Dee Reads

Have you ever wondered where bloggers get their ideas? Some weeks I ask myself the same question. 🤣   Am I sitting on my couch when a comic book bubble suddenly appears over my head and there's a fantastic original theme?  I wish it were that easy, but I am fortunate to have a great sounding board who never fails to shoot off his own unique thoughts.  My brother, my reading cohort, friend, and whom I have mentioned throughout the blog is responsible for the seed that grew into this week's drop.  Here's Jay's inspiration - "It would be interesting to share some authors who have successfully written outside what is thought of as their genre." Jay mentioned one of his special favorites, Robert Dugoni .  Robert, author of the Tracy Crosswhite Series, also favored us with three books, that define the word special and are outside the mystery/thriller genre, The Extraordinary Life of Sam Hell , The World Played Chess , and Hold Strong .  Dugoni has proven himself...

  Book Review Connections🔖 Many years ago now, my mother was telling me about a person she'd met on an airplane.  It must have been a flight from Houston, Texas to Dayton, Ohio or vice versa, since that was the trip between her home and some of my siblings.  Mom was a lifelong reader of many genres, particularly mystery/thriller books.  That's probably how I got interested in some of the same books.  As Mom told me, she had just sat down on the plane and noticed her seatmate reading a book titled  Kiss the Girls .  Yes, from James Patterson's early years, published in 1997.  As a prodigious reader, my mother was surprised to see she'd missed a new, at the time, thriller.  However, that didn't stop her from instigating a conversation with her fellow passenger that lasted for well into their flight.  Would she have begun to talk to a complete stranger had it not been for that book?  Knowing my mom, likely not.  James Patterson c...

🍂New Releases🍂   I love, and I don't say this casually, the Fall season.  For all the obvious reasons; the cooler weather, the colorful leaves, the approaching holidays, and best of all, Fall reading.  This Fall, just a few short weeks away, there seems to be an abundance of great entries into some of my favorite series reading. Maybe some of yours too!  Drop a comment and let me know what series update you are most looking forward to this upcoming season.  📘Primed and ready to release on September 15th is number twelve in Robert Dugoni's Tracy Crosswhite Series. (I'm primed anyway.)   One Split Second  continues the story of Detective Crosswhite who I initially found through Kindle Unlimited, but have continued to read alongside Dugoni's stand-alone books.  By this time, Tracy is a mature and skilled detective as she takes on the defense of an old friend, also a female police officer.  Here's a taste: A girl’s unsolved disappearance....

Recently, I got a brain tickle that lead to a Wikipedia search in order to learn more about fiction genres.  For instance, did you know there are eight genres of fiction? And even more sub-genres and the list grows as more subs are coined all the time.  Here's a look at the list: Core Fiction Genres🍎 Fantasy : Uses magic and other supernatural elements, often set in fictional worlds (e.g., The Lord of the Rings ). Science Fiction : Focuses on futuristic science, space travel, and advanced technology (e.g., Dune ). Mystery : Follows a detective or character trying to solve a crime or secret. Romance : Centers on a love story between characters with an optimistic ending. Thriller/Horror : Builds high tension, fear, suspense, or dark scares. Historical Fiction : Takes place during a real past time period with invented characters or events. Contemporary/Realistic Fiction : Set in modern or realistic times with events that could actually happen in real life. Westerns : Set in the ...

As promised in last week's dispatch, I'm about to reveal three books, from my Summer Reading Challenges, that didn't quite meet my bar.  Before I drop the bomb, let me just say that because I didn't find these offerings to my liking or up to my standards, doesn't mean someone else won't.  In fact, as I've said many times, that's why reading is great - while this, that, or the other book might not have been one of my favorites doesn't mean it won't work for the next reader. Now, the explosion -  The Max Revere Series by Allison Brennan, Books 1-5, Notorious , Compulsion , Notorious , Shattered , Abandoned I've read all five books in this series over the course of a few months and rated them higher than perhaps I might have had I spent more time digesting and considering books 1-3.  I was so invested in Max's origin story I found myself riding a wave of positive feelings as I began the last two, Shattered and Abandoned.  In fact, I lingered...

Hello Dear Readers!   We are in the dog days of summer and with that long days, more daylight saving time, and the opportunity to read even more books. I've been trying to stay cool during these approaching 100 degree days by holing up inside, enjoying the delicious air conditioning, and reading for two, count them two, Summer Reading Challenges.  One for my local public library, which I've successfully completed and will end this coming weekend.  The other, an on-line venture, that asks the participants to read three books a month.  Easy right?  That's what I thought also, but the more pressing challenge, for me anyway, is to decide which from my towering stack of books to read.  In order to share a bit with you all from my summer reading and brag on a few of my favorites, I've compiled a list of three of my favorites.  Not to be all sunshine and roses, next week I will mention one or two for which I didn't feel the same fondness.  One, you ...

Yes, I'm back after a very long hiatus.  What, you might ask, has kept me from engaging with the reading and blogging communities?  In short, my husband and I bought a new home in February and that task has occupied all my reading, contemplating, and writing energy.  Now that things have settled down a smidge, it's time to get back to normal and back to you all.   For this first installment, I'm going with a three prong offensive; one new book, one older book and one I didn't much enjoy. You might say a "newbie, an oldie and ugh".   NEWBIE BOOK: More Than Enough by Anna Quindlen , released on February 24, 2026, Goodreads shows 3.98 stars! I received an ARC of this book from Net Galley, courtesy of Random House Publishing.  I am grateful to them and Ms. Quindlen for the opportunity to read and offer my thoughts on Quindlen’s work. Here's the set-up: “No one knows you like your book club. High school English teacher Polly Goodman can talk about ever...