Everyone get excited, because I am giving away my review copies of Annie's Ghosts and Palos Verdes Blue in June!! The contest will run from today until 11:59 PM MST on June 14th. There will be two winners, and all you have to do to enter is comment. Becoming a follower (or currently following) will get you an additional entry. Unfortunately, due to ever increasing shipping costs, I am going to have to limit this giveaway to those with U.S. or Canadian mailing addresses. Please leave an email address where I can contact you.
Oh, and please specify which book you would prefer to win :)
Friday, May 29, 2009
"Palos Verdes Blue" by John Shannon
While I have heard of the Jack Liffey Mystery s, written by John Shannon, I have never read one before. I was fortunate enough to get a review copy of Palos Verdes Blue, which is the eleventh book in the series. I was a little worried that starting on book eleven would put me at a disadvantage, but luckily, that wasn't the case.
Palos Verdes is southern California city. It is also the name of an extremely endangered species of butterfly, native to only a single site on the Palos Verdes peninsula. It is actually the rarest butterfly on earth. And it is the starting point of Jack Liffey's investigation into the disappearance of a high school aged activist, Blaine "Blue" Hostetler. The daughter of his ex-wife's best friend, she has been missing for a couple days, and Jack has been enlisted to find her and bring her home.
His investigation takes him into the often ignored world of poverty that is the reality of the illegal immigrants that live and work in affluent communities of So Cal. There he meets Jaime, a young immigrant fleeing a sordid past of his own. Also, and unbeknownst to Jack, his seventeen year-old daughter Maeve (a classmate of the missing Blue), begins to investigate the disappearance as well. Although facing troubling issues of her own, Maeve soon begins to dig up significant clues, and makes some fairly insightful observations as to the possible location of the missing girl.
I really enjoyed Palos Verdes Blue, which could easily have been a stand-alone novel and not part of a series. I never felt like I was missing anything, however the characters were so richly drawn and believable, I will probably be hunting down books one thru ten simply to delve into their collective pasts, which were alluded to in this installment. In addition to multi-dimensional characters, Palos Verdes Blue was also a very relevant read, with much of its plot focusing on the subject of illegal immigration and the treatment of immigrants in this country. It was a stark reminder that many of us spend a lot of time with our blinders on, blissful in our deliberate ignorance of controversial issues.
On top of all of the rest, Palos Verdes Blue was also a great mystery, with enough red herrings and potential suspects and outcomes to keep you guessing until the end. There was also enough of a cliff hanger at the end (relating to the family drama and such, not the mystery itself) to make me anxious for the release of book twelve. Of course, between now and then I will be able to catch up on the volumes I have missed. Easily a four star read, one I would enthusiastically recommend to anyone.
Palos Verdes is southern California city. It is also the name of an extremely endangered species of butterfly, native to only a single site on the Palos Verdes peninsula. It is actually the rarest butterfly on earth. And it is the starting point of Jack Liffey's investigation into the disappearance of a high school aged activist, Blaine "Blue" Hostetler. The daughter of his ex-wife's best friend, she has been missing for a couple days, and Jack has been enlisted to find her and bring her home.
His investigation takes him into the often ignored world of poverty that is the reality of the illegal immigrants that live and work in affluent communities of So Cal. There he meets Jaime, a young immigrant fleeing a sordid past of his own. Also, and unbeknownst to Jack, his seventeen year-old daughter Maeve (a classmate of the missing Blue), begins to investigate the disappearance as well. Although facing troubling issues of her own, Maeve soon begins to dig up significant clues, and makes some fairly insightful observations as to the possible location of the missing girl.
I really enjoyed Palos Verdes Blue, which could easily have been a stand-alone novel and not part of a series. I never felt like I was missing anything, however the characters were so richly drawn and believable, I will probably be hunting down books one thru ten simply to delve into their collective pasts, which were alluded to in this installment. In addition to multi-dimensional characters, Palos Verdes Blue was also a very relevant read, with much of its plot focusing on the subject of illegal immigration and the treatment of immigrants in this country. It was a stark reminder that many of us spend a lot of time with our blinders on, blissful in our deliberate ignorance of controversial issues.
On top of all of the rest, Palos Verdes Blue was also a great mystery, with enough red herrings and potential suspects and outcomes to keep you guessing until the end. There was also enough of a cliff hanger at the end (relating to the family drama and such, not the mystery itself) to make me anxious for the release of book twelve. Of course, between now and then I will be able to catch up on the volumes I have missed. Easily a four star read, one I would enthusiastically recommend to anyone.
Wednesday, May 27, 2009
"Jesse's Girl" by Gary Morgenstein
I received Jesse’s Girl by Gary Morgenstein for review yesterday. While I was intrigued, I wasn’t particularly hopeful that it was going to be much of a page-turner. Was I ever wrong. I really got into the story from the very beginning. As I come from a family that has had its own issues with addiction and chemical dependence, it is possible that I was able to better relate to the characters in this novel, thus making it more real to me.
The premise of the book centers on Teddy Mentor and his sixteen year old adopted son, Jesse. Jesse has been sent away to a wilderness program in rural Montana in a last ditch effort to put an end to the drug problems that have plagued him for years. The problems escalated after the death of his adopted mother (and Teddy’s soon to be ex wife), and had reached a point where Teddy had to admit he was incapable of controlling or protecting his child. With nowhere else to turn, he entrusts his only child to the professionals at the Mountain Wilderness Center.
Big mistake. Not two weeks later he gets a 1AM phone call. His son is missing. Risking his job, he books a flight away from Brooklyn and towards his son. After a couple days of searching, he gets the break he needs and tracks his son to a bus stop in Illinois, en route to Kentucky to meet his long-lost birth sister (whom Jesse leads Teddy to believe is his long-distance girlfriend). Jesse swears up and down that he is done with the drugs; in that convincing way all users seem to have. However, it isn’t long before Teddy notices that he is missing some of his antidepressants and that his son occasionally reeks of beer. Jesse’s lies come to a head when he OD’s on heroin in the middle of the night while sharing a hotel room with his dad.
Torn between institutionalizing Jesse for his own good and joining him on his trek to meet his ‘girlfriend’, Teddy relents and the two continue on to Kentucky. When they arrive at Theresa’s, they are introduced to her ‘brother’ Beau. Beau is actually Theresa’s abusive husband, and within a few hours he and Jesse get into a particularly brutal altercation that ends with Jesse stabbing him. This unintentional act of violence spurs a run from the law that leads Teddy and Jesse into the heart of Jesse’s birth family. It also forces the two to address the issues that have destroyed their relationship.
Jesse’s Girl was a very unexpected read. I thoroughly enjoyed it from beginning to end. Not only was it an emotional family drama, it was also full of action and even (a little) romance. I easily give it five stars.
The premise of the book centers on Teddy Mentor and his sixteen year old adopted son, Jesse. Jesse has been sent away to a wilderness program in rural Montana in a last ditch effort to put an end to the drug problems that have plagued him for years. The problems escalated after the death of his adopted mother (and Teddy’s soon to be ex wife), and had reached a point where Teddy had to admit he was incapable of controlling or protecting his child. With nowhere else to turn, he entrusts his only child to the professionals at the Mountain Wilderness Center.
Big mistake. Not two weeks later he gets a 1AM phone call. His son is missing. Risking his job, he books a flight away from Brooklyn and towards his son. After a couple days of searching, he gets the break he needs and tracks his son to a bus stop in Illinois, en route to Kentucky to meet his long-lost birth sister (whom Jesse leads Teddy to believe is his long-distance girlfriend). Jesse swears up and down that he is done with the drugs; in that convincing way all users seem to have. However, it isn’t long before Teddy notices that he is missing some of his antidepressants and that his son occasionally reeks of beer. Jesse’s lies come to a head when he OD’s on heroin in the middle of the night while sharing a hotel room with his dad.
Torn between institutionalizing Jesse for his own good and joining him on his trek to meet his ‘girlfriend’, Teddy relents and the two continue on to Kentucky. When they arrive at Theresa’s, they are introduced to her ‘brother’ Beau. Beau is actually Theresa’s abusive husband, and within a few hours he and Jesse get into a particularly brutal altercation that ends with Jesse stabbing him. This unintentional act of violence spurs a run from the law that leads Teddy and Jesse into the heart of Jesse’s birth family. It also forces the two to address the issues that have destroyed their relationship.
Jesse’s Girl was a very unexpected read. I thoroughly enjoyed it from beginning to end. Not only was it an emotional family drama, it was also full of action and even (a little) romance. I easily give it five stars.
Monday, May 25, 2009
"Annie's Ghosts" by Steven Luxenburg
Like most people, I assume that I know my parents. I assume that they stories they have told me about their past are fairly all-inclusive, and that the stuff they have left out is irrelevant at best. It is easy to forget that they were people long before they were parents, that they had their share of trials and tribulations, and that I didn’t come into the picture until most of their struggles had subsided. After reading Annie’s Ghosts, I realized that perhaps the most important parts of my parents’ pre-parental existence may very well have been the ones they chose to omit from their own personal narratives. I only know the condensed version, the PG version that was cleaned up for my child’s brain and never updated when I became an adult.
Annie’s Ghosts is the story of one family’s hidden history. A few years prior to his mother’s death, Steve Luxenberg discovers a skeleton in her closet. Beth, a self-professed ‘only child,’ had a younger sister. As the story goes, the child had been mentally ill and institutionalized when Beth was only four years old. Because of his mother’s declining health, both mental and physical, Steve and his siblings decide not to press her about the rumor. She passes away in August 1999, unaware that her children have discovered her long-buried secret, and therefore without divulging any information to them.
After his mother’s death, a strange new fact is presented. Beth’s sister, Annie, had not been institutionalized as a young child but as a young woman of almost 21 years old. And Beth had been 23. However, no one in Steven’s immediate family had known that the sister had even existed. He wonders how and why his mother perpetrated the secret, and begins to dig deeper into his family’s history.
What he uncovers is a maze of information that seems to add questions rather than answer them. (What was his mother’s REAL name? Were his grandparents first cousins? Did his father know about Annie? Why did his father end up in a military psych hospital?) In a journey through a different (though recent) generation, we follow Steve’s family through the holocaust and emigration to America, and their inability to attain the American dream. We also get a taste of the mental health care system that was in its infancy in this nation during the ‘40s, and follow its evolution through to the present day.
While many of the questions that are posed throughout the book are inevitably unanswered (a great many of the people who knew about Annie’s existence are deceased by the time Steve’s research begins), it is still a satisfying, four star read. It begs the question, “What do any of us really know about our family history?” It is also a shocking look into the way mentally and physically ill people were treated in this country as recently as 50 years ago. While we can’t change the past, shedding light on some of the dark times in our history may certainly prevent them from repeating themselves.
Annie’s Ghosts is the story of one family’s hidden history. A few years prior to his mother’s death, Steve Luxenberg discovers a skeleton in her closet. Beth, a self-professed ‘only child,’ had a younger sister. As the story goes, the child had been mentally ill and institutionalized when Beth was only four years old. Because of his mother’s declining health, both mental and physical, Steve and his siblings decide not to press her about the rumor. She passes away in August 1999, unaware that her children have discovered her long-buried secret, and therefore without divulging any information to them.
After his mother’s death, a strange new fact is presented. Beth’s sister, Annie, had not been institutionalized as a young child but as a young woman of almost 21 years old. And Beth had been 23. However, no one in Steven’s immediate family had known that the sister had even existed. He wonders how and why his mother perpetrated the secret, and begins to dig deeper into his family’s history.
What he uncovers is a maze of information that seems to add questions rather than answer them. (What was his mother’s REAL name? Were his grandparents first cousins? Did his father know about Annie? Why did his father end up in a military psych hospital?) In a journey through a different (though recent) generation, we follow Steve’s family through the holocaust and emigration to America, and their inability to attain the American dream. We also get a taste of the mental health care system that was in its infancy in this nation during the ‘40s, and follow its evolution through to the present day.
While many of the questions that are posed throughout the book are inevitably unanswered (a great many of the people who knew about Annie’s existence are deceased by the time Steve’s research begins), it is still a satisfying, four star read. It begs the question, “What do any of us really know about our family history?” It is also a shocking look into the way mentally and physically ill people were treated in this country as recently as 50 years ago. While we can’t change the past, shedding light on some of the dark times in our history may certainly prevent them from repeating themselves.
Friday, May 22, 2009
"Of Bees and Mist" by Erick Setiawan
I was lucky enough to get an ARC of Of Bees and Mist through Barnes and Noble’s First Look program. I received the book yesterday (May 21st) and, quite frankly, devoured it. I finished it in less than twenty-four hours. From the first chapter I was totally drawn in, and I struggled to put it down.
In order to truly appreciate what Erick Setiawan has done, you simply have to give yourself over to the fantasy world he has created. Assume that all manners of wonder and enchantment are not only possible but likely, and allow yourself to be swept away. Once you have allowed yourself to become part of this new reality, you will find yourself drawn into the domestic drama surrounding a brave and lovely young girl, Meridia.
Of Bees and Mist chronicles Meridia’s trials and tribulations, beginning in her bizarre and neglected childhood years, and following her through her troubled adult life. Pronounced dead at birth, she is given a new lease on life as a result of her mother’s determination alone. However, following a vaguely remembered incident in the first year of Meridia’s life, her mother withdraws from reality. That, coupled with her father’s inexplicable disdain, leaves her to be raised primarily by a nurse in a cold, haunted, bizarre home that is surrounded by an ever-present mist.
During her sixteenth year, Meridia meets Daniel, the love of her life. After persuading her parents for their blessing, the two wed and move into Daniel’s family’s home. Meridia believes that her marriage will begin a new and wonderful life, removed from the strife and loneliness she has grown accustomed to. Unfortunately, her new mother-in-law, Eva, is a cold, jealous, manipulative shrew, bent on controlling the lives of all around her. At first, she sees her new daughter-in-law little more than a new servant for her household. Soon enough, however, she realizes that she has miscalculated Meridia’s strength of will, and it becomes all out war.
And what a war. In a world where magic abounds, both women have arsenals beyond anything I would ever have imagined. While Eva’s biggest strength comes in the form of her bees (grievances come to life, buzzing and swarming around her adversaries), Meridia finds that her strength comes from the family she sought to leave behind.
I was so pleasantly surprised by Of Bees and Mist that I really can’t say enough good things about it. It was everything I look for in a novel. Fantasy, richly developed characters, and old-fashioned drama. I couldn’t help but get emotionally involved from the beginning. I can give it nothing less than five enthusiastic stars.
In order to truly appreciate what Erick Setiawan has done, you simply have to give yourself over to the fantasy world he has created. Assume that all manners of wonder and enchantment are not only possible but likely, and allow yourself to be swept away. Once you have allowed yourself to become part of this new reality, you will find yourself drawn into the domestic drama surrounding a brave and lovely young girl, Meridia.
Of Bees and Mist chronicles Meridia’s trials and tribulations, beginning in her bizarre and neglected childhood years, and following her through her troubled adult life. Pronounced dead at birth, she is given a new lease on life as a result of her mother’s determination alone. However, following a vaguely remembered incident in the first year of Meridia’s life, her mother withdraws from reality. That, coupled with her father’s inexplicable disdain, leaves her to be raised primarily by a nurse in a cold, haunted, bizarre home that is surrounded by an ever-present mist.
During her sixteenth year, Meridia meets Daniel, the love of her life. After persuading her parents for their blessing, the two wed and move into Daniel’s family’s home. Meridia believes that her marriage will begin a new and wonderful life, removed from the strife and loneliness she has grown accustomed to. Unfortunately, her new mother-in-law, Eva, is a cold, jealous, manipulative shrew, bent on controlling the lives of all around her. At first, she sees her new daughter-in-law little more than a new servant for her household. Soon enough, however, she realizes that she has miscalculated Meridia’s strength of will, and it becomes all out war.
And what a war. In a world where magic abounds, both women have arsenals beyond anything I would ever have imagined. While Eva’s biggest strength comes in the form of her bees (grievances come to life, buzzing and swarming around her adversaries), Meridia finds that her strength comes from the family she sought to leave behind.
I was so pleasantly surprised by Of Bees and Mist that I really can’t say enough good things about it. It was everything I look for in a novel. Fantasy, richly developed characters, and old-fashioned drama. I couldn’t help but get emotionally involved from the beginning. I can give it nothing less than five enthusiastic stars.
Wednesday, May 20, 2009
"All Souls' Night" by Jennifer Armintrout
“They didn’t have time to get out of the way, and I heard body parts hitting the undercarriage of the vehicle. It reminded me of the way dandelion heads sounded smacking against the bottom of my little red wagon as I’d pulled it through the backyard as a child.”
Anyone who has read books one thru three of the Blood Ties books by Jennifer Armintrout (I love her last name, so rememberable!!) knows that they are exceedingly well written. In a genre (paranormal romance/urban fantasy or whatever you want to call it) that is plagued by subpar examples of published writing, they are seriously above and beyond what many have come to expect. The plots are always well-paced, and the characters believable and never one-dimensional. So, when I began reading All Souls’ Night, the fourth and final book in the series, it was with high expectations.
I was not to be disappointed. The action in the book immediately picked up in an unexpected way, as the apartment Carrie and Nathan are borrowing is broken into. After a rough little tussle, they realize that their home invader is not what he seems and a new ally is found. As those who are up to date on the series know, book four is all about evading and stopping the Soul Eater, who is on his way to becoming a god and wrecking all sorts of havoc on man (and vampire) kind. Old friends reappear, including some ‘dead’ ones. This book is a shining example of how difficult it really is to kill a vampire for good…
There are surprises in almost every chapter of this book. Perhaps the biggest surprise comes at the very end (don’t worry, no spoilers). Armintrout found a very inventive and satisfying way to conclude her Blood Ties series; even the most die-hard fans should be pleased with the way everything wraps up. All in all, this was a really great book, easily four stars. However, do yourself a favor and start reading this series at the beginning. If you try to jump into it in the middle, you are going to be confused and will almost certainly get less out of it.
*****I do feel obligated, as a reviewer, to disclose that there is a very graphic sex scene involving two men towards the beginning of the book. It didn’t offend me (although I was pretty surprised at how graphic it was), but in reading other reviews, I have discovered that other readers WERE offended by it, and felt that they should have been somehow warned about it. As I am recommending this book, I thought it appropriate to include this disclaimer*****
Anyone who has read books one thru three of the Blood Ties books by Jennifer Armintrout (I love her last name, so rememberable!!) knows that they are exceedingly well written. In a genre (paranormal romance/urban fantasy or whatever you want to call it) that is plagued by subpar examples of published writing, they are seriously above and beyond what many have come to expect. The plots are always well-paced, and the characters believable and never one-dimensional. So, when I began reading All Souls’ Night, the fourth and final book in the series, it was with high expectations.
I was not to be disappointed. The action in the book immediately picked up in an unexpected way, as the apartment Carrie and Nathan are borrowing is broken into. After a rough little tussle, they realize that their home invader is not what he seems and a new ally is found. As those who are up to date on the series know, book four is all about evading and stopping the Soul Eater, who is on his way to becoming a god and wrecking all sorts of havoc on man (and vampire) kind. Old friends reappear, including some ‘dead’ ones. This book is a shining example of how difficult it really is to kill a vampire for good…
There are surprises in almost every chapter of this book. Perhaps the biggest surprise comes at the very end (don’t worry, no spoilers). Armintrout found a very inventive and satisfying way to conclude her Blood Ties series; even the most die-hard fans should be pleased with the way everything wraps up. All in all, this was a really great book, easily four stars. However, do yourself a favor and start reading this series at the beginning. If you try to jump into it in the middle, you are going to be confused and will almost certainly get less out of it.
*****I do feel obligated, as a reviewer, to disclose that there is a very graphic sex scene involving two men towards the beginning of the book. It didn’t offend me (although I was pretty surprised at how graphic it was), but in reading other reviews, I have discovered that other readers WERE offended by it, and felt that they should have been somehow warned about it. As I am recommending this book, I thought it appropriate to include this disclaimer*****
Monday, May 18, 2009
"Dangerously Innocent" by Nesrine Joseph
A methodical serial killer is plaguing suburban Sydney. Detectives Luther James and Rochelle Trevelyan have just been called to the scene where the fourth victim has been brutally murdered - decapitated in his own home - while his wife showered. The Slicer murders, as the crimes have been dubbed, seem to be random acts of violence. The only connection is that all of the victims have been men, and all have had a body part (or two) removed with surgical precision.
The first break that the police get is when they discover their seemingly happily married fourth victim was actually being unfaithful to his wife - on a nightly basis. His mistress is a beautiful med student, Marissa Martin, whose life has been littered by one personal tragedy after another. She is seemingly torn up about the sudden and barbaric death of her lover - a man she believed to be the true love of her life. She tells the detectives that the two of them had had a fight the night before the murder, centralizing around the fact that he wanted to disclose his affair to his wife. Marissa suggests that perhaps the police should be taking a closer look at the new widow, as she would have a very clear motive for the crime.
As the investigation continues, red herrings abound. Like any good mystery, pretty much every character is a suspect. And while you may solve half of the riddle, there is a high probability that the other half will keep you guessing until the end.
All in all, Dangerously Innocent was a pretty good read. It had a good plot and was very engaging. However, it was really quite short (only 147 pages), and was laid out in a manner that I found a little confusing. You jumped from different characters points of view with no preamble, and had to take a moment to figure out where you had gone. If I had been publishing the book, I would have either cleaned up the language a little and targeted a young adult audience (think Christopher Pike or R.L. Stein), or added another hundred or so pages and developed the characters a little better. However, for what it was, Dangerously Innocent was a surprisingly satisfying read that would surely be enjoyed by lovers of mystery and horror novels alike. Taking into consideration that this is Nesrine Joseph's debut novel, I feel comfortable giving it a three star rating. If you go into it expecting a short and intense read, you shouldn't be disappointed.
The first break that the police get is when they discover their seemingly happily married fourth victim was actually being unfaithful to his wife - on a nightly basis. His mistress is a beautiful med student, Marissa Martin, whose life has been littered by one personal tragedy after another. She is seemingly torn up about the sudden and barbaric death of her lover - a man she believed to be the true love of her life. She tells the detectives that the two of them had had a fight the night before the murder, centralizing around the fact that he wanted to disclose his affair to his wife. Marissa suggests that perhaps the police should be taking a closer look at the new widow, as she would have a very clear motive for the crime.
As the investigation continues, red herrings abound. Like any good mystery, pretty much every character is a suspect. And while you may solve half of the riddle, there is a high probability that the other half will keep you guessing until the end.
All in all, Dangerously Innocent was a pretty good read. It had a good plot and was very engaging. However, it was really quite short (only 147 pages), and was laid out in a manner that I found a little confusing. You jumped from different characters points of view with no preamble, and had to take a moment to figure out where you had gone. If I had been publishing the book, I would have either cleaned up the language a little and targeted a young adult audience (think Christopher Pike or R.L. Stein), or added another hundred or so pages and developed the characters a little better. However, for what it was, Dangerously Innocent was a surprisingly satisfying read that would surely be enjoyed by lovers of mystery and horror novels alike. Taking into consideration that this is Nesrine Joseph's debut novel, I feel comfortable giving it a three star rating. If you go into it expecting a short and intense read, you shouldn't be disappointed.
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