July 3, 2012
DELIGHTFUL SUPERNATURAL SPY thriller hits the sweet spot between X-Men and le Carré. Great #beachread!
Grade: B PLUS
THE ROOK: ON HER MAJESTY'S SUPERNATURAL SECRET SERVICE
Little, Brown
2012
Tags: B Plus Reviews, Fantasy, Novels, Thriller
July 2, 2012
A COLLEGE STUDENT’S OCD crisis and recovery is detailed in this admirably candid yet oddly lackluster memoir.
Grade: B MINUS
TRIGGERED: A MEMOIR OF OBSESSIVE-COMPULSIVE DISORDER
St. Martin's/Thomas Dunne Books
2012
Tags: B Minus Reviews, Memoirs, Mental Health and Illness, Non-Fiction
July 1, 2012
SWEDISH POLICE DETECTIVE Inspector Irene Huss solves a complex series of murders. Crisp, suspenseful mystery!
Grade: B PLUS
NIGHT ROUNDS
Soho Crime
2012
Tags: B Plus Reviews, Mystery, Novels
June 30, 2012
A CULINARY IGNORAMUS TRANSFORMS herself into a food writer, accomplished cook in this clever, charming memoir.
Grade: SOLID B
APRON ANXIETY: MY MESSY AFFAIRS IN AND OUT OF THE KITCHEN
Three Rivers Press
2012
Tags: Food Writing, Memoirs, Non-Fiction, Solid B Reviews
June 29, 2012
SCIENCE FICTION-FLAVORED spy thriller stars a hapless math Ph. D student on the run from shadowy agents. Fun!
Grade: SOLID B
THE COINCIDENCE ENGINE
Crown
2012
Tags: Novels, Science Fiction, Solid B Reviews, Thriller
June 28, 2012
A FLIGHT ATTENDANT TELLS all about the airline industry and out-of-control passengers. Eye-opening snark!
Grade: SOLID B
CRUISING ATTITUDE: TALES OF CRASHPADS, CREW DRAMA, AND CRAZY PASSENGERS AT 35,000 FEET
William Morrow
2012
Tags: Memoirs, Non-Fiction, Social and Cultural Commentary, Solid B Reviews, Travel Writing
June 27, 2012
A LONDON WOMAN’S unexpected, life-changing reunion with her Nigerian birth mother–thoughtful, touching novel.
Grade: SOLID B
BEING LARA
William Morrow
2012
Tags: Black Writers, England, London, Nigeria, Novels, Solid B Reviews
June 26, 2012
SERIAL-KILLER SUSPENSE meets time-travel science fiction: plot is intriguing, but characters less so, alas.
Grade: SOLID B
THE MAN FROM PRIMROSE LANE
Farrar, Straus and Giroux/Sarah Crichton Books
2012
Tags: Mystery, Novels, Science Fiction, Solid B Reviews, Suspense
June 25, 2012
FUNNY, SNARKY BLOGGER, columnist Jen Lancaster’s latest memoir is about trying to be a grownup in the suburbs.
Grade: SOLID B
JENERATION X
New American Library
2012
Tags: Humor, Memoirs, Non-Fiction, Solid B Reviews
June 24, 2012
SWEEPING HISTORICAL NOVEL tells the story of Catherine the Great’s rise to the Russian throne. Engrossing!
Grade: B PLUS
THE WINTER PALACE: A NOVEL OF CATHERINE THE GREAT
Random House
2012
Tags: B Plus Reviews, Historical Fiction, Novels, Russia