Monday, October 24, 2016

Queen of the Flowers by Kerry Greenwood

This post is way overdue. See, my avid reader book brain read this, took photos of it (for posting here and on Instagram) and then forgot about it. Totally. When I last posted about a Phryne Fisher mystery and I was linking up my previous reviews and I was kinda confused because I thought I was missing one and I was! It was this lovely book!

This was actually the second Phryne Fisher mystery I read, and I loved it. I'm pretty sure that this book was actually the basis of one of the episodes of the show that I've seen which was pretty cool. 

This book follows Phryne as she prepares for the Queen of the Flowers parade. Her adopted daughters are behaving a little strangely and the circus is in town. This mystery comes with handmaidens, an old fiddler/lover from her past and an old friend who has three elephants. It's a menagerie of strange and interesting and it'll take some turns down memory lane before it's all sorted out. The fashion, the lifestyle, the old time 20's feel is there in spades. It's got that mix of high society and low down crime all wrapped into one great book.

The biggest thing I love about these books is that they feel exactly like I'm watching the t.v. show. Every time I have to put the book down to go do something else, and I come back, it feels like I had just hit pause on the show and now I'm back. 

Recommendation: Each and every time I write about these books, I urge you to read them or at least watch the show. It's just a great series that is really just a treat for your mystery loving mind. 



Friday, October 21, 2016

Closed Casket by Sophie Hannah

This is the newest Hercule Poirot novel by Sophie Hannah. This is the second one she has written and I didn't even know it existed! If it wasn't for some of you awesome people over on bookstagram that had snapped it up and photographed it, I would have totally missed this one!

Now, I love any and all Poirot stories. Doesn't matter if it's an Agatha Christie or by another authorized author like Sophie Hannah, I eat it up. This one I ate up so very fast as soon as I got it in my hands.

This one has all the hallmarks of an Agatha Christie. There's a strange cast of characters, over heard conversations, multiple mysteries inside of mysteries... all the good things we love from a Poirot.

I was a little disappointed though. I really liked it, but... it just wasn't the greatest. I felt like there could have been more Poirot. Like there could have been a lot more of him thinking, investigating, and doing his thing. I felt like too much was revealed by the side characters and not enough was ferreted out by the master.

That said, you need to read this. It was still such a good book. I am excited for the possibility of more from Sophie Hannah. I will never walk away from a Poirot mystery. It's just not possible. This one was good, but I think perhaps I'm picky when it comes to the famous Belgian detective.

Recommendation: If you somehow haven't read this yet but you are a fan of Poirot, then go and read it. Right now. Seriously.

Tuesday, October 18, 2016

The Fringe Hours by Jessica N. Turner

Almost two years ago (I think?) I was working a lot and I felt like I wasn't making enough time for the things I wanted to do. I really wanted to know how some people can just do it all. I came across this book while exploring around Instagram and at the time I thought it was just the thing I was looking for.

I bought it on sale and then it waited on my shelf all this time. Things happened in life around that time that gave me more time then I knew what to do with so this book really wasn't necessary then. I almost gave it away but I kept it and I'm happy that I did.

I read this one recently, and I have to say, it did have some really good points. It definitely caused me to pause and think about the way I was treating myself and my needs. Nothing really earth shattering though, but good.

Now, if you are a wife and mother this book is totally for you, and that it was written with you in mind. Since I am neither of those things, it was harder for me to relate to some of the stories and anecdotes in the book, but I did get a general idea and spirit behind the messages. I did wish that the book could have possibly touched more on the working, late twenties/early thirties, childless women of the world who have hopes and dreams, but that's okay.

The other thing that was a little weird for me was how religious it got in a few places. I'm not really a religious person and some of it was a bit of a waste on me because I really couldn't connect with the material, but it wasn't a really big issue.

Recommendation: This is for the working wife and mother who needs to learn to give herself permission to have some me time. This is a great resource for you. For the rest of us, this isn't a bad piece of advice. You just have to be patient and take the gems of wisdom where they lie.

Tuesday, October 4, 2016

The Library at Mount Char by Scott Hawkins


This book was something else.

I picked this up at the library mainly because I saw it mentioned on twitter by a pretty fantastic author Victoria Schawb (her latest book This Savage Song I'm sure you've heard about). She said it was one of the best books she's read lately so of course, when I spotted it in the flesh, I took it home to read.

According to my library, this book is science fiction. Part of me agrees and part of me doesn't think this is like any science fiction I've read before. It feels a little more fantasy with some mystery to me, but what do I know!

It's hard to explain the story to you so I'm not going to try. It's more than what the cover says it is, but it's so hard to explain even that. I suggest you look this one up online if you are curious.

Right off the bat, the very first sentence had me hooked. I had to know what was going on, I had to know more, I needed to read the whole thing. You're thrown into a story, almost in the middle, and you are to just follow along, believing everything you are told as a fact. This book shows you a different look on the world, on life in general, and takes you on a journey of the strange and different. Of strange and different characters, with strange and different paths in life.

There's murder, violence, love, friendship, magic, gods, power, family... everything. There is everything.

Some of it was hard to read and I did skip over a couple pages here and there but it's so worth the read. It's so weird and different that reading it is a totally different experience. It's the kind of book that you enjoy reading, but that you come out the other side of not knowing if you really like it, if you know what I mean. I am so glad I read it, and I would totally recommend it, but its a little darker and tougher of a read than most.

Apparently this is the first book by this author and holy crap, that's one hell of a first book. The way it was finished leads me to hope that there may be a second book which would be totally great because I have so many questions!

Recommendation: Read this. Just... read it. Honestly, it's nuts and weird and strange and great all at the same time. Do yourself a favour and just read it.