Sophia Rose Reviews - Murder on Threadneedle Street by Andrea Penrose

 

Murder on Threadneedle Street by Andrea Penrose

#10 Wrexford and Sloane

Historical Mystery

Publisher:  Kensington Books

Published:  9.29.26

Pages:  368

Rating: 5 stars

Format: eARC

Source:  NetGalley

Sellers:  Amazon

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GoodReads Synopsis: 

Not all that glitters in Regency London is quite what it seems, as Charlotte and Lord Wrexford discover when a counterfeiting scheme draws them into a deadly web of murder and manipulation in USA Today bestselling author Andrea Penrose’s masterfully plotted mystery for readers of Victoria Thompson, C.S. Harris, and Deanna Raybourn.

Lord Wrexford and Charlotte’s growing family ensures that life is a source of constant adventure. The addition of Wrexford’s half-sister to their household is proving an unexpected delight. But some surprises are less welcome—and trouble strikes when Hawk, one of the young boys in their care, arrives home distraught after learning that his new drawing teacher has been found murdered on Threadneedle Street.

Fletcher Campbell’s death could be dismissed as a random robbery turned violent. But as an artist herself, Charlotte suspects there’s more to the case than meets the eye. Closer examination reveals that a distinctive ring was taken from the victim’s finger. With Hawk pleading for the family to help solve the crime, Charlotte and Wrexford suddenly find themselves entangled in a fiendish mystery that harkens back to a decade-old scandal that nearly brought down the government.

It seems Campbell’s brother was the infamous leader of a counterfeiting gang that swindled the Bank of England. Most were apprehended, but forged banknotes remain a problem. Now, the Bank of England has offered £20,000 to anyone who can use the newly-invented engineering technologies to create the Inimitable Banknote—a complex design that cannot be counterfeited.

It’s a prize that could tempt anyone, and Wrexford and Sloane’s investigation turns even more fraught when one of their closest friends falls under suspicion. The deeper they probe, the more treachery comes to light. For when a lie so easily masquerades as truth, danger may be much closer than they think . . .

 

Sophia Rose Reviews - Hunting Fiends for the Ill-Equipped by Annette Marie

 

Hunting Fiends for the Ill-Equipped by Annette Marie

#3 Guild Codex: Demonized

Urban Fantasy

Publisher:  Dark Owl Fantasy

Published:  4.3.20

Pages:  336

Rating: 4.5 stars

Format: ebook

Source:  KU borrow

Sellers:  Amazon

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GoodReads Synopsis:

I thought I understood power.

My parents taught me that magic attracts equal danger, and everything I've seen since becoming a demon contractor confirms it. I've witnessed how power twists and corrupts--and I've tasted power no human should wield.

I thought I knew greed.

Ambition and avarice drove my family into hiding. My parents died for someone else's greed. I've never hunted anything in my life, but now I'm hunting their killer--with my demon's help.

I thought I'd seen evil.

But with each step closer to my parents' murderer, I'm uncovering a different sort of evil, piece by hidden piece. I've stumbled into an insidious web that silently, secretly ensnares everything it touches. My demon and I came as the hunters...

...but I think we might be the prey.

--
Author's Note: The Guild Codex includes two series, Demonized and Spellbound, which can be read and enjoyed all on their own; however, this book contains spoilers for Demon Magic and a Martini (Spellbound #4). If you were thinking about giving Spellbound a try, I recommend reading it first.

 

Sophia Rose Reviews - Dragons on the Edge by Maria Grace

 

Dragons on the Edge by Maria Grace

#16 Jane Austen’s Dragons

Gaslamp Fantasy

Publisher:  RBF Books

Published:  5.30.26

Pages:  361

Rating: 4.5 stars

Format: ebook

Source: purchased

Sellers:  Amazon

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Goodreads Synopsis:

Everyone expects Sir Fitzwilliam Darcy to fix their problems: estate management, endorse a courtship, hide from the Blue Order Council dragons. Some were more difficult that others, but still within the realm of a Pendragon Knight.
The mounting dangers to the Blue Order and all of Dragonkind, though, dealing those would require more effort. Perhaps after a strong cup of coffee—not tea, world-ending disasters required coffee.
Dragon Sage Elizabeth’s pregnancy had left her tired and cranky and as big as a dragon. But her father’s emergency visit … best just say, it did not foster pleasant tea time conversations.
Between his entitled demands and his socially-inappropriate dragon assistant, Bede, nothing is sacred. Not correspondence, not locked rooms, and especially not the secrets Bede is supposed to be keeping, rather than whispering into the ears of impressionable young firedrake, Pemberley.
Of course, Pemberley intends to do something with all the secrets she isn’t supposed to know. Things which could turn the Blue Order on its ear. Things which would soon make Elizabeth and Darcy’s world very, very complicated.
Swords, poisons, and a touch of dragon fire could be required to set things back to rights. But first maybe coffee.
A fresh new gaslamp fantasy adventure in the engrossingly intricate world of Jane Austen’s Dragons. Anne McCaffrey meets Jane Austen, a perfect mix for dragon lovers and regency-era fans alike.

 

Sophia Rose Reviews - Mr. Darcy Likes It Wild by Beth Massey, narrated by Benjamin Fife

 

Mr. Darcy Likes It Wild by Beth Massey, narrated by Benjamin Fife

Historical Romance

Publisher:  Beth Massey

Published:  4.29.26

Time:  11 hours 6 minutes

Speed: 1.2x

Rating:  4.5 stars

Format: audio

Source:  Author

Sellers:  Amazon

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GoodReads Synopsis:

What if Elizabeth Bennet's father insisted she marry Mr Collins? Would she be a dutiful daughter and submit to save her mother and sisters? Or would literature's favourite 'headstrong girl' do all in her power to find an alternative to a life of misery shackled to a ridiculous man?

'Mr Darcy Likes it Wild' blends elements of several classic road comedies to tell the tale of Lizzy's decision—the silliness of Billy Wilder's 'Some Like it Hot,' the classic gender reversal comedy of Shakespeare's 'As You Like It,' the hilarious dialogue of Georgette Heyer's 'The Corinthians' combined with Jane Austen's iconic story of mismatched lovers searching for understanding and joy in Regency England. Fitz and Eli's trip to happiness is filled with laughter, miscommunication, disguise of every sort, stolen passion and great adventure.

 

Sophia Rose Reviews - Catching Dragos by Gail Koger

 

Catching Dragos by Gail Koger

#2 The Dragos Clan

Paranormal Romance

Publisher:  Gail Koger

Published:  2.22.18

Pages:  138

Rating: 3.5 stars

Format: ebook

Source: purchased

Sellers:  Amazon

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Goodreads Synopsis:

Everyone calls Mariah Smith the Judge. No, she doesn't wear a black robe or sit on a bench. She provides a unique service to those who have been wronged. She's an expert in paybacks both psychic and magical.

Mariah's next target is the famous supermodel Fabian. Smoking hot body, the face of an Italian sinner and dumb as a rock. His crime? Sticky fingers. The man whore makes millions of dollars a year, but can't resist seducing elderly women out of their jewelry? How does she resist all that tanned, male perfection and unmask Fabian as the gigolo he truly is?

Mariah soon discovers Mister Sticky fingers isn't quite as dim-witted as he acts. He's actually the Dragos clan's top demon hunter who is stealing back magical artifacts that open gateways to hell. Now that she's attracted Fabian's attention, he's determined to possess her and her magical abilities.

 

Sophia Rose Reviews - Disguise of Any Sort by MJ Stratton, narrated by Arthur Rowan

 

Disguise of Any Sort by MJ Stratton, narrated by Arthur Rowan

Historical Romance

Publisher:  MJ Stratton

Published:  6.25.26

Time:  12 hours 43 minutes

Rating: 4.5 stars

Format: audio

Source:  Author

Sellers:  Amazon

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GoodReads Synopsis:

Elizabeth Bennet never meant to disobey.

With her mother in the throes of delivering an unexpected sixth child, a fifteen-year-old Elizabeth and her sisters are ushered into the garden. Restless, Elizabeth wanders off and is stunned to witness a deadly carriage accident. She races to the rescue, but only a wee babe survives the devastating wreck, protected from harm in the arms of his mother.

Uncertain what to do, Elizabeth brings the child back to the house, only to learn that her mother and new younger brother have died. Faced with an uncertain future, a ruse is the orphaned child will become a Bennet. The burden of secrecy falls on Elizabeth's shoulders, and as the years pass, feels almost too heavy to bear.

Fitzwilliam Darcy has searched for his missing cousin for five long years. Miss de Bourgh's disappearance shocked her mother, and though time plods on, Lady Catherine refuses to believe her only child will never return. How surprising, then, when Darcy encounters a young boy who is the very image of his Fitzwilliam cousins, while on visit to Hertfordshire. Questions abound, and one person seems as if she might hold the answers.

Torn between duty to her family and her growing love for the gentleman from Derbyshire, Elizabeth must decide if she can trust Darcy enough to reveal her secret. But specters from the past rise up, threatening the future for all, and disguise of any sort is abhorrent to Mr. Fitzwilliam Darcy.

Disguise of Any Sort is a sweet, low-angst Pride and Prejudice Variation novel.

Sophia Rose Reviews - Druid Vices and a Vodka by Annette Marie

 

Druid Vices and a Vodka by Annette Marie

#7 Guild Codex: Spellbound

Urban Fantasy

Publisher:  Dark Owl Fantasy

Published:  1.3.20

Pages:  338

Rating: 5 stars

Format: ebook

Source:  KU borrow

Sellers:  Amazon

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GoodReads Synopsis:

I've said it before, but sometimes I'm a bad person. I cheated on my twelfth grade math final, I've run countless yellow lights, and I gossip about how hot my kickass best friends are. (Good thing my job as a guild bartender doesn't require moral perfection.)

But there's bad, and then there's bad. And I'm not sure which applies to a certain dark druid/wanted criminal/reluctant friend of mine. His transgressions include black-magic dealings, kidnapping, and murder, and he's about to add "revenge-fueled killing spree" to his resume—if I don't stop him.

Should I stop him?

He and his nemesis are gearing up to tear each other apart, rogues and vultures are converging with their sights on the spoils, and the guilds that would normally stomp them into the ground are under attack. We're on the brink of an all-out criminal turf war, and my time to decide is almost up.

Who's the real bad guy ... and do I dare stand in his way?

 

Sophia Rose Reviews - Before the Storm by Barry S Richman

 

Before the Storm by Barry S Richman

#1 Matlock Fitzwilliams

Historical Fiction

Publisher:  Barry S Richman

Published:  4.10.26

Pages:  347

Rating: 4.5 stars

Format: eARC

Source:  Author via Inkslingers PR

Sellers:  Amazon

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GoodReads Synopsis:

He is a cavalry officer the kingdom relies upon—and dares not question.
Men like him are not born. They are forged.

Before reputation. Before legend.
Before the name Colonel Richard Fitzwilliam becomes synonymous with iron discipline and lethal resolve.

Before the Storm is the history of the second son of Matlock—the spare.
Fitzwilliam is marked early by a constitution that does not register pain as it should. What others feel, he notes only in passing. What is first regarded as peculiarity becomes a curiosity to physicians and, in darker hands, an invitation.

Sent across a Europe tightening towards war, Fitzwilliam moves through Paris, Berlin, and Vienna under constant appraisal by diplomats, soldiers, and men who recognise the hand of the state at work--and mean to harden it further. In him, they recognise something rare. What begins as appraisal becomes selection.

This is not the story of a hero’s rise.
It is the account of a man who submits to pressure and trial until the ordeal drives him beyond the last restraints of gentility.

 

Sophia Rose Reviews - Doubt Not Cousin A Pride and Prejudice Variation by Barry S Richman

 

Doubt Not Cousin A Pride and Prejudice Variation by Barry S Richman

#4 The Bennet Sisters Variations

Historical Fiction

Publisher:  Barry S Richman

Published:  2.10.26

Pages:  465

Rating: 5 stars

Format: ebook

Source:  purchased

Sellers:  Amazon

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GoodReads Synopsis:

This authorised edition republishes Doubt Not, Cousin in its original form under the author’s rights. Only the formatting has been updated.

Darkness, in many forms, must be conquered
to emerge into the light and embrace one’s happily-ever-after.

Fitzwilliam Darcy. Colonel Richard Fitzwilliam.
Two cousins, closer than brothers.
One finds love despite his inner demons; the other resists love because of them.

Elizabeth Bennet. Kitty Bennet.
Two sisters, strengthened by adversity.
One willingly yields to love; the other pridefully misinterprets it.

An epic saga steeped in intrigue and gift-wrapped in romance, Doubt Not, Cousin chronicles the trials and tribulations of three extraordinary families during England’s Regency era.

… But who is the girl with the violet eyes?

 

Sophia Rose Reviews - Platform Decay by Martha Wells, narrator Kevin R Free

 

Platform Decay by Martha Wells, narrator Kevin R Free

#8 Murderbot Diaries

Sci-Fi

Publisher:  Recorded Books

Published:  5.5.26

Time:  5 hours 45 minutes

Speed: 1.2x

Rating: 5 stars

Format: audio

Source:  Purchased

Sellers:  Amazon

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Goodreads Synopsis:

Everyone's favorite lethal SecUnit is back in the next installment in Martha Wells' bestselling and award-winning Murderbot Diaries series.

Having someone else support your bad decision feels kind of good.

Having volunteered to run a rescue mission, Murderbot realises that it will have to spend significant time with a bunch of humans it doesn't know.

Including human children. Ugh.

This may well call for... eye contact!

(Emotion Oh, for f—)

 

Sophia Rose Reviews - Daughters of Daring: Hollywood Cowgirl Stunt Women by Chris Enss

 

Daughters of Daring: Hollywood Cowgirl Stunt Women by Chris Enss

Nonfiction, Historical Biography

Publisher:  Lyons Press

Published: 2.6.26

Pages:  264

Rating: 4.5 stars

Format: Hardback

Source:  Globe Pequot

Sellers:  Amazon

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GoodReads Synopsis:

Discover the untold stories of the bold women who rode harder, roped faster, and stole the spotlight in early Hollywood.

Since the famous “first” western movie, The Great Train Robbery, starring Broncho Billy Anderson, made its debut in 1903, cowboy heroes have continued their easily won dominance—but little has been written about the cowgirl stars and their fans. Young women looked up to independent cowgirl characters played by Barbara Stanwyck and Dale Evans in the 1940s and 1950s. Who were the stars before these women? Surprisingly, Hollywood was well-populated with leading cowgirls and real cowgirls. Early Hollywood actresses and stunt women kept the cowgirl spirit alive. They performed every conceivable feat of horsemanship and displayed professional skills coupled with their best efforts and devotion. For some of these working women, the financial rewards for their daring and athletic prowess were at least reasonable.

Daughters of Daring is the story of more than a dozen trick ropers, bronc busters, and bulldoggers turned actresses who, like the early ranch women and rodeo competitors, had pluck and charm. These women performed their own stunts, riding horses at breakneck speed, firing guns, and capturing outlaws. Cowgirl actresses such as Ruth Roland, Helen Gibson, Texas Guinan, Marin Sais, Anne Little, Marie Walcamp, and Evelyn Selbie received top billing above the cowboy and his horse in hundreds of films. This is their story.

Sophia Rose Reviews - A Bitter Cut by Anna Lee Huber

 

A Bitter Cut by Anna Lee Huber

#14 Lady Darby Mysteries

Publisher:  Berkley

Published: 6.23.26

Pages:  384

Rating: 4.5 stars

Format: eARC

Source:  NetGalley

Sellers:  Amazon

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GoodReads Synopsis:

Lady Kiera Darby plans to spend the summer reconnecting with friends and family in anticipation of the betrothal of her beloved brother. But when a future in-law is implicated in a murder, the party takes a deadly turn. . . .

July 1833. Lady Darby and her dashing husband, Sebastian Gage, are settling into their newly renovated home at Bevington Park in Warkwickshire with their young daughter. With the breach between them and Sebastian’s father recently healed, they've agreed to help host a country house party for friends and family to share in their joy. Kiera is also anxious to help promote a match between her brother, Trevor, and the woman he’s fallen in love with, inviting her family to join them. However, Kiera swiftly discovers that the would-be bride’s family is not without their detractions. Her brother is unpleasant. Her mother is abrasive. And her father—the prosperous industrialist Jeremiah Birnam—is brusque, discourteous, and, at times, downright rude. 

So when Mr. Birnam’s secretary is found murdered with Birnam standing over her body, many are content to allow him to take the blame. But neither Kiera nor Sebastian believes he did it, and in spite of his bluster and boorish behavior, they can’t let an innocent man be hung for another’s crime. Unfortunately, Birnam had his fair share of enemies at the house party, and any one of them might have struck out at his secretary in order to get to him. It's up to Kiera and Sebastian to uncover the truth and salvage Birnam’s reputation. As the couple slowly inches their way closer to the truth and threats emerge against their loved ones, Kiera begins to fear that the price of solving the crime may mean sacrificing her brother’s future happiness.

Sophia Rose Reviews - Slaying Monsters for the Feeble by Annette Marie

 

Slaying Monsters for the Feeble by Annette Marie

#2 Guild Codex: Demonized

Urban Fantasy

Publisher:  Self-Published

Published:  11.1.19

Pages:  358

Rating: 4.5 stars

Format: ebook

Source:  KU borrow

Sellers:  Amazon

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GoodReads Synopsis:

I'm bound to a demon.

For my entire life, I avoided magic at all costs. Now, I'm responsible for a demon who wields magic more powerful than the toughest mage or sorcerer.

Demons are evil.

That's what my textbooks say. That's what I see. He's ruthless, he's temperamental, he's cold. But he protects me without fail. I wonder if he's hiding a heart behind his hostility.

My demon is a monster.

Whether he's heartless or not, my contract with him is illegal and beyond dangerous. Together, we must find a way to return him to his own world before anyone discovers our secret. If that wasn't bad enough, I've come to realize something else:

My demon isn't the only monster I should be worried about.

--
From the author of The Guild Codex: Spellbound comes a new series that will plunge an unprepared young woman into the darkest magic of the mythic world.

 

Sophia Rose Reviews Dancing With Dragons by Maria Grace

 

Dancing With Dragons by Maria Grace

#15 Jane Austen’s Dragons

Gaslamp Fantasy

Publisher:  RBF Books

Published:  5.23.25

Pages:  358

Rating:  4.5 stars

Format: ebook

Source:  Bought

Sellers:  Amazon

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GoodReads Synopsis:

he defining moment of Margaret Dashwood’s social life, the Dragon Keeper’s Cotillion, the most significant event of Blue Order society, looms large on the horizon. Well-recognized as an excellent dancer, Margaret should have nothing to fear. Unless, of course, her Friend Snuff unleashes his own brand of mayhem in London with his hoarding addiction.

But Snuff is the least of the Blue Order’s problems. Blue Order auditor, decidedly staid and dull, Miles Bexley and his Friend Half Wing travel to Exeter to deal with missing dragons, smuggling, and even worse crimes against dragonkind, and find themselves at Colonel Brandon’s doorstep for help in the investigations.

Half Wing’s instant attraction to Margaret and Snuff draws the two, known for innocence and silliness in equal measure, into matters they are not prepared to understand, much less deal with.

Or are they?

Is it possible, Half Wing identified the most sensible person in Bexley’s acquaintance, the one whose help he most needs for his investigations—and his life?

With danger mounting and threats closing in, can Bexley and Margaret prove themselves more capable than what society expects? With only the safety of the Blue Order and a chance at future happiness at stake, they must rise to the occasion or lose everything they hold dear.

A fresh new gaslamp fantasy adventure in the engrossingly intricate world of Jane Austen’s Dragons. Anne McCaffrey meets Jane Austen, a perfect mix for dragon lovers and regency-era fans alike.

 

Sophia Rose Reviews: Outback Secrets by Elle James and Kendall Talbot

 

Outback Secrets by Elle James and Kendall Talbot

#1Koolaroo Ranch

Romantic Suspense

Publisher:  Twisted Pages Inc

Published: 4.21.26

Pages:  304

Rating:  4.5 stars

Format: eARC

Source:  Booksprout

Sellers:  Amazon

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GoodReads Synopsis:

She’s unearthing ancient secrets.
He’s desperate to keep his secrets buried.
But the deeper they dig, the deadlier the truth.

Special Forces soldier Mitch Branson swore he’d never return to Koolaroo Ranch, his family’s vast cattle station in the heart of the Australian Outback. But when his tyrannical father vanishes without a trace, Mitch and his siblings face a chilling truth: their father may or may not be dead, but his secrets are about to tear the family apart.

Fiercely independent paleontologist Charlie Macintyre comes to Koolaroo Ranch chasing a career-defining dinosaur discovery and collides head-on with a brooding soldier determined to shut her down. When a flash flood traps them in a maze of hidden caves, survival takes a deadly turn. Buried in the darkness, they uncover evidence of a decades-old murder, and Charlie realizes the land is hiding far more than fossils.

As the merciless Outback closes in, danger escalates and attraction flares between two people who never planned to trust anyone again. But the truth about Mitch’s past, and the brutal confrontation that drove him from Koolaroo, threatens to destroy what’s growing between them.

While the Branson siblings race to unravel their father’s disappearance, they discover some family legacies are meant to stay buried. And if Frank is still alive, Mitch may be forced to finish what he started ten years ago.

Outback Secrets is book one in the gripping Koolaroo Ranch romantic thriller series, where passion runs hot, danger lurks beneath the red dust, and every book uncovers another shocking layer of the Branson family’s twisted heritage.

Sophia Rose Reviews Gentlemen of Honor by Summer Hanford

 

Gentlemen of Honor by Summer Hanford

Narrated by Carol Beth Anderson, Benjamin Fife, Rosy Fife

#2 Bennet Gang

Historical Romance

Publisher:  Summer Hanford

Published:  1.20.26

Time:  11 hours 44 minutes

Rating:  5 stars

Narrator Rating: 5 stars

Format: Audio

Source:  Narrator

Sellers:  Amazon

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GoodReads Synopsis:

VOLUME TWO of The Bennet Gang Gentlemen of Honor

Elizabeth Bennet is giving up her secret life as a highwayman in favor of her next great adventure...being courted by Fitzwilliam Darcy. But when new guests arrive at Netherfield Park, they bring danger and tumult with them. Can Elizabeth and her sisters contend with the evil Hargreaves while still successfully navigating matters of the heart, or will they be forced to choose between love, honor, and family?

Fitzwilliam Darcy is enamored with Miss Elizabeth Bennet. Unfortunately, making her mistress of his beloved estate, Pemberley, would require embracing a scandal that could ruin the Darcy name. If he could make her see that she must give up her mad ways, she could be his. That is their only recourse, their single path to happiness, because it couldn't possibly be the case that he needs to change.

Gentlemen of Honor is the high-stakes conclusion to The Bennet Gang Duology. This fast-paced, action-filled Pride and Prejudice Variation finds your favorite characters faced with all new reasons to be uncertain in love. If you take delight in Summer Hanford's distinct, entertaining tales, enjoy Gentlemen of Honor today.

Sophia Rose Reviews The Great Lakes Ships of Frank E Kirby by Richard Gebhart

 

The Great Lakes Ships of Frank E Kirby by Richard Gebhart

NonFiction, History, Biography

Publisher:  Michigan State University Press

Published:  5.1.26

Pages:  231

Rating: 4.5 stars

Format: eARC

Source:  NetGalley

Sellers:  Amazon

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GoodReads Synopsis:

This study of the legendary Michigan shipbuilder Frank E. Kirby examines his life and the accomplishments that earned him national esteem and international fame. Kirby was involved in the design and build of nearly one hundred vessels, many of which sailed the Great Lakes region. He is best known for designing the paddle steamer Tashmoo and two boats that ferried visitors to Boblo Island in the Detroit River for decades, Columbia and Ste. Claire. Though only three of his vessels remain, none of them operational, hundreds of thousands of Michiganders who are still alive today have been carried by Kirby vessels. Told through stories found in the Detroit Free Press, historical archives, family documents, an interview conducted by his daughter-in-law Dorothy Clement Kirby in 1926, and keepsakes, Richard Gebhart brings to life the story of one of the most prolific Great Lakes shipbuilders of the time.