Casey Sherman
2003
ISBN 0-446-61468-8
The nephew of the Strangler's last victim, Mary Sullivan, Sherman was introduced to the tragedy by his mother as a teenager, learning that she never believed Albert DeSalvo - the man the State chose - did it.
Deciding to unearth the truth, Sherman starts his own investigation, growing more determined as the authorities refused to co-operate or share what they knew, and even refused to show at scheduled meetings. Using the media to force the state to help, Sherman makes enough headway to prove that DeSalvo was not the Boston Strangler, and leaves the state with two important questions to answer: who did kill all those women, and who is going to be blamed for letting convenient politics get in the way of justice?
Date Finished: 19/02/08
Year Total: 7
Sunday, February 24, 2008
Son of a Witch
Gregory Maguire
2005
ISBN 0-06-08994-2
Following on from Wicked, this story follows the son of the Wicked Witch of the West, Liir, and his journey from vague child to man.
Starting in the middle and recounting Liir's travels from the Witch's mountain castle to the depths of the most notorious prison in Oz, to the squelchy, wet south, where he must face who he could be and what his obligations are.
It's been a while since I read Wicked, and found that I missed having a map to figure out where things were. Most of the characters were easy to remember, although there wasn't much of the sense of meeting old friends, and the ending suggested that there will be another chance to meet them again in another book.
Date finished: 13/02/08
Year Total: 6
2005
ISBN 0-06-08994-2
Following on from Wicked, this story follows the son of the Wicked Witch of the West, Liir, and his journey from vague child to man.
Starting in the middle and recounting Liir's travels from the Witch's mountain castle to the depths of the most notorious prison in Oz, to the squelchy, wet south, where he must face who he could be and what his obligations are.
It's been a while since I read Wicked, and found that I missed having a map to figure out where things were. Most of the characters were easy to remember, although there wasn't much of the sense of meeting old friends, and the ending suggested that there will be another chance to meet them again in another book.
Date finished: 13/02/08
Year Total: 6
Wednesday, February 6, 2008
Ocean's End
Colin Woodard
2000
0-465-01571-9
From the Black Sea to the Southern Ocean, Woodard has travelled the seas, talking to anyone he could along the way. Everyone told him the same thing, which he has turned into a compelling and disheartening book: the oceans are in a bad way and getting worse.
While there are accounts of beautiful coral reefs and unique wildlife, ultimately this book filled me with despair. Written in 2000, several predictions have already been fulfilled, most notably the disastrous effects a full force hurricane would have on New Orleans. It seems the rest is coming true as well, at a slower rate.
I learnt a lot from this, and really wish it was required reading for everyone; a good dose of environmentalism is clearly what is needed, and this book delivers in spades.
Date Finished: 06/02/08
Year Total: 5
2000
0-465-01571-9
From the Black Sea to the Southern Ocean, Woodard has travelled the seas, talking to anyone he could along the way. Everyone told him the same thing, which he has turned into a compelling and disheartening book: the oceans are in a bad way and getting worse.
While there are accounts of beautiful coral reefs and unique wildlife, ultimately this book filled me with despair. Written in 2000, several predictions have already been fulfilled, most notably the disastrous effects a full force hurricane would have on New Orleans. It seems the rest is coming true as well, at a slower rate.
I learnt a lot from this, and really wish it was required reading for everyone; a good dose of environmentalism is clearly what is needed, and this book delivers in spades.
Date Finished: 06/02/08
Year Total: 5
Thursday, January 31, 2008
Murder Most Fab
Julian Clary
2007
I admit it - I love Julian Clary. Or at least, I loved his Christmas pantos that were on when I was a kid. Although I knew I missed most of the jokes, they were still fun, and I was expecting much of the same here.
Johnny D's life just seems to happen; he stumbles onto a lucrative career as a male prostitute, and from there to being rich and famous, all seemingly without effort or intent - much like the way he kills.
Much of this book shocked me - it's been a while since I read anything so blatant - and towards the end I was starting to really dislike everyone involved, but as Johnny realised what Catherine had done I surprised myself by agreeing with him: I could see the humour in it all as well, even while thinking that it was horribly wrong.
Date Finished: 31/01/08
Year Ended: 4
2007
I admit it - I love Julian Clary. Or at least, I loved his Christmas pantos that were on when I was a kid. Although I knew I missed most of the jokes, they were still fun, and I was expecting much of the same here.
Johnny D's life just seems to happen; he stumbles onto a lucrative career as a male prostitute, and from there to being rich and famous, all seemingly without effort or intent - much like the way he kills.
Much of this book shocked me - it's been a while since I read anything so blatant - and towards the end I was starting to really dislike everyone involved, but as Johnny realised what Catherine had done I surprised myself by agreeing with him: I could see the humour in it all as well, even while thinking that it was horribly wrong.
Date Finished: 31/01/08
Year Ended: 4
Saturday, January 26, 2008
The Athena Factor
Michael Gear
2005
ISBN 0-765-35023-8
DNA. Everyone who has seen a crime show knows how easy it is obtain. So why is there a group going to extraordinary - and well-publicised - lengths to gain the DNA of Hollywood's glittering elite? Oscar winner Sheela Marks is one of the targets, and it's her security team, Lymon Bridges and Christal Anaya who must find out why.
While bits of this story annoyed me - Anaya is so perfect that every man who sees her wants her - the story itself is compelling enough that I was happy to overlook the cliches. It moves along at a good pace, and has a good blend of humour and action. While there were long, detailed explanations about genetics, they were easy to absorb, and even made the story feel more movie-like.
The ending was like the rest of the book - realistic enough to be very slightly unsatisfactory, but more importantly, this book makes you think, and presents a worrying future.
Finished: 19/01/08
Year Total: 3
2005
ISBN 0-765-35023-8
DNA. Everyone who has seen a crime show knows how easy it is obtain. So why is there a group going to extraordinary - and well-publicised - lengths to gain the DNA of Hollywood's glittering elite? Oscar winner Sheela Marks is one of the targets, and it's her security team, Lymon Bridges and Christal Anaya who must find out why.
While bits of this story annoyed me - Anaya is so perfect that every man who sees her wants her - the story itself is compelling enough that I was happy to overlook the cliches. It moves along at a good pace, and has a good blend of humour and action. While there were long, detailed explanations about genetics, they were easy to absorb, and even made the story feel more movie-like.
The ending was like the rest of the book - realistic enough to be very slightly unsatisfactory, but more importantly, this book makes you think, and presents a worrying future.
Finished: 19/01/08
Year Total: 3
Sunday, January 13, 2008
Trade Me: The Novel
Geoff Vause
2006
ISBN 978-0-473-11476-3
I thought this book would be a quick, fun read about something that has become part of kiwi life: buying and selling on Trade Me, with all that goes with it.
Unfortunately it started off with promise and started going downhill from there. I'm not sure if it's been written specifically for Aucklanders (of which I am not one), but I found things sliding from uncomfortable to silly to ludicrous.
Date Finished: 12/01/08
Year Total: 2
2006
ISBN 978-0-473-11476-3
I thought this book would be a quick, fun read about something that has become part of kiwi life: buying and selling on Trade Me, with all that goes with it.
Unfortunately it started off with promise and started going downhill from there. I'm not sure if it's been written specifically for Aucklanders (of which I am not one), but I found things sliding from uncomfortable to silly to ludicrous.
Date Finished: 12/01/08
Year Total: 2
The Vampyre
Tom Holland
1995
ISBN 0-7515-1361-X
Byron, one of the romantic figures in history, plagued by rumours, supposition and his own moody temperament, has long been the main ingredient for writers of vampire fiction, and although I was expecting something equally as common and cliched here, I've read another book by Holland on vampires that was impressive, so I was more optimistic with this one.
Date Finished: 10/01/08
Year Total: 1
1995
ISBN 0-7515-1361-X
Byron, one of the romantic figures in history, plagued by rumours, supposition and his own moody temperament, has long been the main ingredient for writers of vampire fiction, and although I was expecting something equally as common and cliched here, I've read another book by Holland on vampires that was impressive, so I was more optimistic with this one.
Tracing Byron's first Tour of Europe, we discover how he comes to his death and rebirth, and his struggles with what he becomes. He becomes the Emperor of the vampires, ruling them from Venice while he wiles away lives and people, eventually giving in to his dissatisfaction with his life.
I found this book relatively tedious, and the fact that it's related as a story to another character, complete with extra quote marks, became irritating. The ending was no ending at all, and the story in general did nothing but make me wonder if Polidori was bad enough in real life to warrant the persecution from various authors.
I'm pleased I read this book, as average as it was, because it has underlined how much I like Holland's first book, but I don't think I'll read any more fictional books about Byron; it seems he's too obvious a subject.
Date Finished: 10/01/08
Year Total: 1
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