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Sunday, November 3, 2013

50. Stormbreaker by Anthony Horowitz

This short book introduces Alex Rider, a 14-year-old hero of British author Horowitz's spy thriller. When his guardian and uncle, Ian, is mysteriously killed, Alex discovers that his uncle was not the bank vice-president he purported to be, but rather a spy for the British government. 
Now the government wants Alex to take over his uncle's mission: investigating Sayle Enterprises, the makers of a revolutionary computer called Stormbreaker. The company's head plans to donate one to every secondary school in England, but his dealings with unfriendly countries and Ian Rider's murder have brought him under suspicion. Posing as a teenage computer whiz who's won a Stormbreaker promotional contest, Alex enters the factory and immediately finds clues from his uncle.

Good short book, good main character, Alex Rider. 



Friday, July 26, 2013

49. Raylan

Okay, if you haven't yet discovered the FX tv series "JUSTIFIED", now is the time. I got this book because the tv series is based off of the author's character, Raylan Givens. Raylan is an US Marshal. And he is so super cool!! Mark and I love the show and can't wait for the new season to start.

Anyway, uncharacteristically, I like the tv show better than the book. Raylan is good in the book Raylan, but he is awesome in the show. Also the other characters, who are minor in the book, are remarkable and unforgettable in the show.

So I say read the book if you love to read. But for sure watch the show!!!


Wednesday, July 17, 2013

48. Just an Ordinary Day

This is a collection of short stories by Shirley Jackson. I got it because I love "The Lottery", her most famous short story, which I have mentioned before that I think the Hunger Games is based on.

Anyway...I did not love this collection. Not one really memorable story. :(


47. Odd Hours

Another Odd Thomas book. He meets AnnaMaria in this book who comes into play in at least one later book (the Odd Interlude which was my first Odd Thomas book).

Still loving this series!

46. Brother Odd

This is a new author that I am exploring along with his signature character - Odd Thomas.

So far I am loving them. Odd (supposed to be Todd but misspelled on his birth certificate) see the spirits of the recently dead.

In this book, Odd is drawn to a monastery that takes care of severely handicapped children. Then of course, strange things start happening and the adventure begins. This story has an ending and a bad guy that I didn't see coming.


45. The Boy with the Cuckoo Clock Heart

This was a delightful little book. And I listened to it as an audio book. And the Narrator was the WONDERFUL Jim Dale. I could listen to ANYTHING read by him.

I won't spoil this one. It is worth reading. A great little fantastical love story.

FIRSTLY: don’t touch the hands of your cuckoo-clock heart. 
SECONDLY: master your anger. 
THIRDLY: never, ever fall in love. For if you do, the hour hand will poke through your skin, your bones will shatter, and your heart will break once more.






44. The Flight of Gemma Hardy

Spoiler Alert - 

Okay so this book has the following description...

The resonant story of a young woman’s struggle to take charge of her own future, The Flight of Gemma Hardy is a modern take on a classic story—Charlotte Brontë’s Jane Eyre—that will fascinate readers of the Gothic original and fans of modern literary fiction alike, with its lyrical prose, robust characters, and abundant compassion.

It might have been an okay book. But when you say that it is a modern take on Jane Eyre - you better deliver. 

Well, I hate to say that this is NO JANE EYRE. How does a switched identity with your cousin compare to a crazy wife in the attic??? And this Mr. Sinclair is a 3 compared with Mr. Rochester (a total 10 +). You never really get to know Mr. Sinclair. 

Jane Eyre is one of my 10 most favorite books ever, so I was excited to read a so called modern take. I really wanted to like it but I couldn't. So sad.




43. Snatched

This was a novella. By the way, what is the difference between a short story and a novella??
Answer -- 
NOVELLA --a fictional prose narrative that is longer and more complex than a short story; a short novel.
Now we know!

Anyway, I got this cheap on my kindle. And I loved it. I will definitely be reading more of this author. In this story an FBI agent accidentally witnesses a child abduction and the chase is on. Great story that I couldn't put down.


42. A Textbook Case

This is a short story starring Lincoln Rhyme by Jeffrey Deaver. Loved it as usual. Great writer and great character.

Tuesday, July 2, 2013

41. 61 Hours

A great older Jack Reacher book. Keeps you wondering what is going on the whole book.


40. Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me?

I bought this book for Brittany because she and Shawn like "The Mindy Show".

I read it before I mailed it to her. Very funny!! but sad that she doesn't know God as she talks about her pre-planned funeral.


39. The Cold Moon

Really good twisting plot that introduces Kathryn Dance (kinesics expert). I sound like a broken record, read Jeffrey Deaver!


38. The Confession

Wow, this is a really good book. I have never really thought the death penalty. This book will make you think about it.

Challenge yourself and read it.


37. The Broken Window

Again, you must read every Lincoln Rhyme book by Jeffrey Deaver...

Lincoln Rhyme and partner/paramour Amelia Sachs return to face a criminal whose ingenious staging of crimes is enabled by a terrifying access to information....
When Lincoln's estranged cousin Arthur Rhyme is arrested on murder charges, the case is perfect -- too perfect. Forensic evidence from Arthur's home is found all over the scene of the crime, and it looks like the fate of Lincoln's relative is sealed.
At the behest of Arthur's wife, Judy, Lincoln grudgingly agrees to investigate the case. Soon Lincoln and Amelia uncover a string of similar murders and rapes with perpetrators claiming innocence and ignorance -- despite ironclad evidence at the scenes of the crime. Rhyme's team realizes this "perfect" evidence may actually be the result of masterful identity theft and manipulation.
An information service company -- the huge data miner Strategic Systems Datacorp -- seems to have all the answers but is reluctant to help the police. Still, Rhyme and Sachs and their assembled team begin uncovering a chilling pattern of vicious crimes and coverups, and their investigation points to one master criminal, whom they dub "522."
When "522" learns the identities of the crime-fighting team, the hunters become the hunted. Full of Deaver's trademark plot twists, The Broken Window will put the partnership of Lincoln Rhyme and Amelia Sachs to the ultimate test.


36. To Kill a Mockingbird

This was the movie my parents saw on their first date. So it has a special place in my heart.

I LOVE the movie. Love Gregory Peck and Scout and Jem...

Anyway, the book was very good but different. The accused Tom Robinson gets convicted and dies trying to escape prison. So on this rare occasion, I like the movie better.


35. First Thrills Volume 1

Sorry, I read this sometime this winter/spring and I can't remember what I thought about it.


34. Triple Threat

Again anything by Jeffrey Deaver is Awesome. Great collection of 3 short stories. Highly recommend.


33. Beyond Belief

Actual title - Beyond Belief: My Secret Life Inside Scientology and My Harrowing Escape.

This is a true cult. No doubt about it. A great read, very eye opening.


32. The 7th Month

I LOVE this author. This is the 2nd or 3rd book I have read by her. It is about a woman detective D.D. Warren. Great character!!
Highly recommend.


31. Shutter Island

Maybe you have seen the movie, which was not as scary as the previews.

Anyway the movie was very true to the book. I think it was actually easier to read because I saw the movie first. Because the main character is really crazy, the book is hard to follow at times.


30. Impact my Life

Impact my Life: Biblical Mentoring Simplified.

I love to mentor women in Bible studies etc.. So I liked this book. It is more of a "how to" book. Nothing really new but good stuff.


29. Cornbread

This is a short story that got my attention with the first line.

They call me cornbread because that is what my husband was eating when I shot him in the face.

How could you not want to read that? ha ha

A good read narrated by the woman herself. Needless to say she was a little bit crazy.

28. Miss Dreamville ...

Actual title...Miss Dreamville and the Collier County Women's Literary Society.

Good read. Set a few years after segregation. A few "character" women end up together in a book club. Makes you think about women and African Americans and their struggles.


27. A Wanted Man

Another awesome Jack Reacher book.

Four people in a car, hoping to make Chicago by morning. One man driving, another telling stories that don’t add up. A woman in the back, silent and worried. And a hitchhiker with a broken nose. An hour behind them, the FBI descends on an old pumping station where a man was stabbed to death—the knife work professional, the killers nowhere to be seen.
 
All Jack Reacher wanted was a ride to Virginia. All he did was stick out his thumb. But he soon discovers he has hitched more than a ride. He has tied himself to a massive conspiracy, in which nothing is what it seems, and nobody is telling the truth.



26. The View from Here

Good beach read. Girls never meets father. Father leaves her a gold mine. Girl moves there and meets tall handsome guy. Love and a small fortune follow.


25. Bloodline

Another Francis book about horse racing. I don't really get horse racing but I like these books. Good story.


21 - 24. Twilight

My yearly (or so) journey through Twilight. I LOVE these books. They are pure joy to read. I love the drama and angst and Edward's unending love for Bella. sigh...
I don't own the white books. This is just a cool pic of all the books.

19 & 20 Catching Fire and Mockingjay

This is my 2nd time through these. I love the first 2 books, but don't love the last book. Was the author taken by aliens and replaced when she wrote Mockingjay??

In my dream, Katniss and a nice version of Gale would have ended up together.


18. Missing Child

Don't usually like stories about missing kids but this one was good. More about the stepmom's story and past catching up to her. Good story of telling the truth and second chances.


Tuesday, June 11, 2013

17. XO

LOVED it! But I love all Jeffrey Deaver books. This is the new Kathryn Dance book. This is about a stalker who is in love with the new hottest young female singer (I picture Taylor Swift).

Must read!


16. Lost December

When Luke Crisp graduates from business school, his father, CEO and co-founder of Fortune 500 Crisp’s Copy Centers, is ready to share some good news: he wants to turn the family business over to his son. But Luke has other plans. Taking control of his trust fund, Luke leaves home to pursue a life of reckless indulgence.

But when his funds run out, so do his friends. Humbled, alone, and too ashamed to ask his father for help, Luke secretly takes a lowly job at one of his father’s copy centers. There he falls in love with a struggling single mother and begins to understand the greatest source of personal joy.

Lost December is Richard Paul Evans’s modern-day holiday version of the biblical story of the prodigal son, a powerful tale of redemption, hope, and the true meaning of love.

OK story - although I really don't remember it now. So maybe not so great.


15. Calling all Invisible Women

   A mom in her early fifties, Clover knows she no longer turns heads the way she used to, and she's only really missed when dinner isn't on the table on time. Then Clover wakes up one morning to discover she's invisible--truly invisible. She panics even more when her family doesn't notice a thing. 
Her best friend immediately observes the change, which relieves Clover immensely--she's not losing her mind after all!--but she is crushed by the realization that neither her husband nor her children ever truly look at her. She was invisible even before she knew it.  
Clover discovers that there are others like her, women of a certain age who seem to have disappeared.  As she uses her invisibility to get to know her family and her town better, Clover leads the way in helping invisible women become recognized and appreciated no matter what their role.  

Okay - I give it 2 stars.


14. The Third Gate

This is about an archaeological dig trying to find a mummy gone horribly wrong. Didn't love it.

Sunday, June 9, 2013

13. Beach Colors

Good summer read about the beach, childhood friends who reconnect, a career gone bankrupt due to a weasel of a husband who steals all the money, and an unexpected love. Just good fun!


12. The Innocent

I liked this book. Great characters. Who doesn't love a hit man who gets a heart?? Great action and plot with a lot of mystery to uncover. 

America has enemies--ruthless people that the police, the FBI, even the military can't stop. That's when the U.S. government calls on Will Robie, a stone cold hitman who never questions orders and always nails his target. 
But Will Robie may have just made the first--and last--mistake of his career . . . 
THE INNOCENT
It begins with a hit gone wrong. Robie is dispatched to eliminate a target unusually close to home in Washington, D.C. But something about this mission doesn't seem right to Robie, and he does the unthinkable. He refuses to kill. Now, Robie becomes a target himself and must escape from his own people.
Fleeing the scene, Robie crosses paths with a wayward teenage girl, a fourteen-year-old runaway from a foster home. But she isn't an ordinary runaway-her parents were murdered, and her own life is in danger. Against all of his professional habits, Robie rescues her and finds he can't walk away. He needs to help her.
Even worse, the more Robie learns about the girl, the more he's convinced she is at the center of a vast cover-up, one that may explain her parents' deaths and stretch to unimaginable levels of power. 
Now, Robie may have to step out of the shadows in order to save this girl's life . . . and perhaps his own.


11. Scarlett

This is the 2nd time that I have read this book. I LOVE it and I LOVE the movie with Joanna Whaley and Timothy Dalton (my favorite Edward Rochester & Heathcliff). This book is a continuation of the original Gone with the Wind book. Highly recommend!!


Thursday, June 6, 2013

10. Odd Interlude

This is my first book by Dean Koontz (I think) at least with his Odd Thomas character. I have been wanting to get read about this character for some time. Odd Thomas is a fry cook who lives in California and can see the spirits of the dead. They can't talk to him but can make signs etc.. He has other gifts that lead him on to help others with their problems involving the supernatural. He is a likeable character who does not like his gifts and he expects to die at any time.

I can't wait to read more. Although I need to start at the beginning as there are many Odd books.


I am alive!!

You will be glad to know that I am not dead! I have just experienced the BUSIEST 4 months of my life.
1. helping Britt pack her house.
2. Britt gives birth to grandson Henry on 1-26-13!!
3. Harrison and family are living with us.
4. Britt and family move in.
5. Harrison and family move out.
6. Harrison closes on house & we help them move.
7. Emily gives birth to grandson Zachary on 3-5-13!!!
8. Britt and family move to Branson Missouri.
9. We are jobless and job hunting.
10. We get our house ready to sell.
11. I go to visit Britt in Branson  - twice.
12. We go to visit Mark's parents in Florida.
13. We celebrate 30 years of marriage with a beach trip to Myrtle Beach.
14. We are keeping our house "show ready" everyday.
These are just the highlights!!!!!!!!!!

So to catch up...

Wednesday, January 23, 2013

9. The Fire Chronicle

This was also an audio book narrated by Jim Dale. 100 points right there!

This is the 2nd book in a series of 3. 3rd is not due out for a year or so :(
It a very interesting series and I actually loved the 2nd book better than the 1st.
Highly recommend!! It is in the genre of Harry Potter, so again, enough said.


8. The Night Circus

Okay, 1st this was an audio book narrated by Jim Dale (of Harry Potter and Pushing Up Daisies fame). So right off the bat, I loved it. He could narrate ANYTHING and I would love it.

But 2nd, I loved this book. It took me a while to finally listen/read it because I was not intrigued by the title. But I Loved it. It is a wonderful magic love story.

Must read!!!!!!!!!!


7. Becoming a Woman of Simplicity

This is a great devotional book. I used it in both of my last yoga life groups. Great material and great Bible study questions.
I highly recommend!

5 & 6 two books by Shirley Jackson

We Have Always Lived in the Castle and The Haunting of Hill House are two classic books by author Shirley Jackson who wrote the short story The Lottery.

The books were pretty good. I kept reading to see what happened but I still wanted a little more information at the end of each book. They feel like old books (published in 1959 & 1962). If written today, I think they would be much scarier.



1 - 4 The Homelanders Series

This is a 4 book series. I loved it. It is an ACTION series through and through. The first book called The Last Thing I Remember starts with Charlie West...He went to bed an ordinary high-school student. He woke up strapped to a chair, covered in blood and bruises. He hurts all over. And a strange voice outside the door just ordered his death.

The last thing he can remember, he was working on homework, practicing karate, daydreaming of becoming an air force pilot, writing a pretty girl's number on his hand.

Now the police want to arrest him for the death of his best friend. And a team of ruthless killers is rapidly closing in for more drastic measures. He's desperate to survive. And to discover what happened.

Charlie is a great character. I love him! He is a great kid, who loves God and his country. I won't tell more because I think you would all love to read this series.

Ask me to borrow it!!!