Title: 50 Harbor Street
Classification: Fiction
Author: Debbie Macomber
Publisher: Gale Group
Copyright: 2005
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: As in all her novels, Macomber tackles the daily challenges of ordinary women - difficult relationships, health problems, impulsive children. There is a touch of mystery in this one but all ends well. Predictable as usual.

Title: 206 Bones
Classification: Mystery
Author: Kathy Reichs
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Copyright: 2009
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: For forensic anthropologist Temperance Brennan the 206 bones in a human body are the essence to understanding life and death. In this latest "Bones" mystery Tempe, held captive in an abandoned underground tomb, mentally reconstructs events of 4 related murders that she and Lt. Ryan are trying to solve. Is her work slipping or is she being sabotaged? The detailed forensics, character development and chemistry with Ryan intensify this complex story. One of her better mysteries.

Title: 1776
Classification: History
Author: David McCullough
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Copyright: 2005
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: The account of events surrounding the writing of the U.S. Constitution and the colonial break from England is well written and easily understood. There are lots of footnotes and references at the end for the true history buff. (Click here to check out other reviews for this title)

Title: Agnes and the Hitman
Classification: Fiction
Author: Jennifer Cruise & Bob Mayer
Publisher: St. Martins
Copyright: 2007
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: Cruise and Mayer have created a complex plot of romance, sex, mob members and government agents. Filled with a ridiculous number of dead bodies and improbable scenarios, this one however is funny and engaging.

Title:  Almost Home
Classification: Fiction
Author:  Pam Jenoff
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Copyright:  2010
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments:

"Almost Home" is the story of American Jordan Weiss, a state department intelligence officer, who returns, on assignment, to London 10 years after her studies at Cambridge. When there she had fallen in love with fellow rower Jared, who unexpectedly died, apparently a suicide. Now questions arise as to the real cause of his death. Seemingly connected to her international assignment, the plot twists, friends become targets and possible suspects and Jordan must rush to find the truth.

Title: Almost There: Onward Journey of a Dublin Woman
Classification: Memoir
Author: Nuala O'Faolain
Publisher: Penguin Group
Copyright: 2004
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: Nuala O"Faolain, now approaching 60, continues from her earlier memoir "Are You Somebody" to explore her understanding of who she is and why. Well into her middle years, still single after several failed relationships, no longer impoverished and unknown, she considers how her Irish Catholic roots, her unconventional and alcoholic parents and her 7 siblings have all affected her emotional growth. Part of her decision: live on and forge ahead.

Title: Alone
Classification: Fiction
Author: Lisa Gardner
Publisher: Bantam
Copyright: 2005
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: Another of Lisa Gardner"s intense thrillers, "Alone" entangles a police sniper, a beautiful abused woman and her sickly child and a vengeful killer into a convoluted plot of intrigue and suspense.

Title: The American
Classification: Fiction
Author: Andrew Britton
Publisher: Kensington
Copyright: 2006
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: Ryan Kealey is called back to work with the CIA to stop an anticipated assassination attempt on the President. The assassin, aligned to Middle East terrorists, is an American who once was Kealey's trainee. Many characters and sub-plots create an exciting techno-thriller filled with personal and political confrontations.

Title: American Lion: Andrew Jackson in the White House
Classification: History
Author: Jon Meacham
Publisher: Random House
Copyright: 2008
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: Meachum's "American Lion" is a biographical portrait of 7th president Andrew Jackson. Much of the book covers his presidency but we learn about his formative years and personal relationships as well. With a strong faith and responsibility towards family, friends and country, Jackson changed not only the presidency but the direction of American politics.

Title: Among the Mad
Classification: Mystery
Author: Jacqueline Winspear
Publisher: Holt, Henry & Co.
Copyright: 2009
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: In her 6th Maisie Dobbs novel Winspear opens on Christmas Eve 1931 with a street bombing in London. Using her psychological investigative talents Maisie works the case even when she is at odds with Downing St. As in all her novels the author portrays the damage war does to ones soul, historically, and timely in today's world as well.

Title: The Art of Detection
Classification: Mystery
Author: Laurie R. King
Publisher: Bantom
Copyright: 2006
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: San Francisco detective Kate Martinelli (series) and her partner Al Hawkin are called to investigate the death of Philip Gilbert, member of a group of serious Sherlock Holmes aficionados. The discovery of a manuscript, possibly written by Sherlock Holmes, intrigues the detectives because the victim's death mirrors that of the victim in the manuscript. Who had read the text?

Title: The Art Thief
Classification: Fiction
Author: Noah Charney
Publisher: Aimon & Schuster
Copyright: 2007
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: Three art thefts are being investigated simultaneously in 3 cities - London, Geneva and Paris. The investigators and several well known art collectors are enmeshed in an implausible plot. Heavy in art history, which might have been interesting, this fictional intrigue attempt is full of trite phrases, overly technical and confusingly convoluted.

Title: Atomic Romance
Classification: Fiction
Author: Bobbie Mason
Publisher: Random House
Copyright: 2005
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: In this novel, her first in over a decade, we meet the main character who is dealing with radioactive contamination, and ailing mother and a girlfriend who won't commit to a serious relationship. The underlying story of an aging atomic plant and its effect on the surrounding community is timely and thought provoking.

Title: Aunt Dimity and the Deep Blue Sea
Classification: Mystery
Author: Nancy Atherton
Publisher: Penguin
Copyright: 2007
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: The 11th novel in the Aunt Dimity series finds Lori Shepard and her children hiding out in a castle on a secluded Scottish Island after a series of death threats. But even there she is drawn into a possible smuggling plot and has to call on Aunt Dimity's supernatural power to save herself and her family. Atherton's cozy amateur sleuth books are both whimsical and suspenseful.

Title: Away: A Novel
Classification: Fiction
Author: Amy Bloom
Publisher: Random House
Copyright: 2007
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: "Away" is the epic story of Lillian Leyb, a young Russian immigrant, in the 1920's. Upon finding out that her little daughter might still be alive back in Russia, she embarks on a monumental journey from NY City up to Alaska and along the Telegraph Trail to Siberia. Hardship, wit, romance and heart back come together in this unusual yet compelling novel.

Title: Baker Towers
Classification: Fiction
Author: Jennifer Haigh
Publisher: HarperCollins
Copyright: 2005
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: By the author of "Mrs. Kimble", "Baker Towers" is set in coal mining Pennsylvania during the industrial boom following WWII. Centered around the Novaks, a family with 5 children, the saga explores life's tragedies and happiness. Quirky characters abound.

Title: Beach Street Knitting Society and Yarn Club
Classification: Fiction
Author: Gil McNeil
Publisher: Voice
Copyright: 2009
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: Recently widowed and almost divorced Jo Mackenzie moves with her 2 little boys from London to the seaside where she takes over her Gran's knitting shop. Charming, witty, uplifting and miles ahead of the "community of women" books so in vogue at the moment. I loved it!

Title: The Bear Went Over the Mountain
Classification: Fiction
Author: William Kotzwinkle
Publisher: Holt McDougal
Copyright: 1997
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: A black bear in Maine finds a manuscript, names himself Hal Jam, gets a suit of clothes and heads to the big city to find an agent. Outrageous you say? Yes, but this older novel is a hilarious satire and timely still today.

Title: Becoming Naomi Leon
Classification: Children's
Author: Pam Munoz Ryan
Publisher: Scholastic
Copyright: 2004
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: This juvenile fiction novel has a warm multi-cultural story and would be appropriate for kids 8 to 10.

Title: Bed Rest
Classification: Fiction
Author: Sarah Bilston
Publisher: HarperCollins
Copyright: 2007
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: British born Quinn "Q", married to an American and living in New York City, has to spend the last three months of her pregnancy on bed rest. While confined she ponders her checklist of "The Modern Woman's List of Things to Do Before Hitting Thirty". The couples extreme self-absorbtion renders the characters somewhat dull although there is some soul searching and emotional growth as the story ends.

Title: The Big Love
Classification: Fiction
Author: Sarah Dunn
Publisher: Little, Brown & Co.
Copyright: 2005
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: Sarah Dunn's first novel is the entertaining story of Alison Hopkins whose love life and professional career fall apart simultaneously. Written with dry humor this one is fresh and better than most of the current "chic-lit".

Title: Birds of a Feather
Classification: Mystery
Author: Jacqueline Winspear
Publisher: Penguin
Copyright: 2004
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments:

"Birds of a Feather", the 2nd Maisie Dobbs series, takes place in post WWI London where Maisie is hired to find a missing young woman. Investigation leads Maisie to consider whether the girl  is the perpetrator or the next victim when 3 of her friends turn up murdered. As in all her mysteries Maisie's use of psychology and mind/body interaction create a compelling main character.

Title: The Birth House
Classification: Fiction
Author: Ami McKay
Publisher: HarperCollins
Copyright: 2006
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: The "Birth House" is a story of Dora Rare, a young woman in Nova Scotia during WW1, who apprentices and then becomes the local midwife. However, the interesting details of women's health matters and women's rights create a deeper sensitive story line.

Title: Birth of Venus
Classification: Fiction
Author: Sarah Dunant
Publisher: Random House
Copyright: 2004
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: Renaissance Italy is the setting for this wonderfully written story of 15 year old Alessandra who finds love and artistic fulfillment despite the boundaries of an arranged marriage and the Medici political turmoil of the times.

Title: Bleeding Heart Square
Classification: Mystery
Author: Andrew Taylor
Publisher: Hyperion
Copyright: 2009
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: Set in London in 1934, this mystery intertwines three people all living in a rooming house. Eventually all the characters are sorted out but not without a great deal of slow moving effort. With the exception of the missing woman's diary entries, everyone and every place seems very one dimensional.

Title: Blind to the Bones
Classification: Mystery
Author: Stephen Booth
Publisher: Bantam
Copyright: 2006
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: Blind to the Bones, a contemporary mystery set in a small English village, pairs detectives Diane Fry and Ben Cooper. Their personal and professional relationships converge as they find the common denominator in two murders. Booth's plot features interesting characters but is somewhat ponderous getting to the point and conclusion.

Title: Bliss
Classification: Fiction
Author: O. Z. Livaneli, Cigdem Aksoy Fromm
Publisher: St. Martin's Press
Copyright: 2006
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: "Bliss", set in Turkey, is a story of three lives shattered by the constraints of traditional and modern society. Their paths unexpectedly cross on a journey of hope and second chances. Particularly interesting is the attention drawn to human rights violations against women in the Middle East.

Title: Blue Christmas
Classification: Fiction
Author: Mary Kay Andrews
Publisher: HarperCollins
Copyright: 2007
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: Mary kay Andrews brings the reader back to Savannah with "Weezie" Foley, from "Savannah Blues" and "Savannah Breeze". This contrived holiday story is cute but has a really weak plot compared to the earlier "Savannah" novels.

Title: The Body in the Bookcase
Classification: Mystery
Author: Katherine Hall Page
Publisher: HarperCollins
Copyright: 1999
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: This is one of many Faith Fairchild mystery series. While catering a lavish wedding weekend she is drawn into solving a murder as well as a break-in in her own home. Witty, complex and recipies to boot!

Title: Bone Vault
Classification: Mystery
Author: Linda Fairstein
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Copyright: 2004
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments:

Assistant D.A. Alex Cooper, in her 5th mystery novel, is called upon to find the killer of a Metropolitan Museum of Art intern whose body is found in an ancient sarcophagus. A controversial combined exhibit with the Museum of Natural History provides several possible suspects. Alex teams up again  with homicide cop Mike Chapman as they search behind the scenes through museum politics as well as miles of backrooms and shadowy halls.

Title: Bones to Ashes
Classification: Mystery
Author: Kathy Reichs
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Copyright: 2007
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: Once again Kathy Reichs enmeshes Temperance Brennan in a series of unsolved deaths and intense forensic study to determine the age and identity of the victims. But one case becomes very personal when she fears the bones may belong to her long ago childhood friend whose disappearance was never solved. Fellow detective Ryan is on the scene too, working on the possibility of a serial predator who may be involved. If you like Reich's detailed forensic study you will enjoy this one too. (Click here to check out other reviews for this title)

Title: Bones to Pick
Classification: Mystery
Author: Carolyn Haines
Publisher: Kensington
Copyright: 2006
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: PI Sarah Booth Delaney and her partner Tinkie are involved in solving several local deaths attributed to a serial killer. Nearly becoming victims themselves draws Sarah Booth's (unavailable) lover to the scene. The "Bones" series generally are well done, but this one has less humor and is too easily solved by the reader.

Title: The Book of Names
Classification: Fiction
Author: Jill Gregory & Karen Tintori
Publisher: St. Martin's Press
Copyright: 2007
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: Another Da Vinci Code-like plot, this intriguing if somewhat unlikely thriller melds Jewish mysticism with modern mystery and murder. Georgetown University professor David Shepherd, haunted by strange images of names, must try to save his stepdaughter and ultimately the world. Israeli archaeologist Yael HarPaz, the female interest, adds to the lengthy list of characters and sub-plots.

Title: The Book of Unholy Mischief
Classification: Fiction
Author: Elle Newmark
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Copyright: 2008
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: 15th century Renaissance Venice is the setting for this tale of intrigue and seduction. Starving street orphan Luciano is chosen by the chef to Venice\'s doge to become his apprentice, not only in the kitchen but to a secret organization supporting the principles of free thought. Believed to possess a book of alchemy and potions, the chef, and ultimately Luciano, struggle to dispel the mistaken myth and survive the corrupt Italian leadership of the times. Rich in historical detail and colorful descriptions of food preparation this debut historical novel is intriguing and entertaining.

Title: Born to be Wild
Classification: Romance
Author: Catherine Coulter
Publisher: Penguin Group
Copyright: 2006
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: The world of soap-operas presents Mary Lisa, a three time daytime Emmy winner whose fun and active life is turned around when someone tries to run her over. Is she being stalked by a photographer or a deranged fan? The D.A. and local police chief come to the rescue and provide the necessary romance. Coulter includes interesting soap opera trivia between chapters.

Title: The Boy in the Striped Pajamas
Classification: Teens
Author: John Boyne
Publisher: Random House
Copyright: 2007
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: Written by the author as a book for anyone, U.S. publisher Random House presents "The Boy in the Striped Pajamas" as teen fiction. Residing in Berlin in 1942 8yr old Bruno and his family move when his father is promoted to head a concentration camp. Naive and unknowing, Bruno wonders about the other side of the fence and all those people who wear "striped pajamas". While exploring he meets, through the barbed wire fence, a boy from inside the camp with whom he forms a friendship, but with devastating results.

Title: Bulls Island
Classification: Fiction
Author: Dorothy Benton Frank
Publisher: HarperCollins
Copyright: 2008
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: Dorothy Frank once again writes about her beloved Carolina Low Country. Two local families, of slightly different "class", come head to head again after 20 years. Family estrangements, star-crossed love and high finance all merge in Benton's latest novel. I think this one is a bit too predictable, but the reader steel feels the attraction of that wonderful area.

Title: The Chameleon's Shadow
Classification: Mystery
Author: Minette Walters
Publisher: Knopf
Copyright: 2009
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: Wounded in Iraq, British lieutenant Charles Acland returns home disfigured and suffering from aggressive paranoia. Unwilling to accept help, he becomes a suspect in a series of vicious murders. "The Chameleon's Shadow" is a psychologically complex and suspenseful thriller.

 Title: Change of Heart  
Classification: Fiction
Author: Jodi Picoult
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Copyright: 2008
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments:

Once again author Picoult presents us with a novel of characters both heart-wrenching and complicated.

Narrated by the 4 main characters, the story shifts and builds. June Nealon, whose husband and first daughter were murdered and whose second daughter Claire needs a heart transplant; Shay Bourne, on death row for murdering June's family, and who wants to donate his heart to Claire;  ACLU lawyer Maggie Bloom who is fighting for Shay's constitutional rights; and Father Michael Wright who becomes Shay's spiritual advisor. Questions of faith, vengeance and redemption are critically considered throughout. Ending with a disturbing twist, "Change of Heart" will satisfy Picoult fans and anyone looking for a full compliment of characters.

Title: Child of my Heart
Classification: Fiction
Author: Alice McDermott
Publisher: Picador
Copyright: 2003
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: The beautiful and precocious daughter of older parents, 15 year old Theresa is highly sought after as a summer babysitter in their oceanside community. Included among her charges is her 8 year old cousin who Theresa discovers is seriously ill. Theresa creates a magical summer for her cousin while coping with several other children from problem families. The premonition of despair makes a strong counterpoint to this sweet and touching story.

Title: City of Falling Angels
Classification: Social, World & Cultural Studies
Author: John Berendt
Publisher: Penguin
Copyright: 2005
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: John Berendt, author of "Midnight In the Garden of Good and Evil", chose Venice Italy in this true crime investigation surrounding the 1996 fire that destroyed the famous opera house La Fanice. Berendt introduces us to dozens of famous and influential people who had their own personal and political agendas. I got bogged down with all the names, but found the Venetian lifestyles and history very interesting.

Title: Clay's Quilt
Classification: Fiction
Author: Silas House
Publisher: Random House
Copyright: 2002
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: This is the story of a young coal miner in southern Appalachia who finds love, family and meaning to his rather desperate life. The author melds together a very interesting cast of characters.

Title: Coal Black Horse
Classification: Fiction
Author: Robert Olmstead
Publisher: Algonquin Books of Chapel Hill
Copyright: 2007
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: "Coal Black Horse", by Robert Olmstead (of Ohio Wesleyan), is the powerful Civil War story of a 14 year old boy's journey to Gettysburg to find his father. The horse guides him through the bloody countryside, where the boy is forever transformed by what he sees and must do. Well written, violently graphic but hauntingly unforgettable.

Title: The Color of Lightning
Classification: Fiction
Author: Paulette Jiles
Publisher: HarperCollins
Copyright: 2009
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: In 1863 former slave Britt Johnson and his family travel to and settle in Texas. Away on business, he returns to find his settlement ravaged by Indians, his son slain and his wife and children taken. Philadelphia Quaker Samuel Hammond travels to Texas as the new agent for the Office of Indian Affairs. Both men struggle to overcome their emotional and physical challenges - Brit searching for his family and Samuel trying to assist the native Americans. Rich in history and sensitive to both the Indians and the encroaching settlers, "The Color of Lightning" is a look into courageous, often tragic, human existence.

Title: The Condition
Classification: History
Author: Jennifer Haigh
Publisher: HarperCollins
Copyright: 2008
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: Jennifer Haigh, author of "Baker Towers" and "Mrs. Kimble", tells the story of the McKotches, a proper New England family in the 1970's through the 1990's. Traditional and rigid Paulette married to warm but self-centered Frank, parents to 3 children; one gay, one ADD and one seriously inflicted with Turner's syndrome. (Daughter Gwen has the chromosome deficiency which keeps her from developing physically in puberty). This emotional and multi-layered novel explores the power of family mythology in a well written format.

Title: The Curve of the World
Classification: Fiction
Author: Marcus Stevens
Publisher: Algonquin Books of Chapel Hill
Copyright: 2002
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: New York businessman Lewis Burke struggles to survive in the jungles of the Congo after his jetliner makes an emergency landing. Aided by a Congolese boy he desperately tries to survive malaria and murdering rebels. Unable to do nothing but wait, his wife Helen and their blind son travel to Africa. Throughout the story they both reflect on the life they shared and the circumstances that threatened their marriage.

Title: Damage Control
Classification: Fiction
Author: Robert Dugoni
Publisher: Warner
Copyright: 2007
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: Donna Hill, rising star in a prestigious law firm, finds her life shattered by a life threatening illness, an unfaithful husband and the murder of her twin brother. Detective Michael Logan becomes her ally in his effort to stop a string of murders following her brother's death. "Damage Control", an exciting techno thriller, will keep you reading to the conclusion.

Title: Damsels in Distress
Classification: Mystery
Author: Joan Hess
Publisher: St. Martins
Copyright: 2007
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: Bookstore owner Claire Malloy finds herself reluctantly drawn into the lives of a strange group of folks who have come to town to put on a Renaissance Fair. Murder, confusion and intrigue as usual. This is the 16th in this series by Hess who also writes the Arly Hanks Maggody series.

Title: Dark House
Classification: Mystery
Author: Theresa Monsour
Publisher: Berkley
Copyright: 2005
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: St. Paul homicide detective Paris Murphy is involved with murders that threaten her family and future in this intense suspense.

Title: Death at Bishop's Keep
Classification: Mystery
Author: Robin Paige
Publisher: Berkley
Copyright: 1994
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: Robin Paige writes several mystery series; this is the first of a series set in Victorian England. An actual historical person is drawn into each book to add depth and interest to a "light" mystery solved by the somewhat unconventional couple.

Title: Death Dance: A Novel
Classification: Mystery
Author: Lisa Fairstein
Publisher: Pocket Books
Copyright: 2007
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: "Death Dance", Linda Fairstein's 8th novel in her Alexandra Cooper series, teams Assistant DA Cooper with longtime friends Mike Chapman and Mercer Wallace of the NYPD. Their investigation into the mysterious disappearance at Lincoln Center of a world famous dancer takes them behind the scenes into the artistic world of Broadway theater. Fairstein continues her series with interesting characters and intriguing plots.

Title: Death Takes Up a Collection: A Sister Mary Helen Mystery
Classification: Mystery
Author: Carol Anne O'Marie
Publisher: St Martins Minotaur
Copyright: 1999
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: Once again Sister Mary Helen (series) delves into solving a crime - this time it's the poisoning death of Monsignor Higgins. Somewhat in the vein of Mrs. Pollifax or Miss Marple, the spry Sister Mary Helen approaches each crime with good humor and cleverness. However, you'll figure out who the murderer is long before she does.

Title: The Deception of the Emerald Ring
Classification: Fiction
Author: Lauren Willig
Publisher: Penguin
Copyright: 2006
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: The third in a series of historical fiction novels, "The Deception of the Emerald Ring" takes place in early 19th century Ireland, England and France. Nineteen year old Letty finds herself married to agent/spy Geoffrey Pinchingdale through a series of misadventures, and eventually joins his secret life. Researcher Eloise Kelly, of the 21st century, tells the story as she discovers the facts. History, intrigue, romance and a very witty dialogue make for an enjoyable read.

Title: Deep Dish
Classification: Fiction
Author: Mary Kay Andrews
Publisher: HarperCollins
Copyright: 2008
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: Local Georgia chef Gina Foxton decides to compete for a national TV spot. Enter Tate Moody, host of an outdoors man cooking show. Everything, and everyone, heats up as they vie for the same position. Romance and fun and pretty typical of Andrew's books.

Title: Deeper Than the Dead
Classification:  Mystery
Author: Tami Hoag
Publisher: Penguin Group
Copyright: 2009
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments:

"Deeper Than the Dead" opens with 4 fifth graders stumbling onto a murder victim. When it becomes apparent a serial killer is responsible FBI profiler Vince Leone is brought in. While trying to consul the kids teacher Anne Navarre is also drawn into the center of the investigation. Suspects include two of the parents, one a well respected dentist and the other a local sheriff's deputy. Thrown in is a little romance with the mystery to keep your interest to the very end.

Title: Devil Bones
Classification: Fiction
Author: Kathy Reichs
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Copyright: 2008
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: In her 11th Temperance Brennan series Kathy Reichs puts Tempe back home in N. Carolina investigating voodoo, devil worship and the death of two young victims. Her ex-husband, her love Ryan and her daughter Katy add troubled dimensions to Tempe's life. A great deal of scientific forensics blends with complex character development in "Devil Bones".

Title: Dirty Laundry: A Sophie Metropolis Novel
Classification: Mystery
Author: Tori Carrington
Publisher: Doherty, Tom Associates, LLC
Copyright: 2007
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: "Dirty Laundry", second in a series, takes place in the Greek-American community of Astoria, Queens. New P.I. Sophie Metropolis takes on several cases involving old high school friends, neighbors and even her family. Add Aussie heartthrob/bodyguard Jake Porter to a long list of endearing characters.
However, the investigations are thin and Sophie is a bit too naive to be seriously believed as an investigator.

Title: The Divide
Classification: Fiction
Author: Nicholas Evans
Publisher: Penguin
Copyright: 2006
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: In "The Divide" author Nicholas Evans presents the story of a family trying to understand the events leading to the death of their daughter. How did their golden child become a wanted woman accused of terrorism and murder? The answers are revealed in a compassionate and gripping novel.

Title: Dragonfly in Amber
Classification: Fiction
Author: Diana Gabaldon
Publisher: Dell
Copyright: 1992
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: The second book in the Outlander series, Dragonfly in Amber, continues the saga of Claire Randal and Jamie Fraser in their quest to thwart a doomed scottish Highlander uprising. Starting 20 years later with Claire and her grown daughter, the story moves back again to Claire's time in eighteenth century Paris and Scotland. Intrigue, romance and history are skillfully combined in Gabaldon's novels.

Title: Dreamers of the Day
Classification: Fiction
Author: Mary Doria Russell
Publisher: Random House
Copyright: 2008
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: 40 year old Ohio schoolteacher Agnes Shanklin arrives at the Egyptian Semiramis Hotel just as the 1921 Cairo Peace Conference convenes. Turned away, she is rescued by T.E. Lawrence (Lawernce of Arabia) and finds herself amid the excursions and social life of Winston Churchill and Gertrude Bell. As a narrator to the reader she is an observer of the invention of Iraq, Lebanon, Jordan and Israel. Charismatic German spy Karl Weilbacher adds a romantic interest to the mix. Interesting history, well crafted and engaging is "Dreamers of the Day".

Title: Dune Road 
Classification: Fiction
Author: Jane Green
Publisher: Penguin Group
Copyright: 2009
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments:  

A Connecticut beach community during the recent economic downturn is the setting for Green's latest novel. The stories of three strong women intertwined provide a "beach read" type of book which is pleasant, often moving and entertaining.

Title: Eat Pray Love
Classification: Biography
Author: Elizabeth Gilbert
Publisher: Penguin Group
Copyright: 2007
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: "Eat Pray Love" is Elizabeth Gilbert's spiritual memoir describing her year of travel in search of recovery from a devastating divorce, ensuing depression and a failed relationship. She spends 4 months in Italy devouring the food and language, 4 months in an Indian ashram learning to meditate and pray, and 4 months in Bali Indonesia striving for "balance" and equilibrium. Gilbert's account is witty, candid and unpretentious.

Title: Every Day in Tuscany: Seasons of an Italian Life
Classification:  Travel writing / memoir
Author: Frances Mayes
Publisher: Broadway Books
Copyright: 2010
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments:

Francis Mayes ("Under the Tuscan Sun") continues to delight us with this new memoir, "Every Day in Tuscany". Written in seasonal experiences she tells of the joys and difficulties she and her husband experience living in Bramasole and in their "new" second home, a centuries old falling-down cottage on a rugged slope. Much travel description follows as she searches for works by her favorite Italian  Renaissance artist. Recipes are included at the end of each section. Mayes, also a poet, reveals that skill in the evocative, almost sensual way, she presents this travel narrative. You can see, feel and almost taste the back roads and small towns in Tuscany.

Title: The Falls
Classification: Fiction
Author: Joyce Carol Oates
Publisher: HarperCollins
Copyright: 2005
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: "The Falls", set against the background of Niagara Falls in the mid-twentieth century, is a rather dark novel about a dysfunctional family affected by suicide, murder and the corruption of the "Love Canal" contamination. Oates writes extremely well but the story seemed unending with new characters and situations continually added in.

Title: A Fatal Slip: A Clay and Crime Mystery
Classification: Mystery
Author: Melissa Glazer
Publisher: Penguin Group
Copyright: 2008
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: Potter Carolyn Emerson's husband is the prime suspect in a local murder. She and her sleuthing friends conspire to clear his name in this middle book of a series. Author Glazer really had to stretch to find a plot in this weak and unmemorable mystery.

Title: Fearless Fourteen
Classification: Fiction
Author: Janet Evanovich
Publisher: St. Martin's Press
Copyright: 2008
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: Once again Stephanie Plum and her cohorts try to solve a local mystery. This time $9 million dollars from an earlier bank robbery is the center of their search, and it may be buried at Joe Morelli's house. Lula and Ranger add to the humor and romance, as well as a raft of other crazy characters. "Fearless Fourteen" is a fun light quick "beach" read. (Click here to check out other reviews for this title)

Title: The Final Solution: A Story of Detection
Classification: Fiction
Author: Michael Chabon
Publisher: HarperCollins
Copyright: 2005
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: Pulitzer Prize winner Michael Chabon intertwines history and legend in this short tale of compassion, intrigue and wit. An old sleuth comes out of retirement in 1944 England to solve a murder surrounding a missing parrot which may hold a secret German SS code. Do we have reason to believe the detective is Sherlock Holmes? As usual Chabon writes in a superb and extraordinary style.

Title: Finger Lickin' Fifteen
Classification: Mystery
Author: Janet Evanovich
Publisher: St. Martin's Press
Copyright: 2009
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: Stephanie Plum again with lots of Lula, perverts, flaming cars and of course, Ranger and Morelli. Fifteen has a pretty weak plot but still lots of laughs.

Title: Follow the River
Classification: Fiction
Author: James Alexander Thom
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: Although fictionalized, this is an account of an early Ohio woman's incredible journey in and out of captivity.

Title: Fool's Puzzle
Classification: Mystery
Author: Earlene Fowler
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: This is the first in a mystery series you'll recognize by the quilt on the cover. In addition to a good "light" mystery, the books take you through several changes in the life of the main character, Benni Harper.

Title: Forest Lover
Classification: Fiction
Author: Susan Vreeland
Publisher: Penguin
Copyright: 2004
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: This well written fictionalized account of Canadian artist Emily Carr gives the reader a wonderful insight not only into her struggle as an artist but into the confines of Victorian culture.

Title: Forever in Blue: The 4th Summer of the Sisterhood
Classification: Teens
Author: Ann Brashares
Publisher: Random House
Copyright: 2007
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: "Forever in Blue", the fourth Traveling Pants novel series, continues the lives of Tibby, Carmen, Bridget and Lena as they try to balance love and friendship in their ever expanding lives. As the girls are now in college the themes become more mature.

Title: For One More Day
Classification: Fiction
Author: Mitch Albom
Publisher: Hyperion
Copyright: 2006
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: Mitch Albom, author of "Tuesdays With Morrie" and "The Five People You Meet In Heaven" weaves a fable about a broken man who gets to spend one more day with his deceased mother. In the course of that day he learns of her sacrifices and love and what he might do to put his life back together.

Title: Founding Mothers: The Women Who Raised Our Nation
Classification: Biography
Author: Cokie Roberts
Publisher: HarperCollins
Copyright: 2004
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: "Founding Mothers" is a wonderful addition to the many offerings about events surrounding the Revolutionary War, the Continental Congress and the formation of our country. While much is known about Abigail Adams, Martha Washington, Dolley Madison, Roberts adds more plus much information about Mercy Otis Warren, Eliza Pinckney, Peggy Shippen and many other women of the period who ran their husband's businesses as well as their households, supported the political issues, even fought alongside their men. Written chronologically, almost chatty in style, "Founding Mothers" is immensely readable.

Title: Full of Grace
Classification: Fiction
Author: Dorothea Benton Frank
Publisher: HarperCollins
Copyright: 2007
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: Full of Grace, set mostly in North Carolina, features 32 year old (unmarried) Grace, daughter of an old fashioned Italian family. Over the years her faith has waned, she loves and lives with a man doing stem cell research and she's trying to fit into her family who are strongly influenced by her traditional grandmother. Filled with wacky compassionate characters, this poignant story is a little different from Frank's usual books.

Title: Furry Logic
Classification: Self-help
Author: Jane Seabrook
Publisher: Top Speed Press
Copyright: 2000
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: Reminiscent of books like "The Blue Day Book", this humorous one has wonderful animal drawings and short sayings to brighten anyone's day.

Title: Garden of Beasts: A Novel of Berlin 1936
Classification: Fiction
Author: Jeffrey Deaver
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Copyright: 2005
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: "Garden of Beasts" takes American hitman Paul Schumann to Berlin to assassinate one of Hitler's top men. Finding himself the victim of a double-cross, Schumann must choose between saving himself and completing his mission. "Garden of Beasts" is intriguing, fast-paced historical fiction.

Title: Garden of Water
Classification: Fiction
Author: Alan Drew
Publisher: Random House
Copyright: 2008
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: "Garden of Water", a debut novel, takes place in a small town outside Istanbul. Following a devastating earthquake Sinan Basioglu, his wife, 15 year old daughter and 8 year old son, are forced to survive in an American missionary tent camp. The culture clash between Islam and Christianity, conservative traditionalism and modernity, love and honor, and age and youth creates devastating situations both sensitive and thought provoking.

Title: Garden Spells
Classification: Fiction
Author: Sarah Allen
Publisher: Bantam
Copyright: 2007
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: In her first novel Sarah Addison Allen has written a tender book about sisters reconnecting and the security of family and love. With their special gifts and their garden of somewhat mystical spells, the family comes together in a lovely story to change their lives and those around them. Reading "Garden Spells" gives you a touch of Sue Monk Kidd, Alice Hoffman or Rebecca Wells.

Title: A Gate at the Stairs  
Classification: Fiction
Author: Lorrie Moore
Publisher: Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group
Copyright: 2009
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments:

Shortly after 9/11 college student Tassie becomes nanny for an older couple who are adopting a bi-racial baby girl. Also enjoying her first love, with a Brazilian student, Tassie's suspicions mount that things are not quite right with the family or her romantic situation. Secondary characters float in and out including her own family who face tragedy. Slowly paced and melancholy but perceptive and beautifully written.

 Title: Gilead
Classification: Fiction
Author: Marilynne Robinson
Publisher: Picador USA
Copyright: 2004
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: Gilead is the winner of the 2005 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction and the 2004 National Book Critics Award for Fiction. The format is a letter written in 1956 by elderly Reverend John Ames to his very young son. He discusses the conflicts between his father and grandfather, various church doctrines and beliefs and the bonds between father and sons. Although not advocating any specific religious belief there is a certain amount of church doctrine discussed. The author's grasp of relationships and defining moments is particularly important and well done.

Title: The Girls From Ames: A Story of Women & a Forty Year Friendship
Classification: Social, World & Cultural Studies
Author: Jeffrey Zaslow
Publisher: Penguin Group
Copyright: 2009
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: Eleven women, originally from Ames Iowa, have been friends since childhood. Now in their 40s they have maintained a strong friendship through letters, email, phone calls and yearly get togethers. Author Zaslow has collected their memories and defined the special relationships that women have - that sisterhood of women - who bond and support each other through good or devastating situations.

Title: The Glorious Cause
Classification: Fiction
Author: Jeffrey Shaara
Publisher: Random House
Copyright: 2002
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: I thoroughly enjoy Shaara's historical fiction selections and this one didn't disappoint. His continuing format takes you from one main character to another in separate chapters, but in chronological sequence. The setting this time is the American Revolutionary War. For any history buff who enjoys an easy overview of the primary events and important leaders.

Title: Going to See the Elephant
Classification: Fiction
Author: Rodes Fishburne
Publisher: Dell
Copyright: 2008
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: This debut novel tells the story of would-be writer Slater Brown as he travels around San Francisco. After finding employment with a down and out newspaper he eventually becomes the toast of the town due to his journalistic prowess. A beautiful chess champion, a corrupt mayor and a wacky inventor add dimension to this unusual novel.

Title: The Good Husband of Zebra Drive
Classification: Mystery
Author: Alexander McCall Smith
Publisher: Knopf
Copyright: 2007
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: Precious Ramotswe, Botswana's leading, and only female detective, continues to solve mysteries in her quiet thoughtful way. This 8th book in "The No 1 Ladies Detective" series also features her husband and office manager, both of whom try their hand at new ventures. McCall Smith's mysteries, although not fast paced or dramatic, are sprinkled with compassionate wisdom.

Title: Grave Goods 
Classification: Fiction
Author:  Ariana Franklin
Publisher: Penguin Group
Copyright:  2010
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments:

Gastonbury Abbey, England, 1176, where the remains of King Arthur and Queen Guinevere are reported to have been found. In "Grave Goods" King Henry II again calls upon Adelia Agular to investigate. Rich with family, friends and an assortment of locals this is a terrific blend of history and mystery in Franklin's 3rd "Mistress of the Art of Death" series.

Series:

1.  Mistress of the Art of Death

2.  The Serpent's Tale

3.  Grave Goods

4.  A Murderous Procession (coming soon)

Title: Grave Secrets
Classification: Mystery
Author: Kathy Reichs
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Copyright: 2003
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: "Grave Secrets" finds Tempe Brennen, a forensics examiner, in Guatemala this time where she must try to find a connection between an earlier government massacre, 4 possible new murders of young women and the attack on two of her co-workers. She also must balance the attention of two admirers with her investigations and her own well being. The books in this series include a lot of forensic detail and many varied interesting characters.

Title: Grayson
Classification: Social, World & Cultural Studies
Author: Lynne Cox
Publisher: Knopf
Copyright: 2006
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: Lynne Cox, author of "Swimming to Antarctica", tells the story of her miraculous encounter while long distance swim training with an 18 foot baby gray whale which had gotten separated from its mother. Wonderful descriptions of ocean life add to this mysterious magical story.

Title: Grief Therapy
Classification: Self-help
Author: Karen Katafiasz
Publisher: Abbey Press
Copyright: 1993
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: This tiny paperback, which leads the reader through grief and beyond, would be an excellent and thoughtful gift for anyone experiencing grief.

Title: Hattie Big Sky
Classification: Teens
Author: Kirby Larson
Publisher: Random House Children's Books
Copyright: 2006
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: Alone in the world, 16 year old Hattie moves to Montana in 1917 to "prove up" her deceased uncle's homestead claim. Her backbreaking challenges are lightened by several neighbors as she learns the true meaning of home. Akin to the "Little House" series grown-up, this would appeal to any teen reader with an interest in an historical period setting.

Title: The Help
Classification: Fiction
Author: Kathryn Stockett
Publisher: Penguin Group
Copyright: 2009
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: Mississippi in the 1960's sets the scene for three women: Skeeter, white and a recent Ole Miss grad; Minny, black and usually too outspoken to keep a domestic position; Aibileen, black who dearly loves all the white babies she has helped raise over the years. Skeeter, not really happy with her Junior League existence, convinces the maids and their friends to secretly write about their employers and injustices even though their jobs and possibly their lives are at risk. Well defined characters and troubling experiences make this first novel a very compelling read.

Title: Here if You Need Me: A True Story
Classification: Biography
Author: Kate Braestrup
Publisher: Little Brown
Copyright: 2007
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: Author Kate Braestrup's heartfelt narrative is insightful, funny and moving. After the tragic death of her husband Braestrup decided to pursue his dream of becoming a minister. Mother of 4 young children, she successfully became a Unitarian minister and the first female chaplain for Maine's Game Warden Service. With simple but somewhat unorthodox faith she provided comfort to both the wardens and families in distress. A memoir definitely worth reading.

Title: Here Lies the Librarian
Classification: Children's
Author: Richard Peck
Publisher: Penguin
Copyright: 2006
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: Set in rural Indiana in 1914, this offbeat novel features 14 year old Peewee (Eleanor), her big brother Jake and their dreams of auto mechanic glory. Motoring down the road comes Irene, a young librarian, whose plans astonish and alter their lives forever. This book, for ages 9-12, is folksy, funny and unexpectedly moving.

Title: Hide
Classification: Fiction
Author: Lisa Gardner
Publisher: Random House
Copyright: 2007
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: When six mummified corpses are discovered policeman Bobby Dodge is drawn back into an earlier case of deception and intrigue. "Hide" isn't one of Gardner's best but I did finish it to see how she pulled everything together at the end. (Click here to check out other reviews for this title)

Title: The Hiding Place
Classification: Religion & Philosophy
Author: Corrie Ten Boom
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: Written in 1971, this religious biography is a very compelling account of the author's and her family's WWII holocaust experience.

Title: Home: A Memoir of My Early Years
Classification: Biography
Author: Julie Andrews
Publisher: Hyperion
Copyright: 2008
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: "Home", Julie Andrews' memoir, starts with her birth in England in 1925 and continues through 1962. Born to an aspiring vaudevillian mother, Julie began her professional career at 12 with an astonishing voice. Throughout the first half of the book she recounts her difficult childhood during the war and traveling to performances with her mother and stepfather. The latter half of the book deals with the more technical aspects of musical theater and anecdotes about many famous performers including Rex Harrison and Richard Burton. "Home" is a bit dry and written with a reserved style one might expect from Andrews.

Title: Home to Harmony
Classification: Religion & Philosophy
Author: Phillip Gulley
Publisher: Harper
Copyright: 2000
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: This religious fiction novel is the first of the "Harmony" series. If you liked the "Mitford" books you might like this series, although it lacks "Father Tim's" warm humor.

Title: Home to Holly Springs: The First of the Father Tim Novels
Classification: Fiction
Author: Jan Karon
Publisher: Penquin
Copyright: 2007
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: "Home to Holly Springs" features the beloved Father Tim from the "Mitford" series. At 70 and retired as an Episcopal clergyman, Father Tim returns to Holly Springs, his childhood home, where he confronts the longtime demons concerning his father and the abrupt departure of his loving housekeeper. Anyone who has enjoyed the Mitford series will continue to enjoy this new Father Tim story.

Title: Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet
Classification: Fiction
Author: Jamie Ford
Publisher: Random House
Copyright: 2009
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: Chinese American Henry Lee is caught up in the prejudice of Americans against Japanese citizens in Seattle after the bombing of Pearl Harbor. His childhood friend and first love Keiko is sent with her family to an internment camp. Forty years later events rekindle Henry's search and contemplation of his own family dynamics. Ford's first novel is, like the title, both bitter and sweet.

Title: The House in Amalfi
Classification: Fiction
Author: Elizabeth A. Adler
Publisher: St. Martin's Press
Copyright: 2005
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: Lamour Harrington, a young woman widowed 2 years earlier, returns to Italy to recapture the memories of her childhood and to discover the real circumstances surrounding her father's death. After deciding to relocate there she must also deal with her attraction to the neighboring father and son. Although somewhat pat and predictable this is a pleasant read.

Title: How I Paid for College: A Novel of Sex, Theft, Frienship and Musical Theater
Classification: Fiction
Author: Marc Acito
Publisher: Broadway Books
Copyright: Reprint 2005
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: 17 year old Edward Zanni's plan to attend Julliard hits a snag when his father's new wife convinces him not to pay for college. Edward,a somewhat feckless fellow, turns to his misfit friends to carry out a scheme of embezzlement, money laundering, forgery and blackmail. This farcical coming-of-age story is highly entertaining.

Title: How to Succeed in Murder
Classification: Mystery
Author: Margaret Dumas
Publisher: Poisoned Pen Press
Copyright: 2006
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: A slick, funny and light amateur sleuth story involving a newlywed couple who infiltrate a software company where an alarming number of executives turn up dead. The characters, Charley and Jack, are an appealing and clever couple.

Title: Incomplete Revenge
Classification: Mystery
Author: Jacqueline Winespear
Publisher: Picador USA
Copyright: 2008
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: Maisie Dobbs, British sleuth and psychologist, travels to Kent to investigate a series of fires and thefts. Maisie, still emotionally fragile from her WWII  nursing experiences, forges ahead  to confront the locals and her own past. Character and plot development lead to an ending which, in the larger sense,  is one of national reconciliation and healing. In this series Maisie as always compelling not only as an investigator but as a psychologist probing not only her subjects but herself as well.

Title: Interred With Their Bones
Classification: Mystery
Author: Jennifer Lee Carrell
Publisher: Penguin Group
Copyright: 2008
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: Shakespeare scholar and theater director Kate Stanley embarks on a high stakes race to solve a string of deadly murders involving numerous literary clues. The ultimate solution- did William Shakespeare really write the many works attributed to him? This debut thriller has lots of twists and a great deal of Shakespearian history.

Title: The Jasmine Moon Murder
Classification: Mystery
Author: Laura Childs
Publisher: Berkley
Copyright: 2004
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: This is one of the "Tea Shop" mysteries where main character, Theodosia Browning, an amateur sleuth, finds herself trying to solve the murders without becoming a victim. She runs a Charleston tea shop so there is the added touch of southern recipes and "tea" tips.

Title: The Kingdom of Ohio
Classification: Fiction
Author: Mathew Flaming
Publisher: Penguin
Copyright: 2009
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments:

"The Kingdom of Ohio" mixes time travel, early 1900's history and a bit of romance into an adventure which is bizarre, occasionally intriguing and certainly unusual. Including the lost kingdom of Ohio (Toledo), the power struggle of Thomas Edison and Nicola Tesla, the financial influence of J.P. Morgan and the plight of a NY City subway laborer and an Ohio woman who has traveled 7 years through time this novel has way too many subplots to do any of them justice.

Title: Knight in Shining Armor
Classification: Romance
Author: Jude Deveraux
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: Written in 1989, this romance has the added twist of "time travel" sequences to create more interest. (Click here to check out other reviews for this title)

Title: The Known World
Classification: Fiction
Author: Edward P. Jones
Publisher: Amistad Press
Copyright: 2003
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: If you enjoy historical fiction, particularly Civil War Era history, you may like this Pulitzer Prize novel. It is, however, somewhat slow paced as it relates to pre-civil war slave activity, not military action.

Title:Krakatoa: The Day the World Exploded: August 27, 1883 Classification: Social, World & Cultural Studies
Author: Simon Winchester
Publisher: HarperCollins
Copyright: 2004
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: World wanderer Simon Winchester examines the 1883 cataclysmic annihilation of the volcanic island Krakatoa. For the scientific minded, this volume is scholarly and extremely detailed. For the literary minded, Winchester's superlative descriptions are extraordinary. Based on journals, ship logs, observatory records, etc. one learns of the worldwide repercussions not only of the day's events but of the months, even years, following the eruptions and accompanying tsunamis.

Title: Land of a Hundred Wonders
Classification: Fiction
Author: Lesley Kagen
Publisher: Penguin Group
Copyright: 2008
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: 20 year old Gibby McGrae, somewhat mentally challenged due to an auto accident, is an engaging young woman caught up in the broken lives of friends and family in a small Kentucky town in the 1970's. Trying to become QR (Quite Right) she is the highlight of Leslie Kagen's compelling, funny and poignant southern novel.

Title: The Land of Mango Sunsets
Classification: Fiction
Author: Dorothy Benton Frank
Publisher: HarperCollins
Copyright: 2007
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: Once again Dorothy Benton Frank has written about Sullivan Island in the Low country of South Carolina. Quasi socialite Mariam Swanson of New York City, divorced and estranged from her sons, learns what is really important in life, thanks to a cast of interesting characters. Not the best of Frank's novels, but a nice light story.

Title: Last Seen Leaving
Classification: Fiction
Author: Kelly Braffet
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin
Copyright: 2006
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: A suspense novel in which a mother and daughter, estranged for several years, examine their divergent lifestyles. Their father/husband's unexplained disappearance 20 years before and the daughter's current involvement with a possible serial killer create an engrossing page-turner. (Click here to check out other reviews for this title)

Title: Leeway Cottage
Classification: Fiction
Author: Beth Gutcheon
Publisher: HarperCollins
Copyright: 2006
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: Sydney Brant, daughter of the wealthy Dundee ME summer colony Brandts, struggles through a difficult childhood. Her marriage to gifted Danish pianist Laurus Moss is challenged by his return to Denmark to help his fellow Jewish Danes during WWII. A combination of wartime history and summer house fiction make this a layered compelling read.

Title: Life Among the Lutherans
Classification: Fiction
Author: Garrison Keillor
Publisher: Augsberg Fortress
Copyright: 2009
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments:

If you are a Garrison Keillor/Lake Wobegon fan you'll love this latest collection of humorous stories about Lutheran life in small town Minnesota. You don't have to be Lutheran or mid-western to appreciate Keillor as a master story teller.

Title: Life of Pi
Classification: Fiction
Author: Yann Martel
Publisher: Harcourt
Copyright: 2002
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: This extraordinary novel is the unlikely story of a 16 year old boy adrift in the Pacific on a life boat for 227 days with a Bengal tiger. Not only must he survive the elements and starvation but he must dominate the tiger as well. The "Life of Pi" is really an imaginative story of struggle, religious belief and the nature of truth itself. (Click here to check out other reviews for this title)

Title: Light
Classification: Fiction
Author: Margaret Elphinstone
Publisher: Canongate Books
Copyright: 2007
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: Light is a family drama set in 1831 on a tiny island off the Isle of Man. Two sisters-in-law and their children, who operate the lighthouse, are thrown into turmoil when two surveyors arrive to arrange for construction of a more modern light. The replacement will force the families to leave their island home since only men are allowed to operate a government lighthouse. In "Light" the author has created an empathetic and compassionate tale.

Title: Light From Heaven
Classification: Fiction
Author: Jan Karon
Publisher: Penguin
Copyright: 2006
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: In Light From Heaven, the final volume in the Mitford series, Karon ties together everyone from Father Tim's many years of ministering in rural North Carolina. You can't help but love this wise gentle man who serves his flock with love and humor.

Title: The Lighthouse Keeper
Classification: Fiction
Author: James Michael Pratt
Publisher: St. Martins
Copyright: 2000
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: Yet another overworked predictable story of an elderly dying man reminiscing about his early life and the family generations that came before.

Title: Lost in a Good Book: A Thursday Next Novel
Classification: Mystery
Author: Jasper Fforde
Publisher: Penguin
Copyright: 2004
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: In this second volume literary sleuth Thursday Next ventures through several literary classics to get back her "eradicated" husband and, perhaps, save the world. Fforde's novels are inventive, witty, fun and sometimes confusing, but this one will especially appeal to "literary" readers.

Title: The Lost Quilter 
Classification: Fiction
Author: Jennifer Chiaverini
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Copyright: 2009
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments:  

This volume, #14 in the Elm Creek Quilt Series, takes a different turn from Chiaverini's other novels. Sylvia, of Elm Creek, and her staff find a stash of old pre-civil war letters written by Joanna, a runaway slave woman, who is captured, sent further south and eventually on to Charleston. The story  recounts  her life, her needlework skills, her struggles with white masters, and her desperate desire to be reunited with her family.

This one is definitely for the quilter or anyone with a love of history.

Title: Man of the Month Club
Classification: Fiction
Author: Jackie Clune
Publisher: Penguin
Copyright: 2006
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: At age 39 successful British business entrepreneur Amy Stokes decides she has one year to find a man to father a child. Meetings with various "donors" are humorous, but the entire story is somewhat mindless and predictable.

Title: The Mapping of Love and Death
Classification:  Mystery
Author: Jacqueline Winspear
Publisher: HarperCollins
Copyright: 2010
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments:

The 7th and latest Maisie Dobbs novel, "The Mapping of Love" finds Maisie and assistant Billie investigating the death of an American cartographer, attached to the  British army in France during WWI. In discovering that his death was actually murder Maisie's own well being is threatened. Several subplots, the chance for personal romance and the approaching loss of her mentor all build to a moving conclusion. If you like a more subtle, introspective and gentle heroine, Maisie Dobbs is definitely for you!

Title: March
Classification: Fiction
Author: Geraldine Brooks
Publisher: Viking Penguin
Copyright: 2005
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: An interesting look at the father of Louisa May Alcot's "Little Women". Brooks follows March as he leaves home to aid the Union cause during the Civil War. Flashbacks to his younger days and early relationships round out the events that shaped his marriage and beliefs.

Title: Marrying the Mistress
Classification: Fiction
Author: Joanna Trollope
Publisher: Penguin
Copyright: 2001
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: Joanna Trollope (a descendant of Anthony Trollope) explores the complicated lives of a family dealing with a marriage broken when the husband leaves his wife to marry his mistress. Both are immensely likeable people which adds to the problems faced by his wife, sons and grandchildren.

Title: Matrimony
Classification: Fiction
Author: Joshua Henkin
Publisher: Random House
Copyright: 2008
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: Starting in 1986 when college freshman Julian meets Mia this novel follows them for the next 20 years through love, friendships, money issues and ambitions. With no great themes "Matrimony" is however lifelike and likable.

Title: Mending at the Edge
Classification: Fiction
Author: Jane Kirkpatrick
Publisher: WaterBrook Press
Copyright: 2008
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: Based on the true story of German-American Emma Wagner Giesy, this is the fictionalized account of her life in a communal society established in Oregon in the 1850s.Working through the grief of her first husband's death and the anguish of an abusive 2nd husband Emma questions her relationships, spirituality and artistry within the framework of the communal good.

Title: Messenger of Truth: A Maisie Dobbs Novel
Classification: Mystery
Publisher: Picador USA
Copyright: 2007
Reviewer: Carol
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: Set in London in 1931, the fourth Maisie Dobbs mystery finds Maisie investigating the "accidental" death of a controversial artist. Once again she must deal with post-WWI England's struggle with widespread unemployment, poverty and political upheaval as well as her own personal problems. Winespear's novels are for those who enjoy historical whodunits and compassionate introspective protagonists.

Title: Mister Pip
Classification: Fiction
Author: Lloyd Jones
Publisher: Dell Publishing Co.
Copyright: 2007
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: "Mister Pip" follows the early years of 13 year old   Matilda on a remote Pacific island. As military rebellion forces the men of the island to leave, the children are left without a teacher until Mr. Watts, the only white man on the island, agrees to step in. He uses Mr. Pip from Dickens' "Great Expectations" to present themes of estrangement, personal metamorphosis, escapism, conviction and strength of the human spirit. After the rebels burn all the books and the schoolhouse Mr. Watts and the children recreate the story from memory, all the while continuing to learn life's lessons. Matilda is torn between her admiration of Mr. Watts and her fiercely religious mother. Extreme violence in the end forces Matilda to make difficult decisions in this fable-like novel.

Title: The Monsters of Templeton
Classification: Fiction
Author: Lauren Groff
Publisher: ?
Copyright: 2008
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: 28 year old Willie Templeton returns home in disgrace at the same moment an enormous dead sea monster surfaces in the local lake. As she searches for her unknown father she discovers many local secrets though journals, historical accounts and old newspapers. The whole story seemed too contrived, too slow and too rote to keep this reader's attention.

Title: Motor Mouth
Classification: Mystery
Author: Janet Evanovich
Publisher: Penguin
Copyright: 2006
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: Alexandra "Barney" Barnaby (series), first introduced in "Metro Girl", returns in this fun and sexy multi crime mystery. NASCAR driver Hooker and the Cigar Ladies Felicia and Rosa add to the cast of characters for a light quick read. Evanovich continues to create supporting characters who add immensely to her books. (Click here to check out other reviews for this title)

Title: The Necklace: Thirteen Women and the Experiment That Transformed Their Lives
Classification: Self Help
Author: Cheryl Jarvis
Publisher: Random House
Copyright: 2008
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: "The Necklace" is the true story of 13 California women who each contribute money to buy a $37,000.00 16 carat diamond necklace. The woman, from vastly different backgrounds, came together regularly and took turns wearing their necklace. What started as a social experiment on ownership grew into more as they shared issues of personality, relationships, health, child rearing, etc. An interesting concept but Jarvis never gets across the appeal of the necklace in the first place and doesn't delve deep enough into the social issues.

Title: Never Stuff Your Dog: And Other Things I've Learned
Classification: Biography
Author: Alan Alda
Publisher: Random House
Copyright: 2005
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: Alan Alda's biography is well written, amusing and enlightening with lots of childhood and off screen experience which formulated his personality and career.

Title: The New Year's Quilt
Classification: Fiction
Author: Jennifer Chiaverini
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Copyright: 2007
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: Jennifer Chiaverini again features master quilter Sylvia, who, newly married, must overcome the sorrows of her relationship with her new daughter-in-law as well as memories from youth of her late sister. Most of the Elm Creek Quilt series are appealing but this one seems to be a forced plot produced just to have a holiday offering.

Title: No Clue at the Inn: A Special Pennyfoot Hotel Mystery
Classification: Mystery
Author: Kate Kingsbury
Publisher: Penguin
Copyright: 2003
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: In this late Victorian British mystery Cecily Sinclair Baxter and her husband, returning to manage the Pennyfoot Hotel for the Christmas holidays, become involved in solving two mysterious disappearances. An enjoyable read somewhere between "light" and intense.

Title: Now You See Me
Classification: Mystery
Author: Rochelle Krich
Publisher: Random House
Copyright: 2005
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: Los Angeles crime reporter Molly Blume is asked to find the 18 year old run-away daughter of a rabbi who was once Molly's teacher. The investigation leads her into the world of chat rooms, exam cheating, sexual harassment. Midway through the story the girl returns home, only to be led into a tangled murder plot, which Molly must solve. This is the 5th of the Molly Blume series (but the first one I've read) and I'm looking forward to going back and reading more.

Title: Now You See Me
Classification: Fiction
Author: Sandi Shelton
Publisher: Crown Publishing Group
Copyright: 2005
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: Sandi Shelton, author of three parenting books, uses this background in a debut novel about 30ish Maz Lombard and her wacky challenging family. Maz's life with her fortune telling mother, her philandering husband, her supportive best friend, and her two young daughters provide the reader with funny situations, unique characters and complicated situations.

Title: Ocean Waves
Classification: Mystery
Author: Terri Thayer
Publisher: Llewellyn Worldwide, LTD
Copyright: 2009
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: Quilt shop owner Dewey Pellicano stumbles across a dead body while attending a sewing/quilting symposium. Mix in a ghost, a missing woman, a stolen heirloom and a mountain lion and you have a mystery which is a real unlikely stretch of the imagination.

Title: Officer Down
Classification: Mystery
Author: Theresa Schwegel
Publisher: St. Martin's Press
Copyright: 2006
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: "Officer Down", winner of the Edgar Award for Best First Novel of 2006, introduces Chicago police officer Samantha "Smack" Mack, a woman with multiple personal problems. She realizes she has been set up to take the blame for her partner's death, investigates on her own and comes face to face with the killer. Schwegel's writing is gritty, even shocking, and intense.

Title: Off Season
Classification: Fiction
Author: Anne River Siddons
Publisher: Warner Books
Copyright: 2008
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: After the death of her husband 53 year old Lilly returns to the family cottage in Maine to try and figure out her future. Recalling the pivotal summer of her childhood in 1962 Lilly tells of her first love, his death, the loss of her mother, meeting her future husband and their ensuing marriage and life together. Well written, as Siddons' books are, but with an astonishing surprise ending.

Title: Olive Kitteridge
Classification: Fiction
Author: Elizabeth Strout
Publisher: Random House
Copyright: 2008
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: Olive Kitteridge, a retired math teacher in a small Maine town, is not a warm fuzzy person. But in each of the 13 story chapters she plays some part which helps us understand her imposing personality. The author keeps the reader engaged with each glimpse of understanding. "Olive Kitteridge" is the 2008 Pulitzer Prize winner in literature.

Title: The Other
Classification: Fiction
Author: David Guterson
Publisher: Knopf
Copyright: 2008
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: From the author of "Snow Falling on Cedars" "The Other" is his new novel about 3 men, friends for over 35 years, whose paths lead in different directions, but who maintain their close relationship. Blue collar Neil becomes a high school teacher, husband, father. Blue-blood John William becomes a hermit in the Olympic Mountains. Ultimately "The Other" is a story of idealism, responsibility and the definition of the "good life".

Title: Outlander
Classification: Fiction
Author: Diana Gabaldon
Publisher: Dell Publishing
Copyright: 2000
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: "Outlander", the first in a time travel series begun several years ago, is the story of Claire Randall who, when traveling in Scotland in 1945, is suddenly transported back to 1743. Torn between desire for two vastly different men, she is enmeshed in the historic Jacobite uprising. Many readers have recommended Gabaldon's series; I can't believe I waited this long to read it!

Title: Out of Africa
Classification: Fiction
Author: Isak Dinesen
Publisher: Knopf
Copyright: 1989
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: "Out of Africa" is the fictionalized biographical account by Isak Dinesen of her 17 years as a coffee plantation manager in East Africa. If you remember the movie based on this you'll find some differences in the book. But, her wonderful prose and gift of story telling brings out her love for Africa and it's people.

Title: Pardonable Lies
Classification: Mystery
Author: Jacqueline Winspear
Publisher: Henry Holt
Copyright: 2005
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: The third in a series, "Pardonable Lies", takes London investigator Maisie Dobbs back to France in the early 1930's to solve two intertwined cases and to confront her own wartime torment. Maisie is a "modern" young woman with much depth and insight.

Title: People of the Book
Classification: Fiction
Author: Geraldine Brooks
Publisher: Penquin
Copyright: 2008
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: In 1996 Hannah Heath, a rare books expert, travels to Sarajevo to conserve a priceless Jewish Haggadah. As she discovers tiny artifacts (an insect wing, salt crystals, a white hair, wine stains) to help her determine its provenance the story moves backward in time, following the history of the codex. Each time segment gives the reader a glimpse of anti-semitism and women's struggle for independence. Intertwined with this long cast of characters are Hannah's personal struggles and relationships. Brooks, author of the Pulitzer Prize winner"March", again combines popular fiction with serious themes.

Title: The Physick Book of Deliverance Dane
Classification: Fiction
Author: Katherine Howe
Publisher: Voice
Copyright: 2009
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: Doctoral student Connie Goodwin is in Marblehead to prepare her grandmother's decrepit home for sale. She discovers evidence of a book of spells and potions belonging to 17th century Deliverance Dance, a reported Salem witch. The intrigue element concerns her university advisor and a young man who tries to help in her search. A bit slow to be the thriller it's purported to be, the story does have an interesting historical backdrop.

Title: The Pig Did It
Classification: Fiction
Author: Joseph Caldwell
Publisher: Delphinium Books
Copyright: 2008
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: Heart broken New Yorker Aaron McCloud travels to his aunt's home in western Ireland to suffer a failed romantic relationship. He encounters a pig along the road which adopts him, follows him to Aunt Kittys and precedes to dig up a corpse. Sounds promising, and it is witty, but I found it choppy and too bizarre.

Title: Poison Heart: A Novel of Suspense
Classification: Mystery
Author: Mary Logue
Publisher: Random House
Copyright: 2005
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: In this mystery Deputy Sheriff Claire Watkins delves into a history of lies, deceit, arson and poison in a small Wisconsin farm community. A collection of varied individuals and family settings contribute to an enjoyable read.

Title: Power Play  
Classification: Fiction
Author: Joseph Finder
Publisher: St. Martin's Press
Copyright: 2008
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments:

Author Joseph Finder explores the aerospace industry in this fast paced thriller. Jake Landry and fellow executives of Hammond Industry, attending a corporate conference at a secluded lodge, are invaded and held hostage by a group of local hunters. Jake, using all his wit and talent, tries to keep them all alive. A combination of intelligence, cynicism and timing create a good nail-bitter.

Title: Prayers for Sale
Classification: Fiction
Author: Sandra Dallas
Publisher: St. Martin's Press
Copyright: 2009
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: It's 1936 and 86 year old Hennie has lived in a small Colorado mining town since her marriage. Nit,17 and newly married, and her husband have just arrived. Both women, having had similar hardships, form a heartwarming friendship based on their sorrows, their love of quilting and their knack for storytelling. Forgiveness, redemption and happiness are themes that bind this compassionate story.

Title: Pretty Poison
Classification: Mystery
Author: Joyce and Jim Lavene
Publisher: Berkley
Copyright: 2005
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: Though not strong on riveting suspense, this mystery was well written and made you read to the end to see if you had correctly figured out "who done it".

Title: Quilt As Desired: A Harriet Truman / Loose Threads Mystery 
Classification: Mystery
Author: Arlene Sachitano
Publisher: Zumaya Publications US
Copyright: 2007
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments:

Widow Harriet Truman takes over her aunt's long-arm quilting business and subsequently is knocked out and drugged. Her shop is ransacked and valuable quilts are vandalized. Her aunt's friend, whose business is in trouble, is murdered. The friend's son, a local vet, wants to date Harriet, but strangely is always around when Harriet is attacked. A series of events leads to the eventual solution in this somewhat far fetched but pleasant mystery.

Title: Quilter's Kitchen: An Elm Creek Quilts novel w/Recipes

Classification: Fiction
Author: Jennifer Chiaverini
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Copyright: 2008
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: In this latest Elm Creek Quilts novel Sylvia and newcomer Anna work together to renovate Elm Creek Manor's outdated kitchen. Sharing reminiscences and creating plans for new traditions bring family and friends closer together. Filled with good recipes, the "Quilter's Kitchen" has a story for every recipe and a recipe for every story.

Title: Quilter's Legacy
Classification: Fiction
Author: Jennifer Chiaverni
Publisher: Penguin
Copyright: 2004
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: One of the Elm Creek Quilters series in which the main character is in search of her mother's quilts which were sold years before. Although not the best in the series this one alternates back and forth to the turn of the 20th century so the reader enjoys two intertwining stories.

Title: Quilting Lessons: Notes from the Scrap Bag...
Classification: Biography
Author: Janet Berlo
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: The title is deceiving because this book isn't really how to quilt but about creativity and overcoming an artist or writers' "block".

Title: The Reluctant Fundamentalist
Classification: Fiction
Author: Stephen Booth
Publisher: Harcourt
Copyright: 2007
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: Two men sit at a table, one a young Pakistani named Changez and the other an unnamed American. Only Changez speaks as he relates his promising career in America and his rocky romantic relationship with Erica, a beautiful fellow Princetonian. Then come the attacks of 9/11 and his identity is forever fractured. Returning to his homeland, he struggles with allegiances which bring his story to an ominous end.

Title: Remember Me
Classification: Fiction
Author: Trezza Azzopardi
Publisher: Grove/Atlantic
Copyright: 2005
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: "Remember Me" begins with the central character, an older homeless woman, who has been robbed of all her very few worldly possessions. In her search to recover these stolen items she recounts the events of her life. Not until the surprising ending does she (and the reader) come to terms with her existence. This is very well written and a compelling read.

Title: The Rising Tide: A Novel of World War ll
Classification: Fiction
Author: Jeff Shaara
Publisher: Random House
Copyright: 2006
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: Historical novelist Jeff Shaara moves onto WWll with the first of a proposed trilogy. Telling the story through multiple personalities and perspectives, Shaara covers the war into 1943. Somewhat short on action and very lengthy on narrative, "The Rising Tide" is nevertheless an interesting mix of dialogue from the everyday soldier to the famous general.

Title: The Rock Orchard
Classification: Fiction
Author: Paula Wall
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Copyright: 2006
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: The legendary Belle family women of Leaper's Fork, TN create a poignant sexy novel about the strength of community and the charm of extraordinary women. Old money versus new, South versus North, hypocrisy versus honesty, prejudice versus love are all handled by the author with comic lightness.

Title: "S" is for Silence
Classification: Mystery
Author: Sue Grafton
Publisher: ?
Copyright: 2005
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: Grafton is back on track with this latest Kinsey Millhone mystery series.

Title: Sacajewa
Classification: Fiction
Author: Anna Waldo
Publisher: ?
Copyright: 1978
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: This older novel, still in print, gives the reader a fascinating fictional account of Lewis & Clark's journey across America.

Title: Sail
Classification: Fiction
Author: James Patterson & Howard Roughan
Publisher: Little Brown
Copyright: 2008
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: Widow Anne Dunne, with her 3 children, takes an elaborate sailing vacation to help bring the family back together again. Catastrophe happens on board and survival is only one of their concerns. "Sail", though not as well written as Patterson's early non-collaborative efforts, has lots of twists to keep you reading through to its conclusion.

Title: Samaritan
Classification: Fiction
Author: Richard Price
Publisher: Knopf
Copyright: 2003
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: Successful writer Ray Mitchell returns to the inner city projects where he grew up to rethink his life, reconnect with his daughter and financially help the area. Assaulted and nearly killed, he refuses to identify his attacker to detective Nerese Adams, a woman he knew as a child years before. Samaritan is lengthy and bleak with many detailed flashbacks but the sharp realistic dialogue keeps you reading.

Title: Searching for Paradise in Parker, PA
Classification: Fiction
Author: Kris Radish
Publisher: Bantam
Copyright: 2008
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: Addy Lipton, married for 28 years, faces a difficult decision-does she still love and want to be married to her husband? With the support and love of her sister and close friends she takes steps to revive "paradise" in her hometown. Soon the men of Parker (husbands, friends, neighbors) realize they need to make the effort to improve their relationships. Once again Kris Radish tackles the challenges of relationships and the community of women- their problems and their strengths.

Title: The Season of Second Chances
Classification: Fiction 
Author: Diane Meier
Publisher: Henry Holt
Copyright: 2010
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments:

"The Season of Second Chances" is about just that- the chance to finally experience personal and professional growth. 48 yr. old Joy Harkness  leaves Cambridge University and New York City where she had chosen to live isolated and distant. Impulsively moving to Amherst College in Massachusetts she finally comes alive to allow herself friends, feelings, love and a more meaningful future.

Title: Secret Keepers
Classification: Fiction
Author: Mindy Friddle
Publisher: St. Martin's Press
Copyright: 2009
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: Aging housewife Emma lives in S.Ca. with her mentally challenged son Bobby, born-again daughter Dora and the memory of her deceased son Will. Newly widowed, she struggles with her family problems while letting her property go to seed. Enter gardener Jake and the story transcends into a quirky, somewhat mythical, chain of events which unearth the family secrets. "Secret Keepers" has its unusual moments but is a very satisfying southern story.

Title: Secret of Lost Things
Classification: Fiction
Author: Sheridan Hay
Publisher: Doubleday
Copyright: 2007
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: 18 year old Rosemary arrives in New York from Australia with little money and a love of books. Upon being hired at the Arcade bookstore she finds herself working amid an odd and eccentric cast of characters. Her involvement in their search for a priceless lost manuscript by Herman Melville makes the Secret of Lost Things an intriguing read for the bibliophile in all of us.

Title: The Senator's Wife
Classification: Fiction
Author: Sue Miller
Publisher: Knopf
Copyright: 2008
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: Sue Miller's latest offering deals with loyalty and betrayal within marriages and friendships. Newly married Me ri and Nathan buy half a duplex owned by Senator Tom Naught on and his wife Delia. What bonds keep couples in love; what infidelities can be accepted? Four potentially interesting characters, not fully developed, within a story too slowly paced. (Click here to check out other reviews for this title)

Title: The Shack
Classification: Fiction
Author: William Young
Publisher: Windblown Media
Copyright: 2008
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: Four years after his youngest child was kidnapped and murdered Mack Phillips receives a suspicious note inviting him back to the abandoned shack where evidence had been found. Upon arrival his life is changed forever. Is he really talking to the Holy Trinity? "The Shack" is thought provoking regardless of your religious beliefs.

Title: Shem Creek
Classification: Fiction
Author: Dorothy Benton Frank
Publisher: Penguin
Copyright: 2004
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: If you love the Carolina Low country Shem Creek will make you want to return. As always Frank beautifully describes the area as the setting for another of her friendship, family and love stories. Although Sullivan's Island remains my favorite, this was a nice read too.

Title: The Shortest Distance Between Two Women
Classification: Fiction
Author: Kris Radish
Publisher: Bantam Book
Copyright: 2009
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: Emma Guilford, 43, the dependable daughter and family mediator thinks she may finally have a meltdown as she plans the annual family reunion. Her wonderful, quirky family is falling apart while new relationships and challenges pop up in her personal life. Author Radish once again takes on the theme of mothers and daughters, sisters and friends in this funny warm "community of women" novel. Delightful to read with meaning for all women.

Title: The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants
Classification: Teens
Author: Ann Brashares
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: This is the first in a fiction series (3 so far) of stories involving four teenage girls whose lives are forever connected. Teens, moms and grand moms would enjoy this series.

Title: Sisters
Classification: Fiction
Author: Danielle Steel
Publisher: Bantam Books
Copyright: 2006
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: The four incredibly successful Adams' sisters are enjoying their lives when a double tragedy strikes. Pulling together, they move into a New York Brownstone and readjust. By the end of that year they are even closer and ready to move on with their lives."Sisters", written from the typical Steel formula, will please her regular fans.

Title: Something Blue
Classification: Fiction
Author: Emily Giffin
Publisher: St. Martins
Copyright: 2006
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: This "beach read" type of book was so predictable; the main character so incredibly shallow; the entire story so unlikely.

Title: Song Yet Sung
Classification: Fiction
Author: James McBride
Publisher: Penguin
Copyright: 2008
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: James McBride, author of "The Color of Water", tackles the issues of slavery in the 1850s on Maryland's Eastern Shore. Escaped slave Liz Sopcott's and retired slave catcher Denwood Long's paths cross as she tries to reach safety by following the "code" of the Underground Railroad. Social commentary on contemporary America is presented through Liz's dreams. Dealing with the Chesapeake Bay area gives a different perspective of slavery from the usual southern plantation story.

Title: Sorrow Without End
Classification: Mystery
Author: Priscilla Royal
Publisher: Poisoned Pen Press
Copyright: 2006
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: Somewhat in the style of Ellis Peters, this medieval period mystery started well but had too much unnecessary repetition and unlikely relationships which didn't enhance the plot.

Title: Soul Catcher
Classification: Fiction
Author: Michael White
Publisher: HarperCollins
Copyright: 2007
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: This pre-Civil War novel connects southern slave catcher Augustus Cain and runaway slave Rosetta in an arduous journey, both physically demanding and morally challenging. "Soul Catcher" encompasses every Civil War scenario we've read about before, but with more in-depth character study and some surprising results.

Title: South of Broad
Classification: Fiction
Author: Pat Conroy
Publisher: Knopf Doubleday
Copyright: 2009
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments:

Pat Conroy, in "South of Broad" writes again of Charleston, this time in 1989, with a cast of characters led by Leo King, whose social core is made up of friends from childhood. They date, marry, work and care a great deal for each others good and bad times. A great mix of personalities and situations keep the reader entranced till the very end. Conroy always writes a great story, ultimately about forgiveness.

Title: The Spellman Files
Classification: Fiction
Author: Lisa Lutz
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
Copyright: 2007
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: Meet 28 year old "Izzy" Spellman, private investigator and member of the quirky Spellman family investigators. Deciding that she needs a change, Izzy takes on one last job, a 15 year old missing persons"cold" case. As good as she is at her job, her personal life is littered with ex-boyfriends and personal problems. This loony Spellman family is endearing and will no doubt appear in future novels.

Title: Still Life
Classification: Mystery
Author: Louise Penny
Publisher: St. Martin's Press
Copyright: 2007
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments:"Still Life", a Debut Dagger honor book in the UK, introduces Canadian Inspector Monsieur L'Inspecteur Armand Gamache, a modern day combination of Inspectors Morse, Daglish and Poirot. The setting is a small French Canadian village; the victim a retired school teacher found shot to death with and arrow. Was it an accident or deliberate murder?

Title: The Stolen Child
Classification: Fiction
Author: Keith Donohue
Publisher: Doubleday
Copyright: 2006
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: "The Stolen Child" is the story of Henry Day, a 7 year old boy stolen by changelings, a secret group living in the nearby forest. A changeling boy then morphs himself into Henry and they essentially change places and lives. Narrated with alternating voices of each character, this is a classic tale of their long obsessive search for their original identity.

Title: A Stolen Season
Classification: Mystery
Author: Steve Hamilton
Publisher: St. Martin's Press
Copyright: 2006
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: During an unusually frigid summer in Michigan's Upper Peninsula Alex McKnight becomes enmeshed with gun smugglers, drug dealers and murderers. In the end he has to face his own revenge demons in a plot which occasionally becomes a bit tedious.

Title: The Stupidest Angel
Classification: Fiction
Author: Christopher Moore
Publisher: HarperCollins
Copyright: 2005
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: Seven year old Josh thinks he saw Santa Clause killed and so prays for Santa's return. Enter Archangel Raziel, sent to earth, but who botches his mission and causes Christmas chaos. Moore's novels are definitely quirky and hilarious.

Title: The Sugar Queen
Classification: Fiction
Author: Sarah Allen
Publisher: Bantam
Copyright: 2008
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: 27 year old Josey Cirrini, plain and plump, is caring for her difficult widowed mother when she discovers local waitress Della Baker living in her bedroom closet. Little by little Della is able to make Josey recognize her self worth and begin to live outside her stifling home environment. She also meets and bonds with Chloe who works at the local sandwich shop, and who is continually finding unexplained books by her side. As in "Garden Spells", Allen's first novel, there is a mystical and captivating effect in "the Sugar Queen". (Click here to check out other reviews for this title)

Title: The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie
Classification: Mystery
Author: Alan Bradley
Publisher: Random House
Copyright: 2010
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments:

The first in a new series (Flavia de Luce series) "Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie" introduces 11 year old Flavia, an extraordinary and precocious child of a well to do English family in the 1950's. Her snooping leads to finding a body in their garden, an old episode of death from her father's school days and her own life threatened. Brilliant and incorrigible, Flavia is a character the reader will want to meet again.

Title: Swine Not?
Classification: Fiction
Author: Jimmy Buffett
Publisher: Little Brown & Co.
Copyright: 2009
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments:

Title: Tallgrass
Classification: Fiction
Author: Sandra Dallas
Publisher: St. Martin's Press
Copyright: 2007
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: During WWII a small Colorado town becomes the site for a Japanese internment camp. When a young girl is raped and murdered suspicion centered on the Japanese splits the town. 13 year old Rennie, the daughter of compassionate and wise parents, struggles to rise above the town's bigotry. In addition to memorable characters author Dallas again emphasizes the need for women to create strong emotional networks.

Title: Tavern on Maple Street
Classification: Fiction
Author: Sharon Owens
Publisher: Penguin
Copyright: 2006
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: The "Tavern on Maple Street", in the style of Maive Binchy, is the story of a quaint Victorian style pub which is threatened with replacement by a modern shopping mall. The owners decide to expand their business in order to save it and thus become entwined with new employees, new friends and longtime customers.

Title: Things Not Seen
Classification: Teens
Author: Andrew Clements
Publisher: Penguin
Copyright: 2006
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: 15 year old Bobby wakes up and finds himself invisible. This
entertaining book continues with Bobby and his family searching to find out why. In the ensuing time he meets a blind teenage girl. They both struggle to overcome their respective conditions. Written in the first person, with humor, the story is well done and appeals to more than just its teenage audience

Title: Thirteen Moons
Classification: Fiction
Author: Charles Frazier
Publisher: Random House
Copyright: 2006
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: As he did in "Cold Mountain", Frazier beautifully writes about nineteenth century America. 12 year old Will is sent into the Indian Nation to run a trading post. As he grows into an influential man he comes to love and identify with the Cherokee Indians. Tirelessly he works to keep their land and prevent the government from sending them west. His passion for literature and learning, the Indians and the woman he loves creates a powerful well written story.

Title: Thistle and Twigg
Classification: Mystery
Author: Mary Saums
Publisher: St Martin's Minotaur
Copyright: 2008
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: Two widows strike up an unlikely friendship in this new series. Phoebe and Jane, from very different backgrounds, are brought closer together after discovering a dead body. These two crafty ladies are more than a match for the scheming murderer."Thistle and Twigg" mixes light humor, suspense and a bit of the supernatural.

Title: Tome of Death
Classification: Mystery
Author: D. R. Meredith
Publisher: Penguin
Copyright: 2005
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: This paperback mystery format was interesting with dual plots, contemporary forensics and 19th century Native American history.

Title: Too Far Gone
Classification: Fiction
Author: John Miller
Publisher: Dell
Copyright: 2006
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: Louisiana, as Hurricane Katrina approaches, is the setting in which FBI agent Alexa Keen must race through to solve the mystery of a missing man. Her search leads back to a 25 year old murder. Keen is somewhat the typical tough single female cop, but the secondary characters lead to occasional surprises and an interesting end.

Title: Trophy House
Classification: Fiction
Author: Anne Bernays
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Copyright: 2005
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: Set mainly on Cape Cod, "Trophy House" is the story of children's illustrator Dannie Faber in the year following 9/11. Living a good life with husband Tom, her life begins to unravel, especially her marriage. Sharp-tongued, yet smart and funny, Dannie struggles with the balance between family and friends and her need for solitary creativity nurtured at her beach house.

Title: Twenty Wishes
Classification: Romance
Author: Debbie Macomber
Publisher: Mira Books
Copyright: 2008
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: "Twenty Wishes" is the story of four friends, recently widowed, who decide to make lists of the 20 things they have always dreamed of but never done. The main character, Anne Marie, acts on one of her wishes (doing good for someone else) by volunteering at the local school as a lunch buddy for 8 yr old Ellen. The relationship becomes far more important than she ever dreamed. Finding love features importantly for all 4 women. Macomber's characters move through their relationships with unrealistic speed but "Twenty Wishes" is an easy pleasant read.

Title: Up Island
Classification: Fiction
Author: Anne River Siddons
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: Anne Siddons writes beautifully descriptive passages to take the reader to the coastal areas generally features in her novels.

Title: Version of the Truth
Classification: Fiction
Author: Karen Mack
Publisher: Dell
Copyright: 2008
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: Cassie Shaw is a 30 year old widow, dyslexic, who barely finished high school. Desperate for a job, she fabricates a college degree and is hired in the office of the psychology department of the local university. Using her new identity Cassie works diligently to transform herself while becoming involved with her new co-workers and her boss. Both humorous and winsome, "Version or the Truth" is an enjoyable read.

Title: Vintage Caper 
Classification: Fiction
Author: Peter Mayle
Publisher: Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group
Copyright: 2009
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments:

Peter Mayle's (A Year in Province) latest novel takes wine expert Sam Levitt to France to investigate the theft in L.A. of a very valuable wine collection. Interspersed with much wine information and decadent french cuisine the crime is, of course, eventually solved. Think fun and "To Catch a Thief".

Title: Voyager
Classification: Fiction
Author: Diana Gabaldon
Publisher: Dell
Copyright: 1994
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: In this next (3rd) novel in the "Outlander" series Claire gives birth, lives and works in England for 20 years but the lure of Jamie is strong enough for her to risk time traveling again. "Voyager" is yet another one of Gabaldon's terrific historical romance series.

Title: A Walk on the Beach
Classification: Biography
Author: Joan Anderson
Publisher: Broadway Press
Copyright: 2004
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: This is the third, and best, in a biographical series, but stands alone. During her friendship with a wise and thought provoking friend, the author learns much about herself and life in general.

Title: What Makes A Rainbow
Classification: Children's
Author: Betty Schwartz
Publisher: Piggy Toes Press
Copyright: 2000
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: I love to give this book as a baby shower or toddler gift. In addition to teacher colors, the unique use of ribbons make it different from the ordinary board book.

Title: When Will There Be Good News?
Classification: Fiction
Author: Kate Atkinson
Publisher: Little Brown & Co.
Copyright: 2008
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: This literary thriller converges the lives of several people in York and Edinborough starting with a brutal crime which surfaces again 30 years later to entangle the original victim, a former policeman, a detective and a teenage girl. Intricately plotted, with an eventual satisfying outcome, Atkinson's latest novel keeps you reading to its conclusion.

Title: Where the River Ends
Classification: Fiction
Author: Charles Martin
Publisher: Broadway Books
Copyright: 2008
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: Loving soul mates for 14 years, Abbie and Dos take one final journey after every treatment fails to halt the spread of Abbie's cancer. The 130 mile canoe trip from Georgia through Florida is fraught with danger as well as with caring individuals. Written with alternate chapters about their earlier years, the plot, though somewhat stereotypical, presents strong characters and a couple totally committed to one another to the end.

Title: Where's the Dragon
Classification: Children's
Author: Jason Hook
Publisher: Sterling Press
Copyright: 2003
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: This hard cover picture book, with wonderful illustrations and a story to challenge a youngster's power of observation, would be appropriate for children ages 3 to 6.

Title: The Whole World Over
Classification: Fiction
Author: Julia Glass
Publisher: Knopf
Copyright: 2006
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: From the author of "the Three Junes" comes the story of Greene Unquote, a woman who is struggling with the love of family,the demands of friends and a search for her sense of self. With a rich mix of compelling characters, the novel leads the reader to a satisfying, but not necessarily expected, ending.

Title: Wickett's Remedy
Classification: Fiction
Author: Myla Goldberg
Publisher: Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group
Copyright: 2006
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments:

"Wickett's Remedy" takes us to Boston in the early 1900's where Irish shopgirl Lydia meets and marries med student Henry Wickett. After deciding to forego med school Henry and Lydia concoct and produce an elixir which will eventually become a popular soft drink. When the 1918 influenza epidemic engulfs Lydia's friends and family, as well as the world, she feels compelled to help in some way.  Each chapter ends with newspaper articles and letters and voice quote sidebars which give insight to the times. A novel both unusual and historically interesting.

Title: A Year in Provence
Classification: Biography
Author: Peter Mayle
Publisher: Knopf
Copyright: 1991
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: After 15 successful years in advertising Peter Mayle and his wife decide to escape that lifestyle by moving to Provence France and renovate a 200 year old farmhouse. What follows is a funny warm-hearted account of quirky characters and many mishaps. This has been one of my favorites for years.

Title: The Year of Magical Thinking
Classification: Biography
Author: Joan Didion
Publisher: Knopf
Copyright: 2005
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments: "The Year of Magical Thinking", Joan Didion's memoir, is in her words an "attempt to make sense of the weeks and then months that cut loose any fixed idea I had about death, about illness . . . about marriage and children and memory . . . about life itself". In 2003, as their adult daughter lay hospitalized and near death, Didion's husband suffered a fatal heart attack. With passion she explores the year following these momentous events."The Year of Magical Thinking", a must read, speaks directly to anyone who has ever loved, and lost, a spouse or child.

Title:  The Yellow House
Classification: Fiction
Author:  Patricia Falvey
Publisher: Center Street Pub.
Copyright:  2010
Book Rating:
Reviewer Comments:

"The Yellow House", set in Northern Ireland in the early 1900's, features young Irishwoman Eileen O"Neill and her family which is torn apart by war, disease and political unrest. Determined to reclaim  her ancestral home, Eileen struggles for years to earn enough money in the local textile mill. Irish nationalist James and wealthy British officer Owen comprise much of the plot as well as Eileen's difficult life.

A good blend of history and romance to keep you reading.

Title: You Suck: A Love Story
Classification: Fiction
Author: Christopher Moore
Publisher: HarperCollins
Copyright: 2008
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Reviewer Comments: Once again Christopher Moore delivers a very funny mixture of characters.In this case- vampires, a mercenary hooker (dyed blue), a street person with a huge cat named Chet, druggie grocery store baggers and a goth teenager. If you like Moore's other books you'll like this one too!