February 2019
Top 5 lawyer books
My 5 top legal novels, which include one John Grisham, and 4 female authors: Alafair Burke, Attica Locke, P.D. James, and Sujeta Massey
Agatha Christie on the meaning of fear
January 2019
The Rōnin’s Mistress by Laura Joh Rowland, book review
The Ronin's Mistress by Laura Joh Rowland. Excellent characters, exciting plot, and well-written historical setting make this a good addition to the Sano Ichiro detective series. But the outlook on life feels bleak and hopeless. 4 stars.
Top 5 Unusual Writing Places for Novelists
My top 5 places to write when I'm not at home. Some may be obvious but others are more unusual. The mall food court, anyone?
Dangerous Personalities, by Joe Navarro, book review
Review of Joe Navarro's book Dangerous Personalities. Identifies 4 types of dangerous personalities, the narcissist, the emotionally unstable, the paranoid, and the predator. Includes ways to escape their influence. Quick, easy read, gives broad overview of topic. 3 stars.
The Snowman by Jo Nesbo, book review
The Snowman by Jo Nesbo, translated by Don Bartlett
Confession: I have a soft spot for Scandinavian crime fiction. I’ve enjoyed every author I’ve read (thus far) in this subgenre. […]
Beneath the Darkest Sky, by Jason Overstreet
Review of Jason Overstreet's historical thriller Beneath the Darkest Sky. There's a lot of info-dumping and an ineffective dual timeline. However, Overstreet's story about an African-American man in a Soviet gulag accurately portrays the time period and brutality of the 1930s Stalinist regime.