Blackwater Falls is the first in a new series featuring Inaya Rahman, a police detective, and her boss, Lt. Waqas "Qas" Seif. They officers from the Denver Police Department's Community Response Unit, assigned to take over a murder investigation in Blackwater Falls, Colorado. This is the first time they have worked closely together. The CSU … Continue reading Blackwater Falls – Ausma Zehanat Khan
Author: Emily Leader
I have been an avid reader since Dick and Jane met Sally. At age 7, I read my parents' first edition of "To Kill a Mockingbird." I am a retired lawyer and so read almost only fiction for pleasure. I'm adding in nonfiction these days, largely on social justice matters but also history, biography, and weird topics that catch my imagination. I used to read only serially, one book at a time. Presently, I read paperbacks, hardcovers, listen to audible, listen to CDs and read online through Net Galley. Covid-19 has caused me to read a lot so I have re-upped my Goodreads challenge for 2021 and am starting to review at least my favorite finds annd, perhaps, some stinkers.
Harry Sylvester Bird -Chinelo Okparenta
In 2006, at 14, Harry travels with his parents, Wayne and Chevrolet, to Tanzania. Already acutely aware that his parents are neglectful and not much his cup of tea, Harry calls them by their first names. Wayne is selfish, racist, boorish, politically a member of a third party, the "Purists," who just won the presidential … Continue reading Harry Sylvester Bird -Chinelo Okparenta
Little Rumours – Bryony Pearce
Little Rumours is about a small town in the County of Devon told from the point of view of Kelly, a woman in an identity protection program related to her ex-husband's infamous and sociopathic crimes. She has a son, Joe, who is eleven. Naomi is native to the town and don't you forget it! Her … Continue reading Little Rumours – Bryony Pearce
Didn’t Nobody Give a Shit What Happened to Carlotta – James Hannaham
One of my favorite books in a year of favorites, although this is an all over the board book emotionally and socially for this older white woman of privilege. Carlotta was Dustin when she went to a liquor store with her cousin. He commits an armed robbery that landed them both in prison. Most folks … Continue reading Didn’t Nobody Give a Shit What Happened to Carlotta – James Hannaham
Secrets of the Nile – Tasha Alexander
Oddly--because I'm a historical fiction/mystery fan and enjoy well researched and written mid 19th through mid-20th century settings -- I never heard of Lady Emily. This is a series I'll dip into more. Secrets of the Nile finds Lady Emily and husband Colin Hargreaves heading to Egypt with Colin's mother and his young adult daughter … Continue reading Secrets of the Nile – Tasha Alexander
And There He Kept Her- Joshua Moehling
Jesse is breaking into a ramshackle house through the basement, his penlight shining on an inexplicable pink room, odd furnishings, decrepit conditions. As he climbs the steps, Jenny joins him, trying to get him to drop the plan but "he" has threatened Jesse's sister. As they start up the steps, a fat naked man with … Continue reading And There He Kept Her- Joshua Moehling
Hurricane Girl – Marcy Dermansky
Told from the perspective of Allison Brody, who loses everything she owns a week and a half after buying and moving into her new house on the beach in North Carolina, Hurricane Girl is compelling and weird. Allison left her abusive producer boyfriend in California to strike out on her own. She loves water. She … Continue reading Hurricane Girl – Marcy Dermansky
Treasure State – C.J. Box
C.J. Box always, always spins a great story and this is no exception. I am a fan of the Joe Pickett series but had not read any of the Highway Quartet Series. Cassie Dewell as a P.I. is clever and daring and her capabilities make sense. She has more than one puzzling case to solve. … Continue reading Treasure State – C.J. Box
The Picture Bride – Lee Geum-yi
Could not "put this down" though I was listening to the audiobook of The Picture Bride, a beautiful portrayal of the lives of three women from a rural area in Korea in the early 1900s. The many Korean men who traveled to Hawaii, then a U.S. territory, wanted to marry as they became financially able. … Continue reading The Picture Bride – Lee Geum-yi
The Shadow Murders – Jussi Adler-Olsen
I am a longtime fan of Jussi Adler-Olsen's Department Q novels. Department Q includes a small cast of clever out-of-the box thinking misfits who handle cold cases that are typically notorious, often gruesome and always beyond the detection and solving capabilities of ordinary officers. The Shadow Murders opens with a scene in which a woman … Continue reading The Shadow Murders – Jussi Adler-Olsen
They Called me Bookworm 