Pretty Baby

Fiction by Mary Kubica.


https://www.barnesandnoble.com

The author says she started this book with an image: A teenage girl is standing in the rain holding a baby. She is in the middle of the city and appears homeless. A nice middle-class lady who works at a charity sees her. What will she do?

This was a really good thriller that  had interesting characters and held a few plot surprises.


I also read by this author: The Good Girl

Vinegar Girl

Fiction by Anne Tyler.


https://www.barnesandnoble.com

This is a retelling of Shakespeare's The Taming of the Shrew, or "Kiss Me Kate," if you prefer the musical version. It's really fun to read, and much more lighthearted than Anne Tyler's usual style.

(Although her usual style is fabulous, of course.)

Also, this cover is terrible. The copy I read had a slightly better one. (Image from penguinrandomhouse.com)



I also read recently by this author: A Spool of Blue Thread

Remember When

Fiction by Nora Roberts and J.D. Robb


https://www.barnesandnoble.com

Guess what? Nora Roberts and J.D. Robb are the same person! Nora Roberts is a romance writer who also pens futuristic crime novels under the pen name J.D. Robb.

How can you co-author a book with your own pseudonym? Well, she did it! Boggles the mind, doesn't it?

This book was actually pretty clever. The idea is: Part One is a straight contemporary romance, with a mystery involving a jewel heist thrown in. Then Part Two is set over fifty years in the future, with J.D. Robb's recurring detective Eve Dallas, and concerning some of the same (still missing) jewels.

It was a fun read.


I also read recently by this author: Year One

Rabbit Cake

Fiction by Annie Hartnett.


https://www.barnesandnoble.com


Here's another book I chose because I liked the title, AND the cover. I'm so shallow sometimes!

It's an interesting character story about a girl coping with her mother's unexpected death. It was set in Alabama but managed not to be all super-Southern about it, which I liked.

The People We Hate at the Wedding

Fiction by Grant Grinder.


https://www.barnesandnoble.com

I'll admit it: This is one of those books I chose just because of the title. Isn't that title fabulous? (To see other books I chose for this ridiculously shallow reason, click here.)

It's about an American brother and sister who travel to England to attend their fabulously wealthy half-sister's wedding. (Obviously the half they share with her is the non-wealthy one.) It was a good premise and I initially liked the repartee between the gay brother and the clever sister.

Unfortunately, I grew to hate the characters more and more as it went on. They stopped being witty and started being petty. I don't know. It just wasn't any fun to read.

The Attachments

Fiction by Rainbow Rowell.


https://www.barnesandnoble.com

This was a nice romance, set at the turn of the century. The twenty-first century, I mean. Who around here is old enough to remember Y2K? Anyone?

Well, the main character here is a tech support guy at the end of 1999, which was a tough time to be the tech support guy. Fortunately, our hero is completely adorable and finds love with the girl of his dreams.

Whoops! Is that a spoiler? I don't think so. It's a ROMANCE. They ALWAYS find love at the end. You read it for the journey to the true love. And this book has a charming journey.

I seriously love Rainbow Rowell!



I also read recently by this author: Landline

The Whispering Room

Fiction by Dean Koontz


https://www.barnesandnoble.com/

This is the sequel to The Silent Corner, which I read recently. It's just as good as the first one, and I'm dying to read the third installment... but it has not yet been released, unfortunately.

I've mentioned before about planned series books in which you can tell the author is stretching out the action to fit more than one book. This is NOT one of those. Mr. Koontz NEEDS at least three books to tell this story.

By the way, it's kind of scary. Evil forces threatening the  entire world and all that jazz... but I'm sure it will be all right in the end. Probably.