Category: SERIES

AUTHOR, Book Review, Eve Duncan, Fiction, J, Read in 2008, SERIES

Quicksand by Iris Johansen

Tara
Quicksand
by Iris Johansen

Copyright: 2008
Pages: 361
Rating: 3.5/5
Read: Nov. 23-28, 2008
Challenge: No challenge; personal read

First Line: Someone was watching him.

Eve Duncan is still searching for Bonnie, her little girl. Her search takes her to a man named Kistle. Kistle will lure Eve into a swamp with Joe. But in the end, it will be just another sick play that Kistle will make.

I’m getting kind of sick of the Eve Duncan series. I’m sorry, but how long is she going to drag on the search for Bonnie? I understand that the series is selling and that once she finds Bonnie the series will more than likely end, but come on, it’s the same stuff every time it seems like.

Alex Delaware, AUTHOR, Book Review, Fiction, K, Read in 2008, SERIES

Compulsion by Jonathan Kellerman

Tara
Compulsion
by Jonathan Kellerman

Copyright: 2008
Pages: 388
Rating: 4/5
Read: Oct. 20-22, 2008
Challenge: No challenge; personal read

First Line: Kat loved breaking the rules.

A tipsy young woman disappears from the side of the highway. A retired schoolteacher is stabbed to death in broad daylight. Two women are killed after closing time in a small-town beauty parlor. All these cases seem to have no connections – but they do. They are linked by the killer’s use of luxury vehicles. This killer will baffle Milo Sturgis and Alex Delaware. But they will chase this killer until they come face to face with the madman once and for all.

Okay, I’m going to be completely honest here. This book was somewhat of a disappointment to me. I’ve read a small amount of Alex Delaware novels, but I’ve never been so disappointed in one of them before. I was really bored out of my mind, if you want the truth. This book just wasn’t up to par in my opinion.

Archie and Gretchen, AUTHOR, Book Review, C, Fiction, Read in 2008, SERIES

Heartsick by Chelsea Cain

Tara
Heartsick
by Chelsea Cain

Copyright: 2007
Pages: 337
Rating: 4/5
Read: Sept. 26-Oct. 2, 2008
Challenge: No challenge; personal read

First Line: Archie doesn’t know for sure that it’s her until that moment.

Detective Archie Sheridan spent years tracking Gretchen Lowell, a brutal serial killer. But in the end, she caught him. And she tortured him and let him go. But why would she let Archie live?! That’s the question that has haunted Archie ever since. But when a new task force is formed because of a new killer on the loose, Archie is called back into duty to lead it. With the local news following this case 24/7 Archie can’t solve the case soon enough. But the question is, will he solve it in time to save himself?

Okay, in all honesty, I have heard a lot of good things from various people in regards to this book. So when it finally arrived in my mailbox via PBS, I was beyond ecstatic. But did it live up to my expectations?! Unfortunately, not really. However, in the end I ended up giving it a high rating because the ending was really a curve ball and was enjoyable. I just had a lot of issues with a few of the characters, mainly Susan and Gretchen. So I’m not sure if I will pick up the next Cain book, “Sweetheart” but I’m glad I read this one at the same time.

4/5, AUTHOR, Book Review, Eve Dallas, Fiction, R, Read in 2008, SERIES

Glory in Death by J.D. Robb

Tara
Glory in Death
by J.D. Robb

Copyright: 1995
Pages: 296
Rating: 4/5
Read: Aug. 25-26, 2008
Challenge: Initials Reading Challenge

First Line: The dead were her business.

Beautiful and successful women are being brutally murdered. Their numerous business contacts and lovers provide Eve Dallas with a very long list of suspects. Unfortunately, Roarke is also on that list. For Eve she wants to trust the man she shares her bed with but her profession makes her investigate into areas that she wishes she could just live untouched. Once again murder will come between Eve and Roarke, but in the end, Eve will ultimately get the man and the murder suspect.

This book was MUCH better than the first in the series (Naked in Death). I read this one very quickly and enjoyed every minute of it!! I love the romance sprinkled throughout the mystery. I’m so glad that I’m finally getting around to this series and so glad that I have so many more books ahead of me 🙂

4.5/5, AUTHOR, Book Review, Fiction, K, Maggie O'Dell, Read in 2008, SERIES

A Necessary Evil by Alex Kava

Tara
A Necessary Evil
by Alex Kava

Copyright: 2006
Pages: 413
Rating: 4.5/5
Read: Aug. 3-9, 2008
Challenge: Series Challenge Season 2

First Line: Monsignor William O’Sullivan was certain no one had recognized him.

Someone is killing Catholic priests. When Maggie O’Dell is called in to profile, she is surprised by the clues. They discover that this might have something to do with a role-playing game that teens are into. But when she realizes that Father Michael Keller might have something to do with this case, she’s absolutely astonished. For four years she has been trying to track Keller down. And now when he contacts Maggie in order to help her, she really doesn’t know what to do. Should she make the deal with him to help stop the killings or should she just trap him?

I am soooo glad I finally got to read this one!! It was really incredibly good. I really regret reading 1, 2, and 4 last year and then 3 and 5 this year. I should have read them all in order last year. So I was a little lost in places, but I really really really enjoyed it! The way that this book ended makes me uncertain if there could ever be another Maggie O’Dell. It’s obvious what will happen next with Keller, but there are so many unanswered questions between some of the other characters. It will be interesting to see if Kava does indeed bring this back again or if she lets it be.

3.5/5, AUTHOR, Book Review, Fiction, G, Kinsey Millhone, Read in 2008, SERIES

B is for Burglar by Sue Grafton

Tara
B is for Burglar
by Sue Grafton
Copyright: 1985
Pages: 211
Rating: 3.5/5
Read: Aug. 4-6, 2008
Challenge: Book Awards II Challenge – Anthony Award

First Line: After it’s over, of course, you want to kick yourself for all the things you didn’t see at the time.

When Elaine Boldt’s sister comes into Kinsey’s office, Kinsey feels that finding the missing Elaine for her signature on some legal papers will be a piece of cake. She was last seen leaving her condo in California headed to her condo in Florida for the summer – an every year occurrence. But when Kinsey finds out that Elaine apparently never made it to Florida and that she instead sublet her condo (against condo rules), Kinsey feels that something deadly has happened to Elaine. As she follows the leads her case has, Kinsey realizes that her case is related to an accidental fire that killed Elaine’s next door neighbor – and that it might not have been accidental at all….
This book was a lot better than the first one. I liked it. It wasn’t exceptional, but it was definitely intriguing!It’s definitely got me hooked on this series. I’m looking forward to “C” sometime in the near future.
3.5/5, AUTHOR, Book Review, E, Fiction, Read in 2008, SERIES, Stephanie Plum

Two for the Dough by Janet Evanovich

Tara
Two for the Dough
by Janet Evanovich
Copyright: 1996
Pages: 312
Rating: 3.5/5
Read: August 1-3, 2008
Challenge: No challenge; personal read

First Line: I knew Ranger was beside my because I could see his earring gleaming in the moonlight.

Stephanie Plum is at it again. This time, the bounty hunter is on the hunt for Kenny Mancuso, a guy who shot his best friend in the knee and has jumped bail. He’s also distantly related to Joe Morelli. So with the help of Joe, her fellow bounty hunter Ranger, and her Grandma Mazur she’s on the hunt and determined to find Kenny before more people are hurt, mutilated or killed.
Okay, this one was just okay. I’m not overly impressed by this series (I read the first one a couple years back and remember not being very impressed), but I’m going to have to admit, that Grandma Mazur is a piece of work!! I found myself jotting down some of her funnier quotes because they were just too good to pass up! The best in the book had to be in the end, where Grandma quotes Clint Eastwood:

“But being that this is a forty-five magnum, the most powerful handgun in
existence, and it could blow your head clean off, you got to ask yourself one
question. Do you feel lucky today? Well, do you, punk?” (p. 305)

I laughed and laughed at that one! It’s definitely an entertaining book, but the plot left a little to be desired in my opinion. I’m probably going to look for the third in the library sometime in the future though, simply because these books are so funny!
4/5, AUTHOR, Book Review, D, Fiction, Lincoln Rhyme, Read in 2008, SERIES

The Bone Collector by Jeffery Deaver

Tara
The Bone Collector
by Jeffery Deaver
Copyright: 1997
Pages: 423
Rating: 4/5
Read: July 28-31, 2008
Challenge: Triple 8 – First in a Series Category

First Line: She wanted only to sleep.

Lincoln Rhyme was one of the nation’s best criminologists. Then an accident at a crime scene paralyzed him. Now a bitter cripple, he’s ready to end his life. But when his old department drags him into a case, he is swept up into an intriguing case. A man known as the Bone Collector is preying on the New York streets, picking at random, and it will take Lincoln’s genius to solve the case. With police detective Amelia Sachs being his eyes at the crime scenes, it becomes a race against the clock in order to catch this madman before he hits too close to home….
I enjoyed this book. I found it a little difficult to follow in a few places, but that might have been my attention slipping a bit. I’ve only read one other in this series and am glad to have read the first in the series. Although I watched the movie, I didn’t recall enough of it to ruin the book for me (although I’m not sure I really agree with changing Thom’s character into Thelma for the movie). Overall I enjoyed this book!
4/5, AUTHOR, Book Review, Fiction, P, Read in 2008, SERIES, Women's Murder Club

The 5th Horseman by James Patterson

Tara
The 5th Horseman
by James Patterson & Maxine Paetro

Copyright: 2006
Pages: 428
Rating: 4/5
Read: July 27-28, 2008
Challenge: No challenge; personal read

First Line: Rain was drumming hard against the windows when the midnight-to-8:00 rounds began at San Francisco Municipal Hospital.

People are dying at Municipal Hospital in San Francisco. It’s a hospital, of course people will die there. But doctors are stumped as to why there are recovering patients that are dying. People that should not be dying are dying. Lieutenant Lindsay Boxer becomes convinced that someone at the hospital is playing God. But the hospital is pulling out all the stops in order to protect its reputation. It will wage a court battle with the family members of twenty deceased patients. All the while, Lindsay and the Women’s Murder Club are hunting down a merciless killer.

This one was okay. Definitely not the best in the series (that one still goes to the 3rd in my opinion) but I enjoyed it. As always, it was a quick and fun read with a lot of twists and turns along the way. And the ending was great!! I highly recommend this series to those who have not experienced it yet, I love it!!

3/5, AUTHOR, Book Review, Fiction, K, Maggie O'Dell, Read in 2008, SERIES

The Soul Catcher by Alex Kava

Tara
The Soul Catcher
by Alex Kava
Copyright: 2002
Pages: 402
Rating: 3/5
Read: July 20-23, 2008
Challenge: Triple Eight – From my TBR Shelf Category; A Well-Rounded Challenge; Series
Challenge Season 2

First Line: Eric Pratt leaned his head against the cabin wall.

FBI Agent Maggie O’Dell thinks that there will be nothing more than routine when she begins to consult on two separate cases. But as she continues to work, she realizes that there might just be a connection between the two seemingly unrelated cases. And that connection is Reverend Joseph Everett, a charismatic leader of a religious sect. But Maggie is not at all prepared when she learns that her mother is part of Everett’s group. Unfortunately the only way that Maggie is going to be able to figure out what is going on with Everett is to use her mother as a pawn in a deadly trap.
I’m going to be honest here. There are currently 5 books in this series. Reading this third book in the series, brings me to a total of reading 4 of the 5. And although I read the first, second and fourth late last year, I vaguely remember them. And I hate to say it, this is the worst one I’ve read. I was just disappointed with this one. I was really flying through this one and enjoyed it right up until the end. The ending was just horrible! It sucked, to be honest. It was just a complete let down to end the book in such a fashion (a horribly unbelievable fashion). I have the fifth in the series on hold at the library and hope that it’s better.