This year at San Diego Comic-Con, Orbit gave away copies of The Astonishing Mistakes of Dahlia Moss, the second book in the Dahlia Moss series. Never one to turn down a free book, I snatched it right up and promptly discovered that I had struck gold, for this book is freaking hilarious. Dahlia is basically a geeky cozy mystery (although there is a little gore and some very unfortunate vomit). At the start of the … Continue reading The Astonishing Mistakes of Dahlia Moss by Max Wirestone →
Romeo and/or Juliet by Ryan North is a choose-your-own-adventure retelling of the Shakespearean classic. It’s all sorts of fun with adorable artwork in shades of white, red, pink, and gray. However, the novelty of the CYOA format wears off quickly and Juliet’s routes were much more fun than Romeo’s (not that I mind too terribly). A little disclaimer that this isn’t a book for kids. Teens, maybe. But the humor is bawdy and some of … Continue reading Romeo and/or Juliet by Ryan North →
The Gentleman is introduced on its title page as: “Being a Truthful Account Concerning the Hazards of Love, Marriage, Duels, Poetry, Inventors, Family, Anarchists, Airships, Intercourse With the Devil, Ladies’ Undergarments, Painting from Life, the History of Exploration, &c., Set Down by Mr. Lionel Lupus Savage & Edited With Objections by Mr. Hubert Lancaster, Esq., Containing Nothing Either Allegorical or Metaphorical and Never Deviating From The Truth.” It is a hilarious and affectionate send-up of … Continue reading The Gentleman by Forrest Leo →
Squee from the Keeper Shelf is a new feature wherein we share why we love the books we love, specifically the stories which are permanent residents of our Keeper shelves. Despite flaws, despite changes in age and perspective, despite the passage of time, we love particular books beyond reason, and the only thing better than re-reading them is telling other people about them. At length. If you’d like to submit your reasons for loving and … Continue reading Keeper Shelf: The Princess Bride by William Goldman →
As I’ve mentioned I have a decided weakness for travel writing, and books wherein the characters travel. This nonfiction memoir follows Lynne and Tim as they reconnect late in life, marry, and find themselves approaching 70. They decide that they want to live in various places around the world instead of just traveling to and from a list of spots on individual vacations. So they sell their house and set off to be what they term “Home … Continue reading Home Sweet Anywhere: How We Sold Our House, Created a New Life, and Saw the World by Lynne Martin →
NB: Welcome to Flashback Friday! During FBF, we’ll be resurrecting older posts and reviews that are relevant to things we’ve published on the site this week. Elyse reviewed a pretty creepy horror/thriller, so we thought we’d resurrect a lighter horror novel for other readers. This review was originally published (weirdly a year ago today) August 26, 2015. Horrorstör is basically a novel about a haunted IKEA. There’s no romance in it, but it’s relevant to the interests of … Continue reading Horrorstör by Grady Hendrix →
You’ll Grow Out of It is a series of autobiographical essays by professional funny person Jessi Klein. I picked it up on pub day entirely because of things I’d been hearing about it, celebrities I love talking about it on Twitter, and several great reviews from sources I trust (i.e. the A.V. Club and Sloane Crosley at the New York Times). For a time, Klein was a writer on Saturday Night Live and she’s now a … Continue reading You’ll Grow Out of It by Jessi Klein →
This book might be receiving a lot of attention and the reason is, it’s pretty wonderful. I can’t go back to my copy for quotes for this review because I end up reading it again and I already lost too much time and sleep trying to make myself stop reading it. Lucy Hutton is the executive assistant to one of the co-CEOs of a recently merged publishing company. Her nemesis and office mate, Joshua Templeman, is the … Continue reading The Hating Game by Sally Thorne →
Finding Dory was just delightful. I loved it. My biologist husband liked it although he kept whispering things like “That’s not really an Open Ocean Exhibit.” My tween daughter adored it (“A+!”). I did not consult with any smaller children, but the theater I sat in seemed to be a happy place. My reviewing duties were made even easier by a very young child who periodically and gleefully yelled out helpful things like, “This movie … Continue reading Movie Review: Finding Dory →
May is Mental Health Awareness Month and I’m certainly no stranger to the trials and tribulations of keeping up with one’s own mental health, not to mention the mental health of my mother. (It’s exhausting sometimes, isn’t it?) So this May, I wanted to read something that I could identify with and that would allow me to further spotlight the importance of mental health discussions. I’ve been a longtime fan of Hyperbole and a Half … Continue reading Hyperbole and a Half by Allie Brosh →
I totally enjoyed Sofia Khan is Not Obliged. It’s a little bit Bridget Jones (given that it has a tribute to Pride and Prejudice and a journal format and opens with some resolutions) and a little bit My Big Fat Greek Wedding (several weddings take place during the course of the story and they all involve huge immigrant families) but mostly it has its own unique charm. Sofia Khan is told as a series of … Continue reading Sofia Khan is Not Obliged by Ayisha Malik →
