Race of Scorpions by Dorothy Dunnett (1989). In the third Niccolo book, he is kidnapped and carried off to Cyprus where both claimants to the throne want his help. They want his funds, his military sidekicks, and also his acumen. Dunnett rarely tells us all that her protagonist is thinking so the reader (and Niccolo’s friends) are always several steps behind. There’s a lot of war and suffering in this book but it’s fascinating to see how he escapes from every predicament. My review.
Summer of the Spanish Woman by Catherine Gaskin (1977). Charlotte is a very mature 17 so when her grandfather dies and the new heir arrives with an unfriendly wife, she is in charge of shepherding her mother from Ireland to Spain, where a neglected house is all they own. How she makes the best of their opportunities there, overcoming hostility and other obstacles, makes this as enthralling as all of Gaskin’s books. My review.
Romance
The Seven Rings by Nora Roberts (2025). In Inheritance, Sonya MacTavish inherited a cursed Victorian manor in Maine from an unknown uncle and discovers a centuries-old family curse involving murdered brides. She and her friend have been coexisting with ghosts (mostly friendly but one malevolent, who murdered many of the others). In this third in the series, Sonya tries to find the wedding rings of the murdered brides to break the spell. This series had too much home decorating and ghosts, and could have been done in one book.
Arabella by Georgette Heyer (1949). Impoverished but beautiful Arabella Tallant enters London's social scene in order to fulfill her mother's hopes that she find the type of eligible suitor not in abundant quantity at her father's modest vicarage. But will all be in vain when Arabella is goaded into pretending to be an heiress? Can she carry off an impersonation through the whole Season? My review.
Fiction
Ms. Mebel Goes Back to the Chopping Block by Jesse Q. Sutanto (2026). Mebel is a middle-aged trophy wife in Indonesia when her husband tells her he is leaving her for their cook. Shocked and furious, she enrolls in a cooking school to learn how to cook and win him back . . . but does she really want him back? This was a funny, enjoyable story about friendship and self-discovery. My review.
Fantasy
This Kingdom Will Not Kill Me by Ilona Andrews (2026). Maggie is obsessed with her favorite fantasy series and, like many fans, has eagerly awaited book three and reread the first two books dozens of times. So when she wakes up in Kair Toren, a fictional world she knows from books, penniless and friendless, she has to use her encyclopedic knowledge of the books to survive. My review.
Mystery/Suspense
The Frozen Shroud by Martin Edwards (2013). In the sixth book of the Lake District series, DCI Hannah Scarlett, head of the Cumbria Cold Case Review Team, has to investigate the murder of her closest friend. Was it an angry ex lover or is this murder related to two other deaths that took place near the same estate?
The Enigma Challenge by S.C. Godfrey (2026). Zoe grew up doing puzzles with her father and although he was killed in a car crash when she was a teen, she is now a cryptology academic giving a presentation in Spain. When she enters The Enigma Challenge, which is sponsored by the conference, she learns it is a more dangerous competition than she realized and is chased through Europe by bad actors who want her insight on the puzzles. My review.
The Husband by Dean Koontz; narrator, Holter Graham (2006)(audio). Mitch is a modest young landscaper, with one employee, and a wife he knows is the best thing that ever happened to him, after a difficult upbringing. When she is kidnapped and he is given 72 hours to come up with a $2 million ransom, he is devastated but is determined to rescue her. This was full of improbabilities but somewhat entertaining anyway.
A Wreath for Rivera by Ngaio Marsh (1949). Not one of her best. A peer with short-lived enthusiasms wants to perform with a jazz band that includes his stepdaughter’s inappropriate boyfriend. No one is too distressed when the musician dies during a performance but no one wants to be accused of his murder either. My review.
Miss Silver Comes to Stay by Patricia Wentworth (1949). Conveniently, Miss Silver is already in place when the murder takes place - James Lessiter has returned to his family home after making a fortune but quickly makes several enemies. There were some good twists to the plot here: the local police want to arrest the wrong person but Miss Silver delicately pursues the truth. My review.
Juvenile
Cruising to Danger by Priscilla Hagon/Mabel Esther Allan (1966). Joanna needs a summer job so when she reads about an opportunity to mind two children on a Mediterranean cruise, she immediately applies. One odd thing: the family wants an ordinary girl so she doesn’t mention she just won a scholarship to Oxford. But soon she is sure there is something sinister about Mr. Verriton and because she is afraid no one would believe her, she has to watch and wait - even if that becomes very dangerous!
No Boats on Bannermere by Geoffrey Trease (1949). I was very pleased to see that my review of this book for the 1949 Club caused several people to read and enjoy this book about a family inheriting a cottage and moving to the Lake District. My review.
Fiction
Ms. Mebel Goes Back to the Chopping Block by Jesse Q. Sutanto (2026). Mebel is a middle-aged trophy wife in Indonesia when her husband tells her he is leaving her for their cook. Shocked and furious, she enrolls in a cooking school to learn how to cook and win him back . . . but does she really want him back? This was a funny, enjoyable story about friendship and self-discovery. My review.
This Kingdom Will Not Kill Me by Ilona Andrews (2026). Maggie is obsessed with her favorite fantasy series and, like many fans, has eagerly awaited book three and reread the first two books dozens of times. So when she wakes up in Kair Toren, a fictional world she knows from books, penniless and friendless, she has to use her encyclopedic knowledge of the books to survive. My review.
Mystery/Suspense
The Frozen Shroud by Martin Edwards (2013). In the sixth book of the Lake District series, DCI Hannah Scarlett, head of the Cumbria Cold Case Review Team, has to investigate the murder of her closest friend. Was it an angry ex lover or is this murder related to two other deaths that took place near the same estate?
A Wreath for Rivera by Ngaio Marsh (1949). Not one of her best. A peer with short-lived enthusiasms wants to perform with a jazz band that includes his stepdaughter’s inappropriate boyfriend. No one is too distressed when the musician dies during a performance but no one wants to be accused of his murder either. My review.
Juvenile
Cruising to Danger by Priscilla Hagon/Mabel Esther Allan (1966). Joanna needs a summer job so when she reads about an opportunity to mind two children on a Mediterranean cruise, she immediately applies. One odd thing: the family wants an ordinary girl so she doesn’t mention she just won a scholarship to Oxford. But soon she is sure there is something sinister about Mr. Verriton and because she is afraid no one would believe her, she has to watch and wait - even if that becomes very dangerous!
No comments:
Post a Comment