Paula G. (Paulathegreat) reviewed on 12/8/2024 + 150 more book reviews

Full disclosure I got it free from the publisher in a Goodreads giveaway. Interestingly they asked me for a review weeks before I received the book. I entered the giveaway because it looked like a good book for my school's free library.
It is very visual and interesting. I would think it would be a comfortable read for upper elementary or higher.
I wasn't sure if it was trying to show how to force creativity from AI or if it was encouraging you to be creative enough to negotiate in a world with AI. The introduction says it is the latter.
It has a number of creative exercises and a lot of facts. It is a very readable book.

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Nada A. reviewed on 12/8/2024 + 1391 more book reviews

Research documents that South Korea as a nation has the lowest fertility rate in the world. Apartment Women by Gu Byeong-mo (translated by Chi-Young Kim) builds a story around a fictional government program to address the issues of a declining and aging population. The book is an interesting look at the South Korean culture through this lens. Many of the concerns of daily and the women's search for a work-life balance are universal and relatable.

Read my complete review at http://www.memoriesfrombooks.com/2024/12/apartment-women.html

Reviewed for NetGalley and a publisher's blog tour.

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Karen S. (BoysMom) - , reviewed on 12/8/2024 + 858 more book reviews

I Thee Dead: Book #1 in The Wedded Bliss Series by Christine Lawrence

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


What a fun start to this new wedding planner mystery series.

I Thee Dead is the first novel in author Christine Lawrence's new Wedded Bliss Mystery series featuring wedding planner Leah Jordan, her two best friends, and TWO potential love interests. When a groom is murdered during the rehearsal dinner, the bride's parents sue, and her best friend is initially arrested for the crime, Leah has nothing to lose and everything to gain by finding the real killer herself.

Leah Jordan, the owner of Wedded Bliss, the wedding planning business started by her late mother and aunt, Sissy, is under a lot of pressure to keep her family's business solvent and make sure that high-profile and highly lucrative society weddings, which are fundamental to her success, go off without a hitch. While Leah is, from all appearances, skilled at what she does, she retains a load of doubt in her mind that she's up to the task. She's capable but vulnerable, and her latest clients, who are a pair of very wealthy and very influential doozies, aren't helping. I actually enjoyed the bride, who has all the makings of a deluxe bridezilla but is really just wildly enthusiastic and wide-eyed over the possibilities for her special day, having unlimited funding to make it happen. The finance, on the other hand, surprised me with his swings of temperament, which, as the story unfolds, became even more confounding. I do feel Leah's character would have benefitted from a wee bit more development and backstory exposition, though.

The author must build her small-town setting from scratch, so there are scads of people introduced, some from Leah's past and others who are encountered during her investigation. However, a couple of these minor characters felt like they popped up unnecessarily and out of nowhere. Readers are provided a light overview of what the town has to offer through Leah's interaction with Caleb Hamilton, a hunky wedding guest who is later revealed to be a retired police officer turned undercover private detective hired by the bride.

The plot is lively, first with wedding preparations, then with the murder and subsequent amateur sleuthing. While I enjoyed the overall story, especially the romantic side storylines, plot holes that were relevant to the investigation really bothered me. The unusual murder weapon, while referenced, is never questioned, nor is the report that the groom had been receiving threats recently ever addressed. The threats were serious enough for the bride to secretly hire Caleb Hamilton to join the wedding party, masquerading as her âold friend who was like a brother,â to keep an eye on the groom's safety. (By the way, Caleb, you had one jobâ¦.) There were also some continuity issues, a problematic timeline, and instances of sentences repeated in their entirety in the same or subsequent paragraphs, but all fixable things. This book appears to be the author's debut novel, and with its intriguing premise and underlying structural foundation, it has all the makings of an outstanding cozy mystery series.

I recommend I THEE DEAD to cozy mystery fans, especially those with a soft spot for weddings and romance.

I voluntarily reviewed this after receiving an Advanced Review Copy from the author through Great Escapes Virtual Book Tours.

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Kay M. (maydayzee) reviewed on 12/8/2024 + 755 more book reviews

I enjoyed this unusual story very much. It is an easy read, but with many thought provoking moments.

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Karen S. (MKSbooklady) reviewed on 12/8/2024 + 995 more book reviews

All of these Three Pines books are sounding alike. Ms. Penny has found a formula, or maybe a rut that works and keeps using it. That and her political rantings are too much.

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Lori C. (dollycas) reviewed on 12/8/2024 + 709 more book reviews

Dollycas's Thoughts

The Deputy Donut Café is one of the most popular shops in Fallingbrook, Wisconsin, and people love the new beignets so owner Emily Westhill is happy to hire her assistant Olivia's younger sister Hannah who is taking a break from college. It isn't long before some of her friends start regularly showing up at the cafe. They both appear to be sweet on Hannah. Emily is fine with Hannah sitting with them on her breaks but Olivia thinks the young men are trouble.

Olivia could be right. When Emily notices a trail of fresh beignets in the forest that borders her lakeside home she follows it straight to a dead body. Hannah's admirers had bought some beignets earlier and it looks like Hannah's hairclip on the trail. With Hannah a probable suspect, Emily needs to find out what happened. Are the boys she's been hanging out with killers? Or did the victim have enemies who wanted him dead?

Emily and her ârecently acquired husbandâ Brent have put the past behind them and stopped blaming themselves for Alec's death. They will always miss him but decided the years spent avoiding each other never worked and they can finally be âcrazy-happy togetherâ. Ms. Bolton handled their grieving and their growth into a strong couple in a very touching way. Everyone in their lives weighed in on the relationship including Alec's dad and Emily's partner at The Deputy Donut Café. All the core characters feel very true to life dealing with real-life issues with a murder thrown in to shake things up. I can't forget Dep, the mascot of the café. The âmischievous tortoiseshell tabbyâ has a way of stealing every scene she is in.

I was very captivated by this story. The death takes place in one of Wisconsin's beautiful state parks. Some places can only be reached from the water. Emily and Brent's home is right on Chicory Lake and she was out in her kayak with Dep when she heard someone scream. She traveled as quickly as she could but she was too late to help the person who had fallen. Our family visits one of our state parks often and there have been people who have fallen from the cliffs and died over the years. Of course, this victim may have had a little help. Emily did a lot of the investigating on her own as Brent was just plain busy. The case had more twists than a spiral pretzel and Emily worked hard to untangle each one. The climatic takedown was excellent, exciting, and funny too. There are some women in Fallingbrook you just shouldn't mess with.

True confession I Door Dashed a half dozen donuts the morning after I finished this book. They didn't have beignets but some powered creamed filled donuts did fine in a pinch. There are some recipes after the story that I do want to try but I woke up with quite a craving.

Blame the Beignets was a perplexing whodunit with a plethora of suspects that kept both me and Emily guessing. I enjoyed my time in Fallingbrook and can't wait to travel up the highway again to spend more time with these characters and some more time at Emily and Brent's on Chicory Lake. This book can be read on its own but to really get to know the characters I recommend starting at the beginning of the series.

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Sallie M. (oldrockandroll) - , reviewed on 12/8/2024 + 307 more book reviews

This is the fourth book in the Kay Scarpetta series. Each book gets better than the last. I really like this series and look forward to the next book. The characters are relatable and down to earth, the story lines are good. I just can't read them fast enough.

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Lori C. (dollycas) reviewed on 12/8/2024 + 709 more book reviews

Dollycas's Thoughts

The Garrisons own the local Cliffside Hotel in Lighthouse Cove. Shannon Hammer and her crew have renovated several parts of it. The family loves the holidays and always plans something special for the days leading up to Christmas. They serve a seven-course dinner each night and getting a reservation is darn hard. They also have fun on the grounds of the hotel. Last year a train took guests on a tour of the beautiful Cliffside estate. This year the Garrisons have asked Shannon and her team to design and build a Victorian-style carnival midway with games and tons of prizes. They have an extraordinary ride that needs to be included and installed in the design.

Things seem merry and bright until the Garrisons' children and their spouses have some concerns about the money being spent on the carnival. They would rather have the cash stashed away for them to inherit. But things take a deadly turn when a dead body is found in the basement. Shannon and Mac are soon on the trail to find out who was at the top of Santa's naughty list and would be receiving their lump of coal in jail.

Christmas in Lighthouse Cove â sign me up â I am all in!

This being the 11th installment of the Fixer-Upper Mysteries the characters are like old friends. I worked in home construction for a couple of years so I enjoy following Shannon around to all her job sites and her creative ability to breathe new life into old homes. She has an amazing crew that can take her ideas and run with them. I love it when she pulls out her pink toolbox and tools and works right alongside them. Shannon and Mac are a perfect match and an awesome sleuthing team. But what I love most about Shannon and Mac is their empathy and huge caring hearts. Family, friend, or stranger â if someone needs help, they will go above and beyond to help the person in any way they can.

The Garrisons are an interesting family. Bill and Lilian are the 3rd generation to own the hotel and they have steadily made improvements to the place. With the exception of their son, Logan, all of their children and their spouses live and work at the Cliffside. Like most families, they have their ups and downs. Bill and Lilian had been Shannon and Chloe's parent's best friends. So much so that when their mother passed away Lillian became a surrogate mother to the girls. Featuring this family in this story was grand for many reasons sans the murder. Ms. Carlisle's detailed descriptions were wonderful. She created distinct images in my mind of the entire hotel and its new âFun Zoneâ. You could feel the joy Bill had when his dream space came to life as well as all the people that visited the new attraction.

I appreciated the time the author took to share all the holiday planning and interactions before she delved into a compelling mystery. The victim was not a nice person but those around tolerated them. Anyone could have snapped and killed them. That means the suspect list is a long one. Shannon and Mac have to work through them all. After some well-placed twists, a second death actually provides clues that could lead to the killer. Shannon has her ah-ha moment at what could have been a very inopportune time but she gets help from a surprising person until the calvary shows up to drag the guilty party away.

I did enjoy the subplot at the Veterans' Village and the three porch pirates. Good people do good things to help people in need. This âvillageâ has been a wonderful place for Lighthouse Cove and veterans with homes, education, jobs, and more. Shannon has a fantastic idea to light the place up for Christmas to bring awareness to visitors and joy and celebration for the residents. It is a special place for both Shannon and Mac and I love that we get to tag along when they visit.

The Knife Before Christmas is a festive whodunit with tons of good holiday feels. I had a delightful time in Lighthouse Cove with genuine and engaging characters who loved Christmas just as much as I do. The mystery was very well-plotted so that the community and family holiday spirit shines as the killer is brought to justice. It was âquite a Christmasâ including a Christmas miracle or two.

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Thomas F. (hardtack) - , reviewed on 12/8/2024 + 2711 more book reviews

Good old fashioned sci-fi about two intelligent species with opposing cultures getting ready to go to war. So a strong subset of one species sets up a plot to destroy the other's means to travel in space. And it looks like that will be successful. But suddenly Mother Nature's space sister intervenes with a previously unknown space ecosystem which complicates matters. Oh? did I forget to mention that one of those so-called intelligent species is Humanity?

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jjares reviewed on 12/8/2024 + 3420 more book reviews

The Qing Dynasty is the story of how the Manchu toppled the Han Dynasty and created a new -- and the last -- dynasty in China. The Manchus lived outside (to the northeast) of the Great Wall of China. The Hans were the largest population in China (and still are).

Considerable real estate covered the Kangxi Emperor, one of the longest rulers in history and considered one of China's most extraordinary emperors. He neutralized external conflicts and reduced internal friction between the Manchus and Hans. He brought about an era of great learning, art, and culture.

Learning about the White Lotus Societies, a group that rebelled against the Qianlong Emperor, was interesting. The Chinese thought their army and navy were formidable until the Opium Wars with Great Britain. After the first Opium War, the Chinese entered the "Century of Humiliation." The Chinese learned they could not fight Western countries with their outmoded weapons and tactics.

After catastrophic wars with Britain, France, and Japan, many Chinese formed anti-foreigner societies, such as the Society of the Righteous and Harmonious Fists (later called the Boxer Rebellion). They were against anything with a Western influence. However, they only undermined China's power.

The country was ripe for a revolution as secret societies grew and hostilities between the Manchu and Han increased. In 1911-12, the Xin Hai Revolution destabilized China.

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jjares reviewed on 12/8/2024 + 3420 more book reviews

If you take a moment to look at Tibet and Nepal, you will see how large Tibet is. Its story is fascinating. Captivating History has done an excellent job explaining the complicated history that China and Tibet share. I thought the explanations were well-written and balanced.

Tibet and China are constantly in the news. Understanding their shared history makes the current issues with these countries more understandable. Captivating History has written a great overview of old and modern conditions in these lands. Overall score = E.

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Terry M. (tmulcahy) - , reviewed on 12/8/2024 + 37 more book reviews

A fun read by a master of Fantasy and Sci-Fi. A new planet, ripe for exploitation, with vast forests and game animals, an intelligent and suspicious native population, a human semi-religious cult that throws one human a year into a volcano for appeasement, and a hateful Christian preacher out to convert the disgusting, reptilian-based natives who dare to call themselves human beings. Throw in a visiting intellectual working on a thesis about native wildlife; there's an interesting story.

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Donna C. (g-ma) reviewed on 12/8/2024 + 3155 more book reviews

short stories

boring

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Marci (marcijo28) - reviewed on 12/8/2024 + 332 more book reviews

Another great story from Matt Phillips!! You just cant go wrong with his books.

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Susan F. (scoutmomskf) - , reviewed on 12/7/2024 + 2622 more book reviews

Good second chance romance. When they were growing up, Finn and Maeve had crushes on each other. But Maeve was Finn's best friend's little sister and off-limits to him. Neither knew how the other felt until the night before Finn left for college when they gave in to their feelings. But Finn couldn't wait to get out of Kansas, and once he was gone, he didn't return.

Ten years later, Finn returns to Wichita to settle his parents' estate and learn American Sign Language to improve his chances of getting the California-based job he wants. While doing so, he fills in as the local hospital's ENT surgeon. He often wondered what had happened to Maeve and is stunned to find her working in the same hospital.

Maeve is mostly deaf and had an over-protective mother. Her best memories are the times she tagged along with her brother, Rolf, and Finn. She works as an audiologist at the hospital and teaches ASL. She lives with Rolf and his deaf son, helping to care for them.

During their ten years apart, Maeve and Finn never forgot each other and never entered into relationships with other people. Finn has been too busy with his career. He also has no plans to marry and have a family. After being raised by indifferent parents, he fears that he would be like them and refuses to inflict that pain on children of his own. Maeve is comfortable with her life as it is, caring for her brother and nephew. She was affected by how other people treated her as a child and keeps her emotions tightly controlled.

The sparks between Maeve and Finn are intense, but he has no intention of staying in Kansas, and Maeve has no plans to leave. They attempt to bury their feelings and limit themselves to being friends only. But the time they spend together brings them closer, and emotions bubble to the surface. I ached for Finn, who realized he was lonely and wanted Maeve to stay in his life. But he fears rejection, so he says nothing about his feelings. I ached for Maeve, who longs for a change but won't desert the people who need her. I liked seeing them work through their issues and find the courage to be honest with each other. I loved the advice both received and the difference it made. The epilogue was terrific, and I liked how their future worked out.

Maeve's nephew, RJ, was a sweetheart and stole the scenes he was in. I especially enjoyed seeing his effect on Finn. A crisis at the end involved him, and I was glued to the pages to see how it worked out.

I enjoyed the medical theme of hearing loss, its causes and treatments, and its challenges. The information was integral to the story, not just an info dump.

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Rachel G. (roach808) - reviewed on 12/7/2024 + 161 more book reviews

Excellent adaptation and a solemn reminder to say attention comrades.

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jjares reviewed on 12/7/2024 + 3420 more book reviews

The fantastic thing about the Tocharians is that they were Caucasians with blue or green eyes and blond or red hair. They lived near China and Tajikistan. So little is known about them because they lived around the first century CE. The earliest mummies (so far) are from about 3800 years ago and are white with lighter eyes and hair color.

The Tocharians were only recently discovered; there is much to learn about this group. Where did they come from? (Some of their clothing shows that they came from the Hallstatt culture of Iron Age central Europe.) Why did they stay in the Tarim Basin (of China)?

Some of the mummies found date from 3800 BCE; we know they were gone by the 9th Century CE. Archaeologists are busy learning more about these people, and it will be fascinating to read about them when scientists study them further. Overall score = VG.

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jjares reviewed on 12/7/2024 + 3420 more book reviews

This cookbook shows how to use roasted veggies as the basis for salads, side dishes, pizza, roasts, and hearty stews. There are several vegetarian choices. Roasted vegetables provide deeper flavor. I prefer BookSumo cookbooks to other ordinary ones because they offer nutritional information and tend to have fewer errors. This edition did not include photos of each recipe. This is a nice-sized cookbook around the theme of roasted vegetables. Overall score = VG.

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Cameron-Ashley H. (BigGreenChair) reviewed on 12/7/2024 + 463 more book reviews

One author I never miss. Jane Urquhart has this strange way of being able to write a beautifully poetic book in a way that makes you feel like she's whispering a story in your ear.....I 've never figured it out. The word ethereal comes to mind. Anyway, they're always great.

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jjares reviewed on 12/7/2024 + 3420 more book reviews

On Brandon Mattson's first day as police chief of Forks, a young woman is found dead. The story moves quickly, and the characters are believable and engaging. Setting this book aside was difficult because the plot was fascinating.

The author discussed why he wrote this book. In real life, the Forks, Washington, area was the locale of a series of vampire books. He wrote this book because of the real story of vacationers migrating to the location of these vampire books. He saw his story as a logical tie-in. I thoroughly enjoyed it. Overall rating = E.

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Nada A. reviewed on 12/7/2024 + 1391 more book reviews

Many tell lies for many reasons in The Greatest Lie of All by Jillian Cantor. The chapters go between two timelines and the perspectives of two women. Layer by layer, the past is revealed and the connection between past and present comes to light. The mystery of the connection is an intriguing one to follow. I enjoyed the read but would have preferred a different ending more focused on who the rest of the story is about and how it's told.

Read my complete review at http://www.memoriesfrombooks.com/2024/12/the-greatest-lie-of-all.html

Reviewed for NetGalley and a publisher's blog tour.

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Thomas F. (hardtack) - , reviewed on 12/7/2024 + 2711 more book reviews

This is yet another interesting page turner from Block about several murders. One killer I figured out, but the others were a surprise to me. I did think there was a bit more filler than necessary.

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Carolyn A. (carolynalt) reviewed on 12/7/2024 + 38 more book reviews

The entire Inspector Rutledge series is terrific. Here I thought I knew what a "black ascot" was. Ha! I was wrong. A good mystery with good characters. Highly recommended by me.

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Donna C. (g-ma) reviewed on 12/7/2024 + 3155 more book reviews

It didn't take long to know the plot to this one and the 'who'

Most of Trope books have a theme of abuse, this one does too but it isn't the main storyline

I don't like the writing style so it's hard for me to stick with her books, after I got started and knew where this was going I skipped most of the middle of it and got closer to the end where Claire learns the truth

I don't like books that have italics portions and I skipped most of that part, after the first few pages of that you know what the rest will contain
When she finds the phone is the 'hitting the nail on the head' part

I didn't like the ending at all!

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Bonnie S. (Bonnie) - reviewed on 12/7/2024 + 424 more book reviews

I had this book on my shelf for about 5 years before finally reading it. What a page-turner it was as the story idea was like nothing I'd read before. The whole idea of Nora and Joe, and could they accomplish a life together, was fascinating. How would it ever work out? And the background of Grand Central Station, its pulsing life, was just as fascinating as they were. However, it did slow down, get long, too long, thus I give it only 3.5 stars. Still worth a read.

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