REVIEW: "14th Deadly Sin"- BY: James Patterson

Hey!

Look at me, two blog posts in one month! I'm proud. :)

This book review is supported again by the book contributions of my lovely co-worker.
She's a quick reader and I'm sure I will have endless book supply from her.

Now about the book...
I have only read one other book by James Patterson and that was also reviewed on this blog and I loved it. But if I remember correctly, I didn't like the ending. Much like I didn't really like this one either. It seems James Patterson loves to leave a good cliff hanger. I'm not about that. But, who am I to question an acclaimed authors style? Clearly, he's doing something right.

"14th Deadly Sin" is another mystery book. It is also apart of Patterson's series of "The Women's Murder Club." I did have some reservations before reading it because, as I've said before, if I don't think I would pick this book up myself then there's a good chance I might not like it. However, lately I have been eating my words because I've liked all the books so far.

There have been a lot of robbery/murders happening in San Francisco. The SFPD has been trying to connect the dots before anyone else gets murdered. Claire, Yuki Cindy and Lindsay make up "the Women's Murder Club." They coined the name because they each work in some aspect of the law or media that requires them to be involved with murders and and crimes. There are two major mysteries that have been happening. The first is a string of murders that are happening in broad day light to women on the same day for five years. The other is a string of robberies that end of with deaths. This case largely has to do with drugs. These robbers are identified by masks and SFPD windbreaker jackets. That is all they know of these criminals but can't seem to figure out who these people are and why they keep robbing and killing. People keep dying left and right that might have answers to who is behind all this but are the killers right under their noses? That is the driving question of this book.

"14th Deadly Sin" is largely compelling. It catches you right away, if not just for the aspect of it being a mystery and you need to know what happens. The chapters are nice and short so you can breeze through this book nicely. I really enjoyed the writing style because it was quick and dynamic and just kept your imagination running. You couldn't help rooting for the SFPD once they starting fitting the pieces together. And I love how the book did break up to accommodate the other ladies and their stories that eventually was all connected in the end. The way that happened was purely  seamless.

Patterson definitely will be put on my list of approved authors. The reading was so effortless yet still complex. It felt like a nice change of pace. I hope you enjoyed the diversity I'm trying to bring to appeal to all of my book lovers.

Feel free to comment a favorite Patterson book!

REVIEW: "The Tides of Memory"- BY: Sidney Sheldon

Here's another review for ya! I'm gonna make it as short and sweet as I can.

An older woman that I work with and I got to talking one day and we realized we are both book lovers. I always feel like I'm in good company with a book lover. Now me and my co-worker do not have exactly the same taste in books. Partially because there is a significant age gap, but also because well, we just have different tastes. She has a much more mature reading style and I still tend to gravitate towards teen fiction. But, I don't like to book discriminate so when she said she left me a good book to read, I couldn't say no.

"The Tides of Memory," is largely a mystery thriller. But what is great about this book is that it's not the creepy kind of mystery books that I often associate with mysteries. The story line was very reminiscent of other books that I love, so I quickly immersed myself in this book.

The book is initially set at a summer camp in the 70's where Toni Galetti and Billy Hamlin become too distracted with each other to realize that a young boy camper has drowned. However, Billy takes the rap for it all because he loves Toni and doesn't want to see her go to jail. Billy winds up going to jail for 20 years and Toni runs away and is never to be seen again.... as Toni. Toni runs away to England and starts another life as Alexia. No one comes looking for her and she ends up marrying Teddy De Vere who is British royalty. Aelxia, for some time, lives a politically sophisticated life with her husband and two kids. That is until she became Home Secretary of England. From that moment on, things start to unravel or Alexia one by one. Her daughter had tried to commit suicide but ultimately ended up paralyzed in a wheel chair. Her son quit University to follow a dream and Billy, the boy who took the rap for her all those years ago, has suspiciously showed up in England looking for Alexia.

Billy has gone crazy since he got out of jail and ends up dead in England as he was trying to get Alexia to help him because he has been hearing voices that someone was going to kill her and his daughter. Alexia didn't want anything to do with Billy, since she tried to hard to erase her old life.

Alexia is ultimately pushed out of office because surprisingly to Alexia, her husband was charged with murder of her daughters ex-boyfriend and also of the murder of Billy Hamlin. Alexia thought her husband was the good one but he did heinous acts to protect his family.

The biggest surprise came when the book revealed that Alexia's best friend Lucy was actually the brother of the little boy that died at camp under Toni's watch that Billy went to jail for. Lucy had been plotting for years to get revenge on her and Billy. Lucy almost successfully kills Alexia but ends up just killing herself and leaving her family completely in shock.

The book may start out a little slow with peaks and valleys to keep you on your toes. But once all hell breaks lose it is like an avalanche of misfortune. One crazy incident after another. I was pleasantly surprised by the story line of the book and was even more surprised by the way the book was written. I loved the style of writing and appreciated the shorter chapters and breaks within.  It is definitely a compelling read and the ending was something I totally had not suspected. There are multiple twists and turns in this book that deserves a gold star.

REVIEW: "Gone Girl" - BY: Gillian Flynn

Welcome back Book Lovers! 

I'm pretty excited to bring you a review of "Gone Girl." I'm probably late to the party again, but that's just my style. Not much of a follower... ya know?!

Anyways, "Gone Girl" is probably not new to you and if it is then I feel pretty good about myself because I just taught you a little something ! :) 

Regardless, "Gone Girl" is basically a house-hold name. You've maybe seen the movie and better yet you read the book before you did. I don't know about you but the trailer of the movie definitely mislead me about the book. My impression of the book, just based on the trailer, made me feel as if this was going to be some middle aged women's version of a mystery/crime scene. That sounds a little harsh but mainly what I'm trying to say is that it could be very blase and not the style I'm impressed with. 

I haven't seen the movie yet because I just finished reading the book. As the natural order should go. It was definitely on my radar because of all the interesting things I've heard about the book. 

I was intrigued from the first sentence. The writing style was beautiful. It was fluid, clear and enticing. I kept finding myself trying to play detective. I was trying to think one step ahead of the author. I went through various stages where I thought maybe he did because it sure did seem like it ... but then just when you thought you had it pegged down, she would flip it on you and you were thinking of a totally different scenario. It was a very natural progression but one that definitely shocked you and you love it for doing that.

Something that I love about books is the hold they can have on you. The hold can be before you read it, while you are reading it or after you read it. This book definitely had all 3. I was excited to read it, couldn't put it down and didn't want to let it go. 

I hate to give some big plot or round up about the gist of this book because it has been so popular in the media. However, I will implore you with a small bit about the book that I feel will help you get a good idea and make you read it or not if you haven't already done so.

Amy and Nick have been married for 5 years when Amy suddenly goes missing from their Missouri home. Nick doesn't freak out but is definitely curious as to how this could possibly have happened. He tries to keep his tracks clear because he knows the story with missing wives and the husbands have nothing to show for it. Nick knows his marriage wasn't great. They both turned into different people after they happened to be married for a little while, but Nick denies any involvement in this disappearance. We slowly learn the true inner workings in the mind of Nick and Amy through narration and "diary" entries that Amy has written. Don't count Nick out just yet. Don't let your mind slip into feminist paranoia towards men. Maybe some women are driven  mad and would do anything to seek their "rightful" attention. 

There is a lot about this book that I love. I love the way it is laid out. Every chapter is either in the voice of Nick or Amy. You are constantly getting a contradiction or rather understanding of what you just read in the last chapter. Its enticing and totally "revolutionizes", if I can say that, about the way I feel towards murder mysteries or disappearances. I never really gave them much thought but I'll probably never think of them the same again. And maybe there is a lot of fictionalization that you can't apply to real life but I always say, "Never say never!"

BUT.. I will leave you with something that still seems to keep plaguing me is the ending. For a book that is full of such suspense, insanity and intrigue the ending still makes me sit and wonder what I just read. Maybe it has a deeper meaning then I can truly wrap my head around at the moment. But it felt like an awfully odd way to let things go. 

Either way, it is what it is and I'll let you go by saying: Yes, read the book enjoy it and let me know what you thought about the ending. I definitely want to hear some thoughts about this book! 

Ciao!