Fantasy murder

Title: Naked in Death
Author: J.D. Robb (AKA Nora Roberts)
Genre: Suspense
Sub-genre: Fantasy, Murder, Crime, Thriller, Women's Fiction, Chick Lit
Pages:  294
Published: 2004
Publisher: Putnam
ISBN: 0399151575
Reader's Annotation: Will Eve be able to solve the killings before they stop?
Summary: Eve Dallas, a lieutenant with the New York City Police in the year 2058 has a serial killer on her hands. As she continues to investigate the murders, she encounters Roarke, a man who both pushes her buttons and makes her attraction gnaw at her inside. Will she be able to solve both the murders and make a relationship with a well-known rich man work?
My Evaluation:While I had know about this series for sometime, I had yet to read them, as I was beginning to find many of Nora Roberts books... formulaic and got to be old. This series is still somewhat formulaic, as I figured out who did it within the first half of the book, but Roberts does throw some good twists and turns in and although it is set in the future, the futuristic stuff isn't all that hard to believe and it is not in your face as some fantasy novels are. I will definitely continue to read this series.
Rating:  4.8 out of 5

Southern France and the Templars

Title: The Templar Legacy
Author: Steve Berry
Genre: Mystery
Sub-genre: Historical, murder, Suspense
Pages:  528
Published: 2007
Publisher: Ballantine Books
ISBN: 0345476166
Reader's Annotation: Will Cotton Malone return safety as a bookseller?
Summary: Cotton Malone, former Magellan Billet agent under Stephanie Nell, is retired as a bookseller in Copenhagen when his former boss drops a mystery into his lap and intrusts his help in solving a mystery dealing with her former husband and son. As the mystery unfold itself, the Templar knights appear and Cotton and Stephanie have to figure out how to save their lives and those they love.
My Evaluation:Wirtten nearly the same time as The Da Vinci Code, Steve Berry does a much better job with the Templar history. Having read this book out of order of the series, it is a little discerning to hear the back story between Cotton and Cassopia, but it is nice now to have that story. Berry keeps the reader interested and throws in many twists and turns. Not only does he provide an excellent mystery but he throws in so many historical details and it shows how much research he has done.
Rating:  4.8 out of 5
Readalikes:
The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown
The Expected One by Kathleen McGowan
Sigma Force series by James Rollins
Altar of Eden by James Rollins
The Crystal Skull by Manda Scott

Hollywood connections

Title: I'm hosting as Fast As I Can
Author: Tom Bergeron
Genre: Non-Fiction
Sub-genre: Biography/Autobiography
Pages:  240
Published: 2009/2010 (Paperback)
Publisher: HarperOne
ISBN: 0061765880
Reader's Annotation: What makes Tom Bergeron the host that he is?
Summary: Tom Bergeron, host of Dancing With the Stars, talks about his life as a radio and TV host, with pitfalls and funny stories along the way
My Evaluation: I've been a huge fan of Tom ever since he started hosting America's Funniest Videos, and then Dancing With the Stars so I was super excited to read the book. Like Tom, it's full of funny stories that will make you laugh and some interesting dialogue to make you think. It's a good, fast read and really funny
Rating: 4 out of 5

Does our experiences define our life?

Title: After You'd Gone
Author: Maggie O'Farrell
Genre: Woman's Fiction
Sub-genre: Modern, English
Pages:  374
Published: 2001
Publisher: Viking Books
ISBN: 0670894486
Reader's Annotation: Will Alice's tragedy bring a family closer together or break them apart?
Summary: Alice Raikes goes to visit her sisters in Scotland's capital but after witnessing something while in the restroom, she rushes back home to London. After getting off the train she is hit by a car and lays in a coma. As she lays there, her family comes and a secret long the past, or so some thought begins to emerge. How will Alice's story interweave into the story of her mother Ann or her grandmother Elspeth?
My Evaluation: Recommended to me by a friend, I wasn't quite sure about this book. I was very thrown in the beginning because the book does switch narratives quiet frequently and it took some getting use to. The stories of Alice both in first and third person are interwoven into her mother's Ann's story about marrying a Scot, as well as her grandmother's. The story is heartbreaking, especially for Alic and O'Farrell does an excellent job in getting the reader to care for her characters. However! I was completely and utterly unsatisfied with the ending!

Conspiracy thories

Title: The Lost Symbol
Author: Dan Brown
Genre: Mystery/Suspense/Thriller
Sub-genre: Historical, murder
Pages:  509
Published: 2009
Publisher: Doubleday Books
ISBN: 0385504225
Reader's Annotation: Can Robert Langdon save Washington DC?
Summary: Robert Langdon is brought to DC by way of his friend, but it turns out his friend is kidnapped. His kidnapper has left Langdon's friend's hand in the middle of the Capital Rotunda and orders Langdon to solve a mystery in order to free his friend. This mystery if solved, could have disastrous effects for Washington DC and the world at large.
My Evaluation: I thoroughly enjoyed Angels and Demons (book #1 in this trilogy) and The Da Vinci Code (book #2) was good, but this book... I got about halfway through and I knew the ending already. Brown's books after you've read one or two are extremely formulaic and I don't really like that. I do not recommend you read this out of order, otherwise there are things that won't make sense. I do love how Brown twists conspiracy theories, especially those dealing with Freemasonry, into a story and get people talking about secret societies, but again, 3/4 of the way through the book, there were no surprises left.
Rating:  3 out of 5
Readalikes:
The Romanov Prophecy by Steve Berry
The Amber Room by Steve Berry
The Solomon Effect by C.S. Graham
The Expected One by Kathleen McGowan
Sigma Force series by James Rollins
Altar of Eden by James Rollins
The Crystal Skull by Manda Scott

Historical literature time travel

Title: The Eyre Affair
Author: Jasper Fforde
Genre: Fantasy
Sub-genre: Historical, time-travel, mystery
Pages:  374
Published: 2003
Publisher: Penguin (Non-Classics)
ISBN: 0142001805
Reader's Annotation: Can a change in a book change the world?
Summary: Thursday Next, a LitraTec SpecOps officer is thrust into a mystery involving several well-known British books including Jane Eyre. She must solve the mystery, save her uncle's life, and at the same time, find her true love.
My Evaluation: Holy son of a mother this book was HORRIBLE!!! Horribly written, horrible to try to follow, and just a bit hot mess. Thorough out the book, there are these random little things that make absolutely no sense and have no place in the book. Plus, I always felt like I was missing something. Several times in the book, things were mentioned but were never explained, including times, terms, and other events. Not to mention all the historical inaccuracies, Fforde, obviously did not do his research. The mystery part of the book had good bones but again I always felt like I was missing something.
Rating:  1 out of 5

Getting to know the real Catherine

Title: Catherine the Great: Portrait of a Woman
Author: Robert K. Massie
Genre: Non-Fiction
Sub-genre: Biography
Pages:  625
Published: 2011
Publisher: Random House
ISBN: 0679456724
Reader's Annotation: One of the most influential and powerful women in history is not who most people think she is.
Summary: Massie, well known for his work in Russian history, brings to life one of the great women of the 18th century. He describes not only the life and court of Catherine the Great but brings in historical elements so that the reader can understand and gain perspective on the decisions that were made.
My Evaluation: There were two reasons that I read this book, One, I had read Massie's Pulitzer Prize winning book, Nicholas and Alexandra previously and I wanted to read this book after reading that book to gain some historical perspective on how previous Russian tzars had influenced the decisions that Nicholas made for his country.  Secondly, my relatives on my mother's side (they were German), joined Catherine in Russia, eventually settling on the Volga River and I wanted to learn more about what their life would have been like under this important ruler. Massie, ever the consummate historian, brings to life a story of a brilliant woman that few in the 21st century know about. This book is long but it is extremely well written and well researched. The life of Catherine both in Germany and finally in Russian is well versed in both brilliance and struggles. Massie is excellent at showing the reader that what happens in a person's past definitely affects their future decisions. The one thing I think readers will take away from this book, even not remembering a thing about Catherine is that: she did not die by having sex with a horse!
Rating:  4 out of 5
Readalikes:
Nicholas and Alexandra: The Classic Account of the Fall of the Romanov Dynasty 

Events mentioned in this book that you might find interesting:
Push Not the River (Polish Trilogy #1) by James Conroyd Martin (Deals with late 1700s Poland and the carving it by Catherine the Great)
Against A Crimson Sky (Polish Trilogy #2) by James Conroyd Martin
Madame Tussard by Michelle Moran (Historical Fiction with a ton of real life research about her life during the French Revolution at the end of Catherine the Great's reign)