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Task Task Task

Taskmaster: 220 Extraordinary Tasks for Ordinary People by Alex Horne

December 15, 2019 by jeverett15 Leave a Comment

Taskmaster is a game show from the UK in which five comedians compete against each other in contests, or “tasks”, set for them by the show’s hosts, Taskmaster Greg Davies and his assistant, (Little) Alex Horne. Though he portrays the servile assistant on telly, Horne is actually the creator of the show and the mastermind of most of the tasks. In this book he briefly gives the history of the show and some behind the scenes secrets, but the main point is the tasks themselves. […]

The Weird Sisters

We Have Always Lived in the Castle by Shirley Jackson

December 12, 2019 by jeverett15 Leave a Comment

The two characters at the heart of Shirley Jackson’s We Have Always Lived in the Castle, sisters Mary Katharine and Constance Blackwood, live alone with their doddering Uncle Julian in the aftermath of the deaths of the rest of their family. It’s a limited existence but for the fact that the outside world can’t let them alone. Though the older sister Constance was acquitted at trial, the town is convinced she killed her relatives and that, along with lingering class resentment for the wealthy Blackwoods, […]

McGee the Magnificent

The Girl in the Plain Brown Wrapper by John D. MacDonald

December 4, 2019 by jeverett15 Leave a Comment

This installment of the Travis McGee series starts with him joining several associates on a literal salvaging operation. It’s an apt metaphor for McGee’s normal exploits. For the unfamiliar, McGee is not quite a private eye, but he can be hired to find anything. His fee? Half of whatever he recovers. It’s a lifestyle that allows for plenty of relaxation aboard McGee’s houseboat, the Busted Flush, plenty of drinking, and plenty of time with the lovely ladies who can’t seem to stop throwing themselves at […]

Detroit in its Heyday

An October to Remember, 1968: The Tigers-Cardinals World Series as Told by the Men Who Played It by Brendan Donley

December 4, 2019 by jeverett15 1 Comment

1968 was a fascinating and turbulent year in America, rocked by assassinations, protests, and riots. Baseball, though frequently cited as a respite from the violence and fear, was also in the midst of a sea-change and was not so far removed from the outside world. The 1968 World Series was at the precipice of all these changes. It was the last so-called “true” World Series, where the two teams earned their way into the series by winning their league’s pennant. The next year divisional playoffs […]

Last Night I Dreamed I Went to the 1300s Again

The House on the Strand by Daphne du Maurier

November 21, 2019 by jeverett15 Leave a Comment

Daphne du Maurier’s Rebecca is one of the best novels I’ve ever read. It’s suspenseful and exciting and is also the reason I will likely never agree to be anyone’s second spouse. It’s been years since I read Rebecca on the recommendation of a trusted friend, but shamefully I’d never gotten around to reading du Maurier’s other work. I decided to rectify that recently, and the superb reviews of The House on the Strand convinced me it was the right place to turn. Sadly, while […]

Tick Tock

The Big Clock by Kenneth Fearing

October 31, 2019 by jeverett15 1 Comment

When crime magazine editor George Stroud sees his boss and his boss’s girlfriend heading into her apartment together, he’s careful not to be seen. That’s because he’s just dropping off the woman in question after having his own tryst with her. Though he keeps out of sight well enough to keep his boss, publishing magnate Earl Janoth, from identifying him, Janoth is able to tell that his girlfriend has just been with another man. When they later get into an argument about that and Janoth […]

Zirza on A Gothic Classic for a ReasonIt's one of those wish-you-could-read-it-again-for-the-first-time books. I loved it.
Emmalita on “It came to something when you found yourself hoping that the footsteps you heard were ghosts.”I loved the ending! I don’t think it’s been out long enough to talk about why though.
Dixie on Track Her Down by Melinda LeighI am just starting Track Her Down and I have read them all in order till now and thought I...
Roland of Gilead on How can you give us the gift of a crazy character named Rando Thoughtful and then just as suddenly take that gift away? We need to talk, Uncle Stevie.I came across this randomly years after it was written because I was searching "Random Thoughtful. But I have the...
Emmalita on “Only you, Em, would refer to heartbreak as a distraction. I think I would have a more sympathetic response if I asked to marry a bookcase.”Oh my goodness, Gallifrey was beautiful. I’m sure her mittens were gloriously murdery.

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