Monday, January 31, 2011

Teaser Tuesday



Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along!

Just do the following to participate:

Grab your current read
Open to a random page
Share two (2) 'teaser' sentences from somewhere on that page
BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS!
Share the title &; author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

Teaser from page 153, Chapter 14
Kyle didn't move from the bed.  Now what?  This asshole gonna get on me again?  He gonna rub me, beat me or what?
I enjoyed this Crime Thriller, gave it 4 1/2, here is my review.
You may be interested in my Rename Contest of The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society.

Saturday, January 29, 2011

Review - Blood over Badge by Wayne Farquhar

TWO SEEMINGLY UNRELATED CRIMES –
TWO SEEMINGLY UNRELATED KILLERS –
AND TWO MYSTERIES WAITING TO BE SOLVED …


The murder of the Mayor of San Francisco’s daughter sets the stage for this intriguing and spellbinding crime thriller. Two police detectives, Jack Paige and Casey Ford are assigned to catch a cold-blooded rapist and killer. In this gritty, realistic tale of homicide, unrelated mysteries of two murderers seem to come together and make little sense. What does a man rotting away behind the stench-enclosed walls of Angola Penitentiary have to do with an evil and cruel rapist and killer now on the run from California to Texas? What is the relationship to the killing of the Mayor’s daughter?

My Review - 4 1/2 Great to the last Drop

A believable crime thriller that has a shocking best twisted ending.  This was Wayne Farquhar's debut and I expect great things from him.  Great true detectives with disgusting hard core mouths, so you must be up for the language.  I thought it was great when one of the detectives had to do a press release and was told, 'watch your mouth'.

The first third of the book was good but I felt it missed something, I couldn't put my finger on it, just wasn't enough filler I guess.  This is what I think the author should work on.  Don't get me wrong I do not enjoy overly description but this only gave you the goods, overall the story was only 259 pages.  I wanted to get invested in the story more but after half way it was so gripping and fast paced that it didn't matter anymore. The author is a veteran police detective so that experience made the story very real.

You know that there is a connection and you are trying to figure it out but you can't put your finger on it and WHAM it is the end of the book and your shocked, like wow, really, but how.......  Great stuff. 

I enjoyed seeing all the different perspectives of police, detectives, prison guards and crime scene specialists. 

If you want a fast, down and dirty crime thriller, I totally recommend this one.

Wednesday, January 26, 2011

Review - The Stormchasers by Jenna Blum



Pages - 384
Published Date - May 24, 2010

Blum (Those Who Save Us) visits Tornado Alley in this vivid novel about a set of twins with a dark history. At home in Minnesota, Karena Jorge gets an unexpected call informing her that her twin brother, Charles Hallingdahl, whom she hasn't seen in the 20 years since something went very wrong during a storm chase, has been admitted to a Kansas mental hospital. Charles suffers from rapid cycling bipolar disorder, and all Karena knows is that he refuses medication, he can be a danger to himself and others, and he is still obsessed with storm chasing. When she rushes to the clinic and finds he has already left, Karena joins a professional storm-chasing tour company, hoping to find her brother in the caravan of watchers who follow major storms. In the course of the tour, Karena confronts the past and the way it has shaped her life. The unpredictable and dangerous storms provide a framework for an exploration of the bond between siblings (and its limitations), and Blum renders the stormy backdrop as richly as she does her nuanced characters.

My Review - 3 More Sugar Please

I enjoyed learning about Stormchasers and getting a glimpse into the life of someone with Bipolar disease.  This was a good story and written well, my issue is it was just a story..... it wasn't exactly my cup of tea.  I expected more highs and lows with the rush of the storms and some emotional touching dramatic times with siblings dealing with Bipolar but it never got intense and I needed that.

Another style issue I had is the Chapter flow.  We started in present for Part 1 then into the past with the siblings then back to the present when the siblings reunited.  This is not a style I like because it ruins the flow for me, I wanted more present and had to wait but then wasn't really interested in the past.  I would have appreciated glimpses of the past throughout the story more than this style.

What I did love, the characters. Karena was a great character, I enjoyed her, felt she was real and the twindar feelings for her twin brother Charles was totally believable and wonderful.  The man she met, Kevin, was also a good feeling character and liked them together.  Something about Charles was missing for me, maybe I just wanted to feel and understand the Bipolar part more.

If you enjoy Adult Fiction and good characters, I would still recommend this book for you.

I have to smile, this was my pick for the online bookclub, sigh, how funny that  it was just ok to me.  I really needed more.  Doesn't the person that chooses the book usually love it????



Book Club questions are here, join in if you have read it.

Paula over at Tome's Devotee is hosting this Book Club, go here to join.

The benefit of this Book Club is you get to have turns choosing the book.

Have you read this, what did you rate it?

Bookclub Questions for The Stormchasers by Jenna Blum

Welcome to Tea Time with Marce




Paula over at Tome's Devotee is hosting this Book Club, go here to join.


Thanks for reading The Stormchasers.  Let's have tea and discuss the book......


  • What did you rate the book?  In 1 sentence what was your overall thought.
  • Who was your favourite character and who was your least favourite?
  • Have you ever experienced a storm?  Would you ever go stormchasing?
  • What did you think of Karena and Charles family?  How do you think his Bipolar disease affected them?
  • How did you respond to Siri as the mom?
  • How would you describe Karena?
  • How would you describe Charles?
  • Favourite moment(s) in book?
  • What are your feelings on them being twins, the twindar relationship?
  • Charles’s bipolar disorder is described throughout the novel as “the djinn,” “the Stranger.” Why does Blum do this? What moment touched you the most?
  • Do you think Kevin and Karena are a good match?
  • How would you handle being in a relationship with someone that had a sibling with Bipolar?  What did you think of Kevin's reaction?
  • Did you note any quotes?  Share with us.

Quote from 42% on Kindle, Chapter 23

She's think about imbalances.  She's thinking Nature is majestic, yes, but vicious too.  She's thinking that whatever Kevin says, Nature is something to be wary of, because of its two-faced system.  Because storms are necessary to scour the atmosphere.  Because chaos is required before order.  Because a human brain can be so scrambled - naturally, scientifically, just chemicals and synapses - that a few hours' peace, let alone euphoria, must inevitably be followed by a descent into hell.  Nature may e beautiful, but it is cruel in its. extremes.

This quote wraps up the book beautifully I think.

I will respond in the comments with my answers.

Add your review here, also, please take a moment to read and comment on each others reviews.





Tuesday, January 25, 2011

Make your dreams a reality......

I would like to welcome Pamela Samuels Young to Tea Time with Marce.  I have enjoyed 2 of her Thriller/Suspense books and look forward to reading her others.

My Reviews

Buying Time
Murder on the Down Low





From the desk of Pamela Samuels Young:

Today is a new day, which means you have a fresh opportunity to pursue your passion.

Have you been thinking about changing careers? Perhaps you’d like to go back to school or start your own consulting firm. Maybe being a stay-at-home mom is your dream job. Unfortunately, every time you think about taking the first step, the fear of leaving the virtual security of your current job floods your head with dozens of sound reasons why you should stay put.

Whether your dream is to write a novel, become an interior decorator or start your own catering business, you can make it happen. Here are five tips that will help you begin your journey.

1. Find Time To Plan Your Career Move
With the demands of work, family, church and community activities, you may think you don’t have a spare moment to even think about, much less pursue, your dream career. You’re wrong.
If someone had told me I could’ve published four novels in four years while still practicing law, I would’ve said, “No way.” The key is having a passion and a plan.

It won’t be easy, but you can find free time where you least expect it. The next time you’re taking a neighborhood jog or walking on the treadmill, use the time to think about possible locations for the day spa you’ve dreamed of opening or mull over the plot for that book you’ve wanted to write. Instead of listening to your favorite CD during your morning and evening commute, use the time to work on the business plan for your jewelry-making business. A Dictaphone can be a pretty handy tool in that situation. Your lunch break and the two to three hours you spend in the beauty shop can also be put to good use. With your family’s support, you might even find an evening or two to run off to your local library or a nearby Starbucks for some business-planning time. Even if it’s only an hour a week, use it.


2. Don’t Reinvent The Wheel
You may not realize it, but you have a multitude of resources all around you -- family, friends, colleagues, church members, sorority sisters, and even strangers. Don’t be afraid to request an informational interview. If you want to run a bed ‘n breakfast, call up the owners of a similar establishment in another community, invite them to lunch and tap their brain. People love to talk about themselves and many will be flattered that you want to ask them for advice. The Internet is also a valuable resource. You can enter a few key words on Google and thousands of helpful articles will appear right before your eyes. Just remember: research, research, research!


3. Join Professional Organizations
It’s a good idea to surround yourself with others who share your interests and passion. There are hundreds of professional groups whose sole function is to help their members develop their creative talents and realize their business goals. As a writer, I belong to Sisters in Crime, Mystery Writers of America and Romance Writers of America. I rarely make many of the meetings, but when I do, I always learn something or make some contact that helps me along in my writing career. No matter what your passion is, there’s bound to be a networking group you can join.

Organizations like Minority and Women Business Owners, Women Entrepreneurs, Inc., and BizyMoms.com, just to name a few, provide information, support and networking opportunities. Find the organizations that can be most helpful to you and join them.

4. Understand That It Won’t Happen Overnight
Unfortunately, entrepreneurial ventures don’t come with the guarantee of a regular paycheck. I assumed that after releasing my first novel in 2006, Oprah would call and the rest would be history. That has yet to happen. Somehow, I’m still balancing both my legal practice and my passion: writing legal thrillers. It can sometimes be quite stressful, but each time I have a new book that hits the stores, I’m re-energized and more committed than ever about reaching my goal of becoming a full-time writer.

There will no doubt be disappointments when things don’t happen in accordance with your time schedule. But if you remain faithful and focused on your goal, it will happen.


5. Ignore The Naysayers
We all know people who believe you should find a good job, work as hard as you can for 30 years, then retire at 65 and enjoy life. For them, the thought of leaving a secure, well-paying position for the uncertainties of entrepreneurial life is unthinkable. That kind of limited thinking won’t help you realize your dream.

When I proudly tell people I hope to one day give up practicing law to become a full-time novelist, they smile and look as if they want to pat me on top of my head and say, “That’s nice. Now run along back to your briefs.”

You have to decide what you want to do and go for it. And don’t be surprised if you turn out to be your biggest obstacle. When that happens, just look your self-doubt squarely in the face and command it to go away. The same degree of preparation and persistence that helped you land your current position will also help you smoothly transition into your dream career.

So don’t just dream about pursuing your passion, make it happen!


Thank you for that great advice Pamela.  Good luck with continuing your dream which you have made a reality.

Monday, January 24, 2011

Review - Murder on the Down Low by Pamela Samuels Young





Book Summary

A brazen killer is targeting me of L.A.'s most prominent citizens.  The victims are all quintessential family men.  Well-educated. Attractive.  Successful.  But appearances can be deceiving.  When the baffling murders are linked to a contentious wrongful death lawsuit, two savvy lawyers and a tenacious female detective soon expose a scandalous tale of lust, lies and vengeance. 

My Review - 4 Great to the last drop

I read Pamela Samuels Young, Buying Time thriller last year and loved it, it was on my top ten of 2010.  I was delighted when Tracee, the Virtual Assistant from Pump up your Books contacted me to read this one.  I have to give PamelaSY praises for being an author that crossed over, what I mean by that is, in my opinion Black authors usually only draw Black readers.  Buying Time completed is for anyone that loves a great edge of seat thriller, but I think Murder on the Down Low is a great Mystery and still has ingredients of makes a great story but it was DRAMA DRAMA DRAMA, more of what I consider black readers love and expect from black authors.

The storyline will not be for everyone.  African American established married men on the down low, having a secret gay life.  There is a serial killer disgusted with this action and out to kill them all.  If any of you watched the show Soul Food or Girlfriends, this had that flair to it.  The story reminded me of author E.Lynn Harris, he wrote books on the invisible life of gay African American men.

Pamela SY executes well.  She always has the perfect balance of characters and they are all important to the story.  Short chapters that make you want to continue reading.  This book was entertaining but also made you aware of an African American dynamic within the community with AIDS statistics.

If you love a great mystery that will teach you about small part of a culture and lots of drama, you will enjoy this story.
I am glad I read Buying Time first, I am still interested in trying her other books.
Pamela Samuels Young will be stopping at Tea Time with Marce tomorrow.

Saturday, January 22, 2011

In My Mailbox - Exciting Mix

In My Mailbox is a weekly meme hosted by The Story Siren.

The idea of In My Mailbox is to bring books to the attention of our blog readers and to encourage interaction with other blogs.

I am trying my best to download on my Kindle and not order books but wowsa, what an exciting week of books in the Mailbox.


left Neglected





I preordered Lisa Genova's new one.  If you haven't read Still Alice, I highly recommend it.














The Tattoo Chronicles








The cover is incredible, packaged gorgeously, can't wait to go through this one. 













The Manufactured Identity






I received another copy from the author, this was my favourite book of 2010, review here.















The Human Obsession


I had an Exclusive here on my blog........ 

Thomas held his breath and wondered if the scattered rain drops and overgrown ferns would be enough to hide his body from the man hunting him ten feet away.

Don’t move.


As the raindrops moved more swiftly from their heavenly courts toward the softening dirt, he clutched his hands tighter around the metal cross now tearing into his palms and closed his eyes, trying to imagine his mother and father and brothers and sisters and all his school friends and all the people he never thought he cared about but now realized he may never see again.

You know you want to read more


I am soooooo excited to read these.

Friday, January 21, 2011

Ted Dekker Recommendations Please

I have seen many bloggers reading Ted Dekker, I am very intrigued.  What would you recommend for me to read first please.

I considered Thr3e from a great review but within two weeks I have read three negative reviews so I don't think that is a good one to start with now.

Here are the titles I have seen around:

The Bride Collector
Immanuel's Veins
Boneman's Daughters


Also, if you know my style good enough and feel this is not an author I will enjoy, please be honest and say that.

Thanks for the recommendations.





Wednesday, January 19, 2011

Lending Feature available for KINDLE........



Have you heard the good news from Amazon.

Lending Kindle Books


Eligible Kindle books can be loaned once for a period of 14 days. The borrower does not need to own a Kindle -- Kindle books can also be read using our free Kindle reading applications for PC, Mac, iPad, iPhone, BlackBerry, and Android devices. Not all books are lendable -- it is up to the publisher or rights holder to determine which titles are eligible for lending. The lender will not be able to read the book during the loan period.

Go here for the full details........

I LOVE my Kindle.  I have had it for a year now and definitely prefer reading on it over real books.  When I am not I miss the built in Dictionary and ability to highlight and write notes and don't talk about being in the mood to read something and less than a minute 'tah dah' you can :-)

The only issue now is seeing what books are actually available to lend.  I think I will make a list of what ebooks I have that are available.

Have you tried this feature yet?

Saturday, January 15, 2011

Review - The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society




Summary from Amazon

The letters comprising this small charming novel begin in 1946, when single, 30-something author Juliet Ashton (nom de plume Izzy Bickerstaff) writes to her publisher to say she is tired of covering the sunny side of war and its aftermath. When Guernsey farmer Dawsey Adams finds Juliet's name in a used book and invites articulate—and not-so-articulate—neighbors to write Juliet with their stories, the book's epistolary circle widens, putting Juliet back in the path of war stories. The occasionally contrived letters jump from incident to incident—including the formation of the Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society while Guernsey was under German occupation—and person to person in a manner that feels disjointed.

My Review - 4 Great to the last Drop

Wow, what a delightful read.  I understand why 'everyone' has recommended this one.  This is the perfect get you out of a reading slump and/or feel good book.  Anyone that loves characters will enjoy this book.

Julia, the main character is just divine, has a remarkable charming personality with perfect sarcastic humour, I totally adored her.

I am not into Historical Fiction, War stories etc so I am shocked that even the parts about this was still interesting to me, very well executed indeed.  Some may not enjoy this novel as it is written in letters but it just makes sense for the story, in my opinion.  Even the co-author explained it in the Afterword, Mary Ann Shaffer was an amazing story teller, that was her talent, you just get enthralled.

I was glad we find out quickly where the title The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society comes from but sheeeesh really :-)  I decided to have a little contest - go here, Rename the book.

I wish I had read this one on my Kindle, quote after quote after quote, this book just had so many amazing quotes I wanted to highlight them.  Go here to see Ruby's blog a thousand Books with quotes, you can read the quotes she chose from The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society.

Rename - The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society


I am sure the majority of those that have read this have thought of a new name, I want to know what it is....

And for those that haven't read this book, I bet it is 1) because of the name and/or 2) because it is a hyped book around the blogosphere.

I wonder if enough bloggers will participate - I have a # in my head, if I get that many responses, I will have a vote and the winning rename title will win a book from Book Depository.

So, go for it, what would you rename The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society?

Only 1 choice please and leave your email.

My choice - I wish I would have wrote them down as I was reading, but I keep on thinking about the Pig Roast so thought I would use that.  Here is my review.

My rename thought is:

The Pig Roast in Guernsey



I look forward to your comments :-)

Monday, January 10, 2011

Teaser Tuesday



Currently Reading

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along!

Just do the following to participate:

Grab your current read
Open to a random page
Share two (2) 'teaser' sentences from somewhere on that page
BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS!
Share the title &; author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

Teaser from page 10

That's what I love about reading: one tiny thing will interest you in a book, and that tiny thing will lead you onto another book, and another bit there will lead you onto a third book.  It's geometrically progressive - all with no end in sight, and for no other reason than sheer enjoyment.


I am so pleased I am reading this, I am thoroughly enjoying it.  I appreciate the title now but still think it is one of the worst titles ever, lol

I look forward to reading your teaser.
 
 

Sunday, January 9, 2011

Review - Beneath the Skin by Nicci French

Currently Reading

Book Summary on Amazon

Beneath the Skin is a spooky, highly effective psychological thriller. Initially, the women refuse, as do the police, to take the threats seriously--they are happy, they are inviolable; surely these letters are the work of a harmless crank. But the novel watches Zoe, Nadia, and Jenny move from blithely insouciant denial, to frustration, to creeping terror, and finally to the stark realization that neither they nor anyone else will prevent this killer from destroying them. French skillfully evokes the insidiousness with which the letters invade the women's lives, straining and shattering relationships, pushing each toward fearful insanity. Perhaps the novel's greatest appeal lies in its mordant irony: not only do the stalker's threats push and fester "beneath the skin," but they also draw out the flaws and terrors that are already there. French sketches the women's weaknesses and fears with merciless accuracy, stripping them naked long before the killer arrives to finish what his letters have begun.

My Review - 4 Great to the Last Drop

This was my first time reading Nicci French and it won't be my last. 

The killer is obsessed with these 3 ladies.  He sends them threatening love notes, can you imagine receiving something like this.  ...what I'm really interested in is looking at you from the inside, the bits of you that you'll never see but I will.  P.S.  You look happy when you're asleep.  Being dead is only like being asleep forever.

Wouldn't that just spook you out or what.  These ladies had full time police protection but they were no match for the killer.  I enjoyed the characters, they all seemed real to me, even the police and specialists on the case, so I think NicciF did a fantastic job with that.  Each lady was unique and headstrong in ways, feminine but spoke up, I enjoyed their personalities.  The story was in sections, Zoe, Jenny and Nadia and then the climax.  The buildup of the story had a perfect rhythm. 

I thought I had it all figured out but of course I still missed a few important factors, but I don't like to figure it all out anyways.  Reading this book made me think, there is no such thing as consequences.

Knowing someone wants to kill you puts these ladies through hell and back and it is amazing how the men in their lives are not supportive. 

I love the intensity of this book, the buildup of drama, definitely a great thriller.

I read this one for the A-Z Mystery Author Challenge.  Go over to Michelle's Blog - red headed book child to join.



Friday, January 7, 2011

Friday Finds

Friday Finds with MizB - Participate, network and get some ideas to add to your TBR list.



This one seems out of my norm but after reading Zoe's review at In The Next Room, I had to add it to my Wishlist.  It was on her Top 10 of last year. And the cover, gorgeous.........

Amazon Product Description

An extraordinary debut novel of love that survives the fires of hell and transcends the boundaries of time.

The narrator of The Gargoyle is a very contemporary cynic, physically beautiful and sexually adept, who dwells in the moral vacuum that is modern life. As the book opens, he is driving along a dark road when he is distracted by what seems to be a flight of arrows. He crashes into a ravine and suffers horrible burns over much of his body. As he recovers in a burn ward, undergoing the tortures of the damned, he awaits the day when he can leave the hospital and commit carefully planned suicide—for he is now a monster in appearance as well as in soul.

A beautiful and compelling, but clearly unhinged, sculptress of gargoyles by the name of Marianne Engel appears at the foot of his bed and insists that they were once lovers in medieval Germany. In her telling, he was a badly injured mercenary and she was a nun and scribe in the famed monastery of Engelthal who nursed him back to health. As she spins their tale in Scheherazade fashion and relates equally mesmerizing stories of deathless love in Japan, Iceland, Italy, and England, he finds himself drawn back to life—and, finally, in love. He is released into Marianne's care and takes up residence in her huge stone house. But all is not well. For one thing, the pull of his past sins becomes ever more powerful as the morphine he is prescribed becomes ever more addictive. For another, Marianne receives word from God that she has only twenty-seven sculptures left to complete—and her time on earth will be finished.

Already an international literary sensation, The Gargoyle is an Inferno for our time. It will have you believing in the impossible.


I also found this series........  My review of the 1st book, I gave it 4 1/2


 

What did you Find?  Have a great weekend.



Tuesday, January 4, 2011

Top Ten Books I Resolve To Read in 2011


 

 

 

 
Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created here at The Broke and the Bookish. This meme was created because we are particularly fond of lists here at The Broke and the Bookish. We'd love to share our lists with other bookish folks and would LOVE to see your top ten lists!

Each week we will post a new Top Ten list complete with one of our bloggers answers. Everyone is welcome to join. All we ask is that you link back to The Broke and the Bookish on your own Top Ten Tuesday post AND post a comment on our post with a link to your Top Ten Tuesday post to share with us and all those who are participating. If you don't have a blog, just post your answers as a comment. If you can't come up with ten, don't worry about it---post as many as you can!

I had more than 10 but I will stop.


*We Need to Talk about Kevin by Lionel Shriver

*Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson

*Before I Fall by Lauren Oliver

*Running with Scissors by Augusten Burroughs

*The House on Tradd Street by Karen White

*Honolulu by Alan Brennert

*The Slap by Christos Tsiolkas

*The Book Thief by Markus Zusak

*And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie

*Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen

 

2011 The Three R's Challenge



This is a great Challenge for me.  First off I always keep who recommends books to me, so that organisational part is done, thank you LibraryThing.  I need to work on actually reading them, I'm not sure how good I am with that but the Wishlist continues to grow :-)

Go here to join and to see recommended reviews.

We'd like to link our reviews that mention the blogger that suggested the book we've read and are now reviewing.

I am going for the 2nd level

7-12 Books (~1 reviews every month)

Rules:
We're not making this a difficult challenge, actually, it's going to be very simple!
  1. This challenge will begin on January 1, 2011 and end on December 31, 2011.
  2. Write a starting post stating how thankful you plan to be in the upcoming year and link it to the linky we'll have on the starting post.
  3. Read a book recommended  to you by another blogger. (This book can be a crossover from another challenge.)
  4. Review the book & Recognize the blogger who recommended it to you.
  5. Recommend the Book in our Recommend linky by linking your review post naming the blogger who recommended the book to you.

Monday, January 3, 2011

What are you Reading - Happy New Year

It's Monday, What are You Reading.  Sheila over at One Persons Journey has an incentive for networking so go over and have fun while adding to your 2011 Wishlist.

If you come to visit please leave a link to your Top 10 of 2010 so I can comment.  Here is mine


I just completed






My Review








I am currently reading


Currently Reading

My first time reading Nicci French, I am enjoying it so far.

Book Summary on Amazon

Beneath the Skin is a spooky, highly effective psychological thriller. Initially, the women refuse, as do the police, to take the threats seriously--they are happy, they are inviolable; surely these letters are the work of a harmless crank. But the novel watches Zoe, Nadia, and Jenny move from blithely insouciant denial, to frustration, to creeping terror, and finally to the stark realization that neither they nor anyone else will prevent this killer from destroying them. French skillfully evokes the insidiousness with which the letters invade the women's lives, straining and shattering relationships, pushing each toward fearful insanity. Perhaps the novel's greatest appeal lies in its mordant irony: not only do the stalker's threats push and fester "beneath the skin," but they also draw out the flaws and terrors that are already there. French sketches the women's weaknesses and fears with merciless accuracy, stripping them naked long before the killer arrives to finish what his letters have begun.


This is what I think I will read next.

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society - Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows

or

The Stormchasers by Jenna Blum - My January choice for Bookclub - go here if interested in joining us.

Sunday, January 2, 2011

Review - I am Not a Serial Killer by Dan Wells




Book Summary from Dan Wells site

I Am Not a Serial Killer is the story of John Cleaver, a 15-year-old sociopath who works in a mortuary, dreams about death, and thinks he might be turning into a serial killer. He sets strict rules to keep himself “good” and “normal,” but when a real monster shows up in his town he has to let his dark side out in order to stop it–but without his rules to keep him in check, he might be more dangerous than the monster he’s trying to kill.

My Review - 4 1/2 Great to the last Drop

What a great character, he intrigued me and I couldn't get enough.  I am so glad to know this is a series even though I truly love a standalone more, but that is how good this is.  Non stop action with John trying to catch his neighbourhood killer.

John has you feel sorry for him, feel fearful of him, fearful for others around him including his mom, just an overall shock.  I am wow'd and completely intrigued by him.

This book has some gruesome description, just how I like it.  John's mom allows him to assist with the embalming process from beginning to end in the mortuary, seeing the dead bodies, smelling them, putting them together so they can be viewed by family and friends.  This was a book I could not read while eating, something I do all the time.   John is 15 and I hope not like any teenager we will ever meet.  Knowing what was in his mind was unbelievable, totally scary and nerve wrecking, even for himself at times.  I loved how deep he thought even though it was unusual.  His parents named him John Wayne Clever.  Now usually no one would notice but he is totally addicted to learning and understanding serial killers, he even wrote an essay on one.  Do you think his teacher was scared, lol  (See the cover)

John lived by rules so that he won't become a serial killer.  How completely strange and weird is that.  He had to go to a counselor, he seriously needed some mental health intervention.  His counselor said he was a sociopath and he was happy to have been labeled.

This is a must read for Horror fans, I am very impressed with Dan Wells and look forward to reading this series.

I saw this on Book Chick City's Top 10 for 2010 and had to read it, glad I did.  Here is her review.

Saturday, January 1, 2011

Post your Reviews here - I Want More Challenge 2011



Welcome to Tea Time with Marce

If you would like to signup for this challenge please go here for details.

Level of Participation

Waited to long:   2 - 4 books
Give me more:    5 - 8 books
Never to much:   9 - 12 books
I look forward to all the reviews and choices of authors.