Frustrating lack of depth with characters combined with much stereotyping--definitely not recommending it and really not recommending it to Middle School age students due to content--discussions of very casual sex for the sake of having the experience, no real decision making process for why character decides not to do so. Surprising amount of gratuitous underage drinking as well. ML

Nicely done prequel to Peter Pan. Quick start but a bit corny in the 1st half.

Kushman's use of language is lovely. Reads aloud like a fairy tale, not as grim as the Grimms, but not all peaches and cream, either. A delightful read!

The book opens with the line "We went to the moon to have fun, but the moon turned out to completely suck." It had my attention from that moment on! It's set in the future in a time where everyone has a sort of computer in their head, and they're constantly getting a barrage of ads, information, etc. The main characters are Titus, who doesn't know what life is like without his feed, and Violet, his girlfriend. Violet is not as accepting of the feed as Titus is, and this leads to conflict. The book has good character development, and some action. Anderson uses a lot of slang and this really puts you into Titus' world. I enjoyed this book! LS

First of the Tillerman series, this is the story of eldest child Dicey and her siblings James, Maybelle and Sammy. The book opens with their mother leaving them in a mall parking lot, and we follow them as they set out to figure out where their mother is. They encounter many challenges along the way, and also meet several meet family they never knew.

This is a cozy story, which would appeal to those readers who enjoy a lighthearted whodunit story with little violence. The characters have ongoing storylines about their families, their careers, and, most of all, their relationships. Along with an enjoyable storyline, this book also provides recipes within each chapter, which further lightens the mood of this culinary caper.
I would also recommend to fans of this book, Just Desserts, by Daheim, Sympathy for the Devil, by Jerrilyn Farmer, Murder, with Peacocks, by Donna Andrews, and, of course, any of the other titles in Joanne Fluke’s Hannah Swenson mystery series. - MH

Every year in real life a mysterious figure leaves roses and a half bottle of cognac on Edgar Allan Poe's grave in Baltimore. Author Lippman builds a murder mystery around this event, wherein series sleuth Tess Monaghan finds herself in the middle of a most bewilding set of circumstances. Likely to appeal to cozy readers more than fans of more traditionally hard-boiled PIs, but the numerous allusions to Poe, the father of the mystery genre, add a nice note of fun to the affair. KB.

fast moving,quick read. Psychological thriller involving Boston P.I., former police detective, Spenser in solving the vicious murder of Negro women in their mid-forties. It gets too close to home when Spenser's girlfriend is left a red rose (the calling card of the killer).PC

Tapply's 16th novel featuring attorney-sleuth Brady Coyne. Quick and solid plot (divorce case turns into a murder mystery) with some swearing and mild sexual undertones. Violence and murder not graphic. Main character/suspect is a retired Detroit Pistons basketball player. Stand alone book in a series.

Lawyer Brady Coyne gets caught up with the case of Daniel McCloud, a Vietnam vet accused of growing pot in his backyard. The case deepens when he is mysteriously acquitted, gives Brady a book he's written and wants published, and several people get murdered. Set in New England, the book has great twists and turns and Brady is an affable main character. Recommended! LS

Gail Connor's life if falling apart - her marriage, her sister"s apparent suicide. Gail becomes an amateur sleuth to clear her name when the police discover her sister was murdered and Gail is the prime suspect. PC

Mallory investigates the killing of a woman named Amanda Bosch, plus a young boy accused of telekinesis. I enjoyed Mallory as a character, but I found the various subplots (her colleague Charles talking to ghosts) to muddle the book overall. There was a lot of exciting action and I liked following Mallory's investigation. She kept me guessing until the end!

The book opens with the murder of an ex con who seemed to be on the straight and narrow. J.P. Beaumont is called in to investigate, while his colleague/girlfriend Mel Soames is investigating a series of murders of registered sex offenders. Soon their investigations collide. The pacing is good, and the characters are very likeable, but I was not amused by the repeated references to the Special Homicide Investigation Team (the acronym is a 'joke' that is overplayed) and the ending fell flat for me. LS

Lindy Haggerty volunteers to help run a small town Halloween extravaganza and fundraiser for a local teen center. Aside from the usual backbiting and petty bickering, murder (eventually) rears its ugly head. The book seems more concerned with the personal problems--divorce, cancer, drugs, etc.--of its rather large cast of characters than with murder, the first of which occurs on about page 230 in a 300 page book (although another offstage death is also eventually revealed to be a murder, albeit about two-thirds of the way into things). The fourth book of a series, the large cast all but demands that you start with the first book to get a handle on all the characters. Lindy works with a professional dance company, but her occupation comes rather less into play in this chapter than in previous ones.

Cora Felton is the grandmotherly, nationally syndicated 'Puzzle Lady' whose crossword puzzle greets newspaper readers every morning. She has a dread secret, though. Far from her wholesome image, Cora is a drunk and a bit of a floozy. Worse, the crosswords she's known for are in fact created by her niece Shelly, who is living with Cora in a small town in hopes of evading her abusive former husband. These secrets are threatened when Cora is drawn into a local murder investigation based on her supposed expertise on crosswords. A fairly lighthearted cozy, this is the first of a series.

This is a coming of age story (with teen crossover appeal) about a girl who is devastated by her mother leaving the family, and then her father's descent into depression. This would appeal to readers who liked The Usual Rules by Maynard. It is NOTHING like Shepard's YA series Pretty Little Liars. MH

A small elusive tale told with an abstract, dreamlike quality. This somewhat gothic and macabre story unfolds at the family's chateau in France as an adult daughter and her unnamed children return home from life in Australia and an abusive husband. Odd but compelling story as family members gathered struggle to help new mother part with stillborn daughter. Suggested for fans of Ian McEwan and Josephine Hart.

A memoirist with writer's block decides to write a non-fiction

Well written, unconnected tales of the supernatural featuring a pleasingly literary style, sort of Stephen King meets Henry James (who factors somewhat into more than one story). Like King, many of the tales revolve around writers and academics, in what one suspects are autobiographical touches. The contents range from traditional ghost tales to sci-fi. Sure to please horror buffs who lean more towards shivers and raised hackles than gross-outs. Definitely an author to keep an eye on.

Deon Meyer is an exciting, new South African author who brings Cape Town to vivid life in all it's beauty and squalor. This thriller deals with a vigilante who targets murderers and rapists of children and the on-the-wagon detective that slowly catches up with him. GZ

SPEAK handles a difficult subject with sensitivity and humor through the main character of Melinda, a young woman with a secret. Driven to acting out by the ignorance and self-involvement of all the adults around her, she takes solace in her art classes. She suffers though a dreadful first year in high school and manages to finally find her voice.

This book is for anyone who has ever felt an "outsider" and flipped the bird to those who made them feel that way. It's a story of friendship and courage and overcoming all the obstacles in your life. It's about taking care of your soul, the Arnold Spirit way. It's a righteous read.

Sven is a common grunt in a galactic army that faces many enemies. Or maybe he's not so common after all, as he learns during what might appears to be a protracted suicide mission against a seemingly unbeatable foe.

Jenna Fox awakes from a coma with no memory of who she is or how she got there. Watching home movies helps her to piece together who she was--but now she feels like a completely different girl. What happened in her former life to bring her here? Why doesn't she have any friends? What are her parents keeping secret?