Book Review: The Strange Attractor

Get it here: Strange Attractor

What a Plot! This one took me awhile to get into, to understand the characters and their relationships. Mr. Dobie is a strange fellow in my eyes, but that gives him a certain charm. There are some funny moments, such as when he is arguing with the detectives about the “other woman”.  It wasn’t until then in the story that I truly got into it and the book took off for me. Everything else beforehand seemed to drag on a bit. Maybe because Mr. Dobie, a Mathematics professor, was out of step with the rest of the world, he was perpetually looking at the rest of us through his mathematical viewpoint.

Once pulled in however, the mystery of the “who dun it”, why did his former student kill him self, how did the “other woman’s” body end up in his bedroom will keep you glued to the pages in an effort to figure out each minute detail for yourself. By the protagonist being a math’s professor, there is much mathematical language in here that might put some people off, but it is well worth it sticking it out until the end. I’m glad I did!

Book Review: Love on a boat

Get it here: Love on a Boat

What a great story! I really enjoy romance novels, in the Mediterranean, its sort of my thing having grown up in Europe, so this story was spot on for me. The characters drew you in and I was rooting for Flynn and Kate a few chapters in. The little details in the book; that flesh the characters out are believable and give it that little extra something.

It was the first time reading a romance that took place primarily on a boat/yacht and the pier, but I wasn’t left behind with unfamiliar terms or descriptions. I think the author really kept it simple and focused the plot on the relationships between the people and how it evolved and I loved that.

The romance in this book builds, like a crescendo until the very end and it survives some life and death situations. There’s also a minor romance in here between Steve and his wife Donna and it is nice to see how it works out for them in the end. A great read for the end of summer (kids off to school and you’ll have some time to read).

Book Review: Bits and Pieces

Get it here: Bits and Pieces

This is an interesting collection of short stories and some of them were extremely interesting whereas others were not. The book is divided into three “parts” and there is a story for everyone. Even though I did not like every short story there were some that really drew me in. Due to the slow pacing of the book overall, some stories felt like they were dragging on and on.

Other than that, the stories are well written and the transition is so smooth between some stories that I had to flip back a few pages to ensure it was really a different character. I think the main premise from this book is that here are a collection of stories of everyday life’s problems and how the individual characters handle them. My favorite two stories were about the accountant and the one about Amala because I could identify with them the most. 

Book Review: Birth of an Assassin:

Get it here: Birth of an Assassin

Jez and Anna are the main POV in this book along with come other dicey characters that have a hatred for Jews (Jez being the main one affected, although Anna does get caught up with it somewhat). Jez, has his heart set on joining the Russian army and is disillusioned with any type of religious zeal his family has. Through some (for him) fortunate circumstances, he finds his career skyrocketed through the ranks with choice posts wherever he wants and thus he comes into the spotlight of Otto, who will stop at nothing to destroy Jez.  

Having read the other book by Mr. Stone, (The Turkish connection), I had high hopes for this book and Mr. Stone sure didn’t disappoint. The story telling was superb and the plot was believable. Even though there are references and connections to the Turkish Connection, you do not have to read that book to enjoy this one. I am hoping that there will be another book in this series, I truly enjoy the world building and the unique characters. I recommended that book and I recommend this one as well. 

Some New items:

Here are the latest picks from my Store:

99 bead Tasbih

99 Bead Tasbih, assorted, going to a local shop for selling

108 Bead Wood and Tree Agate Mala

Tree Agate Mala 108 Bead

2 Special Request Rosaries

Book Review: The Traveler

Get it here: Traveler

Ever since I had watched the Looper movie I have been fascinated with the Time travelling stories. I think that they bring such a wonderful “what if” quality to our lives and this book, The Traveler has certainly delivered. You meet Dan who discovers that he suddenly unlocks this hidden power he has to travel to the past. He cannot resist visiting his hometown of the past, just to “relive old memories”. One thing leads to another and he severely mucks things up both in the past and therefore in the future.

I know some reviewers didn’t like the ending but I did, it ties things off if the author is done, but also leaves him a nice place t pick up in case he wants to start another story with Dan, maybe one where he joins “Thomas” in his profession? Characters were fleshed out and even though this is a Sci-Fi book, the (shocking) twists are still somewhat believable.

An enjoyable story, guaranteed to leave you turning the pages to see what will happen next! If you could travel through time, would you?

Book Review: One before Bedtime

Get it here: One Before Bedtime

This is a collection of short stories, each just about the length of a chapter. They cover everything from mysteries, thrillers, horror, ghost stories, tragedies and skepticism. They are all very well written, and even though they do not relate to each other I found that I was spell bound by this book, I kept turning the pages, and kept on reading. The title of the book is aptly named, you will want to finish just one more before bedtime, but it will turn into two, three and so on.

The words are written well and easy to understand, I only had to look up one word in this book. The stories, even though they are not related are structured in such a way as if one leads to another and so on until you reach the last one, the climax of the book. I truly enjoyed this book, just wish it were longer, or at least that some of the stories would have been given one or two more chapters.

Book Review: The Avocadonine and Spring Stone

Get it Here: Avocadonine

This is a good mystery story, as well as a representation of high school life for Rey Naresh and his friends. He gets a reading from a gypsy at a young age and that reading, strange as it was becomes important in his life when he reaches the 9^th grade. This is a great mystery about a lady from Russia who is trying to gain control of the youngster’s minds once they reach 9^th grade, not just in Rey’s hometown, but eventually all over the world. She wants this so that she can “help children become better and smarter”.

I kept thinking that if you take all those post apocalyptic novels (like Maze Runner, The Giver, Insurgent) and rewind a few hundred years, this is how it might all have begun. With a simple idea from someone trying to me it all “better”.

I did like this book; it was well written, had a good flow and will definitely be picked up by younger readers. You are drawn in and follow along with the kids as they try to unravel the mystery, find out just who is involved and how and ultimately try to stop the plot. It’s a great book and a unique story well worth taking your time checking out. 

Book Review: A Simple Soul

Get it here: Simple Soul

The story is grand, the characters detailed, the plot seamless. This book has the writing style that transports you to Russia, lets you follow the characters and does not distract with poor spelling or errors. I did like this story and found the plot, characters and setting to be both interesting and detailed. The love story between Elizaveta and Timofey was full of passion, disappointment, strategy and turmoil. The ending is satisfying and ties up all the plentiful plot twists.

I loved reading Anna Karenina as a young adult and I really like the grand sweeping majesty of other Russian Novels. This one, however, came up short in my book. Mainly because it was so long with so much detail that I felt like I was being given 5-6 pages in background and history for each character that easily could have been summarized in one or most 2 pages. I understand that the way this book was written that it flows better that way, but I do believe it could’ve been abbreviated in a few spots.