I Am the Messenger by Markus Zusak

Nineteen year old Ed Kennedy doesn't have much going for him. He drives a taxi, is in love with a girl who doesn't love him, spends his spare time playing cards with friends and is bad at sex. After stopping a robbery at a bank he and his friends were in, he starts receiving playing cards in the mail. Aces to be exact, and written on each card is three things. Three tasks he must complete, messages he must deliver, and in each of these tasks he finds that maybe he isn't so useless after all.

Not as good as The Book Thief. Some of the places he had to go and messages he had to deliver were pretty hard to read about, but the book is written in a way that keeps you reading to see what happens and how everything is going to play out. It was a 5 star book until the end. It totally confused me and I had to reread it a couple of times. I'm still not too sure I understood it.

4 stars

In the Shadow of Gotham by Stefanie Pintoff

Sarah Wingate is found brutally murdered in her aunt's home and Dobson, New York in 1905 and police detective Simon Zeile is called in to investigate. No one saw anything, but everyone reports hearing the same blood curdling scream at the exact time Sarah was killed. In the early stages of the investigation, Zeile is contacted by Alistair Sinclair, a professor at Columbia University and founder of a group of criminologists at the school. He believes he knows who killed Sarah, but as the investigation proceeds, every clue eludes Zeile, Sinclair and his team. Why was Sarah Wingate killed and what is her connection to the person Sinclair believes killed her? And are Sinclair's motives truly in the best interest of the investigation? Zeile must discover this and come to his own conclusions if he hopes to solve a brutal murder that is not as simple as it seems.

Pretty good story. The only reason it didn't get 5 stars was because of all the corrupt political sidelines that seemed to be thrown in for no reason. The book ends with some questions unanswered and leaves it wide open to a sequel, which I hope does happen because this has a lot of potential. Good thriller. Check it out.

4 stars

Kane and Abel by Jeffrey Archer

Two very different men from very different backgrounds, try to fulfill their dreams and destiny in the banking/hotel world and along the way develop a hate for each other that may cause them both to lose it all.

William Kane, son of a wealthy banker, follows in his father's footsteps, attending Harvard and going into the family banking business. Abel Rosnovski, of Polish descent, survives Russian war camps and a journey to the "New World", America, to make a better life for himself. Kane continues in his father's footsteps where Abel eventually ends up running a hotel empire. However through one misunderstood event, they cannot get past the deep seated hatred they have for each other as each tries to ruin the other. All of their choices and misconceptions come to a head when Abel's daughter falls in love with Kane's son, neither having any idea of what the truth really is anymore.

5 stars

Assassination Vacation by Sarah Vowell

Author Sarah Vowell has a morbid fascination with Presidential assassinations. In her book, Assassination Vacation, she explores three that interest her the most, President's Lincoln, Garfield and McKinley. From following the path John Wilkes Booth took after fleeing the Ford Theater that fateful night, to going on a tour of the city of Oneida, where in the 1800's the members practiced a kind of "free love" way before its time, she takes you along on the trip.

The very long, boring trip. If you are into history then I think you would really enjoy this book. It had me laughing out loud at some parts, but it is mostly about presidential history, and history was never my big interest. I did find out about a website to check out from reading this book: www.FindAGrave.com. And there were some funny anecdotes that I will be using, but I am glad I didn't buy it.

2 stars

The Last Child by John Hart

Johnny Merrimon's life was turned upside down when his twin sister vanished without a trace on her way home from school. His mother blamed his father, who was supposed to pick her up, causing him to leave, his mother became addicted to pills and alcohol thanks to the supposed family "friend", Ken, who was all too eager to take over her life when her husband left and owns most of the town, they lost their home, and are living in a home Ken gave them, and can take away whenever he feels like it.

Johnny has never been able to stop looking for his sister, even though the police have. While out one day by the town creek, he sees a man run off the bridge by a car, and the man's final word's are "I found her. I found the girl. Run", which Johnny does. He is convinced the man was talking about his long missing sister, even though when he returns home he finds out that another girl has been snatched in broad daylight. As the police try to find the girl, Johnny takes on his own search, to find the missing girl who will hopefully lead him to his sister's whereabouts. He takes to his bike where he checks up on pedophiles, and any other avenue he can think of. But when the truth is finally revealed, it is far from anything Johnny could ever imagine.

This was so much better than Down River. Even though I figured out who it was, it was still a great book. A little unbelievable that a 13 year old kid is riding around on his bike checking up on the town perverts, but still suspenseful. If you like a good thriller, check this one out.

4 stars

The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman

As a toddler, Nobody Owens escapes from the man who murdered his parents and sister and is taken in and raised by the ghosts of a graveyard. Under the teaching and stories of its inhabitants, his adopted "parents" and his guardian, Silas, he earns the Freedom of the Graveyard, learns how to do the same things as ghosts, such as how to Fade and Haunt, and gradually learns the fate of his original family and why his keepers and guardian are so protective of him.

This was pretty weird but entertaining. I love the chapter Danse Macabre, I kept picturing the Thriller video, and it is a quick easy read. Pretty bizarre, but amusing enough to keep you reading.

4 stars

Tender Graces by Kathryn Magendie

Virginia Kate Carey goes home to the hills of West Virginia after her mother passes away to confront her past. Going through her mother's things brings back memories of her childhood, of the mother who gave her and her two brothers to their father with no qualms and no desire to see them again,who would rather drink than take care of her family, and the secrets every member of the Carey family tried to keep carefully hidden. Is it possible to to confront your past without it consuming you? Virginia Kate is about to find out.

This was an amazing book. I didn't have much hope for it since it was free on the Kindle, I figured that was because it wasn't too great but I was so wrong. Great story about families, siblings, secrets, and betrayal. Deeply moving, a bit supernatural sometimes but not enough to notice, and at times had me shaking my head at the things these characters went through. Virginia Kate and her family will stay with me for quite awhile.

5 stars