The Associate

The Associate
by: John Grisham

This does read somewhat like The Firm; which isn't necessarily a bad thing. I liked The Firm.

There is a guy, at the end of law school. He gets blackmailed to spy. The usual Grisham stuff ensues.

The very beginning was good; the story got too tense; I didn't like the subject matter; didn't know if I could keep on, so I read the end!
Yes, i did, and I am glad. It helped me to feel better, understand, I kept reading and really enjoyed the book. Kerry is so against reading the end of books (at the beginning of your reading), but I really don't like the tension. I like to fast forward in the tense part of movies.

If you are a Grisham fan, you will like this book.

The Sleeping Beauty Proposal

The Sleeping Beauty Proposal
by: Sarah Strohmeyer

I didn't enjoy this book as much as my last Sarah Strohmeyer.
This one was readable, ok.

This 36 year old woman has had the same boyfriend for 4 years. Desperately wants to marry him. He proposes on National TV! But the proposal is for someone else. He has been cheating on her.

She chooses to pretend to everyone that she really is engaged. It drives her ex crazy. It is a funny (kind of) premise.

The Cinderella Pact

The Cinderella Pact
by: Sarah Strohmeyer

I found this book to be funny and refreshing. I knew nothing about this author, so I was pleasantly surprised.

It is about 3 girl friends, all over weight. They all decide to really lose the weight and they all do it in a different way. It is written with a lot of humor and reality. The main character is also a writer for a magazine and feels discriminated against until she "applies" for a job as someone else and gets that job also. She ends up being her own editor of her made up job applicant.

Easy, light, entertaining read.

Band of Brothers

I had to read this book for a technology leadership class. I had to pick 2 out of a list of 10 or so, and this looked interesting. HBO also has a series of about 7 episodes that I have heard are very good of this movie.

I enjoyed this a lot more than I thought I would. It gave me a good appreciation for what soldiers went through in World War II to keep the world safe, and I got the feeling that the author worked really hard to get all the details as accurate as possible. It comes highly recommended.

My suggestion is to read the first couple pages or so. If you don't like it, then you probably won't like the rest of the book. His style of writing stays pretty same through the whole thing.

The Summer Guest

The Summer Guest
by: Justin Cronin

I really enjoyed this book.
Easy read.
Each chapter is from a different character's perspective. I really liked that.

At the end of WW2 a family buys this huge "camp". It stays in the family. People frequent this camp year after year. It does not make tons of money, but barely enough. Now the Vietnam war is an issue, the son has been drafted, but because his father is very powerful and begs the boy not to go, his father sends him to Canada.

There are many interesting stories in this book. I would recommend it.

It does end too abruptly for me, though. Be ready.

The Christmas Sweater

The Christmas Sweater

by: Glenn Beck

Yes, THE Glenn Beck, interesting, huh?

It was good. Very much like Richard Paul Evans.

This is based on a true story of Glenn getting a knitted sweater one year for Christmas. The story jumps off from there. It has interesting insights; some good lessons.

I really liked at the end where he explains what was real and not and why.

If you know of a troubled teen in your life. Read this book, it could help you to understand their moodiness.

The Outcast

The Outcast

by: Sadie Jones

It had such potential!

It was so full of sadness, wickedness, more sadness, yuck!

I finally skipped about to find out what happens in the story.

I wish at the back of books there would be a simple plot line! If you liked the book, it wouldn't hurt. If you didn't like the book, it would help you hurry through it.

Sadly, for Sadie, don't read it.

Ok, a little plot: a boy loves his mother; father is just coming home for WW2, boy doesn't remember the father, the family has a hard time getting along, life gets worse, the mother drowns, the boy gets more frustrated and depressed, the father remarries, things get worse, the boy goes to jail, things get worse, eventually the boys goes to some form of "the army", and another sad girl goes away to boarding school.

Hmm, why did I pick up this book?

Friday Night Knitting Club

The Friday Night Knitting Club

by: Kate Jacobs

I thought my review would have been great.....but sadly, it is a disappointment.

I have learned how to knit in this last year, I heard lots of whisperings about this book, so I got it. The first 50 pages were a bit blah, it took a while for me to find interest in these characters - but then I did and I really enjoyed what I was reading. I also enjoyed the knitting aspects.

The problem came with the end, which was like being slammed into a cement wall that you don't see coming. Why, why would the author do this? It just yanks on your emotions for a thrill for the author. Makes me mad! Then come to find out that there really is a walker and daughter place in Manhattan, there is a web page. Then you wonder, oh, my, do these people really exist?? I am now thinking NO! The author just wanted to write a book with a shocking, movie ending (think steel magnolias). Then make sure there is a website to get more people involved in the fictional life. Really, it would have been much better to have a different ending, to be able to expand the story in subsequent books.

Just so you know: it is about a young girl, finds she is pregnant, the father runs away, she is left to figure it all out. She loves knitting, does projects for people, opens up a shop, things go better. She is a hard working woman. She meets other women in her yarn shop - we get to know all those women. The story continues.....until it yanks your head back.

There is a sequel.

But don't worry. Julia Roberts has bought the rights to this movie, and I believe it is supposed to be out 2010. I don't think I will watch it, or I will, I'll just leave early. I don't enjoy crying at movies.

Betrayal

Betrayal

by: John Lescroart

I have read all of his books. They are usually very good. The front half of this one - HARD - but by the back half, all the front half was helpful in the understanding of the plot.

This was a hard book. the first 2/3's are all about the War in Iraq; the soldiers, the people who are over there trying to rebuild, getting contracts to do so. It was not a nice look at any of it. There was some information that I didn't want. I would like to know if it is true. Obviously, the author was VERY against the war and what has happened after. But, how much of what he wrote is true, and how much is just his opinion? That was a bug.

Then the last 1/3 of the book, we finally get to his usual characters. There is a crime, a lawyer. Will it all be soved correctly?

I enjoyed that last part of the book, but because of the hard first part, I can't reccommend it. Who wants to read about people doing bad things, taking advantage, wasting our money. It was sick.

Rush Home Road

Rush Home Road
by Lori Lansens

I really enjoyed this book. It takes you to another world and place.

You get to hear the story of an old, black woman who lives in a trailer park. She has a neighbor, a little girl, whose mother really doesn't want her. The two are put together and a sweet love and friendship begin. I really enjoyed reading this story.

It is about choices we make, what love can overcome, choose the right, choose to be kind. It is never too late to reach out and be there for someone else.