2008: Year in Review

So... in 2008 I read a ridiculous number of books. Seriously. So, I'll do my best to summarize the year with a list of my favorite books, favorite discovered authors and of course, let you know which books you can skip!

Best Fiction
1. Tell No One (#108)
2. Belong to Me (#50)
3. Hold Tight (#84)
4. Change of Heart (#34)
5. Firefly Lane (#116)
6. The Pajama Girls of Lambert Square (#24)
7. Somebody Else's Daughter (#85)
8. the girl who stopped swimming (#18)
9. The Lucky One (#117)
10. The Surrogate (#2)

Best Chick-lit
1. Love the One You're With (#41)
2. Seeing Me Naked (#5)
3. Chasing Harry Winston (#51) 4. Guilty Feet (#26)
5. Nice to Come Home to (#37)
6. My Best Friend's Girl (#27)


Best Non-fiction
1. Bitter is the New Black (#123)
2. How Does it Feel to Be a Problem (#127)
3. Look Me In the Eye (#49)
4. Mother Warriors (#118)
5. Special Siblings: Growing Up with Someone with a Disability (#39)

Best Series
1. Vince Flynn's Mitch Rapp books and Harlan Coben's Myron Bolitar books
2. Janet Evanovich's Stephanie Plum books
3. Laura Lippman's Tess Monoghan books



And.... the ones to skip: A Date with the Other Side, Elements of Style, My Husband's Sweethearts, Bidding for Love, Celebutantes, Girls in Trucks, Sleeping Arrangements, Lovehampton, Don't You Forget About Me

133. Love and other Natural Disasters

This one was pretty thought provoking. It was easy to understand the main character, and be really annoyed with her at the same time. Not a must read, but I liked it.

Here's a review from B&N:

Eve is grateful for the family and friends that surround her Thanksgiving table, including her husband, Jonathon; their five-year-old son, Jacob; and a baby due to make its arrival in a few short weeks. But in this predictable second novel from Shumas (Five Things I Can't Live Without), Eve's idyll gets trashed when a phone call interrupts their holiday dinner and exposes Jonathon's too-cozy friendship with another woman. What turns out to be an emotional affair launches a maelstrom of emotions for both Eve and Jon, neither of whom realized how much their marriage had disintegrated. As they struggle to work things out, they learn a lot about themselves and each other. Throughout the novel, Shumas, a therapist, invites the reader to consider the question-is it cheating if nothing physical happens? Shumas relies heavily on the standard marriage-in-trouble arc (separation, his disheveled bachelor apartment, her ill-fated fling), and readers familiar with the formula will know what to expect.

132. Dashing Through the Snow

A quick, cute and utterly predictable read. A nice story though, and as usual it is pretty impressive how both Mary and Carol manage to tie so many little characters together to make the story work itself out.

Here's the description from B&N:

From beloved mother-daughter duo Mary Higgins Clark, America's Queen of Suspense, and Carol Higgins Clark, author of the hugely popular Regan Reilly mystery series, comes Dashing Through the Snow, a holiday treat you won't want to miss.

In the picturesque village of Branscombe, New Hampshire, the townsfolk are all pitching in to prepare for the first (and many hope annual) Festival of Joy. The night before the festival begins, a group of employees at the local market learn that they have won $160 million in the lottery. One of their co-workers, Duncan, decided at the last minute, on the advice of a pair of crooks masquerading as financial advisers, not to play. Then he goes missing. A second winning lottery ticket was purchased in the next town, but the winner hasn't come forward. Could Duncan have secretly bought it?

The Clarks' endearing heroes -- Alvirah Meehan, the amateur sleuth, and private investigator Regan Reilly -- have arrived in Branscombe for the festival. They are just the people to find out what is amiss. As they dig beneath the surface, they find that life in Branscombe is not as tranquil as it appears. So much for an old-fashioned weekend in the country. This fast-paced holiday caper will keep you dashing through the pages!

131. The Beach Club

Still on my Elin Hilderbrand kick. I think I have one more to read. I liked this one more than some, not as much as others. The characters were pretty interesting, and pretty frustrating too. Which I guess is a sign of a good writer - if she can make you care about people enough to be annoyed she must be doing something right.

Anyway, here's the description from B&N:

In this juicy first novel by a talented newcomer, a series of personal dramas are played out during one summer at a Nantucket Beach Club. It's about the love of summer, summer love, and the special feelings we all have for that special summer place--in this case, a hotel and an island.Mack Petersen, manager of the hotel, has been working at The Beach Club for 12 summers. Only this summer is different. His boss, the owner of the hotel, Bill Elliot, shows up in the spring with a new set of demands. His girlfriend Maribel is pressing Mack to get married and Vance, the African-American bellman, who has hated Mack since the day Mack stole his job 12 years ago, threatens him in a deadly scene. Mack knows something's got to give.Love O'Donnell, the new front desk person straight from the slopes of Aspen, is desperately searching for a stranger to father her child. The bellman, Jem Crandall, who posed as Mr. November in his college calendar, is on his way to LA to break into agenting, until he falls in love with Maribel. Emotions are at a peak when a hurricane threatens to wash away The Beach Club and all it stands for.An engrossing, sexy novel that will sweep you away to the beach any time of the year.

130. Multiple Blessings

As an avid fan of Jon & Kate Plus 8 of course I had to read the book! It was nice to learn their backstory and find out hard things were for them early on with the kids. It was a good read and I'd definitely suggest it to other fans of the show.

Here's a review from B&N:

Infertility treatments, twins, more infertility treatments, followed by six beating hearts on an ultrasound screen. That sets up the Gosselins' memoir of the exhausting and joyous events surrounding the births of their now famous sextuplets. Those familiar with the TLC program Jon & Kate Plus 8 know how their household runs; now their story comes alive for readers as well. Kate admits, "I was a bit of a control freak," yet also quickly draws on and receives the "peace of God... like a security blanket" through her months in the hospital, Jon's job loss and the impending arrivals. Details such as how they chose names; the sextuplets' birth day of May 10, 2004; and the babies' weeks in the neonatal intensive care unit are fascinating, as are stories of running a household that was perpetually full of volunteers, looked like "baby base camp" and required carefully sequenced nightly bath time. The Gosselins' life is a whirlwind, with their book reflecting the fast-paced, faith-filled approach they take to raising their twins and their miracle sextuplets.

129. The Blue Bistro

So yes, I'm on an Elin Hiderbrand kick and this one was by far my favorite.

Here's a description from B&N:

AN UNEXPECTED OPPORTUNITY LEADS TO…Adrienne Dealey has spent the past six years working for hotels in exotic resort towns. This summer she has decided to make Nantucket home. Left flat broke by her ex-boyfriend, she is desperate to earn some fast money. When the desirable Thatcher Smith, owner of Nantucket's hottest restaurant, is the only one to offer her a job, she wonders if she can get by with no restaurant experience. Thatcher gives Adrienne a crash course in the business...and they share an instant attraction.

A SECOND CHANCE AT LOVE…But there is a mystery about their situation: What is it about Fiona, the Blue Bistro's chef, who captures Thatcher's attention again and again? And why does such a successful restaurant seem to be in its final season before closing its doors for good? Despite her uncertainty, Adrienne must decide whether she’ll move on, as she always does—or finally open her heart…

128. The Love Season

I think this is my favorite of the Hilderbrand books I've read so far. Though it does leave a few plotlines dangling, overall it was a really well told story. I like the back and forth between characters and perspectives, still moving the story along though.

Here's the description from B&N:

It’s a hot August Saturday on Nantucket Island. Over the course of the next 24 hours, two lives will be transformed forever.

Marguerite Beale, former chef of culinary hot spot Les Parapluies, has been out of the public eye for over a decade. This all changes with a phone call from Marguerite’s goddaughter, Renata Knox. Marguerite has not seen Renata since the death of Renata’s mother, Candace Harris Knox, fourteen years earlier. And now that Renata is on Nantucket visiting the family of her new fiancé, she takes the opportunity, against her father’s wishes, to contact Marguerite in hopes of learning the story of her mother’s life—and death. But the events of the day spiral hopelessly out of control for both women, and nothing ends up as planned.

Welcome to The Love Season—a riveting story that takes place in one day and spans decades; a story that embraces the charming, pristine island of Nantucket, as well as Manhattan, Paris and Morocco. Elin Hilderbrand’s most ambitious novel to date chronicles the famous couplings of real lives: love and friendship, food and wine, deception and betrayal—and forgiveness and healing.

127: How Does It Feel to Be a Problem?: Being Young and Arab in America

This one caught my attention on the "new releases" section at the library and ended up being a really interesting and eye opening read.

Here's the description from BN:

The story of how young Arab and Muslim Americans are forging lives for themselves in a country that often mistakes them for the enemyArab and Muslim Americans are the new, largely undiscussed "problem" of American society, their lives no better understood than those of African Americans a century ago.

Under the cover of the terrorist attacks, the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, and the explosion of political violence around the world, a fundamental misunderstanding of the Arab and Muslim American communities has been allowed to fester and even to define the lives of the seven twentysomething men and women whom we meet in this book. Their names are Rami, Sami, Akram, Lina, Yasmin, Omar, and Rasha, and they all live in Brooklyn, New York, which is home to the largest number of Arab Americans in the United States.

We meet Sami, an Arab American Christian, who navigates the minefield of associations the public has of Arabs as well as the expectations that Muslim Arab Americans have of him as a marine who fought in the Iraq war. And Rasha, who, along with her parents, sister, and brothers, was detained by the FBI in a New Jersey jail in early 2002. Without explanation, she and her family were released several months later. As drama of all kinds swirls around them, these young men and women strive for the very things the majority of young adults desire: opportunity, marriage, happiness, and the chance to fulfill their potential. But what they have now are lives that are less certain, and more difficult, than they ever could have imagined: workplace discrimination, warfare in their countries of origin, government surveillance, the disappearance of friends or family,threats of vigilante violence, and a host of other problems that thrive in the age of terror.

And yet How Does It Feel to Be a Problem? takes the raw material of their struggle and weaves it into an unforgettable, and very American, story of promise and hope. In prose that is at once blunt and lyrical, Moustafa Bayoumi allows us to see the world as these men and women do, revealing a set of characters and a place that indelibly change the way we see the turbulent past and yet still hopeful future of this country.

126. A Summer Affair

this one was pretty good... not the best, but again I think I'll continue reading her books.

Here's a review from B&N:

Hilderbrand's seventh novel delves into the psyche of a guilt-ridden mother/artist who embarks on a self-destructive path. Nantucket glass artist Claire Danner Crispin has pieces in private collections and one in the Whitney, but is overwhelmed with the needs of her husband and four kids (she gave up full-time glassblowing to take care of the family). Her troubles worsen when Daphne, a friend she'd been drinking with, is severely injured in a drunken car wreck. Claire is convinced that Daphne's husband, Lockhart, holds her responsible, so she's surprised when he asks her to co-chair a charity gala and create a new piece of glass art for auction. The plot mushrooms as Claire and Lockhart begin an affair; Claire rethinks her priorities; a slew of gala-related complications arise; and Claire's ex-boyfriend turned rock star comes into play. Hilderbrand keeps a lot of balls in the air, and if she pays too much attention to event-planning minutiae, there are still enough conflicts to keep readers entertained.

125. Bidding for Love

I wasn't really a fan of this one. Yes, most chick lit is predictible but this one even moreso. And she ends up with her cousin. I think he's a distant cousin, but still. From the beginning they know they are cousins. yuck.

Here's the description from B&N:

When Flora Stanza’s uncle dies unexpectedly, leaving her a 51 percent share in the family antiques business, it gives her the perfect chance to leave her glamorous but less than happy London life for the quieter life of the country. Unfortunately, her cousin Charles and his fiancée Annabelle don’t seem pleased to find Flora and her very pregnant cat on their doorstep.

Flora knows almost nothing about antiques, but with her London apartment rented out, her cat about to burst with kittens, and a mysterious man warning her about Annabelle, Flora has little choice but to accept her cousin’s offer to stay in their abandoned holiday cottage, miles from anything remotely like what Flora considers civilization.

Soon, though, Flora is fighting off dinner invitations from the devastatingly handsome Henry and hiding her eco-friendly lodger, William. Could it be that country life isn’t so dull after all?

124. Barefoot

I think I'm behind the times in discovering this author, but I liked the book a lot and plan to read her others too.

Here's the description from B&N:

It's summer on Nantucket, and as the season begins, threewomen arrive at the local airport, observed by Josh, a localboy, home from college. Burdened with small children,unwieldy straw hats, and some obvious emotional issues,the women--two sisters and one friend--make their way tothe sisters' tiny cottage, inherited from an aunt. They're alltrying to escape from something: Melanie, after seven failedin-vitro attempts, discovered her husband's infidelity andthen her own pregnancy; Brenda embarked on a passionateaffair with an older student that got her fired from herprestigious job as a professor in New York; and her sisterVickie, mother to two small boys, has been diagnosed withcancer. Soon Josh is part of the chaotic household, actingas babysitter, confidant, and, eventually, somethingmore, while the women confront their pasts and map outtheir futures.

123. Bitter is the New Black

This one might possibly have the longest title of any book I've ever read. :) In fact it was too long for the title bar. So here's the full title:

Bitter is the New Black: Confessions of a Condescending, Egomaniacal, Self-Centered Smartass, Or, Why You Should Never Carry a Prada Bag to the Unemployment Office

It's a memoir of a woman laid off shortly after 9/11 and her struggle to find a new job. She's self-admittedly not a very nice person at the start of the book. Her style is really funny, and it reads a lot like chick-lit fiction. She has a few other books and a blog as well - http://www.jennsylvania.com/ - which I'm looking forward to reading as well.

Here's the description from B&N:

Jen Lancaster was living the sweet life-until real life kicked her to the curb.

She had the perfect man, the perfect job-hell, she had the perfect life-and there was no reason to think it wouldn't last. Or maybe there was, but Jen Lancaster was too busy being manicured, pedicured, highlighted, and generally adored to notice.

This is the smart-mouthed, soul-searching story of a woman trying to figure out what happens next when she's gone from six figures to unemployment checks and she stops to reconsider some of the less-than-rosy attitudes and values she thought she'd never have to answer for when times were good.

Filled with caustic wit and unusual insight, it's a rollicking read as speedy and unpredictable as the trajectory of a burst balloon.

122. Extreme Measures

This one was a little less suspenseful and intense then other Mitch Rapp books, but, with more thought provoking at the same time. I liked it a lot, it makes me want to re-read the ones I read earlier this year and I wanna talk about it so someone else needs to read it too! And soon.

Here's the description from B&N:

Counterterrorism operative Mitch Rapp and his colleague Mike Nash may have met their match. The CIA has detected and intercepted two terrorist cells, but a third is feared to be on the loose. Led by a dangerous mastermind obsessed with becoming the leader of al-Qaeda, this determined and terrifying group is about to descend on America.

Rapp needs the best on this assignment, and Nash, who has served his government honorably for sixteen years, is his choice. Together, they have never wavered in the fight against the jihadists and their culture of death. Both have fought the war on terrorism in secret without accolades or acknowledgment of their personal sacrifices. Both have been forced to lie to virtually every single person they care about, and both have soldiered on with the knowledge that their hard work and lethal tactics have saved thousands of lives. But the political winds have changed in America, and certain leaders on Capitol Hill are pushing to have men like Rapp and Nash put back on a short leash. And then one spring afternoon in Washington, DC, everything changes.

Using his insider knowledge of intelligence agencies and the military, Flynn once again delivers an all-too-real portrayal of a war that is waged every day by a handful of brave, devoted souls. Smart, fast-paced, and jaw-droppingly realistic, Extreme Measures is the political thriller of our time.

121. Killer Heels

Ok, so I totally should be doing homework but instead spent part of my afternoon reading a chicklit mystery. Such good fluff. :)

Here's a review from B&N.com:

Mix a splash of Carrie Bradshaw, a dash of Stephanie Plum and a wee bit of Kinsey Millhone and you have Molly Forrester, advice columnist ("You Can Tell Me") for Zeitgeist magazine by day and amateur sleuth by night. At the start of Anderson's debut comic crime novel, Forrester literally steps in it gooey blood, that is when she returns to the office late one night and stumbles over a dead coworker. Molly's spanking new Jimmy Choos are covered in blood and she's soon knee-deep in sex, lies and crime-scene tape. Thrown into the fray are a hottie cop named Kyle Edwards; Molly's two gal pals, lawyer Cassady Lynch and event planner Tricia Vincent; and soon-to-be ex-boyfriend Peter Mulcahey, who happens to be a reporter for a rival magazine. Can Molly solve the murder and segue into a serious writing career? Or is using the death of a coworker as a major career move utterly uncouth? ("I always knew I'd make my mark on the world. I just didn't expect it to be one of those chalk outlines they draw around dead bodies.") While Molly explores her options, there's a second murder, and financial irregularities pop up in Zeitgeist's accounting department. Ample laughs help propel a well-crafted plot.

120: Universal Coverage: The Elusive Quest for National Health Insurance

This was school reading. Pretty interesting, though quite similar to the Starr book I had to read earlier in the semester.

Here's the description from B&N:

In Universal Coverage, Rick Mayes examines the peculiar and persistent lack of universal health coverage in America, its economic and political origins dating back to the 1930s, and the current consequences of this significant problem.

119. My Husband's Sweethearts

For the majority of this book I didn't like it. I only kept reading because I was babysitting and it was all I had with me. But, in the end, I guess it turned out ok. Not great, but it did get better.

Here's a review from B&N:

Faced with the imminent death of her charming, cheating and estranged husband Artie, Lucy Shoreman decides to call the names in his little black book and invite the ladies to his Philadelphia home to say a final farewell. For her part, 30-ish Lucy, who's 18 years Artie's junior, can't decide whether she loves or hates the man, while her much-married mother insists he deserves forgiveness. As a broad spectrum of his ex-lovers arrives, including a surprised mother-and-daughter duo and a troubled young woman Lucy takes under her wing, Artie's previously undisclosed and estranged grown son, John, shows up and seems as wickedly appealing as Dad. Asher, a pen name of prolific author Julianna Baggott, takes the edge off her sharply drawn characters with a succession of familiar sentiments. But flashes of wit and a parade of memorable women keep pages turning as Lucy grows increasingly and endearingly confused about her feelings toward Artie, John and the rest. (Aug.)

118. Mother Warriors

This is Jenny McCarthy's follow up to Louder Than Words. She writes about what it was like to first go public with Evan's story and then includes interviews with other parents who have fought to do more for their kids with autism. It was a very interesting book and, like Louder Than Words, opened my eyes to the issue in a new way.

Here's the description from B&N:

Stories of hope and recovery from a nation of parents of autistic children, by the high-profile, bestselling author of Louder Than Words.

When Jenny McCarthy published Louder Than Words, the story of her successful efforts to save her son, Evan, from autism, the response was tremendous. It hit #3 on the New York Times bestseller list; and Jenny and Evan were featured on the covers of several magazines, including People. But what she hadn't anticipated was the overwhelming response from other parents of autistic children, who sought her out to share their stories.

No two autistic children heal in exactly the same way. And in her new book, Jenny expands her message to share recovery stories from parents across the country. Mother Warriors, shows how each parent fought to find her own child's perfect "remedy of interventions" and teaches parents how to navigate safely through the many autism therapies.

Along the way, Jenny shares her own journey as an autism advocate and mother as well as the progress of her son, Evan. Emotional and genuinely practical, Mother Warriors will inspire a generation of parents with hope.

117. The Lucky One

Nicholas Sparks' latest and I think my favorite... well, though I did like Dear John a lot too. This one also deals with the war in Iraq and its impact on people when they come home. It was a really good read, and not as sappy as some of his others.

Here's a review from B&N:

A photograph found by chance; a chain of events that lead inexorably to the woman it portrays: The Lucky One traces a path so ephemeral and artful that we would know that Nicholas Sparks had written even if his name did not appear on the title page. This story about a man whose scrape with death leads to his one true love will keep you up at night and then make you sleep more soundly. Inimitable storytelling.

116. Firefly Lane

I liked this one a lot. It was a great give and take story of best friends, told over 3 decades. Sometimes it was from one's perspective, sometimes from the others. At the end it gets sad. Really really sad. Just a forewarning I wish I had been given. Otherwise, it's a good read and I definitely recommend it.

Here's the description from B&N:

From the New York Times bestselling author of On Mystic Lake comes a powerful novel of love, loss, and the magic of friendship. . . .

In the turbulent summer of 1974, Kate Mularkey has accepted her place at the bottom of the eighth-grade social food chain. Then, to her amazement, the “coolest girl in the world” moves in across the street and wants to be her friend. Tully Hart seems to have it all---beauty, brains, ambition. On the surface they are as opposite as two people can be: Kate, doomed to be forever uncool, with a loving family who mortifies her at every turn. Tully, steeped in glamour and mystery, but with a secret that is destroying her. They make a pact to be best friends forever; by summer's end they've become TullyandKate. Inseparable.

So begins Kristin Hannah's magnificent new novel. Spanning more than three decades and playing out across the ever-changing face of the Pacific Northwest, Firefly Lane is the poignant, powerful story of two women and the friendship that becomes the bulkhead of their lives.

From the beginning, Tully is desperate to prove her worth to the world. Abandoned by her mother at an early age, she longs to be loved unconditionally. In the glittering, big-hair era of the eighties, she looks to men to fill the void in her soul. But in the buttoned-down nineties, it is television news that captivates her. She will follow her own blind ambition to New York and around the globe, finding fame and success . . . and loneliness.

Kate knows early on that her life will be nothing special. Throughout college, she pretends to be driven by a need for success, but all she reallywants is to fall in love and have children and live an ordinary life. In her own quiet way, Kate is as driven as Tully. What she doesn't know is how being a wife and mother will change her . . . how she'll lose sight of who she once was, and what she once wanted. And how much she'll envy her famous best friend. . . .

For thirty years, Tully and Kate buoy each other through life, weathering the storms of friendship---jealousy, anger, hurt, resentment. They think they've survived it all until a single act of betrayal tears them apart . . . and puts their courage and friendship to the ultimate test.

Firefly Lane is for anyone who ever drank Boone's Farm apple wine while listening to Abba or Fleetwood Mac. More than a coming-of-age novel, it's the story of a generation of women who were both blessed and cursed by choices. It's about promises and secrets and betrayals. And ultimately, about the one person who really, truly knows you---and knows what has the power to hurt you . . . and heal you. Firefly Lane is a story you'll never forget . . . one you'll want to pass on to your best friend.

115. Getting Rid of Bradley

This one was kinda cute, chick lit/mystery combo.

Here's the description from B&N:

High school physics teacher Lucy Savage is finally getting rid of Bradley—and his hideous green recliner. In fact, her front lawn is littered with her cheating ex-husband's belongings. Because despite standing her up in divorce court, Bradley is out of her life for good. Or so she thinks.

When her sister takes her to lunch to celebrate Lucy's single status, all their talk of a no-good louse named Bradley catches the attention of a cop—who wants to arrest the very same Bradley for embezzlement. And Officer Zach Warren figures the lovely Lucy can lead him straight to his target.

When someone shoots at Lucy and then blows up her car, Zach insists she needs twenty-four-hour protection. What does he think her three dogs and attack cat are for? Still, he insists on moving right in to Lucy's house.…

Now there's danger lurking outside and in her own kitchen, bathroom— and bedroom. Or maybe Zach, who looks like a bad boy with that shaggy dark hair and black leather jacket, is really one of the good guys, and just what Lucy needs.

114. Savannah Breeze

cute chick lit fluff. :)

Southern belle BeBe Loudermilk loses all her worldly possessions thanks to a brief but disastrous relationship with the gorgeous Reddy, an "investment counselor" who turns out to be a con man. All that's left is a ramshackle 1950s motor court on Tybee Island.

Breeze Inn is a place where the very classy BeBe wouldn't normally be caught dead, but, with no alternative, she moves into the manager's unit, vowing to make magic out of mud. The work is grueling, especially dealing with the cantankerous caretaker, a fishing captain named Harry. With the help of Harry and BeBe's junking friend Weezie, she soon has the motel spiffed up and attracting paying guests.

Then there's a sighting of Reddy in Fort Lauderdale, and BeBe decides to go after him. She puts together a posse and heads south. The plan is to carry out a sting that may be just a little bit outside the law but that with any luck at all will retrieve BeBe's fortune and put the dastardly Reddy in jail where he belongs.

113. Just One Look

I think this was my least favorite of Harlan Coben's books, which is kinda sad cause it's my last. Like the others something dramatic from the past came back to greatly impact the present. But really, the dramatic thing from the past didn't seem all that dramatic to me. I just wasn't as drawn in my this storyline as I have been by the others. I did however enjoy that many minor characters or places keep showing up in all of the books.

Anyway, here's the description from B&N:

When Grace Lawson picks up a newly developed set of family photographs, there is a picture that doesn't belong-a photo from at least 20 years ago with a man in it who looks strikingly like her husband, Jack. And though Jack denies it, he disappears that night, taking the photo with him. Now, to save her family from a fierce, silent killer who will stop at nothing to get the photo, Grace must confront the dark corners of her own tragic past.

112. Little Bitty Lies

I'm on a bit of a Mary Kay Andrews kick. It's cute, light fluff which is a nice balance to all of the heavy school reading I'm also doing.

Here's the description from B&N:

In a suburban Atlanta neighborhood where divorce is as rampant as kudzu, Mary Bliss McGowan doesn't notice that her own marriage is in trouble until the summer night she finds a note from her husband, telling her he's gone—and taken the family fortune with him.

Stunned and humiliated, a desperate Mary Bliss, left behind with her seventeen-year-old daughter, Erin, and a mountain of debt, decides to salvage what's left of her life by telling one little bitty lie.

At first, Mary Bliss simply tells friends and family that Parker is out of town on a consulting job. Then the lies start to snowball, until Parker turns up dead. Or does he?

Mary Bliss's formerly staid existence careens into overdrive as she copes with an oversexed teenager, a mother-in-law with Ethel Merman delusions, and the sudden but delicious shock of finding herself pursued by two men: the next-door neighbor who's looking for a suitable second wife, and a dangerously attractive ex-cop who's looking for the truth about Parker McGowan.
Little Bitty Lies is a comic Southern novel about all the important things in life: marriage and divorce, mothers and daughters, friendship and betrayal, small-town secrets, and one woman's lifelong quest for home—and the perfect recipe for chicken salad.

111. The Divorce Party

This was pretty interesting. A short book, but not necessarily a quick read. I liked it.

Here's the description from B&N:

On their 35th anniversary, Gwyn Huntington and her husband Thomas have invited friends and family to their Montauk home. Instead of celebrating their decades-long love, they are toasting their divorce. This also marks the weekend that their son brings home his fiancée, Maggie Mackenzie, for the first time. Maggie thought she was joining a perfect family, but she is about to reckon with some uncomfortable truths about the man she wants to marry. A multi-generational story about what it means to share a life with someone, The Divorce Party brings us two immensely appealing women: Gwyn who is stumbling upon the end of her marriage, and Maggie, her future-daughter-in-law, who is trying to navigate the beginning of hers. With emotional candor and surprising humor, these two women find themselves trying to answer the same questions: Can you ever really know someone? When should you fight for the person you love most, and when should you begin to let him go?

110. Secrets of a Shoe Addict

My one complaint about this book was it seemed like a sequel in how they kept referring to things from the past but wasn't. Just figured out that it was. So, I'd say read the first one first like I should have done. Cause it is cute chick lit. Oh, and is set in the DC suburbs so plenty of local references that I always enjoy!

Here's a review from B&N:

Harbison's witty, fast-paced follow-up to last year's Shoe Addicts Anonymous chronicles the foibles of four women brought together by-in this case-not shoes but debt. During a fateful trip to Las Vegas as chaperones of a school band trip, Loreen Murphy accidentally hires a male prostitute on the PTA credit card; pastor's-wife-with-a-past Abbey Walsh gets blackmailed by an ex-con ex-boyfriend; and usually restrained PTA president Tiffany Dreyer purchases thousands of dollars worth of clothes that she can't return. Enter the zaftig Sandra Vanderslice, who, before she started her shoe-importing business, made a living as a phone sex operator. She suggests her sister, Tiffany, hop on that gravy train to pay down her credit card bills. Loreen and Abbey join up, and soon the ladies are raking in dough and trying to hide their new source of income from husbands, kids and their snoopy nemesis, the cartoonishly judgmental Deb Leventer, who wants to take over the PTA. Harbison's writing is zingy and funny, and her light touch allows her to get away with the ridiculous situations in this nutty beach read.

109. No Second Chance

Another really good suspense thriller from Harlan Coben. While the basic themes are the same in each of his books - something from the past comes back in a horrible way to haunt the present - the twists and turns these books take just can't be predicted. As the review says, you don't really fully understand it all until the very end. I definitely recommend reading Coben's books!

Here's a review from B&N:

Harlan Coben returns to the arena of obsession, conspiracy, and violence that make his novels (Tell No One, Gone for Good) such edge-of-your-seat thrillers. Once again, his plot begins with an explosive scene of suburban outrage that leads a sympathetic, everyman hero into ever deeper trials and terrors: Marc Seidman's life becomes a nightmare when he's shot in the chest in the kitchen of his own home. Awakening from a coma almost two weeks later, he discovers that his wife has been murdered and his infant daughter is missing. It takes so long for a ransom note -- which warns that there will be "no second chance" -- to arrive, Marc and the police are uncertain about the kidnappers true intentions. Those intentions do not become clear to anyone -- including the reader -- until the very last pages of the book, after a constantly surprising series of plot twists carries the narrative through another year and a half in Marc's desperate quest to find his daughter. Coben hasn't only given us a masterwork of suspense, he's also written one of the most complex and elaborate novels of his career -- a book so compelling, ingenious, and disturbing you'll want to finish it in one sitting.

108. Tell No One

Back to the Harlan Coben kick. This was his first non-Myron Bolitar book and a good, suspenseful read. Again, a twisting and turning plot that leaves you guessing til the very end!

If you like suspense, Coben is a must read.

Here's the description from B&N:

For Dr. David Beck, the loss was shattering. And every day for the past eight years, he has relived the horror of what happened. The gleaming lake. The pale moonlight. The piercing screams. The night his wife was taken. The last night he saw her alive. Everyone tells him it’s time to move on, to forget the past once and for all. But for David Beck, there can be no closure. A message has appeared on his computer, a phrase only he and his dead wife know. Suddenly Beck is taunted with the impossible–that somewhere, somehow, Elizabeth is alive. Beck has been warned to tell no one. And he doesn’t. Instead, he runs from the people he trusts the most, plunging headlong into a search for the shadowy figure whose messages hold out a desperate hope. But already Beck is being hunted down. He’s headed straight into the heart of a dark and deadly secret–and someone intends to stop him before he gets there.

107. Savannah Blues

Cute chick lit - great for a beach read!

Here's the description from B&N:

Landing a catch like Talmadge Evans III got Eloise "Weezie" Foley a big house in Savannah's historic district. Divorcing him got her booted into the carriage house in the backyard. Tal, meanwhile, lives with his girlfriend, elegant Caroline DeSantos, in the mansion Weezie lovingly restored. For Weezie, letting her dog piddle on Caroline's prize camellias isn't payback enough.

Now Weezie, and antiques "picker," is trying to make a killing at a big estate sale while dealing with loopy relatives, a hunky ex-boyfriend who's the hottest chef in town, and the Tal-Caroline "situation." Dirty deals are simmering all around her, just as Weezie discovers how very delicious love can be—the second time around.

106. It's Not You It's Me

This was a reread... a cute, Red Dress Ink book that caught my eye on my bookshelf the other day.

Here's the description from B&N:

She's heard all the lines. Now it's time for the truth!

Charlie has to keep pinching herself to believe she's leaving Australia for a trip to Europe — a generous gift from her family, who know how tough her life has been lately. But the last person Charlie expects to bump into on the plane is Jasper Ash, international celebrity, rock-star sex-god — and Charlie's former best friend, flatmate and . . .almost-lover!

It's been three years since Charlie impulsively jumped into bed with Jas, then a struggling student. But their nearly-one-night stand had just been warming up when Jas began the male "backing off" ritual, practically sprinting out the door with the classic excuse, "It's not you, it's me." Yeah, right. Everyone knows what that means: It is you! Not pretty enough, not successful enough — just not enough.

Charlie has dealt with it — and a whole lot more — but the unanswered questions still niggle. Acting on impulse once again, she invites Jas to join her own European tour! And as they share hotel rooms, play at being tourists and dodge Jas's determined groupies, it becomes clear they're both at a crossroads in life. Before they can move on, they finally have to deal with the unfinished business between them — starting with a serious conversation about that night.

105. Don't Your Forget About Me

This one was sorta cute... and fairly annoying at the same time. I both liked and really really didn't like the main character by the end of the story. I did like the conclusion and the underlying message about how we don't always see the past accurately. Anyway, I'd say read it and let me know what you think. Oh, and I love the cover art!!

Here's the description from B&N:

At thirty-eight, Lillian Curtis is content with her life. She enjoys her routine as a producer for a talk show in New York City starring showbiz veteran Vi (“short for vibrant”) Barbour, a spirited senior. Lillian’s relationship with her husband is pleasant if no longer exciting. Most nights she is more than happy to come home to her apartment and crawl into her pajamas. Then she’s hit with a piece of shocking news: Her husband wants a divorce.

Blindsided, Lillian takes a leave of absence and moves back to her parents’ home in suburban New Jersey. Nestled in her childhood bedroom, where Duran Duran and Squeeze posters still cover the walls, she finds high school memories a healing salve to her troubles. She hurtles backward into her teen years, driving too fast, digging up mix tapes, and tentatively reconciling with Dawn, a childhood friend she once betrayed. Punctuating her stroll down memory lane is an invitation to the Bethel Memorial High School class of 1988 twenty-year reunion. It just might be Lillian’s chance to reconnect with her long-lost boyfriend, Christian Somers, who is expected to attend. Will it be just like heaven?

Lillian discovers, as we all must, the pitfalls of glorifying the glory days, the mortification of failing as a thirtysomething adult, and the impossibility of fully recapturing the past. Don’t You Forget About Me is for anyone who looks back and wonders:What if?

104. Just Breathe

A really nice break from the suspense and school reading of late, this was good old fashion fiction. A nice family drama with interesting characters and a somewhat unique storyline. I liked it and would recommend it.

Here's the B&N description:

Chicago cartoonist Sarah Moon tackles life's real issues with a healthy dose of sharp wit in her syndicated comic strip Just Breathe. As Sarah's cartoon alter ego, Shirl, undergoes artificial insemination, her situation begins to mirror Sarah's own difficult attempts to conceive. However, Sarah's dreams of the future did not include her husband's infidelity: snag number two in Sarah's so-called perfect life.

With Chicago—and her marriage—in the rearview mirror, she flees to the small Northern California coastal town where she grew up, a place she couldn't wait to leave. Now she finds herself revisiting the past—an emotionally distant father and the unanswered questions left by her mother's death. As she comes to terms with her lost marriage, Sarah encounters a man she never expected to meet again: Will Bonner, the high school heartthrob she'd skewered mercilessly in her old comics. Now a local firefighter, he's been through some changes himself.

But just as her heart is about to reawaken, Sarah discovers she is pregnant. With her ex's twins.It's hardly the most traditional of new beginnings, but who says life and love are predictable… or perfect? The winds of change have led Sarah here. Now all she can do is just close her eyes… and breathe.

103. The Health Care Revolution: From Medical Monopoly to Market Competition

While not exactly a quick and easy read, this was a pretty interesting look at how the health care system has shifted from being controlled by physicians to being controlled by the market. I bought it this summer to read by choice but it ended up being required reading for a class (my professor wrote it). I'm actually glad I didn't just read it on my own because discussing it in class was helpful in understanding it all.

Anyway, here's the B&N description:

America's market-based health care system, unique among the nations of the world, is in large part the product of an obscure, yet profound, revolution that overthrew the medical monopoly in the late 1970s. In this lucid, balanced account, Carl F. Ameringer tells how this revolution came into being when the U.S. Supreme Court and Congress prompted the antitrust agencies of the federal government--the Federal Trade Commission and the Justice Department--to change the rules of the health care system. Ameringer lays out the key events that led up to this regime change; explores its broader social, political, and economic contexts; examines the views of both its proponents and opponents; and considers its current trajectory.

102. The Innocent

First, I am somewhat shocked to report that in the first 8 months and eh, one week of 2008 I have read as many books as I read in all of 2007. Seriously, I need a life.

Anyway, this was another really good Harlan Coben book. It had twists and turns I never saw coming and kept me guessing til the end. I definitely recommend his books if you are fan of suspense.

Here's the description from B&N:

"The horror of one night is forever etched in Matt Hunter's memory: the night he innocently tried to break up a fight - and ended up a killer. Now, nine years after his release from prison, his innocence long forgotten, he's an ex-con who takes nothing for granted. With his wife, Olivia, pregnant and the two of them closing on a house in his hometown, things are looking up. Until the day Matt gets a shocking, inexplicable video call from Olivia's phone. And in an instant, the unraveling begins." A mysterious man who'd begun tailing Matt turns up dead. A beloved nun is murdered. And local and federal authorities - including homicide investigator Loren Muse, a childhood schoolmate of Matt's with a troubled past of her own - see all signs pointing to a former criminal with one murder already under his belt: Matt Hunter. Unwilling to lose everything for a second time, Matt and Olivia are forced outside the law in a desperate attempt to save their future together.

101. Promise Me

The last of the Myron Bolitar books, this one had me guessing up until the very last page. I definitely recommend this series for fans of mysteries, humor and sports. Though this one was actually light on the sports, but the first few in the series definitely have a lot more of that angle. Anyway, I'm sad the Myron books are over but happy I have several more stand alone Harlan Coben books to read!

Here's the description from B&N:

It has been six years since entertainment agent Myron Bolitar last played superhero. In six years he hasn't thrown a punch. He hasn't held, much less fired, a gun. He hasn't called his friend Win, still the scariest man he knows, to back him up or get him out of trouble. All that is about to change . . . because of a promise.

The school year is almost over. Anxious families await word of college acceptances. In these last pressure-cooker months of high school, some kids will make the all-too-common and all-too-dangerous mistake of drinking and driving. But Myron is determined to help keep his friends' children safe, so he makes two neighborhood girls promise him: If they are ever in a bind but are afraid to call their parents, they must call him.

Several nights later, the call comes at 2:00 am, and true to his word, Myron picks up one of the girls in midtown Manhattan and drives her to a quiet cul-de-sac in New Jersey where she says her friend lives.The next day, the girl's parents discover that their daughter is missing. And that Myron was the last person to see her.

Desperate to fulfill a well-intentioned promise turned nightmarishly wrong, Myron races to find her before she's gone forever. But his past will not be buried so easily - for trouble has always stalked him, and his loved ones often suffer. Now Myron must decide once and for all who he is and what he will stand up for if he is to have any hope of saving a young girl's life.

100. Darkest Fear

My second to last Myron Bolitar book and another really good read.

Here's the description from B&N:

Edgar Award-winner Harlan Coben is at his electrifying best in his latest novel--a dazzling tale of seething mystery and dark family secrets. In Darkest Fear, Myron Bolitar faces the most emotionally shattering case of his career. And it all begins when Myron's ex-girlfriend tells him he is a father--of a dying thirteen-year-old boy....

Myron's sports agency is struggling. Now more than ever Myron needs to keep his eye on the ball, sign up some big-name clients, and turn away from the amateur detective work that is taking precious time away from the agency. But life is not going according to plan. Myron's father, recently recovered from a heart attack, is facing his own mortality--and forcing Myron to face it too. Then comes another surprise.

Emily Downing, Myron's college sweetheart, reappears in his life with devastating news: Her thirteen-year-old son Jeremy is gravely ill and can be saved only by a bone-marrow transplant--from a donor who has vanished without a trace. And before Myron can absorb this revelation, Emily hits him with an even bigger shocker: Jeremy is Myron's son, conceived the night before Emily's wedding to another man.

Staggered by the news, Myron plunges into a search for the missing donor. But for Myron, finding the only person in the world who can save a boy's life means cracking open a mystery as dark as it is heartbreaking--a mystery that involves a broken family, a brutal kidnapping spree, and a cat-and-mouse game between an ambitious reporter and the FBI. Somewhere in the sordid mess is the man who once signed hisname to a bone-marrow donor's registry, then disappeared. And as doubts emerge about Jeremy's true paternity, a child vanishes, igniting a chain reaction of truth and revelation that will change everyone's life forever.

At once a riveting mystery and a spellbinding journey into the secrets that haunt families, lovers, and friends, Darkest Fear proves once again that Harlan Coben is a master storyteller like no other--and one of the most original talents in suspense fiction today.

99. The Social Transformation of American Medicine - Book II: The Struggle for Medical Care

My first course book of the semester... I only had to read the second part, "Book II" if you will but since it is called a book and was over 200 pages I'm counting it.

So, here's the description from Amazon:

Winner of the 1983 Pulitzer Prize and the Bancroft Prize in American History, this is a landmark history of how the entire American health care system of doctors, hospitals, health plans, and government programs has evolved over the last two centuries.

98. The Final Detail

Another Myron Bolitar book. Again, I liked it a lot and the twists kept me guessing til the end!

Here's the description from B&N:

Harlan Coben is the master of the sports-related mystery. Great for Father's Day, The Final Detail will keep the baseball fan in your household turning pages into extra innings. When a pitcher is killed, sports agent Myron Bolivar loses not only a client but also his partner, Esperanza Diaz, who's charged with the pitcher's murder. Now it's up to Bolivar to prove her innocence -- that is, if she is innocent.

97. Gone for Good

Yes, another Harlan Coben book. Another very good one. Can't wait for the next!!

Here's the description from B&N:

As a boy, Will Klein had a hero: his older brother, Ken. Then, on a warm suburban night in the Kleins’ affluent New Jersey neighborhood, a young woman—a girl Will had once loved—was found brutally murdered in her family’s basement. The prime suspect: Ken Klein. With the evidence against him overwhelming, Ken simply vanished. And when his shattered family never heard from Ken again, they were sure he was gone for good. Now eleven years have passed. Will has found proof that Ken is alive. And this is just the first in a series of stunning revelations as Will is forced to confront startling truths about his brother, and even himself. As a violent mystery unwinds around him, Will knows he must press his search all the way to the end. Because the most powerful surprises are yet to come.

96. One False Move

Another Myron Bolitar book, another really good read. With several twists I totally didn't see coming!!

Here's the description from B&N:

She's smart, beautiful, and she doesn't need a man to look after her. But sports agent Myron Bolitar has come into her life—big time. Now Myron's next move may be his last—Brenda Slaughter is no damsel in distress. Myron Bolitar is no bodyguard. But Myron has agreed to protect the bright, strong, beautiful basketball star. And he's about to find out if he's man enough to unravel the tragic riddle of her life.Twenty years before, Brenda's mother deserted her. And just as Brenda is making it to the top of the women's pro basketball world, her father disappears too. A big-time New York sports agent with a foundering love life, Myron has a professional interest in Brenda. Then a personal one. But between them isn't just the difference in their backgrounds or the color of their skin. Between them is a chasm of corruption and lies, a vicious young mafioso on the make, and one secret that some people are dying to keep—and others are killing to protect....

95. The Woods

This one was good... really good and suspenseful. I definitely recommend it!

Here's the description from B&N:

Twenty years ago, four teenagers at summer camp walked into the woods at night. Two were found murdered, and the others were never seen again.

Four families had their lives changed forever. Now, two decades later, they are about to change again.For Paul Copeland, the county prosecutor of Essex, New Jersey, mourning the loss of his sister has only recently begun to subside. Cope, as he is known, is now dealing with raising his six-year-old daughter as a single father after his wife has died of cancer. Balancing family life and a rapidly ascending career as a prosecutor distracts him from his past traumas, but only for so long. When a homicide victim is found with evidence linking him to Cope, the well-buried secrets of the prosecutor's family are threatened.

Is this homicide victim one of the campers who disappeared with his sister? Could his sister be alive? Cope has to confront so much he left behind that summer twenty years ago: his first love, Lucy; his mother, who abandoned the family; and the secrets that his Russian parents might have been hiding even from their own children. Cope must decide what is better left hidden in the dark and what truths can be brought to the light.

94. Back Spin

Still good, but not as good as the first few Myron Bolitar books. Too many story lines that were connected, but at the same time not really necessary I think. Anyway, still worth reading if you start the series!

Here's the description:

Kidnappers have snatched the teenage son of super-star golfer Linda Coldren and her husband, Jack, an aging pro, at the height of the U.S. Open. To help get the boy back, sports agent Myron Bolitar goes charging after clues and suspects from the Main Line mansions to a downtown cheaters' motel--and back in time to a U.S. Open twenty-three years ago, when Jack Coldren should have won, but didn't. Suddenly Myron finds himself surrounded by blue bloods, criminals, and liars. And as one family's darkest secrets explode into murder, Myron finds out just how rough this game can get.In stories that crackle with wit and suspense, Edgar Award winner Harlan Coben has created one of the most fascinating and complex heroes in suspense fiction--Myron Bolitar--a hotheaded, tenderhearted sports agent who grows more and more engaging and unpredictable with each appearance.

93. Fade Away

With the other two Myron Bolitar books I figured at least some of the plot twists out before the ending. This one had me guessing til pretty much the last page. I can't wait to read the next one in the series!

Here's a review from B&N:

Wisecracking sports agent Myron Bolitar returns with style in his third mystery (after Deal Breaker and Dropshot). This time, Myron is given a chance to return to professional basketball after being sidelined by a heartbreaking injury 10 years ago. No, the owner of the New Jersey Dragons doesn't want Myron to play. He wants him to use his skills as a onetime FBI undercover agent ("the worst kept secret in the continental United States") to find a missing player and former rival. The hunt for the absent player turns up an ugly web of complications that include a dead body, blackmail, a nasty custody suit, out-of-control gambling and thugs intent on revenge. Myron finds himself dragged in deeper than expected as the case stirs unresolved issues from his own past. With the help of his lethally loyal pal Win, he untangles the mess with bravado and not a little personal pain. Coben writes a fast-moving narrative in a style witty enough to keep pace without straining too hard.

92. Another Thing to Fall

As usual, I'm kinda sad that I've come to the end of a series... the last of the Tess Monaghan books. The author has been writing one new book a year or so which I hope means something else will be coming soon!

Here's the description of the latest:

When private investigator Tess Monaghan literally runs into the crew of a fledgling TV series while sculling, she expects sharp words and evil looks, not an assignment. But the company has been plagued by a series of disturbing incidents since their arrival on location in Baltimore. Worried for the safety of the young female lead, they ask Tess to serve as her bodyguard/babysitter. In the past, Tess has had enough trouble guarding her own body; keeping a spoiled movie princess under wraps may be more than she can handle. But the fish-out-of-water p.i. is abruptly pulled back in by an occurrence she's all too familiar with—murder. Suddenly the wall of secrets is in danger of toppling, leaving shattered dreams, careers, and lives scattered among the ruins—a catastrophe that threatens the people Tess cares about…and the city she loves.

91. Drop Shot

Yet another series I'm completely hooked on.

Here's the description:

Valerie Simpson is a young female tennis star with a troubled past who's now on the verge of a comeback and wants Myron as her agent. Myron, who's also got the hottest young male tennis star, Duane Richwood, primed to take his first grand slam tournament, couldn't be happier. That is, until Valerie is murdered in broad daylight at the U.S. Open and Myron's number one client becomes the number one suspect.

Clearing Duane's name should be easy enough. Duane was playing in a match at the time of Valerie's death. But why is his phone number in Valerie's black book when he claims only to have known her in passing? Why was she calling him from a phone booth on the street? The police stop caring once they pin the murder on a man known for having stalked Valerie and seen talking to her moments before the murder. But Myron isn't satisfied. It seems too clean for him.

Myron pries a bit and finds himself prying open the past where six years before, Valerie's fiancee, the son of a senator, was brutally murdered by a juvenile delinquent and a straight-A student was subsequently gunned down on the street in retaliation, his death squandered in bureaucratic files. And everyone from the Senator to the mob want Myron to stop digging.

The truth beneath the truth is not only dangerous, it's deadly. And Myron may be the next victim.

In novels that crackle with wit and suspense, Edgar Award winner Harlan Coben has created one of the most fascinating and complex heroes in suspense fiction—Myron Bolitar—a hotheaded, tenderhearted sports agent who grows more and more engaging and unpredictable with each page-turning appearance.

90. No Good Deeds

The latest Tess Monaghan book for me took place in part oh so appropriately in Bethany, Fenwick & Ocean City! It even mentioned the 84 Lumber about a mile from my parents house and Bridgeville (famous for it's motto "If you lived here you'd be home now") . :) I don't know why this makes me happy but, it does.

Besides my happiness over the location, it was a really good story and makes me happy I have another Tess Monaghan book to start on tomorrow!

anyway, here's the B&N description:

For Tess Monaghan, the unsolved murder of a young federal prosecutor is nothing more than a theoretical problem, one of several cases to be deconstructed in her new gig as a consultant to the local newspaper. But it becomes all too tangible when her boyfriend brings home a young street kid who doesn't even realize he holds an important key to the man's death. Tess agrees to protect the boy's identity no matter what, especially when one of his friends is killed in what appears to be a case of mistaken identity. But with federal agents determined to learn the boy's name at any cost, Tess finds out just how far even official authorities will go to get what they want. Soon she's facing felony charges -- and her boyfriend, Crow, has gone into hiding with his young protégé, so Tess can't deliver the kid to investigators even if she wants to. Time and time again Tess is reminded of her father's old joke, the one about the most terrifying sentence in the English language: "We're from the government -- and we're here to help."

89. Deal Breaker

Liked this one... a lot! And good news - it's book 1 in a series! The others are sure to follow soon!

Here's the description from B&N:

Sports agent Myron Bolitar is poised on the edge of the big time. So is Christian Steele, a rookie quarterback and Myron's prized client. But when Christian gets a phone call from a former girlfriend, a woman who everyone, including the police, believes is dead, the deal starts to go sour. Trying to unravel the truth about a family's tragedy, a woman's secret, and a man's lies, Myron is up against the dark side of his business—where image and talent make you rich, but the truth can get you killed.

In novels that crackle with wit and suspense, Edgar Award winner Harlan Coben has created one of the most fascinating and complex heroes in suspense fiction—Myron Bolitar—a hotheaded, tenderhearted sports agent who grows more and more engaging and unpredictable with each page-turning appearance.

88. The Last Summer (of you and me)

Ok, so it's by the author of Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants, and the B&N review I'm going to copy below makes it sound like chick lit but... it wasn't. It was more serious then that, better written, more tugging of the heart strings and full of life's complications then chick lit.

Oh, and it was good. You should read it too.

Here's a review from B&N:

In her first adult novel, the author of The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants makes a journey to Fire Island, where 21-year-old Alice and her slightly older sister, Riley, are sharing a home and an infatuation. Boyish lifeguard Riley values her closeness with longtime neighbor Paul, but their "best friend" relationship has less pull than the attraction he shares with Alice. To protect Riley's feelings, the pair try to keep their blossoming romance secret. In the land of fiction, as in the real world, such furtiveness can't be sustained indefinitely, but in The Last Summer (of You & Me), complications and surprises confront us around every turn.

87. Burned

Another Carol Higgins Clark book... As usual, a quick, cute mystery that is quite a well woven story. I know whoever did it is among the cast of wacky characters but I'm always a bit surprised by who it is in the end.

Here's the description from B&N:

Regan Reilly and her best friend, Kit, are on vacation in Honolulu, intent on having a Hawaiian adventure. They won't be disappointed!

When we last saw L.A.-based private detective Regan Reilly, she'd recently become engaged, but before the big event Kit convinces her to come to Hawaii for one last girls' weekend.
At the Waikiki Waters Resort, the body of Dorinda Dawes washes ashore. Around her neck is an exquisite and historically valuable shell lei that had been stolen from the Seashell Museum in Honolulu thirty years before. Will Brown, the manager of the resort, doesn't believe that it's an accidental drowning. In the three months Dorinda had worked in Hawaii, she had become a controversial character who had a reputation for pointing out the very worst in people. Will is afraid that she was murdered and that the murderer might still be in their midst.

Lucky for Will, he meets Regan Reilly in the hotel lobby and convinces her to get on the case. Can Regan find out what really happened to Dorinda before it's too late for someone else? Before it's too late for her?

86. The Mercy Rule

I liked this one. It was different, but definitely a good read.

Here's the description:

A trenchant, funny, and timely novel about what makes a good parent and who should judge that issue.At first glance, Dr. Lucy Weiss looks like the typical high-achieving, upper-middle-class working mother who, along with her husband, is bringing up much-beloved children in the suburbs. But Lucy's own history makes her an anomaly. Having overcome a difficult childhood in foster care, she is what's called a super-survivor. Now a pediatrician, Lucy finds herself working with some of those same at-risk patients and their families.The Mercy Rule is a novel about the all-important job of taking care of children. Lucy's work takes her back into the world of families living on the edge, where every day she must decide whether a parent's actions are so incompetent—or so clueless—that a child is in danger. It's her job to make the call, and to step in when she has to. As she moves between her disparate worlds—from worrying about her own brilliant but odd son being labeled with a diagnosis to worrying about parents struggling with drugs and impossible living situations—Lucy must judge herself as a parent, critique other parents, and also deal with the echoes of her childhood.Watching Lucy try to keep the balance, enjoy her own children, and look at other families with humor and justice and mercy, readers will understand why Chris Bohjalian said of Perri Klass, "Few writers write as beautifully or as authentically about parenting."

85. Somebody Else's Daughter

I'm going to need someone else to read this one so we can discuss. Soon please. Thank you.

Here's the description from B&N:

A psychological thriller of secrets, dark motives, and an adoption buried in the past At the center of Elizabeth Brundage's new novel lies an adoption under stressed and tragic circumstances. Willa, brought up in elegant prosperity, is now a student at the prestigious Pioneer School. But her biological father, a failing writer and former drug addict, can't live with himself without seeing her again.In this idyllic Berkshires landscape, Willa's adoptive parents have fled a mysterious past; a feminist sculptor initiates a reckless affair; teenagers live in a world to which adults turn a blind eye; and the headmaster's wife is busy keeping her husband's disastrous history and current indiscretions well hidden. The culmination of these forces is the collision of two very different fathers—biological and adoptive—and a villain whose ends and means slowly unfold with the help, witting and unwitting, of all around him. Somebody Else's Daughter delivers an electric, suspenseful tale of richly conflicted characters and the disturbed landscape of the American psyche.

84. Hold Tight

This was a page-turner that I could not put down. It reminded me a lot of a Jodi Picoult book and I definitely recommend it and can't wait to read more by this author.

Here's the description from B&N:

Tia and Mike Baye never imagined they'd become the type of overprotective parents who spy on their kids. But their sixteen-year-old son Adam has been unusually distant lately, and after the suicide of his classmate Spencer Hill—the latest in a string of issues at school—they can't help but worry. They install a sophisticated spy program on Adam's computer, and within days are jolted by a message from an unknown correspondent addressed to their son: "Just stay quiet and all safe."

Meanwhile, browsing through an online memorial for Spencer put together by his classmates, Betsy Hill is struck by a photo that appears to have been taken on the night of her son's death... and he wasn't alone. She thinks it is Adam Baye standing just outside the camera's range; but when Adam goes missing, it soon becomes clear that something deep and sinister has infected their community. For Tia and Mike Baye, the question they must answer is this: When it comes to your kids, is it possible to know too much?

83. Fearless Fourteen

And I've come to the end of the Stephanie Plum series. Kinda sad there isn't another one I can move right on to but kinda glad I can read some other things now. :)

Here's the description from B&N:

Personal vendettas, hidden treasure, and a monkey named Carl will send bounty hunter Stephanie Plum on her most explosive adventure yet.

The Crime: Armed robbery to the tune of nine million dollarsDom Rizzi robbed a bank, stashed the money, and did the time. His family couldn’t be more proud. He always was the smart one.

The Cousin: Joe MorelliJoe Morelli, Dom Rizzi, and Dom’s sister, Loretta, are cousins. Morelli is a cop, Rizzi robs banks, and Loretta is a single mother waiting tables at the firehouse. The all-American family.

The Complications: Murder, kidnapping, destruction of personal property, and acid refluxLess than a week after Dom’s release from prison, Joe Morelli has shadowy figures breaking into his house and dying in his basement. He’s getting threatening messages, Loretta is kidnapped, and Dom is missing.

The Catastrophe: MoonmanMorelli hires Walter “Mooner” Dunphy, stoner and “inventor” turned crime fighter, to protect his house. Morelli can’t afford a lot on a cop’s salary, and Mooner will work for potatoes.

The Cupcake: Stephanie PlumStephanie and Morelli have a long-standing relationship that involves sex, affection, and driving each other nuts. She’s a bond enforcement agent with more luck than talent, and she’s involved in this bank-robbery-gone-bad disaster from day one.

The Crisis: A favor for RangerSecurity expert Carlos Manoso, street name Ranger, has a job for Stephanie that will involve night work. Morelli has his own ideas regarding Stephanie’s evening activities.

The Conclusion: Only the fearless should read Fourteen.Thrills, chills, and incontinence may result.