Category: books and reading

Top Ten Favorite books by authors I like

On By Lisa R. HowelerIn books and reading, top-ten-tuesday11 Comments

Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl.

If you are new to my blog, I just wanted to share with you that I co-host a monthly bookish link party called A Good Book and A Cup of Tea (no, you don’t have to drink tea to participate), and you can find a link to it at the top of the page.

The link party is for all book-related posts from reviews and recommendations to …well, anything related to books at all. Including Top Ten Tuesday if you want to link your top ten there too!

Now, on to today’s Top Ten Tuesday prompt, which is: My Favorite Books by My Favorite Authors (Pick your ten favorite authors and your favorite book written by each one of them.) (submitted by Cathy @ WhatCathyReadNext)

I’ll be honest, I don’t know if these authors are all “favorites,” but they are authors I enjoy.

Jan Karon

Jan’s book A Light In The Window is my favorite because it is the  one where the romance between Father Tim and Cynthia begins.

If you have not read this series, it centers around an Episcopal  priest in his 60s who finds love and fatherhood late in life. The 15-book series features sweet, challenging, and thought-provoking stories of faith with a myriad of quirky, fun, and lovable characters.

Lilian Jackson Braun

The Cat Who Talked to Ghosts is my favorite in Lilian’s The Cat Who series. The series is about journalist, and later former journalist, Jim “Qwill” Qwilleran, and his two Siamese cats, Koko and Yum Yum, who help him solve various mysteries.

In this one, a close friend of Qwill’s passes away and he travels to where she lives to find out what happened to her. During the visit he meets a precocious little girl (he is older and in a relationship but has no interest in children), an abused young woman, and other interesting characters.

C.S. Lewis

I still have a lot of C.S. Lewis to read so this book could change, but I really liked The Magician’s Nephew from the Chronicles of Narnia series.

The Chronicles of Narnia are about a magical land called Narnia where children disappear into from the modern world and become kings and queens and meet magical creatures. There is much more to it than that, but that is the short version. The Magician’s Nephew is very magical and where the story of the chronicles really begins.

Agatha Christie

Why Didn’t They Ask Evans is my favorite book so far from Christie.

I know that this is not one mentioned as much when someone talks or writes about Agatha Christie but it is one of my favorites because there is a little bit of romance in it and a lot of humor between the main characters Bobby and Lady Frances “Frankie” Derwent.

A body is found at the bottom of a  cliff by the ocean and when Bobby reaches the man, he isn’t in good shape but manages to utter five  words: “Why didn’t they ask Evans?”

Bobby decides to find out who “they” are and who in the world was/is Evans and why no one asked this person whatever they were supposed to ask him.

Craig Johnson

I have a lot more to read of Craig Johnson’s Walt Longmire series, but so far my favorite book is The Dark Horse.

Here is a quick description of it from Goodreads: “Wade Barsad, a man with a dubious past and a gift for making enemies, burned his wife Mary’s horses in their barn; in retribution, she shot him in the head six times, or so the story goes. But Sheriff Walt Longmire doesn’t believe Mary’s confession and is determined to dig deeper. Unpinning his star to pose as an insurance investigator, Walt visits the Barsad ranch and discovers that everyone in town–including a beautiful Guetemalan bartender and a rancher with a taste for liquor–had a reason for wanting Wade dead.”

Anthony Horowitz

Moriarty is my favorite book of Horowitz’s so far, but I have a lot more of his to read. Moriarity takes place after Sherlock Holmes and his nemesis, Moriarty, have plunged over the Reichenbach Falls.

Now Pinkerton detective agent Frederick Chase arrives in Europe from New York to find the man who wants to take Moriarity’s place as the most sinister criminal in Europe. Horowitz was given permission by the Arthur Conan Doyle Trust to write this and another book, Silk, using Sherlock Holmes’ character.

L.M. Montgomery

The Blue Castle, which I wrote about in a series of posts earlier this spring, is my favorite of L.M. Montgomery’s books for a variety of reasons. It is poetic, thought-provoking while also being sweet, romantic, and enchanting

You can find my posts about the book here.

Carolyn Keene (or whoever wrote this one)

Nancy Drew: The Clue of the Whistling Bagpipes is my favorite Carolyn Keene book so far.

The Nancy Drew books were written by several different authors under the same pseudonym and this one, about a trip Nancy takes to Scotland to investigate a theft at her great-aunt’s house. This one was not only fun but it was full of interesting facts about Scotland. 

P.G. Wodehouse

A Damsel in Distress is my favorite read by P.G. Wodehouse so far. Full disclaimer, I have only read three of his books, but this one, featuring many romantic misunderstandings, is so much fun and full of hilarious moments, if you can push through the old style writing.

Here is a quick description from online: “When Maud Marsh flings herself into American George Benson’s cab in Piccadilly, he believes he has met a damsel in distress. George traces his mysterious travelling companion to Belpher Castle, home of Lord Marshmoreton, where life is hilariously muddled.”

Francine Rivers

A Voice in the Wind (from the Mark of the Lion series). This first book in a series that takes place in Jerusalem during Roman rule fascinated me and kept me on the edge of my seat. It follows the story of a young Jewish girl named Hadassah who is made a slave in the home of a Roman leader.

Have you read any of these? And who are some of your favorite authors?

On Thursdays, I am part of the Weekend Traffic Jam Reboot blog link party. You can find the latest one in the sidebar to the right under recent posts.

Hello! Welcome to my blog. I am a blogger, homeschool mom, and I write cozy mysteries.

You can find my Gladwynn Grant Mystery series HERE.

You can also find me on Instagram and YouTube.

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Ten Favorite Secondary Book Characters

On By Lisa R. HowelerIn books and reading, top-ten-tuesday19 Comments

Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl.

If you are new to my blog, I just wanted to share with you that I co-host a monthly bookish link party called A Good Book and A Cup of Tea (no you don’t have to drink tea to participate) and you can find a link to it at the top of the page or here.

The link party is for all book-related posts from reviews and recommendations to …well, anything related to books at all. Including Top Ten Tuesday if you want to link your top ten there too!

Today’s Top Ten Tuesday prompt is: Favorite Secondary/Minor Characters

I had to think pretty hard about this one as I haven’t read as many books as others have, so I don’t have as many books to choose from, and I know I will think of others after I publish this, but here goes.

  1. Samwise Gamgee from The Lord of the Rings series by J.R.R. Tolkien

In some ways Sam is a main character in Lord of the Rings and to me he is one of THE main characters, but he is considered as a secondary character too since he is Frodo’s “sidekick.”

Let’s all be honest, though, Frodo never would have made it to destroy the ring if it wasn’t for Sam supporting him, and sometimes even carrying him, on his journey. Frodo gets the credit for destroying the ring, and he did withstand the temptation of it the longest, but he would have been completely lost without Sam.

2. Diana Barry from the Anne of Green Gables books by L.M. Montgomery

Diana Barry is Anne Shirley’s best friend in the Anne of Green Gables series and especially in book one when they first meet.

She is Anne’s best friend, loyal at all costs, and just so sweet to Anne — even after Anne gets her drunk and disapproves of the man she’s going to marry. Ha!

3. Huck Finn from The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain

Huckleberry Finn is one of the most fun side characters ever. He’s in the middle of all the drama in Tom Sawyer and then he gets his own book in the sequel. I haven’t read Tom Sawyer all the way through since I was in junior high but I plan to do so this summer.

My son and I read The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn a few years ago for school.

4. Polly Duncan in The Cat Who book series…by Lilian Jackson Braun

Polly is the main character Jim Qwilleran (Qwill)’s girlfriend and the town librarian. She is mild mannered, most of the time, sweet and very smart. I don’t like that Lilian describes her as boring and mundane at times and I also don’t like she often comments on her weight (though Qwill doesn’t seem to mind it) and eventually has her have a heart attack, but I do like Polly and how she  handles the sometimes rude, maybe a bit chauvinistic Qwill (the books are a product of their time in some ways), and how she likes to take care of Qwill without pushing him toward marriage.

5. Dr. John Watson from the Sherlock Holmes short stories and novels by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

Dr. John Watson is Sherlock Holmes’s right-hand man, confidant, and co-sleuth. Sometimes he is as smart as Sherlock and many times he leads an investigation and puts himself in danger while Holmes is working on another area of the case (like in The Hound of The Baskervilles).

As an aside, I was sad to see that David Burke, the actor who played Watson in the first season of the  1980s Sherlock Holmes opposite Jeremy Brett, passed away this past week.

6. Dill from To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee

I have to be honest and admit that I did not think of this one on my own. I’m surprised I didn’t since To Kill A Mockingbird is my favorite book. I saw it on a list online about secondary characters, which I looked up to refresh my memory of some of my favorites when my brain started drawing blanks.

Dill is the best friend of main characters Jem and Jean Louise “Scout” Finch. He spends his summers in their town after essentially being abandoned to his aunt’s every summer by his parents. Eventually he begins choosing to visit his aunt so he can see Jem and Scout, who make him feel like he belongs.

He is the catalyst for getting another great secondary character, Boo Radley, to come out of his house and also instigates several other pivotal scenes and moments that make the reader think about a wide variety of issues — one being children and people who feel neglected.

7. Bess Marvin in the Nancy Drew Mystery series by Carolyn Keene

Bess Marvin is one of Nancy’s friends and the cousin of George Fayne, who incessantly picks on Bess.

Bess is described as pleasantly plump in the early Nancy Drew books and her weight is pointed out often, but she’s portrayed, mainly, as the sometimes nervous friend of Nancy’s who gets dragged into many mysteries she’d rather stay out of.

While Nancy’s other friend, and Bess’s cousin, George, is more adventurous and outgoing, Bess prefers to wring her hands a bit and say things like, “Can’t we just go back home? It’s dark in there.”

I can relate to Bess. I’m heavy, not pleasantly, plump, but I am the one in a group who would be suggesting we all go home and let the police handle it.

8. Fairlight Spencer from Christy by Catherine Marshall

When Christy Huddleston moves to the Great Smokey Mountains of Tennessee to be a teacher at rural school in Cutter Gap, she meets Fairlight, an abused mother who wants an education and to improve herself. The two become fast friends and Fairlight teaches Christy about nature and how to communicate with the people of Cutter Gap. Fairlight is just about my favorite character in the book besides Miss Alice. Fairlight loves to pause and admire God’s handiwork by watching a sunset or looking at flowers.

I won’t say much about the end of the book other than I felt Marshall was very unfair to her character. It’s why I doubt I’d read the book again.

9. Eustace Scrubb from The Voyage of The Dawn Treader by C.S. Lewis

Eustace is the cousin of the children we know so well from The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe (if you’ve ever read it) — Peter, Edmund, Susan, and Lucy. When he gets pulled into a painting in The Voyage of the Dawn Treader he becomes a central character, but still a secondary character (to me) in the Narnia series.

Eustace starts out miserable, mean, and a little brat. Things definitely change as the book goes on and he is changed by the traumatic experiences that happen to him throughout the  book.

10. Marmee March from Little Women by Louisa May Alcott

The mother of the ‘little women’ (Jo, Meg, Amy, and Beth) truly isn’t a secondary character. She is the character that holds the book together, in my opinion, even more than Jo. She holds the family and the book together, the guiding light for the little family who faces so many trials, heartache, and also joy. But, I suppose, the girls are the main characters and she would be considered a very, very important secondary character.

 How about you?

Do you have some favorite secondary characters?

On Thursdays, I am part of the Weekend Traffic Jam Reboot blog link party. You can find the latest one in the sidebar to the right under recent posts.

Hello! Welcome to my blog. I am a blogger, homeschool mom, and I write cozy mysteries.

You can find my Gladwynn Grant Mystery series HERE.

You can also find me on Instagram and YouTube.

Book review: Murder, She Wrote, Aloha Betrayed by Donald Bain

On By Lisa R. HowelerIn book reviews, books and reading3 Comments

Aloha Betrayed, a Murder, She Wrote book by Donald Bain and “Jessica Fletcher,” is the 41st book in the 63-book series. Bain wrote 47 of those books.

This is the fifth book I’ve read from this series and, no, I have not read these books in order, and I don’t feel you need to.

This was a fun, slower paced mystery and my only complaint is that there were a couple of plot points left hanging at the end and that Bain seems to have done that on purpose.

He left us not totally sure if the victim was a totally good person or not but mainly making us think she was being manipulated in some way, while not totally confirming if that was true or not.

Here is a quick description of the book from the publisher:

Jessica is on the Hawaiian island of Maui, giving a lecture at Maui College on community involvement in police investigations—a subject she knows well. Her co-lecturer is legendary retired detective Mike Kane, a behemoth of a man who shares his love of Hawaiian lore, legends and culture with Jessica.

Sadly, all the talking stops when the body of a colleague is found at the rocky foot of a cliff.

Mala Kapule was a botanist and popular professor at the school, known for her activism and efforts on behalf of the volcanic crater Haleakala. The high altitude crater is already the site of an observatory, but plans to place the world’s largest solar telescope there split the locals, with Mala fiercely arguing to preserve the delicate ecology of the area. Was someone trying to muffle the protestors? Or was Mala’s killer making a more personal statement?

Now, it’s up to Jessica, along with Mike, to uncover who was driven to silence the scientist…and betray the true meaning of Aloha.

I read some reviews of this book that said the Hawaiian history mixed in with the story slowed the book down but I actually thought the history was naturally woven into the story with information being given to us through conversations between Jessica and the other characters.

It was not an “info dump” by any means.

Donald Bain wrote Jessica very naturally. He was a ghost  writer for many years, and he clearly learned how to write from the point of view of a woman very well. All the books are in first person (from what I have read so far) and I often forget that Jessica is being written by a man.

He writes Jessica as tender, but not too tender, sensitive and concerned, but not too much of either, and more concerned about the feelings of victims and the perpetrators than a male sleuth would most likely be — or at least show.

He also wrote her as someone who thinks deeply about the issues of the world.

“I’ve had many discussions with Seth Hazlitt, and other friends in Cabot Cove about how today’s frenetic lifestyle, fueled by all the technology that surrounds us, takes away from precious time to think. I needed think time. We all need think time to avoid making some of the mistakes we humans are prone to.”

 This is a good one to read if you are looking for a quick escape and not anything super deep — similar to the show.

Top Ten – Er – Eight Authors I wish were Still Writing Today

On By Lisa R. HowelerIn books and reading, top-ten-tuesday20 Comments

Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl.

Today’s prompt is:  Authors You Wish Were Still Writing Today

I only came up with eight authors I wished were still writing, all of them long dead, but I think it’s a good list.

Agatha Christie

The fun she’d have with modern times and modern toys to mix in her plots. The only drawback is that some of her plot points might not work since we now have so many conveniences and cameras and things that could make getting away with murder even more difficult. That might be a challenge Agatha would love to take on, though.  

Margery Allingham

Margery would also love to use some of the more modern elements to knock off a few victims, I think. But she would write it in a much more poetic way than Agatha. This woman’s way with words….wow.

Erle Stanley Gardner

Perry Mason on his cellphone  telling Burger to stuff it where the sun don’t shine. Also, just more great stories with other characters — Bertha Cool on a podcast, telling everyone stories about her greatest cases.

L.M. Montgomery

I would love to read more sweet, touching stories by her. Whatever she wants to write. Clean, no swearing, just writing about every day life in a beautiful rural setting in Canada.

Donald Bain

Donald was a prolific ghost writer, but I just need him to write more Murder, She Wrote books that feel like authentic Jessica. I love how he makes her so real and fleshed out. He writes it from a first-person point of view and adds in her thoughts about her late husband Frank. She’s always so caring about her friends too. I mean, I really forget it is a man writing it. I feel like he’s truly seeing Jessica’s world through the eyes of a woman. I also love when he adds in history and facts about Maine or whatever city or country Jessica is visiting. He completely immerses you in the story.

Mildred Wirt Benson

I love Mildred’s children’s mystery books. If you don’t know, she was the author who helped create the Nancy Drew books and was the first Carolyn Keene. She later went on to write other children’s books with girl detectives, such as the Penny Parker series

I loved the plots she came up with and always find her plots in the Nancy Drew books so much better than ones written by other authors using the pseudonym.

Mildred wrote 130 books for juveniles and a few for adults. I hope to look up those adult ones soon.

J.R.R. Tolkien

I would love if Tolkien was still  writing and would infuse some of his wisdom and purity into fantasy books of today. He would, however, probably find some of his work edited so we don’t have to read so many descriptions of trees.

C.S. Lewis

I would love to particularly read Clive’s theological thoughts in relationship to the unique challenges of our modern world, which really aren’t that unique, but feel like they are. I would love to know what he thinks of the modern church, our crazy leaders, Christians who are so obsessed with politics that they’ve lost sight of Jesus…and so much more. I have a feeling he would anger so many people.

Are there any authors that you wish were still writing today?

If you write book reviews or book-related blog posts, don’t forget that Erin and I host the A Good Book and A Cup of Tea Monthly Bookish Blog Party. You can learn more about it here.

On Thursdays, I am part of the Weekend Traffic Jam Reboot blog link party. You can find the latest one in the sidebar to the right under recent posts.

Hello! Welcome to my blog. I am a blogger, homeschool mom, and I write cozy mysteries.

You can find my Gladwynn Grant Mystery series HERE.

You can also find me on Instagram and YouTube.

Ten of the most relaxing books I have ever read (in no particular order)

On By Lisa R. HowelerIn books and reading, top-ten-tuesday20 Comments

Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl.

Today’s prompt is: a freebie. Whatever subject we wanted.

so today I chose: Ten of the most relaxing books I have ever read (in no particular order)

  1. The Secret Garden by Francess Stodgson Burnett

This book was not what I expected and I truly ended up loving it.

Description:

When orphaned Mary Lennox comes to live at her uncle’s great house on the Yorkshire Moors, she finds it full of secrets. The mansion has nearly one hundred rooms, and her uncle keeps himself locked up. And at night, she hears the sound of crying down one of the long corridors.

The gardens surrounding the large property are Mary’s only escape. Then, Mary discovers a secret garden, surrounded by walls and locked with a missing key. One day, with the help of two unexpected companions, she discovers a way in. Is everything in the garden dead, or can Mary bring it back to life?

One of the most delightful and enduring classics of children’s literature, The Secret Garden has remained a firm favorite with children the world over ever since it made its first appearance. Initially published as a serial story in 1910 in The American Magazine, it was brought out in novel form in 1911.

2. Miss Read’s Village School by Miss Read

I wasn’t sure what to expect of this one but it ended up being so fun and relaxing and I can’t wait to read more in the series. I’ve read two so far.

Description: Welcome to the English village of Fairacre: a handful of thatch-roofed cottages, a church, the school, the promise of fair weather, friendly faces, and good cheer––at least most of the time. Here, everyone knows everyone else’s business, and the villagers like each other anyway (even Miss Pringle, the irascible, gloomy cleaner of Fairacre School).

With a wise heart and a discerning eye, Miss Read guides us through one crisp, glistening autumn in her village and introduces us to a cast of unforgettable characters and a world of drama, romance, and humor, all within a stone’s throw of the school. By the time winter comes, you’ll be nestled snugly into the warmth and wit of Fairacre and won’t want to leave.

3. The Inimitable Jeeves by P.G. Wodehouse

The Jeeves books are just ridiculous fun. They are full of drama but not scary or sad drama. Hilarious drama that playboy Bertie Wooster keeps getting himself into and his valet Jeeves has to get him out of. The chapters in this book were originally separate stories but they all flow together and were compiled for the book.

Description:

Upon their first appearance in 1915, Bertie Wooster and his highly competent valet Jeeves were destined to become Wodehouse’s most famous duo. The hilarious stories that feature the charmingly foppish Bertie and his equally lightheaded friends being rescued from tedious social obligations, annoying relatives, scrapes with the law, and romantic problems by the quiet interventions of Jeeves are among Wodehouse’s best-loved tales.




4. Heidi by Johanna Spyri  

I just read this book and it was very simple, relaxing, and heartwarming.

Description

Little orphan Heidi goes to live high in the Alps with her gruff grandfather and brings happiness to all who know her on the mountain. When Heidi goes to Frankfurt to work in a wealthy household, she dreams of returning to the mountains and meadows, her friend Peter, and her beloved grandfather.

5. The Enchanted April by Elizabeth Van Arnim

I am actually not totally finished with this book, but so far it is very relaxed and delightful.

Description:

Four disillusioned women seek respite together; polite strangers, sharing an idyllic retreat in Italy. Each carries a burden that must be lifted; each must find a way…

At San Salvatore, ghosts are exorcised and bounds broken: each woman finds her own way back to happiness, on her own terms – aided by the simple magic of an Italian Spring garden.

Any story of a struggle to break free is compelling to the human heart. One way or another, we must each break free of our own prison. This then is the story of Rose, Lotty, Scrap Dester & Mrs Fisher – and their quiet story is epic, like the poems of antiquity.

Elizabeth von Arnim’s modern classic of women’s fiction was a worldwide bestseller upon its publication in 1922. Her story struck an emotional chord with women everywhere, inspiring numerous theatre and radio adaptations, plus an Oscar nominated movie in 1991. Her supreme talent for both dreamy exposition and sharp, witty dialogue made her whole body of work hugely popular in Europe and the United States of America.

I found this one for free on Project Gutenberg.

6. Stillmeadow Daybrook by Gladys Taber

I have not actually finished this book yet, either. This is a book written with each chapter representing a month of the year. I just finished the first chapter, which was April, and I loved it. I can not wait to read more. This is a non-fiction book about a woman and her friend who live on a farm in Connecticut.

Gladys first bought the farm with her husband but he passed away, and her friend moved in with her.

Finding Gladys’ books are very hard to find and I was so excited to find this one on a bookshop on Instagram.

7. The Blue Castle by L.M. Montgomery

I’ve read this book twice now and it always relaxes my tense muscles as I read it.

Description:

The Blue Castle by L.M. Montgomery is a heartwarming and empowering story about self-discovery, courage, and finding true happiness. Set in the early 20th century, the novel follows Valancy Stirling, a shy and unfulfilled woman who has spent her life conforming to the expectations of her overbearing family. When faced with unexpected news about her health, Valancy decides to break free from societal norms and live life on her own terms. Moving to a remote cabin in the Muskoka woods, she discovers love, freedom, and the joy of living authentically. With its witty humor, vivid descriptions, and unforgettable characters, The Blue Castle is a timeless tale of transformation and resilience.

8. Home to Harmony by Philip Gulley

This book is full of individual stories about Quaker pastor Sam Gardener, his family, and the quirky characters of his town. The stories connect but there isn’t one long plot throughout the book. This is the first in the series.

Description:

In this acclaimed inaugural volume in the Harmony series, master American storyteller Philip Gulley draws us into the charming world of minister Sam Gardner in his first year back in his hometown, capturing the essence of small-town life with humor and wisdom.

9. Magical Melons/renamed Caddie Woodlawn’s Family by Carol Ryrie Brink

Little Miss and I listened to Caddie Woodlawn, the first book in this series a couple of years ago and at the end of 2025 we read this one and I found it much more relaxing and sweet than the first book. It is another middle grade book but it is very relaxing.

Description:

The high-spirited Caddie is back with her lively siblings for some amusing escapades. In these fourteen stories, learn about frontier life with the seven Woodlawn children. Join them as they romp through the pages, discovering a secret horde of watermelons long after melon season, engaging in cattail fights, and adopting baby animals. You’ll also encounter of a young preacher doing a favor for a wandering Indian, a poor girl revealing a surprising talent at a medicine show, and Caddie ruining her new dress at the Independence Day celebration. These latest adventures are sure to capture every reader’s attention—and heart.

10. A Bear Called Paddington by Michael Bond

Version 1.0.0

Oh gosh this book and the whole series. It is so cute and creative. I am sure most of you are familiar with the cartoons and the movies based on this book and the 12 other books in the series.

I have read these outloud to my daughter for about five or six years and when I am down I like to read them on my own..

Description:

Paddington Bear had traveled all the way from Peru when the Browns first met him in Paddington Station. Since then, their lives have never been quite the same . . . for ordinary things become extraordinary when a bear called Paddington is involved.

First published in 1958, A Bear Called Paddington is the first novel by Michael Bond, chronicling the adventures of this lovable bear. Paddington has charmed readers for generations with his earnest good intentions and humorous misadventures. This brand-new edition of the classic novel contains the original text by Michael Bond and illustrations by Peggy Fortnum.

Leave me some of the relaxing books you have read over the years in the comments. I’d love to add more to my list.

If you write book reviews or book-related blog posts, don’t forget that Erin and I host the A Good Book and A Cup of Tea Monthly Bookish Blog Party. You can learn more about it here.

On Thursdays, I am part of the Weekend Traffic Jam Reboot blog link party. You can find the latest one in the sidebar to the right under recent posts.

I also post a link-up on Sundays for weekly updates about what you are reading, watching, doing, listening to, etc.

Hello! Welcome to my blog. I am a blogger, homeschool mom, and I write cozy mysteries.

You can find my Gladwynn Grant Mystery series HERE.

You can also find me on Instagram and YouTube.

 Book Recommendation: Crooked House by Agatha Christie

On By Lisa R. HowelerIn book reviews, books and reading8 Comments

Here is some advice for you if you decide to read Crooked House by Agatha Christie: If you think that you know who the guilty party is, but you’re uncomfortable with who you think the guilty party is, go with that feeling and your choice.

That won’t make sense until you read the book, so here is a little background on this one, which does not feature one of Christie’s famous detectives.

This book is a standalone novel that starts with the main character Charles Hayward planning to marry Sophia Leonides who he met in Egypt toward the end of the war. They hang out while in Eqypt and correspond some afterward, but drift apart until he returns to England two years later. It’s after his return that he reads in the paper that Sophia’s grandfather has died. He knows it is her grandfather because she once told him all about her family.

“’We live in a crooked little house . . .’”

“I must have looked startled, for she seemed amused, and explained by elaborating the quotation. ‘And they all lived together in a little crooked house,’ That’s us. Not really such a little house either. But definitely crooked — running to gables and halftimbering!”

In this case the crooked little house quote is a play on the nursery rhyme “There Was a Crooked Little Man,” but I am not familiar with that nursery rhyme.

Due to the blitz, Sophia’s extended family was all living in the house with the patriarch, Aristide Leonides, a short Greek man who commanded a lot of presence. Her family includes her younger brother and sister, her parents, her uncle and an aunt by marriage, her grandfather, a great aunt, and a step-grandmother.”

Charles reaches out to her by telegram, and she asks to meet that night at a local restaurant. The connection they had two years ago is still strong, and he still wants to marry her, but she says she can’t marry him now, and maybe never. She believes her grandfather has been murdered, and she doesn’t want to ruin Charles’ reputation as a member of the Diplomatic Service because she feels certain the murder was committed by someone in her family.

The main suspect is her step-grandmother, Brenda, with the tutor for Sophia’s siblings a close second because the family believes the two were having an affair.

In the first part of the book, we get to know the entire family, and it isn’t very pretty. Many of them are selfish and bitter people looking out for themselves, and the ones who don’t seem that way may be putting on an act. Maybe even Sophia is putting on an act. Figuring out who committed the crime will baffle Charles and Scotland Yard, and when you get to the ending — oof. It’s definitely a plot twist, one I saw coming, but still had to find out how and why.

I would definitely recommend this one if you’ve never read Agatha before or even if you have. I think it’s one of her best, and I read today that she called it one of her favorites to write. It is definitely a book that will stick with you over the years, making you think (and shudder a bit) long after you’ve put it down.

Some quotes from it I enjoyed:

“Curious thing, rooms. Tell you quite a lot about the people who live in them.”

***

“I think people more often kill those they love than those they hate. Possibly because only the people you love can really make life unendurable to you.”

***

“I’ve never met a murderer who wasn’t vain… It’s their vanity that leads to their undoing, nine times out of ten. They may be frightened of being caught, but they can’t help strutting and boasting and usually they’re sure they’ve been far too clever to be caught.”

***

“Murder, you see, is an amateur crime… One feels, very often, as though these nice ordinary chaps, had been overtaken, as it were, by murder, almost accidentally. They’ve been in a tight place, or they’ve wanted something very badly, money or a woman – and they’ve killed to get it. The brake that operates with most of us doesn’t operate with them… They continue to be aware that murder is wrong, but they do not feel it. I don’t think, in my experience, that any murderer has really felt remorse… Murderers are set apart, they are ‘different’ – murder is wrong – but not for them – for them it is necessary – the victim has ‘asked for it,’ it was ‘the only way.”

Five phrases that make me run away from a book and five that make me pick it up.

On By Lisa R. HowelerIn books and reading, top-ten-tuesday20 Comments

Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl.

Today’s prompt is:  Buzzwords or Phrases That Make Me Want to Read (or Avoid) a Book (These words or phrases can be in the title, synopsis, marketing materials, reviews, author blurbs, etc. and immediately pique your interest or immediately make you say “NOPE”. Examples include: fae, forbidden romance, morally grey characters, unreliable narrator, found family, magical worlds, love triangle, marriage of convenience, dark academia, stranded, dragons, dual points of view, starting over, etc.)

Five that make me say nope (for now anyhow) and five that make me say yep!

First, five phrases/words that make me say “nope” and I want to clarify that just because these phrases make me say ‘nope’, I do not look down or judge those it says ‘yep’ too. These are personal preferences driven by my personal likes/dislikes and personality. There is a reason behind each of them and at least one of them is because of my background in newspaper reporting and some of the things I had to cover over that 14 years. Not all pleasant, let’s just say.

Also, don’t take my little, one-sentence response to the “nope” ones too seriously. I’m being dramatic as a joke….or am I? *wink* There are a couple I really hate, so I’m being a bit serious in my response.

  1. “Marriage of convenience”

I got some people royally mad at me recently for saying this on Instagram, but I was not polite about my absolute hatred for this trope, and I regret that. I could have said it in a much nicer way.

I very rarely willingly read a book with marriage of convenience in it. However, I will say that I have read a couple over the years who have pulled it off nicely. I didn’t know there was a marriage of convenience in them when I started but I pushed through because they were just nicely and tactfully handled.

2. “Forbidden romance”

Code words for “age gap”, inappropriate romances, or just a very cliché story. I will probably be gagging at all the side-glances, warm rushes, and “could he really be looking at me?” moments within the first few pages

3. The words ‘gory’, ‘horrific’, or ‘spine-chilling’.

This probably indicates a horror-type book and … nope! Not going to read it. Not my thing. Will be up all night with nightmares.

4. Phrases like “steam up the page…” “will have you fanning yourself…” “will leave you breathless with desire.”

Gag. No thank you. Sounds way too much like erotica, also known as Completely Unrealistic Expectation of Romance and Love Central.

5. “Politically significant” or “culturally significant”

Fiction or non-fiction I probably won’t touch this book. I can not stomach anything political and what is culturally significant to some is not usually earth shattering to me.

Now Five phrases that make me say ‘yep’!

  1. “Fun cozy mystery”

Sign me up. Fun and a cozy mystery? Yes. This is the escape I need a lot of the time.

“2. Loveable characters in a small town.”

Yes, please. As many books with this written on it as possible, please.

3. “Heartwarming” or “Gentle.”

I love anything with heartwarming or gentle feelings/vibes. My shelves are stocked with these type of books.

4. “Queen of Mystery.”

This probably means it is an Agatha Christie book and, yes, despite some mysteries having “unsavory” topics in them, I do like mysteries — even ones that aren’t cozy.

5. “Amateur Sleuth.”

I love a good Amateur-Sleuth-As-The-Main-Character book. I know they aren’t going to be an expert at solving the crime and might even make some fun blunders along the way.

A bonus to the nope list: Anything that says ‘BookTok’ or suggests a book was popular on ‘BookTok’. It’s an immediate pass for me. And anything that says “hot vampires”. No. Just no.

How about you? What phrases or words make you pick up a book or what phrases make you run away?

If you write book reviews or book-related blog posts, don’t forget that Erin and I host the A Good Book and A Cup of Tea Monthly Bookish Blog Party. You can learn more about it here.

On Thursdays, I am part of the Weekend Traffic Jam Reboot blog link party. You can find the latest one in the sidebar to the right under recent posts.

Hello! Welcome to my blog. I am a blogger, homeschool mom, and I write cozy mysteries.

You can find my Gladwynn Grant Mystery series HERE.

You can also find me on Instagram and YouTube.

Top Ten Books on My Spring 2026 To-Read List

On By Lisa R. HowelerIn books and reading, top-ten-tuesday14 Comments

Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl.

Today’s prompt is: Books on My Spring 2026 To-Read List

I already shared a post about what books I have on my spring hopeful list, so today I am narrowing the list down to the top ten from that list that I definitely want to read, even though I know other books will probably catch my attention along the way.

A note for this post: it does contain affiliate links.  Clicking the link does not mean that you will pay more for the item, only that I make a tiny commission if you make a purchase from that link.

  1. Thrush Green by Miss Read

I’ve read other Miss Read books and enjoyed them so wanted to try this one.

Discover the little English village that neighbors Fairacre, in a novel that’s “enchanting, lovely, gentle, pointed, and charming” (Minneapolis Sunday Tribune).
Miss Read’s charming chronicles of English small-town life have achieved legendary popularity, providing a welcome return to a gentler time with “wit, humor, and wisdom in equal measure” (The Plain Dealer).
Welcome to Thrush Green, the neighboring village to Fairacre, with its blackthorn bushes, thatch-roofed cottages, enchanting landscape, and jumble sales. Readers will enjoy meeting a new cast of characters and also spotting familiar faces as they become immersed in the village’s turn of events over the course of one pivotal day: May Day. All year, the residents of Thrush Green have looked forward to the celebration. Before the day is over, life and love, and perhaps eternity, will touch the immemorial peace of the village.

2. Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis

I keep saying I am going to read this one and just never do it! This spring I want to actually read it!

Our moral consciousness and moral judgements are proof to the human race that a moral being exists—God.

Mere Christianity explores the core beliefs of Christianity by providing an unequaled opportunity for believers and nonbelievers alike to hear a powerful, rational case for the Christian faith. A brilliant collection, Mere Christianity remains strikingly fresh for the modern reader and at the same time confirms C. S. Lewis’s reputation as one of the leading writer and thinkers of our age.

The book brings together Lewis’ legendary broadcast talks during World War II. Lewis discusses that everyone is curious about: right and wrong, human nature, morality, marriage, sins, forgiveness, faith, hope, generosity, and kindness.

3. Murder, She Wrote: Aloha Betrayed by Donald Bain  

These are always fun reads so I need at least one per season if not one per month!

Description: Jessica is on the Hawaiian island of Maui, giving a lecture on community involvement in police investigations. Her co-lecturer is legendary retired detective Mike Kane, who shares his love of Hawaiian lore, legends, and culture with Jessica. But the talking stops when the body of a colleague is found at the rocky foot of a cliff.

Mala Kapule, a botanist and popular professor at Maui College, was known for her activism and efforts on behalf of the volcanic crater Haleakala. Plans to place the world’s largest solar telescope there split the locals, with Mala arguing fiercely to preserve the delicate ecology of the area.

Now it’s up to Jessica and Mike to uncover who was driven to silence the scientist…and betray the spirit of aloha.

4. Crooked House by Agatha Christie

I am currently reading this one and enjoying it.

Description Described by the queen of mystery herself as one of her favorites of her published work, Crooked House is a classic Agatha Christie thriller revolving around a devastating family mystery.

The Leonides are one big happy family living in a sprawling, ramshackle mansion. That is until the head of the household, Aristide, is murdered with a fatal barbiturate injection.

Suspicion naturally falls on the old man’s young widow, fifty years his junior. But the murderer has reckoned without the tenacity of Charles Hayward, fiancé of the late millionaire’s granddaughter.

5. A Caribbean Mystery by Agatha Christie

This is my April read for the Read Christie 2026 Challenge.

Description: As Miss Marple sat basking in the Caribbean sunshine, she felt mildly discontented with life. True, the warmth eased her rheumatism, but here in paradise nothing ever happened.

Eventually, her interest was aroused by an old soldier’s yarn about a murderer he had known. Infuriatingly, just as he was about to show her a snapshot of this acquaintance, the Major was suddenly interrupted. A diversion that was to prove fatal.

6. Heidi by Johanna Spyri

I am reading this one with Erin from Still Life, With Cracker Crumbs.

Description: At the age of six, little orphan Heidi is sent to live with her grandfather in the Alps. Everyone in the village is afraid of him, but Heidi – fascinated by his long beard and bushy grey eyebrows – takes to him immediately and soon earns his love in return. She adores her life in the mountains, playing in the sunshine and growing up among the goats and birds, but one terrible day Heidi is collected by her aunt and forced to live with a new family in town. Heartbroken by the loss of her Alpine life, she must do everything she can to return to her grandfather.

7. Nancy’s Mysterious Letter by Carolyn Keene

Because I haven’t read a Nancy Drew in a bit.

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Description: By mistake, Nancy Drew receives a letter from England intended for an heiress, also named Nancy Drew. When Nancy undertakes a search for the missing young woman, it becomes obvious that a ruthless, dangerous man is determined to prevent her from finding the heiress or himself. Clues that Nancy unearths lead her to believe that the villainous Edgar Nixon plans to marry the heiress and then steal her inheritance.

8. Rascal by Sterling North

Little Miss and I will be reading this for school.

Description: Rascal is a beloved, autobiographical children’s book by Sterling North, published in 1963, that tells the heartwarming story of a boy’s year-long friendship with a pet raccoon in 1918 Wisconsin. The book, a Newbery Honor winner, chronicles the adventures of young Sterling and his mischievous companion, exploring themes of nature, family, and a changing world as the boy navigates life with his father after his mother’s death. 

9. A Damsel in Distress by P.G. Wodehouse

I’ve really enjoyed his Jeeves series so we will see about this one.

Description: P. G. Wodehouse’s charming tale of a taxi driver who falls in love with a wealthy woman who rides in his cab. Hilarity and antics ensue when he arrives at her rural estate.

10. An Biography by Agatha Christie

This one may take me a bit as it does seem long, but I am very interested in it.

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Description:

Back in print in the exclusive authorized edition, is the engaging and illuminating chronicle of the life of the “Queen of Mystery.” Fans of Hercule Poirot and Miss Marple and readers of John Curran’s fascinating biographies Agatha Christie’s Secret Notebooks and Murder in the Making will be spellbound by the compelling, authoritative account of one of the world’s most influential and fascinating novelists, told in her own words and inimitable style. The New York Times Book Review calls Christie’s autobiography a “joyful adventure,” saying, “she brings the sense of wonder…to her extraordinary career.”

Have you read any of these?

If you write book reviews or book-related blog posts, don’t forget that Erin and I host the A Good Book and A Cup of Tea Monthly Bookish Blog Party. You can learn more about it here.

On Thursdays, I am part of the Weekend Traffic Jam Reboot blog link party. You can find the latest one in the sidebar to the right under recent posts.

Hello! Welcome to my blog. I am a blogger, homeschool mom, and I write cozy mysteries.

You can find my Gladwynn Grant Mystery series HERE.

You can also find me on Instagram and YouTube.

The Blue Castle Chapters 23 to 44

On By Lisa R. HowelerIn books and reading12 Comments

I am going to be honest with my blog readers — I forgot to write the last blog post for our read along!

My husband was having horrible jaw pain, had to go to the ER (which he never does!)  and will need oral surgery so my mind just blanked on the fact I was supposed to write a final post about the last chapters of the book!

But on with the show.

These are my favorite chapters.

The chapters where all the sweet and subtle romance happens.

There are also some slower chapters for me in this part of the book, but I believe those slower chapters are meant to build up a picture for us of the love growing between Barney and Valancy.

It’s in these chapters where Valancy asks Barney to marry her after Cissy passes away.

She confesses to him about her heart condition and tells him she simply wants to experience some living before she dies.

She wants to live with him on his island and spend time with him and then she will  be dead and gone and he can move on with his life.

Barney agrees, and we aren’t sure if it is because he loves her or he feels sorry for her.

She isn’t either but she is amazed when they travel to his little island across the water, and she realizes his home, amongst the trees and nature, is how she pictured her blue castle.

Valancy loves Barney.

She loves his idiosyncrasies and the way he loves nature and how he cares about the animals, such as his cats.

When they first get married, he makes her promise that she will not go into his little shed out back and she says she doesn’t care about his shed or what he does in there, even if he has a dead wife hanging on the wall. Lucy Maud’s sense of humor  was so odd and quirky and I’m here for it.


They carry on life, scandalizing Valancy’s family who goes apoplectic when they learn Valancy has married a rumored womanizer and criminal.

Valancy likes to read and quote John Foster to Barney as they walk in the woods and he always rolls  his eyes and ask how she can read such silliness.

Gradually Valancy begins to look and feel better. She’s full of joy and her physical appearance is showing it. The dark circles have disappeared and she’s putting on healthy weight.

The chest pains and dizzy spells she used to have have just about disappeared.

Life is wonderful and then something crazy happens.

She and Barney are on their way back from town and are crossing the train tracks when her shoe gets stuck in the track. Before they know it, a train if barreling down on her.

Barney tries to get her loose but she tells him to leave her. She was going to die anyhow but he has a future.

Barney refuses and is able to get her loose and drag her to safety.

Afterwards Valancy realizes that if anything should have caused her weakened heart to fail, it should have been that near death experience.

She is mystified and horrified.

She worries Barney will think she somehow manipulated him into marriage, that she really isn’t dying. She believes this is how Barney feels when he becomes distant and announces he will be leaving for a while.

Cue the misunderstanding trope, which I often hate in modern romances, but which works well here.

It’s at this point that I was hoping what I thought might happen all along — that Valancy will find out that she isn’t really dying.

How exciting it was when Dr. Trent finds out he sent the wrong letter and how realistic for me, someone with chronic illness, to see a doctor screw up a diagnosis or send the wrong letter. Apparently, this whole thing of some/many doctors being inept isn’t a new thing. Unlike some doctors of today, though, Dr. Trent apologizes profusely.

Valancy is happy she isn’t dying, for the most part, but realizes how much she enjoyed life when she thought she didn’t have a lot of it left.

Her world has been turned upside yet again, but her day isn’t over yet.

She’s about to find out who Barney Snaith really is for an old man is waiting by the river when she arrives home, looking for a way to the island.

Valancy soon learns this man is Barney’s father, Mr. Redfern the man who founded the company that produces the elixirs her family always tried to make her take when they decided she was ill. Barney isn’t a poor man who just loves walking through the woods with her and listening to trees blow in the wind. He’s the son of a millionaire. He hasn’t talked to his father in years, but he still has wealthy connections.

There is this whole hilarious part where during her conversation with Mr. Redfern, Valancy would think of one of the advertising phrases for the elixir.

“Dr. Redfern took out a yellow handkerchief, removed his hat, and mopped his brow. He was very bald and Valancy’s imp whispered, “Why be bald? Why lose your manly beauty? Try Redfern’s Hair Vigor. It keeps you young.”

Dr. Redfern tells her that Barney was engaged once but then ran off and now Valancy thinks he would probably rather be married to the woman he used to be engaged to.

I could relate to Valancy feeling overwhelmed at this point. She’s just been told she isn’t dying, she finds out her husband is the son of one of the richest men in Canada, she’s worried her husband thinks she manipulated him— everything is completely messed up.

I truly felt her sadness and despair.

After Mr. Redfern leaves, telling her he’s shocked that Barney couldn’t even tell him he had a wife, even though they haven’t spoken in almost five years, Valancy decides she needs to leave because she feels like Barney definitely only married her because he thought she was going to die.

She wants to write a farewell letter to Barney but can’t find a pencil so goes into the shed she was never supposed to go in and learns that Barney is really John Foster! All those beautiful things that John Foster wrote are really coming from Barney! He was derisive about John Foster because he didn’t want her to know who he was in case she liked him only because he was the writer she loved so much.

If you’ve read the book, then you might have been like me and yelling at the page because you just feel in your gut this is not why Barney left.  Maybe he was trying to process things but I just felt that he was not leaving Valancy.

It was so hard to see Valancy go back to her depressing life with her mother and aunts and uncles.

I was just praying that Barney would come back to rescue her and when he did, I was so thrilled! The way he tells her that he wasn’t running away from her, and how he realized the day she almost died on the train tracks how much he loved her is just so special and lovely.

“But I didn’t realize what you actually meant to me till that moment at the switch. Then it came like a lightning flash. I knew I couldn’t live without you — that if I couldn’t live without you — that if I couldn’t pull you loose in time I’d have to die with you. I admit it bowled me over — knocked me silly. I couldn’t get my bearings for a while.”

What really upset him was that he knew he loved her, but he also knew she was going to die, and it drove him mad with sadness.

He tells her how his previous fiancé only wanted him for his money and when he first met Valancy he needed to know she wanted him for him, not his money.

Sure, he felt sorry for her at first when he married her, but then he fell hard for her.

“You made me believe again in the reality of friendship and love,” he says. “The world seemed good again just because you were in it honey. I’d have been willing to go on forever just as we were. I knew that, the night I came home and saw my homelight shining out from the island for the first time and knew you were there waiting for me. After being homeless all my life it was beautiful to have a home. To come home hungry at night and know there was a good supper and a cheery fire — and you.”

*sniff*

I mean, seriously…I just love this whole section. No, I don’t like some romances as much as other genres, but this romance is just so sweet.

I love when she says he shouldn’t love her and he says, “Love you! Girl, you’re in the very core of my heart. I hold you there like a jewel. Didn’t I promise you I’d never tell you a lie? Love you! I love you with all there is of me to love. Heart, soul, brain. Every fiber of body and spirit thrilling to the sweetness of you. There is nobody in the world for me but you Valancy!”

Valancy doesn’t believe him for a bit, and I just wanted to reach inside the book and shake her a bit and yell, “Girl! Wake up!! He really loves you!”

I don’t know about you but I was a little disappointed when they decide to travel the world instead of stay on their island, or at Valancy’s blue castle. I’m glad they plan to stay there for summers but I don’t like the idea that the two of them may become jaded by the world without nature to ground them. I guess that is why they decided to keep the little island and plan to return to it as often as they can.

This bring us to the end of our read along of The Blue Castle.

What did you think of the book as a whole and especially the ending?