Tag: book-reviews

• Book Review-The Antique Hunter’s Guide to Murder: A Novel by C.L. Miller

  To use a term often used in antique appraisals, this debut novel comes with quite a provenance, as it was written by the daughter of the late Judith Miller (1951-2023), a regular specialist on the wildly popular BBC Antiques Roadshow. Antiques Roadshow, both the UK version and the American version, is a favorite of mine.…

  michardillo

  May 8, 2026

  books

  antiques, Antiques Roadshow, ARC, Atria Books, BBC Antiques Roadshow, book-review, book-reviews, books, British, C.L. Miller, Chippendale, cozy mystery, death, debut novel, Ebook, England, English, fiction, Goodreads, Judith Miller, Kindle, literature, mystery, NetGalley, novel, NPR Books We Love in 2024, reading, The Antique Hunter’s Guide to Murder, writer, writing

• Book Review: The Windsor Affair by Melanie Benjamin

  There’s almost constant chatter about the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, but long before there was a Harry and Meghan, there was a David and Wallis. While the severity of what happened during what will forever be known as the Abdication Crisis does not compare to the “spare” and his wife stepping back from royal…

  michardillo

  April 23, 2026

  books

  Abdication Crisis, ARC, Baltimore, Bertie, book-review, book-reviews, books, Britain, British, British Royal Family, David, Delacorte Press, Duchess of Windsor, Duke and Duchess of Sussex, Duke of Windsor, Edward VIII, Elizabeth II, England, fiction, Fort Belvedere, France, George V, George VI, Goodreads, Great Britain, Harry and Meghan, historical fiction, Kindle, Libby, literature, London, Melanie Benjamin, Mountbatten-Windsor, NetGalley, nonfiction, novel, Prince of Wales, Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother, reading, The King’s Speech, The Swans of Fifth Avenue, The Windsor Affair, Wallis Simpson, WE, Windsor Castle, writing

• Book Review: Food Person by Adam D. Roberts

  I picked this up from the Librarian’s Choice shelves at my local public library (shout out to Aspen Hill Library in Montgomery County, Maryland). Two things caught my attention. First of all, that cover is an eye catcher for sure. The second thing was the starburst blurb on the front cover, “A savory meal of…

  michardillo

  April 9, 2026

  books

  Adam Roberts, author, book-review, book-reviews, books, bookstore, contemporary-fiction, cookbook, cookbooks, cooking, debut novel, Essay, essays, fiction, food, Food Person, Goodreads, Gourmet magazine, Home Cooking, Julia Child, Knopf, Laurie Colwin, library, literature, More Home Cooking, New Yorker magazine, non-fiction, nonfiction, novel, NYC, reading, recipes, Ruth Reichl, short stories, Steven Rowley, writer, writing

• Book Review: The Things We Never Say by Elizabeth Strout

  First of all, thank you to NetGalley and Random House (an imprint of Penguin Random House) for the ARC ebook of Elizabeth Strout’s newest book, The Things We Never Say (May 5, 2026, 224 pages). I lobbied hard for an ARC, and thankfully, the literature gods heard my cry, or at least someone at Random…

  michardillo

  April 6, 2026

  books

  ARC, Artemis II, book-review, book-reviews, books, Easter egg, Elizabeth Strout, English, fiction, Goodreads, High Flight, John Gillespie Magee Jr., Kindle, literature, Maine, Massachusetts Bay, middle school, NetGalley, novel, O. Henry, Olive Kitteridge, Penguin Random, President Ronald Reagan, Random House, sailboat, Shakespeare, teacher, teaching, The Gift of the Magi, The Things They Carried, The Things We Never Say, Tim O’Brien, writer, writing

• Book Review-Change the Recipe: Because You Can’t Build a Better World Without Breaking Some Eggs by José Andrés with Richard Wolffe

  “It’s better to ask for forgiveness than permission” is a saying that could be the theme of José Andrés’s latest book, Change the Recipe: Because You Can’t Build a Better World Without Breaking Some Eggs (Ecco Hardcover, April 22, 2025, 195 pages), written with Richard Wolffe. That saying is often attributed to the late Rear…

  michardillo

  April 2, 2026

  books

  author, Bethesda, book-review, book-reviews, books, Breaking Some Eggs, Change the Recipe, COBOL, cookbook, cooking, death, Ecco Publishing, Essay, essays, family, first career, food, Gaza, Grace Hopper, grease traps, Haiti, internet, Israel, Jaleo, John Steinbeck, José Andrés, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Luis Miranda, Maryland, memoir, microwave omelet, non-fiction, nonfiction, online viral sensation, paralegal, reading, recipes, rice and beans, Richard Wolffe, Russia, The Grapes of Wrath, Ukraine, World Central Kitchen, writer, writing

• Book Review: More Than Enough by Anna Quindlen

  I had a solid reading month in December, with three great (4-stars each) books, and my reading year of 2025 was overall fabulous, with FIFTEEN 5-star books of fiction! so naturally, I wanted to start 2026 with a very successful read. I looked through my list of TBR books in NetGalley and decided on More…

  michardillo

  January 5, 2026

  books

  Anna Quindlen, book-review, book-reviews, books, contemporary-fiction, fiction, literature, Louisa May Alcott, More Than Enough, NetGalley, novel, Random House, reading, teacher, teaching, writing

• Sedentary Should Be Secondary!

  What are your biggest challenges? Like quite a few people I suspect, I “follow” a lot of fitness routines on social media. Tai Chi. Chair Yoga. Asian Pilates. Japanese Walking. Chinese Baduanjin. Shaolin. Couch to Fitness. And then there are the fitness instructors/influencers. Justin Agustin. Grow Young Fitness with Deron Buboltz. Align with Wellness with…

  michardillo

  January 3, 2026

  Essay

  AARP The Girlfriend, book-reviews, crafting, dailyprompt, dailyprompt-1804, fitness, gym, New Year’s resolutions, personal essay, reading, sedentary, swimming, trainer, writing

• Book Review: All My Bones by P. J. Nelson

  This is my second book by P. J. Nelson, also the second in the Old Juniper Bookshop mystery series. The first one, Booked for Murder (Minotaur Books, December 2024, 325 pages), was an enjoyable read, although I noted in my review a few things that I found odd, namely that it is a book about…

  michardillo

  January 2, 2026

  books

  All My Bones, author, book-review, book-reviews, Booked for Murder, books, bookshop, bookstore, cozy mystery, Fever Devilin series, fiction, Flap Tucker series, food, Kindle, literature, Minotaur Books, mystery, NetGalley, north Georgia, novel, Old Juniper Bookshop, P J Nelson, Phillip DePoy, reading, Safe in Their Graves, small town, writer

• Book Review: Murder Will Out by Jennifer K. Breedlove

  

  Murder Will Out by Jennifer K. Breedlove (St. Martin’s Press/Minotaur Books, February 17, 2026) is described by the publisher as a “lighter, modern gothic mystery,” and I think that is pretty accurate. I only recently discovered that I like a touch of magical realism mixed in with my mysteries, thanks to Evie Woods’ books, The…

  michardillo

  December 1, 2025

  books

  book-review, book-reviews, books, contemporary-fiction, crime fiction, debut novel, diverse characters, Downeast, Elizabeth Strout, Evie Woods, fiction, gothic, inclusive, Jennifer Breedlove, Kindle, LGBTQ+, literature, Little North Island Mysteries, Loyola University of Chicago, magical realism, Maine, Minotaur Books, murder mystery, music, musician, mystery, NetGalley, novel, organist, reading, St. Martin’s Press, The Gilded Age, The Lost Bookshop, The Mysterious Bakery on Rue de Paris, writing

• Book Review: Awake: A Memoir by Jen Hatmaker

  First, thank you to NetGalley for the opportunity to read this memoir (via audiobook) which was published by Macmillan in September of this year. Awake: A Memoir by Jen Hatmaker explains a lot. Some time ago I was aware via social media that something was going on with her, there was an ominous post on…

  michardillo

  November 20, 2025

  books

  audiobook, autobiography, Awake: A Memoir, book-review, book-reviews, books, divorce, Jen Hatmaker, Macmillan, marriage, memoir, NetGalley, nonfiction, reading, single mother, writing