avidbookreader

Shift, Rachel Vincent {Guest Review}

Senetra — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 06:00:00 +0000

Shift is the penultimate book in the Shifter series by Rachel Vincent. The action picks up shortly after the events of the previous book; the Sanders Pride is still banged up from and in mourning from the attack and its aftermath.

Pride council member Paul Blackwell has arrived to ask that the Pride not rush out and attack the Pride they think is responsible and also remember that Faythe’s dad’s seat on the council is at stake. Given the events of the other books, and the current council intrigues, the Sanderses and their allies from other Prides are incredulous.

While the councilman is there, Kaci is carried off by a pair of Thunderbirds, beings that werecats believe to be alternately extinct or mythological, ensuring a lack of knowledge about them. Kaci is rescued, more cats are hurt, but they manage to capture one, Kai, who answers their questions and leveling an accusation against the Pride.

One of their young was killed nearby while hunting, and the Sanders Pride was named as the killers. The person who told them that it was the Sanders Pride made a deal whereby all of the tabbies would be taken away before the birds descended to take their revenge on the Sanders compound.

The hows and whys of the accusation is debated and discussed, suspects are named and the councilman asks (again) for restraint until proof can be found. Too bad the people with the proof keep dying. This cycle of attack/accuse/prove it/council says no retribution has been ongoing in all of the books, and if the Sanders clan is half as frustrated with it as I am.…

Soon the birds have the cats holed up in the house with no electricity, no way to leave, and only cell phones for communication. Faythe, Manx, the baby, and Kaci manage to sneak out of the back and make it to a nearby getaway car. More birds appear and take Faythe and Kaci to their nest in New Mexico.

Faythe manages to piece together what actually happened to the young bird, and they confirm Calvin Malone as the accuser. Faythe convinces the nest that she can find proof that the Sanders Pride is telling the truth. They agree, giving her 24 hours to do so or they will kill Kaci as retribution for their young’s death.

The birds back at the Sanders compound will also stand down as part of the bargain. Faythe is picked up by Jace and Marc, and they head to Jace’s stepfather’s place, the source of the trouble and the location of the proof they need. This trip also advances the Faythe/Marc/Jace relationship conflict, revealing secrets that no one was eager to reveal just yet.

This book ends as expected, with Kaci returned and the Sanders vindicated, but as I read, I kept wondering what the birds real purpose in the story was. Then, as the story played out, I saw potential for another character to come into his own as an Alpha, which I would love. We’ll see. I’m also anxious to meet two frequently mentioned but never seen characters, Michael’s supermodel wife and Ethan’s pregnant girlfriend. I’m mulling the possibilities for their appearances, and hoping for the best.

I am conflicted about this series. I am enjoying it, bar the first book, but the pacing (bursts of action followed by pages of “we know who did this but we need proof!”) frustrates me, along with plot threads that keep dangling, but I also want to keep reading and find out how everything shakes out.

Faythe has really grown as a character, and she’s learning to deal with her society’s limitations and work within the framework to her advantage. While his novel is Urban Fantasy and not Romance, there is a romantic subplot. I have no real preference for Faythe choosing Marc or Jace, because they bring different experiences to the table, but I really want them both to live through the final book. Grade B–

For Further Reading

Taking a Brief Break From Blogging

Avid Reader — Fri, 05 Mar 2010 01:15:27 +0000

Debated on posting this but I think I will for those few of you who check this blog on a regular basis. This is just a brief note that to say that I will be taking a brief break from blogging right now. I have a new job with new responsibilities and this will be (and already has) taken up a lot of my spare time for Internet browsing/social media conversations with my fellow bloggers.

I don’t post everyday anyway so lack of updates won’t be a red flag that I’m gone for most of you. Quite frankly, I am quite weary of the Internet. Just uninterested in it right now. It happens on occasion. Anyway, I’ll be back after I get acclimated with things. Promise. I will be reading though and checking my emails. I will continue to participate in the TBR Challenge but that’s about it. Thanks.

For Further Reading

No Related Posts

B&N: Where’s the Ebooks?

Avid Reader — Tue, 02 Mar 2010 20:00:52 +0000

Remember the commercial: where’s the beef? Yeah, where’s the ebooks? Barnes and Noble ebook store has this motto on their twitter page that boasts:

Enjoy eBooks Any Time, Any Place at the world’s largest eBook store

Can’t be all that big since two titles are missing from it but can be found everywhere else including Fictionwise. Nice going B&N.

For Further Reading

No Related Posts

The Little Death, P.J. Parrish

Avid Reader — Tue, 02 Mar 2010 06:00:20 +0000

The Little Death [2010] by PJ Parrish is apart of an ongoing mystery series featuring private detective Louis Kincaid and the story is set in Florida. Out of maybe 8 or 9 titles by the writing team that make up the PJ Parrish pseudonym of Kristy Montee and Kelly Nichol there are only three titles available digitally. The book is available as a paperback & has a list price of $7.99 [432 pages] and a digital price of $6.39 for Kindle (Amazon) and Nook (Barnes and Noble). The Reader Store (Sony) was the highest at $7.59.

Reading this new mystery novel by PJ Parrish kept me on the edge of my seat. It is very well written. Majority of the events of this story take place in an affluent town where older, married rich women are paying for sex. Palm Beach Island seems to be home to the rich and the bored. The social strata there is no joke either. The bulk of the island is made up of families who come from old money and then you have everybody else who live in the “real world.”

In “The Little Death,” the story starts off with the grisly discovery of a headless body in a cow pasture located in a remote area of some farm land preserve called the Devil’s Garden. The victim, who is male, looks to have been tortured and decapitated in a lonely field.

Private investigators Louis Kincaid and his partner, Mel Landeta, travel to Palm Beach island to solve this gruesome murder. Louis and Mel are ex-cops from Fort Meyers. The two men are there to help who the police have already labeled as a possible suspect for the headless corpse: Reggie Kent. For some reason the Palm Beach detectives are ready to pin the murder on Reggie because he had a public fight with the victim, Mark Durand, and was the last to see him alive. But Reggie says he’s innocent.

Reggie comes off very needy and torn up inside. He’s scared shitless and is facing a murder charge. Almost all of the entire town has shunned him. The suspicion that hangs over him is thick and has just about eradicated his livelihood. Reggie’s a “walker.” He escorts rich women to social events and parties. No sex is involved according to Reggie. It’s a profession he’s very proud of and is quick to defend to people who think it’s prostitution.

Reggie comes off looking guilty when he isn’t forthcoming initially about his relationship to the victim. The Sheriff of Palm Beach is hostile towards Reggie because he’s gay and is almost uncooperative with Louis and Mel. The police seem hostile to just about anyone who’s gay, have brown skin or is an illegal immigrant.

Strangers aren’t welcome on the island. It’s an attitude that is quite prevalent. It’s something Louis learns almost immediately when he’s handed a citation for having his ugly Mustang parked on the street. However there is this is one cop who’s willing to help, Lieutenant Swann. He was interesting and surprisingly fleshed out. His character was a significant part of the story as well.

After Reggie is questioned by Louis and the case somewhat stalls, one of the locals on the island tells Louis that her gardener disappeared some five years ago. Rumors around town say that the husband caught his wife cheating on him with the gardener and chased him off the property and disappears. This new information takes Louis in a different direction and maybe even even to a possible connection to the headless corpse. Of course the woman refuses to say who the couple was that chased the guy off. She tells Louis that she has to live in this town, too. But she gives up the name because she has a fondness for Reggie and it’s a bombshell.

The story continues to unravel layer by layer. The reader is given one major puzzle piece at a time. The story is dark and has forensic details in it akin to that of other mystery authors like Patricia Cornwell and Karin Slaughter. For the majority of the story we never know more than the protagonists does about what is going on. There are maybe one or two revealing scenes to help shed some light on things but it isn’t until the last fourth of the novel that readers are given full information about who the murderer is and the motive.

The narrative is in third person and is mostly told from Louis’s perspective but we get maybe a few other perspectives from other characters but the majority of it is from Louis. What I like about this story is that it is character driven and moved at a quick pace. The story has great atmosphere and the setting was well done as well. You get a feel for the island’s inhabitants and the pecking order of the social class.

The tone of the story had a sinister feel to it that never left and I loved that. The people who Louis thought were persons of interest seemed untouchable because of their bank accounts and perceived social clout. The author did an excellent job with leading the reader astray. I liked how all the pieces came together to explain the events that led to the murder and to a secret society where rich married women were paying men to act out their fantasies. Hence the title, “the little death” which in French is called la petite mort. A literary metaphor for orgasm.

The denouement devolved into your typical ending of action and suspense. While I enjoyed almost all the characters in here, I thought Reggie was pathetic. At one point in the story he’s arrested and put in jail which makes Louis and the rest work even harder to clear his name. I thought Reggie should have taken his jail time like a man instead of crying and whimpering like a baby.

I was not completely surprised by the revelation of the murderer in here but it’s meant to shock. The ending was not all that typical either which was another plus. The conclusion wasn’t perfect but it wasn’t neat and I like that too. Like Karin Slaughter, another favorite writer, who loves to show how some of the bad guys often get away, the ending in the Parrish book is somewhat similar and I won’t reveal more than that.

Did I believe the plot? The character’s? The motive behind the murder? Yes to all. Although you would have to suspend disbelief to fully enjoy stories such as these. I liked the novel enough to overlook a lot of things but nothing worth mentioning. The story is unlike anything I’ve ever read but that’s not to say that there aren’t other books out there like this one.

A story isn’t worth anything of value to the reader if he/she doesn’t believe in it. I was engaged emotionally and was invested in the outcome of the characters. I thought the plot was decent and plausible up to a point. Not sure how I feel about Louis as I didn’t bond with him right away like I did with Karin Slaughter’s Will Trent. Louis had no flaws that I could recall. Other than his lack of communication skills which led to him breaking up with his girlfriend who’s also a cop (development from earlier books in this series), he seemed well adjusted and that’s always boring. I like flawed people better I guess.

The Little Death was a well told mystery that kept me engaged. It can stand alone quite well. I haven’t mentioned every single character or every single plot twist in the story. So there’s still some enjoyment for you if you care to read this book. If you enjoy character driven mysteries then P.J. Parrish is a good author to try. I’ve only read the one book but I plan to read the two titles in the back list that’s digitized.

Overall, good story. My grade, B+. Must mention that Louis Kincaid is half black and half-white and his creators are white. Did his character read like a typical black character to me? Not really. The only time I was reminded of Louis’s race was when his skin color was mentioned. Otherwise, he seemed generic to me.

For Further Reading

Territorial Rights and Ebook Readers

Avid Reader — Sun, 28 Feb 2010 06:41:04 +0000

Ran across this somewhat brief article from Digital Book World that discusses the territorial rights that prohibits readers from buying ebooks from other countries. The article isn’t all that in depth but it briefly explains why territorial rights were established. Quite frankly, readers don’t care anything about why they are restricted or what territorial rights were intended to do, they just want to read the damn ebooks.

The sooner this gets resolved the better. Many times I recommend books to other readers and friends who reside in other countries and they can’t buy them. A lot of lost sales at every turn because of these damn geographical restrictions are in place. On it’s face it seems ridiculous and it’s very frustrating from a consumer viewpoint. That’s the only viewpoint I have and as a consumer, it should have some weight to make these publishers and authors think about making their ebooks available to everybody.

Speaking of other countries and their marketing strategies, take a look at the cover art of these three books from Laurell K. Hamilton’s very popular (when will this end?) Anita Blake series. Booksellers and marketers know what sells in their respective regions because clearly the covers look really, really weird to this American reader. I will say one thing in that they are very arresting to look at as I don’t know what exactly I am looking at or what made them conjure up these covers.

For Further Reading

No Related Posts

Thinking About Leaving A Bad Review on Goodreads? Are You Sure?

Avid Reader — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 01:25:06 +0000

Be prepared for some of the authors to respond in a hostile fashion (no links) on Goodreads or any other public forum for that matter. I’ve read or entertained myself thus far with two authors who are learning the hard way what it truly means to attack a reviewer. It’s not like “reviewer” is a revered position. It’s just that authors are fighting a losing battle when they confront reviewers about their opinion on their book(s).

It’s fair game when the author’s response to a bad review is well reasoned and not personal but as most authors will tell you, it’s not smart to respond to positive reviews or negative reviews. It’s best to say nothing and remain in the background. I’ve been online a long ass time. Suffice to say that bad reviews are not going anywhere anytime soon.

No author likes to read or hear bad things about their work. Especially after their book has been getting great reviews everywhere else on the net. It’s like a slap in the face when they see a bad one. See? I understand. But once the book is published, it’s up for public consumption. And it’s not like everybody has great taste either. Books are no different than any other consumer good as far as I’m concerned. And yes, readers come in all kinds of stripes as well. The most extreme we term “rabid” and yes we talk about them too.

In conclusion, new authors, clueless authors, self-published and NYT published — do yourselves a favor and just thank the reader for reading your book and then go offline and cuss them out in the privacy of your own home. Just don’t do it on the Internet for the world to see. Common sense 101.

As an Internet user, I’ve run across topics that have made my blood pressure go up on occasion and to alleviate that I just hit the back button. But you know, I value my time and my sanity too much to participate in online drama. I really, truly, don’t want to argue or convince someone named “anon” to my side of things. I have better things to do than that, thanks.

For Further Reading

No Related Posts

The Black Duke’s Prize, Suzanne Enoch

Avid Reader — Wed, 24 Feb 2010 06:00:59 +0000

Many readers have probably never even heard of this hard to find, out of print title, THE BLACK DUKE’S PRIZE by Suzanne Enoch. You can read the first chapter here.

THE BLACK DUKE’S PRIZE is a slim regency paperback dated 1995 with a teasing excerpt that I read online many years ago that made me go hunt for this book at the used bookstore. Where I live, there are hundreds of used bookstores and second hand stores around. I managed to find my copy in such a place. It’s a library copy at that.

What prompted me to read it now? Well, I am trying to get rid of my books. Since more than a few readers have indicated that they didn’t mind reviews of older romances, I decided to read it and see if I wanted to hang onto it anymore. Yes, I’m willing to pass it on despite the market value of this book right now.

As an aside, the prices of these hard to find titles aren’t always indicative of quality. I found that out the hard way. Scarcity and reader demand is what drives up these ridiculous costs but then I guess you already knew that. Is The Black Duke’s Prize worth paying the astronomical prices for it? I’ll tell you in just a moment.

The summary is as follows, Nicholas Varon aka Nick, also infamously known around polite society as The Black Duke because of his nasty temper and creating scandals, meets his match with outspoken Katherine Ralston, an heiress whose uncle is trying to sell off her inheritance out from under her. It’s a madcap comedy of sorts. Kidding.

Nick’s temper has often led to more than a few pistols at dawn. He has a reputation that has led many to assume the worst about him. It’s a reputation he doesn’t think much of nor care about as long as it suits his purposes. During the London Season, all the mama’s are throwing their eligible daughters in his path but quite a few of them are, quite frankly, scared to death of the Black Duke of Sommersby.

“How are you enjoying the Season so far?” he ventured, curious to see how she would react to a question which she couldn’t answer yes or no.
“Qut, ‘ll, nk you,” came out of her mouth in an almost voiceless whisper, and Nicholas shut his eyes for just a moment.
“Beg pardon?” he said, leaning closer.
“Quite well, thank you,” she managed to articulate, glancing up at his face.
Feeling as though he had accomplished something of a miracle, he smiled down at her. And immediately regretted it. Althaea’s face went white, and she stumbled and sank against his chest, her eyes rolling back in her head.
“Good god,” he muttered, looking about somewhat frantically and trying to keep her from sliding to the ground. From page 29 of the Black Duke’s Prize

That’s the only funny scene in the book. Moving on, Katherine aka Kate Ralston’s parents died, leaving her the sole of heir of Crestley Hall. She won’t inherit fully until she’s twenty-two years old. Meanwhile, her father’s brother who is now her legal guardian, Simon Ralston, packs her off in a mail coach and sends her straight to London to stay with her godparents. He doesn’t want Kate around for whatever nefarious plans he has for Crestley Hall, plus, she annoys him.

Kate doesn’t want to leave because she fears that her uncle is going to sell off her home and the property within it. So she’s hurriedly sent off to London by her uncle, against her will with only what she can carry with her while her “necessities” will be sent out later. She flashes her uncle a bit of her temper before leaving, telling him that he better not remove not one thing from Crestley Hall or as she says, “I will carve the value of it out of your hide with my father’s sword.”

Kate and Nicholas are well matched, temperament-wise. What attracts Nicholas to Kate is what he calls her hardheadedness and putting him in his place. From what I quoted above, you see not very many people, especially women dared to confront The Black Duke at all with the exception of Kate and his mother, the Dowager Duchess. Throughout the story, The Black Duke’s often annoyed with Kate and she him. At one point in the story she pulls a pistol on him.

In the end though, Nicholas is asked by Kate’s godparents, Baron and Baroness of Clarey, to pursue purchase of Crestley Hall to see if Kate’s uncle had it on the market. The goal was to buy the property and then secure it for Kate. Only Nick doesn’t know who Crestley Hall belongs to and Kate is unaware of this scheme altogether. What will happen if she does find out? Should the Duke fear for his life when she does? Will the residents of London miss these two if things don’t work out?

As great as this novel may sound, it was not all that great of a read. The story started off promising but then it slowly disintegrated into one boring scene after another. How Kate and Nicholas meet wasn’t even memorable nor worth remarking. The times that Kate and Nicholas were together, there was no chemistry between them, just a lot of flat dialogue. The ending left me feeling relieved.

THE BLACK DUKE’S PRIZE certainly isn’t the worst book I’ve read. It was just average and no, I don’t feel that it’s worth the price book sellers are asking for it. I could have stopped reading this book and not missed it at all. However, this book was written back in 1995 and my opinion probably won’t mean much to a die hard Suzanne Enoch fan. So, for me it didn’t hold up well like most other regency romances from the same era (Mary Balogh). So, it’s a forgettable C– for me. Buy at your own risk.

I’ve enjoyed my share of regency romances, in particular, Mary Balogh, Carla Kelly and Joan Wolf for starters but regencies as a rule are not my favorites. Didn’t stop me from buying a bunch of them though.

For Further Reading

Installing Python on Mac and PC, Manga Recs and More

Avid Reader — Mon, 22 Feb 2010 06:00:45 +0000

Just in Case You Missed It…

Jane (technical guru) wrote out the tutorial for installing Python and Pycrypto to your Mac or PC or both (you can have it your way). I am a new Mac user (purchased an iMac) and have already printed out the instructions to give it a go on my next day off because I have a feeling that it will be an all day event. I had issues with creating my own cloud of ebooks but eventually got that one going. To truly own, I mean _own_ your ebooks without worrying about the loss of your investment, you have to crack the DRM. Simple. As. That.

Ellora’s Cave Goes Audio.…Yes, you read that right. Readers now have the choice to listen to those super hawt erotic love scenes in the form of an audiobook from Ellora’s Cave. Wonder how that will come across? Blergh. Sorry but audiobooks were never my thing even for regular fiction. Have fun with that as you have a whooping three titles to choose from (at the time of this writing).

Author Interview: Karen Harper, discussing her newest novel, Down River, at the International Thriller Writers blog. I’ve always wanted to read Harper and have one or two books of hers in my stash. Must make effort to read her this year. If anyone has recs, please share.

Manga Readers like myself, appreciate lists. Here is the Manga Critic’s Ten Great Global Manga, focusing on American artists or OEL (wiki) (Original English Language-manga).

Among certain parts of manga fandom, global manga (or OEL manga) is viewed as the comic-book equivalent of New Coke: the packaging might be similar, but the taste is different and, as these fans would have it, not as good as the original.

Will give some of those titles a look when I’m in the library next time.

On a more serious note, I saw a picture (warning, warning) of Roger Ebert on the cover of Esquire magazine and froze. I knew he had cancer and that he had several surgeries that I think he said weren’t always successful that left him unable to talk, eat or drink. I grew up watching Roger Ebert and the late Gene Siskel on TV and enjoyed their commentary on films and on each other. After seeing the Esquire picture of what Ebert looks like today, I was in total shock. I read the article and eventually that made me feel better knowing that he has Chaz (his wife and protector) beside him to lift up his spirits.

For Further Reading

Ain’t Misbehaving, Jeanne Grant

Avid Reader — Thu, 18 Feb 2010 01:26:47 +0000

Contemporary romance writer, Jennifer Greene, who currently writes for Harlequin (last I checked), wrote quite a few category romances under the pen name of Jeanne Grant for two now defunct lines: To Have and To Hold which explored life past the marital vows and Second Chance At Love which is self-explanatory.

On the back of each category title is this little motto:

The heart doesn’t count the years–or the tears. And if romance is grand the first time, there is nothing more precious than your second chance at love.

How cute. Anyway, I bought a bunch of these categories from a list that the reviewer from The Romance Reader, Linda Mowery, had sent me awhile back. Sweets to the Sweet (SCAL#311), Wintergreen and Can’t Say No (SCAL #270) are all Jeanne Grant titles that I’ve enjoyed. I’d heard nothing but good things about “Ain’t Misbehaving.” So, I grabbed it off my bookshelf and dug in.

The hero in here is a brooding, gentle and quietly reserved 28 year old young man who’s had a serious medical condition that snatched away precious time, hopes and dreams. Thirteen years ago, Mitch Cochran had contracted a strep infection that damaged his heart valves. He had a poor prognosis. While other young men his age were out dating and enjoying life, Mitch was spending a good deal of his in and out of hospitals.

He manages to finally get new heart valves that his body doesn’t reject after three surgeries. Needless to say, he has a second chance at having a normal life after years of worry, pain, fear and medical bills.

After such a life changing event that put a single white streak in his hair , Mitch has been volunteering at the local hospital, providing companionship to other kids with similar experiences like his own. Mitch finds difficulty in establishing relationships with people that doesn’t go beyond the superficial (his words not mine). He seems to feel he has a connection to kids though, visiting them in hospitals and providing them with whatever they need.

The story opens with Mitch visiting seven year old Peter, who’s leg has been put in a cast. He walks in on Kay Sanders telling Peter a funny story. Mitch’s been told that they both have been visiting Peter but on alternate Saturdays. Kay and Mitch meet and an interest develops between them immediately.

Mitch, my virgin hero, has insecurities. While young men his age have probably had some type of physical relationship, he has not. He is attracted to Kay but is immediately put off when she mentions that she was once engaged (he assumes that she’s had lovers while he has not).

Mitch tackles his insecurities and decides to get to know her better. Kay’s a teacher who teaches sex education at various schools. I know, the irony. The story is full of meets with Kay’s friends, Mitch’s family intertwined with moments of heated kisses and touches that elicits trembles. As the chemistry between the principal characters heats up, Kay has to take drastic measures to get Mitch into bed, because his old fashioned values about sex as she says while sweet: needs to go.

It must be my mood as I found the story less than satisfying. I was bored by a lot of the extra’s like the secondary characters and even the romance. I was intrigued by the hero though because he was such a serious person who just survived a serious illness. I guess I was looking for a more intense relationship but that didn’t happen.

At one point in the story, I was curious to know what would be the conflict to drive our lovers apart. Well, come to find out, Kay thinks that Mitch is confused about love and sex because he proposes after they’ve made love for the first time. Well, to quote Kay:

It was Mitch’s feelings that increasingly concerned her. How many times had she said it to the ninth graders? First sexual sexual feelings are incredibly powerful. But they aren’t necessarily love

This is romance. They worked out their differences.

Wrapping this up, the best parts about this book was the flow/pace of the story and I liked the hero a lot, the heroine, neutral. If I had been in a better mood, I’d probably have enjoyed this story a tiny bit more. Maybe. C.

Bonus! Well, not really. I did a Google search for Jeanne Grant titles with pictures of the cover (and didn’t find any unsurprisingly) and ran across an old interview that Linda Mowery did with the author if you care to read it. As I said, I’ve enjoyed other Jeanne Grant titles but, yeah, not this one. Average.

Please visit the other participants in this challenge, the 2010 TBR Challenge that we all are doing this year.

For Further Reading

The Wrong Man For Her, Kathryn Shay [Guest Review]

Avid Reader — Wed, 17 Feb 2010 06:04:51 +0000

This review is apart of the TBR Challenge 2010 that was established to help readers focus on those buried treasure reads that they’ve yet to discover from their massive tbr piles. The following review was submitted by fellow reader, Senetra. Please, make sure to visit the other participants in the challenge.

Kathryn Shay’s The Wrong Man for Her is a variation of a workplace romance, in that the work is as prominent a character as the hero and heroine, Nick Logan and Maddie Walsh. Three years ago Nick was the teen counselor at the Rockford Crime Victims Center, and he and Maddie dated.

Following a pregnancy scare, Nick told Maddie that he could never be good enough for her and took off. Now Nick is back as a favor to the previous director, and unbeknownst to him, Maddie will be his new boss. Once Nick discovers this, he feels slightly betrayed and wants to leave, but is convinced to stay. Things have changed since Maddie took over as director, and the changes don’t always fit with Nick’s work style, leading to a few clashes.

This book was definitely Nick’s story. When Nick was a teenager, his father was convicted of embezzlement and went to prison. The taunting and goading of his peers led to Nick acting out and getting into trouble, and in frustration, his mother, Claire, threw the 16 year old out of the house.

Nick spent the next few years on the streets, on drugs, and in jails, finally meeting up with adults who helped him get his life back on track. His experiences led him to become a teen counselor, even though he has been unable to open up to therapists about his past. Nick’s life is thrown into a tailspin once his mother and newly released father try to enter his life again.

Maggie had a home life that included an alcoholic mother who left Maddie to raise herself. Maddie is also a rape survivor, but she took advantage of counselors and worked at not letting what happened to her define her.

Learning how Nick was unable to continue with counseling, Maggie encourages him to try again. Maggie also didn’t let Nick’s leaving her stop her from dating again, or give up on her hope to marry and have a family someday.

The work that is done at the RCVC plays a large enough role in the interactions between Nick and Maddie that the Center is a character all its own. Nick’s work as a teen counselor puts the focus on his students, who have all been the victims of violence, such as bullying, random shooting, and a home invasion.

None of the kids have an easy time coming to terms with what happened to them, and this is mirrored in what is happening in Nick’s life now. A strong bond forms between Nick and JJ, the student who was the victim of bullying, and Nick’s attempt to help JJ makes him admit to himself that he needs more counseling even if he doesn’t have contact with his parents. Maddie’s attempt to help Kara, another victim, brings her memories to the forefront as well, which allows her to get to the truth about Kara’s problems.

The Wrong Man for Her is definitely an “issue” book, but unlike some books that attempt to deal with serious topics, none of the characters had resolutions to their problems at the end. There was no epilogue that showed everyone living happily ever after.

The students at the center had very real problems that couldn’t be solved in 275 pages, and while some students were left at a point where they could see an end in sight, other students were at a point where there seemed to be no way out. Nick had begun to communicate with his parents again, but we don’t know the outcome. Real life is like that sometimes, and I appreciated that. Yes, the topics were serious, and at times hard to read, but well worth the read. Grade: A–

Notes: The Wrong Man For Her by Kathryn Shay (2007), Harlequin Super Romance #1418, 288 pages, is currently out of print. No ebook could be found at the time of writing.

For Further Reading

I Know It’s Over, C. K. Kelly Martin

Avid Reader — Tue, 16 Feb 2010 06:47:24 +0000

I Know It’s Over by C. K. Kelly Martin (Random House 2008), listed $7.99 for paperback with 272 pages, and is currently available as an ebook with the lowest price of $6.39 at both Amazon (Kindle) and Barnes and Noble (Nook). This was yet another impulsive purchase that I actually finished this time.

I Know It’s Over is C.K. Kelly Martin’s debut into the crowded YA market. I was immediately pulled into the story by her authorial voice. It’s engaging and impressive. The story just sucks you right in even though the content/issues make for a heavy and very familiar read with topics like teenage pregnancy, divorce plus other social issues. But even better, the author writes this story from the hero’s point of view which probably made this story stand out more for me.

The story is told in first person and starts a month after Nick and his girlfriend, Sasha have broken up. Nick’s still reeling from the break up when Sasha informs him shortly after the break-up that she’s pregnant. Talk about emotional overload. Nick’s immediate response to the news is to lash out in anger and engage in avoidance. But that doesn’t last long. He comes around and the two teens find themselves confronted with a reality check and having to face the consequences of their actions.

Sixteen year old Nick Svenson is a good guy overall. Just your average run of the mill teen. He’s well liked at school, intelligent and good looking. A hockey player with decent grades. His childhood friends, Nathan and Keelor are guys he’s known since he was 11 years old. After school, he works part-time selling sports equipment.

Nick’s parents are divorced and he and his sister reside with their mom. His dad remarried soon after the divorce, to a woman named Bridgette, that his kid sister Holland dubs “Babette.” Nick’s the only one in the family who still speaks to his dad while his sister blows him off in retaliation to how he treated their mother. According to Nick, everybody pretends. His mother, he says, walks around in a catatonic state with a fake smile plastered on her face. This bothers him but he’s learned to deal with it.

Nick first meets Sasha during the summer. He’d always found her fascinating to look at in his English class. A few weeks later, he dumps Dani, another girl he was “just friends with” to pursue Sasha. After he hooks up with her, Sasha tells him upfront that she has ‘rules’ and of course those rules get rewritten and broken as they spend more and more time together.

The two get hot and heavy five months into the relationship and Nick falls hard. And no, the author doesn’t keep the bedroom door closed at all. Nick is not shy about his feelings. Since we get to be inside his head only, he feels that Sasha “gets him.” That the two of them are “connected.” He’s always wanting to call her and be with her. He seems to be consumed by her.

Their ‘first time’ isn’t so perfect despite what those romance novels may convey. The awkwardness and expectation of losing one’s virginity isn’t all that great of an experience. It was so bad for both of them that it nearly breaks them up. But after the passage of time, they restart their physical relationship.

Nick’s dad, who stays 2 hours away in Toronto, meets Sasha when he comes to town. He tells Nick to practice safe sex. He even hands him two fifty dollar bills to buy condoms. But the teens have an “oops” moment that scares Sasha into asking Nick to give her some space. Problem is that Nick doesn’t want to let her go and he tells her that they can discontinue their sexual relationship if that’s the only way they can be together. Ah, the joys of first love.

This brings us back to where the story started, on Christmas Eve, with Sasha telling Nick that she’s pregnant. Nick’s plans to stay with his dad for the holidays is canceled so that the two of them can talk and figure things out. The rest of the story is mostly focused on Nick and his reactions to the pregnancy and feeling like an outsider. He tries to work through his feelings for Sasha and their future. Sasha mostly keeps Nick at a distance while she tries to decide if she wants to have the baby or not. Nick is hurt and irritated by her making this decision without including him.

Well, that’s most of the story or as much as I’d like to divulge. There’s more to the novel besides Sasha and Nick’s love life. So, how did I like this story? I liked it. The narrator which in this case was Nick made for a compelling read. His thoughts and feelings were so heartbreaking at times, I wanted to give him a hug.

Believe it or not this story has a really strong message against teen sex that highlighted very clearly that your actions have consequences. If I were a teen reading this today, I would have certainly taken it to heart. I don’t know how to explain it only that the author doesn’t preach. She doesn’t lecture. She just uses Nick to bring home the message that life is about the choices we make.

I felt impatient on Nick’s behalf when Sasha seemed at times, to shut him out of the decision making process. Most of the time, he was always the one to call her and make sure she’s alright. I mean she was making a decision that would have affected both of their futures. Anyway, the pacing of the novel was terrific. I didn’t want to put the book down. Like I said, the themes of the story aren’t what’s captivating but the voice/narrative of the author that won my attention.

I’ve read other reviews online that say this is an authentic portrayal of the teen experience and I’d have to agree even though none of what these teens did in here mirrored my own experiences like the drug use and other stuff. I remember my mother lecturing me about pregnancy in high school. How could I forget it. It was short and to the point. She said: if you get pregnant, I’ll kill you. Love you too, mom.

I Know It’s Over by C.K. Kelly Martin was a good, intense read with plenty of angst. Rated R for sexual situations that are more explicit than your usual YA novels (that I’ve read anyway) and language (teens and adults like the F word). Again, the messages were pretty clear: life is about change, our actions have consequences and our parents aren’t perfect people (amen to that). Good story overall with an ending that was less than happy but from the title, I guess you knew that. B+.

For Further Reading

Must See This to Believe, Authors “Having Fun.”

Avid Reader — Sat, 13 Feb 2010 18:00:41 +0000

Ran across Mrs Giggles site and what do I find, a YouTube video of Connie Brockway, Teresa Medeiros and Eloisa James doing — something (not singing of course, certainly not that) with a Cindy Lauper 80’s tune. Enjoy.

For Further Reading

No Related Posts

New Lord John Novella in “Warriors” Anthology

Avid Reader — Sat, 13 Feb 2010 01:14:43 +0000

Fans of Diana Gabaldon may want to go ahead and order this new anthology that features a BRAND NEW Lord John Grey short story that’s featured in Warriors edited by George R.R. Martin and some other guy (just kidding) & Gardner Dozois. Gabaldon also gives readers a sneak peek of this novella (go read). Kindle price is $8.18 at the time of this writing. Remember, Macmillan plans to increase ebook prices so pre-order your copy quickly. No, I’m not using affiliate links.

The anthology also features many other wonderful writers all of whom I either never heard of or never read before. Authors like Robin Hobb, Noami Novik (read only book by her) and James Rollins and many, many more. And for those restless fans looking for another Song of Ice and Fire book (who knows when that’s coming out) will be able to satiate their reading palette with a novella from George R.R. Martin. Cheers.

More details: Hardcover, 736 pages, list price $27.99 with a release date of March 16, 2010.

For Further Reading

The Plague, Joanne Dahme

Avid Reader — Thu, 11 Feb 2010 06:00:27 +0000

The Plague (Running Press 2009) by Joanne Dahme is a historical fiction, young adult novel. The hardcover contains 272 pages and has a list price of $16.95 with the cheapest ebook price I’ve seen of $9.99 at Amazon (Kindle) and B&N (Nook).

The purchase of this ebook was an impulsive one. I’d read a positive review of it somewhere online and bought it immediately. Has anyone else read this book? The premise is as follows: Nell and her younger brother George are left orphans after their parents die from the plague.

Shortly after their parents deaths and with the plague holding England in it’s death grip, King Edward III approaches 15 year old Nell and asks her to be Princess Joan’s protector/body double because Nell bares a uncanny resemblance to his daughter. The two young women could pass for twins.

Princess Joan is traveling through plague infested towns to be with her betrothed, the Spanish King of Castile. It is a political marriage that ensures the Plantagenet line and England’s own interests. The King feels that this betrothal journey places his daughter in some unforeseen risk of danger from his enemies, so, he has Nell act as the Princess in public.

During the trip, Nell and company run across village after village where people have either died from pestilence or they are half-dead and tired from carrying bodies to mass graves. There was one village where the group stopped to get provisions that seemed empty of people but had plenty of food.

The fear of the plague kept most of the people away from certain areas of the village that were occupied by plague-stricken people. Amazing in that the villagers would rather have starved than go anyplace where the plague had struck and that’s not to say that I don’t blame them for keeping their distance.

You would never believe who the enemy of this story was…the Black Prince or more to the point, Princess Joan’s brother, the Prince of Wales. Prince Edward seems hell bent on Joan making the journey to her betrothed no matter what. He ignores the warnings about the plague and has Joan and the rest settle into one of the plague infested towns. Alas, Princess Joan, along with a priest and another person are dead from the plague.

The Black Prince (whose prefers to wear all black attire) decides to keep up the ruse of Nell pretending to be Princess Joan but this puts Nell into a dangerous situation. Well, first of all, she would be considered a fraud and the whole charade could provoke war. Talk about a high risk situation. But it seems that not everybody is on board with the Black Prince’s plans. In fact, two accomplices of Prince Edward’s own entourage actually help Nell and her brother to escape and that’s where I decidedly stopped and put the book down. Why?

I’ll tell you. The story is super slow and had extraneous, boring scenes that bogged down the story. While this story had a great idea/premise, unfortunately the execution of it was lacking. I struggled to read this story because the pacing was at times uneven. I looked forward to any and all dialogue between any and all characters and dreaded all the tiring exposition.

The story also had hints of paranormal activity surrounding The Black Prince and his power over the black rats that seem to have infested the villages and castles and dungeons. Even Nell’s brother, George, who is given some kind of amulet of a rat, mentions that it has some type of mystical power to it that causes Nell some unease but whips the rats into some type of fury.

Overall verdict: I honestly didn’t care what happened to these characters or if Nell made it back to wherever it was she was going. Her brother George, who I assume was a simpleton based on his dialogue, kept up his annoying interest with that amulet. It’s a major disappointment for me to say this book wasn’t all that great.

I am always interested in anything that deals with the Plague but this story was a far cry from what I had expected. This is a DNF. I tried skimming but said to hell with it and deleted it. Take this post as you will. Maybe someone out there finished it and had better luck than I did. DNF.

On the positive side of things, the author does hone in on the despair and fear of the pandemic that was wrought by the Black Death. It was the idea of this story that kept me going for awhile but I gave up. I just needed the story to have been a bit more tighter, characters to have been fleshed out better with scenes that compelled me to turn the page. I didn’t find it here. Sorry.

Diana Norman’s The Vizard Mask featured captivating scenes about the plague but the book is out of print. I’m told that Year of Wonders by Geraldine Brooks is a good read about the plague. The whole point is that there are good books out there if you’re looking for historical fiction that feature the plague. If you have any other recommendations to share with readers, please do.

For Further Reading

The Next Best Thing, Kristan Higgins [Guest Review]

Avid Reader — Tue, 09 Feb 2010 06:00:52 +0000

The Next Best Thing by Kristan Higgins (HQN 2010) is a paperback, 400 pages, contemporary romance. This review was written by fellow reader, Senetra.

*****

Kristan Higgins’ The Next Best Thing features pastry chef Lucy Lang Mirabelli, who has been widowed for almost five years. Her husband Jimmy, also a chef, died in a single-car accident following a trade show, and she has been unable to eat her own desserts since then, instead filling her need for sweets with Hostess cupcakes and Twinkies.

She has also never been able to visit his grave. With the birth of her niece, Lucy realizes that she wants to have a family, but she doesn’t want to risk loving and losing someone again. This is mostly due to the women in Lucy’s family (her mother and three aunts) having a history of becoming widows at young ages. Corinne, Lucy’s sister also lives in dread of joining their club, to the detriment of her marriage.

After making the decision that she is ready to remarry, Lucy informs Ethan, her best friend, brother-in-law, and friend with benefits, that they can no longer sleep together and the reason why. Ethan has been her rock since Jimmy’s death, and Lucy values his friendship. She spent her childhood missing her dad and wishing that her mother would remarry, and part of her happiness with Jimmy came from being part of a family with a living father.

Fear of his death has her holding Ethan at arm’s length and denying her feelings for him. After some bad dates, and a prescription for anti-anxiety meds, Ethan convinces Lucy to try dating him, but she wants their relationship to remain a secret for a while.

The mixed reactions of their family and friends; the entrance of a Jimmy lookalike; and Lucy’s attempts to figure out who she is now, and who she wants to be add to her stress. Some unwanted confrontations lead to revelations about Lucy, Jimmy, Ethan, and their relationships that finally allow Lucy to move on.

This is the third Kristan Higgins book that I have tried, and the first one I have read from start to finish. The other books started with a bang, then as the plot seemed to slow in the middle, I lost interest. I can’t leave a book unread, so I skipped to the last few chapters to see how everything came out in the wash.

The premise really intrigued me, so I decided to try it, even though my previous experiences with Higgins were not so great. When I started this book, I already knew that the heroine would tell her own story, have an animal, and encounter a Mr. Could Be the Hero But Isn’t. What I didn’t expect with the emotion that I felt while reading.

I felt an almost overwhelming sadness for all of the characters: The Black Widows who (happily or not) clung to memories of their dead husbands; Captain Bob pining for Daisy; Corinne’s fears for her husband; Gianni and Marie’s loss; and Lucy, Jimmy, and Ethan. They all seemed to be stuck in situations that that they either could not, did not want, or know how to change.

This was a complete turnaround from what I remember from the previous books I read, and I kept reading without skipping any parts because I needed to see how Lucy came to her HEA. This was hard going for me as a romance reader, and while I enjoyed most of the characters, I can’t say that I really enjoyed their journey. Grade: C+

For Further Reading

Author, Scott Turow Set to Release Sequel to Presumed Innocent

Avid Reader — Tue, 09 Feb 2010 01:42:47 +0000

Wow, color me surprised to learn on Twitter (no less) that Scott Turow is set to release the sequel to his blockbuster hit novel, Presumed Innocent (1987). I saw the movie, never read the book about a man accused of killing his mistress. The movie was good! And that ending! What a twist, huh? I love these kinds of novels. Will the sequel surpass the first book? What plot twists could Turow have up his sleeve this time?

Anyway, the title of the sequel is Innocent, from Grand Central Publishing (May 2010). It’s hardcover with (I presume) the ebook coming out on the same day. Glanced at the Kindle price and yes, it’s a whopping $18.79 with a list price of $27.99. If you’re like me, you’ll just catch the movie version whenever it becomes available (ha ha). For Scott Turow fans, here’s an article that came out last year (Scott Turow to Switch Publishers For Sequel) that talks more about the author and his new book. Writing this up made me think of how much I miss Raul Julia. I manged to snag the synopsis from B&N website that really doesn’t say a heck of a whole lot:

The sequel to the genre-defining, landmark bestseller Presumed Innocent, INNOCENT continues the story of Rusty Sabich and Tommy Molto who are, once again, twenty years later, pitted against each other in a riveting psychological match after the mysterious death of Rusty’s wife.

Guess what I’m watching tonight?

For Further Reading

No Related Posts

Ebook Quality Control

Avid Reader — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 19:48:58 +0000

Digital Book World and it’s blog whose mission is to “[focus] on publishing strategies, not tools; solutions, not theories; practicality, not punditry” spotlights Liza Daly’s presentation (Ms. Daly is an experienced software engineer and consultant for digital publishing). Her presentation at the 2010 Digital Book World Conference talked about essentially, ebook quality control. Timely topic since major publishers are pushing for higher ebook prices.

Ms. Daly’s presentation reflects exactly how I feel about the state of ebooks today. For starters, she discusses “front matter” or extraneous info that readers typically run across in ebooks. Do I care to thumb through the acknowledgments page, the copyright page and several more blank pages before I start reading? No.

Lack of covers — most annoying. But the argument always circles back to well, you’re not even reading on a device that sports color anyway so what’s the big deal. It’s a big deal. In color or not, I would like to look at the original cover versus looking at a mock-up with book title, author name and publisher name. Its an eye-sore and it looks tacky. Besides, Stanza and eReader apps for iPhone sports color covers.

Right now I am reading an secure ePub title that has numbers in the margins. It’s not entirely bothersome but I do notice it and why is it even there? Ms. Daly also touches on the lack of conversation quality control and editorial errors. This is another big area. In many instances while reading Stieg Larsson’s ebooks, I’ve run across needless errors. It’s jarring when you have to figure stuff like this out: “aretired” when it’s actually this –> “a retired…” for example.

But from what I’ve read online (and correct me if I’m wrong), publishers aren’t really caring about the money they make from ebooks anyway since the high prices are set to be prohibitive. We are told repeatedly that the big six make their money from hardcovers. So will any of this sink in? Make a difference?

Anyway, I highly recommend reading Digital Book World as it has interesting information for readers or ebook readers. It is a most informative blog thus far, that keeps its pulse on the trends and changes and nuances of digital publishing today.

For Further Reading

Morning Report

Avid Reader — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 06:00:26 +0000

This a quick run down of the articles/posts I’ve read this past week.

Super Bowl 2010

What about that Super Bowl 2010, huh? Congrats to the New Orleans Saints! I’m sure this win has special meaning for the people of New Orleans who’ve had some trials and tribulations this past few years. Congratulations to you all.

I was at work so I didn’t get to catch the commercials for Super Bowl 2010. Did you have any favorites? Here’s the back story behind the Leno-Oprah-Letterman ad that I found funny considering the history between all three participants. Via Bill_Landay (Twitter)

Higher Ebook Prices On the Horizon

The feud is allegedly over between online retailer Amazon.com and one of the big “six” publishers, Macmillan. For one solid week, the “buy new” links were pulled for all Macmillan titles while authors and readers watched from the sidelines. I don’t suspect that my reading habits will change much now that publishers are getting ready to raise ebook prices. I never bought Macmillan ebooks or any other publisher’s if they were priced higher than the mmp.

Make sure to check out this article, My Ebook Resolution: Saying No to the Ebook Tax at Dear Author, written by Jane. I agree with her resolutions and plan to continue doing what I’ve always been doing and that is not buying ebooks that are priced higher than the mmp and stop buying hardcovers. My plan to support authors is to continue buying their ebook(s) at reasonable cost as usual. I have a tbr pile that could sustain me for a few years, too.

British Actor Who Portrayed Peter Wimsey on the BBC Has Died

Seems that British actor, Ian Carmichael, who portrayed Lord Peter Wimsey on the BBC series passed away. I’ve heard a lot of good things about the Peter Wimsey series from my fellow readers. So much so that I bought the first book to try, Whose Body? by Dorothy L. Sayers.

Contest Equal Free Books

Contest is ongoing right now at Jessica’s blog from Racy Romance Reviews. She’s giving away all her print books since she already owns the audio or ebook version(s) of them. I should do this but I am too lazy. Anyway, make note of this: “Contest ends midnight Eastern time Saturday 2/13.”

What Are You Reading?

I am currently reading a ebook, The Girl With Who Played With Fire by Stieg Larsson. So far, it is AWESOME. Not sure if many of you have seen this YouTube video, just pictures set to music of Noomi Rapace as Lisbeth Salander in the movie version (WSJ article) of The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo.

For Further Reading

No Related Posts

Norwegian Crime Novelist, Jo Nesbo, Upcoming US Events

Avid Reader — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 04:24:12 +0000

Seems that my favorite crime novelist from Oslo will be coming to the US! He has some scheduled events where unfortunately, it looks like he won’t be in my neck of the woods. Damn. Well, if he’s in your area, go meet him!

The website says he’s promoting Nemesis from his most excellent Harry Hole series. Although he does have a new hardcover coming out, The Devil’s Star in March 2010.The three books that are and will be available for US readers are: The Redbreast, Nemesis and The Devil’s Star (in March). Love. Him. I really do. Why? Great plotter. Great writer. Interesting protagonist. Read him. I have. And no, those aren’t affiliate links.

For Further Reading

The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo, Stieg Larsson [Millennium Trilogy]

Avid Reader — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 08:08:14 +0000

The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo (Vintage 2009) by Stieg Larrson (author) and Reg Keeland (translator) is the first book in the Millennium Trilogy, set in Sweden.

The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo was the biggest bestseller last year. The original, Swedish title was “Män som hatar kvinnor” which translates to “Men That Hate Women.” Apt and sad to say that it’s a prevailing theme in this story (or series).

The main protagonist in the story is a financial reporter who gets fined and sentenced to jail for writing libelous content about a corrupt businessman. He steps down as publisher of the magazine that he co-founded,The Millennium and reluctantly takes up as an amateur investigator.

The story is broken down into four parts. The first part of the story shows one of the principal characters, Mikael Blomkvist’s fall into disgrace as he is indicted and sentenced to six months in prison for publishing fraudulent information in his magazine about Swedish businessman, Hans-Erik Wennerström. It is also referred to as “The Wennerström Affair.”

Something went wrong with the story that Mikael wrote about Wennerström, who everybody knows is corrupt. He had a credible source, an old college friend but then along the way something happened and Mikael felt that there was nothing that he could do about it at this point. So he’s charged with fraud and awaits trial.

Instead of fighting the indictment, Blomkvist folds. He accepts his sentence and steps down as publisher in order to save his magazine. Advertisers have fled. The media has torn him and his magazine to shreds. There’s nothing left for him to do but bide his time and figure out his next move.

But into the picture steps Henrik Vanger, a wealthy industrialist and leader of the Vanger family dynasty. He seeks out Blomkvist to ask him to do him a service. He wants Blomkvist to investigate the disappearance of his great niece, Harriet Vanger, who disappeared more than 36 years ago.

Blomkvist learns quickly that the Vanger family are quite…dysfunctional. There’s a lot of disdain and annoyance toward Henrik because of his obsession with finding Harriet. Most of his family members refer to his search for Harriet as his “hobby.” At any rate, Blomkvist moves into a cottage on the island where the girl went missing and starts his investigation under the guise of writing an autobiography about the Vanger family. It’s a really old case, what could Blomkvist find at this late date?

The story didn’t start to really take off for me until I finally met the girl with the dragon tattoo, Lisbeth Salander. She’s an asocial, anorexically thin 25 year old woman with piercings on her face and a lot of tattoos on her body. With that image most people assume she’s a freak or a punk. A self-image that Salander herself perpetuates. But we learn that she’s a genius with Asperger syndrome. Her behavior at times is taciturn, violent and unpredictable. But she’s an outstanding researcher and an excellent hacker.

She unexpectedly teams up with Blomkvist as his research assistant to help him find the missing Harriet Vanger. The two also become lovers. While the mystery itself takes center stage, it’s the dispute between Wennerström and Mikael Blomkvist that concludes the story and what a story it is!

I enjoyed The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo but this isn’t a story for everybody. First of all, the author almost always prefaced some of his chapters with dismal statistics about abuse towards women or how many women go missing each year in Sweden. Depressing. In the story itself, Salander suffers from sexual abuse at the hands of her guardian. She gets him back of course.

Salander was declared legally incompetent (due to some childhood incidents) and has always had a guardian who controlled her personal finances. Her mother is in a nursing home and I assume she had Alzheimer’s disease. I felt really bad for Salander at one point in the story. Her previous guardian gave her a lot more control and encouraged her independence. After he died, she had to revert all financial control over to a man who was a sexual deviant.

The one thing that made me really like Salander was the fact that she didn’t tolerate men who hated women. She fought back, kicked ass and took names. It wasn’t as easy as that but yes, she did get her revenge and quite nicely too. Sometimes I was exasperated with her lack of social skills even though I know it’s not her fault. But her relationship with Blomkvist proves to be good for her. Her relationship with him brings about some subtle changes in her personality. She even falls in love with him.

Salander proves to be a good ally/researcher for Blomkvist and even helps him in his revenge against Wennerström. But Blomkvist has a rather complex relationship with his editor-in-chief, Erika Berger, a woman who is married but she’s Blomkvist best friend and occasional lover. Will Salander wrest him away from her?

To sum up this book, I will quote from this article:

At its heart, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo is not so very different. It is a book about the failure of Swedish society to effectively respond to social ills at all levels. White-collar criminals are treated like celebrities and the press turns a blind eye. Women suffer inordinately at the hands of men in power — government officials, family members, even lovers — and have no recourse but to become vigilantes, protecting themselves where the social system has been utterly impotent.

That’s it in a nutshell. Overall, I thought the start of the book was a bit frenzied and all over the place but it was an ambitious start. The prologue with the pressed flowers had a sinister feel to it. Harriet Vanger was known to send her great-uncle pressed flowers every year on his birthday.

What’s strange is that a year after her disappearance, Henrik Vanger starts to receive pressed flowers every year on his birthday thereafter. Is this the taunt of a killer? The story does move into a more comfortable pace after things settle down. The narrative is told mostly in present tense. I was amused at how many authors (Val McDermid) were mentioned in here since Blomkvist is a reader.

The ending had a twist to it that I didn’t see coming from maybe lack of attention to details. Savvy readers will probably have figured some things out on their own. I had my ideas but none of them panned out. There are scenes of violence towards women that may make some readers uncomfortable (made me nauseous).

I’m now reading the sequel, The Girl Who Played With Fire. It’s criminal that the last book isn’t due out until May. But then I’ve decided I can wait. I’m depressed that three books are all we’ll ever read about these characters. I so enjoyed this story despite the violence and other flaws (nothing worth mentioning though). My grade, B+. I can see this being a reread as it is a rather complex, meaty, character driven murder mystery.