Starling House by Alix E. Harrow

Hello.  I hope you're having a great day.

The holidays often make me think of the people I've lost, like my grandparents.  I was blessed to have fantastic, loving grandparents on both my maternal and paternal side.  My maternal grandfather was a very pious man, he also was extremely outgoing. He was modest but he was also a politician.  He was mayor and actually secured the land that later became the town's only mall. My grandparents traveled around the world going everywhere but Russia, where they wanted to go but never got the chance.  Every year they went to Hawaii for my birthday...without me...and called me from the pool, while I was in cold New York.  Being the way he was, my granddad knew the name of half the population of Hawaii, and they knew him.  My poor demure grandmother went along with it all.  She surprised me when I got married by giving me the advice to "train him (meaning my husband) right from the beginning".  That makes me think she ran the show more than she let on. Sadly, hubby has proven untrainable.

One time my grandparents moved to the boonies near my hometown.  They were near a swampy area, by a State Park.  When there, they became avid bird watchers. They had a tiny little book, which my sisters and I always fought over, that identified all kinds of birds.  It was so prized, it not only survived decades but was given to my niece when she was little.  For a while, my whole family knew the names of many birds, now sadly they are just known as the mean blue one, or the gray one with the yellow tail.

I recently read Starling House by Alix E. Harrow.  This is the story of Opal, a down on her luck, hard life kind of girl.  She lives in the town of Eden where everyone seems cursed.  She keeps having dreams of Starling House, a local mansion.  Starling House was the home of Elizabeth Starling, who, in the 1800s, wrote a book called The Underland and then disappeared.  Drawn to the house, because of her dreams, Opal meets the rude and brash current owner, Authur.  Opal tries to find the reason for her odd dreams of the elusive house, and why in the dreams the mansion feels like home.  As she does secrets become unraveled, some not only dangerous but life-threatening.

This book was lots of fun.  It was a fast pleasant read.  It is an odd bird (get it...bird...Starling), as it's kind of a gothic horror without being scary, it has a bit of romance, lots of mystery and suspense and a fair amount of thriller thrown in for good measure.  One thing about the way this is written, I usually hate, but is done so effectively here, that I loved it.  I dislike when things are said over and over, I feel like the author is trying to increase book length and is wasting my time.  In this case, it is on purpose and very useful.  We hear the story of Starling House from several points of view, from people with experience with the building, land and family.  The closer we get to the end, the closer we get to the truth.  So entertaining.  I literally could not put this down, reading until my vision was blurring.

I've been on a roll lately.  The last several books I've read have been so creative and fantastic.  Christmas has come early! 

Grimmworld The Witch in the Woods by Michaelbrent Collings

Hello, everyone.  I hope you are having a great day.

I've talked about the neighborhood in which I grew up being called "Peanut Butter Hill."  Once you bought your house all you could afford to eat is peanut butter. Looking at it today, it is laughable, my house payment is ten times what my parents paid. Anyway, it was nice, safe, pretty and family oriented.  Like most kids, we had our suspicions about a certain house.  It was on the corner, with a darkly wooded yard.  The couple that lived there was probably in their 50's, we thought they were well over 100.  The woman, she committed the greatest sin of all; she had gray hair and wore it in a bun.  As far as we were concerned, it was confirmed... the lady down the street was a witch.  We avoided her house at all costs, only observing from a distance - mostly yard work.  They were definitely planting all kinds of poisons and child-eating plants. It was the perfect place for a witch to operate, in a neighborhood filled with young children.

I recently read Grimmworld The Witch in the Woods by Michaelbrent Collings. What if things that you thought were just childhood stories were actually true?  That is the premise for this book.  Willow and Jake Grimm are twins.  Their lives were thrust into turmoil when they move to a new area as their parents accept jobs at a top secret Think Tank.  The town, New Marburg, is far different from anything they've experienced.  The police are charming robots, older people fight with swords made of lasers, their car parks itself, their house walls won't hold pictures and terrible storms with lightning abounds. When they go to their new school, they are surprised to find it all very low tech; except for the cafeteria which moves between floors.  Their class is taught by a horrible woman who detests them and treats them terribly.  Willow and Jack count themselves as lucky to make two friends, a boy and girl, who they are surprised to learn are the children of their disliked teacher.  One day, after a particularly violent storm, the twins find their school has been transformed into a castle and they and their friends have been transported to another world.  Grimmworld is the place from which Grimm's fairy tales originate; where they are real.  While exploring this bizarre place, they discover that their friends have become Hansel and Gretel! Willow and Jack must save them from being eaten by the witch and find a way back home.

I usually don't read fantasy, but I couldn't resist this storyline. I was enraptured by this book.  The writing is absolutely wonderful.  This is a children's/young adult's book, recommended for 8-11 year old readers.  Forget that!  This is a novel for adults too...a creative thriller about children.  Besides the stellar writing, the story pulls you in, rich in details and description.  You will feel transported to each setting; so vivid you will feel the darkness of the woods, smell the cinnamon of the witch's house and see the children as they experience it all.  I simply cannot say enough good things about this book.   It will leave you wanting more.  Amazon lists this as volume one, I will be the first to buy each additional book, anxious to rekindle the deep affection I already feel for the Grimm twins.  

Now for the bad news, this novel isn't available until March 5, 2024.  I strongly suggest you preorder it for your children and yourself. In case you forget, I'll remind you in a couple of months.  The enchanting Grimmworld The Witch in the Woods is spellbinding and should not be missed!

Many thanks to the author Michaelbrent Collings and Cameron, his assistant.  This book was the highlight of my week and I am in awe.  Thank you!

The Cartographers by Peng Shepherd

Hello everyone. I hope you're having a great day.

Can you read a map or do you depend only on GPS?  Heck, I remember when maps where huge, fold out, and free.  When was the last time you heard about anything useful being free?  A long time!  A few years ago, we bought our first car with GPS.  Shortly after getting it, we were going from Raleigh, North Carolina to Cape May, New Jersey.  We decided to let the GPS get us there.  It was a bit of an adventure.  Our first place to stop and get gas was surrounded by big huge buzzards.  Too bad I didn't look as beautiful as Tippi Hendren because I sure felt like her, there were dozens and dozens of the birds on top of each surface...waiting and watching for someone to keel over. They would surely devour that person in under thirty seconds. Then we were in northern Virginia, naturally it took us right through Washington.  Heck, it was a weekend so the roads weren't too crowded and we got a side show getting to see the Washington Monument under repair.  Oh yes, it was all urban-ly scenic until the football game got out and the roads became mass panic.  Next to cut over to the coast, GPS has us go through Philadelphia. I don't mean skirt Philly, I mean I could practically land a big old juicy kiss on the liberty bell as we drove (ever so slowly) by. New Jersey never looked so good. 

I recently read The Cartographers by Peng Shepherd.  This is the story of Nell, who loves maps.  She works in cartography in the New York Public Library and loves it.  Her father works there too.  All becomes unpleasant when Nell has a fight with her father about a cheap old fold out map.  He has her fired, causing a huge rift between them.  After resettling in a new life, Nell is suddenly called back to the library, where her father has been found dead.  Imagine Nell's surprise when she finds hidden in his belongings that old gas station map that had caused their estrangement.  Things get even more odd when she finds that there are very few of these gas station maps left in existence and someone is hunting down every last copy.

This book draws you in right from the beginning.  You'll find the book calling you back to read more every time you try and put it down. This mystery draws heavily from fantasy, so if you need everything to be realistic then this isn't the book for you.  If you want an interesting escape, this book will map out a journey to some unusual places (see what I did there?).  While I don't read fantasy in general, this really was an enjoyable story.

My negative sense of direction has me wondering what happens to GPS in bad weather or in a deeply wooded area?  It goes out?  I'll end up in another country!  Maybe paper back ups would be advisable for me.

The Stepford Wives by Ira Levin

Hello everyone. I hope your day has been a pleasant one.

I wasn't always a housewife, I used to actually work (outside the home). I worked in the credit cards industry for years, doing everything from starting a new card program to seeing it sold off and all aspects in between. Want to know about credit card fraud or merchant services, I'm your girl. For real fun, (read with a sexy whisper) I'll show you how to compute an average daily balance. 

When it became more practical for me to stay home, I wanted to do the housewife job well.  I wanted to clean like a dream (I'm laughing so hard now I might fall out of my chair). I wanted to know all the little tricks from packing the perfect suitcase, to making silver shine.  I wanted to be able to cook like a world class chef, but just for my family.  Let's face it, I wanted to be a Stepford Wife, heck I still do I just start to lose my lunch every time I even think about dusting.

I recently read The Stepford Wives by Ira Levin. Now if you are a youngster and have only seen the more recent movie, it's nothing like the book. The original movie, however, sticks much closer to the novel.  We see how the women of the town of Stepford only have time to clean their homes and take care of their husbands and children. The reader witnesses Joanna desperately trying to get the women to do something together that doesn't involve dirt removal.  Like the movie, it doesn't work and she is left without friends except for one, Bobbie. Sadly, one day all Bobbie wants to do is clean her house. As Joanna's dissatisfaction grows, so does the distance between her and her husband, Walter.  Now, she's sure he and others from the town are up to something nefarious.  This fun book is  rapidly read, requiring barely more than an hour as it's just over one hundred pages.  Interesting to note, Ira Levin also wrote several other books including Rosemary's Baby.

Think I'll see if I can get someone to hypnotize me so I love cleaning house and want to do nothing else.....or better yet, hypnotize my husband.  I bet he can dust with the best of them!

Wundersmith: The Calling of Morrigan Crow

Hello everyone.  I hope you are well.  I am still struggling with this creeping crud of a cough I picked up at Christmas. Such a nice present, wish I'd read the gift tag before I opened it! Hubby, who has had a worse version, seems to be doing much better. I am grateful for his improvement! Because of feeling so lousy we haven't begun to take down the holiday decorations. Okay, let me be honest, we wouldn't have begun anyway...I am a strict believer of Christmas decorations down by St. Patrick's Day! Well, maybe not that extreme, but I'm not in any hurry. I keep thinking I'll come up with some excellent new way of organizing all that "stuff" that will make it much easier later this year to put it all back up, but alas, I always get fed up with it all and start shoving stuff in boxes willy nilly. You know, I have heard of people that design closets in their homes that they push their holiday trees in...whole...and just pull them back out the following year. I'm starting to think they have the right idea that all these decorations are kind of like dusting, you just have to repeat over and over. Not that I'm not happy to be able to put up holiday decorations, we all know plenty of people in this world are not able for many reasons, so I guess I'll learn to enjoy the process. I refuse to enjoy dusting though, just for the record.

While downing my zillionth cup of hot tea and cough drop this week I finished the book Wundersmith: The Calling of Morrigan Crow, by Jessica Townsend. This is the second of what I hope is going to be a long running series. The first book, Nevermoor: The Trials of Morrigan Crow, I loved. While not a big fantasy reader, I am totally into this story line. I always seem to like books that it doesn't take time to "get into", probably why I like thrillers so much because of their pacing. It seems like fantasy would take longer because you have to describe the location and characters so much. Don't get me wrong, I love the description in something like Steinbeck's Grapes of Wrath....heck I'm still thinking about that turtle on the road. (Read it if you haven't it is a classic, though somewhat depressing, still a classic). Then there is the description in a book like Maguire's Wicked about the Wicked Witch of the West in the Wizard of Oz story. I adore Elphaba and all her glorious green-ness, but the description of the world, Geez! I was reading that book out loud to hubby one time in the car on a long trip and the words the author made up gave me a tongue cramp! (settle down all you perverts) Anyway, I'm not a huge fan of wasting valuable story time in so much description, I want to get to the plot. Wundersmith, like Nevermoor, spends only necessary amounts of time on description and has a strong plot. It has been likened to Harry Potter. I honestly thought it was just because of the fantasy, its popularity, and being written for an audience a bit younger than myself (no comments necessary). However, I've started noticing more and more similarities, is the villain a little Voldemortish? Do any of the building descriptions remind you of the Weasley's house. I don't know, I might be reading things that aren't there. Once thing is for sure, this is a classic good against evil. Wundersmith is every bit as good as Nevermoor, frankly, I cannot wait for more. Its almost 550 pages fly by way too quickly!

By the way, in my review of Nevermoor I told you about my fabulous artist niece. I saw her a Christmas and she took Nevermoor back to art school with her. So happy this will be something else we can share. I might even be willing to stand in line at midnight, ala Harry Potter, to get her another Morrigan Crow installment.

Nevermoor The Trials of Morrigan Crow by Jessica Townsend

Hello everyone.  You may not believe me, but I know why you come here. You want to read about a book you are interested in and see me yap on about how cleaning the toilet is such a crappy job (ahem, yes, I saw it and yes, it is a bad job I dislike, you probably do too). However, like last time I have to tell you a story that relates to today's book.

I have a niece. She is in her early twenties. My niece was the first "kid" in our family so in an effort to be her favorite aunt I did some things I now don't know whether to be ashamed of or proud of.  Given how many thrillers I read perhaps I should pause here for effect, letting your mind wander. No, these things do not involve shovels, drives to the barren woods, or missing people. Possibly worse. I watched Ren and Stimpy. Think that is bad? Hold on to your chair...I learned all the songs from Blues Clues. Oh, yes, shutter you should! I know the mailbox song, complete with flag arm movement. You want to know about Mr. Salt and Mrs. Pepper, I'm your girl! I know, it is shocking.

When my niece was a teen, I read the Twilight series with her, despite her completely bailing after the first book. I have whole series-itis and had to read all of them. Then there is Harry Potter, we read the whole series together. It was bliss. Sometimes she'd get the book on her own, or it would "magically" appear from Amazon. One time, hubby and I braved the dreaded line at midnight at Walmart. I remember her calling me, saying she had been reading late at night, hidden in the bathroom so as not to bother her family, in tears. She was reading about Dumbledore dying. It was a bond, shared over books that I am so grateful for. No matter how old she gets or where she goes, those shared moments will always be with me and I hope with her.

Now my niece is in a famous design school, either destined for Disney or game design. She can draw, paint, sculpt anything from characters to realistic, from landscape to the intricacies of the human body. Sadly, I don't think she realizes how amazing she is, and she definitely is amazing. My niece is stunningly beautiful both inside and out, not only super creative but absolutely brilliant at math and science. She is funny and sweet, kind and thoughtful. She is the bravest person I know, in so many ways. Despite her young age, she is possibly the most inspiring woman I've ever met and I am in CONSTANT awe.

When I talked to my niece a while ago, we were talking about book genres and she was saying how much she liked fantasy. Given her chosen profession, this is not a surprise. Fantasy is not my favorite. To me it just takes longer to get into a book if I have to go through all that "world building" too.  However, as you've seen in the past sometimes the "buzz" on a book gets the better of me and I have to read it. Such is the case with the kids fantasy book, Nevermoor The Trials of Morrigan Crow, described as being the new Harry Potter.

I loved this book. Thankfully, you are immersed in the story and world easily and quickly. The reader instantly likes and has empathy for the little Morrigan Crow and a chuckle or two for her quick wit and sarcasm. The story progressed quickly, describing just enough of the setting for your brain to take over without over doing it and slowing the plot. Obstacles and tasks are handled efficiently with neither too little nor too much time spent on each one. The pacing is perfection. Needless to say, despite it's 461 pages, I didn't want it to end. And it is a fantasy...I didn't want to end....461 pages...with lots to do at the holidays...461 pages...didn't want to end.  You get the point.

So, Thanksgiving is next week with Christmas close behind. I have cooking galore, cleaning and decorating to do. Something is going to have to go undone. The Nevermoor sequel, Wundersmith: The Calling of Morrigan Crow was released this week. After finishing Nevermoor I had to immediately order it with it's 545 pages. Thankfully, my niece is also great in the kitchen, think I'll leave the cookie baking undone and get her help, she'll understand...maybe I can trade her a book for her help. I know just the one!

The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle by Stuart Turton

The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle is a complex, lengthy, weird, and an odd book. It's also: mesmerizing, brilliant, character rich, has a perfect setting in a creepy old mansion alone in the woods. The atmosphere is moody and rich, making the pages come to life. This book is filled with twists and turns. It is amazing and despite being over 400 pages I would still read more!
No spoilers, but the story follows a character that must solve a murder and moves within the bodies of the different characters to see things from their perspective. Now while I'm not a fan of fantasy, I still loved this book. I really am at a loss to describe this story. It is like Groundhog Day, meets Sherlock Holmes, meets The Death of Mrs. Westaway. The story is so involved with many characters and people moving within those bodies, it seems a bit confusing in the beginning. The reader soon learns about each character, loving some, disliking others. In addition, it has a satisfying ending (which I always appreciate). I am amazed at the work that went into this book, I think it might have been easier to solve a real murder than write this novel. If you are a mystery lover, what are you waiting for...get it now! 

This review was originally written for BookishFirst, a very fun web site. Many thanks to BookishFirst and the publisher Source Books for an advanced reader copy of this book. In addition, huge thanks to the author, Stuart Turton, for writing such a great story. The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle will be released September 18th and is available for preorder.