read Archives

Mysterious Island, The

Solitude, Survival, and a Mystery Author: Jules Verne The Mysterious Island is classic Jules Verne: adventure tinged with near-misses, engaging survivalist saves, profound mysteries, elements of imagination, and lots of fascinating scientific tidbits. We begin with escape. A group of Union soldiers is held at a Confederate camp, and they take advantage of the proverbial dark and stormy night to steal a hot air balloon, letting the wind carry them where it may. And it does. To save their very lives, they end up throwing all their supplies overboard, finally arriving, five men with varying levels of expertise, plus one loyal [...]

Frances Carden2023-12-03T12:42:07-07:00December 3rd, 2023|Tags: book review, classic, read, reading|

NightWhere

Sex Clubs and Sinister Secrets Author: John Everson Rae is insatiable, going from one underground sex club to the next, dragging her husband Mark with her. Mark is not really interested in the life, but Rae craves it. To keep Rae, he must go along with it. He’s not enough for her, and he certainly cannot fulfill her darkest desires, those that involve whips, chains, pain, and blood. Rae has finally finagled the couple an invitation to the legendary NightWhere, the pinnacle of BDSM sex clubs, where a ball gag is a pretty common accessory. It’s invite-only, and each night it [...]

Frances Carden2024-02-20T08:27:19-07:00November 28th, 2023|Tags: BDSM, book review, erotica, horror, read, reading|

Pale-Faced Lie, The

True Crime Meets Coming of Age Author: David Crow David Crow grew up learning to torture his mother and take constant revenge so that his father, Thurston Crow, would love him. These were the only times he received praise from his ex-con father, the only time he was made to feel part of the family, feel like he was worth something. Growing up in a Navajo Indian Reservation, raised by a violent father and a mentally ill mother, David and his siblings lived in a wild, fluctuating space of psychotic violence interspersed with occasional rays of friendliness from passing people. In [...]

Frances Carden2023-11-26T16:25:29-07:00November 26th, 2023|Tags: book review, memoir, read, reading, true crime|