Monday, December 31, 2012

Best and Worst Books Of 2012




I read 55 books this year! Not too shabby :) I had several favorites, but the best one for this year was On The Island by Tracy Garvis Graves. This was such a great book! From beginning to end I loved it. The worst book ever? The Gathering by Anne Enright. OMG this book was horrific! We spent book club talking about how bad it was! Two other great books was Girl Gone by Gillian Flynn and And When She Was Good by Laura Lipman. Both of these are just great reads. Campy fun? The Immortals series by Kresley Cole, love them, lots of fun too read and read four of them one after the other. If you're a fan of paranormal romance pick them up. Most hyped disappointment? The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern. It wasn't bad, but not the great read it was pumped up to be. I will give it this, I tend to hate over descriptive books, but this one made you "see" where they were. Nicest surprise goes to That Boy by Jillian Dodd, very cute story and easy quick read. I usually hate Young Adult, but I read a few this year that were decent books. After Twilight I vowed never again, but I'm glad I read these- Flat Out Love, Because Of Low, and Easy. Are you looking forward to anything special in 2013? With sadness I am anticipating Charlaine Harris' last in the Southern Vampire Series (True Blood) come May. I have no clue how she's going to wrap this up and I'm scared! My To Be Read pile is a mile long, I don't think it'll ever shrink :) There is no such thing as too many books, just too many books and too little time ;) Happy Reading....




Wednesday, November 14, 2012

Gone Missing



Well October has flown away and now November is headed out the door too.  I can't believe Thanksgiving is next week!  I haven't blogged in forever, have not found the time and kinda lost my blogging mojo a bit. I have been reading, but nothing that has made me say "I gotta talk about this one!!!"  I didn't read as much in October, nor will I be in November either.  That's ok.  I'm going to put what I read in list form everything highlighted in bold is my review/rant depending on how I felt ;) -

September


  1. White Witch Black Curse by Kim Harrison
  2. Plain Jane: Brunettes Beware by Cristyn West
  3. Psychos by Jim Skipp - Netgalley
  4. Forever Werewolf by Michelle Hauff - Netgalley
  5. Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls - Book Club Readhttp://booklending.com/
  6. And When She Was Good by Laura Lipman



October

  1. Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn
  2. The Lion The Lamb, The Hunted by Andrew E Kaufman
  3. The Gathering by Anne Enright - Book Club Read

So, of all these books read there was a REAL stinker of the bunch and that honor goes to The Gathering by Anne Enright.  Mama Mia that book just rotted!!!!  We spent book club ranting about how darn bad it was and that's all the time I'll waste on it here!  I really liked Gone Girl and And When She Was Good, excellent in my opinion.  I'm done with Kim Harrison's Rachel Morgan series, I just can't take it anymore and my rant explains it.  

I've read three books so far in November, Blameless by Gail Carriger, Silver Borne by Patricia Briggs, and The Secret Of Ella And Michah by Jessica Sorenson and will be reading Look Again by Lisa Scottoline for book club.. It sounds really good and debate provoking along the lines of Jodi Picoult.  This is the first Scottoline for me so I look forward to it.   Right now I'm reading Exquisite by Ella Frank. The best part is all these books were free!  Three from paperback swap and two from booklending.com!

Well I probably won't get to blog again till after Thanksgiving so have a wonderful one filled with great food and great company.  Make some memories to last a lifetime!



Tuesday, October 16, 2012

Gone Girl


Gone Girl
Gillian Flynn













Amazon Blurb -

Marriage can be a real killer. 
   One of the most critically acclaimed suspense writers of our time, New York Times bestseller Gillian Flynn takes that statement to its darkest place in this unputdownable masterpiece about a marriage gone terribly, terribly wrong. The Chicago Tribune proclaimed that her work “draws you in and keeps you reading with the force of a pure but nasty addiction.” Gone Girl’s toxic mix of sharp-edged wit and deliciously chilling prose creates a nerve-fraying thriller that confounds you at every turn. 
   On a warm summer morning in North Carthage, Missouri, it is Nick and Amy Dunne’s fifth wedding anniversary. Presents are being wrapped and reservations are being made when Nick’s clever and beautiful wife disappears from their rented McMansion on the Mississippi River. Husband-of-the-Year Nick isn’t doing himself any favors with cringe-worthy daydreams about the slope and shape of his wife’s head, but passages from Amy's diary reveal the alpha-girl perfectionist could have put anyone dangerously on edge. Under mounting pressure from the police and the media—as well as Amy’s fiercely doting parents—the town golden boy parades an endless series of lies, deceits, and inappropriate behavior. Nick is oddly evasive, and he’s definitely bitter—but is he really a killer? 
   As the cops close in, every couple in town is soon wondering how well they know the one that they love. With his twin sister, Margo, at his side, Nick stands by his innocence. Trouble is, if Nick didn’t do it, where is that beautiful wife? And what was in that silvery gift box hidden in the back of her bedroom closet?

*****

Amy and Nick are two of the "beautiful people".  Young hip New Yorkers that are successful, vibrant, and just gorgeous.  He's a writer, she has a degree in psychology and writes personality quizzes for magazines.  They don't nag each other, want to have a friends night out, cool, no ball and chain, no hen pecking on either side.  Then trouble hits, Nick loses his job, his mother who lives in Missouri is terminally ill and his twin sis needs help since their dad has Alzheimer and this shouldn't be just on her.

And so starts the trouble.  Amy doesn't want to leave her life, Nick really could care less.  They go and she gives him money to open a bar with his sister.Their marriage slowly deteriorates and then on their anniversary Amy goes missing.  Who did it?  Well read and be prepared for a ride.

I loved this book, I figured out what happened about almost halfway, but was just a bit unsure.  That didn't deter me from enjoying the ride.  Here's what's funny, I HATED both Amy and Nick.  Didn't like either one one stinking bit.  She was a b*tch and he was a jerk plain and simple. That didn't stop me from loving the book either!  I couldn't wait to see what would happen next.  I recommend this one.

4 cannolis



Wednesday, October 3, 2012

And When She Was Good


And When She Was Good
Laura Lipman













Amazon Blurb -

When Hector Lewis told his daughter that she had a nothing face, it was just another bit of tossed-off cruelty from a man who specialized in harsh words and harsher deeds. But twenty years later, Heloise considers it a blessing to be a person who knows how to avoid attention. In the comfortable suburb where she lives, she's just a mom, the youngish widow with a forgettable job who somehow never misses a soccer game or a school play. In the state capitol, she's the redheaded lobbyist with a good cause and a mediocre track record.
But in discreet hotel rooms throughout the area, she's the woman of your dreams—if you can afford her hourly fee.
For more than a decade, Heloise has believed she is safe. She has created a rigidly compartmentalized life, maintaining no real friendships, trusting few confidantes. Only now her secret life, a life she was forced to build after the legitimate world turned its back on her, is under siege. Her once oblivious accountant is asking loaded questions. Her longtime protector is hinting at new, mysterious dangers. Her employees can't be trusted. One county over, another so-called suburban madam has been found dead in her car, a suicide. Or is it?
Nothing is as it seems as Heloise faces a midlife crisis with much higher stakes than most will ever know.
And then she learns that her son's father might be released from prison, which is problematic because he doesn't know he has a son. The killer and former pimp also doesn't realize that he's serving a life sentence because Heloise betrayed him. But he's clearly beginning to suspect that Heloise has been holding something back all these years.
With no formal education, no real family, and no friends, Heloise has to remake her life—again. Disappearing will be the easy part. She's done it before and she can do it again. A new name and a new place aren't hard to come by if you know the right people. The trick will be living long enough to start a new life.
*****

"You have a nothing face."  So says Helen Lewis' father Hector to her, and so begins the abuse  by her father.  A frustrated nothing who takes it out on Helen, her mother is more relieved that her child is now the benefactor of his rage so she does nothing to protect her.

Helen knows she must get out, sadly her choice leads to what happens to most young girls that have no where to go.  But Helen is smart and she watches, hoarding away what she see's learning for when she is on her own, and on her own she becomes successful in an upper middle class neighborhood. 

After her pimp is jailed for murder, she must hide her pregnancy from him since he is the father.  Making up the excuse that her mother is dying and she has to go home so that she won't have to visit him, she gives birth and then uses his help to start her own call girl business.  He never knows about his son, she visits him regularly and he takes his cut from Helen, now known as Heloise.

In a neighboring town, there is the murder of a suburban madam.  Is there a crazed killer on the loose, or is this a well thought out hit?  Helen has to be very careful, her son and her life depend on it.

I loved this book!  It was just fantastic.  Helen was a fantastic character.  I was going right to the last few pages which had me gasping and on the edge of my seat!

4 1/2 cannolis




Wednesday, September 26, 2012

Library Score!

I got two of the books I've been waiting to read on my tbr list!


Gone Girl, YAY!















And When She Was Good, which I already started as soon as I got it and it's good right out of the gate.  Love that!!















I will most defiantly review both of these so stay tuned.

Friday, September 21, 2012

Forever Werewolf


Forever Werewolf
Michelle Hauf
Netgalley Review









Amazon Blurb -

Alexis Conner, princess of the Alpine pack and pureblood werewolf, hides a painful secret—she has never shifted. If she can't shift, she can't mate, and so Lexi resigned herself to a lifetime of loneliness. But then a stranger arrives, and Lexi senses that her world will never be the same….
A massive avalanche might be to blame for Trystan Hawkes getting stuck at Castle Wulfsiege, but after one look at Lexi, Trystan is not about to leave. Lexi is strong, smart and incredibly sexy. Not that it matters. Tryst is an omega—the fabled lone wolf. Even more damning is his mixed vampire heritage.
Lexi knows that the vampire blood running through Tryst's veins makes him off-limits, but what if he's the one man who can rouse her inner wolf?
*****


Trystan comes to Wulfseige to deliver an important package to the ailing leader of Alpine Pack.  An avalanche forces him to stay and he helps find wounded pack members.  Lexie is one of the leader's daughters.  Tough, cold and smart she helps hold everything together while her father is ill.Trystan can't keep his eyes off of the distant beauty.  She tries to avoid his obvious interest.  In all the chaos of the avalanche and a sick leader, will the two be able to come together?

I have to be honest, this wasn't a favorite for me.  I found the banter hard to believe, and a real buzz kill was her description of Trystan. All I could picture was Shawn White and I don't find him attractive at all.    I figured out what was happening almost out of the gate so there was no suspense.   I've read others from Michelle and really enjoyed them. Oh well.

2 1/2 cannolis

Wednesday, September 12, 2012

Psychos


Psychos
Ed Kurtz and John Skipp
Netgalley review










Amazon Blurb -


This collection of thirty-eight terrifying tales of serial killers at large, written by the great masters of the genre, plumbs the horrifying depths of a deranged mind and the forces of evil that compel a human being to murder, gruesomely and methodically, over and over again.
From Hannibal Lecter (The Silence of the Lambs) to Patrick Bateman (American Psycho), stories of serial killers and psychos loom large and menacing in our collective psyche. Tales of their grisly conquests have kept us cowering under the covers, but still turning the pages.
Psychos is the first book to collect in a single volume the scariest and most well-crafted fictional works about these deranged killers. Some of the stories are classics, the best that the genre has to offer, by renowned writers such as Neil GaimanAmelia BeamerRobert Bloch, and Thomas Harris. Other selections are from the latest and most promising crop of new authors.
John Skipp, who is also the editor of Zombies, Demons and Werewolves and Shapeshifters, provides fascinating insight, through two nonfiction essays, into our insatiable obsession with serial killers and how these madmen are portrayed in popular culture. Resources at the end of the book includes lists of the genre's best long-form fiction, movies, websites, and writers.
*****

I am not a big fan of short story compilations, but this past week in my participation in Thrill Week with Tea Time With Marce, I saw this book on another bloggers page, Bitsy Bling Books, and thought, ok I'm going to give this a shot.  Well, for those of you that are big fans of horror, this is going to be RIGHT up your alley!!!

I didn't like all of them equally, to be honest the first one made me go uh oh, but then it just got better and better!  Writings from Poe, Bradbury,and Bloch to authors from our time like Amelia Beamer and Nick Mamatas.  This was a blast, Marla's Eyes just was gross, and I had a fave, The Small Assassin by Ray Bradbury.  

I encourage those who love horror to pick this baby up, especially those who participate in Stainless Steel Droppings annual R.I.P event.  Curl up with this little monster and a cup of cocoa on a chilly night with just a flashlight to read by....I dare you.

4 cannolis




Sunday, September 9, 2012

Plain Jane: Brunettes Beware



Plain Jane: Brunettes Beware
Cristyn West
Kindle Freebie











There weren't any summaries on Amazon so I'll get right to it : )

Here's the skinny short and fast - Detective Nicole Usher is on a case to catch a serial killer, one that is hunting women and taking a trophy, their uterus.  Helping in the hunt is super genius FBI profiler extraordinaire  Kent Harbinger.  Does that sound snarky?  Well keep reading for my rant if you want the long version : )


Kent stalks the women he feels are going to be the Plain Jane (called that for obvious reasons) killer's victims to the point of  almost becoming one with the killer.  He goes into a "zone" where you can't even reach him.  He's rude, selfish self centered, cocky, obnoxious, full of himself, I could go on and on believe me.   The problem with all this amazing hubris?  He keeps just missing the killer and more keep dying to the tune of 17 women!  This man aggravated the crap out of me and I used the nice word instead of the s one that I really wanted.

Onto Detective Usher.  Nicole and Kent used to be a very hot and heavy item.  They broke up and she took up with fellow Det. Ruben Torres, but that's gone cold for her, not for poor Ruben though.  He still pines for Nic while she's like Pavlov's dog concerning Kent.  She pissed me off too!  The junk she allowed him to get away with was beyond ridiculous.  I also found this relationship stuff hard to believe since it was so out in the open.  I really don't think their Captain would have been so forgiving of this.

Kent is staking/stalking who he's convinced is the next victim and while she's undressing in her room he admires her boobs, nah not working for me.  Nicole and Torres are interrogating a possible suspect, Nic has an earpiece in and Kent is telling her what to say.  His thought's?  Damn she never looked hotter, really? 

Was I on the edge of my seat?  Nope, I didn't really feel it pick up till the end.  Kent's character was just too over the top to be likable or believable.  I would have preferred a little more down to earth person and then I probably would have liked the story much much more.

What was good?  I had no clue whatsoever who the killer was AT all.  For me that is such a major score that I'm pissed that I didn't like the characters more. The ending actually had me going more than the rest of the book.

I'm actually going to say read it.  I'd love to know what others think because a lot of what I wrote here is based on what a stubborn opinionated strong willed thick head I am and both their personalities just grated on me something fierce.

3 cannolis





Friday, September 7, 2012

Chelsea Cain, An Interview






Today is a very special day for me.  I am interviewing one of my favorite authors of one of the MOST fantastic psychological thriller series out there, Chelsea Cain of the wonderful Heartsick books.  Gretchen Lowell and Archie Sheridan have made for a simply fantastic thrill ride that just doesn't get boring.

Thank you Chelsea for coming by!

Gretchen is just the perfect psychopath, how hard was she to create?

Here’s the thing about Gretchen--wait for it.  Most psychopaths are actually not witty, charismatic beauties.  I know!  It’s disappointing isn’t it?  I conceived of Gretchen as this seductive, dangerous woman, and immediately set out researching violent female psychopaths. It didn’t take me long to learn this: there aren’t many.  Don’t get me wrong—Women kill.  But we tend to stew for years, plan it all out, and then poison our husbands or smother our babies, and we get away with it.  (I have this theory that there are, in fact, plenty of violent female serial killers – we are just very clever and never caught.) I wanted Gretchen to commit murder, not because she felt wronged or because her daddy was mean to her or because she was mentally ill.  I wanted her to kill for the hell of it.  Because she liked it.  In other words, I wanted her to kill like a man. So after months of reading tedious criminology case studies of female offenders who were nothing like Gretchen, I slammed the books shut and said, “Screw it, I’m going to make it up.”  I can’t tell you how freeing that was.  I created Gretchen out of whole cloth, or at least melded her together from every evil fabulous pop culture character who’d come before her.  (What would Dynasty have been without Alexis?)  

Is she capable of loving Archie?

That’s the question, isn’t it?  This is one of the driving inquiries of the books.  I think that part of what makes Gretchen a powerful character is that readers don’t know what she’s thinking.  She never has a point of view.  We never get inside her head.  So we don’t know.  Does she care about Archie, or is this all part of some long-term plot?  We yearn to know what she’s thinking, just as Archie’s does.  But she’s unreliable.  She’s a liar.  And we known we shouldn’t trust her.  But at the same time there is something vulnerable about her when she’s with Archie and we want to believe that she is capable of caring about him – but is she?  See how I totally evaded that question?


Side stepping her penchant for killing just for a moment, is she modeled after anyone or a complete creation of yours? 

Side stepping her penchant for killing?  That’s like eighty percent of Gretchen’s character!  You are hoping, perhaps, that I will admit to basing her on a popular girl in school?  (I did attend LowellElementary; make of that what you will.)  People ask me if there’s any of me in Gretchen.  I wish.  I mean, setting aside the killing, she is very articulate and charming and beautiful.  She says the stuff that I come up with ten hours after the conversation has ended.  Plus, she’s so confident.  She has very high self-esteem, that woman. And she isn’t afraid of anyone or anything. 


Stephan King can be brutally honest with his criticisms (Stephanie Myers Twilight), how did his tip of the hat to you on 1 & 2 feel?

Oh, Stephan King!  He is a handsome and very wise man.  This is what he said about Heartsick and Sweetheart: "We've been down Hannibal Lecter Avenue many times, and these two books shouldn't work...but they do. Chalk it up to excellent writing and Cain's ferocious sense of humor."  You know what part of that I love the most?  The part about my “ferocious sense of humor.”  Can we just bask in that last sentence for a moment?  That was so important to me.  Because here’s the thing  -- the books ARE funny. Dark, yes, but funny. And I worry that the humor is often overshadowed by the sex and gore.  Don’t get me wrong.  I am all for sex and I am all for gore.  But it’s important to me to inject something else in the books – something light hearted, albeit fucked up, and yes…funny. Before I wrote thrillers, I wrote illustrated humor books—true story.  And I think that a thriller without humor is just a slog.  It’s just too intense.  But I think that many people have an impression that my books are these gripping dark sagas without any relief.  I begged my publisher to put that “ferocious sense of humor” quote on the books.  They used the quote.  But not all of it.  Printed on the back of the paperbacks is the following quote. “Ferocious – Stephen King.”  Sigh.

Any thoughts on why female serial killers are nil in the book world, especially since it's mostly women who read the thrillers?

Women are like 75% of all thriller readers.  Why are female serial killers are rare in fiction?  Probably because they’re rare in life.  Also, they’re not as culturally scary.  We tend to kill people we know, and we do it quietly, without much fuss.  I think a better question is why are popular thrillers so lacking when it comes to any sort of strong female characters?  There are certainly exceptions.  But there are also many bestselling books featuring these weak women wearing inappropriate shoes.  I think that one of the reasons that Gretchen resonates with so many female readers is that she is a powerful archetype in a genre where powerful female archetypes are sadly lacking.  She knows what she wants.  Most of the women we see reflected back at us in books and TV and in movies do not know what they want. Whereas most men we see on screen or on the page, do.  Again, lots of exceptions.  I’m speaking generally.  But it’s interesting to think about, isn’t it?  So when a woman comes up to me after a reading and says, “I find Gretchen Lowell so inspiring,” (and this actually happens), she doesn’t mean she admires Gretchen’s skill with a scalpel.  She’s just excited to come across a female character who appears not to experience any self-doubt.

Do you ever have to take a step back when it gets too intense or is that when it flows the best for you?

Whenever I get nervous when I’m writing, I know I’m doing something write.  I love to push the boundaries.  If my readers don’t say, “I can’t believe she went there,” at least once when reading my book, I feel like I’ve failed them.

What book is on your nightstand right now?

There isn’t a book on my nightstand right now.  I don’t read right before bed.  I’m a before-bed TV watcher.  (Usually DVR’d episodes of Law & Order.)  So my bedside table has a remote on it.  But if you’re asking what book I’m reading right now, the answer is “Dora: A Headcase,” by Lidia Yuknavich.  It is mighty spectacular, too.

Favorite authors?

Val McDermid, Henry James, Maurice Sendak, Mary Gaitskill, Mary Oliver, Bill Bryson, Mary Roach, Raymond Chandler, Robert B. Parker, Brian Michael Bendis, Michael Lewis, Anthony Lane and Carolyn Keene.

How stoked are you with FX picking up Heartsick?  Please tell me you're going to hold onto some control or specify certain changes as unacceptable. A director who shall remain unnamed has absolutely butchered a wonderful series and I would be heartsick (oh no I didn't)  if the same happened here.

I’m pretty epically stoked.  Like massively, heart-attack-inducing, stoked.  I will be a creative consultant on the series, which means basically that I can give them all sorts of feedback and they can take it or completely ignore me.  But, know this.  I personally partnered with the head writer of the series.  I love him.  He read Heartsick when it came out, and all the other books following.  He is a true fan of the series and of the characters. Frankly, he knows the universe better than I do.  I trust him completely with the characters. And FX is known for giving their show runners total creative control. This is their thing – they let creative people do what they do, and see what happens.  This is why they have put together such fine shows as The Shield, Damages, American Horror Story, Justified, Louis, The and Sons of Anarchy.  They are currently working on getting the pilot written, cast and filmed. Then they will look at the pilot and decide if they are going to order a season of shows.  But let me be clear.  I have absolute confidence that if FX picks up the pilot, they will produce an amazing, awesome TV show.  It might be different from the books.  But it will be excellent and interesting and I will DVR it and watch it before bed.

Did you ever imagine this kind of love for your books?

Never, ever.

This was awesome and I truly appreciate your time.  Lots of luck with all your endeavors! I will be waiting for the show :)








Tuesday, September 4, 2012

White Witch Black Curse


White Witch Black Curse
Kim Harrison












Amazon Blurb -


Some wounds take time to heal . . . and some scars never fade.
Rachel Morgan, kick-ass witch and bounty hunter, has taken her fair share of hits, and has broken lines she swore she would never cross. But when her lover was murdered, it left a deeper wound than Rachel ever imagined, and now she won't rest until his death is solved . . . and avenged. Whatever the cost.
Yet the road to hell is paved with good intentions, and when a new predator moves to the apex of the Inderlander food chain, Rachel's past comes back to haunt her.
Literally.
*****

Well I gotta say, after this book I'm done with the Hollows series.  I can't stand it anymore and it's reached its peak now.  I don't like Rachel she is just a bad character who is so annoying and the books just aren't good enough to continue with such a stinky protagonist.

No review just a rant on what I feel stinks.  Her and Ivy is as old as Methuselah and I have had it.  If you live with someone who can make you feel anxiety that quickly, than you're a moron.  Either the two are going to hook up or they aren't.  I am sick of I love Ivy but not like that.  I can't stand how she judges every single guy she encounters.  "Oh he's hot, but it wouldn't work with  me."  Her whining drives me nuts!  Every one I love dies, I'm shunned, I have demon marks. Blah Blah blah.  She's snippy with her mom, I think she needs a good pop in the mouth.

Now for the shocker that will have other gals who love this series gasping...Kisten's story line did not have me running for tissues!  Quite frankly I just didn't feel the connection there with those two.  His fake English accent was dumb, I didn't get him at all.  "Oh Kisten can't bite me Ivy will flip", omg give me a break.  I still don't feel a damn thing one way or another as far as he's concerned.  Finding out what Bill did to Sookie in Charlaine Harris' series was more a hurtful part of a book for me than this.  I'm really ready for the flames now, I can't even take Jenks anymore.  Tink's farts can you believe that!!!

Who do I like, I like Al, he's the most interesting character, even Trent has more substance.

So adieu Rachel Morgon it hasn't been fun getting to know you, and now I can delete the 7 books I have on my kindle in the Hollow's folder ( I know 7 and I kept reading!) and am so glad I didn't buy a single one!


Saturday, September 1, 2012

Thrill Week Blog Hop


1)    My name is Paula and I've been blogging for several years now, having a blog exclusively for books, since 2010


2)   What has been your top 3 reads this year?  Link your reviews

Bodies Left Behind by Jeffrey Deaver

Snake Skin by C.J. Lyons

Defending Jacob by William Landay

 
3)      What are you currently reading during Thrill Week?

Well, right now I'm reading a paranormal romance, since that is one of my other favorite genres :)

 
4)      Do you have an all time favourite cover in the genres above?

To be honest I don't.  I don't always pay attention to covers, though Cody McFadyen's Smoky Barrett series are nice.

 
5)      What debut author(s) or new to you author(s) have you read within the last 12 months that have impressed you?


I liked C.J. Lyons very much, and William Landay's Defending Jacob was great.

 
6)      Favorite trilogy or series you recommend to others to read in the genres above?

Oh hands down it's got to be the Heartsick Series by Chelsea Cain.  That Gretchen is just so bad, and the characters in the book are all really great.

7)    What popular author(s) have you NOT read but is on your Wishlist?

Oh gosh, there are quite a few, but the top ones are Lisa Gardner, Tami Hoag and Greg Isles. I haven't read any of them yet, and I have two of Lisa's right on my bookshelf.

8)      Other than blogs, share with us what other tools you use or subscribe to in order to keep up with the latest news on authors, new releases, book tours, etc? 
I go on Amazon a lot and see what they've got up, and I look in the news on Sunday to see what's on the best seller's list.  Word of mouth is always the best though.

9)     What current book is hyped among the blogosphere that you want to read or are not interested in?  Why or why not or link your review if you have read it.

I really want to read Gone Girl, I know some just couldn't get into it but I want to give it a go.

10)   What is most important in these genres to you?  Plot, characters, location, dialogue, red herrings, narrator or what mix of them?

Most important for me is plot.  If I'm not grabbed that book is going bye bye.  It has to be engaging and I need to be on the edge of my seat flipping those pages. Next would be character, I can coast with a so so character if the plot is awesome, but if the character really rots boy it's tough.

11)   Recommend a book made into movie you thought both were good?  

I have to say, James Patterson's Alex Cross novels Kiss The Girls and Along Came A Spider that Morgan Freeman starred in were great as were the books, and I can't wait to see how Tyler Perry does as well.

12)   Recommend a book you would like to discuss with others and possibly the author?  Note – I will do a poll with participant’s choices at the end of Thrill Week and then we can agree on a date for Q&A.  I will try and arrange the chosen author to participate.

Oh my gosh, I have no idea!  There are so many great ones how could I choose?  

Thank you for participating in Thrill Week II. 

This is a great idea, and on Friday, I have Chelsea Cain author of the wonderfully viscous Heartsick series visiting to talk with me and I hope you stop by and see what she has to say!




Tuesday, August 28, 2012

Thrill Week 2 Preview!


I am participating in this great week Marce has put together!  There are going to be some great blogs involved and some awesome authors as well.  If  you go to her blog Tea Time With Marce you can read all about what will be going on at her place for the week. Just click her title!

On the 1st and 2nd there is a hop with a questionnaire that the participants will have answered and it's a great way to meet up with other bloggers who love the same genre as you do.

ON my blog I will have a VERY special guest on Friday September 7th!  I am so so excited you can not even imagine it.  A little hint -














Is it too obvious?  Know who it is?  I can't wait!  Hope to see you for Thrill Week!


Tuesday, August 21, 2012

Andy Squared



Andy Squared
Jennifer Lavoie
Netgalley review










Amazon Blurb -


Seventeen-year-old twins, Andrew and Andrea Morris, have always been close. They share everything—from their friends to a room—and they both enjoy star positions on their high school’s soccer teams. All’s right with the twins...or is it?


When new student Ryder Coltrane moves from Texas to their small New York town, he spins Andrew’s world upside down. All of Andrew’s past relationship troubles begin to make sense and his true feelings start to click into place after Ryder comes out to him. His friendship with Ryder turns secretively romantic, but secrets, they soon find out, are hard to keep. Once rumors start to fly, so-called friends turn on them, and the boys’ relationship turns into a bomb about to explode. But Andrew never expected it would be his own twin, Andrea, holding a lighter to ignite it.

*****


High school seniors Andrew and Andrea are as close as you can ever get.  Not only are they twins, but for last couple of months they've been sharing a room since Andy's room is being renovated.  The two are quite popular at school, Andy goes through the girl population like water.   They are on the school soccer teams and Andrea is hoping they get a soccer scholarship so they can be together right into college.  

Texas transplant Ryder comes into town and things take a turn in a different direction. Andy is drawn to Ryder like a moth to the flame and he just can't understand his attraction to Ryder...yet.  The girls love him and want to be with him, Andy's best bud Charlie is jealous of Ryder because not only do the girls want to be with him, but so does Andy.  Andrea is upset because now Andy doesn't really want to go to the same college as her, nor does he want to go on a soccer scholarship.  To say she's pissed is an understatement.  Not only does she totally ignore Andy telling her it's not what he wants she does something sneaky behind his back.

Andy finally acknowledges his feelings for Ryder and the two start a secret relationship, but when they are caught, those who were thought to be good and trustworthy may actually be the most viscous of them all.

I liked this book, Jennifer writes in a smooth flowing manner.   The story is so relevant to today's happenings.  I found it touching and sometimes I was angry. I don't know if I would have handled Andrea the same way as a parent knowing how vicious other kids can be.  I also don't know that I liked how it was stressed that Andrew had sex with different girls all the time.  Promiscuity is not something I find good whether you're straight or gay.


3 1/2 cannolis


Lucretia And The Kroons




Victor Lavalle
Netgalley review







Amazon Blurb -

Lucretia’s best friend and upstairs neighbor Sunny—a sweet pitbull of a kid, even as she struggles with a mysterious illness—has gone missing. The only way to get her back is for Lucretia to climb the rickety fire escape of their Queens tenement and crawl through the window of apartment 6D, portal to a vast shadowland of missing kids ruled by a nightmarish family of mutants whose designs on the children are unknown. Her search for Sunny takes Lucretia through a dark fantasyland where she finds lush forests growing from concrete, pigeon-winged rodents, and haunted playgrounds. Her quest ultimately forces her to confront the most frightening specter of all: losing, forever, the thing you love the most.
Lucretia and the Kroons is a dazzlingly imaginative adventure story and a moving exploration of the power of friendship and the terror of loss. This all-new novella serves as the perfect companion piece to The Devil in Silver, a thrillingly suspenseful work of literary horror that continues the story of Lucretia.
*****

Lucretia's or Loochie as she's known, best friend Sunny is very sick and it has kept her away in the hospital for many weeks.  She misses her friend especially since she wasn't able to come to Loochie's birthday party.  Her mother innocently invited some other girls who really weren't friends to Loochie and it was a disaster.  Months go by and Sunny is finally home, Loochie wants her to come to a party in her apartment just the two of them, while her mom goes to an appointment with her brother Louis.

On the day of her party, Louis comes to the house to pick up their mom and while waiting tells Loochie a terrifying story about the abandoned apartment 6 B.  Loochie doesn't believe him, but while they are gone, a crazy terror filled adventure takes place changing her life forever.

This was a novella, so it was a very quick read.  No doubt it was sad, and I felt bad for Loochie.  It wasn't quite the horror story I would have thought, but the author kept it moving nicely. My favorite part, when Loochie told the girls at her party to "get the hell out you whores!"

3 cannolis



Defending Jacob




  Willian Landay
  August book club choice









Amazon Blurb -


Andy Barber has been an assistant district attorney in his suburban Massachusetts county for more than twenty years. He is respected in his community, tenacious in the courtroom, and happy at home with his wife, Laurie, and son, Jacob. But when a shocking crime shatters their New England town, Andy is blindsided by what happens next: His fourteen-year-old son is charged with the murder of a fellow student.

Every parental instinct Andy has rallies to protect his boy. Jacob insists that he is innocent, and Andy believes him. Andy must. He’s his father. But as damning facts and shocking revelations surface, as a marriage threatens to crumble and the trial intensifies, as the crisis reveals how little a father knows about his son, Andy will face a trial of his own—between loyalty and justice, between truth and allegation, between a past he’s tried to bury and a future he cannot conceive.
*****

This book was just a great suspense novel.  I really liked the premise, the flow, all of it.

Andy Barber is the asst. d.a. in his town for years.  He is very well respected and liked.   His wife Laurie is a loving woman who is considered the "mother" in her group of friends.  Their son Jacob is just a typical teenager, moody and sassy like all of them, or is he?

When local boy Ben Rifkin turns up murdered in a local park of course Andy is on the case.   His boss becomes concerned about a possible conflict of interest since Ben and Jacob attend the same school.  Andy passes it off as fellow prosecutor Neal Longiudice move to push Andy out of the way.  Before he can prove there's no conflict his son is charged with the murder.

Andy has to come clean to his wife and son about a past he thought was buried and forgotten.  His marriage is coming apart at the seams and his son is acting like nothing is wrong.  If they all will be able to survive this through to the end looks slimmer and slimmer with each passing day.  

If you love wondering what will happen next, I highly recommend this book . I liked it so much I told my hubby to read it and he is doing so now :) There was a fantastic twist to the ending that I didn't see coming, enjoy!

4 cannolis


Monday, August 13, 2012

July's Wrap




Well my friends, it may still be summer, but for me and mine it is officially back to school!  I now have a 3rd grader, junior high kiddo and a high school freshie! Three different schools, three different times.  And guess what, they went back right with a major heat wave striking :p it was it's been triple digits for 5 days now and today will be 104, yay what fun, send the kids back but they can't go out for recess.  We go back early due to our district being a modified traditional.  That  means they get the whole Thanksgiving week off, 3 wks at Christmas and 2 wks for spring break, I like having those breaks in the mix of the year so it really isn't so bad, what the problem is our region is in its high heat August into part of September, so if there was a way to end them closer to July and send them back in September or the last week of August it would be helpful.  Someone has said they won't do it due to testing and having to have a certain amount of days devoted to studying for it so they get high scores.  Oh well it is what it is ;)  On to books-

I had quite an reading month!  I read pnr, some chic lit all in all 8 books!  I haven't read that many in ages. five were pnr, the Immortals After Dark by Kresley Cole took a chunk of that.  I read four of them numbers 2 - 5.  I like Kresley.  I also read On The Island by Tracey Garvis Graves.  I didn't like this book I loved it, read my review *HERE*.  Just fantastic haven't read a goodie like this in a very long time.  I also had my book club choice, Falling Star by Diana Dempsy  not bad, decent chic lit, Larissa Ione's Ecstasy Unveiled which I also liked and That Boy by Jillian Dodd.  This was a very sweet book, not something I  normally would've picked out, but the description was so enticing I just had to read it.  My review is *HERE*.  Some might find this on the simple side, but I just enjoyed it, it worked for me.

Here's just an UNBELIEVABLE surprise where I'm concerned, I have read two YA's and just loved them.  I'm not big on them because I feel like there isn't any "icing on the cake"  but the two I read just knocked my socks off, Because of Low by Abbi Glines and Easy by Tamara Webber.  Loved Easy's cover, really nice.  I don't think I'll review, just not in the mood, but if you're a big YA fan, read em!  I got them through booklending.com.  I know some hate to read self published due to editing issues, but to be honest it doesn;t bother me all that much, if a book is good, then I'm happy.  As long as it isn't to the point of rendering it impossible to read, no biggie.

I'm letting the wind take me this month, whatever strikes my fancy.  August's book club choice it Defending Jacob by William Landay, and right now I'm reading Tap Tap by David Martin, a thriller with a paranormal twist.

Hope the rest of your summer is a great one!




Related Posts with Thumbnails