Sunday Wrap-Up

Sunday Wrap-Up, Jan. 9, 2011

Tara

I’m going to be starting something new here on my blog. I’ve seen some other people do things like this and I think it’s a great idea. I want to start wrapping up what I’ve done here on my blog on a weekly basis. Here goes:

I participated in three memes this week:

  1. I talked about how I did with my 2010 reading goals in my Musing Mondays post
  2. I listed my Top 10 MUST READ books for 2011 in Top Ten Tuesdays
  3. And I participated in WWW Wednesdays

I also reviewed one book this week:

  1. Double Cross by James Patterson

I started a new page here on my blog:

  1. Books Acquired in 2011

Overall, I did pretty good here on my blog this week. I am trying to make a conscious effort to post more and participate more in 2011 than I have in my previous years as a book blogger. It’s hard to believe that I’m going into my 3rd year of blogging this year! Crazy! I’m definitely looking forward to making 2011 a wonderful year as far as my blog is concerned.

I cleaned up my blog a little bit last weekend – trying to get my 2010 things into more permanent locations and get my 2011 goals/challenges zeroed out to start all over again. I spend way too much time on the internet, and yet, not enough time on my blog! I hope to be able really get this blog into tip-top shape. You might be seeing some layout changes in the coming months, as I’m itching for something new (and yet dragging my feet because of the time it will take, and the insecurities I have with changing anything too much). Hope everyone has another great week this week!

5/5, Alex Cross, AUTHOR, Book Review, Fiction, P, RATING, Read in 2011, READING CHALLENGES 2011, SERIES

2011.1 REVIEW – Double Cross by James Patterson

Tara

Double Cross
by James Patterson

Copyright: 2007
Pages: 402
Rating: 5/5
Read: Jan. 1 – 5, 2011
Challenge: Criminal Plots Challenge; Mystery & Suspense Challenge; TBR Dare
Yearly Count: 1
Format: Print

First Line: At the time of his formal sentencing in Alexandria, Virginia, for eleven known murders, the former FBI agent and pattern killer Kyle Craig, known as the Mastermind, was lectured and condescended to by U.S. District Judge Nina Wolff.

Blurb: Alex Cross rejoins the D.C. police force to confront two of the most diabolical killers he’s ever encountered. Just when his life is calming down, Alex Cross is drawn back into a lethal game like no other. In Washington, D.C., a maniac stages his killings as spectacles in public settings. Alex is pursuing a genius of terror who has the whole city on edge. And the killer loves the attention – he even sets up his own web site and live video feed to trumpet his madness. In Colorado, another brilliant madman is planning a triumphant return. From his supermaximum-security prison cell, Kyle Craig has plotted for years an impossible escape. If he has to join forces with D.C.’s Audience Killer to get back at the man who put him in that prison – Alex Cross – all the better.

Review: Spoilers possible. This is the 13th in the Alex Cross series. This is one of my absolute favorite series *ever*. It’s amazing what kind of trouble Alex always ends up in (or rather, what kind of trouble always finds Alex…). In this particular installment, The Mastermind (a.k.a. Kyle Craig) makes another appearance – in the form of a pretty interesting prison escape. Alex is also having to deal with helping his girlfriend, Bree, and best friend, Sampson, with the Audience Killer case in Washington, D.C. I thought it was very interesting how Kyle Craig was brought back onto the scene by the author. But what’s even more interesting is that at the end of the book, he is still at large! It sometimes seems a little improbable in regards to how many big cases Alex Cross and the Washington D.C. police department have to deal with. And even though some of the situations that the author poses to the reader seem almost entirely impossible, I still love this series! As soon as I finish an Alex Cross book, I’m always interested to know where Alex will go in the next book. This is one of the few series that I have found that has not really gone downhill as it progresses. I highly recommend this book and series.

Top Ten Tuesday

Top Ten Tuesday – Jan. 4, 2011

Tara

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:

  1. The Anatomy of Deception by Lawrence Goldstone – I received this book in the summer of 2010 from Paperbackswap, I need to read this book this year.
  2. Revoultion by Jennifer Donnelly – I won this book in a giveaway and I am so anxious to read it!
  3. The Tenth Justice by Brad Meltzer – I read and reviewed a digital ARC of The Inner Circle in December and I absolutely loved it so I am wanting to go back and read through Mr. Meltzer’s book list.
  4. The Dante Club by Matthew Pearl – I have had this book on my shelf for three years, I need to read it this year.
  5. The Insanity File: The Case of Mary Todd Lincoln by Mark E. Neely, Jr. & R. Gerald McMurtry – I have had this book on my shelf for almost two years after waiting on the wish list on PBS for over a year, I definitely need to get to this book this year.
  6. Blood on the Moon: The Assassination of Abraham Lincoln by Edward Steers, Jr. – I bought this book a LONG time ago, like 5+ years ago, I think it’s more than time to read this one.
  7. Helter Skelter: The True Story of the Manson Murders by Vincent Bugliosi & Curt Gentry – This is another book that has been on my shelf for way too long, definitely a great year to get to this one.
  8. The Historian by Elizabeth Kostova – 2011 seems like a great year to finally read this book!
  9. The Widow of the South by Robert Hicks – Received this book late in 2010, after having my eye on it for some time; definitely want to get to this book this year!
  10. The Sum of All Fears by Tom Clancy – Okay, so this one is a little sentimental for me. The very first date I had with my husband was in June of 2002 and we went and saw “The Sum of All Fears” at our local movie theater. I want to read this book (and watch the movie with my husband again!)

Meme, Musing Mondays

Musing Mondays – Jan. 3, 2011

Tara

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.

Challenge Wrap-Up, End of Year Wrap-Up, READING CHALLENGES 2010

2010 Reading Challenges Wrap-Up

Tara

So I didn’t do as good on my reading challenges as I had hoped, but that’s okay. I’m still pleased with what I accomplished in 2010. Here’s where I stand in terms of my challenges for 2010:

FINISHED CHALLENGES:

  • Random Reading Challenge (12/12)
  • Thriller & Suspense Challenge (12/12)
  • Finish That Series Challenge (3 Series caught up with)|
    ALEX KAVA’S MAGGIE O’DELL SERIES
    JAMES PATTERSON & MICHAEL LEDWIDGE’S MICHAEL BENNETT SERIES
    TESS GERRITSEN’S JANE RIZZOLI & MAURA ISLES SERIES

 

UNFINISHED CHALLENGES:

  • 2010 100+ Reading Challenge (67/100)
  • Celebrate the Author Challenge (10/12)
  • Countdown Challenge 2010 (45/55)
  • Harry Potter Reading Challenge (1/7)
  • RYOB 2010 (45/50)
End of Year Wrap-Up, Reading Statistics

2010 Reading Statistics

Tara

Well, here it is. The breakdown of my 2010 reading. I had a good year this year, and I’m very happy with where I’m at. I especially like that I was able to read 45 books off of my shelves. That’s great in my opinion (now if I could just get through the other gazillion books on my shelves, haha!) Anyways, without further ado, here is my 2010 reading year in review:

Overview

  • Books Read: 67
  • Books Un-Finished: 6
  • Pages Read: 24,551
  • Male Authors: 22
  • Female Authors: 18
  • New-To-Me Authors: 22
  • Longest Book Read: The Camel Club by David Baldacci (593 pages)
  • Shortest Book Read: The Fun of Dying by Roberta Grimes (149 pages)

Best & Worst

  • Best Reading Month Based on Number of Books: September (8 books)
  • Worst Reading Month Based on Number of Books: November (3 books)
  • Best Reading Month Based on Number of Pages: September (2820 pages)
  • Worst Reading Month Based on Number of Pages: November (1322 pages)

Averages

  • Average Books Read Per Month: 5.58
  • Average Pages Read Per Month: 2045.91
  • Average Pages Per Book: 366.43

Top 10 Favorites (In alphabetical order):

  • The Coffin Dancer by Jeffery Deaver
  • 14 by J.T. Ellison
  • The Keepsake by Tess Gerritsen
  • 31 Bond Street by Ellen Horan
  • Black Friday by Alex Kava
  • The Inner Circle by Brad Meltzer
  • Victim Six by Gregg Olsen
  • The Big Bad Wolf by James Patterson
  • The Spire by Richard North Patterson

Breakdown of the Numbers

  • Page Distributions
    • 0-200 pages: 2
    • 201-300 pages: 8
    • 301-400 pages: 33
    • 401-500 pages: 19
    • Over 501 pages: 5
  • Publication Date
    • 2011: 1
    • 2010: 16
    • 2000-2009: 35
    • 1990s: 11
    • 1980s: 3
    • 1970s: 1
  • By Genre
    • Fiction: 64
    • Non-fiction: 3
  • By Rating
    • 5/5: 18
    • 4.5/5: 7
    • 4/5: 25
    • 3.5/5: 3
    • 3/5: 14
    • 2/5: 0
    • 1/5: 0
    • 0/5 (DNF’s): 6
  • Source of Book
    • Owned: 45
    • Library: 11
    • Review Book: 11
  • Authors Read Multiple Times This Year
    • David Baldacci: 3
    • Patricia Cornwell: 13
    • Tess Gerritsen: 6
    • Erin Healy: 2
    • Alex Kava: 3
    • James Patterson: 9
  • Challenges
    • Challenges Completed: 3
    • Challenges Unfinished: 5
3.5/5, AUTHOR, Book Review, C, Fiction, Kay Scarpetta, RATING, Read in 2010, READING CHALLENGES 2010, SERIES

REVIEW: Book of the Dead by Patricia Cornwell

Tara

Book of the Dead
by Patricia Cornwell

Copyright: 2007
Pages: 511
Rang: 3.5/5
Read: Dec. 24-27, 2010
Challenge: 2010 100+ Reading Challenge; RYOB 2010
Yearly Count: 67
Format: Print

First Line: Water splashing. A gray mosaic tile tub sunk deep into a terra-cotta floor.

Blurb: Starting over with a unique private forensic pathology practice in the historic city of Charleston, South Carolina, seems like the ideal situation for Scarpetta and her colleagues, Pete Marino and her niece, Lucy. But then come the deaths… A sixteen-year-old tennis star, fresh from a tournament win in Charleston, is found nude and mutilated near Piazza Navona in Rome. The body of an abused young boy is dumped in a desolate marsh. A woman is ritualistically murdered in her multimillion-dollar beach home. Meanwhile, in New England, problems with a prominent patient at a Harvard-affiliated psychiatric hospital begin to hint at interconnections among the deaths that are as hard to imagine as they are horrible. Scarpetta has dealt with many brutal and unusual crimes before, but never a string of them as baffling, or as terrifying, as the ones facing her now. Before she is through, that book of the dead will contain many names – and the pen may be poised to write her own.

Review: (There will be SPOILERS in this review). This is the 15th book in the Kay Scarpetta series. Overall, I felt as if the plot line was much better than the last few in this series have been. But, I do have a few issues with this book (and the series, really). First, let me just state: Pete Marino is a jerk with a capital J. Ms. Cornwell has managed to take a rough, yet likable, character and just totally ruin him and turn him into a disgusting excuse for a man. And Kay, well, if she forgives Marino one more time for a unexcusable offense, I think I will throw up. In general, the characters have really gone downhill as far as their characteristics go. Lucy hasn’t been in a good mood ever since the tumor was found. Benton, well besides the fact that you “kill” him off to bring him back 2 books later, has some serious communication problems when it comes to his feelings and Kay – and he’s a psychiatrist of all things, he should know better! But what really gets me is the fact that Dr. Scarpetta can’t stay in one place! In the last two books, she has moved to 2 different places (Florida, then South Carolina). And, having picked up Scarpetta, the 16th book of this series off my shelf to read next, I know that Kay has once again moved (Boston/NYC). I don’t know why Ms. Cornwell can’t just let her be in one place, all this moving is confusing. You meet new supporting characters, and then never hear from them again because she has once again picked up and moved. Anyways, I guess if you take away all my gripes and get down to the storyline, it’s slightly disappointing as well. There’s all this lead up to the who-dun-it part of the book, and then the killer is revealed (no big shocker, but somewhat of one) and then he’s effectively caught and imprisoned with only a slight mention in two sentences. Really? That’s how you’re going to end this book? Not sure I really care for this series anymore. I know of quite a few people who have given up on this series simply because the writing is not up to par with her early books and the characters are no longer enjoyable. It may be time for me to hang up Dr. Scarpetta as well. I suppose I will give it two more chances (since I have two more books on my shelves), after that I’m not sure I will pick up the latest installment (Port Mortuary) anytime soon.

4/5, AUTHOR, Book Review, E, Fiction, RATING, Read in 2010, READING CHALLENGES 2010, Review Book

REVIEW: At the Crossroads of Terror by Lenny Emanuelli

Tara

At the Crossroads of Terror
by Lenny Emanuelli

Copyright: 2007
Pages: 224
Rang: 4/5
Read: Dec. 22-24, 2010
Challenge: 2010 100+ Reading Challenge
Yearly Count: 66
Format: Print

First Line: They threw the woman to the ground, naked, on top of a pile of dirt at a construction site on the corner of Front Street and Noble Avenue in Philadelphia

Blurb: An Asian Crime family with the perfect setup, an unsolved double homicide, a billion dollar drug business, a wanna be, big time, news reporter, creating the perfect setting for a suspenseful romantic mystery thriller. Charlie Johnson, a man suspected of killing a local merchant, reluctantly teams of with a television street reporter, Sherry Mann, trying to prove, he is innocent which takes them both deep into the world of an organized Asian street gang, who is on the verge of making their biggest stride, in their drug business.

Review: I received this book for review from Amy at Phenix & Phenix Publicists. This is a very fast-paced, enjoyable thriller. I will say, that I can see where some people might have some issues with the subject matter. But I’m not easiliy upset by what I read, so I had no problem with this book. I throughly enjoyed this book, especially since I probably never would have been made aware of this book had I not had the opportunity for review. I wouldn’t exactly recommend this book for anyone, but I thoroughly enjoyed it.

Meme, WWW Wednesdays

WWW Wednesdays – Dec. 29, 2010

Tara

To play along, just answer the following three (3) questions…

* What are you currently reading?

  • Scarpetta by Patricia Cornwell

* What did you recently finish reading?

  • Book of the Dead by Patricia Cornwell (review pending)
  • At the Crossroads of Terror by Leonard Emanuelli (review pending)

* What do you think you’ll read next?

  • I’m not really 100% sure as to where I will go next with my reading. It will really depend on how long it takes me to read my current read. I might be looking for something short to sneak in before the end of the year, or I might be looking for something to start the year (and new challenges) off with. I guess it just all depends on that. Plus whatever strikes my fancy 🙂