Book Review: The World's Greatest Detective and Her Just Okay Assistant by Liza Tully

   This is definitely a book far out of my own regular reading arenas.  Cozy Mystery. 

I do not know exactly why I picked this up.  I was casting about for a particular kind of book- one that had some romance but wasn't exactly a romance, and one that would be thought provoking, but not an entire treatise on something... 

    And the Library had this one posted on their page. 

And it really was essentially  JUST OKAY. 

This is a cozy whodunit. Olivia is a modern day young adult, who is fascinated by Ms Merrit a world famous detective. Olivia finds herself in the job of assistant to Ms Merritt and the two embark on a new England adventure to discover who did away with an aging society darling. 

I did read the whole thing, I enjoyed the unraveling of the mystery and the brain gymnastics that I went through as I considered who I thought the killer might be.  I also enjoyed the very subtle subplot of Olivia's life- where she's planning a wedding to a nice guy, but she's not very interested in the wedding details, especially because his mother is quite involved in the wedding planning.  

Do I feel passionate about this one?  No, no I do not. It was.... fine.  It was enjoyable. It was also what I'd call an airport book- you pick it up, read it on a plane trip and might leave it in an airport because you definitely don't need to carry that extra weight in your journey.  Would I read more from this author?  Possibly. Would I gift this to a reader friend, or a book club white elephant- definitely!  It is interesting and does not contain deep exploration of any dark themes. 

STATS

First Published: 7/8/2025

Pages: 400 pages

Available as an Audio Book : YES  

Trigger Warnings:  violence, Murder, LGBTQ content, mild bullying

(this is not a full list, read responsibly) 

Book Review: Sisters of the Vast Black by Lina Rather

  This is a bit of a Beat the Backlist kind of novella.  I found it oddly, on good reads as part of a challenge for novellas and I immediately was thinking SIGN me UP!  Nuns in space? I felt this was going to be bonkers and I really was not incorrect.  

The cover is not bad, but it really really doesn't do the novel any favors.  (the novel is much more interesting than the cover.) 

Lina Rather is a talent to continue watching. Her writing is tight, and concise while still being descriptive and immersive. While she's not writing in the same genre, I feel her style compares to Georges Simenon. Both have short works that are completely immersive with well developed characters and environments despite sparse word counts. 

   No Spoiler summary here: Readers are given the story of the Sisters of the Order of Saint Rita. These sisters serve aboard a spacecraft "Our Lady of Impossible Constellations"  a consecrated ship that happens to be a living, semi-sentient slug like creature. Like many missionaries of old, the sisters have joined the order for various reasons- some of which were related to religious calling, many not so much. The focus of charitable and practical aid looms larger than proselytizing.  I was initially struck by the similarities between these space nuns and early earth missionaries. I thought I was going to be getting a cautionary tale of colonialism but set in space. Instead, I got much more.  The novella opens with discussion of what to do about the living ship's imprinting on another ship, and as the sister's debate and discuss, a distress call arrives from a new colony. The sister's respond and find themselves embroiled in a conflict with Central Governance, the Church and themselves. 

   For me this was such a treat, in 160 short pages, we explore a living space ship made of muscle, viscera and more, the public and private lives of nuns, the ethics of power dynamics in religion, government, and relationships, all while being treated to space adventure that is propulsive and interesting. 

  I couldn't put it down,  but it was also very short, so there was no need to put it down. 

I did not like the sort of abrupt, cliff hanger-y type ending but the good part of reading back list books- is that the second book, which continues the story of our Nuns and their unlikely allies, is already available. I do want more space faring nuns. 

I did do this on audio.  The audiobook was well done and did not detract from the story. 

I really do recommend this one, and I can't wait to read more from this author. 

STATS

First Published: 10/29/2019

Pages: 160 pages

Available as an Audio Book : YES  (~ 4 hours) 

Trigger Warnings:  violence, colonialism, religion, plague, infectious disease

(this is not a full list, read responsibly) 

Reading theme 2026!

 Hi Book Friends!

 2026 is coming in hot for all of us. 

New York City. Blizzard of: street scene during blizzard. , ca. 1888. Photograph. https://www.loc.gov/item/2007678801/.

Or cold, as the case may be. 

It's time for me to pick a new reading theme. I enjoyed my Water reading thing and because of it, I read a lot of books about the ocean, rivers and water in general. I also read a lot of books with water/rivers/ponds and lakes in the title that turned out to really not be about water. Despite that, I feel that I did discover authors that I would not have explored were it not for the water theme.  So- I'm going to do a new theme for 2026. 

   In the past I've done pirates, monsters and water. 

For 2026... I'm thinking 

Outer Space,

Bones ( not the TV show kind, but definitely forsensic kind as well as the poetic kind), or

Music. 

It's going to be hard to choose. For most of 2025 I was sure it would be outer space, but here at the end, I have been fascinated by the amount of "bone books" out there, and love the idea of music as a theme, so I'm now a bit torn. 

Does anyone else use a theme for each year? 

Book review: The Poet Empress By Shen Tao

 

   I am so appreciative of Macmillan audio for the Advanced listener copy of The Poet Empress! 

I give this one 5 stars! 

         This is an original dark fantasy that draws on ancient Chinese history - particularly court politics and poetic traditions - while telling a fictional story of Wei- a daughter of rice farmers, and a particularly cruel prince- Terran.  Wei enters the court almost by accident and is chosen by Terran to be his wife. Power plays, intrigue and desperation abound in the Azalea court, and Wei- raised far outside of this arena must rely on her wits, to position herself to succeed and stay alive. Magic abounds in the Azalea court, with poetic blessings that can change the world.  What is to become of Wei, Prince Terran, the court and the nation as a whole?  Set in a time of change, you'll want to read - or listen - to find out!  I enjoyed the personal relations, the action, court politics, and overall arc of the story. It is a rare instance where the characters are so well developed that I found myself rooting for  BOTH the Hero/heroine and the villain in the story as each layer of development was peeled back through the novel.  The novel allows a reader to explore what makes a person "morally good" or not and the effects of the sum of our experiences on their future actions and choices.  A great book for certain book clubs, because there is a lot to unpack and discuss.

The story takes quite a few dark and unpredictable turns (Check those trigger warnings), which were heartbreaking and brought up all the emotions.  I especially enjoyed the conclusion which was, again, unexpected, but perfection for this reader. I loved that it did not conclude with the ending I expected! 

 This book is not suitable for all audiences due to some of the very heavy content.  It will be important to review for potential triggers prior to cracking that spine or putting on your headphones. 

In short, this was an excellent combination of historical elements, ghostly influences, and magic. It is an excellent book for those who enjoy Dark Romantasy but want something that doesn't follow the usual storyline.  I'm not going to lie, this is a book that literally made me cry in rush hour traffic. I found it was hard to put down and finished it off in record time.  Eric Yang and Katharine Chin were the narrators and voiced the novel perfectly.  I felt entirely immersed in the story through the audiobook and was never distracted by the narration.  

STATS

First Published: Coming January 2026

Pages: 400 pages

Available as an Audio Book : YES  (~ 15 hours) 

Trigger Warnings:  violence, grief, murder, war violence, death, near death, body injury, food insecurity, classism, Child abuse.

(this is not a full list, read responsibly) 

Book Review: The Sea Captain's wife, by Tilar Mazzeo

     I did not finish this in time for Non-Fiction November, but I have to say this is a good one, and it's release in early December, makes it a great choice for a reader on your list, as it's unlikely they will have already read it! 

Firstly,  the cover is really beautiful and encompasses the narrative so well. 

    This book falls into the category of non-fiction that reads like fiction.

   Mazzeo explores the life of Mary Ann Patten, and her husband Joshua. Mary Ann married young, and adventurously traveled with her sea captain husband on his clipper ship in the 1850's.  They were bold, and brave and had their entire live ahead of them as they undertook a voyage on the Neptune's Car. 

Currier& Ives. Clipper  ship Three Brothers,tons: The largest sailing ship in the world. , 1875. [New York: Currier & Ives] Photograph. https://www.loc.gov/item/90716156/.

On this voyage, Joshua fell gravely ill, and Mary Ann took over as Captain and navigator all while putting down an attempted mutiny. 

She nursed her very ill husband, and brought the ship safely to the San Francisco harbor looking well and ship-shape. Women captaining ships was not the norm at that time, and this afforded Mary Ann some instant celebrity. 

   After a somewhat lacklustre opening which was maybe too heavy on details we jump right into this story of peril and persistence and it held my attention right to the very end. 

In constructing this book, Mazzeo relied on both maritime journals, and her own expedition of the route Mary Ann followed. Mazzeo freely shares when records were slim, and where some of the narrative relies on customs of the time, rather than exact documented events, making this account feel authentic and real- as we all know that even someone who kept a faithful journal would not enter every detail of their lives. The author brings in the historical context of the Gold Rush, traditional sea-faring, and the politics of the day in a way that supports Mary Ann's history and adds a depth to the narrative that is very satisfying, but still easy to read. 

  It's one of the few non-fiction books that had me shedding a few tears here and there. Well worth a read and an EXCELLENT book club choice. 

   I was extremely fortunate to have both the e-arc and then an audiobook version of the book, and I will say I really enjoyed the audiobook. The book was narrated by Laurence Bouvard who did a smooth clear narration that did not distract from the story. In fact I could see the waves crashing over the ship, and sense Mary Ann's exhaustion at various points in the narration! It does seem to me that I always read some really fine books right at the end of the year, and this one, is definitely one for the year! Loved it and recommend it! 

STATS

First Published :December 2025

Pages: 288

Available as an Audio Book : Yes!

Trigger Warnings: violence, death, disease, 

Not a full list - please read responsibly.

    

November Reading Wrap Up!

  November has been a month of complete and utter chaos. 

Mid Month, I started a new job. I went part time at my old job , but it seems they may have a different idea of part time. So I've been...working a lot. Work is good. 

My grad total for November- 14 books.  A fairly light month. 

TO be fair, I DNF'd a lot of books, and started a few and just havent finished them. 

 So lets see how things stacked up!

 Books in Translation:  2/14 ~ 14%  Neither one was a favorite.  Alas.  Both did expose me to different perspectives. 

Books by Diverse Authors: 4/14 ~ 29%  Probably could have been more. I slipped into some monster romance, why choose- and to be honest, I don't know much about those authors- many using a pen name/alternate identity.  

Favorite Read of the month?

 Hands Down Artifact Space by Miles Cameron. 

A book that deserves an honorable mention: Sanora Babb's An Owl on Every Post.  It should be more widely read. 

What was your favorite from November? 

 

Book Review: Broken Souls and Bones by LJ Andrews

  Many Thanks to Net Galley and  ACE publishing for a reader copy of Broken Souls and Bones by LJ Andrews. 

LJ Andrews is well known in the romantasy world -  She's published a number of books independently and Broken Souls was picked up by Ace, a division of Penguin.  I personally had never read any of her novels, so when we saw this on Net Galley, my reading buddy and I both were granted a copy and did a buddy read. 

 Interestingly, i chose it because I thought it would something my buddy would just be all about, in the end, it was me who liked this book better!

NO SPOILER review-  BECAUSE SPOILERS ARE THE WORST! 

This is a romantasy inspired by Norse mythology and customs. 

Lyra has been stolen from her people, and hidden away as she possesses a certain magic that's prized above all others. She doesn't know about it or how it works, she just knows she needs to remain hidden.  She serves in the household of a Jarl and disguises tell tale markings with a special dye. All goes well until she's discovered in a raid and taken - along with her steadfast friend and protector - to a frightening kingdom. There, she learns to practice her craft, and finds herself strangely attracted and repelled by a guard who only speaks with his hands.  As time passes, raids on the area increase and tensions rise within the settlement. Lyra is forced to face who she is and could become, and to address her growing feelings for the guard. 

 For me personally, I enjoyed the story- it has a slow burn build up to a very frenzied last few chapters where much is revealed. There were some very satisfying moments where some truly terrible characters get their due. I'm definitely interested in reading book two.  My friend pointed out that it's also available as an audiobook, and I listened to a bit of it, and really loved the narrators. 

   If you like romantasy and haven't picked this one up- I'm sure it would be for you, it's got all the tropes we love- secret identities, forbidden love, a unique and easy to understand magic system that's rooted in Norse myth/practice, and a main man who will burn the world for his love. 

STATS

First Published :April, 2025

Pages: 480

Available as an Audio Book : Yes!

Trigger Warnings: violence, blood, bullying, Non-traditional relationships, on page sex.

Not a full list - please read responsibly.