Month: June 2014
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Pandas…in a Submarine
Our daughter came up with the headline for this post, and it perfectly captures the highlights of our recent trip to China and Hawaii. We started off in Beijing for a day or so, but, really, the focus of this trip was Chengdu and the Panda Breeding and Research Center. And the focus of the…
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Book review: State of the Union by Brad Thor
State of the Union by Brad Thor My rating: 4 of 5 stars This is the third in a series of books revolving around Scot Harvath, former Secret Service agent and now focusing on counterterrorism. You learn a few more details about Scot’s personal life and his upbringing in this book, but the motivations and…
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Book review: Mr. Churchill’s Secretary by Susan Elia MacNeal
Mr. Churchill’s Secretary by Susan Elia MacNeal My rating: 4 of 5 stars Having finished a trilogy of Winston Churchill’s life not too long ago, I was interested in seeing how a historical mystery set in World War II Britain would hold up in comparison. The historical details in “Mr. Churchill’s Secretary” are accurate, although…
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Restaurant review: Passage to India (the restaurant not the book)
I am generally pretty dismissive of the restaurant scene in Bethesda, particularly downtown Bethesda. I find the food mostly uninspired and often mediocre (with a few exceptions). So when some friends suggested we go to Passage to India, an (obviously) Indian restaurant in downtown Bethesda, we agreed but were skeptical. We were pleasantly surprised with…
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Book review: The Deception by Joan Wolf
The Deception by Joan Wolf My rating: 4 of 5 stars I really love Joan Wolf Regency romances (her historical fiction is good, too). I compare her Regency romances to champagne. They are light, fizzy, and enjoyable. The plots are well-crafted. The time period is drawn accurately and is well described. The hero and heroine…