Two New Authors

Heart Sick~ Chelsea Cain~ New twist on serial killer. VERY detailed, NOT a cozy.

Spellman Files~ Lisa Lutz~ New PI family on the block, laughs abound!

Three Series, first book in each series

Grift Sense~ James Swain~ Catches cheaters in casinos

Whiskey Sour~ J.A. Konrath~ Intense and graphic. Love Lt. Jack Daniels!

Murder in Hells Kitchen~ Lee Harris~ Jane Bauer has a head on her shoulders and isn't afraid to use it.

One that is so out of my usualy genre that I'm surprised I loved it!

Bitsy's Bait and BBQ~ Pamela Morsi~ This book gave me a warm fuzzy about people in general.

Bitsy's Bait and BBQ was fantastic! Of course, I am crazy about anything Pamela Morsi writes. : )

For a limited time (it's been aboput 2 months now, so??) if you go to J.A.Konrath's website, you can download a PDF of Whiskey Sour in it's entirety, as well as 2-3 older nonpublished novels that he has written, all for free.  It's a great book, very easy to read, and I love the characters.  I'm on book 3 TBR now, and the 4th one in the series just came out.

http://www.jakonrath.com/

This is a mix:

New author to me...

Rita Chabonnier-Mozart's Sister - excellent historical fiction

Lesser known classics...

The Ox-Bow Incident by Walter Van Tilburg Clark-This is the story of a small town murder and how mob rules overtakes everyone involved.  It's one of those books with a moral dilemma as the plot and you can't help thinking about it for days afterward.

Custom of the Country by Edith Wharton.  Everyone raves about Ethan Frome and the Age of Innocence, but I think this is her best book.

A book I wouldn't normally read...

Summer by the Sea by Susan Wiggs.  It's a romance but I see it more as a novel with a romance in it.  It's a good, easy read and well constructed.  Several plots going on so it isn't a predictable read.  Just a sweet story

Best by my two favorite authors...

The Virgin Blue by Tracy Chevalier.  This is such a good book.  It takes place in two time periods.  A woman in the present goes to Europe where she begins to find her roots.  She begins to unravel a mystery about her ancestral past that isn't too pretty.  We see the story from her perspective of uncovering the mystery and the perspective of her ancestors as it is happening.

Queen of Dreams by Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni.  This book is difficult to describe.  It involves a woman who is a painter, her mother who is gifted with dreams about people--even strangers--that foretell the future, her father who brought them to America, and others in their immediate family.  It ties in cultural and generational clashes, following your dreams, and many other themes.

Old Comforts A Tree Grows In Brooklyn - Betty Smith To Kill A Mockingbird - Harper Lee

Juicy Reads Summer Sisters - Judy Blume (on bookshelf) Anything Janet Evanovich (on bookshelf)

Gathering Dust On Shelf (Bring On The Chocolate!) The Carbohydrate Addict's Diet - Rachael Heller (on bookshelf) Dr. Atkins' New Diet Revolution - Dr. Robert Atkins (on bookshelf)

Two authors new to me:

Sarah Caudwell, who wrote British mysteries featuring Professor Hilary Tamar. I just finished my second one and am enjoying them so much. Very dry and funny.

Philippa Gregory, I'd never read any of her books before, but I found The Constant Princess at the used bookstore, and really liked it. I have another on my shelf I'm looking forward to delving into.

Two books I never expected to like:

Middlesex. I am not an "Oprah" book reader, and this one didn't sound like anything I'd like. But it was extremely well-written! One of the best books I've read this year, actually.

The Red Tent. I'm probably the last person in the Western Hemisphere to read this book, but it just didn't seem like my kind of thing. Again, I was wrong--it was quite good.

Two (non-fiction) books that I think everyone should read (actually, I think everyone should read more non-fiction, period!):

The Worst Hard Time, about the Dust Bowl and the Great Depression. We have no idea how blessed we are in the 21st century!

The Ghost Map, about a cholera outbreak in Victorian London and what it taught a few close observers.

New to me: Waiting for the 400: A Northwoods Noir :: Kyle Marffin

Faves: Storm Front (Dresden Files, Bk 1) (Jim Butcher) Dead Until Dark (Southern Vampire, Bk 1) (Charlaine Harris) Eyes of the Virgin (Thomas F Monteleone)

Blue Moon (Lori Handeland) Abby Cooper (Psychic Eye, Bk 1) (Victoria Laurie)

Thanks for starting this.  I just added a bunch of books to my WL, esp from your list, Janelle.  And I sure agree with the Red Tent and your comment about reading more non-fiction.  But, I was never able to finish The Children's Blizzard, even though L.G. assured me a couple of times that there are some redeeming qualities later on in the stories.