Terra Incognita by Ruth Downie

Synopsis : Army doctor Gaius Petreius Ruso strikes out for the uncivilized borders of Roman Britain in this highly anticipated sequel to Ruth Downie's New York Times bestselling debut.

It is spring in the year 118, and Gaius Petreius Ruso has been stationed in the Roman-occupied province of Britannia for nearly a year. After his long and reluctant investigation of the murders of a handful of local prostitutes, Ruso needs to get away. With that in mind, he has volunteered for a posting with the army in Britannia's deepest recesses calmer place for a tired man.
But the edge of the Roman Empire is a volatile place; the independent tribes of the North dwell near its borders. These hinterlands are the homeland of Ruso's slave, Tilla, who has scores of her own to settle there: Her tribes people are fomenting a rebellion against Roman control, and her former lover is implicated in the grisly murder of a soldier. Ruso, filling in for the demented local doctor, is appalled to find that Tilla is still spending time with the prime suspect. Worse, he is honor-bound to try to prove the man innocent and the army wrong by finding another culprit. Soon both Ruso's and Tilla's lives are in jeopardy, as is the future of their burgeoning romance.

Terra Incognita shines light on a remote corner of the ancient world, where Ruso's luck is running short again.

My thoughts: I thoroughly enjoyed the first book, Medicus, in this series so was anxious to read this one. I was not disappointed. I loved the historical feel gleaned while reading this mystery. I like Gaius Ruso. He is a good guy trying to do the right thing. His poor luck sometimes brings comic relief to the story. The relationship between Ruso and Tilla is telling. Neither one can understand the other, being from different cultures. They share affection but are often annoyed due to these cultural differences. I will be reading the third in this series. I "read" this on my iPod.

Sail by James Patterson & Howard Roughan

From the jacket: A perfect family vacation turns into a life-or-death nightmare.
SET SAIL Only an hour out of port, the Dunne family's summer getaway to paradise is already turning into the trip from hell. Carrie, the eldest, has thrown herself off the side of the boat in a bid for attention. Sixteen-year-old Mark is getting high belowdecks. And Ernie, their ten-year-old brother, is nearly catatonic. It's shaping up to be the worst vacation ever.
SOAK UP THE SUN Katherine Dunne had hoped this trip would bring back the togetherness they'd lost when her husband died four years earlier. Maybe if her new husband, a high-powered Manhattan attorney, had been able to postpone his trial and join them it would all have been okay....
PREPARE TO DIE-Suddenly, a disaster hits–and it's perfect. Faced with real danger, the Dunnes rediscover the meaning of family and pull together in a way they haven't in a long time. But this catastrophe is just a tiny taste of the danger that lurks ahead: someone wants to make sure that the Dunne family never makes it out of paradise alive.
With whiplash plot twists, speedboat pacing, and an eye for the evil that can lie behind even the most gorgeous setting, James Patterson delivers Sail–the wettest, most explosive ocean adventure since Jaws.

My Thoughts: This was a good quick read, somewhat suspenseful and entertaining. There is not much mystery here as you know who the bad guy is early on. There didn't seem to be much depth to this story, it is what it is. Escapism at its best.

The Collectors by David Baldacci

About the book: The assassination of the U.S. Speaker of the House has shaken the nation. And the Camel Club has found a chilling connection with another death: the body of the director of the Library of Congress's rare books room has been found in a locked vault.
The Camel Club's unofficial leader, a man who calls himself Oliver Stone, discovers that someone is selling America to its enemies one classified secret at a time. Then Annabelle Conroy, the greatest con artist of her generation, struts her way into the club and gives it a sexy new edge -- one it needs. Because the two murders are hurtling the Camel Club into a world of espionage that can bring America to its knees.

My thoughts: This was a good mystery with its two sub plots working side by side to come to an end. First there is a death by seemingly natural causes of the head librarian of the Library of Congress, and the assassination of the speaker of the house. Second there is a con woman who is trying to con casino owner (who had murdered her mother) out of over 30 million! The second is what brought Annabelle to the Camel Club but had little else to do but leave an opening for the next novel. I found this to be an entertaining read and I really do like the members of the Camel Club!

Death Match by Linclon Child

Book overview: Everyone’s looking for the perfect match, a life-long partner, and Lewis and Lindsay Thorpe have found theirs, thanks to hi-tech matchmaker Eden Inc. But when the happy couple’s life together ends in what looks like a double suicide, Eden Inc. has some explaining to do. So they hire forensic psychologist Christopher Lash to figure out what went wrong. And then another perfect match ends in death....

My thoughts: I didn't enjoy this book as much as I did Child's first solo novel, Utopia, but it was still a good suspensful read. The characters seemed real like people, not super heroes. They are written well enough that you care for them. There were a couple of twists. The one at the very end was a little scary and sad at the same time.

mystery, techno thriller, computer, AI

Sunday at Tiffany's by James Patterson

About the book: As a little girl, Jane has no one. Her mother, the powerful head of a Broadway theater company, has no time for her. She does have one friend—a handsome, comforting, funny man named Michael—but only she can see him. Years later, Jane is in her thirties and just as alone as ever. Then she meets Michael again—as handsome, smart and perfect as she remembers him to be. But not even Michael knows the reason they've really been reunited.Sundays at Tiffany's is a love story with an irresistible twist, a novel about the child inside all of us-and the boundary-crossing power of love.

My Thoughts: This was a sweet, light, quick read and I loved it! The idea of imaginary friends being real and having the job of helping children really caught my imagination. What a great beach read it was!

Savage Run by C.J. Box

About the book: Joe Pickett returns to his slightly offbeat duties in Wyoming's Bighorn Mountains in C. J. Box's Savage Run. Joe is called to the scene when an exploding cow kills a famous ecoterrorist, Stewie Woods, and his bride of three days, who were peacefully spiking trees. A visit to the cow's owner leaves Joe defensive, angry, and curious: Why doesn't the rancher ask any questions about the bizarre accident that happened on his land? Then Joe's wife, Marybeth, begins receiving phone calls from her high-school boyfriend—-the peculiarly healthy-sounding Stewie Woods. Stewie may or may not be alive, but his old pal Hayden Powell and other environmental activists are all turning up deceased in strange circumstances. As the body count climbs, Joe tries to sort out the bad guys, the good guys, and the truly dead guys in this sometimes funny, sometimes angry sequel to Box's award-winning first novel, Open Season. Box depicts the spare beauty and cussed individualism of the intermountain West with the sure hand of a seasoned writer.

My Thoughts: This is actually the second novel in the Joe Pickett series, but as usual I've read them out of order. Joe is a good guy trying to do his job and I like him. This novel is a bit gruesome at times as you see in the beginning with the apparent murder of eco-terrorist Stewie Woods. The descriptions of the Wyoming wilderness are wonderful and the chase through it is exciting. I would love to see Pickett grow some confidence to go with his good guy status. All in all another great read! I will be reading more books by C.J. Box.

I read this on my Kindle.

Cemetery Dance by Douglas Preston & Lincoln Child

From Booklist: It takes a certain amount of guts to start a novel by killing off a popular recurring character, but no one has ever accused this writing team of lacking guts. The latest Pendergast thriller begins with a murder that is apparently committed by a man who, 10 days earlier, was pronounced dead and then buried. But the eyewitness is sure it’s the same man, and footage from a security camera appears to confirm it. How does a dead man commit murder? And why this particular victim? Pendergast, the FBI special agent who frequently takes on personal assignments on a freelance basis, teams up once again with New York police lieutenant Vincent D’Agosta to solve a crime that has ties to the supernatural. Individually, these two writers turn out books that are solid, competent, workmanlike. Together, they manage to kick it up several notches, producing novels that are elegantly written and feature unique characters and eerie, compelling stories. For fans of the Pendergast series, this is a must-read.

My Thoughts: I have read all of the Pendergast novels (in order) as well as others Preston & Child have penned together and have enjoyed them all. Pendergast is still somewhat of a mystery as is his family and background. A little something is pulled out in every novel. I usually buy any new Preston-Child book as soon as it comes out. I was SHOCKED to find that one of my favorite recurring characters, Bill Smithback, was killed off. What of Nora? Will she be back?

Anyway, back to the book- it all...the supernatural, mystery, suspense...all the things I have come to expect in the writing of Preston and Child. There are surprising plot twists , and it's generally a very fun read with quite a bit of action. After Smithback is killed by someone who is deemed to be a zombii, Pendergast and D'Agosta begin their investigation into black magic, vodou and zombii's. It leads them to the upper-most northern part of Manhattan where a strange settlement known as the Ville has existed since before the Civil War. There have been complaints that everything from animal sacrifice to the creation of zombiis takes place up there. But, as usual everything is not as it seems. At the end there was a quick little tease for the next book. A strange little man calaiming to be the lawyer for the Pendergast family visits Pendergast in the hospital. Can't wait to see what's next!

thriller, murder mystery, paranormal, zombiis, suspense

The Camel Club by David Baldacci

About the book: After witnessing a shocking murder, the Club is slammed headfirst into a plot that threatens the very security of the nation, full of stunning twists, high-stakes intrigue and global gamesmanship rocketing to the Oval Office and beyond. Soon the Club must join forces with veteran Secret Service agent Alex Ford, who becomes an unwilling participant in one of the most chilling spectacles to ever take place on American soil. It’s an event that may well be the catalyst for the long-threatened Armageddon between two different worlds, and all that stands in the way of this apocalypse is five unexpected heroes.

The Camel Club consists of four unlikely partners: The leader, man without a past currently called "Oliver Stone"; obsessive computer genius Milton Farb; blue-collar laborer Reuben Rhodes; and Library of Congress reference specialist Caleb Shaw. Their goal: to seek the truth, an often elusive goal in their hometown, Washington, D.C. In their quest for truth, they collect an unusual array of friends who assist them -- Secret Service agent Alex Ford, homeless activist Adelphia, and con-artist extraordinaire Annabelle Conroy.

My Thoughts: This is a great set of CDs I won from J. Kaye. I of course enjoyed these out of order, listening to Divine Justice first, which was VERY good. The Camel Club is the actual first book in the series. What a page turner this would have been had I been reading it instead of listening to it. As it was I made a couple of extra trips to town and sat in the driveway a few extra minutes listening to it. This was much more of a political thriller than Divine Justice was. There are Arab terrorists, the President is kidnapped and we are on the verge of using nuclear weapons. This is averted at the last minute by ...... the Camel Club. In this book we meet Carter Gray, Oliver's nemesis, and he is as loathsome here as he was in Divine Justice.

As much as I liked it I found it a little confusing as there were so many groups involved. Some of it was unbelievable such as where the terrorists plan a major assault, but use tranquilizer darts so as not to kill anyone. ???? Even so was a good read. I've already started the next one, The Collectors.

thriller, political thriller, Oliver Stone, mystery, conspiracy

Tuesday Teaser

MizB of Should Be Reading hosts this cool weekly event.

Share (2) “teaser” sentences from that your current read. Include the title & author of the book that you’re getting your “teaser” from so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR list if they like your teaser. Please avoid spoilers!

My Teaser is from "Second Chances: More Tales of Found Dogs"

At home we put Luca's basket in the entry room at the front door, which is a quiet place as we generally use the back door. At first she just lay there, limp, facing the wall, shutting herself out of the world.

It's Monday! What Are You Reading?

It's Monday! What are you reading this week? is a weekly event at J. Kaye's blog to list the books completed last week, the books you are currently reading. If you do join in, please go to J. Kaye's and leave a link with Mr. Linky. That way others can find it and join in. Leave me a comment too!

Last week I finished reading:
69. Bless Your Heart, Tramp by Celia Rivenbark review here
70. The Golden Buddha by Clive Cussler and review here
71. Naked in Death by J.D. Robb review here

This week I'm reading:
Cemetery Dance by Douglas Preston & Lincoln Child (personal book-page 230)

Second Chances: More Tales of Found Dogs by Elise Lufkin (personal book-page 90)

Terra Incognita: A Novel of the Roman Empire by Ruth Downie (iPod)

The Camel Club by David Baldacci (in car- disc 5) almost done

The Collectors by Davie Baldacci (in car)

I'm leaving on Friday for a beach trip with The Girls. The 6 of us teach together and this is our third beach trip. We're looking foward to it! I have books on my Kindle and music on my iPod for the trip.

Naked in Death by J.D. Robb

About the book: It is 2058. New York cop Eve Dallas doesn't have to confront gun crime anymore, no one does. Guns are simply relics. But this latest homicide is an old-fashioned crime in many ways. Sharon DeBlass is a high-class hooker from a wealthy, powerful family. Her brutal shooting sends shockwaves through her family, political society and police headquarters. From the note under her body, it seems that a serial killer is on the loose. The killer gets uncomfortably close to Eve Dallas as she pieces together his identity. In the course of this murder investigation Eve Dallas meets Roarke, a charming self-made billionaire, and passions are stirred. This is the first in the incredibly successful suspense series featuring Dallas and Roarke. Those expecting a gentle read should put this book back on the shelf immediately. This tale has street language, sex and violence. And it is highly addictive stuff which will have you turning the pages far too fast. (Kirkus UK

Mass Market Paperback: 320 pages
Publisher: Berkley (October 1, 1996)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0425155188

My Thoughts:The review above about covers it. There is murder, romance, and suspense in this futuristic page turner. It was right about the page turning. I was burning up the page turn key on my Kindle. After three books I'm getting invested in these characters. What more could you want? Now that I've read the first one I can get on with the third one.

murder mystery, Kindle, in death series, romantic suspense, police

Golden Buddha by Clive Cussler and Craig Dirgo

About the book: Clive Cussler, creator of the bestselling NUMA and Dirk Pitt series, presents his latest and most intriguing high seas action hero: the enigmatic captain of the Oregon, Juan Cabrillo. In his first feature-length adventure, it's up to Cabrillo and his crew of expert intelligence and Naval men to put Tibet back in the hands of the Dalai Lama by striking a deal with the Russians and the Chinese. His gambling chip is a golden Buddha containing records of vast oil reserves in the disputed land. But first, he'll have to locate--and steal--the all-important artifact. And there are certain people who would do anything in their power to see him fail...

Audio CD
Publisher: Brilliance Audio on CD Unabridged; Unabridged edition (October 7, 2003)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1593552033
ISBN-13: 978-1593552039

My thoughts: As usual I'm reading a series out of order. This is the first of Cussler's Oregon Files books. I've read two or three others and enjoyed them. I've also read two Dirk Pitt novels and a couple of others that aren't in a series and liked them all. While I generally liked this, it didn't flow well for me. There were a LOT of characters to keep track of and a LOT of separate situations needing to be stitched together to follow the story. I couldn't keep track of it all. And every little thing was explained into the ground. It took two paragraphs for some guy to get into a raft. Maybe it would have been better if I had been reading it instead of listening. Oh well. This is the first disappointment I've faced with a Cussler book. It won't stop me from reading more

action adventure, Juan Cabrillo, Oregon Files, suspense,