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Showing posts from April, 2024

Trunk Music (Harry Bosch #5), by Michael Connelly

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Trunk Music by Michael Connelly » “Still the same old Bosch. Your way or the highway.” « In this instalment, Bosch is back from his involuntary leave and investigates a case of the eponymous “trunk music” - a murdered man in the trunk of his own car. Bosch himself is pretty much as he always was but around him, things changed: His lieutenant, Pounds, is on another kind of involuntary and permanent “leave” and was replaced by Grace Billets. Bosch: » I’d heard that you didn’t have any actual time on a homicide table while you were coming up,” he said to her. Billets: “That’s true. My only job as an actual detective was working sexual crimes in Valley Bureau.” Bosch: “Well, for what it’s worth, I would have assigned things just the way you just did.” Billets: “But did it annoy you that I did it instead of you?” Bosch thought a moment. Bosch: “I’ll get over it.” « I liked this exchange - which is indicative of their entire relationship in this book - because, yes, he’s still “sa...

The Westing Game, by Ellen Raskin

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The Westing Game by Ellen Raskin My rating: 1 of 5 stars I’m not sure what this was supposed to be: A mystery? There’s nothing really mysterious here apart from the fact who Westing and his ex-wife might be. The “bomber” (whose motives I never fully understood)? That’s just plainly revealed at some point. The writing itself might be a mystery because at times I felt like I read in some truly foreign language because the story as told by the narrator was interspersed with thoughts of the respective person we’re told about. It made for an immensely confusing and rather annoying reading experience. The perspectives change all the time between the way-too-large cast of 16 (!) characters whom the author instils with the depth of a cardboard cut-out. If at least one or two of these had been likeable, interesting or at least relatable in some way but, no, they all remain shadowy at best. In addition, there’s latent racism, defamation of people with disabilities and many other is...

Troubled Blood (Cormoran Strike #5), by Robert Galbraith

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Troubled Blood by Robert Galbraith My rating: 5 of 5 stars To get one thing out of the way right at the beginning: It’s just a disguise. Creed himself says so. Nevertheless, I’ve been informed by my daughter - who tends to be right (woe be me!) - the author proudly presents views the Dark Ages are rightly about to reclaim . Those views of the author are deeply offensive to many - me as well. And, yet, they do not diminish the greatness of this piece of art. 2021 starts out well, reading-wise. I’ve liked Robert Galbraith ’s “Strike” novels from the beginning because Galbraith’s characters were so relatable. The eponymous Cormoran Strike, former soldier, now a detective, who lost one of his legs in war. Robin, who starts out as a temporary worker at Strike’s then-struggling agency as a secretary, but who becomes Strike’s business partner and confidante. Then there’s Strike’s glamorous ex-fiancee, Charlotte, his estranged rockstar father Johnny Rokeby and Leda Strike, Corm...

Solutions and Other Problems, by Allie Brosh

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Solutions and Other Problems by Allie Brosh My rating: 5 of 5 stars In 2014, I came across Allie Brosh’s first book “ Hyperbole and a Half: Unfortunate Situations, Flawed Coping Mechanisms, Mayhem, and Other Things That Happened ”. Apart from funny stories from Allie’s life, it contained the story of her experiences with depression. Reading about that in what amounts to a crude comic was a singular experience for me - despite suffering from depressions myself at the time. Soon after I had read “Hyperbole”, Allie disappeared from the net. We, her fans, hoped she was well but we rarely got any (reliable) information. Six years later, in September 2020, Allie “resurfaced” and announced her new book “Solutions and Other Problems”. Needless to say, I immediately read it - and initially, I was very slightly disappointed. Allie still did her quirky, charming, weird comic - about a balloon, her stalking her neighbour as a kid and other issues. These panels in the first few chapt...

Der Blaue Lotos (Tim und Struppi, Band 4) von Hergé

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Der blaue Lotos von Hergé My rating: 3 of 5 stars “Der Blaue Lotus” entstand im Jahr 1934 und wurde bereits 1946 erneut überarbeitet und es wurden wiederum auch inhaltliche Änderungen vorgenommen. Auch hier versucht Hergé wieder eine “runde” Geschichte zu erzählen, doch leider mißlingt ihm das gründlich: Die Story besteht in wesentlichen Teilen aus Tims fortgesetzter Flucht und Wieder-Inhaftierung. Ein Entkommen ist dabei absurder als das Vorangegangene. Erstmals allerdings – und das spürt man wohltuend – hat Hergé sich nicht mehr einzig auf “Erlesenes” oder ihm Berichtetes verlassen, sondern hat sich – obschon nicht ganz ohne Druck – mit seiner Materie beschäftigt. War also bisher der Kolonialismus und Imperialismus uneingeschränkt gut und allenfalls die “edlen Wilden” als Relikte einer im Untergehen begriffenen und “minderwertigen” Kultur geduldet, schlägt das Pendel nun mehr in die andere Richtung aus - Hergé versucht sich mit Hilfe seines Freundes Zhang Chongre...

The Last Coyote (Harry Bosch #4), by Michael Connelly

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The Last Coyote by Michael Connelly My rating: 5 of 5 stars From Sartre to Connelly : Last year, at a meeting, a colleague told me she had found my website and mentioned how diverse my reading was. I guess she was right. (Hi, Barbara!) I came from an exhausting read and needed something to just plain enjoy, to read-wallow in, and to indulge in - and “ The Last Coyote ” was pretty much the perfect book for that. Harry, on leave for attacking his superior, Pounds, makes it his mission to finally solve his mother’s murder. Most of the people from back then, the 60s, are dead and/or unwilling to talk. The rest are still among the high-and-mighty and Bosch doesn’t play nice with the latter kind of person. Harry also attends mandatory counselling sessions with a therapist. I really liked this part of the narration on many levels: In 1997, getting professional help and allowing others to help was still not entirely normalised. Maybe not quite stigmatised anymore, people, espec...

The Darker Arts (Frey & McGray, #5), by Oscar de Muriel

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The Darker Arts by Oscar de Muriel My rating: 1 of 5 stars I read one book at a time, always. I simply cannot just “switch” from one book to another anymore. So, if I hit a rotten tomato I tend to actually read less. I’m typing this on my iPhone. A minute ago, I found myself wondering and thinking, “I usually read at a time like this.” - while I was playing a game. Then it began to dawn on me: ‘How much must you despise a book to fantasise about writing its review on GoodReads while actively trying to avoid reading said book?!‘ The answer in a nutshell: Very much, and the reason is that pretty much everything in this book is bland, wrong and unbalanced. Let’s start with the supernatural aspects: While I’m in no way superstitious, don’t believe in anything supernatural, I actually greatly enjoyed the ambivalence of the previous instalments in this series. For McGray pretty much everything was at least supernaturally influenced whereas Frey never really believed in a...

The Push, by Ashley Audrain

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The Push by Ashley Audrain My rating: 5 of 5 stars Blythe, mother to Violet and Sam, comes from two generations of dysfunctional families: Blythe’s mother, Cecilia left her husband and her child when Blythe was eleven. Blythe only ever saw her mother twice later on and never in a positive way. Cecilia’s mother Etta (» born on the very same day World War II began «) - Blythe’s grandmother - suffered from a severe psychological disorder (possibly depression) that rendered her completely unable to care for herself and her family. In 1972, in her early thirties (roughly around the time Blythe must have been born), Etta took her own life. When Fox Connor met Blythe during their late teens he’s immediately “ smitten ” and doesn’t hide it. From the very beginning Fox knows he wants to start a family with Blythe because he » love[s] what a good mother [she]’ll be one day « whereas Blythe is sceptical about motherhood from the start. » She tried very hard to be the woman she was e...

Where the Strangers Live, by Oliver Phipps

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Where the Strangers Live by Oliver Phipps My rating: 1 of 5 stars I don’t know how this book ever made it to my to-be-read pile. It’s a clumsily written short novella about a woman, Sophie, and two men, Elliot and Roy (who only have eyes for Sophie’s butt, breasts, etc.) who happen to enter a submerged alien base… The story itself reads like a truly bad b-movie but as if that wasn’t bad enough, the writing style is repetitive (we keep reading the “three submariners” and other constantly repeating phrases and denominations) and clumsy. Furthermore, there are countless truly grating grammar issues (tense!), typos and other mistakes (“to” versus “too”) that made me think the author must be a non-native speaker (as am I)… The fight scenes were atrociously badly written, a crime against Phipps’ readers! Long-winded, boring and, of course, also badly written. Stay away from this! One out of five stars because I can’t award none. Ceterum censeo Putin esse delendam View ...

The Piper's Son, by Melina Marchetta

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The Piper's Son by Melina Marchetta My rating: 1 of 5 stars Let’s face it – I'm not going to finish this weird book. I’m totally confused: I pretty much loved Marchetta's earlier novel “ Saving Francesca ”. It was one of the best books I’ve read 2019 so far. Thus, I expected to love “The Piper’s Son” as well but I never got into this book. Somehow, the entire book with its plethora of characters and jumps in time falls flat for me. What I’m taking away for myself is this: Just as in music there are one-hit wonders in literature as well. To me, it seems like Marchetta is one of those – she wrote one amazing book in which she told the one great story she had to share with all of us and for that I’m grateful. View all my reviews https://turing.mailstation.de/the-pipers-son-by-melina-marchetta/?feed_id=3194&_unique_id=662697c985350

Existentialism Is a Humanism, by Jean-Paul Sartre

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Existentialism Is a Humanism by Jean-Paul Sartre (Please note that Sartre consistently speaks of "man". Ironically, Simone de Beauvoir's partner of 51 years is unable or unwilling to include women in his language at least. Nevertheless, the essence of his will includes any gender.) » Man is nothing other than his own project. He exists only to the extent that he realizes himself, therefore he is nothing more than the sum of his actions, nothing more than his life.” « “ Existentialism is a Humanism ” is originally a lecture by Jean-Paul Sartre , first delivered in 1945, aimed to clarify misunderstandings about existentialism. He adeptly defends the philosophy against critiques of it promoting despair, amorality, and nihilism. The book is built on the existentialist premise that " existence precedes essence ". Or, in Sartre’s own words: » We mean that man first exists: he materializes in the world, encounters himself, and only afterward defines him...

Lovers at the Museum, by Isabel Allende

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Lovers at the Museum by Isabel Allende My rating: 5 of 5 stars Isabel Allende - I’ve been in love with her work since I first encountered her “ House of the Spirits ” decades ago. I still feel its echoes in my soul. At a mere 5414 words, this is the shortest story of hers I’ve read but it is quintessential Allende: Charming, magical, life-affirming, and just plain fun! Go on and read it - if you’re an Amazon Prime subscriber, you get it for free. Everyone else gets it for a fair EUR 1,99. Five stars out of five. Ceterum censeo Putin esse delendam View all my reviews https://turing.mailstation.de/lovers-at-the-museum-by-isabel-allende/?feed_id=3162&_unique_id=6623820e4ac48

Xerox, von Fien Veldman

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Xerox by Fien Veldman My rating: 1 of 5 stars Die Protagonistin dieses Romans hat einen “Bullshit-Job”, lese ich im Klappentext und so mancher Rezension. Welcher Job das genau ist, bleibt allerdings unklar, denn die Protagonistin, die gleichzeitig Erzählerin ihrer eigenen Geschichte ist, bleibt vage, weitgehend desinteressiert und ihre Glaubwürdigkeit überaus fragwürdig. Obschon sie mit Ende 20 nicht mehr ganz jung ist, ist ihre wichtigste und intimste Beziehung diejenige zu “ihrem” Drucker in ihrem Büro. Mit ihm spricht sie permanent und so ausdauernd, dass es selbst ihren Kolleg_innen im Büro auffällt. Sie schmiegt sich auch gern mal an ihn, putzt und streichelt ihn… » Ich setze mich neben meinen Drucker. Das Gerät steht auf dem Tisch, an dem ich arbeite. Es ist ein typischer Büroapparat, eine sperrige und würfelförmige Maschine. Ich schmiege meine Wange an seine rechte Seite. Glatter, beruhigender Kunststoff. Er steht auf Stand-by. Meine Energie wird von dem Gerät absor...

The Secret Chapter (The Invisible Library #6), by Genevieve Cogman

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The Secret Chapter by Genevieve Cogman My rating: 5 of 5 stars “ Stories matter – telling them, sharing them, preserving them, changing them, learning from them, and escaping with and through them. We learn about ourselves and the world that we live in through fiction just as much as through facts. Empathy, perception and understanding are never wasted. All libraries are a gateway into other worlds, including the past – and the future. ” It’s been a while since I’ve read a book that featured a passage good enough for an opening quote. And the above passage is just from the Cogman’s acknowledgements at the very beginning. Fortunately, the implicit promise given holds true for this sixth instalment of the series . Originally, I intended to give this book four stars, maybe mention it’s more like 4.5 but when I thought about what’s missing in this book for the fifth full star, I couldn’t really think of anything. Yes, there’s not much “philosophical depth” to be found in “T...

Rogue Protocol (The Murderbot Diaries #3), by Martha Wells

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Rogue Protocol by Martha Wells My rating: 5 of 5 stars Well, here’s yet another great instalment in the “ Murderbot Diaries ” series. It starts exactly where the previous novella left off and this leads us to yet another exciting adventure. While it’s, again, more of the same in a good way, this time we get to know even more about Murderbot’s ethics and morality because he has to deal with a human-form or pet robot. Miki, the “pet”, in both its simple-minded innocence which borders naïveté (and sometimes crosses that fine line) drives Murderbot up the proverbial wall and, sometimes, almost derails him. “ I signaled Miki I would be withdrawing for one minute. I needed to have an emotion in private. ” Nevertheless, even in this case, Murderbot acts as we would expect him to… In the end, what still keeps this series engaging for me is what Murderbot expresses at some point: “ Who knew being a heartless killing machine would present so many moral dilemmas. (Yes, that was s...

Everything I Never Told You, by Celeste Ng

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Everything I Never Told You by Celeste Ng My rating: 5 of 5 stars “ Lydia is dead. ”, these three words mark the beginning of Lydia’s journey which we’re about to embark upon. These three words make you think it cannot possibly get worse. Right until it gets worse. A lot worse. I can relate to this book on so many levels: First and foremost, I’m a father. I’m not prone to nightmares but there’s one that has haunted me countless times since my first child was born - losing a child. Fortunately, the nightmare didn’t become reality and I hope it stays that way. This is what this book is (partly) about, though: Losing a child. The reasons, the family, the friends (or lack of); everything is believable and feels shockingly truthful. Painfully so, even. Secondly, as the husband of a woman who made being independent a prerequisite for her moving in with me. A woman who spent the next 20 years lovingly caring for our children, as wise as Solomon, as strong as Hercules, as clever ...

Gebrauchsanweisung für die Pfalz, von Christian "Chako" Habekost

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Gebrauchsanweisung für die Pfalz by Christian Habekost My rating: 4 of 5 stars (To my English-speaking audience: There’s a Google-Translate button at the bottom of each page and the next review will be in English again.) “ Es ist ein spielerisches, ritualisiertes Hin- und Hergezerrtsein zwischen Minderwertigkeitskomplex und Hybris. ” (Der Autor über die Pfalz) Vor gar nicht langer Zeit schrieb ich bereits darüber, wie gern ich mittlerweile in der Pfalz lebe, unter dem Titel “ Danke, liebes Universum ”. Was also lag näher, sich diesem Thema auch literarisch weiter anzunähern? Im Rahmen meiner umfangreichen fünf-minütigen Recherchen stieß ich erneut auf Christian “Chako” Habekost , einen Echt-P(f)älzer Komiker aus Bad Dürkheim (ca. 20 Minuten von hier). In 16 Kapiteln schreibt Habekost - dankenswerterweise auf Hochdeutsch - aus ihrer Mitte heraus über “seine” Pfälzer. Allerdings - und das macht das Buch gleich nochmals sympathischer - verleugnet Habekost dabei nie seine...

Godkiller (Fallen Gods, #1), by Hannah Kaner

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Godkiller by Hannah Kaner My rating: 1 of 5 stars Oh, wow. This was… bad, really bad. I expected this to be fantasy while in fact this is a young-adult novel that feels like it was written by a teenager. Kissen (I’m sorry but as a German, I’m having a hard time with this name…), our queer, one-legged hero, goes on an adventure with a former knight, childhood friend of the king, a spoilt brat, Inara, from a noble house - a house that was literally burned down, including Inara’s beloved servants, and mother. Inara also has a pest problem, manifesting as a god (of white lies). Among that lies naive romance, attempted-coming-of-age, fantasy-lite and a looooong journey that drags and drags and… You get the gist. The writing is also mediocre at best and, even worse, errors abound: » Kissen wasn’t going to let him stupid that easily. « Thankfully, that was the most aggravating mistake but, still, a disgrace. I’m abandoning this at 70% to later slumber on my Kissen . One star ...

The Witness for the Dead (The Goblin Emperor #2), by Katherine Addison

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The Witness for the Dead by Katherine Addison My rating: 3 of 5 stars I very much liked “ The Goblin Emperor ”, the first book in this unusual series . Unfortunately, this successor fell clearly short of greatness. The book's eponymous “Witness for the dead”, Thara Celehar, is a humble, demure and thoroughly traumatized prelate who has - more or less - been exiled because he had an affair with a married man who proceeded to murder his wife. Celehar is originally called upon to investigate the murder of an opera singer but large parts of the book are not actually about this investigation but about a forged will, a serial murderer who kills his newly-wed wives, a ghoul who needs banishing in the country side and a lot of other small “sub-plots”. That’s where my issues with this book start: There is not one consistent primary storyline but there are several that are mostly unrelated to each other. Just like our thoroughly likeable hero Celehar, we’re following him in his...

A Dead Djinn in Cairo (Fatma el-Sha’arawi #1), by P. Djèlí Clark

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A Dead Djinn in Cairo by P. Djèlí Clark My rating: 1 of 5 stars An investigator in an alternative Egypt with ghuls, djinn, angels, other-worldly foes, a plethora of faiths and all set in a steampunk world. The writing is nothing special, the plot still mostly to-be-found at the end of this mercyfully very short novella - this is pretty much the most boring novella I’ve read in years. The most redeeming feature of the simplistically named “A Dead Djinn in Cairo” is its brevity. View all my reviews https://turing.mailstation.de/a-dead-djinn-in-cairo-fatma-el-shaarawi-1-by-p-djeli-clark/?feed_id=3086&_unique_id=661aba459b48c

Home Before Dark, by Riley Sager

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Home Before Dark by Riley Sager My rating: 4 of 5 stars “ I freeze, my sense of relief gone in an instant. Because although their words differ, my parents’ message is the same. Never go back there. It’s not safe there. Not for you. ” Damn, this was good! I knew Riley Sager from his second book, “ The Last Time I Lied ”, which I really liked. This one is even better! “Home Before Dark” tells the story of the Holt family who moved into a house that “remembers” - and it hasn’t seen much love… In fact, it came cheap because Baneberry Hall is a veritable haunted house. Or is it not? Our hero is Maggie Holt, the daughter, who doesn’t remember much (almost nothing, actually) about the house and their short time in it. After her father Ewan’s death, Maggie inherits the huge house and decides to renovate and sell it; after all, she’s an interior designer and has her own company. There’s more to it, though… “ “I have a confession to make,” I eventually say. “Let me guess,” Dane s...

Cibola Burn (The Expanse #4), by James S.A. Corey

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Cibola Burn by James S.A. Corey My rating: 3 of 5 stars Oh, well, this will be a difficult review to write, I guess. I really like this series and its ideas, its wonderful characters, the brilliant writing, etc. etc. Along came “Cibola Burn”: We find ourselves accompanying Holden and his crew through one of the rings into the great unknown - into which a band of settlers from Ganymede made it before him and pretty much started colonising the planet, Ilus, there. Unfortunately for those pioneers, the UN has awarded the “Royal Charter Energy” (RCE), a big Earth corporation, the rights to the afore-mentioned planet - which they refer to as “New Terra”. When RCE tries to get a shuttle down to the planet, it gets blown up by the settlers. Holden is sent to Ilus/New Terra to mediate between the settlers and the RCE guys, only to get caught between both of them. This leads us into a long story about the conflict between the settlers and the RCE people, the “awakening” of the st...

Exit Strategy (The Murderbot Diaries #4), by Martha Wells

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Exit Strategy by Martha Wells My rating: 5 of 5 stars “ I had options, and I didn’t have to decide right away. Which was good, because I still didn’t know what I wanted. But maybe I had a place to be while I figured it out. ” So, four novellas and I’ve devoured them. One short story and one novel ( so far ) to go. I haven’t had this much fun with a book series since… Hitchhiker’s Guide , I guess. Whereas the latter is (almost) purely humorous, though, “The Murderbot Diaries” deliver on several levels: - They most certainly are funny. Usually not the over-the-top thigh-slapper kind of funny but there’s always a bit of melancholy around the corner. Or the humour is laced with mild regret. - While I have no clue who “NPR” is, I agree with him that " We are all a little bit Murderbot. ". At least we would like to be. Or maybe even strive to. Because Murderbot, in its ethics and morals, actually surpasses quite a few of us. (Unfortunately, if this applies to you,...

The Sittaford Mystery, by Agatha Christie

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The Sittaford Mystery by Agatha Christie I learnt to read with turn of the century German editions of Sherlock Holmes - set in Fraktur . I still remember lying in front of the bookcase and deciphering those weird letters - and I prevailed! Having thus been “initiated” it isn’t surprising I turned to other mystery authors once Conan Doyle’s Sherlock retired to beekeeping. Whom else would I turn to than two masters of the field: Edgar Wallace (who has largely been forgotten in his native UK but whose books are still in-print here in Germany!) and Agatha Christie . I think I’ve read every of Christie’s Miss Marple and Poirot books and greatly enjoyed them. Over the years, I’ve revisited Christie, reading her “ The Secret Adversary ” for example. (Three stars, no written review.) When I came across a very favourable review of “ The Sittaford Mystery ” I found myself eager to revisit this childhood icon of mine - which usually is a bad idea. Captain Trevelyan lies slai...

The Seven Brides-to-Be of Generalissimo Vlad, by Victoria Goddard

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The Seven Brides-to-Be of Generalissimo Vlad by Victoria Goddard My rating: 5 of 5 stars This was a very easy read: Science Fiction just done, not lengthily discussed or even dissected but a fun ride of merely 10.000 words. Elegant prose, witty dry humour and a fragment of a story that I would have been interested in reading a full-length novel about. Five stars out of five. Ceterum censeo Putin esse delendam View all my reviews https://turing.mailstation.de/the-seven-brides-to-be-of-generalissimo-vlad-by-victoria-goddard/?feed_id=3029&_unique_id=6612683cd754c

Worst Wingman Ever (The Improbable Meet-Cute #2), by Abby Jimenez

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Worst Wingman Ever by Abby Jimenez My rating: 3 of 5 stars There’s really not much to say about this beyond the fitting blurb. It’s a nice little story of little consequence and length. If you like the author’s other works, you will neither regret reading this one nor missing out on it. Three stars out of five. Ceterum censeo Putin esse delendam View all my reviews https://turing.mailstation.de/worst-wingman-ever-the-improbable-meet-cute-2-by-abby-jimenez/?feed_id=2998&_unique_id=660ffc68e6dd1