Reviews by Roberta

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Remarkably Bright Creatures
Remarkably Bright Creatures: A Novel
by Shelby Van Pelt
A Lovely Book (4/10/2023)
I absolutely loved this book and I'll never eat octopus sushi again! A few years ago I read Sy Montgomery's book The Soul of an Octopus and learned what intelligent creatures octopuses are. Van Pelt builds a story around Marcellus, a Pacific Giant Octopus; Tova, who is the …more
Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow
Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow: A novel
by Gabrielle Zevin
Brilliant and Fun Read (1/20/2023)
If someone had told me that I would fall in love with a book that was about gaming and gamers, I wouldn't have believed them. But this is exactly what happened when I read this book. At the beginning of the book, when Sam sees his friend Sadie and finally gets her attention …more
Clytemnestra
Clytemnestra: A Novel
by Costanza Casati
The Notorious Clytemnestra (11/24/2022)
It would be hard not to write a good book based on the myth of Clytemnestra and this book definitely delivers. All the themes are there---love, lust, jealousy, vengeance and murder. This book tells the myth from the perspective of Clytemnestra. The author begins with …more
The Marriage Portrait
The Marriage Portrait: A novel
by Maggie O'Farrell
Another Home Run by Maggie O'Farrell (10/24/2022)
Maggie O'Farrell has written another great historical novel. In this book she writes about Lucrezia de' Medici, who was married at a young age to Alfonso, Duke of Ferrara in the 1500s. She lived only two more years after the marriage and died when she was 17. The …more
The Latinist
The Latinist: A Novel
by Mark Prins
Academic and dense (10/1/2022)
i really wanted to like this book because it was billed as being a good mystery/thriller with a theme based upon a myth. Too bad it wasn't a mystery/thriller at all. It could have been so much better.

I think the author is a good writer, but I wondered if he was being paid …more
Testimony
Testimony: A Novel
by Anita Shreve
Thought-provoking read (5/16/2022)
I read a number of Anita Shrive books years ago, but hadn't read anything of hers recently. A friend lent me this book and now I want to read more of Shreve's work.

I thought this book was brilliant. The story takes place at a private school in New England and begins with …more
Dirt Creek
Dirt Creek: A Novel
by Hayley Scrivenor
Impressive Debut Novel (3/1/2022)
Esther, a young girl disappears on the way home from school. As the investigation into her disappearance unfolds we learn how interconnected the townspeople are and how they are affected by the girl's disappearance. The setting is in the Australian town of Durton where …more
The Guide
The Guide
by Peter Heller
Disappointing (2/25/2022)
The main character, Jack, is hired as a fishing guide at a luxurious fishing lodge in Colorado. He arrives with his own baggage and I don't mean a suitcase. He is traumatized by the death of his mother and his best friend and blames himself for their deaths. How this adds …more
Two Storm Wood
Two Storm Wood: A Novel
by Philip Gray
An outstanding WWI story (12/28/2021)
This excellent book gave me a better understanding of the horrors of WWI. My grandfather came back from WWI, with what would be called PTSD now, and this book gave me a glimpse into what he might have endured. The descriptions of the trenches, the dead and the living, many …more
The Lincoln Highway
The Lincoln Highway: A Novel
by Amor Towles
Disappointing (12/21/2021)
I loved A Gentleman in Moscow and Rules of Civility so I was looking forward to another great Amor Towles book. This book was a disappointment.

On the positive, Towles is a good writer, but too many negatives spoiled this book for me. It was disjointed and full of side …more
The Fields
The Fields: A Novel
by Erin Young
Excellent police procedural mystery (10/13/2021)
The Fields is a debut crime thriller by Erin Young. I was so glad to read on the back cover that this is the first in a planned series of novels featuring a police sergeant, Riley Fisher. I hope Young is hard at work on the next book because I can't wait to read it!

Young …more
The Night Watchman
The Night Watchman
by Louise Erdrich
Heartbreaking yet Uplifting (5/30/2021)
I absolutely loved this book. If I hadn't borrowed it from a friend, I would have gotten out my yellow highlighter and highlighted passages. This is my first Louise Erdrich book and I can't wait to read more of her work. Her writing is beautiful and lyrical.

One of the main …more
The Four Winds
The Four Winds
by Kristin Hannah
Sad and grim dust bowl story (3/15/2021)
I wanted to like this book, but I regret having even picked it up. It was grim and depressing.

I think Hannah writes well, but that's the only good thing I can say about the book.

The primary characters in the book are women and they suffer 99 of the time. Then there are the …more
Ariadne
Ariadne
by Jennifer Saint
Perfect for fans of Circe (3/9/2021)
An imaginative retelling of the myth of Ariadne. The sisters Ariadne and Phaedra are the children of Minos and Pasiphae. Their half-brother is the dreaded Minotaur who lives in a complicated labyrinth constructed by Daedalus. Each year grisly human sacrifices are made to …more
Migrations
Migrations: A Novel
by Charlotte McConaghy
Grim and Depressing (12/29/2020)
I gave this book 4 stars because the writing is beautiful. However, I hated the main character. Except for her love of nature and birds, there was nothing likable about her. I kept wanting to yell at her to get some therapy. If I had a boat, I'd sure never let her on it.
The Sun Down Motel
The Sun Down Motel
by Simone St. James
Creepy and good! (12/27/2020)
This is the first book of Simone St James that I have read and I loved it. It's like Bates Motel on steroids. I grew up in a town that had many roadside hotels just like the one on the cover of the book. I never thought of them as being haunted, but that's what I will think …more
The Survivors
The Survivors: A Novel
by Jane Harper
Another great mystery from Jane Harper (12/22/2020)
Jane Harper continues to write winners. The Survivors is her fourth book and although it is hard to pick a favorite, this might be the best one yet.

The setting for this book is a small coastal town in Tasmania. Kieran Elliott returns home to help his parents move. He …more
The Wolf and the Watchman
The Wolf and the Watchman
by Niklas Natt och Dag
Avoid (11/19/2020)
I'm sorry to say this book is just horrible. Stomach-turning grisly violence. I'd hate to be in this author's head. I have no idea why someone would write a book like this unless they enjoy knowing they gave the readers nightmares.
American Dirt
American Dirt: A Novel
by Jeanine Cummins
Moving immigration story (8/23/2020)
A compelling story about a mother and her young son fleeing violence in Mexico. With so many stories about immigrants these days, it was good to read a book that described the harrowing journey immigrants must make when there is no other choice but to leave their homeland.

…more
Dirt
Dirt: Adventures in Lyon as a Chef in Training, Father, and Sleuth Looking for the Secret of French Cooking
by Bill Buford
A book to savor and devour (8/23/2020)
A fabulous food memoir written by Bill Buford. This book and his other book "Heat" have convinced me that Buford belongs in the pantheon of great food writers (he's a great writer anyway). I loved this book about his adventures moving himself, his wife and their twin boys ( …more
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