THE JAMES MASON COMMUNITY BOOK CLUB discussion
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WHAT BOOKS HAVE YOU FINISHED?
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by G.W. GreenIn this addition to the 'Agatha Raisin' series, the private detective investigates cases involving murder, theft, and drug dealing.
The book is written by R.W. Green, who continued the series after the death of his friend M.C. Beaton. Green does a good job.
3.5 stars
My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
The Cat Who Turned On And Off
by Lilian Jackson Braun (Cat Who ... #3) 4.0 starshttps://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
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Sicker in the Head: More Conversations about Life and Comedy by Judd ApatowComedian, writer, and director Judd Apatow interviews great comics and other people in the entertainment industry.
The book is fun, interesting, and informative. 4 stars
My review:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
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by Emily St. John MandelA Ponzi scheme is at the heart of this novel in which a young woman gets involved with a crooked billionaire who goes to prison. There's a touch of magical realism as the culprit is haunted by ghosts of his victims.
Good book by an excellent writer. 4 stars
My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
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by Margaret Atwood. 3.5 starshttps://www.goodreads.com/review/show..."
I liked this book.🙂
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by Damyanti BiswasIn this thriller, set in Mumbai, an Indian detective is trying to catch a serial killer.....but many powerful people don't want him to succeed.
Good police procedural in an interesting setting. 3.5 stars
My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Barbara wrote: "Bill wrote: "Hag-Seed: The Tempest Retold by Margaret Atwood. 3.5 starshttps://www.goodreads.com/review/show......"
I like most of Atwood's works; she is an excellent author.
My review of The Penguin Pool Murder
by Stuart Palmer 2.0 starshttps://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
My review of The Crossover
by Kwame Alexander. Excellent. 4.5 starshttps://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
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Promise Me by Harlan CobenIn this addition to the Myron Bolitar series, the professional rep/amateur sleuth searches for missing girls. The book works fine as a standalone.
My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
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by Michael ConnellyRetired septuagenarian Detective Harry Bosch agrees to volunteer on a cold case squad run by his former partner Detective Renee Ballard. Harry hopes to resolve a family murder that still haunts him.
Harry's still got it. 🙂 Good story. 3.5 stars
My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
The Return of Tarzan
by Edgar Rice Burroughs (Tarzan #2) 3.0 starshttps://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
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by C.J. TudorIn this departure from her usual style, thriller-writer C. J. Tudor has penned a triple 'locked room mystery' set in the midst of a viral pandemic.
Very clever book. 4 stars
My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Idoru
by William Gibson (The Bridge #2) Excellent story 5.0 starshttps://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
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by A.K. AllissIn this fake history novel, James Dean and Elvis Presley get into big trouble when they try to investigate Marilyn Monroe's death.
Fun thriller with drama and laughs. 3.5 stars
My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Above the Pacific: Three Medal of Honor Fighter Aces of World War II Speak by Colin D. Heaton
In Above the Pacific, Colin Heaton, a military historian who has interviewed some of the most distinguished aviators (Allied and Axis) of World War II, conducted a series of interviews with 3 Medal of Honor winners who were distinguished fighter aces and leaders during the Pacific War. Two of them --- Gregory "Pappy" Boyington and Joe Foss -- were Marine pilots who had seen considerable combat from China (where Boyington had a combat stint with the American Volunteer Group, aka The Flying Tigers) to the South Pacific.
The third pilot Heaton interviewed was Captain David McCampbell of the U.S. Navy, a prewar graduate of the Naval Academy, who holds the record as the Navy's top ace, having shot down 34 Japanese planes during his combat tour (April - December 1944) with Air Group 15, operating from the carrier Essex. McCampbell distinguished himself in a single action in October 1944, when he and his wingman took on 60 enemy planes intent on attacking the U.S. fleet. During this action, McCampbell shot down 9 planes and his wingman downed 6 of the enemy.
Heaton does a fine job of outlining the various campaigns in which the 3 pilots were involved, as well as identifying the names of some of the officers under whom Boyington, Foss, and McCampbell served during their military careers.
What's more: Above the Pacific is highly readable, with each man given the freedom to speak plainly and honestly about himself and his World War II service
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[bookcover:Above the Pacific: Three Medal of Honor Fighter Aces of Wo..."
Sounds interesting.
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by Linda ReillyIn this 'grilled cheese' cozy mystery, restaurateur/amateur sleuth Carly Hale gets involved in two investigations: a murder and a missing person.
(Story includes recipes.)
Fun cozy. 3 stars
My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Murder by Matchlight
by E.C.R. Lorac (Inspector MacDonald #26) (4.0 stars)https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
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by T. Jefferson ParkerA former DEA sniffer dog named Joe is adopted by a journalist who thinks he's a Mexican street dog. Lots of people want Joe for various reasons.
Good thriller. Fun twist: Joe can 'talk' (by way of his thoughts).
3.5 stars
My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
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There Are Places in the World Where Rules Are Less Important Than Kindness by Carlo RovelliIn this collection of essays, theoretical physicist Rovelli writes about scholars and scientists who've influenced him as well as a wide variety of other topics.
Very interesting and informative. 4 stars
My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
The Cometeers
by Jack Williamson (Legion of Space #2) 2.0 stars. Entertaining but no classichttps://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
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by Gregg Andrew HurwitzFormer assassin Evan Smoak (Orphan X) is on the government's radar, but the U.S. President offers Evan a deal. Kill a billionaire business mogul/political influencer who threatens her re-election or go to prison.
Action-packed thriller with favorite recurring characters. 3.5 stars
My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
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by Robert GalbraithIn this addition to the series, private detectives Cormoran Strike and Robin Ellacott try to identify an online troll and track down a killer.
Good book. 4 stars
My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
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by Jonathan KellermanIn this addition to the (long-running) series, psychologist Alex Delaware helps LAPD Detective Milo Sturgis investigate the death of a photographer.
Good police procedural. 3.5 stars
My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
A neat little mystery, The Better to Eat You
by Charlotte Armstrong (1954) 4.0 starshttps://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Today I finished reading "Pretend I'm Not Here: How I Worked with Three Newspaper Icons, One Powerful First Lady, and Still Managed to Dig Myself Out of the Washington Swamp" by Barbara Feinman Todd, a Georgetown University professor.
I was made aware of this book quite by accident a few weeks ago. I was watching a YouTube video of an interview Barbara Feinman Todd had given about the famous Washington Post Executive Editor Ben Bradlee from the HBO documentary The Newspaperman: The Life and Times of Ben Bradlee in which she gave a brief mention of Pretend I'm Not Here. That piqued my curiosity about the book, which I was delighted to find was available in my local library.
In Pretend I'm Not Here, Feinman Todd takes the reader on a journey through her journalistic career, which began with The Washington Post in the early 1980s. She, a recent graduate from UC Berkeley, was hired by The Post as a temporary 'copy aide', one of the lowliest jobs at the paper. By dint of hard work and showing a willingness to take on challenging assignments at The Post, Feinman Todd made the acquaintance of Bob Woodward of Watergate fame after being selected by him to serve as a researcher in the paper's investigative unit. Her work there would lead to Feinman Todd later serving as Woodward's personal researcher, contributing to his 1988 best-selling book 'Veil: The Secret Wars of the CIA 1981-1987.' What's more: Feinman Todd would subsequently be introduced to Ben Bradlee, for whom she worked as a personal researcher for his 1995 autobiography, 'A Good Life: Newspapering and Other Adventures.'
Feinman Todd went on to work as a ghost writer for a number of notable people in Washington including Senator Bob Kerrey and First Lady Hillary Clinton. Her reflections on what ghost writing entails and the ups and downs she experienced in the role of ghost writer were raw and refreshingly candid.
All in all, a delightful book to read.
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I often wonder what books have ghostwriters and what it's like to be a ghostwriter. Sounds like this book has some insight. 🙂
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by William LandayWhen a mother of three disappears - and her husband is suspected of killing her - how do the children deal with the situation?
Good story. 3.5 stars
My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Adulthood Rites
by Octavia E. Butler (Xenogenesis #2 / 1988)https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Enola Holmes: The Graphic Novels: The Case of the Missing Marquess, The Case of the Left-Handed Lady, and The Case of the Bizarre Bouquets
by Serena Blasco 4.0 starshttps://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Wigs on the Green
is a fluffy social comedy in the vein of Waugh and Wodehouse, but without the sophistication. Had a Mitford not written this book, then suppressed it from publication for decades, it likely would be a period oddity nearly forgotten by time. But a Mitford did write it, and the Mitfords are a minor industry now, so here it is. Approach it with lowered expectations and you'll likely get a few giggles out of it. Three Pimm's cups.Read the full review here.
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How High We Go in the Dark by Sequoia NagamatsuThe book is structured as a series of connected stories that explore people's response to a deadly virus released from the Arctic tundra because of global warming. Goodreads lists it as one of the best sci-fi novels of 2022.
It's pretty good, but I'd call it sci-fi lite. 3.5 stars
My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
A Prayer for the Crown-Shy
by Becky Chambers (Monk & Robot #2) 4.5 starshttps://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
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Tremors in the Blood: Murder, Obsession and the Birth of the Lie Detector by Amit KatwalaAmit Katwala traces the invention of the polygraph machine, the men who were instrumental in its development, and some true crime cases where it was used.
Interesting book. 4 stars
My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
A few hours ago, I finished reading "Henry ‘Chips’ Channon: The Diaries (Volume 3): 1943-57" ed. by Simon Heffer.
It is the final volume of diaries that 'Chips' Channon (1897-1958) --- a naturalized British citizen (born in Chicago) and Oxford University graduate who married into one of the wealthiest families in the UK and was elected to Parliament in 1935 --- had kept for most of his adult life.
I spent close to 3 months immersed in a world long gone, in which Channon regularly associated with much of British high society, the leading UK political figures of the day, as well as British and European royalty.
Volume 3 comes in at 1,092 pp. (outside of the Index), and is chock full of photos and footnotes, which further illustrate the various personalities and historical events that took place at this stage of Channon's life.
What a journey! I enjoyed the experience.
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by David RosenfeltThe private detectives that call themselves the K Team investigate the murder of a police officer and an alleged murder-suicide.
Humorous cozy-ish mystery. 3.5 stars
My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
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by Louise PennyChief Inspector Armand Gamache faces off against an old foe in this thriller, which is filled with assaults, murders, and corrupt cops.
Good addition to the series. 3.5 stars
My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
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Justice Is Served: A Tale of Scallops, the Law, and Cooking for Rbg by Leslie KarstLawyer and food enthusiast Leslie Karst gets to cook dinner for Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg in this entertaining memoir.
Plenty of food and wine talk....and recipes. 4 stars
My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
The Case of The Screaming Woman
by Erle Stanley Gardner 3.0 starshttps://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Finished reading "Masters of the Air: The Great War Pilots McLeod, McKeever, and MacLaren" by Roger Gunn
This book tells the stories (with photos) of 3 of Canada's most distinguished combat pilots from World War I: Alan McLeod, Andrew McKeever, and Donald MacLaren.
Finished reading "Acceptance: A Memoir" by Emi Nietfeld.
This is the story of a young woman (Emi Nietfeld) who came from a very dysfunctional family in Minnesota (her mother was an inveterate hoarder, who while being at turns convinced of her daughter's intelligence, showed an inability to provide Emi with a healthy and secure home and unconditional love and full emotional support; Emi's father had largely absented himself from her life after divorcing her mother and coming out as trans), went through foster care (which didn't always serve her best interests), endured self-harm issues, and mental health challenges. All the while what sustained Emi was her determination to gain admittance into a Ivy League school, which she believed would wholly transform her life for the better and liberate her from her past.
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This is the story of a young woman (Emi Nietfeld) who came fro..."
What a harrowing childhood. Sounds like Emi had the drive to overcome it though.
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THE JAMES MASON COMMUNITY BOOK CLUB
Books mentioned in this topic
The Skull Mantra (other topics)Murder With Chocolate Tea (other topics)
The Left Hand of Darkness (other topics)
The Good Neighbors (other topics)
Listen for the Lie (other topics)
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Authors mentioned in this topic
Eliot Pattison (other topics)Karen Rose Smith (other topics)
Holly Black (other topics)
Amy Tintera (other topics)
Rachel Hawkins (other topics)
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