The Confession by John Grisham

Published in October 2010, the Number One bestseller The Confession is a cracker of a read, quite but not quite similar to his non-fiction, The Innocent Man: Murder and Injustice In A Small Town (2006), and deserves the overrated rating below, but more than that, I second the opinion of one reader from Goodreads who wrote:

"What John Grisham brings to his work as a writer -- other than his deep knowledge of the law and its application in the South -- is more than just craft. For one thing, he clearly has a deep-seated passion for justice. The Confession, like other memorable stories he's told in writing, is a loud cry for the ideals of our legal system to be put into practice. When Grisham tells the story of a young man -- and, for that matter, his family and his community -- victimized by a corrupt system, he's relating to us a true story of America today. He strikes a deep chord of recognition in us all, because we've heard that story before, again and again, on our television screens and in our newspapers. And the details of the story don't matter, because we know in our hearts that the unprincipled police officers and prosecutors and judges, the self-seeking politicians, the heartless insurance executives, and the greedy lawyers that populate Grisham's books are the people we believe are running our lives.

John Grisham has emerged as one of the premier chroniclers of our time because he's telling our story."

Grisham shares his pearls of wisdom at a Commencement ceremony in North Carolina in 2010 below:



Grisham confessed in three versions:







The reason I put up three of the above videos is because I enjoy listening to Grisham every time.  He is a brilliant and witty orator and I am glad there is something to look forward to - his next legal thriller, The Litigators, which comes out in October 2011; and in the interim, may go back to reading his very first publication, A Time To Kill, published in 1989, and so on and so forth, for the pure joy of it.  His books never get old.  For more information on his legal novels, check out the author's official website at www.jgrisham.com

Take time to read.

Rating:  7/5

The Shadow Of Your Smile by Mary Higgins Clark

With her prolific output of world-wide bestsellers, it is not surprising that New York born Mary Higgins Clark has a long and impressive biography.  Some of her books have been adapted into movies and television programs.  Her very first book, Aspire To The Heavens, was published in 1968 and her latest book, I'll Walk Alone, was recently published in May 2011.  Her daughter and sometimes co-writer, Carol Higgins Clark, and her daughter-in-law, Mary Jane Clark, are also writers.  She lives in Saddle River, New Jersey.  To find out more, go onto the Mary Higgins Clark's website.

The Shadow of your Smile, published in 2010, explores the juxtaposition of medical science and religious faith, and the search of identity by a daughter of a man adopted at birth.  This is an engrossing and terrific read.  I have never known Mary Higgins Clark to fail to capture my attention with her innate gift of storytelling, filled with palpable suspense at every turn of the page every time I pick up her books!

The author tells us what it is about:



This book is displayed from the vantage point of a shelf facing the entrance to the Cambridge Central Library - cannot fail to miss it.

Rating: 3.5/5

My New Reading Book - The Kindle

I have succumbed.

I fought long and hard over the last four years to resist buying an electronic book because I am a die-hard booklover but in the end...

...I succumbed.

It was a tortuous and argument-ridden battle between the devil and the angel, but alas, the devil won.  Or is it the angel.

Now, I am proud as punch to say I am a proud as punch owner of such a clever reading apparatus that I have totally forgotten what my gripes were about the Kindle in the first place!

I can now horde more books in one small device instead of having to keep searching for a new place to store my ever-expanding library.  At one time, there was a concern that I might have to store my books on top of the roof with the birds, droppings and nests, if they continued to increase in numbers.

I have even dressed it in a gorgeous red sheath complete with sparkling jewellery to rival the Queen's - the reading light.

Any readers out there who are still undecided about getting a Kindle, I can say hand on my heart just get it.

It will now be my constant companion wherever I go.

Last word:  You can shoot me but I will still carry on buying books.

Meet Me At The Cupcake Cafe by Jenny Colgan

Jenny Colgan is a completely new author to me.  I picked up her book only because of that one word on the cover - cupcake.  I love cupcakes.  I also love to laugh.  So, when both are combined in a book, I simply cannot resist taking it home with me.  Romance is a sideline.

I know a few ladies who make the most delicious and creamiest cupcakes I have ever tasted but sadly, none could sustain a cupcake cafe for long, not outside of London anyway, due to the poor economic climate.

The shop/supermarket-bought ones are not up to par and never will be, so, I guess it is a consolation that they still run their businesses by phone and online whenever we cupcake lovers feel like indulging our sweet tooth.

The best news is that if you want to meet other cupcake lovers, you can now do so at the annual cupcake festival to be held on Halloween's Day of this year from 2-5pm.  The festival is also held in aid of the North London Hospice.


Red, a luxury women's lifestyle magazine from the UK, termed Colgan's books as "a delicious comedy" and I could not agree more.

Flicking through the book before reading it, I notice that almost all chapters open with a tempting and yummy recipe, for example:

First Chapter: Drop Scones


Chapter Two: Orange Cupcakes with Marmalade Icing for a Grumpy Day


Chapter Three: None


Chapter Four: Not Going To Work Nutella Cookies


Chapter Five: Peppermint Creams


Chapter Six: Lemon Getting What You Want Cake


Chapter Seven: Double Chocolate Cupcakes and Chocolate Sauce


Chapter Eight: Pear Upside-Down Cake


Chapters Nine and Ten: None


Chapter Eleven: Strawberry Meringue Cupcakes 


etc

You can even find a Royal Wedding Street Party Red, White and Blue Cupcake recipe at the end of the book, no doubt to commemorate the recent royal wedding between Prince William and Catherine Middleton.

I love Colgan's writing and will definitely check out her other books before the year ends.  Having read a number of chick-lits in the past, I can say with certainty that Colgan's book stands out.  That is because it contains two ingredients which I look out for when I read chick-lits - wit and wisdom - and this book definitely contains much more than a good yarn let me tell you that!

Meet Me At The Cupcake Cafe was published in April 2011.  To know more about the author, keep up-to-date with her, read her blog, check out her latest news, reviews, books and book information, baking tips, recipes, enter competitions, Facebook, Twitter, just click onto her genuinely warm, genuinely funny website.  Right, I need to go and bake a tray of cupcakes now.  Happy read.

Rating:  4/5

Only Time Will Tell (The Clifton Chronicles Series, Book 1) by Jeffrey Archer

It has been aeons since I last read a book set in Great Britain in the early 1900s.  For the past decade or more, I have consciously been reading contemporary books and sourcing and supporting new authors with their books set in the present techie age because I told myself I have had enough of the past.  But when one of my favourite writers of our age produced his latest novel (published 12 May 2011), how could I possibly ignore it?  I could not.  To put it mildly, I will read anything that Lord Jeffrey Archer writes.  I am already very excited to get ahold of the sequel to Only Time Will Tell called The Sins Of The Father, which will be out in March 2012 in hardback, audio and Kindle.  Happy reading.

First line in the book:  This story would never have been written if I hadn't become pregnant.

Hardcover blurb:  The Clifton Chronicles is Jeffrey Archer's most ambitious work in four decades as an international bestselling author.

The epic tale of Harry Clifton's life begins in 1919, in the backstreets of Bristol.  His father was a war hero, but it will be twenty-one tumultuous years before Harry discovers the truth about how his father really died and if, in fact, he even was his father.

Only Time Will Tell takes a cast of memorable characters from the ravages of the Great War to the outbreak of the Second World War, when Harry must decide whether to take his place at Oxford, or join the fight against Hitler's Germany.

In Jeffrey Archer's masterful hands, you will be taken on a journey that you won't want to end, even after you've turned the last page of this unforgettable yarn, because then you will be faced with a dilemma that neither you nor Harry Clifton could ever have anticipated.

I enjoyed listening to this conversation with Lord Archer:

Here is the trailer:

More videos and information can be gleaned from Jeffrey Archer's official website.

Rating:  5/5

Blood And Ashes (The New Joe Hunter Thriller) by Matt Hilton

Front flap blurb:  Brooke Reynolds died in a car crash.

Tragic accident, the police say.

But her father knows otherwise.

And he wants Joe Hunter to find the men responsible.

Trouble is, they find Joe first.

The ensuing blood bath is only the beginning of a trail of death that leads right to the heart of a rascist conspiracy.

Joe is on countdown: can he stop the plotters before they reduce the free world to ashes?

Relevant websites:  Blood and Ashes is Hilton's fifth book in the Joe Hunter thriller series first published in Great Britain in February 2011.  This is my favourite action-packed vigilante series by a British author.  I have read them all and am very excited to read Hilton's sixth, Dead Men's Harvest, out in August 2011.

Do visit www.matthiltonbooks.com, matthiltonbooks.blogspot.com and www.joehuntervigilante.com to for more information.

I like this review of Blood And Ashes by Milo's Rambles.

Rating:  4/5

The Other Half Lives by Sophie Hannah

Hardcover flap blurb:  Why would anyone confess to the murder of someone who isn't dead?

Ruth Bussey knows what it means to be in the wrong, and to be wronged.  She once did something she regrets, and her punishment nearly destroyed her.  Now Ruth is rebuilding her life, and has found a love she doesn't believe she deserves: Aidan Seed.  Aidan is also troubled by a past he hates to talk about, until one day he decides he must confide in Ruth.  He tells her that years ago he killed someone: a woman called Mary Trelease.

Ruth is confused.  She's certain she's heard the name before, and when she realises why it sounds familiar, her fear and confusion deepen - because the Mary Trelease that Ruth knows is very much alive...

To understand the author's writing style, watch this video (in English and Spanish):



The Other Half Lives (published in 2009) is the fourth psychological thriller in the Sergeant Charlie Zailer and Detective Constable Simon Waterhouse series and is published in the USA as The Dead Lie Down.  This book does not make any more sense than the last one (The Point of Rescue) but this one scores more points from me because I thought the plot/maze is very well-constructed and original, and told superbly with the author's usual flamboyance and unconventional wit.  However, I have decided not to read anymore Sophie Hannah because her books get worse as I read down the series.  They are long-winded and make no sense most of the time.  More than half the time, I do not understand what it is about and I am certain real people do not act like the characters in her books.  In short, her psychology is not my cup of tea.

Happy reading!

Rating:  2/5

Written In Bone (The David Hunter Thriller) by Simon Beckett

This book makes my reading time worthwhile.  Very worthwhile.  The final chapter is totally unexpected and leaves me in no doubt that there is more to come in this series.  It is not easy writing an outstanding sequel to an already outstanding debut but in my opinion, Beckett has nailed it on all counts.  Apart from the compelling plot, what I am fascinated about is that the book is set on a fictitious island but  one based closely to the ones the author visited in the Outer Hebrides, an island chain off the west coast of Scotland, where nature in all its glory makes a more turbulent companion than the two-legged kind.

Let's hear it from the author:




Written In Bone (published in 2007) is the No 1 international bestselling sequel to The Chemistry Of Death.  More information and a taster of it can be found on the author's website.  I am already looking forward to reading the next and third book in the David Hunter series called Whispers Of The Dead (published in 2009).  I seriously do not think Beckett can write fast enough for his fans!

Rating:  7/5

No Colder Place (Lydia Chin, Bill Smith Mystery, Book 4) by S J Rozan

No Colder Place (published in 1997) won the Anthony Awards for Best Novel in 1998 and was nominated for the Shamus Awards for Best Novel also in the same year.  The only female mystery writer besides Sue Grafton to win the prestigious Shamus Award for Best Novel, S J Rozan has been praised as one of the very finest in the field.  Discover for yourself the expert blend of suspense, superb characterization, and biting wit that is her hallmark.  The New York Times calls her work "a savvy series."

Bill Smith goes undercover again as a favour to an old friend who wants him to investigate thievery on the 40-story Manhattan site of Crowell Construction's latest project.  His bricklaying is a little rusty, but passable as he checks out the foreman who's under suspicion.  A crane operator has disappeared - along with some heavy machinery.  But when a well-orchestrated riot causes the foreman's "accidental" death, Smith plunges into a morass of bribery, blackmail, and blood as he looks for answers.  With the help of his Chinese-American partner Lydia Chin, he follows a trail of twisted loyalties, old-fashioned greed, and organized crime to its heart-stopping conclusion.

Rating:  5/5

A Killer Plot (A Books by the Bay Mystery) by Ellery Adams

About the author:  Ellery Adams grew up on a beach near the Long Island Sound.  Having spent her adult life in a series of landlocked towns, she cherishes her memories of open water, violent storms, and the smell of the sea.  Ms Adams has held many jobs, including caterer, retail clerk, car salesperson, teacher, tutor, and tech writer, all the while penning poems, children's books, and novels.  She now writes full time from her home in Virginia.  You can find her on Facebook or on her website at www.elleryadamsmysteries.com

Her two other books in the series are


A Deadly Cliche (published 1 March 2011) and


The Last Word (out on 6 December 2011).

Gotta love the trailer:



Backcover blurb:  Olivia Limoges is the subject of constant gossip.  Ever since she came back to town - a return as mysterious as her departure - Olivia has kept to herself, her dog, and her unfinished novel.   With a little cajoling from the eminently charming writer Camden Ford, she agrees to join the Bayside Book Writers, break her writer's block, and even make a few friends...

But when townspeople start turning up dead with haiku poems left by the bodies, anyone with a flair for language is suddenly suspect.  And it's up to Olivia to catch the killer before she meets her own surprise ending.

My take:  I have neglected my cosy reading for awhile now, so after some heavy crime reads in the past few months, I decided to spend the month of June reading at a leisurely pace and also catch up with some books purchased in the last few years and I have more than a few of those, needless to say.

A Killer Plot is the first book in the Books by the Bay mystery published on 1 June 2010 in paperback.  The protagonist is a well-to-do lady who owns a hip restaurant, some buildings downtown and a lighthouse keeper's cottage, her childhood home, in the small coastal town of Oyster Bay, South Carolina.  She lives in a low country-style house with her poodle, Captain Haviland.  She is also a budding writer.  I guarantee all booklovers and those who belong to a writing club will love this series. I am now going to get the second book.

Happy reading.

Rating:  3/5

Home and Away

A memorable episode:

The Chemistry Of Death (The David Hunter Thriller) by Simon Beckett

The author says it best about the idea behind his international bestselling debut, The Chemistry of Death, set in a rural village in Norfolk, England, and published five years ago in 2006:



What is The Body Farm?



Combining the menace of Thomas Harris and the forensics of Patricia Cornwell with storytelling skills uniquely his own, Simon Beckett has written a thriller with an unnerving and original twist.  This is unequivocally one of the best crime thrillers I have read this year or/and ever.  Can't say it hasn't been a good reading year for me!


The Chemistry of Death was shortlisted for the prestigious CWA Duncan Lawrie (Gold) Dagger Award in 2009 and the Theakstons Crime Novel of the Year Award in 2008.  More thrilling information about this book, etc, can be found on the author's website.  Take time to read.

Rating:  5/5

Home and Away

Veering away from reading for a moment on the penultimate day of May, I find myself watching the 5296th episode of one of the most popular Australian television soaps on television, which strikes a chord in my heart because I was there when they filmed Bianca and Liam's scene on the beach in December 2010.  It was an exhilarating moment for me to say the least.

Killing Hour by Andrew Gross

A horrific, decades-old crime...  A dark past...

Dr Jay Handler, a vascular surgeon from New York, is toasting his 20th wedding anniversary with his wife, Kathy, when he hears from his sister-in-law, Gabby, that his nephew has been found dead at the bottom of Morro Bay Rock, California.

At first, his death is ruled a suicide.  After all, his nephew, Evan, had always been a troubled kid and suffered specifically from bipolar disorder.  He had recently been remanded to a psychiatric ward and put under suicide watch.  A couple of days before his death, the ward released him to a halfway house for old people/Alzheimer's patients.  Why?  A day later, he supposedly left the halfway facility to take a walk.  He never came back.

In the meantime, there were two other gruesome murders. One, a detective was murdered in his home thirty miles south of Morro Bay.  Two, black and white photos of a mutilated naked woman was sent to Dr Handler's half-brother, Charlie, at his home in Grover Beach.  She was Charlie's ex-girlfriend.  There were knife wounds on their bodies resembling an open human eye.

As with any murder mystery, the million dollar question is are these deaths related and if so, how and why?  Is there a conspiracy stretching back to someone's shady past?  Every second counts when your family's at stake.

This story is especially poignant to the author as it is his way of remembering a close member of his family who died tragically two years ago and for anyone who has suffered the loss of a child.  Totally unputdownable, engrossing, great writing, highly suspenseful, Gross' best by far - I highly recommend it.  Killing Hour (published April 2011) will be released as Eyes Wide Open in July 2011 in the USA.

More information about the author and his other books can be found on his official website, Facebook and Twitter.

Rating:  5/5