Back to top

MADreads

Posts by Katie H

A different sort of World War II story

Cover of Clark and Division
A review of Clark and Division by Naomi Hirahara

After the hellish experience of the past few years, Aki Ito finally feels like it might be possible to be happy again. She and her parents are about to leave Manzanar, the California desert internment camp into which her family and other Japanese-Americans were forced by the government following Pearl Harbor, for an unfamiliar Chicago neighborhood the government has deemed acceptable for ‘resettlement’.

Jun 18, 2021

Fantastical Cairo

Cover of A Master of Djinn
A review of A Master of Djinn by P. Djeli Clark

Agent Fatma el-Sha’arawi, special investigator with the Egyptian Ministry of Alchemy, Enchantments and Supernatural Entities, knows she’ll need all those magical elements, and a few more, to get to the bottom of the latest investigation to cross her desk. The bodies of several prominent Cairenes, most European, are discovered burned to death at the mansion of a powerful Englishman, apparently gathered as part of a secret society. But these are not just any burns. The unfortunates had all their flesh burned away, but none of their clothing.

Jun 7, 2021

Scribes and witches unite

Cover of In the Presence of Evil
A review of In the Presence of Evil by Tania Bayard

Single motherhood with the responsibilities of earning enough to support several generations—it’s a situation not unfamiliar to many modern women. It’s the situation Christine de Pizan lives in, but her world—1393 Paris—is far from modern in Tania Bayard’s debut In the Presence of Evil. As an educated woman, Christine is already something of an oddity, but growing up as both beloved daughter and widow of scholars employed in the French court has given her a chance to earn her living as a scribe and support her children and mother.

May 25, 2021

A hard-earned happily ever after

Cover of Work For It
A review of Work For It by Talia Hibbert

In the current romance publishing climate, it’s not unusual for ‘debut’ authors to have multiple titles in print through self-publishing houses before they’re picked up by conventional publishers. While the quality of self-published titles are definitely hit-or-miss in terms of quality, self-publishing gives authors the possibility of publishing stories that traditional publishers pass on or to hone their writing chops in different directions.

Mar 23, 2021

A haunted marriage

Cover of Stay with Me
A review of Stay with Me by Ayobami Adebayo

As they start their marriage, Yejide and Akin are aware they’ve a lot to learn, but there is one thing they are sure of: theirs will be a monogamous marriage. In late 1980s Nigeria, it is still assumed that Akin will take several wives. The pair, who met at university and have thus far weathered Nigeria’s often volatile political and social climate, have the sort of love that is strong enough to withstand any outsider’s attempts to drive them apart. But Akin and Yejide may be their own greatest threat to their marriage, a discovery that comes almost too late. 

Feb 3, 2021

The REAL queen of crime

Cover of The Windsor Knot
A review of The Windsor Knot by S. J. Bennett

For a thousand year old castle, it’s certainly not the first time a violent death has happened within its walls. But it’s still shocking when Windsor Castle staff discover the body of a young Russian pianist in the wardrobe of a guest room deep within what is one of the most secure citadels in the world—and more so when that death is revealed as a murder. Her Majesty the Queen is of course horrified to hear the news—she had danced with the man only the previous night—but when police and MI-6 suspects that Russia is behind the crime with a possible mole, she knows what she has to do.

Jan 28, 2021

Love is in the strut

Cover of Black Bottom Saints
A review of Black Bottom Saints by Alice Randall

Alice Randall isn’t an author that typically is at the top of many readers’ lists, having written several solid quietly received novels in the past and a few nonfiction works. But her latest, Black Bottom Saints, proves that Randall deserves more attention and a place on to-read lists.

Jan 14, 2021

Not your typical high society lady

Cover of Her Night with the Duke
A review of Her Night with the Duke by Diana Quincy

Strong heroines are practically a necessity in historical romance, but Diana Quincy introduces an especially memorable lady at the center of her new romance Her Night With the Duke, launching her Clandestine Affairs series. Lady Delilah Chambers knows the habits of England’s ton through and through: as the daughter of a marquis and the widow of an earl, Leela circulates among the highest of the high.

Jan 8, 2021

Something strange in the neighborhood

Cover of When No One is Watching
A review of When No One is Watching by Alyssa Cole

The Brooklyn community of Gifford Place has seen its rough patches to be sure, but Sydney has always relished how her neighbors have banded together to help each other and hold the more insidious threats out of the historically Black neighborhood. But since Sydney has moved back to the venerable brownstone she’s always shared with her mother after a bruising divorce and mental breakdown, something has been off.

Dec 18, 2020

Pages