Category: Books

Are book covers dead? "No!" I want to yell. "Of course not, don't be ridiculous." They grab my attention, draw me into the book, and make me want to read the story between the covers. They give me a feel for the book, what kind of story it will be. That's what I want to say and thought I believed until I really sat down and thought about it. Some book covers are simply gorgeous; others capture the mood of the story without giving much away; and there are some, a very few, that are simply iconic, that go hand-in-hand with the books themselves; but I just don't think I care about them as much as I used to. I remember the days of walking into the bookstore and just browsing through the stacks, picking up the paperbacks that caught my eye, looking at the cover, turning them over to read the blurb, putting them back or maybe opening them to...

The Last Coyote is the third Harry Bosch book I've listened to, although I've been going through the series out of order. In this one, Michael Connelly gives us more insight into Harry's past and how he became who he is. Harry is not in a good place at the start of the novel. His girlfriend has left him; he's living in a house that is comdemned due to earthquake damage; and he's suspended from his job with the LAPD for attacking a superior officer. In order to get back on the job, he has to see the department's psychiatrist, which he of course resists at first. Remember, he's the tough guy. Eventually he does trust her and start to open up to her. He also comes to the decision to use his "time off" to work on the case that has haunted him all his life. When he was 12, his mother, a prostitute, was murdered, and after looking through the...

It's been a while since I read a fun, light, sweet romance and Always a Princess by Alice Gaines fit the bill perfectly. Our couple, Eve and Philip, fit together perfectly. Eve is jewel thief. She's masquerading as a foreign princess to get invited to all the fashionable parties in Victorian London, and during the festivities she makes off with the jewelry. She doesn't see many other options in life, after her former employer destroyed her reputation. Philip, however, does have other options. He is a viscount after all. But he's bored stuck in London and becomes the Orchid Thief, stealing jewels from the nobility and leaving orchid blooms in their place. The two meet at a party and Philip knows right off the bat that Eve is no princess, but he plays along. She, of course, discovers his secret life, and he, of course, discovers how much he is attracted to her. Alright, it's a little formulaic, but I enjoyed it. Philip's...

The Amish way of life has become a fertile ground for novels and mysteries, but to be honest, A Plain Death by Amanda Flower is the first book I've read that features the Amish. I have to admit to having some pre-conceived ideas about the Amish, though. I live in Ohio, the state with the largest Amish population and at least a few times each year visit Berlin and Walnut Creek, both in Holmes County Ohio, one of the largest Amish settlements. For me, Amish country means great food, I love the mashed potatoes with noodles on top, fun shops, jams, bread, and the occasional farm tour or buggy ride. Now, my husband's thoughts on the Amish are slightly different, but his come from dealing with them as a part of a job he used to have. We also had some Amish folks in our county make the news last year, not in a flattering way. You can read about our "rogue Amish" here. In...

Angels Flight is an LA landmark, a funicular (new word for me) railway in the Bunker Hill district.  I would call it an incline, since it's similar to the two in Pittsburgh. There are two cars, Sinai and Olivet, that travel the 298 feet up and down the hill. It's on one of these cars that the mystery in Angels Flight by Michael Connelly begins. Two people are found dead, shot, in the car at the end of the night. One is a woman who works cleaning people's apartments. The other, Howard Elias, is the most likely of the two to be the true target. He's a prominent black civil rights attorney hated by most of the LAPD, because his reputation was built bringing lawsuits alleging racism and brutality by police officers. Enter Harry Bosch, who has never been sued by Elias and also conveniently has two black partners. The political dangers of the case are huge and the potential of a public outcry turning into rioting...

It's been a while since I posted a Mailbox Monday, so this is way more than a week's worth of books, probably more like a couple of months. Mailbox Monday is a meme started by Marcia and hosted this month by Sassy Brit of Alternative Read. The London Eye Mystery by Siobhan Dowd (bought) The Akhenaten Adventure by P. B. Kerr (bought) Starting and Closing by John Smolz with Don Yaeger (for review from William Morrow) Hurry Less, Worry Less for Moms by Judy Christie (for review from the author and Pump Up Your Book!) The Sonnets and a Lover's Complaint by William Shakespeare (won from Allie at A Literary Odyssey. Thanks!) How to Seduce A Scoundrel by Vicky Dreiling (won from Mary at Bookhounds. Thanks!) Lady of Seduction by Laurel McKee (won from Mary at Bookhounds. Thanks!) Demons Are a Girl's Best Friend by Linda Wisdom (won from Mary at Bookhounds. Thanks!) Rotten Apples by Natasha Cooper (won from Mary at Bookhounds. Thanks!) Murder in Moscow by Jessica Fletcher and Donald Bain (won...