Book Review: A Conspiracy of Bones by Kathy Reichs

I was a little disappointed by the last Temperance Brennan book I read, but I really enjoyed A Conspiracy of Bones.

My main issue with the previous book is that Tempe didn't do much lab work. She really didn't apply much forensic knowledge to solve the case. In A Conspiracy of Bones, the same is true, however, Tempe is challenged to solve the case without much use of her lab. A body of a man has been found with no hands and a very damaged face. There is no love lost between the new director and Tempe, so Tempe isn't even asked to help identify the body.

But, she is determined to help, so she enlists some friends and past associates to feed her information. And of course, she puts herself in danger. More than once.

Her personal life is always an added benefit to the stories, and in this case, she is battling a chronic, life-threatening condition, Ryan being away, and anger and some depression from basically losing her job. (This illness mirrors Reichs' life and is the reason she didn't release a book in 2019.)

I enjoyed the usual painstaking attention to detail that allows these cases to be solved. It is never what you think, and this case is no different. I haven't read all the books, but I will always be a fan and look forward to catching up on the ones I've missed when I get a chance.

It helps to be familiar with the characters -- it just adds to the story -- but it isn't necessary. A Conspiracy of Bones is the 19th book in the series, so you really get to know the characters after that long. And, honestly, I liked the early books better. Just FYI, the first one is Deja Dead. Oh, and also the TV series Bones is based on these books, but I never really cared for the series. Tempe has a much different personality in the books. Check Temperance Brennan out if you like detectives who specialize in forensics.

Published by Scribner, March 17, 2020
eARC obtained from Edelweiss
352 pages

Rating: 4.5

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Book Review: The Royal Nanny by Karen Harper

As I wait for the release of the new season of The Crown, I decided to experience The Royal Nanny to satisfy my thirst for all things related to the royal family.

The novel is based on a real person, Charlotte Bill (nicknamed Lala), the nanny to the Duke and Duchess of York's children beginning in 1897. So those are the Duke and Duchess that became King George V and Queen Mary, grandparents of the current Queen Elizabeth II.

The story starts out dramatically as, upon her arrival, she gets the current head nanny fired because she is abusing the children (David and Bertie--the Duchess was pregnant with Mary at the time.) Instantly, Lala is promoted to head nanny. If you are keeping track, David is the one that abdicated the throne for Wallis Simpson. And Bertie becomes King George IV and father of Queen Elizabeth II.) So she is the nanny to two future Kings of England.

The lives the children (and their nanny) lead is interesting and unusual, of course. It is astounding to realize that all of the monarchs of England were pretty much raised by their nannies. Think of the influence. Lala's influence was a good one. She tried unfailingly (and without much success) to change David's belief that he was deserving of special treatment, lauding over everyone. A true example of the "born with a silver spoon in his mouth" idiom. He was a little tyrant and didn't think much of his younger brother Bertie. Not that their father helped much. He, also, was a tyrant and didn't show much affection for his sons. They did get spoiled and loved, however, by their grandparents.

The Duchess went on to bear four more children, the cornerstone of the story being the last child, Johnny, who had severe epilepsy and potentially some sort of autistic disorder. As Johnny's seizures get worse, Lala and Johnny are banished to a small house on the Sandringham estate (where the children spent most of their childhoods.) Lala truly loved Johnny as her own and resented that he was mostly hidden from the public and not included in most of the family activities.

Lala's personal life, including a romance, add to the story, although this part is not necessarily historically accurate. Harper describes the lives and settings of The Royal Nanny so that you can understand the trials of Lala's position, as well as that of some of the other servants and of course, the children. The Author's Note gives some detail about the facts and embellishments of the story and includes an interesting note about the current royal children. It seems Prince William and Duchess Catherine decided their children would not have a nanny, but quickly changed their mind after the birth of their first child. It seems the reality of their royal duties just take too much time to be able to care fulltime for their children.

If you are at all interested in the royal family, I highly recommend you add this one to your list.

Published by William Morrow, 2016
EBook purchased
384 pages

Rating: 4/5

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Book Review: The Turn of the Key by Ruth Ware @RuthWareWriter

I enjoyed The Turn of the Key so much, it was almost "unputdownable." That hasn't happened to me for a while.

Rowan can't believe her good fortune. She's landed a great paying job at a gorgeous house in the Scottish Highlands, away from all the hustle of the city, nannying for three small children. She's been warned that previous nannies didn't last very long, but that doesn't stop her.

It is a difficult situation, given that their mother and father leave on a trip pretty much as soon as Rowan gets there.  The children take a while to warm up to her and give her some problems, but nothing she hasn't dealt with before.

What is even more difficult are the strange occurrences around the house. The footsteps she hears above her room at night, even though she's on the top floor. A locked door that she didn't lock. A disappearing key. And the difficulties of the high-tech system for monitoring and controlling everything in the house doesn't help either.

Ware keeps you guessing, throwing out plausible red herrings over and over again. Who wants Rowan out of the picture? It's not what you think. At least it isn't what I thought! I was totally blindsided by several twists.  And that just added to the enjoyment.

If I have one complaint it is that I didn't think the technique of the whole story being told through letters written to a lawyer was necessary. It did make for a unique wrap up at the end, I guess, so no biggie.

I enjoyed The Death of Mrs. Westaway, also by Ware, a lot. But The Turn of the Key was even better. Highly recommended to thriller fans.

Published by Gallery/Scout, August 6, 2019
eARC obtained from Edelweiss
352 pages

Rating: 5/5

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Book Review: Anna and the Swallow Man by Gavriel Savit

Historical fiction is my favorite genre, and I've read many World War II books.  I am surprised to say that Anna and the Swallow Man isn't going to be on my list of favorites.

Seven-year-old Anna is abandoned in Krakow when the Germans take her father. She happens upon an unusual man, the Swallow Man, and they hook up and walk around for years.  It isn't clear why they keep walking.  Just to stay safe and keep fed, I guess.  And maybe the Swallow Man is avoiding something.

I think my main problem with Anna and the Swallow Man is the third person point-of-view.  I wanted to feel what Anna felt.  But I didn't.  I felt detached from everything that happened.

And I was very unhappy with the ending.  Really? That's what happened?  It wasn't dramatic. And it didn't provide much closure.

The characterizations are very interesting. And the individual struggles they overcame were compelling. The writing was easy to understand and Anna and the Swallow Man is a very quick read.

I didn't hate Anna and the Swallow Man.  I just didn't feel much for it.  Not my usual reaction to stories of survival during WWII. There are plenty of very positive reviews available so make sure you don't write this off just because of my feelings.  I feel kind of guilty that I didn't really like it much...

Published by Knopf BFYR, 2016
Copy obtained from the library
232 pages

Rating: 3/5

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Feature & Follow Friday - Favorite Picture Books!

Happy Friday! Let's get the weekend started by bringing back some childhood memories.

What were some of your favorite picture books as a kid? If you have kids, what are your favorites to read to them? 

I've posted a few of these before. One of my FAVORITE books as a child is Never Tease a Weasel. I loved the rhyming and the funny pictures.

Some of my kids' favorite read-alouds:

Officer Buckle & Gloria

My son loved this one. We would read it over and over and he would giggle!

The Butter Battle Book

The Stinky Cheese Man and Other Fairly Stupid Tales

I could go on -- we were big readers, so there are LOTS of favorites! How about you? Leave your link! Thanks for visiting and I hope you come back soon. Please visit our hosts, Alison & Parajunkee to see all the other participants. Enjoy your weekend!

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Audio Book Review: A Red Herring Without Mustard, by Alan Bradley

Flavia de Luce is back and she's as entertaining as ever. There is another dead body in A Red Herring Without Mustard, and Flavia is on the case!

If you are unfamiliar with this series, you might want to read my reviews of The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie and The Weed that Strings the Hangman's Bag, the first two books in the series.

Flavia is eleven years old, living on an old estate in England in the 1950s with her father and two older sisters. She's precocious, smart, and fancies herself a chemist. This one starts out with her causing a gypsy's fortune telling tent to catch fire, and doesn't stop after that.

The mystery is intriguing, but I find myself not really caring "who done it." It's experiencing all of Flavia's brilliant deductions and crazy escapades while we get to the conclusion that provides all the fun. And Flavia and her sisters have outdone themselves again. The crazy things they come up with to torment each other are not to be missed.

There's the gypsy, a missing baby, a body hanging from Poseidon's fountain, a mysterious junk yard, an artist with a secret painting, and an old religious order called the Hobblers in A Red Herring Without Mustard. And you will never guess how that all fits together! Oh, and plenty of Flavia's explanations of chemicals and their reactions.

These aren't books that you want to hurry through to get to the solution. Flavia's often irrelevant but delightful asides are not to be missed. (And many times what at first seems unimportant ends up being a critical element!)

I find these books pure entertainment, and I've listened to Jayne Entwistle read all of them to me. She's perfect for this series and really brings Flavia and all the characters to life. It isn't necessary to read the books in order, but there are subtle references to previous cases in each book, so why not start at the beginning. I really can't say any of the series are better than the others. They are all just witty and clever and unlike anything I've ever read.

I've recommended the Flavia de Luce Novels to teens in my library and I will continue to do so!

Published by Delacorte, 2011
Audiobook obtained from the library
416 pages

Rating: 5/5

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Book Review and Giveaway: Nutcracker, by E.T.A. Hoffmann, translated by Ralph Manheim, & illustrated by Maurice Sendak

What a cute book Nutcracker is. I was unfamiliar with the story, and thoroughly enjoyed learning about this weird little tale.

It is weird. I've never seen the ballet, or read or heard this entire story. It's kind of complex. The little girl, Marie, gets a nutcracker for Christmas, and she becomes attached to him. He comes alive, and there's a big battle in her bedroom, involving all her dolls and her brother's hussars.

Godfather Drosselmeier tells her a story about a princess, who gets cursed by a mouse queen, and becomes ugly. The only way she can be released from the curse is to find a boy who can crack the Krakatuk -- a very hard nut, and this man must not wear boots and be unshaven. After many years they find the man, they are so happy they promise him the princess' hand in marriage.  He cracks the nut, but then is cursed by the mouse queen and becomes an ugly nutcracker. So the princess doesn't want to marry him.

Long story short, Marie ends up saving the nutcracker. He takes her to a beautiful world made of candy and sweets  And there's more, but I won't tell you everything.

It's an "enchanting" tale, of magic, beauty, and some horror too! There's blood. And evil mice.

I can't talk about this book without talking about Maurice Sendak's illustrations, which are very creative and captivating, although he did take some license with the descriptions in the story. The illustrations don't always match, but they are beautiful and definitely look like Sendak's work. There may even be a little homage to Where the Wild Things Are, but I'll let you find that.

Nutcracker would be a great book to add to your collection of children's Christmas books. You have one of those, don't you? Even though my children are all grown up, we still read some of them every Christmas. I've even featured one of MY childhood Christmas books in one of my Monday Memories posts. Pick up a copy of Nutcracker if you get a chance -- if nothing else, just look at the pictures.

Published by Crown, October 30, 2012
Review copy obtained from the publisher
102 pages

And, even better, I'm allowed to offer one copy from Crown Publishers to giveaway to a lucky reader! Just fill in the form below by November 16, and you are entered!

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Monday Memories: Little House on the Prairie

Welcome to my meme, Monday Memories, where I feature favorite books we've loved from the past. You can link to an old review, or write something new about a beloved book from your past. Really, what's important is not the book, but why it is memorable to you. So, have fun reminiscing, and leave a comment below, so we can all enjoy your memories.

I also wanted to let you know about another wonderful blog that you should check out. Ashley @ Books from Bleh to Basically Amazing does a weekly post called Memory Monday. She has been posting about her childhood memories of books. What's great about Ashley's site is that she is asking for guest posts for her Memory Monday event!  So hop on over there and check it out.

I read Little House on the Prairie when I was very young. I fell in love with Laura. I wanted to BE Laura. Everything about her life seemed so romanticized. Then, when the TV Series came out, I thought maybe this wasn't really the life for me. I mean, there were scary things they had to deal with. Blizzards, illnesses, "Indians," and mean bullies like Nellie Oleson!

What's interesting is that I don't remember reading any of the other books in the series. I think I may have read at least one other, but the first one is the one that left an impression.

I would still encourage young girls to read the Little House books. I think they are classics that kids today can still enjoy. But, it's been a while, so maybe I should read it again before I say that!


Share one of your cherished book memories!

You can do a Monday Memories post on your blog. Copy my button and link back here, so others can see all the other posts.  Leave a comment below with the link to your post.

Or, just leave one of your Monday Memories right here in the comments.

Be sure to visit some other blogs that have posted their links. Thanks!

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Book Review: Mr. Popper's Penguins, by Richard and Florence Atwater

Mr. Popper's Penguins is a classic children's story that is silly and entertaining, as children's stories should be.

Mr. Popper loves to read about the South Pole and Admiral Drake sends him a penguin to keep as a pet. Well, you can imagine there are many obstacles to keeping a penguin, and eventually twelve penguins, in your house. Each obstacle is conquered with very sensible silliness.

I can imagine the children's belly laughs as you read this one aloud. The text is simple; the sentences are short and choppy, but rhythmic.

I haven't seen the movie, but I'm sure Jim Carrey is a wonderful Mr. Popper. The book was originally written by Richard, but after suffering a stroke, it was finished (and parts were re-written) by his wife Florence. It was originally published in 1938, but there is nothing to keep today's kids from thoroughly enjoying this wacky tale.

Published by Open Road (ebook)
eBook obtained from NetGalley
139 pages (qualifies for my Books You Can Read in a Day Challenge!)

Rating: no rating

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