It's All About the Book

The Templar Legacy by Steve Barry – I don’t know why I keep picking up these books that center around debunking Christian mythology, but I do. It must be rooted in my youthful rebellion against the mind-numbing church history classes I was forced to endure at my Catholic high school, which were taught by a nun, Sr. Delphine, who looked, moved and spoke as though she were a step away from one of the catecombs she taught about with such relish. But I digress.

This book is one of the recent spate of DaVinci Code-alikes that have hit the bookshelves. Now, I have to say that I wasn’t too enamoured of Dan Brown’s controversial tale, mostly because I thought Robert Langdon was incredibly boring, and that the French police officer was a total stereotype. I liked Templar Legacy much, much more…better characters, better pacing, better everything.

Our protagonists, Cotton Malone and Stephanie Nelle, find themselves smack in the middle of another gosh-darn conspiracy that will reveal a shocking historical truth intended to rock the foundations of the known world. Stephanie’s dead husband, Lars, spent most of their marriage searching for the lost treasure of the Knights Templar. Seven years after his death, Stephanie receives his journal, sent anonymously through the mail, and decides she must have closure. So, she pulls up stakes from her high level government job, and flies to Copenhagen, where she stirs up a whole bunch of trouble. Teaming up with former intelligence officer turned bookshop owner Cotton Malone (maybe I’m wrong, but I really do think this is the name of the sports announcer played by Gary Cole in the movie Dodgeball), the two follow clues supposedly leading to the Great Devise — the legendary Templar treasure hidden in the 14th century as the Knights were being exterminated by French royalty. The two are challenged by Raymond deRoquefort, Marshal, then Master, of the current, hidden Knights. Twists and turns abound as Cotton and Stephanie race against time to discover the Great Devise and foil the evil deRoquefort’s plans of world domination.

Yep. It’s a page-turner all right. Actually, one of the things I liked best about this book is the short sections within the chapters. There wasn’t that whole one-chapter-about-Raymond, one-chapter-about-Stephanie thing going on. I could pick the book up, read for about 5 minutes, put it down to check dinner, change the laundry over, or help a patron and then pick it right back up without missing a beat. And the story itself was full of surprises. I sure didn’t see the twists coming at the end.

The setting is almost identical to that in The Labyrinth by Kate Mosse — Carcasonne and other areas of France — and there are echoes of the same ancient legends in both books. Templar is a much better read, however. Definitely pick it up and give it a shot.

I’m posting this on all my blogs just because I think it’s such a cool odea. I hope some of you will participate!

The 48 Hour Book Challenge, thrown down by Mother Reader, will take place over the weekend of June 16-18. Mother challenges everyone who participates to read as many books as possible in that 48 hour span and then blog about their experiences. Books have to be at least a 4th grade level. Sign up here and start gathering your books. What a great excuse to sit around all weekend and read all the J Fiction and YA books I’ve been eyeing for months.

There are several variants of this book meme out there and they’re all fun!

1. A book that made you cry – Peace Like a River by Leif Enger – the main character suffers from asthma, and boy, could I relate!
2. A book that scared you – Ghost Story by Peter Straub – a waterlogged ghost gets me every time; Fellowship of the Ring by J.R.R. Tolkien – the scene on the rock where Frodo gets stabbed by one of the Riders always scared the hell out of me.
3. A book that made you laugh – Bad Dog which is really just a collection of photos of dressed up dogs; The Sweet Potato Queens Book of Love by Jill Connor Browne was one of the funniest books I ever read. The scene where she finds a possum under her bed is priceless.
4. A book that disgusted you – Helter Skelter; and The English Roses by Madonna, just because if she was a regular person, every publisher on the face of the earth would have laughed her out of their offices for this insipid story. Pretentious much?
5. A book you loved in elementary school – Flat Stanley, Hailstones & Halibut Bones, Nancy Drew, Trixi Belden, Judy Bolton, The Dana Girls
6. A book you loved in middle school – The Hobbit, trashy gothic mysteries
7. A book you loved in high school – Roots
8. A book you loved in college – Praisesong for the Widow
9. A book that challenged your identity or faith – The Deeper Song by Patricia Pfitsch
10. A series that you love – Harry Potter, Richard Jury, the Meg Mysteries, the Maggody mysteries
11. Your favorite horror book – The Great God Pan by Arthur Machen
12. Your favorite science fiction book – None
13. Your favorite fantasy book – Harry Potter, the Mists of Avalon, Christopher Chant books
14. Your favorite mystery book – Laurie King’s Mary Russell series, Be Buried in the Rain by Barbara Michaels
15. Your favorite biography – Candy and Me by Hillary Liftin
16. Your favorite coming-of-age book – Rats Saw God by Rob Thomas and Weetzie Bat by Francesca Lia Block
17. Your favorite book not on this list – Trojan Gold by Elizabeth Peters

I’ve been re-reading this book because Cosmo had to read it for school and he was totally taken by it. I read Peace Like a River for the first time a couple years ago when it was the selection for All Rochester Reads the Same Book and it didn’t really strike a chord with me at the time. When Cos loved it, I decided I should give it another try, because this is a man who is not a reader. I wanted to see what appealed to him so much, and believe it or not, I understand.

Peace is a family story full of mystery, memorable characters, and heart. I find myself totally drawn to Swede this time around, even though I found her rather annoying during my first read of the story. I’m wondering now why I wasn’t moved by the story the first time I read it. It is full of magical realism, which I first encountered done beautifully in The Milagro Bean Field Wars and thought then that it couldn’t be done any better. I was wrong. Enger blends the power of God with faith, healing and love in a way that rivals the story Nichols spins in Milagro. There are no shrines to Smokey the Bear in Peace, but there is Sunny Sundown, which bears a remarkable similarity in meter to my grandfather’s favorite poem, The Shooting of Dan McGrew. I’m about halfway through the book right now. I’ll be writing more when I finish it.

I’ve always been a fan of reworked stories, going waaaay back to my early years in college when I was obsessed with rewriting fairy tales from all sorts of strange perspectives. It was considered odd back then, but now it seems to be the thing to do. So, when I read the description of Marly’s Ghost, I was intrigued. It’s pretty simple, really. Take A Christmas Carol and move it to Valentine’s Day 2000something and make the characters teenagers in love. The Marly in question is the dead girlfriend of our tragic hero, Ben, who has completely lost faith in love since her death. The three spirits visit Ben and show him the purity and beauty of love, and also show him what he’s missing by shutting love out of his life. The Dickens formula is followed pretty closely, and Ben ends up redeemed as expected.

I wanted to like this book. I really did. And some parts were heartbreaking. However, I just couldn’t stand Ben. I found him whiny, mean, and very unsympathetic. Kids will like this because it’s short, but I’m betting that anyone not familiar with A Christmas Carol just won’t get this.

“Sixteen year old Aidan’s grandmother has a secret recipe. She feeds ghosts.”

This opening line in the flyleaf description of A Gathering of Shades is what made me take the book home. An old lady who feeds ghosts. What a powerfully creepy image. And I must say that I wasn’t disappointed. This story is one of the better books for teens I’ve read in a long time. Evocative, eerie, and heartbreaking…all at once.

Aidan’s grandmother does indeed feed ghosts, but he doesn’t find out until a few days after he and his mother arrive back at the family homestead in The Kingdom, an area in upper Vermont. After Aidan’s father is killed in a car accident, his mother decides to pull up stakes from the suburbs of Boston and head back home to heal. Aidan, having only visited The Kingdom as a child and having listened to his father talk about how much he hated it when he was growing up, is less than thrilled about the move. He’s uncomfortable around his odd grandmother, but is curious enough about her lengthy after-dinner walks that he follows her one night and discovers her secret. She’s been feeding the ghosts of The Kingdom for years, helping them pass the time until they’re ready to move on. She’s surprised that Aidan can see the ghosts, but seems pleased to have flesh-and-blood company among the ectoplasm, until she figures out that Aidan joins her every evening only because he’s hopeful his father’s ghost will put in an appearance. Aidan spends the better part of the summer chasing his father’s ghost until he finally manages to say goodbye.

There are plenty of messages here, but none are pushed to the point of being annoying. The futility of chasing ghosts, the difficulty of moving on and letting go after a tragedy, the reliving the memories of the dead time and again…all are addressed with lovely, gentle writing. Reading this story is a little like floating down a stream tucked in an inner tube. Give it a try…

Let me begin by saying I respect John Briant’s 20-odd years of experience as a NYS Trooper, but then let me add that all the law enforcement experience in the world cannot make a person a good writer. And unfortunately that is the case with The Adirondack Detective. The book reads like a collection of stories Briant might have reminisced about with his trooper buddies over a couple cold ones in a little mountain bar. The writing is juvenile at best, and, well, just plain bad at it’s worst. The dialog is stiff and disjointed, the descriptive passages are awful, and the story is boring and tiresome. I am so disappointed.

I borrowed this book from the Brockport Library so I could read it before I bought it for Ogden. I’m glad I did, because it would have been a waste of money. What I don’t understand is how this guy has had so many books published. I’m going to have to get one of his more recent books and see if the writing has improved. The reviews on Amazon are all pretty good…so maybe Briant has gotten better. I will let you know….

I confess. I love Sherlock Holmes. I grew up reading the Conan Doyle stories, and as an adult reader, I have found great enjoyment…and some disappointment…in the ways other authors have decided to write about the great detective. Of all the Holmes treatments out there, I have to say that Laurie King’s Mary Russell series is far and away my favorite, although Carol Nelson Douglas runs a close second with her Irene Adler series. Even so, I almost always pick up any new book that has Sherlock as a character. And so, it was with great delight that I found Nancy Springer’s The Case of the Missing Marquess, which introduces a lovely new character — Enola Holmes, much younger sister of the Great Detective.

The story opens with Enola pondering the backwards meaning of her name — alone — as she waits for her mother to return to their home. Mum never shows up, and Enola is at first angry because it is, after all, her birthday; but then when Mum is still missing the following day, Enola becomes frightened. After a fruitless search of the rain-soaked grounds, Enola reluctantly sends to London for her two much older brothers…Sherlock and Mycroft. Once they arrive, Enola slowly learns more about the rift between her mother and brothers, and gradually loses hope that the men will find her mother. Enola also learns more about her mother, and even more about the way women are expected to behave in polite society. She rebels against Mycroft’s attempts to “civilize” her, and ditches the whole family while she in enroute to boarding school. In usual Holmesian fashion, Enola then gets caught up in the disappearance of the wealthy son of a Duke. Her adventures are plenty fun and well worthy of the Holmes moniker.

I was particularly struck by the cleverness of the female characters here, and Enola herself says at the end that she has discovered a whole world of feminine secrets that her brother Sherlock, no matter how brilliant his mind, will never penetrate. She uses those secrets to communicate with her mother, who, like Enola, freed herself from the confines of polite society and has chosen to spend the rest of her days roaming the countryside with Gypsies, “blooming in the sun.” I liked this story, and really liked Enola. It’s a short book, and is intended for a younger audience, say 12 and up. Holmes fans will definitely want to become acquainted with this newest member of the family.

I was browsing the Teen shelf at the library last night as I was waiting to shut down a computer at closing time, and what did I see? Nancy Drew, Girl Detective #4: The Girl Who Wasn’t There! Oh yeah! Nancy is now a graphic novel. How cool is that?

I checked it out, toted it home and read it in 15 minutes. Loved it. Nancy Drew and graphic novels — what a nifty combination. I read it again over my cereal this morning and paid a little closer attention to the artwork this time around. I was taken back to the Wonder Woman comics of my youth. Very similar style. The story was pretty good too. Very international…where Nancy becomes friends with an Indian woman who answers her call to a computer help desk in India. When the woman calls her in the middle of the night and seems to be in trouble, Nancy, Bess & George hop on a plane and wing their way to New Delhi. Once there, they encounter resistance every step of the way, but Nancy is not deterred. Not only does she rescue her friend, but she breaks up a DVD smuggling ring along the way.

Yes, this is cotton candy for the brain, but so what? Everyone told me the same thing when I was 8 and devouring every Nancy Drew book I could get my hands on. And look at me now. Still reading fluff and loving every minute of it.

FROM THE PUBLISHER…