Talking about books, food, and life in general…
To play along, just answer the following three (3) questions…
* What are you currently reading?
* What did you recently finish reading?
* What do you think you’ll read next?
The Top Ten Tuesday is a meme hosted over at The Broke and the Bookish. I decided to join in this week. Here’s the question and my answer:
Top Ten Books I Resolve To Read in 2011
In no particular order:
How many books did you read in 2010? If you had a reading goal, did you meet it? What books are you most looking forward to reading for 2011 (either new, OR ones that have sat on your shelves for a while)?
Okay, so I read 67 books in 2010. I didn’t really have a set goal for 2010. I had signed up for the 100+ Reading Challenge, but it was more of a guideline than a challenge for me. I think the number I had in the back of my head for most of the year was 75. So I’m not at all upset with how many books I was able to finish out the year with. For 2011, I really want to get caught up on some more of my series (as well as hopefully start some new ones!). There are also a few books from favorite authors that are being released in 2011 that I am looking forward to (including Alex Kava, Tess Gerritsen, Chelsea Cain). I’m looking forward to seeing what James Patterson puts out this year (I know the 10th in the WMC is due for this spring, I believe). But I’m also looking forward to cleaning out my shelves this year some more. In 2010 I was able to read 45 books off of my shelves, and of those only 14 were acquired in 2010, leaving 31 books coming off my shelves that had been there for over a year – I would love to accomplish more of that this year. So I guess there are a few particular books being released in 2011 that I’m looking forward to, but I’m really looking forward to reading off of my TBR mountain.
To play along, just answer the following three (3) questions…
* What are you currently reading?
* What did you recently finish reading?
* What do you think you’ll read next?
So for today’s “On My Wishlist” I have two books that are coming out early next year.
First is an author I always read. He’s definitely a favorite author! With a release date of 1/4/11, Greg Iles’s newest thriller:
Penn Cage’s father, Dr. Tom Cage, stands accused of murder, and each effort to defend him unearths new, shocking secrets, leaving Penn to question whether he ever really knew his father at all. At issue is the murder of Tom’s former nurse, Viola Turner. The district attorney is quick to point the finger at Tom, citing his decades-old relationship with Viola. When Tom is taken into custody, Penn must explore the dangerous territory of Tom and Viola’s shared history, set squarely in the most harrowing years of civil-rights-era Mississippi. What was the relationship between Tom, Viola, and the ‘Double Eagle Club,’ an ultraviolent group of hardened men who considered themselves smarter, tougher, and more elite than their peers in the FBI-infiltrated Ku Klux Klan? In Natchez, Mississippi, where the past is never truly past, long-buried secrets tend to turn lethal when exposed to the light of day. For Penn Cage, the cost of solving this case is no exception.
And second is what sounds like another really great book from a great author. With a release date of 1/11/11, Brad Meltzer’s newest work:
There are stories no one knows. Hidden stories. I love those stories. And since I work in the National Archives, I find those stories for a living. So says Benjamin January, a young archivist who spends his days working with the most important documents of the U.S. government. When Clementine Kaye, his first childhood crush, shows up at the Archives asking for his help tracking down her long-lost father, Benjy tries to impress her by showing her the secret vault where the President of the United States privately reviews classified documents. It is also where Benjy and Clementine accidentally happen upon a priceless artifact-a 200-year-old dictionary that once belonged to George Washington-hidden inside a desk chair. Eager to discover why the President is hiding this important national treasure, the two soon find themselves entangled in a web of deception, conspiracy, and murder that will reveal the most well kept secret of the U.S. Presidency.
So what’s on YOUR wishlist this week?
So, I just came across the meme On My Wishlist, hosted by Book Chick City. I like the idea of this meme, and hope to participate in it weekly. I have a pretty large selection of books on my PBS wishlist and reminder list combined. I hope to be able to share 1-3 books each week.
First is a book that I am eagerly anticipating the release of in March of 2011, the 4th book in the Archie & Gretchen series: 
With Beauty Killer Gretchen Lowell locked away behind bars once again, Portland detective Archie Sheridan can finally rest. Meanwhile, the city of Portland is in crisis. Several people have drowned in heavy rains that have flooded the Willamette River. But the medical examiner discovers that in fact the latest victim was poisoned before she went into the water—she didn’t drown. A little detective work shows that so far three of those previously thought to be accidental drownings have actually been murdered. Portland has a new serial killer on its hands, and Archie and his task force have a new case. Meanwhile reporter Susan Ward is following up on an entirely separate mystery: the dramatic flooding has unearthed a skeleton, a man who might have died during catastrophic flooding more than sixty years ago that washed away an entire neighborhood and killed at least 15 people. As Archie follows the bizarre trail of evidence and evil deeds to catch his killer, he has to battle the rising waters of the Willamette first.
And second is a book that I’ve had my eye on for quite some time.
What do you get when a woman who’s obsessed with death and U.S. history goes on vacation? This wacky, weirdly enthralling exploration of the first three presidential assassinations. Vowell (The Partly Cloudy Patriot), a contributor to NPR’s This American Life and the voice of teenage superhero Violet Parr in The Incredibles, takes readers on a pilgrimage of sorts to the sites and monuments that pay homage to Lincoln, Garfield and McKinley, visiting everything from grave sites and simple plaques (like the one in Buffalo that marks the place where McKinley was shot) to places like the National Museum of Health and Medicine, where fragments of Lincoln’s skull are on display. An expert tour guide, Vowell brings into sharp focus not only the figures involved in the assassinations, but the social and political circumstances that led to each-and she does so in the witty, sometimes irreverent manner that her fans have come to expect. Thus, readers learn not only about how Garfield found himself caught between the Stalwarts and the Half-Breeds, bitterly divided factions of the Republican party, but how his assassin, Charles Guiteau, a supporter of the Stalwarts and an occasional member of the Oneida Community, “was the one guy in a free love commune who could not get laid.” Vowell also draws frequent connections between past events and the present, noting similarities between McKinley’s preemptive war against Cuba and the Philippines and the current war in Iraq. This is history at its most morbid and most fascinating and, fortunately, one needn’t share Vowell’s interest in the macabre to thoroughly enjoy this unusual tour.
Mailbox Monday is still on tour, with September’s spot being at Bermudaonion’s Weblog.
This week I had three books come into my house. Here’s what I received:
The Bookman’s Wake by John Dunning (From PBS)
Denver cop-turned-book-dealer Cliff Janeway is back, lured by an enterprising ex-cop into going to Seattle to bring back a fugitive wanted for assault, burglary, and the possible theft of a priceless edition of Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Raven.” The bail jumper turns out to be a young, vulnerable woman who calls herself Eleanor Rigby, and who happens to be a gifted book scout. Janeway finds Eleanor enchanting – and is equally intrigued by the deadly history surrounding the rare volume. Stalked by people willing to kill to get their hands on it, a terrifid Eleanor slips from Janeway’s grasp and disappears. To find her, Janeway must unravel the secrets surrounding the book and its mysteirous maker, for only this knowledge can stop the cruel hand of death from turning another page.
The Third Option by Vince Flynn (From PBS)
Mitch Rapp, the CIA’s most lethal and efficient counterterrorism operative, is putting into play a meticulous plan to take out a notorious sponsor of terrorism – when he falls prey to government forces with an agenda of their own. Dr. Irene Kennedy is named the successor to dying CIA Director Thomas Stansfield – a choice that enrages many inside the world’s most powerful intelligence agency. And her detractors will resort to extreme measures to prevent her from taking the reins. But what the Washington conspirators and backstabbing insiders do not know is that Mitch Rapp won’t tolerate being their pawn. And he will stop at nothing to find out who has set him up.
Who Killed Bobby?: The Unsolved Murder of Robert F. Kennedy by Shane O’Sullivan (From PBS)
On June 5, 1968, a jubilant Robert F. Kennedy and his supporters celebrated a first place finish in the California primary, hopeful the crucial win would propel him to the Democratic nominatino for the presidency, and on to the White House. Following a rousing victory speech that practically lifted the roof off the Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles, there was a last-minute route change as he left the stage. Instead of heading downstairs for another speech, the candidate was directed into the kitchen patnry en route to a press conference. Moments later, in the pantry, shots rang out. The senator lay on th efloor, mortally wounded. Five bystanders were also struck. The assailant was Sirhan Bishara Sirhan, a 24 year old Palestinian immigrant who’d come to California at age 12. Sirhan was arrested and, at first, no one doubted he was the lone assassin – but was he really? This is just one of many key questions posed by Shane O’Sullivan, an independent researcher turned investigative journalist, in his exhaustive re-examination of the assassination.
Mailbox Monday is still on tour, with September’s spot being at Bermudaonion’s Weblog.
This past week, I only had two books come into my mailbox (which is probably a good thing, if you saw the size of my to-read pile – er, mountain!) I received one book from PBS and one book for review.
From PBS:
Cracking Cases: The Science of Solving Cases by Dr. Henry Lee
CRACKING CASES takes the reader through the entire investigative process of five murder cases, with world-renowned forensic expert Dr. Henry C. Lee as your guide. Dr. Lee is considered by many to be the greatest criminalist in the world. He gained wide-spread public recognition through his testimony in the televised O.J. Simpson trial and has dedicated his life to establishing the truth at crime scenes no matter where the trail of evidence leads him and no matter which side these scientific findings eventually assist. In each case, Dr. Lee presents an easily understood, detailed scientific explanation of how he investigated the murders, analyzed the evidence, and used forensic techniques that played a critical role in finally bringing the criminals to justice. The reader is treated to an absorbing discussion of how forensic experts examine blood-spatter evidence and use blood identification, DNA analysis, and other scientific technologies developed in the world’s best laboratories. CRACKING CASES is a fascinating insider’s look by an international authority into the pursuit of justice in some of the most grisly criminal cases of recent times. Anyone who enjoys reading true crime and detective stories will surely find this book captivating.
From Anna Suknov at FSB Associates for review:
City in Shadow by Evan Marshall
A Hidden Manhattan Mystery – A frightened woman leaves a note reading HELP ME outside Sanitation supervisor Anna Winthrop’s apartment . . . A career-making story leads a journalist to a human-trafficking ring . . . A woman acts as bait in an effort to track down her missing sister . . . and Anna’s visiting cousin Patti prowls New York’s dark streets, but won’t say why. All roads lead to the Kirkmore, a sinister apartment tower harboring a secret more horrifying than anyone could ever have imagined.
So I’m looking forward to both of these books, especially the new review book! I’m also looking forward to seeing what goodies everyone else has received this past week 🙂
Mailbox Monday is still on tour, with September’s spot being at Bermudaonion’s Weblog.
Well this past week my mailbox was a little lighter 🙂 I received two books from PBS:
Under Cover of Daylight by James W. Hall
James W. Hall’s haunting debut novel first introduced the rugged character Thorn and the breathtaking South Florida landscape where he lives. Thorn’s past includes a savage act of revenge on the drunken hit-and-run killer of his parents. Now, fifteen years later, Thorn still cannot escape that moment, or the darkness he took into his soul that night. Not even his best friend, Sugarman, knows the truth. Not even Sarah Ryan knows the depths of her lover’s pain. Then suddenly, the nightmare begins again as Thorn’s foster mother is found slaughtered. Thorn can almost taste the rage as he stalks her killer and waits.
Blindsighted by Karin Slaughter
A small Georgia town erupts in panic when a young college professor is found brutally mutilated in the local diner. But it’s only when town pediatrician and coroner Sara Linton does the autopsy that the full extent of the killer’s twisted work becomes clear. Sara’s ex-husband, police chief Jeffrey Tolliver, leads the investigation — a trail of terror that grows increasingly macabre when another local woman is found crucified a few days later. But he’s got more than a sadistic serial killer on his hands, for the county’s sole female detective, Lena Adams — the first victim’s sister — want to serve her own justice. But it is Sara who holds the key to finding the killer. A secret from her past could unmask the brilliantly malevolent psychopath .. or mean her death.
Mailbox Monday is still on tour, with September’s spot being at Bermudaonion’s Weblog.
I received a TON of books in my mailbox this week, I had two big box swaps at PBS come in, plus I placed an order with Powell’s that came in. So I’m just going to make a list of the books that I received to save some time and space.
From PBS:
From Powells:
Okay, truth be told, I didn’t need any of these books! I have a serious problem!! But I just couldn’t resist 🙂
Tales of a Book Addict 