Call the Midwife: Shadows of the Workhouse by Jennifer Worth

First sentence:

"Nonnatus House was both a convent and the working base for the nursing and midwifery services of the Sisters of St Raymund Nonnatus."

Description:

When twenty-two-year-old Jennifer Worth, from a comfortable middle-class upbringing, went to work as a midwife in the direst section of postwar London, she not only delivered hundreds of babies and touched many lives, she also became the neighborhood's most vivid chronicler. Woven into the ongoing tales of her life in the East End are the true stories of the people Worth met who grew up in the dreaded workhouse, a Dickensian institution that limped on into the middle of the twentieth century.

Orphaned brother and sister Peggy and Frank lived in the workhouse until Frank got free and returned to rescue his sister. Bubbly Jane's spirit was broken by the cruelty of the workhouse master until she found kindness and romance years later at Nonnatus House. Mr. Collett, a Boer War veteran, lost his family in the two world wars and died in the workhouse.

Though these are stories of unimaginable hardship, what shines through each is the resilience of the human spirit and the strength, courage, and humor of people determined to build a future for themselves against the odds. This is an enduring work of literary nonfiction, at once a warmhearted coming-of-age story and a startling look at people's lives in the poorest section of postwar London." -- from the back cover

My thoughts:

I liked the second book in the Midwife Trilogy series. I especially liked how Jennifer learned to look past the conditions to engage with the people directly. I'm looking forward to reading the third book, Farewell to the East End.

Date read: 4/3/2015
Book #: 6
Series: Call the Midwife #2
Rating: 3*/5 = good
Genre: Memoir/History

ISBN-10: 0062270044
ISBN-13: 9780062270047
Publisher: HarperCollins
Year: 2005
# of pages: 293
Binding: Trade Paperback
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Call the Midwife by Jennifer Worth

First sentence:

"Nonnatus House was situated in the heart of the London Docklands."

Description:

"At the age of twenty-two, Jennifer Worth leaves her comfortable home to move into a convent and become a midwife in postwar London's East End slums. The colorful characters she meets while delivering babies...from the plucky warmhearted nuns with whom she lives, to the woman with twenty-four children, to the prostitutes and dockers of the city's seedier side...illuminate a fascinating time in history." -- LibraryThing.com member description

My thoughts:

I enjoyed this memoir about working as a midwife in the East End of London in the 1950s. Worth's description of the people she met and worked with brought the period to life. I look forward to reading the next book in the series, Call the Midwife: Shadows of the Workhouse.

Date read: 3/15/2015
Book # 4
Series: Midwife Trilogy, #1
Rating: 3*/5 = good
Genre: Memoir/History

ISBN-10: 0143123254
ISBN-13: 9780143123255
Publisher: Penguin
Year: 2012
# of pages: 352
Binding: Trade Paperback
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The Bradbury Chronicles: The Life of Ray Bradbury by Sam Weller

First sentence:

"I remember the day I was born."

Description:

"Accomplished journalist Sam Weller met the Ray Bradbury while writing a cover story for the Chicago Tribune Magazine and spent hundreds of hours interviewing Bradbury, his editors, family members, and longtime friends. With unprecedented access to private archives, he uncovered never–before–published letters, documents, and photographs that help tell the story of this literary genius and his remarkable creative journey. The result is a richly textured, detailed biography that illuminates the origins and accomplishments of Bradbury's fascinating mind." -- Amazon.com

My thoughts:

I enjoyed this extensive biography of Ray Bradbury as I not only learned about his life, I also learned how his short stories and books were born.

Date read: 2/14/2015
Book #: 1
Rating: 3*/5 = good
Genre: Biography

ISBN-10: 0060545844
ISBN-13: 9780060545840
Publisher: Harper Perennial
Year: 2006 (Reprint)
# of pages: 432
Binding: Trade Paperback
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On the Prowl by Patricia Briggs, Eileen Wilks, Karen Chance and Sunny

First sentence:

"The wind was chill and the cold froze the end of her toes."

Description:

"On the make. On the scent. On the edge.

On the Prowl. . .

Alpha and Omega by Patricia Briggs

The werewolf Anna finds a new sense of self when the son of the werewolf king comes to town to quell unrest in the Chicago pack -- and inspires a power in Anna that she's never felt before.

Inhuman by Eileen Wilks

Kai has a secret gift of sensing thoughts and desires. What she senses in her neighbor Nathan could be dangerous. Because he has a secret gift, too, and it's about to be let loose.

Buying Trouble by Karen Chance

In a New York auction house, a Lord of the Fey crosses paths with a fiery redheaded mage named Claire. But in this strange underground society, the rarity up for sale is Claire herself.

Mona Lisa Betwining by Sunny

Among the children of the moon, Mona Lisa is of Mixed Blood--part Monere, part human, and destined to be alone. Then she meets a man who could be her salvation -- or her downfall." -- from the back cover

My thoughts:

I enjoyed these stories of paranormal romance. Each one introduced me to new characters and I look forward to learning more about Claire, Anna, Kai and Mona Lisa.

Date read: 9/8/2014
Book #:33
Rating: 3*/5 = good
Genre; Paranormal Romance

ISBN-10: 0425216594
ISBN-13: 9780425216590
Publisher: Berkley
Year: 2007
# of pages: 541
Binding: Mass Market Paperback
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Mystery Cats by Lillian Jackson Braun, et al

First sentence:

"When my sister and I returned from our vacation and learned that our eccentric neighbor in the wheel chair had been removed to a mental hospital, we were sorry but hardly surprised" [from "Susu and the 8:30 Ghost." by Lillian Jackson Braun]

Description:

"WHEN MURDER IS THE CAT'S MEOW...

This murderously entertaining collection assembles sixteen purr-fect tales of crime and cats by some of today's best mystery writers. Lillian Jackson Bruan's charming Siamese SuSu is the first to smell a rat in ta chilling tale of two spinster sisters and an eccentric neighbor. Edward D Hoch's favorite theif, Nick Velvet, accepts a commission to catnap a pampered pet named Sparkle and ends up a whisker away from death. Ruth Rendell leads an unwary motorist up the garden path to an elderly cat owner's cottage, giving a sinster twist to the old maxim, 'an eye for an eye.' These, along with thirteen other purebred stories of felines and felonies, make for spell-binding reading for mystery fans and cat lovers alike! " -- from the back cover

My thoughts:

I enjoyed this set of feline mysteries.  Favorite stories included "The Lady Wore Black" by Hugh B. Cave and "The Theft of the Mafia Cat" by Edward D. Hoch.

Date read: 8/20/2013
Book #: 25
Rating: 3*/5 = good
Genre: Mystery

ISBN-10: 0451171012
ISBN-13: 9780451171016
Publisher: Signet
Year: 1991
# of pages: 256
Binding: Mass Market Paperback
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Civil War Fantastic edited by Martin H. Greenberg

First sentence:

"Ghosts of Gettysburg, bah."

Description:

"The War Between the States is synonymous with romance, tragedy, bravery, and lost causes. The only war fought by Americans against Americans, it nearly irrevocably tore the nation apart. Yet the United States of America did survive, though at a terrible cost. Even today, more than 130 years after the end of the Civil War, people are still fascinated by this pivotal point in American history. Writers, too, find this a fruitful period to investigate. And in Civil War Fantastic, some of science fiction's finest take us back to this turbulent time with their own special visions of what might have been. So don your uniform, load your cap and ball rifle, raise the colors, and perpare to charge into Civil War Fantastic where:

---A mysterious old man shows a Confederate soldier how one well-placed shot can change the course of history...

---He was only a horse used for children to ride on tours of Gettysburg, but he could see things on the battlefield that no human was aware of...

---Could General Lee bring himself to sanction a terrible sacrifice if it guaranteed that the South would win the war?" -- from the back cover

My thoughts:

This was a good collection of alternate history stories. My favorites included William Keith's "A Place to Stand" and R. Davis's "Across Hickman's Bridge to Home."

Date read: 6/12/2013
Book #: 14
Rating: 3*/5 = good
Genre: Alternate History/Historical Fiction

ISBN-10: 0886779030
ISBN-13: 9780886779030
Publisher: DAW Books
Year: 2000
# of pages: 308
Binding: Mass Market Paperback
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The Stone of Farewell by Tad Williams

First sentence:

"The wind sawed across the empty battlements, yowling like a thousand condemned souls crying for mercy."

Description:

"It is a time of darkness, dread, and ultimate testing for the realm of Osten Ard, for the wild magic and terrifying minions of the undead Sithi ruler, Ineluki the Storm King, are spreading their seemingly undefeatable evil across the kingdom. With the very land blighted by the power of Ineluki's wrath, the tattered remnants of a once-proud human army flee in search of a last sanctuary and rallying point - the Stone of Farewell, a place shrouded in mystery and ancient sorrow.

And even as Prince Josua seeks to rally his scattered forces, Simon and the surviving members of the League of the Scroll are desperately struggling to fulfill missions which will take them from the fallen citadels of humans to the hidden mountain caves of the Qanuc trolls - across storm-tormented waters to discover the truth behind an almost-forgotten legend - to the secret heartland of the Sithi, where the near-immortals must at last decide whether to ally with the race of men in a final war against those of their own blood. . . ." -- from the back cover


My thoughts:

I read the previous book, The Dragonbone Chair years ago, so I was glad to read the recap before reading on. There were times when the plot jumped around and I had trouble keeping track, but overall I liked this book and I look forward to reading the final book, To the Green Tower.

Date read: 5/20/2013
Book #: 10
Series: Memory, Sorrow, Thorn #2
Rating: 3*/5
Genre: Fantasy

ISBN-10: 0756402972
ISBN-13:9780756402976
Publisher: DAW Books
Year: 1990
# of pages: 727
Binding: Mass Market Paperback
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The Museum of Horrors edited by Dennis Etchison

First sentence:

"It is not on any map."

Description:

"Here for the first time in paperback are eighteen original tales of terror and the grotesque from the greatest modern masters of the macabre selected by award-winning editor Dennis Etchison. Step inside the museum and gaze upon the dark works of . . ."

PETER STRAUB	JOYCE CAROL OATES
RICHARD LAYMON	RAMSEY CAMPBELL
WILLIAM F. NOLAN	CHARLES L. GRANT
ROBERT DEVEREAUX	GORDON LINZNER
S.P. SOMTOW	TOM PICCIRILLI
MELANIE TEM	PETER ATKINS
DARREN O. GODFREY	JOEL LANE
CONRAD WILLIAMS	TH. METZGER
SUSAN FRY	LISA MORTON

-- from the back cover 

My thoughts:

This was a good collection of horror tales. Ones I liked included "Piano Bar Blues" by Melanie Tem and "Hammerhead"by Richard Laymon.

Date read: 5/12/2013
Book #: 9
Rating: 3*/5 = good
Genre: Horror

ISBN-10: 0843950773
ISBN-13: 9780843950779
Publisher: Leisure Books
Year: 2003
# of pages: 369
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Crimnal Elements edited by Bill Pronzini and Martin H. Greenberg

First sentence:

"'I'm very glad she's dead,' the man said."

Description:

Thirteen of the best mystery writers today chronicle tales of crime and punishment.

Isaac Asimov - The Cross of Lorraine
P.D. James - A Very Desirable Residence
Ed McBain - Sadie When She Died
Donald E. Westlake - Sniff
Peter Lovesey - A Man With a Fortune
Sue Grafton - She Didn't Come Home
Richard S. Prather - The Double Take
Marcia Muller - Dust to Dust
Francis M. Nevins, Jr. - All the Bagworms on the Block
Edward Gorman - The Reason Why
Susan Dunlap - Hit-and-Run
Joseph Hansen - The Anderson Boy
Tony Hillerman - The Witch, Yazzie, and the Nine of Clubs -- from the back cover

My thoughts:

I like this anthology of mysteries. My favorites include Sue Grafton's "She Didn't Come Home," and Peter Lovesey's "A Man With a Fortune."

Date read: 3/10/2013
Book #: 5
Rating: 3*/5 = good
Genre: Mystery

ISBN-10: 0804101272
ISBN-13: 9780804101271
Publisher: Ivy Books
Year: 1988
# of pages: 294
Binding: Mass Market Paperback
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Triangle by Katharine Weber

First sentence:

"This is what happened."

Description:

"By the time she dies at age 106, Esther Gottesfeld, the last survivor of the 1911 Triangle Shirtwaist fire, has told the story of that days many times. But her own role remains mysterious: How did she survive when at least 146 workers, her sister and fiancé among them, burned or jumped to their deaths? Are the gaps in her story just common mistakes, or has she deliberately concealed a secret over the years? As her granddaughter seeks the real story in the present day, a zealous feminist historian intrudes with her own set of conclusions, but it is Esther's voice echoing insistently through the decades that ultimately reveals the meaning of the tragedy.

A brilliant, haunting chronicle of the event that stood for ninety years as New York's most violent disaster, Triangle forces us to consider how we tell our stories, how we hear them, and how history is forged from unverifiable truths." -- from the back cover

My thoughts:

This was a very good book about people and their stories. The ones they tell, and the ones told about them. I liked Esther's interactions with the interviewer as well as her granddaughter's friend George Bostwick composing music based on DNA.

Date read: 12/29/2012
Book #: 43
Challenge: Off the Shelf Challenge 2012
Rating: 3*/5 = good
Genre: Fiction

ISBN-10: 0312426143
ISBN-13: 9780312426149
Publisher: Picador
Year: 2006
# of pages: 242
Binding: Trade Paperback
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Running Away to Home by Jennifer Wilson

First sentence:

"Dawn had not yet broken as I wrestled my suitcase out of my room above the bar in Mrkopalj, a tiny Croatian village nestled in a low mountain range that looks like the Alps but with fewer people and more wild boars."

Description:

"'We can look at this in two ways,' Jim wrote, always the pragmatist. 'We can panic and scrap the whole idea. Or we can take this as a sign. They're saying the economy is going to get worse before it gets better. Maybe this is the kick in the pants we needed to do something completely different. There will always be an excuse not to go. . . .'

And that, friends, is how a typically sane middle-aged mother decided to drag her family back to a forlorn mountain village in the backwoods of Croatia.

So begins the author's journey in Running Away to Home. Jen, her architect husband Jim, and their two children had been living the typical soccer-and-ballet-practice life in the most Middle American of places: Des Moines, Iowa. They overindulged themselves and their kids, and as a family they were losing one another in the rush of work, school, and activities. One day, Jen and her husband looked at each other--both holding their Starbucks coffee as they headed out to their SUV in the mall parking lot, while the kids complained about the inferiority of the toys they just got--and asked themselves: 'Is this the American dream? Because if it is, it sort of sucks.'

Jim and Jen had always dreamed of taking a family sabbatical in another country, so when they lost half their savings in the stock-market crash, it seemed like just a crazy enough time to do it. High on wanderlust, they left the troubled landscape of contemporary America for the Croatian mountain village of Mrkopalj, the land of Jennifer's ancestors. It was a village that seemed hermetically sealed for the last one hundred years, with a population of eight hundred (mostly drunken) residents and a herd of sheep milling around the post office. For several months they lived like locals, from milking the neighbor's cows to eating roasted pig on a spit to desperately seeking the village recipe for bootleg liquor. As the Wilson-Hoff family struggled to stay sane (and warm), what they found was much deeper and bigger than themselves." -- from the inside flap

My thoughts:

I enjoyed this book of not only researching family history, but living in the ancestors' home village and meeting new relatives. I liked how Jen learned not to stand outside as an observer but instead participate in daily activities, thus making new and valued friends.

Date read: 11/9/2012
Book #: 39
Challenge: New Author Challenge
Rating: 3*/5 = good
Genre: Memoir

ISBN-10: 0312598955
ISBN-13: 9780312598952
Publisher: St. Martin's Press
Year: 2011
# of pages: 317
Binding: Hardcover
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Lullabye by Patricia Wallace

First sentence:

"Wyatt English had been a doctor long enough to know that bad things happened even on the most beautiful of spring days, but until today the bad things had always happened to someone else."

Description:

"Eight year old Bronwyn knew she wasn't like other girls. She didn't have a mother. At least not a real one. Her mother had been in a coma at the hospital for as long as Bronwyn could remember. She couldn't feel any pain, her father said, it was just like sleeping - only she never woke up.

But on visiting days, when Bronwyn sat with her mother, she knew it wasn't true that she couldn't feel anything. Her mother was angry. Angry at the nurses and doctors for the way they treated her. Angry at her own helplessness.

But soon, very soon, she would be helpless no longer. And then she would show them all the true meaning of suffering." -- from the back cover


My thoughts:

This was a good book about revenge, grief, and moving on. I liked the relationship between Wyatt and his daughter Bronwyn. 

Date read: 3/31/2012
Book #: 15
Challenges: TBR Challenge 2012, Off the Shelf Challenge 2012, New Author Challenge 2012
Rating: 3*/5 = good
Genre: Horror

ISBN-10: 0821729179
ISBN-13: 9780821729175
Publisher: Zebra Books
Year: 1990
# of pages: 287
Binding: Mass Market Paperback
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The Wednesday Letters by Jason F. Wright

First sentence:

"Shortly after 11:00 P.M., Laurel slid under the maroon comforter and into bed next to her husband, Jack."

Description:

"Their story began with one letter on their wedding night.

I made a promise today at the church and I'm making another promise tonight. I'm going to write to you every week . . .Laurel, I will always stand by you. No matter what. . .

It ended almost forty years later, when Jack and Laurel Cooper died in each other's arms. But before he took his last breath, Jack wrote his wife one final 'Wednesday letter.'

When the Cooper children return home, they discover the thousands of letters left behind. As they read them, clues to a shattering family secret emerge--and they are brought face-to-face with a life-changing moment of truth." -- from the back cover

My thoughts:

This was a great book about family and discovery. So much is discovered that I had to remind myself that it takes place over just a few days.

Date read: 3/27/2012
Book #: 13
Challenges: New Author Challenge 2012, Off the Shelf Challenge 2012, A-Z Challenge 2012
Rating: 4*/5 = great
Genre: Fiction

ISBN-10: 0425223477
ISBN-13: 9780425223475
Publisher: Berkley Books
Year: 2007
# of pages: 280
Binding: Trade Paperback
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The Wizards of Odd edited by Peter Haining

First sentence:

"It was a fine summer morning, the kind to make a man happy to be alive."

Description:

"Wizards and wotsits, swords and sorcery, astronauts and aliens -- all the ingredients of humorous fantasy are packed into the pages of this unique collection.

Terry Pratchett and Douglas Adams return to Discworld and The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy respectively, with stories first seen in book form in this volume.

Other stars of the genre represented include Brian Aldiss, Isaac Asimov, Robert Bloch, Ray Bradbury, Arthur C. Clarke, Stephen Donaldson, Ursula K. Le Guin, Kurt Vonnegut, and H.G. Wells. Altogether, twenty-four writers have contributed their talents to create the best anthology of humorous fantasy ever published."

My thoughts:

I enjoyed this collection of humorous fantasy stories. Two of my favorites were "Doodad" by Ray Bradbury about a man who learns too late not to underestimate seemingly useless items and "The Rule of Names" by Ursula K. Le Guin about a mysterious wizard and a knight.

Date read: 2/26/2011
Book #: 6
Rating: 3*/5 = good
Genre: Fantasy

ISBN-10: 1857236351
ISBN-13: 9781857236354
Publisher: Orbit
Year: 1997
# of pages: 298
Binding: Mass Market Paperback
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Forever Today by Deborah Wearing

First sentence:

"Clive had no idea that Tuesday 26 March 1985 would be his last day of conscious thought."

Description:

"Clive Wearing has one of the most extreme cases of amnesia ever known. In 1985, a virus completely destroyed a part of his brain essential for memory, leaving him trapped in a limbo of the constant present. Every conscious moment is for him as if he has just come round from a long coma, an endlessly repeating loop of awakening. A brilliant conductor and BBC music producer, Clive was at the height of his success when the illness struck. As damaged as Clive was, the musical part of his brain seemed unaffected, as was his passionate love for Deborah, his wife.

For seven years he was kept in the London hospital where the ambulance first dropped him off, because there was nowhere else for him to go. Deborah desperately searched for treatments and campaigned for better care. After Clive was finally established in a new special hospital, she fled to America to start her life over again. But she found she could never love another the way she loved Clive. Then Clive’s memory unaccountably began to improve, ten years after the illness first struck. She returned to England. Today, although Clive still lives in care, and still has the worst case of amnesia in the world, he continues to improve. They renewed their marriage vows in 2002.

This is the story of a life lived outside time, a story that questions and redefines the essence of what it means to be human. It is also the story of a marriage, of a bond that runs deeper than conscious thought." -- from the inside flap

My thoughts:

I had heard about Clive Wearing's total amnesia on an episode of Radio Lab podcast about identity. This book not only gave an insight into Clive's condition but also how it affected his wife, Deborah.

Date read: 1/25/2011
Book #: 4
Challenge: Dewey Decimal Challenge 2011
Rating: 3*/5 = good
Genre: Memoir

ISBN-10: 0385606265
ISBN-13: 9780385606264
Publisher: Doubleday
Year: 2005
# of pages: 338
Binding: Hardcover
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Year's Best Fantasy edited by David G. Hartwell

First sentence:

"I am sunning myself on the west terrace when Gilyan comes."

Description:

"Tales as deep as legend and as new as dawn.

Acclaimed editor David G. Hartwell has gathered a harvest of shimmering beauty and powerful writing in this inaugural volume of the very best fantasy from the last year. Established masters rub elbows with rising stars in this outstanding collection of short stories rich with imagined land and finely etched, unforgettable characters. Travel to distant realms--and around the block--with stories by:

Terry Goodkind
Nicola Griffith
Nalo Hopkinson
George R.R. Martin
Robert Schekley
Michael Swanwick." -- from the back cover

My thoughts:

I enjoyed this collection of short stories. Some of my favorite stories were George R.R. Martin's "Path of the Dragon" which gave some insight into Daenarys Targaryen and Sherwood Smith's "Mom and Dad on the Home Front," which illustrated what parents go through when the children have otherworldly adventures.

Date read: 6/30/2010
Book #: 40
Challenges: TBR Challenge 2010, Speculative Fiction Reading Challenge
Rating: 3*/5 = good
Genre: Fantasy

ISBN-10: 038081840X
ISBN-13: 9780380818402
Publisher: EOS
Year: 2001
# of pages: 490
Binding: Mass Market Paperback
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The Children's Game by David Wise

First sentence:

"The bears, as expected, had been excellent."

Description:

"William Danner, an ex-spy dragooned back into the CIA, must find the mole whose sabotage of the agency's covert operations threatens to destroy the CIA itself. Haunted by his past, investigating a tangled mix of intrigue, he finds himself simultaneously battling the KGB, a group of mysterious "old boys" fired by the CIA, and his own agency. When he uncovers a spine-chilling plot at the highest levels of government, he risks his life to stop it -- and to save his daughter and the beautiful woman he loves. In the process he discovers new truths about his own life as a man playing The Children's Game." - from the inside flap

My thoughts:

I enjoyed this espionage thriller with its many twists and turns. I especially liked how Danner figured out how to get an important disc from a rather unique hiding place.

Date read: 4/27/2010
Book #: 29
Challenge: TBR Challenge 2010
Rating: 3*/5 = good
Genre: Thriller

ISBN-10: 0312132425
ISBN-13: 9780312132422
Publisher: St. Martin's
Year: 1983
# of pages: 280
Binding: Hardcover
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The Wood Wife by Terri Windling

First sentence:

"On the night that Davis Cooper died, coyotes cam down from the hills to the town in the desert valley below."

Description:

"Leaving behind her fashionable West Coast life, Maggie Black comes to the Southwestern desert to pursue her passion and her dream. Her mentor, the acclaimed poet Davis Cooper, has mysteriously died in the canyons east of Tucson, bequeathing her his estate and the mystery of his life--and death.

Maggie is astonished by the power of this harsh but beautiful land and captivated by the uncommon people who call it home--especially Fox, a man unlike any she has ever known, who understands the desert's special power.

As she reads Cooper's letters and learns the secrets of his life, Maggie comes face-to-face with the wild, ancient spirits of the desert--and discovers the hidden power at its heart, a power that will take her on a journey like no other."

My thoughts:

This was a good fantasy set in the American Southwest. I liked how Maggie learned about the land and people around her and how she discovers the truth behind Cooper's death.

Date read: 3/2/2010
Book #: 16
Challenges: What's in a Name 3 Challenge, Speculative Fiction Reading Challenge
Rating: 3*/5 = good
Genre: Fantasy

ISBN-10: 0812549295
ISBN-13: 9780812549294
Publisher: Tor Fantasy
Year: 1996
# of pages: 292
Binding: Mass Market Paperback
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Winner of the National Book Award by Jincy Willett

First sentence:

"Lightning sought our mother out, when she was a young girl in Brown County, Indiana."

Description:

"Set in Rhode Island, Winner of the National Book Award tells the story of twins who could not be more different. Abigail Mather is a woman of passionate sensual and sexual appetites, while her sister, the book loving local librarian Dorcas, lives a quiet life of the mind. But when the sisters are sought out by the predatory and famous poet, Guy DeVilbiss, who introduces them to Hollywood hack writer and possible psychopath Conrad Lowe, they rapidly become pawns in a game that leads to betrayal, shame and ultimately, murder.

Darkly comic and satirical, Jincy Willett's Winner of the National Book Award is unnervingly funny and disarmingly tender whether she is writing about sex, literary delusion or Yankee pretension."

My thoughts:

I enjoyed this book. I liked Dorca's cynical observations and wit, especially about her neighbors and the library patrons. I also liked how she grew to appreciate her twin sister Abigail.

Date read: 3/2/2010
Book #: 15
Challenges: TBR Challenge 2010; A-Z Challenge 2010
Rating: 3*/5 = good
Genre: Fiction

ISBN-10: 031242423X
ISBN-13: 9780312424237
Publisher: Picador
Year: 2003
# of pages: 323
Binding: Trade Paperback
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Marooned in Real Time by Vernor Vinge

First sentence:

"On the day of the big rescue, Wil Brierson took a walk on the beach."

Description:

"Fifty million years in the future, all the time in the world might not be enough to save mankind. . .

The Extinction happened at some point in the 23rd century. Beyond that point, all that remained of humankind survived locked in timeless limbo inside spherical force fields known as 'bobbles'.

The rebuilding of civilisation and the rescue of survivors fell to the 'high-techs', themselves survivors of the technologically advanced decades just before The Extinction.

When they reached the 'bobble' where the last members of the Peace Authority lived on in stasis, one of the 'high-techs' was murdered, cruelly abandoned in real time.

Wil Brierson, the last detective in the world, was called in to handle the case. Seeking the murderer through a complex web of mysteries, he stumbled on a plan for a new -- and final -- Extinction . . ." -- from the back cover

My thoughts:

This book had a good mix of mystery and science fiction. I liked how Wil and Della Lu learn who abandoned Marta Korolev in the past and who was still a danger to them in the present.

Date read: 2/13/2010
Book #: 10
Challenges: A-Z Challenge 2010, Winter Words Reading Challenge, Speculative Fiction Reading Challenge 2010
Series: Across Realtime, #2
Rating: 3*/5 = good
Genre: SF

ISBN-10: 0330299603
ISBN-13: 9780330299602
Publisher: Pan Books
Year: 1987
# of pages: 269
Binding: Mass Market Paperback
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