Review: The Gods of Gotham

Review: The Gods of Gotham

By Jan

on September 25th, 2018

The Gods of Gotham Author: Lyndsay Fay; Genre: Historical mystery/historical novel; Format: Audiobook; Publisher: Penguin Audio; Rating: . Set in 1840s New York City, this book is full of lush descriptions, a fascinating collection of characters, and it’s beautifully written. Difficult topics (child prostitution, serial killing, racial and ethnic prejudice) abound, but it’s all in the context of the newly-created…

Review: Literary Book Gifts

By Jan

on September 16th, 2018

Literary Book Gifts is a fun website to browse, especially for readers and lovers of books. You can order t-shirts and tote bags from a huge variety of reading, writing, and classic literature-related illustrations and titles. Shirts comes in a large number of colors and sizes, too. The women’s t-shirts, hoodies, and tank tops come in sizes XS to 3XL,…

Review: Jane Austen at Home

By Jan

on September 14th, 2018

Jane Austen at Home: A Biography Author: Lucy Worsley; Genre: Biography; Format: Audiobook; Narrator: Ruth Redman; Publisher: Macmillan Audio (2017); My rating: . This wonderful book follows the Georgian author and her family through the many houses and homes they occupied. Worsley does an astonishing amount of clarification of the little data available about Jane Austen; without adding opinions, she…

Never Give Up (on a book order)

By Jan

on September 11th, 2018

This story is about a book called “George Genealogy” by Keith H. George. It was self-published in 1991 and there aren’t many copies around. In fact, about a decade ago, I asked my brother, who lived in Connecticut, to visit the State Library in Hartford on my behalf because one of the copies is in their stacks. He photocopied a…

Review: Redeeming Love

By Jan

on August 31st, 2018

Redeeming Love Author: Francine Rivers; Genre: Christian Historical Romance; Format: Audiobook; Publisher: Recorded Books; Rating: . So, this is one of those books that I think could have been so much better. The story is basically about Christian redemption, but the book is much too long for the story. In a (loose) retelling of the biblical book of Hosea, a…

Review: Warbreaker

By Jan

on August 19th, 2018

Warbreaker Author: Brandon Sanderson; Genre: Epic Fantasy; Format: Audiobook; Narrator: Alyssa Bresnahan; Publisher: Recorded Book; Rating: . Perhaps I need to take a break from epic fantasy for a while. Or maybe just Sanderson’s work. This is a drawn-out story with lots of repetition. I think it could have told with many fewer words and been more entertaining. The story…

Review: Gregor the Overlander

By Jan

on August 19th, 2018

Gregor the Overlander: Book 1 in the Underland Chronicles Author: Suzanne Collins; Genre: Middle-grade Fantasy; Format: Kindle ebook; Publisher: Scholastic, Inc. (2010); Rating: . This is the first book I’ve actually read in a while, having been busy listening to audiobooks for quite a while. I read this one in conjunction with my 12- and 11-year-old grandnieces, and we plan…

Review: Circe

By Jan

on August 4th, 2018

Circe: A Novel Author: Madeline Miller; Narrator: Perdita Weeks; Genre: Historical fiction; Format: Audiobook; Publisher: Hachette Audio (2018); Rating: . A beautiful story of the goddess-witch Circe, based on the early Greek mythology, suffused with life by the author and performed with skill by the narrator. It might change your opinion of a few of the characters you thought you…