Dead Until Dark by, Charlaine Harris

Dead Until Dark by, Charlaine Harris

I liked parts of this book and disliked parts; I will try to explain.
Liked~ The storyline the whole vampires out of the closet, the characters were interesting even though I felt there may be too many. Oops that’s a dislike.
Dislike ~Too much explicit sex~~ The killing of a character that I felt would have made the series more interesting.

I guess I didn't find this book great and don't feel it lived up to all the hype I've heard. I am reading the second installment and do so far like it a bit better except that as with this book she's killed off a colorful character in the first 10 or so pages. But this is about the first book.
So I will conclude that the jury is still out on this series of books we'll see if when I get done with the 2nd one if it makes me want to read the 3rd.

3***

Teaser Tuesday~~Dead Until Dark by, Charlaine Harris

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:
Grab your current read
Open to a random page
Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!



From Dead Until Dark by, Charlaine Harris~Page 19~"The vampire was in the when I was there?"Jason asked dazzled.
"Uh-huh.The dark-haired guy sitting with the Rats."

Teaser Tuesday~~ True Blue by, David Baldacci

Teaser Tuesday is hosted by Miz B from Should Be Reading.

The rules are as follows:
*Grab your current read
*Open to a random page
*Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
*BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
*Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers




From True Blue by, David Baldacci~Pg57
He Pointed at her.”I knew I recognized you. You’re her sister, Mace Perry. “Should have remembered as soon as you said your name.”He broke off.”But the newspapers said your name was originally Mason Perry.”He looked at her funny.”Mason Perry, Perry Mason the TV Lawyer? Is that a coincidence?”

People of the Book by, Geraldine Brooks

From Amazon~Amazon Best of the Month, January 2008: One of the earliest Jewish religious volumes to be illuminated with images, the Sarajevo Haggadah survived centuries of purges and wars thanks to people of all faiths who risked their lives to safeguard it. Geraldine Brooks, the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of March, has turned the intriguing but sparely detailed history of this precious volume into an emotionally rich, thrilling fictionalization that retraces its turbulent journey. In the hands of Hanna Heath, an impassioned rare-book expert restoring the manuscript in 1996 Sarajevo, it yields clues to its guardians and whereabouts: an insect wing, a wine stain, salt crystals, and a white hair. While readers experience crucial moments in the book's history through a series of fascinating, fleshed-out short stories, Hanna pursues its secrets scientifically, and finds that some interests will still risk everything in the name of protecting this treasure. A complex love story, thrilling mystery, vivid history lesson, and celebration of the enduring power of ideas, People of the Book will surely be hailed as one of the best of 2008. --Mari Malcolm




This was a very engaging book .I found this story fascinating but it is hard to put a synopsis in because this book is the story of one book The Haggadsh that spans 500 years. Where it’s been- who has it and how it got there.
The characters in all the different time periods are fully fleshed out and really make you feel your right there with them. This book takes you on a fascinating journey through history and truly makes you care what happens to the Haggadsh.
I found myself just as engrossed with the book (in the book) as the narrator, I would recommend to anyone who likes historical fiction.
I give it 4 Stars

Gilt-Edged Bonds by Ian Fleming

James Bond is an icon. Like many icons, they originally stem from literature of some sort. However, Bond is arguably most known for his film adaptations starring Sean Connery, Pierce Brosnan, Roger Moore, Timothy Dalton, George Lazenby, or, more recently, Daniel Craig. Fleming’s first of the Bond novels, Casino Royale, first hit the streets in 1953 and the first real Bond movie (I’m not counting the Casino Royale spoof, my apologies) arrived in 1962. In the nine years in between, Bond became enormous. There is a reason for that. Gilt-Edged Bonds contains three of Fleming’s novels; Casino Royale, From Russia with Love, and finally, Dr. No. It was new and exciting, a mixture of fast-paced writing, romance, danger, and adrenaline-filled thrills written with biting detail and intelligence. Even decades later, they still hold up pretty well.

All three of the novels are amazingly solid and it was a very smart move to put them in one convenient package. While they’d each definitely work as a standalone adventure, they’re best read in succession since there are references to previous entries. The first, Casino Royale, is among one of my personal favorites of the film adaptations and the book ranks no differently. Le Chiffre is quite different from his movie counterpart, and Bond’s character is clarified to an extent where the thoughts behind those steel blue eyes are revealed. Bond is a much colder character than what I expected which both fascinates and intrigues. From Russia with Love wasn’t as compelling an installment as others in the series. I attributed it to the fact that Bond isn’t focused on as much, rather, the antagonist and the love interest are expanded upon more so. This creates more of a variety, but when I’m most interested in James, and all I’m getting is back story about others (albeit, it was quite well-written), I can’t help but sigh and try to get through those parts as quickly as possible so I can find out what my favorite secret agent is up to. The last, Dr. No is my top pick of the three. It was absolutely diabolical! I loved every moment and I became hopelessly addicted, and so, unfortunately, it ended much too soon. I must admit that I didn’t expect much because of my previous viewings of the movie. The movie was “good”, but there was better. There was so much that couldn’t be put in the movie due to either budget constraints, the need for a shorter runtime, or simply technological limitations at the time. I look forward to reading this one again sometime in the near future.

A word of warning, there are some outdated ideals present in the novel—mostly a more paternalistic view of women. It didn’t bother me much since times were different back then, although it was mostly in Dr. No I noticed it. Casino Royale differed with a more intelligent and interesting love interest. Another thought I’d mention, Bond gets abused…a lot. I mean, really, poisoned, shot at, tortured, and run through a gauntlet of traps each more deadly than the last. It only increases my respect for 007 and gives the chance to show off some qualities in a long-standing character, his endurance, resourcefulness, and insurmountable tolerance for pain. Strangely enough, I could only imagine Daniel Craig in the place of Bond while reading through these. After finishing them, it seemed to me that Craig is one of the more accurate depictions of Fleming’s Bond. Of course, that doesn’t discredit any of the actors. Connery still has the womanizing, suave Bond that I’ve come to know and love, Brosnan’s the badass (pardon my French), and Moore is…err *cough*…something else. For myself, Craig is the cold, calculating, and gritty version that fits best with the novels. Anyway, movies aside, the essential character of Bond is versatile enough to have the potential to appeal to a variety of readers and movie-goers for generations (which it has, by the way). It's one of the finer points of the character, versatility. Overall, Casino Royale receives 4 ½ stars, From Russia with Love 4 stars, and Dr. No 5 stars.

Review by Alisa Heskin

Review of One Thousand White Women~The Journals of May Dodd

One Thousand White Women~The Journals of May Dodd by, Jim Fergus

Introduction (From the Readers Guide) to One Thousand White Women
One Thousand White Women is the story of May Dodd and a colorful assembly of pioneer women who, under the auspices of the U.S. government, travel to the western prairies in 1875 to intermarry among the Cheyenne Indians. The covert and controversial "Brides for Indians" program, launched by the administration of Ulysses S. Grant, is intended to help assimilate the Indians into the white man's world. Toward that end May and her friends embark upon the adventure of their lifetime. Jim Fergus has so vividly depicted the American West that it is as if these diaries are a capsule in time.


This was a very interesting story and I enjoyed it very much. May Dodd's story is compelling from being put in an insane asylum for living with a man and bearing his children out of wedlock , to her decision to be one of the thousand brides for the Indians as a way to escape the asylum.
I found her to be a great strong woman far ahead of her time. The other women who were on this journey with her were a colorful assortment of characters. I loved the names some of these Indians and white women ended up with (Fact or Fiction who knows). Jim Fergus wrote this book with such detail that I almost felt like an observer to the events happening in May's life. I enjoyed the journal details and the colorful way May sometimes explained things, and I felt for her when she was missing her children but understood her reasoning behind not jumping off the train and going back to them.
The ending left me a little sad but still a great enjoyable book.
4 Stars

Thank-You Veterans!

Thank -You To All Military Personel Past and Present!

Thanks for ensuring our Freedom!

Tuesday Teaser~ Syren by, Angie Sage

Teaser Tuesday is hosted by Miz B from Should Be Reading.
The rules are as follows:
*Grab your current read
*Open to a random page
*Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
*BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
*Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!


From Syren Book #5 in the Septimus Heap Series by, Angie Sage
Page 72- By now Merrin was cowering in the corner, whimpering.At first he had thought that one of the Manuscriptorium scribes had somehow stuck an Expanding Booger Spell (an old Manuscriptorium favorite) on him when he wasn't looking. But now- even with his eyes shut tight- Merrin knew it was worse than that.

Daughters Of The Moon:Goddess of the Night by: Lynne Ewing

In this book Vanessa Cleveland if facing some very serious challenges. Her and her friend Catty have very unique powers.Catty travels back in time and Vanessa can become invisible. Vanessa and Catty have to face mischievous gossips at school, finding out their goddesses and trying to survive multiple attacks by the Atrox's servants. Will Vanessa and Catty survive and what other mysteries lie around the corner? Find out in Daughters of the Moon: Goddess of the Night.

T.A.B. Review-The Midnight Diary of Zoya Blume by, Laura Shaine Cunningham

The Midnight Diary of Zoya Blume by, Laura Shaine Cunningham
In a nutshell it takes more letters to spell the authors name then it does to describe the story.BORING.The idea of an adopted orphan from Russia living with her quirky mother who suddenly has to leave for an emergency medical procedure is kind of interesting, but the story is written for a younger girl.
The story is really kind of predictable, nothing too exciting, except maybe for the birthing process of a cat (which is probably the most vivid part of the story, surprising in a story geared towards a younger audience). Our main character Zoya is also really whinny nerve grating. She doesn't change a whole lot throughout the story making it hard to like her.

Overall the book was really dull, all 163 pages of it, and at a way younger reading level than anyone in high school should be reading.
I give it 2 Stars.
Sara Schuster

The Brutal Telling by, Louise Penny

The Brutal Telling by, Louise Penny
From back cover~ "Chaos is coming, old son." With those words the peace of Three Pines is shattered.When a stranger is found murdered in the village bistro and antique store, Chief Inspector Gamache and his team are called in to strip back layers and lies- and catch a killer whose identity will shock them all...

I enjoyed this book.Inspector Gamache reminded me alot of Poirot.I had not read the previous Three Pines novels but I never felt lost with the characters.I will now be buying the previous books!This was a new author for me and I really enjoyed her writing.
This book kept my attention all the way through and kept you guessing I actually thought the killer was going to be someone else!I like when I am wrong.
The characters were all so vibrant and felt like old friends by the end of the book.Loved the quirkiness of Ruth she was too fun!
Would recommend this book to anyone who likes Agatha Christie and likes a good mystery without all the sex and language!
4 out of 5 Stars