Readers and Reading discussion

I just finished The Shadow of Your Smile by Mary Higgins Clark
rating 3/5 A good story and quick read which is what I needed.

Now reading Knit Two by Kate Jacobs

Meredith

Greetings everyone!

I just read Don't Breathe a Word and really enjoyed it.

This is my first time reading Jennifer McMahon and really enjoyed myself.

The book is one of those page turners where you can't wait to find out what happens.

If you're interested I reviewed this title on my blog and can be found here: http://wp.me/pTRJE-5j

I just finished Sandra Dallas, The Bride's HouseThe Bride's House I liked it. Different than others she has written.

I just finished A Conflict of Interest and even though it is a debut author, Mitzner's writing will no doubt cement him into the world of legal thriller writers.

Fast paced, full of twists and turns, and completely engrossing. A solid 4* read.

If you're interested I reviewed the book on my blog and it can be found here: http://wp.me/pTRJE-5y

I just finished Tabloid City: A Novel and have to say that it was amazing!
Easily a best book of 2011 for me.

The story has something for everyone - it's somber, exciting, fast paced, and a great read.

I think what won me over on this book was Hamill's characters. They stayed with me long after I put the book down.

You're welcome to read my review here: http://wp.me/TRJE

Just finished That Summer in Sicily: A Love Story by Marlena De Blasi

My rating was a 4/5

I just finished A Drop of the Hard Stuff the new Matthew Scudder novel by Lawrence Block.

A quick and enjoyable enough read. Scudder takes on a case that is personal to him. Interesting characters and of course detective work.

As always, if you're interested, you can read my review here: http://wp.me/pTRJE-63

Jason wrote: "I just finished A Drop of the Hard Stuff the new Matthew Scudder novel by Lawrence Block.

I will be reading this book soon. I love this series and am so glad that Lawrence Block decided to write another entry.

I just finished The Lock Artist on audio. This book won the Edgar Award for Best Mystery of 2010 though I was a bit underwhelmed.

@Sandi - this was the first "Scudder" book I've read. I'd love to hear your thoughts when you do read it.

Just finished The Sisters Brothers: A Novel and really enjoyed it. Gave it 4* because it has a little of everything.
Dry humor, great characters, grit, emotion, and plain good storytelling/writing.

If you're interested my review can be found here: http://wp.me/pTRJE-6d

I just finished the delightful Mr. Rosenblum Dreams In English by Natasha Solomons!

R. wrote: "I just finished the delightful Mr. Rosenblum Dreams In English by Natasha Solomons!"

sounds just like your cuppa!!!

Last week I finished Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption. It was excellent. Well-researched, well-written, a story that will stay with the reader for a long time.

JoAnn/QuAppelle wrote: "Last week I finished Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption. It was excellent. Well-researched, well-written, a story that will stay with the reader f..."

I am glad to see that you enjoyed Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption. I downloaded the audio a while back but have not listened to it yet. I really enjoyed the author's previous book Seabiscuit: An American Legend.

I am currently reading The Exception: A Novel which so far has been a real page turner but I am a bit worried about how the ending is shaping up.

JoAnn/QuAppelle wrote: "Last week I finished Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption. It was excellent. Well-researched, well-written, a story that will stay with the reader f..."
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I am on my libraries waiting list for it. The hold list was a mile long. I'm now #10 on the list so I should be getting it soon. I can't wait. I've only read good reviews about it.

Just finished Before I Go to Sleep and while a good read, I wouldn't say it was the most outstanding thriller that it's purported to be.
One thing the author does well is create characters that make the reader guess where their true intentions lie.
A 3* read for me. If you're interested in reading more, my review can be found here: http://wp.me/pTRJE-6E

Jason wrote: "@Sandi - this was the first "Scudder" book I've read. I'd love to hear your thoughts when you do read it."


Jason, I ended up really enjoying A Drop of the Hard Stuff. I've read all the books in the series and it will rank among my favorites. Setting the book in the early days of Matt's sobriety was inspired. If you want to read a story when Matt is still drinking When the Sacred Ginmill Closes is a great read.

@Sandi - Thanks I will def. be reading more "Scudder" as I did really like Lawrence Block.

Just finished reading MAKING TOAST by Roger Rosenblatt. What a poignant story, and still ongoing.

Carolyn (in SC) C234D wrote: "Just finished reading MAKING TOAST by Roger Rosenblatt. What a poignant story, and still ongoing."
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Carolyn, I saw Making Toast on the library book shelf.
Glad to know it's a good read. I'll keep that in mind.

Hi everyone!
I just finished Alice Bliss and WOW. This is a gem of a book. A coming of age tale that is so moving.
I had a reading first with this book, in that I actually cried during the final scene. It was 2am and there I was sitting on the edge of the bed with sobbing tears. Never had it happen before.
But Alice is a moving young woman.
A def. and rare 5* read for me.

If you're interested my review can be found here: http://wp.me/pTRJE-75

>Carolyn, I saw Making Toast on the library book >shelf.
>Glad to know it's a good read. I'll keep that in >mind.

We had a very interesting book group discussion about MAKING TOAST the other night. One of our newer members had gone through a similar experience (the sudden death of an adult child). One person thanked me for nominating the book.

I just finished reading The Bee Eater: Michelle Rhee Takes on the Nation's Worst School District It was difficult to rate this book because I initially felt that there were three elements I needed to assess:
1- the information in the book
2- the writing
3- Michelle Rhee

Then I realized that how I feel about Rhee should have nothing to do with my rating of this book. (But I totally approved of what she did and wanted to do. Her methods were sometimes not as polished as they could have been, but she was very sure of herself and what needed to be done just to make these schools marginal.)

Going on to #2 - the information in this book was astounding and shocking and depressing and, I fear, very very true and real. There can be no doubt that if the DC schools had sunk so low, it was the fault of the administrators and teachers - not the kids. If I had the power Rhee was given, I would have been hard-pressed to keep more than a few of those people in their jobs. Disgraceful. And how can a union DEFEND those teachers? How can they not think about the students and put them first? What a screwed-up entity!

#3 The writing.......I found so many grammatical errors in this book, and some terribly constructed sentences. It was VERY distracting, to say the least. I found at least 20 instances where an article (a, an, or the) had been left out and a lot of poor punctuation. So I arbitrarily decided to not use the writing to determine my rating.

But I would call this a very "qualified" 5 stars because of the writing.

JoAnn/QuAppelle wrote: "I just finished reading The Bee Eater: Michelle Rhee Takes on the Nation's Worst School District It was difficult to rate this book because I initially felt that there were three ele..."

Nice review JoAnn. I listen to the Tony Kornheiser radio show podcast and know that Rhee was a very controversial and polarizing figure in D.C (I especially remember the uproar when she fired all those teachers).

I just finished reading Black Maestro: The Epic Life of an American Legend which had a lot of very interesting information on both horse racing and early twentieth century history. The writing was a bit pedestrian though.

I am now reading On the Line: A Bill Smith/Lydia Chin Novel by S.J. Rozan.

Have you read any of this series before, Sandi? I've read two or three and think they are pretty good.

Carolyn (in SC) C234D wrote: "Have you read any of this series before, Sandi? I've read two or three and think they are pretty good."

Yes, I am a big fan of the series. I tend to prefer the books written in Bill's POV but think the last few Lydia books have been very strong too.