Author: joycesmysteryandfictionbookreviews

#TheSeaLoversCookbook #NetGalley

This cookbook is one that will take readers away to a vacation feeling. The photos are beautiful and will have readers/chefs dreaming of summer.

The author has organized the recipes by the following: Mornings by the Water, Light Meals on Deck, Sundown Hour, Hearty Meals to Share and, Sweet Finishes. Before going to the recipes, it will be helpful to read the beginning sections which include an introduction, information on stocking a pantry and a piece on farmer’s markets.

The recipes…breakfast…how about cornmeal pancakes or crispy pasta with fried eggs? For later in the day the maple glazed carrots look delicious. I also would like to eat eh fresh Vietnamese-Style spring rolls or the salty banana Nutella toasts, among many other good chices..

Do as the author suggests if you are lucky enough to be going on vacation. Take this cookbook with you. The recipes are clear and doable.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Chronicle Books for this title. All opinions are my own.

Pub date: 09 April 2024

“The Women” follows a San Diego debutante into a world of gut wounds and napalm. But the real challenge comes when she arrives home.
— Read on www.nytimes.com/2024/02/01/books/review/the-women-kristin-hannah.html

Emerson, Thoreau, Alcott (Bronson and Louisa May)…Margaret Fuller? Most readers of American fiction and essays know the first few names on this list. They may be less familiar with Margaret Fuller. However, by the time that readers close this book, they will fully appreciate her life with its successes, challenges and tragedy.

Young Margaret was a highly intelligent child, whose father took her education most seriously. When he died, Margaret was left feeling that she needed to support her family. She did that while also being part of the transcendentalist movement and more.

One aspect of the book that I really liked was the way in which icons became human. For example, early in the novel, Margaret visits Emerson and his second wife. Waldo, as Margaret is invited to call him, engages in a flirtation with Margaret. It is in moments like this, that readers get to look at great American figures in a new and less iconic way. Similarly, as the story opens, Thoreau is a young man working for the Emersons, and just beginning his writing career. Bronson Alcott is running a school, while Louisa May is still a child.

Pataki has written a number of works of historical fiction. She has another success on her hands here.

Many thanks toNetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for this title. All opinions are my own.

Pub date: 19 March 2024

On dreary winter days, it is easy for all of us to hope for spring. The young girl in this title is eager for the brightness of a new season. She is impatiently waiting until her world becomes more colorful.

The book opens with rhyming text and a wintry view of the world. As the book continues, young children will watch for signs of spring and will find excerpts from some well known authors on the subject.

The illustrations in this book are distinctive and filled with detail. They go nicely with the text.

Recommended for young listeners and their adults. There are ideas here for poems to explore further.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Vanita Books for this title. All opinions are my own.

This book was published in 2009.

#BigSisterLongCoat #NetGalley

The author and illustrator of this book complement one another so well. The visuals give extra meaning to the text of this picture book.

A young girl is excited to be noticed by and to spend the day with her big sister. However, things don’t go as expected. Will it be a day of disappointment or…could it all be okay? Young kids will enjoy finding out when they hear this sweet title.

Many thanks to NetGalley and NorthSouth Books for this title. All opinions are my own.

Pub date: 05 March 2024

Four stars ****

Shannon Reed offers readers her idiosyncratic answers (and they are many) as to why we read and why she does. Early on Reed shares that, as someone with a hearing impairment, reading books was a comfortable place to be as there was no need to struggle or answer based on imperfect understanding of what was being said. Reed read everywhere and everything, even a car manual when she forgot (never again!) to have a book with her. Bibliophiles will relate to not ever leaving home without something to read; I know that I did.

This is not an academic treatise but more a series of wide ranging personal thoughts and reflections. Throughout it is clear that Reed loves reading and wants her students and everyone, really, to find joy in a book.

Reed begins by talking about getting her first library card and the many libraries that have played a role in her life. I know two of these personally which made the pages come to life for me. 

Whether it is about reading (or not reading) series, signs you may be a character in a popular children’s book, reading to see ourselves across time, for comfort, fun or shock, or more, it is intriguing to see what the author has to say on a variety of topics.

This book would make a fun gift for a reader…even if that reader means giving a gift to one’s self. Take a look at the back of the book for an exhaustive reading list based on the books mentioned in the text. This will give a bibliophile many ideas for what to try next or to fondly remember books that they have read.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing for this title. All opinions are my own.

#TheElementsofArt #NetGalley.

Susie Hodge has written a number of books about museums and art. I have found all of the ones that I have read to be interesting and informative. That is again the case here with Ms. Hodge again sharing her insights and ways of looking at things.

This title is well organized. There are ten elements of art explored in these pages. These include scale, colour, light, movement, medium, technique, content, location, time and, the artist. After explaining each of these in a clear way, Hodge moves on to explore a number of paintings. Just some of these works are The Arnolfini Portrait (van Eyck), The Serenade (Judith Lester), The Monk by the Sea (Caspar David Fridrich), Under the Wave off Kanagawa (Katushika Hokusai), The Starry Night (Vincent Van Gogh), and Guernica (Pablo Picasso). There are too many to list but all are engaging and worth a look.

There are works here that readers will recognize and look at anew and those that will be getting a first glance. In each case, it is terrific to read what Hodge has to say.

Highly recommended to art lover experienced and un. Note the many gorgeous reproductions as the pages turn.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Quarto Publishing Group for this title. All opinions are my own.

Pub date: 30 April 2024

#TheBrightSpot #NetGalley

Here is the second novel in this author’s Sunrise Cove series. It will be welcomed by readers of that first book and will be enjoyed by those new to the series as well. There will be more entries to come.

Shalvis writes stories that include good characters and storylines. They are perfect books to pick up for a bit of pleasant reading time.

Meet Luna. She has a tough outer shell. Luna was adopted and knows little about her birth family as the book opens. What will she discover? How will this changer her?

Luna has made her own circle of trusted people and they, along with some underdogs, are important to her. One of these people is her long time best friend Willow.

Luna runs a farm and a restaurant. The scenes set here take readers to a place that they will enjoy. It is not always easy for Luna, however, as there is a co-owner in Jameson. Will they find a way to work together and maybe a relationship ?

Watch as Luna figures out what she wants in life. Will she get her happy ending? Readers will hope so.

I generally find this author’s novels to be comfort reads. They are titles that I turn to when I need something that helps me to escape the world. Readers in need of this kind of novel will, I think, feel the same way.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Avon and Harper Voyager for this title. All opinions are my own.

Pub date: 16 January 2024

LibraryReads is a list of the top ten books published this month that library staff across the country have voted on as their favorites.
— Read on libraryreads.org/

Four stars ****

The cover of this book, its title and the book’s description all drew me in and made me very eager to read this one. It did not disappoint. I think that The Women of Ardemore House will be adored by those who enjoy a twisty plot and an interesting protagonist.

As in The Maid (Nita Prose),, the main character, inheritor of Ardemore House, sleuth, and keen observer is neurodiverse. This leads to Jo being hyperlexic as just one of her talents. But, readers will enjoy spending time with Jo for many reasons, not just her autism. (It has been noted that the author also is neurodiverse, leading her to be well able to describe Jo’s world.)

Jo is coming out of a difficult period when the story opens. She is recently divorced and has been badly used by her publisher ex. Jo has also experienced the death of her mother. So, when she learns that she has an inheritance in England, Jo is ready to try out the ex-pat life. She arrives to find the requisite decaying country pile and its small cottage, a rather strange caretaker and a portrait…but it disappears.

When caretaker Sid is murdered, the story moves toward solving the case. This gives readers the opportunity to know all those working the case as well as the people in the village.

Who killed Sid? Why? Will Jo find happiness in Britain? Readers will turn the pages as they wait to find out.

I recommend this title. Mystery fans could not do better as they start reading in 2024.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing for this title. All opinions are my own.