Review; The Eye of God By: James Rollins

The Eye of God by James Rollins
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

James Rollins to me is the perfect mixture - a bit of Bond, Indiana Jones, a dash of Crichton, some myth/lore, and an amazing adventure that is distinctly his own.
What does Attila, Genghis, St Thomas and a comet have in common - the end of the world. Sigma forces are all out once the images of a different space/time due to dark matter on a comet come forth. Seichan has found the greatest link to her past, her mother - yet it seems they all have bounty on their hands and a man that is out to claim it. Vigor and Rachael return and give a great story to follow and a lesson in what is truly meaningful in life.
All of Rollins novels will have you on the edge, flipping through every page just to ease your mind as your heart thrums at an uneasy race with the countdown charging into your cells.
There is no going wrong picking up any Rollins book to get lost in - Enjoy!

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Review: Gone Girl By: Gillian Flynn

<Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I could not put this one down, filled with so many twists and turns, told by two voices - this strange tale unwinds and leaves the reader entering the darkness of the mind.
It is the fifth wedding anniversary of Nick and Amy Dunne. Two people so beautiful they were made for each other. The reader is introduced that morning into the ugly dark homicidal thoughts that cover Nick's brain. Hours later his wife is gone, quite literally has disappeared with a tossed scene, cleaned up blood, and the only clues to the Treasure Hunt she created every year for him.
I don't want to give too much away, but this is an amazing tale of a psychopath, a sociopath, the dirt and grit of two humans under one roof. Just how well do you know that person that shares your bed?
Don't start this before bed, you will not want to put it down and as I finished the last page after 5 am. This is a book to be savored in it's entirety.

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Review: The Recipe Box By: Sandra Lee

The Recipe Box by Sandra Lee
My rating: 1 of 5 stars

Oh, Sandra Lee, I had such high hopes for this book. How could I have been so wrong and disappointed.
Filled with one dimension characters with one dimensional problems, a magical solution, a none mystery, and recipes that you could pull off the internet using any cooking site. I found myself looking like a fool for actually paying for this and waiting until 150 pages in to get a grip that this is not going to get better.
With so much potential in the storyline, a friend dies, friends reunite, coming home means reconciling with the past - even if there are a few skeletons hanging in the closet that have to be put out in the open, old loves and new -- but nothing was there to enjoy. The main character was a paper doll with no real depth, the secrets were blown way out of proportion, and the wonderful way it all came together felt as fake as cubic zirconia.
I just stick to Sandra Lee's cooking tips and recipes - writing is not her forte

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Review: Lake Como By: Anita Hughes

Lake Como by Anita Hughes
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Hallie Elliot thought she had it all, the career, the man, the wedding season bringing her closer and closer to a ring on her finger. That is until she witnesses her boyfriend with her boss. No one in San Francisco can understand her not taking him for his word, that there hasn't been anything, but all she can do is run. Lake Como has her half-sister, Portia in the middle of a martial crisis and what better place to find yourself.
Hallie finds a job she can lose herself in and the estate manager, Angus, a little too hard to resist. She has been burned and does not take well to lies or betrayal, and when she uncovers a few that even have lasted her lifetime - well, things can never be the same, but if she can give it a chance it could be better.

I would give this 3.5 stars, I rounded up for a couple reasons. 1. The description of the Lake and all the beauty had me falling through the pages and entering Italy on the other side. 2. I loved some of the secondary characters. While, some characters seem disjointed and almost rushed (and the ending does feel this way), there is heart and magic given to those that stand out.
Now, this isn't the best read of the year - but this is a great escape, a great beach read, and simply something to lose yourself in for a couple hours.

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Review: Tampa By: Alissa Nutting

Tampa by Alissa Nutting
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Enter the mind of Celeste Price, a sociopath, a woman filled with lies and fantasies, a woman who put herself as a middle school teacher to be with her prey. She is complicated and yet only driven by the need to feed sexually off fourteen year old boys. At times I felt for her, but then she would just have no redeeming qualities that the reader could hold on to. Yet, you can't hate a shark for going into a frenzy when blood is in the water and that is just what you are reminded of in Celeste.
Married, wealthy, beautiful, with an education, Celeste moves forward picking a child from one of her English classes. She has it all worked out, from where to go, to already paying for prepaid cell phones - almost like a serial killer with a kill room already done shopping for the bleach. She is driven by youth, her need to hold it, to recreate it in herself, to discover an innocence already gone from within her. There is also a cat and mouse game inside her head, from the one she chooses, to actually getting caught - it is like she has to be the smartest, the one with the plan and the right words to get out of every situation, and it is all there on the tip of her tongue, waiting.
I also saw in these pages a take on society. How appropriate to choose a young beautiful woman to be the predator and what society turns a blind eye to or chooses to look upon without the same disdain and judgement of a male. These are issues definitely in need for discussion, but the answers won't come from this book, only more questions.
You might not like the subject matter, but the writing is amazing. Paragraphs filled with descriptive narratives that leave you immersed into the world of Tampa.

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Review: The Seventeen Second Miracle By: Jason F Wright

The Seventeen Second Miracle by Jason F. Wright
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

How long can it take to change a person's life? Their day? How hard can it be to step outside of yourself and be fully aware? To grab a moment?
Rex Conner took his eyes off of the lake for seventeen seconds and it resulted in the death of a little girl. His life changed in that moment and so did a million others. It took some time, but seventeen seconds to create a miracle for someone else reaches beyond yourself to all those that person comes in contact with.
Cole Conner has picked up his father's lesson and taken the steps a bit further. Working with the local high school, he receives three to eight kids a year to sit in "Discussions" where he teaches them the seventeen second miracle. This year is especially hard, a smaller than usual class of three - a cheerleader, a basketball star, and a boy in a wheelchair. He doesn't know the reasons the principal has chosen these three in particular, but as the time unfolds, so do their stories.
I am a Jason F Wright junkie, I love the messages and stories that he produces. The way the lessons can be instilled in your own life. I find them to be spiritually nurturing and often calling to me to challenge myself, to make a difference, to answer the call to reach outward. You won't go wrong picking any of his books and you will find that this is one that will stay on your shelf to be pulled down over and over.

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Review: Winds of Salem By: Melissa de la Cruz

Winds of Salem: A Witches of East End Novel by Melissa de la Cruz
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

First and foremost - I HOPE this is not the end of this series. I have loved and enjoyed it and want more.
Picking up right where Serpent's Kiss left off - Freya has been sucked back into time, the seventeenth century to be exact and to Salem. This time if she dies, she will not come back. The fabric of travel and time have somehow been warped. Freddie has leads on his trident and uses the pixies for help, even if his marriage to Gert is falling apart. Ingrid's past pops up as she has to resolve herself with the Sophia Loren look a like that is the mother of his child.
Enter the world of the Norse Gods and Goddesses, where bridges and time can be traveled and explored. Where amazing men Killian, Loki, Thor, Fryr leaving you wanting more. A story of love throughout time in Norm and Joanna.
I found the amazing story that held on it's own with the Salem hysteria that swept the area. I think that one would really like something new and a bit different, yes, it is an easy read, but very pleasurable. One thought though, borrow it or get it from the library, it is $24 and could easily be replaced with a book you really want for $17.

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