult person to like. She is deeply affected by her past, no matter how much she believes she's past it. She's self-centered, stubborn, a bit chaotic, probably an alcoholic, but her character makes sense, given the family dynamics and I found myself rooting for her. Yes, I wanted her to make different choices, but that's part of the horror genre, isn't it? The relationships between her and her sisters...

A Matter of Pedigree by Leslie Meier

October 27, 2025October 27, 2025 by Carol1 Comment

I had high hopes for A Matter of Pedigree. I like starting a series at the beginning and Carole and Frank Capobianco sounded like a good couple to base a series around. Turned out I was not a fan. Carole and Frank are newly wealthy, thanks to a toilet Frank invented. They make a too high offer on a fancy apartment, but are rejected as "not the right people." When the property owner is found dead, Frank becomes a suspect and Carole takes it upon herself to prove his innocence. While I loved Frank's parents and the delicious Italian foods they cook, Carole and Frank themselves were annoying. I think Carole's supposed to be funny and quirky, but she's mostly just self-centered and I got tired of hearing about all of the luxury brand items she wore/used. I could have liked her dog, Poopsie, but she was not a great dog owner. She basically drugged the poor puppy so it would stop barking. I understand reactive...

The One Thing You’d Save by Linda Sue Park

October 23, 2025October 23, 2025 by Carol2 Comments

The One Thing You'd Save is written in verse using a Korean form of poetry called sijo. Sijo is an ancient classic form of poetry with three lines of thirteen to seventeen syllables. They can be either 3 long lines or divided into 6 shorter lines. to be honest, though, i wouldn't have noticed if it hadn't been for the author's note at the end. It doesn't read like poetry to me, for what that's worth. In the story, A teacher asks her students what one thing they would save if their home was on fire. Your family and pets are safe, so you don't have to worry about them. We get to hear each student's choices and the reasons behind them. And the kids talk about their lives and what's important to know, with the occasional reminder from the teacher to be respectful. The kids' voices felt real and honest. And yes, it made me cry. ...