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If you've read any of my other reviews of Jeff Noon's John Nyquist series, you already know that these books are really unlike anything else. John Nyquist is a detective who takes on the oddest jobs - or the oddest jobs find him. In either case, Nyquist goes to the most unusual, mind-bending, confusing communities to bring a small sense of order to the disorder around him. In two of my three previous reviews of Noon's book, I compare Noon's worlds with the worlds of Franz Kafka's work.  In case the comparisons weren't obvious enough for some, Noon introduces Nyquist to a resident of this new world by the name of Gregor Samsa who is in the process of turning into a beetle.  We'll also meet Alice Liddell and Mr. Hyde.  If you don't know who any of these people are, you can just skip this review and this book. The locations have been every bit as much a character as the people in Noon's books and that is still true here.  Nyquist is in the city of Delir...

Ellen Cooney's Thanksgiving follows one family through 350 years of Thanksgiving preparations. One family, one house, one room, one meal. Cooney's book connects generations, shares family joys and sorrows and as family items and heirlooms are handed down and sometimes lost, reminds us what is important in life. I have to admit that the first time I started to read this (back in 2013) I was bored early and put it away to try again.  I'm glad I waited and tried again because this time, perhaps fueled by my own interest in family history and genealogy, I was more interested in making the connections and following the family. Seeing how little humans change over the centuries is fascinating. Our technology changes, and perhaps our perception of how we fit into the world changes, but at our core we, as humans, have many of the same concerns, loves, fears, and fervor now as we did 350 years ago. Cooney manages to give us a little bit of the historical backdrop to each chapter (w...

It's almost never good news when the telephone rings in the middle of the night. And when you are Misty Dawn, once the 'Hollywood Psychic to the Stars,' you can be pretty sure that a midnight phone call will be a call for help. Former client, and actress, Dorine Witherspoon, is in town on tour with a musical, but the leading lady, Cassie Marx, has disappeared. Now the understudy is going to have to go - for opening night! Misty heads to the theatre at first light, along with her spirit (ghost) Wilson, and discovers that Cesar Romero - an LAPD detective - is already there and meeting with the cast and crew. And if the circumstances around Cassie's disappearance wasn't strange enough, Misty sees Wilson in a new light as the theatre spirits want nothing to do with him. There's a lot working against Misty, but finding Cassie will save more than a show. I've come to really like author Nancy Cole Silverman's work - based mostly on her Carol Childs Mystery seri...

I once thought that I enjoyed reading epic fantasies - you know books with characters (like sorcerer, priests, and thieves) and storylines that could be pulled from a game of Dungeons and Dragons. But the more I read the more I find them seeming all too much the same, as if they were, well, characters and storylines pulled from a game of Dungeons and Dragons. In Trudi Canavan's Thief's Magic , the first book in a series, we find a world just entering its industrial revolution and, like most fantasy books, this revolution is powered by magic. Here we meet Tyen, an archaeology student who uncovers a special book.  Special because it's a living, intelligent item. Here in this world we also meet Rielle, raised in a community run by priests. Rielle is taught to wield magic. She is aware that she has the ability to steal from the Angels, and there is someone willing to teach her how to do this, but she's not certain she wants to risk the wrath of the Angels. These two come to...

Beatrice Ball loves to sing. She loves it more than anything. When she's not singing she feels empty at best and, because it means dealing with her controlling mother, angry at worst. Beatrice begins to sneak out at night in order to sing incognito. But one night something happens and she wakes up in a hospital ER and learns that her good friend has been murdered. Beatrice has been famous - a household name - practically since the day she was born. With suspicion on her now, her mom hires one of the top attorneys in the country to represent her. This elevates her fame to a whole new level and Beatrice experiences the strange world of the ultra famous Hollywood celebrity. But she can't just live in the circle she's currently in. She either has to keep climbing or suffer a devastating fall from grace. There really isn't much to say about this book. It's quite poorly written and not worth reading. The characters don't stand out in any way. We never believe Beatrice...

Hummingbirds.  Is there any other species of bird that so immediately conjures up images of shimmery colors and blurry wings? Author John Shewey provides a rather thorough look at the group of birds known as hummingbirds, as well as looking at the individual groups of hummingbirds. This is a coffee-table-style book, meaning that it is rich with photos and relatively large text, making it easy to pick up and look at a photo and read just a little bit. It also implies a kind of veneer quality to the material - covering enough to look good without getting too thorough or in-depth. This is probably a pretty apt description, but I also want to be clear ... I liked this book. We don't always need to get deep into the science of ornithology to enjoy a book.  Those kinds of books are also available to those who want it. When you pick up a book about hummingbirds, you want to be able to look at a lot of pictures - to see the colorful variety of the species, and this book definitely pro...

Ah, "An October Daye Novel."  This is a sweet elixir to fans of urban fantasy. October (Toby) is finally planning her wedding to Tybalt, King of Cats, after a long engagement period. But Toby discovers that there is an archaic tradition in Fairie wedding ceremonies that states that the father of the bride must be invited to the wedding or political turmoil could ruin the kingdom. Nothing is ever simple for Toby, is it? This custom holds true for Toby's stepfather (legally her father), Simon Torquill. There are two immediate problems with this.  First, Toby has to find Simon. The two haven't been close lately, and Simon made a deal with the Sea Witch and has been lost since. Then Toby has to help Simon restore his memory in order for him to recognize October as a child he cares for. This is not exactly what Toby wanted to be doing as part of her wedding planning. I really like this series. Author Seanan McGuire is an absolute master. Her storytelling is beyond par and ...