January 18, 2009

Cat Among the Pigeons by Agatha Christie

This story takes place in an English Girl’s Boarding School. However, it contains a foreign revolution, a young prince with a fortune in jewels and a young English pilot. The jewels are smuggled out of the country and end up in the girl’s school, where someone who knows they are there and is willing to kill comes after them.

The plot seems to progress slowly at first, but the players and setting are being carefully and skillfully arranged. I was soon involved in the characters and by the way they were described could ‘see’ them in my mind. I figured out before it was revealed how the jewels were smuggled and where in the girl’s school they were, but it was not an obvious revealing, just putting a couple of clues together. The end was a surprise, especially when someone I was sure was involved was murdered!

Cat Among the Pigeons is a perfect example of why Agatha Christie is called the Queen of Crime.

Category: Mystery
# pages: 292
Challenges: Naming Conventions Challenge – Challenge: RYOB 2009

Posted by on January 18, 2009 in Mystery and tagged , .

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January 15, 2009

True Evil by Greg Iles

Alex Morse is having a bad year, it has just gotten worse with the death of her sister, who told Alex on her death bed that her husband has killed her and begs her to save her son. This starts Alex on a single minded mission to do two things, prove her brother-in-law a murderer and more importantly, save her nephew.

As her investigation progresses, she uncovers the next victim and enlists his help, he is skeptical at first but slowly realizes that she is right. As Alex and eventually others get closer to the truth, the murderer decided to cut his losses and leave and the bodies start piling up.

Greg Iles does a masterful job of pulling all the threads together and writes in such a fashion that the reader actually feels the tension, when Dr. Shepard realizes his wife really does want him dead, I felt like I had been smacked in the face. I wanted to call in sick so I could finish the book that day.

Category: Suspense/ Thriller
# pages: 509
Challenge: Support your local library

Posted by on January 15, 2009 in Uncategorized and tagged , , , .

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January 12, 2009

Mailbox Monday

Happy Monday!! Mailbox Monday is hosted by Marcia at The Printed Page. We share what books that we found in our mailboxes last week. Here’s what I received:

The book that I was talking about last Monday arrived. It is ‘The Rapist Wife’ by Kathryn Casey. It is a true crime book and I am reading it for the What’s In A Name 2 Challenge. I ordered it from Amazon and it came from a used book seller.

Posted by on January 12, 2009 in Uncategorized and tagged , , .

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January 11, 2009

Agatha Christie

I received a comment on one of my posts about someone running an “Agatha Christie Reading Challenge and monthly Carnival” with a link to the blog. I was trying to figure out why she left it then I remembered I read an Agatha Christie book in 2008 and have one as a challenge read.

Then I started thinking, I used to read a lot of Agatha Christie, I loved Hercule Poirot and Miss Marple. I think for some of my library books, for my support your local library, I will have to get some that I haven’t read. I don’t believe I have ever read Murder on the Orient express. I will have to do that this year.

Posted by on January 11, 2009 in Uncategorized and tagged , , .

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January 9, 2009

What Kind of Reader are you?

What Kind of Reader Are You?

Your Result: Dedicated Reader
 

You are always trying to find the time to get back to your book. You are convinced that the world would be a much better place if only everyone read more.
Obsessive-Compulsive Bookworm
 
Book Snob
 
Literate Good Citizen
 
Non-Reader
 
Fad Reader
 
What Kind of Reader Are You?
Quiz Created on GoToQuiz

Posted by on January 9, 2009 in Uncategorized and tagged .

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January 9, 2009

From Amazon.com: Free Download

If you think you ‘have a thing for YA romance/love stories’ with a paranormal twist, click on this link to J. Kaye’s Book Blog, where you will find a link to a page on Amazon where you can get a free download of a first in a series book.

Since its not my thing, I am just directing people there and have no details.

Posted by on January 9, 2009 in Uncategorized and tagged , .

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January 8, 2009

The Nine Days Queen: A Portrait of Lady Jane Grey by Mary Luke

This book is definitely not light reading. However, if you enjoy biographies, this is a very well researched and written book and you will enjoy it. While it does not read like a novel, it also does not read like a textbook. Mary Luke took a collection of facts and arranged them in a format that is informative and interesting. You get a feel for the time period and what Lady Jane’s life was like. It makes me glad I am alive now, in the 20th century instead of the 16th century in England when women had no rights, and pedophilia and marital rape were not only condoned by the court, in some cases arranged by it. Lady Jane Grey was related to Henry VIII, through the manipulations of others, who wanted to rule the country through her, since she had a docile and obedient personality, she was made Queen. She ruled for nine days. She was executed for her part in the scheme although she was for the most part innocent, a female child that did what she was told. You realize the ending is inevitable while at the same time unjust and horrible.

Challenge: Support Your Local Library

Posted by on January 8, 2009 in Biography and tagged , , .

4 Comments

January 8, 2009

Two Awards

I came online, after much aggravation with my internet connection for not connecting when I wanted it to, to post my review about the Nine Days Queen, to find out that I have been awarded two awards!

The Butterfly Award was awarded to me by Jo-Jo from Jo-Jo Loves to Read, DeSeRt RoSe from DeSeRt RoSe BoOkLoGuE and Bunnitaz at Worth Reading It?. This is a “meme” award, so it gets passed on. The rules for passing it on are:

1. Put the logo on your blog.

2. Add a link to the person who awarded the blog to you.

3. Award up to ten other blogs.

4. Add links to the blogs you award onto your blog.

5. Leave a message for your awardees on their blogs.

Here are the blogs I chose, I think they are worthy.

  1. Sherri at Sherri’s Reading Jubilee
  2. JonJon at …a Dedication of Love
  3. A Bite of County Cupcakes

The Lemonade Award is for blogs with great attitude and/or gratitude. I started blogging in November 2006. I started as a way to ‘post my thoughts’. At first that was all it was, some poems I had written, some craft things I had made, now I have 3 blogs, one for books, one for crafts and the original blog, my life. When I started, I had no idea there was a blogging community, or that I would be part of it. I certainly never thought I would win not just one, but 3 awards! I am deeply touched.

This award was given to me by Bonnie at ~Redlady’s Reading Room~, check out all the blogs listed, and check back I keep getting this award (I am so excited!). They are all really great. I have decided to pass the Lemonade Award on to the following bloggers.

☺ Bear at Bear Naked
☺ J. Kaye at J. Kaye’s Book Blog
☺ DeSeRt RoSe at DeSeRt RoSe BoOkLoGuE
☺ Beth at Beth’s Random Stuff
☺ “C” at Brown English Muffin

Posted by on January 8, 2009 in Uncategorized and tagged , , .

6 Comments

January 6, 2009

From Shelf Awareness

Death did not take a holiday in the world of books this year.

Playwright and Nobel laureate Harold Pinter died Christmas Eve. He was 78. The New York Times praised Pinter’s “gifts for finding the ominous in the everyday and the noise within silence” and called him “the most influential and imitated dramatist of his generation.”

Donald E. Westlake died on New Year’s Eve. He was 75. As the author of more than 100 novels, Westlake was “considered one of the most successful and versatile mystery writers in the United States,” the Times observed.

Posted by on January 6, 2009 in Uncategorized and tagged .

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January 5, 2009

Mailbox Monday


Happy Monday!! Mailbox Monday is hosted by Marcia at The Printed Page. We share what books that we found in our mailboxes last week. Here’s what I received:

I ordered a book from Amazon and they sent me an e-mail saying it was shipped, but it didn’t come. So my books for last week is none, zero, zip. (sob)

Posted by on January 5, 2009 in Uncategorized and tagged , , .

3 Comments