War of the Damned Series, Book 1 Resurrection Of The Damned / Michael Todd & Michael Anderle / 230 pages

Three months ago, there was a demon invasion. Due to that, old rules are thrown aside as the world figures out just who the enemy really is. A mercenary named Katie is trying to take a much-needed vacation in Los Angeles but  unfortunately, both friends and foes want her in the worst possible way. While trying to enjoy her vacation she is kidnapped, has to help deal with a demon incursion, and exorcises a ghost at the hotel she’s staying at. The government wants Katie either to experiment or dissect to figure out why she is stronger than all the other damned.  Damned are humans possessed by a demon, this gives them abilities to fight and send other demons back to hell. Then the leader of the demons that caused the demon invasion also wants Katie for what, Katie doesn’t know.. Katie's Killers a mercenary group of damned that fight the demons are facing a new reality, one where they are needed more than ever now that the world's eyes have been uncovered. Narrated by Emily Beresford 5h 41min. 

False Step/ Victoria Helen Stone/ 268 pgs

I (and a number of other people) loved the protagonist in Stone's last novel, Jane Doe. Alas, the main character in this one is no Jane Doe. We spend the entire book in Veronica's head and I didn't find that very enjoyable. Veronica got pregnant at a young age and married Johnny, the father. They've struggled financially, mostly because Johnny is an overgrown adolescent, albeit one who adores his daughter. Johnny becomes a local hero when he finds a missing 3 year old boy while hiking. Except that it turns out the boy wasn't missing per se, but had been kidnapped and his family paid the ransom, without informing the police, a couple of days before he's found. Johnny is immediately under suspicion. Veronica suspects him too--of having another affair. She's still mad at him about the first one and yet, she's got her own secret affair going on. Veronica is not happy with her life or anyone in it but she is not a strong enough character to make the decisions she needs to make. It was clear to me from the beginning who was behind the kidnapping, but Veronica remains selfish and clueless until the very end. If you have a choice, I recommend reading Jane Doe over this one.

Living Dead Girl/Elizabeth Scott/170 pages

                                                                 Living Dead Girl is the story of a ten year old girl, "Alice"
                                                            who is snatched by a pedophile when she is separated from her
                                                            class on a field trip.  Five years later she is brainwashed,
                                                            starved and raped on a daily basis but she remains with her
                                                            captor out of fear for her family.  She is constantly being
                                                            threatened with "Do (whatever) or I will kill/hurt/burn your
                                                            mom and dad."  Now Alice is almost fifteen and no longer the
                                                            little girl that "Ray" desires and Alice longs for the day when
                                                            another little girl will be snatched and she will be free--even
                                                            if that means her death.
                                                                 Such a sad story!  The terrible thing about it all being that
                                                            you can totally see how such a thing could happen!

The Vanishing Season/ Joanna Shauffhausen/ 274 pgs

This is a suspense novel and the first book that I've read by this author. Ellie Hathaway is a young police officer in a small Massachusetts town. Unbeknownst to everyone in the town, including the officers she works with, Ellie was once the victim of a serial child kidnapper. She was the only one of his victims to escape and that was thanks to the quick thinking of FBI agent Reed Markham. For the past three years, right around her birthday in July, a person has disappeared from Ellie's town. Shortly after each disappearance, she receives an unsigned birthday card. Her colleagues on the force do not believe Ellie's theory that the disappearances are related (mostly because they do not know of her past). So, as her birthday approaches, Ellie calls up Agent Markham for help. She hasn't seen him since the night he rescued her and she doesn't know that he's going through a rough patch and is on "stress" leave from the FBI. The mystery that follows is actually very thin. There is truly only one possible suspect in the town given the way the book is written and so I was disappointed in that aspect of the book. However, I thought the portrayal of a survivor of such a violent childhood trauma was excellently done. Ellie's emotions are not cut and dried, and what happened to her has affected the way she lives and the way she thinks. For this alone, I was glad to have read the book.

The Couple Next Door/ Shari Lapena / 308 pgs

I'd heard a lot about this book and since I love suspense, decided to give it a try. Now I wish I hadn't. My first complaint is that the book is written in 3rd person present tense. Ugh. This is a terrible way to read a story. It never stopped irritating me.

So, on to the story and characters. Marco and Anna are parents to 6 month baby girl Cora. They are invited to an adults-only dinner party at their next door neighbors. They do the responsible thing and get a babysitter. Only she cancels at the last minute. Deciding that their snotty neighbor Cynthia won't allow them to bring the baby after all, they leave her in her crib, bring the baby monitor (audio only), and check on her every 30 minutes. Despite all these precautions, baby Cora goes missing while her parents are getting drunk and her father makes out with the neighbor.

There is a lot going on in this story and I didn't like any of it. The characters are all horrible people. The only one who might be able to garner some sympathy is the mother, Anna, but even she ends up being not very likable. These characters spend too much time wallowing in their own poor decision-making. And the ruminations--each character goes over the same information again and again, trying to decide if this person or that person could have done this or that. There were plenty of twists, but all of them left a bad taste in my mouth. Not to mention I spent the whole book worrying about poor little Cora's well-being:(

King's Captive/Amber Bardan/252 pgs

I heard a lot of buzz about this book and decided to give it a try, even though it's not something I would normally pick up. On Sarah's 18th birthday her family party is interrupted by a man named Julius King and a bunch of guys with masks on and guns drawn. Sarah's father, who she knows is involved in some shady business, ends up dead. Sarah ends up agreeing, under duress, to marry Julius so that he can have her inheritance when she turns 21. She does get him to agree to keep his hands off her until that time however. We then fast forward 3 years, to the month before her 21st birthday. Sarah has been held by Julius on a private Caribbean island the entire time.

This is a somewhat unusual book. I knew going in that all was not as it seems but I did not know the big twist in the story. Obviously I'm not going to spoil it here but I will say it was better than the scenarios I was imagining in my head:-) I have to admit, though, that once I knew what was going on (about 3/4 of the way through), my enthusiasm for finishing the book diminished, probably because I no longer had that sense of anticipation. Bardan is a thoroughly competent writer and there is a lot, I mean a LOT, of angst in this book, which isn't really my thing, but if you love angst, it's dialed up to 11 here. Be warned that this book revolves around criminal gangs who are into weapons and drug dealing. Even besides that, there are some very questionable morals running rampant through this story, especially if you think about it for longer than a minute. Still, I'm glad I read it.

In Bitter Chill / Sarah Ward / 314 pages

 In this British police procedural dark secrets have a habit of coming out in the long run. In 1978 two young girls were kidnapped and only one managed to escape. No one was ever arrested and the other girl was never found. Thirty years later, the survivor Rachel has managed to make a life for herself and is trying to live as normally as possible. Unfortunately the past has a way of rearing its ugly head with terrible consequences.
  A first volume in what I hope to be a long series. In the town of Bampton, we have a police force still trying to live down its own past misdeeds. Detective Inspector Francis Sadler has a squad of young officers who are not weighed down by the past. He is asked to look into the recent suicide of a woman who was connected with the kidnapping. Is he going to find anything new to help resolve the long-standing case? In this brilliantly constructed puzzle we follow the police and the suspects through out the investigation, wondering what is a clue, red herring or the true murderer. I loved the twists and turns and the relationships of the characters. It is a fast read with a truly well rewarded and exciting ending. I can't wait to see what else the author Ward has up her sleeve.  

6 Degrees of Reading: Black-Eyed Susans by Julia Heaberlin, Under the Harrow by Flynn Berry, The Ex by Alafair Burke.

Lake House: a novel/ Kate Morton/ 495 pages

The Lake House: a novel written by Kate Morton is a double mystery that leads the reader through several twists.  The book is written in present time and flashbacks to when the crime occurred.  Detective Sadie Sparrow is on leave in Cornwall visiting her grandfather, Bertie.  While there she comes across a house, a ruin almost, deep in the woods.  Bertie explains that the house once belonged to the Edevane family and is now owned by mystery writer, Alice Edevane.  Through the dual story lines the reader learns of others who lived in the house and the disappearance of Theo, Alice's baby brother.  This book will hold your attention as Alice's story parallels Sadie's and then diverges.  The author does a good job leading the reader astray and then bringing them back to the truth.

What She Knew/ Gilly Macmillan/ 472 pages

What She Knew by Gilly Macmillan begins with a walk in the park and quickly moves on to a missing child and an investigator looking for the truth.  Rachel Jenner and son Ben walk the trails in a nearby park to reach a tire swing.  This time Rachel lets Ben run ahead to the swing.  When she arrives Ben is no where to be seen.  The author brings in a cast of supporting characters, including John, Rachel's ex-husband, his new wife Katrina, sister Nicky, and detective Climo.  Together the work toward finding Ben, each from their own perspective.  The author gives the reader a glimpse of each character's past and how it relates to their view.  This book would appeal to readers who enjoyed Gone Girl and similar story lines.

A House in the Sky / Amanda Lindhout / 373 p.

Amanda Lindhout escaped the problems of her troubled childhood by reading National Geographics.  The pictures and stories about exotic places fascinated her. As a young adult she was filled with wanderlust and Amanda soon became a world traveler. Earning just enough money as a waitress to fund her traveling, she eventually decided that she also try to make money as a journalist. Continuously pushing boundaries, Amanda eventually decides to try to cover a story in one of the most dangerous places on Earth--Somalia.  She is accompanied by a former boyfriend.  It is hard not to judge her foolishness in putting herself in such a dangerous place. But this memoir is an interesting study in why we make the choices we make, how strong the will to live can be and how desperate the situations are for people living in impoverished, war-torn areas.

Started Early, Took My Dog/Kate Atkinson/ 371 pages

When newly retired Tracy Waterhouse sees a known "working girl" dragging a young girl through a mall while berating the youngster, she makes a split decision. She offers the woman $3,000 pounds in exchange for the girl. Kelly jumps at the money that Tracy was planning on paying the contractor at her house. Now Tracy, unmarried and childless, is in possession of young girl who hardly speaks but seems easy going enough. That exchange, witnessed by two other people and the security cameras, is just the beginning of the story that stretches back to a murder decades earlier.


This is part of the Jackson Brody series, and my book club's selection for November. The story seemed rambling and disjointed to me. Without having read the previous books, this one didn't fill in the back story enough. I'd suggest reading the series in order to get the most out of this story.

Mean Streak/Sandra Brown/409 pages

Emory, a well known doctor, disappears while training for an upcoming marathon. Her husband doesn't immediately report her missing. Meanwhile, Emory awakes in a stranger's cabin.  As she spends time with her captor, she begins to question the morality of some of the things that he causes her to do.  Things are not always what they seem.  This book is  a fast-paced read with believable characters and enough plot twists to keep you interested till the end.

ONE KICK / Chelsea Cain / 306 Pages / December challenge (2 Turtle Doves: includes scenes involving flying)

Chelsea Cain introduces a fascinating pair of characters in One Kick, the first title in a new suspense series. I received an Advance Reader Copy (ARC) of the author's newest book and was eager to see how is compared to her 'Archie Sheridan / Gretchen Lowell' series.

Kick Lannigan was kidnapped at age six and rescued five years later; she is a survivor. She has learned to defend her self and at age 21 devotes all her time, energy and talent to finding missing children. Just as she's starting to investigate a new kidnapping case, a mysterious man named John Bishop shows up and asks for her help to find two missing kids.

The dynamic between Kick and Bishop is intense, two such determined but flawed individuals working towards a common goal. But are they really working together or does Bishop have another purpose in pulling Kick into the case?

While the tone can be disturbing, the violence takes place off-stage in this fast-paced thrilling novel. Fans of psychological suspense without all the gory details might want to give this one a try.

Lies You Wanted to Hear/James Whitfield Thomson/401 pages

Lucy and Matt are set up by mutual friends. Lucy is still getting over Griff, her on again, off again lover who wants to live in the moment, preferably with lots of drugs. Matt is a nice guy police officer who can't seem to find "the one." They decide to settle for each other even though it's pretty clear that Lucy is still pining for Griff and Matt knows it. He is willing to believe her lies because the truth isn't pretty. When their marriage implodes, their children become pawns in their war.


I was disappointed in this book. I'm pretty sure I was suppose to like and sympathize with Lucy, but I found her character very distasteful. Matt wasn't a gem, but he was light years beyond Lucy. There's nothing worse than a book where there isn't one character you can embrace. Give this one a pass. Longest 400 pages I've read in quite a while.

Alex: The Commandant Camille Verhoeven Trilogy / Pierre Lemaitre / 368 pgs.

The story starts out with a young woman named, Alex Prévost, who is kidnapped, savagely beaten, and thrown into a wooden cage.  Her abductor does not explain why she is there and only comes around to beat her and take pictures before returning her to the cage.  Worse, no one really knows who Alex is nor why she would be taken; which leaves the police with not much to go on when trying to find her.

Commandant Camille Verhoeven, reluctantly takes on the case and has to follow the tiny connections of Alex's past in order to find her.  Will Camille find Alex before she dies of thirst or eaten alive by rats?  And why is in this situation?

AND if this description has not scared you off already, trust me this story gets WORSE!  There are many passages that describe torture and abuse.  If you are okay with reading suspense or horror novels with graphic details then this book will not bother you.  For me it just makes me shake my head and wonder how did the author think up such things and hopefully these were not "real" things that have happened to people.

Read-a-likes:  Archie Sheridan series by Chelsea Cain,  Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson, The Hypnotist by Lars Kepler

Missing You/ Harlan Coben/ 399 pages

NYPD Detective Kat Donovan's friend thinks she's been single long enough, so Stacy signs Kat up for an online dating service to help her find "the one." Kat does find him. He was "the one" that left her 18 years ago, breaking her heart and their engagement. When she decides to try to connect with him online, he doesn't seem to remember her at first, but then tells her that their past is too painful and they must move on. She reluctantly agrees. When his online profile pops up in a possible kidnapping case, Kat must locate him to find out if he's part of a horrible crime or just a face on the internet.


Another home run for Coben. He takes several different stories and weaves them together for one haunting story. This is definitely a cautionary tale for anyone thinking of using an online dating site. While I was reading this, I thought that Kat Donovan might become a regular Coben character, but now that I finished it, I don't know if she'll continue.

Girls/Frederick Busch/279 pages

Jack and Fanny are still trying to come to terms with the death of the young daughter when Jack is asked to talk to the parents of a girl who disappeared on her way home from Sunday School. Jack is a campus police officer on the local prestigious college campus and a Vietnam veteran and MP who specialized in interrogation. Jack gets wrapped up in the girl's disappearance and the campus' drug trade while his marriage continues to fall apart.

There's a secret about the death of their daughter that eventually comes out at the end of the book. This is an older book that is worth your time if you're caught up on all your current titles.

12th of Never/James Patterson/397 pages

Lindsay has just had her baby in a very dramatic setting and is back to work to support her family now that Joe's position has been eliminated due to budget cuts. Claire has been put on desk duty and half-pay since a high profile body disappeared on her watch. Cindy is single-mindedly trying to be the best reporter ever in order to keep her job in an ever shrinking profession. Yuki is in the midst of a double homicide trial that seems to be going well until it starts falling apart. Throw in a couple of other cases and a possible life-threatening illness of Lindsay's baby, and it's just another day at the office for the Women's Murder Club.

Leave it to James Patterson to write a book that has almost 400 pages but can be read in about six hours. There's a lot going on, and he has set up the next novel. Good thing we don't have to wait very long for it.

Touch & Go/Lisa Gardner/423 pages

Justin and Libby Denbe have perfect lives or so it seems. He is the owner of a multimillion dollar construction firm, and she is a jewelry designer and mother of their treasured daughter Ashlyn. When the family is kidnapped from their Back Bay Boston mansion, the firm calls in their own investigator to aid the state police and the FBI to secure their safe return.

A good solid story with lots of red herrings and twists. Thanks to Mizzou77 for her review that sparked my interest. I keep forgetting about Lisa Gardner when she should be on my favorite authors list.

Hidden / Helen Frost 147 p.

Fourteen year-old Wren and Darra recognize each other when they meet face-to-face for the first time at summer camp. First Wren tells of their shared experience of her kidnapping from six years ago. For Wren, the hours drag on as she searches for a way out of Darra’s father’s garage. Darra is the only one who guesses that Wren is hidden in the garage. She leaves food and water. Each was profoundly influenced by the Wren’s kidnapping. Darra’s abusive father ends up in prison. At camp, they ignore each other until their Lifesaving exercise has them in an intense underwater encounter. Helen Frost makes use of poetic forms to tell each girl’s story. Wren’s is through free-verse with Darra’s a new form invented for this book. To get more of Darra’s story, read the last word of each of the long sentences.


2012 Notable Children's Books