Blood Runs Coal: The Yablonski Murders and The Battle for the United Mine Workers of America by Mark A. Bradley is a non-fiction account of the 1969 murder of Mine union leader in running Jock Yablonski and his family in Clarksville, PA. Bradley's account of the inner political machinations of the Miner Unions in coal… Continue reading Review: Blood Runs Coal by Mark A. Bradley
The Diamond Eye by Kate Quinn follows the rise of Lyudmila Pavlichenko ,"Lady Death", famed Soviet Sniper of WWII with an official kill tally of 309. I first heard about Lyudmila ("Mila") during my early - mid '00s Russian history obsession phase of my life (everyone has one of those, right...?) A woman fighting on… Continue reading Review: The Diamond Eye by Kate Quinn
Like many, I know Starship Troopers from the cult classic 1997 movie. Although the movie is campy and satirical fun, the premise and world building is interesting and so I was curious how different the original book would be. While there are similarities in general strokes, the book is a lot less narrative in both… Continue reading Review: Starship Troopers by Robert A. Heinlein
Click the cover to read the review on Journal of the American Revolution:
Black Sun by Rebecca Roanhorse is a fantasy tale set in a world heavily influenced by pre-Columbian cultures. Four great clans reside in the holy city of Tova: Golden Eagle, Water Strider, Winged Serpent, and Carrion Crow. It is the Carrion Crow from which Black Sun's story has its genesis, beginning with a young boy… Continue reading Review: Black Sun by Rebecca Roanhorse
*slight spoilers below* If The Tide Turns by Rachel Rueckert takes place from 1715 to 1717 at the intersection of Massachusetts Puritanism and the Golden Age of Piracy. If The Tide Turns actually reminded me a lot of Hester. I was really excited to read this one because of the subject matter, and I really… Continue reading Review: If The Tide Turns by Rachel Rueckert
The Baronet's Tale: Anthony by Julia Brannan is a prequel to the Jacobite Chronicles, but takes place after The Highlander's Tale which recounts Alex MacGregor's childhood in the Highlands. The Baronet's Tale picks up in 1734 with Alex embarking for university in Paris at his father's insistence. Alex takes on this burden, painful as it… Continue reading Review: The Baronet’s Tale: Anthony (Jacobite Chronicles) by Julia Brannan
The Secret Diaries of Charles Ignatius Sancho by Paterson Joseph is based on the life of 18th century Ignatius Sancho. Born on and soon orphaned upon a slave ship, two-year-old Sancho is purchased by an Englishman and taken back across the ocean and gifted as a sort of "pet" for three society sisters. Sancho runs… Continue reading Review: The Secret Diaries of Charles Ignatius Sancho by Paterson Joseph
The Siege by Helen Dunmore follows a young woman, Anna, who is thrust into the primary caretaker role for her family during the deadly 1941 Siege of Leningrad. With a [unemployed] writer father and a infant brother, and her mother having passed at her brother's birth, Anna is the de facto leader of her family.… Continue reading Review: The Siege by Helen Dunmore
The Oath of Bjorn (book 3 in the Vinland Viking Saga) by Tamara Goranson follows the Beothuk-raised, Norse huntsman husband of Anja Freydisdottir (the main character of book 2,) son of Logatha and the late Finnbogi. Given the female perspectives of books 1 and 2, switching to the male perspective for book 3 was a… Continue reading Review: The Oath of Bjorn by Tamara Goranson
Home 