Reviews of novels, movies and writing events.
Black Creek Crossing by John Saul Based on the blurb, I was expecting Black Creek Crossing to be ghostlit, but it turned out to be more of a witch novel. Or more precisely, a ghost-witch book. A witch from the days of Colonial times makes her presence known, but she is also a ghost because, well, she died 300 years ago. Unfortunately, also residing in this haunted New England house is an entity of pure, unadulterated evil who encourages men to…
Burning Ridge, book 4 of the Timber Creek K-9 mystery series, tells the story of Mattie and Robo–canine detective and canine partner–as they trace the events leading up to a burned corpse in the mountains. As usual, love interest Cole (Mattie’s, not Robo’s) plays an important part in the novel. In book 4, Mattie struggles with her past as a foster child and survivor of abuse and looks forward to reconnecting with her brother. Cole is there to offer…
Going AWOL Hi Dear Readers! I missed you! How are you all doing? Did you notice I’d gone AWOL? I’ve been AWOL from Pen In Her Hand for two months now. I didn’t even realize it had been that long. What, you may ask, have I been up to? Well, I’ve been focusing more on novel writing. I’ve been working on a YA novel, which has now changed to Upper Middle Grade mostly because workshop readers told me my book…
My reading in 2017. At last it’s New Year’s Eve. I’ve yet to speak to anyone who is not happy to bid farewell to this year of greed and infighting and fake news and war mongering. Of course, reading is never something to regret but rather to look back on with affection even as we anticipate the new reads of the new year. With that in mind… I read many books but only recorded 30 of them on Goodreads. Among…
Frankie by Shivaun Plozza Publisher: Penguin, 314 pages Format: Ebook Source: Net Galley What it’s about: Frankie lives with her Aunt Vinnie above Terry’s Kebab Emporium, her addict mother having walked out years before. Currently suspended from school for engaging in a fight with the class bully, Frankie is tough and scrappy because she has to be. As the novel opens, Frankie discovers a brother, a talented street artist, she never knew she had. However, shortly after their meeting, Xavier…
The Secret of Crickley Hall by James Herbert Publisher: Tom Doherty, 633 pages Format: Hardback Source: Purchased What it’s about: In The Secret of Crickley Hall, Gabe and Eve Caleigh along with daughters Loren and Cally have rented Crickley Hall while Gabe is working on an engineering project nearby. Gabe and Eve’s goal is to find some peace and quiet to mourn the disappearance of their child Cam and to prepare themselves to acknowledge Cam’s death, even though his body has…
Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher Prior to committing suicide, Hannah records tapes that she places in a box. These messages–thirteen reasons why–detail the series of events that led her to take her life. She mails the box of tapes to the first person on the list with instructions to listen and then mail the box to the next person on the list and so on. I wasn’t planning on reading this book, but I needed to find a banned…
I didn’t know what a bardo was until I picked up George Saunders’s novel Lincoln in the Bardo. Bardo is the state of the soul between death and rebirth. The translation of this Tibetan word is “between two.” And that’s exactly the condition of the souls in the Oak Ridge Cemetery in 1862 when Willie Lincoln, third son of Abraham Lincoln, was interred. The death of Willie Lincoln and the night-time visits of Abraham Lincoln set off a series of events that will change the ghostly residents of Oak Ridge.
Hunting Hour by Margaret Mizushima Are you an incurable devotee of K-9 mysteries? Have you already devoured (and loved) Suspect and The Promise by Robert Crais and Blood on the Tracks by Barbara Nickless? Then you can do no better than to add Hunting Hour to your reading list. Hunting Hour features the lovable, and doggedly persistent Robo, a German Shepherd officer. You will love him as much as you love Maggie and Clyde–those larger-than-life dogs that leap off the…
Z is for Zugzwang. It is the last day of the A to Z Challenge! You, my readers, have survived! Yay, you! So, zugzwang. I borrowed a chess term for today’s category of novels for young adults. Zugzwang describes a situation in which one must take one’s turn even if it is to one’s disadvantage. It also means to force someone else into that situation. Zugzwang so perfectly sums up what authors do to their characters, and that is particularly…
Y is for Yarn. We are almost finished with the A to Z Challenge! Remember, my theme is: Novels for Young Adults. Today’s two novels fall under the category yarn. I’m using definition 4 (not fibers for knitting or weaving). No, definition 4 is “a tale, especially a long story or adventure…” Year of Wonders by Geraldine Brooks Year of Wonders chronicles the advance of bubonic plague in a small English village in the year 1666. The narrator is a…
W is for Woe. It’s day 23 of the A to Z Challenge! Otherwise known as the letter W Day for my theme Novels for Young Adults. Often teens face more than the usual woe. And for teens, that woe often comes in the form of family troubles. This is the case for both of our novels today. We Were Liars by E. Lockhart This award winning novel generates both love and hate reviews. We Were Liars is narrated by Cadence…
V is for Vicissitudes. So, this will be brief. I’ve been at jury duty all day. This will also be brief because there are very few novel titles, let alone young adult novel titles, that begin with the letter V. I found one: The Virgin Suicides by Jeffrey Eugenides I’ll admit I haven’t read this though I have read another of this author’s works–Middlesex, which I found quite interesting. True confessions: I’m a little creeped out by the concept of…