Book Review: Ex Libris: Confessions of a Common Reader by Anne Fadiman

Ex Libris: Confessions of a Common Reader
Author: Anne Fadiman
Publication: Farrar, Straus and Giroux; 1st edition (November 25, 2000)

Description: Perfectly balanced between humor and erudition, Ex Libris establishes Anne Fadiman as one of our finest contemporary essayists.

Anne Fadiman is--by her own admission--the sort of person who learned about sex from her father's copy of Fanny Hill, whose husband buys her 19 pounds of dusty books for her birthday, and who once found herself poring over her roommate's 1974 Toyota Corolla manual because it was the only written material in the apartment that she had not read at least twice.

This witty collection of essays recounts a lifelong love affair with books and language. For Fadiman, as for many passionate readers, the books she loves have become chapters in her own life story. Writing with remarkable grace, she revives the tradition of the well-crafted personal essay, moving easily from anecdotes about Coleridge and Orwell to tales of her own pathologically literary family. As someone who played at blocks with her father's 22-volume set of Trollope ("My Ancestral Castles") and who only really considered herself married when she and her husband had merged collections ("Marrying Libraries"), she is exquisitely well equipped to expand upon the art of inscriptions, the perverse pleasures of compulsive proof-reading, the allure of long words, and the satisfactions of reading out loud. There is even a foray into pure literary gluttony--Charles Lamb liked buttered muffin crumbs between the leaves, and Fadiman knows of more than one reader who literally consumes page corners.

My Thoughts: This collection of essays illuminates Anne Fadiman's love of books and shows how books have influenced and infused her life. She covers a wide range of topics from her own curiosity about Arctic explorers especially the Victorian failures to her family's obsession with proofreading. 

Essays about merging her library and her husband's library after their marriage and about the care and treatment of books were my favorites. While she and I have different feelings about writing in books, I do share the habit of leaving books face down and sprawled open as I'm reading them. The idea that using a bookmark indicates a stop while leaving the book open and facedown indicates a pause is one I hadn't had before but do agree with. 

I don't share her feelings about used books and really don't want to find someone else's crumbs in the gutter of a book but can understand how they could appeal to some other different reader. Nor do we read the same sort of books. "Literary" and "Classics" are phrases that lead me to look for some different book while they seem to draw her in. 

All in all, I enjoyed this book. Fadiman's love for books shone clearly through each page. 

Favorite Quote:

But why do I receive catalogues devoted exclusively to salsa, equestrian gear, electric grills, extra-large clothes, extra-small clothes, tours to sites at which UFO's have landed, and resin reproductions of medieval gargoyles? Do these companies know something about me that I don't know?

I bought this one October 25, 2009. You can buy your copy here.

ARC Review: A Killer's Game by Isabella Maldonado

A Killer's Game
Author: Isabella Maldonado
Series: Daniela Vega (Book 1)
Publication: Thomas & Mercer (June 1, 2023)

Description: An FBI agent with a background in cryptography. A brilliant game maker bent on revenge. A deadly battle of wits and wills. An ingenious thriller from the Wall Street Journal bestselling author of The Cipher.

FBI agent and former military codebreaker Daniela “Dani” Vega witnesses a murder on a Manhattan sidewalk. The victim is chief of staff for a powerful New York senator. The assassin turned informant is Gustavo Toro. His code: hit the target and don’t ask questions. When Dani suspects a complex conspiracy, the only way to take down the mastermind is from the inside, forcing her to partner with Toro. Together they must infiltrate the inner circle at a remote facility.

Except it’s a trap. For all of them.

Locked in a subterranean labyrinth and held captive by an unseen host, Dani, Toro, and others must fight for their lives. Now Dani must stay undercover, unravel a bizarre conspiracy, and survive lethal puzzles. But will Toro be friend or foe? Because in this killer’s game, everything is real: the paranoia, the desperation, and the body count. And only one person can make it out alive.

My Thoughts: A KILLER'S GAME was an action-packed thriller starring Danielle Vega, a former Army Ranger turned FBI Agent. The case begins with the death of a Senator's Chief of Staff and ends in a former missile silo. 

Vega sees a man kill the Chief of Staff and chases him. He eludes her. When a friend of the Chief of Staff comes with a letter he was to bring to the FBI if anything happened to his friend, the case becomes more complex. From a band of hired killers run by a former Army Colonel to a tech billionaire with a grudge to a corrupt Senator, the story is packed with a variety of characters. 

Vega herself seems too good to be true. She's an elite soldier; she's a master strategist with the ability to solve all sorts of puzzles. She's also only been with the FBI for a matter of months. Yet she's the one for is assigned to go undercover with to find evidence to arrest the Senator. 

If the reader is ready to suspend belief, the story was engaging and it certainly was packed with action. Fans of thrillers will enjoy it. 

Favorite Quote:

Before leaving the Army, Vega had served in their most elite combat unit, where she had smashed through closed doors, glass ceilings, and preconceived notions. Wu had no doubt she was more than qualified for this assignment. Her only challenge would be dealing with Toto, whose loyalty was only to himself. 

I received this one in exchange for an honest review from NetGalley. You can buy your copy here.

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? (May 22, 2023)

It's Monday, What Are You Reading? is now hosted by Kathryn at The Book Date.

It’s Monday!  What Are You Reading is where we gather to share what we have read this past week and what we plan to read this week.  It is a great way to network with other bloggers, see some wonderful blogs, and put new titles on your reading list.

I will be combining my YA and adult reading and purchases on this one weekly roundup.

Want to See What I Added to My Stack? links to Stacking the Shelves hosted by Marlene at Reading Reality.

Other Than Reading...

I had a nice quiet week with nothing on my schedule after last Monday's doctor's appointment. This week I have another medical appointment for an ultrasound of my thyroid but otherwise the week is empty of appointments. 

I finished the final In Death novel until the new one comes out in September and am trying to ignore the stack of novellas in the In Death series until I get ahead on my calendar. Next week will be filled with books I already own including some I bought in 2009. I am starting my June review books too. 

I have planned my June calendar but still have openings for two books and two audiobooks late in the month. I haven't decided what I want to read but have 2450 choices on my "To Read" stack. I'm sure that something will catch my attention. 

Read Last Week

If you can't wait until the review shows up on my blog, reviews are posted to LibraryThing and Goodreads as soon as I write them (usually right after I finish reading a book.)

• Desperation in Death by J. D. Robb (Mine; Audiobook) -- 55th in the In Death series.
• Encore in Death by J. D. Robb (Mine; Audiobook) -- 56th in the In Death series
• Unknown by Rachel Caine (Mine since February 2, 2010) -- Second in the Outcast Season urban fantasy series. Knowing that there were two more books in the series removed a lot of the suspense, but it was a good story. My review will be posted on May 25.

• Booked for Murder by Jasmine Webb (Mine; Audiobook) -- Aspiring author Poppy Perkins finds herself the prime suspect in the murder of one of the customers in the coffee shop where she works. Entertaining story. My review will be posted on May 30.
• The Battered Badge by Robert Goldsborough (Mine; Audiobook) -- This entry in the Nero Wolfe mystery series was an engaging historical mystery. The new author has Rex Stout's voice down pat. My review will be posted on May 25.
• Deadtown by Nancy Holzner (Mine since December 29, 2009) -- This is the first in an urban fantasy series and was an entertaining story. My review will be posted on May 27.

• A Fool's Gold Wedding by Susan Mallery (Mine; Audiobook) -- I was looking for something short to listen to this week and found this novella which is part of the Fool's Gold romance series by Susan Mallery. It was entertaining and well-narrated. I don't plan to review it.
• A Botanist's Guide to Flowers and Fatality by Kate Khavari (Review; June 6) -- This second in the Saffron Everleigh historical mystery series was an engaging mystery about a woman trying to make her way as a botanist is 1920s London. My review will be posted on May 30.

Currently

• Final Cut by Marjorie McCown (Review; June 6)

Next Week

• Beyond Heaving Bosoms by Sarah Wendell & Candy Tan (Mine since April 17, 2009)
• Beyond the Rain by Jess Granger (Mine since August 18, 2009)
• Trapper Road by Rachel Caine & Carrie Ryan (Mine since January 9, 2023)

• The Queen's Weapons by Anne Bishop (Mine since February 7, 2023)
• Come the Night by Susan Krinard (Mine since January 28, 2009)
• Unseen by Rachel Caine (Mine since January 5, 2011)

Reviews Posted

• Hard Dough Homicide by Olivia Matthews
• Identity by Nora Roberts
• The Poisoner's Ring by Kelley Armstrong

• Mrs. Nash's Ashes by Sarah Adler
• The Benevolent Society of Ill-Mannered Ladies by Alison Goodman
• The House at Sea's End by Elly Griffiths

Want to See What I Added to My Stack Last Week?

Review:

Bought:

• Heritage of Power (the complete 5-book series) by Lindsay Buroker (Bookbub; $1.99)
• Fellowship of Fear by Aaron Elkins (Kindle Daily Deal; $1.99)
• Livid by Patricia Cornwell (Kindle Daily Deal; $2.99)

What was your week like?

Book Review: The House at Sea's End by Elly Griffiths

The House at Sea's End
Author: Elly Griffiths
Series: Ruth Galloway (Book 3)
Publication: Mariner Books; Reprint edition (January 10, 2012)

Description: In “a wonderful, atmospheric mystery” featuring forensic archaeologist Ruth Galloway and DCI Harry Nelson, six bodies of men killed during World War II turn up in Brighton—bringing with them a long-buried, nefarious secret (Milwaukee Journal Sentinel).

Just back from maternity leave, forensic archeologist Ruth is finding it hard to juggle motherhood and work when she is called in to investigate human bones that have surfaced on a remote Norfolk beach. The presence of DCI Harry Nelson, the married father of her daughter, does not help. The bones, six men with their arms bound, turn out to date back to World War II, a desperate time on this stretch of coastland.

As Ruth and Nelson investigate, Home Guard veteran Archie Whitcliffe reveals the existence of a secret the old soldiers have vowed to protect with their lives. But then Archie is killed and a German journalist arrives, asking questions about Operation Lucifer, a plan to stop a German invasion, and a possible British war crime. What was Operation Lucifer? And who is prepared to kill to keep its secret?

My Thoughts: Dr. Ruth Galloway is juggling the care of her five-month-old daughter, her relationship with DCI Nelson, and bones discovered on an eroding seashore. These bones are found with tied wrists and gunshot wounds in the back of the neck. 

Testing determines that the bones are about 70 years old and from Germany which puts their deaths during World War II. That would be an interesting historical mystery if DCI Nelson doesn't have to investigate suspicious deaths of some of the very few remaining survivors who might know what happened to the men found buried. Someone clearly wants to cover up what happened when these Germans showed up on the coast. 

Ruth is also dealing with developing a routine for the care of her daughter Ruth and suffers from mother-guilt when she has to leave her in order to do her work as a forensic archaeologist. Ruth is also trying to find some balance with Nelson who wants to be a helpful caring father but doesn't want to blow up his marriage or ruin his relationship with his almost-grown daughters. It doesn't help the Nelson's wife wants to help Ruth whom she sees, rightly, as a woman a bit out of depth in raising a baby. 

This was a great story and entertaining mystery. I love the setting and the characters. 

Favorite Quote:

She has got her figure back after having the baby, which is a shame -- she was rather hoping to ger someone else's. 

I bought this one. You can buy your copy here.

Friday Memes: The House at Sea's End by Elly Griffiths

 Happy Friday everybody!

Book Beginnings on Friday is hosted by Rose City Reader. The Friday 56 is hosted at Freda's Voice. Check out the links above for the rules and for the posts of the participants each week. Don’t dig for your favorite book, the coolest, the most intellectual. Use the CLOSEST.

Beginning:

Two people, a man and a woman, are walking along a hospital corridor. It is obvious that they have been here before.

Friday 56:

"Mmm." Shona looks unconvinced, "I saw the mad Irishman there," she says, "And that purple-haired bitch, Anyone else from the university?"

This week I'm spotlighting The House at Sea's End by Elly Griffiths. I've only recently discovered this series and am enjoying each episode. Here's the description from Amazon:

In “a wonderful, atmospheric mystery” featuring forensic archaeologist Ruth Galloway and DCI Harry Nelson, six bodies of men killed during World War II turn up in Brighton—bringing with them a long-buried, nefarious secret (Milwaukee Journal Sentinel).

Just back from maternity leave, forensic archeologist Ruth is finding it hard to juggle motherhood and work when she is called in to investigate human bones that have surfaced on a remote Norfolk beach. The presence of DCI Harry Nelson, the married father of her daughter, does not help. The bones, six men with their arms bound, turn out to date back to World War II, a desperate time on this stretch of coastland.

As Ruth and Nelson investigate, Home Guard veteran Archie Whitcliffe reveals the existence of a secret the old soldiers have vowed to protect with their lives. But then Archie is killed and a German journalist arrives, asking questions about Operation Lucifer, a plan to stop a German invasion, and a possible British war crime. What was Operation Lucifer? And who is prepared to kill to keep its secret?

ARC Review: Mrs. Nash's Ashes by Sarah Adler

Mrs. Nash's Ashes
Author: Sarah Adler
Publication: Berkley (May 23, 2023)

Description A starry-eyed romantic, a cynical writer, and (the ashes of) an elderly woman take the road trip of a lifetime that just might upend everything they believe about true love.

Millicent Watts-Cohen is on a mission. When she promised her elderly best friend that she’d reunite her with the woman she fell in love with nearly eighty years ago, she never imagined that would mean traveling from D.C. to Key West with three tablespoons of Mrs. Nash’s remains in her backpack. But Millie’s determined to give her friend a symbolic happily-ever-after, before it’s (really) too late—and hopefully reassure herself of love’s lasting power in the process.

She just didn’t expect to have a living travel companion.

After a computer glitch grounds flights, Millie is forced to catch a ride with Hollis Hollenbeck, an also-stranded acquaintance from her ex’s MFA program. Hollis certainly does not believe in happily-ever-afters—symbolic or otherwise—and makes it quite clear that he can’t fathom Millie’s plan ending well for anyone.

But as they contend with peculiar bed-and-breakfasts, unusual small-town festivals, and deer with a death wish, Millie begins to suspect that her reluctant travel partner might enjoy her company more than he lets on. Because for someone who supposedly doesn’t share her views on romance, Hollis sure is becoming invested in the success of their journey. And the closer they get to their destination, the more Millie has to admit that maybe this trip isn’t just about Mrs. Nash’s love story after all—maybe it’s also about her own.

My Thoughts: Millicent Watts-Cohen is on a mission. She is determined to reunite her nonagenarian best friend Mrs, Nash with the woman she fell in love with during the waning days of World War II. So, she's carrying three tablespoons of Mrs. Nash's ashes to Key West where she hopes to meet Elsie Brown who is in hospice care.

Millie is an optimist despite the blows that have hit her lately. Her best friend's death and the implosion of her relationship with the man she thought she was going to spend her life with have left Millie battered. When all flights are cancelled due to a computer glitch, she finds herself on a road trip from Washington, DC, to Key West with a man who was a part of her ex's cohort in graduate school. Hollis Hollenbeck is Millie's opposite. He doesn't believe in true love or any other kind of love. 

This story tells about their adventures as they travel together including a car accident when a deer decides to run into Hollis's beloved car, time spent in a small B&B in a room with 25 paint-by-number pictures of Jesus, and a gig as the Grand Marshall of the local broccoli festival since Millie was once the star of a children's television series. 

I love getting to know Millie who is an extrovert without a filter and Hollis who has almost perfected his persona as a grumpy man. I laughed and I cried and was totally emotionally involved in Millie's quest. 

Favorite Quote:

What if I've been a naive fool my whole life, putting my faith in things like happily ever afters and humanity's overall inherent goodness? I need reassurance that it isn't stupid to believe that two people can love each other and keep on loving each other as long as they live, no matter what obstacles get thrown into their path. That hoping I might find someone who will never give up on me isn't as pointless as it's sometimes felt lately. As pointless as Hollis seems to think it is.

I received this one in exchange for an honest review from NetGalley. You can buy your copy here.

ARC Review: The Benevolent Society of Ill-Mannered Ladies by Allison Goodman

The Benevolent Society of Ill-Mannered Ladies
Author: Alison Goodman
Series: The Ill-Mannered Ladies
Publication: Berkley (May 30, 2023)

Description: A high society amateur detective at the heart of Regency London uses her wits and invisibility as an ‘old maid’ to protect other women in a new and fiercely feminist historical mystery series from New York Times bestselling author Alison Goodman.

Lady Augusta Colebrook, “Gus,” is determinedly unmarried, bored by society life, and tired of being dismissed at the age of forty-two. She and her twin sister, Julia, who is grieving her dead betrothed, need a distraction. One soon presents itself: to rescue their friend’s goddaughter, Caroline, from her violent husband.

The sisters set out to Caroline’s country estate with a plan, but their carriage is accosted by a highwayman. In the scuffle, Gus accidentally shoots and injures the ruffian, only to discover he is Lord Evan Belford, an acquaintance from their past who was charged with murder and exiled to Australia twenty years ago. What follows is a high adventure full of danger, clever improvisation, heart-racing near misses, and a little help from a revived and rather charming Lord Evan.

Back in London, Gus can’t stop thinking about her unlikely (not to mention handsome) comrade-in-arms. She is convinced Lord Evan was falsely accused of murder, and she is going to prove it. She persuades Julia to join her in a quest to help Lord Evan, and others in need—society be damned! And so begins the beguiling secret life and adventures of the Colebrook twins.

My Thoughts: This story set in Regency London is a mystery and contains a lot of social commentary. Lady Augusta Colebrook and her twin sister Lady Julia are unmarried and 42. Julia, who is still grieving the death of her fiance needs a distraction and Gus decides that looking into problems of society women will be a way to distract her. 

Their first adventure takes them to Vauxhall's Dark Walk to retrieve some compromising letters one of their friends wrote to a man who was quite a bit less than a gentleman. They manage to retrieve the letters without parting with the diamond necklace that was supposed to be payment. Their second case flows out of their first. Their friend's niece is in grave danger from her husband and needs to be rescued. 

On their way to rescue the young woman, they are beset by highwaymen, but Gus is handy with a pistol and wounds one of the villains. He turns out to be Lord Evan Belford, a member of their social set, who was convicted of murder after a duel and sent to the penal colony at New South Wales in Australia. He's back because he has heard disturbing news about his younger sister. He escaped before completing his sentence and has both a Bow Street Runner and a thief-taker on his trail. 

After a hair-raising rescue mission, Lord Evan goes his way leaving Gus disappointed but intrigued. There are two more cases - rescuing young girls kidnapped to work in brothels and rescuing Lord Evan's sister from an insane asylum. Each case exposes the dark side of Regency London. Each case also allows Gus to be both active and useful.

Historical detail includes the rights of women during the Regency which were minimal and the treatment of the mentally ill which were appalling. Lady Julia's possible breast cancer also illuminates the state of medicine at the time. 

I enjoyed this story with its historical detail and engaging characters. I'm looking forward to more stories about Lord Evan, Lady Augusta, and Lady Julia.

Favorite Quote:

I looked across at him, all my fear suddenly welling up. "Will it work? Can we do this?"

He reached across the table. I met his hand with my own in the center, our fingers curling into one another. "The only thing guaranteed is that something will happen, good or bad," he said soberly. "But we have out wits, our courage, the excellent support of your sister and Weatherly, and" -- his eyes fixed upon his portmanteau under the bureau, the glint appearing again -- "if all that fails, we have a loaded pistol."

I snorted and released his hand. "A speech to rival Nelson's." Yet I did feel reassured. 

I received this one in exchange for an honest review from NetGalley. You can buy your copy here.