SCLS Reading Suggestions & More

77 Shadow Street by Dean Koontz

2012-01-30T13:50:00.000-08:00

There is a new thing in horror and it’s an oldie but goodie. Haunted houses are back – big time. They have been showing up in horror movies for about a year now and the novelists are catching up. Dean Koontz, who I’ve think was lacking with his horror for a while now, is back in form and delivering the chills. He’s drawing upon the supernatural, the natural and the engineered to bring this chiller of a novel.

The Pendelton is a Gilded Age palace in some large city somewhere in the middle of the country. Once an opulent single family home it was converted into luxury apartments in 1973. Some things didn’t change with the renovation. Every thirty-eight years something strange happens and the inhabitants of the Pendelton disappear, or go mad, or change somehow. It’s 2011 and the last disturbance at the Pendelton was during the renovation. You do the math.

Was it scary? I have no problem reading serial killer thrillers, zombie horror, or anything just plain gross. I do get a little…concerned…when the book is spooky. Things seen out of the corner of your eye, unexplained voices, irrational happenings, now that’s when I get a little unnerved. Did I stay awake for a bit looking at the shadows in my room before falling asleep while reading this novel? Yes. I most certainly did. And it was worth it.

The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater

2012-01-26T07:58:00.000-08:00

The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater

Horseracing with a bizarre and deadly twist. Stiefvater takes the myth of the water horse, a malevolent creature which looks like a normal horse but can swim like a fish, run like the blazes on land, and only ingests meat (human, horse or sheep are just fine), and combines it with an annual race on a rocky island for a large winning purse. Sean has won the Scorpio Races with the water horse Corr four times in the last six years. If he wins this year he can buy Corr from the Malvern Stables, the richest family on the island, and his employer for the past nine years. Kate rashly claims she is entering the races on her horse Dove, a regular horse, not a water horse, so she can save her family home and keep her brother from leaving for the mainland for a few weeks more. Kate is the first woman to ever enter the races and the first participant to ride a normal horse.

I got the sense that the book was set off the coast of Great Britain during the early 1900s but I’m not quite sure. There are British accents and references to America so it is set on a fictional island somewhere in the real world. Mostly an adventure and coming of age story there is a romance as well. Something for everyone!

Since the story is told in alternating chapters from Sean and Kate’s points of view it was great to hear both a male and female voice actor. I loved it on audio until the last disc. The action was so fast paced that it was hard to listen to! If I had the book in hand I would have been furiously skimming to the end. So, I guess it’s good that I listened to it otherwise I may have missed something!

The Crossing Places by Elly Griffiths

2012-01-24T09:36:00.000-08:00

The Crossing Places by Elly Griffiths

Human remains are found buried in the peat in Saltmarsh near Norfolk. Archaeologist Ruth Galloway is called in to determine if the remains are ancient or if it could be Lucy Downey, a five-year-old girl who went missing ten years ago. DCI Harry Nelson hopes that he has finally found Lucy and is disappointed to learn that the body is that of a young girl, but a girl who was sacrificed during the Iron Age. Threatening letters were sent for a year when Lucy first went missing and seem to link her disappearance to Saltmarsh and the henge there. When another young girl, Scarlet, goes missing and letters once again start to arrive referencing the area DCI Nelson goes to Ruth for help puzzling out the mystery.

This is one of the few instances I’ve read where the expert in the field (amateur sleuth) and the police detective work well together. Ruth doesn’t go off and try to solve the mystery. She trusts that DCI Nelson knows what he’s doing, and he does. This is not to say that our amateur sleuth doesn’t find herself in some interesting situations, but we can forgive her because she didn’t do anything silly to end up in peril, she remains intelligent and true to character throughout.

Whispers in the Dark by Maya Banks

2012-01-23T11:58:00.000-08:00

Whispers in the Dark by Maya Banks

Review by Cassandra, Librarian at Mary Jacobs Library

It is that time of the year when the nights are dark and cold so why not spice up your winter reading selections! I started reading Maya Banks' KGI Series several months ago and the latest installment, which came out in early January, is a winning choice for steamy, romantic suspense.

Whispers in the Dark is book 5 in the KGI Series and focuses on the story of Nathan and Shea.

Unlike the other books in the series, Banks throws in a twist in that Shea has special telepathic powers. Overall, her special abilities have made her life hell, but she can't ignore the telepathic communications from a soldier being tortured who is on the brink of giving up, Nathan Kelly. For Nathan these skills save his life and enable him to survive. They also create an incredible bond between these two people.

But when Nathan is rescued, Shea cuts off their connection because she is in her own fight for her life as she is being hunted for her abilities and is on the run. Only when things get desperate and a weak moment on Shea's part causes their connection to flare back to life. That's when the entire KGI team swings into action to save Shea and in turn, save Nathan.

I loved that we got to see an even deeper level of the dynamic between the Kelly brothers. They have a huge part in this story as they are all working together to save Shea. However, just a bit of a fair warning that this is one of those books that you either really love or really hate and be prepared to suspend disbelief!

Three Days in Europe Story by Antony Johnston, Art by Mike Hawthorne

2012-01-23T11:47:00.000-08:00

Three Days in Europe Story by Antony Johnston, Art by Mike Hawthorne

Review by Kay, Librarian at Bridgewater Library

“Love in the Fast Lane” is how I would describe this graphic novel. The story involves a couple who are attempting to improve their relationship by planning surprise European vacation trips for each other. But lack of communication and hasty departures brings about each person traveling to the wrong location. Both parties - Jack and Jill - end up with one-night stands and in dangerous situations. There is a happy ending: the couple up in Paris together, the police catch the bad guys and Jack and Jill are once again a couple. The graphics are all in black and white and the action is fast and predictable.

The Silent Land by Graham Joyce

2012-01-19T10:15:00.000-08:00

The Silent Land by Graham Joyce

This is a wonderful mind bender of a book; a love story that makes you think about life, love and what comes after.

Jake and Zoe Bennett go skiing in the Pyrenees early one morning and are engulfed by an avalanche. They manage to free themselves from the crushing snow and hike down to their hotel only to find it empty. There is no one at the front desk, in the kitchens, anywhere. There is no one in the town, in the shops, at the police station. They reason that there must have been an evacuation of the entire area due to the avalanche threat. Not wanting to be caught in another avalanche they try to drive, hike and walk to a neighboring town. But they always end up where they started. As Jake and Zoe explore their surroundings they come to the conclusion that they are dead. But as time goes by they start to wonder: are they really dead? Where are they? What exactly is going on?

This is a slim, descriptive tale that will keep you reading, smiling and crying until the very end. A story about love and how it truly conquers all.

How I Made It to Eighteen: A Mostly True Story Story and Art by Tracy White

2012-01-19T07:06:00.000-08:00

How I Made It to Eighteen: A Mostly True Story Story and Art by Tracy White

This is the tale of how Stacy Black (Tracy White’s illustrated self) wound up in a psychiatric hospital, faced that she had a problem (actually problems) and got herself back on track. The author freely admits on page one that the book is in essence true. She did a lot of drugs, she was depressed, and she had other problems. As far as the untruths go, she changed the order of some events and the names of some people to protect their identities.

This is a stark in your face look at the process of facing your problems and beginning to work them through. We see Stacy through the eyes of four of her friends from different times in her life as well as through her own eyes. As much as you want to shake her sometimes (her obsession with her boyfriend is painful to behold) you like her and want her to get better. It’s a very real feeling book and the simple black and white line drawings fit perfectly with a person reconstructing their life.

American Jesus Story by Mark Millar, Art by Peter Gross

2012-01-19T07:05:00.000-08:00

American Jesus Story by Mark Millar, Art by Peter Gross
Review by Carolyn, Librarian at Bridgewater Library

After 12 year old Jodie Christianson escapes unscathed from an accident with an eighteen wheeler everything changes. In school he begins to ace his tests, he can cure the sick, and even raise the dead. Could this kid be Jesus reborn? The pacing is fast and the character of Jodie is well developed. The artwork provides a clue to the story’s ending.

The Invisible Ones by Stef Penney

2012-01-18T07:05:00.000-08:00

The Invisible Ones by Stef Penney

The book starts with PI Ray Lovell recovering from his injuries in hospital. (Yes, the book takes place in England.) He knows that he was meeting with a family of gypsies just prior to his car accident, but an ordinary car crash can’t explain the strange symptoms he is experiencing. The whole book leads up to this point and what happened to Ray and why.

Ray was hired by a Romany father trying to find the daughter he hasn’t seen in six years. The trail is cold, but Ray takes the case starting with the last people to see her, her husband and his family. Told alternately by Ray and J.J., a teenaged member of the gypsy clan at the center of the mystery, the reader gets an interesting perspective on the life of the modern day (actually 1986) of the Romany living a nomadic existence in England.

As Sherlock Holmes says in The Sign of Four: How often have I said to you that when you have eliminated the impossible, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth? I have to pat my own back for a minute here. I did figure out the twist of the story prior to the ending. All the reviews mention the shocking ending, but if you follow Sherlockian deduction methods you too may figure it out just before Ray does.

Shattered by Karen Robards

2012-01-18T06:50:00.000-08:00

Shattered by Karen Robards

Lisa, a researcher at a Lexington law firm, gets in trouble with her boss and is banished to Siberia. In law firm parlance that would be the basement and the cold case files. All the files need to be reviewed and scanned into the computer system. One of her colleagues finds a photograph of a missing family in a cold case file and the mother in the picture looks exactly like Lisa. It’s uncanny how similar they look. And the doll that the young girl is holding in the picture seems very much like a doll Lisa remembers playing with as a child.

As soon as Lisa discovers the picture and starts looking into the missing Garcia family horrible things start happening to her. Is it coincidence or are all these incidents related?

Robards is a romantic suspense author and in this book you definitely get both romance and suspense. If you like a fast paced mystery mixed with passion you may want to try Robards to get you in the Valentine’s Day state of mind.

Real People – Unreal Crimes

2012-01-11T10:52:00.000-08:00

The Mysterious Mornings group met this morning and talked about their favorite mysteries featuring real people as sleuths. If it’s a mystery and the main character is famous for something other than solving crimes, and is now solving crimes, then it fit this month’s sub-genre.

Here is the list of group favorites listed by author and sleuth:

Alexander, Bruce (Sir John Fielding)
Barron, Stephanie (Jane Austen)
Brandreth, Gyles (Oscar Wilde)
Davis, Lindsey (Marcus Didius Falco)
Frost, Mark (Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)
Hall, Robert Lee (Benjamin Franklin)
Harper, Karen (Elizabeth I)
Ifkovic, Ed (Edna Ferber)
Kaminsky, Stuart M. (Toby Peters)
Rivers, Joan (Max Taylor – Basically Joan Rivers)
Rowland, Laura Joh (Charlotte Bronte)
Stevens, Rosemary (Beau Brummell)

Interested in joining a Mysterious Mornings discussion? A list of suggested authors and titles are available at the Bridgewater Library and books will be on display about a month prior to the discussion. (If you’re a voracious mystery reader you can read more than one!) Our next theme/subgenre is British Bobbies & Inspectors.

If it’s a mystery and the main character is a member of the police force in England, then it fits this month’s subgenre. Just keep in mind how the setting affects the mystery (and the police procedures) because that’ll be a major talking point at our discussion in March. (The meeting will be on Tuesday, March 6th at 9:30am at the Bridgewater Library.)

Quiver by Holly Luhning

2012-01-11T10:49:00.000-08:00

Quiver by Holly Luhning

Danica Winston moved from America to England for two reasons: to follow her artist boyfriend and to work at Stowmoor Psychiatric Hospital and interview Martin Foster. Martin Foster brutally murdered a 14-year old girl mimicking the savage murders of Countess Elizabeth Bathory. Danica has always been intrigued with the Bathory legend: known as the Blood Countess this Hungarian noblewoman is thought to have murdered over 600 young women and bathed in their blood. Maria, Danica’s archivist friend who seems to pop up at the same conferences as Danica over the past few years, is also intrigued with Bathory and has finally found, and is beginning the translation of, the Countess’ diaries. The stories of the past and present intertwine in this mysterious thriller.

The premise and the gradually growing oppressive tone of the book were great. The story needed a little more. Maybe because I read a lot I saw where the story was going, but the ending was still good. I just think she needed a little less predictability to go with her atmospheric novel. I’ll be interested to see what she writes next.

The Greater Journey: Americans in Paris by David McCullough

2012-01-10T12:02:00.000-08:00

The Greater Journey: Americans in Paris by David McCullough

Reviewed by Cassandra, Librarian at Mary Jacobs Library

David McCullough cannot seem to go wrong regarding his writing topics. The Greater Journey is part travel, biography and history that catapults the reader across the pond to Paris as we learn about America's greatest artists, politicians, writers, physicians and thinkers.

We follow known figures such as James Fenimore Cooper, Samuel Morse, Oliver Wendell Holmes Sr., Mary Cassat, Elizabeth Blackwell, Harriet Beecher-Stowe, Whistler, William Wells Brown and Augustus Saint-Gaudens as they experience life changing adventures that ultimately played a vital role in transforming the course of US history.

I have always enjoyed David McCullough's books and this one is no different. McCullough delivers miniature biographies of obscure and well known Americans to produce a colorful parade of Victorian-era American travelers and their life-changing experiences in Paris. The audio book, read by Edward Herrman and David McCullough, was very well done and I once again found myself driving circles around my house in order to finish a chapter.

Murder at the Academy Awards by Joan Rivers with Jerrilyn Farmer

2012-01-09T16:15:00.000-08:00

Murder at the Academy Awards by Joan Rivers with Jerrilyn Farmer

The sleuth in this mystery is Maxine Taylor, a say-it-like-it-is red carpet fashionista covering the Academy Awards with her daughter Drew. Sound like anyone we know? Of course it does. Joan Rivers admits that she is writing about herself (albeit a much younger version) who gets involved with a juicy murder on the red carpet (which has thankfully not happened).

Halsey Hamilton is the second youngest starlet ever nominated for Best Actress. She is also a train wreck. She’s been in rehab for the past three months and wasn’t supposed to come to the ceremony, but Max has just learned that not only is the troubled starlet coming, she’s giving Max an exclusive interview! All seems wonderful until Halsey arrives sans dress and incoherent, eventually lying down on the red carpet, and as far as Max can tell, dying. Who could possibly want to extinguish such a rising star? Max and her entourage are on the case.

While humor and biting comments abound with name dropping and Hollywood commentary, there is also a really good mystery at the core of this story. I was pleasantly surprised. If you need some pre-Oscar warm up this may be the book for you.

Micro by Michael Crichton and Richard Preston

2012-01-04T07:33:00.000-08:00

Micro by Michael Crichton and Richard Preston

I am a fan of Crichton’s work and I was a little nervous to hear that the author’s unfinished work was going to be finished by another writer. Then I heard that the author doing the finishing was Richard Preston. This was cause for much joy since I loved Demon in the Freezer and The Hot Zone.

While I can’t say I loved the book, and I didn’t hate it, I was disappointed. The science was fascinating – a plausible way to shrink humans and other materials. The dangers were scary – bugs are REALLY scary when they are bigger than you are. But the plot was lacking. If you want to get people out of the way (as in dead) then you just get rid of them (as in murder). Don’t turn them into very tiny humans (half an inch tall – VERY tiny) and not squish them right away. Due to the villain’s delay in getting rid of them they end up dumped in the jungle. These are smart graduate students. Someone will survive simply because you don’t want them to. For a very smart villain he was pretty dumb.

On the plus side there were some great plot twists and action scenes. This would make an excellent movie. And if you wanted to know how deadly and amazing bugs are to other bugs, you can get a bug’s eye view and see how well you would fare in the microverse.

V is for Vengeance by Sue Grafton

2012-01-02T14:39:00.000-08:00

V is for Vengeance by Sue Grafton

Kinsey Millhone is at is again. She’s investigating one crime and gets pulled into a whole world of wrongdoing. But that’s life for a PI in 1988.

That’s the best thing about this series, when Grafton started writing in 1982 it was a contemporary series. She structured Kinsey’s cases to take place every month or two so while twenty-nine years have passed for our readers only six have gone by for her main character. There is something refreshing about phone books being prime sources of information and having a spare rotary dial telephone in your closet. The book is slower paced than many contemporary mysteries, especially since a lot of research is done at the library and city centers which are closed on weekends. Computers are just starting to come on the scene; carbon paper is still used by Kinsey on a regular basis when writing reports.

This is a good choice if you’re looking for a mystery that is interesting and a story line that fills you in on the minute to minute activity of a PIs day. Grafton is also great at taking unrelated stories and not filling you in on all the ways they are interconnected until the very end. I listened to this one while cleaning up after the holiday madness and if your mind wanders or you miss a minute or two you’re okay. It’s a relaxing listen that doesn’t require your full attention to remain intriguing.

Faith by Jennifer Haigh

2012-01-02T14:38:00.000-08:00

Faith by Jennifer Haigh

In this book a man trusted by many is accused of an unspeakable crime. It is Boston in 2002 and the Catholic Church is under fire. Art is yet another priest at the center of a scandal. Did he or didn’t he? His sister is sure her brother is innocent of all claims against him, her other brother, himself a father with three young boys, isn’t sure what to believe. The parishioners are divided. Some believe that Father Art couldn’t possibly harm a child and others are in doubt. What is true?

The story is related by Shelia, Art’s sister. She has unswerving faith in her brother’s innocence. She is determined to get to the bottom of the accusations and discover the truth behind the lies.

Well written and complex this narrative takes you thorough the life of a man as revealed by the searchings of his sister. She thought she knew all about her brother, but even a priest in the public eye has secrets. Faith, in God, in yourself, in others, is at the core of this story.

When She Woke by Hillary Jordan

2011-12-29T07:53:00.000-08:00

When She Woke by Hillary Jordan

Remember The Scarlet Letter? This is a rewrite set in a dystopian future when church and state are no longer separate but co-mingled in all but a few holdout states. In this future those found guilty of a crime are Chromed. They are genetically altered so their skin color reflects their crime. Yellows have committed misdemeanors, blues are sexual predators and reds are murderers.

Hannah Payne committed murder in the eyes of the law when she had an abortion. She refused to give any information about the man who performed the procedure or the identity of the father. By withholding this information her sentence as a Chrome has been extended by six years to sixteen.

Reverand Dale is a charismatic religious leader who speaks for leniency at Hannah’s trial since she was a former member of his congregation. He is now in Washington D.C. serving in the highest religious position in the country. He was also the father of Hannah’s child.

All of this sound a little familiar? It’s a unique retelling where things don’t always go the way you suspect and character motivations aren’t always what they seem.

Murder on the Cliffs: A Daphne Du Maurier Mystery by Joanna Challis

2011-12-28T08:36:00.000-08:00

Murder on the Cliffs: A Daphne Du Maurier Mystery by Joanna Challis

Where did Daphne Du Maurier get her inspiration for the classic tale Rebecca? From becoming involved in a murder investigation! When Daphne comes across the body of a woman at the bottom of a cliff she finds herself in the center of a scandal. Did the bride-to-be commit suicide? Or was she pushed? There are a number of people who would want the young woman dead, but did any of them commit murder?

The author works the real-life authoress into this fictional mystery very well. Never do you feel like you are getting a history lesson or a biographical sketch. You learn about the times and the woman through the course of the narrative. It is also a well written mystery with a gothic air reminiscent of Rebecca.

If you are a mystery reader, you may be interested in joining the Mysterious Mornings discussions. Our next theme/sub-genre is Real People – Unreal Crimes. A list of suggested authors and titles is available at the Bridgewater Library and titles are on display right now.

If it’s a mystery and the main character is famous for something other than solving crimes, and is now solving crimes, then it fits this month’s sub-genre. Just keep in mind how the main character’s fame and profession affects the mystery because that will be a major talking point at our discussion on Wednesday, January 11^th at 9:30am at the Bridgewater Library.

Wickedly Charming by Kristine Grayson

2011-12-28T07:45:00.000-08:00

Wickedly Charming by Kristine Grayson

What if all the characters in fairy tales actually existed? What happens after the happily ever after? Well, Prince Charming and Ella (that’s her real name, the Cinder part got smushed on by the Brothers Grimm) are divorcing. Mellie, the stepmother from the Snow White tale, is trying to get a grassroots movement off the ground to ban the lies (meaning the fairy tales). And Dave (the name Prince Charming uses in our world) just wants to run his bookshop and get books at the book fair. That’s when he runs into Mellie who is protesting the book fair. He tries to pass on his love to books to her; she sees a way to get her message about nice stepmothers out there; and they start collaborating on a plan. Could Prince Charming fall for an Evil Stepmother? Is there life after Happily Ever After? If you’re a fan of romance, retold tales or just a fun, quick read, you’ll enjoy visiting the Greater World (where we live) and the Kingdoms (where the fairy tales happen).

Legend by Marie Lu

2011-12-21T12:08:00.000-08:00

Legend by Marie Lu

Missing The Hunger Games? Looking for the next big dystopian series? Look no further. Lu has a winner with Legend.

It’s some time in the future in what is now part of the Republic, the place we know as California. The West Coast is not only a location prone to earthquakes, but devastating hurricanes happen with frightening regularity. It’s also a hotbed of plague with mutant forms of the virus sprouting up in the poorer sections of the cities every few months.

If you’re from a wealthy family like June, life in the Republic isn’t so bad. Add to her comfortable living situation the fact that she scored a perfect score on her Trial (mandatory testing given to all ten year olds in the Republic) and you have a girl on the fast track to success. June loves the Republic and wants to be a great solider, just like her older brother Metias.

If you’re from a poorer family like Day, life in the Republic isn’t so great. Add to his not-so-great living situation the fact that he’s on the run for his actions against the Republic. While he’s not working for the Colonies he is considered one of the biggest enemies of the Republic.

Told in alternating chapters by June and Day (you just know these two are going to meet!) this is a great edge of your seat tale about life in a place that is good or horrid depending on where you stand and a place where nothing is at it seems to be.

Just My Type: A Book About Fonts by Simon Garfield

2011-12-20T07:24:00.000-08:00

Just My Type: A Book About Fonts by Simon Garfield

Are you the sort of person who notices the type style in advertising and signs? Does it drive you nuts when something you are reading changes fonts in the middle? Do you know the difference between a serif and sans serif typeface? Then this is the book for you! (Even if you aren’t currently a font fanatic, this book will help you become impassioned about the printed word!)

Garfield takes you on a journey through the history of printing and the font revolution Steve Jobs created when his Apple software came preloaded with a number of fonts. You learn which fonts are most airport friendly, which fonts you’ll find in France and which fonts were created for special purposes and have become legendary. (You’ll also learn about some font flops and most hated fonts. Comic Sans being the most hated of all.)

If you’re looking for an entertaining read and also looking to learn something which may one day help you on Jeopardy! you’ve found a good one here. The chapters are short and basically stand on their own so you can read a bit, have a giggle or two, and put it down for a day and not lose anything.

I recommend only reading this book in its physical print form. The typeface changes to illustrate various fonts and the illustrations are wonderful.

Madame Tussaud: A Novel of the French Revolution by Michelle Moran

2011-12-16T11:25:00.000-08:00

Madame Tussaud: A Novel of the French Revolution by Michelle Moran

As we are aware, history is written by the victors. Therefore, most of what I knew about the French Revolution was from the side of the citizenry, even though their side was a brutal one. The Reign of Terror is a very appropriate description indeed! What made this book, and its main character, unique was the way both sides of the revolution were portrayed. You get to see the revolution from the beginning, when it was just talk in a salon, through to the road running red with traitorous blood: the definition of traitor getting vaguer and vaguer as time went on. You also get to see into the court of Louis and Marie Antoinette by the sculptress’s tutelage of the king’s sister. The woman we now associate with wax museums was a sought out artist in her time.

It was interesting to see how involved (albeit unwillingly) Tussaud was in the French Revolution. (If you don’t know how, I’m not giving it away here!) The process and expense of the wax figures at that time was shocking, but not more so than the popularity of her museum and the price of admission.

This is a fascinating read of another time and place which the Popular Fiction Book Discussion Group will be discussing Madame Tussaud on Tuesday, February 21^st at 7pm at the Bridgewater Library. Please contact the library at 908-526-4016 x105 if you would like to signup to attend this discussion.

The Swerve: How the World Became Modern by Robert Greenblatt

2011-12-12T10:59:00.000-08:00

The Swerve: How the World Became Modern by Robert Greenblatt
Reviewed by Cassandra, Librarian at Mary Jacobs Library

It seems that every nonfiction book I've reviewed for the blog has been my all-time favorite. I guess I should continue on that trend with this book! The Swerve is in my top 10 favorite nonfiction books of 2011 and it might just be one of my all-time favorite books. It is a quick listen on audio at just 8 discs and the reader, Edoardo Ballerini, is easy on the ears.

In explaining how European civilization started to push away from Christian religiosity of the Middle Ages into a worldview we recognize as our secular own, Greenblatt traces book hunter Poggio Bracciolini, in 1417, on his quest through Medieval monasteries to search for ancient manuscripts. On this quest he unearths Lucretius's "De rerum natura" (On the Nature of Things.) This book-length Latin poem, written in the 1^st century B.C.E., is described as remarkably beautiful and gripping, while being a great example of Epicurean philosophy (available from gutenberg.org.) It is the story of how this particular manuscript was found, copied and passed along that Greenblatt believes led the way out of the Middle Ages and into the Renaissance and then into modern philosophy.

In essence, this book is an ode to the power and tenacity of manuscripts and the celebration of the scribal skills of men such as Poggio and Niccolo. There is also an amazing insight into medieval religious fervor and the medieval monks who toiled in monastic scriptoria and discreetly inserted grumbles - "Thin ink, bad parchment, difficult text" -onto the pages they produced.

Dreams of Joy by Lisa See

2011-12-08T09:21:00.000-08:00

Dreams of Joy by Lisa See

You don’t have to read Shanghai Girls to appreciate See’s latest book, but it certainly helps since this is a direct sequel taking place IMMEDIATELY after Shanghai Girls ends. This is the story of Joy, an idealistic and naïve nineteen year old who decides to go to China to find her biological father. It is also the story of Pearl, her mother, who follows her daughter to China. If the story took place today it would be complicated enough, but in the book it is 1957 and Joy has just entered Mao’s China.

Seeing Mao’s communes and the transformation of the city of Shanghai is startling. I knew that things under Mao were bad; I just was unaware of how bad. Mao’s unreasonable demands on the communes (fertilizing the fields with crushed glass, seeding ten times the normal amount, competitions for harvest times) caused the great famines that killed up to 45 million people. You get a great understanding of why there wasn’t an uprising of the people, it’s hard to rebel when you are dying of starvation.

Narrated in the first person by both Joy and Pearl you get great insights into these two characters and get to see the transformation of Joy into a woman and the love Pearl has for her wayward daughter.

Silver Sparrow by Tayari Jones

2011-12-01T07:31:00.000-08:00

Silver Sparrow by Tayari Jones

Dana is a secret. She is the daughter of a hidden family. Her father James has two daughters, Dana and Chaurisse, born only four months apart, yet only one can claim him as her father in public. Dana is not that daughter.

Dana grows up knowing her father is a bigamist, knowing all about her sister and her family. She knows that if Chaurisse wants to attend a certain program or work at a certain place she cannot. She feels that Chaurisse is the lucky one, the favored daughter. Things start to unravel when Dana and Chaurisse start to hang out together. Dana is trying to learn everything she can about her sister while Chaurisse is thrilled to have a new friend. Secrets don’t stay secret forever.

Set in the 1980s in Atlanta this is an interesting look at how this social situation could actually seem to work for an extended period of time. I read an interview with the author and she was amazed at how many letters she received from people like Dana who were from hidden families.

I think the best part of the book was the perspective switch at the midpoint. The first half is told from Dana’s point of view and suddenly we have the story from Charuisse’s viewpoint. While it was jarring at first since the girls are more alike than either would ever admit, seeing the other side of the story was in interesting storytelling device.

The Boy in the Suitcase by Lene Kaaberbol and Agnete Friis

2011-11-28T09:08:00.000-08:00

The Boy in the Suitcase by Lene Kaaberbol and Agnete Friis

This book was popping up on mystery lists everywhere for the past couple of months. It is the first Nina Borg mystery to be translated into English and it’s the first Danish mystery I’ve read. I will ruin a little of the suspense for you: the boy in the suitcase is alive. When I read the title my mind went to doom and gloom and to places I don’t wish to explore. While the tension is created around the main character, Nina, who is a clueless as we are about why this young boy is in a suitcase and her mind goes to where ours would (human trafficking, etc.), what is really happening is so much more intriguing and twisty than I would have suspected.

Nina Borg, our heroine, is likable despite her habit of disappearing from her family for months on end. She’s saving lives in Africa so you can’t really fault her. She is a nurse who needs to make a difference in the world and she does so wherever and whenever she can: which is why she feels the need to figure out why there is a three-year-old left in a suitcase without going to the authorities.

Not nearly as dark, brooding or gory as the Swedish mysteries that have been getting all the press as of late, this is a great introduction to Scandinavian mysteries for those that want a taste without the attendant depression of the Swedish ones. (I don’t know about all of you, but I need to read something light and happy after getting through a Swedish mystery.)

Language of Flowers by Vanessa Diffenbaugh

2011-11-28T06:52:00.000-08:00

Language of Flowers by Vanessa Diffenbaugh

Have a favorite flower to give or to receive? Do you know what that flower is saying? The Victorian art of communication through flowers is at the heart of this novel about a damaged young woman, named Victoria, struggling to understand and be understood by those around her.

In and out of foster homes most of her life, and now homeless and with no one to turn to, Victoria finds work at a local florist. At this job she begins to create arrangements using the language of flowers – and creates a successful business out of her work. All is not resolved, Victoria must learn to find her place in the world and talk about her feelings and allow herself to feel in turn. The writing style is not flowery, yet it is a lush tale of damage and the journey to redemption.

At the end of the novel is an appendix of flowers and their meanings. My favorite flower means cheerfulness which makes perfect sense since gerbera daisies are fun flowers. Beware though. Some flowers may mean jealously, deceit or other unsavory things.

Maphead: Charting the Wide, Weird World of Geography Wonks by Ken Jennings

2011-11-23T12:47:00.000-08:00

Maphead: Charting the Wide, Weird World of Geography Wonks by Ken Jennings

I just love maps. I love looking at them, dreaming about what other places are like, even wondering how certain places got their wonderfully wacky names. I think having a GPS is cheating. I love finding my way through corn mazes with only a map and my wits to guide me out. I can’t understand people who can’t read maps. Then again, I can’t make sense of a large area until I see a map, so I really shouldn’t judge.

Ken Jennings (big time Jeopardy! winner) is a lover of maps (read: maphead) too. A much bigger fan than I. Obviously, he wrote the book. And what a fun book it is! Full of facts and odd bits of knowledge about map making, the hidden lives of old maps, geocaching, lifetime travel lists, and geography bee champions, this book is as entertaining as it is informative. I was so caught up in map love I put a road atlas and a “cool” world atlas on my list for Santa (read: dad) to bring me this year.

If you are a fan of humor, knowledge, maps or trivia you’ll want to give this one a read.

The Non-Fiction Book Discussion Group will be talking about Maphead: Charting the Wide, Weird World of Geography Wonks on Thursday, February 9^th at 1pm. Register online if you would like to join in the discussion!

Rin Tin Tin: The Life and the Legend by Susan Orlean

2011-11-23T12:36:00.000-08:00

Rin Tin Tin: The Life and the Legend by Susan Orlean

I never saw Rin Tin Tin on the silver screen or on a television screen, yet I knew he was a famous German Shepherd. He’s part of American culture. And now he’s back in the minds of America because of Orlean’s new book.

Rinty, as his owner affectionately called him, was a foundling: an orphan pup found in a bombed out kennel in France during WWI. From these humble beginnings he became one of the most famous actors in the world and a beloved hero of multiple generations. Told in a factual and entertaining way Orlean follows Rinty’s life as other dogs take on the collar (so to speak) and become the new Rin Tin Tin. There is a lot of interesting background on how dogs fought alongside our soldiers in various wars as well as the evolution of the motion picture and television industries. More than just a book about a dog, this is a book that would appeal to anyone enjoying a story about how a legend was born.

The Non-Fiction Book Discussion Group will be talking about Rin Tin Tin: The Life and the Legend on Thursday, January 12^th at 1pm. Register online if you would like to join in the discussion!

The Stranger You Seek by Amanda Kyle Williams

2011-11-22T07:40:00.000-08:00

The Stranger You Seek by Amanda Kyle Williams

Yes, there are an awful lot of books out there. And yes, it’s hard to find something “good” when there are a lot of similar books (amateur sleuth, vampire romance, spy thriller – to name a few) in a subgenre coming out every year. But every once in a while you have to take a chance on the new kid on the block, and I’ve found more often than not I’m not disappointed. Enter Keye Street, recovering alcoholic, disgraced FBI profiler, now private detective in Atlanta, Georgia. The damaged former golden child of law enforcement has been done before, typically with a male protagonist, but Street is a character to watch.

I enjoyed Street’s story, there is just enough to satisfy my curiosity, but not too much so that the main plot is overwhelmed. She’s an adopted child of stereotypical Southern parents. For example, her mom is a genteel (in her mind) southern lady who refused to address Street’s cat by her given name. Street found her cat outside in the garbage can; it is a white cat, so she named her White Trash. Street’s mom doesn’t find the name proper and calls her White Kitty, Whitey and her new favorite name Snowflake. It’s little touches like this that make the book read more like a real life and less like an episode of CSI. But this is no cozy and Street is a tough lady. The way she takes down a bail jumper twice her size is too cool to give away here.

This is a complex serial killer thriller. Street and her best friend from Atlanta Police Department are trying to track a sadistic killer with terror, red herrings and back story galore. I love a thriller that keeps me on the edge of my seat and constantly guessing and this book is a winner. I’ve read so many of these types of books that sometimes I see the end coming and I really don’t like that. I like the surprise. I like participating in the brain games and the chase alongside the main character. I was with Street every step of the way.

Amateur American Sleuths

2011-11-22T07:12:00.000-08:00

The Mysterious Mornings group met this morning and talked about their favorite mysteries starring Amateur American Sleuths. If it’s a mystery and the main character is solving crimes, but isn’t a police officer or private investigator, then it fit this month’s sub-genre. Since we have already (or will be) discussed culinary, crafting, hobby and pet mysteries, we left them off the list.

Here are the group favorites listed by author and their series main character:

Barr, Nevada (Anna Pigeon)
Burke, Jan (Irene Kelly)
Cannell, Dorothy (Ellie Haskell)
Clark, Mary Jane (KEY News Mysteries)
Dobson, Joanna (Karen Pelletier)
Graves, Sarah (Home Repair is Homicide)
MacInerney, Karen (Gray Whale Inn Mysteries)
Maron, Margaret (Deborah Knott)
Meier, Leslie (Lucy Stone)
Riggs, Cynthia (Martha's Vineyard Mysteries)
Thompson, Victoria (Gaslight Mysteries)
White, Kate (Bailey Weggins)

Interested in joining in on a Mysterious Morning discussion? A list of suggested authors and titles are available at the Bridgewater Library and books will be on display about a month prior to the discussion. (If you’re a voracious mystery reader you can read more than one.) Our next theme/subgenre is Real People -- Unreal Crimes.

If it’s a mystery and the main character is famous for soemthing other than solving crimes, and is now solving crimes, then it fits this month’s sub-genre. Just keep in mind how the main character's fame and profession affects the mystery because that’ll be a major talking point at our discussion on January 11th at 9:30am at the Bridgewater Library.

The Replacement by Brenna Yovanoff

2011-11-15T14:12:00.000-08:00

The Replacement by Brenna Yovanoff

The small town of Gentry seems like a normal enough place. It’s a lucky place – when a factory closes another large business seems to move in and keep the town employed, all seems to go well for the town. All is happy and gay except a child dies every seven years: a child that seems different, off somehow. And no one seems to notice or care that the child who dies isn’t the real child. It looks like the real child, but it simply isn’t. But Mackie Doyle cares. He’s is a “different” child: a child that has lived sixteen years despite being fatally allergic to iron, blood and consecrated ground. (Which some may not think is too hard to avoid, but his dad is a pastor.) Mackie Doyle is a replacement. And he’s determined to figure out why he is like he is and stop the horrible cycle of Gentry.

I’ll admit it. I picked this one up because of the cover. Young adult books have the coolest covers and I just tend to gravitate towards them. So does my mother. I received The Replacement as an advance reader’s copy last year and never got around to it. I was in an independent bookstore this weekend with my mom and she picked it up and I promised her my copy when I was done with it. Being a nice daughter I moved it to the top of the pile.

Fans of paranormal and urban fantasy would enjoy this book. What is also nice is that it isn’t to be continued. The story fits nicely in its small package and that is something to appreciate right there.

Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor

2011-11-14T11:14:00.000-08:00

Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor

This is one of those books where none of the reviews did it any justice. The reviews make it sound like high esoteric fantasy where really it’s a great dual-world paranormal fantasy. It’s totally accessible to any reader, even non-fantasy fans, since one of the two worlds is our Earth: makes the alternate world learning curve a LOT easier to deal with. The Entertainment Weekly review made it out to be literary and in my mind I equate literary with unreadable or “out there.” This reviewer must have just meant “very well written” and has made me rethink glossing over novels labeled as literary.

In this novel we’re in present day Prague. Karou is a blue-haired art school student with a secret other life. She is also a retriever of teeth for a shop run by chimera, beast/human mixed beings. This shop is accessed through multiple doors hidden throughout our world and Karou has had many an adventure retrieving different types of teeth from all sorts of nice and unsavory characters. All is well with Karou and her dual existence until a being, an angel is the closest word she can find for this beautiful man with fiery wings, opens her eyes to the war being fought on her other home world.

This is a well-crafted thoroughly engrossing tale. Fans of paranormal fantasy and romance – check this one out. One warning: the last three words of the book are – to be continued… ARGH!

Hard Truth by Nevada Barr

2011-11-14T11:13:00.000-08:00

Hard Truth by Nevada Barr

I have been meaning to read an Anna Pigeon book forever and finally got around to listening to one. All the mysteries in this series take place in National Parks since Pigeon is a Ranger with the National Park Service. In Hard Truth Pigeon just took a position with Rocky Mountain National Park and is caught up in the story of two battered tweens who stumble out of the woods six weeks after they were reported missing. The girls claim they have no idea where they have been or what has happened to them and they don’t know where the third girl who was with them has gone.

I listened to this book and the reader was very good, however, there was a lot of mouth noise. I don’t know if she was drinking glasses of water throughout her recording or what, but it was pretty distracting. Still, great story, maybe not such a great listen.

I was expecting a cozy mystery and instead got a polygamous sect, serial killers, hand raised predators and some strange sociology/psychology insights. For me it was a pleasant surprise. Next time Barr comes out with a new mystery I will probably be adding her to my book pile.

State of Wonder by Ann Patchett

2011-11-10T06:43:00.000-08:00

State of Wonder by Ann Patchett

Marina Singh loves her job as a researcher at a large pharmaceutical company. She also loves where she lives in frigid Minnesota. But when a close colleague doesn’t return from his attempt to track down an elusive researcher in the Amazon she is sent to both check on the status of the fertility research in the jungle and find out the details of her colleague’s death.

This novel really reminded me of Heart of Darkness – the jungle is a ferocious, exotic and completely alien place. Patchett makes the Amazon and its inhabitants a lush and multi-dimensional being, really allowing the reader to walk in Marina’s shoes.

At the core this is a story about medical ethics. Just because medicine can alter the human body, should it do so? What are the consequences of each new discovery? Are some discoveries too value to humankind to attach a price to? If so, who does pay the price?

Join the Popular Fiction Book Discussion Group at the Bridgewater Library on Tuesday, December 13^th at 7pm as we talk about this novel. Sign up online or call the Adult Reference Desk (908-526-4016 x 105) to register.

Virals by Kathy Reichs

2011-11-10T06:29:00.000-08:00

Virals by Kathy Reichs

I’m sure you’re familiar with Reichs’s Temperance Brennan character from either her bestselling novels or the hit television series Bones. But did you know she has a niece with her own series? Tory Brennan is the main character in the book Virals, the first in a new series. Tory, like her aunt, is a bit of a science nerd but that is where the similarities between the series end. Tory is in high school, lives on Morris Island outside of Charleston and is a bit of a modern day Nancy Drew with a twist. She and three of her fellow Morris Island teen residents stumble upon a decades old mystery/conspiracy/cover-up and manage to get themselves infected by a strain of (supposedly) canine-only disease. I don’t want to give too much away here, but the kids call themselves “virals” and they can do some pretty neat things with their senses now.

While adults will want to read it because of the author, those that don’t like a little science fiction with their mystery may not enjoy it as much as teen readers. A great pick on audio – the use of sound effects adds to the suspense and the accents are great.

Rules of Civility by Amor Towles

2011-11-09T10:24:00.000-08:00

Rules of Civility by Amor Towles

In the 1960s a woman is browsing a gallery with her husband. The photographs on the walls are from the late 1930s. An artist used a hidden camera to photograph people on the subway. He hadn’t shown the images until now because he didn’t want to invade the privacy of these unsuspecting passengers. The woman is startled to recognize her old friend Tinker in one of the photos. In it he is well dressed and looks weary. As she is leaving the gallery she spies another photo of Tinker. Now he is shabbily dressed, on the thin side, but has a slight smile. Her husband comments that it’s nice to see how he went from rags to riches. The wife corrects him. The well dressed photo was taken in 1938; the shabbily dressed one was taken in 1939. This is the story of the year in a life of four friends and the events which shaped their futures.

The city, the economy, the time are as much characters as the four friends. This is a well-crafted relationship story that shows people are many layered and not always only as they seem. It’s also a study in the meaning of happiness and success and how conventional definitions don’t fit everyone.

Beauty Queens by Libba Bray

2011-11-09T07:55:00.000-08:00

Beauty Queens by Libba Bray

In a word: absurd. In another word: wonderful. To sum up: wonderfully absurd.

Some time in the not-so-distant future a plane full of Miss Teen Dream contestants crashes on a deserted island. Not many Teen Dreamers make it. Only about fifteen girls survive. One has a tray table stuck in her forehead, one is determined to practice her routines (no matter that the pageant will most likely not go on), one joined just to sabotage the pageant (and is now stuck with the others), and yet another isn’t even strictly female. But they have spunk and ingenuity and they are survivors. Nevermind the illegal weapons deal, the secret base on the island and the political intrigue. That’s just icing on the cake.

If you’re a fan of the absurd writing of Douglas Adams or Carl Hiaasen you will probably laugh out loud over this one. What’s really great is under all the sarcasm and weirdness is a real message. Girls can do anything when they are given the opportunity to succeed. This is a book with heart at its core and wackiness everywhere else.

Lost Voices by Sarah Porter

2011-11-09T07:40:00.000-08:00

Lost Voices by Sarah Porter

A co-worker with connections in publishing told me that mermaids would be the next big thing now that the vampire craze is losing some steam. Lost Voices describes an interesting idea about the creation of mermaids. Mermaids are created when abused girls are near death; they dissolve into the sea and are reborn as these mythical creatures: vengeful creatures luring ships and their human occupants to their deaths in the cold seas.

Fourteen-year-old Luce was orphaned about a year ago and sent to live with her uncle in a small Alaskan fishing village. He was never kindly towards Luce, but in an alcoholic stupor he goes too far and the next thing Luce knows she is comfortably floating in the icy sea surrounded by other girls. All of these girls suffered abuse at the hands of those who were supposed to care for them (one girl was starved to death by her mother, another thrown from a moving car by hers, and the stories are each worse than the last). The mermaids have beautiful singing voices they use to lure the humans on passing ships to their deaths. But Luce doesn’t want to kill humans. She is upset with what happened to her but doesn’t feel that all humans should suffer because of what her uncle did. This is her struggle to fit in and do what she thinks is best.

This is one of the oddest coming of age stories I’ve read and I must admit I’m intrigued. First in a trilogy it will be followed by the second book next year.

Bonechiller by Graham McNamee

2011-10-31T12:42:00.001-07:00

Bonechiller by Graham McNamee

Blizzard conditions in October? Freezing weather? What’s going on? Since I was huddled at home on Saturday listening to trees cracking and crashing all around me I figured I’d read about people colder and much more on edge than myself.

In the middle of nowhere Canada – truly, middle of nowhere – it is usually about twenty below on a warm day in the winter. Also in this small town in the middle of nowhere is one of the scariest creatures ever. For this cold place has been the home for a creature of the cold. A creature that hungers for the young. A creature who transforms his prey into creatures of the cold like itself.

While in some ways this is the typical horror monster tale, it is very different in its crafting. It’s a very different retelling of the Native American wendigo story. The monster isn’t as you’d expect and the way it hunts is very unique. If you’re looking for a fun action-packed tale that keeps you guessing, and keeps you freezing, get chilled to the bone with this one.

Fallen by Lauren Kate

2011-10-30T12:16:00.000-07:00

Fallen by Lauren Kate

Seventeen-year old Luce is sent to a reform school in Georgia after the mysterious death of her boyfriend. No one knows how Luce killed him, or even if she actually did, but she was alone with him in the cabin when it started to burn. Not helping assure those around her of her innocence is Luce’s problem: the shadow figures that she sees and no one else believes in. You’d think that would make her an oddity at her new school, but everyone there has a history and some are even darker than hers. This is Luce’s opportunity to start over. Or so she thinks.

Luce meets two nice boys, both alluring in their own ways, makes some friends, and seems to be dragged into the battle. And I mean THE battle. The one between angels and demons and all that end of the world stuff. There are fallen angels out there and Luce has met them before. She keeps meeting the same people, life after life, but this time history isn’t repeating itself. This time she may find out what the shadows are and why they are haunting her. This time she won’t get another chance to live her life.

If you’re looking for a multi-part paranormal romance I would point you here (and also to Shiver by Stiefvater). I’ll admit I’m not a fan of Bella and Edward. I never got what the two of them saw in each other. In Fallen you understand the emotion between the two characters and you don’t want a third character (Jacob, to extend the Twilight comparison) coming between them. And I’ll admit that too, I was a Jacob fan. Not what you’re supposed to be in a young-love-against-all-odds romance! In this one, you do want love to prevail against horrific odds and you root for them to the end, waiting impatiently to get your hands on the sequel. (I really enjoyed it on audio.)

Wildthorn by Jane Eagland

2011-10-30T12:14:00.000-07:00

Wildthorn by Jane Eagland

Louisa Cosgrove is going to spend some time with friends of the family in the country. It’s Victorian England and that is the sort of thing young ladies do. However, Lou never arrives at her perceived destination. Instead she arrives at Wildthorn, a mental institution where everyone is convinced that her true name is Lucy Childs and she is just too mad to know it. Who has committed her? Why? How can she possibly get away?

This is a great view of the inner workings of an asylum of the time. It’s a harsh and unjust place and brings up a disturbing question: how do you convince those who believe you are crazy that you are not? Is it even possible?

Spoiler: this historical novel with a huge psychological element is also the story of one girl’s awakening into herself. She discovers that she is a lesbian and comes to terms with her feelings. Yet another spoiler: it is refreshing that her sexual preferences are not the reason she is committed (when in that time period it could have been). No, there are more sinister goings on afoot that Louisa is going to be challenged to discover and devastated to know.

Imaginary Girls by Nova Rem Suma

2011-10-30T12:12:00.000-07:00

Imaginary Girls by Nova Rem Suma

Chloe idolized her big sister Ruby. Ruby is the girl that everyone wants to be and everyone bends over backwards to please. Chloe enjoys being Ruby’s little sister; Ruby who has basically raised her since their mom spends most of her time at the local pub. One day, while hanging out at the Hudson Valley reservoir one of Chloe’s classmates, sixteen-year old London, is found dead floating in a rowboat. Chloe’s dad sends for her to live with him and his new family in Pennsylvania and she goes reluctantly.

Two years later Ruby, whom Chloe has never known to leave their hometown in upstate New York, goes to Pennsylvania to retrieve her sister. When Chloe gets back to the town she notices that things are strange. London is alive, and no one seems to think it strange. And everyone is being unbelievably nice, subservient even, to Ruby.

This is a really strange book, but I mean it in a good way. It leaves you off balance as you see the world through Chloe’s eyes and try to make sense of the world around her. If you are a fan of magical realism, think Alice Hoffman, then you may want to enter the strange world of this small town in New York.

The Night Strangers by Chris Bohjalian

2011-10-27T07:54:00.000-07:00

The Night Strangers by Chris Bohjalian

Chip Linton was a pilot before the accident. Now he doesn’t like to see airplanes or birds. Chip was piloting a regional jet when a flock of geese flew into his plane and killed both engines. Thinking he couldn’t return to Burlington or make it to Plattsburgh he decided to recreate the Miracle on the Hudson on Lake Champlain. It started out well, but the wave created by a ferry turning to help caught the wings and flipped the plane over while it was still moving at a very high speed. The plane broke apart, and while there were survivors, including Chip, 39 people lost their lives.

Chip, his wife and twin daughters, decide to start over in a rambling Victorian in rural Vermont. The neighbors are all extremely kind and constantly sharing the bounty of their greenhouses. All seems idyllic until Chip notices the small door in the basement. The door sealed shut with 39 carriage bolts…

I really enjoy Bohjalian’s books (like The Double Bind and Skeletons at the Feast) and I was looking forward to this one. I am pleased to say that the man can not only write great psychological fiction and historical fiction, but he tells a great ghost story as well.

The White Devil by Justin Evans

2011-10-27T07:32:00.000-07:00

The White Devil by Justin Evans

Andrew Taylor should have graduated from his prestigious boarding school in America, but after being forced out without finishing and turned away by the colleges which previously accepted him, he must go to England, to the Harrow School, to finish out his senior year. Being the only Yank in school is difficult enough but being the target for the local ghost is making things unbearable. Taylor bears a striking resemblance to former alumni, and famous poet, Lord Byron and his presence is awakening a two hundred year old obsession.

Creepy, disturbing and beautifully crafted this would be a great read for fans of historical mysteries that don’t mind a touch of horror and the unusual.

Destiny of the Republic: A Tale of Madness, Medicine and the Murder of a President by Candice Millard

2011-10-27T07:18:00.000-07:00

Destiny of the Republic: A Tale of Madness, Medicine and the Murder of a President by Candice Millard

Reviewed by Cassandra, Librarian at Mary Jacobs Library

Candice Millard, author of the bestselling book River of Doubt, brings history back to life with the riveting three-way biography of President James Garfield, Charles Guiteau, who was Garfield's assassin; and inventor Alexander Graham Bell, whose part in the story was an unsuccessful deathbed attempt to locate the bullet lodged somewhere in the president's body.

The historical narrative, which sounds like a plot that might have been cooked up by Tom Clancy and Michael Crichton, focuses around the fact that the 20^th president of the United States, James A. Garfield, is shot by a madman. It isn’t a mystery that the president dies just a few short months later; not from the assassin’s bullet but from extreme infection brought on by filthy medical practices.

The cast of characters is remarkable. There is Garfield himself, so poor that he worked as a janitor to put himself through his first year of college; so brilliant that he was promoted to lecturer for his second year of college; so unassuming that he did everything he could to block his own nomination to the presidency. Then there is his vice president, Chester Arthur, given the job to placate Garfield's foes and with the assumption that Arthur would never actually be president. Everyone was horrified by the sudden prospect that Arthur actually would be president, not least Arthur himself. The biography of Charles Guiteau is equally intriguing and disturbing.

Of course there is Garfield's egomaniacal primary physician, Dr. Doctor William Bliss -- yes, his first name was Doctor -- whose unsanitary probing for a bullet that was doing no harm led to the infections that actually killed Garfield. When the truth came out, it led a younger doctor to say, "Ignorance is Bliss."

It is a thoroughly intriguing and interesting treat; however be warned that it gets pretty gruesome with the descriptions of “modern” medicine. It is also great on audio.

Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater

2011-10-11T13:00:00.000-07:00

Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater

Welcome to the Mercy Falls and the teenagers (both of the werewolf and human) variety. If you are looking for a paranormal romance I would suggest heading here instead of to Twilight. Granted, I’ve only listened to the first one of these, but the last book of the trilogy HAS to be better than the last Twilight book.

Grace and Sam are in love. One problem. He’s a werewolf and their time together is limited. In this version of the myth werewolves and made when bitten by other werewolves (with the exception being Grace for some strange reason…) They have super healing abilities, they don’t quite retain their humanness when wolfish, and cold makes them turn. They turn when the snow starts to fall and they stay wolf until Spring. Sam is fighting to stay warm and stay with Grace, but another problem with this version of the myth is that every werewolf only has a limited number of turns as a human before they never switch back. And Sam may be out of time.

Great on audio with a separate reader for Sam and Grace's part of the narrative. I'm looking forward to listening to the next part of the story.

The Glass Demon by Helen Grant

2011-10-07T10:58:00.000-07:00

The Glass Demon by Helen Grant

Teenager Lin Fox has been dragged, along with the rest of her family, to a crumbling castle in the wild woods of Germany. Her father is taking a sabbatical year to attempt to become a full professor back in England. He hopes to find and publish on the Allerheiligen glass: a series of famous, and elusive, medieval masterworks in stained glass. Of course (given the title) the glass is rumored to be possessed by the demon Bonschariant and the curse (and the demon) seem to be active once again.

This is an interesting blend of medieval history and present day mystery. I know I was having trouble deciding if a mortal human was behind the murders or Bonschariant was on the prowl, especially since broken glass was found at each of the crime scenes.

More psychological fiction than horror this one will keep you on your toes guessing what’s happening and what or who is stalking the woods at night.

The Last Werewolf by Glen Duncan

2011-10-05T08:25:00.000-07:00

The Last Werewolf by Glen Duncan

Reviewed by Cassandra Alpaugh, Librarian, Mary Jacobs Library

Welcome to a world of vampires, werewolves and otherworldly monsters along with the humans who hunt them. Warning: If you loved the Twilight series and A Discovery of Witches please do not pick up this book expecting it to give you the same ride. In this book, werewolves live to feed their desire for sex, blood, and food (werewolves only eat humans). Duncan creates a dark and gritty world that is written in a superbly elegant and sophisticated style. The descriptions are brutal, but it is a completely original take on the much done paranormal theme and it is definitely a thrilling ride.

The gist of the story is that Jacob Marlowe is the last werewolf and he has lost the will to live. He is also being hunted by WOCOP (World Organization for the Control of Occult Phenomena). It hasn’t helped that he killed and ate the father of one of the chief operatives. WOCOP’s goal is to give Marlowe something to live for so that the chase is more exciting and meaningful. As Marlowe’s resolve changes, the countdown to the hunt is on and it becomes a race to protect what he cares about most.

I have to admit that I listed to the audio version, read by the supremely talented Robin Sachs. (Sachs has read The Snowman and The Redbreast by Jo Nesbo.) I was completely sucked into the raw, dark, elegant prose and Sach’s voice is so deep and gritty that he was a perfect voice for the story. I even found myself taking the extra long way to work so I could keep listening. I completely recommend his entertaining and exciting book just as long as you aren’t feeling squeamish.

Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness

2011-10-05T08:22:00.000-07:00

Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness

Reviewed by Cassandra Alpaugh, Librarian, Mary Jacobs Library

Discovery of Witches is a hefty tome that will demand all your attention. If you are reading late at night you will probably be exhausted at work the next day because you never went to sleep. If you are listening to it on your commute then you will probably end up driving circles around the parking lot to just finish a chapter. Of course this book isn’t for everyone. The only way that it can be described is as a historical-paranormal-romance-adventure-mystery, which basically means Twilight meets The Da Vinci Code. The characters are interesting and complex and the descriptions are wonderful.

Diana Bishop is a gutsy, brainy academic who is not going to use her magic--at least, that's what she keeps telling herself. She is the last in a long line of powerful witches. Having lost her parents when she was seven years old, she has turned away from her heritage and her magic. While researching alchemical manuscripts in the Bodleian Library, she comes in contact with a volume that reaches out to her magic. Panicked, she returns the book to the stacks, but it is too late--word is out that she has discovered the lost Ashmole 782 and now all species of creatures are after her.

Enter Matthew Clairmont, renowned scientist and vampire. He has been searching for Ashmole 782 for centuries and is determined to retrieve the book Diana has recalled. He feels drawn to Diana, feeling the need to protect her from the other creatures, despite witches and vampires being notorious separatists. They are thrown into an uneasy friendship when the worlds of witches, vampires and daemons descend upon Diana, all looking for the manuscript.

Both Diana and Matthew will make cringe-worthy decisions and Matthew will seem too overprotective (can we all say Edward and Bella?) but this is definitely an exciting book that will be hard to put down. Fair warning: this is the first book in a three part series.

Bad Taste in Boys by Carrie Harris

2011-10-05T08:19:00.000-07:00

Bad Taste in Boys by Carrie Harris

Kate Grable desperately wants to be a doctor when she grows up so volunteering as the first aid person for her high school’s awful football team seems like a great idea. It has been. Until she finds unlabeled vials in Coach’s locked cabinet. Coach says they are just B12 and wants Kate to inject the team. She refuses. When one of the defensive linemen pukes black awful smelling vomit all over her car at a party, and she sees the infected injection site on his arm, she thinks back to those vials. And when more linebackers start acting strangely she knows she’s the only one close enough to the problem to find a solution. She dreads saying it, but it looks like her town has a zombie problem.

This is a great teen as hero book, and even better, geeky female teen as hero book. It’s pretty funny, in a sick sort of way. What sets this one apart from the others is that there is a cure. There isn’t a lot of science behind the cure, and things don’t totally add up, but the way the transformations are described is neat. Picture the typical zombie you see in a horror movie – no pain, no blood loss, yet a lot of loss of pieces. Inject a cure. Turn back on the blood flow. BIG mess, possibly life threatening to one suddenly alive again. Neat idea.

If you need a short distraction from the day to day and want to revisit the halls of your high school (albeit one with a zombie outbreak) take a break with this one.

The Hangman’s Daughter by Oliver Potzsch

2011-10-03T11:24:00.000-07:00

The Hangman’s Daughter by Oliver Potzsch

Reviewed by Cassandra, Librarian at Mary Jacobs Library

After spending the summer reading every Michael Koryta and Jo Nesbo book that I could get my hands on I figured I should change things up a little bit. When The Hangman’s Daughter by Oliver Potzsch appeared in a book review magazine I thought it just might be the change of pace I needed. There is nothing like heading into the Halloween season with a good historical thriller.

I love well written historical fiction especially if it takes place any time from Ancient History to Medieval Europe. This story takes place in Schongau, Germany in 1659 and starts with an unspeakable murder that has the potential to create mass hysteria and the resurgence of the witch trials that took the lives of many town women 70 years prior. It is up to the hangman and the young town physician to find the murderer/murderers before an innocent woman is tried for witchcraft. The tale involves mystery, murder, love, hysteria and every sort of outcast that can be thought up from orphans to lepers. The setting is so real you can almost smell the sewage in the streets and feel the weight of the hangman’s sword or club. The characters are easy to love and hate which makes for a great story.

For me one of the best bits was finding out that this story came from the author’s search into his genealogy. The story has been translated from German and the translator, Lee Chadeayne does an excellent job.

The Walking Dead – Robert Kirkman, writer

2011-10-03T11:22:00.001-07:00

The Walking Dead – Robert Kirkman, writer; Tony Moore/Charlie Adlard, ill.

Reviewed by Chris, Librarian at Bridgewater Library

Police officer Rick Grimes awakens from a coma to learn that the world has been overrun by, well, the walking dead. His wife and son are gone, and his hometown is all but empty of the living; with only the barest of plans, he sets off for Atlanta in the hope of finding his family, or at least a larger group of humans.

This is a bleak, bleak series. Interesting; well written; but make no mistake, it's bleak. The apocalypse has happened and the survivors are running very low on hope. Many people die; some at the teeth of zombies, but more often at the hands of their fellow humans. The art style mirrors this: a lot of blank whites and grey tones, lending the book a sparse, washed-out atmosphere; the lack of reds don't minimize the impact of the gore, however. The artist changed after the first trade, switching to a more realistic style, but the tone remains.

If you like your post-apocalyptic fiction dark, violent, and all but hopeless, this is the series for you. The current volume is 14; it is not known where the end will be. The series was also adapted into a TV show on AMC, which will be starting its second will begin on Halloween.

Rot & Ruin by Jonathan Maberry

2011-10-03T11:19:00.000-07:00

Rot & Ruin by Jonathan Maberry

Last year I was head-over-heels in awe with Feed by Mira Grant. This year I’m totally hyped over Rot & Ruin. Zombie (and vampire and werewolf) novels can get pretty stale. They can all read exactly the same after a while. When one stands out and makes you think (actually ponder things) and feel (tears in your eyes!) it’s a book to share. This is one of those rare zombie books.

Rot & Ruin takes place fourteen years after First Night, the time when the dead started to rise and bite and infect their fellow man. In Mountainside, a fenced in community of about 8,000, people are living as best they can knowing that zoms are on the other side of the fence line. Humans have become scavengers, relying on peddlers and bounty hunters to bring them supplies from elsewhere beyond the fence. At fifteen, the age Benny has just turned, all residents of Mountainside must find a job to qualify for daily rations. Benny, not a huge fan of his brother Tom, but out of job options decides to apprentice to Tom and become a bounty hunter. One who quiets the dead.

What sets this book apart from others in the genre is the emotion. Tom, and in turn many of the other characters, see the zoms not as creatures but as people with a horrific disease. People who, while not responsible for their actions and completely unthinking, still deserve respect for the human beings they were/are. It’s something so many books and movies ignore. These are not simply ravening hoards of monsters; these are people who were once mothers, fathers and children. These monsters were once us.

Brains: a Zombie Memoir by Robin Becker

2011-10-01T09:05:00.000-07:00

Brains: a Zombie Memoir by Robin Becker

Blurbed by Kay, Librarian at Bridgewater Library

This novel was my first venture into zombie literature. To my surprise, I enjoyed the book which contained interesting but bizarre characters, a fast-paced style and a humorous story-line. The plot describes the attempt of a newly-bitten professor to save the zombie population. He is an unusual zombie, one who has retained his self-awareness and intelligence. He undertakes this wild journey with the help of other self- aware zombies attempting to save zombies from the living hunters and obtain a truce for the undead.

The story is ghoulish and contains multiple scenes of cannibalism but that’s just what you would expect from the book’s title.

Day by Day Armageddon by J.L. Bourne

2011-10-01T09:02:00.000-07:00

Day by Day Armageddon by J.L. Bourne

Blurbed by Carolyn, Librarian at Bridgewater Library

This is the story of an unnamed naval officer’s survival among the undead that is told in a journal format. Sometimes humorous, sometimes matter of fact, and sometimes unsettling this fact paced book will appeal to most readers, not just the zombie fans.

The Forest of Hands and Teeth by Carrie Ryan

2011-10-01T08:59:00.000-07:00

The Forest of Hands and Teeth by Carrie Ryan

It’s that time of year again! Time to pick your pumpkins and spooky reading! What better way to start off the scariest month of the year than with a zombie novel? Can’t think of anything better myself, and over the coming weeks I’ll give you plenty of horrific reads to choose from.

In The Forest of Hands and Teeth the village has always been surrounded by chain-link fences to keep the Unconsecrated at bay. The Sisterhood and the Cathedral have always protected and taught the villagers well. The Guardians have mended the fences, stocked the platforms and protected the village. Until now. Mary’s world has been upended by the disappearance of her father and the changing of her mother. Her mother chooses to join the Unconsecrated in the Forest of Hands and Teeth; chooses to join her husband as one of the walking dead. After saying good-bye to her mother Mary is torn between joining the Sisterhood and marrying her childhood friend when the unthinkable happens. The fences are breached and the Unconsecrated overrun the village.

This is a really interesting take on what the world could look like years after the world is overrun by zombies. The remnants of humanity live in fenced in villages interconnected (at least at one point) by fenced in pathways. Stories about the oceans and skyscrapers are seen as myths. (At one point someone finds an old copy of the New York Times and the paper is so brittle it simply disintegrates – so you know we’re WAY in the future here.) This is a real interesting view of how one group of people deals with the dangers surrounding them; and also the life of a girl who knows that there must be more to the world somewhere out past the Forest.

Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs

2011-09-26T15:00:00.000-07:00

Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs

After Jacob’s grandfather dies in odd circumstances Jacob feels his life coming apart. He can’t ignore the strange and scary things he has seen that seem impossible. And he can’t get the weird stories his grandfather told him about his childhood in Wales out of his mind. Did his grandfather make it all up as he suspects? Or is there any truth in the tales? To ease his mind Jacob travels (with dad in tow) to find the orphanage where his grandfather spent his childhood: Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children.

I really like books that play around with format and style. In this book the author takes Victorian era photographs from various personal collections (all purchased from yard sales and antique shops) and weaves them into the story. These are creepy photographs. It’s amazing what you could do with trick photography back then. My favorite is the photograph of a young girl looking into a calm pool of water. Normal enough until you realize that in the pool are the reflections of two little girls…

Marketed as a young adult novel (personally I feel it’s because of the photographs interspersed with the plot) this book would appeal to those who have ever felt a little different or wanted to be more peculiar.

Turn of Mind by Alice LaPlante

2011-09-26T14:21:00.000-07:00

Turn of Mind by Alice LaPlante

When Amanda, Jennifer's best friend, is murdered the police don't know who did it, but they wonder why four fingers of her right hand were carefully (surgically even) removed. They are especially curious about Jennifer’s possible involvement in the crime since she is a world renowned hand surgeon. Unfortunately Jennifer doesn't know what she knows. She is suffering from Alzheimer's and often forgets that Amanda is dead, or even who Amanda was. Much of the time Jennifer can’t remember who she is, where she is, or her place in time.

This story is told from Jennifer’s point of view and it is a case study of the progression of the disease coupled with an interesting murder mystery. Unlike Still Alice, another book told from the point of view of a woman suffering from Alzheimer’s, Turn of Mind shows the disease in all its ugliness. The reader experiences not only the gentleness and childhood memories, but the stubbornness, irrational anger and fits of temper Jennifer fluctuates between; as well as her moments of lucidity – painful for her family to have since they are so rare and fleeting.

If you are looking for an psychological thriller told by an unreliable narrator I think you’d enjoy Before I Go To Sleep much more, but if you are interested in a book told from the point of view of a person with Alzheimer’s this is a eye-opening portrayal of the disease.

How I Killed Pluto and Why It Had It Coming by Mike Brown

2011-09-23T07:08:00.000-07:00

How I Killed Pluto and Why It Had It Coming by Mike Brown

It takes a special person to discover something no one in our lifetimes has discovered – a new planet! – and then argue that his discovery isn’t the glorious thing everyone seems to think it is. Mike Brown feels that Pluto, and therefore his planet Xena, don’t deserve the lofty designation of planet and is extremely pleased when his planet is demoted (along with Pluto) by the governing body of astronomy. Why is Pluto demoted? How was Pluto almost saved by tricky wording? How are new planets and objects found in the far flung reaches of space? All these questions and more are answered here.

While this book is mainly concerned with finding new planets and then demoting them, a lot more is covered here. The way scientific discoveries are presented to the world, how telescopes work (and how a scientist gets time to use them), even how life sometimes gets in the way of science. Brown’s engaging and light style will keep you reading and interested in the tumult of his personal life and his life as a gazer of wandering stars (otherwise known as planets).

The Non-Fiction Book Discussion group at the Bridgewater Library will be discussing How I Killed Pluto on Thursday, November 10^th at 1pm. If you would like to join the discussion please call 908-526-4016 x105 to sign up.

The End of Everything by Megan Abbott

2011-09-23T07:07:00.000-07:00

The End of Everything by Megan Abbott

Thirteen year old Evie didn’t go home after school and now she’s been gone for a while. The police think they know who abducted her, but is everyone telling all they know? Lizzie is Evie’s best friend. They share everything, or at least Lizzie thought they did. With Evie’s disappearance, which seems to be a kidnapping, everything is coming to an end.

In a word I would call this book disturbing. I listened to it and the reader captures Lizzie’s inner voice perfectly. She sounds like a tween, which makes the words she is saying much creepier. While Evie is gone Lizzie wonders what it must be like spending time with a man (three times her age) who loves her so much that he would take her away like he did. She is picturing knightly romantic love, spending time together talking and flirting, not the images of a girl kidnapped by an older man that would start forming in the mind of an adult. As I said, disturbing, but the author does an excellent job of getting in the minds of the tweens and teens of the novel.

Shine by Lauren Myracle

2011-09-20T06:59:00.000-07:00

Shine by Lauren Myracle

Cat’s best friend (well, he was before she separated herself from the world these past couple of years) is savagely beaten and lies in a coma in the hospital. Patrick is the victim of a hate crime. He was beaten viciously because he is gay. Being gay in a small mountain town in backwoods North Carolina was difficult for Patrick but many thought he was accepted for who he was, including Patrick. Then this happens. Cat knows the local police personally and knows that they are inept. Therefore she decides to start asking around and learns what her friend’s life has been like and she begins to see the people around her more clearly and is frightened by what she sees.

This is a gritty and dark look at being a teenager in this part of the country where poverty is only a step away and once hardworking people turn to dealing and using meth to get by. This is a young adult novel, but I think anyone who reads realistic fiction and wants to know how other people survive the circumstances of their youth would get something out of this novel.

Though Not Dead by Dana Stabenow

2011-09-20T06:43:00.000-07:00

Though Not Dead by Dana Stabenow

Stabenow is very popular in our library system, but I had never read one, so I picked this one up to listen to while I was working around the house. The book focuses on main series character Kate Shugak, a Native American PI living (most of the time anyway) in the Park – the wilds of Alaska some miles outside of Anchorage. In this book she is mourning the loss of her Great Uncle, Old Sam. Soon though, she is cursing her beloved Old Sam for leaving her a final letter to Find His Father! Easier said than done since Sam was about 90 when he passed and it seems that other players are just as interested as Kate to solve the mysteries of Old Sam’s past.

I enjoy mysteries that flit back and forth between the present and the past so I really enjoyed this one. You get glimpses into Old Sam’s life as a young man and the experience of the Native Alaskans in the Aleutians during WWII and during the bid for statehood. There is a lot of history in here. The mystery is also well crafted. I didn’t know who was responsible for what attempt on Kate’s life until almost the end.

Okay. I have to say it. I had a really hard time dealing with her dog Mutt. She seems a nice husky/wolf mix but when one character asked Mutt, “Hey Girl, where’s Kate?” I had memories of Lassie and Timmy in my head and had a hard time taking Mutt seriously after that. She’s a little too superdog for me.

If you want to learn about modern day Native culture in Alaska, what life (and food – they eat LOTS of moose in this book) is like and the climate (VERY cold) you couldn’t pick a better book. Great on audio, because I don’t think I would have pronounced some of the place names correctly in my head!

Skyjack: The Hunt for D.B. Cooper by Geoffrey Gray

2011-09-20T06:24:00.000-07:00

Skyjack: The Hunt for D.B. Cooper by Geoffrey Gray

Who was D.B. Cooper? Did he survive his infamous parachute jump with $200,000? How unbelievably common were skyjackings in the late 60s and early 70s? This last question is what really got me. I didn’t realize how many planes were hijacked during this time period. The first part of the book deals with the workings of the airplane industry and what the responsibilities of pilots and stewardesses were. Let me tell you, it is a far cry from the service one can expect today. There is also an extremely detailed description of the skyjacking from the people who were there and the FBI agent who became the lead on the case. The second part of the book breaks into a few strings, each string following a different man, a different man who could have been D.B Cooper.

I enjoyed listening to this book because you start reading about the obsession of the FBI agents working the case, and other men who have spent the better part of their lifetimes searching for the Cooper money. Then you begin to realize that the author of the book is as obsessed as the people he is writing about. He NEEDS to know who Cooper was. It is the focus of not only his book, but his life. And he’s got some wonderfully convincing candidates, but no solid proof. The answer to “Who was D.B. Cooper?” is left in the hands of the reader.

Crime in the Big Apple

2011-09-07T10:46:00.000-07:00

The Mysterious Mornings group met this morning and talked about their favorite mysteries set in the Big Apple. If it was a mystery and took place in NYC (or the outer boroughs) it fit this month’s subgenre.

Here are the group favorites listed by author and their series main character:

Barbieri, Maggie (Murder 101 Mysteries)

Block, Lawrence (Matthew Scudder)
Bowen, Rhys (Molly Murphy)
Castle, Richard (Nikki Heat)
Coyle, Cleo (Coffeehouse Mysteries)
Deaver, Jeffery (Lincoln Rhyme)
DeMille, Nelson (John Corey)
Harris, Rosemary (Dirty Business Mysteries)
Patterson, James and Michael Ledwidge (Michael Bennett)
Pintoff, Stefanie (Simon Ziele)
Roker, Al (Billy Blessing)
Rozan, S.J. (Lydia Chin/Bill Smith)
Spillane, Mickey and Max Allan Collins (Mike Hammer)
Thompson, Victoria (Gaslight Mysteries)
Wiprud, Brian (Standalones)

Interested in joining in on a Mysterious Morning discussion? A list of suggested authors and titles are available at the Bridgewater Library and books will be on display about a month prior to the discussion. (If you’re a voracious mystery reader you can read more than one.) Our next theme/subgenre is Amateur American Sleuths.

If it’s a mystery and the main character is solving crimes, but isn’t a police officer or private investigator, then it fits this month’s sub-genre. Since we have already (or will be) discussing culinary, crafting, hobby and pet mysteries, I’ve left them off the list. Just keep in mind how the amateur’s job or personal skills affects the mystery because that’ll be a major talking point at our discussion on November 16th at 9:30am at the Bridgewater Library.

Girls in White Dresses by Jennifer Close

2011-09-06T12:37:00.000-07:00

Girls in White Dresses by Jennifer Close

Need a little chick lit in your life? Want to read something light, short and sweet? Try this collection of stories following a group of friends through their twenties and into their thirties.

We learn about them: their struggles through imperfect and perfect men. How Lauren is convinced she got dumped because she told her boyfriend that in middle school she thought ham came from hams…weird looking oblong creatures. Their struggles with jobs they hate but are good at, and jobs they think they should love, but don’t. We also learn about their friends: Ellen who only dates ugly boys and Kristi who after five bridal showers will probably no longer be their friend after the wedding because they won’t be able to afford the baby showers when she starts having kids.

Set in New York City, with appropriate accents, this was an enjoyable listen. Perfect for short car rides!

Feelers by Brian M. Wiprud

2011-09-03T08:33:00.000-07:00

Feelers by Brian M. Wiprud

I don’t think I’ve been able to use the very fun words: madcap, zany, whirlwind, and jaw-droppingly-laugh-out-loud to describe a book in a long, long, too long time. This book is all those things and more. Granted, you’ve got to like your humor a bit (quite a bit) on the dark side for these adjectives to apply, but it you’re a fan of off-kilter heist books, you’ll love this one.

Morty Martinez is a feeler: a man who clears out the homes of the deceased in East Brooklyn and chooses his jobs based on feel. He “feels” whether or not the deceased has stashed money away in the house. And since the current owner of the property signs over all the proceeds of the house to Morty, he can legitimately keep whatever he finds. Like the 32 tight ones (money rolled tightly into Planters Peanut cans) with over $800,000 in them stashed under the last guy’s stained plaid couch. Unfortunately others are interested in Morty’s sudden good fortune. Like the man who just got out of prison for robbing an armored car fifteen years ago. The same man who hid the five million dollars in his Uncle’s house. The same Uncle who died just a couple of weeks ago and had a feeler clean out his house…

This book has a great Brooklyn feel (excuse the pun) to it. The whole story is a written confession by Morty to a priest and his eloquent use of language, and the lack of eloquence by his associates, makes for a fun mix.

Step on a Crack by James Patterson and Michael Ledwidge

2011-09-01T11:41:00.000-07:00

Step on a Crack by James Patterson and Michael Ledwidge

What a great audiobook! There are two narrators – one man voices the chapters from the good guy’s point of view and another man narrates the chapters about the bad guys. This style worked REALLY well and kept me on the edge of my seat. I found myself taking the long way to places just so I could listen a little longer.

Michael Bennett, NYPD homicide detective, finds himself thrust into the role of hostage negotiator when some of the most influential and wealthy celebrities of the time are taken hostage during a state funeral at St. Patrick’s Cathedral. As the days pass, heading towards Christmas, Michael is at wits end as to how the kidnappers were able to pull this off, and how they manage to stay one step ahead.

This book really gets your adrenaline going and you’ll also shed a tear or two. Michael’s wife is dying of cancer and the scenes she is in are heartbreaking. Add in their brood of ten multi-ethnic adopted children ranging in age from three to thirteen and the waterworks will drip I guarantee.

The Lantern by Deborah Lawrenson

2011-08-31T07:34:00.000-07:00

The Lantern by Deborah Lawrenson

There aren’t many novels today which can put you in that wonderfully gothic mood that classics like Rebecca and Jane Eyre did so well. This debut by Lawrenson is a novel that can. Set in the present day and the not-so-distant past of a small hamlet in Provence, this novel evokes a sense of unease paralleled by the gorgeous scents and pleasant decay of the homes and landscape.

Eve meets Dom in Switzerland and after a whirlwind romance they move in together to a hamlet in France. He does not want to marry having been married once before. Eve is curious about his first wife, but any attempts she makes to learn more about Rachel are rebuffed by her beau. He adamantly refuses to talk about Rachel, the woman Eve becomes more and more desperate to discover. Is she alive somewhere? Is she dead? If so, how did the woman die?

This novel starts slowly and builds both suspense and tension throughout the novel. Not knowing what time frame you are in is a little confusing at first, but it keeps you off balance, feeling very much like Eve trying to understand the man she is with and the home she is living in.

The Popular Fiction Book Discussion Group will be discussing The Lantern on Tuesday, October 18^th at 7pm at the Bridgewater Library.

Murder Most Frothy by Cleo Coyle

2011-08-30T10:43:00.000-07:00

Murder Most Frothy by Cleo Coyle

Clare Cosi, talented New York barista, is enjoying having some fun in the sun at her new millionaire friend’s mansion out in the Hamptons. She’s getting the coffee bar of his new restaurant established and he’s providing guestrooms at his mansion for Clare and her daughter. Then, one of the employees of the restaurant who is helping serve at a mansion party is shot dead while using the master bathroom. Clare is convinced that David Mintzer, the mansion’s owner, was the true target. No one, not David, or the police, believe her. It’s up to Clare to investigate.

While you do learn a LOT about proper techniques of coffee preparation, this is not one of those cozy culinary mysteries. There’s a good mystery, with lots of red herrings and possible suspects. The ending is not exactly a surprise, but not completely obvious either. Coyle brews up a good story, with great New York and Long Island feel.

The Goliath Bone by Mickey Spillane with Max Allan Collins

2011-08-30T08:32:00.000-07:00

The Goliath Bone by Mickey Spillane with Max Allan Collins

Spillane died in 2006, but his iconic detective Mike Hammer is still solving cases with the help of author Max Allan Collins who is finishing his unfinished work.

Mike Hammer is the quintessential New York PI. He’s not politically correct and doesn’t care to be. He calls it as he sees it and even though he’s getting ready (possibly) to retire, he’s still got it. In this book the thighbone of Goliath (yes, the Valley of Elah guy killed by that pipsqueak David) is found and brought to the United States for further study by young graduate students. Various factions want to get their hands on the bone and aren’t concerned with who dies in order for them to get it.

It was odd to me to hear Mike Hammer in modern day, post-9/11 New York City, but it worked. Hammer tracking al Queda terrorists was unique to say the least. Gritty, puzzling, and very New York, this is a fitting end to the Mike Hammer novels.

I definitely recommend this one on audio read by Stacy Keach, the best Mike Hammer.

Want to join our Mysterious Morning program? Just read some mysteries! If it’s a mystery that takes place in NYC then it fits this month’s sub-genre. Just keep in mind how the setting affects the mystery because that’ll be a major talking point in September.

September’s Mystery Type:

Crime in the Big Apple

Wednesday, September 7^th

9:10am – 11:30am, Meeting Room A

Cypress House by Michael Koryta

2011-08-30T07:41:00.000-07:00

The Cypress House by Michael Koryta

I knew I was going to be stuck in my house this weekend, possibly with no power, so I needed the PERFECT book to read. I managed to find a great psychological thriller/horror book taking place during and after a hurricane. I totally recommend this one when the wind is howling outside your windows. My fingers are crossed that no one else will be reading this one during a hurricane anytime soon!

It’s Labor Day weekend in 1935 and Arlen Wagner is on a train headed to the Keys to work on the CCC project to build massive bridges between the islands. But when he awakens from a dose he notices that all of his fellow passengers have grey smoke in their eyes. He knows everyone on that train will die, and soon. He tries to warn his fellow passengers but they laugh him off, all except his friend Paul who gets off the train with Arlen at the next stop. Arlen and Paul hitchhike across Florida, hoping to hook up with another camp, when they learn that the Keys have been wiped out by a massive hurricane. All the men that were on the train are dead, the hurricane which killed them is headed their way, and they are stuck at the very odd establishment known as Cypress House.

Corrupt officials, strange goings on, ex-cons, swamps, are all here. If you have a hard time with the supernatural, the only thing eerie going on is one man’s ability to see when people are about to die. If you are in the mood for a good thriller with a little bit of a scare to it, try this one.

The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern

2011-08-24T08:08:00.000-07:00

The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern

How cool would it be to attend a circus where the magic performed is real? At the night circus (open only from sundown to sunrise) the attendees aren’t aware of the magic coursing around them, just that the circus is the most enchanting place they have ever been. It arrives without warning; it leaves without warning; with no set schedule of where it will appear next.

As with all wonderful things, there is another side of the story. Two competing magicians have each taken on an apprentice. Those apprentices are now engaged in a contest. The rules are vague, the contestants don’t know the identity of the other and the playing field is the circus. Who will win? What is the price of losing? What will happen to the most enchanting place on earth?

What book is getting the most buzz right now? This one, hands down! Every publisher and librarian aimed website is talking about this debut novel. And it’s understandable why. It’s a love story, a dark fantasy and a visual treat all in one.

Coming to town on September 13^th – place your holds now!

Graveminder by Melissa Marr

2011-08-18T07:56:00.000-07:00

Graveminder by Melissa Marr

How can you not be intrigued by a book with the line “Sleep well, and stay where I put you” on the cover? I was intrigued and entered the strange town of Claysville where no one ever gets ill until they are at least in their 80^th year.

The residents of Claysville made a contract with Mr. D a century or so ago and since then the Graveminder and Undertaker (roles passed down to those deemed worthy) have been ensuring the dead don’t walk and become the Hungry Dead. Unfortunately this book starts with one of the Hungry Dead killing the current Graveminder. The Graveminder’s step-granddaughter comes home for the funeral and finds herself the new Graveminder: a role she never knew existed in a town that is much more unusual than she ever knew.

While there are many unanswered questions at the end of the book, the immediate issues are resolved. The mystery (why are these dead suddenly hungry?) is well crafted with the resolution being at once satisfying and creepy. The book leaves you satisfied but curious and wanting to travel to Claysville once again.

The Ridge by Michael Koryta

2011-08-15T13:39:00.000-07:00

The Ridge by Michael Koryta

When it’s rainy and gloomy out it’s the perfect time to read a ghost story. The thunder started just as I was getting to the end of this one –perfect timing!

On a ridge in Kentucky an eccentric man built a fully functioning lighthouse. He keeps it lit every night and even uses infrared lenses when the new neighbors complain about the pulsing intense light. His new neighbors are about fifty rescued exotic cats. And they are NOT pleased about the move. Something just isn’t right about the ridge. Something that has the local humans and the big cats on edge. And when the lighthouse goes dark another light shows up on the ridge. This one is an eerie blue flame and nothing good comes to those who see it.

Koryta is now my go-to ghost story guy. He’s written three so far, and I’ve read two (this one and So Cold the River). I’m saving the last one for the next rainy stretch.

Love You More by Lisa Gardner

2011-08-15T13:26:00.000-07:00

Love You More by Lisa Gardner

State Trooper Tessa Leoni has murdered her husband by putting three rounds in his chest with her service weapon. She looks like she went ten rounds with Mike Tyson and doesn’t deny that she was a victim of spousal abuse. But certain things don’t add up. Like where is six-year-old Sophie Leoni? Did Tessa go on a killing spree and murder her whole family? And there are a lot of other things that just don’t figure and it’s up to Sergeant Detective D.D. Warren of the Boston P.D. to make it all add up.

I love thrillers where I don’t know what’s going on and I can’t figure out who is a bad guy, who is a good guy and how things are eventually going to make sense. It’s wonderful when the author can leave me in that huh? state of mind well into her book yet still make complete sense when it all wraps up in the end. Hence, my love of Lisa Gardner. I discovered her only a few months ago and when I saw she had a new book out I had to listen to it. This is one of those books that I kept bringing in from the car to keep listening to long into the night. Which is why I’ve been a little lax with adding new books here – my reading time was usurped by listening time!

Before I Go to Sleep by S. J. Watson

2011-08-05T11:03:00.000-07:00

Before I Go to Sleep by S. J. Watson

If I had to choose only one word to describe this novel that word would be: creepy. Very, very, hairs sticking up on the back of your neck, creepy. This is the psychological thriller at its best.

Christine wakes up each morning confused. She thinks she’s in her twenties. She’s horrified when she looks in the mirror and sees the face of a woman twice her age. She’s even more horrified, and completely confused, when she recognizes herself in that visage. To add weirdness to oddness she has no memory of the man whose bed she snuck out of to use the bathroom, yet pictures of the two of them are hung all around the mirror. Apparently he’s her husband. She finds out that she was in an accident, and since then she wakes up every morning forgetting what happened the day before and can hardly recall any of her past: childhood, adulthood, nothing, at all.

Unbeknownst to her husband Ben, Christine starts meeting with a doctor who is determined to help her regain some of her memories even though so many have failed in the past. He encourages her to keep a journal and write down what happens to her, and what she learns about herself and her past, each and every day. Each morning the doctor calls her to remind her where her journal is and that she should read it and write in it. Christine decides to keep the journal a secret from Ben. She isn’t sure exactly why, but as time goes on she begins to distrust her husband, and everyone else in her world.

If you enjoyed Still Missing by Chevy Stevens (my creepy pick of last year) I would suggest giving this one a try.

Iron House by John Hart

2011-08-04T07:49:00.000-07:00

Iron House by John Hart

This top pick on the August IndieNext List (which if you haven’t checked out the website IndieBound – http://www.indiebound.org/ – why ever not?) has everything any great thriller should have. There is heart pounding suspense, dark family histories, horribly dysfunctional childhoods and great action packed scenes. Not to mention a new mafia boss, a hit man wanting to retire, a crooked (we think…) senator, an ill children’s book author and more. This is one of those books you can’t put down because you want to see how all the factors the author brings together come together.

I’m making this prediction here and now, John Hart is a name to watch. His last book was great (The Last Child), this book is great, and I’m sure his next will be wonderful as well. If you’re tired of series that seem to be rehashing the same storylines over and over (and getting their main characters in the same trouble again and again) and want a great standalone thriller every time try this guy. You won’t be disappointed.

Sister by Rosamund Lupton

2011-07-26T06:52:00.000-07:00

Sister by Rosamund Lupton

The style in which this story is told is really interesting. The whole tale is told as a letter: a letter from a sister to her dead sister explaining, as the living sister uncovers the truth, why the dead sister was murdered. The police all think Tess committed suicide, but Bee knows her sister. She knows her sister would never take her own life, not after what they both went through.

I could say more, but I won’t. I want to make sure you’re able to have the story uncovered little by little as I did. I have to admit I did figure out the motive for the murder before Bee, but not the perpetrator, and definitely not the zinger you get at the end.

Witches of East End by Melissa de la Cruz

2011-07-26T06:50:00.000-07:00

Witches of East End by Melissa de la Cruz

A trio of women, two sisters and their mother, live in a majestic house in North Hampton. All three were persecuted long ago in Salem; immortal witches forced to live without using magic. But the council has been silent for so long. And when a few spells don’t seem to have any repercussions the women decide to take their magic, and their witchy lives, back. Of course that’s when things start going wrong around bucolic North Hampton and memories of Salem’s Witch Trials start seeping into the present.

I have to admit that the Long Island setting was the draw for me. As a native Long Islander this was pretty spot on. The North Hampton of this book (for those who don’t know the author made it up) reminded me of the author’s favorite Long Island town/island, Shelter Island. If you’ve been to the forks of Long Island you’ll be reminded of your visit.

If you’re a fan of Sarah Addison Allen’s southern magical realism you may want to give this one a try. It’s not as gentle as a southern read; it feels (at least to this reader) more like home.

Toys by James Patterson

2011-07-22T14:11:00.000-07:00

Toys by James Patterson

I wanted something fun and fast paced to listen to and I knew Patterson was a good bet. He was, but it wasn’t at all like anything by him I’ve ever read. This is completely accessible science fiction that even those that hate anything futuristic will enjoy.

It’s the future: not too far, not too close. Humans are no longer in charge. Elites, human and technology hybrids, are the keepers of the planet. Humans are the workers and are shuffled over to the overcrowded city slums. And the time for the human race seems to be about to run out.

Can’t tell you much more without ruining the story, but know that it’s a great ride.

Double Indemnity by James M. Cain

2011-07-16T12:37:00.000-07:00

Double Indemnity by James M. Cain

Need a little noir in your life? Of course you do. This novel brings back the time when men wore hats and toll phone calls were a huge deal. This is the time when the insurance man would come to your home to talk over your policy over drinks. Hence, the great setup for the novel. An insurance man plots with a disgruntled housewife to bump off her husband for a double indemnity accidental death life insurance policy. Of course there is even more to this story than first meets the eye.

The plot is great and as the main character, the crafty insurance guy, gets himself in deeper and deeper you marvel at the world of hurt he’s brought upon himself. It’s the style that makes this novel so enjoyable. It’s just so noir. You can see the old chromed up sedans rumble by and smell the cigarette smoke in the air.

I can’t wait to watch the film classic with Barbara Stanwyck in the next few days. The book has a zinger of an ending and I’m curious to see how the book translates to the screen.

Robopocalypse by Daniel H. Wilson

2011-07-16T12:20:00.000-07:00

Robopocalypse by Daniel H. Wilson

It is the not so distant future. Robots have become a typical part of everyday life; running errands, and taking over simple tasks. Cars are driven for you and toys interact with your children. The robotic presence is everywhere and welcome. That is until one computerized mind is created which can reason for itself and decides that the age of the robot has begun.

Yes, this book is science fiction, but it is also adventure tinged with horror. I just saw the movie Battle: Los Angeles and it was as action packed as that film. In the book you follow five or six groups of people from around the world (New York City, London, Kabul) and see the New War from their perspectives. There are a lot of great twists and turns that make this more than the average the world is ending book. Like learning that in a way the robots are environmentalists! Who knew?

The movie rights were purchased before this book was even printed, so make sure you read this one before it appears on the silver screen!

Ice Cold by Tess Gerritsen

2011-07-14T12:34:00.000-07:00

Ice Cold by Tess Gerritsen

While this wasn’t by any means a pleasant listen, it was a much welcome listen since the temperature outside my car was reading at over 100 as it was playing. Dr. Maura Isles decides to take a break from her life and take a short vacation with an old acquaintance and his friends after a pathology conference. After a horrible wrong turn (darn those GPS systems!) they are dealing with snow, freezing temperatures and hypothermia in the remote areas of Wyoming. When Maura misses her flight and is unreachable by cell phone her friends, including Detective Rizzoli, set off to Wyoming to track her down.

This is one of those books that you think you know where it’s going and then it takes a complete turn about. There is a completely deserted town (with dinners waiting for diners on the tables), a religious cult led by a charismatic preacher with a taste for young girls, and strange locals obsessed with protecting their land from trespassers. None of these elements play out as I assumed, which to me is a sign of a really good thriller.

I’m not squeamish, but there are some descriptions of the pain and suffering (and gangrene) an injured person is enduring that got a little rough to hear. Just another reminder that what you can skim in a book you can’t get away from in audio. Besides that though, it’s a great listen.

Heat Wave by Richard Castle

2011-07-14T09:29:00.000-07:00

Heat Wave by Richard Castle

I’m used to watching movies based on books, or even a book based on a movie. Same goes for the small screen. Many great television shows have been created based on book series. However, I think this is the first time I’ve read a book written by a fictional author from a television show. Reading this book was like watching an episode of the television show with some professions and names changed.

If you are a fan of the television show you have to read Castle’s books. They read as if they were written by the smart aleck fictional author on TV.

Want to join our Mysterious Mornings program? Just read (and for this time at least watch) some mysteries! If it’s a mystery and it was made into a movie or television series, then it fits this month’s sub-genre. We’ll be talking about how true to the book the big (or small screen) adaptations are, so be sure to read and watch, because that will be a major talking point at our discussion next week.

July’s Mystery Type:

Lights! Camera! Murder!

Wednesday, July 20^th

9:30am – 11:30am, Meeting Room A

The Missing by Sarah Langan

2011-07-06T13:53:00.000-07:00

The Missing by Sarah Langan

Planning on spending your summer vacation in the woods of Maine? If so, I recommend NOT reading this book. If you are going to Maine and want to get completely creeped out while on vacation, then by all means, go ahead and read it. Just don’t be blaming me for your nightmares!

Through a bunch of odd circumstances a virus is unleashed on the small Maine town of Corpus Christi. It’s bad. Very bad. I liked that this wasn’t a mindless zombie infection sort of thing. These infected were scary because they could think and know things they shouldn’t know. The book doesn’t go where you think it is going, the author does some new things with the disease/virus horror plot that I haven’t seen too often, and it did give me the chills. This is a bleak, dark, gory story that I’m guessing only horror fans will enjoy.

Wench by Dolen Perkins-Valdez

2011-07-06T13:10:00.000-07:00

Wench by Dolen Perkins-Valdez

This is the story of four slave women who meet every summer at Tawawa House in Ohio. What makes this historical fiction unique is the setting – at Tawawa House white masters bring their favorite female slaves and live with them in the cottages on the property. While it is a vacation of sorts for these women, they are never able to forget their standing in society. The four unique slave/owner relationships give interesting and varied perspectives on how life was for the women in these unusual situations – favored, but still property.

There were two things I would change. First, I would have liked the book to be longer. Lately I’ve found that books need a good editor and could benefit from losing 100 or so pages. This was an exception. There were a lot of gaps I would have liked to have filled and instances where there could have been more description (and instances where there could have been a lot less). Second, I wasn’t thrilled with the audiobook. I got lost in the narrative early on because the voices weren’t consistent which made the listening experience quite confusing. I switched over to the print version over halfway through and then sailed through the book. It was an interesting story telling a part of our history I didn’t know.

This author has great potential, and for a first book it was quite good, just a little overly ambitious. I would probably read her next book.

First Grave on the Right by Darynda Jones

2011-06-27T16:04:00.000-07:00

First Grave on the Right by Darynda Jones

Enjoy a touch of paranormal romance with your mysteries? Like sarcastic humor? Then meet Charley Davidson, Grim Reaper. She’s not what you would expect. She doesn’t wear a hood or carry a sickle. She does manage to get herself in a lot of trouble. Seeing the dead and being able to talk to them when no one else can does make you appear a little strange to your fellow humans. But as a private investigator Charley gets results. It’s great when a murder victim can tell you who killed them.

Love listening to the Janet Evanovich books? Then you’re going to love this. The award-winning narrator of the Stephanie Plum series, Lorelei King, is the reader of these books as well. First in a series, I’m getting ready for number two.

Ready Player One by Ernest Cline

2011-06-24T07:48:00.001-07:00

Ready Player One by Ernest Cline

So far, this is the best book I’ve read all year. Love eighties pop culture? Then this book is for you. Were you a geek growing up devouring coin-operated video games and Dungeons & Dragons? Then this book is for you. Fan of cyberpunk? Fan of virtual worlds? Bleak future books? Great stories? Interesting characters? Something completely different? Yep. Then this book is for you.

In 2044 the world is pretty darn awful. Most people spend their hours hooked into OASIS, a very-interactive online utopia, to escape the drudgery and gloom of their RL (real life) existence. When the creator of OASIS dies he sends an email out to the billions who have OASIS accounts. That email contains a video with a simple worded puzzle at the end. He’s left vast fortune to the person who can find the three keys to open the three gates he’s hidden on the worlds of OASIS. The video holds the first clue. Years pass, and now, finally, the first key has been found. The race for the fortune is on…

I must admit, some of my passion for this book stems from the fact that I was able to figure out the location and look of the first gate before Wade did. I was also able to puzzle out a few of the other gate and key locations without Wade’s help. While this was rewarding, it also made me realize that I was a HUGE geek in the 80s. Upon further reflection I have realized that I’m pretty darn proud of it.

This book isn’t coming out until August 16th (I managed to get my hands on an advance copy) so place your holds now!

The Distant Hours by Kate Morton

2011-06-24T07:15:00.000-07:00

The Distant Hours by Kate Morton

A letter is lost, and found, and delivered fifty years after it was posted. The delivery of that letter changes the lives of two families causing events of the past and present to collide in fortunate and disastrous ways.

Kate Morton has a very gothic style, rich with descriptions. A dark tone envelops her characters, yet shafts of light do break through the mists. While not all is grim, there is a melancholy resting over the elderly sisters moldering away with their castle in the English countryside.

Time, the fluidity of it, and the nature of the relationships between mothers, daughters and sisters are the heart of this intriguing novel.

Event by David Lynn Golemon

2011-06-24T07:12:00.000-07:00

Event by David Lynn Golemon

Aliens are making a comeback (Super 8, Area 51) so what better time to read a thrilling new take on the Roswell incident? In Event, a clandestine government agency known fittingly enough as the Event Group, is on high alert after two Navy planes are destroyed. The one survivor of the incident swears his plane was bumped by a failing flying saucer.

The Event Group caught the whole thing from their spy satellite and is now racing to recover the fallen spacecraft. The Group knows something we don’t. Back in 1947 one of the aliens survived long enough to pass on a message. There is something coming that we are not prepared to fight. Something that may have survived this new wreck. And it’s going to be hungry…

I’m a big fan of adventure books that take historical fact and twist it around to make a “cool legends come to life and the world may end” storyline. Usually the history is a bit more historical (Excalibur, Atlantis, etc.) so it was neat to read about a recent event like Roswell. Plus, who doesn’t love little green men?

This is now the second Event Group book I’ve read (Legend being the first I read, but the second in the series) and I’m looking forward to reading more.

The Venetian Betrayal by Steve Berry

2011-06-20T12:45:00.000-07:00

The Venetian Betrayal by Steve Berry

If you’re a fan of adventure/thrillers and you haven’t discovered Steve Berry’s Cotton Malone series you’re in for a treat. Malone is former agent enjoying life as a rare book dealer in Copenhagen. At least he tries to enjoy his non-agent life. No one seems to want to let this guy just relax and run his shop. Which is very fortunate for us readers.

In The Venetian Betrayal Malone is recruited to help find the most famous of missing tombs, the resting place of Alexander the Great, before the maniacal leader of the new Central Asian Federation does. It was interesting having a warrior female leader as the villain in this book. A nice twist. Berry is great at combining ancient legends and history to come up with plausible stories. It’s also neat to find out what’s fact and fiction when you get to the author’s notes at the end.

This is another series that you can jump into at any time. This happens to be book three of seven; The Jefferson Key just came out. (His standalones are fun too!)

The Secret of Excalibur by Andy McDermott

2011-06-20T12:35:00.000-07:00

The Secret of Excalibur by Andy McDermott

Archaeologist Nina Wilde and her fiancé, and sort of bodyguard, Eddie Chase, are hoping to hop over to England to visit with Eddie’s family when Nina hears from an old friend of her deceased parents. Of course it is not a social visit, the old friend has a problem, one he hopes Nina can help with, and when he’s killed his problem – finding the legendary sword Excalibur – is suddenly hers…

I absolutely love McDermott. I was compulsively reading this one on an airplane when I really should have been napping. The author manages to mix historical fact, legends, adventure, action and humor in an absolutely riveting way. This is the third in the series; you can jump in at any time.

Married with Zombies by Jesse Petersen

2011-06-20T12:25:00.000-07:00

Married with Zombies by Jesse Petersen

Sarah and David have been married for five years and things just aren’t going as well as either of them hoped. They’ve been in marriage counseling for a while and are wondering if it’s worth continuing when they enter the office for their last session. That’s when their marriage counselor tries to eat them. Nothing brings a couple together like a crisis and the zombie apocalypse definitely qualifies!

If you’re not a fan of romance because they are too cute, or zombie books because they are too gory, this will be the perfect mix for you.