Author Archives: Caroline Trent-Gurbuz

Nora Roberts, Tribute

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Book design, Meighan Cavanaugh; http://www.us.penguingroup.com/nf/Book/BookDisplay/0,,9780515146363,00.html?Tribute_Nora_RobertsFame is destructive. It has the power to build someone up, bringing them money and work and admiration and ego. It’s addictive. It’s powerful. Cilla McGowan, granddaughter of legendary actress Janet Hardy and daughter of self-absorbed actress Dilly, is close companions with the elusive drug of notoriety. It’s in her blood. As a former child actress herself, she also knows the consequences of celebrity; it shattered her parents’ marriage and marred her formative years. Now an adult, she strives for some semblance of normality, some structure and stability. She finds it, quite literally, in rehabbing houses. And she’s beginning to find it in love.

Plot Overview: Love, Longing and Dreams

Cilla McGowan is a mix of contradictions: she has lived the high life but finds herself seeking the ordinary; she has that savoir-faire, but she can be hopelessly naïve about her own safety; she craves the comfort of an intact family, but she doesn’t believe in marriage. In short, Cilla is jaded. Vulnerable.

When she settles in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia to start the rehab of her grandmother’s house, Cilla is, for the first time in a long time, at home. Her father and his second wife are nearby, she’s making friends, and she can feel her grandmother’s presence in the home.

One afternoon, Cilla finds a stack of letters in the attic, letters that detail Janet’s affair with a married man – and her previously unmentioned pregnancy. Intrigued, Cilla starts to poke around, curious about whether her grandmother’s suicide was, in fact, a suicide, and who the mystery man might be.

Ford Sawyer, a graphic novelist, lives across the street from Janet Hardy’s crumbling masterpiece. He and his endearingly ugly dog, Spock, gradually win over the reluctant Cilla, and the neighbors strike up a friendship. At first. As they find themselves falling in love – Ford, thrilled, Cilla, terrified – someone else has his eyes on the ingénue. He doesn’t appreciate the amateur investigating, the digging up of old loves, old wounds. And in the case of Janet and Cilla’s family, violence will certainly beget violence if Cilla doesn’t stop her sleuthing.

Criticisms and Compliments

Roberts has an innate sense for what is trendy, what is popular, what is marketable. Before the Twilight series, there was the The Circle Trilogy (vampires, witches, warriors), the The Three Sisters Island Trilogy (witches) and The Sign of Seven Trilogy (demons). Before the fascination with risky jobs (check out a recent feature in the May 2013 issue of Marie Claire), there was Chasing Fire (smoke jumping). And before the explosion of DIY projects and blogging (e.g. YoungHouseLove), there was Tribute (and later, the Inn Boonsboro Trilogy). For whatever reason, many female readers are intrigued by the idea of makeovers, of crafting and creating. Tribute, though it may revolve primarily around death, love and family, is incredibly entertaining if just for the chronicling of Cilla’s house-flipping efforts.  It’s a nice little piece of what is already a good read.

The best part of a mystery, and despite its feminine flourishes, Tribute is a murder mystery, is the reveal of the killer. Traditionally, there are several red herrings, and the murderer is unmasked in a climactic moment by the protagonist, usually when he or she is caught in the killer’s web. Sometimes, the exposure of the antagonist is satisfying, assuming the reader guessed correctly; occasionally, the identity is predictable and disappointing; and every now and then, it is a huge surprise. The “who” whodunit is an intimate acquaintance, a family member, a woman rather than a man, a child rather than an adult. The question of the killer in Tribute – and whether Cilla’s grandmother did indeed commit suicide or not – has a delicious, scandalous answer.

Tribute is a satisfying read that incorporates all that appeals to female readers: DIY, romantic love, family, fame, fortune and suspense. Pick it up. (Also, the Lifetime movie isn’t bad either, though Brittany Murphy has some weird eyebrow action going on in it.)

Source:

  • Roberts, Nora. Tribute. Putnam Adult, 2008 ISBN 9780399154911

Matthew Reilly, “Area 7″

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St. Martin’s Press; http://us.macmillan.com/area7/MatthewReillyProtecting the President of the United States, like being a police officer, involves long periods of tedium and brief high-octane moments of violence and fear. Shane Schofield, call sign Scarecrow, is a soldier on Marine One, the president’s helicopter, and used to both the crawling of time and the heart-pounding excitement. On a routine visit to Area 8 and secretive Area 7, the experienced, scarred soldier finds himself fighting off a powerful, ‘roided out rogue unit of Air Force soldiers. Every floor of the underground Area 7 facility holds a dangerous secret, and only Schofield, with his band of tough Marines, can possibly outrun, outfight and outmaneuver the 7th Squadron of the Air Force and their megalomaniac leader. Oh, and he also needs to save the President – and the populations of fourteen major U.S. cities – from certain death.

Plot Overview: Conspiracy, Deception and Survival

Shane Schofield isn’t so different from former Army military police officer Jack Reacher. Both are resourceful, logical and practically invincible. When Schofield discovers that he, along with the President, the White House staff and the rest of the Marines in his unit, has walked into a trap in Area 7, he gets to work. With weapons and a Maghook – and his smarts – Schofield manages to survive the first assault.

High in the protected chamber on the upper floor of the underground base, Charles Samson Russell, call sign Caesar, sits on his throne. He is the mastermind behind the secret assault. He’s spent years plotting his revenge, plotting to make the President pay for his incarceration and his death penalty sentence. Now he waits and watches as his men slaughter the unprepared visitors.

While the 7th squadron and the Marines play cat-and-mouse, other events are taking place in the deep, dark levels of Area 7. One level holds some of the most violent killers in the country. Another holds massive animals, including bears. And a third holds “Sinovirus,” a Chinese biological weapon designed to kill those of a different race. In the wrong hands, countries, even continents could be wiped out. If Caesar wins his game, he has plans for the virus. Plans the Chinese haven’t considered. Plans to change the face of the United States – and the world – forever.

Criticisms and Compliments

When looking at the publishing industry, it’s clear that most books – and now genres (romance, chick-lit, romantic suspense) – are targeted toward women. And while women may be the majority of readers, there is a niche for men writing for other men. Matthew Reilly’s Area 7 is one of those novels. It’s packed to the hilt with action, with strategy, with military jargon and situations. The writing tends to be stark and straightforward with a great deal of text devoted to logistics: the size of an area, the layout, the physical motions and angles needed to beat someone (just look at any of Lee Child’s Jack Reader novels). That said, these books, these adventures that eschew typical romances and typical emotions, are high-flying rides that any reader, male or female, should read. Maybe just for variety, maybe just for fun.

Area 7 is also a book that the reader chooses for the fantastic – and sometimes completely unrealistic – plot. Scarecrow and his pals repeatedly get into impossible situations, and just when the reader thinks that there can’t possibly be a way out, Reilly presents an outrageous solution. It’s partly frustrating to see the protagonists continue to get trapped, and it’s partly entertaining to find out what plot twist will save the Marine heroes. The character development is relatively shallow, but the pacing is fast.

Pet peeve, however: Reilly, like Andrew Gross, is guilty of using far too many exclamation points and italicized text. If he eliminated all of the exclamation points and gave the reader credit for understanding what words are emphasized – rather than italicizing to show emphasis – Area 7 would be a more enjoyable read. Still, it’s thrilling and page-turning, perfect for any reader (male or female) who needs a quick fix of action and adventure.

Source:

  • Reilly, Matthew. Area 7. St. Martin’s Paperbacks, 2003 ISBN 9780312983222

Marian Keyes, “Sushi for Beginners”

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HarperCollins; http://www.harpercollins.com/books/Sushi-for-Beginners-Marian-Keyes?isbn=9780060555955&HCHP=TB_Sushi+for+Beginners It’s a common problem. Bridget Jones remarked on it. Most people have experienced it. When one part of life is going really well, another part falls spectacularly apart. Professionally, a person could be doing fantastic work, making money, feeling good. But her personal life is in shambles. She’s single. Again. And afraid to look for what she might – or might not – find in the murky world of dating. For Lisa, Ashling and Clodagh, women who ostensibly don’t “have it all,” total happiness eludes them. One part of their lives is chugging along; the other is stalled. It seems only time, humor and a heaping helping of humble pie can tip the balances in favor of love and satisfaction.

Plot Overview: Glitz, Glamour and Girls

Ashling Kennedy is the consummate best friend. She is prepared for every disaster with a Mary-Poppin’s-like cavernous bag, she has a tendency to worry, she is loyal and needy and lacking in self-esteem. And she’s single, though she wouldn’t mind having a loving and faithful boyfriend. But for now, Ashling is a girl with a big heart – and maybe even a bigger body – who works as an assistant at fledging magazine “Colleen.”

Lisa Edwards is the polar opposite of her assistant, Ashling. Lisa is the high-powered new editor of “Colleen,” though she views her move from London to Dublin as a demotion. She is slim and svelte and gorgeous, and she maintains such high standards that a normal person – her employees, her ex-husband – can only fall far short. The unpleasant Type-A personality is loath to work at the Irish mag, but ruggedly handsome and cranky editor-in-chief Jack Devine might be her perfect complement. Might be.

At first glance, Clodagh really does have it all. A handsome husband who brings home the big bucks, two lovely children, a beautiful home. But Clodagh fights persistent unhappiness and boredom. There is no passion in suburbia and in motherhood, and the young, flighty woman is desperate for something. Drama. Excitement. An affair.

Criticisms and Compliments

Keyes is the undisputed queen of chick-lit (Sophie Kinsella is a close runner-up; perhaps the “princess” of chick-lit). Keyes typically channels a variety of young, struggling twenty and thirty-somethings, many of whom have professional lives that any other woman would envy. Case in point: the workers at “Colleen” have the luxury of not only working for a glamorous women’s magazine, but they are also spearheading a new publication. Quite an opportunity. But where Keyes would normally tackle a mainstream issue (abuse, rape, suicide, alcoholism), such a topic seems to be missing – or at least not as obvious – in Sushi for Beginners. Rather, this frothy novel looks at the superficial, the surface of a woman’s relationship with her partner, her lover, her friend and her husband. Essentially, no single relationship in perfect; boredom or dissatisfaction inevitably set in, and infidelity is almost a guarantee, but love is worth the fight. Or so it would seem.

The problem with Sushi for Beginners, aside from its lagging first few chapters, is the general unlikeability and stereotypical personalities of the characters. Lisa is just not a sympathetic character; her situation is sympathetic – aside from her “promotion” of sorts to Dublin (who wouldn’t want that?) – but her nasty attitude overpowers her vulnerability. She is, in plain speak, a bitch. Likewise, Clodagh is selfish and insensitive, a woman who could have it all, but still isn’t happy. So what does she do? Turn to what her best friend has and take that. She might be sorry, but not sorry enough to give it back. And Ashling, the only likeable character in the novel, is too much of a chick-lit stereotype: clumsy, bumbling, overweight, single. In true Keyes fashion, however, each character does wind up with her deserved ending – happy or not – which can be immensely satisfying. Still, Sushi for Beginner’s leaves something to be desired.

Sushi for Beginners is certainly not a bad novel; it’s well written and funny and evokes the glamorous world of magazines (not unlike Tasmina Perry’s Daddy’s Girls), but the pacing and the characters bring it down a notch. The Other Side of the Story, The Brightest Star in the Sky and This Charming Man are better reads.

Source:

  • Keyes, Marian. Sushi for Beginners: A Novel. William Morrow Paperbacks (Reprint edition), 2005 ISBN 9780060555955

Nora Roberts, “Birthright”

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Cover photograph, Rosemary Porter; cover design, Honi Werner; book design, Amanda Dewey; http://www.us.penguingroup.com/nf/Book/BookDisplay/0,,9780515137118,00.html?Birthright_Nora_RobertsThe birth of a child is one of the greatest gifts a couple can receive. Once that tiny face crumples into its first smile, when that sweet-faced baby begins to crawl, walk, run, it is impossible to imagine life without her. And when she goes missing, when she’s taken, it is the worst kind of torture a family can endure. For Suzanne and Jay Cullen, the kidnapping of their daughter, Jessica, created a permanent hole in their small family. The couple broke up, and their young son, Douglas, grew up believing it was his fault for not protecting his baby sister. Decades later, archeologist Callie Dunbrook shows up in the Cullens’ home town, Woodsboro, Maryland, to lead a dig, and Suzanne is convinced she’s the missing Jessica – but no one else, including Callie, believes her.

Plot Overview: Archeology, Adoption and Family Secrets

Ronald Dolan jumped through hoops to get approval on the Antietam Creek Project, so it was just perfect that one of his guys unearths a skull on the first day of construction. Lana Campbell, town lawyer and muckety-muck, smugly tells him that his project will be delayed, if not cancelled.

After Dolan wanders off to sulk, Lana gleefully runs to local bookstore owner and her best friend, Roger, to tell him the news. While there, she meets Douglas, Roger’s grandson. The two don’t immediately hit it off, but when the gossip mill churns out a rumor that a team of archeologists is coming to town, Lana and Douglas find common ground in their curiosity.

Callie Dunbrook, though on sabbatical, is eager to start the dig in Woodsboro – until she finds out that her ex-husband, Jake, is the anthropologist assigned to the project. Chemistry (and unresolved anger) sparks dangerously between the two, entertaining their family-like team.

Something else is also sparking dangerously: the speculation that Callie may be the abducted Jessica. As one accident after another happens on the site, Callie and Jake begin to suspect that Suzanne, Douglas’s mother, may be right about her lost daughter’s identity. As the exes sift through the secrets and cover-ups, someone is waiting. And watching. And preparing to kill.

Criticisms and Compliments

Birthright is one of Roberts’s best, but for whatever reason, it seems to get lost in her considerable collection of standalone novels. Roberts is so prolific and consistent in her writing that readers expect a certain standard, and Birthright certainly meets those: it’s well researched, the love story is captivating and not one of her usual pairings (ex-husband and ex-wife reunite and fall back in love), and the mystery is complex. It’s romantic suspense at its best.

Aside from providing an intriguing glance into the world of archeological digs, Roberts excels at creating families out of friends. The idea of a group of professionals and students, bunking in a cabin, sharing meals, sleeping in sleeping bags, working hard – it all just sounds like fun. The fact that they bond with each other, create a kind of community, gives Birthright a warmth that is lacking in other novels.

Don’t let this novel fade into the bookshelf – it’s an excellent read.

Source:

  • Roberts, Nora. Birthright. Jove, 2004 ISBN 9780515137118

Jennifer Weiner, “Goodnight Nobody”

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Washington Square Press; http://books.simonandschuster.com/Goodnight-Nobody/Jennifer-Weiner/9780743470124The city versus the suburbs. Singledom versus married life. Freedom versus motherhood. Every woman makes her choices, either deliberately or not. Some might be thrilled to find themselves professionally successful, financially sound and happily single in their 30s. Others, however, find themselves cleaning up dirty diapers, chasing the uppity moms of the most popular stay-at-home clique and reducing their intellectual challenges to repeated games of Candy Land. Kate Klein is one of those mothers. And she has no idea how she ended up in Upchurch, Connecticut, bored, frustrated and contemplating a different life.

Plot Overview: Suburbia, Secrets and Boredom

After being mugged, Kate and her workaholic husband, Ben, uproot their family of five from the bustling streets of New York City to move to quiet, serene Upchurch. But behind the glossy front doors and beneath the perfectly coiffed hair of the ladies who lunch lie secrets. Kate, rumpled, clumsy and always with a mussed ‘do, is eventually invited into the  group – only to find her hostess, Kitty Cavanaugh, murdered. Stabbed in the back with a kitchen knife.

The suburb is shocked at the murder, outraged that such a safe place could be home to a maniacal killer. But Kate, bored and lonely and desperate for purpose, is intrigued. She takes it upon herself to investigate the death of Kitty and to unearth all the secrets of the WASP-y clan in Upchurch. Of course, she can only ferret out the murderer on Monday, Wednesday and Friday mornings (when her children are in school), but a lack of time won’t stop the determined mother.

Complicating matters is Evan McKenna, an old boyfriend whom Kate never got over. With her own marriage on the rocks, Kate finds herself drawn closer to the man of the past, a man who reminds her of better times, freer times, happier times. But is she willing to sacrifice the family for whom she has worked so hard? Could she end up just like Kitty, stabbed in the back in her own shiny, remodeled kitchen?

Criticisms and Compliments

Jennifer Weiner is an excellent story teller, and her novels have wide appeal to female readers, all of whom dream of being accepted and loved for exactly who they are and what they look like. It is fantasy fiction at its best. However, while Weiner’s other hits (In Her Shoes, Good in Bed, Best Friends Forever) are endearing, nostalgic, tug-at-the-heartstrings chick lit, Goodnight Nobody is Weiner’s first venture outside of the frothy romance box. Unfortunately, the mystery of Goodnight Nobody isn’t exciting or intriguing, nor is it particularly well-crafted. Instead, Weiner vacillates between her protagonist’s personal life and emotional struggles and the superficial backgrounds of suburbia’s most powerful: the housewives. While it isn’t unusual for authors to include vulnerable elements of their primary detectives, the mystery generally takes a priority. In Goodnight Nobody, boredom and dissatisfaction do.

Despite its lackluster plot, Goodnight Nobody can still be enjoyed if just for Weiner’s writing style and humor. Sophie, Kate’s daughter, is wry and sarcastic, and Kate is a bumbling, endearing mom who just can’t fit in. That said, the ending and the lack of a conclusion, of closure, of any type of resolution between Kate, her husband and her former lover is disappointing. Goodnight Nobody is a book the reader tolerates for the wit, for the depictions of the ridiculous and now archetypal stay-at-home moms and for the untangling of a miserable life – but just as the reader believes Weiner will neatly tie up her plot, the story ends. Abruptly.

Better stick with Weiner’s other hits and avoid this one.

Source:

  • Weiner, Jennifer. Goodnight Nobody. Washington Square Press, 2006 ISBN 9780743470124

John Grisham, “The Brethren”

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Cover photo, Joshua Sheldon 2000; cover design, the DD Team; http://www.randomhouse.com/book/72153/the-brethren-by-john-grishamThree men straddling the line between middle-aged and elderly are disgraced, divorced and broke. They sit in the cells of Trumble, a relatively pleasant minimum-security federal prison in Florida, ruling as a committee over petty prison squabbles. Collectively, they are known as “The Brethren.” The Brethren, however, are also bored and money hungry. So like any set of jaded, creative and brilliant men, they concoct a plan to bring in some cash. Their scheme is carefully crafted and well-executed, and the Brethren become quite successful. Too successful.

Plot Overview: Buddies, Greed and Regret

Ricky and Percy are two young men in dire straits. They are recovering addicts in cushy rehab facilities, but their release date is coming soon, and the two are in desperate need of money. Thankfully, they have their pen pals, sympathetic and closeted men who can fund their continued recovery. The only catch is, Ricky and Percy don’t exist. But Hatlee Beech, Finn Yarber and Joe Roy Spicer do.

The Brethren’s extortion plan is beginning to gather speed, thanks to their careful letter writing. Their lawyer on the outside, Trevor, a man staring down the bottle of alcoholism, delivers the letters and keeps track of wire transfers to a bank in the Caribbean. He also takes a hefty commission. All four men dream of a life away from Florida, a life of money and freedom and a lack of responsibilities. Ricky and Percy are their tickets to paradise.

Teddy Maynard, reclusive and enigmatic head of the CIA, has his own plot. Using Aaron Lake, a quiet, unremarkable congressman from Arizona, he plans to buy the next presidential election. He intends for Lake to shore up military spending and defense, and he has no qualms about orchestrating terrorist events abroad to help convince the American people that a man like Lake, a man who cares about defending his country, is the ideal candidate.

Schemers and dreamers, the Brethren and Maynard are pulling all the strings. But when their strings become entangled, when their puppets collide, only the truly manipulative mind in the bunch can straighten it out.

Criticisms and Compliments

The Brethren has received mixed reviews from readers and critics because it doesn’t have the action, the character development or the closure of Grisham’s other hits. But what Grisham really appears to be doing with The Brethren is moving away from his typical formulaic legal thrillers. The Brethren doesn’t trace the heroic efforts of one naïve but impossibly courageous lawyer who can dispense justice, save his family and come out on top with his reputation relatively unscathed. Rather, The Brethren lacks a protagonist completely. Not one of the characters – Teddy Maynard, Aaron Lake, Finn Yarber, Joe Roy Spicer, Hatlee Beech, Trevor Carson – is likeable. They’re all conniving, dishonest men. The only semi-respectable one in the bunch is Aaron Lake, but he’s a victim to his circumstances and secrets. If anything can be drawn from The Brethren, it is so prioritize honesty. And to never take politics at face value.

What is also disconcerting about The Brethren is its accuracy. It is entirely possible that fallen men run scams from prison every day, extorting money from those too ashamed or too scared to come forward. Likewise, how much of what happens during an election is transparent? Can money really buy a presidency? And if so, what does that mean for the American people who believe that they have any say in the matter? Do their votes really count, or are they just a superficial indication that Washington has bought and paid for the candidate of their choice? The idea certainly doesn’t support America’s priority of democracy.

Still, the questions raised, the issues explored and the lack of humanity make The Brethren an intriguing read. Beyond those, Grisham also has a great storytelling style. His prose rolls smoothly along, and he always manages to inject a little humor into hopeless situations.  So, ignore the mixed reviews and give The Brethren a chance – it’s worth it.

Source:

  • Grisham, John. The Brethren. Dell, 2000 ISBN 9780440236673

J.K. Rowling, “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone”

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Scholastic; http://harrypotter.scholastic.com/sorcerers_stone/Harry Potter’s existence in London is small and unremarkable. He’s an orphan who lives with his neglectful and somewhat abusive aunt and uncle, and his cousin is clearly the favorite boy in the household. But Harry has a cozy (read: cramped) place of his own in the cupboard under the stairs. It could be a lot worse. What he isn’t expecting, however, is to find that he not only has a magical gift, but he’s also famous. In another world. To go from a nobody to a somebody, from a lonely boy to a popular student with two best friends, from an orphan to a boy with a family – it’d be a lot for anyone to handle. Unless you’re “The Boy Who Lived.”

Plot Overview: Maturity, Magic and Family

When Harry first receives the letter from Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, he’s not sure what to expect. Then again, considering his Uncle Vernon refuses to allow him to have it, it doesn’t really matter. But when the letters, and a parliament of owls, begin to haunt the house, the family flees to an island, and Harry believes he will continue his desolate life, even on his birthday.

Hagrid, a half-giant on assignment from Professor Dumbledore, the headmaster of Hogwarts School, tracks down the young boy and lifts him from a loathsome family to a world of unimaginable delights. Hagrid provides Harrry with a wand, books and a sweet owl named Hedwig before dropping him off at Platform nine and three-quarters to take the train to Hogwarts.

Although Harry makes friends, Ron and Hermione, he isn’t universally liked, though he is acknowledged as the most famous person in the wizarding world. Of course, he has no idea why he’s so well known, or even who “He Who Must Not Be Named” is, but he begins to discover bits and pieces about his parents. The information he gleans only makes him thirstier to understand his roots and who he is.

Someone at Hogwarts, however, has plans that involve a vengeful “He Who Must Not Be Named” – and Harry is a target. With magic and talent on his side, as well as two great friends, Harry just might defeat those who wish him harm. For now.

Criticisms and Compliments

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, at first glance, is just a great children’s book, on par with the tales of Roald Dahl, Judy Blume and Beverly Cleary. And like the aforementioned authors, J.K. Rowling will be (if she’s not considered so already) a fixture in children’s literature, a prolific and talented writer whose stories will become classics. But what sets her above the rest, what makes the Harry Potter series so remarkable is its influence not only on readers in the UK, but across the world. Rowling, whether intentionally or not, has given children the most valuable gift: a love of reading.

Rowling has long been credited with renewing reading in children and parents; bedtime stories, as of 1999 when Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone was published, were no longer a quick five-minute read where mom or dad would skip pages or read part of one chapter. Instead, story time became a more intense bonding session as both parent and child became absorbed in the book. What’s more, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, as well as the other novels in the series, became the book for the everyreader. Regardless of age, background, nationality and reading level, Harry Potter was “the” book to read. And for good reason.

J.K. Rowling, though she hasn’t been as successful since her venture into standalone novels for adults, is a truly gifted storyteller. Her characters are quirky, her writing is nuanced, and the world she creates, the magic and the mystery, is so carefully and creatively done that Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone becomes the novel that the reader doesn’t want to end. It’s a complete immersion, and Hogwarts is an incredible place. Please read these books (then watch the movies; they’re pretty decent adaptations).

Source:

  • Rowling, J.K. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone. Scholastic, 1999 ISBN 9780590353427

Suzanne Brockmann, “Hot Pursuit”

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Cover design, Jae Song; cover image: Brooklyn Bridge, Amanda Hill/Robert Harding World Imagery/Getty Images; http://www.randomhouse.com/book/18615/hot-pursuit-by-suzanne-brockmannThe Dentist is a prolific, twisted serial killer. He kills mercilessly, randomly, and he collects teeth from his victims. While he keeps the majority of the choppers at home, he likes to tuck a small handful in his pocket, fingering them throughout the day. And when he discovers beautiful Alyssa Locke, the Dentist knows he has found his ideal target. So he waits and he plans, and he waits and he plans, until Alyssa and a team of Troubleshooters arrive in New York City to guard Assemblywoman Maria Bonavita. The assemblywoman with whom the Dentist works.

Plot Overview: Bodyguards, Babies and Breastfeeding

Alyssa Locke has terrible luck; every time she thinks she’s got an easy mission – in this case, protecting Maria and investigating threatening emails – Murphy’s Law goes into effect. On her first day, Alyssa and the team discover a human heart in the bottom drawer of Maria’s chief of staff and old friend, Jennilyn’s, desk.

Alyssa, Sam and the other SEALs get to work, setting up security systems and conducting interviews. Meanwhile, Jules Cassidy and his husband, Emmy-award winning actor Robin Chadwick Cassidy, are on their way to New York from Boston. After learning that the heart belongs to one of Maria’s missing friends (and a large donor), Jules reluctantly agrees to let Robin continue on the journey with him.

Once everyone is assembled in New York City, assignments are doled out and responsibilities are undertaken. Robin and Izzy Zanella are the go-to babysitters for Sam and Alyssa’s son, Ashton, and Dan Gillman (a.k.a. Gilligan), has taken over guarding Jenn.

Dan is, at first, dazzled by Maria’s good looks, but he’s happy to settle for the chunkier best friend. He proposes a two-week relationship of sex, laughter and company, and Jenn agrees. They enjoy a couple of days of love and relaxation until the situation with the Dentist comes to a head. Dan finds that his casual encounters with Jenn have gone beyond just the physical, while Jenn, unfortunately, overhears Dan’s unflattering descriptions of their time together. But what time do they have to bicker with the Dentist preying on not just Maria but also another of the group’s own?

Criticisms and Compliments

Brockmann’s Troubleshooters series is so strong, so well-written and so nicely plotted that Hot Pursuit, which a long-time Brockmann fan would expect to be great, is that much more of a disappointment. Although it isn’t poorly written, the plot leaves much to be desired, as do the characters. Based on the description of the story, the reader knows going in that Alyssa will be kidnapped and Sam will be frantic, creating a good amount of tension. However, when that moment finally – finally – happens, it’s in the last quarter of the book. Furthermore, while Brockmann throws in a red herring or two, the antagonist of this whodunit, the “Dentist,” is so obvious that his exposure is anticlimactic.

While it is nice to get an update on Brockmann’s characters (Sam and Alyssa have a baby, Mary Lou is pregnant with her and Ihbraham’s first child, Gina and Max have two children, Cosmo and Jane have a son named Billy), the main characters in Hot Pursuit are just plain unlikeable. Dan Gillman, the primary lovesick SEAL, is not a sympathetic character. He’s vulnerable, sure, suffering from PTSD, but he’s also manipulative, rude, a user and, as his nemesis Izzy points out, kind of a douchebag. Jenn is easily taken in by the hunky soldier, but she doesn’t have the emotional arsenal to tangle with such a scheming player. Brockmann hints in her Author’s Note that the couple’s story isn’t over, but based on the events in Hot Pursuit, Jenn deserves much more than Dan Gillman.

Overall, Hot Pursuit isn’t terrible, but it is nowhere near as great as the other books in the Troubleshooter’s series; rather, it’s a so-so story that leaves the reader feeling lukewarm.

Source:

  • Brockmann, Suzanne. Hot Pursuit. Ballantine Books (Reprint edition), 2011 ISBN 9780345501585

Suzanne Brockmann, “Breaking Point”

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Cover illustration, H & T; http://www.randomhouse.com/book/18606/breaking-point-by-suzanne-brockmannFor some, love is what answers every question, what fulfills every desire, what makes the world go round. For others, like FBI team leader Max Bhagat, love is unnecessary; it’s better to just avoid it, deflect it or shove it away. So that’s what he does to Gina Vitagliano – push her away until she leaves and never comes back. And he does it for her sake, to protect her from him. From his emotional hang ups, from his responsibilities, from his cold, dead heart. But when word of her death circles back to him, Max discovers that his heart is not shriveled and numb. Rather, grief and regret tip him over into a panicked madness as he travels around the world trying to find out what happened to the girl he tossed away.

Plot Overview: Salvation, Religion and Love

After having been shot (in Gone Too Far), Max takes a vacation. Of sorts. He spends months recuperating in a rehab facility, and Gina, his one-time romantic partner, refuses to leave his bedside. Max would be loath to admit it, but Gina’s presence is the soothing balm on his healing pride and his aching body. But he knows, better than she, that he is not relationship material. Innocent, young and vivacious, Gina deserves a man who could be a more equitable partner, who could not only stand by her but also pledge his love for her, something Max is unwilling to do.

Heartbroken from Max’s rejection, Gina travels to Kenya to work as an aide at a medical camp. She befriends earth mother Molly, and the two quietly work to save young girls from FGM (female genital mutilation). They also welcome various visitors to the camp, including Leslie Pollard, a curious Englishman whose appearance belies his true nature.

Several months after Gina’s departure, Jules Cassidy, the FBI’s Boy Friday and one of Max’s best agents, receives word that Gina was killed in a car bombing in Hamburg. Max, horrified after hearing the news, scrambles to get answers, and Jules follows. With the rest of the world occupied by threats of terrorist attacks and hijackings, the two FBI agents are left with little resources. Nothing can stand in the way of finding true love, though. Can it?

Criticisms and Compliments

Unlike the rest of the Team Sixteen/Troubleshooters series, Breaking Point does not contain a secondary story set during World War Two. Rather, Brockmann plays with the timeline, alternating between present day and 4 and 18 months earlier. The sporadic changes between time actually work in the story’s favor; the relationship between Gina and Max appears as a deeper struggle between emotional needs and physical wants, and the push-and-pull that takes place over the past several months adds a great deal of clarity to their current delicate relationship.

Gone Too Far might have been the book that Brockmann fans were waiting for, but in terms of quality, Breaking Point is a close second. Where Brockmann excels, and why her series is so popular, is in her snappy dialogue. Conversations read quickly and naturally, and Brockmann manages to navigate the tenuous nature of budding or complex relationships where every statement, every phrase, every word could have double meaning and easily turn a light-hearted conversation into a fight. Relationships – especially one as fraught with tension (and history) as Gina and Max’s – are a balancing act, and they can quickly turn on the clichéd dime. It only takes one change of tone, one carelessly uttered sentence to spark the beginning of the end.

Brockmann also brings back Jones and Molly, a doomed couple à la Romeo and Juliet from Out of Control. Their relationship, while unstable and tricky, epitomizes the force and power of love. Despite danger, geographical distance, disease and severe limitations, the missionary and the mercenary never waver in their feelings for one another. Compared with Breaking Point’s other couple who must deal with internal challenges (i.e. complicated, conflicting emotions about love), Molly and Jones grapple with external challenges that are entirely out of their control. Still, both couples manage – sometimes through sheer force of will – to create their happily-ever-after. Breaking Point is the thriller for lovers, an action-packed ride of heat and heartache.

Source:

  • Brockmann, Suzanne. Breaking Point. Ballantine Books, 2006 ISBN 9780345480132

Nora Roberts, “Homeport”

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Text design, Kristin del Rosario; http://www.us.penguingroup.com/nf/Book/BookDisplay/0,,9780425233566,00.html?Homeport_Nora_RobertsMiranda is one of the Maine Joneses, a moniker that carries with it responsibility and obligation and pride. As with many children of wealthy, well-established and successful families, Miranda was expected to pursue art, to become an extinguished, powerful member of the family business. StandJo, her mother, Elizabeth’s, branch of the corporate empire, was nurtured by the cool and elegant woman who barely glanced at her redheaded daughter. For the Joneses, business came first, love second, loyalty third. So it’s no wonder that Miranda, now grown and well-educated with a Ph.D., is expected to authenticate a bronze statue that might be the work of Michelangelo. And when Miranda’s work is disputed by another company, it’s natural that StandJo and Elizabeth would be disappointed and hostile.

Plot Overview: Italy, Art and Secrets

Pulling up to the family home, Miranda steps out of her car only to be assaulted by a strange man. Her purse and passport are stolen, and she’s left bruised and bleeding. Reluctantly, she calls her mother to inform her that she will not be leaving immediately for Italy, and Elizabeth is irritated at her daughter’s inability to jump at her beck and call.

Miranda, after replacing her documents, finally lands in Florence a week later. She’s been instructed to authenticate and date a bronze statue found by a common Italian plumber. At first look, at first touch, Miranda knows. The Dark Lady, as the statue is known, is a Michelangelo. She’s sure. After the discovery and Miranda’s findings are leaked to the press, Elizabeth summarily fires Miranda and sends her home. Adding insult to injury, another company finds the bronze to be a fake.

Miranda holes up in Maine with her alcoholic, struggling brother, Andrew, to run their art history museum and lick her wounds. Thief Ryan Boldari, however, has his sights on a statue in their collection, and he intends to lift it. Cleanly, quietly, subtly. But Miranda, with her wounded eyes and her smarting pride steals the thief’s heart instead.

As bodies start piling up, and more of Miranda’s work is found to be inaccurate, the doctor and the thief decide to unravel the inevitable conspiracy themselves. But danger is close behind, and the art world is vicious.

Criticisms and Compliments

On the surface, Homeport is a nice novel. The plot, while not flashy or exciting, is intriguing, and Roberts never dumbs down her research for the reader; her inclusion of the processes behind scientific testing and the dating of art and artifacts is clear and concise. But where Roberts falters is with her character development. As a protagonist, Miranda is only okay. She’s stunning and smart and successful, but as a reader, it’s frustrating that such a personality can continually be manipulated and abused by those in her inner circle, especially her family. Like Nell from Three Sisters Island Trilogy and Tia in Three Fates, Miranda is easily overpowered by a slick, smug and suave operator. While it’s easy to understand why Roberts might create a weaker character (i.e. to show emotional and personal growth as she’s strengthened by the unconditional love of a man), her stronger female characters who have a vulnerable side – Roxanne of Honest Illusions, Adrianne of Sweet Revenge, Willa of Montana Sky – are far more appealing.

While Miranda is disappointing as a character, Roberts strikes gold with Elizabeth. She’s domineering and ambitious to a fault, and her icy mask covers a hard heart wounded by betrayal. Although she may not be the hand behind the forgeries and the killings, she makes for an excellent antagonist, and it is terribly satisfying to see her struck with karmic retribution. Homeport is certainly worth a read, if for the art alone, but it shouldn’t be a first choice; second or third, perhaps.

Source:

  • Roberts, Nora. Homeport. Berkley Trade (Reprint edition), 2009 ISBN 9780425233566