2018 A to Z Reading Challenge

Bookworm and I have both achieved Turtle Status in our 2018 A to Z Reading Challenge by completing 5 books!!!

2018 - A-Z Challenge --------------------------  "I"
    
          I am the Messenger   -  Markus Zusak

  Ed is a nineteen year old cab driving.  Just going through life driving his cab, playing cards with his friends, and chilling with his dog, Doorman.  One day he foils a bank robbery, no big deal. He goes back to his ordinary life.  Then the first ace appears in his mailbox.    But this card has addresses and times on it.  No instructions & no clues on what to do.

   Ed figures it out and soon is running all around town helping and sometimes hurting people and sometimes getting hurt himself.  But why?  and Who is sending the cards,  and Why was Ed chosen ?    

I enjoy this book a lot.  I loved the subtle humor ....." he wears a  suit. A cheap suit.  It's all over him."  I love how Zusak uses words to paint a picture. "It feels like the mornings  clap their hands. To make me wake"       " Marv throws his voice out and ropes be back to face him".  

For me it was a feel good book and the ending was totaling unexpected.    

                                          #2018AtoZchallange

A Killer Harvest by Paul Cleave

PageHabit Subscription - August - Mystery

2018 A to Z Challenge - "K"

A fascinating concept - cellular memory.  And this concept explored through a suspense/thriller is well done by Cleave.  Our main character, Joshua receives the eyes of his detective/cop father when he is killed in the line of duty.  What Joshua sees is more than just what is right in front of him.  There is little more I can say without giving spoilers about this book (don't want anyone giving me the evil eye).  There is a pretty good twist and Cleave's writing certainly has the reader flipping pages as fast as you can. With some morally questionable behaviors you may find yourself looking into your own soul with fresh eyes.

Quotes:  "...and wonders what it is he put them through in order for them not to want to help him now."

"Monday does what it does best-it arrives quicker than any other day."

#2018AtoZChallenge

2018 - A-Z Challenge -------------------------"A"

                         All the Missing Girls
                           Megan Miranda

We meet Nicolette 10 years after her friend, Corrine had disappeared. Nicolette has returned to her small home town to help her brother, Daniel, get their father's house ready to sell. Their father is in a nursing home with beginning dementia and is rambling nonsensical things. Or are they??  Does he know something about Corrine?  Is he confused?? 

Now Annaleise, , a girl who is dating Nicolette's ex boyfriend.  is missing.   What????  Who is behind this?????

In a story that is told backwards  -  Day 15 to Day 1 --  Nicolettte tries to find the truth about what happened to Annaleise  and discovers many secrets about what happened 10 years ago.

I enjoyed the writing twist in the reversal of the telling of the happenings.  It kept me on my toes and thinking about when something I learned happened.  If you like suspense novels,  I would highly recommend this interesting read.

#2018AtoZ
Challenge

The Borrower by Rebecca Makkai

New Author

2018 A to Z Challenge - "B"

This book has been on my shelf, taunting me for years!  So glad I finally picked it up through this year's reading challenge!!  A light read with some pretty heavy topics that stay with you long after the epilogue - First Amendment rights, stereotypes, children's rights.  The book takes place around 2006, during the Bush presidency, but many of the statements of America and government ring true today.  Maybe even more so.  I think there would be quite a bit for book club's to discuss in this one and for people to think about "what would I do?"

And of course since it revolves around books and libraries and travel.....I was hooked!  Add to that, the humor and quirky characters...I almost didn't want the book to end.

There was one point where it had just started to feel a bit repetitive, a little bit drawn out, but fortunately the author advanced the plot at that time.  I've already placed Makkai's next two novels on my TBR pile!!!  And I think I need to read Ulysses - surprising that as an English major it was never required reading for me; I'm sorry it wasn't.

And I dare you not to YouTube the Australian National Anthem or hear Lucy's father's Russian accent in your head!

Quotes:  "...having chosen America out of all the countries in the world, and then watching the government tighten its clench, chip away at the promised freedoms..."

"You are lucky...that you can make fun of your President this way.  You know what happened if you made jokes about Stalin?...People died all the time because of jokes."

"It had saved the lives of thousands of people before him, the ones who...had looked at those outdated moral codes, at the judgments of their parents and aunts and priests, and said the same thing:  Wait, no.  That can't be right."

"I'd been a fish in the current so long, I'd forgotten I could swim."

"I do still believe that books can save you."

#2108AtoZChallenge

The End of Temperance Dare by Wendy Webb

Once Upon a Book Club Subscription - October 2017

2018 A to Z Challenge - "E"

Wow, what a creepy, I needed to sleep with the lights on, book!  Reminiscent of Shirley Jackson’s Haunting at Hill House.

Start with an old TB sanatorium turned into a writers/artists retreat.  Add in a handful of carefully selected houseguests.  Mix in some things that go bump in the night and you got yourself a pretty good gothic horror tale.

I was certainly captivated by the plot and the characters and got really weirded out when my insomnia kicked in and I found myself waking up between 2:00-3:00 a.m.; the same time the main character was being awakened by strange sounds!

I had kinda guessed at some of the mystery, but I really didn’t see the bizarre ending coming.  It was a bit more paranormal than I typically read, but I found myself enjoying the ride.

This was a Once Upon a Book Club Book with five unique gifts to enhance the reading experience and again the company did a great job in selecting fun and practical gifts.

#2018AtoZChallenge

      2018 A-Z Challenge--------------"H"

            Hidden Keys    by  Andre Alexis
                              new author

We are off on a treasure hunt!!!!  Tancred Palmieri, a very honorable thief,  has made a promise to Willow Azarian.  Willow's father left a special memento to each of his 5 children that provides a clue to a large inheritance. Tancred must steal the other 4 items and, with Willow's object, they will decipher the clues.

Even after Willow's death, Tancred tries to honor his promise,  to find the treasure.  Along the way he has to deal with some unsavory characters like Colby, the albino black man, and Freud, the psychopath, both heroin dealers.  Plus Willow's siblings, each with their own agenda concerning the reality of the hidden inheritance.

Bit of a fun read, slow at times but I did enjoy it as it was something a bit different.

                         #2018AtoZChallenge

Burning Bright by Tracy Chevalier

Historical Fiction
2018 A to Z Challenge - January Mini Challenge - A book you bought based on the cover or author.

"The Girl with the Pearl Earring" was my first Chevalier book and I loved it!  I've since read "Falling Angels", "Remarkable Creatures" and "The Last Runaway" and while I've not loved them as much as the first one, I still enjoy Chevalier's amazing research and the way she weaves a story.  So much so that if I see a new book by her on the horizon I must have it even if I know nothing about the plot!  I just received "At the Edge of the Orchard" for Christmas and it eagerly sits atop my toppling book pile!

"Burning Bright" was a delightful read of some truly lovable characters.  The historical figures of the poet, William Blake and circus owner, Philip Astley (whom I did not know was a real person) were not the main focus, but were colorful and intriguing.  It was the characters of Maggie, Maisie and Jem that the reader is cheer-leading for throughout the book.  Chevalier brings the sights, sounds and smells of 18th Century London to life along with the trials and tribulations of a simpler, but not necessarily easier time.

Quotes: "Neither had much experience with handling books...had never owned a book..."

"Gossip spread quickly...It was a kind of currency, with coins newly minted every hour."

"...his deep sorrow for the death of his brother...of everyone who was lost and would be lost, himself included"

#atozminiChallenge

2018 A - Z Reading Challenge --- X

                                          2018 A - Z Reading Challenge  ---  X

                                          XO  by  Jeffery Deaver

            For all you Jeffery Deaver fans who know his Lincoln Rhyme series, this book stars his other character, Katheryn Dance.  Katherine Dance works with the CBI in body-language analysis, kinetics. 

              Katherine is taking some personal time and gets involved in a stalking case when she visits her young friend Kayleigh Towers.  Kayleigh is a young, popular country western singer who appears to have a very obsessive fan or does she?  Edwin is a very smart stalker.  He knows the law and never steps over the line so that Katherine can arrest him or even issue a retaining order.  Then Kayleigh's road manager is murdered , but still no hard evidence is found.  How do we get this guy?????

I would not call this book a thriller or even  suspenseful  but it certainly is a very good who-done-it with the obsessed stalker, a murder or two and a few "Oh,No!"  moments.  There are a lot of twists and turns, some I thought I saw coming,  and some I didn't see coming at all.  All-in-all, another good read by Jeffrey Deaver.  

                                                   #2018AtoZChallenge

The Visitors by Catherine Burns

PageHabit Subscription - September - Mystery

2018 A to Z Challenge - "V"

What a strange book.  A bit gothic mystery, though I would probably categorize it horror/mystery?

I can't say I disliked the book, but I'm also not ready to say I liked it either.  Unfortunately the ending left me disappointed so I'm giving the book an "ok" rating.

While I liked some of Burns descriptive writing, none of the characters were very likable (which isn't always the sign of a badly written book), though you could find some empathy for the protagonist, Marion.

While it wasn't an edge of your seat thriller, the book read well and you certainly wanted to discover the creepy secret within.  Burns did keep you guessing with back and forth from the present situation to the backstory of the two siblings.  Even more distributing is the fact that the author created some of the plot from true crime stories.

Not a bad read - a disturbing and, as one reviewer said a "slow burn", with a not-quite-what-I-hoped-for ending.

#2018AtoZChallenge

All is Not Forgotten by Wendy Walker

2018 A to Z Challenge - "A"

I was really looking forward to this book, as well as the brand new one by this author, but I struggled throughout this entire book and now I'm not so sure I want to purchase her latest release.

The narrator in All is Not Forgotten is unreliable, unlikable, egotistical, pompous and repetitive, terribly repetitive.  He even says (often) "As I've told you" and goes on to repeat himself AGAIN!

Now maybe the author intended to make the narrator an unlikable character, but it made for a long, difficult and not very enjoyable read in which at times it felt as if I was being lectured to.  I kept thinking that the author must have been a therapist herself, but I checked and she is an attorney - so yes, that made sense that she would over-explain/lecture  (I work with attorneys so I know of what I speak).

At times there was confusion as to who was speaking as the author uses italicized print to set off other speakers from the narrator.

But it wasn't all bad, Walker did do a good job of keeping the mystery going, throwing in red herrings and at the end all the loose ends were tied up.  I doubt the reader will see the end coming as not all the breadcrumbs were laid out to do so.  The author's interview at the end of the book gives explanation as to why.

While some of the descriptions of the crime(s) are very graphic, I felt, too graphic at times and the sexual nature of the story is uncomfortable; I did find the idea of the treatment of erasing traumatic memories fascinating and the author's portrayal of how such treatment may play out a valid argument.

Quotes:  "Love can make one person cry and another smile.  One angry and another sad.  One aroused and another sleepy with contentment."

"Anxiety disorders are on a continuum like all mental illness.  We must have names for them so we can communicate about what we see, but it is not the same as diagnosing a physical ailment like the flu."

"How else can I describe it?  I do not admire her.  She is not particularly skilled at any one thing, though she is highly competent at running our family.  She attended college...but I don't think she learned much.  She was very social.  Lived in a sorority.  Majored in English, which basically means she read a lot of novels.  It was mostly a passive exercise for her." [VERY ANGRY READER (English major) AT THIS POINT]

"...at the risk of sounding egotistical, I was very pleased with myself." [Yeah, pretty much narrator's attitude the entire book]

#2018AtoZChallenge

2018 is here and so is the 2018 A to Z Reading Challenge!!!

All is Not Forgotten by Wendy Walker

Borrower (The) by Rebecca Makkai

Carnegie's Maid by Marie Benedict

Dear Zoe by Phillip Beard

End of Temperance Dare (The) by Wendy Webb

Family Fang (The) by Kevin Wilson

Girl Last Seen by Nina Laurin

Hotel on Shadow Lake by Daniela Tully

Isaac's Storm: A Man, a Time, and the Deadliest Hurricane in History by Erik Larson

Julie and Julia by Julie Powell

Killer Harvest (A) by Paul Cleave

Last Mrs. Parrish (The) by Liv Constantine

Maze at Windermere (The) by Gregory Blake Smith

Now or Never by Elizabeth Adler

Ocean at the End of the Lane (The) by Neil Gaiman

Pomegranate Soup by Marsha Mehran

Quickie (The) by James Patterson and Michael Ledwidge

Red Sky in Morning by Paul Lynch

Song of Captive Bird by Jasmin Darznik

Tangled Mercy (A) by Joy Jordan-Lake

Underground River (The) by Martha Conway

Visitors (The) by Catherine Burns

Woman in the Photo (The) by Mary Hogan

XO by Jeffery Deaver

You Suck (A Love Story) by Christopher Moore

Zorro by Isabel Allende

2018 A - Z Reading Challenge

                                                             

        Beasts of Extraordinary Circumstances  - Ruth Emmie Lang

I wasn't sure that I was going to like this book.  A debut novel being toted as "magical realism" but for me it was a bit more whimsical and the  story line jumps around from character to character and different time periods . That took me a little while to get use to.    However,  I did end up enjoying the book.

I met Weylyn when he is born, opens his eyes and snow falls on the doctor who delivered him.  Weylyn closes his eyes and the snow stops.  Did I mention that he was born in June??   Yes, a strange little boy. 

At an early age he is orphaned and lives with wolves.  Strange things continue to occur whenever he is around.  He seems to be able to converse with animals and has an effect on the weather.

I came to care for Weylyn as he tries to fit in and interact with people.  He really wants to because of a young girl he meets by the name of Mary. I  continue to travel with Weylyn as he grows from young boy to manhood, treating everyone and everything he meets with tenderness and honesty.