Yikes. My goodness that ending! Warning: Spoilery talk below!
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This book put to rest the two main storylines of the original Enola Holmes books. 1) Yikes. My goodness that ending! Warning: Spoilery talk below!
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This book put to rest the two main storylines of the original Enola Holmes books. 1) Where is Enola's mom and why did she leave her behind? 2)Will Sherlock & Mycroft stop being a-holes and eventually treat Enola with respect?
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I'm not sure I wholeheartedly love-love Enola's mom and her reasoning. I totally agree with not defining yourself by your children or husband, losing your own identity in that of a wife and mother. Running away with the gypsies is great and all, and I can see why she didn't take Enola (view spoiler)[she was dying and didn't want her to have to see it (hide spoiler)]. BUT. But there were parts of her letter and her actions that were built on some really faulty logic. Other than for the plot convenience of having her disappearance a mystery, disappearing the way she did? Leaving it up to Enola to solve riddles in time to collect money, make a run for it, then hopefully be savvy enough to survive without an adult until she was old enough to be safe from her brothers? That was dumb. Why not just tell your daughter that you have to leave and can't take her with you? Then why not just place her with someone you trust to keep her hidden and safe? Or better yet... Woman, practice what you preach! Why were Sherlock and Mycroft unaware of why she didn't want Enola in boarding school or encased in a corset? Why didn't she teach her sons to be feminists? It's not like it would have been an impossibility because they were both able to understand Enola's concerns as soon as the information was presented to them. It seemed a silly waste (not to mention really odd considering the way she acted) that her mother didn't teach them this from the onset of their childhoods.
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The actual mystery was (once again) not terribly fulfilling. Something to do with a missing rich woman, stolen clothing, and another gross corset. And yet, I still enjoy these books and will continue to use them as cute little palate cleansers between other books....more
A boy discovers he has the power of magic within him.
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I'm glad I finally read this classic young adult/middle-grade fantasy book, but I'm just A boy discovers he has the power of magic within him.
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I'm glad I finally read this classic young adult/middle-grade fantasy book, but I'm just not completely invested in the series yet. I didn't love it. However, 3 stars means that the book was good. As in, I liked it. So don't come for me!
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Thing is, after a pretty interesting start, I struggled a bit as the story trudged toward the end. It felt dry and crunchy and I just wasn't all that engaged in what was happening. Now, I know I have to give it allowances as it is meant for a younger audience and it was also published in 1968.
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I mean, it has all the right elements (magic, arrogance, guilt, redemption), it just didn't make my heart go pitty-pat. Maybe it's because there just isn't much tension as to whether or not Sparrowhawk will survive, since it literally tells you that this is the story of how this kid becomes the world's most powerful wizard. Maybe it's because it felt like the storytelling was a little on the dull side for me. I don't know. I'm not ready to call it quits on this one, though, and I plan on coming back to the series at some point....more
I'm starting to feel creaky. Not a lot! But just a little bit...less young.
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I had this sudden realization that I'm going to have to be proactive I'm starting to feel creaky. Not a lot! But just a little bit...less young.
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I had this sudden realization that I'm going to have to be proactive about shit, or I could end up sitting on the front porch mumbling to myself and throwing cans of beans at the neighborhood kids.
Shhh. That's my fear. Just go with it.
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I'm looking for books to help keep me from turning into, well, my peers! I feel old age creeping up on me as I watch from afar the people I went to high school with copy and paste dumbass shit on social media sites. Or as friends text me iffy links that ask me to sign up and help them win free prizes or free money from something they've found on god knows what website. Has the zombie apocalypse happened and I was too busy not watching the news to notice it?! And it was with a dawning horror that I wondered not if, but when, this sickness was going to hit me.
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Enter my search for these sorts of books.
So. Who is Frank W. Abagnale? Most of you will know him as the main character from the lighthearted movie Catch Me If You Can starring Tom Hanks and Leonardo DiCaprio. Abagnale, after working with the FBI for years to help catch con artists and scammers just like himself, is now in his 70s and has written another book.
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There is quite a bit of useful information in this. Yes, even for those of us who are aware of what the internet is like. I was expecting to find that I knew most of the scams. And I did. But what I didn't know were a lot of the tips that will help me become less vulnerable to identity theft, and how to do some preparatory work that will help me recover faster if/when I do get hit by someone who gets hold of my information. Simple things like verifying my social security number so that someone else can't verify it for themselves and cause me a shitload of problems.
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There were so many little things like that sprinkled throughout! Within a few minutes of listening to the book, Abagnale had already pointed out something that I really should have already done but didn't even realize I could do. Putting my cell phone number on the National Do Not Call List. I don't know why I thought that was only for landlines. And who has those anymore? 1-888-382-1222 <--US only Will it stop illegal scammers? No. But it will stop nuisance calls AND you'll know that anyone who is calling you certainly ISN'T legit. Eh? Eh?
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Also, opt out of getting credit card offers in the mail by calling 1-888-5-OPT-OUT (1-888-567-8688) or by visiting optoutprescreen.com. The point of doing that is so you don't make it easy for any a-holes digging through your trash to commandeer these offers and start opening up cards under your name. Obviously, do not take my word that it is the correct number and check it out for yourself. ALWAYS.
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This is an edit that I'm adding in. A tip. A free tip! And it was one that I took advantage of myself. I can't add a link but you can Google this: What To Know About Credit Freezes and Fraud Alerts Federal Trade Commission (.gov) You can find the links on US Federal Trade Commission's site that will take you to Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion. These are the 3 top credit bureaus. And for zero cost to yourself, you can freeze your credit. Which means no one can open credit cards under your name. If you decide you want to open a new credit card, you just go to all 3 sites and unfreeze your credit. Easy, peasy, lemon squeezy. Now, it takes a few minutes of your time to open an account with each credit bureau and then click the button to freeze your credit. BUT. Think of how stupid you'll feel if you knew you should have done this and then your identity gets stolen? Do you really want some douchebag running around with a credit card with your name on it? No. No, you do not! There is also an option to place your credit on alert. This means that these companies will notify you if someone (possibly yourself) is trying to open a line of credit. I'm not sure how long they will do that for free, though. But even if you had to pay a little $$ for the alert, I think it would be worth it, if your other option is doing nothing.
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Alright. For those of you like me out there? This book actually has a lot of really great advice that will help you tighten up your personal information. And most of us can use all the help we can get. For every 5 things he told me that I already knew, there was some little tidbit he shared that I did not know. And of course, me being me, I would pause the book and call one of my girlfriends to ask them if they were aware that they should be doing such-n-such. And no! They didn't know it, either! And while some of my friends are complete dingdongs that click the sketchy link, quite a few shred their mail and don't list their birthdays on Facebook. So while this book isn't exactly a fun romp I learned a lot. If you are interested in Abagnale, you can Google his presentations and watch them, as well. Highly Recommended....more
I think this would be a good one for anyone who has ever freaked out over the cryptic book of Revelation. Ehrman covers not onlyApocalypse Now.
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I think this would be a good one for anyone who has ever freaked out over the cryptic book of Revelation. Ehrman covers not only the book but also the history of The Rapture, and a lot of rather oddball cults that have sprung up due to misinterpretations of the passages (think: Branch Davidians) over the years.
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I thought he made some great points about what an apocalyptic religious view of the world can do when mixed with politics concerning the environment. I have to say that the older I get, the more annoyed I get by this sort of thing. It's fine if you want to believe the world is coming to an end any day now, making it okay to just toss your trash into your front yard, but it's pushing my property value down. Don't force the rest of us to drink your hillbilly toilet water.
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However, I wasn't crazy about the way he seemed to use the gospels of the Bible as proof that "the real Jesus" wasn't bloodthirsty like John of Patmos. I don't personally buy that you can say the Gospels were written decades later by whoknowswho, and then use them to promote the idea that they can tell us anything about a historical figure like Jesus. Perhaps I misunderstood what he was saying, but seems hypocritical to say something is an unprovable story in one breath and then promote it as fact in the other.
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I thoroughly enjoyed his step-by-step deconstruction of a lot of the passages of Revelation using a historical lens. I think it would surprise most people to find that it really isn't all that spooky or complicated to get what the author is talking about if you stop taking it out of context.
Told from the pov of all of the guests at a destination wedding held on a remote island, the book uEveryone is a suspect. But who gets murdered?
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Told from the pov of all of the guests at a destination wedding held on a remote island, the book unfolds from all different angles. Everyone has a story, everyone has secrets, and everyone is lying about something.
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There were several big reveals at the end that got me but I did manage to guess the reason for the killer to...well, kill.
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An odd side note is the overuse of the fact that Jules & Olivia are half-sisters. Like, who says my half-sister all the time? Unless there is a HUGE age gap or you were raised in different households, most people don't even mention it. My kids don't do that. It's weird. It's your brother or your sister unless you need to specify because the last names are different or you're explaining why you have so many grandparents at a function.
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Still, all in all, this was a really good murder mystery. The audiobook was great with a whole cast of narrators that all did a wonderful job bringing each character to life. Recommended....more
Nature vs Nurture. I've heard it said that genetics loads the gun and environment pulls the trigger. But how true is that?
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So, Fallon was/is a neNature vs Nurture. I've heard it said that genetics loads the gun and environment pulls the trigger. But how true is that?
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So, Fallon was/is a neuroscientist who had two separate studies going. One looking at brain scans for markers of Alzheimer's and another looking at the brain scans of "psychopaths". I'm putting it in quotation marks because apparently there isn't any real psychopath diagnosis, but everyone knows what the term means. Like porn, you know it when you see it. Anyway. He was using members of his family in the Alzheimer's group because they had the disease on his wife's side of the family. But as he was pawing through the data it appeared that one of the violent criminal's scans had somehow made its way into his Alzheimer's study. Nope. Turns out, it was his brain scan.
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So how was this non-violent, intelligent, well-liked, happily married father of 3 doing with a "psychopath's" brain? Well, spend some time listening to him talk about himself and his life. He's a pretty classic narcissist. A very happy, if emotionally stunted sort of guy who enjoys his life to the fullest and doesn't really care about the impact his reckless or selfish behavior has on anyone - including his family and friends. In fact, not many of the people who knew him either professionally or personally were especially surprised that his brain looked like a potential Dexter's.
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There is a lot to unpack here but the skinny version is that if he hadn't been raised in a loving family, who knows what sort of person he would have become? As it is, he may not be the sort of person who does things from the heart, but he is a productive member of society. A very interesting book with a lot of tidbits about how our brains work, what a huge role genetics play in our personalities, and how important the formative years are in our future development. BUT.
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How objective is he and how much is he lying to the reader? Who knows? I wouldn't suggest that you read this and take it as God's truth. However, if you're just looking for something outside the norm to read and are willing to go along for the ride with someone who may or may not be a reliable narrator, then I think you'll have fun with this. Recommended....more
I usually really like these sorts of lecture-style books. This one? It was boring on a level that I really didn't think it would be when I picked it outI usually really like these sorts of lecture-style books. This one? It was boring on a level that I really didn't think it would be when I picked it out. Man, I was zoning out right and left. So, to understand what someone means by a chair you really need to know the virtues of a chair, not just that it is a chair. Swear to god, he said something along those lines and I felt something trickling out of my ear that I'm pretty sure was brain matter.
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I listened to this in audio format which is exactly what you would be doing if you were listening to Aryeh Kosman speak in one of his lectures as a student. So. I don't want to hear any crap about how you really should have read the book instead of using an audiobook.
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You can tell that Kosman is such a fanboy of these two philosophers but he's maybe not the most interesting teacher. OR maybe I just listened to the wrong lecture. I mean, you know how people think of philosophy majors as useless and up their own asses? Yeah, this didn't do anything to get rid of that stereotype. At all.
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There's usually at least one thing I take away from a book that sticks with me, but the only thing I can think of is that Aristotle was Alex The Great's teacher. Yay. I do want to learn more about these guys but...yikes. I feel like I've gotta go work on my car or fix something in my house so I can feel useful again before I dive back into this shit....more
Well. It had a great premise and I liked the tongue-in-cheek style in which the story was told.
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But it was too long and drawn out for me to trulWell. It had a great premise and I liked the tongue-in-cheek style in which the story was told.
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But it was too long and drawn out for me to truly love. There seemed to be a lot of unnecessary wheel-spinning in some parts and I started getting bored at the halfway mark. I think the problem was that I pretty much knew where the story was headed and just wanted it to hurry up and get there. But with three different students' stories each weaving in and out of the narrative, it gave the whole thing a somewhat draggy feel. <--for me
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Ok, the skinny gist is that there's this school that teaches people how to get away with murder. Each of our 3 main characters has a very good reason to want some person dead, and they each arrive at the school via different means. Their stories are set in the past and are read to us by the school's current headmaster through diary entries they were required to write.
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Our main main character is a guy who tried to murder his employer and would have been caught if it hadn't been for the interference of some of the school's teachers. He has a mysterious benefactor who has paid for his tuition, and you learn through his journal that his boss is a despicable man who has changed the safety features on a plane our guy designed for the company, and it will probably fall out of the sky if it goes into production. Instead of listening to his engineers, he planted evidence that caused them to lose their careers. Bad things happened. So. This guy has got to die.
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There is also an actress who wants to kill the scuzzy studio head and a young woman who wants to kill her blackmailing co-worker. My favorite character was the somewhat bitchy actress, to be honest. Everyone else had pretty decent intentions and a good heart. She was a tad more mercenary and I dig that kind of person.
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The epilogue was funny and probably my favorite little twist in the book. Unfortunately, there was never a moment that I truly cared about anything that happened, so I don't think I'll be pushing this one anyone. Great idea plot-wise, but it needed a zippier pace to pull it off. Why? Because if given too much time to mull over this school for murder, the reader will start pulling on the loose threads and unravel a lot of the plot holes in the school's arbitrary rule system.
The narration by Simon Vance & Neil Patrick Harris was fantastic if you're looking for a good audiobook....more
Enola meets Florence Nightingale. This was a super-shorty, with the audiobook clocking in at 3 hours and 13 minutes. I have zero complaints as this remEnola meets Florence Nightingale. This was a super-shorty, with the audiobook clocking in at 3 hours and 13 minutes. I have zero complaints as this remains a cute mystery series. The mystery involves Enola rescuing her landlady from the nefarious clutches of...someone.
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And as far as "mysteries" go, it's not that great. But it's Enola doing her thing while avoiding her brothers, pining over her missing mother, and giving the reader a bit of insight into some of the nonsense women had to put up with during the...late 1800s? I'm not 100% sure, but she mentions Jack the Ripper in this one. So, we're going with that. Then again, pick a time period and you will more than likely find some kind of funky nonsense that women had to put up with.
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At the end of every book, Sherlock grows a little as a person. This time around he gets schooled by Ms. Nightengail and it causes him to perhaps think about Enola and what she might want out of life.
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Maybe there's hope for him after all. Recommended....more
It's really that last thing that will give you the shivers. Because if you grew up in a weird one, nothDemonic Puppets. Possessed dolls. FAMILY.
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It's really that last thing that will give you the shivers. Because if you grew up in a weird one, nothing will scare you more than having to go back home and face your fucked-up blood relations. However, if your mom spent her spare time making Christian puppets and collecting dolls, you're in a class all by yourself. You, my friend, get a pass on Christmas and Thanksgiving. No one expects you to go home. Ever.
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On a side note, I did a stint in my church's Puppet Ministry when I was in middle school, so this book hit me on all the levels. I know what you're thinking, Random Goodreader <-- that Anne is so multi-talented! Reading AND puppets? Is there anything she can't do?
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Alright. I'll stop.
I have to tip my hat to Hendrix because he really nails the voice of that southern religious woman. Perfection, sir. Also. Charleston, South Carolina. It is lovely. But seriously. Come on down to Columbia, Grady. We might be a little more grubby and a tad less touristy, but we still have prayer warriors who will wrap you in a Jesus burrito. Bless.
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Ok, this takes a little while to get going as Hendrix sets the family scene with little to no horror in sight for quite a good bit. I'd almost forgotten this was supposed to be a spooky story by the time the freaking dolls started moving around and the damn puppet started acting the fool.
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And normally, I don't like stories that drag on, but this time it worked. Every time I thought the story was going one way or I had a bead on the characters, the author would give the rug a little yank and I'd be on my ass asking what the hell just happened.
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I don't want to give anything away so I'll just say that this was a good tale. And I now believe that those damn puppets we had in the Children's Ministry at my old church were probably 100% possessed by demons. Recommended for horror fans and puppeteers....more
Considering it was originally published in 1921, Van Loon's voice is still surprisingly accessible. And whiThe origins of mankind in a nutshell.
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Considering it was originally published in 1921, Van Loon's voice is still surprisingly accessible. And while the information is not 100% accurate, this has a quick and dirty look at the history of the world as historians kinda-sorta understood it when Van Loon wrote this. I use the word world in the loosest terms because a lot of cultures were left out and you're mostly getting the European version. However, the author does admit that there is quite a bit missing and urges readers to fill in the gaps.
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The main draw of this book (for me) is the way Hendrik tells children to look into the history of everything. I think history is incredibly important to understanding the present. And yeah, people say that all the time. But it's true. Looking back you really can see cycles repeating themselves. And the truth is that we are not special. Every generation thinks theirs is the last because of wars, famine, disease, and political upheaval. It's fascinating to see how predictable we are, and it's also much less frightening when you realize we've done this all before.
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Having said that, I wouldn't recommend this to anyone looking for an actual history lesson. This is more of something I would recommend for someone who wants to look in a window of the past to see how our view of history has changed. <--if that makes sense?
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Not going to lie, it was also cool to hear him talk about Hitler as a present-day issue in the epilogue. Recommended. <--but not for kids because it's not accurate. And let's face it, reluctant readers aren't exactly going to be thrilled by a history lesson. Give those kids a comic....more
I can see why this is a beloved children's fantasy. It's good vs. evil and right vs. wrong, but there is just enough give in the story so that it doesnI can see why this is a beloved children's fantasy. It's good vs. evil and right vs. wrong, but there is just enough give in the story so that it doesn't feel like the world is uncomfortably rigid. The characters really are quite lovable. They try to be good and do the right thing. And if they fail at that, then they try to learn from their mistakes. I'm not terribly sappy but I enjoy this sort of thing when it comes pre-packaged with magic, loyalty, and danger.
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The assistant pig keeper, Taran, finds himself on another epic adventure with his friends Fflewddur Fflam, Princess Eilonwy, Doli & Gurgi. This time our heroes are hunting down the evil bucket from the last book- the Black Cauldron. It needs to be found and destroyed before the Death Lord Arawn makes any more of his Cauldron-Born. And this time around Arawan's plans for the cooking pot of death are worse than before!
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There were some very cool new characters in this one, not the least of which were the 3 witches Orddu, Orwen, and Orgoch. They were somehow dangerous and hilarious at the same time and I kind of loved them for that.
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Not going to ruin anything for those of you who haven't read it yet, but this installment definitely has a lot of heart. I can see why this series means so much to so many people. Recommended....more
History in an Hour. <--this is my jam. Ok, so quite obviously you are not going to end up with in-depth knowledge of 1066, William the Conqueror, or thHistory in an Hour. <--this is my jam. Ok, so quite obviously you are not going to end up with in-depth knowledge of 1066, William the Conqueror, or the Battle of Hastings. What you are going to get is a condensed bit of information about an important year in England's history.
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The gist is that when King Edward the Confessor died without any children, a battle for the throne began between William, the Duke of Normandy (who Edward had previously promised the throne) and Harold Godwinson Earl of East Anglia (who Edward kinda/sorta/maybe named as his heir on his deathbed). The Witan (fancy name for the king's counsel) wanted an Englishman on the throne and Harold's coronation was held shotgun wedding style a day or so after Edward shuffled off this mortal coil.
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William was properly pissed when he found out. His big claim to fame was that he ran straight to the Pope and cried like a little bitch until he got Alexander II to give him his banner. That's like a seal of approval from God. Except it's, you know...a banner. At any rate. Off sails William, ready to wave his flag and kick some ass.
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Meanwhile, there is this Norwegian dude, Harald Hardrada, who also thinks he has a claim on the English throne. PLOT TWIST! English King Harold has an evil twin brother named Tostig who teams up with Norway's Harald to defeat him! Ok, he's not really his twin and whether or not he's evil may also be up for grabs. BUT! Tostig was definitely Harold's brother and he fought with Harald to knock his brother off of the throne. Give these boys some shoulder pads and they could give the ladies of Dynasty a run for their soap opera money.
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Ok. So, they clashed and fought and killed each other off for a solid year with everything kind of culminating in The Battle of Hastings. <--very bloody! And unless you thought they were just calling him this ironically, you probably already guessed that William the Conqueror came out on top. Ta-Da! I may have left a few things out, but thems the bare bones of the story. You're welcome.
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I'm woefully behind on history in general. In fact, there appears to be a lot of things that happened before I was born - and some of it looks to be fairly important! So, in a last-ditch effort to remedy the gaps in my knowledge, I'm going to be attempting to stuff some educational material into my brain and see if it sticks. And since big books scare me, snacking on the info in bite-sized portions might just be the thing to help me along. Recommeded....more
Remember the Left Handed Lady, Cecily? She's back. This time Enola runs into her in an old-timey bathroom. <--this was bFans! Fans, everywhere!
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Remember the Left Handed Lady, Cecily? She's back. This time Enola runs into her in an old-timey bathroom. <--this was back when ladies would have to pay money to safely pee when they were out shopping.
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Thanks to the language of fans, which is yet another language I have to master, Enola is alerted that Cecily is in some sort of danger and needs her help. Which, of course, she is more than willing to give. But how can she help her (sort of?) friend while still actively avoiding her brothers, Mycroft & Sherlock? Welp. That's the plot of this book. And I honestly think it's starting to look like her brothers might just come out of this with a bit of respect for their little sister when it's all said and done.
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There's not a great deal of substance, but I'm still eating these with a spoon because they're such easily digestible books. Recommended for anyone looking for a bit of an adorable YA mystery series....more
Awesome collection of Agatha's short stories. I know I seem to say that about all of these collections, but this one has quite a few stories in it thatAwesome collection of Agatha's short stories. I know I seem to say that about all of these collections, but this one has quite a few stories in it that you don't get to read very often. I would personally love to own this book!
Accident An overzealous cop pokes his nose in the wrong spot.
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The Fourth Man This one was an incredibly inaccurate portrayal of dissociative identity disorder (multiple personalities) AND hypnotism but it was so entertaining! Bananas plot about a woman with DID that killed herself. Or was she actually killing someone else? A wacky must-read.
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The Mystery of the Blue Jar Young Jack Hartington investigates the supernatural. It all starts as he passes by a cottage and hears a cry of Help! Murder! and runs to check it out. When he gets closer he sees a beautiful girl just...weeding the flower bed or some such shit. No murderer. No one in need of his aid. Every day for 3 days he passes the cottage and hears the same thing. And every time he runs to help. And every time the beautiful girl looks at him like he's crazy.
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The Mystery of the Spanish Shawl (a.k.a. Mr Eastwood's Adventure) Anthony Eastwood has writer's block. His (hopefully) soon-to-be-written story The Mystery of the Second Cucumber is right there...on the tip of his typewriter! His writer's block is interrupted when he gets a phone call from a desperate-sounding woman who mistakes him for someone called Conrad Fleckman, and then begs him to meet her at a secret location. LIFE ANd DEATH! What the hell, it's not like he's doing anything anyway, right?
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Philomel Cottage Bluebeard gets an ass beating! Alix Martin comes into a bit of money and a whirlwind romance at the same time. Her long-time man-friend, Dick, is acting weird after she inherits a bit of cash from a relative and they have a falling out. Meanwhile, she runs into the handsome Geral and they fall in love and get married, against Dick's warnings that she doesn't know him well enough.
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The Red Signal What is a Red Signal? Dermot West tries to explain the concept to a group of people at a dinner party as a premonition he sometimes feels before he's in danger. When one of the guests, Sir Arlington, tells him it's all hogwash, Raymond tells of the time his Red Signal warned him before he was almost killed in Mesopotamia. However, he doesn't tell anyone that he's actually felt that same warning sign before he came there tonight.
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The Second Gong If you're a Christie fan you're probably going to look at this and think, didn't I already read this story? Well, yes and no. The Second Gong was originally published in 1932 in The Ladies Home Journal and added into some of Christie's short story collections. BUT then later it was expanded upon and turned into the novella, Dead Man's Mirror. You can find that one in the Murder in the Mews collection.
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Sing a Song of Sixpence So 10 years ago on a boat trip, the now retired barrister Sir Edward Palliser met and made love to the 17 year old Magdalen Vaughan. He was nearing 60 at the time of their affair and was enchanted by her eagerness and hero worship of him. Ye gods, Agatha!
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Scrape away the dirty old man and it's a good mystery.
S.O.S. Mortimer Cleveland is a paranormal researcher. When his car breaks down, he stops and knocks on the door of a nearby house that belongs to the Dinsmeads. It doesn't take him long to sense that something is wrong, but he can't put his finger on what exactlyit is. Is there something supernaturally sinister about this home or is the evil a little more human in nature? Can it possibly be a little bit of both? Sure. Why not.
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Where There's a Will (a.k.a. Wireless) An older woman with a heart problem is persuaded to buy a wireless radio by her favorite nephew and finds she really enjoys listening to the programs in the evening. As we all do.
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The Witness for the Prosecution LOVE THE ENDING! This one is juicy. A rich old lady is found dead and all signs point toward Leonard Vole, a young man who has been paying her special attention, as she had apparently changed her will and he stands to inherit a good deal of money. Did he kill her? All signs point to yes. But his attorney, Mr. Mayhew, isn't convinced that he's actually guilty. Especially once he pays a visit to Leonard's wife, Romaine. <--yes, like the lettuce
I loved the tone of this one. You get an almost playful heist vibe this time around. And there's a builDefinitely not as dark as the last book.
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I loved the tone of this one. You get an almost playful heist vibe this time around. And there's a build-up toward what you know will end in Gen having pulled something over on...someone?
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And it doesn't disappoint.
I don't think that's at all a spoiler because Gen is Gen and there's no way anyone who has read the previous books is going to fall for him being a complete stooge. The question is how much of what he's doing is real and how much Gen is playing everyone around him.
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The basic gist of this one (without giving any spoilers) is that Gen is having to deal with becoming the King of Attolia when everyone in Attolia hates his guts. Partially because he is the Thief of Eddis but mainly because they all think that he forced their beloved queen into this marriage. Everyone from his own attendants to the palace cooks is out to get him - in big ways and in small irritating ways. Can Gen win over an entire nation? <-- so he can help his beloved Queen rule her people Or at the very least win over the palace guards? <--so he doesn't get shanked in the gardens
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This. was. excellent. I loved it from start to finish. Highly Recommended....more
This is not an argument for or against Christianity. It's a lecture on the subject of the "lost scriptures". With lecture being the operative word hereThis is not an argument for or against Christianity. It's a lecture on the subject of the "lost scriptures". With lecture being the operative word here. That may or may not be your jam.
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But it was kind of perfect for what I was looking for because I didn't really want someone inserting a lot of opinions into the subject. Obviously, there are and always will be a lot of opinions when it comes to ancient texts, simply due to the nature of them being ancient and present-day scholars and researchers having to act like detectives to attempt to piece together how everything went down thousands of years ago. Because even if you have historical documents, those documents were more than likely written by the winners of whatever philosophical argument (war, political coup, etc) of that day.
What I mean by opinions is that I'm not interested in reading a philosophical discussion on the existence of God. And that's why I really enjoyed this. The history of when we first heard of these texts vs when we actually found physical copies of them, and what the differences between what ancient theologians/scholars/religious leaders had said about them in the past vs what they were found to have actually contained, was exactly what I had been wanting to know. To me, that stuff is just cool. Your mileage, of course, may vary.
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This lecture included a lot of information about Gnostics, Ebionites, & Marchionites. I'd heard of all of these sects, but I'd never read much, so for me, this was a great introduction to their beliefs. Also included was a breakdown of quite a few non-cannon religious texts that range from probable forgeries (The Secret Book of Mark) to stuff that almost made it into the Bible (The Apocalypse of Peter). Other books give us a background for some of the Christian lore (Gospel of James tells the story of Mary mother of Jesus) that isn't found in the New Testament. This stuff is all fascinating and I was honestly never bored while listening to it.
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So. The moral of the story for me is that I'm going to be grabbing more books that are lecture-style like this one. Recommended....more
LOVE THE ENDING! This one is juicy. A rich old lady is found dead and all signs point toward Leonard Vole, a young man who has been paying her special LOVE THE ENDING! This one is juicy. A rich old lady is found dead and all signs point toward Leonard Vole, a young man who has been paying her special attention, as she had apparently changed her will and he stands to inherit a good deal of money. Did he kill her? All signs point to yes. But his attorney, Mr. Mayhew, isn't convinced that he's actually guilty. Especially once he pays a visit to Leonard's wife, Romaine. <--yes, like the lettuce
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Leonard swears she can give him an alibi for the time of the murder, but when Mayhew speaks to her, it's obvious to him that she's a bitter woman who can't wait to see her lover hanged. Even if she has to lie on the witness stand to do it.
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The ending to this one was abrupt and shocking - and I loved it! (view spoiler)[After Mr. Mayhew gets the evidence to prove Romaine has lied on the witness stand and has freed his client, it looks like all is well. BUT THEN! Romaine looks Mayhew dead in the eye and admits to lying on the stand. But NOT because she knew he was innocent. Because she knew he was guilty. And she also knew the jury wouldn't believe her if she gave him an alibi and they thought she loved him. But if they thought she hated him and was trying to get him put away for murder? Oh yeah. They'd believe that she was being vindictive and that he was innocent. (hide spoiler)] WHAT?!
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Published in Flynn's Weekly in 1925, the story was originally titled Traitor's Hands. Christie was unhappy with her ending (view spoiler)[(a murderer getting away with murder is not something you see often in her books) (hide spoiler)] so when she later turned it into a play, she changed it up (view spoiler)[so that Vole had a secret lover who appeared at the end and Romaine, in a fit of jealousy, stabs him as he's leaving the courtroom (hide spoiler)]. However, I prefer the shock of the original. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!...more
Everyone? Yes. Everyone. Maybe not in the way you'd think, though, as this isn't a story about some wacky family of assassins.
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It's a murder mystEveryone? Yes. Everyone. Maybe not in the way you'd think, though, as this isn't a story about some wacky family of assassins.
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It's a murder mystery that pulls the past and present together in a fun way, introduces a flawed bunch of characters, and is told through the eyes of a narrator that you're never really too sure about. I would tell you more, but I think it's better to go into this with as little information as possible and just enjoy the ride. I will say I thought it was a very cool book.
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And while I personally want to read more in this series, if you decide to stop here, you've read a complete story. Which is nice. I appreciate it when authors can give us a one-and-done. Recommended....more
So 10 years ago on a boat trip, the now retired barrister Sir Edward Palliser met and made love to the 17 year old Magdalen Vaughan. He was nearing 60So 10 years ago on a boat trip, the now retired barrister Sir Edward Palliser met and made love to the 17 year old Magdalen Vaughan. He was nearing 60 at the time of their affair and was enchanted by her eagerness and hero worship of him. Ye gods, Agatha!
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Alright. So, unsurprisingly you don't feel the least bit bad for him that she wants to claim his promise of, "if there is ever anything I can do - remember, I mean it...", to ask his help to solve the murder of her aunt. It's quite literally the very least he can do after that sort of disgusting nonsense. I'm guessing this much too older man and much too younger woman trope wasn't as vile to the reader when Christie wrote originally wrote this. So, hey! That queasy feeling in your stomach is a sign that things are slightly better now than they were in 1929.
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Ok, the gist of the mystery is that her great-aunt Lily was murdered a few weeks ago. Someone supposedly broke in and whacked her on the back of the head. Except the police can't find any evidence that anyone broke in, so it looks as though it must have been one of the members of the house that did it. There were 4 people besides Magdalen who lived with her aunt. Her brother, her aunt's nephew and his wife, and one long-time servant. All four of the family members will split the inheritance which turns out to be quite a lot of money.
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Whodunnit? <--not who I thought! The mystery was fun, the twist was good, and I enjoyed the ending where he told her that if she ever needed his help again... Call a younger man.
Scrape away the dirty old man and it's a good mystery. Originally published in Illustrated Sporting and Dramatic News in 1929....more
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