The Correspondent

 

The Correspondent by Virginia Evans, 285 pages.

Sybil Van Antwerp has always made her most meaningful connections through writing. She has spent her very full life writing letters to anyone who struck her fancy: loved ones, authors whose work she enjoyed, professional correspondence, and anyone else who cares to write. Much to her displeasure, being in her 70s does not stop life from continuing to change, and even feelings she has kept buried for decades will not lie in peace. 

Despite the crushing popularity of this book, I'm afraid I found it pretty dull. I am usually a big fan of epistolary novels, but I think I would have liked this one better if it had some sort of anchor point, aside from Sybil herself. It did feel very realistic, with correspondence often drying up and not particularly connecting. I did like Sybil, flawed though she was, and the writing itself had a lot of verisimilitude, I only wish there was anything at all in this book that had hooked me. I know many people enjoy this book, but I don't myself understand the hype. 

There Be Dragons Here

 

There Be Dragons Here by S.L. Rowland, 288 pages.

For nearly a century Hilda Flintbreaker journeyed on adventures in every corner of the continent with the adventuring party Stone & Splendor. But for the last several decades, Hilda Rockfall has had a much smaller kind of adventure, marrying and raising children and grandchildren. But when the last of her old adventuring party dies and leaves her with an outlandish request, Hilda is set for one last adventure to spread his ashes on a mountain in dragon territory. Her granddaughter, a war goat, and a dragon broodling all come together to make the adventure of a lifetime. 

This was the coziest, most wholesome book. Unlike some books of that description, it had a solid plot that felt exciting but not necessarily frightening. There was a lot of emotional heft to it, and the novel managed to deal in a meaningful way with grief without feeling heavy. I really enjoyed it, and would recommend it for an emotionally-driven fantasy novel.  

Wisdom Corner

Wisdom Corner by David Heska Wanbli Weiden (2026), 320 pages 

Somehow it missed me (and several others) that this is actually Book 2 in the Virgil Wounded Horse series. So, as I will be doing that shortly - go read Winter Counts first. 

Virgil Wounded Horse is a former enforcer/vigilante for hire on the Rosebud Reservation where he resides. He is trying to shake that lifestyle, but a murder on the Reservation and potential gang activity from the neighboring Pine Ridge Reservation are pulling him back in.  

Overall, I enjoyed the book. It is touted as a thriller, but the pacing does not lend it to that. It more of a slow burn. Weiden does an excellent job of portraying current Native life on a Reservation, but sometimes bogs the story down with too many side-details and historical notes. I find these details very interesting, but others will find them distracting. As always, though, I will forever feel angry for how Native Americans were/are treated on their own land. 

 

The River is Waiting

The River is Waiting by Wally Lamb (2025), 466 pages 

This is a tough read. Corby is struggling as a husband and father. He recently lost his job and is sliding into alcohol and drug addiction. Through his own actions, he causes a family catastrophe and ends up in prison. The novel follows his journey through prison, personal reckoning, and family reconciliations. It is a hard, sad story and not the book to read if you aren't in a mentally decent place.

Voted Most Likely to Murder

Voted Most Likely to Murder by Lacey Moone (2026) 294 pages

Belinda Bishop is an outspoken daughter of a cop and a real estate agent. Her parents now run a small cottage rental and RV park in their small town in Nova Scotia. Belinda is back home working with them after her attempts to make a living by journalism haven't worked out. She reluctantly goes to her class reunion and catches up with both good friends and her former best friend—now enemy—Jolene. 

They are not the only ones with issues. There's a moment when things get heated on the dance floor, when classmate Andy, a big flirt, starts lecturing Trawler about his treatment of Trawler's wife, Jolene. It's awkward, and even more so when Belinda and her friend Stevie stumble onto Andy's dead body later. When Jolene is deemed a person of interest in the murder, Belinda and Stevie try to help clear Jolene's name, which is tricky because of Belinda and Jolene's rocky relationship.

The murder investigation by the three women has a solid foundation, but they keep getting in the way of the real investigators in the police force. The story flowed well, but the outspokenness and sometimes impulsiveness of Belinda was a bit much at times. Enjoyable in spite of that.

The Last Contract of Isako

 The Last Contract of Isako by Fonda Lee (2026) 528 pages

This is my first book by Fonda Lee. The synopsis of this standalone sci-fi adventure caught my attention. I love samurai movies, so a legendary swordswoman in the future on a planet gradually being terraformed and controlled by corporate interests is an intriguing twist on the genre. On this planet, Aquilo, in the future, humans are in a strict hierarchy and are divided over terraforming taking top priority to make the planet more habitable or trying to re-establish contact with Earth (which was lost centuries ago). Stay in the corporate hierarchy, with a wide gulf between the rich and the poor, or look outward toward exploration and potential better opportunities? Isthmus Isako is our heroine. Everyone has a personal name of a plant, animal, or geographic feature from old Earth and a kith name, or family name, on Aquilo. Isako and everyone with the same sort of job as her, an atier, operates with a modified Bushido code and fights with longknives. Their job is part bodyguard, part espionage, and all about strategy. The rich and powerful who control the corporations and govern the domed habitat of multiple cities have the means to transfer their brains into synthetic bodies when they reach 80 or 90 years old. This ruling class calls in second stage, while everyone under them tends to call them jarbrains. In this world, Isako's contract surprisingly changes hands and she is sent on a final mission to dig up dirt on an executive of a gas production corporation pushing to be nominated to the highest Board of Directors. This man, in his 70s, is young for the recent second stage transfer operation he went through. His atier, Dragonfly Martim, was mentored by Isako. Martim is a young overachiever just beginning his career, who suddenly supposedly dies of a drug overdose... Isako knows something is wrong with this reported cause of death and turns her final mission into an investigation of Martim's death. About a quarter of the book changes perspective to show us Martim's life. Then we return to Isako's point of view to wrap it up. I liked the action and the surprises and the cautionary future sci-fi world presented.

Mathematics without apologies

Mathematics without apologies: portrait of a problematic vocation by Michael Harris (2015) 438 pages

A mathematical memoir and creative writing exercise is not as odd as it might sound. Abstract math is the bailiwick of fast-thinkers living in a very esoteric world. Popular science and math books abound and Harris gets credit for NOT making it all about him. The book is arranged in stand-alone chapters, each illustrates a concept or personality which the layperson can (or may) relate to. I was flummoxed by the chapter on the use abstract math in the novels of Thomas Pynchon – specifically Against the day and the allusion to automorphic forms and conic sections. Harris points out that reviewers of Pynchon’s work often prefaced their critiques with the acknowledgement that they know no math -- sad. Recommended to those enjoy a non-linear reading adventure.

Call Me Ishmaelle by Xialolu Guo, 446 pages

 

 

This is kind of a playful retelling of Moby Dick, but with a new protagonist. Ishmaelle is a teenage girl posing as a young man who sets out on a ship very similar to the Pequod. While correcting the all-maleness of Moby Dick, it gives a lot of characters a new look with more cultural understanding. None of that contributed to me not feeling this one. Usually I like a lighthearted romp into a beloved classic (looking at you, Jasper Fforde). But it was just too long, and the protagonist was devoid of personality to a startling degree.

Ruby Falls by Gin Phillips, 368 pages

 

 

Others have summarized this one, so I’ll skip that part. I like this one pretty well! While technically a mystery, it didn’t really have that tone or fit into any of the endless flavors or subgenres. Just a solid realistic historical fiction. And there's plenty here for you if you just...like rocks. Will definitely seek out more by this author.

The Sound of a Wild Snail Eating by Elizabeth Tova Bailey, 190 pages

 

This is one of those memoirs that isn’t strictly a memoir, and contains just interesting things that the writer has found out researching a topic. In this case, the story vacillates between the author’s own experience with a chronic illness and her relationship with a snail that a friend brings her for company, and interesting snail facts about snails in nature and pop culture. Kind of a subgenre that could be called “We’re Not So Different, You and I”. This as a pretty good quick little read. No real complaints about it, but nothing earthshattering. Alternate title could easily be Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Snail Sex but Were Afraid to Ask.