» Sarah A. Peterson

“Who knew debt could be so much fun?” the host of a fictitious talk show asks her audience in “Confessions of a Shopaholic.”

And so another Valley retail giant bites the dust, and with it, another snippet of my childhood.

This recession may have changed my spending habits, but not my haunting habits.

Hookah pipes and tobacco in a dizzying array of flavors take up the whole left-hand wall, as glass cases house blown glass hand pipes in a variety of shapes, sizes and colors. Reggae music sets the mood.

Many critics have pounced on “The Haunting in Connecticut” for being formulaic, but I see nothing wrong with that.

Bottles of Corona line the ledge by the dance floor, tucked with lime wedges, glinting in the flash of colored lights.

If you’ve ever wondered what the drug of choice was for nineteenth-century addicts, “In the Arms of Morpheus: The Tragic History of Laudanum, Morphine, and Patent Medicines” has the answers.

Long-distance relationships don’t always spell doom, but keep in mind that it takes two to tango. It’s basically about communication and being on the same page, but even so, it’s tough.

Rose Hennig has finally found her perfect match—though they have never actually met.