Four-star review of The Red House Mystery by A. A. Milne

 This is Mr. Milne’s only mystery. It’s dated, of course, but still well-plotted with interesting characters. Anthony Gillingham arrives at the Red House to meet his friend Bill Beverley, who’s a guest of the owner, Mark Ablett. He finds Mark’s cousin and secretary Matthew Cayley trying to get into the study and when they finally gain entrance from the French doors on the other side, they find a body. I already had an inkling of what was to come, who was dead and by whose hand, so there was no surprise for me  at the end, but it was still a good read. Quick to finish and satisfying in a way as Tony and Bill play Holmes and Watson to uncover the truth.

Tuesday Book Review on Wednesday

Five-star review of Soon by Morris Gleitzman 

Felix is older and less naïve than in the earlier books in this series, but he still doesn’t quite know how to read people or situations, which often makes him charming in the midst of terrible actions by some people and keeps his voice fresh. In this fifth book in the series, WWII has ended, and the Nazis are defeated. Still, life is difficult, even dangerous. The people Felix meets many people in this story, a few more important in his life than others. He also ‘adopts’ a baby and tries to take it to Ukraine, since he believes the baby is Ukrainian. The entire series should be required reading for preteens, because they present an awful part of human history in terms kids can comprehend.

  

Tuesday Book Review

 

Five-star review of Hard-boiled Wonderland and The End of the World by Haruki Murakami

 Very interesting book. Two stories told alternately, each in a different setting. The unnamed protagonist of the story set in a modern Japanese city has more fantastical adventures even than the also unnamed protagonist who recently arrived in the kind of walled village that often appears in fantasies. Echoes of one story appear in the other. Both have a library and librarian, both have skulls, to be precise, unicorn skulls. Slowly but surely the relationship between the two stories becomes apparent and so does the fact that Murakami is talking about the human mind. But the writing is clear and humorous and that makes the book easy to grasp and enjoyable even when it goes into absurd science fantasy or difficult scientific concepts.   

Tuesday Book Review on Wednesday

 Four-star review of Secret in the Stars: An Abi Wunder Mystery by Linda Wilson

When young teen girl Abi Wunder is stranded at an inn just before it’s scheduled to be demolished, the ghost of the former owner asks her to help his wife save the inn. This mystery is appropriate for middle grade/pre-teen kids who love a good ghost story, but I enjoyed it too. Will Abi be able to save the day, with the help of Star, the dog, Bell, the cat, and her new friend Jess? She soon decides solving mysteries is more fun than art camp

Tuesday Book Review on Wednesday

Four-star review of The Immortal Words by Jeff Wheeler

 This is the end of the trilogy about Bingmei’s efforts to defeat the dragons, especially Echion the Dragon of Night and his queen, Xisi, and restore the kingdoms he’d conquered. She must go beyond the Death Wall, accompanied much of the way by her faithful friend, the fisherman’s son Quion. Several prophecies are involved in her quest, including her visit to the phoenix shrine and the birth of her child by Prince Rowan. I’ve enjoyed Wheeler’s books for a long time, but this one seemed to drag in places, and the ending left so many unfinished plotlines without the promise of a book four or a second trilogy in this world. Somewhere along the way, instead of Bingmei being the only Phoenix-chosen, her son is, and did I miss the place where Rowan developed the ability to transform into a phoenix too? 

Tuesday Book Review on Thursday

 

Five-star review of Under Two Moons: The Paradisi Chronicles (Caelestis Series Book 2) by Louisa Locke

The history and secrets revealed in Book 1 of this series are just a start. In this book, that takes place two years after the first, Mei-Lin Yu learns so much more about Ddaera, its people and animals; what happened after the arrival of the ten families and others in the first ten ships from Earth; what happened to the Reachers; and her own abilities. It starts when she’s kidnapped on her way home to Mynyddamore from New Hong Kong. And then there’s Silence, the Snow Leopard, a sentient animal who’s Jaxon’s companion. The book ended before all was revealed and before Mei-Lin discovered what scheme her brother, Albert, is trying to push through the Council. But I would have read the third book anyway. The fact that the second book of my series is also named Under Two Moons did not affect my rating. 

Tuesday Book Review on Wednesday

 Four-star review of Killing Custer by Margaret Coel

 Although I’d never read any of the other books in this series of mysteries that take place near the Wind River, I had no trouble immersing myself in the lives of Father John and Arapaho lawyer Vicky Holden. A Custer impersonator, Edward Garrett, is killed during a parade in the town of Lander, Wyoming, and suspicion falls on two of the young Arapaho men who took part in a dare ride around Garrett and the men impersonating two of his lieutenants. It’s up to Father John and Vicky to clear the names of the suspects by finding the real killer. The story is well-written, and the characters are fleshed out. The author has done her research on Custer and weaves what happened at the Little Big Horn and in Washita deftly into the story.