Hollow City
Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children was one of my favorite books last year, so I was excited to read the sequel. I think the first book was better, but this one was also good.  My only complaint is that it was a bit slow at times.  I was surprised by a certain plot twist, and the ending left me feeling sorry that it was over. I will definitely be reading the next book(s) in this series.

(finished 2/17/14)

The Dead in their Vaulted Arches

Flavia is a delight as always, but this book had a somber air to it.  I don’t want to give anything away, so I’ll just say that this book is a turning point in the series.  I hope the entire feel of the series doesn’t change now. It’s hard to imagine Flavia in this new situation. However, Mr. Bradley is a wonderful author, and I believe he can pull it off.

If you’ve never read Flavia deLuce, you’re missing out.  I highly recommend these books.  

(finished 2/26/14)

The Cosmic Puppets

This isn’t my favorite Philip K. Dick story. I liked the concept of it, but I didn’t really understand why the “galactic invaders” were fighting over the town. I got bored towards the end (almost gave up on it) and I read the last half quickly. So, I might have missed something.  :-/

(finished 3/5/14)

The Minor Adjustment Beauty Salon

This is the 14th book in this series.  When I first started the series I wasn’t sure if I liked it or not.  By the time I’d read 4 or 5 of them, I was hooked.  I now read every new addition as soon as I can.  It feels like visiting old friends.  

In this installment Mma. Matkutsi has a baby (Itumelang Clovis Radiphuti), there is another run-in with that bad woman, Violet Sephotho, and the ladies solve a mystery that has a scandalous conclusion.

( finished 3/19/14)

Death of a Glutton

I will admit that this series isn’t great literature, but there is something about it that keeps you coming back for more.  After you’ve read a few of them, the characters come alive and you feel like you’re visiting friends every time you read a new one. The setting and atmosphere is so well described that you feel as though you’re really in Lochdubh.

When I first started reading this series, I read the books that our library carried.  There were only a few and I read most of them out of order.  For the past few years I’ve been buying them so I could read them all in the correct order.  

I am doing the same thing with M.C. Beaton’s Agatha Raisin series, though that one is taking a bit longer because I prefer this one.  When I have to choose one or the other, I almost always grab a Hamish Macbeth story. ;)

(finished 4/10/14)