It started with an accidental fall that may or may not have caused a minor concussion. What it did cause was a lifestyle change. Amy is a grumpy curmudgeon, a writer who now makes a living teaching online writing classes. The fall puts into action a change of events that move her from the life of a semi-recluse into a whirlwind of public appearances and a steady stream of new stories. The writing is crisp, brisk, and unfailingly funny. Amy's adventures are told with sardonic humor and a wonderful understanding of human nature. I had a great time reading this and plan to read the first book by this author to learn more about Amy and the world she lives in.

When I first started reading The Sisterhood, by Helen Bryan, my first impression was that the main character, Menina, was too "pat." She was beautiful, smart, and I was sure she was not going to be very interesting to follow. I admit I am more drawn to quirky people on the pages I read. As the plot developed, though, I found myself liking the story and the way it moved from one time period to another. The plot was complicated, but followed the theme of secrecy, faith, and the fellowship of women from beginning to end. I am still not sure how present day Menina ended up with the ancient and valuable artifacts , but that doesn't really detract from the story. It was a fun read, and I think it would be a good choice for a book club. It has a smattering of romance, intrigue, and history, so there would be lots to discuss.

This was an interesting read on a complex subject. Max Walker is a sixteen year old boy, popular, obedient, and seemingly normal in every way. The secret his family holds close is that Max is intersexual. He was born with both male and female anatomical features. As he reaches puberty, the inevitable problems arise. I thought the author developed the character of Max well enough, but the other characters seemed stilted and trapped in their roles. The family dynamics were too predictable for most of the story. Having said that, this was a compelling story, and I found myself rooting for Max as he tries to sort out where his true sexual orientation lies. There are no easy answers, and the author wisely does not provide a cliched ending.

Although the story got off to a slow start, it wasn't long before I was completely engrossed. As atmospheric and moody as its setting in the 19th century Pacific Northwest, the story of Leonie and her inexplicable connection to the mummy discovered in the riverbank after a storm will keep you turning turning the pages. Leonie and her husband Junius are ethnologists, forerunners to modern day cultural anthropologists. Junius wants to give the mummy, an Indian woman, to a museum, but Leonie begs for more time to study it. As the story unfolds, the characters' true natures are revealed, layer by layer, just as an archaeology site might yield its secrets. The relationship between Leonie and her husband is complicated by her stubborn desire to learn more about the Indian woman's life and, more specifically, by the appearance of her husband's son by a previous marriage.
I thoroughly enjoyed Bone River and found myself rooting for Leonie to find not only the identity of the Indian woman, but her own in the process.

My Brilliant Friend has all the makings of a TV mini-series. In the first installment of a trilogy, Elena Ferrante skillfully involves the reader in life in a neighborhood in Naples, Italy in the 1950's. The inhabitants are poor and hold, for the most part, menial jobs, but their lives are rich in passions, friendships, divided loyalties,unrequited loves, and unrealized dreams.
The main character, Lena, and her best friend and chief competitor, Lila, grow up sharing dolls, dreams, fears, and family complications. The author brings the reader into their lives with a cast of characters that needs a family tree to keep everyone sorted out so that the various feuds and alliances are properly understood. That was probably my chief complaint with the story. I had to constantly refer to said family tree to keep all the alliances clear in my head as I read. This was an engrossing tale, and I wasn't ready to let go of the characters when the story ended.

There was much I enjoyed about this book, but initially I was tempted to put it down. When we first meet the main character, Geoffrey Tremont, he is a middle aged New Yorker who is content with his life as an actor doing commercial voice overs for radio and television. He is just beginning to feel vague stirrings of discontent when he finds that he has been named executor of the will of his best friend in college, a jazz musician named Laura, whom he has not seen in many years. In the course of settling her affairs, he quickly falls for Laura's best friend. Here is where I felt the disconnect. Do I know enough about Geoffrey at this point to understand or even care about his emotional turmoil? As the story unfolds, the reader begins to understand the self-doubts felt by each of the characters populating this novel. They all have decisions to make about goals, dreams, and how the pull of the past can shape the future.

I did enjoy the book. It was a pleasant, introspective read, best enjoyed by someone who can understand and appreciate a time in one's life when one wonders, ala Peggy Lee, "Is that all there is?"

I confess that I tend to be character driven in my choice of books, and it took me some time before I could relate to Clementine or allow myself to get caught up in her story. Maybe I wasn't given enough about her background early on, or maybe I don't have enough experience with depression. At the beginning of the story, all the reader knows about Clementine is that she is an artist, suffers from depression, and is carrying out a methodical plan to commit suicide. As the story progresses, you learn that she is actually very talented and has a thoroughly messed up history when it comes to keeping love and loved ones in her life. At this point I began to care about her and her plans for suicide.
Clementine as a person is complicated, conflicted, and at times hilariously funny. Her neat and tidy plan to end her life turns out to have unexpected twists and turns. It is in dealing with these events that she discovers that she really isn't ready to walk away from life, as messy and unresolved as it is. If the reader can stay with her through a somewhat confusing beginning, it is worth the trip to join her on her road to self-discovery by way of suicide.

I have read the Inspector Banks series written by Peter Robinson, so I already have a healthy respect for his writing. This book was a slight departure from his usual mysteries. It takes place in the Yorkshire area as do his other stories, but it is a gentler tale- part ghost story, part love story, and part mystery on several levels. The story moves slowly at first, and I couldn't really tell where it was headed. For that reason, I began to wonder how long it was going to take to gain some momentum.
The plot unfolds in several voices. The narrator is Chris Lowndes, returning to England after the death of his wife in California, where they had lived for many years. Chris buys a house, sight unseen, and once he moves in, he discovers that the wife of the original owner was hanged for the murder of her husband. Partly because of his need to distract himself from the grief he still feels for the death of his wife, and partly because he feels and sees something in the house, he starts investigating the circumstances of the murder and subsequent trial. At this point , the narration is interspersed with accounts of the trial. At another point, Grace's journal becomes another voice heard. Grace was the woman hanged for the murder of her husband, Dr. Ernest Fox. This is when I became hooked and couldn't stop reading.
The author has done an excellent job of carrying the story back and forth from England during WWII to the present time as he weaves the different threads necessary to the solving of the mystery of who Grace Fox was and if she truly murdered her husband. The various characters are believable and interesting, and I think many readers will find this to be a first rate read.

I found this book to be an entertaining read with an interesting plot. The story is told in alternating chapters by Toni and her mother, Evie. After a confusing second chapter, I finally figured out I needed to pay attention to the chapter headings. Toni has returned home to care for Evie after she found comatose due to a stroke. Toni leaves her successful catering business and a romance she hoped would end in marriage to care for her mother.

The Little Black Dress appears early in the story. It weaves its magic through and around both main characters and also a third person in the story, Toni's Aunt Anna, who disappeared after breaking her engagement the night before her wedding. The LBD, worn first by Anna, is indeed magic, but is it good or evil?

The story was well told, but became a tad predictable as the plot unfolded. The complications between sisters and daughters are a familiar theme, but still manage to hold the reader's interest. The female characters were vivid, but the male characters came across as flat and somewhat one-dimensional. There could have been a little more tug and pull in Toni's relationship with her boyfriend to liven things up.

A good summer read, nonetheless.

Hm-m-m-m...where to begin? When I read this book, I found it to be a rich, vivid historical fiction and recommended it to my daughter. She declared it to be a bodice-ripping romance, and my sister, when asked about it, smiled knowingly and said, "Every woman deserves a Jamie Fraser." Then there is the whole sci-fi time travel angle going on, too. In essence, there's something for everyone in this compelling story by Diana Gabaldon. The author has done a wonderful job of peopling an epic adventure with characters you either root for or love to hate. Claire's incredible journey from post-WWII Scotland to a mid-eighteenth century village is a rousing, action-packed, enchanting read that has been enjoyed by legions of readers since it was first published.

I have always been fascinated by men like Leonardo da Vinci, Benjamin Franklin, and Thomas Jefferson because their interest in the world around them knew no bounds. They were scholars, writers, inventors, and artists. Early in the 1800s, four such men met while at Cambridge and formed a friendship that was to change the definition of the pursuit of science. Charles Babbage, John Herschel, Richard Jones, and William Whewell formed the Philosophical Breakfast Club based on their shared admiration of Francis Bacon and his writings on inductive reasoning and on his belief that "knowledge is power." Prior to this time, science was not practiced with other scientists. It was a solitary pursuit with little recognition or rewards. There was no agreed upon scientific method, and science was not thought of as something that could be used to improve the lives of ordinary people.

The term "scientist" was actually coined by Whewell. Up until his use of the word, anyone who pursued a scientific interest was known as a man of science or natural philosopher. Men of science experimented in a wide variety of disciplines, including art, poetry, theology, and photography.

Babbage, Herschel, Jones, and Hewell devoted their lives to transforming science and scientists. The author has presented a fascinating look at four giants of their time whose varied interests enabled them to map the stars, seas and land.

It is inevitable that comparisons will be drawn between The Little Princes and Three Cups of Tea, but Conor Grennan has written a book that deserves to stand on its own. Told in equal proportions of humor, compassion, and honesty, the story relates how the author came to be involved with a children's home in Nepal at the beginning of a year-long journey of travel around Asia and Southeast Asia. After volunteering at the home for three months, he vows to return. The children at the home are not orphans, but rather "disappeared" children, sent away by their parents to avoid conscription into the Maoist army in Nepal. Grennan and a French volunteer named Farid become obsessed with the idea of finding the parents of these children, most of them from the remote village of Humla. The story of this quest and Grennan's own personal growth draw the reader into a compelling story of how individuals can make a profound difference in the world by the simple act of caring about the welfare of others. I could not put the book down once I started reading it.

As I began 'The Wave', I expected it to be more about rogue waves round the world and the damage that ensues, and at first that is what pulled me into the book. I am a big fan of cruising as a vacation choice, and while I never worry about getting seasick, I do occasionally think about those monster waves that appear out of nowhere for no reason. The first part of the book addresses those situations, and I was properly horrified and fascinated.

The author, Susan Casey, then moved into the world of surfing and the people who pursue the big waves for the thrill and glory of the ride. A flatlander for most of my life, I found myself both appalled and amazed at the risks surfers such as Laird Hamilton take to ride the big ones. An accomplished writer, Ms. Casey helps you understand the allure of surfing and the mechanisms of the giant waves. It was an informative and entertaining glimpse into to a watery world about which I knew very little before I read this book.

Death Echo is a good summer read. It is fast-paced, engaging, and action-packed. The story takes place on the Northwest coast of America and Canada and includes some gorgeous scenery. A fictional covert spy agency has been ordered to recover a luxury yacht before it ends up in the wrong hands. The main characters are perhaps a little too perfect to make them totally believable (a la Clive Cussler ), but the action is non-stop and the plot line is fairly solid. I can see more stories with the same cast forthcoming. Well written and entertaining!

A brooding, atmospheric setting in England in the 1600's tells the story of the hard scrabble life of Bess Southern, a "wise woman" who only used her talents for healing or blessing people to support her family. Her daughters and granddaughters inherit the talent but not the wisdom for using it. I was drawn into the story and became attached to the characters as they tried to make a life for themselves in a community increasingly suspicious of anything even remotely related to witchcraft. Based on actual witchcraft trials in Pendle in1612, there is enough history to make the tale believable and enough magic to make it a gripping read.

Such a lovely read! This story, based on actual lives, pulled me right in. The characterization was excellent, allowing me to understand how each one dealt with their circumstances and to sympathize with their emotions and reactions. I enjoy historical fiction, and this one shines as it traces the lives and events of the two Oades families, separately and together. It is a testimony to the ability of the human spirit to triumph over adversity.

When I first started reading Dragon House, I found the writing to be a bit uneven and stilted. I had trouble staying with the book and put it down several times before I finally got into the story. Iris Rhodes flies to Vietnam to see the children's home her father was building in Saigon before his death. The author never really explains why her father felt compelled to do this, but the reader can surmise it was motivated by guilt after his involvement in the Vietnam War, a guilt that kept him estranged from his family throughout all of Iris's life. Those of us who reached adulthood during this era can completely identify with his need to rebuild the city in some meaningful way. Iris is accompanied by a childhood friend, Noah, who brings with him physical, mental, and emotional scars from the war in Iraq.

Once Iris and Noah reach Saigon, the story starts to pick up momentum. The reader meets the various characters and in spite of my earlier misgivings about the writing, I became attached to them all. The process of healing for both Iris and Noah keeps the story moving toward a very satisfying conclusion. It is a feel good story, complete with a few teary moments.

Zivatar is a small Hungarian village that has managed to exclude itself from the march of time and technology, and the setting comes across as something out of the Middle Ages because nothing ever changes. Not even Valeria, the crusty village shrew. That is, until she falls head over heels in love at the ripe old age of 68.

When I first met Valeria, I was not prepared to like her as the main character. As the story unfolds, so does the life of Valeria. You can't help but cheer for her as she battles for the affection of the village potter. Supported by a cast of hilarious characters, the village and Valeria find their way into a new life and a new world. Valeria's Last Stand is a fun read and you will enjoy the comical characters you will meet in Zivatar.

Mikael Blomkvist and Lisbeth Salander must surely be the Odd Couple of crime fighters. Lisbeth, the girl with the dragon tattoo, is not the main character, but she is far more interesting than Mikael. She is a quirky, scary-smart investigator who knows how to raise revenge to an art form. Mikael is a moral, compassionate, hardworking financial journalist who finds himself in dire straits when he is convicted of libel and defamation of a crooked financier. Coerced into looking into a cold case murder while waiting to serve his sentence, he eventually teams up with Lisbeth.

After a slow start, bogged down in background about Swedish financial history, I thoroughly enjoyed the book and raced through to its very satisfying conclusion. I am hoping that Mikael's character gains more dimension in the next two books of the trilogy. He's likable, but not fascinating.

In the past several years, I have read enough books depicting the lives of average German citizens during WWII to realize that as hard as it is for Americans to understand, many Germans were unaware of the use of Hitler's death camps to systematically eliminate the Jews. This was one of the themes in Skeletons at the Feast.

We meet a group of people from different backgrounds bound together by a shared goal of moving across Germany during a bitter winter in order to reach the American and British troops. I had a hard time keeping everyone straight in the beginning as the story moved from one group to another, but I quickly become invested in the story and the characters. I did wonder if a family of prosperous German farmers would be as noble as the Emmerichs were in their suffering, but I was caught up in their struggle to survive nonetheless.

This is a story of sacrifice, tragedy, bravery, and a will to survive. I recommend it to adult readers who want a deeper understanding of life in WWII Germany.