Ellen's bookshelf: favorites en-US Wed, 18 Sep 2024 07:33:57 -0700 60 Ellen's bookshelf: favorites 144 41 /images/layout/goodreads_logo_144.jpg <![CDATA[Love Over Scotland (44 Scotland Street, #3)]]> 6584401 44 SCOTLAND STREET - Book 3

The residents and neighbors of 44 Scotland Street and the city of Edinburgh come to vivid life in these gently satirical, wonderfully perceptive serial novels, featuring six-year-old Bertie, a remarkably precocious boy—just ask his mother.ĚýĚý

This just in from the complicated lives of the denizens of 44 Scotland Street are becoming no simpler. Domenica Macdonald has left for the Malacca Straits to conduct a perilous anthropological study of pirate households. Angus Lordie’s dog, Cyril, has been stolen, and is facing an uncertain future wandering the streets. Bertie, the prodigiously talented six-year-old, is still enduring psychotherapy, but his burden is lightened by a junior orchestra's trip to Paris, where he makes some interesting new friends. Back in Edinburgh, there is romance for Pat with a handsome young man called Wolf, until she begins to see the attractions of the more prosaically named Matthew.

Teeming with McCall Smith’s wonderful wit and charming depictions of Edinburgh, Love Over Scotland is another beautiful ode to a city and its people that continue to fascinate this astounding author.




From the Trade Paperback edition.]]> 368 Alexander McCall Smith 0307387593 Ellen 5 favorites 4.31 2006 Love Over Scotland (44 Scotland Street, #3)
author: Alexander McCall Smith
name: Ellen
average rating: 4.31
book published: 2006
rating: 5
read at:
date added: 2024/09/18
shelves: favorites
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Man in the Wooden Hat (Old Filth, #2)]]> 6570431 Old Filth has been acclaimed as Jane Gardam's masterpiece, a book where life and art merge. And now that beautiful, haunting novel has been joined by a companion that also bursts with humor and wisdom: The Man in the Wooden Hat.

Old Filth was Eddie's story. The Man in the Wooden Hat is the history of his marriage told from the perspective of his wife, Betty, a character as vivid and enchanting as Filth himself.

They met in Hong Kong after the war. Betty had spent the duration in a Japanese internment camp. Filth was already a successful barrister, handsome, fast becoming rich, in need of a wife but unaccustomed to romance. A perfect English couple of the late 1940s.

As a portrait of a marriage, with all the bittersweet secrets and surprising fulfillment of the 50-year union of two remarkable people, the novel is a triumph. The Man in the Wooden Hat is fiction of a very high order from a great novelist working at the pinnacle of her considerable power. It will be read and loved and recommended by all the many thousands of readers who found its predecessor, Old Filth, so compelling and so thoroughly satisfying.]]> 233 Jane Gardam 1933372893 Ellen 5 favorites 4.04 The Man in the Wooden Hat (Old Filth, #2)
author: Jane Gardam
name: Ellen
average rating: 4.04
book published:
rating: 5
read at: 2012/05/21
date added: 2024/08/07
shelves: favorites
review:
What a stunner of an ending!!!! My friend told me there were a few surprises in this book and what an understatement. Loved it.
]]> <![CDATA[One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich]]> 17125 The only English translation authorized by Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn

First published in the Soviet journal Novy Mir in 1962, One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich stands as a classic of contemporary literature. The story of labor-camp inmate Ivan Denisovich Shukhov, it graphically describes his struggle to maintain his dignity in the face of communist oppression. An unforgettable portrait of the entire world of Stalin's forced work camps, One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich is one of the most extraordinary literary documents to have emerged from the Soviet Union and confirms Solzhenitsyn's stature as "a literary genius whose talent matches that of Dosotevsky, Turgenev, Tolstoy"--Harrison Salisbury

This unexpurgated 1991 translation by H. T. Willetts is the only authorized edition available, and fully captures the power and beauty of the original Russian.]]> 182 Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn Ellen 5 favorites 3.98 1962 One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich
author: Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn
name: Ellen
average rating: 3.98
book published: 1962
rating: 5
read at:
date added: 2024/03/15
shelves: favorites
review:

]]> The Shipping News 7354
A vigorous, darkly comic, and at times magical portrait of the contemporary American family, The Shipping News shows why E. Annie Proulx is recognized as one of the most gifted and original writers in America today.
(back cover)]]> 337 Annie Proulx 0743225422 Ellen 4 favorites 3.88 1993 The Shipping News
author: Annie Proulx
name: Ellen
average rating: 3.88
book published: 1993
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2023/10/31
shelves: favorites
review:

]]> 84 Charing Cross Road 2727537
"84, Charing Cross Road" is a charming record of bibliophilia, cultural differences, and imaginative sympathy. For 20 years, an outspoken New York writer and a rather more restrained London bookseller carried on an increasingly touching correspondence. In her first letter to Marks & Co., Helene Hanff encloses a wish list, but warns, "The phrase 'antiquarian booksellers' scares me somewhat, as I equate 'antique' with expensive." Twenty days later, on October 25, 1949, a correspondent identified only as FPD let Hanff know that works by Hazlitt and Robert Louis Stevenson would be coming under separate cover. When they arrive, Hanff is ecstatic - but unsure she'll ever conquer "bilingual arithmetic." By early December 1949, Hanff is suddenly worried that the six-pound ham she's sent off to augment British rations will arrive in a kosher office. But only when FPD turns out to have an actual name, Frank Doel, does the real fun begin.

Two years later, Hanff is outraged that Marks & Co. has dared to send an abridged Pepys diary. "I enclose two limp singles, I will make do with this thing till you find me a real Pepys. THEN I will rip up this ersatz book, page by page, AND WRAP THINGS IN IT." Nonetheless, her postscript asks whether they want fresh or powdered eggs for Christmas. Soon they're sharing news of Frank's family and Hanff's career.

"The Duchess of Bloomsbury Street" is a memoir of the author's visit to London following the publication of "84 Charing Cross Road." It is based on diary entries written during her stay and chronicles the events she attended, the people she met, and her impressions of a city she had long dreamed of experiencing.]]> 220 Helene Hanff 0860074382 Ellen 4 favorites 4.20 1970 84 Charing Cross Road
author: Helene Hanff
name: Ellen
average rating: 4.20
book published: 1970
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2022/09/21
shelves: favorites
review:

]]> ...And Ladies of the Club 1489728 New York Times bestseller--and an American classic--now in trade paperback...

A groundbreaking bestseller with two and a half million copies in print, "...And Ladies of the Club" centers on the members of a book club and their struggles to understand themselves, each other, and the tumultuous world they live in. A true classic, it is sure to enchant, enthrall, and intrigue readers for years to come.]]> 1176 Helen Hooven Santmyer 0517619741 Ellen 5 favorites 3.77 1982 ...And Ladies of the Club
author: Helen Hooven Santmyer
name: Ellen
average rating: 3.77
book published: 1982
rating: 5
read at:
date added: 2021/03/31
shelves: favorites
review:

]]> Masada 990085 316 Ernest K. Gann 0515054437 Ellen 5 favorites 3.89 1970 Masada
author: Ernest K. Gann
name: Ellen
average rating: 3.89
book published: 1970
rating: 5
read at:
date added: 2018/10/29
shelves: favorites
review:

]]> East (East, #1) 161887 Rose has always been different.

Since the day she was born, it was clear she had a special fate. Her superstitious mother keeps the unusual circumstances of Rose's birth a secret, hoping to prevent her adventurous daughter from leaving home... but she can't suppress Rose's true nature forever.

So when an enormous white bear shows up one cold autumn evening and asks teenage Rose to come away with it--in exchange for health and prosperity for her ailing family--she readily agrees.

Rose travels on the bear's broad back to a distant and empty castle, where she is nightly joined by a mysterious stranger. In discovering his identity, she loses her heart-- and finds her purpose--and realizes her journey has only just begun.

]]> 507 Edith Pattou 0152052216 Ellen 4 favorites I came across this sequel so of course I have to read it. I hope it's as
enjoyable as East was. I am sure I will enjoy reading this book again.]]> 4.14 2003 East (East, #1)
author: Edith Pattou
name: Ellen
average rating: 4.14
book published: 2003
rating: 4
read at: 2018/10/23
date added: 2018/10/23
shelves: favorites
review:
Read this several years ago and this somehow missed my "read" list.
I came across this sequel so of course I have to read it. I hope it's as
enjoyable as East was. I am sure I will enjoy reading this book again.
]]> A Fine Romance 22609470
A Fine Romance begins with Bergen’s charming first husband, French director Louis Malle, whose huge appetite for life broadened her horizons and whose occasional darkness never diminished their love for each other. But her real romance begins when she discovers overpowering love for her daughter after years of ambivalence about motherhood. As Chloe grows up, Bergen finds her comic genius in the biggest TV role of the 80s, Murphy Brown , and makes unwanted headlines when Dan Quayle pulls her into the 1992 presidential campaign.

Fifteen years into their marriage, Malle is diagnosed with cancer, and Candice is unflinching in describing her and Chloe’s despair over his death. But after years of widowhood, she feels the sweet shock of finding a different kind of soulmate. Candice takes us through the first years of her new marriage and shares the bittersweetness of watching Chloe leave home and flourish—and the comedy of a losing battle against those damn wrinkles and extra pounds.

A natural writer, Candice is hilarious, brutally honest, down-to-earth, and wise. She may be a beautiful Hollywood actress with a charmed life, but Candice is someone who can talk frankly about extraordinary events. Readers who pull up a chair will feel like they’ve just made a best friend.]]> 368 Candice Bergen 0684808277 Ellen 4 favorites 3.58 2015 A Fine Romance
author: Candice Bergen
name: Ellen
average rating: 3.58
book published: 2015
rating: 4
read at: 2018/03/01
date added: 2018/03/01
shelves: favorites
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Maestro Wore Mohair (The Liturgical Mysteries #13)]]> 27873793
� "Dirk cracked his knuckles, then moved in like an unwanted relative, not that unrelated uncle that used to live in the basement, but has now moved into the den and put up a bed sheet to define his space, but a worse one, like Dick Cheney or Marie Osmond." �

Autumn is drawing nigh, and when a skeleton turns up in the woods, it’s all anyone is talking about. That is, until the Maestro and her minions come to town. Now there’s another dead body, a thirty-year-old murder mystery, and all the usual suspects. Can Hayden, Nancy, and Dave figure it all out before another victim is found? Is there any doubt?

Hayden Konig's 13th mystery
It's not what you expect...
it's even funnier!]]> 208 Mark Schweizer Ellen 4 favorites Nice that the author can maintain a level of humor in his stories where other can't.
Only bad thing is that I have to wait a full year to find out if this priest is a winner or
a dud!!!!!]]> 4.40 2015 The Maestro Wore Mohair (The Liturgical Mysteries #13)
author: Mark Schweizer
name: Ellen
average rating: 4.40
book published: 2015
rating: 4
read at: 2015/09/12
date added: 2017/09/11
shelves: favorites
review:
Another fun read by Mark Schweizer. Several parts are laugh out loud funny.
Nice that the author can maintain a level of humor in his stories where other can't.
Only bad thing is that I have to wait a full year to find out if this priest is a winner or
a dud!!!!!
]]> Britt-Marie Was Here 27406704
When Britt-Marie walks out on her cheating husband and has to fend for herself in the miserable backwater town of Borg—of which the kindest thing one can say is that it has a road going through it—she finds work as the caretaker of a soon-to-be demolished recreation center. The fastidious Britt-Marie soon finds herself being drawn into the daily doings of her fellow citizens, an odd assortment of miscreants, drunkards, layabouts. Most alarming of all, she’s given the impossible task of leading the supremely untalented children’s soccer team to victory. In this small town of misfits, can Britt-Marie find a place where she truly belongs?]]> 324 Fredrik Backman 1501142534 Ellen 5 favorites 4.05 2014 Britt-Marie Was Here
author: Fredrik Backman
name: Ellen
average rating: 4.05
book published: 2014
rating: 5
read at: 2016/06/25
date added: 2016/06/25
shelves: favorites
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Finn Fancy Necromancy (Finn Fancy Necromancy, #1)]]> 22238200 366 Randy Henderson 0765378086 Ellen 4 favorites 3.63 2015 Finn Fancy Necromancy (Finn Fancy Necromancy, #1)
author: Randy Henderson
name: Ellen
average rating: 3.63
book published: 2015
rating: 4
read at: 2016/06/14
date added: 2016/06/14
shelves: favorites
review:
What a great imaginative fantasy. Author Randy Henderson took a mystery thriller and turned it on it's head and made it magic! Finn is such a such a great weird hero from a supremely dysfunctional family who runs a mortuary whose main job it to safely remove magic from dead necromancers. His father is a brain damaged inventor, his brother Mort is selling off family heirlooms to gnomes, sister Sam is a hacker who is allergic to magic and his big lovable brother Pete wrongly believes he's a werewolf because he was bitten by a dog as a kid and they have been giving him a tasty home made ( and harmless) potion at every full moon so he won't go berserk. Finn has been in exile to the "other" realm for 25 years after being framed for a supposed death of their au pair Felicity and he just got back home. Things are very bad and he has to find out why someone wants him sent back into exile. Things get very exciting when you add a family of witches that are trying to kill him. All this have a great northwest backdrop. Finn and his family live in Port Townsend but there's lots of adventures in Kingston, Port Gamble, an Everett cemetery, Bainbridge Island, and some hair raising action underneath EMP at Seattle Center.
]]> <![CDATA[Mrs Pargeter's Principle (Mrs Pargeter, #7)]]> 25306755
Attending the funeral of the respected Sir Normington Winthrop, because his name is in the book, Mrs Pargeter sets out to discover the connection between Sir Normington and her late husband. Her investigations will draw her into a shady world of gunrunners, shifty politicians - and a kidnapped vicar.

Listening Length: 6 hours and 25 minutes]]> 192 Simon Brett 1780290748 Ellen 4 favorites 3.88 2015 Mrs Pargeter's Principle (Mrs Pargeter, #7)
author: Simon Brett
name: Ellen
average rating: 3.88
book published: 2015
rating: 4
read at: 2016/05/21
date added: 2016/05/21
shelves: favorites
review:
Mrs Pargeter attends the funeral Sir Normington Winthrop, a man whose name is in her husband's little black book. While Mrs. Pargeter, Gary and Truffler are attending the reception, a thuggish man comes up and tells Mrs Pargeter ( in a very threatening way) that she's not allowed to talk to the widow. He gives no explanation but threatens her with major bodily harm. Of course this sets off her curious nature and she is determined to find out who the deceased was and why his name is crossed off in her husband's little black book. This leads to much mayhem with people from Mr. Pargeter's past being robbed, kidnapped, and murdered. Lots of surprises as Mrs. Pargeter, Truffler and Gary investigate with the help a brilliant computer expert who is the daughter of one of Mr. Pargeter's associates. There is even a trouble-making politician who reminds me of Donald Trump !!!!!
]]> <![CDATA[Rise of the Ragged Clover (The Luck Uglies, #3)]]> 25816841 In this exhilarating conclusion to the critically acclaimed Luck Uglies series, the final battle between the Luck Uglies and the treacherous Fork-Tongue Charmers comes to Rye O’Chanter’s doorstep.

Filled with adventure, humor, and a hint of magic, this middle grade fantasy series is an irresistible cross between Chris Colfer’s Land of Stories series and Kelly Barnhill's The Girl Who Drank the Moon.

When Rye finally travels back home to Village Drowning to help her father with his plan to defeat the Luck Uglies� bitter rivals, she finds it in shambles. The monstrous Bog Noblins now raid the streets at night. And people are afraid to leave their houses because no one is around to protect them.

Rye soon realizes she can’t wait for the adults to sort everything out, so she enlists her friends to come up with a plan. A plan that could change everything for Drowning . . . because the only way to save her village may just be to destroy it.

The Luck Uglies was named an ALA Notable Children’s Book as well as a New York Public Library Title for Reading and Sharing, and it won the Cybil Award for Middle Grade Speculative Fiction and a Sunshine State Young Readers Award.]]> 400 Paul Durham 0062271563 Ellen 4 favorites 4.26 2016 Rise of the Ragged Clover (The Luck Uglies, #3)
author: Paul Durham
name: Ellen
average rating: 4.26
book published: 2016
rating: 4
read at: 2016/05/18
date added: 2016/05/18
shelves: favorites
review:
Thoroughly delightful, fast paced fantasy adventure. Lots of mayhem and monsters galore with 4 very brave children fighting both the bad guys, and the monsters in order to save their village. Great story!
]]> <![CDATA[Strange Tide (Bryant & May, #13)]]> 25790847 Soon they discover that the river is giving up other victims, but as the investigation extends from the coast of Libya to the nightclubs of North London, it proves as murkily sinister as the Thames itself. That’s only part of the problem; Bryant’s rapidly deteriorating condition prevents him from handling the case, and he is confined to home. To make matters worse, May makes a fatal error of judgement that knocks him out of action and places everyone at risk.
With the PCU staff baffled as much by their own detectives as the case, the only people who can help now are the battery of eccentrics Bryant keeps listed in his diary, but will their arcane knowledge save the day or make matters even worse? Soon there’s a clear suspect in everyone’s sights � the only thing that’s missing is any scrap of evidence.
As the detectives� disastrous investigation comes unstuck, the whole team gets involved in some serious messing about on the river. In an adventure that’s as twisting as the river upon which it’s set, will there be anything left of the Peculiar Crimes Unit when it’s over?]]> 416 Christopher Fowler 0857523422 Ellen 5 favorites The crew is in dire straights as it appears that Arthur Bryant is losing it due to Alzheimer's. He experiences several very realistic hallucinations. Because of the complicated case the unit is working on they can't do without their senior detective. So The PCU team organizes a plan to keep Arthur from wandering off. Of course they fail because Arthur may have memory problems, but he is still very intelligent and he outsmarts his "keepers" at every turn. While the unit is dealing with Arthur Bryant, they are working on a case of several suspicious drownings, which appear to be suicides at first.
I found this mystery fast paced and interesting. It's full of very quirky characters like Arthur's friend Maggie Armitage, the white witch who is head of a local coven, or the survivalist scientist who helps Arthur become almost normal again, well not normal like everyone else, but normal for Arthur!
]]> 4.13 2016 Strange Tide (Bryant & May, #13)
author: Christopher Fowler
name: Ellen
average rating: 4.13
book published: 2016
rating: 5
read at: 2016/05/15
date added: 2016/05/15
shelves: favorites
review:
The whole PCU gang is back in this latest sequel of the Bryant and May series. Lots of history of London and especially the Thames river.
The crew is in dire straights as it appears that Arthur Bryant is losing it due to Alzheimer's. He experiences several very realistic hallucinations. Because of the complicated case the unit is working on they can't do without their senior detective. So The PCU team organizes a plan to keep Arthur from wandering off. Of course they fail because Arthur may have memory problems, but he is still very intelligent and he outsmarts his "keepers" at every turn. While the unit is dealing with Arthur Bryant, they are working on a case of several suspicious drownings, which appear to be suicides at first.
I found this mystery fast paced and interesting. It's full of very quirky characters like Arthur's friend Maggie Armitage, the white witch who is head of a local coven, or the survivalist scientist who helps Arthur become almost normal again, well not normal like everyone else, but normal for Arthur!

]]> <![CDATA[Night Shift (Midnight, Texas, #3)]]> 25250449 308 Charlaine Harris 1101598832 Ellen 5 favorites 4.02 2016 Night Shift (Midnight, Texas, #3)
author: Charlaine Harris
name: Ellen
average rating: 4.02
book published: 2016
rating: 5
read at: 2016/05/06
date added: 2016/05/06
shelves: favorites
review:
I love how several personal histories are told, also the many surprises that kept popping up. It was a fun creepy thrill ride throughout. This was a 5 star addition to the series!
]]> <![CDATA[Stars Above (The Lunar Chronicles, #4.5)]]> 25689074
CONTENTS
The Keeper: A prequel to the Lunar Chronicles, showing a young Scarlet and how Princess Selene came into the care of Michelle Benoit.
Glitches: In this prequel to Cinder, we see the results of the plague play out, and the emotional toll it takes on Cinder. Something that may, or may not, be a glitch�.
The Queen’s Army: In this prequel to Scarlet, we’re introduced to the army Queen Levana is building, and one soldier in particular who will do anything to keep from becoming the monster they want him to be.
Carswell’s Guide to Being Lucky: Thirteen-year-old Carswell Thorne has big plans involving a Rampion spaceship and a no-return trip out of Los Angeles.
After Sunshine Passes By: In this prequel to Cress, we see how a nine-year-old Cress ended up alone on a satellite, spying on Earth for Luna.
The Princess and the Guard: In this prequel to Winter, we see a young Winter and Jacin playing a game called the Princess and the Guard�
The Little Android: A retelling of Hans Christian Andersen’s “The Little Mermaid,� set in the world of The Lunar Chronicles.
The Mechanic: In this prequel to Cinder, we see Kai and Cinder’s first meeting from Kai’s perspective.
Something Old, Something New: In this epilogue to Winter, friends gather for the wedding of the century…]]> 400 Marissa Meyer 1250091845 Ellen 4 favorites characters. The last story was a pure delight!]]> 4.16 2016 Stars Above (The Lunar Chronicles, #4.5)
author: Marissa Meyer
name: Ellen
average rating: 4.16
book published: 2016
rating: 4
read at: 2016/04/24
date added: 2016/04/24
shelves: favorites
review:
This was a wonderful conclusion to the series. I loved learning more about my favorite
characters. The last story was a pure delight!
]]> <![CDATA[Mrs Pargeter's Point of Honour (Mrs Pargeter, #6)]]> 1824188 272 Simon Brett 074324186X Ellen 4 favorites As the book fly leaf says, " In a caper worthy of her much lamented husband, Mrs. Pargeter leads a merry chase that is so audacious that it just might work."
Loved this book!]]> 3.79 1998 Mrs Pargeter's Point of Honour (Mrs Pargeter, #6)
author: Simon Brett
name: Ellen
average rating: 3.79
book published: 1998
rating: 4
read at: 2016/04/18
date added: 2016/04/18
shelves: favorites
review:
As per my previous review, Mrs. Pargeter has quite a time with all those paintings . When the associates drive up in their red transit van to pick up the paintings from Veronica Chastaigne's house, they discover that someone has beat them to the paintings, leaving only 3 paintings behind. Mrs. Pargeter and her late husband's associates, Truffler Mason, Hedgeclipper Clinton, Hamish Ramon Henriques and Palings Price are stumped. Who knew about the removal of the valuable art work and now they have figure out how to get them back so they can return them to their rightful owners, hopefully before Veronica dies. On top of the bad guys, they have to deal with a new policeman who is determined to make a name for himself by investigating and arresting all of Mr. Pargeter's surviving associates.
As the book fly leaf says, " In a caper worthy of her much lamented husband, Mrs. Pargeter leads a merry chase that is so audacious that it just might work."
Loved this book!
]]> <![CDATA[Mrs. Pargeter's Plot (Mrs Pargeter, #5)]]> 1824187 252 Simon Brett 0373263228 Ellen 4 favorites baddies from Streatham. ]]> 3.61 1996 Mrs. Pargeter's Plot (Mrs Pargeter, #5)
author: Simon Brett
name: Ellen
average rating: 3.61
book published: 1996
rating: 4
read at: 2016/04/15
date added: 2016/04/15
shelves: favorites
review:
A quick fun read. We meet a few more of Mr. Pargeter's associates and a few more
baddies from Streatham.
]]> <![CDATA[Mrs. Pargeter's Pound of Flesh (Mrs Pargeter, #4)]]> 1824190
Mrs. Pargeter must receive a special "allergy treatment" featuring the choice delicacies of a cordon bleu chef and an excellent wine list. Suitably assured of rich food and drink, she relaxes and looks forward to a luxurious rest.

Until ... she sees two men wheeling away a young girl's body. Never one to let a murder go unsolved, Mrs. Pargeter sets off on a dangerous trail of inquiry through the pretensions and occasional charlatanism of the health-and-fitness game. It's a trail that brings her up against many of her late husband's "business associates" - among them, the lugubrious private eye Truffler Mason, journalist Ellie Fenchurch, Brotherton Hall's manager "Ankle-Deep" Arkwright, surgical specialist "Jack the Knife," and the enigmatic Stan the Stapler.

But can she trust them all, or were some involved in the notorious betrayal of the late Mr. Pargeter summed up in the one ominous word "Streatham"? In typically unflappable style, Mrs. Pargeter rides through the investigation - from Brotherton Hall to London's King's Cross, through Cambridge University to a Dead Sea mud bath - in search of the villain.

Justice will prevail. One way or another, Mrs. Pargeter will get her pound of flesh. The fourth excursion for this irrepressible widow, Mrs. Pargeter's Pound of Flesh is bound to bring even more enthusiastic fans to Simon Brett's masterly series of mysteries.]]> 208 Simon Brett 0140234853 Ellen 4 favorites Melita Pargeter is truly fortunate to have some many men lined up to assist her in solving murders, although there are a few former associates who are not what they seem.
All the characters are well drawn out and as I read these stories is discover more about Melita, her marriage and of course more about these crooks and cons who may or may not be reformed.
Great fun, lots of humor and written with a light touch. ]]> 3.64 1992 Mrs. Pargeter's Pound of Flesh (Mrs Pargeter, #4)
author: Simon Brett
name: Ellen
average rating: 3.64
book published: 1992
rating: 4
read at: 2016/04/11
date added: 2016/04/11
shelves: favorites
review:
With each reading, I am introduced to more of the late Mr. Pargeter's associates. It seems that
Melita Pargeter is truly fortunate to have some many men lined up to assist her in solving murders, although there are a few former associates who are not what they seem.
All the characters are well drawn out and as I read these stories is discover more about Melita, her marriage and of course more about these crooks and cons who may or may not be reformed.
Great fun, lots of humor and written with a light touch.
]]> And Then Came Paulette 23164999
Barbara Constantine's And Then Came Paulette has climbed the European bestseller charts providing many smiles and laughs as along the way. When his son's family move away, widower Ferdinand is left with only a sadistic kitten for company on a farm that was built for a family. Just as loneliness starts to bite, he discovers his neighbor Marceline has long been shivering beneath a leaky roof. He welcomes her to his farm, temporarily of course, and also provides a home for her dog and her gluttonous donkey.

As each begrudgingly adjusts to the other's quirks, yet more new arrivals appear. It seems that Ferdinand isn't the only one who was all-alone, and the dusty farm becomes a haven for lost souls of every age to share their sorrows and set about rediscovering their joie de vivre. Amidst the newfound hustle and bustle, one final uninvited guest threatens to upset the apple cart once and for all. Constantine has created a delightful and poignant novel of people coming together to create new interpersonal relationships of support.]]> 256 Barbara Constantine 1623653940 Ellen 5 favorites During a terrible rainstorm Ferdinand rescues his neighbor Marceline, whose house is in such poor shape it could collapse. Ferdinand offers her a room to stay in till she gets back on her feet. She comes with her donkey Cornelius, her chickens, her cat and her dog. This is just the start of a list of lonely, and desperate people, both old and young who find their way to Ferdinand's farm. They all form a family of sorts. I just loved this heartwarming and joyful story and the fact that it's not what I call"Icky Sticky Sweet". ]]> 3.64 2012 And Then Came Paulette
author: Barbara Constantine
name: Ellen
average rating: 3.64
book published: 2012
rating: 5
read at: 2016/04/09
date added: 2016/04/09
shelves: favorites
review:
Somewhere in France, Ferdinand is a lonely widower living in a very large empty house on his farm. His son Roland, and his wife Mireille and two sons Ludo and Luc (who are called the Lulus) have recently moved to a nearby village to run a restaurant. Ferdinand is missing his two grandsons so much that he goes into town and sits at a cafe opposite his son's restaurant waiting for the kids to get home from school so he can get a hug and a kiss from his two Lulus. Of course this just sets off Roland and Mireille and embarrasses them to have their father drinking their competition's cheap wine out on the square in front of everyone.
During a terrible rainstorm Ferdinand rescues his neighbor Marceline, whose house is in such poor shape it could collapse. Ferdinand offers her a room to stay in till she gets back on her feet. She comes with her donkey Cornelius, her chickens, her cat and her dog. This is just the start of a list of lonely, and desperate people, both old and young who find their way to Ferdinand's farm. They all form a family of sorts. I just loved this heartwarming and joyful story and the fact that it's not what I call"Icky Sticky Sweet".
]]> <![CDATA[The Little Old Lady Who Broke All the Rules (League of Pensioners, #1)]]> 19135360 435 Catharina Ingelman-Sundberg 1447250990 Ellen 4 favorites have it figured out, something happens to screw things up. Very very funny heartwarming romp.
]]> 3.17 2012 The Little Old Lady Who Broke All the Rules (League of Pensioners, #1)
author: Catharina Ingelman-Sundberg
name: Ellen
average rating: 3.17
book published: 2012
rating: 4
read at: 2016/04/05
date added: 2016/04/05
shelves: favorites
review:
Martha and 4 of her friends live in a retirement home in Stockholm. At one time living there made them happy and content but now they are quite miserable due to the lack of amenities such a rolls with their coffee, desserts, and outings. The new regime has decided that spending less on the clients improves the profit margin. So these five decide to pull off a crime that will land them in prison, where they think they will be treated better. Their criminal adventure is successful, too successful, but then nothing goes right. I love that there is nothing predictable in the plot. Just when you think you
have it figured out, something happens to screw things up. Very very funny heartwarming romp.

]]> <![CDATA[Winter (The Lunar Chronicles, #4)]]> 13206900
When Winter develops feelings for the handsome palace guard, Jacin, she fears the evil Queen will crush their romance before it has a chance to begin.

But there are stirrings against the Queen across the land. Together with the cyborg mechanic, Cinder, and her allies, Winter might even find the power to launch a revolution and win a war that's been raging for far too long.

Can Cinder, Scarlet, Cress, and Winter claim their happily ever afters by defeating Levana once and for all?]]> 827 Marissa Meyer 0312642989 Ellen 5 favorites 4.41 2015 Winter (The Lunar Chronicles, #4)
author: Marissa Meyer
name: Ellen
average rating: 4.41
book published: 2015
rating: 5
read at: 2016/03/27
date added: 2016/03/27
shelves: favorites
review:
Absotootly amazing!!! There aren't enough superlatives for me to say about this book!
]]> <![CDATA[Lowcountry Bordello (Liz Talbot Mystery #4)]]> 26169556
With her wedding back home on Stella Maris less than a week away, Liz must juggle one elderly madam, two ex and future in-laws, three ghosts in the bordello, four giddy bridesmaids, five lovely courtesans, six suspicious patrons…and a partridge in a pear tree as she tries to keep her bridesmaid out of jail and live to walk down the aisle.]]> 272 Susan M. Boyer 1943390177 Ellen 4 favorites The house it turns out is a bordello co-owned by Olivia and her elderly Aunt Dean. Liz calls Olivia's house and Robert answers the phone, so who was the dead guy? The next morning a dead body is found on a park bench not far from the bordello who matches Olivia's description of the dead guy she found in the front parlor.
What ensues is mayhem involving 3 ghosts in the bordello, 5 lovely courtesans, 6 suspicious patrons, a terrible blackmailing murdering handyman, and several bodies buried in the back yard.
Great fun read!]]> 4.19 2015 Lowcountry Bordello (Liz Talbot Mystery #4)
author: Susan M. Boyer
name: Ellen
average rating: 4.19
book published: 2015
rating: 4
read at: 2016/03/15
date added: 2016/03/15
shelves: favorites
review:
It's the week before Liz and Nate's wedding and there's loads of stress mostly caused by Liz's mom and the wedding coordinator Nazi, who pesters Liz with every little problem. Liz gets a plea for help from Robert Pearson, the only lawyer on Stella Maris. He thinks that his wife Olivia, who is one of Liz's best friends might be having an affair. Liz turns him down since she doesn't want to get involved in a family problem. Later than night, Liz gets a phone call from a hysterical Olivia telling her that Robert is dead in her Aunt's house and she needs to come to Charleston immediately. Liz hurries to the house only to find there is no dead body.
The house it turns out is a bordello co-owned by Olivia and her elderly Aunt Dean. Liz calls Olivia's house and Robert answers the phone, so who was the dead guy? The next morning a dead body is found on a park bench not far from the bordello who matches Olivia's description of the dead guy she found in the front parlor.
What ensues is mayhem involving 3 ghosts in the bordello, 5 lovely courtesans, 6 suspicious patrons, a terrible blackmailing murdering handyman, and several bodies buried in the back yard.
Great fun read!
]]> <![CDATA[Lowcountry Boneyard (Liz Talbot Mystery, #3)]]> 24514259
But behind the garden walls South of Broad, family secrets pop up like weeds in the azaleas. The neighbors recollect violent arguments between Kent and her parents. Eccentric twin uncles and a gaggle of cousins covet the family fortune. And the lingering spirit of a Civil-War-era debutante may know something if Colleen, Liz’s dead best friend, can get her to talk.

Liz juggles her case, the partner she’s in love with, and the family she adores. But the closer she gets to what has become of Kent, the closer Liz dances to her own grave.]]> 286 Susan M. Boyer 1941962475 Ellen 4 favorites history and 2 very nasty thugs who keep trying to kill off Liz and Nate. A real mystery that leaves you
wondering throughout most of the book what has happened to Kent, the missing daughter of
a powerful and wealthy Charleston family.
After a big fight, Nate and Liz are back together and their
romance is going forward.
I recommend all of the Lowcountry books! ]]> 4.21 2015 Lowcountry Boneyard (Liz Talbot Mystery, #3)
author: Susan M. Boyer
name: Ellen
average rating: 4.21
book published: 2015
rating: 4
read at: 2016/03/13
date added: 2016/03/13
shelves: favorites
review:
Great characters, including a monster of a matriarch, a pair of sleazy twins, a convoluted family
history and 2 very nasty thugs who keep trying to kill off Liz and Nate. A real mystery that leaves you
wondering throughout most of the book what has happened to Kent, the missing daughter of
a powerful and wealthy Charleston family.
After a big fight, Nate and Liz are back together and their
romance is going forward.
I recommend all of the Lowcountry books!
]]> <![CDATA[The Revolving Door of Life (44 Scotland Street, #10)]]> 25277659
Things are looking up for seven-year-old Bertie Pollock. The arrival of his spirited grandmother and the absence of his meddlesome mother—who is currently running a book club in a Bedouin harem (don’t ask)—bring unforeseen blessings: no psychotherapy, no Italian lessons, and no yoga classes. Meanwhile, surprises await Scotland Street’s grown-ups. Matthew makes a discovery that could be a major windfall for his family, but also presents a worrisome dilemma. Pat learns a secret about her father’s fiancée that may shake up her family, unless she can convince the perpetually narcissistic Bruce to help her out. And the Duke of Johannesburg finds himself in sudden need of an explanation—and an escape route—when accosted by a determined guest at a soirée. From the cunning schemes of the Association of Scottish Nudists to the myriad expressive possibilities of the word “aye,� Alexander McCall Smith guides us through the risks and rewards of friendship, love, and family with his usual inimitable wit and irresistible charm.]]> 281 Alexander McCall Smith 1846973287 Ellen 5 favorites Matthew and Elspeth are now out of their apartment in town and into a large old house out in the country which it turns out has a secret room which holds a beautiful surprise, but the question is can they keep they keep that treasure?
Pat, who is Matthew's assistant in his art gallery, asks Matthew to help her get dad's seemingly greedy girlfriend out of his life. They cook up a plan to have a dinner party and they invite the truly AWFUL Bruce lure her away from dad. Bruce is so truly irritatingly awful, and sleazy. He thinks he's God's gift to women when he's just a misogynistic jerk. Things backfire at the dinner big time.
This is a wonderful addition to this series and I look forward to the next book.
]]> 4.05 2015 The Revolving Door of Life (44 Scotland Street, #10)
author: Alexander McCall Smith
name: Ellen
average rating: 4.05
book published: 2015
rating: 5
read at: 2016/03/06
date added: 2016/03/06
shelves: favorites
review:
I just love this series! All the characters and their various personalities, both irritating and pleasant. Now that Irene is out of the picture, Bertie's life has become a joyful time. No more pink dungarees, and he gets his own kilt. That same day Bertie is given a sporran by their neighbor Angus. His mother wouldn't let him have a kilt because she said it smacked of tribalism! No more weird food, or yoga or that psychotherapist. You just feel such joy for this young, almost 7 year old boy! I am just hoping the sheikh doesn't throw Irene out of the harem and send her home. She's already organizing a book group in the harem.
Matthew and Elspeth are now out of their apartment in town and into a large old house out in the country which it turns out has a secret room which holds a beautiful surprise, but the question is can they keep they keep that treasure?
Pat, who is Matthew's assistant in his art gallery, asks Matthew to help her get dad's seemingly greedy girlfriend out of his life. They cook up a plan to have a dinner party and they invite the truly AWFUL Bruce lure her away from dad. Bruce is so truly irritatingly awful, and sleazy. He thinks he's God's gift to women when he's just a misogynistic jerk. Things backfire at the dinner big time.
This is a wonderful addition to this series and I look forward to the next book.

]]> <![CDATA[Murder Past Due (Cat in the Stacks, #1)]]> 7337871 There's a cat in the stacks...

...and he makes the purr-fect partner for a librarian-turned-sleuth.

Everyone in Athena, Mississippi, knows librarian Charlie Harris-and his Maine coon cat named Diesel that he walks on a leash. They also know his former classmate-turned-famous bestselling novelist, Godfrey Priest.

But someone in Athena took Godfrey off the bestseller lists- permanently, and with extreme prejudice. Now, Charlie and Diesel must browse through the history section of the town's past to find a killer.]]> 294 Miranda James 042523603X Ellen 3 favorites goes everywhere with Charley Harris, the librarian who spends time investigating the murder of the very obnoxious and arrogant author. ]]> 3.81 2010 Murder Past Due (Cat in the Stacks, #1)
author: Miranda James
name: Ellen
average rating: 3.81
book published: 2010
rating: 3
read at: 2016/03/03
date added: 2016/03/03
shelves: favorites
review:
Nice easy cozy mystery with a great surprise ending. I love Diesel the big Maine Coon cat who
goes everywhere with Charley Harris, the librarian who spends time investigating the murder of the very obnoxious and arrogant author.
]]> <![CDATA[Lowcountry Bombshell (A Liz Talbot Mystery, #2)]]> 18053731
Before Liz can open a case file, Calista’s life coach is executed. Suspicious characters swarm around Calista like mosquitoes on a sultry lowcountry evening: her certifiable mother, a fake aunt, her control-freak psychoanalyst, a private yoga instructor, her peculiar housekeeper, and an obsessed ex-husband. Liz digs in to find a motive for murder, but she’s besieged with distractions. Her ex has marriage and babies on his mind. Her too-sexy partner engages in a campaign of repeat seduction. Mamma needs help with Daddy’s devotion to bad habits. And a gang of wild hogs is running loose on Stella Maris.

With the heat index approaching triple digits, Liz races to uncover a diabolical murder plot in time to save not only Calista’s life, but also her own.]]> 248 Susan M. Boyer 1938383567 Ellen 4 favorites 4.05 2013 Lowcountry Bombshell (A Liz Talbot Mystery, #2)
author: Susan M. Boyer
name: Ellen
average rating: 4.05
book published: 2013
rating: 4
read at: 2016/02/26
date added: 2016/02/26
shelves: favorites
review:
Great sequel. Liz Talbot works to save beautiful woman who is a double for Marilyn Monroe and is certain that she is going to die on the same day and month , August 4th, that Marilyn did. Thing is, it just might happen as there is someone out there who is threatening her. Neither she or Liz have a clue who it might be. Fun fast read with loads of crazy relatives, a new romance for Liz with her hunky business partner, and a very sleazy therapist who has designs on Liz's gorgeous client!
]]> The Lady in Blue 645489 352 Javier Sierra 1416532234 Ellen 4 favorites 3.22 1998 The Lady in Blue
author: Javier Sierra
name: Ellen
average rating: 3.22
book published: 1998
rating: 4
read at: 2016/02/24
date added: 2016/02/24
shelves: favorites
review:
Four stories, 3 in modern time, one in the 1600's that are told in alternating chapters. They slowly begin to form into a cohesive historical fiction novel which is mystical, and fascinating. It held my attention to the end.
]]> <![CDATA[Lowcountry Boil (A Liz Talbot Mystery, #1)]]> 14061354 408 Susan M. Boyer Ellen 5 favorites 4.06 2012 Lowcountry Boil (A Liz Talbot Mystery, #1)
author: Susan M. Boyer
name: Ellen
average rating: 4.06
book published: 2012
rating: 5
read at: 2016/02/19
date added: 2016/02/19
shelves: favorites
review:
Even though you learn early on who the baddies are, there are still some wonderful surprises in store for you when you read this book. I loved the characters, especially Colleen the ghost! This little bit of fantasy doesn't spoil this southern mystery. She helps Liz along to finally catch Gram's murderer. I look forward to the next book.
]]> In a Sunburned Country 24
Ignoring such dangers - and yet curiously obsessed by them - Bill Bryson journeyed to Australia and promptly fell in love with the country. And who can blame him? The people are cheerful, extroverted, quick-witted and unfailingly obliging: their cities are safe and clean and nearly always built on water; the food is excellent; the beer is cold and the sun nearly always shines. Life doesn't get much better than this...]]> 335 Bill Bryson 0767903862 Ellen 5 favorites negative. I find Bill Bryson's books are pretty fair and balanced and he uses humor to
describe some of the more tacky and touristy spots. Lots of information and history so you learn
why things are the way they are. I enjoyed this book immensely!]]> 4.06 2000 In a Sunburned Country
author: Bill Bryson
name: Ellen
average rating: 4.06
book published: 2000
rating: 5
read at: 2016/02/06
date added: 2016/02/06
shelves: favorites
review:
There is a travel writer, that I won't name, whose books I've found to be pretty
negative. I find Bill Bryson's books are pretty fair and balanced and he uses humor to
describe some of the more tacky and touristy spots. Lots of information and history so you learn
why things are the way they are. I enjoyed this book immensely!
]]> <![CDATA[One for the Road: An Outback Adventure]]> 94528 ĚýĚýĚýĚýĚýĚýĚýĚýWhat follows is a hilarious, hair-raising ride into the hot red center of a continent so desolate that civilization dwindles to a gas pump and a pub. While the outback's terrain is inhospitable, its scattered inhabitants are anything but. Horwitz entrusts himself to Aborigines, opal diggers, jackeroos, card sharks, and sunstruck wanderers who measure distance in the number of beers consumed en route. Along the way, Horwitz discovers that the outback is as treacherous as it is colorful. Bug-bitten, sunblasted, dust-choked, and bloodied by a near-fatal accident, Horwitz endures seven thousand miles of the world's most forbidding real estate, and some very bizarre personal encounters, as he winds his way to Queensland, Alice Springs, Perth, Darwin--and a hundred bush pubs in between.
ĚýĚýĚýĚýĚýĚýĚýĚýHorwitz, the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of two national bestsellers, Confederates in the Attic and Baghdad Without a Map, is the ideal tour guide for anyone who has ever dreamed of a genuine Australian adventure.

]]> 211 Tony Horwitz 0375706135 Ellen 5 favorites 3.73 1987 One for the Road: An Outback Adventure
author: Tony Horwitz
name: Ellen
average rating: 3.73
book published: 1987
rating: 5
read at:
date added: 2016/02/03
shelves: favorites
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Mirror Crack'd from Side to Side (Miss Marple, #8)]]> 16372
Marina’s frozen expression suggested she had witnessed something horrific. While others searched for material evidence, Jane Marple conducted a very different investigation � into human nature.

Librarian's note: this entry is for the novel, "The Mirror Crack'd from Side to Side." Collections and other Miss Marple stories are located elsewhere on Ĺ·±¦ÓéŔÖ. The series includes 12 novels and 20 short stories. Entries for the short stories can be found by searching Ĺ·±¦ÓéŔÖ for: "a Miss Marple Short Story."]]> 351 Agatha Christie 0007120982 Ellen 4 favorites 3.95 1962 The Mirror Crack'd from Side to Side (Miss Marple, #8)
author: Agatha Christie
name: Ellen
average rating: 3.95
book published: 1962
rating: 4
read at: 2016/02/03
date added: 2016/02/03
shelves: favorites
review:
Loved it. Great surprise ending!
]]> <![CDATA[Bachelor Brothers' Bed & Breakfast Pillow Book]]> 1840533 Bachelor Brothers' Bed and Breakfast is a place readers will want to return to again and again.

Bachelor Brothers' Bed & Breakfast, originally published by Douglas & McIntyre, won Canada's prestigious Stephen Lecock Award for Humour in 1994, and was published in hardcover by A Wyatt Book for St. Martin's Press in 1996. Its sequel, Bachelor Brothers' Bed & Breakfast Pillow Book, is a Canadian bestseller, and will be published in hardcover by A Wyatt Book in October 1997.
]]> 208 Bill Richardson 0312167792 Ellen 5 favorites 3.98 1997 Bachelor Brothers' Bed & Breakfast Pillow Book
author: Bill Richardson
name: Ellen
average rating: 3.98
book published: 1997
rating: 5
read at:
date added: 2016/01/24
shelves: favorites
review:

]]> Foulsham (Iremonger, #2) 20929552
Abandoned in the depths of the Heaps, Lucy Pennant has been rescued by a terrifying creature, Binadit Iremonger, more animal than human. She is desperate and determined to find Clod. But unbeknownst to her, Clod has become a golden sovereign and 'lost'. He is being passed as currency from hand to hand all around Foulsham, and yet everywhere people are searching for him, desperate to get hold of this dangerous Iremonger, who, it is believed, has the power to bring the mighty Umbitt down.

But all around the city, things, everyday things, are twitching into life...]]> 400 Edward Carey Ellen 5 favorites 3.96 2014 Foulsham (Iremonger, #2)
author: Edward Carey
name: Ellen
average rating: 3.96
book published: 2014
rating: 5
read at: 2016/01/22
date added: 2016/01/22
shelves: favorites
review:

]]> Shadowlands: A Play 80999 Shadowlands shows how love, and the risk of loss, transformed this great man's relationships, even with God.

An L.A. Theatre Works full-cast performance featuring: Arthur Hanket, Harriet Harris, Nicholas Hormann, Martin Jarvis, Christopher Neame, Kenneth Schmidt, W. Morgan Sheppard]]> 100 William Nicholson 0452267323 Ellen 5 favorites 4.12 1989 Shadowlands: A Play
author: William Nicholson
name: Ellen
average rating: 4.12
book published: 1989
rating: 5
read at:
date added: 2016/01/21
shelves: favorites
review:

]]> Heap House (Iremonger, #1) 17977053 The Iremongers have taken up what was not wanted and wanted it.

Clod is an Iremonger. He lives in the Heaps, a vast sea of lost and discarded items collected from all over London. At the centre is Heap House, a puzzle of houses, castles, homes and mysteries reclaimed from the city and built into a living maze of staircases and scurrying rats. The Iremongers are a mean and cruel family, robust and hardworking, but Clod has an illness. He can hear the objects whispering. His birth object, a universal bath plug, says 'James Henry', Cousin Tummis's tap is squeaking 'Hilary Evelyn Ward-Jackson' and something in the attic is shouting 'Robert Burrington' and it sounds angry.

A storm is brewing over Heap House. The Iremongers are growing restless and the whispers are getting louder. When Clod meets Lucy Pennant, a girl newly arrived from the city, everything changes. The secrets that bind Heap House together begin to unravel to reveal a dark truth that threatens to destroy Clod's world.]]> 410 Edward Carey 1471401561 Ellen 5 favorites It's weird, creepy, funny, imaginative, scary, heart breaking, adventuresome, maddening, outrageous, and delightful! I loved the screwy names, the mystery of how people were turned into birth objects, and birth objects were becoming people. It's like the Addam's ( sp?) Family on steroids! I love this book and I am
looking forward to reading the next two books in the series.]]> 3.68 2013 Heap House (Iremonger, #1)
author: Edward Carey
name: Ellen
average rating: 3.68
book published: 2013
rating: 5
read at: 2015/12/04
date added: 2016/01/20
shelves: favorites
review:
There aren't enough adjectives in the English language that could do honor to this book. But here goes:
It's weird, creepy, funny, imaginative, scary, heart breaking, adventuresome, maddening, outrageous, and delightful! I loved the screwy names, the mystery of how people were turned into birth objects, and birth objects were becoming people. It's like the Addam's ( sp?) Family on steroids! I love this book and I am
looking forward to reading the next two books in the series.
]]> Family Album 6491111
PRAISE FOR PENELOPE LIVELY

?Her greatest gift is her ability to see beyond mere cultural ephemera and grasp the unchanging essence of life.?
? The Wall Street Journal on Consequences

?Her characters are beguiling, and her blend of romance and stinging social commentary is tonic.?
? Booklist (starred review) on Consequences

PRAISE FOR FAMILY ALBUM

?[U]nflaggingly compelling?. exceptionally well observed and gloriously enjoyable. Family Album manages to intrigue and delight, and to keep the reader captivated, racing along without obvious direction but with a very tight sense of purpose?. [O]ne of [Lively?s] most impressive works.?
? The Guardian

?[H]ugely enjoyable? a pleasure to read.?
? The Independent

?Lively skilfully mingles past and present, as she peels away the layers to uncover a family secret of which no one speaks. What seems at first a minor domestic drama evolves into a much darker picture, and time takes its inevitable toll as the parents grow old and infirm. Lively`s astute skewering of family relations reverberates in the mind long afterwards.?
? The Daily Mail

?Lively succeeds brilliantly in getting a hold on the climate of family life. Slowly we absorb the details that get lost in the bluster and flurry until we are so drawn in, so tightly contained in the dynamics of this one, that the end, when it comes, is simply devastating.?
? The Times With its bountiful characters and exhaustive time traveling, Lively`s vivisection of a nuclear family displays polished writing and fine character delineation."?
-- Publishers Weekly]]> 259 Penelope Lively 0886194490 Ellen 5 favorites 3.32 2009 Family Album
author: Penelope Lively
name: Ellen
average rating: 3.32
book published: 2009
rating: 5
read at: 2016/01/19
date added: 2016/01/19
shelves: favorites
review:

]]> The Road to Lichfield 202881 The Road to Lichfield, Penelope Lively explores the nature of history and memory as it is embodied in the life of a forty-year-old woman, Anne Linton, who unexpectedly learns that her father had a mistress. With this new knowledge, Linton must now examine the realities of her own life - of her childhood, her husband - and ask, What do they really know of her?

Deeply felt, beautifully controlled, The Road to Lichfield is a subtle exploration of memory and identity, of chance and consequence, of the intricate weave of generations across a past never fully known, a future never fully anticipated.]]> 224 Penelope Lively 0802136257 Ellen 5 favorites 3.82 1977 The Road to Lichfield
author: Penelope Lively
name: Ellen
average rating: 3.82
book published: 1977
rating: 5
read at:
date added: 2016/01/16
shelves: favorites
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Carrying Albert Home: The Somewhat True Story of A Man, His Wife, and Her Alligator]]> 24585366 Big Fish meets The Notebook in this emotionally evocative story about a man, a woman, and an alligator that is a moving tribute to love, from the author of the award-winning memoir Rocket Boys—the basis of the movie October Sky

Elsie Lavender and Homer Hickam (the father of the author) were high school classmates in the West Virginia coalfields, graduating just as the Great Depression began. When Homer asked for her hand, Elsie instead headed to Orlando where she sparked with a dancing actor named Buddy Ebsen (yes, that Buddy Ebsen). But when Buddy headed for New York, Elsie’s dreams of a life with him were crushed and eventually she found herself back in the coalfields, married to Homer.

Unfulfilled as a miner’s wife, Elsie was reminded of her carefree days with Buddy every day because of his unusual wedding gift: an alligator named Albert she raised in the only bathroom in the house. When Albert scared Homer by grabbing his pants, he gave Elsie an ultimatum: “Me or that alligator!� After giving it some thought, Elsie concluded there was only one thing to do: Carry Albert home.

Carrying Albert Home is the funny, sweet, and sometimes tragic tale of a young couple and a special alligator on a crazy 1000-mile adventure. Told with the warmth and down-home charm that made Rocket Boys/October Sky a beloved bestseller, Homer Hickam’s rollicking tale is ultimately a testament to that strange and marvelous emotion we inadequately call love.]]> 432 Homer Hickam 0062325892 Ellen 4 favorites 3.83 2015 Carrying Albert Home: The Somewhat True Story of A Man, His Wife, and Her Alligator
author: Homer Hickam
name: Ellen
average rating: 3.83
book published: 2015
rating: 4
read at: 2016/01/14
date added: 2016/01/14
shelves: favorites
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Alistair Grim's Odd Aquaticum (Odditorium, #2)]]> 25038983
With the evil prince hot on their trail, Grim, Grubb and the rest of the Odditorium's crew embark on a perilous adventure to find the legendary sword Excalibur: the only weapon capable of penetrating Nightshade's magical suit of armor. As expected, their quest turns out to be anything but ordinary. Not only can the Odditorium fly, but it can also swim! And so the crew battens down the hatches and sets off on an underwater voyage to the otherworldly realm of Avalon, home to Excalibur. Along the way, they must battle a banshee assassin, sea monsters, and a witch who seeks revenge on Alistair Grim for stealing her magical objects.

But that’s not all. Unbeknownst to Grubb and the others, their fate has been written in an ancient Avalonian prophecy—a prophecy that holds the key to a destiny not even Alistair Grim could have possibly imagined.]]> 448 Gregory Funaro 1484700074 Ellen 4 favorites 4.14 2016 Alistair Grim's Odd Aquaticum (Odditorium, #2)
author: Gregory Funaro
name: Ellen
average rating: 4.14
book published: 2016
rating: 4
read at: 2016/01/08
date added: 2016/01/12
shelves: favorites
review:
This sequel is every bit as wonderful as Alistair Grim's Odditorium and is packed with sorcerers, banshees, fairies ( both black and yellow), an evil master who could've been in a Dickens novel, dragons, a evil dark prince who has a secret identity, a wicked witch and characters from Arthurian legends along with the sword Excalibur and a brave and determined young hero. All these made for a great read.
]]> <![CDATA[Revenge of the Paste Eaters: Memoirs of a Misfit]]> 155193



A collection of stories for anyone who shuddered at the idea of senior prom, Revenge of the Paste Eaters is about the way the experiences of childhood stay with us and shape us into adults.




Cheryl Peck applies her signature wit to more personal stories and reflections-about hurting people and getting hurt, about discovering who you are and who you want to be, about feeling "not good enough," and about being bigger-physically and mentally-than many of the people surrounding you.




This is a wickedly funny view of what it's like to be a middle-aged woman in middle-America, and what really happened to the kids who were different.]]> 320 Cheryl Peck 0446693731 Ellen 4 favorites 3.09 2005 Revenge of the Paste Eaters: Memoirs of a Misfit
author: Cheryl Peck
name: Ellen
average rating: 3.09
book published: 2005
rating: 4
read at: 2015/10/27
date added: 2016/01/11
shelves: favorites
review:

]]> Ruby in the Rough 22837455
Steve’s goal in life is to become a great inventor. He is fascinated by gadgets and gizmos: whether big or small, new or old, safe or perilous. His older sister, Katie, is his friend in peace and ally in battle. But even she can’t protect him from his worst enemy: himself. He is far too inquisitive and unpredictable for the adults who constantly worry whether he just might accidentally incinerate the house or inadvertently blow up the dog. To tell the truth, he’s never actually exploded anything or maimed anyone. Then again, he’s only eight. So, there’s lots of time left for being a holy terror. Looks like the road ahead’s going to be rough.

The book is a series of stories (each chapter can be read independently) about a boy's coming of age. They are linked by the hero's life changes through his boyhood and teenage years.]]> 222 Steven Ruby 0989755509 Ellen 4 favorites 4.13 2013 Ruby in the Rough
author: Steven Ruby
name: Ellen
average rating: 4.13
book published: 2013
rating: 4
read at: 2016/01/04
date added: 2016/01/04
shelves: favorites
review:

]]> Circus Mirandus 23281919
Micah Tuttle does.

Even though his awful Great-Aunt Gertrudis doesn’t approve, Micah believes in the stories his dying Grandpa Ephraim tells him of the magical Circus Mirandus: the invisible tiger guarding the gates, the beautiful flying birdwoman, and the magician more powerful than any other—the Man Who Bends Light. Finally, Grandpa Ephraim offers proof. The Circus is real. And the Lightbender owes Ephraim a miracle. With his friend Jenny Mendoza in tow, Micah sets out to find the Circus and the man he believes will save his grandfather.

The only problem is, the Lightbender doesn't want to keep his promise. And now it's up to Micah to get the miracle he came for.]]> 292 Cassie Beasley 0525428437 Ellen 5 favorites 4.07 2015 Circus Mirandus
author: Cassie Beasley
name: Ellen
average rating: 4.07
book published: 2015
rating: 5
read at: 2015/12/16
date added: 2015/12/16
shelves: favorites
review:
This book is right up there with Night Circus as one of my favorite books.
]]> <![CDATA[My Southern Journey: True Stories from the Heart of the South]]> 24396962
Keenly observed and written with his insightful and deadpan sense of humor, he explores enduring Southern truths about home, place, spirit, table, and the regions' varied geographies, including his native Alabama, Cajun country, and the Gulf Coast. Everything is explored, from regional obsessions from college football and fishing, to mayonnaise and spoonbread, to the simple beauty of a fish on the hook.

Collected from over a decade of his writing, with many never-before-published essays written specifically for this edition, My Southern Journey is an entertaining and engaging read, especially for Southerners (or feel Southern at heart) and anyone who appreciates great writing.]]> 256 Rick Bragg 0848746392 Ellen 5 favorites as wonderful as this. Utterly delightful and touching. Only recommendation would be not to read the
table section on an empty stomach! So many stories were my favorites, too many to count!
If you have family members who live in the south, this would make a great gift!!!!]]> 4.21 2015 My Southern Journey: True Stories from the Heart of the South
author: Rick Bragg
name: Ellen
average rating: 4.21
book published: 2015
rating: 5
read at: 2015/12/11
date added: 2015/12/11
shelves: favorites
review:
great book to almost end my yearly challenge. It's been awhile since I've read a southern memoir
as wonderful as this. Utterly delightful and touching. Only recommendation would be not to read the
table section on an empty stomach! So many stories were my favorites, too many to count!
If you have family members who live in the south, this would make a great gift!!!!
]]> <![CDATA[Sons of the Profits or There's No Business Like Grow Business: The Seattle Story 1851-1901]]> 601277 345 pages 345 William Speidel 0914890069 Ellen 5 favorites 3.47 1967 Sons of the Profits or There's No Business Like Grow Business: The Seattle Story 1851-1901
author: William Speidel
name: Ellen
average rating: 3.47
book published: 1967
rating: 5
read at:
date added: 2015/12/06
shelves: favorites
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Ghost to the Rescue (Bailey Ruth #6)]]> 24611667 New York TimesĚýbestselling author Carolyn Hart’s ghostly gumshoe Bailey Ruth Raeburn is frequently amusing…but this is the first time she’s been a muse.

When you wish upon a star, you get…Bailey Ruth? You do if you’re a little girl whose mom needs help and you touch the soft heart of Supervisor Wiggins at Heaven’s Department of Good Intentions. Granted it’s not the usual task of an emissary, but then again Bailey Ruth is not your usual emissary. So Wiggins dispatches the spunky spirit to her old hometown of Adelaide, Oklahoma, to help a single mother and struggling writer find some creative solutions to her problems.

Deidre Davenport is just about broke, trying to support her two children, and has her hopes pinned on getting a faculty job with the Goddard College English department. Jay Knox, who is in charge of the writer’s conference she’s participating in, will decide who gets the job, but he’s more interested in her body than her body of work.

Not long after his advances are rejected, Knox turns up dead—and Deirdre’s fingerprints are found on the murder weapon. Bailey Ruth knows Deirdre is innocent, and that the professor’s lewd behavior is bound to have rubbed others the wrong way. Now she must find out who really knocked off Knox...if Deirdre and her family are ever going to have a happy ending.

]]> 288 Carolyn G. Hart 0425276562 Ellen 4 favorites Quick fun read with endearing characters like Bailey Ruth, and her boss in heaven Wiggins.]]> 3.65 2015 Ghost to the Rescue (Bailey Ruth #6)
author: Carolyn G. Hart
name: Ellen
average rating: 3.65
book published: 2015
rating: 4
read at: 2015/11/08
date added: 2015/11/08
shelves: favorites
review:
This is book 3 in the Bailey Ruth ghost detective series, a great cozy mystery with a fast pace and lots of possibly guilty characters. Besides the beautiful and innocent Deirdre Davenport, who happened to have her fingerprints on the murder weapon making her the top suspect, there are lots of other people who unfortunately had a good reason to kill the sleazy womanizing literary agent Jay Knox. He got what he deserved thanks to a clank on the head with a magnum of champagne. That was the bottle Jay brought to Deirdre's hotel room earlier in the day in an attempt to seduce her. She picked up the bottle and the glasses and firmly handed them back to him and showed him the door. He told her that her upcoming job on the college faculty would be in jeopardy if she didn't show up later that night. She goes to his cabin that night only to find Jay, dead on the floor from said clanking on the head! There is a second murder in which there is an attempt to frame Deirdre. The police chief, Sam Cobb, thinks Deirdre is innocent as does his detective Hal who is falling hard for Deirdre which only complicates things further. They both gets lots of help from Bailey Ruth, who is working hard behind the scenes to find out who the real killer is before Sam is forced to have Deirdre put in jail.
Quick fun read with endearing characters like Bailey Ruth, and her boss in heaven Wiggins.
]]> Save the Date 18404093
Up-and-coming floral designer Cara Kryzik is about to score the wedding of a lifetime—one that will solidify her career as the go-to-girl for Savannah society nuptials. The only problem is, life seems to be conspiring against her. Cara's implacable father, "The Colonel", doesn't believe in Cara's business savvy and is about to call in his twenty-thousand-dollar loan. Then, on the morning that someone steals her dog, Cara's refrigerator goes on the blink, turning twelve thousand dollars' worth of gorgeous blooms into road kill. And if that's not enough, the dog-napper, Jack Finnerty, turns up at her latest wedding and then mysteriously leaves her stranded on the dance floor.

All this turmoil will be solved if Cara can pull off the lavish Trappnell-Strayhorn wedding. The payday will solve all her problems—even the looming problem of a celebrated florist named Cullen Keane who is moving into her turf from Charleston. But the wedding is in six weeks, the bride is acting strangely (even for a bride) and the stepmother of the bride is becoming Cara's biggest headache. What Cara needs is to focus, but that's not easy when Jack is turning up at every wedding in Savannah (the man seems to know everybody), with Cara in his sights and seduction on his mind.

When Brooke Trappnell spirals into a shocking crisis and the wedding is in jeopardy, Cara must come to the rescue and figure out what she really believes in. Is it love? Is it her own strength? In the end, for everyone, "Save the Date" has more meanings than one. Told with Mary Kay Andrews's trademark wit and keen eye for detail, Save the Date is one you won't want to miss.]]> 448 Mary Kay Andrews 1250019699 Ellen 5 favorites into the night. Will recommend this one to my daughter and several of my friends. ]]> 3.88 2014 Save the Date
author: Mary Kay Andrews
name: Ellen
average rating: 3.88
book published: 2014
rating: 5
read at: 2015/10/31
date added: 2015/10/31
shelves: favorites
review:
This novel was such a delight! Lots of surprises and it's loaded with nasty bitchy snobby controlling women and villainous power hungry men. I loved it. Nothing was ever predictable, which kept me turning the pages late
into the night. Will recommend this one to my daughter and several of my friends.
]]> The Man Who Lived at the Ritz 3757793 286 A.E. Hotchner 0399126511 Ellen 4 favorites was an exciting read ( although more than a bit graphic is parts). ]]> 3.45 1981 The Man Who Lived at the Ritz
author: A.E. Hotchner
name: Ellen
average rating: 3.45
book published: 1981
rating: 4
read at: 2015/10/23
date added: 2015/10/23
shelves: favorites
review:
This book ended too soon. Felt like I was left hanging. I still gave it 4 stars because it
was an exciting read ( although more than a bit graphic is parts).
]]> <![CDATA[SandRider (TodHunter Moon, #2)]]> 16069951
Now it’s two months later and Alice is settled into her new life in the Castle. Being Apprentice to ExtraOrdinary Wizard Septimus Heap is tricky—there’s loads of new Magyk to learn—but at least she’s mastered the Unseen charm.

She’s lucky she has, too—that Unseen will come in handy when she sets out with friends Oskar and Ferdie on a perilous journey to retrieve the Egg of the Orm from the Desert of the Singing Sands. If they don’t reach the Egg before it hatches, the new baby Orm could imprint on the evil sorcerer Oraton-Marr, giving him unlimited Magyk to do with what he wishes�.

Bursting with humorous and poignant moments, SandRider celebrates the satisfaction of taking charge of one’s path in life—unexpected adventures and all.

Perfect for anyone who can’t get enough of the world of Septimus Heap!]]> 480 Angie Sage 0062272500 Ellen 5 favorites with a flash light! I adore this series ( Septimus Heap and Alice Tod Hunter Moon) and this
one was fun not just for that 12 year old girl inside me but the adult too! What an exciting adventure for Alice ( mostly known as Tod) and Kaznim ( a determined child of the desert), who together with twins Oskar and Ferdie race to get to the Egg of the Orm before it hatches. There are wicked witches, a huge dragon, an evil sorcerer, magic sleds ( that work both in snow and sand), a nasty evil Red Queen who loves to behead folks and a delightful disobedient genie. All this made for a fun read. Loved it!!!!!]]> 4.17 2015 SandRider (TodHunter Moon, #2)
author: Angie Sage
name: Ellen
average rating: 4.17
book published: 2015
rating: 5
read at: 2015/10/17
date added: 2015/10/17
shelves: favorites
review:
If I was 12 years old, I would be reading this under the covers at night
with a flash light! I adore this series ( Septimus Heap and Alice Tod Hunter Moon) and this
one was fun not just for that 12 year old girl inside me but the adult too! What an exciting adventure for Alice ( mostly known as Tod) and Kaznim ( a determined child of the desert), who together with twins Oskar and Ferdie race to get to the Egg of the Orm before it hatches. There are wicked witches, a huge dragon, an evil sorcerer, magic sleds ( that work both in snow and sand), a nasty evil Red Queen who loves to behead folks and a delightful disobedient genie. All this made for a fun read. Loved it!!!!!
]]> An Eligible Bachelor 1803388 512 Veronica Henry 0141012366 Ellen 5 favorites 3.88 2005 An Eligible Bachelor
author: Veronica Henry
name: Ellen
average rating: 3.88
book published: 2005
rating: 5
read at: 2015/10/15
date added: 2015/10/15
shelves: favorites
review:
Surprising, romantic, funny, and thoroughly wonderful. Deserves 10 stars.
]]> Saint Mazie 23341876
When the Great Depression hits, Mazie's life is on the brink of transformation. Addicts and bums roam the Bowery; homelessness is rampant. If Mazie won't help them, then who? When she opens the doors of The Venice to those in need, this ticket-taking, fun-time girl becomes the beating heart of the Lower East Side and, in defining one neighborhood, helps define the city.

Then, more than 90 years after Mazie began her diary, it's discovered by a documentarian in search of a good story. Who was Mazie Phillips really? A chorus of voices from the past and present fill in some of the mysterious blanks of her adventurous life.

Inspired by the life of a woman who was profiled in Joseph Mitchell's classic Up in the Old Hotel, Saint Mazie is infused with Jami Attenberg's signature wit, bravery, and heart. Mazie's rise to "sainthood" - and her irrepressible spirit - is unforgettable.

Listening Length: 9 hours and 38 minutes]]> 336 Jami Attenberg 1455599891 Ellen 5 favorites 3.68 2015 Saint Mazie
author: Jami Attenberg
name: Ellen
average rating: 3.68
book published: 2015
rating: 5
read at: 2015/10/12
date added: 2015/10/12
shelves: favorites
review:
Wonderful historical fiction novel about Mazie Philips Gordon. She was a woman who worked ( and eventually owned) a theater in New York City. She was a wild party girl early on in her twenties ( during the 1920's) but became a hero to the down and out during the depression. She was known as the Queen of the Bowery, and she saved many lives by her generosity and care for the homeless and stricken. The book is her diary and the writings of people whom she helped. It is such a wonderful story about such a real life amazing woman.
]]> High Tide 25599656 *Shortlisted for the RNA Contemporary Romantic Novel of the Year 2016*Pennfleet might be a small town, but there's never a dull moment in its narrow winding streets ...Kate has only planned a flying visit to clear out the family home after the death of her mother. When she finds an anonymous letter, she is drawn back into her own past.Single dad Sam is juggling his deli and two lively teenagers, so romance is the last thing on his mind. Then Cupid fires an unexpected arrow - but what will his children think?Nathan Fisher is happy with his lot, running picnic cruises up and down the river, but kissing the widow of the richest man in Pennfleet has disastrous consequences.Vanessa knows what she has done is unseemly for a widow, but it's the most fun she's had for years. Must she always be on her best behaviour?As autumn draws in and the nights grow longer, there are sure to be fireworks in this gloriously engaging novel from Veronica Henry, author of A Night on the Orient Express.]]> 335 Veronica Henry Ellen 4 favorites fascinating and a real page turner. The stories of Kate, Sam, Nathan, Mary and Vanessa hold the readers
interest and there's never a dull moment.
The ending says THE END OR INDEED, THE BEGINNING.
Would love more stories from the Cornish town of Pennfleet!]]> 4.04 2015 High Tide
author: Veronica Henry
name: Ellen
average rating: 4.04
book published: 2015
rating: 4
read at: 2015/10/07
date added: 2015/10/07
shelves: favorites
review:
My timing for reading this book was perfect as it's setting is Cornwall in autumn. It's warmhearted,
fascinating and a real page turner. The stories of Kate, Sam, Nathan, Mary and Vanessa hold the readers
interest and there's never a dull moment.
The ending says THE END OR INDEED, THE BEGINNING.
Would love more stories from the Cornish town of Pennfleet!
]]> Red Dog 3396 119 Louis de Bernières 0099429047 Ellen 4 favorites for a friend who helps find homes for stray dogs, but I don't think she will be
able to handle the ending. That's the problem with dog stories, the dog dies in
the end, and Red Dog's end is pretty tragic. Guess that would be a spoiler.
]]> 3.79 1999 Red Dog
author: Louis de Bernières
name: Ellen
average rating: 3.79
book published: 1999
rating: 4
read at: 2015/10/03
date added: 2015/10/03
shelves: favorites
review:
I love these stories of Red Dog and the people who cared for him. I got this book
for a friend who helps find homes for stray dogs, but I don't think she will be
able to handle the ending. That's the problem with dog stories, the dog dies in
the end, and Red Dog's end is pretty tragic. Guess that would be a spoiler.

]]> <![CDATA[Library of Souls (Miss Peregrine's Peculiar Children, #3)]]> 24120519 An army of deadly monsters.
An epic battle for the future of peculiardom.

The adventure that began with "Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children" and continued in "Hollow City" comes to a thrilling conclusion with "Library of Souls."

As the story opens, sixteen-year-old Jacob discovers a powerful new ability, and soon he’s diving through history to rescue his peculiar companions from a heavily guarded fortress. Accompanying Jacob on his journey are Emma Bloom, a girl with fire at her fingertips, and Addison MacHenry, a dog with a nose for sniffing out lost children.

They’ll travel from modern-day London to the labyrinthine alleys of Devil’s Acre, the most wretched slum in all of Victorian England. It’s a place where the fate of peculiar children everywhere will be decided once and for all.]]> 458 Ransom Riggs 159474758X Ellen 5 favorites Aren't there more adventures for Emma, Jacob, Miss Peregrine and all the peculiar children?
I just loved these books.]]> 4.12 2015 Library of Souls (Miss Peregrine's Peculiar Children, #3)
author: Ransom Riggs
name: Ellen
average rating: 4.12
book published: 2015
rating: 5
read at: 2015/09/27
date added: 2015/09/27
shelves: favorites
review:
Ended? It doesn't feel like an ending!
Aren't there more adventures for Emma, Jacob, Miss Peregrine and all the peculiar children?
I just loved these books.
]]> <![CDATA[The Beach Hut Next Door (The Beach Hut, #2)]]> 18804899
A glorious summer novel featuring the lives and loves of the people who own a beautiful row of Beach Huts on Everdene Sands.

Summer appeared from nowhere that year in Everdene; and for those lucky enough to own one of the beach huts, this was the summer of their dreams. For Elodie, returning to Everdene means reawakening the memories of one summer fifty years ago. A summer when everything changed... Vince and his brother are struggling to come to terms with the death of their father, but they have very different ways of coping... And for Jenna, determined to put the past behind her, the opportunity to become the 'Ice-Cream Girl' once again might just turn her life around. But this summer is not all sunshine and surf - as secrets unfold, and some lives are changed forever...]]> 400 Veronica Henry 1409146731 Ellen 5 favorites The Everdeen Beach in Devon. I would love it if Veronica Henry writes another. A great enjoyable summer
read!]]> 3.94 2014 The Beach Hut Next Door (The Beach Hut, #2)
author: Veronica Henry
name: Ellen
average rating: 3.94
book published: 2014
rating: 5
read at: 2015/09/21
date added: 2015/09/21
shelves: favorites
review:
This Sequel to The Beach Hut is wonderful. I loved each of the individual stories all centered around
The Everdeen Beach in Devon. I would love it if Veronica Henry writes another. A great enjoyable summer
read!
]]> A Lesson in Hope (Hope, #2) 24397002 260 Philip Gulley 1455519847 Ellen 5 favorites such annoying characters, and the one who is not annoying and has a lovely French braid, has the hots for him
and is not particularly bothered by the fact that Sam is married. His parents are driving him crazy as are several of the members of the Hope Meeting.
Funny, delightful and ends well!]]> 3.94 2015 A Lesson in Hope (Hope, #2)
author: Philip Gulley
name: Ellen
average rating: 3.94
book published: 2015
rating: 5
read at: 2015/09/09
date added: 2015/09/09
shelves: favorites
review:
I love the Harmony series. This was a wonderful edition to the series. Pastor Sam Gardiner suffers from
such annoying characters, and the one who is not annoying and has a lovely French braid, has the hots for him
and is not particularly bothered by the fact that Sam is married. His parents are driving him crazy as are several of the members of the Hope Meeting.
Funny, delightful and ends well!
]]> <![CDATA[The Shepherd's Crown (Discworld, #41; Tiffany Aching, #5)]]> 22886868 A shivering of worlds.

Deep in the Chalk, something is stirring. The owls and the foxes can sense it, and Tiffany Aching feels it in her boots. An old enemy is gathering strength.

This is a time of endings and beginnings, old friends and new, a blurring of edges and a shifting of power. Now Tiffany stands between the light and the dark, the good and the bad.

As the fairy horde prepares for invasion, Tiffany must summon all the witches to stand with her. To protect the land. Her land.

There will be a reckoning…]]> 276 Terry Pratchett 0062429973 Ellen 5 favorites 4.34 2015 The Shepherd's Crown (Discworld, #41; Tiffany Aching, #5)
author: Terry Pratchett
name: Ellen
average rating: 4.34
book published: 2015
rating: 5
read at: 2015/09/07
date added: 2015/09/07
shelves: favorites
review:
I gave this book 5 stars and I've decided not to be too critical. I think it was wonderful considering it was written by a man who suffered from a horrible brain disease and he had a great desire to give us one more book to enjoy. I feel so fortunate because I have kept all of Sir Terry's Discworld books and I can reread my favorites in the years to come.
]]> Circling the Sun 23995231 366 Paula McLain 0345534182 Ellen 5 favorites 3.88 2015 Circling the Sun
author: Paula McLain
name: Ellen
average rating: 3.88
book published: 2015
rating: 5
read at: 2015/09/01
date added: 2015/09/01
shelves: favorites
review:
Wonderful book. Couldn't put it down.
]]> Notwithstanding 6605281
Welcome to the village of Notwithstanding where a lady dresses in plus fours and shoots squirrels, a retired general gives up wearing clothes altogether, a spiritualist lives in a cottage with the ghost of her husband, and people think it quite natural to confide in a spider that lives in a potting shed. Based on de Bernières' recollections of the village he grew up in, Notwithstanding is a funny and moving depiction of a charming vanished England.]]> 288 Louis de Bernières 184655330X Ellen 5 favorites novel about the village of Notwithstanding. Wonderful quirky and enjoyable characters in sometimes hysterical situations, and some sad and touching ones. I love Bugger one and Bugger two . Bugger one is a story about a bird, a Rook with violet eyes, that was adopted by a family. Bugger two is a tale about a man who wanted a putting green in his backyard and had a problem with moles. Then there are the crazies. The General who forgets to completely dress himself, and goes to town only to be picked up by the police. Then there's the woman who hates squirrels and goes around shooting them with her double barreled shotgun. The two gardeners, and a lovely girl who works at a stable, who take time out to talk to George, a large spider living in a shed on the property. Takes all kinds but in this village there's a lot of love and care going on. ]]> 3.78 2009 Notwithstanding
author: Louis de Bernières
name: Ellen
average rating: 3.78
book published: 2009
rating: 5
read at: 2015/08/29
date added: 2015/08/29
shelves: favorites
review:
I love stories about England's villages. Stories by Miss Read, E.F. Benson, and now Louis de Berniere's
novel about the village of Notwithstanding. Wonderful quirky and enjoyable characters in sometimes hysterical situations, and some sad and touching ones. I love Bugger one and Bugger two . Bugger one is a story about a bird, a Rook with violet eyes, that was adopted by a family. Bugger two is a tale about a man who wanted a putting green in his backyard and had a problem with moles. Then there are the crazies. The General who forgets to completely dress himself, and goes to town only to be picked up by the police. Then there's the woman who hates squirrels and goes around shooting them with her double barreled shotgun. The two gardeners, and a lovely girl who works at a stable, who take time out to talk to George, a large spider living in a shed on the property. Takes all kinds but in this village there's a lot of love and care going on.
]]> <![CDATA[The Christmas Scrapbook (Harmony, #5.5)]]> 579063
Meanwhile, Sam struggles in the class and must attempt to complete his project with only the help of his faithful secretary, Frank. As Christmas fast approaches and rumors of Sam's Wednesday night absences swirl along with the snow, a series of mishaps leads to a Christmas no one will soon forget.]]> 96 Philip Gulley 0060736615 Ellen 5 favorites 3.93 2005 The Christmas Scrapbook (Harmony, #5.5)
author: Philip Gulley
name: Ellen
average rating: 3.93
book published: 2005
rating: 5
read at:
date added: 2015/08/27
shelves: favorites
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Doomsday Machine: A Further Astonishing Adventure of Horatio Lyle (Horatio Lyle, #3)]]> 1348338 320 Catherine Webb 1905654006 Ellen 5 favorites 3.96 2008 The Doomsday Machine: A Further Astonishing Adventure of Horatio Lyle (Horatio Lyle, #3)
author: Catherine Webb
name: Ellen
average rating: 3.96
book published: 2008
rating: 5
read at: 2015/08/22
date added: 2015/08/22
shelves: favorites
review:

]]> All the Light We Cannot See 18143977
In a mining town in Germany, Werner Pfennig, an orphan, grows up with his younger sister, enchanted by a crude radio they find that brings them news and stories from places they have never seen or imagined. Werner becomes an expert at building and fixing these crucial new instruments and is enlisted to use his talent to track down the resistance. Deftly interweaving the lives of Marie-Laure and Werner, Doerr illuminates the ways, against all odds, people try to be good to one another.

From the highly acclaimed, multiple award-winning Anthony Doerr, the stunningly beautiful instant New York Times bestseller about a blind French girl and a German boy whose paths collide in occupied France as both try to survive the devastation of World War II.

An alternate cover for this ISBN can be found here]]> 544 Anthony Doerr 1476746583 Ellen 5 favorites It was worth all the lost sleep! ]]> 4.31 2014 All the Light We Cannot See
author: Anthony Doerr
name: Ellen
average rating: 4.31
book published: 2014
rating: 5
read at: 2015/08/08
date added: 2015/08/08
shelves: favorites
review:
Since others have written such amazing reviews I will not. I loved this book and I am glad I read it.
It was worth all the lost sleep!
]]> After Hamelin 1604437 After Hamelin picks up the story where the Robert Browning poem - or other tellings of The Pied Piper of Hamelin - leaves off.
In a quest that is both contemporary and timeless, Bill Richardson creates a magical world through inventive wordplay, uninhibited imagination and a facility with rhyme. Here is a raconteur who spins a narrative tale that takes readers into strange lands inhabited by unusual characters, both good and evil, where adventure abounds and unlikely saviors emerge.
Penelope is 101 years old, but she can remember the story like it happened yesterday. On the morning of her eleventh birthday, she wakes to discover she can no longer hear. It is on this same day that the Piper returns to Hamelin to spirit the children away in an evil act of revenge upon the townspeople. Spared because she is deaf to the Piper's bewitching tune, Penelope is left to grieve the loss of her friends and beloved sister Sophy until Cuthbert, the wise man of the village, reveals that Penelope possesses the unusual gift of deep dreaming. Armed only with a charm from Cuthbert and her own courage, Penelope enters the land of sleep on a treacherous quest to rescue the stolen children.
There is suspense, humor and high excitement (wrapped in dark undercurrents) as Penelope and the companions she meets along the way - Scally, her trusted cat; Alloway, the blind harpist; Ulysses, a three-legged dog; and Quentin, a dragon who loves skipping - journey to the Piper's mountain fortress. Their combined wits and talents see them through strange landscapes and close calls. In a thrilling climax played out in a mysterious place between dreaming and waking, they triumph over the Piper and set the children of Hamelin free.]]> 144 Bill Richardson 0613461886 Ellen 4 favorites 4.04 2000 After Hamelin
author: Bill Richardson
name: Ellen
average rating: 4.04
book published: 2000
rating: 4
read at: 2015/07/24
date added: 2015/07/24
shelves: favorites
review:
Another wonderful Bill Richardson novel.
]]> <![CDATA[The Beach Hut (The Beach Hut, #1)]]> 6887697 373 Veronica Henry 1409119955 Ellen 4 favorites 3.91 2010 The Beach Hut (The Beach Hut, #1)
author: Veronica Henry
name: Ellen
average rating: 3.91
book published: 2010
rating: 4
read at: 2015/07/20
date added: 2015/07/20
shelves: favorites
review:
Wonderful story about the people who own ( or rent) small cabins on the beach. They are owned by families for decades and are lovingly maintained. These are stories of their marriages, affairs, and how the past can sometimes catch them unawares. For one family there are lots of surprises and not all of them are good. I will certainly read the sequel to this novel.
]]> <![CDATA[Wicked Charms (Lizzy & Diesel, #3)]]> 23012480
Greed is eternal and insatiable, and Lizzy and Diesel aren’t the only ones searching for the lost pirate’s chest. There are people who have dedicated their entire lives to finding it, and are willing to commit murder or make a deal with the devil, just to hold the fortune in their hands. One of those people may even be Wulf, Diesel’s deceptively charming and enigmatic cousin. Wulf desires the Stone of Avarice. He also desires Lizzy. It’s hard to say how far he’s willing to go to gain either one.

It’s a swashbuckling adventure full of raiders, monkeys, minions, and mayhem. Lizzy and Diesel are going to have to do everything they can to keep their heads above water and hope they are living a charmed life.]]> 308 Janet Evanovich 0553392719 Ellen 4 favorites hit his stride with Lizzy. This is an entertaining summer read. This fast paced story involves a crazy sinister millionaire named M. Ammon who wants this magic stone which will give him power to rule the world. There's also a few more villains in the mix and all are determined to find the pirate treasure and the stone. The search is on for a map, an old coin that's broken up into 8 pieces, a diary, and a blue diamond which vibrates and glows when it is near the stone. Several people have these things but they have to be used together to make the stone give it's owner the power of Mammon. M. Ammon has some of these things, but Lizzy manages to find several others with the help of Diesel and her friends. This novel reads like Treasure Island on steroids, but who cares when it's this much fun to read.]]> 3.76 2015 Wicked Charms (Lizzy & Diesel, #3)
author: Janet Evanovich
name: Ellen
average rating: 3.76
book published: 2015
rating: 4
read at: 2015/07/04
date added: 2015/07/04
shelves: favorites
review:
Goofy and funny page turner! Diesel started out on Stephanie Plum series but he's
hit his stride with Lizzy. This is an entertaining summer read. This fast paced story involves a crazy sinister millionaire named M. Ammon who wants this magic stone which will give him power to rule the world. There's also a few more villains in the mix and all are determined to find the pirate treasure and the stone. The search is on for a map, an old coin that's broken up into 8 pieces, a diary, and a blue diamond which vibrates and glows when it is near the stone. Several people have these things but they have to be used together to make the stone give it's owner the power of Mammon. M. Ammon has some of these things, but Lizzy manages to find several others with the help of Diesel and her friends. This novel reads like Treasure Island on steroids, but who cares when it's this much fun to read.
]]> The Long Weekend 13565469
Claire Marlowe owns 'The Townhouse by the Sea' with Luca, the hotel's charismatic chef. She ensures everything runs smoothly - until an unexpected arrival checks in and turns her whole world upside down.

And the rest of the guests arrive with their own baggage. There's a couple looking for distraction from a family tragedy; a man trying to make amends for an affair he bitterly regrets . . . and the young woman who thinks the Cornish village might hold the key to her past.

Here are affairs of the heart, secrets, lies and scandal - all wrapped up in one long, hot weekend.]]> 376 Veronica Henry 1409135462 Ellen 5 favorites and loved. If you are looking for a delightful chic lit book, this is it!!!]]> 3.96 2012 The Long Weekend
author: Veronica Henry
name: Ellen
average rating: 3.96
book published: 2012
rating: 5
read at:
date added: 2015/06/27
shelves: favorites
review:
I don't know why I didn't mark this down last year as a book I've read
and loved. If you are looking for a delightful chic lit book, this is it!!!
]]> Written in Stone 15927544
ĚýĚýĚýPearl has always dreamed of hunting whales, just like her father. Of taking to the sea in their eight-man canoe, standing at the prow with a harpoon, and waiting for a whale to lift its barnacle-speckled head as it offers its life for the life of the tribe. But now that can never be. Pearl's father was lost on the last hunt, and the whales hide from the great steam-powered ships carrying harpoon cannons, which harvest not one but dozens of whales from the ocean. With the whales gone, Pearl's people, the Makah, struggle to survive as Pearl searches for ways to preserve their stories and skills.]]> 208 Rosanne Parry 0375869719 Ellen 5 favorites 3.74 2013 Written in Stone
author: Rosanne Parry
name: Ellen
average rating: 3.74
book published: 2013
rating: 5
read at: 2014/09/24
date added: 2015/06/19
shelves: favorites
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Obsidian Dagger: Being the Further Extraordinary Adventures of Horatio Lyle (Horatio Lyle, #2)]]> 1179038 336 Catherine Webb 1904233694 Ellen 5 favorites 3.81 2006 The Obsidian Dagger: Being the Further Extraordinary Adventures of Horatio Lyle (Horatio Lyle, #2)
author: Catherine Webb
name: Ellen
average rating: 3.81
book published: 2006
rating: 5
read at: 2015/06/19
date added: 2015/06/19
shelves: favorites
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Extraordinary and Unusual Adventures of Horatio Lyle (Horatio Lyle, #1)]]> 71214
Thrown together with a reformed (i.e. 'caught') pickpocket called Tess, and a rebellious (within reason) young gentleman called Thomas, Lyle and his faithful hound, Tate, find themselves pursuing an ancient Chinese plate, a conspiracy that reaches to the highest levels of polite society and a dangerous enemy who may not even be human. Solving the crime will be hard enough - surviving would be a bonus...]]> 320 Catherine Webb 1904233619 Ellen 5 favorites At the same time Horatio catches Tess, a 12 year old thief, who's trying to rob him. She ends up trapped hanging from a pipe outside his house. One of his many inventions he created to protect his home and hearth.
Horatio gives her a choice. Become his assistant or he hands her over to the police. He will keep her lock pics until he decides she can leave. Along with Tess, Horatio finds a rebellious young aristocrat named Thomas who wants to help him in the search for the dangerously powerful plate. There's a group of evil non-humans
who want the plate so they can wipe out the human population of earth.
The last chapter was riveting and exciting. Great ending!!! ]]> 3.70 2006 The Extraordinary and Unusual Adventures of Horatio Lyle (Horatio Lyle, #1)
author: Catherine Webb
name: Ellen
average rating: 3.70
book published: 2006
rating: 5
read at: 2015/06/16
date added: 2015/06/16
shelves: favorites
review:
Dickens with more than a bit of magic. Horatio Lyle is a brilliant inventor who is passionate about science and also a special constable who is an occasional detective. This story starts with a killing that is tied a search for a ancient plate with powerful properties.
At the same time Horatio catches Tess, a 12 year old thief, who's trying to rob him. She ends up trapped hanging from a pipe outside his house. One of his many inventions he created to protect his home and hearth.
Horatio gives her a choice. Become his assistant or he hands her over to the police. He will keep her lock pics until he decides she can leave. Along with Tess, Horatio finds a rebellious young aristocrat named Thomas who wants to help him in the search for the dangerously powerful plate. There's a group of evil non-humans
who want the plate so they can wipe out the human population of earth.
The last chapter was riveting and exciting. Great ending!!!
]]> <![CDATA[The Girls at the Kingfisher Club]]> 18764828
Jo, the firstborn, "The General" to her eleven sisters, is the only thing the Hamilton girls have in place of a mother. She is the one who taught them how to dance, the one who gives the signal each night, as they slip out of the confines of their father's townhouse to await the cabs that will take them to the speakeasy. Together they elude their distant and controlling father, until the day he decides to marry them all off.

The girls, meanwhile, continue to dance, from Salon Renaud to the Swan and, finally, the Kingfisher, the club they come to call home. They dance until one night when they are caught in a raid, separated, and Jo is thrust face-to-face with someone from her past: a bootlegger named Tom whom she hasn't seen in almost ten years. Suddenly Jo must weigh in the balance not only the demands of her father and eleven sisters, but those she must make of herself.]]> 277 Genevieve Valentine 1476739080 Ellen 5 favorites end up independent, strong and full of joy and love for each other. ]]> 3.78 2014 The Girls at the Kingfisher Club
author: Genevieve Valentine
name: Ellen
average rating: 3.78
book published: 2014
rating: 5
read at: 2015/06/05
date added: 2015/06/05
shelves: favorites
review:
This was such a great story. The sisters go through such fear and hardship because of their father. They
end up independent, strong and full of joy and love for each other.
]]> <![CDATA[Gonzalez & Daughter Trucking Co.: A Road Novel with Literary License]]> 59751
�1,001 nights in a Mexicali women’s prison . . . González and Daughter Trucking Co. is about our compulsion to make events into stories and stories into bridges of understanding.”—John Sayles, Screenwriter and Director

Serving a sentence in a prison in Mexico, Libertad González finds a clever way to pass the time with the weekly Library Club, reading to her fellow inmates from whatever books she can find in the prison’s meager supply. The story that emerges, though, has nothing to do with the words printed on the pages. She tells of a former literature professor and fugitive of the Mexican government who reinvents himself as a trucker in the United States. There he falls in love with a wild woman with whom he shares his truck and his life—that is until Joaquín González unexpectedly finds himself alone on the road with a baby girl and González & Daughter Trucking Co. is born. Joaquín and his daughter make the cab of an 18-wheeler their home, sharing everything—adventures, books, truck-stop chow, and memories of the girl’s mother—until one day the girl grows into a woman, and a chance encounter with one man causes her to rebel against another.

With her stories, Libertad enthralls a group of female prisoners every bit as eccentric as the tales she tells. In González and Daughter Trucking Co ., bestselling author María Amparo Escandón seamlessly blends together these elements into one compelling and unexpected conclusion that will have you cheering for Libertad and filled with joy.]]> 304 María Amparo Escandón 1400097355 Ellen 5 favorites why they are there but Libertad never divulges why she is there. She is one of the few who speaks English, and also can read and write. She decides to start a reading group in the prison library. She gets an enthusiastic response from both the warden and the inmates. On her first reading she holds a book in her hands, but begins to tell her
life story.
This is one of the most unusual books I've ever read. It's also one of the best!]]> 3.86 2005 Gonzalez & Daughter Trucking Co.: A Road Novel with Literary License
author: MarĂ­a Amparo EscandĂłn
name: Ellen
average rating: 3.86
book published: 2005
rating: 5
read at: 2015/05/30
date added: 2015/05/30
shelves: favorites
review:
This is what I'd describe as a Woman's Novel, but not chic lit! A wonderful heartfelt story of a woman who leads a very unusual life right from birth. Libertad is in a women's prison in Mexico. The other inmates talk about
why they are there but Libertad never divulges why she is there. She is one of the few who speaks English, and also can read and write. She decides to start a reading group in the prison library. She gets an enthusiastic response from both the warden and the inmates. On her first reading she holds a book in her hands, but begins to tell her
life story.
This is one of the most unusual books I've ever read. It's also one of the best!
]]> <![CDATA[Helen and Troy's Epic Road Quest]]> 15791459 369 A. Lee Martinez 0316226440 Ellen 4 favorites things I love in a book! I've read every one of A. Lee Martinez's novels and enjoyed them all. Pure fun
entertainment. ]]> 4.04 2013 Helen and Troy's Epic Road Quest
author: A. Lee Martinez
name: Ellen
average rating: 4.04
book published: 2013
rating: 4
read at: 2015/05/26
date added: 2015/05/26
shelves: favorites
review:
My friends would call this an "Ellen" book. This book is strange, funny, outrageous and bizarre. All the
things I love in a book! I've read every one of A. Lee Martinez's novels and enjoyed them all. Pure fun
entertainment.
]]> <![CDATA[Bryant & May and The Bleeding Heart (Bryant & May, #11)]]> 21480719
Romain Curtis sneaks into St. George's Gardens one evening with his date, planning to show her the stars. A centuries-old burial ground, the small, quiet park is the perfect place to be alone. Yet the night takes a chilling turn when the two teenagers spy a strange figure rising from among the tombstones: a corpse emerging from the grave. Suffice it to say that wherever there's a dead man walking, Bryant and May and the Peculiar Crimes Unit are never far behind.

As the PCU investigates the sighting, a second urgent matter requires their unusual brand of problem-solving. Seven ravens have gone missing from their historic home in the Tower of London, and legend has it that when the ravens disappear, England will fall. Bryant has been tasked with recovering the lost birds, but when Romain is suddenly found dead, the two seemingly separate mysteries start to intertwine and point to a plot more sinister than anyone could ever imagine.

Soon Bryant and May find themselves immersed in London's darkest lore, from Victorian-era body snatchers, to arcane black magic, to the grisly myth behind Bleeding Heart Yard, a courtyard long associated with murder. And as the body count spikes and more coffins are unearthed, they will have to dig deep to catch a killer and finally lay these cases to rest.
Inventive, darkly funny, and fast-paced, "Bryant & May and the Bleeding Heart "is a brilliantly twisting puzzle, as only Christopher Fowler can write.
Praise for Christopher Fowler's ingenious novels featuring the Peculiar Crimes Unit
"A brilliant series."--"The Denver Post "
""The Invisible Code" has immense charm, but its plotting will satisfy serious mystery fans. . . . Best of all are the two main characters, particularly Bryant, whose fine British stodginess is matched perfectly by the agility of his crime-solving mind."--"The New York Times"
"Spiced with a little screwball-comedy dialogue and a touch of the occult."--"The Washington Post"," "on" The Memory of Blood"
"Fowler, like his crime-solvers, is deadpan, sly, and always unexpectedly inventive."--"Entertainment Weekly"
" "
"May and Bryant make a stellar team."--"The Wall Street Journal"
""Grumpy Old Men" does "CSI" with a twist of Dickens! Bryant and May are hilarious. I love this series."--Karen Marie Moning, #1 "New York Times" bestselling author of the MacKayla Lane novels
"[A] trademark mix of whimsical humor and macabre thrills."--"Publishers Weekly" (starred review)
"[Christopher] Fowler reinvents and reinvigorates the traditional police procedural.""--The Boston Globe"]]> 400 Christopher Fowler 0345547659 Ellen 5 favorites 4.10 2014 Bryant & May and The Bleeding Heart (Bryant & May, #11)
author: Christopher Fowler
name: Ellen
average rating: 4.10
book published: 2014
rating: 5
read at:
date added: 2015/05/15
shelves: favorites
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Burning Man (Bryant & May #12)]]> 23346783 No case is too curious for Arthur Bryant and John May, London’s most ingenious detectives. But with their beloved city engulfed in turmoil, they’ll have to work fast to hold a sinister killer’s feet to the fire.
Ěý
In the week before Guy Fawkes Night, London’s peaceful streets break out in sudden unrest. Enraged by a scandal involving a corrupt financier accused of insider trading, demonstrators are rioting outside the Findersbury Private Bank, chanting, marching, and growing violent. But when someone hurls a Molotov cocktail at the bank’s front door, killing a homeless man on its steps, Bryant, May, and the rest of the Peculiar Crimes Unit is called in. Is this an act of protest gone terribly wrong? Or a devious, premeditated murder?
Ěý
Their investigation heats up when a second victim is reported dead in similar fiery circumstances. May discovers the latest victim has ties to the troubled bank, and Bryant refuses to believe this is mere coincidence. As the riots grow more intense and the body count climbs, Bryant and May hunt for a killer who’s adopting incendiary methods of execution, on a snaking trail of clues with roots in London’s history of rebellion, anarchy, and harsh justice. Now, they’ll have to throw themselves in the line of fire before the entire investigation goes up in smoke.
Ěý
Suspenseful, smart, and wickedly funny, Bryant & May and the Burning Man is a brilliantly crafted mystery from the beloved Christopher Fowler.
Ěý
Praise for Christopher Fowler’s ingenious novels featuring the Peculiar Crimes Unit
Ěý
“A brilliant series.��The Denver Post
Ěý
“Fowler, like his crime-solvers, is deadpan, sly, and always unexpectedly inventive.��Entertainment Weekly
Ěý
“Mr. Fowler’s small but ardent American following deserves to get much larger. And The Invisible Code is a delightful introduction to his work. . . . The Invisible Code has immense charm, but its plotting will satisfy serious mystery fans. . . . Best of all are the two main characters, particularly Bryant, whose fine British stodginess is matched perfectly by the agility of his crime-solving mind.�—Janet Maslin, The New York Times, on The Invisible Code
Ěý
“Picture a television series that is a rough mash-up of Law & Order, The X-Files, and Monty Python’s Flying Circus . . . and you have the Peculiar Crimes Unit. . . . These stories are witty, challenging, engrossing, informative and incredibly well-written.��Bookreporter
Ěý
“Spiced with a little screwball-comedy dialogue and a touch of the occult.��The Washington Post, on The Memory of Blood
Ěý
“May and Bryant make a stellar team.��The Wall Street Journal
Ěý
“Fowler reinvents and reinvigorates the traditional police procedural.� —The Boston Globe ]]> 416 Christopher Fowler 0857522043 Ellen 5 favorites 4.26 2015 The Burning Man (Bryant & May #12)
author: Christopher Fowler
name: Ellen
average rating: 4.26
book published: 2015
rating: 5
read at: 2015/05/15
date added: 2015/05/15
shelves: favorites
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Day Shift (Midnight, Texas, #2)]]> 23281944 New York Times bestselling author of the Sookie Stackhouse novels returns to the one-traffic-light town you see only when you’re on the way to someplace else�

There is no such thing as bad publicity, except in Midnight, Texas, where the residents like to keep to themselves. Even in a town full of secretive people, Olivia Charity is an enigma. She lives with the vampire Lemuel, but no one knows what she does; they only know that she’s beautiful and dangerous.

Psychic Manfred Bernardo finds out just how dangerous when he goes on a working weekend to Dallas and sees Olivia there with a couple who are both found dead the next day. To make matters worse, one of Manfred’s regular—and very wealthy—clients dies during a reading.

Manfred returns from Dallas embroiled in scandal and hounded by the press. He turns to Olivia for help; somehow he knows that the mysterious Olivia can get things back to normal. As normal as things get in Midnight�



]]> 307 Charlaine Harris 0425263193 Ellen 5 favorites way off and others were spot on! Good mystery which was solved with a nice little twist although I would have
loved to have seen Lewis get his. At least he won't be back to harass Manfred but Olivia would have loved to
have killed him. Great book!!!!]]> 3.93 2015 Day Shift (Midnight, Texas, #2)
author: Charlaine Harris
name: Ellen
average rating: 3.93
book published: 2015
rating: 5
read at: 2015/05/07
date added: 2015/05/07
shelves: favorites
review:
What a wonderful weird book! Now I know who and what all the residents are, and some of my guesses were
way off and others were spot on! Good mystery which was solved with a nice little twist although I would have
loved to have seen Lewis get his. At least he won't be back to harass Manfred but Olivia would have loved to
have killed him. Great book!!!!
]]> Baking Cakes in Kigali 6088236 Baking Cakes in Kigali is just such a novel. This gloriously written tale—set in modern-day Rwanda—introduces one of the most singular and engaging characters in recent fiction: Angel Tungaraza—mother, cake baker, keeper of secrets—a woman living on the edge of chaos, finding ways to transform lives, weave magic, and create hope amid the madness swirling all around her.

In Kigali, Angel runs a bustling business: baking cakes for all occasions—cakes filled with vibrant color, buttery richness, and, most of all, a sense of hope only Angel can deliver.…A CIA agent’s wife seeks the perfect holiday cake but walks away with something far sweeter…a former boy-soldier orders an engagement cake, then, between sips of tea, shares an enthralling story…weary human rights workers…lovesick limo drivers. Amid this cacophony of native tongues, love affairs, and confessions, Angel’s kitchen is an oasis where people tell their secrets, where hope abounds and help awaits.

In this unlikely place, in the heart of Rwanda, unexpected things are beginning to happen: A most unusual wedding is planned…a heartbreaking mystery—involving Angel’s own family—unravels…and extraordinary connections are being made among the men and women who have tasted Angel’s beautiful cakes…as a chain of events unfolds that will change Angel’s life—and the lives of those around her—in the most astonishing ways.]]> 308 Gaile Parkin 0385343434 Ellen 5 favorites Angel surely lives up to name, quietly finding ways to help not only her customers, but her friends also.
]]> 3.69 2009 Baking Cakes in Kigali
author: Gaile Parkin
name: Ellen
average rating: 3.69
book published: 2009
rating: 5
read at: 2015/05/04
date added: 2015/05/04
shelves: favorites
review:
Angel Tungaraza lives in a UN type compound with her husband Pius and their 5 grandchildren in Kigali Rwanda. Angel's specialty is unique and colorful cakes. Customers come to her and while they are talking cakes and drinking her unusual tea, their stories emerge. Angel is a good listener and is very discreet and she provides healing and hope to each person. There's a lot of secrets to keep and not a lot of hope in war torn Rwanda. I love Angel's uplifting spirit and faith that things will get better. Her spirit is strong, even after suffering the loss of both of her adult children. There's so much sorrow and fear; Ebola, Aids, and retribution from the time of genocide.
Angel surely lives up to name, quietly finding ways to help not only her customers, but her friends also.

]]> <![CDATA[A Nice Class of Corpse (Mrs. Pargeter, #1)]]> 1824186
She checks into the Devereux Hotel on England’s sunny south coast. Where secrets hide behind every door and the sea-views are to die for . . .

Her arrival, in a fancy car and a flurry of silk, causes much excitement among the elderly residents.

By next morning, they have something new to talk about � the discovery of a crumpled body at the foot of the stairs.

The victim is old Mrs Selsby, timid occupant of the hotel’s most coveted sea-front room. Everyone says her death was a tragic accident, but Melita’s not so sure.

Wealthy Mrs S. just happens to have left her fortune to her fellow Devereux residents. And then there’s the matter of her jewellery. A priceless collection that seems to be disappearing piece by piece . . .

Melita may be pushing seventy, but she still has a trick or two left up her sleeve.

Can she catch the killer before anyone else dies?]]> 221 Simon Brett 0684186853 Ellen 4 favorites The murderer is a diarist who's slowly dying although they ( won't give away whether this person is a he or she) don't look ill to the other residents. Periodically this person's writings are revealed and the reader discovers that this person wants a bit of a thrill before their demise. Three residents are murdered and an attempt is made on Mrs. Pargeter's life. Fun, quick read and full of surprises. ]]> 3.67 1986 A Nice Class of Corpse (Mrs. Pargeter, #1)
author: Simon Brett
name: Ellen
average rating: 3.67
book published: 1986
rating: 4
read at: 2015/04/16
date added: 2015/04/16
shelves: favorites
review:
Cozy little English mystery. Mrs. Pargeter is a very wealthy elderly widow who moves into a seaside residential hotel. Mrs. Pargeter is the widow of a man who is described as being in the "Upper echelon of criminals". I get the impression Mr. Pargeter was a very successful thief and con artist, and many of his skills that she learned are used in her investigation. From the beginning she suspects murder although the doctor, police and the other residents think that these deaths are accidental. It's a bit of a stretch when one of the victims is supposedly smothered in her sleep but when the pillow is removed, the victim's eyes are open.
The murderer is a diarist who's slowly dying although they ( won't give away whether this person is a he or she) don't look ill to the other residents. Periodically this person's writings are revealed and the reader discovers that this person wants a bit of a thrill before their demise. Three residents are murdered and an attempt is made on Mrs. Pargeter's life. Fun, quick read and full of surprises.
]]> <![CDATA[Zoo Story: Life in the Garden of Captives]]> 7556318 Zoo Story, an unprecedented account of the secret life of a zoo and its inhabitants, both animal and human. Based on six years of research, the book follows a handful of unforgettable characters at Tampa's Lowry Park Zoo: an alpha chimp with a weakness for blondes, a ferocious tiger who revels in Obsession perfume, and a brilliant but tyrannical CEO known as El Diablo Blanco.

Zoo Story crackles with issues of global urgency: the shadow of extinction, humanity's role in the destruction or survival of other species. More than anything else, though, it's a dramatic and moving true story of seduction and betrayal, exile and loss, and the limits of freedom on an overcrowded planet-all framed inside one zoo reinventing itself for the twenty-first century.

Thomas French, a Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter, chronicles the action with vivid power: Wild elephants soaring above the Atlantic on their way to captivity. Predators circling each other in a lethal mating dance. Primates plotting the overthrow of their king. The sweeping narrative takes the reader from the African savannah to the forests of Panama and deep into the inner workings of a place some describe as a sanctuary and others condemn as a prison. All of it comes to life in the book's four-legged characters. Even animal lovers will be startled by the emotional charge of these creatures' histories, which read as though they were co-written by Dickens and Darwin.

Zoo Story shows us how these remarkable individuals live, how some die, and what their experiences reveal about the human desire to both exalt and control nature.]]> 288 Thomas French 1401323464 Ellen 5 favorites The beginning is about 4 elephants that are brought from Swaziland to Lowry. The elephants are destroying the trees and vegetation which is impacting other animals who need those plants to survive. There are too many elephants and they are facing a cull. Rather than kill them, the rangers decide to send 11 to the US. Four go to Lowry and 7 got to the San Diego Zoo. This sets off a huge battle with PETA and other animal rights groups, but Lex won't take no for an answer so eventually these 4 arrive which sets off a huge multimillion dollar expansion which eventually leads to a battle involving the city of Tampa and the state of Florida. ]]> 3.99 2010 Zoo Story: Life in the Garden of Captives
author: Thomas French
name: Ellen
average rating: 3.99
book published: 2010
rating: 5
read at: 2015/04/04
date added: 2015/04/04
shelves: favorites
review:
There are so many superlatives I can use to review this book. It's riveting, fascinating, heartbreaking, funny and a real page turner. It's the story of the Lowry Park Zoo in Tampa Florida. It tells the story of the rise, fall and rise again of America's Number One Family Zoo and all the characters in it both human and animal. Everyone from the obsessive dictatorial CEO Lex Salisbury to Herman the King of the Chimpanzees to Enshala the Sumatran tiger whose keeper sprays Obsession around her grotto. Enshala is beautiful and dangerous and rejects every suitor that the zoo brings in to hopefully mate with her. Herman is the alpha male chimpanzee who starts out with a family until he and his sister get too big and strong to live with this family and they are given to Lowry. Herman is one of the most long lived of the zoos animals. He has survived through some awful times when the zoo was a very horrible place to the present time where the animals are cared for with kindness and intelligence. Herman loves blondes and likes to see a bit of skin if he can. Makes for some interesting interactions with his female keepers.
The beginning is about 4 elephants that are brought from Swaziland to Lowry. The elephants are destroying the trees and vegetation which is impacting other animals who need those plants to survive. There are too many elephants and they are facing a cull. Rather than kill them, the rangers decide to send 11 to the US. Four go to Lowry and 7 got to the San Diego Zoo. This sets off a huge battle with PETA and other animal rights groups, but Lex won't take no for an answer so eventually these 4 arrive which sets off a huge multimillion dollar expansion which eventually leads to a battle involving the city of Tampa and the state of Florida.
]]> <![CDATA[The Market Square (The Caxley Chronicles, #1)]]> 669042 0 Miss Read 084881696X Ellen 4 favorites 4.19 1966 The Market Square (The Caxley Chronicles, #1)
author: Miss Read
name: Ellen
average rating: 4.19
book published: 1966
rating: 4
read at: 2015/03/30
date added: 2015/03/30
shelves: favorites
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Fork-Tongue Charmers (The Luck Uglies, #2)]]> 22635844
Rye O Chanter was shocked to discover that her father was the leader of the notorious band of outlaws known as the Luck Uglies. Now she too has been declared a criminal in her own village, and she must flee to the strange and remote Isle of Pest while her father faces off against the Luck Uglies bitter rivals, the Fork-Tongue-Charmers, on the mainland.

But all bets are off when the battle moves to the shores of Pest. To defeat the Fork-Tongue Charmers, Rye must defy a deranged earl, survive a test meant to judge the grit of the fiercest men, and lead the charge in defending the island against a strangely familiar enemy, which means uncovering some long-buried family secrets .

The first Luck Uglies book was named an ALA Notable Children s Book as well as a New York Public Library Title for Reading and Sharing, and it won the Cybil Award for Middle Grade Speculative Fiction."]]> 416 Paul Durham 0062271539 Ellen 4 favorites 4.21 2015 Fork-Tongue Charmers (The Luck Uglies, #2)
author: Paul Durham
name: Ellen
average rating: 4.21
book published: 2015
rating: 4
read at: 2015/03/24
date added: 2015/03/24
shelves: favorites
review:
A great "can't put down" fantasy!
]]> <![CDATA[Prudence (The Custard Protocol, #1)]]> 12799420 From New York Times bestselling author Gail Carriger comes a new novel in the world of the Parasol Protectorate starring Prudence, the daughter of Alexia Tarabotti.

When Prudence Alessandra Maccon Akeldama (Rue to her friends) is given an unexpected dirigible, she does what any sensible female would under similar circumstances - names it the Spotted Custard and floats to India in pursuit of the perfect cup of tea. But India has more than just tea on offer. Rue stumbles upon a plot involving local dissidents, a kidnapped brigadier's wife, and some awfully familiar Scottish werewolves. Faced with a dire crisis and an embarrassing lack of bloomers, what else is a young lady of good breeding to do but turn metanatural and find out everyone's secrets, even thousand-year-old fuzzy ones?]]> 357 Gail Carriger 0316212245 Ellen 4 favorites 3.79 2015 Prudence (The Custard Protocol, #1)
author: Gail Carriger
name: Ellen
average rating: 3.79
book published: 2015
rating: 4
read at: 2015/03/21
date added: 2015/03/21
shelves: favorites
review:

]]> Goodnight June 18667906 New York Times bestselling author of Blackberry Winter imagines the inspiration for Goodnight Moon

Goodnight Moon is an adored childhood classic, but its real origins are lost to history. In Goodnight June, Sarah Jio offers a suspenseful and heartfelt take on how the "great green room" might have come to be.

June Andersen is professionally successful, but her personal life is marred by unhappiness. Unexpectedly, she is called to settle her great-aunt Ruby’s estate and determine the fate of Bluebird Books, the children’s bookstore Ruby founded in the 1940s. Amidst the store’s papers, June stumbles upon letters between her great-aunt and the late Margaret Wise Brown—and steps into the pages of American literature.
]]> 288 Sarah Jio 0142180211 Ellen 5 favorites This is one of the best books I've read this year. Being born and raised in Seattle, I loved the setting. I also loved the theme of sisterhood. Each character, Margaret Wise Brown, Ruby and Jane all had problems in their relationships with their sisters. Made for some parts of the story to require a few hankies! ]]> 3.80 2014 Goodnight June
author: Sarah Jio
name: Ellen
average rating: 3.80
book published: 2014
rating: 5
read at: 2015/03/12
date added: 2015/03/12
shelves: favorites
review:
I love this story of a young woman named Jane who left Seattle, only to return when she receives an inheritance from her great aunt Ruby. Ruby has left her Bluebird Books, a children's book store Ruby founded in the 40's. This store brings back many wonderful memories of her otherwise troubled childhood. She arrives in Seattle a tough and hard hearted New York banker who specializes in handling foreclosures. Jane soon finds that Ruby had left her some surprises in the form of letters placed in several books in the store. As jane finds and reads these letters she discovers that Ruby had a long and close friendship with the author of "Goodnight Moon". She also discovers that Ruby had a long and loving affair with a man from a prestigious Seattle family. As she learns more about Ruby, she is also getting to know Gavin, the restaurant owner from next door. She soon faces the problem of whether she should sell the store and go back to her job in New York, or stay and run the store which was Ruby's dying wish.
This is one of the best books I've read this year. Being born and raised in Seattle, I loved the setting. I also loved the theme of sisterhood. Each character, Margaret Wise Brown, Ruby and Jane all had problems in their relationships with their sisters. Made for some parts of the story to require a few hankies!
]]> <![CDATA[Miss Clare Remembers and Emily Davis (Fairacre Series #4, 8)]]> 1215060 448 Miss Read 0618884343 Ellen 4 favorites 4.41 2007 Miss Clare Remembers and Emily Davis (Fairacre Series #4, 8)
author: Miss Read
name: Ellen
average rating: 4.41
book published: 2007
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2015/03/09
shelves: favorites
review:

]]> <![CDATA[A Peaceful Retirement (Fairacre, #20)]]> 1824844 160 Miss Read 0618884386 Ellen 4 favorites 4.25 1996 A Peaceful Retirement (Fairacre, #20)
author: Miss Read
name: Ellen
average rating: 4.25
book published: 1996
rating: 4
read at: 2015/03/08
date added: 2015/03/09
shelves: favorites
review:
I read these in the wrong order. This is the last book in the Fairacre series and it's a lovely novel about Miss Read's retirement. As usual everyone is telling her what to do, and no one listens to her except John Jenkins who is in love with her and proposes to her every time he sees her, and she turns him down. She begins to find her way and finds a balance of activities and the solitude which she loves. A great book to read in the winter curled up in bed under a cozy quilt and a nice cup of tea. Lovely series!
]]> <![CDATA[A Rather Remarkable Homecoming (Penny Nichols, #4)]]> 10723355 Join the fun and frolic with American heiress Penny Nichols and her English hero Jeremy Laidley, as the adventurous couple sets off for more elegant travel and delightful sleuthing together!

Penny and Jeremy are just returning from their honeymoon, only to be greeted by eccentric friends of Prince Charles bearing a rather royal request: to rescue a historical village on the coast of Cornwall, England. A property developer is bulldozing his way across the countryside to build a monstrous new development, and he's heading straight for Grandmother Beryl's old homestead where the newlyweds first met long ago as kids. Can Penny and Jeremy solve an ancient puzzle in time to save Grandma's house-and the entire village-from total destruction?

On the romantic rocky cliffs of Cornwall, amid Celtic lore and tales of Shakespeare, smugglers, and shipwrecks, Penny and Jeremy must contend with a rakish cast of local characters: a bird-watching earl, a famous TV chef, a vain actor, a New Age farmer, a pair of thuggish real-estate tycoons, a rebel rock-and-roller, and a band of determined "eco-warriors." Following a trail of cryptic clues, Penny and Jeremy's new caper takes them to the lush island of Madeira and the legendary castle of Tintagel, in a race against time to find the astonishing truth... before the wrecking ball strikes.

With her trademark wit, wisdom, and verve, C.A. Belmond's newest novel in her beloved "Rather" series provides a perfect armchair voyage of Europe's glamorous locales, with plenty of mystery, history, food, wine, love, and life's little pleasures.

]]> 342 C.A. Belmond 0451234618 Ellen 4 favorites 3.97 2011 A Rather Remarkable Homecoming (Penny Nichols, #4)
author: C.A. Belmond
name: Ellen
average rating: 3.97
book published: 2011
rating: 4
read at: 2015/03/08
date added: 2015/03/08
shelves: favorites
review:
Each of these books are like a Nick and Nora Charles story. Romance, humor, and some danger included and nice conclusion and this one hints at another book coming.
]]> <![CDATA[A Rather Charming Invitation (Penny Nichols, #3)]]> 6606453
London, Paris, Antibes. It's time to get down to wedding planning. But while heiress Penny's distant relatives insist that the nuptials be held in their native France, Jeremy's kin won't have it anywhere but England. And either choice might just re-ignite the Hundred Years' War...

Then, in a family château high above the perfume fields of Grasse, Penny's French cousin offers her the loan of an ancient bridal tapestry. But Penny has barely begun to crack its perplexing imagery before a series of strange events unfolds, threatening to derail the wedding. From a secret chalet on Lake Geneva, to a nostalgic stop at the opulent Train Bleu, to a winner-take-all gamble in Monte Carlo, Penny and Jeremy are off on another romp...while the clock is ticking down until they say, "I do."]]> 464 C.A. Belmond 0451229088 Ellen 4 favorites that was made by one of their ancestors. Jeremy's very difficult grandmother insists that the wedding be in England in the Cotswolds with all of her society friends attending. Penny and Jeremy toughen up and with the toss of a coin decide to have the wedding at their villa. They invite both families to their villa to see how the tapesty will look in the drawing room where the ceremony will take place. Then the tapestry is stolen!]]> 3.94 2010 A Rather Charming Invitation (Penny Nichols, #3)
author: C.A. Belmond
name: Ellen
average rating: 3.94
book published: 2010
rating: 4
read at: 2015/03/05
date added: 2015/03/05
shelves: favorites
review:
This is book 3 in a series of romantic mysteries. Penny and Jeremy are now engaged but the wedding plans have been anything but easy. Penny's french relatives want the wedding at their chateau in front of an antique wedding tapestry
that was made by one of their ancestors. Jeremy's very difficult grandmother insists that the wedding be in England in the Cotswolds with all of her society friends attending. Penny and Jeremy toughen up and with the toss of a coin decide to have the wedding at their villa. They invite both families to their villa to see how the tapesty will look in the drawing room where the ceremony will take place. Then the tapestry is stolen!
]]> La Cucina Seconda 15755442 263 Lily Prior Ellen 4 favorites love Italian food! ]]> 3.60 2012 La Cucina Seconda
author: Lily Prior
name: Ellen
average rating: 3.60
book published: 2012
rating: 4
read at: 2015/02/20
date added: 2015/02/20
shelves: favorites
review:
A wonderful sequel to La Cucina! Warning. Don't read this book on an empty stomach especially if you
love Italian food!
]]> <![CDATA[The Tower, the Zoo, and the Tortoise]]> 7745326
Balthazar Jones has lived in the Tower of London with his loving wife, Hebe, and his 120-year-old pet tortoise for the past eight years. That’s right, he is a Beefeater (they really do live there). It’s no easy job living and working in the tourist attraction in present-day London.

Among the eccentric characters who call the Tower’s maze of ancient buildings and spiral staircases home are the Tower’s Rack & Ruin barmaid, Ruby Dore, who just found out she’s pregnant; portly Valerie Jennings, who is falling for ticket inspector Arthur Catnip; the lifelong bachelor Reverend Septimus Drew, who secretly pens a series of principled erot­ica; and the philandering Ravenmaster, aiming to avenge the death of one of his insufferable ravens.

When Balthazar is tasked with setting up an elaborate menagerie within the Tower walls to house the many exotic animals gifted to the Queen, life at the Tower gets all the more interest­ing. Penguins escape, giraffes are stolen, and the Komodo dragon sends innocent people running for their lives. Balthazar is in charge and things are not exactly running smoothly. Then Hebe decides to leave him and his beloved tortoise “runs� away.

Filled with the humor and heart that calls to mind the delight­ful novels of Alexander McCall Smith, and the charm and beauty of The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society, The Tower, the Zoo, and the Tortoise is a magical, wholly origi­nal novel whose irresistible characters will stay with you long after you turn the stunning last page.

Published in the UK in August 2010 as Balthazar Jones and the Tower of London Zoo.]]> 304 Julia Stuart 0385533284 Ellen 5 favorites It starts out pretty depressing telling the story of Balthazar and his wife Hebe Jones. They have a marriage that has crumbled due to the death of their son Milo and they can't seem to get past that tragic event. Balthazar is walking the raw edge of disaster and pretty close to getting fired. Then the Queen decides to bring back the animal menargerie to the Tower. One of the animals that she received from another country died at the London zoo and she has promised that if that country sends her another, they will take better care of it. She decides that all her animal gifts should be in one place. Since Balthazar has managed to keep his family's 120 year tortoise alive, he is chose to run the menagerie. The Beefeaters are extremely angry that they are going to get stuck with not only these animals but more tourists, whom they hate. Add to that, the total lack of knowledge on how to care for the animals and the circus ensues. Mix in the quirkiness of the other Beefeaters and you have a wonderful funny novel. ]]> 3.58 2010 The Tower, the Zoo, and the Tortoise
author: Julia Stuart
name: Ellen
average rating: 3.58
book published: 2010
rating: 5
read at: 2015/02/18
date added: 2015/02/18
shelves: favorites
review:
This novel is amazing, clever, delightful and loaded with historical facts ( some pretty gruesome) about the Tower of London.
It starts out pretty depressing telling the story of Balthazar and his wife Hebe Jones. They have a marriage that has crumbled due to the death of their son Milo and they can't seem to get past that tragic event. Balthazar is walking the raw edge of disaster and pretty close to getting fired. Then the Queen decides to bring back the animal menargerie to the Tower. One of the animals that she received from another country died at the London zoo and she has promised that if that country sends her another, they will take better care of it. She decides that all her animal gifts should be in one place. Since Balthazar has managed to keep his family's 120 year tortoise alive, he is chose to run the menagerie. The Beefeaters are extremely angry that they are going to get stuck with not only these animals but more tourists, whom they hate. Add to that, the total lack of knowledge on how to care for the animals and the circus ensues. Mix in the quirkiness of the other Beefeaters and you have a wonderful funny novel.
]]> <![CDATA[Anglotopia's Dictionary of British English: British Slang from A to Zed]]> 17444354 115 Jonathan Thomas 1482014211 Ellen 4 favorites 4.09 2013 Anglotopia's Dictionary of British English: British Slang from A to Zed
author: Jonathan Thomas
name: Ellen
average rating: 4.09
book published: 2013
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2015/02/16
shelves: favorites
review:

]]> <![CDATA[A Guide to the Beasts of East Africa (Mr Malik, #2)]]> 13107401 272 Nicholas Drayson 0670920096 Ellen 4 favorites 3.70 2012 A Guide to the Beasts of East Africa (Mr Malik, #2)
author: Nicholas Drayson
name: Ellen
average rating: 3.70
book published: 2012
rating: 4
read at: 2015/02/13
date added: 2015/02/13
shelves: favorites
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Fairest (The Lunar Chronicles, #3.5)]]> 22489107 Cress and Winter in the bestselling Lunar Chronicles, Queen Levana’s story is finally told.

Mirror, mirror on the wall,
Who is the fairest of them all?

Fans of the Lunar Chronicles know Queen Levana as a ruler who uses her “glamour� to gain power. But long before she crossed paths with Cinder, Scarlet, and Cress, Levana lived a very different story � a story that has never been told . . . until now.

Marissa Meyer spins yet another unforgettable tale about love and war, deceit and death. This extraordinary book includes full-color art and an excerpt from Winter, the next book in the Lunar Chronicles series.]]> 272 Marissa Meyer 1250060559 Ellen 4 favorites I am glad Marissa wrote this novella so give us a view of what Levana was like when she was just a princess. I also enjoyed the first 3 chapters of Winter! Love this series. ]]> 3.95 2015 Fairest (The Lunar Chronicles, #3.5)
author: Marissa Meyer
name: Ellen
average rating: 3.95
book published: 2015
rating: 4
read at: 2015/02/01
date added: 2015/02/01
shelves: favorites
review:
How could Levana be anything but evil and cruel considering her family. Her parents are killed and Levana and her sister don't feel a thing. Levana is a dangerous spoiled woman/child who only thinks about what she wants. She is filled with envy and jealousy and latches onto a handsome royal guard who shows her kindness and friendship. She has these fantacies about romance with him and makes up her mind that he loves her. This man's wife dies in childbirth but her child named "Winter" survives. With the wife out of the way, Levana uses her glamour to make her look like the man's dead wife. She thinks that doing this will ease his grief. She also works on his mind forcing him to be with her and she makes him marry her. It's a very hard life that Winter will face with this greedy manipulative evil stepmother. Think Snow White.
I am glad Marissa wrote this novella so give us a view of what Levana was like when she was just a princess. I also enjoyed the first 3 chapters of Winter! Love this series.
]]> <![CDATA[The Axe Factor (Jimm Juree #3)]]> 17934616 Chumphon Gazette. This time they are sending her out to interview a local farang (European) writer, Conrad Coralbank, who writes award-winning crime novels. At the same time, several local women have left town without a word to anyone, leaving their possessions behind. These include the local doctor, Dr. Sumlak, who never returned from a conference, and the Thai wife of the aforementioned Conrad Coralbank. All of which looks a little suspicious, especially to Jimm's grandfather, an ex-cop who notices Coralbank's interest in Jimm with a very jaundiced eye. And now a major storm is brewing. Who knows what it will blow in for Jimm and her family?]]> 304 Colin Cotterill 1250043360 Ellen 4 favorites The characters are wonderful and so quirky. Mom and her pushy attitude and her insanity, Arny who is now a hero even though the sight of blood makes him pass out, Grandpa who likes to play cop when Jimm needs some kind of help, Capt. Kow who is the love of Mom's life and Chom the sweet gay policeman who is now living at their rundown resort.
Like I said before parts were graphically grisly, take note from the title! Lots of humor and surprises. ]]> 3.72 2013 The Axe Factor (Jimm Juree #3)
author: Colin Cotterill
name: Ellen
average rating: 3.72
book published: 2013
rating: 4
read at: 2015/01/31
date added: 2015/01/31
shelves: favorites
review:
Well there was a twist and it was a stunner. There was also one hell of a cliff hanger at the end.
The characters are wonderful and so quirky. Mom and her pushy attitude and her insanity, Arny who is now a hero even though the sight of blood makes him pass out, Grandpa who likes to play cop when Jimm needs some kind of help, Capt. Kow who is the love of Mom's life and Chom the sweet gay policeman who is now living at their rundown resort.
Like I said before parts were graphically grisly, take note from the title! Lots of humor and surprises.
]]> <![CDATA[As You Wish: Inconceivable Tales from the Making of The Princess Bride]]> 21412202 Storm the castle once more

Standing on the stage for the twenty-fifth anniversary of The Princess Bride, I felt an almost overwhelming sense of gratitude and nostalgia. It was a remarkable night and it brought back vivid memories of being part of what appears to have become a cult classic film about pirates and princesses, giants and jesters, cliffs of insanity, and of course rodents of unusual size.

It truly was as fun to make the movie as it is to watch it, from getting to work on William Goldman's brilliant screenplay to being directed by the inimitable Rob Reiner. It is not an exaggeration to say that most days on set were exhilarating, from wrestling André the Giant, to the impossibility of playing mostly dead with Billy Crystal cracking jokes above me, to choreographing the Greatest Sword Fight in Modern Times with Mandy Patinkin, to being part of the Kiss That Left All the Others Behind with Robin Wright.

In this book I've gathered many more behind-the-scenes stories and hopefully answers to many of the questions we've all received over the years from fans. Additionally, Robin, Billy, Rob, and Mandy, as well as Christopher Guest, Wallace Shawn, Fred Savage, Chris Sarandon, Carol Kane, Norman Lear, and William Goldman graciously share their own memories and stories from making this treasured film.

If you'd like to know a little more about the making of The Princess Bride as seen through the eyes of a young actor who got much more than he bargained for, along with the rest of this brilliant cast, then all I can say is...as you wish.]]> 259 Cary Elwes 1476764026 Ellen 4 favorites 4.16 2014 As You Wish: Inconceivable Tales from the Making of The Princess Bride
author: Cary Elwes
name: Ellen
average rating: 4.16
book published: 2014
rating: 4
read at: 2015/01/15
date added: 2015/01/15
shelves: favorites
review:
I love watching TV documentaries about movies and how they were made and all the things that happened. This is like a wonderful documentary about how The Princess Bride was made. It is one of my favorite movies ever!
]]> The Fixer Upper 5941079
After her boss in a high-powered Washington public relations firm is caught in a political scandal, fledgling lobbyist Dempsey Jo Killebrew is left almost broke, unemployed, and homeless. Out of options, she reluctantly accepts her father’s offer to help refurbish Birdsong, the old family place he recently inherited in Guthrie, Georgia. All it will take, he tells her, is a little paint and some TLC to turn the fading Victorian mansion into a real-estate cash cow.

But, oh, is Dempsey in for a surprise when she arrives in Guthrie. “Bird Droppings� would more aptly describe the moldering Pepto Bismol–pink dump with duct-taped windows and a driveway full of junk. There’s also a murderously grumpy old lady, one of Dempsey’s distant relations, who has claimed squatter’s rights and isn’t moving out. Ever.

Furthermore, everyone in Guthrie seems to know Dempsey’s business, from a smooth-talking real-estate agent to a cute lawyer who owns the local newspaper. It wouldn’t be so bad if it weren’t for the pesky FBI agents who show up on Dempsey’s doorstep, hoping to pry information about her ex-boss from her.

All Dempsey can do is roll up her sleeves and get to work. And before long, what started as a job of necessity somehow becomes a labor of love and, ultimately, a journey that takes her to a place she never expected—back home again.]]> 422 Mary Kay Andrews 0060837381 Ellen 4 favorites a bill favoring big oil interests who are clients of Hodder. Dempsey has a big crush on the handsome powerful lobbyist and will do anything he asked. He has her set up two bogus appointments with a so called wave board teacher and someone to give him a massage, but they are high priced call girls. She uses her company card. When they return home, the FBI and the justice department descend on Hodder's busness and takes all the receipts and computer information. Hodder promptly fires Dempsey. Now with no money and no job, Dempsey takes her father's offer of a place to stay. She feels she's well away from her bosses trouble but she doesn't realize what a scum bag her boss truly is.
When Hodder is called before the grand jury on charges, he testifies that Dempsey took it upon herself to set up Licatta with the call girls. Dempsey is left holding the bag. She finds that staying in Miami is a huge nightmare. Her father's cuban wife who is only a few years older than Dempsey makes it clear she doesn't want her around.
So dear old dad comes up with the idea that she should go to Guthrey Geogia and fix up an old plantation house that he's inherited from his Uncle Norbert. The house, painted pepto bismol pink is a true money pit surrounded by weeds and kudzu. When she gets there, she is greeted by a very nasty old lady with a shotgun and a mean little dog that bites.
Needless to say she has her work cut out for her. She becomes a hard worker, cleaning, stripping and sanding cabinets,floors etc..... She also finds friends in a father son law team, and lots of people who are willing to help her fix up the house so it regains some of it's former glory. Only thing predictable was the hot romance with the young lawyer but hey this is chick lit! ]]> 3.88 2009 The Fixer Upper
author: Mary Kay Andrews
name: Ellen
average rating: 3.88
book published: 2009
rating: 4
read at: 2015/01/14
date added: 2015/01/14
shelves: favorites
review:
The lead character Dempsey Killebrew is a young lawyer that works for a D.C. lobbyist Alex Hodder. The story starts with her boss in deep trouble for bribing a sleazy congressman named Licata. He takes this congressman on a jaunt to the Bahamas with Dempsey in tow, telling her that this trip is to try and persuade Licata to support
a bill favoring big oil interests who are clients of Hodder. Dempsey has a big crush on the handsome powerful lobbyist and will do anything he asked. He has her set up two bogus appointments with a so called wave board teacher and someone to give him a massage, but they are high priced call girls. She uses her company card. When they return home, the FBI and the justice department descend on Hodder's busness and takes all the receipts and computer information. Hodder promptly fires Dempsey. Now with no money and no job, Dempsey takes her father's offer of a place to stay. She feels she's well away from her bosses trouble but she doesn't realize what a scum bag her boss truly is.
When Hodder is called before the grand jury on charges, he testifies that Dempsey took it upon herself to set up Licatta with the call girls. Dempsey is left holding the bag. She finds that staying in Miami is a huge nightmare. Her father's cuban wife who is only a few years older than Dempsey makes it clear she doesn't want her around.
So dear old dad comes up with the idea that she should go to Guthrey Geogia and fix up an old plantation house that he's inherited from his Uncle Norbert. The house, painted pepto bismol pink is a true money pit surrounded by weeds and kudzu. When she gets there, she is greeted by a very nasty old lady with a shotgun and a mean little dog that bites.
Needless to say she has her work cut out for her. She becomes a hard worker, cleaning, stripping and sanding cabinets,floors etc..... She also finds friends in a father son law team, and lots of people who are willing to help her fix up the house so it regains some of it's former glory. Only thing predictable was the hot romance with the young lawyer but hey this is chick lit!
]]> <![CDATA[Belshazzar's Daughter (Inspector Ikmen, #1)]]> 32122
A racist murder? Inspector Ikmen has his doubts, and begins tracking down the few people who might have known the old man, including a faded prostitute, a shadowy family of Russian emigres, a dispairing rabbi, and a high-strung young Englishman in the throes of erotic obsession.

The first in a stunningly atmospheric new series from a writer who has deservedly been compared with Michael Dibdin and Donna Leon.]]> 448 Barbara Nadel 1933397497 Ellen 4 favorites 3.68 1999 Belshazzar's Daughter (Inspector Ikmen, #1)
author: Barbara Nadel
name: Ellen
average rating: 3.68
book published: 1999
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2015/01/12
shelves: favorites
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Grandad, There's A Head On The Beach (Jimm Juree, #2)]]> 12992430 326 Colin Cotterill 0857387081 Ellen 4 favorites bad cops and slavers who are kidnapping Burmese people and nobody seems to care since most of the people don't like the Burmese who are living in their town in Southern Thailand. She also is dealing with two women who seem to be hiding out at their resort.
In this sequel you have "crazy " mom, grandpa who is a former traffic cop, Arny the body building brother and his girlfriend and now the brother, who is a transgender computer hacker. One big strange family!]]> 3.74 2012 Grandad, There's A Head On The Beach (Jimm Juree, #2)
author: Colin Cotterill
name: Ellen
average rating: 3.74
book published: 2012
rating: 4
read at: 2015/01/12
date added: 2015/01/12
shelves: favorites
review:
Jimm finds a head on the beach which leads to a mystery. She ends up exposing
bad cops and slavers who are kidnapping Burmese people and nobody seems to care since most of the people don't like the Burmese who are living in their town in Southern Thailand. She also is dealing with two women who seem to be hiding out at their resort.
In this sequel you have "crazy " mom, grandpa who is a former traffic cop, Arny the body building brother and his girlfriend and now the brother, who is a transgender computer hacker. One big strange family!
]]> Constable & Toop 17464884
This highly atmospheric and bitingly funny ghost story by successful British author Gareth P. Jones will delight fans of Eva Ibbotson and Neil Gaiman.]]> 391 Gareth P. Jones 1419707825 Ellen 5 favorites Betelgeuse! I could not put this book down. ]]> 3.85 2012 Constable & Toop
author: Gareth P. Jones
name: Ellen
average rating: 3.85
book published: 2012
rating: 5
read at: 2015/01/05
date added: 2015/01/05
shelves: favorites
review:
I can't believe I read this book in one day! It was so deliciously creepy. It's like a blending of Dickens and
Betelgeuse! I could not put this book down.
]]> <![CDATA[A Rather Lovely Inheritance (Penny Nichols, #1)]]> 248889 376 C.A. Belmond 0451220528 Ellen 5 favorites Woman receives an inheritance from her aunt. which she shares with her cousins. One cousin is a wonderful caring young man and the other is a creepy vulture who is out to remove his cousin from getting the beautiful villa in the south of france, and gets caught in the act trying to steal a classic car ( which is left to the heroine Penny) from the garage. I loved this book.]]> 3.65 2007 A Rather Lovely Inheritance (Penny Nichols, #1)
author: C.A. Belmond
name: Ellen
average rating: 3.65
book published: 2007
rating: 5
read at: 2015/01/02
date added: 2015/01/02
shelves: favorites
review:
Wonderful, romantic, adventure. Absolutely a can't-put-down story. Immediately ordered book 2 in the series.
Woman receives an inheritance from her aunt. which she shares with her cousins. One cousin is a wonderful caring young man and the other is a creepy vulture who is out to remove his cousin from getting the beautiful villa in the south of france, and gets caught in the act trying to steal a classic car ( which is left to the heroine Penny) from the garage. I loved this book.
]]> <![CDATA[Foxglove Summer (Rivers of London, #5)]]> 20499240
Travelling west with Beverley Brook, Peter soon finds himself caught up in a deep mystery and having to tackle local cops and local gods. And what's more all the shops are closed by 4pm ...]]> 377 Ben Aaronovitch 0575132507 Ellen 5 favorites 4.16 2014 Foxglove Summer (Rivers of London, #5)
author: Ben Aaronovitch
name: Ellen
average rating: 4.16
book published: 2014
rating: 5
read at: 2014/12/16
date added: 2014/12/16
shelves: favorites
review:

]]>