Ever since reading There, There by Tommy Orange a few years ago, I’ve been eager to buy more books about the American Aboriginal experience. These books are hard to find (at least as a Canadian, they seem be hard to find), and other than Louise Erdrich, I’m having trouble thinking of other Native American writers…
In 2018 an award called “The Staunch Book Prize” began, and it’s awarded to “ a novel in the thriller genre in which no woman is beaten, stalked, sexually exploited, raped or murdered.” Although there was lots of criticism surrounding it, it does raise an interesting point, which is the proliferation of violence against women in…
Are you the type of reader that’s affected by book hype? If an upcoming release is getting a lot of attention, does it make you want to read it even more? It’s ok to admit it affects you, that’s why they call it ‘buzz’, it’s so persuasive! Woman on the Edge by Samantha M. Bailey…
I’ve been on a ‘classical’ streak lately; reading The Haunting of Hill House a few weeks ago whet my appetite for the older stuff, so armed with a recommendation from FictionFan, I went to the library in search of some Arthur Conan Doyle. I picked up the tidy little volume of three of his best-known…
Mystery readers are a picky bunch, and I’m allowed to say that because I count myself as one of them. The pacing needs to be tight but not rushed, the detective needs to be believable but not unlikable, and the solution better be conclusive but not obvious. And don’t get me started on too many…
So I feel quite foolish that this is the first Karin Slaughter book I’ve ever read. She’s an America superstar thriller writer that everyone but me is familiar with, as she’s sold over 35 million books and even has a section of her website dedicated to selling t-shirts with her name on them. Where have…
Yes you read that right, I’m reviewing a ‘classic’ work of literature, one that was published back in 1959! As a book blogger, I’m always following other book blogs that review older books in addition to new releases, which always made me jealous. So instead of being a slave to the towering pile of review…
Ah yes, here we are with another domestic thriller. There seems to be a rash of books about naughty-nannies lately, yet this trend keeps going strong because it’s ripe for creativity. The figure of the nanny is an easy one to exploit in fiction because it’s essentially a stranger who enters the heart of a…
What’s better than reading a book that takes place at a Christmas party in front of your very own Christmas tree? How about if that book contains a devious murder plot too? Reading a holiday book during the holidays certainly ratchets up the tension and the dark pleasure of a good winter read, which is…
Are you a fan of ‘noir fiction’ ? Do you even know what ‘noir’ means? There are various definitions for it, but I found this wikipedia listing pretty thorough, and the first sentence does enough for my purposes here: “In its modern form, noir has come to denote a marked darkness in theme and subject…
My faithful readers will know all too well how much I love a Ruth Ware book. I’ve had my minor complaints about them over the years, but it’s never enough to put me off reading her. I still get excited each and every time I hear she’s written another, and thank god she’s productive because…
I read Elevator Pitch by Linwood Barclay in a place far far away from any kind of elevator. I was staying in a cabin in Northern Ontario, dodging mosquitoes but blissfully distant from any and all high rises. Barclay’s name is well known to me, as I’ve read previous books by him AND listened to…
