Dead Until Dark is the first book in the Sookie Stackhouse series by author Charlaine Harris. This series is the basis for the TV series True Blood. Having seen just two episodes of True Blood, I was very interested in the books. Dead Until Dark did not disappoint.
Sookie Stackhouse is a waitress in a local bar, in a small town in northern Louisiana. She has a disability, or a gift, depending on how you look at it. She can read minds. A vampire walks into the bar one night and Sookie can't hear his thoughts. She is immediately intrigued and attracted to the silence. But when young women start showing up dead, she begins to wonder who she can trust and if she will be the next victim.
The book was fast paced and fun, and Sookie is instantly likable. It was a mix of genres - mystery, horror and romance, satisfying to many readers. Had I not seen a little of the television show, I may have been a little confused at first in the book. Some details are glossed over, casually and quickly mentioned before moving on. However, by about 40 pages in I was hooked and did not find any more of those confusing moments. The book is different from the TV series, at least the two episodes that I saw. I say that with very limited experience with the TV series, and I understand why the changes were made. The storyline, as it is presented in the book, may not lend itself to be played out in the same order in the television show.
I truly enjoyed this book from start to finish and can't wait to sink my teeth into the next one in the series. Happy Reading!
Monday, October 12, 2009
Wednesday, October 7, 2009
The Beach House
The Beach House is a novel by James Patterson and Peter de Jonge. The novel is about a man's quest to find the truth about what happened to his brother. The main character, Jack, is a promising law student whose brother, Peter, dies in a supposed accident or suicide. Jack and his family don't believe Peter's death was either an accident or suicide. Jack begins to investigate exactly what happened to his brother and gets himself, his family and friends tangled into a massive web of cover ups, and people who will do anything to keep the truth from coming out.
James Patterson's books tend to have excellent plots, but are typically a little unrealistic and brought around to conclusion way too easily. This book was no exception. That doesn't mean that it wasn't entertaining or interesting. Quite the contrary. In this book, the Every Day Guy goes after the Untouchables. It is a story that every one of us loves to get into. A story where we root for the characters to defeat the undefeated. The mystery in this book is a compelling one, and Patterson and de Jonge bring us around to a conclusion that leaves the reader satisfied.
This was a fast, entertaining, easy read. If you are a James Patterson fan, I would recommend it.
Happy Reading!
James Patterson's books tend to have excellent plots, but are typically a little unrealistic and brought around to conclusion way too easily. This book was no exception. That doesn't mean that it wasn't entertaining or interesting. Quite the contrary. In this book, the Every Day Guy goes after the Untouchables. It is a story that every one of us loves to get into. A story where we root for the characters to defeat the undefeated. The mystery in this book is a compelling one, and Patterson and de Jonge bring us around to a conclusion that leaves the reader satisfied.
This was a fast, entertaining, easy read. If you are a James Patterson fan, I would recommend it.
Happy Reading!
Friday, October 2, 2009
You Had Me at Halo
You Had Me at Halo by Amanda Ashby was a novel that I purchased for under $3 at a small bookstore in Reading. It looked like a fun, light, silly read; something that would not require brain power to read. Boy was I right!
The premise of the book is that the main character dies in what appears to be a suicide. She gets to heaven and has a lot of issues to work out from her earthly life before she can move through the ranks and get to a peaceful place. So, the powers that be send her back down to earth in someone else's body to work out those issues in 48 hours.
The novel had an interesting viewpoint on heaven and how things might work up there. Other than that it falls pretty short. It is supposed to be a romance, I think, but it isn't very romantic. The author tries to have tension between the main character and a potential love interest but it never really gets there. The idea and plot for the book are original, but the writing doesn't measure up. It isn't cohesive, the characters are not realistic or consistent, and some of them aren't even likable. The ending is one that the reader will want, but doesn't make much sense. That is just about the only thing that is consistent with the book. Not one I would recommend.
Happy Reading!
The premise of the book is that the main character dies in what appears to be a suicide. She gets to heaven and has a lot of issues to work out from her earthly life before she can move through the ranks and get to a peaceful place. So, the powers that be send her back down to earth in someone else's body to work out those issues in 48 hours.
The novel had an interesting viewpoint on heaven and how things might work up there. Other than that it falls pretty short. It is supposed to be a romance, I think, but it isn't very romantic. The author tries to have tension between the main character and a potential love interest but it never really gets there. The idea and plot for the book are original, but the writing doesn't measure up. It isn't cohesive, the characters are not realistic or consistent, and some of them aren't even likable. The ending is one that the reader will want, but doesn't make much sense. That is just about the only thing that is consistent with the book. Not one I would recommend.
Happy Reading!
Mr. Darcy, Vampyre
Amanda Grange is the author of the Pride & Prejudice spin off novel, Mr. Darcy, Vampyre. This was a book club pick, directly following Pride & Prejudice. I enjoyed it almost as much as I enjoyed it's inspiration.
Mr. Darcy, Vampyre picks up where Pride & Prejudice leaves off. Elizabeth and Darcy are married and begin their wedding tour. Things start smoothly, but very soon Mr. Darcy's strange behavior concerns Elizabeth. They travel far from home, into some pretty scary places. Adventures ensue, and eventually Elizabeth learns the truth. What will become of her marriage and her future?
A lively, fun tale. I recommend it as the perfect follow-up to the original novel. When I finished Pride & Prejudice, I wanted more. This novel answered that call in a very original way. I am intrigued by the whole industry created by the desire to know "what happened next" to Elizabeth and her family. This will not be the last P&P follow up novel that I read. I plan on devouring Amanda Grange's other spin off novels soon.
Happy Reading!
Mr. Darcy, Vampyre picks up where Pride & Prejudice leaves off. Elizabeth and Darcy are married and begin their wedding tour. Things start smoothly, but very soon Mr. Darcy's strange behavior concerns Elizabeth. They travel far from home, into some pretty scary places. Adventures ensue, and eventually Elizabeth learns the truth. What will become of her marriage and her future?
A lively, fun tale. I recommend it as the perfect follow-up to the original novel. When I finished Pride & Prejudice, I wanted more. This novel answered that call in a very original way. I am intrigued by the whole industry created by the desire to know "what happened next" to Elizabeth and her family. This will not be the last P&P follow up novel that I read. I plan on devouring Amanda Grange's other spin off novels soon.
Happy Reading!
Dreamland
Dreamland is a young adult novel by Sarah Deesen. It is a novel about a teenage girl and the struggles she goes through when her older sister runs away from home, and she finds love. Having to live in her sister's shadow was nothing compared to living with her absence. It makes her even more invisible to her parents. As she struggles to find out who she is, without her sister (with whom she was very close), she finds love in a boy from another school. What follows is a path of destructive behavior that she cannot find her way out of. The novel is about friendship, family and love, and about finding your own dreams in spite of what someone else wants for you. I think it also sends a message to teenagers about the dangers in certain relationships and how our choices can drastically affect our futures.
This novel was hard to read as a parent. Watching this girl go down a dangerous path, while her parents are not looking, was very difficult to witness. She starts out with such a good head on her shoulders, but one person changes that. Her relationship with this one boy threatens her friendships and her relationship with her parents, and ultimately her life. It was scary to think of what could happen when a teenager doesn't tell anyone about what is going on in her life. She gets so involved and falls so heavily, that even though she knows things are bad, she does nothing to stop them. In the end, her recovery from these events takes a long time.
The sister makes some choices that affect her future, as well. She was set to go to an ivy league college, and leaves town because she doesn't feel like this was her dream. She feels it was what her parents wanted. She leaves this incredible future behind for a boy. I think the author was trying to get the reader to sympathize with the sister's character, but I just couldn't do it. It was so hard to read about those choices and try to sympathize, because as an adult and a parent all I could see was what she was throwing away. I could only imagine how I would have felt if these were my children.
I think the author romanticized life a bit, and I suppose most novelists do. But I think that is dangerous in a young adult novel. None of the struggle the sister must have faced was noted in the novel, and it does not go far enough into the future to truly show how her choices affect the rest of her life. This is not a book I would really want my teenage daughter to read. If she ever did, I would need to discuss the books themes with her, specifically the older sister's path, to ensure that she understood that life isn't that simple.
Overall it was a good book, and maybe an important one for parents to read. It is certainly important to read it if your children have.
Happy Reading!
This novel was hard to read as a parent. Watching this girl go down a dangerous path, while her parents are not looking, was very difficult to witness. She starts out with such a good head on her shoulders, but one person changes that. Her relationship with this one boy threatens her friendships and her relationship with her parents, and ultimately her life. It was scary to think of what could happen when a teenager doesn't tell anyone about what is going on in her life. She gets so involved and falls so heavily, that even though she knows things are bad, she does nothing to stop them. In the end, her recovery from these events takes a long time.
The sister makes some choices that affect her future, as well. She was set to go to an ivy league college, and leaves town because she doesn't feel like this was her dream. She feels it was what her parents wanted. She leaves this incredible future behind for a boy. I think the author was trying to get the reader to sympathize with the sister's character, but I just couldn't do it. It was so hard to read about those choices and try to sympathize, because as an adult and a parent all I could see was what she was throwing away. I could only imagine how I would have felt if these were my children.
I think the author romanticized life a bit, and I suppose most novelists do. But I think that is dangerous in a young adult novel. None of the struggle the sister must have faced was noted in the novel, and it does not go far enough into the future to truly show how her choices affect the rest of her life. This is not a book I would really want my teenage daughter to read. If she ever did, I would need to discuss the books themes with her, specifically the older sister's path, to ensure that she understood that life isn't that simple.
Overall it was a good book, and maybe an important one for parents to read. It is certainly important to read it if your children have.
Happy Reading!
Saturday, September 5, 2009
Hold Tight
Hold Tight is a page turning novel by Harlen Coben. I have read a couple other of his books in the past and have never been disappointed. This book was no exception. It is fast paced and full of adventure, mystery and haunting questions about what a parent might do for their child.
This novel has several sets of characters in one community, but is mainly about the lengths that parents are willing to go to to protect their kids. There are a couple troubled teens, one boy with a life threatening illness, one girl who has been bullied. In each case, the parents are willing to spy, threaten, even kill for their kids. The novel moves at a fast pace and the characters continually switch and in some cases are not brought around to connect to each other until the end.
This book was a thrilling ride, that at some times was heartbreaking. And in the end it begs the questions: What lengths would you go to? Is spying on your kids for their benefit; does it save them or push them further away? What is trust worth and how to you maintain it? All very important questions that are thought provoking and worth debating. I think this novel would make a good book club selection for that purpose. There is a lot to debate, and maybe no real definitive right or wrong answers. Thought provoking and thrilling...a good ride!
Happy Reading!
This novel has several sets of characters in one community, but is mainly about the lengths that parents are willing to go to to protect their kids. There are a couple troubled teens, one boy with a life threatening illness, one girl who has been bullied. In each case, the parents are willing to spy, threaten, even kill for their kids. The novel moves at a fast pace and the characters continually switch and in some cases are not brought around to connect to each other until the end.
This book was a thrilling ride, that at some times was heartbreaking. And in the end it begs the questions: What lengths would you go to? Is spying on your kids for their benefit; does it save them or push them further away? What is trust worth and how to you maintain it? All very important questions that are thought provoking and worth debating. I think this novel would make a good book club selection for that purpose. There is a lot to debate, and maybe no real definitive right or wrong answers. Thought provoking and thrilling...a good ride!
Happy Reading!
Lost & Found
Carolyn Parkhurst's second novel, Lost & Found is an entertaining read with some profound insight into relationships, and human nature. I found this book entirely enjoyable, and it also affected me.
The book is about several characters who are participating on a TV Reality show called "Lost & Found." The main characters are a mother/daughter team, but the secondary characters play an important role and are very entertaining and engaging. There is the TV show host, a religious couple who have been able to turn their lives around, brothers, a pair of actors that were child stars, and in each set of characters, there is at least one person with a secret or some personal crisis that they would prefer the world not know about. The producers of the show, know each of these secrets/crises, and it is their job to try to make the characters crack. In the end, will they each find what they are looking for? Each character is well defined, and portrayed consistently, and likable - well, for the most part!
This book is well rounded...a little action/adventure, a little romance. I found that it was a funny, probably realistic, look into what reality shows are really like. I also found the author's insights into human nature to be profound, particularly the relationship between parent and child. At times you laugh, at times you want to cry. I love when a book can elicit such a response. I truly enjoyed every page of this book and would highly recommend it.
Happy Reading!
The book is about several characters who are participating on a TV Reality show called "Lost & Found." The main characters are a mother/daughter team, but the secondary characters play an important role and are very entertaining and engaging. There is the TV show host, a religious couple who have been able to turn their lives around, brothers, a pair of actors that were child stars, and in each set of characters, there is at least one person with a secret or some personal crisis that they would prefer the world not know about. The producers of the show, know each of these secrets/crises, and it is their job to try to make the characters crack. In the end, will they each find what they are looking for? Each character is well defined, and portrayed consistently, and likable - well, for the most part!
This book is well rounded...a little action/adventure, a little romance. I found that it was a funny, probably realistic, look into what reality shows are really like. I also found the author's insights into human nature to be profound, particularly the relationship between parent and child. At times you laugh, at times you want to cry. I love when a book can elicit such a response. I truly enjoyed every page of this book and would highly recommend it.
Happy Reading!
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