Susan is a Hudson resident, avid reader, and Book Chat enthusiast. Join Book Chat on the 4th Thursday of the month at 10:30am, January through October, to get Susan’s take without waiting for us to publish it here.
From Susan, herself:
I hope that you are enjoying these book reviews. As Jenny mentioned, I am a Hudson resident and an avid reader. I can thank my parents who were avid readers themselves and encouraged my sisters and I to read whatever caught our fancy, no matter the subject matter. As a child I eagerly read the “Childhood of Famous Americans” biography series in the school library. In high school I discovered Agatha Christie and am a mystery lover to this day! But over time I learned to enjoy most all genres including history, sci-fi, memoirs, and whatever else catches my eye at the library or book store. Sometimes I wish there were more hours in the day so I could read more! But while I love talking about books, I also relish hearing about what other people are reading so come join us at Book Chat!
The Hotel Nantucket by Elin Hilderbrand
In this story, London billionaire Xavier Darling has bought the historic hotel Nantucket still surviving...
The Faithful Spy by Alex Berenson
If you were the CIA handlers of an operative embedded with al-Qaeda who had been...
Autopsy by Patricia Cornwell
This is a Kay Scarpetta novel but is quite enjoyable on its own. Dr. Kay...
Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus
In the late 1950s to the early 1960s, women were supposed to fall in love...
How to Stop Time by Matt Haig
This was the Hudson literary guild selection for March. It has an interesting premise –...
Storm Watch by CJ Box
Danger looms throughout this book and the threats range from the weather, including late season...
Two Graves by Douglas Preston & Lee Child
This is the third and final installment in the “Helen” trilogy which answers a few...
Cold Vengeance by Douglas Preston & Lee Child
This is book number two in the “Helen” trilogy. FBI special agent Pendergast has learned...
Fever Dream by Douglas Preston & Lee Child
This book is also the first in the “Helen” trilogy. In this story we learned...
The Woman in the Library by Sulari Gentill
The premise of this book is intriguing. Four strangers who just happen to sit at...
Verity by Colleen Hoover
At first, this appears to be a fairly straightforward story. Near bankrupt author Lowen Ashleigh...
Fox Creek by William Kent Krueger
Both Stephen O’Connor and ancient Ojibwe healer, Henry Meloux, have seen visions of Henry’s death...
The Barbizon: The Hotel That Set Women Free by Paulina Bren
As I continue my quest to read something from each of the Dewey decimal system...
The Dollhouse by Fiona Davis
At the Barbizon Residential Hotel, young women new to New York City, but with ambitions...
The Dinner Lady Detectives by Hannah Hendy
Margery and Clementine are lunch ladies, though Clementine prefers their actual title which is Education...
The Defender: How the Legendary Black Newspaper Changed America by Ethan Michaeli
This non-fiction book came in at just over 500 pages, but I am glad to...
A World of Curiosities by Louise Penny
Even though it’s spring in the ordinarily tranquil village of Three Pines, there is a...
Rin Tin Tin: The Life and the Legend by Susan Orleans
Baby boomers like me might have vague memories of a TV show from the 1950s...
The Japanese Lover by Isabel Allende
This was a Hudson Literary Guild selection. The story focuses on Alma Belasco and the...
David and Goliath by Malcolm Gladwell
Gladwell is always fascinating to read. In this work he considers how so-called little guys...
I Work at a Public Library by Gina Sheridan
I picked up this nonfiction book while trying to complete my Hudson Library Book Bingo...
Desert Star by Michael Connelly
I had a Christmas gift card burning a hole in my pocket when I found...
Livid by Patricia Cornwell
This is a Kay Scarpetta story, but complete and enjoyable on its own. As the...
No Plan B by Lee Child and Andrew Grant
Jack Reacher’s latest adventure starts in Colorado when he sees a woman being pushed under...
The Twelve Topsy-Turvy, Very Messy Days of Christmas by James Patterson
Will and Ella Sullivan live with their dad, Henry, in a big old house. There...
Triple Cross by James Patterson
Alex Cross is on the case again along with his friend and coworker, John Sampson...
The Beekeeper’s Apprentice by Laurie King
This is the first in the Mary Russell and Sherlock Holmes series that I accidentally...
Turn a Blind Eye by Jeffrey Archer
This is the third William Warwick book, but complete on its own. In this story...
A Twist of the Knife by Anthony Horowitz
This is yet another mystery where real life author, Anthony Horowitz, is both narrator and...
Fortune & Glory: Tantalizing Twenty-Seven by Janet Evanovich
Fugitive apprehension agent – AKA bounty hunter – Stephanie Plum is at it again! Grandma...
A Line to Kill by Anthony Horowitz
Successfully mixing reality and fiction, author Anthony Horowitz plays Dr. Watson to former Detective Inspector...
Where’d You Go, Bernadette by Maria Semple
Bernadette is a stay-at-home mom to Bee, a miracle child, born with a heart defect...
The Alice Network by Kate Quinn
Historical Fiction at its finest! Using the real-life spy network (The Alice Network created by...
From Slave to State Legislator by David Joens
This non-fiction book explores the life and political career of John W. E. Thomas. He...
State of Terror by Louise Penny & Hilary Clinton
Wow! Talk about thrilling – this book is it!!! With a combination of fictional, but...
The Talented Miss Farwell by Emily Gray Tedrowe
You may have heard of the case of Rita Crundwell, former comptroller of Dixon, Illinois...
Relic by Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child
Visitors to the New York Museum of Natural History are found savagely murdered, and their...
24 Hours by Greg Iles
The kidnapper had pulled off the “perfect” crime before several times without being caught. Kidnap...
The Cactus by Sarah Haywood
Susan Green has created the perfect life – for one. She has a job that...
Killing Season by Faye Kellerman
Three years ago, 16-year old Ellen Vicksburg disappeared. One year after her disappearance, her younger...
The Maidens by Alex Michaelides
Mariana Andros is a group therapist still trying to deal with the unexpected death of...
A Lesson in Secrets by Jacqueline Winspear
It’s 1933, and former World War I nurse, now private investigator, Maisie Dobbs accepts an...
The Guest List by Lucy Foley
Imagine being on a remote Irish island to attend the wedding of two beautiful and...
The Corrections by Jonathan Franzen
This interesting book was – in 2019 – voted 16th in a list of 100...
The Madness of Crowds by Louise Penny
What other author could bring together characters such as a Nobel Peace Prize nominee from...
The Rose Code by Kate Quinn
The little-known history is Bletchley Park, Britain’s World War II code-breaking center, is brought to...
Manitou Canyon by William Kent Krueger
Even though the police have already abandoned the search for an engineer who disappeared while...
Nothing Ventured by Jeffrey Archer
While the forward of this book suggests that “this is not a detective story, this...
Killer Pancake by Diane Mott Davidson
As she is taking food to the Mignon Cosmetics banquet – at which the cosmetic...
The Last Letter from Your Lover by Jojo Moyes
Imagine waking up in a hospital bed with no memory of the accident that put...
Recipe for a Perfect Wife by Karma Brown
Alice and her husband Nate buy a house in the suburbs of New York City...
Murder at Monticello by Rita Mae Brown and Sneaky Pie Brown
An archeological dig at Monticello – home of Thomas Jefferson – uncovers a body under...
The Growing Season by Sarah Frey
This was a Hudson Literary Guild selection about a female entrepreneur. At times this book...
The Handsome Man’s Deluxe Cafe by Alexander McCall Smith
(an audio book narrated by Lisette Lecat) Precious Ramotswe and Grace Makutsi, now co-director of...
Blink by Malcolm Gladwell
We all make ‘snap’ decisions now and then, but some of us get better results...
The Lying Game by Ruth Ware
Isa, Thea, Fatima and Kate meet at Salten, a boarding school on the English coast. ...
The Bone Collection by Kathy Reichs
This book consists of four novellas all involving forensic anthropologist Temperance Brennan at various stages...
The Last Thing He Told Me by Laura Dave
Before she realizes the husband is even missing, Hannah receives a note from him. In...
The Last Passenger by Charles Finch
In 1855 London, Charles Lenox finds himself trying to unravel the mystery of the dead...
Sunflower Sisters by Martha Hall Kelly
During the American Civil War the paths of three women intersect. There are: Georgeanna “Georgy”...
Ugly Prey by Emilie Le Beau Lucchesi
The sub-title of this non-fiction book is “An Innocent Woman and the Death Sentence that...
All the Single Ladies by Dorothea Benton Frank
Lisa St. Clair is a nurse in a senior living facility where her favorite patient...
Chocolate Chip Cookie Murder by Joanne Fluke
Things are normally pretty quiet in Lake Eden, Minnesota and Hannah keeps plenty busy running...
Mrs. Lincoln’s Sisters by Jennifer Chiaverini
Moving back and forth in time, this author examines the relationships of Mary Todd Lincoln...
White Houses by Amy Bloom
Real-life Lorena Hickock, reporter and author reflects (in this historical fiction) on her long-term relationship...
Rest in Pieces by Rita Mae Brown and Sneaky Pie Brown
When gorgeous, single Blair Bainbridge moves to tiny Crozet, Virginia all the local matchmakers think...
The Spymistress by Jennifer Chiaverini
Many of us have never heard of Elizabeth Van Lew, but her efforts on behalf...
Good Riddance by Elinor Lipman
A Hudson Library Literary Guild selection. When Daphne’s mom died, she left Daphne her most...
Promise Me by Harlan Coben
Who would have thought that simply asking the teen kids of long-time friend to call...
The Mystery of Mrs. Christie by Marie Benedict
This author of historical fiction about little-known women has Agatha Christie, the world’s best-selling author...
The Wife Upstairs by Rachel Hawkins
Poor (financially-challenged) Jane – a dog-walker for the rich in Thornfield Estates, a gated community...
Blood Island by H. Terrell Griffin
Trouble has a way of finding former Special Forces military man turned lawyer despite his...
Walking Shadows by Faye Kellerman
Former LAPD homicide detective Peter Decker and his wife, Rina Lazarus, have move to the...
Mrs. Sherlock Holmes by Brad Ricca
The TRUE story of Grace Humiston, a New York lawyer, District Attorney, and detective who...
Spider Woman’s Daughter by Anne Hillerman
This is Tony Hillerman’s daughter Anne’s first book continuing the stories of Navajo Nation Police...
Eight Perfect Murders by Peter Swanson
Many years ago bookseller Mal Kershaw compiled a list of “eight perfect murders” as written...
1st Case by James Patterson
Despite being kicked out of MIT’s graduate program, with the aid of her mentor, Eve...
We Begin at the End by Chris Whitaker
In this book we meet Duchess Day Radley, a thirteen year old self-proclaimed outlaw, trying...