Pretty Bad Things, by C.J. Skuse

Angry teen twins go on a violent attention getting rampage when they find out that their sociopathic grandmother has been lying to them about their imprisoned father never trying to get in touch with them. Paisley and Beau, the Wonder Twins,  head to Las Vegas aftrer hearing rumors that that is where their father is, taking along a gun they took after burning down their grandmother's house.
This was kind of Natural Born Killers, but improbably, to  me, Paisley and Beau hold up candy stores and popcorn trucks in their attempt to get national attention to help them find their dad.
It was well written, but strange, I did not love it, but that's not much of a review, is it.

The Red Blazer Girls: The Mistaken Masterpiece, by Michael Beil

Another excellent and clever Childrens/young YA mystery. These are so well done.

Murder Most Persuasive, by Tracy Kiely

Not a lot to say about this, clever well done cosy mystery with an Austen flavor. Contemporary, but the protagonist is an Austenite.

The Lipstick Laws, by Amy Holder

Forgettable YA. Cliques and bullying, with a rebellion. Mean Girls with less clever writing.

You Don't Sweat Much For A Fat Girl, by Celia Rivenbank

I loved Celia Rivenbank's Stop Dressing Your Six-Year Old Like a Skank, so was really excited to read this book, but I felt uncomfortable in many parts.


I realize that hyperbole and snarkiness is kind of her thing, but a section endorsing racial profiling at airports really disturbed me, and I felt like the many pointed jabs at Yankees went far beyond laid-back good humor. That said, it was still a funny and quick read, but overall it was not a feel-good read for me.

The Real Macaw, by Donna Andrews

Good new Meg Langslow mystery. Fun.

The Exile of Gigi Lane, by Adrienne Maria Vrettos

Pretty bad private school YA. Cliques and power.

Smokin' Seventeen, by Janet Evanovich

Stephanie Plum and her crazy life. Better than the last few.

The Sixes, by Kate White

Kate White's The Sixes was a quick and hard-to-put-down thriller. Well developed characters and tight plotting kept the pages turning well into the night, and a large and suspicious cast of suspects made for satisfying attempts at 'figuring it out' without being too overwhelming.


Disgraced celebrity biographer Phoebe Hall is teaching a writing course at Lyle College, after accepting the job offer from her best friend, the president of the school. When a young student is killed, Phoebe uses her investigational skills to look into the murder, and uncovers sinister situations in the groves of academe. This was a great read, and was genuinely thrilling without being gruesome- the perfect balance between chilling and cosy.

If You Were Here, by Jen Lancaster

Very funny fiction from Jen Lancaster, the queen of funny nonfiction. This was a quick and amusing take on HGTV fantasies, the suburbs, John Hughes, and it was a fast and enjoyable light read.

American Heiress, by Daisy Goodwin

Fantastic absorbing historical fiction. From gilded age Newport to crumbling English estates, this was an impossible to put down juicy read. Cora Cash, the richest girl in America, goes to England to secure a title, and the classic America vs. Europe thing happens. Great read.

Ingenue, by Jillian Larkin

This excellent follow-up to Larkin's Vixen follows the fortunes of Clara, Gloria, and Lorraine from Chicago to thrilling New York City. While the reader really should read Vixen first, I think it would be possible to jump in to the series here, and still enjoy it tremendously.


Wonderful historical detail combined with raging melodrama combine to create a book that is impossible to put down- a one-sitting read! The fashions, the music, and the societal tidbits mixed in with a racy enthralling plot make for a winning combination. Can't wait for the next in the series!

She Makes It Look Easy, by Marybeth Whalen

This seemed at first as though it was going to be a standard domestic fiction summer read, but it was surprisingly heavy on Christian theme and messages. Interesting and well written characters rose above predictable plotting.


New neighbors Ariel and Justine have very different stay-at-home mom lives, but when Justine's past returns to haunt her, both she and Ariel find out that the grass is always greener on the other side of the fence.

Sisterhood Everlasting, by Ann Brashares

Heartbreaking and lovely conclusion to the sisterhood of the traveling pants series.

Divergent, by Veronica Roth

OK YA dystopian thriller-type thing, but the plot was pretty meh. Pointless, actually, but fast paced action kept pages turning.

Endless Night, by Agatha Christie

Rather creepy Agatha Christie stand-alone.

The Psychopath Test, by Jon Ronson

Fascinating book by the funny and intrepid Jon Ronson. He ventures into prisons and psych wards to find out what exactly a psychopath is, and despite coming out with no clear answers, gives a great read with a lot to think about.

Deadly Appraisal, by Jane Cleland

Quick and cozy read.

Bright Lights, Big Ass, by Jen Lancaster

Quick and very funny. Jen Lancaster in chicago, don't really have much else to say about it.

Withering Tights, by Louise Rennison

As a HUGE fan of Louise Rennison's Georgia Nicholson series, I was so excited to read this, and even more so when I realized that Tallulah Cassey is Georgia's cousin, but I have to say that the book fell a little short of my high hopes and expectations.


Tallulah, whose parents seem inexplicably more up-market than Georgia's family, is off to Yorkshire to study dramatic arts for the summer, but it's never really clear why- she doesn't seem to really have any passion for theater, and never takes the program seriously at all. While there, she makes friends, and of course, boyfriends, but I felt her character fell into the "oh I'm SO TALL and SO THIN with SUCH GREEN EYES and SUCH SHINY HAIR, why, I'M A TROLL, and boys will never like me" trap- which is so annoying and overdone and at this point such a ghastly cliche. One of the things that made Rennison's voice so authentic in her other YA books was that Georgia came across as a real girl, and relatable, while Tallulah did not.

It is a shame, because the set-up had a lot of potential, and coming from such a talented author, could have been a great young YA read, but as it was, it was a bit grating, and Tallulah's silliness annoyed rather than enchanted.

In the Rooms, by Tom Schone

Drunk New York writers, and drunk New York literary agents. AA, manipulation, redemption- boring.

Clouds of Witnesses, by Dorothy Sayers

Super annoying Dorothy Sayers mystery. I would like her books so much more if it weren't for hero Peter Wimsey being such a supercillious ass.

The Magnolia League, by Kate Crouch

Southern debutante paranormal YA - interesting mix! Set in Savannah, this is the story of what happens when Alexandria Lee's mother dies in an accident in California, and she has to go to Savannah to live with her grandmother. Having grown up on an organic produce and weed farm in Humboldt county, Alex is initially very uncoomfortable with the white gloves and curtsies, but when she is fully initiated into the Magnolia League, she finds that it can be very tempting to join in the dark and glamorous world her mother fled.

The Patriotic Murders, by Agatha Christie

Pretty good Agatha Christie, a Poirot one with diplomatic complications with the evocative fictional Ruritania.

The Murder on the Links, by Agatha Christie

Solid Hercule Poirot mystery.