Category: READING CHALLENGES 2010

3/5, AUTHOR, Book Review, Fiction, H, RATING, Read in 2010, READING CHALLENGES 2010

REVIEW: The President’s Assassin by Brian Haig

Tara

The President’s Assassin
by Brian Haig

Copyright: 2005
Pages: 426
Rating: 3/5
Read: Aug. 7 – 13, 2010
Challenge: 2010 100+ Reading Challenge; Countdown Challenge 2010;  RYOB 2010
Yearly Count: 40

First Line: Settling into the backseat of the car, I mentioned to the attractive young lady seated beside me, “That’s a lovely pistol you’re carrying.”

Six people are shot and killed in a Virginia mansion, one of the victims is the White House Chief of Staff. But that’s not why Sean Drummond is called in on this case. New to the CIA, the Army lawyer knows that this is just the beginning: the killer left a note. The manhunt begins. There has been a $100 million bounty placed on the President’s head. If Drummond fails, Washington will never be the same. If Drummond succeeds, he will be a hero – maybe. It will be a rush against the clock to stop the senseless killing and get to the bottom of the case.

Apparently, this is part of a series, I was unaware of that when I first picked this book out. However, that wasn’t really necessarily my issue with this book. I never really warmed up to the main character, Sean. I just didn’t like him. He was cocky, smart-mouthed, and obnoxious. He’s just not a likable character in my opinion, and that affected my opinion of the entire book. Some of the parts of this part flew by and others felt like they moved at a snail’s pace. Overall, I enjoyed the plotline, but I just never warmed up to Sean.

3/5, AUTHOR, Book Review, C, Fiction, Kay Scarpetta, RATING, Read in 2010, READING CHALLENGES 2010, SERIES

REVIEW: Blow Fly by Patricia Cornwell

Tara

Blow Fly
by Patricia Cornwell

Copyright: 2003
Pages: 467
Rating: 3/5
Read: Aug. 1 – 6, 2010
Challenge: 2010 100+ Reading Challenge; Finish that Challenge; RYOB 2010
Yearly Count: 39

First Line: Dr. Kay Scarpetta moves the tiny glass vial close to candlelight, illuminating a maggot drifting in a poisonous bath of ethanol.

Dr. Kay Scarpetta is settling into her new life as a private consultant when she agrees to investigate a cold-case in Louisiana. But she soon receives news that Jean-Baptiste Chandonne has asked to see her – on death row. Giving the monster the audience that he craves, Kay tries to figure out what exactly is going through his mind in terms of an endgame. But she soon realizes that he is pointing her in the direction of the cold-case she is investigating in Louisiana. She must figure out how there could possibly be a connection in that case while trying to deal with a revelation that will change her life forever.

DISCLOSURE: This post will have SPOILERS. I had some real issues with this book. First of all, I’m not sure how I’m going to like Dr. Scarpetta as a private consultant, but I guess time will tell as I continue reading this series. But my real gripe was that you cannot kill a character off only to bring him back two books later and play the witness protection program card. PLEASE! It was sickening to think back to the past two books and think about all the grief Kay had gone through only to find out that the two people closest to her knew all along that her grief was not necessary! I was like, seriously? You’re going to bring him back? It probably would have been better off if Ms. Cornwell had just left him dead. And the reason why he was in the witness protection program, well that bothered me also. How on earth could he possibly have been involved with who he was? I was just really irritated by the way this book panned out. I’m going to continue reading this series, but I’m not sure how much further I’m going to be going with these books.

3/5, AUTHOR, Book Review, C, Fiction, Kay Scarpetta, RATING, Read in 2010, READING CHALLENGES 2010, SERIES

REVIEW: The Last Precinct by Patricia Cornwell

Tara

The Last Precinct
by Patricia Cornwell

Copyright: 2000
Pages: 468
Rating: 3/5
Read: July 27-31, 2010
Challenge: 2010 100+ Reading Challenge; RYOB 2010; Finish That Series
Yearly Count: 38

First Line: The cold dusk gives up its bruised color to complete darkness, and I am grateful that the draperies in my bedroom are heavy enough to absorb even the faintest hint of my silhouette as I move about packing my bags.

After survivng an attack by a suspected serial killer, Virginia’s Chief Medical Examiner, Dr. Kay Scarpetta, is put in a spotlight she has never experienced before. She is under suspicion of murder – something that she works with every day of her working life; something that she would never have anything to do with. She has to try and proceed with life as if nothing was different. But when a female assistant district attorney from New York comes to town trying to make the connection between her case in New York and the so-called Werewolf mruders in Richmond. But Kay will be tested in every way imaginable and she will be confused as to who she can trust in this awful time of her life.

This is the 11th book in the Kay Scarpetta series and I have to admit, that at first I didn’t really like it. After about the 100 page mark, I really wanted to throw in the towel and be done with this book, but I kept with it. Overall, I’m glad that I finished this book, but it didn’t end in any truly surprising way. There were a few twists and turns along the way that were interesting, but overall I was not all that impressed with this instsallment. However, that’s not to say that I don’t want to continue on with this series and see where Ms. Cornwell takes Kay, because I’m interested to know where she goes from here, but I hope that theese books get better, not worse like I’ve heard from some people.

4/5, AUTHOR, Book Review, Fiction, K, Maggie O'Dell, RATING, Read in 2010, READING CHALLENGES 2010, SERIES

REVIEW: Damaged by Alex Kava

Tara

Damaged
by Alex Kava

Copyright: 2010
Pages: 255
Rating: 4/5
Read: July 25-27, 2010
Challenge: 2010 100+ Reading Challenge; Countdown Challenge 2010; Finish That Series Challenge
Yearly Count: 37

First Line: Elizabeth Bailey didn’t like what she saw.

Pensacola Beach is bracing for what could be a category 5 hurricane. The Coast Guard is routinely patrolling the Gulf of Mexico when they spot a cooler floating a mile offshore. Suspecting drugs, they recover it. Instead of drugs, it’s full of body parts. Profiler Maggie O’Dell is called in on the case. She is able to track down who the torso belonged to – a man who went missing during a previous hurricane on the other side of Florida. How did the body end up 600 miles away in the Gulf? Maggie must battle a serial killer in the middle of a hurricane to get all the answers this case has to offer.

This is the eighth in the Maggie O’Dell series and I must say, I was a little disappointed in it. First of all, Maggie didn’t even feel like the main character in this book; Scott and Liz did. And the story seemed to build up for the first 200 pages and then the ending was so rushed. The storyline seemed good, but not all that inventive, really. I have never read an Alex Kava book that felt so rushed. I just felt as if there was too much emphasis on the other characters, and not enough on Maggie, who is obviously the main character in this series. I still gave it a good rating because I just love this series and this author, but it’s definitely not the best book in this series.

4.5/5, AUTHOR, Book Review, D, Fiction, RATING, Read in 2010, READING CHALLENGES 2010

REVIEW: The Next Killing by Rebecca Drake

Tara

The Next Killing
by Rebecca Drake

Copyright: 2007
Pages: 416
Rating: 4./5
Read: July 21-25, 2010
Challenge: 2010 100+ Reading Challenge; Countdown Challenge 2010; RYOB 2010
Yearly Count: 36

First Line: The shed was dark.

St. Ursula’s Preparatory Academy is an elite institution that young girls have come to for years. There have been so many good memories, so much learning, and now so much death. When the first body is found, an accident is assumed. But the students know that something else is going on. When other girls turn up dead, it become increasingly obvious that there is a serial killer at work in the halls of St. Ursula. No sins will go unpunished at this school.

The description of this book immediately caught my eye, this is pretty much a perfect book for me. And for the most part, I enjoyed it. But I did have an issue with the ending, I wasn’t really too fond of it. It was okay, but that’s about it. I also had a feeling that the killer was revealed a little too early. It would have been a little bit better had it come in the last few pages, rather than with 100 pages to go. Overall, I enjoyed this book. I would recommend it to other people to read.

3/5, AUTHOR, Book Review, C, Dirk Pitt, Fiction, RATING, Read in 2010, READING CHALLENGES 2010, SERIES

REVIEW: Pacific Vortex! by Clive Cussler

Tara

Pacific Vortex!
by Clive Cussler

Copyright: 1982
Pages: 270
Rating: 3/5
Read: July 11-14, 2010
Challenge: 2010 100+ Reading Challenge; Celebrate the Author Challenge 2010; Random Reading Challenge; RYOB 2010
Yearly Count: 35

First Line: Every ocean takes its toll of men and ships, yet none devours them with the voracious appetite of the Pacific.

Dirk Pitt, deep-sea expert, is put to the ultimate test when he has to plunge into the Pacific Vortex, a fog-shrouded sea zone where dozens of ships have gone missing without a trace. The latest victim is the Navy submarine Starbuck. An awesome super-sub with a nuclear arsenal, the Navy must find the Starbuck before the Russians do. Pitt has to find it and salvage it. The job sounds easy, but his time is limited. He will encounter a beautiful and dangerous woman and will find an ancient sunken island along the way, but it will end up being a race against time to make it out of the sea alive.

This is the first in the Dirk Pitt series. I have read another Cussler book in the past few years and really enjoyed it. This one was not as good in my opinion. The storyline was really strange, with an almost sci-fi-ish slant to it. Very strange, indeed. Overall it was just an okay book for me. I will probably continue on with this series, but this book will not stand out in my mind by any means.    

3/5, Alex Cross, AUTHOR, Book Review, Fiction, P, RATING, Read in 2010, READING CHALLENGES 2010, SERIES

REVIEW: London Bridges by James Patterson

Tara

London Bridges
by James Patterson

Copyright: 2004
Pages: 378
Rating: 3/5
Read: July 5-10, 2010
Challenge: 2010 100+ Reading Challenge; Countdown Challenge 2010; RYOB 2010
Yearly Count: 34

First Line: Colonel Geoffrey Shafer loved his new life in Salvador, Brazil’s third-largest city and some would say its most intriguing.

One of Alex Cross’s worst nightmare has come true: the Wolf and the Weasel are working together and what they are capable of together is incomprehensible. It begins when a small Nevada town is completely destroyed by a bomb. The Wolf takes credit for the destruction. This automatically brings Alex Cross in on the case. But the Wolf is far from done; he is giving law enforcement four days to come up with some serious money or else he will obliterate major cities, including London, Paris, and New York. Alex will run like crazy for those four days in order to figure out the identity of the Wolf and end this once and for all.

This is the 10th book in the Alex Cross series. Overall, I was not as impressed by this book as I have been with other books in this series. I had some serious problems with the plot, it felt a little more forced and choppy in places than other Alex Cross novels. There seemed to be a lot of jumping around back and forth and I had some trouble following where Alex was at a few times. There also seemed to be quite a few too many false leads and bad guys, I understood why Patterson chose to write this book in that fashion, but I just didn’t care for this strategy. That’s not to say that the book wasn’t enjoyable, because it was good. But I was just a little bit disappointed with it.

5/5, AUTHOR, Book Review, D, Fiction, Lincoln Rhyme, RATING, Read in 2010, READING CHALLENGES 2010, SERIES

REVIEW: The Coffin Dancer by Jeffery Deaver

Tara

The Coffin Dancer
by Jeffery Deaver

Copyright: 1998
Pages: 532
Rating: 5/5
Read: June 24 – July 4, 2010
Challenge: 2010 100+ Reading Challenge; Celebrate the Author Challenge 2010; Random Reading Challenge; RYOB 2010
Yearly Count: 33

First Line: When Edward Carney said good-bye to his wife, Percey, he never thought it would be the last time he’d see her.

Lincoln Rhyme and Amelia Sachs have to pair up again to hunt down the Coffin Dancer – an ingenius killer who changes his appearance as often as most people change their clothes. They only have one clue – a tattoo on the killer’s arm is reportedly that of the Grim Reaper dancing with a woman in front of a coffin. Lincoln and Amelia have so little to work with, but they must find out who the killer is before more people die.

This is the second book in the Lincoln Rhyme series and I loved it!! It was so fast paced and so full of twists and turns. The plot was interesting as well. But I did have one issue with Amelia’s jealousy of another woman who supposedly has Lincoln’s interest. The jealousy was so unbecoming and I also felt as if it was a little forced, a male author (no matter how skilled) really didn’t capture the feelings Amelia would have felt like a woman author would have. It just didn’t work out all that great in my opinion. It definitely didn’t do anything about my opinion about Amelia’s character. But overall I really enjoyed this book and am looking forward to see where this series goes next!

4/5, AUTHOR, Book Review, C, Fiction, Kay Scarpetta, RATING, Read in 2010, READING CHALLENGES 2010, SERIES

REVIEW: Black Notice by Patricia Cornwell

Tara

Black Notice
by Patricia Cornwell

Copyright: 1999
Pages: 441
Rating: 4/5
Read: June 17-23, 2010
Challenge: 2010 100+ Reading Challenge; RYOB 2010
Yearly Count: 32

First Line: The late morning blazed with blue skies and the colors of fall, but none of it was for me.

When the body of an unidentified man is found in a cargo ship in Richmond, cause of death and an identification is nearly impossible. But Dr. Kay Scarpetta is able to make out an odd tattoo on the decomposing flesh. It will be that tattoo that will lead Kay to Interpol, over in France. But she also has to deal with a lot of stuff on the homefront. There seems to be someone out to get her and Marino: someone wants both of them out of their jobs. In order to figure out this latest puzzle, Kay will have to try and protect her career while also trying to get to the truth at the same time.

This is the 10th book the Dr. Kay Scarpetta series. I personally felt like it was another good installment in this series. However, I did have a few complaints: first, I got really tired of Kay and Marino constantly fighting in this book. I understood that emotions were still raw from what happened in the previous book, and I also understood that they were both having to deal with some changes in their jobs, but seriously? It was a little annoying after a while – I mean, their characters have always kind of gotten on each other’s nerves, but it was really obnoxious in this book. I also had some issues with Lucy’s attitude in this book. I hope that the characters straighten their attitudes out in the next installment of this book. Overall, I’m still enjoying this series and I did enjoy this book, but it wasn’t as good as some of the earlier books in the series.

Challenge Wrap-Up, READING CHALLENGES 2010

Finished Challenge – Thriller & Suspense 2010

Tara

Book Chick City hosted this challenge – and I sure am a sucker for thriller/suspense books considering it’s my favorite genre 🙂 I had a lot of fun reading the books for this challenge, and it surprised me how easily I was able to fit the books that I already had on my shelves to the list of sub-genres provided. Here is what I read for this challenge:

  1. Exposed by Alex Kava (Eco-Thriller)
  2. Four Blind Mice by James Patterson (Police Procedural)
  3. Shall We Tell the President? by Jeffrey Archer (Conspiracy Thriller)
  4. Final Breath by Kevin O’Brien (Stalker Thriller)
  5. 18 Billion by Jack Gresham (Terrorist Thriller)
  6. Hotshot by Catherine Mann (Romantic Thriller)
  7. All That Remains by Patricia Cornwell (Serial Killer Thriller)
  8. The Dying Game by Beverly Barton (Private Detective Mystery)
  9. The Sinner by Tess Gerritsen (Medical Thriller)
  10. The Cater Street Hangman by Anne Perry (Historical Mystery)
  11. The Alexandria Letter by George R. Honig (Religious Thriller)
  12. The Spire by Richard North Patterson (Psychological Thriller)

For the most part, I enjoyed all of the books that I read for this challenge, but my personal favorite is the book that I just finished, The Spire. (I just can’t stop raving about that book!! It was great!) I’m relieved that I was able to finish a challenge this year, since I have been in somewhat of a slump – I’ve been reading, but most of the books that I’ve been reading have not been all that great to me. But I enjoyed this challenge and if it is hosted again, I will definitely sign up again!!