Category Archives: Book Reviews

A Gambler’s Anatomy by Jonathan Lethem

Posted on April 19, 2017 by Marion

Usually when I read a book I have some idea what’s going on. I can see at least the outlines or a faint shadow of the author’s intent. With A Gambler’s Anatomy by Jonathan Lethem, I cannot say that. Oh, … Continue reading →

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After the Parade by Lori Ostlund; I Loved it From Page Four.

Posted on March 8, 2017 by Marion

When Lori Ostund’s After the Parade opens, Aaron is getting ready to leave a relationship of more than twenty years, and move from Albuquerque to San Francisco. Everything he owns is in a U-Haul truck in the driveway. On the … Continue reading →

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Summerlong: My Personal Reaction to a Work of Great Beauty that Ultimately Failed

Posted on February 23, 2017 by Marion

SPOILERS     SPOILERS    SPOILERS     SPOILERS     SPOILERS     SPOILERS When I heard that Peter Beagle had written a fantasy novel about an older couple whose lives intersect with ancient gods, set in the Puget Sound area, my expectations were very high. I was … Continue reading →

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Warp by Lev Grossman

Posted on January 19, 2017 by Marion

In his foreword to Warp, Lev Grossman says that it took him four years to write it, from 1992 through 1996. That seems a little surprising at first, since it is about 180 pages long, but he clearly did not … Continue reading →

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The Book We Got for Christmas; an Annual Report

Posted on December 31, 2016 by Marion

Spouse got Hamilton, by Ron Chernow. Unfortunately, Lin-Manuel Miranda will not come to the house and sing parts of the musical for us as Spouse reads, but still, it’s a good book. The bonus is that I get to read … Continue reading →

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What Angels Fear by C.S. Harris

Posted on December 17, 2016 by Marion

The first Sebastian St. Cyr novel, What Angels Fear, was published in 2005. We meet  St Cyr in Chapter One as he is preparing to fight a duel. Before that, though, we see the beginning of a brutal murder in … Continue reading →

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What Darkness Brings

Posted on December 10, 2016 by Marion

On a whim I picked up a history-mystery last week. What Darkness Brings, by C.S. Harris, is the ninth book in the Sebastiann St. Cyr series, so it’s probably not the place to start. While I had no trouble following … Continue reading →

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Make a Scene, by Jordan E. Rosenfeld

Posted on September 13, 2016 by Marion

Writer friend Terry Connolly introduced me to Jordan E. Rosenfeld at this year’s MCWC. Rosenfeld has a craft book called Make a Scene; Crafting a Powerful Story One Scene at a Time. “Scene” as a narrative choice had been a … Continue reading →

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Gardens of the Moon by Steven Erikson

Posted on May 24, 2016 by Marion

WARNING! SPOILERS! Book One of the saga of Malazan, Book of the Fallen is Gardens of the Moon. Erikson’s epic fantasy currently spans 11 volumes, and I don’t think a single one of them is fewer than 650 pages. I’m … Continue reading →

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The Optimist’s Daughter by Eudora Welty

Posted on April 27, 2016 by Marion

Eudora Welty won the Pulitzer prize in 1972 for The Optimist’s Daughter. This slim novel follows Laurel McKelva Hand in the days leading up to her father’s death and the week immediately following. The story starts in New Orleans but … Continue reading →

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