BOOK REVIEWS (two parts) – Max in the House of Spies: A Tale of World War II (and) Max in the Land of Lies: A Tale of World War II (Operation Kinderspion)

both by Adam Gidwitz (Author), Euan Morton (Narrator), Listening Library (Publisher) Audiobooks  In Adam Gidwitz‘s MAX AND THE HOUSE OF SPIES, Max Bretzfeld is a Jewish boy living in Germany with his parents during the rise of Hitler’s Third Reich. It is very dangerous for Jews, and as a last resort while the atrocities escalate higher, they send their son…

BOOK REVIEW – The Maltese Parrot: A Patricia Fisher Mystery: A Humorous Cruise Ship Cozy Mystery, Book 9

by Steve Higgs (Author), Sheila Daly Payson (Narrator), Steven J. Higgs (Publisher) An Audiobook    I bought THE MALTESE PARROT by Steve Higgs because of the setting. I love Malta. I also like mysteries and cruising. I thought this book would be right down my reading alley. However, Patricia Fisher, a wealthy (with a butler), divorced, 60-something sleuth is not…

REBLOG – AI makes mistakes too!

This is an excellent, share-worthy blog post by author Gayle Bartos-Pool, about the foibles and unimaginative prowess of Artificial Intelligence (AI). She’s fair, and uses it some as an editor, but believes authors can do very well writing their books on their own, thank you very much.  Check it out!

BOOK REVIEW – Antiques and Adversity in the Azores: A Travel Cozy Murder Mystery with a Female Amateur Sleuth’s Fresh Start (A Treasured Journey Mystery Book 1)

by by Victoria Tait (Author)   Victoria Tait’s new travel cozy mystery series is set first in the Azores, an island group that is a part of Portugal, only about 1,000 miles away in the Atlantic Ocean. Here Tait has sent Georgiana Carey, a secondary character from some of her Dottie Sayers mysteries. She was known as George…

BOOK REVIEW – Inheritance & Intrigue in The Cotswolds, a Prequel to The Treasured Journey Mystery Series

by Victoria Tait Although Inheritance & Intrigue in The Cotswolds is a prequel and available only via the author (for free), it is an excellent segue from the familiar Dotty Sayers Antique Mysteries we’ve learned to love.  (Dottie and her policewoman friend Keya will continue in the new Cotswolds Antique Mystery series.) … In Inheritance & Intrigue,…

BOOK REVIEW – The Girl From Berlin

The Girl from Berlin, by Ronald H. Balson(Author), Fred Berman(Narrator), Macmillan Audio(Publisher) An audiobook Attorney Catherine Lockhart and her assistant (and hubby) Liam Taggart journey to Tuscany, Italy, to solve a land ownership dispute before their Italian friend’s aged aunt is evicted. Gabriella has a beautiful estate and prize-winning vineyard that two large “silent” corporations are attempting…

BOOK REVIEW – The Matchmaker

by Paul Vidich (Author), Jeff Harding (Narrator), Tantor Audio (Publisher) An Audiobook Set in both West and East Berlin just before The Wall came down, this is a suspenseful and personal story of a woman used and tossed aside by a cruel and heartless man called The Matchmaker.  This man ran an East German spy ring “matching” his assets with…

BOOK REVIEW – Death In Berlin

by M. M. Kaye (Author), Kate Udall (Narrator), Audible Studios (Publisher) An Audiobook A vacation with her adopted cousin Robert and his wife (who were to be newly stationed in post-war Berlin) becomes a nightmare of death and suspicion for Miranda Brand. After the traveling group dines in the hotel, a tipsy old army Brigadier tells a story about a…