The short version of this review is, if you like this series (as I do – I like it a LOT) you’ll really enjoy this latest installment. The mystery is sharp and poignant, there are myriad historical details folded in, the relationships between the characters continue to grow and mature, and Veronica is as sarcastic as ever. Longer (slightly) version: I was extremely happy that I received an advanced audio copy of this book, because … Continue reading A Grave Robbery by Deanna Raybourn →
I forgot where I heard about Yakuza Fiancé initially, but that cover was a strong motivator. Yoshino, the granddaughter of a crime boss in Osaka, and Kirishima, the grandson of a Yakuza boss in Tokyo are instructed to date (and possibly marry) to strengthen an alliance between the two families. Yoshino is a bit of a fish out of water, leaving Osaka to live in Tokyo with the Miyama family. She transfers to Kirishima’s school … Continue reading Yakuza Fiancé, Vol 1. by Asuka Konishi →
Please check the content warnings before continuing as several of them are unavoidable when discussing the setup! This manga is originally based on a series of Japanese light novels. They’ve been translated to English and even just reading the sample, it seems that the beginning of the manga follows the text closely. Maomao was kidnapped from her job as an herbalist/apothecary in a red light district and is now forced to work as a maid … Continue reading The Apothecary Diaries, Vol. 1 by Natsu Hyuuga and Nekokurage →
I read about book 3 in this series, Death Comes to Kurland Hall, in the December 2015 issue of Romantic Times, which we’re recapping on the podcast. As I mentioned in Whatcha Reading, like a completely strange human being, I didn’t start with book three. I started with book one, Death Comes to the Village. This review will be mostly about that book, with some warnings about book two, Death Comes to London. A Very Important … Continue reading Death Comes to the Village by Catherine Lloyd →
I’m a sucker for a historical mystery with an angry female lead. Can’t resist. Must read immediately. Fortunately, I discovered this series of books with exactly this type of sleuth on offer. Rhiannon ‘Non’ Vaughan is auditing some lectures at Oxford in 1881. Women aren’t allowed to attend all lectures, write exams or attain degrees, but Non is determined to do as much as she can nonetheless. Non is a fearsome young Welsh woman studying … Continue reading A Bitter Remedy by Alis Hawkins →
I said in Whatcha Reading about reading Lavender’s Blue, “In some ways my brain feels like I am putting on clothing from two jobs ago that fit but feel strange and familiar at the same time.” Now that I’ve finished it and sat with my thoughts and tried (several times) to write out a longer impression, I agree with my earlier assessment that it is both strange and familiar, but disagree with the idea that … Continue reading Lavender’s Blue by Jennifer Crusie and Bob Mayer →
This was an excellent airplane book. I found it on Kindle Unlimited in the airport, and read it on a two hour flight. It held my attention, but was light enough that I could read quickly and not feel like I was taxing my tired brain. There is a lot of dialogue and in just about any other circumstance that would make me very happy. I love dialogue. But the characters do a lot of … Continue reading Death in Soho by Emily Organ →
I mentioned this book in a recent edition of Whatcha Reading? and said, I have started A Most Agreeable Murder and it is extremely silly and absurd and I’m turning pages. Or pressing a button to do so, whatever. There are glowing, I presume bioluminescent, frogs. Their glowy slime is likely used for face cream to create a similarly glowy complexion. These frogs are unique to the town and make a lot of noise. I … Continue reading A Most Agreeable Murder by Julia Seales →
When I’m not in the mood for a romance, I need a cosy mystery, especially an old school murder mystery. Murder mysteries set in post-WW2 Britain – particularly the variety featuring small villages? Yes, please! They tend to lean towards ‘cosy’ on the ‘cosy’ to ‘hard-boiled’ spectrum, and there is a glorious escape from modern technology and its baggage. If you, too, enjoy this type of story, may I propose Catherine Aird’s book The Religious … Continue reading The Religious Body by Catherine Aird →
We have a word among the bitchery: catnip. Catnip in this context is not the plant, it is the trope, or group of tropes that is our personal drug of choice. The Mimicking of Known Successes is a queer science fiction romance/mystery featuring a woman who is of the Sherlock Holmes mode of detective and another woman as the Watson type, although unlike some versions of Watson, this one is intelligent and useful. I understand … Continue reading The Mimicking of Known Successes by Malka Older →
The Spare Man is most frequently described as The Thin Man in space, and the cover copy does a better job of summarizing than I could: Tesla Crane, a brilliant inventor and an heiress, is on her honeymoon on an interplanetary space liner, cruising between the Moon and Mars. She’s traveling incognito and is reveling in her anonymity. Then someone is murdered and the festering chowderheads who run security have the audacity to arrest her … Continue reading The Spare Man by Mary Robinette Kowal →