strange and random happenstance: Grave Secret

Showing posts with label Grave Secret. Show all posts

Monday, November 1, 2010

Tuesday Tomorrow

Mary Ann in Autumn by Armistead Maupin
Published by: Harper
Publication Date: November 2nd, 2010
Format: Hardcover, 304 Pages
To Buy
The official patter:
"A hilarious and touching new installment of Armistead Maupin's beloved Tales of the City series

Twenty years have passed since Mary Ann Singleton left her husband and child in San Francisco to pursue her dream of a television career in New York. Now a pair of personal calamities has driven her back to the city of her youth and into the arms of her oldest friend, Michael "Mouse" Tolliver, a gardener happily ensconced with his much-younger husband.

Mary Ann finds temporary refuge in the couple's backyard cottage, where, at the unnerving age of fifty-seven, she licks her wounds and takes stock of her mistakes. Soon, with the help of Facebook and a few old friends, she begins to reengage with life, only to confront fresh terrors when her checkered past comes back to haunt her in a way she could never have imagined. After the intimate first-person narrative of Maupin's last novel, Michael Tolliver Lives, Mary Ann in Autumn marks the author's return to the multicharacter plotlines and darkly comic themes of his earlier work. Among those caught in Mary Ann's orbit are her estranged daughter, Shawna, a popular sex blogger; Jake Greenleaf, Michael's transgendered gardening assistant; socialite DeDe Halcyon-Wilson; and the indefatigable Anna Madrigal, Mary Ann's former landlady at 28 Barbary Lane. More than three decades in the making, Armistead Maupin's legendary Tales of the City series rolls into a new age, still sassy, irreverent, and curious, and still exploring the boundaries of the human experience with insight, compassion, and mordant wit."

A new Tales of the City Novel! I've been waiting all year for this, so sorry if I'm gone for a few days, MUST READ NOW!

Virals by Kathy Riechs
Published by: Razorbill
Publication Date: November 2nd, 2010
Format: Hardcover, 464 Pages
To Buy
The official patter:
"Tory Brennan, niece of acclaimed forensic anthropologist Temperance Brennan (of the Bones novels and hit TV show), is the leader of a ragtag band of teenage "sci-philes" who live on a secluded island off the coast of South Carolina. When the group rescues a dog caged for medical testing on a nearby island, they are exposed to an experimental strain of canine parvovirus that changes their lives forever.

As the friends discover their heightened senses and animal-quick reflexes, they must combine their scientific curiosity with their newfound physical gifts to solve a cold-case murder that has suddenly become very hot-if they can stay alive long enough to catch the killer's scent.

Fortunately, they are now more than friends- they're a pack. They are Virals."

A YA book that's a spin off of Bones! Count me doubly sold.

The Broken Kingdoms by N.K. Jemison
Published by: Orbit
Publication Date: November 2nd, 2010
Format: Paperback, 416 Pages
To Buy
The official patter:
"The gods have broken free after centuries of slavery, and the world holds its breath, fearing their vengeance. The saga of mortals and immortals continues in THE BROKEN KINGDOMS. In the city of Shadow, beneath the World Tree, alleyways shimmer with magic and godlings live hidden among mortalkind. Oree Shoth, a blind artist, takes in a homeless man who glows like a living sun to her strange sight. This act of kindness engulfs Oree in a nightmarish conspiracy. Someone, somehow, is murdering godlings, leaving their desecrated bodies all over the city. Oree's peculiar guest is at the heart of it, his presence putting her in mortal danger — but is it him the killers want, or Oree? And is the earthly power of the Arameri king their ultimate goal, or have they set their sights on the Lord of Night himself?"

The first book in N.K. Jemison's Inheritance trilogy was all the rage this year at WisCon. She was also a really great speaker and nice at the signing, making it another must buy for me! Though naming it the Inheritance Trilogy, when there's already one out there... not the wisest idea Orbit!

Pegasus by Robin McKinley
Published by: Putnam
Publication Date: November 2nd, 2010
Format: Hardcover, 400 Pages
To Buy
The official patter:
"Because of a thousand-year-old alliance between humans and pagasi, Princess Sylviianel is ceremonially bound to Ebon, her own Pegasus, on her twelfth birthday. The two species coexist peacefully, despite the language barriers separating them. Humans and pegasi both rely on specially-trained Speaker magicians as the only means of real communication.

But its different for Sylvi and Ebon. They can understand each other. They quickly grow close-so close that their bond becomes a threat to the status quo-and possibly to the future safety of their two nations.

New York Times bestselling Robin McKinley weaves an unforgettable tale of unbreakable friendship, mythical creatures and courtly drama destined to become a classic."

I'm so a child of the 80s when I see a book about a Pegasus and must own it! Serendipity Classics, you taught me well!

Wolfsbane by Patricia Briggs
Published by: Ace
Publication Date: November 2nd, 2010
Format: Paperback, 304 Pages
To Buy
The official patter:
"Shapeshifting mercenary Aralorn leads a dangerous existence. Now she must return home for her noble father, the Lyon of Lambshold, has passed away. But when Aralorn and her companion Wolf arrive, they find he's not dead, but ensorcelled by the ae'Magi, using him as a conduit to destroy Aralorn and Wolf. She must overcome this mysterious mist or fall to the blackest of magic. "

Yeah new Briggs book! Yeah!

Grave Secret by Charlaine Harris
Published by: Berkley
Publication Date: November 2nd, 2010
Format: Paperback, 288 Pages
To Buy
The official patter:
"Lightning-struck sleuth Harper Connelly and her stepbrother Tolliver take a break from looking for the dead to visit the two little girls they both think of as family. But as they travel to Texas, memories of their horrible childhood resurface. Family secrets ensnare them both, as Tolliver learns his father is out of jail and Harper finally discovers what happened to her missing sister Cameron so many years before. And what she finds will change her world forever."

I just love this series, and even if this is the end, it was a damn satisfying ending.

Posted by Miss Eliza at 12:00 AM 3 comments

Labels: Armistead Maupin, Charlaine Harris, Grave Secret, Harper Connelly, Katy Riechs, Mary Ann in Autumn, N.K.Jemison, Patricia Briggs, Pegasus, Robin McKinley, The Broken Kingdoms, Virals, Wolfsbane

Thursday, January 21, 2010

Book Review - Charlaine Harris' Grave Secret

Grave Secret by Charlaine Harris
Published by: Berkley
Publication Date: October 27, 2009
Format: Kindle, 306 Pages
Rating: ★★★★
To Order

Harper Connelly and Tolliver Wells have barely recovered from their horrific experiences in North Carolina (read An Ice Cold Grave) when they decide to head to Texas to see their two little half siblings, Mariella and Gracie. They figure that it's going to be tough enough telling the girls that the two of them have gone from step siblings to being a couple, let alone the girls religious adaptive parents, Iona and Hank. On the way they stop off near where they grew up in Texarkana, to do a reading for a Lizzie Joyce who read about Harper and decided she couldn't rest until she thought of a reason to invite her to Clear Creek. Harper decides to throw out a few freebies for the Joyce's and Chip Moseley, the manager of their ranch and Lizzie's beau, before she get's to their grandfather, who is the reason for her visit. Harper unwittingly uncovers that not only had the Joyce's grandfather died of a heart attack induced by someone throwing a snake at him, but his caretaker had died after childbirth. Unconcerned with this bombshell they've dropped on the family, Harper and Tolliver head onto Dallas, and their own family. The reaction to Harper and Tolliver becoming a couple, and in fact becoming engaged, really shocks their family, even Tolliver's brother Mark is taken aback. This reaction on top of a multitude of other reasons, including Iona finally becoming pregnant, leads Harper to consider that perhaps her and Tolliver's dream of moving to Dallas and becoming more involved in their sister's lives is in fact unwise.

But everything takes a back seat when Tolliver's dad, Matthew, shows back up. The man who shared Harper's mother's slide into depravity. The drug addict who would willingly sell his own step-daughter to eager men. The drug addict who ruined their lives and wasn't their for them when Cameron went missing. He's been released "clean and sober" from prison, but more importantly he wants to "reconnect" with his family, surprising them on their day out skating. They desire to have nothing to do with him, making him resort to tailing them. But something worse happens...Tolliver is shot and it appears he might not have been the target. Bodies start piling up but the one body Harper hopes to find more than any other remains elusive. Will Harper even find Cameron? Also why where they attacked? Could the Joyce's case, whose missing baby is being looked into by Harper and Tolliver's old PI friend Victoria Flores, have a connection to Cameron? Was the answer to Cameron's disappearance closer than Harper even knew? And can Matthew really not be involved in all this? Thankfully Manfred shows up to land an ever eager hand.

While I will freely admit this was not my favorite in the series, which given the quality of the series is so not a slam, it was the most satisfying. Answers have been given and it all makes nice sense. Answers which you won't be hearing from these lips...or these nimbly typing fingers as the case would be. This book was far more personal then the other three, dealing with how bad their life was in the little trailer in Texarkana. Instead of an outside murder mystery plot driving the story, here the plot is driven by discovering the mysteries within these character's lives. We see more clearly then ever before the horrors of their past and how Cameron affected their lives. After the total disclosure and revelation of this book you feel like you can understand the characters better than before and that until now they were never truly formed, like something was missing. I also have to say, I loved the Joyce's. They were quite literally the Ewings of Dallas. This was like one long season of the most wonderful of shows with missing babies, hidden heirs, a murder or two and then, BAM, a kick to the gut with the fistful of answers you were waiting for. Also, I like Tolliver and all... but Harper and Manfred... hmmm... it has a certain kind of interesting allure... Also if you take issue with Harper and Tolliver, then you take issue with Clueless... it's the same resulting hookup!

Posted by Miss Eliza at 12:00 AM 0 comments

Labels: An Ice Cold Grave, Book Review, Charlaine Harris, Dallas, Ewings, Grave Secret, Harper Connelly, Manfred, Tolliver

Monday, October 26, 2009

Tuesday Tomorrow

Grave Secret by Charlaine Harris
Published by: Berkley Hardcover
Publication Date: October 27th, 2009
Format: Hardcover, 320 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"Lightning-struck sleuth Harper Connelly and her stepbrother Tolliver take a break from looking for the dead to visit the two little girls they both think of as sisters. But, as always happens when they travel to Texas, memories of their horrible childhood resurface.

To make matters worse, Tolliver learns from his older brother that their father is out of jail and trying to reestablish contact with other family members. Tolliver wants no part of the man- but he may not have a choice in the matter.

Soon, family secrets ensnare them both, as Harper finally discovers what happened to her missing sister, Cameron, so many years before.

And what she finds out will change her world forever. "

While Charlaine Harris my be best known for her Sookie Stackhouse books of Southern Vampires, I have always found the most enjoyment in her Harper Connelly books. While this one is unfortunately titled Grave Secret, I say unfortunate because it is also the title of one of Kathy Reichs Temperance Brennan "Bones" novels, I hope that we do get to the bottom of one secret that's been looming in Harper's life...what happened to her sister? I've been so impatient I actually read the first chapter on Charlaine Harris' website, something I rarely do because it makes me more impatient. I literally can't wait for this book, I've preordered it for my Kindle (and checked occasionally to see if it was accidently sent early) in the hopes that at midnight I can sink my teeth into it....hmm, that metaphor seems too vampy for her non-Sookie books...dig into it perhaps? Ah, the metaphor doesn't matter, just the fact of a great read with a truly complex mystery, the likes of which might baffle a bar maid at Merlotte's.