April Books:

 Life in the Sloth Lane: Slow Down and Smell the Hibiscus by Lucy Cooke

Non-Fiction: Pop Culture, 144 pages

This book has the well known format of a picture and a short quote, fact, or other info on the subject on the opposite page.  It does have longer writing on many pages than many books of this type.  Sometimes there were whole paragraphs of info, not just a sentence or two.

Ukulele for Dummies by Alistair Wood

Non-fiction: 338 pages

This book is set up that even a beginner can understand the start of the book, but as the book goes on it gets deeper and deeper into the subject, so if one was reading it over months to a year while practicing they could learn all the things in the book and play them.  

A Year of Living Prayerfully: How A Curious Traveler Met the Pope, Walked on Coals, Danced with Rabbis, and Revived His Prayer Life by Jared Brock

Non-fiction: Religion, E-book

The author of the book (and his wife for most parts) travel the world to meet with people of various religious traditions, as well as some religious like groups to learn what prayer is.  They start out locally with some nearby Rabbis but end up in Rome, on the Camino, at monasteries on Mount Athos (that was just him, as no women are allowed,) a fire walking seminar and more places.   

Homily on St. Ignatius by John Chrysostom

Non-Fiction, Religion, E-book

St. John Chrysostom talking about the life of St. Ignatius (the early martyr not the one born centuries after St. John Chrysostom, of course.) Also I see how he got his name, Chrysostom meaning Golden Mouth, as there was 1 sentence with 131 words in it. 

NeuroTribes: The Legacy of Autism and the Future of Neurodiversity by Steve Silberman

Non-fiction: Science, History, 447 pages

This book is a look over the major players in the history of diagnosing Autism as well as important pop culture moments in the public understanding of Autism.

Duel with the Devil: The True Story of How Alexander Hamilton and Aaron Burr Teamed Up to Take on America's First Sensational Murder Mystery  by Paul Collins

Non-fiction: History, 304 pages

This book is all about the trial of Levi Weeks for the death of Elma Sands as well as the political issues that were interconnected to the trail.  Also it has more information on the parties involved, including info on the likely true killer.  

Murder at 40 Below: True Crime Stories from Alaska by Tom Brennan

Non-Fiction, Mystery, History, 192 pages

Each chapter in this book is a story of a murderer who killed while in Alaska.  Most are rather unknown, one was the Birdman of Alcatraz.

How to Behave Badly in Elizabethan England: A Guide for Knaves, Fools, Harlots, Cuckolds, Drunkards, Liars, Thieves, and Braggarts by Ruth Goodman

Non-Fiction: History, 320 pages

This book is based on the idea that you can know more about what a historic time cared about, by seeing what was considered bad behavior and how bad was it seen then what was the average person's way of life.  

The Deadly Mystery of the Missing Diamonds by T.E. Kinsey 

Fiction: Mystery, E-book

This book takes place in London in the years between the world wars.  The main characters are mostly members of a Jazz band and their family and friends and the people of a club.  Do to a family friend of the drummer recommending that they help with a mystery involving missing diamonds, false identities and eventually murder to a police Superintendent, they are playing a local private members’ club trying to help a bunch of uncoordinated men learn to dance while picking up clues to find out who is the thief.

March Books

Dungeons and Dragons and Philosophy: Raiding the Temple of Wisdom (Popular Culture and Philosophy #70) Edited by: Jon Cogburn and Mark Silcox

Non-fiction: Pop Culture, 328 pages

Much like the rest of the books in this series, this book is about how the game of Dungeons and Dragons intersects with various ideas in philosophy.  It was also written a few years ago and so deals largely with the 4th edition of the game.

The Fisherman's Tomb: The True Story of the Vatican's Secret Search by John O'Neill

Non-fiction: History, Science, Religion, 256 pages

This is the story for the hunt for St. Peter's tomb and bones below the Vatican.  After reading this, I am amazed that anyone involved was allowed to do any archology (excluding the lone woman who many people refused to listen to and the American who secretly financed it all.) Also I was amazed that they didn't destroy all the priceless historic artifacts that they touched.  Besides that it was an interesting story with lots of twists and turns. 

Roman Cookery: Ancient Recipes for Modern Kitchens by Mark Grant

Non-fiction: History, Cooking, 192 pages

This book takes what we know of Roman cooking and the few recipes that we have recorded and update them with things a modern person could get and what equipment they could have. 

Dying to Read (Cate Kinkaid Files #1) by Lorena McCourtney 

Fiction: Mystery, E-book

This book's title is based on a book club meeting that never happened at the start of the book.  Cate is working as a PI helper who's been giving the job of finding if a person is at an address.  She doesn't find that person then, but she does find the body of a woman who might have died from an accident or murder.  She of course decides to investigate the death.  

February Books

Epic Fails: The Edsel, the Mullet, and Other Icons of Unpopular Culture by: Salvador Jimenez Murguia

Non-fiction: History, Pop Culture, 184 pages

This book is a collection of things that were well known failures.  It goes over what each thing was, how it connected to things that the time and why and how it happened.  

The Great Mortality: An Intimate History of the Black Death, the Most Devastating Plague of All Time by: John Kelly 

Non-fiction: History, science 364 pages

A history of the Black Death including how it traveled around the world, what types of the plague it likely was, and current thoughts and counter thoughts on it.

Haunted Flint by: Roxanne Rhoads, Joe Schipani

Non-fiction: History, Paranormal, 144 pages

This book is more about the history of Flint than just ghost stories.  It does include why some places were thought to be haunted and possible ghostsly pictures but the history that lead to the possible haunting is in the forefront of the stories.  

Middle Finger of Fate (Trailer Park Princess #1) by: Kim Hunt Harris

Fiction: Mystery, Christian, E-book

First, this book is very much a Christian fiction book.  The title and description made me think it was more of a humorous  mystery (which it also is) but it is not a mystery novel where the characters happen to be Christian, but a Christian novel that is about a mystery.  Besides that Salam is a recovering alcoholic who finds a dead body on the way to her AA meeting at church, and then decides to solve the mystery after the police arrest her (possibly) ex-husband for it.  She works on solving the case with the help of her dog, a senior citizen with a colorful past of her own, and the "Pickle Mobile."  

Everything Is Going to Kill Everybody: The Terrifyingly Real Ways the World Wants You Dead

by: Robert Brockway

Non-fiction: Science, Pop Culture, humor, 272 pages

This book covers all the major ways that you can die at anytime from things all around you.  It includes natural disasters, as well as science gone wrong.  Also it is written by a writer from Cracked and has related humor as Cracked.

Grace, Grits and Ghosts: Southern Short Stories by: Susan Gabriel

Fiction: Short Story, E-book

This book is a collection of short stories, some of which are based on the author's larger novels and/or interconnected with each other.  

Tell Me The Odds: A 15 Page Introduction To Bayes Theorem by: Scott Hartshorn

Non-fiction: Math, Science, Short Story, E-book

This short work is on how to tell the odds of something if you know the outcome.

January Books

 After last year's 163 books I thought I would take it easy this year.  So I only made my reading goal 24 books.  Because of that I plan on doing a monthly post.

American Cookery: The Art of Dressing Viands, Fish, Poultry, and Vegetables by Amelia Simmons

Non-fiction: Food, History, E-book

Anyone who has been watching historic cooking YouTube channels has heard of Simmons.  This book has many recipes that I can mostly make out what one was to do with which items, but like most cookbooks of the time it is a fun mix of no amounts listed with exact amounts listed with a few non-exact measurments mixed in.

Colonial Spirits: A Toast to Our Drunken History by Steven Grasse

Non-fiction:Food, History, 224 pages

A combination of recipes based on historic drinks and history.

Quackery: A Brief History of the Worst Ways to Cure Everything by Lydia Kang, Nate Pedersen

Non-Fiction: History, Science, 334 pages

Many things that people thought would cure or help illnesses were in fact horrible things.  This book deals with some of these "cures."

The History of Underclothes by C. Willett Cunnington, Phillis Cunnington

Non-Fiction: History 272 pages

This book goes over about 600 years of trends in under clothes, ending in the 1950's.  It deals with both male and female garments, but spends more time on female ones, as they both changed faster and they had more of them.  There are photos, but they are only black and white, which makes it harder to see some of the details. 

The Sword of Summer (Magnus Chase and the Gods of Asgard #1) by Rick Riordan 

Fiction: YA, fantasy, e-book

Magnus has been homeless, since his mother died in an attack of wolves with glowing eyes.  She had a couple of brothers that he could live with, but he didn't trust them.  And he knew nothing about his father.  On his 16th birthday he runs into one uncle, raises a magic sword from the river, fights a fire giant, dies, and gets taken to Valhalla by his valkyrie, and finds out who his father was.  After that his life gets complicated.

Murder by the Pint by Belle Knudson

Fiction: Mystery, E-book

This book was a very quick read.  If it wasn't I might have just stopped reading it.  Not only did it have the issues that many self published books have, but it also had issues on basic knowledge of beer. (And the MC is running a brewery, which is an important part of the plot.)  For example a character absolutely hates bitter things (like even cola or coffee is too bitter,) so of course the MC gets them to try an IPA that they just love.   

End of the Year Books:

 A is for Arsenic: The Poisons of Agatha Christie by: Kathryn Harkup

Non-fiction: History, Science, Classic Lit, 320 pages

This book goes over all of the poisons that are used in the works of Agatha Christie.  It covers what she got right what she got wrong, cases where it was used in real life as well as the chemistry, history, etc of the compound.  It does have spoilers for her books, but it is mostly about the medical and scientific aspects of things.

Star Wars Be More Vader: Assertive Thinking from the Dark Side by: Christian Blauvelt

Non-fiction: pop culture, 64 pages

This book is a short book that is a "self-help" book based on Star Wars.

Rebel Without a Claus : A Little Tombstone Novelette (Little Tombstone Cozy Mysteries Book 2) by: Celia Kinsey

fiction: Mystery, E-book

A short little mystery that takes place around Christmas. Also there is a dog.

Christmas Slay Ride: Most Mysterious and Horrific Christmas Day Murders by: Jack Smith

Non-fiction: History, E-book

This book is a collection of true crime stories that happened around Christmas. (Mostly Christmas eve or day.) 

Isaac Newton: A Life From Beginning to End by: Hourly History

Non-fiction: History, Biography, E-book

Fun fact I should have known, but didn't think of.  Newton wasn't born on Christmas day, because England refused to switch to the Gregorian calendar until well after other countries did.  Besides that this book is a quick look at the life and legacy of Newton.  

 The Poison Squad: One Chemist's Single-Minded Crusade for Food Safety at the Turn of the Twentieth Century by: Deborah Blum

Non-fiction: Food, History, 330 pages 

This book goes over the life of Dr. Harvey Washington Wiley as well as the work that was done to make food safe in America by him and others working with him.  It dealt with major laws, events, studies and other things that changed what people ate in America.  

Ho Ho Homicide by: Amy Phipps 

Fiction: Mystery, short story, E-book

A short murder mystery that takes place at Christmas time.

The Essential Star Trek Party Bite Cookbook: Cook Like A Replicator! by: Dan Babel

Non-fiction: Food, Pop Culture, E-book

This cook book has many easy recipes, some have some connection with Star Trek, but most have little to no actual connection with the show. 

Books of December Part 1:

 Supernatural: The Official Cookbook: Burgers, Pies, and Other Bites from the Road by: Insight Editions

Non-Fiction: Food, Pop Culture, 128 pages

This book was, as one would expect, written before the end of the show.  But as it is largely about the food that has been eaten in the series this has little effect on it.  It is divided up into types of meals, foods, etc. For example, breakfast, burgers, and pies.  For each recipe it includes info on why it is in the book.  This could be an episode, a food that is eaten a lot overall, or something that a character likes.  It also had many pictures.

Handcrafted Bitters: Simple Recipes for Artisanal Bitters and the Cocktails That Love Them by: Will Budiaman

Non-fiction: Food, 192 pages

This book gives recipes for homemade bitters based on what in in season, drinks to make with them as well as ideas for making your own bitters recipes.

A Thyme and Place: Medieval Feasts and Recipes for the Modern Table by: Lisa Graves, Tricia Cohen

Non-fiction: Food, History, 152 pages

1st, while the book is based off of recipes from the middle ages to slightly after the renaissance the recipes have been updated for modern ingredients and cooking methods, sometimes with info on what was originally used.   2nd, this book only deals with English holidays and foods. 3rd, this book follows the formula that the "church" is a singular thing that hated fun, and so will range from talking about the Catholic Church to the most Puritan Calvinist with no note about them being very different groups. (which results in confusing statements if you didn't know which they were talking about, like when outlawing Christmas or pie.)

 The Haunting of H. G. Wells by: Robert Masello

Fiction: History, Mystery, Paranormal, E-book

This story takes place during WWI and as one expects stars H.G. Wells.  It deals with him going to the front for the war effort, and seeing the real horrors of war.  It also deals with a moral quandary his wife has back at home,  And a female reporter, who likes Wells and her chasing a story.  Of course all these connect to the biggest issue in the story.

 Christmas Miscellany: Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Christmas (Books of Miscellany) by: Jonathan Green

Non-Fiction: History, Holiday, E-book

This book also mostly deals with Christmas traditions in the UK, but also deals with general Christmas traditions and info about ones for other places. (Mostly ones that were started in the USA.)  But this one is for the most part well researched and there are very few mistakes in it. There were a few things like plum used to mean any dry fruit, so plum pudding doesn't usually have actual plums in it. (And figgy pudding doesn't have to have figs, and they both are Christmas pudding.)  But besides a few things like that, it is full of information and history on things related to Christmas. 

Books of November Part 2:

The History of Bread: From Pre-historic to Modern Times by: John Ashton
Non-fiction: History, Food, E-book
This book was written by an Edwardian English man, and you can tell.  It is good about telling the history of bread in Europe (besides the fact that the first bread was likely not made in Europe unlike the author’s opinion.) But it does insist that all bread in India is horrible (except the one region that also happens to be Christian.) And for some reason felt the need to point out that all theology about communion is completely wrong besides that of the low Church of England’s theology. (And also hot cross buns may be a sacrament?!?) But no matter how crazy the myth relating to bread of European background, there is no need to question it. 

Ad Limina: A Novella by: Cyril Jones-Kellett
Fiction: Sci-fi, Religion, 220 pages
If I wasn’t reading this for review on my YouTube channel, I would have stopped reading it on page 2.  But it was not as bad as the start made me think it would be.  It was clear that it was self-published or done by a small likely vanity press, but given that, it was over all an ok read.
This is the story of the 1st bishop of Mars,that was born on Mars.  It is time for his trip back to Rome (called the Ad Limina.) In fact he was way overdue for the trip, but this is the 1st time that the Pope hasn’t let him wait due to the problems with traveling to Earth for him.  He gets a ticket on a ship heading that way, but then things happen that lead him to many places he wouldn’t normally go to. 

Pilfered Promises (A Victorian San Francisco Mystery #5) by: M. Louisa Locke
Fiction: Mystery, History, E-book
This book takes place over Thanksgiving to Christmas, so I read it at the right time.  In this book Annie and Nate have already been married, she is still solving mysteries and he is growing the law firm he is in.  A local major department store hires her to find out who is stealing from the store and how.  And he is hired to be their lawyer.

The Painted Queen (Amelia Peabody #20) by: Elizabeth Peters, & Joan Hess
Fiction: Mystery, History, 544 pages
This is the last book in the series, because the author died before it was done and the other author finished it off based on what was done.  In this book there is a bust of Queen Nefertiti that has gone missing and had been given to a master forger, who is making copies of it.  Also there is a family of people named after famous traitors who are after Amelia.  And there is a missing Egyptologist. 

Books of November Part 1:

In case you didn't read the post below, I am still working on books from Halloween, but also have new books in the mix, plus this year who's to say Halloween is done, I mean it is already Christmas and Thanksgiving hasn't happened yet.

The Five: The Untold Lives of the Women Killed by Jack the Ripper by: Hallie Rubenhold

Non-fiction: History, E-book

This is an interesting look at the victims of Jack the Ripper.  It includes all that the author could find about the women before the events, giving them a chance to speak as people and not just as the ripper's victims. Interestingly most of them were not prostitutes at the time of their death, just that at the time poor, homeless woman and prostitute were considered interchangeable given the belief that they would do anything to survive. At least 1 of them had a common law husband who they would not be let into the overnight lodgings they stayed at with any other male. 2 had at times been considers a prostitute, but one of them likely was the willing or unwilling mistress of someone in the family that they worked for years before the events. It was interesting to see that one of the few things that we thought we knew about the Rippers victims might be wrong, as much of the analyzing of the Ripper's victims and who he might have been is based on this idea.  Also it contained a list of what was one each body at the time of death, which was interesting. 

Old World Cookery, Seafood Recipes from 100 Years Ago  by: Catrina LaNoir

Non-fiction: food, history, e-book

This book is a collection of Victorian/Edwardian seafood recipes.  If you have ever read any recipes from that time, it is what you might expect.  A number of them have info like a vague notation on what the main amount and type of thing should be and then (at the time) exact amounts for other things. So combine a fish with a walnut sized amount of butter, etc.  

Goat Castle: A True Story of Murder, Race, and the Gothic South by: Karen L. Cox

Non-fiction: History, 227 pages

This is the story of a murder that happened in the 1930's in a Southern town that included families that were Southern "royalty" and the ancestors of slaves. As one could expect the African Americans were convicted even if they were not a willing participant, but the white "land owners" got off, but didn't necessary life the life they wanted either. 

The Necronomnomnom: Recipes and Rites from the Lore of H. P. Lovecraft by: Red Duke Games, LLC

Non-fiction: pop culture, classics, food and cooking, 197 pages

This is a cookbook that has recipes based on the works of H.P. Lovecraft, some are normal ones that are in some way connected with the series, and some are more about the look then the taste.  Each one is written first in a very Lovecraften way and then in a normal way. (Which is good, as some are hard to tell what the actual ingredients or directions are.) 

I Love Ranch Dressing: And Other Stuff White Midwesterners Like by: Cara Freie

Non-fiction: humor, pop culture, 192 pages

A book based on things white midwestern people like.  Some that you may agree with some that you might not.  Also in at least 1 entry it is important to state that it was published in 2008. 

Month of Halloween Part:3

 -As often happens, I have picked out too many books for the month.  Luckily many of the themes work for the November holidays too (death, history -that might have to do with murders, cooking, etc.) So there will likely be books on the next post that would fit here, but I just couldn't read fast enough.  

Also I may just decide to do NaNoWriMo, because why not it's 2020 and everything is cancelled anyway, so my reading time may be spent writing.

Young Frankenstein: The Story of the Making of the Film by: Mel Brooks

Non-fiction: Pop Culture, Humor, 200 pages

This is the story of how the film "Young Frankenstein" came about from the mouths of the people involved.  It also contains lots of pictures from on the set and behind the screens information.

The Frighteners: A Celebration of our Fascination with the Macabre by: Peter Laws

Non-Fiction: History, Pop Culture, Science, Psychology, E-book 288 pages

This book deals with the whys and hows people love the macabre.  The topics range from true crime to horror films, and furries to zombie games. It involves places and events that the author personally visited as well as info from experts and a wide range of specialties.  Also it is written by a minister that became Christian after watching "The Exorcist". 

The Butcher and Other Supernatural Tales Vol. 2 by: Brendon Faife 

Fiction: Horror, Paranormal, Short Story, E-book

A collection of 5 short stories involving the supernatural.

The Girl in the Woods (Off-Kilter Tales #1) by: Michael Robertson

Fiction: Horror, Paranormal, Short Story, E-book

When attempting to kill themselves by driving into a tree, a man sees a strange girl in the woods.  He decides to see if she needs help, even if he is sure she is a ghost or delusion, and wakes up in a basement missing part of his leg. 

Your Favorite Band Cannot Save You by: Scotto Moore

Fiction: Sci-fi, Paranormal, 127 pages

A music blogger finds a new band who's music they just can't stop listening to. They try and find out who the band is and end up on the front line of what might just be the end of this dimension. 

Ghosts, Monsters and Madmen by: D. Nathan Hilliard

Fiction: Horror, Paranormal, Short Story, E-book

This book is a collection of short stories that the author got the rights back from after a couple of small presses went under.  They were made for anthology collections with diverse criteria. 

The Poison Plot: A Tale of Adultery and Murder in Colonial Newport by: Elaine Forman Crane

Non-Fiction: History, 272 pages

Apparently, until the famous one ruined the name for everyone there were a large number of people named  Benedict Arnold in that family.  This is the story of the possible murder attempt of the possible grandfather of the famous  Benedict Arnold. (The book deals with the reasons why he may or may not have been poisoned in a murder attempt, it doesn't deal as much with how this Benedict might not be the grandfather of the famous one, besides the fact that there is a lot of adultery, pregnant brides where the new husband wasn't the father, and other questions about paternity in the family history.  The book does deal with the fact that Mary Arnold might have had children by Benedict Arnold AND his son {by a previous wife} also Benedict Arnold.) Basically everyone in this family has the same couple of names and one of them might have been poisoned by their wife.

Month of Halloween Part:2

 Strange Planet by: Nathan W. Pyle

Fiction: Pop Culture, Comics, Humor, 144 pages

If B or L is reading this, No, I didn't read all the books I got you before giving them to you, the other book was too long to read that quickly. ;)

If you know the comic strip/web comic you know what this book is, a collection of short stories (many 4 panel) about "aliens" seeing everyday life with unusual, but reasonable word choices.  The book is divided up by themes. 

mental floss presents Condensed Knowledge: A Deliciously Irreverent Guide to Feeling Smart Again

by Will Pearson, Elizabeth Hunt, Mangesh Hattikudur

Non-Fiction: Science, Art, Food, History, Religion, 352 pages

This book is set up in a bathroom reader like format.  It is divided up by subject and includes lists as well as short little blurbs.  Most of it is OK, but not anything great.  The religion section was so bad, I wanted to correct their statements about other religions, because it was soo bad, that anyone with a basic knowledge on the subject could see the issues.  Like: suggesting that the founder of Islam had only 1 wife, noting that different Christians have some differences in what books make up the Bible (while stating the opposite of what happened was what happened) and then talking about books not in the Bible (while half of the books are in 2 out of the 3 branches of Christianity's Bibles), and getting so many dates wrong (both in historic evidence, and in how the religion sees itself- like I'd be cool with either this is what X group believes or this is what the archeology shows. But they get both wrong at times.)

Will My Cat Eat My Eyeballs? Big Questions from Tiny Mortals About Death by: Caitlin Doughty, Ill. by: Dianné Ruz

Non-Fiction: Science, Pop Culture, Children's, YA, 222 pages

This book answers a series of questions that children have asked about death, funerals, and ways to deal with dead bodies. Most questions deal with human death, as the author is a funeral director, but it does have questions about animal deaths as well.  Also, while I logically knew that a "Viking funeral" shouldn't work given the temps and length of  time it takes to cremate a person, having someone point out that you would end up with a slightly charred body floating around in the water and a sunk boat, is depressing.  

To Hell I Must Go: The True Story of Michigan's Lizzie Borden by: Rod Sadler

Non-fiction: History, 176 pages

This is a novelized version of the story of a murder that took place in a small Michigan town in 1897.  It was written by a retired police officer who was looking into the life of their great, great grandfather who was the sheriff when it happened.  While the murder did take place using an ax, and the murderer was a female, that is the only connections with Lizzie Borden that the event has.

 The Zen of Zombie: (Even) Better Living through the Undead by: Scott Kenemore

Non-fiction: self help, pop culture, 280 pages

This is a self help books based on being like a zombie.  Because nothing stops a zombie from getting what they want (brains.)  It has 2 parts: the 24 habits of highly effective zombies and a 90 day guide to zombification.  

   

Month of Halloween Part:1

 Some of these books were picked out before Halloween or are not topical. (The trivia books with will appear in this and the next posting are for a possible spot on a trivia podcast.) 

The Living Flame of Love by: Juan de la Cruz (St. John of the Cross)

Non-Fiction: Religion, Classic, Poetry, E-book

Part of this book is his poetry as well as an explanation of it's meaning.  And part of it is letters that he sent to various people.  

Brick Greek Myths: The Stories of Heracles, Athena, Pandora, Poseidon, and Other Ancient Heroes of Mount Olympus by: John D. McCann, Monica Sweeney, Becky Thomas

Fiction: Classic, Pop Culture, E-book

A retelling of the major Greek myths told in Lego.  

The Romanovs: A Captivating Guide to the Last Imperial Dynasty to Rule Russia and the Impact the Romanov Family Had on Russian History by: Captivating History

Non-fiction: History, E-book

A short history of the Romanov dynasty in Russia.  It highlights the major people and events including of course the end of the Tsars in Russia.

Opium and Absinthe by: Lydia Kang

Fiction: History, Mystery, E-book

This book takes place in NYC shortly after the book "Dracula" came out. Tillie is the younger daughter in one of the wealthy, society families.  She has a riding accident and is given opium for the pain.  Soon after the accident her older sister is murdered.  From the way she was killed it looks like it was a vampire.  Besides the bite marks the major possible clue to what happened was an absinthe bottle found next to her.  Tillie is determined to solve her sister's murder, and gets help from unexpected places while also dealing with her growing use of the opium.

The Best Bar Trivia Book Ever: All You Need for Pub Quiz Domination by: Michael O'Neill

Non-Fiction: History, Science, Art, Sports 265 pages

Mostly a good collection of the trivia likely to show up in things like bar trivia games.

The Professor & the Madman: A Tale of Murder, Insanity & the Making of the Oxford English Dictionary by: Simon Winchester

Non-fiction: History, Biography, E-book

The story of the main creator of the Oxford English Dictionary and the American, who was found criminally insane, who was the biggest outside contributor to it. 

The Republic of Pirates: Being the True and Surprising Story of the Caribbean Pirates and the Man Who Brought Them Down by: Colin Woodard

Non-fiction: History, 405 pages

This book tells the story of the heyday of Pirates in the Caribbean and who and what ended much of it.

 Death & Co: Modern Classic Cocktails, with More than 500 Recipes by: David Kaplan, Nick Fauchald, Alex Day

Non-fiction: Food, 320 pages

A collection of cocktail recipes as well as information on how to bartend/make good drinks, the bar and people connected to the bar.

Post Quarantine Books Part 3:

 Scooby-Doo, Where Are You? #76 by Sholly Fisch, art by: Silvana Brys, Walter Carzon, Horacio Ottolini, Scott Jeralds 
Fiction: Pop Culuture, Mystery, Graphic Novel, E-book

This book contains a couple of adventures.  This includes an adventure with the "ghosts" being famous authors and one in a hotel. 

Assassination!: The Brick Chronicle of Attempts on the Lives of Twelve US Presidents by Brendan Powell Smith

Non-Fiction: History, Biography, Pop Culture, E-book

The story of all the assassinations and attempted assassinations of American presidents, done in little plastic bricks that legally can not be called Lego.  

Mental Floss: What's the Difference? by: Mental Floss

Non-Fiction: Science, History, 208 pages

A quick and easy way to know the difference between similar things that people got confused over, as well as who you will impress with this info.  

Sir Apropos of Nothing: Gypsies, Vamps, and Thieves by Peter David, art by:Robin Riggs

Fiction: Fantasy, Graphic Novel,  148 pages

A knight without a grand pass goes on a number of adventures.

Who Put the Devil in Deviled Eggs?: A Food Lover's Guide to America's Favorite Dishes by Ann Treistman

Non-Fiction: History, Food, E-book

This book goes over classic Americana dishes.  It includes the history of the food as well as a clasic recipe for it.

Kitchen Things: An Album of Vintage Utensils and Farm-Kitchen Recipes by Richard Snodgrass

Non-Fiction: History, Food, E-book

This book tells about various utensils as well as having artistic black and white pictures of them.  It also includes family recipes and history of the author and their wive's family cooking.

Drinking with Saint Nick: Christmas Cocktails for Sinners and Saints by Michael P. Foley

Non-fiction: Food, Religion, Holidays, History, 224 pages

A collection of drinks relating to the various holidays connected with Christmastide.  It also lists beers and wines which have names, ingredients or histories that connect with the day.  

Post Quarantine Books Part 2:

Relative Fortunes by Marlowe Benn

Fiction: Mystery, Historic, E-book

I actually started reading this in April, and just didn't feel like reading a book that dealt with sexism in the 1920's on top of everything else that was happening.  Julia has to go to NYC to get her inheritance when it is released on her birthday, but her half brother is contesting that she even gets one according to their father's will.  Meanwhile a friend's sister dies, possibly from a suicide, and the family's actions after that are very odd.  While some of it could be explained by trying to hide a suicide in a society family, given the way the family hated this suffragist, Julia thinks it was murder.  As she is stuck in the city, penny less until the will issues are resolved (and possibly after too,) she agrees to help her friend find out the truth. 

K is for Knifeball: An Alphabet of Terrible Advice by Avery Monsen, Jory John

Fiction: Humor, 80 pages

This ABC book is not for children.  It is filled with dangerous and ill advised activities, things like: let a drifter into the house and burn your dad's wallet.  

Household Tales by Brothers Grimm

Fiction: Children, E-book

This is a large collection of stories from the Grimm brothers.  There is a lot of overlap of things that happen in multiple stories or even slightly different variations of the same story.  It was not as gruesome as I would expect, but there were many ones where I have to question the lesson of the story.  Also what is with all the true brides of princes asking to spend the night with the prince and the evil female (witch, rival princess, etc) who is cool with this, even if they do give the prince a sleeping potion?  How horrible would an actual dress as bright as the sun be?  What's with all the being just handing out great magical items to anyone that passes by who is the least bit nice to them? 

H. H. Holmes: The Life of the American Ripper by Hourly History

Non-fiction: History, Biography, E-book

The man best known as H. H. Holmes, (he was born Herman Webster Mudgett) was America's first serial killer.  Although he is not as famous as Jack the Ripper (who lived during the same time), he killed more. (Although, we can't say exactly how many he killed as few of the bodies were found/identified and he lied constantly. Also a descendant of Holmes think that he might have also been the Ripper.) This book errs on the side of a smaller body count of the confirmed murders and adds the fact that a number of people just disappeared. It also follows the theory that he only said he was renting rooms to swindle people and not the theory that he actually did have people renting rooms.   (As his castle aka murder mansion was located near the Chicago's World Fair, so a number of people who believe in a large murder count believe that he rented rooms to young, single, people who wouldn't be as much missed, just so he could murder them and steal what money and valuables they had.) 

James Cook: A Life From Beginning to End by Hourly History

Non-fiction: History, Biography, E-book

A short Bio of James Cook.  It covers his most famous discoveries as well as parts of his life and personality that are less well known. 

Post Quarantine Books Part 1:

After the marathon of reading during the quarantine and life happening, my list of finished books were rather short for each week, so I waited for a month long list.

Eye of the Storm: The Silent Grief of Miscarriage by Rachel McGrath
Non-fiction: E-book
A short book on the author's loss.

Dealing with Grief: How to Cope and Heal After the Death of a Loved One by Paul Stanton
Non-fiction: E-book
A short book going over the basics of the grieving process.

The Onion and Philosophy: Fake News Story True, Alleges Indignant Area Professor (Popular Culture and Philosophy #54) Ed. by Sharon M. Kaye
Non-Fiction: Pop Culture, Essay 286 pages
This book had a couple sub-par essays at the beginning the negatively effect the feel of the whole book.  Like it starts with an essay against religion using the arguments that science can't prove God and WhAt AbOuT tHe PrObLeM oF pAiN? which mostly isn't about philosophy and the part that is about philosophy they deal with poorly.  A later essay also goes into the problem of pain as well and discusses why they think what they do based on philosophical arguments, like the book is about.  (Both essays come to the same basic conclusion, so its not like I like one more because I agree with it, just that they actually deals with the question using philosophical arguments.)

John Adams: A Life From Beginning to End (President Biographies Book 2) by Hourly History
Non-fiction: Biography, History, E-book
A friend suggested watching a bio on Adams for the 4th of July, given that he was a founding father who didn't own slaves and wasn't for slavery.  As I did not have the time to watch it, I picked up the book instead.

The Sixth Gun Volume 1 Deluxe Edition (The Sixth Gun #1, 2) by Cullen Bunn,
Illustrated by:  Brian Hurtt
Fiction: Graphic Novel, Fantasy, 368 pages
This graphic novel takes place after the Civil War and has a cowboy/western theme.  It revolves around a collection of guns, each with magical abilities.  These guns also bond with their owners and most of the guns seam only to bond with evil men.

Hamlet by William Shakespeare
Fiction, Classic, Play, E-book
Read for a class. It is Shakespeare, I'm sure you all know the plays of Shakespeare.

Quarantine Edition Part 12:

The library re-opens tomorrow, so I have a huge box to take in and this will be the last Quarantine Edition.  I didn't get to one book a day, but still read a ton.

The Tin Rose by Anne Renwick
Fiction: Short Story, Fantasy, E-book
The daughter of a noble and a Gypsy man plan to run off together, but a jealous person tries to stop them.

  I Hate Fairyland: Book One (I Hate Fairyland #1-2) by Skottie Young
Fiction: Graphic Novel, Fantasy, 296 pages
At age 6 Gert ended up in Fairyland.  After 30 years of being on a quest that will let her go back home, she has left a trail of death and destruction in her wake, and even the queen of Fairyland is looking for a way to get rid of her.

The Case of the Toxic Mutants by Ursula Vernon
Fiction: Children's, Fantasy, 208 pages
Danny is sent to visit his grandfather, not the one that lives in mythical Japan, but the one that lives in a retirement village for reptiles.  He learns that his grandfather's dentures are missing.  He blames the next-door neighbor, but she is missing her's too. (and what would she use such giant dentures for anyway?) So him and his friends work to solve the mystery.


The Frozen Menace by Ursula Vernon
Fiction: Children's, Fantasy, 208 pages
Danny's fire went out.  And to get it back he needs to travel to the far north to eat Phoenix eggshell.

 20th Century Ghosts by Joe Hill
Fiction: Paranormal, Sci-fi, Fantasy, Short Story, 316 pages
A collection of short stories, many of them would fall into  horror stories, but not all of them.

Quarantine Edition Part 11:

Every Tool's a Hammer: Life Is What You Make It by Adam Savage
Non-fiction: Science, Pop Culture, 320 pages
This book is all about being a maker, mostly about making things that the author is known for making, but he also has quotes and info from other makers in the book

The Adventure of the Christmas Pudding: A Hercule Poirot Short Story by Agatha Christie
Fiction: Mystery, Short Story, E-book
Poirot is asked to discreetly find a ruby stolen from a prince, by attending a traditional English Christmas out in the country. 

The Vikings: A Brief History by University Press
Non-fiction: History, E-book
Like the title states, this briefly goes over the history of theVikings.

Jefferson Davis Timeline: by Hourly History
Non-fiction: History, E-book
This book goes over the life of Jefferson Davis, in chronological order with a paragraph under each year where something important happened in his life.

A Festival of Ghosts by William Alexander
Fiction: Children's, paranormal, mystery, 272 pages
1st, this is book 2 in the series.  They talk about events from book one in it, but you could read it having not read book 1. Rosa is an assistant librarian, which not only includes what we think of an librarian but also dealing with ghosts, spirits and appeasing them.  She lives in a town that had banished all ghosts for generations, but now is full of ghosts due to the town's banishment being broken.  She, as a kid, is given the task of dealing with the ghosts in the school as well as trying to help her friend who's parent's Renaissance Festival fair grounds are haunted by 2 groups of ghosts.

A Parfait Murder: Out of the Strong Came Forth Sweetness by Luna Snow
Fiction: Mystery, Short Short, E-book
A couple of wealthy people move into a quaint British town and threaten to change everything.  Pat the town's retired librarian tries to think up a way the stop them. But it looks like she is no match for the two schemers. . .

Badwater: A Horror Story (The Shattered God Mythos) by Travis Liebert 
Fiction: Paranormal, Short Story, E-book
This book is about a rescue diver who ends up in an lovecraftian horror.

Murder Aboard the Titanic (Mystery at Sea) by R. Barri Flowers
Fiction: Mystery, Short Short, E-book
This book is actually 2 short stories that both take place on the Titanic, one is about Jack the Ripper being on the boat and the other is an unrealistic romance story on the boat.

The house next door by Tom Coleman
Fiction: Paranormal, Short story, E-book
Sarah is a teen that lives next to a creepy old house with a weird man in it.  After his wife dies, she brings him a pie and disappears.

Quarantine Edition Part 10:

Maybe picking a 600 page book and a couple of 300 pages books at once wasn't the best way to keep my book numbers up.

Mercia: A Captivating Guide to an Anglo-Saxon Kingdom of England and the Invasions of the Vikings during the 9th Century by Captivating History
Non-fiction: History, E-book
The history of the Mercia, the kingdom located in what is now the UK.  It includes maps.

Oscar Wilde: A Life From Beginning to End by Hourly History
Non-fiction: History, Biography, E-book
A short biography of Oscar Wilde.

Mayflower: A History From Beginning to End by Hourly History
Non-Fiction: History, E-Book
A short history of the most famous voyage of the Mayflower as well as the Pilgrims that were on the ship.

American Legends: The Life of Humphrey Bogart by Charles River Editors
Non-fiction: History, Biography, E-book
Humphrey Bogart started his career as a nude model, for baby food. This quick biography coveres much of his life, but mostly his personal relationships and how he became a movie star.

In an Absent Dream by Seanan McGuire
Fiction: YA, fantasy, 204 pages
1st, this author's books need to be easier to find which number they are in a series.  As I keep reading them out of order as a quick look of the covers doesn't denote that it is a series.  But this book is a prequel, even if it is book 4 in the series, so it does do a good job of explaining the important things.  Lundy is a girl who is lonely. (Also she gets points from me for reading a series of books I loved when younger, but most people don't know.) Her father is the principle of her school, and she doesn't have friends.  She finds a tree with a door in it where there wasn't any tree with or without a door before.  She opens it and travels down a hallway with a few rules listed in it that opens to the Goblin Market, a place made for people like her.

Quarantine Edition Part 9:

Doctor Who Classics Omnibus, Vol. 1 by Pat Mills , John Wagner, Grant Morrison, Steve Moore, Steve Parkhouse, Dave Gibbons, John Ridgway, Paul Neary
Fiction: Graphic Novel, Pop Culture 360 pages
A collection of Doctor Who stories.  Most are from the 4th Doctor.

The Allure of Immortality: An American Cult, a Florida Swamp, and a Renegade Prophet by Lyn Millner
Non-Fiction: History, Religion, E-book
Amazingly the Branch Davidians weren't the first group of Americans who's leader thought that he was Cyrus from the Bible and used the Hebrew version of the name.  This book is about a group from the era when many new religions were starting in America. (The leader was related by marriage to Joseph Smith the founder of Mormonism.) His name was Cyrus Teed and the group were called Koreshans.  This book covers the whole time of the group and after effects.  It starts with the beginnings of the group's ideas when Cyrus worked as a "doctor" who used the positive power of the brain to treat people.  We learn about his idea that we were living on the inside of the earth and what we saw as space was the middle of the planet, his thoughts on marriage, and his beliefs on becoming immortal.  It then goes over how his group grew and the problems that they faced.  They moved down to Florida to start their own Utopian community. And had new problems as well as new successes.   It includes the aftermath of the death of the leader.  How the group slowly died (both by people leaving, and because as they were a celibate group without recruiting new members, they got old and died with no replacement members.)  It also talks about what happened to their land and artifacts after the group was gone.

The History of Cuba in 50 Events by Henry Freeman
Non-Fiction: History, E-book
50 events starting with the earliest inhabitants of the island to modern times.

Cuban Missile Crisis: A History From Beginning to End by Stephan Weaver
Non-fiction: History, E-book
A short history of the Cuban Missile Crisis including info on the main world leaders involved and possible outcomes each would have been worried about.

Battle of Waterloo: A History From Beginning to End by Hourly History
Non-fiction: History: E-book
A detailed description of what happened during the battle as well as the main events leading up to it as well as the aftermath.

The Borden Murders: Lizzie Borden and the Trial of the Century by Sarah Miller
Non-Fiction: History, YA, 288 pages
This book goes from the events of the day of the murders through the trails and includes info on the rest of Lizzie's life.  It is amazing the number of things that were lost from such a famous case, not to mention the number of things done that we would now see as corrupting evidence and bad police work.

 Siege of Yorktown: The Last Major Land Battle of the American Revolutionary War by Henry Freeman
Non-fiction: History: E-book
A quick read on what happened at the siege of Yorktown.

Quarantine Edition Part 8:

Almost 80% done with my yearly reading goal.

Themes and Variations by David Sedaris

Non-fiction: essay, humor, e-book

A short essay on themes of book signing tours that the author has been on.

Thomas Aquinas: A Life from Beginning to End by Hourly History

Non-fiction: Biography, e-book

A quick read about the life of St. Thomas Aquinas.

Native American Mythology: Captivating Myths of Indigenous Peoples from North America by Matt Clayton

Non-fiction: History, E-book

A collection of myths from various groups of Native Americans for North America (largely from what is now the USA) They attempt to include peoples from all major areas (plains, North West, etc) and divide the stories up into themes. 

Hannibal Barca: A Life From Beginning to End by Hourly History

Non-fiction: History, Biography, E-book

As most all anyone knows about Hannibal is that time he took war elephants over the Alps, this has a fair amount of information that I did not already know, even if this book is quite short.

Atlantis: Myths, Legends and History by KIV Books

Non-fiction: History, Mystery, E-book

This book first goes over the main points of the story of Atlantis as told by Plato, and then talks about different locations that people have thought were Atlantis and how they fit or don't what Plato said.

Cleopatra: A Life From Beginning to End by Hourly History

Non-fiction: Biography, E-book

A quick look at the life of the last Pharaoh of Egypt. 

The Odd Fellow: A Mystery by Ian Honeysett

Fiction: Short Story, Mystery, E-book

As this story is about a small town priest who thinks that there is something up with one of his new parishioners and then goes about solving a mystery that no one asked him too, this book reminded me a bit of a Father Brown Mystery, although this takes place in the 1770's.

 Moving Target: A Princess Leia Adventure by Cecil Castellucci , Jason Fry

Fiction: Pop-Culture 231 pages

This story takes place after Han is frozen in carbonite and before he is rescued. (So between episode V and VI.) In this book the Rebels find out that the Empire is making another Death Star.  And so Princess Leia is send on a mission to make the Empire think that the Rebels are collecting in a area far from where their main force's are working on finding a way to stop the new Death Star. 

Quarantine Edition Part 7:

Look, if it's an e-book it's a book.  I know some of these books are a little short, helping me to stay at at least a book a day.  

The Wars of the Roses: A Captivating Guide to the English Civil Wars That Brought down the Plantagenet Dynasty and Put the Tudors on the Throne by Captivating History

Non-Fiction, History, E-book

As one can tell by the long title, this book goes over the history of the War of the Roses.  It includes key people, battles, who was king, and how they held onto power or lost it.

Talking to the Dead: Kate and Maggie Fox and the Rise of Spiritualism by Barbara Weisberg

Non-fiction: History, Biography, 336 pages

This book goes over the lives of the Fox sisters, it includes some on their lives before the famous knocking and continues to their deaths.  

Alexander the Great: A Life From Beginning to End by Henry Freeman

Non-fiction: Biography E-book

A short gloss over the live of Alexander the Great.  It includes more about his early life then many books of this length would.

Boer Wars: A History From Beginning to End by Henry Freeman

Non-fiction: History, E-book

A quick look about the Boer Wars, including info on who the Boers were, what lead to the wars and the effects of the wars.

The Sawbones Book: The Hilarious, Horrifying Road to Modern Medicine by Justin McElroy, Sydnee McElroy,

Non-fiction: History, Science, Humor, Pop Culture 216 pages

Much like the Podcast this book deals with the many, many missteps of medical history.  

Mayan Civilization: A History From Beginning to End by Hourly History

Non-Fiction: History, E-book

A quick look at the Mayan Civilization.

Step Aside, Pops (Hark! A Vagrant #2) by Kate Beaton

Fiction: Graphic Novel, 168 pages

This collection of comics has many types of comics in it.  Some include stories based of: historic figures, classic novels, as well as taking an old drawing and adding context. 

Ancient Civilizations: The Aztecs by Victor Miller

Non-fiction: History, E-book

The actual parts on the history of the Aztecs was mostly good.  The parts that tried to show how Europeans were all just as bad or worst then their human sacrifices reads like someone with an ax to grind.