Essays & Musings

What We’ve Been Thinking About

Thoughts on books, reading, culture, and the literary life.

Whatcha Watching Right Now?

Whatcha Watching Right Now?

November 9, 2022

After polishing off the final season of Derry Girls–good but not great though I could watch Siobhán McSweeney as Sister Michael all damn day–thoroughly enjoying Nicola Walker’s chatty Annika, loving…

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the ask@AAR: Long series–love ’em or loathe ’em?

the ask@AAR: Long series–love ’em or loathe ’em?

November 4, 2022

Nora Robarts, aka J. D. Robb, is publishing the 56th book in her In Death series in January. We appear to have reviewed 42 of the Eve Dallas books (!!!),…

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the ask@AAR: What do we think about Eloisa James?

the ask@AAR: What do we think about Eloisa James?

October 28, 2022

Next month, Eloisa James will publish The Reluctant Countess, the second in her Would Be Wallflowers historical romance series. James has published over 40 books and we’ve reviewed her 38…

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the ask@AAR: How do you use the site?

the ask@AAR: How do you use the site?

October 21, 2022

I spend a lot of time looking at AAR’s stats. According to Google Analytics, 60% of AAR readers access the site via their phones and/or other devices. When users visit…

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the ask@AAR: What book broke your heart?

the ask@AAR: What book broke your heart?

October 14, 2022

The final season of His Dark Materials comes out this December and the trailer has dropped. The thing is, I’m not sure I can take it. The conclusion of series,…

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Q&A with Mimi Matthews

Q&A with Mimi Matthews

October 11, 2022

AAR has loved much of Ms. Matthews work and we thought our readers would enjoy learning more about her and her writing! (Thanks to Lisa for coming up with most…

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the ask@AAR: What’s your current frontrunner for best romance of 2022?

the ask@AAR: What’s your current frontrunner for best romance of 2022?

October 7, 2022

The AAR staff will soon begin pulling together their top romances of 2022 lists. I’ve been thinking about mine–I love these lists! My current top pick is easy–I’ve only given…

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the ask@AAR: What’s the best party you’ve ever been to?

the ask@AAR: What’s the best party you’ve ever been to?

September 29, 2022

As Covid, more or less, recedes in its every day impact, people are socializing. All over the place. This makes me happy–as an utter extrovert I love get togethers. I’ve…

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It’s hard out here for a blog….

It’s hard out here for a blog….

September 28, 2022

It’s time for my depressing reminder that AAR needs your help to survive. Lately, things have been a bit grim. By many measures, we’re doing OK. In 2021, our users…

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the ask@AAR: What’s the most entertaining work of fiction you’ve read in the last six months?

the ask@AAR: What’s the most entertaining work of fiction you’ve read in the last six months?

September 22, 2022

What’s the book you’ve read in the last six months that you simply couldn’t put down? For me, it’s Ninth House. Smart, engrossing and entertaining as hell. What about for…

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I’ve fallen hard for someone… and he’s a character on TV.

I’ve fallen hard for someone… and he’s a character on TV.

September 19, 2022

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the ask@AAR: What romances do you feel are brilliantly plotted?

the ask@AAR: What romances do you feel are brilliantly plotted?

September 16, 2022

I was struck by a recent article prizing, in mysteries, psychologically complex characters over novels that were essentially puzzles… with tricky plots. In suspense reading, I am the reader who…

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What We’ve Been Thinking About

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