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Friend of the Devil by Peter Robinson
Seventeenth in the Inspector Banks series
Pages: 372
Finished: Nov. 12, 2007
Reason for Reading: I received an Advanced Reading Edition. This is also on my From the Stacks challenge list.
First Published: 2007 in Canada, 2008 in U.S.
Genre: thriller
Rating: 5/5
First Sentence:
She might have been staring out to sea, at the blurred line [...]

Sitting Practice by Caroline Adderson tells the story of Ross and Iliana, a newlywed couple, and how they deal with the aftermath of a car accident that leaves Iliana paralyzed. Ross is a film caterer who has had multiple ex-girlfriends, but he is absolutely in love with Iliana at the time of their marriage, much [...]

Friend of the Devil by Peter Robinson
William Morrow, 2008 (ARE)
Mystery; 372 pgs
Completed: 10/28/2007
Rating: 4 Stars
First Sentence: She might have been staring out to sea, at the blurred line where the gray water meets the gray sky.
Reason for Reading: I requested to preview this book through Harper Collins First Look Program. It sounded [...]

Friend of the Devil by Peter Robinson
Advance Reading Copy
372 pages
I had never read anything by Peter Robinson before I snagged this ARC in the LibraryThing Early Reviewers Program. I am pleased to say that I have found another author that I enjoy reading.
The story opens with a quadripalegic woman being murdered near Whitby. A young [...]

Remember Me? by Sophie Kinsella
What if you were in an accident and woke up 3 years later? Only, not really 3 years later, but 3 years earlier in your life? Lexi Smart, a twenty-eight year old Londoner wakes up and discovers she isn’t the person she thought she was. Lexi, like Becky the Shopaholic, is [...]

The Quirks and Quarks Guide to Space by Jim Lebans
42 Questions (and Answers) About Life, The Universe, and Everything
If you are lucky enough to get CBC radio, you probably already know about Quirks and Quarks, the science show on Saturdays. Host Bob MacDonald explains all the newest scientific discoveries, in everyday language and with humor. [...]

Catherine Grace Cline was 6 years old on the hot summer day that her mama went to pick berries, fell into the river, and died. The indelible influence of growing up in a small town without a mother makes Catherine long for the day that she can leave Ringgold, Georgia behind her.
When I received the [...]

For those of us living in the United States, the suffering that goes on in other parts of the world is unimaginable. Darfur is one of the places where such suffering takes place. Genocide is occurring there and military power is constantly shifting. The reasons for this are complicated. However, this book contains an appendix [...]

It says everything about this land to know that even the mountains are not to be trusted, and that the crunching sound under your camel’s hooves are usually human bones, hidden and revealed as the wind pleases. -From The Translator, page 20-
Daoud Hari’s memoir about the genocide occurring in Darfur is beautifully and simply wrought, [...]

Daoud Hari, as a translator of many languages, knows how important words can be. During his entire life, Hari followed the “pen is mightier than the sword” philosophy by providing translation services to journalists writing about the genocide and the horrible circumstances of his homeland, Darfur, Sudan. His adventures and reflections came to life in [...]

Rating: 4 Stars
First Sentence: I am sure you know how important it can be to get a good phone signal.
Reason for Reading: I was interested in learning more about the current conflict in Darfur. I received this book through the LibraryThing’s Early Review Program.
Comments: Last summer as I immersed myself in [...]

The Somnambulist by Jonathan Barnes
William Morrow, 2008 (ARE)
Fiction; 353 pgs
Completed: 11/30/2007
Rating: 3 Stars
First Two Sentences: Be warned. This book has no literary merit whatsoever.
Reason for Reading: This was a Harper Collins selection I was chosen to review through the publisher’s First Look Program. The description of the book intrigued [...]

If one didn’t mention a thing afterwards, it was as if it hadn’t happened. -From The Outcast, page 76-
Sadie Jone’s debut novel - The Outcast - is a disturbing and provocative story about loss, adolescent struggle for understanding, familial relationships and secrets, and finally redemption.
When ten year old Lewis Aldridge loses his mother to a [...]

I found this to be a very interesting story of the complexity of family relationships. It deftly illustrates how no decision we make is without repercussions for our family members.
Deborah chooses to shoulder the responsibility for Grace’s actions and inadvertently touches off a chain reaction of events that leads to family confessions about pressure, expectations [...]