Book: Win

 Book: Win

Author: Harlen Corben

Pages: 384

This is my 109th read for the year

What Amazon Says:

Over 20 years ago, the heiress Patricia Lockwood was abducted during a robbery of her family's estate, then locked inside an isolated cabin or monhts, Patricia escaped, but so did her captors - and the items stolen from her family were never recovered.  Until now.  On the Upper West Side, a recluse is found murdered in his penthouse apartment, alongside two objects of note: a stolen Vermeer painting and a leather suitcase bearing the initials WHL3.  For the first time in years, the authorities have a lead - not only on Patricia's kidnapping, but also on another FBI cold case - with the suitcase and painting both pointing them toward one man.  Windsor Horne Lockwood III - or Win, as his few friends call him - doesn't know how his suitcase and his family's stolen painting ended up with a dead man.  But his interest is piqued, especially when the FBI tells him that the man who kidnapped his cousin was also behind an acto fo domestic terrorism - and that the conspirators may still be at large.  The 2 cases have baffled the FBI for decades, but Win has 3 things the FBI doesn't; a personal connection to the case; an ungodly fortune: and his own unique brand of justice.

I am slowly working through a back log of books on my shelves, and this one has been sititng there for awhile.  I have read a couple of Harlen Corben books, and I like them okay.  But to me, they aren't great.  They are easy reads, but his chracters are not likable to me.  Win, especially turned me off right from the beginning.  It was almost like reading more later Patricia Cornwell books where she also makes her main characters so rich that they are not relateable let alone likeable.  Because the Win character struck a negative cord with me from the beginning, I could not turn this story around in my mind.  It was an interesting enough murder mystery, but not enough to redeem the characters as a whole.

Stars: 2.5

Book: The God of the Woods

 Book: The God of the Woods

Author: Liz Moore

Pages: 496

This is my 108th read for the year

What Amazon Says:

Early morning, August 1975: a camp counselor discovers an empty bunk.  Its occupant, Barbara Van Laar, has gone missing.  Barbara isn't just any thirteen-year-old: she's the daughter of the family that owns the summer camp and emplys most of the region's residents.  And this isn't the first time a Van Laar child has disappeared.  Barbara's older brother similarly vanished fourteen years ago, never to be found.  As a panicked search begins, a thrilling drama unfolds.  Chasing down the layered secrets of the Van Laar family and teh blue-collar community working in its shadow, Moore's multi-threaded story invites readers into a rich and gripping dynasty of secrets and second chances.

This was a pretty good book.  I have read mixed reviews, so I was worred - especially since it is a bit more of a popular novel.  Those tend to be hit or miss for me.  But I did like this one.  It has a good story where you want to get to the end to see what has happened to Barbara and her brother.  You learn about members of the camp and the  Van Laar's family along the way to complete the picture of why what happened to those children happens.  The back story of the Van Laar's family was a bit tedious, and probably could have been a bit less of this story, but that is just my opinion.  Overall , a solid story, and I am glad I finally read this one.

Stars: 4

Book: The Roommate

  Book: The Roommate

Author: Andrea Mara

Pages: 39

This is my 107th read for the year

What Amazon Says:

A dark and dangerous secret one woman has desperately tried to forget becomes the plot of a hit TV dramam in this chiling short story.  Elena's looking forward to a quiet Friday night curled up with her husband with a glass of wine and a new crime drama on TV.  As the show starts, she realises, with a jolt of panic: every detail mirrors one horrific night she's spent years trying to forget.  Elena doesn't believe in coincidences.  Someone knows her secret - and she'll lose everything if the truth comes out.

This was an interesting short story.  It has a nice beginning, middle, and end in a few pages.  The ending even has a twist I did not see coming.  Good story.

Stars: 

4

Book: You Killed Me First

 Book: You Killed Me First

Author: Jon Marrs

Pages: 399

This is my 106th read for the year

What Amazon Says:

It's 5 November, and a woman awakens to a nightmare.  Bound and gagged, she lies trapped in the heart of a towering bonfire.  As the smoke thickens, panic sets in - she's moments away from being engulfed in flames.  How did it come to this?  Rewind 11 months: Margot, a faded TV star, and her long-siffering friend Anna watch as glamorous Liv nd her flawless family move into their street.  The three women soon fabricate the perfect pretence of friendship, but each harbours her own deadly secret - and newcomer Liv senses something is terribly wrong beneath the polish exteriors.  As cracks widen in the veneer of perfection and lies escalate out of control, tension ignites.  Bonfire Night is approaching and someone is set to burn - But who will it be?

This was an interesting book.  I have read a lot of Marrs books, and I always enjoy them.  I hated most of the characters in this book - he wrote some of them over the top.  Was it on purpose?  There were a lot of twist - a few I did not see coming, which was a plus.  The ending was wild.  Overall, I was glad I read it.

Stars: 4

Book: Shakespeare for Squirrels

 Book: Shakespeare for Squirrels

Author: Christopher Moore

Pages: 288

This is my 105th read for the year

What Amazon Says:

Set adrift by his pirate crew, Pocket of Dog Snogging - last seen in The Serpent of Venice - washes up on the sun-bleached shores of Greece, where he hopes to dazzle the Duke with his comedic brilliance and become his trusted fool.  But the island is in turmoil.  Egus, the Duke's minister, is furious that his daughter Hermia is determined to marry Demetrius, instead of Lysander, the man he has chosen for her.  The Duke decrees that if, by the time of the wedding, Hermia still refuses to marry Lysander, she shall be executed - or consigned to a nunnery.  Pocket, being Pocket, cannot help but point out that this decree is complete bollocks, and that the Duke is an egregious weasel for having even suggested it.  Irritated by the fool's impudence, the Duke orders his death.  With the Duke's guards in pursuit, Pocket makes a daring escape.  He soon stumbles into the wooded realm of the fairy king Oberson, who, as luck would have it, IS short a fool.  His hester Robin Goodfellow - the mischievous sprite better known as Puck - was found dead.  Murdered.  Oberon makes Pocket an offer he can't refuse: he will make Pocket his foold and hae his death sentence lifted if Pocket finds out who killed Robin Goodfellow.  But as anyone who is even vaguely aware of the Bard's most performed play ever will know, nearly every character has a motive for wanting the mischievous sprite dead.  With too many suspects and too little time, Pocket must work his own kind of magic to find the truth, save his neck, and ensure that all ends well. 

Stars: 4 

Book: The Let Them Theory

 Book: The Let Them Theory

Author: Mel Robbins

Pages: 336

This is my 104th read for the year

What Amazon Says:

This was an okay book.  I liked a lot of it, but it just left too many unanswered questions.  The fantas part of this novel was choppy.  Some of the characters were really horrible - I do not like to read about domestic violence.  I was curious about where it was going, but I just don't think the plot pulled itself all the way together - even with the ending where she tried.

This book could have been an article.  Or an email.

Stars: 2

Book: The Lost Bookshop

 Book: The Lost Bookshop

Author: Evie Woods

Pages: 448

This is my 103rd book for the year

What Amazon Says:

For too long, Opaline, Martha and Henry have been the side characters in their own lives.  For too long, Opaline, Martha and Henry have been the side characters in their own lives.  But when a vanishing bookshop casts its spell, these three unsuspecting strangers will discover that their own stories are every bit as extraordinary as the ones found in the pages of their beloved books.  And by unlocking the secrets of the shelves, they find themselves transported to a world of wonder - where nothing is as it seems.

This was an okay book.  I liked a lot of it, but it just left too many unanswered questions.  The fantasy part of this novel was choppy.  Some of the characters were really horrible - I do not like to read about domestic violence.  I was curious about where it was going, but I just don't think the plot pulled itself all the way together - even with the ending where she tried.

Stars: 3