THE BLACK ECHO

Author: Michael Connelly

Genre: Police Procedural, Series #1

Published: 1992

Personal Rating: 3.5/5 (Good)

Yearly Count: 53

Harry Bosch is called to a crime scene where a body has been discovered in a drainpipe. The scenario turns into a personal one when Bosch recognizes the corpse as a fellow soldier in the Vietnam War. The story evolves into burglary and deception.

I have enjoyed all the books I have read by Michael Connelly (dabbled in three of his series and a standalone), yet have rated the more recently published books with higher scores. Hmmm. Hopefully that isn't indicative of what's to come of my experience with the rest of this series, because I have a numerous collection of it! I don't think so, though. I think this time was a matter of simply not caring for the story line so much. I found that my mind had a tendency to wander (audiobook), and that's no longer a common occurrence (thank goodness!); however, it did happened with this book. Maybe I just like Mickey Haller better? We'll see. I'm still looking forward to #2, The Black Ice, with Harry Bosch.

PRAY FOR SILENCE

Author: Linda Castillo

Genre: Thriller, Series #2

Published: 2010

Personal Rating: 4/5 (very good)

Yearly Count: 52

Kate Burkholder, Chief of Police in an Ohio Amish community, is faced with the annihilation of an Amish family. The case brings Kate's personal experiences (ex-Amish and ex-victim) to the surface and fuels her determination to bring the perpetrator to justice.

I would love to feel contentment and satisfaction since closing this book, but I don't. I feel confusion with the many thoughts going through my mind. In general, it was a great - at times I didn't want to put it down, until the last quarter/eighth of the book. Here are some of my mixed up thoughts:

The Good: The Amish community setting/integration, the difficult of the mystery to solve, the police procedural component, style of writing (word choice, length of paragraphs/chapters, etc.), building scenes, suspense, etc.

The Bad (not too bad, though): Kate and John (sporadic boyfriend?) - foolish characterization at times, over-the-top/ridiculous climax, formulaic ending. I was very disappointed in the change of writing towards the end. To me it ruined a lot of what was built.

And The Ugly: Anything to do with the crime and s*x scenes! Castillo is a very descriptive writer, so visualizing is not a problem. And, I'm telling you - it's not pretty. Also, there was some repetitive scenes that frankly were gratuitous.

I have discovered that Castillo has written many books under the publication of Harlequin and Silhouette. Blech, I won't be going back to read any of those. But, I will be seeking out the next in the Kate Burkholder series, because despite my disappointments, it was still very good.

JACK THE RIPPER

Author: Rick Geary

Genre: YA Non-Fiction Graphic Novel, Series

Publisher: 2008

Personal Rating: 3.75/5 (better than good)

Yearly Count: 51

In graphic novel form, Geary presents the tale of self-proclaimed, Jack the Ripper. The time period is 1888 in London's Whitechapel District where five women have been gruesomely murdered.

Again, another success for Geary. However, I do have two minor disappointments - the length was shorter than the others in the series, and the font was difficult to read. Other than that, another fine fact-filled book.

THE LINDBERGH CHILD

Author: Rick Geary

Genre: YA Non-Fiction Graphic Novel, Series

Publisher: 2008

Personal Rating: 4/5 (very good)

Yearly Count: 50

Charles A. Lindbergh, at the age of 25, was the first to fly from New York to France in a solo, non-stop flight. Along with this fame, came misfortune. Following his marriage to Anne Morrow, their first born son was kidnapped from their secluded home and supposedly held for ransom.

Geary continues to impress me with this series. His style of writing and drawing is precise and easy to follow. Once I pick up a book, I don't want to put it down until the end. Most (if not all) of the books in this series are short and can be read quickly, but the length does not adequately represent its importance or value. I have learned many interesting tidbits and facts from this series of graphic novels and without a doubt am a big fan of Geary's talent. I plan to read all those that I can get my hands on.

GHOST IN THE MACHINE

Author: Patrick Carman

Genre: YA Mystery, Series #2

Published: 2009

Personal Rating: 4/5 (very good)

Yearly Count: 49

The mystery in Skeleton Creek continues as Ryan and Sarah seek out what the actual mystery is regarding the town's dredge. And, they need to find out before it is destroyed.

I love, love, love the journal/video format. Ryan writes everything in his journal as Sarah uses her videocamera to record her findings and send messages to Ryan. It actually didn't take too long to get back in the flow of their story, and once I did - I didn't want to stop.

The plot and characters aren't necessarily spectacular, but the format has me so intrigued. I actually really like Ryan and Sarah is okay, too, but her breathing made me crazy! If she's not careful she just may hyperventilate. (You have to watch a video clip to understand.)

This 2nd addition was fun, and the 3rd will be out in August!

COUNTDOWN!

Update:

I'M HOME AND HAPPY-HAPPY!!!

THE LAST CHILD

Author: John Hart

Genre: Southern Fiction, Standalone

Published: 2009

Personal Rating: 3/5 (just okay)

Yearly Count: 48

It's been over a year, but 13-year-old Johnny continues to search for his missing twin sister who was last seen being abducted on her way home from the library.

Down River was my introduction to John Hart's work. I read it in 2007 and thoroughly enjoyed it. When I heard about The Last Child, I was excited and was looking forward to another deep southern tale. Unfortunately, I was let-down. My main disappointment was in the lead character - I didn't buy into him; therefore, I didn't connect or care about him. Everything about him was off (unrealistic) - his dialog, his behavior, his thought process, etc. I did like the plot and the ending was decent, but it flopped in comparison to what I had anticipated. Maybe the next one will suit me better.

BTW - The Last Child won the 2010 Edgar Award for Best Novel.

THE NATURAL LAWS OF GOOD LUCK

Author: Ellen Graf

Genre: Memoir, Standalone

Published: 2009

Personal Rating: 2.5/5 (eh)

Yearly Count: 47

From the book cover:

Ellen is forty-six, divorced, and having no luck with personal ads when her Chinese girlfriend comes up with a plan; she has a brother in China, Zhong-hua, who's lonely too. maybe they'd like each other? Taking a leap of faith that most of us wouldn't dare, Ellen travels to China to meet him. Though they speak only a few words of each other's language, there's an unspoken connection between them and they decide to marry.

What follows is a remarkably touching and humorous story of two people from completely different worlds trying to make a marriage work. Settling in at Ellen's ramshackle farmhouse in upstate New York, they quickly discover the cultural chasm that lies between them. Ellen and her teenage daughter decide to adopt a policy of nonjudgment as Zhong-hua lobbies to sell their refrigerator ("Just three people, no need"), serves them giant sea slugs for dinner, and brusquely nudges Ellen aside witout an "excuse me" ("Family no need these kind of words").

Zhong-hua is not the type to offer his wife impromptu smiles or hugs, but in bed at night he holds her tightly like she's "something long lost and precious that might not live until morning." The Natual Laws of Good Luck is an unusual and exquistitely written love story--one that will resonate with anyone who has ever contemplated with wonder the spaces that exist between us and those we care about.

I didn't find any warm fuzzies or even the hint of genuine passion here. Not to say that they didn't (don't) feel it, but the pages between the covers did not portray it to me. And, I didn't find any humor either. What I did find was a tangent-driven report of two lonely people who decided to make a life together.

I feel like Ellen compromised much more of herself in order to accommodate her Chinese man than he did for her. It's certainly her choice to do so, but it didn't make for a very enjoyable read. I'm not sure if Zhong-hua's lack of manners or insensitivity were apart of the Chinese culture or if they were just Zhong-hua himself, but they were peculiar to say the least. The best part was learning about Zhong-hua's experiences growing up under Mao.

I wish Ellen and Zhong-hua all my best as they continue to grow together.

My thanks go to LibraryThing Early Reviews program and Trumpeter Books for sending me this book.

BONE: OUT FROM BONEVILLE

Author: Jeff Smith

Genre: Children's Graphic Novel, Series #1

Published: 2005

Personal Rating: 2/5 (not enjoyable)

Yearly Count: 46

Three blobby cousins are kicked out of town for dishonesty and soon become lost in a new land that contains talking creatures: bugs, opossum, monsters and dragons. Early on, the cousins become separated, and they each have a different experience as they search for one another.

I have seen young kids reading this series for many years, and I finally picked it up. I discovered that I'm not missing anything. It flowed well and had a lot of excitement, but overall - not for me. I'm glad I read it though. My curiosity has been quenched.

SAVING CEECEE HONEYCUTT

Author: Beth Hoffman

Genre: Women's Fiction, Standalone

Published: 2010

Personal Rating: 2.5/5 (eh)

Yearly Count: 45

A southern, 12-year-old, little girl is being raised by a mentally ill mother and a distant father - thus, creating a difficult childhood. Eventually she is swooped up by her distant relatives who embrace her warmly.

I didn't buy into this one. I thought CeeCee, actually all the characters, were pleasant enough, but I didn't feel much depth to any of them. The story was somewhat sweet, but somewhat boring as well. There just wasn't enough substance, tension or boldness for me. It takes a lot for me to enjoy "women's fiction," so I'm not terribly surprised at my reaction. Wish it were different.

BURY THE LEAD

Author: David Rosenfelt

Genre: Legal Mystery, Series #3

Published: 2004

Personal Rating: 4/5 (very good)

Yearly Count: 44

Andy Carpenter, a defense lawyer, is retained by the local newspaper editor when one of his employees is contacted by a serial killer.

Why did I wait so long to get back to this series? I love Andy Carpenter. His wit is what keeps me coming back for more.

Here's a small sample:

We stare at each other during dinner. I'm staring at her because she possesses a casual beauty that quite literally and quite frequently takes my breath away. Since she doesn't do much gasping when I enter a room, my guess is that she's staring at me for a different reason.

And another . . .

Suddenly, Singer's face brightens. "Wait a minute, I heard about this," he says to Laurie. "You kicked his *ss, right? The guys were talking about it."

"He slipped and fell," she says. "I just neglected to catch him."

He turns to me. What were you doing while the lady was punching him out? Holding her purse?"

His question confirms my low opinion of his intelligence. He knows nothing; the fact is that Laurie wasn't even carrying a purse that night. It was more of a handbag.

THE 19TH WIFE

Author: David Ebershoff

Genre: Fiction, Standalone

Published: 2008

Personal Rating: 2.5/5 (eh)

Yearly Count: 43

The 19th Wife alternates between two fictitious stories of polygamy: a historical account of Brigham Young and his 19th Wife, Ann Eliza, and a contemporary mystery in which the "husband" of many wives is murdered.

For me, the individual stories separated themselves on both ends of the spectrum. The historical account was intriguing and compelling, while the contemporary story was very amateurish and ineffective. Also, as a listener to this book, I found it to be very choppy. I did not care for the alternating chapters and didn't really care much about the characters. Also, I wondered many times, if any of the historical aspects held any truth. I had high hopes for this "chunkster," but ultimately feel it was way too long, and a waste of my time. There are many other really good books on this topic that I would recommend.