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About Dee

I'm one of those people that no matter how many books I have, I can't turn down a sale or a trip to the bookstore. There are no limits to what I'll read and I hope you enjoy my reviews.

Review – Dead Ringer – Allen Wyler

23 Nov

Dead Ringer
Author: Allen Wyler

Review Copy provided by Blue Dot Literary

Book Description:
While speaking at a Hong Kong medical conference, neurosurgeon Dr. Lucas McCrae slips the cloth off a cadaver’s head during a routine medical demonstration, and is overwhelmed with the shock by what’s staring back at him: His best friend, Andy Baer.
Stunned, McCrae races back to Seattle to discover that Andy is in fact missing and may have been murdered by a gang of body snatchers who operate a legit funeral business and make a fortune by selling recovered body parts to medical researchers.

McCrae teams up with an unlikely pair—a beautiful but hardnosed female cop and a gang member whose family was victimized by the body parts ring—to try and expose a macabre web of corruption that involves law enforcement, politicians, funeral home curators and murdered prostitutes.

Review
After reading a previous book by Allen Wyler (Dead End Deal), I was impressed by the medical technique and familiarity that he brought to the storyline. In Dead Ringer, he managed to do that once again. Reading the description of Dead Ringer, I was like, the name of the main character (Lucas McCrae) sounds familiar, and then I realized that his name had been used as a cameo in Dead End Deal – so I liked how the author was able to tie to two books together though similar characters, without making them a true series.

But this book was for me, so much freakier than Dead End Deal. I have been an organ donor since I got my license nearly 15 years ago, and while I had thought about how my organs might be used, should anything ever happen to me – the depravity of the antagonist opened my eyes. I had read/heard about bad market deals with organs, so it didn’t really surprise me that there were ones for dead bodies as well – but wow, that’s about all I can say. I think that the author managed to walk the fine line between being dramatic, and cheesy – although, there were a few moments where I was like, uhhh ok…and personally, I felt that everything tied up in a pretty bow almost too easy…but I’m sure others would disagree with me.

I’m definitely interested in seeing more of what he writes in the future. Overall 3.5 stars.

Purchase from Amazon here: Dead Ringer (Print) or Dead Ringer (Kindle)

 
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Posted by on November 23, 2012 in Book Review

 

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In Memoriam – Bryce Courtenay (1933-2012)

23 Nov

There aren’t a lot of authors who I would write this kind of post for, but Bryce Courtenay is one of them. I remember when I picked up the first book I ever read by him, back in grade eight – Tandia – set in South Africa where he grew up. After that I went through a period of reading, where I read pretty much all of the books that he had released up until that point in time. One of the most poignant was April Fool’s Day – which was the story of his son, Damon who died from medically-acquired AIDS after suffering from Haemophilia his entire life. I remember having a box of tissues sitting next to me as I bawled my way through it.

Earlier this year, Bryce announced that his soon to be released book, Jack of Diamonds would be his last because he had been diagnosed with terminal cancer. The book was published 2 weeks ago (November 12, 2012). Today while I was checking my facebook, I saw that his publisher, Penguin Australia, had published the notice of his death. He was 79 years old.

While his books have never been widely known in the US, in fact, the only book, I can find of his with regularity is The Power of One. I can only hope that with the growing popularity of ebooks and audiobooks that many readers will experience his writing in the years to come. It is going to be weird, knowing that I won’t have that new yearly released by him to anticipate for Christmas (since my mom has been oh so awesome at giving me his books for gifts over the years. While i have yet to read all of his books, those that are left, as well as re-reads will give me something to look forward to in the future.

RIP Bryce. I look forward to reading Jack of Diamonds when my copy arrives and will remember all your books with fond memories 🙂

 
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Posted by on November 23, 2012 in Musings

 

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Audiobook Review – Circle of Quilters – Jennifer Chiaverini (@jchiaverini)

19 Nov

Circle of Quilters
Author: Jennifer Chiaverini
Series: #9 in the Elm Creek Quilts series

Narrator: Christina Moore
Run Time: 10hrs and 12 minutes
Publisher: Recorded Books

Book Description:
Elm Creek Quilts, the thriving artists’ retreat at Elm Creek Manor, is a place that stakes its sterling reputation on the palpable creative energy and collective goodwill of its teachers and students. But when two of its founding members decide to leave the fold, the Elm Creek Quilters face untold changes not only in their personal lives but also in their business. As the news spreads, a single question emerges: Who can possibly take their place?

An Elm Creek Quilter must not only possess mastery of quilting technique but teaching experience, a sense of humor, and that intangible quality that allows an individual to blend harmoniously into a group. With high hopes, Elm Creek Quilts posts an open call for applicants.

Review
I’ll be the first to admit that learning to quilt is on my bucket list. I can already cross-stitch, crochet (to an extent – meaning that I am really good at making scarves) and other stuff like that, and while I have tried quilting in the past, I haven’t had the time to dedicate to it (as much as I would have loved). But i remember when I first came across the Elm Creek Quilts series – one of my good friends from college took up quilting (and is still doing it to this day) and for Christmas that first year (or maybe it was her birthday), I bought her the first two books in the series. And while I was at it, I bought myself the first book – and there is has languished in the TBR pile since. Then at the library one day, I saw the audiobook for one of the later books in the series (maybe book 5 or 6) and I grabbed it, thinking what the heck…I was soon hooked.

This entry into the series was slightly different from the rest, as it was told in a series of short-stories/flashbacks. The general theme was that the four people who featured predominantly through-out were being considered as staff as the quilting school. Through these flashbacks you see how they started quilting, what was their inspiration, and methods to their creativity in their own designs. However, the other characters that I have come to enjoy in the other books (Sylvia and the other quilters) also made an appearance.

For me, I think the narration by Christina Moore makes a good book all the better. I enjoy all the voices that she uses for the characters and having listened to 3 or 4 books now, she has been able to keep them consistent over the different installments. My only comment would be, that aside from this one, there are very few males who appear in the series, so i don’t necessarily have a good judge of her range with masculine voices – but what I did hear in this one, I am impressed and hope to hear more. I’m looking forward to finishing this series up next year (hopefully) and looking for more in the future. Overall 3.5 stars.

 
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Posted by on November 19, 2012 in Audiobook Review

 

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Review – My Bluegrass Baby – Molly Harper (@mollyharperauth)

18 Nov

My Bluegrass Baby
Author: Molly Harper

Review Copy provided by Pocket Star and Edelweiss

Description:
Sadie Hutchins loves her job at the Kentucky Tourism Commission. Not only could her co-workers double as the cast of Parks & Recreation, but she loves finding the unusual sites, hidden gems, and just-plain-odd tourist attractions of her home state. She’s a shoo-in for the director’s job when her boss retires at the end of the year…until hotshot Josh Vaughn shows up to challenge her for the position.

Josh is all sophisticated polish while Sadie’s country comfort, and the two have very different ideas of what makes a good campaign. So when their boss pits them against each other in a winner-takes-all contest, they’re both willing to fight dirty if it means getting what they want. But it turns out, what Josh and Sadie want could be each other—and Josh’s kisses are the best Kentucky attraction Sadie’s found yet!

Review
Three things, I had never considered prior to reading My Bluegrass Baby by the fantabulous Molly Harper – that I could claim programing my Tivo on my resume (I’m sure that parlays into something workplace related), the number of cartoon characters who run-around with no pants on (aka, the Pantless Pantheon) and Squirrel genitalia (as my friend Toni would say, its all about the nuts ; ) But when I reading Molly Harpers newest contemporary romance, all three of those things, plus many more were mentioned. There is just something quirky about the way she writes, that makes you feel right at home with the characters. I loved how she managed to work so many weird and wonderful facts about Kentucky in the book (but don’t worry, I’m not going to spoil the surprise for anyone, since you guys need to have a chance to read it). I do have to admit that I’m normally not a fan of workplace romance type books, it is just a trope that I normally don’t enjoy, but I think that Molly did a great job balancing the line between funny and the awkwardness that so often ensures in situations like that.

Anyways, i could probably amble on for hours about how much I enjoy Molly Harper’s work – but I won’t 😉 All I can say is that if you haven’t read (or listened) to any of her stuff yet, then you really need to. If you are looking for lite funny PNR or entertaining contemporary romance, she has something for you. After reading this, she has pretty much sealed her spot on my auto-buy/auto-listen list. Now I can start stalking her for new work. Overall, a solid 4 stars. Oh yeah, and I totally have a new saying, I’ve been known to comment on my lack of a brain mouth barrier, but I think atrophied verbal filter sounds soo much better!! (Thanks Molly!)

Thanks to Pocket Star for approving my review request and Edelweiss for providing the opportunity.

 
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Posted by on November 18, 2012 in Book Review

 

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Deja Vu Review (7) – An Author You Are Thankful For

18 Nov

The Deja Vu Review is a weekly meme hosted by Brittany at The Book Addicts Guide. Its an opportunity to revisit old books you might have read before you launched your blog, but that you think should maybe still be highlighted.

An Author You Are Thankful For

When I first saw this prompt on the Book Addicts Guide, I was like easy-peasy…and then I sat down to write the post and ummm, yeah, not so much…there are many authors that I like and admire because of all their writing, but thankful for is a bit harder…then it was like a lightbulb…the one author I am thankful for is LaVyrle Spencer – wayyy back in my teen years, she was my main introduction to romance (aside from a few Silhouette/Harlequin’s that I had read). I found a bunch of her books when I was snooping in my mom’s room one day (statute of limitations has expired now right?) – I then proceeded to devour all of her books.

Most people know her for Morning Glory – which is not related to the Rachel McAdams, Harrison Ford movie that came out a couple of years ago. But it was turned into a movie starring Christopher Reeve and Deborah Raffin (see more here). However, unlike most people this wasn’t my favorite book by her – I liked it, but didn’t love it.

At the same time, I am hard pressed to figure out which one of her books is my favorite – its a toss-up between Years featuring a mail-order bride right before WW1, Bitter Sweet about finding love, losing it and finding it again, That Camden Summer or The Gamble – each one holds a special place in my heart. It was a sad day when she announced her retirement from writing. I keep hoping, even now 15 years later, that she will release just one more book. I recently trolled ebay and bought a collection of her stuff that I had lost/misplaced over the years.

 
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Posted by on November 18, 2012 in Deja Vu Review

 

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Happy 201st Blog Post

17 Nov

When I launched my blog back in July of 2010 (the 5th to be exact), I never dreamed that I would a) stick with it long enough to make 200 posts, or b) have enough books that I felt needed reviews to be posted (because I honestly don’t review half of the stuff that I read)…

But here, I am, so happy 201st Blog Post day – I actually planned on doing one for my 200th post, but that just seemed to expected whereas a 201st, not so much (yes, I am that much of a dork!).

Now for the random blog facts (since I know you guys love them!)
5487 total views (and thanks for all you guys who keep coming back for bumping up my numbers!)
122 views on my busiest day (who would have thunk that a blog giving away prizes would have been the most popular…)

Top countries that have had viewers to my blog:
United States (well, duh, I live here)
Australia (Thanks Mom!)
UK
Canada
Philippines (ok, that was an interesting one…)

Random Countries that popped up:
Serbia
Bahrain
Ecudor
Iceland (thanks James!)
Angola

Most Popular Post:
Summer Blog Giveaway – Aug 1 (ironically, my most popular blog day…)

Most Popular Review:
The Ponds of Kalambyi from 28 October, 2011.

Most Popular Tag Used:
Audiobook (well, I am a self-admitted junkie), followed by 3.5 stars (guess I am also a picky reviewer 😉 )

But of course, no blogaversary would be complete without gifts 😉 So for all you guys out there, I’m offering up a $20 Amazon giftcard to a lucky commenter. All you have to do is comment and let me know which of my reviews, or other blog posts, you found the most interesting. Entries will close on November 30th.

 
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Posted by on November 17, 2012 in giveaway

 

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Audiobook Review – At Grave’s End – Jeaniene Frost

12 Nov

At Grave’s End
Author: Jeaniene Frost
Series: #3 in the Night Huntress series

Narrator: Tavia Gilbert
Run Time: 9hrs and 28 minutes

Book Description:
It should be the best time of half-vampire Cat Crawfield’s life. With her undead lover Bones at her side, she’s successfully protected mortals from the rogue undead. But though Cat’s worn disguise after disguise to keep her true identity a secret from the brazen bloodsuckers, her cover’s finally been blown, placing her in terrible danger.

As if that wasn’t enough, a woman from Bones’s past is determined to bury him once and for all. Caught in the crosshairs of a vengeful vamp, yet determined to help Bones stop a lethal magic from being unleashed, Cat’s about to learn the true meaning of bad blood. And the tricks she’s learned as a special agent won’t help her. She will need to fully embrace her vampire instincts in order to save herself—and Bones—from a fate worse than the grave.

Review
This is a hard book for me to review because my thoughts on the narration have completely taken over my thoughts on the book itself, and I am having a hard time separating the two. So I am going to break from my normal mode, and review the audiobook narration first and then hopefully touch on some of the book specific comments. Many of these audiobook comments can also be found on the Audible.com page for this audiobook. Having read the previous 2 books in the series on my kindle, I decided to try something different and listen to book 3 for a challenge. Going into it, I had heard varying opinions about the narration, specifically focused on the voice of Bones and after listening I would definately say that I fall into the negative. I have to wonder if my opinion would have been changed if I had listened to all of the books, but i don’t know.

Typically I like Tavia Gilbert’s narration, but something with this just didn’t work – I HATED Bones voice – he sounded like an Australian teen high on something – now admitedly based on the backstory, he did spend some time in Australia before he became a vampire and after, but he is also supposed to be British, so the voice just didn’t work for me. I imagine him more sounding like James Marsters who played Spike on Buffy way back when. My other, albiet small complaint, was about some of the word pronunciation. One of the main secondary characters is Don, but for the life of me every time I heard her say his name, is sounded like Dawn…and then on the one occurrence when Dawn is said, it sounded like Don…

But that being said, narration aside, I didn’t mind the book. Cat was a bit more whiny/clingy in this book than she had been in previous ones. She wasn’t as kick-ass as I was expecting her to be and oh the drama and the death. Without disclosing any spoilers, some serious shit went down in this book and it will be interesting to see how it plays out in later books. I can say that I will be reading the rest of them and not listening.

Overall, i’d give the narration only 2 stars, but the book itself 3.5-4. So adding them together about 3 stars over all. I do think that people who like UF should read this series if they haven’t started yet.

 
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Posted by on November 12, 2012 in Audiobook Review

 

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Review – A Thousand Lives – Julia Scheeres

10 Nov

A Thousand Lives: The Untold Story of Hope, Deception, and Survival at Jonestown
Author: Julia Scheeres

Book Description:
In 1954, a pastor named Jim Jones opened a church in Indianapolis called People’s Temple Full Gospel Church. He was a charismatic preacher with idealistic beliefs, and he quickly filled his pews with an audience eager to hear his sermons on social justice. After Jones moved his church to Northern California in 1965, he became a major player in Northern California politics; he provided vital support in electing friendly political candidates to office, and they in turn offered him a protective shield that kept stories of abuse and fraud out of the papers. Even as Jones’s behavior became erratic and his message more ominous, his followers found it increasingly difficult to pull away from the church. By the time Jones relocated the Peoples Temple a final time to a remote jungle in Guyana and the U.S. Government decided to investigate allegations of abuse and false imprisonment in Jonestown, it was too late.

Review:
I have often heard the term “drinking the koolaid” and have even said it a time or two, but until I finished this book, I didn’t know the originals of the saying. Not growing up or attending school in the United States means that things many people learned in their history classes, I am clueless about (and don’t even get my started on my lack of knowledge of politics)…but when I was listening to Ice Cold (Tess Gerritsen), the Jonestown cult and massacre was mentioned and I was intrigued. And funnily enough, I was talking to some coworkers at the same time I was reading this and one of them mentioned the phrase and I was then about to put two and two together to understand. I then found out about this book while I was trying to find a book set in Guyana for my Around the World reading challenge – so it was like hitting two birds with one stone.

I loved how the author was able to use various documents that had been released by the FBI to develop the picture of what happened – since there is very little eye-witness testimony and most of the people who did survive (not that there were many of them) have since died. I was actually surprised to see the amount of information that had been recovered from the camp after the massacre was discovered. I found that the author did a good job of weaving the tale to make it interesting, I wanted to know about what happened. It wasn’t like a normal NF book where I can read bits and pieces and be ok with stopped, in the end, I think I read this in about 3 days, which is significantly less time than most non-fiction books that I read. I will definately be looking for her other book to read and will be interested to see what more she writes in the future. 3.5 stars.

 
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Posted by on November 10, 2012 in Book Review

 

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Audiobook Review – Timeless – Gail Carriger

09 Nov

Timeless
Author: Gail Carriger
Series: #5 in the Parasol Protectorate

Narrator: Emily Gray
Run Time: 11hrs and 29 minutes
Producer: Hachette Audio

Book Description:
Alexia Tarabotti, Lady Maccon, has settled into domestic bliss. Of course, being Alexia, such bliss involves integrating werewolves into London High society, living in a vampire’s second best closet, and coping with a precocious toddler who is prone to turning supernatural willy-nilly. Even Ivy Tunstell’s acting troupe’s latest play, disastrous to say the least, cannot put a damper on Alexia’s enjoyment of her new London lifestyle.

Until, that is, she receives a summons from Alexandria that cannot be ignored. With husband, child, and Tunstells in tow, Alexia boards a steamer to cross the Mediterranean. But Egypt may hold more mysteries than even the indomitable Lady Maccon can handle. What does the vampire Queen of the Alexandria Hive really want from her? Why is the God-Breaker Plague suddenly expanding? And how has Ivy Tunstell suddenly become the most popular actress in all the British Empire?

Review
This has to probably be one of my favorite series that I had read/listened to in the recent past. I loved all 5 books and while various ones had their ups and downs, like can be expected in a series, overall, they were well worth my time. I can’t wait to see how the spin-off series featuring Alexia’s daughter is going to turn out, as well as the other series pending that is set in the same world, but 20-ish years prior. But I digress. Timeless picks up 2+ years after the end of Heartless – but not much has changed in the world. There are still vampires and werewolves roaming loose in London, but Alexia isn’t just having to cope with that, she also now has a toddler to chase after. Adding a twist to this installment, Alexia travels abroad to Egypt (and all that entails). I really want to say more, but it could easily turn spoilish and I don’t want to ruin this series for anyone.

As I was listening to Emily Gray’s narration, I realized that sometimes, it felt like the author had just reached into a hat filled with various sounds and pulled several out to make names of some of the characters. I also loved Lord Ackeldama – he has been one of my favorite characters through-out the whole series and I can’t wait to see the influence that he has had on characters in the later books. I have to admit to being a bit disappointed by the Biffy/Professor Lyall scenario – I don’t think that it really added anything to the book overall – but maybe it will be needed in the future.

Emily Gray’s narration for all 5 books was spot on – I felt that she managed to capture the British accents perfectly and I felt like I was there. Her narration of Lord Maccon was great and well, Lord Ackeldama…all I could do was laugh because it was perfect. I highly recommend her for future narrations and will be looking out for her when I pick audiobooks in the future. Overall, 4 stars and a high recommendation

 
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Posted by on November 9, 2012 in Audiobook Review

 

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Classics Challenge – A Tree Grows in Brooklyn – Betty Smith

08 Nov

A Tree Grows in Brooklyn
Author: Betty Smith
Classics Challenge Sub-topic: Coming of Age

Book Description:
The story of young, sensitive, and idealistic Francie Nolan and her bittersweet formative years in the slums of Williamsburg has enchanted and inspired millions of readers for more than sixty years. By turns overwhelming, sublime, heartbreaking, and uplifting, the daily experiences of the unforgettable Nolans are raw with honesty and tenderly threaded with family connectedness — in a work of literary art that brilliantly captures a unique time and place as well as incredibly rich moments of universal experience.

Review:
I probably never would have put this book on my challenge to read list if it hadn’t shown up as a group read in one of my various goodreads groups. But now that I have read it, I can’t believe that I hadn’t before. And come to think of it, I don’t recall even really hearing about it – although apparently it is still used on school reading lists. (My library has all the reading list books separated from the standard YA, so they are easy to find).

A Tree Grows in Brooklyn is such a simple tale – the story of Francie growing up in Williamsburg, a part of New York (although every time I see that town name, I think of Williamsburg, VA). She goes through the same trials that most kids do – going to school, dealing with boys, first love, but on top of all that, an alcoholic father and being exceptionally poor. I loved seeing her mother (who some reviews describe as being cruel, although I don’t agree) teaching Francie and her brother about the value of money and saving towards a goal (with the tin cup that they nailed in the cupboard at each house they moved to). Or the love of learning that she inspired in them, through Shakespeare and the bible.

Even now, over 60 years since it was originally written, I can see how kids can relate to the going-ons. Not necessarily the time period specific, but the general themes of growing up and finding your place in the world. Being the sucker that I am for happy endings, I wonder what would happen if a sequel was ever written – What did Francie end up doing with her life – Did she finish going to college? Did she get over her first love and subsequent first heartbreak? But at the same time, I don’t want to know because I can imagine various different endings all I want and a sequel would change that.

This is a book that I would recommend to pretty much anyone, but I do think that teenage girls would enjoy it the most because of the themes and the characters.

 
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Posted by on November 8, 2012 in classics challenge

 

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