Sunday, November 30, 2008

176. Shot Girl by Karen E Olson

About the book

New Haven police reporter Annie Seymour has a talent for running into trouble. So it should come as no surprise when her co-worker's bachelorette party at a local club quickly turns into a crime scene. What is surprising is that the dead club manager in the parking lot happens to be Annie's ex-husband-and

I was going to put off reading this one. I figured that even though this is the last in the series,it is not really over until I read it. However, since I love this series I had to read it. A wonderful installment. We get some insight as to why Annie is the way she is. I will miss this series. I truly enjoyed reading these books. I wish there was going to be another. Who knows maybe someday. I am looking forward to reading Karen's new book when it comes out next year. Something to look forward to.

Wednesday, November 26, 2008

175. Cross Country by James Patterson

About the book

When the home of Alex Cross's oldest friend, Ellie Cox, is turned into the worst murder scene Alex has ever seen, the destruction leads him to believe that he's chasing a horrible new breed of killer. As Alex and his girlfriend, Brianna Stone, become entangled in the deadly Nigerian underworld of Washington D.C., what they discover is shocking: a stunningly organized gang of lethal teenagers headed by a powerful, diabolical man-the African warlord known as the Tiger. Just when the detectives think they're closing in on the elusive murderer, the Tiger disappears into thin air. Tracking him to Africa, Alex knows that he must follow

Interesting concept. Makes you think about what is really going on in other country's. Pretty gruesome at times. But I kept turning the pages. I enjoyed it.

Saturday, November 22, 2008

174. Dashing Through The Snow by Mary and Carol Higgins Clark

About the book

In the picturesque village of Branscombe, New Hampshire, the townsfolk are all pitching in to prepare for the first (and many hope annual) Festival of Joy. The night before the festival begins, a group of employees at the local market learn that they have won $160 million in the lottery. One of their co-workers, Duncan, decided at the last minute, on the advice of a pair of crooks masquerading as financial advisers, not to play. Then he goes missing. A second winning lottery ticket was purchased in the next town, but the winner hasn't come forward. Could Duncan have secretly bought it?
The Clarks' endearing heroes -- Alvirah Meehan, the amateur sleuth, and private investigator Regan Reilly -- have arrived in Branscombe for the festival. They are just the people to find out what is amiss. As they dig beneath the surface, they find that life in Branscombe is not as tranquil as it appears. So much for an old-fashioned weekend in the country.

I keep saying I am not going to read this series anymore and then when it comes out I end up picking it up at the library. One of these days I hope this series has more depth to them. A predictable and quick read.

173. Bodies left Behind by Jeffery Deaver

about the book

When a night-time call to 911 from a secluded Wisconsin vacation house is cut short, offduty deputy Brynn McKenzie leaves her husband and son at the dinner table and drives up to Lake Mondac to investigate. Was it a misdial or an aborted crime report?
Brynn stumbles onto a scene of true horror and narrowly escapes from two professional criminals. She and a terrified visitor to the weekend house, Michelle, flee into the woods in a race for their lives. As different as night and day, and stripped of modern-day resources, Brynn, a tough deputy with a difficult past, and Michelle, a pampered city girl, must overcome their natural reluctance to trust each other and learn to use their wits and courage to survive the relentless pursuit. The deputy's disappearance spurs both her troubled son and her new husband into action, while the incident sets in motion Brynn's loyal fellow deputies and elements from Milwaukee's underside. These various forces race along inexorably toward the novel's gritty and stunning conclusion.

Good read. Lots of twists and turns and some things you did not see coming

172. Ceder Cove Christman by Debbie Macomber

about the book

Mother-to-be Mary Jo Wyse arrives in Cedar Cove on Christmas Eve, searching for her baby's father. David Rhodes had said he'd be in town. But he isn't. Which leaves Mary Jo stranded, pregnant and alone. And there's no room at the local inn.…
So Grace Harding brings Mary Jo home to her nearby ranch. She and her husband, Cliff, have a houseful of guests, but they offer her a room over their stable (currently sheltering the animals—including a donkey and a camel—for Cedar Cove's Nativity pageant!).
When Mary Jo goes into labor that night, a young man named Mack McAfee, a paramedic, comes to her rescue, just as her brothers—the three Wyse men—show up in town. The people of Cedar Cove join them in celebrating the birth of baby Noel. But no one has more to celebrate than Mack. Because this Christmas brings him faith, hope and love…

Five pages into this book you knew how it was going to end up. But it was a cute book.

Sunday, November 16, 2008

171. Dead of the Day by Karen E Olson

about the book

A soggy April has hit New Haven, Connecticut-along with an unidentified body in the harbor. The strange fact that there were bee stings on the floater gives New Haven Herald police reporter Annie Seymour an intriguing excuse to put off her profile of the new police chief-a piece that becomes a lot more interesting when the subject is gunned down.
But this is only the beginning of a killer exposŽ-because as she connects the dots between the John Doe, the police chief, and the city's struggling immigrant population, Annie's drawing a line between herself and someone who doesn't want her to learn the truth, or live to report it...

This was a very busy book and I loved it. I love Annie. I am so bummed that there is only 1 book left in the series. It is sitting here taunting me. I want to read it but I want the series to last and if I hold off on reading the last book then to me the series has not ended even though it really has.

I have a library book that I need to read first then I will have to decide when to read the last Annie

Saturday, November 15, 2008

Read Your Own Books 2009 Challenge

I have joined my first challenge for 2009. The rules to this one are easy.
1.Set a goal of how many of your own books you want to read in 2009
2. Read from your own collection between January 1st and Dec 31st. 2009
Follow this link to sign up http://readingwise.wordpress.com/ryob-2009/

170. Chocolate Snowman Murders by JoAnna Carl

About the book

Lee McKinney Woodyard knows that being in the luxury chocolate business isn't all sweetness and light, and neither is the holiday season. But she tries to draw the line at cold-blooded murder.
As treasurer of WinterFest, Lee is up to her elbows in the arguments, egos, and last-minute mix-ups that happen behind the scenes. But she's coping, even when the guest juror of the art show shows up drunk. Lee leaves him to sleep it off, and is stunned the next day when her husband, Joe, discovers someone has put the visiting dignitary into a permanent state of repose...

I really enjoy this series. I liked this one. I miss not buying them since they are now in hardback instead of paperback.

169. Christmas Jars by Jason F Wright

About the book

Where had it come from? Whose money was it? Was I to spend it? Save it? Pass it on to someone more needy? Above all else, why was I chosen? Certainly there were others, countless others, more needy than me...
Her reporter's intuition insisted that a remarkable story was on the verge of the front page.
Newspaper reporter Hope Jensen uncovers the remarkable secret behind the "Christmas Jars", glass jars filled with coins and bills anonymously left for people in need. But along the way, Hope discovers much more than the origin of the jars. When some unexpected news sets off a chain reaction of kindness, Hope's greatest Christmas Eve wish comes true.

A nice warm Christmas story. I loved it. Even though it is a short book you find yourself reading slower so that it will not end.

168. Murder With All the Trimming by Elaine Viets

About the book

Mystery shopper Josie Marcus doesn't get the appeal of the year-round Christmas shop. But when three such holiday houses pop up within two blocks, she's assigned to rate them anonymously.
Easy enough, Josie thinks, until she realizes that shoppers at one store are finding a strange-even deadly-secret ingredient in their holiday cake. And Josie must get to the bottom of it all before someone else becomes a Christmas spirit.

A very interesting installment. I enjoyed this one and I am already looking forward to the next one.

Saturday, November 8, 2008

167. Dark Summer by Iris Johansen

About the book

It begins with a single shot.
Devon Brady is a devoted veterinarian working in a makeshift hospital on a remote search and rescue mission. When a man arrives with his wounded black Lab, Ned, she has no idea that she is about to be plunged into a whirlwind of terror and destruction.
Jude Marrock is out for revenge and has no choice but to involve Devon in a high-stakes cat-and-mouse game with an escalating body count. She doesn’t trust him one bit, but when the shots start flying and friends start falling, she finds herself with nowhere else to run. And there are innocent lives, both human and animal, at stake, including Ned and his mysterious pack. Is Jude her salvation or her damnation? Are the secrets he’s protecting worth killing for . . . or dying for?

An interesting book. Some twists along the way.

Wednesday, November 5, 2008

166. Rough Weather by Robert B Parker

about the book

Heidi Bradshaw is wealthy, beautiful, and well connected–and she needs Spenser’s help. In a most unlikely request, Heidi, a notorious gold digger recently separated from her latest husband, recruits the Boston P.I. to accompany her to her private island, Tashtego, for her daughter’s wedding. Spenser is unsure of what his role as personal bodyguard will entail, but he consents when it’s decided that he can bring his beloved Susan Silverman along.
It should be a straightforward job for Spenser: show up for appearances, have some drinks, and spend some quality time with Susan. Yet when his old nemesis Rugar–the Gray Man–arrives on Tashtego, Spenser realizes that something is amiss. With a hurricane-level storm brewing outside, the Gray Man jumps into action, firing fatal shots into the crowd of wedding guests and kidnapping the bride–but Spenser knows that the sloppy guns-for-hire abduction is not Rugar’s style. Unable to prevent the attack, Spenser will stop at nothing to recover the kidnapped bride and figure out how the Gray Man is connected. It’s up to Spenser to decide who the real enemy is . . . before more people end up dead

I used to really love his books. If you want to read this one, borrow it from the library. This book could have been summed up in 2 chapters. I hope the next book is better.

Sunday, November 2, 2008

165. Burn Out by Marcia Muller

About the book

Traumatized by a recent life-or-death investigation, Sharon McCone flees to her ranch in California's high desert country to contemplate her future. Deep depression shadows her days and nights, and a chance encounter with a troubled, highly secretive Native American woman begins to haunt her dreams. Even though she is determined not to investigate anything during her stay--and perhaps not ever again--McCone is drawn into the plight of the young woman and her dysfunctional family. A murder and traces of violence at a deserted resort lead her across the desert and into Nevada, and finally to a remote and isolated ranch, where danger lies closer that she expects and where her future and life itself may hang in the balance.

The lastest installment in the Sharon McCone series. An enjoyable read. Not the best in the series but I liked it.

Saturday, November 1, 2008

164. Brass Verdict by Michael Connelly

About the book

Things are finally looking up for defense attorney Mickey Haller. After two years of wrong turns, Haller is back in the courtroom. When Hollywood lawyer Jerry Vincent is murdered, Haller inherits his biggest case yet: the defense of Walter Elliott, a prominent studio executive accused of murdering his wife and her lover. But as Haller prepares for the case that could launch him into the big time, he learns that Vincent's killer may be coming for him next.
Enter Harry Bosch. Determined to find Vincent's killer, he is not opposed to using Haller as bait. But as danger mounts and the stakes rise, these two loners realize their only choice is to work together.

I loved this book. Michael Connelly is one of my favorite authors. Also a very interesting ending.