I wasn’t sure what to think of Madwoman by Chelsea Bieker when it first arrived on my doorstep – was this a thriller, or a work of literary fiction? The cover was difficult to decipher, until I saw that Ashley Audrain had blurbed it. Ah yes, a thriller then. For those who follow along with…
I’ve never read a book by B.R. Myers before, but she’s a Canadian writer, and the premise of her latest release The Third Wife of Faraday House intrigued me, so I took a chance on a ‘new to me’ author. It was a fun book to read with lots of elements that promise a good…
It’s been awhile since I picked up a book by Kate Atkinson, although in the past when I did read her, I enjoyed her work. Atkinson is also well known for her detective Jackson Brodie and the series she’s written for him, of which Death at the Sign of the Rook is the sixth. This…
I read the highly-anticipated debut novel by Carley Fortune when it came out, and enjoyed it. Her second book came out to much fanfare, but it didn’t seem to gain the same level of popularity her first had, so I never got around to it. Her third book This Summer Will be Different was released…
I had been meaning to read The Ministry of Time by Kaliane Bradley when it first hit my doorstep almost a full year ago, but I never seemed to get around to it (story of my life, and my bookshelf). When I saw how much attention it was getting, plus it’s appearance on the Top…
It’s been a few years since Alan Bradley has released a Flavia de Luce novel, but I’m happy to say I’ve completed the 11th in the series titled What Time the Sexton’s Spade Doth Rust, and it is just as fantastic as the rest that come before it. It picks up right where the 10th…
Whenever a new adult book or story collection comes out by Caroline Adderson, I always jump at the chance to read it. A Way to be Happy is her latest release, and was longlisted for the Giller Prize earlier this year. Most of her books have come out quietly, and it continually astounds me how…
It has become a new Christmas tradition of mine to read the latest releases of Biblioasis’ Haunted Bookshelf series around the holidays. Each year they release three previously-published ghost stories but with the additions of illustrations by Seth, meant to revive the Victorian tradition of reading ghost stories on Christmas Eve. I’ve done this a…
This is the second book by Benjamin Stevenson that I’ve read and enjoyed this year. Everyone This Christmas Has a Secret is obviously a seasonal release, meant to capture those readers who love a good holiday-themed book, myself included. I’ve reviewed stories like this before, and typically enjoyed them. But I knew this book would…
Around the holiday season I like to dive into a romance novel. Partially because this is the month I like to ‘treat’ myself to lighter reads, but also because I aim to include one romance novel in my ‘books as gifts’ round-up each December for the CBC. Sunshine and Spice by Aurora Palit does not…
Ah yes, another cozy mystery series for me to enjoy – and this time it features a feisty female farmer doing the sleuthing! Grounds for Murder by Betty Ternier Daniels is part of the “Jeannie Wolfert-Lang Mystery” series, and according to the author bio, Daniels is currently working on the second in the series, so…
I was immediately intrigued by the cover of the novel Rosenfeld, by Maya Kessler. It was designed to look like a movie rating, with the capital letter “R”, and the subtitle A Grown-Up Love Story for Grown-Ups. Although I’ll read an occasional romance novel (typically when it’s centered around a holiday), I do prefer the…
