Time for some photos...

That's my backyard adn this morning it looked a bit fairytale-ish what with things being coated with snow as they were. And I love the sunshine! We don't get much of it this time of year so every little bit helps lift the spirits.

If you click on the photo, you'll get the details better...



That's a close-up of the fence. It really is pretty when it's like that.

And finally, a photo of Riley and Maddie...



No great outdoors for them. Riley's okay with it but it's even been too bitterly cold for her lately. Maddie has barely stuck her nose out the door since the snow started. She's definitely a homebody.

Another giant gone...

John Updike, the kaleidoscopically gifted writer whose quartet of Rabbit Angstrom novels highlighted so vast and protean a body of fiction, verse, essays and criticism as to earn him comparisons with Henry James and Edmund Wilson among American men of letters, died Tuesday. He was 76 and lived in Beverley Farms. Massachusetts.

The cause of death was lung cancer, his publisher, Knopf, said in a statement.

Things that make you go hmmm

I've been told this fits me...

Your Word is "Fearless"

You see life as your one chance to experience everything, and you just go for it! You believe the biggest risk is being afraid and missing out on something amazing. Sometimes your fearlessness means you're daring. You enjoy risky activities. And sometimes your fearlessness means you're courageous. You're brave enough to do the right thing, even when it's scary.

What's Your Word?

Book Review: The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls

The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls
Scribner
288 Pages
Copyright 2005

There are books that reach out and grab you. They do so for a variety of reasons, as we all know. Beautiful language. Amazing characters. A plot that makes you laugh or cry or simply feel good about yourself and life. I’ve read books that have contained all those things. I’ve laughed more than I’ve cried but I have cried too. It’s one of the reasons I love to read. The possibilities are endless and I usually wind up reading a book or two that stays with me for a long time after I’ve put it away.

The Glass Castle is one of those books. I haven’t been able to get it completely out of my mind since I finished it Friday night. I found myself reading it at times like it was a work of fiction... but then I’d remember it wasn’t fiction and the true magnitude of what I was reading would hit me all over again.

Jeannette Walls grew up the child of an alcoholic father and a mother who clearly had psychological issues. They lived a vagabond life, ‘doing the skedaddle’ in the middle of the night, usually on step ahead of the bill collectors or the law. When she was three, she suffered serious burns while cooking herself hotdogs, catching her dress on fire in the process. Her mother was too busy painting to be bothered with feeding her child and besides, children needed to learn to fend for themselves.

The Walls family, Rex (the father), Rose Mary (the mother), Lori, John, Jeannette, and Maureen led a life of privation and instability. There were times when they had no food in their house and resorted to pilfering food from the garbage cans at school, or, in one case, eating a stick of butter mixed with sugar. At other times, they would buy (or steal) whatever they could get for cheap. One time they ate green grapes for weeks. Another, it was a ham so large that they ate it until it grew maggoty and then Rose Mary would tell them to cut the outside part off because the inside part was still good.

After years of roaming around the southwest, the Walls family returned to the small town of Welch, West Virginia, Rex’s home. There the children meet their alcoholic grandmother, who may or may not have sexually abused their father. After a falling out with the grandmother, the family moves into a small house located high up on the mountainside where the steps were falling apart and the house would decay around them.

Here are some memorable quotes:

During one middle of the night ‘skedaddle’, Jeannette recounts having trouble controlling their cat:

“Cats don’t like to travel,” Mom explained.

Anyone who didn’t like to travel wasn’t invited on our adventure, Dad said. He stopped the car, grabbed Quixote by the scruff of the neck, and tossed him out the window. Quixote landed with a screeching meow and a thud. Dad accelerated up the road.

“Don’t be so sentimental,” Mom said. She told me we could always get another cat, and now Quixote was going to be a wild cat, which was much more fun than being a house cat.

Later in the book, Jeannette recounts how she was afraid to complain because she was worried she would suffer the same fate as Quixote.

And:

When Dad wasn’t telling us about all the amazing things he had already done, he was telling us about the wondrous things he was going to do. Like build the Glass Castle. All of Dad’s engineering skills and mathematical genius were coming together in one special project: a great big house he was going to build for us in the desert. It would have a glass ceiling and thick glass walls and even a glass staircase. The Glass Castle would have solar cells on the top that would catch the sun’s rays and convert them into electricity for heating and cooling and running all the appliances. It would even have its own water-purification system. Dad had worked out the architecture and the floor plans and most of the mathematical calculations. He carried around the blueprints for the Glass Castle wherever we went; sometimes he’d pull them out and let us work on the design for our rooms.

With an alcoholic father, and a mother who didn’t believe in rules of any kind because her mother had been too strict, the Walls children grew up to be surprisingly normal and responsible. After graduation, Lori fled West Virginia for New York City. Jeannette and John followed soon after. Each became a responsible, functioning adult: Jeannette is a writer and recently gave up a job at MSNBC online. Lori worked as a comic book illustrator. John became a decorated detective with the NYPD. Maureen, after moving to NYC with her parents, finally made her escape to California.

Rex and Rose Mary eventually moved to New York City to be with their family. They ended up living on the streets for a time and then became squatters in an abandoned tenement. It was a lifestyle of choice and it continued until Rex died of cancer at the age of 54. The back of the book states that Rose Mary now lives on a guest house on the Virginia property of Jeannette and her second husband, author John Taylor.

The Glass Castle is the story of a dysfunctional family in the extreme. It was almost a horror story in a way and, when I was jarred by the knowledge that it wasn’t fiction, that it was a true story, I would wonder how the kids managed to fall through the cracks as completely as they had. Where were social services? Why didn’t they get help?

The answer was simple – Rex and Rose Mary didn’t want help. They preferred to do things on their own. Strangely enough, as horrible as their childhood was, it led to the children becoming the sort of adults who could handle anything. In a way, isn’t that the true test of parenthood?

Recommendation: What can I say? It’s an amazing story that will make you want to cry and make you want to laugh, too. Walls writes with a sort of detachment that somehow makes the story even more compelling. Give it a go and I’ll be willing to bet that you won’t forget the family any time soon.

Newest edition...

Well, it didn't come in the mailbox, but reading Chris's Mailbox Monday post gave me the push to 'fess up.

I bought a book today. I haven't been to the bookstore in months but I stopped in today to buy a couple of magazines and walked out with a book:



I think I'm safe to say I may be one of the few who will admit to enjoying Ann Coulter. I think she's a hoot and I'll even admit that I enjoy watching the liberal pundits foam at the mouth over her writings.

Does that make me a bad person?

Book Review: Hunter's Prayer by Lilith Saintcrow

Hunter’s Prayer by Lilith Saintcrow
Orbit, Hatchette Book Group
326 Pages
Copyright 2008

Jill Kismet is back, hunting demons and dealing with those who deal with evil as mercilessly as always. Teamed up with Saul Dustcircle, her Native American werecat lover, she seems to be in better shape, mentally and physically, to deal with the demands of her job.

That, however, is before prostitutes start showing up dead, eviscerated and discarded like so much garbage. Also in town is the woman responsible for the death of Jill’s mentor and lover, a woman Jill has sworn to destroy. Will she allow the woman to distract her from her real purpose – the ancient evil threatening to destroy not only Jill and Saul, but the city she has sworn to protect?

Once again, Saintcrow was written a gritty, intriguing story of the paranormal. Her characters are strong and likable, even the bad guys. It is fun, however, to see those bad guys meet their fates at Jill’s hands.

Recommendation: If you like paranormal, urban fantasy type stories and haven’t tried Saintcrow, why not? She is a master of the genre and you will, most likely, not be disappointed.

Book Reviews - the last three Kathy Reichs' novels

Break No Bones by Kathy Reichs
Pocket Books, a division of Simon and Schuster
439 Pages
Copyright 2006

From the back of the book:

To some, the dead are a commodity. For Tempe Brennan, they hold the key to cracking a horrific crime ring.

Among the ancient remains in a Native American burial ground, Tempe discovers a fresh skeleton – and what began as an ordinary teaching stint at an archeology field school in Charleston, South Carolina, fast becomes a heated investigation into an alarming pattern of homicides. The clues hidden in the bones lead to a street clinic where a monstrous discovery awaits, and Tempe – whose personal life is in upheaval, with two men competing for her – can’t afford any distractions as she pieces together a shattering and terrifying puzzle.

I’ll admit that after Cross Bones, I wasn’t going to dive right into the next book in the series. But, I found myself with time to read and no other book to read so I went ahead with it. I’m glad I did because it had none of the problems that Cross Bones did. Reichs was certainly back on solid ground with another intriguing story.

I haven’t quoted anything from one of these books in awhile so here’s one for you:

In my view, death in anonymity is the ultimate insult to human dignity. To spend eternity under a Jane Doe plaque. To disappear nameless into an unmarked grave without those who care about you knowing you have gone. That offends. While I cannot make the dead live again, I can reunite victims with their names, and give those left behind some measure of closure. In that way, I help the dead to speak, to say a final good-bye, and sometimes, to say what took their lives.

That sentiment is woven through all of Reichs’ books. It’s not a bad one and, I believe, it is one shared by most of those who choose law enforcement as a career. We want to help the victims, to speak for those who cannot, whether they be helpless or, in Reichs’ case, dead. She does an admirable job with it.

Bones to Ashes by Kathy Reichs
Pocket Books, a division of Simon and Schuster
388 Pages
Copyright 2007

From the back of the book:

As a child, she was told to forget about the missing girl. But some memories don’t die...

The discovery of a skeleton in Acadia, Canada, reawakens a traumatic episode for forensic anthropologist Temperance Brennan: Could the young girl’s remains be those of Evaneline Landry, Tempe’s friend who disappeared when Tempe was twelve? Exotic, free-spirited, and slightly older, Evaneline enlivened Tempe’s summer beach visits... then vanished amid whispers that she was “dangerous”. Now, faced with bones scarred with inexplicable lesions, Tempe is consumed with solving a decades-old mystery – while her lover, Detective Andrew Ryan, urgently needs her attention on a wave of teenage abductions and murders. With both Ryan and her ex-husband making surprising future plans, Tempe may soon find that her world was painfully and irrevocably changed once again.

This one went in a number of ways I didn’t expect and certainly didn’t see coming. I also didn’t appreciate all of them. But, none of that is a bad thing, is it?

Devil Bones by Kathy Reichs
Scribner, a division of Simon and Schuster
304 Pages
Copyright 2008

From the book:

In a house under renovation, a plumber uncovers a cellar no one knew about, and makes a rather grisly discovery – a decapitated chicken, animal bones, and cauldrons containing beads, feathers, and other relics of religious ceremonies. In the center of the shrine, there is the skull of a teenaged girl. Meanwhile, on a nearby lakeshore, the headless body of a teenage boy is found by a man walking his dog.

Nothing is clear – neither when the deaths occurred, nor where. Was the skull brought to the cellar or was the girl murdered there? Why is the boys’ body remarkably well preserved? Led by a preacher turned politician, a citizen’s vigilantes blame devil worshippers and Wiccans. They begin a witch hunt, intent on seeking revenge.

This one was okay but I saw the solution to things that puzzled Tempe and her co-workers for far too long. I also learned a great deal about Wiccan, Voodoo, and Santeria. I also learned that Ricky Ricardo’s favorite song – Babalu Aye – is about a Santeria diety. Reichs is like that – teaching you things when you least expect it.

Recommendation: If you’re interested in forensics and well-written mysteries, I can whole-heartedly recommend this entire series, even the one book I didn’t enjoy all that much.

Book Review: Cross Bones by Kathy Reichs

Cross Bones by Kathy Reichs
Pocket Books, a division of Simon and Schuster
453 Pages
Copyright 2005

From the back of the book:

Examining a badly decomposed corpse is de rigueur for forensic anthropologist Temperance Brennan. But puzzling damage on the body of a shooting victim, an Orthodox Jewish man, suggests this is no ordinary Montreal murder. When a stranger slips Tempe a photograph of a skeleton unearthed at an archaeological site, Tempe uncovers chilling ties between the dead man and secrets long buried in the dust of Israel. Traveling there with Detective Andrew Ryan, Tempe plunges into an international mystery as old as Jesus, and centered on the controversial discovery of Christ’s tomb. Has a mastermind lured her into an elaborate hoax? If not, Tempe may be on the brink of rewriting two thousand years of history – if she can survive the foes dead set on burying her.

This book was a first for me as far as the series goes. I was going to say I didn’t like it but that’s not completely true. There were parts that I liked but they didn’t make up for those parts that I truly disliked. The actual murder mystery is, as usual, intriguing. It’s what I would call the secondary story line that was bothersome and it has to do with casting doubt on Christianity. Reichs raises several questions about the foundations of Christianity and then leaves them, as she must, unanswered. I found those questions, and some of her conclusions, troublesome. Nor did I understand the need for the questions to even be raised. I also found some of the developments a little too contrived, too convenient.

Also, let me describe my on-going problem with the series:

You are a brilliant scientist. You are in a country where violence is an everyday occurrence – bombings and deaths are common place. You’ve already had one experience that has put you on guard. Then, by yourself, you go to a friend’s apartment and find the gate to the property unlocked. The door to the apartment is ajar. So, of course, you wander inside, right? No pause to consider that there may very well be people about who want you dead...

Or, you go to a university late at night. Again, the gate is unlocked. So is the side entrance. You wander into a building that is dark and clearly deserted. You smell cordite in the air and what might very well be the smell of blood. What do you do? Keep going to the point of contaminating a crime scene, of course.

You would think that this amazingly brilliant woman would eventually learn from making the same sort of mistake and stop endangering her life in silly, senseless ways, wouldn’t you?

Recommendation: In spite of my problems with the story, I still like the series and the characters. I don’t expect to love every book in any series, so this one didn’t discourage me from reading the others.

Friday Fill - Ins 41

1. Oh, I am so tired!

2. I need to make changes, big and little.

3. During winter, I become a couch potato.

4. Bungee jump; are you kidding me???

5. Right now I'd like to be watching tennis in Australia.

6. My new electric can opener is my favorite gadget.

7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to my last Friday night shift for this rotation, tomorrow my plans include seeing Underworld (maybe) and Sunday, I want to relax!

Coming soon...

It makes no sense.

At Christmas, there was only one book I was interested in receiving - Dean Koontz's latest work. I got it and it's one my TBR pile.

Now, when I check over at Amazon, I find the following books:





Books 5 and 6 in the Kitty Norville series, due to be released on the 27th of this month and then the 24th of February. I'm looking forward to reading the next tales in this series about a Werewolf named Kitty and her fledging pack...




Two works by Kelley Armstrong have caught my eye. Two problems, however - I've never read Armstrong's Otherworld series but the synopsis of The Men of Otherworld caught my attention. The second problem? I didn't really care for the first book in the Nadia Stafford series... yet I find myself drawn to this one. Hmmmm. They're due to be released in - you guessed it, January and February, the same days as Carrie Vaughn's books.



This one is going to be bittersweet, isn't it? Coming in March.


And finally, the next in the Harry Dresdan series. I love Butcher's characters and can't wait to see what happens next in this excellent series. I only wish the Sci-Fi channel had done a better job translating them to film. It's due to hit the shelves in April.

So, there you have it. Nothing before Christmas and now, four books in two months followed by one in each of the following two months.

It's not a complaint. Not really. Just a wish that some of them would've been ready to go for Christmas.

The positive spin? I am looking forward to some excellent reading in the coming months.

Book Review: Night Shift by Lilith Saintcrow

Night Shift by Lilith Saintcrow
Orbit, Hatchette Book Groups
323 Pages
Copyright 2008

Meet Jill Kismet, dealer in dark things. Spiritual exterminator. Demon Slayer. She’s the one the cops call when things happen that can’t be explained by anything normal. She deals with hellbreed – demons, half-demons, and others that have been sent or have escaped from Hell – those that deal with them, and the possessed. She is a hunter, trained by the best, but also in league with Perry, a demon with his own agenda. Through Perry, Jill has enhanced abilities but has the price for those abilities become too high?

There is a rogue Were on the loose and it has teamed up with some... thing that smells faintly like hellbreed but is unlike anything Jill has ever dealt with. While trying to stop the slaughter that follows in the wake of the rogue, Jill must deal with the Martindale Squad, the top-secret FBI unit assigned to deal with the nightside, and a strange Were who finds her tainted due to her connection with Perry.

Jill quickly finds the water getting very deep as she tries to balance the hunt for the rogue and whatever is working with him, Perry’s demands, and the complication of outside forces she couldn’t possibly have anticipated. At stake? The safety of the normal, everyday civilians she has sworn to protect and, ultimately, her own life.

Reading Night Shift reminded me of the first Dante Valentine book I read. The characters drew me in, the story was a fast-paced, action-packed romp led by a strong, competent woman who also has her own flaws, failings, and doubts. She struggles with doing the right thing, is tempted by the wrong thing, and somehow manages to keep moving even when she wants to give up. She is a tough, determined, but flawed individual that I found myself rooting for almost immediately. By the same token, Saintcrow’s bad guys are delightfully bad and it’s easy to see why Jill might have such trouble resisting them.

Recommendation: Saintcrow is a master of the urban fantasy genre. Her worlds are gritty, ugly, and real. They’re also worth visiting and I’m looking forward to visiting with Jill again soon.

Book Review: Monday Mourning by Kathy Reichs

Monday Mourning by Kathy Reichs
Pocket Books, a division of Simon and Schuster
380 Pages
Copyright 2004

From the back of the book:

The bones of three young women are unearthed in the basement of a Montreal pizza parlor, and forensic anthropologist Tempe Brennan has unsolved murder on her mind as she examines the shallowly buried remains. Coming up against a homicide cop who is convinced the dead have been entombed on the site for centuries, Tempe perseveres, even with her own relationship with Detective Andrew Ryan at a delicate turning point. In the lab, the clean, well-preserved bones offer few clues. But when carbon-14 dating confirms her hunch that these were recent deaths despite the antique buttons found hear the bodies. Tempe’s probing must produce answers quickly to stop a killer whose grisly handiwork has seen the light of day.

Along with her problems with Ryan and Detective Claudel, Tempe finds herself consoling her best friend who may or may not be leaving her husband up until the friend disappears, that is. Life is chaotic and the story behind the bones from the pizza parlor leads Tempe deeper and deeper into a puzzle with a horrific solution – one that may lead Tempe into unprecedented peril.

This seems, to me, to be Reichs’ most complicated story to date, one she weaves together almost flawlessly. It is fascinating to follow the trail from the graves in the pizza parlor to a place that holds the ultimate horror.

I do, however, have my usual complaint – Tempe goes out of her way to place herself in a position where she needs to be rescued once again. She’s a strong, smart woman. Why does she keep doing foolish things?

Recommendation: This is a strong entry in the series, filled with memorable characters, tension between characters, and suspense. As always, the technical aspects are flawlessly presented.

Another look at God's Country

I think I like this one the best...

Friday Fill-Ins 40

1. Enough with the vertigo.

2. Not much causes me to be conflicted.

3. I've been craving holding a baby in my arms.

4. My dog makes me laugh.

5. I wish I could go to ANYWHERE WARM next week.

6. The future has been on my mind lately.

7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to feeling better, tomorrow my plans include catching up and Sunday, I want to get outside if it warms up!

Wrap-ups, part II

So, I had intended this to be a one post deal but obviously the cyber gods decided it would be too long and posted the first part for me.

I have no idea how I did it, but there you go. We have a two part post.

In the year 2008, I read a total of 75 books. Given the slump I went through, I'm very happy with my total. It was one off my first year total of the 76 books I read during my June to June journey.

Here's the list from my sidebar, which will be replaced with a new one:

December (11):

75. Bare Bones by Kathy Reichs
74. Grave Secrets by Kathy Reichs
73. Fatal Voyage by Kathy Reichs
72. Deadly Decisions by Kathy Reichs
71. Mindhealer by Lilith Saintcrow
70. Death Du Jour by Kathy Reichs
69. Deja Dead by Kathy Reichs
68. The Sugar Queen by Sarah Addison Allen
67. Twilight by Stephenie Meyer
66. The Summoning by Kelley Armstrong
65. The DeVouring by Simon Holt

November (4):

64. Buckingham Palace Gardens by Anne Perry
63. Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
62. Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil by John Berendt
61. To Hell and Back by Lilith Saintcrow

October (1):

60. The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame

September (4):

59. Blue Like Jazz by Donald Miller
58. Down to a Sunless Sea by Mathias B. Freese
57. Saint City Sinners by Lilith Saintcrow
56. When Twilight Burns by Colleen Gleason

August (7):

55. The Devil's Right Hand by Lilith Saintcrow
54. Blood Hollow by William Kent Krueger
53. Shakespeare's Counselor by Charlaine Harris
52. Purgatory Ridge by William Kent Krueger
51. Shakespeare's Trollop by Charlaine Harris
50. Shakespeare's Christmas by Charlaine Harris
49. Shaekspeare's Champion by Charlaine Harris

July (3):

48. Iron Kissed by Patricia Briggs
47. Blood Bound by Patricia Briggs
46. Moon Called by Patricia Briggs

June (6):

45. Fearless Fourteen by Janet Evanovich
44. From Dead to Worse by Charlaine Harris
43. Lean Mean Thirteen by Janet Evanovich
42. Dead Center by David Rosenfelt
41. All Together Dead by Charlaine Harris
40. Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen

May (9):

39. The Pajama Girls of Lambert Square by Rosina Lippi
38. The Light Fantastic by Terry Pratchett
37. The Color of Magic by Terry Pratchett
36. Bel Canto by Ann Patchett
35. Odd Hours by Dean Koontz
34. Garden Spells by Sarah Addison Allen
33. The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield
32. The Historian by Elizabeth Kostova
31. Exit Strategy by Kelley Armstrong

April (7):

30. Small Favor by Jim Butcher
29. Alice Adams by Booth Tarkington
28. Demons Are A Ghoul's Best Friend by Victoria Laurie
27. Twelve Sharp by Janet Evanovich
26. Eleven On Top by Janet Evanovich
25. Ten Big Ones by Janet Evanovich
24. To the Nines by Janet Evanovich

March (8):

23. Shakespeare's Landlord by Charlaine Harris
22. A Rose from the Dead by Kate Collins
21. Hard Eight by Janet Evanovich
20. Seven Up by Janet Evanovich
19. Hot Six by Janet Evanovich
18. The Cat Who Went Up the Creek by Lilian Jackson Braun
17. High Five by Janet Evanovich
16. The Good, The Bad, & The Ugly by George Cantor

February (7):

15. Sudden Death by David Rosenfelt
14. Four To Score by Janet Evanovich
13. Three To Get Deadly by Janet Evanovich
12. Harriet the Spy by Louise Fitzhugh
11. Bootlegger's Daughter by Margaret Maron
10. The Bleeding Dusk by Colleen Gleason
9. Boy's Life by Robert McCammon

January (8):

8. Ice Cold Grave by Charlaine Harris
7. The Book of the Dead by Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child
6. Dance of Death by Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child
5. A Canticle for Leibowitz by Walter M. Miller Jr
4. Bury The Lead by David Rosenfelt
3. Kitty and the Silver Bullet by Carrie Vaughn
2. The Book Thief by Markus Zusak
1. The Setting Sun by Osamu Dazai

What's interesting to me when I read over the list is the fact that I average, statistically, a little over 6 books a month. When I look at the breakdown, however, the numbers that appear most often are 7 and 8. I have no idea why July was such a bad month and October was horrid, but that's due to the slump I was in. I also note that my slump wasn't as extended as I thought. I also discovered that my December total was 11 books, not 10. Math has never been my strong suit.

The titles in bold were my favorites. They are the ones that made a long-lasting impression on me.

Some disappointed me but I've already covered that.

I also discovered Janet Evanovich, Patricia Briggs, Sarah Addison Allen, Elizabeth Kostova, Diane Setterfield, Sara Gruen, and Terry Pratchett. Not a bad bunch of new faces to add to my growing list of favorites.

I also want to take a moment to thank all of you for helping me find them. You, along with the books you've recommended, have enriched my life to no end. Thank you for that.

Wrap-Ups

Finally, only 15 days into the new year, I am posting my December and year-end wrap up. I could offer all sorts of excuses as to why it's taken me so long but they're really rather pathetic, so I'll skip them.

I have be rendered momentarily imobile by my vertigo again. This time it's almost as bad as the original spell - when I got up yesterday my bedroom was actually spinning. Today is better. I'm still spinning but not nearly as much. I'm hopeful that tomorrow things will be steady enough to go in to work.

So, on to the topic at hand.

In December I read a total of 10 books and 3664 pages. That comes out to 118 pages a day. Wow. I've never had a month like that. After the prolonged slump I went through, I' thrilled.

Here's the list:

Bare Bones by Kathy Reichs
Grave Secrets by Kathy Reichs
Fatal Voyage by Kathy Reichs
Deadly Decisions by Kathy Reichs
Mindhealer by Lilith Saintcrow
Death Du Jour by Kathy Reichs
Deja Dead by Kathy Reichs
The Sugar Queen by Sarah Addison Allen
Twilight by Stephenie Meyer
The Summoning by Kelley Armstrong
The DeVouring by Simon Holt

Definitely heavy on the Temperance Brennan/Kathy Reichs books. I'm thrilled I found her wonderful reads. I also enjoyed Lilith Saintcrow's latest entry into her Watchers series. After being so disappointed by her last couple of Dante Valentine books, I'm very happy to say it didn't bleed over to her other works. Twilight disappointed me, The Sugar Queen was another delightful read, and I'm looking forward to sequels for both The Summoning and The DeVouring.

Not a bad month at all.

Winter in God's Country...

That would be the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, of course.

As much as I bitch about the snow and the cold, there truly is something breath-taking about this place in winter. Especially when you can get away from people to enjoy it.

These photos aren't mine but a good friend took them on a hike into the Tahquamenon Falls, located near Paradise. No, I'm not making that up. It's an impressive place in the summer time but in the winter... well, see for yourself:



The Upper Tahquamenon Falls close up





Same view, zoomed out to show the entire river.





And finally, a close up of some of the ice formed on the edge of the falls.

She's got a bunch more pictures and she's given me permission to use them so I may post a few more.

Now, if I can just remember the beautiful part of this when the low tomorrow night hits -13F and I'm at work.

Book Reviews...

in order to wrap up last year, I want to catch up with my reviews. So, I'm resorting to a speed up method I've used once before and thought worked well - I call it my 'back of the book' review. It also has the advantage of not boring y'all to tears with reviews of multiple books by the same author in a row.

So, we've got the following books left to review:

Bare Bones by Kathy Reichs
Grave Secrets by Kathy Reichs
Fatal Voyage by Kathy Reichs
Deadly Decisions by Kathy Reichs

See what I mean? I'm on a Kathy Reichs bender at the moment...

So, in the order they were read:


Deadly Decisions by Kathy Reichs
Pocket Books, a division of Simon and Schuster
368 Pages
Copyright 1999

Nine-year-old Emily Anne Toussaint is fatally shot on a Montreal street. A North Carolina teenager disappears from her home, and parts of her skeleton are found hundreds of miles away. The shocking deaths propel Tempe Brennan from north to south, an deep into a shattering investigation inside the bizarre culture of outlaw motorcycle gangs – where one misstep could bring disaster for herself or someone she loves.

This one grabbed me at the start for one reason – on page 32 Detective Andrew Ryan, Tempe’s developing love interested is arrested for dealing in drugs and stolen property. It also brings Tempe’s nephew, Kit to town. Kit, who has an interest in motorcycles, is quickly hanging around with a reporter who is using the young man to snoop on Tempe’s current cases and her work with the task force created to deal with the OMC violence.

That said, I found it irritating that once Ryan was arrested, he became a foot-note in the book, a passing thought for Tempe to worry and wonder about. And, this is another book in the trend of having either a good friend or a family member wind up in danger because of Tempe. Also, Tempe herself is developing the same annoying trait I’ve seen in other books with strong female leads – the tendency to do stupid things to put themselves in dangers that require them to be rescued by men. What is up with that? One would think that a woman with Tempe Brennan’s intelligence would know better than to put herself in such positions in the first place.

This book is an interesting look into the world of Outlaw Motorcycle Gangs and includes some background that I wasn’t aware of – such as it’s the OMC’s that virtually control most of the drug trafficking in this country and in Canada.

Recommendations: Even with my complaints, I still enjoyed this book. I like Reichs’ style and her ‘insider knowledge’ and she still had me reading late into the night, always a sign of a good book.


Fatal Voyage by Kathy Reichs
Pocket Books, a division of Simon and Schuster
420 Pages
Copyright 2001

A commercial airliner disaster has brought Tempe Brennan to the North Carolina mountains as a member of the investigative agency DMORT. As bomb theories abound, Tempe soon discovers a jarring piece of evidence that raises dangerous questions – and gest her thrown from the DMORT team. Relentless in her pursuit of its significance, Tempe uncovers a shocking, multilayered tale of deceit and depravity as she probes her way into frightening territory – where someone wants her stopped in her tracks.

Again, as with the OMC’s in the previous title, this book provides a fascinating insight into the works of the national disaster response system. DMORT, which stands for Disaster Mortuary Operational Response Team, is part of the National Disaster Medical System (NDMS). It’s also an excellent introduction into the federal government system of alphabet soup: DMORT, NDMS, NTSB, OEP, and DMAT, just to name a few. Reading all of the acronyms and initials can get confusing, so be forewarned.

Tempe is, as the synopsis indicates, removed from the investigation after being accused of mishandling the scene and evidence. She quickly finds her professional career at stakes as the accusations endanger not only her position with DMORT but with the other agencies she works with. It also hinders an investigation that quickly becomes a far different one than in the beginning.

Two things about this book stand out: Kathy Reichs is a member of DMORT and in an afterward, she touches one what it was like to work at the World Trade Center site. That alone is almost worth the price of the book. And, I was again struck by the vivid realism of her writing. The book opens with unbelievable imagery:

I stared at the woman flying through the trees. Her head was forward, chin raised, arms flung backward like the tiny chrome goddess on the hood of a Rolls-Royce. But the tree lady was naked, and her body ended at the waist. Blood-coated leaves and branches imprisoned her lifeless torso.

Recommendation: Nothing new to say – this is just another engrossing book in a series that seems to be getting stronger as it goes.


Grave Secrets by Kathy Reichs
Pocket Books, a division of Simon and Schuster
366 Pages
Copyright 2002

They are “the disappeared,” twenty-three massacre victims buried in a well in the Guatemalan village of Chupan Ya two decades ago. Leading a team of experts on a meticulous, heartbreaking dig, Tempe Brennan pieces together the violence of the past. But a fresh wave of terror begins when the horrific sounds of a fatal attack on two colleagues come in on a blood-chilling satellite call. Teaming up with Special Crimes Investigator Bartolome Galiano and Montreal detective Andrew Ryan, Tempe quickly becomes enmeshed in the cases of four privileged young women who have vanished from Guatemala City – and finds herself caught in deadly territory where power, money, greed, and science coverage.

So, here’s the thing. This book was not my favorite – there are aspects of what’s going on (one’s I can’t openly discuss) that I disagree with on a personal level. Plus, the relationship between Galiano, whom I liked, and Detective Ryan, whom I adore, seems just a little too convenient. But, I still thoroughly enjoyed the book. It takes a good story teller to accomplish that, if you ask me.

Recommendation: Again, not much new to say. If you enjoy good mysteries and being allowed to see the inside workings of a forensic investigation, these books are right up your alley.

Bare Bones by Kathy Reichs
Pocket Books, a division of Simon and Schuster
380 Pages
Copyright 2003

“Down time” is not a phrase in Tempe Brennan’s vocabulary. A string of disturbing cases has put her vacation plans on hold; instead, she heads to the lab to analyze charred remains from a suspicious fire, and a mysterious black residue from a small-plane crash. But most troubling of all are the bones . . . Tempe’s daughter’s new boyfriend invites them to a picnic – a pig pickin’ – in the North Carolina countryside, where a cache of bones turns up. But are they animal or human? X-rays and DNA may link the crimes, but they can’t reveal who is closing in on Tempe and her daughter – and how far they will go to keep her from uncovering the truth.

This one weaves two seemingly unconnected situations – the bones of a child found in a wood stove and the crash of a small-plane seamlessly with the on-going problem of black market trading in endangered species. There’s also (finally!) an intimate relationship between Tempe and the gorgeous Andrew Ryan – one that is, by the way, handled in a low key, incredibly sexy way without the in your face borderline triple X verbiage.

Another example of Reichs ability to leave you with images that take some time to fade:

“Nobody did nothin’ to that baby.” Tears glistened on her face, and her bony chest heaved below the red halter top. “It was just born wantin’ to be dead.”

The anguish of that moment was palpable and it stayed with me for some time.

Recommendation: Another good read and another book that proves to be educational. What was it Bill Cosby said on Fat Albert? If you’re not careful you just might learn something.

So there it is. My last reviews for the year 2008. I'll be a wrap up of the month and then of the year soon.

Friday Fill - Ins 39

1. The world is nuts. (Either that or I am...)

2. Wrong frequency was the last thing I said.

3. I wonder how many licks it takes to get to the middle of a Tootsie Pop.

4. I plan to be with God at the end of all things.

5. There's something to be said for a night of doing absolutely nothing.

6. Bed is where I want to be.

7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to dinner with a friend, tomorrow my plans include cleaning (maybe) and Sunday, I want to catch up with my niece and make sure she's okay after her accident!