Aurora Teagarden Series
Charlaine Harris
Genre: Crime/Mystery
Audience: adults, mainly female
Rating: 3.5/5
Despite the popularity of her "Sookie Stackhouse" series, this is the first Charlaine Harris series I have really sunk my teeth into. There's no werewolves, no vampires, no supernatural creatures what-so-ever. What there is instead is a petite (4'11") librarian with big glasses and a penchant for being in the wrong place at the right time. There's a lot of murders in this small, Southern town in America, Lawrencetown. So much in fact that you start to wonder if everyone is either a future murderer or a murder victim in waiting. To be fair on Aurora, quite a time lapses between each book. Interspersed with the murder-solving is Aurora's tumultuous love life, which has some both amusing and tragic moments.
This series started in the 90s with:
Real Murder:
They thought they'd just be meeting to discuss famous murderers of the past. Little did they know that soon they would be involved in the most dramatic series of murders to be seen in Lawrencetown for many a decade...
Bone to Pick:
An inheritance leaves Aurora with more than just money. And we're not talking about the cat...
Three bedrooms, One Corpse:
A house showing gets gruesome when a Realtor turns up dead...
The Julius House:
This mystery might be 30 years in the grave, but when Aurora acquires the old "Julius house", she's determined to unearth the skeletons in its closet.
Dead over heels:
Aurora may never have got on with him, but that doesn't mean she wanted him dropped in her yard... From a great height and very dead.
A Fool and His Honey:
When Aurora's Niece-in-law turns up with a baby and then disappears a short time later, Aurora is left holding the baby and with another mystery on her hands.
Last Scene Alive:
Hollywood comes to Lawrencetown when Robin Crusoe, mystery writer, returns to film his version of "Real Murders" for tv. But the fantasy soon becomes the reality...
Warning: These books are highly addictive! They're short, quick reads, with a few red herrings and a bit of smut. But you might find yourself like me - chasing around libraries to get the next one so that you can read them all in order (I've still a couple to go).
Monday, May 2, 2011
Friday, April 29, 2011
Magician by trade, bastard by disposition
Eagle Rising
David Devearaux
Genre: Crime thriller
Audience: mature, probably more male
Rating: 4/5
You can call him "Jack", it's not his name, but if you knew his name, he'd have to kill you. Jack works for a secret branch of the government - a branch that deals with the supernatural thread. Jack is a magician. But this is not your typical paranormal urban fantasy. This is a crime thriller with a touch of magic. Jack's latest challenge is to infiltrate a neo-nazi society - a society that are about to delve into dark magics. To do this, first he must befriend some of the least likeable people you might ever meet. Jack is a hard man, somewhere deeply buried within him is a conscience, but he is not afraid to do what has to be done to achieve his goals - whether it be killing someone, or worse...
Not for the faint of heart, and not for those of you that like to sink your teeth into a nice paranormal romance. This book is as far from romance as you can go. It's bleak, it's grim and it will make you cringe and maybe even think about stopping reading. But you won't. Because for all that you will grow to hate him, just a little, Jack's story is just too darned engrossing.
And here's my review in brief of its predecessor:
Hunter's Moon
"Jack" is a magician, working for the government. He's also not the sort of person you'd want as a friend - and even less as an enemy. He may not be proud of his methods, but he's prepared to do what it requires to complete his mission. This book is like a dark cousin to Jim Butcher, Jack lacks in morals and subtlety and the whole set-up is just more brutal and dark. From disturbing sex-scenes to even more disturbing inquisition tactics, this is not a tale for you paranormal romance readers!
David Devearaux
Genre: Crime thriller
Audience: mature, probably more male
Rating: 4/5
You can call him "Jack", it's not his name, but if you knew his name, he'd have to kill you. Jack works for a secret branch of the government - a branch that deals with the supernatural thread. Jack is a magician. But this is not your typical paranormal urban fantasy. This is a crime thriller with a touch of magic. Jack's latest challenge is to infiltrate a neo-nazi society - a society that are about to delve into dark magics. To do this, first he must befriend some of the least likeable people you might ever meet. Jack is a hard man, somewhere deeply buried within him is a conscience, but he is not afraid to do what has to be done to achieve his goals - whether it be killing someone, or worse...
Not for the faint of heart, and not for those of you that like to sink your teeth into a nice paranormal romance. This book is as far from romance as you can go. It's bleak, it's grim and it will make you cringe and maybe even think about stopping reading. But you won't. Because for all that you will grow to hate him, just a little, Jack's story is just too darned engrossing.
And here's my review in brief of its predecessor:
Hunter's Moon
"Jack" is a magician, working for the government. He's also not the sort of person you'd want as a friend - and even less as an enemy. He may not be proud of his methods, but he's prepared to do what it requires to complete his mission. This book is like a dark cousin to Jim Butcher, Jack lacks in morals and subtlety and the whole set-up is just more brutal and dark. From disturbing sex-scenes to even more disturbing inquisition tactics, this is not a tale for you paranormal romance readers!
Tuesday, April 26, 2011
Books in Brief
Aurora Teagarden Mysteries Omnibus 1-4
Charlaine Harris
Fun detective/mystery novels with some rather brutal moments. Aurora Teagarden is a diminutive librarian living in a small town, who finds herself involved - sometimes rather indirectly in varoius murders around town, and invariably gets involved.
Dragonhaven
Robin Hobb
A worthy follow-up to "Dragonkeeper", this instalment further develops the characters and advances the plot.
The Project
Brian Falkner
A fast-paced teenage action novel set in a small town in the US. Two boys uncover the most boring book in teh world, which hides a deadly secret amongst its droll prose and find themselves in a great deal of trouble.
Fallen
Lauren Kate
Better than I had expected - but I wasn't expecting much. This is another paranormal romance aimed at teenages, but this time it is set in a school for children that are not-quite-right. Creepy and over-the-top weird, I found the school mostly unbelieavable, but interesting never-the-less. One gets the feeling from these sort of books that teenage girls are romantically inclined towards boys that seem to hate them, and are dark, mysterious and most of all - dangerous. The nice, sweet ones never get a look in.
Year of the Griffin
Diana Wynne Jones
A magical school book as written by the Diana Wynne Jones. Her stories are fun, fast-paced and filled with unexpected twists and turns. I re-read this slim novel to commemerate her passing on the 26th March from cancer.
Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society
Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows
What a delight! This charming book is written as a series of letters between an English reporter, Juliet Ashton and a Guernsey Farmer, Dawsey Adams. What transpires is friendship, mystery and ... oh, just read it!
Charlaine Harris
Fun detective/mystery novels with some rather brutal moments. Aurora Teagarden is a diminutive librarian living in a small town, who finds herself involved - sometimes rather indirectly in varoius murders around town, and invariably gets involved.
Dragonhaven
Robin Hobb
A worthy follow-up to "Dragonkeeper", this instalment further develops the characters and advances the plot.
The Project
Brian Falkner
A fast-paced teenage action novel set in a small town in the US. Two boys uncover the most boring book in teh world, which hides a deadly secret amongst its droll prose and find themselves in a great deal of trouble.
Fallen
Lauren Kate
Better than I had expected - but I wasn't expecting much. This is another paranormal romance aimed at teenages, but this time it is set in a school for children that are not-quite-right. Creepy and over-the-top weird, I found the school mostly unbelieavable, but interesting never-the-less. One gets the feeling from these sort of books that teenage girls are romantically inclined towards boys that seem to hate them, and are dark, mysterious and most of all - dangerous. The nice, sweet ones never get a look in.
Year of the Griffin
Diana Wynne Jones
A magical school book as written by the Diana Wynne Jones. Her stories are fun, fast-paced and filled with unexpected twists and turns. I re-read this slim novel to commemerate her passing on the 26th March from cancer.
Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society
Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows
What a delight! This charming book is written as a series of letters between an English reporter, Juliet Ashton and a Guernsey Farmer, Dawsey Adams. What transpires is friendship, mystery and ... oh, just read it!
Monday, March 28, 2011
Sibling Rivalry
Revenge
Sharon Osborne
Rating: 4/5
She's an intelligent and determined woman, but not only that, Sharon Osborne can actually write. This book is good! It's filled with the gritty, dark side of show business, of pushing your children to become the person you failed to become yourself, of allowing dreams to overwelm reality. It has the dark, British humour of Ben Elton intermingled with the more scandalous manipulation of many popular female authors (although not the sort I normally read). You grow to alternatively love and hate the characters, or possibly just want to give them a slap and tell them to "get over themselves". In short, Osborne writes a convincing, compelling story about sibling rivalry and fame.
Amber and Chelsea Stone are sisters, but could not be more unalike. Chelsea is quick-tempered, impulsive and reckless, whereas Amber is the lovely, sweet "girl next door". Both are famous. But in the world of show-business, only one can truly be the star.
Sharon Osborne
Rating: 4/5
She's an intelligent and determined woman, but not only that, Sharon Osborne can actually write. This book is good! It's filled with the gritty, dark side of show business, of pushing your children to become the person you failed to become yourself, of allowing dreams to overwelm reality. It has the dark, British humour of Ben Elton intermingled with the more scandalous manipulation of many popular female authors (although not the sort I normally read). You grow to alternatively love and hate the characters, or possibly just want to give them a slap and tell them to "get over themselves". In short, Osborne writes a convincing, compelling story about sibling rivalry and fame.
Amber and Chelsea Stone are sisters, but could not be more unalike. Chelsea is quick-tempered, impulsive and reckless, whereas Amber is the lovely, sweet "girl next door". Both are famous. But in the world of show-business, only one can truly be the star.
Thursday, March 24, 2011
A bit of Monkey Busines.
Plum Spooky
Janet Evanovich
Stephanie Plum "Between the Numbers" book
Genre: Chicklit/humour/crime
Audience: Women
Rating: 3/5
There's always a time when one needs something light and fun to read, and it was certainly the case when I picked this book up. And I rather enjoyed it. Nothing like a face-paced crime/comedy with a hearty dose of tongue-in-cheek humour, feisty women and sexy men to distract one from the drama of real life. And there are monkeys. Lots of monkeys. The ending was a bit of a letdown, but I believe this was just what the doctor ordered.
Stephanie Plum, bounty hunter extraordinaire has her work cut out for her once again in this spooky case. Not only has she had a smart-arse monkey foisted upon her, but the rather hot and quite mysterious Diseal is back and seems to want to sleep in her bed. And her latest FTA is a short computer geek with relationship issues who has fallen into league with her most frightening opponent yet. Not to forget the Easter Bunny (retired), sasquatch and what's the deal with the Jersey Devil?
Janet Evanovich
Stephanie Plum "Between the Numbers" book
Genre: Chicklit/humour/crime
Audience: Women
Rating: 3/5
There's always a time when one needs something light and fun to read, and it was certainly the case when I picked this book up. And I rather enjoyed it. Nothing like a face-paced crime/comedy with a hearty dose of tongue-in-cheek humour, feisty women and sexy men to distract one from the drama of real life. And there are monkeys. Lots of monkeys. The ending was a bit of a letdown, but I believe this was just what the doctor ordered.
Stephanie Plum, bounty hunter extraordinaire has her work cut out for her once again in this spooky case. Not only has she had a smart-arse monkey foisted upon her, but the rather hot and quite mysterious Diseal is back and seems to want to sleep in her bed. And her latest FTA is a short computer geek with relationship issues who has fallen into league with her most frightening opponent yet. Not to forget the Easter Bunny (retired), sasquatch and what's the deal with the Jersey Devil?
Monday, March 21, 2011
Do you oil your war machines or do you feed them?
Leviathan
Scott Westerfield
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PYiw5vkQFPw
Genre: Steampunk/alternate history/fantasy
Audience: Ages 10+
Rating 4.5/5
If you've enjoyed Phuilip Reeve, you will delighted to read this similar-feeling but completely different novel by Scott Westerfield. Filled with quirky delights, strange beasties and a delightful cast of characters, it is easy to pick up and hard to put down.
The year is 1914, and Europe is on the verge of war. On one side we have the Darwinists - the English people, with their genetically-manipulated-and-modified monsters (they're alive and freaky-awesome) - on the other side, Germany with its mighty metal war machines. Caught in the middle we have Aleck, a young royal on the run for his life, and Deryn, a girl who has masqueraded as a boy in order to enter the air force. With a secret mission and a mystery cargo and with danger assailing them from all sides - one can but hold their breath and eagerly await learning what happens next.
Make sure you check out the Book Trailer linked above, it a really good one.
Scott Westerfield
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PYiw5vkQFPw
Genre: Steampunk/alternate history/fantasy
Audience: Ages 10+
Rating 4.5/5
If you've enjoyed Phuilip Reeve, you will delighted to read this similar-feeling but completely different novel by Scott Westerfield. Filled with quirky delights, strange beasties and a delightful cast of characters, it is easy to pick up and hard to put down.
The year is 1914, and Europe is on the verge of war. On one side we have the Darwinists - the English people, with their genetically-manipulated-and-modified monsters (they're alive and freaky-awesome) - on the other side, Germany with its mighty metal war machines. Caught in the middle we have Aleck, a young royal on the run for his life, and Deryn, a girl who has masqueraded as a boy in order to enter the air force. With a secret mission and a mystery cargo and with danger assailing them from all sides - one can but hold their breath and eagerly await learning what happens next.
Make sure you check out the Book Trailer linked above, it a really good one.
Friday, March 18, 2011
A case for Bigamy?
The Wives of Henry Oades
Johanna Moran
Genre: Historical
Audience: Adults
Rating: 3/5
Based on a true case, this is the story of Henry Oades, who accidentally ended up commiting bigamy. At times funny, others heart-breaking it will in turn intrigue you, hearten you and occasionally frustrate you (some of the people are so close-minded). It is a well written, not overly well researched first-time novel from a New Zealand writer.
Why do I say not well researched? Well, Henry Oades earns the post in New Zealand when his predecessor dies from a bat bite. Now, rabies has never been recorded in New Zealand and our bats are rare and not prone to biting. So I was a little annoyed at this from the onset. However, I did not allow this to put me off reading, and I am glad I persevered.
After earning the post in New Zealand, Henry Oades brings over his wife and his two children. They settle in, more-or-less to this rough and ready lifestyle, so unlike that which they had experienced in England. Although unhappy, Margaret Oades knows it is only for a short time, a year or so. Then disaster strikes - and she and her children are captured by Maori and whisked away as slaves.
Henry Oades returns to find his family gone, his house burned. His searches end in failure and after a time, he resigns them as dead and in his grief, he leaves for America. Wherein he marries again, this time to a young widow.
But Margaret and the children are not dead, and when they escape they manage to trail him to America. Wherein he is faced with a terrible dilemma for he now has two wives and only recently was a confirmed bigamist hanged...
Johanna Moran
Genre: Historical
Audience: Adults
Rating: 3/5
Based on a true case, this is the story of Henry Oades, who accidentally ended up commiting bigamy. At times funny, others heart-breaking it will in turn intrigue you, hearten you and occasionally frustrate you (some of the people are so close-minded). It is a well written, not overly well researched first-time novel from a New Zealand writer.
Why do I say not well researched? Well, Henry Oades earns the post in New Zealand when his predecessor dies from a bat bite. Now, rabies has never been recorded in New Zealand and our bats are rare and not prone to biting. So I was a little annoyed at this from the onset. However, I did not allow this to put me off reading, and I am glad I persevered.
After earning the post in New Zealand, Henry Oades brings over his wife and his two children. They settle in, more-or-less to this rough and ready lifestyle, so unlike that which they had experienced in England. Although unhappy, Margaret Oades knows it is only for a short time, a year or so. Then disaster strikes - and she and her children are captured by Maori and whisked away as slaves.
Henry Oades returns to find his family gone, his house burned. His searches end in failure and after a time, he resigns them as dead and in his grief, he leaves for America. Wherein he marries again, this time to a young widow.
But Margaret and the children are not dead, and when they escape they manage to trail him to America. Wherein he is faced with a terrible dilemma for he now has two wives and only recently was a confirmed bigamist hanged...
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