Serafina and the Black Cloak by Robert Beatty

by Carol3 Comments
Isn't that cover great? I don't read many middle school books, but I have to thank whoever wrote the review that made me put Serafina and the Black Cloak on my to-read list. I really enjoyed it. Serafina herself is a charming twelve-year old. She has an odd life, hiding in the basement of the Biltmore Estate where her pa works, but she's adorable and brave and smart. And not quite human, but part of this first story is her discovery of who she is. The narrator does an excellent job, giving Serafina a perfect accent and a very expressive voice, showing her pride, curiosity and fears well. I love Serafina's pa, too. He's not a huge part of the actual plot, but he's a strong, caring man, doing the best he can in an unusual situation. There aren't really any surprises in the story, we see most things coming well before they're revealed, but it's a middle school book, so I'm...
Read More

Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn

by Carol12 Comments
Gone Girl was all the rage a couple of years ago, but I didn't get around to listening to it until now. I shouldn't have put it off. It was unique, well-done, definitely attention-grabbing, maybe not quite unputdownable, but close. Nick and Amy are not nice people. Neither is really the good guy, although you do sympathize with Nick. The audio had two narrators, one for Nick and one for Amy, which I thought was a great choice. It always takes me a while to get used to anything different than one narrator of the same gender as the main character, but this format worked so well with the story it was the perfect choice. Both narrators did a great job capturing the points of view, the dark humor, the nuances in the phrasing. I think that listening to it probably made it even better than reading it in print would have. I can't say much about the plot without ruining it,...
Read More

A Highland Christmas by M. C. Beaton

by Carol5 Comments
This is the first Hamish Macbeth story I've read and I realize it's not typical of the series - no murder for example, but I really liked Hamish. He seems like a truly good guy who actually cares about the people of his town. The towns are filled with quirky odd characters, most of whom are amusing. I also love how the locals treat Hamish. Even though he's the police, he's on their side. I don't quite understand the conflict with his boss, but i'm sure it's made clear in another of the installements. This particular one is a feel-good light Christmas mystery. The mysteries involve a missing cat and some lights that have been stolen from another village.  It's short and I don't want to give much away, but it left me with a smile and wanting to visit Lochdubh again....
Read More

City of Stairs by Robert Jackson Bennett

by Carol2 Comments
The world in City of Stairs is awesome! Deities used to be involved in a close, daily basis with their followers, building and changing the world, allowing one country to rule. The gods have been killed or have disappeared, their people now at the mercy of others, the city itself transformed, the weather changing. It is not surprising that there are some in Bulikov who are not happy living under the thumb of their conquerors, some who are wiling to do whatever they can to make Bulikov thrive again. Into this arena arrives Shara, a woman whose job as an intelligence agent is to maintain the status quo but whose interests lie in the past, in the history of the gods and the miracles they allowed. She has chosen this assignment to investigate the murder of a man she truly admired, but when we're talking about governments and politics and gods, dead or not, it gets complicated. Shara begins to suspect that those closest to...
Read More

Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening by Robert Frost, illustrated by Susan Jeffers

by Carol9 Comments
My mom and I were at the bookstore the other day looking for Christmas gifts and ran across this lovely little book. Happily, she bought it. I'm not sure if she's keeping it or giving it to my niece, but either is a good choice. I love introducing kids to classics before they can think they're boring. "Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening" by Robert Frost is perfect for the season. Whose woods these are I think I know. His house is in the village though; He will not see me stopping here To watch his woods fill up with snow. My little horse must think it queer To stop without a farmhouse near Between the woods and frozen lake The darkest evening of the year. He gives his harness bells a shake To ask if there is some mistake. The only other sound’s the sweep Of easy wind and downy flake. The woods are lovely, dark and deep, But I have promises to keep, And miles to go before I sleep, And miles to go...
Read More

The Grand Babylon Hotel by Arnold Bennett

by Carol2 Comments
I love vintage mysteries, a bit old-fashioned, no gratuitous sex or violence. They're comfort reads for me. I read a short story by Arnold Bennett in Resorting to Murder from Poisoned Pen Press and enjoyed it, so I picked up the free Kindle version of The Grand Babylon Hotel and I'm glad I did. It's a light mystery, but full of intrigue and adventure and a plucky young woman who's not afraid of a bit of danger. The hotel was an interesting setting. The Babylon is a quite distinguished hotel and often hosts royalty, which is what leads to the sequence of events here. An equerry (an officer of a royal household who attends or assists members of the royal family) is found murdered. His body disappears. A prince fails to arrive for an important meeting in the hotel.  Rackham learns that his stellar staff is perhaps not quite as above-board as they appear. The story is a bit over the...
Read More