Oh and if you're wondering...

I am reading "The Monster of Florence" right now. So far so good!

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I have been reading books my faithful readers! Its been a busy two three months for me in lawyer land but things are starting to slow down so hopefully I will have reviews written this week for these books:

- The Piano Teacher
- The Year of Fog

Both very good books (and both read for book club).

Much love.

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)

The Story of Forgetting (by Stephen Merrill Block)

This book is very intellectually stimulating. The Story of Forgetting is mainly centered around early onset familial Alzheimers. But the way the Author tells the story makes it what it is. He weaves the stories of two men, one is in his 70s and the other is in his teens. Both men (or boys) experience the ramifications of alzheimers in their families in different ways. In the midst of these two separate stories, a sense of unity forms. This book details what alzheimers is, how it effects the mind, and the genetic contributions. It also details the human side of the disease, and its effect on the people it infects and the family members who care for those people. It is a tough book in the sense of the topic and how hard it is on the families, but it the story is presented in such a good way that it lessens the tragic effect of the disease. I recommend this book. I was particularly interested in it because of my psychology/neurology back ground from college, but I think anyone will enjoy this tale of two human spirits and the adversity they overcome.

Rating: CPD.

Up Next: The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (by Stieg Larsson)