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Don’t let the format of this book scare you. It’s very easy to follow as the writer floats back and forth between past and present; the what was, the what is, and the what might have been. Yes, this is ultimately a romance novel so all of our readers who enjoy a good love story will find a place here….

Kevin Hazzard and his wife, Sabrina were living a safe, quiet life in Atlanta in 2001. Kevin was working as a reporter, while Sabrina was working her way up the corporate ladder. In the aftermath of 9/11, Hazzard became restless. He felt the need to step out of his comfort zone, to test himself. It took seven years, but ultimately…

The Impossible Fortress is an absolute delight! If you grew up in the 1980s or if you just long for a time when life was simpler and sweeter, this novel is for you. The nostalgia alone had me smiling from beginning to end. Who doesn’t remember perusing the cassette tapes at Musicland or Sam Goody, or watching John Hughes movies?…

2016 has been The-Year-of-the-Memoir for me. I have been reading them like crazy. While I did not watch Gilmore Girls, I did watch Parenthood faithfully and became a huge fan of Lauren Graham. Lauren just seems like a woman I would have all kinds of fun with. After reading her new collection of essays, my suspicions were confirmed. This is…

To members of my generation, the name Patty Hearst rings all kinds of bells. She is the granddaughter of one of the richest men the world has ever known, William Randolph Hearst. She is also the subject of one of the most famous photos ever taken. Patty is the poster child for Stockholm Syndrome and of course, one of the…

Don’t let the title fool you. While this incredible novel takes place in Russia, it is set entirely in the Grand Hotel Metropol. A Gentleman in Moscow is the story of Count Alexander Rostov who is found guilty by the state of being an aristocrat, a crime for which he is sentenced to house arrest in the famous hotel across…

If you ever doubted the power of a book to help a person escape their own reality, you won’t after reading The Maximum Security Book Club. The author is a college literature professor who started a classics book club at the Jessup Correctional Institution outside of Baltimore three years ago. Through her ability with words, Brottman makes you feel a…

This book is the “nothing” story of how one television show changed our cultural landscape. Seinfeld, one of my all-time favorite shows, is still one of the most oft quoted programs in history. Armstrong tells the story of the comedians who started the series and of the show itself. All Seinfeld fans will enjoy learning the origins of some of…

Every now and then I give a book in the Young Adult genre a go. Gary Schmidt is a no-nonsense author, who gets right to the heart of the matter. No stuff. No fluff. I like his style! In Orbiting Jupiter, Schmidt tells the heart wrenching story of thirteen-year-old Joseph. Joseph is truly old before his time. At his young…

This is a daring attempt to tell a fictionalized account of a famous true crime.  The girls in the title are all members of a cult during the late 1960s with a charismatic leader named Russell.  (Am I the only one thinking of Charles Manson?)  By the time too many chapters go by this group has committed a horrible crime…