Friday, January 9, 2026

Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption by Stephen King

Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption by Stephen King

⭐⭐⭐/5

Synopsis (from Goodreads)
Suspenseful, mysterious, and heart-wrenching, Stephen King’s extraordinary novella, populated by a cast of unforgettable characters, tells a powerful tale of crushing despair and liberating hope through the eyes of Ellis “Red” Redding. Red’s a guy who can get you whatever you want here in Maine’s corrupt and hard-edged Shawshank State Penitentiary (for a price, of course), but the one thing he doesn’t count on is an unexpected friendship forged with fellow inmate Andy Dufresne—an inscrutable one-time banker perhaps falsely convicted of brutal, calculated murder who will go on to transform everyone’s lives within these prison walls.

An Academic Affair by Jodi McAlister

An Academic Affair by Jodi McAlister -- 366 pages

Sadie Shaw and Jonah Fisher have been academic rivals since they first crossed paths as undergraduates in the literature department thirteen years ago. Now that a highly coveted teaching opportunity has come up, their rivalry hits epic proportions. Jonah needs the job to move closer to his recently divorced sister and her children, while Sadie needs the financial security and freedom of a full-time teaching position.

When Sadie notices that the job offers partner hire, however, she hatches a plot to get them both the job. All they must do is get legally married. It’s a simple win-win solution but when sparks begin to fly, it becomes clear that despite their education, these two may not have thought this whole thing through.


Thursday, January 8, 2026

The Secret Christmas Library by Jenny Colgan - 305 pages

 The Secret Christmas Library by Jenny Colgan



Mirren Sutherland stumbled into a career as an antiquarian book hunter after finding a priceless antique book in her great aunt’s attic. Now, as Christmas approaches, she’s been hired by Jamie McKinnon, the surprisingly young and handsome laird of a Highland clan whose ancestral holdings include a vast crumbling castle. Family lore suggests that the McKinnon family’s collection includes a rare book so valuable that it could save the entire estate—if they only knew where it was. Jamie needs Mirren to help him track down this treasure, which he believes is hidden in his own home.

But on the train to the Highlands, Mirren runs into rival book hunter Theo Palliser, and instantly knows that it’s not a chance meeting. She’s all too familiar with Theo’s good looks and smooth talk, and his uncanny ability to appear whenever there’s a treasure that needs locating.

Almost as soon as Mirren and Theo arrive at the castle, a deep snow blankets the Highlands, cutting off the outside world. Stuck inside, the three of them plot their search as the wind whistles outside. Mirren knows that Jamie’s grandfather, the castle’s most recent laird, had been a book collector, a hoarder, and a great lover of treasure hunts. Now they must unpuzzle his clues, discovering the secrets of the house—forming and breaking alliances in a race against time.

Holly by Adalyn Grace

Holly by Adalyn Grace -- 384 pages

Something strange is happening at Wisteria Gardens, the magical manor that Blythe and Aris call home. All they want is a peaceful holiday season with their family, but a group of restless spirits is determined to threaten their festivities. With a new mystery to solve, Signa, Death, Blythe, and Fate must uncover what happened to Wisteria’s ghostly inhabitants and help the spirits move on before it’s too late.


Wednesday, January 7, 2026

Murder, She Wrote: A Body in Boston by Jessica Fletcher

 Murder, She Wrote: A Body in Boston by Jessica Fletcher - 304 pages

Jessica is invited to deliver a lecture at the Boston Public Library around the same time Seth is headed to Boston to give a lecture for an old med school buddy.  They decide to travel together and see some sites while they are there.  Jessica is excited to plan to see some local friends including PI  Harry McGraw.  What they didn't plan was to get caught up in investigating a murder that the local pub bartender's daughter is accused of.   I enjoyed the book.  Looking forward to another.

Robin, Vol. 1: The Lazarus Tournament by Joshua Williamson

Robin, Vol. 1: The Lazarus Tournament by Joshua Williamson
Robin (2021), 184 pages

⭐⭐⭐⭐/5

Synopsis (from Goodreads)
Damian Wayne will be forced to find his own path as Robin away from both sides of his family—his father, Bruce Wayne, the Dark Knight, and his mother, Talia al-Ghul, the daughter of Ra’s al Ghul, the ecoterrorist known as The Demon’s Head!

After learning of the deadly League of Lazarus tournament, Damian Wayne has a new mission: win the tournament and prove he is the greatest fighter in the DC Universe! But first he must find the secret island where it’s all going down!

Dark Knights of Steel, Vol. 1 by Tom Taylor

Dark Knights of Steel, Vol. 1 by Tom Taylor
Dark Knights of Steel #1, 176 pages

⭐⭐⭐.75/5

Synopsis (from Goodreads)
An entire medieval world will be forever changed when a spaceship crash-lands from a doomed planet. Years later the El Kingdom reins and Jefferson Pierce, the head of the Kingdom of Storms sees their family as a threat and gathers allies to challenge them. Monarchs will die, kingdoms will rise, and what seemed like the end of the world for many…was only the beginning! An epic high-fantasy story set in a DC Universe where nothing is what it seems…