BookBrowse | Book Reviews and Recommendations

Reviews by Mary J. (La Quinta, CA)

If you'd like to be able to easily share your reviews with others, please join BookBrowse.

The Essex Serpent
by Sarah Perry

Struggled to read (3/15/2017)

This book has many great reviews. However I found it difficult to get through. The characters are well developed but the storyline just didn't catch me.

Henry and Rachel
by Laurel Saville

Slow! (10/15/2013)

Henry and Rachel is a good book but it took me almost half of the book before I felt the characters and became lost in the story. The moving back and forth between characters based by chapter was off putting to me. I would recommend for book clubs because it would be great to flesh out characters.

Lost Luggage
by Jordi Punti

Lost Luggage (9/3/2013)

Lost Luggage is a good story but is difficult to read and somewhat confusing. 4 characters with basically the same name is a little much for me. It's told from many different people, not just the 4 brothers. Jordi Punti can tell a good story but needs to cut back on the characters.

Golden Boy
by Abigail Tarttelin

Swept Away! (1/22/2013)

I received The Golden Boy this past Thursday and finished it yesterday morning! This may be a debut book but Abigail Tarttelin can certainly weave a tale. I could not put it down. The story line is one I have never heard of but she nails it. This is an absolute must read!

The Good House
by Ann Leary

Absorbing Characters! (12/11/2012)

This book draws you into small town life and its people. The characters are well developed and make you want to meet them and live there. I loved the story and will suggest it to my friends. 5 star read that I couldn't put down!

Tides of War: A Novel
by Stella Tillyard

Tides of Characters (11/21/2011)

Stella Tillyard has a wonderful grasp of history but there are far too many characters in this novel. It is slow going through the first 100 or so pages. It finally picks up and I couldn't put it down. Well worth the effort a great read.

Falling Together: A Novel
by Marisa De Los Santos

Full of Suprises (9/11/2011)

The beginning of the book starts slow but after about 50 pages, it really picks up. It's full of twists and turns and will keep you on edge. I found if very enjoyable with a sweet ending. Highly recommend.

The Language of Flowers: A Novel
by Vanessa Diffenbaugh

Heartbreakingly Wonderful (6/19/2011)

Vanessa Diffenbaugh delivers a wonderfully well written first novel. Her character Victoria Jones is a strong and complicated and flawed character who tries to find her way out of a lonely past. This novel should be on everyone's must read list. I couldn't put it down and loved the flower background as well.

Top Picks

Prophet Song
by Paul Lynch

Paul Lynch's 2023 Booker Prize–winning Prophet Song is a speedboat of a novel that hurtles...
The Love Elixir of Augusta Stern
by Lynda Cohen Loigman

Lynda Cohen Loigman's delightful novel The Love Elixir of Augusta Stern opens in 1987. The titular ...
Small Rain
by Garth Greenwell

At the beginning of Garth Greenwell's novel Small Rain, the protagonist, an unnamed poet in his ...
Daughters of Shandong
by Eve J. Chung

Daughters of Shandong is the debut novel of Eve J. Chung, a human rights lawyer living in New York. ...