Share your book reviews? > Likes and Comments

One of my other groups has a very popular and active thread where group members are encouraged to post links to their newly-completed reviews. I thought that might be a good idea for this group as well; we already have a thread where we keep each other up to date on what we're reading, but this will give us an opportunity to also let each other know what we thought of our reads. (And it can be a forum where we can post new reviews of books we read before joining Goodreads, if we review those.)

I'll start the ball rolling with one of the latter, posted just a couple of days ago. The Spy is one of three books I've read so far by James Fenimore Cooper, though (as of now) I've only reviewed two. Here's my review of that one: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show... .

Good review. I am only familiar with James F. Cooper as a picture on my author's game I played as a child. I think if really educated me as to who the authors were and what they wrote even if I didn't read the books.

Thanks, Nina. Yes, as a kid, I remember playing that game, too! I was quite fascinated by the pictures of the authors and the names of their books. :-)

In order to post a link to your reviews, try highlighting the URL of the review page itself (in the long box at the very top of your screen, right beside the arrow icons). Click "Control-copy" for that only, and then click "Control-v" in your comment box on this thread, and see if that works.

To clarify what I wrote above (the computer jargon was unclear to one person; sorry!), you "highlight" the URL just by clicking on it (that will turn it blue). Just for a moment, hold both the Ctrl key at the lower left corner of the keyboard and the c key down, simultaneously. Then, either go to this thread from that window, or have it open in another window (I usually do the latter). Put the cursor in the comment box where you want the link, and hold down Ctrl again while holding down the v key. That should do the job, on any brand of computer (crosses fingers!).

Sometimes, reading a book as a freebie on my Kindle app allows me to discover a new-to-me book and author that proves to be really rewarding. I'd hoped that The Housewife Assassin's Handbook, a series opener by Josie Brown, might prove to be one of them. Unfortunately, it wasn't. My two-star review is here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show... .

Originally, I'd intended to review James Fenimore Cooper's The Pioneers (which I read back in 1970) this weekend; but at the last moment, I decided I could do it better justice after a reread. When I went prospecting in my bookshelves for an un-reviewed short-notice substitute, I came up with The Heroes of Asgard: Tales from Scandinavian Mythology (1870), by Annie and Eliza Keary. So, here's that review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show... .

] The Deerslayer by James Fenimore Cooper was a long read (it's a well over 500 page book) which took me a full month to complete; but it was worth every minute of it. My five-star review is here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show... .

Though I've read a fair amount of historical fiction, and have liked it ever since I was a child, my project this year of trying to finish reading Cooper's Leatherstocking Tales reminded me that there are a lot of books in this genre that I read pre-Goodreads and still haven't reviewed. In the next few weeks, I hope to review some of these; and the first one I picked for that was Gwen Bristow's Plantation Trilogy. That brand-new review is here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show... .

My latest review, a retrospective one of a novel I read in the late 90s, turned out to be one very appropriate for the Easter season, though that wasn't actually my original thought when I decided to review it! It's a review of Lloyd C. Douglas's 1942 classic The Robe, here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show... .

Having started reading Susan Page Davis' excellent Ladies Shooting Club trilogy with the third volume, The Blacksmith's Bravery, my wife Barb and I went back to read the series opener, The Sheriff's Surrender. Here's that review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show... .

This is another one of my retrospective reviews, of a book I read pre-Goodreads, The Pigman by Paul Zindel. My reading wasn't as long ago as the copyright date and YA connection might suggest, however. in 1968, I would have been part of the publisher's target demographic, but back then Zindel wasn't on my radar. I read the book as an adult, on the recommendation of my youngest daughter. That was probably for the best; if I'd discovered it as a teen, I actually don't think I'd have appreciated it as as much. Here's my five-star review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show... .

I've recently come to recognize that, although I've read a number of individual stories and poems by black writers, these authors have been unintentionally neglected in my reading as far as whole books are concerned. That's a neglect I intend to remedy! (And my to-read list has a number of long-standing books that will help to do that.) Meanwhile, I've finally reviewed the only book I've read that I know is by an African-American, Alex Haley's Roots: The Saga of an American Family. Here's that review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show... . Black Struggle: A History of the Negro in America is on my "read" list as well, but I don't know whether the author was black or white. (Of course, Ngugi wa Thiong'o, the Kenyan author of A Grain of Wheat which I read in college, is also black, though not African-American.)

Continuing my reading of Fenimore Cooper's Leatherstocking Tales, I've now finished The Pathfinder; that four-star review is here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show... . (It would be four and 1/2 if I could give half stars.) Now there's only one book left in the series that I haven't read, The Prairie, and I'm reading that one now! (But I do plan to go back and re-read The Pioneers, which I last read nearly 50 years ago in junior college, sometime relatively soon.)

Noted American author Ursula K. Le Guin's recent death has focused some attention on her large body of work. Over the years, I've read several of her books, but until this weekend had only reviewed one, the novel The Left Hand of Darkness. Since the Bluefield College library recently added two of her short story collections to its shelves, I decided it's about time I reviewed those as well. Here's my review of one of them, The Compass Rose: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show... .

Following up on my review of The Compass Rose last weekend, this weekend I reviewed the other collection of Le Guin's short stories that I've previously read, The Wind's Twelve Quarters. This one earned a higher rating from me; that review is here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show... .

Having finished reading The Prairie over the weekend, I've finally completed my reading of James Fenimore Cooper's Leatherstocking Tales series, a saga I began as a nine-year-old kid. That's been a rewarding reading adventure! My review of this last book (in terms of its internal chronology) of the series is here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show... .

My review of Charles Dickens' Great Expectations is here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show... . I've read this book twice, both in junior high school as a required read and as an adult, and it's one of my favorite Dickens novels; but I'd never written a review of it until yesterday.

Barb and I have finished our reading of Susan Page Davis' Ladies Shooting Club trilogy, with The Gunsmith's Gallantry. As usual, we're a bit sorry to have to say goodbye to series characters we've become fond of! My five-star review of this installment is here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show... .

Masterpieces of Terror and the Supernatural is a story collection that's been on my "being read intermittently" shelf for about two years, during which time I've been reviewing it in installments. It's been my go-to read to kill time in the public library at Harrisonburg, Virginia when I spend time there; I did so again this week, and finally finished the anthology! My completed review is here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show... ; I gave the book three stars overall.

So far this year, Pride's Children: Purgatory, by my Goodreads friend Alicia Butcher Ehrhardt, is only the second general fiction book I've read (and the only one set in the contemporary U.S.); it's not the sort of book that forms my most typical reading fare. But I've been blessed in that both of them have proven to be five star reads! My review of this latest one (the opener for a planned trilogy) is here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show... .

Barb and I read the second and third installments of my Goodreads friend Heather Day Gilbert's A Murder in the Mountains series, Trial by Twelve and Guilt by Association, back-to back. Here are those reviews: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show... and https://www.goodreads.com/review/show... . We're ready and waiting for the fourth installment, when it's published!

Although I read The Folk of the Fringe by Orson Scott Card back in the 90s, until today I'd never gotten around to reviewing it. That review is here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show... . (The edition pictured isn't the one I currently own, but it's the one I actually read, as a selection from the Science Fiction Book Club. Military science fiction usually isn't my cup of tea, so I've never read any of his Ender books; but I zeroed in on this one because of the post-apocalyptic scenario.

Good review, Werner. I remember reading this about 10 years ago, but I’d completely forgotten about it. I should add it to my shelves.
Like you I’ve read a lot of Orson Scott Card’s books, some of which I’ve loved, and some I’ve disliked intensely. He seems to be an author who brings out strong emotional reactions in readers. People seem to either love or hate him.

Thanks, Janelle! Yes, I'd say definitely add this to your "read" shelf (I try to make my shelf as complete a record of my lifetime reading as I can). Have you read any of the Alvin Maker books? If so, what did you think of them?

Obviously, your reactions, pro and con, to Card's books are based on whether or not you liked the books themselves. A lot of the hatred for him, though, from what I've read (like some of the hatred for his fellow Mormon, Stephenie Meyer) is directed at his religious beliefs. In a world hostile to traditional faiths, believers who don't conceal their faith pay a certain price in the public square.

I haven’t read the Alvin Maker books, so I can’t comment on them.
I’ve noticed a lot of faith based hate towards Card, but I’ve also encountered people who simply don’t like his books. And plenty of fans of course who can’t get enough of them. I’m somewhere in the middle ground.

And yes, my opinion on his books isn’t influenced by his faith. I’ve read a few books by Mormon authors and appreciate the fact that they are often a clean read. The author’s faith is often included, though usually not explicitly.

I hear ya, Janelle! My special liking for post-apocalyptic and alternate world fiction was what drew me to the Card books I've read; I doubt if I'd appreciate, for instance, his military SF or his historical novels to the same extent.

Back in 1992, I read and reviewed evangelical Bible scholar Craig S. Keener's book And Marries Another: Divorce and Remarriage in the Teaching of the New Testament for The Christian Librarian. This review updates that one: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show... . Though it was published over a quarter of a century ago, Keener's serious, compassionate and well-informed study is still relevant for readers interested in the New Testament teaching on the subject.

I'm seeing a shift on this teaching in general, but Keener is talking especially about church leadership so I was surprised to see it written in '92. I may try to get a copy.

Reggia wrote: "I'm seeing a shift on this teaching in general, but Keener is talking especially about church leadership so I was surprised to see it written in '92. I may try to get a copy."

It's worth a read, IMO. You might want to recommend it for your local public library, or your church library, if they have one.

The Louis L'Amour novel that I finished reading this past week, Ride the River, was the first of his Sackett books that I've read (though my wife has read all of them, and is currently rereading the whole corpus). My four-star review is here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show... .

Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee: An Indian History of the American West is a landmark work in American historiography, which I read back in the early 70s, but until today, I'd never reviewed it. I considered that it was about time I remedied that, so here (finally) is my review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show... .

Although I haven't read as many of the older classics as I'd like to have, I continue to expand my acquaintance with them as I get the opportunity. The latest one I've read and reviewed (which had been on my to-read shelf forever) is Ann Radcliffe's 1794 chunkster The Mysteries of Udolpho, which I finally finished yesterday after starting it back on July 1. That review is here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show... ; I gave it three stars.

As a general rule, I don't write separate reviews of individual short stories that I've read as parts of collections (I just review the collections). But I've been taking part in a common read and discussion of Katherine Mansfield's story The Garden Party in another group, and read the story again last night as an online e-story. So, I've reviewed it, here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show... .

Lost Horizon (1933) by James Hilton was the common read for August in another of my groups. I started it very late; but since it's a relatively short book, it proved to be, as I'd expected, a quick read. My review is here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show... .

Tirza And Her Knight is a short e-story by Goodreads author A. M. Werner, which retells the basic story of Cinderella in a more serious and spiritual vein than we usually associate with "fairy tales." My review is here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show... .

Another one of my groups is doing a common read of Anthony Hope's 1894 action-adventure novel The Prisoner of Zenda this month. Although I'd heard of the book, it wasn't really on my radar before this; but it turned out to be a much more satisfying read than I'd expected. My four-star review is here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show... .

This past week, I finished two books, the one I'd been reading aloud to my wife and the one I'd been reading to myself, within a few days of each other. The former is Dragonlord of Mystara by pseudonymous author Thorarinn Gunnarsson; the latter is Moon of the Wolf, by Les Whitten. Here are those reviews: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show... and https://www.goodreads.com/review/show... .

With The Apocalypse Door by new-to-me author James D. Macdonald, I've completed two supernatural fiction reads back-to-back (and have another one coming up next month). This one, though, reads more like action-adventure or spy fiction. As my four-star rating and review (https://www.goodreads.com/review/show... ) indicate, I found this one a pretty fun read --quick, not particularly deep philosophically, and light rather than dark despite the subject matter and the dangerous bad guys.

Earlier this week, I finished reading my first and only exposure to John Saul's work, Black Creek Crossing. That one ultimately proved to be a disappointment; I went with a three-star rating to be fair, but I could have gone lower. My review is here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show... .

Although Patricia C. Wrede is one of my favorite fantasy authors, and I read her story collection Book of Enchantments more than 20 years ago, I hadn't reviewed it here on Goodreads until yesterday. Here, finally, is that five-star review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show... .

Here and there, I continue to plug away at gradually reviewing some of the many books I read pre-Goodreads. Here's the link to the latest of these retrospective reviews, for Thomas the Rhymer by Ellen Kushner. As my five-star rating suggests, this historical fantasy was one that I especially liked. https://www.goodreads.com/review/show... .

Both of my most recent reviews are of fantasy books, and both of the latter were written by authors I count as favorites; but in other particulars, they're quite different. The Coming of Conan the Cimmerian by Robert E. Howard is a collection of short fiction of the 'swords and sorcery" type, while Charles de Lint's The Harp of the Grey Rose: The Legend Of Cerin Songweaver is a traditional fantasy novel. My reviews are here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show... and https://www.goodreads.com/review/show... .

Here's the link to my most recent review, of FBOM by Goodreads author E.M. Bosso: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show... . This was a free review copy from the author; I didn't make him any promises as to how I'd like it, but my rating ultimately went the full five stars. (I've classified it as "mystery-crime fiction," but it's the second half of that hyphenated designation that fits --this is not a mystery as such, that involves detection of an unknown perpetrator.)

Since I'm currently reading a biography of 20th-century German Lutheran theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer, I was reminded of an earlier biography of Luther himself, Here I Stand: A Life of Martin Luther by Roland Bainton, which I'd read in the early 70s (in a different edition than the one shown here, of course!), but never reviewed until today. Here's that review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show... (which has theological content that might bore some readers :-) ).

Earlier today, I finished reading, and reviewed, the Bonhoeffer biography I mentioned in my previous post,
Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy by evangelical Goodreads author Eric Metaxas. That review is here:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show... . This was a common read in one of my other groups; this discussion thread there, https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/... , has more discussion, and links to reviews in several journals.

Earlier this year, someone in one of my other groups proposed doing a Christmas-themed common read in December. Having some vague memories of having watched part of the movie 46 years ago, and knowing that we had a copy of the book in the BC library and that it was apt to be a quick, easy read, I suggested The House Without a Christmas Tree by Gail Rock. As it turned out, I enjoyed it more than I'd expected to! My four-star review is here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show... .

Although the YA historical novel Pirates! by Celia Rees was a library book (so I can't keep it), I've had my eye on it for some time; so making time to read it this month was a Christmas present of sorts to myself. :-) My five-star review is here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show... . One thing I didn't mention there, though, is that this book has a really cinematic quality; it would make an excellent action movie (probably rated PG-13) if Hollywood ever chooses to adapt it, and if they do I definitely want to see it!

Since I posted here last, I've added several reviews:

Christmas at Red Butte by Canadian author Lucy Maud Montgomery (famed for the Anne of Green Gables series) is a seasonally-appropriate story that I read as a common read in another group. My review is here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show... .

Goodreads doesn't have a single entry for the three-volume set of The Collected Short Stories of Louis L'Amour: The Frontier Stories; so although I think of this as one long book that I've been intermittently reading for three years (and finally finished a few days ago), I've had to review each volume separately. It turns out that I never linked to my review of Vol. 2 here; so here are the links to that review and the one of Vol. 3: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show... and https://www.goodreads.com/review/show... .

Finally, I did my end-of-the year review of 2018 on Goodreads yesterday. As always, I'm also linking to that one here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show... .

My 2019 reviewing got of to a stellar start (pun intended!) with two five-star reviews, of In Death Survive: Ghostly Tales by Andrew Seddon (https://www.goodreads.com/review/show... ) and The Witch of Blackbird Pond by Elizabeth George Speare (https://www.goodreads.com/review/show... ).

Anyone who knows my reading tastes is aware that I'm quite a fan of the fiction of the supernatural, especially fiction with a serious spiritual dimension. So it's probably no surprise that I really liked City of the Shrieking Tomb, which I got from the author, Patrick A. Rogers, as a free e-book for review. https://www.goodreads.com/review/show... .