August Reads

64.  Sarah's Key (de Rosnay) ~ 3.5/5

65.  Never Knowing (Stevens) ~ 4/5

66.  The Chicago Way (Harvey) ~ 3.25/5

67.  Copper Sun (Draper) ~ 4/5

68.  The Elegance of the Hedgehog (Barbery) ~ 2/5

69.  You Believers (Bradley) ~ 4.25/5

70.  Dreams of Joy (See) ~ 3.5/5

71.  Living Dead Girl (Scott) ~ 4.25/5

Chellini's Solution (Fusilli) ~ 3/5

One True Love (Lippman) ~ 4/5

Wifey (Stine) ~ 4/5

Push or Was Fell (Brandon) ~ 4/5

72.  The Lock Artist (Hamilton) ~ 4.25/5

Entrapped (Coben) ~ 4.25/5

73.  Death Do Us Part (Edited By:  Coben) ~ 4/5

Short Story (not counted)

Bold titles made Best Reads of 2011 list

~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~

MONTHLY  -  YEARLY STATS:
TOTAL:  10 - 73 

Audiobooks:    7 - 45

Best Reads:    0 - 8

Books:    2 - 16

DNF:    0 - 4

eBooks:    1 - 12

New-to-Me Authors:    9 - 49

Off My Shelf:   4 - 24

Published in 2011:  3 - 22

Short Stories:    5 - 36

YA:    2 - 12

Ratings

Monthly - Yearly Stats:

5.00 =   0 - 2

4.75 =   0 - 0

4.50 =   0 - 6

4.25 =   3 - 5

4.00 =    3 - 14

3.75 =   0 - 9

3.50 =    2 - 17

3.25 =   1 - 3

3.00 =   0 - 7

2.75 =   0 - 1

2.50 =   0 - 2

2.25 =   0 - 2

2.00 =   1 - 5

1.75 =   0 - 0

1.50 =   0 - 0

1.25 =   0 - 0

1.00 =   0 - 0

__________

average =  3.70  -  3.56 

DEATH DO US PART

 

Edited by: Harlan Coben

Genre: Short Story Collection

Published: Death Do Us Part, 2006

Personal Rating: 4/5 (very good)

Format:  Book

Yearly Count: 73

Death Do Us Part is a collection of 19 short stories about love, lust and murder.  My actual average rating was 3.8, but it definitely deserves a 4.  Especially since most stories were really very good.  Even though I started this collection in early September of 2010 (eek!), I have only good things to say about it.  My lack of consistent reading had nothing to do with this particular collection.  It, unfortunately, just kept getting usurped for one reason or another.  I'm very content with all the new authors I met (13) and hope to pick up something by them at another time.


 Queeny (Pearson)

Safe Enough (Child)

The Home Front (Ardai)

The Last Flight (DuBois)

 Part Light, Part Memory (Hill)

Blarney (Hockensmith)

Heat Lightening (Krueger)

Till Death Do Us Part (Maleeny)

The Cold Hard Truth (McMahan)

Cyberdate.com (Savage)

The Masseuse (Wohlforth)

One Shot (Parrish)

Home Coming (Todd)

A Few Small Repairs (Abbott)

Chellini's Solution (Fusilli)

One True Love (Lippman)

Wifey (Stine)

Push or Was Fell (Brandon)

Entrapped (Coben)

ENTRAPPED (19 of 19)

Author: Harlan Coben

(Edited by Harlan Coben)

Genre: Short Story Collection

Published: Death Do Us Part, 2006

Personal Rating: 4.25/5 (very good +)

Format:  Book

(ss) Yearly Count: 36

A newlywed reports to the police that her husband has been missing for two days. Yet when he comes home, she claims that he is an imposter.

I liked watching this story unfold. Not knowing what was true kept me captivated, and I enjoyed it until the very end.  

THE LOCK ARTIST

Author: Steve Hamilton

Genre: Fiction, Standalone

Published: 2010

Personal Rating: 4.25/5 (very good +)

Format: Audiobook

Yearly Count: 72

Michael, a 17-year-old, gets wrapped up in a high school prank and ends up taking the fall which included consequences. The consequences evolved into much more trouble than he ever imagined. The added kicker - as a result of a traumatic experience as a young boy, Michael is mute.

Michael was a great character. He was a scarred teen, but had a good heart.  I had sympathy for him and wanted to help.  However, I became a tad bit annoyed with the amount of lock talk, but overall the plot was interesting. And, I wasn't 100% pleased with the way in which the story was told either - alternating between several years.  I did love, love, love the setting, though!  Michael was all over the country, but Michigan (Milford, Detroit, Ann Arbor) was prevalent. It was so exciting to read specifics about places I know.  I gave the extra ".25" simply for Michael and Michigan.

PUSH OR WAS FELL (18 of 19)

Author: Jay Brandon

(Edited by Harlan Coben)

Genre: Short Story Collection

Published: Death Do Us Part, 2006

Personal Rating: 4/5 (very good)

Format:  Book

(ss) Yearly Count: 35

A quick marriage leads to a quick resolution.

My curiosity was piqued through much of this story. I guessed the outcome, but still enjoyed the process of learning if I was right.  

WIFEY (17 of 19)

Author: R. L. Stine

(Edited by Harlan Coben)

Genre: Short Story Collection

Published: Death Do Us Part, 2006

Personal Rating: 4/5 (very good)

Format:  Book

(ss) Yearly Count: 34

A man is murdered and his best friend is willed his prize possession - his other best friend, a big dog.

This was a great introduction to a new-to-me author. I loved that he was able to project the character's anger and fear so that I could feel it. The plot itself was good, too.

I'm only aware of Stine's children's books (i.e.: Goosebumps). Does anybody know if he writes YA/adult books? Obviously he wrote a short story for this collection, so maybe there's more. :)  

ONE TRUE LOVE (16 of 19)

Author: Laura Lippman

(Edited by Harlan Coben)

Genre: Short Story Collection

Published: Death Do Us Part, 2006

Personal Rating: 4/5 (very good)

Format:  Book

(ss) Yearly Count: 33

A woman who has the oldest profession in the world happens upon a client in real life who has a new plan for their relationship.

This was my first full piece of work (even though it was just a short story) that I've read by Lippman and liked her writing.  The plot was interesting, and I especially liked how quick the woman was in figuring out what she could do to thwart the man's plan.  

CHELLINI'S SOLUTION (15 of 19)

Author: Jim Fusilli

(Edited by Harlan Coben)

Genre: Short Story Collection

Published: Death Do Us Part, 2006

Personal Rating: 3/5 (just okay)

Format:  Book

(ss) Yearly Count: 32

A man discovers his wife is having an affair.

Nothing too fancy or memorable here. Once the man finds out, he comes up with a solution to resolve the problem.

LIVING DEAD GIRL

Author: Elizabeth Scott

Genre: YA Fiction, Standalone

Published:  2008

Personal Rating: 4.25/5 (very good +)

Format: Audiobook

Yearly Count: 71

A 15-year-old girl describes her life living with her abductor in the present and the past with flashbacks.

What a terrifying story!  Right from the start I was engaged and a bit anxious throughout. I think Scott did an excellent job of relaying the level of fear and angst. I truly felt it.  Unfortunately it has bits of truth from real life embedded in it.  

This was published as a YA book, and I think it's too scary and advanced for the young. Also, it's a short book, but has a long-lasting effect. Chilling.

DREAMS OF JOY

Author: Lisa See

Genre: Historical Fiction, Sequel to Shanghai Girls

Published: 2011

Personal Rating: 3.5/5 (good)

Format: Audiobook

Yearly Count:  70

In this sequel to Shanghai Girls, the saga continues when Joy flees to China to seek out her roots.

This was seconds away from becoming a DNF.  I felt absolutely no connection to Joy and thought her reception in China was not believable. It took almost half the book for me to get invested and actually care about what happened to any of the characters. The only reason I kept with it was because of the ratings I have seen it receive. I couldn't understand what other readers saw in it and figured I was missing something. Finally, I released my disbelief from the beginning and let the story take me to China. I'm so glad I finished it, because the second half was really very, very good. I'm astonished at the amount of history I learned and what a perfect way to do it - through an interesting story.

YOU BELIEVERS

Author:  Jane Bradley  

Genre:  Fiction, Standalone  

Published:  2011

Personal Rating:  4.25/5 (very good +)

Format:  eBook - iPad

Yearly Count:  69

From NetGalley:

Part southern gothic, part crime, part haunting suspense story, You Believers takes the reader on an infinitely harrowing journey that finally offers insight into how we can endure horrible events with faith, strength, and grace while it reveals the ripple effects of random violence, how the worst things can be faced so that we might not only survive, but grow.

Katy Conner, a 30-year-old bartender, goes missing, and Shelby Waters from Effort Rescue Volunteers is called in to help with the search.

I love how this was told.  There were many narrators, so you really get to know the character's inner thoughts, and they all share from their past and present.  They were unique individuals, yet they were still just everyday people making good or bad decisions, but the story wasn't an everyday story by any means (thank goodness!).  The "southern gothic, part crime, part haunting suspense" was very prevalent and added a halo of gray overhead.  It was somewhat difficult to read at times, but hope hovered nearby as well.

My thanks go to Unbridled Books and NetGalley for sending me this eBook.

THE ELEGANCE OF THE HEDGEHOG

Author:  Muriel Barbery

Genre:  Fiction, Standalone

Published:  2008

Personal Rating:  2/5 (not enjoyable)

Format:  Audiobook

Yearly Count:  68


A 54-year-old French woman, the concierge of an affluent building, and a precocious 12-year-old girl who lives in the building give their take on life in an alternating fashion.  

Oh my.  I decided to finally give this book another try due to the fact that the movie is coming out in a couple of days.  I did finish it, but it was not an enjoyable read (listen).  In the beginning, I had a very difficult time getting into it (slow and boring), but thankfully (at almost the half way point, though) another character was introduced and that changed the book for me.  It did become more interesting, and I had hope.  Unfortunately though, even with the added character and some thought-provoking philosophical topics, I just didn't enjoy it.  I will not be seeing the movie.

COPPER SUN

Author:  Sharon M. Draper

Genre:  YA Historical Fiction, Standalone

Published:  2006

Personal Rating:  4/5 (very good)

Format:  Audiobook

Yearly Count:  67

From deep in Africa to a rice plantation in the Carolinas, we walk alongside Amari as she is captured, sold and abused by her owner.  With nothing but freedom on her mind, she takes steps to make it a reality.

I read Someone Knows My Name about 1.5 years ago and the beginning of these books (Africa to the United States) were extremely similar.  So, even though I thought it was incredibly interesting the first time through, I didn't the second time because it somewhat felt like a reread, and I'm not a re-reader.  However, when a shift in plot finally occurred and the story progressed, I liked where it took me.  I hadn't read anything about the Fort Mose before, so learning something new about this time frame was appreciated.  There wasn't a lot of information, per se, but I now have more knowledge about it than when I began.  In general, it was a well-written young-adult historical fiction story with a couple of likable main characters.

THE CHICAGO WAY

Author:  Michael Harvey

Genre:  Mystery, Michael Kelly Series #1

Published:  2007

Personal Rating:  3.25/5 (just okay +)

Format:  Audiobook

Yearly Count:  66  

Former Chicago detective, Michael Kelly, is now a PI who is hired by his retired, ex-partner to look into an unsolved case regarding a young girl.  To his dismay, the ex-partner is soon to be found dead.  Kelly is a suspect while he tries to figure out who are the good guys and who are the bad guys.

This has been on my radar for many years.  With an audiobook version available, I finally went for it.  In the end, I'm a little disappointed, but I do want to read the second in this series because I liked Michael Kelly.  He has a little zip to his tongue that made me want to hear more.  There just wasn't anything else that kept me intrigued or truly interested.  So, a good character with a not so good plot has me curious about what may be ahead.

Anybody read this series?  Does it get better?

      

Give-Away Winner!

CONGRATULATIONS!

Shut Your Eyes Tight (Verdon) Winner is:

Molly

I'll be in touch! 

NEVER KNOWING

Author:  Chevy Stevens

Genre:  Thriller, Standalone

Published:  2011

Personal Rating:  4/5 (very good)

Format:  Book

Yearly Count:  65

From Chevy Stevens' Website:

All her life, Sara Gallagher has wondered about her birth parents. As an adopted child with two sisters who were born naturally to her parents, Sara’s home life was not ideal. The question of why she was given up for adoption has always haunted her. Finally, she is ready to take steps and find closure.

But some questions are better left unanswered.

After months of research, Sara locates her birth mother—only to be met with horror and rejection. Then she discovers the devastating truth: her mother was the only victim ever to escape a killer who has been hunting women every summer for decades. But Sara soon realizes the only thing worse than finding out about her father is him finding out about her.

What if murder is in your blood?

Never Knowing is a complex and compelling portrayal of one woman’s quest to understand herself, her origins, and her family. That is, if she can survive…

I have to say that I loved Still Missing and knew that any book to immediately follow would have a difficult time beating it.  Ultimately, it did cause a bit of a problem in my rating because I compared.  I just couldn't help it.  Even though I felt the plot was a little repetitious, I thought the writing was terrific.  No matter when I picked it up, I was immediately placed back in the action.  I was right in the thick of it and felt like I never put it down.  That was awesome.  

My complaints (or why I didn't like it as much as Still Missing) come from two major areas:  characters and some plot points.  I didn't really like Sara or any of her family.  I think the only person I actually liked was Sara's fiancé.  I didn't dislike anybody; I just didn't like them.  As for the plot, I mentioned that above - the repetition (phone calls, decisions made, etc.).  I'm disappointed that it didn't make my "best reads" list, but I did really, really enjoy it and can't wait for another Stevens' thriller.  I think she's fabulous.

My thanks go to St. Martin's Press and Shelf Awareness for sending me this ARC.