TV Review: The Quilters

Title: The Quilters
Director: Jenifer McShane
Producer: Jenifer McShane
Starring: Joe Satterfield
Publisher: Netflix
Genre: Non-Fiction, Contemporary
Rating: 5 Stars (10 on IMDB)
Reviewed by Astilbe

In this award-winning short documentary, men in a Missouri maximum-security prison design and sew beautiful, personalized quilts for foster children.

Rehabilitation begins with empathy.

I adored the sensitive and kind framing of this documentary, especially given the fact that many of the men who sew these quilts have been incarcerated for decades or even for the rest of their lies for what were in a few cases hinted to be terrible crimes. It’s not always easy for filmmakers or audiences to see the humanity in people with these kinds of violent pasts, so I appreciated the fact that as little time as possible was spent exploring what, exactly, they did to end up in a level 5 facility. Those details, while obviously important in other contexts, were not relevant to work these inmates were doing for children living in foster care or with disabilities like autism.

As someone who knows little about sewing, I was fascinated by the many detailed steps it requires in order to sew a quilt, weighted vest, or weighted blanket. For example, I didn’t know that cloth needs to be ironed and stretched out before being sewn together or what happens if those steps aren’t done properly. The inmates were trained carefully on their craft, and the items they produced were incredible. It was especially interesting to see how every inch of an item was inspected methodically before being shipped out to the children who were waiting for their gifts.

Regret and forgiveness were two of the deeper themes of this documentary that played out quietly in the background. A few of the men featured will probably never leave the maximum-security prison in Missouri where they have already lived for decades, so hearing their thoughts on the many years they’ve had to consider their life choices was especially poignant. I don’t want to share too many spoilers about what they’ve learned along the way, but I will say that they have had a lot of time to work through their feelings and I liked the way they expressed them.

The Quilters was a beautiful and heartwarming look at how dramatically people can change for the better when given the chance.

Swept Away by Jo Hiestand

Swept Away by Jo Hiestand
Publisher: Cousins House
Genre: Mystery
Rated: 5 stars
Review by Rose

Dan Winter asks his friend, former police detective Michael McLaren, to discover what happened to his wife, Ellie, who disappeared on the third day of the couple’s holiday on Bow Island. Dan thinks she was swept away by rough ocean waves. Perhaps, but after three weeks there is no sign of her, alive or dead.

McLaren’s inquiry seems to be going along swimmingly until the police suspect Dan of killing Ellie and hiding her body. Now McLaren has to dive deeper for the truth. Was Ellie really swept away or did she disappear of her own volition, perhaps helped by a wildlife expert who knows all the hiding place on the island? Or there’s the Chaucer-spouting war veteran who seems eager to help with anything. Or did Dan actually murder her?

Once again we are back in the world of Michael McLaren, and there have been a lot of changes since my last visit with him. I will definitely have to find the time to go back and read this series from the beginning, because I absolutely love these characters and the growth I have seen in them through the few books I have had the chance to read and review (see below for the links to those).

As much as I have enjoyed the rest of the books, I have to say I think this is my favorite so far. They just keep getting better and better. Ms. Hiestand really conveys the desolation and the weather on Bow Island, and the list of characters/suspects leave the reader with several possible solutions. There are twists and turns that truly keep you guessing with every new bit of information that Mike discovers.

I can often figure out the solution, but Ms. Hiestand has me guessing right up until Mike’s explanation on this one. Good job! I love it when that happens.

I am looking forward to more books in this series, and I also want to delve into her other series.

Here are my reviews of other McLaren Mysteries:

An Unfolding Trap
The Cottage
Overdue
Related by Murder
An Unwilling Suspect

Movie Review: BTS – The Return


Title: BTS – The Return
Director: Bao Nguyen
Producer: Bao Nguyen
Starring: Kim “RM” Nam-joon, Min “Suga” Yoon-gi, Jung “J-Hope” Ho-seok, Kim “Jin” Seok-jin, Jeon “Jung Kook” Jung-kook, and Kim “V” Tae-hyung
Publisher: Netflix
Genre: Nonfiction, Contemporary
Rating: 5 Stars (10 on IMDB)
Reviewed by Astilbe

Follows BTS as they reunite in Los Angeles after completing military service, confronting how to begin again, honor their past, and move forward together as they return to making music.

Boy bands generally don’t last this long. Can BTS make their big comeback in 2026?

Due to South Korea’s mandatory military service, the members of the K-Pop band BTS have been absent from modern music since 2022. This documentary showed their readjustment to life as civilians and the work they put into their new album, Arirang. I was surprised to learn that these performers were not exempt from military service and was curious to see what their time away from the spotlight had taught them. Without sharing spoilers, this topic was covered thoroughly and satisfactorily!

The scenes that explored how all seven members have matured over the past thirteen years or so were the ones that propelled this to a perfect rating for me. Most people change quite a bit between their teens or early twenties and their thirties, and BTS wanted this evolution to be included in their new music. When combined with what is a fairly long hiatus for a genre that is famous for having young fans that can rapidly outgrow their favourite artists, the question of how their audience would respond to this growth hung in the air both in the studio and in the meetings with music executives about which songs should or should not make the cut. It was especially interesting to me to find out how they chose the name for their album and what that represented to them now that they are all well into adulthood.

Viewers who are already part of the Army, which stands for Adorable Representative M.C. for Youth and is how some fans of BTS refer to themselves, will have a few fun surprises along the way, but this was still a good watch for those of us who maybe weren’t so familiar with their work. I appreciated the fact that this was filmed in a way that could appeal to a wide variety of people and didn’t make any assumptions about what we did or didn’t already know about them. It’s not always easy to accomplish something like that, but it sure makes for a good viewing experience.

BTS – The Return was heartwarming and made me wonder what is in store for them next!

A New Life by L.J. Ambrosio


A New Life by L.J. Ambrosio
Publisher: self-published
Genre: contemporary, literary fiction
Rated: 5 stars
Review by Rose

From America to the streets of Paris, A New Life follows two friends as they navigate grief, love, and self-discovery in a city filled with history and hope.

A New Life is a story that lingers long after the last page.

This book is the ending of the Reflections of Michael trilogy (actually a bonus book – book 4) and is a complete ending to the circle that began in A Reservoir Man. You can see all the reviews of the trilogy here: A Reservoir Man, Reflections on the Boulevard, and Exiles.

Like the other books, Ambrosio takes the reader on a lyrical journey into the lives of Louie and Ron. This stream of consciousness way of writing is like sitting with an old friend and finding out what they have been up to.

This book is probably one of the most emotional of all the books and, without giving away any spoilers, I have to admit to more than a few tears and will stay with me for a long time.  I’m so glad I read it.

This book gets a solid 5 stars for a wonderfully stirring and emotive closure, and I recommend the entire series to everyone.

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Movie Review: The Wild Robot

The Wild Robot by Writers Chris Sanders, Peter Brown
Director: Chris Sanders
Starring: Lupita Nyong’o, Pedro Pascal, and Kit Connor
Publisher: Dreamworks Animation/Universal Pictures
Genre: Sci-Fi/Fantasy, Children’s (0 – 6 y.o.), Middle Grade (8 – 12 y.o.)
Rating: “Best Movie” – 5 stars (10 stars on IMDB)
Reviewed by Dicentra

After a shipwreck, an intelligent robot called Roz is stranded on an uninhabited island. To survive the harsh environment, Roz bonds with the island’s animals and cares for an orphaned baby goose.

Based on Peter Brown’s The Wild Robot, Chris Sanders’ movie version of the story (produced by DreamWorks Animation and distributed by Universal Pictures) pulled my heartstrings in a way very few movies ever have, animated or not. I can’t even remember the last time I teared up in a theater prior to this movie. Lupita Nyong’o voices the titular robot, Roz, who must adapt to her new environment and complete her programming to ‘help with tasks’ after finding herself shipwrecked on an island.

The emotional connection in this movie is stunning. Roz is, understandably, viewed as an outsider by the other animals on the island. The main theme in this movie is the idea of family (and what that can look like), but it also touches on the ideas of belonging and community. Roz’s motley crew of fox Fink (Pedro Pascal) and orphan gosling Brightbill (Kit Connor) are an unlikely family, but I enjoyed seeing the growth that all three of them went through over the course of the movie. Sometimes there are tragic events in the past that can shape one’s trajectory, but they can also lead to beautiful results. I loved seeing all of the animals on the island, both predator and prey, coming together in a common goal towards the end of the movie. I also thought there were some super fun elements to balance out the deep emotional moments, like how Roz gradually learned the ‘language’ of the animals after her first attempts to communicate did not go as planned (in a very comical manner).

The storytelling was another highlight of the movie. The voices of many of the characters were familiar to me while watching, but I didn’t realize how star studded the cast was until I looked it up after leaving the theater. In addition to Nyong’o, Pascal, and Connor, Catherine O’Hara, Bill Nighy and Mark Hamill are some of the other big names that grace the screen. The animation style was excellent, there’s a lot of humor (both subtle and outright), and it never shied away from tackling the tough topics (while making it accessible to both children and adults).

Overall, an excellent movie and an excellent narrative. I’ve already bought the first book in the series that inspired the movie as a result of watching it, so I’m excited to read it. I would recommend this movie to children and adults of all ages, as I think there’s something that you can take away from it no matter your age.

The Dark Court by Vyvyan Evans



The Dark Court by Vyvyan Evans
Publisher: Nephilim Publishing
Genre: Sci-Fi/Fantasy
Rated: 5 stars
Reviewed by Rose

Voted BoM by LASR Readers 2013 copy

A genre-blending dystopian, sci-fi mystery-thriller that will make you think about communication in a whole new way.

Five years after the Great Language Outage, lang-laws have been repealed, but world affairs have only gotten worse. The new automation agenda has resulted in a social caste system based on IQ. Manual employment is a thing of the past, and the lowest soc-ed class, the Unskills, are forced into permanent unemployment.

In a world on the brink of civil war, a deadly insomnia pandemic threatens to kill billions. Lilith King, Interpol’s most celebrated detective, is assigned to the case.

Together with a sleep specialist, Dr. Kace Westwood, Lilith must figure out who or what is behind this new threat. Could the pandemic be the result of the upskilling vagus chips being offered to the lowest soc-ed class? Or are language chips being hacked? And what of the viral conspiracy theories by the mysterious Dark Court, sweeping the globe? Lilith must work every possible angle, and quickly: she is running out of time!

While attempting to stop a vast conspiracy on an intergalactic scale, Lilith also faces shocking revelations about her origin, coming to terms with her own destiny.

This book is the second in the series that explores and warns of what could possibly happen in our near future society. You can read our five-star review of the first book in the series here. Rather than a language outage, this book focuses on a deadly pandemic that seems to be targeting the lowest socioeconomic group…those who have been deemed from testing at birth to be Unskills, permanently unemployed.

Even though it’s the second book in the series, THE DARK COURT can very much stand on its own as it takes place several years after the events of the first book; however, I strongly recommend reading them in order because, while the majority of the book can be understood, the ending will make a lot more sense if you are familiar with the first book.

THE DARK COURT, as does the first book, offer a cautionary tour, but also reaches out beyond our current technology and into more of a sci-fi bend. I really liked this as well as the deeper view of what is going on behind the scenes and the part that Lilith plays in them.

I loved Kace and Lilith and their interactions together. Without giving away an spoilers, I really hope I’ll be able to see them in future books.

This is truly a book that is almost impossible to put down, and I was lucky as I got to read it during a storm when I was without power and internt..no distractions, which I absolutely loved!

There is only one problem with reading a book like this… now I have to wait patiently for the next book in the series!!

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The Lies Among Us by Sarah Beth Durst


The Lies Among Us by Sarah Beth Durst
Publisher: Lake Union Publishing
Genre: Sci-Fi/Fantasy, Contemporary
Rating: 5 Stars
Reviewed by Cholla

After her mother dies, Hannah doesn’t know how to exist without her. Literally. In fact, Hannah’s not even certain that she does exist. No one seems to see or hear her, and she finds herself utterly alone. Grief-stricken and confused, her sense of self slowly slipping away, Hannah sets out to find new purpose in life—and answers about who (and what) she really is.

Hannah’s only remaining family is her older sister, Leah. Yet even Leah doesn’t seem to notice her. And while Hannah can see and hear her sister, she also sees beautiful and terrible things that don’t—or shouldn’t—exist. She learns there’s much more to this world than meets the eye and struggles to make sense of it all.

When Hannah sees Leah taking the same dangerous path that consumed their own mother—where lies supplant reality—she’s desperate to get through to her. But facing difficult truths is harder than it looks…

What happens to a lie after the liar is gone?

For two decades, Hannah’s only focus has been on her mother. But when her mother dies, Hannah’s world and everything she knows is shattered. How does she find her way without the most important person in her life?

Hannah is one of the most interesting characters I’ve ever met. While she stumbles a bit after her mother’s death, she eventually finds her direction after a chance meeting. Sylvie is everything Hannah never thought she could be, and together they alter each other’s perception of the world and the reality they live in. They are truly the biggest catalyst for character development in each other, which was really fascinating to watch.

Leah, on the other hand, doesn’t handle her mother’s death very well. There were so many unresolved issues between them that it’s extra hard for her to process the loss. She lashes out, acts erratically, and attempts to shut out everyone who cares about her while she struggles through her grief. It was heartbreaking to watch, but very real and extremely visceral.

The thing that will stick with me long after I’ve put this book up on my bookshelf is how Hannah reinvents herself after her mother dies. She finds new purpose and new adventures, all while holding onto her past. In addition, there is so much insight into how humans work in this novel. A favorite quote, “Who we are is who we’ve been. And who we’ve known.” That hit me right where it hurt. Every person we meet, even peripherally, becomes a part of us in a way.

The Lies Among Us is one of the most interesting and unique stories I’ve read in a long time. It’s hard to even review it properly. Beautifully written and strewn with intriguing characters, I couldn’t stop reading once I started. We all know that we’ll inevitably lose someone who means the world to us, but we’re never quite ready for it, even when we have advanced notice of it. This novel shows you both the horror and beauty of love, loss, and moving on in a relatable and emotional way.

Death Tango by Lachi

Death Tango by Lachi
Publisher: RIZE Publishing
Genre: Science Fiction, Horror
Rated: 5 stars
Review by Poppy

Voted BoM by LASR Readers 2013 copy

In a Utopian twenty-third-century New York City, where corporations have replaced governments, AI dictates culture, and citizens are free to people-watch any other citizen they choose through an app, this horror-laden Sci-Fi Thriller follows four mis-matched coeds as they attempt to solve the murder of an eccentric parascientist. Only someone or something able to navigate outside the highest levels of croud-sourced surveillance could get away with murder in this town. If the team can’t work quickly to solve the case, New York City will be devoured by a dark plague the eccentric had been working on prior to his death, a plague which, overtime, appears to be developing sentience.

My mind is officially blown! Death Tango was a un-put-downable read. Let me explain…

I wasn’t sure what to expect when I started this book, but once I opened it and dove in (and you really do dive in–the author plops you right into the world with little explanation, which I actually appreciated) I was hooked. Yes, it took me a little while to sort through the world-building, which the author does effortlessly. She doesn’t do some dull, in your face infodump. Nope, she she shows you the world, as if it was just a normal thing and leads you through the nuances and differences from our own. So well done.

Honestly, her writing ability is what made this book stand out for me. It’s smooth and clean, vivid and clear and checks all the boxes. It truly, clearly shows the world, the plot, the characters. It played out like a movie in my mind while I read. It’s been awhile since I’ve read such a well-written novel, and I want to make sure to give a round of applause to the author, Lachi. So well done.

The story itself is intriguing, and I could see something like it happening as we all dive deeper into the idea of living virtually. It was alternately intriguing and awfully sad. I’m not sure I like her ideas of what society could become, but I completely understand how she got there. Her future is absolutely possible.

I got very deeply attached to her realistically written, three dimensional characters. The complexity of plot took some time to sink into, but that’s a good thing. I was challenged throughout to think, and to feel and to consider and ultimately to not only try to solve her “whodunnit” but just to soak in the environment and to be intrigued and horrified by the dark, horrific world she’s created that’s covered up by what should feel more utopian. I’ve always thought that human beings with their faults and flaws, with their basic humanity, would never be able to create a utopia, and in this book I’m proven correct.

There is good and evil here. Lachi doesn’t shy away from the dark, but she also shares moments of light. And the characters become friends which, for me at least, means I’ll happily read every last word about them.

Looking for a superbly written book with a complex but believable plot peppered with characters you’ll come to love? Don’t mind a little darkness and horror? Then pick this one up. I can’t imagine you’ll be disappointed. I sure wasn’t.

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A School of Daughters by Kate René MacKenzie


A School of Daughters by Kate René MacKenzie
Publisher: Red Lace Books
Genre: Contemporary, Women’s Fiction
Rated: 5 stars
Reviewed by Rose

Voted BoM by LASR Readers 2013 copy

It’s funny how things sneak up on you…

Kate Willoughby is a champion for throwaways—discarded dogs and cats, abandoned horses bound for slaughter, and all creatures great and small. But now it’s Kate who’s alone in a hostile world like a dog dumped by the side of a road. Is there a champion for Kate?

After 22 years of marriage, Kate loves her husband, Brian, with an even greater passion than when she spoke her vows. “My world spins on his axis,” she often says. But when Kate finds a love letter to Brian from Micky, she’s torn between proving Brian’s innocence and nailing him to the wall with his guilt.

Throughout her marriage, Kate has been trusting and trustworthy —to a fault, friends have said. Now, she steals into Brian’s emails and accesses his credit card accounts, phone records, bank statements, friends and activities, discovering the metaphoric iceberg beneath Brian’s affair.

Turning to the one constant in her life, Kate is guided by her family of animals: shelter dog Molly; Premarin horse Quinn; packrat Winston; owls Albert & Victoria; Stubby, the chipmunk; rattlesnake Cassandra; and Phineas, the determined grosbeak. These wise and wonderful teachers, along with a wild menagerie on her Arizona ranch, deliver lessons on life, love, and letting go. But it’s Molly, in a heartbreaking act of courage, who leads Kate back to her true self, before she became lost in love with Brian.

Shining a light on the childhood events and adult choices that, like steppingstones, brought her to this moment, Kate illuminates a familiar and well-worn path. Narrating her story with equal doses of heartache and humor, Kate comes to understand that nothing sneaks up on you that isn’t already here. Learning from Phineas, the determined grosbeak, Kate realizes that even after a devastating injury, you can soar again.

A School of Daughters is a beautifully written, lyrical book that delves into the heart of the main character, highlighting how her current life is rooted in her past, from childhood abuse to the desperate desire for stability at nearly any cost. There is truth here that shines through, and I admire the author for taking her life and sharing it all, the good, the bad, and the ugly.

This story hit me hard, in a good way. I was completely engrossed in the story and could see myself and friends in similar situations. Even after finishing the book, I could not stop thinking about Kate, what she was going through, and how her friends and, especially, the animals in her life not only helped her through the pain, but also taught her important life lessons.

The book skips back and forth from present day to situations in her past with not only her husband, but her childhood, other romantic relationships, and with different animals in her life. It is a revealing look on how a person can be strong and yet still give up parts of herself without even realizing it.

Her journey was heartrending, yet the reader is, in the end, left with a sense of hope that Kate will make it through to the other side. Kudos, Ms. MacKenzie. I will definitely be on the lookout for other books by this author.

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Mile High with a Vampire by Lynsay Sands


Mile High with a Vampire by Lynsay Sands
Publisher: HarperCollins Publishing
Genre: Contemporary, Paranormal, Romance, Mystery/Suspense
Rating: 5 Stars
Review by: Xeranthemum

In the latest Argeneau novel from New York Times bestselling author Lynsay Sands, an immortal and her mortal pilot are on the run from hungry vampires…and discover they’re life mates along the way.

Quinn Peters never wanted to be immortal. Once a renowned heart surgeon, she was turned against her will and now she has to drink blood to survive. Before she can ask how her “life” can get any worse, she’s in a plane crash. One of the few survivors, Quinn is desperate to get the mortal pilot to safety before her fellow immortals succumb to their blood lust and drain Jet dry.

But hungry vampires are the least of their worries—the crash wasn’t an accident, and someone is trying to kill Quinn. Will she and Jet find their happily ever after as life mates, or will her assassin find her first?

It’s been a while since I’ve read a book that I enjoyed from beginning to end and I’m happy to share that Mile High with a Vampire delivered a quality read from the very first pages. It starts with a plane crash, a race for survival, a close call and a revelation that the crash was intentional. That’s just in the beginning chapters, the rest of the plot is figuring out who is trying to kill one of the passengers and why, especially when they’ve done nothing wrong to anyone. Who would do something so foul that they’d be willing to murder everyone on the plane, not just their target? The suspense, the interesting interplay between characters and the well-written plot kept me glued to the story. I didn’t stop turning the pages until I finished the epilogue. Ms. Sands has delivered another winner for fans to enjoy.

It took me a while to remember that Quinn was Pet’s sister in the book, The Trouble with Vampires. That’s when I first learned about their horrific background when they were little kids. This novel, Mile High with a Vampire, completes the story of the two sisters. Quinn finally gets her happy ever after, but of course, she has a bunch of hoops to jump through to get it. She has finally accepted the fact that she needs therapy to deal with what her husband had done to her and their son, what she’s become and to heal enough to start living again. However, therapy ends up giving her a lot more to deal with than she expected. Which of course is the point. The villains who traumatized both Quinn and Pet all those years ago are back in the picture.

Now, the villains are not what I expected. Ms. Sands wrote a scene describing what happened to one of the villains from back in the past and I have to tell you, it’s freakishly horrifying. I actually felt really bad for the guy because it was over the top violent. You may wonder how that past event effects the present and it’s a good question. It’s one of the surprises that impressed me in this book. I would never have guessed it. It helped make the climactic fight scene more meaningful. I know this probably doesn’t make a lot of sense but once you read the book and get to that part, you’ll understand. I didn’t expect to feel any empathy but I kind of did. Don’t get me wrong – a bad guy is still a bad guy – and comeuppance is meted out, but Quinn and Petronella (Pet) weren’t the only ones affected by the past and that’s all I’m going to say.

Now, to get to the good stuff. The romance between Quinn and Jet. It works, it’s great, I thought they were wonderful together, and I liked both their personalities. I thought Jet was a studly hero but it turned out he’s a smart cookie. He’s not just a pretty face. Quinn is adorable. I liked a lot of her internal dialogue and the insight it provides gives a reader a reason to want her to be happy – and that she would choose Jet when she finally was ready.

Their physical chemistry is of course off the charts. Life mates are always hot and bothered for each other. Readers will get plenty of examples of just how ‘hot’ it gets. Fortunately, the book has just enough of those scenes to satisfy readers who like the nitty gritty details, but for readers who are looking for a solid plot conflict, dialogue, action, intelligence with great storytelling and pacing, this story delivers.

I would be remiss if I didn’t give a hearty shout out to Lucien, Margarite, Sam, Tybo and so many others in the Argeneau and Notte families that came to help Quinn and Jet survive so they could enjoy their happily ever after. I adore that whole family dynamic and how they all come together to party when things are good, and when things get hairy, they band together to defend and fight for the ones they love when there’s trouble. I believe this is the 33rd book in the series – so that’s a lot of family ties to keep track of. Oh, it might be naughty of me, but I actually snickered when Lucien accidently gets … well, I’m not going to actually tell you what happens… Fans of the series will more than likely understand why I found that scene humorous and why I giggled. Since I didn’t expect that to happen, I’m not going to ruin the fun and surprise by letting the cat out of the bag. You’ll have to read the book to find out what happens.

On the whole, Mile High with a Vampire is a sure bet. It’s a fun and exciting adventure. I had a great time watching Quinn and Jet fall in love and you can be sure that I am adding this novel to my very large book pile of keepers. Many of Ms. Sands’ books have made it to my re-read list so many times, I’ve lot count. I’m thrilled with everything about this story and I heartily recommend it to paranormal romance fans in general, and to Ms. Sands’ fans specifically. It’s a great addition to the series and one not to miss.