MARCH READS

[rapa]

Looks like March has arrived in most of the country like a "Lion".  Will be 83 and sunny here in Texas today with a 50 degree drop in temp tomorrow.  I have five potentially good books stacked and ready to hunker down if the predicted sleet arrives late tomorrow.

Am currently reading Quindlen's STILL LIFE WITH BREAD CRUMBS. So far, so good.  Nice respite from the thrillers!

Happy March reading to all!!!!

[rapa]

Just had a call from library that THE GOLDFINCH is in for me!  It's been a long wait and can't wait to dig in! 

Am almost finished J. D. Robb's CONCEALED IN DEATH.  It's her latest Roarke and Eve Dallas novel.  Moves quickly and predictabley. 

[Ioruach]

That 50 degree drop you referred to, rapa, we are trying to send as much of that stuff down to you as possible from here in Minnesota. That "83 and sunny" you have makes us very jealous.

During the last week I finished The Gods of Guilt, which I enjoyed very much and then Phillip Margolin's latest, Sleight of Hand. That one was pretty readable, too. Just picked up Sycamore Row from the library, which finally became available after several months on the reserved list.

[Carci]

I finished the roller coaster ride that was You're Next and gave it to my sister to read.  She claims it is the best thriller she has ever read...  lol

Then for a change of pace I tackled The Longest Ride by Nicholas Sparks and it was, indeed, the longest ride.  What a bunch of romantic garbage and the ending wasn't even original.  I had heard a similar story in the past. It'll be awhile before I pick one up by him again!

I just started A Serpent's Tooth (Walt Longmire series) and it is engaging and fun to be back with these old friends.  A few chuckles and a few weird characters make for an interesting read. I have read all the others in this series.

I also have The Goldfinch on order at the library, rapa.  The premise doesn't sound that interesting but there have been so many rave reviews on it that I want to give it a try.

I heard there was a movie out in French of Harlan Coben's  Tell No One so I ordered it at the library and it is in... just have to pick it up.  Loved that book but I sure hope there are English subtitles as I don't speak more than 2 words of French...  lol

[rapa]

Re:  THE GOLDFINCH, one of our members remarked that this was the best book they had read "This century."  Also, member Mandy Muffin thought it one of his best reads.  BTW, is Mandy back from his celebrity cruise?

[rapa]

Unfortunately, I'm having trouble with THE GOLDFINCH.  Imagine the men will enjoy it more than the women readers. Have done a lot of skimming.  The book is 720 pages! It's well written but I'm finding it depressing.  The premise is unforgettable! 

[Baia]

Presently enjoying Terry Pratchett's latest: "Raising Steam."  Moist von Litwig takes a break from running the Post Office, the Royal Bank and the Mint to fulfill Lord Vetinari's requirement for a faster way to visit his girlfriend in Uberwald.  In the process, human rights are increasingly extended, employment booms, suburbs blossom and religious extremism amongst the dwarfs struggles against the increasing community awareness of all sentient beings.  Fans of the Discworld novels have been waiting for this and I am finding it hard to ration myself.  During the last few months I have been rereading my favorites and after I am finished with this one, I will go back to "Lords and Ladies".

[Slopok]

I'm going to break down and buy a new best seller. I've been reading older novels and cheapies (but good). I can get a lot of good authors and books for free on our internet library here but it's a long wait for new novels. Gonna have to look over the latest and buy a good one....Then I'll have something to post later.

[Mandy Muffin]

I put my Kindle reads on hold for a bit and am reading some paperbacks I have waiting in a pile.  My current read is "Innocent" by Scott Turow. It brings back the characters from "Presumed Innocent," a NYT best seller and acclaimed motion picture of about twenty years ago.  Turow is a master of the court room drama and in this one a sixty year old judge finds himself accused of killing his wife, and will go to trial for the murder.  I can watch the original movie with a great cast (Harrison Ford, etc) for $1.99 on my Amazon Prime video. http://movies.msn.com/movies/movie/presumed-innocent.2/ This seems a better choice than spending 8-10 hours re-reading the original book. 

[Carci]

I am 1/3 of the way into The Plum Tree by Ellen Marie Wiseman and altho some of my favorite books include WWII novels this one is a bit of a simplistic romance so far.  I am getting a sense of what it was like in Germany during those days but I hope the story takes on a little more depth as I get farther into it. 

[officerripley]

I just finished up Don't Look for Me by Loren Estleman; it's not the best in his Amos Walker/Detroit mystery series but still pretty darn good; I just love a well-done, hardboiled priv. detective mystery. Now I'm just starting Children of the Revolution by Peter Robinson, the latest in his Alan Banks/British police procedural series; I love those police procedurals too.

[Mandy Muffin]

March is going out like a lion, as I am finishing up the month with two Lisa Gardner suspense novels set in Boston -- "Hide" and "Alone."  I started to read "Hide" and found that it is a follow up to "Alone," and the reviews recommend reading this first, so the characters will make more sense.  http://www.amazon.com/Alone-Detective-Warren-Novel-Novels/dp/055358... 

Have you ever started reading a novel in the middle of series and had trouble following the story line that was constantly referring back to events in a prior novel by the same author? 

I recently ran into the same problem with a Lisa Unger novel, "Darkness My Old Friend" with character carry overs from her novel, "Fragile."  Again, I tabled the book and plan to read both books together. 

[Carci]

if you go to http://www.fantasticfiction.co.uk/ you can look up any author and the series are listed in order.

This is especially helpful when you want to start at the beginning and with authors that write several series and you just want to follow one of them at a time.