Tag: writer

• Book Review: We Don’t Talk About That by Amanda Schoepp

  We Don’t Talk About That is a soon to be published work of nonfiction written by Amanda Schoepp. It is part memoir, part biography, part diary, part psychological study, and part true crime story. It is about a very dark moment in 1963 in the DesHotel family of Louisiana, and that darkness dripped down and…

  michardillo

  August 5, 2026

  books

  Amanda Schoepp, ARC, biography, book-review, book-reviews, books, death, family, Kindle, Koehler Books, Louisiana, multigenerational, murder suicide, NetGalley, nonfiction, psychological study, reading, trauma, We Don’t Talk About That, writer, writing

• Book Review: The Oxford Guide to Scandal and Lies by Kate Westbury

  A lot of the recently published novels that I am reading, whether it is historical fiction, cozy mystery, or contemporary fiction, don’t seem to be particularly well-written. The Oxford Guide to Scandal and Lies (The Oxford Guide #1) by Kate Westbury is a paradox for me. It is well-written, but the plot and character connection…

  michardillo

  August 4, 2026

  books

  ARC, book-review, book-reviews, books, British, cozy mystery, death, England, English, fiction, Ginevra Bishop, Inspector Morse, Kate Westbury, Kindle, literature, Minotaur Books, mystery, NetGalley, novel, reading, Sidney Braithwaite, spy, St. Martin’s Press, The Oxford Guide to Scandal & Lies, writer, writing

• Book Review: The Mad Widows by Scott Moore

  I just finished The Mad Widows by Scott Moore last night and what a wild ride of a book! The whole time I was reading this book, I kept thinking, “It’s like I’m reading a screenplay!” I could actually picture what was going even if I couldn’t clearly put a face on any of the…

  michardillo

  July 25, 2026

  books

  ARC, Bad Moms, Bad Moms: The Novel, book-review, book-reviews, books, cozy mystery, death, debut novel, fiction, grief, grief counseling therapy, It’s Okay to Laugh (Crying is Okay Too), Jon Lucas, Kindle, literature, mystery, NetGalley, Nora McInerny, novel, reading, Scott Moore, Simon and Schuster, suicide, The Hangover, The Mad Widows, writer, writing

• Book Review: Fancy Dogs by Tini Malina (author) and Tammi Reichel (translator)

  WHAT A CHARMING BOOK! I am a relatively newish dog lover, acquiring my very first dog in late 2011, but as with many things in my life, when I fall, I FALL HARD. I now know all the dogs in our neighborhood, dog-sit for friends (hi to my favorite Golden, Chubbs), pet random dogs whenever…

  michardillo

  July 15, 2026

  books

  ARC, book-review, book-reviews, books, children’s book, dog, Fancy Dogs, NetGalley, NorthSouth Books, picture book, reading, Tammi Reichel, terrier, Tini Malina, translator, writer, writing

• Book Review: The Three Graces of Pearl Street by Elizabeth Wellington Rollins

  I just finished this book last night and I am truly impressed that this is a debut novel. The Three Graces of Pearl Street by Elizabeth Wellington Rollins is soon to be published by Atria Books, an imprint of Simon and Schuster, which is one of the “Big Five” of publishing. The Big Five is…

  michardillo

  July 8, 2026

  books

  ARC, Atria Books, author, book-review, book-reviews, books, Catholic, Catholic Church, chicken cutlet, Columbia University, contemporary-fiction, cooking, debut novel, Elizabeth Wellington Rollins, family, fiction, food, food pantry, italian-american, Italy, lasagna, literature, Long Island Sound, Manhattan, NetGalley, novel, NYC, pizza slice, reading, teaching, The Three Graces of Pearl Street, type 1 diabetes, writer, writing

• My May Reads 2026

  May was a busy reading month but not a month of all star, blockbuster reads. These were good reads, solid 3-stars. Happy Reading, everyone!!!

  michardillo

  June 6, 2026

  books

  book-review, books, Brian Platzer, C.L. Miller, fiction, food, Goodreads, Kindle, literature, MJ Soni, mystery, Nadiya Hussain, Nadiya’s Everyday Baking, NetGalley, novel, reading, Shiamin Kwa, The Antique Hunter’s Guide to Murder, The Masala Chai Mystery Club, The Optimists, The Secret Menu: Chinese Food in America and How I Made It, writer, writing

• Book Review: The Secret Menu by Shiamin Kwa

  The Secret Menu: Chinese Food in America and How I Made It by Shiamin Kwa is more than a memoir. It is more of an anthropological study of the Chinese culture in America, where the author wasn’t Chinese enough for home and too Chinese for her new country. In fact, the subtitle itself is somewhat…

  michardillo

  May 24, 2026

  books

  appropriation, ARC, book-review, books, Bryn Mawr, Ebook, Farrah Straus and Giroux, food, Kindle, literature, Malaysia, memoir, NetGalley, nonfiction, reading, recipes, Shiamin Kwa, teacher, teaching, The Secret Menu: Chinese Food in America and How I Made It, writer, writing

• Book Review: The Optimists by Brian Platzer

  I’ll begin this review of The Optimists by Brian Platzer with a quote from another reviewer on Goodreads: I’ll admit, when I finished this book I immediately went to Goodreads to look at some of the reviews, a few 5-star, a few 1-star, and then I turned to the 3-star reviews. Near the top I…

  michardillo

  May 15, 2026

  books

  animal cruelty, ARC, book-review, book-reviews, books, Brian Platzer, English, essays, fiction, Goodreads, literature, Little Brown and Company, middle school, NetGalley, novel, NYC, reading, teacher, teaching, The Optimists, writer, writing

• 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: Saoirse by Charleen Hurtubise

  The title of this book, Saoirse, is an Irish name that means freedom. And, in this powerful novel, a US debut for this American writer living and working in Ireland for the last few decades, the main character longs for just that…freedom from her past, from her trauma, from her fears of her past catching…

  michardillo

  April 28, 2026

  books

  book-review, books, Celadon Books, Charleen Hurtubise, Daphne du Maurier, Donegal, Dublin, fiction, Fredrik Backman, gothic tension, Ireland, literature, Michigan, My Friends, NetGalley, novel, reading, Rebecca, Saoirse, secrets, The Irish Times, unsettling domestic environments, writer, writing