BookBrowse: Your Guide to Exceptional Books

Too Old for This
by Samantha Downing

Another winner (4/14/2025)

This is only the second book by Samantha Downing I have read and I need to read the others. This was fun and darkly humorous. It wasn't really fast paced which I appreciated. Being a little younger than Lottie, I chuckled when she complains about all the aches and pains and the limitations that come with aging. This was a fun book and I'm glad I read it.

The World's Greatest Detective and Her Just Okay Assistant
by Liza Tully

Loved it (3/22/2025)

I was surprised to see that this book was 400 pages. It flew by. A two day read for me. I loved the female lead roles. Dynamic and powerful. I loved the setting. Makes me want to head too the east coast. I also didn't figure out until it was revealed who the killer was. I had ideas but I couldn't have said with any confidence. I hope this is the star of a series because I will keep reading.

The Cleaner: A Novel
by Brandi Wells

Not for me (2/6/2024)

I just couldn't get into this book. It was slow and plodding. I got tired of the main character and her boss. I'm sure there is a audience for this book, it just wasn't my cup of tea.

Strong Passions: A Scandalous Divorce in Old New York
by Barbara Weisberg

Meh (12/5/2023)

This was just meh for me. I loved the time period and the subject but the execution was dry and text books. I appreciate all the research that the author put into the book but I just didn't find it compelling.

Do Tell: A Novel
by Lindsay Lynch

Expecting something more (7/4/2023)

This book was just meh for me. I thought that it being old Hollywood and a gossip columnist that I would love it.

First of all there were too many characters. Some seemed to be totally unnecessary. I wish that those could have been deleted and more depth on the main characters. I was basically bored and didn’t want to pick it up. The second thing that bothered me was the writing was choppy, nothing flowed. It took me out of the reading experience.

Do Tell: A Novel
by Lindsay Lynch

Do Tell disappoints (6/21/2023)

This should have been my kind of book.Old Hollywood, gossip, stars being bad and hiding secrets but this didn’t do it. I was never pulled into the story. Too many characters and they weren’t fleshed out. It felt choppy and off balanced and I found myself not wanting to pick it up. This wasn’t a win for me.

Our Missing Hearts: A Novel
by Celeste Ng

Wow!!! (9/6/2022)

I went into this with a little trepidation. I read the synopsis and wasn't quite sure it was for me. I loved her first two book so I decided to give it a try. I am so glad I did. I will be thinking about this book for along time. The first part was a little slow but the second and third part flew. It's chilling and I'm afraid maybe prophetic. It feels too me that this could be where we are headed. I'm so glad I read it and another win for Celeste Ng.

Good Husbands: A Novel
by Cate Ray

Thought Provoking (3/11/2022)

I liked the book. It was fast paced and I enjoyed having three POV's. It took me quite awhile to like a couple of the characters but I liked the backstories it's very thought provoking and I'll be thinking about this for a while. The only real issue I had was the last two pages made no sense to me.

True Crime Story: A Novel
by Joseph Knox

It's complicated (11/2/2021)

I've decided that this books rating is a 3.5. I had to sit with this for about a week after reading to make my decision. I loved the format of the book. It's all interviews and emails which makes for a fast read. The reason I chose 3.5 is because it's about a hundred pages too long. I felt there was a lot of repetition. It also felt like more of a YA read to me.The idea was great but the execution was lacking.

Mrs. March: A Novel
by Virginia Feito

Not what I was expecting (5/17/2021)

I liked this book, didn't love it but liked the writing. I guess I was expecting something a little more fast paced and thrilling. This was a slow burn that was slower paced.
Mrs. March is slowing spiraling into madness. She's always been odd in my opinion but she is getting worse the older she gets.
She is fixated on two things, an unlikable main character in her husbands new novel that people are saying is based on her and a murder in Maine that may or may not involve her husband.
The book was a little slow but I liked the writing. I was expecting it to be a little more like a Patricia Highsmith novel and it really wasn't.

The Personal Librarian
by Marie Benedict, Victoria Christopher Murray

Such an interesting read (2/17/2021)

So happy that I was able to read this. What could be better then a book about a rich mans private library? Getting to read the book from the personal librarians point of view.

Marie Benedict does such a good job at time period and all the secrets that are happening. This book was a delight and I will be buying a hardback copy for my personal library.

The Mystery of Mrs. Christie
by Marie Benedict

Good book (11/27/2020)

I enjoyed this book. I found it to be a bit of a slow burn but I think I liked it because it was. I also like the format of the book going back and forth between a manuscript and Archies point of view. A good book for fans of Agatha Christie.

At the Edge of the Haight
by Katherine Seligman

Meh (10/22/2020)

The more I think about it the more I realize I just wasn't in the mood for this particular book at this time.

It wasn't anything original or new and I'm a little tired of these stories. The synopsis sounded good and the writing was fine, I just didn't care for it. I didn't connect to any of the characters or really care about them.

The Stone Girl: A Novel
by Dirk Wittenborn

This is so Good!!! (4/23/2020)

I loved this book. It is one of my best of the year. It's a slow burn type of book that gets better and better the further you get. I loved all the female characters and despised most of the men but a couple.

This wasn't a page turner until about half way and then it just lit up. I loved the setting and the writing. It's just an all around hit for me.

And They Called It Camelot: A Novel of Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy Onassis
by Stephanie Marie Thornton

Underwhelmed (12/4/2019)

This was not a bad book. I loved learning more about Camelot and the Kennedy family. What I didn't like where the voice of Jackie specifically. I thought she was written as very melodramatic with her interactions with Kennedy Clan. I felt like I was reading a romance novel instead of a historical fiction.

The Sun Down Motel
by Simone St. James

Scary!! (11/15/2019)

I was drawn to this book by the cover. This is a beautiful cover and so intriguing. The book was just as good. I'm not really a ghost story person but this worked for me.

I will say that when I was reading it at night I got a little uncomfortable. This is a fast paced and interesting read.

Highly, Highly recommend!!!

The Last List of Miss Judith Kratt: A Novel
by Andrea Bobotis

Love a good southern story (7/22/2019)

I love a good southern story and this didn't disappoint. It was fun to watch the story unfold and all the secrets the the family had. I found the pacing to be a page turner which I love. I look forward to more books by this author.

The French Girl
by Lexie Elliott

Disappointed (9/4/2017)

I was really not a fan of this book. The characters were all disappointing. I especially did not like the main character Kate. Melodramatic, whiney, and just plain annoying.

I also figured it out right from the start. Maybe I read to many whodunits, but this was way to easy.

Seven Days of Us: A Novel
by Francesca Hornak

Seven Days of Us (5/23/2017)

I started out not liking this book at all. There wasn't one character that I felt I could root for. It took me to about the half way point to figure out that my family growing up was just like this one.

The whole family is really only concerned about themselves, until a crisis developed and then they grudgingly start to think about other people, but only half heartedly. It really starts to pick up toward the end. I'm glad I stuck with it, because it ended way different than I though it would.

Lola
by Melissa Scrivner Love

I was a little underwhelmed (3/15/2017)

I guess my expectations were a little high. Lola being compared to Lisabeth Sanders in The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo was a bit of a stretch for me. It was an okay read. I really enjoyed the LA setting. The characters fell a little flat for me. It wasn't the page turner I was hoping for.