The Bookman's Tale: A Novel of Obsession by Charlie Lovett

My rating: 2 of 5 stars


As a book lover, I really wanted to like this book. I think that's the only reason I liked it as much as I did. Shakespeare forgeries are always an interesting topic to me but this was overloaded with coincidence that lead to a predictable story.

This review is based on a free ARC received from the publisher.



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Big Maria by Johnny Shaw

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


This was a really great story. I feel stupid that I put off reading it for so long. It's a bit sad that it's not on a ton of bestseller lists because I feel like people would really love it if they knew about it. It's it's own little bit of treasure.

I received this book for free through Goodreads First Reads.



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Inferno by Dan Brown

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


Pretty good. I still think DaVinci was his best written as far as an interesting topic and good suspense. It was testing my limits to believe all this happened in one day.



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Stealing History by Gerald Stern

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


This is the first time I've read any of Stern's work and I now know I need to read much more. I love the way his mind works and he isn't afraid to say what he really thinks. Brilliant.


I received the book for free through Goodreads First Reads.



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Spying in America: Espionage from the Revolutionary War to the Dawn of the Cold War by Michael J. Sulick

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


This was an interesting read. It's a good overview of significant spies in America (working against America) up through the Cold War. I'd be interested in reading an account by this author of spies working for America during the Cold War era. I suppose we'll have to wait many years for that due to the protection of those agents.

I received the book for free through Goodreads First Reads.



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Hello Goodbye Hello: A Circle of 101 Remarkable Meetings by Craig Brown

My rating: 2 of 5 stars


There were some interesting stories but it has a very gossipy feel to it. The way the author kept switching between past and present tense was a bit awkward and it felt like there were times when a quote was being used but was not credited.

I received the book for free through Goodreads First Reads.



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The Movement of Stars by Amy Brill

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


I wasn't sure how much I was going to like this from the blurbs I had read but I was surprised how quickly I was sucked into the story. It was interesting from both a cultural and a historical standpoint and I'm always fond of a strong heroine. I really enjoyed the poetic ending on the last page but think the story could easily have ended a few pages prior, before the epilogue.

This review is based on a free ARC received from the publisher.



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Big Girl Panties: A Novel by Stephanie Evanovich

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


The author should be spanked for the amount of spanking in this book.

Sweet story though. :)



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The Testing by Joelle Charbonneau

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


It feels like the YA dystopian field has been pretty much exhausted. Everyone seems to want to write (and read) this stuff but it feels like it's all been said and there's not much room for originality anymore. This book had a lot in common with The Hunger Games with a little bit of Matched thrown in. There were some new elements but the similarities were a bit distracting. This makes it sound like I hated it but I didn't. It was still an entertaining read and I will probably finish the trilogy when it comes out. This book may get a lot of readers but I'm not sure it will retain everyone through the storyline when they might just choose to re-read Hunger Games instead.



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The Supremes at Earl's All-You-Can-Eat by Edward Kelsey Moore

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


Really wonderful story about friendship and love told with a witty sense of humor. Excellent book.



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