January's Books
1. The Man in the Brown Suit by Agatha Christie (1924)
The story flows from England, onto a ship, and lands in Africa, following Anne on her quest to find adventure while chasing down a murderer. I really enjoyed all the characters, they were so real and the story was a lot of fun. I'm half in love with Colonel Race - if only he wasn't a big game hunter, I'd run away with him.
2. Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone by J.K. Rowling (1997)
I re-read the first three books in this series once a year, particularly if I'm sick. They're my 'happy' books. Everyone knows this story, but just in case, Harry is a wizard and he gets to drink pumpkin juice, live in a wacky castle, get chased by Voldemort (a misunderstood villian) and fly on a broomstick. ;o)
3. Queen of Hearts by Rhys Bowen (2014)
Lady Georgiana Rannoch keeps her mother company as she takes off for Hollywood. Of course there's a murder that only Georgie and her beloved Darcy can solve.
This is the 8th book in Her Royal Spyness mysteries. They're a lot of fun and the characters are quirky with a dash of absurd.
4. Cooking the Books by Kerry Greenwood (2011)
This is the 6th book in the Corinna Chapman series. This novel has Corinna baking pastry for the cast and crew of a new television series, who mirror the drama of the soap in their real lives. Corinna hunts down an adopted child, stolen bonds, a mean prankster and tames a tiger in this latest mystery.
I really like that Corinna's character is a normal woman. She isn't a size 000 and more beautiful than the Venus de Milo, I get so tired of the novels with impossible women in them. The mysteries are unique and I like the recipes at the end of the book.
5. Young, Gifted and Dead by Lucy Carver (2013)
This book started out like season 1 of Veronica Mars and I almost tossed it, particularly as the murdered girl was also named Lily. But, the plot quickly turned into something much deeper with a long forgotten mystery, a secret society and a vicious class sytem. It became quite an intriguing novel in the end and I'm looking forward to book 2 in the series.
6. Lion in the Valley by Elizabeth Peters (1986)
This is the 4th book in the Amelia Peabody series. Amelia's an unlikely heroine, out in Egypt with her archaeologist husband Emerson and their precocious son Ramses. They're on the dig, trying to unearth a new tomb, while harried by a master criminal who seems to only want to return what he's previously stolen from them. I'm really enjoying this series so far and Ramses is by far my favourite character.
7. Green Eggs and Ham by Dr. Seuss (1960)
I have always meant to read this book and I've only just gotten around to it. The first thought I had was Sam-I-Am is my little brother. Anyone who has an annoying younger brother who goes on and on and on and will not EVER leave you alone will know just what I mean. I really liked the rhyming and the images - but there's no way I would eat green eggs and ham, especially after they'd been dipped in the ocean. Yuch!
8. Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak (1963)
I don't know why I didn't read all these cool books when I was a child, but I'm making my way through them now. I saw the movie last year and I had to read the book, because books are always better than movies. I loved it! I want to put on a wolf suit, sail away to a wild forest and become Queen of the wild things. So much better than being an adult.
9. Grain Brain by David Perlmutter (2013)
This book was interesting, but could have been shorter since the author kept repeating the same information (padding much!). What I got from it is that glutens & sugars set off a response in our brain that makes us calm, happy, craving… like a shiny zombie. So to get away from those foods we just need to find something else that will make us calm & happy. Easy? Not so much.
10. The Deeds of the Disturber by Elizabeth Peters (1988)
Book 5 in the series. Amelia & her family are back in London, determined to prove a mummy's curse is a load of journalistic invention. My favourite character still has to be her son Ramses. He's 10 years old now & he gives the books that edge of uniqueness for me which makes them fun.
11. The Last Camel Died at Noon by Elizabeth Peters (1991)
Book 6 in the series. Amelia & family are on a dig in Egypt when they rush off to the rescue of a fellow Englishman. This one was good, but the death of the camels made me sad. I'm not great with any kind of animal abuse in stories.
12. The Snake, the Crocodile & the Dog by Elizabeth Peters (1992)
Book 7 in the series. There's an old Egyptian fable that says a Prince will be killed by a snake, a crocodile or a dog. When Amelia's husband loses his memory, he finds himself threatened by all three & his only hope is Amelia. I liked this one up till they killed the dog. I thought the author could have written it a different way. On a positive note, they did adopt a stray cat - Anubis.
The story flows from England, onto a ship, and lands in Africa, following Anne on her quest to find adventure while chasing down a murderer. I really enjoyed all the characters, they were so real and the story was a lot of fun. I'm half in love with Colonel Race - if only he wasn't a big game hunter, I'd run away with him.
2. Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone by J.K. Rowling (1997)
I re-read the first three books in this series once a year, particularly if I'm sick. They're my 'happy' books. Everyone knows this story, but just in case, Harry is a wizard and he gets to drink pumpkin juice, live in a wacky castle, get chased by Voldemort (a misunderstood villian) and fly on a broomstick. ;o)
3. Queen of Hearts by Rhys Bowen (2014)
Lady Georgiana Rannoch keeps her mother company as she takes off for Hollywood. Of course there's a murder that only Georgie and her beloved Darcy can solve.
This is the 8th book in Her Royal Spyness mysteries. They're a lot of fun and the characters are quirky with a dash of absurd.
4. Cooking the Books by Kerry Greenwood (2011)
This is the 6th book in the Corinna Chapman series. This novel has Corinna baking pastry for the cast and crew of a new television series, who mirror the drama of the soap in their real lives. Corinna hunts down an adopted child, stolen bonds, a mean prankster and tames a tiger in this latest mystery.
I really like that Corinna's character is a normal woman. She isn't a size 000 and more beautiful than the Venus de Milo, I get so tired of the novels with impossible women in them. The mysteries are unique and I like the recipes at the end of the book.
5. Young, Gifted and Dead by Lucy Carver (2013)
This book started out like season 1 of Veronica Mars and I almost tossed it, particularly as the murdered girl was also named Lily. But, the plot quickly turned into something much deeper with a long forgotten mystery, a secret society and a vicious class sytem. It became quite an intriguing novel in the end and I'm looking forward to book 2 in the series.
6. Lion in the Valley by Elizabeth Peters (1986)
This is the 4th book in the Amelia Peabody series. Amelia's an unlikely heroine, out in Egypt with her archaeologist husband Emerson and their precocious son Ramses. They're on the dig, trying to unearth a new tomb, while harried by a master criminal who seems to only want to return what he's previously stolen from them. I'm really enjoying this series so far and Ramses is by far my favourite character.
7. Green Eggs and Ham by Dr. Seuss (1960)
I have always meant to read this book and I've only just gotten around to it. The first thought I had was Sam-I-Am is my little brother. Anyone who has an annoying younger brother who goes on and on and on and will not EVER leave you alone will know just what I mean. I really liked the rhyming and the images - but there's no way I would eat green eggs and ham, especially after they'd been dipped in the ocean. Yuch!
8. Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak (1963)
I don't know why I didn't read all these cool books when I was a child, but I'm making my way through them now. I saw the movie last year and I had to read the book, because books are always better than movies. I loved it! I want to put on a wolf suit, sail away to a wild forest and become Queen of the wild things. So much better than being an adult.
9. Grain Brain by David Perlmutter (2013)
This book was interesting, but could have been shorter since the author kept repeating the same information (padding much!). What I got from it is that glutens & sugars set off a response in our brain that makes us calm, happy, craving… like a shiny zombie. So to get away from those foods we just need to find something else that will make us calm & happy. Easy? Not so much.
10. The Deeds of the Disturber by Elizabeth Peters (1988)
Book 5 in the series. Amelia & her family are back in London, determined to prove a mummy's curse is a load of journalistic invention. My favourite character still has to be her son Ramses. He's 10 years old now & he gives the books that edge of uniqueness for me which makes them fun.
11. The Last Camel Died at Noon by Elizabeth Peters (1991)
Book 6 in the series. Amelia & family are on a dig in Egypt when they rush off to the rescue of a fellow Englishman. This one was good, but the death of the camels made me sad. I'm not great with any kind of animal abuse in stories.
12. The Snake, the Crocodile & the Dog by Elizabeth Peters (1992)
Book 7 in the series. There's an old Egyptian fable that says a Prince will be killed by a snake, a crocodile or a dog. When Amelia's husband loses his memory, he finds himself threatened by all three & his only hope is Amelia. I liked this one up till they killed the dog. I thought the author could have written it a different way. On a positive note, they did adopt a stray cat - Anubis.