Grimm's Fairy Stories By: Jacob & Wilhelm Grimm

What a cool set of stories!  Having grown up on the watered down version of a lot of the Grimm's tales, is was really exciting to read the originals. Since I did know the more popular stories, it was really fun to read the ones I'd not heard of before.  These are very dark, but also oddly sweet stories.  Great fun!

Serial Killers: Six Bloody Fantasies Vol. 1 By: Ryan Becker

There is something refreshing to be said for a book that just lays it all out there.  While I'd read/heard about all 6 of these cases previously, it was kind of cool to have all the "artifice" stripped away and the facts laid bare.  No psychobabble, no in depth look into things we already know.  Becker calls it like it is: fucked up childhood, horrific abuse, lead these people to repeat the pattern on a grander scale-no let's have sympathy for the hand they were dealt.  They had horrific childhoods, they did horrific things and they are being punished for it!  Now of course, I may have been particularly in need of a no bs kind of read after the awful book I just finished plodding through, but I really enjoyed this one!

Timebends: A Life By: Arthur Miller

I have to say I was pretty mortified by how much I disliked this book.  I was excited to read it because I knew nothing about Arthur Miller except of the fact that he wrote my favorite pay and was married to Marilyn Monroe.  I figured an autobiography from such a great writer would be endlessly fascinating.  Instead, I found this book plodding, and incredibly boring.  I still no nothing about Arthur Miller!  I bounces around with no discernible pattern, there is little to know information about the author, but several mini-biographies about the people he came in contact with-most of whom I know about because I've read their autobiographies or biographies.  Very disappointing.

Use of Force By: Brad Thor

Picking up a Brad Thor thriller is like visiting old friends.  It may have been a while, but it's like no time has passed!  Use of Force is a pulse pounding story that moves around the globe and manages to keep multiple story lines clearly defined and easy to follow, and the ending is oh so satisfying!

To Brew or Not to Brew By: Joyce Tremel

While I really loved the brewing processes and the characters, I did figure out who did it, how and why.  I also figured out the heartfelt ending.

The Drifter By: Nick Petrie

Holy crap is this a great book! An intriguing protagonist, amazing characters, and an amazing plot.  And Mingus-can't forget Mingus!!!!  A former marine with major PTSD arrives in town to assist the widow of one of his buddies, and this simple gesture sends him on a thriller of a ride (literally and figuratively).  An amazing start to what I'm sure is going to be an amazing series!

Mystery of the Flying Express By: Franklin W. Dixon

While Joe and Frank are always the stars of this series, this particular entrant really belongs to Chet.  Adding a zodiacal twist to the mystery, Chet gets to shine in this twisted tale of a new boat, missing boat parts and a kidnapping.

The Disappearing Floor By: Franklin W. Dixon

The scientific shenanigans in this, the 19th outing for Joe & Frank Hardy, were so innovative and integral to the plot.  A fun jaunt through the woods, a haunted mansion and floors that aren't where they are supposed to be!

The Twisted Claw By: Franklin W. Dixon

This is the first Hardy Boys mystery where I was disappointed with the ending.  I felt it wrapped up too quickly and conveniently, as opposed to the others.  I felt it lost it's main thread, so it went downhill for me about midway through.

The Secret Warning By: Franklin W. Dixon

A cane, a sunken ship, and a missing Egyptian bust all conspire to send the Hardy Boys (and Chet) to a a haunted island and the depths of the ocean in 17th installment of this series.  A fun, twisted adventure!

Two Trains Running By: August Wilson

Set in a restaurant on a block that's about to be destroyed by the city, we get the low down on the denizens of this neighborhood.  With Wilson's inimitable blunt style, this play puts you in the restaurant and into the lives of it's inhabitants, the town, and the world. August Wilson's African-American play cycle is the most astonishing collective piece of work out there.  Each play stands on it's own as brilliant writing, drama/comedy, and together they form a history of America that is beautifully rendered, with all of it's love, ugliness, truth and beauty.

The Hollywood Book of Scandals By: James Robert Parish

After reading several heavy books, I needed something light that didn't require thought, and this served it's purpose well.  I'm a hug fan of Hollywood gossip (not ashamed to admit it), and while I've read about most of these cases previously, I still found some wonderful gobbits of dish that I din't know before.  Great fun!

A Figure in Hiding By: Franklin W. Dixon

I can't remember a Hardy Boys Mystery with this many twists and turns!  A great ride with Frank & Joe (with a healthy assist from Chet!).  What starts as a simple mission of getting background for their Dad, turns into the hunt for a missing statue, a search for a dangerous gang, and figuring out what to do with the glass eye!  Great fun!

The Day the World Came to Town: 9/11 in Gander, Newfoundland By: Jim Defede

A gorgeous and moving collection of stories about the "plane people" and the volunteers in Gander and surrounding towns in Newfoundland on 9/11 and the subsequent 5 days.  There is good in the world...it's hard to remember that (especially these days), but reading this book will remind you!

The Malta Exchange By: Steve Berry

History, mystery, intrigue, action...these are a few of my favorite things.  Steve Berry has done it again, and with his usual brilliance.  A long lost document that could destroy the Catholic Church is being hunted by several people, and all hunting paths lead to the storied/historic island of Malta.  Breathtaking locales, non-stop action and amazing gobbits of history make this one of Berry's best!