Devil-Devil
Graeme Kent
Kent has managed to create one of the rarest of novels. Set in the Solomon Islands in the 1960s as colonial rule is disintegrating, many of the bright boys are given a European education in preparation to take over control of the country. These men vacillate between their traditional village lifestyles and beliefs and their eastern education and Christianity. Kent does the amazing job of giving a solid chunk of island history, the beliefs and religions of the various Solomon Island tribes and families, colonial attitude, the life of a missionary and much more… all without the usual tedious couple of paragraph expositions crammed in here and there. His dialogue flows between Sergeant Kella, a police officer officially looking for a missing...
Raven Black
Ann Cleeves
The first in her Shetland Island thrillers, Cleeves’ story is dark and gripping. The isolation, small-town atmosphere and like of privacy on the tiny island add to the tense atmosphere and ominous air. Suspicion over the death of two local girls bounces from one resident to the other, though always circling to the grinning old man in the dilapidated house. A book as much about psychology and personality as it is about murder. Wonderful.
Following Polly
Karen Bergreen
A perfect blend of mystery, chick-lit, tension and snark. Bergreen’s heroine (of sorts) Alice acts like a real person. She holds grudges, creates fantasies and often does nonsensical and stupid things. But they all make their own wacky, forgivable sense. Out of work and looking to occupy herself, Alice happens to catch sight of a former classmate. Now rich and famous, Polly is everything Alice is not. With nothing better to do, Alice starts following Polly…all the way to the end. Amusing and engrossing. I hope Bergreen has some more titles in the works.
The Happiness Project
Gretchen Rubin
Rubin is a book-dork and I love her for it. Like me, when she has a problem to solve her first reaction is to find a book on the topic. After deciding that, on the whole, her life is good but there were areas that need work, Rubin set out to do some research. Dividing up her life into categories she thought deserved a polish, Rubin set out to find solutions to her problems. What she came up with some wonderful ideas. More importantly, she came up with some of her own life truths:
What’s fun for other people may not be fun for you — and vice versa.
What you do EVERY DAY matters more than what you do ONCE IN A WHILE
Plus commandments such as:
Do it now.
Let it go.
Spend out (spend money to make life better).
Some may apply to...
Face to Face: Polar Portraits
Huw Lewis-Jones
This is a brilliant and gripping collection of photos, some almost 150 years old, of the brave (and possibly insane) women and men who explore the poles. The book gives a wide range of vignettes – the big names like Robert Scott and Ernest Shackleton – but also their crew, modern explorers and scientists, Inuit residents and guides and other integral people. Beautiful, often unreal, photos accompanied by gripping ...
Star Island
Carl Hiaasen
Hiaasen’s newest title, Star Island, is by far my favorite since Skinny Dip. Using the trite and oft-seen story of a starlet going off the rails, Hiaasen drags Cherry Pye, a mediocre singer filled with blind ambition, had her double Ann, into the psychotic world of The Captain’s Florida. Never one to disappoint, Hiaasen’s characters careen widely from one-near miss to another. The bad get theirs in the end and the good get a nasty vindication. Cheaper than drugs and just as shiny and confusing.