The Hobbit by J R R Tolkien - this is probably about the 6th time I've read this book. Read it again to get ready for the movie. I find this more lighthearted than the LOTR books. I enjoyed it this time almost as much as the first.
5 stars
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A Fistful of Collars by Spencer Quinn - this is one of my current favorite authors. It's written from a dog's point of view and I find that part very humorous. The mystery part is usually pretty good and this one had me going until the very end. These aren't meant to be great literature but are lots of fun for a fun read, especially if you like dogs.
4 stars - I only rate it this high because Chet thinks like I think dogs do (if they really think :).)
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The Dark Winter by David Mark - a debut novel by the author and I really enjoyed it. A series of seemingly unrelated murders and a not so usual detective. It's supposed to be the beginning of a series and I'm looking forward to the next one.
4.5 stars
Sunday, November 25, 2012
Sunday, November 18, 2012
Nov 11-17, 2012
I actually went inside the library and browsed this week. 2 out of the 3 books I found were quite good.
Another Time, Another Life by Leif G.W. Persson - This novel spans 25 years and concerns the bombing of the West German embassy in Sweden. What starts as a murder investigation 14 years later becomes secret occurrences in the Swedish secret police. I wasn't sure I was going to like this or even finish it because it was a little slow going at first. But when I got into it I thought it quite good.
4 stars
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Seconds Away by Harlan Coben - This is the second in the author's young adult series. The story follows the nephew of Myron Bolitar who is the main character in many of Mr Coben's novels. Each book follows a mystery, but there is a larger mystery in both dealing with the death of Mickey's father. No answers yet! Guess that means there will be a third book in the series for sure. I've found both books enjoyable although they are definately for a younger audience.
3 stars
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Dancing Dogs by Jon Katz - a collection of short fiction stories. A nice quick read if you like dog stories. The story about dog heaven had an interesting perspective - in heaven dogs get to do all the things we don't want them to; roll in stinky stuff, bark all the time, eat garbage, and go potty wherever they want. Dog hell is pretty much how they live here. This author has written quite a few books of non-fiction about his adventures with dogs.
3 stars
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The Bedlam Detective by Stephen Gallagher - Not an author I've read before. This is set in 1912 and is about a detective who gathers evidence of wealthy people's insanity so that they can be declared insane and their assets seized. That's not what the story is about, though. Young girls have gone missing and then are found dead and no one knows what really happened. The story is told from a few different viewpoints. I had absolutely no idea who the perpetrator was and was really surprised. I think this would be a good series but have no idea if there will be more.
4 stars
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Come Home by Lisa Scottoline - a mystery with mother love thrown in. Jill's ex-stepdaughter shows up distraught over her father's death, claiming he's been murdered. Lots of twists at the end. I'm not sure I thought people acted true to life and I have a little trouble with Jill's fiance.
2.5 stars
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Force of Nature by C J Box - I made the mistake of "just going to read the first few pages to see if I'll like it" at 3 am and finished the book at 6:30. At just kept moving right along and I really got sucked in. This is the latest in a series about a game warden. I've read a few but have missed a couple. This one deals more with his friend who lives off the grid and is a fugitive from shadowy figures in the government. Fairly violent, I always read those parts fast.
3.5 stars
Another Time, Another Life by Leif G.W. Persson - This novel spans 25 years and concerns the bombing of the West German embassy in Sweden. What starts as a murder investigation 14 years later becomes secret occurrences in the Swedish secret police. I wasn't sure I was going to like this or even finish it because it was a little slow going at first. But when I got into it I thought it quite good.
4 stars
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Seconds Away by Harlan Coben - This is the second in the author's young adult series. The story follows the nephew of Myron Bolitar who is the main character in many of Mr Coben's novels. Each book follows a mystery, but there is a larger mystery in both dealing with the death of Mickey's father. No answers yet! Guess that means there will be a third book in the series for sure. I've found both books enjoyable although they are definately for a younger audience.
3 stars
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Dancing Dogs by Jon Katz - a collection of short fiction stories. A nice quick read if you like dog stories. The story about dog heaven had an interesting perspective - in heaven dogs get to do all the things we don't want them to; roll in stinky stuff, bark all the time, eat garbage, and go potty wherever they want. Dog hell is pretty much how they live here. This author has written quite a few books of non-fiction about his adventures with dogs.
3 stars
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Bedlam Detective by Stephen Gallagher - Not an author I've read before. This is set in 1912 and is about a detective who gathers evidence of wealthy people's insanity so that they can be declared insane and their assets seized. That's not what the story is about, though. Young girls have gone missing and then are found dead and no one knows what really happened. The story is told from a few different viewpoints. I had absolutely no idea who the perpetrator was and was really surprised. I think this would be a good series but have no idea if there will be more.
4 stars
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Come Home by Lisa Scottoline - a mystery with mother love thrown in. Jill's ex-stepdaughter shows up distraught over her father's death, claiming he's been murdered. Lots of twists at the end. I'm not sure I thought people acted true to life and I have a little trouble with Jill's fiance.
2.5 stars
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Force of Nature by C J Box - I made the mistake of "just going to read the first few pages to see if I'll like it" at 3 am and finished the book at 6:30. At just kept moving right along and I really got sucked in. This is the latest in a series about a game warden. I've read a few but have missed a couple. This one deals more with his friend who lives off the grid and is a fugitive from shadowy figures in the government. Fairly violent, I always read those parts fast.
3.5 stars
Saturday, November 10, 2012
Week of Nov 4-10, 2012
Had a busy week this week but the library came through with a bunch of books so I got a lot of reading in too.
Bones Are Forever by Kathy Reichs - This is one of the Temperance Brennan books that the tv series Bones is based on. I didn't think it was one of the better ones. Way too many acronyms and descriptions of forensics techniques. Plus it was about dead babies.
2 stars - I wouldn't recommend it unless you're determined to read every book in the series.
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Gathering Blue by Lois Lowry - This is the second in the Giver series and I enjoyed it the most of the three I've read. Perhaps because I've become used to the author's style, or because I had read the third book previously and so had a little more resolution than normal.
3 stars
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Munster's Case by Hakan Nesser - Set in Sweden, this is about an elderly man murdered in his sleep right after he has won a share in a lottery. The police don't have a clue and seem burdened with ennui and depression. Like many Scandinavian mysteries it's rather dark. These people don't get enough sun in the winter.
4 stars - because I didn't get an inkling of why the murder happened until more than halfway through the book, and I never guessed the murderer.
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Middlesex by Jeffrey Euginides - a friend gave it 4 stars so I decided to give it a try. About a hermaphrodite and the history leading up to her/his birth and what happens when she becomes truly aware of her true self.
4 stars - Very well written and I didn't find it pruient.
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The Third Gate by Lincoln Child - I wish I had followed my instinct and not finished this book. Personal preference, I don't like supernatural or paranormal books and I didn't realize this was one at first. Archeologists (sp?) are searching for an ancient tomb buried under a swamp called the Sud and calamaties ensue.
1 star - personal preference
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The Secret Keeper by Kate Morton - 16 year old Laurel sees her mother stab a man and 50 years later tries to find the reason. The book goes back and forth in time and is told from different viewpoints but I didn't find that irritating at all. Managed to keep myself from reading the end first and really enjoyed the whole book.
4.5 stars - One of the better books I've read this year.
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Delusion in Death by J D Robb(Nora Roberts) - this is the 35th book in the series and I've read every one. It's a police series set in the future. All the cases take place one right after the other, so only 2 1/2 years have gone by since the first one. These won't be for everyone - there are sex scenes(between the detective and her impossibly rich, impossibly handsome husband) and some of the murders are fairly gruesome. I read them because I'm hooked on the characters and want to know how they're going to develop. This book is about mass murder in a bar caused by a drug that makes all the patrons turn on each other.
3 stars
Bones Are Forever by Kathy Reichs - This is one of the Temperance Brennan books that the tv series Bones is based on. I didn't think it was one of the better ones. Way too many acronyms and descriptions of forensics techniques. Plus it was about dead babies.
2 stars - I wouldn't recommend it unless you're determined to read every book in the series.
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Gathering Blue by Lois Lowry - This is the second in the Giver series and I enjoyed it the most of the three I've read. Perhaps because I've become used to the author's style, or because I had read the third book previously and so had a little more resolution than normal.
3 stars
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Munster's Case by Hakan Nesser - Set in Sweden, this is about an elderly man murdered in his sleep right after he has won a share in a lottery. The police don't have a clue and seem burdened with ennui and depression. Like many Scandinavian mysteries it's rather dark. These people don't get enough sun in the winter.
4 stars - because I didn't get an inkling of why the murder happened until more than halfway through the book, and I never guessed the murderer.
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Middlesex by Jeffrey Euginides - a friend gave it 4 stars so I decided to give it a try. About a hermaphrodite and the history leading up to her/his birth and what happens when she becomes truly aware of her true self.
4 stars - Very well written and I didn't find it pruient.
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The Third Gate by Lincoln Child - I wish I had followed my instinct and not finished this book. Personal preference, I don't like supernatural or paranormal books and I didn't realize this was one at first. Archeologists (sp?) are searching for an ancient tomb buried under a swamp called the Sud and calamaties ensue.
1 star - personal preference
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The Secret Keeper by Kate Morton - 16 year old Laurel sees her mother stab a man and 50 years later tries to find the reason. The book goes back and forth in time and is told from different viewpoints but I didn't find that irritating at all. Managed to keep myself from reading the end first and really enjoyed the whole book.
4.5 stars - One of the better books I've read this year.
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Delusion in Death by J D Robb(Nora Roberts) - this is the 35th book in the series and I've read every one. It's a police series set in the future. All the cases take place one right after the other, so only 2 1/2 years have gone by since the first one. These won't be for everyone - there are sex scenes(between the detective and her impossibly rich, impossibly handsome husband) and some of the murders are fairly gruesome. I read them because I'm hooked on the characters and want to know how they're going to develop. This book is about mass murder in a bar caused by a drug that makes all the patrons turn on each other.
3 stars
Sunday, November 4, 2012
The compulsion begins
I don't remember learning to read. I went to school already knowing how. Both my parents read to us before bed. I remember one time my sister and I were sitting on Dad's and right when he got to an exciting part in the story, the springs on the rocker broke and we went crashing back. It was a long time before my sister could listen to that story without crying when we got to that part.
I got my first library card at the town library when I was in 1st grade. The building was quite impressive, I think it was a Carnegie library. I can still remember the booky smell of it. Sometimes I have dreams set in this library, although I really remember very little about it. That summer the library had a read so many books get a candy bar - I think it was a Baby Ruth. Well, I earned my candy bar in about a week and promptly started to earn another. The librarian was suspicious that I had really read the books and made me tell her about each one. (Not the last time I would be questioned by a librarian.) I got my candy bar but was banned from participating again. I guess you were supposed to take all summer to earn the candy bar. And here I thought I was going to have candy all summer long.
I got my first library card at the town library when I was in 1st grade. The building was quite impressive, I think it was a Carnegie library. I can still remember the booky smell of it. Sometimes I have dreams set in this library, although I really remember very little about it. That summer the library had a read so many books get a candy bar - I think it was a Baby Ruth. Well, I earned my candy bar in about a week and promptly started to earn another. The librarian was suspicious that I had really read the books and made me tell her about each one. (Not the last time I would be questioned by a librarian.) I got my candy bar but was banned from participating again. I guess you were supposed to take all summer to earn the candy bar. And here I thought I was going to have candy all summer long.
Week of Oct 28-Nov 3, 2012
I had to get some books from the library for my Kindle, nothing seems to be moving along on my request list.
Bleeding Hearts by Susan Wittig Albert - I hate when I read a series out of order and I knew when I read her last book I had missed a few. This is the first book in a trilogy she wrote in the middle of her series. These books are written as if the author is talking directly to you.I find that rather irritating at times. A little too folksy. The beginning of the chapters have either a history of an herb or a recipe because the main character, China Bayles, owns an herb shop.
Spanish Dagger by Susan Wittig Albert - the second book in her trilogy. What connects these books is that interwoven with the regular mystery there is also an investigation into her father's death 16 years ago. I'm assuming the 3rd book will wrap that up. The main mystery is fairly interesting but unrealistic in the involvement of China in the police investigation.
Nightshade by Susan Wittig Albert - the last book in the trilogy and dedicated solely to investigating the death of her father. Part of the story is told by China's husband in the present tense, which I found very annoying.
I'd give all three of these books 3 stars. It's a series I read when I just want to be entertained and not have to think too much.
The Confession by John Grisham - I started out thinking this was going to be a slow book and then it picked up speed. It's about a group of people trying to save an innocent man from execution. I thought the author had some interesting takes on people on both sides trying to stir things up, not always with the best of intentions.
4 stars
Bleeding Hearts by Susan Wittig Albert - I hate when I read a series out of order and I knew when I read her last book I had missed a few. This is the first book in a trilogy she wrote in the middle of her series. These books are written as if the author is talking directly to you.I find that rather irritating at times. A little too folksy. The beginning of the chapters have either a history of an herb or a recipe because the main character, China Bayles, owns an herb shop.
Spanish Dagger by Susan Wittig Albert - the second book in her trilogy. What connects these books is that interwoven with the regular mystery there is also an investigation into her father's death 16 years ago. I'm assuming the 3rd book will wrap that up. The main mystery is fairly interesting but unrealistic in the involvement of China in the police investigation.
Nightshade by Susan Wittig Albert - the last book in the trilogy and dedicated solely to investigating the death of her father. Part of the story is told by China's husband in the present tense, which I found very annoying.
I'd give all three of these books 3 stars. It's a series I read when I just want to be entertained and not have to think too much.
The Confession by John Grisham - I started out thinking this was going to be a slow book and then it picked up speed. It's about a group of people trying to save an innocent man from execution. I thought the author had some interesting takes on people on both sides trying to stir things up, not always with the best of intentions.
4 stars
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