Pompeii by Robert Harris

This fictionalized account of Pompeii is told from the eyes of Marcus Attilius Primus, an upstanding Roman engineer rushes to repair an aqueduct in the shadow of Mount Vesuvius, which, in A.D. 79, is getting ready to blow its top. Young Marcus Attilius Primus becomes the aquarius of the great Aqua Augusta when its former chief engineer disappears after 20 years on the job. When water flow to the coastal town of Misenum is interrupted, Attilius convinces the admiral of the Roman fleet-the scholar Pliny the Elder-to give him a fast ship to Pompeii, where he finds the source of the problem in a burst sluiceway.

Attilius meets Corelia, the defiant daughter of a vile real estate speculator, who supplies him with documents implicating her father and Attilius's predecessor in a water embezzlement scheme. Attilius has bigger worries, though: a climb up Vesuvius reveals that an eruption is imminent. Before he can warn anyone, he's ambushed by the double-crossing foreman of his team, Corvax, and a furious chase ensues. As the volcano spews hot ash, Attilius fights his way back to Pompeii in an attempt to rescue Corelia.

It took me awhile to really get into this book as I found the politics a bit mundain.  But I didn't expect to find such suspense as the novel literally tells the story 48 hours before the demise of Pompeii.  It has been on a my reading list for several years now and I'm glad that I finally got to it.  This is not for the faint of heart as there are some very graphic violence and torture scenes that I had to skim through.

Ice princess by Camilla Läckberg; translated from Swedish

Returning to the Swedish coastal town of Fjallbacka, biographer Erica Falck to sort through her deceased parents' belongings and work on her next book. But this is not the same hometown she grew up in. Summer tourists are turning the former fishing village into a thriving resort, and Erica's controlling brother-in-law is pressuring her to cash in by selling the family home. Erica is struggling with her childhood memories as she tries to come to term with her abupt parents death.

The apparent suicide of childhood friend Alexandra Wijkner contributes to Erica's grief. Once inseparable, they drifted apart before Alex's family abruptly moved away, and Erica feels compelled to write a novel about why the beautiful Alex would kill herself.  During the investigation she meets police detective Patrick who she knew growing up.  The initial meeting quicky developes into a passionate affair. 

The story is somewhat complicated as we see many different points of view that provide some red heerings.  A very compleling mystery series set in cold country of Sweden, which during Phoenix hot summers is refreshing.

Scent of Rain and Lightning by Nancy Picard

One beautiful summer afternoon, from her bedroom window on the second floor, Jody Linder is unnerved to see her three uncles parking their pickups in front of her parents’ house—or what she calls her parents’ house, even though Jay and Laurie Jo Linder have been gone almost all of Jody’s life. “What is this fearsome thing I see?” the young high school English teacher whispers, mimicking Shakespeare. Polished boots, pressed jeans, fresh white shirts, Stetsons—her uncles’ suspiciously clean visiting clothes are a disturbing sign.

The three bring shocking news: The man convicted of murdering Jody’s father is being released from prison and returning to the small town of Rose, Kansas. It has been twenty-six years since that stormy night when, as baby Jody lay asleep in her crib, her father was shot and killed and her mother disappeared, presumed dead. Neither the protective embrace of Jody’s uncles nor the safe haven of her grandparents’ ranch could erase the pain caused by Billy Crosby on that catastrophic night.

Now Billy Crosby has been granted a new trial, thanks in large part to the efforts of his son, Collin, a lawyer who has spent most of his life trying to prove his father’s innocence. As Jody lives only a few doors down from the Crosbys, she knows that sooner or later she’ll come face-to-face with the man who she believes destroyed her family.

What she doesn’t expect are the heated exchanges with Collin. Having grown up practically side by side in this very small town, Jody and Collin have had a long history of carefully avoiding each other’s eyes. Now Jody discovers that underneath their antagonism is a shared sense of loss that no one else could possibly understand. As she revisits old wounds, startling revelations compel her to uncover the dangerous truth about her family’s tragic past.

This stand alone novel by Picard immediately drew me in and I wanted to know what really happened that fateful day.  I've enjoyed her Jenny Cain mystery series and especially her Eugenia Potter series that she finished for Virginia Rich.  I need to read more books by her.

Plugged by Eoin Colfer

Daniel McEvoy is an Irish ex-pat and now a bouncer at seedy Slotz, a New Jersey casino. McEvoy's friend, Zeb Kronski, has medical aspirations but no degree. That doesn't stop him from injecting fake Botox or performing liposuction. It's where Zeb injects the unwanted fat that magnifies the sassy, irreverent tone of this novel. Always a step ahead of the law, Zeb now transplants hair plugs for McEvoy and others.
Connie DeLyne is a hostess in the casino Dan works in and he has always had a soft spot for Connie.  But when he finds her dead with a dime-sized hole in her head, he becomes the prime suspect.  Detective Ronnie Deacon, investigates the homicide but McEvoy finds himself in an epic battle with her and her partner.

Now, Zeb has gone missing, but McEvoy finds himself having conversations with him and wonders if he is now a ghost or if they have some psychic connection.  Complicating matters is Irish Mike Madden, a fake Irishman as he has never been to Ireland, but controls rostitution, protection and a burgeoning crystal meth business" personify the Irish mafia.

If this story sounds complicated it is!  But I did find myself getting into the story and enjoying this crazy ride.

Kill time by T.J. MacGregor

Nora's mother disappeared when she was a child. Now, as she prepares to tell her husband that she wants a divorce, her childhood fears come back to haunt her as her husband is taken away from her right in front of her in a restaurant by FREEZE (Freedom and Security). Labeled as a terrorist, there is no recourse and her attempts to find out the charge become much too similar to a Kafka novel. As she traces a trail of clues left by her husband, she uncovers medical research gone awry, disappearing dissidents, political corruption and power brokering, greed run rampant and an eerie connection to a television show from the past.

With some interesting references to Rod Sterling of the Twilight Zone and Jerry Garcia as the story travels between 1998 and 1968.  Not the best time travel book I've read but it was fun.  I did a get fed up with all the sex swapping that seemed to be going on.  It is obvious from the ending this will become a series, but I don't think I'll look for others in the series.  Connie Willis is much better writer of time travel.

Redbreast by Jo Nesbo

Featuring Harry Hole

Shifting effortlessly between the last days of WWII on the Eastern front and modern day Oslo, Norwegian this is a complex tale of murder, revenge and betrayal. A recovering alcoholic recently reassigned to the Norwegian Security Service, Insp. Harry Hole begins tracking Sverre Olsen, a vicious neo-Nazi who escaped prosecution on a technicality.

But what starts as a quest to put Olsen behind bars soon explodes into a race to prevent an assassination. As Hole struggles to stay one step ahead of Olsen and his gang of skinheads, Nesbø takes the reader back to WWII, as Norwegians fighting for Hitler wage a losing battle on the Eastern front. When the two story lines finally collide, it's up to Hole to stop a man hell-bent on carrying out the deadly plan he hatched half a century ago in the trenches.

I really enjoy these books from another land but I get frustrated when the books are not translated in order.   This is book 3 in the series but the first 2 are not yet available in English.

Limpopo Academy of Private Detection by Alexander McCall Smith

Book 13 in No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency series

In the latest collection there are several storylines to keep track of.  Mma Potokwane, the matron of the orphans farm, is facing dismissal from her job. Add to this Phuti Radiphuti and his new bride, Grace Maskutsi are having a house built by a contractor who isn't quite following the rules. I raced through the book, hoping that all would come out well in the end.


But the most interesting addition is the arrival of Clovis Andersen, whose book The Principle of Private Detection has been the guide for the No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency since day one. Plus Fanwell (one of the apprentices at the garage) finds himself in legal trouble, by helping a friend fix a vehicle that ends up being a stolen vehicle.  So Mma Ramotswe has her hands full dealing with all these issues.

Happily in the end all the issues are resolved in a satisfying manner.  I really enjoyed the addition of Clovis to the story as both Mma Ramotswe and Mma Maskutsi try to impress him with their knowledge and use of his book.

Birds of a Feather by Jacqueline Winspear


Maisie Dobbs Mystery - book 2

Maisie gets hired by a wealthy industrialist to find his only daughter, Charlotte Waite, who has gone missing. With the help of her cockney assistant, Billy Beale, Maisie sets out to learn all she can of Charlotte's habits, character and friends.

No sooner has Maisie discovered the identities of three of these friends than they start turning up dead—poisoned, then bayoneted for good measure. At each crime scene is left a white feather. Increasingly preoccupied with these tragedies, Maisie almost loses sight of her original mission, until it becomes apparent that the murders and Charlotte's disappearance are related.

What I enjoy about this series is the layers in the storyline.  Maisie's assistance, Billy Beale, has been struggling with chronic pain from a war wound.  But lately even Maisie has noticed an erratic change in behavior and discovers that he has been self-medicating using cocaine.  So she strives to find a way to help him that doesn't destroy their relationship.  I find her storytelling really compelling and am looking forward to reading the next book.

Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet by Jamie Ford

Story opens as Henry Lee is still mourning the death of his wife when he learns that the belongings of Japanese Americans hidden in the basement of Seattle's Panama Hotel for decades have been discovered. Henry is drawn to the basement, and what he's searching for there opens a door he thought he had closed forever.

Henry Lee is a 12-year-old Chinese boy who falls in love with Keiko Okabe, a 12-year-old Japanese girl, while they are scholarship students at a prestigious private school in World War II Seattle. Henry hides the relationship from his parents, who would disown him if they knew he had a Japanese friend. His father insists that Henry wear an "I am Chinese" button everywhere he goes because Japanese residents of Seattle have begun to be shipped off by the thousands to relocation centers.

This is an old-fashioned historical novel that alternates between the early 1940s and 1984, after Henry's wife Ethel has died of cancer. A particularly appealing aspect of the story is young Henry's fascination with jazz and his friendship with Sheldon, an older black saxophonist just making a name for himself in the many jazz venues near Henry's home.

As we see Henry felt disconnected from his demanding and overbearing father who insisted that Henry stopped speaking Chinese at home even though he and his wife know little or no English.  As we see Henry in current time he and his son seem to  have the same disconnection.  What brings them together is a woman, this time the fiance of his son.  She is not Chinese but embraces the culture and goes out of her way to impress Henry.  It enables Henry to open his heart and go ofter his past. 

This was a beautiful story and I enjoyed seeing how Henry's past helped develop the future. I don't know a lot about the Japanese camps and found that fascinating.  This book has been on my reading list for a long time and I'm glad that I finally got to it.

Nerve Damage by Peter Abrahams

When sculptor Paul Valois learns that he has only months to live, his thoughts turn more frequently to Delia, his late, beloved wife. While undergoing an experimental treatment for mesothelioma, he aska friend to read his unpublished obit.  It is then he discovers that Delia's death--and life--may have been different than he believed. Debilitated by disease and chemotherapy, he sets out to learn the truth.

This fast paced novel starts out quietly and slowly but quickly takes off as Paul strives to discover what really happened to his wife.  But towards the ends you almost wonder how much is really happening or just inside his psychie.

Before the Poison by Peter Robinson

A widower, Chris Lowndes, returns to his native England after a successful career in Hollywood as a composer of background music for movies. Upon his wife's death, he decided to return to Yorkshire to write a composition to honor his wife's memory. He buys Kilnsgate House, an old mansion deep in the isolated Yorkshire countryside, only viewing it online and relying on his real estate agent to preview the property for him.

Chris finds the house charming, but has a vague sense that the house has been waiting for him as he sees or feels ghostly presences as he tours his home. He conducts inquiries and finds that the house was the scene of a murder in the 1950's. The home's owner, a prominent doctor, was poisoned by his much-younger wife and she was hung for the crime.

More intriguing is that he grew up not far from this house and was about 3 years old when incident happened but finds himself having dreams and memories of the events. 

Chris begins to delve into the background of this tragic event to determine what really happened. His curiosity quickly becomes an obsession to determine if the death of Dr. Fox was really a murder committed by his wife, Grace, or a natural death. As Chris delves deeper into the mystery, he conducts inquiries with locals who knew the Fox family, and searches through archives to find out what really happened. The more he reads and researches this tragedy, the more convinced he is that Grace was innocent and only declared guilty because she was having an affair with a much-younger man.

I found this story fascinating as it was almost a ghost story but more of a historical mystery as the story goes between Chris's time and his imagining the story based on Grace's diary - he discovered while looking through a desk.  This is a quite story of one person's self discovery as well as trying to solve a mystery from his childhood.  From my reading this is a stand-alone and not part of the Inspector Banks series.

Ghost, Interrupted by Sonia Singh

An amateur ghost-hunting team takes on a professional-grade haunting in this pale paranormal novel by the author of Bollywood Confidential and Goddess for Hire. Former stockbroker Scott Wilder recruits Indian-American psychic Anjali Kumar for his San Francisco ghost-hunting firm, the Cold Spot. Soon, the pair picks up the telekinetic drifter Coulter Marshall, whose golden-boy looks get more ink than his talents. The trio lands jobs removing spirits from expensive homes, but Singh's ghosts aren't scary in the least; they're just a pretext for the heroes to zip around the Bay Area and for Scott's ex-girlfriend, parapsychologist Vivica Bates, to re-enter the picture with her own paranormal investigation team. By the time the teams go head-to-head at a military base to impress the Department of Defense by exorcising the spirit of a tortured soldier, the mission is less important than the goofy antics that ensue.

I've read many reviews about this book and her others and was intrigued to try it out.  I enjoy a good chick lit kind of supernatural book.  And this fit the bill.  I liked how the main character was from India and how they main characters interacted and had interesting storylines.  I'll be interested to see if she writes more in this style and try her other books out.  2nd Kindle book so far.  I have to say it makes reading fast for me!

The Right Attitude to Rain by Alexander McCall Smith

3rd book in this delightful series - Isabel Dalhousie Mysteries

Isabel, fortysomething and well to do (her mother left her a sizable inheritance, much of which she donates anonymously to charity), once again finds herself in several ethical dilemmas. Her cousin and her husband, are visiting from Dallas, TX (from her American Mother's side).   They introduce her to an affable and affluent fellow Texan, whose flighty fiancee seems less interested in his character than his cash.  But as we all know there is always 2 sides to every relationship and this one is even more complicated than most.  At the end Isabel just can't tell who is really right so has to let it go. 

During her cousin's visit she discovers that her Sainted American Mother had an affair while in Dallas and never told Isabel's father as she died from cancer not long after.  So the main theme of this book is dealing with relationships and impressions. 

Meanwhile, Isabel must come to terms with her feelings for Jamie, who is 14 years Isabel's junior, but should age really matter when it comes to matters of the heart.  But most of all she will need to deal with her niece Cat, who used to date Jamie.  As Cat does not deal with rejection well.  But the ending of the book is one that makes me want to read further. 

Oh, before I forget.  This was the first book I read on my new Kindle Fire that Jose gave me on 5/4/12.  I'll still be a traditional book reader but am becoming around to the digital age.  It did read really well on the Kindle. 

Finder - Sin Eater by Carla Speed McNeil

Finder - Sin Eater by Carla Speed McNeil

Jaeger is a half-aborigine and an ex-soldier, rouge, wanderer, and much more. He has an uncanny healing ability even to the point he has to keep re-inking his tattoos. But most of all he is a finder, member of some sort of secret order of detectives and trackers; plus he's a sin-eater, thus a pariah but respected for his work of taking blame and punishment for someone else. Jaeger is also a borderline personality, incapable of settling, always restless, a twitching although basically good-natured mass of contradictions, a jack-of-all-trades, a master fighter.

Most of this storytime focuses on his relationship with his old mate and his ex-commanding officer Brigham Grosvenor who seems to be losing his mind.  Brigham was Jaeger’s commanding officer during his brief stint in the army. A Medawar from a police family, Brigham ended up in the military after he bucked family and clan tradition by marrying a Llaverac. After being assigned to a small, predominantly Medawar outpost, Brigham became increasingly unbalanced, holding Emma and their three children prisoner—first subtly, then directly—for several years.  So now Jaegar has to decide who he is loyal too.

I had read some reviews of the complete collection and just found it to be very overwhelming so tried this collection of issues 1-14 & 22. Reading the commentary the author has at the end is interesting as it gives one a window of why she wrote that section. The hardest part of this collection is that time seems fluid and flows back and forth that I kept getting characters confused. But I found myself enjoying it the 2nd time around once my brain had time to process it all.

Knowland Retribution (The Locator Series) by Richard Greener

Walter Sherman, a/k/a the Locator, is a tracker who honed his skills in Vietnam. He lives in St. John island and hangs out at a bar Bill a bartender with a mysterious past and Ike an old black man who smokes like a chimney. 

When successful Atlanta lawyer Leonard Martin loses his family-wife, daughter and grandchildren-to a vicious strain of e.coli, he wins a $6 million settlement and promptly disappears. Three years later, Martin begins gunning down those connected to Knowland, the meat-packing company responsible, one by one-from line workers to high-powered investment bankers.

 

Through the grapevine they surviving Wall Street investment bankers contact Walter and ask him to find this unknown assassin. 

Isabel is a young journalist who writes obituaries for the New York Times and starts linking 3 random deaths together and concludes all were connected to Knowland and probably killed the same person.  She becomes an overnight sensation and attracts the attention of Walter and he helps her make an even more sinister spider web of people who decided that human lives were worth less than money and their comfort.


I discovered this series because I really enjoy the TV show based on this series.  Finder on Fox.  It is quirky and fun and while I see hints of the characters in this book it is not nearly as quirky and fun but still an enjoyable supsense thriller.  I will probably read another book down the road.

Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins

Final book in the Hunger Games triology

Finally made it the final book in this series.  Following her subversive second victory in the Games, this one composed of winners from past years, Katniss has been adopted by rebel factions as their symbol for freedom and becomes the rallying point for the districts in a desperate bid to take down the Capitol and remove President Snow from power. But being the Mockingjay comes with a price as Katniss must come to terms with how much of her own humanity and sanity she can willingly sacrifice for the cause, her friends, and her family.

I wanted to read this one as book 2 left such a clifhanger.  But this was a tough book to read through as it focused much more on the violence of war and how far will people go to be right.  I was overall happy with the ending as I didn't expect there to be a easy resolution.

The night circus by Erin Morgenstern

The circus arrives without warning. No announcements precede it. It is simply there, when yesterday it was not. Within the black-and-white striped canvas tents is an utterly unique experience full of breathtaking amazements. It is called Cirque des Reves and it is only open at night. But behind the scenes, a fierce competition is underway - a duel between two young magicians, Celia and Marco, who have been trained since childhood expressly for this purpose by their mercurial instructors. Unbeknownst to them, this is a game in which only one can be left standing, and the circus is but the stage for a remarkable battle of imagination and will. Despite themselves, however, Celia and Marco tumble headfirst into love - a deep, magical love that makes the lights flicker and the room grow warm whenever they so much as brush hands. True love or not, the game must play out, and the fates of everyone involved, from the cast of extraordinary circus performers to the patrons, hang in the balance, suspended as precariously as the daring acrobats overhead.

I listened to this on CD read by Jim Gale (voice of the Harry Potter books - is an excellent reader)

Wow, I so enjoyed this book.  I think I'll go back and re-read it in print after listening to it on CD in the car.  Of course it will have comparisions to Harry Potter but who cares, this was an excellent story and I would welcome her writing sequels about the other characters in the story.

Tower of Treasure by Scott Chantler

Fourteen-year-old Dessa Redd is an orphan who witnessed her brother's kidnapping years earlier. Now she is working as an acrobat in a traveling circus, but she still continues to search for her twin and the man who took him. She hopes that she will find them in the royal city of Kingsbridge. Topper the juggler and Fisk the strongman plan to rob the royal treasury, and because Dessa is also desperate for money, she reluctantly joins them. Little does she know how much this one decision is going to change her life. This book contains a lot of action, but there are also numerous instances where readers will want to slow down and think about the story more deeply, as when Dessa has flashbacks about her family.

Not really one of my favorites but it had gotten interesting reviews.  Geared towards a younger audience, found her weird looking side-kicks rather annoying.

Doctor Digs a Grave by Robin Hathaway

Introduces Doctor Fenimore

When cardiologist Dr. Andrew Fenimore isn't mending weak hearts, he's solving crimes in Philadelphia's wealthy Society Hill. But murder is the last thing the good doctor expects when he befriends a teenage boy, named Horatio, trying to bury his dead cat. As the two dig a grave for the cat's final resting place in a vacant lot-- which happens to be an ancient burial ground-- they discover a fresh corpse, buried feet flexed, facing east, according to Lenape Indian tradition.  They learn that that woman buried, Sweet Grass, was the fiance of the son of one of Fenimore's colleagues, from a promident family and a very well-known surgeon.

The story becomes more complicated when Fenimore is asked by the family to find Sweet Grass (initially it is a missing person's case) and then to discover what really happened.  Did Sweet Grass die of natural causes or did one of the family help her along.

This series has been on my reading list for such a long time and I found  myself really enjoying it and the other characters.  Since I work with so many doctors it was kind of nice to read how he does his practice.  Looking forward to reading more of this series.

Human Target: Chance Meetings by Peter Milligan, Edvin Biukovic (Illustrator) and Javier Pulido (Illustrator)

Collects the first 10 issues of Human Target in one collection

Christopher Chance was a soldier-of-fortune, a man who would disguise himself as someone marked for death then step in front of a bullet, betting his life that his skills and mind were sharp enough not only to save his life but the life of the person that had hired him as well. People called him the Human Target, and the nickname stuck. However, no one could ever guess at the huge price Chance had to pay to become someone else. The Human Target didn't just change his looks when he assumed an identity; he also changed his thoughts and feelings, becoming the person he was trying to protect.

Now, Chance is semi-retired and he has a young protégé named Tom McFadden stepping into his shoes. Only Tom is struggling with the whole Human Target gig too-struggling so much that he sometimes forgets who he is and can't remember how to be who he really is. Earl James is a militant black preacher drawing a line in the sand against the local drug dealers, headed up by Dee Noyz. Emerald is an assassin-for-hire, every bit as dedicated and driven as Christopher Chance, and she's been contracted to kill the Human Target. Christopher Chance is caught in the middle of a vicious crossfire: he wants to save himself and Tom McFadden, who feels he must save Earl James. At the same time, Chance has to stay out of the line of fire from Emerald and Dee Noyz. Chance is working against the clock. How can he find the man he trained-someone who can be anyone?

2nd part is Final Cut

Bodyguard to the stars Christopher Chance is a kind of extreme actor, who uses makeup and mimicry to transform himself into the people he protects. Milligan's (Enigma) twisted, deceptive work is a humorous tale about fame, betrayal and the Tinseltown wannabes that get left behind. Chance is hired to impersonate an aging movie star who's been targeted by a murdering extortionist. When the threatened actor refuses to pay, the killer strikes, only to discover the able and deadly Chance awaiting him. In the ensuing fight, Chance kills the extortioner. Or does he? The same extortioner is believed to have kidnapped a child star, whose parents hire Chance to find him. In the process of trying to locate the kidnapped teen, Chance takes on the identity of this killer (who turns out to be a nutty failed screenwriter), only to find his own sense of identity, and that of the killer's, merging into one confusing multiple personality. By the tale's end, Chance learns that one never really knows who anyone is.

Human Target was one of my favorite TV shows that no longer airs.  So I was intrigued to try out this graphic novel collection.  It is nothing like the TV show but fun to read never-the-less.