I have three books that I have finished this week. The first is by Jennifer Chiaverrini. The Lost Quilter is another edition in the Elm Creek Quilter's series and it did not disappoint. Once again we visit the evils of slavery and how quilts help lead the way on the Underground Railroad but this time we got a look primarily from the view of one slave. These books are like candy once you start you cannot put it down. Definitely a keeper and I think this is a series that I do need to purchase for my collection.

The next was another book in the China Bayles series by Susan Wittig Albert. Wormwood lacked the input of China's usual cast of characters but found a place close to my heart anyway. This book takes place in a fictional Shaker community in Northern Kentucky (!). The Shaker Village at Pleasant Hill is one of my absolute favorite places to visit in Kentucky and I have been there many times. The fictional village of Mt. Zion is very much like that and took care to depict the Shaker community very much as it was in the 1800's. I read it straight through and loved every minute. I just wish Ms. Albert could write as quickly as I can read! I cannot wait for the next one.

The last book was an audio book. The 37th Hour by Jodi Compton. Out of the three books, this is the only one I would not recommend. While I chose this because because it is a mystery/thiller with a woman as the main character I was very disappointed in the way the story was handled. There were so many sub-themes and flash backs that I found myself going back to re-listen several times to see just what I had missed that kept me from understanding what I was listening to. The ending was awful. I suspected that there would be a sequel (which I have since found out is true, there is) but I won't be reading it. I won't go into the themes since I don't want to give away any spoilers but I would only read this if there is nothing else at hand.

Fans of Da Vinci Code knockoffs will welcome Byrnes' first novel. When an ancient stone burial box known as an ossuary is stolen from a secret crypt beneath the Temple Mount in Jerusalem, readers will immediately intuit that the bones contained in the box are those of Jesus Christ, even though it takes quite a bit longer for the characters to admit as much. American geneticist Charlotte Hennesey is summoned to the Vatican along with Dr. Giovanni Bersei, an anthropologist, to study the ossuary. Back in Jerusalem, Arabs, Jews and Christians bicker, protest, fight and scheme against one another both within and outside the Temple Mount. A ruthlessly efficient Vatican hit man, Salvatore Conte, hovers over the action. Venal cardinals, contemptuous Israelis, Knights Templar and evil popes round out a familiar cast. Byrnes puts a more contemporary spin on his material than most authors of religious thrillers.

I spent part of my misspent day finishing The Scared Bones by Michael Byrnes. I also have the sequel The Sacred Blood here. I enjoyed the plot and characters much more that the aforementioned Book of Lies. I am looking forward to the sequel but I think I may pick up something a bit lighter first. I like that Byrnes included all sides of the religious war going on in the Middle East and showed respect for each groups thoughts. While I absolutely realize that this is a book of fiction I also know there are many people in this world that are attempting to save their own ideology by undermining someone else's. Truthfulness has become a subjective virtue and I hate to think the opposite of that being practiced by religious leaders but...well, I am just not that naive.

I don't know guys, I kind of liked this one because I listened to it rather than reading it and it was kind of fun but...I think if I had been reading it, I may never have finished. I cannot for the life of me understand how someone could tie the world's first murder (Cain and Abel) to the birth of Superman. I liked that there was a lot of research done on both of those aspects of the story but I felt it turned the solemnity of the bible story into gruel for comic book readers. Yes I got the parallels but I have to say, it didn't do much for me. I read one review that suggested the Meltzer "got so excited (about his themes) he forgot to write a book that made sense." LOL What could have been a great historical mystery got lost.

I will give it three stars for the effort but sorry, no recommended status.

Bestseller Meltzer (The Book of Fate) deserves credit for an audacious conceit—wedding the biblical fratricide of Abel by his brother Cain with the unsolved 1932 homicide of the father of Jerry Siegel, the creator of iconic comic book hero Superman—but the results are less than convincing. A highly tenuous link between the two murders revolves around the mysterious weapon Cain (the world's greatest villain) used to kill his brother. One of numerous theories is that the weapon was a divine book containing the secrets of immortality. After coming to the aid of a shooting victim, Calvin Harper, a homeless volunteer working in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., soon finds himself hopelessly caught up in a life-and-death quest for the ancient artifact that includes the obligatory secret societies, Nazi conspiracies, enigmatic villains and cryptographic riddles à la The Da Vinci Code.

from Publisher's Weekly

Set against a backdrop of Oval Office corruption, bestseller Meltzer's overblown thriller opens with a frantic assassination attempt on President Leland Manning, who manages to elude the gunfire. Manning's deputy chief of staff, Ron Boyle, is killed, and his top aide, the cocky, ambitious Wes Holloway, is left facially disfigured. Eight years later, his motivation and confidence drained by his handicap, Holloway still toils away for the out-of-office Manning, fetching refreshments and handling the daily social calendar. On a goodwill junket to Malaysia, however, Holloway spots Boyle, surgically altered, but unmistakably the same man who was supposed to be dead and gone. From this turning point, Meltzer (The Zero Game) follows Holloway step by excruciatingly slow step as he tries to find out what really happened eight years earlier.

I have to say I loved this book. I did not read any of the reviews before hand (I rarely do) and I have to say I was really shocked at the reviews on Amazon. To be truthful, I did expect something a little more along the lines of The Davinci Code or National Treasure but I was not disappointed in what I got. I enjoyed the book immensely. I found myself listening even at lunch. I did do the audio version of this book and maybe that made a difference. It was funny to find myself hoping that someone would make a particular decision and getting exciteed when they did. While I probably wouldn't give this book 5 stars I would probably rate it at least a 4. It sure brought up some frightening thoughts on just how easily the government has been corrupted.

Book of Lies is next in my aduio queue.

Here are a couple of review options other than Amazon.
The Book Reporter
Who Dunnit?

That should be in my top 5. Rebecca by Daphne Du Maurier.
*sigh* "Last night I dreamed I went to Manderley again."

Rebecca is a novel of mystery and passion, a dark psychological tale of secrets and betrayal, dead loves and an estate called Manderley that is as much a presence as the humans who inhabit it: "when the leaves rustle, they sound very much like the stealthy movement of a woman in evening dress, and when they shiver suddenly and fall, and scatter away along the ground, they might be the pitter, patter of a woman's hurrying footsteps, and the mark in the gravel the imprint of a high-heeled satin shoe." Manderley is filled with memories of the elegant and flamboyant Rebecca, the first Mrs. DeWinter; with the obsessive love of her housekeeper, Mrs. Danvers, who observes the young, timid second Mrs. DeWinter with sullen hostility; and with the oppressive silences of a secretive husband, Maxim. Rebecca may be physically dead, but she is a force to contend with, and the housekeeper's evil matches that of her former mistress as a purveyor of the emotional horror thrust on the innocent Mrs. DeWinter. The tension builds as the new Mrs. DeWinter slowly grows and asserts herself, surviving the wicked deceptions of Mrs. Danvers and the silent deceits of her husband, to emerge triumphant in the midst of a surprise ending that leaves the reader with a sense of haunting justice. -- For great reviews of books for girls, check out Let's Hear It for the Girls: 375 Great Books for Readers 2-14. -- From 500 Great Books by Women; review by Vickie Sears

I am SUCH a bookworm that I never knew this was a movie with Laurence Olivier and Joan Fontaine until I hit Amazon this morning. Hmmm, think I may have to order that!

OK, that is a definate 4 books in my top 5. I will have to keep thinking.

This came from the United Cerebal Palsy site so now I know Karen grew up and had a life. God Bless her parents and parents everywhere that don't take a doctor's opinion for gospel when they know better!

Karen Killilea and the Killilea Family
Growing up, many people read the book Karen by Marie Killilea and were profoundly moved by Karen's story, as told by her mother. UCP receives many inquiries about the Killilea family. We are pleased to share this information, which has been complied from many sources.


Marie Lyons Killilea was born June 28, 1913 in New York City to Tom and Marie Powers Lyons. Her father was a sportswriter for the New York Sun and later became co-owner of a Wall Street brokerage firm. Marie was educated at the Mount St. Vincent Academy in Riverdale. She graduated from the Katherine Gibbs Secretarial School. Marie married James Killilea on July 25, 1933. Their primary residence was Larchmont, NY.


The Killileas consulted 23 top medical specialists and clinics in the United States and Canada. After finally finding out that her third child had cerebral palsy, Mrs. Killilea wrote to hundreds of parents of children with disabilities and was an active lobbyist in Albany for the rights of individuals with cerebral palsy.


Mrs. Killilea encouraged Karen to train dogs for show, breaking new ground for persons with disabilities.


She wrote a novel, Karen, which became a best seller in 1952 and has never been out of print. A sequel, With Love From Karen, was published in 1963 and it is still in print. She wrote other books as well, including Wren and Newf, published posthumously around 1992.


Karen won a Christopher Award and was one of the 30 Notable Books of 1953. Mrs. Killilea's books, totaling 4 million copies, have been published in 11 languages. She received letters from all over the world and once estimated she had answered 15,000 or more.


Marie Killilea died on October 23, 1991 at the age of 78 of respiratory ailments. At the time of her death she was survived by her husband, Jimmy (who died a few years later at the age of 80) and four children: Marie Irish, Karen Killilea, Kristin Viltz, and Rory Killilea, six grandchildren, and one great grandchild.


Karen Killilea now lives in New Rochelle, NY. She lives in an accessible apartment building, and works as a receptionist at a retreat house for priests run by Catholic monks.


Marie Killilea Irish lives in Fairfield, CT.


Rory Killilea was in the Army circa 1971. He is married and has at least one child. He lives in Seattle, WA.


Kristin Killilea Viltz was showing dogs by age 15, with some success. She now lives in Tarrytown, NY.


Gloria Killilea Lea passed away in November, 2001 in Cortlandt, NY. Her husband, Russell Lea, passed away just a few months later in February, 2002.


July 2006 Karen's relatives shared with us that Karen is today thriving independently, living and loving life better then many of us could ever dream of.

Clicking on the title above will take you to the UCP website and the link to this story.