Cake on a Hot Tin Roof Book Review

Ok, heads up alert on this one...it's just for fun. Just as I can't resist a good dessert, I can't resist clever titles for summer beach reads either. Cake on a Hot Tin Roof follows A Sheetcake Named Desire by Jacklyn Brady. The premise is a bakery chef inherits a pastry shop from her late, almost ex-husband in New Orleans. There is a mystery involved, as in her first of this "A Piece of Cake" series. However, it's the inner workings of the pastry shop that interests me the most. New owner Rita Lucero who is still trying to earn her spot as the boss of the shop finds her visiting uncle a suspect in the murder of one of New Orleans prominent businessmen. Several families' secrets are revealed in the course of the book and a view of Mardi Gras a few years after Katrina keeps things interesting.

As in many books lately, recipes are included in the back of the book.  None for the fancy cakes made up for the pastry shop but some recipes for brunches and other meals. Only one appealed to me but then I'm not a fan of New Orleans style food.

Have fun as you get an inside glance at a business most of us will not see in daily operation.

Objects of My Affection Book Review

The premise of this book hooked me. Lucy Bloom is an organizer given the job of clearing out an artist's house with a deadline that is an important part of the plot. The artist is a hoarder and refuses to let go of her stuff creating most, but not all, of the tension in the story. I like my 'stuff' too so I picked this up to discover how the cleaning out goes. Along the way I found myself guessing as to what happens to the hard working organizer who has recently lost her job, her boyfriend and sold her house to pay for her drug addict son's therapy.

I crave happy endings so this book pretty much tied up the storyline the way I wanted with a few surprises along the way. I'll be reading Jill Smolinski's earlier book, The Next Thing On My List, now that I've enjoyed Objects of My Affection.

Delusion in Death Book Review

J.D. Robb (Nora Roberts) is either one of the most prolific writers working today or has a host of ghostwriters working for her. Either way she is selling a ton of books and I read everyone of them. With that statement you know I'm a fan and will not be writing the usual book review, but instead will just recommend any of her books for escapist reading as they pull you in and keep you with her till 'the End.'

Delusion in Death is perhaps a little more fast-paced than usual as Lt. Eve Dallas works almost around the clock with her detective team in 2050 NYC to prevent mass murder via mind blowing chemicals. Her team is made up of returning characters with a couple of those characters getting more exposure this time around. I guess I like her books because of the dialogue. She does it with quips and threats and humor between characters. I don't have to skip over paragraphs and paragraphs of introspection or description that makes me impatient when reading these days.

I would suggest if you're new to Robb's 'Death' series to start with the first in the series, Naked in Death, 1995. It's not mandatory but you'll have a vested interest in the characters and understand more of the insider comments if you do.

The Afterwife Book Review

Sometimes not reading the book cover turns into a pleasant surprise. I had my doubts about Gigi Levangie Grazerat's book in the opening pages but enjoyed the surprise as I finished the book. 

The doubts came as the beginning of the book had the protagonist's husband dying. A deeply loved husband killed in the first few pages is not my idea of escapist reading. However, it paid to stay with it as I did enjoy the book and its unexpected curve into unforeseen territory. I don't want to spoil this for anyone else so let me just say that there is a play on words with the title.  Think Afterlife and you'll have a clue what's ahead.

Grazer has a host of characters that are fun, pathetic, and believable supporting the widow. Her subplots also take side trips that are surprising and entertaining. I even laughed out loud at some of the antics in the book. For something that starts out with a sad premise, she turns it into a book that's both engaging and amusing.

Paris My Sweet Book Review

I've always considered memoirs to be written by older people. Paris My Sweet, A Year in the City of Light (and Dark Chocolate) does not fall into that category. Amy Thomas lived in Paris for two years in her thirties and shares that experience of loving Paris and all things dessert but eventually returning to her home in New York City.

This isn't a recipe book although she frequently shares how the dessert is made and its inspiration if in New York or Paris. She shares her work experiences, her loneliness and her love of the city that claimed her heart when she first visited during a semester of college. I enjoyed her writing style and living vicariously in Paris through her experiences. I certainly enjoyed reading of the dessert treasures she consumed with verve and passion. If you've ever dreamed of bicycling through ancient streets and architecture, visiting the Louvre whenever you wanted, eating multi-course meals each served with great wine, then you'll enjoy Thomas' adventures in the City of Light and Dark Chocolate.

Paris My Sweet, A Year in the City of Light (and Dark Chocolate), Amy Thomas, Sourcebooks Inc,. 2012

The Checklist Manifesto Book Review

I'm becoming more of a list maker all the time. Lists make me more efficient and keep me from forgetting things I really want to accomplish in a day. So finding an online recommendation for The Checklist Manifesto, How to Get Things Right by Atul Gawande intrigued me enough to order it from my local library.

It wasn't the consummate way to create and complete to-do lists that I expected, but took off in quite a different direction. The author uses some of the best checklists known to make a case for using them in any arena where safety and efficiency is warranted. We all realize pilots use checklists before flying airplanes. Gawande gives examples of how these checklists save lives. His stories keep the reader's attention on what he's going to say next. The take away from this book is how checklists used in hospitals are preventing mistakes in surgery and elsewhere. If I have to have surgery I want to ask the doctor if he uses such a checklist. Gawande convinced me that, although often times checklists seem to be rote, the times they save lives is worth the effort involved.

Gawande builds his case for checklists with case histories that are page turners and research data that convinces instead of glazing over the eyes of readers. This is a nonfiction book I can recommend.

The Checklist Manifesto How to Get Things Right by Atul Gawande, Metropolitan Books, 2009.