Review: Etiquette for the End of the World by Jeanne Martinet

Title: Etiquette for the End of the World
Author: Jeanne Martinet
Genre: general fiction, chick lit
Series: N/A
Pages: 272 (ARC edition)
Published: July 2012
Source: publishes via NetGalley
Rating: 2/5

A romantic comedy of post-millennial manners, apocalyptic career moves, and a woman's last chance to get life right...

RULE #1: DON'T PANIC—IT ONLY ATTRACTS THE SHARKS

It's not the end of the world. That's what 39-year-old Tess Eliot has to remind herself after losing her newspaper column ("Tess Knows Best") and being dumped by her boyfriend for a younger woman (a feng shui expert? Really?) Then Tess is hired to write an etiquette guide preparing readers for the Ancient Mayan doomsday of December 21, 2012, and she has to ask herself: Could the world really be coming to an end? At first, Tess fakes her way through chapters like "Boundaries in the Bunker" and "Cannibalism: Yes or No?" But after uncovering a secret plot for world destruction, she is forced to embark on a life-changing odyssey of her own—involving all-too-close encounters with touchy-feely survivalists, conspiracy theorists and one handsome guy who seems way too perfect.

Reviewed by Danielle.  


** spoiler alert ** Original Review: What the fuck did I just read?

After a couple of days:

Dear Tess Knows Best Eliot,

I’m going through a really difficult time right now. I have to write a review of Etiquette for the End of the World, but even though it was really boring, offensive, and schizophrenic, I can’t come up with anything to say! How do you even start reviewing a book that calls itself a romantic comedy, but is more All About Steve than Annie Hall? The romantic “twist” is so badly telegraphed it hardly counts, and is offensive as hell to boot! Plus, halfway through, the author completely forgot she was writing a romantic comedy and turned it into a conspiracy thriller/supernatural/travel fiction! No, I don’t know how it’s all supposed to work, either. As a famous columnist, and one time chapter header writer on an etiquette guide, can you get me out of this?

Sincerely,
Bored of Everlasting Stupid Tropes, Reading Even Very Irritatingly Exasperating Works for Enthusiastic Review, Even Veritably Enraging Romances

Dear BEST REVIEWER EVER,

When my boyfriend Matt dumped me for my feng-shui expert neighbor, I didn’t sit at home and moan. I went to the bar and ordered laundry-themed drinks from my hot, gay BFF. And when I lost my job writing this column, (sorry this won’t get published in some big-shot NYC newspaper, by the way,) I didn’t wallow in self pity. I went to the bar and ordered laundry-themed drinks from my hot, gay BFF! BEST REVIEWER EVER, what I’m saying is you need to get out of your slump. Fly to Mexico or London or the beach, even if you’re flat broke like yours truly. The change of scenery, and all the gin, will do you good.

If that still doesn’t help BEST REVIEWER EVER, we’re going to have to get drastic. First, steal mail from your 84 year old ex-boss. Then go visit some end of the world loonies and take a massively profitable writing job, even if it will embroil you in an international cult trying to bring about the apocalypse. There, BEST REVIEWER EVER, you’ll meet a smoking hot, mysterious Hollywood exec. who will sweep you off your feet in a whirlwind romance unlike any you have ever know. It’s only a shame he’s also a pathological liar who will tell you his ex-girlfriend stabbed all of his suits, when it was really the cult members, keeping you from getting out while you still can. When he stands you up on New Years, causing you to panic and reveal the detective work you’ve been doing on the side to one of the sketchiest cult members of all, don’t drown your sorrows at the bar…oh no wait, yes do that.

BEST REVIEWER EVER, now’s the part where it gets really tricky. Remember that detective work I mentioned? Well you are going to research a new idea for the end of the world. It will lead you to a librarian who will tell you she found secret plans for a nanobot that could bring down all technology as we know it. Being afraid of these plans falling into wrong hands, she won’t destroy them. She will hide them in an obscure book about beetles. The psycho you’re working for will be obsessed with beetles. His lackey, the one cutting up suits and the one you’re going to have to reveal all these plans to, will steal the book for his boss, inadvertently stealing the apocalypse plans too. I know this is a lot to take in, so pause for a stiff drink.

You may need to take time out for a side plot about your brother stealing your inheritance, I know mine did. This will probably result in baby rabies and a psychic salad-dressing obsessed aunt. You will also start having prophetic dreams about Mexico and earthquakes, just like one of the nutters at the cult. This is totally normal and not mass hysteria, but a tiny bit of the supernatural. Just to spice life up.

Anyway BEST REVIEWER EVER, don’t bother going to the police, because they think you’re nuts. Gather up Gay BFF and fly to London to meet with the cult leader in person. He’ll turn out to be even more mad scientist-y than feared, but you’ll be able to talk your way out of him killing you. You may even get gifts! Make sure to steal a vial of his nanobot solution, because you’re going to need that to prove you haven’t had too many Spin Cycles. On the way home, you’ll meet that same librarian, who’s now a stewardess, and she’ll be able to smuggle the vial through customs for you. This will leave you free to confess to Gay BFF that you’re in love with him. He’ll confess that he’s not really gay; his “boyfriend” is actually his son! (This is a very advanced maneuver, BEST REVIEWER EVER, don’t try this unless you’re sure you’re in a terrible book.) You may now advance to your HEA.

In the end, the Hollywood Exec. will show back up for you to realize he was just a rebound. The government will totally let you go incite hysteria while they quietly deal with the wacko cult leader, whose serum didn’t even work anyway. You’ll settle down to being the stepmother of not-Gay BFF’s kid, while you both make hilarious gay jokes about how could you ever think he was a queen, giiiiirlfriend? And then you’ll get a book deal out of the whole thing! If that’s not enough to break through writer’s block, BEST REVIEWER EVER, I don’t know what is. Maybe you’ll have to write a parody of something.

Now dear, I’m off to Mexico to play poker with some colorful stereotypes. There’s nothing like spending those book advances on expensive, spur-of-the-moment plane tickets!

<3

Tess "Etiquette for the End of the World" Eliot
Totally Awesome Relatable Character.
Super Not Racist/Homophobic. Pinkie Swear.

Book Tour Review: Ironskin by Tina Connolly

Title: Ironskin
Author: Tina Connolly
Genre: supernatural, retellings, steampunk
Series: Ironskin #1
Pages: 302 (ARC paperback edition)
Published: October 2 2012
Source: TLC Book Tours 
Rating: 4.25/5

Jane Eliot wears an iron mask.

It’s the only way to contain the fey curse that scars her cheek. The Great War is five years gone, but its scattered victims remain—the ironskin.

When a carefully worded listing appears for a governess to assist with a "delicate situation"—a child born during the Great War—Jane is certain the child is fey-cursed, and that she can help.

Teaching the unruly Dorie to suppress her curse is hard enough; she certainly didn’t expect to fall for the girl’s father, the enigmatic artist Edward Rochart. But her blossoming crush is stifled by her own scars, and by his parade of women. Ugly women, who enter his closed studio...and come out as beautiful as the fey.

Jane knows Rochart cannot love her, just as she knows that she must wear iron for the rest of her life. But what if neither of these things is true? Step by step Jane unlocks the secrets of her new life—and discovers just how far she will go to become whole again.

It's easily apparent from the very start of this deceptively good novel that Ironskin is a story loosely based on Charlotte Brontë's beloved classic Jane Eyre. Fortunately for me, I have never read the original, and that's one of the reasons I think I was free to enjoy this supernaturalized version as much as I did. I had no predispositions or favorites or even opinions going in - Connolly was free to do whatever she wanted with any of the characters, or with the plot, and it all worked out amazingly for me. Ironskin was a creative outlet of steam (really more fey-)punk, that managed to be both entertaining, and full of surprises. A few twists were expected, but Tina Connolly managed to pull the rug out from under my feet more than once before this short-ish novel was over. With a solidly built world, and a strong protagonist who changes and develops as the pages progress, I found a lot to recommend about this novel.

A debut novel, Ironskin comes loaded with great characters, a compelling storyline, and with a unique, new  interpretation of steampunk. The ideas and fey-punk (bluepacks, etc.) that Connolly has envisioned for her alternate world of fey, dwarvven, and more work well for the frame of the plot, but are not truly steampunk. There's more of a supernatural feel to Ironskin as well - from Rochart to his daughter, magic is alive and unwell at Silver Birch. Despite its clear homages to Jane Eyre that even a reader almost wholly unfamiliar with that story could pick out, this is a fantasy tale obviously flavored with Connolly's original spin on the Victorian genre of literature. The well-handled themes of love, betrayal, acceptance, and atonement are subtly interwoven into the storyline of protagonist and governess Jane's attempts to reconcile a fey-talented child into a fey-hating world.

The characters took a bit longer to gel than the rest of the novel. I was easily enraptured by Connolly's lovely and often very visual writing to the benefit of the atmosphere, but her characters were a different story. With a slower-paced novel like this one, it's more difficult to get a grip on personalities, ambitions, and more. Jane, for the fiirst hundred or so pages, can be hard to empathize with, or relate to. She wasn't as astute as could be hoped for, but in the end, her journey to self-realization makes up for it. Thankfully with this author and engaging novel, the time spent building Jane, Dorie, and Rochart into distinct beings all payout in the end. The romance between the two adults is many things: expected, tumultuous, well-handled, and slow-building. No headlong rush into instalove here! The conflicts and complications that frequently spring up between Rochart and his damaged employee are part and parcel to the up-and-down relationship the two endure as they struggle to trust one another and protect Dorie. There isn't a ton of chemistry between the two for the first 200 pages, but Connolly manages to rectify that in time with some chance meetings and subtle conversations to build their relationship into something more believable than it started out as.

With the Gothic edge one would expect of something based on a Brontë sisters work, the world and technology of Ironskin is one of the most alluring concepts; both interesting and creepy. The unsettling setting, the unknown details of Jane's life at Silver Birch, the tension between the ironskins and the rest of the populace and more make for an encompassing, suspense-filled atmosphere. Ironskin is a well-written novel where the slightly creepy ambiance is as much of a part of the novel as the plot itself or the characters that grow from outlines into fully fleshed and three-dimensional people. The world, full of history and war and curses is a complex and imaginative more. Connolly is thankfully one of those few authors that don't inundate their audience with all the details immediately in an infodump, but one that parses out small, pertinent pieces of information slowly as the novel progresses along, creating an informative, large worldview of the time and place Jane lives in. 

Ambitious and impressive, Ironskin wraps up the main plotline/mystery neatly and succinctly in those 302 pages. With a few open-ended plotlines obviously leading up the next book in this series, Connolly is a writer who knows how to hook her readers. I certainly eagerly awaiting to see what new struggles and battles Jane will encounter as well as gaining more knowledge about the Great War that lead up to the current conflict.  With a strong ending, an intriguing and original interpretation of a beloved classic, realistic characters with human (and otherwise..) flaws, and mysteries a plenty, Ironskin is a rewarding and fun read.

Review: Lovedeath by Dan Simmons

Title: Lovedeath
Author: Dan Simmons
Genre: horror, science fiction, short stories
Series: N/A
Pages: 354 (paperback edition)
Published: January 1994
Source: bought
Rating: 5/5

A collection of five novellas exploring the exquisite conjunction of love and death, combining literary artistry and undiluted emotional impact. Includes Entropy's Bed at Midnight, Dying in Bangkok, Sleeping with Teeth Women, Flashback, and The Great Lover.

The novella is an ideal length for dark fiction: short enough to sustain mood, long enough to develop interesting characters. This fine collection of five novellas shows off Simmons' range of styles: a literary tale of a man and his daughter on a scary mountainside; a Bram Stoker Award-winning horror tale about female vampires in Thailand; a semi-horrific Native American story about a young Sioux who undertakes various trials in order to become holy; a dark science fiction tale about a drug that has pernicious effects on society; and a harrowing, ambitious tale about the horrors of World War I.

Reviewed by April.

I picked this book up because I’d never heard of it before, and now I’m wondering why it’s so obscure.

Lovedeath is Simmons at the level of, well, Simmons. All of his work I’ve read so far (which is admittedly not much) has been at the very least excellent (if not outright mind-blowing) and this one is no exception. This is really a collection of five novellas which are centered around the themes of- you guessed it- love and death (but really nothing so simple).

A note about each piece:

Entropy’s Bed at Midnight- a father loses his son and wants to protect his daughter- but what’s the cost? Hell, just stepping out the front door can kill you. I like the way Simmons juxtaposes the memory of the past loss with the reality of the present fear of loss. It’s a simple story but told in a heartbreaking manner that has bittersweet written all over it.

Dying in Bangkok- Darker than the first tale, this is a pretty creepy look at the underbelly of pleasure and the ways in which our sexual desire can lead us astray. It’s sensual, cautionary, and a bit disturbing all at once- an excellent mix.

Sleeping with Teeth Women- A little Native American guilt, anyone? (Just kidding.) This is about a seemingly useless young man (who just wants to get laid!!) who ends up being the hope of his people. I found this one a little long winded but nebulous in a sort of funny way. The end of it will probably surprise you.

Flashback- Simmons’ nod to science fiction, this is about a drug where people can live out their memories again, at the expense of the present. I sensed a little of the cautionary in this as well, in a more realistic sense than the second of this collection. This is almost dystopian and could become reality fairly easily; it’s a plea to live life to the fullest and live in the present, something a lot of us forget to do.

The Great Lover- I understand why this was saved for last. It’s a long novella, but twists beauty and grimness to create a tapestry that is one of the better short works of speculative fiction I’ve ever read. The paranoia, terror, and tragedy of war is intertwined with the main character’s epiphany of the meaning of life. Sounds trite, but come on- if anyone can pull off this kind of depth it’s Simmons, and he does it with flying colors.

So- read this. Even if some stories are too terrifying or gritty for your taste, you’d be hard pressed not to find something to like in this collection. And if you’re a Dan Simmons fan, it’s a must read.

Highly recommended.

Blog Watch Friday

Apologies for the late post - another insane week of 12+ hour days at the job, plus boyfriend, plus family, plus physical therapy (sigh), leaves me little time for reading, much less reviewing, much less seeking out awesome links to share. But! I did find some, so stay tuned!

Reviews Posted:

The Shadow Society by Marie Rutkoski - 2/5 stars - young adult, fantasy, supernatural

The Listeners by Harrison Demchick - reviewed by Danielle - 5/5 stars - horror, zombies, post-apocalyptic

Shadowfell by Juliet Marillier - 4/5 stars - young adult, fantasy

Book Tour Review: Wake of the Bloody Angel by Alex Bledsoe - 5/5 stars - fantasy, mystery

The Secret Keeper by Kate Morton - 5/5 stars - mystery, general fiction

Book Tour and Giveaaway - Jane by Robin Maxwell - 4/5 stars - retellings, historical fiction

Fun Stuff:

Adele's theme for Skyfall has arrived and it is AMAZING. Like all she does, really. 

The 10 Most Mentioned Songs in Books

10 Actors You Probably Didn't Know Could Dance. 

The Top Ten Most Challenged Books of 2012. I haven't read nearly enough of these. Plus: infographic!

And along with that, famous author's responses to their books being banned. My favorite: Harper Lee. Ziiing!

And 15 movies based on banned books. I am happy to say I have seen most of them, and plan to see the others I yet haven't.

8 Epic Heroes Who Committed Mass Murder. 

Another show mashed up with Game of Thrones. This time it's The Wire - and like always - it works in an odd and awesome way.

The stories behind words told in paper animations. 

A pretty thorough and very helpful list of expected YA released for Winter.  So so many books in there that I am dying to read!

Rowling is "done" with Harry Potter, but leaves the door open for further books set in his world. This makes me so excited! I am good with Harry himself being put to bed, but I hope a Marauders novel comes out one day. 

10 NSFW lines from The Casual Vacancy. I am really excited to get to this -- if I ever find the time to tackle it.

Rebel Wilson and Ellen do Salt-n-Pepa. I love Ellen and this is pretty entertaining.

How your Facebook 'likes' and tweets could get you prosecuted.  The "Cybercrime" Law is scary and has been called worse than SOPA and PIPA. 

Review + GIVEAWAY for Jane The Woman Who Loved Tarzan by Robin Maxwell

Title: Jane, The Woman Who Loved Tarzan
Author: Robin Maxwell
Genre: historical fiction, retellings
Series: N/A
Pages: 320 (paperback edition)
Published: September 20122
Source: Passages to the Past Book Tours for review
Rating: 4/5

Cambridge, England: 1905. Jane Porter is hardly a typical woman of her time. The only female student in Cambridge University’s medical program, she is far more comfortable in a lab coat, dissecting corpses, than she is in a corset and gown, sipping afternoon tea. A budding paleoanthropologist, Jane dreams of travelling the globe in search of fossils that will prove the evolutionary theories of her scientific hero, Charles Darwin.

When dashing American explorer Ral Conrath invites Jane and her father on an expedition deep into West Africa, she can hardly believe her luck. Rising to the challenge, Jane finds an Africa that is every bit exotic and fascinating as she has always imagined. But she quickly learns that the lush jungle is full of secrets—and so is Ral Conrath. When danger strikes, Jane finds her hero, the key to humanity’s past, and an all-consuming love in one extraordinary man: Tarzan of the Apes.

Released in the centennial year for the publication of Tarzan of the Apes original publication and endorsed by Edgar Rice Burroughs' estate, Jane is an involving, detailed, engrossing, and yet, original retelling of a well-loved and widely known story.  Robin Maxwell is my first exposure to actually reading the mythos of the Tarzan world (watching the 1999 Disney animated movie clearly does not count), and her updated version, while clearly paying homage to the source material, is indelibly her own. Jane is a novel rife with adventure, credible characters, excitement, betrayals, and revelations. An engaging read from the get-go, the spotlight on protagonist and narrator Jane makes for a fast but highly enjoyable read for those all too-short 320 pages. I had planned to read Burroughs' original version, but now I wonder if that one will hold up as well in my opinion as what Maxwell has recreated here. 

As the title character and first-person narrator for the eponymous novel, Jane will either make or break this novel for readers. I, for one, unabashedly loved her. Her voice is strong and clear; I identified with and rooted for this intelligent and unique woman as she grapples with society's unforgiving attitudes, as she grows and learns about herself, Africa, and what she wants from her life. I loved Jane's strident attitudes, her analytical approach to any and all situations, her unflinching convictions and stalwart self-esteem. She's an unconventional woman for her time but not so much as to be entirely anachronistic for the era and setting the novel takes place during. She may eventually want a man, but unlike her society peers, she definitely doesn't need one. While her views and opinions can approach the unrealistic, the sincere motivations at the heart of Jane's actions ring true and keep her character from sticking out as improbable. An aspiring paleoanthropologist, the beginning flashbacks illustrate clearly how committed and devoted Jane is to her field and establish a more than credible reason for her journey to Africa and the events that transpire there. 

The growing dynamic between Tarzan and his more "civilized" mate evolves maturely and with aplomb under less than ideal circumstances. Tarzan himself is a bit romanticized (both by Burroughs and by Maxwell here) - and the romance between him and Jane does provide a lot of internal debate for the title character - but he is realistic and engaging in his distant role. His relationship with Jane is complicated and hard-won, but it is a real partnership of equals, unlike what she could have expected back in her "civilized" home country. Theirs is a true give and take - each teaches the other essential skills for living in their respective worlds. Their interactions are a bit simpler and overcome more easily than I had expected (the language barrier most noticeably) but it doesn't jar too much. Under Maxwell's able hand as storyteller, the bits and pieces of Tarzan's tragic history and life are teased out into the more action packed events evenly and keep the sentimentality on par with the action and excitement of life as The Wild Ape Man.

The vibrant setting of Africa is one of the very best aspects of the novel. The place-as-character is superb here. It's really topnotch - from the port town of Libreville to the boat trip down the Mbele Ogowe River to the Great Bower, every scene and setting pops from the page with a burst of color. As one character so aptly said to Jane early on: "You do not live in Africa, my dear. Africa lives in you." Under Robin Maxwell's pen and talent, I certainly felt like I was seeing the jungles, forests, villages myself. This is a creative author with an obvious ability to set and describe a scene; her talent for place as character is one of the more prominent things I will take away from reading Jane. I haven't read many other historical novels set on this particular continent, but upon, reluctantly, concluding this one, I can't imagine I will wait long to search out another. Maxwell touches upon so many issues of that plagued continent - colonization by European powers, the deforestation of jungles for trade routes, King Leopold of Belgium's genocide of 10 million natives - that some areas do feel slightly shortchanged, but all serve to create an even bigger, more authentic view of Africa and its problems.

 
This is a book that started out good, one that easily progressed past my initial lukewarm feelings due a bit of an infodump and into "great" territory, and one that ends with a bang (and a hint at a possibility for more down the line?!). A clear departure both from its source material and the sanitized Disney version, Jane is no wilting violet but a strong protagonist with great depth and characterization, more than able to carry the weight of the novel on her own. A great read and reinvention of one of the most beloved stories, Jane is a credit to both Edgar Rice Burroughs' original tale and to Robin Maxwell's immense individual talent. With characters crafted so well, with vibrant settings and a plot that moves at a brisk and involving pace, this is a novel retelling that will stand out and stand the test of time equally well. Highly recommended and highly enjoyable -- those on the lookout for a new era/setting in historical fiction need look no further than Jane.

(The giveaway is open for US/Canada residents!)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Review: The Secret Keeper by Kate Morton

Title: The Secret Keeper
Author: Kate Morton
Genre: mystery, general fiction, historical fiction
Series: N/A
Pages: 480 (Nook ARC edition)
Published: expected October 9 2012
Source: publishers via NetGalley
Rating: 5/5 

1961 England. Laurel Nicolson is sixteen years old, dreaming alone in her childhood tree house during a family celebration at their home, Green Acres Farm. She spies a stranger coming up the long road to the farm and then observes her mother, Dorothy, speaking to him. And then she witnesses a crime.

Fifty years later, Laurel is a successful and well-regarded actress, living in London. She returns to Green Acres for Dorothy’s ninetieth birthday and finds herself overwhelmed by memories and questions she has not thought about for decades. She decides to find out the truth about the events of that summer day and lay to rest her own feelings of guilt. One photograph, of her mother and a woman Laurel has never met, called Vivian, is her first clue.

The Secret Keeper explores longings and dreams, the lengths some people go to fulfill them, and the strange consequences they sometimes have. It is a story of lovers, friends, dreamers and schemers, play-acting and deception told against a backdrop of events that changed the world.

I love this book wholeheartedly. Kate Morton rocketed to my absolute favorite author list last year on the strength of The Distant Hours and The Forgotten Garden, but this latest novel absolutely cements and guarantees her continued place there. The Secret Keeper blew my mind. Honestly, it might even rival The Distant Hours for my all-time favorite Kate Morton and mystery novel. It's just that good great; it's more of what Kate Morton does so very very well. All the time taken and careful preparations of the plot, scene, characters clearly show, and add up to make this novel a compulsive read filled with vibrant and flawed characters. I wanted to stretch out my reading experience - it's one of those few times when 480 pages seems like too little for a novel rather than a good size. For all my restraint and desire to keep this going as long as possible, I inhaled this novel in 14 hours - eight of which I was sleeping. An impressive fourth novel from a very talented author, fans and newcomers alike will eat The Secret Keeper up.

When I first started this, I was sure I was going to like it, but it didn't immediately grab me the way her first two novels had. I was curious, and intrigued where the multiple plotlines across various periods of time would eventually go, but it wasn't until about 100 pages in that I was truly gripped and aware that I was reading something truly special. The tension slowly builds as main character Laurel uncovers more and more about her mother's life before children and marriage, evoking both intensity and curiosity as her revelations show a very different woman than the mother she had known her whole life. The shifting perspectives of various characters (Laurel, her mother Dorothy, and a woman named Vivien) from 1941 to 1961 to 2011 allow for a wide view of the plot across the many eras that impact the story. The merging of the different plotlines and timeliness works so well under this author's capable hands. I did not want to put this down to eat, to sleep, or anything. It's hard to write this review because the reveal and payout are so rewarding, and I don't want go give anything - ANYTHING - away that might spoil the deft authorial sleight of hand that Morton has going. 

I had high hopes going into reading The Secret Keeper, and if anything, this book exceeded any and all expectations I had for it. Morton's obvious and immense talent for prose, for setting, and for crafting such realistic, concrete characters to operate upon the page - alive in all their wishes, hopes, pasts, flaws, and mistakes - marks her as one of the best authors I have ever had the pleasure to read. With twists and turns and huge reveals that I never predicted and never once came off as hackneyed, this is an author that continually proves she knows how to write a story, as well as a truly mystifying mystery. An impressive storyteller with talent across the board including an-all-too-rare talent for subtlety and foreshadowing, her latest novel is heavy on detail, inner observations, and contemplation, but is never slow or boring. Themes of unexpected consequences, and desire are explored with caution and care, further adding to the complicated plot of the novel. With one of the top three best endings I've ever had the surprise of reading, The Secret Keeper is thoroughly satisfying and totally unpredictable. 

Kate Morton is amazing. I am a huge fan, and I won't let too much time go before I dig into the only novel of hers I've yet to read - The House at Riverton. Her style is uniquely her own, and her ability to create such detailed, well-characterized novels truly sets her above most other authors. Nuanced, emotionally involving, original, and completely wonderful, The Secret Keeper further proves that my fangirling extreme love for Kate Morton's novels is more than founded - it's necessary. I haven't had such a strong reaction to a novel in far too long; I cared intensely about the characters, I was caught up in every timeline shown. This is an author who will be a favorite for a long, long time. I can only hope that a fifth novel is on the horizon for this immensely talented writer.

Cheap eBooks for October!

Cast in Shadow by Michelle Sagara West (Chronicles of Elantra #1) - kindle price $2.99; Nook price $5.29

Seven years ago Kaylin fled the crime-riddled streets of Nightshade, knowing that something was after her. Children were being murdered -- and all had the same odd markings that mysteriously appeared on her own skin...

Since then, she's learned to read, she's learned to fight and she's become one of the vaunted Hawks who patrol and police the City of Elantra. Alongside the winged Aerians and immortal Barrani, she's made a place for herself, far from the mean streets of her birth.

But children are once again dying, and a dark and familiar pattern is emerging, Kaylin is ordered back into Nightshade with a partner she knows she can't trust, a Dragon lord for a companion and a device to contain her powers -- powers that no other human has. Her task is simple -- find the killer, stop the murders... and survive the attentions of those who claim to be her allies!

The Dulcie O'Neil Set (books one, two and three) by HP Mallory - kindle price $2.99; Nook price $6.99

Book 1: To Kill A Warlock:

The murder of a dark arts warlock.
A shape-shifting, ravenous creature on the loose.
A devilishly handsome stranger sent to investigate.
Sometimes working law enforcement for the Netherworld is a real bitch.

Dulcie O’Neil is a fairy. And not the type to frolic in gardens. She’s a Regulator—a law-enforcement agent who monitors the creatures of the Netherworld to keep them from wreaking havoc in the mortal world.

When a warlock is murdered and Dulcie was the last person to see him alive, she must uncover the truth before she’s either deported back to the Netherworld, or she becomes the next victim.

Enter Knight Vander, a sinfully attractive investigator sent from the Netherworld to work the case with Dulcie.

Between battling her attraction to her self-appointed partner, keeping a sadomasochistic demon in check, and fending off the advances of a sexy and powerful vampire, Dulcie’s got her hands full.

As the body count increases, Dulcie finds herself battling dark magic, reconnoitering in S&M clubs and suffering the greatest of all betrayals.

Book 2: A Tale of Two Goblins:

A Dreamstalker— a creature that stalks and kills its victims in sleep.
A fairy in law enforcement determined to stop him.
A potions smuggler who possesses something she wants.
A vampire with his own agenda.
And a partner who couldn’t possibly be sexier or more frustrating.

Dulcie O’Neil is a fairy working in law enforcement for the Netherworld.

When Knight Vander approaches her with a case regarding comatose victims, she agrees to help him, imagining the most difficult part will be combatting her attraction to him.

But, what Dulcie isn’t betting on is the fact that the case becomes personal when she learns all the victims are somehow linked to her.

When her best friend falls victim to the Dreamstalker, Dulcie must do everything in her power to ensure her friend’s survival, including associating with criminals and accepting the fact that desperate times do definitely call for desperate measures.

Book 3: Great Hexpectations

A misunderstanding turned deadly.
A fairy in law enforcement who won't stop until the truth is uncovered.
A vampire who seems to be her ally but appearances can be deceiving.
And a partner who would put his own life on the line to defend hers.

Dulcie O'Neil knows she's at fault for failing to arrest a wanted criminal but when her partner gets pinned for the crime, she'll stop at nothing to ensure his innocence.

What Dulcie isn't planning on is a trip to the infamous Netherworld where chaos rules.

Between battling the affections of a mysterious vampire, protecting herself from monsters and ensuring the innocence of the one man who would die for her, Dulcie's trip to the Netherworld isn't sunshine and strawberry daiquiris.

Riding Lessons by Sara Gruen - kindle price $2.99; Nook price $2.99

As a world-class equestrian and Olympic contender, Annemarie Zimmer lived for the thrill of flight atop a strong, graceful animal. Then, at eighteen, a tragic accident destroyed her riding career and Harry, the beautiful horse she cherished. Now, twenty years later, Annemarie is coming home to her dying father's New Hampshire horse farm. Jobless and abandoned, she is bringing her troubled teenage daughter to this place of pain and memory, where ghosts of an unresolved youth still haunt the fields and stables—and where hope lives in the eyes of the handsome, gentle veterinarian Annemarie loved as a girl . . . and in the seductive allure of a trainer with a magic touch.



But everything will change yet again with one glimpse of a white striped gelding startlingly similar to the one Annemarie lost in another lifetime. And an obsession is born that could shatter her fragile world.

Blade Song by J.C. Daniels - The Colbana Files #1 - kindle price $1.99; Nook price $4.29

Kit Colbana—half breed, assassin, thief, jack of all trades—has a new job: track down the missing ward of one of the local alpha shapeshifters. It should be a piece of cake.

So why is she so nervous? It probably has something to do with the insanity that happens when you deal with shifters—especially sexy ones who come bearing promises of easy jobs and easier money.

Or maybe it’s all the other missing kids that Kit discovers while working the case, or the way her gut keeps screaming she’s gotten in over her head. Or maybe it’s because if she fails—she’s dead.

If she can stay just one step ahead, she should be okay. Maybe she’ll even live long to collect her fee…

Keeping Faith by Jodi Picoult - kindle price $2.99; Nook price $2.99

One of America's most powerful and thought-provoking novelists, "New York Times" bestselling author Jodi Picoult brilliantly examines belief, miracles, and the complex core of family.

When the marriage of Mariah White and her cheating husband, Colin, turns ugly and disintegrates, their seven-year-old daughter, Faith, is there to witness it all. In the aftermath of a rapid divorce, Mariah falls into a deep depression -- and suddenly Faith, a child with no religious background whatsoever, hears divine voices, starts reciting biblical passages, and develops stigmata. And when the miraculous healings begin, mother and daughter are thrust into the volatile center of controversy and into the heat of a custody battle -- trapped in a mad media circus that threatens what little stability the family has left.

Awaken by Kate Kacvinsky - Awaken #1 - kindle price $3.99; Nook price $7.55

 Maddie lives in a world where everything is done on the computer. Whether it’s to go to school or on a date, people don’t venture out of their home. There’s really no need. For the most part, Maddie’s okay with the solitary, digital life—until she meets Justin. Justin likes being with people. He enjoys the physical closeness of face-to-face interactions. People aren’t meant to be alone, he tells her.

Suddenly, Maddie feels something awakening inside her—a feeling that maybe there is a different, better way to live. But with society and her parents telling her otherwise, Maddie is going to have to learn to stand up for herself if she wants to change the path her life is taking.

In this not-so-brave new world, two young people struggle to carve out their own space.

Heart-Shaped Box by Joe Hill - kindle price $1.99; Nook price $1.99

Judas Coyne is a collector of the macabre: a cookbook for cannibals...a used hangman's noose...a snuff film. An aging death-metal rock god, his taste for the unnatural is as widely known to his legions of fans as the notorious excesses of his youth. But nothing he possesses is as unlikely or as dreadful as his latest discovery, an item for sale on the Internet, a thing so terribly strange, Jude cant help but reach for his wallet.

I will "sell" my stepfather's ghost to the highest bidder...

For a thousand dollars, Jude will become the proud owner of a dead man's suit, said to be haunted by a restless spirit. He isn't afraid. he has spent a lifetime coping with ghosts--of an abusive father, of the lovers he callously abandoned, of the band-mates he betrayed. What's one more?
But what UPS delivers to his door in a black heart-shaped box is no imaginary or metaphorical ghost, no benign conversation piece. It's the real thing.

And suddenly the suit's previous owner is everywhere: behind the bedroom door...seated in Jude's restored vintage Mustang...standing outside his window...staring out from his widescreen TV. Waiting--with a gleaming razor blade on a chain dangling from one bony hand...

The Sisters Brothers by Patrick DeWitt - kindle price $2.99; Nook price $2.99

Hermann Kermit Warm is going to die. The enigmatic and powerful man known only as the Commodore has ordered it, and his henchmen, Eli and Charlie Sisters, will make sure of it. Though Eli doesn't share his brother's appetite for whiskey and killing, he's never known anything else. But their prey isn't an easy mark, and on the road from Oregon City to Warm's gold-mining claim outside Sacramento, Eli begins to question what he does for a living-and whom he does it for.

With "The Sisters Brothers," Patrick deWitt pays homage to the classic Western, transforming it into an unforgettable comic tour de force. Filled with a remarkable cast of characters-losers, cheaters, and ne'er-do-wells from all stripes of life-and told by a complex and compelling narrator, it is a violent, lustful odyssey through the underworld of the 1850s frontier that beautifully captures the humor, melancholy, and grit of the Old West and two brothers bound by blood, violence, and love.

American Gods by Neil Gaiman -  kindle (with audio/video) price $3.99

American Gods is Neil Gaiman's best and most ambitious novel yet, a scary, strange, and hallucinogenic road-trip story wrapped around a deep examination of the American spirit. Gaiman tackles everything from the onslaught of the information age to the meaning of death, but he doesn't sacrifice the razor-sharp plotting and narrative style he's been delivering since his Sandman days.

Shadow gets out of prison early when his wife is killed in a car crash. At a loss, he takes up with a mysterious character called Wednesday, who is much more than he appears. In fact, Wednesday is an old god, once known as Odin the All-father, who is roaming America rounding up his forgotten fellows in preparation for an epic battle against the upstart deities of the Internet, credit cards, television, and all that is wired. Shadow agrees to help Wednesday, and they whirl through a psycho-spiritual storm that becomes all too real in its manifestations. For instance, Shadow's dead wife Laura keeps showing up, and not just as a ghost--the difficulty of 
their continuing relationship is by turns grim and darkly funny, just like the rest of the book. 

Armed only with some coin tricks and a sense of purpose, Shadow travels through, around, and underneath the visible surface of things, digging up all the powerful myths Americans brought with them in their journeys to this land as well as the ones that were already here. Shadow's road story is the heart of the novel, and it's here that Gaiman offers up the details that make this such a cinematic book--the distinctly American foods and diversions, the bizarre roadside attractions, the decrepit gods reduced to shell games and prostitution. "This is a bad land for Gods," says Shadow.

More than a tourist in America, but not a native, Neil Gaiman offers an outside-in and inside-out perspective on the soul and spirituality of the country--our obsessions with money and power, our jumbled religious heritage and its societal outcomes, and the millennial decisions we face about what's real and what's not.

Happy reading! What did you pick up to read this week?