Review: The Crime Writer

The Crime Writer by Gregg Hurwitz
3 stars

Reason for reading: Crime novel for the Genre Challenge

Description: "Drew Danner , an L.A.-based crime novelist, awakens in a hospital bed with a scar on his head, blood under his nails, and a cop by his side. Accused of murdering his ex-fiancée, Drew has no memory of the crime but reconstructs the story the only way he knows how—as a novel. As he searches the dark corridors of his life and the city he loves, another young woman is similarly murdered and Drew must confront the very real possibility of his own guilt."

First line: "I woke up with IVs taped to my arms, a feeding tube shoved through my nose, and my tongue pressed against my teeth, dead and thick as a sock."

My thoughts: The book starts off with a real bang - Drew wakes up from having a brain tumor removed and is accused of murder. It was suspenseful and you really wondered how or if Drew was going to be able to clear his name when all of the evidence was stacked against him. He goes on a reckless quest to find out if someone framed him - so reckless that I found myself telling him several times that he should stop it, he'd only be digging himself in deeper!

L.A. is almost another character in the book. The author has obviously spent a lot of time there and writes eloquently and sometimes humourously about its beauty, superficiality, and cruelty.

The secondary characters are well drawn. Drew's best friend Chic, a former ballplayer famous for dropping a game-losing pop fly, is a great character - wise, calm, and a fiercely loyal and helpful friend. His life with his wife and brood of children is sensitively portrayed, a good contrast to the chaos in Drew's life. Drew also manages to acquire a Little Brother while trying to solve the case - Junior, a wise-cracking, dog-loving, often-in-court graffiti artist.

I think my favourite parts were the pages that replicated Drew's manuscript - basically a book within the book. They had his editor's snarky comments scrawled in the margins, which was an entertaining touch.

By the end the book sort of devolves into more of a typical murder mystery, but there is enough action and enough twists along the way to make it a pretty satisfying book. Not entirely my thing, but it was an interesting read.

Review: Vodka Neat

Vodka Neat: a Faith Zanetti thriller by Anna Blundy
2.5 stars

Reasons for reading: The title/cover caught my eye on our New Books shelf; Thriller for the Genre Challenge

Description: "Vodka Neat features Faith Zanetti, a war correspondent with plenty of libido, good looks, a great sense of humor, and a zest for life that never quits. She's the new Moscow correspondent for a leading newspaper--chosen for the job because she married a Russian when she was a teenager. But the minute she steps on Russian soil, she is instantly arrested in connection with the murders, fifteen years before, of a couple from a neighboring apartment. She was drunk at the time, but surely not that drunk. In order to solve the mystery, what she needs to do is find the charming Russian black marketer she married as a nineteen-year-old. And when she finds him, her problems really begin."

First line: "Moscow 1989 - There was a do at Dom Literov, the literary house."

My thoughts: I didn't hate this book, and Blundy clearly knows Russia really well, which was interesting, as I don't know much about it. But it just wasn't my thing. For one, I didn't really get the "thriller" part of it. I felt it was more like a mystery. There were some twists and a climactic, violent scene, but I didn't really feel, well, thrilled. The basic plot had some good parts (the actual mystery of who killed the couple next door and a horrifying case of mistaken identity) but there were almost a few too many twists on the way to resolving it. Blundy's obvious knowledge of and love for Russia bogged the book down, I found - there was too much discussion of the cold, the bleakness, the weirdness of the country and the rampant alcoholism there (whether you're Russian or not). Perhaps if I'd read the first book in this series, I'd have felt warmer towards Faith, who is getting over the loss of her mother and a mental breakdown, which I assume happened in volume one. I admired her toughness, but she's a very messed-up human being (although there may be a tiny bit of light at the end of her tunnel by the end).

The verdict: I thought Kirkus Reviews summed Faith and the book up well: "A hard-drinking, foul-mouthed protagonist in Putin's Russia, occupying a landscape nearly as depressing as she is. "

Review: And Then There Were None

And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie
5 stars


Reasons for reading: Mystery for the Genre Challenge; have always meant to read it

From the publisher: "First, there were ten—a curious assortment of strangers summoned as weekend guests to a private island off the coast of Devon. Their host, an eccentric millionaire unknown to all of them, is nowhere to be found. All that the guests have in common is a wicked past they're unwilling to reveal—and a secret that will seal their fate. For each has been marked for murder. One by one they fall prey. Before the weekend is out, there will be none. And only the dead are above suspicion.

First line: "In the corner of a first-class smoking carriage, Mr. Justice Wargrave, lately retired from the bench, puffed at a cigar and ran an interested eye through the political news in the Times."

My thoughts: I was so taken with this book!! It's so very ingenious. Of course, the plot is a bit of a cliche nowadays, but that's because Agatha Christie did such an amazing job of it the first time! I loved how it stuck to the 10 Little Indians poem laid out at the beginning and how that added to the creepiness.

I believe this is the second Christie book I've read - I read Murder on the Orient Express when I was a teenager and remember liking it. I obviously should read some more! Sometimes I find older books dated, but the 30's-40's charm of Christie's books really works for me.

There's not much else I can say - if you've read it (and you probably have) you know what happens and if you haven't (you should!), I won't spoil it. I, as usual, had no idea whodunnit but I've decided that, rather than making me a lazy and non-perceptive reader, it just means life holds lots of surprises for me, which is great! My husband read it when he was like 10 and had it all figured out, of course. He's incredibly smart and is the opposite of me, life holds no suprises for him. :-)

The verdict: Read it!

Review: Casino Royale

Casino Royale by Ian Fleming
3 stars

Reasons for reading: Adventure novel for the Genre Challenge; have always meant to read a Bond book

Summary: "In the first of Ian Fleming's James Bond novels, 007 declares war on Le Chiffre, French communist and paymaster of the Soviet murder organization SMERSH. The battle begins in a fifty-million-franc game of baccarat, gains momentum during Bond's fiery love affair with a sensuous lady spy, and reaches a chilling climax with fiendish torture at the hands of a master sadist. For incredible suspense, unexpected thrills, and extraordinary danger, nothing can beat James Bond in his inaugural adventure."

First line: "The scent and smoke and sweat of a casino are nauseating at three in the morning."

My thoughts: Wow, I now know more about baccarat than I ever thought I would, and yet I still don't really understand it. I also know why more about Cold War-era espionage, and am not entirely sure I understand all of that, either.


I have to say, I liked the Daniel Craig movie version much better! There were isolated scenes of action (a bomb, an attempted shooting) but apart from the kidnapping and (almost) ball-breaking torture, I didn't find there was a whole lot of sustained, suspenseful action.


It was interesting to read the James Bond origin story and see what a cold-hearted bastard he is, until he falls in love with Vesper Lynd. And then becomes a cold-hearted bastard again. But I don't know if I'll read any more of them.

Review: The Chili Queen

The Chili Queen by Sandra Dallas
3.5 stars


Reasons for reading: Sounded good and won the Spur Award; Western for the Genre Challenge and Profession title for the What's in a Name? Challenge


Description: "Life may have been hard on Addie French, but when she meets friendless Emma Roby on a train, all her protective instincts emerge. Emma's brother is seeing her off to Nalgitas to marry a man she has never met. And Emma seems like a lost soul to Addie-someone who needs Addie's savvy and wary eye. It isn't often that Addie is drawn to anyone as a friend, but Emma seems different somehow. When Emma's prospective fails to show up at the train depot, Addie breaks all her principles to shelter the girl at her brothel, The Chili Queen. But once Emma enters Addie's life, the secrets that unfold and schemes that are hatched cause both women to question everything they thought they knew."


First line: "As the train pulled into the shabby station at Palestine, Kansas, the pinch-faced farmers and their wives in their rusty black-wool best lined up along the tracks like the teeth of a rake."

My thoughts: I don't think I'd ever read a Western before, so this was a new experience. I thought it was really cool to read a Western written by a woman - I always associate them with old guys like Louis L'Amour and Zane Grey.

The book is told in four parts, one for each main character - Addie French, madam of The Chili Queen; Ned Partner, bank robber; Emma Roby, a mail-order bride; and Welcome, a former slave turned cook at the whorehouse. It's the 1880's and most of the action takes place in New Mexico. I liked this device - it was an interesting way to reveal more information about the characters and what had really happened. Because things aren't always as they seem in this story, which makes for a few twists.

The tone of the story is a bit confusing - it's mostly quite light ("zesty" as one reviewer described it) but it also contains one of the most horrible descriptions of rape and murder I've ever read, as well as a few other grisly scenes. While they helped to shed light on the characters' past lives, it was a bit jarring to come upon these terrible things in what seemed like it was going to be rather a bank-robbing romp.

The verdict: Despite the tone issue, I think I'd read another book by Sandra Dallas (isn't that the perfect Western-author name?). Yee-haw!

Review: A Wrinkle in Time

A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle
3 stars

Reasons for reading: have always meant to; Sci Fi for the Genre Challenge; 1963 Newbery Medal-winner for the Book Awards Challenge

Description: "It was a dark and stormy night; Meg Murry, her small brother Charles Wallace, and her mother had come down to the kitchen for a midnight snack when they were upset by the arrival of a most disturbing stranger.

"Wild nights are my glory," the unearthly stranger told them. "I just got caught in a downdraft and blown off course. Let me sit down for a moment, and then I'll be on my way. Speaking of ways, by the way, there is such a thing as a tesseract."

A tesseract (in case the reader doesn't know) is a wrinkle in time. To tell more would rob the reader of the enjoyment of Miss L'Engle's unusual book. A Wrinkle in Time, winner of the Newbery Medal in 1963, is the story of the adventures in space and time of Meg, Charles Wallace, and Calvin O'Keefe (athlete, student, and one of the most popular boys in high school). They are in search of Meg's father, a scientist who disappeared while engaged in secret work for the government on the tesseract problem."

First line: "It was a dark and stormy night." [Really, that's it!]

My thoughts: I'm just not really a sci-fi gal. I enjoy sci-fi TV and movies more than I used to, thanks to my geek husband, but books, not so much. And I'm finding a lot of the kids' classics I've been reading lately to be quite-feeling dated, including this one. Although the level of sci fi was sort of like the level of fantasy in Harry Potter - based enough in our own world that I could handle it.

That said, I did like the overall message of love being the greatest force in the universe. There's a forward by Anna Quindlen that points out that the creepy sameness of the bad planet they travel to was a reaction against Communism, which was pretty interesting, although it adds a bit to the dated feeling. Although I guess North Americans always tend to struggle against conformity, whatever its form.

The book is one of the ALA's top 100 most-challenged books, apparently because of L'Engle's "liberal" Christianity and its references to witches (of which there are none in the book) and crystal balls. I always love the challenges to books - if putting Jesus on the same list as great artists and writers is all you've got to complain about, you're not looking hard enough and have way too much time on your hands.

The verdict: Not really my bag but I can see why it's a classic. And even if I found the tone a bit dated, the message never gets old.

Review: Last Night at the Lobster

Last Night at the Lobster by Stewart O'Nan
3 stars

Reasons for reading: had read good things about it; Realistic fiction for the Genre Challenge; Time of day title for the What's in a Name? Challenge II

Description: "The Red Lobster perched in the far corner of a run-down New England mall hasn’t been making its numbers and headquarters has pulled the plug. But manager Manny DeLeon still needs to navigate a tricky last shift with a near-mutinous staff. All the while, he’s wondering how to handle the waitress he’s still in love with, what to do about his pregnant girlfriend, and where to find the present that will make everything better."

First line: "Mall traffic on a winter's day, stalled."

My thoughts: This was an interesting little book. It definitely met the challenge requirement for realistic fiction. O'Nan quotes a poem at the beginning of the novel that ends with the line "All the vatos never in a poem" and that's what Manny is - a regular guy who would never normally be the subject of either poetry or fiction. He's just an ordinary guy trying to do his ordinary job while trying to keep his personal life out of it (hard to do when his ex is one of his waitresses). The story is particularly realistic for this year of economic crisis, given that the Red Lobster is closing down and most of the staff are losing their jobs.

The novel takes place over the course of one day, the last night at the Lobster before it closes and Manny and a handful of his staff have to go and work at an Olive Garden. Most of the staff have refused to come in because they're ticked off that Manny isn't taking them to the pasta joint and a bad snowstorm makes things even worse. But Manny is, in his own workaday world way, a hero - he tries to placate the feuding kitchen staff, he's kind to the boy with special needs who is, in many ways, his best employee, and he tries very hard to keep the walkways clear of snow, even though there are no customers. He gives the Lobster his full managerial best until the last moment, even though headquarters has barely spared a thought for his little family of mostly misfits.

The verdict: A quick read with some poetic moments. I think it would be a great read for anyone who has worked in a a restaurant, particularly as a manager.

Review: The Sealed Letter

The Sealed Letter by Emma Donoghue
4 stars

Description: "Miss Emily "Fido" Faithfull is a "woman of business" and a spinster pioneer in the British women’s movement, independent of mind but naively trusting of heart. Distracted from her cause by the sudden return of her once-dear friend, the unhappily wed Helen Codrington, Fido is swept up in the intimate details of Helen’s failing marriage and obsessive affair with a young army officer. What begins as a loyal effort to help a friend explodes into a courtroom drama that rivals the Clinton affair —complete with stained clothing, accusations of adultery, counterclaims of rape, and a mysterious letter that could destroy more than one life."

First line: "The last day of August, and the sky is the colour of hot ash."

My thoughts: Another winner from Donoghue! In fact, I enjoyed this one a bit more than her previous historical novel, Life Mask (which I also loved) because while I enjoy historical detail, Life Mask had a lot of information about the politics of the time, which was a bit much. I enjoyed the details about the popularization of divorce in England, as well as the early women's movement. As with Donoghue's other books, I loved that it was based on the lives of real people. While the Clinton thing didn't really register with me, it was quite fascinating the way the trial was sensationalized in the tabloids of the time, just like such cases are today.

Fido, oh Fido. While she mostly lived up to her name and tried to be a good friend, she was also very naive and gullible. Several times I said to her in my head, about Helen, "Don't trust her!" While her life went on with a fair bit of success (according to Donoghue's notes afterwards), it seemed like she was destined to be rather sad and alone.

The verdict: I think my favourite of Donoghue's historical novels is still her first, Slammerkin, but they've all been great and I look forward to the next historical person she tackles. I may even try some of her contemporary fiction, too.

Review: The Case of the Missing Books

The Case of the Missing Books by Ian Sansom
2.5 stars

Reasons for reading: spotted it at Barnes and Noble a while ago and thought it sounded perfect for me, with the whole librarian theme and all; Detective genre for the Genre Challenge

Synopsis: "Israel Armstrong is a passionate soul, lured to Ireland by the promise of an exciting new career. Alas, the job that awaits him is not quite what he had in mind. Still, Israel is not one to dwell on disappointment, as he prepares to drive a mobile library around a small, damp Irish town. After all, the scenery is lovely, the people are charming—but where are the books? The rolling library's 15,000 volumes have mysteriously gone missing, and it's up to Israel to discover who would steal them . . . and why. And perhaps, after that, he will tackle other bizarre and perplexing local mysteries—like, where does one go to find a proper cappuccino and a decent newspaper?"

My thoughts: This one just didn't do it for me and I'm sad about that because I wanted to love it. Like a lot of books I've read lately, the very ending redeemed it for me a fair bit, which bumped it up half a star. I think it could be a good book for lots of cozy mystery fans - there's no murder and it does have funny parts.

I think my problem was my librarian-ness. Israel, while amusing, is a loser. I wanted the librarian to be awesome. Apparently in England you can become a librarian after 6 months at a 5th-rate college, which is what Israel's qualifications are. Yet all that got him was a job in a discount bookshop. And then, the job of "librarian" in Tumdrum, Middle of Nowhere, Ireland. Except, they've closed the library down and Israel's actually going to be driving the bookmobile. If he can find the books, which are now solely his problem even though he's just arrived.

Maybe the humour was too broad for me - Israel's loserness, the complete stupidity of the town council's library representative - the fat, Asian, bureaucratic Linda (although there are a few great moments of PC-to-the-max pencil-pusher ridiculousness with her). And the fact that the whole town of Tumdrum is just mean to Israel - they refuse to help him even though they've asked him to come to their godforsaken town and he's basically penniless and doesn't understand the local culture or even the dialect, they act like it's his fault the library is closed and the books are missing, the only accommodation offered to him is a chicken coop owned by a surly farm family, and townspeople beat him up and threaten him. Perhaps this type of humour would've worked better as a TV show. It reminded me a bit of the Vicar of Dibley, though without as much charm.


I will say Sansom hit the nail on the head with his description of what a busy library usually looks like, when Israel discovers the building is closed up:

"No one was approaching with armfuls of books...there were no sour and pear-shaped OAPs; no straggle-haired young mums at their wits' end with smeary, miserable children dragging along for story time; no one clutching important-looking unimportant documents to be photocopied in triplicate...no wrinkled, stubbly, fragrant winos; no schoolkids half-heartedly working on projects about ancient civilizations or the Second World War or the processes of human digestion. No madmen. No one. None of them. The building was empty. The car park was deserted.

The library was shut."

It's funny that I chose this for my detective novel, because Israel doesn't actually solve the case of the missing books himself - all of his theories about who stole the books are completely wrong.

The verdict: Not my cup of tea, but it could be a good read for someone who likes cozy mysteries full of small-town eccentrics. It also might help if you don't base most of your identity on being a librarian, like I do. :-)

Review: The Book of Three

The Book of Three by Lloyd Alexander
3 stars

Reasons for reading: I've been meaning to because it's one of my husband's childhood faves; Daring Book Challenge and Fantasy for the Genre Challenge

Summary (from Kirkus UK): "Assistant pig-farmer, Taran craves adventure and longs to be a hero. So when magical pig, Hen Wen escapes, his desires turn to reality as he embarks upon a dangerous quest to find her. Set in the mystical country of Prydain, Taran must brave perilous lands, mysterious creatures and face the terrifying and evil Horned King. Along the way, a colourful cast of characters provide Taran with worldly wisdom and witty banter, while the "crunchings and munchings" of the adorable Gurgi will captivate everyone's hearts. Originally published in 1964, The Book of Three is the first in Alexander's fantasy series, The Chronicles of Prydain, and has won him numerous praise and awards, including the prestigious Newbery Medal. Combining traditional storytelling with the struggle of good versus evil, this is a fast-paced and entertaining fantasy adventure."

First line: "Taran wanted to make a sword; but Coll, charged with the practical side of his education, decided on horseshoes."

My thoughts: I'm not really a high fantasy girl, so at first I was a bit resistant to the medieval, pseudo-Welsh setting of Prydain. I did like that it was fast-paced and not many hundreds of pages long. But I soon came to like Taran, who wants to be a warrior and hero before he truly knows what those words mean, but does become both by the end of the book. And really, who can resist an "oracular pig"? Big, white, smiling Hen Wen the pig is a character herself. Wolfhound/humanoid thing Gurgi reminded me a lot of Gollum and I wouldn't describe him as adorable, but he eventually won me over. And chatty, chatty Eilonwy is both an irritating little girl and quite fab - I liked how she kept putting Assistant Pig-Keeper Taran in his place and ended up being much more important than she seemed at first.

Verdict: Not sure if I'll read the whole series, but I might some day. And I'm glad that I've read this fave of my husband's and that I can now recommend it to fantasy-seeking kids.

Genre Challenge

Samantha at Bookworms and Tea Lovers is hosting:

There are 12 basic genres and she wants us to get reading outside our comfort zones. It runs from November 1, 2008 - November 1, 2009 I'm going to do option A, which is "Read 10 books, drop the genre you read the most and one of your own choosing." I'm dropping horror because I'm a big wimp and I'd say that my beloved chick lit is basically romance, so I'll leave it out, too.

Here's my list (subject to change):

1. Crime - The Crime Writer by Gregg Hurwitz
2. Detective - The Case of the Missing Books by Ian Sansom
3. Mystery - And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie
4. Thriller - Vodka Neat by Anna Blundy
5. Science Fiction - A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle
6. Action/adventure - Casino Royale by Ian Fleming
7. Fantasy - The Book of Three by Lloyd Alexander
8. Realistic - Last Night at the Lobster by Stewart O'Nan
9. Historical - The Sealed Letter by Emma Donoghue
10. Western - The Chili Queen by Sandra Dallas