Under Vixen’s Mere is one of those novels that quietly gets under your skin and then refuses to leave.
From the opening pages, the prose immediately stood out to me. It’s spare without ever feeling sparse—clean, confident, and quietly assured. Dialogue and description are held in careful balance, each doing its work without calling attention to itself. Nothing strains for effect, and that sense of restraint builds trust early on, inviting the reader to settle in and follow where the story leads.
What makes this book especially satisfying is its sensory richness. The attention to detail is so precise you can practically smell the bread cooling on the racks, the sharpness of cheese, the damp stone after rain. It is comfort reading with substance: sunshine and laughter paired with the everyday complications life throws at us, and the quiet resilience required to meet them.
This is not a book about capital-H heroes. Instead, it centers on people who engage in small acts of service, kindness, and yes, heroism—not for recognition or glory, but because it was the right thing to do in the moment. These are stories of people showing up when it would have been easier not to.
The Locked Room is clever, cozy without being complacent, and deeply satisfying for puzzle-lovers. If you adore classic detective fiction but crave a fresh perspective, Harriet White deserves a place on your shelf—and very likely, in your reading rotation for a long while to come.
About the Book: A Treatise on Martian Chiropractic Manipulation and Other Satirical Tales Human beings are flawed creatures, and humor is the perfect means to exploit the endless fodder of our shortcomings. This multi-genre collection of twenty-one short satirical stories will leave you smirking, chuckling, scratching your head, and maybe even muttering to yourself […]
I had to resist the urge to run my hand along my screen. You just want to pat a gorgeous fish like that! The color is almost too much to resist.
When I grow up, my house is gonna have a fish pond. Never mind that I live in the Great White North: we’ll bring ’em in in winter! I’m sure the dog will just love to have new fish-friends.
what a beautiful koi!
Beautiful shot! I had a similar one a couple of weeks ago that I used for a Wordless. If I’d known this theme was coming up I’d have saved it. But since i didn’t I’m glad you had this one!
Nicely done…
i enjoy seeing the ripples in the water preceding the fish as it moves about.
but watch out for herons. my sister and her neighbours in Bracebridge, Ontario are losing their fish very quickly as the big birds prepare for migration.
cheers,
gord h.
Oh, nice caution, gord. I didn’t know that. And it would be a real shame to lose these fantastic creatures. I could watch koi swim around for hours.
–smarmoofus
We used to have an aguarium when my boys were small, I used to love to watch the fish swimming around… it’s very calming.
A super photo….. I enjoyed.