Book obtained from: Library e-book
Description: Stanley Yelnats [palindrome name], a boy from a family with more than its share of bad luck, is accused unjustly of stealing some shoes. He's sent to a boy's detention center out in the desert where the warden's idea of building the boys' character is having them dig holes all day, every day.
Plot: As Stanley and the other boys dig holes exactly five feet wide and five feet deep, Stanley realizes the warden is actually looking for something buried out there in the desert. He works on figuring it out, in the process building his character and finally ridding his family of its bad luck curse.
Characterization: Stanley is well developed. Two of the other boys are sufficiently differentiated, but I lost track of who was who with the others.
Setting: Fictional Camp Green Lake, which is located in the desert of western Texas. Good descriptions.
Other: This is a middle grade book that kept my interest, even tho I'm not that demographic. I liked how the multiple story lines, spanning three different time periods, eventually wound together.
Overall: An interesting story.
Grade: B+
Book obtained from: Library New Books shelf, Audio book
Description: Olav is a man who “fixes” problems for his boss as a contract killer in Oslo [Norway].
Plot: Olav is asked by his boss to “fix” his boss's wife. If he fixes her, he'll be next because he knows too much. If he refuses, he'll be next because he refused. To complicate matters, while he's watching her to decide what to do, he falls in love with her. There are some rather violent scenes, but also several surprising plot twists.
Characterization: Olav is very well developed. He's a sensitive guy in all areas except for the people he “fixes”. He's dyslexic, not very good at much except being a contract killer, and longs to learn what it means to love and be loved. The other characters are not as well developed as Olav.
Setting: Oslo, Norway. This is the first book I've ever read that's set in that country. The descriptions were good, I was able to picture every scene without it being over-described.
Other: This is a rather short [225 pages] stand-alone book by this author, who is more well-known for his Harry Hole series. The book is translated from Norwegian. The audio book is read by Patti Smith, who reads this book in a monotone, which adds to the characterization, possibly unintentionally. I wouldn't care for this style of narration if it didn't match the personality of the main character.
Overall: A very introspective, literary crime novel.
Grade: B
Book obtained from: Library New Books shelf, Audio book
Description: Kate O'Hare is an FBI agent. Nick Fox is a con man and #7 on the FBI's most wanted list. They team up to capture criminals who are beyond capture by legal means. This is the third book in the series.
Plot: In this book, Nick and Kate go after a drug lord with a taste for fine chocolate and a love of art and other treasures. They concoct an elaborate con using a ridiculous amount of money, which does strain credibility at times, but if you can get past that, it does makes sense and there's a lot of humor.
Characterization: The characters are reasonably well developed and had their own personalities. Some of the secondary characters are wild and crazy [an actor who takes his roles much too seriously, a lady who loves driving/racing anything with a motor, a Somali pirate, Kate's father who loves explosives a little too much, etc], adding much color and humor to the story.
Setting: Nashville, Portugal, Istanbul, France, England. The descriptions were good, I was able to picture every scene without it being over-described.
Other: The con does strain credibility.
Overall: A good, light mystery/thriller. Funny. The audio book is read by Scott Brick and he's awesome, a unique and appropriate voice for each character, including foreign accents.
Grade: B
Book obtained from: Library New Books shelf, Audio book
Description: Maura Donovan, a 20-something from Boston, was raised by her grandmother. She visits Ireland after her grandmother's death to fulfill a promise and to learn more about her family. While there, her life is threatened as she searches for answers for first one, then another, murder.
Plot: Maura promised her grandmother she would visit the small town of Leap, in County Cork, Ireland. She travels there after her grandmother's death, meets the locals, talks to friends of her grandmother, learns about Irish history and her family, and stumbles upon two murders. When she is the subject of several seemingly-random attacks, she sets about to solve the murders before she is next.
Characterization: The characters are reasonably well developed and had their own personalities. I did like Maura altho she was sometimes a bit whiny.
Setting: Small towns in Ireland. The descriptions were very good, I was able to vividly picture every scene without it being over-described. The book also gives some history of Ireland, presented in an interesting way and keeping within the story, which I enjoyed.
Other: This book was slow in places, but still interesting.
Overall: A good, light mystery, with some history. Very good, vivid descriptions. The audio book is read by Amy Rubinate, who read it well with different voices for the different characters altho some voices did sound similar.
Grade: A-
