Jenifer’s Comments (group member since Dec 05, 2011)

Jenifer’s comments from the Reading with Style group.

Oops! Let me try this again.

Starting: Susanna Kearsley

15.1 Sarah Jio
15.2 Beth Hoffman
15.3 Claire Cook
15.4 Sheila Roberts
15.5 Debbie Macomber
15.6 Susan Wiggs
15.7 Elin Hilderbrand
15.8 Kristin Hannah
15.9 Patti Callahan Henry
15.10 Sarah Strohmeyer

*These are all new to me authors*

I can't decide between two chains. One is mostly thriller/suspense novels and the other is more chick-lit. Can I get both approved and then will decide what I feel more like reading on June 1?

Starting point: Nicci French

1. Tess Gerritsen
2. Karin Slaughter
3. Lisa Gardner
4. Tami Hoag
5. Iris Johansen
6. Catherine Coulter
7. Julie Garwood
8. Judith McNaught
9. Lisa Kleypas
10. Sarah MacLean

**edited per mod request. Thanks for the readjustments, Liz M!
Thanks!!

20.8 Spring Fling

The French House: An American Family, a Ruined Maison, and the Village That Restored Them All by Don Wallace (this was an ARC)

+20 task
+10 not-a-novel

Task Total = 30

Grand Total = 160

15.4 1963 - Gold Dagger

The Spy Who Came In from the Cold by John le Carré

+15 task
+5 before 1990
+10 Multi Award/Somerset Maughaum Award

Task Total = 30

Grand Total = 130

15.3 1972 - California Young Reader Medal

Watership Down by Richard Adams

+15 task
+5 before 1990

Task Total = 20

Grand Total = 100

15.2 EOTP - 2005 Michael L Printz Award

Looking for Alaska by John Green
lexile 910

Task Total = 15

Grand Total = 80

15.1 - 1996 - Scotiabank Giller Prize
Alias Grace by Margaret Atwood

+15 task
+10 multi award (also Bailey's Women's Award)

Task Total = 25 points

Grand Total = 65 points

10.4 Romeo & Juliet

The Three Musketeers by Alexandre Dumas

#146 on the book list

+10 task
+15 oldie (pub 1844)
+10 jumbo (720 pg)
+ 5 combo w/ 10.3 shelved as historical fiction over 500 times

Task Total = 40

Grand Total = 40

If I live in Oregon, would I be able to use "pacific northwest" or "west coast" as a location for my author's birth?

1. 1953 National Book Award - Invisible Man
2. 1960 Newberry - Island of the Blue Dolphins (1000 lexile)
3. 1963 Gold Dagger - The Spy Who Came In from the Cold
4. 1972 California Young Reader Medal - Watership Down (880 lexile)
5. 1996 Scotiabank Giller Prize - Alias Grace
2005 Michael L Printz Award - Looking for Alaska (910 lexile)
6. 2007 PEN Open Book Award - Half of a Yellow Sun
7. 2009 Man Booker Prize - Wolf Hall
8. 2010 Horn Book Award - The Notorious Benedict Arnold: A True Story of Adventure, Heroism & Treachery (990 lexile)
9. 2012 Independent Foreign Fiction - The Prague Cemetery
10. 2013 PEN Translation - The Sound of Things Falling

Kate S wrote: "From Post 708

Jenifer wrote: "20.1 1964

Dan Brown was born in 1964

Inferno by Dan Brown

+20 task
+5 combo (w/ 10.6 This is Dan Brown's most recent release)
+10 rev..."

Sorry! I've just added the review to the original post.

Task 10.6 Beginnings and Endings

The Rosie Project by Graeme Simsion

*This is the debut novel and most recent work by Graeme Simsion*

+10 task
+10 review

Task Total = 20 pts
Grand Total = 430 pts

My Review:

I had heard good things about The Rosie but I still wasn't sure what to expect when I picked up The Rosie Project (or maybe I should say downloaded since I purchased this book on Kindle). A few pages into this book, I realized that it would be very different then I had expected. At first, I wasn't too thrilled with the detour that the story put me on, but once I reconciled the actual story with the story that I had in mind, I fell in love with The Rosie Project.

I fell in love with the quirkiness of the main character, Don Tillman. This is a man who has created the "Standardized Meal Plan", meaning that he repeats his meals every week (no substitutions allowed) to save time and confusion. Don's life is very very organized, down to the second. That is until he decides to embark on "The Wife Project".

This book really touched my heart. Graeme Simsion's main character has Asperger's (yet he doesn't realize it) and has a difficult time showing emotion or understanding social cues. Through Simsion's writing, we get inside Don's mind and experience his confusion right along with him. We also get to experience his growth as Don realizes that sometimes it is okay to be flexible.

20.1 1964

Dan Brown was born in 1964

Inferno by Dan Brown

+20 task
+5 combo (w/ 10.6 This is Dan Brown's most recent release)
+10 review

Review:
I don't know why I continue to read these books. I don't really like them. Maybe it's my compulsivity to finish a series once I've started it? Inferno wasn't horrible but it wasn't as exciting a read as The Da Vinci Code either. As with his other books, Dan Brown seems to have jumped up on his own personal soapbox, although this time, instead of attacking the church, he is preaching about population growth.

Brown (or his assistants) have obviously done quite a bit of research for this book. I enjoy reading his descriptions of the various locations in the book and I did enjoy learning a little more about Dante's Inferno. I just might even start reading some Dante in the future.

I think my problem with Inferno and The Lost Symbol is that I just find Robert Langdon to be an unbelievable character. You would think that after a few books of being chased at gun point, kidnapped, etc. he would become suspicious of people and not be so surprised when someone shoots at him! Oh well, as much as I complain, there is a good chance that I will end up reading Dan Brown's next book..

Task Total: 35
Grand Total = 410 pts

Task 20.6 Twentieth Century

The Hound of the Baskervilles by Arthur Conan Doyle

#254 on the list

+20 task
+5 combo w/ 10.3 detective fiction
+10 oldie
+10 review

Task Total = 45 points
Grand Total = 375

My Review:
I'm not sure what took me so long to read this book. I've always loved Sherlock Holmes since I first saw Basil Rathbone's version on t.v. as a child. This was a lovely mystery. Although, I knew the basis of the story (from what I could remember seeing as a child and also from the Moffit/Gatiss modern version of the tale), I still found myself surprised in a few areas. I even found myself jumping at one point when my telephone rang while I was reading a particularly dark description of the moors at night.

I do love Sherlock Holmes and think everyone should read at least some of Doyle's masterpiece series at least once in their lifetime. As I've told my son (who is currently reading A Study in Scarlet), you might just be surprised with how readable and enjoyable, Doyle's work is.

Task 10.5 Goodreads Authorized

The Masque of the Black Tulip by Lauren Willig
Lauren Willig is a Goodreads Author

+10 task
+5 combo w/ 10.2 (shelved as fantasy 110 times)

Task Total = 15
Grand Total = 330 pts

Task 10.5 Goodreads Authorized

The Winter Sea by Susanna Kearsley
Susanna Kearsley is a Goodreads Author


+10 task
+5 jumbo (544 pages)

Task Total = 15
Grand Total = 315 pts

Task 10.5 Goodreads Authorized

The Cost of Love and Sanity by Jaye Cherié
Jaye Cherie is a Goodreads Author

Review
I usually stay away from contemporary romances but something about this one caught my eye so I found myself agreeing to part of the blog tour. I’m glad I did. This was a cute story about a woman becoming comfortable with who she is and realizing that she does not need to accept less then she deserves, especially when it comes to men! The story flowed well and was a quick read. I liked the main character, Alex, although I did find myself wanting to yell at her a couple of times when it came to her dealings with Nathan. My one complaint with the story is that the ending was tied together a little too neatly and happened a little too quickly. I think the end of the story would have been better if it had been just a bit longer.

I would recommend The Cost of Love & Sanity to fans of contemporary romance or anyone in the mood for a light read.

+10 task
+10 review

Task Total = 20
Grand Total = 300 pts

No, you just choose to read the one that interests you.

Oh, I always thought we had to complete the entire challenge first...this is great!

It says that Task 10.1 may be repeated three times. Do I need to complete the challenge before repeating it?