I love the Longmire series! I have been slowly meandering my way through these books since I discovered there were books. I watched the first two seasons of the Netflix show before I found out it was based on a book series. There were so many changes between the two that I didn't rush to binge the books but read slowly, savoring each story instead. Now that the show has ended, these books are my Longmire fix, so I'm happy to keep the slow pace. I read a book or two....then move on to other things before coming back to Absaroka County again.
Johnson has written several short stories/novellas for this series. Spirit of Steamboat is one of them. A Christmas story! This one jumps back in time a bit....to when Lucian Connally was sheriff. A blizzard is raging, but a young burn victim needs to be flown to Denver. The problem is there are no planes available that can make it through the storm. Except one...Spirit of Steamboat....an old World War II bomber. This story flashes back to World War II and 1988 when Connally flew the old B-29 into a blizzard to save a girl's life. There's a lot of story going on! And as usual, just a touch of supernatural to spice things up.
Great story! And George Guidall is a wonderful narrator! He does a superb job each time! The audio book is 3 hrs 20 minutes long -- so an easy listening length.
There is plenty of action and story in this novella. It kept my attention riveting for the entire time. I like Lucian as a character. He's rough, opinionated, stubborn and sometimes a real curmudgeon. BUT....he was a damn good sheriff in his day. And I enjoy it when other characters feature in a Longmire story. Walt is still a central figure in this story, but Lucian gets some time to shine.....and cuss, and drink, and belly-ache.... :)
Problems are mounting in an Australian ghost town. Tourists flock to Walhalla to see the old gold mine. The dark, often dangerous, mining tunnels and the old buildings in town are a big draw, especially because almost every building in Walhalla is reportedly haunted. But, something else....something much more sinister lurks in the old mine. When two tourists disappear and a strange symbol is found, Detective Wellock calls in a friend -- Zack Bolder. Bolder is a priest who tackles cases involving supernatural forces. If anyone can get to the bottom of what's going on in Walhalla, it's Zack Bolder.....
What a creepy story! I enjoyed every word of it! I was in the mood for a supernatural horror story, and this book scratched that itch perfectly! Ghosts, demons, and murder....all in an old Australian mining town. It made the story even more interesting when I discovered that Walhalla and the Long Tunnel Mine are real places! Demon free, I hope!
A quick, very entertaining, creepy read! There are three books in the Zack Bolder series, with a fourth coming out soon! I have all three ebooks....so binge reading this series before the new book comes out! This is the first book by Janice Tremayne that I've read, and I'm definitely reading more of her writing! I've had a couple of her books and a short story on my ebook TBR for months....glad I finally started actually reading them!!
I love the cover art for this series! Definitely eye catching!
There is a lot going on in this story! I'm going to have to read this a second time just to catch all the nuances! On the surface, the story is a space opera. The crew of the Demeter has been in space for two years on a mission to gather plant life from other planets. The routine mission becomes much more dangerous when an alien biological is loosed in the ship. But underneath, the story is also about the crew dynamics. The main character, Reina, is stuck on the ship (her first voyage, too) with a completely overbearing boss and.....her abusive ex. As if that wouldn't make a first mission really really suck....then....alien biological. Yikes! Her first mission is definitely not textbook!
I loved how the story not only hits those exciting points: space mission, ahhhhh aliens!, survival, etc, but also delves into the behavior of the crew, the psychology of being in space stuck on a ship, and then being in danger.... and how Reina and the crew have to adapt and learn in order to survive.
I enjoyed this book! I will definitely be looking to read more by this author.
**I voluntarily read a review copy of this book from Flame Tree Press. All opinions expressed are entirely my own**
Goblin. The town is strange. Its residents are strange. So, of course, most of what happens there is strange. Creepy. Scary. Evil.
I enjoyed this journey to Goblin through six novellas. And the prologue about a delivery man hauling mysterious, dangerous cargo set the tone for the entire book. Very weird and entertaining! The only other Josh Malerman book I've read is Bird Box. I'm pleasantly surprised that this book is different, yet maintains that weird, off-kilter feeling I got when I read Bird Box. I like Malerman's writing style. His brand of horror just makes me feel...creeped out, slightly uncomfortable, and thoroughly entertained. It's like horror movies where I find myself trying to tell the characters not to go in the basement, split up the party, hide upstairs, pick up the hitchhiker -- and the excited, yet creeped out feeling I get when they do it anyway. I kept wanting to tell these characters DONT look in the truck, never try to trap ghosts, don't go in the woods..... They didn't listen. They did it anyway. They...... well, read the book to find out what happens!
I love the cover for this edition. It looks like the old weathered horror paperbacks I love to find with the supremely awesome creepy artwork on the front! It definitely fit the book!
Very entertaining! I'm definitely going to read more of his books. I've had A House at the Bottom of a Lake on my TBR list for a long time. I think it's time to finally read it!
Horror lovers who are in the mood for something a bit different will like this book. It's strange....creepily uncomfortable....and awesome!
**I voluntarily read a review copy of this book from Random House. All opinions expressed are entirely my own**
The Scariest Stories You've Ever Heard, Part 3 Author: Tracey E. Dils
This third collection of horror stories for kids was published in 1990. The Scariest Stories You've Ever Heard books (there are 3 of them!) gather together adaptations of ghost stories/urban legends/campfire tales that we all scared each other with as kids....the hookman, the phone call coming from inside the house, the axe murderer hiding in the back seat of the car, the empty house that holds a secret, etc etc. We all loved these stories as kids...and kids today love them too! This third and last volume gathers 9 more creepy-cool stories reimagined by author Tracey Dils!
The stories in these books are creepy....but not TOO creepy. Definitely ok for middle grade students to enjoy. I could see the stories being a great way to get a classroom of kids started on a creative writing assignment to write their own scary tale! Or for some fun Halloween-theme reading in the fall.
The cover art (by Richard Kriegler) is wonderful! This 3rd book is my favorite!
I enjoyed all of these stories! Very entertaining! And despite being published almost 30 years ago, the stories aren't dated. Face it -- we've all been scaring each other with these basic stories for a very, very long time!
The Scariest Stories You've Ever Heard, Part 2 Author: Katharine Burt
This book picks up where the first Scariest Stories You've Ever Heard left off....and gathers 11 more creepy short tales for kids. Most of the stories are urban legends/ghost stories/campfire tales that adults have heard before....the sorts of stories we scared each other with on campouts or at slumber parties. The stories are for kids...so they are creepy but not TOO creepy. Each tale is just a few pages long,,,perfcect length for reading out loud. I could also see these stories being used for a creative writing assignment in a classroom....read a story to the class, then have then write their own short scary tale! Or just as a book in the class library for free time reading, especially in the fall. Fun!
I just happened to find an old, used copy of this book at a 2nd and Charles bookstore in SC. Grabbed it right up! I love these old kid's books, especially when they are ghost stories/creepy/Goosebumps type books. :) Always fun to read! I enjoyed this book so much I hunted up copies of Part 1 and 3 as well!
I enjoyed each of these stories! Most were ones I have heard in one form or another before....but a couple were new to me!
Very entertaining!
**Just an aside, but it makes my teeth clench when adults rate down children's books for the stories being too simple, ones they have heard before, or for stories not being scary/violent/bloody enough -- when the book is written for CHILDREN and not adults. If you want spurting blood, grab an ADULT horror novel. These stories were written or adapted from urban legends/campfire stories for middle grade age children more than 30 years ago! Just my opinion -- enjoy these stories in the context of when and who they were written for....and just have fun!**
The Scariest Stories You've Ever Heard Author: Mark Mills
Some of my fondest memories from grade school are about books -- RIF days when we got to go to the library to pick out a book, those Fridays where the teachers handed out forms for book orders, and bringing books to school to trade with friends (We always swapped Laura Ingalls Wilder books with each other). Every time I'm in a thriftshop or used book store, I always gravitate to the section that has all the children's paperbacks. Most of the time I find a few I want to take home to read....partly because the stories are entertaining and partly for nostalgia.
There are three books in this little horror story series for kids. This is the first book...I found a copy of the second book (Scariest Stories You've Ever Heard Vol II by Katharine Burt) at 2nd and Charles Books one day. 75 cents. Yep....it came home with me. But....having bought volume 2, I started wondering about the awesome stories that must be in volume 1....
So I hunted down this book. And, while doing that, discovered that there is also a Scariest Stories You've Ever Heard Vol III ! I am very thankful to digital library borrows -- that lovely gift of the internet age gave me the opportunity to read this book, published by Willowisp Publishing in 1988.
This collection of 14 short little creepy tales gravitates to middle grade age kids, but I enjoyed it too! A nice mix of ghost stories, urban legends, and campfire style tales, this book was a quick, fun read! I could see this book being used at Halloweentime in a classroom setting to get young but reluctant readers to read for fun, as a creative writing tool (read a story/have students try writing their own short, scary story), or for reading aloud. As for me, I had a very enjoyable morning of reading and remembering similar stories we scared each other with while camping when I was a kid. :)
Another book finished in my journey through Agatha Christie's writings! Ever since I read my first Hercule Poirot novel when I was 9, I have wanted to read everything Christie wrote. I never got around to actually doing it until now. I'm not a binge reader...so I'm taking my time. I read some short stories, a couple novels...then move on to other things and come back to Christie....a slow, joyful meandering. I'm loving it!
Lord Edgware Dies. This was my first read of this novel. Definitely classic Christie! I loved this book!
The basics: an American actress - very pretty but mostly empty-headed - approaches Hercule Poirot with a request: Will Poirot please convince her husband, Lord Edgware, to give her a divorce? Then she flounces out of his office with a flourish to attend a dinner party that night. In the morning, there are two dead bodies and a mystery to solve. Poirot is on the case!
I listened to the audio book (HarperAudio). Narrated by Hugh Fraser, the audio is 6.5 hours long. Easy listening length! Hugh Fraser played Hastings in the Poirot television series, so he's a perfect choice to narrate Christie novels. He reads at a nice pace, and gives a great performance!
Lord Edgware dies was first published in 1933. In the UK, the book was published as part of the Collins Crime Club, a mystery book club that offered three crime novels by well-known authors each month. Oh don't I wish I could jet back in time, sign up, and bring books back with me!!!! The book was printed in the US that same year under a different title, Thirteen at Dinner. Before published as a book, the story was printed in serial format in a magazine, The American Magazine, as 13 For Dinner. So many titles!! Great story though!
This book features some of my favorite Christie characters -- Hercule Poirot with his lovely moustache and little grey cells, his faithful sidekick Arthur Hastings, and Inspector Japp. The story follows the usual Christie formula -- the setting and the dastardly crime, Poirot discovers clues that Hasting does not understand, Japp is confused, Poirot figures it out, the reveal, the downfall of the culprit. But despite it being a formula, Christie pulls it off again and again -- she truly was the master of plot!
This story has been adapted for radio and television several times. It was adapted into a five part radio series by BBC Radio 4 in 1992. Real Art Productions made a movie version starring Austin Trevor in 1934. In 1985, Peter Ustinov starred as Poirot in a movie version (believe it or not David Suchet played Japp in this movie....). Suchet later played Poirot in an episode of the television series based on this novel in February 2000 (series 7, episode 2). And in 2012 it was adapted for French television.
I happily hunted down the adaptations I discovered while researching for this review.
The Poirot episode was the easiest to find: Acorn TV :) (Just an aside: for Poirot lovers, BritBox has several seasons and AcornTV has the rest). The episode makes several changes in the plot, but the story is mostly intact. The episode is really good!
I found the 1985 Peter Ustinov movie on Amazon (SD version only. Rent or purchase). I remember watching these 80's adaptations on television back in the day, but I somehow missed this one! Bought it! I really enjoyed the movie! I was surprised at some of the awesome actors -- Peter Ustinov as Poirot, Faye Dunaway, David Suchet (playing Inspector Japp), and Lee Horsley (I recognized him from his days on Matt Houston in the 80s). Fun! The story is updated to modern times. The 80s fashions and hairstyles were cringeworthy, but the story was mostly there. It was odd seeing Suchet playing Japp, and I felt Hastings was made to look just a bit too stupid. Other than that -- fun watch!
The 1934 movie is on Youtube here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5MPZbhpdxPU
The old movie is watchable, but the casting seems a bit awkward. Austin Trevor who plays Poirot has no moustache and is taller than Poirot would be. And the actor playing Hastings is short and has a moustache. A bit backwards? Trevor's French accent is terrible. lol But....the movie was made 87 years ago. The fact I got to watch it is amazing, even if I have been very spoiled by modern adaptations like Poirot. I loved seeing this old film just because it was one of the first film adaptations of Hercule Poirot! This is actually the third film starring Trevor as Poirot, but the earlier films, Alibi and Black Coffee, are considered lost.
And, the BBC radio dramatization (2 hrs 20 minutes) is available from Audible, or can be found on the Internet Archive. The radio drama is full cast & very well done!
A very enjoyable story. Classic Christie! Loved it! On to the next: Murder on the Orient Express! One of my favorites!
When I got offered a review copy of this book, I jumped right on it. But I got about 2/3 of the way through and stopped reading....
.....because I knew the audio book would be amazing and I didn't want to get to the end of the story. I wanted to start all over at the beginning and listen to the audiobook! I eagerly awaited Release Day....loaded it to my phone....and started this awesome story all over again so I could hear it! Talk about a binge listen!
I love sci-fi...especially stories like this one. Earth under theat. An unlikely hero trying to save humanity and facing rough odds. Alien life. The huge expanse of space. I was totally geeking out the entire time I listened (and read) this book. I kept pausing to look things up -- the physics involved, information on the sun, and whatever else popped into my head. I LOVE it when a book engages me like this -- nothing like some research tangents to really plug me into a story and characters!
Andy Weir never disappoints me! I thoroughly enjoyed this new book and can't wait to see what he comes up with next! And, I am hoping that they make this story into a movie! Please, please, please!
The audio book, narrated by Ray Porter, is a bit over 16 hours long. Ray Porter is an amazing narrator! He put the right emotion and humor into his voice acting and brought the story to life! I knew I recognized his voice from somewhere so I looked through my Audible Library -- he is also the narrator for the Bobiverse books! He's definitely near the tippy top of my favorite male narrators...Scott Brick beats him out by just a bit. Porter is sandwiched in-between Brick and Wil Wheaton...the trifecta of awesome narrators IMHO.
But I digress....
Back to Project Hail Mary!
This book is awesome to read! And awesome to listen to! Full stars from me!
**I voluntarily read a review copy of this book from Random House - Ballentine. All opinions expressed are entirely my own. Including this one -- MAKE A MOVIE!**
The Ghost & the Haunted Portrait Author: Cleo Coyle
Jack is back!
I love this series! It is absolutely one of my favorite cozy mystery series, and I snap up a copy each time I see a new book pop up for pre-order. This time, I got my review copy and pre-ordered both the paperback and audio book. I gotta have my Jack and Penelope (that sounds like a cool mixed drink, doesn't it!)!
The Ghost & the Haunted Portrait is the 7th book in the Haunted Book Shop Mysteries. This time, Penelope is preparing for a special event at her shop involving vintage book cover art. A spooky portrait of a woman with a bit of a legend behind it starts to cause trouble. Is the portrait cursed? Who best to help investigate a ghostly curse than a ghost detective? Penelope enlists Jack's help to discover the truth behind the portrait.
I have to admit that I have not read the end of this story yet. I'm repeating what I did with the last book....I read about half of my review copy....then I wait for the physical copy of the book to finish. I don't know whodunnit yet! My book is on the way though -- just left the Baltimore postal system on its way south! You better believe I'm tracking that puppy! I want to read the rest of the book on release day! If the book doesn't arrive on time (packages from all delivery companies seem to be taking longer to get here lately), I can always load my audio book which will magically appear on my devices on release day. I got it covered! The half of my review copy that I read was very good! But I'm making myself wait to finish the story!
For those new to Cleo Coyle's books (pseudonym for a husband and wife writing team), their Coffeehouse Mystery series is also very good! I'm a firm fan of that series too!
**I voluntarily read a review copy of this book from Berkley Publishing. All opinions expressed are entirely my own**
Absolutely Everything! A History of Earth, Dinosaurs, Rulers Robots, and Other Things Too Numerous to Mention Author: Christopher Lloyd
While this book is geared to middle grade children, the snippets of facts and history from the beginning of the universe clear up to modern times was interesting for me, too!
I listened to the audio book version of this book. The author, Christopher Lloyd, narrates his own book. Up until now I always said only actors and Neil Gaiman should narrate their own books, but Christopher Lloyd is now added to this list. His voice is pleasant and he does a very good job of reading his whirlwind history of almost everything. I read up on this author....he's a lecturer specializing in sweeping, big scope histories. I couldn't help thinking as I listened to him talk about events, people, and changes in the universe and Earth over time that this man is the school assembly we always wished we could have, but never got. Or the popular professor whose classes are always full because students just like him and enjoy his lectures. It's a super power I think -- the ability to bring complex subjects to a level that makes students love to learn and seek knowledge. And this author has that superpower! This book was interesting, entertaining and filled with facts on a huge variety of things. Very interesting!
This book is the reason why I read a lot of books for kids. It isn't bogged down by adult nonsense, but just conveys the joy of learning and knowing. Very entertaining and informative listen...and I will be looking for more audio books of this author's work.
The audio book is about 6.5 hours long, and is organized into 15 chapters. It starts with the beginning of the universe in chapter 1 and ends with 1945-present day in chapter 15. Lloyd covers everything from dinosaurs to climate change. Great book -- for kids and adults!
**I voluntarily listened to a review copy of this audio book from Spotlight Audio. All opinions expressed are entirely my own.**
