Gone Before Goodbye by Reese Witherspoon & Harlan Coben

Gone Before Goodbye is an unusual collaboration by actress/producer Reese Witherspoon and mystery/thriller writer Harlan Coben, and the product is a thriller that takes the reader from Baltimore to New York to Russia to Dubai and France. Maggie McCabe is a former Army combat surgeon whose life has fallen apart after a series of personal tragedies caused her to lose her medical license.

Searching for Shona by Margaret J. Anderson, a WWII evacuation story

Marjorie Malcolm-Scott leads a lonely but privileged existence in Edinburgh, living with her Uncle Fergus, who has been gone for months (war work?) and his disagreeable housekeeper, Mrs. Kilpatrick. Sometimes when she is sent outdoors to play, she goes to the local park and observes the rough and tumble orphans from St. Anne’s. 

October 2025 Reading

This month's reading mostly focused on books published 100 years ago for the 1925 Club.  However, it was fun to see Lisa Scottoline and Maureen Corrigan in conversation, sponsored by a local library, and caused me to check out her second book.  I also spent a weekend in Deep Valley, MN for the Betsy-Tacy Convention, always a good time.

Mystery and Suspense

Grime and Punishment by Jill Churchill (1989). Jane Jeffry, recently widowed and raising three children, is busy with car pools and community commitments (and gossip).

The Correspondent by Virginia Evans

This is an unusual novel told in letters, primarily from the perspective of Sybil Van Antwerp, a divorced grandmother in her 70s, who had a distinguished career as a lawyer. Sybil started writing letters as a child and takes pride in her correspondence but there is a dramatic contrast in her ability to communicate through writing vs her inability to maintain relationships with her immediate family. 

Final Appeal and Lisa Scottoline in Boston

Last month, the Friends of the West Roxbury Library hosted mystery writer, Lisa Scottoline (right), in conversation with Maureen Corrigan, the NPR book critic (left). They chatted about legal thrillers and single motherhood and Lisa’s love of libraries (much appreciation from this audience).  Both were amusing and enjoyable.  Lisa said she has always been an avid reader, starting with Nancy Drew, and reads a lot of suspense fiction as well as many other genres. She joked that being divorced twice and not having a social life means more time to read! She also advised aspiring writers to keep on trying – she got rejected for years before Everywhere That Mary Went was published in 1994. That is about an unappreciated associate (is there any other kind?) in a Philadelphia law firm and was nominated for an Edgar.  That is the major award for crime books.  

WWW Wednesday - Guy Fawkes Day

WWW Wednesday is hosted by Taking on a World of Words.

The Three Ws are:

What are you currently reading?

What did you recently finish reading?

What do you think you’ll read next?

On a very windy Election Day

The Librarians - a mystery by Sherry Thomas

When Hazel Lee moved back to Austin after years in Singapore, her grandmother suggested she get a job at the library and she finds one at her own childhood branch. Hazel is welcomed by Astrid, one of the librarians; Sophie, the branch administrator; Jonathan, the program director; and several clerks. They think Hazel is elegant and slightly mysterious but have no problem with her work ethic:

Six Degrees of Separation – from We Have Always Lived in the Castle to Summer of Fear

It’s time for #6degrees, inspired by Kate at Books Are My Favourite and Best. We all start at the same place as other readers, add six books, and see where it ends up. This month’s starting point is We Have Always Lived in the Castle by Shirley Jackson. I guess it is a good Halloween tie-in because it is certainly creepy but I used it once before. One of the characters is a Constance, which tempted me, but for my link I am going with the author’s name.