Women Widening Worlds With Words.

Book Review for “The Temple of the Muses” by Jane Davis. Summary: "London, 1780. As the city smoulders in the aftermath of the Gordon Riots, booksellers James and Dorcas Lackington resolve to fight despair not with charity, but with books. Convinced that reading is the surest path out of poverty, they launch a daring experiment … Continue reading Women Widening Worlds With Words. →

For the Love of Syntax.

Book Review for “Confessions of a Grammar Queen” by Eliza Knight. Summary: "Bernadette Swift, a young copyeditor at Lenox & Park Publishing, is determined to become the first female CEO in the publishing industry. But first she needs to take the next step up that ladder with a promotion that her boorish and sexist boss … Continue reading For the Love of Syntax. →

Hollywood and it’s Resistances.

Book Review for “Typewriter Beach” by Meg Waite Clayton. Summary: " 1957. Isabella Giori is ten months into a standard 7-year studio contract when she auditions with Hitchcock. Just weeks later, she is sequestered by the studio’s “fixer” in a charming little Carmel-by-the-Sea cottage for a secret rendezvous. There, she is awoken by the clack and … Continue reading Hollywood and it’s Resistances. →

Similar is NOT the Same.

Book Review for “A Complete Fiction” by R.L. Maizes. Summary: "With little evidence, would-be author P.J. Larkin serves a "nibble" on the trendy new social-media app Crave, accusing editor George Dunn of stealing the novel she submitted to him for publication. The nibble shoots to the top of the site's Popular Menu Items and before … Continue reading Similar is NOT the Same. →

To Spy, or Not to Spy…

Book Review for “The Predicament” (Gabriel Dax #2) by William Boyd. Summary: "1963, Guatemala. The country is in turmoil, with a presidential election looming and a charismatic, left-wing ex-priest and trade union leader predicted to win. United Fruits, a giant American corporation responsible for a large percentage of the country’s GNP, meanwhile, is not pleased … Continue reading To Spy, or Not to Spy… →

From Filings to Fillings.

Book Review for “Julia: A Novel Inspired by the Extraordinary Life of Julia Child” by Heather B. Moore. Summary: "On the sunny shores of California, Julia McWilliams is poised to embrace a life of comfort and financial security, with a marriage proposal from a wealthy man to consider. But as World War II erupts in … Continue reading From Filings to Fillings. →

Writers Anonymous?

Book Review for “The First Line (The French List)” by Jean-Marie Laclavetine, (Teresa Lavender Fagan - translator). Summary: "Cyril Cordouan is the beleaguered editor at Fulmen, a distinguished publishing house known for its solid but not particularly popular literary titles. Every day, Cyril faces an avalanche of subpar manuscripts, struggling to find a glimmer of … Continue reading Writers Anonymous? →

An Agency for Death.

Book Review for “An Amateur Sleuth's Guide to Murder” by Lynn Cahoon. Summary: "TIP #1: WHAT DOESN’T KILL YOU COUNTS AS WORK EXPERIENCE. Meg Gates could use a guidebook for life. Indeed, she’s faced some challenges. She dropped out of college to work for a tech startup that failed—and her fiancé just took her bridesmaid … Continue reading An Agency for Death. →

Burning Rivers of Faith.

Book Review for “Gabriel's Moon” by William Boyd. Summary: "Gabriel Dax is a young man haunted by the memories of a fire that took his mother’s life. Every night, when sleep finally comes, he dreams about his childhood home in flames. His days are spent on the move as an acclaimed travel writer, capturing the … Continue reading Burning Rivers of Faith. →

The First Flapper.

Book Review for “Z: A Novel of Zelda Fitzgerald” by Therese Anne Fowler. Summary: "When beautiful, reckless Southern belle Zelda Sayre meets F. Scott Fitzgerald at a country club dance in 1918, she is seventeen and he is a young army lieutenant. Before long, Zelda has fallen for him, even though Scott isn't wealthy or … Continue reading The First Flapper. →