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Reader’s Log 078: Stacking Non-Fiction Books

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Adding nonfiction to your stacks is always a must for growing in your knowledge of real-world events and the endeavor certainly feeds the curious mind. I am always on the lookout for upcoming nonfiction reads and it is always a pleasure to share what I’m interested in learning.

I am currently reading through the nonfiction books I have already acquired and I’m enjoying them greatly and have learned a great deal more. Meanwhile, I’m collecting nonfiction (that sounds interesting) to read in the near future. They are not listed in any order and one of them is being published in November of this year and the others next year.

What nonfiction books are you on the lookout for? Do any of these books sound intriguing to you?

Stephanie

In Search of Ancient Trees: A Wayward Quest for America’s Oldest Living Things by Greg Melville

Expected Publish Date Mar 16, 2027 by @AbramsPress

Description

For readers of Bill Bryson and Ed Yong, a cross-country road trip to America’s ancient trees, reveling in natural wonder and exploring what old trees reveal about our environment, our history, and our future

We often think of ourselves as the stewards of the forests. But since before the spark of civilization, trees have been silent engineers of ecosystems and even shaped human evolution. Trees made us, have sustained us, and we couldn’t survive without them. The problem is we don’t know how to stop killing them.

Journalist Greg Melville set out in his family camper van—nicknamed the Mystery Machine—to see the extraordinary arboreal survivors across the United States while he still could. By car, foot, subway, and kayak, he visits the oldest of the old trees, Methuselah, a 4,857-year-old bristlecone pine, the tallest tree in the world, Hyperion, a 380-foot coast redwood that is between 600 and 800 years old, and the biggest tree, General Sherman, a giant sequoia with a 36-foot diameter. He stops in Austin, Texas, for a famous crime scene, in Utah for the world’s largest living organism in Pando, a quaking aspen clone that covers over 100 acres, and in Manhattan for an unassuming elm tree that predates the United States.

Blending adventurous travel, history, and natural history, Melville explores what happened to America’s trees, wonders at the survivors, and uncovers the lessons they can teach all of us. In Search of Ancient Trees is insightful and entertaining, a walk in the woods like no other.

Dead in the Water: The Lost Passengers of the Titanic by Caitlin Doughty

Expected Publish April 6, 2027 by W. W. Norton & Company

New York Times best-selling author Caitlin Doughty presents Titanic like never before: through the stories of those who died—and what happened to the bodies.

Millions of people trust Caitlin Doughty to explore dark subjects with empathy and humor. Now, in her most ambitious work to date, Doughty explains what actually happened to the 1,500 people who died the night of history’s most famous shipwreck. Alongside white-knuckle tales of survival and mass death during the disaster, Doughty foregrounds the haunting stories of lesser-known victims, profiles the telegraph-cable-repairmen–turned–seafaring-undertakers who pulled the floating bodies from the wreck site in the North Atlantic and explores how a salvage company came to control the human artifacts—shoes, hairbrushes—carried and worn by the dead passengers and crew. Along the way she shares the surprising science of death at sea, and how the Titanic tragedy led to mass casualty protocols still used today. The first book of its kind on one of the most famous events in human history, Dead in the Water explores how we face the void and accept (or refuse to accept) death in extreme conditions.

By Definition: The Surprising History of the English Dictionary by Peter Sokolowski

Expected Publish February 23, 2027 by @StMartinsPress

A veteran Merriam-Webster editor celebrates the world’s biggest language through the dictionary

In this engaging narrative lexicographer Peter Sokolowski uncovers the history of our language in the dictionary definitions written from Shakespeare’s time to ours. English is always changing. And so our dictionaries present a paradox; they represent stability and standards, but they also constantly add new usage and new words (and discard some old ones). The dictionary is, by definition, the story of the way we express culture, authority, and identity with our words.

We haven’t always had dictionaries. In Renaissance England, explaining the meanings of words meant translating the Latin of the Church and the French of the Norman bureaucracy. A linguistic class system separated these “hard words” of privilege, prestige, and power from the native English words of hearth and home. Thus, the most common words in English–from go and green to mother and father–were not given definitions in dictionaries until the mid-18th century.

Dictionaries developed as the language grew, and definitions by British Samuel Johnson and American Noah Webster are compared through Sokolowski’s close readings, which take us through the creation of the Oxford English Dictionary and into current online references. Many questions are answered along the way, Is irregardless a word? Does literally have only one meaning? And what exactly are users looking up today? Full of fun examples, and peeks into the mysterious world of dictionary creation, this book will delight word lovers of every kind.

Harboring the Enemy (The Civil War Heroine History Forgot) by R.C. Duffy

Expected Pub Date Nov 7, 2026 by @AmericanLegacyMedia

Charleston, 1861. Anna Itgen is a twenty-year-old German immigrant, newly married and expecting her first child, when cannon fire erupts from Fort Sumter and upends her world. Within months, her husband is killed at the Battle of Port Royal.

As a single mother, Anna works alongside her neighbors to survive the Union blockade, all while a Confederate prison sits within view of her window, packed with starving captives. She begins slipping bread to guards and prisoners alike. Then she hides an escaped Union officer in her cellar and is summoned before the Confederate provost marshal on charges that could hang her.

Choosing her integrity over self-preservation, Anna Itgen risked everything for a stranger who wore the wrong uniform.

Beneath Waves and Shadows (The Sinking of the Steamship Valencia) by Tyler Hooper

Expected Pub Date Jan 19, 2027 by @StMartins Press

With the suspense of a thriller and the emotional depth of human drama, Beneath Waves and Shadows is the untold, meticulously researched story of survival after a 1906 shipwreck in the Pacific Northwest.

On a mild January day in 1906, the Valencia steamed out of San Francisco and began the four-day voyage to Seattle. Though it was a routine journey, the crew was well aware of the dangers of sailing along the west coast of Vancouver Island, an area known as the “Graveyard of the Pacific”, a place of violent storms, dense fog, rocky shoals, and fearsome currents.

The Valencia’s captain, Oscar Marcus Johnson, was an experienced mariner, but on the third day at sea, he lost his bearing in the increasingly thick winter weather. The vessel’s hull was ripped apart on Vancouver Island’s rocky shore, setting in motion a multiday struggle for survival that revealed both the sea’s terrible power and the remarkable bravery of passengers, crew, and rescuers alike.

Of the approximately 165 souls who left San Francisco, fewer than 40 would survive.

Hooper spent more than a decade immersed in the story of the Valencia. He hiked the same wild stretches of Vancouver Island coastline where the tragedy unfolded in 1906 and combed through thousands of pages of letters, newspapers, and official reports. Drawing from survivor testimonies, and a powerful interview with one of the survivors’ descendants, Hooper brings to life a deeply human story of courage, chaos and survival at sea.

Reader’s Log 077: September Shelf

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The month of September’s reading has been great so far! I’m reading and listening to audiobooks and I’m enjoying both mediums-of course. Yesterday, I finished listening to The Lost World (Professor Challenger, #1) by Arthur Conan Doyle and it is such a great adventure story! I highly recommend checking it out, especially if you like reading classics. Today, I’ve started listening to an Ai generated audiobook on Youtube called After the Moon by colin Jacobson. I can’t say how I feel about it yet and I may or may not write a review for the story. If I don’t, I will be sure to say how I feel about it (a little) in other reader’s log post.

The physical books I’m currently reading are Mystery Play by Elizabeth Kostova (for review), The Strawberry House by Rachel Burton, and Jayber Crow by Wendell Berry. So far, I’m enjoying all three and as you can see, I’m a mood reader. Usually, I have several books going at a time. Sometimes, when a story grabs me, I will focus on that book, then pick back up with the others. What book(s) are you currently reading? -Stephanie

After the Moon by colin Jacobson (book cover not provided) Description:

When an asteroid strikes the Moon with unimaginable force, humanity initially believes it has witnessed a spectacular astronomical event.

They are wrong.

The impact sends the Moon slowly drifting away from Earth, unraveling billions of years of gravitational balance. Oceans become unpredictable. Weather patterns lose their rhythm. Wildlife senses change long before humans do. Civilization struggles to adapt as scientists race to understand a world whose most fundamental assumptions are quietly disappearing.

High in the remote Canadian Rocky Mountains, retired mechanical engineer Zach Cliverton watches the catastrophe unfold from the solitude of his mountain cabin. Armed with little more than decades of engineering experience, careful observation, and an unshakable respect for the laws of physics, Zach begins documenting strange phenomena that few others notice—oscillating rivers, silent forests, shifting stars, and mysterious objects appearing near the departing Moon.

As governments lose certainty and the familiar world slips beyond recognition, Zach discovers that survival depends not only on food, fuel, and shelter, but on understanding a planet that is becoming something entirely new.

Blending believable science with relentless suspense, After the Moon is an eerie, atmospheric journey into one of humanity’s greatest imaginable disasters—a story of isolation, resilience, and the unsettling realization that the universe owes us no permanence.

Sometimes the end of the world doesn’t arrive in a single moment.

Sometimes it quietly drifts away.

Mystery Play by Elizabeth Kostova

Expected publication October 13, 2026 by Ballantine Books

The youngest son in a family of historians who has been hunted by dark forces associated with Dracula finds himself in peril at the hands of a new threat—a thrilling novel from the bestselling author of The Historian.

The youngest son in a family of historians who has been hunted by dark forces associated with Dracula finds himself in peril at the hands of a new threat—a thrilling novel from the bestselling author of The Historian.

When his mother passes away suddenly, Jay Turner finds himself at a crossroads. She was always secretive, raising him alone in Boston and staying single until her death. Returning to their brownstone to clear out her possessions, he finds two unusual objects: a partially burned scrap of newspaper bearing the name “Gael Brogan,” and a small antique volume bound in leather.

The sight of the volume is chilling. As a young scholar, his mother had been given the medieval book—one of a set commissioned by Vlad Tepes, otherwise known as Dracula, just before his death in 1477.  She’d always warned Jay of how dangerous it was and had donated it to a museum before she died . . . yet here it sits before him.

Taking leave from his position as a history instructor at a boys’ boarding school, Jay sets out to learn more about Gael Brogan, a prominent nineteenth century actor whose last and most famous role was the Count himself in Bram Stoker’s Dracula. As Jay begins to dig deeper—helped by a mysterious woman named Rhiannon he meets along the way—he uncovers a frightening story of a young actress who fell under Brogan’s sway long ago.  And before long, Jay and Rhiannon realize that something similarly implacable is also pursuing them.

Hypnotic and atmospheric, Mystery Play is a novel richly steeped in lore, pulsating with tension as it chronicles a dark secret history of rituals, religion, and immortality.

The Strawberry House by Rachel Burton

Published March 4, 2026 by Boldwood Books

1938: For Camilla Kerrigan, life at her family’s Oxford manor is a delicate balancing act – between duty to her family and a yearning for something more. When her brother Anthony returns for the summer, bringing with him a new friend, Camilla recognises a kindred spirit. Like her, Henry is thoughtful, restless and uncertain of his future.

But the arrival of four strangers – among them a gifted artist determined to paint Camilla’s sister Mabel – soon shatters the fragile peace of the manor. In the shimmering heat, desires are stirred and one impulsive act will set in motion a tragedy that echoes for decades.

1952: Haunted by war and the memory of that long-ago summer, the last thing Henry wants is to return to Montagu Manor. But when a photograph arrives, showing the painting he thought destroyed – the portrait that ruined so many lives – he is drawn back into the past.

Now, Henry and Camilla must face the secrets that shaped them, and the love that refuses to fade.

Port William

Jayber Crow by Wendell Berry

Published August 30, 2001 by Counterpoint

“This is a book about Heaven,” says Jayber Crow, “but I must say too that . . . I have wondered sometimes if it would not finally turn out to be a book about Hell.” It is 1932 and he has returned to his native Port William to become the town’s barber. Orphaned at age ten, Jayber Crow’s acquaintance with loneliness and want have made him a patient observer of the human animal, in both its goodness and frailty. He began his search as a “pre-ministerial student” at Pigeonville College. There, freedom met with new burdens and a young man needed more than a mirror to find himself. But the beginning of that finding was a short conversation with “Old Grit,” his profound professor of New Testament Greek.

“You have been given questions to which you cannot be given answers. You will have to live them out―perhaps a little at a time.”

“And how long is that going to take?”

“I don’t know. As long as you live, perhaps.”

“That could be a long time.”

“I will tell you a further mystery,” he said. “It may take longer.” Wendell Berry’s clear-sighted depiction of humanity’s gifts―love and loss, joy and despair―is seen though his intimate knowledge of the Port William Membership.

Reader’s Log 076: Stories and Reflection

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It was about the middle of August since the last blog I posted and I must say, I am exhausted by the end of the day to get much writing in but have read a lot and I have listened to several audio books. My workload has increased (which involves reading and analyzing material), leaving me little time to blog. Then I got to thinking about how to remedy this problem of not blogging like I want. Maybe write short bursts of posts? Or perhaps, blog once a week at the end of the week and post on Mondays? There are also book reviews to be written and posted. I want to continue to write and share what I’m reading and my thoughts about what I’ve read. I have thought of keeping some sort of journal to begin drafting blog posts. I have done that in a digital format before that worked rather well. Maybe that is what will remedy this problem. Whatever happens will happen and the best thing is not to stress it. Now you’re probably thinking I should just get on with it and right you are.

I have finished a few books and have listened to some interesting audio books. Here are a just few and at some point, I will be sharing some books reviews on them soon.  The three books as follows would make great fall reads. Are you familiar with any of these books or authors? Three of the books are classic literature.

The Historian by Elizabeth Kostova

Format: Hardback

This is my second read through The Historian because it has been years since I first read the book and the publishers have asked me to review the sequel. Yes, that’s right, there is a sequel coming out after all these years. The Historian was first published on June 14, 2005, and I read it a few years after it was published. My thoughts vary on the story, and they still do after reading it the second time. I guess you can say I have a love hate relationship with the dialogue, and a few of the characters. There is also the plot that needs to be discussed. However, there are other aspects of the story that I enjoyed and found many of the research, travels, letters and historical elements intriguing. More on this coming soon!

About the Book:

To you, perceptive reader, I bequeath my history…. Late one night, exploring her father’s library, a young woman finds an ancient book and a cache of yellowing letters. The letters are all addressed to “My dear and unfortunate successor,” and they plunge her into a world she never dreamed of a labyrinth where the secrets of her father’s past and her mother’s mysterious fate connect to an inconceivable evil hidden in the depths of history.

The letters provide links to one of the darkest powers that humanity has ever known and to a centuries-long quest to find the source of that darkness and wipe it out. It is a quest for the truth about Vlad the Impaler, the medieval ruler whose barbarous reign formed the basis of the legend of Dracula. Generations of historians have risked their reputations, their sanity, and even their lives to learn the truth about Vlad the Impaler and Dracula. Now one young woman must decide whether to take up this quest herself–to follow her father in a hunt that nearly brought him to ruin years ago, when he was a vibrant young scholar and her mother was still alive. What does the legend of Vlad the Impaler have to do with the modern world? Is it possible that the Dracula of myth truly existed and that he has lived on, century after century, pursuing his own unknowable ends? The answers to these questions cross time and borders, as first the father and then the daughter search for clues, from dusty Ivy League libraries to Istanbul, Budapest, and the depths of Eastern Europe. In city after city, in monasteries and archives, in letters and in secret conversations, the horrible truth emerges about Vlad the Impaler’s dark reign and about a time-defying pact that may have kept his awful work alive down through the ages.

The Willows by Algernon Blackwood

First published January 1, 1907

Format: Audiobook

Two friends are midway on a canoe trip down the Danube River. Throughout the story Blackwood personifies the surrounding environment—river, sun, wind—and imbues them with a powerful and ultimately threatening character. Most ominous are the masses of dense, desultory, menacing willows, which “moved of their own will as though alive, and they touched, by some incalculable method, my own keen sense of the horrible.”

“The Willows” is one of Algernon Blackwood’s best-known short stories. American horror author H.P. Lovecraft considered it to be the finest supernatural tale in English literature. “The Willows” is an example of early modern horror and is connected within the literary tradition of weird fiction.

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The Wendigo by Algernon Blackwood

First published January 1, 1910

Format: Audiobook

“The Wendigo” by Algernon Blackwood follows a group of adventurers venturing into the Canadian wilderness. As they delve deeper, they encounter unsettling phenomena and eerie encounters. Soon, they realize they’re stalked by a malevolent force, the Wendigo, a mythical creature of Native American folklore…

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The Secret Garden is a favorite childhood classic story, and I was so delighted to listen to the story. I do have several favorite childhood stories and have been wanting to visit them again. Now I must chose another classic story to listen to next.

The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett

First published August 1, 1911

Format: Audiobook

When orphaned Mary Lennox comes to live at her uncle’s great house on the Yorkshire Moors, she finds it full of secrets. At night, she hears the sound of crying down one of the long corridors. Outside, she meets Dickon, a magical boy who can talk to animals. Then one day, Mary discovers the most mysterious wonder of all—a secret garden, walled and locked, which has been forgotten for years and years.

The story of how Mary Lennox brought a secret garden back to life has been loved by generations of readers since it was first published in 1912. Now, with this very special deluxe edition of Frances Hodgson Burnett’s timeless classic, readers can continue to discover the magic of this powerful and deeply moving story.

Book Review: The Castle in the Glen by Rhys Bowen

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PublishedAugust 4, 2026 by Lake Union Publishing

Australian writer Emma Callander has been recruited to complete the final historical mystery in a series by celebrated author Iris Blackburn. It’s 1964, and Iris’s memory is fading. She’s certain that only Emma can do justice to her novel about a murder on the Isle of Skye. When Emma ventures to Scotland for research, she discovers it isn’t fiction at all, but rather a true crime unsolved for more than fifty years.

It was 1904 when a couple’s suspicious drowning led to the disappearance of a mysterious young woman the locals called the Wild Girl. To this day the mystery is unforgettable, especially among the descendants of an aristocratic family who’ll do anything to keep their secrets buried. From the misty Highlands to a medieval castle, Emma and Tony Gordon, Iris’s handsome lawyer, work ever more closely to uncover them.

But while Iris may be known for her fiendishly clever twists, there’s one not even Emma could have seen coming.

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Emma is hired to be a ghost writer for a famous author and soon discovers that the story she is researching turns out to be an actual cold case, and as she investigates the case further, her life is put in danger. Not only that, but Emma also discovers that there is more to this mystery than meets the eye and it will change the course of her life.

Rhys Bowen is a talented storyteller. I have read her work before and was excited to pick this story up. I knew it would be good and she did not disappoint. Bowen has such a way of weaving a story that captures the reader and you become fully engaged.

Most of the setting for this story takes place in the Isle of Skye, Scottland and Bowen really captures the atmosphere and its surroundings. I was completely taken to time and place.

There is so much to this mystery, including family secrets and romance. The character development is well developed and the clever plot kept me turning the pages.

A must read!

Stephanie

I obtained an ARC from the publishers through Netgalley for an honest review.

I rated this book four stars.  

Book Review: When Mikan Road Was Ours by D.K. Furutani

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Published July 28, 2026 by Atria Books

Amidst a sweltering Los Angeles heat wave, Murano, a reclusive high school English teacher, is muddling through life. Reeling from his father’s death as well as his own recent cancer diagnosis, he spends his days grading papers and appeasing disgruntled parents while painstakingly counting down the days until summer vacation.

However, the monotony breaks when he inherits his great-uncle Benjiro’s unpublished memoir. He expects the pages to be a grim reminder of his position as the half-white son of the black sheep of the family. Instead, as he reads, Murano is whisked away to 1930s California, to a time when the Murano family was inseparable, relishing life on their bucolic farmland. As Murano is introduced to family members he never knew existed and confronted with the hidden complexities of the past, he is pulled close to the Japanese identity he’s dismissed all his life.

Ultimately faced with more questions about his fractured family than answers, Murano becomes determined to discover the reasons behind his family’s dissolution following their incarceration in American concentration camps during World War II, no matter what hidden truths he might uncover about his ancestors or himself.

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This story has dual timelines and as the story of Murano’s family in America unfolds, we are shown his family heritage, struggles and their incarceration and experience during World War II. A truly shameful time in our American history to say the least.

I have mixed feelings about the structure of the story. While I’m used to reading slower and reflective literary fiction, I found it hard at times to push on with this book. I’ve reflected on the reason why that is this case, and it’s not because of the culture, because I do extensive cultural background studies, it’s that the narrative’s voice and perhaps the character development was a bit dry to me. Also, I found it difficult to know who was talking sometimes or who was who in the family dynamic. That said, I pushed onward and I’m glad I did because the story has a good conclusion, and I learned a few things.

There are many good lessons that come from this story, and I know many readers will enjoy this book.

I rated this book three stars.

Stephanie

I obtained a review copy from the publishers for an honest review.

June Birthday Book Haul!

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Amazon Prime Day(s) this year was just a few days after my birthday, and I loaded up on lots of books! There are quite a few book series I’ve been wanting to start and the gift cards I got were the perfect opportunity to purchase the first books in these series I’ve had my eye on. I can’t wait to get started on them.

After they came in the mail, I was thinking about which one I wanted to start first, and then another thought came to me. There are a ton of series I’ve started-even going years back-and I haven’t kept up with a lot of them-not on purpose-but because there are so many. I need to create a spread sheet or master list-if you will-of the series I’ve started and about to start. It would be great to track them. That said, I’m almost hesitant to begin this project because I know there are more than twenty or so book series I started. Though that would be a good reason for the list! This may be a fun book project to blog about further.

As you can see in the pictures, I got quite a bit of physical books. I also got a few theology books as well, but that will be for other posts. I want to read them first and decide after that if I want to write about them.

I did get a few more ebooks as well because they were such a great deal. Some of you may have remembered I blogged about ones I got on June 19th  and mentioned I may download more.

Did you acquire any books on Prime Day? How many book series are you currently reading, if any? Do share!

Below are the ebooks I bought.

Read a lot, and read widely

Stephanie

The Sky Beneath Her by Mary Ellen Taylor

Published July 1, 2026 by Montlake

It’s been seven years since a tragic diving accident took her mother’s life, leaving Tula Cassidy with a crushing fear of the sea. The ocean she once loved is no longer a part of her. And she can’t imagine it ever will be again.

Until her return to the Outer Banks changes everything.

While clearing out an old beach house, Tula receives a mysterious manuscript about the Oceanus. The passenger ship’s final voyage ended in disaster in 1942, and its underwater wreckage ultimately became her mother’s final resting place.

As Tula unravels the ship’s haunting history, she uncovers not only an unexpected family connection, but also a story of survival that helps her understand her own journey toward healing.

With help from Nathan, the charming dive instructor she left behind years ago, Tula faces her deepest fears to unlock the secrets of both past and present. Sometimes the greatest journeys begin when we find the courage to dive back in.

The Echo of Lost Stories by Victoria Scott

Published  June 28, 2026 by Boldwood Books

1842: London is preparing for Christmas, but Isabelle Burdett wants nothing to do with the world. Grieving her husband, she has withdrawn from work, family, and even her daughter. Yet as Christmas Eve draws to a close, an unexpected arrival at her door shatters her carefully built solitude – and brings a choice that could change everything.

Present day: Emily, a history lecturer still mourning her father, is called to a crumbling house in Cheapside, where developers have discovered a stack of old notebooks. They tell the story of three ghostly visitors on a Christmas Eve long ago. But who wrote them – and how could they have been written before Dickens’s famous tale?

As Emily searches for answers, the past and present collide, and long-hidden truths emerge that will haunt both women forever.

Murder at the Abbey by Irina Shapiro

Redmond and Haze Mysteries #2

Published  June 2, 2020 by Merlin Press LLC

I read the first book in this series and I loved it! You can read my review HERE.

When the body of a young woman is found near the ruins of a haunted abbey, everyone assumes she died of fright. A postmortem examination tells a different story. Not only was Elizabeth Barrett poisoned, but the lethal dose of cyanide must have been administered by someone close to her—someone she trusted, who may have known her secret. As Captain Redmond and Constable Haze delve into the victim’s seemingly ordinary life, they learn she wasn’t the proper, biddable wife everyone believed her to be. With no clear motive for the murder and no obvious suspects, the trail soon grows cold. But the killer is closer than they imagined, waiting to strike with deadly force should they discover the truth.

The Silence by Kendra Elliot

Columbia River #2

Published August 25, 2020 by Montlake

I have not read the first book yet, nor have I read anything from this author. I hope there is not any or a lot of foul language in this one.

A dead conspiracy theorist. A mass murderer. Two cases collide for Callahan and McLane in a pulse-pounding thriller by Wall Street Journal and Amazon Charts bestselling author Kendra Elliot.

A man is savagely murdered outside Portland, and Detective Mason Callahan finds blood-spatter evidence that tells a troubling story. Files reveal the murder victim, Reuben Braswell, was a radical conspiracist. In his home, investigators find pages of diatribes against law enforcement as well as ties to Mason’s fiancée, FBI special agent Ava McLane. The victim was her informant—and had strong reasons to be paranoid.

To Ava, Braswell’s rants were those of a wearying and harmless man…until they collide with her investigation into the murders of police officers and finding the connection becomes urgent. Meanwhile, Braswell’s brother and Ava’s twin sister both disappear, and disturbing acts of sabotage target Ava’s personal life.

For Mason and Ava, the brutal crimes and escalating mysteries create a perfect storm for a terrorist conspiracy that becomes dangerously personal—one that has yet to claim its last victim.

The Blackout Murders by Anna Elliott and

Charles Veley

Homefront Sleuths #1

Published  January 5, 2025 by Wilton Press

I heard this is a great series from a fellow book blogger and they are clean reads.

Five unlikely friends. One quaint village. A killer hiding among them.

It’s 1941, and the village of Crofter’s Green has grown quiet since the Cozy Cup tea shop closed its doors. But when Evie Harris—granddaughter of the shop’s late owner—returns to the village, gossip swirls about her exploits as a London air raid warden. Could she reopen the Cozy Cup? Or is she back for good?

Before anyone can find out, the local air raid warden turns up dead, and the village is left reeling. With the police preoccupied by the war, Evie and four eccentric neighbors form an unlikely team to solve the

Alice A sharp-tongued herbalist who sees everything.

Blake A schoolteacher whose wit is as sharp as his mind.

Harry A retired detective called back into the game.

Dotty Baker: A nosy mum with instincts sharper than her sewing needles.

Together, they uncover secrets that could shatter their little village—and reveal a killer hiding in plain sight.

Reader’s Log 074: Amazon Prime Ebook Deals

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Amazon Prime Day is running for four days this year, starting June 23 to 26. This special deal is for Amazon Prime members. Already there are many deals that have started and this post is about the ebooks I have already downloaded. I was able to acquire five ebooks that are on my wish-list. Next week, I will be purchasing a few physical copies of novels, and perhaps more ebooks. My Birthday is this weekend. I can’t wait!

The List of ebooks:

  1. The Mountains We Call Home by Kim Michele Richardson
  2. Where the Sea Lavendar Grows by Kitty Johnson
  3. To Love a Lady by Gabrielle Meyer
  4. To Dance with a Duke by Gabrielle Meyer
  5. Pre-ordered: To Educate an Earl Gabrielle Meyer

I was auto approved to read and review “Where the Sea Lavendar Grows” by Kitty Johnson, published by Lake Union Publishing, but my review stack was full for May. I am delighted to get an ebook copy at such a great price. That said, not all my books come from publishers to review. What books I choose to review from publishers depend on several factors.

The Gabrielle Meyer books are part of her Dollar Princess Sereis. I’ve read two of her books from another series so far, and her story telling is so good. I recommend checking out her books.

“The Mountains We Call Home” by Kim Michele Richardson is the third installment in her series “The Book Women of Troublesome Creek.” This series has been on my to-read list for some time and I’m starting with the third book? I’m not sure yet. It depends on if I can get the first two at a good price.

I love the books covers of all these books!

Stephanie

The Mountains We Call Home by Kim Michele Richardson

Published April 21, 2026 by Sourcebooks Landmark

When Cussy Lovett, a Packhorse Librarian famed for bringing books to the people of Appalachia, is unjustly incarcerated, she finds a new calling as a prison librarian, bringing hope to downtrodden women and voiceless city residents alike, finding a home even while separated from those she loves. A vivid portrait of mid-century Kentucky, from the hills and hollers of Appalachia to a vibrant city neighborhood on the cusp of urban renewal, The Mountains We Call Home explores the effects of criminalization and incarceration on the poor and powerless, while tracing the societal consequences of fractured family bonds.

Where the Sea Lavendar Grows by Kitty Johnson

Published May 1, 2026 by Lake Union Publishing

Elise, an artist grieving the loss of her son and a fracturing marriage, is in North Norfolk to restore Marsh House to its former glory, its walls adorned with the fading murals and paintings of its long-ago owner, Lilias Carter-Brown. Elise makes an immediate connection to the house, to Sam—a carpenter and a comfort—and to history itself when an old photograph draws Elise into Lilias’s heartbreaking past.

In 1939, with war threatening, Lilias and her sister turn Marsh House into a sanctuary for London evacuees—a young boy and his mother. But it’s the boy’s father, Harry, an enlistee soon to report for duty, with whom Lilias forms an unexpected and intimate bond. When Harry suddenly vanishes without a trace, it changes the course of Lilias’s life forever.

Now, as Elise and Sam work to solve the mystery of the disappearance, the restoration of Marsh House is bringing Elise back to life as well—to love again, to put her and Lilias’s past to rest, and to finally move on.

To Love a Lady by Gabrielle Meyer

Dollar Princess #1

Published  January 6, 2026

For fans of My Fair Lady and The Gilded Age

New York City, 1883. Keira O’Day has spent her life scraping by in the tenements, haunted by the mystery of her parents’ abandonment. When wealthy widow and social climber, Maude Hill, offers her a daring proposition—to be adopted, polished, and presented as a society bride for an English lord—Keira sees an opportunity she can’t pass up.

Maude’s nephew, Alexander Paxton-Hill, is skeptical from the start. Tasked with teaching Keira the art of charm and flirtation, he soon finds himself captivated by her honesty and warmth as she challenges everything he thought he knew about love—and about himself.

After navigating the glittering, treacherous world of New York society, Keira arrives in England and catches the eye of the elusive Duke of Severton. She’s poised to win everything until a lavish ball, a long-buried secret, and one reckless act of love threaten to unravel it all. Now Keira must the role she’s been prepared to play—or the woman she’s become.

To Dance with a Duke by Gabrielle Meyer

Dollar Princess #2

Published  June 9, 2026

For those who love The Gilded Age and Seven Brides for Seven Brothers.

In 1884, Ames Welby, the Duke of Severton, is desperate. His ancestral home is falling apart, his tenant farmers are starving, and his family name is tainted by a mysterious scandal that keeps people away. With no fortune and no time, he does the unthinkable—marries for money. But Lily Parker, the American heiress he weds in haste, is no pampered socialite. She’s practical, passionate, and has a plan to restore Pickering Castle—and the reputation of the five reclusive Welby brothers.

Inspired by her love of matchmaking and her longing for connection, Lily invites four eligible young women to a summer house party, hoping to spark romance and rebuild the family’s future. What follows is a whirlwind of mischief, mismatched couples, and unexpected love. But when Lily’s belief in true love clashes with Ames’s fear of family curses and social ruin, their fragile marriage is put to the ultimate test.

To Educate an Earl by Gabrielle Meyer

Dollar Princess #3

Expected Publication  October 6, 2026 by

For those swept away by The Gilded Age and The Sound of Music.

In 1886, when a scheming suitor threatens her family’s fragile reputation, Adeline Ranier is sent to England under a false name to pose as a governess for the Earl of Torrington’s five motherless children. Stripped of her title and fortune, she steps into a world of quiet sorrow and stubborn resistance—and discovers a household aching for joy.

George Stafford, the Earl of Torrington, has buried his heart along with his late wife. His children have driven away every governess, and he has no hope that Miss Ranier will be any different. But Addie’s unconventional charm, fierce loyalty, and refusal to give up begin to awaken something long forgotten in all of them, including George.

As laughter returns to the halls of Torrington Manor, Addie finds herself falling for the children—and for their father. But secrets from her past threaten to unravel everything, especially when George chooses a wealthy heiress to be his bride. Torn between duty and desire, Addie must decide whether to protect her heart or fight for the family she’s come to love.

Book Review: Dear Missing Friend by Susan McGuirk

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Storied Sisters Society #1

Published May 19, 2026 by Sea Crow Press

Three hearts. Countless letters. One impossible choice.

Through letters exchanged across oceans and Manhattan streets, Irish immigrant Catherine McGuirk navigates love, ambition, and heartbreak. Torn between her seafaring husband, the suitor she once refused, and her own dreams, Catherine’s fate unfolds in an intimate, epistolary saga of passion, resilience, and nineteenth-century life.

My Thoughts:

I know this might sound strange to some, but after I finished reading Dear Missing Friend, written in the form of corresponding letters, I thought, how would I respond if I were to write a letter in the form of a review? You see, a letter would be more fitting, and more worthy because Susan McGuirk has given readers an incredibly personable and thought-provoking experience and as I navigated through the lives of a family and their friends, I have never felt such a deep connection this way before with characters in this format.

19th Century: Catherine McGuirk and her brothers are Irish immigrants who came to America to start new lives in a world full of uncertainties. Through the years, their thoughts, joy, friendships, heartbreak, domestic troubles, loss of children, abandonment, sorrow, loneliness, are shared through letters in such an open way that it’s as if you were part of their family experiencing everything they were going through.

As Catherine’s decisions in life unfolded, years later she was faced with examining the result of her decisions in life, and as a Christian, I felt such a deep conviction of my own choices in life regarding my relationships past and present. Which brought me to Catherine’s dear friend Jane, and a particular letter she wrote to Catherine about “putting things to right.” That letter really moved me. There is much to reflect on with this story about relationships. There were beautiful lessons of mercy, grace, faith and forgiveness.

There were also so many historical threads interwoven with the characters’ lives and one will experience that with these letters. Such as, the whaling industry, the great famine, civil war, the gold rush, immigration of the Irish, the Panic of 1857 and so forth. I also enjoyed reading the poems the author included in the beginning of each chapter by Walt Whitman from his book Leaves of Grass. I am going to buy a physical copy of Dear Missing Friend, and place it next to my copy of Whitman’s book. This is a story I won’t ever forget. This is a story I will always go back to. Even as I wrote this, I wanted to read the story all over again and I will.

I have rated this book five stars and so far, this book is among my five top favorite stories of this year. 

Stephanie

Reader’s Log 073: Book Highlights

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There are two fiction stories I wanted to highlight today, and I thought I would share how it is going.

The two books are A Botanist’s Guide to Tradition and Treachery by Kate Khavari and Dear Missing Friend by Susan McGuirk. I am enjoying the corresponding format of Dear Missing Friend a lot more than I thought I would. That is not to say I haven’t enjoyed the letter written style of telling a story before, it’s just that sometimes, I feel I’m not getting the whole picture-if you will, and the bouncing back and forth can feel a bit disjointed at times. That said, I’m glad I chose this story to read and review. I like Susan McGuirk’s writing style.

Yesterday, I started A Botanist’s Guide to Tradition and Treachery, and previously I read and reviewed the first book A Botanist’s Guide to Parties and Poisons, and I was a bit critical of some of the elements in the story, but I did enjoy it nonetheless. Skipping a few books in the series, I’m hoping I will enjoy this story I’m currently reading. I will probably state in my review that I’ve only read two books in the series to be fair with my critic.

Below are the two books I will be starting next and I can’t wait to read and review them!

Be sure to read my latest review The Last Fatal Hour by Jan Matthews!

What are the books you are currently reading and expecting to get to next?

Stephanie

The Museum of Lost Dreams by Christine Nolfi

Expected Publication June 23, 2026 by Lake Union Publishing

When Bess Rollins’s parents die in a tragic accident, she is forced to abandon her dream job overseas. After three years away, she returns to her family’s estate in the Finger Lakes, a veritable monument to her brilliant late grandmother, and a reminder of the wreckage Bess left behind.

There’s the guilt over leaving her younger twin siblings, Casey and Caleb, and she struggles to rebuild a bond that may be irrevocably broken. Amid the grief, resentment still looms toward her reckless and self-indulgent mother and father. And then there’s Luke Monticelli, the devoted man Bess walked out on but never stopped loving.

Haunted by her regrets at every turn, Bess soon realizes that the past is far more complicated than she ever knew. With each secret that she uncovers about her family, Bess comes closer to healing their wounds, seizing a second chance at love, and fulfilling dreams that can lift them all—right here at home, where she belongs.

The Museum of Second Chances by Jo Leevers

Expected Publication July 1, 2026 by Lake Union Publishing

Every morning, Evelyn Silver walks the shoreline before the rest of Portheast wakes, gathering what the tide leaves behind. Broken cups. Lost trinkets. Objects others have discarded. In her small Museum of Maritime Curiosities, each one earns its place—because to Evelyn, every forgotten thing deserves to have its story told.

At the heart of the museum lies her most precious a fragment of Cornish lace, found pinned to her blanket when she was abandoned as a newborn. For over sixty years, she has kept it close, hoping someone might one day recognize it and tell her who she really is.

So, when the local council threatens to close the museum, Evelyn stands to lose far more than her livelihood. Forced out of her solitude, she rallies the community around the museum’s curious collection—and as the objects begin to give up their secrets, lives start to intertwine in ways nobody expected.

Because sometimes, the most precious things aren’t lost at all. They’re simply waiting to be claimed.

Reader’s Log 072: New to My Book Stack

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Today I’m sharing a few books I’ve added to my book stack this week and one I’ve added to my wish-list. The stack of books I got that are thrifted or were deeply discounted, and Dear Missing Friend is an ebook I acquired on NetGalley. I’ve added Murder on 34th Street by Mariah Fredericks to my wish-list. The story sounds intriguing! The Lisa Scottoline’s book is titled Come Home and I’m trying to remember if I’ve ever read a story written by her.

I was curious about Sager’s book because the premise touches on a subject that is talked about a lot today and though his book is a fictional story, I wanted to see where he went with it. I read this book in less than a day. The book is a slow burn but it does build on tension and the clues that lead up to the big reveal. I do have to admit, the characters were not well developed but I kept on reading regardless because I needed to know if justice would be served!

So many books…

What are some titles you’ve recently acquired?

Stephanie

Dear Missing Friend by Susan McGuirk

Book 1 of A Storied Sisters Society Novel

Pub Date May 19 2026 by Sea Crow Pass

Description

Three hearts. Countless letters. One impossible choice.

Through letters exchanged across oceans and Manhattan streets, Irish immigrant Catherine McGuirk navigates love, ambition, and heartbreak. Torn between her seafaring husband, the suitor she once refused, and her own dreams, Catherine’s fate unfolds in an intimate, epistolary saga of passion, resilience, and 19th-century life.

Murder on 34th Street by Mariah Fredericks

Pub Date Oct 06 2026 by St. Martin’s Press

Description

From the author of The Girl in the Green Dress comes a delightful and captivating novel about a fictional murder mystery at the iconic Macy’s parade leading up to the holidays in historic New York City.

New York, 1932. Grace Verlander is the secret beating heart of Macy’s. She’s the “assistant to the assistant to the someone who’s in charge”, the go-to person for keeping everything running smoothly behind-the-scenes at the famous, bustling store.

It’s not every day you get a letter from Santa Claus, but three days before the Macy’s annual Thanksgiving Day Parade, Grace arrives at work to find a note from the store Santa Claus in her locker: someone has sent him a death threat. Shocked, Grace promises to look into it and speaks to the store detective about the parade’s security, confident that they’ve found a solution that will keep everyone safe. But on the day of the parade, despite all their precautions, a dead body is found on one of the floats.

Using her wits and deep knowledge of the ways of the place, Grace is determined to find the killer and seek justice—not just for the dead man, but to save the reputation of this iconic store from ruin.