Tag: British

• Book Review: Sugar and Spite, An Agatha Raisin Mystery by M.C. Beaton with R. W. Green

  Mystery is by far my favorite genre, and within that genre I tend to gravitate toward cozy mysteries. Add to that a Scottish author and, well, I’m all in. Everyone has a guilty pleasure when it comes to their reading life, and for me, the Agatha Raisin mystery series falls squarely in that court. With…

  michardillo

  August 1, 2025

  books

  Agatha Raisin, ARC, book-review, books, British, cozy mystery, death, England, fiction, food, Hamish MacBeth, M. C. Beaton, Macmillan Publishers, mystery, NetGalley, novel, R. W. Green, Ray Bradbury, reading, Sugar and Spite, The Homemade God, The Quiche of Death, The White Octopus Hotel, writer, writing

• Book Review: The Killer Question by Janice Hallett

  The Killer Question by Janice Hallett (Atria Books, September 2025) is my third book by Hallett. All of her books, those I’ve read and those I’ve yet to read, are told in epistolary style, meaning the story is told through a series of letters, or in modern terms, a series of emails, interoffice communications, text…

  michardillo

  June 30, 2025

  books

  84 Charing Cross Road, Annie Barrows, Atria Books, book-review, books, British, Catherine Called Birdy, Chat GPT, Emily Blunt, England, epistolary novels, Ewan McGregor, fiction, food, Goodreads, Helene Hanff, Janice Hallett, Karen Cushman, Kim Fay, Kindle, library, literature, Love and Saffron, Mary Ann Shaffer, middle school, mystery, NetGalley, novel, Paul Torday, reading, Salmon Fishing in the Yemen, Scotland, teacher, teaching, The Appeal, The Examiner, The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society, The Killer Question, writer

• Book Review: Death on the Marlow Belle by Robert Thorogood

  In Death on the Marlow Belle (Poisoned Pen Press, September, 2025) this fourth installment of The Marlow Murder Club, a cozy murder mystery series, author Robert Thorogood has returned us to Marlow, a very real town located on the Thames River thirty miles from London. This is brilliant news for all of Thorogood’s fans, as…

  michardillo

  June 16, 2025

  books

  Agatha Christie, And Then There Were None, book-review, books, British, Columbia Theatre Players, community theatre, cozy mystery, death, Death Comes to Marlow, Death in Paradise, Death on the Marlow Belle, Downton Abbey, England, English, fiction, Goodreads, James Bond, Kindle, Lady Rosalind, London, Lord Grantham, Marlow, Miss Moneypenny, mystery, NetGalley, novel, Oscar Wilde, PBS Masterpiece, Poisoned Pen Press, reading, Richard Osman, River Thames, Samantha Bond, Ten Little Indians, The Importance of Being Earnest, The Marlow Murder Club, The Queen of Poisons, The Thursday Murder Club, theater, theatre, writer, writing

• Book Review: Dear Miss Lake by AJ Pearce

  I have a love-hate relationship with book series. Part of me loves the continuity, the bond established between the reader and the characters from book to book, the story taking me on a journey and coming back full-circle. But, I also hate when the series ends. To me, after I’ve invested so much time with…

  michardillo

  June 11, 2025

  books

  AJ Pearce, Blitz, book series, book-review, books, British, Dear Miss Lake, Dear Mrs. Bird, Edelweiss, England, English, fiction, Kate Messner, Kindle, library, literature, London, Maryland, Mrs. Porter Calling, mystery, novel, reading, Scholastic Press, Scribner, Silver Jaguar, social media, teacher, teaching, writer, writing, WWII, Yours Cheerfully

• Book Review: The Christie Affair by Nina de Gramont

  In a familiar refrain—if you have been reading my book reviews—once again, I am not sure how I feel about this book. Did I hate it? No. Did I love it? No. Yet, somehow, I’ve given it FIVE STARS. I’ll get to the why a bit later. The Christie Affair (St. Martin’s Press, 2022) by…

  michardillo

  March 5, 2025

  books, Essay

  Agatha Christie, book-review, books, British, England, fiction, Goodreads, literature, Marie Benedict, mystery, Nina de Gramont, novel, reading, Sherlock Holmes, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, St. Martin’s Press, The Christie Affair, The Queens of Crime, writer, writing

• Book Review: The Queens of Crime by Marie Benedict

  Those of you who know me, I mean really know me, know how much I love to read! Growing up, I would read just about anything; of course, the back of the cereal box, but also, the back of the shampoo bottle in the bathroom. But, my favorite all time thing to read is a…

  michardillo

  February 17, 2025

  books

  Agatha Christie, Baroness Emma Orczy, book-review, books, British, cozy mystery, Dorothy Sayers, England, fiction, Golden Age of Detective Fiction, literature, London, Margery Allingham, Marie Benedict, NetGalley, Ngaio Marsh, novel, Queens of Crime, reading, St. Martin’s Press, The Queens of Crime, writer, writing

• Book Review: How to Age Disgracefully by Clare Pooley

  How do you feel about books that start with an epigraph? Yea or nay? I generally like it, but sometimes I have no idea of its relevance until deep into the book. Not with this one, however. Last night I finished How to Age Disgracefully by Clare Pooley. This book is VERY popular right now.…

  michardillo

  February 5, 2025

  books, Essay

  aging, Andy Griffith, Are You Being Served, As Time Goes By, Aspen Hill Public Library, Bonnie Garmus, book-review, books, British, British TV, Clare Pooley, Dylan Thomas, epigraph, fiction, Goodreads, How to Age Disgracefully, invisibility, Iona Iverson’s Rules for Commuting, Kathy Bates, Keeping Up Appearances, Kindle, Lessons in Chemistry, library, literature, Maryland, Matlock, Montgomery County, Mrs. Quinn’s Rise to Fame, novel, old people, Pamela Dorman Books, reading, Richard Osman, seniors, Six-Thirty, The Authenticity Project, The Sober Diaries, The Thursday Murder Club, Waiting for God, writer, writing

• Book Review: The Mysterious Bakery on Rue de Paris by Evie Woods (a/k/a Evie Gaughan)

  The Mysterious Bakery on Rue de Paris is my second book by Evie Woods, although I am a bit confused whether #2 is the chicken or the egg. I loved her first (?) book, The Lost Bookshop. It was the perfect blend of a dual timeline, half contemporary and half historical, with a dash of…

  michardillo

  January 11, 2025

  books, Essay, food

  afternoon tea, Ann Napolitano, bakery, baking, book-review, books, bookstore, British, chocolate, coming of age, Compiegne, contemporary-fiction, cystic fibrosis, Dear Edward, dual timeline, English, Evie Gaughan, Evie Woods, fiction, food, France, Goodreads, grief, Harper 360, HarperCollins, hello-beautiful, historical fiction, Ireland, Irish, literature, magical realism, NetGalley, novel, Oprah, Paris, reading, Romance, tea, The Lost Bookshop, The Mysterious Bakery on Rue de Paris, Within Arm’s Reach, writing

• Book Review: Mrs. Quinn’s Rise to Fame by Olivia Ford

  A book dominated by the daily bakes of a British pensioner? Sign. Me. Up. I just finished reading Olivia Ford’s debut novel, Mrs. Quinn’s Rise to Fame. A teacher colleague of mine—an avid reader and all around dear friend—gave me two books for Christmas and when I opened the package, this one was on top.…

  michardillo

  December 28, 2024

  books, Essay, food

  baking, book-review, books, British, British pastries, chocolate, cooking, debut novel, English, family, fiction, GBBO, Great British Baking Show, literature, middle school, Mrs. Quinn’s Rise to Fame, Netflix, novel, Olivia Ford, reading, social media, tea, writer

• Book Review: The Lost Passenger by Frances Quinn

  One of my husband’s nicknames for me is “dolphin girl.” I love the water. I love being in the water swimming laps or just relaxing. I love being on the water in a boat, a ship, a ferry, a cruiseliner, anything. And, somewhat contrary to all of that, I also have a slight obsession with…

  michardillo

  December 1, 2024

  books, Essay

  book-review, books, British, Downton Abbey, England, estate, fiction, Frances Quinn, literature, Lord Storton, NetGalley, new money, novel, Random House, reading, The Lost Passenger, Titanic, titled heir