Bunches (Well, Four) Of Mini Reviews
I’m a tad bit overwhelmed with all of the reviews that I have to write :/ I tend to do that to myself. And I haven’t written any mini-reviews in awhile. I like mini-reviews. Let’s face it, most of my reviews are basically mini-reviews anyway…but these will be even more miniature. I like them because they’re short, concise and force me to get to exactly what worked or didn’t work for me with a book. So here are four recent books that I’ve read:
The first is This World We Live In by Susan Beth Pfeffer. I’ve waited SO long for this book!!! I absolutely love this series. I’ve come to call it “the moon series”. Don’t know if it actually has a name, but it’s that series where the moon gets pushed closer to the earth and all sorts of natural disasters happen which in turn causes horrible things to happen to PEOPLE. In the first book, we followed the story of Miranda, in the second, the story of Alex. Well, with this book, their paths meet. And I really can’t say much more than that because this book just has to be experienced. Pfeffer is a master of “the experience.” She can MAKE you lose your breath when you’re reading her books. She goes back to journal form with this one like she did with Life As We Knew It. Which I liked. I know it didn’t work for some, but it worked really well for me. Some of the book I found to be a tad unbelievable, but I was able to suspend my disbelief overall and just enjoy the story. It’s a good one. And I’d be happy if the series ended with this book. Though of course, I’d love to see more as well.
I also recently read Raven Stole the Moon by Garth Stein which I know you’ve all seen MANY times on it’s recent blog tour. 
Sadly, I was given the book for the blog tour but was unable to keep up my end of the bargain due to life circumstances beyond my control. But let me tell you this….I totally think the hype surrounding this book is actually justified. Damn, I fell in love with this book!!! It has everything I love. A touching personal story that felt real and not contrived in the least bit, tons of mythology and folklore, it taught me about a culture that I didn’t know about before, and the writing was just exquisite and so unique. For those who don’t know yet, it’s the story of a woman who journeys to Alaska to find closure and to find herself after things fall apart between her and her husband gradually after the death of her young son who died in Alaska. She turns to a shaman and finds herself entangled in Alaskan folktales and mythology and comforted by the arms of strangers as she goes on her journey and it’s all just such a beautiful tale. I so hope that others read this one if they haven’t yet!!
Next up is The Storm in the Barn by Matt Phelan. This one is a graphic novel! And it’s from the library. Woohoo! I finally read one of my library books! I just wish I could’ve read it a few more times before I had to return it because I feel like I didn’t spend enough time with it. I feel like I may have read it at a bad time. I just never fully connected with this one. It’s the story of a young boy growing up in a town that’s been taken over by dust and has become barren. It hasn’t rained in years. The boy is picked on by his classmates, his father can’t find a use for him and his sister is sick with pneumonia like symptoms. The doctor in town thinks that the boy may have “dust dementia” but he thinks he has found the reason for the drought and it lies in a barn adjacent to his home…a dark entity lies in wait with water dripping from it. Sounds like something I would love, right? So I don’t know why I didn’t 
I honestly don’t. It seemed maybe too rushed or unfinished or unpolished or something…I don’t know. But try it out anyhow, you may disagree with me!
And finally, I finished my first Dorothy Sayers book today and OMG I loved it so much!!!! I’m a sucker for reading books in series
order, so I read the first book in the Lord Peter Wimsey Mystery series, Whose Body? and I plan to continue reading the remaining 14 in order after finishing this one :p Prior to this book, I’ve never really been a mystery reader. I’ve read mysteries that have fit into other genres, like John Lawson’s Sorrow for instance which is also a dark fantasy type tale, but never just an old fashioned mystery. I found that I loved it though! I can’t thank Ana enough for recommending Sayers to me. But I guess I should tell you what this book is actually about. Lord Peter Wimsey is an amateur detective that is really anything but amateur. He’s widely respected for what he does though he sees it as a hobby, really. His other hobby by the way is book collecting, a fact that I absolutely loved!! And he has a wonderful library filled with rare editions and a fireplace and leather chairs and…ok, the story Chris, the story….Anyway, Peter is summoned to an apartment when a dead body turns up in a couples bathtub to their surprise one morning wearing nothing but a pair of gold pince-nez (those little eyeglasses with no ear pieces). The book follows his deduction of the crime and is filled with wit, intellect, humor, wonderful writing, and fantastic characters. Seriously, I just can’t wait to read more of Sayers stuff. In fact, I’ve already ordered the next in the series :p
And now I can breathe a sigh of relief because I’m all caught up on my reviews!!!
Oh yeah. Dorothy Sayers is incredible. I was introduced to her books by the librarian when I was in my early teens. I read her before I read Agatha Christie.
She’s always been one of my favorite authors. Glad to see someone mention her!
Oh boy.. well i hope you list your reads on Carls linky!
You are just whizzing along which surprised me since I know of your headaches! I am happy to think you have some painless times to read!
The Sayers books sounds really good but I sure don’t need to begin a series of 14 books when I can’t get my tbr down!!! grrrrrrrrrrrr darn you! lol
yay for being caught up on your reviews!!! I loved loved Raven Stole the Moon…your thoughts were great on this one and I so agreed with everything that you wrote. I have to read book 2 in The Moon series…the first one gave me nightmares!!!!!!!!!!!! I did enjoy Storm in the Barn but didn’t fall in love with it either. I have a Sayers book that I found at my library sale…Ana is the reason I grabbed this one too!!!
Have a wonderful Easter!
I feel like there’s nothing positive I can say in this comment except that I’m glad you liked so many of these books. As for me, though, hearing that This World We Live In goes back to diary format makes me even less excited to read the other books in the series, because it really didn’t work for me. And finding out Whose Body is the first of 14 books makes me want to run away. Series that big scare me! But again I’m glad you enjoyed these!
It’s a series of 14, really? I didn’t know there were that many. I’ve only read two of the Wimsey books that don’t have Harriet Vane in, but I kind of like the idea of reading them in order from the beginning. I am a completist that way.
Ahhhhhhh! What am I going to do with you?!! Seriously. Think I needed to add four books to my wish list with one post? Well, I didn’t! But that’s what you’re making me do! (Oh, alright, I can’t pin This World We Live On on you…I loved the first two so much that of course, I wanted to read this one already.) But the rest, Chris…come on! I’d managed to somehow avoid (without even trying) all the reviews of Raven, though I certainly heard people talking about it. But after reading your thoughts, I know I have to have it. And The Storm in the Barn…sheesh…you didn’t even like it, but somehow I still think I might, so on the list it goes, too. And as for the Sayers…I’d told myself I was only going to read the Harriet Vane ones, but now you’ve got me thinking that I ought to just start from the very beginning, too. Dammit, Chris…it’s a darn good thing I love you so much, or I might just be tempted to get mad about today’s damage to the wish list.
Oooh, the Pfeffer book sounds so cool! I don’t think I am aware of that series, but I’m glad to be now. I will have to look it up!
Okay, actually, Aarti’s comment that she wasn’t aware of the Pfeffer series just goes to show maybe there’s no such thing as too much book blog coverage!
I didn’t like Raven like you did, but I’m glad you did enjoy it. Sorry the Phelan didn’t connect as well this time, though. And clearly I need to read some Sayers!
Glad you enjoyed the Peter Wimsey book, I’ve read them all in order and it’s really worth it to see his character develop. My absolute favourite is Murder Must Advertise, and I’ll be interested to see what you think when you get that far.
I love doing mini reviews for the same reasons you mentioned. You know how I periodically try to work on brevity and fail? Yet, my end-of-month summaries are concise. I think when Kiddo goes off to college, I may just do end-of-month summaries and can the rest or go to mini-reviews and not let myself get so carried away.
Anyway . . . great reviews! The first two are on my wish list. I love anything set in Alaska. I’ve got a Dorothy Sayers book (with 3 mysteries) around here, somewhere, unless I re-donated it. I would never have expected you to like Dorothy Sayers! Shows what I know.
Stacey, She really is fantastic!! I’m so glad that I’ve discovered her. I can definitely see me flying through all of her books!
Deslily, I think you’d really like the Sayers books!! They’re not technically a series. They’re all standalone mysteries. They’re just called a series because they all feature the same detective. I’m just reading them in published order so I can see the detective evolve :p But you don’t have to read them like that. It’s not a series where you have to read one book to know what’s going on in the next.
Staci, Sounds like we’re pretty much in the same boat with everything
I’m glad to hear that you enjoyed Raven Stole the Moon as much as I did 
It was so good!!
Amanda,
Yeah, you might not like This world We Live In if you didn’t like the diary format…I thought it was good though! Like I told Pat, the Sayers books are stand alone mysteries…they’re a series in that they’re all “Lord Peter Wimsey Mysteries”. But you don’t have to read one to know what’s going on in the next. I thought it was a great book!
Jenny, yay!! I’m not the only crazy completist :p People think I’m nuts for reading things in published order sometimes, but I’m so anal about having to do that!! LOL. I just like watching the evolution of characters.
Debi, Sorry!!! LOL. This World We Live In was Really good! I think you’ll like it a lot. Especially if you liked the first two. Same heart beating action with a touching story. Raven Stole the Moon is SO GOOD!!! And I think it’s your kind of book too Debi. I really think you’ll like that one. Sorry I’m not helping here, am I? :/ And I do think that you’d like Storm in the Barn even though it wasn’t my favorite. And yes yes yes…read all the Sayers that you can
Aarti, Oooooh!!!! You must go start the Pfeffer series NOW!! LOL…it’s so good!
Amy, Seriously! I guess there really can never be enough coverage of a book! I wish everyone would read that series. I just love it. I’m sure there are mixed thoughts on Raven. I skipped most of the reviews because I was in the middle of reading it when they were being published. I really need to go back and read the reviews now though!
Bride of the Book God, Definitely plan on reading them in order!! And Murder Must Advertise sounds really good just based on the title alone! I loved Whose Body so much…just such a fun book
Nancy, Hey you!!! How are you my dear? We’ve had this conversation before :p Like I said, we need to meet in the middle somewhere. I really need to take lessons from you on how to expand my reviews! Personally, I don’t think your reviews are ever too long!! I think you write perfect reviews. I always enjoy them
Mini reviews are fun though. I always enjoy doing them. Glad to hear that the first two are on your wishlist! If you like anything to do with Alaska, then I really think you’ll like Raven Stole the Moon. It’s your kind of book. And there’s so much fantastic Alaskan folklore in it! I would’ve never expected me to like Dorothy Sayers either to be honest with you!! Totally surprised myself :p She’s great though!! I want to read them all now!