en-US Tue, 10 Jun 2025 14:21:57 -0700 60 144 41 /images/layout/goodreads_logo_144.jpg Review7627481802 Tue, 10 Jun 2025 14:21:57 -0700 /review/show/7627481802 Beth gave 2 stars to Dorothy L. Sayers: The Centenary Celebration (Paperback) by Alzina Stone Dale
bookshelves: 2025, mystery, writing, nonfiction
This collection of essays on Sayers works felt inconsistent, the tone from academic to kinda-academic. Two essays on the subject of her Dante translation, and it was mentioned in many of the other entries, which felt like too much emphasis on an effort than many readers wouldn't have even read. The editing was sketchy, too, with one essay misspelling Sayers' major character throughout. In the end, I learned more about Sayers and her work, but I don't think this is a resource worth keeping. ]]> Review7622358756 Sat, 07 Jun 2025 10:57:58 -0700 /review/show/7622358756 Beth gave 3 stars to Little Fires Everywhere (Kindle Edition) by Celeste Ng
bookshelves: 2025, literary, borrowed
I borrowed this from my library for a book club. This book is shrewd look at a progressive, predominantly white Ohio suburb in the late 1990s. It becomes a study of character, all revolving around the theme of motherhood. Much of the plot, however, is transparent fairly early on. ]]> ReadStatus9508296561 Wed, 04 Jun 2025 10:45:05 -0700 /review/show/7627481802 Beth is currently reading Dorothy L. Sayers: The Centenary Celebration by Alzina Stone Dale
]]> Review7612582350 Tue, 03 Jun 2025 14:02:37 -0700 /review/show/7612582350 Beth gave 5 stars to Project Hail Mary (Hardcover) by Andy Weir
bookshelves: 2025, science, borrowed
I read this for a June book club. Wow, what a book. Weir has a way with delving into deep scientific scenarios but making them accessible to laymen through his incredibly human characters. This book went places I didn't expect at all, and the ending was perfection. ]]> ReadStatus9500999626 Mon, 02 Jun 2025 14:43:55 -0700 /review/show/7622358756 Beth is currently reading Little Fires Everywhere by Celeste Ng
]]> ReadStatus9487122729 Fri, 30 May 2025 08:49:56 -0700 /review/show/7612582350 Beth is currently reading Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir
]]> Review7612423733 Fri, 30 May 2025 08:15:29 -0700 /review/show/7612423733 Beth gave 4 stars to Tricks of Fortune (Paperback) by Lina Chern
bookshelves: 2025, mystery, netgalley
I received an advance copy via NetGalley.

I greatly enjoyed the first book in Chern's Play the Fool series, following tarot card reader Katie True, and this book is likewise strong. This is a cozy mystery series with a darker edge: the language is coarser, the lewdness blunter, though still mild compared to a lot of other genres. The set up for this delves into police corruption right from the start: Officer Pete, the man made famous for being photographed saving young Katie from an accident years before, is murdered on the job. It quickly is clear that Pete was not the golden hero many thought him to be. Katie's close friend Gina is accused of the crime, and as Katie digs deeper, she finds things dirtier than dirt. The end is especially nice. I kinda-sorta guessed at the murderer, but things were more complicated than that, and I love when that happens. ]]> Review7612436110 Fri, 30 May 2025 07:50:36 -0700 /review/show/7612436110 Beth gave 5 stars to The Tapestry of Time (Paperback) by Kate Heartfield
bookshelves: 2025, historical, fantasy
Another fantastic Heartfield book, an extensively researched World War II novel following four gifted sisters with a fascinating tie to the Bayeux Tapestry. There is loads of action, but for me, the well written characters and the grittily realistic backdrop really propelled the story. ]]> ReadStatus9486899540 Fri, 30 May 2025 07:37:31 -0700 /review/show/5502736883 Beth finished reading The Wishing Game by Meg Shaffer
]]> Review7612392095 Fri, 30 May 2025 07:25:35 -0700 /review/show/7612392095 Beth gave 5 stars to The Ghosts of Gwendolyn Montgomery (Hardcover) by Clarence A. Haynes
bookshelves: 2025, urban, fantasy, netgalley
I received an advance copy via NetGalley. An additional disclaimer: Clarence has worked on three of my books as the developmental editor, and I have tremendous respect for him.

This book is a fast-paced, fun read, an urban fantasy that draws on Clarence’s own Afro-Latinx roots within an NYC setting. Gwendolyn Montgomery is a glamorous, in-demand publicist at a prestigious firm. But when her client’s events start getting sabotaged in horrific ways, she’s drawn back into a past she thought she left behind. The queer rep is strong, the characters unique. I loved the book. I read the entire thing in one day courtesy of a long day of travel, and this book was just what I needed to pull me away from stressful reality.
]]>