It is ironic, is it not, how everything seems so poetic in death, yet we rarely see the poetry in life?
I couldn’t think of a more truer statement than this, spoken by a God-like king on the first page of Cheryl Anne Gardner’s book, The Splendor of Antiquity. True, we’d expect our Gods to say such profound things and the narrator of this book does not disappoint with such expectations. After all, he has been dead for centuries and our lead female, an archaeologists named Joliette Deneauve, is about to dig him up.
I will admit that a “romantic mystery” is not my first choice for a book I’d read for review here or for pleasure. But what convinced me to give Kit DeCanti’s book a sincere try was a YouTube video that she posted of herself reading the prologue. Proof that book trailers and author videos on the web do work! Not only does Kit do a good job at it and has a good voice for reading out loud, but I admired the unique and uncommon attention to certain details that might otherwise be overlooked. I was immediately captivated, like a small child in the library who just sat down for storytime.
Tightening the Knot by Amanda Hamm is all about relationships: Meredith’s relationship with her husband Greg, her sibling, her in-laws, her friends and to a lesser degree her co-workers and students. We know from the book’s blurb that Greg and Meredith go to a Tightening the Knot seminar but they don’t arrive there until Chapter 22. Until then, have fun getting to know Meredith and a whole cast of characters complete with their little quirks.
When I saw Minnie posted for review request, I knew I wanted to review it even before I read the preview. There was just something about it that appealed to me and drew me in. In fact, I put dibs on the book before I read the preview, and then realized I had better do my homework first and find out exactly what I was getting myself into.
Waiting for Spring was actually queried to us some time last year, and unfortunately we turned it down at that time. I can’t recall the exact reason and can’t speak for the other reviewers. I remember reading the preview and it just didn’t capture my attention like it probably should have at that time. But for me, books are like fine wine: sometimes they need to sit on the shelf for a while and a time will come when you will want to open them up and enjoy the essence that waits inside.
I do not remember the last time I read a comic book or graphic novel. I wasn’t much of a comic geek back in the day, although I did enjoy my Garfield and Far Side collections in between classes in junior high, and occasionally read Archie just because my best friend did. But when Ellen Lindner queried us with her graphic novel, Undertow, I jumped at the chance to read it because it was something different.
When this particular book was posted on the Pick Me! tab of the LL Book Review, I knew, being the only woman regular reviewer selecting from the Pick Me! tab, if I didn’t review it, the book would be declined.
The Simplest of Acts: And Other Stories is a short collection of short stories. In only 102 pages, Melanie Haney manages to take us into the hearts and lives of eleven separate individuals.
Ever lived in an apartment where the walls were a bit too thin and you often overheard music from the next apartment? Did you ever wonder who was listening to that music and why? What did the music do for them? How did it make them feel? What were they doing while listening to it? Did you ever overheard too much of a conversation? Or maybe you just heard bits and pieces and you were left to fill in the missing pieces?
Most of us have things in our lives that we can obsess on. In fact, ask any teenage girl and she’ll immediately tell you that her nose it too big or too small, she has too many freckles or not enough, that her eyebrows are too thin or too bushy; the possible list is endless. We can spend hours agonizing and obsessing over features that the rest of the world doesn’t even notice.
Do you love to read?
Do you support the POD community?
Can you be critical, yet positive?
Do you like to review books?
If so, we'd love to hear from you. LLBR is looking to add a few more reviewers to its team. Email us at llbookreview@gmail.com for details.
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