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Dawn's Reading Log 2012


dawnbirduk

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P = Paperback K = Kindle H = Hardback

 

 

January

Vengeace Lies in Wait by Janice B Scott - P - Brilliant

The Blood Chamber and other Stories by Angela Carter - P

And Then There were none by Agatha Christie - K

The Girl who played with Fire by Stieg Larsson - K

 

February

The Girl who Kicked the Hornets Nest by Stieg Larsson - K

The One you Love by Paul Pilkington - K

On The Fifth Day by A J Hartley - K

 

March

The Mask of Atreus by A J Hartley - K

The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield - P

Pied Piper by Nevil Shute - P

The Fifth Child by Doris Lessing - H

An Axe to Grind by A A Fair - K

The Tenth Chamber - Glenn Cooper - P

Twisted by Andrea Kane - K

 

April

Drawn in Blood by Andrea Kane -K

Thr Dark Tide by Andrew Gross - K

Don't Look Twice by Andrew Gross - K

Level 26 by Anthony E Zuiker - K

Speak no evil by Allison Brennan - K

Fear no evil by Allison Brennan - K

 

May

See no Evil by Allison Brennan - K

 

June

 

July

 

August

 

September

 

October

 

November

 

December

 

Wishlist

 

Down to Earth by Melanie Rose

Over Sea, Under Stone (The Dark is Rising 1) by Susan Cooper

The Shack by William P Young

Murder at the Alter (Ellie Quickie 1) by Veronica Heley

Murder in Steeple Martin (Libby Sargeant Mysteries 1) by Lesley Cookman

Through a glass darkly by Bill Hussey

London: The Novel by Edward Rutherford

Lament: The Faerie Queen's Deception (Book of Faeries 1) by Maggie Stiefvater

The Woman in Black by Susan Hill

Emotional Geology by Linda Gillard

Howards End is on the Landing: A year of reading from Home by Susan Hill

In the Bleak Midwinter (Rev Clare Fergusson 1) by Julia Spencer-Fleming

A Christmas Guest - A Novel by Anne Perry

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Vengeance Lies in Wait by Janice B Scott

 

 

I got this book as a Birthday Present, it is set in Norfolk and the story centres around a woman rector. It was a very good story set round human intrigues passions and jealousies. The characters were very well presented and I got very involved in them.

When Rev. Polly Hewitt arrives as rector in a new parish, disturbing things happen to her. It seems that someone is out to get her, but who is targeting her and why?

 

The culmination is when Polly is taking a funeral, but discovers there is already a body in the grave. Who is the murder victim and who is the murderer?

 

When Polly tries to find out for herself, events escalate and she is soon in danger.

 

Set in the Norfolk countryside, this tale of intrigue in small villages with the unlikely backdrop of the Church of England, will grip you from the beginning.

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The Bloody Chamber and other Stories by Angela Carter

 

This is Book Club Forum book of the month for January, I really wasn't keen on it, I am not keen on short stories as I like a book I can get my teeth into, but I didn't enjoy the writing style, I found it most longwinded.

From familiar fairy tales and legends - Red Riding Hood, Bluebeard, Puss-in-Boots, Beauty and the Beast, vampires, werewolves - Angela Carter has created an absorbing collection of dark, sensual, fantastic stories.

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And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie

 

I read this book years ago and decided to reread it, on my new kindle, it is as good as I remembered it, thoroughly enjoyed the book, the plot and the characters

 

 

 

From Goodreads

Ten people, each with something to hide and something to fear, are invited to a lonely mansion on Indian Island by a host who, surprisingly, fails to appear. On the island they are cut off from everything but each other and the inescapable shadows of their own past lives. One by one, the guests share the darkest secrets of their wicked pasts. And one by one, they die-

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And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie

 

I read this book years ago and decided to reread it, on my new kindle, it is as good as I remembered it, thoroughly enjoyed the book, the plot and the characters

 

I'm happy to hear you enjoyed the book even the second time round :) It's one of those novels where you really can't see what's coming in the end! One of Christie's best, in my opinion :)

 

Happy reading in 2012! :friends3:

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The Girl who Played with Fire by Stieg Larsson

 

 

The second book of The Millennium Trilogy, wow a fantastic read, it is unbelievably well written, some of the sexual references in the early part of the book made me feel a bit uncomfortable, and it started slow, however, once you get into the book, it is a powerful read.

 

From Goodreads - Part blistering espionage thriller, part riveting police procedural, and part piercing exposé on social injustice, The Girl Who Played with Fire is a masterful, endlessly satisfying novel.

 

Mikael Blomkvist, crusading publisher of the magazine Millennium, has decided to run a story that will expose an extensive sex trafficking operation. On the eve of its publication, the two reporters responsible for the article are murdered, and the fingerprints found on the murder weapon belong to his friend, the troubled genius hacker Lisbeth Salander. Blomkvist, convinced of Salander’s innocence, plunges into an investigation. Meanwhile, Salander herself is drawn into a murderous game of cat and mouse, which forces her to face her dark past

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The Girl who Played with Fire by Stieg Larsson

The second book of The Millennium Trilogy, wow a fantastic read, it is unbelievably well written, some of the sexual references in the early part of the book made me feel a bit uncomfortable, and it started slow, however, once you get into the book, it is a powerful read.

 

What did you think about the ending ?

 

I'm just over half way on the The Girl Who Kicked the Hornets Nest I prefer it to "Fire"

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The Girl who Kicked the Hornets Nest by Stieg Larsson

 

 

Another good read in this final one of the series, however, I do think that the first one The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo is by far the best in the trilogy

 

From Goodreads - Lisbeth Salander—the heart of Larsson’s two previous novels—lies in critical condition, a bullet wound to her head, in the intensive care unit of a Swedish city hospital. She’s fighting for her life in more ways than one: if and when she recovers, she’ll be taken back to Stockholm to stand trial for three murders. With the help of her friend, journalist Mikael Blomkvist, she will not only have to prove her innocence, but also identify and denounce those in authority who have allowed the vulnerable, like herself, to suffer abuse and violence. And, on her own, she will plot revenge—against the man who tried to kill her, and the corrupt government institutions that very nearly destroyed her life.

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Glad you enjoyed it Dawn I plan on starting this after I've finished Mistress Masham's Repose it's nearly a year since I read the second one so thought it was about time I got round to finishing the trilogy.

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The One you Love by Paul Pilkington

 

 

Emma Holden's nightmare has just begun. Her fiancé vanishes, leaving the battered and bloodied body of his brother in their London apartment. Someone is stalking her, watching her every move. And her family are hiding a horrifying secret; a secret that threatens all those she loves. In a desperate race against time, Emma must uncover the truth if she ever wants to see her fiancé alive again

 

This was a FREE kindle book from Amazon, and I loved it, it was a great read.

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On the Fifth Day by A.J. Hartley

 

 

An interesting and exciting book never heard of this author a most entertaining read, I empathised with all the characters.

 

From Goodreads - The death of a priest is met with suspicion by his brother Thomas, who knows that his sibling died while researching Christian symbols. But Thomas and curator Deborah Miller aren't alone in retracing the priest's final steps. They're followed by fanatics desperate to hide the secret stumbled upon by Thomas's brother-and willing to kill to keep it buried forever.

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The Mask of Atreus by A J Hartley

 

It was a good interesting book, with likeable characters, twisted and turned along the way, I did begin to see who the 'villain' was but it in no way detracted from the story.

 

From Goodreads - An obscure museum's dead proprietor lies in a secret room surrounded by one of the world's most astonishing collections of Greek antiquities. Only a priceless Mycenaean death mask has been taken, along with the bones of a legendary hero thought to exist only in ancient myth. Looted by the Nazis, the treasures are still being sought by those whose dreams of glory remain undefeated.

 

The mask is an unparalleled discovery that will be a force for devastating retribution in the wrong hands. But by the time museum curator Deborah Miller learns the truth, it may be too late not only to save herself--but to reveal to the world the awesome secret she's uncovered

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The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield

 

 

This is being read for Hunstanton Town Read, a great read, a thoroughly enjoyable story, I loved the storyline and the characters.

From Goodreads - Angelfield House stands abandoned and forgotten. It was once the imposing home of the March family--fascinating, manipulative Isabelle, Charlie her brutal and dangerous brother, and the wild, untamed twins, Emmeline and Adeline. But Angelfield House conceals a chilling secret whose impact still resonates...

 

Now Margaret Lea is investigating Angelfield's past--and the mystery of the March family starts to unravel. What has Angelfield been hiding? What is its connection with the enigmatic author Vida Winter? And what is it in Margaret's own troubled past that causes her to fall so powerfully under Angelfilds spell

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Pied Piper by Nevil Shute

 

It was an unusual book for me, and I did enjoy the writing style and the characters. I enjoyed the storyline immensely.

 

 

It is the summer of 1940 and in Europe the time of Blitzkreig. John Howard, a 70-year-old Englishman vacationing in France, cuts shorts his tour and heads for home. He agrees to take two children with him.

But war closes in. Trains fail, roads clog with refugees. And if things were not difficult enough, other children join in Howard's little band. At last they reach the coast and find not deliverance but desperation. The old Englishman's greatest test lies ahead of him.

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The Fifth Child by Doris Lessing

 

 

This the book of the month for April, a strange book, I didn't really enjoy it, but I couldn't put it down.

 

 

From Goodreads - Doris Lessing's contemporary gothic horror story—centered on the birth of a baby who seems less than human—probes society's unwillingness to recognize its own brutality.Harriet and David Lovatt, parents of four children, have created an idyll of domestic bliss in defiance of the social trends of late 1960s England. While around them crime and unrest surge, the Lovatts are certain that their old-fashioned contentment can protect them from the world outside—until the birth of their fifth baby. Gruesomely goblin-like in appearance, insatiably hungry, abnormally strong and violent, Ben has nothing innocent or infant-like about him. As he grows older and more terrifying, Harriet finds she cannot love him, David cannot bring himself to touch him, and their four older children are afraid of him. Understanding that he will never be accepted anywhere, Harriet and David are torn between their instincts as parents and their shocked reaction to this fierce and unlovable child whose existence shatters their belief in a benign world
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An Axe to Grind by A A Fair

 

 

Being unable to find this book on Goodreads, I did a search on Fantastic Fiction and found it was a pseudonym used by Erle Stanley Gardner.

This is a book in the Donald Lam and Bertha Cool series, I have to say I wasn't terribly impressed, it was set in wartime America, and I felt it wasn't portrayed very well.

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The Tenth Chamber by Glenn Cooper

 

 

What can I say a fantastic sensational book, I couldn't put it down - it had everything, murder, mayhem, archeology, great story, good characters - what more can one ask!!

 

From Goodreads - Abbey of Ruac, rural France - A medieval script is discovered hidden behind an antique bookcase. Badly damaged, it is sent to Paris for restoration, and there literary historian Hugo Pineau begins to read the startling fourteenth-century text. Within its pages lies a fanciful tale of a painted cave and the secrets it contains - and a rudimentary map showing its position close to the abbey. Intrigued, Hugo enlists the help of archaeologist Luc Simard and the two men go exploring. When they discover a vast network of prehistoric caves, buried deep within the cliffs, they realize that they've stumbled across something extraordinary. And at the very core of the labyrinth lies the most astonishing chamber of all, just as the manuscript chronicled. Aware of the significance of their discovery, they set up camp with a team of experts, determined to bring their find to the world. But as they begin to unlock the ancient secrets the cavern holds, they find themselves at the centre of a dangerous game. One 'accidental' death leads to another. And it seems that someone will stop at nothing to protect the enigma of the tenth chamber

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Twisted By Andrea Kane

 

A brilliant book, I loved it, I liked the characters and the storyline.

 

From Goodreads - The acclaimed author of "Dark Room" is back with the first novel in a brilliant new series of romantic thrillers that takes readers inside the FBI and the life of a hostage negotiator.

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Drawn in Blood by Andrea Kane

 

 

 

I found this a great read and a great story.

From Goodreads - Former FBI Special Agent Sloane Burbank has seen her share of danger, but she never expected that danger to invade the lives of her family. Then her mother is viciously attacked in the posh Manhattan apartment her parents share and it quickly becomes clear that this is no ordinary robbery. They were obviously after something of her father's, and she soon realizes he's in over his head. Determined to find out the truth, Sloane discovers a deadly secret buried in his past that has made him the target of a power-hungry mobster with a lethal agenda and nothing to lose

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The Dark Tide by Andrew Gross

 

 

A great book, I thoroughly enjoyed it

 

 

From Goodreads - Gross, who's partnered with James Patterson on a number of bestsellers (Lifeguard, etc.), mixes murder, suspense, sex and romance as capably as his mentor in his assured second solo thriller (after The Blue Zone). Charles Friedman, a New York hedge fund trader, perishes in a bombing at Grand Central Station that destroys the railroad car in which he was riding one morning from his home in Greenwich, Conn. Ty Hauck, head of the Greenwich police's violent crime unit, enters the picture when a hit-and-run victim turns out to have a vague connection to Friedman. Soon, Friedman's widow and her kids are threatened by men searching for vast sums of money her late husband never earned. The stakes rise as Hauck's involvement shifts from professional to personal. While the reader will occasionally see the next drop, tunnel or curve looming far ahead, the roller-coaster thrills are still there in abundance
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Level 26 by Anthony E Zuiker

 

 

Anthony E Zuiker is the creater and executive producer of CSI.

 

After a shaky start when I thought this was too dark, however, once the chase began it improved, a fantastic read.

 

From Goodreads - It is well known among law enforcement personnel that murderers can be categorized on a scale of twenty-five levels of evil, from the naive opportunists starting out at Level 1 to the organized, premeditated torture-murderers who inhabit Level 25.

 

What almost no one knows, except for the elite unnamed investigations group assigned to hunt down the world's most dangerous killers, a group of men and women accounted for in no official ledger, headed by the brilliant but reluctant operative Steve Dark, is that a new category of killer is in the process of being defined.

 

Only one man belongs to this group.

 

His targets:

Anyone.

 

His methods:

Unlimited.

 

His alias:

Sqweegel.

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