Thugs and Kisses; Austenland

I'm in a bit of a book slump right now. It happens every so often. I start books but can't finish them, ones I was looking forward to aren't holding my interest, etc. So I pulled the third book of Sue Ann Jaffarian's Odelia Grey series off the shelf and read it, knowing it would be fun and quick and hopefully snap me out of my apathy. It didn't really work, but it was a good story: Odelia's odious boss, Mike Steele, has gone missing, which is totally not like him at all. Odelia attends her thirtieth high school reunion with reservations, and her old nemesis is murdered. She's not a suspect, since she was dancing with her date, NBPD detective Dev at the time, but one of her friends is, and Odelia promises to help her clear her name. Her law firm has also asked her to help find Steele, so Odelia has a full plate.

After watching the Colin Firth version of Pride and Prejudice a few weeks ago, I found out from a coworker that I had to read this book, so I did. It was cute. Jane's a thirty something girl in New York, a string of failed relationships and attempts behind her. She's somewhat obsessed with Mr. Darcy (or, more precisely, Colin Firth) and when her great aunt Carolyn dies, she leaves Jane a mystery trip to Pembroke Park. There's no information about it online, so Jane goes, curious as to what it's all about. It's an estate for wealthy clients who pay to spend three weeks pretending they live in the Regency era of P&P, complete with actors who woo them. There's the Mr. Darcy type, the Mr. Bingley type, etc. While at Pembroke Park they must stay in character the whole time, and Jane finds it difficult to determine where fiction ends and facts begin when she starts a romance with a good looking gardener. It had a very sappy, sweet ending, but other than that it was funny.

Everything, Everything

I really enjoyed Nicola Yoon's "Everything, Everything". I'm a sucker for a YA book with a happy ending, I halfway wasn't expecting it, although I did guess the main twist ahead of time. It was nice to be right!
Maddy has a very compromised immune system and hasn't left her hermetically sealed house since she was a tiny baby. She doesn't remember what it was like to be outside. She only knows the world through all the books she reads. Then one day a new family moves in next door, with a teenage boy named Olly. They start emailing and instant messaging, and Maddy is desperate to meet him. Her nurse Carla finally arranges it and before Maddy and Olly can help themselves, they've fallen for each other. Hard. Maddy soon grows frustrated with her restrictive life. It was really sweet and I liked both Maddy and Olly very much.

Nightmares Unhinged; Darcy and Fitzwilliam; Car Crazy

Ugh, what an utter waste of time this one was. Not a decent story in the bunch, they were all terrible. The less said the better.

I really enjoyed Karen V. Wasylowski's "Darcy and Fitzwilliam". With the great Regency era slang, it reminded me of Georgette Heyer. The book is about Fitzwilliam Darcy from Pride and Prejudice and the relationship he has with his cousin, Richard Fitzwilliam (Colonel Fitzwilliam in P&P, I don't think Jane Austen ever mentioned his first name, but Richard is a good choice). The cousins are as close as brothers and Fitzwilliam is there for Darcy during Elizabeth's trying pregnancy and Darcy is there for Fitzwilliam during his courtship of a young widow battling her mother in law for custody of her son.
On a semi-unrelated notes, I finally saw the Colin Firth version of Pride and Prejudice (I've always watched the 2005 version with Matthew MacFayden as Darcy, and I love it). It was pretty good, I see why so many people like it so much. I still prefer the newer one, though :)

"Car Crazy" by G. Wayne Miller was an interesting look at the beginning of the motor vehicle age in America. Car races for both speed and endurance were regularly used as a way for manufacturers to promote their vehicles. He also discussed the Seldon patent fiasco which kept car makers tied up in courts for nearly a decade.

Louise Rennison RIP

I'm so sad to find out Louise Rennison passed away on Monday. She was one of my favorite YA authors. Georgia Nicolson's adventures (and misadventures) never failed to make me laugh whenever I was feeling down. I can't even being to imagine how I would have gotten through some of the worst periods of my life without having Louise's hilarious books to turn to for solace. Rest in Peace, Ms. Rennison, and thank you so much.

My reviews of:
Are These My Basoombas I See Before Me?
Away Laughing on a Fast Camel & Then He Ate My Boy Entrancers
Books 2-9
Startled By His Furry Shorts & Love is a Many Trousered Thing & Stop in the Name of Pants!
Angus, Thongs, and Full-Frontal Snogging & On the Bright Side, I'm Now the Girlfriend of a Sex God
Knocked Out By My Nunga-Nungas
Stop in the Name of Pants!

A Mother's Reckoning; Bad Days in History; Falling for Prince Charles; He Killed Them All

Wow, this was a tough one to read. The Columbine case has always fascinated me, and I think it's because in 1999 I was still very young, not much older than Dylan Klebold and Eric Harris, and wondered how anyone my age could do such terrible things. Dylan's mother, Sue, has spent the last nearly 20 years wondering the same thing. I can't even begin to imagine the pain and horror and heartbreak she's been through. She makes no excuses for what her son did, she blames herself for failing him, even though, honestly, Dylan didn't show any outward signs of depression or suicidal or homicidal tendencies. She came across as very likeable, very believable, and most of all, very brave. It's a terrible tragedy all the way around, for everyone.

I needed something a bit lighter after Sue's book, so I read Michael Farquhar's humorous look at the bad things that have happened on each day of the year. Some were obviously not funny, but most were darkly humorous. It was quick and easy to read.

I was so disappointed in "Falling for Prince Charles" by Lauren Baratz-Logsted. It was one of those ones I happened across while ordering books, and thought it sounded cute and funny and charming, but it was none of these things. It was dull and there was no romance whatsoever. A Jewish cleaning girl named Daisy wins the lottery and uses the money to take a trip to London, where she happens to meet Prince Charles (the book takes place in 1999). They fall for each other (although she doesn't show us that, I guess we're supposed to use our imagination) and consider marrying before the Queen discovers she's Jewish and a former maid. It was an utter waste of time.

I remember hearing about Robert Durst on the news last year, about how he confessed to murder during a documentary he willingly participated in, but I didn't watch it, so I didn't know the story. I picked up Jeanine Pirro's book to find out. At first I was worried her arrogant style was going to turn me off: she talks about "putting her Manolo Blahniks" up on her desk and slipping into Seven jeans on casual days, her Chanel jackets, etc., etc. After a few pages of that I was rolling my eyes. I get it: you have money and good taste. Bully for you. But in spite of it, I found myself enjoying the book and her passion for justice immensely, so much so that this morning I watched the first three episodes of the six part documentary "The Jinx", which aired on HBO last year.
In case you don't know the story: Robert Durst's wife Kathie went missing back in 1982. The police didn't do anything, despite all of Kathie's friends begging them to look at Robert, as Kathie had warned them if anything happened to her it would be Robert's fault. Durst is heir to one of the biggest real estate fortunes in the country, his father basically owned most of Times Square. Seventeen years later, Pirro, the DA for Westchester County, began investigating what happened to Kathie, since Robert's story of her disappearance didn't make any sense. Then in 2000, Robert's best friend Susan Berman was murdered. Then in 2001 in Galveston, Texas, an older man named Morris Black is found dismembered and Robert Durst was arrested for the murder. He posted bail and skipped town ($250,000 is nothing to him, after all). He was caught in Pennsylvania when he shoplifted a $6 sandwich from a grocery store. What an arrogant SOB. Unfortunately the trial was a joke and he was acquitted. He's awaiting trial for Berman's death now, based on evidence found during the filming of "The Jinx". Oh, and his recorded confession. What a slimeball. "The Jinx" is absolutely chilling.