February's bookish art...

 

Claude Buck -- Woman Reading

"I think books are like people in the sense that they'll turn up in your life when you most need them."

--Emma Thompson

Inside Man by John McMahon

 

The team:  Gardner Camden, Joanne "Shooter" Harris, Cassie Pardo, and Richie Brancato, the rookie.

"(We) work for an FBI unit called PAR, which stands for Patterns and Recognition....Our job is to identify peculiarities in cases that have stalled or gone cold. To uncover details that others have missed, then hand the case off, either back to the field office that sent it to us--or to a team in Quantico. When people speak well of us, they call us puzzle-solvers. When they don't, we are thought of as oddballs. Freaks with a bent toward data. Often, they call us 'head cases.'"

Gardner Camden is the leader of this eccentric team, the oddest...and the smartest. He sees and calculates patterns others can't. He also has to remind himself to make small talk, and to smile, and try to show concern for others. Though never with his young daughter, Camila. With her, "I try not to be me."

He and his team are working a fraud case in Florida that quickly becomes complicated with a dead C.I., a missing shipment of ghost guns, the threat of domestic terrorism, and a possible serial killer.

My thoughts:  This book is as propulsive and gripping as McMahon's first Gardner Camden mystery, Head Cases, which was one of my favorite reads last year. Gardner is one of those characters that you can't help but like. And he's dealing with a lot in this novel. I love his interactions with his daughter, and how he figures out the intricacies of this cases. I couldn't put this one down. This novel is well-written, intense, compelling and entertaining. 

My rating:  ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Happy Reading! 

Sisters of the Lost Nation by Nick Medina

 

The plot:  Anna Horn's life is not easy -- she's bullied and tormented at school, she doesn't seem to fit on the rez either, and she's haunted by a ravenous, mythological entity her uncle told her about when she was seven. The tribal stories she once knew are being forgotten, her parents are arguing, her 15-year-od sister, Grace, is sneaking out at night, and there's something mysterious going on in suite 808 at the casino/hotel where she works. And young women from the reservation are disappearing. As Anna struggles to put all the pieces together, Grace goes missing, too. Now it's a race against time if Anna is going to save her sister.

My thoughts:  This novel is both a coming of age story and a mystery with hints of Native American lore and a touch of supernatural horror. The chapters alternate between the days leading up to Grace's disappearance, and the hours afterwards. It was a little confusing at first, but once I got used to the switches in time, I found the narrative to be very compelling. And I really liked Anna and sympathized with all her struggles. And I liked the Native American myths and stories she remembers and tells. But it's also a dark story at times. The plight of young Native American women who go missing or are murdered every year is a heartbreaking one, and Medina does a good job of highlighting this crisis. This novel is propulsive, suspenseful and very well-written.  

My rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Happy Reading! 

Top Ten Tuesday...

 Top Ten Tuesday is a fun weekly meme hosted by Jana at That Artsy Reader Girl.

This week's theme:  LOVE/VALENTINE'S FREEBIE.

So I decided to go with 10 Romance Books on my TBR List that I'm hoping to read this year. 

Extracurricular by Rachel Lynn Solomon

Maybe This Once by Sophie Sullivan

Lost and Found by Tarah DeWitt

Bookmarked For Love by Sarah Monzon

Happy Ending by Chloe Liese

The Summer Share by Jenn McKinlay

The Shippers by Katherine Center

The Great Outdoors by Kayla Olson

Only On Gameday by Kristen Callihan

Accidentally Wedded to a Werewolf by Isabelle Taylor

I have about 20 other romance titles on my Goodreads Want To Read List, so I could easily keep going and going with this post, but I'll try to make myself stop at just 10 titles this time. 😉 Have you read any of these? 

Happy Romantic Reading! 

My Year in Books (2025) ...a Meme

 

I got this from Cindy's blog, Cindy's Book Corner, and she got it from Anne's blog, My Head is Full of Books. And I thought it looked like fun, so I'm doing it, too. 

The rules? Answer the following questions with titles from books you read in 2025. Some may be silly, some serious. But the idea is to have fun. 

Participate by copying the questions below, erasing my answers, and filling in your own. Then you're supposed to link it back to Anne's post, but I think I missed the deadline for that. Anyway, here's my list of titles to answer these questions.

Questions:

In high school I was: Once Smitten, Twice Shy (Chloe Liese)

People might be surprised: You Are Here (David Nicholls)

I will never be: World's Greatest Sleuth! (Steve Hockensmith)

My fantasy job is: The Third Gilmore Girl (Kelly Bishop)

At the end of a long day I need: The Grump Whisperer (Katy James)

I hate: Dungeons and Drama (Kristy Boyce) 

Wish I had: The Geographer's Map to Romance (India Holton) 

My family reunions are: Chaos (Constance Fay)

At a party you’d find me: Flipping the Birdie (S.L. Woeppel)

I’ve never been (on a): Blind Date With a Werewolf (Patricia Briggs)

A happy day includes: The Best of Friends (Sarah Eden)

Motto I live by: Look on the Bright Side (Kristan Higgins)

On my bucket list is: [a] Summer Romance (Annabel Monaghan)

In my next life, I want to have: A Quantum Love Story (Mike Chen)

Be sure to check out Cindy's and Anne's lists...then do your own. 

Happy Reading!

Eddie Winston is Looking for Love by Marianne Cronin

 

From the blurb: 

"Eddie Winston is 90 years old. He has lived and loved, but he has never been kissed.

"A true gentleman and incurable romantic, Eddie spends his days volunteering at a charity shop, where he sorts through the donations of the living and the dead, preserving letters and tokens of love. It is here that he meets Bella, a troubled young woman who, at 24 years old, has just lost the love of her life.

"When Bella learns that Eddie is yet to have his first kiss, she resolves to help Eddie Winston finally find love, sparking an adventure that will take them to unexpected places and, they hope, bring Eddie Winston to the moment he has waited for all his life."

My thoughts:  What a charming story! Eddie and Bella are such engaging characters; I loved both of them. And Eddie's flashbacks with his first love, Bridie, were poignant and bittersweet. But this isn't a sad book. There's a lot of humor in it. Especially with Eddie's forays into online dating. And Eddie's friendship with Bella was so cute. I liked how he helped her through her own grief. They make a fun pair. Cronin has written a captivating novel of love and loss, kindness, laughter, found family, and hope. I really enjoyed it. ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Happy Reading!

Randomness....

•  Went to my first NHL game two weeks ago. And it was a lot of fun. The Utah Mammoth (the team I was rooting for) defeated the Seattle Kraken 6-3. I wouldn't mind going again...if only I could afford the tickets. But even the cheap seats are expensive. 
• I just finished reading Harlow Giles Unger's excellent biography John Hancock: Merchant King and American Patriot. It's a well-researched book, as all his books are, but what I love most about his writing is how accessible and compelling his prose is. I came away with newfound respect for John Hancock and all he did to contribute to the founding or our nation. For me, this was a fascinating 5-star read.
• I've been missing my mom a lot this last month. Even little things have been making me sad. Grief is the gift that keeps on giving. But I'm trying to count my blessings. 
• Lots of recent family get-togethers and outings have helped bring some joy into the mix...from my niece's birthday dinner to Dino Fest to a Q-tip painting art day to laughing with my sisters at our monthly game night. I'm SO grateful for my family.
• My co-workers have been super caring, too, always checking in to see how I'm doing and offering their friendship and support. Makes me better understand and appreciate that scripture in Mosiah about bearing one another's burdens that they may be light, mourning with those that mourn, and comforting those that stand in need of comfort. 
• And I'm very excited for the Winter Olympics this month. Can't wait to watch some curling along with short track, freestyle skiing, half pipe snowboarding, and all the figure skating. Go U.S.A.!