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Top Banana
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Top Banana
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1. Bad Monkey, by Carl Hiaasen
Andrew Yancy--late of the Miami Police, soon-to-be-late of the Key West Police--has a human arm in his freezer. There's a logical (Hiaasenian) explanation for that, but not for how and why it parted from its owner. Yancy thinks the boating-accident/shark-luncheon explanation is full of holes, and if he can prove murder, his commander might relieve him of Health Inspector duties, aka Roach Patrol. But first Yancy will negotiate an ever-surprising course of events--from the Keys to Miami to a Bahamian out island--with a crew of equally ever-surprising characters, including: the twitchy widow of the frozen arm; an avariciously idiotic real estate developer; a voodoo witch whose lovers are blinded-unto-death by her particularly peculiar charms; Yancy's new love, a kinky medical examiner; and the eponymous Bad Monkey, who earns his place among Hiaasen's greatest characters with hilariously wicked aplomb.
This book was entertaining, though not as laugh-out-loud funny as some of Hiaasen's earlier books. Andrew Yancy is a character with promise, though -- he's obnoxious (in a likable way). The descriptions of Health Inspector duties may put you off restaurants, though.
"Oh, you can’t help that," said the Cat: "we’re all mad here. I’m mad. You’re mad."
"How do you know I’m mad?" said Alice.
"You must be," said the Cat, "or you wouldn’t have come here.”
- Lewis Carroll, Alice in Wonderland
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Merriwether
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#1 Kingdom of Ash by Sarah J. Maas Years in the making, Sarah J. Maas’s #1 New York Times bestselling Throne of Glass series draws to an epic, unforgettable conclusion. Aelin Galathynius’s journey from slave to king’s assassin to the queen of a once-great kingdom reaches its heart-rending finale as war erupts across her world. . A satisfying conclusion to a well written series.
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Beat Reporter
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#1 Soul of the dragon by Kyle Higgins
the most legendary power ranger ever, Doctor Tommy Oliver, is called out of retirement when his son JJ gets missing. He needs to power up one more time to save his son.
* once a Lois and Clark fan, always a Lois and Clark fan *
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Columnist
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#1 Anne of Green Gables by Lucy M. Montgomery
#2 Anne of Avonlea by Lucy M. Montgomery
A bachelor brother and spinster sister living on Prince Edward Island try to adopt a boy to help on their farm but get a girl, Anne, by mistake.
My wife recommended Anne of Green Gables and I was very pleasantly surprised that I enjoyed it as much as I did. I am not the target audience but the story is a good mix of plot, humor and vivid "poetical" descriptions of the island that kept it interesting and made me get the next book. (Though to be honest, her descriptions of the landscape would have made this a hard read if I didn't live in a place equally beautiful.)
Shallowford
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#2 Black Dragon, perfect match story by Jason David Frank, auteurs: Tiffany Kai and Stephen Angelos.
Matt is a 14-year-old boy with autism who want to learn martial arts, he is bullied by his stepfather, who owns a Dojo and doesn't want to learn him the arts, and his stepbrother. Until he finds a fighting master in the school's janitor, who had an alcohol problem, together they learn the pad of trust and learn from each other. I really enjoyed the book.
* once a Lois and Clark fan, always a Lois and Clark fan *
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Top Banana
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Top Banana
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2. Strip Tease, by Carl Hiaasen
Murder, politics, and G-strings collide in this caper from the bestselling author of Tourist Season. Hilarity and chaos break out in a strip joint when a bachelor party gets out of hand, making the drunken guest of honor a threat to "big money" and "big government."
This book was funny, with Hiaasen's classic weird, "only-in-Florida" characters. Much better than the Demi Moore movie based on the book.
"Oh, you can’t help that," said the Cat: "we’re all mad here. I’m mad. You’re mad."
"How do you know I’m mad?" said Alice.
"You must be," said the Cat, "or you wouldn’t have come here.”
- Lewis Carroll, Alice in Wonderland
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The Thrilling Adventures of Lovelace and Babbage: The (Mostly) True Story of the First Computer by Sydney Padua
A mix of alternate universe (Babbage actually finished the engine) and together they fight crime. A musing graphic novel and a large set of references for the research the author did so she would be accurate. Wonderful diagrams of how the analytical engine would have worked.
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Merriwether
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#2 The Book Thief by Marcus Zusak It is 1939. Nazi Germany. The country is holding its breath. Death has never been busier, and will be busier still.
By her brother's graveside, Liesel's life is changed when she picks up a single object, partially hidden in the snow. It is The Gravedigger's Handbook, left behind there by accident, and it is her first act of book thievery. So begins a love affair with books and words, as Liesel, with the help of her accordian-playing foster father, learns to read. Soon she is stealing books from Nazi book-burnings, the mayor's wife's library, wherever there are books to be found. Good book.
Last edited by scifiJoan; 01/24/19 03:35 PM.
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Merriwether
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#3 Us Against You by Fredrik Backman
Sequel to Beartown. A good read. Not as completely as engaging as the first book, but still enjoyable.
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Top Banana
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3. Cross Justice, by James Patterson
For Alex Cross, the toughest cases hit close to home -- and in this deadly thrill ride, he's trying to solve the most personal mystery of his life. When his cousin is accused of a heinous crime, Alex Cross returns to his North Carolina hometown for the first time in over three decades. As he tries to prove his cousin's innocence in a town where everyone seems to be on the take, Cross unearths a family secret that forces him to question everything he's ever known. Chasing a ghost he believed was long dead, Cross gets pulled into a case that has local cops scratching their heads and needing his help: a grisly string of socialite murders. Now he's hot on the trail of both a brutal killer, and the truth about his own past -- and the answers he finds might be fatal.
This is actually the first Alex Cross book I've read, although there are several available in the library I run. The characters are well fleshed out, and the story keeps you reading. I think I will try more of the books from this series.
"Oh, you can’t help that," said the Cat: "we’re all mad here. I’m mad. You’re mad."
"How do you know I’m mad?" said Alice.
"You must be," said the Cat, "or you wouldn’t have come here.”
- Lewis Carroll, Alice in Wonderland
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Merriwether
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#4 The Whip by Karen Kondazian
Inspired by the true story of a woman, Charlotte "Charley" Parkhurst who lived most of her extraordinary life as a man in the old west.
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Merriwether
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#5 The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater“There are only two reasons a non-seer would see a spirit on St. Mark’s Eve,” Neeve said. “Either you’re his true love . . . or you killed him.”
It is freezing in the churchyard, even before the dead arrive.
Every year, Blue Sargent stands next to her clairvoyant mother as the soon-to-be dead walk past. Blue herself never sees them—not until this year, when a boy emerges from the dark and speaks directly to her.
His name is Gansey, and Blue soon discovers that he is a rich student at Aglionby, the local private school. Blue has a policy of staying away from Aglionby boys. Known as Raven Boys, they can only mean trouble. Interesting YA supernatural thriller. My daughter loved it and got me to try it out. Very entertaining. Looking forward to the next book in the series.
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Merriwether
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#6 Waiting for Eden by Elliot AckermanEden Malcom lies in a bed, unable to move or to speak, imprisoned in his own mind. His wife Mary spends every day on the sofa in his hospital room. He has never even met their young daughter. And he will never again see the friend and fellow soldier who didn't make it back home--and who narrates the novel. Looking at other people's reviews of this book, I just didn't get it. It claimed to be about the quality of life. And to me it just seemed obvious that this poor man had none of this left. It seemed cruel to keep him alive.
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Merriwether
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#7 The Dream Thieves by Maggie Stiefwater #2 in the Raven Cycle Now that the ley lines around Cabeswater have been woken, nothing for Ronan, Gansey, Blue, and Adam will be the same. Ronan, for one, is falling more and more deeply into his dreams, and his dreams are intruding more and more into waking life. Meanwhile, some very sinister people are looking for some of the same pieces of the Cabeswater puzzle that Gansey is after… Although this book is told from the POV of one of the characters that I don't like as well, there are some interesting developments.
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Merriwether
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#8 In the Garden of Beasts by Erik Larson he time is 1933, the place, Berlin, when William E. Dodd becomes America's first ambassador to Hitler's Germany in a year that proved to be a turning point in history. This book was saved by the fact that it was based on actual people. Otherwise, it seemed to dwell on minor details and was a bit dull.
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Merriwether
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#9 Improvement by Joan Silber
The novel starts out about Reyna and her unconventional aunt. We get to know them then suddenly we're following other characters. These characters were so flawed there was a lot of room for "improvement". I didn't see any over the course of the story.
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Merriwether
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#10 Lily Blue, Blue Lily by Maggie Stiefvater Third in The Raven Cycle series. Blue Sargent has found things. For the first time in her life, she has friends she can trust, a group to which she can belong. The Raven Boys have taken her in as one of their own. Their problems have become hers, and her problems have become theirs.
The trick with found things, though, is how easily they can be lost. This writer does a nice job of focusing on a different character's POV for each installment of the series.
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Merriwether
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#11 All You Can Ever Know by Nicole Chung icole Chung was born severely premature, placed for adoption by her Korean parents, and raised by a white family in a sheltered Oregon town. From early childhood, she heard the story of her adoption as a comforting, prepackaged myth. She believed that her biological parents had made the ultimate sacrifice in the hopes of giving her a better life; that forever feeling slightly out of place was simply her fate as a transracial adoptee. But as she grew up—facing prejudice her adoptive family couldn’t see, finding her identity as an Asian American and a writer, becoming ever more curious about where she came from—she wondered if the story she’d been told was the whole truth.
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Merriwether
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#12 The Raven King by Maggie Stiefvater
Final chapter of the The Raven Cycle
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Merriwether
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#13 News of the World by Paulette Jiles In the aftermath of the Civil War, an aging itinerant news reader agrees to transport a young captive of the Kiowa back to her people in this exquisitely rendered, morally complex, multilayered novel of historical fiction from the author of Enemy Women that explores the boundaries of family, responsibility, honor, and trust.
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Merriwether
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#14 Evicted: Poverty and Profit in the American City by Matthew Desmond Matthew Desmond takes us into the poorest neighborhoods of Milwaukee to tell the story of eight families on the edge. A sad yet interesting read. The author takes a balanced approach, mentioning short comings of both the tenants and the landlords.
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Merriwether
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#15 The Other Woman by Sandie JonesEmily chose Adam, but she didn’t choose his mother Pammie. There’s nothing a mother wouldn’t do for her son, and now Emily is about to find out just how far Pammie will go to get what she wants: Emily gone forever. The mother was manipulative - I got mad reading about what she did. I was disappointed that the author put in a twist that she didn't lay much groundwork for.
Last edited by scifiJoan; 04/17/19 09:42 AM.
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Merriwether
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#16 The Immortalists by Chloe BenjaminIf you knew the date of your death, how would you live your life?
It's 1969 in New York City's Lower East Side, and word has spread of the arrival of a mystical woman, a traveling psychic who claims to be able to tell anyone the day they will die. The Gold children—four adolescents on the cusp of self-awareness—sneak out to hear their fortunes. Excellent book.
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Hack from Nowheresville
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Hack from Nowheresville
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I'll join in.  I have only read 8 books so far this year (writing my own has taken up much time...). Heads up, aside from Lois and Clark fanfiction, I prefer historical romance... 1: The Redeeming by Tamara Leigh. (Book 3) 2: The Kindling by Tamara Leigh. (Book 4) 3: A Boss's Proposal by Layla Holt. -This one wasn't historical, but I was given an advanced copy and it was somewhat lacking in the writing but an enjoyable story. 4: The Longing by Tamara Leigh. (Book 5) 5: The Vexing by Tamara Leigh. (Book 6) - This and the previous books by the same author are part of a series. I thoroughly enjoyed the first and second stories in this series as well as book 5, and I'm not sure if I'll read the last 2 as they feature characters I'm not too attached to. 6: An Unlikely Courtship by Heidi Kimball. - The fact that I can't remember what happens could tell you something about this one. I rated it 4 stars though, so it must have been good. 7: A change of Fortune by Jen Turano. - I ... well ... The women's rights stuff was overdone to the point of being forced and unnecessary to the plot. 8: The Shameless Flirt by M.A. Nichols. - This one gets to join a few others on my list of all-time favorites that I would appreciate owning a copy. Surprising and Heartfelt.
"Oh my gosh! Authors really do use particular words on purpose!" ~Me, when I started writing a book. 
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Merriwether
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#17 The Girl Friend by Michelle FrancesThe Girlfriend by Michelle Frances is a gripping and chilling debut psychological thriller, based on the fall-out following an unforgiveable lie. It looks at the potentially charged relationship between girlfriend, boyfriend and his mother, which most women can identify with, and locates it in an extreme but believable setting. Much better book than The Other Woman.
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Merriwether
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Merriwether
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#18 Educated by Tara Westover
Just re-read this one for book club this month. A powerful story about a girl who grew up with Mormon survivalist parents and no formal education. Yet she managed to teach herself enough to get a 28 on the ACT and get into Brigham Young University.
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Hack from Nowheresville
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9: Persuasion by Jane Austen - It was referenced in Shameless Flirt and I love Jane Austen so I read it next. I thoroughly appreciated the thinly veiled insults thrown at Anne's father. If I hadn't spent the past two years reading almost nothing but historical romance and titles written during the time period, I probably would have missed them. Never thought Jane Austen could make me laugh so much.
10: My Sister's Intended by Rachael Anderson - Younger sister catches the eye of the man her sister is supposed to marry. I kept going back and forth on what I wanted to see happen as I read. I'm happy it ended the way it did.
11: My Brother's Bride by Rachael Anderson - Hmm... I'm not sure what to say about this one that wouldn't spoil it too much. I'm not even sure how much I liked the plot. I loved the characters though.
"Oh my gosh! Authors really do use particular words on purpose!" ~Me, when I started writing a book.
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Merriwether
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#19 Zucked: Waking up to the Facebook Catastrophe by Roger McNameeThe story of how a noted tech venture capitalist, an early mentor to Mark Zuckerberg and investor in his company, woke up to the serious damage Facebook was doing to our society and set out to try to stop it. While the author had many valid points, this was a slow read.
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Merriwether
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#20 The Girls at 17 Swann Street by Yara ZgheibAnna Roux was a professional dancer who followed the man of her dreams from Paris to Missouri. There, alone with her biggest fears – imperfection, failure, loneliness – she spirals down anorexia and depression till she weighs a mere eighty-eight pounds. Forced to seek treatment, she is admitted as a patient at 17 Swann Street, a peach pink house where pale, fragile women with life-threatening eating disorders live. Women like Emm, the veteran; quiet Valerie; Julia, always hungry. Together, they must fight their diseases and face six meals a day. Short story collection Anything Is Possible explores the whole range of human emotion through the intimate dramas of people struggling to understand themselves and others. At first I wasn't thrilled that it was just inter-related short stories. You'd get to know a character and only catch a peak of them later. Yet, I liked that most of the characters had dealt with significant struggles and managed to find peace afterwards. That was encouraging.
Last edited by scifiJoan; 05/12/19 10:00 AM.
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Merriwether
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#22 The Girl with all the Gifts by M.R. CareyEvery morning, Melanie waits in her cell to be collected for class. When they come for her, Sergeant Parks keeps his gun pointing at her while two of his people strap her into the wheelchair. She thinks they don't like her. She jokes that she won't bite, but they don't laugh.
Melanie loves school. She loves learning about spelling and sums and the world outside the classroom and the children's cells. She tells her favorite teacher all the things she'll do when she grows up. Melanie doesn't know why this makes Miss Justineau look sad. I'm not usually a zombie fan but this one had some interesting parts to it.
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Merriwether
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#23 After the End by Amy PlumWorld War III has left the world ravaged by nuclear radiation. A lucky few escaped to the Alaskan wilderness. They've survived for the last thirty years by living off the land, being one with nature, and hiding from whoever else might still be out there.
At least, this is what Juneau has been told her entire life.
When Juneau returns from a hunting trip to discover that everyone in her clan has vanished, she sets off to find them. Leaving the boundaries of their land for the very first time, she learns something horrifying: There never was a war. Cities were never destroyed. The world is intact. Everything was a lie. I didn't realize this was a YA book but with that teaser, it seemed like it shouldn't matter. It quickly became predictable and ended rather abruptly.
Last edited by scifiJoan; 05/20/19 03:28 PM.
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Merriwether
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#24 American Overdose: The Opioid Tragedy in three Acts by Chris McGreal Journeying through lives and communities wrecked by the epidemic, Chris McGreal reveals not only how Big Pharma hooked Americans on powerfully addictive drugs, but the corrupting of medicine and public institutions that let the opioid makers get away with it. This wasn't an easy book to read due to the subject matter but it was very informative.
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Merriwether
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#25 An Anonymous Girl by Greer Hendricks and Sarah PekkanenWhen Jessica Farris signs up for a psychology study conducted by the mysterious Dr. Shields, she thinks all she’ll have to do is answer a few questions, collect her money, and leave.
But as the questions grow more and more intense and invasive and the sessions become outings where Jess is told what to wear and how to act, she begins to feel as though Dr. Shields may know what she’s thinking… and what she’s hiding. Decent suspense story.
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Merriwether
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#26 The Resurrection of Joan Ashby by Cherise Wolas
An accomplished writer gets married. When she becomes pregnant, she decides to embrace her new life. When the kids are grown, she attempts to restart her career.
While this book was well written, I didn't really like Joan. She was selfish. The author also kept posting huge excerpts of Joan's work, which got old fast.
#27 Nine Perfect Strangers by Liane Moriarty
Nine strangers have an odd experience at a high end health retreat.
I enjoy this writer but this was not one of her best works.
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Merriwether
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#28 The Diversity Delusion: How Race and Gender Pandering Corrupt the University and Undermine Our Culture by Heather MacDonald
Interesting points.
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Merriwether
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#29 The Outliers by Kimberly McCreightWylie hasn’t heard from Cassie in over a week, not since their last fight. But that doesn’t matter. Cassie’s in trouble, so Wylie decides to do what she has done so many times before: save her best friend from herself.
This time it’s different, though. Instead of telling Wylie where she is, Cassie sends cryptic clues. And instead of having Wylie come by herself, Jasper shows up saying Cassie sent him to help. Trusting the guy who sent Cassie off the rails doesn’t feel right, but Wylie has no choice: she has to ignore her gut instinct and go with him. I've enjoyed other books by this author. Not this one. The plot goes downhill so fast it's ridiculous. Yeah, two teenagers getting into a car with strangers in the middle of the night is such a good idea! And it gets worse! All these secret groups interested in Emotional IQ research? It's just silly. I won't be reading the next book in this series.
Last edited by scifiJoan; 06/13/19 03:33 PM.
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Merriwether
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#30 House on Fire by Bonnie Kistlern the bestselling tradition of Jodi Picoult and Celeste Ng, a tightly wound and suspenseful novel about a blended family in crisis after a drunk driving accident leaves the daughter of one parent dead—and the son of the other parent charged with manslaughter. Parts of this book were good but some of the subplots got a little silly.
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#31 Good Riddance by Elinor Lipman Daphne Maritch doesn't quite know what to make of the heavily annotated high school yearbook she inherits from her mother, who held this relic dear. Too dear. The late June Winter Maritch was the teacher to whom the class of '68 had dedicated its yearbook, and in turn she went on to attend every reunion, scribbling notes and observations after each one—not always charitably—and noting who overstepped boundaries of many kinds.
In a fit of decluttering (the yearbook did not, Daphne concluded, "spark joy"), she discards it when she moves to a small New York City apartment. But when it's found in the recycling bin by a busybody neighbor/documentary filmmaker, the yearbook's mysteries—not to mention her own family's—take on a whole new urgency, and Daphne finds herself entangled in a series of events both poignant and absurd. This was a light read, which I needed, being in the airport for hours. I didn't like the main character that much and I felt the writer could've done more with the premise.
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Merriwether
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#32 Tell Me Lies by Carola Lovering Thrilling, sexy coming-of-age story exploring toxic love, ruthless ambition, and shocking betrayal, Tell Me Lies is about that one person who still haunts you—the other one. The wrong one. The one you couldn’t let go of. The one you’ll never forget. I did not find this book to be thrilling or sexy. The main character was an idiot to put up with that guy as long as she did.
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#33 Rising Out of Hatred: The Awakening of a Former White Nationalist by Eli Saslow From a Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter, the powerful story of how a prominent white supremacist changed his heart and mind It is encouraging that Derek met so many people at college who were willing to build a relationship with him while slowly challenging his beliefs.
Last edited by scifiJoan; 06/25/19 10:20 AM.
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Hack from Nowheresville
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Hack from Nowheresville
Joined: Jul 2017
Posts: 296 |
I did some binge reading of an author I discovered I liked. There are still a few more of hers for me to read, but I am on a wait list at the library to read them... All by Sarah M Eden, unless otherwise noted. 12: Friends and Foes: #1 in the Jonquil Brothers series. An excellent and fast paced read. 13: Drops of Gold: #2 in the same series. Fantastic! I laughed so hard at one point I had to put the book down. Then I was sobbing later. 14: Piano Tuning: A Simple and Accurate Method for Amateurs: NOT by Sarah M Eden  but by J. Cree Fisher. I was given a piano and decided I would teach myself to tune it. This was a surprisingly interesting read with some very unique tidbits of information that apply almost anywhere. I haven't finished tuning the piano, but I did finish the book. 15: As You Are: #3 in the series. Not my favorite but good nonetheless. 16: A Fine Gentleman: #4 in the series. Pretty good. Drew some tears from me. 17: For Love or Honor: #5 in the series. Oh my! I think I cried for most of this book, sad tears, happy tears, lots of tears. Book 6 isn't out yet and I'm pretty sure there will be a 7 (because there are 7 brothers).  18: Glimmer of Hope: Not in a series, but one of the main characters appears in the Jonquil Brothers series. It takes place years before. And I didn't think I'd cry as hard as I did in the last one, but I did. 19: Seeking Persephone: #1 in the Lancaster Family series. Very good. 20: Courting Miss Lancaster: #2 in Lancaster Family. Also very good. Reminded me of another book I read a long time ago in plot, but I liked this one more. 21: A Night in Grosvenor Square: This was an anthology of novelas, but I only read the one by Sarah M Eden (the others couldn't hold my interest) and it was lovely. 22: The Rescue: by Lori Wick. This is the book that did all those things in that post by Terry. If you are in need of a book where everything goes right and nothing bad happens, this is the book for you. A fast read. 23: The Lost Letter: by Mimi Matthews (I'm still waiting for the next few books by Sarah M Eden to be available in the library ) This was a fast read, shorter than an average novel, but well done, sort of a Beauty and the Beast story (as it claims in the description) but the only similarity I saw was that the guy had scars on his face... scifiJoan reads a much more well rounded collection of books than I do...
"Oh my gosh! Authors really do use particular words on purpose!" ~Me, when I started writing a book.
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Joined: Nov 2010
Posts: 1,727 Likes: 1
Merriwether
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Merriwether
Joined: Nov 2010
Posts: 1,727 Likes: 1 |
scifiJoan reads a much more well rounded collection of books than I do... That's only because I get lots of recommendations from my kids and I belong to two book clubs. #34 Cinder: The Lunar Chronicles by Marissa Meyer CINDER, a gifted mechanic in New Beijing, is also a cyborg. She's reviled by her stepmother and blamed for her stepsister's sudden illness. But when her life becomes entwined with the handsome Prince Kai's, she finds herself at the centre of a violent struggle between the desires of an evil queen - and a dangerous temptation.
Cinder is caught between duty and freedom, loyalty and betrayal. Now she must uncover secrets about her mysterious past in order to protect Earth's future. I love reworked fairy tales and this was lots of fun. I'm planning on reading the rest in this series.
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Joined: Nov 2010
Posts: 1,727 Likes: 1
Merriwether
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Merriwether
Joined: Nov 2010
Posts: 1,727 Likes: 1 |
#35 The Stressed Years of their Lives: Helping your kid survive and thrive during their college years by Janet Hibbs and Anthony Rostain
This book focused more on extreme issues so it wasn't as useful for general information.
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Joined: Nov 2010
Posts: 1,727 Likes: 1
Merriwether
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Merriwether
Joined: Nov 2010
Posts: 1,727 Likes: 1 |
#36 Beauty in the Broken Places: A Memoir of Love, Faith, and Resilienceby Allison Pataki Five months pregnant, on a flight to their “babymoon,” Allison Pataki turned to her husband when he asked if his eye looked strange, and watched him suddenly lose consciousness. After an emergency landing, she discovered that Dave—a healthy thirty-year-old athlete and surgical resident—had suffered a rare and life-threatening stroke. Next thing Allison knew, she was sitting alone in the ER in Fargo, North Dakota, waiting to hear if her husband would survive the night. For the most part this was an inspiring read, seeing how she coped with so many distressing life changing events, emotionally the story didn't go as deep as I thought it would. She seemed to gloss over the worst parts and those are the ones we can related to the most.
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Joined: Nov 2010
Posts: 1,727 Likes: 1
Merriwether
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Merriwether
Joined: Nov 2010
Posts: 1,727 Likes: 1 |
#37 Behold the Dreamers by Imbolo MbueJende Jonga, a Cameroonian immigrant living in Harlem, has come to the United States to provide a better life for himself, his wife, Neni, and their six-year-old son. In the fall of 2007, Jende can hardly believe his luck when he lands a job as a chauffeur for Clark Edwards, a senior executive at Lehman Brothers. Clark’s wife, Cindy, even offers Neni temporary work at the Edwardses’ summer home in the Hamptons. With these opportunities, Jende and Neni can at last gain a foothold in America and imagine a brighter future.
When the financial world is rocked by the collapse of Lehman Brothers, the Jongas are desperate to keep Jende’s job—even as their marriage threatens to fall apart. As all four lives are dramatically upended, Jende and Neni are forced to make an impossible choice. A more balanced approach than I usually see - showing that the rich and poor each have issues they struggle with. #39 Normal People by Sally RooneyThis book wasn't what I thought it might be. While it described the relationship between a couple over time, I didn't see much growth.
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Posts: 1,727 Likes: 1
Merriwether
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Merriwether
Joined: Nov 2010
Posts: 1,727 Likes: 1 |
#40 A Spark of Light by Jodi PicoultThe warm fall day starts like any other at the Center—a women’s reproductive health services clinic—its staff offering care to anyone who passes through its doors. Then, in late morning, a desperate and distraught gunman bursts in and opens fire, taking all inside hostage.
After rushing to the scene, Hugh McElroy, a police hostage negotiator, sets up a perimeter and begins making a plan to communicate with the gunman. As his phone vibrates with incoming text messages he glances at it and, to his horror, finds out that his fifteen-year-old daughter, Wren, is inside the clinic. I've read many books by this writer and this isn't one of my favorites. Although the author has successfully used varying time points in other books, telling the story in reverse order didn't enhance the story. She is good at addressing hot topics but this one came off a bit preachy.
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Joined: Nov 2010
Posts: 1,727 Likes: 1
Merriwether
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Merriwether
Joined: Nov 2010
Posts: 1,727 Likes: 1 |
#41 The Favorite Sister by Jessica KnollBrett and Kelly have always toed the line between supportive sisters and bitter rivals. Growing up, Brett was the problem child, in the shadow of the brilliant and beautiful Kelly. In adulthood, all that has changed. Kelly is a struggling single mother and Brett has skyrocketed to such meteoric success, which has been chronicled on a reality TV show called Goal Diggers.
When Kelly manipulates herself onto the show and into Brett’s world, Brett is right to be threatened. Kelly, and only Kelly, knows her younger sister's appalling secret, and it could ruin her.
Still, when the truth comes out in the explosive final weekend of filming, neither of them ever expected that the season would end in murder First, I have to say that my taste in reality TV shows is HGTV and that's about it. I was reading a heavy political book and needed something light and this fit the bill. Kind of like a Lifetime movie - a real train wreck but entertaining to watch. #42 Bullies: How the Left's Culture of Fear and Intimidation Silences Americans by Ben ShapiroWhile Ben had many good points, this was a depressing book to get through. At times he got as snarky as some of the 'bullies' he was writing about. #43 Forget You Know Me by Jessica StrawserWhen a video call between friends captures a shocking incident no one was supposed to see, the secrets it exposes threaten to change their lives forever.
Molly and Liza have always been enviably close. Even after Molly married Daniel, the couple considered Liza an honorary family member. But after Liza moved away, things grew more strained than anyone wanted to admit—in the friendship and the marriage.
When Daniel goes away on business, Molly and Liza plan to reconnect with a nice long video chat after the kids are in bed. But then Molly leaves the room to check on a crying child.
What Liza sees next will change everything. Despite the opening, this was not a thriller. It focused on the friendship between the women. This felt more like a Lifetime movie than a realistic look at a friendship. (Such as, a woman suffering from chronic pain can suddenly run in a 4K?)
Last edited by scifiJoan; 07/30/19 10:19 AM.
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Joined: Nov 2010
Posts: 1,727 Likes: 1
Merriwether
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Merriwether
Joined: Nov 2010
Posts: 1,727 Likes: 1 |
#44 For Better or Worse by Margot HuntOn their first date back in law school, Natalie and Will Clarke bonded over drinks, dinner and whether they could get away with murder. Now married, they’ll put the latter to the test when an unchecked danger in their community places their son in jeopardy. Working as a criminal defense attorney, Nat refuses to rely on the broken legal system to keep her family safe. She knows that if you want justice…you have to get it yourself. Interesting fast paced thriller.
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Joined: Nov 2010
Posts: 1,727 Likes: 1
Merriwether
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Merriwether
Joined: Nov 2010
Posts: 1,727 Likes: 1 |
#45 Yesterday's Kin by Nancy KressAliens have landed in New York.
A deadly cloud of spores has already infected and killed the inhabitants of two worlds. Now that plague is heading for Earth, and threatens humans and aliens alike. Can either species be trusted to find the cure? I like Nancy Kress' earlier works. I hadn't seen anything by her in a while so I was excited to pick this one up. She always does a good job with credible science and creating intriguing situations. The characters seemed flat to me in this one. And the main concept feels a little dated. In fact, I just read a similar one by another scifi writer. I don't think I'll be reading more books in this series.
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Joined: Nov 2010
Posts: 1,727 Likes: 1
Merriwether
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Merriwether
Joined: Nov 2010
Posts: 1,727 Likes: 1 |
#46 The Psychology of Time Travel
by Kate Mascarenhas In 1967, four female scientists worked together to build the world’s first time machine. But just as they are about to debut their creation, one of them suffers a breakdown, putting the whole project—and future of time travel—in jeopardy. To protect their invention, one member is exiled from the team—erasing her contributions from history. A unique look at time travel and the impact on those undergoing it.
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Posts: 1,727 Likes: 1
Merriwether
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Merriwether
Joined: Nov 2010
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#47 Our Kids: The American Dream in Crisis by Robert D. PutnamLots of excellent points showing the increasing divide in opportunities between the poor and upper middle class. #48 Half of What You Hear by Kristyn Kusek LewisFrom well-loved women’s fiction writer Kristyn Kusek Lewis comes a breakout novel about a woman moving to a small community and uncovering the many secrets that hide behind closed doors—perfect for fans of Liane Moriarty and Elin Hilderbrand. This got a little silly but it was a good light airplane read.
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Posts: 1,727 Likes: 1
Merriwether
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Merriwether
Joined: Nov 2010
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#49 The Girl Before by J.P. DelaneyIn the tradition of The Girl on the Train, The Silent Wife, and Gone Girl comes an enthralling psychological thriller that spins one woman's seemingly good fortune and another woman's mysterious fate through a kaleidoscope of duplicity, death, and deception. This book was not in the same league as those listed above. It was a fast read but not an especially good book.
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Posts: 1,727 Likes: 1
Merriwether
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Merriwether
Joined: Nov 2010
Posts: 1,727 Likes: 1 |
#50 Good Luck with That by Kristan HigginsEmerson, Georgia, and Marley have been best friends ever since they met at a weight-loss camp as teens. When Emerson tragically passes away, she leaves one final wish for her best friends: to conquer the fears they still carry as adults. Since this book deals with the issue of self image and weight, it got a lot of hate on Goodreads. I thought the author did a decent job with the idea that your life doesn't have to be hold until you lose the weight. #51 Missing Molly by Natalie BarelliEveryone has secrets, and Rachel Holloway is no exception. She’s worked hard to keep the past where it belongs: dead and buried. And so far, she’s been very successful.
But now the small newspaper where she works wants to produce a podcast on a cold case: the disappearance twelve years ago of little Molly Forster. And she's Molly Forster. This was an interesting concept. I was surprised this woman's secret didn't come out immediately, she acted so erratically.
Last edited by scifiJoan; 08/26/19 10:59 AM.
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Merriwether
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Merriwether
Joined: Nov 2010
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#52 The Dream Daughter by Diane ChamberlineWhen Caroline Sears receives the news that her unborn baby girl has a heart defect, she is devastated. It is 1970 and there seems to be little that can be done. But her brother-in-law, Hunter, a physicist, tells her that perhaps there is. Something that will shatter every preconceived notion that Caroline has. Something that will require a kind of strength and courage that Caroline never knew existed. Something that will mean a mind-bending leap of faith on Caroline's part. I've read other books by this author and have liked them. This is the first one I've read with more scifi/fantasy leanings. I liked it.
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Posts: 1,727 Likes: 1
Merriwether
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Merriwether
Joined: Nov 2010
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#53 Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth GilbertA celebrated writer's irresistible, candid, and eloquent account of her pursuit of worldly pleasure, spiritual devotion, and what she really wanted out of life. I didn't care for this book. The author gave only surface accounts of life changing events. And her account for her search for spirituality lacked depth.
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Joined: Nov 2010
Posts: 1,727 Likes: 1
Merriwether
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Merriwether
Joined: Nov 2010
Posts: 1,727 Likes: 1 |
#54 Genuine Fraud by E. Lockhart From the author of the unforgettable New York Times bestseller We Were Liars comes a masterful new psychological suspense novel--the story of a young woman whose diabolical smarts are her ticket into a charmed life. But how many times can someone reinvent themselves? You be the judge. This thriller was told in reverse. It worked well for this book. An engaging read.
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Joined: Nov 2010
Posts: 1,727 Likes: 1
Merriwether
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Merriwether
Joined: Nov 2010
Posts: 1,727 Likes: 1 |
#55 Ghosted by Rosie WalshWhen Sarah meets Eddie, they connect instantly and fall in love. To Sarah, it seems as though her life has finally begun. And it's mutual: It's as though Eddie has been waiting for her, too. Sarah has never been so certain of anything. So when Eddie leaves for a long-booked vacation and promises to call from the airport, she has no cause to doubt him. But he doesn't call. When I read the jacket of this book, I was excited. I was expecting a thriller. This was a sappy cliched romance with unlikable, immature characters.
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Joined: Nov 2010
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Merriwether
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Merriwether
Joined: Nov 2010
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#56 Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens For years, rumors of the “Marsh Girl” have haunted Barkley Cove, a quiet town on the North Carolina coast. So in late 1969, when handsome Chase Andrews is found dead, the locals immediately suspect Kya Clark, the so-called Marsh Girl. But Kya is not what they say. Sensitive and intelligent, she has survived for years alone in the marsh that she calls home, finding friends in the gulls and lessons in the sand. Then the time comes when she yearns to be touched and loved. When two young men from town become intrigued by her wild beauty, Kya opens herself to a new life–until the unthinkable happens. Interesting book though parts of it stretched credibility.
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Merriwether
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Merriwether
Joined: Nov 2010
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#57 The Hazards of Time Travel by Joyce Carol OatesTime travel” — and its hazards—are made literal in this astonishing new novel in which a recklessly idealistic girl dares to test the perimeters of her tightly controlled (future) world and is punished by being sent back in time to a region of North America — “Wainscotia, Wisconsin”—that existed eighty years before. Cast adrift in time in this idyllic Midwestern town she is set upon a course of “rehabilitation”—but cannot resist falling in love with a fellow exile and questioning the constrains of the Wainscotia world with results that are both devastating and liberating. Time travel with dystopian society. And a well established writer. So many things going for it. What could go wrong? This book was utter garbage in every aspect. The plot made no sense. The girl was an idiot. The love story was cringe worthy. What a waste of time.
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Merriwether
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Merriwether
Joined: Nov 2010
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#57 We were Liars by E. Lockhart A beautiful and distinguished family.
A private island.
A brilliant, damaged girl; a passionate, political boy.
A group of four friends—the Liars—whose friendship turns destructive.
A revolution. An accident. A secret.
Lies upon lies.
True love.
The truth. An engaging thriller with an interesting twist.
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Joined: Nov 2010
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Merriwether
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Merriwether
Joined: Nov 2010
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#58 Last Bus to Wisdom by Ivan Doig Donal Cameron is being raised by his grandmother, the cook at the legendary Double W ranch in the Montana Rockies. When Gram has to have surgery for “female trouble” in the summer of 1951, all she can think to do is to ship Donal off to her sister in faraway Manitowoc, Wisconsin. There Donal is in for a rude surprise: Aunt Kate is nothing like her sister. She henpecks her good-natured husband, Herman the German, and Donal can’t seem to get on her good side either. After one contretemps too many, Kate packs him back to the authorities in Montana on the next Greyhound. But as it turns out, Donal isn’t traveling solo: Herman the German has decided to fly the coop with him. In the immortal American tradition, the pair light out for the territory together, meeting a classic Doigian ensemble of characters and having rollicking misadventures along the way. This was a great coming-of-age/character read.
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Joined: Nov 2010
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Merriwether
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Merriwether
Joined: Nov 2010
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#59 Code Name Verity by Elizabeth WeinOct. 11th, 1943 - A British spy plane crashes in Nazi-occupied France. Its pilot and passenger are best friends. One of the girls has a chance at survival. The other has lost the game before it's barely begun.
When "Verity" is arrested by the Gestapo, she's sure she doesn't stand a chance. As a secret agent captured in enemy territory, she's living a spy's worst nightmare. Her Nazi interrogators give her a simple choice: reveal her mission or face a grisly execution.
As she intricately weaves her confession, Verity uncovers her past, how she became friends with the pilot Maddie, and why she left Maddie in the wrecked fuselage of their plane. On each new scrap of paper, Verity battles for her life, confronting her views on courage and failure and her desperate hope to make it home. But will trading her secrets be enough to save her from the enemy? This is one of my daughter's favorite books. I haven't yet told her that the 'twist' wasn't really a surprise for me, though that didn't take away from the story.
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Merriwether
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Merriwether
Joined: Nov 2010
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#60 The Perfect Girlfriend by Karen Hamilton Juliette loves Nate.
She will follow him anywhere. She’s even become a flight attendant for his airline so she can keep a closer eye on him.
They are meant to be.
The fact that Nate broke up with her six months ago means nothing. Because Juliette has a plan to win him back.
She is the perfect girlfriend. And she’ll make sure no one stops her from getting exactly what she wants. The premise was pretty cheesy but it seemed to have potential to build into something else. It didn't.
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Joined: Nov 2010
Posts: 1,727 Likes: 1
Merriwether
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Merriwether
Joined: Nov 2010
Posts: 1,727 Likes: 1 |
#61 Red Bird by Stephanie Grace WhitsonAll her life Carrie has dreamed of Soaring Eagle. Now all grown up, can Carrie's love survive his new way of life? I only read this book so I could discuss it at book club. I am not a fan of just romance. I'm not excited about the 1880s frontier life. And while I enjoy some Christian literature, this book was, for lack of a better word, stiff.
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Merriwether
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Merriwether
Joined: Nov 2010
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#62 A Lite Too Bright by Samuel MillerArthur Louis Pullman the Third is on the verge of a breakdown. He’s been stripped of his college scholarship, is losing his grip on reality, and has been sent away to live with his aunt and uncle.
It’s there that Arthur discovers a journal written by his grandfather, the first Arthur Louis Pullman, an iconic Salinger-esque author who went missing the last week of his life and died hundreds of miles away from their family home. What happened in that week—and how much his actions were influenced by his Alzheimer’s—remains a mystery.
But now Arthur has his grandfather’s journal—and a final sentence containing a train route and a destination.
So Arthur embarks on a cross-country train ride to relive his grandfather’s last week, guided only by the clues left behind in the dementia-fueled journal. As Arthur gets closer to uncovering a sad and terrible truth, his journey is complicated by a shaky alliance with a girl who has secrets of her own and by escalating run-ins with a dangerous Pullman fan base. This was an interesting premise. I didn't find the journal readings to be very profound but the story kept me reading. #63 The Cast by Amy BlumenfeldTwenty-five years ago, a group of ninth graders produced a Saturday Night Live-style videotape to cheer up their ailing friend. The show’s running time was only ninety minutes, but it had a lasting impact: Becca laughed her way through recovery, and the group—Jordana, Seth, Holly, and Lex—became her supporting cast for life.
On the silver anniversary of Becca Night Live, the friends reunite over the Fourth of July to celebrate Becca’s good health—but nothing goes as planned. It was as fluffy as it sounds but a good airplane read.
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Merriwether
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Merriwether
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#64 Beneath a Scarlet Sky by Mark Sullivan Pino Lella wants nothing to do with the war or the Nazis. When his family home in Milan is destroyed by Allied bombs, Pino joins an underground railroad helping Jews escape over the Alps, and falls for Anna, a beautiful widow six years his senior.
In an attempt to protect him, Pino’s parents force him to enlist as a German soldier—a move they think will keep him out of combat. But after Pino is injured, he is recruited at the tender age of eighteen to become the personal driver for Adolf Hitler’s left hand in Italy, General Hans Leyers, one of the Third Reich’s most mysterious and powerful commanders.
Now, with the opportunity to spy for the Allies inside the German High Command, Pino endures the horrors of the war and the Nazi occupation by fighting in secret, his courage bolstered by his love for Anna and for the life he dreams they will one day share. My book club loved this one. I didn't find it compelling to read. Although it claims to be based on a true story, there were just two many coincidences. It was pushing credibility to believe one man did all that was covered in the book.
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Merriwether
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Merriwether
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Thanks! I'll check that out.
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Joined: Nov 2015
Posts: 7
Blogger
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Blogger
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Now that I can post again, I'm back in for next year. I am on book 79 for this year.
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Merriwether
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Merriwether
Joined: Nov 2010
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#65 Too Close by Natalie DanielsConnie has woken up in a psychiatric hospital. They say she committed a terrible crime but she says she can’t remember a thing. From the blurbs on the cover, I thought this was going to be a 'single white female' situation. While it was refreshing that it was more than that, many of the emotions and actions of the characters didn't ring true to me.
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Merriwether
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Merriwether
Joined: Nov 2010
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#66 Women Rowing North by Mary PipherIn Women Rowing North, Pipher offers a timely examination of the cultural and developmental issues women face as they age. Drawing on her own experience as daughter, sister, mother, grandmother, caregiver, clinical psychologist, and cultural anthropologist, she explores ways women can cultivate resilient responses to the challenges they face. Nothing earth shattering here, though it was still an interesting book due to the use of personal examples.
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Merriwether
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Merriwether
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#67 The Faraway Brothers: Two Young Migrants and the making of an American Life by Lauren Markham The deeply reported story of identical twin brothers who escape El Salvador's violence to build new lives in California--fighting to survive, to stay, and to belong. A disturbing but interesting story of the perils a set of young brothers dealt with in their home country and their experiences in America.
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Merriwether
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Merriwether
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#68 Becoming Superman: My Journey from Poverty to Hollywood by J. Michael Straczynski n this dazzling memoir, the acclaimed writer behind Babylon 5, Sense8, Clint Eastwood’s Changeling and Marvel’s Thor reveals how the power of creativity and imagination enabled him to overcome the horrors of his youth and a dysfunctional family haunted by madness, murder and a terrible secret. I'm a big fan of Babylon 5 so I was excited to read this book. And after reading this book, JM Straczynski continues to amaze and impress me. I can't imagine living through all he did and surviving, nonetheless succeeding as he did. What a story!
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Merriwether
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Merriwether
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#69 Carnegie's Maid by Marie Benedict In the industrial 1860s at the dawn of the Carnegie empire, Irish immigrant Clara Kelly finds herself in desperate circumstances. Looking for a way out, she seeks employment as a lady's maid in the home of the prominent businessman Andrew Carnegie. Soon, the bond between Clara and her employer deepens into love. But when Clara goes missing, Carnegie's search for her unearths secrets and revelations that lay the foundation for his lasting legacy. I was a little confused as to what was real in this story. However, the author's note at the end clearly states Clara was a fictional character designed to possibly explain Carnegie's change of focus.
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Hack from Nowheresville
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Hack from Nowheresville
Joined: Jul 2017
Posts: 296 |
I've been out a bunch, but I did read some more since last I posted on this thread. Rounded my 2019 count out to a nice even 40.
24: For Elise by Sarah M Eden (surprise surprise) - This one was not at all related to either of the other series I've read. But it was heartbreakingly awesome. Guy finds long lost girl and tries to figure out what happened in the first place.
25: Romancing Daphne by SME - Another good one in the series. Often forgotten Middle Sister is finally noticed by someone.
26: Loving Lieutenant Lancaster by SME - The first book to really connect the two series (and inspired in me an idea for what I hope will happen in the final book of both serieses (how do you make that word plural??))
27: The Heart of a Vicar by SME - The one where the almost youngest brother realizes he can behave how he wants not how he is expected to. Also the one I read when I realized they haven't all be written yet and there aren't any more for me to read but still two siblings (one from each family) that don't have stories yet... Oy I hate waiting.
28: The Fall of Lord Drayson by Rachael Anderson - I feel like this would make an interesting plot for a LnC fic... A great episode spin-off. [muse runs off to write it down...]
29: Upon My Heart Forever by Amber Lynn Perry - I want to like her books, I really do, but they are so incredibly cheesy...
30: Gentleman of Her Dreams by Jen Turano - Ms Turano does a great job of making me laugh in her writing. Like out loud, put the book down and wipe my eyes laughing.
31: Costochondritis - A Forgotten Condition... by Peter Askes - After being diagnosed with the condition in June, I did lots of research. This book was not written for patients but it was very informative. since this summer, I've had two more instances (which many refer to as "flare ups"). Not fun... but at least I'm one of the lucky ones who knows why I have it (or at least what is causing it right now..)
32: A Timeless Romance Anthology Book : Blind Date Collection - Annette Lyon (and others): Several cheesy and relatively predictable stories, some better than others.
33: Before the Season Ends by Linore Rose Burkard - Someone told me (or I read) that this book started the genre of Christian Historical Fiction, but I'm pretty sure that's impossible given that it was first published in 2005... Either way. I can't remember anything about it. (Edit. its the first in REGENCY Christian historical fiction, thought I'm not sure why the specification is necessary.)
34: Longing for Home by SME: The first book by her I really didn't care for. Too many characters, I didn't like the way it ended, and I read the summary for the next book in the series only to find out the way the book ended wasn't really the end (happy about it, but I don't really want to read the next one...)
35: The Governess of Penwythe Hall by Sarah E Ladd - Another favorite author of mine. Filled with intrigue and mystery, the governess has secrets...
36: The Lady and the Highwayman by SME - I picked this one up and put it down several times before finally finishing it. I have mixed feelings. Two authors meet and try to solve two mysteries (each author knows the answer to one mystery...) it was weird, but I liked it? (question mark intentional, I just can't decide...)
37: The Lady and the Gent by Rebecca Connolly - I enjoyed this one, another girl trapped in her place in the world, escapes and ends up in unusual situations.
38: Rescuing Lord Inglewood by Sally Britton - An arranged marriage sort of story. I cried a lot with this one (probably because I was going through some similar things at the time I read it...not an arranged marriage, ha!)
39: Discovery Grace and 40: Saving Miss Every also by Sally Britton (same series as the one before that follows a group of childhood friends). I list these together because they are related Grace and Hope Everly are twins. Hope gets to go on a trip and Grace wants to stay home, but after some mischief, their dad punishes them by making them do the opposite. Both are completely miserable at the prospect and trade identities to be able to avoid it. Each story is what happens to each twin. I loved them both. But I also learned with this one that the last book in the series doesn't come out until May... Oy, more waiting...
Much fewer books than the previous year, but hey, I wrote a book myself and that takes a significant amount of time (among other life events that have taken much time...). I look forward to more reading in 2020.
"Oh my gosh! Authors really do use particular words on purpose!" ~Me, when I started writing a book.
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