Shin's 2010 Reads

[Shin]

Thanks for that but I bought it and I`ve nearly finished it now. I have enjoyed it so far ( not too many tears either!) I like the idea that that`s what I`ll find when I die.

 

Glad you are liking it...it such a lovely read. x

[Shin]

Synopsis: Sara Linton, medical examiner in the small town of Heartsdale, is called out to an apparent suicide on the local college campus. The mutilated body provides little in the way of clues - and the college authorities are keen to avoid a scandal - but for Sara and police chief Jeffrey Tolliver, things don't add up. Two more suspicious suicides follow, and a young woman is brutally attacked. For Sara, the violence strikes far too close to home. And as Jeffrey pursues the sadistic killer, he discovers that ex-police detective Lena Adams, now a security guard on campus, may be in possession of crucial information. But, bruised and angered by her expulsion from the force, Lena seems to be barely capable of protecting herself, let alone saving the next victim...

 

A Faint Cold Fear is the third book in the Grant County series and Sara, Jeffrey and Lena find themselves investigating suicides on the local college. I was really keen to read this book after reading the first chapter at the end of Kisscut as the excitement starts from the beginning. Then when I got the actual book to read I felt I was struggling a little bit but that could have just been my mojo. It was up and down in the first half and then I really began to enjoy it. It wasn't the constant the page turner like Blindsighted but the storyline had me intrigued.

 

I really love the relationship development with Sara and Jeffrey. Well, what can I say about Jeffrey in general? I really just love this character and find him very sexy for a fictional character...sad eh? Then there is Lena, the complicated character. I have to admit that Lena's story sort of bores me a little and sometimes I would love to shake the girl but I did find myself wanting to read more of her part in this book.

 

This is a great book and again Slaughter keeps us guessing with her twists and turns of the storyline. What I really love about Slaughter's writing is that even though you think you have the ending in the bag....it never really happens that way. Great read.

 

 

The way Slaughter gets you thinking that all the killings and attacks were related to race made me think that the killer was Ethan White. Or Dr Brian Keller, just because he was a horrible wife beater. But in the back of my mind I was thinking this is what Slaughter wanted all her readers to think and that it had to be someone we are expecting but I couldn't think of who. Richard Carter was the last person that would have came to mind. I just thought he was just a little creep. I just love the way Slaughter brings all her characters and stories into one eventually. This is why I think you have to read the series from the beginning.

 

 

Rating: 5/5

[pipread]

I`ve never read Karin Slaughter, but I think I should give her a try she sounds like my kind of author.

[Shin]

I`ve never read Karin Slaughter, but I think I should give her a try she sounds like my kind of author.

 

Definitely read her books, she was introduced to me by catwoman and I heard a lot of them raving about her on here. So I got the first book in the Grant County series to see what all the fuss was about and I couldn't put it down. They are great.

[Shin]

Synopsis: When medical examiner Sara Linton and police chief Jeffrey Tolliver take a trip away from the small town of Heartsdale - an escape from all the pressures which complicate their relationship - it should be a straightforward weekend at the beach. But they decide to take a detour via Jeffrey's hometown and things go violently wrong when Jeffrey's best friend Robert shoots dead an intruder who breaks into his house.

Jeffrey and Sara are first on the scene and Jeffrey's keen to clear his friend's name, but for Sara things aren't so simple. The sear marks around the bullet-hole don't tally with Robert's story. Robert's wife, Jessie, is incoherent and confused. And when Jeffrey appears to change the crime scene, Sara no longer knows who to trust.

Twelve years later, Sara and Jeffrey are caught up in a shockingly brutal attack which threatens to destroy both their lives. But they're not random victims. They've been targeted. And it seems the past is catching up with both of them...

 

This is the fourth book in the Grant County series and this time Slaughter takes us back to the beginning of Sara and Jeffrey’s relationship. Sara and Jeffrey are off to the beach and along the way they stop off at Sylacauga, Jeffrey’s hometown. As usual disaster strikes during their visit, one of Jeffrey’s friends shoots dead an intruder and secrets start to unravel. Years later, Sara and Jeffrey are targeted in a horrific attack.

 

I can honestly say that Indelible is my favourite Slaughter book so far. I loved going back to the past and reading about the younger, feisty Jeffrey. At the beginning of the book Sara and Jeffrey are targeted in a horrible, vicious attack. The book then takes you back to the past and that is how the book is lead out, jumping from the past to the present. Indelible was a book that I could not put down, it had a big impact on me. I couldn’t stop thinking about it and even dreamt that I was reading the book. I just know that when I have read all the Grant County series that it will leave a gaping hole, just like Twilight did. And not very many books do that to me.

 

There were quite of few gasps and ahs, when Slaughter starts unfolding all the secrets, piece by piece. Again, I thought I had it all in the bag only to be proven wrong once again. This is what I love about her stories, you think that the result is predictable and it certainly is not. I just love the way she involves the story from the first book of the series to this one and I know she will continue to do this in future books. The only thing about these books that the endings come around really fast and there are times I have turned the page to find there is no more pages left. An amazing read.

 

I have to admit I was clueless in this book; normally I tried my best to figure out “whodunit”. But I was just baffled with this one and quite shocked when I got to the point that the shooter was Jared. But it wasn’t Jared (just another twist) and this is the point were Jeffrey finds out that Jared is actually his son. I never thought that the shooters were the Kendall’s, one thinking that he is also Jeffrey’s son. I just think that the storyline is so well thought out that I never expected the shooters to be Sonny and Eric.

 

Rating: 5/5

Edited March 10, 2010 by Shin

[Janet]

Notes from a Small Island - Bill Bryson

 

I can't wait to read the Bill Br [/b]

This was my first Bryson book. It's really good - I hope you enjoy it.

[Shin]

This was my first Bryson book. It's really good - I hope you enjoy it.

 

Thanks Janet, I can't wait to read it but I have to get through my priority list first.

[frankie]

Hm, am I completely wrong or did you go straight from the third Sara Linton -novel to the fifth one? Why didn't you read the 4th one? *

 

Anyways, great reviews Shin You are totally making me want to reread the whole series right now

 

* My mistake. You read them in the right order but you just mentioned that Indelible is the fifth novel by mistake. I didn't mean to be nitpicky, I was just worried if you'd accidentally left a book unread between the 3rd and 5th one.

Edited March 10, 2010 by frankie

[Shin]

Hm, am I completely wrong or did you go straight from the third Sara Linton -novel to the fifth one? Why didn't you read the 4th one? *

 

Anyways, great reviews Shin You are totally making me want to reread the whole series right now

 

* My mistake. You read them in the right order but you just mentioned that Indelible is the fifth novel by mistake. I didn't mean to be nitpicky, I was just worried if you'd accidentally left a book unread between the 3rd and 5th one.

 

Frankie, I thought the same thing. I went to the library today to pick up Faithless and in the front of the book it had the order. Indelible came after Faithless and I thought I read them the wrong way round. Then I went onto Fantastic Fiction website and it confirmed that Faithless was number five. I did my review after that so I think that's were my confusion came from in my review. Thanks for pointing that out hun.

[frankie]

Frankie, I thought the same thing. I went to the library today to pick up Faithless and in the front of the book it had the order. Indelible came after Faithless and I thought I read them the wrong way round. Then I went onto Fantastic Fiction website and it confirmed that Faithless was number five. I did my review after that so I think that's were my confusion came from in my review. Thanks for pointing that out hun.

 

Ah I see I never trust those orders in the front of the books because far too many times there are some "slight" changes for who knows why and I just don't trust the lists unless they specifically mention 'in chronological order'. I have no idea why anyone would want to publish the order of the books in any other way but still it always happens

 

When the time comes that I'll work in a library I will print out the right orders of each thriller series there is and put them right beside the thriller shelves so people can check the chronological order of the series!

Edited March 10, 2010 by frankie

[Shin]

When the time comes that I'll work in a library I will print out the right orders of each thriller series there is and put them right beside the thriller shelves so people can check the chronological order of the series!

 

Great idea, I just hate it when I am in a library trying to figure out if the book is the next in the series that I need to read. I suppose I could pop onto their computers to double check but the computers are always occupied.

[frankie]

Great idea, I just hate it when I am in a library trying to figure out if the book is the next in the series that I need to read. I suppose I could pop onto their computers to double check but the computers are always occupied.

 

Exactly! In our library there are no computers upstairs (where the books are) that are allowed to be used for Internet, there are only ones where you can check out which books are in the library etc. And those programmes don't show the order of book series So I'd have to walk downstairs to the magazine section to get to a normal computer and those are always occupied and there are long queues for them.

[Shin]

Synopsis from Waterstones: Sookie comes to the rescue of a naked, amnesiac vampire - and ends up in the middle of a war between witches, werewolves and vampires! Sookie Stackhouse is a small-town cocktail waitress in small-town Louisiana. She's pretty. She does her job well. She keeps to herself - she has only a few close friends, because not everyone appreciates Sookie's gift: she can read minds. That's not exactly every man's idea of date bait - unless they're undead - vampires and the like can be tough to read. And that's just the kind of guy Sookie's been looking for. Maybe that's why, when she comes across a naked vampire on the way home from work, she doesn't just drive on by. He hasn't got a clue who he is, but Sookie has: Eric looks just as scary and sexy - and dead - as the day she met him. But now he has amnesia, he's sweet, vulnerable, and in need of Sookie's help - because whoever took his memory now wants his life. Sookie's investigation into what's going on leads her straight into a dangerous battle between witches, vampires and werewolves. But there could be even greater danger - to Sookie's heart, because the kinder, gentler Eric is very hard to resist. The Sookie Stackhouse books are delightful Southern Gothic supernatural mysteries, starring Sookie, the telepathic cocktail waitress, and a cast of increasingly colourful characters, including vampires, werewolves and things that really do go bump in the night.

 

I have to admit that I am going to find it quite hard to review this book. Although I really do love the Southern Vampire series and TrueBlood, this fourth installment wasn't as exciting as the previous books. I was a little sad at the beginning knowing that Bill would not be making much of an appearance in this book but Eric featured quite a lot in it. I wasn't much of a fan of Eric Northman but I am swaying more towards him now.

 

Towards the end of the book

Bill finally makes an appearance along with Bubba to join the Weres, witches and vampires to fight the evil witches.

I like the idea of the Supes getting together as allies to

fight the evil witches.

But I found myself blinking...then that scene was over. I didn't think that the

evil witches featured enough in this book.

We are also introduced to other characters and I was left wondering what their relevence was to the storyline. Maybe there is a relevence in later books and this is only a small introduction.

Then there is Jason...a werepanther?

 

Even though this book isn't the best so far, I still enjoyed it and I would love to see more of Eric again. I do like Alcide but to be honest, I was never one for Weres. I just love the vampires. So just Bill and Eric in the book is enough to make me enjoy it.

 

Even though I enjoyed it, the reason I gave this book is a 3.5/5 is that I know that the books can be must better than this one. And of course because of that one scene at the end.

 

Rating: 3.5/5

[Shin]

Synopsis from Waterstones: Sookie's got just a month, before the next full moon, to find out who wants her brother dead - and to stop the fiend! Sookie Stackhouse enjoys her life, mostly. She's a great cocktail waitress in a fun bar; she has a love life, albeit a bit complicated, and most people have come to terms with her telepathy. The problem is, Sookie wants a quiet life - but things just seem to happen to her and her friends. Now her brother Jason's eyes are starting to change: he's about to turn into a were-panther for the first time. She can deal with that, but her normal sisterly concern turns to cold fear when a sniper sets his deadly sights on the local changeling population. She afraid not just because Jason's at risk, but because his new were-brethren suspect Jason may be the shooter. Sookie has until the next full moon to find out who's behind the attacks - unless the killer decides to find her first.

There is just not enough of vampire in this book for me. There is quite a bit of Alcide who I really did like the first time we were introduced to him in Club Dead...but now I am going slightly off him. There whole story line just rates fair with me. In fact, the main plot was so boring and dull. It wasn't really as exciting as the passed books have been but still I needed to finish the book, that's just me. I did get a little excited with the mention of Eric and now I can't even remember if Bill was in it at all. Not a great review from me but then again I think it was hard to rate a disappointing book.

 

Rating: 2.5/5

[catwoman]

 

I have to admit that I am going to find it quite hard to review this book. Although I really do love the Southern Vampire series and TrueBlood, this fourth installment wasn't as exciting as the previous books. I was a little sad at the beginning knowing that Bill would not be making much of an appearance in this book but Eric featured quite a lot in it. I wasn't much of a fan of Eric Northman but I am swaying more towards him now.

 

Even though this book isn't the best so far, I still enjoyed it and I would love to see more of Eric again. I do like Alcide but to be honest, I was never one for Weres. I just love the vampires. So just Bill and Eric in the book is enough to make me enjoy it.

 

Even though I enjoyed it, the reason I gave this book is a 3.5/5 is that I know that the books can be must better than this one. And of course because of that one scene at the end.

 

Rating: 3.5/5

 

There is just not enough of vampire in this book for me. There is quite a bit of Alcide who I really did like the first time we were introduced to him in Club Dead...but now I am going slightly off him. There whole story line just rates fair with me. In fact, the main plot was so boring and dull. It wasn't really as exciting as the passed books have been but still I needed to finish the book, that's just me. I did get a little excited with the mention of Eric and now I can't even remember if Bill was in it at all. Not a great review from me but then again I think it was hard to rate a disappointing book.

 

Rating: 2.5/5

 

You see I felt exactly the same way about the books to the point that I have now stopped reading them and failed to finish it. Eric just annoys me I'll be honest. Sookie just seems more and more like a 'lady of the night'. The werewolves in the story bore me and the only thing I can remember about either of those books was Bubba. Oh and how dissapointed I was. I may go back to them, when I have nothing else to read, but I honestly don't think it will be for a long long time.

 

Good reviews and argreed on all nearly all of your points. Apart from the getting to like Eric. Haha.

[Shin]

I just really like Eric at the minute but it helps when watching him in True Blood and I am actually picturing him as Alexander Skarsgard in the book. Yum! Yum!

 

The Weres bore me aswell. I really thought the whole series was mainly about vampires. I have just finished Definitely Dead and I think Eric and Bill are mentioned about three times each. But I did enjoy this one, better than the others and that was because the were fewer Weres and a little more vamp...even if it wasn't any Eric or Bill related. Have to do my review on this one soon.

[Shin]

Synopsis: Sookie doesn't have that many relations, so she hated to lose one - but of all the people to go, she didn't expect it to be her cousin Hadley, a consort of New Orleans' vampire queen - after all, Hadley was technically already dead. But she is gone, beyond recall, and she's left Sookie an inheritance - one that comes with a bit of a risk - not least because someone doesn't want Sookie digging too deep into Hadley's past - or her possessions. Sookie's life is once again on the line, and this time the suspects range from the rogue werewolves who have rejected Sookie as a friend of the pack to her first love, the vampire Bill. Sookie's got a lot to do if she's going to keep herself alive ...

 

I thought that these books were going down hill greatly but Definitely Dead was an improvement to the two previous books in this series. I associate these books with a great percentage of vampire activity rather than other supernatural beings and this book provide just that. Sookie travels to New Orlean's to organise her dead cousin, Hadley's apartment and of course it is never a straight forward visit. Although, I am team vampire and not too fussed on the weres, I did enjoy getting to know Quinn I bit more. However, I just can't stand the way Sookie

treats Bill.

 

 

I just hope Harris continues with the series with more vampires. I rate this book higher simply because she brought them back in this book.

 

Rating: 4/5

[Shin]

Synopsis: There are many ways to die. But some are more terrifying than others...A walk in the woods takes a sinister turn for police chief Jeffrey Tolliver and medical examiner Sara Linton when they stumble across the body of a young girl. Secreted in the ground, all the initial evidence indicates that she has, quite literally, been scared to death. But as Sara begins an autopsy, something even more horrifying comes to light. Something which shocks even Sara. Detective Lena Adams, talented but increasingly troubled, is called in from vacation to help with the investigation - and the trail soon leads to the neighbouring county, an isolated community, and a terrible secret..

 

Where do I begin with this review? Ms Slaughter has simply done it again! I got this book with the feeling that my mojo was slipping and when I looked at the size of the book (it was only 500 odd pages) I thought that it would take me forever to get through this. How wrong was I? It is the same with every Slaughter book that I have read....I can never put them down.

 

Well, as the synopsis says that Sara and Jeffrey stumble over a girl buried in the ground...

while they are arguing over the fact that Jeffrey may have Hepatitis from having his fling during their marriage...why is it that I still adore this man?

The storyline is just a tale of turns and twists that just keep you guessing which is great. Although, sadly I did guess "who done it" before I normally do but there was a few twists that was making me gasp thinking..."maybe I am wrong". Well, I hope you know what I mean if you have read the book...if you haven't....READ THIS SERIES!!!! I just adore Jeffrey Tolliver, he maybe a fictional character but I still adore him. I just love his relationship with Sara, even though sometimes I would just love to smack her. As for Lena...

I know that she went through a very bad experience but it really surprises me that she lets Ethan do what he is doing. I always thought of her as a strong character.

 

 

Top marks for me again!

 

Rating: 5/5

[Shin]

Oh my, I have just realised that my reviews are slacking...I have four and a half books still to review...I'll explain the half later.

[Shin]

Synopsis: Substance D -- otherwise known as Death -- is the most dangerous drug ever to find its way on to the black market. It destroys the links between the brain's two hemispheres, leading first to disorentation and then to complete and irreversible brain damage. Bob Arctor, undercover narcotics agent, is trying to find a lead to the source of supply, but to pass as an addict he must become a user, and soon, without knowing what is happening to him, he is as dependent as any of the addicts he is monitoring.

 

I started reading this book as part of a Reading Circle on here and really was looking forward to it as the synopsis sounded so interesting. But as I started reading this book, I quickly came to realise that it was not a type of book I would be interested in. It is not normally me to abandon a book and I was going to go back to it as I hate not finishing books but I would just be wasting my time. So it went back to the library today unfinished. I am not saying that this book wasn't a great one, I am just saying that it wasn't my style. The author wrote the book that lead to the film Blade Runner...I think that is right and that wasn't even my type of film. So unfortunately, I really can not rate this book but felt I had to give an explanation as to why I abandoned it.

 

Maybe I will read it again but there is so much more that I want to read before it.

[Shin]

Synopsis: Sookie's beginning to get used to being surrounded by all varieties of undead, changeling, shapeshifting and other supernatural beings - but even she has her limits. She'd really like to take a while to get over being betrayed by Bill, her long-time vampire lover, and get used to her new relationship with the sexy shapeshifter Quinn - but instead, she finds herself attending the long-planned vampire summit, the destination of choice for every undead power player around, as a sort-of human 'Geiger counter' for Sophie-Anne Leclerq, vampire queen of Louisiana. But the job is fraught with difficulties. Sophie-Anne's power base has been severely weakened by Hurricane Katrina, and she's about to be put on trial during the event for murdering her king. Sookie knows the queen is innocent, but she's hardly prepared for other shocking murders: it looks like there are some vamps who would like to finish what nature started. With secret alliances and backroom deals the order of the day - and night - Sookie must decide which side she'll stand with, and quickly, for her choice may mean the difference between survival and all-out catastrophe.

 

I am really getting back into the Southern Vampire series now. I really enjoyed this book and again there is more vamps in it than weres and that is how I like it.

I loved the fact that Sookie has now a bond with Eric!

Great read!

 

Rating: 4/5

[Shin]

Synopsis: Morganville is such a nice place to live...and die. If you don't mind that sort of thing. When Claire Danvers learnt that her college town was run by vampires, she did what any intelligent, self-preserving student would do: she applied for a transfer and stocked up on garlic. The transfer is no longer an option, but that garlic may come in handy. Now Claire has pledged herself to Amelie, the most powerful vampire in town. The protection her contract secures does little to reassure her friends. All of a sudden, people are turning up dead, a stalker resurfaces from Claire's past, and an ancient bloodsucker extends a chilling invitation for private lessons in his secluded home.

 

The Morganville Vampire series is a teen vamp collection and Midnight Alley is the third book in the series. I started reading the series sometime last year and thought it was time to get the third book. As of it being for teens, I think these are great reads and they are quite action pack from start to finish. I just love how the relationship between Claire and her group of friend evolve in each book and when you think they are out of trouble...something else comes up.

 

So if you have finished reading the Twilight saga, the Southern Vampire series and the House of the Night series then I definitely recommend starting the Morganville Vampire series. If you enjoyed the House of the Night series...then these are even better. Highly recommended.

 

Rating: 4/5

[Shin]

Synopsis: The supernatural community in Bon Temps, Louisiana is reeling from two hard blows: the natural disaster of Hurricane Katrina, and the manmade horror of the explosion at the vampire summit in the up-north city of Rhodes. Sookie Stackhouse is safe but dazed, and she's yearning for things to get back to normal. But that's just not happening. Too many vampires - some friends, some not - were killed or injured, and her were-tiger boyfriend Quinn is among the missing. It's clear that things are changing, whether the weres and vamps like it or not. And Sookie, Friend to the Pack, blood-bonded to the leader of the local vampire community, is caught up in those changes. She's about to find herself facing danger and death and, not for the first time, betrayal by someone she loves. And when the fur has finished flying and the cold blood has stopped flowing, Sookie's world will be forever altered ...

 

Again, I enjoyed this book. Can't really say more but what I really love is

the whole Sookie and Eric thing...they have to get it on for good.

The only thing that gets to me about this series is that they talk of the wars that have taken place. Now my idea of war is something that happens for a very long time but in Harris' world they seem to last for a half an hour!!! Like the Witch War...to me when I was reading it, it lasted seconds and then it is a great deal in the book.

I hope you understand what I say when I say this...but Harris seems to make a big deal out of something and then bam...has it over in a spilt second. The Were War was over in no time and then you have half of the book to finish. Well, even though I like Quinn, I was glad he is out of the picture so Eric can get in there.

 

Rating: 4/5

[Shin]

Synopsis: Lena Adams has spent her life struggling to escape her past. She has only unhappy memories of Reece, the small town which nearly destroyed her. She's made a new life for herself as a police detective in Heartsdale, a hundred miles away - but nothing could prepare her for the violence which explodes when she is forced to return. A vicious murder leaves a young woman incinerated beyond recognition. And Lena is the only suspect.When Heartsdale police chief Jeffrey Tolliver, Lena's boss, receives word that his detective has been arrested, he has no choice but to go to Lena's aid - taking with him his wife, medical examiner Sara Linton. But soon after their arrival, a second victim is found. The town closes ranks. And both Jeffrey and Sara find themselves entangled in a horrifying underground world of bigotry and rage - a violent world which shocks even them. A world which puts their own lives in jeopardy. Only Jeffrey and Sara can free Lena from the web of lies, betrayal and brutality that has trapped her. But can they discover the truth before the killer strikes again?

 

Well, were do I begin? I think that I am going to have to do my review completely in spoiler quotes. Well, firstly all that I can say to those who don't want to read the spoilers is...another great book by Slaughter with a twist at the end that will make you gasp!

 

 

Ok, as much as I enjoyed this book and the fact I knew what would happen to Jeffrey, I am still very angry at Slaughter. I got used to the idea that Jeffrey was going to be killed off at the end of this book...but did she have to twist the knife by giving him such a horrible death? God, how am I going to read Genesis now? So basically, I have dropped a 0.5 in my ratings for this book but if Jeffrey had of lived or maybe if Slaughter had not been so descriptive....I probably would have given it my usual 5/5. (Ok, I have decided to change my rating now) Now I am sad. (were is the sad smiley?)

 

 

Rating: 5/5

 

Ok, I decided to change my rating of this book to 5/5, the usual I would give for the Grant County series. I just think it wasn't fair that I deducted the 0.5 for the twist. When I really think about it...it was a great twist and just something I have to deal with. Also, I have realised that I have rated other books at 4.5/5 and they were not as half as good as this book.

Edited May 25, 2010 by Shin
Changed rating of book

[frankie]

Awww Shin, have a hug I think everyone who's read Skin Privilege went through the same thing you're going through, or at least I can't see how they couldn't have. Where did you find out about the twist beforehand? Have you read the letter Slaughter wrote to her Grant County fans?