Birth of a Nation

Into the Wilderness - Sara Donati

Set in America/Canada at the end of the 1700's - this has the scope and detail of Gabaldon's Outlander Series. In fact, we do meet up with Jamie and Claire Fraser (main characters of Gabaldon's books) -- I'm a sucker for that type of cross-over/homage. I loved 3/4 of the book, but the last quarter really dragged for me and I almost didn't finish it. Great historical detail about America at this time and especially a woman's place in America at this time.

It's enjoyable, but I won't delve into the other books in this series. It was almost too predictable for me after having read the Outlander Series. I also think that part of it is that Gabaldon is just a better writer. I'd recommend it if you've got a serious jonesing for Gabaldon's type of book, but it's definately no Outlander.

Pretty much everything Charlaine ever wrote

Yeah, the entire month of August was consumed with me reading all of the Shakespeare/Lily Bard series, all of the Aurora Teagarden series, and the the "Grave" books by Charlaine Harris....not proud of it, but rationalized that this was perfectly normal reading behavior for a grown woman as it was "Summer". As if "Summer" makes it okay to do things like that. Do crooks just say: Sure, I walked out with all that booze without paying, but (shrug), it's Summer. It's Summer. As in, I stole that laptop, but, it's Summer. Yeah, It's Summer.

Although, as I write this it's Fall and Fall doesn't seem to lend itself to any crazy words of self-defense. In the Winter you can go "stir-crazy" (see The Shining by Stephen King); in the Spring, people have been known to get "Spring Fever" (great excuse); Summer, well, (shrug) It's Summer. Is there any excuse in the Fall? I don't think there is...maybe I need to make one up.

High hopes dashed

The Strain -- Guillermo Del Toro and Chuck Hogan

Perhaps I had too high hope for this one. I love Del Toro's movies - Pan's Labryinth was amazing and so frightening. I love horror. I also heard a great interview on the radio with him about this book. I also seem to love vampire fiction. What could possibly go wrong?

Couldn't finish it. At first, the set up was awesome. NYC - mysterious planes sets down at JFK, no signs of life, lights off, shades drawn, no communication with air traffic control. Great start.

It was written very much like a cross between a thriller book and a thriller script. It felt a little different than your typical thriller, so I really had high hopes. You could see the movie: time, place, visual, establishing shots, then some action. You can tell that people with major talent were involved with this. Saying that though....

I found it to be obvious, obvious, obvious. Not scary in the least, one of those books where it seems like no one in the book has any idea what's going on, but you, as a reader are hundreds of pages in going, "It's VAMPIRES. Coffins, you know, blook sucking, that's called V-A-M-P-I-R-E-S."

You might like it if you haven't read a scary book in a while, but, if you love horror you'll probably be frustrated by the slow pace and at the writer's innocence that no one ever read Dracula in high school. Not to mention the movies out now and the HBO series that is so popular.

oh well, Del Toro is still a great filmmaker, and I bet, Chuck Hogan, is probably a good thriller writer on his own. I'll have to look him up.

She hears dead people

Grave Sight - by who else but Charlaine Harris I might promise that the next book I read won't be one of hers, but it has made for some great summer reading. This one is the first in the Harper Connelly series and stars yet again a young woman who is alienated from "normal" society by a strange gift, the "gift" of finding dead bodies, among other things.

This book was okay -- it didn't grab me like Real Murders - it was better than the Shakespear book though. It felt dark - and it was a little depressing. I usually like dark and depressing, so I might go for the second book to see what she does with this.

Maybe I found Charlaine's weakness....

Shakespeare's Landlord - Charlaine Harris

This heroine is, again, a bit of a loner in a small town (sensing a pattern?), yet attractive. And, of course, there's something a bit off about her. It's not supernatural off like the Vampire series, but it's off for the norm. This first book was a little too slow - it dealt too much on a terribly violent thing that happened to the heroine that I just wasn't that into reading about or thinking about. The mystery was okay; there's some romance in it that was okay, but not great.

I wouldn't recommend it, but, at the same time, after reading it and knowing I wouldn't recommend it; I was placing the next book on hold at the library. Harris is a good mystery writer, even when she's not that good, she's still better than most....and I seem to be addicted to her.

Old fashioned feel - and I mean that in good way

Real Murders - Charlaine Harris

This is the first book in the Aurora Teagarden (yes, Harris does seem to have a penchant for ungainly names) series. It looks like it is one of her first books, wayy before the, ahem, vampire series. I loved it - I know some might not like it because their ain't no vamps in it, but it was a well-written, truly old-fashioned (again, in a good way), murder mystery.

Teagarden is a librarian in a small town - and something about the way it is set up and presented, it reminded me a lot of the British small town mysteries. This is a really likable, bookish, quiet heroine who also happens to be a huge fanatic of horrible murders - for me: what is not to like?

Not so good.....

Borderline - the latest book by Nevada Barr

I've loved this series about the National Park Ranger Anna Pigeon, but the last 2 books have been un-finishable for me. (I know, I don't think unfinishable is a word either) This one, like the last one about wolves, just took itself wayy to seriously. I don't want to read about illegals dying trying to get to this country. I can read about that every day in the paper. I didn't make it very far....If you've never read anything by her - start with Firestorm or Blind Descent - they're exciting books set in different National Parks with a female Park Ranger as the lead character.




Shimmer by David Morrell

First of all, David Morrell is an incredible thriller writer. He started the whole Rambo thing; he's written other great books Scavenger and Creepers being my two favorites about urban exploreres.
This book suffers from the same thing the Barr book suffered from - just too realistic. If I want to read about marriages suffering, I'll read about it through Richard Ford or John Updike. Morrell is so incredible with the art of the thriller - I don't want to read about his take on a marriage "in trouble".

These writers are great - Barr and Morrell are at the top of their craft. I don't think Updike or Ford or Roth would be able to write a breath-taking thriller or mystery. It's not their bag. It feels like Barr and Morrell were trying too hard to be something they're not.