Ember Falls by S.D. Smith - the 2nd in the Green Ember series finds the rabbit resistance against Morbin Blackhawk in trouble. Pickett and Heather, the two rabbits from the first book are settling into their positions, with Pickett leading an elite fighting squad and Heather a healer. Treachery within their own family and from others seems to threaten the rabbits very existence. The book ends on a cliffhanger and I can't wait for the next installment.
4 stars
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Robert B. Parker's Debt to Pay by Reed Farrel Coleman - a Jesse Stone mystery authorized by the estate of Mr. Parker. Jesse's ex is getting married and a psycho is threatening to kill her. I don't feel this author got the character of Jesse quite right, he seemed a little whiny to me. Just internally of course, he's still macho on the outside. In fact, most of the characters seemed a little off.
2 stars
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The Old Man by Thomas Perry - Dan Chase seems like a bland retiree until the night someone sneaks into his house and tries to kill him. Then he seems a very capable fellow indeed. He's been waiting for this moment for 30 years. The book started with a bang but bogged down in the middle portion. I had a hard time liking Dan but was interested to see what would happen to him. I liked his dogs, Dave and Carol, the best.
3.5 stars
Sunday, February 26, 2017
Sunday, February 19, 2017
Feb 12 - 18, 2017
Norse Mythology by Neil Gaiman - a retelling of the Norse tales starting with the creation of the gods and ending with Ragnarok. I'm giving this a lower rating not because of the writing, which was good, but because I discovered I don't like Norse mythology.
2 stars
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Rather Be the Devil by Ian Rankin - in the 21st John Rebus novel, Rebus is retired and is having health issues despite giving up smoking and drinking. He begins thinking of an unsolved case from 40 years ago when a beautiful woman was murdered in an upscale hotel where a rock star was also staying. In the present, a rising gangster has been found beaten in his driveway. Do these cases actually have something in common?
3 stars
2 stars
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Rather Be the Devil by Ian Rankin - in the 21st John Rebus novel, Rebus is retired and is having health issues despite giving up smoking and drinking. He begins thinking of an unsolved case from 40 years ago when a beautiful woman was murdered in an upscale hotel where a rock star was also staying. In the present, a rising gangster has been found beaten in his driveway. Do these cases actually have something in common?
3 stars
Sunday, February 12, 2017
Feb 5 - 11, 2017
The Book Jumper by Mechthild Glaser - Amy Lennox and her mother abruptly leave Germany and return to an island off Scotland where the grandmother she's never seen lives. Amy abruptly learns she has the ability to enter books and interact with the characters. Amy abruptly learns who her father is. Lots of things happen to Amy abruptly and while it keeps the drama going there's not much room for anything else. Someone is stealing plot ideas from books and it's up to Amy to stop them. I didn't like this as much as I anticipated. This is a YA book.
2 stars
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The Drawing of the Three by Stephen King - the 2nd in the Dark Tower series. The gunslinger is still trying to get to the tower and on his way he comes across three doors which take him to the New York City of our world. In each world he meets a person who may help him on his quest. Even though there is lots of endless walking I found this very compelling. I'm anxious to know what happens next. Lots of violence and language and some humor too.
4 stars
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Where it Hurts by Reed Farrell Coleman - Gus Murphy had a good life as a Suffolk County cop until his son died unexpectedly. Now he spends drives a hotel courtesy van and drifts in a cloud of grief. When a criminal from his past asks him to look into the murder of his son Gus finds himself interested in spite of himself. But his old friends from the force keep warning him off, which makes him even more interested. Lots of shooting in this one and a fairly typical plot. But the character of Gus is interesting. The beginning of a new series.
3 stars
2 stars
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The Drawing of the Three by Stephen King - the 2nd in the Dark Tower series. The gunslinger is still trying to get to the tower and on his way he comes across three doors which take him to the New York City of our world. In each world he meets a person who may help him on his quest. Even though there is lots of endless walking I found this very compelling. I'm anxious to know what happens next. Lots of violence and language and some humor too.
4 stars
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Where it Hurts by Reed Farrell Coleman - Gus Murphy had a good life as a Suffolk County cop until his son died unexpectedly. Now he spends drives a hotel courtesy van and drifts in a cloud of grief. When a criminal from his past asks him to look into the murder of his son Gus finds himself interested in spite of himself. But his old friends from the force keep warning him off, which makes him even more interested. Lots of shooting in this one and a fairly typical plot. But the character of Gus is interesting. The beginning of a new series.
3 stars
Sunday, February 5, 2017
Jan 29 - Feb 4, 2017
The Piper by Charles Todd - a short story about Hamish MacLeod, the voice in Inspector Ian Rutledges's head. Before WWI, Hamish was a sheep farmer on his grandmother's farm. One stormy night he finds a young man with a head wound and tends to him. When the boy disappears, Hamish has his own mystery to solve.
3 stars
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The Drifter by Nicholas Petrie - Peter Ash has been at war too long and now that he's home he finds himself unable to stay indoors for any length of time. He lives outdoors, roaming the Cascades. But when a Marine friend commits suicide, Peter goes to Milwaukee to help the widow. While replacing the porch, he finds a suitcase containing a great deal of money and some plastic explosives. Also, a very large, angry dog. A fast paced thriller, somewhat predictable, with lots of action and violence. And a stinky dog.
4 stars
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Heir to the Sky by Amanda Sun - Kali is heir to a kingdom that floats above an earth inhabited by monsters. Loyal to her father and her people, she is also betrothed to a man she doesn't love but will marry out of duty. Except... one day she falls off her island and discovers that there is more to earth than she's been told. And things aren't quite right in the kingdom either. I was glad to see this wasn't the beginning of a trilogy but felt the story could have been more developed. Told in first person present tense, which is like fingernails on chalk to me.
3 stars
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The Mermaid's Scream by Kate Ellis - the 21st Wesley Peterson story has so many interwoven plots it was a little confusing to me. That was partly the fault of the very poor formatting of the ebook, some portions ran into each other without benefit of spacing, so that you don't realize you're at a completely different scene. A couple found dead leads to other murders and old suicides. And of course there's an old tale coinciding with the present with Neil working on a dig for an obsessive landowner. And I'm a little concerned about the path Wesley and Pam's son will take as he approaches the teen years. But it was nice to get back to this series.
3.5 stars
3 stars
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The Drifter by Nicholas Petrie - Peter Ash has been at war too long and now that he's home he finds himself unable to stay indoors for any length of time. He lives outdoors, roaming the Cascades. But when a Marine friend commits suicide, Peter goes to Milwaukee to help the widow. While replacing the porch, he finds a suitcase containing a great deal of money and some plastic explosives. Also, a very large, angry dog. A fast paced thriller, somewhat predictable, with lots of action and violence. And a stinky dog.
4 stars
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Heir to the Sky by Amanda Sun - Kali is heir to a kingdom that floats above an earth inhabited by monsters. Loyal to her father and her people, she is also betrothed to a man she doesn't love but will marry out of duty. Except... one day she falls off her island and discovers that there is more to earth than she's been told. And things aren't quite right in the kingdom either. I was glad to see this wasn't the beginning of a trilogy but felt the story could have been more developed. Told in first person present tense, which is like fingernails on chalk to me.
3 stars
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The Mermaid's Scream by Kate Ellis - the 21st Wesley Peterson story has so many interwoven plots it was a little confusing to me. That was partly the fault of the very poor formatting of the ebook, some portions ran into each other without benefit of spacing, so that you don't realize you're at a completely different scene. A couple found dead leads to other murders and old suicides. And of course there's an old tale coinciding with the present with Neil working on a dig for an obsessive landowner. And I'm a little concerned about the path Wesley and Pam's son will take as he approaches the teen years. But it was nice to get back to this series.
3.5 stars
Thursday, January 26, 2017
Jan 22 - 28, 2017
When the Music's Over by Peter Robinson - newly promoted Detective Superintendent Alan Banks is given a decades old case when a woman claims she was assaulted by a man considered a national treasure. While Banks tries to uncover old facts, DI Annie Cabot is trying to find the people responsible for beating a young woman to death on a lonely road. Historical sexual abuse, grooming of young women, and racial tension made this a gloomy read. Certainly not one of my favorites in this 23 book series.
3 stars
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Kill the Next One by Federico Axat - Ted McKay has been diagnosed with a brain tumor. Just when he is about to commit suicide, a stranger knocks on his door and knows what he's about to do. He has a proposition: if Ted kills a "bad guy" and another man also wanting to commit suicide, then someone will murder him, which will supposedly be easier for his children. Ted agrees and then things start to fall apart. He has strange memories and his targets seem to know him. And then the book goes in a completely different direction. Not everyone will like this book but I read it straight through. It would have received 5 stars but at the very end I was subjected to a yucky scene with an animal that my shocked eyes didn't jump over fast enough.
4.75 stars
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The Tempest by James Lilliefors - Pastor Luke Bowers and homicide detective Amy Hunter team up to investigate the death of a summer visitor to their town. Only the day before she had visited Luke to say she was afraid of her husband and something he was entangled in. So-so mystery that includes stolen art, the FBI, jealous and chauvinistic police officers, bungling reporters, baby making (wink wink), and many other cliches. Second in a series and I haven't read the first. Could have used some editing, rather long for an ebook, over 400 pages. A low
3 stars
3 stars
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Kill the Next One by Federico Axat - Ted McKay has been diagnosed with a brain tumor. Just when he is about to commit suicide, a stranger knocks on his door and knows what he's about to do. He has a proposition: if Ted kills a "bad guy" and another man also wanting to commit suicide, then someone will murder him, which will supposedly be easier for his children. Ted agrees and then things start to fall apart. He has strange memories and his targets seem to know him. And then the book goes in a completely different direction. Not everyone will like this book but I read it straight through. It would have received 5 stars but at the very end I was subjected to a yucky scene with an animal that my shocked eyes didn't jump over fast enough.
4.75 stars
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The Tempest by James Lilliefors - Pastor Luke Bowers and homicide detective Amy Hunter team up to investigate the death of a summer visitor to their town. Only the day before she had visited Luke to say she was afraid of her husband and something he was entangled in. So-so mystery that includes stolen art, the FBI, jealous and chauvinistic police officers, bungling reporters, baby making (wink wink), and many other cliches. Second in a series and I haven't read the first. Could have used some editing, rather long for an ebook, over 400 pages. A low
3 stars
Sunday, January 22, 2017
Jan 15 - 21, 2017
The Lost Boy by Camilla Lackberg - a well-liked man has been found murdered and no one has any idea why anyone would want to kill him. Patrik Hedstrom and his team slowly try to come up with a motive and a suspect. This is seventh in a series set in Fjallbacka, Sweden, and we're just thrown into the story supposing that we've read the previous books. Many characters with just snippets of their stories told at a time. The biggest mystery for me was trying to connect all the dots of the storyline. There's also a bit of supernatural element to this and the Scandinavian matter of factness about sex. I've read two others in this series and don't remember either. I'm ambivalent about this one.
3 stars
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Where Am I Now? by Mara Wilson - the child actress from Mrs. Doubtfire, Miracle on 34th Street, and Matilda writes a not quite memoir. Mostly she talks about how anxious she was from a really young age and her eventual diagnosis of OCD. Not a good thing to have if you want to be an actress. Eventually she decided she'd rather be a writer. The book was all over the place time wise and there was much talking about yearning for boyfriends. I wanted to like this a lot more.
2 stars
3 stars
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Where Am I Now? by Mara Wilson - the child actress from Mrs. Doubtfire, Miracle on 34th Street, and Matilda writes a not quite memoir. Mostly she talks about how anxious she was from a really young age and her eventual diagnosis of OCD. Not a good thing to have if you want to be an actress. Eventually she decided she'd rather be a writer. The book was all over the place time wise and there was much talking about yearning for boyfriends. I wanted to like this a lot more.
2 stars
Sunday, January 15, 2017
Jan 8 - 14, 2017
Lafayette in the Somewhat United States by Sarah Vowell - how Lafayette and the French won the Revolutionary War. Well, they were quite helpful. It took me awhile to get used to the author's style - the book isn't divided into chapters and I though it meandered some. But I found her asides humorous and a bit acidic.
3.5 stars
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Echo by Pam Munoz Ryan - part fable/fantasy and historical, this is a story of how music can lift us out of our circumstances. The story moves from Germany to Philadelphia and California, connecting the lives of four children, all through a harmonica. My dad had a harmonica from the factory in the book so I thought of him often when I read this. Written for 5-9th grades.
4.5 stars
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Call the Nurse: True Stories of a Country Nurse on a Scottish Isle by Mary J. McLleod - in 1970, Mary and her husband decided to leave London to lead a simpler life. They settled on an island in the Hebrides off the coast of Scotland where Mary would be the district nurse. The book is really a collection of stories about the locals and their way of life at a time when electricity had just come into common usage. There's lots of talk about the weather and the scenery. This was written when Mary was 80 so I suppose a little disjointedness can be overlooked.
2 stars
3.5 stars
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Echo by Pam Munoz Ryan - part fable/fantasy and historical, this is a story of how music can lift us out of our circumstances. The story moves from Germany to Philadelphia and California, connecting the lives of four children, all through a harmonica. My dad had a harmonica from the factory in the book so I thought of him often when I read this. Written for 5-9th grades.
4.5 stars
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Call the Nurse: True Stories of a Country Nurse on a Scottish Isle by Mary J. McLleod - in 1970, Mary and her husband decided to leave London to lead a simpler life. They settled on an island in the Hebrides off the coast of Scotland where Mary would be the district nurse. The book is really a collection of stories about the locals and their way of life at a time when electricity had just come into common usage. There's lots of talk about the weather and the scenery. This was written when Mary was 80 so I suppose a little disjointedness can be overlooked.
2 stars
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