Butterfly Games by Kelly Scarborough

June 2, 2026

Butterfly Games by Kelly Scarborough

At the insistence of her mother, 14 year old Countess Jaquette Gyldenstolpe unwillingly becomes a courtier at the Swedish royal court. She soon meets Prince Oscar, the son of the crown prince, and they are immediately attracted to each other. But everyone at the court engages in love affairs known as butterfly games, and the court becomes a dangerous place for Jaquette.

Years ago, I read the book Desireee by Annemarie Selinko (which I highly recommend), about the daughter of a French silk merchant whose first romance was with Napoleon Bonaparte (yes, that Napoleon), and after she marries one of Bonaparte's generals, she unexpectedly becomes the Queen of Sweden. Sounds like a made-up story but it's all true - Desiree had a fascinating and well-documented life. Her sister Julie married one of Napoleon's brothers and became the Queen Consort of Italy and Spain. Not bad for the daughters of a silk merchant.

So I was very interested in reading this novel about Desiree's son, Prince Oscar. But other than having a historical setting, this is a lot more imagined romance than history. Facts about Jaquette are sketchy at best. While they were acquainted at court and were friends, the only evidence of an affair is hints in letters by other courtiers. Also, the writing is awkward at times and does not flow smoothly. This is a first novel that would have benefited from an editor. Disappointing. 

Countess Jaquette Gyldenstolpe Lowenhielm

The Antique Hunter's Guide to Murder by C. L. Miller

May 26, 2026

The Antique Hunter's Guide to Murder by C. L. Miller

Following the death of her estranged mentor, a private antique dealer is invited to a weekend at a country home to value a collection of objects. But almost as soon as she arrives, she realizes that something is wrong, since all of the "antiques" appear to be cheap and obvious fakes.

DNF. I love a mystery set at an English country house (see the Heathcliff Lennox series by Karen Baugh Menuhin), so I thought this one would be a slam dunk based on the description. Country house? Art forgeries? A cast where everyone has something to hide? A goofy aunt? Sign me up.

But the characters turned out to be on the boring side and the writing was clunky - I found myself mentally correcting/improving the author's writing starting on the first page (the publisher needs to hire some editors). Even the cover was boring. Disappointing.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an eARC for review.

A Dark Room in Glitter Ball City by David Domine

May 25, 2026

A Dark Room in Glitter Ball City by David Domine

Two men, a gay couple, purchased an old Victorian house in the Old Louisville area of Louisville, Kentucky. Some time later, a body in a plastic tub was found buried in the house's wine cellar. Who was the man in the bin and how did he get there?

I read this for an online true crime book discussion, and after I read the book description, I remember seeing this case on one of the true crime shows (maybe Buried in the Basement?). Old Louisville is a historic district in Louisville that has an eclectic population, a mixture of old wealth, artists, gays, and homeless, living in historic houses and mansions, brownstones, and homeless shelters. The narrative in the book reminds me of Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil, with descriptions of Louisville, its history, the city's culture, and the author's life, in addition to the crime. Louisville is sometimes called Glitter Ball City since most of the disco or glitter balls in the country were manufactured in Louisville; also called Happy Birthday City, the City That's Not Too Busy, and Derby City. While I enjoyed it, readers expecting a straight true crime investigation will be disappointed.

Jamie Carroll, the murder victim

A Crown of Stars by Shana Abe

May 19, 2026

A Crown of Stars by Shana Abe

English actress Rita Jolivet is starring in one of the new motion pictures, but after she appears at the movie's New York premiere, a family emergency calls her home to England. She hurries to book passage on the first ship leaving New York and considers herself extremely lucky to be able to book one of the last available cabins on the Lusitania, especially when she finds both her brother-in-law and her agent are also aboard.

Almost everyone knows about the Titanic, but most people would be hard pressed to tell you anything about the Lusitania, Cunard's flagship liner. While Titanic sank due to a series of poor decisions and an unstoppable force of nature, the sinking of the Lusitania was a war crime. The ship was torpedoed by a German u-boat about a mile off the coast of Ireland in the middle of the afternoon. They were supposed to receive an escort of British destroyers to see them safely into harbor, but for some reason, the escort never materialized. Some historians maintain that the British prime minister knew that the Germans had threatened to sink the Lusitania but did nothing about it because he felt that was the only way to draw the United States into the war, due to the high number of Americans traveling aboard the Lusitania. There were British war ships in the area after the ship was torpedoed, but they did not go to the assistance of the survivors in the water because they feared that there were still German submarines in the area trying to draw them out to be torpedoed. Instead, the Irish fishing fleet as well as other private citizens went to the aid of the survivors, pulling as many as they could from the icy Atlantic waters, offering them shelter and basic necessities, and later collecting as many bodies as they could find.

The main character Rita Jolivet was a real person, as were many of the characters in the book. She was a rising actress in the new moving picture industry, and she survived the ship's sinking. The descriptions of the aftermath are horrendous. Highly recommended for readers of historical fiction.

The Lusitania

Rita Jolivet

Nobody's Baby by Olivia Waite

May 18, 2026

Nobody's Baby by Olivia Waite

Ship's detective Dorothy Gentleman is back for a new case, this time to solve a supposedly impossible mystery: the appearance of a baby on the interstellar luxury cruise ship the Fairweather. On Old Earth, babies were a common enough occurrence, but all the passengers on the ship have been modified to prevent such an event until they read their final port. So how did this happen, and more importantly, who made it happen? With the ship's limited space and resources, Dorothy needs to solve the mystery and make sure it doesn't happen again.

The second adventure for Dorothy Gentleman, ship's detective on the luxury star liner Fairweather. I love the world that the author is creating and want to know more about life aboard the ship, the passengers, and how they all came together. Also about Ferry, the ship's AI who (sort of) controls everything aboard the ship. Dorothy's nephew Ruthie and his husband John are delightful characters (John is a master mixologist who mixes cocktails that evoke a certain time or place, such as a sunset on a summer evening, which would be nice, since most cocktails evoke poor decisions and regret). A quirky read but in a good way. Looking forward to more Dorothy adventures.

Also, can someone please tell me what port this ship leaves from? I want to book a stateroom right away.

Many thanks to Edelweiss and the publisher for providing an eARC for review.

Cleopatra by Saara El-Arifi

May 11, 2026

Cleopatra by Saara El-Arifi

Cleopatra never expected to be pharaoh but after the death of her older sister, she became her father's heir. After his early death, Cleopatra became pharaoh, ruling jointly with her half-brother. But she would face almost constant turmoil during her reign, as well as plots to overthrow her from those closest to her.

Most of what we "know" about Cleopatra comes from the writings of Josephus and Cicero, as well as writers who lived under Augustan rule, long after Cleopatra's death. From the start of her reign, Cleopatra was not popular with the Egyptian people, partly because she was a woman and partly because of the turmoil in Egypt at the time, which included famine, climate disasters, financial troubles, attempted coups by her siblings, and ongoing wars. Ruling jointly with first one of her half-brothers, and then her second half-brother, suspicion immediately fell on Cleopatra when both died under mysterious circumstances. Cleopatra was a patron of the arts and literature, tolerant of religious freedom, a capable administrator and commander of Egypt's military, but those contributions are largely ignored, and male historians focus on her love affairs (of which there were only two) and her physical appearance.

I didn't enjoy the writing style here as much as other books that I've read about women from ancient history (such as Clytemnestra by Costanza Casati or Pat Barker's Trojan women trilogy), I think because there was more telling than showing. There is a lot of description about what Cleopatra was wearing. But the eternal mystery surrounding Cleopatra's life will appeal to readers of historical fiction.

Note: there is an archaeologist who has been searching for Cleopatra's tomb for about 20 years. She thinks she has narrowed down the possibilities and is close to locating Cleopatra's resting place.

This is believed to be an actual depiction of Cleopatra from one of the temples. 

Life: a Love Story by Elizabeth Berg

May 7, 2026

Life: a Love Story by Elizabeth Berg

Florence Greene is 92 years old and has just been told that she is terminally ill, with only a few months to live. Widowed and childless, Flo has always known that she will bequeath everything she has to Ruthie, who lived next door while she was growing up. Flo begins to write Ruthie a letter to tell her about some of the things that she saves over the years, things that wouldn't seem important to anyone else, and why. Along the way, Flo also has some life lessons to impart.

A feel-good read about life, friendship, relationships, and forgiveness, and about enjoying your life, even if it isn't perfect (especially when it isn't perfect). Flo's memories are written in sections of a long letter, explaining about the small things that made her life so wonderful, even if someone looking at her life from the outside might not think so, as well as the importance of paying attention to small things. Recommended for readers of literary fiction.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an eARC for review.