Books Read November 2013

Adams, Ellery

• Poisoned Prose 

Fiction.  Fifth in a cozy series.  In this book, a mysterious storyteller who comes from the Appalachian mountains where her family has lived for generations.  What stands out most in this book for me is that she has a medical disorder that causes her skin to be blue, based on real occurrences of methemoglobinemia, a disorder that many members of an Appalachian family suffered from.  When the storyteller is murdered, Olivia finds that her tales hold the secret to a treasure that people are willing to kill for.

Barrett, Lorna

• Bookplate Special 

Fiction.  Third book in this cozy series about a mystery book store owner in a small New Hampshire town who keeps finding dead bodies.  With her sometimes acerbic sister and faithful employees, she keeps herself very busy solving murders.

Blake, Heather

• A Potion to Die For 

Fiction.  First in a paranormal cozy mystery series starring Carly Bell Hartwell, also known as Care Bear to her currently ex-fiance.  She owns a potion shop specializing in love spells and comes to work one day to find a body taking up space on the floor of her breakroom...surrounded by blood.

Child, Lee

• Tripwire 

Fiction.  3rd in the Jack Reacher thriller series.  A private detective shows up in Key West where Jack happens to be working, but when he asks Jack if he knows who Jack Reacher is, Jack tells him no.  When he finds the private detective dead on the street, he goes in search of the client.

Clark, Mary Higgins

• The Night Awakens

Fiction.  Collection of short stories by various authors.  Most have something a bit dark and a bit romantic.

Dalai Lama, The

• In My Own Words 

Non-fiction.  Introduction to Buddhist philosophy and the practice of meditation, as well as a treatise on how the Buddhist contemplative tradition and neuroscience can work together to better the human experience.

Norman, Michael

• On Deadly Ground

Fiction.  First in a series set in Kanab, Utah starring an ex-Denver police detective who left the force in questionable circumstances and now works as a BLM ranger in the town he grew up in.  His job is made difficult by the two factions in his town...the cattlemen and the environmentalists.

Richan, Michael

• The Bank of The River 

Fiction.  First in a paranormal series about a man just getting to know his father and the secrets that they share, a magical book, and dangers of the unknown.

• A Haunting in Oregon

Fiction.  Second in a series about a father and son with special abilities who are called in to assist an old friend and his daughter with a paranormal problem at their bed and breakfast.

Tan, Amy

• The Joy Luck Club

Fiction.  Related stories of Chinese mothers and their Chinese-American daughters, the trials they’ve lived through, the differences between then, and how they finally connected.

Todd, Charles

• The Confession

Fiction.  Scotland Yard Inspector, Ian Rutledge, is approached in his office by a man reporting a murder.  He refuses to give any details about the murder other than revealing the names of the killer and the victim.  Rutledge begins to investigate the case, when suddenly another murder takes place.  This time, the victim is the man who had come to report the other murder.