Mariandy's Book Blog

The Coroner's Lunch

2012-02-09T20:40:00.017-05:00

The Coroner's Lunch
Author: Colin Cotterill
Soho Crime, 2005
272 pages

It's the mid-1970s and seventy-two year old Dr. Siri Paiboun is living in Vientiane, Laos just after the Pathet Lao government came to power. Although he's old enough and would like to be retired, Dr. Siri has been called . . . er, placed into service as the state coroner for the Lao People's Democratic Republic. Not that he's a trained or experience coroner, because he's not.

He's a medical doctor, though, trained in France. Widowed several years ago, he now has some fantastic sidekicks: an ambitious nurse and a morgue helper with Down's Syndrome. And he has friends in high places in the government -- sort of. His neighbor spies on him, and he has a crush on the sandwich maker. These are just a few of the other colorful characters in this wonderful first-in-a-series mystery by English-born author Colin Cotterill.

Dr. Siri is a man who takes things in stride and has a sense of humor despite the time and circumstances. But things get deadly serious when the morgue starts getting customers. A fisherman loses his legs in a horrible boating accident -- but was it really an accident? The wife of a Party leader keels over at a luncheon -- natural causes or murder? Three drowned soldiers -- what really happened?

These are just a few of the cases that Dr. Siri must solve with his limited skills in forensic sciences. Dr. Siri faces all sorts of challenges, from lack of basic supplies and equipment to lack of support from his own superiors. But he's a resourceful man, and he's also got something else on his side. Let's just say he has some special abilities.

The Coroner's Lunch is a mystery with added elements of fantasy and historical fiction. Not being very familiar with Laos or its history, I felt like I was learning something while also being entertained by this wonderful main character and his excellent supporting cast. I want so badly to continue reading all the Dr. Siri books in order. I think you'll be seeing more Dr. Siri books on this blog . . . sooner rather than later.

Involuntary Witness

2012-02-05T17:13:00.005-05:00

Involuntary Witness
Author: Gianrico Carofiglio (translated from Italian by Patrick Creagh)
Bitter Lemon, 2005
274 pages

Here's a book I noticed on the shelf in the library a few weeks ago without knowing anything about the author or series. Luckily, Involuntary Witness is the first of several books featuring Italian attorney Guido Guerrieri. From the opening pages, a couple of things are clear: Guido's not particularly happy, and he's entering that challenging phase of life known as mid-life crisis.

Guido doesn't seem to really enjoy his chosen profession. He seems lackadaisical about lots of things. At the office, he tends to ignore his assistant, and he often makes his clients wait. His similar lack of enthusiasm at home leads his wife to announce (to his surprise) that she wants a separation, and at this, Guido starts to fall apart at the seams.

But then he's visited by a student from Africa, who tells him about a friend of hers who desperately needs help. The friend -- Abdou Thiam, an immigrant from Senegal, has been imprisoned for the murder of a young Italian boy. Although he was a teacher in Senegal, Abdou is unable to get similar work in Italy so he peddles wares (including a few counterfeits) on the beach near Bari.

Upon visiting Abdou in prison, it's pretty clear to Guido that the man is not a killer. However, according to the Italian legal system, Abdou basically has two choices: 1) he can admit guilt and serve a shortened sentence; or 2) he can have a trial, which he'll probably lose, and spend the rest of his life in jail. Since Abdou maintains his innocence, he decides to risk a trial. As Guido works to free his client, he also attempts to put his personal life back in order.

Guido comes across as a guy who used to be a jerk, but has learned some very big lessons. Actually, he learns several (and somewhat redeems himself) in this book. That makes him a likeable character. He's also quite clever and creative, and the scenes involving some of his adventures can bring a smile to your face.

According to online sources, the author is a former judge in southern Italy (in Bari, the city where Involuntary Witness takes place). He obviously knows his way around the very complex legal system there. That the accused is a "non-European" (the term used in court) immigrant adds an additional level of complexity to this finely-told legal tale.

Another win for the library. Glad I picked this one up.

A Stolen Life

2012-01-30T19:36:00.001-05:00

A Stolen Life
Author: Jaycee Dugard
Simon & Schuster, 2011
288 pages

On a typical morning in 1991 as eleven year-old Jaycee Dugard walked to school, a strange man drove up beside her in his car. Moments later, the California girl was kidnapped, only to be found eighteen years later. A Stolen Life is the memoir of that experience, and the first year (more or less) of Dugard's new life after she was finally able to break free.

The book is as forthright as a memoir can be while also describing her feelings about the man who kidnapped her. It was hard to read because it's difficult to imagine anyone doing the things this man did. Not only did he steal Jaycee's youth and innocence, he made her (and his accomplice wife) totally dependent on him for even the most basic human needs. He also fathered her two daughters; the first born when Jaycee was only fourteen. She was so terrified of what would happen if she tried to escape, that she never even attempted it.

Fortunately, Jaycee didn't just find a path to freedom - she bravely took it. Since then, she started The JAYC Foundation, an organization that helps families who've been impacted by abduction. That so much good can come from so much bad is something that leaves me speechless.

Dublin Dead

2012-01-29T11:19:00.003-05:00

Dublin Dead
Author: Gerard O'Donovan
Sphere, 2011
418 pages

This book isn't available in the USA yet -- it's scheduled for release here in print and eBook on 13 March. I ordered my copy from Amazon UK, and it arrived a couple of weeks ago. It's the second book in the Mike Mulcahy series (the first book was The Priest, which I haven't read). Normally, I don't read books out of order, but when I ordered Dublin Dead I didn't know it was a series. Fortunately, I was able to jump right in to Book #2.

When an Irish drug dealer is killed in a Spanish resort town, detective Mike Mulcahy and his special task force are asked to look into the dead guy's connections in Ireland. This leads to them learning about a similar murder in the UK of an English drug lord, and a missing shipment of cocaine that seems to have disappeared into thin air. In the meantime, key people in the investigation keep getting bumped off by a mysterious blonde assassin.

While Mulcahy looks for links between these events, journalist Siobhan Fallon is making a comeback. Apparently she was the victim of some brutal stuff in Book #1. We're given hints to explain why she hasn't worked in a while, why she has nightmares, and what her relationship with Mulcahy might have been at one time. Siobhan's looking into the suicide of a very rich Irishman (well, he had been rich, until the economy went bad) that took place in Bristol, England. Her investigation leads her to Cork, where she's approached by a woman who's adult daughter has gone missing.

There's a lot going on in these 400+ pages and it's a bit of a challenge to keep up in the beginning. There's a certain tension between Siobhan and Mulcahy that makes you want to keep reading about them. I enjoyed the Irish setting, as well as the various side trips and mentions of other places. And it was kind of cool to read a book that's not available over here just yet.

All in all, I was quite satisfied with Dublin Dead and will be looking out for more books by Gerard O'Donovan in the future.

Dregs

2012-01-24T09:44:00.001-05:00

Dregs
Author: Jørn Lier Horst
Sandstone Press, 2011
320 pages

Out of Norway comes this very intricate novel featuring police investigator William Wisting, a descendant of a polar explorer. As far as I can tell, this is the sixth Wisting novel, but the first translated into English. I'm not sure why publishers translate series novels out of order, but I suppose that's a different blog entry. So let's focus on Dregs now.

Wisting is 51 years old and has been a police investigator for quite some time, apparently. He's feeling old and a bit burnt out, and is having some health issues that he refers to as the menopause. A recent widower, he lives in the Larvik area of southern Norway. The two main people in his life are his daughter Line, a journalist, and his girlfriend Suzanne. Line is visiting for a while to conduct some interviews with a handful of local ex-cons for a story she's writing on the prison system.

Suddenly, a shoe is found on the beach . . . with someone's left foot still in it. But that's not all. Over the course of a few days, other left feet & shoes will be found. They appear to belong to missing persons from the area, including a couple of men from the local nursing home. Then one of the nursing home's carers disappears.

As Wisting investigates, Line interviews a local man who recently got out of prison for killing a police officer some twenty years ago. He doesn't seem like a killer -- in fact, Line is sure he served time to cover up for someone else. But can she prove it? And will Wisting find out what's up with all the left feet?

Dregs is very clever. It addresses certain aspects of Norway's history, and examines an important social issue from both sides, without taking sides. Wisting is likeable, and I like the idea of father and daughter working together, so I hope future books are headed in that direction. There were several red herrings that had me going down wrong paths more than once. By 50% complete I was sure I knew who the killer was . . . but I was wrong.

I just wish I had the background on Wisting that I feel like I'm missing by not having read the books before Dregs. And I'd like to tell the author that 51 is not old. :)

Mixed Blood

2012-01-21T18:58:00.006-05:00

Mixed Blood
Author: Roger Smith
Picador, 2009
320 pages

I needed a little break from North America and Europe, so I decided to look to Africa for my latest read. Roger Smith is a South African author and this was his first book (followed by Wake Up Dead in 2010 and Dust Devils in 2011 -- I predict that I'll be reading both of those). Mixed Blood is a thriller in the true sense: It had me from the first few pages, and never let me go. So I'm telling you now, be sure you have some time to read before starting this one, otherwise, if you're anything like me, you'll be very grumpy if interrupted.

Paul Burn is an American living in a posh area of Cape Town with his beautiful pregnant wife, Susan, and their young son, Matt. At first they seem to be a "normal" expat family. When a couple of local meth-heads breaks into their home and it seems like they're about to rape and kill them all, Paul turns the tables on them. Suddenly we're wondering who Paul is . . . or maybe what Paul is.

Before we find out, our attention is turned to another character, Benny Mongrel. Raised in the Cape Town area known as the Flats, Benny's a former gangsta who's trying to turn his life around after doing serious jail time. He works as a night watchman in the construction site next door to where the Burn family lives, and he witnesses the two thugs breaking in. He's quite surprised when, a short time later, instead of seeing them run back out and drive off in their red BMW, Paul Burn drives away in his Jeep.

Next we meet a rotten-to-the-core policeman named Rudi Barnard. He's a large, stinky, freak of a man and one of the most crooked cops I've come across in recent literature. Truly, he's a bad, bad dude.

Finally, we meet 'good cop' Disaster Zondi (who probably has one of the coolest character names ever). Zondi works out of a special unit in Johannesburg that investigates crooked cops, and Barnard is on his list. (By the time Zondi is introduced, you're totally ready for Barnard to get his karma.)

The stories of the four men come together in this rollercoaster ride of a novel. Along the way, we learn quite a bit about the complexities of South African culture -- and It's Complicated. But it's also a stunningly beautiful country, and Cape Town is widely known to be one of the most beautiful cities in the world. To me, that's what makes it the perfect setting for this very raw and gritty story.

The Jasmine Moon Murder

2012-01-16T22:06:00.004-05:00

The Jasmine Moon Murder
Author: Laura Childs
Berkley, 2005
272 pages

Although my taste in fiction has evolved over the years toward more international crime/thrillers and historical fiction, I enjoy a good "cozy" mystery every now and then. One series I absolutely adore is the clever Tea Shop Mystery series by Laura Childs, of which The Jasmine Moon Murder is Book #5. Every time I read one of these Charleston, South Carolina-based works, I want to drink tea and demonstrate gentility. And of course, I want to visit Charleston immediately (I'm only 3 hours 47 minutes away according to Google Maps! Hmm, if I leave now . . . )

This time around, Indigo Tea Shop owner Theodosia and her steady crew (tea master Drayton and baker extraordinaire Haley) are catering a Ghost Tour event in a cemetery when a man collapses. When Theodosia rushes over to try to help him, she finds out it's too late. The man is dead -- and Theodosia finds a syringe nearby. Later tests will reveal the contents to be a lethal drug: it was murder!

Turns out the dead man wasn't a stranger -- he was the uncle of Theo's boyfriend, Jory. Uncle Jasper was an executive at a medical devices company that's about to release a revolutionary new product, meaning that he was probably about to make a boatload of money. He was also in the middle of a divorce from a woman who's obviously a gold digger. Suddenly there are lots of potential suspects around, including a couple of rival CEOs and a shady PR man who seems willing to do anything to promote his clients -- and himself.

By now, even Detective Burt Tidwell knows he can't stop Theo from conducting her own investigation. But when someone takes a couple of shots at Theo at the fox hunt, and throws a rock through the window of the mansion Theo is housesitting, it becomes personal. But then one of her top suspects is also murdered . . .

The Tea Shop Mystery series just keeps getting better. I'll definitely keep reading these . . . and I'll keep dreaming of a Charleston getaway. Hmm, I wonder if I could get down there for the Spoleto Festival this year? :)

Previous books in this series that I've reviewed:

Book 1 - Death by Darjeeling

Book 2 - Gunpowder Green
Book 3 - Shades of Earl Grey

Book 4 - The English Breakfast Murder

The Invisible Ones

2012-01-15T00:29:00.003-05:00

The Invisible Ones
Author: Stef Penney
Putnam, 2012
416 pages

This book is still hot off the presses, so I'm really excited to be one of the first to read it. Mostly set in England (with a portion set in France) in 1986 or so, it's a detective story and also a coming of age story, told by two characters.

Main character Ray Lovell is a hard luck private detective whose cheatin' wife has left him all messed up. Half Romany Gypsy, half gorjio (non-Romany), Ray is in the hospital when the book opens, suffering from an unknown condition that has him partially paralyzed with no memory of what has happened. Slowly, he begins to remember a recent missing persons case he worked on involving a young Romany woman. The woman, Rose Wood, married into an "unlucky" Romany family -- The Jankos -- and has not been seen by her own family since the wedding some six years ago.

Meanwhile, young James "JJ" Smith is a teenager being raised by his single mother and her family . . . The Jankos. They live in a trailer encampment on the outskirts of town: JJ and his mom, grandparents, uncle, and cousin Ivo and his son, Christo. When the book opens JJ and his family are in France, on their way to Lourdes, hoping for a miracle for Christo, who has the family curse -- an unknown illness that has killed many young Janko boys -- a source of their unluckiness.

While Ray navigates the Romany culture to find Rose (who was Ivo's wife), JJ navigates gorgjio society. He's a good kid and a good student with lots of potential, but not knowing his father (or who his father is) is eating him up inside. Eventually JJ's path will cross with Ray's, and we can only hope after reading The Invisible Ones that Ray will continue to be a role model for him.

Ray has his own demons, of course. Will he be able to fight them off? Will he get his memory back? Will he find the missing woman? Things aren't always what they seem in The Invisible Ones. Guess you'll have to read it to find out. :)

Among Others

2012-01-11T11:04:00.006-05:00

Among Others
Author: Jo Walton
Tor, 2011
304 pages

I saw this book on the shelf of my local library recently, and decided to pick it up because (deep breath - I usually don't admit this) I was attracted to the pretty cover. Something about the reddish glow and the fairy dust, I suppose. When I started reading it last Saturday, I was drawn into a sort of mystical world that bridged the gap between humans and the supernatural (witches and fairies) in the year 1979. Turns out, I was born in the same year as the main character (I was 15 in 1979), and that made her instantly relatable. She could have been someone I went to school with.

"Mori" or "Mor" has recently moved from Wales to England to live with her father and his three strange half-sisters. The half-sisters are wealthy, having received an inheritance. They seem to be in their forties, and are all unmarried and childless . . . and a bit on the strange side. Just prior to moving to England, Mori lived with her twin sister and extended maternal family in South Wales. But there was an accident that left Mori with a bad leg and killed Mori's twin. We eventually learn that this "accident" was caused by the twins' mother, who was apparently doing some pretty serious magic at the time.

The supernatural element isn't the star of this show, however. Books are. Mori is a fanatic reader of science fiction, and also of classical works written by the likes of Plato and Virgil. Among Others is written like a diary covering several months, and during that time Mori reads and/or refers to dozens of books. One review called Among Others a long song to librarians and libraries, and this is very evident in the relationships Mori develops with two characters, her school librarian and Greg from the local public library.

It's the books that help Mori make the transition from Wales to England, from her home with "Gramper" and her favorite Auntie, to her English boarding school and new sort-of home with her father and his family. Her Dad (she can't call him 'Dad' so she uses his first name) is also a voracious reader of science fiction, which gives them common ground. Science fiction will also provide Mori with a new circle of friends.

So maybe it's Science Fiction that's really the star of this book . . . yes, I think so. I kind of hate to admit that I've only read a handful of the books discussed. Maybe I should look more closely at that genre.

Whatever the case, Among Others is truly other-worldly. I felt like I was dreaming much of the time I was reading this very interesting "coming of age" story. And that was OK with me.

P.S. I love libraries, so it was kind of ironic that I checked out this particular book from a library. Our local library system (like a lot of others) has experienced some hard times over the last few years. I find this to be very disconcerting and I urge you to SUPPORT YOUR LOCAL LIBRARY!!!

Purge

2012-01-07T11:00:00.009-05:00

Purge
Author: Sofi Oksanen
Grover Press, Black Cat, 2010
320 pages

I want to start out with a confession: This book blew me away, and I was not prepared for that. I knew that Purge was: 1) set in the country of Estonia; and 2) written by a young author from Finland -- but that's really all I knew before I read it. I've never been to Estonia (but I've been to Finland) and I don't know much about the history of Estonia or the Baltic states. But none of that mattered because I was transported there, and now I feel as if I've been there many times.

The story revolves around two women, Aliide and Zara. In the present day (which is really the early 1990s), Aliide is an old woman who lives alone in a rural area of Estonia, and Zara is a young woman from Vladivostok in far-eastern Russia. One rainy morning, Aliide looks out her window and sees something in her front yard. When she goes outside to investigate, she finds Zara, who is barely conscious, dirty, and covered with bruises. Aliide struggles with whether or not to help Zara, but decides to bring her into her home and take care of her.

Through a combination of voices in mostly alternating chapters, we learn their life stories. Aliide's is a woeful tale of sibling rivalry and star-crossed lovers in parallel with the history of 20th century Estonia. Zara is a victim of the sex-trafficking industry between Russia and Western Europe (in her case, Germany) and is now being pursued by her ruthless Russian captors. The women have much in common. They've both made some bad decisions. They've both been used and abused. They're both survivors. But those aren't the only things they have in common, as we'll learn from a secret photo that Zara keeps tucked into her bra.

Purge refers not only to the title of the book, but to the political purges that occurred during the Soviet occupations of Estonia in the early 1940s. Many Estonian nationals disappeared. Some were forcibly removed to Siberia or other places in Russia to be "rehabilitated." Others went into hiding, escaped to Finland or another country, or were killed. To say that it was a very bad time would be a major understatement.

There are several other literary references to Purge throughout the book. Both Aliide and Zara have things they need to purge from their pasts in order to heal -- if indeed healing is possible. We're not really sure it is, at least not in the traditional sense, as the book's ending only leaves hints of an ending. Or perhaps a new beginning, which is what will soon be happening to Estonia (during the early 1990s).

Although Purge is classified as a thriller in many circles (and it certainly has its "thrilling" moments), I'd recommend it more for fans of historical fiction, women's literary fiction, or world literature. It would be an excellent choice for a literary book club. I wish I knew someone else who's read it, because I'd love to chat about it! There's so much more I'd like to write about Purge, but instead, I'll just end with this statement:

This is a book that's going to stay with me for a while.

Eggsecutive Orders

2011-12-30T01:01:00.002-05:00

Eggsecutive Orders
Author: Julie Hyzy
Berkley, 2010
352 pages

In this third book in the White House Chef Mystery series, top chef Olivia "Ollie" Paras is doing more than cooking. One early morning as she's getting ready for work, Ollie learns that a guest at last night's White House dinner has died of mysterious causes, and all eyes are on the kitchen staff. Ollie knows that none of her team would ever poison anyone, and she's fairly confident in the safety of her kitchen's ingredients. Unfortunately, the Secret Service (including Ollie's boyfriend Tom, who's assigned to the President) isn't letting her or her team back into the kitchen just yet.

As the Secret Service awaits the medical examiner's report, Ollie gets some unexpected time off -- just as her mother and grandma ("nana") are in town for a visit to Our Nation's Capital. But Ollie doesn't want to be off work. She wants to be in the White House kitchen, doing her job, along with the other chefs, Bucky and Cyan. She also wants to take her visitors on a tour of the White House, but now it looks like that won't be possible.

Turns out, the man who died was the head of the National Security Agency. He wasn't exactly well-liked, so there are lots of suspects, including his second-in-command, and a mysterious older gentleman who begins paying amorous attention to Ollie's mom. And then Ollie remembers that there were guests in the kitchen that night: Two of her friends who host a TV cooking show - along with their crew - had taped a segment in the White House kitchen for an upcoming episode . . . and one of the hosts had a history with the dead man. Yet the Secret Service doesn't want Ollie helping in their investigation!

Of all the times for something like this to happen . . . the big Easter Egg Roll is only days away, and Ollie and her crew need to boil something like 15,000 eggs and prepare other food for one of the White House's biggest events of the year. Will they be able to pull it off? That's one of many questions to be answered in Eggsecutive Orders.

Author Julie Hyzy has a knack for writing believable (and interesting) dialogue, so you feel like you're in the same room as the characters, eavesdropping on their conversations. Ollie is growing as a character, and having her mom and hilarious nana in town was a great idea (I'd like to see more of them - especially nana). I'd still like to punch the "sensitivity director" character in the face, but since I can't, maybe someone will in a future book.

Eggsecutive Orders, like the other books in this series, is a light and quick read. I read it in two nights. As with the others, there are some yummy-sounding recipes in the back. I'm particularly looking forward to trying the Eggs Benedict and the Scotch Eggs recipes some upcoming weekend. I already have the fourth book, Buffalo West Wing, and have pre-ordered the fifth, Affairs of Steak, which will be released next Tuesday (January 3). So as you can tell, I like the White House Chef Mysteries a lot! :)

Previously read books in this series:

Hail To The Chef
State Of The Onion

The Traitor's Emblem

2011-12-26T21:42:00.003-05:00

The Traitor's Emblem
Author: Juan Gómez-Jurado
Atria Books, 2011 (reprint)
336 pages

I bought this book a while ago and started reading it, but couldn't get through the first chapter. But I kept seeing good reviews about it online, so I decided to give it another shot. Fortunately, the results were different this time, and I was pulled right into the middle of a storm off the coast of Spain in 1940. A Spanish ship rescues a small group of Germans crossing the Strait of Gibraltar. As payment for rescuing them and taking them to Portugal (not Spain), the leader of the German group gives the Spanish captain an emblem made of gold with a diamond. Fast forward some sixty years, when the Spanish captain's son is offered a lot of money for the emblem. The potential buyer tells the tale of the emblem, and things really start to get interesting.

The tale starts in Munich, Germany just after the end of the first World War. Things are bad. The economy's in shambles, Germany's in major debt, and there's a shortage of jobs. Fifteen-year-old Paul Reiner and his mother, Ilse, live in the home of Ilse's sister, Brunhilda, who's married to a baron. The baron has a gambling problem and is quickly losing his assets, so there's a lot of stress in the household. The Reiners are treated more like servants than family. Paul's father disappeared when Paul was just a baby. The story is that the elder Reiner was captain of a ship that sunk off the coast of German South-West Africa (now Namibia). Paul wants to know more, but the subject seems to be taboo.

The baron and baroness have two sons: Eduard, a recently-returned war veteran with no legs and plenty of post-traumatic stress; and Jürgen, a big bully just a few months older than Paul. At a party in his honor, Jürgen tries to impress his mates by disrespecting young guest Alys Tannenbaum, the daughter of a wealthy industrialist. Paul steps in to defend Alys, and thus begins a rivalry between the two cousins that will just get nastier as time passes. An event later that same evening puts Paul and Ilse out on the streets, no longer welcome in the baron's mansion -- but not before Paul hears a different story about is father's death.

Paul and Ilse struggle to survive in a world where inflation is rampant and the political winds are beginning to shift. Gómez-Jurado masterfully weaves historical facts into the story, while creating a believable and very interesting story around the characters of Paul, Jürgen, and Alys. And that's really all I want to say, because otherwise I'm going to write all night and give way too much away.

Bottom line: GREAT book. Loved it. Glad I gave it a second chance.

Next up will be something light -- not sure what yet. I'm also reading a "healthy" book for a work initiative, so a nonfiction review is coming soon!

The Boy In The Suitcase

2011-12-25T19:15:00.003-05:00

The Boy In The Suitcase
Authors: Lene Kaaberbøl and Agnete Friis
Soho Crime, 2011
323 pages

This amazing thriller comes from Denmark. It was actually published a few years ago, and was a finalist for the Scandinavian Glass Key, an award given annually to a crime thriller written by an author from Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway or Sweden. I've read online that it's part of a bestselling Danish series, and I really hope that others will be translated into English soon.

Main character Nina Borg is a Red Cross nurse who works primarily with refugees. She has a family of her own, but is passionate about her job to the point where she occasionally leaves her family to work in another country. When her old friend Karin asks for a favor, Nina reluctantly complies, even though she hasn't seen Karin in a while. In doing so, she comes across a suitcase with an unconscious little boy inside.

Other characters are introduced, and each chapter focuses on a different character. There's Jan, a wealthy Danish businessman who's stuck on an airplane and in a hurry to get back to Copenhagen, and Jucas, a temperamental Lithuanian thug who's in Denmark to do some sort of a job. Back in Lithuania, a young single mother named Sigrita is dealing with the disappearance of her three-year-old son, Miklas.

Of course, the characters are all interconnected, and it doesn't take long for us to know how. But we have to wait until the final pages of the book to find out why. Fortunately, you won't have to wait long to get to the final pages, because this is a fast read. So if you're thinking about reading The Boy In The Suitcase (and I think you should), plan a weekend or a day off where you can sit back for several hours and get it all done in one fell swoop. You will not want to put this one down. Not to eat, not to answer the phone/check email/Facebook/Twitter, and certainly not to sleep. When you do finally turn the last page, you'll finally be able to breathe again.

It's a fantastic story, and also a sort of mini-treatise on some of the social problems endemic to a "free" society. So in addition to entertaining you for several hours, The Boy In The Suitcase might also make you think about these issues. Who knows? Maybe you'll want to do something about them as a result of reading this book.

*****

This was Book #52 for 2011, and I'm well into Book #53 already. So I've broken the record I set last year, and I haven't slowed down yet. :)

Holiday Grind

2011-12-22T12:36:00.007-05:00

Holiday Grind
Author: Cleo Coyle
Berkley, 2009
384 pages

Ah, the holiday season! This eighth installment in the amazing Coffeehouse Mystery series finds Village Blend manager Clare Cosi trying to create the perfect holiday coffee drink. When Santa (Village Blend customer Alf Glockner) fails to show up at the tasting party, Clare goes out to look for him. Unfortunately, he's in a back alley . . . dead.

By now Clare's family (ex-husband Matt Allegro, the globetrotting coffee broker and reformed [?] playboy now married to publishing magnate Breanne Summour; Clare & Matt's daughter Joy, a young chef currently living in Paris; and Matt's mother Madame, who owns the Village Blend) and her boyfriend Mike Quinn (of the NYPD) are getting used to her propensity for crime-solving. And that's a good thing, because despite what anyone else may think, it's obvious to Clare that Alf was murdered.

Who could have murdered such a nice guy? -- In a Santa outfit, no less. Perhaps the shady businessman who lent Alf $200k. Or the businessman's son, who seems to have his own shady side business. Or perhaps Alf's bitter, plastic-surgeried ex-wife. Perhaps it was a professional hit? Just before Alf died, he was hanging out in a fire escape and looking through the window of the residence of a television producer . . . why?

Holiday Grind is a nice cozy mystery, and the Coffeehouse Mystery series just keeps getting better. As usual, Clare gets herself into some interesting . . . shall we say get-ups? There's still a sort of sexual tension between Clare and Matt, and in this book, the former Mrs. Quinn shows up, and it ain't pretty.

But the thing I appreciate most about Holiday Grind is the section in the back. There's a substantial section on coffee basics and terminology; detailed instructions on using a Moka Express Stovetop Espresso maker; and plenty of recipes for different types of holiday-themed coffee beverages, syrups for lattes, and other goodies. I'm keeping my copy of Holiday Grind, so I can refer to it whenever I want to make something really special for future holiday seasons.

Previously read books in this series:

On What Grounds (December 2009)

Through The Grinder (January 2010)

Latté Trouble (June 2010)

Murder Most Frothy (January 2011)
Decaffeinated Corpse (April 2011)
French Pressed (August 2011)
Espresso Shot (November 2011)

***********

Special Note: Holiday Grind is the 51st book I've read and blogged about in 2011. This ties the 51 books I read/blogged about in 2010. With eight days remaining in 2011, it's possible for me to break the 2010 record. Will I do it? Come back again soon to find out! :)

The Dirty Parts Of The Bible

2011-12-18T21:10:00.001-05:00

The Dirty Parts Of The Bible
Author: Sam Torode
CreateSpace, 2010
276 pages

Let me start out by saying that I bought the Kindle edition of this book for 0.96 cents on Amazon. From the very first sentence I was laughing, and there were many instances when I had to stop and read a section out loud to whomever was around (Dad, Mom, Sandy, the dogs) just to share my amusement.

It's 1936, during the period that would eventually be known as the Great Depression. Main character Tobias is the son (and only child -- you'll know why in the first couple of paragraphs) of a Baptist preacher in a small Michigan town. Tobias only thinks about two things: girls and religion (mostly girls) . . . and he has a wonderful imagination.

When a series of ironic events leads to the Reverend losing his job, Tobias sets out to save the family by returning to his father's home in Texas to retrieve some money his father secretly hid there many years ago. But first he has to get to Texas, and the journey is a huge part of this coming-of-age story.

Things start out well enough as Tobias rides the train to Chicago. But when he gets to the Windy City, he realizes his own unsophistication. I don't want to give away too much, but there are encounters with all sorts of people. When an innocent split-second decision leaves him broke, he decides to continue his journey anyway. Meeting up with some hobos, he hops a southbound train and yet another journey begins as one of the hobos, Craw, teaches him what it's like to live as a "free" man.

Craw ends up becoming a mentor and friend, despite their age and other differences. Eventually they make it to the family farm in Texas, where they both get jobs as farm hands. Tobias finds that he blends in better with his uncle's family than with his own. There's a funny family reunion scene involving Grandma and Craw, and there's this really cute girl named Sarah. That's really all I want to say in terms of plot.

In short, The Dirty Parts of the Bible -- aside from having one of the coolest titles ever -- is one of my favorite books of the year. It's definitely the best 0.96 cents I've spent in a long, long time.

Killer Instinct

2011-12-17T10:21:00.005-05:00

Killer Instinct
Author: Zoë Sharp
Murderati Ink, 2011 (previously published)
509KB

I've read lots of mysteries & thrillers with female protagonists. But Zoë Sharp's Charlie Fox is . . . different. She lives in Lancaster, England, a small city situated along a river in the northwest of England, not far from the Lake District. This is a new setting for me, and it's always refreshing to read about a new place.

A motorcycle-riding, ex-member of the British military, the woman formerly known as Charlotte Foxcroft teaches self defense courses to women. One evening she tags along with her best friend Clare to a new club. There's an altercation, and Charlie's skills are observed by the club's owner, the mysterious Marc Quinn. Soon after, Marc asks her to work for him as part of the club's security detail. Charlie can use the extra money, so she agrees to work a few evenings a week. However, on her first night working at the club, she immediately feels unwelcome by the all-male security team . . . and it just goes downhill from there.

First, one of the women at the club that night is assaulted and murdered. This is followed by a string of other incidents, including more murders -- and threats to Charlie. As things become more personal, we learn that Charlie was attacked during her time in the military and suffered all sorts of losses as a result. The reason she teaches self-defense to women is so they won't have to be a victim, like she was so long ago. Charlie no longer defines herself as a victim. But does that give her the killer instinct? Her underlying struggle with this question is one of the things that makes her a unique female protagonist.

There are lots of red herrings and false leads, and things don't always turn out like you think they're going to. The last pages are so filled with action, I couldn't stop reading although it was way past my bedtime.

But my favorite thing about Killer Instinct was . . . Charlie. She's a tough cookie, with bit of marshmallow in the inside. She makes me want to get a motorcycle and a pair of leather pants, and to take up martial arts. And I'd definitely want her to have my back, if I was ever in any kind of trouble.

I'll be reading more of this series!

The Start-Up

2011-12-09T19:36:00.004-05:00

The Start-Up
Author: Sadie Hayes
Backlit Fiction, LLC, 2011
635KB

They say the Internet is the great equalizer, and more and more this seems especially true in the publishing world. The Start-Up is one of many books I've seen lately that are only available in digital form. I came across it while looking at a list of top-selling Young Adult books on Amazon.com. The description sounded interesting, and at 99 cents, I just couldn't pass it up.

Amelia and Adam Dory are twins who grew up in a series of foster homes in Indiana. Through their own hard work, they landed scholarships to Stanford University. It's not easy living in rich Silicon Valley when you don't have much money, but somehow they get by. Adam takes on temporary jobs, and Amelia has special talents with computers and coding. Adam longs for the lifestyle of the rich and famous and would like to see his sister 'do something' with her skills, but Amelia believes money's the root of all evil. But when she hacks into a company to check out something Adam overheard at a party where he was tending bar, a frightening scam behind a multi-billion dollar investment is revealed. When the media breaks the story based on Amelia's tip, heads start to roll.

This little book is jam-packed with despicable characters, from the venture capitalist whose financial return is ruined by Amelia's discovery, to Amelia's scheming two-faced rich-chick roommate, Patty. But those are just two of many. The Start-Up (and apparently Silicon Valley) is replete with selfish, shallow characters who care about little else but making money, driving fancy cars, and partying. In that regard, it's a lot like a TV soap opera: You want to pull away and stop watching, you know it's wrong . . . but you just can't help yourself.

And sure enough, The Start-Up ends with a cliffhanger that makes you want to dive right in to the second book (called The Anti-Social Network). There's a third coming soon, and my guess is, there'll be several more.

Tempest Rising

2011-12-05T14:59:00.015-05:00

Tempest Rising
Author: Nicole Peeler
Orbit, 2009
368 pages

Quick Quiz: You're headed out of town for a three-day weekend in sunny Florida with your friends, and you need something to read on your brand-new Kindle Fire. Do you choose: A) a work-related business book; B) historical fiction about the place where you're going; or C) a breezy chick-lit fantasy to take your mind off the Real World? For me, the obvious choice in this type of situation is always C. Based on a recommendation from someone I follow on Twitter, I snagged Tempest Rising, the first book in a series featuring twenty-something Jane True.

Jane lives in Rockabill, Maine, once a fishing village but now a tourist town thanks in part to its proximity to The Old Sow, the largest whirlpool in North America. Mysteriously abandoned by her mother as a child, Jane lives with her father and works in a book shop. A few years back, her boyfriend Jason died, and Jane still deals with the after-effects of that and her mother's disappearance. Actually, she feels like the Town Freak, and there are lots of people in Rockabill who reinforce her perception.

You'd think she'd just skip town and try to start over somewhere else. But she can't leave her Dad. Nor can she leave the water - at least not for very long. For some reason, Jane feels compelled to secretly swim in the cold ocean near The Old Sow every night. There's something about the experience that strengthens her and helps her forget about the stark realities of her life. When she emerges from her swim and finds a dead body, things start to get really weird . . . and they'll get even weirder as Jane becomes aware of her true heritage. Turns out she's a halfling: half human and (in Jane's case) half selkie. That's why her mother had to leave all those years ago.

And those other so-called mythological creatures? Gnomes, vampires, goblins, succubae, and several you've never heard of? They exist, too. In fact, the detective who comes to Rockabill to investigate the murder is a vampire (actually, in the book he calls himself a baobhan sith) named Ryu (pronounced "Roo"). Wouldn't you know, one thing leads to another, and Jane find herself with a vampire boyfriend. Their romance happens quickly - no waiting three or four books for this couple to get beyond the, um, dance.

Turns out there have been other halfling murders, and when their goblin investigators are also whacked, it's pretty obvious that there's a supernatural murderer on the loose. Jane and Ryu head up to Quebec, where there's a royal court that no full-blooded human knows about, complete with king (Odin) and queen (Morrigan) and some rather nasty supes. Things get really wild here . . . the water in the grotto has a crack-like effect on Jane and, well, let's just say we learned to never rub a genie's lamp. Of course, the truth will be revealed, and the ending isn't really an ending . . . in fact Tempest Rising is the first of five (almost six) books in this series.

Jane has a wonderful sense of humor, and most of the time, I really like her. I don't really get the attraction to Ryu -- he's just not all that to me. His baobhan sith isn't like any other similar character I've ever read about -- which doesn't make it wrong, just different. (I believe in literary license. After all, it's fiction.)

Although I didn't mention him until now, my favorite supe character in Tempest Rising is Anyan, the barghest. He takes on a sort of protector role for Jane, and I get the feeling their relationship will evolve over the series. I certainly hope it will, because to be honest, I like Anyan a lot more than Ryu. So if I continue to read the series, it'll be because I have a sort of literary crush on The Big Dog. :)

Tempest Rising turned out to be an excellent choice for my weekend getaway. But I really do want to read that historical novel about the place I visited, and there's that book I have to read for work . . . guess I need to get busy, huh?

Nowhere Else On Earth

2011-11-28T20:49:00.005-05:00

Nowhere Else On Earth
Author: Josephine Humphreys
Penguin, 2001
368 pages

At a professional development conference late last year, I met a woman who asked me where I grew up. When I told her I was from Robeson County, her eyes lit up. "Have you read a book called Nowhere Else On Earth?" she asked. I hadn't. We exchanged business cards, and a couple of weeks later, I received a copy of this book (which won the 2001 Southern Book Award for Fiction) in the mail as a gift from this new acquaintance.

If you're a regular reader of this blog, you know that my books tell me when I'm supposed to read them - not the other way around. So although I wanted to read it, Nowhere Else On Earth sat on my shelf for a while. The long wait ended on Thanksgiving Day. I spent the weekend in Robeson County, and I think the book wanted me to start reading it there, where this story takes place.

It starts in 1864. The US Civil War is winding down, yet to the people in the settlement known as Scuffletown, it seems like the war many never end. Once a player in the turpentine industry, the area is home to all sorts of folks. Caught between Union soldiers (who take whatever they want - even if it's everything a family has - and often give empty promises in return) and the local Confederate sympathizers (who want to punish them for "supplying" the Union - as if they had a choice), the residents of Scuffletown are just trying to get by in these desperate times. When the Home Guard starts taking their young men away to use as laborers at Fort Fisher, tensions thicken. But soon the situation escalates, and a group of men known as the Lowrie Gang sets out to avenge the many wrongs perpetuated on Scuffletown's residents.

This is the story of Henry Berry Lowrie (sometimes spelled Lowry), the young man from a prominent Indian family who led the "gang" and became a sort of local folk hero to many, and vilified by others. Henry's story has been told many times and in many different ways, including the outdoor drama Strike At The Wind. Nowhere Else On Earth tells it from the perspective of Henry's young admirer Rhoda Strong. The daughter of an Indian mother and Scottish father, Rhoda eventually becomes Henry's wife and the mother of his children. The author does take some liberties with the story (it's historical fiction, after all). To tell you more than this would be to give too much away.

Nowhere Else On Earth is good, solid historical fiction. I found myself wanting to know more about the place I'm from, asking my Dad lots of questions, and searching maps to find some of the places mentioned. I've come away with a new appreciation of the place where I'm from and a new respect for its history. And that's pretty cool if you ask me.

Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter

2011-11-24T14:45:00.004-05:00

Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter
Author: Tom Franklin
William Morrow Books, 2011 (reprint)
304 pages

As a kid growing up in the rural American South, I learned how to spell Mississippi the M-I-crooked letter-crooked letter-I-crooked letter-crooked letter-I-humpback-humpback-I way -- so I knew upon seeing the title of this book that it had a Mississippi connection. Sure enough, I was transported to a small town and rural community in the southeastern part of that state, and into the lives of two men. Silas Jones -- known as "32" -- is black, with a past he's still trying to figure out. Larry Ott is white, a lonely mechanic with no customers . . . or friends.

Many years ago, 32 and Larry were secret friends -- it had to be that way for a variety of reasons. Then one night Larry took a girl out on a date, and she never made it back home. Although no evidence was found, everyone assumed foul play on the part of Larry, and since then he's lived his life in sad isolation, ostracized by everyone. 32 was the local baseball star who left town seeking glory, only to blow out his arm and return years later as the town constable.

In the present day: When the daughter of the richest man in town disappears, everyone thinks Larry had something to do with it. But then Larry gets shot in the chest at close range, and it's not quite clear whether someone shot him, or whether he shot himself -- perhaps out of guilt? As 32 investigates, the story moves back and forth in time. We learn how as a child 32 and his single mother came to Mississippi from Chicago, and the rather odd circumstances under which he and Larry first met. Larry was always a little "different" -- while other boys liked to hunt, fish, and play sports, he preferred reading Stephen King novels. Because of this, it wasn't all that hard for 32 to deny their friendship. Yet 32 doesn't think Larry had anything to do with the disappearance of either girl.

You won't have to wait until the end of the story to find out whodunnit, nor will you have to wait to find out the other big surprise (yes, there is another one) in Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter.

Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter seems like a crime novel, but it's really much more than that. The intertwined stories of the men, from their two vastly different perspectives, is compelling, and the writing is exquisite. I've read online that some people are comparing this book to The Help and even To Kill a Mockingbird. There's a strong sense of place that pulls you in from the first few sentences. Some people have complained in their reviews that the prose is a little overdone -- for example, in the opening sections when Larry's doing his farm chores. But I could totally relate to the mundane, everyday activities such as feeding the chickens and driving the tractor -- based on my own farm experiences. I've seen the result of trees being cut and companies closing and jobs being lost, and the long term effect that has on the psyche of a small community. I know people like 32 and Larry and many of the secondary characters. I went to school with them. I get them. I am them.

Fortunately, there's an undercurrent of hope and plenty of opportunity for redemption in Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter. That may be why I loved it so much, and why I didn't quite want it to end when it did.

In short, I think Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter is a fine example of contemporary literature. It's my favorite fiction read of 2011 by an American author, and IMHO, is highly deserving of every accolade and award that it gets. I'm hoping that someone out there in Hollywood-land will find it, because it's got terrific movie potential. Anybody?

Espresso Shot

2011-11-20T10:08:00.001-05:00

Espresso Shot
Author: Cleo Coyle
Berkley, 2008
321 pages

Book #7 of the Coffeehouse Mystery series starts out with a bang -- literally! Main character Clare Cosi manages the Village Blend, an independent coffee house in New York's Greenwich Village. Her friend/housemate/ex-husband Matt Allegro is about to take a walk down the aisle with wealthy fashion magazine publisher Breanne Summour. When a Breanne lookalike is shot dead while walking down the street with Matt and Clare after the bachelor party, Matt recalls an earlier incident where the real Breanne was almost run down by a car. It seems as if someone is out to get Breanne -- and they don't seem to care who gets in the way.

As a favor to Matt, Clare agrees to hang out with Breanne for a few days in order to investigate. Breanne is definitely in bridezilla mode, and there are several amusing scenes à la The Devil Wears Prada; Breanne and Meryl Streep's characters have a lot in common. Clare also spends some quality time with Breanne's friend, food writer Roman Brio (whose name cracks me up because I'm just barely old enough to remember the mid-1970s TV commercials for the cologne of the same name). Roman has been entrusted with the wedding rings, which were designed by a famous Italian sculptor. There are a couple of side stories involving the sculptor and the rings, but you'll have to read the book for that. :)

In addition to her sleuthing duties, Clare's got a gourmet coffee and dessert bar to prepare for the wedding festivities. Guests have come from all over the coffee world for the big event. But there's still a couple of questions that haven't been answered: Do the groom and bride really love each other? Will they actually get married? Is someone really trying to kill Breanne? If so, who? And why?

Answers will be revealed in Espresso Shot, which may be my favorite in the series so far. The characters continue to grow, and I keep learning interesting stuff about coffee (Espresso Shot will always be memorable for the tale behind the world's most expensive coffee.) I can hardly wait to read Book #8 . . . and since it's called Holiday Grind, I have a feeling I'll be reading it soon!

Previously read books in this series:

On What Grounds (December 2009)

Through The Grinder (January 2010)

Latté Trouble (June 2010)

Murder Most Frothy (January 2011)
Decaffeinated Corpse (April 2011)
French Pressed (August 2011)

The Winter Sea

2011-11-02T10:06:00.015-04:00

The Winter Sea
Author: Susanna Kearsley
Sourcebooks, 2010
544 pages

When I got into genealogy a few years ago, I learned that several of my ancestors came from Scotland. Among these was a young man who fled that country after the Battle of Culloden. He fought on the losing side of said battle and was considered an outlaw by the English. This personal connection got me interested in the Jacobites, which somehow I missed in my history classes. I've been looking for a good historical novel set in that era for several years now, and I found it in The Winter Sea.

There are two main storylines in The Winter Sea. One is first person, told from the perspective of Carrie, a present-day author of historical fiction who's recently arrived in Cruden Bay (near Aberdeen) to research and write her next book, which takes place at nearby Slains Castle.

A Canadian of Scottish descent, Carrie grew up hearing her Dad's stories about their Scottish ancestors, who were from the western Shires -- the other side of the country. Yet for some reason, upon arriving in Cruden Bay, Carrie has a feeling that she has come home. Almost immediately, she's compelled to begin writing the story of one of her ancestors, Sophia.

The second story is Sophia's. A strong, clever girl, she has come to Slains from the west to live with a distant relative, the Countess of Errol. The Countess and her son (the Earl of Errol) are both Jacobites, and Slains castle is a hub of Jacobite activity. As Sophia is drawn into the day-to-day affairs of the castle, she develops a relationship with a young soldier who will change her life forever.

Back in the present time, Carrie becomes increasingly drawn into the story she's writing about Sophia. It turns out that many of the things she writes about (without researching first) are actually true: names of people and ships, descriptions of the castle layout, and so on. Carrie begins to wonder if she's sharing some sort of ancestral memory with Sophia. When she's not writing, she's dealing with two brothers, Stuart and Graham, local lads who are competing for her affections.

The Winter Sea is probably most accurately categorized as a historical romance. But don't let the "R" word put you off. Canadian author Kearsley does a fabulous job explaining the very complex history of the Jacobite era, which is so complicated I found myself consulting Wikipedia and other internet sources on occasion, just to catch up. For example, I never knew about the Darien Colony, a failed attempt by Scotland to establish a territory in Panama. This is the reason it took me so long -- about 3 weeks -- to read The Winter Sea.

Whether or not you have connections to Scotland, if you appreciate good historical fiction, I'm pretty sure you'll like The Winter Sea. (Or Sophia's Secret, if you're in the UK.)

Happier Than A Billionaire

2011-10-06T19:22:00.000-04:00

Happier Than A Billionaire
Author: Nadine Hays Pisani
CreateSpace, 2011
240 pages

I'm seriously considering retiring somewhere outside the USA. There are lots of reasons for this, but the biggest is that I probably won't be able to afford to retire in the USA -- at least if things keep going the way they have been lately. Costa Rica is one of the countries in my sights (there are several others) so when I came across this book, whose official title is Happier Than a Billionaire: Quitting My Job, Moving to Costa Rica, and Living the Zero Hour Work Week, I knew I'd have to read it.

I was immediately hooked and could totally relate when the author described the sort of mid-life crisis that preceded her move. After all, I've been there myself. She was a chiropractor with a thriving practice and a 3,000 square foot house filled with crap she bought from QVC because she was bored and/or unfulfilled. To outsiders, she probably looked the epitome of success. But she longed for something more.

Enter her very cool husband, Rob. Instead of saying No! or questioning her sanity, he chose to be supportive. Rob researched various countries where they could live cheaply and without working. Costa Rica, with its stable government, excellent health care system, and other perks, seemed to fit the bill. After a visit or two they decided to go for it. They sold all their stuff back in the States and took the plunge, moving to this Central American country despite not speaking much Spanish or knowing anything about the culture.

A result is this often laugh-out-loud hilarious little book, one of my favorite (and least pretentious) reads of the year so far. Let me sidestep for a moment and confess that one of the reasons it took me longer than usual to read this book is because I was reading it out loud to Sandy at the rate of two chapters per evening. We've never laughed so hard. Part of this is because (both of us have expat experience and therefore) we could totally relate to and understand the multiple culture shocks. Let's see. Stepping in cow poop. Paying bribes to get stuff done. Dealing with the local maintenance man who never quite gets around to fixing stuff. And oh, Costa Rica may have an excellent health care system, but their roads are really, really bad.

Even their expat neighbors provide material. I wonder if the woman who pees in the yard realizes she's being written about? Somehow I have a feeling she wouldn't mind. Or wouldn't care.

Of course, the main thing is that living the Pura Vida life in Costa Rica mellows Nadine out. Here, whether she's watching spider monkeys or getting up close and personal with a volcano, she feels at home. After a year in Costa Rica, she's able to live in the moment and just be. Based on her blog (also called Happier Than A Billionaire -- and this interview), she and Rob have been in Costa Rica for four years now. And they live off about $1,000 a month. A thousand dollars a month for two people! Now you know why I'm thinking about retiring South.

Bottom line: if you're thinking about skipping the country and heading South, or if you just like good/fun writing, read Happier Than A Billionaire. You'll like it.

Dear Nadine, you are living my dream, and I'm highly jealous. :) With Best Wishes, Mariandy.

Three Seconds

2011-09-17T20:51:00.000-04:00

Three Seconds
Authors: Anders Roslund & Börge Hellström
Translated from Swedish by Kari Dickson
Quercus, 2011
683 pages

What happens when an ex-journalist and an ex-con hook up to write fiction? In the case of Sweden's Roslund & Hellström, the result is an international bestselling, award-winning crime novel. Three Seconds won the 2011 CWA International Dagger Award in July, but it's been on my list of books to read for several months. I kept waiting for it to be available on the Kindle. I waited. And waited. I'm still waiting, for it still isn't.

In the meantime, I ordered the paperback version from Amazon UK, even though that was more expensive than getting the hardback here in the USA . You see, I don't like hardbacks. I've noticed that many books come out in paperback months earlier in Europe than they do over here, which I find very annoying. But this review isn't supposed to be about my views of the publishing industry's marketing practices. Moving right along.

Despite my exuberance over reading Three Seconds, the truth is, I wasn't immediately drawn in. I plodded through the first 150 pages or so, trying to figure out who was who and keep track of the characters. But once I figured that out, I was good to go, and it soon became apparent what's so special about this book.

Main character Piet Hoffmann has a life so secret, only one other person knows about it. A police informant, he's so deep into the Polish mafia that he's now organizing sales of amphetamines smuggled into Sweden by human mules. Yet Piet is also a family man with a loving wife, Zofia, and two young sons whom he adores. Only Piet's handler Erik (who knows Piet by his code name Paula) is aware of Paula's role in this highly covert mission.

When a drug deal goes bad and an undercover policeman is killed execution style, Piet begins to struggle with the conflicting priorities of his life. His Polish 'CEO' back in Warsaw wants him to lead a new 'business initiative' supplying drugs to Swedish prisons. But in order to do this, Piet will have to be convicted of a crime and go to prison. In doing this, he risks everything, including the family he loves.

In the meantime, veteran Stockholm investigator Ewart Grens is looking into the drug-related murder. Still grieving from the loss of his wife and his role in it (a sub-story which will be partially revealed), Ewart sincerely believes he's on the trail of a psychopath. Since I don't do spoilers, I won't say more, except to say that the last 200 pages of this book are impossible to put down. And I didn't put it down until I finished, even though it was well after midnight on a "school" night when I finished it last Thursday.

If you like thrillers, police procedurals, or Scandinavian crime novels, you have to read this. And although it's still not on Kindle (WTH???), it's available on Nook. The US paperback is being pre-sold online now with an expected release date of 01 November 2011. Oh, and there's always the hardcover -- if you can stand it. :)

Into The Darkest Corner

2011-09-10T17:48:00.001-04:00

Into The Darkest Corner
Author: Elizabeth Haynes
Myriad, 2011
403 pages

This has been a great year for reading books by first-time authors. Allow me to introduce you to Elizabeth Haynes from the UK. Her freshman entry Into The Darkest Corner is so clever, it doesn't seem like a first book at all. From the opening two scenes (one, an excerpt from a court hearing transcript; two, a murder), I wasn't sure at first where I was headed. But I felt compelled to keep reading . . .

Main character Cathy was once a big time party girl, with a life full of good times, alcohol, and casual relationships. But that was three years ago. Now, she's a somewhat shy and obsessive-compulsive recluse who has set patterns for doing things like checking to see that her doors are locked, having her tea at certain times of the day, and avoiding red clothing. Through the technique of describing past and present in alternating chapters, we learn what happened to Cathy, how she came to be in this condition, and why she trusts no one.

In the present-day chapters, Cathy slowly and reluctantly develops a relationship with Stuart, who moves into the apartment upstairs. Turns out Stuart's a doctor, and it doesn't take long for him to realize that Cathy has obsessive-compulsive disorder. Through him she begins to trust again, and takes steps toward getting the help she so badly needs. But when ghosts from Cathy's past come around, she just might take a giant leap backwards.

I don't feel that I can say too much more about the plot without giving too much away, so instead I'll focus on my reaction to the book. It's a true psychological thriller with lots of nail-biting, cringing moments. Even now, hours after I've finished reading, I still find myself thinking about some of the more disturbing scenes. Into The Darkest Corner is definitely an apt title.

One other thing. In the afterword section of the book, it's noted that the author wrote the first draft of Into The Darkest Corner during National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo) in November of 2008. I think that's really cool!

A Cold Day For Murder

2011-09-02T21:52:00.008-04:00

A Cold Day For Murder
Author: Dana Stabenow
Gere Donovan Press, 2011 [original paperback published in 1992]
208 Pages

One of the blogs I follow mentioned this book in a recent post, and it occurred to me that I'd never read anything by Alaskan author Dana Stabenow. I thought it was about time, so I decided to start with A Cold Day For Murder, the first book in the Kate Shugak series and winner of the 1993 Edgar Award for best paperback original. I read the Kindle version, which was released this year and is currently a free download on Amazon.com.

Kate Shugak is a thirty-year-old Alaskan native who lives alone, some five miles from her closest neighbors. She travels by snowmobile and her best friend is her half Husky/half wolf, named Mutt. Her relationships with family (namely her grandmother and a few cousins) is complicated. Actually, Kate herself is a little complicated. In a former life, she worked in Anchorage as an investigator for the D.A.'s office. In fact, she's still recovering from an altercation with a child abuser she was investigating, in which she received permanent injuries.

But now her old friend Jack has made the long trek to Kate's cabin, hoping to get her help on a case. A local park ranger, a young "Outsider" whose father happens to be a U.S. congressman, has gone missing - as has the investigator sent to find him. In solving the mystery of these disappearances, Kate is forced to confront her past, to overcome her fears, and face up to some serious problems in her community.

Stabenow weaves a solid mystery into a unique geographical setting, with some very colorful characters. Kate is a strong yet tender character who is able to navigate the cultural complexities of her world with a great deal of sensitivity. I have no doubt that she grows considerably over the course of the now eighteen-book (that's amazing!) series.

Most likely, if you like Tony Hillerman's Navajo Tribal Police mysteries, then you'll like this series, too.

Half-Assed

2011-08-31T17:57:00.006-04:00

Half-Assed
Author: Jennette Fulda
Seal Press, 2008
250 pages

This may be a first for me: I found out about this book via Twitter because a friend of mine (@zigged) follows author Jennette Fulda (@jennettefulda), and one day she RT'd one of her tweets. I don't remember what the Tweet was about, but it was funny and therefore got my attention. So did the concept behind Half-Assed.

The actual title of the book is Half-Assed: A Weight Loss Memoir, and that's what it is - a memoir. So, let's just get it out in the open right now: this isn't yet another one of those books that tells you what to eat and what not to eat. In fact, the author never reveals exactly which diet she's on. But the writing is so entertaining and the stories are so compelling, it doesn't really matter.

Jennette was an overweight kid who grew up to be a morbidly obese adult. At one point, she weighed 372 pounds. After gall bladder surgery in her early twenties, she decided to do something about it. One of her deal-with-it methods was writing a blog called Pasta Queen, which developed quite a following while she was on her journey of losing more than half her body weight. Her humorous way of writing led me to more than one laugh-out-loud moment, and her dogged determination is nothing short of inspirational. But what I like best is her honesty. She doesn't hold anything back.

Nor does she gloat in her success. In fact, she often seems reluctant about being an inspiration/guru/weight loss expert, and reminds us several times that everyone has to find their own way. Again, very honest.

At the time she was writing the blog, Fulda (a native of Indiana) was living in Indianapolis. She now lives in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. This is interesting to me personally because I've lived in both cities. Her second book, Chocolate & Vicodin, came out earlier this year. It's about the aftermath of Half-Assed, when she developed a "headache that wouldn't go away" and how she dealt with that. Given my history with headaches, I might have to give it a try sooner rather than later.

French Pressed

2011-08-17T21:10:00.006-04:00

French Pressed
Author: Cleo Coyle
Berkley, 2008
288 pages

This is the sixth book in the Coffeehouse Mystery series featuring Clare Cosi, the amateur sleuth and manager of the Village Blend Coffee House in Greenwich Village. Clare's the mother of culinary student Joy Allegro, and ex-wife of globetrotting coffee broker Matt Allegro. Other recurring characters include Matt's Mom, a spirited octogenarian known as Madame; Detective Mike Quinn of the NYPD, Clare's sorta/kinda boyfriend; and the fabulous baristas of the Village Blend, namely one Miss Esther Best.

French Pressed begins with Clare and Madame having dinner at Solange, the hot New York restaurant where Joy is completing her internship. Clare's not happy about Joy being romantically involved with the much older (and married) Chef Tommy Keitel (who for some reason reminds me of a certain real-life celebrity chef whose name I won't mention). Nor is she thrilled when she witnesses another chef's abusive behavior toward Joy and other restaurant employees.

When a talented co-worker of Joy's is murdered in his home in Queens, the po-po think Joy did it since she was the one who found the body. But when another murder takes place, and Joy's expensive Shun knife is the murder weapon, she becomes the prime suspect in two murders. Of course, we all know that Joy isn't a murderer. She may have lapses in judgment, but hey, she's really new at this adult thing. Clare, Matt, and Mike must work together (like it or not) to prove Joy's innocence and find the real murderer(s).

It's always enjoyable to read these books because not only are they well-written, clever, and fun . . . you learn stuff, too. French Pressed continued my java education, including the possibilities of pairing coffee with different types of cheeses. Who woulda thunk?!! And it was really cool to see the shout-out to the amazing North Carolina institution known as Counter Culture Coffee. Woo-hoo!!!

SPECIAL MESSAGE: Congrats to author Cleo Coyle for the recent release of the latest Coffeehouse Mystery: Murder By Mocha. I'm trying to get caught up with this series this year, so maybe by the release of her next book, I'll be one of the first to review it! :-)

***

Previously read books in this series:

On What Grounds (December 2009)

Through The Grinder (January 2010)

Latté Trouble (June 2010)

Murder Most Frothy (January 2011)
Decaffeinated Corpse (April 2011)

Farishta

2011-08-16T21:20:00.000-04:00

Farishta
Author: Patricia McArdle
Riverhead, 2011
368 pages

I know hindsight is 20/20, but if I had a chance to live the last 25 years of my life over again, I'd either join the Peace Corps or the Foreign Service. According to Amazon.com, first-time author Patricia McArdle did both. Her experiences as a diplomat in Afghanistan inspired her to write Farishta, a novel about a middle-aged female American diplomat assigned to the northern part of that country in 2004. Perhaps that explains why this novel reads a lot like a memoir.

Many years ago when main character Angela Morgan was beginning her career as an American diplomat, she experienced a devastating personal tragedy. Since then, she's been lying low in a DC-based job while fighting her personal demons. Needing a promotion in order to move forward in her languishing career, she takes a crash course in Dari and begins a year-long assignment at a British Army post in Mazār-i-Sharif. It's 2004 -- a few years into the war. She must keep her fluency in Dari a secret, since one of her assignments is to ensure accuracy of translation by the local interpreters.

As the only woman stationed at the post, Angela must earn the respect of the men around her, including her British Army guard and driver, young "Fuzzy" and Jenkins, and Rahim, her assigned interpreter. Once that respect is earned the first half of her tour seems fairly easy. That area of Afghanistan was relatively conflict-free at the time, so Angela becomes relaxed about going out in public and even doing things that women there don't do, such as going to the local buzkashi games and driving her vehicle ("The Beast") around town. She and Rahim develop a sort of mother-son relationship, and when Rahim falls for a strong-willed young law student named Nilofar, she supports him even though the relationship seems doomed since one of the young lovers is Tajik, the other Hazara.

Then there's Mark Davies, the handsome, stiffly formal officer in the British Gurkha battalion. Since the first time they met, he's been nothing but disagreeable, and he seems to really dislike Angela. You can kinda guess where that leads. In the meantime, Angela's dealing with a sick, elderly parent back home in New Mexico . . . and sometimes you can't help but ask yourself: What's next? I really sympathized with Angela as a character, so I wanted her to catch a break every now and then. But in order for her to be fully redeemed, some things have to play themselves out.

The author does an excellent job of exploring the complexities of Afghanistan's history and culture by weaving in several interesting sub-plots. There's a French archaeologist whose "finds" prove the historical prosperity and strategic importance of the area; a sneaky Russian diplomat and references to the Russian-Afghan war and why it failed; the local warlords and their complicity with the opium trade; and environmental issues related to cutting down trees in a land that was once covered with forests. Of course, there's some emphasis on the differences between the diplomacy corps and the military and reminders that the British and Americans aren't the only players, with abundant references to NATO forces, Swedes, Danes, Romanians, Estonians, Dutch, etc.

The result is a captivating read. I totally lost myself in Farishta, and for a few nights I felt like I actually was in the Foreign Service as I followed Angela's adventures. There may no longer be any hope for me to become a diplomat, but I can always live vicariously through others. (And who knows? Maybe it's not too late for the Peace Corps.)

Farishta, by the way, is a Persian/Dari name that means "angel" . . . a sort-of nickname given to Angela by her Dari teacher in DC and also by one of the local warlords. It's also the first name of a young girl she meets in Afghanistan.

The Day Is Dark

2011-08-08T22:14:00.004-04:00

The Day Is Dark
Author: Yrsa Sigurðardóttir
Hodder, 2011
432 pages

I've been wanting to read something by Yrsa Sigurðardóttir for quite a while now, and I even bought Last Rituals, the first book in her series featuring Icelandic attorney Þóra (Thora) Guðmundsdóttir. Unfortunately, it's in a box somewhere and I can't seem to find it after two moves in less than one year. Last week, quite randomly, I decided to break my rule of reading series books in order, and went for this one - her fourth featuring Thora. (It didn't hurt that the Kindle version of The Day Is Dark is currently available for less than eight bucks on Amazon.com.)

Enlisted by her partner Matthew, who works for a bank that underwrote a loan for a mining company start-up, Thora finds herself on a team being sent to a remote work site on the eastern coast of Greenland. Three of the company's employees have gone missing, and now their other employees are refusing to work there. When creepy things begin to happen (sabotaged satellite dishes and snowmobiles, mysterious blood stains, and the appearance of human bones in office desks, for examples), this book turns into a genuine thriller. The unusual setting and remote location only add to the intrigue.

The character lineup includes some native Greenlanders in the nearly village. Most of these folks seem unwelcoming and unfriendly to the non-natives, but they have their reasons. This community has been slammed by change in a very short time, and the natives are torn between the old and modern ways. They want to be respectful of their own culture, but they see the value that the mine could bring (in the form of jobs) to their economically-challenged village. Thus, there are some additional elements that take you down a unique path as a reader.

In the meantime, we have Thora. She's a great main character: intelligent, personable, and appropriately witty. As a lawyer and a young grandmother, she's just so . . . real. I really must go back to the beginning and start over, so I can find out how she got to where she is in The Day Is Dark. So I do need (and want) to read the first three books. I just wish I had more reading time! :-)

The Ice Princess

2011-08-03T21:21:00.003-04:00

The Ice Princess
Author: Camilla Läckberg (Translated from Swedish by Steven T. Murray)
Free Press, 2011 (originally published in 2002)
416 pages

When I learned from one of the book blogs I follow that Swedish crime writer Camilla Läckberg was about to release her fifth book translated into English (The Hidden Child -- not yet available in the USA), I knew I had some catching up to do. I believe in starting at the beginning whenever possible, and The Ice Princess is the first in this series. (Yes, I was late to the party, but at least I arrived.)

The plot goes like this: While temporarily staying in her hometown of Fjällbacka on the coast of Sweden (which is also the author's hometown) after a family tragedy, writer Erica Falck finds her childhood friend Alex dead, a victim of a brutal murder. Alex was a physically attractive girl who grew into a beautiful woman, and seemed to have all of life's successes. Distracted by current events, Erica finds herself drawn into Alex's world as she tries to unravel the mysteries of her former friend's life. One of the mysteries is why Alex ended their friendship so suddenly all those years ago, when they were only ten years old. Turns out this is something that had hurt Erica very deeply.

Another mystery is Alex's connection to one of the town drunks, a brilliant artist whose difficult life has undoubtedly contributed to his current state. Evidence suggests a relationship between the dead woman and the artist, which blows everyone's minds and makes him an easy target to pin the murder on. Erica's path soon converges with Patrik Hedström, another old school friend and now local police officer. Their relationship grows as the story progresses, and soon Erica is questioning whether she'll ever return to her old life in Stockholm.

There are lots of secondary characters in The Ice Princess, and it seems as if all of them are struggling with some sort of challenge or secret. In particular is Erica's sister Anna, who's trapped in an abusive marriage. The author skillfully describes the terror of an abuse victim, and I'll admit that I found myself wishing for the abuser to suffer some sort of twisted yet karmic fate.

The writing (translation) is excellent; getting inside the heads of the various characters held my interest and I didn't stress over the 400+ pages or mind that it took me a little longer than usual. Some might argue that the outcome is predictable. I sort of guessed what was going on fairly early, but only in a big-picture sense.

Based on the first part of the book, I assumed that The Ice Princess was the first book in a series featuring Erica Falck, writer. That was refreshing, being that so many crime novels out there feature a male police officer/detective/whatever as the main character. At some point Patrik seemed to overtake Erica as the main character, and alas, the series is indeed known as the Patrik Hedström series. I can live with that, because I actually like Patrik as a character. It'll be interesting to see where the series takes him -- and where it takes Erica, if indeed she goes along for the ride.

Bottom line: The Ice Princess is an engaging "first in a series" that should appeal to those who enjoy Scandinavian crime novels in the vein of Stieg Larsson, Jo Nesbø, Karin Fossum, etc. If you enjoy getting into the heads of characters, and reading "daily life" stuff going on behind the scenes, you'll really like this one. I read somewhere online that Camilla Läckberg is one of the best-selling authors in all of Europe, and now I know why. Check her out.

Hounded

2011-07-24T08:59:00.005-04:00

Hounded
Author: Kevin Hearne
Del Rey, 2011
320 pages

I'm smiling as I write this review because I feel like I'm one of the first people who's just discovered something really great, although there are already 121 reviews (as of today) of this book on Amazon.com. Hounded is the first of three books (so far!) known as The Iron Druid Chronicles. It was released in May and quickly followed by books two and three, Hexed and Hammered, released in June and July. I predict that I will be reading them soon.

Atticus O'Sullivan appears to be a young Irish immigrant of twenty-one years. He runs a New Age-y bookstore within walking distance of the university in Tempe, Arizona, rides his bike, and hangs with Oberon, his Irish Wolfhound. On the surface, he seems to be a very normal young man with lots of tattoos. In fact he's twenty-one hundred years old, and he's the last of the Druids. Of course, the fact that he doesn't age requires him to move around every so often, but he's found that he really likes Arizona, and he feels safe in his desert haven after centuries of running from an old enemy. You see, a long, long time ago he came into possession of a special sword that Aenghus Óg - Celtic god of love - believes is his. Atticus believed he was safe in the desert. But now Aenghus's Fir Bolg henchmen have found him, and it appears that Aenghus will do anything to get the sword back - including enlisting a coven of local witches, possessing 'innocent' police officers, even getting Oberon into trouble. Hold on, 'cuz you're about to go for a very exciting ride.

Hounded is a mix of urban fantasy and mythology with a dash of history, and at times it's laugh-out-loud funny. There's one scene in particular with Atticus's neighbor (an elderly, whisky-drinking Irish widow) that still makes me laugh when I think of it. She's a hoot, and I hope there will be more of her in future books. Then there's Oberon, the Irish Wolfhound. Atticus can communicate with Oberon telepathically, and the interplay between them is nothing short of brilliant. Oberon may just be the coolest character of all.

The author's knowledge of Celtic mythology is impressive, but Hounded isn't just about the Celts -- there are Nordic, Vedic, and Native American characters and mythology woven throughout the book. After reading Hounded, I want to know more. I've been reading Wikipedia articles about the Tuatha Dé Danann to try to give myself a better understanding. When a work of fiction leads me down the path of constructivist learning, I say that's a good thing. :-)

I liked Hounded so much that I told my 20-year-old nephew about it on Friday night. (If you read my most recent review of Game of Thones, you'll know that he's a major fantasy fiction fan.) He immediately ordered Hounded for his Nook, stayed up all night Friday night reading, and finished it several hours before I did. He's now well into the second book, Hexed. My guess is, he'll have all three books read by Monday night. Since he doesn't blog, I'll just add his review to mine: "Read this series. It's awesome. You'll love it."

A Game of Thrones

2011-07-16T08:15:00.005-04:00

A Game of Thrones
Author: George R. R. Martin
Bantam, 2011 (reprint)
694 pages

It seems as if everyone I know is either reading this book or has watched the HBO series upon which it's based -- or both. Truth is, although I'd heard of the Song of Ice and Fire series (A Game of Thrones is the first book) long before the captivating TV series, I'd never read any of the books. And I didn't plan to, until my nephew (aged 20 and serious fantasy fan) read the verrrrrry long A Game of Thrones in two days and told me I just had to read it.

Thing is, I so loved the TV series, that I really wasn't sure I wanted to read the book -- but I did, for my nephew. I quickly found that the book is indeed much like the series in terms of both plot and characters. You would think this would have made it easy for me to read, right? Wrong. For some reason I plodded through the first 50 pages or so. Fortunately, things picked up thereabouts, and I decided to fully commit to the book.

And I'm glad I did, because the book is helping me to understand the complexities of the TV series and its characters. I'm no longer stomping mad that [a certain character whose name I won't reveal] was killed because I now see that it had to happen for the storyline to move forward. I have increased respect for at least three of the characters (Tyrion, Jon Snow, and Daenerys) and a greater dislike of others. In fact, I may just have to watch Season 1 again on On Demand because I think I may view it differently after having read the book.

Here's the basic storyline. In a fictional land that often (hmm) resembles the island of Britain, in a time that for some reason reminds me of a blend of Arthurian and 13th/14th centuries C.E., several families joust (sometimes literally) for power. Currently Robert is king, but about ten years ago, he and his buddy Ned Stark, along with several other key characters, overthrew the previous king. That king and his son were assassinated; the next generation (children at the time) were taken to exile. Those children have now grown up and want their kingdom back, and are plotting from foreign lands. In the meantime, the current queen has secrets that she'll keep at all costs - and she'll do anything (and I do mean anything) to see her son ascend to the throne.

If that's not enough drama, to the north of this land there is a wall (hmm, Hadrian's wall?) that separates 'civilization' from a place of legendary, scary creatures (e.g., skinwalkers) that seem to be most active in cold weather. In this land no one can predict how long the seasons will last. Winter can last for decades. The older folk remember winter as a horrible time when people starve and freeze and die all sorts of gruesome deaths, but the kids just don't understand. It's late summer in A Game of Thrones, and. . . well, um, Winter is coming.

The question now is, do I read A Clash of Kings (the next book in the series) before or after next season of Game of Thrones (TV version)? That's a tough one. I'm glad I don't have to decide today.

A Trace of Smoke

2011-07-10T12:03:00.005-04:00

A Trace of Smoke
Author: Rebecca Cantrell
Forge, 2009
292 pages

It's 1931 in Berlin, Germany, and crime reporter Hannah Vogel is just trying to live her life and make a living. As a single woman in her early thirties, she has her share of challenges. As a Socialist living in a Nazi world (the Nazis are just coming to power), she has other challenges. One of them is her younger brother, Ernst -- a cross-dressing entertainer in one of Berlin's most notorious gay bars. Hannah has been one of the few people in Ernst's life who accepted him for who he was, despite an increasing Nazi enforcement of the (then) German law known as Paragraph 175.

In the opening chapter, Hannah learns that Ernst has been murdered when she spots his photo on display in the Hall of the Unnamed Dead at the police station, where she's researching an article for her newspaper. Without letting anyone else know about Ernst's fate or that she knows he is dead, she sets out to find out who killed her brother, and why. Hannah soon finds that Ernst had more secrets than she could have ever dreamed possible.

When a young boy named Anton shows up on Hannah's doorstep in the middle of the night, things get even more complicated. Anton claims to be her son, although she has never had children. Now Hannah has another mystery to solve: who are Anton's real parents, and why don't they want him? She quickly grows to love the boy as her maternal instincts kick in, and soon she finds herself doing all sorts of things to protect him. (He is adorable.)

This book is an exciting blend of history, mystery, and thriller. It's got an admirable heroine, scary Nazis, and a seedy underworld. It covers an aspect of the time and history that I hadn't read about previously, which for me, is always a plus. A Trace of Smoke ends with a cliffhanger that makes you want to keep reading. Fortunately, there are at least two more novels featuring Hannah Vogel. The next one is called A Night of Long Knives, and I hope to read it soon.

From Dead To Worse

2011-07-04T20:39:00.001-04:00

From Dead To Worse
Author: Charlaine Harris
Ace, 2008
303 pages

Season 4 of HBO's True Blood started last week, which put me in the mood for another Sookie Stackhouse book. This one's the eighth in the series. I haven't read eight books in a series since I was a kid reading Nancy Drew. So I see this as some kind of milestone.

To those who haven't read the books and don't watch the show, I apologize for the lack of a thorough recap. Feel free to click the links below -- preferably in order -- to get an idea of the series plot and characters.

This time around, Sookie's dealing with the revelation of her fairy/faery/fae heritage. With the help of vampire Eric Northman, Sookie has a secret meeting with her great-grandfather, who happens to be a Fairy Prince. In the meantime, werewolf Alcide's new girlfriend has been murdered, someone is trying to kill Sookie, and the vampire hierarchy in Louisiana is under fire, too. All signs point to war, but the question is, who's fighting whom? After all, things aren't always what they seem in supernatural Louisiana and Mississippi.

Sookie's friend (and roommate . . . and witch) Amelia has a pretty heavy role in this one, and new character Ophelia (older, powerful witch) is introduced. Quinn (Sookie's boyfriend in Book 7) returns, along with some major drama. For some reason, I never really warmed up to the Quinn character. I keep hoping that somehow Sookie and Bill will get back together, but I have to say, Eric is becoming more appealing as time goes by.

I'm glad I read From Dead To Worse now because it's helping me to understand the whole fairy thing, which apparently is going to be a continuing theme in the TV series. It's also helping me stay caught up with the changing vampire politics, but I suppose I'll need to keep reading if I want to fully get it. Like the other Sookie books, this one's an easy read. It took me a while, though, because I've had a LOT of personal stuff going on over the last week. Oh, well. On to the next book!

Previous books in the series that I've reviewed:
Book 1 - Dead Until Dark
Book 2 - Living Dead In Dallas
Book 3 - Club Dead
Book 4 - Dead To The World
Book 5 - Dead As A Doornail
Book 6 - Definitely Dead
Book 7 - All Together Dead

Before I Go To Sleep

2011-06-26T13:11:00.007-04:00

Before I Go To Sleep
Author: S.J. Watson
Harper, 2011
368 pages

I discovered this novel on Amazon.com's Best Books of the Month for June 2011 list. Here's the overview: A woman wakes up one morning, only to find a strange man in bed with her. She goes to the bathroom and looks into the mirror, only to see the hands, face, and body of an older (age 47) woman. She freaks out, and the man in bed comes to her rescue, telling her that he's her husband, Ben. Turns out the woman is Christine, and this happens every morning. Christine has a type of amnesia where her memory is erased every time she goes to sleep, due to an injury to her brain from an "accident" when she was in her late twenties.

One morning after Ben leaves for work, Christine gets a phone call from a man named Dr. Nash who claims to be her doctor. Dr. Nash tells her to look in a certain place in her house for a journal. Turns out, Dr. Nash has been working with Christine on the down low, and he had encouraged her to keep a secret journal to record her memories. One of the first things Christine reads in the journal is the cryptic message written in her own hand: Don't Trust Ben.

Let the nail biting begin!

Every day, Christine must piece together clues. As she does, she begins to realize that Ben has lied to her about several key things in her life. Yet he has taken such good care of her since her accident. Or so it appears.

This is a fast-moving read and very cleverly written. I read it during an unusually busy week (we were moving into a new house), so often I could only read a few pages or a few minutes at a time -- which was quite challenging because I wanted to keep reading. The last 50 pages or so are particularly engaging and difficult to put down.

This is a psychological thriller in the true sense, and one of the best I've read in a really long time. I've no doubt that someone in movie land is going to jump on this soon and make a film version -- probably starring someone kind of big (Nicole Kidman comes to mind). Read the book now, and you'll be way ahead of that game. :-)

The English Breakfast Murder

2011-06-18T23:07:00.003-04:00

The English Breakfast Murder
Author: Laura Childs
Berkley, 2003
274 pages

The fourth book in the Tea Shop Mystery series finds Theodosia Browning (owner of the Indigo Tea Shop) and her young pastry chef, Haley, volunteering with the Charleston (South Carolina) aquarium's sea turtle rescue program. It's late at night; the sea turtles are hatching and instinctively making their way to the water; and Theo is absolutely amazed with the beauty of it all . . . until she spots something in the water. Swimming out to get a closer look, she discovers the dead body of Harper Fisk, a local antiques dealer who was a member of a circle of friends known as the English Breakfast Club. It soon becomes apparent that Fisk's death was no accident, and once again, Theo (along with sidekicks Haley and Tea Master Drayton) get caught up in solving a murder.

The English Breakfast Murder is a fun, quick read that introduces us to several possible suspects, all of whom are either in the same business as Fisk, or share his hobby of exploring shipwreck sites and looking for treasure off the coast of Charleston. Once again, the author excels with spinning a yarn while sharing her knowledge of Charleston's rich culture and history, and making me hungry for shrimp and grits (and, of course, Haley's scones). I'm ready to plan a trip to the Low Country. Who wants to go with me?

Previous books in this series that I've reviewed:

Book 1 - Death by Darjeeling

Book 2 - Gunpowder Green
Book 3 - Shades of Earl Grey

Red Wolf

2011-06-08T22:27:00.000-04:00

Red Wolf
Author: Liza Marklund
Atria, 2011
400 pages

I know you're not supposed to judge a book by its cover, but it was the cover of Red Wolf that captured my attention. I love it. So, kudos to the designer.

Welcome to the multidimensional world of Stockholm's Annika Bengtzon. Annika's an investigative journalist who writes mostly about terrorism, something she's actually had first-hand experience with. She's also a wife, mother, and best friend, and if you're like me, you'll be wishing she was one of your friends by the time you get halfway through Red Wolf.

While researching an incident that happened on a military base in northern Sweden in the late 1960s, Annika travels to the Norrland town of Luleå to meet with another journalist. Unfortunately, she arrives too late -- the journalist is dead, the victim of a hit and run. Annika soon learns that this was no accident. In fact, it's just the first of a string of murders -- all different, but all sharing similar cryptic clues.

Back home in Stockholm, Annika's husband Thomas is experiencing mid-life crisis. He's a sort of project manager in a boring government agency, and although he loves his family, he's feeling unappreciated and unfulfilled. This leaves him vulnerable to a young coworker who is more than happy to pay him some attention. In the meantime, Annika's best friend Anne is having serious troubles of her own. I won't say more except that one of the strengths of this book is its emphasis on relationships and the behind-the-scenes "non-work" stuff that actually makes the main character who she is.

But this is a crime thriller, with a crooked politician, a scheming business executive, and an old revolutionary who has come back home after many years away. There's a lot of interesting Swedish cultural and political stuff woven into the storyline. Marklund definitely has a strong sense of place which is reflected in Red Wolf. It makes me want to visit Scandinavia and drink lots of coffee.

After I finished reading Red Wolf, I learned that it's not the first in a series, nor is it a standalone novel. It's actually the fifth book featuring Annika. I would have preferred to read them in order, but the truth is, in this case you don't really have to. I'm planning to start from the beginning next time, and as soon as the first book The Bomber is available on Kindle, I'll be buying it.

Gonna read something light next. :-o

Train to Budapest

2011-05-30T21:28:00.002-04:00

Train to Budapest
Author: Dacia Maraini
Arcadia Books, 2010
342 pages

In the years prior to the second world war, a boy and girl growing up near Florence, Italy met and became close friends. The girl, Amara, was the daughter of a local shoemaker. The boy, Emanuele, was the son of a wealthy Austrian industrialist and former actress, who happened to be Jewish. In the first of several unfortunate decisions, Emanuele's parents decide to move back to Vienna. Thus begins a series of letters written by Emanuele to Amara describing his family's removal from their home in Vienna to the Jewish ghetto in Łódź, Poland. There, he wrote to Amara in a notebook that was found after the war and sent to her in Italy.

Thirteen years after the war is over, Amara is now a journalist, traveling to the East to write stories about life behind the "Iron Curtain" . . . but she also has a personal mission: to find out what happened to Emanuele. En route to Poland to visit Auschwitz, she meets the very interesting Hans, a "half-Austrian, half-Hungarian, half-Jew" whom Amara calls The Man With Gazelles because of an unusual sweater he wears. They team up to search for Emanuele, meeting all sorts of people with incredible personal stories.

While they wait for visas to return to Poland for another Auschwitz visit, their travels take them to Budapest, where they get caught up in the Hungarian Revolution. This is a period in history I know very little about, and I was surprised at the unexpected twists. But this was just one of several.

This amazing novel does an extraordinary job of describing some of the dramatic changes that took place in Europe in the mid-twentieth century. It's been a bestseller on Amazon UK for a while and when I last checked, it had a perfect five-star rating. There's a reason for that. It's really, really good. If you're into fiction about World War II or European History, go get it. And read it. Now.

Grace Interrupted

2011-05-20T21:56:00.001-04:00

Grace Interrupted
Author: Julie Hyzy
Berkley, 2011
278 pages

I had an opportunity to receive a free advanced reading copy (ARC) of this book from the author in exchange for a review. Having previously read the first book in the Manor House Mystery series (Grace Under Pressure, reviewed June 2010), I was both happy and honored to do this.

In the first book, Grace Wheaton was just getting settled into her new role as curator of Marshfield Manor in a small tourist town. Grace Interrupted opens just a short time later. The grounds of the manor have been transformed into a Civil War camp and battleground, and the Blue and Gray reenactors are in town. When one of them is murdered, it seems there's no shortage of people with motives, including Grace's sort-of boyfriend, landscape gardener Jack Embers.

Many years ago, Jack's sister was involved with the victim's brother, who was also murdered. Lots of folks thought Jack did it, and that he got off because his father was a cop. Now it seems as if the clues are again pointing to Jack, or to his offbeat younger brother, Davey.

Grace's assistant, Frances, makes no bones about her feelings when it comes to trusting the Embers brothers. Yet she willingly goes undercover among the reenactors in order to dig for dirt, and in doing so becomes not just Grace's assistant but her sidekick. A word or two about Frances. She's worked at the manor longer than anyone else. She's nosy, crotchety, and highly disagreeable. Yet you can't help but like her. At least I do. She reminds me of someone I used to work with - I'll say no more about that. But I have a feeling that by the time Hyzy is finished with this series, Frances will be redeemed.

In addition to Jack and Frances, several characters from the first book are back: Tooney, the annoying private detective; Grace's boss, the wealthy Bennett; and Grace's housemates, wine shop partners Scott and Bruce. Several new characters add to the story and potential growth of the series. One of these is Tank, a (female) police consultant imported from Michigan to bring the police department into the twenty-first century, much like Grace was brought to Marshfield Manor. Tank may roll some people over, but she's probably a marshmallow on the inside. Perhaps we'll get to know her more in future books. But the coolest new character of all is Bootsie, a stray tuxedo cat who makes her way into Grace's life and home.

The Civil War reenactment makes an interesting backdrop, with some colorful characters . . . like the pompous play-by-the-rules General, the ornery Hennessey (some of his scenes with Frances were laugh-out-loud funny), and the Soiled Doves, a group of women who role-play, um, shall we say nineteenth century ladies of the night.

All in all, Grace Uninterrupted is a nice second installment to a series that fits nicely into the cozy mystery category. I look forward to book number three.

The Rapture

2011-05-15T11:43:00.005-04:00

The Rapture
Author: Liz Jensen
Doubleday, 2009
304 pages

Since the world's gonna end on May 21, I thought I should read this book before it all goes haywire. This end times-themed novel by English author Liz Jensen is set sometime in the not-too-distant future. Gabrielle Fox, an art therapist at a psychiatric hospital in England, is assigned to work with sixteen year-old Bethany Krall after Bethany's therapist takes a mysterious leave of absence. Gabrielle has struggles of her own; she's a survivor of a car crash that killed her married lover and left her paralyzed from the waist down. She's vulnerable and depressed, but trying to hide it, since she has to work in order to support herself.

Bethany's in the facility because she brutally stabbed her own mother to death. Complicated and narcissistic, Bethany grew up in a strict religious household; her father is a well-known Evangelical preacher who believes she's possessed by the devil. There's been a spike in religious fervor all around the world, perhaps a result of increasing ecological and weather disasters. When Bethany claims that the world's about to end and brags that she can predict hurricanes and earthquakes, Gabrielle doesn't pay much attention at first. But when it becomes clear that a pattern is in force, Gabrielle turns to a new friend, Scottish physicist Frazer Melville.

I don't know if I've grabbed your attention yet, but this is a pretty interesting story. If you like "scientific" thrillers, if you like sitting on the edge of your seat while you read, if you like it when your eyes are ten words (or more) ahead of your brain, then you'll want to read this. Although it was just a teensy bit slow in the beginning, the last half to one-third of it leaves you breathless. In fact, I told S that it hooked me in a way sort of like The Da Vinci Code did many years ago. Will there be a sequel? I guess we'll have to wait and see.

Belshazzar's Daughter

2011-05-09T18:12:00.004-04:00

Belshazzar's Daughter
Author: Barbara Nadel
Felony & Mayhem Mysteries, 2006 (originally published in 1999)
448 pages

British author Barbara Nadel is the CWA Silver Dagger award-winning author of several mystery novels set in Turkey and featuring crotchety police inspector Cetin Ikmen, and Belshazzar's Daughter is the first. I've been wanting to read it for a while, motivated by my buddy Mike, who is a fan of all things Istanbul. In fact, Mike gave me the second and third books in the series (The Ottoman Cage and Arabesk), which I'm sure I'll be reading and writing about soon.

The book opens quickly, with the finding of a brutally murdered old man in a traditional Jewish quarter of Istanbul known as Balat. Inspector Ikmen, his young sidekick Suleyman, and medical examiner Sarkissian immediately spring into action to solve to mystery of this gruesome crime. Learning that the dead man immigrated to Turkey not long after the Russian revolution of 1918 leads them to a very strange Russian family called the Gulcus. Led by (OK, 'dominated by' is more accurate) the elder matriarch Maria, this multi-generational family includes the young Natalia.

Natalia is the obsession of expatriate English teacher Robert, whom it just so happens was in Balat at the time of the murder. He's sure that he saw Natalia running away from the murdered man's building, although she denies it. The inevitable mess brought about by Robert's obsession is one of many twisted roads the author takes you down. Another path leads to Smits, a wealthy Nazi sympathizer who fired the dead man from one of his companies during the time of the second world war. So who dunnit? It could have been any of these characters . . . or someone else entirely.

I'll confess that before I was even halfway through the book, I'd figured out where the "main highway" was leading. I even had a strong suspicion who the murderer was, although I was kind of shocked when all was revealed.

But the ride was good, and I enjoyed getting to know Ikmen and his colleagues. Ikmen reminded me of a Turkish version of Columbo, only instead of a raincoat and cigar, he sports a flask of brandy and chain smokes cigarettes. Despite his crotchetiness, he's extremely likeable, especially in the tender moments with his wife Fatma, who in Belshazzar's Daughter is pregnant with their ninth child. (Yep, you read that right! And this is just the first book in the series! LOL.)

I've never been to Istanbul, but Nadel's writing definitely arouses my curiosity. It sounds like a city of great contrasts, from economic to cultural and religious diversity. Hopefully someday I can see it for myself. Until then, I'll keep reading Nadel.

The Diva Takes The Cake

2011-05-03T19:57:00.000-04:00

The Diva Takes The Cake
Author: Krista Davis
Berkley, 2009
320 pages

The hoopla surrounding the recent royal wedding in the UK had me in the mood for a wedding-themed story. So I picked up this second-in-a-series cozy mystery featuring domestic diva Sophie and her snooty rival, Natasha. Natasha in now living with Mars (Sophie's ex) in a house just down the street from Sophie's beautiful nineteenth-century home in Old Town Alexandria, Virginia. Sophie's unlucky-in-love sister, Hannah, is about to marry for the third time -- this time to the shady-seeming Craig. Sophie has been against this marriage from the beginning, but is doing everything she can to support her sister - including hosting family and members of the wedding party in her home. As people start to gather, some uninvited guests show up. One of them is a woman who claims to be Craig's ex-wife. When she turns up murdered, clues point to either Hannah or Craig as the murderer.

Sophie knows her sister isn't a murderer, so despite warnings from her police buddy Wolf, she takes it upon herself to not only prove Hannah's innocence, but to prove Craig's guilt.. The wedding is off, then it's on again . . . . or is it? In the meantime, Natasha wants to help with Hannah's wedding. The two domestic divas are opposite in every way, so hilarity ensues as they try to outdo each other (or, I should say as Natasha desperately tries to outdo Sophie).

Witty, with plenty of mouth-watering recipes in the back, The Diva Takes The Cake is a quick, fun read if you're in the mood for a cozy mystery . . . and if you can keep up with all the characters. Davis has created a great lineup of family, friends, and neighbors. Let's admit it: we all know someone like Natasha, whose insecurity is masked by a strange combination of vanity and innocence: one moment you want to slap her, the next you feel sorry for her. The slimy mortician, Humphrey, has a couple of fabulous moments in this one. I don't know why I like him, but I do. I also like the mysterious Mordecai and his little Pomeranian dog, and neighbor Nina. As is the case with many of the series books I read, I'll keep reading this one just because I want to know what happens to the characters! (And, oh yeah, the food!)

Previously reviewed books in this series:
The Diva Runs Out of Thyme (June 2010)

Please Look After Mom

2011-04-27T20:36:00.006-04:00

Please Look After Mom
Author: Kyung-Sook Shin
Knopf, 2011
256 pages

As one of Amazon's Best Books of the Month for April 2011, this international bestseller comes from South Korea and is the author's first book translated into English. I'll just go ahead and tell you that I was blown away. The plot is wrapped around the disappearance of an elderly woman from the countryside as she travels to the city. While making a connection at the busy Seoul Station, her husband gets on the connecting train, but she doesn't. As her family searches for her, they experience flashbacks of their mother's life, and slowly begin to see her not just as a (strict) mother or (nagging) wife, but as a unique individual with her own hopes, dreams, and life.

The book's four sections are "narrated" by four different characters. Two of the sections are written in second person. This turns out to be a brilliant writing technique. As the story unfolds, her husband and their four children (who grew up to be a successful businessman, a famous author, an internet entrepreneur and a pharmacist) experience a sort of awakening . . . and lots of guilt. Through their memories, they realize the sacrifices made by this amazing woman they called Mother (or Wife).

Kyung-Sook Shin is clearly a genius at her craft. Many times, I found myself thinking of my own Mother, coming to a new appreciation of the sacrifices she has made for me over the years, and feeling like a dolt for not being able to see that she always has my best interests in mind. Most likely, this will happen to you as well if you read Please Look After Mom. So be forewarned that you'll probably want to give your Mom a hug, or phone her, or visit if you haven't seen her in a while. I would say do it now while you can -- if you can. I think that might just be an underlying message of this incredibly beautiful and moving book.

The Long Quiche Goodbye

2011-04-24T22:41:00.001-04:00

The Long Quiche Goodbye
Author: Avery Aames
Berkley, 2010
309 pages

Here's the first in a fairly new (2010) food-themed mystery series, this one centered around a small-town Ohio cheese shop. Cheesemonger Charlotte Bessette is the thirtysomething granddaughter of the cheese shop's owners, French immigrants whom she refers to as Grandmère and Pépère. When Grandmère (who also happens to be the town's mayor and up for re-election) is accused of murdering the husband of her opponent (I should mention here that the victim was also a philandering sort of fellow who was also a local real estate mogul), Charlotte springs into action to clear her grandmother's name.

You know, I read a lot of foodie mysteries and other types of mysteries, and let's face it, most of them are pretty formulaic. Usually the main character is someone you think you could be friends with. They're always experts in some particular field (coffee, tea, wine, cupcakes, etc.) They're always heterosexuals, so of course there have to be two potential and usually hunky love interests. They always have a best friend or sidekick. Truth is, The Long Quiche Goodbye has all of these. But it goes further, and takes the reader into some fresh, new directions. The Long Quiche Goodbye has a very diverse cast of characters: French, Italian, Japanese, African-American, Hawaiian . . . to name a few. There's a character who was raised Amish, but who has left her family and community. There's a single dad, and his lovely twin daughters (one of whom is gluten-intolerant). There are the two septuagenarian grandparent characters, and neither of them is a stereotypical elderly person. In fact, no one character seems to exemplify any stereotypes. This is what I like most about the first Cheese Shop Mystery.

As for the cheese, you learn quite a bit about it: different varieties, where it comes from, unique cheese trivia, what types of cheese pair well with certain wines, and so forth. Clearly the author knows her cheese. :-) So if you're looking for a cheese-y escape for a few hours, along with a good mystery (I didn't guess the murderer until the very end), you might enjoy this. The series' second offering, Lost and Fondue, will be released in the USA in just a few days - on Tuesday (3 May).

Blacklands

2011-04-15T15:33:00.005-04:00

Blacklands
Author: Belinda Bauer
Simon & Schuster, 2010
240 pages

I became aware of this book by browsing the best-selling Crime books on Amazon UK's web site sometime last year, and immediately put it on my list. I had to wait a bit to get the Kindle version, but it was worth it. Blacklands is definitely a page-turner (page-clicker?) . . . and a nail-biter, too.

Twelve-year old Steven Lamb lives in Somerset (England) with his grandmother, mother, and five year-old half-brother. He's a bit of a gloomy kid, seemingly unloved at home, tormented by neighborhood bullies, and continually betrayed by best friend Lewis. His majorly dysfunctional family is affected by a tragedy that happened many years ago when his Uncle Billy disappeared (when he was about Steven's age) after presumably being taken by a serial child molester/killer named Arnold Avery.

Uncle Billy's body was never found, and Steven is obsessed with finding it, hoping against all hope that this is the thing that will save his family. Using a spade given to him by one of his mother's boyfriends, he spends his spare time digging in the moors near his home. After months, perhaps years of unsuccessful digging, Steven decides to escalate his search by secretly contacting Avery, who is now miles away in prison. Thus begins a secretive correspondence between the two of them.

The author takes us deep into the minds of both Steven and Avery. At times the similarities between the two can be very chilling. The plot thickens, but of course, I can't tell you any more without giving too much away.

Amazingly, this is the author's first novel. But I'm not the only one who was impressed: Blacklands won the 2010 CWA Gold Dagger Award. With this honor, Belinda Bauer joins the likes of Ann Cleeves, Henning Mankell, and Arnaldur Indridason. If you like reading crime novels, thrillers, or what I like to call 'hardcore' mysteries, you would love Blacklands. I have a feeling I won't be forgetting this one for a long time!

Decaffeinated Corpse

2011-04-09T16:54:00.004-04:00

Decaffeinated Corpse
Author: Cleo Coyle
Berkley, 2007
273 pages

The more I read of the Coffeehouse Mysteries, the more I love them! Decaffeinated Corpse is Book 5. When I reviewed Book 4 (Murder Most Frothy) back in January, I said it was my favorite so far. But Book 5 is even better!

As you probably know by now if you've read my other reviews, this series is set around a Greenwich Village (New York City) coffeehouse called The Village Blend. It's been around a long time, and is managed by Clare Cosi. Her ex-husband, Matteo ("Matt") Allegro, is a coffee broker who's usually jet-setting somewhere in search of the best coffee beans. They have an adult daughter, Joy, who's in culinary school. Matt's mother, called Madame (she's French), rounds out the family; other recurring characters are Mike Quinn, a police detective and love interest of Clare's, and the Village Blend's team of baristas.

In Decaffeinated Corpse, Matt is visited by an old friend, Ric, whose family is in the coffee business in Brazil. Ric has developed a coffee plant that produces naturally decaffeinated beans. When Ric is mysteriously attacked outside the Village Blend one evening, Clare wonders what's up. Her questions lead her to visit with Ric's old girlfriend, Ellie, who now works in a botanical garden. There's a very funny scene involving Clare and Madame and a car chase through Brooklyn and Manhattan. The women learn that Ellie and Ric have rekindled their old relationship, and that the couple is being tailed by a private investigator.

Of course, someone turns up dead. Actually, two people turn up dead, but you'll have to read to find out who they are and whodunnit, 'cause I'm not saying anything else about it. :-)

In the meantime, Clare's relationship with Mike Quinn is heating up . . . or is it? And it looks like Joy is making bad decisions again. This time, it seems like she's in love with the wrong beau. Will Clare and Mike become a couple? Or will she and Matt get back together? Will Joy ever grow up? I guess if I want to find out, I'll have to keep reading this series . . . which won't be difficult for me to do since I like it so much.

By the way, I was thrilled to read a couple of paragraphs about Vienna's Café Central in Decaffeinated Corpse! Hope to see more references to Vienna coffeehouses in the future.

Previously read books in this series:

On What Grounds (December 2009)

Through The Grinder (January 2010)

Latté Trouble (June 2010)

Murder Most Frothy (January 2011)

Kindred

2011-03-27T22:10:00.001-04:00

Kindred
Author: Octavia Butler
Beacon Press, 2004 [originally published in 1979]
287 pages

I would like to thank work friends Lauren and Shakira for introducing me to the amazing world of Octavia Butler! :-)

It's 1976, the year of America's Bicentennial. While moving into her new Los Angeles home with her husband Kevin, Dana begins to feel dizzy. Suddenly, she's transported back in time to the year 1815 to a plantation on the eastern shore of Maryland. A young boy is drowning, and Dana saves his life. The boy happens to be her ancestor, Rufus Weylin, son of the plantation owner.

This first trip is one of several Dana makes to the nineteenth century. We're never told exactly how the time travel works. It's just a given, and it happens whenever Rufus's life is in danger. Dana may be gone for days or weeks or even months at a time, but when she returns to 1976, only a few minutes have passed by.

Each time Dana makes a trip, she stays a little longer and sees a little more of the grim realities of life during that time period. Since Dana is black and educated, she's viewed as a threat to plantation society. Each time she returns, the level of danger increases.

Dana's other ancestor is Alice, who was born free. As one character in Kindred pointed out: a free person's papers could easily be destroyed. Rufus and Alice were friends when they were young, but as they grow older Rufus becomes obsessed with her. His obsession ultimately leads to Alice's enslavement.

During one visit, her husband Kevin goes with her back in time. Kevin is white, and was probably the most complex character in the book. He seems like a fairly liberal kind of guy in 1976, and is disgusted by much of what he sees in the nineteenth century. But as Dana notes, he adjusts a little too easily. He also has a much more difficult time readjusting when he returns to the 'present' day.

Kindred is an amazing book and a genuine rollercoaster of a ride. It also makes you think about the concept known as 'man's inhumanity to man' and why/how it is that society often supports unethical behavior even when it's clearly wrong.

Coming up next . . . something light and breezy! My brain is a little fried from all these heavy subjects lately. :-)

Veganist

2011-03-24T20:19:00.006-04:00

Veganist
Author: Kathy Freston
Weinstein Books, 2011
304 pages

Several weeks ago, I made my mind up that I was going to go vegetarian. I had lots of reasons for doing it, and for two and a half weeks now, I've been about 90% vegan. I haven't eaten any meat or dairy, at least not intentionally. (I have had a couple of eggs, but they were farm fresh eggs from my parents' small farm and they treat their chickens very well.) Anyway, at about the same time as I started eating this way, I began reading Veganist: Lose Weight, Get Healthy, Change the World.

Each chapter in the book lays out a good reason to move toward a more plant-based diet: health reasons, environmental reasons, etc. I've read lots of other books that try to convince readers to go vegetarian or vegan, but sooner or later they usually get annoyingly preachy. Not Veganist. In fact, several times the author expresses her purpose for this book is to get people to consider the impact if they lean into a vegan diet, not necessarily to be a strict vegan, which may be the ideal but is not always attainable by everyone.

One point of view I hadn't read much about in the past was the spiritual perspective. Freston discusses some of the eating rules/guidelines outlined in Christianity, Judaism, Islam, Buddhism, and Hinduism. While I'm certainly not an expert on this topic, it does make sense to me that if your belief system involves reducing suffering, then that should extend to the animal kingdom as well.

The chapter on factory farming had me tears. I read part of it out loud to Sandy, and there were times when I could barely read because it was like something got caught in my throat and I couldn't say the words out loud. After reading this chapter, I'm not sure I will be able to return to eating meat or dairy, especially meat and dairy from factory farms.

Most likely you won't want to, either, if you read Veganist.

This isn't a cookbook, so don't expect recipes. It does, however, have a fairly extensive appendix section that includes three weeks' worth of meal suggestions, recommended books and web sites, and examples of vegan products you can buy at grocery stores and health food stores. All in all, Veganist is a reasonable, well-written set of arguments for a plant-based diet and a nice addition to my growing library of vegetarian-focused books.

Sarah's Key

2011-03-16T21:05:00.006-04:00

Sarah's Key
Author: Tatiana de Rosnay
St. Martin's Griffin, 2008
293 pages

My friend Sophie from Belgium sent me this book with a note that said she read it on a plane from Sydney to London and couldn't put it down until she finished. Having been on two flights from Sydney to the USA, I know how a good book can make that incredibly long journey easier. Sophie was right. Sarah's Key is the type of book that hooks you from the first couple of pages, and it doesn't let go until the very last word.

There are actually two story lines, both taking place in Paris. The first is in July 1942, when a young girl and her mother are roused in the middle of the night by someone pounding on their apartment door. The girl makes a split-second decision to lock her little brother in a secret cabinet -- a place where they'd played hiding games in the past -- and she takes the key with her. She thinks she's coming back soon. What she doesn't realize is that she won't be going back -- ever. You see, that was the night that French police removed hundreds, maybe thousands of Jewish families from their homes and took them to the Velodrome d'Hiver, in what history now calls the Vel' d'Hiv Roundup. Most were eventually taken to Auschwitz.

Sixty years later, Julia, a middle-aged journalist -- an American who's lived in Paris for over half of her life -- is struggling with moving into a new home and dealing with a husband she's outgrown. She gets an assignment to look into the Vel' d'Hiv Roundup, which she'd never heard of previously. Come to find out, most French people of her generation and younger haven't heard of it, either, or don't know much about it. The people who do remember seem to want it swept under the rug, or at least that's how it seems to Julia.

As she investigates the events surrounding this painful moment in France's history, Julia learns about a young girl named Sarah, whose tragic story will break your heart. She also learns a great deal about herself. I can't tell you much more without revealing too much. I'll just say I loved it, and hopefully you will, too.

Thanks, Sophie! :-)

Favorite

2011-03-07T21:54:00.012-05:00

Favorite

Author: Karen McQuestion

Amazon Digital Services, 2009

170 pages

In addition to having one of the coolest author names ever, Karen McQuestion has made a name for herself as a successful self-published fiction writer. Favorite was released via the Kindle (for $2.99) before it was released as a book. The Kindle version has been a bestseller for several weeks now.

In a town two hours from Milwaukee, Wisconsin, sixteen year old Angel (“Angie”) Favorite is just trying to live her life and be a good person. Since her mother went missing five years ago, she and her brother Jason have lived quietly with their grandmother. Their Dad is a musician always on the brink of (but never quite achieving) his big break, so they live with Grandma for the purposes of stability. But now Grandma’s getting married, and things are changing. While our running errands, Angie is accosted by a strange man who tells her she must go with him, that there’s something she needs to see. This freaks her out, and she tries to run away, but the man pursues her. Next thing she knows, she’s waking up in the hospital . . . and her would-be attacker is dead.

This sets up the reader for all kinds of possibilities, and the author leads us down a meandering path with Angie and the would-be attacker’s mother. Mrs. Bittner is the matriarch of the town’s wealthiest family, and she lives in a mansion on the lake with her butler/driver and cook, the married couple Hank and Trudy. She’s drawn to Angie in particular. The more Angie resists, the harder Mrs. Bittner tries. When a series of events separates Angie and Jason from their Grandma and Dad, Mrs. Bittner insists that they stay with her. Things get creepy when the siblings move into the mansion. Think John Saul for younger readers.

Angie is the narrator of the story, so you know things will work out. But you might be surprised where the path leads, and how things wrap up. This may be a young adult novel (which I didn’t realize until I was already into it) but it’s full of psychological suspense. As a $2.99 Kindle download, I felt like I definitely got my money’s worth from this quick read. The paperback (priced more like a normal book) will be available on Amazon.com on 01 April 2011.

The Blue Sweater

2011-03-01T21:59:00.000-05:00

The Blue Sweater: Bridging the Gap Between Rich and Poor in an Interconnected World
Author: Jacqueline Novogratz
Rodale Books, 2009
304 pages

After my trip to El Salvador, I wanted to read something to complement my experiences there. I'd actually purchased The Blue Sweater for my Kindle back in 2009, but hadn't gotten around to reading it yet. That's because the time hadn't been right for me - until now.

The Blue Sweater is an engaging, thoughtful look at the author's life work. After working for a few years in global banking on Wall Street (where she found a passion for developing countries), she was drawn to the non-profit world, particularly to programs focused on women and entrepreneurship. She describes her experiences with various non-governmental organizations (NGOs) as well as private entities, and the creation of the Acumen Fund, the non-profit she founded to fight global poverty through entrepreneurship. (Think Muhammad Yunus, microloans, Kiva . . . )

The first part of the book leads up to and describes her time in Kenya and Rwanda (at the time just prior to Rwanda's troubles). Her tales of her time in East Africa were my favorite parts of the book, and I could really feel her sense of wonder coming through in her writing. Her later work in other African countries, as well as in India and Pakistan, is also described in detail.

Obviously, Novogratz is a brilliant person who has a lot of ideas on how to improve things. She's also very aware that so many well-intentioned programs (regardless of vision) . . . fail miserably. The Blue Sweater presents a perspective that's both balanced and intellectual. As for the blue sweater (i.e., how the book got its title) . . . well, that's such a cool story, you'll just have to read it yourself.

Shades of Earl Grey

2011-02-22T20:25:00.007-05:00

Shades of Earl Grey
Author: Laura Childs
Berkley, 2003
234 pages

This breezy read is the third in the Tea Shop Mystery series, which is set in the historic district of Charleston, South Carolina. Amateur sleuth Theodosia Browning (owner of the Indigo Tea Shop) and her sidekicks Drayton (tea master and Renaissance man) and Haley (pastry chef extraordinaire) are preparing to launch a tea-based bath products line. Business at the tea shop is booming, especially now that Indigo has added a lunch service. Life seems to be going along rather swimmingly in the old town . . . until a bridegroom turns up dead, and a valuable piece of heirloom jewelry turns up missing.

When a couple of other valuables in the neighborhood mysteriously disappear, Theo begins to wonder: has a cat burglar come to town? She can list several people who just might be suspects. Take the creepy lawyer who keeps showing up in all the right places. And the special events bartender who was at all of the events, and loves to sell vintage "finds" on an internet auction site. Regardless of whodunnit, with the death of the groom, theft is not the only crime.

I like this light-hearted series, despite a few editing glitches (it was Wallis, not Wallace, who was Duchess of Windsor. And it was Pachelbel's Canon, not Cannon.) I kind of wonder how Theo's business would be doing in the current economy. Things are just a little too perfect; the banter between characters is at times just a little annoying. But it works, and I want to read more books in this series.

I can't wait to try the Chicken Perloo recipe. :-)

Previous books in this series that I've reviewed:
Book 1 - Death by Darjeeling
Book 2 - Gunpowder Green

Olive Kitteridge

2011-02-21T13:55:00.007-05:00

Olive Kitteridge
Author: Elizabeth Strout
Random House, 2008
270 pages

This was another borrowed book on the El Salvador trip . . . we passed quite a few around to each other. (Thanks, Beth!)

Olive Kitteridge is a Pulitzer prize-winning collection of thirteen short stories seamlessly woven into a larger story about the impact one woman has on her family and community. The title character is a proud New Englander of substantial size, both physically and in personality. She's bold, bitchy, annoying, sensitive, and all too real. Olive treats her husband (Henry) and son (Christopher) like crap, yet she loves them fiercely (and has no idea she treats them like crap). Her "sphere of influence" may be somewhat small in that it's mostly limited to her hometown of Crosby, Maine, but she has an impact on all kinds of people as she defends the defenseless and never holds back, even when a gun is aimed her way.

I didn't like Olive at first. Her flaws and her humanness are just so real, at times it was like holding a mirror up to myself and seeing everything I don't like about me. But as the stories went by, I began to see her in a new light. By the last story (called "River") she redeemed herself almost completely.

I adored Henry, her pharmacist husband. His steadfast loyalty to Olive, despite her numerous shortcomings, reminded me that giving your life for someone else doesn't necessarily mean you have to die - at least not physically. Henry died a thousand deaths for Olive, but he would have died a million more. Talk about love. Not much was revealed about how they met, their courtship, and early marriage. At first, that kind of bugged me. I mean: why did Henry wall in love with Olive, anyway, if she was such a bee-yotch? Surely there was something "attractive" about her, at some point? But then I realized it didn't matter. Some things just are. And that's that.

There's an underlying current of depression throughout the book. Suicide, anorexia, alcoholism, divorce, loneliness, clinical depression and a whole host of other dark topics are woven into the stories. There are sad characters, such as Angela, the piano player at the local bar, and Denise, Henry's pharmaceutical assistant. There are people in loveless relationships, like Harmon. And people who don't love themselves. We also know that both Henry and Olive each had parents with problems, so there's the theme of passing things along to the next generation. Despite the sadness, I was drawn to the characters and increasingly, to Olive herself.

Now I'm ready to read something light and breezy. Gotta have balance, ya know?

Town in a Blueberry Jam

2011-02-21T13:13:00.000-05:00

Town in a Blueberry Jam
Author: B. B. Haywood
Berkley, 2010
308 pages

Candy Holliday lives just outside a small Maine tourist town, having come here to run a blueberry farm with her retired Dad after a short career in the city. She earns a little money on the side making blueberry pies and other goodies, and has a banner year selling her goods at the Blueberry Festival. Life is simple, but sweet.

When the local celebrity is found dead in the waters near a cliff, everyone wonders: did he jump? Did he fall accidentally? Or was he pushed? But when the newly-crowned Blueberry Queen (whom no one thought should win) is also found murdered and one of Candy's friends is accused of the crime, she gets involved in the investigation.

This cozy, food-themed mystery that will appeal to readers who like quaint and don't like anything too gory or scary. The writing is tight and the characters are set up well for future stories. The descriptions of the coastal town makes me want to visit Maine . . . and I'd definitely like to try some of Candy's baked goods. Of course, there are several recipes in the book. You can practically smell the blueberry muffins in the oven. :-)

Black Seconds

2011-02-21T13:00:00.002-05:00

Black Seconds
Author: Karin Fossum (translated from Norwegian by Charlotte Borslund)
Mariner Books, 2009 (originally published in 2002)
266 pages

My family knows how much I love a good Scandinavian mystery, and Karin Fossum has been on my radar for a while. In fact, I have her book The Indian Bride on my shelf, and will no doubt be reading it soon. I hadn't expected to read Black Seconds before The Indian Bride (since I usually read series books in order), but on my recent trip to El Salvador I found myself desperate for something new to read. I saw that one of my traveling buddies was reading this one, and she generously passed it my way when she was finished (Thanks, Chris!)

From the first few sentences, two things were apparent. 1) It didn't matter that I hadn't read the previous books in the series; and 2) Putting this book down was going to be difficult. It grabbed me and didn't want to let go. And I didn't mind at all.

The plot centers around the disappearance of a pretty young girl and the impact this has on her family and some of the other people in the community. The author's technique of getting into the heads of other characters (not only the main "detective" character) is refreshing. The main detective (Konrad Sejer) doesn't seem as gloomy, depressed, or shell-shocked as many others out there in crime thriller land. Of course, he has his problems, and I'm sure I'll learn more about him when I read the other Konrad Sejer books.

There were plenty of weird characters, though . . . the mother of the disappeared girl was quite a head case, and there's the colorful local weirdo who never talks except to say the word "No" and drives around on a motorized three-wheeler. Born to be wild, yeah.

I can't say much more without giving too much away, but I will say that the way things unravel at the end is downright creepy. If you like mysteries and/or thrillers, you'll probably like this one. It's not a cozy, but it's not gross, either. Just know in advance that you won't be able to put it down, so wait until you have a block of time before you get started.

All Together Dead

2011-02-21T12:24:00.000-05:00

All Together Dead
Author: Charlaine Harris
Berkley, 2007
323 pages

The seventh book of the Southern Vampire series finds our leading lady, Louisiana telepath and barmaid Sookie Stackhouse, in the weeks and months just after Hurricane Katrina. She's sharing her house with the displaced New Orleans witch Amelia and her cat Bob (who was Amelia's boyfriend until she turned him into a house cat during a spell gone bad) and getting to know her new boyfriend, Quinn, a little better. If you're not familiar with this series, you're probably going: "Whaaaa?" So maybe I'll keep quiet about the fact that Quinn is a were-tiger (sort of like a werewolf, but tiger instead of wolf) and that in the past, Sookie's been romantically linked with two vampires, Bill the Confederate Soldier and Eric the Viking. Just trust me on this.

In Book 6, Sookie found herself working a special job for Sophie-Anne, vampire queen of Louisiana. During that job, Sookie was the sole witness to the murder of Sophie-Anne's new husband, so now she's called to accompany Her Majesty and the Louisiana contingent in order to testify on the queen's behalf at a sort of central states vampire summit. Traveling to the city of Rhodes (which sounds a lot like Chicago) is a big deal for Sookie. It's her first time in such a big city, and her first trip north.

In Rhodes, Sookie is reunited with Barry, the bellboy telepath she met during the trip to Dallas in Book 2. Barry works for the King of Texas now, and has lost much of his innocence as a result. Together they stumble upon an assassination plot. There's a huge disaster with several chapters of don't-bother-me-I-can't-put-this-book-down-now reading, and Sookie is challenged in ways she never imagined.

Meanwhile, the old love triangle between Sookie, Bill, and Eric is now a love quadrangle although Sookie can't answer the question when people ask her if she loves Quinn. Sookie is not really liking Bill much at all, but it appears as if her anger is cooling. Will they ever get back together? That's always the underlying question, isn't it? And in All Together Dead, there's a new twist in her relationship with Eric.

This is probably my favorite book in the series after Book 1. Some new "supe" characters were introduced - mysterious warriors from another dimension who can become invisible. I'm interested in learning more about them. That said, I can't help but wonder what other "supes" the author's going to send our way.

Previous books in the series that I've reviewed:
Book 1 - Dead Until Dark
Book 2 - Living Dead In Dallas
Book 3 - Club Dead
Book 4 - Dead To The World
Book 5 - Dead As A Doornail
Book 6 - Definitely Dead

The Hangman's Daughter

2011-02-06T11:16:00.001-05:00

The Hangman's Daughter
Author: Oliver Pötzsch (Translated from German by Lee Chadeayne)
AmazonCrossing, 2010 (Originally published in 2008)
448 pages

A few weeks ago, this was the top-selling Kindle book in the USA. The reviews were mostly good, but what really hooked me was that the author drew upon his own family history to create an amazing fictional family. You see, he descends from a line of village hangmen, or executioners. As an amateur genealogist, I kinda dig this.

Following the career path of his father, grandfather, and other male ancestors, Jakob Kuisl is the executioner and torturer for the Bavarian town of Schongau in the mid-1600s. Everyone is afraid of Kuisl not just because of his job, but because he's physically strong and imposing in stature. But Kuisl is actually a happy family man with a good wife, a young adult daughter named Magdalena (for whom the book is named), and five year-old twins. He's actually quite sensitive, too -- not at all the scary person he's made out to be . . . well, at least if you're not on the other end of his torturing. Ironically, Kuisl is more interested in healing than torturing. In fact, he supplements his income with herbs and other traditional healing methods (and also by cleaning the streets of the town once a week).

Bavaria is finally at peace after a long war (known historically as the Thirty Years' War), but peace hasn't fully come to Schongau. For one thing, mercenary soldiers are roaming around with nothing much to do except stir up trouble. And Schongau is slowly losing out economically to the nearby town of Augsburg, so there are issues between the tradesmen and merchants. When several young orphans are found dead, all tattooed with a mysterious symbol, there's talk of witchcraft. Immediately, the town's midwife is a suspect; she's a single woman who works with mysterious 'potions' and has been seen with the orphans. Although Kuisl is certain of her innocence, he knows he'll be expected to torture a confession out of the midwife . . . and eventually, to execute her.

Kuisl and his new friend Simon, a young university-educated physician who has a thing for Magdalena and a desire to learn the old ways of medicine, set out to find the real killer. But when Magdelena is kidnapped, things get personal for both Kuisl and the doctor. The last one-third of the book is especially hard to put down, and it's a breathless, fantastic ride.

The Hangman's Daughter is the first of at least two books featuring Kuisl, Simon, and Magdalena - but the others aren't yet available in English. Let's hope they are soon!

Never Let Me Go

2011-01-27T16:53:00.001-05:00

Never Let Me Go
Author: Kazuo Ishiguro
Vintage, 2005
288 pages

This book was a finalist for the Man Booker Prize back in 2005, and was made into a movie (which I haven't seen) last year. About a month ago, I found a gently used copy at my parents' house. Turns out, my nephew read it for a university class, and left it when he was finished. Anyway, I just sort of picked it up.

For me, Never Let Me Go was incredibly difficult to get into at first. I plodded through the first hundred or so pages. Several times, I thought about stopping and moving on to something . . . easier. But at some point around page 120, I realized I was hooked, and I'm glad I stuck it out because Never Let Me Go is quite . . . well, powerful.

The narrator is Kathy, a young woman looking back on her life, specifically her time at an English boarding school called Hailsham. We realize early on that something is a bit "off" about Hailsham: it's definitely not your typical boarding school. For one thing, the students don't have parents. They're encouraged to stay healthy and to spend time on creative endeavors, but unlike most schools there's no emphasis on preparing for a career or life after Hailsham.

Never Let Me Go is a story of friendship (a dystopian romance, really) between Kathy and her friends Ruth and Tommy. Ruth is uptight and at times quite snippy. Tommy struggles with anger issues and is at times bullied by other students, yet with Kathy he's sensitive and gentle. Kathy is curious yet subdued, a good observer. As the book progresses, we learn the truth behind who they are and what's expected of them.

It wasn't the plot or even the characters that kept me turning the pages. It was a combination of brilliant writing and the ethical issues that the author brought to my attention. Ethically speaking, the big question the author seems to be asking is: What is it that makes us human? I found myself thinking back on history (not just history, really, but the present as well) and asking myself: Why is it that we humans are constantly looking for ways (and taking advantage of opportunities) to exploit each other?

This book made my brain hurt. But that's not necessarily a bad thing. Sometimes we need to stretch ourselves in ways other than physical. If you want to stretch yourself . . . if you want to read some really good writing . . . if you're willing to tackle some big questions and think philosophically even long after the book has been closed . . . then Never Let Me Go might be a good choice for you.

Hex Marks The Spot

2011-01-21T07:37:00.003-05:00

Hex Marks The Spot
Author: Madelyn Alt
Berkley, 2007
246 pages

This is Book 3 of the Bewitching Mystery series. It's early springtime in northern Indiana, and main character Maggie and her boss, Felicity ("Liss") are checking out the wares at the county farmers' market and craft sale. Liss is drawn to a piece of furniture that's been intricately carved with ancient symbols by an incredibly handsome young man from the nearby Amish community. When that young man turns up dead a short time later - the third murder in the small town of Stony Mill in just six months - lots of folks are on edge and ready to blame either the residents of a local juvenile facility . . . or the local witches.

Maggie's not a witch, but she's definitely sensitive to paranormal activity. She gets feelings and sees shadows and stuff like that. She does have friends who are witches, including Liss . . . and the hunky Marcus, who seems to be becoming even more desirable to Maggie.

Unfortunately, there are some in town (including Maggie's police officer friend, Tom - who may or may not be her boyfriend) who suspect the worst of anyone different. The dead man's widow is certainly different. She's Amish, too, but from a different sect, with different ways and a propensity for painting and drawing hex symbols. Clues indicate the couple was having marital troubles. Could she be the murderer?

Of course, Maggie gets drawn into the investigation. Along the way, she finds herself increasingly drawn to the paranormal world, whether or not she wants it. You see, in addition to the murder, there's other weird stuff happening in small Stony Mill, Indiana - such as ghosts in the local library. Somehow Maggie keeps winding up in the thick of things. Is Stony Mill located on some sort of portal to the "other" world? Hmm, guess we'll have to keep reading.

I like this series, and the small town "everybody knows everybody's business" setting is perfect for a paranormal mystery. The characters are reflective of people that everyone knows (Maggie's mother hen of a mom is one example), so it's easy to relate to Maggie and her everyday world. Hex Marks The Spot is the darkest of the series so far, but it's also my favorite. Maggie continues to grow as a character and her internal struggles are more apparent in this installment. She has lots of choices to make (and not just Tom vs. Marcus) so it'll be interesting to see where the author takes her in future books.

Other books in this series:
The Trouble With Magic (reviewed December 2009)
A Charmed Death (reviewed May 2010)

The Redbreast

2011-01-18T16:49:00.005-05:00

The Redbreast
Author: Jo Nesbø (translated from Norwegian by Don Bartlett)
HarperCollins, 2009 (originally published in 2000)
521 pages

Scandinavian crime novels are all the rage lately, and I can't seem to get enough. Having read all three of the Stieg Larsson books, and having successfully sampled Sweden's Håkan Nesser (Woman With Birthmark) and Iceland's Arnuldur Indridason (Jar City), I decided it was time to check out Norway's Jo Nesbø. I wasn't disappointed.

It's late 1999. Nesbø's protagonist, Harry Hole, is a detective is Oslo. Harry's an alcoholic who's on the wagon - at least at first. Something happened to him in Sydney and Bangkok on a recent case, but we're not exactly sure what - The Redbreast apparently isn't the first Harry Hole book. It doesn't really matter, though, because other than the references to Sydney-Bangkok, this is a good standalone novel.

The Redbreast begins with action. Harry and his police partner are covering the route being taken by the US President and his entourage as they travel to the airport after an event. Harry thinks he sees an assassin, and shoots the man. Turns out, the man was a Secret Service agent who was in the wrong place at the wrong time. Despite the embarrassment, Harry receives a "promotion" and starts a new role in surveillance.

Suddenly, we're transported to the Russian front during World War II, following a group of Norwegian soldiers fighting on the side of Germany. Despite the abrupt change in setting and time, I immediately got hooked into the wartime story, although it did take a certain amount of concentration to keep the characters straight. One soldier takes a detour through a Vienna hospital. We don't know his real name, but he calls himself Uriah. This story-within-a-story adds to the overall mystery.

Meanwhile, back in present-day Oslo (which happens to be at the turn of the millennium and shortly thereafter) there's a growing tension between the immigrant population and modern neo-Nazis. Evidence has been found that a banned rifle has been smuggled into the country. Then a string of seemingly random murders takes place: a WWII soldier, a police officer, a young neo-Nazi, a philandering government official . . . and others. Are these events related?

This is a thoughtful, well-researched mystery, IMHO. Not only was I motivated to keep turning the pages, I also felt like I learned something about Norway's history. For example, I was not aware of the historical figure Quisling. I was motivated to go online to research a few things behind the story taking place in The Redbreast.

I like how Nesbø inserted trivia into the story. Especially the bird trivia. Even the quote at the beginning of the book (the reference to the title) was something interesting that I'd never seen before. I also like several of the minor characters. Harry's sister (Sis, who has Down's syndrome) is a shining light in Harry's semi-dark world. Oleg, the young son of Harry's friend Rakel, also brings out a kinder, gentler side of Harry. For me, this is refreshing, as I've grown tired of the stereotypical "lone wolf" detective.

By the way, Norway is high on my list of places to visit. Reading The Redbreast only strengthened my resolve to get there. Hope it's someday soon!

Murder Most Frothy

2011-01-13T21:11:00.002-05:00

Murder Most Frothy
Author: Cleo Coyle
Berkley, 2006
247 pages

This is the fourth book I've read in the Coffeehouse Mystery series, and I think it's my favorite so far. Main character Clare Cosi (forty-something manager of The Village Blend in Manhattan) is temporarily helping out her millionaire friend David by working as the coffee steward of his restaurant in the Hamptons for the summer. One of the perks of this arrangement? She and her college-age daughter (Joy, a culinary school student on summer break) and ex-mother-in-law (the elderly Frenchwoman known as "Madame", who owns The Village Blend) get to live in David's mansion and enjoy all the benefits thereof. Everything seems to be going well . . . until David's July 4th party, when another employee is shot dead during the fireworks. Clare thinks David was the intended target, but he's in denial, and the local police aren't being very receptive to Clare's, um, assistance.

The more Clare digs, the more possible suspects she comes up with. There's an angry neighbor, a business competitor who lost out on a major deal, an unlikely heir, and a shady maitre d'. All of them could possibly benefit from David's death. And, oh, there's this mysterious boat anchored offshore . . .

As Clare pieces together the clues that keep popping up everywhere, she deals with the everyday life of running a fine restaurant while also balancing the antics and adventures of Joy, Madame, and her own ex-husband, Matteo. (There are several funny scenes involving Madame - I'm liking her more and more and hoping she'll keep entertaining us in future books.) In the end, we have a good solid "cozy" mystery. And as with the previous Coffeehouse Mysteries, there's lots to learn about my favorite legal drug.

I'm just getting started with this series, and looking forward to reading the next book soon!

Previous reviews of other Coffeehouse Mysteries:

On What Grounds (December 2009)
Through The Grinder (January 2010)
Latté Trouble (June 2010)

Mockingjay

2011-01-08T23:31:00.005-05:00

Mockingjay
Author: Suzanne Collins
Scholastic, 2010
400 pages

When I finished Catching Fire last week, the cliffhanger was so strong, I needed to read the final book in The Hunger Games series right away. Mockingjay was just published last August, and like the other books in the trilogy has been on the general bestseller lists for some time now. So even though these books are categorized as Young Adult, they appeal to a wide audience.

Seventeen-year-old heroine Katniss Everdeen survived not just one but two of her country's Hunger Games (a sort of reality TV show where contestants fight to the death) only to find that her home district has been destroyed. As she recovers in the mysterious District 13 (which didn't exist, according to President Snow and the hardcore federal government), her friend Peeta has been captured and taken to the Capitol. As the symbol of the rebellion (the Mockingjay), Katniss must rally the other districts to come together to defeat the government. But she's also thinking about Peeta, and feeling very guilty knowing that he's most likely being tortured behind enemy lines.

When Peeta is rescued and brought back to District 13, Katniss anticipates a joyful reunion and a return to camaraderie. Instead, Peeta tries to kill her. Katniss, Haymitch, and the others continue to fight a war of independence, but now they also have to deal with Peeta, who's been brainwashed and turned into an assassin. This is really just one example of how dark Mockingjay is. Mockingjay describes in great detail the tragedies of war, the effects of war on ordinary people as well as the combat soldiers, and things you don't normally read about in Young Adult fiction, like post-traumatic stress disorder. So if you're looking for a clean, happy ending like you get with most books, well . . . I won't say any more.

I'll have to find out if my niece has read the third book. I know she read the first two. I'd love to get her perspective on this one. This entire series is built for good intellectual discussion!

Catching Fire

2011-01-02T09:23:00.001-05:00

Catching Fire
Author: Suzanne Collins
Scholastic Press, 2009
391 pages

Catching Fire is the second book in The Hunger Games trilogy. (My review of the first book, also called The Hunger Games, is here. If you haven't read any of this series, then I suggest taking a look at the first review before going further in this one. For the sake of context.)

When we were last with main character and narrator Katniss Everdeen, she'd just won the Hunger Games. Actually it was a tie with her District 12 partner, Peeta. She and Peeta had played the game by pretending to be in love with each other, when really Katniss was sort of in love with Gale from back home in coal mining country. Now Peeta and Katniss are back home, where they live the good life in the Victor's Village. Life is about as good as it can get in post-apocalyptic society. Gale, though, has been put to work in the coal mines. He works 12 hours shifts six days a week. Katniss helps take care of his family (and lots of other people, too) by sharing her winnings of monthly food and other goods. When they can, they steal away to the forest for a few hours of hunting, but those days are now few and far in between.

One day, quite out of the blue, Katniss returns home to find that she has a special visitor. The President of Panem (the name of her repressive country) has come to pay her a special visit. President Snow is truly despicable. He's a dictator who controls the people in the districts -- who, by the way, are really no more than slaves to the people in the Capitol. President Snow has a message for Katniss, that she really needs to get with his program. You see, she's now considered a hero in the districts because her actions in the Hunger Games inspired an uprising in one of the districts. President Snow makes it clear that he doesn't want to see any more of Katniss' rebellious behavior.

But Katniss isn't the type of person who takes easily to rules. Rumors of unrest continue, and things start to tighten up in District 12. One day after a successful hunt with Gale, Katniss is drawn to a commotion in the town center, where she finds the Peacekeepers (the government police) have Gale tied to a whipping post and are whipping him mercilessly. Her interruption of Gale's punishment (he was caught with "stolen" game from the hunt") probably saved Gale's life, but it put yet another target on her back. Suddenly, District 12 is under a sort of martial law. Katniss sneaks out again to go hunting, and meets up with two women who have run away from another district in search of District 13, the nuclear-energy producing area that was supposedly destroyed many years ago. When Katniss returns to 12, she finds that electricity has been restored to the fence, and the only way back inside is to climb a tree and then jump in.

So now we're in the middle of the book, more or less, when the real action begins. President Snow announces that, in celebration of the Capitol's 75 year-old victory over the "district rebels", there will be a special Hunger Games. The participants will be two people from each district, from the pool of previous Hunger Games winners. This means that Katniss, Peeta, and their mentor Haymitch will all be potential players. Once again, players must fight to the death.

Katniss realizes that what President Snow is doing is trying to quell the uprisings by killing off the strongest - to teach the districts yet another lesson. She and Peeta return to the games (Haymitch remains their mentor) and this time, the gamemakers have even more challenges and surprises for the players. The last half of the book will have you on the edge of your seat, and Catching Fire has one of the most amazing and unexpected cliffhangers I've read in a while. So much that I had to immediately begin reading the final book in the series -- Mockingjay. Come back again in a few days to see how that goes.

Let Me In

2010-12-25T17:29:00.006-05:00

Let Me In
Author: John Ajvide Lindqvist
St. Martin's Griffin, 2010 (media tie-in)
486 pages

Originally published as Låt Den Rätte Komma in Sweden (Let The Right One In is the title of the first English translation), this novel by an author that many are calling "the new Stephen King" is the most unique and creepy book I've read in a really long time. The book (and its Swedish language film adaptation) has been very popular in Europe, and a Hollywood version of the film (renamed Let Me In) was released in the States this year. I haven't seen either movie, and this isn't a movie review blog, so back to the book.

The story centers around Oskar, a middle school-aged boy who's tormented by neighborhood bullies. Oskar lives with his Mom in a suburb of Stockholm (I don't think the author cares too much for suburbia given his dreary descriptions of this one!) and he's a really odd kid, yet most of us should be able to relate to him. One evening after a particularly traumatic day at school, Oskar meets his new neighbor. Eli is a strange girl who smells bad and only comes out at night, but she and Oskar become friends. Oskar eventually realizes that Eli is a vampire . . . not only is she a vampire, but she's 200+ years old and, oh, she's not really a girl.

Woven into Oskar's story are those of several other characters who will eventually cross paths with Oskar. The most disturbing (and disgusting) is Håkan, who becomes the monster on the outside that he considers himself to be on the inside. Despite Håkan's actions, for some reason I still felt sorry for him when glances of his humanity came through. (He kind of reminded me of Frankenstein in that way.) But some scenes involving him are really, really gross.

There's a born-again Christian police officer, several absent/distant parents, a group of old stoners, a man with too many cats, and a teenager named Tommy whose story kind of runs parallel to Oskar's. At some point or another, we get into the heads of nearly all the characters to see things their way. Eventually we get Eli's story, who s/he is and how s/he became a vampire. There's an underlying current of sadness and gloom that makes you wonder if perhaps Lindqvist wrote this during one of Sweden's long, dark winters. And yet there's hope, exhibited in characters who undergo life-changing experiences and an edge-of-your-seat final scene of justice that will make you say "Yes!!!" out loud.

It really is an example of classic horror genre. Yet in a way, Let Me In is a love story, multiple love stories, actually. It's a friendship story that asks: what would you do/how far would you go for your friend? All the while weaving through multiple stories of acceptance of self and others for who they are. Each of us has an inner monster, and it's up to us to keep our monsters in check. Some say that's the difference between humans and . . . well, non-humans.

If you have a tendency to bite your nails, you'll lose a few while reading Let Me In. I know I did. Recommended if you like horror or suspense, or general vampire tales.

Fatal Fixer-Upper

2010-12-15T20:43:00.006-05:00

Fatal Fixer-Upper
Author: Jennie Bentley
Berkley, 2008
336 pages

My recent adventures as a volunteer with Habitat for Humanity have me interested in all aspects of construction and home renovation. As I searched my shelf for a new read, this one popped out at me. Fatal Fixer-Upper is the first in a series known as the Do-It-Yourself Mysteries featuring amateur sleuth Avery Baker. You've just gotta love that title, especially if you watch as much DIY and HGTV as we do in our home.

Avery is a thirty-something interior designer who works in her boyfriend Philippe's furniture store in Manhattan. Philippe is a beret-wearing Frenchman with a roving eye and penchant for speaking in French language clichés. Avery gets an unexpected letter from a nonagenarian great aunt from Maine; she barely knows Aunt Inga and only vaguely remembers a childhood family trip to Maine. The intriguing letter requests for Avery to visit as soon as possible. But Avery arrives too late; Aunt Inga is dead, supposedly after falling down some stairs in her old Victorian home.

At first, Avery isn't very interested in sticking around the small Maine village any longer than she must. She thinks she'll just sell the house and go back to New York. But when she realizes that Philippe is having an affair with a young woman barely half his age, she decides to use the distance to her advantage and renovate the house. In the meantime, she meets some interesting (good and bad) locals, including the hunky handyman Derek; a friendly bed and breakfast owner; an unscrupulous cousin; and a very annoying real estate agent. She also learns that on the day Aunt Inga died, a local college professor disappeared. And did I mention that someone doesn't want her around? A threatening letter and a couple of menacing break-ins rattle Avery's nerves.

Are these events related? This, of course, is yet another mystery, and soon Avery finds herself conducting her own investigation. Along the way she comes across an old legend that links the town to Marie Antoinette. The historical trivia adds a nice element to a story that just keeps getting more interesting with each page. Oh, and Philippe? Turns out he has a few mysteries of his own. You'll have to read to find out how it goes!

I liked the book and will probably read more of this series when I'm looking for an escape . . . or perhaps some home improvement tips and ideas. :-)

The Art of Racing in the Rain

2010-12-09T21:41:00.000-05:00

The Art of Racing in the Rain
Author: Garth Stein
HarperCollins, 2008
336 pages

A couple of weeks ago, I went to my apartment building's office to pick up a package. While I was waiting for the leasing agent to finish up with a potential renter, a young man entered the office. He was carrying a book. I notice these things. It was The Art of Racing in the Rain. I overheard the young man say it was one of the best books he's ever read. I really noticed that.

I picked up the free sample on my Kindle, thinking this was probably not for me, but I was curious. I was hooked after just reading a few sentences. The narrator of book is Enzo, a dog (Labradoodle, if I remember correctly) looking back on his life. Enzo really wants to be a human. He's spent quite a bit of time watching television, and he's very smart. I love this dog!

Enzo recalls his early days on a farm in Washington state, and lovingly recounts his first meeting with the man who would become his best friend. Denny is a would-be race car driver who knows the art of racing in the rain (there's a lot of auto racing "philosophy" in the book - for that reason it should appeal to a wider variety of readers). As Denny goes through life's changes (marriage, fatherhood, ups and downs - including some really BIG ups and downs), Enzo is right there with him. All the way. Did I say I love this dog? I think you'll fall in love with him, too.

You'll also fall in love with Denny. He's such a gentleman, and a really good guy, which seems so rare in fiction. There are times when you'll probably want to punch someone on his behalf, yet you know that Denny wouldn't want you to punch them.

I really did like this book. The only problem I had was the ending. That's no fault of the author or the characters. You see, books don't normally make me cry. I can only think of one other time this has happened. But I had a near meltdown at the end of this book. So if you read it, get some tissues!

The Help

2010-12-02T22:16:00.009-05:00

The Help
Author: Kathryn Stockett
Amy Einhorn Books/Putnam, 2009
464 pages

As someone who was born during the Civil Rights era and raised in the South, I grew up hearing stories (from different perspectives) about what things were like back then. This is a period in history that has always fascinated me, and I've always gotten a great deal out of reading books and watching movies about it. That said . . .

The Help takes place in early 1960s Jackson, Mississippi and is "narrated" by three characters: Aibileen, Minny, and Skeeter. Skeeter is a young white woman who has recently graduated from college and wants to be a writer. Aibileen and Minny are black women who work in white homes doing the cooking, cleaning, and often the raising of children (Aibileen, for example, has raised 17 white children, and Skeeter herself was raised by a domestic helper named Constantine, who moved away without saying goodbye - this weights heavily on Skeeter's mind.)

Aibileen is in her fifties, single, and has recently suffered the loss of her only child, a young adult son who'd had quite a bit of academic potential. Thirty-something Minny is married to Leroy, who beats her when he's drunk. They have several children ranging in ages from toddler to teenager. Skeeter lives at home with her parents on a farm that her mother refers to as "the plantation."

For quite some time, Skeeter's been friends with a group of young women who are now the leaders of a Jackson societal group, led by Miss Hilly (who has to be one of the meanest beeyotches in recent literary history). The more Skeeter observes, the more she realizes the inequities of Jackson life. Her growing awareness leads her to form a relationship with Aibileen and Minny, which results in the three of them collaborating to write a book about race relations in Jackson that will shake that city's foundations. As the three narrators get to know each other (and some of the other characters such as the cold-hearted young mother Elizabeth and the insecure Celia, who married her way to the "right side" of the tracks, so to speak), they find that they have a lot more in common than they ever realized.

You'll laugh, you'll want to cry, and you'll really want to hit somebody (a couple of characters, I mean) when you read The Help.

Thanks to my friends Q and L for recommending The Help. I don't often say "everyone should read this!" but in The Help's case, I really do think so. In fact, I'll go so far as to state that this book is the To Kill a Mockingbird of our generation. I'm not really doing it justice with this lame book review, and for that, I apologize. But run, don't walk, to get your copy . . . and start reading it today.

Definitely Dead

2010-11-25T22:19:00.004-05:00

Definitely Dead
Author: Charlaine Harris
Ace, 2007
324 pages

Definitely Dead is the sixth book in the Southern Vampire series featuring telepath and self-proclaimed barmaid Sookie Stackhouse. This is the book series that became the hugely popular cable TV phenomenon, and True Blood the TV show is quite different from the books. I get confused sometimes. But things are starting to make more sense now. I think.

Let's see. In the past five books, we've learned that Sookie is irresistible to vampires, especially Bill the Confederate Army soldier and Eric the Viking. Her brother Jason and boss Sam are both shapeshifters. Sookie is now acquainted with witches and fairies. It kind of makes you wonder what's next. Book 6 provides a major revelation about Sookie . . . turns out, there's a genetic reason for her uniqueness. (Which I won't reveal yet. Sorry! Will have to see where Book 7 takes it.)

Of course, there's more of a plot than that in Book 6. Lots of things are going on in tiny Bon Temps, Louisiana: Sookie gets an unofficial request to help with a police investigation of a missing boy; the parents of a missing werewolf stalk Sookie for answers; and Sookie has a new boyfriend (a were-tiger named Quinn who kind of reminds me of Mr. Clean). Oh, but we're just getting started, for now the creepy Mr. Cataliades is in town to fetch Sookie to come to New Orleans. You see, Sookie's cousin Hadley - a vamp tramp-turned-vampire and one of the Queen of Louisiana's favorites - is dead again. For real this time. And by command of Her Majesty, the newlywed (to the King of Arkansas) Sophie-Anne, Sookie needs to close out Hadley's estate. When Sookie arrives at Hadley's place, she finds a "newborn" vampire waking up, and all heck breaks loose. She also learns the real reason for her summons by the Queen. Never fear. Sookie will save the day.

Definitely Dead introduces us to some new characters, including the Queen (we may have met her already, but we get to know her so much better in this book) and Hadley's landlord, a "good" witch named Amelia. We get to know Quinn a little better, and it's very clear that Bill and Eric are not the only ones in love with Sookie. There's now a third serious competitor. Who will win Sookie's love? I guess I'll have to keep reading. And watching.

I can't help myself.

Previous books in the series that I've reviewed:
Book 1 - Dead Until Dark
Book 2 - Living Dead In Dallas
Book 3 - Club Dead
Book 4 - Dead To The World
Book 5 - Dead As A Doornail

The Girl Who Kicked The Hornet's Nest

2010-11-13T10:23:00.003-05:00

The Girl Who Kicked The Hornet's Nest
Author: Stieg Larsson
Translated from Swedish by: Reg Keeland
Knopf, 2010
576 pages

My Swedish friend Katarina introduced me to Stieg Larsson's work in 2008 when she gave me The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo, the first book in the Millennium series. I didn't read it until May 2009, but when I finally did, it blew me away. I pronounced it "the greatest mystery novel ever written" in my blog. Book two, The Girl Who Played With Fire, was even more riveting. I wanted to read the third and final book -- The Girl Who Kicked The Hornet's Nest -- right away, and yet I didn't because I didn't want it to end. My curiosity finally got the best of me, though. So here we are.

The second book ended with a cliffhanger: heroine Salander had been shot, buried alive, and was being rescued; meanwhile, the "Bad Guy" was (we hoped) bleeding to death. Book three opens from the perspective of the surgeon who's working on both characters and then shifts to a totally new intriguing story that features secret government organizations and cover-ups. Much of the book is focused on the police investigation and legal proceedings, so there's not nearly as much action in The Girl Who Kicked The Hornet's Nest as in the previous books. It's more of a thriller than a mystery, but still moves at the quick pace we've come to know and love. We get to know some of the minor characters more (in particular, Giannini, Michael Blomkvist's attorney sister -- she rocks) and meet some new ones. I'm sticking to my usual "don't give too much away" policy here, but you can always find more plot details online if you want.

My biggest concern about The Girl Who Kicked The Hornet's Nest before reading it (other than coming to the end of the series) was that it wouldn't end to my satisfaction. I had read somewhere online that Larsson had actually planned a series of seven (or more?) books featuring journalist Blomkvist and genius Salander. However, when I finally got to the end, I felt as if most of my questions were answered.

Still, I'm a little depressed that there won't be more books. I maintain my opinion in previous entries that Salander is one of the most unique literary characters I've ever "met" and I will miss her dearly. The bottom line: I LOVE THIS TRILOGY. Stieg Larsson, why did you have to leave us so soon?

P.S. If you also liked the Millennium series, you might want to check out the three Swedish movies based on the books. They're in Swedish (of course!) but are subtitled in English. Noomi Rapace, the actress who plays Salander -- well, she totally is Salander -- great casting there. The movies follow the books about as well as any movie ever does. There's supposed to be a Hollywood version of The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo coming out sometime next year and I will definitely want to see it . . . Daniel Craig should make an interesting Blomkvist. Not sure about some of the other casting, though. We'll see!

Sprinkle With Murder

2010-10-29T18:24:00.002-04:00

Sprinkle With Murder
Author: Jenn McKinley
Berkley, 2010
215 pages

I needed a quick read after my last book, so I grabbed this one off my shelf. I was missing my Foodie friends back in Indianapolis, especially my friend Lisa B. (Hey, Lisa!), who has a talent for and an interest in all things Cupcake.

Fairy Tale Cupcakes is a cupcakery (is that a word? If not, it should be) in a tourist area of Scottsdale, Arizona run by Melanie ("Mel") and Angie, who've been friends since grade school. Mel was bound for a career in marketing, and Angie in education, but they decided to go for their dream of making people happy with cupcakes instead. They've got some simply amazing creations, and if you read the book, you'll actually find some recipes - what a nice bonus! (Unfortunately, I'm on a diet right now. Not quite sure how I managed to read Sprinkle With Murder under those circumstances, but I did.)

Unfortunately, they've also got a jealous rival (Olivia, who owns the other cupcakery in town) who's doing crazy things like driving past their store several times a day giving them dirty looks. But there's a bigger problem: best friend and investor Tate (who grew up to be a rich corporate executive) is about to marry Christie Stevens, a bee-yotch-y fashion designer who can't seem to get along with anyone. When Christie hires the ladies at Fairy Tale to make 500 cupcakes for the wedding, she can't just let them bake. She insists that they come up with five original recipes, which Christie (not Mel and Angie) will own.

Main character Mel isn't happy with this idea, but she accepts the challenge, and sets about creating some really yummy-sounding flavors - including a dark chocolate cake, cherry filling, dark chocolate ganache icing with dried cherries that sounds divine if you ask me. Mel sends the samples to Christie via Christie's assistants. When she goes to Christie's office the next morning to get her feedback on the samples, Mel finds Christie dead. Um, and there's a piece of a cupcake in one of her hands.

Of course, everyone thinks Mel did it. When business tapers off as a result of nasty rumors, Mel decided she has to find the real killer. She and Angie come up with some very clever investigative techniques and encounter some colorful individuals along the way. Whodunnit? The crazy cupcake rival? The dour, spooky assistant who looks a lot like a grown-up Wednesday from The Addams Family? The cross-dressing photographer who Christie constantly yelled at? Or perhaps Tate, the fiance and best friend of Mel and Angie? (And just why was he marrying Christie, anyway?!!!)

Unlike most cozy mysteries, I didn't guess the killer until that character was revealed. The murder technique was original, and all things considered, I really enjoyed the book. The only downside to me was what I considered an overuse of references to Mel's former weight issues and references to emotional eating. I really don't think it's necessary to get into that. After all, cozy mysteries are supposed to be fun. And darn it, if I can't eat the cupcakes, at least I can read about someone else eating them -- without guilt! :-)

Cutting For Stone

2010-10-24T21:13:00.002-04:00

Cutting For Stone
Author: Abraham Verghese
Vintage, 2009
560 pages

Have you missed me? I can't believe it's been over two months since my last book review. There are lots of reasons for that, but the bottom line is, due to personal issues I just haven't had much time to read lately. I want to be very clear that my slowness has nothing to do with the book itself, because Cutting For Stone is, quite simply, one of the best books I've ever read.

In "real" life, author Abraham Verghese is a surgeon. Born in Ethiopia to parents who were from India, he came to the USA during a period of civil unrest in his birth country. These facts of his life play very heavily in Cutting For Stone. Main character Marion Stone is a surgeon who was born in Ethiopia whose mother, adoptive mother, and adoptive father are from India. The book is the story of Marion's life; of before his life, really, since it also tells the story of how is mother got to Ethiopia and how she met his father. I won't give away too many details, but Marion also has a twin brother named Shiva, who is his mirror image not just in physical appearances but sometimes in personality as well.

The twins are raised in a Hospital near Addis Ababa. Their adoptive mother, Hema, is the hospital's gynecologist; adoptive father Ghosh is a surgeon. So the boys grow up learning about medicine. Their extended "family" includes a woman with Eritrean connections and her daughter, Genet. Genet is about the same age as Marion and Shiva, and although they are raised so close together as to be brother and sister, Marion falls in love with Genet when they are still young. The three of them go through all sorts of adventures together, and share many secrets, including some that they will never be able to tell anyone.

Unfortunately, something happens between Marion, Shiva, and Genet that will change all their lives forever. This sets a chain of events in motion that is both fascinating and agonizing to read. Verghese weaves in bits of Ethiopian history throughout the book, and his explanations really helped me to understand the complicated situations that contributed to so many people leaving that country for the USA, Canada, and elsewhere.

At times, things seem a little overly detailed. The descriptions of medical procedures are both interesting and tedious. I mean, really, did I need to know that much about fistulas or vasectomies or liver transplants? No. But that's one of the things about the book that makes it so real.

There are so many rich characters. Ghosh is my favorite. His humor, his passion for medicine, and the thoughts in his mind as he relentlessly pursued Hema to be his wife made this so. He wasn't perfect (and one of his mistakes - if it is a mistake - isn't revealed until very late in the book), but I admired him. There were characters that I disliked a great deal. And then there was Marion. Unforgettable Marion!

I can't say enough about this book. Yes, it took me a while to get through it, but if I'd had nothing else to do with my time, I would have finished it a lot sooner.

If you like good literary fiction that broadens your horizons, teaches you something, and provides an insight into other cultures, you'll like Cutting For Stone. If you only read one serious work of fiction all year, this should be it. Buy it now.

P.S. My next book is going to be a quick read. :-)

Still Missing

2010-08-13T15:05:00.004-04:00

Still Missing
Author: Chevy Stevens
St. Martin's Press, 2010
352 pages

I can't remember how or where I heard about this book (just published in June), but I'm glad I did. In her debut novel, Canadian author Chevy Stevens produces a nail-biting thriller. Main character Annie is a 32-year old real estate agent whose life is pretty normal: career, dog, boyfriend, overbearing mother, etc. But all is about to change when a would-be homebuyer abducts her during an open house. Her creepy captor takes her to his hidden hideaway in the mountains, where he has created a cabin prison from which there is no escape. There Annie experiences unimaginable tortures (warning: very graphic at times - this is not a "cozy" by any means) and learns some horrifying truths about her captor's past.

We know that Annie survives, because she's telling the story. But how? Each chapter is titled with "Session" (instead of Chapter) and a number. The book is written in first person with a blend of tenses (past and present) as if Annie is recounting her experiences with a psychiatrist. It's clever, and for the most part, it works. We learn not only about Annie's time in captivity, but of events in her childhood and in her family's history. The sum of all the parts equals a compelling story that is much more complex than I expected.

Clearly, Annie will never be the same. This is one part of Missing Persons stories that you don't often hear about -- the return home and its affect not just on the victim but on friends and family. The police investigation that follows seems to be a little unrealistic at times -- particularly Annie's relationship with the lead investigator. I'm just not sure that a seasoned professional like Gary would have behaved that way in real life. But :::sigh::: it's fiction, and I know certain things are expected.

Despite a few slow points in the second half of the book, overall this is a very good read, and an impressive debut for a new author. The Vancouver Island setting was a nice change, and when the motive for the abduction is finally revealed, you'll probably be just as surprised as I was. I just didn't see it coming.

The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner

2010-08-10T06:17:00.003-04:00

The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner
Author: Stephenie Meyer
Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, 2010
192 pages

Like most other females, I'm a fan of the Twilight series, so when I heard that Stephenie Meyer had published a novella about a character only briefly mentioned (I don't even remember, to be honest) in . . . Eclipse, I think? . . . I thought: "Hmm. That sounds sort of interesting." Here's the deal. Remember Victoria, the vampire whose boyfriend was killed in the opening book? You may recall that she raised an army of "newborns" (newly-created vampires) to go to war against the Cullens as a sort of revenge. Well, Bree Tanner is one of those newborns.

When the story opens, Bree's still getting used to vampire life. She's living in a coven of newborns led by charismatic Riley and a mysterious female leader (whom the reader assumes is Victoria, but this is not known to Bree). There's a lot of political maneuvering in the coven, but Bree doesn't really want to be a part of it. She finds herself drawn to Diego, a trusted follower of Riley who shares some vampire secrets with her. For example, the newborns all believe that vampires can't go out during the day, but Diego proves that's not exactly true.

When it becomes apparent to Diego and Bree that something's up that they don't want to be a part of, they hatch a plan to break apart from the group. But first, Diego has to do one final favor for Riley, so they plan to meet later. This is where my description of the plot stops, because I don't want to give too much away. Suffice it to say that I knew how the story would end, but I allowed myself to get so caught up in it, that I really didn't believe it was going to end the way it did. Until the very last sentence.

I liked the concept behind The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner and I can see where this might lead to other spin-offs from the series. I was impressed that the author was able to create such a fresh new voice. I would have loved to know more about Bree's past and how she became a vampire, but who knows, maybe there's another story (short or long) just waiting to be written.

The Alchemist

2010-08-07T20:22:00.003-04:00

The Alchemist
Author: Paulo Coelho
Unabridged Audio Version [Time: 4:16:33]
HarperAudio, 2001 (originally published in 1986)

Three nonfiction books in a row . . . you might think I've turned over a new leaf. Actually, I've just been on the road a lot lately, and nothing passes the time like a good audiobook when you're driving. This is my second book by Brazilian author Coelho (I reviewed The Witch of Portobello in August 2008), whose works have been translated into numerous languages and sold more copies than you can imagine. But The Alchemist is probably the most well-known, and I totally get why.

The story begins with the introduction of a Spanish shepherd known throughout the book as The Boy. The Boy has a recurring dream about finding treasure near the pyramids in Egypt. Encouraged to follow his dreams by a gypsy woman and a mysterious man who claims to be the King of Salem, The Boy sets out on his journey. First, he goes to Morocco, where he encounters a thief, a crystal merchant, and an Englishman. As he ventures further, he meets other interesting characters, including a woman of the desert who might just be the love of his life . . . and an alchemist.

The simple yet deep allegorical tale of The Boy's quest for his "personal legend" reminds us of some simple truths, the main one (for me) being that we must always follow our dreams. If we don't, we'll always regret it.

I highly recommend the audiobook. A plus for me is that it was read by English actor Jeremy Irons. I could probably listen to him all day.

A Girl Named Zippy

2010-08-03T23:52:00.002-04:00

A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana
Author: Haven Kimmel
Broadway Books, 2001
282 pages

I'm leaving Indiana soon after living there for just over 14 years, and I hadn't read A Girl Named Zippy yet, so I figured there was no time like the present. Boy, was I missing out. This quirky memoir, written by an author who is about my age, had me laughing out loud. Everything about this well-written book is, well, quirky.

Anyone who's ever lived in a small town - or spent much time in one - will be able to relate to some of the people and events in this book. Crazy neighbors, mean boys and girls, weird teachers, and even occasional total strangers make this book come to life. Sometimes it feels like you're reading fiction. I mean, some of this couldn't be real, could it? Well, there are some things you just can't make up, as you'll see when you read A Girl Named Zippy.

I loved it. I loved how she wrote so lovingly about her parents, and how her family was so accepting of each other's, um, quirks. I loved her humor, which could be snarky at times, but only when deserved. I loved the story about her being adopted from a band of gypsies and how her parents played along with her sister's suggestion . . . and when her Dad took her to his church in the woods . . . and her very vivid description of the time she ate a whole bag of carrots and . . . well, you'll have to read it. Even the sad stories grabbed at my heart, like the one about the pet chicken . . . and so many about kids from her school. I wanted to smack a couple of people up, and I couldn't help but wonder: was she using real names? How does that memoir thing work, anyway?!!

I read this on a recent visit to my parents' farm, and I laughed out loud so much that my Mom asked for me to leave the book when I finished so she could read it. Actually, I think she was just enamored with the cover photo. It is captivating.

Anyway, if you like memoirs, and you like quirky, then you should definitely add this one to your list. You'll probably want to add her follow-up memoir, She Got Up Off The Couch, also.

This makes two nonfiction books in a row. Did you notice?

Women Food and God

2010-08-01T20:46:00.007-04:00

Women Food and God: An Unexpected Path To Almost Everything
Author: Geneen Roth
Unabridged Audio Version (Time: 5:30:45)
Simon & Schuster Audio, 2010

This seems to be required reading for North American women this summer, and although I'm definitely not a sheep when it comes to the books that choose me, for some reason I was intrigued. I listened to the unabridged audio version in one sitting during a long car trip. It gave me a lot to think about.

The author has had plenty of her own issues with food. She shares her personal experiences with weight gain, diets, and binge eating and says that she has gained and lost over 1000 pounds. Three decades ago, she made a sort of spiritual connection with food that helped her lose weight and keep it off. Now she conducts seminars on body image, apparently mostly with women.

She quotes Buddhist teacher Pema Chodron: "Never underestimate the inclination to bolt." Roth says you can't just bolt whenever you feel like it. Instead, you have to let yourself feel your emotions. Many people with eating issues don't want to feel their emotions. This discussion made me realize that there have been many times in my life when I've bolted in order to avoid unpleasantness when maybe what I really did was miss out on a growth experience. Another point she makes is: if you don't like yourself as you are now, you won't like yourself after you've lost weight (or after your eyelift . . . or after your liposuction . . . or whatever). You have to learn to love yourself and stop listening to the inner voice that tells you you're not good enough. (OK, you're probably humming Kum Ba Yah now, so I'll move along.)

Some of the stories had me laughing, while others brought tears to my eyes. Particularly memorable are the stories of Mookie the cat . . . and the "successful" CEO who admitted that she's wanted to die since she was about 10 years old because she never felt like she fit in anywhere.

There are some eating rules (guidelines?) . . . the first one is: eat only when you're hungry. May seem like a big "Duh!" -- but if you really think about it, how many of us truly do that? You'll have to read the book (or listen to it) to get the other guidelines.

If I have any "issue" with Women Food and God, it's the title. I know several men who could benefit from reading it, but with that title, the book might as well be wrapped in a pink cover. I'm just sayin' . . .

Pretty Is As Pretty Dies

2010-07-26T17:40:00.002-04:00

Pretty Is As Pretty Dies
Author: Elizabeth Spann Craig
Midnight Ink, 2009
206 pages

The little town of Bradley, North Carolina is usually quite sleepy, so when super-beeyotch real estate agent Parke Stockard is murdered in the church sanctuary, everyone wakes up. Retired English teacher and octogenarian Myrtle Clover sees an opportunity: if she can solve Parke's murder, maybe people will stop treating her like she has nothing to contribute. Her son, Red (Red Clover - haha!) is the town's police chief, and he doesn't think it's a great idea for Myrtle to be, um, interfering in a police investigation. That only makes Myrtle more determined.

The murder victim may have been both wealthy and physically attractive, but she wasn't exactly Miss Congeniality. It seems as if everyone in town had a motive to take her out: from her druggie gambler of a son to the star reporter at the local newspaper . . . even Myrtle's own neighbors and fellow churchgoers could've done it. When Red concocts a "red herring" to lure Myrtle out of the way of his investigation, Myrtle learns of a connection between the dead woman and a local politician . . . and the plot thickens.

Along the way, Myrtle gets a sort-of sidekick: her new neighbor, the widower Miles Brandon. All the "mature" ladies have a sort of crush on Miles, so Myrtle doesn't mind their gossip. But one night when she's out walking by her pond, someone pushes her in! And then . . . another person turns up dead in Bradley. So is Miles a suspect, too? This whodunnit will keep you guessing.

Myrtle is a real hoot, and her character is well-developed. I found myself laughing out loud at some of the scenes involving minor characters, too, such as the French exchange student and a dude by the name of Crazy Dan. And I got hungry for Carolina food and sweet tea whenever any of the characters went to the local diner. But not when Myrtle tried to cook. :-)

Elizabeth Spann Craig is a North Carolina-based author that I follow on Twitter and on a couple of mystery-themed blogs. She just published a new book a few weeks ago under the name Riley Adams -- the first in a new food-based cozy mystery series based in Memphis, Tennessee called Delicious and Suspicious. I've already bought that one, and plan to read it soon!

Dead As A Doornail

2010-07-23T17:25:00.002-04:00

Dead As A Doornail
Author: Charlaine Harris
Ace, 2005
295 pages

I can't believe I've now read five books in the Southern Vampire series (which the HBO-TV series True Blood is based on. I'm having to speed up my reading of this series in order to understand the show!)

In the most recent book, Sookie's brother Jason joined the supernatural world when he became a were-panther. Dead As A Doornail is more about this world of the "Shifters" than vampires. It just so happens that someone out there is shooting Shifters, and once again, all eyes are on Jason, since the Shifter community thinks he's angry about being "turned." When Sookie's boss Sam Merlotte and acquaintance Calvin (both Shifters) become victims of the sniper, she feels compelled to help Jason prove his innocence.

Unfortunately, it now seems that someone's out to get Sookie. Her house it torched, and the arsonist seems to be a card-carrying member of Sookie's nemesis the Fellowship of the Sun - the "church" she and Jason encountered in Book #2 (Living Dead In Dallas). But things don't quite add up.

In the meantime, Colonel Flood (werewolf packmaster introduced in the most recent book) is killed and a successor must be chosen. Sookie finds herself drawn into the world of werewolf politics. And we learn more about Claudine, the character who was introduced as Tara's friend in Book #4 (Dead To The World). Beautiful Claudine is . . . um, a fairy. With an equally beautiful twin brother named Claude.

Tara, meanwhile, has come under a sort of spell by an evil vampire who won't go away. Sookie will have to ask Eric for a favor, and since nothing's for free with Eric, she has to comply with one of his requests: he wants to know what happened to him in Book #4 because he cannot remember (his memory had been wiped out and it was bugging him like crazy that he didn't know what had happened. I have to say that I like Eric more and more.)

As I'm writing this, I'm realizing that describing this book is a lot like recalling an episode of a TV show to a person who's never really seen it before. Sorry. But it's getting more and more difficult for me to keep up with all the characters in this series!

To be perfectly honest, I prefer the vampires to the Shifters. I just don't care that much for werewolves or were-panthers or were-anythings. There was a new character introduced in this book that has me intrigued, though: Quinn, the big bald guy who reminds me of Mr. Clean. He tells Sookie that she will see him again. The plot thickens.

Dead As A Doornail is probably my least favorite of the series so far. This isn't to say that I didn't like it, but I wasn't sitting on the edge of my seat or anything. At this point, I want Sookie and Bill (her former boyfriend, a vampire) to get back together and just live (or not live, ha ha) happily ever after. Actually, I'd kind of like for him to just get it over with and turn her into a vampire and the two of them fly off to Romania or wherever. I WILL BE ANGRY if they don't eventually get back together. But I'm hooked on this series, and I'll keep on reading it. No matter what.

Previous books in the series that I've reviewed:
Book 1 - Dead Until Dark
Book 2 - Living Dead In Dallas
Book 3 - Club Dead
Book 4 - Dead To The World

The Adoration of Jenna Fox

2010-07-21T11:20:00.006-04:00

The Adoration of Jenna Fox
Author: Mary E. Pearson
Square Fish, 2010
265 pages

I bought this Young Adult novel for my fourteen-year-old niece, and gave it to her a few weeks ago when I was visiting the family. She immediately began reading it, and I could tell she was hooked because she tuned out of the conversations taking place around her. (Yeah, I know teens don't necessarily need a good book for that.) When it was time for lunch, she didn't want to put the book down. When she completed it (just a few hours later) she dramatically closed the book and proclaimed for all to hear: "This is the BEST book I've ever read! You HAVE to read this!"

So I did.

Imagine a world in the not-too-distant future, not long after an antibiotic-resistant virus has wiped out a quarter of the world's population. There's a sort of battle going on between the scientists and the naturalists. The latter believe strongly that the virus would have never happened if not for all the scientific meddling in our food supply (e.g., genetically modified foods). In the meantime, a new product called BioGel has been developed that enables quick growth of new organs, among other things, making it possible to save lives, but also generating new questions such as: What percentage of a person makes them human?

Now imagine that you're a seventeen-year old girl who's just waking up after being in a coma for 1.5 years. You have no memory of anything, but guided by your parents and grandmother and digital recordings of your life, you start to put the pieces together. The more you learn, the more questions you have: What put you in the coma? Why did your family move from Boston to California while you were "out"? Why don't you - or your family - have any friends? How is it that you're able to recite entire literary works from memory? (Hmmm.) This is what happened to Jenna Fox, who slowly remembers her past and the accident that led up to this situation.

Of course, Jenna's Dad is the founder of the company that makes BioGel, and when you realize that, the plot thickens and you start thinking of various Kyle XY (former TV show) scenarios. The story is told from Jenna's perspective and therefore allows you to get totally in her head. It's confusing enough to be seventeen (from my memory, at least!), but the magnitude of Jenna's situation will blow your mind.

The Adoration of Jenna Fox is a sort of dystopian Sci-Fi tale, but it's also a treatise on ethics. I really want to have a conversation with my niece now to learn what her takeaways were (if she was able to read between the lines on the ethical issues.) My niece was totally right that this book rocks. Although it was written primarily for a teen audience, I think adults can take plenty away from it, too.

Check out the official "book trailer" here. Then go get the book. My niece was so right on this one. :-)

Tressed To Kill

2010-07-18T12:32:00.004-04:00

Tressed To Kill
Author: Lila Dare
Berkley, 2010
292 pages

Miss me? I mean, you'd think that if I read 10 books last month, I'd read at least one or two by the middle of this month, right? I have some really good excuses. I won't go into them here except to say that I wasted a good 10 days on a book that I couldn't get into (and couldn't finish.) This rarely happens with me. But this review isn't about that book. It's about a really cute book I just finished this afternoon!

Tressed To Kill is the first in a new series of cozy mysteries set in a coastal Georgia (USA) hair salon. (Ironically, I bought the book just a few hours before my most recent hair appointment - not thinking about the correlation, at least consciously!) Main character Grace Terhune is thirty, divorced from her childhood sweetheart, and has recently returned to her hometown after living in Atlanta for a few years. She's working in her Mom's salon. Her Mom, Violetta (for whom the salon is named) is a self-taught cosmetologist who started the business in their home when Grace and her sister were kids. Violetta's may not be the fanciest place in town, but the place has heart. So do the women who work there, including Althea, the aesthetician whose husband mysteriously disappeared many years ago.

Unfortunately for these nice ladies, local rich bi!ch and busybody Constance DuBois comes into the salon one afternoon, without an appointment and demanding a hair color job. Violetta obliges, but when Constance rudely insists on conducting business on her cell phone instead of rinsing at the appropriate time, her hair turns a ghastly orange color. This just gives her one more reason to be upset, and she threatens to have Violetta's unlicensed salon shut down. In the meantime, Constance pi$$es several other people off, including a neighboring shop owner, and a developer from "Morestuff" - a large retail chain hoping to build a store in the area.

That evening, Violetta finds Constance dead, and now everyone thinks Violetta did it. Grace knows her mother could never kill anyone -- even someone as annoying and mean as Constance. But the more she tries to prove it, the more someone wants to stop her. Things get more and more dangerous, and old mysteries will be solved along with new ones.

Tressed To Kill came along at just the right time for me, and it was a joy to read. I'm looking forward to the next installment in the series, but unfortunately, I'm going to have to wait a while. Polished Off won't come out until sometime in 2011!

Sink Trap

2010-06-25T22:47:00.002-04:00

Sink Trap
Author: Christy Evans
Berkley, 2009
244 pages

10 books in one month! Woo-hoo!

If you read my other blog regularly, you'll know that we had a "flooding event" at my house this week due to way too much rain in a very short period of time. I spent an entire day with plumbers and water removers and waterproof specialists, and that prompted Sink Trap to choose me when it was time for a new read. The first book in the Georgiana Neverall Mystery series, Sink Trap's main character and I have something in common: our stressful corporate lifestyles have gone down the drain. "Georgie" has recently moved back to her childhood home in Oregon, and -- to the chagrin of her high-maintenance, super-feminine mother -- taken plumbing classes and become a plumber's apprentice.

While unclogging a drain in a warehouse, Georgie discovers an old brooch trapped in the pipe. She recognizes the brooch as one that longtime local librarian Miss Tepper wore everyday. Miss Tepper recently retired to Arizona, but no one seems to know how to reach her. Even worse, no one seems to care! It's up to Georgie and her circle of friends (her old pals from high school) to figure out what happened to Miss Tepper.

Sink Trap is a light read, with so many references to junk food (pizza, fried chicken platters) that I was hungry nearly the whole time I was reading it. Well, except for the occasional times when our plumber's apprentice character encounters something gross in the line of duty. Still, I enjoyed it enough to look forward to future Georgie books.

BONUS-->There are some helpful tips inserted between some of the chapters. Turns out that I had a clogged drain in my bathroom. I'd been postponing doing anything about it. One of the hints told me exactly what to do. I followed the very simple instructions using very simple and common household ingredients, and Voila! Unclogged drain. And I didn't have to use any harsh chemicals!

That in itself was worth the $6.99 plus tax I paid for this cool little paperback. Go Georgie!

Death At La Fenice

2010-06-22T19:41:00.005-04:00

Death At La Fenice
Author: Donna Leon
HarperCollins, 1992
270 pages

With the reading of this book (and posting of this blog entry), I've now surpassed my previous record of 8 books in a single month. Nine books for June. Woo-hoo!

I've had my eye on author Donna Leon for a long time. When I was living in Europe, I saw her books prominently displayed in bookstores, and I was always impressed with their pretty covers featuring the lovely historic city of Venice, Italy. I assumed that Leon was a European author. Turns out she's an American who has lived much of her life overseas. That gives her significant street cred which is proven in her exquisite descriptions of Venetian history and daily modern life.

Death At La Fenice is the first of many books featuring Commissario Guido Brunetti, a police commissioner and native Venetian. Whenever possible, I prefer to start any series at the very beginning, so although it may not be necessary in this series, it's what I decided to do. The book opens as the intermission during a performance of Traviata is coming to a close. (Teatro La Fenice is the name of the opera house in Venice.) German conductor Helmut Wellauer, an iconic figure in the music world, is dead of cyanide poisoning. Commissario Brunetti leads the investigation, sorting through clues and talking to numerous potential suspects, including the conductor's much younger Hungarian wife (his third wife, actually), an Italian opera diva, various musicians and music critics, and a Belgian housemaid.

Brunetti is a family man (the scenes with his wife Paola and their children are priceless) and also a Renaissance Man of sorts. He realizes that in order to understand what really happened to Wellauer, one must understand the person that was Wellauer.. There are rumors that the man was a Nazi back during the day. Few would argue that Wellauer had the power to make or break careers -- and some of the careers he broke have some sad stories attached. He was also a moral snob who threatened to expose homosexual liaisons of fellow musicians. There's no shortage of motives or suspects. I thought I had it figured out by page 202 . . . BUT NO. I was so wrong!

I enjoyed Death At La Fenice very much. In fact, I told "S" that it made me want to go back to Venice (which is kind of funny, because I didn't really like Venice when I was there. But maybe now I could see it with different eyes . . . and appreciate it properly this time.)

One final note: Since Death At La Fenice is approximately 18 years old and often references even earlier times, readers will need to keep in mind the differences between the current European Union and the days before the Berlin Wall came down. For example, nowadays you don't need a passport to travel from Italy to Spain and vice versa. Also, it might not seem like a big deal for a woman from Hungary to marry a man from Germany, but it would have been rather challenging in the days of the "Iron Curtain." Not that I'm an expert or anything. I'm just sayin'. :-)

The Diva Runs Out Of Thyme

2010-06-19T21:16:00.009-04:00

The Diva Runs Out Of Thyme
Author: Krista Davis
Berkley, 2008
286 pages

Once upon a time there were two childhood rivals. Sophie had loving parents and a stable home. Natasha's father disappeared when she was young and her mother struggled to makes ends meet. They both grew up to become domestic divas, sort of. Natasha is a perfectionist with her own TV show and newspaper column on gourmet cooking and home decor. Main character Sophie has a similar type of career but is sort of the "anti-Natasha" -- she's all about simplicity. Oh, and to complicate things? Sophie's ex-husband Mars is now Natasha's boyfriend.

Our story begins when the two divas face-off in a Thanksgiving cooking contest: will Sophie's simple Crusty Country Bread, Bacon, and Herb Stuffing beat Natasha's fancy gourmet oyster recipe? Just as the contest is kicking off, the celebrity host is found dead offstage. Both Natasha and Sophie are suspects, since they were two of the last people to see the man alive.

Sophie expects a small crowd at her 1825 Federal-style house in Old Town (Alexandria, Virginia) for Thanksgiving dinner, but her plans change when several people show up unexpectedly -- including Natasha, Mars, an old friend from England, and a slimy little mortician who has a crush on Sophie. There are LOTS of other characters, too, including in-laws, out-laws, neighbors, and of course, a hot-looking police detective named Wolf. And did I mention there's another murder?

All the characters makes things a little complicated at times, but it all seems quite realistic. Even the murderers have solid motives, and you won't guess "whodunnit" until all is revealed. Sophie is someone you'd want to be friends with, and not just for her cooking ability. (I'd be willing to bet that she's a regular at her local farmers' markets!) Her house sounds awesome. Reading this makes me want to take a trip to the DC area . . . I haven't been there in a really long time. I'll have to check out Old Town Alexandria next time I'm in the area, for sure. Sounds like my kind of place!

BONUS: There are some really yummy-sounding recipes in the back of the book, including the stuffing recipe.

I've now tied my record of reading 8 books in one month (achieved in December 2008). I think things are looking really good for me to break that record this month. The question is, will the next book that chooses me be a quick read? Or something more complex? Only the Magic Library knows for sure . . .

Speak

2010-06-17T10:25:00.002-04:00

Speak
Author: Laurie Halse Anderson
Puffin Books, 1999
198 pages

This book may be eleven years old, but it's still #1 on several Amazon.com lists. It won tons of awards, including a Golden Kite and ALA Printz Honor, and it was a finalist for a 1999 National Book Award (those are just a few of the awards/nominations it received). I've wanted to read it for years. So why did it take me so long to finally crack it open? Maybe I was waiting for just the right time to pass it along to my niece. After all, she's about to enter the the lovely institution known as . . . High School [insert scary music here.]

Main character Melinda Sordino is starting her freshman year, which is traumatic enough for anybody. In Melinda's case, though, it's immediately obvious that something's up. She's been outcast from her circle of friends for calling the cops on a recent teenage party. What Melinda's friends don't know is why she called the cops, and Melinda's not talking. To anyone.

Instead, she slowly unravels while observing the world around her: cliques at school ("Jocks", "Marthas", etc.), weird teachers (with interesting, descriptive names such as Hair Woman, Mr. Neck, and Ms. Keen), mostly absent parents, and her one glimmer of hope - Biology Lab Partner David, who somehow manages to be popular and nice without joining any of the cliques. Her only friend is Heather, the new girl at school, who eventually dumps her in order to be more socially accepted by one of the cliques. The one teacher who seems to sense something's up is Mr. Freeman, the art teacher, for whom Melinda's sole assignment all year is to create an artistic piece involving a tree. The tree thing - combined with a new interest in plants thanks to Biology (her second favorite class) - turns out to be instrumental in Melinda's recovery.

Eventually, of course, we learn what happened that night when Melinda called the cops. When it appears that her ex-best friend, Rachel, may soon be in a similar situation, Melinda finally speaks . . . in an effort to save Rachel from the same fate. But Rachel's response is to get upset and call Melinda a liar. This leads to a climactic scene at the end. I'm doing my best to avoid spoilers here. You just have to read the book.

And do read the book . . . maybe not instead of seeing the movie but in addition to it. (I learned just before I wrote this review that there was a Speak movie in 2004, starring none other than Kristen Stewart -- Becca in the Twilight movies -- as Melinda. I'm sure that my niece will want to see it, since she's a fan of all people and things Twilight.) The movie and book are quite different, apparently, so if you "just" see the movie you'll be missing a lot.

Can't wait to get my niece's take on this.

Corpse Pose

2010-06-16T09:16:00.002-04:00

Corpse Pose
Author: Diana Killian
Berkley, 2008
276 pages

When I was researching cozy mysteries to read, I came across this series involving a yoga studio. Now that's different, I thought, so I put it on my list. Corpse Pose is the first book in the Mantra for Murder series, which so far includes two books (the other being the cleverly titled Dial Om For Murder.)

The protagonist is A.J. Alexander, a young woman whose life is out of balance in so many ways: her husband left her for another man; her mother's a bit on the zany side, and A.J. no longer feels passionately about her career the way she used to -- or her life, for that matter. She needs a change, and she gets it when her aunt is murdered. Turns out, "Aunt Di" was a multi-millionaire owner of a New Jersey-based yoga studio and healthy living business, and it just so happens that A.J. is set to inherit the bulk of her aunt's estate. Or is she? Turns out, Aunt Di had a few enemies, and now at least one person is jealous of A.J.'s inheritance.

Of course, A.J. and her mother (a former actress who once played a detective on British television) set out to learn what really happened to Aunt Di. Along the way, they become acquainted with local police detective named Jake, and meet some local people, such as the mysterious neighbor Stella; Lily, Aunt Di's angry business partner; and a young man who's training for the Olympics, but seems to have something to hide. It seems as if everyone is a suspect, including A.J. herself.

The strengths of this book include the growth (and potential growth) of A.J.'s character, the sense of humor, and the not-so-obvious "bad guy." It's just too bad Aunt Di had to die, because I think she'd be a wonderful regular character. There were several loose ends that could be tied up in future books. For example, who is Stella, what was her relationship with Di, and why is A.J.'s mom so snarky towards her? OK, so she's a little flaky, but she really doesn't seem to deserve that treatment. And speaking of A.J.'s mom, she is quite annoying at times, particularly when she overuses British terms and slang. Yet you can't help but like her. Imagine that!

Anyway . . . I do like the yoga theme, and I'd definitely read more of this series.

On another note, I realize that some of you think I've gone to cozy mystery hell lately, so perhaps I need to explain again that I'm doing research because I plan to write my own cozy mystery someday. That said, my next book will NOT be a cozy, so if you're burned out on the cozy thing, come back in a few days for something different.

:-)

Dead To The World

2010-06-13T11:13:00.010-04:00

Dead To The World
Author: Charlaine Harris
Ace, 2004
291 pages

The more I read this series, the more I'm amazed by the imagination of Charlaine Harris. Admittedly, I'm a little late coming to the paranormal mystery party. Or paranormal romance, or whatever this genre is called. Unlike my friends Karen, Jill, Elyse, and Sandy T., I haven't read a whole lot of this stuff. I resisted reading the Sookie Stackhouse series (also known as the Southern Vampire series, of which Dead To The World is Book #4) until it became absolutely obvious that if I wanted to truly understand the HBO series True Blood, these books are required reading.

This time our favorite small-town waitress - Sookie - is feeling a little lonely and a lot angry after her vampire beau Bill takes off for South America on another mysterious assignment. Things hadn't been quite right between them since he up and left her for his old girlfriend (and maker, the vampire Lorena), so it's all strange. Meanwhile, Sookie's friend Tara Thornton (who is not at all like the Tara character in the TV series, I'm learning), has a strangely alluring new friend named Claudine, and Claudine happens to be turning up in a lot of places lately. And Sookie's "horndog" brother Jason has taken up with a mysterious young woman from a clannish community way out in the sticks.

Our story begins early on New Year's Day as Sookie's driving home after a long night of working at Merlotte's Bar when she sees a naked man running down the deserted rural road. Turns out, it's Eric Northman, the vampire sheriff of Area 5 - Bill's "boss." But Eric isn't acting like Eric. He's scared, and he has no memory of who he is, who Sookie is . . . nothing. He's like a blank slate. Sookie finds herself strangely attracted to this new, innocent Eric. Let that be considered foreshadowing. :-)

Being the good Samaritan she is, Sookie takes Eric back to her house and tries to help him. As she digs into the mystery of what's happened to Eric, she learns that he's had a spell cast on him by a group of evil witches who are trying to hone in on his business dealings. It looks like the witches have declared war on the vampires - and the witches are winning. If the vampires have any chance at all, Sookie will have to enlist the aid of her new werewolf friends (including Alcide from Book 3 and the new were-character, Colonel Flood, who for some reason reminded me of Clint Eastwood in the movie Gran Torino). She'll also need to find some good witches, which is kind of ironic, since she had no idea witches actually existed. Especially in rural Louisiana.

In the meantime, Jason Stackhouse mysteriously disappears, and the only clues to his disappearance are one of his footprints, and blood that turns out to originate from . . . a panther? The whole town is out looking for Jason. When Sookie learns that Jason's new girlfriend's family are "shifters", she's certain they know something. She makes the trip way out to the country to visit the family, and receives a very interesting proposition from their "packmaster", a man named Calvin.

It's been nearly a year since Sookie first learned about the Supernatural world, and she's learned about the existence of vampires, werewolves, shapeshifters, and now, human witches with real magical powers. She'll also find out who - or should I say what - the mysterious Claudine is. (I'm being purposefully vague about Claudine in hopes that she'll appear more in the next book. Let's hope. I can tell you, though, she's NOT Maryann in the True Blood series, which is what I initially suspected given her relationship with Tara.) What was it I said earlier about Harris having an imagination? Dead To The World is the most imaginative book so far, I think.

I must confess to being spellbound (ha ha) by this series. I really would like to rush through the remaining six books (so far), but I'm restraining myself.

*****

Previous books in the series that I've reviewed:
Book 1 - Dead Until Dark
Book 2 - Living Dead In Dallas
Book 3 - Club Dead

Latte Trouble

2010-06-10T00:27:00.004-04:00

Latte Trouble
Author: Cleo Coyle
Berkley, 2005
256 pages

Here we are with the third Coffeehouse Mystery (preceded by On What Grounds and Through The Grinder) and I'm starting to feel like a regular at the Village Blend. One evening our favorite fictional coffee house hosts a private party for a group of fashionistas who are celebrating the opening of Fashion Week and a new line of coffee-themed jewelry designed by Village Blend regular Lottie Harmon. This is a sort of comeback for Lottie, who rose to fame in the 1980s after designing a hit line called Spangles. It's also special for the Village Blend: it was there that Lottie got the inspiration for the new coffee jewelry. It was also where she serendipitously met marketing genius Rena, who was instrumental in Lottie's resurgence.

Just as the party's getting started, Tucker (talented barista and budding actor/playwright) sees his old flame walking in with a flirty new lover. This gets Tucker agitated, and he starts to get a little careless in his work. When he's asked to make a special latte for Lottie (love the word play here), Tucker decides to deliver the drink himself. But as he walks across the room, his ex takes the latte off the tray and starts drinking it, sharing it with his new pal. Suddenly, both of them become very sick, and Tucker's ex collapses and dies. When the police arrive, they quickly determine the cause of death as cyanide poisoning, and since Tucker had made such a scene earlier, he's taken into custody.

Village Blend manager Clare Cosi knows Tucker couldn't hurt a fly, and she sets out to prove his innocence. Besides, Clare is certain that Lottie was the intended victim - not Tucker's ex. When Rena is found dead a few days later - also after drinking a cyanide-laced latte from a Village Blend cup - she is absolutely certain someone else is the murderer. But who? And why?

As Clare unravels the mystery, she meets some very interesting (and twisted - and sad) people who work in the fashion industry. She's also reunited with an old enemy, a scheming slimeball of a businessman who seems to want nothing more than to destroy the Village Blend. Despite the plethora of suspects and motives, it's never really obvious what's really going on until the last few pages. Once again, Cleo Coyle delivers.

Oh, yeah -- Detective Quinn - who reminds me of a young, sexy Colombo - returned in the latter part of the book. But he may be too late as a potential romantic interest for Clare, because she and her ex-husband and business partner Matt have - shall we say - rediscovered each other. Clare and Matt are going to have to unite to do some parenting, anyway, since adult daughter Joy appears to be hanging with the wrong crowd. Matt has new plans to take the Village Blend to the next level as a business, so we can be sure that there will be a fourth book. And a fifth. And a sixth, etc. I'm still planning to drink them all.

Alpine For You

2010-06-07T22:12:00.005-04:00

Alpine for You
Author: Maddy Hunter
Pocket Books, 2003
246 pages

What happens when a 29-year-old American divorcee with no previous international travel experience goes to Switzerland with her 78-year-old lottery winner Grandmother and a bunch of senior citizens from Iowa who have no previous international travel experience? In the case of Alpine for You, everything that can go wrong will. The hotel room sucks, the food is horrible, and the weather is dreadful. But things really go downhill when philandering tour guide Andy is murdered in his hotel room. When two other members of the tour group kick the bucket, everyone begins to wonder: is a septuagenarian serial killer on the loose?

Emily (the 29-year-old) volunteers to take Andy's place as tour guide when she learns she'll get a refund of her fee. After all, her "Nana" may be a lottery winner, but Emily has recently become unemployed. She soon proves herself to be a huge resource to the tour group, and she also catches the eye of the handsome police inspector Etienne Miceli. OK, so the hot-and-heavy thing with Miceli seems a little forced. And the book is definitely written from the American perspective and with the American reader in mind. But I can forgive these things because there were so many parts that had me laughing out loud. The incident with the self-cleaning toilet, for example. They have those toilets in the washrooms of my former company's Geneva office. When I visited there in 2008, I had a moment not unlike the one that Nana and the other ladies had. (This would have totally gone over my head, though, had I not been to Switzerland and seen these toilets.)

This international-themed "cozy" is the first of a series of six books called Passport to Peril. I was drawn to it because of the international focus, but I'll probably read all of the books eventually because this one was just so funny. The interplay between Emily and Nana is fantastic, and the author has a way with dialogue as well as with going off on humorous tangents. Unfortunately, according to the author's web site, the series was discontinued after the sixth book. But she's at work now on a new series (also with an international focus) and the first book should come out in 2012. If it's anything like Alpine For You, I'll be very happy.

Grace Under Pressure

2010-06-06T12:36:00.001-04:00

Grace Under Pressure
Author: Julie Hyzy
Berkley, 2010
310 pages

Julie Hyzy is the author of the mystery series about the White House Chef (e.g., State of the Onion, Hail to the Chef, and Eggsecutive Orders), and she's taking a daring detour with Grace Under Pressure, the first in a new series called Manor House Mysteries. Instead of a chef amateur sleuth who shares recipes, we have a young executive-type named Grace Wheaton who works in the Marshfield Manor, a place that reminds me of the Biltmore Estate near Asheville, North Carolina. Part hotel/resort and part museum, it's also the home of Bennett Marshfield, sole remaining member of the Marshfield family. Grace grew up nearby, and has fond memories of childhood visits, even though her own family eventually moved away. Now she's back in town and part of a new crew that's been hired to bring Marshfield Manor into the twenty-first century.

The story begins with a disturbance in the Tea Room, which as it turns out, was merely a diversion from the real crime: Grace's boss, long-time employee and personal friend of Bennett Marshfield, is shot and killed by a mysterious intruder. Grace must step into a leadership role so that the manor can continue with "business as usual" during the ensuing police investigation, while also mourning this loss and dealing with the fear of a murderer still on the loose. Immediately, Grace faces obstacles, including a gossipy administrative assistant who seems hell-bent on seeing Grace fail, and an increasingly annoying private detective.

Grace faces additional problems at home. The old house she inherited from her parents has not been taken care of over the years, and repairs cost a lot of money. Grace had to take in some housemates to help makes ends meet. Partners Scott and Bruce run an emerging wine business and provide a good support system as well as some comic relief for Grace. There's also an underlying story about the shaky relationship between Grace and her sister, Liza, that leaves room for growth in future books.

The mystery was a good one involving a Ponzi scheme, a scam artist, and other interesting elements. The identify of the murderer wasn't obvious to me until almost the end. As is the case with the White House Chef series, Hyzy tells a good story, and there are a couple of nail-biting moments. But the strength of Grace Under Pressure to me is Grace herself. She's a strong young woman with good leadership skills and lots of potential. Yet she also has a lot of heart . . . and grace.

The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie

2010-06-04T15:06:00.001-04:00

The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie
Author: Alan Bradley
Bantam, 2010 (originally published in 2009)
370 pages

This first novel from Canadian author Alan Bradley is both delicious and ingenious. Main character Flavia de Luce is a highly precocious eleven year-old girl with a passion for chemistry and an obsession with poisons. It's 1950, and Flavia lives on an old family estate in rural England with her emotionally distant father, two older sisters (looks-obsessed Ophelia and bookworm Daphne), a mysterious groundskeeper called Dogger, and Mrs. Mullet, a part-time housekeeper and cook who occasionally bakes awful custard pies that no one in the family will eat. Flavia's mother, an adventurous flapper-type named Harriet, died when Flavia was only about a year old, something that lingers in the back of Flavia's mind.

But this is really a mystery, and that part of the story begins when a dead bird is found on the doorstep. The specific type of bird was out of season in England at that time of year, so obviously, it hadn't come from those parts. An orange postage stamp was hanging from the bird's bill, as if placed there on purpose. Flavia's father, a passionate philatelist, immediately knows something's afoot. Hmmm.

Sometime later, Flavia and Dogger eavesdrop on an argument between her father and someone they cannot see or identify. The next morning, Flavia stumbles across a dying man in the cucumber patch. He breathes a final word to her, and then dies. Turns out the dead bloke and Flavia's father were old school chums, and suddenly, another very intriguing story begins to unfold. Flavia becomes a fine amateur sleuth, combining her knowledge of science and chemistry with an often amusing "common" sense that only someone her age and inexperience could have.

The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie is a story within a story - and a mystery within a mystery. The writing is superb, and Flavia is the most wonderful literary character I've come across in years. I simply adore her! She makes me want to break out in a British accent. Even in this review. As you can probably tell.

The author was seventy years old when The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie (his first novel) was published. (That gives me hope!) Hopefully, the commercial and literary success of this book (it was a bestseller and won a Dagger Award in 2009) will ensure future books featuring Flavia. Actually, the next book - The Weed That Strings The Hangman's Bag - is already out, in hardcover. And a third book is in the works. I look forward to reading them all!

A Charmed Death

2010-05-30T21:52:00.004-04:00

A Charmed Death
Author: Madelyn Alt
Berkley, 2006
289 pages

We last met Stony Mill, Indiana native Maggie O'Neill in The Trouble With Magic. At that time, she'd just started working in the Enchantments gift shop with Felicity, an Englishwoman who happens to be a witch. When Felicity's sister was murdered, everyone thought Felicity must have been involved, but Maggie proved her innocence and helped catch the real killer. A Charmed Death takes place two months later, in early December. Felicity's away on sabbatical and Maggie's running the store, along with part-time Evie, who attends the local high school and secretly hangs out with the N.I.G.H.T.S. (Northeast Indiana Ghost Hunting and Tracking Society).

When an in-store altercation between Goth Girl Tara and Mean Girl Amanda is followed shortly by Amanda's murder, Maggie once again finds herself drawn into a mystery. Clues lead her to an underground sex ring - could Amanda, a daughter of privilege who seemed to have everything, have possibly been involved in something so dangerous and controversial? The more Maggie learns, the more questions she has - and there are lots of red herrings. I actually guessed the murderer early on, but I was thinking: "Nah, can't be this person" and I went down the wrong trail!

But the murder isn't the only story in A Charmed Death. Tara the Goth Girl is a new character, and she seems to have a gift. Unfortunately, the intense, angry young woman hasn't learned all the rules - or the necessity of respecting them. Her attraction to dark energies is of great concern to Maggie. In the meantime, Maggie's still trying to come to grips with her own gifts, and she's learning all sorts of new things from some of the N.I.G.H.T.S. members. When Felicity returns in the second half of the book, she continues her mentorship of Maggie - and that's another story!

You've heard this from me before, but the growth of the characters and the relationships between the characters is critical to the success of the "cozy mystery." Certainly the relationship between Maggie and Felicity is of great importance, but so are Maggie's relationships with her Mom, her sister, and her best friend. Then there are the Dudes. In The Trouble With Magic, Maggie was sort of developing a relationship with Tom the police officer, but it seems to have fizzled in A Charmed Death. Or has it? In the meantime, this second book has Maggie getting to know Marcus, the mysterious warlock who Maggie assumed was Felicity's boyfriend in the first book. Turns out that Marcus and Tara the Goth Girl are cousins, which adds an extra element and additional potential for future books.

This series is a guilty pleasure to me, sort of like the Sookie Stackhouse series by Charlaine Harris. I like it because it's set in Indiana, and also because I can read an entire book in just a few hours. It's fun, and doesn't give me a headache. :-)

It occurred to me as I was writing this review that I haven't read a book with an international focus since early March. Not sure what I'll read next, but it will be set outside the USA. I'm heading to my home library just as soon as I press "Publish Post" to select the next book. Cheers!

Fallen

2010-05-29T18:31:00.006-04:00

Fallen
Author: Lauren Kate
Delacourte Press, 2009
452 pages

Recently, I bought several Young Adult novels, with the intention of passing them along to my niece (age 14) so she'd have something to read this summer. I'd seen Fallen in the bookstores, and remembered reading a good review when it first came out - so this was the first of the new books I decided to read.

The plot goes something like this: Seventeen year-old Luce (named after singer-songwriter Lucinda Williams - her yuppie academic parents met at a concert) is the new girl at a very unusual reform school near Savannah, Georgia called Sword and Cross. Luce, who was previously schooled in the finest college-prep institution in New England, has a history of seeing strange shadows that give her a sense of foreboding, followed by some sort of disaster. Her parents have spent loads of time and money on psychiatrists to help Luce, but the visions escalated until the event that sent her to Sword and Cross.

While Luce tries to assimilate at Sword and Cross, she gets to know some of the other students; all of them are strange in one way or another. She finds herself particularly drawn to Arriane and Penn, two very different girls with whom she becomes friends, and the overly pleasant and romantic Cam. But Luce is attracted to Daniel, who seems not only disinterested in her, but hostile.

When the Nancy Drew-like Penn (whose name is Pennyweather Van Syckle Lockwood, one of the coolest names in recent literature IMHO) begins to research Daniel's past, she discovers a book written by someone with his name (an ancestor?) back in the 18th century. It was about here that things started to get predictable for this experienced reader. However, for some silly reason I kept reading. The more I read, the more annoyed I became with myself for reading!

I know I haven't been seventeen in almost thirty years, but I don't remember ever feeling as if I had anything in common with most of the characters in this book. As much as I wanted to like Luce, there was something about her that rubbed me the wrong way. The only character with any real redeeming qualities was Penn, and I was not pleased with what happened to her (so much that I nearly threw the book across the room - and from there on out, I just skimmed.)

This is not to say that my niece wouldn't like Fallen. Or that you wouldn't like it. But I didn't like it. Don't get me wrong: the idea behind Fallen is pretty cool, and the author writes well. She's just not writing to me. :-)

Gunpowder Green

2010-05-26T10:57:00.003-04:00

Gunpowder Green
Author: Laura Childs
Berkley, 2002
244 pages

This was another book I took with me on the recent trip to North Carolina, but I didn't start reading it until I got back home. This second book in the Charleston, South Carolina-based Tea Shop Mystery series (I reviewed the first - Death by Darjeeling - last December) was even better than the first, IMHO (in my humble opinion). In fact, I'd love to jump right into Book #3, but that would violate my self-imposed rules of reading. :-)

Gunpowder Green starts out with main character Theodosia Browning and her staff providing tea service for a large gathering of people watching the annual Regatta yacht race. One of the more prominent members of Charleston society has the honor of discharging the antique gun that ends the race, but when the gun goes off, it misfires and kills the man. At first, most people think it was an accident. But Theodosia has her suspicions, especially when the brother of an old acquaintance becomes the prime suspect.

One of the things I most like about this series is the likeable characters. Tea shop owner Theodosia is just the right balance between the "snooty" and the down-to-earth: she enjoys the finer things in life, but hasn't lost touch with her rural roots. Drayton, Indigo Tea Shop's tea master, is one of my favorite characters in the series. He reminds me of any number of "Renaissance men" I've known in my life. I also like Haley, the tea shop's young baker, who in addition to having a talent for producing delicious baked goods, has a heart of gold.

A few of the secondary characters who made things interesting (challenging?) in the first book were back in Gunpowder Green. Crotchety Detective Tidwell's appreciation of both tea and Theodosia appears to be growing, and I foresee some sort of mutually respectable friendship on the horizon (not sure about anything else at this point, but it seems to be possible if things don't work out between Theodosia and her attorney boyfriend Jory.) The snobby Timothy Neville let down a little of his guard in this book, leading me to believe that Theodosia will win him over . . . eventually.

I also like the Charleston setting. As I said in the Death by Darjeeling entry, Charleston is the perfect city for a mystery/crime series . . . it's got history, interesting people and cultural traditions, and that oh-so-Southern Gothic charm. I'm really surprised that more Hollywood types haven't figured this out. In fact, I predict that a CSI: Charleston would go over really well . . . just in case anyone out there in Hollywoodland is reading this.

Farm Fresh Murder

2010-05-24T23:17:00.000-04:00

Farm Fresh Murder
Author: Paige Shelton
Berkley, 2010
304 pages

I needed something to read while I was visiting the farm recently, so I picked up this new, first-in-a-series paperback. To my delight, it was set in South Carolina, in a fictional town that (at least in my mind) seemed a lot like Anderson, where my family lived for several years.

Becca Robins is a thirty-something farmer and jam/preserves maker who sells her products at the local farmers' market. When one of the peach vendors is murdered one morning before the market opens, all clues point to crusty old Abner -- the fresh flower vendor who happens to be a good friend of Becca's. But Becca knows Abner could never do such a thing, and with the help of her sister (Allison, the manager of the farmers' market) and some friends (including hunky young artist Ian and the increasingly attractive Officer Sam Brion), Becca sets out to find the real killer. In the process, she evolves into quite the amateur sleuth.

Farm Fresh Murder was a fun way to spend a few hours. I liked Becca and most of the other characters, and look forward to reading future books in this series. By the way, I thought I'd guessed the murderer early on, but I was wrong. (You won't see me write that often!)

Club Dead

2010-05-19T22:36:00.001-04:00

Club Dead
Author: Charlaine Harris
Ace, 2003
292 pages

Ahhh, there's nothing quite like a short, easy-to-read book when it took you a month to read the previously read book.

We're back with Sookie Stackhouse and the rest of the True Blood gang in this third-in-a-series paranormal yarn about a Louisiana waitress and her two hundred year-old vampire boyfriend. This time Bill the vampire goes missing while working on a top-secret assignment. Unfortunately, Sookie hears rumors that he's reunited with an old vampire flame, Lorena. Needless to say, she's not very happy about that, especially when there are so many other potential suitors around vying for her attention, such as Eric Northman (the vampire "sheriff" of Area 5 in Louisiana, which includes Sookie's hometown of Bon Temps) and Alcide, the really nice werewolf who's been hired to take her to Jackson to look for Bill.

In Jackson, Sookie learns all about werewolves and more about shape shifters, increasing her knowledge of Supes (creatures with supernatural powers). While a guest at Club Dead - the nickname for a mysterious bar frequented mostly by Supes - Sookie meets the vampire king of Mississippi and saves him from an assassination attempt. This provides her access to the king's castle, where with the help of a few friends (including Bubba, the never stated but heavily implied Elvis in vampire form), she learns Bill's fate.

Will she rescue him? Will they break up over his behavior? You'll have to read Club Dead to find out. Which unless you're a True Blood or paranormal romance fan, you probably won't. I realize that. But for some weird reason I'm hooked, and I plan to read this entire series.

Hawaii

2010-05-14T23:26:00.003-04:00

Hawaii
Author: James Michener
Fawcett Crest, 1959
1036 pages

I can't believe it's been over a month since I've written a book review. Believe me, it's not because I haven't been reading -- I have -- a very long book!

I'm a fan of historical fiction, and I've heard about Michener all my life, but this was my first book of his. Although I bought Hawaii a while back, it sat on the shelf until I packed my bag for the recent trip. I figured: first time going to Hawaii, first time reading Michener -- and I started reading it on the first leg of the journey. I was sucked in immediately. WOW! Michener knows his stuff! His writing was as amazing as his grasp of history and people.

Hawaii the book starts out with a short chapter explaining how the islands emerged slowly over time from volcanic action. The next chapters are long - hundreds of pages long -- excellent fictional tales of how the first humans might have come to Hawaii from Tahiti, the 19th century Christian missionary and native Hawaiian perspectives, and the Chinese, Japanese, and Filipino immigrant perspectives. Surely it was intentional that the book was first published in 1959, the year Hawaii became the 50th state in the USA.

I'm not exaggerating when I say the human drama in this book is unsurpassed in any other fiction I've ever read! I felt like I was in that tiny boat with the Tahitians when they saw "new" (northern hemisphere) stars for the first time. I was seasick with the missionaries during the month it took them to get around Cape Horn. It was as if I was working alongside the imported workers in the pineapple and sugar cane fields.

Covering the evolution of Hawaii from pre-history to just after World War II, this book is a true epic. Very highly recommended. I'm just sorry this review doesn't do the book justice. Truth is, I'm ready for a short, easy read now!

The Kitchen Garden

2010-04-11T19:36:00.000-04:00

The Kitchen Garden
Author: Alan Buckingham
DK, 2010
352 pages

If you read Gypsy Roots (one of my other blogs), then you'll know that I've been spending a little time in the garden lately. I'm still a novice vegetable gardener, so I'm constantly on the lookout for resources that are basic but not too basic, with just the right info. I like things in small bites, otherwise I get bored. The Kitchen Garden is, in a word, perfect. For me, anyway.

It's divided into four main sections. 1) An introduction, with just enough of that basic info mentioned earlier. Particularly helpful for me were sub-sections on plot layouts and bed systems, tools/equipment, and crop rotation. 2) A month-by-month listing of tasks to be completed (specific to the northern hemisphere, I must point out), e.g., what seeds to start indoors (or outdoors). I wish I would have had this info in January. 3) Detailed info on various vegetables, in mini-sections divided by the type of vegetable (root, brassica, etc.) 4) A troubleshooting section, with helpful info on problems, pests, etc.

Like most DK books, there are lots of photos, and I find this to be particularly appealing. The layout and photos aren't just helpful, they're beautiful and inspiring. I want my vegetables -- heck, I want my gardens -- to look like the ones in this book. :-) I know I'll be referring to The Kitchen Garden on a regular basis. Highly recommended for beginners, and maybe even for those with several years of experience who are interested in growing something new.

A Reliable Wife

2010-04-04T08:12:00.006-04:00

A Reliable Wife
Author: Robert Goolrick
Algonquin, 2010
320 pages

The year is 1907. The place: a small town in northern Wisconsin. A man named Ralph Truitt waits at a train station for the arrival of his bride-to-be, a woman who responded to his want-ad in a Chicago newspaper for "a reliable wife." As it turns out, neither of them is really who they seem to be, and the theme of trust (along with several other themes including loss and redemption) is a key component of Robert Goolrick's first novel.

Goolrick isn't exactly a spring chicken, and neither are his characters. Truitt is pushing 60, and Catherine Land, the beautiful woman he will marry despite trickery, plots, and schemes you simply cannot imagine until you read the book, is at an age where she is "no longer youthful." Like his father before him, Ralph is a very successful businessman. He wasn't always responsible, but over time has become worthy of inheriting his kingdom. Catherine is equally interesting, a person with many secrets whose photographic memory enables her to make her way through the world in a chameleon-like fashion.

From northern Wisconsin with its long winters to the slums of Philadelphia to old world Europe to opium dens and whorehouses of Chicago and St. Louis we go, experiencing nearly every human emotion imaginable. I can't remember ever reading anything (fiction or not) that describes the "seedy" side of the early 20th century like A Reliable Wife does. It's disturbing, and (for me) it was difficult to put down. Nearly every chapter ends with something you didn't expect, leading you to keep reading . . . all the way to the shocking and unpredictable (for me, at least!) ending. I read it in about four hours - maybe less -- not in one sitting, but if I'd had the time it could have been so.

I read online that the movie rights have already been snapped up. It will be interesting to see how Hollywood interprets this story for the big screen. I'm perplexed by the negative reviews on Amazon and B&N's web sites. Both ratings are averaging 3 out of 5 stars, but it seems as if people either really love or really hate this book. If I'd seen the reviews before I read the book, I might not have read it. But I'm glad I did, and I'd like to give a shout-out to my co-worker friend Jan for the recommendation.

Hail to the Chef

2010-03-31T18:18:00.003-04:00

Hail to the Chef
Author: Julie Hyzy
Berkley, 2008
328 pages

We last checked in with White House Executive Chef Olivia "Ollie" Paras in State of the Onion, the first book in the White House Chef mystery series. Several months have passed, and now it's Thanksgiving. Ollie and her crew are frantically trying to stay ahead of the game as they prepare Thanksgiving dinner and plan for the annual Holiday Open House.

Out of the blue, a bomb-like device is found in the White House, and Secret Service Special Agent-in-Charge Gavin wants all staff trained in new procedures. Then the chief White House electrician, a very experienced fellow, is electrocuted in a freak accident. In the meantime, the First Lady is having some trouble with some business partners who want her to sell her stake in a company. Her nephew Sean, a young financial advisor who has a bit of a crush on Ollie, is trying to help his aunt -- but is found dead of an apparent suicide.

The holiday season is obviously made somber by these events, and since Ollie's boyfriend Tom (a Secret Service agent assigned to the President) is traveling with POTUS, Ollie's pretty much on her own. She finds herself consulting with a retired electrician neighbor, who tells her about floating neutrals and encourages Ollie to bring this to the attention of the other White House electricians, lest they too fall prey to this electrical anomaly. But the electrician brotherhood is hostile to Ollie when she asks them about it. The First Lady's business partners are becoming increasingly hostile, too -- and now there are rumors that one of them is a murderer!

There are a couple of new characters in Book 2, such as Gavin (a potential rival of Tom?) and the Swedish bombshell Agda, whose excellent work in the kitchen (as a seasonal employee) cancels out her lack of English skills. (I'm hoping she'll become a regular.)

Although I figured out what was going on early, there were enough interesting twists and turns that my fingers kept turning pages. Actually, I enjoyed this book even more than the first. This series makes me want to go to culinary school and move to DC. :-)