Crime, Mysteries & Thrillers discussion

The Naked Face by Sidney Sheldon
Shanna by Kathleen Woodiwiss
Charlotte's Web by E. B. White
Dr. No by Ian Fleming

The first was extremely scary, the second my first big romance, the third I read over and over with my girls when they were little, and the fourth was my first real "adult" novel my mom allowed me to read.

Sands of Time by Sidney Sheldon
Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
Secret Letters by the Monk who sold his Ferrari by Robin Sharma

Helter Skelter
In Cold Blood by Truman Capote
White Oleander
Alice in Wonderland

Winnie-the-Pooh
Heidi
Eleven Hours
Where the Grooleys Play

Gail wrote: "Temple wrote: "Helter Skelter
In Cold Blood by Truman Capote
White Oleander
Alice in Wonderland"

I remember In Cold Blood..."

Creepy book!

Promised Land by Robert B. Parker – turned me on to Parker, Spenser, and mysteries as a genre.
Red Storm Rising by Tom Clancy – every time I read it, it’s as engaging as the first time
Criminal Conversation by Evan Hunter – haunted me long after I finished it.
Billy Strobe by John Martel – the best legal thriller I ever read.

There are many others that have stuck with me because they introduced me to great writers or characters I developed an instant affinity for, but these are the top four.

Ida, I loved Country Mouse, City Mouse, too. In fact, I think I still have it. My four are:
Harriet the Spy, I wanted to be Harriet.
The Hobbit, just opened my imagination up
more recently... The Brutal Telling, awesome mystery and Room, another amazing book. Darn, I thought of more but can only name 4.

The Three Musketeers, Jane Eyre, Voices by Arnaldur Indridasson, Being Mortal'

THIS is NoT fair... I say in a whiny voice.

"Read aloud to me standouts" The Wind in the Willows, Watership Down, Where the Red Fern Grows When We Were Very Young

On own: The Mists of Avalon (before I heard how horrible the author was) Watership Down, The Solid Gold Kid,Alan and Naomi
oh shoot that's 4.

A Tree Grows In Brooklyn A Tree Grows in Brooklyn
Cashelmara Cashelmara
The Circular Staircase The Circular Staircase
Seabiscuit Seabiscuit: An American Legend
and a current 5 star read;
EuphoriaEuphoria

I know - I cheated!!

So difficult to just pick 4..........also loved Watership Down, Harriet the Spy & The Secret Garden, when I was growing up......

Oh yeah - can't forget East of Eden! :-) :-) :-)

The Map of Time
The Forgotten Garden
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
The Shadow of the Wind

Oddly enough, none of them are Mysteries or Historical Fiction which are my preferred genres.

The Ruins by Scott B. Smith
The Rape of Nanking by Iris Chang
The Budayeen Cycle by George Alec Effinger
The New York Trilogy by Paul Auster

Wendy wrote: "THIS is NoT fair... I say in a whiny voice.

"Read aloud to me standouts" The Wind in the Willows, Watership Down, Where the Red Fern Grows [book:When We Were..."

What is so horrible about Marion Zimmer Bradley?

Taylor wrote: "The Map of Time
The Forgotten Garden
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
The Shadow of the Wind

Oddly enough, none of them are Mysteries or Histo..."

Forgotten Garden is a wonderful story!

Kirsten *Dogs Welcome - People Tolerated" wrote: "Wendy wrote: "THIS is NoT fair... I say in a whiny voice.

"Read aloud to me standouts" The Wind in the Willows, Watership Down, Where the Red Fern Grows [boo..."

Child abuser

A Scots Quair: Sunset Song, Cloud Howe, Grey Granite
when I found that a book could speak to my heart
The BFG
when I found that a book could make me laugh and be moved at the same time
The Hound of the Baskervilles
when I found Mr Holmes
One Shot
when I discovered action thrillers

Icewineanne wrote: "Kirsten *Dogs Welcome - People Tolerated" wrote: "Wendy wrote: "THIS is NoT fair... I say in a whiny voice.

"Read aloud to me standouts" The Wind in the Willows, [book:Watership Down|..."

See, this is why we shouldn't know too much about authors. We rule out books that are really good.

1. Au bonheur des dames by Emile Zole : the first book i fell in love with
2. Gone with the wind: i read the 3 parts in 2 weeks ( quiet an accomplishment at the time
3. North and South by Elizabeth Gaskell : ooooh Mr Thornton!!!
4. A quiet belief in Angels by J. ellroy : very touching thriller

Taylor wrote: "The Map of Time
The Forgotten Garden
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
The Shadow of the Wind

Oddly enough, none of them are Mysteries or Histo..."

i finished "The shadow of the wind" yesterday and it was an amazing book!!! Never came across something like it before!!

Kirsten *Dogs Welcome - People Tolerated" wrote: "Icewineanne wrote: "Kirsten *Dogs Welcome - People Tolerated" wrote: "Wendy wrote: "THIS is NoT fair... I say in a whiny voice.

"Read aloud to me standouts" The Wind in the Willows, [..."

Wow... Difficult issue!


And this is why Goodreads quote system in their forums is horrible and insufficient. Wish they'd get better software for that. *sigh*

Faouzia wrote: "Taylor wrote: "The Map of Time
The Forgotten Garden
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
The Shadow of the Wind

Oddly enough, none of them are Mys..."

Wasn't it fabulous? Hands down, the best book I've ever read.

Taylor wrote: "Faouzia wrote: "Taylor wrote: "The Map of Time
The Forgotten Garden
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
The Shadow of the Wind

Oddly enough, none..."

Have this in my TBR pile, will have to move it up on the list. Thanks for the nudges Faouzia & Taylor :-)

Jaws Read when I was around 10 years old.
The Stand I have read multiple times.
Weaveworld by Clive Barker and his intense narrative.
To kill A Mocking Bird that I've read just recently.

So any others that have made a unique impression on me.

Happy Reading Everyone!

Taylor wrote: "Faouzia wrote: "Taylor wrote: "The Map of Time
The Forgotten Garden
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
The Shadow of the Wind

Oddly enough, none..."

Yes it was!!! At the end i couldn't put it down!! Yes it was a unique book :)

Loved shadow of the wind! Glad someone else thought it a memorable book!

P.S. I Love You by Cecelia Ahern
Faithful Place by Tana French
Fin & Lady by Cathleen Schine
Naked in Death by J.D. Robb

did you all know there are 2 sequels to The Shadow of the Wind

Wendy wrote: "did you all know there are 2 sequels to The Shadow of the Wind"

YEs :) i added both to my TBR as soon as i finished the Shadow of the Wind :)

Gravity's Rainbow by Thomas Pynchon

Debbie wrote: "Gail wrote: "Temple wrote: "Helter Skelter
In Cold Blood by Truman Capote
White Oleander
Alice in Wonderland"

I remember In Cold Blood..."

Creepy book!"

Agreed. but it is a good one. Its sad in a way that Capote never wrote another book. If you get a chance, watch the movie "Capote" with Philip Seymour Hoffman. Its very interesting.

it is definitely difficult to select just four books. It depends on what mood I'm in — whether mystery, spy, literature, history or ....

I know that when I was a kid I fell in love with mysteries by reading Agatha Christie and Arthur Conan Doyle. Feeding that passion as I got older, I got into Tony Hillman and Ed McBain and in the true crimes section of the library, "In Cold Blood" (I was a pretty gruesome teen).

Then I was amazed at Harry Potter when my son started reading them. I've always enjoyed any of the books I've read by Gore Vidal and recent loves are "Major Pettigrew's Last Stand" and "The Forgotten Garden."

Every Agatha Christie book, The Mirror by Marlys Milheiser, The Lord of the Rings trilogy and Green Darkness by Anya Seton.

Lori wrote: "Every Agatha Christie book, The Mirror by Marlys Milheiser, The Lord of the Rings trilogy and Green Darkness by Anya Seton."

I had forgotten about Green Darkness - one of my favorite books as a teenager!

The Dressmaker by Kate Alcott
The Gift by Cecelia Ahern
Before The Storm by Diane Chamberlain
Harry Potter and The Half-Blood Prince by J.K. Rowling

A Separate Peace
The Yearling
Shibumi
One Second After

Gone With the Wind
Wit'ch Fire
Shutter Island
The Thirteenth Tale

Dune - my introduction to fantasy and science fiction

Merrivale Holds the Key: The Plague Court Murders & The Red Widow Murders - "Plague Court" is one of the creepiest books I have ever read.

The Queen's Gambit - hauntingly beautiful and lonely portrayal of a young female chess prodigy, who is so shut off from the rest of the world.

The Rose Rent - my introduction to historical mysteries. I have never found a writer who can surpass the medical mysteries of Ellis Peters (Edith Pargeter).

The Furies of Caulderon by Jim Butcher.
White Wolf by David Gemmell.
The Killing Floor by Lee Child
Bag of Bones by Stephen King

The Shadow of the Wind, The Brothers Karamazov
All the Light We Cannot See, Orphan Train

The GodfatherThe Great Book of AmberThe Master and MargaritaGlue

Fortune is a Woman; The Rich shall Inherit; Property of a Lady; Live by Night.

The Budayeen Cycle by George Alec Effinger (admittedly that is 3 books)

Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn (unfortunately)

The Buried Giant by Kazuo Ishiguro

Revival by Stephen King

Snow Dog by Jim Kjelgaard - I read it about 200 times when I was a kid.

The Call of the Wild by Jack London - got me crazy to read all his stuff and I grew up in the SF Bay Area where you could go see Jack London's haunts

The Lone Star Ranger by Zane Grey - When I closed the book I wanted to be an author just like him so I could make other people feel the way I did right then.

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban - This was when I truly got hooked on the book series and it seemed like she had made a quantum leap as far as writing skill.

Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn

The Last Policeman by Ben Winters

Nemesis by Jo Nesbo

Broken Harbour by Tana French

The Yearling
To Kill a Mockingbird
A Separate Peace
Illumination: The Shaman's Way of Healing

David Copperfield: My mother reading it about 10 pages at a time to me when I was a child.

Gone Girl

Case Histories

Wuthering Heights

Children's/Young Adult:
1. The Solid Gold Kid Norma Fox Mazer
2. Alan and Naomi Myron Levoy
3. Where the Red Fern Grows Wilson Rawls
4. Summer of My German Soldier Bette Greene

Adult:
1. The Shadow of the Wind Carlos Ruiz Zafón
2. The Mists of Avalon Marion Zimmer Bradley (* incredible book, horrible nasty child-abusive author)
3. The Forgotten Beasts of EldPatricia A. McKillip
4. The Last Unicorn Peter S. Beagle

1. The Great Gatsby
2. Comes a Horseman by Robert Liparulo
3. The 13th Juror by John Lescroart
4. The Color of Law by Mark Gimenez
5. Last but not least-The Old Man and the Sea
These are the ones that come to mind at the moment, but I remember quite a few, vividly.

Janet wrote: "David Copperfield: My mother reading it about 10 pages at a time to me when I was a child.

Gone Girl

Case Histories

Wuthering Heights"

I love Case Histories...in fact I have loved everything Kate Atkinson has ever written!