Dime Store Magic by Kelley Armstrong
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
I actually really enjoyed this book in spite of not liking Paige all that much originally. I really did feel for her character and the trials she was going through, both literally and figuratively in this novel. Lucas is just about one of my favourite characters introduced in this series. These books a really well written, and detailed without it being a little too much.
Stolen by Kelley Armstrong
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
I really enjoyed this book a lot.
There were parts of it however which seemed to drag on for me, perhaps due to just a little too much detail for my appetite.
I found myself wanting more action, but that does not mean the writing is bad. It’s actually rather fantastic, and as always I am amused to see parts of Canada mentioned as well as the travel between two countries. I did also find the new characters rather interesting, but found myself wanting more of Clay, Jeremy and Elena.
The Keepsake by Tess Gerritsen
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
I don’t know that there will ever be a book by Tess Gerritsen that I don’t truly enjoy, because this one I certainly did. While some of the more gruesome seems were a bit too much for my overactive imagination. I just love the way I always end up researching things outside the novel, wanting to know more about them.
The Mephisto Club by Tess Gerritsen
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
This book took me quite a bit longer than the others in this series to read, in part because it was so rich in detail and in part because I was so fascinated by the religious history, and the mythological history in it that I frequently stopped to further research what was being talked about, wanting to know more.
I think that is one of the things that makes a book like this a really great book, it leaves you wanting to know more about some of the source material, therefore leaving it’s mark on you further than just any old novel.
I loved the different concepts of evil which were played with in this novel, from sociopathic tendencies to the possibility of Satanic possession. The weakness of Maura isles was completely fascinating to me, as it showed a lot of frailty to a character who often seems to make the best decisions based purely on logic.
Vanish by Tess Gerritsen
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
This is more chilling than any of the books that came before it and the crimes, so realistic, and sickening. And sadly, do happen in real life quite frequently although not quite with the same connections.
It was interesting to me to see the shift with Gabriel and Jane, as well as Isles’ analytical mind. There are few words to express how well I feel this book was written.
Body Double by Tess Gerritsen
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
This book absolutely terrified me, but I loved it completely.
It was chilling, and often nauseating because of the subject matter but I was driven through it, needing to know what would happen and how it would end.
I do feel terribly sorry for Isles though, who doesn’t seem to catch a break at all when it comes to relationship, but loved the revelation of family, and the value of nurture over nature. This was a fantastic read .
The Sinner by Tess Gerritsen
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
This was the first glance we got to see of the cases through Maura Isles’ eyes and man do I love her as a character. S
he’s enjoyable, analytical but seems to have more of a heart than anyone would give her credit for.
It was a heartbreaking novel, and yet warming for Jane. I don’t even know how to explain this book except to say that I devoured it and loved every minute of it.
The Apprentice by Tess Gerritsen
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
This book was such a quick read for me, and genuinely, brilliantly written. While not your standard mystery, the gritty details are all laid out before you and I found as a reader I could not help but feel the revulsion, and fear of Rizzoli. I absolutely love this book, even though there were parts that made me cringe, due to my weak stomach and wild imagination.
The return of the Surgeon was absolutely brilliant, where it could have ended up being cheesy. I liked meeting Korsak and Dean was an interesting new development.
Dennis Lehane is an author I can respect for more than a few reasons the least of which being that he sticks to his roots and Boston and the most being that he isn’t afraid to pull any punches.
His writing is vivid, it’s gritty and at times definitely horrific but yet once I started really getting into this book I couldn’t even imagine putting it down. I needed to know who the monsters were, who the people were who would ever consider doing something so horrible to other human beings.
The character of Patrick is as likeable in this book as he was in the first, perhaps moreso because we as readers got to see the softer side of him and then in the end the more brutal side. Angela improved immensely in this series and despite myself I like Bubba which really makes me wonder about my own psyche.
The novel was colourful but beyond that it was memorable and well written. However it is not for the faint of heart or those who can’t handle violence that much is certain.
