Tag: book reviews

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Week in Review: April 5, 2026

Happy Easter!

This was a pretty good week. I felt fairly productive at work and Michael’s job seems to be going pretty well. One thing I have been avoiding is making a phone call to the place where I got my dental implants a few years ago to discuss the issues I am having now. My dentist feels like it would be a good idea to pursue whether they will do anything for me since the implants seem to have been placed too close together, but that seems like a terrifying phone call for me to make so I didn’t get it done last week.

I have still not been reading as much as usual, but I did finish one book last week. It was a short story collection called Show Don’t Tell by Curtis Sittenfeld. I have enjoyed several of her novels, but this book was a bit more difficult to read. The stories seemed designed to expose toxic beliefs and prejudices, and I have to admit some of them hit close to home. The two stories I liked the most were “Follow-Up” and “Lost But Not Forgotten.”

I hope all of you who are celebrating Easter have a wonderful day however you choose to spend it. I will be having a quiet day at home with Michael.

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Jesse Parker Mystery Duology

I have been a fan of John Flanagan for several years. His main claim to fame is his middle grade series Ranger’s Apprentice and its spinoff series, The Brotherband Chronicles and Ranger’s Apprentice: The Royal Ranger. I have read them all and loved them, so when I learned that he had written a mystery duology, I was excited to read it.

The main character in the books is Jesse Parker, a former Denver police detective, who has returned to his hometown in Colorado to work with the ski patrol. When there are a series of killings in town, he is pulled into the investigation by Sheriff Lee Torrens, a longtime friend and former flame. I really enjoyed the mystery and the rekindling of the relationship between Jesse and Lee.

In the second book, Jesse has taken a trip to Utah to face his fears after a skiing accident and ends up in the middle of a hostage situation. It was interesting to see the character in a very different type of mystery, and I really liked the ending, especially the epilogue.

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Can’t Spell Treason Without Tea

Can’t Spell Treason Without Tea by Rebecca Thorne – Tomes & Tea book 1

Reyna is one of the Queen’s private guards, and Kianthe is a powerful mage, but all the pair wants to do is leave their responsibilities behind and open a bookstore that sells tea. After a couple of years of sneaking around to spend time together, they make their move and flee to a small town where they can follow their dream. 

If you think this book is reminiscent of Legends & Lattes by Travis Baldree, you would not be wrong. Thorne says in her acknowledgments that her book was directly inspired by his work. There are some definite similarities between the two, but Thorne has put her own spin on “leave a life of adventure for a cozy shop” story.

This book has a lot more adventure because there are people who don’t want the two women released from their obligations. There is also a mystery in the town that needs to be solved. I did like the action, but it was the cozy parts of the story that I enjoyed the most–watching Reyna and Kianthe explore their relationship now that they were living together, and seeing how they gradually became part of the town where they had settled. 

All in all, this was a fun read and I look forward to reading more of the series.

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Somewhere Beyond the Sea

Somewhere Beyond the Sea by TJ Klune – Cerulean Chronicles Book 2

This sequel to The House in the Cerulean Sea was good, but not as good for me as the first book. I loved being introduced to the world Klune created, meeting the magical children, and seeing things unfold between Linus and Arthur. In this book, the story focuses on the fight the inhabitants of the island wage against the Department in Charge of Magical Youth to be able to live in peace. It was clever and had some really touching moments, and I appreciated the social commentary. I just didn’t feel that it drew me in the way book one did.

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All the Broken Places

I haven’t read a Christian fiction book in quite a while, not since my favorite Christian writer Jamie Langston Turner had a new book out. But I have been following M. Jean Pike’s blog for a while now and decided to read one of her books and really enjoyed it!

In All the Broken Places, we meet Monica Humphrey, who is a schoolteacher living with her cat Ginger. She is lonely and overweight. A fall in the grocery store leads her into a relationship with the store’s manager, Barry, as well as into a weight-loss journey. As both of these storylines unfold, we learn about Monica’s history, especially with her father and the female relatives who raised her after her mother died.

I was quickly drawn into this book and connected with Monica right away. As someone who is overweight myself, I really appreciated that Monica was portrayed as a complex human being with a range of emotions and abilities.I loved seeing her emotional growth alongside her physical transformation as she reflects on the past and how it has affected her.

Unlike many Christian fiction books, the story was not predictable, and I enjoyed the twists and turns that it took, especially at the end. I definitely recommend checking out this or one of her other books!

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The Devil You Know

The Devil You Know is a chick lit/romance by Freida McFadden. It is a sequel to The Devil Wears Scrubs, which I read back in 2023. I must not have realized there was a second book, but when I saw this one on Kindle Unlimited, I grabbed it to read right away.

The story centers on Dr. Jane McGill, who has a husband, a daughter, and a job at a VA hospital. At work, she runs into Dr. Ryan Reilly, who she had previously dated, and starts to wonder if she made the wrong choice back then.

I liked the first book better and would recommend starting with that one if you decide to read these, but this was a fun read and I’m glad I read it. I think it’s kind of funny that McFadden is known for her thrillers but I haven’t read any of them yet!

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The House in the Cerulean Sea

The House in the Cerulean Sea by TJ Klune – Cerulean Chronicles Book 1

Linus Baker is a solitary man who lives with his cat and enjoys old records. He works at the Department in Charge of Magical Youth and is sent to observe and report on one of the orphanages run by the department. This classified assignment is unique because this orphanage is home to six dangerous children and an enigmatic caretaker named Arthur Parnassus.What follows is a delightful tale of discovery and understanding.

This book is just the sort of thing I would have loved as a child, and I thoroughly enjoyed it as a 50-something adult. I especially identified with Linus and his longing for beauty and connection, but all of the characters were wonderfully drawn and the story is enchanting. The social commentary is on point but not overdone as well.

I highly recommend this book and am already reading the sequel.

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Author Spotlight: Fannie Flagg

Fannie Flagg is an author who never disappoints. I always enjoy her books – they are full of colorful characters and heartwarming stories with both humor and a bit of social commentary mixed in. Her Southern charm shines through all of her work.

She is most famous for her book Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe and for writing the award-winning screenplay for the film adaptation, “Fried Green Tomatoes.” I can’t actually remember whether I read the book or saw the movie first; either way, I am glad I came across her and have been able to enjoy her books over the years. I have read all of them except the short stories published last year.

Flagg has written eleven books to date:

Whistle Stop Series

  • Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe (1987)
  • The Wonder Boy of Whistle Stop (2020)

Elmwood Springs Series

  • Welcome to the World, Baby Girl! (1998)
  • Standing in the Rainbow (2002)
  • Can’t Wait to Get to Heaven (2006)
  • The Whole Town’s Talking (2016)

Standalone Novels

  • Daisy Fay and the Miracle Man (1981)
  • A Redbird Christmas (2004)
  • I Still Dream About You (2010)
  • The All-Girl Filling Station’s Last Reunion (2013)

Short Stories

  • Something to Look Forward To: Fictions (2025)
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Butterfly Inn

Butterfly Inn by Kate Wentworth is the first book in her new series, Butterfly Lane. It is set in the same location as the Bella Beach series she just wrapped up and includes many of the same characters as that series. 

I enjoyed the book; it was a fun, quick read. I did feel that she spent a lot of time setting things up and explaining who everyone was, but that’s not unexpected when starting a series.

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Sheepfarmer’s Daughter

Sheepfarmer’s Daughter by Elizabeth Moon is book 1 of The Deed of Paksenarrion and was published in 1988. I originally read this as a teenager shortly after it first came out, so this was a reread for me, and I enjoyed it just as much the second time around.

If you enjoy high fantasy, this book would be a great choice for you. Moon wrote it after playing Dungeons & Dragons, and it reads like the best D&D campaign you could want to be involved with. 

One thing that really caught my attention was that the main character, who goes by Paks for short, is asexual and aromantic. I don’t remember hearing those terms back then, but her orientation is very clear in the book and is understood and accepted by the other characters.

I am so glad I decided to reread this one, and I am looking forward to the rest of the series.