Reviews

Staff Review

Stieg Larsson & Scandinavian Mystery/Thriller Readalikes


Rated by Library Staff (not verified)
Mar 19, 2010

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Stieg Larsson's The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo has been one of the most popular novels of recent years, and the furor has only continued with the release of the second novel in the series: The Girl Who Played with Fire. His last book (both in the Millennium Trilogy, and forever - Larsson is being published posthumously), The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest, is due out in the US May 25th.

Staff Review

A Lesson Before Dying by Ernest Gaines


Rated by Library Staff (not verified)
Mar 18, 2010

Written in 1993, Ernest Gaines’ A Lesson Before Dying takes us back to the 1940s South and young, innocent Jefferson sitting in a Louisiana jail waiting to be executed. His Tante Lou and Godmother Miss Emma are determined that he should die like a man. Their nephew Grant, the one-room school teacher, is sent to teach the despondent prisoner the lessons of life. Gripping, gritty and heartbreaking this novel goes to the depths of the soul yet takes us up to the universal meaning of life.

Staff Review

Murder in the Palais Royal by Cara Black


Rated by Library Staff (not verified)
Mar 17, 2010

Murder in the Palais Royal by Cara BlackCara Black's mysteries, set in Paris in the late 1990s, are appealing to mystery lovers and Francophiles alike, what with all the name-dropping of Parisian streets, monuments, subway lines, and cafes.

Staff Review

The Blood Ballad by Rett MacPherson


Rated by Library Staff (not verified)
Mar 17, 2010

I recently read The Blood Ballad, the 11th book in the Torie O'Shea mystery series by Rett MacPherson. While this series is made up of cozy mysteries that are very easy, mild reads (the exact opposite of my favorite Harry Bosch series by Michael Connelly), I've chosen to read them because they combine three of my special interests: mysteries and genealogy and Missouri. Torie O'Shea lives in a fictitious small town just south of St. Louis. She is the resident genealogist, historian, tour guide of historic buildings, snoop, plus a harried wife and mother.

Staff Review

Ghost Rider: Travels on the Healing Road by Neil Peart


Rated by Library Staff (not verified)
Mar 16, 2010

In a ten-month time span in 1997 and 1998, Neil Peart lost his 19-year-old daughter to a single-car accident and his wife to cancer. He was devastated.

Peart is best-known as the drummer for the Canadian rock band Rush. He's also their lyricist. Yet Ghost Rider, his chronicle of healing from his terrible losses, reveals talents barely hinted at in his music career.

Staff Review

Conspirata by Robert Harris


Rated by Library Staff (not verified)
Mar 16, 2010

ConspirataConspirata by Robert Harris is a work of historical fiction set in ancient Rome. A sequel to Harris’ novel Imperium, Conspirata continues the story of the life of the great orator and politician Cicero.

Staff Review

The Oxford Project by Peter Feldstein and Stephen Bloom


Rated by Library Staff (not verified)
Mar 15, 2010

“I like Oxford. You can trust everyone in this town-from Highway 6 to the Interstate. But one think about Oxford is that if you’re and outsider, you don’t wanna cause any trouble. You mess with Oxford, you’re gonna have problems.” –Bob Lindley P. 42.