Rosh's Reviews

AUTHOR: David M. Barnett GENRE: Contemporary Fiction PUBLICATION DATE: October 10, 2024 RATING: 4.25 stars. In a Nutshell: A character-oriented contemporary fiction with a strong Christmas spirit and a dash of Christmas magic. Excellent characters and a well-connected narrative linking them all. True to contemporary times in every way. Might get a bit too sugary, but works well for the genre. A fabulous and heartwarming option for the festive season. Plot Preview: When Molly McGinley moves from London to her Northern hometown of Merry-le-Moors, she feels like an utter failure. Ten years in the big city, and all she has to show is a broken relationship and no job. Her widower dad Jack is more than happy to have his daughter home, especially as he is still missing his wife who passed away a decade back. Jack now whiles away his time driving the town’s mobile library and he insists that Molly accompany him on his rounds instead of moping alone at home. As the two take the library bus t

AUTHOR: Marzieh Abbas ILLUSTRATOR: Bhagya Madanasinghe GENRE: Children's Picture Book PUBLICATION DATE: March 26, 2024 RATING: 4 stars In a Nutshell: A sweet little picture book about a girl who, inspired by her grandma, decides to make samosas for her friends. Cute story, great characters, lovely illustrations, loads of yummy food! Recommended! Plot Preview: Noor’s friends are coming over to her house for the very first time. As Noor ponders over what to serve them, she recollects her grandmother’s delicious samosas. Her father tries to get her to order pizzas instead, but the heart wants what the heart wants. So Noor and her dad set about making samosas. But some key ingredients are not in stock at home and time is running out. Motivated by her father and her pet parrot Mithoo, Noor decides to experiment with Dadijaan’s recipe. She is sure that her Awe-Samosas will turn out awesome!! But will they? I recently read ‘My Teacher Has Tattoos’ , and loved the illustrations so much

AUTHOR: Brenda Maier ILLUSTRATOR: Fanni Mézes SERIES: The Adventures of Penguin and Panda, #3 GENRE: Children's Graphic Novel PUBLICATION DATE: October 1, 2024 RATING: 4.25 stars. In a Nutshell: The third standalone graphic novel in the Penguin and Panda series. The best of the series so far, with wonderful wintry vibes. This cute graphic novel is about two best friends and their adventures together. This is the third book in the ‘Adventures of Penguin and Panda’ series, but the books are standalone and can be read in any order. ( That said, if you begin with this book, you might be befuddled about why Panda is carrying around an egg named Fred; he first popped up in the second book and evidently hasn’t popped out yet. ) The format of this book is the same as the other books in the series. There are four independent stories featuring the two titular animals and their adventures. As the title indicates, the dominant theme in this book is winter, so we get loads of snow and wintry

AUTHOR: Nita Prose SERIES: Molly the Maid, #2 GENRE: Mystery-Drama PUBLICATION DATE: November 28, 2023 RATING: 4.25 stars. In a Nutshell: Molly the Maid is back in this second novel of the series. The mystery isn’t as tricky as in the first book, but the proceedings are still enticing. You will enjoy this more if you read it as a character-oriented drama than as a murder mystery. Though this book can work as a standalone, this series is best read in order. Plot Preview: Four years after the events of Book One, Molly is still working at the Regency Grand boutique hotel in New York, now as the Head Maid. She is still focussed on maintaining things to a state of perfection. Her personal life is also going well with her beau Juan Manuel. Just as the Regency Grand is set to host a high-profile event that will hopefully help it brush away the shadows of the old murder case, there is yet another death in the hotel. J.D. Grimthorpe, the world-renowned mystery author, drops dead on the tearoo

AUTHOR: Cho Nam-Joo TRANSLATOR: Jamie Chang GENRE: Short Story Collection, Korean Fiction. PUBLICATION DATE: October 29, 2024 RATING: 4 stars. In a Nutshell: A short story collection by the brilliant Korean writer who always tackles powerful themes in her standoffish style. A good range of female characters, strong themes. A wonderful option for literary short fiction lovers. I have been a huge fan of this author ever since I read ‘Kim Jiyoung, Born 1982’ . Its dry writing style belied the powerful theme it contained. The statement it made against the systemic patriarchy in Korea was so realistic that it stood true to regions much beyond Korean boundaries. This collection of short stories explores a similar theme. The eight stories herein all focus on women, with the central characters ranging in age from preteen to octogenarian. The blurb describes the book as "exploring the intimacies of contemporary Korean womanhood", and the stories do justice to this claim. In line wit

AUTHOR: Thibault Busschots GENRE: Short Story PUBLICATION DATE: November 16, 2024 RATING: 3.75 stars. In a Nutshell: A short story that offers a different take on the well-known proverb referenced in the title. A straightforward tale written straight from the heart. Plot Preview: Adora is excited to visit her boyfriend’s home for the first time. He has decided to make a homecooked meal for the two of them, preparing a dish that holds a special meaning in their lives. However, when there’s an interruption to their cosy evening, Adora faces some tough questions and decisions. Does she have what it takes to secure her way to her man’s heart? The story comes to us in Adora’s third-person perspective. All of us must have heard the popular maxim, “The way to a man’s heart is through his stomach.” Whether you agree with it or not, the story incorporates this adage into its plot, but with a novel twist. As a short tale of just 19 pages, the plotting and the pacing is quick. There are only t

AUTHOR: Laura Imai Messina NARRATOR: Kenichiro Thomson TRANSLATOR: Lucy Rand GENRE: Japanese Literary Fiction PUBLICATION DATE: January 4, 2024 RATING: 4 stars. In a Nutshell: A slowburn and heartwarming literary fiction about two lonely souls who find solace in each other. (No, this isn’t a romance.) Evocative writing, realistic characters. Grief and hope intertwined. Wanted more of the titular library, but the rest was beautiful. This is a mood read. Better if actually read than on audio. Plot Preview: Off the west coast of Japan on the serene island of Teshima is a small library, where the heartbeats of thousands of people from all over the world have been collected. Whether now living or dead, their heartbeats continue to thrum in this quaint library. In the distant city of Kakamura, there are two persons in very different circumstances but equally lonely. Forty-year-old Shuichi, who has just lost his mother, has returned to his childhood home to clear her house. Eight-year-old K

AUTHOR: McGarvey Black GENRE: Psychological Thriller PUBLICATION DATE: October 10, 2024 RATING: 1 star. In a Nutshell: No. Plot Preview: When she was fifteen, Abbie killed her mom. She wasn’t caught. Over the past twenty years, she has turned her life around. Now married to an extremely wealthy investor and living in a large home with her two little daughters, Abbie uses her time to be the best wife and mom, and volunteer for various social causes. However, the past has now come to haunt her. Someone knows her secret and is threatening to reveal it. With her husband unaware of her murky past, Abbie has to make sure that her secret stays buried. The story comes to us in Abbie’s first-person perspective. I am very picky with my thriller reads because more often than not, they turn out to be OTT messes. The title of this book eroded my resistance somewhat, and seeing the high ratings of the other books written by the same author, I thought I would be in good hands. As is evident, I w

AUTHOR: Tamara von Werthern SERIES: Accidental Detective Mystery, #2 GENRE: Cosy Mystery PUBLICATION DATE: November 1, 2024 RATING: 4 stars. In a Nutshell: A cosy crime mystery novella with a quirky senior citizen in the lead. The characters are as interesting as the mystery this time, though they are also more flawed. Some thought-provoking themes included. Second in a series, but works well as a standalone. Plot Preview: About two years after the incidents of Book One, Philipp’s life has changed somewhat, though he is still juggling a variety of businesses as well as his family commitments. When a lorry crashes outside his house in the dead of night, yet another mystery tumbles unexpectedly into his life. What initially seemed to be a routine accident turns out to be a cover-up for something else. Instead of his usual nemesis, Philipp has Sergeant Nadja Bernstein for company, investigating a situation that turns darker with every revelation. At the same time, Philipp is also navig

AUTHOR: Eoin Colfer ILLUSTRATOR: Steve McCarthy GENRE: Long-form Picture Book PUBLICATION DATE: November 12, 2024 RATING: 3.75 stars. In a Nutshell: A cute long-form picture book aimed at early readers, taking the Irish myth of the banshee and giving it a child-friendly twist. Didn’t expect a story with a banshee to be so sweet and heartening! I wanted more at the end, which is why my rating fell a bit. Plot Preview: Banshees are heralds of death. However, Beanie the titular banshee, or to be precise, a young bansheenie, missed out on crucial information about her human Rose due to an accident of nature. As a result, she doesn’t know when Rose is supposed to die. Instead of giving up, Beanie does her best to learn more about Rose, and as she channelizes her knowledge of nature and Rose together, Beanie realises some important truths about her role in Rose’s life. Banshee is an old Irish word and means ‘fairy woman’. However, her appearance is bound to create jitters as she is alway

AUTHOR: Jaima Fixsen NARRATOR: Cathleen McCarron GENRE: Historical Mystery PUBLICATION DATE: October 15, 2024 RATING: 4.5 stars In a Nutshell: A historical Gothic mystery focussed on some stomach-churning crimes. Based on true events. Not exactly a whodunnit as we already know the guilty party. But fabulous as a story depicting the extent a mother can go for her son. Slow-paced, yet gripping all the way. I loved it! Plot Preview: 1826. Edinburgh. Isobel Tait, a single mother who teaches piano to earn a living, loves one person more than anyone else in the world: her seven-year-old son Thomas. Unfortunately, Thomas has been sickly ever since he contracted scarlet fever about a year before. When an acquaintance suggests that Isobel take Thomas to the acclaimed Dr. Burnett for a reliable cure, little does the young mother know that her life is soon to turn into a nightmare. With frequent kidnappings and grisly human organ museums and phantom voices and nefarious activities under the gui

  AUTHOR: Louise Douglas GENRE: Contemporary Mystery SERIES: Toussaints Detective Agency, #3 PUBLICATION DATE: November 5, 2024 RATING: 3.5 stars. In a Nutshell: A contemporary mystery filled with secrets. Third book of the series (which I didn’t know when I grabbed this.) One dominant mystery and one more secondary mystery. Realistic characters, interesting themes, slowburn, fair bit of suspense, partially incomplete ending. Not too sure if it is good as a standalone as I haven’t read the earlier two books, but I feel it is better read in series order.  Plot Preview: Morranez town, Brittany, France. When Elizabeth Quemener dies, she leaves behind a small parcel with the instructions that only Astrid Oake can open it. The problem is that no one knows who Astrid Oake is. When Elizabeth’s family and her solicitor approach the Toussaint Detective Agency for help, Mila Shepherd and her colleague Carter Jackson begin pursuing leads, but most end up blank. An exploration of Elizabeth’s home