These Things Hidden

Believe it or not, I HAVE been reading lately, I've just been slacking on posting reviews of the books.

Today I am sharing my thoughts about These Things Hidden by Heather Gudenkauf.

Here's the synopsis:

"When teenager Allison Glenn is sent to prison for a heinous crime, she leaves behind her reputation as Linden Falls' golden girl forever. Her parents deny the existence of their once-perfect child. Her former friends exult her downfall. Her sister, Brynn, faces whispered rumors every day in the hallways of their small Iowa high school. It's Brynn--shy, quiet Brynn--who carries the burden of what really happened that night. All she wants is to forget Allison and the past that haunts her. 

But then Allison is released to a halfway house, and is more determined than ever to speak with her estranged sister. 

Now their legacy of secrets is focused on one little boy. And if the truth is revealed, the consequences will be unimaginable for the adoptive mother who loves him, the girl who tried to protect him and the two sisters who hold the key to all that is hidden."

Let me start this by saying that this book has been on my reading list for a while now, so I was really excited when my sister got it for me for Christmas. But I have to say that when I started reading it, I was a little disappointed. It seemed really predictable without leaving much to be anticipated. But the farther I got, the more intriqued I because to find out how all these characters were related to each other, and what else there could be to know (since I already felt like I knew the whole story).

By the time I was halfway through, I couldn't put it down and finished it within a couple days.

The main characters are really well developed, and there is a good amount of back story to help you understand the people you're reading about.

Overall I give it 4 out of 5 stars. It didn't end the way I WANTED it to, and there were a few loose ends that I kind of wanted some more closure on. I'm looking forward to reading other books by this author.

If I Stay

Linking up for...

Today I'm sharing If I Stay by Gayle Forman

Mia had everything: a loving family, a gorgeous, adoring boyfriend, and a bright future full of music and full of choices. Then, in an instant, almost all of that is taken from her. Caught between life and death, between a happy past and an unknowable future, Mia spends one critical day contemplating the only decision she has left - the most important decision she'll ever make.

Sister got me this book for my birthday, and i was really excited. I've had it on my Goodreads wish list for a while, and then with the movie coming out, I wanted to read it before it was ruined for me by all the movie-goers.

It was such a fast read... I couldn't put it down. The way it's written is really great... it jumps back and forth between what is happened after the accident, when she is stuck between life and death, and the back story. 

My only complaint was with the actual printing of the book. At the end of the book there's probably 30 pages of excerpts from other books. So as I was reading, I was thinking there was a lot more book to go, so I really wasn't emotionally ready when it ended abruptly. I was also really pissed off with the lack of closure of the book. Until I saw that there's a second book in the series, so now I can sleep better at night knowing that there is a continuance of the story.

This was a great book. I give it 4.75 out of 5 stars.

The Sixes

The book I have to tell you about this week is The Sixes by Kate White.

Right after Phoebe Hall's long-term boyfriend breaks off their relationship, she's falsely accused of plagiarizing her latest bestselling celebrity biography. Looking for a quiet place to put her life back together, she jumps at the offer to teach in a small private college in Pennsylvania run by her former boarding school roommate. But something evil lurks behind the quiet campus cafes and leafy maple trees. When the body of a female student washes up on the banks of a nearby river, disturbing accusations begin to surface about abuses wrought by a secret campus society known as The Sixes. Haunted by memories of her own school days, Phoebe launches a private investigation, and soon finds herself in the middle of a real-life nightmare, not knowing whom she can trust and if she will even survive. Because with the truth comes a terrifying revelation: your darkest secrets can still be uncovered... and starting over may be a crime punishable by death.

This was a Barnes and Noble bargain book, and I was really scared it was going to be as bad as the last one I got (see this post). But I am happy to report that it was WAY better. It grabbed my attention pretty much from the get go. There was a lot of characters coming in and out which can be overwhelming sometimes, but in this case it was all about keeping the reader guessing. Every time a new name came up, I was find myself trying to think through scenarios about how they fit in and what it might mean. Overall, the book took a few twists and turns and it seemed like around every corner, there was another surprise.

It wasn't the most intense book I've ever read, but the fact that it had good suspense while also being an easy read made it really good for a reader who doesn't always have long periods of time to read (since sometimes you have to be able to devote a good hour or two to make any progress in a book).

Overall, I give it 4 out of 5 stars. I think I will do some looking to see what other books this author might have out there for me.

Smash Cut and Skinny

I know it's been a while since I talked about anything aside from weight loss or food (weird...?)

But believe it or not, I have been doing a bit of reading, so I thought I might link up for Book Club Friday.

Smash Cut by Sandra Brown

When millionaire Paul Wheeler is murdered, his family retains renowned lawyer Derek Mitchell to defend the victim's nephew Creighton - although the police have not charged the young man with the crime. Wheeler's mistress, Julie Rutledge, who is also a suspect, believes that Creighton is the killer, despite his rock solid alibi, and she'll do almost anything in her quest to prove his guilt - even ruin Derek's career. But the more Derek learns of Creighton's darker side, especially his bizarre fascination with movie murders, the more he comes to believe Julie is right. The clock ticks down to a shocking ending as Derek and Julie join forces to find the truth. Has Creighton begun reenacting cinema's goriest scenes? And who will be his unwilling costars?

When I first started reading this book, it really drew me in. I love a good mystery/suspense/murder book, so this seemed right up my alley. But I quickly realized that this wasn't going to have the twists and turns I had hoped for. It didn't take long to figure out who the murderer was, and the author's attempts to throw the reader off onto a different tangent failed. It also, as the synopsis implies, has a lot of references to movies, and I think that the book may have had a bit more attraction if I was familiar with all the movies that were referenced.

Overall, it was just okay. I give it 3 out of 5.

Skinny by Diana Spechler

After her father's death, twenty six year old Gray Lachmann finds herself compulsively eating. Desperate to stop bingeing, she abandons her life in New York City for a job at a southern weight-loss camp. There, caught among the warring egos of her devious co-counselor, Sheena; the self-aggrandizing camp director, Lewis; his attractive assistant, Bennett; and a throng of combative teenage campers, she is confronted by a captivating mystery: her teenage half-sister Eden, whom Gray never knew existed. Now, while unraveling her father's lies, Gray must tackle her own self-deceptions and take control of her body and her life.

I thought this book would be PERFECT for me. But it was really not. I mean. REALLY not. I understand what the author was trying to do, show the reader that there is a connection between our minds wanting answers and our bodies supplementing with overeating, etc. But what she ended up with was a weird novel with a lot of confusing, contradictory things happening. She is so depressed about her fathers death but she talks about him like she hates him. She is SOOOO unhappy with her relationship, yet she continuously talks about how this guy was so great to her. There's an awkward, high school-esque drama with the other counselor, and a random steamy romance. 

Overall, this book really lacked anything to make me recommend it to someone else. I think that the author was onto a really good topic, but it came out more as a lot of unfinished characters and storylines, and too many loose ends.

I give it maybe 1.5 out of 5 stars.

Books.

Somewhere between working out, Seahawks obsession, and work, I've managed to read a couple books lately.

Orphan Train by Christina Baker Kline

This is a little bit of what GoodReads has to say:

"The author of Bird in Hand and The Way Life Should Be delivers her most ambitious and powerful novel to date: a captivating story of two very different women who build an unexpected friendship: a 91-year-old woman with a hidden past as an orphan-train rider and the teenage girl whose own troubled adolescence leads her to seek answers to questions no one has ever thought to ask."

This wasn't my FAVORITE book ever, but it was good. It goes over a part of American history that I had never heard anything about.

Although I can't get rid of the feelings I'm having lately of all the books I've been reading have the same weird orphan/tough start to life/foster child meets life changing experience storyline. 

With that said, this was a good book, I got really invested in the story and it was hard to put down at times.

3.5 out of 5 stars.

It's Not Me, It's You by Stefanie Wilder-Taylor

Take it away GoodReads:

"Stefanie Wilder-Taylor has never been one to take the easy, conventional route. In her latest work It’s Not Me, It’s You, she unabashedly showcases a life well lived, ignoring all wisdom, but yet somehow, coming out on top. Combining her trademark biting wit and straightforward common sense, the anticipated comedic memoir delivers outrageous tales from all periods of her life and family history. From Taylor’s outlook on working hard (audition for a game show instead) to getting her husband to propose (forget The Rules: try nagging and physical violence) these stories venture beyond daycare, sure to entertain both parents and non-parents alike."

SO. FUNNY. The number of times I LOL'd is ridiculous. It took a bit of a serious turn at the end of the book that makes you feel more connected to this girl (whom I've never heard of before). I would definitely enjoy reading her other books... despite the fact that they appear to be about motherhood.

4.5 out of 5 stars

Book Club Friday x 2

It may seem as though I have forgotten how to read, what with the lack of book review posts the past few months. However I HAVE finished reading a couple books lately, so I thought I would share them with you.

Plain Truth by Jodi Picoult

"The discovery of a dead infant in an Amish barn shakes Lancaster County to its core. But the police investigation leads to a more shocking disclosure: circumstantial evidence suggests that eighteen-year-old Katie Fisher, an unmarried Amish woman believed to be the newborn's mother, took the child's life. When Ellie Hathaway, a disillusioned big-city attorney, comes to Paradise, Pennsylvania, to defend Katie, two cultures collide - and for the first time in her high profile career, Ellie faces a system of justice very different from her own. Delving deep inside the world of those who live "plain," Ellie must find a way to reach Katie on her terms. And as she unravels a tangled murder case, Ellie also looks deep within - to confront her own fears and desires when a man from her past reenters her life."

I probably never would have picked this book up if it hadn't been in a bag of books my mom got from a book sale. Don't get me wrong, I like Jodi Picoult books, but it wasn't on the same level as some of her other books like My Sisters Keeper or House Rules.

Overall, it was fairly predictable throughout the main part of the story, but did end on a good note with a surprise twist at the end.

I give it 2.5 out of 5 stars.

Reason to Breathe by Rebecca Donovan

"In the affluent town of Weslyn, Connecticut, where most people worry about what to be seen in and who to be seen with, Emma Thomas would rather not be seen at all. She’s more concerned with feigning perfection while pulling down her sleeves to conceal the bruises - not wanting anyone to know how far from perfect her life truly is. Without expecting it, she finds love. It challenges her to recognize her own worth - but at the risk of revealing the terrible secret she’s desperate to hide."

This has been on my book wish list for quite a while, so I was really excited to finally get my hands on it. I can't say it was the most original story line I'd ever read, I've stumbled upon a couple other books that follow along the same sort of "gifted girl with abusive/secret home life" books the past few years, but it was an easy read, I found myself going to bed earlier than normal at night so I would have time to get a couple chapters down. 

The real kicker in this book was the ending. I was NOT happy with it, but mostly because it left me needing to know what happens next. It is the first book in the series, so it accomplished the main goal of an author, which is getting me to add her other books to my list. However, if the next book doesn't carry on this girls story, I am going to be REALLY upset because there are some things that need to be explained and finished with this book.

Overall, 3.5. Nothing life changing about this book, but it is a good read and has a nice little teenage love story in there too. 

That's it kids, tune in later to (hopefully) see my next completed Pinterest inspired Christmas craft!

Well Deserved Friday

I have to say, this week has been kicking my ass. My boss has been on vacation all week and it's been a lot more stressful that it usually is when she's gone. So it's an understatement to say that I'm glad the weekend is here.

Today I have two books to share with you. One that was pretty good, and one that was fan-freaking-tastic. For real.

First up, the book that was pretty good.

Saving Max by Antoinette van Heughten

Attorney Danielle Parkman knows her teenage son Max's behavior has been getting worse - using drugs and lashing out. But she can't accept the diagnosis she receives at a top notch adolescent psychiatric facility that her son is deeply disturbed. Dangerous.

Until she finds Max, unconscious and bloodied, beside a patient that has been brutally stabbed to death.

Trapped in a world of doubt and fear, barred from contacting Max, Danielle clings to the belief that her son is innocent. But has she, too, lost touch with reality? Is her son really a killer?

This is a book I've bypassed on my sister's bookshelf a few times, but I finally decided to pick it up.

It's one of those books that you pick up knowing that something big is going to happen, and you find yourself kind of sitting on the edge of your seat because you always know it's just around the corner. 

For the most part, I didn't find anything wrong with it, however there are some character relationships that don't make sense to me. (spoiler alert!) Such as the main character, Danielle, having a one night stand with a man, and then finding out he's her attorney, and that one night has just meant so much to him he's willing to risk his reputation for her. I really could have done without that part.

Overall, it had good plot twists and suspense, but I think the ending was pretty cheesy.

I give it 3 out of 5 stars. The good parts of the book make it easy to overlook the less desirable characteristics.

Now, on to the REAL winner.

Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher

Clay Jensen doesn't want anything to do with the tapes Hannah Baker made. Hannah is dead. Her secrets should be buried with her.

Then Hannah's voice tells Clay that his name is on her tapes - and that he is, in some way, responsible for her death.

All through the night, Clay keeps listening. He follows Hannah's recorded words throughout his small town...

...and what he discovers changes his life forever.

This book has been on my list to read for a long time, but I hadn't been able to find it for a good enough price (aka cheap as dirt) to buy it. But then my luck changed! I found it at our CEO's garage sale for $3 and I snatched it up like it was a gold nugget!

HOLY. BALLS. I could not put this book down. I think that it's a book that everybody should read. I think it should be required reading in high school... shoot, even middle school.

Suicide is such a huge problem, and people think that there is always some major thing going on that causes it. But this book shows that it can be a whole combination of different events. Events that, on their own, don't seem like they would be that big of a deal. But when they stack up on someones mind and their heart, it can really bring things crashing down.

Hannah Baker, the girl in the tapes, essentially called out all the people who helped make her life a living hell, and pushed her towards the decision to take her life.

I couldn't imagine being one of those people. Hearing the voice of a girl telling you that YOU are partially to blame for their death.

I read this book in two days, and I promise that if you pick it up, you won't be able to put it down. Pass it on.

With that said, I'm off to face the day and keep my eye on the prize: the clock striking 5 and a nice cold cocktail in my hand.

The Likeness

I'm nothing if not a woman of my word. So here I am with a book review for you.

The Likeness by Tana French

Six months after a particularly nasty cash, Detective Cassie Maddox has transferred out of Dublin's murder squad and has no plans to go back. That is, until an urgent telephone call summons her to a grisly crime scene.

It's only when she sees the body that Cassie understands the hurry. The victim, a young woman, is Cassie's double and carries ID identifying herself as Alexandra Madison, an alias Cassie once used on an undercover job. Suddenly, Cassie must discover not only who killed this girl but, more importantly, who is this girl? And as reality and fantasy become desperately tangled, Cassie moves dangerously close to losing herself forever.

The Good: It not a story line that's been used over and over and over again like a lot of mystery/suspense novels do. It also has a sort of mesmerizing quality to it, which is probably due to the characters in the book having the same sort of quality.

The Bad: The ending kind of falls flat for me. It's not that there are a bunch of lose ends or that you're left looking for closure, it just didn't really flow for me.

Overall, it was a good book. It had points where I was completely enthralled, but it also had times where it got pretty slow and I was just wading through filler to get to the next interesting part.

3.5 out of 5 stars.

Bossypants

Ah, the end of another thrilling, suspenseful week.

Or it's just the end of another boring, rainy week. Either way, I'm still going to share this book review with you.

Bossypants by Tina Fey

This book has been on my Goodreads list for a while. So while perusing my sister's bookshelf I decided I would take the plunge.

I don't have a synopsis to share with you, I'll just leave you with knowing that it's Tina Fey's autobiography. She talks about her start in comedy, a little about her family, and a lot of random crap.

The Good: There are some funny parts. 

The Bad: A lot of her references are to people I have never heard of, therefore taking away from some of the humor. And it's one of those books that jumps around to unrelated stories, which makes it one of those books that can be really hard to get into.

Overall, I was disappointed. Don't get me wrong, there were times when I was laughing outloud. But there was also a lot of times where I had a hard time even getting through one page because it felt like overkill on some of the jokes and it didn't have a storyline to draw me in. 

I give it 2.5 out of 5 stars.

Double Trouble

It's another double review kind of Friday.

Northwest Angle by William Kent Krueger

During a houseboat vacation on the remote Lake of the Woods, a violent gale sweeps through unexpectedly, stranding Cork and his daughter, Jenny, on a devastated island where the wind has ushered in a force far darker and more deadly than any storm.

Amid the wreckage, Cork and Jenny discover the body of a teenage girl. She wasn't killed by the storm, however; she'd been bound and tortured before she died. Nearby, underneath a tangle of branches, they also find a baby boy, hungry and dehydrate, but still very much alive. Powerful forces intent on securing the child pursue them to the isolated Northwest Angle, where it's impossible to tell who among the residents is in a league with the devil, but Cork understands that to save his family he must solve the puzzle of this mysterious child whom death follows like a shadow.

This book is #11 in the Cork O'Connor series... which I'd never heard of and never read any of the previous books. But it ended up not being a factor when I read the book.

The Good: The story starts off with a bang and there are SO many little mini mysteries that come up. As soon as you get through one heart pounding scenario, another one starts a few pages later. Also, it's written well enough that you don't have to read the previous books to know what the hell is going on.

The Bad: I can't really think of anything "bad" about the book. I guess the closest thing I can come up with is that it has a lot of Native American language references in it because the characters have some in their heritage. But it defines all the words, so it really doesn't detract from the story at all.

Overall, I give it 4.5 out of 5 stars, and I am really excited to go back and read the other Cork O'Connor novels.

Lost & Found by Jacqueline Sheehan

Rocky's husband Bob was just forty-two when she discovered him lying cold and lifeless on the bathroom floor... and Rocky's world changed forever. Quitting her job, chopping off all her hair, she leaves Massachusetts - reinventing her past and taking a job as Animal Control Warden on Peak's Island, a tiny speck off the coast of Maine and a million miles away from everything she's lost. She leaves her career as a psychologist behind, only to find friendship with a woman whose brain misfires in the most wonderful way and a young girl who is trying to disappear. Rocky, a quirky a fallible character, discovers the healing process to be agonizingly slow.

But then she meets Lloyd. A large black labrador retriever, Lloyd enters Rocky's world with a primitive arrow sticking out of his shoulder. And so begins a remarkable friendship between a wounded woman and a wounded, lovable beast. As the unraveling mystery of Lloyd's accident and missing owner leads Rocky to an archery instructor who draws her in even as she finds every reason to mistrust him, she discovers the life-altering revelation that grief can be transformed... and joys does exist in unexpected places.

The Good: It's a book about a dog! And there is an air of mystery that keeps you turning the pages. It's also got a pretty damn good ending.

The Bad: There's a lot of strange random things that are mentioned that don't really seem to have anything to do with the story line. I mean, I suppose they add to the development of the characters in some cases, but not enough to really be relevant to the story.

It was a fast read, a good story with a little bit of everything. Overall I give it 3 out of 5 stars.

Book Review Catch Up

After I wrote up my Pinteresting Wednesday post the other day, I was trying to take off my toenail polish, when puppy came bounding in, jumped on my desk (her legs, not her whole body) and knocked my nail polish remover over, saturating my USB wireless internet thing. So now I am having to utilize my lunch break to bring you these book reviews, rather than actually reading another book. It's probably a good thing though, since I have 4 books to tell you about today.

Barefoot by Elin Hilderbrand

Three women - burdened with small children, unwieldy straw hats, and some obvious emotional issues - tumble onto the Nantucket airport tarmac one hot June day. Vicki is trying to sort through the news that she has a serious illness. Her sister, Brenda, has just left her job after being caught in an affair with a student. And their friend Melanie, after seven failed in vitro attempts, is pregnant at last - but only after learning that her husband is having an affair. They have come to escape, enjoy the sun, and relax in Nantucket's calming air. But into the house, into their world, steps twenty two year old Josh Flynn.

This is a book that borrowed from my sister when I ran out of my own. I read another book by this same author last year and it was an okay read, so I thought I would give it a shot.

The Good: It has a good ending, meaning that it doesn't leave a bunch of loose ends sitting out there that you want to know about.

The Bad: There really isn't any suspense. It's not funny. It doesn't give you anything that really makes you sit at your desk dying for your lunch break to get to read more.

Overall, it was a good book, a light read. Good for passing the time, but nothing spectacular.

3 out of 5 stars

Sarah's Key by Tatiana de Rosnay

Paris, July 1942: Sarah, a 10 year old girl, is taken with her parents by the French police as they go door to door arresting Jewish families in the middle of the night. Desperate to protect her younger brother, Sarah locks him in a bedroom cupboard - their secret hiding place - and promises to come back for him as soon as they are released.

Sixty years later: Sarah's story intertwines with that of Julia Jarmond, an American journalist investigating the roundup. In her research, Julia stumbles onto a trail of secrets that link her to Sarah, and to questions about her own romantic future.

I've passed this book by quite a few times just because I wasn't sure if I would like it. But it was another that I borrowed from my sister.

I FLEW through this book. It was so good. I was disgusted and saddened by the things I learned about France's role in the holocaust, and on the edge of my seat wanting to know what happens to this girl and her family.

The Good: Pretty much everything. I liked that it would go back and forth between the two time settings. The characters were developed. It was suspenseful and evoked emotion.

The Bad: It isn't really bad, but I much prefered the 1942 setting to the current setting... I think the story line was a lot more intriguing, but that could be my interest in the history talking.

4.5 out of 5 stars.

Waiting to Be Heard by Amanda Knox

In November 2007, Amanda Knox was twenty years old and had been studying abroad in Perugia, Italy, for only a few weeks when her friend and roommate, a young English student named Meredith Kercher, was brutally murdered. The investigation made headlines around the world, and Amanda's arrest placed her at the center of a media firestorm. Young, naive, grieving at the horrifying death of her friend, and with little more than basic knowledge of the Italian language, she was subjected to harsh interrogations during which she struggled to understand the police and to make her own words understood. The subsequent trial exposed Amanda to international scrutiny and speculation, and she became a tabloid staple. In 2009, after an extremely controversial trial, she was wrongly convicted of murder. But in October 2011, after Amanda had spent four years in an Italian prison, and following a lengthy appeals process, the conviction was overturned. Amanda immediately flew home to the United States.

I was waiting and waiting and WAITING for this book to come out! In case you missed it, you can read my post here about how I felt when Amanda was acquitted. Anyways, back to the book.

It was good. It was in her own words and it was so nice to hear her side of the story, because like the synopsis says, her whole case was surrounded by so much media attention, it was really hard to get a good idea of what happened.

Overall the book was good. It was nice to hear about her experience and confirm my thoughts on the case from her point of view.

I give it 4.5 out of 5.

Before I Go to Sleep by SJ Watson

Memories define us.
So what if you lost yours every time you went to sleep? Your name, your identity, your past, even the people you love - all forgotten overnight. And the one person you trust may be telling you only half the story.
Welcome to Christine's life.

This book has been on my To Read list on Goodreads for quite a while, so I was really happy to see it at Costco in Oregon (no sales tax!) when we were down there for my uncle's funeral. 

The Good: Very suspenseful, and it really draws you in from the start.

The Bad: It gets a little repetitive, but that goes hand in hand with the fact that this woman wakes up every morning and has to be told over and over again who she is. 

Overall, I am really glad I read this book and I highly recommend it for anybody who likes suspense in their books.

4.5 out of 5 stars.

Never Knowing

I didn't think I would get it done, but I managed to finish my book just in time to give you guys a review (since I'm sure you guys were just sitting on the edge of your seats, not knowing how you could survive if you didn't find out today what I thought of my book).

I just finished reading Never Knowing by Chevy Stevens



Here's the summary from the back of the book:

All her life, Sara Gallagher has wondered about her birth parents. As an adopted child with two sisters who were born naturally to her parents, Sara did not have an ideal home life, so the question of why she was given up for adoption has always haunted her. Finally, she is ready to take steps to and to find closure.

After months of research, Sara locates her birth mother - only to be met with horror and rejection. Then she discovers the devastating truth: Her mother was the only victim ever to escape a killer who has been hunting woment every summer for decades. But Sara soon realizes the only thing worse than finding out about her father is him finding out about her.

I have been really looking forward to reading this book. I really loved Chevy Stevens' other book Still Missing, so I had a feeling I would enjoy this one also.

The Good: There is a twist at the end that you don't really see coming until right before it smacks you in the face. Also, it's not one of those storylines that you find being overdone.

The Bad: A lot of the situations in the book are repetitive... she's fighting with her sister, she's arguing with her fiance, her daughter is being a brat. Granted, I know that those are things that realistically happen, but I found myself being kind of annoyed when I felt like I was reading the same scenario for the 3rd time when I really wanted to be moving on to more exciting things happening.

Overall, I enjoyed the book, but not as much as Still Missing.

3.5 out of 5 stars

A Land of Sheltered Promise

Back for another book review my friends! 

This week I'm sharing A Land of Sheltered Promise by Jane Kirkpatrick

The synopsis on the back is fairly long, so here is my cliff notes version:

It's the historical story (based on true events) that surround an area in Oregon known as The Big Muddy Ranch.
The first story starts in 1901 when a woman's husband is accused (and convicted) of murder. It follows her as she starts a life of her own on the land, and the changes it brings to her life.
Next up, in 1984, the land is transformed into the religious city of Rajneeshpuram which is, essentially, a cult. It follows the thoughts and actions of one girl who gets swept up into the cult, and whose mother comes to try to bring her back to reality.
Finally, in 1997, a group of people revive the land that had been used for the cult to start a youth camp using the buildings and resources that had been left behind.

Like I said, that's just the cliff notes of the story, and I'm sure not as good as if you were reading the actual synopsis, but you get the idea.

This book was one that I picked up at my church rummage sale last year and has been sitting by my bed since. I started reading it once last year and couldn't get into it. However this time when I picked it up again, I could barely put it down! I really enjoyed the way the three eras were tied together, and I think as far as historical fiction goes, it was really good. From what I can tell, the events are all true, but the names and characters (and obviously their thoughts, etc) are fiction.

Anyways, overall I thought it was a good book and give it 3.5 out of 5 stars. If you like US history, I think this would be a good book to read.

Poor Little Bitch Girl and The Devil Wears Prada

Once again, I've held back a book review from you, so I have a double today.

First up, Poor Little Bitch Girl by Jackie Collins

Here is the synopsis from the cover:

Denver Jones is a hotshot twenty-something attorney working in LA. Carolyn Henderson is personal assistant to a powerful and very married senator in Washington with whom she is having an affair. And Annabelle Maestro - the daughter of two movie stars - has carved out a career for herself in New York as the madam of choice for discerning famous men. The three of them went to high school together in Beverly Hills, and although Denver and Carolyn have have kept in touch, Annabelle is out on her own with her cocaine addicted boyfriend, Frankie.

Then there is Bobby Santangelo Stanislopolous, the Kennedy-esque son of Lucky Santangelo and deceased Greek shipping billionaire Dimitri Stanislopolous. Bobby owns Mood, the hottest club in New York. Back in the day, he went to high school with Denver, Carolyn, and Annabelle. And he connected with all three o them. Plus, Frankie was his best friend.

When Annabelle's beautiful movie-star mother is found shot to death in the bedroom of her Beverly Hills mansion, the five of them find themselves thrown together... and secrets from the past have a way of coming back to haunt everyone.

My initial thoughts on the characters are that they are very predictable. Their names seem really cheesy, and their personalities are the kind that I feel like I may have come up with  in high school creative writing (the rich, shallow celebrity child, the smart dedicated attorney, and the delusional, well meaning mistress).

With that set aside, though, I feel like this was a good story. It grabbed my attention, and it was an easy read. There were a couple little twists and things that I was kind of on my seat to find out (is she going to get away from those people? Who killed the mom?) but I don't think it had the suspense and mystery that the cover lead me to believe.

Also, this book is part of a series (the Lucky Santangelo series, I think) written by Jackie Collins. I didn't realize that until I found the book on Good Reads. But unlike when I read that random Stephanie Plum book, I was able to read this book without missing anything from prior books in the series.

Overall, it wasn't the BEST book I've ever read, but it was good as far as chick lit goes, and i would read other books by Jackie Collins.

3.5 out of 5 stars.

The Devil Wears Prada by Lauren Weisberger

I'm not going to bother giving you a full overview of what the book is about, since I think most of us know.

The book is more entertaining than i remember the movie being. As movies usually do, there seemed to have been a lot of stuff left out of the movie, and the characters were a bit different. 

It wasn't a book I was really looking forward to reading, since I had already seen the movie. But it was entertaining, and I was always thinking to myself "Andrea, you are such a dumb bitch, just quit your job!!!" and whatnot.

Not much to say about it other than I have read other things by Lauren Weisberger before that I have enjoyed, and I look forward to reading other things.

Another 3.5 out of 5. Entertaining, but nothing spectacular.