Joyfuljess@aol.com
1ST TO DIE by James Patterson, 5 stars
What an excellent book!! I read it in one sitting, I couldn't put it down! I heard this is supposed to be a new series, and I certainly hope so.
BIRDS OF PARADISE by J.A. Jance, 5 stars
This book reminded me of why I love the character J.P. Beaumont so much. He is at his best in this book! I have missed him!
EVAN AND ELLE by Rhys Bowen, 4 stars
Another volume in the Constable Evans series. Bowen does an awesome job of taking a seemingly simple small town and drawing out intrigue and murder. The only problem with books like this, is you know the bad guys aren't one of the regular characters, so the new person is usually the one to get whacked and the killer is some unknown factor. The mystery in these cases is WHY they did it. This isn't neccesarily a bad thing, just not surprising.

DBinPgh@aol.com
ANGEL FALLS by Kristin Hannah, 5 stars
THE REDEMPTION OF SARAH CAIN by Beverly Lewis, 4 stars
A sweet Amish story!
I have visited this place many many times and want to thank you all for your great reviews! Happy reading!

Rhiannon2012@aol.com
MOVE YOUR STUFF, CHANGE YOUR LIFE by Karen Rauch Carter, 4.5 stars
This is a great book for those learning the art of Feng Shui for the first time. Not only is it simple to read, informative, the author has a a funny side as well. I really am enjoying this book.

lskett@yahoo.com
BRIDGET JONES'S GUIDE TO LIFE by Helen Fielding, no rating given.
BRIDGET JONES: The Edge of Reason by Helen Fielding, no rating given.

dbelk105@adelphia.net
ONE TRUE THING by Anna Quindlen, 5 stars
I just finished reading this for the second time. When I started it I didn't remember I had read it before, and then it didn't matter. It was so good and so well told I couldn't put it down. Read it and you'll think about it for a long time. A daughter gives up her job and life in New York to care for her mother who is dying of cancer and learns many things she could never have learned anywhere else --- who she is, who her father is, and most of all who she is.

BBJ13141@aol.com
EYES OF A CHILD by Richard North Patterson, 5 stars
DEGREE OF GUILT by Richard North Patterson, 5 stars
The EYES OF A CHILD was the first book I read by Richard North Patterson and I was hooked! I am currently reading THE LASKO TANGENT (his first). I've hit the library and am going to read everything I can find by him. He doesn't clutter his stories with so many characters that you can't keep them straight, but has enough to keep the story interesting. Loved these books and this author! Can't wait to finish THE LASKO TANGENT and move on to the next.

SilverDawg87@aol.com
1ST TO DIE by James Patterson, 4 stars
Great book! Everyone should buy it!

Skbrost@aol.com
THE RED TENT by Anita Diamant, 3 stars
Good research and insight into the lives of old testament women. The red tent is where these wives of Jacob go during menstruation. Sometimes hard to get through but good character studies.

gregc2@bellsouth.net
IN COUNTRY by Bobbie Ann Mason, 4 stars
Teen seeks information about her father who was killed in Vietnam before she was born.
WHISTLE by Janice Daugharty, 4 stars
Memorable story of conflict in the deep south. A black man discovers bossman's dead wife and is afraid he'll be blamed.
A YEAR BY THE SEA by Joan Anderson, 5 stars
True story of self discovery and reflection. Very insightful!

GldMorrow@aol.com
A PAINTED HOUSE by John Grisham, no rating given
A very unusually written book --- through the eyes of a young child with his families lives and those of others. A rare book for Mr. Grisham. No lawyers/no trials/no verdicts. Very enjoyable and yet intriguing.

Lucky4750@aol.com
TRIUMPH OF KATIE BYRNE by Barbara Taylor Bradford, 5 stars
This book started off with such an explosion I was hooked immediately, another book that I knew I'd read straight through. Three 17-year-old girls who have been best friends from toddlers, all wanting to be actresses. They study lines and practice everyday together at an old barn . But when Katie Byrne has to leave early one day, it isn't until later that day when she returns to retrieve her school books she left behind, with her older brother and they find the tragedy of what has happened to her best friends. You must read this story. Bradford puts you right their with her characters.
THE STANISLASKI SISTERS by Nora Roberts, 5 stars
I love everything she has written so far. I feel as if I know everyone of her characters , and that I'm right there with them. Only Nora Roberts can write a book from 10 pages to 1000 and I'd buy it sight unseen. This was a great read!
CHARMING LILY by Fern Michaels, 5 stars
Lily Harper is a professional mountaineer who decides to leave Wyoming and move to Mississippi. In the process of restoring an old house she meets and finds happiness with one Matt Starr. An enjoyable read as you feel Lily's pain when Matt disappears and it's Lily who goes searching for him deep into Mississippi and uses sheer courage and inner strength to keep going.

PAASTRSTEV@aol.com
THE DAY BEFORE MIDNIGHT by Stephen Hunter, no rating given
I have just discovered Stephen Hunter this last week and have read all his books except two. His series about Bobby Lee Swager and his father including Hot Springs are great. I am looking forward to future work.

BREEZYWRITER@aol.com
A PAINTED HOUSE by John Grisham, 5 stars
I loved it! It's totally different from most of his work, but just as good. A nice old-fashioned story --- something that is sometimes hard to find nowadays!!

Tealjules@aol.com
HORNET'S NEST by Patricia Cornwell, 5 stars
No Kay Scarpetta, but the characters are equally strong.

Me4765@aol.com
THE RED TENT Anita Diamante, 5 stars
This book is wonderful, especially for women and anyone interested in Biblical times. Don't be intimidated by the fact that it is based on a Bible story --- it is a fascinating look at the story of Jacob's family from the woman's point of view.

GDurisin@aol.com
COMMITMENTS by Barbara Delinsky, 0 stars
The mother of a brain-damaged infant helps a reporter who has been framed for murder. Paper-thin characters, rambling plot-line, all-too-predictable events made this one a loser! Delinsky’s writing, though never outstanding, has improved over time so reissuing a 1988 novel now was a mistake.
A SEASON IN PURGATORY by Dominick Dunne, 5 stars
Dunne has a writing style that's very readable, and in this novel, loosely based on a murder in Connecticut with which Ethel Kennedy’s brother was charged and acquitted, he has a compelling tale to tell of a wealthy family powerful enough to prevent the youngest son from ever facing consequences of his actions.

Rozpet@aol.com
SWIMMING TOWARD THE OCEAN by Carole Glickfeld, 5 stars
This book was so difficult to put down. I enjoyed it immensely. The story is about the Arnow family, living in the Brighton Beach section of Brooklyn, NY in the 1950s. The family is seen through the eyes of Devorah, the youngest child, and it is through Devorah's story that the reader gets to examine the lives of Jewish immigrant family members, their living and working conditions, marital relationships, extra-marital relationships, family structure, and their struggles and hopes. Mainly, the story is about Chenia, the mother of the family, her difficult life and her personal growth. Devorah tells her mother's story with humor, sympathy, and most of all, love.

OTaylor432@aol.com
MARCHING THROUGH CULPEPER by Virginia Beard Morton, no rating given.
Constance is the ultimate heroine and I still wonder daily what she is doing and where she is going. The battle sequences are so vivid and real. The many interesting people who pass through Constance's life are, in some cases, real-life people although she was created in the imagination of the author. The brilliant research makes you feel you are there and end up knowing much more about the war than you previously did.

candie1021@hotmail.com
BUBBLES UNBOUND by Sarah Strohmeyer, 4 stars
A hilarious book about a woman trying to break into a new career and her escapes along the way. The reality of switching careers as an adult is addressed with humor and the book just keeps you laughing and guessing in the crime. Great mystery in the humor.
FAST WOMEN by Jennifer Crusie, 5 stars
Another hilarious book. There were scenes I laughed out loud and parts I nearly cried. A woman in her early 40's deals with what life gives her, solves her dilemma and a mystery at the same time as finding love.

RROSEPEDAL13@aol.com
THE MYSTERY AT LILAC INN by Carolyn Keene, no rating given.

BLhasdogs@aol.com
THE LAST PRECINCT by Patricia Cornwell, no rating given.

dmmay@yahoo.com
COMFORT ME WITH APPLES by Ruth Reichl, 5 stars
Picking up where TENDER AT THE BONE left off, Reichl continues on with her story detailing her career as a food critic with New West magazine and The LA times. Recipes included.

stoneda07@aol.com
A PAINTED HOUSE by John Grisham, 4 1/2 stars
A departure from the usual legal thriller. This novel reads like a homespun tale. Centered on a late 50s-early 60s bible belt cotton plantation. The main character is a precocious seven-year-old who is wise beyond his years. This book tells the story of farming; family life in simpler times........or were they? Pleasant to read, a real page turner. It would be nice to see Grisham write more in this genre.

seschend@earthlink.net
THE HEIDELBERG CYLINDER by Jonathan Carroll, 4 stars
Hard to describe but hard to put down.
BOOKED TO DIE by John Dunning, 5 stars
THE BOOKMAN'S WAKE by John Dunning, 5 stars
Both unbelievably good, quick reads for any book lovers.
WONDER BOYS by Michael Chabon, 4.5 stars
Great book and greater movie adaptation for once by eliminating a subplot I thought slowed down the narrative and disrupted the character growth of James & Grady both.
AFTER LIFE by Rhian Ellis, 3 stars
Okay read, but never really gets anywhere solidly.
MIKKELSON'S GHOSTS by John Gardner, 3.5 stars
A little too reliant on foreknowledge of philosophy. Makes Part One slow going.
CARRION COMFORT by Dan Simmons, 5 stars
A bit gory and intense at times, but I've never found an 800+ page book that I couldn't put down until this book...
THE SECRET HISTORY by Donna Tartt, 4 stars
Good book for any academics and fans of Greek mythology.
Not all of these are recent, but many are worth your time and effort to hunt them down; I'm still plowing through 6 years of the reading pile before I get terribly close to the newer material of 2000/2001.....mea culpa.....

ZakasNana@aol.com
THE LAST ENCHANTMENT by Mary Stewart, 5 stars
This is the third in the series and is a captivating telling of the legend of Merlin.
THE WICKED DAY by Mary Stewart, 5 stars
The fourth in the above mentioned series, I haven't finished this yet but it is as good as the first.

DebTeix@aol.com
THE RED TENT by Anita Diamant, 4 stars
Although fictionalized it is an interesting perspective on the story of the 12 tribes of Jacob. Written in the form of an oral history, Diamant explores the rarely documented world of women in the old testament. Through the lives of Jacob's wives and his daughter, Dinah, the reader also experiences a world caught between monotheism and paganism.
THE BONESETTER'S DAUGHTER by Amy Tan, no rating given.

evers@erols.com
MARCHING THROUGH CULPEPER by Virginia Beard Morton
General readers and Civil War students will enjoy this story of a real town during the Civil War. MARCHING THROUGH CULPEPER brings the Civil War era out of dust and mothballs and gives readers a well balanced account of events and life of the time in this small town in Virginia. Culpeper is a thriving town today, and many of the sites in the war exist today. Morton knows her history, places and people and pulls them together in an intriguing read. Even if you don't visit Culpeper to see the places she describes, you will enjoy following the people of Culpeper and the battles that overtake them.

Bossu49@aol.com
THE FIRST COUNSEL by Brad Meltzer, 5 stars
Great read, exciting.
FAMILY REUNION by Carol Smith, 4 stars
Good mystery.
THIS HEART OF MINE by Susan Elizabeth Phillips, 4 stars
Fun.
NORA, NORA by Anne Rivers Siddons, 5 stars
Touching.
THE BODY IN THE MOONLIGHT by Katherine Hall Page, 4 stars
Good suspense story.
THE FOURTH WALL by Beth Saulnier, 4 stars
Riveting whodunit.
HEART OF A WARRIOR by Johanna Lindsey, 3 stars
Space travel.