nomadreader

The basics: Mistress of My Fate , the first in a planned trilogy, is the story of Henrietta Lightfoot. From the publisher: "a young woman who was abandoned as a baby and raised alongside her cousins, noble children of a lord and lady. At just sixteen years old, circumstance and a passionate love affair tear Henrietta away from everything she knows, leading to a new life fending for herself on the streets of 18th century London as a courtesan, gambler, and spirited intellect of the city." My thoughts: The premise sounds great, right? I love a feisty historical heroine and meandering life stories. Yet,   I still can't quite put my finger on why this novel didn't work for me. I liked it enough to read all of its 450+ pages in three days, but I never felt truly immersed in the story. Henrietta directly addresses the reader in her retelling of her life, and while I got the impression Rubenhold intended for Henrietta to appear to be trying to hard, it also felt like Rube...

The backstory:  David Morrell, best known for his debut thriller First Blood , which the Rambo  franchise was based on, has written more than twenty novels. The basics: Set in 1854 London, Murder as a Fine Art  is the story of a panicked London, as the someone is copying the horrifying Ratliffe Highway murders of 1811. Thomas de Quincey, known as the Opium-Eater, is immediately a suspect, as his recent essay Murder as a Fine Art  details the 1811 crimes and speaks of them with reverence. My thoughts: I was instantly transported to 1854 London as soon as I started this book. The first chapter immediately brings to life the grime and chaos of London; it also brings a savage set of homicides. About two-thirds of the way through, I (correctly) figured out the killer, but this novel is not as much a whodunit as it as a whydunit. Morrell reveals the killer about three-fourths of the way through the novel. Much of the last quarter of the novel felt like a cin...

The backstory: This time last year, I read Alafair Burke's first stand-alone novel,  Long Gone ( my review .) I spent the rest of last year trying to only read one of her books a month. I failed. I read all eight in only seven months. While I'm still eagerly awaiting more from her two series, featuring attorney Samantha Kincaid and police detective Ellie Hatcher, I eagerly read her second stand-alone mystery, If You Were Here. The basics: New York City is abuzz with the news of a woman heroically rescuing a young man who fell onto the subway tracks and then running away. When prosecutor turned journalist McKenna Jordan researches the story she discovers someone took cell phone video of the woman, and she looks exactly like McKenna's friend Susan Hauptmann, who has been missing for ten years. My thoughts: Having read all of Alafair Burke's novels in seven months last year, I'm able to spot some of her patterns, even as she continues to improve her craft. When I s...

The backstory: Dick Wolf, perhaps most famous for creating all of the Law & Order  series, as well as my beloved Chicago Fire . The Intercept  is his first novel, presumably of a series, given the subtitle: a Jeremy Fisk novel. The basics: Jeremy Fisk is an NYPD officer who works in the Intelligence Division to combat terrorism. When a terror attempt on a commercial flight is disrupted days before July 4, when One World Trade Center is set to be dedicated, Fisk and partner Krina Gersten work to figure out who was behind the attack and what they might be planning next. My thoughts: As much as I adore all things Law & Order (and Chicago Fire ), I was somewhat skeptical about this novel. Does Wolf have novel-writing chops? Having brilliant ideas for television shows isn't easy, but it's also not necessarily the same skill set as writing a well-crafted terrorism thriller. My fears were soon put to rest, as Wolf skillfully developed characters and mixed it with a compel...

When we moved into our new house, Mr. Nomadreader and I made the choice to get rid of our satellite television package. I love television, but the rising prices became untenable for me, particularly as more and more is available streaming for free or very reasonable subscription fees. There are certainly things I'll miss, but I'm actually enjoying the change. Binge watching is like binge reading I adore binge watching shows, just as I adore binge reading entire series of books in a short amount of time. Even with satellite tv, I frequently let 3-5 (or more) episodes record and then watched them in spurts. I love devouring entire seasons of shows in a few days. Given that I prefer to watch shows in large doses, it made sense to abandon an increasingly dated television system. Although I broke up with Grey's Anatomy  years ago, I began watching it from the beginning the week before we moved. I started season 3 last night, and that's in two weeks I've been packing...

The backstory: After adoring French Milk , Lucy Knisley's graphic memoir about traveling to France with her mother in 2004, I was eager to read her newest graphic memoir. The basics: Relish  is a memoir of Knisley's life told through food. As the daughter of foodies, Knisley traces her relationship with food from childhood to today. My thoughts: Lucy Knisley has a wonderful ability to share the emotions she felt with her readers. It's not simply a matter of her signature art, although her visual aesthetic certainly contributes to it, particularly the way she uses space. At the heart of what I love about her work is her raw honesty. She doesn't hide, and that inhibition draws me right in. Knisley isn't just showing and telling her story, she's inviting her readers to share it. Relish  is obviously perfect for foodies. The images of Knisley tasting her first foie gras at a dinner party as a child and proceeding to ask every grown up at the table if they ha...

The backstory: I read Elizabeth Strout's last book, Olive Kitteridge , for book club a few years ago. I liked it, but I didn't love it , mostly because I wanted more of a novel than interconnected stories. I was curious to see how I would far with her latest novel, The Burgess Boys. Update: It was also longlisted for the 2014 Baileys Prize . The basics: The Burgess Boys  is about three adult siblings from Maine. Jim and Bob now live in Brooklyn, but Susan remains in the town where they grew up. When Susan's son Zack gets in trouble, she turns to her brothers for help. My thoughts: What I liked most about Olive Kitteridge  was Olive herself. Strout has a way of developing characters beautifully, and The Burgess Boys  begin with detailed glimpses into each of the Burgesses, plus Jim's wife. The set up was glorious. I devoured Strout's writing and character building and could not bear to put this novel down. After all this set up, I was ultimately disappointed. The...