The Cluttered Corpse by Mary Jane Maffini

The Cluttered Corpse by Mary Jane Maffini

My rating: 3 of 5 stars
My main criticism/observation from the first book in this series was that the main character, Charlotte, never finishes an organizational job during the book. In fact, I finished my review for Organize your Corpses by saying, "Perhaps Charlotte will be able to finish a job in the next book? Ha ha!" Well, imagine my surprise to discover the same thing happens in this book too! I just don't get it. Again, Charlotte is interrupted during a big job with a mystery, so that explains the hold up on the big job. But, she never actually finishes any other job either. This is really striking me as odd for a series with organization as a theme. Am I the only one bothered by this? I guess I just expect a little more from Charlotte than I've been given thus far. Of course, I enjoy the books overall and will continue with the series, despite this random concern. The author does throw in a lot of organizational tips, but I'd kind of like to see her complete a job from start to finish as well as help solve a mystery. Am I asking for too much here? :/

I did find parts of the mystery a little obvious to solve and other parts impossible to solve until the reveal. I had no reason to suspect who was behind everything and how it all came together, which can be both good and bad. I liked that it was a surprise, but I don't like that I had no chance of solving the case before Charlotte. What can I say? I'm competitive with these fictional sleuths and I want a chance to beat them at their own game. :)

Bring Your Own Poison by Jimmie Ruth Evans

Bring Your Own Poison by Jimmie Ruth Evans

My rating: 3 of 5 stars
While the mystery of this book isn't as exciting as I would have liked, there are a lot of character developments that help make up the difference. In fact, the only plot points that I recall with clarity have to do with the main characters and what is happening in their lives. It's only been 3 days since I've read this book and I find it is difficult to recall who did what, how, and why. I wouldn't say it's poorly written, but the character developments definitely overshadow the mystery for me. I look forward to reading more in this series, despite not loving this installment.

Love is a Mix Tape by Rob Sheffield

Love Is a Mix Tape: Life and Loss, One Song at a Time by Rob Sheffield


My rating: 4 of 5 stars
I loved the concept behind this book. Rob is a music fan and he uses music to tell his story. It was funny, sad, touching, and real. I would love to have a play list of all the songs mentioned at the beginning of each chapter so I could really connect to Rob's experiences. There were many great quotes that will end up in my quote book. In particular, the chapter that deals with Kurt Cobain's music and death was fantastic. It was a thought provoking chapter for me. However, there was one chapter that did nothing for me and that's why I gave it 4 out of 5 stars. Otherwise, it was a really good book that I would recommend to anyone that has ever made a mix tape. :)

The Mysterious Benedict Society by Trenton Lee Stewart

The Mysterious Benedict Society by Trenton Lee Stewart


My rating: 3 of 5 stars
Overall, I liked it. I think comparisons to Harry Potter and Lemony Snicket are ambitious, but I enjoyed the story for the most part. Personally, I'm not sure it needs to become a series. I will read the next one just to see how it goes, but I'm not foreseeing an addiction. The children were cute and I liked their interactions with Mr. Benedict. Once they were away from him, however, I was no longer in love. I loved the selection process in the beginning and following along to see how the children solved the problems in their own ways. But, the second half of the book didn't really do much for me. As I said, however, I will give book 2 a chance even though I'm not sure it will be worth it. If you have an appropriately aged child in your life, however, by all means give this story a shot. It has enough adventure to keep a child interested and enough new vocabulary to make a parent or teacher feel good about them reading it.

Remains of the Dead by Wendy Roberts

The Remains of the Dead by Wendy Roberts


My rating: 5 of 5 stars
I did not want to put this one down! This is not a light, cozy read but it was very engrossing. If you can't sit through an episode of CSI, however, you will probably want to skip this book. It is more descriptive of crime scenes than pretty much any book I've ever read and the crime scenes are far from pleasant. But, I loved the main characters and the storyline. I thought some of the clues were very obvious along the way, but missed a big one that was revealed in the final chapter. Kudos to the author for that last chapter because it was fantastic. I was already quite pleased with how things happened, but then I was pleasantly surprised to find just one more twist. If this is the author's first book, I am more than impressed and I expect great things to come from her. I look forward to reading more in this series. Excellent first book in a series and highly recommended for anyone that likes mysteries with a little bit of the paranormal and that doesn't mind a little gore. :)

Merciless by Richard Montanari

Merciless: A Novel of Suspense by Richard Montanari


My rating: 3 of 5 stars
Normally, I don't read this type of mystery novel, but it was recommended to me by someone at a garage sale and I thought I'd give it a try. I can say it was good, but not a favorite. It's harder than the cozy mysteries I tend to read, which is to be expected, but I think it contributed to why I wasn't in love with it. I really enjoyed the fairy tale angle and would like to see that theme more often. I recently ordered a Grimm's Fairy Tale book because they are amazing to read as an adult, especially in a more pure form than say Disney would allow. The descriptions of the area were really good and I thought the plot was strong. I think if I venture into harder mysteries in the future, I will look this author up and see what else he has to offer. :)

Organize Your Corpses by Mary Jane Maffini

Organize Your Corpses by Mary Jane Maffini


My rating: 3 of 5 stars
I have to say, there was a lot less organizing than I was expecting. I'm fairly certain Charlotte didn't finish a single job during the book! Of course, one job was suspended because of the mystery, so I can forgive that. But, she was also helping other clients and they never actually finished the jobs. How odd! There are plenty of organizational tips thrown in though, so it's not a big deal. It just struck me as funny that Charlotte never actually finished a job during the book. Anyway, I enjoyed this book. For the most part, I liked the dialogue, the characters, and how they interacted with one another. I think the author waited a little too long before really diving into the reveal and I don't think we were given enough clues along the way to see how Charlotte figured it out. The reveal also requires one to suspend a lot of disbelief, in my opinion. That said, I still enjoyed the book enough to want to continue with the series. Perhaps Charlotte will be able to finish a job in the next book? Ha ha!

Cooking Up Murder by Miranda Bliss

Cooking Up Murder by Miranda Bliss


My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Overall, I really liked this book. I liked Annie and Eve quite a bit. After reading a review or two, I noticed Eve wasn't as popular as Annie. Personally, I know people like Eve in real life, so she seemed very real to me. Additionally, I just like the idea of 2 friends working together to solve a mystery. I've always thought that if I were to become an amateur detective in real life, that I'd have to work with a friend. I would need that other person to bounce ideas off, if nothing else. Plus, I would feel safer if I had a friend with me when dealing with possibly dangerous situations. :) Now, my biggest problem with the book was the ending. It wasn't as strong as I would have liked, but it wasn't bad. I think the author was a touch lazy about some of the finer points when it comes to believability, but it wasn't so unrealistic that I felt dissatisfied by it. A big plus, though, is that one of the recipes supplied at the end of the book sounds really good and I think I'm actually going to try it. (It's bacon pinwheels... Honestly, the name alone sounds great to me!) I look forward to reading more in this series and I have a feeling they will get better with each installment. :)

Where There's a Witch by Madelyn Alt

Where There's a Witch by Madelyn Alt


My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Overall, I really like this series a lot. There were some really good things happening in this particular installment, especially in the romance department. If there's one thing I hate about the Stephanie Plum series, it's that Stephanie doesn't progress with either of the men in her life. I find that so irritating, that I no longer look forward to reading the series. However, I'm pleased to see that this series isn't following that same pattern. It appears as though Maggie is making a little more headway in her love life and I'm glad to see it. I can only take so much waffling between men before I lose sympathy for your situation.

The biggest negative? It has to be the clues for the reveal and how the main characters never seem to figure things out until it's too late. I figured out who did the crime long before all of the clues made sense. But, they made sense to me a LONG time before they made sense to the characters, which I found a little disappointing. However, I did enjoy the ending a lot more than I thought I would. So, even though the main characters seemed a little dense at times, I felt more than satisfied with how it all went down. I look forward to reading more in this series and I hope the author continues to let Maggie's love life develop. :)

Under the Rose by Diana Peterfreund

Under the Rose: An Ivy League Novel by Diana Peterfreund


My rating: 4 of 5 stars
I'm just a sucker for this series already! Even when things seem a bit far-fetched, I still find myself not wanting to put it down. In this installment, we're still following Amy's journey at Eli college and the drama she's involved in with her secret society membership. This time there's a traitor that is leaking information that could be potentially damaging and it is having a huge impact on all of the society members. I felt really bad for Amy a few times because it seemed like so many people in her life were not what they seemed. On the negative side, I had a little trouble suspending my disbelief at some things at times. In the first novel, for some reason, it all seemed totally plausible to me. But, this time around, I was a little surprised at some of the things I was expected to swallow. However, it was entertaining and I look forward to reading more of this series. Even if we can no longer follow Amy and the established characters, I would still be interested. :)

Soon I Will Be Invincible by Austin Grossman

Soon I Will Be Invincible by Austin Grossman


My rating: 3 of 5 stars
This book just didn't grab me as much as I thought it would. I did enjoy the story from the villain's point of view, at least to some degree. But, I think the author should have used a different hero to tell the story. When I was done, I was very disappointed with Fatale's story and just didn't care for her or her thoughts. I would have enjoyed the story much more from Lily's or Damsel's point of view. I don't know. It just wasn't what I was expecting and I was a bit disappointed. I can see that the author spent a lot of time thinking about characters and what they would be like. But, I think he missed the mark on execution and motivations, just a bit. I believe this was the author's first novel, however, and I would like to revisit him in the future when he's had a little more time to hone his craft. I see a lot of potential in his work and would like to see him develop.

My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Picoult

My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Picoult


rating: 2 of 5 stars
Yet again, this book is very well crafted but I didn't fully connect to the characters. Maybe because I waited so long to read it, it also seemed quite a bit predictable. I'm sure hearing what a tear jerker it is set me up to remain a little detached while reading. The closest I came to tearing up was the epilogue, but the tears never fell. I'm at a bit of a loss with this author. Obviously, she takes her craft seriously and I respect that. But, I'm just missing out on the emotional ride she's trying to take me on. I don't mind the multiple voices or the dramatic twists at the end. However, I hate that I'm not emotionally invested enough to truly care what happens to any of the main characters. At the very end, I'm more concerned about how the lawyer and his dog turn out than anyone and that's not what I should feel. I think I'm going to take a break from trying to read any more of her books right now. Oh well. :(

Breaking Dawn by Stephenie Meyer

Breaking Dawn by Stephenie Meyer

rating: 1.5 of 5 stars
The ending was pretty weak, if you ask me. Overall, it was probably the most disappointing book in the series, even though it had some of my favorite parts.



SPOILERS BELOW!





YOU'VE BEEN WARNED!





I was very happy to see that Bella finally became a vampire. I figured she would have a baby before becoming a vampire while reading the third book, so that wasn't a surprise for me. I knew her dream about the Volturi meant they would be visiting at the end. I also guessed that they were visiting to try and have the Cullens, particularly the baby, join their ranks. It was obvious that Alice would pop up in the end to help save the day. Oh and can I just say that Reneesme is the dumbest name EVER? I hated it. I also disliked the ending because it was pointless. The Volturi show up, with their biggest numbers ever, and then nothing happens? One vampire dies and that's it? There was no fighting? Nothing? Really!?!?! Lame. Sorry, Ms. Meyer, but I wanted more. Ugh. Oh well. At least Bella became a great vampire and that's better than nothing. :)

Eclipse by Stephenie Meyer

Eclipse by Stephenie Meyer


rating: 2 of 5 stars
Okay, I like the series well enough, but I wasn't a huge fan of this installment. I don't understand how anyone can be Team Jacob! I don't like his character much at all in this one. He's a bit of a jerk and I don't see his appeal for Bella. If I were to compare this love triangle to the Stephanie Plum/Joe/Ranger one... Well, on second thought, there isn't much of a comparison. I like both Joe and Ranger and I think they each have pros and cons. I can clearly see the cons for Edward and Jacob, but I was really not seeing enough pros for Jacob. Sorry! Truthfully, there aren't a lot of negatives for Bella choosing Edward either, in my opinion. I don't know. Well, now on to the next book in the series and I have to say, I'm kind of glad I'm almost done with it all. I will never feel the way about the Twilight series that I felt about Harry Potter. Oh well.

A Tisket, a Tasket, a Fancy Stolen Casket by Fran Rizer

A Tisket, A Tasket, A Fancy Stolen Casket by Fran Rizer


rating: 5 of 5 stars
I really loved this book! I liked that the main character works in the funeral business because it's a bit quirkier than usual. I love that her best friend is blind, wonderfully flawed, and holds an unusual job as well. I enjoyed the mystery and most of the resolution. There were a lot of references to other books, or shout-outs if you will, and I liked that. There was very little that I didn't like about the book. It was a little bit quirky, a lot of fun, and even a little informative at times. The main characters were fleshed out nicely and I can't wait to read more of this series. I feel like I'm totally gushing, but I really did enjoy it and it's nice to be so excited about a series again. :)

Ghouls Just Haunt to Have Fun by Victoria Laurie

Ghouls Just Haunt to Have Fun by Victoria Laurie


rating: 5 of 5 stars
I loved it! I've enjoyed this series from the beginning and this installment was fantastic. I liked the change in scenery, I liked the plot, the action, just about everything. I was a little disappointed by one aspect of the reveal, but the rest of it was so good, that I can totally overlook it. (I wanted to know more about someone that played a big part in the mystery. Don't worry, I won't spoil it for you!) There was a new character introduced that I liked very much. It sounds like the author has also found an interesting way to keep things moving with upcoming books. I can't wait for more in this series! :)

Recipe for Murder by Lisa Harris

Recipe for Murder by Lisa Harris


rating: 1 of 5 stars
If I had noticed that this was a Christian mystery novel, I never would have requested it from paperbackswap.com. But, as it stands, I didn't notice it and it's a shame. I don't mind a little bit of religion in novels, but I need for it to be VERY subtle. However, in this case, the author even mentions in her blurb that she sees writing as an extension of her ministry. For me, that is NOT a good thing. It was far too preachy for me and I just did not like the book. If you enjoy mysteries with a Christian theme, then you will likely love this book. If you don't enjoy that, then just steer clear and save yourself the trouble. I wish I hadn't read it. I hate leaving such a negative review for a book, but it can't be helped in this case. Sorry!

Vanishing Acts by Jodi Picoult

Vanishing Acts: A Novel by Jodi Picoult

rating: 3 of 5 stars
This is a beautifully written and crafted novel, but I did not find myself as drawn in as I should have. For some reason, I did not connect emotionally to most of the characters. However, it is such a well crafted novel that I still enjoyed myself and didn't have any trouble finishing it. There is a strong chance that I will read another novel by this author in the future, even though I did not LOVE this book like so many others.

Night of the Loving Dead by Casey Daniels

Night of the Loving Dead by Casey Daniels


rating: 4 of 5 stars
Wow! I think this is my new favorite book in the series. I will admit that it was just a touch slow in the beginning and that I was worried that it wasn't going to live up to my expectations. Thankfully, I was very wrong! It quickly picked up and I soon found it difficult to put the book down. We finally get to learn a lot about Dan, which I really appreciated. I've been waiting for more of his story for way too long. :) Now I'm really looking forward to more in this series.

A TV Guide to Life by Jeff Alexander

A TV Guide to Life: How I Learned Everything I Needed to Know From Watching Television by Jeff Alexander



rating: 2 of 5 stars
I wanted to like this book more than I actually did. It wasn't bad, just not quite what I was expecting either. I've been a TWoP follower for a few years now, so I had an idea of what to expect from a writer on the site. Unfortunately, for me, the book didn't quite deliver as much as I was thought it would. It started off quite strong, but seemed to lose momentum as it progressed. There were a few laugh out loud moments though, so it definitely wasn't a total loss. I wanted to say that I loved it, but in truth, I thought it was okay. Not bad, but not great either. However, I feel the book was targeting an age range that is just a little older than I am, which could explain my slight disappointment. So if you were alive for more than just a few days of the 70's, you will likely enjoy this book more than I did. :)

Extras by Scott Westerfeld

Extras by Scott Westerfeld


rating: 4 of 5 stars
First of all, I must confess how much I love this series overall. I find the series to be fast paced, entertaining, and thought-provoking. Tally's story in the first 3 installments really captured my imagination. However, I was just a little disappointed with this installment. My disappointment is really very minor. I think I had expectations about the book that worked against me. I expected that the main character would be from the same part of the world as Tally. I expected that Tally would play an important role or none at all. Of course, some of my expectations were exceeded as well. For example, I would expect a futuristic Japan to be extremely technologically advanced and the author had some interesting ideas on that. I really enjoyed that exploration. At the end of the day, here's what I think happened. The "trilogy" was extremely popular and people wanted more. So, the author finally gave in to pressure and expanded the series. He was smart and chose a new character's story to tell and found a way to keep established ideas and people in it as well. Brilliant, really. But, I wanted something either entirely different or very similar to the previous stories. I did not really want a mix of the two, which is what happened. I imagine 99% of the fan base will love that approach, but I was mildly disappointed with it. Oh well. I still liked the book a lot and I love the series enough to recommend it to young adults and older adults, as well. I am curious to see how others react to the book and what the author will do next.

Kilt Dead by Kaitlyn Dunnett

rating: 4 of 5 stars
My biggest complaint about this book is that it ended very abruptly. I turned the last page fully expecting to see at least another paragraph or chapter, but that wasn't the case. Another small complaint is that I figured out who the bad guy was very early on and it was starting to get annoying that they weren't figuring it out in the book. But, overall, I really enjoyed it. I will definitely read the next book in the series, no doubt about it. I hope the characters evolve a little and that should make for a very good sequel. :)

Books Read in 2008

While I didn't keep up with my monthly summaries here, I did manage to update my list with the books I finished.

1. I Am America (and So Can You!) by Stephen Colbert 1/4/08
2. The Chick and the Dead (A Pepper Martin Mystery) by Casey Daniels 1/08/08
3. Lean Mean Thirteen (A Stephanie Plum novel) by Janet Evanovich 1/14/08
4. Body Movers by Stephanie Bond 1/22/08
5. I'd Tell You I Love You, But Then I'd Have to Kill You by Ally Carter 1/26/08
6. Bad Heir Day by Wendy Holden 2/02/08
7. Sorcery and the Single Girl by Mindy Klasky 02/08/08
8. Girl Walking Backwards by Bett Williams 02/13/08
9. The Idiot Girls' Action-Adventure Club by Laurie Notaro 2/17/08
10. Tell Me Lies by Jennifer Crusie 2/22/08
11. Grecian Holiday by Kate Cann 2/25/08
12. Confessions of a Teen Sleuth by Chelsea Cain 2/27/08
13. Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer 3/02/08
14. Tombs of Endearment by Casey Daniels 3/09/08
15. Uglies by Scott Westerfeld 3/15/08
16. Bright Lights, Big Ass: A Self-Indulgent, Surly, Ex-Sorority Girl's Guide to Why It Often Sucks in the City, or Who are These Idiots and Why Do They All Live Next Door to Me? by Jen Lancaster 03/27/08
17. Getting the Boot (S.A.S.S) by Peggy Guthart Strauss 04/03/08
18. The Places In Between by Rory Stewart 04/18/08
19. Pretties by Scott Westerfeld 4/23/08
20. Cashed In by Jackie Chance 5/9/08
21. Death by Chick Lit by Lynn Harris 05/15/08
22. The End of America: A Letter of Warning to a Young Patriot by Naomi Wolf 05/22/08
23. Specials by Scott Westerfeld 06/01/08
24. The Sound of Munich (SASS) by Suzanne Nelson 06/04/08
25. Karma Girl by Jennifer Estep 06/09/08
26. Crazy Aunt Purl's Drunk, Divorced, and Covered in Cat hair by Laurie Perry 06/15/08
27. What's a Ghoul to Do? by Victoria Laurie 06/21/08
28. A Killer Stitch by Maggie Sefton 06/27/08
29. Demons Are a Ghoul's Best Friend by Victoria Laurie 07/01/08
30. How to Be a Villain: Evil Laughs, Secret Lairs, Master Plans, and More! by Neil Zawacki 07/07/08
31. The Trouble With Magic by Madelyn Alt 07/26/08
32. A Charmed Death by Madelyn Alt 08/09/08
33. If I Am Missing Or Dead by Janine Latus 08/13/08
34. Baggage by Emily Barr 08/23/08
35. Testing Kate by Whitney Gaskell 09/01/08
36. A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini 09/06/08
37. Devil in the Details by Jennifer Traig 09/11/08
38. 50 Ways to Hex Your Lover by Linda Wisdom 09/27/08
39. Angel at Troublesome Creek by Mignon F. Ballard 10/01/08
40. An Angel to Die For by Mignon F. Ballard 10/07/08
41. Magic and the Modern Girl by Mindy Klasky 10/16/08
42. Shadow of an Angel by Mignon F. Ballard 10/23/08
43. Witch Way to Murder by Shirley Damsgaard 10/30/08
44. Flamingo Fatale by Jimmie Ruth Evans 11/06/08
45. Too Late for Angels by Mignon F. Ballard 11/13/08
46. Such a Pretty Fat by Jen Lancaster 11/19/08
47. Dead Cat Bounce by Sarah Graves 12/14/08
48. With or Without You by Carole Matthews 12/21/08
49. Hex Marks the Spot by Madelyn Alt 12/27/08

Altogether, I finished 49 books in 2008. I was a little disappointed with the final tally, but I had a hard time focusing on books. I think I just had a lot on my mind and found it difficult to concentrate on reading. Luckily, I think I'm getting back into reading a bit so I'm looking forward to finishing more books this year.

The best part about the books I did finish though is that I loved almost all of them. So while I may not have had the quantity I was looking for, I did have the quality I wanted. :)

End of Year Stats

I have a slight obsession with keeping track of how many times I go to the post office and how much money I spend there on my books and DVDs. For the record, swapadvd.com wasn't a factor in 2007, so that alone can partially explain why I spent more money in 2008. Anyway, without further ado, here are my end of year stats:

2008
January: 20.42
February: 14.69
March: 23.30
April: 15.48
May: 20.33
June: 21.97
July: 9.80
August: 12.53
September: 9.84
October: 30.29
November: 12.92
*December: 1.85
Total: $193.42
Total trips to the post office: 35

* My shelf was on hold for most of the month because I went out of town. Otherwise, that number would have been higher. It also had a big impact on January 2009's numbers. Trust me.

2007
January: 6.84
February: 8.67
March: 37.65
April: 9.06
May: 18.30
June: 29.79
July: 5.90
August: 14.44
September: 19.89
October: 6.41
November: 11.69
December: 18.06
Total: $186.70
Total trips to the post office: 41

So, there you go. It's actually rather fascinating if you ask me. It's neat to see that July is consistently a cheap month for me while March stayed on the high side. The difference between October 2007 and October 2008 is crazy too! I don't know why this fascinates me so much, but it does. To be honest, I haven't been posting books as much as I used to either. I have quite the pile of books just waiting to be posted, but with the current state of the economy, I'm hesitant to post too many at once. Spending money is one of my least favorite activities really. So, I am letting them pile up a bit more than I'd like in the meantime. The good news is that I still have plenty of credits and stacks of new (to me) books and DVDs. :)

Still around

Gee, what's this? Another neglected blog that I started? Say it isn't so!

I've really got to get better at updating these things. /big sigh

Today, I did my calculations for 2008 to see how many times I went to the post office to feed my PBS and SaDVD habits and how much money it cost. The final numbers are in! I went to the post office 35 times and spent over $190! Amazing, isn't it? In 2007, I went to the post office 41 times but spent less money. I will dig out the final totals later and promptly die a little on the inside.

Well, no, I love the swapping sites because I get so many new (to me) books to read and movies to watch and it's really much cheaper. I only read 49 books in 2008, but if I'd paid retail for them? Holy crap, that would have been a lot of money! Even a conservative estimate of $7 per book puts me in the $340 range. So, while I'm always a little shell shocked when I add up my yearly totals, it only takes a few minutes to calm down and realize that's it's not so bad. Plus, I joined Swapadvd.com in 2008 and I received some awesome movies. For example:

• Season 1 of House
• Seasons 1 and 2 of Nip/Tuck (season 1 was still in the original wrapper!)
• Season 1 of Strangers With Candy
• Juno
• Into the Wild

Plus, some others titles for me and family members. But, honestly, I got some great shows and movies for rather cheap. So, thank you PBS and SaDVD for letting me feed my habits for much cheaper than retail! You rock!