From the category archives:

Reviews

Flash Review: Jinx, by Meg Cabot

June 12, 2009 Books and Reading

Jinx, by Meg Cabot

The only thing Jean Honeychurch hates more than her boring name (not Jean Marie, or Jeanette, just . . . Jean) is her all-too-appropriate nickname, Jinx. Misfortune seems to follow her everywhere she goes—which is why she’s thrilled to be moving in with her aunt and uncle in New York City. Maybe [...]

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Flash Reviews: The Agatha Christie Audiobook Edition, Part 1

June 11, 2009 Books and Reading

Flash Reviews: Quick reviews of the Agatha Christie audiobooks One, Two, Buckle My Shoe, A Pocket Full of Rye and Murder is Easy.

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Review: Write Away, by Elizabeth George

June 3, 2009 Books and Reading

In Write Away, mystery novelist Elizabeth George writes about her “approach to fiction and the writing life”. I am always on the lookout for books about writing written by authors I know and love, and this is one of my favorites.
I am a big fan of George’s Inspector Lynley novels; I’ve read all of them [...]

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Review: The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie, by Alan Bradley

May 27, 2009 Books and Reading

Eleven-year-old Flavia de Luce has a flair for chemistry and a love of poisons. When she’s not busy concocting weird and wonderful substances in her laboratory, she’s engaging in guerilla-style battles of the wit with her two older sisters. One day, shortly after she sees a stranger in an argument with her father, Colonel de [...]

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Review: Kissed a Sad Goodbye, by Deborah Crombie

May 22, 2009 Books and Reading

The body of a very beautiful young woman has been found in an East London park. She looks peaceful, like she might be sleeping. But death has, indeed, come for her, and Detective Superintendent Duncan Kincaid and Sergeant Gemma James set out to discover the woman’s identity, and who hated her enough to kill her. [...]

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Review: The Year of Living Famously, by Laura Caldwell

May 21, 2009 Books and Reading

Kyra Felis, a minor clothing designer whose life consists of working temp jobs to make ends meet between each collection she designs, meets Declan McKenna, an up-and-coming Irish actor who sweeps her off her feet. She finds herself married and moves from New York to Los Angeles, where she beings living a life of bliss [...]

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Review: Up Till Now, by William Shatner

May 18, 2009 Books and Reading

Usually when I finish reading a memoir or an autobiography, I come away with a sense of connection of sorts with the author, a feeling that I’ve shared in some of the personal details of his or her life. This wasn’t quite the feeling I got with Up Till Now, William Shatner’s autobiography; however, the [...]

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Review: The Book of the Film of the Story of My Life, by William Brandt

May 7, 2009 Books and Reading

“A hilarious novel about coming of age – in your forties” says the front cover of The Book of the Film fo the Story of My Life. Here’s the summary from the back of the book:
Frederick’s life is like a movie. All it’s missing is a hero.
Once Frederick Case passionately believed he could change the [...]

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Review: Ruling Passion, by Reginald Hill

May 5, 2009 Books and Reading

In Ruling Passion, by Reginald Hill, Pascoe and his girlfriend Ellie arrive in Thornton Lacey to spend a weekend with old friends from their student days. They find instead three of their friends dead of shotgun wounds, and a fourth friend at large, sought by the local police as a suspect in the killings. Meanwhile, [...]

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Audiobook Review: Death in the Clouds, by Agatha Christie

April 30, 2009 Books and Reading

A woman dies in her seat in an airplane en route to London from Paris. If not for Hercule Poirot’s quick eyes, her death may have been attributed to a wasp sting. Luckily, though, Poirot spots a half-hidden venom-tipped dart, and accident turns into murder. A search of the plane reveals a South American blowgun. [...]

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Review: The Murder Stone (A Rule Against Murder), by Louise Penny

April 29, 2009 Books and Reading

In Louise Penny’s latest Inspector Armand Gamache mystery, The Murder Stone (A Rule Against Murder in the U.S.), Gamache and his wife Reine-Marie are on holiday at Manoir Bellechasse, a luxury Québec chateau at which they stay annually. This year, though, they find themselves sharing the chateau with the wealthy Finney family, who have come [...]

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Review: The Essential Earthman, by Henry Mitchell

April 28, 2009 Books and Reading

The Essential Earthman, by Henry Mitchell, is one of my favorite books – it’s one I re-read frequently, and at least once between January and May. It’s also a book I’ll never lend, even though at heart I’m really a book lender. But while I might not lend it, I’ve been known to purchase it [...]

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The Chloe and Levesque Mystery Series

April 16, 2009 Books and Reading

Last month while knee deep in spring cleaning mode, I discovered a set of three books by Norah McClintock that I had purchased last year. The Third Degree, Over the Edge, and Double Cross all feature high-school student Chloe Yan and her stepfather Louis Levesque. McClintock has won five Arthur Ellis awards for juvenile crime [...]

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Book Review: My Little Red Book, by Rachel Kauder Nalebuff

March 17, 2009 Books and Reading

The Snapshot Review
What I Liked: The diverse range of women’s voices represented in this wonderful collection of stories about first periods.
First Line of First Essay: The chronology: I learn, I cry, I wish, I get, I divulge. (Louise Story, “Oh, Brother, 1993”)
Ms. Bookish’s Very Quick Take: This is the book that I wish someone had [...]

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Book Review: In a Dark House, by Deborah Crombie

March 11, 2009 Books and Reading

The Snapshot Review
What I Liked: Complex plot with lots of twists, and great series characters.
First Line: It took no more than a match, nestled beneath the crumpled paper and foil crisp packets.
Ms. Bookish’s Very Quick Take: An intricate mystery that’s difficult to put down, In a Dark House is well worth the read.
Pin it

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Book Review: The Private Patient, by P.D. James

March 9, 2009 Books and Reading

The Snapshot Review
What I Liked: Commander Adam Dalgliesh and all the much-loved regulars are back; the suspects and victim are well-characterized as usual; the mystery is complex and intelligent.
First Line: On November the 21st, the day of her forty-seventh birthday, and three weeks and two days before she was murdered, Rhoda Gradwyn went to Harley [...]

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Review: The Pull of the Moon, by Elizabeth Berg

March 4, 2009 Books and Reading

From the back of the book:

Dear Martin,
I’m sorry the note I left you was so abrupt. I just wanted you to know I was safe … I won’t be back for awhile. I’m on a trip. I needed all of a sudden to go, without saying where, because I don’t know where. I know [...]

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Book Review: A Cure for All Diseases (The Price of Butcher’s Meat), by Reginald Hill

February 26, 2009 Books and Reading

From the back of the book:

Some say that Andy Dalziel wasn’t ready for God, others that God wasn’t ready for Dalziel. Either way, despite his recent proximity to a terrorist blast, the Superintendent remains firmly of this world. And while Death may be the cure for all diseases, Dalziel is happy to settle for [...]

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Book Review: Rough Weather, by Robert B. Parker

February 25, 2009 Books and Reading

From the jacket flap:

Heidi Bradshaw is wealthy, beautiful, and well connected – and she needs Spenser’s help. In a most unlikely request, Heidi, a notorious gold digger recently separated from her latest husband, recruits the Boston P.I. to accompany her to her private island, Tashtego, for her daughter’s wedding. Spenser is unsure of what [...]

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TSS – Book Review: Full Dark House by Christopher Fowler

February 7, 2009 Books and Reading

Synopsis:
A present-day bombing rips through London and claims the life of eighty-year-old detective Arthur Bryant. For John May, it means the end of a partnership that lasted over half a century and an eerie echo back to the Blitz of World War II, when they first met. Desperately searching for clues to the killer’s identity, [...]

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Book Review: Skeleton Creek by Patrick Carman

February 6, 2009 Books and Reading

Something mysterious is happening in Skeleton Creek. Something scary. Something sinister.
Ryan came close to it … and nearly died. Now he’s trapped in his house. He can’t trust anyone – not even himself.
He is forbidden from seeing his best friend, Sarah. So while Ryan is isolated and alone, she plunges back into the mystery, putting [...]

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Thoughts on Book Reviewing, and New Rating System

February 2, 2009 Books and Reading

Recently, I’ve been thinking a bit about the blogging that I do here at MsBookish. I enjoy the book blog world very much, and have met some wonderful book bloggers in the short time I’ve been blogging here.
But I’ve been asking myself: what is it that I want to do here? And okay, I’ll [...]

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Review: The Case of the Missing Marquess, by Nancy Springer

January 28, 2009 Books and Reading

From the Back of book:
When Enola Holmes, sister to the detective Sherlock Holmes, discovers her mother has disappeared, she quickly sets off to find her. Disguising herself as a widow, Enola embarks on a journey to London, but nothing can prepare her for what awaits. For when she arrives, she finds herself involved in the [...]

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Review – The Squad: Perfect Cover, and The Squad: Killer Spirit

January 21, 2009 Books and Reading

The Snapshot Review
What I Liked: Likeable protagonist, a very intriguing and over-the-top (read: fun) story line, good dose of humour.
And I Learned: Cheerleading really is a tough sport. And the girls on the squad work hard!
Ms. Bookish’s Very Quick Take: Spy stories with a difference! These books were a fun and delightful read – I’m [...]

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Review: White Corridor, by Christopher Fowler

January 13, 2009 Books and Reading

The Snapshot Review
What I Liked: Bryant and May and all the other wonderfully quirky characters at the Peculiar Crimes Unit.
But: I didn’t get into the book until about a third of the way.
Ms. Bookish’s Very Quick Take: If, like me, you have difficulty getting into the book initially, stick with it – when the plot [...]

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Review: Airhead, by Meg Cabot

January 11, 2009 Books and Reading

The Snapshot Review
What I Liked: Em Watts is just wonderful, the dialogue is very realistic (says this mother of a 15-year-old girl) and the story is pure fun.
BUT: it’s more of a prequel, and at the end, I felt like it wasn’t really a complete story on its own.
Ms. Bookish’s Very Quick Take: A great [...]

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Review: Savvy, by Ingrid Law

December 14, 2008 Books and Reading

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Review: Santa Clawed, by Rita Mae Brown & Sneaky Pie Brown

December 9, 2008 Books and Reading

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Why I Like On Writing

December 5, 2008 Books and Reading

I’m sitting here re-reading my copy of Stephen King’s On Writing. You could say I’m procrastinating, as I’m doing this instead of working on one of several editorial deadlines that are coming due next week and the week after, not to mention the condition of my TBR pile, each book of which I plan on [...]

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