A comfy corner of a good friend’s couch, the other party guests are long gone but a few of you are lingering with vodka tonics and party snacks, dishing gossip, telling old stories and laughing your arses off. That’s exactly the atmosphere of Anything Goes, John Barrowman’s autobiography. Dr. Who fans will recognize John from his role as Captain Jack… Read more
“REPLACE THE GOD ANCHORS! WHO IS GUARDING THE NATION! WHERE IS OUR BEER!” These are the sort of gods I can relate to. In Terry Pratchett’s new book, Nation, the gods are angry and churlish. They berate Mau, lone survivor of an enormous tidal wave, for not singing the proper songs, doing the proper chants, or bringing them their daily… Read more
Raymond White is a young man who has everything: a fancy degree, a gorgeous fiance, a high-powered career and connections that are about to land him a seat in the US Congress. Then he agrees to do a favor for a dying friend and it all falls apart. His rivals frame him for murder, taking the job, the Congressional seat… Read more
If you like Historical Fiction with a strong emphasis on the Historical, you’re going to love The Whiskey Rebels. This book is well-written and painstakingly researched. Liss clearly has a thorough knowledge of the history behind the story, the language and demeanour of the characters, and the workings of the frontier economy. (It is truly bizarre to hear them keep… Read more
The problem with reading a book about the Salem witch trials is that you know how it ends, and you know it is going to end badly. It’s like reading a book about the Titanic – you know the boat is going to sink, and even if the characters survive, they’re going to get wet. This was the undercurrent running… Read more
How would you like to go to the grocery store or the gynecologist or your graduation wearing a $37,000 diamond necklace? Would it be fun? Would it be shocking? Would it change your life? In Cheryl Jarvis’ book, The Necklace, Jonell McClain convinces 11 other women to band together with her to bid on a $37,000 diamond tennis necklace. (The… Read more
Twelve-year-old Ren is an orphan. He was pushed through the tiny gate at St. Anthony’s on a rainy night when he was just an infant and already his life had been more difficult than most: Ren was missing his left hand. Despite that dreadful beginning, Ren’s life seems steady enough. He has a roof over his head, food in his… Read more
City of Refuge is the story of two families in New Orleans, their love of the city and its culture, and the wrenching decisions they have to make in the wake of Hurricane Katrina. I am advising my dear friends in New Orleans not to read this book; for them, the pain is too close to the surface and some… Read more
Harry Sullivan reads renovations the way a fortune teller reads tea leaves: he can predict the course of your marriage by the tiles you’ve chosen for the master bath. At the end of a project, when he has been part of your family and had access to your most intimate spaces, he knows more about you than anyone else. In… Read more
Ever wonder where the phrase “getting laid” comes from? The answer might surprise you. Check the comments after this review for the answer. Sin in the Second City is the story of the Everleigh Sisters, who ran the most notorious brothel in Chicago in the 1890’s/early 1900’s. This was at a time when brothels were not exactly illegal: prostitution and… Read more