July 2018

July is here!!! It's hot, it's sweaty, and it's time to hit the beach or your local (air-conditioned) bookstore and find something new to read! Here are some of our newest reviews by our lovely staff and valued customers! Check them out! 

The Summer I Met Jack
by Michelle Gable

When Alicia Darr, a young, pretty immigrant from Poland meets the charming Jack Kennedy, she is immediately taken with his attractive personality. Based on a true story, the relationship between Alicia, Jack, and the disapproving Kennedy clan has summer sizzle written all over it! Michelle Gable is a GREAT historical fiction writer!

Review by Christine (Staff)

The Dark Lake
by Sarah Bailey

After reading this book I let it percolate in my mind for a couple of weeks. I could not get it out of my mind- how does a police detective investigating a case to which she's personally tied to take herself out of the story? Or does she? That is the underlying question that carries through this first novel by Sarah Bailey. Detective Gemma Woodstock is a complex individual who just happens to be a police detective....but what is her real story? Read this book and find out!

Review by Susan (Staff)

My Twenty-Five Years in Provence
by Peter Mayle
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If you are familiar with Peter Mayle, you'll enjoy this book- and if you're not, you will still definitely enjoy these amusing anecdotes of rural french life. Very funny and easy to enjoy- perhaps sitting in a cafe?

Review by Christine (Staff)

A Torch Kept Lit
by William F. Buckley Jr.

A Torch Kept Lit presents more than fifty of Buckley's best eulogies, drawing on his personal memories and private correspondences and using a novelist's touch to conjure his subjects as he knew them/ We are reintroduced, through Buckley's eyes, to the likes of Winston Churchill, Ronald Reagan, and Martin Luther King Jr.

Review by Chloe (Customer)

Lido
by Libby Page

Great to find a debut novel by an author who has developed such interesting characters! This is a great, uplifting story for readers who like this genre! Enjoy!

Review by Christine (Staff)

Star of the North
by D.B. John

Likely more of a true story than a fiction novel, this book tells the tale of Japanese Prime Minister Abe's plea for the return of kidnapped Japanese citizens from North Korea. Our protagonist Jenna's twin sister goes missing, and the family believes she is one of the kidnapped Japanese. After years of struggle, they find out that she could still be alive- but what has her life been like?
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Review by Susan (Staff)

Eat Like Walt
by Marcy Carriker Smothers

A wonderful momento of Walt Disney's World. Each Disney attraction has a story behind it and photos from yesteryear. A beautiful gift for Disney lovers and collectors!

Review by Christine (Staff)

The Lost Detective
by Nathan Ward


Though not an author initially, Hammett soon made up for the delay with five novels in as many years, and more than 50 short stories published throughout his career. Murders were still a genteel matter before he came on the scene and they were solved via elegant deduction made by the likes of Sherlock Holmes and Hercule Poirot. Not so, in Hammett's mind. He spent years gumshoeing for the Pinkerton Detective Agency before ever putting pen to paper, and when he finally began to write, the murder mystery genre was changed irrevocably. Drawing from his personal experience, Hammett crafted some of the most iconic detectives ever written. Sam Spade, the Continental Op, Nick and Nora Charles and their beloved Asta- all made famous by Hammett and all front-runners in the crime noir genre. Ward's biography focuses on these influential years of Hammett's career, including his brief stint in the army and his travels across America (even documenting his time in San Diego!). Finely crafted and thoroughly researched “The Lost Detective” is a delightful look at a fascinating man.


Review for Jeanette (Customer)