Tag / Books

by admin

Book 10 (of 52) – The Girl Who Kicked The Hornet’s Nest

The Girl Who Kicked The Hornet's Nest - Stieg Larsson

In the final chapter of the Millennium trilogy, Larsson picks up the story immediatelty following the events of The Girl Who Plays With Fire, but slows down the action, replacing it with the intrigue of the unraveling plot behind what has become known as the Zalachenko Affair.  As Mikeal Blomkvist works to uncover the true players responsible for Lisbeth’s fate, Salander recovers from her injuries and prepares to fight for the rights, and life, that have been unlawfully taken from her.

Larsson’s final work is much slower than his previous novels, but the story doesn’t suffer from it.  In fact, the slow build that culminates with the cross examination of the prosecution’s main witness against Salander works to its advantage, as you really feel the sledgehammer that comes down on “that bastard” as his testimony is ripped to shreds.  A fitting end to a gripping trilogy that seems to have taken the world by storm.

by jim

Book 4 (of 52) – The Girl Who Played With Fire

The Girl Who Played With Fire - Stieg Larsson

The second book of the Millennium trilogy focuses on Lisbeth Salander, now estranged from Mikael Blomkvist and wanted for three murders.  The “friends” that she left behind two years ago try to piece together the truth while the police track her down.

While not as good as its predecessor, this was a fine follow up and provided a deeper look into what makes up Lisbeth Salander, one of the best literary characters of the past decade.  The ending also provides a good starting point for the next book, the final of the series.

by jim

Book 1 (of 52) – Naked Heat

Naked Heat - Richard Castle

Naked Heat - Richard Castle

Book 1 of 2011 is the second Nikki Heat novel written by “Richard Castle”, based on NYPD detective Kate Beckett.  Just like the first one, this was a surprisingly good yarn that can be enjoyed by fans of the TV show Castle or by anyone who enjoys a little murderous fun.  I’ll be looking forward to the resulting book from season 3.

by jim

52 Books in 52 Weeks – 2011 Edition

As you may recall, last year I set off on a mission to read a book a week for the entire year, coming out to 52 books in 52 weeks.  I only made it to 8, 44 short of the goal, but doubling the number I read in 2009.  Given that, I’m going to give it another shot this year.  I got a few new books for Christmas, so I’ve got a pile to start with.

As a reminder, the rules I am using are:

  1. You can count a book as read as long as you have completed the book in 2011 and at least 50% of that reading takes place in 2011
  2. Any book counts as long as you’re not embarrassed to count it.
  3. Poetry collections do indeed count.
  4. Re-reading a book is okay as long as it isn’t done this year. (Reading Twilight twice in 2010 only counts as 1 read)
  5. Audiobooks also count.

First up is Naked Heat, the follow up to last year’s book number two, Heat Wave.  Happy reading.

by jim

Book 8 (of 52) – Personal Injuries

Personal Injuries - Scott Turow

Personal Injuries - Scott Turow

This was not your father’s legal thriller.  Most of the action is confined to the courtrooms and law offices of the main players, making it more legal than thriller.  But the characters come alive in ways difficult to describe, making the story worth the read.  This was my first time revisiting Turow since late high school/early college and, while not as good as I remember the previous outings, it was a nice reintroduction to the goings on in Kimball County.

Possibly the better story here is the mystery of a little addendum to the physical book.  I must have bought the hardcover years ago on eBay (it originally came out in 1999) and then put it in a drawer until earlier this year.  Tucked inside was a boarding pass for American Airlines flight 685 headed to New York from Fort Lauderdale on November 2nd, 2009.  Mr. Todd Scher must have enjoyed this particular piece of fiction while sitting in seat 14A on his evening flight to New York.  What is his story?  Heading to New York for business?  Returning home after some fun in sunny Florida?  Is he who I bought the book from?  Where is he now?  Is this him?

by admin

Book 7 (of 52) – The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo

http://feministhemes.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/07/girl_dragon_tattoo1.jpg

The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo - Stieg Larsson

The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo, Stieg Larsson’s debut novel, was a gripping read that easily draws a reader into a world of intrigue and mystery.  While there are many things that could potentially draw the readers focus away from the story (the Sweedish setting, the extreme violence towards women), Larsson’s story is able to easily overcome those obstacles.  There’s been much debate over the casting for the American film version, and with good reason.  The characters, especially Lisbeth Salander, stick with you and the faces given to them on the big screen will have a lot to live up to.  I’m very much looking forward to picking up the next book in the series, as well as the forth coming film.  Hell, I may even try to see the Swedish film, which has become a worldwide hit in its own right.

The story behind this book and its two sequels in the so-called Millennium Trilogy is almost as intriguing as the books themselves.  All three have been published posthumously, after the author wrote them for his own pleasure and made no attempt to sell them to a publisher until shortly before his untimely death.

by admin

Book 6 (of 52) – Dismantled

Dismantled - Jennifer McMahon

DISMANTLEMENT = FREEDOM

Or so the author would lead you to believe.  This is a tale of a group of friends, recent college graduates, who share a summer, and ultimately a secret together.  10 years later, both come back to haunt them in an intriguing tale that jumps around between 3 (4?) main characters and 2 different time periods, somewhat reminiscent of Stephen King’s It. 

I picked this up used on a suggestion from the good folks at Amazon and am glad I did.  I certainly will be on the lookout for Jennifer McMahon’s other works.

by admin

Book 5 (of 52) – Deja Dead

Deja Dead - Kathy Reichs

Déjà Dead was Kathy Reichs’ first novel, but the second I’ve read.  As the cover states, this series of novels is the inspiration behind the TV show Bones, although they share very little beyond the protaganist’s name and occupation.   The plot revolves around a number of dead bodies, and forensic anthropologist Temperence Brennan is having a hard time convincing the Montreal authorites that they have a serial killer on their hands.  As she starts her own investigation, the bodies, and murders, hit a little too close to home.

After my previous attempt at reading a Reichs novel featuring the character (Cross Bones), I had no intention of trying another, but an Amazon Buy 3 Get 1 Free sale left me needing one more book, so here we are.  I did end up enjoying this book much more, although, as a fan of the TV series, it once again took some getting used to, as the character of Temperance Brennan is very different here than in the show.  Once I got passed that and was engaged in the action of the book (which took awhile.  I started this book last August, according to the ticket stub bookmark), it was a quick and enjoyable read.  I’m certainly not running out to get more books in the series, but I’m not going to actively avoid them either.

by admin

Book 1 (of 52) – The Hound of the Baskervilles

The Hound of the Baskervilles - Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

The Hound of the Baskervilles - Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

In honor of the new film, and with London fresh in my mind, I decided to pull this classic off the bookshelf.  I started it last year (technically I started it in 1988*), but we’ll still count it towards the 2010 total.

I found it interesting that, for a Sherlock Holmes novel, Dr. Watson was the main character and Holmes himself barely appears, save for brief appearances at the beginning and the end.  Seeing as how this is the only Sherlock Holmes tale I’ve read, however, this may not be an unusual thing.  I did enjoy the trip to 1800s London, and how some of the sights named in the book I had just visited.  Overall, a worthy starting place for this 52 book challenge and, probably, the most “scholarly” choice of the year.

*I was originally supposed to read this for Freshman English back in high school.  I remember renting the movie the night before the test, if not the movie itself.  About half way through the book, I found the small slip of paper I was using as a bookmark, so I guess I never did get through it back then.  Hopefully I passed the test.

by admin

52 Books in 52 Weeks

I saw this thread on the Bendis Board and, seeing as how I managed to complete 4 books this year, it seemed like a noble, if foolhardy, goal.

The basic point is to read a book a week for the entire year.  The rules, stolen from their blog, are as follows:

  1. You can count a book as read as long as you have completed the book in 2010 and at least 50% of that reading takes place in 2010
  2. Any book counts as long as you’re not embarrassed to count it.
  3. Poetry collections do indeed count.
  4. Re-reading a book is okay as long as it isn’t done this year. (Reading Twilight twice in 2010 only counts as 1 read)
  5. Audiobooks also count.

3 and 5 probably won’t mean much to me, but I’ll give it a shot.