Reader's Choice Fall 2011

[Jennifer]

Okay, all you Reader's Choice lovers... here's the list of the July-October 2011 Reader's Choice selections, which will be available at your Salt Lake County library on July 1st. So, what do you think? Have you read any of them yet?

The Bells
Bliss, Remembered
Crashers
Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter
Don't Kill The Messenger
Farm Fresh Murder
First Grave on the Right
The Gentleman Poet: A Novel of Love, Danger, and Shakespeare's The Tempest
Girl in Translation
The Holy Thief: A Novel
The Lady's Slipper
Liar, Liar: A Cat DeLuca Mystery
Mothers and Other Liars
On the Edge of Survival
The Personal History of Rachel DuPree: A Novel
Power Down
Red Station
Rise Again: A Zombie Thriller
Russian Winter
Shades of Milk and Honey
The Shadow War: A Novel
The Stormchasers
Sweet Misfortune: A Novel
Think of a Number
The Tower, The Zoo, and The Tortoise
The Vanishing of Katharina Linden
The Widower's Tale
The Winter Sea

[Britt, Book Habitue]

Haven't read any of them yet, but more than one is already on my "to read" list!

[Jeana]

I'm reading The Winter Sea now.

[Havilah]

I LOVE Reader's Choice!! I'm excited to get started on this list. I've already read Girl in Translation. That one is a GREAT book. Thanks for the list!

[Gofita]

This looks like an excellent list! I had two or three already on my to read pile!

[Stephanie]

I loved The Tower, the Zoo, and the Tortoise. I didn't love The Bells (but I liked it) but it did make me look up lots of info on castrati. :)
I just started The Vanishing of Katharina Linden today.

[Jennifer]

I started Liar, Liar, but I couldn't finish it. It just didn't take itself seriously enough. I don't mind a silly book, but it seemed to me like the authors were more interested in entertaining themselves than they were in writing a cohesive story. Plus, too many cliches.

That's the only one I've read so far, but people have been telling me great things about Sweet Misfortune, The Winter Sea, Girl in Translation, and First Grave on the Right. How about you?

[Britt, Book Habitue]

Loved The Tower, The Zoo and The Tortoise.
Didn't love The Widower's Tale-- kind of Major Pettigrew's Last Stand meets Friday Night Knitting Club... just didn't quite work for me.
Rise Again was.... bizarre.
Farm Fresh Murder was lots of fun. I've read the second in that series now too. :)

[Vicki]

I have only read The Winter Sea, so far, but I loved it! It is really good and I have recommended it to others. SO read it!

[Porsche]

I read some.
Don't Kill The Messenger-liked it. The cover put me off a little, but it was a fun read.
Farm Fresh Murder-light read.
First Grave on the Right- um, way too "adult" for me! I don't need that-ew!
Girl in Translation-I couldn't put it down. I wanted to see what happened to Kim. You really wanted her to succeed.
Liar, Liar: A Cat DeLuca Mystery-silly, light read.
The Personal History of Rachel DuPree: A Novel-Interesting, kind of depressing.
Shades of Milk and Honey-people who like pride and Prejudice will like this book. I liked it.
The Vanishing of Katharina Linden- I really liked this one. The heroine is quite likeable.

[Jennifer]

Here's an upcoming event with a past Reader's Choice author:
Meet Bethany Maines, author of the Carrie Mae mysteries (Bulletproof Mascara)! Light refreshments with book sales and signing will follow her presentation. Join us in Room 106 of the Columbus Center, adjacent to the Columbus Library, at 2530 South 500 East, South Salt Lake City.

[Britt, Book Habitue]

Just read The Vanishing of Katharina Linden and really enjoyed it. Well-written.
Also read Liar, Liar-- HILARIOUS! Loved it.

[Britt, Book Habitue]

Don't Kill the Messenger-- liked it more than I thought I would. :)

[Britt, Book Habitue]

Has anyone else read Bliss, Remembered yet?? If not, go do so now!!!
It absolutely may end up being my favorite off this list!!!!

[Beks]

I read Shades of Milk and Honey and wasn't that impressed, I didn't like a single character in the whole novel and felt it was a mish-mash of all of the Jane Austen novels and not really all that original.

[Tanya]

I read Sweet Misfortune and thought it was really bad. I didn't like the writing style at all. The plot was ok and the characters were interesting enough but the writing was distracting to me.

I also read The Gentleman Poet which I LOVED, surprisingly. I usually don't like period pieces because I feel like I have to translate the language before I get the meaning, but this book was wonderfully writen, the characters were great and the plot moved along nicely. I cried at the end.

[Britt, Book Habitue]

I've recently read:
Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter-- interesting
Red Station-- disappointing
Girl in Translation-- ugh... wanted to like it, but didn't
Russian Winter-- liked it SO much more than I thought I would

That puts me at 12 read so far... I gotta step it up if I want to read them all...

[Jennifer]

Britt- you are an inspiration! I hope you turn in ballots for all those books so you can be entered in the gift certificate drawing- the odds would be stacked in your favor.

[Britt, Book Habitue]

I do turn in all my ballots. :)

Just finished First Grave on the Right-- racy and a little slim on plot, but oh my gosh it was funny!! (Not as slim on plot as I was afraid it would be.)

[Tina]

Britt, Book Habitue wrote: "Has anyone else read Bliss, Remembered yet?? If not, go do so now!!!
It absolutely may end up being my favorite off this list!!!!"

I read the ending on this one and had to go back and glance through the whole book again trying to reconcile the two different images I had of his father. I realize the book is all about the mother and I thought her story was incredible, but I just couldn't see how he could know so little about his own father!

[Tina]

Britt, Book Habitue wrote: "I do turn in all my ballots. :)

Just finished First Grave on the Right-- racy and a little slim on plot, but oh my gosh it was funny!! (Not as slim on plot as I was afraid it would be.)"

This one was really racy, I can't decide whether I'll read the sequel or not. I want to, I want to know what happens, but whoooa!

[Britt, Book Habitue]

I know, I can't decide either....

[Britt, Book Habitue]

Think of a Number was very interesting and somewhat creepy. You can kind of tell it's a first novel, though-- threads that don't quite get tied up and threads that didn't need to be there. Not sure I'm loving the idea of a series... I think it makes a better stand alone, but whatever.

Funny story-- I actually checked this one out... and then checked it out again (so I had 2 library copies at the same time) and then discovered I OWN IT! Sigh.

[Britt, Book Habitue]

(I've read 14 so far... not sure I'll get them all read by the end of the month.)

[Jennifer]

Britt, Book Habitue wrote: "(I've read 14 so far... not sure I'll get them all read by the end of the month.)"

Well, we aren't putting the new ones out until January, so you could always give yourself an extension. Which are your favorite so far? I, sadly, have only read one and I didn't like it. Usually I do better.

[Britt, Book Habitue]

Favorite? Hmmmm..... I LOVED Bliss, Remembered and Russian Winter. I also really liked Liar, Liar. I have a hard time picking favs overall, though, because different genres are like apples and oranges! lol

[Erin]

I am just starting The Tower the Zoo and the Tortise and would also like to get to the Winter Sea.
I have also read Girl in Translation, Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter and The Personal History of Rachel Dupree, all of which I liked very much.
I also read Sweet Misfortune, Widower's Tale and Mother's and Other Liars, and these I didn't care for.

[Jennifer]

There are only a few days left for this Reader's Choice session, so make sure to turn in your ballots before Oct. 31 to be entered in the prize drawings. Of course, that doesn't mean you have to stop reading- or commenting! The next Reader's Choice contest will start in January.

[Britt, Book Habitue]

Just read The Holy Thief and The Gentleman Poet-- enjoyed both of them!

Trying to decide how many more I can read between now and going to the library Monday.... :)

[Britt, Book Habitue]

Crashers, The Shadow War and Mothers and Other Liars-- check check check!! That gives me 19 this round. And I am headed to the library in a minute, so I'm done with ballots. Still have several checked out, though, so I'll keep at it. ;)

Gave all 3 of those 4 stars-- Mothers is really emotional and hard to read though.

[Britt, Book Habitue]

Power Down was okay. Dragged... got bogged down in repetitive descriptions.