Lisa's 11-11 in 2011

I did not do so well with my TBR this year, mainly because of my stalking my BM wishlist and my impulse grabs at the library.

I am going to try harder to work with what I already have at home. I'm starting to feel like I should be featured on Hoarders or something. That being said most of my reading will be mysteries, police procedurals, thrillers, and whatever else I have on hand.



February:

Bleak House

1. Happy Birthday!

(I will read a book by an author born in each month of the challenge)

1. January 8th-Wilkie Collins, The Woman in White ****1/2 Jan 27th
2. February 17th-Ruth Rendell, No More Dying Then **** Jan 31
3. March 22nd- James PattersonThe Sixth Target ****March 23
4. April 23-Ngaio Marsh Death in a White Tie
5. May-Daphne du Maurier, Margery Allingham
6. June-Dorothy Sayers, Sara Paretsky
7. July-Michael Connnelly, James M Cain, Josephine Tey
8. August-P.D. James, Theodore Dreiser or Mary Roberts Rinehart
9. September-Agatha Christie
10.October-Fannie Hurst, Mario Puzo, Anne Rice
11.November-Bram Stoker, Louisa May Alcott

2. 1001 List (Books that have appeared on this list at one time)

1.Bleak House Group read
2.Tess of the D'Ubervilles March 17 ****
3.Tenant of Wildfell Hall
4.The Corrections Jan 22
5.The Cider House Rules
6.Therese Raquin March 31 ***1/2
7.Of Human Bondage
8.
9.
10.
11.

3. A Thrill a Minute (I have many legal and other type thrillers in my TBR.

1 The Passage
2 True Evil
3 The Survivors Club Jan 29th ****
4.Love You More March 17 ****
5 The Night Season March 25 ****
6Three Weeks to Say Goodbye March 29 ***
7
8
9
10
11

4. In Color (Books with a color in the title)

1.Five Quarters of the Orange Jan 7th*****
2.Fried Green Tomatoes Jan 10th ****
3.Blues Dancing Feb 12 ***1/2
4.The Blue Hammer
5.The Blackbirder
6.Agnes Grey
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.

Brown's Requiem
The Scarlet Letter
Red Threads
Black Money
Agnes Grey
The Golden Bowl

5. Short and Sweet (Books with One Word Titles)

1. Fright Feb 26 ***
2. Immoral Jan 12th ****
3.Gangster Feb 15th ****
4.Freedom
5.Misery
6.Hush April 25th ***1/2
7.Curtain
8.Tumbling Jan 19th ****
9.Summer April 19th****

6. It's New to Me (books by authors new to me)

1.Indemnity Only w/Victoria Feb 5th ***
2.The Ice House Jan 3rd *****
3.The Case of the Gilded Fly w/DeltaQueen
4. In The Bleak Midwinter Feb 11th *****
5.The Fabulous Clipjoint Feb 23 ****
6.A Perfect Evil March 3 ***
7.Forty Words for Sorrow March 13 ****

7. Have You Seen? (books made into movies)

1. The Asphalt Jungle
2. The Joy Luck Club Feb 25 ***

8. Just Because (whatever strikes my fancy at the moment)

1.Spade and Archer w/Victoria Jan 27 **
2.Miss Pym Disposes w/DeltaQueen
3.Behind the Scenes at the Museum Jan 16th ****
4.The Sculptress Minette Walters Jan 14
****
5.The Scold's Bridle **** Feb 22
6. Out of the Deep I Cry Feb 22 ****
7.Bobby Darin: A Life ***1/2 April 15

10611747::Fallen Karin Slaughter

9. Where Am I? (books with a specific location i.e. a foreign country or a specific US locale)

1. Don't Look Back:Karin Fossum January 5th **** (Norway)
2.The Girl With No Shadow
3. When the Devil Holds the Candle February 18 ****(Norway)
4.Crooked Letter Crooked Letter April 11 ***** (Mississippi)

10. Historical Fiction

1.Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet w/DeltaQueen March 5 ***
2.The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Society Jan 17th ****
3.Pardonable Lies March 6 ****

11. A Series of Events (unread in series)

1.Dearly Devoted Dexter w/Victoria Jan 9th ****
2.In the Presence of the Enemy
3. A Fountain Filled With Blood Feb 19****
4. All Mortal Flesh March 1 ****1/2
5.Crunch Time April 22 ****

Ah, now I can post a comment here - I was waiting until you got your categories set so I didn't mess you up. Good categories - you should be able to fit in lots and lots of mysteries!

The poor Decemberists won't get a look in for your birthday category. I feel sorry for them ;)

# 13. Thanks Judy! Let's hope I do better with my TBR tower this year, I kind of lost momentum with the TBR Challenge.

#14. Lol, yes, but if I finish the challenge in November, I can do a mini challenge and feature Rex Stout or Jane Austen in December!

Glad to see that you're back!! Of course, I will be following your progress and getting plenty of ideas from you.

Welcome back!

I really like your categories, especially the author birthday one! I'm looking forward to following your thread for this challenge.

Book #1 from the (It's New to Me) category.

Sometimes when I look back on how I've rated various books, I look at them and go really, what was I thinking?

I gave The Ice House five stars. I thought it was excellent. Usually when I read a "first" book by an author, I have a tendency to go just a little nuts and try to read everything that they wrote. I am going to try to resist that urge this year.

The story is as follows:

Three women are living together in seclusion at a Hampshire county house and have been the topic of gossip for years. Everyone in town is convinced that they are witches, that they are all intimately involved, and of course that the lady of the manor, Phoebe Maybury killed her husband ten years ago.

Of course the police were never able to find a body and lacked sufficient evidence. Her two house mates Diana and Anne also have secrets that interest the police.

Unfortunately for Phoebe, the same detective who couldn't put her away ten years ago, is back and very committed in finally nailing her for good. When a badly decomposed body is found on the property, everyone assumes that it's Phoebe's long missing husband. Whose body is it? Did one of the women kill the deceased? Or did someone else do the honors?

This book kept me on the edge of my seat all the way through. It's great to have such a good read at the beginning of the year.

I love Minette Walters. The Ice House and her next book, The Sculptress are my favorites. The Ice House was done on PBS (I think the production was originally British) that was very well done, Daniel Craig (of James Bond fame) played the detective.

I'm glad your first book was a good one.
I get that urge to devour an entire backlog too - Karin Slaughter and Ira Levin come to mind. I guess I hate being late to the party. So here's to more patience this year, for both of us!

#20 Judy, thanks for letting me know about the PBS production of The Ice House and I do rather like Daniel Craig also......

#21 Hi Victoria:

I guess it helps my mania that my books are not in any type of order, so I would have to hunt for the next Walters, which would be a deterrent haha!

Oh yes, Karin Slaughter, I was not going to stop until I got my mitts on every last book lol!

Book #2 from the Where Am I? category. I was in Norway with my first Inspector Sejer mystery, Don't Look Back.

I enjoyed this book very much. I thought that things moved a bit slowly, but then everything came together in the end.

A teenage girl is found dead by the lake in a very small Norwegian village. What could have happened to a girl who was strong, smart, and who was so well-liked?

Inspector Sejer investigates in a very slow, but deliberate manner, finding clues that seemingly have nothing to do with his case, but then again maybe they do?

That one's been on my wishlist for a while but not got round to picking it up yet. Glad you enjoyed it.

3. Five Quarters of the Orange from the In Color category. Five stars for this one also!

I found this book to be a very engrossing read. Set in a small French town, the protagonist, Framboise Simon refects on her past life as a nine year old farm girl(during World War II) and her present life as a sixty five extremely bitter woman.

I was fascinating with the character development in this story, Framboise (Boise) was an extremely cruel child and hateful older woman. Although the character never had any redeeming qualities, I wanted to know her story. I wanted to know about each family member's secrets, what happened with the German soldier, and most importantly, what happened the summer of Boise's ninth year.

Add the many food references to this wonderful book and it makes for an excellent read.

I haven't read any of Joanne Harris' books, but I do see them, including Five Quarters of the Orange at my favorite bookstore. Glad to hear this one was a winner for you.... adding Harris to my author TBR pile.

I love your birthday category too! I took Five Quarters of the Orange off my wishlist today because it was getting long and I couldn't remember why I had added that one in the first place. Looks like I better put it back on the list. The Ice House sounds good too. At least they don't film Hoarders just because of a long wishlist!

I am going to add Five Quarters of the Orange to my wishlist. I had already planned to read Blackberry Wine by Joanne Harris sometime soon, I can see I will probably end up adding all her books to my wishlist!

I have Five Quarters of the Orange scheduled for my Colors category also. Good to know it sounds interesting. Might move it up after I finish what I'm reading now.

>28 DeltaQueen50: DeltaQueen, Five Quarters of the Orange, Blackberry Wine and Chocolat make up her food trilogy. They're my favorite ones, although Gentlemen and Players was satisfying too.

Well, I'm always ready to read about food :) - those three will be going on my list. Oh, Oh, Chocolat must be the book for the Johnny Depp/Juliette Binoche movie - another reason to read it - I can watch that movie again!

That's correct. Don't forget Alfred Molina's in there too. In fact, I think of one of his scenes almost everytime I endulge in really good chocolate.

#26- 29, I think you will really enjoy Five Quarters of the Orange it had me captivated with the way the story unfolded.

#31. Oh my, how could I have missed anything with Johnny Depp, I have to see Chocolat now!

4. Dearly Devoted Dexter from the category A Series of Events.

I am a big fan of the TV series, so the big differences in what happens to various characters is a good thing for me, because the books (so far) have definitely held my interest. It hasn't been like watching and reading the exact same thing.

In this second book in the series, Dexter is wondering what the heck is going on, could he really be having actual feelings for Rita and her children Astor and Cody?

Doakes is hot on his trail watching his every move and the "Dark Passenger" has to take a little break from his nightly activities. Not to worry though, Dexter eventually finds a way to rid society of its undesirables by following "Harry's code".

Now that I have read the second book, I do want to finish the series.

5. Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe from the In Color category.

Here is another movie that I haven't seen. I don't know why since Jessica Tandy was and Kathy Bates is great.

There are two main stories which take place: first is the story of the relationship that evolves between an unhappy middle-aged woman and the woman she befriends at her mother-in-law's rest home. The other story is that of the spunky Idgie and her friend Ruth who ran a small cafe in Alabama during the 1930's.

The story comes alive with the various characters whose lives are impacted by the main characters and the vivid descriptions of Alabama during various times in history.

I thought it was a good entertaining read.

Lisa, have you read Daisy Fay and the Miracle Man also by Fannie Flagg? I think I like it just a tad better than Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe.
You should really see the movie. Make it a double-feature with Steel Magnolias!

Hi Victoria: I haven't read any other Fannie Flagg books. I will check the one you mentioned out.

Oh Steel Magnolias that gets me bawling every time, that and Terms of Endearment.

#6 Immoral

This book was recommended to me by a fellow Bookmoocher who thought I would like the author. She was right!

This first in the series police procedural featuring Lt. Jonathon Stride takes place mostly in Duluth and then toward the end of the book switches to Las Vegas. From the way the book ended, it looks like the move to Las Vegas will be a permanent one for the character.

Lt. Stride is haunted by an unsolved case of a missing runaway when another similar case is also assigned to him. The second missing person case is full of suspects, lies, and people who are not who they appear to be.

There were many plot twists throughout, and I found the characters to be very well developed.

The ending blew me away, I did not see it coming!

Duluth? My parents were from Duluth. Did the author seem to know the town well, or was it just chosen as a good place for to raise a naive runaway?

#39, The author currently lives in Minnesota (according to his bio) and it seems to me that the setting descriptions were properly researched. I'm still not sure how I feel about the move to Vegas, though. I think a Vegas setting will set a different tone for the story, but we'll see.

7. The Sculptress Ok, yes, I caved and sought out another Minette Walters. It's still early, so I don't have to be extra creative yet.

This was the chillingly good story of author Rosalind Leigh, requested by her publisher to write the story of Olive Martin. Olive is in prison for hacking her mother and sister into pieces, and called the police only because she thought she wouldn't be able to get rid of all the carnage before her father got home. Yikes!

As Rosalind researches Olive's story, her confession to the murders, and finds more and facts that don't add up, she begins to believe that Olive just may be innocent.

Rosalind also have to face her own painful life events while trying to help Olive. Creepingly good, and I liked how the ending left things hanging just a bit.

8.Behind the Scenes at the Museum I wasn't sure how I would feel about this whimisical first offering by Kate Atkinson. I am however, a huge fan of her Jackson Brodie series and I think she is an exceptional writer.

This is the story of Ruby Lennox, and the three generations of women before her. Her mother Berenice (Bunty), her grandmother Nell, and her great grandmother Alice.

Ruby narrates her life story and the background of her female relatives at breakneck speed. I did have to refer to previous chapters to keep the family relationships straight. Ruby's story is at times heartbreaking, and others downright hilarious.

I thought it was genius how the author used numerical chapters to tell Ruby's story, and used chapters titled "footnotes" to tell the historical aspects of her mother, grandmother, and great grandmother's lives, as well as various aunts and other relatives.

I thought it was a great read.

Wasn't The Sculptress a fantastic book! You've got me in the mood to read a Minette Walters now. I think I might still have one of hers tucked away that I haven't read, I'll have to go see if I can find it and fit it into my reading somewhere.

Oh my, you are definitely making my wishlist grow... too long! It's growing tentacles!

#43. Hi Judy! Yes, The Sculptress was fantastic indeed! It's good that her books are stand alones, somehow with the series books, I feel like I have to read all of them at once!

I think I will take my time before the next one.

9. The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Society from the Historical Fiction category.

I wasn't sure how I would feel about this book's epistolary format, but once I started reading, I very quickly became absorbed in the story.

Juliet Ashton is searching for a subject for her next book, when an inhabitant of Guernsey contacts her in reference to finding more works by Charles Lamb.

Through letters with this correspondent, Juliet becomes vry interested in the stories of the people of Guernsey. ( I did not realize that British islands were also captured by the Nazis).

Eventually Juliet moves to Guernsey to experience the life histories of the various letter writers and becomes enamored of the people and the life there. Each inhabitant had a moving story to tell and had suffered so much.

It was a very good read, but I think maybe if I read a book like this again, an audio format would be the way to go.

I enjoyed The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Society when I read it but your idea of a re-read in audio format sounds intriguing. I can see how this book would work great as an audio book!

#47. I wish I had thought to check about the audio format, then the distinction of who is writing the various letter would be a little more clear, I think.

10. Tumbling from the Short and Sweet category. I happened to run across an article in my hometown Sunday paper last year. about this author.

She is from Philadelphia, still lives here, I think, and I knew nothing about her works. Admittedly, just about every library branch and bookstore here has a shelf with Phillly authors. I really should peruse those shelves sometimes instead of always gravitating toward my regulars.

Tumbling is the story of Noon and Herbie, who live in Philadelphia during the 1940's and 1950's. Herbie is a bit of a cad who hangs out in bars and keeps company (such an old fashioned saying) with a blues singer named Ethel.

Herbie loves Noon, but she is unable to fufill her wifely duties (ok another archaic term), due to an unspeakable event which took place during her youth.

One day, a baby girl is left on Noon and Herbie's doorstep who they decide to keep and raise as their own and name her Fannie. Five years later, Ethel leaves her five year old niece, Liz, on their doorstep also. She figures that the live of a singer on the road is not good for a child and that Noon and Herbie will make good parents.

Herbie, who adores Fannie, is unable to allow himself to love Liz, mainly because Liz recognizes Herbie from all the nights that he spent with her aunt Ethel. He lives in fear that one day she will spill the beans to Noon.

This is a moving story of faith, hope, love and that family is whatever you make it, regardless of blood ties.

11. The Corrections This book took me a while to get through, while it was well-written, there were parts that were kind of ho-hum for me (i.e. the talking turds and the many capitalist rants).

This story of the dysfunctional Lambert family is certainly true to life. The father is suffering from Alzheimer's and Parkinson's disease, the mother is repressed and highly delusional about her husband's failing health but also how it impacts and disrupts her life.

The one thing that she focuses on throughout most of the book, is having her three children and three grandchildren at the family home for Christmas.

The oldest son Gary is married with three sons, and is battling depression. He's become disillusioned with his wife and being a parent and thinks he knows what is best for everyone. Although I did not have warm fuzzies for any of the characters, Gary was the one that I disliked most of all. His attitude toward his family was horrible!

The middle son Chip has been fired from teaching because of inappropriate relations with a student and doesn't seem to have any life direction.

The youngest, daughter Denise is battling sexual confusion and the only one who really tries to help her father when he becomes ill.

The end was sad, although one of the characters seemed to mature and accept responsibility, which was good.

12. Spade and Archer Maybe I was just a little bit too excited about this prequel to the Maltese Falcon and that made my expectations higher than they should have been.

At any rate, while I applaud the author's effort, this book didn't work for me. It just seemed to me that much of the book wasn't true to the "Sam Spade" persona.

The reader learns how the ever efficient Effie came to be Sam's secretary and for those familiar with the Maltese Falcon, you can understand why Sam didn't hesitate to take Archer's name off the door of their shared office.

I would have liked more background about Archer, despicable character as he was, and more detail about the triangle of Sam, Archer, and Iva.

Little nagging details aside, I found the three sections of the book a bit disjointed and they would have probably been better as novellas, than loosely tied together.

13. The Woman in White This book was part mystery, part gothic romance. It was very long, but worth the effort.

Published as a newspaper serial in 1859, the reader very much feels the sense of anticipation for the next installment, much like a television "cliffhanger".

I thought it was pretty clever to tell the story from the viewpoints of various characters, in the form of letters, diaries, and dispositions, which were recounted by both major and minor characters.

Walter Hartright, an art teacher is hired to teach Laura Fairlie and her half sister, Marian Halcombe. Walter falls in love with Laura, but she is promised in marriage to the evil Sir Percival who is after Laura's inheritance. Marian convinces Walter to leave and not act on his feeling for Laura, leaving her miserably married to Sir Percival and fearing for her life.

The secondary plot to this story is the mysterious woman dressed in white who is determined to see Laura at any cost and who keeps escaping from the insane asylum.

Who is this mysterious woman and why does she bear such a resemblance to Laura?

I enjoyed this book very much, even if it did take most of the month to get through.

Ah!!! I'll be reading The Woman in White in October with the group. Can't wait!

I'm looking forward to reading it in October as well. I read The Moonstone quite a few years ago and I remember liking it alot.

I've had this on my shelf for a while now. I may need to move it closer to the top.

#53- 55, You will love The Woman in White and October seems like a perfect time to read it Judy!

14. The Survivors Club tackles the very difficult subject of serial rape, by not focusing so much on the crime itself, but the aftermath for the three women who make up the Survivor's Club.

Jillian Hayes, Carol Rosen, and Meg Pesaturo have all survived unspeakable violence. They took charge of their own investigation which led the police to find and jail their attacker. Just before his trial is about to start, a sniper's bullet kills the attacker and a bomb goes off in the sniper's getaway car. Each of the survivors of course is suspected of the murders.

When another woman in attacked in the same manner, the police are baffled. Was the wrong man unjustly accused?

A good action paced thriller as usual by this author.

The Survivors Club sounds good!

You've had a good reading month! Of course, you're sure to fit just one more book in!

# 58 Cam, I am a big fan of Lisa Gardner, I recommend her highly.

# 59, Kay how right you are, not only did I squeeze one in, it was a Ruth Rendell. I wanted to catch up on some of the early Wexfords, and I found a couple of others that I will fit in this month as well.

15. I gave Ruth Rendell her birthday salute a few weeks early, for my Happy Birthday category.

Her birthday is Feb 17th. The book was a shorty, and I found two others that I want to read as well. The early Insp Wexfords are so good! Of course I am going to fit them in, I'll pretend that I'm reading a trilogy. The others that will be read are The Veiled One and Wolf to the Slaughter.

I finished No More Dying Then In this one Insp. Wexford is haunted by the case of young Stella Rivers who disappeared without a trace. Eight months later, little John Lawrence doesn't come home from playing outside.

Burden, who is usually Wexford's sounding board in solving cases, is of no use this time around, as he is plauged by a tragedy in his personal life and crossing the line with the mother of the missing boy.

Very Good. as usual.

16 Indemnity Only read with Victoria and Kay

This book is first in the series featuring private eye V.I. Warshawski.

I liked the vivid descriptions of Chicago, the characters were somewhat interesting, but I thought the author tried too hard with the witty dialogue.

I may re-visit the series at some point, but I won't rush to do so.

17. Miss Pym Disposes I read this with my LT bud DeltaQueen. Work issues and other things kept me from finishing as soon as I would have liked, but I'm glad I was able to savor the book.

I love Josephine Tey. I think because most of all, her books are all different and no one reminds me of another. I enjoyed all of them, and I think my favorite is a tie between The Franchise Affair and A Shilling for Candles.

Miss Pym Disposes is not your typical whodunit as the "action" doesn't take place until the last 40 pages or so. This book is more of a psychological study that really makes you think about human nature.

Lucy Pym is a guest lecturer at a physical training college who thwarts one of the students from cheating. This action in turn, sets off another event which truly tests her psychological theories.

Let me say, I did not see the end coming at all!

Now back to my Julia Spencer-Fleming lovefest:)

I am now a big fan of Joesphine Tey. I plan to work my way through all of her books. Hope things in your RL have settled down, giving you more time to spend with your nose in a book!

Looking forward to The Case of the Gilded Fly next month!

18. In The Bleak Midwinter
It's New to Me

I don't ever need much of a nudge to read a mystery, but there is something different about this series. It's on the cozier side, as there is not too much out of control gore, but then you also have real people with real problems which makes the book realistic in many aspects.

And then, the author teases you with the tension between the two main protagonists, Episcopalian priest Clare Fergusson and police chief Russ Van Alstyne.

Who would think that a book about a female Episcopalian priest and a police chief would make such a great story? It does!

Clare Fergusson is St. Alban's new priest whose views don't exactly endear her to everyone at Miller's Kill. Not only do some people not know what to make of a female priest, she's also an ex-army pilot.

Police Chief Van Alstyne also happens to be ex military and is at first, very uncomfortable around Clare. That changes when they work together to find out who left a baby on the parish steps and later, who killed the baby's mother. As various events unfold, you just know that something is happening between Russ and Clare, but she's a priest and he's married. I can't wait to see what happens with their story.

I'm happily devouring book #2!

19. Blues Dancing was a good read right before Valentine's Day. Not a hearts and flowers kind of story, but a story of how people make mistakes and learn from them. It's also a story of redemption, misspent youth, and the intoxication of first love, which may or may not be good for us.

Verdi Mae comes to Philadelphiain the 70's to attend college from a small southern town, the naive daughter of a rural preacher. She soon meets and falls head over heels in love with Johnson, a poor, militant city boy who makes Verdi passionate about civil rights causes, and unfortunately heroin.

Lost in their drug addicted lives, Johnson flunks out of school, but Verdi is saved by a professor names Rowe, twenty years her senior who vows to help her get clean and to have her for himself, when he leaves his wife for her.

Johnson has never gotten over Verdi and twenty years later, he comes back into her life. He is now clean and Verdi realizes that she has never gotten over him either. She's faced with the conflict between her sense of duty to Rowe for saving her life, or her rekindled passion with her first love.

The book has a happy ending, but it's not a pretty path getting there.

In the Bleak Midwinter looks good. My wishlist is getting out of control!

I'm loading In the Bleak Midwinter on my nook for vacation. Looking forward to it.

Got you hooked didn't I? Bwahahahaha. Let me know when you're ready for book#4!

#67 and 68 you won't be sorry! Oh and 68, reading it on the Nook, you'll finish so fast that you will be looking for book #2! It's good and dangerous to the credit card that books can be downloaded in seconds lol!

#69 Victoria: It's a world gone mad I tell you, with all your mysteries so far this year. Oh, and it won't be long before I'm ready for book 4, I'm dying to know what's up with Russ's wife!

Lisa, just dropping by to say I've started A Share In Death and really liking it. It's great to know that there is lots more in this series.

#71 Hi Judy: I think I left you a note on your thread about my favorite book in this series. They're all good, but the one I'm thinking about, well, you'll know when you get there!

20. Gangster Yes, I picked this book off the shelf while I was watching the Godfather for the who know how many times it's been. I never get tired of it, ever!

I picked this book up mainly because of the other book that I read by this author, Sleepers.

It's the story of Angelo Vestieri, born in America after his parents escaped from Italy. Angelo's grandfather( who was murdered) owed quite a bit of money to the mafia, who took Angelo's brother 8 year old Carlo, hostage, in order to get their father's attention.

Rather than see his son destined to a life of crime, their father shoots Carlo dead, in an attempt at some sort of misguided honor. Angelo's mother dies in childbirth giving birth to him, and he is raised by his father, watching him struggle through life never doing more than makes end meet.

Angelo quickly befriends the local criminals who at the time, rule early 20th century New York. He rises from soldier, to mob boss in a very short time. The years pass, and Angelo, who is now an old gangster, takes a young abandoned boy named Gabe under his wing and hopes to pass his legacy down to him and that he will take over the business.

Even though you can kind of guess the end game, so to speak, this is still a very good read, for those who enjoy a good mob story.

I read Gangster a few years ago and don't remember it that well, but I do remember that I liked it and passed it along to my husband and he enjoyed it as well.

21 When The Devil Holds the Candle Where Am I?

I was in the mood for a little Norwegian crime, and this book did the trick and then some. It's chillingly dark and the story is slowly revealed in pieces which come together in the end. It reminds me a lot of Ruth Rendell, who I love, and Minette Walters, who I am just delving into.

Andreas and his friend Zipp, spend much of their time up to no good, finding ways to steal from people as a way to amuse themselves for a few dollars. Of course we all know, what starts as a petty crime can quickly spiral out of control with horrible circumstances.

When Andreas decides to invade the home of Irma Funder he gets more than he bargained for in the worst way. There are a few good twists in this story and of course Inspector Sejer is on the case.

There is an event mentioned in this book that makes me think that I missed something, and sure enough, I never read the second book. I will have to remedy that.

A good entertaining read.

That one is in my TBR pile. I'll try to remember to read the first two books in the series before it since you feel you "missed" something. I've read the book that comes after it and loved it. It was my "discovery" of Karin Fossum.

#76, I do like Karin Fossum's style, I will have to get the rest of her books at some point.

22. A Fountain Filled With Blood The second book in what promises to be an excellent series.

I have to say, that even though I gave this book a 4*, there were a few parts that seemed to drag a little bit for me. At any rate, I found myself captivated, just not as captivated as I was with the first book.

It's a hot July in Miller's Kill and Clare and Russ continue to find themselves thrown together while he tries to solve his murder cases. This time, a resort developer is killed, and the question becomes, was he a victim of a hate crime, or because someone doesn't want his new luxury spa to open?

I still want to know more about Russ and his wife's relationship. Maybe book #3 will give me some detail!

23. The Scold's Bridle
Just Because

No one seems to care when Mathilda Gillespie's body in found in her bathtub, with her wrists slit, and wearing the scold's bridle on her head. The scold's bridle is a Middle Ages torture tool used to silence yakking women.

Her death appears to be suicide, but then it begins to look more and more like a homicide with no end to the list of possible suspects.

The major list of possible suspects includes: Sarah Blakeney, Mathilda's doctor, Sarah's husband Jack, and Mathilda's daughter Joanna, and her granddaughter Ruth. There are also a host of minor characters who can't be discounted as wanting to do away with the hateful Mathilda.

This book was very disturbing, very chilling and very good! I'll try to control myself from reading all of her books at one time!

24 Out of the Deep I Cry
Just Because

This is book number 3 in a series that I can't seem to get enough of right now.

Clare needs funding to get the roof of the church fixed. One of the vestry members offers the money, but it would mean taking funds away from the town free clinic. The vestry member happens to be the daughter of the clinic's founder, Jane Ketchem.

Jane's story is told in bits and pieces as the author takes us from the 1920's to the 1950's and then to the present, sometimes slowly but effectively.

Sometimes it's hard not to become frustrated with Clare, because frankly she doesn't listen. She wanders into crime scenes and puts herself in dangerous positions without thinking. It's a good thing there's a police chief around to save her!

re: Out of the Deep I Cry... I got a little impatient in places with the "older" Ketchem story but I loved the last third of the book.

I'm so glad you caught up with me! Onward to book#4!

Sounds like you've read quite a few good mysteries lately. The Scold's Bridle may have to go on the wishlist.

The Scold's Bridle was the first Minette Walters I ever read and remains my favorite.

I wonder if The Scold's Bridle will become my favorite and the one that I will most associate with this author.

It just might be like Judgement in Stone which is the one book that I always recommend of Ruth Rendell's.

25 The Fabulous Clipjoint
It's New To Me

This was an interesting read. The setting is Chicago mid 1940's which just screams hardboiled mystery. This book won the 1947 Edgar for best first novel. I was intrigued that the author wrote both science fiction and mystery!

Amateur sleuth Ed Hunter goes to see his uncle Ambrose, a carney, to inform him of Ed's father's death.

Uncle Ambrose hasn't been around much, but is still affected by his brother's death. He and Ed team up to find out who left Ed's father, Wally, laying in the alley like garbage. Uncle Ambrose must have had prior detective experience, but this isn't mentioned in the book.

As usual there is no shortage of suspects: Gardie, Ed's stepsister, who likes to take off her clothes to see if she can lead Ed into temptation. Madge, Wally's wife, and Ed's stepmother, who has her own agenda, and Bunny Wilson, Wally's co-worker who tries desperately to help Ed and Ambrose. There are also assorted thugs and dames just to make things more interesting.

Even though you could kind of see how this would play out, it was fun getting there. The ending suggests that Ed and Ambrose will team up for future endeavors, and I did find out that this book was the first in a series about the duo as detectives.

26 The Joy Luck Club

Have You Seen?

I was a bit confused through most of this book as four mothers and four daughters tell their respective stories. The book was good, but I found myself flipping to the front quite a bit, to remember who was who.

The mothers, are all Chinese immigrants in 1949, and their daughters, all born in California, each shunning the traditions of their Chinese culture in their own way. The mothers form the Joy Luck Club, where they eat, talk and play mah jong and try to build new traditions.

The daughters of course, want to assimilate into American culture, while their mothers try to pass down their individual culture and history. This conflict of wills leads to hurtful words, and then acceptance of traditional values.

It is also a story of how young girls often view their parents and are sometimes cruel but as they age, appreciate the struggles that their parents have gone though and the history that makes them who they are.

27 Fright

Short and Sweet

I was excited to find anything of Cornell Woolrich's in print, because most of his work remains difficult to find.

Written under his alias, George Hopley, in 1950, Fright was written "post fame" and not considered to be one of the author's best works. Published by Hard Case Crime, this book has one of those typical 1950's covers that I can't be seen in public with so this book needed to be read at home!

Fright, is however, a decent "noir" novel even if some of the plot and the dialogue are akward. Prescott Marshall is being blackmailed by a little "indiscretion" that he had while engaged to his fiancee Marjorie.

A violent act takes place literally an hour before Prescott and Marjorie are married. He spends the remainder of the book looking over his shoulder and suffering from paranoia on a daily basis.

Not much else happens until the end, then of course there is the standard ironic twist, kind of thrown in.

Fright Sounds interesting! Don't you love those old pulp covers with the little waists and big cleavage. ;) Yup, embarrassing.

#88, Yep exactly, huge cleavage, torn blouses, and then the anxiety of wondering what people are thinking about me lol!

#28 All Mortal Flesh This is an outstanding series, but I think this book was as excellent as the first. Although Russ and Clare's adventures are always riveting, I found this one to be especially exciting.

Russ has finally clued his wife Linda in on his feelings for Clare and rightfully so, kicks him out. When it appears as though Linda has been murdered, most people, even one of Russ's men, think that either Russ or Clare killed her so that they could be together. Although Russ shouldn't be on the case, he investigates anyway. And even though Clare should stay away, of course she can't. And the ending is just superb!

#29 A Perfect Evil This must be my year for characters finding love in the midst of criminal investigations.

This is my first time reading this author, and I found that I like the story of Maggie O'Dell, FBI profiler.

Maggie is called upon to help out inexperienced, small town Sheriff Nick Morelli when a killer is again terorizing young boys after the supposed serial killer was electrocuted months ago. The twist is that just before his execution, the killer confessed to only one murder, which means that the two other murders he was convicted of were committed by someone else.

I thought that this was a pretty good book, the one thing that kept nagging at me is that Nick had his mind on romancing Maggie, even after he wasn't sure if his nephew was going to be ok. The ending left a lot of things wide open, which just screams sequel, or many sequels, or possibly a switch off of main characters.

I will probably move forward in the series at some point.

30. Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet

Historical Fiction

I read this book with Judy (DeltaQueen) and I think we pretty much agreed that this intense relationship that developed between two 12 year olds was a bit much. Overall, though, it was a pretty good read, and I did feel as though I was experiencing 1940's Seattle while reading it.

I couldn't help but remember the many discussions that I had with my parents who were also children during the WW2 years. I remember hearing them talk about how cruel their classmates were to the German and Asian children in school during this time, which was heartbreaking for them, as they were all friends at one point.

Henry who is Chinese, befriends Keiko who is Japanese during 1942, when the Japanese and Chinese were enemies, and also at a time when the United States forcibly moved Japanese -American citizens into internment camps supposedly until the war was over. Henry's father is a Chinese nationalist, who doesn't understand his son and his life choices.

Keiko and Henry have bonded over their love of jazz music and the fact that they are the only Asian American children in an all white school.

In 1986, Henry notices certain belongings that were stored in an old hotel. He begins to think that maybe he may find some of Keiko's family belongings which they had to leave behind upon being taken to the camp.

He has touching moments with his son as his memories come flooding back. Henry is recently widowed and wants a better relationship with his son. I like that his son understands that his father finding his first love doesn't disrespect his mother's memory.

I found the ending to be sort of haphazard, I suppose I felt just a little bit cheated, because I wanted to know what Keiko's life was like for the past forty years, and if was too late for her and Henry.

31. Pardonable Lies I may have to fill my Historical Fiction with the rest of the Maisie Dobb series.

In this third installment, Maisie is hired by Sir Cecil Lawton, who wants to honor his wife's deathbed request to find out once and for all if their son Ralph, was killed in the Great War. All signs point to his being killed, but his mother felt as though he was still alive, and his father, well, he seems disinterested at best.

While digging in to solve the Lawton case, Maisie inadvertently decides to help her friend Priscilla with a lingering doubt that she has about the death of her brother Peter. Maisie has no idea that investigating Peter's death will also have an impact on her Lawton case.

Meanwhile, Maisie, who is always so composed, must fight her own personal demons from the war, as she must go to France to work on both of these cases. If that isn't enough, someone is trying to kill her, and there is a serious rift in her relationship with her mentor, Maurice Blanche. Things may never be the same between them again.

I can't wait to read the next installment!

Ay! Does Maisie leave us with a cliff hanger? You certainly did. So why does someone want to kill her. No, don't tell me...

#94 Kind of; the ending just makes you wonder if Maisie will look at her mentor Maurice in the same way.

>93 lsh63: Hi, Lisa, I'm really behind on reading threads...

I've also gotten hooked by the Maisie Dobbs series, and it looks like I'm going to fill up most of my British Mystery category will them! I read Pardonable Lies last week, and just finished Messenger of Truth. I'm reading a couple of other things right now, but will probably be on to #5 soon...

Hi Ivy:

Isn't the Maisie Dobb series great? I'm still in and out of Messenger of Truth, but will get to it soon. I will have to check out your thread to see if you come up with a "favorite" of the series.

32. Forty Words for Sorrow It took me a while to finish this book, maybe because I found the first 100 pages or so to move slowly, but when I finally picked up the book again after several weeks it was hard to put down.

This book was right up my alley; part psychological thriller, part police procedural. Now that spring is trying to arrive, I seem to be reading quite a few snowy and cold books lately.

Forty Words for Sorrow is set in a fictional Canadian town, and features police officers John Cardinal and Lise Delorme, two solid characters, one who we learn is flawed, having done something wrong perhaps with the best of intentions.

As punishment for suggesting that missing children cases may be something else, John Cardinal is transferred to a different division. When another child turns up dead, he is quickly reassigned. We are introduced to the killer early on, so there is no big reveal, rather the reader "gets inside the head" of killer, which I'm not sure that I like.

At any rate, I will of course, continue with the series.

>97 lsh63: So far, Birds of a Feather is my favorite, but I thought all (4 that I've read) were really good. Messenger of Truth upset me, which I give her credit for being able to do, but it wasn't what I was looking for this week.

33. Tess of the d'Ubervilles
1001 List

The tragic story of young Tess Durbeyfield, who lives with her impoverished family in rural Wessex. One day a casual conversation about the possibility of noble d’Uberville blood causes Tess’s parents to send her off to the d’Ubervilles in an effort to claim their rightful inheritance.

Tess does not meet Mrs. D’Uberville, but instead meets the wicked Alec Stoke-d’Uberville, who takes advantage of Tess and later secretly bears his child, Sorrow, who later dies.

After this tragic event, Tess decides to get a new start, and seeks employment as a dairy maid where she becomes reacquainted with Angel Clare, a preacher’s son, who loves Tess, but knows nothing of her previous dalliance with Alec. Tess repeatedly tells Angel that she is not “worthy” of his love and discourages his offers of marriage. Eventually, Tess gives in to her feelings for Angel and they are married.

When Tess decides to confess her transgressions, Angle cannot deal with it and sends her packing back to her parents. Angel embarks on a voyage to Brazil, and takes one of the other dairy maids along with him as his mistress. To add to her devestation, Tess encounters Alec again, who is supposedly a reformed Christian, who wishes to atone for his evil past ways. In an effort to help her family financially, Tess accepts the offers of help from Alex just as Angel is regretting his decision to leave her and now wants her back.

Tess snaps, tragedy ensues, and the ending will just break your heart. I loved this book even with the wordiness in some parts and the maddening endless double standards for women.

34. Love You More
A Thrill a Minute

I love Lisa Gardner's D.D. Warren series. And ever since State Trooper Bobby Dodge was introduced in an early book of the series, I have been waiting for he and D.D. to team up on a case.

This is what happens in Love You More. D.D. gets a phone call from Bobby about a case, which confuses her because typically, state and local law enforcement don't work together unless necessary.

The case involves another state trooper, Tessa Leoni, who is bruised, battered and suspected of killing her husband. Was this an act of spousal abuse gone bad, or is there more to the story? More importantly, D.D. wants to know where Tessa's six year old daughter Sophie is, who can't be found, and who everyone fears is dead.

This was an extremely fast paced thriller, and I found myself worrying less about D.D. and becoming fascinated with Tessa's story and what happened to Sophie. A great read.

Tess of the d'Urbervilles is one of my favorite books of all time. I'm glad you enjoyed it.

#100 Hardy writes beautifully, but he can also be abysmally depressing. I'm a little afraid to read Tess, but I also didn't read your whole review for fear of spoilers. Is it so depressing that I won't like it???

#103, I think that even though Tess is a depressing read throughout most of the book, the story is written so beautifully, that I think you will enjoy it.

35. The 6th Target
Happy Birthday

I doubt that I will get tired of the Women's Murder Club series. At first I didn't think I would care for it, but I did.

I have to admit, though, sometimes it appears that Mr. Patterson's collaborative efforts are sometimes not quite as good,I think the first book in the series is the only one that is a solo effort.

In this sixth installment, Lindsay makes a career move, while tracking down the shooter of one of her friends. Her relationship with Joe seems to going well, if only she could stop thinking about her hunky partner. While the shooting case is under investigation, a crime spree involving kidnapped children of wealthy families is also taking place.

This was a good fast paced read, I am already reading number 7.

36 Mystic River

Have You Seen?

I don't know what took me so long to read this book. It was great! Childhood friends Sean Devine, Jimmy Marcus and Dave Boyle's live were forever altered when a strange car pulled into their street one day. One of the boys got in the car, the other two did not. A horrible act took place which ended the boys friendship and shaped the rest of their lives.

Years later, another horrible act has brought them all back together again, but not necessarily as friends again.

I think most people have seen the movie and after reading the book, I think the actors who were cast were perfect choices for their roles.

I must read more of this author!

I must read more of Lehane too. He is great. & I'll put Tess on the WL!

Dennis Lehane is fantastic. He has a series, of which Gone, Baby, Gone is a part, that I love. The books are gritty and almost hard-boiled, but there's much more there than just a mystery/thriller. A Drink Before the War is the first in that series.

#108, Thanks for letting me know about the series Kay, I had no idea.

Do you think I need to read the series in order? I think I have Gone Baby Gone but I don't have any of the others.

37 The Night Season
A Thrill a Minute

I'm still trying to figure out why this book has this title. It is the fourth book in the Beauty Killer series.

Unlike the previous books, in the series, The Night Season does not feature the beautiful serial killer Gretchen, and there is way less gore. At first, I thought that this wouldn't work for me, but it did! I think Gretchen's earlier presence is still haunting enough for everyone, especially Archie.

Portland is under water, which brings to mind for its citizens, the flood of 1948 which wiped out the city of Vanport. When a skeleton is found, Susan Ward writes a story about it, and all heck breaks loose. Of course no one listens to her at first, which is so fun for me, as she sometimes outsmarts the police and criminals too. Susan is such a great character, she's quirky and inappropriate at times, but likeable.

The choice of murder weapon here almost made me laugh, but then it became more creepy and very effective. The ending was so good, Archie did something just a tad naughty at the end which I was not expecting!

38 Three Weeks to Say Goodbye
A Thrill a Minute

So-so story of Jack and Melissa McGuane who after years of having a baby, finally adopt a beautiful baby girl, Angelina. Nine months after bringing her home they get a terrible phone call telling them that Angelina's birth father, a teenager, never signed away his parental rights and wants her back.

The boy's father is a powerful Denver judge who will use whatever means at his disposal to get Angelina. Does he really want the baby because she's his granddaughter, or is something sinister going on? The judge gives Jack and Melissa three weeks to say goodbye. He even offers to use his influence to "get them another baby".

Lots of emotion, and of course the question how far would you go to proctect your child?

An overall, good but not great read.

39
Therese Raquin
1001 List

Therese Raquin is trapped in a loveless marriage to her sickly cousin Camille. She later embarks on a turbulent affair with her husband's friend Laurent.

When their animal passion for each other spirals out of control, the lovers decide to do away with Camille so that they can be together. Atlhough this book is very well written, it becomes even more powerful and emotional to read as the relationship between Therese and Laurent deteriorates.

This is a great story of adultery, madness, revenge and human nature.

40 Started Early, Took My Dog
Just Because

Let me just begin by saying that I think Kate Atkinson is an exceptional and very original writer. I also love the Jackson Brodie character.

I thought that after reading the three other books in this series, that I would be used to her writing style and her introduction of many characters with several stories going on at the same time.

For some reason, I found myself slightly frustrated with this book at times, I thought that were a few too many plot lines, and I wasn't entirely sure which character was in the past having a flashback, or in the present.

The plot: Tracy Waterhouse, a retired police officer, is supplementing her income by working security at a local mall. In a moment of insanity and heartfelt caring, she purchases a little girl from her drug addicted mother and then wonders when and if she will be caught, as she is not entirely certain that the person she bought the girl from was in fact her mother.

Witnessing this act are Tilly, an elderly actress who is suffering from dementia, and Jackson Brodie who still hopes to hunt down his wayward wife, Tessa, but was hired to find out the truth about an adopted woman's past.

Eventually the major plot lines were connected for me, and I enjoyed the book, but I didn't love it as much as the others. There was just enough of a good tease at the end to suggest that certain characters may reappear in the next installment.

LA LA LA LA LA...

I can't hear you...

Lol Kay, I can't wait to see what you think when you get around to reading it!

Hi Lisa, I have finished with The Case of the Gilded Fly and have posted my review, giving it 3 1/2 stars. It definitely kept me wanting to read to find out who the murderer was!

41. I Shall Not Want
A Series of Events

I just cannot stop reading this series! This sixth installment find Russ still reeling from a tragic event in his life and both he and Clare feeling guilty about their feelings for each other. They have little time to sort things out when a van full of Mexican migrant farm workers is run off the road. As usual, Russ investigates, and Clare finds herself in the midst of the investigation.

An interesting turning point in their relationship takes place......

42.A Lesson in Secrets
Historical Fiction

I am still in the middle of book #4 in this series Messenger of Truth when I saw the shiny new copy of this 8th installment at the library. I usually try to read books in order, sometimes it makes a difference, sometimes not. At any rate, I just couldn't help myself! There are a couple of events that must have taken place in books 5-7, but I'm okay with going back to read about them.

The great thing about this series, is in addition to the mystery, is the wonderful historical aspect which is always present. A Lesson in Secrets takes place in late summer of 1932, and Maisie Dobbs's career takes an interesting new turn when she is offered an assignment with the British Secret Service. Her cover is to pose as a junior lecturer at a private college in Cambridge.

When the college's founder and principal is found murdered, Maisie of course, wants to assist with the investigation, but is held off by Scotland Yard. Of course she investigates anyway, and strongly suspects many of the faculty members, whille also learning about the rise of the Nazi Party in Britain.

I enjoyed this book, because after so much sadness in Maisie's life, there is a hint that she may just experience some happiness in the near future.

43. The Case of the Gilded Fly
It's New to Me

I really had to work to make myself finish this book. I didn't hate it, but didn't love it either. I suppose the plethora of literary references and the constant need for a dictionary frustrated me just a bit.

An actress who just about everyine hates, is found dead in the bedroom of one of her many admirers. Everyone seems to have a motive, yet nothing seems obvious as far as the timing of the murder. I believe that this book introduces Gervase Fen, Professor of English Lit and amatuer detective. I found him rude, annoying and condescending, but maybe he will grow on me in another book.

By the time of the reveal, I just didn't care anymore. I think that maybe I found the book too clever for its own good.

I love your last line in your review of The Case of the Gilded Fly. I got the distinct feeling that Edmund Crispin, the author, styles himself as an intellectual and looks down upon the rest of us as uneducated slobs. After awhile, this just became rather laughable to me.

I guess I'll avoid that one!

44 Crooked Letter Crooked Letter
Where Am I?

This book was a five star read for me. What I thought was unique about this book is that it didn’t typify any particular genre.

Crooked Letter Crooked Letter is part mystery, part thriller, but overwhelmingly a story about friendship. The character development and description of the Mississippi setting is excellent.

There is also a seamless transition from past to present as Larry and Silas recount their childhoods. Mystery and crime took a back seat to the main story of the friendship between the two.

Silas “32” Jones and Larry Ott are complete opposites, Silas is black and the only child of a single mother, Larry is white, the only child of lower middle class parents who longs for some kind of acceptance from his father and with his classmates. Larry reads horror novels and is perceived as being “weird”. On his very first date, Larry takes her to the drive-in movies, and the girl was never seen or heard from again. All indications are that Larry killed her and disposed of the body, but a body was never found, no did Larry confess. With no evidence to suggest otherwise, Larry is nevertheless labeled as a killer and lives his life shunned by everyone, leading a lonely existence. When another young girl turns up missing, of course all suspicion again points to Larry.

After the incident with Larry’s date, Silas left home. He returns many years later, now a police officer, and whether he likes it or not, he and Larry are destined to cross paths again. Silas remains haunted by his past, by the way that Larry was treated, and coming to terms with family secrets that he would like to remain hidden.

I thought that the writing was simply flawless, I felt as though I was in Mississippi watching a movie and reading a book at the same time. It was that vivid.

I couldn’t stop wondering what Silas’s and Larry’s lives were like after the ending, because I simply didn’t want the story to end.

Great review of one of my favorite reads of the last couple of months, Lisa! The vividness of the setting particularly struck me, too. Glad you liked it!

Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter is one of the best books I've read this year. Can you open your mailbox now without hesitating?

Ohh, Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter sounds good! I see it's up for an Edgar Award as well.

Really? I hope it wins. It deserves to be a huge bestseller.

#123 Thank you! I love when I run across a book that is so powerful.

Kay: If I hear any sound coming from my mailbox, I'm outta here!

Judy: I did not know about the Edgar award either, I hope it wins. As good as the book is, it should be more of a bestseller.

45. Messenger of Truth I love this series. I always feel as though I am getting a little history along with my mystery, which is great.

Maisie's case this time, is the investigation into the death of controversial artist, Nick Bassington Hope at the request of his twin sister, Georgina. She is unwilling to accept Scotland Yard's theory that his death was an accident.

Maisie's search for the truth leads to some uncomfortable reminders of the war.

Maisie also learns some truths about herself and that maybe there is more to her life than she thought possible.

I'm already on the next book.....

>128 lsh63: It's a wondeful series, Lisa! After reading Messenger of Truth last month, I took a break to read a few other things. I'm eager to get back to it, hoping to read books 5 & 6 later this month.

You've been reading other interesting books, too. Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter goes on my list, and I think maybe I should try Julia Spencer-Fleming...

I was lucky enough to get Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter as an ER. Glad to hear it's up for an Edgar!

46 Bobby Darin: A Life
Just Because (March ER book)

Bobby Darin: A Life provides an intimate look at the life of a charismatic and extremely talented performer. Driven by a sense of urgency due to his fragile health, Bobby Darin declared that he would be a legend by the age of 25. Perceived by many in the entertainment business as arrogant and perhaps a little disrespectful of other legendary performers, one cannot argue that he had the talent to back up his assertion.

Not quite a Sinatra, Crosby or Bennett, Bobby Darin carved his own niche with the songs "Splish Splash", "Beyond the Sea", "Dream Lover" and many more. My personal favorite of his, and the song that I most associate with him, "Mack the Knife" became his most requested song. The fact that he was able to transform a very depressing song into a upbeat smash, is amazing.

Married to the girl next door actress Sandra Dee, their idyllic marriage was wrought with problems: his mother-in-law's constant presence and influence, as well as the pressure of both of their careers. Eventually, Bobby was able to sing many different types of songs, and also did stand up comedy, variety shows and was instrumental in many political and social causes in the 1960's.

The latter part of his life was marked by his bitterness over learning the family secret that his sister Nina was really his mother, becoming pregnant with him when she was 17. He was never able to forgive her for what he saw as betrayal.

His health problems with his weak heart worsened and he passed away in December of 1973 after his second open heart surgery. Although he lived such a short life, he leaves a legacy behind as a consummate entertainer who accomplished what he set out to do.

47 Sleep Pale Sister
Where Am I?

This was a very good gothic horror story by the author of Chocolat and Five Quarters of the Orange.

This book was written before Chocolat and it is very different in style from the other books I have read by her.

Set in 19th century London, and told in seamless narrative by: artist Henry Chester, his child bride Effie, the rogue Mose, and the vengeful Fanny, I was unable to put this book down.

Henry sees Effie for the first time as a child, and convinces her mother to let her model for him. When she is barely of age, he marries her, but feels guilty when they are intimate. Unfulfilled, Effie seeks comfort with the no good Mose, who has an agenda. Enter Fanny, the madam, who has history with Henry and is bent on revenge, no matter what it takes.

I thought it was a strange story at times, but a good one!

>132 lsh63: I have this one on the TBR shelves. I bought it after a quick glance at the description and didn't realize until later it was by that Joanne Harris. Based on your review, I think I may have to move it up the pile...

Sleep Pale Sister Sounds good & creepy!

48. Summer
Short and Sweet

I'm sure that Edith Wharton's tale of young lust caused quite a stir when this book was published in 1917.

Young 17 year old Charity Royall is bored with life and looking for excitement. She is the ward of Lawyer Royall who brought her down "from the mountain" when she was a child after her father was sent to prison for manslaughter and presumably when her ex prostitute mother wanted to give her a better life.

One night Lawyer Royall enters Charity's room expecting that now she has reached legal age, their relationship would develop into something more. Charity, repulsed, decides that she needs a job to earn her keep.

She begins working at the town library after her guardian has pulled many strings over more qualified candidates to get her the job.

One day young Lucious Harney walks in and sparks fly between them. Lucious is hiding a big secret from Charity, who is left devastated and winds up with her guardian after all.

49. Crunch Time
A Series of Events

The first thing that hit me about the 16th book in the Goldy Schulz culinary mystery series was the size of it, about 450 pages!

Goldy finds herself in big trouble (what else is new) when she tries to help her friend and assistant Yolanda Garcia and her aunt Ferdinanda. Yolanda is being stalked by her ex-boyfriend and she and her aunt are burned out of the house that they were renting, which belonged to former cop turned PI, Ernest McLeod.

Goldy convinces Tom to let Yolanda and Ferdinanda stay with them while the investigation takes place.

I'm a big fan of this series, but there were parts that dragged, and where I may have skimmed words or even whole paragraphs.

There seemed to be less cooking in this one and more investigation. I also hope that Julian resurfaces in the next book, I missed him this time. There is also a potential for a new plot twist in Goldy's life!

450 pages - yeah! no Julian - boo hoo! I still read the series, but I liked it better when the recipes were included rather than stuck in the back of the book. Sorry to hear it's a little draggy. But I'll still read it.