Book Talk – November 9th, 2025

Yet another new reader joined us this month, Ron from Republic, MO.  While we were waiting for others to join us, he let me know because of his poor eyesight he mainly reads with audio books.  Unfortunately he had to leave early before we had a chance to hear what he has been hearing.

It was nice to see Christina and Cynthia once again after a short absence.  And Linda just returned from a trip in Chile, including Easter Island, where I was sadly informed, they do not grow Easter lilies.

Post-books we talked about the holidays and vacation plans.  Beth and her family are going on their annual Christmas tree hunt, and Peggy will be heading off to Maryland with a museum on her schedule.

And, Michael is writing a memoir!  He has lived one heck of a life, and that is no exaggeration.  There is no way you could make up what he has lived through.

All in all, eight readers joined us for the November Book Lovers SIG, with 69 books read/discussed/reviewed.  The full list can be found here:

https://mamensa.org/category/book-lovers-sig-book-talks/

Book Lovers SIG always meets on the second Sunday of each month; in this case December 14.  We meet online using Zoom, so it is easy to join in.

Folks generally start checking in around 2 p.m. for a bit of socialization.  Book discussions begin around 2:30 p.m., more or less, or when Peggy says, “OK, Let’s talk about books!”

To join us on Zoom, simply click on the link shown below:

https://tinyurl.com/BookLoversSIG

You can also open your Zoom app and use these parameters:

Meeting ID: 946 0436 4344
Passcode: 844358

*****

Beth

Snake Eater by T. Kingfisher.  This story starts on a train, with a woman running away.  Something is very wrong, and it takes a while to figure out what it is as the woman navigates the world on her own, with good and bad spirits of all shapes and sizes trying to have their way with her.

A House with Good Bones by T. Kingfisher.  A woman comes home in between jobs and runs into the malevolent forces in her family’s past.

Thorn Hedge by T. Kingfisher.  A retelling of Sleeping Beauty with a very different twist.  There’s a reason she’s locked in that castle.

The Hollow Places by T. Kingfisher.  Our protagonist and her neighbor find a doorway to another world, inhabited by voracious beings and wildly invasive willow trees.  It is all driven by a lost artifact.  It’s a story about trying to get home.

A Sorceress Comes to Call by T. Kingfisher.  A Sorceress mother with gold-digger aspirations twists her daughter into a tool.  Betrayal and finding family.

Testimony of Mute Things by Lois McMaster Bujold.  Penric solves a political murder with help from Desdemona.  All to the backdrop of redistricting with a huge financial twist.

3 Days, 9 Months, 27 Years by John Scalzi.  Time Travel and multiple universes.  Our protagonist explores the pitfalls of time travel and his take on how to outwit the constraints.

Uprooted by Naomi Navik.  There is a wizard who lives in this valley, where the main enemy is a malevolent forest that captures people who go into the woods, and sometimes comes out to steal them.  There might be a cure, but the wizard who rarely interacts with his subjects may or may not help.  He chooses a girl every 10 years to be his helper/slave/mistress.  Until our protagonist refuses to go along with the plan.

Spinning Silver by Naomi Novik.  A different take on Rapunzel, with the Jews in old Russia being the ones who spin the silver.  This story is about balance, and making a good lasting deal, where anyone can become a person if they try hard enough and are willing to make some sacrifices for others.

Peggy

Slowly Dying Cause by Elizabeth George.  As Linda said last month, it was too long and not focused on the detectives.  A hundred pages of narration from the murder victim slows down the detection, which should always be the important part.  At least the Lyndley and Havers connection remains.

Backstage: Stories of a Writing Life by Donna Leon.  Leon writes sparse, elegant mysteries set in Venice.  This is a collection of book reviews, research trips into her book themes, and stories of her non -writing career.  This includes taking her Swiss boarding school students to a Frank Zappa concert interrupted by fire.

Dinner with King Tut: How Rogue Archeologists are Recreating the Sights, Sounds, Smells and Tastes of Ancient Civilizations by Sam Keen.  One of my favorite science writers, Keen isn’t content to just go on digs; he wants to make the weapon, brew the beer, or tan the leather.  But he decides he wouldn’t have survived if he was born before 1900.  If you like Keen, check out his podcast Disappearing Spoon.

The Killing Stones by Ann Cleeves. The 9th book in her Shetland series is now set in Orkney. I’ve watched the BBC series, which has significant plot changes from the books, so it took a while to get in the groove. Perez and his partner, who is also his boss, investigate the death of his old friend, who was found at an archeological site and was killed with a Neolithic stone. Two murders follow, both at archeological sites.  Small town relationships and wariness of strangers are recurring themes in the series.

The Winds of Fate by S.M. Stirling.  The second book in the alternative history series Make the Darkness Light, in which a bunch of academics are thrown back in time to 160 A.D., when Marcus Aurelius is Caesar.  This book has too many military advances, and not enough industrial or medical improvements.  Biggest plot development is the Chinese have also sent security guys back, so war is on its way.

Jews vs. Rome: Two Centuries of Rebellion Against the World’s Mightiest Empire by Barry Straus.  From Augustus to Hadrian, the Jews of Israel and the diaspora were battling Rome.  The book covers the Great Revolt, Masada and the Bar Kochba revolt, as well as smaller fights, and concludes that the rabbis ultimately settled things by recognizing this was a battle they could not win with swords.

Linda

Note: M means this book has already been discussed in our club. ~LInda

(M) In Five Years by Rebecca Serle.  Inspired by the eternally hated job interview question, “Where do you see yourself in 5 years?”.  NYC yuppie is on track for typical marriage when she has a realistic dream of another man – who turns out to be dating her best friend.

5 years pass with many unpredictable twists and turns.  ***

Part of Your World by Abby Jimenez.  Chick Lit, but pretty-well done.  Wealthy doctor meets diamond-in-the-rough carpenter/innkeeper in a small town and complications ensue.  ***

(M) Give Her Credit by Grace L. Williams.  The story of a group of women who got together in the 70s to form Women’s Bank of Denver.  ***

Master Slave Husband Wife, by Illyon Woo.  True story of an enslaved couple who escaped by disguising the wife as a man and pretending the husband was his slave.  Fascinating account of their subsequent lives together.  *****

Insane City by Dave Barry.  A wedding party in Miami encounters madness caused by alcohol and weed.  A typical Barry romp. (Note: Brad thought Barry was dead but he’s not, I checked.  He’s 78 and still funny.)  ****

Pursuing my intent to read ALL the authored works of Michael Connelly:

The Scarecrow by Michael Connelly.  2nd Jack McEvoy novel.  Also involving Rachel Walling.  McEvoy investigates the possibility of a false conviction of a teenage boy.  ****

(M) Nightshade, by Michael Connelly.  #1 in a series about Detective Stilwell working on Catalina Island.  He investigates the case of a woman found dead in the harbor.  ****

Fair Warning by Michael Connelly.  Jack McEvoy #3.  Investigating a possible serial killer, Jack becomes a suspect.  ****

(M) Void Moon by Michael Connelly.  An early standalone Connelly, this is about a “caper” in Las Vegas carried out by a woman who has a personal stake other than money.  Compelling.  ****

Michael

The Embodied Mind by Francisco J. Varela.

Subtitled: Cognitive Science and Human Experience.  Published by MIT in 1991, this is a very lengthy and heavy academic treatise on the relationship between cognitive science and Buddhist meditative psychology in relationship to other traditions such as phenomenology and psychoanalysis.  Contemporary nihilism is discussed and compared with Buddhist ‘no self’ and Zen ‘positive emptiness’ concepts.  Conclusions recently reached in the study of quantum mechanics follow on neatly, I think, from the conclusions of this book.

I’m continuing to re-read the book.  Just finished an interesting section on the nature of color which only exists in the mind of the beholder, just like everything else.  You could attack the book for being over-written and obsessively academic but that’s almost necessary considering the nature of the subject matter.

Also, been busy rewriting a chapter daily from my memoir, Michael, the Rat with Women, for submission to a contest.

On Reading List:

• Shadow Ticket by Thomas Pynchon
• Replaceable You by Mary Roach
• The Rose Fields by Phillip Pullman

Christina

Novels

The Nightmare Before Kissmas by Sara Raasch.  Read for a local queer book club.  The Prince of Christmas falls for a Prince of Halloween as they fight corruption in the winter holiday courts.  More spice than I typically like, but good, wholesome fun otherwise.

Vampires of El Norte by Isabel Cañas.  More romance than horror, but an interesting take on vampire legends.  It’s set in the Texas borderlands at the beginning of the Mexican American War.

Immaculate Conception by Ling Ling Huang.  Surreal speculative fiction about art and grief and reproduction in the not-too-distant future.  I didn’t connect with this one as much as I did with Natural Beauty, Huang’s earlier book.  Read for The Book Troop and The Midnight Society.

The Missing Half by Ashley Flowers & Alex Kiester.  Read for the Sleep When I’m Dead book club.  Two young women join forces to solve the cold cases of their sisters’ disappearances.  I still don’t know what to think of that ending.

The Last House on Needless Street by Catriona Ward.  Highly disturbing tale of a missing girl, her older sister trying to find her years later, and a man suspected in her disappearance.  The multiple points of view, including a cast of supporting characters, will have you sliding back and forth in time and in glorious confusion.  It’s a brutal read but handles mental illness issues with unexpected care.  Read for Nightmare on the Square Book Club.

Strange Practice by Vivian Shaw.  First in an urban fantasy series featuring Dr. Greta Helsing, physician to the monsters of London. She is called to the home of Lord Ruthven (vampire) to treat his guest Sir Francis Varney (vampyre), who has been viciously attacked by a peculiar monk.  Much monstrous wackiness ensues.  Read for Gothtober and Temporal Textual Talks, a virtual steampunk book club.  (This is not actually steampunk, more steampunk adjacent.)

Alice by Christina Henry.  A sort of re-imagining of the Alice in Wonderland books, but more like Alice in Hell after escaping a burning insane asylum with her neighboring inmate, Hatcher.  Much horrific wackiness ensues.

The Woman in the Library by Sulari Gentill.  I may have to re-read this uber-meta book within a book to see if I interpreted certain things correctly.  (I listened to the audiobook, which is not great for flipping back and forth.)  It’s about a woman murdered in a library.  Or is it?  I feel like some of the mystery elements were carefully crafted while others were too on-the-nose.  Read for the Book Wyrm Club.

Dying Cry by Margaret Mizushima.  Another strong entry in the Timber Creek K-9 mystery series.  As always, I recommend starting at the beginning with Killing Trail.  Read for Sisters in Crime – Colorado’s book club.

We Live Here Now by Sarah Pinborough.  Read for the Sleep When I’m Dead book club.  A troubled young couple moves into an old mansion in the countryside.  Lots of creepy things happen, and occasionally the POV is from a resident raven.  This is a different kind of haunted house story, and I found it satisfying even after I had a good idea what was happening.  Avoid reading the cover blurb, which is kinda spoilery.

Malice Aforethought by Francis Iles.  This was a reread for a local mystery book club.  This is a classic of crime fiction, but not for the reason everybody talks about.  That’s all I’m saying.  You’ll have to figure it out for yourself.

The Vaster Wilds by Lauren Groff.  A gripping story follows a servant girl who escapes her dying colonial village and takes on the challenges and dangers of the harsh wilderness with brains, determination, and a fair amount of luck.  The story also goes back in time to show how she ended up on this continent and how her very existence was always fraught with peril.

A Fatal Grace by Louise Penny.  I almost didn’t finish this one.  I wasn’t a huge fan of the first Gamache book, and this one was way more predictable and pretentious.  But book #3 is a book club book, so I persevered.  I have started #3 but I will be surprised if I pick it back up.

Glass Houses by Madeline Ashby.  I have mixed feelings about this story of a corporate retreat turned survival adventure.  It’s an intriguing premise and examines some important topics, but ultimately, it’s too heavy-handed to be an entertaining read.  Still, it makes for an interesting book club discussion.  Read for Libronauts.

The Murder of Mr. Ma by John Shen Yen Nee & S.J. Rozan.  Judge Dee and Lao She team up to solve a series of murders of Chinese men in 1924 London.  The comparison to Guy Ritchie’s Sherlock Holmes films is spot-on.  It’s a fun ride chock full of cinematic derring-do and interesting spins on stock characters.  Read for the Cozy Puzzler Book Club.

Novellas and Short Fiction

System Collapse by Martha Wells.  Book 7 of the Murderbot Diaries.  Our favorite rogue SecUnit is experiencing strange memory and resilience issues in the wake of the events of Network Effect.  System collapse is an actual symptom of perimenopause.  Coincidence?  I think not.  Read for Neurovember.

The Roommate by Dervla McTiernan.  This novella is the second prequel to the Cormac Reilly series set in Dublin.  A young woman’s roommate is murdered, and soon her own life inexplicably begins to fall apart.  Well, not inexplicably, I suppose, because she eventually figures it out.  But not before her life’s endangered and DI Reilly has to rescue her.  I’m enjoying this series and ready to move on to the second novel, The Scholar.

Lost Ark Dreaming by Suyi Davies Okungbowa.  Sort of a weird mash-up of Wool, New York 2140, and The Deep, with a fair bit of ancient mysticism.  There is a breach in the lower levels of a giant tower off the coast of West Africa, and the trio tasked with investigating it get way more than they bargained for.  I really enjoyed the poetic interludes and the archival bits, but YMMV.  Read for Gothtober.

Before the Coffee Gets Cold by Toshikazu Kawaguchi.  I liked this time-travel novella better than I thought I would, given the use of the sacrificial incubator trope.  I appreciated the clarity of the intertwined timelines, but the characters were pretty flat.  Read for Book Snobs.

Badlands Witch by Carrie Vaughn.  The second story in the series spun off from Vaughn’s Kitty the Werewolf series.  Cormac and his Victorian wizard spirit partner Amelia head to South Dakota to examine a strange piece of pottery.  Much mystery and wackiness ensue.  I love this but need to get back to the Kitty books before I read more.  Read for Occult Detective October and Vamptober.

A Master of Mysteries by L.T. Meade & Robert Eustace, illustrated by J. Ambrose Walton.  Read for Victober and Occult Detective October.  This short story collection is ridiculous but fun.  Think 19th-century Scooby Doo.

Chelsea’s Werk Week by Keke Palmer & Jasmine Guillory.  I needed a book with candy corn colors on the cover.  So, my confusion is on me for reading the third story in a series featuring off-the-wall characters I knew nothing about.  But the magical wig trope was entertaining anyway.

Randomize (Forward Collection #6) by Andy Weir.  A quantum heist story set in Las Vegas.  It’s too short to say much more than that.  It’s quick and entertaining.

Manga

Tokyo Ghoul: re, Vol. 1 by Sui Ishida.  Tokyo has ghouls and they’re being hunted by ghoul hunters, some of whom are part ghoulish.  That’s all I got.  It’s mostly nonsense with bog-standard art, but occasionally there’s a panel that is done in a photo-realistic style that is visually arresting.

Sōseki Natsume’s I Am a Cat: The Manga Edition, retold & illustrated by Chiroru Kobatu, translated by Zack Davisson.  I was going to give this two stars because the artwork is fine.  But there is one plot point that I simply cannot forgive.  Zero stars.

Nonfiction

A City on Mars by Kelly & Zach Weinersmith.  Read for the Stranger Than Fiction Book Club.  This is an in-depth examination of the challenges involved in moving humanity off planet.  Highly recommended.

That Bear Ate My Pants! by Tony James Slater.  Young Englishman goes to a wildlife refuge in Ecuador to become a man.  Some interesting information on South American wildlife, but mostly the cringe you would expect.

Anxiety as an Ally by Dan Ryckert.  This is mostly a memoir of Ryckert’s development of his meditation practice and how it has helped him with his anxiety.  I have relaxation-induced anxiety, so this was not useful to me, but YMMV.

Raising Hare by Chloe Dalton.  A memoir about a woman who finds an abandoned leveret and takes on the challenge of keeping it alive.  This was well written and interesting, but I’m not sure I understand all the fuss.  Read for the Stranger Than Fiction Book Club.

YA/Middle Grade/Children’s

Night of the Mannequins by Stephen Graham Jones.  Some teens find an old mannequin and decide to prank their friend who works at the local cinema.  The prank goes pear-shaped and hares off in wild directions.  Much terror ensues.

Over My Dead Body by Sweeney Boo.  Read for Gothtober.  A graphic novel about the disappearance of a student at a boarding school for witches.  Her friends investigate and discover some long-buried secrets.  Strong Harry Potter fanfic vibes, and some of the plot doesn’t make much sense, but the artwork is gorgeous and there’s great diversity rep.

The Graveyard Club #1: Revenge Game by R.L. Stine and Carola Borelli.  A group of fringe teens who hang out in the graveyard get involved in a disastrous revenge spiral.  Disjointed story, inconsistent characters, and just generally kinda stupid.  I also didn’t care much for the artwork.

Cthulhu Cat by Pandania, translated by Zack Davisson, illustrated by Steve Dutro.  A teen accidentally adopts Cthulhu in cat form, which soon attracts other eldritch beings to his home.  Much cosmic wackiness ensues.

What Fell from the Sky by Adrianna Cuevas.  A very timely story inspired by a real military exercise that saw the U.S. Army taking over a town in Texas.  This has actual space aliens for added themes of compassion and belonging.  Even if you don’t normally read middle grade stuff, this is well worth checking out.

Moonfleet by John Meade Falkner. Read for Victober.  A classic adventure tale set in Dorset.  Young John Trenchard goes looking for buried treasure and gets involved in a smuggling operation.  Much wackiness ensues.

The Shaggy Dog by Elizabeth L. Griffen, Bill Walsh, and Lillie Hayward.  Short novel adapted from the 1960s Disney movie of the same name.  A boy accidentally shapeshifts into the new neighbor’s sheepdog and stumbles onto an espionage plot.  It’s as silly as it sounds but great nostalgic fun.

Coyote Tales by Thomas King, illustrated by Byron Eggenschwiler.  A pair of stories: “Coyote Sings to the Moon” and “Coyote’s New Suit”.  It’s not clear whether these are based on old folk tales, but they’re funny and clever.

Detective Duck: The Case of the Strange Splash by Henry Winkler & Lin Oliver, illustrated by Dan Santat.  Super-cute investigation into an ecological disaster in the pond of a young duck determined to be the first duck detective.

Cynthia

Mainly reading medical journals.

Brad (65/24,984)

My Friends by Fredrik Backman.  I really like anything Backman writes, and this is no exception.  This is a story about a famous painting of a seascape with a few tiny figures sitting on a pier, so small that they get lost in the larger picture.  These are the friends of the artist, the ones he grew up together, the ones that supported each other through some pretty tough childhoods.  It is also the story of a young woman whose life has been influenced and changed by that very same painting, some 25 years later.  Strongly recommended.  *****

The Book of Sheen by Charlie Sheen.  A quote on the Goodreads page states that this is the book Charlie Sheen shouldn’t even have been alive to write.  That is an understatement.  This is a brutally honest story of Sheen’s life.  I knew he had been in a lot of famous movies, but I had no idea he was starring in them at such a young age.  He chose to cope with this sudden fame with alcohol and drugs.  More of both than you can possibly imagine.  I have read quite a few memoirs of actors; this one stands out for its honesty and writing.  *****

The Last Orphan (Orphan X #8) by Gregg Hurwitz.  This series continues to impress me.  After Orphan X’s last mission (Caper? Or assassination?) the President has withdrawn her offer of live and let live.  To regain it back, she wants him to assassinate a billionaire kingmaker, someone who opposes her legislative agenda.  Does this man deserve to die?  Will Agent X follow his principles, or bend to the will of the President?  So few people live by their principles these days.  *****

Tamarack County (Cork O’Connor #13) by William Kent Krueger.  It is winter in Tamarack County, deep in northern Minnesota, and brother it is cold.  Which is cause for concern when the car of the wife of the retired judge is found abandoned after a snowstorm.  No one really likes the judge, and he appears to be suffering from dementia.  Could he have murdered his wife?  Turns out things are much more complicated than that.  Much more.

I like this series because the characters continue to age as the years go by; they aren’t frozen in time.  I also like how the author continues to emphasize the importance of family.  A different kind of series than most detective novels.  *****

Voices of the Pacific, Expanded Edition by Adam Makos.  The author interviewed a lot of former Marines who served in the Pacific during WWII, mostly in their 80s and 90s when he spoke to them.  He then took their narratives and wove them into this book, starting with how and why they became Marines, their time in boot camp, their experience in some horrific battles in the Pacific, through their return home and their lives post-service.  Really well done.  *****

The Captured: A True Story of Abduction by Indians on the Texas Frontier by Scott Zesch.  I had read Empire of the Summer Moon last month, which really is the definitive history of the Plains Indians, so this was a bit of a let down for me.  The author, a graduate of Harvard Law School, started out by researching one of his distant relatives, someone who as a 12-year-old was captured by a band of the Comanche and lived with them for several years.  This initial interest drew him to research other children who were kidnapped and live with them as well.  Lots of conjecture as to their lives with the Indians, as there isn’t a lot of source material available.  And there really weren’t that many of them, maybe 10-12 total.  If you are interested in this story, I would read this book first, then Empire.  ***

Severance by Ling Ma.  I like the writing, liked the story, about a young woman who moves to New York and works at a publisher, just getting by.  But then people start coming down with a fever.  She doesn’t really notice at first, as preoccupied as she is with her own life.  But people start dying.  And dying.  And dying.  Turns out there is a bacteria spreading, and it originated in China.  Old news, you say?  Well, this book was published in 2018, several years before Covid-19 became a thing.  The rest of the story is about what happens after she leaves the city and falls in with a group of fellow survivors.  It isn’t pretty.  *****

Goodreads Choice Award Nominee for Readers’ Favorite Science Fiction (2018).

The Memory Police by Yōko Ogawa (translated by Stephen Snyder).   I enjoyed so many books this month, but this wasn’t one of them.  The protagonist lives on an island, where disappearances occur.  Not people disappearing but things and memories?  The logic of the story is very uneven, inconsistent, which makes it difficult to suspend your disbelief.  Especially when the Memory Police, who enforce these disappearances by rounding up people who still remember, are unaffected.  ***

Clown Town (Slough House #9) by Mick Herron.  It has been a few years since the last book in the Slow Horses series, so I thought maybe it had come to an end.  Not so!  This is an intricately plotted novel, full of double- and triple-crosses.  Spies lie in the bottom line.  Trust no one.  *****