Pages & Paws

Writing, Reading, and Rural Life With a Border Collie

Category Archives: Book Reviews – Fiction


by 7 Comments

Dystopian Novel ‘Reverence’ Clears High Bar

Reverence

Book One of the Reverence Trilogy

By Raena Rood

One Foundation Publishing, 2022

Genre: Fiction/Dystopian/Apocalyptic/Christian Fiction

Pages: 305

Via: Author Request

Note: We received a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

“Well, doggone it!” says I, Kimber the Magnificent. “You’d think one of us would learn. Never start a Raena Rood novel at night. If you do, you’ll be up till the wee hours finishing it. Cuz you can’t put it down! But you know Mom!” – Insert eye roll here. –

You know we loved Rood’s Subversives trilogy, right? Well, we did. Think nice, thick, juicy New York steak. With a T-bone chaser. And sirloin steak on the side. We didn’t know how this next trilogy would stack up. Which just shows you what we know.

Here’s the 4-1-1:

Continue reading →


by 4 Comments

‘The Nurse’s Secret’: Compelling Historical Fiction

The Nurse’s Secret

By Amanda Skenandore

Published by: Kensington Books, 2022

Genre: Historical Fiction

Pages: 352

Via: Book Blog Tour

Note: We received a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Una Kelly has been living by her wits and her sticky fingers since she was a child. A grifter in the mean streets of 19th century New York City’s slums, Una is on the run from the “coppers” for a murder she didn’t commit. She lies her way into an unlikely refuge: the Bellevue Hospital Training School for Nurses. Based on Florence Nightingale’s nursing principles, Bellevue is the first school of its kind in the country. But for Una, it’s a place to hide.

An Expert Blend

Then an inebriated ex-friend shows up at Bellevue and threatens to expose Una’s secret past. Una caves to Deidre’s extortion scheme. But when Deidre winds up dead in the hospital’s alcoholic’s ward where she’s drying out, Una gets suspicious. Did Deidre die from an overdose of laudanum, or was she murdered? A certain tall, handsome young doctor also enters the picture in this expert blend of historical fiction, whodunit, romance, and murder mystery.

Gripping & Intense

Emotionally gripping and intense, The Nurse’s Secret is propelled by masterful story-telling, an engrossing plot and lively, three-dimensional characters within a unique historical setting. Think A Tree Grows in Brooklyn and Oliver Twist meet Florence Nightingale and The Murders in the Rue Morgue.

A Second Chance

We almost missed this book. It arrived well past our deadline for a review. We just don’t have time for late arrivals. So we were inclined to put it aside. But one us – the four-legged one- said, “C’mon Mom! Let’s shoehorn this puppy into our calendar! I’ll help!”

So we gave it another chance. Glad we did. Cuz The Nurse’s Secret is a winner.

Our Rating: 4.0


by 2 Comments

Action Abounds in ‘Revenge on a Cruel World’

Revenge on a Cruel World by [Rick Clements]Revenge on a Cruel World

By Rick Clements

Via: Reedsy Discovery

Genre: Thriller

Summary:

If you thought the Great Depression was bad, think again. How about a computer theft by a mathematical genius that mangles the worldwide banking system, causes a financial tsunami, and threatens to topple governments around the globe?

That’s the main storyline in this fast-moving, action-packed novel.

Note: We received a complimentary digital copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Continue reading →


by 2 Comments

‘Stirring Up Love’ Serves Up Heaping Helping of Fun, Romance

Stirring Up Love

By Chandra Blumberg

Montlake Publishing, 2022

Via: Author Request

Release Date: July 26, 2022

Genre: Fiction – Romance/Humor

Pages: 372

Note: We received a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Summary:

A sassy, saucy story about a feud-fueled romance where two rivals with a passion for food and community come together in ways they never expected.

Simone Blake and Finn Rimes are as different as it gets. Simone has just returned from a corporate stint in Chicago where everything went sideways. She’s inherited her grandfather’s barbecue restaurant, Honey and Hickory. Determined to make a go of it and prove that she’s a competent professional who knows what’s what, Simone plans to put her restaurant and her hometown on the map.

So does Finn Rimes. Only from a different angle. A chef thinking big, Finn dreams of opening his own culinary school.

Sparks soon fly like fireworks on the Fourth of July when Finn shows up on Sim’s turf – the local farmer’s market – to market his own brand of barbecue sauce and hopefully raise some cash for his would-be culinary school.

Continue reading →


by 2 Comments

‘Waterbury Winter’ Warms Hearts

Waterbury Winter

By Linda Stewart Henley

She Writes Press, 2022

Genre: Fiction

Note: We received a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Summary: Two lost souls reach for love and second chances during a freezing New England Winter.

“The transformative value of art is in making the ordinary extraordinary.”

Basic Plot

It’s Christmas Eve. Barnaby Brown thinks back eighteen years when he lost his teaching job. His twin passions, painting and his wife Anna, also died that year. Now forty-five years old, a widower and an alcoholic, Barnaby’s working a dead-end job at the local hardware store.

Once a promising young artist, Barnaby has been on a downward spiral since loss and alcohol dragged him down. He’s lived a reclusive life after the deaths of his parents and his wife. He now prefers the company of his wise-cracking parrot, Popsicle, to companionship with other humans. Yearning to start over, Barnaby dreams of going to California and resurrecting his dreams of a painting career.

“It’s like painting. You have to reach beyond the vanishing point on the horizon for something important you can’t quite see, but know is there.”

Continue reading →


by 4 Comments

Gripping Suspense in ‘The Second Wife’

See the source imageThe Second Wife

By: Miranda Rijks

Via: Book Blog Tour

Publisher: Inkubator Books, 2022

Genre: Fiction: Psychological Thriller/Murder Mystery/Suspense

Note: We received a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Summary:

When a down-on-her-luck violinist takes a menial job for a famous composer, she gets more than she bargained for in this intense and compelling murder mystery/suspense story.

Mia Benton is a former student at the Royal College of Music in London. Desperate for a job in the aftermath of a dark secret from her recent past, Mia takes a cleaning job at the residence of composer Robin Featherstone. Recently divorced, Robin’s new wife Tamsin is 25 years his junior. Tamsin’s not exactly thrilled with the new hire, to put it mildly.

Continue reading →


by 4 Comments

Holmes & Watson at Top of Their Game in ‘Murder in Keswick’

Murder in Keswick

A Sherlock Homes Mystery

By William Todd

SpellBound Books, 2022

Genre: Fiction/Mystery/Suspense

Via: Book Blog Tour

Note: We received a complimentary digital copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

“The game is afoot.” It’s the catch phrase for literature’s most famous detective. And there are plenty of twists, turns and “gaming” going on in William Todd’s delightful page-turner, Murder in Keswick.

Told in the third person by Dr. Watson, the story opens aboard a train bound for Keswick, England in 1898. Disembarking, the duo soon learns that a well-respected resident of the area has turned up dead. And while Watson is looking forward to a relaxing holiday in the bucolic countryside, Holmes quips that nothing is more relaxing than solving a murder, even if he’s informed that “this sort of thing never happens here.”

Continue reading →


by 2 Comments

‘Here, There Be Dragons’ Ignites Imagination

The Chronicles of the Imaginarium Geographica:

Here, There Be Dragons

Written and illustrated by James A. Owen

Simon & Schuster, 2006

Genre: Fiction: Fantasy/Young Adult

Pages: 324

“There’s a very strange man outside, said Jack…’

One of us is totally kicking herself for not finding this book sooner.

“Good thing one of my brothers sent this to Her Momness for Mother’s Day,” spake I, Kimber the Magnificent. “Otherwise, Mom would still be clueless. Cuz this book is a bibliophile’s treasure trove. It’s just Too. Much Fun! Ya know. Like me. So way to go, bro!”

Here’s more:

Continue reading →


by 2 Comments

‘Potiphar’s Wife’: Fresh Take on an Old Story

ImagePotiphar’s Wife

A novel

By Mesu Andrews

Genre: Fiction/General Fiction/Historical Fiction/Biblical Fiction

Part of The Egyptian Chronicles

Published by: WaterBrook & Multnomah

Release Date: May 24, 2022

416 pages

Via: Book Launch Team

Note: We received a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Streams of mercy, never ceasing…

Step back into ancient Egypt and the palace of a mighty pharaoh in this beautifully crafted, meticulously researched historical novel where the writing is as elaborate as Potiphar’s apparel and the story is as exquisite as his bride’s finest crystal vase.

Who Was She?

Most people know her as one of the Bible’s most notorious women. But who was Potiphar’s wife? What was her background? Her name? Who was she? How, where and why did she meet the powerful Potiphar? Even a cursory reading of the Old Testament story indicates that she was unhappy with her marriage and husband. But why?

These themes and more are explored in a captivating faith-based novel from the award-winning author of Isaiah’s Legacy.

A Brief Overview (without giving too much away):

Continue reading →


by 2 Comments

PAWsome or Over-Rated? 7 Popular HF Titles Reviewed

Kimber here. You know Mom and I read a lot of historical fiction, right? Well. We’ve read so much historical fiction lately, we’re almost ready to produce our own Encyclopedia Historica. Almost.

Best of HF?

Anywho, we’re in the process of reading our way through some “Best Of” historical fiction lists found elsewhere. We wanted to see for ourselves what titles are worth the time and what belongs in the kitty litter box. Cuz ya know, just because a book or author is a popular “best seller” doesn’t necessarily mean it’ll pass Kimber and Mom Muster.

Yea, verily. No one wants to waste their time on lousy snoozers with stale, brittle plots that are as predictable as tomorrow’s sunrise. Or populated with one-dimensional, cardboard characters we don’t know, don’t want to know, and could care less about, no matter how many accolades they get elsewhere. Cuz we’re like, picky.

The List

So here’s our Totally Unscientific, 100% Subjective take on a few recently read historical-fiction titles. Plus one plain fiction title we’re throwin’ in for free. Cuz we can. (You may want to buckle up. Just sayin’). Ready? Set? Let’s GO!

Continue reading →