readinggeek has high hopes for 2020!!!
Discussions50 Book Challenge
Rejoignez LibraryThing pour poster.
2readinggeek
1. Death in the Air: The True Story of a Serial Killer, the Great London Smog, and the Strangling of a City by Kate Winkler Dawson
Oddly enough, the smog part of the book was more interesting to me. I had never heard about the London smog "outbreaks," so I was fascinated by how things were.
Oddly enough, the smog part of the book was more interesting to me. I had never heard about the London smog "outbreaks," so I was fascinated by how things were.
3readinggeek
2-4. I Am Not a Serial Killer, Mr. Monster, and I Don't Want to Kill You by Dan Wells
I'd read these before, but chose to reread because I'm getting ready to read the final three installments in the John Wayne Cleaver series. These are good, fast reads that are pretty enjoyable.
I'd read these before, but chose to reread because I'm getting ready to read the final three installments in the John Wayne Cleaver series. These are good, fast reads that are pretty enjoyable.
4readinggeek
5. Lock Every Door by Riley Sager
I have thoroughly enjoyed all of Sager's books, and this was no exception. It did go a bit "off the rails" near the end, but it kind of worked given the overall storyline. I'm looking forward to his next book.
I have thoroughly enjoyed all of Sager's books, and this was no exception. It did go a bit "off the rails" near the end, but it kind of worked given the overall storyline. I'm looking forward to his next book.
5readinggeek
6. Let Me Lie by Clare Mackintosh
I really like Clare Mackintosh and thoroughly enjoyed this book. The ending was a bit "in your face," but it didn't ruin my overall enjoyment.
I really like Clare Mackintosh and thoroughly enjoyed this book. The ending was a bit "in your face," but it didn't ruin my overall enjoyment.
6readinggeek
7. The Eyes of Darkness by Dean Koontz
I've been a Koontz fan for years but had never read this book. It's one of his early ones; in fact, he wrote it under a pseudonym. I actually picked it up because of all the press I'd read about there being a Chinese virus mentioned in it. That was there, but the underlying storyline was more disturbing for the American government connection.
I've been a Koontz fan for years but had never read this book. It's one of his early ones; in fact, he wrote it under a pseudonym. I actually picked it up because of all the press I'd read about there being a Chinese virus mentioned in it. That was there, but the underlying storyline was more disturbing for the American government connection.
7readinggeek
8. The Twisted Ones by T. Kingfisher
I was impressed by roughly the first two-thirds of the book. Unfortunately, I felt that things went a bit "off the rails" with the ending.
I was impressed by roughly the first two-thirds of the book. Unfortunately, I felt that things went a bit "off the rails" with the ending.
9readinggeek
10. Arguing with Socialists by Glenn Beck
I love politics and Glenn Beck, so there was a lot of information in this book I already knew. There is, however, a lot of stuff that I think would surprise a lot of people.
I love politics and Glenn Beck, so there was a lot of information in this book I already knew. There is, however, a lot of stuff that I think would surprise a lot of people.
10readinggeek
11-13. The Devil's Only Friend, Over Your Dead Body, and Nothing Left to Lose: A Novel by Dan Wells
These are the last three installments in the John Wayne Cleaver series. I reread the first three books earlier in the year, and I have to say Dan Wells did something that doesn't happen all that often: he managed to improve the series. It's still gory, but very entertaining.
These are the last three installments in the John Wayne Cleaver series. I reread the first three books earlier in the year, and I have to say Dan Wells did something that doesn't happen all that often: he managed to improve the series. It's still gory, but very entertaining.
11readinggeek
14. The Haunting of Hill House - Shirley Jackson
The book really showcases Jackson's writing skills. She definitely knew how to turn a word/phrase, and there are some of the best-written descriptive passages I've ever read. That being said it was not a scary read. It was creepy at best, but was well worth the read.
The book really showcases Jackson's writing skills. She definitely knew how to turn a word/phrase, and there are some of the best-written descriptive passages I've ever read. That being said it was not a scary read. It was creepy at best, but was well worth the read.
12readinggeek
15. History Decoded: The 10 Greatest Conspiracies of All Time by Brad Meltzer
Nothing like reading about a good conspiracy theory - or ten of 'em - during this time in history.
Nothing like reading about a good conspiracy theory - or ten of 'em - during this time in history.
13readinggeek
16. The Chestnut Man by Soren Sveistrup
The story revolves around a serial killer who leaves a chestnut man as his calling card at the scene of each brutal killing. The murders are bad enough, but the chestnut men found at the scenes throw an even bigger wrench in the works. The problem? They all have the same identifiable fingerprint on them, but it belongs to the kidnapped, presumed-dead daughter of a government minister. What's more is the two lead detectives don't really get along and don't really want to be there. Thulin, single mom with an independent streak, wants to be transferred to a computer forensics unit. Hess, formerly of Europol but reassigned to his old job because of a screw-up, is just treading water until he gets back into the right people's good graces.
The story can get a bit hard to keep straight in places, and the writing is a bit "stilted" at times. I wonder, however, if that's because it's an English translation from the original Danish. Overall, I'd recommend it. It is pretty graphic in places, so the squeamish need not apply.
The story revolves around a serial killer who leaves a chestnut man as his calling card at the scene of each brutal killing. The murders are bad enough, but the chestnut men found at the scenes throw an even bigger wrench in the works. The problem? They all have the same identifiable fingerprint on them, but it belongs to the kidnapped, presumed-dead daughter of a government minister. What's more is the two lead detectives don't really get along and don't really want to be there. Thulin, single mom with an independent streak, wants to be transferred to a computer forensics unit. Hess, formerly of Europol but reassigned to his old job because of a screw-up, is just treading water until he gets back into the right people's good graces.
The story can get a bit hard to keep straight in places, and the writing is a bit "stilted" at times. I wonder, however, if that's because it's an English translation from the original Danish. Overall, I'd recommend it. It is pretty graphic in places, so the squeamish need not apply.
14readinggeek
17. The Boy Who Followed His Father into Auschwitz: A Story of Family and Survival by Jeremy Dronfield
When Austria fell to Germany, Jewish father and son Gustav and Fritz Kleinmann were arrested and sent to the Buchenwald concentration camp. When Gustav was selected for transfer to Auschwitz, Fritz insisted he accompany his father, even though a transfer to that concentration camp spelled certain death.
The book's core is definitely the story of Gustav and Fritz, who spent nearly six years moving from concentration camp to concentration camp, but it also follows the lives of their family left behind in Vienna: wife/mother Tini and the three other Kleinmann children - Edith, Herta, and Kurt.
This true story reads like a work of fiction, and no one can fault Dronfield when it comes to his research skills. Judging from the notes and resources listed at the end of the book, he left no stone unturned in his quest to tell this story. Also, Gustav's diary, which he kept during his time in the concentration camps, helped Dronfield show the experience from a prisoner's perspective.
My only criticism of the book, however, is that there is really not much to the "after" part of the story. Four of the six family members survived the events of WWII, and two - Edith and Kurt - were sent to England and America, respectively, to escape the horrors. With all that, I would have expected more than a few pages to wrap up everything. That being said, the book is well worth the read.
When Austria fell to Germany, Jewish father and son Gustav and Fritz Kleinmann were arrested and sent to the Buchenwald concentration camp. When Gustav was selected for transfer to Auschwitz, Fritz insisted he accompany his father, even though a transfer to that concentration camp spelled certain death.
The book's core is definitely the story of Gustav and Fritz, who spent nearly six years moving from concentration camp to concentration camp, but it also follows the lives of their family left behind in Vienna: wife/mother Tini and the three other Kleinmann children - Edith, Herta, and Kurt.
This true story reads like a work of fiction, and no one can fault Dronfield when it comes to his research skills. Judging from the notes and resources listed at the end of the book, he left no stone unturned in his quest to tell this story. Also, Gustav's diary, which he kept during his time in the concentration camps, helped Dronfield show the experience from a prisoner's perspective.
My only criticism of the book, however, is that there is really not much to the "after" part of the story. Four of the six family members survived the events of WWII, and two - Edith and Kurt - were sent to England and America, respectively, to escape the horrors. With all that, I would have expected more than a few pages to wrap up everything. That being said, the book is well worth the read.
15readinggeek
18. The Hunting Party by Lucy Foley
A group of college friends meet each year to ring in the new year. This year they are spending a few days at an isolated 50,000-acre estate in the Scottish Highlands. Everything is fun and games until old - and some new - wounds are opened. When one of the party goes missing and is later found dead, it's anyone's guess who is responsible. Plus, a crippling snowstorm has made it impossible for the authorities to help, and did I mention there's possibly a serial killer nearby? Who can be trusted?
The story is what is called a locked room mystery and is told from the point-of-view of five different characters: Miranda is the beautiful, vivacious one. Katie is Miranda's "less than" best friend. Emma is the newbie - her boyfriend is one of the original pack - trying too hard to belong. Heather is the estate manager. Doug is the estate's gamekeeper. (There are other characters in the story, but they are only seen through the eyes of these five.)
The story opens with Doug having found a body, but the reader doesn't know who is dead. Alternating between the group's arrival a few days ago and current time, everything becomes clear, including who is dead and who did it.
I was with the story until the last 50 pages or so. The narrators are not the most reliable in the world, and the author leans pretty heavily on convenient events to wrap things up. It wasn't a bad read overall, so I'll give her new book The Guest List a try.
A group of college friends meet each year to ring in the new year. This year they are spending a few days at an isolated 50,000-acre estate in the Scottish Highlands. Everything is fun and games until old - and some new - wounds are opened. When one of the party goes missing and is later found dead, it's anyone's guess who is responsible. Plus, a crippling snowstorm has made it impossible for the authorities to help, and did I mention there's possibly a serial killer nearby? Who can be trusted?
The story is what is called a locked room mystery and is told from the point-of-view of five different characters: Miranda is the beautiful, vivacious one. Katie is Miranda's "less than" best friend. Emma is the newbie - her boyfriend is one of the original pack - trying too hard to belong. Heather is the estate manager. Doug is the estate's gamekeeper. (There are other characters in the story, but they are only seen through the eyes of these five.)
The story opens with Doug having found a body, but the reader doesn't know who is dead. Alternating between the group's arrival a few days ago and current time, everything becomes clear, including who is dead and who did it.
I was with the story until the last 50 pages or so. The narrators are not the most reliable in the world, and the author leans pretty heavily on convenient events to wrap things up. It wasn't a bad read overall, so I'll give her new book The Guest List a try.
16readinggeek
19. Night by Elie Wiesel
Another true account of going through the concentration camps. Wiesel went through the camps with his father, but his experience was very, very different from the father/son experience in The Boy Who Followed His Father into Auschwitz (my #17 read of 2020). Absolutely heartbreaking.
Another true account of going through the concentration camps. Wiesel went through the camps with his father, but his experience was very, very different from the father/son experience in The Boy Who Followed His Father into Auschwitz (my #17 read of 2020). Absolutely heartbreaking.
17readinggeek
20. Animal Farm by George Orwell
While it was published in 1945 and is a satire of Stalinist Russia, this novel definitely has one foot - if not both - firmly planted in 2020. Basic summary: The farm animals decide to take over Farmer Jones' Manor Farm. Renaming it Animal Farm and adopting the Seven Commandments of Animalism, everything is supposed to be better for the inhabitants. And it would be if not for the pigs, led by Napoleon.
While it was published in 1945 and is a satire of Stalinist Russia, this novel definitely has one foot - if not both - firmly planted in 2020. Basic summary: The farm animals decide to take over Farmer Jones' Manor Farm. Renaming it Animal Farm and adopting the Seven Commandments of Animalism, everything is supposed to be better for the inhabitants. And it would be if not for the pigs, led by Napoleon.
18rocketjk
>16 readinggeek: Night is definitely a depressing, horrifying classic. I've also read, and highly recommend, The Gates of the Forest, The Fifth Son, and Dawn.
20readinggeek
22. Hunting Eichmann: How a Band of Survivors and a Young Spy Agency Chased Down the World's Most Notorious Nazi by Neal Bascomb
Adolph Eichmann was an SS officer who many credit with being the mastermind behind the Holocaust. After the war, he eventually settled in Argentina. In 1960, Mossad agents captured him, taking him to Israel to stand trial for his crimes against the Jewish people. He was found guilty and hanged.
The book is an absolutely fascinating read. It's one of those true stories that reads like top-notch fiction.
Adolph Eichmann was an SS officer who many credit with being the mastermind behind the Holocaust. After the war, he eventually settled in Argentina. In 1960, Mossad agents captured him, taking him to Israel to stand trial for his crimes against the Jewish people. He was found guilty and hanged.
The book is an absolutely fascinating read. It's one of those true stories that reads like top-notch fiction.
21readinggeek
Thanks for the recommendations, rocketjk!
22rocketjk
>20 readinggeek: You're welcome. Also, I read this Eichmann book a couple of years back, and you're right, it's fascinating and very well written.
23readinggeek
23. Local Girl Missing: A Novel by Claire Douglas
Sophie Collier disappeared 18 years ago. The only clue: one of her tennis shoes found at the end of a rundown pier. The explanation: she accidentally fell into the sea after a night of partying.
When human remains wash up on the beach all these years later, most think they are Sophie's and that the matter can now be put to rest. Her brother Daniel, however, is convinced it was foul play, not an accident, that killed his sister. He contacts Sophie's best friend Francesca "Frankie" Howe to help him prove this.
In the 18 years since Sophie's disappearance/death, Frankie has moved on. She's married, divorced, made a name for herself in the business world, etc. In fact, she hasn't been back to her hometown in ages and isn't crazy about going back now. But she owes Sophie and was one of the last people to see her alive.
After arriving, Frankie begins to see Sophie's ghost, receives anonymous notes alluding to a secret from Frankie and Sophie's teenage years, faces people from her past who are as unhappy to see her as she is to see them, and becomes increasingly paranoid.
The book is told in what I call "dueling chapters." One chapter is told by Frankie in current time, helping with the "investigation." The next chapter is an entry from Sophie's journal, written the summer she disappeared. The two dovetail to tell the whole story of what happened then and what's happening now.
I enjoyed the book, but I kind of thought I knew how it was going to end. There were some twists and turns and many red herrings along the way, but nothing was too complicated or confusing.
Sophie Collier disappeared 18 years ago. The only clue: one of her tennis shoes found at the end of a rundown pier. The explanation: she accidentally fell into the sea after a night of partying.
When human remains wash up on the beach all these years later, most think they are Sophie's and that the matter can now be put to rest. Her brother Daniel, however, is convinced it was foul play, not an accident, that killed his sister. He contacts Sophie's best friend Francesca "Frankie" Howe to help him prove this.
In the 18 years since Sophie's disappearance/death, Frankie has moved on. She's married, divorced, made a name for herself in the business world, etc. In fact, she hasn't been back to her hometown in ages and isn't crazy about going back now. But she owes Sophie and was one of the last people to see her alive.
After arriving, Frankie begins to see Sophie's ghost, receives anonymous notes alluding to a secret from Frankie and Sophie's teenage years, faces people from her past who are as unhappy to see her as she is to see them, and becomes increasingly paranoid.
The book is told in what I call "dueling chapters." One chapter is told by Frankie in current time, helping with the "investigation." The next chapter is an entry from Sophie's journal, written the summer she disappeared. The two dovetail to tell the whole story of what happened then and what's happening now.
I enjoyed the book, but I kind of thought I knew how it was going to end. There were some twists and turns and many red herrings along the way, but nothing was too complicated or confusing.
24readinggeek
24. United States of Socialism by Dinesh D'Souza
There's too much information in the book for me to sum it all up and do it any kind of justice, but his explanation of Scandinavian versus Venezuelan socialism is worth the purchase price alone.
There's too much information in the book for me to sum it all up and do it any kind of justice, but his explanation of Scandinavian versus Venezuelan socialism is worth the purchase price alone.
25readinggeek
25. Devolution: A Firsthand Account of the Rainier Sasquatch Massacre by Max Brooks
I loved World War Z, so I had high hopes for this book. It wasn't as good as that one, but it was definitely a page-turner. I thought there were some plot holes - mostly at the end. I found the idea of being completely dependent on technology almost as terrifying as being attacked by a horde of angry Sasquatches.
I loved World War Z, so I had high hopes for this book. It wasn't as good as that one, but it was definitely a page-turner. I thought there were some plot holes - mostly at the end. I found the idea of being completely dependent on technology almost as terrifying as being attacked by a horde of angry Sasquatches.
26readinggeek
26. Force of Nature (Aaron Falk #2) by Jane Harper
I liked The Dry, so I expected Harper to do a good job. I wasn't disappointed, and I really appreciated that Falk and Carmen didn't take their partnership to the "next level." How tired a plot twist would that have been?
I liked The Dry, so I expected Harper to do a good job. I wasn't disappointed, and I really appreciated that Falk and Carmen didn't take their partnership to the "next level." How tired a plot twist would that have been?
27readinggeek
27-29. Parasite, Symbiont, and Chimera by Mira Grant
Overall, I liked this trilogy. It wasn't anywhere near as good as the Newsflesh Trilogy, but it definitely held its own.
Overall, I liked this trilogy. It wasn't anywhere near as good as the Newsflesh Trilogy, but it definitely held its own.
