Tag / Paula Hawkins

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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.

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Book 11 (of 52) – The Blue Hour

The Blue Hour – Paula Hawkins

Paula Hawkins returns with her fourth novel, The Blue Hour.  In this go around, an art museum curator heads to a remote island to retrieve the remains of a collection left to the museum by an artist near and dear to his heart.  He deals with the friend/caretaker/lover? of the artist, who is loath to release any more material than she already has but relents somewhat when she sees he is a true fan.  A discovery in one of her pieces leads to the discovery of multiple murders, with perhaps more to come.

Hawkins hit the scene in 2015 with her smash debut, The Girl on the Train, which was one of many releases at that time to be dubbed “the next Gone Girl.” While I have enjoyed parts of all four of Hawkins’ efforts, there certainly are diminishing returns, as I liked each one less than its predecessor.  This one fell apart at the end, spoiling what had been an exciting tale to that point.  I may have reached the end of my road with her work, but I’ll probably forget my growing apprehension when she puts out her next new book.

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Prolific Authors – 3 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 yeas, 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 20 authors I’ve read thrice, an increase of eight over the past two years.

Kevin J. Anderson

Last read in the 20th century, he’s responsible for three of the X-Files books on my shelf.

A Man Called Ove – Fredrik Backman

Fredrik Backman

This Swedish author has become a recent favorite, showing up once a year over the past three years, with more to come, I’m sure.

Adam Carolla

The former comedian and current right-wing nutjob managed to get me to read three of his podcast regurgitations.

Bill Carter

The former media reporter for the New York Times delivered three behind the scenes looks at the television industry, including the transition from Johnny Carson to Jay Leno and from Jay Leno to Conan O’Brien and back again.

Executive Order – Max Allan Collins

Max Allan Collins

Author of all entries of the Reeder and Rogers trilogy.

Suzanne Collins

The woman behind a little trilogy about a young woman named Katniss who upends her entire world.

Keith R.A. DeCandido

Two Buffy the Vampire Slayer novels and a Spider-Man novel make up his works.

Alex Finlay

A DC lawyer writing under a penname, Finlay has placed three books in my hands over the past two years.

The Guest List – Lucy Foley

Lucy Foley

Another recent fave, Foley, a New York Times best seller, has shown up annually since 2021.

Megan Goldin

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

Paula Hawkins

Continue reading →

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Book 53 (of 52) – A Slow Fire Burning

A Slow Fire Burning – Paula Hawkins

Paula Hawkins returns with her third novel, A Slow Fire Burning.  In this go around, the death of a young man on a houseboat is the latest connection between a group of locals, the nosy neighbor who found him, his aunt and uncle, his mom’s neighbor, and the young woman he had just slept with.  As the police focus in on one suspect, the others intersect until the truth is finally revealed.

Hawkins hit the scene in 2015 with her smash debut, The Girl on the Train, which was one of many releases to be dubbed “the next Gone Girl.”  While I have enjoyed all three of Hawkins’ efforts, there does seem to be some diminishing returns, as I liked each one less than its predecessor.  I may check out what comes next, since I’ll probably forget my growing apprehension four years from now when she puts out a new book, but, for now, I’m ready to give her work a rest for a bit.

by admin

Prolific Authors – 2 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 start things off with the 35 authors I’ve read twice.

Max Barry

An Australian author, I’ve enjoyed the two novels of his I’ve read, Jennifer Government and Company.

Laura Caldwell

I have no idea how I came across the work of this local author, but I must have enjoyed it enough to go back for seconds.  Unfortunately, she passed away last year.

The Amazing Adventures Of Kavalier & Clay – Michael Chabon

Michael Chabon

Winner of the 2001 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction for The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay, the most recent of  the two works of his I’ve read.  I have another, Wonder Boys, waiting in the to read pile, so he rise up some day.

Matthew V. Clemens

The co-author, with Max Allan Collins, of the final two chapters of the Reeder and Rogers trilogy.

Felicia Day

The first author here that I’ve happened to meet in person.

Cameron Dokey

She makes the list based on two entries in the Buffy the Vampire Slayer series.

Diane Duane

Living in Ireland, she is responsible for a Star Trek: The Next Generation book and a Spider-Man novel, of all things.

Warren Ellis

The comic writer, currently in exile after being called out for abusing women, makes the list thanks to two prose novels.

David Fisher Continue reading →

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Prolific Authors 2019

Way back in December of 2011 (and again in the Decembers of 2013, 2015, and 2017), we took a look at the authors I have read the most, dating back to high school. Since our last check-in, I’ve read an additional 48 books from 50 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. Once again, we will be limiting ourselves to the now 70 authors from whom I have read more than one book.

 

Author Name Current Total 2017 Total Difference
Nancy Holder 16 15 1

Nancy Holder adds 1 new book over the past 2 years to maintain her lead.

Richard Castle 15 14 1

The writer (or writers) using the nom de plume of the main character from the television show Castle sees a slight increase, despite the show being off the air for well over 3 years now.

Stephen King 13 12 1
Greg Rucka 13 13 0
Christopher Golden 12 12 0
Brad Meltzer 12 11 1

Very little movement in the next tier the past 2 years.

Jeffery Deaver 11 8 3

We round out the double digits with Deaver, who will be going up again soon, as I’m currently reading one of his books. Continue reading →

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Prolific Authors 2017

Way back in December of 2011 (and again in the Decembers of 2013 and 2015), we took a look at the authors I have read the most, dating back to high school. Since our last check-in, I’ve read an additional 60 books from 47 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. Once again, we will be limiting ourselves to the now 54 authors from whom I have read more than one book.

Author Name Current Total 2015 Total Difference
Nancy Holder 15 13 2

A new leader in the clubhouse, as Nancy Holder adds 2 new additions over the past 2 years to put her out front.

Richard Castle 14 9 5

The second largest increase (or largest for someone I had read before) goes to the writer (or writers) using the nom de plume of the main character from the television show Castle.  I’m guessing this total will stay pretty static, with the show off the air for over a year now.

Greg Rucka 13 13 0
Christopher Golden 12 12 0
Stephen King 12 12 0

These three round out the top 5 with absolutely no movement over the past 2 years.

Brad Meltzer 11 9 2
Jeffery Deaver 8 5 3

Slight increases for both of these authors, with more to come.  Meltzer’s next book is already pre-ordered, while there are a few unread Deaver works on my Kindle. Continue reading →

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Book 17 (of 52) – Into The Water

Into The Water – Paula Hawkins

Following up on her smash debut novel, The Girl On The Train, Paula Hawkins returns with her sophomore effort, Into The Water.  In this tale, a woman falls prey to the same to the same suicide spot that she had been writing about.  But her sister and daughter don’t believe it was suicide and the mystery of her death, and the ones before her, start to unravel.

After all of the praise for Train, Hawkins was due for some push back, and the reviews were less forgiving this time around.  That said, I enjoyed the tale, finishing it in just a few sittings.  I look forward to what comes next, unless it’s another sub-par movie adaptation.  That I could do without.

by jim

2015: The Year In Books

2015booksWith another year coming to an end, it is time to take a look back at the 31 books I read over the past year, an increase of 8 from last year and my highest total ever, surpassing the 27 books I read back in 1992.  Of those 31, 11 were non-fiction and, of the 20 novels, only 3 were TV show tie-ins.  Only 4 of the books came from the “to-read” drawer, and 11 were e-books.  I read a nearly 9200 pages, the most in 1 year since 1992 and my second straight year reaching the 9000 mark.

Once again, a majority of the books I read this year were by authors I’ve never read before. The 19 authors that I read for the first this year were:
Kurt Vonnegut
Jim Bouton
Melissa Joan Hart
Patton Oswalt
Erle Stanley Gardner
Doug Sohn
Kate DeVivo
Paula Hawkins
Jayson Stark
Scott Reifert
Oscar Wilde
Jeff Katz
Felicia Day
George Carlin
Max Allan Collins
Ann Brashares
David Lagercrantz
Graham Greene
Mary Kubica
Martin Short

The ghost writer for Richard Castle was the only author I read multiple titles from during 2015.

Ten books I read were released this year, while 3 of them were released prior to 1980, with one, The Picture of Dorian Gray, dating back to 1890.

Finally, the breakdown by month.  Vacations in March, November, and December certainly helped pad their totals a tad bit. Continue reading →

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Book 10 (of 52) – The Girl On The Train

The Girl On The Train - Paula Hawkins

The Girl On The Train – Paula Hawkins

When a depressed alcoholic involves herself in the disappearance of a woman who just happens to live near her ex-husband and his new wife, she finds purpose for the first time since her divorce and learns that her life may not have unfolded the way she had been led to believe.

The debut novel from Paula Hawkins, The Girl On The Train has become a best seller.  It is the latest novel to be dubbed the next Gone Girl, and, for the most part, it holds up its end of the bargain.  Hawkins puts together a suspenseful tale, with a few twists and turns along the way that leads to an entertaining ride.