Book Reviews
I typically post between two and three book reviews a week. Please refer to my review policy if you’d like to submit a book for consideration. I invite you to subscribe to my newsletter to get a summary of my reviews every three weeks.
Book Review: The Beguiling by Zsuzsi Gartner
The Canlit community is abuzz over Zsuzsi Gartner's debut novel, The Beguiling. Despite this being her first novel, Gartner is a well-established pillar of the Canadian writing community. She's been shortlisted for a Scotiabank Giller Prize for her short story...
Book Review: The Orphan of Cemetery Hill by Hester Fox
As I continue to read through my recently-released spooky books for Halloween collection, I'm treated to a wide variety of genres that incorporate elements of horror into their narratives. Today's novel, The Orphan of Cemetery Hill by Hester Fox leans heavily into the...
Book Review: Consider This by Chuck Palahniuk
I haven't actually read a book by Chuck Palahniuk since his 2010 release Tell-All, which is also the year I met him, and helped organized his event here in Calgary. His writing memoir Consider This, Moments in my Writing Life After Which Everything Was Different...
Book Review: Anxious People by Fredrik Backman
Is my reading palette less refined for loving a bestselling book? Should I be embarrassed that I easily jump on book bandwagons with the rest of the world? Maybe some fellow book critics see it that way, but I certainly don't. Good books sell well because they are...
Book Review: Plain Bad Heroines by emily m. danforth
I don't normally review YA books, which is why I wasn't familiar with the author emily m. danforth. She's the writer behind The Miseducation of Cameron Post which is apparently quite popular, so I have no doubt her name is familiar to many who read YA widely. Plain...
Ivereadthis Jr. Edition: Halloween with Confidence
In the past few weeks, I've gotten the question of whether or not I'll allow my children to trick-or-treat this Halloween. I typically answer this question with a joke (one of my go-to coping mechanisms) when I ask: who gets to decide whether Halloween is cancelled,...
Book Review: Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia
Caught up in the buzz of Fall book season again, I jumped at the chance to review Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia which seemed to be on everyone's must read lists for 2020. My blogger bud Melanie over at GTL reviewed this book a few weeks ago with a warning...
Book Review: The Children of Red Peak by Craig DiLouie
I'm getting a head start on my Halloween reading this year, and I think I've begun with two of the scariest books released this Fall. The Residence was a spooky ghost story I finished last week, then I dove right into The Children of Red Peak by Craig DiLouie....
Book Review: The Residence by Andrew Pyper
I'm no stranger to the spookiness of Andrew Pyper's books so I knew his latest, The Residence, would be scary. It was indeed terrifying, and just looking at the cover of it reminds me of all the chilling scenes that were so vividly described it felt like I was...
Book Review: How to Pronounce Knife by Souvankham Thammavongsa
How to Pronounce Knife by Souvankham Thammavongsa most recently appeared on the Scotiabank Giller Prize longlist, and we'll find out on October 5 if it makes it to the shortlist. Interestingly, it's a collection of short stories, written by a poet. It's rare that a...
Book Review: How to Raise a Reader by Pamela Paul and Maria Russo
I've spoken before about how much I enjoy reading parenting books that teach what I already know-I love being preached to, as a member of the choir! I get a smug sense of satisfaction, sort of like sitting through a class that you already know the lesson of....
Book Review: A Russian Sister by Caroline Adderson
It's been years since I've read a book by Caroline Adderson, and I don't remember anything about the last book itself other than the fact I loved it. Adderson is one of those writers that motivates me to pick up her work, regardless of the genre, and she's quite...