March books

Nothing much happening in otterevilland, so just books :)

Nonfiction:
James Herriot's Dog Stories by James Herriot
The Joy of Writing Sex by Elizabeth Benedict
Frontier by Louis L'Amour

SF/Fantasy:
Red As Blood by Tanith Lee
Chicks In Chainmail
Crystal Rain by Tobias Buckell
Ragamuffins by Tobias Buckell
The Service of the Sword by David Weber et al

Mystery/thriller:
Dead Hunt by Beverly Connor
Nameless Night by G.M. Ford
The Murderer's Club by P.D. Martin
Double Cross by James Patterson
A Homecoming For Murder by John Armistead
Mission Canyon by Meg Gardiner

Fiction:
Nineteen Minutes by Jodi Picoult

Teen:
The Night Room by E.M. Goldman

reviews up at otterevilreads

3 mystery/thrillers and a general fiction

A Homecoming For Murder by John Armistead - Sheriff Bramlett is looking forward to spending some quality time with his grandson, but work interferes. The body of a male school teacher is found murdered in a graveyard - and it turns out the deceased wasn't the nicest guy, which makes for lots of suspects. Bramlett is especially concerned as his grandson may have seen and been seen by the murderer leaving the scene. More of a procedural than a thriller, lots of homey small town touches, and several side plots make a nice solid read. (A to Z)

Mission Canyon by Meg Gardiner - I got this one and the first Evan Delany based on a rave review by Stephen King. Not sure I like them quite as much, but they are good. Evan's lover Jesse was paralysed below the waist in the same hit and run that killed his best friend several years ago. Now it looks like the driver, who fled the country, is back. But his return stirs up more than Jesse and Evan - a computer company, a Russian mobster, and the Feds are all putting pressure on Evan and Jesse to make them stop hunting the driver or else. (888)

Nineteen Minutes by Jodi Picoult - School shooting aftermath. I liked it - and I didn't. Some of the characters were very well done - a good look into the effect bullying can have. Some of the characters were just caricatures (and were meant to be) and were irritating in a way that made it easy to put the book down. And it felt tedious. Lionel Shriver's We Need To Talk About Kevin was better.

all books: 100 books

three SF and a teen

Crystal Rain by Tobias Buckell - Kind of hard to explain :) But I'll try. A nice mix of cultures transplanted to a new world, combined with the destruction of the technology that brought them there, results in a retreat to frontier times. But an enemy bent on subjugation and sacrifice mean forcing an amnesiac to retrieve his memories to regain needed technology. I did enjoy it after I got past the Caribbean patois, which threw me for a bit. (A to Z)

Ragamuffins by Tobias Buckell - sequel but much more typically SF. Spaceships and guns :)  The aliens who control most of the galaxy have decided that humans need to be eliminated. Humans, of course, fight back.  A young woman, Nashara, has been implanted with a virus that could help take down the computer networks of the aliens' minions - but her survival afterwards is uncertain. The two books connect when the wormholes between the worlds are reopened, allowing the planet on one end and the ships on the other to seek help from each other.  I'll be looking for more from Buckell definitely!

The Service of the Sword by David Weber et. al - a Worlds of Honor story collection. I love Honor Harrington and her universe. Several excellent military sf authors offer up stories. Good stuff.(888)

The Night Room by E.M. Goldman - A group of high school students are offered a chance to to participate in "Argus", a VR program that lets you see yourself 10 years in the future at their high school reunion. The only problem is that one of them isn't alive. So the group decide to try to stop one's future death, which may have been planned by a vengeful computer hacker. Characters start off fairly stereotypical, but develop real personalities as the story goes on. Entertaining, but not essential. (YAC)

all books: 100 books

2 nonfiction

The Joy of Writing Sex by Elizabeth Benedict - I got this years ago, back when I was still writing fanfiction. Mine tended to be a bit naughty :)  Benedict isn't interested in porn here, but using sex scenes to further plot and/or characterization. She includes quotes from authors she interviewed, plus excerpts from books. Mostly read this to get it off my TBR pile, but it was okay. (888, BAM)

Frontier by Louis L'Amour - Read this for the Every Month a Holiday challenge(see links) - L'Amour was born in March.  This book is a series of essays on the frontier - but not just what is typically considered the frontier. L'Amour looks at all of the US as a frontier - as it was when people first started exploring. I love his writing - and his love for the wild parts of the country are obvious. The accompanying photographs by David Muench are gorgeous. (emah)

both: 100 books (halfway! 52 books)