I really enjoyed Shadow on the Crown, the first in the Emma of Normandy trilogy, so when I was offered a review copy of The Steel Beneath the Silk, I jumped at it. I even reread Shadow on the Crown to make sure everything was fresh in my head (it didn’t hurt that the British… Read More ARC Book Review: The Steel Beneath the Silk by Patricia Bracewell
Anthony Horowitz… where have I heard that name before? Oh yeah, I used to read a lot of Alex Rider. It was a bit of a surprise to me when a few years ago, I started hearing Anthony Horowitz’s name in a non-Alex Rider context. And it was a bigger surprise a few weeks ago… Read More Rereading: Magpie Murders by Anthony Horowitz
I think I’m getting better at finishing opened teas before starting new ones because I finished the Jun Chiyabari Oolong and the Tea & Toast blend before opening this. The Nara Native Mountain-grown Sencha is one of the teas from The Tea Crane, run by Tyas Sosen (who also wrote The Story of Japanese Tea),… Read More Tea Review: Nara Native Mountain-grown Sencha from The Tea Crane
After an enjoyable experience reading Sherlock Holmes for the first time, I decided to buy another book by Arthur Conan Doyle (also, the fact that I like this series of covers may have played a role in it). The Adventure of the Six Napoleons and other cases is a baker’s dozen of Sherlock Holmes short… Read More Book Review: The Adventure of the Six Napoleons and Other Cases by Arthur Conan Doyle
I got this (and a few tea samples) as part of The Tea Crane Kickstarter and was super excited to dive into it! For context, I read this after finishing the third report for the Japanese Tea Instructor course, so I was already in the frame of mind where I wanted to learn more about… Read More Tea Book Review: The Story of Japanese Tea by Tyas Sosen
This is my second Detective Kaga book (I previously read Malice) and I think this is what’s going to turn me into a Higashino Keigo fangirl! I mean, I loved the Galileo series, but more for the TV adaptation than the books. Newcomer is a murder mystery – a woman has been found dead in… Read More Book Review: Newcomer by Higashino Keigo
It’s always a bit scary to read something by someone that has earned multiple awards for their writing, because what if you don’t like it?? That was my experience with Exhalation, a collection of science-fiction short stories by Ted Chiang. I’m not super familiar with science-fiction short stories, so I don’t know if it’s a… Read More Book Review: Exhalation by Ted Chiang
In summer the sun slants across the garden, but the drawing-room smells of rose and of potpourri and is always cool. In the drawing-room you do not forget about the sea. From Chapter 1 of The People of the Sea by David Thomson This book was not written recently and it shows (in a good… Read More Book Review: The People of the Sea by David Thomson
I have been dealing with some stomach problems, which means that I haven’t been able to drink as much tea as I’d like. So, looking at my teacups is a substitute (of sorts) and got me to actually work on this post instead of sighing at the thought of how much I’ve purchased. I hope… Read More 2021 Teacup Collection Update (Part 2)
With ‘So You’ve Been Publicly Shamed’ fresh in my mind, I started on ‘The Perils of Privilege’ by Phoebe Maltz Bovy, only to find… the book opening with a shaming of someone whose privilege has been called out. But despite the close connection that the privilege call-out has with shaming, ‘The Perils of Privilege’ doesn’t… Read More Two Books, One Review Part 2: The Perils of Privilege by Phoebe Maltz Bovy
