Book 52 of 2011 The Glass Rainbow by James Lee Burke

The Glass Rainbow by James Lee Burke
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

I'm thinking that JLB is getting tired. Tired of writing good, meaty stories about Dave R. This book was only okay. The story was basically just a re write of the same old crimes, and criminals. I'm beginning to think that after six or eight in a series it's time to 'just say no'. I felt the same way after the last Janet Evanovich Stephanie book, the last Tess Gerittsen Rizzoli and Isles, and the last Kathy Reichs Tempe book. Maybe I need to find some new series.

Even though there was something of a cliffhanger at the end of this one, I'm not sure I'll bother with the next one.Sorry JLB, I love you but I need something more from you and Dave.


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Top Ten DJ list??

from my friend  Ladyjanet I'm trying to pick my top ten songs.
1. Poison and Wind by The Civil Wars
2.  Sweet Home Alabama by Lynyrd Skynyrd
3 Stairway to Heaven by Led Zeppelin
4. Can't You See by Marshall Tucker Band
5. Blue Sky by Allman Brothers Band
6. Always on My Mind by Willie Nelson
7.Mountain Music by Alabama
8. Old Man by Neil Young
9.Maggie May by Rod Stewart
10. A Whiter Shade of Pale by Procol Haram

That's my 10 for now. I may change my mind if you ask me again next week. I'm sure I'll think of 10 more! It's hard to narrow it down to just 10.

Book 51 of 2011 Milk Glass Moon

Milk Glass Moon by Adriana Trigiani
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

the last of the Big Stone Gap trilogy. I like the way things were wrapped up. I appreciate an author who takes me on a journey and wraps everything up in the end. Some of the story lines didn't end the way I would have liked them to, but you can't have a perfect ending for everyone. Don't know why I waited so long to read this, but I'm glad I finally did.


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book 50 of 2011 Witches of East End by Melissa de la Cruz

Witches of East End by Melissa de la Cruz
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I had really high hopes for this book since I loved Melissa de la Cruz' YA series Blue Bloods. This series gets off to a pretty slow start with 2 sisters and a mother who are witches banished to live in the mortal world without using their witchy powers. There are a couple of brothers who one of the sisters is trying to choose between. One she's engaged to, the other she's having hot wild sex with. The other sister is a librarian who has a thing for local cop but won't act on it. Dad is mysteriously missing and has been for years. I wanted more detail and set up of the magic world that these characters are going to inhabit. Perhaps in the next book, we'll get more of that. I'll definitely read the next in the series before I write this series off.


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Book 49 of 2011 Death Masks by Jim Butcher

Death Masks by Jim Butcher
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

that Harry Dresden gets into the damnedest situations. First he's agreed to a duel to the death with Ortega of the Red Court of Vampires. Next he's been hired to find the missing Shroud of Turin. And it seem that there are some hired hit men out to kill him.

Enter Michael and his friends Shiro and Sanya the other Knights of the Cross. Susan makes an appearance and the Denarians are some bad ass freaks who are also very hard to kill. The baddest of those dudes, Nicodemus, is trying his best to make Harry go away or join his horde. Never a dull moment in Chicago when Harry Dresden is on the job!


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Book 48 of 2011 The Year of Fog by Michelle Redmond

The Year of Fog by Michelle Richmond
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Abby Mason is walking on the beach with her fiance's 6 year old daughter Emma. She has her camera. She looks away for a minute and Emma vanishes into the fog or the ocean or up the highway in one of the cars that were in the parking lot. The year that follows is filled with guilt and heartbreak. The search is extensive and when everyone else including Emma's dad gives up Abby continues the search going out of the country to Costa Rica.


I think this book had the potential to be a 4 star book. I really loved the writing. The descriptions are vivid and really left an image in my mind. The anguish that Abby felt resonates and feels very real. Jake's reaction is spot on. But, there are too many cliches and impossibilities in the book for me to give it the 4 stars. The whole business with David was predictable. The scenes with Nick and Wiggins were improbable. The final scene on the beach was fantastical. So to say that I was slightly disappointed with the last third of the book after a great beginning would be honest. I liked it, but I really wanted to love it.


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Book 47 of 2011 Killing Fear by Allison Brennan

Killing Fear by Allison Brennan
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Something about this book was familiar, but I'm not sure if I'd read it years ago or if the characters were just familiar because they were in another series by the same author. This one was a pretty good representation of the romantic suspense genre. The main killer was a known entity, but there was a secondary killer that was a slight surprise. This was the first in the 'Prison Break' series so I suppose I'll have to check out the other two. This book isn't going to change your life, but it's an entertaining story to read (if you like sick killers).


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A to Z Reading Challenge

Read a book for each letter of the alphabet.  I decided to go back and enter all the books I've read in my alphabet list. Still have some letters to complete and they are not looking real easy. 

A       
The Art of Keeping Secrets  by  Patti Callahan Henry
The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian  by Sherman Alexie
B       
Beastly  by Alex Flinn
A Bend in the Road  by Nicholas Sparks
C       
The Cracker Queen  by Lauretta Hannon
Crooked Letter Crooked Letter by Tom Franklin
Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins
D       
Devil Bones  by Kathy Reichs
Duma Key  by Stephen King
Death Masks by Jim Butcher
E       
The Edge of Sleep  by David Wiltse
Envy the Night   by Michael Koryta
F      
Flesh and Bone  by Jefferson Bass
Fallen  by Karin Slaughter
Fallen  by Lauren Kate
G        
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo  by Steig Larsson
The Girl  Who Played withFire  by Steig Larsson
The Girl  Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest  by Steig Larsson
Grave Surprise  by Charlaine Harris
Grave Peril   by Jim Butcher
Georgia Bottoms  by Mark Childress
The Glass Rainbow by James Lee Burke
H       
The Hunger Games  by Suzanne Collins
Hush Hush  by Becca Fitzpatrick
House Rules  by Jodi Picoult
I    
I'd Know You Anywhere by Laura Lippman
J
K
Killing Fear  by Allison Brennan
L        
Lucia, Lucia  by Adrianna Trigiana
Looking for Alaska  by John Green
Lisey's Story  by Stephen King
The Land of Painted Caves  by Jean Auel
M       
Murder List  by Julie Garwood
Mockingjay  by Suzanne Collins
Middlesex  by Jeffrey Eugenides
Milk Glass Moon by Adriana Trigiani
N        
The Ninth Judgement  by James Patterson (Maxine Pareto)
O
One Grave Too Many  by Beverly Connor
P         
Pretties  by Scott Westerfeld
Q
R        
Room  by Emma Donoghue
S         
The Straw Men  by Michael Marshall 
The Silent Girl  by Tess Gerritsen
Summer Knight by Jim Butche
Sizzling Sixteen by Janet Evanovich
Specials by Scott Westerfield
Smokin' Seventeen by Janet Evanovich
T         
Total Recall   by Sara Paretsky
Torment  by Lauren Kate
Thirteen Reasons Why  by  Jay Asher
U        
Uglies  by Scott Westerfeld
V
A Visit from the Good Squad  by Jennifer Egan
W        
Wild Fire  by Nelson DeMille
Witches of East End by Melissa de la Cruz
X
Y
The Year of Fog  by Michelle Redmond
Z

book 46 of 2011 A Visit from the Good Squad

A Visit from the Goon Squad by Jennifer Egan
My rating: 1 of 5 stars

Worst book I've read this year! I can't believe this drivel won the Pulitzer Prize. What was the committee thinking? Did nothing else get nominated?

This might have been a decent book it the author had bothered to write a book instead of throwing a bunch of crappy stories together and calling it a novel. The book confused me. Each chapter was a totally different story about different people (who sometimes sort of related back to another character in a different story). The time line jumped around and confused me further. Don't waste your time. Can you give a book zero stars? That's what I'd like to give this one.


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