Northland: A 4,000-Mile Journey Along America's Forgotten Border by Porter Fox - the author grew up near the US/Canadian border in Maine. He decides to travel along the border from Maine to Washington. He travels by canoe, freighter, plane, and car. Along the way he weaves the history of the area and current events into an interesting story. There is a slight emphasis on the plight of present-day Native Americans, which is appalling.
4 stars
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Murder in the Mews by Agatha Christie - four short Hercules Poirot mysteries. I liked Dead Man's Mirror the best.
3 stars
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Dumb Witness by Agatha Christie - Poirot receives a letter from a wealthy spinster several weeks after her death. Her death appears natural but the accident previously may not have been so accidental. It's been blamed on the dog's habit of leaving his ball on the top of the stairs but he may not be the culprit. Hastings seems to interpret dog talk very well.
4 stars
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Partners in Crime by Agatha Christie - a collection of short stories featuring Tommy and Tuppence. All the stories are connected on the premise of them running a detective agency when they're really setting a trap for a foreign agent. Along the way they take on other cases. These two are really my least favorite Christie characters. Their witty repartee irritates me no end. And their impulsiveness and naivete lead them into danger. I wonder if they were as irritating to people reading them at the time they were written.
2 stars
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Relic by Alan Dean Foster - Ruslan is the last known human survivor in the universe. Found on the planet Seraboth by the Myssari, he is now both their guest and scientific subject. They are determined to resurrect the human race. Ruslan agrees to help and in exchange they will search for Earth, the original home planet. Loved the writing, loved the story.
5 stars
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Peril at End House by Agatha Christie - Hercules Poirot is vacationing in Cornish when he and Hastings meet a young woman who has recently had a series of accidents that could have had serious consequences. When another incident occurs right in front of Poirot, he becomes convinced that someone is trying to kill her. However, there seems to be no motive. Poirot must really use his little grey cells to solve this one. This one totally surprised me even though I've read it before and seen the tv episode. Christie is so good at making you suspect everyone.
3 stars
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Leverage in Death by J.D. Robb - a well-liked executive walks into an important meeting wearing a suicide vest and kills himself and several other people. No one can understand it until they learn his family is being held captive and he was coerced. Eve Dallas considers him one of the victims. But no one can figure out the reason for the act until they decide it was for quick, financial gain. So that means there may be another attack. This one gave me an actual headache there was so much rehashing and re-speculation. The book could have been half the size. The language seems to get coarser with each book. (A very offensive remark about why babies suck there thumbs.) This time for one of the obligatory sex scenes Eve and Roarke have an argument so they can have hot makeup sex. The tides crash together or whatever and we're back to the rehashing. (These scenes are easily skipped, they usually run two pages, that's how rote they are.) This 47th Eve Dallas book just didn't do it for me this time. I'm even getting tired of the characters. I am very much in the minority on Goodreads.
1 stars
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Appointment with Death by Agatha Christie - it takes quite a while for the murder to happen and when it does you're secretly happy. Nowadays Mrs. Boynton would be labeled narcissistic/npd/sociopath, but she's just plain evil. She has her entire family under her thumb and has brought them to Israel and Petra perhaps just to show them how much. When she dies, everyone is under suspicion and it's up to Hercules Poirot to show the way.
3.5 stars
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Live Long and ... What I Learned Along the Way by William Shatner David Fisher - not so much an autobiography as it is Shatner's philosophy of life. Don't die, always say yes, and live passionately. He reveals himself to be a lonely man who has found happiness with his dogs, horses, and 4th wife. A short book and yet somewhat repetitious, I found myself skimming a little towards the end.
2 stars
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Parker Pyne Investigates by Agatha Christie - a collection of short stories featuring Parker Pyne, a man who advertises that he can provide happiness. Mr Pyne believes he know much about people due to his previous life as a statistician. He helps unhappy wives and husbands realize they are happier with each other and provides a little excitement for people living dull lives. In the later stories he also solves some mysteries.
3 stars
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Murder in Three Acts by Agatha Christie - a Hercules Poirot mystery in which Poirot is absent for about two thirds of the book. A man dies at a cocktail party and there is no reason to suspect anything but poor health and advanced age. But suppose it was murder? What was the reason? Then another man dies in much the same way who was also at the party. This is definitely murder. But for what reason? Three amateur detectives bumble about until at last Poirot steps in.
4 stars
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