Sometimes I Feel Like a Nut: Essays and Observations by Jill Kargman

Book Description
Demonstrating Woody Allen's magical math equation, comedy = tragedy + time, a sensational collection of witty essays about life, love, hate, kids, work, school, and more from the author of The Ex-Mrs. Hedgefund and Arm Candy

Jill Kargman is a mother, wife, and writer living the life in New York City . . . a life that includes camping out in a one-bedroom apartment with some unfortunate (and furry) roommates, battling the Momzillas of Manhattan, and coming to terms with her desire for gay men. In this entertaining collection of observations, Kargman offers her unique, wickedly funny perspective as she zips around Manhattan with three kids in tow.

Kargman tackles issues big and small with sharp wit and laugh-out-loud humor: her love of the smell of gasoline, her new names for nail polishes, her adventures in New York City real estate, and her fear of mimes, clowns, and other haunting things. Whether it's surviving a family road trip or why she can't stand Cirque du So Lame, living with a mommy vagina the size of the Holland Tunnel or surviving the hell that was her first job out of college, Kargman's nutty self triumphs, thanks to a wonderfully wise outlook and sense of fun that makes the best of everything that gets thrown her way. And if that's not enough, Kargman illustrates her reflections with doodles that capture her refreshing voice.

My thoughts
When in the introduction Ms. Kargman says that her father instilled in her that it isn’t the ones who had the most money or the most successful careers that lived the best but it is the ones who laughed the most; I knew I was going to enjoy this book. The book of essays is humorous and off the wall. She touches various subjects like her fear of vans, obsessions, giving birth and being a mother, and her favorite smell. I found myself cracking up at times and sharing bits with my wife. She can be a little vulgar and crass at times (the author, not my wife) and may offend some but I found her a bit nutty.

Disclosure: I received this book for review from the publisher. I received no compensation for my thoughts.

Dead Man's Eye by Shaun Jeffrey

Book Description
A corneal transplant does more than correct Joanna Raines sight. It allows her to see something that doesn't want to be seen. Something evil. Something that threatens mankind. The only trouble is that no one believes her, and by the time they do, it might be too late ...

Seeing is believing. Now Joanna just has to convince everyone else.

My thoughts
Joanna is the recipient of a new cornea, courtesy of a dead priest. She sees things that aren’t there like shadows and blames it on the surgery. Yet, nobody believes her and the terror begins. Is it an evil eye? Sorry, had to put that in there. This horror story is a riveting piece of work. Shaun Jeffrey captures what the horror fan wants; being on the edge of their seat.
Disclosure: I received this book for review from the author. I received no compensation for my thoughts.

The Memory Palace by Mira Bartók

Book Description
“People have abandoned their loved ones for much less than you’ve been through,” Mira Bartók is told at her mother’s memorial service. It is a poignant observation about the relationship between Mira, her sister, and their mentally ill mother. Before she was struck with schizophrenia at the age of nineteen, beautiful piano protégé Norma Herr had been the most vibrant personality in the room. She loved her daughters and did her best to raise them well, but as her mental state deteriorated, Norma spoke less about Chopin and more about Nazis and her fear that her daughters would be kidnapped, murdered, or raped.

When the girls left for college, the harassment escalated—Norma called them obsessively, appeared at their apartments or jobs, threatened to kill herself if they did not return home. After a traumatic encounter, Mira and her sister were left with no choice but to change their names and sever all contact with Norma in order to stay safe. But while Mira pursued her career as an artist—exploring the ancient romance of Florence, the eerie mysticism of northern Norway, and the raw desert of Israel—the haunting memories of her mother were never far away.

Then one day, Mira’s life changed forever after a debilitating car accident. As she struggled to recover from a traumatic brain injury, she was confronted with a need to recontextualize her life—she had to relearn how to paint, read, and interact with the outside world. In her search for a way back to her lost self, Mira reached out to the homeless shelter where she believed her mother was living and discovered that Norma was dying.

Mira and her sister traveled to Cleveland, where they shared an extraordinary reconciliation with their mother that none of them had thought possible. At the hospital, Mira discovered a set of keys that opened a storage unit Norma had been keeping for seventeen years. Filled with family photos, childhood toys, and ephemera from Norma’s life, the storage unit brought back a flood of previous memories that Mira had thought were lost to her forever.

The Memory Palace is a breathtaking literary memoir about the complex meaning of love, truth, and the capacity for forgiveness among family. Through stunning prose and original art created by the author in tandem with the text, The Memory Palace explores the connections between mother and daughter that cannot be broken no matter how much exists—or is lost—between them.

My thoughts
Mira has spent most of her adult life hiding from her schizophrenic homeless mother when she gets a call through a friend that her mother is in the hospital dying of stomach cancer. When she finds a key to a storage locker that her mother rents, she finds artifacts from her childhood and memories start flooding back. With this memoir Mira has written a captivating story of a childhood filled with hope and fear. She reads from her mother’s journals and opens the reader’s eyes to what it is like to live in such a world. This is a book of love and forgiveness and finding truth. I recommend you keep a box of tissues close by.


Disclosure: I received this book for review from the publisher. I received no compensation for my thoughts.

Breach of Trust by David Ellis

This book will be released on February 3, 2011.

Book Description
Former college football star and criminal defense attorney Jason Kolarich returns in this shocking thriller from the award-winning author of The Hidden Man.

Jason Kolarich has spent the past year struggling to recover from the horrific deaths of his wife and baby daughter.

On the night of their deaths, Kolarich was at the office, awaiting a call from a confidential informant named Ernesto Ramirez-a call that never came. Kolarich blames himself not only for the deaths of his wife and child, but for the informant's murder as well. He can't bring back his family, but he can find out who killed Ramirez and bring the killer to justice.

Unfortunately, Kolarich's guns-blazing approach to justice lands him smack in the middle of an FBI probe of a deeply corrupt governor and his cronies. To avoid jail, Kolarich must enter a world of wiretaps, double-dealing, and kickbacks, where he soon discovers that the murder of his informant was only the tip of the iceberg.

This breach of trust runs up to the highest levels of power, and exposing it may drag Kolarich into the fight of his life.

My thoughts
Jason Kolarich loses his wife and daughter in an automobile accident while waiting for a reluctant witness for a very important case. He should have been with them and driving but his work seemed more important at the time. After mourning, quitting his job and going to work for himself, Jason learns that his witness was murdered on the same night his family died. Determined to help the wife of the witness and find the truth behind it all, Jason is thrown into the world of corrupt politicians and payoffs that may go all the way to the governor. But Jason with the help of the FBI isn’t got to stop even if it means his own demise. David Ellis’ new book is a legal thriller that is expertly written. His plot and characters are believable and the novel enjoyable.

Disclosure: I received this book for review from the publisher. I received no compensation for my thoughts.

Blog Hop Linky List

I have added a Blog Hop Linky thing on my blog page. You can add your blog to my page here or scroll down on the right side of my blog to add. I am always looking for new blogs to read and I am hoping this Hop will not only generate traffic to all our sites but also finding new blogs to read!



Thanks for adding your blog.

Rot & Ruin by Jonathan Maberry

Book Description
In the zombie-infested, post-apocalyptic America where Benny Imura lives, every teenager must find a job by the time they turn fifteen or get their rations cut in half. Benny doesn't want to apprentice as a zombie hunter with his boring older brother Tom, but he has no choice. He expects a tedious job whacking zoms for cash, but what he gets is a vocation that will teach him what it means to be human.

My thoughts
It’s been about fifteen years since the war began; the war between the dead and the living and the living are losing. Benny is fifteen and doesn’t remember much of his parents who were lost that night. He now lives in a secure town with his older brother Tom; a respected and successful zombie killer. He brothers aren’t close and Benny thinks other zombie killers like Charlie are so much cooler. But at fifteen, Benny has to find a job within the community or loses half of his allotted rations. Not finding an easy or cool job, he decides to go into the family business. Tom takes him out to the Ruin where the dead roam free.

When a new collection of zombie trading cards are released and one is of The Lost Girl, it starts a series of violent incidents where the brothers are almost killed and Benny’s friend gets kidnapped and dragged to the Ruin. Tom and Benny search outside to find and rescue her. In the Rot & Ruin Benny learns more about his brother, the society and himself. It’s a coming of age story where one learns that not all monsters are the undead.

Disclosure: I borrowed this book from my local library.

Scream 4 coming out April 15, 2011

Guess where I will be on Tax Day!

All That's True by Jackie Lee Miles

Book Description
"My life was close to being perfect until my brother Alex got killed. Then my mother started drinking and my father started having sex with Donna, my best friend's stepmother. She's not even thirty years old."

With an equal mix of joy and sorrow, All That's True follows Andi's poignant-and sometimes laugh out loud-journey to young adulthood, where she struggles with the elusive nature of truth and the devastating consequences of deception.

My thoughts
Andi is a young Southern girl from a well-to-do family that has to deal with so much in this coming of age story. After her brother dies (this is where the story begins), her mother starts drinking and her father has an affair with a neighbor. Her sister is preparing for her own wedding; he dead brother’s girlfriend is pregnant with his child and Andi thinks she is in love at the age of thirteen. For such a young girl, she has to deal with so much in a short period of time. I found Andi to be fresh and genuine and Mile’s writing not too sappy. Adolescence is tough and she captures the angst of such a rite of passage.

Disclosure: I received this book for review from the publisher. I received no compensation for my thoughts.

Hell's Horizon by Darren Shan

Book Description
In the City, The Cardinal rules, and Al Jeery is a loyal member of his personal guard. But when Al is pulled from his duties at Party Central to investigate a murder, an unexpected discovery leads him in a new direction, where his loyalties and beliefs will be severely tested.

Soon he is involved in a terrifying mystery that draws in the dead, the City's Incan forefathers, the imposing figure of The Cardinal, and the near-mythical assassin Paucar Wami.

Wami is a law unto himself, a shadowy, enigmatic figure who can apparently kill anyone he chooses without fear of punishment or retribution. And Al is about to find out that he has a lot more in common with Wami than he could ever have imagined...

My thoughts
The Cardinal owns the City and Al is one of his guards. When assigned to investigate the murder of a young woman, Al finds it is his girlfriend Nic. Determined to get the truth, Al finds that some people and things are not what they appear to be. Will this hinder his investigation or make him more determined to find the real answers behind this conspiracy? In this fantasy novel, there were things that through me off for a moment and afterwards I found this too be the second novel in a series, but it was still a captivating story to read during a cold wintery weekend.

Disclosure: I received this book for review from the publisher. I received no compensation for my thoughts.

The Terror of Living by Urban Waite

This book will be released on February 7, 2011

Book Description
Phil Hunt is in deep trouble.

Hunt is on the run from two men: Drake, the deputy sheriff who intends to catch him, and Grady, the vicious hitman who means to kill him.

For twenty years Hunt has lived in Washington State, raising horses with his wife on his small farm. He's tried to stay out of trouble, wanting only to make a living and taking the occasional illicit job in order to do so.

Then his last delivery goes horribly wrong, and the chase is on from the mountains down into the Puget lowlands. To have any chance of rescuing his quiet life, Hunt will have to deal with deputy sheriff Bobby Drake, a good man determined to make up for his father's tainted legacy and Grady Fisher, a very bad man intent on making a name for himself in the most violent ways. With a fondness for blood, Grady takes pleasure in the use of knives, taking Hunt's life apart piece by piece, all the while leaving a trail of victims across the state.

Relentless and gorgeously written, with original characters and a vividly powerful sense of place, The Terror of Living heralds the arrival of a writer who will be compared with the great suspense novelists.

My thoughts
Although Phil Hunt and his wife own a horse ranch, he also makes money by helping delivery drugs across the Canadian border. Deputy Sherriff Bobby Drake out on vacation in the hills, interrupts the transfer of illegal drugs and hence the confrontation between Phil and Bobby. To complicate things, the owners of said drugs want their drugs back and the blood of those who screwed up the shipment. Phil is trying to protect himself and his wife, while Bobby is trying to locate Phil before the hunters kill Phil. The emotional pull of this novel is enough to draw anyone in as both Phil and Bobby struggle to make things right in their own lives. An exceedingly touching tale.

Disclosure: I received this book for review from the publisher. I received no compensation for my thoughts.

A Heartbeat Away by Michael Palmer

This book will be released February 15, 2011

Book Description
On the night of the State of the Union address, President James Allaire expects to give the speech of his career. But no one anticipates the terrifying turn of events that forces him to quarantine everyone in the Capitol building. A terrorist group calling itself “Genesis” has unleashed WRX3883, a deadly, highly contagious virus, into the building. No one fully knows the deadly effect of the germ except for the team responsible for its development—a team headed by Allaire, himself. The only one who might be able to help is virologist Griffin Rhodes, currently in solitary confinement in a maximum security federal prison for alleged terrorist acts, including the attempted theft of WRX3883 from the lab where he worked. Rhodes has no idea why he has been arrested, but when Allaire offers to free him in exchange for his help combating the virus, he reluctantly agrees to do what he can to support the government that has imprisoned him without apparent cause.

Meanwhile, every single person in line for presidential succession is trapped inside the Capitol—every person except one: the Director of Homeland Security, who is safely at home in Minnesota, having been selected as the “Designated Survivor” for this event. With enemies both named and unnamed closing in, and the security of the nation at stake, Griff must unravel the mysteries of WRX3883 without violating his pledge as a scientist to use no animal testing in his experiments…and time is running out.

Tense, thrilling, and entirely plausible, A Heartbeat Away will make you reflect, wonder, and be truly afraid.

My thoughts
Michael Palmer has written an intense political thriller involving the president, terrorists, scientists and a deadly virus. From the start when terrorists calling themselves ‘Genesis’ cause a huge blackout then release a deadly virus in the Capital to the finale and resolution, this novel is one hell of a page turner. Non-stop action, twists, questions and more kept me engrossed throughout the night reading this one.

Disclosure: I received this book for review from the publisher. I received no compensation for my thoughts.

Muppets with People Eyes

Just creepy.  See more here:

http://muppetswithpeopleeyes.tumblr.com/

The Knot Artist by India Wilson

Book Description
THE KNOT ARTIST is a startling, erotic political thriller whose unique heroine is Dominique - the most costly dominatrix on the East Coast -- a character who will mesmerize you. Dominique s view of men, women and society is dark, original and hilarious. When something goes terribly wrong in her Bridgehampton dungeon with a U.S. Senator involved in Cuban-American relations, Dominique finds herself attracted to the mysterious international security expert who appears to handle the problem and whose life is even more about control than her own. Did you love Lizbeth Salander in The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo? Did you tear through the entire Stieg Larssen Millennium trilogy and don't know what to read next

My thoughts
India Wilson’s writing is fresh and exciting. The Knot Artist is a story about Dominique; one high-price and very good dominatrix. So much so that she has politicians and other important people as her clients. I wasn’t sure what to expect but India describes Dominique’s dungeon which such detail, I don’t think she left anything out. One can learn a lot about the S&M world just by this alone. Regarding the story line (without adding spoilers), it has to do with a certain client and his interests. Although, labeled a political thriller, I see it more as a political drama with a whole lot of masochism thrown in!

Disclosure: I received this book for review from the author. I received no compensation for my thoughts.

Toy Story 3

I recently purchased Toy Story 3 on DVD, having seen the first two in the series. And I was not wrong in doing so. My wife and I watched it the other night. This animated film is one of the best films I’ve seen in a long time. First, sequels always have a hard time comparing to the original, but this one held it’s own. Yes, you need to watch the others to ‘know’ the characters, but the story takes it all to a new dimension. This is a not just for kids but for the whole family. It is funny, sad, touching and fully emotional. I recommend it highly!

Shades of Green by Ian Woodhead

Book Description
Holburn was just like any other northern English town, at least on the surface. Buried below the local woodland, something of ancient evil had begun to tunnel up…

Within hours, Holburn suffered a drastic transformation as invasive, bizarre plant-life infest the town, the population and wildlife transform into rampaging, blood-thirsty beasts.

A handful of survivor’s battle to stay alive and search for answers.

My thoughts
Shades of Green is a weird trip through horror in the town of Holburn. The characters are disturbing and the plot is something that the spawn of Stephen King and Rod Serling would conjure up. It had slow start with character development but once the story unfolded it moved well. I could easily envision this as a low-budget horror movie.

Disclaimer: I received this book for review from the author. I received no compensation for my thoughts.

Trash to Treasure

I have to share this as it made my day today.  I picked up a bunch of old magazines someone was tossing and found this old program from Corriganville from 1954 inside one of them (and it was signed).  Put both on eBay; the magazines didn't sell, but the progam did.  I just sold it for $33.00. Now that can buy lunch for me for the rest of the week.  You never know when one person's trash is another person's treasure!

Easy As Pie At Bobby's Diner by Susan Wingate

Book Description
Georgette Carlisle lost her first husband, and is about to lose her next one: Hawthorne Biggs. She’s running the diner with Roberta, her late husband’s daughter. When old friend, Helen, comes back home after a failed attempt at a writing career, she is, once again, attracted to Georgette’s man. After the two women part company Helen goes missing. While digging around, Georgette finds out that Biggs has a dangerous past. With Roberta at her side, the two women brave separation, torture, and near death at the hand of Biggs. And, after taking him down, the women find a new strength and belonging. EASY AS PIE is the number two book in the four-part “Bobby’s Diner” series.

My Thoughts
Georgette is a widow and running a diner with her late husband’s daughter when she meets Hawthorne and a second chance at love. When Georgette’s friend Helen comes back to town and stays with Helen, Helen and Hawthorne do the dirty deed. Georgette has enough of both Helen and Hawthorne. Then Helen is found murdered and Hawthorne wants to reconcile. But is Hawthorne hiding a secret? This is the second book of a four book series, but holds its own. I found Georgette to be a strong character and the novel a fun one to read.

Disclosure: I received this book for review from the author. I received no compensation for my thoughts.

Elephant Milk by Diane Sherry Case

Book Description
Sean Hayes is driving a lime green dune buggy that a friend of hers traded from Elvis Presley for angel dust. A major motion picture is about to be released with Sean's accidentally naked breasts in it and she has just watched her best girlfriend shoot heroin, while Keith Richards nodded on the couch. Sean parks the dune buggy on Coldwater Canyon, walks down the hill, and lights a joint to calm down. There she finds a pile of black clothes, wet with blood. The Tate murders? It is 1969 and things are starting to get really icky.

Meanwhile, Sean's first boyfriend has taken off to Mexico and she has no idea exactly where he is. But a girl has to follow her heart. Sean leaves Beverly Hills determined to find her lover, even if it means joining a traveling circus and getting lost in a world of drum rolls and lions and Mayan glyphs. Even it means having knives thrown at her for a living, and facing a loaded machine gun in the hands of her rival. Somehow, she will find Frank, even if means going deep into the jungle, just in time to view a total eclipse, on the back of her favorite elephant.

My thoughts
It is 1969 and Sean Hayes falls in love with Frank. Frank doesn’t want commitment and takes off for Mexico. Sean decides to follow him and during her search for Frank she joins the circus. This makes it easy to travel and try and find him. Sean’s adventures are more exciting than her relationship with Frank (who is a jerk, by the way). Circus life has Sean growing up and experiencing life as no other. Like others, I was intrigued by the title, but Diane Sherry Case writes a extraordinary coming-of-age story.

Disclosure: I received this book for review from the author. I received no compensation for my thoughts.

The Sentry by Robert Crais

This book will be released on January 11, 2011

Book Description
Dru Rayne and her uncle fled to L.A. after Hurricane Katrina; but now, five years later, they face a different danger. When Joe Pike witnesses Dru's uncle beaten by a protection gang, he offers his help, but neither of them want it-and neither do the federal agents mysteriously watching them.

As the level of violence escalates, and Pike himself becomes a target, he and Elvis Cole learn that Dru and her uncle are not who they seem- and that everything he thought he knew about them has been a lie. A vengeful and murderous force from their past is now catching up to them . . . and only Pike and Cole stand in the way.

My thoughts
The Sentry is the latest novel in Robert Crais’ Joe Pike series. In this one Pike is a Good Samaritan and steps in when a local sandwich shop owner is attacked by two gang members. Pike has a thing for Dru, the niece of the shop owner and offers to help then, but then she and her uncle go missing. Before you know it, the LAPD, FBI and the Mexican Mafia are involved. Pike recruits his friend Elvis Cole and soon bodies start emerging; none of which are Dru or her uncle. I enjoyed the story, the writing and the characters. Another good book by Robert Crais.

Disclosure: I received this book for review from the publisher. I received no compensation for my thoughts.

Hell's Corner by David Baldacci

Book Description

Oliver Stone and the Camel Club return in #1 bestselling author David Baldacci's most stunning adventure yet.

An attack on the heart of power . . .

In sight of the White House . . .

At a place known as . . .

HELL'S CORNER

John Carr, aka Oliver Stone-once the most skilled assassin his country ever had-stands in Lafayette Park in front of the White House, perhaps for the last time. The president has personally requested that Stone serve his country again on a high-risk, covert mission. Though he's fought for decades to leave his past career behind, Stone has no choice but to say yes.

Then Stone's mission changes drastically before it even begins. It's the night of a state dinner honoring the British prime minister. As he watches the prime minister's motorcade leave the White House that evening, a bomb is detonated in Lafayette Park, an apparent terrorist attack against both leaders. It's in the chaotic aftermath that Stone takes on a new, more urgent assignment: find those responsible for the bombing.

British MI-6 agent Mary Chapman becomes Stone's partner in the search for the unknown attackers. But their opponents are elusive, capable, and increasingly lethal; worst of all, it seems that the park bombing may just have been the opening salvo in their plan. With nowhere else to turn, Stone enlists the help of the only people he knows he can trust: the Camel Club. Yet that may be a big mistake.

In the shadowy worlds of politics and intelligence, there is no one you can really trust. Nothing is really what it seems to be. And Hell's Corner truly lives up to its name. This may be Oliver Stone's and the Camel Club's last stand.

My Thoughts
I enjoy David Balducci’s books but this is the first Camel Club novel of his that I have read. I must say that I enjoyed (although the Camel Club takes back seat to the story). Oliver Stone is recruited by the President to investigate and destroy an international drug syndicate. But before he can start his mission, while taking a walk in his favorite park (Lafayette Park), a bomb goes off and he gets involved in trying to locate who is responsible and why. Every time he gets close to the truth, someone is killed, putting his life in more danger. Although, some found this story tedious and unbelievable, I found it thrilling and a great escape.

Disclosure: I received this book for review from the publisher. I’ve received no compensation for my review.