Mailbox Monday

Tuesday, Nov. 24
Golden Buddha by Clive Cussler

In this first feature-length adventure, the enigmatic captain of the Oregon, Juan Cabrillo and his crew of expert intelligence and naval men must put Tibet back in the hands of the Dalai Lama by striking a deal with the Russians and the Chinese. His gambling chip is a Golden Buddha containing records of vast oil reserves in the disputed land. But first, he’ll have to locate – and steal – the all-important artifact. And there are certain people who would do anything in their power to see him fail…

Received this book as part of a two book swap on PBS. It looks interesting, I’ve only read one Cussler book before and really loved it. I hope this one is just as good.

The Eight by Katherine Neville

New York City, 1972 – Catherine Velis is a computer expert for a Big Eight accounting firm. Before heading off to an assignment in Algeria, Cat is approached by an antiques dealer with a mysterious offer: His anonymous client is trying to collect the pieces of an ancient chess service, purported to be in Algeria. If Cat can bring them back, there will be a generous reward. The south of France, 1790 – France is aflame with revolution, and two young novices – Mireille de Remy and her cousin Valentine – burn to rebel against their constricted convent life at Montglane Abbey. Now their means of escape is at hand. Buried deep within the abbey are the pieces of a chess service once owned by Charlemagne. Whoever has all the pieces can play a game of unlimited power. But to keep the Game a secret from those who would abuse it, the pieces must be scattered throughout the world.

This was the second in the two book swap from PBS and the one that I really wanted. I’ve had this one on my reminder list for quite some time and jumped at the opportunity to finally get it. I hope that it’s as good as I think it will be!

Denial
by Keith Ablow

Copyright: 1997
Pages: 358
Rating:4/5
Read: Nov. 24-28, 2009
Challenge:  2009 100+ Reading Challenge; Random Reading Challenge; RYOB 2009
Yearly Count: 62

First Line: I shot up, sweat dripping down my face.

Frank Clevenger is a forensic psychiatrist with more than a few problems. Problems with drugs, intimacy, childhood abuse, and professional mistakes have made him who he is today. And that is exactly what makes him so good at his job. But this latest case is one that he needs in order to get back into the good graces of his employers. A young woman is found brutally murdered and mutilated. But when Frank goes to the morgue he is shocked to find that he knows the woman lying on the table. She is a good friend of his girlfriend. The main suspect is a schizophrenic homeless man. But Frank isn’t convinced that he committed the murder. When more evidence and more bodies begin to stack up, it is Frank who must race agains the clock to find the murderer to end the killings. But what he finds will terrify him.

This is the first in a series. (Like I need any more of those!) Either way, this is not a book for everyone. This book has all the elements of what I like to call “sick sh*t”. I’m not offended or turned off easily, but some people may be. If that is the case for you, then do not read this book. However, I felt like it was an interesting read. I always like to read fiction novels with psychological elements in them. This one definitely has that. There were certain times when I did want to just knock Frank upside the head and knock some sense into him. But I think the ending sure did sober him up. I personally liked how Mr. Ablow created a character who was addicted to cocaine rather than the standard alcohol (how many books have main characters with alcohol problems these days?) I felt like it gave the book a different angle. I think he eventually found himself in this book in a very unconventional way. Now how this series continues will be very interesting in my opinion. So I’m definitely looking forward to reading the next one.

So Book Chick City will be hosting the 2010 Thriller & Suspense Challenge this year. I signed up for the 2008/2009 challenge but not the 2009 one because I was still working on the previous one. So I was glad to see that someone took this one over for J. Kaye. Thriller/Suspense is one of my very favorite genre of books. It’s probably what a good 90% of my books are. So this one will be a good challenge for me. The rules are simple: Read 12 books between January 1st and December 31st, 2010. No lists are required and crossovers with other challenges are okay. There are many different sub-genres within the realm of Thriller/Suspense books. You will choose your books from that list, but don’t worry it’s easy to fit books into the categories. . There is a list of the sub-genres which can be found here. I will be keeping my list here:

I am looking forward to doing this challenge again! I’m not going to meet my 2009 goals, but that’s okay. I relied too much on the library this year because I wanted to read more than a few new releases (and I refuse to buy hardbacks). It’s silly, I have what seems like a gazillion books on my shelves and I browse the library like I have no books at home. So, once again I’m going to be setting a goal of 50 books: 25 of those have to be on my shelves prior to 2010. I would prefer to have all of them on my shelves before 2010, but I like to leave myself a little leeway for new books to get read You can click on the button above to go to the post about the challenge. The rules are simple: You set a goal of how many books off of your shelves that you want to read and you choose as you go. However, re-reads cannot count.  I will be keeping up with my list on this page.

So I have signed up for the Celebrate the Author Challenge hosted by Becky the past two years. Of course I couldn’t resist signing up once again. I know I stated that I wanted to be a little less restrictive in my challenges this year, but I just had to make an exception for this one! It’s been one of my favorite challenges, and it’s always easy to do as long as you pay attention to what month you’re in, lol! You can click on the image above to take you to Becky’s page regarding sign-ups. The rules are simple: you choose 12 books (no lists required) and you essentially “celebrate” the author’s birthday. Take Harlan Coben, for example. His birthday is in January, so you would read a Harlan Coben book in January to fulfill January’s requirement. You choose one author for each month and read what you want. Pretty much any type of book goes. I will be keeping my list here.

January:
February:
March:
April:
May:
June:
July:
August:
September:
October:
November:
December:

So, J. Kaye might be cutting back in 2010 but thankfully she is still hosting this challenge! I was not signed up in 2008, but almost made 100 coming in at 97 I believe. In 2009, I haven’t done quite as well, only currently sitting at 61. But I’m going to try again in 2010. You can click on the button above to go to the sign-up page on J. Kaye’s blog. The rules are really simple: read 100 books between January 1st and December 31st, 2010. There are no necessary lists beforehand and crossovers with other challenges are allowed. Pretty much any kind of book and/or format of book can count. I will be keeping my list here:

Grave Secret
by Charlaine Harris

Copyright: 2009
Pages: 306
Rating:4/5
Read: Nov. 17-24, 2009
Challenge:  2009 100+ Reading Challenge; 2010 Countdown Challenge;  2009 Celebrate the Author Challenge
Yearly Count: 61

First Line: “All right,” said the straw-haired woman in the denim jacket. “Do your thing.”

Harper Connelly has traveled to Texas with her stepbrother Tolliver to do a job. They like to travel to Texas, it allows this to see their little sisters. But what they learn while in Texas is worse than they could have ever imagined anything. First they learn that Tolliver’s father is out of prison and is trying to re-establish family connections. After they finish the job that brought them to Texas, Tolliver is shot. But the police think that Tolliver was not the intended target, that Harper was. While Tolliver is recovering in the hospital, Harper is trying to figure out what is going on. She has a feeling that there is a connection between their last job and Tolliver being shot, but she can’t possibly figure out what it is. And the fact that Tolliver’s father is back in the mix only makes matters worse for her. However, what she will ultimately find out will turn her world upside down. Harper finally finds out what happened to her sister so many years ago, but what the truth reveals is something far more disturbing than anyone ever thought possible.

This is the fourth (and, sadly) the last in the Harper Connelly series. Although Ms. Harris left a small opening for another book in this series, she has mentioned in numerous places on her website that she is finished with Harper. And honestly, I can see where it would be hard to go anywhere else with this series. Although a lot of people might have been turned off by the relationship between Harper and Tolliver, I didn’t find it all that problematic. In fact I can see where it can be quite common – however, I would have thought that the attraction would have happened when they were teenagers. However, having Harper and Tolliver together practically 24/7 on the road made it kind of inevitable also. I personally liked Harper’s character. I thought that the gift that Harris thought up for her was quite interesting, and her descriptions of how she did her work were interesting. However, I have a rather large complaint about this book – there was very little action in regards to what Harper does as a living. She came in and did her “thing” within the first chapter and that was that. The rest of the book was mainly about Tolliver recovering and Harper trying to figure out what was going on with the help of Manfred. I rated this book a 4/5 simply because I felt it was a little rushed in places. It was like Ms. Harris was trying her hardest to wrap this series up as quickly as possible. There were also more than a few grammar/spelling errors (which I have noticed is a common thing in Ms. Harris’ books). Overall I thought that this was a pretty decent way to end this series, and that although I am sad to see the end of this series, I am also glad to have a conclusion.

Mailbox Monday

Wednesday, Nov. 18
Gideon by Russell Andrews

Gideon. An identity shrouded in mystery – the anonymous source who holds the key to an explosive secret. In a clandestine meeting, writer Carl Granville is hired to take the pages of an old diary, articles, letters, documents in which all proper names and locations have been blacked out – and turn them into compelling fiction. He will be paid a quarter of a million dollars. But he can never tell a soul. As he is fed information and his work progresses, Granville begins to realize that Gideon’s book is more than just a potential bestseller. It is a revelation of chilling evil and a decades-long cover-up by someone with far-reaching power. He starts to have second thoughts. How will his book be used? Whose lives will be shattered? What is the truth behind the story – and who is the true storyteller? Then someone close to Granville is bludgeoned to death. Another is savagely murdered. His apartment is ransacked, his computer destroyed, all his records stolen. Suspicion falls on Granville. He tries to explain the shadowy assignment. No one believes him. He has no proof, no alibis…

I received this one today as part of a three book swap from PBS (goodness, I am addicted to the boxer feature!). This one sounds like a good book – we’ll see

No Time for Goodbye by Linwood Barclay

Fourteen-year-old Cynthia Bigge woke one morning to discover that her entire family – mother, father, older brother – had vanished. No note, no trace, no return. Ever. Now, twenty-five years later, she’ll learn the devastating truth. …. Cynthia is happily married with a young daughter, a new family. But the story of her old family isn’t over. A strange car in the neighborhood, untraceable phone calls, ominous “gifts” – someone has returned to her hometown to finish what was started twenty-five years ago. And no one’s innocence is guaranteed, not even her own. By the time Cynthia discovers the killer’s shocking identity, it will again be too late … even for goodbye.

Received this one in the PBS swap; I have had my eye on this author for quite some time and am looking forward to giving this book a go!

The Lost Constitution by William Martin

Rare-book expert Peter Fallon and his girlfriend, Evangeline Carrington, are back for another treasure hunt through time. They have learned of an early, annotated draft of the U.S. Constitution, stolen and smuggled out of Philadelphia. The draft’s marginal notes spell out, in shocking detail, the Foundders’ unequivocal intentions – the unmistakable meaning of the Bill of Rights. Peddled and purloined, trafficked and concealed for more than two centures, the lost Constitution – if found – could forever change America’s history … and its future. Congress is fighting tooth and claw over the eternally contentious Bill of Rights, spurring a frenzied search for the missing document, which each side believes it can use to bolster its arguments. Peter and Evangeline must get to the document first, because they know that if the wrong people find it, they will burn it, stripping the nation of its constitutional moorings. The search takes Peter and Evangeline into the rich history of America. Past and present play off one another as the quest for the draft heats up until it boils over and the truth is finally revealed.

This is the last in the PBS swap. And this one looks REALLY good to me! I’m looking forward to getting to this one rather soon!

Mailbox Monday

Tuesday, Nov. 10
Die Trying by Lee Child

Jack Reacher is an innocent bystander – in the wrong place at the wrong time – when a woman is kidnapped. Now, he’s at the mercy of a group of men demanding an impossible ransom, for this mysterious woman is worth far more than Reacher ever suspected. And though she doesn’t ask for his help, he’s going to give it to her … Because ex-military policeman Jack Reacher is a hero. He’s used to saving lives. But this time he’s going to take a few before he’s through….

Ordered this one from FrugalReader. Have been wanting to try this series for a while. This is the second in the series. Hopefully it’s a new series that I can enjoy.

Killing Floor by Lee Child

Ex-military policeman Jack Reacher is a drifter, just passing through. He is in Margrave, Georgia, for less than a half hour when four policemen arrive, shotguns in hand, to arrest him for murder. All Jack knows is he didn’t kill anybody. Not in their town, and not for a long time …

Ordered this one from FrugalReader as well. This is the first in the series. Am really hoping this one is as good as I hope it will be

The Robert F. Kennedy Assassination: New Revelatios on the Conspiracy and Cover-Up by Philip H. Melanson, Ph.D.

This breakthrough book provides the basis for a major new effort to re-open the flawed investigation of the Robert F. Kennedy assassination. Melanson’s investigation has unvoered startling new evidence of a murder conspiracy – despite the fact that the supposed lone gunman, Sirhan Sirhan, was caught “red-handed.” … The numerous glaring and unanswered questions in this case, coupled with the simplistic official solution, caused this investigative researcher to question whether there was additional unexamined evidence. … With masterful research and exceptional courage, this book challenges the official history of a national tragedy. At last, we have a solid case for a re-investigation of the RFK assassination.

Ordered this one from PBS. I was a history major, and the 1960s is a favorite era of mine to study. I am especially interested in assassinations, though. (Lincoln, JFK, MLK, RFK….) So I was excited to see this book was available. I have never read anything that has dealt primarily with the RFK assassination, and I am looking forward to learning more about it.