Audio Book Review: Chenneville by Paulette Jiles, Narrated by Grover Gardner

Posted in Audio book, Fiction, Historical Fiction by

With Chenneville, author Paulette Jiles, who also wrote News of the World, delivers another immersive, Civil War era historical fiction novel. This one is centered on John Chenneville, a Union officer who wakes up in a Virginia hospital after suffering a severe head injury during a battle. The story follows John as he returns to post-Civil War Missouri, discovers his beloved sister and her family have been murdered, and hunts the killer across Missouri, Arkansas, Oklahoma, and Texas. Continue reading →

Audio Book Review: We Solve Murders by Richard Osman, Narrated by Nicola Walker

Posted in Audio book, Fiction, Humor, Mystery by

We Solve Murders is a hilarious romp through the worlds of money smuggling, Internet influencers, hired hitmen, and rogue security agencies. Author Richard Osman, who also wrote The Thursday Murder Club series, brings the same heart to We Solve Murders but ramps up the humor. This novel is the first in a series and I can’t wait until the second book is released! Continue reading →

Audio Book Review: The Last Bookshop in London by Madeline Martin, Narrated by Saskia Maarleveld

Posted in Audio book, Fiction, Historical Fiction, WWII Fiction by

The Last Bookshop in London is a historical fiction novel set in London during the German blitzkrieg of World War II. The story explores how the power of a good book can temporarily soothe anxiety during a crisis and transport readers away from dangerous realities. The novel also has strong themes of love, relationships, duty, human decency, and perseverance. Continue reading →

Audio Book Review: The Night We Lost Him by Laura Dave, Narrated by Julia Whelan

Posted in Audio book, Fiction, Mystery, suspense by

The Night We Lost Him is a suspense novel highly focused on the complexities of family and romantic relationships. When Nora Noone’s father falls off a cliff at his seaside home, her half-brother Sam calls foul play despite the police determining the death was an accident. Nora and Sam, who barely know each other, team up to do their own investigation. Continue reading →

Audio Book Review: A Flicker in the Dark by Stacy Willingham, Narrated by Karissa Vacker

Posted in Audio book, Fiction, suspense by

A Flicker in the Dark is an entertaining suspense novel that explores what it’s like to be a family member of a serial killer. Just when psychologist Chloe Davis thinks her father’s reign of terror is in the distant past, girls begin disappearing again. Are these the acts of a copycat killer, or is something else going on? Continue reading →

Audio Book Review: Leave Only Footprints: My Acadia-to-Zion Journey Through Every National Park by Conor Knighton, Narrated by the Author

Posted in Nonfiction, Travel by

CBS Sunday Morning correspondent Conor Knighton pitched a story to CBS: he would visit all the US National Parks within a year and film his experiences. Leave Only Footprints is a humorous and interesting memoir of his adventures. If you’re looking for something meaty about the National Parks, this is probably not the right book for you. But if you just want a 20,000-foot overview of some parks, human interest stories, amusing personal anecdotes, history of the park system, and a heavy dose of political and social commentary, you just might enjoy this travelog. Continue reading →

Audio Book Review: Child 44 by Tom Rob Smith, Narrated by Dennis Boutsikaris

Posted in Audio book, Fiction, Historical Fiction, suspense, Thriller by

In Stalin’s Russia, thoroughly investigating a murder could be considered its own subversive crime, especially if the outcome tarnishes the State’s narrative of being a communist Utopia where citizens are so content that they never turn to crime. Against this backdrop, Leo Demidov, a member of the much-feared State Security Force (MGB), risks everything to track down a serial killer who is viciously preying on children. Continue reading →