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Tuesday, October 28, 2008
I really meant to keep up...
Sigh. This might be everything - I tried to slow down when I realized there was a backlog again. These are generally organized from good to bad-ish.
Playing James
by Sarah Mason
Mediocre reporter gets assigned to the police beat in a PR move for the department where they have her riding along with one of the officers (James). They’re both in relationships but have the traditional bickering and reluctant attraction, and eventually end up together. Really liked this one, and not just because they had British accents in my head while I was reading.
Rumble on the Bayou
by Jana DeLeon
Local small-town sherriff (daughter of the former sheriff) has to call in the feds when they discover a crocodile full of cocaine floating in a woman’s pool. Fed that's sent has history with the theoretical bad guy and doesn't understand small-town politics. Power struggles, deep hidden secrets, etc. Fun.
Stacked Deck
by Terry Watkins
Rather like what maybe happens to the girls from Gallagher Academy when they grow up – a secret network of super-awesome female spies traveling around and saving the world. Absolutely ludicrous, and I love it that way. Supposedly this is part of a series (“Athena Force”), but my library seems to only have this book. Thankfully the library also has a form where I can recommend things to add to the collection ("pretty please buy more books about hot female spies so I can live vicariously through the books!").
Don’t Look Down
by Suzanne Enoch
Sequel to Flirting with Danger; former cat burglar is now engaged to British billionaire (seriously, the accent AND the bank account? I’m in love) and goes legit, becoming a PI who has to solve the murder of her first client. As always, though I liked the characters the first time I was okay with not knowing what happened during their happily-ever-after phase.
Drop Dead Gorgeous
by Linda Howard
Sequel to To Die For; again, I was happy when we left the couple alone and happy and alive at the end of the book. But no, we have to have more random attempts on her life.
The Deadliest Strain
by Jan Coffey
Chasing a rare, infections strain of bacteria. There was potential for a romance that was never explored - that made me sad. I want either non-fiction involving bacteria OR fiction involving sex. This was neither.
Village Affairs: A Mystery
by Cassandra Chan
British, in an ambiguous time period, aristocrat/amateur sleuth helps out when his Scotland Yard friend gets called in to work a case. At least he has a high-strung model girlfriend to make things interesting...
Body Language
by Suzanne Brockmann
Best friends are attracted to each other but each thinks they don't stand a chance with the other. They pretend to be together so that she can make some jerk she works with jealous, pretend starts feeling real, then big misunderstanding and argument, then all happy in the end.
Seven Days and Seven Nights
by Wendy Wax
Rival radio talk-show hosts have to share a small apartment for a week. They have some history, are reluctantly attracted, etc. Poor communication ensues for a while but is anyone really surprised that they get together in the end?
Public Displays of Affection
by Susan Donovan
There seem to be a LOT of books out there based on the premise that this naïve girl has a hot fling (often on the side of a road) with a nameless but gorgeous guy, then goes off and marries someone else who proceeds to die, and then the nameless guy miraculously moves in next door and they realize they were meant to be together forever. Does this really ever happen?
Bad Girls Don’t
by Cathie Liz
Belly Dancer/free spirit extraordinaire is just what the uptight cop mourning his dead wife needs. (gag)
TailSpin
by Catherine Coulter
The Sherlock/Savich series really isn’t doing it for me anymore.
No Safe Place
by JoAnn Ross
Cop gets dragged into helping investigate the disappearance/death of her estranged twin (con artist) sister, with the assistance of a former cop who went bad (supposedly). Everyone’s redeemed in the end.
Kiss of Death
by Meryl Sawyer
Iraq war vet inherits an estate from his mysterious uncle, there’s lots of murder attempts that throw him together with the caretaker who, as usual, butts heads with him but is reluctantly attracted, etc. Don’t remember how it’s resolved.
Wizard’s Daughter
by Catherine Coulter
I remember a bit of this. It was weird, and involved a trip to an alternate realm at the end. Catherine doesn’t usually do the supernatural stuff. Very bizarre.
EDIT: to anyone who gets this multiple times, sorry! I kept finding books that were left out...Labels: Brit lit, burglary, crap, girl power, hunky armed forces or government operatives, irresponsible parents, melodrama, romantic "suspense", trashy romance
posted by ket at
12:42 PM
1
comments
Monday, July 28, 2008
Meh.
Tribute
by Nora Roberts
Follows her usual plot of boy meets girl, they solve unresolved tragedy from her past, she almost dies at the end, but the baddie is captured/killed, they live happily ever after.
This time Cilla buys the farm where her (famous actress) grandmother mysteriously died of an overdose decades ago, falls for Ford who lives across the street, and stirs up memories of the past which results in mysterious accidents and stuff until the truth comes out that it was someone close to them and unexpected (Nora never gives hints), and then Cilla and Ford can get married.
I suppose that all could have been labeled with spoiler, but it's not like you read a Nora and think they might break up...Labels: irresponsible parents, melodrama, romantic "suspense"
posted by ket at
10:33 PM
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Monday, December 31, 2007
spooooky!
Title: Pride and Prescience: or, A Truth Universally Acknowledged
Author: Carrie Bebris
This one's all spoilers.
Set in the period after Darcy and Elizabeth's marriage, this takes the existing characters on a few weird adventures. Darcy and Elizabeth are apparently now re-imagined as crime-solvers, and they get involved trying to figure out what's wrong with Miss Bingley, who is very disturbed following her marriage to an American landowner. I liked the concept initially, but then the plot got rather quirky. There's a professor of magical studies (not in so many words, but he studies things like tools of medicine men and stuff), and Elizabeth and Darcy quarrel over the existence of supernatural powers, and then it turns out that Miss Bingley's problems are the result of wearing a cursed ring (her wedding ring) that allows the possessor of the mate (in this case, her evil husband) to control her actions, and he's been trying to use her to kill off her siblings and then herself so he can have all the Bingley money - plot contrivances that include an overturned carriage, setting fire to Netherfield, a suicide attempt, and a dazed walk through a bad part of town at night. But Elizabeth saves the day in the end, gets the ring off Miss Bingley's finger, and survives a semi-violent confrontation involving Darcy versus the bad guy. Mr. and Mrs. Hurst (facing scandal from Hurst's gaming debts) take Miss Bingley (ok, fine, Mrs. Bad Guy) to the continent and are hopefully never heard from again.
I'm debating requesting the next in the series. I like Darcy and Elizabeth, but if this is any indication of what the other 2 books in the series are like, I have low expectations.Labels: Austen, Brit lit, crap, high society, melodrama
posted by ket at
5:32 PM
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Friday, November 23, 2007
um, no.
Someone to Love
By Jude Deveraux
Jace's fiance died suspiciously in England; he finds a postcard sent to her days before her death several years later with a house on it and is still not over her, so he buys the estate and tries to figure it out. Helped by Nigh, local girl who'd been a war reporter for a few years, hindered by housekeeper Mrs. Brown; also ghosts in estate that they interact with. Mrs. Brown is actually the aunt of a mobster who'd had affair with the now dead fiance when she was a teen in England at boarding school (which she never told Jace about), he tried to get back together with her when she and Jace were in england but she turned him down. He told Mrs. Brown she broke his heart, she killed the fiance in a guest room at the local pub where she was staying and made it look like suicide. Jace makes friends with his estate employees and townspeople over the course of the story, and stays there but buys smaller place with Nigh, since his love for her helped him recover from the dead fiance and all he learned about her after her death.Labels: Brit lit, crap, ghosts, melodrama, romantic "suspense", trashy romance
posted by ket at
12:19 PM
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Sunday, November 04, 2007
My Sister's Kidney
Title: My Sister’s Keeper
Author: Jodi Picoult
I can be a forgiving reader. Really. I enjoy the cheesiness of laughably bad books. The only books that I find truly detestable are those which insult my intelligence by discussing serious topics in a completely ridiculous manner. Unfortunately, Jodi Picoult’s My Sister’s Keeper is just one of these loathsome beasts.
Warning: I’m about to spoil the plot of this book shamelessly and with relish! If you had actually wanted to read it…tough.
Kate was diagnosed with leukemia when she was a baby. No one in her family was a perfect match as a donor, so her parents conceived another child for the sole purpose of being a “perfect match” for Kate. They ensured that the child could be a donor through “preimplantation genetic diagnoses.” Enter Anna. By the time Anna’s thirteen, she’s given blood transfusions, bone marrow, and stem cells in order to keep the sinking Kate afloat. Now Kate’s kidneys are failing, and she needs a transplant. Otherwise, she dies.
And guess what? Anna says “no.” No, Kate. No kidney for you.
We actually have a very interesting premise here. Anna hires a lawyer, Campbell, who specializes in obtaining “medical emancipation” for minors. If a court finds that her parents aren’t making medical decisions in her best interest, a judge will give the responsibility to Anna or a legal guardian. Is it in Anna’s best interest to donate her kidney to Kate? Can she be forced to do so? Does she have a legal obligation, a moral obligation? All fascinating questions, which could make for a ripping tell of medical and legal ethics.
But Picoult RUINS IT ALL.
First, she makes Campbell a secret epileptic. And Anna’s interim legal guardian, Julia, is Campbell’s ex-lover. They were high school sweethearts before Campbell inexplicably ditched Julia the day of graduation – which he only did because he’d just learned of his epilepsy and wanted to “protect” her from the truth. Still, sexual tensions simmer between them. However, every time they get close to tearing each other’s clothes off, Campbell feels an epileptic attack approaching and flees the room. Seriously. Every time. He’s just as compulsive about it as Clark Kent. Guess flashing lights aren’t the only stressors that cause seizures…
A not-so-seismic courtroom scene is the book’s climax, and Picoult springs several stupid “twists” upon the reader. I say “twists,” but that’s not really fair, because they’ve been obvious all along. See, Anna’s not really a selfish creature who is so possessive of her bodily organs that she’ll let her sister die instead of relinquishing one measly little kidney. Oh no. Anna refused only because Kate secretly asked her to. *everyone gasp* Apparently, a life in hospitals connected to tubes no longer appeals to Kate. Who knows, maybe she saw The Matrix and freaked. Either way, she’s ready to chuck it all. Anna agreed with the plan only reluctantly, after Kate threatened a gruesome suicide.
Oh, and immediately after Anna’s dramatic confession on the witness stand…Campbell suffers a seizure in front of everyone! Surprise!!! Now Julia knows the truth, and they can live happily every after. But really, why do we care?
(Oh, and there’s another lame side plot where Anna’s father, Brian, is a firefighter trying to discover the identity of an arsonist who has been striking with increasing frequency. In an ironic twist, the arsonist is his own son, who is clearly striking out because he feels he doesn’t get enough attention. Nice. But the son kind of has a point, I guess. I mean, I wouldn’t have cared about him except for the arson, and even with that, he only merited one measly paragraph in this review. Unfortunate boy.)
So now Anna’s an angel (the silly girl won’t even lie under oath), and Campbell and Julia are gazing at each other with bedroom eyes. But what about Kate? She can’t really let herself…die, can she? Isn’t that a wee bit…evil? Don’t suicides go to hell?
Don’t worry, little children, Mommy Picoult will make everyone happy again – or at least morally righteous! And they’ll all get into heaven.
Oh, but Mommy Picoult, how?
Simple. As Campbell, Julia, and Anna drive from the courtroom in the rain – a giant truck hits their car! Campbell and Julia are badly injured, but live. Anna dies. How sad. Actually, she’s brain dead, although still breathing on a respirator. Campbell and her parents decide to pull the plug. Her kidney is quickly harvested and transplanted into Kate, who’s wavered in her determination not to receive it now that her sister’s pavement pancake. Kate makes a miraculous recovery and lives on indefinitely. Yay.
Despicable.
Picoult raised all those interesting questions – medical emancipation, a patient’s right to refuse treatment, etc. – and copped out on them all. None of them resulted in real consequences. How cowardly. Grow a backbone, Jodi. Better yet, if you have siblings, rip one out from them. I’m sure they don’t need it as much as you.
Actually, there was one good thing about this book: Campbell has a dog with him at all times that is trained to detect impending seizures. Whenever someone asks what the dog is for, Campbell gives a smart-ass answer. For example: “I have an iron lung, and he keeps me away from magnets.” “I’m a recovering alcoholic, and he keeps me out of bars.” Or, “I’m color-blind, he tells me when traffic lights change.” Ha! Those were great.
Several months ago, I met a colleague who was clearly very intelligent and driven and dedicated to her career. At first, I found her rather intimidating. But when we were discussing books several weeks ago, she mentioned a pure adoration of Jodi Picoult. While doing so, her eyes shone with genuine admiration.
I’m not intimidated by her anymore.Labels: epilepsy, ethics, fiction, leukemia, melodrama
posted by Elizabeth at
8:38 AM
5
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