In this story about women who go missing and then have their dead images appear in paintings, Isles does an excellent job in developing the characters and their connections to one another. And this is important because the subject matter here is often harsh and without this development of characters, it would simply be a brutal story. I was on the edge of my seat the whole time and liked the ending.

I did this book as an audio book, and I felt like someone was telling me a story nor reading an audio book to me. This is based on a true story and is sad, and wonderful, and hopeful, and amazing. It’s about a small group of people who live isolated, though harsh and beautiful, lives until someone comes and wants to help them. The display of humanity here will evoke feelings here and make you think about how society creates rules and how people are affected.

This was an interesting look at Russian life set in the early 1900’s. Though one sister is unhappily married, another will marry a man she does not love just to be married, one sister is in college and worried about the future, and a brother who is gambling away their home, they all share the belief that life would be better in the city than in the country and there is a circulating feeling that life may be, should be better in the future. A good read.

Wow. What a story! AS you read this book, you may think you know what is going to happen next, but trust me you will not see these sharp turns coming! I sounds simple; a man is sold a liquid, by a traveling salesman, that when applied to mirrors makes the person reflected in the mirror, look better. Not perfect or amazing, just a little more full of life and with the rough edges smoothed out. No big thing, right? Wrong!

This is an unusually formatted book, done as letters between correspondents and some of the letters are removable from envelopes within the book. This book is a continuation of the series. The story is engaging, but the presentation of the book with its colors and images makes it a striking choice for a read.

In what I think of as a "Cozy Mystery", an elderly couple is murdered by their nephew for, predictably, money. There is also a major town celebration, which really has very little to do with the plot. Not going to be a great real for real mystery fans.

A fun academic mystery in a beautiful location. Great cast of characters to spend a little time with in the summer.

This is a most touching story of a grandfather and his relationship with his son and grandson as he devolves into Alzheimer’s. We experience his thoughts as he begins to live inside the past as the present slips away. It is beautiful and sad and told from the grandfather’s point of view. Everyone should read this.

So here is a perfect example of why I prefer not to know too much about a book before I read it, because this is a western. It’s not a genre I would normally select, but this one was very enjoyable. On the surface, it’s a simple story about a man looking for gold, but it’s also the story of fear, loneliness, and hope. It’s about making tough choices and doing the right think. I look forward to reading something else by this author.

A great exploration of the attention economy throughout history. It was a little slow in the first half, but that could just be my extremely deteriorated attention span. Last two chapters on the current state of affairs are excellent.