Category Archives: fiction

The Big Cats Dance Party, by Alexander McCall Smith*****

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https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/8938952382

One of the best things about autumn is looking forward to a new installment of The #1 Ladies Detective series by Alexander McCall Smith.  The Big Cats Dance Party is the 27th in this wonderful series. By this stage, some long-running series become stale or revert to an obvious formula, but that has never happened with this one, and I doubt it ever will. My huge thanks go to NetGalley and Random House for the review copy. This book is for sale now.

There is a standard format to these stories, which is that two problems get dealt with at once, and it takes place so seamlessly and naturally that I can only shake my head in wonder. Sometimes there are two mysteries; sometimes there’s a mystery and also a personal dilemma. In this book, the agency’s owner and proprietor, Precious Ramotswe, goes on a trip to an elephant sanctuary that is under attack from unknown forces; she is accompanied by her husband and the other detective, Grace Makutsi.

While they are away, Charlie, who is training to become a detective, is left in charge of the agency. Charlie is a tremendously dynamic character, and was originally an apprentice in the auto repair shop owned by Mr. J.L.B. Matakoni, Precious’s husband, but he wasn’t cut out to become a mechanic. Over the course of the series, we’ve seen Charlie get into one scrape after another, generally of his own making, but he’s gradually grown up, matured, and now Precious believes he is ready to take on responsibility. What happens while he is in charge is the more important of the two problems in our story, and it is riveting. To say more might ruin it for you, so I’ll leave it there, except to say that this is how the book’s title comes about.

What has stayed with me after the last page has been turned and I’ve read other books is the disconnect between the understanding we in western cultures have of the elephant’s plight, and the efforts to save it, as opposed to that of people that live in its path. Many of us, myself included, might have imagined that to inadvertently come across an African elephant would be pure magic; this happens to Precious, who steps out into the night for some fresh air while she is on her trip, but for her, it’s not magical. It’s terrifying! The elephant has wandered into her host’s yard, and now it’s between her and the house. She sees “a creature that could end her life with a swipe of its trunk or a single nudge from its great head.” And indeed, the attacks on the sanctuary are suspected to be from a local man that lost an uncle to an elephant attack while he was working in his field. There’s a condition that occurs annually called “musth,” which is the male elephant equivalent of being in heat, and it makes them aggressive. If an elephant has had negative experiences with humans—say, if someone has taken potshots at them or otherwise harmed them—it’s even worse, since elephants are so intelligent. And as the person from the sanctuary points out, it isn’t the elephant’s fault; the elephant is just being an elephant. Of course we want to save the elephants, but a little knowledge and compassion toward those more directly affected wouldn’t go amiss, either.

Before I close, I want to point out that this series is so successful, and so widely loved, not only because of the things it includes, but also because of the things it doesn’t. At one point, Grace is conversing with someone about the ways in which businesses are sometimes misunderstood, and she points out that every now and then, someone calls the agency to report a crime. But, she points out, “We are not law enforcement,” and so the caller is referred to the police. Our detectives don’t share information with cops, as a rule. There are no buddies on the force; there are no wild car chases. Nobody kidnaps the detectives or their loved ones, and there are no serial killers featured. Rather, this series focuses on basic human behavior, and it carries with it the understanding that people are, as the late Anne Frank said, inherently good. Sometimes all it takes is a gentle nudge to get someone to do the right thing.

Get this book, and if you like reading at bedtime, this is your story. Fall asleep with a smile on your lips and at peace with the world. How many novels can do this for you?

The Collected Stories of Katherine Mansfield*****

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There are a small number of writers so proficient in their craft that it feels a bit arrogant to presume to review their work. Katherine Mansfield is one of them. However, I welcome an opportunity to revisit her stories, and so I thank NetGalley and Random House for the review copy. This collection is for sale now.

Mansfield’s writing is somewhat unconventional; her plots exist only for the purpose of showcasing her characters. It’s exactly the kind of writing that I love. Her depth of perception contributes a great deal to her stories, particularly when children are involved.

I was first introduced to Mansfield as a college freshman while taking a survey course required for graduation. Reading Mansfield was one of the highlights of that year. Now, as I continue to read her at the opposite end of my life, I am struck, not only by her brilliance, but also by how easily I interpret her work according to my own experiences. My favorite of the 34 short stories offered up here is Miss Brill; This story made me cry as a callow young woman. Miss Brill is a teacher, and she is both single and lonesome. In it, the protagonist spends some time in a local park, people watching and, yes, eavesdropping, not maliciously, but because she doesn’t have much of a personal life and so enjoys seeing and hearing the lives of others unfold. She takes a tremendous amount of time and consideration in deciding what to wear, even though she is unlikely to see anyone that she knows, but is then devastated when a pair of thoughtless young people spot her eavesdropping and say something malicious about her clothing.

As a young person myself, I instantly recognized myself in those rude youths, knew full well that I was capable of hurting someone else in that way. And that poor old lady, I thought. Such cruelty was visited upon a sweet, elderly woman with few resources and who relied upon small, simple pleasures. I was deeply ashamed!

In rereading it now, I realize that Miss Brill was not a senior citizen; in fact, she was most likely in her thirties, like her creator. I had previously invented a scenario that fit who I was as a reader. I don’t think I have done such a thing with any other author. And I still find the story moves me.

Those that enjoy short story collections should add this wonderful book to their shelves. The one caveat is that, like many Caucasian authors of that time period, Mansfield limits her subjects to her own race. Apart from this, I can find nothing to which anyone might object.

Highly recommended.

Those Who are Gone, by Laurie R. King***-****

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Those Who Are Gone is the second installment in the Raquel Liang mystery series by Laurie R. King. I read and enjoyed the first in the series, and then found this one when I was in need of an audio book. I came away feeling a bit conflicted about it.

My thanks go to NetGalley and RB Media for the review copy. This book is available to the public now.

The story opens with Raquel’s sister, Dee, in a tailspin. The women’s parents are dead, and the two sisters live together and are close. Growing up, they believed that Raquel was adopted, but Dee was the biological child of their parents. Now Dee has used an ancestry kit and discovered that she was also adopted. She’s not taking it well.

So, the mystery…? The crime…? The….you see my concern.

In many, many reviews, I have defended authors of long-running mystery series that delve deeper into character development as their series progress. There are readers out there that expect every mystery to focus exclusively on catching a serial killer or whatever sort of baddie is the culprit, yet once a series is well underway, the only way to keep it fresh—there being only so many ways and reasons to kill someone—is to make it feel more personal to the protagonist.

In this case, however, we’re only on the second book of the series, and not only are we spending time—a lot of it—on character development, but this is how the book opens, and it takes its time to get moving.

Once the thing is well underway, it does become compelling, and the last ten percent or so has me on the edge of my chair. So please don’t think I’m calling this a boring read; but if I weren’t already a fan of this author’s, and if I didn’t owe a review, I might not have stuck around long enough to find this out.

Here is the tricky part. I became a huge fan of King’s mysteries back in the 1990s, when she published the Kate Martinelli series. Merely mentioning that series, all these years later, makes my heart pound. The adrenaline rush of that series is unmistakable; in fact, now that I am older, I might even find it stressful, it’s so dynamic. And so I ask myself if it is fair to compare these books to the ones she’s writing now. Would I be so critical if I had read nothing else by this author? Is a good book still a good book when it’s not as good as what came before it? If this was a debut novel, surely I would be kinder and more encouraging. Instead, I find myself grumbling about the slow build-up.

This audio book has two narrators. The first is Vivienne Leheney, who reads most of the book and voices Raquel’s internal monologue, and she does a fine job. The second is Luis Moreno, the bad guy; his reading is smooth, but almost stereotypically sinister.

Would I recommend this book to those that enjoy the genre? Sure I would, but I would recommend the Martinelli series more, if you can find it.

Cleopatra, by Saara El-Arifi****

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What do most of us know about Cleopatra? I had heard, and taken with a grain of salt, the stereotypes: she was the head of her government; she was attractive; she had a lot of sex; she died with a snake. Boom. That’s it. And so when I saw this novel, I jumped at the chance to learn about her. My thanks go to NetGalley and Ballantine Books for the review copy. This book is for sale now.

The narrative is told in the first person; because I had fallen behind, I checked out the audio version to accompany my digital copy. I usually address the narrator at the end of my reviews, but Adjoa Andoh is not just any narrator. Without her commanding presence and interpretation, I don’t think I’d have enjoyed it as much as I did.

I appreciate this story largely because of the nuances El-Arifi employs. She takes the stereotype, tosses it out the window, and instead presents a strong ruler, one that loves deeply but also makes her decisions primarily in the interest of the people of Egypt, and also, of course, in her own self-interest. Her flaws appear to be trusting those she loves too deeply, particularly in regard to her siblings, who betray her almost immediately upon her assumption of the throne.

What I do not know is how accurate this story is. Excellent historical fiction is history with quotations and an inner narrative added. There are no endnotes provided with this novel, nor a bibliography, but that is usually true of historical fiction. And while history is my field, Egyptian history is not; it is, however, the author’s, and she holds a Master’s degree in African studies. Thus, I am inclined to believe her.

I recommend this book to those that are interested in historical fiction, feminism, and of course, Cleopatra.

Tough Luck, by Sandra Dallas****

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Tough Luck, a novel by Sandra Dallas, is the story of two almost-orphans, Haidie and her younger brother, Boots, that set out on a journey from Oklahoma to Colorado in search of their father. He’d left to find work some four years prior, planning to either send for them, along with their mother and older brother, Cheet; but Ma has died, and Cheet—the scoundrel—sells the farm, dumps his siblings in an orphanage, and takes off with the money. After escaping the orphanage, which is grim and abusive, Haidie is determined that she and her younger brother will make their way to Colorado and find their father.

My thanks go to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the invitation to read and review. I’m over a full year late in doing so, a fact I’m not proud of, but despite my lateness, I have enjoyed this read, and I believe others that enjoy quality historical fiction will enjoy it as well.

Any author that writes historical fiction in the first person with a child as the protagonist has their work cut out for them. The ones that earn my scorn are those that make their main character so precocious that they speak as if they were an adult. This is, of course, complete nonsense, since brilliant children are still children; I am delighted to say that Dallas doesn’t use this cheap, ineffective device. Haidie is a bright child and most of her decisions are good ones, but she’s no Einstein, and she doesn’t talk like one. Having brother Boots along is important because it provides an opportunity for dialogue.

I do love American history, and so I am also waiting for Dallas to play fast and loose with historical fact. Instead, she is dead accurate, and despite the tall job she’s given herself, sending a couple of children across the plains and into the Rockies without an adult escort in the time before there were highways or readily available maps to follow, she nevertheless makes the story credible. I believe Haidie completely, and I believe the various villains and thieves, as well as the more decent people that she runs across during her journey. The settings are well rendered, too.

Because I fell behind in my reading, I checked out the audio book at my local library. Narrator Mia Hutchinson-Shaw does a fine job in bringing these characters to life.

This is an entertaining read, despite the sorrow and deprivation with which it begins, and I recommend it to those that love the genre.

Sunrise, by Tea Obreht*****

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Sunrise is just the sort of bizarre yet brilliant novel I’ve come to expect from author Tea Obreht. My thanks go to NetGalley and Random House for the invitation to read and review. This book is for sale now.

Our protagonist is Nina, a nanny on vacation with her boyfriend, Ben. Ben was the pilot of the plane flying over the Northern Rockies; Nina bailed, and Ben is nowhere in evidence. She’s landed in a river, and is remarkably free of major injuries, but she’s cold, scared, and alone. There’s no search and rescue within hearing or sight, so she knows it’s up to her to reach help.

Friends, it’s gonna take a long time.

The book is divided into 5 sections. The first is described above; the next three feature earlier residents of Sunrise, the ghost town Nina eventually reaches; and the last circles back to Nina. The sections are tied together at the end, but not in the way any other author would do it.

The first section feels tedious at times, limited as it is to Nina’s internal monologue. She walks, she rests, and she spends a good deal of time deciding whether she’s hungry enough to allow herself one of the handful of protein bars she possesses. How many days is this going to take? She has no idea. As Nina trudges, she ruminates, and in doing so, we gain more knowledge of her past and her relationship with Ben. Had this been any other author, I might have abandoned the whole thing; reader, I am very glad that I persevered, because the last ten percent of this book makes it completely worth it!

This is the third of this author’s books that I’ve read. The first was Inland, which remains one of my favorite galleys to date. The second, The Morningside, is not as powerful as the other two, including this one, but it’s still well worth reading. Sunrise, however, is the first one that’s made me stand up and cheer.

Those that have the patience for unconventional plots, and that appreciate a protagonist that’s full of surprises and badass feminist moxie, will have a hard time finding a more satisfying novel. Highly recommended!

The Secret Dinner, by Raphael Montes****

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Translated from Portuguese by Zoe Perry

The Secret Dinner, by Brazilian author Raphael Montes, has become an international sensation, and once a friend mentioned it, I had to read it. My thanks go to NetGalley and Celadon Books for the review copy; this book is for sale now.

Our story begins with four main characters. Dante, a student, is the protagonist; it is he that provides the first-person narrative. Then there are his three roommates, all close friends since childhood. Hugo is a chef; Miguel is a hospital intern; and Piglet is a mess, an agoraphobic computer whiz who mostly stays in his room, eating junk food as he invents programs and plays video games. Dante’s family has provided the seed money to get them all into this lovely apartment in the city, but now they all have rent to pay. It’s not easy, but they do it…until they are threatened with eviction for nonpayment. Wait, what? Yes. The roomie in charge of paying the rent has been squandering everyone’s money on a sex worker!

Now they’re in trouble.

Finally, they hatch a plan: they will serve incredible gourmet meals to a select group of extremely wealthy clients. Exclusivity will be the main draw. They use the name “Seagull Meat,” but that’s just a witticism. Seagulls are not what they are serving! They plan to do it only a couple of times, till they raise the rent and the back rent, but they meet with such success, and oh, so much money, that they continue, even once they no longer have to.

I read an eclectic combination of genres, and every now and then, I read a horror novel or an unusually visceral murder mystery. I don’t have the stomach for a lot of it, but I like the occasional dabble.

This story, my friends, is no dabble!

I don’t want to go into a lot of detail here, because the whole thing is better when the element of surprise is honored. However, the gruesome details, which start out humorous, increase and at about the 65% mark, I found I couldn’t take it, so I skipped to the 85% mark, then skimmed until I reached the 90% mark, where I commenced reading the rest. I initially recorded this book as “did not finish,” but I changed it to “read,” since I did in fact read the beginning, end, and most of what is in between. And the ending. The ending!! The ending. The ending is epic, and once again, it’s funny as hell.

Recommended for readers that aren’t squeamish; don’t read the promotional blurb till you’ve read the book.  

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/8702257026

Country People, by Daniel Mason*****

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Author Daniel Mason is on a roll. He’s won nearly every possible literary award and accolade; my first encounter with his writing was with his last book, North Woods, which is complex, brilliantly crafted, and droll. But I may have had even more fun reading his latest novel, Country People, which is less intricate, easier to read, and even funnier than the last.

My thanks go to NetGalley and Random House for the review copy. This book is for sale now.

The story opens with several well-chosen quotes, and the main narrative begins like a fairy tale. We have the wife, the husband, a son and a daughter. We also have the dog; we are told its name, Giuseppe, before we see anyone else’s. And although the wife is mentioned first—perhaps because she is the breadwinner—the protagonist here is actually Miles, the husband.

Miles is in a rut. He’s been working on his dissertation for fourteen years, although “working” is a euphemism for uh, not. He is easily distracted; he has no real idea what he wants to write about. And because he is the house husband, it is his job to look after the children, who are distractions unto themselves. So, while everyone is told that Miles is working on it, Miles isn’t. He is frustrated by his own lack of progress, and feels more and more dwarfed by his wife, a full professor with many admirers. And because of her admirable achievements, they are currently in the car, leaving California headed to Vermont, where she has been offered a one year visiting professorship.

And so our story is of the family’s experiences in Vermont, and their introduction to New England weather and smalltown life. In the hands of a less capable author, this might be a blah story, but luckily for us, it’s Mason’s story, and it’s massively entertaining!

They learn to ski, sort of. And while Kate is caught up in her professional obligations, Miles meets the more eccentric townsfolk and is invited to join their secret organization. As things progress, Miles has the occasional second thought about his new friends:

“It was all very mysterious, and to be honest, even a little sinister. One didn’t have to be getting a Ph.D. in literature to recognize the outlines of the story: the innocent city person, on what sems to be an innocuous foray among simple country people, happens upon a dark conspiracy, with predictably horrific consequences. We’ve read the book, we’ve seen the movie. If the hero escapes, it is only after some gory climax, stumbling out into the night to stare, blood-bespattered, into the high beams of the state police. Not for me! thought Miles.”

That’s a small sample. You’ll have to get the book to experience the rest. As for me, I had a fine time reading it, and was wistful when it ended. Highly recommended.

You’ll Love it Here, by Natalie Sue****

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You’ll Love it Here is a wry, strangely intimate novel by Canadian author Natalie Sue. My thanks go to NetGalley and William Morrow for the review copy. This book will be available to the public August 11, 2026.

Mona is a workaholic. She has no private life; she has no time for one. She’s putting in an intolerable number of hours every week to build herself a strong position in the firm that employs her; she also needs the money. She’s earning money for herself, but also to pay off her mother’s debts. Is it any wonder, then, that her only friends are her work buddies?

Meanwhile, she’s living in an older building gone slightly to seed, and she dislikes it so much that she refuses to add any personal touches. No pictures on the wall; no cute curtains. After all, her main goal is to get out of here and into somewhere more impressive. And maybe that’s why she has never bothered to learn her neighbors’ names. Instead, she identifies them by their habits, and by her own impressions of them. So while she knows no one’s name except that of the owner, she does know them as Fighting Couple, Old White Perve, Weird Girl Beside Me, etc.

Then one day, the unthinkable happens. Mona snaps during a meeting with her most important client. She thinks something unforgivably snarky, then realizes she’s said it out loud. There’s no walking it back, either. Her boss kindly suggests she take six weeks of bereavement leave, as her father has recently died. She’d prefer not to, but it’s not actually a suggestion, it’s an order. And so Mona is spinning her wheels a little, crazed from the lack of work and routine, when she is offered a chance to do some work for the landlord in return for a better apartment in a better building. Sweet! Say no more; Mona is in.

I’m not telling you where it goes from there, only that it’s captivating. Sometimes I find myself reading a galley from duty, but this book is sheer pleasure. In fact, had it not been for a technical distraction (editor? Hello?) I would have rated this book five stars.

If you need a light but absorbing feel good book, then look no further. This is a great story to take on vacation, or even just bury yourself in over the course of a weekend. You’ll come out happier at the end.

Don’t Cross Mo Ellery, by Birdie Horne**-***

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Don’t Cross Mo Ellery is a wacky girl detective novel by Birdie Horne, which is a pen name used by co-writers Eden Robins and MW Garguilo. Mo is a twenty-something hot mess. The story opens with her simultaneously getting dumped by her better-off boyfriend of ten years and getting fired from her job. It’s loaded with cringe humor and appears to be a new series entering the general lane of Stephanie Plum and Finlay Donovan, only not as good.  Nevertheless, I thank NetGalley and William Morrow for the invitation to read and review. This book will be available to the public August 11, 2026.

The book starts with sex, ends with sex, and has sex in the middle. There’s awkward sex, hot sex, and interrupted sex, with a fair amount of crossover between these types and between genders. Oh, there’s also sex with just one person. I’m not using the word for this. There are some that will enjoy it, or at least find it funny, but it leaves me with a mild headache from rolling my eyes so often.

The premise here is that Mo gets a job as a crossing guard because that’s all she can find. In the course of her duties, she is harassed by a difficult driver who then dies behind the wheel while she’s on the job. In order to find out who killed him, she teams up with an insistent older neighbor and a (precocious, of course, of course, of course) elementary school student, which she doesn’t realize is illegal and unprincipled until midway through. I believe none of these characters even slightly.

It’s possible that I am in the wrong demographic for this book. My memory harks back to the early female detective series that were well written and empowering. At a time when young women needed to hear that they could do anything, including occupying traditionally male occupations, these were a balm. Mo Ellery, on the other hand, can’t find her butt with both hands.

There are poodles in this thing, and they are the characters that I enjoy.

The narrator is Cia Court, who does as good a job as is probably possible.

So there you are. If you still want this thing, you can pre-order it; as for me, I’m out.