Bookshops and Bonedust by Travis Baldree

August 29, 2023

Bookshops and Bonedust by Travis Baldree

As a young orc, Viv was injured when she was with a band of warriors pursuing a necromancer named Varine. While recuperating in a seaside town, she meets a rattkin bookseller named Fern and her pet gryphet Potroast. Viv also strikes up a romance with Maylee, the owner of the local bakery. But one of Varine's henchman is seen lurking about the town, and Viv knows that the day is coming when she will have to face down Varine, and only one of them will survive.

A prequel to Legends and Lattes that fills in some of Viv's backstory including how she met some of her fighting companions, also how she got her sword. Two of the best characters are Satchel the homunculous skeleton and Potroast the gryphet (a gryphet is half dog, half bird)! One of the things that Viv learns is that when there are people you care about and who care about you, it's easier for your enemies to get at your weak spots. She also learns about the magic and power of books. Very enjoyable and creative, recommended for fantasy readers.

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

It's Potroast the gryphet!

Legends and Lattes by Travis Baldree

August 28, 2023

Legends and Lattes by Travis Baldree

When retired orc warrior Viv decides to open a coffeehouse in the city of Thune, she has no idea of the challenges she will face. But in her last job as a fighting orc, she secured a magic stone known as the Scalvert's Stone which she believes will bring her good luck and guarantee success. She hires a talented young succubus as a shop assistant (and is somewhat distracting) and a rattkin baker who is a genius when it comes to pastry. The shop gains a regular clientele, which attracts the attention of the local gang, who come around to shake Viv down for protection money. There is a dire-cat (a creature that looks like a house cat but is bigger than a wolf) that shows up at unexpected times. Plus old acquaintances from Viv's fighting days keep popping up, some welcome, others not so much. Viv has to figure out how to deal with all of it, while still serving coffee and pastries to the working folk of Thune.

Fun creative fantasy with good characters and a little LGBTQ thrown in. Who would ever think to write a cheerful fantasy novel with a rather charming orc protagonist? Amity the dire-cat and Thimble the rattkin are wonderful creations. Looking forward to the next book to find out more about Viv and her friends. Recommended for anyone who enjoys fantasy or is looking for a fantasy that isn't about a quest or saving a fantasy kingdom.

A female orc

The River We Remember by William Kent Krueger

August 26, 2023

The River We Remember by William Kent Krueger

Memorial Day 1958. The citizens of Jewel, Minnesota, gather to remember those killed in the country's wars. But the festivities are interrupted when the body of a wealthy but unpopular resident is found floating in the river. Suicide, accident or murder? If it's murder, Sheriff Brody Dern has no shortage of suspected, since many locals had a reason to hate the victim.

This is a stand-alone novel, not part of the author's mystery series. The plot is complicated, and there are a lot of characters, so many that I started keeping a list of their relation to the dead man. The river is a character on its own, since so many scenes are enacted on its banks. Ultimately the story is about the human condition that we all share - almost all of the characters experience some kind of loneliness or alone-ness, and many are still traumatized by the wars of the the 20th century. While I didn't enjoy it as much as This Tender Land, it is still a remarkable novel, highly recommended to readers of literary fiction.

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

Minnesota river

The House Witch by Delemhach

August 23, 2023

The House Witch by Delemhach

Finlay Ashowan is a house witch who serves as cook to the king and queen of Daxaria. Fin and his familiar, a kitten named Kraken, just want everyone to stay out of the kitchen and let him get on with putting meals on the table. Fin is able to keep it all under control and his identity under wraps, until war is looming with a neighboring country. At the same time, he is drawn to a highborn lady far above his station.

Cooking? Yes. Fantasy? Yes. Sign me up. Light romantic fantasy. A lot of the humor is on the 14 year old boy level and the writing could have been more polished (how many times does the author need to describe Annika as a black-haired beauty?). The main character also delivers a number of soliloquies on respecting others, political correctness, etc., which got old. Note to writers: show, don't tell. Recommended only if you're a diehard fantasy fan who reads only fantasy.

The art of kitchen witchery

Tom Lake by Ann Patchett

August 22, 2023

Tom Lake by Ann Patchett

In a community theater production of Thornton Wilder's Our Town, Lara Kenison played the role of Emily when she was 16 years old. It becomes her defining role, and led her to a brief acting career that included commercials, a short-lived TV series, and a motion picture. While doing the part of Emily in summer stock in Tom Lake, Michigan, Lara met struggling actor Peter Duke, who would go on to become a famous movie star. Her adult daughters return to the family farm during the COVIC-19 lockdown and while they are picking cherries, the girls ask Lara to tell them about her acting career and her romance with Duke.

Multi-layered narrative that ponders the meaning of the past and how it shapes who we are. I usually run like crazy from books that are selected for one of those TV book clubs but I decided to give this one a try because I have read the author in the past. I loved the fact that Lara didn't regret or apologize for any of her choices. While Lara's story fascinates her children, it forces them to think about their parents' lives before they married and had children, and also about the direction of their own lives. I love Ann Patchett's writing, and while nothing can beat The Dutch House, Tom Lake is very good indeed. Highly recommended to anyone who enjoys literary fiction.

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

Cherry orchard in bloom in northern Michigan

Happiness Falls by Angie Kim

August 20, 2023

Happiness Falls by Angie Kim

Mia and her twin brother John live with their parents and their autistic brother Eugene in a suburb of Washington DC. Their father is a stay-at-home dad who provides much of Eugene's care. Even during the pandemic, he ensures that Eugene continues to receive the therapy he needs. One day, Dad takes Eugene to the local park for his therapy session but only one of them comes home.

Family drama with a twist of mystery. I thought this was going to be a missing person story, but it turned out to be a story about living with an autistic child. (I know you're not supposed to say this, but I don't like books with autistic characters.) The first half of the book held my interest but I found myself skimming the second half. It reminded me of something that would be a selection for Reese or Jenna's book club. If you like family dramas with lots of angst, this one is for you. If you're looking for a mystery or a missing person story, look elsewhere.

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

Assistive technology keyboard for autistic children

The Book of Lost Things by John Connolly

August 19, 2023

The Book of Lost Things by John Connolly

David lives with his father, his new stepmother, and his new half-brother. He is a lonely child, desperately missing his dead mother and feeling unwanted by the rest of the family. He loses himself in books, mainly fairy tales, until one night, he wanders into the garden following the sound of his mother's voice, and is swallowed by a tree. The tree turns out to be a portal to another world that David calls Elsewhere. There are familiar fairy tale figures but they appear and act differently than they did in the stories he read. David wants to go home more than anything, but first he has to find the king, who has a book that may hold the answer on how to get there.

Grimm's Fairy Tales (the original gruesome ones) meets the Wizard of Oz. David is on a quest where he meets people who help him and others who try to hinder him. He feels his mother's death is somehow his fault, even though she died after a long illness that sounds like cancer. At the same time, he feels abandoned, and that if he would just disappear, his father could have a new life with his new family.

I read this book when it first came out and decided to re-read it before I get the sequel (The Land of Lost Things). While there is a lot going on here about the psychology of fairy tales and mythology, you can also read the book just for the enjoyment of David's story. The sequel is coming out in the fall of 2023.

A fairy tale cottage