Books read in January, 2005

Didn't read as many books in January as I hoped, but for the most part they were enjoyable:

Andrews, Mary Kay. HISSY FIT. 9/2004. B. [Rom/C] - I really enjoyed the Southern flair and sass the characters bring to this story. The lead character, Keeley is someone you can see yourself being friends with. The light mystery and romance really round out this book for enjoyable reading. I recommend this book.

Brown, Sandra. WHITE HOT. 9/2004. A. [Mys/Rom/C] - I loved the suspense in this story and the surprise twists the author takes the reader on. Sandra Brown is one of those authors that easily draws the reader so deep into the story, you wonder if you are there; especially with her descriptions of the sultry summer days. I also love animals that have a supporting role in a book. This one has a golden retriever named Frito who I think stole several scenes. I highly recommend this book.

Dyer, Chris. WANDERLUST: A Novel Of Sex And Sensibility. 2/2003. B. [Gen Fiction] - This is a new to me author and after reading this book, I will definitely be on the lookout for more by this author. This book follows the life and travels of a writer who writes travel articles for a magazine. The book is written completely in email format, which I enjoyed and follows our frequent flyer, Kate Bogart (affectionately known as Bogie by her close friends) as she traipses all over the world finding romance. I recommend this book.

Gardner, Lisa. THE THIRD VICTIM. 1/2001. B. [Mys/S] - Lisa Gardner delivers another satisfying mystery/suspense novel that is reminiscient of the headlines we so often see today. The story centers around a sheriff's deputy named Rainie Conner who is investigating a school shooting that has left two little girls and a teacher dead. Unfortunately, their confessed shooter is the sheriff's son. Several sub-plots add to the detail and richness of this story and I am happy to see that Rainie and FBI profiler Quincy will be back in a quasi sequel called The Next Accident. I recommend this book.

Lissner, Caren. CARRIE PILBY. 6/2003. B. [General Fiction/Rom/C] - I wasn't sure if I was going to enjoy this one or not when I started it. Another new to me author, Lissner weaves a tale around a young 19 year old prodigy named Carrie Pilby who has graduated from Harvard at age 18 and is trying to make sense of the world, find her place and be accepted for herself. Along the way, her therapist is trying to get her to leave her apartment more often, make friends, go out for New Years, go on a date and tell someone you care about them. I ended up enjoying this and watching Carrie learn to accept herself as well as others. I recommend this book.

Matthews, Carole. LET's MEET ON PLATFORM 8. 8/2004. F. [Rom/C] - Unfortunately, this book totally turned me off. Adultery, adultery, adultery. I couldn't plug in to any of the characters and their behavior left me cold. I think the author's intention in writing this book is to show how love comes upon us when we least expect it and from some unlikely places and that we don't always get to choose who we love. Having said that, we still are in control of ourselves and choosing to conduct a relationship with a married individual is wrong. That's just me. I would have been more accepting of this story if the leading man had perhaps been physically separated from his wife instead of still living with her...also the leading lady uses poor judgment in continuing to see him even after she finds out that he's married! Yuck. This was the first book by this author I've read, so I will try another in the hopes it gets better.

Moore, Christopher. BLOODSUCKING FIENDS. 1995. B. [Rom/V] - You would think by the title of the book that this is a horror novel. I labeled it as a romance because the cover says "a love story". The story centers around Jody, a woman with a problem. She certainly never asked to become a vampire but one night after work, she is attacked while waiting for the bus. She wakes up under a dumpster with strength she didn't know she had and a huge thirst. Along the way, she meets Tommy, an aspiring Kerouac writer who spends his evenings frozen-turkey bowling in a Safeway grocery store. They end up moving in together and falling in love while trying to catch the vampire who sired Jody and stop the vampire killings in the city. This was a wacky and off-beat story by another new to me author, that I enjoyed quite a bit. The ending leaves it wide open for another Jody and Tommy adventure. I recommend this book.