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The French Art of Living Well by Cathy Yandell

The French Art of Living Well by Cathy Yandell

The French Art of Living Well had a strong beginning and end but it lost me a bit in the middle. As a lifelong Francophile, I was impressed with the amount of tidbits and information that was new to me and found many things to dive into deeper. The middle of the book, I felt, went into too much detail on a few topics, and I would have preferred to let the reader look into those things more if they…

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Spring Book Reviews

Spring Book Reviews

The Child Thief by Brom 2/5 StarsI like the idea of exploring the origin story of a dark, true-to-the-original Peter Pan. I would have liked for the majority of the book to be about that with more details of the past and a magical/faerie way of life. Instead this book was entirely sad: bad things happening to bad people and horrific descriptions that felt gratuitous. It also jumped around in time and was difficult to follow that because there wasn’t…

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The Little Village of Book Lovers by Nina George (Early Review)

The Little Village of Book Lovers by Nina George (Early Review)

The Little Village of Book Lovers is an extraordinary story. It’s the first book I’ve ever started rereading immediately, and I haven’t reread that many books overall because it feels like there are too many books out there waiting to be read. What I love most about this book is the unique perspective of Love. The entire book is Love telling the story, with some points-of-view of an ancient olive tree; both of which Marie-Jeanne has a special connection with….

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Carnival Quest (The Candy Shop War #3) by Brandon Mull

Carnival Quest (The Candy Shop War #3) by Brandon Mull

Carnival Quest has been the long-coming finale to The Candy Shop War trilogy. It’s been many years since I’ve read the first and second books and I was able to easy jump right back into the world. Despite being a middle grade reading level, I was engrossed in and excited for the adventure that Nate, Summer, Trevor, and Pigeon found themselves on. The premise of the carnival reminded me so much of Meow Wolf in Santa Fe (which I absolutely…

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Wednesday Whimsy #39 : An American in Provence Review

Wednesday Whimsy #39 : An American in Provence Review

An American in Provence is a special book. It combines almost all of my most favorite things: France, cooking, motherhood, photography, seasonal living (I mean what am I missing from this list… cats and books? That’s a pretty good ratio). The book is divided by season and each season has essays, photography tutorials, and recipes. On every page are the beautiful photographs you know to expect with Jamie’s work. Each page is such a delight and a treasure. The first…

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January Book Reviews

January Book Reviews

Destroyer (The Shattered City #1) by Meg Smitherman 4/5 StarsThis is a delightfully engrossing and unique book. The world it’s set in is explained simply and clearly, which I’m always thankful for in a fantasy novel. I love the fact that the main character, Ru, is an archeologist and an underdog, and I really like all of the supporting characters. The first half has some clunky phrases or wording that distract from the story and fade as it goes on;…

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Emily Wilde’s Encyclopedia of Faeries by Heather Fawcett

Emily Wilde’s Encyclopedia of Faeries by Heather Fawcett

I try to make the first and last books of a year special ones, and I was really happy to have this one be the last one I finished in 2022. Emily Wilde’s Encyclopedia of Faeries is a wonderful lady-explorer adventure book (can we get that made an official genre?) which is one of my very favorite types of books. I love the journal format, the adventure, the mystery, the traveling to a faerie world, and we even get a…

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Flight Risk (The Booking Agents #2) by Cherie Priest (Early Review)

Flight Risk (The Booking Agents #2) by Cherie Priest (Early Review)

Flight Risk is the second book in Cherie Priest’s newest series, The Booking Agents. (I loved the first book and you can read my review here.) Cherie does a great job reviewing important details from the first book so I *think* you could probably read this one if you haven’t read Grave Reservations yet (though you’ll be missing out on a great book). As with the first, Flight Risk takes place in Seattle and the surrounding areas, with an emphasis…

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October Book Reviews

October Book Reviews

An Impossible Imposter (Veronica Speedwell #7) by Deanna Raybourn 3/5 StarsIn this book we learn of a HUGE detail about Veronica that we didn’t know previously, and I don’t even recall a hint to it. This new development was terribly exciting, but the way Veronica behaves is so frustrating and, to me, inconsistent with the rest of her direct personality. It’s as if along with her feelings for and relationship with Stoker, her ability to follow through with reason has…

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August Book Reviews

August Book Reviews

Darling Girl: A Novel of Peter Pan by Liz Michalski 4/5 StarsI love a modern retelling of a classic tale, especially if it is made more real or gritty. I didn’t love Holly, Wendy’s granddaughter, or her mother, Jane, but I did like the uniqueness of the rest of the characters and story. There are a few things at the end that are conveniently, magically “fixed” that seemed like an easy way out for the author. I think this would…

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