en-US Fri, 01 Nov 2024 16:03:30 -0700 60 144 41 /images/layout/goodreads_logo_144.jpg 18144590 The Alchemist has become a modern classic, selling millions of copies around the world and transforming the lives of countless readers across generations.

Paulo Coelho's masterpiece tells the mystical story of Santiago, an Andalusian shepherd boy who yearns to travel in search of a worldly treasure. His quest will lead him to riches far different—and far more satisfying—than he ever imagined. Santiago's journey teaches us about the essential wisdom of listening to our hearts, recognizing opportunity and learning to read the omens strewn along life's path, and, most importantly, following our dreams.]]> 182 Paulo Coelho 0062315005 Steve 4 4.01 1988
author: Paulo Coelho
name: Steve
average rating: 4.01
book published: 1988
rating: 4
read at: 2024/11/01
date added: 2024/11/01
shelves:
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]]> 40097951
Alicia’s refusal to talk, or give any kind of explanation, turns a domestic tragedy into something far grander, a mystery that captures the public imagination and casts Alicia into notoriety. The price of her art skyrockets, and she, the silent patient, is hidden away from the tabloids and spotlight at the Grove, a secure forensic unit in North London.

Theo Faber is a criminal psychotherapist who has waited a long time for the opportunity to work with Alicia. His determination to get her to talk and unravel the mystery of why she shot her husband takes him down a twisting path into his own motivations—a search for the truth that threatens to consume him....

The Silent Patient is a shocking psychological thriller of a woman’s act of violence against her husband—and of the therapist obsessed with uncovering her motive.]]> 336 Alex Michaelides 1250301696 Steve 0 to-read 4.17 2019
author: Alex Michaelides
name: Steve
average rating: 4.17
book published: 2019
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/08/01
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 18749 A masterly, haunting new novel from a writer heralded by The Washington Post Book World as “the 21st-century daughter of Chinua Achebe,�� Half of a Yellow Sun re-creates a seminal moment in modern African history: Biafra’s impassioned struggle to establish an independent republic in Nigeria in the 1960s, and the chilling violence that followed.

With astonishing empathy and the effortless grace of a natural storyteller, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie weaves together the lives of three characters swept up in the turbulence of the decade. Thirteen-year-old Ugwu is employed as a houseboy for a university professor full of revolutionary zeal. Olanna is the professor’s beautiful mistress, who has abandoned her life of privilege in Lagos for a dusty university town and the charisma of her new lover. And Richard is a shy young Englishman in thrall to Olanna’s twin sister, an enigmatic figure who refuses to belong to anyone. As Nigerian troops advance and the three must run for their lives, their ideals are severely tested, as are their loyalties to one another.

Epic, ambitious, and triumphantly realized, Half of a Yellow Sun is a remarkable novel about moral responsibility, about the end of colonialism, about ethnic allegiances, about class and race—and the ways in which love can complicate them all. Adichie brilliantly evokes the promise and the devastating disappointments that marked this time and place, bringing us one of the most powerful, dramatic, and intensely emotional pictures of modern Africa that we have ever had.]]> 435 Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie 1400044162 Steve 5 4.34 2006
author: Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
name: Steve
average rating: 4.34
book published: 2006
rating: 5
read at:
date added: 2022/04/07
shelves:
review:

]]> 15796700 477 Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie Steve 3 4.32 2013
author: Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
name: Steve
average rating: 4.32
book published: 2013
rating: 3
read at:
date added: 2022/04/07
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]]> 37781 Things Fall Apart is written with remarkable economy and subtle irony. Uniquely and richly African, at the same time it reveals Achebe's keen awareness of the human qualities common to men of all times and places.]]> 215 Chinua Achebe Steve 0 to-read 3.73 1958
author: Chinua Achebe
name: Steve
average rating: 3.73
book published: 1958
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2022/03/10
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 28257707 Alternate cover edition of ISBN 9780062457738

In this generation-defining self-help guide, a superstar blogger cuts through the crap to show us how to stop trying to be "positive" all the time so that we can truly become better, happier people.

For decades, we’ve been told that positive thinking is the key to a happy, rich life. "F**k positivity," Mark Manson says. "Let’s be honest, shit is f**ked and we have to live with it." In his wildly popular Internet blog, Manson doesn’t sugarcoat or equivocate. He tells it like it is—a dose of raw, refreshing, honest truth that is sorely lacking today. The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F**k is his antidote to the coddling, let’s-all-feel-good mindset that has infected American society and spoiled a generation, rewarding them with gold medals just for showing up.

Manson makes the argument, backed both by academic research and well-timed poop jokes, that improving our lives hinges not on our ability to turn lemons into lemonade, but on learning to stomach lemons better. Human beings are flawed and limited��"not everybody can be extraordinary, there are winners and losers in society, and some of it is not fair or your fault." Manson advises us to get to know our limitations and accept them. Once we embrace our fears, faults, and uncertainties, once we stop running and avoiding and start confronting painful truths, we can begin to find the courage, perseverance, honesty, responsibility, curiosity, and forgiveness we seek.

There are only so many things we can give a f**k about so we need to figure out which ones really matter, Manson makes clear. While money is nice, caring about what you do with your life is better, because true wealth is about experience. A much-needed grab-you-by-the-shoulders-and-look-you-in-the-eye moment of real-talk, filled with entertaining stories and profane, ruthless humor, The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F**k is a refreshing slap for a generation to help them lead contented, grounded lives.]]> 212 Mark Manson Steve 0 to-read 3.87 2016
author: Mark Manson
name: Steve
average rating: 3.87
book published: 2016
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2021/01/12
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 231262
The fact is your brain craves novelty. It's constantly searching, scanning, waiting for something unusual to happen. After all, that's the way it was built to help you stay alive. It takes all the routine, ordinary, dull stuff and filters it to the background so it won't interfere with your brain's real work--recording things that matter. How does your brain know what matters? It's like the creators of the Head First approach say, suppose you're out for a hike and a tiger jumps in front of you, what happens in your brain? Neurons fire. Emotions crank up. Chemicals surge. That's how your brain knows.

And that's how your brain will learn Java. Head First Java combines puzzles, strong visuals, mysteries, and soul-searching interviews with famous Java objects to engage you in many different ways. It's fast, it's fun, and it's effective. And, despite its playful appearance, Head First Java is serious stuff: a complete introduction to object-oriented programming and Java. You'll learn everything from the fundamentals to advanced topics, including threads, network sockets, and distributed programming with RMI. And the new. second edition focuses on Java 5.0, the latest version of the Java language and development platform. Because Java 5.0 is a major update to the platform, with deep, code-level changes, even more careful study and implementation is required. So learning the Head First way is more important than ever.

If you've read a Head First book, you know what to expect--a visually rich format designed for the way your brain works. If you haven't, you're in for a treat. You'll see why people say it's unlike any other Java book you've ever read.

By exploiting how your brain works, Head First Java compresses the time it takes to learn and retain--complex information. Its unique approach not only shows you what you need to know about Java syntax, it teaches you to think like a Java programmer. If you want to be bored, buy some other book. But if you want to understand Java, this book's for you.]]> 688 Kathy Sierra 0596009208 Steve 5 I highly recommend this book!]]> 4.25 2006
author: Kathy Sierra
name: Steve
average rating: 4.25
book published: 2006
rating: 5
read at: 2020/08/31
date added: 2020/08/31
shelves:
review:
This book really made me understand about Object Oriented Programming and the concepts around it. You couldn't find a better book for beginners if you tried.
I highly recommend this book!
]]> 37301
The "maddog" murderer who is terrorizing the Twin Cities is two things: insane and extremely intelligent. He kills for the pleasure of it and thoroughly enjoys placing elaborate obstacles to keep the police befuddled. Each clever move he makes is another point of pride. But when the brilliant Lieutenant Davenport--a dedicated cop and a serial killer's worst nightmare--is brought in to take up the investigation, maddog suddenly has an adversary worthy of his genius.

Librarian's note: the first five books in the Lucas Davenport series are #1, Rules of Prey, 1989; #2, Shadow Prey, 1990; #3, Eyes of Prey, 1991; #4, Silent Prey, 1992; and #5, Winter Prey, 1993.]]> 479 John Sandford 0425205819 Steve 3 Ok this should be a hard boiled detective novel but sometimes it seemed like a romantic fiction because instead of the cat and mouse game I was expecting, the book was more about Lucas Davenport and his boring life of sleeping with women. The writer seemed obsessed with him.
Not sure I wanna read another Lucas Davenport book. Maybe I'll give him another shot later on.]]> 4.10 1989
author: John Sandford
name: Steve
average rating: 4.10
book published: 1989
rating: 3
read at:
date added: 2020/08/31
shelves:
review:
This was a book that started out promising, the first twenty pages were good. I was thinking I had a five star thriller on my hands.
Ok this should be a hard boiled detective novel but sometimes it seemed like a romantic fiction because instead of the cat and mouse game I was expecting, the book was more about Lucas Davenport and his boring life of sleeping with women. The writer seemed obsessed with him.
Not sure I wanna read another Lucas Davenport book. Maybe I'll give him another shot later on.
]]> 58128
At any given moment, somewhere in the world someone struggles with the same software design problems you have. You know you don't want to reinvent the wheel (or worse, a flat tire), so you look to Design Patterns--the lessons learned by those who've faced the same problems. With Design Patterns, you get to take advantage of the best practices and experience of others, so that you can spend your time on...something else. Something more challenging. Something more complex. Something more fun.

You want to learn about the patterns that matter--why to use them, when to use them, how to use them (and when NOT to use them). But you don't just want to see how patterns look in a book, you want to know how they look "in the wild". In their native environment. In other words, in real world applications. You also want to learn how patterns are used in the Java API, and how to exploit Java's built-in pattern support in your own code.

You want to learn the real OO design principles and why everything your boss told you about inheritance might be wrong (and what to do instead). You want to learn how those principles will help the next time you're up a creek without a design pattern.

Most importantly, you want to learn the "secret language" of Design Patterns so that you can hold your own with your co-worker (and impress cocktail party guests) when he casually mentions his stunningly clever use of Command, Facade, Proxy, and Factory in between sips of a martini. You'll easily counter with your deep understanding of why Singleton isn't as simple as it sounds, how the Factory is so often misunderstood, or on the real relationship between Decorator, Facade and Adapter.

With Head First Design Patterns, you'll avoid the embarrassment of thinking Decorator is something from the "Trading Spaces" show. Best of all, in a way that won't put you to sleep! We think your time is too important (and too short) to spend it struggling with academic texts.

If you've read a Head First book, you know what to expect--a visually rich format designed for the way your brain works. Using the latest research in neurobiology, cognitive science, and learning theory, Head First Design Patterns will load patterns into your brain in a way that sticks. In a way that lets you put them to work immediately. In a way that makes you better at solving software design problems, and better at speaking the language of patterns with others on your team.]]> 638 Eric Freeman 0596007124 Steve 0 to-read 4.29 2004
author: Eric Freeman
name: Steve
average rating: 4.29
book published: 2004
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2019/11/18
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 69571 195 Robert T. Kiyosaki 0751532711 Steve 0 to-read 4.10 1997
author: Robert T. Kiyosaki
name: Steve
average rating: 4.10
book published: 1997
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2019/05/11
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 44074741
Jordanian student Siwar Salaiha is murdered on her birthday in Maryland,and her consciousness survives, finding refuge in the body of a Seattle baby. Stuck in this speech delayed three-year old body, Siwar tries but fails to communicate with Wyatt's parents, instead focusing on solving the mystery behind her murder.]]> Natasha Tynes 1947856758 Steve 1 1.48 2019
author: Natasha Tynes
name: Steve
average rating: 1.48
book published: 2019
rating: 1
read at:
date added: 2019/05/10
shelves:
review:

]]> 44643716 246 Greg Sidelnikov 1091212163 Steve 5 4.68 2019
author: Greg Sidelnikov
name: Steve
average rating: 4.68
book published: 2019
rating: 5
read at:
date added: 2019/04/15
shelves:
review:

]]> 18744383 199 John Campbell Steve 0 to-read 4.53 2013
author: John Campbell
name: Steve
average rating: 4.53
book published: 2013
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2018/12/14
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 179735 370 Jack Ketchum 0843955430 Steve 5 shiver 3.90 1989
author: Jack Ketchum
name: Steve
average rating: 3.90
book published: 1989
rating: 5
read at: 2018/06/18
date added: 2018/10/28
shelves: shiver
review:

]]> 830502
It’s a small city, a place as hauntingly familiar as your own hometown. Only in Derry the haunting is real ...

They were seven teenagers when they first stumbled upon the horror. Now they are grown-up men and women who have gone out into the big world to gain success and happiness. But none of them can withstand the force that has drawn them back to Derry to face the nightmare without an end, and the evil without a name.]]> 1184 Stephen King 0450411435 Steve 0 currently-reading 4.28 1986
author: Stephen King
name: Steve
average rating: 4.28
book published: 1986
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2018/10/28
shelves: currently-reading
review:

]]> 19086306 Examining in detail at least one amazing site for all fifty states, Albert Dickas clearly explains the geologic forces behind each one’s origin in 101 Geologic Sites You’ve Gotta See. Dickas discusses not only iconic landforms such as Devil’s Tower in Wyoming but also locales that are often overlooked yet have fascinating stories. Consider the Reelfoot scarp in Tennessee: to the casual observer it is nothing more than a slight rise in a farm field. Yet this subtle slope represents a rift formed during an 1812 earthquake that forced the mighty Mississippi to flow upstream. Or Lousiana’s unassuming, low-lying Avery Island, which actually caps an 8.5-mile-high column of salt. Amply illustrated with full-color photographs and illustrations and written in clear yet playful prose, 101 Geologic Sites You’ve Gotta See will entertain and inform amateur and seasoned geology buffs whether from an armchair or in the field.]]> 264 Albert Dickas 0878426132 Steve 0 to-read 4.50 2013
author: Albert Dickas
name: Steve
average rating: 4.50
book published: 2013
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2018/06/18
shelves: to-read
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]]> 10611
​Thus begins one of the most unique tales that master storyteller Stephen King has ever written—a sprawling fantasy of dark magic and the struggle for absolute power that utterly transforms the destinies of two brothers born into royalty. Through this enthralling masterpiece of mythical adventure, intrigue, and terror, you will thrill to this unforgettable narrative filled with relentless, wicked enchantment, and the most terrible of secrets…]]> 427 Stephen King Steve 4 3.95 1984
author: Stephen King
name: Steve
average rating: 3.95
book published: 1984
rating: 4
read at: 2015/10/12
date added: 2017/10/20
shelves:
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]]> 33124137 This is an alternate Cover Edition for ASIN: B00K3NEE56. When the Creeds move into a beautiful old house in rural Maine, it all seems too good to be true: physician father, beautiful wife, charming little daughter, adorable infant son-and now an idyllic home. As a family, they've got it all...right down to the friendly car. But the nearby woods hide a blood-chilling truth-more terrifying than death itself-and hideously more powerful. The Creeds are going to learn that sometimes dead is better.]]> 580 Stephen King Steve 5 4.21 1983
author: Stephen King
name: Steve
average rating: 4.21
book published: 1983
rating: 5
read at: 2017/09/05
date added: 2017/10/15
shelves:
review:
The best Stephen King novel I have read so far. Haunting is the word to describe this masterpiece which will stick in your mind long after you have put it down
]]> 17934463 Dryden, who lost his wife and young daughter in an accident five years ago, agrees to help her try to unravel her own past and make sense of it, to protect her from the people who are moving heaven and earth to find them both. Although Dryden is only one man, he’s a man with the extraordinary skills and experience—as a Ranger, a Delta, and five years doing off-the-book black ops with an elite team. But, as he slowly begins to discover, the highly trained paramilitary forces on their heels is the only part of the danger they must face. Will Rachel’s own unremembered past be the most deadly of them all?

]]> 328 Patrick Lee 1250030730 Steve 0 currently-reading 3.97 2014
author: Patrick Lee
name: Steve
average rating: 3.97
book published: 2014
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2017/10/15
shelves: currently-reading
review:

]]> 6879697 224 Gar Anthony Haywood 0727868519 Steve 0 to-read 3.74 2009
author: Gar Anthony Haywood
name: Steve
average rating: 3.74
book published: 2009
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2017/10/13
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 13418228 212 Jake Hinkson Steve 0 to-read 4.04 2011
author: Jake Hinkson
name: Steve
average rating: 4.04
book published: 2011
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2017/10/13
shelves: to-read
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]]> 498645
When Gwen comes to him one night scared and desperate for help, Worth discovers just how far he’s willing to go to protect and serve. The next thing he knows, he’s driving a stolen car with a corpse in the trunk, a pistol in the glove box, and no way to turn back. Everything he doesn’t know could get them killed. And things haven’t even begun to get messy yet....]]> 304 Sean Doolittle 0440242827 Steve 0 to-read 3.57 2006
author: Sean Doolittle
name: Steve
average rating: 3.57
book published: 2006
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2017/10/13
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 11557
He is the Man with the Scarlet Eye, a malevolent force that feeds on the dark desires of the countless followers he has gathered into his service. His only desire is to find a special child named Swan—and destroy her. But those who would protect the girl are determined to fight for what is left of the world, and their souls.

In a wasteland born of rage, populated by monstrous creatures and marauding armies, the last survivors on earth have been drawn into the final battle between good and evil that will decide the fate of humanity....]]> 956 Robert McCammon 0671741039 Steve 0 to-read 4.29 1987
author: Robert McCammon
name: Steve
average rating: 4.29
book published: 1987
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2017/09/26
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 829860
The two million bucks should be enough to last him a lifetime or two. But a two-faced dame has another idea: Let Johnny do the work, then she'll grab the swag for herself and her boyfriend.]]> 128 Lionel White 0887390862 Steve 0 to-read 3.94 1955
author: Lionel White
name: Steve
average rating: 3.94
book published: 1955
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2017/09/11
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 110430 226 James Hadley Chase 1842321102 Steve 0 3.80 1972
author: James Hadley Chase
name: Steve
average rating: 3.80
book published: 1972
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2017/09/11
shelves:
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]]> 380558 170 Lawrence Block 0752827499 Steve 3 3.82 1976
author: Lawrence Block
name: Steve
average rating: 3.82
book published: 1976
rating: 3
read at: 2017/08/05
date added: 2017/08/05
shelves:
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]]> 39507 The pretty young prostitute is dead. Her alleged murderer—a minister's son—hanged himself in his jail cell. The case is closed. But the dead girl's father has come to Matthew Scudder for answers, sending the unlicensed private investigator in search of terrible truths about a life that was lived and lost in a sordid world of perversion and pleasures.

]]> 182 Lawrence Block 0752834525 Steve 3 3.87 1976
author: Lawrence Block
name: Steve
average rating: 3.87
book published: 1976
rating: 3
read at:
date added: 2017/07/20
shelves:
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]]> 220968
The gunman worked from a parking structure just thirty yards away–point-blank range for a trained military sniper like James Barr. His victims were in the wrong place at the wrong time. But why does Barr want Reacher at his side? There are good reasons why Reacher is the last person Barr would want to see. But when Reacher hears Barr’s own words, he understands. And a slam-dunk case explodes. Soon Reacher is teamed with a young defense lawyer who is working against her D.A. father and dueling with a prosecution team that has an explosive secret of its own. Like most things Reacher has known in life, this case is a complex battlefield. But, as always, in battle, Reacher is at his best.

Moving in the shadows, picking his spots, Reacher gets closer and closer to the unseen enemy who is pulling the strings. And for Reacher, the only way to take him down is to know his ruthlessness and respect his cunning–and then match him shot for shot…]]> 466 Lee Child 0440241022 Steve 5 4.21 2005
author: Lee Child
name: Steve
average rating: 4.21
book published: 2005
rating: 5
read at: 2017/06/25
date added: 2017/06/25
shelves:
review:
Better than Killing Floor. Currently my favourite in the series
]]> 32423
A lonely widower; a ruthless assassin; a beautiful woman; a government agent.

Drawn together in a deadly hunt, all four are inexorably propelled towards a confrontation with an evil beyond human imagining.]]> 624 Dean Koontz Steve 4 4.17 1987
author: Dean Koontz
name: Steve
average rating: 4.17
book published: 1987
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2017/05/23
shelves:
review:

]]> 648729 224 Ross Macdonald Steve 0 4.04 1968
author: Ross Macdonald
name: Steve
average rating: 4.04
book published: 1968
rating: 0
read at: 2017/05/23
date added: 2017/05/23
shelves:
review:

]]> 9014 370 Richard Bachman 0451196716 Steve 4 4.11 1978
author: Richard Bachman
name: Steve
average rating: 4.11
book published: 1978
rating: 4
read at: 2016/09/13
date added: 2016/09/13
shelves:
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]]> 19161894
One afternoon he meets Fay, a beautiful young widow. She is smart and decent -- at least when she's sober.

Soon Collins finds himself involved in a kidnapping scheme that goes drastically wrong almost before it even begins. Because the kid they've picked up isn't like other kids: he's diabetic and without insulin, he'll die. Not the safest situation for Collins, a man for whom stress and violence have long gone hand-in-hand.]]> 223 Jim Thompson 0316403849 Steve 4 3.88 1955
author: Jim Thompson
name: Steve
average rating: 3.88
book published: 1955
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2016/08/04
shelves:
review:

]]> 21936809 The Girl on the Train will love this modern reimagining of Patricia Highsmith’s classic Strangers on a Train from the author of the acclaimed The Girl with a Clock for a Heart—which the Washington Post said “should be a contender for crime fiction’s best first novel of 2014.��

On a night flight from London to Boston, Ted Severson meets the stunning and mysterious Lily Kintner. Sharing one too many martinis, the strangers begin to play a game of truth, revealing very intimate details about themselves. Ted talks about his marriage that’s going stale and his wife Miranda, who he’s sure is cheating on him. Ted and his wife were a mismatch from the start—he the rich businessman, she the artistic free spirit—a contrast that once inflamed their passion, but has now become a cliché.

But their game turns a little darker when Ted jokes that he could kill Miranda for what she’s done. Lily, without missing a beat, says calmly, “I’d like to help.�� After all, some people are the kind worth killing, like a lying, stinking, cheating spouse. . . .

Back in Boston, Ted and Lily’s twisted bond grows stronger as they begin to plot Miranda's demise. But there are a few things about Lily’s past that she hasn’t shared with Ted, namely her experience in the art and craft of murder, a journey that began in her very precocious youth.

Suddenly these co-conspirators are embroiled in a chilling game of cat-and-mouse, one they both cannot survive . . . with a shrewd and very determined detective on their tail.]]> 320 Peter Swanson 0062267523 Steve 4 gripping-thrillers 3.98 2015
author: Peter Swanson
name: Steve
average rating: 3.98
book published: 2015
rating: 4
read at: 2016/07/06
date added: 2016/07/07
shelves: gripping-thrillers
review:

]]> 107291 790 Stephen King Steve 0 never-finished 3.98 1991
author: Stephen King
name: Steve
average rating: 3.98
book published: 1991
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2016/07/06
shelves: never-finished
review:

]]> 11597 #1, #2, #3

Thad Beaumont would like to say he is innocent. He'd like to say he has nothing to do with the series of monstrous murders that keep coming closer to his home. But how can Thad disown the ultimate embodiment of evil that goes by the name he gave it-and signs its crimes with Thad's bloody fingerprints?]]> 460 Stephen King 045052468X Steve 0 never-finished 3.81 1989
author: Stephen King
name: Steve
average rating: 3.81
book published: 1989
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2016/01/03
shelves: never-finished
review:
Slow , repetitious and boring. Stephen King just takes too long to get a single point across. Moving on to the next book
]]> 425123 The tough neighborhood of Dorchester is no place for the innocent or the weak. Its territory is defined by hard heads and even harder luck; its streets are littered with the detritus of broken families, hearts, and dreams. Now one of its youngest is missing. Private investigators Patrick Kenzie and Angela Gennaro don’t want the case. But after pleas from the child’s aunt, they open an investigation that will ultimately risk everything—their relationship, their sanity, and even their lives—to find a little girl lost.]]> 412 Dennis Lehane 0380730359 Steve 0 never-finished 4.15 1998
author: Dennis Lehane
name: Steve
average rating: 4.15
book published: 1998
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2015/12/23
shelves: never-finished
review:

]]> 17660 The Tommyknockers is a 1987 horror novel by Stephen King. While maintaining a horror style, the novel is more of an excursion into the realm of science fiction, as the residents of the Maine town of Haven gradually fall under the influence of a mysterious object buried in the woods.

In his autobiography, On Writing, King attributes the basic premise to the short story "The Colour Out of Space" by H.P. Lovecraft. It also draws fairly obvious parallels with the classic 1956 movie Invasion of the Body Snatchers & the 1959 novelette The Big Front Yard by Clifford Simak. King wrote the book during a period of acknowledged substance abuse & has written that he realized later on that the novel was a metaphor for that addiction.

The writer & critic Kim Newman has cited another influence on the novel, saying that in it King had "more or less rewritten Quatermass & the Pit," a 1950s BBC television science-fiction serial. This influence was also picked up on in The Times newspaper's review of the book on its release.]]> 747 Stephen King Steve 0 never-finished 3.61 1987
author: Stephen King
name: Steve
average rating: 3.61
book published: 1987
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2015/10/12
shelves: never-finished
review:

]]> 21671
Twenty-five years later, Sean is a homicide detective. Jimmy is an ex-con who owns a corner store. And Dave is trying to hold his marriage together and keep his demons at bay -- demons that urge him to do terrible things. When Jimmy's daughter is found murdered, Sean is assigned to the case. His investigation brings him into conflict with Jimmy, who finds his old criminal impulses tempt him to solve the crime with brutal justice. And then there is Dave, who came home the night Jimmy's daughter died covered in someone else's blood.

A tense and unnerving psychological thriller, Mystic River is also an epic novel of love and loyalty, faith and family, in which people irrevocably marked by the past find themselves on a collision course with the darkest truths of their own hidden selves.]]> 416 Dennis Lehane 0060584750 Steve 5 gripping-thrillers 4.17 2001
author: Dennis Lehane
name: Steve
average rating: 4.17
book published: 2001
rating: 5
read at: 2015/09/15
date added: 2015/09/17
shelves: gripping-thrillers
review:
One word to describe this book is : Haunting.
]]> 10605 320 Richard Bachman 0451190750 Steve 2 Thinner could have been a 100 page long thriller, instead it's more than 300 pages . Stephen King's biggest sin is stretching his novels even when it's clear that there is nothing to write about. The chapter 'Ginelli's story' is one of the most boring stuff I've had to endure from Stephen King. There was a temptation to flip towards the ending (which was bad and seemed a bit forced ) and just get through the whole thing.
Again, this book had no business being more than 300 pages long, there was so little going on.]]> 3.79 1984
author: Richard Bachman
name: Steve
average rating: 3.79
book published: 1984
rating: 2
read at: 2015/06/10
date added: 2015/06/10
shelves:
review:
Stephen King's novels tend to be long. That's ok if there are lots of plot developments to keep a reader captivated.
Thinner could have been a 100 page long thriller, instead it's more than 300 pages . Stephen King's biggest sin is stretching his novels even when it's clear that there is nothing to write about. The chapter 'Ginelli's story' is one of the most boring stuff I've had to endure from Stephen King. There was a temptation to flip towards the ending (which was bad and seemed a bit forced ) and just get through the whole thing.
Again, this book had no business being more than 300 pages long, there was so little going on.
]]> 18498558 Alternate cover edition of ISBN 9780062259653

Something is out there, something terrifying that must not be seen. One glimpse of it, and a person is driven to deadly violence. No one knows what it is or where it came from.

Five years after it began, a handful of scattered survivors remains, including Malorie and her two young children. Living in an abandoned house near the river, she has dreamed of fleeing to a place where they might be safe. Now that the boy and girl are four, it's time to go, but the journey ahead will be terrifying: twenty miles downriver in a rowboat—blindfolded—with nothing to rely on but her wits and the children's trained ears. One wrong choice and they will die. Something is following them all the while, but is it man, animal, or monster?

Interweaving past and present, Bird Box is a snapshot of a world unraveled that will have you racing to the final page.]]> 262 Josh Malerman Steve 4 4.02 2014
author: Josh Malerman
name: Steve
average rating: 4.02
book published: 2014
rating: 4
read at: 2015/06/02
date added: 2015/06/02
shelves:
review:

]]> 21920693
Three days after Christmas, a lonely bartender looking for a reason to live rescues an abused puppy from a trash can and meets a damaged woman looking for something to believe in. As their relationship grows, they cross paths with the Chechen mafia; a man grown dangerous with age and thwarted hopes; two hapless stick-up artists; a very curious cop; and the original owner of the puppy, who wants his dog back. . . .]]> 224 Dennis Lehane 0062365444 Steve 0 to-read 3.71 2014
author: Dennis Lehane
name: Steve
average rating: 3.71
book published: 2014
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2015/05/30
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 34084 422 Stephen King 0670032565 Steve 3 4.25 1991
author: Stephen King
name: Steve
average rating: 4.25
book published: 1991
rating: 3
read at: 2015/05/10
date added: 2015/05/10
shelves:
review:

]]> 383028
Lane runs a highly illegal soldiers-for-hire operation. He will use any tool to find his beautiful wife and child. And Jack Reacher is the best manhunter in the world.

On the trail of vicious kidnappers, Reacher learns the chilling secrets of his employer’s past . . . and of a horrific drama in the heart of a nasty little war. He knows that Edward Lane is hiding something. Something dirty. Something big. But Reacher also knows He’s already in way too deep to stop now. And if he has to do it the hard way, he will.]]> 384 Lee Child 0385336691 Steve 4 4.13 2006
author: Lee Child
name: Steve
average rating: 4.13
book published: 2006
rating: 4
read at: 2015/03/23
date added: 2015/03/23
shelves:
review:

]]> 21418013
A quarter of a century later, in a world shaped by what's now known as "Haden's syndrome," rookie FBI agent Chris Shane is paired with veteran agent Leslie Vann. The two of them are assigned what appears to be a Haden-related murder at the Watergate Hotel, with a suspect who is an "integrator" - someone who can let the locked in borrow their bodies for a time. If the Integrator was carrying a Haden client, then naming the suspect for the murder becomes that much more complicated.

But "complicated" doesn't begin to describe it. As Shane and Vann began to unravel the threads of the murder, it becomes clear that the real mystery - and the real crime - is bigger than anyone could have imagined. The world of the locked in is changing, and with the change comes opportunities that the ambitious will seize at any cost. The investigation that began as a murder case takes Shane and Vann from the halls of corporate power to the virtual spaces of the locked in, and to the very heart of an emerging, surprising new human culture. It's nothing you could have expected.]]> 336 John Scalzi 0765375869 Steve 0 never-finished 3.89 2014
author: John Scalzi
name: Steve
average rating: 3.89
book published: 2014
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2015/03/07
shelves: never-finished
review:

]]> 5094
Here he links forces with the defiant young Eddie Dean and the beautiful, brilliant, and brave Odetta Holmes, in a savage struggle against underworld evil and otherworldly enemies.

Once again, Stephen King has masterfully interwoven dark, evocative fantasy and icy realism.]]> 463 Stephen King 0451210859 Steve 5 4.23 1987
author: Stephen King
name: Steve
average rating: 4.23
book published: 1987
rating: 5
read at: 2015/03/04
date added: 2015/03/04
shelves:
review:

]]> 550844
Now scenes of unbelieving horror come each time the full moon shines on the isolated Maine town of Tarker Mills. No one knows who will be attacked next. But one thing is sure.

When the moon grows fat, a paralyzing fear sweeps through Tarker Mills. For snarls that sound like human words can be heard whining through the wind. And all around are the footprints of a monster whose hunger cannot be sated... Cycle of the Werewolf.]]> 128 Stephen King 0451822196 Steve 3 3.69 1983
author: Stephen King
name: Steve
average rating: 3.69
book published: 1983
rating: 3
read at: 2015/02/24
date added: 2015/02/28
shelves:
review:

]]> 49552 The Stranger has long been considered a classic of twentieth-century literature. Le Monde ranks it as number one on its "100 Books of the Century" list. Through this story of an ordinary man unwittingly drawn into a senseless murder on a sundrenched Algerian beach, Camus explores what he termed "the nakedness of man faced with the absurd."]]> 123 Albert Camus Steve 0 to-read 4.04 1942
author: Albert Camus
name: Steve
average rating: 4.04
book published: 1942
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2015/02/26
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 35824 320 David Goodis 1852424699 Steve 0 to-read 3.87 1954
author: David Goodis
name: Steve
average rating: 3.87
book published: 1954
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2015/02/23
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 596869 174 Donald E. Westlake 0446404098 Steve 4 3.93 1974
author: Donald E. Westlake
name: Steve
average rating: 3.93
book published: 1974
rating: 4
read at: 2015/02/24
date added: 2015/02/23
shelves:
review:

]]> 852505 Black Money is Ross Macdonald at his finest.]]> 238 Ross Macdonald 0679768106 Steve 5 gripping-thrillers 3.96 1966
author: Ross Macdonald
name: Steve
average rating: 3.96
book published: 1966
rating: 5
read at: 2015/02/02
date added: 2015/02/22
shelves: gripping-thrillers
review:
This is Ross MacDonald at his very best. Fast-paced , usual style of writing. But this novel has something I believe sets it apart.
]]> 10603
Uno de los grandes clásicos de Stephen King, el gran maestro actual de la literatura de terror.]]> 432 Stephen King 0307348245 Steve 5 shiver 3.79 1981
author: Stephen King
name: Steve
average rating: 3.79
book published: 1981
rating: 5
read at: 2014/10/28
date added: 2015/02/22
shelves: shiver
review:
Cujo has to be one of my best Stephen King novels. It doesn't involve any scary 'monsters' but it's scary. Stephen King draws you into a heck of a story which hooks you. You can easily relate with the characters cos they act like normal people. The story is about a faithful dog that gets bitten by a bat, the dog gets rabies. As the story progresses you are being drawn in more and more till you can't put it down all the way to the outstanding ending.
]]> 20170296 really happened?

Sick of deeply personal accounts written in the first person? Seeking an exciting, interactive read that puts the “u�� back in “aUtobiography��? Then look no further than Neil Patrick Harris: Choose Your Own Autobiography! In this revolutionary, Joycean experiment in light celebrity narrative, actor/personality/carbon-based life-form Neil Patrick Harris lets you, the reader, live his life. You will be born in New Mexico. You will get your big break at an acting camp. You will get into a bizarre confrontation outside a nightclub with actor Scott Caan. Even better, at each critical juncture of your life, you will choose how to proceed. You will decide whether to try out for Doogie Howser, M.D. You will decide whether to spend years struggling with your sexuality. You will decide what kind of caviar you want to eat on board Elton John’s yacht.

Choose correctly and you’ll find fame, fortune, and true love. Choose incorrectly and you’ll find misery, heartbreak, and a hideous death by piranhas. All this, plus magic tricks, cocktail recipes, embarrassing pictures from your time as a child actor, and even a closing song. Yes, if you buy one book this year, congratulations on being above the American average, but make that book Neil Patrick Harris: Choose Your Own Autobiography!]]> 291 Neil Patrick Harris 0385346999 Steve 0 to-read 3.81 2014
author: Neil Patrick Harris
name: Steve
average rating: 3.81
book published: 2014
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2015/02/21
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 18007564
Now, he’s sure he’ll be the first person to die there.

After a dust storm nearly kills him and forces his crew to evacuate while thinking him dead, Mark finds himself stranded and completely alone with no way to even signal Earth that he’s alive—and even if he could get word out, his supplies would be gone long before a rescue could arrive.

Chances are, though, he won’t have time to starve to death. The damaged machinery, unforgiving environment, or plain-old “human error�� are much more likely to kill him first.

But Mark isn’t ready to give up yet. Drawing on his ingenuity, his engineering skills �� and a relentless, dogged refusal to quit �� he steadfastly confronts one seemingly insurmountable obstacle after the next. Will his resourcefulness be enough to overcome the impossible odds against him?

]]> 384 Andy Weir 0804139024 Steve 0 to-read 4.41 2011
author: Andy Weir
name: Steve
average rating: 4.41
book published: 2011
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2015/02/20
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 10629
Elle aime les sensations fortes, les virées nocturnes et le rock n'roll des années héroïques. Depuis qu'elle connaît Arnie, elle est amoureuse. Signe particulier : Christine est une Plymouth « Fury », sortie en 1958 des ateliers automobiles de Detroit.

Une seule rivale en travers de sa route : Leigh, la petite amie d'Arnie��
Ce roman légendaire de Stephen King, rythmé par la musique de Chuck Berry et de Janis Joplin, a déjà pris place parmi les classiques de l'épouvante.]]> 411 Stephen King 2253147699 Steve 4 3.85 1983
author: Stephen King
name: Steve
average rating: 3.85
book published: 1983
rating: 4
read at: 2015/02/19
date added: 2015/02/19
shelves:
review:

]]> 43615
He is a haunting figure, a loner on a spellbinding journey into good and evil. In his desolate world, which frighteningly mirrors our own, Roland pursues The Man in Black, encounters an alluring woman named Alice, and begins a friendship with the Kid from Earth called Jake. Both grippingly realistic and eerily dreamlike, The Gunslinger leaves readers eagerly awaiting the next chapter.]]> 231 Stephen King 1501143514 Steve 4 3.95 1982
author: Stephen King
name: Steve
average rating: 3.95
book published: 1982
rating: 4
read at: 2015/01/11
date added: 2015/01/11
shelves:
review:
A very good story, nice touch of mystery too. Looking forward to the next book.
]]> 5348
Enter the lawyers. Nate O’Riley is fresh out of rehab, a disgraced corporate attorney handpicked for his last job: to find Rachel Lane at any cost. As Phelan’s family circles like vultures in D.C., Nate goes crashing through the Brazilian jungle, entering a world where money means nothing, where death is just one misstep away, and where a woman—pursued by enemies and friends alike—holds a stunning surprise of her own.]]> 533 John Grisham 0440234743 Steve 4 3.87 1999
author: John Grisham
name: Steve
average rating: 3.87
book published: 1999
rating: 4
read at: 2009/06/02
date added: 2015/01/02
shelves:
review:

]]> 11607
Ben Richards is out of work and out of luck. His eighteen-month-old daughter is sick, and neither Ben nor his wife can afford to take her to a doctor. For a man from the poor side of town with no cash and no hope, there's only one thing to do: become a contestant on one of the Network's Games, shows where you can win more money than you've ever dreamed of—or die trying. Now Ben's going prime-time on the Network's highest-rated viewer participation show. And he's about to become a prey for the masses...]]> 317 Richard Bachman 0451197968 Steve 4 3.90 1982
author: Richard Bachman
name: Steve
average rating: 3.90
book published: 1982
rating: 4
read at: 2014/12/15
date added: 2014/12/15
shelves:
review:

]]> 231562
New Year’s Day, 1990. The Berlin Wall is coming down. The world is changing. And in a North Carolina “hot-sheets�� motel, a two-star general is found dead. His briefcase is missing. Nobody knows what was in it. Within minutes Jack Reacher has his orders: Control the situation. But this situation can’t be controlled. Within hours the general’s wife is murdered hundreds of miles away. Then the dominoes really start to fall.

Two Special Forces soldiers—the toughest of the tough—are taken down, one at a time. Top military commanders are moved from place to place in a bizarre game of chess. And somewhere inside the vast worldwide fortress that is the U.S. Army, Jack Reacher—an ordinarily untouchable investigator for the 110th Special Unit—is being set up as a fall guy with the worst enemies a man can have.

But Reacher won’t quit. He’s fighting a new kind of war. And he’s taking a young female lieutenant with him on a deadly hunt that leads them from the ragged edges of a rural army post to the winding streets of Paris to a confrontation with an enemy he didn’t know he had. With his French-born mother dying—and divulging to her son one last, stunning secret—Reacher is forced to question everything he once believed…about his family, his career, his loyalties—and himself. Because this soldier’s son is on his way into the darkness, where he finds a tangled drama of desperate desires and violent death—and a conspiracy more chilling, ingenious, and treacherous than anyone could have guessed.]]> 496 Lee Child 0440241014 Steve 3 4.14 2004
author: Lee Child
name: Steve
average rating: 4.14
book published: 2004
rating: 3
read at: 2014/12/09
date added: 2014/12/09
shelves:
review:
Lots of military jargons otherwise would have been a brilliant novel. I hope there won't be another Reacher army novel.
]]> 571397 285 John D. MacDonald 0449224384 Steve 4 4.00 1964
author: John D. MacDonald
name: Steve
average rating: 4.00
book published: 1964
rating: 4
read at: 2014/11/03
date added: 2014/11/03
shelves:
review:

]]> 121172 256 Ross Macdonald 0679768653 Steve 4 4.07 1965
author: Ross Macdonald
name: Steve
average rating: 4.07
book published: 1965
rating: 4
read at: 2014/10/15
date added: 2014/10/15
shelves:
review:

]]> 618604 225 Richard Stark Steve 4 4.00 1963
author: Richard Stark
name: Steve
average rating: 4.00
book published: 1963
rating: 4
read at: 2014/08/03
date added: 2014/10/04
shelves:
review:

]]> 17245 You can find an alternative cover edition for this ISBN here and here.

When Jonathan Harker visits Transylvania to help Count Dracula with the purchase of a London house, he makes a series of horrific discoveries about his client. Soon afterwards, various bizarre incidents unfold in England: an apparently unmanned ship is wrecked off the coast of Whitby; a young woman discovers strange puncture marks on her neck; and the inmate of a lunatic asylum raves about the 'Master' and his imminent arrival.

In Dracula, Bram Stoker created one of the great masterpieces of the horror genre, brilliantly evoking a nightmare world of vampires and vampire hunters and also illuminating the dark corners of Victorian sexuality and desire.

This Norton Critical Edition includes a rich selection of background and source materials in three areas: Contexts includes probable inspirations for Dracula in the earlier works of James Malcolm Rymer and Emily Gerard. Also included are a discussion of Stoker's working notes for the novel and "Dracula's Guest," the original opening chapter to Dracula. Reviews and Reactions reprints five early reviews of the novel. "Dramatic and Film Variations" focuses on theater and film adaptations of Dracula, two indications of the novel's unwavering appeal. David J. Skal, Gregory A. Waller, and Nina Auerbach offer their varied perspectives. Checklists of both dramatic and film adaptations are included.

Criticism collects seven theoretical interpretations of Dracula by Phyllis A. Roth, Carol A. Senf, Franco Moretti, Christopher Craft, Bram Dijkstra, Stephen D. Arata, and Talia Schaffer.

A Chronology and a Selected Bibliography are included.]]> 488 Bram Stoker 0393970124 Steve 3 The book starts of full of promise, which leaves the reader shivering.
These promises are not fulfilled, instead we are treated to endless pages of Van Helsing and his troops displaying their politeness and love for one another.
The ending itself pretty disappointed me as I thought Stoker was setting the scene for a grand slam finish.
All said, this is still a decent read with some scenes that will captivate any reader.]]> 4.02 1897
author: Bram Stoker
name: Steve
average rating: 4.02
book published: 1897
rating: 3
read at: 2014/10/05
date added: 2014/10/03
shelves:
review:
The main problem I had with this book was its anti-climax pace.
The book starts of full of promise, which leaves the reader shivering.
These promises are not fulfilled, instead we are treated to endless pages of Van Helsing and his troops displaying their politeness and love for one another.
The ending itself pretty disappointed me as I thought Stoker was setting the scene for a grand slam finish.
All said, this is still a decent read with some scenes that will captivate any reader.
]]> 10577 --stephenking.com]]> 320 Richard Bachman 0451197879 Steve 4 The thing I love about this book is that it takes you along with the protagonist, you feel his pain and confusion. At the same time, you don't really know what he's going to do next.
I have to say that 'Roadwork' is so underrated.]]> 3.63 1981
author: Richard Bachman
name: Steve
average rating: 3.63
book published: 1981
rating: 4
read at: 2014/09/10
date added: 2014/09/09
shelves:
review:
I enjoyed this book (well not the beginning) Once I got to the December part, I could hardly put it down.
The thing I love about this book is that it takes you along with the protagonist, you feel his pain and confusion. At the same time, you don't really know what he's going to do next.
I have to say that 'Roadwork' is so underrated.
]]> 32508 482 Michael Connelly 0446612731 Steve 0 never-finished 4.11 1992
author: Michael Connelly
name: Steve
average rating: 4.11
book published: 1992
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2014/09/01
shelves: never-finished
review:

]]> 13480263
With this, his second novel, Stephen King established himself as an indisputable master of American horror, able to transform the old conceits of the genre into something fresh and all the more frightening for taking place in a familiar, idyllic locale.]]> 668 Stephen King Steve 5 shiver I dreamt vampires, woke up in the middle of the night, shivered, yet I was loving it!

Stephen King knows how to write. This books starts off in trademark slow pace that King is known for. The first quarter of the book introduces you to the town, puts you right into it. You feel as if you live in Salem's lot. You're a part of the town, you feel fear for the inhabitants. The story then picks pace and you find yourself experiencing the fear that the people experience. Hoping for the little town, maybe even praying for it...]]> 4.22 1975
author: Stephen King
name: Steve
average rating: 4.22
book published: 1975
rating: 5
read at:
date added: 2014/08/25
shelves: shiver
review:
I'm 19. I read this book few weeks ago. I stay alone in my room in college so it scared the crap out of me. I was literally dreaming about vampires every night yet I couldn't stop reading. This book gave me chills at night! Those chills that scare you yet you love them.
I dreamt vampires, woke up in the middle of the night, shivered, yet I was loving it!

Stephen King knows how to write. This books starts off in trademark slow pace that King is known for. The first quarter of the book introduces you to the town, puts you right into it. You feel as if you live in Salem's lot. You're a part of the town, you feel fear for the inhabitants. The story then picks pace and you find yourself experiencing the fear that the people experience. Hoping for the little town, maybe even praying for it...
]]> 16136967 214 Richard Bachman Steve 4 3.49 1977
author: Richard Bachman
name: Steve
average rating: 3.49
book published: 1977
rating: 4
read at: 2014/07/08
date added: 2014/08/25
shelves:
review:

]]> 233667 This a previously-published edition of ISBN 0451167805.

The Department of Scientific Intelligence (aka "The Shop") never anticipated that two participants in their research program would marry and have a child. Charlie McGee inherited pyrokinetic powers from her parents, who had been given a low-grade hallucinogen called "Lot Six" while at college. Now the government is trying to capture young Charlie and harness her powerful firestarting skills as a weapon.
--stephenking.com]]> 564 Stephen King Steve 4 3.92 1980
author: Stephen King
name: Steve
average rating: 3.92
book published: 1980
rating: 4
read at: 2014/08/19
date added: 2014/08/19
shelves:
review:

]]> 15852625
Forward.

A stranger staggers out of the wilderness under the cover of a blizzard and stumbles into a diner full of people. He collapses in the entryway, unzips his jacket, and allows the object hidden inside to fall out. Screaming commences.

Down.

Four old college buddies embark upon their annual elk hunting trip into the Rocky Mountains. This promises to be their last, for the passage of time is as merciless and unpredictable as the Colorado weather. And they’re not alone.

Help.

There are other hunters in the mountains, stalking game of a different breed. They know exactly what they’re doing, because they’ve been hunting in these woods for a long, long time. And no one ever survives to betray their existence.]]> 212 Michael McBride 1937771490 Steve 0 to-read 3.70 2012
author: Michael McBride
name: Steve
average rating: 3.70
book published: 2012
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2014/08/13
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 89717 182 Shirley Jackson 0143039989 Steve 0 to-read 3.85 1959
author: Shirley Jackson
name: Steve
average rating: 3.85
book published: 1959
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2014/08/13
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 447212 224 Richard Stark 0446674672 Steve 2 4.11 1963
author: Richard Stark
name: Steve
average rating: 4.11
book published: 1963
rating: 2
read at: 2014/08/13
date added: 2014/08/13
shelves:
review:

]]> 968 The da Vinci Code, The da Vinci Code, The da Vinci Code, and The da Vinci Code

While in Paris on business, Harvard symbologist Robert Langdon receives an urgent late-night phone call: the elderly curator of the Louvre has been murdered inside the museum. Near the body, police have found a baffling cipher. While working to solve the enigmatic riddle, Langdon is stunned to discover it leads to a trail of clues hidden in the works of Da Vinci -- clues visible for all to see -- yet ingeniously disguised by the painter.

Langdon joins forces with a gifted French cryptologist, Sophie Neveu, and learns the late curator was involved in the Priory of Sion -- an actual secret society whose members included Sir Isaac Newton, Botticelli, Victor Hugo, and Da Vinci, among others.

In a breathless race through Paris, London, and beyond, Langdon and Neveu match wits with a faceless powerbroker who seems to anticipate their every move. Unless Langdon and Neveu can decipher the labyrinthine puzzle in time, the Priory's ancient secret -- and an explosive historical truth -- will be lost forever.

The Da Vinci Code heralds the arrival of a new breed of lightning-paced, intelligent thriller utterly unpredictable right up to its stunning conclusion.]]> 489 Dan Brown Steve 4 3.92 2003
author: Dan Brown
name: Steve
average rating: 3.92
book published: 2003
rating: 4
read at: 2014/08/09
date added: 2014/08/09
shelves:
review:

]]> 17899948 Last night I dreamt I went to Manderley again...

The novel begins in Monte Carlo, where our heroine is swept off her feet by the dashing widower Maxim de Winter and his sudden proposal of marriage. Orphaned and working as a lady's maid, she can barely believe her luck. It is only when they arrive at his massive country estate that she realizes how large a shadow his late wife will cast over their lives--presenting her with a lingering evil that threatens to destroy their marriage from beyond the grave.

First published in 1938, this classic gothic novel is such a compelling read that it won the Anthony Award for Best Novel of the Century.]]> 449 Daphne du Maurier 0316323705 Steve 5 shiver 4.28 1938
author: Daphne du Maurier
name: Steve
average rating: 4.28
book published: 1938
rating: 5
read at:
date added: 2014/08/05
shelves: shiver
review:

]]> 14554 501 Sidney Sheldon 0006479677 Steve 0 to-read 4.07 1985
author: Sidney Sheldon
name: Steve
average rating: 4.07
book published: 1985
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2014/08/03
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 867623 The Chill a distraught young man hires Archer to track down his runaway bride. But no sooner has he found Dolly Kincaid than Archer finds himself entangled in two murders, one twenty years old, the other so recent that the blood is still wet. What ensues is a detective novel of nerve-racking suspense, desperately believable characters, and one of the most intricate plots ever spun by an American crime writer.]]> 288 Ross Macdonald 0679768076 Steve 5 gripping-thrillers
And what a character Lew Archer is! Probably the greatest hard-boiled character I know!]]> 4.09 1964
author: Ross Macdonald
name: Steve
average rating: 4.09
book published: 1964
rating: 5
read at: 2014/08/02
date added: 2014/08/01
shelves: gripping-thrillers
review:
Best Ross MacDonald novel I've read. The chill is everything a hard-boiled, noir novel should be. Right from the first page you're hooked. It's a classic MacDonald novel : sins of the fathers, family secrets, tragedies & regrets.

And what a character Lew Archer is! Probably the greatest hard-boiled character I know!
]]> 1640420
Straight off I knew it was going to be a bad day. The room was stifling hot; and when I did finally manage to drag open my eyes, all I could see was blood. I thought I’d stepped into the middle of a nightmare.

But I was wrong. The nightmare was only just beginning.

Ex-soldier Sean Tyler wakes up in an unfamiliar room next to the headless corpse of a girl he’s met only once. With his memory of the previous twenty-four hours wiped clean, he’s hardly out of bed before the phone rings. A voice tells him to press play on the room’s DVD machine. The film shows him stabbing someone to death.

Tyler is confident that the footage is fake, but will a jury see things the same way? The man on the phone tells him to go to an address in east London, and await instructions. Tyler knows he must do as he is told. He also knows that the phone caller has no intention of keeping him alive.

To survive he must recover the missing twenty-four hours of his life and find out who’s setting him up before his time runs out for good. The clock is ticking...]]> 352 Simon Kernick 0593054733 Steve 0 to-read 3.96 2007
author: Simon Kernick
name: Steve
average rating: 3.96
book published: 2007
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2014/07/31
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 434231
The damsel in question is his old friend’s kid sister, whose fiancé has just been murdered in what the authorities claim was a standard Manhattan mugging. But Nina knows better. Her soon-to-be husband had been digging around, finding scum and scandal at his real estate investment firm. And this scum will go to any lengths to make sure their secrets don’t get out.

Travis is determined to get to the bottom of things, but just as he’s closing in on the truth, he’s knocked out and taken captive. If he’s locked up in a mental institution with a steady stream of drugs being siphoned into his body, how can Travis keep his promise to his old friend? More important, how can he get himself out alive?

“As a young writer, all I ever wanted was to touch readers as powerfully as John D. MacDonald touched me.�� �� Dean Koontz
“I envy the generation of readers just discovering Travis McGee, and count myself among the many readers savoring his adventures again.�� —Sue Grafton
“Travis McGee is the last of the great knights-errant: honorable, sensual, skillful, and tough.�� —Donald Westlake]]> 266 John D. MacDonald 0449224147 Steve 2 3.85 1964
author: John D. MacDonald
name: Steve
average rating: 3.85
book published: 1964
rating: 2
read at: 2014/07/28
date added: 2014/07/30
shelves:
review:

]]> 247067 Raymond Chandler 1671028465 Steve 4 3.83 1936
author: Raymond Chandler
name: Steve
average rating: 3.83
book published: 1936
rating: 4
read at: 2014/07/27
date added: 2014/07/27
shelves:
review:

]]> 11356787 Stephen King's fan-favourite thriller. Also available in audio for the first time, read by Academy Award nominee James Franco.

The two things that conjured up that horrible night, were his run of luck at the Wheel of Fortune, and the mask...

Meet Johnny Smith. A young man whose streak of luck ends dramatically in a major car crash. Followed by blackness. A long, long time in cold limbo.

When he wakes up life has been turned upside down. His fiancée has met someone else. And Johnny is cursed with the power to perceive evil in men's souls. He's had these hunches since he had an ice-skating accident as a child. Now he has an ability to see into the future. An ability which will bring him into a terrifying confrontation with a charismatic, power-hungry and dangerous man...]]> 530 Stephen King Steve 4 4.14 1979
author: Stephen King
name: Steve
average rating: 4.14
book published: 1979
rating: 4
read at: 2014/07/26
date added: 2014/07/26
shelves:
review:

]]> 2755771
Detective Riley MacIntyre had long ago stopped being anyone's protector. Until a scared Devra Morgan needed his help. But the beautiful blonde's dependence only went so far. Were her secrets the key to the grisly murder that had torn apart his family?

THAT MADE HER TREMBLE

Devra had been suppressing her fears for so long, she didn't know how to trust the sexy New Orleans cop. But frequent psychic visions sent shivers down her spine, forcing her to reveal that Riley was the killer's next target. Could she get him to believe what she saw was unequivocally real—as real as the pain in her heart at the thought of losing him?]]> 256 Cynthia Cooke 0373228368 Steve 4 3.76 2005
author: Cynthia Cooke
name: Steve
average rating: 3.76
book published: 2005
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2014/07/26
shelves:
review:

]]> 2760879 It was a 24/7 job...little did he know it would last for nine months!

Carson Nash had been tasked with an important mission: rescue a fellow agent and make sure she was safely delivered to the CIA for questioning. But he never anticipated that agent would be Ava Ross, a woman with whom he'd shared one forbidden night...before she disappeared without a trace. Seeing Ava and discovering she had no memories of the last few months was like losing her all over again. But learning she was pregnant - with his child - made this job a whole lot more personal. Now, amid dodging bullets, helping Ava unlock the past was their best chance at survival. And Carson's only chance of reclaiming what was his.]]> 248 Jan Hambright 0373693079 Steve 4 3.32 2007
author: Jan Hambright
name: Steve
average rating: 3.32
book published: 2007
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2014/07/26
shelves:
review:

]]> 581126 Somewhere in Time is the powerful story of a love that transcends time and space, written by one of the Grand Masters of modern fantasy.

Matheson's classic novel tells the moving, romantic story of a modern man whose love for a woman he has never met draws him back in time to a luxury hotel in San Diego in 1896, where he finds his soul mate in the form of a celebrated actress of the previous century. Somewhere in Time won the World Fantasy Award for Best Novel, and the 1980 movie version, starring Christopher Reeve and Jane Seymour, remains a cult classic whose fans continue to hold yearly conventions to this day.
]]> 316 Richard Matheson 0312868863 Steve 0 to-read 3.85 1975
author: Richard Matheson
name: Steve
average rating: 3.85
book published: 1975
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2014/07/22
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 2429135
An international publishing sensation, Stieg Larsson’s The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo combines murder mystery, family saga, love story, and financial intrigue into one satisfyingly complex and entertainingly atmospheric novel.]]> 480 Stieg Larsson 0670069019 Steve 3 I loved the first 150 pages, they were original, they had me hooked, I was really eager to see how the story would turn out. The book then went the usual detective novel way.
The characters were annoying, Salander was the only character that Steig was putting effort into ; I still didn't like her. The rest were immature.

Steig presents a good, flawless mystery at the beginning. Later it seemed he was trying to conjure a trick to crack the case. The leads he offered were a bit forced. He just threw them in there like a children's fantasy novel.

The ending parts were good but that's just it ; they weren't fantastic.

My rating is only this high because of the first 100 pages or so.]]> 4.17 2005
author: Stieg Larsson
name: Steve
average rating: 4.17
book published: 2005
rating: 3
read at: 2014/07/21
date added: 2014/07/21
shelves:
review:
I don't see how the first part of this book was boring. If anything, the whole book was sort of an anti-climax for me.
I loved the first 150 pages, they were original, they had me hooked, I was really eager to see how the story would turn out. The book then went the usual detective novel way.
The characters were annoying, Salander was the only character that Steig was putting effort into ; I still didn't like her. The rest were immature.

Steig presents a good, flawless mystery at the beginning. Later it seemed he was trying to conjure a trick to crack the case. The leads he offered were a bit forced. He just threw them in there like a children's fantasy novel.

The ending parts were good but that's just it ; they weren't fantastic.

My rating is only this high because of the first 100 pages or so.
]]> 648642
]]> 288 Ross Macdonald 0375701443 Steve 4 4.05 1961
author: Ross Macdonald
name: Steve
average rating: 4.05
book published: 1961
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2014/07/13
shelves:
review:

]]> 371023 The Galton Case displays MacDonald at the pinnacle of his form.]]> 242 Ross Macdonald 0679768645 Steve 4 4.09 1959
author: Ross Macdonald
name: Steve
average rating: 4.09
book published: 1959
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2014/07/13
shelves:
review:

]]> 867621 245 Ross Macdonald 0307278980 Steve 4 4.01 1951
author: Ross Macdonald
name: Steve
average rating: 4.01
book published: 1951
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2014/07/13
shelves:
review:

]]> 371024 288 Ross Macdonald 0375701451 Steve 4 4.10 1962
author: Ross Macdonald
name: Steve
average rating: 4.10
book published: 1962
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2014/07/13
shelves:
review:

]]> 10628
This is the horror of ordinary people and everyday objects that become strangely altered; a world where nothing is ever quite what it seems, where the familiar and the friendly lure and deceive. A world where madness and blind panic become the only reality.

Listening Length: 10 hours and 33 minutes]]> 409 Stephen King Steve 0 to-read 4.04 1978
author: Stephen King
name: Steve
average rating: 4.04
book published: 1978
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2014/07/13
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> 596576 287 Donald E. Westlake 0446677035 Steve 3 3.92 1970
author: Donald E. Westlake
name: Steve
average rating: 3.92
book published: 1970
rating: 3
read at: 2014/07/13
date added: 2014/07/13
shelves:
review:

]]> 672989
In the course of his line of business, the man who calls himself Roy Martin has robbed a bank in Phoenix, killed three men, and caught a bullet in his arm.  Safety--and one half of $178,000--awaits him on the other side of the country.  All that separates "Martin" from his destination are two thousand treacherous miles and three lethal   to trust the wrong friend, to love the right woman, and to start believing that a man like himself can ever be safe.

The Name of the Game is Death combines a narrative as taut as a hangman's rope with chillingly authentic insights into the psychology of casual murder.]]> 138 Dan J. Marlowe 0679738487 Steve 5 gripping-thrillers 4.19 1962
author: Dan J. Marlowe
name: Steve
average rating: 4.19
book published: 1962
rating: 5
read at:
date added: 2014/07/08
shelves: gripping-thrillers
review:

]]> 618399
University of Chicago Press has embarked on a project to return the early volumes of this series to print.]]> 208 Richard Stark Steve 4 4.01 1962
author: Richard Stark
name: Steve
average rating: 4.01
book published: 1962
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2014/07/08
shelves:
review:

]]> 455941
The ultimate loner.

An elite ex-military cop who left the service years ago, he's moved from place to place...without family...without possessions...without commitments.

And without fear. Which is good, because trouble--big, violent, complicated trouble--finds Reacher wherever he goes. And when trouble finds him, Reacher does not quit, not once...not ever.

But some unfinished business has now found Reacher. And Reacher is a man who hates unfinished business.

Ten years ago, a key investigation went sour and someone got away with murder. Now a chance encounter brings it all back. Now Reacher sees his one last shot. Some would call it vengeance. Some would call it redemption. Reacher would call it...justice.]]> 496 Lee Child 0440241006 Steve 5 gripping-thrillers 4.09 2003
author: Lee Child
name: Steve
average rating: 4.09
book published: 2003
rating: 5
read at: 2014/07/06
date added: 2014/07/06
shelves: gripping-thrillers
review:
This book keeps you guessing until the end. I loved the opening pages, from then on it took me for a ride ; a very thrilling one!
]]> 648643 240 Ross Macdonald 0446358827 Steve 3 3.88 1956
author: Ross Macdonald
name: Steve
average rating: 3.88
book published: 1956
rating: 3
read at:
date added: 2014/07/04
shelves:
review:

]]> 441818
Paul Cain is the pseudonym of Peter Ruric, a man who emerged from nowhere in the 1930s, wrote 'Fast One''and several short stories and movie scripts, and then disappeared. Nothing more has been heard of him. Gerry Kells, the antihero of his shocking, brutal novel, is equally mysterious. A loner with a reputation but without a visible past, Kells simply appears, arranges the lives of the Los Angeles underworld, and then is heard no more.

Only the strong prosper in the world of the depression. Seemingly amoral, Kells does prosper. He strikes to survive, kills without conscience, with­out time for conscience. But he never becomes a mere killing machine. His integrity, his humanity, abides in a code demanding that he pay for all services: those rendered for him, those rendered against him.

Fast paced and very readable, the novel limns a true character who should take his place in our national literature, if only for his representation of the individual will to survive in one of the toughest times in American life.]]> 171 Paul Cain 0887390781 Steve 5 gripping-thrillers 3.67 1933
author: Paul Cain
name: Steve
average rating: 3.67
book published: 1933
rating: 5
read at:
date added: 2014/07/03
shelves: gripping-thrillers
review:

]]> 216
Chronically depressed, constantly strapped for money, always willing to bend the rules a bit, Hoke Moseley is hardly what you think of as the perfect cop, but he is one of the the greatest detective creations of all time.]]> 191 Charles Willeford 1400032466 Steve 4 3.92 1984
author: Charles Willeford
name: Steve
average rating: 3.92
book published: 1984
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2014/06/30
shelves:
review:

]]> 21745
Skilled, cautious, and anonymous, Jack Reacher is perfect for the job: to assassinate the vice president of the United States. Theoretically, of course. A female Secret Service agent wants Reacher to find the holes in her system, and fast - because a covert group already has the vice president in their sights. They've planned well. There's just one thing they didn't plan on: Reacher.]]> 14 Lee Child 1590860624 Steve 4 4.15 2002
author: Lee Child
name: Steve
average rating: 4.15
book published: 2002
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2014/06/29
shelves:
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]]> 383324
Jim Vanning has an identity crisis. Is he an innocent artist who just happens to have some very dangerous people interested in him? Or is he a killer on the lam from his last murder—with a satchel worth over $300,000 in tow?

Relentlessly focused, Nightfall may be David Goodis�� most accomplished novel. It is a fiendishly constructed maze, filled with unpredictable pitfalls and human predators whose authenticity only makes them more terrifying.

David Goodis (1917��1967), a former pulp, radio, and Hollywood script writer, is now recognized as a leading author of crime fiction. Besides sojourns in New York City and Hollywood, he lived primarily in Philadelphia.]]> 220 David Goodis 1933618175 Steve 3 3.87 1947
author: David Goodis
name: Steve
average rating: 3.87
book published: 1947
rating: 3
read at:
date added: 2014/06/14
shelves:
review:

]]> 269362 310 John D. MacDonald 0449223833 Steve 4 3.88 1964
author: John D. MacDonald
name: Steve
average rating: 3.88
book published: 1964
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2014/06/01
shelves:
review:

]]> 11588 497 Stephen King 0450040186 Steve 5 shiver 4.28 1977
author: Stephen King
name: Steve
average rating: 4.28
book published: 1977
rating: 5
read at:
date added: 2013/09/25
shelves: shiver
review:

]]> 11797285 389 Bentley Little 0451236378 Steve 3 3.51 2012
author: Bentley Little
name: Steve
average rating: 3.51
book published: 2012
rating: 3
read at:
date added: 2013/08/16
shelves:
review:

]]> 108570 392 Bentley Little 0451212800 Steve 5 shiver 3.65 2004
author: Bentley Little
name: Steve
average rating: 3.65
book published: 2004
rating: 5
read at:
date added: 2013/08/10
shelves: shiver
review:

]]>