#39

Catch Me : A Detective DD Warren by Lisa Gardner
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I figured it out too soon. That always disappoints me just a little. Otherwise, this was a good read. Easy and quick. Not too involved. Some brutal subject matter but it's another good outing for DD and company. Enjoyed the moments with her family.

Detective DD Warren is investigating a murder when she finds a note on her car and catches a glimpse of a person lurking around the crime scene. When she confronts the woman, Charlene Rosalind Carter Grant tells her a story unlike anything she's ever heard. Charlie believes that she will be murdered on January 21 at 8pm. You see for the past two years her best friends have been murdered on that date at that time and she knows she's next.


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Book #33 of 2012

The Devil's Bones by Jefferson Bass
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This is the third book in the Body Farm series by the writing team of Jon Jefferson and Dr. Bill Bass. This book has 3 mysteries/problems happening. #1 Mary Latham's body is found in a burned out car on her family's farm outside of Knoxville. #2 Dr. Brockton's defense attorney "Grease" asks him to check out the cremains of his Aunt. #3 Garland Hamilton escapes form prison.

#1 -- Seemed to be almost an afterthought. This mystery wasn't the 'biggie' in this book, but was interesting to get the answer to how the fire was set while the suspect was 7 hours away.

#2 -- This story line was definitely based on the real life crematory mess that happened in North Georgia several years ago. My favorite part of this book, but wish Dr. Brockton had been more involved.

#3 -- I'm over the Garland Hamilton mess and am glad this is resolved in this installment.

There seemed to be a few loose ends that weren't tied up to suit me, but perhaps that'll happen in the next book. I want more of Art in the books and I enjoy the peeks into Dr. Brockton's family.


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Book #31 of 2012

Birdman by Mo Hayder
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This is the first book in the Jack Caffrey series and boy does it pack a wollop. It's a mystery/thriller, but I would also categorize it in my favorite genre, sick shit. Jack Caffrey is a Detective Inspector who himself has a tragic and dark past that makes him flawed and sympathetic character . He's investigating a series of murders involving girls from the wrong side of the track. 5 bodies are discovered in a trash dump and at autopsy some disturbing clues are discovered. Each body has a bird sewn into the chest cavity, strange marks around the hairline, breast reduction surgery performed, and evidence of necrophilia. Graphic violence. An incompetent fellow DI. A couple of unexpected twists.

This book got a little too graphic and brutal for me at the end, but I'll definitely keep reading this series. I have a difficult time reading books set in England. Even though the language is the same, the words used to describe and name things are different. It's worth it to keep on reading and to do a little research to become more familiar with the language differences.


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Book 18 of 2012

Spider Bones by Kathy Reichs
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I always really like the Tempe Brennan books and look forward to reading them. I prefer the books set in North Carolina (even though I do like Ryan). This book really had the best of all worlds. It began in Canada, had the connection to North Carolina and took the gang to Hawaii (my favorite place on earth) to solve the mystery. And I did enjoy this mystery even though it got a little convoluted at the end. I always learn a little in these novels and this time I learned about chimeras. Interesting stuff. I loved the Plato character. Loved him! I also learned about JPAC and was quite impressed with what I learned.
As an aside, I also like the TV show Bones that is loosely based on this series of books. It's enough different that I don't even see Emily Deschanel and/or David Boreanz as the characters when I read these books. I just see Tempe and Ryan.


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Book 12 of 2012

The Accident by Linwood Barclay
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

There was too much going on in this book. The story became too contrived.


When Glen Carver's wife Sheila is killed in a drunk driving accident he's devastated. He can't believe that she would get behind the wheel of a car and drive if she was drunk. Not only did she kill herself, but a father and son are also killed in the accident. A couple of days later, her daughter's best friend's mother dies in a suspicious accident. As Glen delves into his wife's last day he uncovers some very unsavory happenings.


Too many types of counterfeit goods. Too many sexually perverted affairs. Too many murderers. Too many side stories. All put together it just muddled up the book and made it much less enjoyable.


I probably won't try another by this author unless I just run out of things to read.


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Book 8 of 2012

S is for Silence by Sue Grafton
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I forget how much I enjoy these books and then I read another and remember why I like them. I enjoy the setting. They are not set in present day, yet they are set in recent times. It's like just going back a few years and enjoying the time all over again. They're modern but not today. Takes me back to my 'good ole days'.

This book takes Kinsey to a small town to find a woman who disappeared about 30 or so years ago. Her daughter hires Kinsey to find her or find out what happened to her. The books moves between the present and Kinsey's investigation and the past in the days leading up to the disappearance. We're provided with a cast of several suspects. I was waffling between a couple of those right up until the end. I should have figured it out quicker.

I'll be getting on to the next in the series, "T" working up to "V".


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Book 7 of 2012

Buried Prey by John Sandford
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

So glad that John Sandford didn't disappoint. Buried Prey is #21 in the Lucas Davenport series and it's just as good as the previous 20.

This book begins with the discovery of two sisters buried under an old building that is being torn down. Davenport worked the original case, first as a patrolman then as a plain clothes. This is the case that got him out of a patrol car and into the detective bureau. I loved the flashback and getting to see Lucas as a young policeman. Lucas was never happy with the outcome of the case. He didn't believe the party line that the mentally ill, homeless man who was shot fleeing the police was the kidnapper.

As Davenport investigates the case, he comes back to his initial conclusion that the mentally ill man was not guilty and that the mysterious tipster may well have been the criminal. Del plays a big part in the investigation and Jenkins and Shrake play a bit part. And Marcy, oh Marcy. Why?

As always I'll anxiously await the next book in this series and in the meantime, I'll just be off to read #5 in the Virgil Flowers series!


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Book 71 of 2011 Disturbed by Kevin O'Brien

Disturbed by Kevin O'Brien
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Another new author for me. Another book about a serial killer. And another killer. A family falling apart. Revenge. Philandering. Debauchery. So...there was alot going on in this book. It all started when a student, Chris, saw the school counselor hugging another student and maybe kissing him on the top of his head. He told his step mom, she went with him to the principal. His dad and mom went a little crazy. Some students texted, tweeted, and facebooked about it. The counselor lost his job, his wife left him, his daughter ran away and the book begins with him being murdered by a person he hired so that his wife can collect some insurance money.

I liked this book alright, but I did have it all figured out pretty early on. I like a little more surprise in my mysteries, but it was good enough that I'll probably seek out other titles by this author.


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Book 70 of 2011 Bury Your Dead by Louise Penny

Bury Your Dead by Louise Penny
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Great mystery by a new to me author. Will definitely be going back to read previous in this series.

I'm anxious to read the earlier books in this series. I enjoyed the Canadian setting and the side mystery of Samuel Champlain. I didn't know that his burial site was unknown. The politics involved in Quebec with the English speakers and French speakers was an interesting aspect of the book also. The flashbacks to the terrorist attack and kidnapping were extremely interesting. The secondary mystery of the reexamination of  a previous case made me want to know more. I kept wondering if these cases were in a previous book or if they were new to this one. Inspector Gamache seems a very complex and likable character.


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Book 67 of 2011 Tonight I Said Goodbye by Michael Koryta

Tonight I Said Goodbye by Michael Koryta
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This book held my interest from the beginning. Lincoln Perry and Joe Pritchard are former policemen who are now private detectives. They are hired by Wayne Weston's father to investigate his alleged suicide and the disappearance of his wife and daughter. Weston was also a PI who worked for a prominent businessman in town. The Russian mob is involved and there are several twists. All in all a great suspense/crime novel. It was good enough that I'll be reading more by Michael Koryta.


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Book 57 of 2011 Worth Dying For by Lee Child

Worth Dying For by Lee Child
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

this is one series that I've not been disappointed in. Great addition to the Reacher series. The setting was bleak and that really added to the feeling of this book. It was one evil family and it was good to see them get what they had coming.


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Book 40 of 2011 Envy the Night by Michael Koryta

Envy the Night by Michael Koryta
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Really enjoyed my first novel by Michael Koryta.

Frank Temple III found out 7 years ago that his father, a US Marshall, was also a contract killer. Those 7 years he has drifted around the country trying hard to come to terms with the loving father he knew being the monster that the public perceives him to be. He believes that the son of one of his father's buddies, Devin Matteson, is the informant that gave his dad up to the FBI. When this informant heads back to the isolated cabin on a Wisconsin lake from Miami, Frank heads there to kill him. On his way to Wisconsin he encounters a vehicle that he is sure is occupied by Matteson. He is involved in a crash with the car and it isn't who he thinks it is. By the time he gets to the lake, he discovers that Matteson isn't in the cabin on the island in the lake and that it's occupied by a mysterious lady and a gray haired man. A pair of assassins arrive from Miami and some innocent locals become involved.

This book kept my interest from beginning to end. There were just enough twists and turns but not too many. It was just dark enough but not too dark. I became very involved with Frank, Nora and Ezra. This is why I like series of books. I get to stay with the characters I love and follow their lives. With 'stand alone' novels, when it's over, it's over and you never know what happens to the characters after. Is it weird that that makes me sad? Probably, but it does.


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Book 39 of 2011 The Silent Girl by Tess Gerritsen

The Silent Girl by Tess Gerritsen
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Rizzoli and Isles are quite a team. Isles was not around much in this installment, but that was okay with me. She isn't as interesting a character as Jane in my opinion. I enjoyed this book right up until the end, but did not like the ending. That's why 3 instead of 4 stars.


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Book 36 Fallen by Karin Slaughter

Fallen by Karin Slaughter
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I always love Karin Slaughter's books. The Grant County series is one of my favorites of all time. She's also a Georgia author and the books take place in Georgia. Don't you just love reading a book and recognizing places and things? I do.


This book is the GBI series and focuses around agent Faith Mitchell's family. Her mom Evelyn, a former APD narcotics investigator is kidnapped. Faith arrives at her mother's home to find her infant daughter in a shed, a bloody kitchen, a dead body in the laundry room and a hostage situation in the back bedroom. Her mother is nowhere to be found. Two of the men are shot by Faith and another gets away wounded. Was Faith's mother dirty when she ran the narcotics squad at the APD? Who has kidnapped her and why haven't they contacted anyone with a ransom demand? The twists and turns in this mystery are numerous and leave you guessing until the very end. I didn't figure this one out. Was this a high brow, important read? Nope, but it was a damn good mystery with a little side of romance and I enjoyed every minute of it.


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Book 14 of 2011 -- Flesh and Bone

Flesh and Bone by Jefferson Bass
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I'm really liking this series by the duo of Dr. Bill Bass and Jon Jefferson. I've been fascinated with 'the body farm' since reading about it in Patricia Cornwell's book. The fascination doesn't end with the place but extends to the people, especially, Dr. Bass who work and do research there. Maybe one day I'll be able to take a tour?
The first murder we examine in this book is certainly gruesome. As we learn more about the victim I can't help but think he might have gotten what he deserved. Not sure what that says about me, but it certainly makes me take a look at myself.
The second and really the main murder mystery in this book makes me cry! It's not fair to write such a great character and then kill that character off before you've fully explored him/her. The mystery wasn't really difficult to figure out. I had both murderers tagged well before the climax of the book, but all in all this was a decent if quick read. It was definitely good enough to merit reading more in the series.


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Book 7 - 2011 Devil Bones

Devil Bones by Kathy Reichs

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


This was not my favorite book in this series. I just don't get excited about devil worship, voodoo and the like. I think it's overdone. I'm also ready for the relationship with Ryan to be resolved. I'm sure I'll read the next one,(since I already own it) but I won't rush out to buy any more of these books.



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The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest -- Book 4 2011

The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest by Stieg Larsson

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Loved this final book in the trilogy and so sorry it's over. I so want to know what happens with Sally and Micke and the rest of the crew. Many things were wrapped up, but there are still so many questions that are unanswered. I'm really going to miss my Swedish friends! There were some parts of the book that were slow, some parts were unbelievable, but the majority of the book was just delicious!



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59

Hidden Prey by John Sandford


My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Lucas Davenport never disappoints and this was no exception. Loved the Russian spy element, but would have loved more info on that. No matter, I'm sure I'll read number 16 soon.

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50-- Swimsuit

Swimsuit by James Patterson


My rating: 4 of 5 stars
much better than the last few Patterson books I've read. would like to see more from him like this one.

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47 -- 7th Heaven

7th Heaven by James Patterson


My rating: 3 of 5 stars
Another great book in the Women's Murder Club series. I've enjoyed reading about the women solving the murders but I also enjoy reading about the lives of the women. Happy to see Claire's baby born safely and can't wait to see what happens with Lindsey and Joe. Anxious to get my hands on number 8.


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