Welcome to Catalina Comes to TV, Honoring Strand Bookstore Owner Bass, Pride Month Bookstore T-shirt, A Pair of Aces is Reese's Pick, Obit for Marjane Satrapi, Swordheart by T Kingfisher, The Midnight Train by Matt Haig, Across the Vanishing Sky by Catherine Cowles, and Nightfall in the Garden of Deep Time by Tracy Higley

 It's June, the start of summer reading, fellow book lovers! Rejoice! Stay out of the carcinogenic sunshine and curl up with a good beach read in your favorite cozy spot in your home, be it bed or big chair.RIP to my best friend Muff Larson, who would have turned 65 on June 1st. I still miss her though she's been dead for 18 years...and it seems like just yesterday. Also, today Anthony Stewart Head, who played Giles the librarian (with wit and wisdom) on Buffy the Vampire Slayer, died of pneumonia, though he was only 72. A number of great actors, authors and musicians have died this year, including (though she was a nurse, not any of the other professions listed) my mother, who died at the end of March. It's only half over and its already been a tough year. At any rate, I've been reading a lot and trying not to let loss get the better of me. Here's my latest tidbits and reviews. 

 

I'm a big fan of Kelley and of the Lincoln Lawyer, so I will definitely be keeping an eye out for this new TV program. 

TV: Welcome to Catalina

David E. Kelley (The Lincoln Lawyer) is adapting another Michael Connelly crime novel, the 2024 bestseller Nightshade, for television. Deadline reported that the project, titled Welcome to Catalina, is in development at HBO Max "under the streamer's model for drama procedurals intended to return each year with sizable orders and moderate cost. The model was introduced by the Emmy-winning medical drama The Pitt, which produces 15 episodes a year."

Written by Kelley, Welcome to Catalina centers on Los Angeles County Sheriff's Detective Stilwell, "who has been 'exiled' to a low-key post policing rustic Catalina Island. But while following up the usual drunk-and-disorderlies and petty thefts that come with his new territory, Stilwell gets a report of a body found weighed down at the bottom of the harbor," Deadline noted.

The Strand Bookstore in New York has long been on my bucket list, and I think it's wonderful that NYC is honoring the former owner of the store by naming a street after him. People who create community through books and bookstores are rock stars, IMO. 

Image of the Day: Honoring Strand Owner Fred Bass

New York City officially renamed part of E. 12th Street at Broadway Fred Bass Way, celebrating the life and work of second-generation Strand Bookstore owner Fred Bass, who died in 2018. Yesterday, Councilman Harvey Epstein and current Strand Bookstore owner Nancy Bass Wyden unveiled the sign together outside the flagship store.

Bass Wyden said, "My father believed deeply in New York City--in its readers, its curiosity, and the communities that make it such a vibrant place. He dedicated his life not only to building Strand Bookstore, but to preserving something he felt was essential: a place where people could discover ideas, stories, and one another."

Epstein added, "Strand Bookstore is woven into the fabric of our community: in my life, from buying birthday presents and family gifts to spending countless hours with my kids browsing shelves, reading books, and picking out books and Strand swag together. It is deeply meaningful to honor the life and legacy of Strand Bookstore owner Fred Bass right here in our neighborhood. As Strand Bookstore approaches its 100th anniversary next year, we recognize the enormous role it has played in shaping New York City's cultural and intellectual life."

YAY Pride Month bookstore shirts, especially in a red state like Texas, land of MAGA idiots.

Cool Idea: Pride Month Bookstore T-shirt

Hyperbole Bookstore in College Station, Tex., has found a creative way to celebrate Pride Month, posting on Instagram: "Happy Pride!! We are so excited to uplift our fellow LGBTQ+ readers, customers, and community partners this month. In celebration, we've created an exclusive, rainbow-tastic Pride version of our Hyperbole t-shirt that we'll be selling all month in the store. We will be donating 100% of the profits to the Trans Education Network of Texas and the Trevor Project, so be sure to visit us this month and grab a shirt to support two wonderful organizations and show your bookish pride!! These will be available in-store all month long (and for our long-distance friends who may want a shirt, please shoot us an e-mail or call during business hours). Happy Pride."

This book is high on my To be Acquired list, so I'm hoping to get a copy soon...Reese usually has good taste in novels.

Reese's June Book Club Pick: A Pair of Aces

A Pair of Aces by Marie Benedict and Victoria Christopher Murray is the June pick for Reese's Book Club, which described the book this way: "Though they come from vastly different worlds, Polly Adler and Eunice Carter are each trailblazing women in their own right. Eunice Carter, an assistant district attorney for the City of New York, made history as Manhattan's first Black female prosecutor. Meanwhile, Polly Adler spent years building her business to become one of the city's most notorious madams. When Mob boss Lucky Luciano's power and corruption go too far, the two women forge an unlikely alliance to bring him down in a way only they can."

Persepolis was a ground-breaking graphic novel, and I'm saddened by the passing of its author, Marjane Satrapi...I hate the fact that they made her cause of death sound so misogynistic. I doubt, as a feminist, she would have appreciated being seen as someone who died for love of a man. Anyway, RIP. 

Obituary Note: Marjane Satrapi

Marjane Satrapi, graphic novelist, film director, and children's book author, died today, June 4. She was 56.

According to a statement issued by friends and family, "Marjane Satrapi died of sadness a little over a year after the death of Mattias Ripa, her husband and the love of her life." (Swedish producer, actor, and screenwriter Ripa died April 8, 2025.)

Born and raised in Iran, Satrapi studied abroad for a time and then moved to France permanently in her early 20s. She was best known for her graphic novels Persepolis and Persepolis 2, which were originally published in French and then appeared in English, published by Pantheon in 2003 and 2004. The graphic novels featured an autobiographical character and chronicled her difficult childhood and adolescence in the brutal Islamic Republic. The bestselling graphic novels were made into an animated film co-directed by Satrapi that was released in 2007. The film won the Jury Prize at the Cannes Film Festival and was nominated for an Oscar in the best animated feature category.

Cannes Film Festival head Thierry Fremaux said, "Marjane was an extraordinary artist and a charming woman who embodied the joy of creation and the sorrow of exile and painful memories. We mourn her this morning."

Satrapi was also well-known for her film Radioactive, a 2019 live-action biography of Marie Curie that was based on a graphic novel by Lauren Redniss and starred Rosamund Pike.

Satrapi's other work included the graphic novel Chicken with Plums, about how a musician's life falls apart after his wife destroys his violin. Chicken with Plums also was made into an animated feature. Throughout her life, Satrapi remained opposed to the Islamic Republic's repressive cultural and political policies and its subjugation of women. She edited a collection of graphic stories, Woman, Life, Freedom, published in the U.S. in 2024 by Seven Stories Press.

Swordheart by T. Kingfisher is an adventure romantasy that, as with all Kingfisher's other novels, delivers a cracking good read with lux prose while also creating a page-turning plot that will keep you up until the wee hours. Here's the blurb:  

A beautiful hardcover edition featuring turquoise sprayed edges, a foil stamp on the casing, and custom endpapers.

The delightful charm of The Princess Bride meets the delicious bodyguard romance of From Blood and Ashin this cozy fantasy romance from New York Times bestselling author T. Kingfisher

Halla has unexpectedly inherited the estate of a wealthy uncle. Unfortunately, she is also saddled with money-hungry relatives full of devious plans for how to wrest the inheritance away from her.

While locked in her bedroom, Halla inspects the ancient sword that's been collecting dust on the wall since before she moved in. Out of desperation, she unsheathes it―and suddenly a man appears. His name is Sarkis, he tells her, and he is an immortal warrior trapped in a prison of enchanted steel.

Sarkis is sworn to protect whoever wields the sword, and for Halla―a most unusual wielder―he finds himself fending off not grand armies and deadly assassins but instead everything from kindly-seeming bandits to roving inquisitors to her own in-laws. But as Halla and Sarkis grow closer, they overlook the biggest threat of all―the sword itself. 

The relationship between Halla and Sarkis is dreamy and deliciously tense, and the resulting HEA very imaginative. Having read 3 of Kingfisher's other novels (I'm not a fan of horror, so I didn't read the two that were firmly ensconced in that genre), I wasn't surprised at how much I enjoyed this romantic fantasy storyline and its found family undercurrents...there's also a "cozy" atmosphere to the book, which is just my speed of late. I'd give this enchanting novel an A, and recommend it to anyone who likes House on the Cerulean Sea or Travis Baldree's cozy fantasies.

The Midnight Train by Matt Haig is "kind of" a sequel to his bestselling (and popular with book groups everywhere) Midnight Library, which added a refreshing spin to the time-travel fantasy genre. Here's the blurb:  

When your life flashes before your eyes, where would you stop?

No one can change the past, but the Midnight Train can take you there.
The chance to re-live the moments that meant most.
To see what kind of person you really were.

For Wilbur his best days were with Maggie, the love of his life. On his honeymoon in Venice.

Before he gave it all away.

He wishes he could go back and live differently. But to do so risks everything. A magical, time-travelling love story, from the world of The Midnight Library. 

 

That last blurb line is a bit of a misnomer, because this book is different from Midnight Library, in that it was about the choices we make in our lives in terms of how we live them via jobs and family, etc. People at the library are allowed to relive their lives in terms of different choices, only to discover that their original life was the only one worth living. The Midnight Train is about where you stop on the "death" train after you perish, so you can review where your choices took you in the wrong or right direction...and in this case, so the protagonist, Wilbur, can kidnap himself in a dream state and get his past self to realize that his relationship to Maggie, his wife, was more important, in the end, than his greed and pride on building a bookstore empire worth millions. Basically, people over profit. This is not a new idea, I remember back during my childhood hearing adults say "you can't take it with you" about miserly rich people who died alone because they felt that gaining money was more important than caring for and about family. People like that were looked on with pity (and yes, some envy/jealousy by people like my dad who were shallow).  I'd give this book a B+, and recommend it to those who were intrigued by the life choices issues in Midnight Library.

 

Across the Vanishing Sky by Catherine Cowles is an older YA romance with a great deal of added suspense to keep readers turning pages. Here's the blurb: 

The limited deluxe edition includes designed edge pages.

A heart-stopping small town romance from New York Times bestselling author Catherine Cowles, the first in a brand-new series.

He spent a lifetime trying to escape his dark past…but to save her, he'll wade back into the shadows.

Braedyn Winslow never expected to return to Starlight Grove―the town that took everything from her. Not after her best friend, the one who'd sacrificed so much for her, vanished without a trace. But with a young son to raise and a past that won't stay buried, Brae is back…and determined to uncover the truth.

She just didn't count on the brooding, reclusive mountain man living next door.

Dex Archer is the stuff of local legend―silent, rugged, and surrounded by whispers of his and his brothers' violent father. But Brae sees through the scowl and his parentage to the man beneath: fiercely loyal, unexpectedly kind…and just dangerous enough to protect her when someone starts warning her off her search.

The closer she gets to the truth, the harder it is to stay away from Dex. And as things get more perilous, Brae realizes the only person she can rely on is the one man who swore never to trust again.

Only someone isn't happy that Brae has been digging, and they'll do anything to stop her. But Dex? He'll do anything to save her, even slip back into the dark.

 

Brae and Dex's slow-burn romance is very well written, as is the rest of the book, which glides along a swift and decisive plot with rich and detailed prose. The suspense and addictive characters kept me glued to the page, though, at over 400 pages I wasn't expecting to encounter that kind of story arc. There wasn't a cliche in sight, and the author kept the tropes to a bare minimum. I'd give this delectable book an A, and recommend it to anyone who might enjoy a fast-paced romance with suspense and twists and turns galore.

 

Nightfall in the Garden of Deep Time by Tracy Higley is a magical realism novel that didn't quite gel for me, though it had it's moments of lucidity. Here's the blurb: 

You’re invited…to a timeless party in a Secret Garden.
Expect to come back transformed.

Kelsey Willoughby doesn’t have time to pursue her dream of writing a novel. Imagination doesn’t pay the bills, and she’s busy saving her beautiful bookshop from online competition, hotel developers, and the sneaking suspicion that nobody reads anymore.

Not to mention all those voices telling her she doesn’t have talent.

But then the vacant lot of weeds next door starts to shimmer.

When Kelsey stumbles into a luminous nighttime garden party, larger than the vacant lot that holds it and filled with enigmatic guests, she suspects they hold the key to saving the bookshop, and perhaps even to her own mysterious origins.

But answers aren’t forthcoming, not until Kelsey is willing to confront her past, step into her potential, and push deeper into the unknown edges of the garden, where an unexpected journey takes her into a world of dangerous revelation.

With evocative prose and a deeply-embedded mystery, the magical realism of Nightfall in the Garden of Deep Time immerses readers in a delicious adventure of creativity and the arts. A must-read for anyone pursuing a creative life.

This is one of those bizarre books that, just when you think you have a handle on where the plotline is going, it moves in the opposite direction, leaving you scratching your head, wondering what is going on. The prose is dream-like, weaving in and out of moments that weren't linear, but the author gives you no warning that you're not when you thought you were. I sincerely do not agree with the blurb that this book is a must for creative people of any stripe. It would only confuse and depress most of them. The ending leaves much to be desired, as it devolves into a TED talk-like rant on how creatives need to just get on with it, while not really giving them any actual tools to do that. WEIRD. That's the best word I can think of to describe this book. I'd give it a B-, and only recommend it to those who like experimental fiction books, especially ones that are designed to make creatives feel superior to the rest of the human race.

 

East of Eden Comes to TV, My Shelf Books and Gifts to Close, Not Quite Mine by Catherine Bybee, The House at Tyneford by Natasha Solomons, How to Hack a Heartbreak by Kristin Rockaway, Tea is For Trouble by Karen Sue Walker, Mad Mabel by Sally Hepworth, and My Mechanical Romance by Alexene Farol Follmuth

We're just about into June, but I had too many books read stacked up to wait, so I'm going to have to consider this a pre-June review post. There are a number of books I'm anticipating that are coming out this week, so that will add to my TBR stack...and then I will have to wait until mid-month to acquire any more books when I get my SS check. Most of it will be taken up by bills, but I'm hoping to get to some thrift stores and garage sales (and the library sale this weekend) to see if I can pick up some books for under a dollar each.Wish me luck, fellow book dragons!  

 

I read EOE when I was a teenager, and I was disgusted and appalled at Cathy Ames, incestuous pedophile and total dumpster fire of a human being...and a waste of oxygen. It should be interesting to see how they try to excuse her evil behavior and make her into an "anti-hero" in this film. 

TV: East of Eden

A teaser has been released for East of Eden, the Netflix limited series based on John Steinbeck's classic novel that is being adapted by Zoe Kazan, granddaughter of filmmaker Elia Kazan, whose 1955 film version of the book starred James Dean and Jo Van Fleet. "Talk about generational inheritance," IndieWire commented.

The new series stars Florence Pugh, Christopher Abbott, Mike Faist, Hoon Lee, Tracy Letts, Ciarán Hinds, Martha Plimpton, Joseph Zada, and Joe Anders. It is described as a "fresh interpretation of Steinbeck's masterpiece [that] explores the timeless story of good & evil through the multigenerational saga of the Trask family and its chilling, indelible antihero, Cathy Ames." (Editors note: it is common now instead of calling someone an antagonist or an evil character, that film and book people like to use softened language like "antihero" to make the evil character more attractive to readers and viewers...this is complete and utter BS, IMO).

"I fell in love with East of Eden when I first read it, in my teens," Zoe Kazan had said when the project was first announced. "Since then, adapting Steinbeck's novel, the great, sprawling, three-generational entirety of it, has been my dream. More than anything, I have wanted to give full expression to the novel's astonishing, singular anti-heroine, Cathy Ames. Florence Pugh is our dream Cathy; I can't imagine a more thrilling actor to bring this character to life."

Kevin is the author of the children's books, the Totally Ninja Raccoon series. I think its horrible that he's having to close the store. 

From My Shelf Books & Gifts, Wellsboro, Pa., to Close

From My Shelf Books & Gifts in Wellsboro, Pa., will close permanently in the months ahead, NorthCentralPA.com reported.

In a Facebook post, owners Kevin and Kasey Coolidge said they've decided to close the new and used bookstore and have launched a major liquidation sale. Everything in store will be 60% off for store members, while nonmembers will receive 30% off. The store will continue to accept special orders for the time being.

"It's hard to believe the final pages are turning," the owners wrote. "We've loved being your local bookstore, your quiet escape, and the only place in town where you could get a literary recommendation from a feline."

They encouraged customers to continue to support independent, bricks-and-mortar bookstores and not switch to online retailers. And though they did not give an official closing date, they expect to be operating the bookstore until at least mid-July.

Not Quite Mine by Catherine Bybee is a misogynistic romance that has men and women in their trope/stereotypical roles of big overly possessive he-man and fragile woman who only wants love and a baby, because, of course, motherhood is all a woman is good for and can strive for...everything else is meaningless without a baby and a family with your handsome caveman. UGH. If you even have an ounce of feminism in you, this book will turn your stomach. Here's the blurb:  

Gorgeous hotel heiress Katelyn “Katie” Morrison seems to have it all. But when she crosses paths with Dean Prescott―the only man she’s ever loved―at her brother’s wedding, Katie realizes there’s a gaping hole in her life. After the ceremony she gets an even bigger surprise: a baby girl left on her doorstep. Determined to keep the newborn until she learns who her mother is, Katie has her hands full and doesn’t need Dean snooping around…especially when his presence stirs feelings she thought were long gone...

Dean Prescott knows Katie is lying to him about the baby. He shouldn’t care what the woman who broke his heart is up to…and he most certainly shouldn’t still be aching for her. Yet Dean can’t ignore the need to protect Katie―or the desire to be near her every chance he gets. But when he and Katie solve the mystery surrounding the baby, their second chance for happiness could be shattered forever.

What they're calling "protection" in the blurb is lust and misogyny, wherein the male protagonist has the hots for the female protagonist and can't seem to keep it in his pants or off his mind, he must dominate and possess her, and once he discovers she has a child thrust upon her (she can't have children of her own due to "woman issues" that are vaguely explained, and of course which don't keep her from enthusiastically enjoying sex, though its very vanilla sex). He of course assumes because she's a woman, and therefore frail and weak and stupid, that she can't take care of herself, and he must be manly and keep all other suitors away from her, not caring what she wants or needs. He, of course, almost married another woman, and when it comes to light (SPOILER) that this former fiance was pregnant with his child when he left her at the altar, and then left the baby with Katie, whom she felt would be a better mother because Dean revealed he was in love with her (this just didn't seem realistic at all to me, and it made Dean seem like a jackass), Dean ups his stalking ante and proceeds to try and find out what Katie's hiding and who the real parents of the child are...and once he finds out that it's him, he immediately wants to marry Katie and have the three of them be a family. Of course he mentions planning on adopting more kids, which wussy Katie is all on board for, because she loves Dean, and when you love someone apparently you overlook and forgive all their red flags and faults. UGH. Still, the book has fine prose and a rapid-fire plot that will have you finishing the book in an afternoon. I'd give it a B- and only recommend it to women who like "traditional" romances with cis-het characters and sexual tropes.

 

The House at Tyneford by Natasha Solomons is a WWII historical fiction novel with romance interwoven through the plot, though it isn't the focus of the book, as, inevitably, most of the men in the book die during the war. Here's the blurb: Fans of The Forgotten Garden and TV’s Downton Abbey will love this sweeping New York Times bestselling historical novel of love and loss. 
It’s the spring of 1938 and no longer safe to be a Jew in Vienna. Nineteen-year-old Elise Landau is forced to leave her glittering life of parties and champagne to become a parlor maid in England. She arrives at Tyneford, the great house on the bay, where servants polish silver and serve drinks on the lawn. But war is coming, and the world is changing. When the master of Tyneford’s young son, Kit, returns home, he and Elise strike up an unlikely friendship that will transform Tyneford—and Elise—forever.“The House at Tyneford is an exquisite tale of love, family, suspense, and survival. Capturing with astonishing detail and realism a vanished world of desire and hope trapped beneath rigid class convention, Natasha Solomons’s stunning new novel tells the story of Elise Landau, a Jewish Austrian teenager from a family of artists, who is forced to flee her home in Vienna carrying only a guide to household management and her father’s last novel, hidden on pages stuffed inside a viola. Elise hides as a parlor maid in a fine English country estate, but soon she discovers that passion can be found in the most unexpected places. Already a bestseller in Britain, American readers will thrill to The House at Tyneford.”—Katherine Howe

While I enjoyed this story of the bourgeoisie, or middle class Jews of Europe escaping to places like England, where they had to earn a living as servants or in other working class jobs that cared nothing for their skills or expertise as artists, I felt that Elise, a German Jew, was something of an idiot, because, though she was highly educated in Vienna, even after years of living in England, she still had trouble with the English language, and with understanding of the English hierarchy of servants and masters. She seemed to be something of a snob, even without her rich family, and held herself above all the other servants and even her "betters" in the Tyneford household. She was consistently crappy at her job as a maid, and wasn't able to get over her petty sibling rivalry with her sister, who wisely immigrated to America, where there were no bombings or round ups of Jewish people to be killed or placed in death camps. Of course the heir to Tyneford falls in love with her, and she finally succumbs to his charms as well. He inevitably dies in the war, and Elise, ever the social climber, falls in love with his father (I know! Horrible!) and marries him instead. Solomons prose is smooth as silk and flows along a sedate plot that is sometimes barely believable. Still, I'd give this book a B, and recommend it to anyone interested in the immigration of German Jews to England during WWII.

 

How to Hack a Heartbreak by Kristin Rockaway is a rom-com with a women in STEM twist, and though I enjoyed the concept, I felt that the author gave too much priority to the male protagonist, who was a complete jerk for 75% of the book. Here's the blurb: Swipe right for love. Swipe left for disaster. . . . By day, Mel Strickland is an underemployed helpdesk tech at a startup incubator, Hatch, where she helps entitled brogrammers “Hatchlings” — who can’t even fix their own laptops, but are apparently the next wave of startup geniuses. And by night, she goes on bad dates with misbehaving dudes she’s matched with on the ubiquitous dating app, Fluttr. Because she grew tired of bad dates, Mel develops her own app that points out which guys on Fluttr are a red flag and why they're not boyfriend material. Most readers find this book a fascinating and fun read, with one mentioning it's particularly appealing to tech-savvy women. The story receives positive feedback for its twists and turns, and readers appreciate its content, with one noting how it provides insight into women's mental health challenges.   

I felt that it took too long for Mel to develop a spine and go ahead with her own app, regardless of how intimidated and attracted she felt to "dreamy" Alex Hernandez, who is a real misogynistic piece of work. Why these young women in rom-com and regular romance or even romantasy books can't seen to get their brains to work when they're in the presence of a handsome boy, I don't know. Young women need to realize actions speak louder than words, and Alex's actions don't make him attractive at all. I'd give this book a B-, and recommend it to young women in computer programming who are fed up with all the road blocks they face in STEM fields.

 

Tea Is For Trouble by Karen Sue Walker is a haunted tearoom cozy mystery that is short but sweet and full of fascinating characters. Here's the blurb: 

A new life complete with tea, scones, and… murder?

And let’s not forget about the ghost…

When your fiancé breaks up with you on your 49th birthday, what do you do? If you’re April May, you buy a huge Victorian home on a whim and open a tearoom featuring lace tablecloths, exotic teas, and dainty sandwiches. No one told her the house came with a cat in the attic who might just be guarding a treasure. How else to explain people breaking into her house?

From the moment she moves in, nothing goes right, but her problems seem minor when a dead body turns up in her home. Accused of murder, April teams up with a cantankerous bar owner and a feisty, young antiques expert to solve the crime.

And what about the handsome, arrogant chef in her kitchen who no one else can see? She plans to get medical help for what must be a hallucination, but in the meantime, he’s putting a tasty French twist on her menu. If you’ve ever wished someone would remake The Ghost and Mrs. Muir as a culinary murder mystery, this book is for you.

Though I loved the movie "The Ghost and Mrs Muir" I didn't feel that this book was anything nearly as sophisticated or intelligent. Though I did enjoy the oddball characters and the ghosts in the house, as well as April May's ability to accept the French chef ghost in the kitchen and learn to cook from him. I just wish there had been more about the tearoom opening up, and all the delicious delicacies and lovely warm tea that April dishes up now that the murder has been solved and its all behind her. Still, I would give this fun fantasy full of ghosts and magic a B+, and recommend it to anyone who likes cozy ghost stories.

 

Mad Mabel by Sally Hepworth is a women's thriller fiction (though I believe men would enjoy it just as much) with a lot of snark and suspense added to make the plot zing (along with well mannered prose). Here's the blurb: 

From author Sally Hepworth comes a twisty tale of justice, redemption, and one irrepressible woman who’s not done breaking the rules just yet.

Meet Elsie Mabel Fitzpatrick: eighty-one years old, gloriously grumpy, fiercely independent, and never without a hot cup of tea―or a cutting remark. She minds her own business in her quiet Melbourne suburb, until a neighbor turns up dead and the whispers start flying.

Because Elsie hasn’t always been Elsie. Once upon a headline, she was Mad Mabel Waller―Australia’s youngest convicted murderer. But was she really mad, or just misunderstood? Either way, she’s kept her secret buried for decades.

Enter seven-year-old Persephone, a relentless little chatterbox who has just moved in across the road (armed with stickers, questions, and no sense of personal boundaries); Joan, who appears to have it in for Elsie; and a healthy dose of public interest―the cops are sniffing around, and the media is circling like seagulls at a picnic.

So Mabel does what she’s always done best―she takes matters into her own hands.

Is she a cantankerous old lady with a shady past? A cold-blooded killer with arthritis? Or just someone who’s finally ready to tell her side of the story?

Sharp, surprising, and wickedly funny, this is the unforgettable story of a woman who’s spent a lifetime being underestimated―and is about to prove everyone wrong. Again.

I loved nearly all 344 pages of this scintillating novel, complete with a female protagonist who is a senior and isn't some wimpy, whinging pensioner who can't deal with her past and the hard questions lobbed at her by a nosy couple of journalists. I enjoyed her tales of the past, and how she was blamed for things that were not her fault, and railroaded by men into being a convenient scapegoat. It's also worth mentioning that the cover of this book is gorgeous, and that it's a real page-turner...you won't be able to put it down. I'm with Mabel, and I'd give this novel an A, and recommend it to anyone who like Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus. 

 

My Mechanical Romance by Alexene Farol Follmuth is a YA rom-com involving two "engineering" nerds and one young woman who has to do battle with all the misogyny surrounding her in the heavily male dominated field of robotic engineering. Here's the blurb: Opposites attract in this battle-robot-building YA romance from the author of The Atlas Six.

Bel would rather die than think about the future. College apps? You’re funny. Extracurriculars? Not a chance. But when she accidentally reveals a talent for engineering at school, she’s basically forced into joining the robotics club. Even worse? All the boys ignore Bel—and Neelam, the only other girl on the team, doesn't seem to like her either.

Enter Mateo Luna, captain of the club, who recognizes Bel as a potential asset—until they start butting heads. Bel doesn’t care about Nationals, while Teo cares too much. But as the nights of after-school work grow longer and longer, Bel and Teo realize they've made more than just a combat-ready robot for the championship: they’ve made each other and the team better. Because girls do belong in STEM.

In her YA debut, Alexene Farol Follmuth, explores both the challenges girls of color face in STEM and the vulnerability of first love with unfailing wit and honesty. With an adorable, opposites-attract romance at its center and lines that beg to be read aloud, My Mechanical Romance is swoonworthy perfection.

 

UGH, I loathe the phrase "swoonworthy perfection." This isn't the 19th century, people, and most young women in the 21st century have no idea what a swoon even is! Plus, Teo is, as are most men/boys in romances these days, a complete and utter sexist jerk, not at all worthy of an actual swoon. Why? Why can't he accept that a young woman in STEM needs allies and not cruel and mean treatment, along with ignoring Bel's talents that are a huge asset to the team. Even the engineering teacher is a misogynist who sucks up to Teo because he's handsome and wealthy. GROSS. What a pedophilic asshat! He made a weak, half-assed apology to Bel in the end, but its worthless unless he's dismissed from the classroom for favoring male students (especially Teo) over anyone else. And justice is never served to him, which is wrong. Bel should have showed up at the school board with names, dates and a paper trail proving that this teacher was an idiot and a biased creep. Infuriating! Still the prose with clean and crisp, and the plot rumbled along like a well-oiled battle bot. I'd give this book a B, and recommend it to any young woman leaning toward a male-dominated STEM field, who wants to be inspired by a young woman who persists! Never say die, ladies!

 

Single Girls Book Review, Secret Garden Book Store Opens in Parrish, Fla., Obituary for Alan Bradley, For Whom the Spell Tolls by Devon Monk, Mystic Misfortune by Cindy Stark, Death's Daughter by S.A. Barnes, First Frost by Sarah Addison Allen, Platform Decay by Martha Wells

Hey there, fellow bookish people! We're almost through May, going into the early days of June and summer season. While I'm not a huge fan of the heat of summer, the PNW where I've lived since the early 90s, doesn't get too hot until August, and we also have AC that works well to keep the house at a nice cool temp. So I can still curl up and read and not have to sweat and get sunburn outside, or open the windows to all the bugs and pollen of summer. Anyway, here are a few tidbits and 5 book reviews for you all...enjoy!

This sounds like an excellent book about the ground-breaking (and glass ceiling breaking) Helen Gurley Brown, an amazing woman whose work taught a generation of young women how to deal with the patriarchy and misogyny.  

Book Review: Single Girls

John Searles's frothy, fizzy fifth novel, Single Girls, charts the unlikely success story of self-professed "mouseburger" Helen Gurley Brown and the crackerjack team of female writers and editors she assembled to transform Cosmopolitan magazine in the mid-1960s. Searles (himself a former Cosmopolitan editor) dives into Helen's personal life, her complicated relationship with her mother and sister, and the inner lives of the half-dozen women who took a chance on Cosmopolitan--and on Helen.

Searles (Her Last Affair begins with the 1932 elevator accident that killed Helen's father, Ira). As with much of the book, the incident is true and the details around it are imagined. Searles returns repeatedly to that pivotal moment in Helen's childhood as he explores Helen's fraught bond with her sister, Mary Eloine (who eventually contracted polio), and their difficult mother, Cleo. After Ira's death, Cleo and Mary Eloine are focused on gaining stability and security, while Helen wants more from life.

Searles takes readers through Helen's early years working as a secretary and copywriter in Los Angeles, her marriage to film producer David Brown, and their move to Manhattan in the wake of her smash hit book Sex and the Single Girl. When Helen gets the chance to turn around Cosmo's fortunes, she recruits a half-dozen writers and editors, some of them unlikely: a department-store window dresser, a bartender with a secret, a typist besotted with a married man. Together, the women fill the pages of the magazine with sharp, well-written, slightly edgy stories aimed at single female readers, trying to keep the (male) higher-ups happy while pushing the envelope.

Searles gives readers a glimpse into each woman's story, exploring the writers' balancing acts as they build careers, support themselves financially, and (in some cases) try to find love. Meanwhile, each woman receives at least one magazine assignment that stretches her skills and confidence. Relationships editor Myrna takes a trip to test out the world's first champagne-glass-shaped hot tub, with surprising results, while entertainment editor Liz Smith interviews a Park Avenue call girl and makes some discoveries of her own. As Helen guides (and sometimes pushes) her team of women toward making their magazine the hottest item on newsstands, she continues to wrestle with complex feelings about her father's death.

Witty, buzzy, and full of magazine-worthy descriptions of midcentury fashion, Single Girls offers an entertaining look into the world of publishing and a tribute to the unassuming editor who revolutionized women's magazines. --Katie Noah Gibson, blogger at Cakes, Tea and Dreams

I actually remember traveling through Parrish, which is a nice area, and I'm glad to read that they have a new bookstore and plant shop.

Secret Gardens Book Store Grows in Parrish, Fla.

Secret Gardens Book Store opened in early March in Parrish, Fla., WWSB reported. The bookstore, which focuses primarily on romance, mysteries and thrillers, fantasy, and contemporary fiction, resides at 8267 U.S. Hwy. 301 N., inside of a plant shop called Fancy Leaf Plant Co.

Store owner Libby Bolles also owns the plant shop, which she opened in 2021 after launching the business as a mobile store. Bolles hosts a variety of community events, including high tea and stationery painting, bingo nights, watch parties, author signings, and book release parties.

This news gutted me, as I'm a huge fan of Flavia de Luce, who is an awesome pre-teen detective and science nerd in England during the 50s. I am glad that there will be one more book coming out about her adventures, but after that, those of us who have read the whole series will have to mourn the end of our time with the de Luce family. So sad. RIP AB.

Obituary Note: Alan Bradley

Canadian author Alan Bradley,who was best known for the Flavia de Luce mystery series featuring an 11-year-old detective, died May 19, CBC reported. He was 87. A Toronto native, Bradley was raised in Coburg, Ont., attended Ryerson Polytechnical Institute (now Toronto Metropolitan University), and worked as a TV and radio engineer before getting a position at University of Saskatchewan, where he taught for 25 years and became the director of television engineering.

Bradley retired in 1994, moved to Kelowna, B.C., with his wife, Shirley, and began writing full-time, publishing short stories for children and adults, the memoir The Shoebox Bible, and the nonfiction book Ms. Holmes of Baker Street (with William A.S. Sarjeant).

In his late 60s, "an 11-year-old girl named Flavia de Luce first appeared on the page," CBC wrote. "Precocious and smart, Flavia was a minor character in a manuscript that captivated Bradley's wife. Shirley encouraged him to develop Flavia further and she ultimately became the protagonist of the bestselling mystery series bearing her name."

In a 2013 interview on CBC's The Next Chapter, Bradley said: "I'm almost ashamed to admit that she makes me laugh out loud because I don't know what she's going to do or what she's going to say. She just does it and I laugh and jot it down.... My wife Shirley will be sitting in the next room or at the other end of the same room and she'll say, 'Flavia's just done something outrageous'.... There is a sense of wonder I can remember from being 11. You are absolutely invincible. It's that age where you think that you can build a glider out of bed sheets and jump off the castle wall and you won't get hurt. You can do anything."

The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie, the first novel in the Flavia de Luce series, was immediately successful, winning numerous honors including the Crime Writers' Association Debut Dagger Award, the Dilys Winn Award, the Arthur Ellis Award, the Agatha Award, the Macavity Award, and the Barry Award. The 11 books in the series have sold more than six million copies and been translated into 36 languages.

In a 2024 interview on The Next Chapter, Bradley said his biggest accomplishment was the impact he had on the lives of readers who were inspired by Flavia: "I've just been absolutely flattened by letters and e-mails from girls of Flavia's age who have said that they've decided to go into science.... Now that the first book has been out for 16 years, I'm beginning to hear from girls who graduated, who are now very advanced in science. I think that's a wonderful achievement, inspiring young people to go into the sciences."

The final installment in the Flavia de Luce series, Numb Were the Beadsman's Fingers, will be published November 3, and a movie adaptation of the first book appears around the same time.

For Whom the Spell Tolls by Devon Monk is another Ordinary Oregon mystery that showcases all the god-like and magical characters (like witches) who live and work in the small seaside town of Ordinary (which is anything but). Here's the blurb: A laugh-out-loud, cozy, magic-packed whodunit by Devon Monk

Come for the readings...stay for the revenge…

Jules Larkwood, a witch looking for a little adventure, doesn’t expect her friendly bet with the town’s oldest vampire to change her life. Then a powerful enemy from her past rises from the dead, and Jules’ life becomes a little too interesting.

Now she must juggle tracking down ancient spells, thwarting secret rituals, and facing old foes, while attending her book club and keeping her crystal shop open for Ordinary’s full moon festival.

But when a woman is found dead, all bets are off. Jules and her best friends Medusa (yes, that Medusa) and a seer named Piper, are on the hunt, and running out of time to catch the murderer before the next victim falls. 

 

This is yet another superbly written and plotted book by the wonderful Devon Monk, whose work is nigh-on perfect. I've read all of her series but one, and loved them all. This cozy mystery series, though only on its second book, is a real delight full of unexpected magic and interesting insight into some of Ordinary's more unique characters, like Thanos, the God of Death who has a female child's taste in clothing and an extremely dry sense of humor. While the book is short, its very satisfying with a fun ending that leaves you wanting more. I'd give it a well deserved A, and recommend it to anyone who has read any of the Ordinary books...you will not be disappointed.

 

Mystic Misfortune by Cindy Stark  is a paranormal cozy mystery novel that, at least for the paperback copy that I got, is printed in large print, which is great. Unfortunately, I believe this is a self-published series, so there's the inevitable typos and grammar mistakes that you have to overlook, and the prose is simplistic, while the plot is fairly generic. Here's the blurb: When fledgling gift shop owner Kalie Kennedy gets invited to a new age festival in her picturesque red-rock hometown of Mystic, Arizona, she expects a peaceful experience and opportunities to promote her store. But the spiritual fair takes a dark turn when the infamous psychic Vespera winds up dead, and Kalie becomes entangled in the investigation.

Detective Nick Monroe is highly competent at his job, and in capturing Kalie’s interest, but when it comes to supernatural matters, he’s at a disadvantage. He seeks Kalie’s help to navigate a maze of spurned townsfolk and bitter rivals, while suspicion swirls through the tranquil community.

As romantic tensions simmer with Detective Monroe, and the mystical world collides with harsh reality, Kalie must use her unique knowledge to uncover the truth. With a blood-stained tarot card as her clue and an enigmatic gnome figurine stirring up trouble, Kalie’s journey is fraught with mystical implications and hidden dangers. Only time will tell if they’re able to uncover the veiled secrets in Vespera’s past and catch the killer before the festival ends.

Mystic Misfortune is Book Two in the charming paranormal Mystic Village Cozy Mystery series. If you like a savvy heroine, a dashing yet skeptical hero, and just the right sprinkling of magic and humor, you’ll love these stories.

 
I will admit that this was a fun and easy read that only took me an afternoon to finish. There's something to be said for books that are "palate cleansers" between more meaty reads, but what I usually go for in easy reads is something with just a bit more heft and beguiling prose. Still, I'd give this large print novel a B-, and recommend it to anyone who likes magical mysteries with silly heroines.

 

Death's Daughter by S.A. Barnes is a beautifully-designed novel with purple end papers and a beautiful cover that is bound to attract collectors and readers alike. This gothic folklore rewriting with a huge addition of romantasy has gotten a ton of accolades and great reviews, sending it to the top of the bestseller lists. It's a bit over-hyped IMO. Here's the blurb: 

The steamy mythology of Neon Gods meets the dark academia of Ninth House in this contemporary romance from bestselling author S.A. Barnes.

After a lifetime of chaos, Jocasta has finally found her home with good friends, great classes, even a messy situationship with her former TA―a normal life.

Well, as normal a life as the only child of Death can have.

She’s always refused to embrace her father’s legacy. Instead of taking lives, she feeds on her classmates’ disappointments, failures, and rejections. Finals week has her feasting, and all is good.

Until Death ruins her life. Again.

Without warning, Death names Jocasta as his sole successor, making her a powerful ally… and a massive target. Devon, a descendant of Lust, claims to want to help her―for a price.

Jo will do anything to protect the people she loves and the life she’s worked so hard for. Even if it means becoming a monster.

While I understand the popularity of "dark academia" and "romantasy" genre books, I really didn't see anything in this book that made it a stand out among its peers in those genres. The "spicy" love/sex scenes were fairly cis-het generic to nearly every romantasy I've read in the past 5-10 years or so. But all of Jo and Devon's wishy-washy yearning made me tired, in the end...just make a decision already! Either get into bed or shut up about it! Yeesh. I know a lot of people enjoy this sort of yearning, back and forth, will they or won't they thing, which I can enjoy only if its witty and well written, but I can't enjoy something that drags out the plot in such a way that it becomes dull and uninteresting. Still, having read some of the authors earlier works, this is a big leap of improvement for her, and I appreciate how hard she must have worked to get here. Therefore I'd give this book a B, and recommend it to anyone who is into legendary tales of gods and monsters with some romance thrown in for good measure.

 

First Frost by Sarah Addison Allen is a magical realism novel written in Allen's impeccable, lush prose that slides along her elegant and swift plot beautifully. Here's the blurb: Sarah Addison Allen, beloved author of Garden Spells, returns with a luminous story of the trouble with hanging on too long, and the magic that happens when you finally let go.

Autumn has finally arrived in the small town of Bascom, North Carolina, heralded by a strange old man appearing with a beat-up suitcase. He has stories to tell, stories that could change the lives of the Waverley women forever.

But the Waverleys have enough trouble on their hands. Quiet Claire Waverley has started a successful new venture, Waverley's Candies, but it's nothing like she thought it would be, and it's slowly taking over her life. Claire's wild sister Sydney, still trying to leave her past behind, is about to combust with her desire for another new beginning. And Sydney's fifteen-year-old daughter Bay has given her heart away to the wrong boy and can't get it back. 

Magical and atmospheric, First Frost transports readers back into the lives of the gifted Waverley women - back to their strange garden and temperamental apple tree, back to their house with a personality of its own, back to the men who love them fiercely - proving that a happily-ever-after is never the real ending to a story. It's where the real story begins. 

 

Allen shares a literary heritage with Alice Hoffman of taking magical people and integrating them into our mundane human world, making their exploits fascinating to discerning readers everywhere. Here its the infamous Waverley women, all of whom make some kind of potion or baked good that is magical enough to change the lives of those consuming them. My only concern was that Bay, the youngest family member is focused completely on a teenage boy whom she discerns is her soulmate, she just has to wait for him to realize that he will fall in love with her, eventually. Which is creepy, because she stalks him throughout the book, and refuses to deal with any scenario in which the two do not end up together. Weird. But other than that, this was an un-put-downable novel that will make you think and feel differently about life and your own gifts as a person. I'd give it a B+ and recommend it to everyone who enjoys magic realism done right.

 

Platform Decay by Martha Wells is the 8th book in the fantastic science fiction Murderbot Diaries, which has been made into a streaming series starring Alexander Skarsgaard (who makes a very sexy SecUnit). Here's the blurb: Everyone's favorite lethal SecUnit is back in the next installment of Martha Wells' bestselling and award-winning Murderbot Diaries series.

Having someone else support your bad decision feels kind of good.

After volunteering to run a rescue mission, Murderbot realizes that it will have to spend significant time with a bunch of humans it doesn't know.

Including human children. Ugh. This may well call for... eye contact!“Murderbot’s legion of fans will be thrilled by Wells’s latest series installment, and readers who love a good, snarky internal monologue will be glad to know that Murderbot is back in fine fettle after their self-doubt in the previous book, System Collapse.” ―Library Journal

 
Murderbot, and his fixation on "quality entertainment" space opera videos, along with his intense dislike of snotty children, makes me laugh out loud and chortle with enjoyment because I know that whatever Murderbot's gotten into, he's going to get the humans out alive just fine, because he's amazing at what he does, and he protects stupid humans all the time. You can't help but cheer for him and his crew of drones and other 'freed' space machines, from cargo haulers to other Sec Units being freed from their governor modules. Other than a bit too much techno-babble, I adore Wells spare and elegant prose, and her clean and swift plots that always end exactly as you'd expect them to. I'd give this lean novel an A, and recommend it to anyone who has read any of the Murderbot novels, because you won't be disappointed. Murderbot can always be relied on for a witty and wonderful reading experience.

 

Love Potion Library Debuts in California, Trigger Warning Book Bus Hits the Road in Des Moines, Iowa, Midnight Library Movie, Quote of the Day, Anna Pigeon Comes to TV, Outllaw by Jim Butcher, League of Gentlewomen Witches by India Holton, The Cyprian by Mercedes Lackey, and A Bride in the Bargain by Deeanne Gist

Good evening, book people! Here we are halfway through May, and its gone by in the blink of an eye! I'm excited to celebrate Mother's Day a week late this weekend with my son Nick, by going to Half Price Books and perusing the purses at a local clothing store. It's going to be epic, and we will probably stop for a boba tea at the tea shop a few towns over, and get a hot dog for lunch! YAY!   Meanwhile I'm going to share some tidbits and reviews with you all from this past week, when I was still getting over a respiratory infection that managed to keep me in bed, reading.

 

This sounds like a great romantic store to visit, if I'm ever lucky enough to take a trip to San Fran.  

The Love Potion Library Debuts in San Francisco, Calif.

The Love Potion Library, a romance-focused bookstore and cafe, made its debut in San Francisco, Calif., on April 25, the San Francisco Standard reported.Located at 284 Noe St. in the Castro, Love Potion Library carries a wide array of romance and romance adjacent titles, with books categorized both by relevant tropes and sub-genres. The cafe side of the business serves tea from a local tea shop as well as locally-sourced pastries, and it is licensed for beer and wine. The store's event plans include book clubs, game and trivia nights, and both queer and straight speed-dating events.

Prior to opening the Love Potion Library, store owner Veena Patel worked in alternative energy for nearly 10 years. She left that job in early 2025, telling the Standard: "I realized it wasn't something I enjoyed doing, being behind my computer all day. I just felt really lonely." A life-long romance reader, Patel opened the bookstore with the help of her husband, Varun Dutta, who is a software engineer and sometimes works the register at the bookstore.

The store's reception since its debut on Independent Bookstore Day has been fantastic, the Standard noted, with certain titles selling out within days of opening and a Heated Rivalry trivia night bringing in almost 50 customers with a substantial waitlist. According to the Standard, it is San Francisco's only romance-focused bookstore.

I love this idea, repurposing a bus to turn it into a local mobile bookstore. I will have to ask my friends who live in Des Moines to check it out.

Trigger Warning Book Bus Hits the Road in Des Moines, Iowa, Metro Area

Trigger Warning Book Bus hosted a ribbon cutting celebration recently in Waukee, Iowa, after which owner Becky Vandermark made a stop at Local 5 News to talk about her venture.

The mobile bookshop is located inside a 22-passenger shuttle bus that has been transformed into a romance bookstore.

"I wanted to do something different, and I thought I need something like a food truck and a bookstore... and here's the book lists," said Vandermark, whose day job is serving as a Waukee police officer. "I'm just excited to share my love of reading with people. I think everybody to use a little bit more love in their life."

Low, warm lighting casts a seductive glow over shelves filled with stories of desire, danger, and devotion. Neon script softly illuminates the floral textures and rich tones creating a space that feels private, tempting--almost forbidden. Every inch whispers: stay awhile. The bus will hold approximately 600 romance novels available for purchase."

In March, Vandermark told the Des Moines Register that she began her love of reading as a U.S. Marine: "No matter what country I was in, no matter what was going on, I was always able to just escape into a book." She particularly enjoys romance novels, a way for her to "escape reality," and likes the appeal to "our human need to feel accepted, to feel loved."

This ultimately led to purchasing and renovating the bus. "This was a retirement home shuttle bus before it was this," Vandermark said, noting that the mobile bookshop's name is an homage to her law enforcement background and an acknowledgment of the explicit content of the books she plans to offer. She plans to sell in the Des Moines metro area at events and rent the bus for parties.

I loved the Midnight Library, and I'm going to try to get a copy of the sequel this weekend, but meanwhile, I'm excited that they're filming the ML based on the novel...it has big shoes to fill. I hope that it doesn't disappoint. 

Movies: The Midnight Library

Florence Pugh (Dune franchise) will star in and produce The Midnight Library, based on Matt Haig's bestselling novel and directed by Garth Davis.

Deadline reported that Pugh will play Nora Seed, "who finds herself in a library between life and death with the chance to experience all the potential lives she could have lived."

The screenplay is by Laura Wade (Rivals) and Nick Payne (We Live in Time). Studiocanal and Blueprint Pictures are behind the project, which the former is launching for the Cannes market, Deadline noted. Haig will executive produce. The project is set to enter pre-production this fall with shooting to begin early next year.

"I am so happy that Nora's story is in such great hands, and that her myriad possibilities will be vividly reawakened by the absolute perfect team. And I can't wait for people to see my book reimagined for the big screen," Haig said.

Books are powerful, and that is why libraries and bookstores are so important.

Quotation of the Day

"But there is something the powerful have never been able to destroy.

Not princes, not presidents, not lawyers, not the grinding machinery of institutional silence. The power of a book.... Virginia and Amy Wallace did not write their book so that we would mourn her. They wrote it so we would read it. So that things would change.

"It is on the shelves of beautiful bookstores. It is in libraries. It is on nightstands. It is being read tonight by people who will close it and know--with absolute certainty--that her testimony cannot be ignored. That the world she described demands an answer. The woman can be silenced. The book cannot.

"This is what the greatest acts of witness always do. They do not close a story. They open it outward--into all the other stories that were never told, all the voices that were silenced before they found a page.

Books are not monuments. They are instructions. Not merely to record what happened to one person. But to change the way the reader sees the world.

"That is what we do. That is why we write, publish, and sell books. This is what one book can do--when it is written honestly enough, published bravely enough, and read by enough people willing to be changed by it. And the truth, once a book unleashes it in the world, has a way of outlasting everything that tried to stop it. It makes the world a little less safe for the predatory and powerful, and a little more possible for the rest of us."--Sarah Wynn-Williams

This sounds like a fantastic series coming to TV, and hopefully a streaming service this summer. 

TV: Anna Pigeon

The first trailer has been released for the new USA Network series Anna Pigeon, based on the bestselling novels by Nevada Barr. Morwyn Brebner is showrunner and Tracy Spiridakos stars in the series that "follows Anna, a former city slicker who becomes a park ranger after a devastating loss that changed the trajectory of her life forever. While Anna tries to outrun her demons, her focus turns to solving crimes that have taken place within national park grounds, no matter who or what gets in her way," Deadline reported. The show is set to premiere August 7.

Spiridakos said the pilot is based on Track of the Cat, the first novel in the Anna Pigeon series: "I hope that audiences can really immerse themselves in the wilderness, which is definitely its own character. It's so stunningly beautiful. Every day we were working, and I looked around, pinching myself and wondering, 'How is this my life?' "

Outlaw by Jim Butcher is a Dresden Files novella that I was anxious to read immediately, because Harry Dresden is freaking amazing, and my chosen book boyfriend. I love Chicago's only real wizard, and his big heart and strong moral compass...and the fact that he kicks major arse with his nearly 7 ft tall, leather greatcoated self, carrying his staff and consulting Bob the ancient spirit inhabiting a skull that he keeps in his work room. Here's the blurb: 

The past comes back in a big way for Chicago’s only professional wizard in this action-packed novella from the bestselling Dresden Files series.

In a city that’s just beginning to recover from the devastation caused by the Battle of Chicago, Harry Dresden is finally pulling himself together as well. He’s ensconced in his own personal castle, healing his various wounds and training an eager new apprentice. The last thing he wants is any trouble. But, as history has consistently―and quite annoyingly―shown, what Harry wants is rarely what Harry gets.

It starts with a visit from Harry’s most powerful frenemy, Gentleman John Marcone, Baron of Chicago. He needs Harry to assist in the redemption of an underling who’s looking to go straight. And since Harry does kinda sorta owe Marcone for saving his life once (stupid honorable debt!), it’s not a request he can refuse. He’ll just wish he had.

Because this little favor is going to drag Harry into a fight he doesn’t want on behalf of a lowlife he doesn’t trust against an enemy more powerful and pestilent than he ever could’ve expected: an insatiable, demonic foe whom Harry himself may have created when he wiped out the vampires of the Red Court so long ago.

Before, all it wanted was blood. Now it wants the entire world.

There is something so satisfying about a Dresden Files book...good always wins against evil (though the price in human lives/suffering is high) and Harry always learns something about his magic and his life. This short novel featured some of the best side characters that the series has to offer (the ones that haven't died, like Karen Murphy, Harry's love interest), from Gentleman John the gangster king to Bob the skull to Bear the Valkyrie...the only person we didn't get to see was Waldo (where's Waldo?..there, I said it, you know you were thinking it!) Butters the ME who is a carrier of a heavenly sword. We also didn't get a glimpse of Michael the retired archangel and his daughter Molly, who is currently a fae queen. But they're not as interesting or important as Butters or Bob. Butcher's ability to lighten battles and scary villains with wit and snark is unrivaled, and you'll find yourself smirking and enjoying every minute that Harry is filleting someone with his sharp tongue. To Butcher I can only say "Bravo! MORE PLEASE!" as I give this fun novellla an A, and recommend it to anyone who loves the Dresden Files series. 

 

The League of Gentlewomen Witches by India Holton is a Victorian romantasy, in which there's a lot of kerfuffle about various sides of the magical community, and how they shouldn't mix, until, inevitably, a witch and a pirate do fall in love and have to navigate the prejudices on both sides to be together. Here's the blurb: Just when you thought it was safe to go back into the teahouse. . . .

Miss Charlotte Pettifer belongs to a secret league of women skilled in the subtle arts. That is to say—although it must never be said—witchcraft. The League of Gentlewomen Witches strives to improve the world in small ways. Using magic, they tidy, correct, and manipulate according to their notions of what is proper, entirely unlike those reprobates in the Wisteria Society.

When the long lost amulet of Black Beryl is discovered, it is up to Charlotte, as the future leader of the League, to make sure the powerful talisman does not fall into the wrong hands. Therefore, it is most unfortunate when she crosses paths with Alex O’Riley, a pirate who is no Mr. Darcy. With all the world scrambling after the amulet, Alex and Charlotte join forces to steal it together. If only they could keep their pickpocketing hands to themselves! If Alex’s not careful, he might just steal something else—such as Charlotte’s heart.

 

There's a lot of prim sniffing and aristocratic snarling and one-upmanship in this book, which is just another way to say that the 19th century version of snark and sarcasm is definitely on board here. There's also a lot of flirting and sexytimes between Charlotte and Alex, who find sniping at one another arousing in every sense of the word. The prose is a bit old fashioned, and Holton does drone on a bit with descriptions of the house interiors and the clothing of the characters, but the plot is sturdy enough that it refuses to derail until the end, which is good news for readers. I'd give this fun and funny book a B, and recommend it to anyone who loves banter and enemies to lovers stories.

 

The Cyprian by Mercedes Lackey is the 19th book in her Elemental Masters series, and this one is a retelling of the Swan Maiden fairy tale. I've loved this series, until I caught the nasty whiff of pedophilia in this particular story that was sad and nauseating. One of the male protagonist heroes, Stephen, develops a desire to see a little girl he met at a ball when she was 13 and he was an adult! EWWWW. fortunately he doesn't see her again until she's 17 or 18, but even then he wants to bed and marry her right away, and it is obvious that he's decades older than she is! Ugh. Why, ML?! Here's the blurb: A cozy, cottage-core Regency fantasy perfect for fans of Bridgerton
Elena, having lost her father, must rescue herself from her evil stepmother, a Master of Water, who has bespelled her brothers into swans. She is left without home or protection by her father's villainous widow, who plans to regain her wealth by selling Elena to the highest bidder.

Alone, Elena must not only find a way to save herself, but to reverse the spell that has transformed her brothers.

The latest in Mercedes Lackey's Elemental Masters series is a standalone romantasy based on Hans Christian Anderson's The Wild Swans.

The story of the 7 Swans who transformed for an hour back into humans but were otherwise cursed to live as birds gets retold here in a somewhat charming fashion, with a bit of Cinderella thrown in to make things as difficult as possible for the youngest child, a daughter, to break the curse and redeem her brothers from her evil stepmother's curse. The evil stepmother was once a high class whore, or Cyprian, as they were called at that time, and she plots to start a brothel and sell Elena's virginity to the highest (rapist) bidder. Another shudderingly awful plot point. ML's prose is dynamic and her plots never flag, so her novels are truly page-turning adventures with romance woven throughout. I'd give this book a B-, and recommend it to anyone who enjoys fairy tale retellings.

 

A Bride in the Bargain by Deeanne Gist is a Western Christian historical romance novel that takes place in mid 19th century Seattle, lumberjacks and all. I wasn't aware that it was a Christian romance, otherwise I might not have purchased it, but the lure of reading a fictionalized account of Asa Mercer's Brides brought to the wild west of Seattle at a time when mostly men where there as gold diggers, miners, lumberjacks or business owners (or lawmen), was too great to resist. Here's the blurb: In 1860s Seattle, a man with a wife could secure himself 640 acres of timberland. But because of his wife's untimely death, Joe Denton finds himself about to lose half of his claim. Still in mourning, his best solution is to buy one of those Mercer girls arriving from the East. A woman he'll marry in name but keep around mostly as a cook.

Anna Ivey's journey west with Asa Mercer's girls is an escape from the griefs of her past. She's not supposed to be a bride, though, just a cook for the girls. But when they land, she's handed to Joe Denton and the two find themselves in a knotty situation. She refuses to wed him and he's about to lose his land. With only a few months left, can Joe convince this provoking--but beguiling--easterner to be his bride? 

 

It's inevitable that Joe and Ivey will fall in love, my only problem with their romance is that Ivey feels responsible, personally, for every person in her life who has died, and therefore believes she can't marry because she's tainted and unworthy. I believe this is part and parcel of the Christian ideology, which is misogynistic enough to try and force women to believe that everything bad that has happened in society is because of women's "original sin" which was to eat the apple on the tree of knowledge (on the cunning advice of a talking snake). This ridiculous belief is apocryphal, and tries to keep women submissive, stupid and slave-like. Blech...I call BS on that. Still, the story was engaging and the background of how lumber was harvested and taken to the mills back in the early days of Seattle is fascinating. It was also interesting to read about all the food that Ivey had to cook just to keep 8 or so lumberjack men well fed (it was a LOT of work). It reminded me of my grandmother Lang, who used to cook huge breakfasts for her husband, children and farm hands every morning, and pack them lunches for noon (and then feed them a light supper before they retired for the evening, either at home, or in the barn's hayloft. Both of my grandmothers were skilled cooks who could literally make nourishing meals out of next to nothing. Both grandmothers had "truck patches" of vegetables in gardens that often also contained fruit trees, which were used to make jams and jellies, along with veggies and meats that were canned and preserved for the winter months. My grandma's canned roast beef became, when ground with mayonaise and breadcrumbs and pickles, a fine sandwhich spread that was tangy and delicious. In this book Ivey makes use of every scrap of food, making soups from the tops and scrapings of vegetables and adding in bacon ends and other meat, and using bacon grease for a variety of recipes that were hearty and healthy and kept the lumberjacks well fed and happy. The book had a lovely HEA as well. I'd give it a B+, and recommend it to anyone who enjoys "clean" non-spicy romances that are set in a specific historical time and place.

 

B&N Opens New Store in Seattle, Better Than the Movies Movie, Author, Editor on Phishing Scams, Amazon Shifts Prime Day to June, Story of Ferdinand at Carle Museum, Burn Bright by Becca and Krista Ritchie, The Thorn Queen by Sasha Peyton Smith, Anywhere You Go by Bridget Morrissey, The Witch and the Vampire by Francesca Flores and From Bad to Cursed by Lana Harper

It's already the second week of May, and I've read through 5  books and I will be done with my TBR stack before the month is out. Tomorrow is Mother's Day, the first one I will have to celebrate without my own mom, who died this past March. She was a great mom, and I miss her so much, it hurts. She wasn't the kind of person who stood on ceremony, and she disliked most holidays and was very anti-religion. So she would tell me, if she were still here, to rest, relax and have a cup of tea in her honor. Happy Mother's Day to all the hard working moms out there.

Speaking of Mother's Day, I am hoping that my son Nick will take me to this new B&N store in downtown Seattle tomorrow, where I can stock up on a few items. Both Nick and I have been ill with some kind of respiratory infection that only subsides once you're on antibiotics. Since we both got on antibiotics a few days ago, we're feeling better, so I'm hoping we will be well enough for at least a quick visit.  

B&N Opening New Space in Seattle

B&N is also opening its new bookstore in Seattle, Wash., today. The store returns downtown after the location in Pacific Place closed in January 2020. Located at 520 Pike St., the 18,000-square-foot space is situated a couple of blocks from the Convention Center and Pike Place Market.

The official opening to the public will feature local author Robin Hobb cutting the ribbon and signing copies of her book Blood of Dragons: Volume Four of the Rain Wilds Chronicles.

"The return of a major bookstore to Downtown Seattle is testament both to the revitalization of the downtown area and the vigor of bookselling generally," said James Daunt, CEO of Barnes & Noble. "The Downtown Seattle Barnes & Noble was for many years a flagship for the bookseller. We are very pleased to restore this again with the new Pike Street bookstore."

This was a fun novel, so I can hardly wait to see what they do with it in a movie. Speaking of adaptations, Remarkably Bright Creatures, based on the book by Shelby Van Pelt, has been made into a Netflix movie that I watched last night, and although its not as good as the book, I still cried, and loved seeing Marcellus brought to life (he's a wise old Octopus).

Movies: Better Than the Movies

Julia Hart (I'm Your Woman) will direct a film adaptation of Better Than the Movies, the bestselling YA novel by Lynn Painter, for Netflix, Deadline reported. Hart is also a co-writer on the project with her husband and creative partner Jordan Horowitz, who will produce for Original Headquarters alongside Shauna Phelan. 

Better Than the Movies "is a love letter to romantic comedies, in which senior Liz Buxbaum relies on her obsession with rom-com movies to get the attention of her untouchable crush, with an assist from her annoying but cute next-door neighbor," Deadline wrote.

These scammers and AI bots are becoming more bold and horrible by the day. It's evil, and completely unnecessary. Hoppefully it is something that will fade away over time.

Author, Editor on Bookish Phishing Scams

“It's so hard to be an author. It's also super hard to keep an independent publishing company afloat for nearly 30 years... and this scam and whoever or whatever is behind it is just such a waste of time and hurtful, unnecessarily hurtful.”--Johanna Ingalls, managing editor & director of foreign rights, Akashic Books

Phishing scams directed at authors are all the rage (or, more accurately, rage-making) in the book trade. Just yesterday in Shelf Awareness Pro, we ran an Editor's Note warning that names of some of our staff members have been used in recent phishing attempts.

As it happens, I've been in conversation about the topic recently with author Jessica Keener, whose latest novel, Evening Begins the Day (Koehler Books), was released in March; and Johanna Ingalls at Akashic Books.

"Covid spawned a new era of online events and activities," Keener observed. "But this AI-generated flood of online marketing spam is another beast. It's targeting that vulnerable streak that every author has--a need, and hunger to grow their reader base and sell more books."

And when I e-mailed Keener to clarify some details, she said she had just "deleted and blocked yet another long letter appealing to how great my new book is and how they would like to help me expand readership via Goodreads and Litsy.

"It's almost pathetic. The marketing letters use AI and repurpose familiar descriptions of the book online, and sentences from reviews found online. It's endless!" Be careful out there.--Robert Gray, contributing editor

I guess that Amazon isn't satisfied with getting a big boost to their bottom line in July, so they've got to move the date for Prime Day forward...corporate greed is disgusting.

Amazon Shifts Prime Day from July to June

Amazon has confirmed earlier media reports that Prime Day 2026 will take place in June rather than in July, when it has been held since 2015. The company gave no reason for the change and has not yet officially released dates for the four-day sales event for Prime members, saying only: "Stay tuned--we'll share more details as the event approaches."

In March, Bloomberg had reported that the change was coming, citing people familiar with the matter and noting: "The change will affect both Amazon and its constellation of third-party vendors, which count on the discounting surge to attract shoppers. Since Amazon captures about 40 cents of every dollar spent online, the timing of Prime Day is also closely watched by competitors, which look to draft off of the promotions and web traffic."

This was one of Nick's favorite books for me to read to him when he was little. I thought it was pretty awesome, being a children's book about anti-violence and anti-animal abuse.  

The Story of Ferdinand Exhibition Opens at the Carle Museum

Tomorrow an exhibition celebrating the 90th anniversary of the publication of the classic The Story of Ferdinand by Munro Leaf, illustrated by Robert Lawson, the tale of a bull that didn't want to fight, opens at the Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art in Amherst, Mass. The exhibition includes the original manuscript and drawings for the book, as well as material from the animated Disney film and Ferdinand memorabilia. Under the Cork Tree: The Story of Ferdinand runs until November 8.

Burn Bright by Krista & Becca Ritchie is a deliciously written and beautifully produced YA romance, with a gorgeous cover and blue butterfly end papers. Though it's ridiculously long (over 700 pages), it is a fast and fun read, with a lot of teenage melodrama and emotions flying everywhere. Here's the blurb:  He's a rich jock with a larger-than-life family. She's a punk-rock nerd with a troubled past. (editor's note: troubled past equals growing up poor with parents who are either criminals, drug addicts, divorced and/or mentally unfit to raise a child...because of course children of wealthy parents have much more love and support for their childhoods...blech! Classist nonsense!).

Ben Cobalt is number six. Not sixth place—in fact, he’d be considered at least third draft pick for the NHL if he didn’t quit hockey during college. And he’s not sixth-in-line for any throne. Though, most consider his larger-than-life, billionaire family American royalty.

He is the sixth-born Cobalt.

Out of a normal family of seven, he might get lost in the shuffle. But being the black sheep of the Cobalt Empire comes with its own intense spotlight. After he hits a major low at college in Philly, his four older brothers convince him to move in with them in New York City. Transferring to Manhattan Valley University—piece of cake.

Living in an apartment with all of his brothers while harboring a giant secret among a family who’s more tight-knit than a secret society—total effing chaos.

He has to find a way out of the tense living arrangement, especially as he clashes with his oldest brother Charlie. Ben turns to an unlikely source for help. A grumpy, punk-rock girl with a troubled past who's already pissed off one Cobalt brother.

So when an undeniable attraction ignites, Harriet Fisher is expecting the flames to die out. Except…what happens when they don’t? Falling for a Cobalt brother with secrets might be a Shakespearean tragedy she can't rewind. 

Amazon bot reviewers claim this is an adult romance novel, but the main characters are all in their late teens or early 20s, just like most YA lit, and the romance is very "exploratory" because the characters are so young and have never been in love before. The so-called "Giant Secret" Ben is hiding is that he's mentally ill with OCD, which somehow leads him to believe every bad thing that happens to his brothers and sister, or his beloved Harriet, is his responsibility, because he's somehow poisoned with bad luck. Several of his other brothers are also in therapy and dealing with mental illness, as is his father, who, despite all attempts to the contrary, sounds like a controlling asshat one-percenter (his mother is, of course, more sane, but still cold and controlling). Ben is ridiculously naive and childishly innocent, because he can't beat any kind of violence or killing...not even of bugs (like cockroaches, which are vile and filthy bugs that carry a variety of diseases). Harriet is also dealing with terrible self esteem issues, and doesn't feel worthy of love or care from the famed Cobalt brothers and family. She has, in the past, given out blow jobs in exchange for things she needs, or to help others get what they need. This is couched in sneering terms, as if she's tainted by being sexually active while not "in love" with her "soul mate." Which is misogynistic bullcrap. But, in the end, after everyone has had their running-away freak-out, the two main characters are together and happily going forward with their lives. I couldn't figure out, after Harriet discovers what a jerk her father the surgeon is, why she still insists on going to medical school to become a doctor, which she originally wanted to do to show him that she was "worthy" of his love and attention. When it becomes obvious that she's never going to get that, I would have assumed she'd drop expensive med school and become a drummer in a punk band. But it is inferred that now that she has all the monetary backing of the Cobalts, that she must excel at her career and become worthy of the love of that wealthy family, which is gross. Still, the fast plot and the tight and glossy prose made this a page-turning doorstop read. I'd give it a B+ and recommend it to anyone who has ever dreamed of being inside a one-percenter family and having access to anything they want in life.

 

The Thorn Queen by Sasha Peyton Smith is the sequel YA romantasy to The Rose Bargain, and it's darker and more depressing than the first book in the series, unfortunately. Here's the blurb: 

Wed to one brother. In love with the other.

Bridgerton, The Selection, and The Cruel Prince collide in this Victorian-inspired romantasy; the sequel to the instant New York Times bestseller The Rose Bargain.

Having won the hand of the faerie King Bram, Ivy is now Queen of England.

But with his ascension to the throne, Bram unleashed the fae into the human world. After hundreds of years of being kept from their favorite playthings, the Others are looking to make up for lost time—and they do, with wicked revelry that sweeps through the country.

To survive, Ivy acts the sweet, devoted wife. Behind the smile, she plots to banish her husband, save her sister Lydia, and reunite with the love of her life, Emmett.

Yet Emmet and Lydia are trapped in the Otherworld, where fae games are deadlier than ever—and a queen must play most viciously of all. Or see herself dethroned.

Forbidden romance, deceptive bargains, and lethal court intrigue intertwine in this mesmerizing, fae romantasy sequel that will captivate fans of Once Upon a Broken Heart and Belladonna.

 This is a "dark" fantasy, which generally means horror genre level of plot, but here they also indulge in plenty of "torture" porn, with young women getting jailed, chained, beaten, etc, over and over, yet somehow still surviving to whine and fight a losing battle the next day. The fae are portrayed here as nothing but immature psychopaths whose only interest in humans is how to torture, kill and abuse them. There never seems to be anyway for Ivy to win in the otherworld, where she's kept captive by the evil and capricious (read: cruel and childish) King Bram. Things slow down at the end, but most of the book is taken up with the creative ways that magical fae can abuse and kill mere mortals for sport. If you're in any way disgusted by serial killers, then skip this book and buy something a bit less painful. The prose wasn't as clear as it should have been, often falling prey to the overly flowery description of 19th and early 20th century authors. The plot meanders a bit, but eventually gets you there. I'd give this book a B-, and only recommend it to those who find horror-romance hybrids fascinating.

 

Anywhere You Go by Bridget Morrissey is an LGBTQ romantic comedy that is whimsical and sparkling. Here's the blurb: 

Two women discover love after swapping their homes. Fleeing the messiness of their personal lives, a small-town waitress and a big-city Broadway press agent swap addresses and lives in this queer contemporary romance.

Tatum Ward and Eleanor Chapman lead totally opposite lives. Tatum’s never left her Midwestern hometown. She resides in a quaint guest cottage on her parents’ property while working part-time as a waitress, where she spends most shifts ignoring her feelings for a beautiful regular named June. Eleanor dedicates every waking hour to her high-profile press career, sacrificing personal relationships for professional success, save for the occasional hookup to fight off her loneliness. When both women’s lives unexpectedly blow up at the exact same time, they each need an escape, and fast.

In Tatum’s hometown, Eleanor expects a quiet hideaway where she can recharge. Instead she gets wrapped up in the family drama that Tatum left town to avoid, pulled in by Tatum’s charismatic older sibling, Carson, who charms Eleanor at every turn. Tatum ends up in Eleanor’s New York high-rise apartment with June. One week together in the big city might make it impossible for Tatum to avoid not just her true feelings for June, but her real dreams for her life.

Amid a friendship with a reclusive Hollywood actress and a complicated family reunion, Tatum and Eleanor each discover much more than they bargained for away from home. Their house swap won’t last forever, but it might be just long enough for both women to surrender their defenses and finally fight for the life—and love—they deserve.

Though I enjoyed the queer romance aspect of this novel, and the country mouse vs city mouse swap, I felt that there needed to be a bit more depth to the characters and their backgrounds, which are kind of glossed over. I also found Carson confusing, as They were portrayed as gender non binary, but without the background to know how they had evolved into the person they were now...so readers are unsure if Carson is a trans male or female. For me, (realizing that I'm a dinosaur) it meant that I found the love scenes confusing and the sexual attraction murky at best. Still, the prose was strong and the plot fun and zippy. I'd give this book a B, and recommend it to anyone interested in lesbian and non binary romances.

 

The Witch and The Vampire by Francesca Flores was a stiff and bumpy YA "dark" LGBTQ romantasy that became tedious and derivative before it was halfway through. Here's the blurb: Francesca Flores's The Witch and the Vampire is a queer Rapunzel retelling where a witch and a vampire who trust no one but themselves must journey together through a cursed forest with danger at every turn.

Ava and Kaye used to be best friends. Until one night two years ago, vampires broke through the magical barrier protecting their town, and in the ensuing attack, Kaye’s mother was killed, and Ava was turned into a vampire. Since then, Ava has been trapped in her house. Her mother Eugenia needs her: Ava still has her witch powers, and Eugenia must take them in order to hide that she's a vampire as well. Desperate to escape her confinement and stop her mother's plans to destroy the town, Ava must break out, flee to the forest, and seek help from the vampires who live there. When there is another attack, she sees her opportunity and escapes.

Kaye, now at the end of her training as a Flame witch, is ready to fulfill her duty of killing any vampires that threaten the town, including Ava. On the night that Ava escapes, Kaye follows her and convinces her to travel together into the forest, while secretly planning to turn her in. Ava agrees, hoping to rekindle their old friendship, and the romantic feelings she'd started to have for Kaye before that terrible night.

But with monstrous trees that devour humans whole, vampires who attack from above, and Ava’s stepfather tracking her, the woods are full of danger. As they travel deeper into the forest, Kaye questions everything she thought she knew. The two are each other's greatest threat―and also their only hope, if they want to make it through the forest unscathed. 

As per usual with horror (called "dark") romantasy novels, there was a great deal of blood and torture and pain heaped on the main characters and everyone they love, while Ava's quest to become part of a "nice" vampire nest turns out to be futile, because there are no nice vamps, and she is apparently alone in her quest to not drink the blood of humans to survive. The book starts out depressing and only gets darker and more pain-filled as it goes along, on a plot that dips and bumps like a mile of bad road. I'd give this poor quality book a C, and recommend it to those who actually liked the awfulness that was Twilight.

 

From Bad to Cursed by Lana Harper is a witchy rom-com that should have been added to the YA genre, especially since the main characters are "finding themselves" as people and for future careers. Here's the blurb: 

Opposites attract in this wickedly charming rom-com by Lana Harper, New York Times bestselling author of Payback’s a Witch.

Wild child Isidora Avramov is a thrill chaser, adept demon summoner, and—despite the whole sexy-evil-sorceress vibe—also a cuddly animal lover. When she’s not designing costumes and new storylines for the Arcane Emporium’s haunted house, Issa's nursing a secret, conflicted dream of ditching her family’s witchy business to become an indie fashion designer in her own right. 

But when someone starts sabotaging the celebrations leading up to this year’s Beltane festival with dark, dangerous magic, a member of the rival Thorn family gets badly hurt—throwing immediate suspicion on the Avramovs. To clear the Avramov name and step up for her family when they need her the most, Issa agrees to serve as a co-investigator, helping none other than Rowan Thorn get to the bottom of things.

Rowan is the very definition of lawful good, so tragically noble and by-the-book he makes Issa’s teeth hurt. In accordance with their families’ complicated history, he and Issa have been archenemies for years and have grown to heartily loathe each other. But as the unlikely duo follow a perplexing trail of clues to a stunning conclusion, Issa and Rowan discover how little they really know each other… and stumble upon a maddening attraction that becomes harder to ignore by the day.

There's a serious Romeo and Juliet vibe in the romance of Rowan and Issa, though they're older than Shakespeare's tragic teen lovers. I liked that there was also the enemies to lovers trope involved here because it bolstered the somewhat thin plot. The prose was lush and intricate enough to keep the reader going along the trail of mystery set out at the beginning of the book. I'd give it a B- and recommend it to anyone interested in rival family drama and witchy magic.