'Longitude: the True Story of a Lone Genius Who Solved the Greatest Scientific Problem of the Time' by Dava Sobel

Longitude: the True Story of a Lone Genius Who Solved the Greatest Scientific Problem of the Time, Dava Sobel (4.0)

While latitude was understood and measured relatively easily, who knew how challenging longitude would be and how long (no pun intended) it took to find a sure-fire way to measure it? While that is quite interesting, the history is even more dramatic as the best solution eventually comes from a commoner, a self-taught watchmaker named John Harrison. Even though reputed sea captains of the time raved about Harrison’s invention, he/it is unfairly tested over many years.  Ms Sobel has written a fast-paced history lesson with villains and heroes that should be read by all.

'Once Upon a Wardrobe' by Patti Callahan

 

Once Upon a Wardrobe, Patti Callahan (4.0)

A touching and imaginative story of a sister’s love for her sick brother and her journey to find the answer to his question: how did C.S. Lewis come up with Narnia? Megs is a Physics/Math student at Oxford who tracks down C.S. Lewis to get an answer to her brother’s question. Unable to give her one answer, he tells her many stories of his life which she dutifully recites back to her bed-ridden brother. I normally don’t like fiction that uses real people, but this is a charming story more about relationships and how life likely affects fiction. 

'Blood of the Wicked' by Leighton Gage

Blood of the Wicked, Leighton Gage (3.0)

It took me a bit to get into this story due to how the stage is set and characters introduced. I enjoyed the last half a lot more than the first half. The main story is about landowners vs those who work the land in a remote area of Brazil. A Bishop is assassinated and the main character, a federal investigator named Mario Silva, arrives from the big city to find the killer. I have read so little fiction from and about Brazil that I mostly appreciated the setting and interactions of the people. Many of the evil characters were two-dimensional and the gore was quite graphic. Mario is complex, neither all good nor all evil. I can see why this is the first book in a series with him facing new challenges.