In Book Reviews

Book Review: We Were Never Friends

Thriller Lovers

Comments are closed.

Welcome to Colloquium!

WELCOME!
I founded Colloquium in 2005. In addition to being a constant reader and dedicated book reviewer, I’m a musician and retired attorney. I enjoy making music with the Lodi Community Band and Stockton Concert Band, and spending time with my two grown sons, two nephews, & nieces-in-law. My greatest joy is being "Grandauntie Janie" to Quinn Eileen and Raven Maxine. I've been a proud San Francisco 49'ers Faithful for more than 40 years, & when I'm not at home in Lodi, California, you'll most likely find me on Maui, my "happy place."

Read More

Facebook X (Twitter) Instagram Pinterest YouTube TikTok Discord RSS

Click HERE to subscribe to Colloquium.
Currently Reading
Recently Read

Janie Hickok Siess' Bookshelf: Recently Read

The Missing Ones

by A.R. Torre

Sacrament: A Novel

by Susan Straight

Nash Falls

by David Baldacci

Three-Fifths

by John Vercher

Best Offer Wins

by Marisa Kashino
Goodreads Annual Reading Challenge

2026 Reading Challenge

Janie Hickok Siess has read 0 books toward her goal of 100 books.

hide

0 of 100 (0%)

view books

2025 Reading Challenge

Janie Hickok Siess has read 0 books toward her goal of 100 books.

hide

0 of 100 (0%)

view books

2024 Reading Challenge

Janie Hickok Siess has read 57 books toward her goal of 100 books.

hide

57 of 100 (56%)

view books
Follow Colloquium on Instagram

jhscolloquium

794

Book Reviews | Guest Authors

jhscolloquium

Open post by jhscolloquium with ID 17891024112530157

jhscolloquium

Open post by jhscolloquium with ID 17929014615290192

jhscolloquium

Open post by jhscolloquium with ID 18101950088003294

jhscolloquium

Open post by jhscolloquium with ID 18116225470774315

jhscolloquium

Open post by jhscolloquium with ID 18321766849254982

jhscolloquium

Open post by jhscolloquium with ID 18113294455845392

jhscolloquium

Open post by jhscolloquium with ID 18009635483714134

jhscolloquium

Open post by jhscolloquium with ID 18097850453169144

jhscolloquium

Open post by jhscolloquium with ID 18354963142209684

jhscolloquium

Open post by jhscolloquium with ID 18091814999349564

jhscolloquium

Open post by jhscolloquium with ID 18048015008773039

jhscolloquium

Open post by jhscolloquium with ID 18081040622427988

jhscolloquium

Open post by jhscolloquium with ID 18106927057932890

jhscolloquium

Open post by jhscolloquium with ID 18312064990274073

jhscolloquium

Open post by jhscolloquium with ID 18120678787640384

jhscolloquium

Open post by jhscolloquium with ID 18100403630078109

jhscolloquium

Open post by jhscolloquium with ID 17904662121243606

jhscolloquium

Open post by jhscolloquium with ID 18161131387435198

jhscolloquium

Open post by jhscolloquium with ID 18098028784844679

jhscolloquium

Open post by jhscolloquium with ID 17885264850526718

Follow on Instagram
Follow JHSiess on Instagram

jhsiess

645

Musician | Book Reviewer | Retired Attorney

Absolutely thrilled with the way the Hickok Homestead renovation has turned out! Still waiting on blinds for the sliding glass door & shutters for the picture window in the living room. Getting everything tidied up (so much dust everywhere) & organized. I`m confident my parents would approve. My mother would love all the counter space in the kitchen!

15 0

Open post by jhsiess with ID 17946686100102453

This is a sight no one has seen since 1982!

The renovation of my beloved childhood home is underway! #1Son, Robert, is working hard, prepping for the contractor to work some magic. He`s ripping out carpets, tack strips, & baseboards, and peeling off wallpaper. Not to mention cleaning out closets & cupboards. Lots of purging taking place.

Look at those gorgeous hardwood floors! But no, I`m not going to leave them exposed, in part because, as is visible in the last photo, they aren`t in all of the rooms. My parents added about 675 square feet to the house 43 years ago. In the family room, you can see the outline of where my bedroom used to be before it was converted.

It`s going to be beautiful again when this project is complete. I think Kenny & Ethel, the parental unit, would be proud. I know they`d be tickled about Robert`s involvement!

I still have to decide what colors to paint the exterior. 🤔 The dreadful beige & green have to go.

Now, if I could just get those pesky home flippers to stop calling, texting, emailing, & snailmailing me with ridiculous lowball offers to buy the house, I`d be a happy woman. 🤦‍♀️ It`s not for sale! Not now & not ever . . . at least as long as I`m sucking air into my lungs!

#HickokHomestead #Family #HomeRenovation #HomeImprovement

8 0

Open post by jhsiess with ID 17912033538050001

I didn`t intentionally abandon this account. 🤦‍♀️ But my energy is usually focused on @jhscolloquium, where I post about books & authors.

And life just happens . . . sometimes lobbing totally unexpected plot developments at us. More about that to follow.

In the photo, I`m with some of my favorite people on the planet -- my boys & my grandnieces. Quinn is 10 & Raven will be 7 in September! They`re headed to 5th & 1st grade this week.

Matthew is still an Accountant with the State of California, Department of Social Services, & Robert is assisting me with a total renovation of the Hickok Homestead on Crescent Avenue. More about that in subsequent posts, too.

📸: Nephew #1, Paul McKelvey

#GrandauntieJanie #QuinnEileen #RavenMaxine #Family #FavoritePeople #MissingJudyMcKelvey #HickokHomestead

14 1

Open post by jhsiess with ID 17943081315040641

🎄 Delta Drama Peeps Annual Christmas Party🎄

It was epic, but we missed Michael Grenie so we had a video call with him! Hope to see him soon. ❤️

#Friendship ##Priceless #Christmas2023 #DeltaDramaPeeps

24 3

Open post by jhsiess with ID 18219283669267294

🎄Whine Club 🎁

Our monthly Whine Club with our annual gift exchange fell on my birthday this year!

📸: @jea955 & @linda.sunday.hansen

#WhineClub #Christmas2023 #Friendship #Priceless

17 1

Open post by jhsiess with ID 17849241984105788

🎄Christmas 2023🎅

Some things old (my mother`s animated carolers & her silly little elf atop her clock) & something new (my tree -- because I gave Matthew my tree for his new house).
We got in the spirit right after Thanksgiving this year!

#Christmas2023 #Retired #TisTheSeason🎄

5 2

Open post by jhsiess with ID 18016343081060469

Enjoyed a cozy evening with Matthew at Boo Manor watching @breakingbad again. He has decorated for Christmas and it`s very cozy & homey. He loves Christmas and is enjoying his first holiday season in his first home! 🎄🎁

#Christmas2023 #HappyHolidays #BooManor #Matthew #Family #Retired #RetirementDoesNotSuck #SavorTheMoments #Priceless #BreakingBad #BingeWatching

20 2

Open post by jhsiess with ID 17996764439154698

Their new single has been released to raise funds to help the people of #LahainaTown.

#MauiStrong #LahainaStrong #Maui #DoobieBrothers #MichaelMcDonald #MickFleetwood

https://youtu.be/PXdWmNjWFbg?si=0TuXgOwLNECRBsGU

12 0

Open post by jhsiess with ID 17863815062996845

Relaxing afternoons & spectacular sunsets. 🌴🌺🌊😎

#Vacation2023 #Maui #MauiStrong #LahainaStrong #Retirement #RetirementDoesNotSuck

11 0

Open post by jhsiess with ID 17963557487514971

There`s no place I`d rather be to cheer on our @49ers!
💛❤️🏈❤️💛🏈💛❤️🏈❤️💛

Maui nō ka ʻoi! 🌺🌴🌊

#Maui #Vacation2023 #LahainaStrong #MauiStrong #Retirement #RetirementDoesNotSuck

9 0

Open post by jhsiess with ID 17868239745005743

Matthew and I had a great time when we stayed in Makena last month. But I`m so happy to be back at my favorite spot again. I`m staying on the 12th floor, as I have numerous times, enjoying this panoramic view from the lanai. Yes, it is different now as those of us visiting are sharing space with a large number of employees & Lahaina residents for whom this resort is their home for the time being. And it was heartbreaking to drive through Lahaina Town for the first time since the fire, especially when I got to the area along the Bypass where almost 100 crosses stand, one for each victim. I just passed through, but this transformed Maui is the everyday reality for its people. I can`t help contemplating why such a beautiful, spiritual place & its citizens have to endure such destruction & tragedy. Of course, there are no answers. But aloha is more than a word; it is a belief & way of life. The word has been coopted commercially & socially, & gets thrown around casually, but it means presence (alo) & breath (ha). It is a profound concept when you ponder it. Aloha will carry Maui & its people through this time of grief, mourning, & manifesting a different future than was contemplated, just as everyone I have encountered has welcomed me with warmth & appreciation. In this ever-changing yet unchanging view from my lanai, I see & feel Maui`s unbreakable spirit, & am grateful to be able to savor it & this indescribable beauty yet again.

Maui nō ka ʻoi! 🌺🌴🌊

#Maui #Vacation2023 #Kaanapali #LahainaStrong #MauiStrong

11 1

Open post by jhsiess with ID 18030159565713254

It`s a great time to visit Maui because local businesses need tourism to survive! And every business owner & employee thanked us for proceeding with our trip & supporting their efforts to help not just themselves, but their ohana, many of whom are now residing with them & looking for jobs.

The aloha spirit at the Kula Lodge & Restaurant is amazing. They do not yet have clearance to use the water, but did that stop them from serving delicious food? Nope! The loco moco was outstanding, served in a paper bowl with plastic utensils and an ice cold bottle of water! They are bringing in barrels of fresh water to cook the items on a limited menu, & wash pots and pans. They even put big water bottles with pumps in the restrooms for guests to wash their hands & are offering stays in their quaint, charming lodge at steeply discounted rates for guests who don`t mind a sponge bath! The staff are all upbeat, friendly, delighted to be working . . . and making it work.

Over at the Maui Tropical Plantation, the Mill House is now Cafe O`Lei. The Maui onion soup is delicious & the setting beautiful, although this photo of the hillside & fields shows the effect of the ongoing drought on Maui. My photos from previous visits feature a lush, green hillside & crops growing in the fields. But as Californians know, the rain returns -- eventually -- and the grass & vegetation turn green again.

I asked Matthew to snap a photo as I was driving of just one of the many fields around the Kahului airport where a total of approximately 10,000 rental cars are sitting idle that would normally be navigated all over the island by happy tourists. The cars have been sitting in what were once pineapple and sugar cane fields, but those industries are long gone. Now Maui relies on tourism & construction to keep its economy running.

We stayed in south Maui & never ventured to the west side out of respect for Lahaina town & her people.

Maui nō ka ʻoi! 🌺🌴 I can`t wait to get back to the island. My body lives in Lodi most of the time .. . . but my soul resides on Maui.

#Maui #MauiStrong #MauiTropicalPlantation #Vacation #Vacation2023 #I❤️Hawaii #KulaLodgeAndRestaurant #Retirement #CafeOlei

14 1

Open post by jhsiess with ID 18354702670078821

We usually get takeout from Miso Phat in Kahana, but we`re staying in Wailea this time & not venturing to the west side. There was no wait at the Kihei location, which we had never visited before!! The sushi was just as yummy!! And had a glass of Lodi wine -- Michael David -- with it. 🍇🍷🥢🐟🐠🐡🐙🦀

#Vacation #Vacation2023 #Maui #MauiStrong #I❤️Hawaii #Retirement #RetirementDoesNotSuck #IDeserveIt #IEarnedIt #Sushi #MisoPhat #MisoPhatKihei #NoFilter

6 0

Open post by jhsiess with ID 18052864174470956

The view from our table at Mama`s Fish House. Spectacular! And Matthew enjoying it after the meal.

#Vacation #Vacation2023 #Maui #MauiStrong #I❤️Hawaii #Retirement #RetirementDoesNotSuck #IDeserveIt #IEarnedIt #RetirementCelebration #PromotionCelebration #MamasFishHouse #NoFilter

4 0

Open post by jhsiess with ID 17993916887184635

We finally celebrated my retirement, as well as Matthew`s two promotions and purchase of his first home, at Mama`s Fish House! We used the generous gift certificate presented to me at my retirement party on 10/29/21. Mahalo to my wonderful staff & colleagues! 🌴🌺🌊

#Maui #MauiStrong #Vacation #Vacation2023 #Retirement #RetirementDoesNotSuck #RetirementCelebration #I❤️Hawaii #IDeserveIt #IEarnedIt #MamasFishHouse #PromotionCelebration #NoFilter

18 2

Open post by jhsiess with ID 17949769703678339

Last night, we enjoyed a delicious, fun dinner at Monkey Pod!
The squash ravioli appetizer melted in my mouth.
Then I relaxed on the comfy lanai for another dazzling sunset.

#Maui #MauiStrong #Vacation #Vacation2023 #I❤️Hawaii #Retirement #RetirementDoesNotSuck #IEarnedIt #IDeserveIt #NoFilter

6 0

Open post by jhsiess with ID 18009513922909789

We had a lovely brunch at Nalu`s where Poke served as our host! He is apparently 28 years old & quite a talker. It was not crowded at all, & the food was yummy!

#Maui #MauiStrong #Vacation2023 #Vacation #Retirement #RetirementDoesNotSuck #IDeserveIt #IEarnedIt #NoFilter

5 0

Open post by jhsiess with ID 18278868739152384

Perfection.

#Maui #MauiStrong #I❤️Hawaii #Vacation2023 #Retirement #RetirementDoesNotSuck #IDeserveIt #IEarnedIt #NoFilter

2 0

Open post by jhsiess with ID 17892900071888264

Aloha kakahiaka!

@49ers football in paradise!

#Priceless!

#Maui #MauiStrong #Vacation #Vacation2023 #I❤️Hawaii #Retirement #RetirementDoesNotSuck #IDeserveIt #IEarnedIt #NinerGang #Niners #49ers #49erfaithful #FTTB🏈 #NoFilter

7 0

Open post by jhsiess with ID 17886689348848880

Sunset.

#Maui #MauiStrong
#I❤️Hawaii #Vacation2023
#Retirement #RetirementDoesNotSuck #IDeserveIt #IEarnedIt #NoFilter

8 0

Open post by jhsiess with ID 18235302928238800

Follow on Instagram
Follow Colloquium on TikTok
Follow JHSiess on Twitter

🌴🌺 JHSiess 🌺🌴 Follow 9,129 1,101

Musician | Book Reviewer | Retired Attorney Facebook/BookBub/Litsy/Goodreads: jhsiess Instagram: jhscolloquium @49ers Faithful 🏈

🌴🌺 JHSiess 🌺🌴 @jhsiess ·
6 May 2052121373204795468

📖 𝓐𝓾𝓽𝓱𝓸𝓻 𝓒𝓱𝓪𝓽 📖

Ｙｏｕ＇ｒｅ　Ｉｎｖｉｔｅｄ

𝐓𝐡𝐮𝐫𝐬𝐝𝐚𝐲, 𝐌𝐚𝐲 𝟕𝐭𝐡
𝟏:𝟎𝟎 𝐩.𝐦. 𝐄𝐃𝐓 | 𝟏𝟎:𝟎𝟎 𝐚.𝐦. 𝐏𝐃𝐓

I'll be chatting with acclaimed, bestselling author #𝐂𝐡𝐫𝐢𝐬𝐏𝐚𝐯𝐨𝐧𝐞 about his latest novel, 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐃𝐨𝐨𝐫𝐦𝐚𝐧!
@BookSparks

Twitter feed image.

Reply on Twitter 2052121373204795468 Retweet on Twitter 2052121373204795468 0 Like on Twitter 2052121373204795468 1 X 2052121373204795468

🌴🌺 JHSiess 🌺🌴 @jhsiess ·
27 Apr 2048878111891275845

📚 𝑮𝒖𝒆𝒔𝒕 𝑨𝒖𝒕𝒉𝒐𝒓 📚

Author @JaneEyre77 is my guest at 𝐂𝐨𝐥𝐥𝐨𝐪𝐮𝐢𝐮𝐦, relating how her journalism career was delayed by a "wicked curveball." Did supernatural forces intervene?
@partnersincr1me @severnhouse
https://tinyurl.com/3xpcw3u3

Twitter feed image.

Reply on Twitter 2048878111891275845 Retweet on Twitter 2048878111891275845 1 Like on Twitter 2048878111891275845 3 X 2048878111891275845

More Tweets!
Other Sites

Lodi Community Band
Stockton Concert Band
Official Clint Ritchie Site
Robert's Legacy (Conservatorship of Wendland)
Lodi Community Band Concerts | Events
Stockton Concert Band Concerts | Events
Find it on Colloquium

Search for:

Related Posts

jhscolloquium

jhsiess