Posts

Showing posts from January, 2023
Image
In Stephanie's world everything is expanding.  When a fresh guy pushes himself against her, she becomes larger. And he, the problem, blows away. The larger the world becomes, the lonelier you become like a "fortress" in the middle of the sky. The world of others can bloom into minor stretches. Amazingly, the author can explode anything into large. In Terrace Story, there are gifts or talents. All that is needed  is a resourceful approach. Used well you can become a"fortress." But would you really wan to become One? Hillary Leicher widens our choices. If it is incomprehensible, just stay where you are and do not sweat alternatives. Stay. This is a complimentary copy from Ecco

Thief, Liar, Lady by D.L. Soria

Image
                                   This is the retelling of Cinderella. Now, we can choose the best one. This Cinderella named Aislinn is not in to pumpkins and mice, This one carries a lock picker in her little bag. Seraphina is the stepmother. She and Aislinn have traveled to a city thick with smog. It's a factory town at its best. When D.L. Soria goes so deeply in to the tedious reasons for war, I become upset. I suppose it is easy to travel too far from the land of fairy tales. Do not throw away the fairy tale while trying to make the audience emotionally involved with a new story. Besides, is Aislinn ugly or pretty? I feel a bit disappointed. This tale is not reaching my expectations.I do like the chase for Cross. No,I do not think he is hiding behind a rosebush. Yes, it has become too political.  My dislike has become like. Puppy has broken the ice.

Charred by G.P. Gotttlieb

Image
    Charred by  G. P. Gottlieb is frightful and fun. Aleene Baron is our main lady. She owns a cafe named "Whipped and Sipped." It's a small offshoot of the big city. When an awful crime  takes place, Aleene, her staff and friends begin to ask questions. Kofi Lloyd is a friend and artist of Aleene's. He gives people a new way  to look at the city through what he picks up on the street. He would not look at a paper plate in the same way as a passerby going to work or to a church. He makes of the city a Phoenix. "Charred"  happens during a significant time. The Coronavirus, with its social distancing and masks is the new way of life for everybody. Whether believed or not, whether frustrated or not it is a part of daily living. While learning new rules about relationships and such, murder comes to this quaint, little town. What is interesting is that the victims are wearing her company's jackets, and their pockets are stuffed with  napkins from

leaning toward light: Poems for Gardens & the Hands That Tend Them

Image
        Tess Taylor is the editor of a beautiful poetry book. She brings the garden into more light. Then,  gifts us  with the bounty of words, flowers and fruit. Wendell Berry is one of the many famous poets included in "Leaning Toward Light. There is no shame if a poet's words have never come through your lips or been heard by your unsealed ears. Now, today, is the time you waited anxiously for a new serendipitous moment.  Each poem spoons up its worthiness, it's celebration of light, soil and seed. Laura Villareal writes about uncontrolled happiness when the last days of  winter forks up beauty after a snow. Gerard Manley Hopkins looks afar and wonders what if. He is filled with praise for what we hold in our hands now. If we hush, there is the infinitesimal movement of a new bud. Again, there is Tess Taylor writing about an Artichoke. Never seen a dragon? There are "dragon scales" you must hand pick. .The poetry, prose and Art are amazing. There is nothing to

The Thing About Home by Rhonda Mcknight

Image
 On the very day of the ceremony, while the people are waiting in the church, he changes his mind. Her mother knows something is wrong. Drew has decided he is not going going through with this media event. He  is going to split. He is not going to renew his vows, and he is   going to divorce this woman.   It is hard understanding how Casey must feel about this new trial in her life. As a matter of fact, no one knows what to do about the situation.What Victoria chooses to do is a Godsend. The solution to the problem is a love gift.  It will change her life forever. "The Thing About Home" by Rhonda Mcknight is wondrous. This is a complimentary gift from Thomas Nelson.    

The Book Spy by Alan Hlad

Image
It is the Forties.War news is growing. Secret groups are forming. Some people are willing to pass secret information. The days of bravery and pain endured by different people must remain in our memories. Their journeys give us the strength needed to travel on our personal weary, tortuous road. What we must not do is compare our afflictions. One man, over and over again, is driven to persuade his grandparents to leave their home for the sake of safety. He arrives at a Benedictine monastery only to learn his grandparents have been taken away on a cattle train. He bends down and weeps. Through " The Book Spy," I feel his heart breaking. Alan Hlad knows how to put words to "real" broken feelings. He has described a broken heart. Perhaps, the work at the Library of Congress can alleviate the pain for the Americans at home. They can take humongous pride knowing librarians are helping to break the powerful arms of the Axis  countries.. These catalogers will use their micro

The Five Sorrowful Mysteries of Andy Africa by Stephen Buoro

Image
   Andy Africa is fifteen years old. He is Catholic. He is a poet. Andy is also a phenomenon and an enigma.  Although, there are none living in Africa, He adores white, blonde girls. His mother's color is likened to a dark berry. Does he really love  his mother,or does he hate her color and love her motherly character. After all, he is definitely in love with white. His answer is I love her deeply. It's hard to take that as a truthful statement. This is what makes his story so tantalizing. It is the absurdity. Then, all of a sudden you can hear the poet inside him striving to get out. That it is poetry is impossible to  ignore. Ydna, the brother, of Andy Africa, is weaved into his anatomy.  From the grave, Ydna speaks to Andy and his mother. He is never forgotten. Like a poem, Ydna is always there when he needs him. He is magical.Ydna  comes in a light breeze. The truth is he entered world through a Cesarian birth. Andy and his mother lived through that difficult

The Castle Keepers by Aimie K. Runyan

Image
  Marriage is a business.  For success in London, England a person must marry well. That means having money and a title. unfortunately, there is no way to personally pick your  in-laws. An estate can become a war zone. Imagine a marriage between an American and an Englishman. Each  must become Napoleonic or Duke Wellington in thought. Strategy is the name of the game. When the families are without scandal  the epitome of right living has been reached.  The very clothing worn by Beatrice Alnwick and her Dowager Mother-in-law is a testament to their brazen spirit. It is not a Russian Ballet. It is a dance of death.The prize? Leedwick Castle. This is a complimentary copy from Harper Muse

Place Of Cool Waters by Ndirangu Githaiga

Image
   When Mr.and Mrs.Wilson adopt a child, events begin to scramble together much like any part of the world. There is the dailiness of living by going to work and school. Ndirangu Githaiga not only writes about ordinary days, he  also writes about the bewildering events which suddenly interrupt life. The author leaves a person desirous of finding cooling waters to refresh the heart and mind. It is a quiet novel with serious overtones. Place of Cool waters arouses questions. One is how and when should a person follow a dream? Another is how is it possible to regroup and go on after the unforseen hits you in the face? It is about daily living. Walking and not running while the world seems to have gone insane. The novel is totally honest. Life does not come along with chocolates and strawberries. Life tends to fight us or are we fighting it?  I received this complimentary copy from Netgalley  
Image
It is always amazing that parents and others in society expect ladies to  marry without love. What is important only is the man's fortune. Love might come along later. If it does not, so be it. Sadie plans to marry not out of convenience but for  passionate love while being a strong business woman in the world of Horticulture and Architecture.  These prejudicial views can lead family, friends and employees into living a lie. Covered in secrets life does not meet the level of successful happiness the reader would have hoped to see. If riches are lost, there is always the life of the poverty stricken person. One man cries after the loss of his career and his wife. He stops at the Friends' estate to look at their gardens. It is the way he copes nowadays until his ship of normalcy comes in again.The families see their marketing occupations as occupying not just a corner of their mind. Work takes up their whole mind because it is the legacy they offer their children. It is their pe

Would You Trust A Woman Pirate?

Image
   Rita Chang-Eppig's "Deep As The Sky , Red As The Sea"  is as exciting as reading Pericles by William Shakespeare. The heroine, pirate is Shek Yeung. Not only can she behead an enemy, she can strategize the next move in a sea battle. It is a thrill  pretending to stand in her sea shoes. The bloody  truth is that Shek Young must maintain the  control of the ship, at least half of it.  Notwithstanding The piracy of  ships must not stop. Therefore, while missionaries evangelize about eternal kingdoms, there is one electrifying truth. Women pirates do not cater to permanence. It is about overthrow and conquer.     A complimentary copy received from Bloomsbury Pub. https://www.bloomsbury.com/us/
Image
    In West Mills, North Carolina, three siblings are found dead at the foot of their staircase: two sisters and a brother. One sister is a Pediatrician. Around town there are very strong feelings about Doctor Marian. People dislike her. The good lady does not seemed concerned about whether she is liked or not. The chapters are titled by a character's name. There are whispers about the selling of drugs or some illegal care given to those who have become addicted. The reaction to the murders by the community is an irritant. Hearing such horrible news leaves every one extremely controlled. No one gasps, no one cries, no one collapses no one acts shocked. Black people usually react more loudly about deaths especially violent deaths and multiple deaths. Here in West Mills it is as if three boxes of Girl Scout cookies have landed at the wrong address. Perhaps, these folks carry their shock in a different way. By the time of the funeral, moods will have probably changed. It

Charred by G.P. Gottlieb

Image
   What good can come from the city?  However, there are always bunches of good people who want to rejuvenate the city. Aleene Baron's cafe is one of the friendly,  clean and tastiest cafes around.The shop is called "Whipped And Sipped. Aleene is such a nice person. She likes the multicultural side of the city. There are  immigrants who work for her. Kofi is a friend. He makes City Art. His art is made from whatever he finds on a corner or a empty lot. He looks at Art without using  rose colored glasses He knows where there is trash or dirt you can also find poetry. "Charred" takes place during the Coronavirus. People are wearing masks, standing further apart instead of close together.  There is also is sickness. Through all of this Aleene and her staff stay strong by serving the community. There are interesting  historical anecdotes in the book. One very tasty morsel is the facts about Archaeology in the city.  Chicago was one of the main places that used the restr