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Book Review: Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry

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5/5 stars. I am 58 years old. I never watched the mini-series and never read the book until now. I read along in the ebook as I listened to the audiobook narrated by Will Patton, who does an outstanding job. When I was growing up, my dad was an enthusiastic fan of Western movies, so I watched many movies featuring John Wayne, Randolph Scott, Gary Cooper, Roy Rogers, Gabby Hayes, Andy Devine, and Walter Brennan. In reading / listening to this story, I pictured so many of those actors in the roles of Call, Gus, Newt, Jake, Diets, Lippy, Pea Eye, Dish, etc. I imagined female actors like Maureen O’Hara as Clara, and Vera Miles as Lorena, as tough, strong-willed women on the frontier. This novel brought back some of those shared experiences in the home of my childhood, which made it all the more enjoyable. I have had so many people recommend this novel to me, for the action, adventure, and emotional story found within its pages. After reading Tom’s Crossing earlier this year, I looked for s...
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Book Review: Terms of Enlistment (Frontlines 1) by Marko Kloos

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4.25/5 stars. This is my first Kindle+ experience - Read & Listen. Of course I’ve had Kindle Unlimited for some time, but this is the first book I have read on the ‘new’ platform. This was also my first Marko Kloos novel, and I am impressed with the prose, the character development, and the world building. I also enjoyed the audiobook narration by Luke Daniels, who did an outstanding job with all the voices. Set in the future of Earth and focused on Andrew Grayson, a new recruit into the North American military. Grayson leaves his parents in their lower-class slums in the hopes of getting off-planet, making enough money to serve his five-year enlistment, and finding a nice place to settle afterwards. He quickly learns it might not all be that easy! This novel has realistic training and battle sequences. I also thought the author portrayed the personal interactions and found family aspects of military life well. Recommended!!
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Book Review: Reapers by Anthony (A.J.) Ryan

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4.25/5 stars. Thanks to NetGalley and Blackstone Publishing for the eARC. I am an enthusiastic fan of Ryan’s fantasy stories, but in the last few years, I have enjoyed reading his dystopian thrillers even more. This is the third of his dystopian stories that I have read, and this is the best of the bunch so far. Ryan is an excellent writer, builds interesting worlds, and populates them with fascinating characters. Reapers is no exception. I highly recommend this story for anyone who enjoys dystopian, science fiction, artificial intelligence, and military action. Be forewarned, there is some violence, but the characters are absolutely outstanding.   There are some SPOILERS below, so read at your own risk!! Our story begins after a catastrophic event called the Glitch. A large group of people implanted with a new chip device that allows access to immediate knowledge and intelligence have had their brains affected by an electronic surge. Some of these people died right away while othe...
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Book Review: Seed by Ania Ahlborn

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4.5/5 stars. This story asks the question: can a demon possession pass down through generations of a family? Jack and Aimee are a struggling young couple with two daughters, Abby and Charlie. One of the daughters is not acting like herself, and Aimee is worried that something is seriously wrong. Jack might know what the trouble is, but he doesn’t want to share that knowledge with his family. Slowly, we uncover secrets upon secrets and begin to understand what is happening to the family. This story was frustrating to read for someone who believes honesty, especially with my spouse, is essential to a strong relationship, but at the same time, as the story progresses, I understand Jack’s reluctance to share all of his past with his wife. The past can be a portent for things to come, especially quite often when genetics are involved! If you enjoy a slow-build apprehension with a gradual revelation and all the surprises along the way, this book is for you. An exceptionally good spooky seaso...
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Book Review: When the Night Comes Knocking by Katherine Daniel

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4.5/5 stars. An excellent debut novel from Katherine Daniel, an author that we will no doubt hear more from in the future. This novel introduces us to the Mimic, an ancient creature doomed to live within the Appalachian Mountains of Georgia until a guilty heart can be found to take its place. When two siblings and eight strangers are forced to confront this horror at a small out-of-the-way grocery store a day before Thanksgiving, the question everyone begins to ask is, “Who has the guiltiest heart?” Thomas is Jane’s older brother. Just two months ago, they went through a trauma that might change their lives, and now they are not on the best of terms but must ride together to a remote rented cabin to meet their mom, dad, and older sister Cassie for Thanksgiving. The family dynamic created by the author is fabulous and offers wonderful insight into the members of this Southern family. In fact, all of Daniel’s character work is strong throughout the story. I could picture each of the ch...
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Audiobook Review: Dracula (2026 Dramatized Adaptation) by Bram Stoker, adapted by Robyn Ahern

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4.5/5 stars. I decided to give this latest version of Dracula a try for spooky season this year, as it has been over 35 years since I last read it. The performances in this 2026 dramatized adaptation were excellent. Ella Purnell as Mina, David Jonsson as Dr. Seward, Louis Partridge as Jonathan Harker, Francis Lovehall as Arthur Holmwood, Aimee Lou Wood as Lucy Westenra, and Jonathan Bailey as Dracula were all outstanding. Maggie Gyllenhaal is also very good as Professor Van Helsing, but I did not understand the producer’s decision to cast her in this role.   I am not a purist, in most instances, when producers or writers change the gender of a character for a modern audience; however, Mina Harker is one of the strongest female characters in all classical literature. In my mind, by making Van Helsing female, the producer has taken some of that female strength from Mina and given it to a character that was not present in the original story. This aspect detracted somewhat from my enjo...
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Book Review: Out of Range (Joe Pickett 5) by CJ Box

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4/5 stars. I read a lot of dark novels - Grimdark fantasy/sci-fi and dark thrillers, so Joe Pickett novels serve as a nice comfort read / palate cleanser in between those darker stories. I enjoy the mysteries, but also the normalcy of family and everyday living that these novels usually represent. This novel took an unexpected darker turn, both for Joe and for his family, that I am not sure I enjoyed. The mystery, the setting, the scenery were all good. This is not the first time Joe’s family has faced danger and adversity, but it is the first time they’ve done it separately, as Joe must leave home to cover another district, in Jackson Hole, for a fellow Game Warden who took his own life. The way Joe and Mary Beth handled their time apart disappointed me the most about this story and both characters, but still an overall satisfying mystery. I find CJ Box to be a fluid writer and particularly enjoy his descriptions of Wyoming and the Grand Tetons. His dialogue and internal monologue ex...
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