MAZE IN BLUE (2011)

Maze in Blue by Debra H. Goldstein

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

If you have spent time on the University of Michigan campus or lived in Ann Arbor, you will especially be interested in this cozy mystery with a 70s vibe. Professors, students, tenure, fraternities, concerts and murder. What more could one ask for?

What made this title even more interesting to me was spending a morning eating beignets and drinking cafe au lait with author Debra Goldstein. She was on the Gulf Coast for a writing weekend and my husband and I were here escaping a Michigan winter.

I really appreciate a story where I learn about something new and Maze in Blue caused me to scurry off to the Internet to reseacrch the Collegiate Sorosis sorority and to verify the extraordinary concert described. I suspect our heroine Denney Silber may encounter murder again in the future!


View all my reviews

Paperbacks

spaces design by other metros media and blogs Chez Larsson

Here are two idea shared on Houzz that make me uncomfortable although I like the effect. One suggests putting like colors together. The second suggests putting page edges out to achieve a neutral look. As a reader, I can't imagine doing either. What do you think?

contemporary kids design by philadelphia design-build Sullivan Building & Design Group

Talk About Books IN GOOD COMPANY

I have this crazy idea. It's not that the idea itself is crazy, it's more that with my over committed life, the idea that I would add one more thing to it has got to be perceived as slightly off balance.

But something a friend said to me around the holidays really resonated with me. He said, "I don't need anyone to recommend books to me anymore. I have more than I can read in what's left of my life as it is, and I have found comfort in rereading the books that I have loved in the pasts." And I understand these feelings. Occasionally I prune my list of 'to read' books because I know I am never going to get to them all. I bristle when someone says, "You have to read this book," although I often do and am pleasantly surprised. It's just that there are so many books and so little time.

So the idea is to meet once in a while at IN GOOD COMPANY for dinner or dessert and discuss whatever we are currently reading.

You Need to Know About Amy Einhorn

When I asked a friend how she had heard of mystery author Harry Dolan, she responded 'Amy Einhorn'. Amy is a publisher with a magic touch who was given an eponymous imprint at G.P. Putnam’s Sons where her first title was Kathryn Stockett's The Help.

"What I wanted to do was establish an imprint that hit that sweet spot between literary and commercial books – because that’s the place I as a reader find myself."

Her imprint is described as ‘intelligent writing with a strong narrative, always with great storytelling at its core.’ 

If these quotes pique your interest, read an interview HERE.

And if this fascinates you the way it does me, you can join in Beth Fish's Amy Einhorn Perpetual Challenge by going HERE.

Advice to Writers (And Readers)

"If you don't have the time to read, you don't have the time or the tools to write."

~ Stephen King, Best Selling Author

A Rule Against Murder (2008)

A Rule Against Murder by Louise Penny

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Since first discovering Louise Penny's Bury Your Dead, I have become addicted to her Chief Inspector Gamache series. Although they can be read out of order, I love the forward progression and recurring characters she has created. It is always a delight to visit in Three Pines. It feels like going home to a place you know even though you know something bad (and exciting) is going to happen.

A Rule Against Murder is book number four in a brief list of seven titles ending with last year's Trick of the Light. Even though Penny has amassed a rightfully earned number of awards for all her books, it appears her craftsmanship has gotten better and better.

The setting in A Rule Against Murder follows Gamache and his wife to an isolated, luxurious resort just over the mountains from Three Pines. They are celebrating their anniversary where they spent their honeymoon years earlier. Unfortunately a wealthy and entitled family has occupied much of the lodge. That combined with a storm that leaves behind a dead body eventually reveals an intricate past and unexpected connections.

Her eighth book, The Beautiful Mystery will be available in both the U.S. and Canada on August 28th. Needless to say, there are a continually growing devoted group of readers who can't wait. One of them is me!

View all my reviews

Blurb Rules: A guide to the art and artifice of writing blurbs for books.

Thrilling, pertinent, and insightful comments on how to write book blurbs. Too bad I didn't know about these rules sooner. Thank you to the Barnes and Noble Review for Blurb Rules by Daniel Menaker.