Sailor and Fiddler by Herman Wouk

It is sad but true that I am a graduated English major who never read any Herman Wouk. Of course, I know of this author; Marjorie Morningstar has long been on my TBR list but the length is... <whew!> prohibitive. But I enjoy biographies and requested an ARC from NetGalley on the basis of this being an autobiography of a 100-year-old man. It is not a biography plumbing the depths of Wouk's life (upon seeing the 100-page notation, I guessed that) but it is a charming (can one call a biography a novella? Maybe it's a novella-length biography?) read nonetheless. For such a celebrated author, Wouk has a rather dry sense of  fame, not falling into the pitfalls of his own press. He also has a wry affection for his long-time wife (who died in 2011) that shines through in every mention of her.
A nice book for those who haven't read Wouk's work and one not to be missed for those who have.
Three stars
Comes out on January 5, 2015

Should I Scoop Out My Bagel?: And 99 Other Answers to Your Everyday Diet and Nutrition Questions to Help You Lose Weight, Feel Great, and Live Healthy by Ilyse Schapiro and Hallie Rich

The puns. Oh. My. God. The puns. My review started with, "Oh, this is a little punny" to "It's unfortunate that so many puns were included" to seriously considering this as a DNF book. The regular writing style is breezy, informative, and interesting. So why so many puns? Especially since they are more annoying than fun-filled and unerringly point to expanding waist-lines rather than health. The most useful (and readable) parts come when the authors are more serious. A few scattered puns? Engaging. Starting, ending, and then scattering up to 3 more in each 1 page section? Infuriating.
This book started off a little smug - in discussing bagels, they say, (19) "the taste may not compare, but we love our asses in our favorite jeans more." It's just a retread of "nothing tastes as good as skinny feels." It's tone-deaf in a book that's supposed to be about healthy choices.
But the information about whether to blot your pizza (question 3, the answer is no) is more helpful, as are most of the answers to the (again) pun-filled questions. And that's the most frustrating thing about this book, it's seriously helpful but nearly unreadable. If you're looking for a weight-loss book, this is as good as any other. Unfortunately, I think this was supposed to be a nutrition book and in that regard, fell short.

How to Rescue a Rake by Jayne Fresina

We've met both Diana and Nate in previous Book Club Belles Society books. And it always seemed that they were destined for each other but we find out it is now three years later and, due to a Big Misunderstanding, the two parted ways. Diana is now firmly on the shelf (although wouldn't she have been at 24 as well?) and a bit meeker, a bit quieter than she used to be. She laments often that her good friend Cathy, the other "quiet" one of the group, has married and left town (well, more sad about the latter and happy for her friend about the former).
Captain Nate Sherringham is in town on a piece of business. He's not sure how he got roped into bringing along a rather notorious divorcee (actually, he knows that he's a sucker for helping women) but he's glad that he'll have a chance to show snooty Diana that he's made something of himself.
There were misunderstanding on both sides but the two slowly start to realize what those mistakes were and a trip to Bath, where the two meet again and can start anew, might just let them find their HEA.
I really vacillated between a three and four-star review on this one. I had a lot of issues with the book (the Bath scenes are a bit drawn out and seem out of character for Diana) but it was overall not out of the way Fresina has framed this series so I think that people who enjoyed the first two books will really enjoy this one as well.
This book comes out Jan. 5, 2016.

The Door by the Staircase by Katherine Marsh

Mary's life is like a fairy tale. Unfortunately, it's the first part of the tale. She's been orphaned and left to one of the less desirable places to live. There's no hope that she's going to be adopted so she tries to escape instead. She's thwarted by a strange wind which turns out to be a good thing since a strange woman, Madame Z, shows up the next day and wants to adopt Mary. From then on, Mary learns the ins and outs of living with Madame Z and in the strange new town of Iris which seems to be full of tricksters and magicians. But are some of them using real magic? That's not possible. Is it?
I very much enjoyed this story, especially the way some of the usual fairy tale tropes are subverted to make a truly charming tale.
This book comes out January 5, 2016
Four stars

The Lady's Command by Stephanie Laurens

We so rarely get romance books that start at the marriage, I was really excited to read the latest from Stephanie Laurens (well, over and above the usual Laurens excitement level).
Declan and Edwina Frobisher have only been married three weeks when his top-secret government job pulls him back into play. While Declan was happy to marry Edwina and delighted to discover her link to Neville Roscoe ("The Lady Risks All"), he wants to tame some of her more...  adventurous tendencies. Oh, not all of them, just the ones that might lead her into danger.
This one didn't have the... overwhelming sense of urgency running throughout the entire book that many of Laurens' adventure novels have. And yet, I didn't feel like it suffered. And there was only one mention of someone's [adjective] [soul/spirit/etc.] which was a great relief since it got more than a little repetitive even when I first noticed it in Chillingworth's book.
A very nice addition to the Laurens canon and I can't WAIT to read the next one.

Four stars
This book comes out December 29, 2016

Followed by A Buccaneer at Heart

Hard copy from Publisher

Opinions are my own

Reread as hard copy from library April 2023

Updated review: I think this book is better read right after the other series because it took me SO LONG to get into it and re-read it. It's fine and I'm looking forward to the next books in the series but it wasn't the sense of delight I had reading it originally. 

America's Favorite Holidays by Bruce David Forbes

A look at five holidays that seem to be a major part of the American (at least United States culture); Christmas, Valentine's, Easter, Halloween, and Thanksgiving.
I liked his point about the variety in Christmas celebrations not only being religious vs. cultural but also parts of various branches of Christianity.
It was interesting to read about Valentine's that it was a fully-commercialized holiday long before Hall ever created Hallmark. I also enjoyed Forbes' discussion of how the symbol of the heart became part of our culture and discussion on why it has that particular shape.
All of the holidays had interesting stories and links to various "beginnings." An interesting read with okay writing but sometimes the repetition of specific points or ideas gets to be a bit much.
Three stars.

Death Crashes the Party by Vickie Fee

I'm starting to find a divide in the cozy mysteries that feature a perky heroine with a niche job: those heroines that do it smart (let the police in on the clues they find, tell people where they're going, etc.) and those that are idiots. Unfortunately, Liv falls into the latter category. She does some really dumb things like breaking into houses and taking evidence that could have been used in court to nail the bad guys. Basically, hindering the cops. Like, a lot. This may not annoy other readers though. And the premise of having her be a party planner could get her into some interesting places without the author having to contort reasons for her to run into bodies. I did also love the fact that Liv is married (to Larry Joe, how's that for a name?), so no love triangles!
Book comes out Dec. 29, 2015