Summary (from the publisher):

On her 7th birthday, Annie’s con artist father Jack told her two things: he was giving her an airplane, and he was leaving her behind. Then he raced out of her life.

Years later, Annie, now a top Navy jet pilot, returns home on her twenty-sixth birthday to visit with her aunt and uncle, who raised her as their own. But she arrives to the most unexpected: a call from her father to say he is dying and needs her to fly to St. Louis to bring him the airplane he gave her the day he left.

Is Jack really dying, or is it another one of his elaborate cons? Why would she help the man who abandoned her? And is he telling the truth that if she brings him the plane, he will give her the one thing she always wanted: the name of her mother? The answer will set Annie on a quest filled with hilarious characters, strange encounters, and the most unexpected of all: the mystery of falling in love.

I have to say while I enjoyed this book, I probably wanted to like it more than I actually did like it.

I loved the characters in this book and their dedication to each other. It truly showed that families are what you make them. Annie was the heroine and after having been abandoned by her father at the age of 7, she began her life with her Aunt Sam (Samantha) and Uncle Clark. What a pair. Sam is a lesbian with a failed relationship she has had difficulty getting over, and Clark is a twice married (and divorced) peditrician and long time friend of the family who lives with Sam in the ancestral home. Together they provided the roots for the life that Annie's father gave her wings for. This book would have been a great character novel...or a great mystery as Annie races to help her (presumed) dying father. Somehow it fails at both. I would have like to have picked the book apart and put it back together in a chronological manner that would make more sense. I wanted more of both generes and as a consequence had a difficult time keeping myself interested in the novel. I did finish it. I can't say I loved the ending. I think for the amount of development in the novel it was almost likesomeone said enough, this is the end. I am sorry for that because the book had so much promise.

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.

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

I realized today that I am totally addicted to my audio books. I finished one at lunch today and had nothing to listen to on the way home from work! WOW, I had not realized how much I really enjoyed that unwinding on the way home. I was able to listen to a podcast from Authors in your pocket. This turned out to be really fortuitous since it was an interview with Lisa Jackson. I never knew Lisa had a sister who was an author as well and I can't wait to find some of her books! Lisa's sister is Nancy Bush, co-author of Wicked Game with Lisa. I have not read that so I am going to have to go get it.

The book I just finished was The Deepest Water by Kate Wilhelm. I believe I may have read this years ago in a Reader's Digest Condensed Book. I remembered parts of it but it was a long time ago. I do know I need to find more of her books as she is simply awesome. Kate Wilhelm On her site she has a list of books a mile long so I don't think I will be running out anytime soon!!

When Jud Connors, a successful writer, is found murdered in his isolated cabin in the woods of Oregon, his daughter Abby's world starts to fall apart. Who wanted her father dead and why? More puzzling is how anyone could have gotten to the cabin undetected. Was the murderer someone Jud knew? As Abby embarks on her own investigation, she soon realizes that the clue to the murderer's identity is buried in her father's latest novel, finished just weeks before his death. But will she be able to see through the fiction in time -- before the killer comes after her?

This book was great. I was on the edge of my seat, There were surprises around each corner. I love strong women stories too so this was high on that list as well. Her characters were richly described and well thought out. At some point I began to think of them as real and was almost shocked when the book ended! I rate it two thumbs up.

I just finished "reading" (it was an audiobook this time) Sweetheart by Chelsea Cain. Sweetheart is the second book in a series about a female serial killer (Gretchen Lowell) and cop (Archie Sheridan). It is a twist on the Hannibal Lecter story that deals in the twisted realtionship between Gretchen and Archie since Archie was one of Gretchen's victims but she let him go. His fate might be worse than death. These books are far more about the hunter and the hunted than the actual killings that Gretchen committed. I found them both (the books that is!) memerizing and horrifying.

I am getting hooked on my audiobooks since it allows me to do other things while reading. I am finding them addicting as well. Last night everyone was out and I crawled into bed with the lights out to "read" some more of this book and I found it more intense as I became enveloped in this other world. I was really disappointed that folks came home as soon as they did!

Great reads both of them. Again, click the title of the post to be taken to Chelsea Cain's website!

Synopsis:
HeartSick

Portland detective Archie Sheridan spent years tracking Gretchen Lowell, a beautiful and brutal serial killer. In the end, she was the one who caught him…and tortured him…and then let him go. Why did Gretchen spare Archie’s life and then turn herself in? This is the question that keeps him up all night—and the reason why he has visited Gretchen in prison every week since.

Meanwhile, another series of murders is tearing up the Portland streets. Archie seems to be getting closer to solving this high-profile case…until he finds himself in a fatal collision course with the killer—one that inevitably leads him back to his former captor. Gretchen may be the only one who can help do justice. The only thing she can’t do, this time, is save Archie’s life.

Sweetheart:

With Heartsick, Chelsea Cain took the crime world by storm, introducing two of the most compelling characters in decades: serial killer Gretchen Lowell and her obsessed pursuer Portland Detective Archie Sheridan. The book spent four weeks on the New York Times bestseller list and garnered rave reviews around the world. But the riveting story of Archie and Gretchen was left unfinished, and now Chelsea Cain picks up the tale again.

When the body of a young woman is discovered in Portland’s Forest Park, Archie is reminded of the last time they found a body there, more than a decade ago: it turned out to be the Beauty Killer’s first victim, and Archie’s first case. This body can't be one of Gretchen's—she’s in prison—but after help from reporter Susan Ward uncovers the dead woman's identity, it turns into another big case. Trouble is, Archie can't focus on the new investigation because the Beauty Killer case has exploded: Gretchen Lowell has escaped from prison.

Archie hadn't seen her in two months; he'd moved back in with his family and sworn off visiting her. Though it should feel like progress, he actually feels worse. The news of her escape spreads like wildfire, but secretly, he's relieved. He knows he's the only one who can catch her, and in fact, he has a plan to get out from under her thumb once and for all.

The next book in the series Evil at Heart is due out September 1, 2009