Heartless - Book Review

I completely missed a book review for my #26in2011 so I've completed 10 books with 16 more to go in 2011. If you don't know what I'm talking about, read the original post I wrote about this here. In the meantime, lets get on with the show.

A week or so ago I decided to have luxurious bath and read. It's one of my favourite guilty pleasures and on this night I decided to crack into one of the books I picked up at the annual book sale from the Cambridge Public Library. I picked up a couple of paperbacks for 50 cents so even if I didn't like the books I figured it wasn't a big deal.

As you know from reading my other reviews, that my tastes are pretty varied but I tend to always stay on the fiction side of things. I'm hoping that this book was not based on true events because I ended up staying up half the night until the book was finished. I was sitting on the edge of my seat reading it the entire time. I was completely lost in the story and needed to have it resolved or else I wasn't going to sleep.

The book is Heartless by Alison Gaylin. I've never heard of this author before and have never read her books but I was really trapped in the story.

It's a suspense kind of horror book based in Northern Mexico. I had the pleasure of going to Mexico 10 years ago before I moved to Alberta and was able to get a grasp on the culture of the people in the book and the look and feel for the surroundings. I think I may have already put my own take on the landscape before even reading so perhaps that was why I was so easily drawn into the story. Based around a somewhat sleepy town with some gruesome history, there is no way to really know what's going to happen and why until you read further and peel away another layer of the story.

It's twisted, slightly dark, mildly religious and cult like. Yet it's also delicious and interesting.

It's a really good book and I won't give away too much of the details but if you want a book you HAVE to read in one sitting due to the creepy content, this one is a good choice.

The Secret - Book Review

If there ever was a book that highlighted how amazing a kiss can be in, it would be my 9th book in my #28in2011 - "The Secret" by Julie Garwood.

As I mentioned in my first post about #26in2011, Julie Garwood is one of my favourite authors of all time. Therefore it shouldn't come as a complete shock to anyone that on a snowy day in April (yes snow... in April!) I would want to reach for a book that I know I'm going to enjoy. The Secret has never disappointed.

It's a historical romance set in the Scottish Highlands during the early 1200's. So of course you have dashing lairds and family feuds. The Secret focuses on two of Julie Garwood's favourite clans - the Maitlands and the MacLean's.

What is really great about this story is that it really builds. The tension and the passion build as the story you get further involved in the story. Julie Garwood does a wonderful job of describing those in the story so that you really feel that you are there with them and experiencing everything written on the page. The story his a hot one but really makes me appreciate what I already have.

The only issue that I have is that when the secret was revealed, the story ended a little too easily. The dramatic confrontation you felt it was building into was short and didn't really crest as I was expecting. Even still I felt satisfied and fulfilled with the way the story ended.

I devoured this book, as I do with many that I read, in a few short hours and in one sitting. It was an easy read and if anything, all I wanted to do was kiss my husband at the end. Lucky for me he was obliging. So if you are looking for a book that might get your heart palpitating, I really do recommend this one but don't be surprised if you are thirsting after a nice long kiss to leave you senseless when you are done.

Sisterly love

My sister went into the hospital this week. She's been having a rough go and I think everything caught up to her.

She blacked out last weekend and wasn't waking up. My niece was the only one with her when it happened and rather than call me, she called her cousin out of town to come in and take my sister to the hospital.

In so many ways I feel like I'm to blame for the rift in our relationship. If I just tried harder. If I just spoke up more, or tried to spend more time with them they would think of me as someone they could count on. It's not that I wouldn't come if there was a true emergency, it's that they never think of me.

I'm not as helpful nor am I as involved in their day to day lives. My life is busy, but at the same time it's not. I try and include my family in my life, but get a lot of excuses and a lot of "Some other time". I try not to get upset that they are missing out on my life, but I feel bad that I'm missing out on theirs.

Before I met my husband I was intrinsically attached to everyone in my family. I spent all my time with them. I didn't really have friends of my own that I hung out with on a regular basis but when I met my husband, I suddenly found myself being drawn into hanging out with people my own age who had similar interests to me. I found they really wanted me to spend time with them and enjoyed talking to me about me and what I was interested in. I think my friends find it hard to believe that I'm the quiet one in my family in that I can be quite loud and boisterous.

I miss my family though. I miss just being able to spend time with them doing nothing. Sitting around and watching tv or comparing notes while we people watch at the mall. I didn't really have to pick up the phone or email them in that I could just come to their house, walk in and make myself at home. Now it's more we only visit during birthdays and holidays.

My sister and I used to be really close, spent every weekend together. Over time we both got busy doing other things and before I knew it, I didn't have a clue what she was into or even what music she likes. We used to laugh together and just generally be together. We'd shop, we played baseball together. Here we are a few years later and I'm not even on the quick call list in her house and I can count the number of times she's been to my house on one hand.

I wish that things were different, but I have no idea how to go back. Or how to change things so that we are closer again. All I know is that she is my family, my blood, and I will always love her and her pain will always be my pain. Even if I'm not the first one she calls.

Hope in a Jar - Book review

I finished another book last week when I was sick and came home from work early. Yes, I was sick. Boo hiss. No worries though. I'm feeling better and no one caught the flu from my blog before.

Anyhow - the latest little gem was one that I picked up second hand from my favourite book store - Millpond Records and Books. If you haven't had a chance to check out the store - I highly recommend it. It's located in the village of Hespeler which is part of the bigger city of Cambridge. They are on twitter and facebook. I'm happy to say a) I knew them before they were famous in the local book store circles and b) that I can count them as really good friends even if I don't buy books or records.

I seriously could gush on and on about Greg and Wendy and their awesome shoppe, but I'm here for my latest book review - so let's hop to it.

Hope in a Jar by Beth Harbison

This novel is more geared to those that like a bit more of a feminine touch. The book is written in first person and uses the concept of a high school reunion to reunite friends who have spent 20 years apart. What I really liked about the writing style, is that you really felt for the characters. The author did a wonderful job of holding just enough back so that you were guessing the whole time.

No matter who you are, there will have been times when you were in high school that you didn't really feel like you fit in. The two protagonists in this novel are very relatable in this aspect. More and more as I read, it made me really appreciate the friends I've had, and especially those that I call friends now. All in all this book was really about friendships - and how important they are no matter where you are in your life and career. If anything, it helped me look at my own life and let me see that even if it isn't exactly the same as my childhood dream, I can be happy about what and who I have in it now. It also gave me hope for some of the friendships I've had that have slipped away a bit.

No book is perfect, and there are aspects of the book that I found a little too predictable. But the writing is clean, the story is easy to get through and it was fun to read. It also made me really want a makeover, but that's nothing new.

I've already recommended this to a few friends - and even passed it off to a friend who's been having a bit of a rough patch lately. I think the book will help her see that things just might work out for the best. I would really recommend this book for any woman who has friends. Hopefully that means everyone because friends are a fabulous thing to have.

So this is #8 for my #26in2011

#26in2011

I've been pretty active with my plan to read books this year. It became a conscious choice when everyone on twitter started talking about #26in2011. From my understanding there is no rules except to finish 26 books in 2011. As every year has 52 weeks, this means reading a book every two weeks. Here we are at the middle of March and I'm already done 7 books and have one on the go. Long way to go to hit 26!

#1 - I started out 2011 with a book that I had already read but love. Ransom by Julie Garwood. Julie Garwood is one of my favourite authors for how she weaves a story. In Ransom, we are transported to the medieval ages. It's a romantic yet dramatic story about a woman who has to endure heartache and pain as the story moves from England to the Scottish highlands. I won't give away the ending, but the story does have a wonderful beginning, middle and end. I'll read it again and again I'm sure.

#2 - The White Queen by Philipa Gregory. The author of The Other Boleyn Girl has become hot hot hot since the book was made into a movie. And although I did like that b

ook, I was actually more intrigued by the stories that were woven into Philipa Gregory stories. The first of her novels I read was the Constant Princess. That lit a fire under me that had me thirsting to find out more and more about the Tudor dynasty. My husband realized this last year when I started talking about it frequently, watching the tudors and just generally having a one-track mind. the library didn't have any copies of any books by Philipa Gregory as they were in constant demand (I can completely understand). So this Christmas when my hubby was wandering around a store, he just looked over and found this little gem. the story is based on the War of the Roses, a famous time in English history when the country is split into two different factions to determine who should be the king of England. What I love about the stories of Philipa Gregory is that they are always based on truth. Yes she puts thoughts into the minds of those that there is absolutely no way of knowing what they really felt, but she's researched so much about the

period and the people that she's writing about that you feel you are right there with her. She truly is a gem of a writer. As a writer myself I truly can admit that I really admire how she uses her craft. This is a fantastic book. Read it. I know it will make you clamor for more.

#3 - The Book of Lies played on another of my favourite reading passions - religious mystery. This is an action packed adventure based in current day but with a little bit of history mixed in. The story goes on the search for the tool that Cain used to kill Abel. Again, based a little on fact, but a lot on speculation, I found that I couldn't put this down. It was action packed. Good read if you feel like getting caught up i

n the story.

#4 - Winter Solstice by Rosamunde Pilcher was actually my 3rd book, but I had to put it down and read The Book of Lies. I found the story was really hard to get into. It was really heavy and reading it in the winter made it difficult. So I took a break, got lost in an action adventure book - and then picked this back up again later. Lucky for me, I was in the right mind. The protagonist in this book is not your typical 30-something going on an adventure, it's about a 60-something woman trying to get her life back together after going through heartbreak and loss. Her positive outlook and her will to keep on going was wonderful. If anything, it helped me get through this winter in a good way. I'm glad I finished what I started.

#5 - Julie Garwood again with Shadow Music. Based again in the Highlands during medieval times. It was an easy read, but so good. Every time I read a Julie Garwood novel I want to be the heroine in the story, being caught up in passion. ah. good story.

#6 - Found Wanting by Robert Goddard took me back to action adventure and puzzles. Every adventure book has to have a treasure, and this one is no exception - Anastasia from Russia, Nazi Germany and some crazy business with Russia and Norway. It's another book that was difficult to put down -even brought it to work to read during my lunch hour. I had to know how it ends. The title was very fitting as even at the end of the book you felt like there were still questions. With that said, it's a good book. Great way to get lost for awhile.

#7 - Bitch Posse by Martha O'Connor. From what I read, she's a new author but she's a writer of my generation and her story was based in my times. Honestly - I w

as a few bad choices away from

being a member of the Bitch Posse in real life. I really felt that I related to the characters - all of them. The story used a technique that I enjoy, flipping back and forth through time to help the story move along but at the same time explaining the depth and reasoning behind current day decisions. It was a great book. Maybe men won't get it, but any girl from my generation should get it and if she doesn't - she doesn't deserve to read it. :)

Honestly, the books this year have been good. I think all of them are worth reading. Can't wait to read the other 19. Yikes! 19 more to go. I better get reading!