Friday's "Forgotten" Books: the links to the reviews and more, 29 August 2025

Patti Abbott: Hamnet by Maggie O'Farrell

Brad Bigelow: The Great Day by Georgette Carneal

Ben Boulden: Front Sight: Three Swagger Novellas by Stephen Hunter

Cora Buhlert: Zothique by Clark Ashton Smith

Brian Busby: four of my father's books

John Coulthart: The Crystal World by J. G. Ballard

DforDoom: The Longest Second by Bill S. Ballinger

Glory Edim: Plum Bun by Jessie Redmon Fauset

Martin Edwards: The Hanging Woman by John Rhode

Will Errickson: The Snake by John Godey

Jose Ignacio Escribano García-Bosque: The Wrong Letter by Walter S. Masterman

Curtis Evans: Papa La-bas and The Ghosts' High Noon by John Dickson Carr (and, for me, at least, many interpolated targeted ads)

Michael Gonzales: Donald Westlake's "Parker" novels (as by Richard Stark)

Charles Gramlich: Battle in the Dawn by Manly Wade Wellman

Aubrey Hamilton: Dangerous Sea by David Roberts

Lesa Holstine: The Great American Retro Road Trip by Rolando Pujol

Rich Horton: The Female Man by Joanna Russ; The Three Musketeers by Alexandre Dumas (with Auguste Maquet) [the "forgotten" collaborator entry this week]

Jerry House: Nothing but a Drifter by Lee Hoffman (James Reasoner in 2023, as well)

Kate Jackson: Agatha Christie: A Very Short Introduction by Gill Plain

Kaggsy: The Stone Door by Leonora Carrington

George Kelley: The Outspoken and the Incendiary: Interviews with Radical Speculative Fiction Writers conducted (for the most part) by Terry Bisson

George Kelley and Bill Pronzini: The Garden of Weapons by John Gardner

B. V. Lawson: One Night's Mystery by May Agnes Fleming (and B. V. advises her blog will be relocated to Blogspot; the clumsiness of Blogspot layout functions at times may enervate you, B. V....)

Steve Lewis: The House of Brass by "Ellery Queen" (in this case, Frederic Dannay and Avram Davidson, then revised?/rewritten? by Manfred Lee); Death is the Last Lover by Peter Kane

Todd Mason: Midcentury Literary Ferment: some best-ofs from magazines and movements: TriQuarterly, If, Short Story International, Venture SF, and other bohemian expressions

Neeru: Who Died at the Grange? by "Michael Halliday" (John Creasey); No Comebacks by Frederick Forsyth

Jim Noy: The Black Angel by Cornell Woolrich; Poirot Investigates by Agatha Christie

"Paperback Warrior": Your Body Will Never Be Found by Jeff Strand

"Puzzle Doctor": As If by Magic: Locked Room Mysteries and Other Miraculous Crimes edited by Martin Edwards

James Reasoner: Suitable for Framing by James Atlee Phillips; Ranch Romances, First August Number (issue), 1955, edited by Helen Tono

Scott: A Dozen Books

Stephen H. Silver: "Ill Met in Lankhmar" by Fritz Leiber/"The Fair in Emain Mancha" by Charles de Lint; "The Pugnacious Peacemaker" by Harry Turtledove/"The Wheels of If" by L. Sprague de Camp

Kevin Tipple: Pesticide by Kim Hayes

TM

Philadephia Free Library Rare Book Department videos

Tracy K: Spell the Month in Books

short stories by Evelyn Waugh, Theodore Sturgeon, Robert Sheckley and Kingsley Tufts: Short Story Wednesday

Lewis Lapham in 2009:

a quick survey of fragrance reviews

My friend Laura, an aficionada of the Voluptuary Arts, is particularly fond of fragrance reviews, not least these from lucky scent:

Laura:
The fun of fragrance reviews is that they sharply contrast for the same scent but are generally much briefer than movie or book reviews. I try to triangulate to imagine what could create such divergent views. An example of some from one fragrance:

<<<I love this fragrance, I put it on and immediately imagine myself as being rich and powerful....for me it is a an amazingly masculine fragrance thanks SL>>>

<<<This is almost a carbon copy of The Body Shop's White Musk, which costs a fraction of the price. A pleasant, light and clean musk.>>>

<<<If ever there were a scent that smelled like Bigfoot's penis, this would be IT.>>>

[TM here: I have no desire whatsoever to ever experience anything that would elicit this reaction from me...or, probably, from anyone else.]

Another fragrance:

<<<This is extraordinary. It's understated and exceptionally elegant. I've received more compliments on this perfume than any other.>>>

  

<<<Exotic dancer turned gold-digging wife of an oil baron shows up late and slightly drunk to a luncheon at the country club. This is the perfume she wears.>>>


 And another fragrance:
<<<I bought a small bottle (don't know if it's still offered) in December, have used half of it. I think it's my favorite daytime scent. Gasoline? Fart? It has a hard edge initially that I like very much. Something metallic. And then on me it dries down to the smell of old wood left to the elements.>>>