I recently read "Second Glance" by Jodi Picoult. I love ghost stories, and it was a pretty good read. Too overwrought in some parts though.

Kriskat, I can't read in the summer, lol
Winter is my favorite reading time
Years ago my BIL used to give me a couple of books every year for my birthday, then he found out that I didn't read them til Winter so now... I get books for Christmas, lol
This was the last book I read

"The Ghost Writer"
(Reviewed by Mary Whipple OCT 30, 2005)

"Ghosts or hallucinations-did it make any difference what you called them?"

One of the most intricate and haunting ghost stories since Turn of the Screw, which it resembles in many ways, The Ghost Writer is captivating, filled with romance, Gothic twists, melodramatic surprises, vibrant imagery, and a series of rich and overlapping stories within stories. Complex and carefully constructed, it is also hugely entertaining, totally involving the reader in good, old-fashioned haunted happenings which turn out to be even eerier than they appear at first.

Young Gerard Hugh Freeman grows up in rural Mawson, Australia, a bleak place that is in marked contrast to Staplefield, the English country house where his mother grew up. Extremely private, she has revealed almost nothing else about her family background, and when Gerard, curious, opens her locked bureau and finds some personal papers, his angry mother refuses to speak about her past at all. Gerard, one the "legions of the lost: the swots, the cowards," eventually finds a pen pal in whom he confides everything, Alice Jessell, a paralyzed English girl whose parents are dead.

Continuing to investigate his mother, Gerard eventually discovers among her belongings an eerie ghost story written by Viola Hatherley, who may or may not be his grandmother, one of four stories she published in "The Chameleon," a short-lived British magazine. As Gerard grows up, he eventually uncovers the remaining three ghost stories by Viola, all as fascinating as the first, and as the reader discovers when these stories are inserted into the novel, the lives of Gerard and his family overlap with the plots of these stories. When he is in his thirties, and still pursing Alice, he finally visits the place in England that appears to be his mother's "Staplefield," and the details of his mother's life suddenly combine with Viola's four vibrant ghost stories to precipitate an intriguing conclusion.

Harwood is a fine writer, giving detailed physical descriptions and creating unforgettable images which reveal similarities among people, surroundings, and events in Viola's four ghost stories. The mystery and suspense begin on the first page, and increase geometrically as Gerard tries to solve his questions while creating even more mysteries. The parallels among the stories and with Gerard's life keep the reader on edge, trying to figure out who Gerard is, how he might fit into these stories, and even whether Gerard's life is a story manipulated by some great, unknown storyteller. Like The Turn of the Screw, this novel leaves the reader with questions--and like that brilliant novel, haunts the reader long after the fun has concluded.

I've read some good books lately, and some so-so ones. Currently, I'm reading "The Virgin of Small Plains" by Nancy Pickard. I've never read any of her books. I was trying to find someone new to read, so I went to Amazon, did a search for mysteries (very general, I know) and then had them sort them according to reader rating. That didn't exactly work the way I expected, but I did discover this author, Pickard, that a lot of people seemed to like. So, I decided to give her a try. I just finished Faye Kellerman's Street Dreams. It was the so-so book. I've enjoyed Kellerman's Peter Decker and Rina Lazarus series, but this one was the second to feature Decker's daughter, who's also a cop.

Before that, I read a non-fiction by Ruth Reichl, called "Garlic and Sapphires : The Secret Life of a Critic in Disguise." Even though it was about her experiences reviewing restaurants in New York, in the 90's, it was still a fun read, for the most part. It bogged down a little bit when she went into too much detail describing exotic dishes, but her experiences dressing up as different people and characters are what made this book so fascinating.

I have to leave, but I'll list a few more later.

Sally

(lol) I'm going through a 'phase'.

Currently reading non-fiction Southern history from about 1715 to 1855. My concentration is on architecture, daily life, women's issues, slavery, horticulture, salt, iron/lead mines in Louisiana and what is now Missouri, American Indians as indentured servants and methods of construction.

A book I highly recommend is, 'Memories of the Old Plantation Home' by Laura Locoul Gore.
It's outstanding, even for those who aren't history geeks!
Mrs. Gore's left us the account of her life on the Laura Plantation, written so her children would understand why she broke tradition and chose not to become the fifth female to devote their lives to running the family home.

If you want to savor rich language and learn something of an all but vanished culture, read anything by George Washington Cable. He was foolishly bold for his time, portraying facts as they were and not society's image.

'The Widow of the South' by Robert Hicks. Good read.

Sucker for embarrassed to write it - Joanna Lindsey's romance of the Mallory series.

Jolana, your book sounds interesting. How did you like it, do you agree with the reviewer? Was it a good ghost story?

So far I'm just reading novels for entertainment. Romance&mystery.I'm also reading a whole lotta gardening books. I read Carl Hiaasen's "Double Whammy" not too shabby. The rest I picked out aren't worth mentioning.PJ

Those books sound interesting, Jac. I need to read more about history. I did read "Founding Mothers" by Cokie Roberts a year or two ago, I thought it was quite interesting. It's about the women behind/beside the founding fathers of our nation.

I've avoided Dean Koontz books because I thought he was a lot like Stephen King, and I'd read enough of those for a lifetime, but my sister raved so much about Koontz's book, "Life Expectancy" and DH read it and enjoyed it too, and assured me Koontz is NOT like Stephen King, so I decided to read it. They were right. It's really quite entertaining. I did almost put it down in the opening, because it contained an element that I find to be a cliche, and that I've always hated in fiction - the evil clown. But, the book is so quircky and well written, I persisted, and was glad I did.

For you mystery lovers, I recommend anything by P.J. Tracy. They are a mother-daughter writing team, and have combined their names to make their pen name. The first one to read is called "Monkeewrench" and it definately helps to read them in order. I think they have 3 out now involving mostly the same characters. I may have recommended them before, but they are worth recommending over and over again. Their myteries are a good combination of gritty, dark, moody, with the right amount of humor thrown in. (No, they are not comedies, like the Evonovitch books, but they have good comic relief)

Sally

At present, reading "Mapping the Edge" by Sarah Dunant. I just love the fact that she can change subject/genre and still write an engaging novel.

I'm also working on Jodi Picoult series of novels. Light prose, no doubt, but she's an easy, entertaining read. After a stressful day at work, easy and entertaining are welcome!

I've read Clifford goes to the Firehouse,CJ and Edison Find Treasure,Thomas and Tank Engine(all of them I think).
I also have managed to squeeze in time for Franny Flagg, J Evanovich(sp?) and am reading Mary Higgins Clark's Girls in Blue.PJ

Hi Sally...seems that we have very similiar tastes in mystery...I think the PJ Tracey books are awesome. They actually have 4 out and all of them are excellent, totally worth reading. You also might like Tess Gerritson. I also really like Linda Howard, she's more romantic suspense than straight mystery.

Anyone read the Susan Albert "herb" mysterys?

Susan Wittig Albert was a guest lecturer at the Tyler Pulbic Library a few months ago and was very intersting and entertaining. I've read all her books except the last 2 and I would highly recommend them. She includes a lot of info about herbs and spices.

My oldest daughter gave me "V for Vendetta" for Father's Day so I am currently reading that.

Wow, is Grafton all the way up to "V" now? I'm currently reading her "R" book now. It's okay. I like her earlier books better, but they're still fun. (Or, is V for Vendetta not a Sue Grafton book?)

Tess, I'm glad to finally "meet" someone that's read PJ Tracy besides my DH. I've never heard of Tess Gerritson. I've read, well, struggled through one of Linda Howard's books. Someone recommended it to me, and I have to admit that I was several chapters into it when I realised it was a romance novel in disguise. I just don't do romance novels. Sorry. The Evonovitch novels are as close as I come to that genre. I definately am addicted to mysteries, though, and I like the Wittig-Albert novels quite a lot, especially when I'm ready for a cozy. Another mystery author I've enjoyed is Sarah Andrews. Her main character is a forensic geologist...well, really she's mainly a geologist, but does forensic geology as part of that. Anyway, she finds herself having to solve mysteries. Like Linda Barr, another mystery writer I love, her novels usually involve the outdoors. Linda Barr's main Character is a park ranger for the National Park Service. If you haven't tried Linda Barr or Sarah Andrews, I recommend both authors.

I just finished reading the new Barbara Kingsolver book, a non-fiction called "Animal, Vegetable, Miracle, A Year of Food Life." It was about her family's attempt at eating only locally grown food for one year. Much of it they grew themselves, but some of it they bought from neighboring farmers at the local farmer's market. It starts out with the basics as taught to someone that's never understood where food really comes from, and it's hard to believe anyone is THAT naive - even to the point of not knowing potatoes have plant parts or that lettuce actually has flowers if left to grow long enough. But apparently they discovered that yes, people are that naive. Anyway, aside from teaching things like that, she writes about the whys and wherefores of buying locally. It's co-written by her daughter, Camille and husband, Stephen Hopp. Camille is a chip off the old block, and is quite a good writer. Once you get past all the preaching and teaching, it becomes a well written and entertaining book.

Sally

A lot of well written books have a bit of preaching in them. It makes it hard to recommend them! "Get past the preachy part and you get some info" sounds kind of weak.
I've read all the Grafton books(book aholism runs in the family) I've read a couple PJ Tracey. Basically, the "PJ" part caught my attention at the store.LOL! Never heard of Tess Gerrtison either. Linda Barr sounds good I'll have to find that one.
I consider my JD Robb books romance even tho they are more or less murder mysteries. In fact, I consider all of my books with any love theme romances.This includes RobertBParkers(I've read most)as a romance in my book because the character spends quite a bit of time with his girlfriend(and her dog).
I've read all of Evanovich's books except 12. I just read it slightly out of order because I ended up with 13 first. PJ

Oooohhh...I love Joanna Lindsey's books! Total fantasy escape!! :-)

And Jac, I'm going to read that "Memories..." book you recommended. I love reading Texas/Southern history actual life stories. I am into tracing my ancestry, and this fits right in there.

I have a hard time finding time to read in the summer too - stays daylight too long - so, I'm outside gardening!! LOL

I don't spend a lot of time reading, but I read every day. At work I read while I eat lunch, and then I always read a little bit, even if it's a paragraph, at bedtime. It takes me a long time to finish a book that way, especially since I'm a slow reader, but I don't mind.

Sally

I read "Flyboys" - the book has nothing to do with the movie

I am about to finish "The Decent" - creepy

Purchased and waiting to be read:
A Thousand Splendid Summers
Kite Runner

Joe, I think I heard an interview/discussion on the radio about Kite Runner. Is it an Indian book?

Sally

It was written by man from Afghanistan. I believe it to be a memoires of his childhood back in the 70s.

ZJoe

That sounds like it could be very interesting. I hope you enjoy it. I'll try to remember to look for it at the library sometime.

Sally

"The Decent" was excellent. Jeff Long, the author, is natural born Texan. I did not know that until I was looking for other books of his online and read his bio.

Here is a synopsis of the book:
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THE DESCENT

Hell exists.

In Tibet, while guiding trekkers to a holy mountain, Ike Crockett discovers a bottomless cave. When his lover disappears, Ike pursues her into the depths of the earth....In a leper colony bordering the Kalahari Desert, a nun and linguist named Ali von Schade unearths evidence of a proto-human species and a deity called Older-than-Old....In Bosnia, Major Elias Branch crash-lands his gunship near a mass grave and is swarmed by pale cannibals terrified of light....

So begins mankind's realization that the underworld is a vast geological labyrinth riddling the continents and sea beds, one inhabited by brutish creatures who resemble the devils and gargoyles of legend. With all of Hell's precious resources and territories to be won, a global race ensues. Nations, armies, religions, and industries rush to colonize and exploit the subterranean frontier.

A scientific expedition is launched westward to explore beneath the Pacific Ocean floor, both to catalog the riches there and to learn how life could develop in the sunless abyss. Is there a natural explanation, as the scientists hope? Or is there a true supernatural basis? Are the "demons" part of our evolutionary family tree? Is their enigmatic leader merely a freak genius, or could he be the legendary Satan?

Fathom by fathom, Ike guides the expedition--and Ali--deeper into the deadly stone wilderness. In the dark underground, as humanity falls away from them, the scientists and mercenaries find themselves prey not only to the savage creatures, but to their own treachery, mutiny, and greed. Meanwhile, on the surface, a band of aged scholars scours archaeological digs, museums, artifacts, and rare texts for clues to Satan's existence. Is he lurking in wait for the expedition, or is he roaming the earth? Or is he dead? One thing is certain: Miles inside the earth, evil is very much alive.

In the tradition of Jules Verne and H. G. Wells, The Descent is an epic adventure through fantastic landscapes, among creatures for whom man is both god and meat. It is a horrifying mystery penetrating the realms of faith and reason, a raw and original questioning of the divine and the demonic. And finally, The Descent is the story of a man and woman who enter the maze of the underworld and find at its center the human heart.

-----------------------------------------------------------

"Kite Runner" is the next book I am starting. I am going to wait until next week to start it though. I have a trip to Albuquerque, NM that I have to get ready for.

ZJoe

I took the kids to the library, which didn't have the book I was looking for, "Total Money Makeover" by Dave Ramsey. My son checked out the thriller, "House" by Peretti & Dekker, among other things, so I'm reading that while he reads the others he got. It's written on a easy reading level, but it's still pretty good. Peretti is a Christian writer, but I don't know if this is classified as Christian fiction or not. It doesn't seem to have an overtly Christian theme, and so far, I think one would enjoy the book whether they're Christian or not. It got a tremendous review by the producer of "Fantastic Four".

While we ride in the car, the kids and I are listening to "The Magician's Nephew" by C.S. Lewis, the first in his "Chronicles of Narnia" series, and it's fantastic! I love it. Even though I'd read it when I was young, it's wonderful to experience it all over again with the kids.

PJ, I love your reading list! Been there, done that! Hey, while you're reading to little ones, you've gotta check out, "Love You Forever". It's so sweet, it made me cry in a dentist's waiting room. I sure didn't expect that. It's written by Robert Munsch, after losing two babies of his own. He wrote it as a children's book, but it turned out to appeal to EVERY generation.

Here is a link that might be useful: Robert Munsch Website

I read "Love You Forever" at a friends house. Glad that book didn't sneak up on me in public! I had no idea about the author.How sad and how hard that has to be. PJ

Someone gave me that book. I lost my mother to Alz. so it really hit home. Another one is The Giving Tree. When I taught pre-school, I would take the children outside and we would sit under a tree and read that. I always wore my sunglasses, b/c we'd go on a sunny day, but the main reason was I didn't want them to see me tear up. It was interesting to watch the children "get it". Only a few would "get it", and you could see the looks on their faces when they did "get it".

Sally, "Kite Runner" is the story of an Afghan man who is now a US citizen. It's very interesting and helps to understand some of the awful things that have happened in that country that have led up to the current upheval there.

I think I have found the PERFECT BOOK that combines my two favorite subjects, English History and Gardening. It's by Phillipa Gregory and called "Virgin Earth." It's the story of John Tradescant the Younger and his life in England and his exploration of Virginia Colony. You may recall a plant called Tradescantia also known as spriderwort; it's named for John and was one plant that he took back to England when he made one of his journeys to the New World.

After I began reading "Virgin Earth", I discovered there was an earlier work by the same author called "Earthly Joys" that is the story of, what else, John Tradescant the Elder. He established a museum of 'curiosities' and also began a gardening business and eventually became a gardener to the English royal families. I haven't read it yet, but I'm really looking forward to it.

I am currently reading "The Mayflower Papers" that is a compilation of several first-hand accounts of early settlers in America. It is designed as companion reading to another book, "Mayflower." These accounts are gleaned from personal diaries of several early settlers, and much of the language is archaic and kinda hard to understand. Also some of the terminology and names of things and articles is mysterious, and I have to go look them up or Google them. But it's very interesting reading, even if it isn't English history per se.

Cheryl

Seamommy, I gotta find that book. I read a bit about J Gregg and his studies here in TX and toward Mexico and down into some desert areas all the way to California. It was facinating!!! PJ

I got it at the Barnes and Noble. Cheryl

Dad gummit, I used to have a little book about how flowers got their names, but I don't remember what the name of the book was. I hate it when that happens. I loaned it out, or it got lost when we remodeled, but I don't have it any more. Anyway, it had anywhere from one to a few pages devoted to several flowers and plants, telling about their history and how they were named. It was great to read when you wanted just something short to read, so you could read about one or two flowers, and put the book down till the next time you wanted just a short read. Anyway, the history of the naming of plants can be quite interesting.

Sally

I just started reading "A Confederacy of Dunces"--I started it several years ago but never got to finish. Aslo , bought "Hornblower and the Atropos" by C.S Forrestor ( African Queen), my wife replaced her copy of 'A Handmaid's Tale". I am trying to get back into the habit of READING- I always was loved to read but since Katrina I have to restablish myself. Thankfully my memory is starting to come back. I have gotten back inot Gardening, hopefully I can eventually return to "NORMAL", which for me and my family means putting the "fun" in dysfunctional.

"Love you Forever" is wonderful. We buried a copy with my mom.
Now that I am on my feet, I don't read us much. The many months/years I couldn't walk I read at least a book a day. Friends brought me books from everywhere.
I prefer the detective/police type best. Throw in a little romance or medical issue & it's even beter.
I like both Johnathon & Faye Kellerman & Tess Garritson. There are dozens of authors really like, but my mind is a blank at the moment.

I think the same.
I recently started reading books about herbs/plants that are involved it the mystery of each book.
The author is Susan Wittig Albert.
The first I read was "Deadly Nightshade", which was out of order, but did not make a difference.
If she mentions a recipe, then she adds the recipe at the end of the book.