2004 book list

2004 Goal Update!

Mon, 13 Dec 2004 06:28:19 GMT

I didn't quite reach my goal of 150 books. I blame university workload and exams, work, my movie obsession and the new boyfriend... ha ha

And another thing, I've stopped going to libraries. Before I used to go to about 4 libraries regularly and borrow the maximum amount but I've now preferred to buy my books and collect them. Anyway, I'm still going to continue my book list through 2005 in this journal.

I know I've read 2 or 3 more books in November but I seriously can't remember what they were and I lost my list. Surely they're not that memorable.

Currently reading:

*A Game of Thrones by George R.R. Martin - Book 1 of the Song of Ice and Fire series.
*Set This House in Order - Matt Ruff

Happy Holidays everyone and keep reading! :-D

114. Split Second

Mon, 13 Dec 2004 06:16:29 GMT

by David Baldacci
September 2003

Book Description

From #1 bestseller David Baldacci comes a new thriller reminiscent of his phenomenal bestselling debut, Absolute Power.It was only a split second--but that's all it took for Secret Service agent Sean King's attention to wander and his "protectee," third-party presidential candidate Clyde Ritter, to die. King retired from the Service in disgrace, and now, eight years later, balances careers as a lawyer and a part-time deputy sheriff in a small Virginia town. Then he hears the news: Once again, a third-party candidate has been taken out of the presidential race--abducted right under the nose of Secret Service agent Michelle Maxwell. King and Maxwell form an uneasy alliance, and their search for answers becomes a bid for redemption as they delve into the government's Witness Protection Program and the mysterious past of Clyde Ritter's dead assassin. But the truth is never quite what it seems, and these two agents have learned that even one moment looking in the wrong direction can be deadly. Full of shocking twists and turns, and introducing a villian to rival Jackson in Baldacci's The Winner, SPLIT SECOND is pure, mind-numbing adrenaline to the last page.

R - ***

His previous novels were so so much better. I'm still going to read the sequel [The Hour Game] to this though...

113. Spiking the Girl

Tue, 26 Oct 2004 10:47:41 GMT

by Gabrielle Lord
August 2004

Book Description

When Private Investigator Gemma Lincoln agrees to investigate a missing student from exclusive ‘Netherleigh Park Ladies’ College’, she finds herself drawn into a double murder case surrounded by a wall of silence. Gemma’s best friend Detective Sergeant Angie McDonald helps, but Angie is overworked. unsupported by an incompetent superior officer and crazy in love.

Gemma’s other cases include a woman whose ex-husband still terrorises her at night, a grieving widower who wants to know what happened to his late wife’s remains and the elderly mother of Gemma’s piano teacher, who swears there’s ‘an animal’ in her second storey flat and wants a surveillance camera installed to prove it. Every instinct warns Gemma that she herself is under surveillance.

Gemma’s equilibrium, already shaky after the break-up with Steve, is further thrown out of balance when her late father’s mistress tells her of the existence of an ex-nuptial child. Somewhere, Gemma has a half-sister...

As Gemma searches for her half-sister and follows the last movements of the murdered girls, an anonymous email tips her off.

She must get the tell-tale evidence, but will she survive this encounter and the malevolent hatred that’s been following her?

R - ***/

Another Australian thriller but much better than the previous novel by Moss!

112. Covet

Tue, 26 Oct 2004 08:45:41 GMT

by Tara Moss
August 2004

Book Description

Eighteen months after her ordeal at the hands of the sadistic 'Stiletto Murderer', fashion model and forensic psychology student Makedde Vanderwall must confront her demons when she returns to Sydney for the trial. But just as the verdict is handed down, the unthinkable happens -- the killer makes a daring escape, aided and abetted by a twisted accomplice that no one suspected ...

Mak is terrified, and ex-boyfriend Detective Andy Flynn, who has a bad habit of employing more madness than method in his work, isn't helping. She decides to leave the country, but the press dog her every move, hindering her safe passage and unknowingly helping the Stiletto Murderer, who's busy rekindling an old fetish ... her ...

Where can she run? Who can she trust? And has she, and the police, underestimated Australia's most notorious serial killer yet again? Sharper than a Manolo four-inch heel, sexier than a Versace fashion show, and more risky than all seven deadly sins, Covet will set your pulse racing. -- from Tara's website.

R - ***

I've decided to try Tara Moss' thrillers again after giving up on her first book which was Fetish. Covet's storyline was actually very interesting although the ending sort of let down the entire book. I also like Makkede Vanderwall as a character. BUT her writing still needs a bit of improvement and polish - she's definitely not comparable to Cornwell (in her earlier novels) or Faye Kellerman. No way!

[Australian thriller]

109 - 111. The Josephine Bonaparte Trilogy

Mon, 18 Oct 2004 09:59:52 GMT

by Sandra Gulland
November 2002

Book Description

The three novels chronicles the life of Josephine Bonaparte, from her childhood to her marriage and divorce to one of the world's most powerful and influential man.

R - *****

I recommend reading this nonstop from the first book. It's just plain wonderful and interesting. I cried buckets in the third book!

108. Death Match

Mon, 18 Oct 2004 09:54:15 GMT

by Lincoln Child
May 2004

Book Description

The Thorpes were the perfect couple: young, attractive, and ideally matched. But the veil of perfection can mask many secrets. When the Thorpes are found dead in their tasteful Flagstaff living room—having committed double-suicide—alarms go off in the executive offices of Eden, Incorporated, the worldwide matchmaking phenomenon that uses its astonishing artificial intelligence to create supercouples and guarantee its customers just one thing: lifelong happiness.

Enter Christopher Lash, a gifted former FBI forensic psychologist who is brought in by Eden to perform a quick—and quiet—investigation. As Lash conducts his detailed “psychological autopsy,” he delves deep into the seemingly ordinary private lives of the Thorpes, all the while trying to suppress a personal tragedy of his own that has been kept buried in the past. But when another perfectly matched couple commits double-suicide, Lash finds himself suddenly pulled in to the many hidden layers of Eden, Incorporated. It is an astonishing world—one inhabited by Eden's genius, reclusive founder, Richard Silver—a world that inadvertently may bring Lash face-to-face with his own demons.

With tremendous imagination and consummate skill, master thriller-writer Lincoln Child renders a setting too frighteningly believable not to be real. Infused with sharp, cutting-edge technology and a riveting pace, DEATH MATCH is Lincoln Child at his best.

R - **/

The ending ruined the entire book!

107. Utopia

Mon, 18 Oct 2004 09:51:59 GMT

by Lincoln Child
December 2003

Book Description

Fasten your seat belts–the white-knuckle thrills at Utopia, the world’s most fantastic theme park, escalate to nightmare proportions in this intricately imagined techno-thriller by New York Times bestselling author Lincoln Child.

Rising out of the stony canyons of Nevada, Utopia is a world on the cutting edge of technology. A theme park attracting 65,000 visitors each day, its dazzling array of robots and futuristic holograms make it a worldwide sensation. But ominous mishaps are beginning to disrupt the once flawless technology. A friendly robot goes haywire, causing panic, and a popular roller coaster malfunctions, nearly killing a teenaged rider. Dr. Andrew Warne, the brilliant computer engineer who designed much of the park’s robotics, is summoned from the East Coast to get things back on track.

On the day Warne arrives, however, Utopia is caught in the grip of something far more sinister. A group of ruthless criminals has infiltrated the park’s computerized infrastructure, giving them complete access to all of Utopia’s attractions and systems. Their communication begins with a simple and dire warning: If their demands are met, none of the 65,000 people in the park that day will ever know they were there; if not, chaos will descend, and every man, woman, and child will become a target. As one of the brains behind Utopia, Warne finds himself thrust into a role he never imagined–trying to save the lives of thousands of innocent people. And as the minutes tick away, Warne’s struggle to outsmart his opponents grows ever more urgent, for his only daughter is among the unsuspecting crowds in the park.

Lincoln Child evokes the technological wonders of Utopia with such skill and precision it is hard to believe the park exists only in the pages of this extraordinary book. Like Jurassic Park, Utopia sweeps readers into a make-believe world of riveting suspense, technology, and adventure.

R - ***

Good thriller but I'd rather read a Preston/Child novel.

106. Giants of the Frost

Thu, 30 Sep 2004 03:39:27 GMT

Book 2 of the Europa Suites
by Kim Wilkins
May 2004

Book Description

Victoria Scott, scientist and hardened sceptic, accepts a job at an isolated weather station in the Norwegian Sea. But there are shadows outside her cabin window, rumours about a hag that visits in nightmares, and a disturbing sense of familiarity in the deep, haunted forest: almost as if she has connection with the island and its past.

In Asgard, the world of the old gods, Odin's son Vidar has exiled himself from his cruel family to await the reincarnation of his beloved; the woman that his father mercilessly slew a thousand years past. After centuries of waiting, the seeing-waters tell him that she has returned, and her name is Victoria.

Deep in the black, twisted roots of the World Tree, the three Norns spin and weave the fates of everyone. Vidar knows he must escape his destiny, but can only do so at enormous cost. Will he discover that fulfilling the heart's desire is a tragedy worse than death?

R = ****

Another wonderful fantasy thriller from Kim Wilkins - so much better than the first book in the series. More mature and sophisticated story. Recommended!

105. In Her Shoes: A Novel

Tue, 14 Sep 2004 23:26:42 GMT

by Jennifer Weiner
July 2003

Book Description

Meet Rose Feller, a thirty-year-old high-powered attorney with a secret passion for romance novels. She has an exercise regime she's going to start next week, and she dreams of a man who will slide off her glasses, gaze into her eyes, and tell her she's beautiful. She also dreams of getting her fantastically screwed-up, semi-employed little sister to straighten up and fly right.

Meet Rose's sister, Maggie. Twenty-eight years old and drop-dead gorgeous. Although her big-screen stardom hasn't progressed past her left hip's appearance in a Will Smith video, Maggie dreams of fame and fortune -- and of getting her big sister on a skin-care regimen.

These two women, who claim to have nothing in common but a childhood tragedy, DNA, and the same size feet, are about to learn that they're more alike than they'd ever imagined. Along the way, they'll encounter a diverse cast of characters -- from a stepmother who's into recreational Botox to a disdainful pug with no name. They'll borrow shoes and clothes and boyfriends, and eventually make peace with their most intimate enemies -- each other.

R - ***

This could very well be my first chick-lit of the year. I used to be addicted to them (back in 2001) but then they all became dumber as time went past. IHS and Weiner's previous novel, Good In Bed were exceptions though...

105. 253

Tue, 14 Sep 2004 23:22:19 GMT

by Geoff Ryman

Book Description

A Bakerloo tube train with no-one standing and no empty seats can carry 252 passengers. The driver makes 253. Each one has a page devoted to them, divided into three sections - what they look like, what they are thinking and inside information - and some of them are going to die.

R - **/

Good concept but it became boring after a while.

104. A Death in Vienna

Tue, 14 Sep 2004 23:19:55 GMT

by Daniel Silva
February 2004

Book Description

Art restorer and sometimes spy Gabriel Allon is sent to Vienna to discover the truth behind a bombing that killed an old friend. But while there he encounters something that turns his world upside down. It is a face - a face that feels hauntingly familiar, a face that chills him to the bone and sends him on an urgent hunt for more: a name, a history, a connection.

Each fact he uncovers, however, only leads to more questions: each layer hestrips away reveals more layers beneath. Finally, a picture begins to emerge, but one more terrible than he could have imagined, a portrait of evil stretching across sixty years and thousands of lives and into his own personal nightmares. Soon the quest for one monsters becomes the quest for many. And the monsters are stirring...

Filled with sharply etched characters and prose, and a plot of astonishing intricacy and resonance, this is an uncommonly intelligent thriller by one out our very best writers.

R - ***/

Sandford (of the Prey series) and Cornwell (Scarpetta) should take lessons from this guy on how to improve their writing while not losing the original voice of the earlier novels of the series. I've read every book of Silva's and he just keeps getting better!

103. The Robber Bride

Mon, 06 Sep 2004 08:31:31 GMT

by Margaret Atwood
January 1998

Book Description

Margaret Atwood's The Robber Bride is inspired by "The Robber Bridegroom," a wonderfully grisly tale from the Brothers Grimm in which an evil groom lures three maidens into his lair and devours them, one by one. But in her version, Atwood brilliantly recasts the monster as Zenia, a villainess of demonic proportions, and sets her loose in the lives of three friends, Tony,

Charis, and Roz. All three "have lost men, spirit, money, and time to their old college acquaintance, Zenia. At various times, and in various emotional disguises, Zenia has insinuated her way into their lives and practically demolished them.
To Tony, who almost lost her husband and jeopardized her academic career, Zenia is 'a lurking enemy commando.' To Roz, who did lose her husband and almost her magazine, Zenia is 'a cold and treacherous bitch.' To Charis, who lost a boyfriend, quarts of vegetable juice and some pet chickens, Zenia is a kind of zombie, maybe 'soulless'" (Lorrie Moore, New York Times Book Review). In love and war, illusion and deceit, Zenia's subterranean malevolence takes us deep into her enemies' pasts.

R - ***/

I'm in an Atwood collecting phase right now. After seeing new paperbacks of her books released in the bookstores, I vowed to get my hands on all of them. Robber Bride is the first and I thought it was great. I finished it in just two days! Remember how I said that Naomi was my most hated literary character ever? Well, I haven't met Zenia before that and Naomi is an angel compared to Zenia.

Cat's Eye will be next!

102. Naked Prey

Mon, 06 Sep 2004 08:24:50 GMT

by John Sandford
May 2003

Book Description

Lucas Davenport Þnds some changes-and some nasty surprises-in store, in the chilling new novel by the number-one-bestselling author.

In Naked Prey, John Sandford puts Lucas Davenport through some changes. His old boss, Rose Marie Roux, has moved up to the state level and taken Lucas with her, creating a special troubleshooter job for him for the cases that are too complicated or politically touchy for others to handle. In addition, Lucas is now married and a new father, both of which are fine with him: he doesn't mind being a family man. But he is a little worried. For every bit of peace you get, you have to pay-and he's waiting for the bill.

It comes in the form of two people found hanging from a tree in the woods of northern Minnesota. What makes it particularly sensitive is that the bodies are of a black man and a white woman, and they're naked. "Lynching" is the word that everybody's trying not to say-but, as Lucas begins to discover, in fact the murders are not what they appear to be, and they are not the end of the story. There is worse to come-much, much worse.

Filled with the rich characterization and exceptional drama that are his hallmarks, this is Sandford's most suspenseful novel yet.

R - *

The worst in the Prey series and I've read them all! I probably won't even bother with the new one.

101. Forbidden Love: A Harrowing True Story of Love and Revenge in Jordan

Mon, 30 Aug 2004 06:26:32 GMT

by Norma Khouri
February 2003

Title in the US: Honor Lost: Love and Death in Modern-Day Jordan

Book Description

I'd always believed that we'd spend our lives together...I never dreamed that my time with her would be cut short, or that my life would be a journey down this path, but I realize that she left me with a mission...I must find a way to make all Arab women's silent cries for justice and freedom heard around the world.

Dalia was a young, beautiful Arabian Muslim living with her family in Amman, Jordan. At the age of twenty-five, she unexpectedly fell in love with Michael, a major in the Royal Army, and a Catholic. For a Muslim woman, any relationship with a Catholic man is forbidden, and Dalia was only too aware that flouting this rule could cost her her life.

But they were deeply in love, and with the help of Dalia's lifelong friend, Norma, with whom she ran a hair salon, they went to extraordinary lengths to meet in secret. Dalia and Michael were only alone on a handful of occasions, and their relationship remained entirely chaste. Although they covered their tracks meticulously, one of Dalia's brothers became suspicious and she was suddenly gripped by the terrifying reality of what might happen to them all.

Norma Khouri's book is a gift to the memory of her friend. In it she recounts a powerful love story that ends in an appalling tragedy, and also attempts to bring to the world's attention the continuing practice of honor killing in Jordan -- an ancient tradition that encourages the murder of women considered to have dishonored their families. It is a crime that effectively goes unpunished.

Shocking and dramatic, Honor Lost will strike a chord with women everywhere and is a testimony to the courage and strength of women who are prepared to defy generations of male dominance.

The most controversial book of the year so I just had to read it. Although the writing was very simple, I could imagine why it would move most readers. Unfortunately, it's all a hoax [not all honour killings but Norma's story].

Here are some of the latest headlines:

- Khouri admits lies
- Khouri accused of cheated woman
- Khouri admits making up details

100. Naomi

Mon, 30 Aug 2004 06:16:25 GMT

by Junichiro Tanizaki
translated by Anthony H. Chambers
april 2001

Book Description

Na-o-mi. The three syllables of this name, unusual in 1920s Japan, captivate a 28-year-old engineer, who soon becomes infatuated with the girl so named, a teenaged café waitress. Drawn to her Eurasian features and innocent demeanor, Joji is eager to whisk young Naomi away from the seamy underbelly of post—World War I Tokyo and to mold her into his ideal wife. But when the two come together to indulge their shared passion for Western culture, Joji discovers that Naomi is far from being the naïve girl of his fantasies, and his passion descends into a comically helpless masochism.

A literary masterpiece that helped to establish Junichiro Tanizaki as Japan's greatest novelist, Naomi is both a hilarious story of one man's obsession and torment, and a brilliant evocation of a nation's cultural confusion.

R - ***/

I wouldn't call the story hilarious like the review above. Instead, I would call it infuriating. Naomi is probably one of my most hated literary characters with Joji being a close second. I enjoyed reading the book while I was quietly seething over the stupidity of the two main characters.

99. Unlock the Secrets of Your Money Personality and Change Your Life

Tue, 24 Aug 2004 09:10:41 GMT

by Greg Smith
April 2002

Book Description

Are you a Spender, a Savvy or a Careful? The real answer might surprise you. (Hint: A lot more people think they belong in the Savvy group than really do.) Through years of helping thousands of Australians sort out their financial problems, Greg Smith has come to realise that everyone has a money personality which tends to one of these three types. Too many people don't even know which they are, and just repeat poor habits learnt in childhood. But it's never too late to change. Beginning with a quiz to help you identify your money, the book shows step by step how your unconscious habits could be holding you back from the life you want, how to solve your immediate financial woes and then how to build up the kind of assets that will give you the future you dream of.

R - ***

I've been on the look-out for self-help books lately particularly about money and found this one immediately. Mind you, I didn't waste any money on it. I just borrowed it from the library.

I'm not a big reader of self-help and empowerment books so I'm not sure how this compares to others. I found it quite enjoyable to read, however. Aside from quite a few tips on how to save (mostly commonsensical activities) and other financial information, there are also a lot of case studies that were interesting. However, if you're looking for an indepth book about how to be a millionaire, this is not it! There actually aren't any books for that.

Note: I'm in the Spender category. As if I needed a book to tell me that. I started a money diary though. I'll see if it works or not.

98. The Codex

Mon, 23 Aug 2004 10:54:57 GMT

by Douglas Preston
December 2003

Book Description

"Greetings from the dead," declares Maxwell Broadbent on the videotape he left behind after his mysterious disappearance. A notorious treasure hunter and tomb robber, Broadbent accumulated over a half a billion dollars' worth of priceless art, gems, and artifacts before vanishing---along with his entire collection---from his mansion in New Mexico.

At first, robbery is suspected, but the truth proves far stranger: As a final challenge to his three sons, Broadbent has buried himself and his treasure somewhere in the world, hidden away like an ancient Egyptian pharaoh. If the sons wish to claim their fabulous inheritance, they must find their father's carefully concealed tomb.

The race is on, but the three brothers are not the only ones competing for the treasure. This secret is so astounding it cannot be kept quiet for long. With half a billion dollars at stake, as well as an ancient Mayan codex that may hold a cure for cancer and other deadly diseases, others soon join the hunt---and some of them will stop at nothing to claim the grave goods.

The bestselling coauthor of such page-turning thrillers as Relic and The Cabinet of Curiosities, Douglas Preston now spins an unforgettable tale of greed, adventure, and betrayal.

R - ***

Not quite up to par with the Preston/Child novels but good nonetheless. There were also a few loopholes as a result of the hurried ending.

97. Political Suicide

Thu, 19 Aug 2004 00:56:30 GMT

by Alan Russell
December 2003

Book Description

Will Travis, an investigator who specializes in small-time jobs like looking into employee theft at hotels and bars, falls into a much bigger case when he unwittingly foils a murder attempt on a politician's daughter. Sitting in a hotel bar he sees a man drop something into a woman's drink, then watches as she begins to lose consciousness. Unable to sit by and watch her in peril, he comes to her rescue only to nearly get killed himself by a hitman out to get her.

The woman, Claire Harrington, tells a farfetched but believable story, given what they've just escaped: She's in danger because she believes her father's death--ruled a suicide by the police--was actually murder. What's more, she believes that one of the candidates in the upcoming presidential election was behind it.

Will gets drawn further and further into this dangerous situation, caught between wanting to go to the authorities, whom Claire doesn't trust, and wanting to help her himself. When events begin to spiral out of control, he knows there's no way out until they find the truth, wherever it takes them. Political Suicide is another gripping, edge-of-your-seat thriller from Alan Russell, one of the most ingenious suspense writers working today.

R - **

I've read and liked two of his previous novels, Exposure and Shame. I can't say the same for this novel though. First up, the plot in itself isn't that interesting and his writing wasn't as gripping as I remembered. It took me about three days on and off to finish this. Very bad!

96. In Fidelity

Fri, 13 Aug 2004 22:49:02 GMT

by M.J. Rose
January 2001

Book Description

Hot on the trail of her much talked-about debut, Lip Service, M.J. Rose once again explores the dark corners of the human psyche in a riveting and erotic tale of love, lust...and betrayal.

Although everyone thinks she's being paranoid, psychotherapist Jordan Sloan knows better. Haunted by the long-ago murder of her father, she learns that his killer has been paroled and she instantly fears his revenge. Only she knows the dark secret of her relationship with Mallory -- and the depth of her deception in providing the testimony that put him away. She sees him in shadows, in mirrors, in photographs her teenage daughter takes in the park....

Still suffering the bruises of her husband's betrayal, Jordan grapples with ambiguous emotions even as she is drawn again to her estranged spouse. Clinging desperately to the hard-earned stability of her life, she maneuvers through the meshwork of love's fragile bonds, layers of longing, and the chaos that is human relationships. All the while, a mysterious new patient seems intent on contributing to Jordan's unraveling. For as she struggles to prove that her fear of Mallory is justified, she also wrestles with how it might feel to finally forgive Robert's infidelity.

M.J. Rose has crafted a rare and evocative new novel of spellbinding energy, as a woman come to terms with her own life -- assuming she will continue to enjoy the luxury of living it.

R - **/

Rose's second book before Flesh Tones which I've read just a few days ago. The plot wasn't quite as engaging as FT but her beautiful writing still drew me to the story.

95. Blood

Mon, 09 Aug 2004 09:17:24 GMT

by Patricia Traxler
September 2001

Book Description

From talented newcomer Patricia Traxler comes a brilliant literary suspense novel about how desire can become jealousy, obsession, and finally murderous rage. Blood is equal parts auspicious literary debut, pageturner, and erotic novel about four people whose lives become irrevocably intertwined during one year at Radcliffe College.

The narrator, Norrie Blume, is a painter who has accepted a prestigious fellowship at the college; she's excited to leave her job as a commercial graphic designer and take up the artist's life. But she's also in the middle of an intense love affair with a married colleague, an affair that is threatening to consume both their lives. At Radcliffe, Norrie develops friendships with two other fellows, a journalist and a poet. One is deep, comforting; the other ruled by need and guilt. These three intense relationships quickly begin to infringe upon each other, and soon the four of them seem to be hurtling toward some shocking-and perhaps tragic-end.

Blood is a triumph of suspense writing, a true psychological thriller about the nature of desire and the danger of love.

R - ****

94. Just One Look

Sat, 07 Aug 2004 22:28:05 GMT

by Harlan Coben
April 2004

Book Description

Harlan Coben, author of the coast-to-coast bestseller No Second Chance, delivers an emotionally powerful thrill-ride of a novel that asks the question: How far would you go to protect your family?
An ordinary snapshot causes a mother’s world to unravel in an instant. After picking up her two young children from school, Grace Lawson looks through a newly developed set of photographs. She finds an odd one in the pack: a mysterious picture from perhaps twenty years ago, showing four strangers she can’t identify. But there is one face she recognizes—that of her husband, from before she knew him.

When her husband sees the photo that night, he leaves their home and drives off without explanation. She doesn’t know where he’s going, or why he’s leaving. Or if he’s ever coming back. Nor does she realize how dangerous the search for him will be. Because there are others interested in both her husband’s past and that photo, including Eric Wu: a fierce, silent killer who will not be stopped from finding his quarry, no matter who or what stands in his way.

Her world turned upside-down, filled with doubts about her herself and marriage, Grace must confront the dark corners of her own tragic past she struggles to learn the truth, find her husband, and save her family.

R - **/

Although it was still a decent read much like his other novels, it could be time for Coben to change a little of his formulaic writing. The plot in this novel is so confusing that the last two to three chapters were devoted to explaining it all. It almost felt like the rest of the novel were just fillers.

93. Flesh Tones

Sat, 07 Aug 2004 11:35:17 GMT

by M.J. Rose
April 2003

Book Description

In such erotic thrillers as In Fidelity and Lip Service, acclaimed author M. J. Rose took readers to the darkest edges of desire. Now, in her most riveting novel yet, she leads us across the fine line separating passion and obsession, mercy and murder.

In a New York courtroom, a woman stands accused of a controversial crime. Genny Haviland, thirty-eight, is said to have drugged and suffocated legendary painter George Gabriel. For two decades the tempestuous Gabriel has challenged audiences with his wild work. And in the end, the prosecution claims, he alienated the woman he first seduced, then enslaved—enough to cause his own death at her hands.

Yet in Genny’s mind there rests another story, one that started twenty years before . . . one in which a college girl on summer break met an older, attractive artist—and began a forbidden affair she would never forget, a shadowy, sensual union in which she was more helpless and more powerful than she would ever imagine. Then the discovery of a shocking secret blew it all apart: Genny’s father was Jonathan Haviland, the renowned gallery owner who could make or break Gabriel’s career.

Now Genny contends she was only easing her old lover to a painless death, allowing him to escape the awful illness that was slowly eroding his sanity and self. But is that the whole truth? Or was Gabriel indeed killed—but for far more sordid reasons, from a motive driven by scandal and the threat of financial ruin? How much would Genny do for the man she professed to love, or for the father who has always loomed darkly in the background of her life?

Peopled with complex and fascinating characters, and capturing the essence of two different and decadent decades, here is the most impressive achievement of an up-and-coming author. In this irresistible novel, M. J. Rose creates a world where love doesn’t last and fame is fleeting . . . but desire never ends.

R - ****

Amazing! I'm a sucker for beautiful and haunting love stories such as this. Recommended!

92. 3rd Degree

Tue, 03 Aug 2004 10:16:34 GMT

by James Patterson & Andrew Gross

Book Description

Detective Lindsay Boxer and Assistant District Attorney Jill Bernhardt are enjoying a quiet afternoon in San Francisco when a townhouse across the street explodes in flames. A sinister note signed "August Spies" is found at the scene of the disaster, and the body of an infant who was asleep in the house at the time of the explosion cannot be found. Soon a wave of violent incidents, all with links to political terrorism and involving "August Spies," sweeps through the city. An upcoming economic summit of the world's most powerful nations will surely be a target. And it's up to the Women's Murder Club to get to the bottom of the violence before it's too late. Delivering the breakneck pace and never-saw-it-coming plot twists that have made James Patterson the most addictive writer at work today, 3rd DEGREE is another searing and unforgettable thriller from the nation's #1 bestselling suspense writer.

R - **

He's really lost it. Maybe he didn't even have it to begin with. But Patterson's books are getting annoying. The flimsy plot, the too-short chapters... Even the death of one of the members of the Women's Murder Club didn't even register that much. A one-hour read. That is, if you've got nothing better to do [I was procrastinating over an essay so I had an excuse :-P ].

91. Monday Mourning

Mon, 02 Aug 2004 02:14:10 GMT

by Kathy Reichs
June 2004

Book Description

Temperance Brennan, forensic anthropologist for both North Carolina and Quebec, has come to Montreal during the bleak days of December to testify as an expert witness at a murder trial.

She should be going over her notes, but instead she's digging in the basement of a pizza parlor, investigating the skeletonized remains of three young women. How did they get there? When did they die?

Homicide detective Luc Claudel believes the bones are historic. Not his case, not his concern. The pizza parlor owner found nineteenth-century buttons near the skeletons. Claudel takes them as an indicator of the bones' antiquity.

But something doesn't make sense. Tempe examines the bones in her lab and establishes approximate age with Carbon 14. Study of tooth enamel tells her where the women were born. If she's right, Claudel has three recent murders on his hands. Definitely his case.

Detective Andrew Ryan, meanwhile, is acting mysteriously. What are those private phone calls he takes, and why does he suddenly disappear just when Tempe is beginning to hope he might be a permanent part of her life?

As Tempe searches for answers, she finds herself drawn deep into a web of evil into which women have disappeared, never to return....Tempe may be next.

With its powerful mix of nail-biting suspense and cutting-edge forensic science, Monday Mourning is the best yet from this megastar author who, as New York Newsday says, is "the real thing.

R - ***/

90. The Rule of Four

Mon, 02 Aug 2004 02:10:30 GMT

by Ian Caldwell and Dustin Thomason
May 2004

Book Description

Princeton. Good Friday, 1999. On the eve of graduation, two students are a hairsbreadth from solving the mysteries of the Hypnerotomachia Poliphili. Famous for its hypnotic power over those who study it, the five-hundred-year-old Hypnerotomachia may finally reveal its secrets -- to Tom Sullivan, whose father was obsessed with the book, and Paul Harris, whose future depends on it. As the deadline looms, research has stalled -- until an ancient diary surfaces. What Tom and Paul discover inside shocks even them: proof that the location of a hidden crypt has been ciphered within the pages of the obscure Renaissance text.

Armed with this final clue, the two friends delve into the bizarre world of the Hypnerotomachia -- a world of forgotten erudition, strange sexual appetites, and terrible violence. But just as they begin to realize the magnitude of their discovery, Princeton's snowy campus is rocked: a longtime student of the book is murdered, shot dead in the hushed halls of the history department.

A tale of timeless intrigue, dazzling scholarship, and great imaginative power, The Rule of Four is the story of a young man divided between the future's promise and the past's allure, guided only by friendship and love.

R - ***

Although this was a far more well written novel than The DaVinci Code, I still enjoyed the latter much more. The puzzle or the book that they were trying to solve didn't really fascinate me and I felt that there were too little of the actual code-solving compared to the personal stories that could be found throughout.