Book Review: Murder on Cape Cod

Book: Murder on Cape Cod (A Cozy Capers Book Group Mystery book #1) by Maddie Day

Edition: Paperback

Description:

A Cape Cod shop owner and her book club must find a crafty killer in this charming new series from the Agatha-nominated author of the Country Store Mystery series.

Summer is busy season for Mackenzie “Mac” Almeida’s bicycle shop, nestled in the quaint, seaside hamlet of Westham, Massachusetts. She’s expecting an influx of tourists at Mac’s Bikes; instead she discovers the body of Jake Lacey. Mac can’t imagine anyone stabbing the down-on-his-luck handyman. However, the authorities seem to think Mac is a strong suspect after she was spotted arguing with Jake just hours before his death. Mac knows she didn’t do it, but she does recognize the weapon—her brother Derrick’s fishing knife.

Mac’s only experience with murder investigations is limited to the cozy mysteries she reads with her local book group, the Cozy Capers. So to clear her name—and maybe her brother’s too—Mac will have to summon help from her Cozy Capers co-investigators and a library’s worth of detectives’ tips and tricks. For a small town, Westham is teeming with possible killers, and this is one mystery where Mac is hoping for anything but a surprise ending…

Book Review: Congo

Book: Congo by Michael Crichton

Edition: Paperback

Description:

Deep in the African rain forest, near the legendary ruins of the Lost City of Zinj, an expedition of eight American geologists is mysteriously and brutally killed in a matter of minutes.

Ten thousand miles away, Karen Ross, the Congo Project Supervisor, watches a gruesome video transmission of the aftermath: a camp destroyed, tents crushed and torn, equipment scattered in the mud alongside dead bodies — all motionless except for one moving image — a grainy, dark, man-shaped blur.

In San Francisco, primatologist Peter Elliot works with Amy, a gorilla with an extraordinary vocabulary of 620 “signs,” the most ever learned by a primate, and she likes to fingerpaint. But recently, her behavior has been erratic and her drawings match, with stunning accuracy, the brittle pages of a Portuguese print dating back to 1642 . . . a drawing of an ancient lost city. A new expedition — along with Amy — is sent into the Congo where they enter a secret world, and the only way out may be through a horrifying death…

Book Review for Tackle Your TBR Read-a-Thon book #6: Batman Returns

Book: Batman Returns by Craig Shaw Gardner

Edition: Paperback

Description:

Batman versus the criminal element. In Gotham City, evil never sleep not even for Christmas.

Today, a new danger is born—in the guise of a villainous figure with an umbrella full of savage tricks. He's the Penguin and he's out to take over the city. And he has an ally, she's sinuous and mysterious. And she's got nine ways of evading death. She's Catwoman. This time, Batman faces the showdown of his life.

Book Review: Guidebook to Murder

Book: Guidebook to Murder (A Tourist Trap Mystery book #1) by Lynn Cahoon

Edition: Digital

Description:

In the gentle coastal town of South Cove, California, all Jill Gardner wants is to keep her store--Coffee, Books, and More--open and running. So why is she caught up in the business of murder?

When Jill's elderly friend, Miss Emily, calls in a fit of pique, she already knows the city council is trying to force Emily to sell her dilapidated old house. But Emily's gumption goes for naught when she dies unexpectedly and leaves the house to Jill--along with all of her problems. . .and her enemies. Convinced her friend was murdered, Jill is finding the list of suspects longer than the list of repairs needed on the house. But Jill is determined to uncover the culprit--especially if it gets her closer to South Cove's finest, Detective Greg King. Problem is, the killer knows she's on the case--and is determined to close the book on Jill permanently. . .

Book Review for The Book Girl's Book Club for October: Wicked

Book: Wicked by Joanne Fluke

Edition: Paperback

Description:

A Killer Rivalry. . .

When Eve Carrington is chosen to participate in an exclusive writers workshop, she knows it's a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. For one month, she will live, write, and share her work with nine other aspiring authors. The top three will get a chance to be published. But when the building they're staying in isn't ready and Eve sees the old mansion they'll be moved into, she starts having second thoughts. Not only is the mansion isolated but the deadlines are tight, the pressure intense, and the competition incredibly fierce. Her biggest rival, Angela, is writing a murder mystery based on the workshop and its participants. It's a brilliant idea. Until life begins to imitate art -- and death begins to knock out the competition . . .

Book Review for The Book Girl's Book Club for May: Eat, Pray, Love

Book: Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert

Cover Design by Helen Yentus
Photography by John Saponara

Edition: Paperback

Description:

In her early thirties, Elizabeth Gilbert had everything a modern American woman was supposed to want—husband, country home, successful career—but instead of feeling happy and fulfilled, she felt consumed by panic and confusion. This wise and rapturous book is the story of how she left behind all these outward marks of success, and of what she found in their place. Following a divorce and a crushing depression, Gilbert set out to examine three different aspects of her nature, set against the backdrop of three different cultures: pleasure in Italy, devotion in India, and on the Indonesian island of Bali, a balance between worldly enjoyment and divine transcendence.

Book Review: Nancy Drew: Mystery of Crocodile Island

Book: Mystery of Crocodile Island (Nancy Drew book #55) by Carolyn Keene

Edition: Hardcover

Description:

In a response to a friend’s call for help, Nancy’s father, Carson Drew, asks her to travel to mysterious Crocodile Island with her friends Bess and George to study the reptiles and try to uncover a group of suspected poachers.

Book Review: Teen Wolf issue #3

Book: Teen Wolf issue #3 by David Tischman with illustration by Stephen Mooney, color by Adam Chong and letters by Ed Dukeshire

Cover by Joe Corroney

Edition: Digital

Description:

PARTY! Scott goes on the offensive, attacking Allison's father and the Hunters in a last-ditch attempt to get the serum that will enable him to return to human form. And he better do it quick. Lydia's party is in two hours and Allison's laid down an ultimatum--if he doesn't show up, their relationship is over.

Jackson gets off on watching Scott's life crumble, but nothing motivates a teen-age Werewolf like a hot girl threatening to break up with him. Can a last-minute assist from Derek and Stiles help save the day? Scott deals with the idea that he may never be human again, as the first comic book story based on MTV's new hit series concludes!

Book Review: Teen Wolf issue #2

Book: Teen Wolf issue #2 by David Tischman with illustration by Stephen Mooney, color by Adam Chong and letters by Ed Dukeshire

Cover by Joe Corroney

Edition: Digital

Description:

Scott is on the run as he tries to deal with life as a full-time Werewolf. His Mom, school, Allison, the team--the excuses are piling up and everyone wants to know what's wrong. Adding to the drama, Scott's arch-rival Jackson is using Scott's disappearance to try and poison Allison against him. It's up to Stiles to discover the truth: a bio-engineered virus is causing Scott's condition. But who's behind the attack? And is there an antidote? Derek Hale may have the answer.

Book Review: Baggage Claim

Book: Baggage Claim by David E. Talbert

Edition: Paperback

Description:

SHE'S GOT THIRTY DAYS AND THIRTY THOUSAND MILES TO FIND A HUSBAND.

According to the women in Montana Moore's family, you're not a lady until you marry and not a woman until you have birthed at least two children. At age thirty-five, Montana is neither and her prospects are meager. Her mother is working on husband number five, and her baby sister, Sheree, has just announced her engagement to a promising future doctor. Pledging to keep herself from being the oldest and the only women in her entire family never to wed, Montana embarks on a thirty-day, thirty-thousand-mile expedition to charm a potential suitor into becoming her fiance.

Who will she choose? Damon Diesel, a P. Diddy wannabe; Reverend Curtis P. Merewether, pastor of Greater House of Deliverance, Tabernacle of Praise, Worship, and Miracles; pompous attorney-turned-councilman Langston Jefferson Battle III; or Quinton Jamison, a multimillionaire who's twenty years her senior?

Book Review: Not a Girl Detective

Book: Not a Girl Detective (A Cece Caruso Mystery book #2) by Susan Kandel

Edition: Paperback

Description:

Besides her beloved collection of vintage designer clothing, there is nothing Cece Caruso cherishes more than her childhood memories of Nancy Drew. Her near obsession with the fictional teenage sleuth led her to become a professional biographer of classic mystery writers. And now that she's working on a book about Nancy's pseudonymous creator, "Carolyn Keene", Cece's in heaven.

At the L.A. home of another rabid Drew-ophile, Cece finds a treasure trove of useful memorabilia, including one unique and somewhat shocking collectible. Later she finds a dead body -- and a puzzle that would sorely test the sills of her spunky girlhood heroine. Now she'll have to channel her former idol and unmask a murderer, and the killer may be coming for Cece next.

Book Review: Nancy Drew: Mystery of the Brass-Bound Trunk

Book: Nancy Drew: Mystery of the Brass-Bound Trunk (Nancy Drew book #17) by Carolyn Keene

Edition: Hardcover

Description:

A brass-bound trunk mistakenly delivered to Nancy's cabin on a New York-bound ocean liner becomes the first clue leading her to suspect that international jewel thieves are aboard.

Book Review: Worlds' Finest vol #2 (New 52)

Book: Worlds' Finest volume #2: Hunt and Be Hunted (issues #6-12) by Paul Levitz

Cover Art by Ryan Sook

Illustrations and Ink by Kevin Maguire, George Perez, Sandra Hope Cafu, Cliff Richards, Yildiray Cinar, Phil Jimenez, Ken Lashley, Barry Kitson, Robson Rocha, Wayne Faucher, Geraldo Borges and JP Mayer

Color by Rosemary Cheetham, Hi-Fi and Matt Yackey

Letters by Carlos M. Mangual and Dezi Sienty

Edition: Trade Paperback

Book Review: Star Wars: The Crystal Star

Book: Star Wars: The Crystal Star by Vonda N. McIntyre

Edition: Paperback

Rating: 3 stars

Review:

Star Wars books are generally hit or miss for me with The Crystal Star falling somewhere right in the middle.

It was told in three rotating yet eventually connecting plots. The story opens with Leia dealing with the realization that her three children, five year old twins Jaina and Jacen and their three year old brother Anakin, had been kidnapped while she had been visiting the small planet Munto Codru. In the process of the kidnapping, Chewbacca had been injured but what hindered Leia's start in looking for her children was that the officials had believed the abduction was a simple yet standard kidnapping with nothing that she should have to worry about, according to officials the children will be returned as soon as the abductors issue a ransom. This is something that happens on this planet fairly often. However, instead of trusting her instincts that something was wrong and this wasn't a typical Munto Codru abduction, she actually listened to the officials and continued her dignitary duties.

Leia was so out of character in this book was beyond laughable. It was as if the writer didn't know anything about Leia which is why I figured her personality was so off. The Leia in this book second guessed herself a lot throughout the story and had a lot of misplaced anger which she initially directed at Chewbacca for not stopping her children's kidnapping. Leia is good is high pressure situations and should not have been painted as unsure or hysterical when she should have taken charge of the situation. If it wasn't for R2-D2 (with assistance from Chewbacca) sort of tricking her to get her aboard her ship, Leia probably would have never left to go in search of her children.

As to where the children were, it was indeed the worse place for them to be in. They had been taken by Hethrir, a former Imperial officer who had plans to restore the fallen Empire. They soon realized they were not the only children that had been taken. Their circumstance immediately became one of cruelty as Hethrir's command was law. Despite Jaina and Jacen dealing with a bleak and depressing world they now lived in, they remained defiant refusing to give in to their current situation. Unlike the other children who were already browbeaten into submission.

Meanwhile, Han, Luke and C-3PO traveled to the Crseih Research Station to investigate a report of lost Jedi. However, meeting their contact Xaverri, who turned out to be an old friend of Han's, the reports were not about lost Jedi but something more disturbing. There is a powerful being named Waru who has amassed a following for his healing abilities.

Luke was also out of character but not as bad as Leia was. I know this is an older book (it was published in 1995 and is no longer considered part of continuity) but there were elements of Luke that were right on point and feel like you're seeing the natural progression to who he eventually becomes in the current Disney owned Star Wars universe.

This wasn't bad but it had a slow start and the ending felt rushed. A lot of time and pages were wasted drawing out all three plots before they merged into one story. A good editor could have reduced this 413 page story by getting rid of some of the redundancy and slow moving scenes. Leia's characterization was by far the worse but it didn't ruin some of the interesting points of the story.

Book Review: The Little Paris Bookshop

Book: The Little Paris Bookshop by Nina George with translations by Simon Pare

Edition: Paperback

Rating: 3 stars

Review:

The Little Paris Bookshop was an interesting read as it follows Jean Perdu who owns a very unique bookstore that's on a ship. Although he enjoys prescribing just the right books for his customers he can't seem to help himself. Because for 20 years, Perdu has put his life on hold, he's nothing more than a ghost haunting his own life. He doesn't seem to be able to move on after his girlfriend Manon had suddenly left him. He didn't even read the letter she had left him.

It wasn't until a new neighbor, Catherine, who was dealing with her own romantic difficulties as a soon to be divorcee, moved into his apartment building did he finally read the letter. For 20 years, he had avoided reading the letter in fear of what it may contain and what new heartbreak it would unleash. However, what the letter contained set Perdu off on an impromptu adventure where he set sail with his ship of books in hopes of dealing with so many warring emotions and thoughts. He was surprisingly accompanied by a writer, Max Jordan who was trying to escape the pressures of writing his next book.

Along the way they meet many fun, strange, weird and interesting people but at the heart of this book is dealing with grief and the realization that life is equally hard and worth living to its fullest. There is a lot of soul searching not only for Perdu but for many of the characters. There were so many unspoken feelings, desires and hopes as the characters seemed to have managed to go through life not really living it. It took some time but after a break-through Perdu had finally started to rekindle the joy of living and finding a new love.

This was good and it had some very beautifully description writing but there were times when the story dragged quite a bit and was very slow and boring. At one point, I had almost decided to stop reading it because it was moving so slow but I'm glad I finished it. There is a good story here but it does take a while for it to really build up and take form.

Book Review: Scooby-Doo! Where Are You? issue #36

Book: Scooby-Doo! Where Are You? issue #36

Cover by Fabio Laguna with Jason Lewis


Edition: Single Print Issue

Description:

Terry the Terror is terrorizing the pit crew at the big races! Will Scooby and the gang figure out what this monstrous apparition wants…or will their day at the races end in disaster?

Book Review: Bridget Jones's Diary

Book: Bridget Jones's Diary (Bridget Jones book #1) by Helen Fielding

Edition: Hardcover

Rating: 3 stars

Review:

Told in journal entries, this follows a year of Bridget Jones' life which turned out to be a mess as well as everyone that's in it.

At the start of the book, Bridget who was still enjoying the holiday season, attended a New Year's day party where she met a peculiar Mark Darcy who was wearing an ugly diamond pattern sweater. Despite everything Bridget's mother and her mother's friend tried to do to get Bridget and Mark together, nothing resulted in their efforts. At the time Bridget really wasn't that interested in Mark because for some reason she had a huge crush on her boss Daniel Cleaver.

Bridget works in publishing but in a dead-in job that only seemed remotely tolerable for her because of Daniel. In between the flirting and secret dating, Bridget learned rather quickly how much of a slimy jerk, Daniel really was. However, that still didn't stop Bridget from liking him.

In the midst of her romance and life drama, Bridget's parents and her friends were also dealing with some issues of their own. Drama really should be Bridget's middle name because her life seems to revolve around it. From her dismal dating life to her constant mistakes at her new job as a television reporter, nothing ever quite seems to work out for her.

This was funny but there were parts of the story that were boring, dragged on longer than they should have or were simply ridiculous especially the scenes that center around Bridget's mother. So much time was wasted on Bridget dealing with Daniel. Even when they first started flirting you could tell that he was a total creep but some how she didn't see it.

Bridget's life maybe miserable but at least her friends were there for the most part to wallow in misery with her. I wish there had been more scenes with Bridget and Mark Darcy, but a few misunderstandings seemed to put a damper on thing between them initially but things did eventually work out between them.

I think I prefer the movie version over the book version of Bridget because in the movie she had a more proactive, take charge approach to life. She wanted to make a change in her life and set about doing it. While in the book, she sort of coast along as thing happen in her life, not really making any effort to make changes to improve her life or go after what she wants.

This is one of those rare instances where although the book was a relatively fun read the movie was so much better. The movie did a great job of capturing a Bridget who is slightly neurotic yet witty while also building up the romance between her and Mark.

Bridget Jones's Diary wasn't a bad read but if I had to chose between the book and the movie I would most definitely choose the movie.

Book Review: Bat-Mite

Book: Bat-Mite (issues #1-6) by Dan Jurgens, illustrations and ink by Corin Howell, ink by Corin Howell and Andres Ponce (issue #1), color by Mike Atiyeh and letters by Tom Napolitano

Edition: Single Print Issues

Rating: 3 1/2 stars

Review:

This was a fun little adventure as this miniseries follows Bat-Mite an exuberant exiled fifth dimensional imp. He tries his best to help but a majority of his attempts cause nothing but tremendous amounts of trouble. Surprisingly, his help although mostly unwanted does occasionally work out in the end.

Some of the heroes he "helped" were Batman, Hawkman, Robin (Damian Wayne), the Inferior Five and Booster Gold. Bat-Mite even found himself constantly battling a villain called Gridlock who was set on trying to stop progress. In between offering magical assistance and fighting Gridlock, he found himself living with two very reluctant roommates, who of course, he caused nothing but trouble for.

I love finding comic books that are fun, zany and a little crazy because it's not something I find a lot of. However, there have been a lot more of them lately because I believe publisher, writers, etc. are realizing that not everyone is looking for comics that are dark and sometimes dreary.

Bat-Mite is an annoying character and probably will always be but unlike his counterpart Mr. Mxyzptlk he is not malicious and does everything with the best intentions. However things tend to go side ways and never quite go to plan.

Book Review: A Wrinkle in Time

Book: A Wrinkle in Time (A Wrinkle in Time book #1) by Madeleine L'Engle

Edition: Paperback

Rating: 3 stars

Review:

A Wrinkle in Time follows Margaret "Meg" Murry who along with her little brother Charles Wallace and their new friend Calvin O'Keefe go on a rescue attempt to save Meg and Charles Wallace's father, Mr. Murry. Mr. Murry, a scientist who had been working on a special project, had been gone for so long that people in town had started to make little remarks and spread rumors as to why he left. Which irritated and angered Meg a great deal.

To make things worse, there had not been a hint as to where Mr. Murry was especially since all communication stopped between him and Meg and Charles Wallace's mother who was also a scientist. It wasn't until Charles Wallace's new friends Mrs. Who, Mrs. Whatsit and Mrs. Which, who are indeed a strange and unusual group of ladies, took them on an unexpected adventure to find Mr. Murry.

The Mrs. W's took them to distant planets as a way to prepare them for the challenge of finding Mr. Murry and to make them understand about an encroaching evil growing across the universe. After making their way to the planet Camazotz where Mr. Murry was at, the kids were on their own since the Mrs. W's could go no further.

The three kids soon had to figure out how to find Mr. Murry and to not get affected by the evil that has taken over the planet.

I've never been at a loss for words to describe a book until I read A Wrinkle in Time. This is a strange and weird little book but it did hold my interest. One of the main problems I had with this book was that there was a lot of vagueness in this. From the character description which lacked in a lot of ways to the overall story itself which at times made it hard to get a good understanding of where it was going. I was also disappointed that the story moved on so quickly from things that were introduced as well as not really expanding on it nor being more descriptive.

This was a decent read perhaps not something I would rush to read again. I felt like some of the story was a little unimaginative and cliché as it focused on the theme of good vs evil with a bit of sci-fi tossed in. However, there were things that I enjoyed such as Meg who was smart, feisty and headstrong but she does have her fault of being very petulant at times. Charles Wallace was an interesting character, he was smart and for a little kid he had an old soul. The author did a good job with the creepiness of conformity on Camazotz but there was still this vagueness that plagued the story.

Although the book wasn't necessarily my favorite, I am still interested in wanting to see the movie. I want to see what aspects of the book made it into the film as well as any changes. I'm not sure I will continue on with the series but I am glad I finally read the first book.

Book Review: Armed and Glamorous

Book: Armed and Glamorous (Crime of Fashion book #6) by Ellen Byerrum

Edition: Paperback

Rating: 3 stars

Review:

Armed and Glamorous follows Lacey Smithsonian, a fashion reporter for the Washington, D.C. newspaper The Eye. She was taking a P.I. class in Falls Church, Virginia in hopes that having a P.I. license will help in her quest to do more than write the fashion column for the paper. She's a reporter and wants to tackle more hard hitting news. Although, she does have a strange knack for unfortunately finding dead bodies and getting involved in intriguing mysteries, that has not helped her crossover to writing non-fashion news.

Taking the class should have been an interesting experience but she wasn't in class a full day before the body of Washington, D.C. socialite Cecily Ashton was found in a car in the parking lot. Why had Cecily even been there to begin with? Did it have anything to do with Lacey's upcoming story about her? Was it possible that one of the students or even the teacher could have killed her? Could it be someone else altogether such as Cecily's ex-husband Philip Clark Ashton or jewel recovery expert Nigel Griffin?

Lacey's unofficial investigation turned up a lot of clues and a lot of suspects. Unfortunately, for the reader it's way too easy to figure out who the killer is and the motivation behind everything feels so stale and predictable.

I enjoyed reading this until it neared the end where I was disappointed with the way the reveal unfolded. It was so farfetched and downright ridiculous, I would love to say more about it but I don't want to spoil it for anyone who would like to read it. I was also disappointed that as a fashion mystery book there wasn't as much fashion in the book as you would think.

Although this is the sixth book in the series, this is the first book I have read from it. I do like that it's written in a way that makes it easy to follow along while giving you all the information you need about the characters, in case you're reading the books at random.

Despite my disappointment with how easy it was to figure out and the predictability in some parts of it, I am still interested enough to read more books in the series.