The Four Hearts

Started: 5/30/07
Finished: 6/2/07
Year: 2007
Pages: ?
Genre: Chick Lit
Grade: C
Reason for reading: review
Blurb: 4 women go to California to strike it rich
Opinion: This story could have been a lot stronger if the story was told in one of the characters point of view instead of all four. The 4 main characters were all strong characters and important to each other. For a more complete review, check out MyShelf.com next month.

Desperate Measures by David Morrell

Started: 5/25/07
Finished: 5/30/07
Year: 1994
Pages: 503
Genre: Suspense/Mystery
Grade: B-
Reason for reading: grabbed it off the TBR shelf
Blurb (from back cover): "The suicide of Matt Pittman, fallen star journalist, is abruptly interrupted by a phone call and unexpected assignment: write an obituary of a man who is not yet dead. Suddenly, clinging desperately to a life he'd so recently been eager to discard, Matt will be thrust into the heart of a conspiracy whose global influence remains terrifyingly unsurpassed. And he will find himself both a suspect for murder by the police and a target for murder by invisible killers determined to destroy him-and anyone he comes close to-before he finds out why."
Opinion: A lot of twists and turns...too many in my opinion. But still a fun read.

Possessing the Secret of Joy by Alice Walker

Started: 5/24/07
Finished: 5/25/07
Year: 1992
Pages: 288
Genre: Literature
Grade: B+
Reason for reading: booksfree.com
Blurb: A book about female circumcision and how it can affect a family.
Opinion: A fascinating read. Reminded me of a college presentation that I did with my then boyfriend Mike and our friend Tracy about female circumcision and what can happen to the women. I really enjoyed it.

Secrets of a Former Fat Girl by Lisa Delaney

Started: 5/21/07
Finished: 5/24/07
Year: 2007
Pages: 246
Genre: Self-help, weight loss
Grade: C
Reason for reading: review for MyShelf
Blurb (from book jacket): "Any woman who has ever been a 'fat girl' knows the label sticks in your mind, regardless of how much weight you lose. That's what Lisa Delaney thought, too. Twenty years ago, at 5'4" and 185 pounds, Delaney was despondent over diets that never worked and disappointed by her full job and lack of love life. Fortunately, a late-night epiphany involving a half gallon of mint chocolate chop ice cream convinced her that becoming a former fat girl-in body and spirit-was the key to creating a life she truly loved."
"Today, seventy pounds lighter, Lisa is a full-fledged Former Fat Girl. She's a successful writer and editor at a national magazine. She is married to a man she loves. And she wears a size two.
"Eye-opening, compassionate, and filled with practical advice, Secrets of a Former Fat Girl reveals the seven secrets of Delaney's success (Secret #1: Forget Dieting), exploring how shifting from wannabe Former Fat Girl to actual Former Fat Girl is as much about seeing yourself as a confident, secure, desirable woman as it is about achieving an ideal weight. Using the story of her own transformation as a guide, Delaney provides the reader with invaluable tips and guidance for how to create an exercise plan that works for you; how to find a gym and workout clothes you love (they do exist); how to deal with those pesky relatives who seem determined to sabotage your goals (we all have them); and, most importantly, how to reimagine your own best life and 'see' yourself slim.
"Whether you want to drop two, four, or more dress sizes, Secrets of a Former Fat Girl offers the strategies and support to help you effect real change once and for all."
Opinion: I enjoyed the writing style but didn't agree with all of the advice that was given. For a more complete review, check out MyShelf.

Say Cheesy by Darby Conley: A Get Fuzzy Collection

Started: 5/21/07
Finished: 5/21/07
Year: 2005
Pages: 127
Genre: Comic book
Grade: A
Reason for reading: grabbed it off the TBR shelf
Blurb: A collection of Get Fuzzy comics
Opinion: Some very funny bits regarding Satchel and Bucky. Some current events and pop culture is in some of the comics-very subtle and funny.

Fury by Salman Rushdie

Started: 5/19/07
Finished: 5/21/07
Year: 2001
Pages: 259
Genre: Literature
Grade: C
Reason for reading-booksfree.com book
Blurb (from back cover): "Malik Solanka, historian of ideas and world-famous dollmaker, steps out of his life one day, abandons his family in London without a word of explanation, and flees for New York. There's a fury within him, and he fears he has become dangerous to those he loves. He arrives in New York at a time of unprecedented plenty, in the highest hour of America's wealth and power, seeking to 'erase' himself. But fury is all around him.
"Fury is a work of explosive energy, at once a pitiless and picth-black comedy, a profoundly disturbing inquiry into the darkest of human nature, and a love story of mesmerizing force. It is also an astonishing portrait of New York. Not since the Bombay of Midnight's Children have a time and place been so intensely and accurately captured in a novel."
Opinion: A lot of description that made me skim over parts of the book. I got the basic gist but I didn't find myself engrossed in it.

High Crimes by Joseph Finder

Started: 5/16/07
Finished: 5/19/07
Year: 2006
Pages: 388
Genre: Legal Mystery
Grade: A
Reason for reading: review for MyShelf.com
Blurb (from back cover): "Star attorney Claire Heller Chapman has known only love and respect from her successful husband. But now police are saying Tom Chapman is not who he says he is. Thirteen years ago, they claim, he had a different face and a different name-and was responsible for a crime so heinous that only a maniac could have committed it. Now Claire must put her reputation, her family, and her life on the line to defend this man she never knew-in a case where all evidence is classified, all the rules are being changed around her...and the stakes are higher and deadlier than she or anyone else could have ever imagined."
Opinion: One of the better legal mysteries that I've read. Not crazy about the ending. The book was fast paced and I wanted to keep reading it. For a more complete review, check out MyShelf.com next month.

Hannibal Rising by Thomas Harris

Started: 5/14/07
Finished: 5/16/07
Year: 2006
Pages: 323
Genre: Horror
Grade: C
Reason for reading: grabbed it off the TBR shelf, have enjoyed the rest of the series
Blurb (from book jacket): "Hannibal Lecter emerges from the nightmare of the Eastern Front, a boy in the snow, mute, with a chain around his neck.
"He seems utterly alone, but he has brought his demons with him.
"Hannibal's uncle, a noted painter, finds him in a Soviet orphanage and brings him to France, where Hannibal will live with his uncle and his uncle's beautiful and exotic wife, Lady Murasaki.
"Lady Murasaki helps Hannibal to heal. With her help he flourishes, becoming the youngest person ever admitted to medical school in France.
"But Hannibal's demons visit him and torment him. When he is old enough, he visits them in turn.
"He discovers he has gifts beyond the academic, and in the epiphany, Hannibal Lecter becomes death's prodigy."
Opinion: Eh. A disappointment compared to some of the other books in the series. I'll check out the movie just because I've seen the rest of them but am ready to face the fact that it just won't be as good.

She Wanted It All by Kathryn Casey

Started: 5/9/07
Finished: 5/14/07
Year: 2005
Pages: 448
Genre: True Crime
Grade: B+
Reason for reading: booksfree.com
Blurb (from back cover): "The wife: She wanted everything, but her husband stood in the way.
"The lesbian lover: A love-struck, middle-aged woman with a history of mental illness, she would do anything to set Celeste free.
"The beauty salon receptionist: Celeste hired her to tie up the loose ends...in a second conspiracy to commit murder."
Opinion: A decent true crime story about a woman who basically was a gold-digger and would do anything, including sacrificing her own children to get what she wants. A good read.

The Lisbon Crossing by Tom Gabbay

Started: 5/8/07
Finished: 5/9/07
Year: 2007
Pages: 310
Genre: Mystery
Grade: B-
Reason for reading: review for MyShelf.com
Blurb (from book jacket): "Teeming with Nazis, spies, and ambiguous loyalties, the early days of World War II come alive with dark intrigue and heart-stopping action in this brilliant second tale from the author of the hit thriller The Berlin Conspiracy.
"It's the summer of 1940 and Europe is in the grip of the Nazi war machine. Jack Teller arrives in neutral Lisbon on the arm of international screen legend Lili Sterne, to help her search for her childhood friend, Eva Lange. Having escaped Germany, staying one step ahead of the Nazi terror, Eva is believed to be hiding among the thousands of desperate refugees who have descended upon Lisbon. But Jack isn't the first on her trail. Top Hollywood detective Eddie Grimes had been on the case-until he turned up dead.
"Instead of answers, Jack uncovers a series of lies that leads from Estoril's glittering nightclubs-rubbing elbows with the likes of Edward, Duke of Windsor, and his scheming wife, Wallis Simpson-into Lisbon's dank and dangerous backstreets. Along the way, Jack makes a shocking discovery that takes him from Portugal to the perilous boulevards of Nazi-occupied Paris, where his actions could change the course of the war."
Opinion: Not as strong as I wanted it to be. Never got a real sense of setting of WWII. Romance between some characters was unbelievable. Characterization of Jack was great. For a more complete review, check out MyShelf.com next month.

A Hand to Guide Me by Denzel Washington

Started: 5/2/07
Finished: 5/8/07
Year: 2006
Pages: 272
Genre: Memoir
Grade: B+
Reason for reading: Love Denzel, grabbed it off the TBR shelf
Blurb (from book jacket): "Everyone needs a hand from time to time, a gentle nudge to get on track. And you never know when the help you provide will lift someone toward a life of greatness.
"A Hand to Guide Me showcases how the kindness of mentors has shaped the lives of people you know and respect. In their own words, legendary personalities tell how people stepped up to guide them. From Hank Aaron and Muhammad Ali to Bob Woodward and James Worthy, the voices in this book may be household names now, but they credit their success to the guidance of others long ago.
"Seventy-four stores in all, each one is a revelation about how important any one of us can be to the youth around us."
Opinion: A great book that includes several memoirs from several well-known celebrities and heads of companies. I enjoyed it.

Sabriel by Garth Nix

Started: 4/30/07
Finished: 5/2/07
Year: 1995
Pages: 311
Genre: fantasy
Grade: B
Reason for reading: booksfree.com
Blurb (from back cover): "Sent to a boarding school in Ancelstierre as a young child, Sabriel has had little experience with the random power of Free Magic or the Dead who refuse to stay dead in the Old Kingdom. But during her final semester, her father, the Abhorsen, goes missing, and Sabriel knows she must enter the Old Kingdom to find him. She soon finds companions in Moggot, a cat whose aloof manner barely conceals its malevolent spirit, and Touchstone, a young Charter Mage long imprisoned by magic, now free in body but still trapped by painful memories. As the three travel deep into the Old Kingdom, threats mount on all sides. And every step brings them closer to a battle that will pit them against the true forces of life and death-and bring Sabriel face-to-face with her own hidden destiny."
Opinion: As someone who really doesn't read a lot of fantasy, I found this book exciting and well worth the read.

Play Dead by David Rosenfelt

Started: 4/26/07
Finished: 4/30/07
Year: 2007
Pages: 308
Genre: mystery
Grade: B
Reason for reading: review for MyShelf.com
Blurb (from back cover): "Few can rival attorney Andy Carpenter's affection for golden retrievers, especially his own beloved Tara. After he astonishes a New Jersey courtroom by successfully appealing another golden's death sentence, Andy discovers that this gentle dog is a key witness to a murder that took place five years before. Andy pushes the boundaries of the law even further as he struggles to free an innocent man by convincing an incredulous jury to take canine testimony seriously. It will take all the tricks Andy's fertile mind can conceive to get to the bottom of a remarkable chain of impersonations and murder, and save a dog's life-and his own-in the process."
Opinion: What I really loved about this book was that golden retrievers are involved. There were some editing mistakes but since this was an advanced reader copy, it's fine. For a more complete review, check out MyShelf.com next month.

Darwin and the Barnacle by Rebecca Stott

Started 4/24/07
Finished: 4/26/07
Year: 2003
Pages: 261
Genre: Biographical/Science
Grade: B+
Reason for reading: grabbed it off the TBR pile
Blurb (from back cover): "In a suspensful narrative, Rebecca Stott tells the story of Charles Darwin's discovery in 1835 of an unknown, shrimplike barnacle he would call 'Mr. Anthrobalanus' and the decisive influence this tiny marine organism would have on the course of evolutionary biology."
Opinion: An interest look at Darwin and his life. I found it worth reading as I believe in Darwin's theory and I like marine biology.

The Folding Star by Alan Hollinghurst

Started: 4/20/07
Finished: 4/24/07
Year: 1994
Pages: 437
Genre: Literature
Grade: D
Reason for reading: booksfree.com
Blurb (from back cover): "Alan Hollinghurst's hypnotic and exquisitely written novel tells the story of Edward Manners, a disaffected thirty-three-year-old who leaves England to earn his living as a language tutor in a Flemish city. Almost immediately he falls in love with one of his pupils, but can only console himself with other affairs. With the novel, Hollinghurst exposes us fearlessly to the consequences of unfulfillable, annihilating desire.
Opinion: Eh. Not worth picking up in my opinion. Only finished it because I believe in attempting to finish every book I start.

The Robert F. Kennedy Assassination by Philip H. Melanson

Started: 4/14/07
Finished: 4/20/07
Year: 1994
Pages: 353
Genre: Non-fiction
Grade: B+
Reason for reading: Scott recommended
Blurb: This is a look into the possible cover-up surrounding Robert F. Kennedy's assassination.
Opinion: This contains a lot of valid points regarding cover-ups with the LAPD, LA District Attorney's office, FBI, and CIA. After reading this, I believe that this investigation should be reopened. There are too many unanswered questions, and thanks to the some of the evidence being destroyed, there will remain unanswered questions. But in order for true justice to be done, this should be relooked at. Did Sirhan Sirhan kill Kennedy? Was there another gun? Was there a mysterious woman with Sirhan? Why would there be such a cover-up?

The Shipping News by E. Annie Proulx

Started: 4/9/07
Finished: 4/14/07
Year: 1993
Pages: 337
Genre: Fiction
Grade: C
Reason for reading: booksfree.com
Blurb (from back cover): "At thirty-six, Quoyle, a third-rate newspaperman, is wrenched violently out of his workaday life when his two-timing wife meets her just deserts. He retreats with his two daughters to his ancestral home on the starkly beautiful Newfoundland coast, where a rich cast of local characters all play a part in Quoyle's struggle to reclaim his life. As three generations of his family cobble up new lives, Quoyle confronts his private demons-and the unpredictable forces of nature and society-and begins to see the possibility of love without pain or misery."
Opinion: I believe that this is one of the 1001 books you should read list. I don't feel that it should be on that list. I didn't find it that enjoyable but certainly not the worst book I've read. I did like how each chapter discussed a knot fact and how it plays a part in that chapter.

Death and Justice by Mark Fuhrman

Started: 4/5/07
Finished: 4/9/07
Year: 2003
Pages: 252
Genre: True Crime
Grade: C-
Reason for reading: grabbed it off the TBR shelf
Blurb (from book jacket): "Are innocent people being executed? Are death penalty cases being investigated and tried as if someone's life depended on it? Is capital punishment justice or revenge?
"Fuhrman seeks to answer these questions by investigating the death penalty in Oklahoma, a place where a 'hang 'em high' attitude of cowboy justice resulted in twenty-one executions in 2001, more than in any other state in the nation. The majority of these death penalty cases came from one jurisdiction, Oklahoma County, where legendary district attorney Bob Macy bragged about sending more people to death row than any other prosecutor, and police chemist Joyce Gilchrist was eventually fired for mismanaging the crime lab. These two figures loom large in Fuhrman's investigation.
"Examining police records, trial transcripts, and appellate decisions, and conducting hundreds of interviews, Fuhrman focuses his considerable investigative skills on more than a dozen of the most controversial Oklahoma death penalty cases, including two in which innocent men nearly lost their lives.
"When he began Death and Justice, Mark Fuhrman was firm believer in the death penalty What he saw in Oklahoma changed his mind. It may change yours."
Opinion: Well, it's an interesting look at Oklahoma and how an overzealous attorney and a chemist was unskilled, got together in several death penalty cases. I really did not like Fuhrman's writing style, but that could just be who he is, which is fine.

There Goes the Bride by Lori Wilde

Started: 4/2/07
Finished: 4/5/07
Year: 2007
Pages: 348
Genre: Romance
Grade: B+
Reason for reading: review for MyShelf.com
Blurb (from back cover): "The moment Texas socialite Delaney Cartwright touches the veil, she know she can't go through with her wedding. And it's not just because she envisions a stranger's dark eyes and irresistible lips the second her fingers hit lace. But she can't simply call the whole thing off. The nuptials to her nice, predictable childhood friend are the social event of the season (not to mention that her mother would freak). To fan the flames of this dying ember, Delaney abducts her fiance for a night of passion...and grabs the wrong guy! It isn't her fault that Detective Nick Vinetti of the oddly familiar eyes and lips has crossed her path-and looks game for all kinds of sexy fun.
"Now Delaney hatches an outrageous plan to get out of marrying: she'll hire her own kidnapper. With an alter to avoid and a cop to dream of, this runaway bride is hoping a little Irish magic will unveil the true destiny of her heart."
Opinion: A fun romance as most Lori Wilde books are. For a more complete review, be sure to check out MyShelf.com next month.

Unless by Carol Shields

Started: 3/30/07
Finished: 4/2/07
Year: 2002
Pages: 320
Genre: Fiction
Grade: A
Reason for reading: booksfree.com
Blurb (from back cover): "Forty-four-year-old Reta Winters, wife, mother, writer, and translator, is living a happy life until one of her three daughters drops out of university to sit on a downtown street corner silent and cross-legged with a begging bowl in her lap and a placard round her neck that says 'Goodness.'
"The final book from Pulitzer Prize-winner Carol Shields, Unless is a candid and deeply moving novel from one of the twentieth century's most accomplished and beloved authors."
Opinion: I cannot grasp what I liked so much about this book. The style is different. I felt very connected with Reta and her story. Definitely glad I decided to get this one.