Annual Reading Goal Challenge for 2016 - Come and join us!

[Cogswel_Cogs]

#3 The Reversal by Michael Connelly
Second book in a row for me by author. Both contain Detective Harry Bosch and lawyer Mickey Haller. I like both characters though I enjoyed Haller parts of this book more. Story is interesting - retrial of older case due to new DNA evidence.
What I really liked was not only DNA change suspect but shows how it could even effect the theory of what happened. That said the very last part of the book to me was big let down. Really seemed like ending was rushed together while the rest of the book(not small) was anything but rushed.


(If anyone is interested in reading any of my works, I would gladly send kindle gift version (Written for You , Cemetery Girl, Three Twigs for the Campfire, or Reigning).

 

[MochaDrinker]

26/200 The Real Elizabeth by Andrew Marr. A biography of the queen of England

 

[Sparkly]

So I've read one book, and it's almost March. Not doing so well here. It was Charmed Life by Diana Wynne Jones.

 

[Kirby]

#10 - The Rest of Her Life by Laura Moriatry.

In The Rest of Her Life, Laura Moriarty delivers a luminous, compassionate, and provocative look at how mothers and daughters with the best intentions can be blind to the harm they do to one another.

Leigh is the mother of high-achieving, popular high school senior Kara. Their relationship is already strained for reasons Leigh does not fully understand when, in a moment of carelessness, Kara makes a mistake that ends in tragedy -- the effects of which not only divide Leigh's family, but polarize the entire community. We see the story from Leigh's perspective, as she grapples with the hard reality of what her daughter has done and the devastating consequences her actions have on the family of another teenage girl in town, all while struggling to protect Kara in the face of rising public outcry.

Like the best works of Jane Hamilton, Jodi Picoult, and Alice Sebold, Laura Moriarty's The Rest of Her Life is a novel of complex moral dilemma, filled with nuanced characters and a page-turning plot that makes readers ask themselves, "What would I do?"

I've read all four of her books now and have enjoyed each one. I'm looking forward to her next one.

I tried to start #11, March by Geraldine Brooks but could not get into it. It's about Mr. March, the father of the girls in Little Women. While it's a small book, it's just too deep for me at the moment. On to something lighter......................

 

[BonnieF]

11/40 - Raven Black, Ann Cleeves, the first in a series about Detective Jimmy Perez - set in the Shetland Islands. Very well written, good characters, taut story line - she had me guessing all over the place! I'm really looking forward to the rest of the series. This is also a BBC TV series, also very well done.


Time to start my countdown - two weeks till I'm sitting in my 'happy place' - Stormalong Bay!!!!

 

[mommysaurus]

7/24: Rome Sweet Home: Our Journey to Catholicism by Scott and Kimberly Hahn

I did not read this for pleasure...but rather for the RCIA class I am taking. I still found it enjoyable and gave it 4 stars.

The well-known and very popular Catholic couple, Scott and Kimberly Hahn, have been constantly travelling and speaking all over North America for the last few years about their conversion to the Catholic Church. Now these two outstanding Catholic apologists tell in their own words about the incredible spiritual journey that led them to embrace Catholicism. Scott Hahn was a Presbyterian minister, the top student in his seminary class, a brilliant Scripture scholar, and militantly anti-Catholic ... until he reluctantly began to discover that his "enemy" had all the right answers. Kimberly, also a top-notch theology student in the seminary, is the daughter of a well-known Protestant minister, and went through a tremendous "dark night of the soul" after Scott converted to Catholicism. Their conversion story and love for the Church has captured the hearts and minds of thousands of lukewarm Catholics and brought them back into an active participation in the Church. They have also influenced countless conversions to Catholicism among their friends and others who have heard their powerful testimony. Written with simplicity, charity, grace and wit, the Hahns' deep love and knowledge of Christ and of Scripture is evident and contagious throughout their story. Their love of truth and of neighbor is equally evident, and their theological focus on the great importance of the family, both biological and spiritual, will be a source of inspiration for all readers.

 

[zippitydoo]

Book #11/50: Chocolate Chip Cookie Murder(Hannah Swenson, #1) by Joanne Fluke

From Goodreads:
Hannah Swensen already has her hands full, between dodging her mother's attempts to marry her off, and running Lake Eden, Minnesota's most popular bakery, The Cookie Jar. But when the Cozy Cow Dairy's beloved deliveryman is found murdered behind Hannah's bakery with her famous Chocolate Chip Crunchies scattered around him, Hannah sets out to track down a killer. The more Hannah snoops, the more suspects turn up. This is one murder that's starting to leave a very bad taste in Hannah's mouth, and if she doesn't watch her back, her sweet life may get burned to a crisp.

 

[Colleen27]

#27 - The Martian by Andy Weir

Unless you've been living under a rock, you probably know what this one is about from the movie. It fascinated me both for the actual subject matter - I'm of that generation that dreamt of being astronauts until we watched the Challenger from our classrooms - and for the story of how the book came to be, starting as a serialized story on the author's website, then a .99 ebook on Amazon, and eventually a NYT bestseller and Oscar-nominated movie. I enjoyed the movie, which was astonishingly faithful to the book, but the nerd in me simply adored the book for the fact that it got much, much more into the technical side of survival on Mars and the complexity of the rescue effort. There was just so much more detail that couldn't possibly translate to the screen but added such depth to the story.

#28 - Dead and Gone by Charlaine Harris
#29 - Dead in the Family
#30 - Dead Reckoning

My obsession continues. I'm only annoyed that I didn't pick up one more of the titles in the series on Friday because I really wanted to start the next one today! I have a feeling this is one of those series that I'm going to regret coming to an end.

 

[wilma-bride]

#10/50 - Fourth of July Creek by Smith Henderson:
After trying to help Benjamin Pearl, an undernourished, nearly feral eleven-year-old boy living in the Montana wilderness, social worker Pete Snow comes face-to-face with the boy's profoundly disturbed father, Jeremiah. With courage and caution, Pete slowly earns a measure of trust from this paranoid survivalist itching for a final conflict that will signal the coming End Times.

But as Pete's own family spins out of control, Pearl's activities spark the full-blown interest of the FBI, putting Pete at the center of a massive manhunt from which no one will emerge unscathed.


I don't think I liked this book very much. It got good reviews a few years back, I had it on hold at the library, and when it came it the first time I had too many books to read and just skipped it. Now I'm short of books so I went back to it.

It was very hard to get into and mostly NONE of the characters were likeable at all. Everyone was sort of seedy, on drugs, alcohol, etc. The book was just kind of gritty and depressing. Toward the middle, it picked up and I kind of wanted to know the story of the Pearl family; but I didn't like the non-resolution of the story with Pete's own daughter.

Finished book #13/65 - Hollow Man by Mark Pryor

This one was boring and predictable. It's about a man who is a psychopath who decides to rob a man. He is quite a dull narrator bc he has no emotions at all. It was clear throughout the story how it would end. Don't bother

Dominic is a prosecutor, a musician, and an Englishman living in Texas. He's also a psychopath.
His main goal is to hide his condition and lead a seemingly normal life in hopes to pay off his debts and become a full-time musician in Austin's club scene. But on one lousy day his carefully-controlled world starts to shatter: he's demoted at work and accused of stealing a fellow musician's song.
He also meets a beautiful woman in a lime green dress--perhaps the biggest threat to his safety of all. At her urging, Dominic hatches a plan to steal a van he knows will be filled with cash. He picks two friends as accomplices, insisting on no guns and no violence. But a security guard catches them in the act and simple theft turns into capital murder.
Cracks start to show in the conspiracy and, with no allegiance to anyone but himself, Dominic has to decide whether to stick by his partners in crime, or let his true nature come out to play.

As much as I am disappointed that you were both disappointed in your books, I am secretly relieved as I don't think my 'to read' list could really take much more

Can I join in? Start me with 20 books and I'll see if I can do better then that. Since I've only finished one this year so far.

The one I just finished was The Way Of Sarrows by Jon Steele. This is the third book Ina trilogy. I had read the others last year. The trilogy follows angels and Demons to fight off the apocalypse.

I did enjoy all three books, but found them to be slow to read. There are lots of thinks going on kind of in all directions, so you really have to keep up with each area. But interesting stories in the end.

#26 - Clockwork Angels by Kevin J Anderson

A remarkable collaboration that is unprecedented in its scope and realization, this exquisitely wrought novel represents an artistic project between the bestselling science fiction author Kevin J. Anderson and the multiplatinum rock band Rush.

The newest album by Rush, Clockwork Angels, sets forth a story in Neil Peart’s lyrics that has been expanded by him and Anderson into this epic novel. In a young man’s quest to follow his dreams, he is caught between the grandiose forces of order and chaos. He travels across a lavish and colorful world of steampunk and alchemy with lost cities, pirates, anarchists, exotic carnivals, and a rigid Watchmaker who imposes precision on every aspect of daily life. The mind-bending story is complemented with rich paintings by the five-time Juno Award winner for Best Album Design, Hugh Syme.

This book achieved something rare in my world... I checked it out of the library to read, and liked it so well that I ordered it from Barnes & Noble when I was done. Most of the time I only buy books when my library doesn't have them. But this story was so engaging and the artwork so beautiful that I wanted to own it. I'm a big Rush fan so the collaboration between the author and Neil Peart was the initial attraction, and it exceeded all expectations. Some of the symbolism could be a bit heavy-handed at times, much in the same style as the band's lyrics, but the world was a gloriously developed steampunk fantasy of technology and alchemy and impossibility that sucked me in right from the start with the idea that "The best place to start an adventure is with a quiet, perfect life . . . and someone who realizes that it can’t possibly be enough."

Sounds like a perfect fan read

#12/72

Shift by Hugh Howey

Donald Keene was recruited by the government to design an underground shelter. Over fifty years later Donald's design has been realised and the last remnants of mankind live in his silo. But no one can remember what life was like before. In fact, they're forced to forget. One simple pill erases a memory. And with it, any chance of hope
In a future less than fifty years away, the world is still as we know it. Time continues to tick by. The truth is that it is ticking away. A powerful few know what lies ahead. They are preparing for it. They are trying to protect us. ...

A complete world of people living in huge silos under the ground in this not so far future.
This is the second of the Wool Trilogy. Wool told us about the building of the Silos and introduced some of the characters that continue thru the series. Very good but took a while to get thru. May have to wait a bit before starting the third book.

I have been intrigued by these books but I think I might have to be 'in the mood' to start the series

Finished book #14 today. "The Firebird" by Susanna Kearsley. I really love this author! From Goodreads: "Nicola Marter was born with a gift. When she touches an object, she sometimes glimpses those who have owned it before. When a woman arrives with a small wooden carving at the gallery Nicola works at, she can see the object’s history and knows that it was named after the Firebird—the mythical creature from an old Russian fable.

Compelled to know more, Nicola follows a young girl named Anna into the past who leads her on a quest through the glittering backdrops of the Jacobites and Russian courts, unearthing a tale of love, courage, and redemption."

I love her writing style, and the subject matter that she deals with. It's historical fiction, with a little bit of paranormal written into it. I've enjoyed all of her books.

Now, to finish "An Abundance of Katherines"

Love the sound of this book

3/12 A Secret Kept by Tatiana de Rosnay

The Good Reads summary is awfully long, I hate t post it here. It is kind of a mystery when two middle aged siblings go back to where they vacationed as kids and one recalls some important information but has a car wreck when she goes to tell her brother and then forgets it with her injuries. The book is told from the point of view of the brother as he unravels what is going on.

It was OK, but nothing special---I more felt like I should finish it than really wanted to do so.

I'd give it 2.5 or 3 stars out of 5

I have read a couple like that lately - I always feel so fed up when I end up reading a book out of obligation, rather than for enjoyment. But I really hate to give up on a book half way through (I think I have only done that with a couple of books ever).

Finished #7 - The Fifth Wave

I know it has received good reviews and is now a movie, but I just couldn't get into it at all. Glad it's done, but now not sure what to read. I HATE not having a book - I feel absolutely lost. I'm next in line for an ebook, The Storyteller by Jodi Picoult, so hesitant to start something new because I know that as soon as I do, that book will come in! Was hoping it would be in yesterday, nope... and so far nothing today either. I'm going to have to break down and find SOMETHING - maybe a short book with 200 pages or less.

I hope you get The Storyteller soon - that is one of the very few books that I have started but never managed to finish. Not sure why, because normally I love her books

So I liked my latest book much better than the 3 from my last post. I'd recommend this one.

#9/30 The Interestings by Meg Wolitzer

The summer that Nixon resigns, six teenagers at a summer camp for the arts become inseparable. Decades later the bond remains powerful, but so much else has changed. The kind of creativity that is rewarded at age fifteen is not always enough to propel someone through life at age thirty; not everyone can sustain, in adulthood, what seemed so special in adolescence. The friendships endure and even prosper, but also underscore the differences in their fates, in what their talents have become and the shapes their lives have taken.

Sounds good

#3 The Reversal by Michael Connelly
Second book in a row for me by author. Both contain Detective Harry Bosch and lawyer Mickey Haller. I like both characters though I enjoyed Haller parts of this book more. Story is interesting - retrial of older case due to new DNA evidence.
What I really liked was not only DNA change suspect but shows how it could even effect the theory of what happened. That said the very last part of the book to me was big let down. Really seemed like ending was rushed together while the rest of the book(not small) was anything but rushed.

(If anyone is interested in reading any of my works, I would gladly send kindle gift version (Written for You , Cemetery Girl, Three Twigs for the Campfire, or Reigning).

Thanks for the offer but, sadly, Kindles registered to Amazon UK cannot receive gift versions of books.

22/200 the dance of fear by Harriet learner

23/200-Never Good Enough by Monica Ramirez Basco. About perfectionism

24/200 Diana by Sarah Bradford. A biography of the late Princess of Wales

25/200 Feel the Fear and do it anyway by Susan Jeffers

26/200 The Real Elizabeth by Andrew Marr. A biography of the queen of England

So I've read one book, and it's almost March. Not doing so well here. It was Charmed Life by Diana Wynne Jones.

Well done for getting off the mark

#10 - The Rest of Her Life by Laura Moriatry.

In The Rest of Her Life, Laura Moriarty delivers a luminous, compassionate, and provocative look at how mothers and daughters with the best intentions can be blind to the harm they do to one another.

Leigh is the mother of high-achieving, popular high school senior Kara. Their relationship is already strained for reasons Leigh does not fully understand when, in a moment of carelessness, Kara makes a mistake that ends in tragedy -- the effects of which not only divide Leigh's family, but polarize the entire community. We see the story from Leigh's perspective, as she grapples with the hard reality of what her daughter has done and the devastating consequences her actions have on the family of another teenage girl in town, all while struggling to protect Kara in the face of rising public outcry.

Like the best works of Jane Hamilton, Jodi Picoult, and Alice Sebold, Laura Moriarty's The Rest of Her Life is a novel of complex moral dilemma, filled with nuanced characters and a page-turning plot that makes readers ask themselves, "What would I do?"

I've read all four of her books now and have enjoyed each one. I'm looking forward to her next one.

I tried to start #11, March by Geraldine Brooks but could not get into it. It's about Mr. March, the father of the girls in Little Women. While it's a small book, it's just too deep for me at the moment. On to something lighter......................

I have a couple of Laura Moriarty books on my 'to read' list. Might get round to reading one eventually. They always get good reviews.

11/40 - Raven Black, Ann Cleeves, the first in a series about Detective Jimmy Perez - set in the Shetland Islands. Very well written, good characters, taut story line - she had me guessing all over the place! I'm really looking forward to the rest of the series. This is also a BBC TV series, also very well done.


Time to start my countdown - two weeks till I'm sitting in my 'happy place' - Stormalong Bay!!!!

Just over 3 weeks until I am at Boardwalk Villas - so looking forward to chilling out (and reading).

7/24: Rome Sweet Home: Our Journey to Catholicism by Scott and Kimberly Hahn

I did not read this for pleasure...but rather for the RCIA class I am taking. I still found it enjoyable and gave it 4 stars.

The well-known and very popular Catholic couple, Scott and Kimberly Hahn, have been constantly travelling and speaking all over North America for the last few years about their conversion to the Catholic Church. Now these two outstanding Catholic apologists tell in their own words about the incredible spiritual journey that led them to embrace Catholicism. Scott Hahn was a Presbyterian minister, the top student in his seminary class, a brilliant Scripture scholar, and militantly anti-Catholic ... until he reluctantly began to discover that his "enemy" had all the right answers. Kimberly, also a top-notch theology student in the seminary, is the daughter of a well-known Protestant minister, and went through a tremendous "dark night of the soul" after Scott converted to Catholicism. Their conversion story and love for the Church has captured the hearts and minds of thousands of lukewarm Catholics and brought them back into an active participation in the Church. They have also influenced countless conversions to Catholicism among their friends and others who have heard their powerful testimony. Written with simplicity, charity, grace and wit, the Hahns' deep love and knowledge of Christ and of Scripture is evident and contagious throughout their story. Their love of truth and of neighbor is equally evident, and their theological focus on the great importance of the family, both biological and spiritual, will be a source of inspiration for all readers.

Book #11/50: Chocolate Chip Cookie Murder(Hannah Swenson, #1) by Joanne Fluke

From Goodreads:
Hannah Swensen already has her hands full, between dodging her mother's attempts to marry her off, and running Lake Eden, Minnesota's most popular bakery, The Cookie Jar. But when the Cozy Cow Dairy's beloved deliveryman is found murdered behind Hannah's bakery with her famous Chocolate Chip Crunchies scattered around him, Hannah sets out to track down a killer. The more Hannah snoops, the more suspects turn up. This is one murder that's starting to leave a very bad taste in Hannah's mouth, and if she doesn't watch her back, her sweet life may get burned to a crisp.

I read this one a couple of years back and enjoyed it but haven't felt compelled to read any more of them. I felt like they might be a bit 'samey'. Do you plan to read more of hers?

#27 - The Martian by Andy Weir

Unless you've been living under a rock, you probably know what this one is about from the movie. It fascinated me both for the actual subject matter - I'm of that generation that dreamt of being astronauts until we watched the Challenger from our classrooms - and for the story of how the book came to be, starting as a serialized story on the author's website, then a .99 ebook on Amazon, and eventually a NYT bestseller and Oscar-nominated movie. I enjoyed the movie, which was astonishingly faithful to the book, but the nerd in me simply adored the book for the fact that it got much, much more into the technical side of survival on Mars and the complexity of the rescue effort. There was just so much more detail that couldn't possibly translate to the screen but added such depth to the story.

#28 - Dead and Gone by Charlaine Harris
#29 - Dead in the Family
#30 - Dead Reckoning

My obsession continues. I'm only annoyed that I didn't pick up one more of the titles in the series on Friday because I really wanted to start the next one today! I have a feeling this is one of those series that I'm going to regret coming to an end.

My daughter raved about The Martian - we did watch the movie just last weekend so I might get around to reading the book now.

 

[MochaDrinker]

27/200 The Cardinals Way by Howard Megdal. About my favorite baseball team the St. Louis Cardinals

 

[jenny105]

Finished Book #5, Queen of Babble by Meg Cabot, over the weekend. It was a quick and easy read and entertained me enough to finish the rest of the series.

I am currently on Chapter 6 of The Red Queen by Victoria Aveyard. Enjoying it so far.

 

[nemofans]

Finished book #14/65 - Orphan Number 8 by Kim van Alkemade

This was a good read. It's about a girl who ends up in an orphanage where a dr does experiments on her. The chapters switch back and forth between her as a girl growing up and the present time as an adult. As an adult, she becomes a nurse and the dr ends up in the home she works at. I enjoyed both timelines. The author based this story on true events where experimental testing was done on orphaned children. I would give this 3.5/5 stars

In 1919, Rachel Rabinowitz is a vivacious four-year-old living with her family in a crowded tenement on New York City’s Lower Eastside. When tragedy strikes, Rachel is separated from her brother Sam and sent to a Jewish orphanage where Dr. Mildred Solomon is conducting medical research. Subjected to X-ray treatments that leave her disfigured, Rachel suffers years of cruel harassment from the other orphans. But when she turns fifteen, she runs away to Colorado hoping to find the brother she lost and discovers a family she never knew she had.
Though Rachel believes she’s shut out her painful childhood memories, years later she is confronted with her dark past when she becomes a nurse at Manhattan’s Old Hebrews Home and her patient is none other than the elderly, cancer-stricken Dr. Solomon. Rachel becomes obsessed with making Dr. Solomon acknowledge, and pay for, her wrongdoing. But each passing hour Rachel spends with the old doctor reveal to Rachel the complexities of her own nature. She realizes that a person’s fate—to be one who inflicts harm or one who heals—is not always set in stone.

 

[Deffenm]

6/50 - Lost Lake
7/50 - Nantucket Sisters

I think I need a vacation as I keep picking up books that take place at a lake or beach.

 

[K and K's Mommy]

#7 - Mrs. Lincoln's Dressmaker by Jennifer Chiaverini - I enjoyed learning more about Elizabeth Keckley and her relationship with Mrs. Lincoln. She served as her dressmaker while Lincoln was president. However, the book was slow and tedious for me. It was not one of my favorite historical fictions.

#8 - The Watsons Go to Birmingham by Christopher Paul Curtis - My fifth grader had to read it for class, so I decided to read it. I really liked it!

#9 - Await Your Reply by Dan Chaon - This was chosen as our book club book. I had never heard of it, but ended up really liking it. I am still not sure if I know how it ended! It is three stories going on at the same time. Lucy, a high school graduate, has run off with her history teacher. Miles searches for his missing brother. And, Ryan goes to visit his long-lost "uncle" who is actually his biological father. The stories, of course, all come together at the end.

 

[Kogo Shuko]

Book #7: Secret Brothers by V.C. Andrews

The most unexpected Dollanganger story of them all, new from the author of Flowers in the Attic and Petals on the Wind—both now major Lifetime movie events.

A young boy suffers amnesia from a trauma he suffered in what feels like must have been another life. He’s adopted into a wealthy family—but what will happen when he learns the truth about his past?



While the writing style itself is so much better than the last two in this series, this book is horrible. I can not stand the main character. She is, without a doubt, extremely unlikable. I understand she's going through grief, but the sheer selfishness to the point of refusing to listen to reason just drove me up the wall.

Not to mention what did we really learn? Nothing.

 

[miksilver]

10/35 Ready Player One by Earnest Cline. I haven’t read a Sci-fi book in a while and my DH had this one on his book shelf and recommended it to me. Being the nerd/geek that I am I got most of the 80’s references in the book, but some of them were really obscure. Overall I thought it was well written and it didn’t take me long to get hooked into it and read it through. Recommended.

11/35 Nothing Like Love by Abigail Strom. A flirty and fun short romance novel. I needed a little break from my previous reads and this happened to be on the homepage of my Kindle. Free with Kindle Unlimited I decided to give it a try. I think was the first book that I read from a Kindle ad.

 

[Kogo Shuko]

10/35 Ready Player One by Earnest Cline. I haven’t read a Sci-fi book in a while and my DH had this one on his book shelf and recommended it to me. Being the nerd/geek that I am I got most of the 80’s references in the book, but some of them were really obscure. Overall I thought it was well written and it didn’t take me long to get hooked into it and read it through. Recommended.

They'll be turning this one into a movie in the future!!

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1677720/

 

[miksilver]

They'll be turning this one into a movie in the future!!

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1677720/

It's part of the reason why I wanted to read it. I realized I had a book on my shelf that was going to be turned into a movie soon!

 

[Glynis]

Finished book 15 last night, "An Abundance of Katherines" by John Green. I read this because it was recommended by a student. From goodreads: "Katherine V thought boys were gross
Katherine X just wanted to be friends
Katherine XVIII dumped him in an e-mail
K-19 broke his heart
When it comes to relationships, Colin Singleton's type happens to be girls named Katherine. And when it comes to girls named Katherine, Colin is always getting dumped. Nineteen times, to be exact.

On a road trip miles from home, this anagram-happy, washed-up child prodigy has ten thousand dollars in his pocket, a bloodthirsty feral hog on his trail, and an overweight, Judge Judy-loving best friend riding shotgun--but no Katherines. Colin is on a mission to prove The Theorem of Underlying Katherine Predictability, which he hopes will predict the future of any relationship, avenge Dumpees everywhere, and finally win him the girl. Love, friendship, and a dead Austro-Hungarian archduke add up to surprising and heart-changing conclusions in this ingeniously layered comic novel about reinventing oneself."

This was just ok to me. I have enjoyed other books of his more. This one was really hard for me to get through.

Next up: "As Chimney Sweepers Come to Dust" by Alan Bradley. I'm excited about this one, as I've loved all the books in this series!

 

[Kewz1]

#2/12 - "The Prime Minister's Secret Agent" by Susan Elia MacNeal.

This is book #4 in the Maggie Hope series. Takes place in England during WWII. In this book we find Maggie recovering in Scotland from an earlier mission. While visiting a friend she becomes embroiled in a murder which has bigger implications.

Easy read, mostly "fun" but at times dealing with more serious subject matter. I've enjoyed the whole series and would recommend both this book and the three that proceed it.

Kristen