Killin' Time Reading

Pink Smog; Francesca Lia Block

2012-01-31T18:20:00.002-05:00

Pink Smog by Francesca Lia Block

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Did you love meeting Weetzie Bat? Of course you did. So now you can see how Louise becomes Weetzie...

Louise/Weetzie's 7th grade year isn't starting off well: Dad's left, Mom's drunk, she has no friends, and her "what I did on my summer" essay has just been dubbed "over-written". As the year progresses, things don't get easier but she does grow in confidence and friendship. Is Winter read? What is Annabelle's problem - and is she really practicing voodoo? Will she ever come up with a good retort when Staci is... well... Staci? And most important, will she ever see Charlie again? By the time she's ready to start 8th grade, she's a confident Weetzie with a pretty good grasp of life.

ARC provided by publisher.

Game Changers; Mike Lupica

2012-01-31T16:34:00.000-05:00

Game Changers: Book 1 by Mike Lupica
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I've never read one of Lupica's sports books before, but I've read his column many times. His ear for language is as evident here as it is in the newspaper, making this book about a sport I don't really follow that much more enjoyable.

Ben McBain's goal is to be the QB for the Rockville Rams Pop Warner team, but he's never chosen for that. This year there's not only Shawn O'Brien, last year's QB, to contend with, there's also Shawn's father, a former NFL QB. As the Rams' season unfolds, Ben gets to be a good friend, good teammate and good football player in what to an adult appears to be a very predictable fashion.

That's why for me this was a 3-star: the predictable nature of the plot, and the somewhat moralizing tone overall. However, if I were a football-besotted middle grade boy? Those wouldn't matter and I'd love the book.

ARC provided by publisher.

Bad Apple; T.R. Burns

2012-01-31T08:27:00.000-05:00

Bad Apple by T. R. Burns

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Poor Seamus: one incredible, coincidental, horrible throw of an apple and his entire life is changed. That apple? It hit a substitute teacher, in the head, and killed her. And that one action got him sent to Kilter Academy for Troubled Youth, where his roommate, Lemon, has gone through twelve roommates in three weeks thanks to his habit of playing with fire. Seamus is homesick, ashamed of what he did, and hopes only to make it through the first semester so he can go home. But the Kilter Academy is nothing like what he (or his parents) imagine and his natural instincts for trouble and kindness mean he's one of the most successful students at KA.

There are some great Lubar-eqsue moments and if every reader doesn't want a K-Pak, well, they're not reading clearly. This is a great book for middle grade readers... and the ending will leave them wanting to read the next book asap.

ARC provided by publisher.

The Disenchantments; Nina LaCour

2012-01-31T08:22:00.000-05:00

The Disenchantments by Nina LaCour
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

That the point-of-view was that of Colby, a boy, was an interesting choice: his relationships with Bev, the others in the band (Meg and Alexa), his family and the people they meet should have felt very different than if this was told by an omniscient author or Bev. And therein lies the problem, I didn't get the sense that this *was* a male telling the story.

Bev has been Colby's best friend since elementary school; throughout their high school years at a SF arts school, they've planned a gap-year trip around Europe. After Bev forms a band with Meg and Alexa the plan becomes: post graduation tour, then gap year. But just as they head off on tour, Bev tells Colby that she's actually going to RISD in the fall. They continue their tour as Colby tries to figure out what happened to their plan and what he's going to do with his future.

As I said, this didn't strike me as a particularly male voice. Worse was that the natural anger and confusion that he should have felt given the betrayal of his plans with Bev didn't appear. Sarah Dessen fans may not notice, however.

ARC provided by publisher.

Blood on the Moon; Jennifer Knight

2012-01-31T08:11:00.000-05:00

Blood on the Moon by Jennifer Knight
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

Imagine Twilight mixed with Nightshade and you've got Blood on the Moon. Set in Colorado, we've got vampires, werewolves (who are the good guys), love and friendship - all the elements of today's paranormal romance/suspense genre explosion.

The problem for me was that I've read it all too often before: there was nothing really new here. The writing wasn't (at first) overly dramatic, which kept me reading in hope that there'd be something new or different to grab on to... but no, there wasn't. The only real surprise in the book doesn't have any relevance to the overall plot. Still, for those that simply can't get enough of these books, this isn't a bad example. And yes, there will be a sequel, if not more books.

ARC provided by publisher.

The Hero's Guide to Saving Your Kingdom; Christopher Healy

2012-01-30T09:55:00.000-05:00

The Hero's Guide to Saving Your Kingdom by Christopher Healy
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I'm a huge fractured fairy tale fan, and this is a wonderful addition to that genre!

In The Hero's Guide we learn the truth behind all those Prince Charming stories (they're not named "Charming", for one) and that the stories have been a little mangled thanks to the bards. Frederic, the foppish, fearful Prince in the Cinderella story, decides to go in search of Ella (she's eager for adventure, not a safe, cossetted life at home) and on the way meets Princes Gustav (Sleeping Beauty), Liam (Briar Rose) and Duncan (Snow White). Their adventures as they try to rescue Ella and the bards are filled with mystical creatures (Troll, the Bandit King, a giant named Reese and an evil Witch), fighting and humor.

The ending is just fuzzy enough to leave room for a sequel... or perhaps it was a deliberate avoidance of Happily Ever After.

ARC provided by publisher.

Welcome, Caller, This is Chloe; Shelley Coriell

2012-01-30T09:16:00.000-05:00

Welcome, Caller, This Is Chloe by Shelley Coriell
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

The second half of Chloe's junior year in high school is off to a Very Bad Start: her BFF Brie hates her (for some unknown reason), leading her other BFF Mercedes to hate her, ditto all the other girls in their crowd, her Mom and Grams are locked in World War III, and her Junior Independent Study Project has just been cancelled by her new guidance counselor. She's forced to do a project at the school radio station, a place filled with "outsiders" (eg, people outside her, Brie and Merc's orbit) and who seemingly hate her. Somehow, by the end of the book, she manages to make all this better.

One of the strongest images in the book is that of family. The words "clan" and "plaid" are used over and over, hammering home the fact that Chloe is one of those for whom family is extremely important - not merely her genetic family, but the family of friends with which she surrounds herself. What's slightly unrealistic is that her family of friends are so eager to believe the things Brie is saying about her, or that she was capable of posting horrible photos to OneWorld; doesn't it occur to any of them that this is completely unlike Chloe? Yet no one seems to question any of this.

There's nothing wrong with this book... but there's nothing outstanding either. It's a great read for Sarah Dessen or Stephanie Perkins fans.

ARC provided by publisher.

The Cabinet of Earths; Anne Nesbit

2012-01-29T14:38:00.002-05:00

The Cabinet of Earths by Anne Nesbet
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

What a fun, interesting twist on the idea of immortality and the marriage between magic and science. Maya is the bookish, normal daughter in the Davidson family; her mother is recovering from cancer, her father is a scientist and her younger brother, James, is one of those naturally charming, gregarious kids everyone loves. The family moves to Paris for a year while her father works with the Society of Philosophical Chemistry, and she's thrown into a school where she must speak French and is an outsider - although she does make one friend, a Bulgarian named Valko, who lived in America for four years and speaks English.

Maya spends time with her cousin, Louise, a very faint, forgettable, grey woman who as a child survived a church collapse in Italy and through Louise meets another cousin, Henri-Pierre, who lives a very secluded life making opera sets and watching over a rather odd looking cabinet. There's another cousin, another Henri, who is young and dashing and yet somehow a little creepy. The three Fourcroys are descended from the original Fourcroy, a scientist, and his wife, a Lavirotte, a witch. Maya appears to take after the Lavirotte side, which will have consequences for her family...

There are touches of Lewis' Magician's Nephew, Tuck Everlasting and more modern "weird things happen to ordinary people" books, but the blend is new and fresh.

ARC provided by publisher.

If Only; Carole Geithner

2012-01-29T14:25:00.000-05:00

If Only by Carole Geithner

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

It's rare when I agree with blurbage/jacket copy like "...nothing short of extraordinary" but here, it's so deserved.

Corinna's life has been completely upended by the death of her mother in the summer between her seventh and eighth grade years. If Only is her journal of her life during 8th grade, marking the various firsts of life without her mother, as well as first in life generally. There's such deep sadness mixed with normal teen girl stuff (like her "orange crush") and her feelings of loneliness and distance from her friends are part of a pitch-perfect book. There were no moments when I felt that there was something age inappropriate or false about Corinna's voice.

While written for middle grade girls, this is a wonderful read for anyone who has lost, or knows someone who has lost, a parent when young.

ARC provided by publisher.

Starters; Lissa Price

2012-01-27T18:55:00.000-05:00

Starters by Lissa Price
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Yet another dystopian series (at least there's definitely a sequel in the works, if not more books). The twist here is that the Spore Wars (enemy unknown) have led to a situation where adults between 20 and 60 have essentially died off, and those minors without grandparents (or great-grandparents, or great-aunts/uncles) are either institutionalized or living as squatters. Because this is set in Los Angeles, there's an even greater disparity between the really rich of Beverley Hills and everyone else.

Callie has been taking care of her sick younger brother, Tyler, while trying to avoid the marshals who will separate and institutionalize them. One day she hears about an opportunity to earn a lot of money as a rental body - Elders (and in this world, that can be anyone from about 90 through 200 years old) who want to re-experience a young body pay to have their brains "implanted" (via a computer chip) into a Starter (who could be 13-19 years old) body. Of course, things are never as easy as they seem, and it turns out that Callie's renter, Helena, has only joined because her granddaughter, Emma, has gone missing. Working with an amazing brain surgeon-turned-computer genius, she's had her (and Callie's) chips altered so they can communicate... and I'll stop there to avoid spoilers.

As with many of these series, editing this down to a good single volume would have made for a better read; having said that, this isn't a bad execution of a dystopian vision. There are some interesting twists, only a few of which were telegraphed from afar.

ARC provided by publisher.

Storm Makers; Jennifer E. Smith

2012-01-27T18:43:00.000-05:00

The Storm Makers by Jennifer E. Smith
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

At first I thought this was going to be like Savvy, but it wasn't: not everyone has the ability to affect the weather (although I'm not sure that an earthquake is a type of weather, but whatever). Usually it's a skill/talent that emerges when the person is in their 20s, but in this case, Simon is only 12 - the youngest StormMaker ever.

The McDuff family has moved to a farm in Wisconsin, where they will make a living off Dad's invention, Mom's painting and a few crops. At least, that's the plan. But there's a drought and neither the painting nor the invention are working well. One day Simon seems to short circuit the toaster... and then a car battery. It turns out that he's a StormMaker, and the focus of Rupert London, the leader of MOSS. London has a plan to use weather to destroy, rather than help; of course there is an opposition in the form of Daisy and Otis.

The questions here are of whom to believe, which side is telling the truth, and how to be loyal to your ideals. Luckily, these teens aren't preternaturally smart and you sense their confusion, making this fantasy feel more real than most. Simon's twin, Ruby, is the narrator of this story, which makes it perfect for both middle grade boys and girls.

ARC provided by publisher.

The Downside of Being Charlie; Jenny Torres Sanchez

2012-01-27T08:00:00.000-05:00

The Downside of Being Charlie by Jenny Torres Sanchez
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

What are the downsides to being Charlie? His best (only?) friend is a skinny, ADD Turk obsessed with the Rat Pack, he's 5'10" and weighs 235 (and no, he's not on the football team), and his mother disappears every so often. That's not enough? He's just spent the summer between junior and senior year at a fat camp, a very cute girl has moved in across the street, and he's sharing a locker with the class pariah.

As he goes through the first semester of his senior year he starts to come out of his shell a little, despite things going wrong - very wrong - at home. There's a caring teacher but, in true teen fashion, Charlie doesn't really turn to him for help. His food issues will resonate with any teen dealing with weight problems.

The writing brings Charlie to life is a way that makes him feel real - usually this combination of "downsides" is too much, as though the author is just throwing things in for effect. Here, that's not quite the case. Charlie's love of photography, his crush on (and near inability to speak to) Charlotte, his problems at home, etc. all made sense and don't have that kitchen sink feeling.

ARC provided by publisher.

Hearts of Darkness; Dave Thompson

2012-01-27T07:41:00.000-05:00

Hearts of Darkness: James Taylor, Jackson Browne, Cat Stevens, and the Unlikely Rise of the Singer-Songwriter by Dave Thompson>
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

This wasn't my favorite musical genre, but the music of these three definitely played a part in my high school experience. So I was interested in learning more about them and how this genre grew to be so popular... if only this book had been less like the songs they sung.

What do I mean by that? The timeline rambled, with long digressions into musical history and other, earlier genres (like skiffle). There were moments when the information was hedged (eg, James Taylor's stay in McLean when he was in high school). And the writing simply wasn't tight enough to sustain my interest, and I was able to put it down for long periods before coming back to the narrative.

ARC provided by publisher.

Illuminate; Aimee Agresti

2012-01-26T19:25:00.000-05:00

Illuminate by Aimee Agresti
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I'm vacillating between "it was ok" and "I liked it", but decided to be generous.

Haven Terra (yes, the name has import) was abandoned as a child - found bruised, bleeding and alone at the side of the road when she was five, with no memory of her past. Taken in and raised by Joan, she's one of the top students in her class and firmly focused on the future. One day she and her BFF, Dante (and why is it that the male BFF is always gay? seriously, it's bugging me that we can't show boys and girls just being friends without one having a same-sex orientation) learn that they've been chosen to participate in an exciting internship, assisting with the opening and running of a new luxe hotel in Chicago.

Once there she feels outclassed by the gorgeous, glamorous members of The Outfit (named after Al Capone's gang) but is made to feel like a critical member of the team by Aurelia, the owner and her mentor. Her assignment seems normal at first, but slowly she realizes that something is not quite right - and her friendship with Dante is starting to loosen. Luckily, there's Lucian to romance her, and Lance to pick up where Dante's friendship has left off. There's also a mysterious book blank book that gives her instructions and orders via writing that appears.

Sounds familiar? Yep, I thought so, too. Without going into spoilers, let's just say that this is paranormal romance/suspense and there's nothing really surprising here. At times the writing was a little florid and a good editing would have helped. Yes, there's a huge Capone component (the hotel is where the Valentine's Day Massacre took place, and there's even a minor mention of Geraldo's ill-fated opening of the hidden vault) but the history is glossed over - it's there for atmosphere and nothing more.

ARC provided by publisher.

Pilgrims Don't Wear Pink; Stephanie Kate Strohm

2012-01-26T08:33:00.002-05:00

Pilgrims Don't Wear Pink by Stephanie Kate Strohm
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Libby and her BFF Dev have found ways to escape their grey prep school for the summer: he's going to New York to do an internship at a fashion magazine (very Devil Wears Prada) while Libby will spend her summer living in 1790s Maine, acting as an Educational and Historical Interpreter for a reenactment village. Despite Libby's love of fashion and shoes, she's a passionate history buff with knowledge of cooking, needlework and, yes, fashion. Example? She can tell you when left and right shoes were invented (yes, they were invented) and create a blueberry pie that impresses a writer for Bon Appetit.

In other words, Libby's not your usual blonde bubblehead (kind of like Legally Blonde's Elle). The problem is that the other characters are no where near as fully realized, plodding along relatively predictable paths. The love triangle (of course there has to be one) is actually a little boring as a result.

ARC provided by publisher.

Lost Girls; Ann Kelley

2012-01-24T09:01:00.000-05:00

Lost Girls by Ann Kelley
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Did you like Libba Bray's Beauty Queens? I confess, the satire was a little too heavy for me, so it only rated a 3. This book? Solid 5 for me.

Apparently this is based on a true event in Thailand in the '70s: several girls on a camping trip get stranded on a deserted island in the Thai archipelago and have to survive for quite a long time before they get rescued. Sounds like Lord of the Flies, too, doesn't it? In this version (called Koh Tabu in England, where it won the Manchester Book Award in 2011), it's group of girls whose fathers are involved with the Vietnamese War effort. This cadet group (sort of Girl Scout-esque) is minus their longstanding leader, although they're thrilled that Layla Campbell, a very glamorous younger woman, will be there with them. At the last moment, Bonnie's mother withdraws as well.

A storm makes it impossible for them to land on the island they'd planned to spend three days camping on, and the boatman somehow gets them to semi-safety on another island (which he calls Koh Tabu) that has abundant fresh water. The storm worsens and in the morning they realize that one of the girls died. Then the boatman, whom they'd assumed was going to return in three days, turns up dead.

Of course there are moments of courage as well as moments of hideously selfish behavior. The island has secrets, some of which the girls find and some that are hinted at. Layla's glamor wears off quickly for most of the girls, and her leadership abilities are completely lacking. Their survival, and rescue, seems bleak.

While much of this seems like a re-tread of Golding, it's more than merely that. The girls reactions to their situations all feel completely real, and there were moments when I knew/hoped I'd have acted in a similar fashion.

ARC provided by publisher.

A Confusion of Princes; Garth Nix

2012-01-24T08:39:00.000-05:00

A Confusion of Princes by Garth Nix
My rating 5 of 5 stars

Who doesn't love Garth Nix? There were several Middle School readers at my school anxious about missing the release of each new "day" in his Keys to the Kingdom series - they'll love this new book.

Khemri was chosen by the Emperor Hierself's minions to be a Prince, a life he believes will lead to something like the one he's seen in a number of videos: commanding a starship of some kind, ruling a world, surrounded by luxury and adventure, and many, many rebirths. The reality of life post-Ascension isn't quite that, what with potential assassination plots, service in the Navy and trying to learn something about how to stay alive.

Turns out that he's somehow special. Quite how special isn't revealed until later, when he's sent on a mission to a world on the Fringe. Stripped of his "enhancements" and virtually human, he learns to survive and - most important - not be one of the cookie-cutter princes that litter the universe. I can't go into detail here without massive spoilers, suffice it to say that the twists in Khemri's life aren't 100% predictable.

ARC provided by publisher.

The Drowned Cities; Paolo Bacigalupi

2012-01-24T08:23:00.000-05:00

The Drowned Cities by Paolo Bacigalupi
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I enjoyed Ship Breaker but I think that this was even better! The world that Bacigalupi imagines, a future Waterworld-lite with the coastal cities "drowned", social structures breaking down and private armies/gangs running things is so realistically drawn that you can actually see it. This isn't a sequel to the first book, just an expansion on the world of Ship Breaker.

Here we are what I think is the former American South - Banyan Town is a small village trying to eke out a living while avoiding the violence that accompanies the marauding gangs of Army of God, UPF and other militia. These militia gangs are so similar to the Sudanese Lost Boys that it's a little painful to read. One such gang of UPF men/boys are hunting a half-man/part-wolf-bear-dog-tiger-hyena (named "Tool") when they find two "war maggots", Mahalia and Mouse. These two are squatting with Banyan Town's doctor, resented and feared by the other villagers.
One day the two children find Tool, nearly dead in a swamp but alive enough to capture them and attempt to kill the two. Mahalia's decision to try to save him, leaving Mouse behind as a hostage, sets the rest of the book in motion.

The questions of what loyalty you owe people (or, in Tool's terms, your pack), how far people will go to survive, and whether even truly hardened boy/men warriors can find mercy and redemption are all covered; no clear answers are given. This is definitely a Must Read for boys, book groups and lovers of dystopias.
ARC provided by publisher.

Cold Cereal; Adam Rex

2012-01-22T21:54:00.000-05:00

Cold Cereal by Adam Rex
My rating: 3 of 5 stars
This book had me until the very end - the satirical look at breakfast cereals (who wouldn't want to try Burlap Crisp or KoKo Lumps?), the unicat, Harvey the semi-invisible rabbit-man were all fun and a little charming. I got the joke about Sir Reggie Dwight being John Doe. The idea that Emily and Erno had a strange (ok, bizarre) home life, that Scott saw strange things, that Goodco was, well, evil? All well and good.

The setting is New Jersey and Goodco is a multi-national cereal company that also dabbles in other things (like medicine, and physics). Scott's mother moves to Goodborough because everyone working for the company lives in the company town, and Scott has to, once again, try to fit in. He meets Emily and Erno, twins who live with their foster Dad, and starts settling down. Until he sees Harvey, and rescues Mick (a leprechaun) and life changes a lot. Emily and Erno have grown up playing weird intellectual games created by their Dad, who suddenly disappears. And that's when the fun starts...

As I said, the premise and the execution were really good, until the end. There's a really long passage near the end where the Big Villian does one of those "now I have you - I'm going to explain my evil plan and evil history and go on for so long that you figure out how to get out of your predicament" speeches, which is where the book lost me. Otherwise this would have been a solid four-star.

ARC provided by publisher.

The Book of Lost Fragrences; M.J. Rose

2012-01-20T13:15:00.000-05:00

The Book of Lost Fragrances by M.J. Rose
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

This had such promise - but too much going on for that promise to really be fulfilled. There's the concept of Jungian archetypes, past-life regression, scent as aide memoire, Tibetan freedom, Chinese triads, former loves, Cleopatra's perfume factory, Napoleon in Egypt... and I'm sure I've left stuff out.

If the author had simply concentrated on Jac and Robbie's world, perhaps with more about the history of perfumes, it would have been interesting. Even the addition of Malachai Samuel's search (and possible theft) of the memory objects would have been great. But as it was, with three major strands trying to come together? Too much. Which is really too bad because I was trying so hard to really like this book (part of it is set in the Sleepy Hollow Cemetery, and most is in Paris; plus the Jungian connection).

ARC provided by publisher.

The Starboard Sea; Amber Dermont

2012-01-18T10:39:00.000-05:00

The Starboard Sea: A Novel by Amber Dermont
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

The hype suggested this was a blend of A Separate Peace and A Secret History, but the reality is that this is a much slighter novel.

Set during the mid-80s, referencing Oliver North/Fawn Hall, Gary Hart/Monkey Business, The Preppy Handbook, Robert Chambers (aka "The Preppy Murderer") and Dorian's, this exploration of Jason's final year of high school is more about his sexual confusion, feelings for Aiden and guilt over his best friend Cal's suicide than it is about resolving any great mystery. We see Jason pulling away from the people he's grown up with, starting to grow beyond the limitations of his social and economic class. Bellingham is the prep school of last resort and Jason tries to make it a starting point for something new rather than relying on his father's money and position.
The problem isn't that these aren't universal themes, but that the setting and characters are so clearly part of the mid-80s St. Grottlesex experience that those not part of that world may not relate to it.
ARC provided by publisher.

The Green Man; Michael Bedard

2012-01-18T10:10:00.002-05:00

The Green Man by Michael Bedard
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

"The Green Man" is a bookstore, owned by Emily, a 70-year-old poet; O, her teenage niece has been sent to spend the summer with her while O's father travels to Italy to research Ezra Pound. The store is dilapidated, with an almost Hoarder-esque interior and O sets out to clean and organize. She realizes that there's something odd about the store: she sees people that aren't really there, hears noises and smells roses where there are none.

Interspersed with O's story is the tale of a night at a magic show for children and the tricks the magician does (like the Indian Basket and the Human Salamander). The problem isn't the tricks but the overwhelming sense of evil that emanates from Professor Mephisto.

Over time the odder, eerier elements take over and the "rips in the fabric of time" more evident. While the bookstore's poet-ghosts are benign, it's unclear what the motives of "Rimbaud" and several other characters are. Ultimately, everything comes together but the climax doesn't live up to the build-up.
ARC provided by publisher.

The Difference Between You and Me; Madeleine George

2012-01-14T11:18:00.002-05:00

The Difference Between You and Me by Madeleine George
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I knew each of the three types these girls (Jesse, Esther and Emily) exemplify when I was in high school and things haven't changed in the 30+ years since then. They're very clearly defined and feel very real. It was easy to understand Jesse's Out/Proud/Activist outlook, to roll my eyes over Emily's Perfect Girl/Closet Case actions and smile at Esther's Action Oriented Passion. And that should have been enough - but usually girls in high school grow and change, and except for a little bit at the end, there was no real change in any of them.

Another problem for me was the ancillary characters/background, which felt a bit like tossing in the kitchen sink. It felt like restraint when Emily didn't have an eating disorder on top of it all; I actually groaned out loud when we walked into Esther's house. Finally, while I enjoyed the interior monologues for Emily and Esther, it was odd that we got a more distant view of Jesse.
So why three stars and not two? Because I really did believe in the characters, despite the outside stuff.**

ARC provided by publisher.

** (note, I'm not going to get into the librarian quibble about a public library using LC and not DDC because the vast majority of readers aren't going to notice)

Byron; Fiona MacCarthy

2012-01-13T17:53:00.000-05:00

Byron: Life and Legend by Fiona MacCarthy
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Whew! It's a good biography, but honestly - 8pt font? For 600 pages??? I deserve a medal for finishing!!

Since reading The White Devil a year ago I'd wanted to know more about the Mad, Bad Lord and this bio is definitely "more". The author goes over his life in great detail (mostly) and has had access to papers and letters that previous biographers haven't been able to use. She dissects the questions of his lameness (right foot? left foot? club foot? polio?), his sexuality, his education, his poetry, his relationships with friends, his health (and odd diet) and finally his involvement with the Greek independence movement to great effect; why the dissolution of his marriage and how that affected his reputation is given a mere 40 pages while his last year is given more space is a huge question. Still, if you want to learn more about him, this is probably a good place to start.

Hence the four stars: physically difficult to read and a major part of his life semi-glossed over.

Bitterblue; Kristen Cashore

2012-01-08T09:53:00.000-05:00

Bitterblue by Kristin Cashore
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

It's not just that these books about the Seven Kingdoms are a great read, it's that each book builds on the last without being a real sequel. Characters from the first two books appear here but the focus is Princess, later Queen, Bitterblue of Monsea.

Bitterblue is the daughter of King Leck and Queen Ashen - Leck is a Graceling with a sociopath's interest in others, Ashen is desperate to save their daughter from his clutches. At age eight, things come to a head and Princess Bitterblue becomes Queen. Ten years later she's snowed under a mound of paperwork, knowing little about the kingdom she rules with the help of several of her father's former retainers. Being an intelligent, inquisitive woman this situation doesn't suit her... and that's all I'll say for fear of serious spoilers.

While at times I felt there was a little padding in terms of description or elongation of events, the characters and world of Monsea are so wonderfully realized that the irritation was fleeting. It was also interesting that there are events alluded to during the ten years between the Prologue and the main story that aren't fully fleshed out, allowing readers' imaginations to fill in some of the blanks.

ARC provided by publisher.

Leeway Cottage; Beth Gutcheon

2012-01-02T21:12:00.002-05:00

Leeway Cottage by Beth Gutcheon
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

Mix an American family with the Holocaust and you have this book: the story of the life and marriage of Annabelle Sydney Brant and Laurus Moss is also the history of America in the 20th century, including all the social changes we've seen. At times it was unclear what direction the author was taking Sydney in, or whether she even liked her central character, which is a little unusual in a book like this. The tale of the Dutch Resistance was interesting but tended to divert attention from the rest of the story. Given that we're also tackling (albeit in a sideways fashion) civil rights/integration and class differences, there's a lot going on. Less might have been more.

Lemprière's Dictionary, Lawrence Norfolk

2012-01-01T08:38:00.000-05:00

Lemprière's Dictionary by Lawrence Norfolk
My rating: 1 of 5 stars

There was a core of interesting stuff in this book, but that core was so covered with ornate sentences, rambling asides and lack of clarity that it was difficult to follow the narrative thread.

What I *think* this is about is that 200 (or so) years earlier, a group called the Cabbala decided to defraud the Anglo-India Company. An agreement between the Lemprieres and the de Veres siphoned part of this money off, and then the De Veres reneged, starting a 200-year search/revenge plot. I think. When it took a good 30 pages before I even knew which time period we were in, you know it's going to be tough going.

So here I am, starting 2012 with a one-star DNF.

The Road to Petra; D.C. Baramki

2011-12-29T13:43:00.000-05:00

The Road to Petra by D.C. Baramki
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Petra has been a fascination of mine since reading Richard Halliburton's description of the city in his Complete Book of Marvels. While I don't remember where or how this really slim book came into my life, that's definitely why.

This isn't really travel writing, it's a factual tour guide for those interested in visiting Transjordan; since the 6th edition is dated 1961, one can only imagine the trip the author describes as much has changed in the intervening half-century. Example: the recommended route is Jerusalem to Amman then to several cities, a simple process (albeit one with many police check-ins) back then.

The many black-and-white photos hint at how beautiful these antiquities must be (describing the es Siq gorge, "Here one enters a dream-like, unreal world. Soft sandstone cliffs of varied and unusual colours and fantastic shapes tower to a height of 200 to 300 feet"). One of these days, I'll get to visit and this book will come with me.

Folly; Laurie R. King

2011-12-29T10:57:00.002-05:00

Folly by Laurie R. King
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

Another psychological thriller that's less of either - the scary bits don't come until the very end, and by then it's pretty obvious what's going on.

Rae has her Watchers, voices and noises that drove her to attempt suicide following the accident that killed her husband and daughter and the attack/near-rape a few months later. After spending time in a mental hospital, she finally has the health and direction to attempt to rebuilt the house her great-uncle built on a remote island in the San Juan Strait. There are still Watchers, but slowly she finds the work healing on an emotional level - there's also her growing relationships with Nikki, Ed and Jerry.

She's also haunted by the problem of her son-in-law, a shady businessman determined to fleece her out of her money (or prevent her from seeing her granddaughter), and the guilt of not being a better mother to her elder daughter. All of this could have added up to many more flashes of mental terror and questioning, but instead we get long - and I do mean long - passages about the building/rebuilding of the house and her life on Folly. The same applies to her finding the bones of her Great-Uncle Desmond (who supposedly disappeared in New Mexico, not on the island).

While this is well-written, the creepy terror 'noises-that-go-bump'/'am-I-going-mad?' factor just isn't there.

The Night Lawyer; Michelle Spring

2011-12-27T15:21:00.000-05:00

The Night Lawyer by Michelle Spring

My rating: 2 of 5 stars

This is supposed to be a psychological thriller, but ultimately it wasn't so thrilling. Eleanor is haunted by her past (her father's death and her mental breakdown and hospitalization) and is starting to pick up the pieces, including becoming a purple belt in karate and joining a tabloid as their night lawyer. We see how she's filled with self-doubt, punctuated with moments of real confidence and happiness.

The thriller part comes from her having a stalker, someone who has apparently waited 20 years for justice. There's also her relationship with one of her female colleagues, with whom she thinks she can be friends, and a few of her male ones, from whom she desires respect. Finally, her next-door-neighboor has an abusive boyfriend and with the thin walls between their houses... Getting to see glimpses of the others' lives is supposed to immerse us in Eleanor's world, ratcheting up the terror quotient. That doesn't quite happen because those glimpses allow us to make really educated guesses about what's happening or going to happen. There was one real surprise, but even that felt a little like a letdown.

Speak Ill of the Living; Mark Arsenault

2011-12-27T06:03:00.002-05:00

Speak Ill of the Living by Mark Arsenault
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Our reporter/investigator/hero Eddie Bourque is the much (20 years) younger brother of Hank, who is serving life for the theft of 1MM lbs of gold and the murder of the two security guards guarding the gold. Why is this relevant? At first we're not sure, but slowly the kidnapping (and possible murder) of businessman Rick Lime, the suicide of the coroner Caine and the death of the writer/editor/dogsbody of the Lowell weekly start to tie together. The ending is nicely ambiguous - what will Eddie do next? how will what happened in this book affect his future? will he continue to report on/investigate mysteries only now with his brother's behind-bars help?

The mystery was relatively easy to follow, and the Big Reveal was hinted at earlier (or maybe I've just read far too many mysteries?), but overall this wasn't bad. Even better was that General VonKatz wasn't portrayed as some cutesy addition to Bourque's life but as the only constant being in his life. At times I'm not sure why we get all the Lowell-Kerouac ties, however. Perhaps it's to separate Lowell from other small, semi-rundown towns? There seemed to be little other reason.

The Merry Recluse; Caroline Knapp

2011-12-26T16:30:00.002-05:00

The Merry Recluse: A Life in Essays by Caroline Knapp
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This was one of those "how did I end up with this book?" reads - I suspect a colleague weeding her collection, possibly grabbed because of the title. However it happened, this is a wonderful selection of essays that will remain in my mind and on my shelves.

Knapp is incredibly honest about her life as an anorexic and alcoholic (both of which are also covered in her two previous books), funny about her problems as a nester and compulsive shopper, open about her reaction to September 11, men named "Dave", girl crushes and other life-related items. I giggled through her "Letter to Corporate America" and the "All-Girl Marine Corps" and hoped I can deal with my parents' eventual deaths and dismembering their house better than she did.

There were essays I want to share with others so I'm definitely going to look for them on-line, but the book stays with me.

The Athenian Murders; José Carlos Somoza

2011-12-26T12:50:00.000-05:00

The Athenian Murders by José Carlos Somoza
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

This mystery tried so very hard to be clever, but honestly? More trying and less clever. It also brought to mind Sophie's World, with the supposed translator becoming a part of the book but perhaps more of a literary device than a real character.

Ostensibly this is an ancient Greek text about the murders of a few young boy/men in Athens, students at Plato's Academy yet also partaking of the arts (forbidden by the Academy) and Heracles is a "Decipherer of Enigmas" asked to find out what really happened. Then there's the translator of the original into Italian, Montalo, who apparently went mad at the end of his life and may have been killed in the same manner as the first death. Finally, there's the modern day translator who realizes that this is an eidetic novel, goes somewhat mad, is kidnapped and finally written out of the text by the original writer. Confused yet?

There is a lot going on, and quite a bit about what life was like in Athens at the time of the "original" murders. For lovers of literature and literary devices there's also much to chew on (although "eidesis" is not a real literary device - I checked). The problem is that there's almost too much going on and, as I said, the author is trying to be too clever.

Switched; Amanda Hocking

2011-12-26T04:14:00.000-05:00

Switched by Amanda Hocking
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

I've heard so much about the self-published phemon Amanda Hocking that I was really curious to read this - and now that I have, well, "meh". The writing isn't bad, but a good critical editor is definitely missing (four books? really? there's material here for two at most).

>Wendy (named after the heroine of Peter Pan and all her descendants) has a temper, doesn't look anything like her family (she's dark, they're fair), can manipulate people with her mind and was nearly killed by Kim, her mother, when she was six. Since then she's been taken care of by her aunt Maggie and her brother Matt, while Mom/Kim languishes in the looney bin. Flash forward to high school and she's semi-stalked by this cute guy, Finn. Turns out she's Trylle (fancy name for a branch of the troll family) and a changeling, while he's a tracker sent to bring her back to the Trylle compound to take her rightful place as Princess.

As with the Inheritance series by Paolini, you can really see Hocking's influences here and there's little to surprise the reader. The other problem is that this is written (I'm guessing) for high school students but in a style that 7/8 graders will appreciate - and neither group is going to really care about that.

ARC provided by publisher.

Ripley Under Ground; Patricia Highstreet

2011-12-25T11:16:00.000-05:00

Ripley Under Ground by Patricia Highsmith
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Reading this, I had to wonder if the perpetrators of the forgeries outlined in Provenance had read this! Here, Ripley is living a life of relative ease as a married man in France; his wife knows he's a little on the shady side, but doesn't seem to mind (theirs is also what one can only term an open marriage). One source of income is from the forgery of Philip Derwatt paintings and the licensing of his name for art supplies and an art school.

Of course things start to go wrong, and Ripley is called upon to impersonate Derwatt... and then - oops! - kill people to cover his tracks. Once again, the murders fall into the "he had it coming/it wasn't really murder" category, and Ripley manages to skate through. Or does he? At the end of the book it's clear that his proximity to all these deaths is starting to raise eyebrows.

Now I need to read the next book at see what happens. Only I don't have that one. Sigh.

The Talented Mr. Ripley; Patricia Highsmith

2011-12-20T11:25:00.000-05:00

The Talented Mr Ripley by Patricia Highsmith
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Definitely old-school from the pacing to the plot. We have Tom Ripley, amateur con man, who is sought out by Herbert Greenleaf, father of Dickie. Dickie has escaped the family and gone to Italy and his father (and mother) want him back home, would Tom go over and convince him to return? Tom takes on the job and turns into a SWF (ok, SWM)-stalker, imitating Dickie's walk, talk and life. And then it's not about imitating, it's actually inhabiting Dickie's life, avoiding friends and living off Dickie's money until Freddie Miles comes and Tom's life as Dickie starts to unravel.

Except it doesn't completely, as Tom miraculously manages to evade detection as a double murderer. As I read I kept thinking how much a period-piece this was: fingerprinting is primitive, ditto police methods. Could someone take on another's entire personality and life in this day and age? That didn't lessen my enjoyment of the book, but it did occasionally run through my mind.

We Shall not Sleep; Anne Perry

2011-12-19T19:39:00.002-05:00

We Shall Not Sleep: A Novel by Anne Perry
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This finale to the WWI series was the first - only - book I've read by Perry, and I'm intrigued enough to read more. Because this wraps up a series, there are allusions to previous murders and doings, although you can definitely read it as a stand-alone and not feel as though you've missed something,

The horror of the war and trenches is clear, as is the confusion and rage that soldiers near the end of the war felt. The rape and murder of Sarah Price brings those even more forward, particularly as this is October 1918 and no one is sure what waits for them back home. There's also the question of the Peacemaker and how he can finally be brought to justice.

The mystery is pretty good, but the characterizations sometimes seemed to be a little pat. There are too many pronouncements, some holier-than-thouishness and a few implausible twists, not to mention far too many emotions flaring (briefly, usually). I'd have to read another of her books to see if this is her usual style.

The Tsarina's Daughter; Carolly Erickson

2011-12-19T06:12:00.002-05:00

The Tsarina's Daughter by Carolly Erickson

My rating: 2 of 5 stars

One of the problems of historical fiction is how well the history is portrayed. While the first part of the book isn't that far off (although some of the relationships between the various European rulers is mangled and unclear), the tsarina's escape to (eventually) the United States lost me. Usually it's Tsarina Anastasia who is rumored to have survived, so that this is based on her older sister Tatiania is a little different. Not different enough, though, to overcome the writing or the plotting.

Obviously Tatiana's history prior to 1918 has to adhere to what we know, but there are weird time jumps and several suppositions (that she would help her maid's sister and visit the poor at night) that just don't quite ring true. Also, because these are Russian-born, native Russian speakers, it doesn't work when words are translated by the speaker (eg, what "Rasputin" means).

Exploring Philip Pullman's His Dark Materials; Lois H. Gresh

2011-12-16T19:25:00.003-05:00

Exploring Philip Pullman's His Dark Materials : An Unauthorized Adventure Through The Golden Compass,Subtle Knife by Lois H. Gresh
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

This is the perfect book for anyone interested in the "behind the text" of Pullman's series, however the slightly too-chatty tone combined with first-person narrative (eg, "I have a few modern books about angels" or "In the last chapter, we discussed..."). I found it distracting from the actual information, but for middle grade readers - whom I suspect are the intended audience - that might not matter.

Cinder; Marissa Meyer

2011-12-15T11:32:00.002-05:00

Cinder by Marissa Meyer
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I do love Cinderella stories and this is an interesting mix of that genre with the Lost Prince/future-with-cyborgs-and-androids genres.

Cinder is a cyborg, technically the property of the stepmother (Andri). She works as a mechanic and her best friend is Iko, an android owned by her family. There's one mean stepsister (Pearl) and one nice one (Peony), both of whom are going to Prince Kai's ball. Prince Kai is, of course, gorgeous and one day brings Cinder his broken-down tutor android, Nainsi; they flirt. So far, so familiar, right?

Add to this the fact that there's a colonized moon with a population of humanoids called Lunars, noted for their "magic" (actually just bioelectrical manipulation in the form of glamors), ruled by an evil, usurping Queen who wants to take over the Earth; there's also a modern-day plague that is killing people. Cinder's sister Peony contracts the plague and Cinder is sent to the hospital as part of a program to see if the cyborgs somehow hold the key to the cure.

Anything more would be spoilers, so let me just say that of course Cinder does get to the ball. The big questions about Cinder's pre-cyborg identity are relatively easy to guess, but the way in which she - and others - find out isn't a detraction. The fact that this is the first of a four-part series, on the other hand... I think the second book will be interesting (given what we know about the characters by the end of the book) but can this be sustained over four books? There were signs of padding in this one, and I suspect we'll see more. However, as the French say, on verra.

ARC provided by publisher.

Clearcut; Nina Shengold

2011-12-14T08:23:00.002-05:00

Clearcut by Nina Shengold
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

What is it about Forks WA? Another book about a love triangle, this time without sparkly vampires but with an ecological message.

Earley is a 29-year-old shake-rat (someone who goes to a forest clear-cut and cuts stumps down for shingling) originally from Georgia - he has a broken-down truck and lives in a bus parked up in the woods. His showers are taken in dime-per-minute campsite showers, and his life is anything but going somewhere. One incredibly rainy day he picks up Reed, a trust-fund hitchhiker who left Berkeley to head to Alaska (but first, he wants to see Xan, the girl he's in love with).

Reed and Earley end up working together, sharing the bus and daily chores. Reed's newness to the job frustrates Earley but they find a way to make it work, particularly as Reed's skills grow. And then there's Xan, who is in love with Reed but flirts with Earley.

The love triangle is messy but, unlike most, the twist of who ends up with whom may surprise readers. The characters don't really change (although Reed grows up some over the course of the book), and the ecological message isn't pounded in - both of which would have made for a more compelling book.

World's End and other stories; Paul Theroux

2011-12-10T11:05:00.000-05:00

World's End and Other Stories by Paul Theroux
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This collection of short stories is supposed to be tied together by a diversity of places, but it's more the inherent sadness of the characters that is the thread that carries through. Each, of course, sad in their own way; some aren't sad in the truly unhappy sense but in the "reader looking at their life" sense.

As an introduction to Theroux this might discourage readers, but each story, on its own, is so well crafted (except perhaps "The Greenest Isle") that if readers take their time - perhaps spacing the stories out - they'll appreciate his writing more. (Note: "Zombies" is not a nod to the latest paranormal craze!)

The 351 Books of Irma Arcuri; David Bajo

2011-12-08T17:52:00.000-05:00

The 351 Books of Irma Arcuri: A Novel by David Bajo

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

A book about books? Yay! When that book includes lots of math? Uh, not-so-yay. Irma Arcuri is an author, book binder, relatively free spirit and the decades-long friend/lover of Philip. She disappears (possibly for good, possibly suicide) and leaves Philip her library of 351 books.

Philip is a twice-divorced math genius who runs for fun (he's worked out how many steps and breaths it takes to run the 3000) and who has downsized into a small apartment, little furniture and bookshelves to hold his legacy. His goal? To read all the books, not necessarily in order and not necessarily all the way through. One night he meets Lucia, with whom he starts a physical relationship - in part because she reminds him of Irma. Lucia points out that the books have not only been rebound by Irma, but that Irma has created content (a new story by Borges or paragraphs of Cervantes).

Added to this is his learning that his former stepson, Sam, has gone missing and that his two former wives and his stepchildren have had physical relationships with Irma. Philip goes to Spain looking for Sam and Lucia, hoping to also find Irma. Things get a little weird from there, with coincidences and memories colliding.

In some ways Irma and Philip's relationship like that of Hilde and Sophie in Sophie's World, or that of Griffen and Sabine. The math confused me (I'm not a math person) and that's when the book lost me; the books, the conversations about them and the bindings drew me in.

Mooncranker's Gift; Barry Unsworth

2011-12-06T16:08:00.000-05:00

Mooncranker's Gift by Barry Unsworth
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

For some reason this book reminded me of Durrell's Alexandria Quartet - it's nothing overtly like it, but there was something there that tugged at my memory of those four books and said this was like them.

The main character is Farnaby, who met the titular character as a teen. At that point in Farnaby's life he was religious, reading the Bible and praying daily, but it was one of those turning-point summers: his parents are getting divorced, he discovers the mixed pleasures of "pleasure" and Mooncranker gives him a gift that so horrifies him that he turns from prayer. What's the gift? A figure of Jesus, on the cross, made of sausage and wrapped in cloth; it eventually rots and Farnaby discovers maggots and flies crawling over the dead meat.

For years this has haunted him, both the image and the question of why someone would give him such a "gift." While studying in Istanbul, his Uncle George reintroduces him to Mooncranker, by this time a pathetic drunk mourning the loss of Miranda (another remnant of that long ago summer). After hospitalizing Mooncranker, Farnaby agrees to go look for Miranda at a Turkish spa, a place that seems to be more about illicit sex than healing.

The characters at the spa are vaguely stereotypical, but we don't meet them clearly enough during the two days that Farnaby is there. He does meet up with Miranda and ultimately asks her about this "gift" - whether or not he's happy with the response, or her reasons for why it may have been given, are left open to our interpretation. I didn't get he sense that he'd come to peace with what happened either that summer or with Mooncranker in Istanbul.

Having said all that, I'd be interested in reading more from this author. Why? The style is a little old-fashioned, less plot than character driven and that makes a nice change of pace.

Arcadia; Lauren Groff

2011-12-05T05:28:00.000-05:00

Arcadia by Lauren Groff
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I wasn't quite sure how I felt about this one - at times it was really engrossing, and at times my mind wandered or I wondered what the author wanted me to get from that episode. Overall it was a good read, and certainly a good nostalgia read for those who want to know more about the hippie commune movement of the 70s. Having said that, it's not historical fiction (the timefrom moves from 1970s-2018!).

This is the life of Ridley "Bit" Scott, the first-born Arcadian. His parents, Abe and Hannah, joined Hardy's intrepid group somewhere out West and Bit was born (it appears prematurely) as they made their way East. Ultimately they end up on a 600+ acre property in Upstate New York, where the winters are harsh but the ground is good for growing and there's the possibility that the Arcadians can live in peace with the land. We meet Bit at/in Arcadia at the ages of 5/5 and 14/15, both pivotal times for the commune, then again at 35 and 50-ish, post-Arcadia.

The life of the Arcadians, the power of a charismatic leader, how communes can work well and then implode, and how people dedicated to a cause and belief can become disillusioned are all explored in the first two sections - that's the best part of the book. By the time Bit is an adult, married with child and working at a university, the book has lost a little of its power. It would have been more interesting to see Bit evolve in the World Outside Arcadia (although that is shown) that it was to hear him go on about Helle. His observations about digital fasts and technology today (during the 35y.o. segment) also could have been expanded into something more.

It's the last part, the future of 2018, that I think bothered me the most. It was almost as if the author wanted to show that the world Arcadia was founded to prevent was, in fact, inevitable. And even though Bit (and Abe and Hannah) have stayed in touch with a core group of Arcadians, we don't get a good sense of their lives 30+ years on (which would have been really interesting, particularly since some - like Dylan - have radically changed).

ARC provided by publisher.

The Invisible Ones; Stef Penney

2011-12-04T10:08:00.001-05:00

The Invisible Ones by Stef Penney
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I'm giving this a 5 even though it was really a 4.5/4.75 - I really enjoyed this mystery!

Ray is a half-Gypsy (dad left that traveling life to become a postman) private detective and as such is considered acceptable to Leon Woods, who is searching for his long-lost daughter. Seven-ish years ago, Rose Woods married Ivo Janko - the Jankos being of the "old black blood" and from "somewhere in the Balkans". As is traditional, Rose became part of the Janko clan, and Leon didn't expect to have much contact with her... except no one seems to have heard of/from her in over six years. So he hires Ray to clear up this mystery.

As Ray digs into the Janko's lives, he runs into several sub-mysteries: why is there such division between Tene and his sister Lulu? What happened to JJ's father? What is this "blood" illness that Ivo's son, Christo, has? And why can't anyone give him a direct answer to the question of when Rose disappeared and where? Most important: how did he end up with ergot/henbane poisoning, semi-paralyzed and in hospital?

Interwoven with his story is that of JJ, the son of Sandra Smith nee Janko. JJ goes to school, interacts with non-Gypsy girls, and seems to want to settle down somewhat. He's a teen and starting to look for answers to some of his questions about his father - who he was, why he left, and why there are no photos or signs of him. He cares for Christo and Ivo, helping the family on their trip to Lourdes (Ivo was cured there years ago, and perhaps Christo will also be cured).

The two stories come together in somewhat surprising (and violent) ways, and its clear that neither Ray nor JJ will be the same. What I particularly liked was that not all of the mysteries are resolved, with several loose ends left untidily around for the reader to ponder. While I guess the major plot twist about 50 pages from the end, it was still ambiguous enough for me to think "maybe I'm wrong" until the very end!

Because this is a murder mystery, I'm hoping that Ms. Penney turns this into a series - in any even, her first book is on my To Buy list and I'm keeping an eye out for her next one.

ARC provided by publisher.

Sympathy for the Devil; Virginia A. McConnell

2011-12-03T08:10:00.000-05:00

Sympathy for the Devil: The Emmanuel Baptist Murders of Old San Francisco by Virginia A. McConnell
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

True crime, particularly when the crime happened a long time ago, is somehow a perfect read when you're feeling sick - this book fit the bill in much the same way that P.D. James' The Maul and the Pear Tree did a few years ago.

The murders of Blanche and Millie took place in April 1895, in San Francisco, so there was no way to process the crime scenes in a modern sense: no "Bones", no "CSI" and no BAU to profile the murderer. Instead there was a lot of circumstantial evidence, conflicting witness statements, and two newspapers to whip the public into a frenzy. Ms. McConnell does a great job of sorting through all this and of pointing out where modern court cases and murder investigations differ from what happened.

In the beginning of the book, however, she suggests that Theo Durrant was not the murderer, that there were other, equally plausible suspects; by the end of the book, however, she seems to have changed her mind. There are two others who might have done one (or both) murders, and it would have been interesting to explore that a little. Perhaps the lack of documents (due to the age of the crimes, the difference in what evidence was collected back then, and the 1906 earthquake destroying some of the records) prevented her from pursuing that.

The Artful Dodger; Nick Bantock

2011-12-01T10:12:00.000-05:00

The Artful Dodger: Images and Reflections by Nick Bantock
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

If you don't know Bantock's art, this is a great way to learn... and if you do know his work, it's a wonderful celebration of what he's done. I had no idea he'd done cover art, or the pop-up books (and now I'm adding those to my To Be Bought list). His explanation of the thought and art process that went into the Griffin & Sabine books as well as his other work is just fascinating, and seeing some of the art again made me think about re-reading and re-viewing what I've read before.

A must buy/must read for the art lover in all of us.

Living with Ghosts; Prince Michael of Greece

2011-11-30T21:02:00.002-05:00

Living With Ghosts: Eleven Extraordinary Tales by Prince Michael of Greece
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

I have no idea where I got this book (a signed edition, no less), but seemed like the perfect read on a day when I was feeling flu-ey. And in part I was right: the descriptions of the various haunted castles, manors and palaces, along with some of their history was definitely worth the read.

However, the ghost part was disappointing. We're expected to believe that Prince Michael communed with these ghosts, somehow able to memorize (he has no note taking equipment with him) the stories he's told. Sometimes, but not always, there's a follow-up, wherein we learn that yes, there was this murder or that secret room. At least two of the ghosts lay claim to some incredible, esoteric knowledge - but they don't share it because they want to keep us (or the Prince) safe.

Not the shivvery experience I'd hoped for, but perhaps a starting point to learn more about these houses and their history.

Beneath a Meth Moon; Jacqueline Woodson

2011-11-30T08:50:00.003-05:00

Beneath a Meth Moon by Jacqueline Woodson
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

The meth epidemic hasn't hit my neck of the woods, so it was interesting to read this book with that as its focus. At times it was a little difficult to follow as we travel through three time threads: Laurel's life in Pass Christian just before/after Katrina, her life as she moves to Gilead, and the present. Because it's only a two-year spread, there's not that much to differentiate the threads except context.

Laurel lived in Pass Christian with her parents, her brother Jesse Jr.; her grandmother, M'Lady, played a major role in her life. When the hurricane approaches, she, her father and brother go to her aunt's, but her mother and M'Lady stay behind (planning to move to the Walmart if things get bad). Of course, things do go bad, and the remaining family eventually moves to Gilead to start over. There, she meets Kaylee and joins the cheerleading team... where she meets T-Boom. T-Boom introduces Laurel to meth, and ultimately Laurel ends up begging on the streets for meth money.

Teens who live in areas where meth is a problem will recognize the characters, but for those who don't (or who avoid the drug scene) this might not appeal. The question of whether Laurel would have turned to meth had her mother and M'Lady not died or would she have gotten so involved anyway (assuming she'd met T-Boom or some other meth dealer in Pass Christian) is an interesting one and might lead to some good discussions.

Why a 3 and not a 4 star? I felt that Jesse Jr. was introduced to deliberately tug at our heartstrings, and that type of manipulation irritated me.

ARC provided by publisher.

The Lola Quartet; Emily St. John Mandel

2011-11-29T15:00:00.000-05:00

The Lola Quartet by Emily St. John Mandel
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Ignore the hype - this is more of a novella that explores the relationships between five friends and their past/present selves than it is a mystery or suspense novel.

The Lola Quartet (named after the movie, not the song) is a group of four high school musicians: Jake, Daniel, Gavin and Sasha. They attended a high school for performing arts in Sebastian FL, and Anna was both Sasha's half-sister and Gavin's girlfriend. Shortly before Gavin's graduation, Anna disappears - her homelife is abusive, but there are rumors about a pregnancy or something else. He sees her briefly just after graduation at the Quartet's final performance, and then she disappears.

Ten years later, he's a newspaper reporter in NYC and his life is falling apart; his invented quotes in his articles get him fired, but they're part of his losing control after his girlfriend leaves him and his sister calls to say she's seen a girl who could be Gavin's daughter. Moving back to Florida, he begins to investigate exactly what happened to Anna, recoonecting with Sasha, Daniel and Jame in ways that one mightn't expect.

The questions of culpability, responsibility, honesty and honor are explored, as are the dreams we have when we leave high school filled with possibility and the reality we run into as soon as a few years later. This isn't a particularly philosophical novella, but it does make one think about the what might-have-beens and the relationships we left behind (many of which we never thought about again).

ARC provided by publisher.

The Darlings; Cristina Alger

2011-11-27T22:54:00.000-05:00

The Darlings by Cristina Alger
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This really Bonfire of the Vanities 2.0: a Madoff-esque Ponzi scheme married to insider trading, bribery at the SEC, the lives of the incredibly rich and a Samuel Isreal-like figure. Even the name of the family at the heart of the book, Darling, reminds one of the tv series "Dirty Sexy Money" (there's another character whose first name is Tripp. sigh).

So, timely. And at times well-written but other times description and detail get in the way of the plot. It's also interesting to hear certain names, places and brands trip off the author's pen, making those she glides over more obvious. The characters are pretty detailed, with few exceptions most are complex in ways that make them feel like real people, not made-up characters (although at times all of them rotate through the "hmm... this person must be here in the role of [stereotype]").

Overall, though, this is one of those books that encapsulates an era and will rapidly read as dated. That's not necessarily a bad thing (see Wolfe's Bonfire as a good example).

>ARC provided by publishers.

The Doll; Daphne du Maurier

2011-11-27T11:41:00.002-05:00

The Doll: The Lost Short Stories by Daphne du Maurier
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

So interesting to read the early short stories of Daphne du Maurier - you can sense the talent, but it's clearly not fully formed. Only a couple of the stories have the creep factor that her later works have ("East Wind" and "The Doll") while the rest are more character studies. Maybe it was her youth or lack of writing experience that made stories like "Picadilly" and "Mazie" feel slightly off.

As I said, you can clearly sense the talent here and it's interesting to see the development between these and Jamaica Inn, written a few years later. Perhaps if I didn't know the later novels I'd have enjoyed these stories more.

The Betrayal of Trust; Susan Hill

2011-11-25T18:03:00.000-05:00

The Betrayal of Trust by Susan Hill
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I've been enjoying the Simon Serrailler series since I discovered it a few years back in Canada. Luckily, Susan Hill's detective has found a home here in America as well. As I said in my review of Shadows in the Street, Simon is a lot like Adam Dalgliesh, only with more family. And like Kate Atkinson, Ms. Hill has a number of seemingly unrelated threads going through her mysteries.

The main mystery is the 15-year-old case of the missing Harriet Lowther (interestingly, the jacket cover calls her "Joanne"), whose skeleton was found after a major flood. Nearby another skeleton is found - only this time there's no cold case for a missing person. Then there's his disintegrating relationship with his triplet sister, Cat, upon whom his spring some disturbing family news. There's Lenny, dealing with her partner Olive's continued descent into at-times violent dementia... Jocelyn, recently diagnosed with MND and rapidly deteriorating physically, who needs to decide how her end-of-life care will unfold... and Rachel, with whom Simon falls in love but who is still married to her much older, Parkinson's-riddled husband.

Ultimately, of course, the mystery is solved and the threads tied-in (not up: there's always some room for ambiguity and doors left open for the next installment). While I know that Lafferton is an imaginary town, after reading this series I feel that I should be able to visit there. It's also nice that we spend time with the inner lives of most of these characters, not just the "hero" and criminals. If only I didn't have to wait another couple of years before the next book...

3:15 Season Onet; Patrick Carman

2011-11-21T18:41:00.000-05:00

3:15 Season One: Things That Go Bump in the Night by Patrick Carman
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This was such a difficult book to review because each of the short stories ends with a "go to the website / use the password" comment. So while each of the stories was the start of something creepy, the reading experience got interrupted as I put down the book, picked up my laptop and found out how each ended. And then had to remind myself that there was more to be read... go back to the book... etc.

The stories are creepy and I think those readers looking for something in the "short and shivery" category will enjoy them; whether or not they'll appreciate the breaking of the narrative flow is another question.

ARC provided by publisher.

The Story About the Story; J.C. Hallman

2011-11-17T08:48:00.002-05:00

The Story About the Story: Great Writers Explore Great Literature by J.C. Hallman
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Another one of those books that works well as an in-between book - something to read in-between reading other books, or when you have only a short time in which to read and don't want to get caught up in a full-length book.

This is a collection of short(ish) essays by writers on books, writers and genres and as a result it's a little choppy. Some essays were great, others less so. A few made me want to read (or re-read) the book or the author's genre, some I only read the first page or so and moved on.

Born Wicked; Jessica Spotswood

2011-11-12T21:35:00.000-05:00

Born Wicked by Jessica Spotswood
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

In 1860, New England is its own nation (not Red Sox Nation, but still, a nation), with the western part of North America part of Indo-China and the south part of Spain. The borders to NE are closed, and for the past century the country has been run by the Brothers, a Puritan/Taliban mash-up. There is a Sisterhood, which is one of the two options for young women when they reach 17, the other is marriage.

NE was founded by the Sisters of Persephone as a safe-haven for witches, and the society is very integrated racially. However, the Brothers have banned witchcraft and actively seek out witches, banishing some to an asylum, others to the shipyards. Women are expected to be meek, deferential and, well, bubbleheaded. Cate and her sisters are witches, which means they have to be careful around everyone, including their father (who spends most of the book off stage, attending to business in New London; Mom's dead).

Cate is stuck at the intersection of three crossroads: marriage or the Sisterhood? marriage to whom? and what about her promise to take care of her sisters? Her decision to choose one path will, obviously, affect the others. There's a love triangle here, and while it doesn't seem as forced as many of the recent crop have been, it just added to the "a lot going on and nothing happening" problem. Because this is a trilogy, there's a lot of scene setting going on that occasionally gets in the way of real plot.

The witchcraft part is very similar to Harry Potter, sans wands. Of course this plays into the craze for paranormal; the idea that women can be powerful (and thus a threat to men and their leadership) is an interesting twist in a book for this age group. It reminded me a little of Mists of Avalon in that way.

It was interesting that the forward-thinking country is Dubai, with women rumored to wear trousers and what sound like crop tops. NE itself is vaguely Victorian-era in terms of clothes, accessories, furnishings, etc., but in terms of the way the people talk and act it's very modern. There were moments when something was going on and then a carriage pulled up and I had to remind myself that this was a pre-modern technology society.

I think the trilogy will be popular among those who still haven't gotten enough of the paranormal books, and it might also appeal to those who like romance.

ARC provided by publisher.

Catherine the Great; Robert K. Massie

2011-11-11T22:53:00.000-05:00

Catherine the Great: Portrait of a Woman by Robert K. Massie

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Massie's research into the life of Catherine II is extensive (for example, he used three different translations of her Memoirs) and wide-ranging and the writing style is engaging enough to almost make one forget this is a nearly 600 page book (it's the weight that gives it away).

While I knew something about her life, there was much I hadn't and was fascinated to learn. I knew she was a German princess, but not that it was of some small, unimportant state. I knew she and her mother didn't get along, but not the extent of the difficulties. Etc. Intertwined with her story is that of those around her, so we meet people like Empress Elizabeth and Voltaire and Potemkin fully-fleshed out rather than as sketches.

Several rumors are debunked here, like the one about the Potemkin Village (Massie states that those that talked about them weren't on her trip down the Dnieper, and those that were on the trip never mentioned anything amiss - even those representatives of foreign governments who would certainly have done so had there been fakery). Nothing about horses, however, except that she didn't like to ride sidesaddle.

I really wanted this to be a solid 5, but... I just couldn't do it. The missing star is due to four factors: one, there were phrases that were used again and again to describe people (eg, virtually every time an Orlov is mentioned, we hear again that she owes her throne to them); two, there's an entirely unnecessary chapter devoted to the intricacies of the French Revolution (which is interesting in itself, but goes into detail not needed for a book about Catherine); three, there were pieces that I felt were missing, as when she is persuaded that Lutheranism and Russian Orthodoxy are "virtually the same", yet many readers may not understand the depth of the differences between the two; and four, while mentioning many times that Gregory Orlov was "the father of her son, Bobrinskoy" we never actually learn what happened to his child.

Having read his Nicholas and Alexandra, I now think I'll try to find Peter the Great!

There is No Dog; Meg Rosoff

2011-11-07T19:00:00.000-05:00

There Is No Dog by Meg Rosoff
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I thought this book was funny, but then I've got a definite irreverent streak. Others, on the other hand, might find the concept of a God who is really a petulant, sex-crazed boy just a bit wrong.

The life of God (first name, Bob) is pretty easy: sleep until noon, play Nintendo with Eck (his penguin-like furry, purring, long-nosed pet), have a wank and then back to sleep. All the real work of answering prayers, monitoring things and looking after earth falls to Mr. B, who came in second in the "who gets to create this planet" job search. One day a young woman, Lucy, asks God for love and, well, Bob fall in love with her.

The path of love is pretty stormy, and global weather goes a bit nuts - temperature swings of 30-50 degrees in one day, flooding that freezes, tsunamis, tornadoes, etc. - because Bob's miserable without his One True Love. Mr. B is appalled by this and decides that 10,000 (or so) years is enough, he's resigning. And then there's Mona, Bob's mother, who gambles away Eck, even though Eck is Bob's pet. What's a God to do?

The humor is evident (did anyone think that platypus' were anything other than a joke?) but as I said, this is going to offend those that are not able to laugh about their faith.

ARC provided by publisher.

One Hundred Names for Love; Diane Ackerman

2011-11-07T09:46:00.000-05:00

One Hundred Names for Love by Diane Ackerman
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

This was one of those "wow, I learned a lot" books - more than I hope I'll ever need to know about having a stroke or the resulting recovery (including levels of aphasia). What dropped the rating considerably is that the author's voice was too wordy, too in love with description and sometimes this clouded the narrative.

Paul's frustration and anguish as he recovers from his stroke are painful to read. As someone who loves words and reading, losing the ability to understand and communicate is akin to a living death. The delight he has in recovering some of his facility with language struck home with me, as did difficulty he has matching words to thoughts later (I'm prone to "thingy" as a catch-all when my brain and mouth don't coordinate).

I've always wondered how people remember exact conversations and emotions at a distance: did Ms. Ackerman keep a journal? Or is she relying on memory and others' impression of what happened and was said? Towards the end she says that she read the book to him and they reconstructed the events together, but I'm a little leery of the accuracy of her story.

The bibliography and helpful hints appendices, while scary, could really help others in the caregivers role, should that happen.

The Sense of an Ending; Julian Barnes

2011-11-06T17:19:00.001-05:00

The Sense of an Ending by Julian Barnes
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

What responsibility does a suicide have to those left behind? Why would someone choose not to fulfill the terms of a will? How does memory play tricks on, and inform, our memory? Those are some of the questions that Barnes asks, and to some extent answers, in this book (it's more like a novella than a novel, only 150 pages).

Tony's not the swiftest, most introspective or intuitive of people - he's rather ordinary, to be honest. Ditto his friends Colin and Alex, but when Adrian joins their little group he's pushed to be just a little bit more. He goes to university, meets Veronica, meets her family, they break up, he continues on with his life to a career in arts management, a wife whom he'll divorce, a daughter he'll love but be slightly estranged from... and then he gets left 500 pounds and two documents by Veronica's mother. Years earlier, Veronica and Adrian had started dating (after the break-up with Tony) and then Adrian committed suicide.

Tony's left wondering why he was left the money and the documents; one is a letter from Veronica's mother and the other is Adrian's diary, still with Veronica, who isn't giving it to Tony as per her mother's will. His quest to retrieve his "legacy" leads him to delve into his past, to wonder about relationships and his ability to figure out what the truth about history really is.

Suffice it to say that I'm left thinking about my past and about the "damage" that occurred then, and how to deal with that now. Unintentionally, reading this has answered some of the questions I've been asking - and isn't that the best possible result from reading a book?

Pulse; Julian Barnes

2011-11-06T17:04:00.000-05:00

Pulse by Julian Barnes
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Barnes' short stories are little jewels, with insight into the life or situation that leaves you wanting slightly more than you're given but still feeling very fulfilled.

I really wish there were the 4.5 star option, because that's where I'd grade this collection. Why not the full 5 stars? It's the "At Phil & Joanne's" episodes, which made me think of a Woody Allen movie (think "Hannah and Her Sisters" type dialogue) and that irritated me. However, "The Limner", "Sleeping with John Updike" and "Carcassone" are worth re-reading. The notes say that "Marriage Lines" was written for Alan Howard (whom I saw years ago in "Good") and now I'm going to try to find a recording.

US readers will have to wait, or do as I did and order via Indigo.ca (or Amazon.co.uk).

The Saints of Swallow; Suzzy Roche

2011-11-03T15:53:00.002-04:00

The Saints of Swallow by Suzzy Roche
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This book has so much going on that it should have been longer - there's the music part, the recovery part, the faith part and the family part and all are done well, but I just wish we could have had more of each.

There's a band, Sliced Ham, that was an alternative/grunge/punk type band, with relatively obscure lyrics and a lead singer who wears ripped stockings and combat boots. That part of Mary Saint's life ends when her friend/lover/bassist Garbagio (aka Anthony Calabrese, from a small town near to hers) dies. Then there's her recovery, coming to terms with her past and her music and her life - and her faith. Both collide when she's asked to do a solo concert at her old high school. This isn't just Mary's story, though, it's also her mother Jean's, and how Jean's life in Swallow has unfolded since Mary left years before.

There are some interesting questions about faith raised here, and not nearly enough time spent on them (particularly at the end). What family is and means, and what fame is and means is also explored. Since the author is a member of The Roches, it's clear that she's writing from experience, albeit in a different genre than her folk music roots.

This will definitely appeal to those that question fitting in and how to survive their teens, let alone their early adulthood, with some sense of sanity intact. It may also appeal to alternative music lovers, although we're more in the group's aftermath than spending time with the group itself.

ARC provided by publisher.

Double; Jenny Valentine

2011-11-03T08:46:00.000-04:00

Double by Jenny Valentine
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Chap is nobody - no family, no real name, no home. One day, in exchange for two meals and a roof over his head, he goes to a shelter and there things radically change: he's the spitting image of Cassiel Roadnight, a boy missing for two years. Something compels Chap to agree that he is, in fact, Cass and so his adventure begins.

>Of course, he isn't and the differences in personality and size (although in two years, boys do grow!) raise a few suspicions (much like in the movies "Sommersby" and "Martin Guerre") but overall his family accepts him and is thrilled with his return. Interspersed with his new life as Cass is Chap's story of his previous life with Grandpa, a life that ended six years ago when Grandpa got into an accident and started Chap's life on the streets. Anything more would be spoilers, so I won't go into how this all plays out - suffice it to say that I did guess the twist but wasn't quite sure until the very end.

This was a Carnegie shortlist book and I can understand why: there's a good mystery, interesting plot and characters with no paranormal qualities, and nothing forced about the writing.

ARC provided by publisher.

The Case of the Deadly Desperados; Caroline Lawrence

2011-11-02T21:13:00.000-04:00

The Case of the Deadly Desperados by Caroline Lawrence
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Caroline Lawrence has moved away from her Roman Mysteries to the Wild West, and it's a lot of fun.

P.K. "Pinky" Pinkerton is a half-Lakota foster child to the Joneses, and we open on their being scalped and killed by "Injuns", except Ma Evangeline realizes they're actually white men. Turns out that one of the men is Whitling Walt, so named because he "whittles" his victims, and they weren't after the Joneses they were after a Letter that PK's real mother gave him.

P.K. runs away, hoping to get to Chicago, where he can persuade his uncle (the famous Pinkerton detective) to hire him. However, he only makes it as far as Virginia City, a Nevada mining town filled with gamblers, Chinese "Celestials", miners and Soiled Doves. Because of his Thorn, P.K. is unable to tell whom to trust and ends up being shot at, tied up and finding ways to disguise himself before he can get to the Recorder's to have his Letter declared true.

The combination of P.K.'s Thorn (aka ASD) and the Wild West atmosphere make this a great Middle School boy read - they'll enjoy the history and detective work, as well as P.K.'s take on people and events.

ARC provided by publisher.

The Ruins of Gorlan; John Flanagan

2011-11-02T19:24:00.000-04:00

The Ruins of Gorlan by John Flanagan
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I've read others in this series, but never the first book - it's definitely worthwhile going back to starting properly (although the author does make the books/world accessible to latecomers).

I can see where Middle School boys love this: Will is small, not that skilled and has no family but his role in the future of his world is huge. Who wouldn't like that? His relationship with Halt and Horace develop in a way that I could see them wanting to emulate, in that Will gains Halt's respect and Horace's friendship in ways that are realistic. Of course, the adventure and fighting are very appealing.

Now I need to fill in the holes in my reading of this series!

Copy provided by publisher

The Way We Fall; Megan Crewe

2011-11-02T19:16:00.000-04:00

The Way We Fall by Megan Crewe
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Not a dystopia, but a rather realistic look at what could happen if a virulent virus strikes - just think of the hysteria surrounding MRSA, SARS, the H1N1 virus, etc.. The unrealistic part is that this is set on an island just off Canada, and thus easy to quarantine.

>Kaelyn is a typical teen, except that she's living on a small island (one of the Summer People/Year-Rounders type of island). Her peers aren't quite sure what to make of her, as she's recently returned from several years in Toronto, but that's good because she can be a "new Kaelyn". Something has happened to her friendship with Leo and she starts an epistolary journal to try to mend that rift, but when the virus strikes it becomes a log of what's going on on the island.

It was interesting that the Canadian authorities' response to the problem is to quarantine the island, allowing no one on or off. Predictably there's a Lord of the Flies group of boys that start to take/steal the food and supplies, and just as predictably there's a group that tries to keep things running smoothly. Kaelyn's family is affected, in that her mother dies of the virus, her brother disappears to the mainland, her father is the doctor trying to help and she herself gets sick. While most of her reactions to what's going on seem real, I did expect a little more fear and anger, particularly at the government's decision to virtually abandon the island.

That this is the start to a series is problematic for me (I know, that's my Big Bugaboo), because without it this could be a great read for science and ethics classes.

ARC provided by publisher.

I'm Not Her; Janet Gurtler

2011-11-02T19:03:00.002-04:00

I'm Not Her by Janet Gurtler
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Tess has a big problem: she's a nobody compared to her Perfect Sister, Kristina. Because of this, her grades and love of art go virtually unnoticed by her mother, while her father is rather a nonentity in the home. Then Kristina learns she doesn't have a sports injury, she has a tumor, osteosarcoma - cancer. And the family falls apart.

Despite having read other books like this recently, I thought Tess' voice sounded authentic (the parents were, sadly, far more stereotypical). Kristina's actions/reactions to her cancer and treatments also sounded authentic, but more anger might have been even more realistic. I particularly liked the arc of Tess' relationships with Clark, Jeremy and Nick, which reminded me of so many of my and my friends relationships with boys when we were in high school.

Copy provided by publisher.

The Filter Bubble; Eli Pariser

2011-10-30T15:13:00.000-04:00

The Filter Bubble: What the Internet Is Hiding From You by Eli Pariser
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

How ironic that I chose to read this on my Kindle - a product provided by just the type of corporation Pariser talks about in terms of privacy, filtering, recommending and being generally overly intrusive into our habits! The thing I regret most about buying this version is that there are people to whom I would love to lend the book but can't.

Pariser's position is that we, as a society, have ceded much in the way of privacy and choice to corporations. In some ways it's about the explosion of news sources and our ability to filter out the news we don't want to hear (How many people do you know that only get their news from NPR/New York Times/New Yorker or Fox News/Daily Post? Sadly, I know far too many who are that polarized). This doesn't lend itself to a well-informed, understanding, communicating citizenry.

The other filter comes from how easy it is to allow Google, Amazon, Netflix, etc. to learn from our choices (of searches, purchases, queries, whatever) and to tailor our next experience to meet those previous ones. My buying habits must give Amazon and Google fits, as I've used them as personal and professional resources! The fact that I, in New York, will get different results than friends in Georgia or Germany, is only one problem - friends searching on their laptops in my home will get different results than I do, even though we're separated by a mere few feet.

What actions we take to regulate these companies (who are, after all, not answerable to us, their free users but to their hoping-for-big-payout advertisers and investors) and how we make friends, family and students aware of how their choices affect their on-line experience is important. My gut tells me that the vast majority won't care, even among those that read this book.

In Too Deep; Amanda Grace

2011-10-30T15:01:00.000-04:00

In Too Deep by Amanda Grace
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This is not a book like Good Girl or Speak, although it does have some of those elements.

We're a few weeks before graduation, and Carter - the golden boy, the one every girl wants - is throwing a party; Sam has decided that it's her last, best chance to make Carter notice her and changes from her usual jeans/t-shirt to a thong, stilettos and a micro-mini. It does get his notice, but not in the way she wants... and things only get worse when someone misinterprets what happened between them. Sam, humiliated by Carter's response to her overture, just wants to forget it happened, particularly since things finally seem to be going well with Nick, the boy-next-door.

>When school starts on Monday and people are staring at her, then asking how she is, she thinks it's all about what really happened, and then she learns it's because they think he raped her. Now, at this point Sam could have done the decent thing and said "no, he didn't" but she's at first too shocked and then too scared to say anything. When she finally does admit that he didn't, she's with a group of former friends who are all being supportive, and they convince her that Carter has been a real jerk for a long time and that a couple of weeks not being Big Man On Campus would be good for him. Of course, this completely backfires on everyone.

Sam's dilemma was written realistically, and I could relate to her distress and confusion about how to handle everything. I particularly liked that she learned the very hard way that doing the easy thing can have lasting consequences. The reason this wasn't a 5-star review was that there were moments, when there was something just a bit off with her relationship with her father. Unlike the other relationships she has, this one read a bit too stereotypical and mostly for effect.

ARC provided by publisher.

Speak No Evil: Marilyn Kaye

2011-10-30T14:39:00.000-04:00

Speak No Evil by Marilyn Kaye
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

It's always a little worrisome when a publisher has a huge stack of paperbacks of a late-series book, particularly since it was published over a year ago: has the series not been selling? In the case of the Gifted series, that might be what's going on (I don't actually know but I do suspect).

This series tells the story of a very unusual Gifted class at Meadowbrook Middle School. Each book is in many ways a stand-alone, with only a few references to previous books. This is Carter Street's story, a selectively mute boy with no discernible Gift.

Carter's been moved to a Home, under the care of Dr. Paley. Despite all Madame's instructions that what happens in Gifted class stays in Gifted class, Dr. Paley seems to know quite a bit about the class members. He also is convinced that he can cure Carter's mutism and memory loss. The methods do work, and Carter uncovers his history and his Gift. Several of his classmates also want to work with Dr. Paley, who claims he can cure them of their Gifts (contrary to Madame's wishes and methodology - she's working to help them understand and control the Gifts).

What bothered me is that this wants to be a HS book, but it's set in Middle School and that could be the problem. The covers skew older, but the inside is more like Lubar's Hidden Talents.

Copy provided by publisher.

Perfect Escape; Jennifer Brown

2011-10-30T14:21:00.002-04:00

Perfect Escape by Jennifer Brown
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I loved Hate List and was a little disappointed by Bitter End but this is a return to form for Jennifer Brown.

Kendra's life has been overshadowed by her OCD brother Grayson's problem, and she's tried to be Little Miss Perfect to compensate. There's only one glitch, and she's aware that things are about to radically change for her: possibly expulsion, being kicked out of the National Honor Society and worse. It's not clear exactly what she's done, but it is clear that it's Something Bad. That this all coincides with Grayson's return home after some time away at a hospital doesn't help.

So Kendra decides that the best solution to all this is to get into her car (after having convinced Grayson to stop counting rocks at the nearby quarry) and drive to California, home to her former BFF Zoe. Zoe's parents didn't like the relationship Zoe and Grayson had, and abruptly moved her away - so there are lots of unresolved emotions on all sides. This road trip doesn't meet with Grayson's approval, but slowly he seems to warm to the idea and enjoy the adventure.

Throughout the course of the book I had to remind myself that Grayson was OCD, not ASD; he was always capable of normal interpersonal interactions except when his obsessions took over. Kendra spends time distracting him from his fears and obsessions and the normalcy of their brother/sister relationship is realistic. It was also interesting to see that the book ends on a semi-cliffhanger, in that we don't know how things will get resolved vis-a-vis her problems at school. I liked that sense of "this adventure's over, another one is going to begin but not here", because too many neatly tied loose-ends bothers me. So yay for that!

ARC provided by publisher.

Mercy Lily; Lisa Albert

2011-10-30T14:03:00.000-04:00

Mercy Lily by Lisa Albert
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

I really wanted to like this book, but it really felt as though the author was writing with a Message, rather than letting the whole Death with Dignity motif happen organically.

Lily is a relatively normal teen, albeit one with no friends. Why? Because when her father died and her mother's MS got worse, she pulled away from her friends and they her. So now Mom's getting worse and Lily has few people in whom she can confide. At the age of 16, she's been working (illegally) as a vet, following her mother's instructions on animal care - she's also giving her mother BVT (Bee Venom Therapy) for the MS but that seems to have stopped working.

How her mother wants to resolve things, and Lily's future, makes up the main plot, while Lily's feelings for the boy-next-door, Trent, are the subplot. The problem is that both plots, along with the renewal of her relationship with Shauna, are pretty obvious and there's no surprise anywhere. There was nothing new here, and that it's set in Oregon is purely to highlight the Death with Dignity issue.

ARC provided by publisher.

Life Eternal; Yvonne Woon

2011-10-30T13:51:00.000-04:00

Life Eternal by Yvonne Woon
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Any book that takes place (mostly) in Montreal is going to get 2-stars from me, and this earned a solid 1.5 more (which I'm bumping up to a 4) by 1. being the second in a series yet accessible to those who haven't read the first book and 2. by being a little more interesting than a mere Twilight-esque love triangle.

>Renée is recovering from her soul-swapping adventure with Dante and her parents' deaths when she starts having some strange dreams. They feel real, and to her shock and horror, one actually does become real... but it can't be because she was no where near the scene-of-the-death at the time. Then she learns that Gottfried Academy is going to be solely for the Undead, while all the Monitors there will now be at St. Clement, in Montreal. So there's no reunion for her and Eleanor (what with Eleanor being Undead, etc.). Somehow Renée ends up being the top Monitor in the school, much to her new enemy Clementine's anger. There's a hot Monitor guy, Noah, who comes close to making her forget Dante, and Anya, a Russian-Canadian friend who helps her figure out what's happening with the dreams.

No plot spoilers here, but suffice it to say that the love triangle wasn't as annoying as other recent ones have been, and despite the paranormal elements Renée feels like a real teen. The questions of who the Ninth Sister is and how the whole Monitor/Undead tension will play out is left unresolved - yes, there's a cliffhanger ending. There's a part of me that thinks the resolution to that cliffhanger may end up being obvious, and I really hope the author does something different. We'll see.

ARC provided by publisher

Mysteries of the Middle Ages; Thomas Cahill

2011-10-22T08:24:00.000-04:00

Mysteries of the Middle Ages: The Rise of Feminism, Science & Art from the Cults of Catholic Europe by Thomas Cahill
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This look at the Middle Ages as a turning point in our history was interesting - I'd never really known much about Hildegard, Abelard or Giotto, much less thought of Ravenna as an important city before. There was also a very easy-to-understand discussion of Dante's Divine Comedy and the different religious splits during this time period.

What bothered me, though, was the attempts at humor. Cahill appears to be aiming for a teen audience and inserts comments designed to appeal to someone not necessarily reading this for fun but as part of a class assignment. It also was unnecessary to continually refer to his other books and the "Hinges of History" series.

The Magician King; Lev Grossman

2011-10-16T18:05:00.002-04:00

The Magician King by Lev Grossman
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Grossman picks up the tale of Quentin and the others in Fillory - they're there, ruling quietly, when they go hunting. The hunting leads to the idea Quentin has of a quest (not that big a one, just a few days sail to get the back rent due from the Outer Island). As these things so often go, the quest becomes a Quest and Quentin ends up tackling more than he'd originally anticipated.

Accompanying Quentin is Julia, and I particularly liked how we got Julia's backstory (remember, she wasn't at Brakebills with the others). It's a very different trip to magic than Quentin's and by the end of the book I felt much closer to her than to the "Brakebills" magicians. I was also quite fond of sloth (the representative of the talking animals sent on the q/Quest).

Any reader familiar with the Narnia stories will see many similarities, but Harry Potter, Star Trek, Wind in the Willows and other YA-magical favorites are also referenced. At times I wondered if the similarities detracted from the story as a whole, where pure imagination could have done just as well. There's ample opportunity for another Fillory-esque book here, but a part of me hopes that we simply leave Quentin, Julia, Josh, Poppy and the others with their new lives.

Snuff; Terry Pratchett

2011-10-15T17:51:00.000-04:00

Snuff by Terry Pratchett
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I truly love me some Terry Pratchett - I've read virtually everything he's written, including the lesser-known Bromeliad trilogy, and if you can get your hands on Only You Can Save Mankind (from the Johnny Maxwell trilogy) do so immediately!

Anyway, Snuff continues the Ankh-Morpork Watch series, this time taking Commander Sam Vimes (and the Duke of Ankh, Sir Samuel Vimes and Blackboard Monitor Vimes) on vacation to the Shires, specifically to Ramkin Hall, Lady Sybil's ancestral home. Vimes is a fish-out-of-water here, or more accurately copper-off-the-streets, missing the noise and smell and general crime of the city. Of course things change, and he ends up with yet another title, King of the River. Along the way we meet goblins, a blacksmith and several other characters who one hopes become part of the Discworld family.

So why the four and not a five? Two reasons: the first is that I chuckled, not laughed, and the second (much more important) is that there's no DEATH. I miss DEATH. Doesn't every one?

Harbor; John Ajvide Lindqvist

2011-10-12T05:08:00.000-04:00

Harbor by John Ajvide Lindqvist
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Growing up, books like Harvest Home and The Other were perfect late night reads - Harbor (written by the author of the book that gave rise to the movie "Let the Right One In") easily fits in with that genre. Not full-on horror, but seriously creepy village horror.

We start out thousands of years ago as the Domaro archipelago is being formed, then flash-forward to more modern times. Anders' life has been ruined by the complete disappearance of Maja, his daughter. Moving between his adolescence, his life post-disappearance, his "grandfather" Simon's early years and a few other time periods, it becomes clear that there's something Not Quite Right about Domaro or the surrounding areas. Anna-Greta, Anders' grandmother, clearly has something to do with this, but exactly what only becomes clear later in the book.

Adding to the creep factor is the question of why seemingly ordinary people go nuts, why the most beautiful girl of Anders' generation is having plastic surgery to make her ugly and old, and what the Spiritus that Simon tends is. If this were in Stephen King's hands there'd be more detail, here it's what's left out that counts most.

ARC provided by publisher.

The Perils of Peace; Thomas Fleming

2011-10-11T08:36:00.000-04:00

The Perils of Peace: America's Struggle for Survival After Yorktown by Thomas D. Fleming
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

What an interesting filler to the American history I learned in school! It always seemed that we went from the signing of the Declaration to the signing of the Constitution relatively easily, but in truth there was much more going on. In this book, covering the time between the victory at Yorktown through Washington's stepping down as Commander-in-Chief, we get a really in-depth look at just how chaotic that time was.

Based on films like "1776" and "The Adams Chronicles" I didn't know that John Adams and Ben Franklin were anything other than friends, but apparently they really disliked each other. As they both try to negotiate a peace treaty, recognition of the new country and secure loans (at first with Franklin based in France, Adams in Holland and then together in France) their back-biting didn't help our cause. Neither did the strong loyalist population still in the former colonies, or the fact that the British still held three major cities and didn't want to give them up. The lack of funds to pay the army was also a major problem. And then there was the issue of Gibraltar...

Given how little time teachers have to spend on our history if they're going to cover 200-300+ years, it's not surprising that all this has been neglected. I'm glad some of the missing has been filled in for me!

Brooklyn; Colm Tóibín

2011-10-05T21:10:00.002-04:00

Brooklyn by Colm Tóibín
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Every year I vow I'm going to read more of the Booker short list and every year I fail to do so: here's one reason why everyone should be reading from that list.

Toibin's portrait of Eilis, an Irish girl in a small town with few prospects (for her or the town) is one of those quiet books - no great action sequences, just an ordinary person going about her ordinary life. Her sister arranges for her to go to America, to Brooklyn, and Eilis rather meekly goes; when her sister dies, Eilis goes back to Ireland. It was surprising to me that she actually does return to Brooklyn and her life in America, because she really is a very passive person.

The part of Brooklyn she lives and works in is the area I lived in, and the changes from the 50s (Irish) through the early 90s (still rather Italian, but more yuppies moving in) were interesting. I also liked the way the integration of the Fulton Mall area was handled.

Gordon; Edith Templeton

2011-10-04T09:15:00.002-04:00

Gordon: A Novel by Edith Templeton
My rating: 1 of 5 stars

I have no idea how I ended up with a copy of this. The cover says "sadomasochism" and "comedy of manners a la Edith Wharton" but, well, it didn't do too well at either. There was a lot of Freudian talk (Gordon is a psychoanalyst) and the sex was there, but it all felt stilted and forced (no pun intended).

>Definitely not for a school collection, and not long for mine, either.

Famous; Kathleen Flenniken

2011-10-03T23:30:00.002-04:00

Famous by Kathleen Flenniken
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I am really not a poetry person, so that this got four stars should really say something!

These are quiet poems about relatively mundane things - a Holiday Inn, for example, or the marriage bed; some are about semi-famous people (Mary Todd Lincoln). My favorite is "How to Read This Story to Your Children", which encapsulates what I think of when I read aloud.

It's a keeper, and perhaps even a book to be re-read sometime soon.

Rock On; Denise Vega

2011-10-03T23:23:00.002-04:00

Rock On by Denise Vega
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This brother v. brother story is told with more realism than I'd anticipated: Del is a high school lacrosse star turned college drop-out, while Ori is the dorky guitar-playing kid brother. We don't focus on that as much, though, because the book is also about Ori's unnamed band, his lack of luck with girls, his love of music and desire for a Les Paul guitar with which to win the Battle of the Bands. The plot was a bit predictable, but in a good way (I know, that's odd, but trust me on this).

Even the fact that this was told in texts, website screenshots, straight narrative and IMs didn't feel forced and gimicky. Kids use all those methods (well, not the straight narrative, but the others) and the way they blended into the story made sense. It was also nice to have this be a boy-based story, although there's definite girl appeal here.

ARC provided by publisher.

Boy 21; Matthew Quick

2011-10-03T09:44:00.000-04:00

Boy21 by Matthew Quick
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

"Boy21" (aka "Russell") and Finley (aka "White Rabbit") are in some ways mirror images of each other: they stand out at their schools and on their basketball teams, basketball is their lives, and they share a loss. When Boy21 moves to Finley's town and Coach asks Finley to befriend the new student, little to they expect to become friends.

Loss - tragic loss - can lead people to shut down in different ways; they can retreat from reality, they can channel their energies into other paths, and they can try to blend in with the background. These two boys explore all those coping mechanisms, and by the end of the book it's clear that there has been some healing.

This will appeal to boys, particularly those who feel they don't fit in or who have some personal problem or loss. The focus Finley and Russell put on basketball is also appealing, as is the fact that they are not in a privileged suburb or school. It surprised me to learn that this was set in Pennsylvania, near to Philadelphia, rather than near Boston, but I suppose "Bellmont"s exist all over the country.

ARC provided by publisher.

The Rivals; Daisy Whitney

2011-10-02T17:21:00.002-04:00

The Rivals by Daisy Whitney3 of 5 stars

One of the main issues I had with The Mockingbirds is addressed here: how any one supposedly underground group have that much influence on the rest of the students? Think about it. There's a whole lot of buy-in that needs to happen, and if one of the accused chooses to ignore the Mockingbirds, the system falls apart. So I was glad that the author tackles that in the sequel.

It was also good to see that Alex, in her role as leader of the Mockinbirds, is not perfect. She makes mistakes in judgement, she allows personal feelings to get in the way of the supposedly dispassionate nature of the investigation, and she does some decidedly stupid things. Her relationship with Martin definitely felt real, as did her relationships with her friends. I also liked the tie-ins to two of the classics of YA literature, which made me think of them in more modern terms (and yes, I realize that was part of the author's intent).

So why the drop from four to three stars? Several reasons: 1. the adults are little more than cookie-cutters, 2. many of the characters had too much baggage (not that teens don't have baggage, but these had pressures from parents that didn't seem necessary to include in the book), and 3. while students may use "prep" and "prep school", administrators don't. They'd call Themis an independent school or a college preparatory school, not a prep school. I say this having attended one and worked in others. It grated. But that's not something most readers will notice.

My guess is that there's at least one more book with this main cast and it could all-too-tidily remake Themis or it could show a continued tension between the Mockingbirds and the Watchdogs. Either will be interesting.

ARC provided by publisher.

Tiger's Voyage; Colleen Houck

2011-10-02T09:41:00.001-04:00

Tiger's Voyage by Colleen Houck
My rating: 1 of 5 stars

A DNF: after 50 pages, I could barely grasp the plot. As followers of my reviews know, when I read a series book that isn't the first one, I look for how easy it is to get into the world and pick up the plot - the start of Tiger's Voyage was filled with information that could only be understood if you'd read previous books.

Readers who enjoyed the first and second books may enjoy this one.

ARC provided by publisher.

How to Save a Life; Sara Zarr

2011-10-01T09:33:00.002-04:00

How to Save a Life by Sara Zarr
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Jill's father died two years ago, and Jill's still dealing with her acute loss; her mother, Robin, also grieving, has decided to adopt a baby. Maddy is the child of a casino waitress, unwanted and abused by her mother's boyfriend. Maddy has agreed to give her child to Robin, much to Jill's dismay.

During the time that Maddy stays with Robin and Jill you can see the relationships between them changing; Jill's life becomes a little easier, her relationships with friends and family returning to something like normal. Maddy finds a family in Robin and Jill.

There's nothing really different about this book, or plot, but I can see where teens will really enjoy it.

ARC provided by publisher.

The Future of Us; Jay Asher

2011-09-30T09:18:00.000-04:00

The Future of Us by Jay Asher
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

The conceit here - looking at Facebook, not being happy with the future you see, and making changes now to affect then - is not that new (the addition of Facebook notwithstanding). And because the Big Grab was Facebook, I wasn't grabbed.

In 1997, Ellen and Josh were BFFs for years, but six months earlier he tried to kiss her so now things are awkward. Ellen's parents are divorced, and her father has done the "guilty parent" thing of giving her gifts to compensate for his new life by giving her a computer. Josh's parents give Ellen one of those formerly ubiquitous AOL CD-ROMs (the ones with free hours when you sign up), and when she logs in she finds a link in her "favorite sites" to something called Facebook.

Initially puzzled by what this site is, she (and Josh) quickly realize that this is somehow projecting their future, what's going on in 2012. They're married (she to someone they don't know, he to one the hottest girls in school), with children and careers. Ellen keeps making small changes and watches her Facebook future change - disgusted with her mother's attempt at tofu mac-and-cheese, she changes her adult self's comfort food from "mac-and-cheese" to "lasagna". You get the drift. Sadly, the story of Ellen and Josh's friendship in the 1997-present is not anything we haven't read before.

As someone who remembers 1997 clearly, I'm pretty sure there was more on tv than "Friends" and "Seinfeld" (there must have been, as I watched neither), and more music than Dave Matthews and Oasis. The references to things that were popular at that time will definitely help the targeted readers, but they just annoyed me.

ARC provided by publisher.

The Memory Palace; Mira Bartok

2011-09-28T16:08:00.000-04:00

The Memory Palace by Mira Bartok
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I went into this with some trepidation - I hadn't liked The Glass Castle as much as everyone told me I would, and here was another crazy family memoir. Perhaps it was Mira/Myra's story of trying to care for an obviously troubled mother, even after she'd moved, changed names and was using a post office box miles away.

The fact that the father left, and is never a real factor in the lives of this family, is interesting. Why weren't Myra and her sister more interested in finding him? There's one episode when he calls, asking Myra to choose to leave (at a time when she clearly couldn't just up and left immediately) and even that doesn't spark that much curiosity about the paternal side of the family.

Her accident, leaving her with brain trauma, was also of interest, as I have a friend who (nearly 20 years later) is still suffering from the same problems. Because that's only a side-story to the one she's telling, the author doesn't go into it as deeply. Perhaps next book?

ARC provided by publisher.

Finding Evertt Ruess; David Roberts

2011-09-26T18:52:00.003-04:00

Finding Everett Ruess: The Life and Unsolved Disappearance of a Legendary Wilderness Explorer by David Roberts
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

If, like me, you know nothing about Everett Ruess, here's a quick intro: Everett was 17 in 1931 when he decided to travel throughout the Southwest, he made three trips and disappeared in 1934, leaving behind several diaries, paintings, woodcuts, poems and a mystery that's lasted over 70 years.

The majority of his childhood was conventional, the exception being his family's keeping of, and reading to each other, personal diaries. Given that this was the early 1910s and 20s, the family moved as Ruess' father's job required. By the late 20s, Everett had decided that he was not cut out for college and was more interested in traveling alone. His trips to the Southwest were conducted on a shoestring budget, sometimes trading woodcuts or paintings for food. He relied on burros and the kindness of the Dine and Mormon farmers, and his parents ability to send money.

In many of the letter and diary fragments he comes across as a self-absorbed brat, not caring about his effect on the land (burning wood from hogans or taking Anasazi relics) or his parents' finances. The vision he had of the Southwest may have been unique and he may have been a budding artistic talent, but the overly portentous writing bored me. It was also difficult to continually read phrases that pre-shadowed his disappearance and the search.

Still, this is perfect for naturalists or adventure readers looking for a follow up to Jon Krakauer's works.

ARC provided by publisher.

Playground; 50 cent

2011-09-26T05:08:00.000-04:00

Playground by 50 Cent
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I'm pretty sure there was a ghostwriter involved, but the tone sounds like something an "internationally famous" rapper would write. And while I was expecting a fictionalized account of what "50"'s life was like it didn't appear to be that (although I admit I don't know much about his life). At times there was a slight moralizing tone, possibly because the author wanted to point out that there are other ways than his to get through childhood.

"Butterball" is a fat black kid who has been moved from the Bronx to Garden City by his mother. Because she transferred him to his new school in October, he stood out and found it difficult to make friends - except for one kid, Maurice, who was nice to him. We open with him in a psychologist's office, where he's been sentenced to go at least twice a week as a condition of not being expelled. What had he done? Beaten up his one friend, Maurice.

As the book unwinds, we slowly learn his motivation for the beating; we also see him start to grow and realize that he's got options other than being a bully. While most of the time this was realistically portrayed, there were times when you could feel the author's hand guiding the book (see "moralizing tone" above). I don't know how realistic the intended reader will find this, but it will probably go over well with middle grade boy readers.

ARC provided by publisher.

L.A. Mental; Neil McMahon

2011-09-26T04:58:00.000-04:00

L.A. Mental: A Thriller by Neil McMahon
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

This was trying to do too much: the noir overtones got in the way of the thriller aspect, which were overshadowed by the whole Parallax (a mix of quantum mechanics and Scientology) plot. At times the writing got clunky, with the desire to go noir colliding with the need to explain or move the plot forward.

Having said that, I was impressed that the author actually got the quantum mechanics part right! The idea that there are nanoparticles that you breathe in and go directly to your brain is a little off (they'll go everywhere in your system), and the idea of being able to control them from afar sounds interesting but far fetched.

Given the nature of noir-ish books, the characters were a little flat, but there again the author just misses, as he occasionally wants to give them some depth. I wish he'd made up his mind what type of book he was writing and stuck with that.

ARC provided by publisher.

The Secret Daughter; Shilpi Somaya Gowda

2011-09-25T07:54:00.002-04:00

Secret Daughter by Shilpi Somaya Gowda
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

This is one of those culture clash books: India vs. America, and rich India vs. poor India. Told from several different viewpoints, we get to know the characters somewhat more fully if we only had one viewpoint; the twenty-plus year span also gives the characters time to grow and change, which they do in believable ways (not always as easy as it sounds).

My biggest complaint is Asha's search for her birth parents. That she's supposedly intelligent yet somehow completely misses the "boys preferred" aspect to Indian culture (whether or not she was actually living there) surprised me. It's one of the things I was taught in my rather backwards high school Asian history course over 30 years ago. My guess is that the author used this as the device to drive her angst over who she was and where she fit in, but as an adoptee (who has known about her adoption virtually since she was born) it felt false. Far more believable would have been her wanting to explore her Indian side and getting to know her Indian family (which she does) and to leave the adoption part alone. Weaving Kavita and Jasu (and Vijay) into the story could have been done in some other way.

Copy provided by publisher.

Before Ever After; Samantha Sotto

2011-09-24T10:47:00.000-04:00

Before Ever After by Samantha Sotto
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I went into this expecting something far less than it was - what a wonderful surprise! This love story, intermixed with impressively personal historical fiction, is a perfect rainy fall read.

One of the problems with historical fiction is when seemingly normal, average people suddenly find themselves in the middle of Major Historical Events, interacting with Very Important People. With one exception (Adrien's story) that doesn't happen here; we get the sense of what these average lives were like without the addition of a familiar marker. I confess that I did spend some time looking up the places mentioned and would love to visit them, with or without Max as my tour guide.

The themes of love and loss, eternal life and family are touched upon beautifully, as lightly as the historical aspects are. It was truly difficult to realize that the ending was near, and that we weren't being treated to the infamous baked eggs and cheese recipe.

ARC provided by publisher.

Alice Bliss; Laura Harrington

2011-09-23T06:59:00.002-04:00

Alice Bliss by Laura Harrington
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I'll admit it - this brought a tear to my eye. Overall, I liked the book but did have a few quibbles: Ellie was too precocious (she's supposed to be in 2nd grade, not middle school), and if we get to hear Angie's voice then perhaps the character should have been fleshed out a little more.

Mostly, though, this is about Alice and her struggles to grow up as well as deal with her father's deployment to Iraq (he's in the reserves... this was never supposed to happen!). Because this is a small-ish sized town, you get the feeling that more people know what's going on than Alice lets on, although from her point-of-view she's pretty alone (excepting, of course, her family and Henry, her BFF/boy-next-door). Coping with her father's absence and trying to preserve the things he wanted done the way he wanted (the garden, for example) is difficult for her, and she takes refuge in running - a topic I wish had been explored more than the breads Mrs. Piantowski makes.

Matt's decision to join the NG resonated with me; I know someone who felt the same way ("...doing what's right, not letting someone else do what he should do: serving his country, set an example for his girls") and who, like Matt, was deployed to Iraq for a couple of years. While many of my friends may not understand his reason, I think many readers will.

Copy provided by publisher.

The Rafters; A.C. Montgomery

2011-09-16T09:02:00.000-04:00

The Rafters by A.C. Montgomery
My rating: 1 of 5 stars
Oh where to begin? This was a DNF - and I tried, I really tried to get into this book.

Why DNF? This is a self-published book, and the author really needed an editor. It wasn't just her delight in throwing in as many adjectives and as much description as she possibly could (to the detriment of actual plot), it was also her misuse of words. I strongly suspect that she went to an SAT Verbal prep book or a thesaurus and chose words that just missed the meaning she actually wanted to convey, and that rules of basic grammar were never covered in her schooling.

Here's an example: He tied a black cord necklace around his neck, amongst others, and finally made his exit to The Courtyard.

As for plot, well, perhaps there is one buried somewhere but it's difficult to tease out. The main characters are either always angry (shouting, grimacing, smashing things, glowing with rage, etc.) or completely clueless. The use of the word "somns" was - I thought - to separate the common folk from others, but then it turned out that was a synonym for "people" (if that's not true, the distinction is only clear in the author's mind).

ARC provided by publisher.

Saint Louis Armstrong Beach; Brenda Woods

2011-09-13T21:27:00.000-04:00

Saint Louis Armstrong Beach by Brenda Woods

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This book about a boy named Saint Louis Armstrong Beach (Saint after his grandfather, Louis Armstrong after a friend of his grandfather) is mostly split into two time periods: before Katrina and during. There's a brief bit set after the storm, but that's more of an epilogue.

Before Katrina, Saint was trying to earn $2000 to buy a good clarinet by busking near Jackson Square. During, he tries to save his dog Shadow and ends up in an attic, from which he's rescued and sent to the Superdome (he then leaves and heads for the Jazz Shack, where his parents ultimately find him). The storm's power and horror don't play as big a role as his music and his pre-Katrina life, which may help readers understand why New Orleans was such a vital city and how devastating the storm really was.

ARC provided by publisher.

Islands End; Padma Venkatraman

2011-09-13T17:31:00.000-04:00

Island's End by Padma Venkatraman
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I was really torn about this book. On the one hand, I enjoyed reading about this culture (representative of other cultures in the Andaman Island chain), on the other I felt that the author's purpose was too clearly evident, that Western ideas/culture were encroaching on these tribes and were Bad Bad Bad. Now, I'm not saying that I don't agree with the idea of letting these "untouched" peoples live their lives without modern day intrusions, but I thought the message could have been conveyed a little more subtly.

Because this was an ARC, I don't know if the final version will include a list or commentary about resources for those of us who know virtually nothing about the Anadamans and would like to learn more about them (and about these tribes).

ARC provided by publisher.

Among the Missing; Morag Joss

2011-09-11T06:58:00.002-04:00

Among the Missing: A Novel by Morag Joss
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

I probably would have rated this higher had I not felt cheated: the blurbage and Mystery Guild led me to believe this would be a dark mystery (which was what I was in the mood for) and instead I got a psych study of three people.

None of the characters was particularly interesting on their own, but they could have been had Joss delved a little deeper. The bridge collapse made me think Bridge of San Luis Rey and the Staplehurst wreck that starts off Drood, mostly because it ties the characters together as well as sets off the chain of events that leads to Silva's going just a little insane.

Everybody Sees the Ants; A.S. King

2011-09-09T17:08:00.002-04:00

Everybody Sees the Ants by A.S. King
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This is a great book for any boy who has been bullied and who feels as though his parents (and, ok, most others) don't quite understand him. Lucky's life has been filled with trying to avoid Nader, the school bully, and dealing with his chef father's near disappearance from his life. Complicating all this is the fact that his grandfather was declared MIA during Vietnam, something his father and paternal grandmother never quite got over.

Most readers will have seen the MIA/POW flags and stickers, but because the war ended so long ago (although I remember the marches and "War Is Not Healthy..." buttons, as well as the POW bracelets) they may not know what that means. However, that's not the main thrust of the book - the war, and his grandfather's MIA status serve as a vehicle for him to explore growing up and getting male advice.

So, what about the ants? They appear after the Big Incident, and their Greek Chorus-like appearance for the rest of the book is really quite funny. Example: Lucky is in church and he's just been semi-introduced to this perfect, gorgeous girl. The ants' comment? She's so out of your league that she's playing a completely different sport.

The problems of bullying and Lucky's family life are dealt with humorously, and I can see this appealing to both boys and girls, no matter what their situation is.

ARC provided by publisher.