BOOK REVIEWS
The Talisman (by Stephen King and Peter Straub)
I first read The Talisman in 2018—and somehow remembered almost none of Jack Sawyer’s story. Rereading it now, ahead of the third book, I fell hard for this twelve-year-old on an impossible road, and even harder for Wolf. Not every mile of this long journey is equally alive, but the bond at the center of it stayed with me.
The Caretaker (by Marcus Kliewer)
I loved Marcus Kliewer’s debut, so I went into The Caretaker with high expectations. A desperate young woman takes a three-day caretaking job on the Oregon Coast and finds herself bound by strange “Rites” meant to keep something terrible contained. The house tour is deliciously eerie, the audiobook is excellent, and the mental-health threads almost saved it for me. The ending did not.
Into the Fire (by Gregg Hurwitz)
Evan Smoak wants Into the Fire to be his last job. It isn’t. I listened on Audible—Scott Brick is Evan for me—and I came away more interested in the man than the mission. The ending shoved the next book up in my rotation.
The Complete Letters of Vincent van Gogh
After twenty-six years on the shelf, I finally read The Complete Letters of Vincent van Gogh. Five pages a day. Jo’s labor, Theo’s love, and Vincent on the page—philosophical, fragile, and more alive than the myth.
Y is for Yesterday (by Sue Grafton)
I started Sue Grafton’s Alphabet series in 2017 after seeing her in conversation with John Grisham. A few months later, she was gone. This year I finally reached the last book she wrote, Y Is for Yesterday—and I didn’t care much for it. Too many threads, too few people to root for, and a sharp turn from the Kinsey novels I liked best. I finished it anyway. Here’s why.
The Ghost of the Cuban Queen Bordello (by Peggy Hicks)
A shopkeeper in Jerome pressed a signed book into my hands: Peggy Hicks’s The Ghost of the Cuban Queen Bordello. I expected a ghost story. I got a harder history—and a madam who was no one’s heroine.
A Secret in the Keys (by Hope Holloway)
Hope Holloway’s A Secret in the Keys showed up in my Audible library after I’d already enjoyed her Asheville Christmas book. The Keys setting was hard to resist. I almost bailed before Beck reached Coconut Key—then the story opened up, and I was glad I kept listening.
Her Last Breath (by Taylor Adams)
After loving No Exit, I grabbed Taylor Adams’s Her Last Breath as soon as it hit Libby. The cave scenes are uniquely frightening—I’ll be sticking to Mammoth Cave—but I could see the ending coming. Well written. I just wished I liked it more.
The Women (by Kristin Hannah)
I wasn’t sure I wanted to read a Vietnam War novel. I’m so glad I did. Kristin Hannah’s The Women doesn’t just tell Frankie’s story—it made me feel it.
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