Category: Monthly Wrap Up

Here’s my end of the month wrap-up:

1. Stephanie Meyer, New Moon –> This one was not as good as the first one, but I still really enjoyed it. My biggest gripe was that Bella was so disgustingly whiny it was awful!! 4.5/5
2. Stephen King, The Shining –> This was a re-read, reading it the first time while I was in high school. I definitely liked it a lot better the first time around, but I still enjoyed it. 3.5/5
3. Kevin O’Brien, One Last Scream –> Oh my goodness, I can’t possibly say enough good things about this book – I absolutely LOVED it!!! 5/5
4. John Saul, Black Creek Crossing –> I was really disappointed in this book. I had myself all geared up for a great strong ending and it was horrible, just plain awful! This is the first time I have read Saul, but it definitely wasn’t a positive introduction for me … I’m not sure if it was this particular book or Saul…. 3/5
5. Sandra Brown, The Witness –> This one started a little bit slow, but it quickly picked up pace. And the ending came completely out of left field! But I enjoyed this one a lot! 4/5
6. Chelsea Cain, Heartsick –> I wanted to love this book so much because of all the great things I heard about it, but overall I was left a little deflated, but I still enjoyed it, just not as much as I had hoped I would. 4/5

Here are some statistics in regards to my reading:

• Books read: 6
• Pages read: 2726
• New Authors: 2
• Fiction: 6
• Nonfiction: 0
• Read for Challenges: 3

Here’s my end of the month wrap-up:

1. Janet Evanovich, Two for the Dough –> This one was just okay. Some places were hilarious some places were lacking. This series is just a little too fluffy for my taste. 3.5/5
2. Sue Grafton, B is for Burglar –> This one was a lot better than the first in the series. I figured out the ending before it was over, but it was still a good story. 3.5/5
3. Alex Kava, A Necessary Evil –> I really enjoyed this one! I’m glad we finally got to see what happened to Father Keller. Yet I’m sad because I’m pretty sure this might be the end of the Maggie O’Dell series (she could bring it back, but she really wrapped it up in a way). 4.5/5
4. Matt Dalton, Presumed Guilty: What the Jury Never Knew About Laci Peterson’s Murder and Why Scott Peterson Should Not Be on Death Row –> Okay, this shows the other side of this case. He brought up some interesting points, but it didn’t sway my opinion. 3/5
5. Nelson DeMille, Night Fall –> Overall this was a good book. It had a slow start, but the ending was really great!! 4/5
6. Gregg Olsen, A Cold Dark Place –> This book was awesome! I was hooked from the first page and could hardly put it down until I was finished!! I highly recommend this one! 5/5
7. James Patterson, Judge & Jury –> I enjoyed this book to a certain extent. It felt like Patterson, but then it didn’t. I really prefer when he authors a book alone rather than co-authoring (like this one was). 3.5/5
8. Stephanie Meyer, Twilight –> WOW! I never thought I would enjoy a vampire book or a YA book, but I absolutely LOVED this one!!! 5/5
9. J.D. Robb, Glory in Death –> This one was MUCH better than the first in the series. I actually enjoyed this one quite a bit and am looking forward to #3! 4/5
10. Jeff Lindsay, Darkly Dreaming Dexter –> Dexter is a weird, sick character. The whole book was very strange. It was quite funny in some places, but overall it was just nasty sick. And I usually like sick shit in my books, lol. But this one was a little far out for me. 3/5
11. J.T. Ellison, All the Pretty Girls –> This one had a slightly slow start, but once I was about 100 pages into it it really took off and I was hooked! This was a superb author debut! I’m looking forward to more J.T. Ellison!! 4.5/5

Here are some statistics in regards to my reading:

• Books read: 11
• Pages read: 4060
• New Authors: 6
• Fiction: 10
• Nonfiction: 1
• Read for Challenges: 5

Here’s my end of the month wrap-up:

1. John Sandford, Invisible Prey –> Really good. I thought this one had some really great twists and turns. I really enjoyed it and really need to catch up on this series more. 4/5
2. J.F. Freedman, The Disappearance –> I thought that the beginning was incredibly slow. It did pick up some, but I really didn’t enjoy this one all that much, it was just okay. 3/5
3. Michael Connelly, The Black Echo –> First in the Harry Bosch series. It had a slow start, but the rest of the book made up for the slow start! Glad I finally read this one! 4/5
4. John Lescroart, Dead Irish –> I enjoyed this one. The first in the Dismas Hardy series. The ending was really good! Looking forward to exploring this series more. 4/5
5. Alex Kava, The Soul Catcher –> Okay, this one was really great up until the ending … it was AWFUL! There is no other way to say it, the ending was just plain bad. 3/5
6. Anne Bird, Blood Brother: 33 Reasons My Brother Scott Peterson is Guilty –> I’ve read a few books on the Scott Peterson case, this one was not the best but not the worst. I’m glad I read it, but I wouldn’t really recommend it to people who didn’t follow the case very closely. 3/5
7. J.A. Jance, Name Withheld –> This one was okay for me. I didn’t really like or dislike it. I’d never read this author before, and I’m afraid to say I’m not going to be trying Jance again. 3/5
8. James Patterson, The 5th Horseman –> This one is another good installment in the Women’s Murder Club. It’s a quick and enjoyable read! It’s not the best in the series (the 3rd is in my opinion), but I enjoyed it! Looking forward to the 6th in a little while! 4/5
9. Jeffery Deaver, The Bone Collector –> I enjoyed this one. I found it a little hard to follow in places. But overall it’s a really good book. 4/5

Here are some statistics in regards to my reading:

• Books read: 9
• Pages read: 3,594
• New Authors: 3
• Fiction: 8
• Nonfiction: 1
• Read for Challenges: 7

1. James Patterson, The Midnight Club –> This one was not as good as the other Patterson books that I have read, it was just okay for me. I honestly could have skipped this book and never missed anything. 3/5
2. Jacqueline Seewald, The Inferno Collection –> This one I picked up at the library on a whim. I read it in one day – it was that good!! 4.5/5
3. Van Ryn & Cerak Families, Mistaken Identity –> In my opinion, I could have done without all the religious comments, but I understand that that is their lifestyle. They could have toned it down a little bit for others though. Otherwise, this was such a heartbreaking story. But I find it really hard to believe that the Van Ryn’s stood over “Laura” (aka: Whitney) for five weeks without knowing that they weren’t looking at their daughter. I think they were grasping for straws near the end. Still a good book though I would have rated it a 5 if the religion had been toned down some. 4/5
4. Robin Cook, Marker –> I’m not a huge fan of medical thrillers, but I found this one easy to read and follow. This is the second in the Laurie Montgomery/Jack Stapleton series. High enjoyable. 4/5
5. Carla Neggers, The Widow –> This one was really good. The romance was not overpowering, but just enough – exactly how I like my books!! The ending was surprising and enjoyable. Highly recommended. 4/5
6. Harlan Coben, The Woods –> Okay, I cannot say enough good things about this book. But I’m going to put it in the plainest terms I can: READ THIS BOOK! It is not to be missed. I was hooked from the first page and could hardly put it down! This is the first book I’ve given a 5/5 to since March!! 5/5
7. Clive Cussler, Raise the Titanic! –> This one was really good. I’m fascinated by the Titanic and loved that they “raised” her in this book. There were all kinds of twists and turns, really enjoyable! Recommended!! 4/5

Here are some statistics in regards to my reading:

• Books read: 7
• Pages read: 2,798
• New Authors: 4
• Fiction: 6
• Nonfiction: 1
• Read for Challenges: 3

1. Sue Grafton, A is for Alibi –> This one was just okay for me; I had a lot of trouble concentrating on this one. I thought that it was hard to get everything in 215 short pages. I will definitely be continuing this series, but overall I think this could have been a better opening novel, 3/5
2. James Patterson, 3rd Degree –> This book was amazing!! I absolutely loved it! This one is, by far, the best in the series!! I can’t say enough good things about it, 4/5
3. James Patterson, 4th of July –> This one was not as good as the third one in the series. Perhaps I thought that because I read them back to back when I shouldn’t have. But it was still enjoyable, just not as good as the third one, 4/5
4. Ann Rule, A Rose for Her Grave & Other True Cases, Crime Files Vol. 1 –> Personally, I prefer her full length true crime books to this. I found it hard to get everything into twenty pages in the shorter cases featured in this book, 3/5
5. John Connolly, Dark Hollow –> I didn’t care much for this book at all. I found myself struggling to concentrate and not interested in reading this one much at all. It was just okay for me, I could have skipped it and never missed anything, 3/5

Here are some statistics in regards to my reading:

• Books Read: 5
• Pages Read: 1,987
• New Authors: 0
• Fiction: 4
• Non-Fiction: 1
• Read for Challenges: 3

1. Ian Caldwell & Dustin Thomason, The Rule of Four –> I enjoyed this one. Some people compare it to The Da Vinci Code. It doesn’t read as smoothly as The Da Vinci Code, but I definitely felt that it was better. 4/5
2. James Patterson, 1st to Die –> Why did I wait so long to start this series?! It was really, really good. Lots of twists and turns, very enjoyable reading. 5/5
3. Iris Johansen, Fire Storm –> Good book. Probably not the best of hers that I’ve read, but it was still an enjoyable read. 4/5
4. Christopher Andersen, Diana’s Boys: William and Harry and the Mother They Loved –> This book was really, really good!! His books read so smoothly. It’s like you’re reading a story, not non-fiction. I highly recommend this one. It’s hilarious to see how much those two got away with as children! 4/5
5. Philippa Gregory, The Other Boleyn Girl –> I cannot possibly say enough good things about this book. I thoroughly enjoyed this one. I cannot believe that I waited so long to not only buy it but to read it as well. Highly, highly recommended!! 5/5
6. Jodi Picoult, The Pact –> After hearing such wonderful things about Picoult, I decided to try one of her books. Boy was I NOT disappointed! This book was so amazing! It was so heartfelt and thrilling. It was fast paced yet enjoyable too. Just great all around! 5/5
7. Anita Shreve, The Pilot’s Wife –> Another new author for me. I found this one to be really great! I was hooked in from the first page and couldn barely wait to find out what happened in the end! Great book! 4/5
8. Dean Koontz, Odd Thomas –> This one was definitely not one of his better books. I had a lot of trouble staying focused on this one. I don’t know, I just didn’t care much for it at all. It was just okay for me. 3/5
9. J.D. Robb, Naked in Death –> Good book. Kind of weird setting, and I was disappointed that there was no real explanation as to the technological advances. But overall, it was a really good start to what I hope will be a great series! Looking forward to the next one! 4/5
10. Nancy Pickard, The Virgin of Small Plains –> WOW! This book was awesome! I absolutely loved it!!! Great, great, great!! So suspenseful with lots of twists and turns, just a great book!! 5/5

Here are some statistics in regards to my reading:

• Books read: 10
• Pages read: 4,624
• New Authors: 7
• Fiction: 9
• Nonfiction: 1
• Read for Challenges: 8

1. Milo Speriglio, The Marilyn Conspiracy –> This book had a lot of promise, but I felt that the writing style was severely lacking. It could have been a lot better. 3/5
2. Thomas Harris, Hannibal –> Overall, this book was enjoyable. However, the part that was set in Italy really lagged for me. Enjoyable, but not the best in this series. 4/5
3. Tom Coffey, The Serpent Club –> I loved the plot line of this book. However, I felt that the writing that constantly switched from first to third person was very confusing. 3/5
4. Taffy Cannon, Class Reunions are Murder –> This one actually surprised me! I’m usually not much into “cozy” mysteries, but this one was really enjoyable. 4/5
5. Thomas Harris, Hannibal Rising –> Without a doubt, the absolute worst book in the series. I was so disappointed in this one. It held so much promise, we were finally going to be able to figure out what made Dr. Lecter into the monster that we know him as. But to me, the book just didn’t do what it was designed to do. I was really disappointed by this one. 3/5
6. Danielle Steel, Accident –> This one surprised me a lot. I have always been pretty adament about hating romance novels, but I really enjoyed this one a lot! It was a good story and wasn’t completely full with sex. It had just the right amount of romance in all the right places. Very good read. 5/5
7. Larry Watson, White Crosses –> This one was a surprise for me as well. It hooked me from the first page and I practically flew through it. I found myself understanding the main character in ways that I never thought I would. Highly recommended. 4/5
8. Erica Spindler, See Jane Die –> I absolutely loved this book! I love Erica Spindler! This book is a lot like her others in that the ending is never what you think it will be. Highly recommended. 5/5
9. Greg Iles, Blood Memory –> Greg Iles is a favorite author of mine, and this one was really enjoyable. The book focused a lot on childhood abuse which is a touchy subject for some, but I really, really enjoyed it! 5/5
10. Dave Holloway, Aruba –> This book was a disappointment for me. I waited a few months for it on my WL on PBS and couldn’t wait to get to it when it came in the mail. But for me, it just wasn’t any good. There was almost nothing personal in this book. All I could see is that Dave Holloway is an angry man. He used almost none of the space to tell the world who Natalee really was, which would have made the book so much better. I wouldn’t waste my time with this one. 2/5
11. Thomas T. Noguchi, M.D., Coroner –> This book was kind of boring to me. It started out really interesting, but it just slowly went down hill. I just didn’t care for it. It also wasn’t written very well, either. Not recommended. 2/5
12. Andrew Britton, The Assassin –> WOW! This one shocked me. At times I was a little bogged down by the Iraqi information/names as well as the military terminology. But the story was really great and the last 250 pages were extremely action packed. Very good book overall. 4/5

Here are some statistics in regards to my reading:

• Books read: 12
• Pages read: 4,909
• New Authors: 8
• Fiction: 9
• Nonfiction: 3
• Read for Challenges: 8