Bad Business (2004) Robert B. Parker
The danger in reading a Spenser book is that I then want to go back and reread all the other Spenser books. All 28 of them.
But as I reread them just a year ago, I’ll try to restrain myself.
Spenser takes what seems to be a simple divorce case, where he [...]

Illusion (1992) Paula Volsky
Illusion is a good book, however I can’t say I really like it.
The characters are good–very good. Despite starting out as a rich snob, I quite liked Eliste. Her snobbery was quite obviously a product of her upbringing, and beneath it she showed herself to be a decent human being. The same [...]

The Last Unicorn (1968) by Peter S. Beagle
Although I’ve read other books by Peter S. Beagle, I had not yet read The Last Unicorn. It’s mentioned as a classic, and I kept getting stunned disbelief that I had never read it, so I finally picked up a copy.
Perhaps it was a case over a book [...]

Whispers of the Dead (2004) Peter Tremayne
When I first came across the Sister Fidelma mysteries I was almost certain I was going to like them. Sister Fidelma is a nun and a lawyer in 17th century Ireland. Written by an Irish scholar, the stories are full of wonderful historical detail and are history lessons as [...]

Luscious Lemon Desserts (2001) Lori Longbotham
For the past couple of years I have been searching for the perfect lemon cake recipe. As a rule I prefer cakes from scratch, but when it comes to lemon cake, none of the cakes I made seemed quite as good. In my quest I’ve ended up with several cookbooks [...]

A Fistful of Sky (2004) Nina Kiriki Hoffman
At loose ends last night I picked up A Fistful of Sky because it was a single book and not a series. (I picked up the first book in a series by Mindy L. Klasky, and was so annoyed by the main character I put it back after [...]

The Southern Vampire Mysteries: Dead Until Dark (2001), Living Dead in Dallas (2002), Club Dead (2003), Dead to the World (2004) Charlaine Harris
If I told you I’d been reading erotic, vampire mysteries, would you still respect me?
If the answer is “No,” too bad. Since the Victorian part of my soul has to deal with [...]

Tigana (1990) Guy Gavriel Kay
Why is it that every time I finish one of Guy Gavriel Kay’s books, I ask myself, “How could I have forgotten how good his books are?” Even reading this book for a second time, I was still surprised at how good it was.
This book was frustrating at first. There are [...]

Across the Nightingale Floor (2002) Grass for His Pillow (2003) Brilliance of the Moon (2004) Tales of the Otori by Lian Hearn
Fabulous. Absolutely fabulous.
I loved everything about these books. The story, the writing, even the covers. The only complaint I have is that there was very little resolution at the end of books one and [...]

The Assassins of Tamurin (2003) S.D. Tower
This book is a rare find in fantasy–a stand alone book. No trilogy, no books from the same world or with the same characters, just a single story within it’s covers. I have to say it’s really quite a joy to come across a book like this, and a [...]

The Shadow Roads ‘The Swan’s War Book III’ (2004) Sean Russell
Finally! The book was in the mailbox when we got home, and I devoured it last night.
Good. Very good!
Yet in retrospect this series is quite different from other Sean Russell books I’ve read. There was more direct action. In the past I’ve found his [...]

Tales of Mithgar (1994) Dennis McKiernan
Still looking for books to tide me over, I turned to another favorite, Dennis McKiernan. I picked up Tales of Mithgar because it’s a collection of short stories, and I love short stories.
Set in the “One Eyed Crow” tavern, a blizzard has descended suddenly upon the land, and everyone [...]

Swordspoint (1987) Ellen Kushner
While waiting for the last book in Sean Russell’s ‘The Swan’s War’ to arrive, I decided to indulge in a book I’ve read fairly recently and loved.
This book is just as gorgeous as I remember. The writing is absolutely lovely, drawing me into the story from the first sentence. The story [...]