Book reviews and more!

ROMANCE IS MY DAY JOB by Patience Bloom

May 28, 2014

A ROMANCE EDITOR’S COMIC saga of a less-than-novel-worthy love life, until she found her happily ever after. SOLID B

Grade: SOLID B

ROMANCE IS MY DAY JOB: A MEMOIR OF FINDING LOVE AT LAST
Dutton
2014

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MURDER AT CAPE THREE POINTS by Kwei Quartey

May 27, 2014

A GRUESOME MURDER IN GHANA uncovers tangled family and national politics. Vivid setting, strong characters. B PLUS

MURDER AT CAPE THREE POINTS
Soho Crime
2014

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THE SPLENDID THINGS WE PLANNED by Blake Bailey

May 26, 2014

A CANDID, RUEFUL MEMOIR of a difficult family life made harder by a brother’s addiction and mental illness. B PLUS

Grade: B PLUS

THE SPLENDID THINGS WE PLANNED: A FAMILY PORTRAIT
W. W. Norton & Company
2014

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SEPIA BLUE: RISE OF THE NIGHT by Orlando Sanchez

May 25, 2014

ACTION-PACKED URBAN FANTASY set in an enchanted New York City, where supernatural beings prowl Central Park. B PLUS

Grade: B PLUS

SEPIA BLUE: RISE OF THE NIGHT
Self-Published
2014

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SHRINKAGE by Bryan Bishop

May 24, 2014

AN UNEXPECTEDLY HILARIOUS CANCER memoir with a lot of heart and some practical advice. Warm and bro-funny. B PLUS

Grade: B PLUS

SHRINKAGE: MANHOOD, MARRIAGE, AND THE TUMOR THAT TRIED TO KILL ME
St. Martin's Press/Thomas Dunne Books
2014

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FOR TODAY I AM A BOY by Kim Fu

May 23, 2014

A CHINESE-CANADIAN FAMILY, RIVEN by a father’s desire for control and his children’s search for identity. B PLUS

Grade: B PLUS

FOR TODAY I AM A BOY
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
2014

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MARKED by Alex Hughes

May 22, 2014

A TELEPATHIC DETECTIVE IN a post-high-tech world must solve a friend’s murder and avert a political crisis. SOLID B

MARKED (MINDSPACE INVESTIGATIONS)
Roc
2014

INHERITANCE by Sharon Moalem

May 21, 2014

A DOCTOR AND GENETICS RESEARCHER’S informal overview of how our environment can affect our gene expression. SOLID B

Grade: SOLID B

INHERITANCE: HOW OUR GENES CHANGE OUR LIVES---AND HOW OUR LIVES CHANGE OUR GENES
Grand Central Publishing
2014

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AUTHORITY by Jeff VanderMeer

May 20, 2014

AS THE COMMAND POST outside the mysterious Area X decays, eerie things are happening. Thrilling, uncanny SF! B PLUS

Grade: B PLUS

AUTHORITY
Farrar, Straus and Giroux
2014

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HEMP BOUND by Doug Fine

May 19, 2014

CHATTY TOUR OF WORLDWIDE industrial hemp production points to future opportunities for US farmers, factories. SOLID B

Grade: SOLID B

HEMP BOUND: DISPATCHES FROM THE FRONT LINES OF THE NEXT AGRICULTURAL REVOLUTION
Chelsea Green
2014

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