“If there's a book that you want to read, but it hasn't been written yet, then you must write it.” ― Toni Morrison
Summary: In 1922, Count Alexander Rostov is deemed an unrepentant aristocrat by a Bolshevik tribunal, and is sentenced to house arrest in the Metropol, a grand hotel across the street from the Kremlin. Rostov, an indomitable man of erudition and wit, has never worked a day in his life, and must now live in an… Continue reading Book Review: “A Gentleman in Moscow” by Amor Towles (Spoiler-Free)
Summary: All the world, from Scirland to the farthest reaches of Eriga, know Isabella, Lady Trent, to be the world's preeminent dragon naturalist. She is the remarkable woman who brought the study of dragons out of the misty shadows of myth and misunderstanding into the clear light of modern science. But before she became the… Continue reading Thoughts on “A Natural History Dragons” by Marie Brennan (Spoiler-Free)
Summary here. The backdrop of The Glittering Hour is an entertaining one; a post-war Britain using glamour and materialism to mask it's festering wounds left by a lost generation killed in a terrible war. It's a time of great luxury, but also of great grief and poverty; of sickness and depression. It is the perfect setting… Continue reading Thoughts on “The Glittering Hour” by Iona Grey (Spoiler-Free)
WARNING: THIS REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS FOR THE BOOK. IF YOU DO NOT WISH TO HAVE ANY FOREKNOWLEDGE OF THE CONTENTS OF THIS NOVEL, READER DISCRETION IS ADVISED. Summary: January 1937. 28-year-old Jack is poor, lonely and desperate to change his life. So when he's offered the chance to join an Arctic expedition, he jumps at… Continue reading Thoughts on “Dark Matter” by Michelle Paver
Summary: On June 9, 1865, while traveling by train to London with his secret mistress, 53-year-old Charles Dickens–at the height of his powers and popularity, the most famous and successful novelist in the world and perhaps in the history of the world–hurtled into a disaster that changed his life forever. Did Dickens begin living a… Continue reading Spoiler-Free Thoughts on “Drood” by Dan Simmons
Summary: Life can turn on a dime—or stumble into the extraordinary, as it does for Jake Epping, a high school English teacher in a Maine town. While grading essays by his GED students, Jake reads a gruesome, enthralling piece penned by janitor Harry Dunning: fifty years ago, Harry somehow survived his father’s sledgehammer slaughter of… Continue reading Spoiler- Free Thoughts on “11/22/63” by Stephen King
I made a promise to myself that I would try to read more books in 2019 since I didn't feel as though I read that much in 2018. Fortunately (and surprisingly) I've managed to keep this vow even with my turbulent schedule and lack of desire to be productive. So here are some thoughts on… Continue reading Spoiler-Free Thoughts on The Books I’ve Read In 2019 (So Far)
Author's Note: I wrote this for a vocabulary-based challenge a co-worker proposed and thought I might post it here. Enjoy! One particularly disagreeable night in late December, Dr. Rothchild received a telegram from a fellow erudite and former student, Edmond Talbot, which piqued his interest. Have been delivered package of suspicious origin. Stop. Pray come… Continue reading The Soul-Reaper’s Hymn: a Short Story
WARNING: POST CONTAINS SPOILERS FOR THE SECOND BOOK IN THE OUTLANDER SERIES, A DRAGONFLY IN AMBER. READ AT YOUR OWN DISCRETION. My relationship with the Outlander series so far is mired by indecision. There's so much to adore about these books: the remarkable characters, the rich descriptions, the sexy-fun times, the action-packed storyline that constantly… Continue reading Damn you, Outlander Series: Thoughts on A Dragonfly in Amber
WARNING: CONTAINS MILD TO SIGNIFICANT SPOILERS FOR THE BOOK. The Terror and her flagship, Erebus, are stranded in the arctic. Their food source is contaminated. Sickness is rampant. Their ships have been ravaged by ice. And no rescue is expected. .......Oh, and, also, there's an immortal polar bear demon that can only be appeased by… Continue reading Thoughts on “The Terror” by Dan Simmons
The Crooked Pen 