LATEST REVIEWS

SUNDAYS AT TIFFANY'S by James Patterson: Admittedly, the premise of this book is a little odd.  Girl falls in love with her childhood imaginary friend.  But, despite this, Breakfast at Tiffany's is a pretty fabulous book.  Jane is a lonely child that grows up to be a lonely woman.  Her mother, head of a Broadway theatre company is oppressive and overbearing.  Jane's attempts to spread her wings and fly are repeatedly squashed.  Then one day she sees him, Michael, her childhood imaginary friend.  The only person she could ever confide in, the only person that truly understood her.  He shows her that she has the strength and ability to walk out from beneath her mother's overbearing arms and become the woman she is meant to be.  Aside from the odd premise, this is a wonderfully endearing love story, based on something Patterson's son said to him---"'Love means you never have to be apart." 05/08 Jennifer Lawrence

TWENTY WISHES by Debbie Macomber: Anne Marie Roche is a recent widow. Despite having several close friends and owning a successful bookstore, she feels alone. Anne Marie's close friends also feel the loneliness of widowhood. Lillie Higgins lost her husband in a plane crash, the same crash that took the life of the husband of her daughter, Barbie Higgins. Elise Beaumont lost her husband to cancer. Anne Marie and her friends get together and celebrate their lives. They discuss their hopes and dreams. Each decides to create a list of twenty wishes, dreams that they've had all their lives but have never fulfilled. In subsequent months, all of the women start acting on their wishes. Anne Marie's first wish: Find one good thing about life. To her, it seemed to be an admission of how depressed and low she really felt. She finds that Ellen is the key to her happiness, and together Anne Marie and Ellen quickly fulfill their twenty wishes. This was my first "Blossom Street" book and I absolutely loved it. Macomber's characters come alive and I feel like they are a part of my life. Finishing the book, I felt a sense of loss, but I have plans to pick up the rest of the "Blossom Street" books and continue on with these truly amazing women. 05/08 Jennifer Lawrence

THE DEPARTMENT OF LOST & FOUND by Allison Wynn Scotch: Natalie Miller is the top aid of one of New York's women senators. She's devoted all of her time and energy to her career. Then she learns that she has breast cancer, and she's forced to devoting all her time and energy to her survival. She takes a look at the decisions she's made throughout her life and puts all of her energy into finding her past loves of her life so she can determine what went wrong. It turns out that she is the one to blame---she consistently chooses her job and her career over love and her own personal happiness. Natalie's therapist suggests that she use a journal to channel her pain into, rather than falling into a state of depression. She learns how to embrace life and live it at its fullest. This book was amazing. The journal entries allow the reader to witness the evolution Natalie goes through during this self-discovery. Rather than being a downer, this book was incredibly uplifting. It realistically portrayed the frightening truth behind cancer and its victims but still provided hope. 05/08 Jennifer Lawrence

NO ONE LEFT TO TELL by Jordan Dane: When the body of a Dunhill Corporation security agent is found hanging in a church, a cryptic message carved into his chest, Raven MacKenzie knows she’s in for a difficult case. She and her partner have been ordered to cooperate with the corporation’s owner as much as possible and that means working with her handpicked head of security, Christian Delacorte. Christian has a colored past and believes dirty cops were responsible for the death of his family when he was a young boy, so he has no reason to respect or trust the boys and girls in blue. He makes his distaste very obvious, but finds that he is strongly attracted to Raven in spite of all of this. Raven is also drawn to Delacorte but can’t ignore the signs that point to him as the prime suspect in the case. Like Lisa Gardner, and Lisa Unger, Dane’s edge-of-your-seat action-packed thrillers are a perfect blend of suspense and romance. While Dane’s debut title, No One Heard Her Scream, is a stand-alone (for now) MacKenzie’s own story will continue with this month’s release of No One Lives Forever.  05/08 Becky Lejeune 

ISLAND OF LOST GIRLS by Jennifer McMahon: Rhonda lives in a small town. The kind of town where everyone knows your name and everyone knows your business. She makes a last minute stop at the town’s only gas station one afternoon and ends up being the only witness to quite a strange occurrence – a rabbit gets out of a gold VW beetle and walks over to a neighboring car where a girl sits waiting for her mother. The girl gets out, takes the rabbit’s hand, and gets into the beetle. They drive away before a shocked Rhonda can even think to do anything about it. Appalled by her own lack of action, Rhonda becomes determined to help find the missing girl. The case will force Rhonda to finally face memories of her own past that have been dormant up until now, memories of a summer long ago when everything she knew as a child began to change. Island deals with many of the same issues that were found in McMahon’s phenomenal debut, Promise Not to Tell. Both books tackle issues of child abuse, childhood secrets, and the nature of small towns. McMahon has a real talent for expressing the conflicting range of emotions felt by her heroines. She’s also great at creating these quiet mysteries that really involve the reader. It’s easy to sympathize with her characters, and she manages to keep the outcome a surprise even while she’s given you every clue you need to figure it out.  05/08 Becky Lejeune 

WICKED GAME by Jeri Smith-Ready: Ciara Griffin is a con-woman looking for a real job. She manages to get hired on as a Sales and Marketing intern at WMMP Radio. Unlike many stations out there today, WMMP’s djs really care about the music. You see they’re all vampires. Apparently, the vamps have a hard time letting go of the era in which they were alive and the station was set up to help them deal with the change in times - the music provides them something concrete that they can hold on to, which makes it easier for them to cope with the time that has past. The problem is this, the owner, a vamp herself, is looking to ensure her retirement and a big corporate conglomerate has offered to buy out the station which would leave the rest of the undead djs out of a job. Ciara is supposed to help figure out a way to boost the station’s popularity and bring in enough cash to discourage the sale. She does, but her plan involves outing the vamps themselves in hopes that it will prove to be a great marketing gimmick without actually convincing people that the undead really do walk among us. Unfortunately, her campaign is not so popular with other area vamps. Smith-Ready’s urban fantasy is both sharp and witty, Ciara is a spunky and sarcastically funny heroine, and the whole book is a fresh spin on the classic vampire mythology making it a stand-out title amongst its peers.  05/08 Becky Lejeune

ONE FOOT IN THE GRAVE by Jeaniene Frost: It’s been four years since the events of Frost’s debut Night Huntress title, Halfway to the Grave. Cat has agreed to work for Homeland Security tracking down and eliminating evil vamps, but she can’t help pining for the man that got away – or the vamp that she let go, in this case. She did it to protect him from her new employers, so she knows that it was for the best, and she’s finally going to attempt to move on. Unfortunately for her, someone has placed a significant bounty on her head and Bones has decided that they’ve been apart long enough. It seems he’d rather stay where he can keep a close eye on her and protect her, especially when his own sire decides that he would like the Red Reaper (the vamp nickname for Cat) for his very own. Course Cat’s boss and coworkers are none too pleased about the new setup, until they realize just what an asset Bones can be. Frost toes the line between the newly minted urban fantasy genre and paranormal romance. The book contains enough steamy sex to earn itself a place firmly in the romance genre, but in my opinion the series will still appeal to readers who aren’t normally too big into the romance aspect. 05/08 Becky Lejeune

The Blood Ballad by Rett MacPherson: The eleventh Torie O’Shea mystery takes readers back to New Kassel, Missouri, to the tourist town on the Mississippi River that Torie and her family call home. There’s no doubt that some of the enjoyment of this mystery series comes from Torie’s family life. And, the genealogist and town historian can’t believe that she might have been wrong about her own family history. When she’s shot at while spending the night at the birding Olympics, she thought it was odd. But, why do corpses just tumble at her feet, down a hill, and land in front of her? Even worse, the corpse mailed her a ballad that might be connected to the mystery of her family history. Even worse, maybe, for Torie, but it makes one more enjoyable story to MacPherson’s fans. 05/08 Lesa Holstine

When We Get to Surf City: A Journey Through America in Pursuit of Rock and Roll, Friendship, and Dreams by Bob Greene: Like his other books, Greene’s latest makes the reader nostalgic for a past you never knew. Or, if you were lucky enough to be a teenager during the 1960s, it might bring back memories. In 1992, when a musician for Jan and Dean’s road band contacted Greene, he never expected that letter would change his life. For the next fifteen years, Greene spent his summers meeting up with the band, performing and enjoying their company. He had the chance to meet the performers of his teen years, the Beach Boys, James Brown, Jerry Lee Lewis, the Everly Brothers, and, of course, Jan and Dean. It’s a book tinged with sadness, with Jan Berry’s accident hanging over the whole book. It’s also the story of a group of men, “Lost Boys,” as Greene refers to them, who spend their summers together, in friendship, just “playing.” If anyone can make the reader long for the past, it’s Bob Greene. 05/08 Lesa Holstine

Small Favor by Jim Butcher: The latest Dresden Files book starts out on the light note of a snowball fight, but, before he can enjoy it, Harry Dresden is caught up in a another war between the forces of Summer and Winter. Chicago’s only wizard has to bring in friends and family in order to take care of the small favor he owes to Mab, the Winter Queen. Harry and his friends face one horror after another as they try to rescue Gentleman Johnny Marcone, the lord of Chicago’s underworld. It’s even worse when a young girl is kidnapped, because Harry takes it personally. Small Favor is another strong entry in this outstanding series, a series with dark humor, magic and suspense. 05/08 Lesa Holstine

Cats in May by Doreen Tovey: Tovey’s 1959 story about her two Siamese cats has been republished in a delightful little format with drawings by Dan Brown. Tovey’s cats became celebrities in England, but she had to live with the rivalry between Solomon and Sheba. Her husband’s lack of mechanical skills did not make life any easier. Add in the stories about the pet squirrel and Doreen’s grandmother, and Cats in May is a fun book for light reading. 05/08 Lesa Holstine

Chloe Anne: Force of Nature by Valerie Oblath: Chloe Anne, a voluptuous cat, “too beautiful for words,” tells her life story, through her owner, Oblath. Before her adoption from the Humane Society, Chloe Anne led a pedestrian life, with a pedestrian name, Penny. However, she found herself loved and cherished, adopted by Oblath, and sharing a pampered life with Cinders, the other cat in the house. Chloe Anne has a wonderful sense of humor, and cat lovers will totally love and accept this book, although other readers might find us nuts. It’s the perfect book for the cat lover in your life. 05/08 Lesa Holstine

The Night Tourist by Katherine Marsh: Marsh’s mystery just won the Edgar Award for Best Juvenile Mystery. Fans of Rick Riordan’s Percy Jackson and the Olympians will appreciate this story about a boy’s attempt to find his dead mother in the underworld. Jack Perdu is a fourteen year old Classics scholar, whose mother died in New York City. When Jack’s sent there to see a doctor, after a car accident, he stumbles across a ghost in the subway. Soon, he knows from Euri’s stories, and his classic studies, that he might be able to find his mother. Jack’s journey through the underworld, with a teenage ghost as guide, is a fascinating mystery. 05/08 Lesa Holstine

BABY SHARK'S HIGH PLAINS REDEMPTION by Robert Fate: Pulp fiction makes a comeback with this series featuring Kristin Van Dijk, better known as Baby Shark, the pool-hustling, butt-kicking 18-year-old heroine of Baby Shark and Baby Shark’s Beaumont Blues. Kristin is comfortable in her job as a private eye at the Millett Agency in 1950’s Texas. Their latest case seems simple enough; pick up bootlegger Travis Horner’s girlfriend and bring her back to him. Horner is one of the biggest bootleggers in Oklahoma, and his girlfriend happens to be the daughter of his biggest rival, Bull Smike. But someone doesn’t want that to happen, Otis is set up and Baby Shark walks into a fight and a shootout. The fights and shootouts continue nonstop until Baby Shark finds out that Horner considers himself to be a world class pool player. She challenges him to a game, and all scores are settled. These books must be read in order as there are no explanations as to what came before or how and why all these relationships were formed. The language is rough and the body count high in this fast paced shoot-‘em-up. 05/08 Stacy Alesi, AKA The BookBitch

BABY SHARK'S HIGH PLAINS REDEMPTION by Robert Fate: No one does action-packed, visual books as well as Fate does. Once again, he brings Baby Shark, Kristin Van Dijk, to life. Kristin, who lost her pool hustler father to murder, and her own life as she knew it to a group of men who beat and raped her, is now a private investigator teamed up with Otis Millett. They agree to find a bootlegger's girlfriend, but by the time Kristin arrives on the scene, Otis is beaten, and they face a number of gunmen. It takes all of Kristin's skills to escape with Otis and the girl, Savannah Smike. By the time they discover that Savannah is the daughter of a rival bootlegger, it's too late, Kristin and Otis are targets of ruthless killers, willing to shoot them down, for some unknown reason. As in the two previous Baby Shark books, readers will be cheering for Kristin as she takes down the bad guys, with a pool cue, and her wits.  05/08 Lesa Holstine

THE PRINCE OF FROGTOWN by Rick Bragg:  The author of All Over But the Shoutin’ and Ava’s Man, completes his family cycle by breaking the reader’s heart one more time. This time, Bragg digs into his father’s story, the man he viewed as a drunk who couldn’t keep his family together. When Bragg, himself, becomes a stepfather, he realizes he might not have understood his father’s life. He contacts family members and his father’s friends to discover a truth he never knew. The Prince of Frogtown wraps itself around the story of a mill town, the story of a man and a family, and, ultimately, the story of Rick Bragg. All Over But the Shoutin’ may still be a favorite of many people, but fans should read this in order to complete the family story. 05/08 Lesa Holstine

WHERE HAVE ALL THE LEADERS GONE? by Lee Iacocca: Iacocca’s book may be the most important book people should read in an election year. It summarizes the problems with our government, and our country, and raises a call to arms. Iacocca says he’s sick and tired of politicians who don’t listen to the people, politicians who are running the country into the ground. He admits Americans are to blame as well, but he encourages everyone to carefully choose a president. Iacocca’s call to action demands outrage, action, and sacrifice from everyone. He offers a great deal of hope for the country, if we’re willing to take action. Where Have All the Leaders Gone? is a book that demands answers. 05/08 Lesa Holstine

THE HOST by Stephenie Meyer: They call themselves souls. They can live essentially forever transferring themselves from one host to another, and Earth is just their latest conquest. Wanderer has lived more lives on more planets than most of her kind. It is for this reason that she is chosen to be placed inside one of the remaining resistant humans. The Seekers know that Melanie was with others and they hope that Wanderer will be able to tell them where these people are hiding. From the beginning, this host is different from the others. Melanie’s consciousness seems to have remained, and her memories of loved ones haunt Wanderer day and night. Melanie’s increasingly insistent voice drives Wanderer to the desert where she hopes to finally track down Melanie’s hiding family. Along the way, Wanderer begins to bond with Melanie and the other humans, and as a result, she becomes unsure where her place is in this life. In a utopian society that lives a collective, but perfect existence, there is no room for individuality. Humans embrace this aspect of life and though it is new and foreign to Wanderer, it offers her something that her previous existences never have. This is a more complex story than any synopsis can really express, but it’s essentially a tale of love, friendship, and the need to belong somewhere. Meyer has already conquered the teen scene, and captured the hearts of many adult readers as well, with her Twilight series. The Host is an absolutely amazing book that will give those few remaining holdouts the opportunity to see just what all the fuss is about. I’ll tell you now, it’s all true - I loved The Host and can’t recommend it highly enough.  05/08 Becky Lejeune

NOVEL ABOUT MY WIFE by Emily Perkins:  Tom and Ann are expecting their first child and they couldn’t be happier. Their story begins with a train derailment. Ann claimed that she had been feeling ill and left work early which caused her to be on the train. Everyone was fine, including Ann, but she subsequently admits that the reason she left work early was because a man had been following her. Ann mentions the man only a few more times, and Tom assumes that the problem has gone away. Then Ann’s behavior begins to change, frantic cleaning sessions, strange smells that only she can detect, and an almost obsessive return to her sculptures – tiny protectors she leaves all around the house. Tom begins to suspect that the wild mood swings and neuroses may not be a symptom of the pregnancy after all. The story is his attempt, after the fact, to outline his wife’s spiral into madness, something of an attempt to find the moment when it all began. Tom reveals Ann’s fate almost at the very beginning, but even with that knowledge, Perkins’s characters and their pain are so real and so touching that you hope things will turn out differently just this once. 05/08 Becky Lejeune

THE TENTH GIFT by Jane Johnson:  Julia Lovat’s lover has decided that its time to call it quits; he wants to make a go of it with his wife. As a parting gift, he gives Julia a book called the “The Needle Woman’s Glorie,” a centuries-old tome that is filled with embroidery patterns popular in the 1600s. It’s also filled with the writings of the original owner, Catherine Anne Tregenna, Cat for short, who was captured by Moroccan corsairs in 1625. Cat was to be taken back to Africa and sold into slavery, and she used the book to keep track of her story. The more Julia learns of Cat’s life, the more enthralled she becomes with the tale and the more questions she has about Cat’s eventual fate. Cat’s story has a profound effect on Julia, and sends her on her own adventure to Morocco in an attempt to learn more. Johnson’s book about a book is part mystery, part adventure, part history, and part romance. Throw in some pirates and ghosts of the past and you’ve got a surefire recipe for a summer hit. This book lived up to every expectation I had for it given its literary counterparts. Johson’s Tenth Gift is similar in style to Carol Goodman’s literary mysteries.  05/08 Becky Lejeune

BLOODSTONE by Nate Kenyon: An ancient evil lies waiting below the surface of quiet White Falls, Maine. Billy Smith’s nightmares have been preparing him for the danger to come and he answers the subconscious call that leads him there. Along the way, he kidnaps Angel, a woman who shares Billy’s nightmares, and brings her along for the ride. The two soon realize that although they have no idea what awaits them at the end of their journey, they do share a common bond and their once hostile relationship evolves into something more. Jeb Taylor has lived with the stain of his father’s horrible crime all his life. Now his father is dead, but his ghost won’t let Jeb be. In fact, people all over White Falls find themselves tossing and turning nightly with strange nightmares, haunted by the sins of their pasts. I guess this Stoker nominated title just wasn’t for me. First off, it reminded me way too much of another nominated title (from the same year) Sarah Langan’s The Keeper. Kenyon’s book, however, is slow to develop and left me with a feeling that there was something missing. The build-up to the final revelation is underwhelming and I still don’t really “get” what was happening. I wanted to like it but was sadly disappointed. Overall, other reviews of the book have been positive, though. 05/08 Becky Lejeune

WICKED CITY by Ace Atkins:  “WELCOME TO PHENIX CITY, Alabama, population 23,205.  Located across the Chattahoochee River from Columbus, Georgia we offer all the basic amenities of small town Southern life.  There’s Cobb’s Barber Shop, where kindly grey-headed gentlemen discuss local politics and current affairs between the buzz of the clippers and local radio ag reports.  And we have the friendly Elite Café, where Mr. Ross Gibson will cook you up the best plate of eggs and grits with red-eye gravy you ever tasted.  We have a Bentley’s Grocery Store, the Phenix City Pharmacy, and the wonderful Palace Theatre, where on Saturdays a kid can get in for fifty cents and watch the latest B westerns or the new adventure of Francis the Talking Mule.  Phenix City also boasts Idle Hour Amusement park – you can take a miniature train from downtown into the hills and roller-skate, bowl, and swim.  There is even a little zoo there with bears and lions and monkeys.  All of this mixed with dozens of churches, Christian and civic clubs, and one of the best hospitals in east Alabama make Phenix City an ideal place for the family.  Not to mention the world-famous nightclubs, clip joints, and brothels.  Phenix City is probably best known for its whores.”  Thus begins Atkins’ fictional account of the cleanup of Phenix City, which began after the state Attorney General-elect Albert Patterson, was shot and killed on June 18, 1954, after running a campaign to clean up Phenix City (He was succeeded by his son who carried out his father’s plan).  Larger than life characters include Ex-boxer and appointed sheriff Lamar Murphy, opposed by crooked Deputy Bert Fuller, Madame (in the traditional sense) Fannie Belle, and the redneck mafia determined to keep Phenix City sinful and profitable.  Although the ending is obvious, the journey is most enjoyable, particularly if you have a personal interest in the area, as I, a native Alabamian do. 05/08 Jack Quick  

THE ACCIDENT MAN by Tom Cain:  British journalist Tom Cain has come up with a new twist on an old story.  It’s Paris, 1997 and hit man Samuel Carver is in a tunnel preparing to do a job.  The car wreck he creates causes a speeding black Mercedes to crash into a stone pillar, surely killing the car’s occupants.  Moments later, Carver finds himself the target of an apparent Russian killer.  Only later does he learn that the victim of his actions was, in fact, Princess Diana, and not the terrorist he was told would be occupying the car.  Since Carver only does bad guys, he vows revenge on the people who set him up.  This includes several spy organizations and various intermediaries.  Think James Bond without the government backing.  Nicely written and perhaps the basis for an on-going series featuring Carver and his Russian female accomplice.  Wilbur Smith calls this “This is the best first thriller I have read since The Day of the Jackal, and that was a long time ago.”  Not a bad recommendation. 05/08 Jack Quick  

LIEBERMAN’S FOLLY by Stuart Kaminsky:  Having finished all the Porfiry Rostnikov series (except the one due out in August) and all the Lew Fonesca series, I am now tackling the third of Kaminsky’s four separate mystery series.  Abe “Rabbi” Lieberman and Bill "Father Murphy" Hanrahan are Chicago cops.  In this first outing, a past informant, prostitute Estralda Valdez, is murdered even though Hanrahan is supposed to be watching out for her.  After her death, he and Lieberman seek her killer, even though their rules happy captain, who is unhappy about negative publicity; opposes, since after all, she was only a prostitute.  It will be interesting to see what direction Kaminksy takes this series and whether he develops these characters as thoroughly as those in his other books.  Recommended. 05/08 Jack Quick  

LIEBERMAN’S CHOICE by Stuart Kaminsky:  It’s a cop’s worst nightmare for sixty-year-old Chicago cop Abe Lieberman.  A fellow officer, Bernie Shephard, has found his wife and a fellow officer in bed together and blown them away with a shotgun.  Then he barricades himself on his roof with food, his dog, guns, and explosives.  Abe knows all the parties involved and it falls eventually to him to solve the matter after a failed SWAT team assault yields additional casualties.   Another good one from a master storyteller. 05/08 Jack Quick  

THE SCORELESS THAI by Lawrence Block:  Originally published as Two for Tanner in paperback in 1968, this hardcover reprint seems dated now but still a great read today.  Tanner is the Korean War veteran with a head injury that destroyed his sleep center.  Never having to sleep Tanner has plenty of time to become interested in hopeless causes, oppressed groups, obscure languages and exotic travel.  In this fourth Tanner novel, he is in Thailand looking for a missing girlfriend, singer Tuppence Nagwa, an African-American beauty into the jazz scene.  She and her fellow musicians have been kidnapped by Communist insurgents, immediately after a major burglary of the local royal jewelry collection.  It’s Tanner to the rescue but not without his own pitfalls and perils.  Again, a great read or re-read. 05/08 Jack Quick 

THREE LITTLE WORDS by Ashley Rhodes-Courter: Ashley Rhodes survived 9 years and a total of 19 foster parents. "Three Little Words" describes the many cases of abuse Ashley experienced in the near decade that she spent in the foster care system. Ashley and her brother, Luke, were forced to live in foster homes overrun with children and suffered unspeakable abuse. The odds were against her in a system that still has problems. Yet she not only survived, she flourished. Throughout her experience in the foster system she attempted to reach out to authorities about the atrocities that she and her foster siblings faced. Each time she was ignored; she was simply an unruly child seeking attention. After she was adopted, Ashley went on to become an advocate for the foster care system and her voice was finally heard. One of the most powerful parts of the book is the three little words alluded to in the title. They aren’t “I Love You” as many would expect, but “I guess so” which is what Rhodes said to a judge on the day of her adoption. 05/08 Jennifer Lawrence

THE KINDNESS OF STRANGERS by Katrina Kittle: Sarah Ladens is struggling to keep her family intact after the death of her husband. Her oldest son, Nate, has been getting in trouble at school and her youngest, Danny is barely getting by. Sarah learns that her best friend is charged with a horrendous crime against her son, a classmate of Danny's, as well as several other young children in this small, close-knit town. Sarah must determine who to believe--the scathing evidence the police has found, or her best friend. And caught in the middle is Jordan, Danny's classmate. Jordan has never known what it feels like to really be loved. Now, without parents, he's destined to become part of the foster care system. The Ladens step up and offer to foster him. After a long and difficult struggle, the Ladens, once again a family of four all begins to heal. The Kindness of Strangers is powerful and full of emotion. Katrina Kittle deals with a sensitive topic that is often buried. The emotion that each of the characters experience is genuine and believable. The reader feels that they are part of the story, a member of the community that is forced to deal with this horrendous crime. 05/08 Jennifer Lawrence

TARNISHED BEAUTY by Cecilia Samartin: Jamilet is a beautiful young woman from a small town in Mexico. Throughout her life she has been shunned by local townspeople because of a horrible birthmark that taints her back and part of her legs. She flees to Los Angeles illegally in order to seek treatment for her birthmark and begins working at a local mental institution. Her patient is an elderly man named Antonio, a difficult and angry man from Spain. Antonio steals Jamilet's illegal immigration documents and promises to return them upon the condition that she listens to his story. Jamilet agrees, and thus begins an unbreakable bond. Antonio’s story details his pilgrimage to the Cathedral of Santiago in Spain with his friend Tomas prior to joining the priesthood. Inspired by Antonio’s story, Jamilet learns that her mark does not define her as a person. Beauty is more than skin deep. She breaks herself free of the shell that has been preventing her from opening up and allowing herself to love. The ending of the story was a bit sudden; several aspects were left hanging, but this doesn't detract from the powerful storytelling. 05/08 Jennifer Lawrence

HOLD TIGHT by Harlan Coben: I have had a love/hate relationship with Coben's books for some time now.  I was his biggest champion when he wrote his first standalone thriller, Tell No One.  But as he continued to write and define the "family thriller", I started having serious issues.  Coben can suck a reader in and keep those pages turning like nobody's business, but a few books ago I noticed that he was writing himself into a corner and taking absurd, unbelievable, completely far-fetched ways out of it.  That, combined with his penchant for wrapping up every loose end in the last two pages caused me to stop reading him.  But I was persuaded to try his last book, The Woods, and I was delighted to find that he finally learned how to write a believable, albeit entirely too detailed, ending.  Which brings me to his latest effort, Hold Tight.

Coben recently penned an op-ed piece for the NY Times titled "The Undercover Parent", about why parents should install software to spy on their children's every move, every time they go online.  He slams that ball home in this book.  In lovely suburban New Jersey, one such family is weighing that very option as their teenage son's grades are sliding and his behavior becomes erratic.  The arguments both for and against are well presented, and it is an integral part of the story which includes moms getting murdered, teenage drug parties, and a teenage suicide -  most of your basic parental nightmares rolled up into one riveting read - with an ending that makes sense. All in all, I'm happy to say this was an excellent read and a marvelous way to spend a few hours. 05/08 Stacy Alesi, AKA The BookBitch

CERTAIN GIRLS by Jennifer Weiner:  Weiner writes good chick-lit.  She's the author of In Her Shoes, which became a blockbuster movie with Cameron Diaz and Toni Collette.  Weiner's first novel was the chick-lit bestseller Good in Bed and Certain Girls is the sequel. In Good in Bed, our heroine Candace "Cannie" Shapiro gets dumped and reads about it in a magazine article written by the dumper.  In retaliation, she writes a very angry, very funny novel that becomes a huge bestseller.  Now we meet up with Cannie about 10 years later, as she's getting ready for her daughter Joy's bat mitzvah.  The story is told in alternating first person chapters between Joy and Cannie, so we get both perspectives of the coming-of-age, mother-daughter relationship in all its glory.  Being a mother of a 15 year old who went through the bat mitzvah process not that long ago, I could easily relate.  Cannie has been pseudonymously writing a young adult sci-fi series for years and reveling in being a wife and mother.  The angst arises when Joy gets hold of a copy of her mother's bestseller, which raises all sorts of questions about her family.  Certain Girls has lots of angst, lots of laughs and a very bittersweet ending - I loved it. 05/08 Stacy Alesi, AKA The BookBitch

THE FORTUNE COOKIE CHRONICLES: Adventures in the World of Chinese Food by Jennifer 8. Lee: I love Chinese food, and I love humorously written, well researched food books, so when I heard about this one, I couldn't wait to get my chopsticks on it.  I am really glad I did.  This is a fact-filled, fun read about the history of Chinese food in America, that includes amazing research that took the author all through China and Japan.  Japan, you say?  Why yes, because our beloved fortune cookies are not Chinese in origin, but rather Japanese.  In fact, we are now exporting "American fortune cookies" to China.  The idea of delivering food to people's homes started with a savvy Chinese restaurant owner in New York City.  And Lee explores the relationship between Jews and Chinese food, including a chapter devoted to the only Glatt Kosher Chinese restaurant in the southeastern United States, and its Peking Duck scandal.  She goes looking for the origin of one of our most popular dishes, General Tso's chicken, and explains why chop suey is disappearing off of Chinese restaurant menus all across America - hint: neither dish is Chinese in origin.  This is a quick, fun read, perfect to read in small bites and guaranteed to make you hungry.  05/08 Stacy Alesi, AKA The BookBitch

THE BLACK DOVE by Steve Hockensmith:  There is a joke about a fellow from Minnesota who took as his bride, a lady from Palestine.  To honor both their cultures, they named their firstborn son “Yassir Youbetcha”.  Gustav “Old Red” Amlingmeyer and his brother Otto “Big Red” Amlingmeyer find themselves in Chinatown in San Francisco in 1893.  Although cowpokes by training, the brothers fancy themselves experts as “deducifying” like their idol, the immortal Sherlock Holmes.  The brothers face guns and hatchets while defying the San Francisco Police Department, brutal Barbary Coast hoodlums and the deadly Chinatown tongs.  Their friend, Dr. Chan, is a victim of the hunt for the mysterious, exotic, and enigmatic hard to find “Black Dove.”  All that’s missing is Jackie Chan as “Chon Wang” from Shanghai Noon.  Definitely not your every day mystery but definitely amusing.  05/08 Jack Quick 

DEAD TIME by Stephen White:  If I had to describe this book in one word it would be “messy”.  Messy plot line and even messier presentation.  If it were anyone other that Stephen White I would have chucked it, but I persevered and am glad I did.  Here’s the messy theme – At the end of White’s last book, Dry Ice, his bi-sexual friend and neighbor Adrienne is killed in a suicide bomb attack while visiting Israel.  She has left instructions that she wants Alex and his wife, Lauren, to adopt her son Jonas.  At Adrienne’s memorial service her uptight brother from back in New York tells Alex he wants Jonas to come live with him.  While Alex is processing this, Alex’ ex-wife Meredith shows up.  She tells Alex she is pregnant and engaged.  All this adds strain to Alex’ relationship with current wife Lauren whose MS is acting up.  Lauren leaves for Europe with their daughter to look for a daughter she had given up for adoption before meeting Alex.  Alex goes to New York City to be close to Jonas while Jonas is spending three weeks with Adrienne’s brother and his family.  While in New York, Meredith contacts him.  She had miscarried her child and then she and fiancé Eric had engaged a surrogate to bear their child, using fertilized eggs left over from the in vitro process.  Still with me?  Eric was involved in a decade old mystery involving the disappearance of a woman at the Grand Canyon that connects back to the disappearance of the would-be surrogate mother.  Now, to make it even more interesting the story is told in alternating chapters from the standpoint of Alex and then from ex-wife Meredith, interrupted by flashbacks to the Grand Canyon trip involving Eric.  If you can keep all the balls bouncing it’s a good story and everything ends well, sort of.  To learn more, you’ll just have to try it yourself. 05/08 Jack Quick 

THE SEX CLUB by L. J. Sellers:  I grew up in and currently live in Birmingham, Alabama where Eric Rudolph killed officer Robert Sanderson and critically injured nurse Emily Lyons in the bombing of an abortion clinic January 29, 1998.  Consequently, I feel a special empathy with Kera Kollmorgan, a registered nurse at the Planned Parenthood clinic in Eugene, Oregon, which suffers a similar encounter.  A pipe bomb goes off, damaging the building and causing severe injuries to one patient.  Things only get worse the next day when the dead body of a young girl who has visited the clinic is fond in a nearby dumpster.  Detective Wade Jackson is initially assigned to the bombing case and later to the homicide.  He is a single father of a fourteen- year old girl who was friends with the victim.  In addition to the personal implications, there are also political implications complicating the case.  I understand this is the first of a series featuring Detective Jackson. I hope so, and think it will do well. 05/08 Jack Quick 

QUANTICO by Greg Bear:  It’s the not too distant future and the FBI and other assorted alphabet agencies are on the track of gene-keyed anthrax (Remember 2001?).  The focus of the book is on two classmates at the FBI Training Academy.  One is William Griffin, son a legendary FBI agent, who ends up following a case in which his father is almost killed.  The other is Fouad Al-Husam, who ends up on super-secret missions to the Middle East.  Bear does an excellent job of interweaving their stories with that of the terrorists in a very believable scenario.  At the end it’s up to Griffin, Al-Husam, and veteran agent Rebecca Rose to pull the plug on this potentially devastating group.  Well done.  I want to go back and read his previous, Dead Lines. 05/08 Jack Quick 

DANCING ABOVE THE WAVES by Susan Walerstein:  Wealthy Bostonian Jack "Scooter" McCalister has it all - a degree from Brown, a Vassar graduate trophy wife, houses in Boston, Clary’s Cove, Palm Springs, Maui and Aspen; a Commander 24 powerboat, a restored Porsche Speedster, enough money to cash in stocks for $500,000 without a problem, and a mistress who was once “the prettiest girl on the Island.”  But now it all comes crashing down as Jack, rushing to meet the ferry, hits a pedestrian with his car – a young girl, and then he leaves the scene, not knowing whether she is dead or alive.  There are witnesses – the girl’s boyfriend, and Jack’s pregnant mistress who starts having second thoughts about Jack’s suitability as a father.  There are problems at the magazine he and his wife co-manage, a blackmailer appears, and Jack’s once wonderful life is now going down the tubes.  An interesting psychological thriller, although there are truly few sympathetic characters.  Even the dead teenager had sneaked out of her home and was high on drugs when the accident occurred.  Enough suspense to keep you going to the end of this debut novel. 05/08 Jack Quick  

CHILD 44 by Tom Rob Smith: In Stalinist Russia, the government would have you believe that Communism is the only way to live, that their system is the best, that they’ve eliminated crime and jealousy. To attempt to speak out and disprove the government means years of hard labor and even death. Everyone lives on edge wondering if they will be the next ones on the militia’s hit list. Leo Demidov, a war hero and well-respected member of the elite militia, has never questioned authority until now. His wife is accused of being a spy and Leo must show where his loyalties lie – with his superiors, or with his family. The wrong decision results in his exile and demotion. Then, a body is discovered. The accused is a mentally challenged teen from a local asylum. Leo knows that the boy can’t be responsible. In fact, Leo knows that this is not the first murder of its kind. But how do you prove there is a serial killer on the loose in a country that disavows even the possibility of crime. On his own, Leo discovers a second body in the area and, believing that he has proven the boy’s innocence, turns it over to authorities. Instead, the boy is killed for the first murder and a witch-hunt begins for a second killer, the government’s way of eliminating undesirables amongst their perfect society. A search through local records reveals over forty bodies and Leo will literally risk everything to find the real killer. This is one of the most talked about books of the year, and I’ve got to tell you, it definitely lives up to the hype. It’s brilliant debut based on painstaking research. Smith’s attention, not only to the physical details of his setting, but to the emotional strain and motivations of his characters amidst this environment are impeccable. This will be one of the best books you read all year.  05/08 Becky Lejeune  

THE LADY ELIZABETH by Alison Weir: Historian Weir’s latest is a fictional depiction of Queen Elizabeth I in the years prior to the beginning of her monarchy. As with last year’s Innocent Traitor, the story of Lady Jane Grey, Weir has used historical record and creative license to create an addictive and dramatic story that begins with Mary’s revelation to her younger sister that her mother, Anne Boleyn, has been put to death for the crime of treason against the king in 1536 through to Mary’s death in 1558. A twist in Weir’s tale is the notion that Elizabeth conceived and miscarried a child fathered by Thomas Seymour. People have been fascinated with tales of the British monarchy for ages, and the timely release of Weir’s novel provides a perfect opportunity for fans of titles such as The Other Boleyn Girl to gain more insight into this fascinating piece of history – taken with a grain of salt, of course. Readers looking for a more accurate depiction can tackle Weir’s extensive non-fiction collection on the Tudors, but the fictional interpretation leaves more room for the consideration of less popular, but still remotely possible, “conspiracy theories” that make for provocative reading.  05/08 Becky Lejeune  

THE DARKEST NIGHT by Gena Showalter: They were ancient warriors of the highest order until jealousy prompted an irreversible mistake. The story of Pandora and her box is well known, but Showalter adds another twist to this famous myth. Pandora was one of these ancient warriors, set to guard a box housing all of the evils of the world. Maddox, a fellow warrior is so incensed over Pandora’s assignment that he and his fellow warriors steal the box, accidentally releasing the demons housed within. As punishment, each of the warriors must house within them one of the demons from the box. Maddox’s punishment is the demon of violence. As further punishment for killing Pandora, he is murdered every night at midnight, his soul sent to hell, and resurrected each morning. The men live in a tower in Budapest, surprisingly supportive of the surrounding community who view them as angels. Ashlyn Darrow has been plagued with psychic abilities – she hears voices and conversations everywhere she goes. She seeks out the men in hopes that they may be able to help her and gets much more than she bargained for. She and Maddox are instantly drawn to one another, which could mean real problems since the men have taken great pains to avoid bringing outsiders into their sanctuary. This is an intriguing concept for a romance series, and it’s going to be a definite favorite amongst fans of the paranormal.  05/08 Becky Lejeune  

THE QUEEN’S BASTARD by C. E. Murphy: Belinda Primrose has been raised to believe that her parents died years ago in an accident. Just before her twelfth birthday, the truth about her birth is finally revealed. Her mother is none other than Queen Lorraine and her father is the man she believed to be her uncle. She can never reveal the truth of her heritage, and she must help to ensure that her mother’s seat on the throne remains unthreatened, at all costs. After spending ten years training and acting as an assassin securing the Aulunian queen’s interests, Belinda is given a new task. She is to infiltrate the royal family of a neighboring kingdom and find out if there are plans against Lorraine. Belinda seduces the prince and discovers that they share a common bond. The two have special abilities, powers that have lain hidden in Belinda until now. With these abilities becoming more and more powerful each day, Belinda finds herself in a position of power and possibility that has remained unattainable to the bastard child. The question is whether she can overcome the evil and greed that has begun to taint her and stay loyal to her mother, or if she will be the instrument that will bring the Titian Queen down. Belinda’s dilemma is an interesting one that elicits many emotions from readers. At times she is not at all a likeable heroine, at others it is impossible not to sympathize with her. With so many aspects left to explain and a cliffhanger of an ending fantasy readers are sure to be on edge until the next installment of the story hits shelves. 05/08 Becky Lejeune  

THE DEAL by Adam Gittlin: Jonah Gray has it all, wealth, power, and all the drugs and women he wants. As the third generation of a family of real estate moguls, he has learned the business well and is one of the best. When a longtime friend, and heir to one of the world’s most powerful international businesses contacts Jonah and tells him that the company wants him to orchestrate a huge deal for them, Jonah and his team jump at the idea. The chances of earning out an enormous payday are almost guaranteed. Unfortunately, like all things that seem to good to be true, this deal might be Jonah’s downfall. As everything begins to fall apart around him, Jonah starts to put together the pieces that will eventually uncover a conspiracy that has been years in the making. To tell anymore would be to give too much away, but I can tell you there is more to this book than greedy real estate deals. A crazy stalker, murder, and stolen Faberge eggs all play a part in this smart thriller by newcomer Gittlin. If you like Joseph Finder and Stephen Frey, you’re going to love Adam Gittlin. 05/08 Becky Lejeune  

MURDER IS BINDING by Lorna Barrett: Barrett’s first Booktown Mystery is a delightful introduction to Tricia Miles, owner of a mystery bookstore in a town that welcomes bookstores, Stoneham, New Hampshire. It’s just a shame that the owner of the Cookery, the cookbook store, is found murdered. It’s even worse that Tricia, the newcomer in town, is the primary suspect. Tricia doesn’t welcome her sister’s help, or her presence in Stoneham, but she needs her. She can’t escape the suspicions of the police chief, so Tricia, along with her sister, Angelica, pries into the local secrets. Here’s hoping that Barrett will return readers to Stoneham, and other Booktown mysteries, in the near future. 05/08 Lesa Holstine

THE CRAGGY HOLE IN MY HEART AND THE CAT WHO FIXED IT by Geneen Roth: Roth tells the story of the kitten she didn’t want, the father she was afraid to lose, and the love she found in life. After sixteen years of an eating disorder, Roth quit diets, settled at her natural weight, wrote two books, and taught workshops. What she couldn’t overcome was her fear of losing everyone she loved. Roth didn’t think she had the capacity to love, because she was afraid to let herself love. And, then along came Blanche, a white kitten who grew to be twenty pounds, and turned out to be a he. The woman who was out of touch with her feelings suddenly found herself dealing with her feelings about her father, and the acceptance of a cat who gave her love with no strings attached. Roth takes a fascinating journey of growth in this book about love and loss. 05/08 Lesa Holstine

THE HOUSE ON FORTUNE STREET by Margot Livesey: The lives of four people intertwine in an absorbing story about how chance can turn a life around. Although Dara and Abigail met at the university, they were both changed by an incident in their lives at the age of ten. Part of the story tells how the two women coped with their lives as a result of their childhood, as a result of their friendship, and, as a result of a man. Livesey skillfully relates the story through the eyes of four characters, Dara and Abigail, as well as that of Cameron, Dara’s father, and Sean, the man Abigail loved. The House on Fortune Street tells of the roles people take in their own lives, and the choices made to get there. It’s a fascinating story. 05/08 Lesa Holstine

THE UNRAVELING OF VIOLETA BELLl by C.R. Corwin: The third Morgue Mama Mystery is the best in the series yet. Maddy Sprowls is the curmudgeonly newspaper librarian for an Ohio paper. She seldom suggests stories, but when she does, and murder follows, Maddy follows the trail. Four women hired the same cab driver every Saturday to take them to garage and estate sales. When one is killed after the story runs, Maddy is asked to investigate on behalf of the cabbie. Who was the victim, Violeta Bell? Was she killed because of a newspaper story? Or is there a connection to the antiques she used to sell? What about her claim to the Romanian throne? It’s a complicated case, but much of the appeal of this latest mystery lies in the character of Maddy, a librarian with a tough exterior, a heart of gold, and a mind for crime. 05/08 Lesa Holstine