Still cold out, but the daylight starts a few minutes earlier every morning. The universe is still dependable that way. At least in the tiny slice of time that I am experiencing it. It’s light out now when I leave my afternoon curling games.
Ah February! It used to be my second-least-favourite month (after November, of course), but in recent years, it has become travel-south-month. So off to MLB Spring Training we go. Go Blue Jays!
Reading? I’m having a hard time deciding what’s next after that great book just finished in January, “The Huntress” by Kate Quinn. Wow, what a story. On to something else deep before lighter holiday reads? Historical fiction again? Or contemporary? Or speculative? Something weird, or horror?
I settle on a non-fiction adventure story by Canadian explorer, Adam Shoaltes, “The Whisper on the Night Wind”. I loved the cover in the sale aisle at Indigo, and a quick blurb mentioning “Labrador” meant instant purchase. Those who “know” me, know I lived in Goose Bay as a military kid, and of all the places I’ve lived in my life (and believe me, I still count them on my fingers before remembering how many), Goose Bay is the only one I’ve never returned to. Left at 12 years old, over 50 years ago, more than a half-century! Yet Labrador still calls me, so I was eager to follow this author’s venture into the forest and scrubby mountains near (one of) my childhood’s homes. What a fun read! I camped and trudged along as Shoaltes and his buddy track through the domain of legendary forest creatures. They eventually resolve their mystery, and I eventually return to my own reality out of the wilderness and back to suburban condo retirement living. Nice read, I’ll probably pick up more from this author when I need another getaway from my own life.
Speaking of getaways, off to Dunedin, Florida! Winter to be cut short to start baseball season, yay!
Just enough time to read a Bookbub Freebie before we go : “The Posh Prepper” by Todd Knight. I enjoy a good end-of-civilization story as much as anyone. This one, fairly usual in its freebie fast-pace that reads like a movie playing in your head, is also unusual in that the story is more complex and well-written than many in this genre. Very fast to get through, as in hard to put down. Perfect fun before leaving for vacation.
Also a bit forgettable, which is just fine, as I’ve found a dense, juicy, historical fiction by Alice Hoffman, “The Dovekeepers”.
Wow. Heavy, interesting, written in poetic, evocative prose, pretty enough on that alone for a good read. But the story? Masada, 70-71 AD. Yes, as the Romans are closing in. Told in four separate voices by four women tasked in the refuge community of Masada, to care for the doves, which are used for food, religious offerings, and their fertilizing leavings. It’s like four stories in one, all intertwining to conclusion. I hated knowing what that conclusion was, historically speaking, but couldn’t look away. The conclusion was as graphic as expected, but also somewhat (fictionally?) satisfying. I devoured the author’s notes in the afterword.
Whew. Home from holidays, back to a stubborn March that won’t let winter go. Lots of curling to play and watch. Also, more, more reading! How about “The House on Biscayne Bay” by Chanel Cleeton. I like to pick up books while travelling, and this one is about a grand estate built in Miami. Quite sinister in tone, lots of secrets and deaths and dual timelines of original (1940s) and current (1960s) owners. What happened? Who did it? Why? How? You know, the usual for a good story!
Enough rambling for February and March, 2026. Bring on April!
Tried Michele Sabad’s books yet? Please take a look. 😉
Stevie Szabad, Author 