2-20-10 Pulse by Jeremy Robinson - Fiction

5 - Robinson's thrillers get better and better! This one is like Jurassic Park with an elite commando team steeped in Greek mythology. Fantastic! Robinson builds the story on the mythology of Hercules and a genetics company's founder's quest for immortality. Throw in the elite Delta team and you have a great military technothriller. One of the best things about Robinson's books is that they are meticulously researched but he presents the information in such an entertaining way that you almost absorb the factual knowledge by osmosis. No dry and boring recitations here! A winning thriller. I cannot recommend strongly enough that you add this author to your go to list with Cussler, Follett, and Morrell.

2-16-10 Living Dead in Dallas by Charlaine Harris - Fiction

5 - Yeah, these books are really addicting. Sookie is put out on loan by Eric to a nest in Dallas because of her special abilities. So a whole new bunch of vampires are introduced. And so is the Fellowship of the Sun which, I am sure, will figure into future books. You know you have to have religious fanatics to balance out all the "fictional" monsters roaming around. I am hooked.

2-15-10 The Chardonnay Charade by Ellen Crosby - Fiction

4 - Now that I'm reading this series in order, I'm picking up a lot more about the characters. And I like it. These are well written mysteries even if you do have to wonder about the luck of Lucie since she keeps having dead bodies show up on her winery grounds. And the wine information that Crosby includes is really educational but not in a documentary sort of way. Definitely a well researched topic. In this book Lucie has not only the murder, but the difficulty of trying to keep her grapes from freezing when a late cold snap threatens the year's harvest. I already have the next book in the series lined up to read and I hope someone out there tries these books and enjoys them as much as I do.

2-13-10 Confidence Game by Michelle M. Welch - Fiction

2 - Mediocre. That's the best way to sum this one up. Too much politics without any depth or real background, shallow emotion, whiny emotionlessness. The characters are flat with no emotional hook for the reader. The politics of the world are laid flat like a map with no interest from any history and no explanation of true governmental structure. About halfway through the book I just wanted it to be over so I could start something else. There's barely a plot and I'm not sure even after finishing it if I guessed the right plot. I'd not bother with this one unless you have nothing else to read.

2-9-10 The Mangler of Malibu Canyon by Jennifer Colt - Fiction

4 - As if you can't tell by the title, this is a goofy mystery. Which made it a fun, light read for me. The main characters are twin sisters Kerry and Terry McAfee who are private investigators and ride a hot pink Harley. This is actually the second book featuring the McAfee sisters but I don't feel I've missed too much by reading out of order (again!). The story is simple: a body has been found sans head in their great aunt's Malibu beach house and, in a fit of maternal instinct, their aunt confesses to the murder when her son, Robert, walks into the house, when it's full of police, carrying the missing head. Of course, in a bid to save his mother, Robert also confesses to the murder. It's up to the twins to find the real killer before their insane relatives are imprisoned for a murder they didn't commit.

2-6-10 The Unseen by Alexandra Sokoloff - Fiction

4 - This is a slow creeper. It draws you in with an interesting premise and suddenly it's two in the morning, you look up from the book and decide it's a perfectly logical idea to turn on every light in the house and check all the doors and windows. The storyline is based on the efforts of the Rhine lab, the parapsychology lab based at Duke University in the fifties and sixties. Sokoloff has created a story that ratchets up the suspense and anxiety in time with the main character resulting in a slow building terror and a satisfying read.

2-1-10 The Good, the Bad, and the Uncanny by Simon R. Green – Fiction

5 – What truly makes this entry in the Nightside series entertaining is the time John Taylor spends with Ms. Fate, the cross-dressing super heroine.  Green’s descriptions are so simple yet so complete I challenge you not to snicker.  He has found a great balance between appalling and amusing.  So you’ll laugh but not really feel guilty about finding the humor.  The real draw of this series is that the rule of the Nightside is there are no rules.  Anything, and I mean anything, can happen.  Angels and Demons battling it out?  Check.  Gods walking through the streets?  Check.  Liquors with the names Valhalla Venom and Angel Piss that aren’t false advertising?  Check.  And as your guide, John Taylor, Lilith’s son.  Yes, that Lilith.  You gotta love the Nightside.