In Cold Blood (by Truman Capote)

I have a fascination (albeit strange) of true crime stories. So, when I was reading about a sad sad story on CNN the other day, my co-worker suggested I read In Cold Blood. And I did. And I liked it. Can you really say you like a nonfiction story about a family that gets murdered? In any case, I didn't "enjoy" it, but found it intensely interesting. And, well, Truman Capote was just an amazing story teller. I was thoroughly engaged and felt like I knew every side of the story of what happened to that tragic family. If you don't know what this book is about, it basically, in detail, describes the before, during, and after of the murder of a family in Kansas, from the perspective of everyone involved - the killers, the towns people, and the police/detectives. Yea, a very happy book. But apparently, Truman Capote went to Holcombe and researched heavily into the murders, and, according to some stories, striked up a friendship with one of the killers. I recommend this book if only that it is in and of itself a "classic." But, if you get scared easily, I would not recommend it. It is very real.

Up Next: The Hunger Games (by Suzanne Collins)

The Girl who Kicked the Hornet's Nest (by Steig Larssen)

This book is the third and final book in Steig Larssen's series. And what a good series it was! The third book was my favorite. It might be because everything comes to a climax and resolutions, and it also might be because it seemed to read at a faster pace. Once again, as with all his books, there is a lot of description of everything - such as "now we are drinking coffee", "he walked up the stairs", etc. If you have read these books then you know what I am talking about. This particular book deals with the protection of Zalachenko, Salander's dad, and the secret section of the Security Police who used every tactic it could to protect itself and Zalachenko, to the detriment of Salander. This book was interesting because it got a little Bourne-y - spies, stalkers, crime, murder, etc. I enjoyed this book, and like I said it was a good conclusion to this series. I recommend it!

Up next: Winter Garden (by Kristin Hannah) - I think this book has been on my "to read" list for about 6 months.

After that - if anyone has an good recommends let me know!

Little Bee (by Chris Cleave)

What an interesting book. This one did not take me long to get through. I won't divulge too much of what this book is about because it'll ruin it for you and I don't want to do that. But, what I will tell you is this - read it. This book is not "easy" emotionally. Its not a romantic book. It is a love story though. This book centers around a character named "Little Bee" who is a Nigerian Refugee and a British woman named Sarah and how their lives impact each other's lives. This book will take you through the emotions of anger, fear, compassion, gratitude, frustration and happiness. That's all I will tell you about it thought - I definitely recommend you read this one for yourself! And then let me know what you think!

Up Next: The Shack (William P. Young)

In the Woods (by Tana French)

I just finished this book for book club (which meets tonight). This is a mystery novel, similar in a way to Steig Larrsons "The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo". I enjoyed this book, although it took me a while to get through (it might have been more of my busyness at work, then the book itself). It takes place in Ireland (Dublin and Knocknaree - a small town in Ireland). It was interesting to learn a lot about Ireland and the fictional police force that the author made up. This book follows two Murder Squad detectives, Cassie and "Rob" Ryan, as the seek to uncover who murdered a teenage girl in what is called "The Woods" located in Knocknaree Estate. Knocknaree also happens to be where "Rob" Ryan (the quoatation marks are added because his real name is Adam, which plays a key part in the book) grew up and was part of a disappearance of two of his best friends back in the 80s, a crime that is still unsolved. The book was a little heavily worded at times for my taste (I did some skimming of descriptions of things), but the dialogue was well written between the characters. The author does a good job of exploring the dynamics of a "partnership" between Rob and Cassie, and the role this partnership plays in each of their lives, and how one incident can cause repercussions for the rest of your life. I'm excited to discuss this book tonight at book club, and I recommend it to all those mystery lovers out there. The ending will surprise you and surely lead to discussions. I have mixed feelings about the ending, just to put that out there. Let me know what you think!

Rating: Could put down but enjoyed it while i was reading it.

Up next: Little Bee (by Chris Cleave)

The Monster of Florence (by Douglas Preston)

This books was good in many ways and not so good in many ways. This books is non-fiction and details the story of "The Monster of Florence" - a person who killed couples as they messed around in cars in the Florence country-side. The book is very descriptive about the crimes and the investigations concerning the crimes. This book follows Douglas Preston - a journalist who moves to Florence and meets Mario Spezi (another journalist in Florence who had been following the Monster of Florence case from the beginning). The author describes Mario Spezi's investigation and personal dealings with the Monster of Florence. The book also beautifully describes the Florence country-side and gives you a glimpse into Italian culture, police work, and societal norms. That part was very interesting. The part which became a little tedious was the descriptions of the on-going investigations and false accusations that ran rampant during the 30 year pendency of the case (which remains unsolved). As far as historical non-fiction goes it was pretty enlightening, other than the slow parts which were easliy skimmable.

Rating: Good

Up next: Columbine (by Dave Cullen) and In the Woods (by Tana French - for book club!)

Her Fearful Symmetry (By Audrey Niffenegger)

I received this book as a Christmas present from one of my besties - Elaine (she has a book blog too - http://alittlebookworm.blogspot.com/). This book is from the author of the famed "Time Traveler's Wife" so I knew I was in for twists and turns. The setting of this book takes place in London's Highgate Cemetery and an apartment building which overlooks the cemetery. The characters in this book are two sets of twins, one of the sets is in their 20s, and the other is in their late 40s/50s. One of the 40s twins is the 20s twins mom (got that?). The story follows the series of events that occurs after one of the 40s twins passes away and bequeths her apartment overlooking the cemetery to the 20s twins. They move into the apartment, and are met with the presence of their dead aunt, and form a relationship with her, and the odd neighbors of the building. I enjoyed this book as it explored the relationships between twins and the jealousies and dependency that occurs between them. And no worries, you'll get your Niffenegger twist in there.

Naked in Death (JD Robb)

Did I mention my mom is WAY into reading series upon series of mystery novels? Whether its Sue Grafton, Nora Roberts, or Patterson, she LOVES these things. Which means she trys her hardest to get me into these series. The problem is that once I start reading the series, they are on book a hundred million of the series (okay, maybe not quite that many, but enough to seem overwhelming). So, I generally end up giving up after book 2. Well, she got me to read the book to the left of this post, which is a part of the "In death" series by JD Robb (aka Nora Roberts). And well, I'm hooked. I'm not sure what it is about this particular book but I really enjoyed it. The "In Death" series follows Eve Dallas, a futuristic detective, and her relationships, mysteries, and struggles. It is an easy to read, engaged crime novel. Each book apparently has its own mystery to solve in which it appears (after reading 1 1/2) that Eve always solves. This particular book (Book 1 of about oh I think 20), we get introduced to Eve and the futuristic world she lives in (I believe its NYC in about 2065 or something like that, far away enough that cars fly). This mystery deals with the death of "licensed companions". It was entertaining and I enjoyed the witty writing of Nora Rober... er JD Robb. There is also a little bit of romance thrown in there to titilate the taste buds.

The Girl Who Played with Fired (by Steig Larsson)

Well, with the holidays and everything, I was able to read a few books. The first one - the book to the left - I received as a present from one of my friends. This is the sequel to the Girl With the Dragon Tattoo. It was just as good, or better. The upside of this book was you didn't have the 100 pages of explanation of characters like the last book, which is understandable since it is a sequel. This book dealt with the issue of sex trade in Sweden (I'm not sure if this is a real issue in Sweden, by Swedish knowledge is a bit lacking). In this sequel we have the same characters from the last book - Mikael Blomkvist and Lisbeth Salander. There is less interaction between the two in this novel. This sequel focuses on the life of Lisbeth more than the first book. We get a glimpse into her back history and the reasons why she is the way she is, while also watching her character mature and grow into a better version of herself. This book hooked me more then the last book (don't get me wrong, I really liked the first book). There are a lot of twists and turns in this novel as they seek to discover who murdered two people investigating the sex trade and the major players. It's once again, a mystery, and a very well written one at that.

Rating: Hard to put down.

Up Next: Naked in Death (by JD Robb)

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (by Stieg Larsson)

I really enjoyed this book. This book is the first book in a new series (I'm hoping to get the second book for Christmas - The Girl who Plays with Fire!). I won't lie, it took a little bit to get into this book. The storylines are a bit complex, and the author is very detailed in his descriptions. And all the characters have Swedish names. After I got through the back stories and preliminary information, I had a hard time putting it down. So, if you start this book, push through the first 100, it'll be worth it in the end. This book is about a Swedish journalist, a Swedish Private Investigator, and a Swedish Financier. An investigation brings the three together. This book has elements of mystery, romance (albeit not the lovey type of romance), suspense, and murder. It throws curveballs at you, and kept me entertained after the first 100 pages. I definitely recommend this to anyone who is interested in a good mystery.

Rating: CPD (after 100)

Up Next: The Pillars of the Earth (by Ken Follet) (this one is a mammouth (1,000 pages), so I am intermixing other books in as I get tired of it)

One For the Money (by Janet Evanovich)

I also read this book while on vacay (took me a total of one day). My mom is a big fan of this series and gave me the first five books to read, and then to return for the next 5. I think there are a total of 15 books now. I know I'm a bit late on the bandwagon, considering this book has been out since the lat 90s, but sometimes it takes me a while.

I really enjoyed this book. It was an easy read, entertaining, and addictive. Its a mystery book about a female bounty hunter and her escapades. The writing is witty, just the way I like it. This story line was her first adventure, her being the main character Stephanie Plum, as a bounty hunter, because she needed some extra money. Its qutie humorous to read about her adventure with this new job and no experience. I look forward to reading books 2-15!

Rating: CPD.

No movie, although a tv series would be pretty cute!

UP Next: Still Harry Potter and The Deathly Hollows.