I wanted to keep posting in here, because you guys are fun! And I didn't want to miss anything. So here is my 3rd set for 999, but very loose categories and no number requirements.

Categories:

1 - TBR pile
2 - From the library
3 - Book club

Message edited by its author, Aug 20, 2009, 4:30pm.

TBR pile

1. Waxwork ****
2. A Circle of Quiet ***
3. The Forgotten Man - Sumner *
4. Reno Rendezvous *
5. Inspector Ghote Trusts the Heart ****
6. Poison Parsley ***
7. Inspector French's Greatest Case *
8. Murder by the Book **
9. 39 Clues: The Black Circle ****
10. Death Casts a Long Shadow ****
11. Magic Lost, Trouble Found ***
12. Thirteenth Child ****
13. Murder Came Late ***
14. Tenant for the Tomb ****
15. The Scandalous Widow **
16. The Ascent of D-13 ***

Message edited by its author, Nov 24, 2009, 5:09pm.

From the Library

1. 1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die **
2. Top Secret Recipes Lite **
3. Mormon Scientist ****
4. Chicks in Chainmail **
5. The Crimson Thread **
6. Soul Music *****
7. My Foe Outstretch'd Beneath the Tree ***
8. Only a Matter of Time ***
9. To Study a Long Silence ***
10. Far World: Water Keep ***
11. In Reckless Hands: Skinner V. Oklahoma and the Near-Triumph of American Eugenics *****
12. America's Best Lost Recipes ***
13. The Science of Sherlock Holmes ***
14. In Julia's Kitchen with Master Chefs ***
15. The Gecko's Foot ****
16. Written in the Bones ***
17. Death of a Doxy ***
18. Malice Aforethought - currently reading
19. Under a Monsoon Cloud *****
20. Paint by Magic ****
21. Malice Aforethought ****
22. The Ratastrophe Catastrophe **
23. Laced ***
24. Cursed **
25. Death in the Garden ****
26. Mrs. Craggs Crimes Cleaned Up****
27. Murder Must Appetize***
28. Murder Takes a Holiday***
29. Coraline Graphic Novel****
30. Three Men in a Boat *****

Message edited by its author, Dec 1, 2009, 12:33am.

Book Club

1. The Hunger Games ****
2. David Copperfield ****
3. The Adventures of Tom Sawyer
4. I Capture the Castle ***
5. Falling Leaves
6. The Memory Keeper's Daughter
7. The Girl Who Could Fly

Message edited by its author, Dec 1, 2009, 12:57am.

I just wanted to say hi because you have nicely posted a couple comments on my challenge. It seems like you are really good with keeping up with what we are all reading! Wondering how you liked David Copperfield? I have been on (very small) Dickens kick recently and I'm trying to choose which I'll read next. :) Best wishes.

I see you're a double booker too.

I haven't started David Copperfield yet. I hope I like it - the last Dickens I tried to read was Nicholas Nickleby, and I didn't finish it. I used to really enjoy his books, so we'll see what happens.

Review for 1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die

First of all, I like reading lists, so I was hoping this would be fun. And I love books, so what could be better than a list of books? Even if I disagreed, it would still be fun.

It wasn't as much fun as I thought it would be. Sure, I found a few books I have already read, but so many of them sounded awful! Plus I didn't like all the naked illustrations with the book. I mean, did I need an illustration to go with Justine - de Sade? I don't think so!

I didn't finish this one. It's huge! I just didn't feel like wading through all those books I have no intention of reading. I'll have to find my own new books.

Review for Top Secret Recipes Lite

I would really give this about 1 1/2 stars. It was written in 1998, and you can tell. That was when everyone was still into the low-fat craze, before everyone started talking about 'good fat' and 'bad fat.' This book seems to be designed to cut all the fat possible out of every single recipe. Only once does the author acknowledge that some fat, namely Omega-3 fatty acids, is in fact good for you.

There are two main problems with the book. First, that he doesn't seem to realize that too many calories, too much carbohydrates, other kinds of junk, those are all bad for you. Fat alone is not the bad guy.

Second, I am not about to use Butter Buds or whatever instead of real butter! Maybe lite margarine, but that's as far as I am willing to go. And fat-free cheese is disgusting! Low-fat yes, but fat-free is more like plastic that actual food.

I just can't recommend this book. There are a few recipes that sound pretty good - he has the Guiltless Grill entrees from Chili's in here.

And fat-free cheese is disgusting! Low-fat yes, but fat-free is more like plastic that actual food.

Ha! I once, around 1998, made a lovely lasagne, except I used fat-free mozarella. I had to throw it away, as no one likes eating plastic. It also didn't melt, just formed an unpleasant cling-wrap like layer over the top.

That sounds horrible! (but kind of funny)

Review for Chicks in Chainmail

This started as a fun idea, but after 3 stories, it wasn't quite what I expected. I didn't hate it, but it wasn't for me.

Review for Mormon Scientist

This was a biography of scientist Henry Eyring. He had a very colorful life, from growing up in Mexico in a polygamist family, to becoming a mining engineer, then decided to study chemistry and teach at Princeton. He sounds like he would have been fun to know. I took a point off for style. It was written by his grandson, which is great, but I didn't like the way he had to create this artificial sort of flow between the chapters. It was a little repetitive at times as well. But overall, a good book.

Review for Crimson Thread

This is a non-magical retelling of Rumpelstiltskin. While I have enjoyed this series, including others by this writer, this one was a big disappointment. Bridget is the main character, fresh off the boat from Ireland, along with her large family. Bridget (and the other family members) are impossibly naive and stereotypical. Bridget gets a job as a seamstress in a wealthy household. She meets a mysterious boy named Ray - or is it Rudy? - get engaged to her employer's son, gets mixed up in a labor union strike, saves her sister from diptheria, etc. etc. There was in fact a chapter where straw is spun into gold thread, but that was as far as the magic went. I would recommend skipping this title and reading some of the others in this series instead, or reading the book The Rumplestiltskin Problem by Vivian Vande Velde.

And just an observation - this is possibly why I have such a problem with TBR books, I'm always reading the library books instead! I need to stay out of the library for a while. But that's going to be hard!

Review for Reno Rendezvous

Boring mystery set in Reno when it was still the divorce capital of the US, all about love and murder among the rich and reckless set. I didn't finish it. The only reason I got these books by Leslie Ford is that I had her confused with an author I HAD enjoyed. But these are dated and dull, full of stereotyped characters and cliched plot elements. Add a lurid cover and there's a book waiting to go into the recycle bin.

Tell us what you really think!

The cover is pretty fabulous! :)

Review for Soul Music

All right, I'm prejudiced. I really love Terry Pratchett. Any of his books that have DEATH as the main character is a winner as far as I'm concerned. I really just loved it. Now I'm anxious to read The Hogfather.

Oh, about the plot - well, it's all about sex, drugs, and Music With Rocks In It. The Unseen University is home to a bunch of aged rebels, Cut Me Own Throat Dibbler is trying to make a buck, and the raven and DEATH OF RATS are trying to cover when the guy in the black robe takes a little break. Really funny.

Review for Inspector Ghote Trusts the Heart

Inspector Ghote is asked by the Police Commissioner himself to investigate a kidnapping. When he arrives, the finds that it is a wealthy industrialist who is involved. However, the kidnappers did not take the businessman's son, but rather the son of his tailor, who was playing with the other boy at the time. Early in the book, the kidnappers realize their mistake, but they still demand an enormous sum for the release of the little boy.

Mr. Desai, the industrialist, is torn between wanting to help and wanting to placate his young wife, who is furious at the idea of him paying any money for someone who is so unimportant. Superintendent Karandikar wants to bring in lots of police officers and capture the criminals. Only Inspector Ghote manages to stay focused on the real victim, the missing little boy, only a few years younger than his own son. It is a race against time for Ghote to deliver a ransom, follow the clues, and find the boy.

I really enjoy Keating's Inspector Ghote books. In some ways, Ghote reminds me of Inspector Alleyn. He is a very competent police officer, but he is also a complex human being with a good heart. These books are out of print, sadly, but they are well written and worth looking for.

Review for Poison Parsley

Rosalind and her teenage son son have always been close. But now Rosalind has developed a friendship with a married man. Her son Martin hates him and becomes friends with the wife. Soon the couple's marital troubles have drawn mother and son into a complicated new relationship with a menacing tone. No one in this little group is to be trusted. Rosalind is an acquitted murderer. Martin has a violent temper, just like his father. Mr. Goodwin is an expert on poisons, and his wife is an alcoholic who was already responsible for one death.

Anna Clarke has written some good scary books. The Poisoned Web was really well done. This one seems to take a really long time to build up to action. The tension is there, the climax was everything I expected, but the resolution was a little unconvincing. She could have taken the story even further. I think she held back a little, to make more of a happy ending. I would have preferred her to push for a more dramatic end.

Review for The Forgotten Man - William Graham Sumner

The basic idea behind this book is that any form of involvement of the government in social programs of any kind, any type of government regulation of business, is all designed to lead to enslavement. The 'Forgotten Man' is the one who is the victim of all such legislation.

I just can't agree with that assessment. It was impossible for me to read this book without getting angry. There are hundreds of examples that contradict this book. According to the author, everyone asking for a handout is either lazy, vicious, or a criminal. Every time someone donates to a charity, he is promoting the welfare of this rotten class of people at the expense of the common working man. What about organizations like Kiva? I donate and I know where my money is going. What's wrong with helping someone who is struggling? I have been in such a situation, and I do not like the idea that it was all my fault that we were poor because I was either lazy, cruel, or a crook! Or maybe just stupid. Please.

Really this is nothing more than propaganda. I very seldom throw books away, but this one is heading for the garbage.

Review for A Circle of Quiet

I thought this was fiction until I started reading it, but this is a memoir written by Madeleine L'Engle, author of A Wrinkle in Time. Lots of stuff in here about writing, about her own approach, and her experience working with beginning writers. It wasn't bad, but wasn't quite the book for me. I think one of my friends would enjoy it though, as it reminded me of a book she really enjoyed, An American Childhood by Annie Dillard.

Review for Igraine the Brave

A fun story about a girl who wants to be a knight, her brother who wants to be a magician, and what happens when their parents are turned into pigs just as their castle is under attack. I loved the three-headed dragon. Nice illustrations throughout. Any girl would like Igraine, and her brother Albert is also a fun character.

I think that The Forgotten Man would be very comforting for a wealthy person who has to occasionally set eyes on the less fortunate. After all, if our place in society is entirely due to our own innate worth, then we can be safely smug and don't have to take any action to help anyone else. I think the garbage can is a very kind place for that book.

I have checked out a copy of Igraine the Brave from the library for my daughter. She hasn't said anything about it yet, but I usually don't get to hear what she thinks until the book is finished.

Thanks for the comments, RidgewayGirl. I'm not quite as angry as I was, but so glad to be done with that.

I'm currently going through the library's small collection of books by V. C. Clinton-Baddeley. (a link here http://stopyourekillingme.com/C_Authors/...) They all feature a retired professor who seems to travel quite a bit around England, attending plays, academic events, and so on, and stumbling upon mysteries. The one I'm reading now, To Study a Long Silence - first of all, great title - is about a murder following a college performance of a commedia dell'arte pantomime sort of thing. I am really enjoying it. Not great plots, but fun all the same. Maybe a little predictable, but I like Dr. Davie very much.

Review for Waxwork

Really, the more I read Peter Lovesey, the more I like him.

Sergeant Crabb has been asked to look into a case. That's not so odd. But the case has already been closed, a murderer arrested, and the sentence of death passed. So why look into it now? Plainly put, because Scotland Yard has had a few delicate hints dropped that they might have arrested the wrong person. And since the person is a woman, public sympathy is running high. So Inspector Jowett, who has never liked Crabb and whom Crabb thinks is incompetent. But Crabb is expendable. Crabb is hardly flattered, but in the interest of justice and in the vain hopes of furthering his career, he agrees to take on the case.

Miriam Cromer confessed to murdering her husband's assistant. She says that he was blackmailing her, and she put cyanide in the poison decanter. But as Crabb digs into the case, he finds many clues that the officer in charge of the investigation failed to follow. Now Cromer is sitting in jail, awaiting her hanging.

Through all of this, Lovesey weaves in the story of Miriam while in the jail, frustrating the jailers in charge by her icy demeanor, and the story of James Barry, the public hangman, busy in negotiations with Madame Tussauds about a new figure of himself, the waxwork of the title. But as the story progresses, the waxwork in question seemed to be the facade of the accused murderer, Miriam herself. Only at the very end does the reader get a glimpse into what was really going on inside her head.

Very well done. I hesitate to give it 5 stars, but I think maybe I am just being picky.

Message edited by its author, Aug 31, 2009, 11:41pm.

Review for Far World: Water Keep

This is another of the great fantasy books written by a local author. For some reason, it seems like a bunch of the local LDS writers are getting known for their children's fantasy series. No, I'm not including Stephenie Meyer in that. She is LDS, but she's not a local. I mean like Brandon Mull of the Fablehaven series, Brandon Sanderson (OK, he also writes adult fantasy), Shannon Hale, Brett Helquist, Obert Skye, and now J. Scott Savage.

The basic idea is that Earth and Far World are like mirror worlds. Earth has no magic, Far World has no machines, but they are very closely linked. Now two children are the key to saving both worlds, but they can only do it by enlisting the help of the elementals to fight the Dark Circle.

The opening chapters were really solid. Marcus was up against some truly nasty folks on Earth. And I liked Kyra. But for a book called Water Keep, we didn't spend much time in the world of water. I was disappointed by that. The cover makes it look like the main characters will be spending lots of time in the water.

Still, it was a good start to the series, and I will give it another chance, mostly because I liked the two main characters.

Review for In Reckless Hands: Skinner V. Oklahoma and the Near-Triumph of American Eugenics

"It was an almost irresistible intellectual seduction: a Promise that asylums and prisons would fade away and that the problems of the old and infirm and unemployed would 'cease to trouble civilization.' The seduction was once named the science of eugenics. Law would confront this seduction and its science in a case called Skinner v. Oklahoma."

From the opening paragraph in this book to the final page, I was completely wrapped up in the writing and the story itself. Nourse takes a rather controversial decision of the Supreme Court, and through it, explores the racial attitudes of the United States in the early 20th century.

By racial, Nourse makes it clear that it is not specifically color of skin that she's talking about. Rather, eugenics used to refer to the ethnic and class distinctions which even scientists used to classify people.

She starts by referring to a newspaper that has photographs of 3 men on the front page: Chief Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes, Oklahoma Governor Alfalfa Bill Murray, and Adolf Hitler. Today, any such grouping would be an automatic 'guilt by association.' But when the picture appeared, it was in reference to the hot new science of eugenics, which its proponents believed held the key for transforming society by eliminating poverty, mental illness, and crime. Those carrying 'bad germ plasms', which we call genes today, would be sterilized and therefore all the nasty things that affect humanity would disappear in a generation or two.

It was only when reports began to leak out of Nazi Germany that people began to realize that eugenics could also be used as a handy excuse to exterminate entire populations. Nazi doctors bragged of sterilizing over 1000 people a week, including children. Of course, eventually they got tired of that and just began exterminating people. That way, the Aryan race would remain pure.

But in the 20s and 30s, a really staggering number of people subscribed to this way of thinking, without ever considering what kinds of abuses it would lead to. When Oklahoma proposed a law allowing involuntary sterilization of any prisoner convicted of three crimes or more, all hell began to break loose. Men at McAlester prison rioted, escaped, and shot it out with police in an effort to escape the procedure. Hundreds of inmates in Oklahoma asylums were sterilized without their consent.

Eventually, the inmates in the McAlester prison had collected enough money to hire a lawyer, choose a plaintiff, and take the case to court. Interestingly, the very aspect that would strike most modern readers as being the deciding factor in declaring this process as unconstitutional, that of the right to privacy, was scarcely mentioned. Nourse goes over all the aspects of the decision, which ultimately meant the end of eugenics as practiced in the prison.

But was I was astounded (and infuriated) to learn was that the practice of sterilizing the mentally ill continued up until 1983, when a court ruled that North Carolina officials were justified in sterilizing a young Black woman because she was 'promiscuous' and 'feeble minded.' The young woman went on to graduate from college.

I think what really made me so angry was the realization of how this law would have affected my own family. My grandmother suffered from depression, although she was never hospitalized. If things had been different, and she had lived just 100 miles north of her home, she could have been one of the ones selected for sterilization. That would have meant that now, 3 generations of people would not have been born. Among the 20 of us, there are certainly those who do have depression, some who have been hospitalized and received medication. But there are also 2 veterans who have and are serving their country. There are a few who have attended college, a couple of them graduating. There are no hardened criminals - in fact, the worst any of us has done is received a traffic ticket. In the meantime, we have married, raised families, worked hard, paid taxes, and served in our communities. All that would never have happened if my grandma hadn't been so lucky in where she lived.

What I took away from this book is a recognition that I need to be more vocal in demanding my rights. I need to stand up for my children, and refuse to allow anyone to deny them anything because of their tendency to mental illness. Today it is almost impossible to find a family who has not been affected by mental illness. And yet, we go on, and we are still good people. My children are inferior in absolutely no way to any other child. Such practices seem completely barbaric today. But if we're not careful, it could happen again.

Message edited by its author, Sep 7, 2009, 3:44pm.

Review for Murder by the Book by Rex Stout

Cramer seeks Wolfe's help in a homicide, but Wolfe can't come up with a case that just might tie in. Although the action starts around an unpublished manuscript, the real mystery revolves around a law firm.

Archie gets to fly to California and meet the woman of his dreams, ply ladies with orchids, and Nero Wolfe actually leaves the house, but just to have dinner with a friend.

I liked this one, but I didn't feel like it was anything special. Stout wrote so many books that were very similar. This one didn't really stand out in any way. It was a fun read, but ultimately forgettable.

Wow, what a great review of In Reckless Hands - I am putting that on my bookmooch wishlist right away!

Thanks! I'd love to see what someone else thinks.

Review for The Hunger Games

Katniss lives out in District 12, where life is hard and she is lucky to be able to provide food for her family by her hunting and gathering skills. This year's reaping will be the first for her little sister, Primrose. And against all odds, Prim is chosen. Katniss immediately volunteers to take her place, and gets thrust into the Hunger Games.

The Hunger Games are a sort of cross between Survivor and a Gladiator contest - the last one to survive wins. Katniss knows she is an outside chance, but she wants to do her best to survive. She become allies with Peeta, the boy from District 12. But it's going to take an amazing amount of skill and luck to win.

We read this one for book club, and every one of us enjoyed it - that was a first! The action was riveting, the writing was great, the whole world that Collins created just sucked me in from the very beginning. Katniss is a great character and I can't wait to read the next one. I know this one is really hot, and I'm sure there are lots of reviews, but I wanted to say how much I loved it. I went out and bought Catching Fire today. I hope it's as good as the first one.

Message edited by its author, Sep 16, 2009, 11:43pm.

Review for David Copperfield

Dickens said that David Copperfield was like his favorite child. As I read this, I couldn't help but feel that it was apparent that his favorite sure had it rough.

David is a posthumous child - born after his father's death. That's a pretty fair preparation for the rest of his life. Nothing in life comes very easily for David. His mother remarries, and his new stepfather hates him. He's sent off to school and the headmaster is a brute. His mother dies and he is sent off to live and work on his own in London.

But David is not one to sit and moan about his fate. He does something. As I was reading this, his naivety in the beginning of the book was kind of annoying. It seemed like a lot of rough things happened, and he just reacted. But once he started taking charge of his own life, I started to like David Copperfield, and I was hoping things worked out for him.

One of Dickens' strengths is his ability to create interesting and sympathetic characters. This book was full of people I would love to know - Peggoty, Mr. Dick, Aunt Betsey Trotwood (she is a riot!), Doctor Strong, Traddles, and my very favorite, Mr. Peggoty.

The theme of family was big in this one - the questions of who is my family and how should I treat them. I loved that David went straight from Mr. Peggoty's house, with his large, mostly adopted, affectionate household to David's home with his new stepfather and aunt, with nothing but "firmness" and mistreatment. The two men were perfect foils for one another.

If you haven't read this one, I recommend it. It is a long book, but it is a much easier read than you might expect. Much better, IMO, than Dickens' other supposed masterpiece, Great Expectations.

Review for In Julia's Kitchen by Julia Child.

Nice stuff, a little complicated sometimes. I only tried one recipe, Pralines, and it was incredibly good. Very simple too. I gave directions on my blog, http://chocolateandotherfoodgroups.blogs....

Review for Death Casts a Long Shadow

Blanche French gets what she really wanted - a husband. But once Paul French gets a look at the pretty nurse taking care of his rich wife, he can't help falling for her. Soon Mrs. French is dead. It was just an accident, protests her husband. So why is there another murder a couple of years later?

I enjoyed this one. The dilemma is there almost from the beginning - did he kill his wife or not? You don't really find out until the end.

Review for Magic Lost, Trouble Found

First of all, I hated the title. Too awkward and not descriptive enough. About the writing though -

When I started reading this, I really felt like I had missed something. Was this the second in a series? Because I was kind of lost. It just opens with Raine in the middle of danger, lots of references to places, people, and ideas I didn't understand. But no, this is the first book in the series, and things do gradually get explained as the book goes on.

Raine's friend Quentin is a thief. He has just taken on a dangerous new job, and she doesn't plan on letting him out of her sight, just in case he needs backup. So she uses her magic as a seeker to keep an eye on him.

It's a good thing. Suddenly Quentin is surrounded by goblins who are after the item he's stolen, and Raine winds up in the middle of the fight. She discovers that Quentin has been hired to steal an amulet. To keep it away from Quentin, Raine puts it on her own neck. And that's when the trouble really starts.

I liked this book. Like I said, it was at times confusing. The author had obviously created this new world and lots of complex characters. But the reader just has to figure things out as they go, and that means that I was confused for longer than I should have been, and had a harder time connecting with the characters, because I was trying to keep things straight in my head. Still, plenty of action, a strong setting, and an appealing main character.

Review for I Capture the Castle

Cassandra and her family live in a large, rather decrepit house built out of the remains of a castle. She and her family - sister Rose, brother Thomas, stepmother Topaz, father, and friend/servant Stephen - are all falling into decay along with the building. They have lived on the remains of her father's career as a writer, but for years he has written nothing else, and now the royalties have stopped coming in. Then a new family moves into the estate next door.

The new heir is an American, Simon, with a brother named Neil. They are both young and handsome. Rose decides the best way out of their problems is to marry one of them. What happens next, as told by Cassandra in her diary, is not completely smooth sailing.

I enjoyed this book. I liked Cassandra a lot. She's a very appealing character, honest and loyal, pretty clear-headed. But I was a little disappointed by the ending.

And what's with these folks? Why didn't Rose, or the father, or Cassandra, any of them show a little independence and GET A JOB? That's what most people do when they need money - they work! Odd.

I'm looking forward to the book club discussion on this one. I didn't love it as much as I hoped to, and since I chose it, I hope the others did like it at least a little.

38> Nice review! I've been meaning to read this book for years. Maybe someday...

I haven't been online as much lately for a bunch of reasons, so I need to sort of catch up on what I've been reading.

Thirteenth Child is by one of my favorite children's writers, Patricia C. Wrede. She wrote the Dealing with Dragons series, which I really love. This one is an interesting mix between a Western and a fantasy. The story takes place in an alternate world where it's the late 1800s and magic is common. Lewis and Clark were lost in a dangerous wilderness full of magical beasts. Eff is the 13th child of the title, and she is also the sister of a 7th son of a 7th son. 13 is bad luck, so when anything goes wrong, her extended family - and even the town - blame it all on her. Her parents get tired of it all move Out West, where her father gets a job at a university of magic. For the first time, Eff gets a chance at a normal life.

I really enjoyed this one. It's the first in a series, and I can't wait to see what Eff gets up to now that she's developing her own magical talents. Lots of fun.

More catching up - The Gecko's Foot was an interesting book about how nature has influenced engineering. From self-cleaning surfaces based on the lotus flower to photonic crystals and new ideas about molecular circuitry, this was a fascinating read. Most of the book was easy enough for me, a non-engineer, to understand. The part about optics went right over my head, no matter how much I tried to break it down into small pieces. But it was quite informative in other places. I had always wondered what spider silk is made of and how it works, so it was cool to read that I am not the only person who wondered about that and that even scientists still don't quite understand how the spider does that. I would have liked more pictures, but the ones that were there really helped explain the text. Fun book.

Written in the Bones was about forensic anthropology. It reads as if it was a companion book to a TV series. It covers lots of area, none in great depth. The pictures were great, and most of the writing was easy enough to understand, although when the writer would describe the position of finds as having a 'north - south axis' I had no idea what that meant. The subjects were really interesting, but the book was not especially well written and more surface stuff than any real depth.

Death of a Doxy was another Nero Wolfe audiobook. Orrie Cather, sometimes employed as an investigator by Wolfe, is arrested as material witness in a murder. Archie and Wolfe are both convinced he didn't do it. Wolfe agrees to investigate.

I didn't enjoy this one as much as I expected. I did finish it, but Archie got on my nerves. Partly it was the reader, who didn't have much of a range, and partly it was the writing. Archie is always very full of himself, and enough is enough. Still, I like these books as long as I don't listen to them too close together.

Under a Monsoon Cloud

One more audiobook, a big contrast from the one above. Inspector Ghote of Bombay Police is sent to a small outpost when the chief inspector is out sick. Ghote is working hard fixing the mistakes left by his predecessor. Then he gets word that Inspector Kelkar, known as Tiger for his fierce anger that gets results so quickly, is coming to inspect the station. Ghote works furiously to get everything into order. But when Kelkar arrives, he and Ghote get involved in a sudden and violent event which will have tragic consequences.

I don't want to give away too much. The event takes place in the first 1/3 of the book and rest of the book is dealing with the aftermath. But if you do want to read it, I don't want to spoil anything.

I really loved this one. Keating wrote so many mysteries, and some were much better than others, IMHO. The Inspector Ghote ones are some of the best, with the ability to transport the reader completely into another world and time. This one deals with the Indian monsoon, and I almost wanted to turn on my windshield wipers and look for an umbrella as I listened. This one is more of a character study than some of the other ones in this series, but it was still one that I couldn't wait to see what happened. Highly recommended, but probably hard to find.

Paint by Magic was a quick read about a boy whose mom is suddenly acting very strangely. Is she bewitched? Connor decides he has to save his mom. He discovers that the solution lies in the past and he has to travel in time to get back to where the trouble started. It was a little light for me, but probably much more fun for the age it was intended. Cool idea.

Nice to see you back - I've already added The Thirteenth Child and The Gecko's Foot to the wishlist and am intrigued by Under a Monsoon Cloud. My library actually does have that book, but I'm not sure they have all the others that come earlier in the series. I'm usually one of those "read it in order or die" types when it comes to series, so should I begin with #1 and work my way through? Begin with #1 for the introductions then skip ahead? Go right for the one I want because they all stand alone? What do you think?

I've sort of skipped around in the series, and it hasn't been a problem. I think this one would stand alone just fine.

#47 Great, now that one is on the wishlist, too!

Malice Aforethought by Frances Iles

Dr. Bickleigh decided that he was tired of his wife. So the best solution, really the only fair solution, was to kill her.

According to the preface in my edition, this was a rather revolutionary book when it was written, being more of a character study and not a 'whodunnit' unlike the regular mystery. It was written in the 30s by Anthony Berkeley, who was already published under his own name.

I understand there's a Mystery! TV miniseries based on this book. I haven't seen it, but I would like to compare the two.

The Ratastrophe Catastrophe by David Lee Stone

A retelling of the Pied Piper. The illustrations were the best part of this book. Otherwise, I didn't really enjoy it. I didn't like any of the characters and the story didn't hold my interest. I skipped ahead to the end. Maybe better for younger readers, but not really for me.

I have Malice Aforethought scheduled for my Alphabet challenge I author read so it's good to know you enjoyed it.

I think I'll have to check the library for the miniseries. Let me know what you think, Wolfy.

Laced and Cursed by Carol Higgins Clark

I read Zapped recently and that one comes in between these two, so I went back and read them.

These are light and fluffy reads for me. They are usually harmless fun. I like Reagan Reilly, but I get tired of hearing her described as 'Black Irish' and then the term explained in EVERY SINGLE BOOK! That bugs me. And I don't think that her latest books have been as funny as Snagged or Twanged, which I think was my favorite. Laced is set in Ireland where Reagan and her new husband go on their honeymoon - of course. No trips to Hawaii for them! In Cursed she flies to LA to help out a friend. That one was really light and fluffy, a little too light for me. I'm not sure if I'll read anymore from her. I like fun books, but there are better writers out there.

Death in the Garden

Fifty years ago, Diana Pollexfen was arrested for the murder of her husband. She was acquitted. She settled down to a quiet life and was almost forgotten.

After Diana's death, her niece discovers that her Great Aunt had a whole secret life she never knew about. Did Diana kill her husband? Helena feels that she can't rest until she figures it out.

I really enjoyed this one. It was a little similar to Murder in Retrospect by Agatha Christie in that the main suspects are all elderly or dead. But this was more of a psychological novel, with a few loose ends here and there. I liked it a lot. I will have to look for more by this author.

#54 Cindy, that one sounds fascinating.

I think it was bcquinnsmom who told me about it. So thanks, Nancy!

Murder Came Late

Young married couple Daniel and Sarah Ede have just about had enough of living with her mother, but Daniel loves the studio they created for his sculpting. Still, after his vagabond cousin Barnabas comes for a visit, Daniel realizes that things are worse than he had realized. Soon a series of violent attacks place Daniel right at the center, as either victim or attacker. Superintendent Folly of Scotland Yard arrives just in time to sort things out.

This is one written by the prolific John Creasey under the pseudonym Jeremy York. Not up to his Gideon books, my all-time favorite, but still a good book. I wasn't exactly floored by the time the identity of the bad guy was revealed, but it was still good, suspenseful fun.

Inspector French's Greatest Case

I think I would have rated this much higher if it weren't for the title. If this was Inspector French's Greatest Case, then it's no wonder that his books are virtually forgotten today.

A man goes to work at a jewelry shop only to find the dead body of a senior clerk and an empty safe. French takes over the case. The investigation is described in mind-numbing detail, along with his frequent trips to Europe - the Netherlands, Spain, France, etc, which are either by rail (with the entire route carefully described, including a time table) or by sea. At this point, I had all but given up. So when I temporarily misplaced this book, I wasn't exactly heartbroken. And when I got it back, I finished more because I wanted to get it over with than because I really cared how it ended.

It ended with a big climax aboard another ocean-going ship, complete route included (just in case you wanted to book passage) and Inspector French being surprised by the identity of the murderer.

This was a classic example of "tell, don't show." Not recommended for anyone. If you want to try another book by this author (this was his first book, and it really shows) Inspector French and Cheyne Mystery is better. Although even then, the ending could have been much better. Crofts seems to go for the very conventional story.

To be fair, this might have been a much better read at the time. But as a modern reader, I kept thinking that if he had taken a plane ride, it would have sped up the plot a lot. And where was Scotland Yard getting all this money to pay for his fares? Never once does French end up short on cash or miss his connection. Silly read, all around.

Tenant for the Tomb

Arthur Crook is traveling up to London one day when he spots a curious pair of ladies. One he christens Daisy, the other a stiff sort of female who seems to treat the chatty Daisy as if she's an escapee from a mental home. Young Daphne is also on the train. Crook predicts a sticky end for one the ladies, but he's wrong about which one.

Message edited by its author, Dec 1, 2009, 12:05am.

The Scandalous Widow

Lady Catherine has scandalized her relatives by insisting on doing something, rather than sitting prettily and enjoying her widowhood. In fact, she has opened a school and is teaching young ladies to think for themselves.

The Marquess of Charlmont has agreed to investigate this school at the request of his latest flirt. It turns out that they are acquainted.

Rather unbelievable romance ensues, dastardly relations try to interfere, but true love conquers all.

Not a favorite, as the heroine is not very believable and both main characters are too modern in their outlooks and relationship. I'm put off when writers of historical fiction try to make their characters behave in a way that is acceptable by today's standards. I can't really recommend this one.

#60 "I can't really recommend this one." Too bad, because your description started out sounding very promising.

The Ascent of D-13 by Andrew Garve

This book starts with a hijacking. A carefully chosen UN plane is traveling across Europe to test a new top secret spy camera when one of the crew pulls a gun and announces that they are going to Russia. The copilot gets a chance to get the gun away from him just before they are ready to land and the plane turns around. Right at the Turkish border the Russians shoot down the plane. It crashes on a remote mountain.

Entirely by chance an internationally renowned mountain climber happens to be in Turkey at that very moment! (all right, the book has to start somewhere) The English diplomat asks him would he please climb up there and return that camera?

Some major mountain climbing drama ensues. I am not a climber; in fact, I'm not so crazy about hanging off a cliff tied to a rope. No fun for me. But I still enjoyed this book. Maybe it helps that I have some mountains right outside my window, but I found it pretty easy to get into the story.

What made the book a little odd to read is that so much has happened since the book was written. Satellites make much of the story out of date, although a major blizzard will still obscure things. GPS devices mean that pinpointing an exact location is entirely possible. But the real drama - will they make it off the mountain - that hasn't changed. When it comes to the roughest peaks on earth, it's still man vs. element, and the element still wins most of the time.

Not perfect, but I liked it well enough that I'm going to look for another by this author.

Message edited by its author, Dec 1, 2009, 12:29am.

Coraline Graphic Novel

Forget about the movie. This is completely different.

If you already know the book, you will probably still enjoy this version. I *loved* the book, and found this edition good and creepy. My daughter, who found only the scantily clad old ladies in the movie to be truly frightening, thought this one would keep her up at night.

Beware of buttons!

Three Men in a Boat

Nothing like a little holiday to refresh the spirits, right? So George, Harris, and J. all set off for a nice little trip down the river, along with Montmorency the dog, and confidently await nothing but rest and relaxation.

As anyone who has ever taking a holiday can tell you, things don't go quite as planned. The tent, described as so easy a child could set it up, takes all three men, and puts them quite out of temper. Their accommodations are not quite up to par. A tin of pineapple proves especially obstinate. Montmorency is defeated by the tea kettle.

And yet, there are the times on the river which go quite well. They pass through some truly beautiful countryside. They learn to make a hearty Irish stew. And they discover, as again, every traveler knows, that the best part of the holiday is coming back home.

This book was just what I needed! By turns rather philosophical and then suddenly hilarious, it was a quick and fun read. The tin of pineapple had me laughing out loud. I love this passage:

"I like work: it fascinates me. I can sit and look at it for hours. I love to keep it by me: the idea of getting rid of it nearly breaks my heart. You cannot give me too much work; to accumulate work has almost become a passion with me: my study is so full of it now, that there is hardly an inch of room for any more. I shall have to throw out a wing."

Story after hilarious story follows, from the German folk singer to the speaker's experiences with rowing, rafting, and sailing, the perils of sharing a house with a courting couple, all funny and worth reading. I'm so glad I heard of this one.

61 - If you like idea, by all means give it a try. I just think it wasn't as well written as it was conceived.

#65 No, I think I'll give it a pass - your comments about it sound like the kinds of things I would be bothered by, too. But I do already have Three Men in a Boat on my wish list, and am glad to see that you enjoyed it. I may have to move that one up.

I have my copy of Three Men in a Boat along with Connie Willis's To Say Nothing of the Dog lined up for next year's 1010. I've heard nothing but positive reviews of the 3 Men.