frogcat3@cox.net
Normally, I choose to read fiction, but my current reading list features three nonfiction books too good to put down, yet important enough to pass on. (Two of the books are already in friends' hands.)

Sugar Busters! Cut Sugar to Trim Fat by H. Leighton Steward, Morrison C. Bethea, Samuel S. Andrews, and Luis A. Balart. 5 stars.
Oh, no! Not another diet book! This book explains the principles behind the necessary dietary changes in a cogent manner and is responsible for major changes in my life. I have cut my need for insulin by nearly 50% in less than three weeks and will see weight loss continue as the need for insulin decreases. This book is essential for type II diabetics.

Strange Fruit: Billie Holiday, Cafe Society, and an Early Cry for Civil Rights by David Margolick. 5 stars.
This amazing little book tells the story of "Strange Fruit," perhaps the most important song written in the last century. Racism, lynching, anti-Semitism, and McCarthyism are all a part of this fascinating book I read in one evening. The song was haunting, and the story behind it is equally haunting. (A PBS program was based on this book.)

Seabiscuit: An American Legend by Laura Hillenbrand. 5 stars.
As a child, I grew up reading horse stories. This one's an epic. Set against the depression, this horse and the people involved with him survive a series of suspenseful disasters to triumph and eventually receive more press than the current world leaders. Seabiscuit captured the imagination of a nation aching for good news, and this book captures the essence of that era. Read the book before you see the movie this summer.

FalseMillennium@aol.com
Shutter Island by Dennis Lehane. 5 stars.
"It was a dark and stormy night." Isn't Snoopy's Great American Novel always slated to start this way? Only in this case, it "is" a dark and stormy night on Shutter Island. Lehane's latest work follows the tale of two U.S. Marshals sent to an island off the coast of Boston that houses a prison for the criminally insane. Their job? To find a missing female patient sentenced to the island after killing her husband and two children. Lehane continues to produce masterful themes of loss, loneliness and the passage of time while challenging his characters, and his readers, into questioning their perceptions of reality.

Dark Star Safari by Paul Theroux. 4 stars.
Another book of travel adventures from one of literature's most curmudgeonly perambulants. Theroux returns to Africa, forty years after his life there as a teacher in Uganda, traveling the continent from Cairo to Capetown. The news isn't good. The countries are rife with poverty, governmental corruption, violence, beggars, misbegotten charities, desperation, and a seemingly endless supply of people who wish to live in New Jersey or Kansas. Theroux describes Africa as a place you go "to wait." As for the charities? "Where are the Africans in all of this? If all you have done is spend money and have not inspired anyone, you can teach the sharpest lesson by turning your back and going home. It was what Africans did. The most imaginative solution to their plight was to bail out."

Half of the people he meets on the Kilimanjaro Express train were fleeing, with the intent to emigrate. Quoting Henry James (to a blindly fervent missionary) Theroux says, "Only don't, I beseech you, generalize too much in these sympathies and tendernesses --- remember that every life is a special problem which is not yours but another's, and content yourself with the terrible algebra of your own." "Safari" is the Swahili word for journey, not the machismo hunt of Hemingway. Theroux's safari epiphany? That only Africans can make a difference in Africa.

queene1@earthlink.net
The Vanished Man by Jeffery Deaver. 5 stars so far.
This book is about a cunning magician who uses disguises, illusion, and sleight of hand to kill again and again, and baffle Lincoln Rhyme, investigator extraordinaire. As each murder becomes more gruesome and baffling, he enlists the help of a magician's assistant to acquaint him with the fine points of magic. The forensic details and explanations of magic are incredibly fascinating. I read this book every free moment I could spare.

age304@mizzou.edu
I am reading and really enjoying Harlan Coben's No Second Chance.
It's always so good to find a book I can't put down! 5 stars.

YMuso@aol.com
5 +stars! I promised myself that I would read one classic this year. I am reading War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy. Dear Fellow readers, do not be daunted by its length. It is one the best books I have ever read. I cannot put it down. The writing is superb and the story is extraordinary. Do not miss this one…It is one book that I will be very sad to finish.

johno99@comcast.net
Dark Star Safari: Overland from Cairo to Capetown. Paul Theroux. 5 stars.
Superb reading! You can almost smell the camels and feel the sand in your teeth. Theroux's great good humor carries off what could, in other hands, have been a maudlin disaster. His take on international aid workers as smug and selfish "agents of virtue" driving around in Land Rovers amidst abject poverty is a close-up view that many readers may find helpful when the next appeal for charity comes in.

The Guards by Ken Bruen. 3 stars.
Tough Irish stuff here.

The White Trilogy by Ken Bruen. 5 stars.
More tough stuff here from a master of dialogue and cop humor. You find yourself laughing when an assassin gets ready to smash his victim's head in with a baseball bat. You'll read every last page of these three related
novellas.

Pattern Recognition by William Gibson. 5 stars.
Strange, but once you're on this bike and rolling, you don't want it to end. It's that good. This saga of the travels and travails of a woman with a talent for trends-spotting is at the same time unnerving and comical,
although a mite Trekkie in its own way.

Close to Home by Peter Robinson. 3 stars.
A page flipper from start to finish, but perhaps some predictability sets in.

Death in Dublin by Bartholomew Gill. 4 stars.
The stars are for dialogue and plot, and because it's a rippin' read. But what in heaven's name did the late Gill have against the Catholic group Opus Dei to have featured them as villains so often, including this, his last effort before death?

parcelhome@adelphia.net
Dead Aim by Iris Johansen. 1 star.
There's too much terrorism in the world today. I read fiction for escape, and so that I don't feel like I am watching the news.
The Tea Rose by Jennifer Donnelly. 5 stars.
Excellent!

Lester2000@aol.com
I am enjoying John Grisham's The King of Torts very much. I also loved Anita Shreve's Sea Glass and Fortune's Rock --- light summer reading.

songoden@earthlink.net
Living in Ether by Patricia Geary.
I came to Geary's work by way of a review of her latest, The Other Canyon: Trekking to the Intangible. Not finding the new one right away, I picked up an earlier work, Strange Toys, and now this 20-year-old gem. Geary has a way with her wordcraft. I'm fond of passages like:

"In California we believe that most anxiety can be traced to a purely physical cause.
Which can be traced to a purely mental cause.
Which can be traced to a purely spiritual cause.
Which can probably be traced back to a physical cause. Et cetera."

and

"We adults know how to complicate our rituals, how to keep ourselves entertained. But the effect is professional --- hip, to those in the know."

susanrjensen@yahoo.com
The Saving Graces by Patricia Gaffney. 4 1/2 stars.
A wonderful book about women and friendship. It details the triumphs and struggles of four members of a women's club. Well-written, funny and poignant. Great read!

Life of Pi by Yann Martel. 5 stars.
This book truly lives up to all the hype. On its most basic level, the book is about a teenage boy who survives many months at sea in a lifeboat with a Bengal tiger. There is much, much more to this wonderful, vivid tale. Not to be missed!

The Shadow Dancer by Margaret Coel. 4 stars.
Lawyer Vicky Holden and Father John O'Malley are at it again. This time the mystery involves several murders, an Indian cult, and Vicky as a murder suspect. A good, fast read.

charris@pcnuthut.com
Midnight Bayou by Nora Roberts. 4 stars.
One of her better books. It has supernatural happenings and a good ending.

Daddy's Little Girl by Mary Higgins Clark. 4 stars.
A good mystery and Clark's usual good writing.

The Color of Death by Bruce Alexander. 3 stars.
A mystery in 1775 in England about a blind detective and the young boy who helps him solve the problems.

The King of Torts by John Grisham. 4 stars.
The usual good lawyer story by Grisham. This one is not quite up to some of his first ones, but better than lots of books by other authors.

Three Years in a Twelve-Foot Boat by Stephen Ladd.
A true story of this man's journey in a boat from Montana to Cuba and how he got there. He writes a good journal but you wonder why he thought he had to make that trip.

Rickimc@aol.com
The Claiming of Sleeping Beauty by Anne Rice. 1 star.
A friend said this book was good, but it was too sexually graphic for my tastes and had almost no story line.

The Magician's Nephew by C. S. Lewis. 4 stars.
As a big fan of fantasy novels, it was very interesting to read one of the Narnia books by a pioneer in fantasy and see from where many modern story concepts sprung.

mysticjen@ev1.net
I am currently reading The Forest for the Trees: An Editor's Advice to Writers by Betsy Lerner. This book is a must read! I give it 5 stars. I'm not even halfway through the book and already I have learned a lot.

Ykira@aol.com
My Losing Season by Pat Conroy. 5 stars.
His words drip like the Southern Dew and roll like honey from his pen. I am going back and rereading his previous books starting with The Lords of
Discipline.

DLV122273@aol.com
I'm currently reading Let It Bleed by Ian Rankin. Both my husband and myself totally devour Ian Rankin's Rebus novels. We'd love to visit Edinburgh and take the John Rebus Tour around the city. What a terrific writer!

In the car, I'm listening to Pennies on a Dead Woman's Eyes by Marcia Muller. Sharon McCone is an exceptional detective with a real life, real feelings, and real intelligence. I've also recently listened to the first of the Miss Julia novels by Ann B. Ross, Miss Julia Speaks Her Mind. I've listened to the other two before and hope there will be more. Miss Julia is a hoot!

I love Jan Karon's Father Cavanaugh novels, Elizabeth George's novels, and Barbara Kingsolver's novels --- The Poisonwood Bible is probably one of the best books ever written! I teach a Shakespeare elective, and my students and I have recently read The Taming of the Shrew and The Merchant of Venice. You can't go wrong with the Bard!

Also, any of Robert Goddard's novels are fantastic pieces of storytelling (In Pale Battalions, Into the Blue). He's an extraordinary, ironic writer. When you read or listen to his books, it's like you're living the characters' lives right along with them. And my list would not be complete without all the Lillian Jackson Braun cat books. Love that KoKo and YumYum and Qwill!

svitale@grantsburgtelcom.net
I just finished reading That Old Ace in the Hole by Annie Proulx. I loved her previous novel, The Shipping News, and read this expecting something similar. But this one took forever to get into --- so long, in fact, that I almost gave up on it. I lived in Texas for two years right after college, and her dialogue is right on. All in all, this was a good book. 3 stars.

KLOZIER40@aol.com
The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown. 5 stars.
A real page turner.

BREEZYWRITER@aol.com
Sea Glass by Anita Shreve. 5 stars.
Another great read by Anita Shreve. This author's style is unique and her stories are unforgettable.

harrises@bayou.com
I am reading Dating Hamlet: Ophelia's Story by Lisa Fielder. 4 stars.
This is a young adult novel from Ophelia's side of Hamlet's saga. It's great for those kids studying Shakespeare or adults who just want a different twist on the story. I also enjoyed The Shakespeare Stealer by Gary Blackwood. 5 stars.

lindaharriet@msn.com
I just finished Family History by Dani Shapiro and could barely put it down. I read it in two sittings. What I found especially interesting about it was that you can do all of the right things, but still things can turn out wrong in your family. The book stayed true to the very end and didn't have a pat ending. It's definitely a 5-star book!

The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd is another book I just finished. I enjoyed the parallel between the bees and the human characters. We all need to recognize the mother within us. A 4-star book.

Newcrain@aol.com
Miss Julia Speaks Her Mind by Ann B. Ross. 4 stars.
A fast, fun read. Picture newly wealthy widow who opens her door one day to meet the mistress and son of her dead husband. The unlikely plot becomes likely and believable as she learns to assert herself as she never did before in 40+ years of marriage. And she gains a new family to boot. 4 stars instead of 5 --- just because it's not "literary" --- but it's definitely fun, fun, fun.

A Trip to the Beach by Melinda and Robert Blanchard. 4 stars.
Escape civilization and live in the islands for the rest of your life? Sounds great, but not when you --- like the Blanchards --- try to start up a restaurant. Imagine importing from the mainland all of your restaurant equipment and food. Trying to hire reliable and conscientious help in a "manana" culture. Then the hurricane hits. My husband and I both read this true story and were beset constantly by incredulity over what the Blanchards continued to undertake and survive.

Yodasmommy@aol.com
Right now I am reading Forever by Pete Hamill. It has been a while since I
have read anything with any history about Ireland in it, and I am enjoying
this book very much. So far it is 5 stars!!

GM7685@aol.com
Kingdom of Shadows by Alan Furst. 4 stars.
Red Gold by Alan Furst. 4 1/2 stars.
Up Country by Nelson DeMille. 4 stars.

NGroves@aol.com
Julie and Romeo by Jeanne Ray. 4 stars.
A love story that proves it's never too late for romance. In their 60s, Julie and Romeo meet at a business conference and sparks fly. They already know each other slightly, since their families own competing florist businesses. On top of that, the families have been bitter enemies for several generations, although no one seems to remember what started the feud. Julie and Romeo's grown children are outraged at the romance and try to stop it, despite the fact that Julie is divorced, Romeo is a widower, and they are certainly old enough to make up their own minds. Will love win out? Let's just say that Ray writes happier endings than Shakespeare.

The Virgin's Knots by Holly Payne. 4 stars.
A young woman in an isolated Turkish mountain village is famous for her skills in weaving rugs and has been told that the skill in her hands is compensation for the polio that has damaged her legs. While she is proud of her talent, she also longs for the normal life of the other young women, but marriage and motherhood seem to be denied to her because of her disease. The status quo in the village is disrupted when several young people seek love matches instead of arranged marriages, an American anthropologist arrives in search of evidence of goddess worship, and thieves from outside the village injure the weaver while trying to steal one of the rugs she is making for a bride-to-be. An interesting look at a little known way of life and unusual characters.

The Travelling Hornplayer by Barbara Trapido. 4 stars.
I'm still reading this, but it's great so far. Each chapter focuses on one character who tells a piece of the story. In brief, teenager Lydia has been struck by a car and killed, leaving her older sister devastated. We also learn about their parents and stepparents, an author whom Lydia corresponded with shortly before her death, along with his wife, mistress and rather bizarre daughter Stella, who eventually meets the dead girl's sister. I'm not sure where the story is going, but it's great fun and very well-written.

Rainbow Mars by Larry Niven. 2 stars.
This science fiction book has as much to do with time travel and the consequences of environmental damage as it does with space travel. I had trouble staying interested in it, but hardcore sci-fi fans might like it.

CMSivula@aol.com
I am currently reading Caroline Kennedy's A Patriot's Handbook. This was a Mother's Day gift from my daughters. I have just started the book, so I cannot rate it overall. I can tell you that the Foreword is beautiful and that the documents contained therein are some of the most pertinent to our country's history.

OLTLFREAK@aol.com
I'm reading Wild Orchids by Jude Deveraux. As always, a five star book!
This book has a lot of mystery in it, and I can't put it down.

grudolph@ixi.net
Mystic River by Dennis Lehane is at least a 5-star read. I loved the story!

Janis1004A@aol.com
I am currently reading October Sky by Homer Hickam. It's a book with three different themes and I give it 5 stars.

John1rosie@aol.com
The Sinister Pig by Tony Hillerman. 3 stars.
Perhaps Tony bit off more than he could chew. Perhaps Tony took all the easy choices in plot and character development. Perhaps Tony does not choose to write as prolifically and beautifully about the weather and the colors of the land and the native American customs as he once did. We still have Jim and Lieutenant Leaphorn, Bernie, and Cowboy Dashee, their behaviors and interactions to enjoy. No, there is no memorable bad guy here. But given what happens between Jim and Bernie, we will hopefully next find out how Leaphorn and Louisa resolve "things." Thanks for writing, Mr. Hillerman. You still have a world of stories to tell. Please, please do continue.

txmlhl@msn.com
Dirty Work by Stuart Woods. 4 stars.
Stone Barrington has it all --- money, looks, a good job as a lawyer --- but he can't seem to keep a girlfriend. In this book, Carpenter (a British female agent he was involved with in The Short Forever) is in New York City to work on a case. Naturally Carpenter's case coincides with a case that Stone also has an interest in.

Stone and Carpenter work together to find an assassin who is killing British agents (Carpenter is also on that list). When Stone eventually meets Marie-Therese (her parents were killed by agents and she is retaliating for their deaths), he tries to help Marie-Therese get compensation for their deaths and escape without being killed.

Through ill-timed coincidences, things don't work out as Stone planned. The ending is fast and furious. And again Stone is left by himself. I recommend this book.

Hon2724@aol.com
The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown. 4 stars.
I must admit I was going down the bestseller list, and it took me a few pages...well chapters...to get into this one, but when I did, I was fascinated by the story. Very different from today's mystery story books. I read, I learned and I liked it.

The King of Torts by John Grisham. 5 stars.
I am a fan of this writer and always has been, but I began to feel he was just churning them out as many do. However, I very much like the manner in which this book is constructed, as well as the story. He has done an outstanding job on a current subject all of us need to know about. As a citizen of the state of Mississippi I appreciate his take on it all. Very good book. I read, I learned and I loved the book.

houstonwife@hotmail.com
I just finished Cape Light and have just started Home Song by Thomas Kinkade and Katherine Spencer. What a joy these books are to read. The characters come to life, and God is talked about in the most positive, truthful, real way I have ever read in a fiction book. The third book is out this month, and I am anxious to read it. I hope you give them the enjoyment they deserve.

AUGER77777@aol.com
I just finished Where the Red Fern Grows by Wilson Rawls. I don't know how this little gem escaped me when I was growing up. A must-read for every kid, no matter what his or her age. 5 stars.

The Guardian by Nicholas Sparks was a great read. It combines Sparks's love of romance writing with a truly scary tale of suspense. I hope he writes more like this one. 5 stars.

CALsZoo@aol.com
I just finished Milkrun by Sarah Mlynowski and it is a 5 star book. I would classify it in the "beach bag book" category. It's a quick read but tons of fun. The characters are well-developed and the storyline is a hoot. I think any female reader would relate to this book and enjoy it immensely.

Helenme23@wmconnect.com
The Guardian by Nicholas Sparks. 4 stars.
This was my first Nicholas Sparks read. I picked it up because the dusk jacket said it was darker than his other books and because the author was at the store signing copies. (And yes, he looks even better in person.) A good blend of a romance and a thriller. I enjoyed the book, and I loved the dog.

juliecbarnard@yahoo.com
I just finished The Divine Economy of Salvation by Priscila Uppal. I enjoyed the book a lot; it reminds me of The Secret History by Donna Tartt. I would give it 4 stars.

charris@pcnuthut.com
Bell Canto by Ann Pachett. 4 stars.
A very good book that you think you will not like when you start reading it. It is about terrorists holding 72 people hostage. Yet it is funny, as well as tragic and very well-written.

Sunshine and Shadow by Earlene Fowler. 5 stars.
This is a serial about Benni Harper. She works with quilts, and there is always a murder. It holds your interest. You can read each book separately if you wish. I will read the next one as soon as I can.

Meenmom714@aol.com
I am reading The Syndrome by pen name John Case. It is actually a husband and wife writing team. It's about mind control. The character development and the unfolding of the story make it the perfect book to read on a rainy Memorial Day weekend. I can't wait to get back to it.

j_gargus@hotmail.com
I am currently reading The Visitor by Lori Wick. It is historical fiction with a Christian theme, as are most, if not all, of her novels. It is set in early 19th-century England, the third book in the series, and is a romance. I am really enjoying it. It leaves you with a feeling that love can conquer all, and that there is someone out there for everyone. 5 stars!

JDavid5380@aol.com
The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown. It earns 5 stars from me!
I love puzzles and codes, but it's still a great read for those who don't enjoy them. A friend who teaches Art is reading it now. She doesn't get into codes and conspiracies but is enjoying it for the glimpse into the world of art history.

paperbackwriter@rock.com
Anna-Versery ---The Poetry of Anna Marie Fritz.

Siml414@aol.com
The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown.
Really gripping --- keep thinking about the premise of the book. Brown's research had to have been exhaustive. Outstanding read!

Deception Point by Dan Brown. Another really gripping one.
Fiction but based on the latest technology. Much research went into this one. Another outstanding read!

Angels & Demons by Dan Brown.
I have not started this one yet, but it looks like another winner!

joswood@adiis.net
Shutter Island by Dennis Lehane. 5 stars.
The ending of this book was so shocking that I never saw it coming. I'd like to read it again in light of what I now know about that ending. You'll see what I mean if you read it for yourself. Not as good as Mystic River, but close.

No Second Chance by Harlan Coben. 4 stars.
Marc Seidman has been gravely injured in a shooting in his home, his wife is dead from that same event, and where is his 6-month-old daughter? The rest of the novel is spent looking for her. This was a fast-paced novel, one that I hated to put down. There was a great deal of action in the book, but I thought the ending had so much information that it was hard to process all of it. A great read nevertheless.

AndreaCarter3270@aol.com
I've just finished reading Trisha Meili's I Am the Central Park Jogger, which was far more inspiring than it was shattering --- and what happened to her was very, very shattering. Any woman who has ever been victimized by sexual assault of any sort should NOT MISS reading this; it's a wonderful story of determination and hope.

At the moment I'm juggling two books: Alison Weir's Henry VIII: The King and his Court [I'm an English history nut] and Once Upon a Time: Behind the Fairy Tale of Princess Grace and Prince Rainier by J. Randy Taraborrelli. Weir's book is entertaining, as her books usually are for those of us who love things British; I haven't gotten far enough into the Taraborrelli book to rate it yet, but I've always been fascinated by Princess Grace [and wondered why on earth a woman like that would marry someone like Rainier].

When I get through these two, then I'm going to allow myself the ultimate treat: Oryx and Crake by Margaret Atwood, who I think is one of our greatest living writers. And what more can I possibly say about her than THAT?

I Am the Central Park Jogger - 4 stars
Henry VIII: The King and His Court - 4 stars
Once upon a Time - 3 stars
Oryx and Crake - 5 stars [pending how I normally have rated her other books, and the reviews I'm reading on this one are wildly enthusiastic, so I think it's a safe rating]

JAdams5065@aol.com
I just finished reading When the Bough Breaks and Blood Test by Jonathan Kellerman. 5 stars for both! I have started at the beginning of his series after reading an interview with him through the Bookreporter newsletter. I am now reading Over the Edge, the next in the Alex Delaware series. I have gone out and purchased all of his fictional works now...up to A Cold Heart. Jonathan's psychological expertise is woven intricately throughout his stories. In my opinion, he is the master of this genre --- the psychological/suspense/thriller.

I am also reading Anita Shreve's All He Ever Wanted, and it is very poignant and amazing. Anita Shreve never disappoints. 5 stars.

I have read all of Lisa Scottoline's novels, except Courting Trouble, and would give her books 4+ stars.

KLOZIER40@aol.com
Skywater by Melissa Worth Popham. 5 stars.
The world of seven coyotes and how they searched for "Skywater".

The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown. 5 stars.
One of the best books I've read all year.

dawn@mld.org
I just finished Harlan Coben's No Second Chance, an excellent page-turner. I give it 4 stars for adventure thrills. I just started Back Story by Robert B. Parker and it is proving to be yet another great read by this author. I give it 4 stars also.

Fafajane@aol.com
Seabiscuit by Laura Hillenbrand.
OK, but not great.
Up Country by Nelson DeMille.
Good, but too much Vietnam conflict and not enough story.
Between Sisters by Kristin Hannah.
I cannot wait to start it!

bjtay@tds.net
Good Hope Road by Lisa Wingate. 5 stars.
Excellent, thought-provoking book.

lindaharriet@hotmail.com
The Cutting Room by Louise Welsh. 4 stars.
It's very suspenseful about somewhat dissolute characters with a twist of an ending.

mcgurkus@telusplanet.net
Sleep Toward Heaven by Amanda Eyre Ward. 5 stars.
This was truly a great little book. All I can say is just read it.

Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides. 4 stars.
I didn't know what to expect about a book about a hermaphrodite, but I got so much more than I bargained for. This book had a wonderful back story about the struggle of immigrants, Detroit during the race wars, and intricate family relationships.

Atonement by Ian McEwan. 5 stars.
This wasn't just a great story but a novel full of such lush language and vivid descriptions that I would often read and re-read a single passage. It started off slowly, but it is definitely a book to savor over many days.

In Open Spaces by Russell Rowland. 4 stars.
A great American story about one man's life in rural Montana from the 1920's through the depression and into the late 40's. Quiet and beautiful descriptions of the people and their environment.

Crow Lake by Mary Lawson. 4 stars.
A beautiful story about siblings that raise each other after the tragic death of their parents in a car crash. The choices and the sacrifices that they make for each other gives you reason to really care about these characters.

AnnRumsey@aol.com
I am reading Nora Roberts's Birthright and am amazed that she consistently provides an interesting and varied story after writing so many books. I am learning about archaeology and bones, adoption, kidnapping and a darn good story with three relationships blossoming and a suspenseful pace (which is why we read Nora's books after all). 4 stars.

BREEZYWRITER@aol.com
Nights in Rodanthe by Nicholas Sparks. 3 stars.
Recycled Bridges of Madison County but an easy read and entertaining if all you want is something light.

Sesame705@aol.com
Haunted Heartland by Beth Scott and Michael Norman. 5 stars.
The authors have collected over 150 true "ghost stories" from America's heartland. The collection includes stories of ghosts, haunted houses, possessions and exorcisms, vanishing people, mysterious lights, spontaneous combustions, poltergeists, and dreams of premonition. While all of the incidents have been reported as fact to Scott and Norman, the authors, who do not claim to be parapsychologists or ghosthunters, leave the reader to draw his/her own conclusions. In fact, while the authors have striven for accuracy, their main objective has been to present a collection of mysterious stories that have been passed down from one generation to the next. If you enjoy ghost stories and mysteries and are looking for a book that you can pick up or put down at any time, then I guarantee you will enjoy this one. But my guess is that once you pick it up, it is unlikely that you'll put it down!

BREEZYWRITER@aol.com
Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress by Dai Sijie. 4 stars.
This was a very unusual little book --- intriguing to experience life in such a different environment than our own. I felt as if it were taking place 100 years ago rather than in the late 60's. Charming little morality tale.

Kufungee@aol.com
Atlantis Found by Clive Cussler.
You don't have to be a "guy" to like the adventure novels written by Clive Cussler, and his latest book featuring his "main man" is no exception. Dirk Pitt is the projects director for a government agency called NUMA (National Underwater Marine Agency) and always finds himself embroiled in a fascinating, fast-moving adventure-mystery. Now, you couldn't drag me in the ocean, but I do love these novels, and this one is no exception because it involves a lost civilization similar to Atlantis. Enjoy!

tchr257@zwallet.com
I am currently reading The King of Torts by John Grisham and rate this book a 4. It is compelling in the sense that I can no longer put it down until I pass out from exhaustion. The story is great and shows how easily one might be persuaded by money to do something that they never even imagined within their realm of capability.

I am also reading Bad Girls, Good Women by Rosie Thomas and rate this book a 5. It is the second time that I have read this novel (and I normally cannot read a book twice without a long period of forgetfulness first). This book spans two women's lives over thirty years and is absolutely wonderful. Two girls runaway as teenagers to live on their own in London to escape an abusive situation at one of the girl's homes. The other is running from parents that have never really seemed to love her in the way that she needs. Rich characters, remarkable emotions, and an all-around fantastic read. You won't be sorry!

Wjmichele@aol.com
The Company by Robert Littell. 5 stars.
A novel of the CIA spanning 40 years --- the author has done an excellent job of inserting fictional characters alongside historical characters in a multigenerational saga dealing with the search for a mole in the C.I.A. Agents, double agents, KGB, CIA, British Intelligence, Mossad --- this book has it all!

Derailed by James Siegel. 5 stars.
Don't start this book unless you have time to read it straight through --- an edge of the seat, roller coaster ride --- how one man's life plummets out of control and his attempt to reclaim it, and his family.

GerryD8784@aol.com
Persuader by Lee Child. 3 1/2 stars.
Fast-moving and well-plotted, but I never felt I really knew the characters in this mystery-thriller about a former military policeman who encounters a target he thought he'd killed ten years earlier. Their chance meeting sets off a renewal of their old animosity and is tied to a new investigation of a drug-dealing connection.

The Guardian by Nicholas Sparks. 2 1/2 stars.
A young widow, finally ready to start dating again, chooses one of two men who are courting her, and finds her life in danger. Very predictable, despite Sparks's early efforts to throw the reader off, but still surprisingly enjoyable.

susanrjensen@yahoo.com
Circle of Three by Patricia Gaffney. 4 1/2 stars.
Another great book from Gaffney. Told from the perspectives of three different women from one family, the story centers on how they each react to the death of a loved one, and how life continues despite grief and hardship.

Perfect Match by Jodi Picoult. 5 stars.
I have enjoyed all the Picoult books I have read, including this one. This story is about ADA Nina Frost, a woman who balances a hefty career prosecuting child molesters and a life at home with her husband and son. When Nina discovers that her son has been molested, her world falls apart. As she searches for the man responsible, Nina discovers how far a mother will go to protect her child. An engrossing novel, for sure.

Bossu49@aol.com
Breakout by Richard Stark. 5 stars.
Chasing the Dime by Michael Connelly. 5 stars.

ATENC3@aol.com
Plum Island by Nelson DeMille. 5+ stars thus far.
I have read other DeMille books and have not found one I did not thoroughly enjoy. In this one, he has quite a sense of humor.

ilmlhl@yahoo.com
Soul Circus by George P. Pelecanos. 4 stars.
In this book, Strange is looking for a witness who will help clear a "drug czar" in a murder trial. Quinn is helping Strange and also looking for a runaway teenager on his own. Since most of the action takes place in the black section of town, Quinn is out of place and often feels "disrespected" as he is white.

In addition to looking for witnesses, they try to straighten out the two gangs fighting to take over the turf of the imprisoned drug czar. There are many entanglements between the different story lines.

The book ends on a sad note, but a new alliance for Strange seems to be in the making.

Derek Strange and Terry Quinn have a relationship much like Spencer and Hawk in Robert Parker's books. The story is fleshed out more than in Parker's books and there is much more dialogue.

I would recommend this book.

The White Road by John Connolly. 1 star.
I've been trying to read this book but it is very dark. There is a lot of jumping from one story to another and a lot of references to events that apparently happened in a previous book.

I'm about halfway through and don't think I'm going to make it to the end. There are too many other books that flow better and aren't as violent and depressing as this book.

yodasmommy@woh.rr.com
I just finished The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown and it was the best book I have read in a very long time. I learned a lot about Leonardo Da Vinci, and the book was very fast-paced and now I want to get all his other books.

gojessicago@juno.com
Higher Authority by Stephen White. 4 stars.
Third in the series of Alan Bates, White focuses on Alan's girlfriend, Lauren, in this installment. Good book, great plot.

Scott Free by John Gilstrap. 4 stars.
I really enjoyed this book about a young man who survives a deadly plane crash, only to find himself in a more dangerous situation when he finally finds "help."

Second Glance by Jodi Picoult. 3 1/2 stars.
I am a huge fan of Ms. Picoult's and tried really hard to buy into her tidy endings and flowery words. It just didn't do it for me.

Dead Run by Erica Spindler. 5 stars.
GREAT BOOK with an unexpected ending, which for me is always a kick in the pants.

pcleary@mangobay.com
Any book in the Ancient Rome series by Steven Saylor. These mysteries display astounding scholarship as well as an engaging, brilliant "detective": Gordianius, the Finder.

MACOBB@aol.com
Dead Aim by Iris Johansen was a great read. I give it 5 stars.
Also, Sin City by Max Allan Collins. The book reads just like an episode of CSI: Crime Scene Investigation (only there isn't a George Eads visual). A hearty 5 star rating.

pwooten@direcway.com
Rising Tide by John M. Barry. 5 stars.
A story of the Great Mississippi River Flood of 1927 and how it affected the entire country. Until I read Rising Tide I had no idea of the far-reaching effects the great flood had on America. This brilliantly told story is a well researched account of one of America's greatest natural disasters and the politics, bureaucracy, racial conflicts, and society surrounding it. A must- read for anyone who loves history, politics, or science. It will change the way you think.

ufouria@bellsouth.net
The Beach House by James Patterson. 2 stars.
I love Patterson and have read most of his books. This one was missing something. I had a hard time staying focused with it. To me, it was not as exciting as his other books.

Brakedrum@aol.com
I'm reading The Vanished Man by Jeffery Deaver. What twists and turns! Just when I think I've figured out the plot, the plot changes. Good read.

Dana_Cherrier@commerce.state.il.us
Shutter Island by Dennis Lehane. 4 stars.
Lost Light by Michael Connelly. 4 1/2 stars.
Naked Prey by John Sanford. 5 stars.
The Murder Book by Jonathan Kellerman. 1 star.
The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency by Alexander McCall Smith. 4 stars.
Secret Sanction by Brian Haig. 5 stars.
Mortal Allies by Brian Haig. 4 1/2 stars.
The Kingmaker by Brian Haig. 4 stars.

Brain Haig is my new favorite author. He's like a combination of Nelson
DeMille and John Grisham.

GeoBarb636@aol.com
Funny Money by James Swain. 1 star.
This sounded like something I would like, but I just couldn't get into his way of writing. Others may like it, but it isn't for me.

Shutter Island by Dennis Lehane. 5 stars.
Almost as good as Mystic River.

gregc2@bellsouth.net
No Second Chance by Harlan Coben. 4 stars.
Here is another page-turner from Coben. Where is the missing child when the mother is murdered and the father is left for dead? The father makes a miraculous recovery and is driven against all odds to find his daughter. When a ransom note appears days after the "kidnapping," neither the police nor the FBI can determine if the child is alive or if this is a hoax for money. There are lots of surprises and you cannot second guess the end results.

Valerie.Russo@RIAG.com
The Dirty Girls Social Club by Alisa Valdes-Rodriguez. 4 stars.
I am reading this book, and I'm just about finished. Finally a book about Latinas --- real Latinas with real lives, real problems and real attitudes. Latinas who don't fit the stereotypical roles usually ascribed to them by society. It is a good read. I would have given it 5 stars but I don't like books with happy endings. This book is like a Hispanic version of Waiting to Exhale and, if you read this book, you'll laugh at this sentence.

lockmp@sjr.mb.ca
I recently re-read Virginia Woolf's Mrs. Dalloway so I could get the most from Michael Cunningham's The Hours. I highly recommend both, in that order. Cunningham is amazingly clever in his ability to intertwine the new fiction with the old reality of Virginia Woolf's life and characters. They're both lovely reads! 5 stars each!

My other current favorite is Yann Martel's Life of Pi. I'm not sure it has made me believe in God (as so many critics have suggested it will), but I thoroughly enjoyed the writing and the story. Our bookclub had the most lively discussion of this book! Another 5 stars!

kumasijg@hotmail.com
Recently, I've had 3 books on the go, all of which I've just completed: A
Million Little Pieces by James Frey, Electroboy: A Memoir of Mania by Andy Behrman, and Prozac Nation (in anticipation of the soon-to-be released movie starring Christina Ricci) by Elizabeth Wurtzel.

I'd have to say that A Million Little Pieces was probably the best of the three books, although it was sort of long and dragged a bit. Still, I felt like the issue of addiction was dealt with honestly, and I enjoyed the minimalist style of writing. I'd give it 4 stars all in all.

I read Electroboy quickly and liked it, although it was a memoir that would have been drastically different had Andy not been rich. I liked Prozac Nation the least, maybe because it seemed dated somehow, I'm not sure. I'd give Electroboy 3 stars and Prozac Nation 2 stars.

clschomer@dmci.net
I am reading Jeffery Deaver's The Vanished Man, and I just finished The Dive From Clausen's Pier. Both are excellent.

lin111@juno.com
I just finished Crooked Heart by Cristina Sumners, a thoroughly delightful and entertaining book. It's her first novel and I hope she continues with the two main characters, a not terribly attractive Chief of Police and a female minister who seem to be attracted to each other but don't know it yet. It has everything --- murder, humor and will keep your interest right through until the end. I give it 5 stars.

Sandn2shoes@aol.com
Between Friends by Debbie Macomber.
I picked up this paperback recently. It follows the friendship of two women through their correspondence, journals, and other printed material (birth announcements, draft notices, etc.) over their lives. They are both born in 1948 and come from entirely different socioeconomic backgrounds but become the best of friends.

It is what I need to read at this time --- something light and interesting. It is a comfy, warm book reflecting their friendship and keeping in touch, even though life takes them in opposite directions.

This would be good beach reading!

MAP5402@aol.com
Tell No One by Harlan Coben. 5 stars.
Dirty Work by Stuart Woods. 4 stars.
Lost Light by Michael Connelly. 4 stars.

mcgillrmcgill@charter.net
Dancing Through Life in a Pair of Broken Heels, written by Mickey Guisewite and illustrated by Cathy Guisewite.
This is just a fun book of short stories about the many incredible, stressful things that can happen to a woman who's just trying to get through life. Cathy is one of my favorite comic heroines, and anyone who enjoys her will enjoy this book!

Bettys1870@aol.com
In the past three weeks I have read:

The Confessor by Daniel Silva. 5 stars.
This tale of intrigue kept me reading.

The Coffee Trader by David Liss. 3 stars.
Good story and well researched, but tended to be a bit choppy. Liss's Conspiracy of Paper was a much better book. I would give this one 5 stars.

A Cold Heart by Jonathan Kellerman. 4 stars.
Both Jonathan and Faye Kellerman are top-notch writers of escapist fiction. A Cold Heart is more police work rather than psychologist leading, as many of his earlier books. I think I like the early books better. This book and his penultimate book have his relationship with Robin faltering. That doesn't make me happy.

MSmith2957@aol.com
Right now I am reading No Second Chance by Harlan Coben. I've only finished 1/3 of the book and, if I didn't have plans tonight, it would be my companion. So far it is very good. It's well-written and the suspense keeps you turning page after page. It even made me miss my bus stop. I'll give it 4 stars for now because I don't know yet if the end is as good as the beginning. It seems very much worth the read.

NGroves@aol.com
Life in the Treetops: Adventures of a Woman in Field Biology by Margaret Lowman. 3 stars.
A combination of a memoir and scientific report, this is the story of an American woman's research in the tree canopy at a time when this approach was brand new, blended with references to her struggles as a female scientist when there were few women in the field and to her efforts to cope with the demands of marriage and motherhood while pursuing her career. The marriage fails, not surprisingly, since her Australian husband and in-laws hold an extremely traditional view of women's roles, but her research is successful. The transitions between almost purely scientific writing about her research and discoveries and her personal life are not always very smooth, but the story is worth reading if you're interested in either the science or the autobiography.

Things Not Seen by Andrew Clements. 4 stars.
A teen book, it might be of interest to adults who want a quick read that nonetheless poses some interesting questions. Fifteen-year-old Bobby wakes up one morning invisible, not just "invisible" to the cute, popular girls in his class but really, truly invisible. This plot element is treated seriously, for the most part, and not for laughs. Bobby's parents decide that they can't tell anyone about the problem, so he can't go to school, hang out with friends, or do anything he would normally do. He can leave the house either bundled up from head to toe so that no skin (or what should be skin) is visible, or completely naked. In the latter form, he wanders into the library and meets a blind girl, who of course doesn't know that her new friend isn't really there. He shares his secret with her and her parents, and this small group tries to find a solution while coping with problems such as school officials, social workers, and police who are suspicious about Bobby's whereabouts and long absence from school.

The Firm by John Grisham. 4 stars.
This was one of Grisham's earliest legal thrillers. "Hungry" young lawyer Mitch McDeere is hired, fresh out of law school and deeply in debt, by a seemingly prestigious but rather secretive law firm in Memphis. The salary and benefits are excellent, but Mitch is a little concerned about a number of "accidental" deaths that have occurred in the past few years and puzzled by the exceptional security measures he encounters. Sure enough, it turns out that the firm has some bona fide clients but is primarily involved in money laundering for the Mob. Pressured by the FBI to be an informant and knowing that he'll be killed if the firm finds out, Mitch is very much between a rock and a hard place, and has to use all his wits to find a way out.

The Telling by Ursula Le Guin. 4 stars.
An earthling named Sutty is sent to the planet Aka, controlled by an extremely capitalist government that is trying to turn all of its citizens into brainwashed "producer-consumers." Granted permission to travel out of the city, Sutty gradually discovers that all of the culture, literature, and heritage of the people have not been eradicated, and she embarks on a quest to understand and preserve the remnants she has found. This book is interesting in itself and as a warning or parable about what can happen when governments become overzealous in their attempts to lead (or push) their citizens in the direction they think is right.

JAdams5065@aol.com
I just finished:
A Perfect Lie by Sharon Sala. 4 stars.
A very good suspenseful, and romantic, thriller.
Blood Test by Jonathan Kellerman. 5 stars.
All He Ever Wanted by Anita Shreve. 5 stars.
If I could give it more, I WOULD!

I have started Sea Glass by Anita Shreve and Over the Edge by Jonathan Kellerman.

ginawjax@attbi.com
Lucy: A Novel by Ellen Feldman.
The true life love triangle between Franklin Roosevelt, Lucy Mercer
and Eleanor Roosevelt is the subject of this novel. The story is told from the perspective of Lucy Mercer with her observations of the Roosevelts, their children and entourage. The book did not hold my interest because I was never sure of how much was "novel' and how much of Lucy's descriptions were based on fact. I found it to be an average read (2 out of 4 stars) but not the engrossing book I had hoped it would be.

FalseMillennium@aol.com

Mrs. Kimble by Jennifer Haigh. 3 stars.
Ms. Haigh's first novel follows the lives of three women who have all, at different times, shared the same husband. Broken down into three sections, we follow the paths of these women through the decades, and the social and emotionally charged changes for women during that time. The lives of the women are fleshed out and alive --- Birdie, the abandoned wife, when faced with single motherhood in a time of the nuclear family, turns to alcoholism and despair; Joan, the successful ahead-of-her-time career woman of the '60's, whom Ken uses to build his own success; and Dinah, former babysitter to the first Mrs. Kimble's children, Charlie and Jody. All of Mr. Kimble's wives are themselves children in being considerably younger than their husband, as well as childish in the dreams women are given to believe that having the perfect husband will then give them the perfect life.

Dinah, however, is a woman of the new order. When Mr. Kimble stumbles upon her again, she is a learning chef. She takes pleasure in her work, yet still secretly longs for that Princess Bride dream. Once Dinah marries Mr. Kimble and seemingly has it all --- the beauty, the grand home, the child, the country club life --- she finds herself facing the same physical and emotional abandonment of the other Mrs. Kimbles. When Kimble bolts again, following financial scandal, Dinah ultimately becomes pivotal in the lives of all the factions making up this man's life, including abandoned children, former in-laws and wives.

In interviews, Ms. Haigh has stated that her novel is a meditation upon marriage: "why women hunger for it, and what we're willing to sacrifice in order to have it. The three Mrs. Kimbles aren't victims. Ken Kimble isn't some kind of sociopath. He is, in fact, a very ordinary man; he simply takes what is given to him." It seems rather foolhardy for me to disagree with an author's accounting of her own character, but I would contend that Ken Kimble very much possesses sociopathic qualities in his character: his lack of empathy, his excessive narcissism, his emotionally abusive behavior, his unbounded lying. Ken Kimble's world is that of the egocentric. That blank slate "Everyman" adaptability is pathological in its lack of possessing any altruism, particularly in his lies to harm others in order to succeed. If I fault this novel at all, it is in the fleshing out of development in Mr. Kimble's own portrayal so that we might understand his actions more clearly.

White Apples by Jonathan Carroll. 3 stars.
Vincent Ettrich, genial philanderer, dies and comes back to life to guide his unborn son. I would give this book a higher rating, but Carroll is definitely an acquired taste. Metaphysical fiction might be an apt description, where the dead speak to the dead and resurrect from the dead to learn about being dead or guide the unborn toward not becoming dead. I wouldn't recommend Carroll to any Thanatophobics or Cynophobics out there, because death and dogs (talking guides usually) go hand in hand when reading Carroll. A tale about love, fatherhood, death, eternity --- and dogs.

KLOZIER40@aol.com
Skywater by Melissa Popham. 5 stars.
Written as if coyotes had thoughts and feelings. An emotional book.

All He Ever Wanted by Anita Shreve. 4 stars.
Not as gripping as some of her other novels.

PooohCat@aol.com
I am currently reading Confesssions of a Shopaholic by Sophie Kinsella. It is a very funny book that takes place in England. A young woman keeps getting further and further in debt due to her excessive shopping and "need" to purchase items! The book tells how she deals with this in a very humorous, laugh-out-loud manner!

jeanmaurie@angelsloveyou.com
I absolutely could NOT stand The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold. I tried and tried. I am reading and recommend What About the Big Stuff? Finding Stength and Moving Forward When the Stakes are High by Richard Carlson, Ph.D. I would give this book 4 stars.

j_gargus@hotmail.com
I have read Jude Deveraux's The Mulberry Tree. Her characters, as always, were witty, realistic and fun. It was a light, entertaining read, great to take along to the beach. 4 stars.

Vikkivand@aol.com
Lucky by Alice Sebold. 5 stars.
"Lucky" is a memoir about Alice Sebold's rape while at Syracuse University. Through her strength and determination, her rapist is arrested and convicted. I especially liked that I read The Lovely Bones first and loved it (as everyone does). Then, to read Alice Sebold's story of survival made me appreciate her spirit and courage. When I was finished, I felt a real heartfelt happiness for Alice Sebold and her successes.

Massachusetts, California, Timbuktu by Stephanie Rosenfeld. 5 stars.
I'm still reading this book. I'm loving the story because it is so well written, but hating the mother (Colleen Hadley) with each passing chapter.

DStegmanCrawford@aol.com
I just finished Scott Free by John Gilstrap and I've seen the last of him. All his books are the SAME. Now I'm reading the new Dean Koontz book, By the Light of the Moon, about the "nanobots." Although Koontz is wordy and very proud of his clever turn of phrase, the plot is OK. All his books are very much the same as well!! I'm glad to be done with the hairy guys and the light sensitivity!!

harrises@bayou.com
I just started The Fruit of Stone by Mark Spragg. It feels like a 4-star book but I will have to wait and see what it is like.

dmilburn@alltel.net
Angry Housewives Eating Bon Bons by Lorna Landvik. 5 BIG stars.
This book intrigued me from the first page and, by the last page, I was so involved with the five women in the story, I hated for the story to end. We follow the lives of five neighbors who form a book club. Each chapter is titled by the book they are reading at that time. They take turns choosing their books and give the reasons. Then we get on with the story of their lives over several decades. Don't miss this one. You'll really enjoy it. I promise!

Avery85282@aol.com
The Da Vinci Code. I enjoyed this book; it was written about a subject that interests me. I was, nonetheless, dismayed by the solecisms I encountered. Of the most egregious was the use of the name "Da Vinci" in referring to Leonardo. He was an artist from Vinci, and most people who know much about artists refer to him as "Leonardo." Another mistake was not calling an English knight by his honorific and his first name. He is known not as "Sir Olivier" but "Sir Lawrence." There were grammatical errors as well. Where are the editors these days? They are supposed to look after the authors who aren't familiar with the niceties of language. I will give the book 3 stars and politely forget the author's name.

miriama59@dealofday.com
I just finished reading Utopia by Lincoln Child. This is the first book I have read by him. And I enjoyed it immensely. It's about a futuristic theme park in Nevada. It is the kind of theme park that I would LOVE to visit, with worlds that contain Victorian life, old time carnival rides, Camelot, and a spaceport. There is a lot of detail and thought given to each world to make it seem "real". Reading this book gives you a behind-the-scenes look at how a park is run and what could happen to the innocent families should someone choose to sabotage it. It is a suspense thriller with "bad guys" and murder, betrayal, love...all that make up a great book. I enjoyed the characters, but really I believe the park is the most riveting aspect of the book. Very enjoyable. I found it hard to put it down. It'll certainly make you think twice the next time you wander around a theme park. I give this book 5 stars.

yodasmommy@woh.rr.com
I just finished The Edge of Justice by Clinton McKinzie. This is the first book by this author and I can't wait to read his other two: Trial by Fire and Ice and Point of Law. The hero of The Edge of Justice is Special Agent Antonio Burns, called QuickDraw by some and Anton by his friends. This thriller will keep you from your housework and hoping for a rainy day so you don't have to garden! 5 stars.

GandmaRI@aol.com
Flashback by Nevada Barr. 4 stars.
Park Ranger Anna Pidgeon is currently stationed at an island park in the Bahamas. While she tries to find the answer to the mystery of the exploding boat, she also reads letters from long ago written by her Great Aunt Raffia while her military husband was in charge of the same island in its former military days. Good reading.

lindaharriet@msn.com
I'm reading Mystic River by Dennis Lehane. It's been made into a movie and is a selection at the Cannes Film Festival. This is the story of three childhood friends --- a homicide detective, an ex-con, and one with severe problems resulting from an abduction as a child. A daughter of one of the characters is found murdered. The book is an excellent character study and sets a visual scene. I'd rate it 5 stars.

BettyB6768@aol.com
The Piano Shop on the Left Bank by Thad Carhart. 3 stars.
For music lovers and pianists this book is a joy. For the rest of us it is also interesting. An American who has spent most of his life in Paris becomes an aficionado of a used piano shop in Paris where he buys a piano, visits frequently, and becomes a regular.

Joyceglad@aol.com
Naked Prey by John Sandford. 5 stars.
The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency by Alexander McCall Smith. 5 stars.

DancingGram7@aol.com
Blonde by Joyce Carol Oates. 5 stars.
This was a book tape and the reader did a wonderful job of portraying Marilyn Monroe. This was a novel where the truth could be enhanced upon. It was interesting to listen to as I was not a fan of Marilyn Monroe. She was portrayed as a caring person but her choices in men and the consequences that eventually took place were of her own making. She had a miscarriage when she was married to playwright Arthur Miller and was devastated, but she had many abortions prior to this, so the incident didn't ring true. I did enjoy listening to this tape.

The Skeleton in the Closet by M.C. Beaton. 4 stars.
If you like a short book and no hanky-panky, this is the book for you. It's easy to read, it's got a good story and it's short and sweet. It's easy to hold if you are reading in bed because it only has a little over 200 pages. It's about a single man who, at age 38, loses his domineering mother and discovers he is a wealthy man. His parents made him give all his money he made to them so he was surprised when he received this money. He then thought his father had robbed a train, and tries to solve the mystery of where the money came from with a co-worker. There is murder and romance and enough to keep you interested if this is the type of book you enjoy.

Agatha Raisin and the Case of the Curious Curate by M.C. Beaton. 3 stars. Short and sweet is the name for this one too. Same author, newest book. I find this book on the same level as The Skeleton in the Closet. There is a murder, and a couple who don't like one another try to solve the mystery. No sex, no violence, just plain a whodunit. I recommend it for a quick and easy read.

JUTTZ@aol.com
I just finished the new John Sandford book, Naked Prey. I give it 5 stars. Sandford just keeps getting better and better with his Prey books. His characters are just so lovable and the bantering between them is just so funny and refreshing. If you have never read any of the Prey books, start from the beginning --- you will love them.

Mystrytx@aol.com
A Christian suspense series by Dee Henderson. The Negotiator and The Guardian are books 1 and 2. I would give 3 stars. The message is good without being overpowering, but the tales drag a bit. I will, however, finish the series.

swl44th@hotmail.com
I would highly recommend Bel Canto by Ann Patchett. I read it during a
recent vacation and found that I could not put it down. I became very much involved with the characters.

PFLucas@aol.com
Chopping Spree by Diane Mott Davidson. 4 stars
Following the "Goldy" caterer series "Where everything tastes just right",
the added recipes are mouthwatering. The characters are interesting and the story moves right along.

The Beach House by James Patterson and Peter De Jonge. 5 stars.
A body is found on an exclusive beach in the Hamptons. It is apparent that the death was not caused by drowning, and that someone's power and money must have bought the local police and the whole legal system. This book is definitely a page-turner!

maryk57@yahoo.com
I am currently reading The Beach House by James Patterson. It is a suspenseful combination of murder and intrigue, mixed with a small bit of romance. I'd give it 4 stars.

bradylee@myway.com
The Kid Stays in the Picture by Robert Evans.
This autobiography of a principle in the film industry is a wonder to behold and a story of so many highs and lows you wonder how one person can be so talented, lucky and unlucky, a cad, and a loving father, a lover and a steel-hearted scion. You will read about an interesting life in spades where there is action on every single page. A page-turner if there ever was one. I raved so much about it that, now, my wife is starting it.

JENMORE627@aol.com
Dry: A Memoir by Augusten Burroughs. 5 stars!
I finished Dry in just under three days. When I read the last page at just past 4:00 in the morning I felt like I had just spent a few days in rehab with Augusten Burroughs --- and emerged surprisingly sober. The book is an honest, emotionally rich, humorous look at the author's relationship with alcohol. Like Running with Scissors, you will take away an appreciation for dysfunction and instability. A gay, advertising professional with a drinking problem may not sound like hot material, but combine that with a cast of real characters, including an undertaker, a gorgeous crack addict, and a beloved best friend with AIDS, and you have an electrifying mix that you won't be able to put down. I can't wait to see what Augusten Burroughs will come up with next.

angie3@rakz.net
My latest book was Sunset in St. Tropez by Danielle Steel, which I give 4 stars. My current read is Millionaire Cop & Mom-To-Be by Charlotte Hughes, which I give 5 stars.

marcia.noble@eds.com
I'm reading One for the Money by Janet Evanovich. It's a fun, relaxing and easy read about a sassy female who's had some hard luck and turned to bounty hunting. Who knew such a career existed? I'd give it 4 stars.

pnichols@woodruffelectric.com
Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides.

micheleserrani@carolina.rr.com
Currently I am devouring No Second Chance by Harlan Coben. It's tough to put down. 5 stars!

maurn.k@btopenworld.com
All the King's Women is rather more than the title suggests. It is a biography of King Charles the Second, known widely as England's
most "randyish" monarch. The book attempts to explain how Charles's early tragic background (he was eleven-years-old when his father regretfully lost his head!) helped to create a King who enjoyed the company of women at least as much as that of men, if not more. His dependence during his adolescence on strong powerful women and the necessity for him to mix "socially" with "the ordinary people" molded a rather unique man and ruler, most certainly for his time. 4 stars.

*****

jdeval@verizon.net
The novel I've just read is The Kalahari Typing School for Men, part of a mystery series set in Botswana by Alexander McCall Smith. If you haven't tried this series yet, start with the first one, The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency. The characters are utterly charming, and the style of storytelling is deceptively simple while it ranges over themes like sexism, atonement, honesty, depression, and beauty.

bradylee@myway.com
For the Sins of My Father: A Mafia Killer, His Son, and the Legacy of a Mob Life by Albert DeMeo. 4 stars.
This young man does have an interesting story to tell. In fact my wife read this first and liked it so well, she suggested I read it. I concur. Albert tells his family's story, but particularly about his father who was a wonderful dad and, at the same time, a part of the Mafia who did such a good job of racketeering that he continually improved his financial situation and moved up within his organization. This scheme of things eventually got out of control and you will learn how his father really led two lives: a loving family man and a proven killer, where one "hit" led to his eventual undoing.


KINDLEELF@aol.com
Islands of Silence by Martin Booth. 5 stars.
Deeply moving, thoughtful read.
The Holy by Daniel Quinn. 4 stars.
An unusual premise that the author handles well.

melajessi@aol.com
The House on Beartown Road, A Memoir of Learning and Forgetting by Elizabeth Cohen. 5 stars.
A lovely memoir that exposes a year in the life of the author as she embarks on a journey that has changed her life forever. Ms. Cohen moves with her husband and one-year-old from NYC to lovely rural upstate NY and takes a job as a reporter/columnist at the local newspaper. This move is a 360 degree change from the fast paced city life this accomplished writer has been living. All seems well until the fateful call from her sister begging "please take daddy". It turns out that Daddy has mid-stage Alzheimer's. Thus the journey begins, her husband leaves, the cold and harsh NY winter comes raging into the picture and her life spins out of control. The lyrically written tale of this winter in the country with a one-year-old baby and an 80-year-old man who are at opposite ends of the learning curve is told in a humorous and unsentimental manner. You will laugh and cry and ultimately put this book down with a renewed belief in family values.

Mmant8285@aol.com
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain. 5 stars.
This is a reread. I hated it the first time I read it. Now I am older and sympathetic to Huck and his slave friend's needs. The author tells us this is just a story and just to read, but it is hard not to get emotional. This book covers a multitude of touchy subjects: slavery, substance abuse, and many others. A classic is always a good read, but a Mark Twain classic is a 5!

SNJNWDist@aol.com
Changing Habits by Debbie Macomber. 4 stars.
This is the story of three young women who enter the convent for three different reasons. Not being Catholic, I found this story fascinating. Once again, good reading from Debbie.

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