The Latest

SCIENCE FICTION

MYSTERIES & THRILLERS

NONFICTION

How the OSS saved the Parthenon and other Greek treasures

How the OSS saved the Parthenon and other Greek treasures

Most of what appears in print today about the OSS in World War II dwells on the heroic men and women it infiltrated into France to sabotage the Nazis or in the China-Burma-India theater. Of course, "Wild Bill" Donovan's brief as head of the Office of Strategic Services was much...

read more

Popular Fiction

Why do some novels win literary awards?

Why do some novels win literary awards?

Let's see if we can figure out why this paper-thin work of fiction won wide recognition and a literary award for its author. Snow Hunters introduces . . . let's count them: eight characters in 226 pages: Yohan, a North Korean soldier captured by UN forces late in the Korean...

read more

Explore My “BEST OF the category” selections

WHAT’S YOUR FAVORITE BOOK?

When people ask me that question, I never know what to say. In a lifetime of reading, I’ve read many thousands of books. And I’ve reviewed well over 2,000 of them on this site. Picking just one as a “favorite,” or even a handful of them, makes no sense to me.

The problem is, I read for many different reasons. Perhaps you do, too. And I read many different sorts of books. Mysteries and thrillers. Popular fiction, especially historical fiction. Science fiction.

And nonfiction, history in particular. You’ll find hundreds of reviews in every one of those categories on this site.

Look to the right for a rotating random selection culled from throughout this site.

Happy reading!

 

Cover iImage of "The True Flag," a book about American empire

The racist origins of the American empire

In The True Flag: Theodore Roosevelt, Mark Twain, and the Birth of the American Empire, award-winning journalist and author Stephen Kinzer recalls the four-year period 1898-1902, when the United States made its debut as a world power. The central event in this story was the U.S. seizure of Cuba,...
Cover image of "When Money Talks," a book about how to overturn Citizens United

How to overturn Citizens United

There are few people who have a better understanding of the influence of money in American politics than Derek Cressman. Over the past two decades, he has played a leading role nationally in the growing movement to overturn the judicial missteps that culminated in the decision of the U.S. Supreme...
Terrorists attack the White House in The Warriors of God.

Iranian terrorists attack the White House in an exciting thriller

Europeans are well acquainted with terrorism. Long before jihadist fighters began operating in the West, 19th-century anarchists, the Irish Republican Army, and the Basque ETA killed hundreds. By contrast, the United States has largely avoided loss of life from terrorists, with the sole (major)...
Cover image of "Doors Open" by Ian Rankin, a novel about a motley collection of misfits who plan a perfect crime

A motley collection of heroes and misfits and the “perfect crime”

Consider this cast of characters: a burned-out 37-year-old retired software millionaire, a gorgeous art gallery owner with a taste for retired software millionaires, a sleazy professor of art, a divorced and self-pitying banker facing up to the emptiness of his life, a bitter young art student...
Cover image of "Groucho Marx Master Detective" by Ron Goulart

Sherlock Holmes, meet Groucho Marx, Master Detective

Here's the ultimate wisecracking detective, and, yes, it's Groucho Marx, in person. If you're a fan of the Marx Brothers classics of the 1930s—Duck Soup, A Night at the Opera, Horsefeathers, Animal Crackers, and the others—you'll love this fast-paced romp through the dark side of Hollywood. In...
Peril

Bob Woodward’s revealing new book about the Trump-Biden transition

Many of the thousands of books about Donald Trump that have seen the light of day in recent years—Amazon lists more than 30,000—were written by people with an axe to grind or a reputation to restore. Not so the latest of Bob Woodward's twenty-one books, Peril, coauthored with fellow Washington...
Fractured State is a fast-moving military thriller.

A fast-moving military thriller set in a dystopian future California

For many years, optimistic activists primarily in Northern California have fantasized about California seceding from the United States. The latest iteration of this movement is the Yes California Independence Campaign, which is preparing a statewide referendum for a future election. Given that...
Cover image of "All the Sinners Bleed," one of the best small-town mysteries

The 10 best small-town mysteries and thrillers

Setting a novel of suspense in a small town offers a writer several advantages. And those advantages multiply when the book is one in a series. Many of those in the cast of characters become familiar over time. They, and not just the investigator, as in an urban-based series, may come across as...

Historical perspective on the surprising rise of Barack Obama

The White House has been home to many colorful characters in the more than two centuries since it was first occupied in 1800—think of the polymath Thomas Jefferson, the swashbuckling Andrew Jackson, and the big game hunter and peacemaker Teddy Roosevelt—but Barack Obama is at least their equal....
Cover image of "Half a Crown," a novel by Jo Walton

Jo Walton finds the present in an alternate history of the past

Alternate history can illuminate the present. Recently I reviewed the first two books in Jo Walton's alternate history of England after World War II, the Farthing Trilogy, Farthing and Ha'penny. I found them to be both intriguing from an historical perspective and adeptly written as novels of...

My Most Popular Reviews

Weekly Reviews Delivered to You!

Mal Warwick - Book Reviews

Weekly book reviews to match your taste!

Love mysteries and thrillers? Historical fiction fan? Prefer to read nonfiction? Or, like me, you just love reading? Take your pick of my three weekly newsletters. Just click the Yes! button, and you’re on your way.

Here you can take your pick of the three newsletters I publish each week. They’re all free of ads, and I never share subscribers’ email addresses with anyone. Just make your newsletter selections below.

Feel free to subscribe to any or all of these newsletters. Remember, they’re ad-free, and I won’t share your contact information with anyone.

Enjoy reading!

Mal Warwick

The latest mystery
& thriller book
reviews every Tuesday.

…includes my latest mystery and thriller book reviews, with links to other content in the genre.

The latest nonfiction book reviews every Wednesday.

…includes my latest nonfiction book review, with links to other nonfiction content.

My latest
book reviews,
every Thursday.

…includes summaries and links to all the previous week’s three to five book reviews, including some that don’t appear in any of the other newsletters.

The Latest Book Reviews of the Week

...includes summaries and links to all of the week’s three to five book reviews, including some that don’t appear in the other newsletters.

You have Successfully Subscribed!

The Latest Mystery & Thriller Book
Reviews Every Week

Mysteries & Thrillers Tuesday includes my latest mystery and thriller book review,
with links to other science fiction content.

You have Successfully Subscribed!

The Latest Nonfiction Book
Reviews Every Week

Nonfiction Wednesday includes my latest nonfiction book review,
with links to other nonfiction content.

You have Successfully Subscribed!

The Latest Book Reviews of the Week

The Weekly includes summaries and links to all the previous week’s three to five book reviews, including some that don’t appear in any of the other newsletters.

You have Successfully Subscribed!

Tuesday's Newsletter

Tuesday's Newsletter

Mysteries & Thrillers Tuesday includes my latest mystery and thriller book review, with links to other science fiction content.

You have Successfully Subscribed!

Wednesday's Newsletter

Wednesday's Newsletter

Nonfiction Wednesday includes my latest nonfiction book review, with links to other nonfiction content.

You have Successfully Subscribed!

The Weekly Newsletter

Thursday's Newsletter

The Weekly includes summaries and links to all the previous week’s three to five book reviews, including some that don’t appear in any of the other newsletters.

You have Successfully Subscribed!