[21 Apr 2024] I'm not a fan of short stories, but there were only five stories in this collection and most were more of the novella length. I only read[21 Apr 2024] I'm not a fan of short stories, but there were only five stories in this collection and most were more of the novella length. I only read the first one and the last one. The other three just didn't interest me. I didn't need another story about Stephanie Harrington or Grayson and I didn't care much about the taming of Silesia. But the first story about the founding of the Andermani dynasty was good and the last one about the early marriage of Honor's parents was okay.
[21 Apr 2024] The first half of this book is a retelling of an important period in Honor's life, from only a very slightly different viewpoint. The sec[21 Apr 2024] The first half of this book is a retelling of an important period in Honor's life, from only a very slightly different viewpoint. The second half is a series of minor space battles mostly involving a young engineer who had been wounded at the Battle of Hancock. I'm a diehard Honorverse fan so I will read just about anything in that pantheon, and I enjoyed this but it wasn't anything special. ...more
[19 Jan 2024] Another really good mystery in the Eddie Flynn series. Eddie is asked to find a young man who has been missing for two years, with very f[19 Jan 2024] Another really good mystery in the Eddie Flynn series. Eddie is asked to find a young man who has been missing for two years, with very few clues available. Not long after his investigation starts, things get weird, with representatives from two disparate groups -- an apparent Albanian crime syndicate and a multi-billion dollar business -- trying to disrupt or follow his search. And he can't find any reason for either of those groups to be interested in the missing kid.
Eddie is an admirable PI. Mostly nonviolent. But independent and impossible to intimidate. And always creative.
The plot is good. Suspenseful and sad. Ending with two pretty big surprises.
[19 Jan 2024] I enjoyed this, mildly. I am a big fan of Valdemar, especially the books focusing on the Companions and Heralds, rather than the serious [19 Jan 2024] I enjoyed this, mildly. I am a big fan of Valdemar, especially the books focusing on the Companions and Heralds, rather than the serious magic mage-war types. And this book is a fairly important one in the history of Valdemar since it introduces the Companions and the beginning of the Heralds. However, it seemed to me rather slow and subdued. I frequently got bored and a little impatient with all the internal dialogue of Kordas, second guessing himself and wondering if he was doing the right things. And there were a number of characters that were important to the story, but I didn't remember much about them from the previous books. So I felt a little behind. Another thing that bothered me is the amount of intervention by the gods. I prefer stories where people save themselves.
But it's a pretty good story. Definitely worth reading if you're a Valdemar fan....more
[19 Jan 2024] Jayne Castle's Harmony series is one of my guilty pleasures. Formulaic. Not in any way literary. A little bit sci-fi, a little more roman[19 Jan 2024] Jayne Castle's Harmony series is one of my guilty pleasures. Formulaic. Not in any way literary. A little bit sci-fi, a little more romance but not obnoxious, a little paranormal, a little suspense, a little mystery. In this one the heroine is a matchmaker who falls for her client. Totally predictable.
But I still enjoyed it. A light fantasy to lighten a grey winter day....more
[27 Jan 2025] The subtitle of this series is a little misleading. Although the heroine is trained as a xeno-archaeologist, that's not what she does. Sh[27 Jan 2025] The subtitle of this series is a little misleading. Although the heroine is trained as a xeno-archaeologist, that's not what she does. She flies around the galaxy in her one-person ship mapping space and occasionally testing for exploitable resources. Something happened to her in her earlier life -- partly this was the death of her husband, but I think there was more to it -- that left her angry and generally distrustful of other people. But her meeting with Liam and his crew who have been exiled to the boonies after essentially winning the recent war, mitigates that anger and distrust to some extent.
I found this book fun and reasonably believable. Some action, more character development, and some humor. I liked both of the main characters and most of the secondary characters. I will probably read more in the series. ...more
[20 Dec 2023] I enjoyed this second installment of the Harriet Foster detective series. The crime was not easily solved but the resolution did mostly m[20 Dec 2023] I enjoyed this second installment of the Harriet Foster detective series. The crime was not easily solved but the resolution did mostly make sense (I thought it was a little far fetched, but not so much that I wouldn't recommend reading it). More important, to me anyway, is the character development which continued admirably. Harriet is still struggling to deal with the deaths of her son and her former partner, but she's working on it and her relationship with her new partner helps. There are also some quirks in the plot that add interest and spill over to the next book, which I will definitely read.
[19 Jan 2024] This book claims that many of the features of humans that distinguish us from other species evolved in order to meet the needs of the fem[19 Jan 2024] This book claims that many of the features of humans that distinguish us from other species evolved in order to meet the needs of the female body. I don't have the ability to judge the accuracy of these claims, but most of it seems to make sense to me.
Bohannon is not a scientist. She's an author. And this is her first book, though she has apparently written a lot of articles for a variety of publications. Again I'm not able to judge her qualifications but she does write well. Clearly. Understandably. With humor and occasional snark. The only time I could not fully follow her arguments was in her discussion of how we changed from a matrilineal species to a patriarchy. I found that confusing, but it was a small part of the last chapter.
Her arguments do seem to be supported by a lot of scientific evidence that she references often. Until the last chapter where she discusses love, sex, monogamy, and sexism. All interesting topics, but her discussion seems to be primarily opinion and speculation, and emotion, rather than based on concrete evidence. I have no problem agreeing with her conclusions, but again that's opinion and emotion on my part. And it's a little unfortunate that she stoops to that level when the rest of the book seems so solid scientifically.
However, it's still a very interesting book. Worthy of discussion. And I recommend it....more
[9 Dec 2023] I'm not sure how I feel about this mystery, set in small town England. I liked it well enough to finish it. But early on, I remember think[9 Dec 2023] I'm not sure how I feel about this mystery, set in small town England. I liked it well enough to finish it. But early on, I remember thinking it spent too much time in the murderer's head. Also, aspects of the plot -- a female detective who is sent into exile in a satellite station due to a conflict with a male detective at the main station -- seemed a little old to me. It's been done in several series that focus on a female sleuth. And I thought some of the breakthroughs occurred awfully quick and conveniently. I liked the character of Louise for the most part, but I would have liked a little more development for some of the secondary characters.
Enjoyable, but flawed. Probably won't reread and I haven't decided whether to continue with the series....more
[28 Oct 2023] Someone is killing redheaded girls in Chicago. Harriet, a tough experienced cop still recovering from the unexpected suicide of her partn[28 Oct 2023] Someone is killing redheaded girls in Chicago. Harriet, a tough experienced cop still recovering from the unexpected suicide of her partner, is assigned to the case as her first case in a new precinct. She has plenty of personal issues impacting her ability to solve the murders. But it's a pretty decent mystery, with a few twists, not totally unexpected. Still a good read and recommended....more
[24 Sept 2023] I was disappointed with this book. It seemed to me that the crime was solved very easily. There were just too many convenient coincidenc[24 Sept 2023] I was disappointed with this book. It seemed to me that the crime was solved very easily. There were just too many convenient coincidences. The characters were interesting, but I just didn't believe it....more
[6 Sept 2023] Eve investigates the death of a retired IAB cop, but runs into difficulty when her initial suspects seem to be clear and she must widen h[6 Sept 2023] Eve investigates the death of a retired IAB cop, but runs into difficulty when her initial suspects seem to be clear and she must widen her parameters. It's a typical, enjoyable murder mystery, but nothing really unusual....more
[6 Sept 2023] After I finished reading the last Cork O'Connor book, which was #11, I decided I was a little tired of Cork and Northern Minnesota. So I [6 Sept 2023] After I finished reading the last Cork O'Connor book, which was #11, I decided I was a little tired of Cork and Northern Minnesota. So I read a couple nonfiction books and a new Nora Roberts novel. Then when deciding what to read next, this one came up on my kindle since I had bought it earlier and I decided to give it a go.
This book is about the murder of Jubal Little, who was a childhood friend of Cork's and was running for Governor of Minnesota. Like most of the Cork O'Connor series there was lots of nature descriptions, lots of indigenous wisdom, and dead ends in the investigation. In other words, not much surprise in this one.
[1 Sept 2023] Fairly standard Nora Roberts romantic suspense. The heroine's life suffers a major upset when a brief boyfriend steals her identity and h[1 Sept 2023] Fairly standard Nora Roberts romantic suspense. The heroine's life suffers a major upset when a brief boyfriend steals her identity and her savings, and murders her roommate instead of her. She moves to Vermont to live with her mother and grandmother while she rebuilds her life. She gets a job with a local family owned resort and falls in love with the scion of that family. Meanwhile the murderer/thief keeps killing other women but is obsessed with the one who got away. Of course, everything works out in the end. The heroine regains her confidence, finds love, and defeats the killer when he finally comes after her.
It's an enjoyable read, but nothing unusual....more
[6 Aug 2023] Although I'm still a huge fan of Nathan Lowell and Ishmael Wang, I felt somewhat disappointed with this book. The first part of the book w[6 Aug 2023] Although I'm still a huge fan of Nathan Lowell and Ishmael Wang, I felt somewhat disappointed with this book. The first part of the book was good, with a series of equipment failures putting the Marva Collins and it's crew in serious danger. But in the last part of the book, after they return safely to Port Newmar, Ish makes some decisions that I was disappointed in. I can understand why Lowell took that direction. Much of the last two trilogies has been focused on Ish's developing understanding that he was not really in control of his life. Rather he felt that others, mainly Pip, but also the other ship captains he had served with, pushed him into decisions that he wasn't wholly committed to. The change he makes in this book is understandable. It's just that it was little bit of an easy way out. ...more
[28 Oct 2023] Michael Lewis has a gift for making things interesting. Even when the subject is totally arcane. He somehow is able to tap into the human[28 Oct 2023] Michael Lewis has a gift for making things interesting. Even when the subject is totally arcane. He somehow is able to tap into the humanity of the people he's covering. Sam Backman-Fried, the crypto tycoon who is the subject of this book, is a very strange person. Lewis had extended and intimate access to him and is able to describe him in some detail. He does not try to explain cryptocurrency in any detail. Nor does he try to explain why SBF's empire imploded, though he does describe briefly what happened. I couldn't really decide whether Lewis actually liked SBF, but I think he tried to treat him fairly and honestly. Lewis was fascinated by SBF and he does a pretty good job of describing him for the reader. It's a short book and definitely worth reading, though it doesn't explain everything about the situation....more
[15 July 2015] The first part of the book was very good, fighting the derecho and surviving afterward, but then it seemed to veer into something of a c[15 July 2015] The first part of the book was very good, fighting the derecho and surviving afterward, but then it seemed to veer into something of a cliche. I also thought it could have been improved if Noah had been a bigger part of the story and maybe a continuing character. Still it kept me engaged throughout. ...more
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