OK, I’m going crazy on book reviews in this blog. We listened to one audio book on our drive to the Outer Banks and started another one on our way home which I then finished today. When I am at home I never seem to whittle out enough time to read and I do love to read. So, when I am relaxing at the beach I find lots of time to read. Here are some of my recent reads.
“Riven” by Jerry B. Jenkins. I was not familiar with this author who I find out has written the Left Behind series. This book is considered Christian fiction. There are two story lines, one is Thomas Carey, a pastor who feels he has a calling to the ministry but never seems to make a difference in the lives of his congregants. His wife is his biggest fan and strongly supports her husband’s moves from one church to another. His daughter has left the church which adds to his feeling like a failure. He finally gets a job working as the pastor at a prison and most specifically working with the inmates on death row. The other story line is about Brady Wayne Darby who is raised by an alcoholic mother. She leaves him and his brother alone in their trailer a lot while she is out drinking and who knows what else. Brady commits numerous criminal acts and after several years commits the ultimate crime, murder. Pastor Carey and Brady meet on death row.
Although the story was slow at times, I could not stop reading to find out how things would end.
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“The Accident” by Lindwood Barclay was my next read. I have read several other books by Linwood Barclay and liked them and this book did not let me down. This story starts in what appears to be a normal neighborhood with Glen, a local contractor, his wife Sheila who is taking classes in order to help her husband with his bookkeeping, and their eight year old daughter. Many of their friends and they have fallen into some difficult financial times. Some of the people in their neighborhood have started to sell knock-off items to make a little extra money. The knock-off items include handbags, prescription drugs, electrical equipment, etc. When Shelia is killed in a car accident Glen must become an investigator because the story from the police is just not adding up. Just when I thought I had things figured out, the story would take another turn. Very good read and it held my interest all the way through the last sentence.
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At the recommendation of a student, I then read “The Wife” by Meg Wolitzer. Joe and Joan Castleman are in route to Helsinki, Finland where Joe will be receiving a very prestigious book award. During their flight, Joan decides that at the end of this trip, she will leave her husband. The story takes you on a journey of both the private and public lives of the Castlemans. Joan has been a very devoted wife raising the couple’s three children and looked the other way many, many times. Very good read. Thanks to whoever recommended it to me.
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Then I read “Huck: The Remarkable True Story of How One Lost Puppy Taught a Family–and a Whole Town–About Hope and Happy Endings” by Janet Elder. I am a sucker for books about animals, especially dogs. This is a heart warming story about how a wonderful little puppy brought so many people together. Janet’s son, Michael, has been asking for a dog for many years. Janet keeps putting it off but when she is diagnosed with caner she thinks a dog would be good for her son as well as for her and her husband. So after much research, they get “Huck”. After Janet finishes her treatments her husband, her and her son need a vacation. So, Janet leaves their new puppy, Huck, with her sister in Ramsey, New Jersey. Somehow, while his masters are on vacation, Huck escapes from the sister’s fenced-in backyard. The family quickly packs and returns home early to search for Huck. Along the way the family is awed by the kindnesses shown to them in their search.
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During our ride to the Outer Banks we listened to Michael Connelly’s newest book “The Drop”. If you are a fan of Michael Connelly’s books, like I am, then you will be happy with the return of Harry Bosch. The “DROP” refers to the Deferred Retirement Option Plan. Harry is given three years before he must retire from the LAPD. Bosch, now with the unsolved cases division longs for some real cases to investigate and in one morning he gets two. Unexpectedly in addition to a regular cold case, he receives a call from the Chief’s office to look into a current matter. Going back and forth between the two cases keeps you very interested as each story line develops. The current case has political undertones as Councilman Irvin Irving’s son commits suicide or is it murder? The Councilman and Harry have a long history and have been at odds with each other, but Irving demands Harry handle the case. Bosch juggles the political landmines as he simultaneously works the cold case and uncovers some spine chilling facts. An excellent audio book which makes the 8 hour drive seem much shorter.
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The new John Grisham book “The Litigators” was a great audio book. We started it on our drive home and I finished it today while I was sewing. The story starts with a young attorney, David, a Harvard Law School graduate, who is working at a huge Chicago law firm. David is fed up with slaving from early each morning to late each night because he rarely sees his wonderful wife and has no life outside the firm. David arrives at work one day and decides he’s had enough. Instead of exiting the elevator to his designated floor, he jumps back in, pushes L for lobby and goes to a bar for a few drinks. Many drinks later and prompted by a sign on a public bus , David stumbles into the firm of Findley and Fig, owned by a couple of local ambulance chasers. David loves the place and he, even though intoxicated, is hired. The firm has some highs and some lows and David gets a lot more experience in and out of court than he bargained for. The book kept my interest the whole way through and I liked the character development. Great read.
OK, that should keep those of you who tell me you like the book reviews occupied for a while. And I know I’ve said it before but keep your book suggestions coming. I have read some great books based on your suggestions that I otherwise would have missed.
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Mary Schiller send me the photo below of her finished top from the “Japanese Garden Quilt Pattern”. Mary made some nice changes to the pattern to suit her needs. She eliminated all the fussy leaves which gives her a nice open area for quilting. Very nice job Mary and thanks for sharing.
