Catherine, Author at Your Book Group

Death by Cashmere

CatherineMarch 21, 2023March 21, 2023Leave a comment

Sally Goldenbaum 2008 In the first book of the Seaside Knitters Mysteries we meet Izzy, who has a knitting studio after a short-lived legal career; her Aunt Nell, Uncle Ben, and the usual assortment of friends. The cover is very appealing, and the story itself is slow paced – so … Continue ReadingDeath by Cashmere

Mystery

Master of the Moor

CatherineMarch 21, 2023March 21, 2023Leave a comment

Ruth Rendell 1982 Ruth Rendell wrote mysteries like poetry. Maybe it’s because she grew up speaking English, Swedish, and Danish – but her spare, lyrical prose is a delight. One man’s love of the moor on which he grew up is explored in detail as Ms. Rendell excavates what lies … Continue ReadingMaster of the Moor

Romance

A Wish for Winter

CatherineMarch 19, 2023March 19, 2023Leave a comment

Viola Shipman 2022 Viola Shipman* is the pen name of Wade Rouse, the author of the memoir Magic Season: A Son’s Story. This reviewer is a sucker for any fiction that takes place in Michigan, and A Wish for Winter is set in Petoskey, right around the tip of your … Continue ReadingA Wish for Winter

Podcast

Your Book Group Podcast

CatherineMarch 19, 2023March 19, 2023Leave a comment

Readers may know that we also have a podcast called House of Books. In the interest of consistency and cost cutting, House of Books will be discontinued, to replaced with a new podcast called Your Book Group. Future posts and reviews will also be avialable on the podcast, which will … Continue ReadingYour Book Group Podcast

Fiction

Weyward

CatherineFebruary 20, 2023February 20, 2023Leave a comment

Emilia Hart 2023 Weyward Cottage holds memories and secret knowledge – and it offers asylum for three women in a story that transcends time, with a nod to the three witches (weyward, or weird, sisters) of Shakespeare’s “Macbeth.” Altha (1619), descended from a line of women who heal, is on … Continue ReadingWeyward

Memoir Uncategorized

Magic Season: A Son’s Story

CatherineJanuary 29, 2023January 29, 20231 Comment

Wade Rouse 2022 Born and raised in the rural Ozarks, Wade Rouse had a complicated relationship with his father – complicated from the author’s youngest years until his father’s passing. In Magic Season, a memoir of those years, Wade Rouse has shown readers his heart. This book IS his heart. … Continue ReadingMagic Season: A Son’s Story

Romance

The Catch

CatherineDecember 29, 2022December 29, 2022Leave a comment

Jenna Miles -2015 Julia is the victim of bad timing and circumstance. She meets Will, the man of her dreams, in high school. Will and Kevin are nothing alike; Will is brooding and full of angst, from a working class family. Kevin is neither brooding nor angsty; he’s a nice … Continue ReadingThe Catch

Uncategorized

Bookworm

CatherineDecember 3, 2022December 3, 2022Leave a comment

Robin Yeatman – coming soon in 2023 Victoria is given to flights of fancy. An active imagination – it’s a gift, right? A positive attribute? Sometimes it’s an escape. Massage therapist, reader of fiction, creator of stories (whether she realizes it or not), and wife of the supercilious Eric, Victoria … Continue ReadingBookworm

Mystery

A Stitch in Time

CatherineNovember 5, 2022November 6, 2022Leave a comment

Monica Ferris – Needlecraft Mysteries #3 Betsy Devonshire identifies the killer again! But so did I, about 30 pages into the book, so three stars is as high as it goes. It’s still an enjoyable listen though, and worth listening or reading if you want to finish the series. There’s … Continue ReadingA Stitch in Time

Memoir

The Hero of This Book

CatherineOctober 22, 2022October 25, 2022Leave a comment

I’ve written discussion questions for this book – free for you or for your book club. Questions will open on a new tab. Elizabeth McCracken 2022 Is it a memoir or is it a novel? This stream-of-consciousness narrative flows between past and present at the speed of thought. The Hero … Continue ReadingThe Hero of This Book

Mystery

Framed in Lace

CatherineOctober 15, 2022November 5, 2022Leave a comment

Monica Ferris – Needlecraft Mysteries #2, 1999 (Audio 2011) Betsy Devonshire solves two murders spanning fifty years, in this clever cozy mystery with a lacework theme. As with many cozies, the book is longer than it needs to be, but that’s really ok with an audiobook; while listening to the … Continue ReadingFramed in Lace

Mystery

Crewel World

CatherineOctober 5, 2022November 5, 20221 Comment

Monica Ferris – Needlecraft Mysteries #1, 1999 Betsy Devonshire escapes her life in San Diego to visit her sister Margot in Excelsior, Minnesota, where Margot owns a needlework shop called Crewel World. Shortly after the sisters reunite, a dead body is found in the badly ransacked shop. The first book … Continue ReadingCrewel World

Authors

Elizabeth Strout

CatherineSeptember 29, 2022September 30, 20221 Comment

Because Elizabeth Strout has built worlds with very different protagonists, and because two of those worlds (at least) eventually bump into each other, Ms. Strout’s books are being summarized here – to help me plot worlds and characters and how they interact more than for any other reason. For those … Continue ReadingElizabeth Strout

Mystery

One Poison Pie

CatherineSeptember 28, 2022September 28, 2022Leave a comment

Lynn Cahoon 2021 -Kitchen Witch Mysteries #1 This is a fun cozy paranormal mystery featuring kitchen witch Mia Malone, her Grans, and other residents of the magical Magic Springs, Idaho. The author lays the groundwork for some mysterious magical subplots that urge the reader to continue with the series. The … Continue ReadingOne Poison Pie

Mystery

Chili Cauldron Curse

CatherineSeptember 28, 2022September 28, 2022Leave a comment

Lynn Cahoon 2020 – Kitchen Witch Mysteries # .50 This novella (just over two hours for the audiobook) is great way to get acquainted with the witchy characters in Magic Springs, Idaho. This is a pretty standard paranormal murder mystery series but with an unique twist – Mia is a … Continue ReadingChili Cauldron Curse

Romance

Dear Santa

CatherineSeptember 28, 2022September 28, 2022Leave a comment

Debbie Macomber 2021 A pleasant relatively enjoyable 5 hour listen, Dear Santa is a holiday romance with a touch of magic. It’s also available in print form, but the audiobook is nicely narrated by Keylor Leigh.

Fiction

Anything is Possible

CatherineSeptember 15, 2022September 30, 2022Leave a comment

Elizabeth Strout 2017 – Amgash #2 The citizens of Amgash, Illinois and its environs, people we met while visiting Lucy Barton’s hospital room in My Name is Lucy Barton, are more fully explored in the second book in the Amgash series. Because of Strout’s gift of moving fluidly from present … Continue ReadingAnything is Possible

Fiction

My Name is Lucy Barton

CatherineSeptember 14, 2022September 30, 2022Leave a comment

Elizabeth Strout – 2016 – Amgash Series #1 What a compassionately told story. Lucy, in a New York City hospital bed, is visited by her mother who has traveled from the small farming town of Amgash, Illinois. Although the older woman is sometimes judgmental and brusque, mother and daughter converse … Continue ReadingMy Name is Lucy Barton

Fiction

Olive Kitteridge

CatherineSeptember 11, 2022September 30, 20221 Comment

Elizabeth Strout 2008 Olive Kitteridge, retired teacher of 7th grade math, is cantankerous, fearful, and quick to anger – but she does have the occasional flash of insight and compassion. This Pulitzer Prize winner is not a casual read, and you won’t want to take it to the beach, but … Continue ReadingOlive Kitteridge

Fiction

Now is Not the Time to Panic

CatherineSeptember 2, 2022November 13, 2022Leave a comment

Kevin Wilson – Expected November 15, 2022 We all know words have power. They can unite or divide. In 1996, teens Frances (Frankie) and Zeke are the anonymous co-creators of art that is attributed with unintended meaning. While it doesn’t occur at the lightning speed we experience in the age … Continue ReadingNow is Not the Time to Panic