Death of a Cozy Writer by G.M. Malliet

Adrian Beauclerk-Fisk is a writer of cozy British mysteries, and he's also an absolute beast. Pompous, phony, and cruel to his family, frequently changing his will in favor of whichever of his children has momentarily pleased him (or displeased him the least), he decides to have some real fun by inviting his four children to his wedding. They are aghast of course, seeing a threat to their inheritances, but they all head toward his manor, figuratively attempting to elbow their way into his favor and hopefully talk him out of this marriage to an obvious gold digger. (It takes one to know one!)

Then Sir Adrian drops the bombshell that his marriage is a done deal, that he and Violet are already man and wife and that his will has (yet again) been changed--but he doesn't say how. Shortly thereafter, Sir Adrian's eldest child Ruthven is brutally murdered, and it's not long before he follows his son to the afterlife. Just about everyone has motive to kill one or another of them, so who dunnit?

This felt like one of classic who done it written by Agatha Christie with lots of red hearings and a pretty good twist at the end.  Unfortunately I got rather annoyed by the clever dialog that I felt distracted from a pretty good mystery.  I also didn't feel connected to the main characters - Detective Inspector St. Just and Sergeant Fear as they felt kind of superfiscial.  Maybe I should try another as I believe there are several Malliet has written.  I felt like I should have liked it more than I really did. 

Stalking Susan by Julie Kramer


Two cold cases spark a hot story for flailing TV reporter Riley Spartz. Although she's as driven and fast-driving as any of her competitors, she's been sidelined by more than ratings. Her Minnesota state trooper husband was killed in the line of duty, a tragedy that has caused Spartz to take time off just when she should be renegotiating her contract.

Then a friendly source, an ex-homicide cop, drops a potential story in her lap. It concerns a possible serial killer who has already killed two young women named Susan on the exact same date, one year apart. The problem is, those murders were years ago, and Spartz must dig through databases to see if the killings have continued and if other young women are at risk. The all-important November ratings are coming up, as is the anniversary of the murders, and Spartz must take seriously her contact's hunch--that the killer could be a cop.

I had read a review of this series and it looked fun so thought I would give it a try. It gave a different perspective into TV mysteries as it comes from the point of view of a reporter as well as a network who is looking for next big scoop. Riley has to balance between finding out the truth and getting the ratings needed to keep her job.  We find out what makes her tick as see the death of her husband through her flashbacks.  It gives her an interesting point of view.

Ice Cold Grave by Charlaine Harris

3rd in the series featuring Harper Connelly (who finds dead bodies) and her stepbrother Tolliver

For the past several years six boys of a similar age have gone missing in the town of Doraville, North Carolina. The previous Sheriff seemed to turn a blind eye or even investigate their disappearances, claiming they were probably runaways or suicides. The new sheriff, who was deputy under the old sheriff, has always thought something was wrong. But she has run out of leads and ideas on how to locate the boys. 

Harper is brought into the picture by Twyla, the grandmother of one of the missing boys and is willing to try anything at this point. She convinces the sheriff and the other townspeople to hire and give Harper a chance. It isn't long before Harpers gifts are proven right but instead of one body - 8 total are discovered - all missing boys from the town and local areas.  Now the town has a serial killer on their hands and the truth is even more horrifying than anyone ever imagined.

The story gets even more complicated when Harper is attacked and has to be hospitilized.  Both only want to leave town but are unable to do so until Harper is stable enough to travel.  This is by far the best book of the series.  We see more development between Harper & Tolliver and see how complicated their familiy life is for them.

I've really enjoyed Charlaine Harris' books over the years and this series has been a lot of fun to read.  I find myself liking her non-Sookie Stackhouse books better and hope she continues to write more.

Pride & Prejudice by Nancy Butler, Hugo Petrus, artist ; Alejandro Torres, colorist ; Dave Shapre, letterer ; adapted from the novel by Jane Austen.

Writer Nancy Butler and artist Hugo Petrus capture the essentials of Miss Jane Austen's classic romance in graphic novel format. Inevitably, the storyline has been compressed, and the dialogue was been slightly modernized, but fans should have no problem recognizing the story of the Bennets, the Bingleys, and Mr. Darcy. The best of the dialogue has been preserved while giving us a graphic presentation of a classic. 

I did enjoy this graphic novel version as it captured the essence of what makes this classic timeless and so good.  Hopefully this will bring this story to a new age of readers.

Attachments by Rainbow Rowell

The story begins with Lincoln feeling like he's somehow trespassing into his co-workers lives as the IT Security Office watchdog. His job requires him to monitor the email going in and out of the newspaper office for red flag warnings issued through the Webfence mail filters. Two non-politically correct co-workers in particular, Jennifer and Beth, catch his attention and he begins to feel as if he knows them. Now understand this was in the late-90's when email was just becoming part of the corporate culture.  I remember when I started in libraries and we had to sign all kinds of documents stating we wouldn't use our email for personal use and it would be monitored. 

Best newsroom pals Beth and Jennifer trade gossip over their romances—Beth with her marriage-phobic boyfriend, Chris, and Jennifer with her baby-mania-stricken husband, Mitch. Lincoln becomes intrigued by their emails and can't stop himself reading them though he neglects to send warnings or report them. Things become interesting when Beth sends an email to Jennifer about 'my cute guy'. It dawns on Lincoln that Beth is talking about him!

Now he has to wrestle with the dilemma of trying to find out what she looks like, where her desk is and feeling like a peeping tom into Beth and Jennifer's lives. This turn of events makes him feel even more disgusted with the progress of his own life, unable to move on after his girlfriend, Sam, broke his heart. His job is boring, his social life consists of playing Dungeons & Dragons on Saturday nights with old college friends and to make matters worse he begins to wonder about his ethics as a result of the email peeping.

You can't help but want to read to the end to find out what really happens to everyone.  Now I read this book because the author is a former Omaha World Herald reporter and my mom was very excited about this book coming out.  I have to say I'm glad that I read it.  I did find it interesting that Rainbow never lists it being Omaha or the paper's name but does list the Indian Hills movie theater that was torn down in 2001.  Reading more about it the Omaha World Herald was one of the driving forces behind it's demolition - this was where Rainbow worked.  I remember seeing many movies in that theater which was a single theater and held 100's of people.   So it brought back those memories.

The book was insightful and funny and made me nostalgic for when I first started using email.

Obsidian prey by Jayne Castle (aka Jayne Ann Krentz)

This is the sixth installment in Castle/Krentz's Harmony series which has links to Krentz's Arcane society books with psychic abilities and in common ancestors.

The Dores were famous for their luck bad luck, that is and Lyra is a true Dore. Three months ago, she located an ancient amethyst ruin deep in the rain forest on planet Harmony, but she was swindled out of her claim by the CEO of Amber, Inc., Cruz Sweetwater, the man Lyra just happened to be dating at the time.  Though she didn't know it as he used a fake name.  Hence their big breakup.

Now Cruz needs Lyra to help free some of his employees, who have become trapped in the ruin. Cruz is the last person in the world Lyra wants to help, but she isn't about to let five people suffer just because their boss is a jerk. Working with Cruz proves to be a bit difficult, though, once Lyra discovers Cruz believes she is his true love, and that he now wants her back in his life, for good.

I've been reading her books set in Harmony for about 15 years and it was nice to read one that is back to the fun yet somewhat suspenseful romance atmosphere. 

Dark of the Moon by John Sandford

Featuring Virgil Flowers

Headed to rural Bluestem to assist local law enforcement with the seemingly motiveless murder of an elderly couple, Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension investigator Virgil Flowers happens upon a raging house fire on the edge of town. The house's owner, Bill Judd, killed in the blaze, was an elderly recluse who, back in the day, ran an elaborate pyramid scheme and simultaneously bedded half the women in town. He escaped conviction on the fraud charge, and the money was never recovered.

There have been no murders in Bluestem for a half-century, and now there are three in a couple weeks. Virgil is not an advocate of coincidence and so begins digging for a connection between the victims. Complicating matters is his affair with the sister of the local police chief.

Flowers is part of the Sandford's Prey series but not a major characters. It is nice to see him the main focus of this new series.

I listened to this on CD and while I'm not a major fan of John Sandford I do like him for a change of pace.

Gateway by Sharon Sinn

When Daiyu, a St. Louis high school student adopted as a baby from China, lives an ordinary life - she is spending her summer volunteering and getting ready for high school to begin.  Then she purchases the ring, she is transported, not back in time – but to an alternate universe. The universe is a near replica in terms of geography to her home in St. Louis but the buildings and modes of transportation are different and the people all look Chinese, they speak an unknown language (which the ring enables her to understand). Daiyu learns that she has been called upon to complete a mission to send an evil leader back to his own universe. The only problem is that Daiyu likes him and cannot commit to the act.

I enjoyed this teen alternative reality novel.  It wasn't overly complicated but the issues that Daiyu deals with felt very real.  Is she allowed to have free will or is her fate already decided?  She is starting to forget the world she came from but finds her self caring little about that as she is falling in love with Kalen.  Kalen is a native boy who helps Daiyu adapt to this strange place.  But when by fate she actually accomplishes her mission there is little reason for her to stay so will she follow her heart and return to her parents and the world she knows or stay and make a life for herself with Kalen?   

One of my favorite movies is Made in Heaven starring Timothy Hutton and Kelly McGillis and the ending of this book reminded me a lot of this movie.  Not a great teen book but a decent one and maybe it will open a new world to teens who only want to read vampire books.

Beekeeper's Apprentice: or on the Segregation of the Queen by Laurie R. King

Featuring Sherlock Holmes and Mary Russell

In the early years of WW I, 15-year-old American Mary Russell encounters Holmes, retired in Sussex Downs where Conan Doyle left him raising bees. Mary, an orphan rebelling against her guardian aunt's strictures, impresses the sleuth with her intelligence and acumen. Holmes initiates her into the mysteries of detection, allowing her to participate in a few cases when she comes home from her studies at Oxford. The collaboration is ignited by the kidnapping in Wales of Jessica Simpson, daughter of an American senator. The sleuthing duo find signs of the hand of a master criminal, and after Russell rescues the child, attempts are made on their lives (and on Watson's), with evidence piling up that the master criminal is out to get Holmes and all he holds dear. 

Now I know that I am biased as I'm a huge Sherlock Holmes fan and have tried out various series out there that feature Sherlock Holmes but still find this one of my favorite as he seems much more likable.  King does an excellent job of tying in the original stories and then adapting her characters to fill in the gaps.  I've read this one several times and it always seems as fresh as the first time I read it years ago.

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone by J.K. Rowling

The novel opens with Harry living under the cupboard with aunt and uncle. He has had a mean, depressed life, but has no joy or love for his life. He is basically a male version of Cinderella. Just before his 11th birthday he gets a letter (actually, hundreds) saying he is in fact a wizard. After the Dursleys try to hide him away a giant man, named Hagrid, finds him on his birthday and takes him to a new and wondrous life. As he goes through platform 9 and 3/4 he meets Ron and Hermione who will be his best friends.  He also meets Malfoy who will be one of his greatest foes.

Before he goes to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, Harry, along with his new friend the giant Hagrid, go to Diagon Alley, a magical bazaar. Harry discovers that he is really famous among wizards for conquering an evil Wizard named Vo - um - He Who Must Not Be Named. Along the way, we learn that Voldemort is after a magical artifact called the Sorcerer's Stone (which was, unfortunately, changed from the UK original title of Philosopher's Stone" in all other regions). 

In this novel we get the first ever glimpses of Hogwarts, Voldemort, Quidditch, Dumbledore, Severus Snape, muggles, the Forbidden Forest, the Invisibility Cloak, and any other number of thins Rowling's magical confectionery of an imagination has cooked up for us.

I remember reading this book in early 1999 and being amazed by how fun it was to read and incredulous that the Phoenix library had to import a British edition for us to read.  I've have read this book so many times and especially love hearing it read by Jim Dale.

No Good Deeds by Laura Lippman

Tess's boyfriend, Edgar "Crow" Ransome, brings home for the night a homeless teenager, Lloyd, who slashed Crow's tires outside a Baltimore soup kitchen. During dinner Tess suspects that Lloyd has information regarding the recent murder of Assistant U.S. Attorney Gregory Youssef.  After peeling the story out of Lloyd Tess gives his story, sans name, to the local paper, so the authorities will get it secondhand.

this causes a ripple affect as suddenly a fellow street kid of Lloyd's is murdered and it causes Lloyd to panic as only he knows the connection.  Tess starts to get visits from a sinister trio of law enforcement agents avid to know her source. Crow decides that it would be in Lloyd's best interest for them both to disappear and flees with Lloyd while Tess suffers growing pressure, including the threat of federal jail time.

We read the story as it goes back and forth between Tess & Crow with a couple of side chapters from 2 of the bad guys. Tess is one of my favorite series and I always relish her books.  This story wasn't particularily complicated as it focused more on how choosing your path can really affect one's future.

666 Park Avenue by Gabriella Pierce

It seems like magic when Jane Boyle finds herself falling in love with fabulously wealthy American Malcolm Doran.  After just a month he proposes and she accepts and decides to move to New York to be with him and his family.  But before she can leave she takes him to meet her superstitious, overprotective grandmother.  Jane is an orphan raised in the rural Alsace region of France by her grandmother and she moved to Paris to study architecture. When they find her grandmother deceased Jane isn't really upset as she was not close to her grandmother but upon getting ready for the funneral finds an envelope with her name on it that contain a mysterious letter from her grandmother and a silver ring that changes everything.

Jane discovers that she has magical powers and that she's a witch from a long line of witches!  She decides to continue her plan of going to New York and marring Malcolm.  But when she meets Malcolm's family, one of the oldest and most powerful in New York, she discovers that nothing is as it seems and starts to question if her love of Malcolm is even real.  She quickly discovers that her magic will be useless against them, especially Malcolm's very intimidating mother, Lynne. But as her wedding day gets closer, Jane discovers that there's more to the Dorans than she thought, and her magic might be the only thing that will save her.

Fun, light read that gave another element to a supernatural romance.  I did like how the ending was left open and felt much more real than I expected as Jane has to decide to either go on her own or run away with Malcolm.

Devotion of Suspect X by Keigo Higashino; translated by Alexander O. Smith with Elye J. Alexander

Meticulous high-school math teacher Ishigami frequents the modest box-lunch shop Benten-tei because of his crush on Yasuko Hanaoka, a young mother who works there. Yonazawa and his wife Sayoko, who manage the shop, speculate regularly about Ishigami's visits, but Yasuko seems oblivious to his attention. Although she and her daughter Misato are Ishigami's apartment building neighbors, they've never spoken outside of the shop.

But when divorcee Yasuko Hanaoka is forced to kill her abusive ex-husband in defense of her daughter, Ishigami offers his help to dispose of the body and provide an alibi based on "perfect defense based on perfect logic," his plot to save her from arrest. As the police investigation proceeds, Ishigami isolated world is broken as detective Kusanagi reports going to college with him.  He mentions this to physicist Manabu Yukawa while playing chess and this prompts Yukawa to reconnect with Ishigami. Thus begins a intrigute cat and mouse dance.

Meanwhile Yasuko's past comes in the form of wealthy Mr. Kudo who used to visit her when she worked at a bar.  He has found her at her new job and works at winning Yasuko's heart but will her conscience to Yukawa allow herself to fall in love? 

As the police chip away at the alibi, it is slowly revealed that the math genius' devotion to Yasuko is based not only on love but also on the purity of committing the perfect crime. Yasuko has to remain a pawn to the math teacher's plan, but she wonders how long and how far he will go.

Higashino won Japan's Naoki Prize for Best Novel with this stunning thriller about miscarried human devotion, a bestseller in Japan.  Wow, was this an intense book.  Reminds of the Alfred Hitchcock movies where you just didn't know where the story would take you.  The ending chapters kept me guessing and had me gasping as the real story unfolded.  I think this may be one of the best books I've read so far this year.

My Last Supper: 50 Great Chefs and Their Final Meals: Portraits, Interviews, and Recipes by Melanie Dunea

Melanie Dunea, an award-winning photographer, wrote to 50 famous chefs and asked them to describe their ideal last meal. Their answers, compiled in this weirdly absorbing and gorgeously designed volume, range from the comforting (Lidia Bastianich bids adieu over a plate of linguini and clams) to the cheekily self-aggrandizing (Laurent Tourondel wants nothing more than a BLT sandwich from his own restaurant). The meals are curiosities, and the few recipes included are pleasant enough; it's the photographs of each chef that make this book so irresistible. One needn't have heard of them, much less dined in their restaurants, to appreciate their portraits: from a graceful Gabrielle Hamilton nursing her son to a dashing Guillaume Brahimi reclining in front of the Sydney Opera House, each image is iconic, surprising, and quite often, oddly appetizing. Marcus Samuelsson poses, impishly, in a Japanese-style headband made of salmon; Wylie Dufresne leans like a centerfold on a table stacked with American cheese; and Anthony Bourdain poses totally nude, strategically wielding a butchered leg bone. But perhaps no picture is more memorable than Dan Barber's, a soft-featured New York chef, posing alongside a massive boar named Boris. His last meal is rack of boar, of course: "If I'm going, so is Boris."


Now I heard about this book because it was featured on Top Chef All-Stars as one of the final challenges for the top 3 - they had to give 3 other chefs their last meals.  So I was intrigued enough to find the book at the library.  I knew something or recognized about 75% of the chefs featured. My main complaint is the font - it is really hard to read and I wished the questions had been in the same order for each chef so I could have browsed easier.  Some chefs were very verbose and some said very little. But it was fascinating to learn a bit more about each one by what they love to eat.

Wicked Appettite by Janet Evanovich

Featuring the 7 Deadly sins - this one focuses on gluttony.

Lizzy Tucker has a way with cupcakes, and she’s inherited a great-aunt’s 1740 saltbox house in Salem, Massachusetts, plying her trade at Dazzle’s Bakery in town. Who should turn up in her living room but Diesel, who we met in Visions of Sugar Plums, who is extremely handsome, very strong, and not entirely human (if not entirely angelic). Diesel is locked into a cosmic battle with his cousin Wulf, specter-thin with more than an air of sulfur about him.

Lizzy, who may or may not have a secret, special ability, is needed by Wulf and Diesel to recognize objects of magical power. Lizzy gamely attempts to make sense of oddly magical occurrences (in possession of one of the magic charms, she can’t stop eating; in possession of another, she wants household goods and babies now), while simultaneously dealing with some fairly specific threats involving Wulf and resisting Diesel’s obvious affection and attraction.

fun weekend read and I enjoyed having some new characters to read about as well as a few from other Stephanie Plum novels.  Maybe some more cross-overs to come? Looking at Evanovich's website she states these will feature the 7 deadly sins - so maybe only 7 will be in this series.

Still Life by Louise Penny

Chief Inspector Gamache Novel

The residents of a tiny Canadian village in Quebec, Canada called Three Pines are shocked when the body of Miss Jane Neal is found in the woods. Miss Neal, the village's retired schoolteacher and a talented amateur artist, has been a good friend to most of the townsfolk, so her loss is keenly felt. At first, her death appears to be a tragic accident--it's deer-hunting season, and it looks a stray hunter's arrow killed her.

But since no one can find the murder weapon Chief Inspector Armand Gamache of the Montreal Surete is called in to investigate. Accompanying Gamache are his loyal assistant Beauvoir and Yvette Nichol, a new addition to Gamache's team. The trio soon finds that the seemingly peaceful, friendly village hides dark secrets.

This intriguing cozy was much more graphic than I expected and was a pleasant surprise as now I want to read more. It has the flair of a Miss Marple but the drama of Hercule Poirot.

Slightly Shady by Amanda Quick (aka Jayne Ann Krentz)

Lavinia Lake first encounters Tobias March when he bursts into her antiques shop in Rome, trashing her wares, all the while claiming to be on the trail of a murderer and warning Lavinia that she is in danger. There's also talk of treason, a criminal organization known as the Blue Chamber and an evil mastermind named Azure.

Despite her skepticism, Lavinia returns with her niece, Emeline, to London, where she is caught up in more intrigue. She sets herself up as a private detective and even though stubbornness on both sides leads to an oil-and-water pairing, she soon finds herself in business with Tobias, attempting to foil a blackmail scheme, locate the culprit in a series of murders and identify the surviving member of Azure's organization. 

Lavinia also is skilled in the practice of mesmerism, but decides to become a private investigator. Strong-willed and independent, Lavinia isn't a typical society widow, a fact which alternately attracts and frustrates her enigmatic partner, Tobias March. Lavinia and Tobias have a prickly and passionate relationship, and Tobias is determined to protect her, while Lavinia is just as determined to be an equal partner in their business. 

Both Lavinia and Tobias come from simliar backgrounds where they have to take responsiblity of another person and help make both better.  But the sexual tension doesn't have much depth and it took me awhile to figure out what drives the characters.  The sub-characters were almost more interesting than the main ones.

The first chapter of the next book in the series was included but I'm not sure if I'm that interested in reading more of this series or not.  It reminds me of the Amelia Peabody and Radcliffe Emerson series by Elizabeth Peters which I think I really prefer.  Plus I think I prefer her books that have more a futuristic aspect to them that she writes under Jayne Castle.

Strain by Guillermo del Toro & Chuck Hogan

First in the Strain series

When a plane arriving from Berlin goes completely black on the runway at JFK, losing all electrical power and contact with the outside world, authorities expect to find a tense hostage situation on board. Instead, they discover that almost everyone on the plane has mysteriously died, presumably during the very brief interval between the time it landed and the moment a SWAT team stormed the cabin. Suspecting a disease of some kind and fearing its spread, authorities call in Dr. Ephraim Goodweather, head of a CDC team set up to deal with just this sort of fast-moving, potentially catastrophic epidemic.

What Dr. Goodweather and his team gradually discover, however, is something much stranger and potentially even more dangerous: a species of parasitic worm that gradually turns its host into a bloodthirsty something that very closely resembles a vampire. Soon they are operating well outside the realm of established science, especially after they team up with Abraham Setrakian, a Holocaust survivor and former academic who now operates a pawnshop in Spanish Harlem and has dealt with this sort of thing before. Armed with Setrakian's knowledge and an extensive arsenal of anti-vampire weaponry, the CDC team sets out to control the outbreak by attacking its source.

An interesting premise and I was intrigued by the storyline as I've enjoyed many vampire novels in the past.  This one did not disappoint though I could tell towards the end that it was going to be a series as there was no way it could be finished in one.  So of course there is a cliff-hanger to make me want to read the next one.  But it was borderline too much for me.  The gore was pretty offensive especially in some sections.  I just turned down the volume and waited it out.

Ristorante Paradiso by Natsume Ono

Nicoletta, in her late teens or early 20's is seeking out the mother who left her as a child.  She finds her way to Casetta dell'Orso, a quaint little restaurant in the heart of Rome. The food's delicious, but the handsome staff of bespectacled gentlemen is the real draw. Nicoletta's mother, Olga, left her with her grandmother when she was 4 years old to marry her dream man, Lorenzo, whom she believes would have refused her had she revealed the existence of her child. Fifteen years later, the adult Nicoletta plans to expose her mother by telling Lorenzo the truth.

But instead decides to observe her mother and her relationship with her husband and the people who work in the restaurant.  She finds herself attracted to one particular waiter, Claudio, who still wears a wedding ring even though he has been divorced for years.  But his ex-wife continues to eat in the restaurant every week almost making in impossible for him to move on.  So Nicolette continues to watch and learn from everyone as she starts to work in the kitchen prepping and cleaning.

I enjoyed this quiet graphic novel though I'm not really sure I understood everything but found the illustrations intriguing and it kept me reading.

Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest by Stieg Larsson

This picks up where "Girl Who Played with Fire" left off - Lisbeth Salander, who was found by Blomkvist shot in the head is alive after having brain surgery. Though still the prime suspect in three murders in Stockholm, she is convalescing under armed guard.  Meanwhile Mikael Blomkvist works to unravel the decades-old coverup surrounding the man who shot Salander: her father, Alexander Zalachenko, a Soviet intelligence defector and longtime secret asset to Säpo, Sweden's security police. While Blomkvist and Listbeth primarily communicate via online the story flows as both come to terms with the truth.

It took me 2 months to read this book as the first 350 pages just were difficult for me to process.  We are introduced to many new characters while we continue to follow old ones.  Plus since I knew it was the final book I think I just didn't want to finish it.  But once I got to about 350 I just couldn't put it down.  Thankfully it was over a long weekend so I was able to finish it and I felt very happy by the ending.  While I'll miss this series I felt like it ended where I would like it to be.

Hereville: How Mirka Got Her Sword by Barry Deutsch

Mirka is a normal Orthodox Jewish girl who dreams of fighting dragons.  She constantly battles wits with her stepmother, Fruma, whose argumentative nature and sharp nose conceal a warm and caring nature.  Mirka is stuck going to school, cleaning and has to learn how to knit, yet longs to wield a sword and do battle with dragons. 

One day on her way to school she takes a wrong turn and discovers a magical house where a witch lives.  She brings her siblings there to prove she isn't just making it up.  She takes one grape and finds herself caught in a battle of wills with a talking pig.  The girl encounters both a mind-reading witch and a multilingual troll in her quest for a sword with which to fight dragons. Yiddish language and Jewish customs are an essential part of the story and provide window to another way of life. 

The scene where Mirka outwits the troll and obtains the sword is hysterical as she is challenged to a race of knitting the perfect sweater.  What makes this graphic novel endearing is the relationships that Mirka has with her stepmother and her opinionated brothers and sisters.  We see how life is in an Orthodox Jewish village as Mirka has to deal with life and yet dreams outside her ordinary life.  Interestingly enough the father never has a voice and is in the background while the stepmother is the one who teaches Mirka how to live life including how to fight trolls.  A fun yet thought provoking graphic novel.

Timbuktu by Paul Auster

Mr. Bones, "a mutt of no particular worth or distinction," and his master, Willy G. Christmas, a middle-aged schizophrenic who has been on the streets since the death of his mother four years before. The novel begins with Willy and Mr. Bones in Baltimore searching for a former high school English teacher who had encouraged the teenage Willy's writerly aspirations. Now Willy is dying and anxious to find a home for both his dog and the multitude of manuscripts he has stashed in a Greyhound bus terminal.  Timbuktu is Willy's name for heaven.

After Mr. Bones is forced to leave Willy he is temporarily adopted by a Chinese boy named Henry but after a few days is discovered by Henry's father and forced to run again.  He then finds a family with 2 young children, Alice & Tiger - but there is no longer has control of his own life.  There are rules that he must follow or there might be serious consequences. But in the end Mr. Bones decides his own fate and goes to find the road to Timbuktu.

This was a rough book to read as about half is focused on Willy and Mr. Bones' relationship and mostly about Willy's rants. But this is all Mr. Bones has ever known.  Over the years I've worked with a lot of homeless that are homeless by choice - more often than not really intelligent people.  So it was hard to read the sections with Willy.  Plus I knew the book wasn't really going to be a happy one - it just had a despondent feel to it.  But there were some really lovely passages - I loved the section in which Mr. Bones turns into a fly and follows Willy to the hospital and is there until he dies.  It is a dream of course but wouldn't it be a wonderful thing?

Dexter is Delicious by Jeff Lindsay

5th book featuring, Dexter, who works as a blood-spatter expert for the Miami Police Department.  This book continues where the previous one left off - but now he’s got a new baby, a beautiful little girl. So Dexter decides he really, really wants to live like a normal human, to leave his Dark Passenger behind and stop all this murder stuff.  But his Dark Passenger isn't ready to leave and now his left for dead dead brother, Brian, is back.  We left him at the end of book 1.  Brian starts bonding with Dexter's family as Deborah, his sister, keeps insisting that Dexter help her with the case that involve missing girls, vampirism, and cannibalism.  And honestly it is making it difficult keeping his homicidal urges in check.

Part of the charm of these books is the dialog Dexter has with us (the readers).  His use of witty and sarcastic dialog makes for a fun read.  Interesting enough Dexter only kills one person and he really, really deserved it.  It isn't the strongest of the series but definitely back on track after book 3 that I really did not like at all.

Skinny Dip by Carl Hiaasen

The story starts with Joey Perrone being thrown overboard from a cruise chip by her husband Chaz. The almost-murdered wife of corrupt Charles "Chaz" Perrone, survives by clinging to a floating bale of marijuana and is rescued by Mick Stranahan, a burnt-by-love ex-cop. The description alone of how she deals with the attempted murder and then the fight to survive is hysterical if it wasn't so scary at the same time.

Chaz, an incompetent marine biologist, (he doesn't even know which direction the Gulf Stream flows in), has long been on the take from agribusiness tycoon Red Hammernut, who's been dumping fertilizer into the endangered Everglades. He thinks that Joey has discovered that he's been exchanging clean-water samples for the actual tainted water that is the result of Hammernut's environmental pollution. But while his wife suspects he is sleeping around she doesn't have a clue about the scam.

Joey recovers her strength, mental and physical, at the island home of her gallant rescuer Mike, who is the victim of six failed marriages. Instead of going to the police, however, she decides to play dead. She persuades Mike to help her mess with Chaz's mind while she figures out why he tried to kill her.

Great cast of charcters - Tool the hired goon of Red Hammernut w ho is brought in to watch Chaz. He was shot in the behind and still has the bullet lodged up his butt.  So since he is in constant pain he raids hospice nursing homes for pain patches.  During one of his late night raids he meets an old woman who gives it right back to him and suddenly reveals that Tool might have a heart of gold.

Hiaasen is not for the faint of heart as he likes his humor dark but still laugh out loud funny.  It is a bit preachy on the devastation of the everglades but you can tell it is a passion of Hiaasen and you can't fault him with being passionate.

Hold Me Closer, Necromancer by Lish McBride

Sam has dropped out of college and is stalled in a fast-food job in Seattle. Interrupting the boredom of days waiting on Plumpy customers and evenings watching old movies with his friends, a scary guy named Douglas enters Sam’s world. After a few pithy verbal threats, Douglas has Sam beaten and mauled by a sidekick—and later delivers teen Brooke’s pretty blond head to Sam’s door. The good news is that Brooke seems to be in no pain and is as sassy as ever. The bad news, as Sam finds out in short order, is that Douglas is a necromancer and has identified Sam, who hasn’t a clue what his strengths are, as a rival. Before the week is out, Sam finds himself in a cellar, caged with another pretty girl, who is part werewolf, part fairy. And then there’s Ashley, the parochial-school-uniformed 10-year-old who can orchestrate salvation for Sam by using her Blackberry and brains.

A little trivia, the title and all the chapter headings are lyrics, some which are familiar and others more obscure but it makes one pause and try to figure it out.

Great fun and I hope it will encourage readers who like this book to try other more established series such as Jim Butcher's Dresden's Files.

Naked Heat by Richard Castle

2nd book in the series featuring female New York cop, Nikki Heat, who reluctantly pairs up with a writer, Jameson Rook.   Rook had written an cover story featuring New York City Police department but it focused on Nikki Heat, leaving her feeling exposed to all to see.  When New York's most vicious gossip columnist, Cassidy Towne, is found dead, Heat uncovers a gallery of high profile suspects, all with compelling motives for killing the most feared muckraker in Manhattan.

Heat's murder investigation is complicated by her surprise reunion with superstar magazine journalist Jameson Rook. In the wake of their recent breakup, Nikki would rather not deal with their raw emotional baggage. But the handsome, wise-cracking Pulitzer Prize-winning writer's personal involvement in the case forces her to team up with Rook anyway. The residue of their unresolved romantic conflict and crackling sexual tension fills the air as Heat and Rook embark on a search for a killer among celebrities and mobsters, singers and hookers, pro athletes and shamed politicians.

Some of the storylines are following the TV series so it makes for fun reading.  If you watch the show "Castle" this will all make more sense.   But even if you don't watch the series it is great fun and I really enjoy the reader.

Scott Pilgrim 6 : Scott Pilgrim's Finest Hour by Bryan Lee O'Malley

With six of Ramona's seven evil exes dispatched, it is time for Scott Pilgrim to face Gideon Graves, the biggest and baddest of her former beaus. But didn't Ramona take off at the end of Book 5? Shouldn't that let Scott off the hook? Maybe it should, maybe it shouldn't, but one thing is for certain all of this has been building to Scott Pilgrim's Finest Hour!

This sixth and final volume doesn't disappoint as we finally get to the final battle that lasts most of the book.  I wasn't sure if I was going to like it but once the actual battle began it was a wild ride. 

Live to tell by Lisa Gardner

Boston police detective D. D. Warren returns in another gripping thriller. A family is murdered, apparently by the father (who, it seems, barely failed to take his own life after killing his wife and young children). But soon there are questions, the most pressing of which is, Why would this man, apparently out of the blue, slaughter his own family? Is it possible that someone else was the killer, perhaps another member of the family?  When another family is murdered in a very similar style the next day Warren fears there might be a serial killer at work instead.

We hear the story from 3 points of views - D.D. Warren from the point of view of the police, Victoria, a mother at her wits’ end - which until almost the end you wonder why you are hearing it and Danielle, survivor of a family slaughter.  Danielle works as a pediatric psych nurse on an acute hospital ward.  Every day she works with children who hurt themselves and have hurt others.  We learn that the 2 of the children from the murdered families were at the Acute ward in the last year. Through Victoria's eyes we learn that eight-year-old son, Evan, is capable of astonishing violence, including plotting to murder her.  We see that for 8 years her life has been put on hold as she does everything to keep her son even losing her husband and younger daughter. 

I have read several others of Gardner's work and so far all have featured D.D. Warren.  This by far has been the best, because it focuses more on the story behind the characters instead of the police side.  The story really came together and was engrossing even when I got angry by how some of the characters acted but it did feel authentic.

Koko Be Good by Jen Wang

Jon is a recent college graduate planning to follow his older girlfriend to Peru to work for an orphanage, and his story, starts the book. In the midst of his existential crisis, he meets Koko, an eccentric, sometimes almost feral young woman who ricochets from encounter to encounter, often leaving a trail of chaos in her wake.  We are introduced to Faron as he seems to be her sidekick. 

At first Faron seems to be an unmotivated slacker. He lives and works with his family and doesn't seem to have any aspirations beyond playing video games and sometimes performing Kung Fu tricks as Koko's sidekick. But out all 3 characters he seems to have the most depth as we learn as a young boy he was fat and teased by other kids.  He pushed himself to grow up strong and dangerous. He has a secret which is that he loves Broadway musicals, and his most treasured possession is a poster from the musical Wicked.

This had a very nostalgic feel to the artwork and I had some trouble following the story sometimes as it jumped between characters.  I did like how all 3 characters were so different from each other.  But when Koko gets to know Jon it inspires her to become a better person and she inspires Faron.  The ending is left open as both Koko and Jon follow their hearts to see where life takes them. 

Edwin of the Iron Shoes by Marcia Muller

Private eye Sharon McCone works for All Souls Cooperative, a San Francisco legal services plan.  She is hired to discover who was vandalizing a small street of antique shops.  But before she can discover who is behind the vandalism one of the antique dealers was found murdered in her own shop. Sharon had no idea who had killed Joan Albritton, who Sharon really liked.  She was a pleasant older woman whose main fault was talking to the dressmaker's dummy, the stuffed German shepherd, and the little boy mannequin she kept in her shop. She decides to stay on the case as she didn't feel confident in the police's ability to discover the killer. Especially after she met the unpleasantly patronizing Lieutenant Marcus who was in charge of the case. Uncertain of whether she would be paid for her work or not, but refusing to allow Joan Albritton's killer to go free, Sharon starts her investigation.

Suspects abound, with Charlie, the junkman who ran the shop across the street from Joan's, at the forefront. Charlie was Joan's former lover, recently jilted for a wealthier man, and he was the one who had discovered the body and called the police. Then there was Cara Ingalls, a real estate mogul with ice running through her veins. She made no secret of the fact that she was glad that Joan was gone so that she could buy the land and force the antique dealers out. Of course, Cara was not the only one trying to buy the land and then there was the slimy bond bailsman and the slick "antique-style" dealer who kept popping up at every corner. Not to mention the puzzling Lieutenant Marcus, who was grateful for Sharon's help and then pushing her aside the next.

This book introduced us to Sharon McCone and while I have read others in the series I have never read the first one.   It gives a great sense of place and time as it was written in 1977 before female PI's were all the rage.  Marcia Muller hints at the prejudices women had to face off with from the police and the public in general.  The mystery was a bit muddled as I felt like information was deliberately left out so I couldn't figure out who the killer was or what the motive was.  But it does make me want to go back and read more of her books.

Saturn Apartments. 1 / Hisae Iwaoka ; translation by Matt Thorn

Far in the future, humankind has evacuated the earth in order to preserve it. Humans now reside in a gigantic structure that forms a ring around the earth, 35 kilometers up in the sky. The society of the ring is highly stratified: the higher the floor, the greater the status. Mitsu, the lowly son of a window washer, has just graduated junior high. When his father disappears and is assumed dead, Mitsu must take on his father's occupation. As he struggles with the transition to working life, Mitsu's job treats him to an outsider's view into the living-room dioramas of the Saturn Apartments.
 
The story revolves around Mitsu but there are reoccurring characters, like Jin who had been Mitsu's father's partner and now is showing Mitsu the ropes, and Sachi, a girl who lives in a cleaning-machine with her cat that perpetually crawls the surface of the ring. But mostly the stories revolve around the quirks of Mitsu's clients, and the various reasons why they shelled out the massive amount of cash required to get their window's cleaned.
 
I didn't think I would like this as I don't do well with Japanese manga but I the first copule of pages several times to get a feel for it and actually found myself enjoying it.

My first book of 2011.

Hunt for Sonya Dufrette by R. T. Raichev

Antonia Darcy is the assistant librarian at London's Military and Naval Club.  This divorced grandmother is also an aspiring writer. Twenty years after the Royal Wedding, Antonia sadly remembers the little girl Sonya Dufreete, who disappeared the same day Charles and Diana were married in July 1981. Along with Sonya's parents, Antonia was on holiday at a country house on the Thames at the time the young girl went missing and was presumed drowned, her body never recovered.

Being a writer - Antonia writes a lot and while having writer's block discovers a long ago written detailed account of Sonya's disappearance that she wrote shortly after the tragedy.  While re-reading it Antonia has a strong sense that something isn't right with her story and sets out to satisfy her nagging doubts—with the help of her admirer and willing assistant, widower Maj. Hugh Payne.

Hence a mystery reminiscent of Agatha Christie as we are given a few red herrings and the ending was more complicated than I expected.  It also appears this is a the first in a series which I discovered by accident. Plus I really enjoyed reading it, the suspense was well done and the mystery worked well.  I'm looking forward to others by this author.

Happy New Year!  My Last book of 2010.

Please Ignore Vera Dietz by A.S. King

Vera Dietz's a little odd, but in a good way. She's dealing with the death of her ex-best friend, Charlie. She loved him. She hated him. She knows what happened the night he died, but can she find it in her to forgive him and clear his name? 

Vera  and Charlie have been best friends since childhood and they keep each other secrets - Vera's mother left when she was 12 and was a stripper when she was a baby.  Charlie's dad abuses his wife and Charlies.  But as they enter their Junior Year everything falls apart. 

Charlie finds new friends when he starts having after school detention buddies Evil Jenny Flick.  When Jenny decides that she wants Charlie and that Vera is in the way she broadcasts Charlie's secret about his father's domestic abuse to the whole school and blames Vera. In “retaliation,” Charlie reveals the fact that Vera's mother was a stripper before she deserted the family and then starts a perilous relationship with Jenny. 

But Vera is changing too as her goal has been to get hired by the local animal store/shelter that she has been volunteering in for the past several years.   But she is torn as her father tells her he can have her mother's car only if she gets a job delivering pizza.

Vera's story begins at Charlie's funeral where she hides the truth about Jenny's part in his death. It seesaws through her full-time job delivering pizzas while maintaining “A” grades, her upsetting relationship with Charlie, her conflicts with Jenny as well as her father, her romance with a 23-year-old coworker, and other complications.  Charlie's ghostly presence manifests itself through out the book making her feel like she is going crazy. The chapters alternate between perspectives of Vera's father, dead Charlie, and the pagoda atop the town (yes, the pagoda speaks). Vera's father's even include “flow charts” about dealing with life circumstances. All of these give us another view of Vera's life. 

Heartbreaking to read yet page turning as I wanted to know if Vera could find the strength to stand up and tell the truth and not just let things be.   It was refreshing to read a YA novel with real situations versus fantasy or teen angst.

Beat the Reaper by Josh Bazell

Dr. Peter Brown is an intern at Manhattan Catholic, what some would call the city's worst hospital. He's cynical, critical, comical and one tough guy. He's big, not so good looking (in his own words) and he used to be a mafia hit man. He went into witness protection, got a new identity which explains why he's a half dozen years older than most of his contemporaries.

His hours are long, but drugs help, so does attitude. One day he has to tell someone about his cancer and it turns out to be Nicholas LoBrutto, aka Eddy Squillante, someone from his mafia days. At first LoBrutto thinks Doc Brown has come to kill him, because the good doctor has an AKA as well, he's AKA Pietro Brnwa and he is also known as "Bearclaw."

It doesn't take long for LoBrutto to start the squeeze on Peter. Either Peter saves him or he turns him over to the mob. As long as LoBrutto lives, Peter is safe. And thus begins the zaniest thriller I've read. A lot of the book has Brown flashbacking to how his life got to this point.  He came home to find his grandparents dead at age 14.  His grandparents raised him when his own hippi parents were too caught up in living  their own lives to raise a child.  After their death he befriends a guy named Skinflick who is known to be the son of a mafia lawyer.  At 18 he is given his first kill by Skinflicks father - the 2 brothers who killed his grandparents to get made by the mob.  So over the next several years his reputation grows as he kills with a vengence and a blood tenacity.


But when he is sent to help Skinflick kill a father and his sons that are running a sex trade worker farm - he gets fingered as the main killer and goes to court.  Here is where we find out how he got his nickname Bearclaw which is much more anticlimatic than I thought it would be.  After Brown is aquited he finds himself thrown into a shark tank at the local aquarium trying to keep his girlfriend alive.  When she gets knocked off he decides to flip on the mob and gets put into witness protection.

I won't give anything away but I have to say the final 2 chapters were brutal - I almost threw up during some of the descriptions of Brown performing surgery on himself!  Plus I'll never look at a aquarium in quite the same way again.  I listened to it on CD as I couldn't get past the first chapter when I was reading it.  The flashbacks are mixed in and it was hard for me to follow where as I could just listen and I could just follow along.

This book was kind of crazy and fascinating at the same time.  If you don't like violence, fowl language or sex then do not read this book as it has all of that plus much more.  One of the reviews describes this book as a cross between House and Sopranos and that pretty much sums it up.