Monthly Book Report

This is the first edition of a planned monthly book report; however this first report will cover about 5 weeks of reading. I will come up with a format for the reports as I go along, but for this report I will simply list the books I have read and give a VERY brief summary and/or recommendation. Perhaps I will devise a rating system later on. Okay, now......TA DAH!!!!!!

Books by authors whose works I have often read:

Dark Horse by Tami Hoag – Ms Hoag has written several New York Times bestsellers. I found this one more engrossing than her usual whodunits.

Twisted by Jonathan Kellerman – Mr. Kellerman is a master of phrasing – I always enjoy his use of language. Examples: "Seeing him made her eyes ache." "(a person) with all the warmth of ceramic tile." "Her face was rodentine." This is not one of Kellerman's Alex Delaware novels but a Petra Conner one. Both Delaware and Conner are serial characters. This police-procedural mystery kept me reading.

False Testimony by Rose Conners – This political and legal mystery follows a recurring main character, lawyer Marty Nickerson. Ms Conners writes very realistic dialog and has a very engaging style. The first 2 chapters of this book could serve as a textbook example of how to grab the reader with action from the first words.

No Place Like Home by Mary Higgins Clark – Typical Mary Higgins Clark thriller – I couldn’t put it down. Many twists and turns in plot, great character development.

The Closers by Michael Connelly – Another Harry Bosch mystery. Harry solves a cold case. I enjoyed this one a great deal.

By authors I was not familiar with before:

Julie and Romeo Get Lucky by Jeanne Ray – very light tone – a love story with middle-aged main characters. Unusual, mildly interesting. I found myself reading it more as a writer than as a reader or participant (Thoughts such as, “A writer wouldn’t have to do any research to write a novel like this – maybe this is the kind of novel I need to write, instead of the kind I like to read.”)

Any Human Heart by William Boyd – Didn’t finish this one. Written as a series of journals of a British man, beginning when he was a schoolboy and continuing throughout the twentieth century. The vocabulary and use of language was fascinating; but in the end, there was just not enough plot to keep me reading. Some examples of the language use: “I stirred the memory soup in my head, hoping gobbets of ------ would float to the surface.” “When faith hath died, WE must paint the colours on the sky.” “They took a verbal walk through the case.”

A Million Little Pieces by James Frey – true, first-person narrative of drug addiction and recovery. An Oprah Book Club selection. Very raw, somewhat repetitive, over-all interesting, but not read-every-word involving. I read this after seeing a review on The Median Sib -- there is a link for the book in her sidebar. Here is a review.

The Ladies of Garrison Gardens by Louise Shaffer – a generational tale, combining mystery, romance, the poor vs the rich. Being a GA girl, I kept visualizing the story events taking place in Callaway Gardens in central GA.

Heartbreak Hotel by Jill Marie Landis – a light mystery, romance. Interesting, not spellbinding

This Dame for Hire by Sandra Scoppettone – A clever, light-tone mystery. I found the dialog a little overdone and flip -- trying too hard to fit into the period (the 1940's). I found myself thinking far too often of the writing style instead of the story. I expect this character, detective Faye Quick, to be a continuing protagonist in future books by this author. I enjoyed this but generally prefer a deeper and more involved plot.