Tag / Entertainment Weekly

by admin

Prolific Authors – Four Books

It is time once again to take a look at the authors I have read the most, dating back to high school.  This year, I’m once again on pace to set a new record for books read in a year, so I thought it would be nice to take a deeper dive into those books I’ve read through August of this year. Since our last check-in, I’ve read an additional 114 books, so there should be some movement over the past two years.  Without further ado, it’s time to take another look and see if my “favorite” authors have changed much over the years.  We continue today with the fourteen authors I’ve read two times, up four from two years ago.

Scott Adams

The now-cancelled creator of Dilbert, who can’t seem to help himself from spouting racist takes on Twitter, Adams used his famous character to write a number of humorous business books, the most recent of which I read in 2012.

Suzanne Collins

A return to the world of the Hunger Games brought Collins back to my reading list in 2024.

James Ellroy

The author of the L.A. Quartet, which I finished off with The Big Nowhere in 2014.

Gillian Flynn

The former Entertainment Weekly writer turned into one of my favorite authors, though she still hasn’t written a new full-length work since 2012’s Gone Girl.

The Book of Lost and Found – Lucy Foley

Lucy Foley

A recent favorite, Foley, a New York Times best seller, has shown up annually since 2021 until this year, although there are still five months to go.

Diana G. Gallagher

The author, who passed away in 2021, can credit the world of Buffy the Vampire Slayer for all four of her entries, the most recent of which I read in 2011.

Lee Goldberg

A writer for the Monk television series who went on to pen a series of tie-in novels about the show.

Megan Goldin

The former Reuters correspondent first appeared on my radar in 2021 with her debut, The Escape Room.

The Blue Hour – Paula Hawkins

Paula Hawkins

The best-selling author of The Girl on the Train, her latest novel was released last year and read in early 2025.

Greer Hendricks

After spending two decades as an editor at Simon & Schuster, she has teamed up with Sarah Pekkanen for four novels, which I’ve read one annually starting in 2020 until this year.

Grady Hendrix

Winner of a 2018 Bram Stoker Award, the horror novelist debuted on my reading list with The Final Girl Support Group in 2021.

Carrie Soto Is Back – Taylor Jenkins Reid

Taylor Jenkins-Reid

I first came her work thanks to her smash Daisy Jones & The Six.  Her latest is currently on my waitlist at the library, so she will continue to move up this list.

Minka Kent

Two new reads in 2024, The Stillwater Girls and Unmissing, push her up this list.

John Vornholt

Three fourths of his works that I’ve read come from the world of Star Trek: The Next Generation.

by admin

Prolific Authors – 4 Books

Way back in December of 2011 (and again every other December since), we’ve taken a look at the authors I have read the most, dating back to high school. Since I’ve far surpassed my “normal” reading output the last three years, I thought it would be nice to once again take a deeper dive into those books I’ve read through the start of October. Since our last check-in, I’ve read an additional 118 books, so there could be some movement over the past two years, but it’s time to take another look and see if my “favorite” authors have changed much in that time span.  We continue today with the ten authors I’ve read four times, an increase of four over the past two years.

Scott Adams

The now-cancelled creator of Dilbert, who can’t seem to help himself from spouting racist takes on Twitter, Adams used his famous character to write a number of humorous business books, the most recent of which I read in 2012.

The Big Nowhere – James Ellroy

James Ellroy

The author of the L.A. Quartet, which I finished off with The Big Nowhere in 2014.

Gillian Flynn

The former Entertainment Weekly writer turned in to one of my favorite authors, though she hasn’t written a new full length work since 2012’s Gone Girl.

Rebecca Forster

One of my first Kindle finds, I’ve read the first four entries in her Witness series.

Diana G. Gallagher

The author, who passed away in 2021, can credit the world of Buffy the Vampire Slayer for all four of her entries, the most recent of which I read in 2011.

You Are Not Alone – Greer Hendricks & Sarah Pekkanen

Greer Hendricks

After spending two decades as an editor at Simon & Schuster, she has teamed up with Sarah Pekkanen for four novels, which I’ve read one annually starting in 2020.

Grady Hendrix

Winner of a 2018 Bram Stoker Award, the horror novelist debuts thanks to the four novels I’ve read over the past three years, starting with The Final Girl Support Group in 2021.

Kimberly McCreight – Reconstructing Amelia

Kimberly McCreight

A New York Times bestselling author thanks to her debut novel, Reconstructing Amelia, she has been a steady presence since 2013.

Sarah Pekkanen

She has teamed up with Greer Hendricks for four novels, one of which I’ve read one annually since 2020.

John Vornholt

Three fourths of his works that I’ve read come from the world of Star Trek: The Next Generation.

by admin

Prolific Authors – 4 Books

Way back in December of 2011 (and again every other December since), we’ve taken a look at the authors I have read the most, dating back to high school.  This year, since I’ve far surpassed my reading output of any year on record, I thought it would be nice to take a deeper dive into those books I’ve read through August. Since our last check-in, I’ve read an additional 60 books from 54 different authors. There shouldn’t be much movement over the past 2 years, but it’s time to take another look and see if my “favorite” authors have changed much in that time span.  Today, we continue with the 6 authors I’ve read 4 times.

Scott Adams

The creator of Dilbert and all around internet crank, Adams has used his famous character to write a number of humorous business books, the most recent of which I read in 2012.

Angels & Demons – Dan Brown

Dan Brown

One of the most successful authors of all time, I’ve read four of his five Robert Langdon novels.

James Ellroy

The author of the L.A. Quartet, which I finished off with The Big Nowhere in 2014.

Gone Girl – Gillian Flynn

Gillian Flynn

The former Entertainment Weekly writer turned in to one of my favorite authors, though she hasn’t written a new full length work since 2012’s Gone Girl.

Diana G. Gallagher

All four of her entries are based in the world of Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

John Vornholt

Three fourths of his works that I’ve read come from the world of Star Trek: The Next Generation.

by jim

Book 11 (of 52) – Reconstructing Amelia

Kimberly McCreight - Reconstructing Amelia

Kimberly McCreight – Reconstructing Amelia

I first heard of Kimberly McCreight’s debut novel when the review in Entertainment Weekly called it this year’s Gone Girl, which I very much enjoyed last year.  Given their stellar review, I decided to buy the book and give it a shot, and I am glad I did.  While the comparison to Gone Girl may have been a bit of an oversell, it was an enjoyable read which I finished in less than a week.

Reconstructing Amelia is the tale of a girl whose death has been ruled a suicide and the working mother who pieces together the remains of her life, using texts, Facebook posts, and tweets to find out the truth of what really happened to her daughter.  McCreight does a good job of bringing the reader into 2 different worlds: one of a grieving mother who finds out that her daughter may not have been who she thought she was and the other of a high school girl finding herself out of her element and trying to negotiate her first love and her first exposure to bullying.

Considering this was McCreight’s first published novel, I’ll certainly be interested in seeing what she comes up with next.  If she improves her craft with more experience, it is certainly possible that she may ultimately surpass the bar set by Gillian Flynn and Gone Girl.

by admin

Midseason Review – Fridays

Finishing up our look back at the fall television season.

CBS

Blue Bloods – The surprise hit of last season.  A decently solid show with a small mystery that lurks in the background.

Last season’s mystery has been replaced by the occassional undercover plot, but still a consistent, if unspectacular, performer.

NBC

Chuck – The final season kicks off its thirteen episode run in late October.  It will likely be a fun ride to the finish line.

And tonight is the finale.  It will be sad to say goodbye to the Buy More.  A good show that did not deserve the jerking around it has gotten in recent seasons.

Grimm – All I know is that Jennifer Morrison is involved and it has something to do with the Grimm fairy tales.

See, this is what happens when someone steals your Fall TV Preview issue of Entertainment Weekly and there are two shows with similar backgrounds.  Jennifer Morrison, of course, is on Once Upon A Time.  This show is horrible and I’m surprised it is still on the air.  Yet NBC can’t find a place for Chuck or Community on the schedule.

FOX

Fringe – Peter is gone and the two universe’s have merged into one.  I’m not sure what the new season has in store for us, but I’m on board.

You know, for someone who took at lot of grief for her “stiff” acting style, Anna Torv has played 5 distinct versions of the Olivia character and has applied different nuances to all of them.  She really is quite good and it is a shame she will never be recognized for the work she is doing here.  Also a shame is the ratings the show is getting, making it ever more likely that this will be the final season. Continue reading →

by jim

2011 New Fall Season – Sundays

I never received this year’s Fall TV Preview from our good friends at Entertainment Weekly, so I’m going to wing this based on what I’ve seen so far and what I can remember from the Internets.  Not much to watch on Sunday nights, so let’s get this started.

ABC

Pan Am – ABC’s attempt to hop on the Mad Men brigade premieres tonight, with Christina Ricci making her move to television.  It looks somewhat interesting, so I will give it a shot.

CBS

The Good Wife – Slowly built itself up to a top performer last season and should do even better on Sundays without much competition.  The only problem with the new timeslot will be in the fall due to football overruns.