Friday, May 16, 2014

Cell by Robin Cook
George Wilson is a medical resident in a busy hospital radiology department.  While he is starting the fourth year of his residency, two of his patients die unexpectedly soon after being diagnosed with a terminal illness.  George discovers that they both, as well as George's deceased fiance, had been patients of iDoc, a cutting edge medical app developed by Amalgamated Healthcare and a old college girlfriend of George's.
George puts his residency and future in jeopardy when he begins to investigate these deaths which he alone believes there is a connection between.
I have enjoyed Robin Cook's medical thrillers before, and Cell lives up to his other books.  The story grabs your interest immediately, keeps up the quick pace, and doesn't let you put it down until the surprising conclusion.

Friday, May 09, 2014

The Thoughts and Happenings of Wilfred Price Purveyor of Superior Funerals



by Wendy Jones
Wilfred Price has reached a point in life when he is beginning to think about his future. In a small Welsh town in 1924, Wilfred is thoughtfully cultivating a respectable and prosperous career as a funeral director, and making and saving enough money to allow a comfortable life for himself and his widowed father. So, basking in the beauty of a spring day and his burgeoning success, he impulsively asks Grace (a girl he barely knows) to marry him. The next day, coming to his senses, he decides to retract his spontaneous proposal. But Grace is well onto wedding plans and so are her parents. For kind-hearted and timid Wilfred, he never finds the right moment or seems to gain the proper momentum to convince Grace that the proposal is off - and plans for a wedding continue to run well ahead of him. And Wilfred is left trying to figure out how his life could so suddenly gone off kilter.
The story is a comedy of errors but in between that comedy Wendy Jones weaves layers of wisdom and insight. This is a carefully crafted study in human nature as Wilfred wrestles with his sense of responsibility verses desires. In the end, Wilfred is forced into a marriage that saves Grace from personal and public humiliation and shame . . . for her and her parents. The shame runs deeper than a broken engagement. It is a shame, that if uncovered, will tear Graces family apart.
Optioned for a mini-series by the producers of Downton Abbey, this novel is packed with wonderful characters, humor, heart and spirit. A quick and very satisfying read.


Monday, May 05, 2014

The Good Dream

Ivorie Walker, the heroine of this novel, is a single, 30ish woman finding herself lonely after years of taking care of her mother, who is now deceased.

With time on her hands she wonders what she will do, when she begins to notice her garden is being raided. She soon discovers a young boy, dirty as can be and hungry.  Ivorie steps over a line or two for Tennessee and the 1950's; she goes after answers and a way to save the boy.

This is a heart-warming story about the good and bad of families and two souls healing each other.  You'll like it!

The Maze Runner by James Dashner

The Maze Runner by James Dashner

'Yet another young adult author that has written a dystopian future trilogy?' is what I thought when I was recommended James Dashner’s Maze Runner trilogy by a friend. I was not looking forward to reading this series and figured it would be very similar to many other teen series that have been popular in recent years. It took me three years to finally pick up this book and finish it and it was worth it. The Maze Runner is a unique and thrilling novel that takes you to a desolate world where a group of teenaged boys are fighting for their lives and trying to figure out the maze they have been mysteriously sent to.
The main character in these books is Thomas who loses his memory before being put in this maze and isn’t even sure how old he is. The story starts with Thomas waking up in what seems to be an underground elevator and it is moving toward the surface. Once he appears at the surface, he is greeted by many other young men who refer to this new world he has entered as the Glade.
For two years, these boys and many other who have died have been trying to solve a maze that surrounds the Glade. Everyday boys called runners go and try to find an exit. Within the maze are creatures that will either kill you or string you and make you go insane if you happen upon one.
The day after Thomas arrives something strange happens, a girl arrives and completely changes the game. Thomas must solve this puzzle before they all end up dead.

This book had a slow start for me and did not answer questions until the end, leaving me confused for about half of the book. Once the pace of this book picked up and the action began, I could not put it down. There are two other books after this one and those are equally as good, if not better than the first. I would recommend this series to anyone who enjoys dystopian future or adventure/action books.