Silence - Thomas Perry

A favorite author of mine. A thriller that was all right but not great. I still love all the details of how to "disappear" and keep people from finding you.

Life Sentences - Alice Blanchard

Another gripping book by Alice Blanchard. The main character is human. I didn't like her at all to start with because of what I perceived as being "weak" in spirit but you know, everyone can be weak and that doesn't mean they are ALWAYS weak. I think that more thought was put into the character of her sister but the sister is bipolar/schizophrenic and maybe because of that, I felt I knew her better through the book. Daisy seemed a little underdimensional in comparison to her sister. It was a solid book. Not the best but definitely worth reading.

Into The Forest - Jean Hegland

What happens if you live in a remote area, are two teenagers and your parent's both die and the world is not what it is supposed to be? Read it to find out. Great book.

Mister B. Gone - Clive Barker

A demon tells his story. Very clever and I liked the ultimate piece of the plot. Short, fast read.

Blind Fall - Christopher Rice

This is probably one of the most frustrating and all over the place bad books I've ever made myself read. It's very gripping but by the time you're really into the story, it falls back on such cliched stuff that it was hard to feel finishing was a wonderful thing. Very choppy too. Ugh. I'd give something else of his a try but if this is his style, then it definitely doesn't work for me.

Fidelity - Thomas Perry

The Forgotten Man - Robert Crais

Not bad. Not great. A quick read.

The Darkest Evening of the Year - Dean Koontz

Not half bad. I enjoyed this much more than some of his books from about 6 years ago. If you haven't been paying attention, this book should really bring to your realization how much he loved his dog Trixie and just Golden Retrievers in general.

Brother Odd - Dean Koontz

Another good story with this very likable character.

Ice Trap - Kitty Sewell

A nice slow buildup to what's really going on. Interesting, different than most of what I'd read before (plot wise), so, pretty good. This was the author's first novel and was short-listed for the Crime Writers's Association's New Blood Award and the Wales Book fo the Year 2006. It also won the BBC Wales Readers' Prize. Pretty fancy debut!

Bones To Ashes - Kathy Reichs

This book, I had no idea it was what the show BONES was based on before I picked it up, was pretty good. Difficult with all the Canadian addresses and stuff that I don't normally run across in the books I read but the characters were great and it was an awesome story with stuff ending up being not quite what I was expecting.

Undiscovered Country - Lin Enger

Great story idea but left me with a bit of the blues. There was a lot of character development but at the end, I wasn't satisified with exactly what happened. Pretty decent book though. The family dynamics are insane. Lots of reality behind it. Too much sometimes.

Jinn - Matthew B.J. Delaney

WOW! Fast, horrific, fantastic book. A quote used at the beginning of the book says it all (without giving any spoilers!): I didn't tell half of what I saw, because no one would have believed me. - Marco Polo

The characters were great, the twists were wonderful, how it all tied in together was spectacular. LOVED it.

In The Forest of Harm - Sallie Bissell

Book One with Mary Crow.

I read this book and then right after this one, Earth Abides and oh my God. Where Earth Abides had no violence or graphic detail, this book had it in spades. GREAT story. I picked up the other three books available at the library by this author.

Darker Justice - Sallie Bissell

Book Two with Mary Crow.

After reading In The Forest of Harm, and just writing the above paragraph tells you NOTHING about what these four books are like when you read them back to back, in order.

Call The Devil by his Oldest Name - Sallie Bissell

Book Three with Mary Crow.

Excellent. Just wonderfully terrifying.

Legacy of Masks - Sallie Bissell

Fourth book with Mary Crow.

Difficult material to read through, horrifically compelling. Sallie Bissell's web site.

The Trudeau Vector - Juris Jurjevics

A chilly read! Set in the Arctic, an epidemiologist must figure out what caused the deaths of 4 scientists that are working in a private research facility. Very, very good book!

The Other Side of Silence - Bill Pronzini

Man In The Dark - Paul Auster

Wow. I read through this in a day or two.

Ghost Radio - Leopoldo Gout

I picked this up based purely on the recommendation of James Patterson on the back of the book. He said: "Ghost Radio reminded me of early Stephen King - Carrie and Pet Sematary and The Dead Zone. The story sticks with you long after you've finished the final page."

I enjoyed it but it was so frantic in detail in some places but lacked depth in other places. I don't know. Not bad but not up on par with Stephen King.

Bloodfever - Karen Marie Moning

I haven't read a book of this type in a long, long time. I knew that it was not the first book of a series but decided to go ahead and read it anyway. The character building is great though and now I have to wait until this fall for the next book to come out!!! Fay, faeries, demons, vampires, Ireland, all in this story.

Crime Zero - Michael Cordy

I read this thing in one day. GREAT story, characters and plot. Genetic engineering sci-fi stuff.

Queen of the Dragons - Shana Abe

It's been quite awhile since I've been able to find a good Fantasy book about dragons that was actually readable. My only regret is that I was unable to read the first two in the series but I enjoyed the characters so much in this book that I still plan on going back and reading book 1 and book 2. Light, fast, fun read. Just in time for summer!!

The Elementals - Morgan Llywelyn

What's a summer without some apocolyptic type of fiction? I LOVE the premise of this book. I read it in one day. LOVED the work. If you love Sci-Fi/Apocolyptic stuff, definitely pick this up. How did they describe it....ecological fantasy. It's great.

Heavy Weather - Bruce Sterling

I'd have to agree with the majority of the reviews: EXCELLENT idea but failed to really bring it to a satisfying reality and the ending really sucked. I was very disappointed in this book.

The Judas Strain - James Rollins

James Rollins delivers ANOTHER very excellent read. I love that his books have so many facts in them and he really writes the story well to accomodate the facts and the current theories of scientists. Excellent read. Very satisfying. He has several books out but my favorite still remains Amazonia. Now THAT is a freakin' awesome book. The book jacket at the back reads that he's an avid scuba diver and caver. Very cool author.

The Last Oracle - James Rollins

This ties in were the previous book, The Judas Strain, had left off. Very fun. Loving the character development. Great story, history, interesting. Hurry up and write MORE, FASTER!

Earth Abides - George R. Stewart

Not what I expected. No gore, no violent language, very philosophical. Then I realized it was written in 1949.

The Postman - David Brin

Very, very interesting view of the end of the technological era (otherwise known as "life as I know it"). The characters were really great and the details while giving enough information were not GRAPHICALLY or overly gorey. One of the better one's I've read that was written before the 2000's. This one was published in 1985.

Alas, Babylon - Pat Frank

This is still considered one of the top apocolyptic novels ever written and it IS in my opinion, a great classic novel for this genre. The reasons: for what he writes and gives in information but also for what he DOESN'T write and you fill in.

Fatalis - Jeff Rovin

Wow. This guy really expected you to suspend a lot of belief. I would have liked more archeological information but the theories presented in order to make you buy into the story weren't that bad. Interesting. I've not read a book like this before.

Surviving Antartica Reality TV 2083 - Andrea White

A Young Adult novel based on a type of Survivor series....only the contestants usually die in these reality shows in the future. Very good and surprisingly so for a Young Adult novel. Fast read but very good!

edenborn - Nick Sagan

The second book. I wish I had read the first one before reading this. Although, it was a pretty darn good stand alone read. You don't really have to know or have read the first story to enjoy this book. It would have been nicer to have been more invested in the characters though. My own fault.

Tooth Fairy - Graham Joyce

A very um, interesting read. Different but interesting. Contains quite a bit of sexual content. Not that I mind that type of thing but I have not found many books that delve over into really serious details of that nature. Pretty decent plot but the charcters really make this book.

The Children of Men - PD James

Thankfully, I have not yet seen the movie so I really did enjoy this book, thought it could have gone more indepth, just a little more, and would have been an unbelievably excellent read. But, overall, great. Now I can enjoy the movie!

Dark Moon - Alton Gansky

I am so glad that I took a chance on this book and author. I'd never heard of either and Wow! What a fabulous book. Very entertaining, fast read, great characters. My only quibble would be that the end wrapped up a little "too perfectly and quickly". Other than that, it's well worth the read if you like SciFi Thriller type books.

Historical Fiction

I first read Boudica about 4 years ago. I have been avidly awaiting the next two books in the series. I was delighted to find that there were actually going to be four.

It was the most wonderful, vivid, heartbreakingly awesome saga I've ever read. LOVED it.

Boudica: Dreaming the Eagle (read a few years ago)
Boudica: Dreaming The Bull
Boudica: Dreaming The Hound
Boudica: Dreaming The Serpent Spear  - the finale that took my breath away and broke my heart all over again. Manda Scott is an incredible author. LOVED THEM. I am especially glad that I was able to read the last 3 so close together. It makes a huge difference.

Snowstruck: In the Grip of Avalanches - Jill Fredston

I'm not a snow person even though I grew up in upper Northwestern Pennsylvania. We had mountains but not the kind of mountains that produced avalanches so this was a completely new subject for me to learn about. And Jill Fredston nailed this perfectly. She tells us the science behind avalanches but she also introduces the human factor into it. Natural disasters that happen all the time and yet people that live directly in the paths, even some of them don't seem to recognize the dangers. It was a mix of science, personal memoirs and narratives on the history of avalanches. Highly recommended.

House to House: An Epic Memoir of War  - SSG David Bellavia with John R. Bruning

I am vehemently opposed to our continued presence in Iraq and have been for 6 years now. George Bush is doing nothing but creating a huge mess, continuing to put our men and women's lives in danger just because of his own agenda at this point.

But I am not against the men and women who go and give their lives for a cause they believe in. I support them completely. This is the first book I've read regarding the war in Iraq and it made me weep. SSG Bellavia writes from the heart and gut and there are no questions in my mind of just how much they are sacrificing every day, in ways that I will never understand.

This is a first hand account of a short period of time and the fight at Fallujah that occured on November 10, 2004 and it is gut wrenching and majestic and explains what compels these men and women to be over there. It's not just an order from their government. It's a cause they believe in enough to die for and so many have died. If you read anything about first hand experiences for the soldiers over there, I ask you to put this one at the very top of your list. It deserves to be read and you will find yourself never wondering why they do what they do. Hooah to SSG Bellavia and his team and all the other soldiers over there.

Here If You Need Me - Kate Braestrup

I'm not sure why I picked this book up but I did. It is Kate Braestrup's memoir about losing her husband who was a State Trooper for Maine, becoming the Chaplain for Maine's Game Wardens and raising her 4 children in the aftermath of losing her husband, becoming a chaplain and her experiences. Very well written but I lacked the complete connection that I expected to find, that I can usually find with most memoirs.

The Fighting 69th - Sean Michael Flynn

This book sort of ties in with the House to House memoir. It's told from the point of view of the 69th National Guard Unit out of New York. They were one of the first on the scene at 9/11 and they were eventually dispatched to the fight in Iraq. It covers roughly the same time frame that the unit SSG David Bellavia covers in his book. So, it was nice to get a bigger picture of what was happening during that time in different military outfits.

On Call In Hell: A Doctor's Iraq War Story - Cdr. Richard Jadick and Thomas Hayden

This was a pretty decent book for a memoir that tries to reach out to people not familiar or in the military to try and show a small part of what it was like to be a battle surgeon in Iraq. The writer seemed very self-conscious of himself though at times and seemed like he held back on his emotions a lot. I think just based on the title that I was going to encounter some pretty heavy emotional issues and while he did convey things in a realistic way, it's like he was too removed to be able to truly communicate every thing he felt in a way that I could identify with. Overall, a solid memoir of this man and his story.

eat pray love - Elizabeth Gilbert

Sometimes in your life you pick up the exact book you need to make a difference in your life at precisely the right moment. That's what this book is to me. Incredible, lovely, perfect. I think maybe it's because I can identify so closely with what the author went through. I envy her travels and life and it makes me wish I had the means to take a year off to center my own self.

Down the Nile : alone in a fisherman's skiff - Rosemary Mahoney

I had higher hopes for this book. I guess I expected more of a growth of the person but if that happened, it was not communicated at the end. Decent enough book though.

Kabul Beauty School: An American Woman Goes Behind the Veil - Deborah Rodriguez and Kristin Ohlson

A wonderful book that every woman who has had a dream to do something BIG but had to get past abusive relationships to make that happen. Also full of information on what life is really like for Afghani women.

Sand in My Bra and Other Misadventures: Funny Women Write from the Road (Travelers' Tales) - Jennifer L. Leo and Jessica Maxwell

Short stories, mostly centered around travel anecdotes. The best one in it was written by Ellen Degeneres.

Heros Among Us - Edited and with an Introduction by Major Chuck Larson

Read it. Just read it.

Warrior King - Lt. Col. [Ret.] Nathan Sassaman w/Joe Layden

Something very different than the other books I've been reading about what has been going on over in Iraq. What a sad and eye-opening read. It just proves that what I've thought for several years now, is in fact, true. If I had ever joined the military, I don't think I would have been a career type - the politics and the ass kissing you have to do is just ridiculous. What the Army did to this guy was just completely out of bounds. The media, for the most part, sucks as well. As usual. This man is the kind of leader that should be placed in ALL KEY positions throughout the DoD, Homeland Security, and any military institution. As Kevin says (former Sgt. in the Army), "He's the kind of leader I'd follow to hell and back." Indeed.

My Guantanamo Diary: The Detainees and the Stories They Told Me - Mahvish Rukhsana Khan

www.mahvishkhan.com

In The Land of White Death: An Epic Story of Survival in the Siberian Arctic - Valerian Albanov

The little known account of a Russian sailor that made an epic trek to safety across glaciers, moving ice, in harsh conditions after the ship he was on had been stuck in the ice for over a year. Written in a journal format. Finally translated after many years of little reknown, a great book.

Love My Rifle More Than You - Kayla Williams

She tells it pretty straight on what it's like to be a female and in the military and what it was like to go to Iraq and then come back. Well done.

Before that it was Side Effects: A Prosecutor, a Whistleblower, and a Bestselling Antidepressant on Trial - Alison Bass

What an EYE opener THAT was. Wow. The FDA is all fucked up, the big pharma companies are running the trials and handpicking the doctors who are doing the studies. It's pretty scary idea.

The Blue Death: Disease, Disaster, and the Water We Drink - Dr. Robert D. Morris

It's pretty interesting so far. Tracing the roots of waterborne epidemic/contagious disease in 18th century England with Dr. John Snow who proved that disease could come via water. Okay. Finished up. Do not read this if you are the least bit squeamish about the water coming out of your faucets!!!! Very informative both from a scientists view and also how the government works in regards to safety regulations. Not encouraging.

Cold Zero: Inside the FBI Hostage Rescue Team - Christopher Whitcomb

Written by Special Agent Christopher Whitcomb. Extraordinarily gripping and interesting. One of the best I've read of this type of book.

Lady Q
The Rise and Fall of a Latin Queen by Reymundo Sanchez (Author), Sonia Rodriguez (Author)

Links To Check Out

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