Old School Indian by Aaron John Curtis

July 12, 2025

Old School Indian by Aaron John Curtis

Suffering from a rare autoimmune disease that will kill him within two years, Abe Jacobs returns to his family home on the reservation where he grew up. Abe dreamed of becoming a poet, but after his work was rejected by a number of publishers, he quit writing. He hasn't lived on the reservation since he left for college 25 years earlier, but now, desperate for a cure or at least something that will send the disease into remission, Abe agrees to allow his great uncle Budge to try to heal him, who teaches him that healing is not possible without hope and knowing yourself. 

There is a lot to unpack here. It's not a light read or a happy book, although many of the characters handle their situations through humor. Themes include family, cultural identity, tradition, mortality, various kinds of loss, and survival. Food plays a large role, in the ceremony of preparation, as an offering or tribute, and the act of gathering for meals. Lovely language and writing. In addition to telling a story, the author also describes trauma inflicted on indigenous peoples: forced sterilization, relocation and segregation, loss of culture, sexual violence. There are graphic descriptions of violence and sex, so more sensitive readers should be warned.

You should be aware of an organization called Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women that publicizes the violence committed against Native American women and girls, and tracks their cases. In North America, about 16% of all missing or murdered women and girls are Native American, while they make up only 4% of the population.

A Native American healing ceremony

Like Mother, Like Mother by Susan Rieger

July 10, 2025

Like Mother, Like Mother by Susan Rieger

Lila Pereira is an unconventional mother, focusing on her career as the executive editor of a major newspaper and leaving the raising of their daughters to her husband Joe and household help. But her youngest daughter Grace yearns for a regular mother who goes to PTA meetings, bakes cupcakes and takes her to soccer practice. After Lila's death, Grace receives a letter that Lila left her, telling her to go find out what really happened to Lila's mother, who disappeared when Lila was a toddler. Grace realizes how little she actually knows about her mother's family and wonders if you can ever know yourself if you don't know your past.

Part 1 is Lila and Joe's story, and I loved it. But the last 2/3 of the book is mostly about Grace, the youngest daughter, a real whiner and completely unlikeable, probably the least interesting character in the book. When I first started reading it, I thought it would appeal to readers who enjoyed Ann Patchett or Ann Napolitano, but the last two thirds morphed into something more like Sally Rooney, with a bunch of characters under 30 who are completely self-centered and unaware (putting your life on hold for five years to start a podcast???? Or "I can't ask her to marry me until she gives me the signal"???? What does that even mean????). It takes until around the 85% mark for the search for Lila's mother to begin, and then it is anti-climatic. Disappointing.

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

Glamorous Notions by Megan Chance

March 27, 2025

Glamorous Notions by Megan Chance

Elsie Gruner escaped her family’s hog farm in rural Ohio by eloping with an aspiring actor. They travel across the country to Hollywood, earning money by hustling players at pool halls. When they arrive in Hollywood, Elsie takes a job in a cafe while her husband Walt struggles to break into the movies. But Walt is just a hustler, a mediocre actor who only gets small parts. Elsie dreams of being a dress designer and she gets her chance  when she wins an internship to an American art school in Rome. But Elsie is soon swept up in a dangerous game that threatens to end her budding career almost before it starts.

The 1950s are one of my least favorite eras to read about, because of the paranoia, the persecution, and the super-rigid morality. Anyone who wasn’t mainstream was wrong - if you associated with anyone who had subversive views, your job and your future could be in serious trouble. Gossip could ruin your life. Elsie/Lena, the main character, is extremely naive and is caught up first by a con man and later by a spy ring. A little too much description of costumes and studio in-fighting and name dropping, which made the narrative drag. Disappointing, not as good as the author’s earlier books. 

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

Film studio circa 1950

The Lost Passenger by Frances Quinn

March 12, 2025

The Lost Passenger by Frances Quinn

Elinor is a young woman from a very wealthy Manchester manufacturing family. So she is surprised when she and her father are invited to attend an elegant ball given by one of the local aristocrats that they barely know. At the ball, Elinor meets a charming young man who turns out to be the heir to a title and an estate. After a whirlwind courtship, they marry and move to his family's home, where Elinor quickly learns that her real attraction was her father's money to save their crumbling estate. Furthermore, she is told that people of the upper classes don't marry for love and to learn to "rub along" with the husband she now detests. But a few years after her marriage, Elinor is delighted when her father purchases tickets for himself, Elinor, her husband, their son, and Elinor's maid on the maiden voyage a grand new ship: The Titanic.

Have you heard the old saying "marry in haste, repent in leisure?" Yeah, that's this story. When the opportunity arises, the main character Elinor makes a brave decision to take control of her life. I love a good Titanic book and while the Titanic is the setting, the most compelling part of the story is Elinor's struggle to build a new life in New York as she deals with the constant fear of discovery of her deception as well as survivor's guilt. Years ago, I read a terrific book called Amanda/Miranda by Richard Pec, also set on the Titanic. Unfortunately that book has been diluted down to a short novel for young adults, but if you can find a copy of the original novel, I highly recommend it.

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

RMS Titanic, probably the most famous ship in the world

The House of Hidden Meanings by RuPaul

April 28, 2024

The House of Hidden Meanings by RuPaul

Long before he became the fabulous RuPaul, international drag superstar, he was a gay Black child with a mother who suffered from depression her entire life and a father who was largely AWOL. This is a memoir of growing up poor, Black and queer in San Diego and Atlanta, always feeling different and trying to find a place where he belonged. RuPaul discusses candidly his dysfunctional family, his struggles with drugs and alcohol, and his journey to find and accept his identity. If you're expecting a book with celebrity anecdotes, life as a drag queen, and behind-the-scenes dish, this is not that book.

RuPaul in character - I should have legs like that

The Last Murder at the End of the World by Stuart Turton

April 4, 2024

The Last Murder at the End of the World by Stuart Turton

The last 122 people on earth live in a village on an island at the end of the world - everyone else has been consumed by a mysterious fog. Technology is gone, the last of it buried somewhere beneath the island. All of the residents work for the greater good, managed by Abi, an artificial intelligence. No one lives beyond the age of 60 - when a villager dies, another appears to take their place. The deadly fog remains at bay, but they all fear that someday, the fog will consume them too. Equilibrium is maintained until a resident is murdered, and the fog suddenly begins to creep closer.

Stuart Turton writes mysteries that are anything but ordinary. I refer to them as "thinking person mysteries," with stories that are complex and original. Like the author's previous books, this one is edgy and a blend of dystopia, sci fi, and mystery. It's a "locked room" mystery, where a group of people are isolated from the outside, and one of them must be the murderer, but it seems to be impossible that any of them did it. Hints of the television series LOST and also The Prisoner. I could have used a map of the island since it was sometimes difficult to picture where the characters were at times in relation to the village and the bay. Not for someone looking for a traditional mystery, but will appeal to readers who like fiction that is "out there."

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

A foggy island at the end of the world

The Berry Pickers by Amanda Peters

January 17, 2024

The Berry Pickers by Amanda Peters

While her family is picking berries on a farm, a Native American child goes missing. Her family searches for her desperately without success. In alternate chapters, one of the little girl's brothers and a child named Norma tell the story of a family dealing with incredible loss.

A slow moving character driven story that asks the question, how much are we shaped by our heritage and culture? I found the storyline to be predictable - by the end of the third chapter, I was pretty sure how the story would unwind. Sad, filled with various types of loss. This would be a good book club choice since there are many topics to discuss. Will appeal to readers who enjoy Jodi Picoult or are in the mood for a good cry.

Pickers on a blueberry farm

The Lost Girls of Willowbrook by Ellen Marie Wiseman

October 27, 2023

The Lost Girls of Willowbrook by Ellen Marie Wiseman

Sage Winters has always known that her twin sister Rosemary died of pneumonia when they were children. But at age 16, Sage learns that her sister didn't die and is living at the Willowbrook School, a school for children with special needs. She learns that Rosemary vanished from the school a few days earlier, and Sage is determined to go to the school to find her twin.

Based on a true story. My hair stylist's oldest sister was a resident at Willowbrook in the 1970s, which was how I originally heard about it. The first third of the book is mostly about how terrible the conditions were at the school, and it takes a while for the plot to get moving. The main character is pretty dense for someone who is supposed to be street smart. I started with this novel as an audiobook, but I switched to the ebook version because I could skim over the slower parts. The story moves a lot slower than in Wiseman's earlier books. Geraldo Rivera did a prize-winning expose about living conditions at the school, which were truly horrible, with most of the residents contracting hepatitis and other diseases due to the filthy living conditions and lack of care. Definitely has a YA feel to it. Meh.

Willowbrook State School, New York

The Heiress by Rachel Hawkins

October 23, 2023

The Heiress by Rachel Hawkins

When she was a toddler, Ruby McTavish went missing from a family picnic in the mountains near their North Carolina home. Missing for almost a year, there was always speculation whether the child who was returned to the family was really Ruby. Almost 70 years later, Ruby's adopted son gets an email telling him that it's time for a reckoning and he needs to come home.

Psychological suspense with multiple plot twists. Just when you think you know what's going on, there is a twist in the story. Also, all of the narrators are unreliable! I like this novel much more than the author's previous book The Villa. If you liked The Maid's Diary with its twisty plot, multiple narrators, and dual timeline, you'll enjoy Hawkins' upcoming book.

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

North Carolina mountains

The Maid's Diary by Loreth Anne White

August 30, 2023

The Maid's Diary by Loreth Anne White

Vancouver BC, Halloween night, 2019. A couple engaged in an illicit affair park in a secluded spot near the river to have sex, but they are interrupted when two other cars pull into the area. Two people get out of the cars and haul something out of the backseat of one car and throw it in the river. Then they push one of the cars into the river, get back in the second car, and drive away. Near midnight in a wealthy Vancouver neighborhood, an elderly woman calls 911 to say she heard a woman screaming in the house next door. When police arrive, the house looks like a bloodbath but there are a lot of unknowns: who is the victim? where are the homeowners? is the maid seen earlier in the day involved? who were the couple seen visiting around dinner time? was it accident, suicide, or murder?

Very good psychological fiction with an unreliable narrator and plenty of unlikeable characters. Kit Darling is a maid with a snooping problem that is going to land her in trouble one day, serious trouble. There are some really unexpected twists. You think you have the story figured out, but then something else happens to make you wonder what is really going on. Highly recommended if you want a story that will mess with your mind.

Vancouver BC

The Nature of Fragile Things by Susan Meissner

May 1, 2023

The Nature of Fragile Things by Susan Meissner

Sophie Whalen, an Irish immigrant living in New York, answers a newspaper advertisement for a mail order bride, then travels to San Francisco to meet the man she has agreed to marry. Martin Hocking is a handsome widower with a small child who needs a mother since he travels for business. Sophie has always wanted a child and is so happy with little Kat that she accepts her strange marriage and strange husband. But a year after their marriage, a pregnant woman shows up at Sophie's door, claiming that Martin is her husband as well, but under a different name. But Martin isn't the only one living a lie - Sophie also has secrets that she fears will destroy her carefully constructed life if they were to become known.

Well-researched historical novel set against the backdrop of the 1906 San Francisco earthquake. There is wonderful detail about how the upper middle class lived in the early 20th century. Although the sociopath husband is the story's catalyst, it is predominantly about the women that he has used so carelessly, who band together and pick up their lives and go on. Most of the stories threads are wound in at the end, but it is never really clear why Martin wanted a mail order bride from the east coast or why he married Sophie - at least one character notes that he could have hired a nanny and a housekeeper. Will appeal to readers of Kate Morton and Diane Chamberlain. 

An Impossible Imposter by Deanna Raybourn

April 25, 2022

An Impossible Imposter by Deanna Raybourn

London 1889 - Recently returned from attending a royal wedding in Europe, Veronica Speedwell and her partner Stoker (aka Revelstoke Templeton-Vane) are summoned by Sir Hugh Montgomerie to investigate a delicate matter. A man named Jonathan, believed to have been killed in the eruption of Krakatoa in Indonesia in 1883, appears at his family home, claiming amnesia. He has the "dead" man's belongings and matches his general description. The family members are uncertain whether he really is the missing Jonathan. His teenaged sister and elderly grandmother are the only family members who ever met the man in person, and while the grandmother is positive that he's her grandson, the sister is less sure. It's important for them to find out, because the missing man was the heir to the family fortune and the country house where they now all live. 

I love the Veronica Speedwell series, and in this volume, we learn more about Veronica's past beyond her connection to the royal family. But the more we learn about Veronica, the more mysteries there are! Her relationship with Stoker is growing deeper and is one of the best things about the mysteries, considering I'm not much into romance novels. The peripheral characters are all entertaining and well-conceived. Looking forward to the next book.

The volcano on Krakatoa blew up in 1883, so there aren't any photographs from that time - this is Krakatoa today.

Secluded Cabin Sleeps Six by Lisa Unger

September 26, 2022

Secluded Cabin Sleeps Six by Lisa Unger

Hannah and her husband Bruce along with two other couples decide to go away for a long weekend at an isolated cabin. Hannah isn't wild about the idea since it means leaving their toddler home with Grandma, but she thinks her husband might be cheating on her and this will be a chance to reconnect. All six of them have secrets from their partners and each other. The cabin is opulent but creepy, the property is creepy, the host is creepy, even the private chef is creepy. And there's a hurricane bearing down on them. As well as a maniac.

I just finished two novels that were literary fiction, so I needed something different, a change of pace, so I decided to try Lisa Unger's upcoming suspense novel. This is the first book I've read where the plot depends so heavily on DNA technology. 

People should know better by now than to go someplace that is basically cut off from civilization, especially when your companions are more like frenemies than friends. You know it's not going to end well. What's so great about being off the grid and unable to use your cell phone or computer??? 

Most of the characters were annoying and the ending was a little too neat. There are two story lines and it was interesting to see how they tied together. Overall, I wasn't that wowed, but fans of suspense fiction will like it.

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

A  secluded rustic cabin, opulent but possibly creepy

The Deepest Grave by Jeri Westerson

October 13, 2021

The Deepest Grave by Jeri Westerson

There is something strange going on at St. Modwen's church in London. Someone or something has been disturbing the graves in the churchyard. The terrified priest calls Crispin Guest, the Tracker, to the scene to investigate. Crispin suspects that it's the living rather than the departed who are to blame for the trouble. At the same time, his former lover Philippa needs his help. Her seven year old son Christopher has been accused of murder and attempting to steal a relic from a neighbor. Crispin needs to prove the boy's innocence before the sheriffs hang him (yes, in the 14th century, children were executed if convicted of a serious crime).

This is the 11th book in the Crispin Guest mysteries and it is one of the best. Old characters return, there are a pair of new sheriffs who are a good contrast to each other, and Crispin finds himself the patriarch of his household as he approaches the ripe old age of 40, with Jack and his wife Isabel and their growing brood of children (who adore Crispin).

St. Modwen or Modwenna

The Disappearing Act by Catherine Steadman

July 1, 2021

The Disappearing Act by Catherine Steadman

Mia Eliot is an English starlet looking for her break-through role. She has had some success in England and her agent arranges for her to audition for several potential roles during pilot week in Hollywood. While at one of the auditions, she meets another actor named Emily, who leaves some personal items with Mia and then disappears. Mia is the last person to have seen her and the more she tries to track her down, the more she begins to wonder if Emily really exists or if it is all a hoax.

This one had an interesting premise and usually I really like books about missing persons, but I had problems with the plot almost from the start. The main character is TSTL (romance novel-speak for Too Stupid To Live). She makes the worst possible decision at every turn. Yes, I realize that if characters in novels made sensible choices, there would be no story and the book would be four pages long. But come on - characters need to exercise SOME brain power for the reader to feel something for them - you have to feel like they're trying. For example: if you knew someone intended to kill you, would anyone agree to meet that person at a remote location and then follow them to a place where there is NO chance anyone can help you or even hear you? I mean, seriously, suspense is one thing, pure undiluted stupidity is another.

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

Actors waiting to audition

Interior Chinatown by Charles Yu

February 3, 2020

Today is National Golden Retriever Day!  Go hug a golden (or any dog)!

My Luke

Interior Chinatown by Charles Yu

Willis Wu works as an extra in a TV police drama called Black and White, as Generic Asian Man.  Even in his personal life, he sees himself as Generic Asian Man.  His career goal is to become Kung Fu Guy, which he considers to be the pinnacle for an Asian actor.  He lives in the SRO (single room occupancy) housing above the Golden Palace Chinese restaurant along with other Asian Americans who are bit players for the TV show, since many of the scenes are filmed at the restaurant.  Willis works in the restaurant when he needs to (such as the times when his character “dies” and he can’t work on the show for 45 days).  Inside his head, Willis lives in an interior Chinatown:  although he is American-born and educated, he can’t seem to find his place in the world, except against a Chinatown backdrop, and he sees himself and the Asian Americans around him as stereotypes that America has cast for them (such as Old Asian Man or Restaurant Hostess).

The plot blends the storyline of a television drama with Willis’ life, written in a script-like format with a Courier font that mimics an old-fashioned typewriter, and eventually the two storylines get tangled into a single jumble.  The narrative style forces the reader to look at stereotypes both “on” and “off” screen and consider the stereotypes in our own lives and how we see others.  Should appeal to readers who enjoy Dave Eggers or Paul Beatty.

(When we were kids, there was a TV program for a few seasons called Kung Fu – I think the whole Carradine family acted in the show.  The main character was a half-Chinese monk being played by a white guy.  My brothers didn’t care much about the story line but really got into the martial arts fighting.  My youngest brother convinced my mother to buy him a kimono style robe, and he would leap out of his bedroom wearing it, give a kung fu yell, and kick-box his way down the hall.  Just a fond memory, grasshopper.)