Book Review Connection

 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 can thank that unknown person, on a flight to or from Houston, for starting Mom off on a long journey through his work.    

I believe, as did my mother, one of the bonuses of books, reading, and conversation is the connections they generate.  If you are a more introverted person, or even if you're not, a book is oftentimes the tool that opens the box on a conversation. How about your seatmate on an airplane, getting your reluctant to teen to talk, or making a connection with other readers through a book club?  Do any of those sound at all familiar?  They're all familiar to me and I'm pleased to say so.    

One of the ways in which I have connected with authors, brand new and more experienced, is through advance reader copies of books.  Sometime in 2000, I became a reviewer for Net Galley. I can't recall exactly how or where I heard of Net Galley, but it permits access to authors that I never thought a "regular Jane", such as myself, would have been able to unlock.  It's pretty simple to join, request books, and submit your reviews.  That's precisely what I did.  

 

One for the Money by D.  B. Borton is my first Net Galley ARC and review submitted in 2000.  It is also the first time I heard from an author.  Ms. Borton emailed me asking for permission, as if she needed to ask😉, to use a small piece of my review in some of her promotional material.  Needless to say, I gave my permission.  Since then, I've heard from her a few times offering to send me ARC's of her new books in the Cat Caliban Series, which now tallies twelve.  I can't begin to describe how thrilled I was and am when I hear from her or other authors!  The author contact is something really special.  

Here's the review that prompted Ms. Borton to touch base with "little old me":

"One for the Money is a tasty recipe for an old-fashioned mystery.  Toss in a little Jessica Fletcher (Murder She Wrote) and a sprinkling of Agatha Christie’s Miss Marple and you have a wonderfully entertaining read.  

Cat Calaban is a more “mature”, unlicensed as yet, sleuth.  I say sleuth, she says private detective - some of this/some of that.  Really not much difference when she inserts herself into a murder investigation.  One the police likely wouldn’t have even investigated, since it was the death of an apparent homeless and destitute person found in Cat’s own apartment building.  As you can imagine, this could go wrong in so many ways and it does from time to time, especially when she crosses Detective Fricke (assigned to the case) and a lengthy list of suspects.  

However, Cat has skills!  Some learned by raising three kids.  Anyone who has children knows you have to have an inquiring mind and she certainly has that in abundance.  In fact, at some points in the case her inquiring mind seems on the verge of tipping over into fantasy, but she stops at the precipice, hones in and solves the case.

Was this great literature?  Maybe not, but it certainly was fun!  I understand there are three more books in the series.  I’m looking forward to having a gin and tonic with Cat and her neighbors.  #NetGalley, #ONEFORTHEMONEY"

Here's another amazing example of the ability to reach out to an author and hear from her personally.  In April of 2025, I came upon The Long March Home by Tosca Lee and Marcus Brotherton.  Below is a segment of the review I posted:

"You really must read a book, any book by the author Tosca Lee. If I had my say, you'd read The Long March Home written by Tosca and Marcus Brotherton.  Chosen as The One Book One Nebraska selection for 2025, I also selected it as my Best of 2024.  It was a superior piece of historical fiction set during World War II's Bataan Death March, featuring three hometown friends who vow to make it back from the war alive.  It is as well-researched as it is readable!"

 

This gem of a book sparked my interest in Tosca herself.  Like I did, you could go to her  social media pages and website, but to really get a feel for the person and her work, I needed a more personal interaction. I emailed Tosca, requesting an interview with the hope that I might hear from a member of her team.  Surprisingly enough, I got a quick response from the author herself agreeing to answer my questions by email.  Wow!  Needless to say, I was thrilled and shot off a lightning quick response.🗲 

From that very generous response, a blog post featuring Tosca and her work was written.  Can you imagine any author taking the time and effort necessary to respond to a request from an unknown reader?  I couldn't, but she sure did!  I now follow her on social media and continue to recommend her work to readers everywhere I go.  

With these examples in mind, I encourage you to be bold, don't hesitate to reach out and touch base with an author who interests you or sparks new avenues of reading enjoyment.  I think you'll find them very open, willing to connect, and even generous.