Tender at the Bone by Ruth Reichl

Subtitle: Growing up at the Table -- She is a great writer and I don't think that I will ever complain about the food I grew up with again.  Her mother was a manic depressive and you never knew what was going to hit the table.  Reichl had some other wonderful people in her life that introduced her to different foods and ways of cooking and over the years she found that it was a wonderful way to express herself and feel good about things.  Her curiosity of foods and the ability to just jump in also aided in her wonderful food experiments.  This book gave a great insight into her growing up and interest in food.  Another book that she wrote, Garlic and Sapphires, is about her being a food critic and her experiences doing that.  It is also a great book.  Some of the lengths that she went through were quite amazing!!  Great author!

Still Life with Crows by Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child

Amazing book.  I really did have a hard time putting it down.  It was not good bed time reading, and probably not something to read around Halloween either.  Strange killings are happening in a sleepy town in Kansas and, of course, Pendergast gets involved with the whole thing, offering his insights and ticking off some of the locals.  So far, I think this has been my favorite in the series.  There were times that I wanted to turn my head away from what I was reading because it was so gruesome.  The writing was wonderful.  Preston and Child know how to weave a tale and just suck you in.  You keep learning more about Pendergast as the stories continue and their character development, at times, I feel is brilliant.  It keeps making you want to come back to more and more.

Love Comes Softy by Janette Oke

I read this to my mother-in-law over the past several days.  She has had a hard time concentrating to read on her own, so I read it to her.  It was a very enjoyable book and very descriptive.  There were many scenes that I could easily picture and see happening.  Many times we both were laughing about what was going on.  Many times my mother-in-law was laughing before I got to it because she knew it was coming!!!  The story is about a woman, Marty, who goes out west with her husband and he dies in an accident.  Right after this happens a gentleman, Clark, approaches her and says that he is alone with his little girl who needs a mama and maybe they can get married and then Marty would have a place to stay and his daughter would have a mama.  She was angry about the whole thing, but did it anyway.  The trials and tribulations were many and much growing for all parties occurred.  It was a wonderful story with much to contemplate and think about with your own life too.

Nanny McPhee and The Big Bang by Emma Thompson

This was quite fun.  It went back and forth - every other chapter - with one about Thompson's feelings and thoughts while filming the movie and the other telling the story.  If you have never seen a Nanny McPhee movie, you must.  They are great fun.  I have always enjoyed Thompson as an actor and it was nice to see her point of view while filming.  She is quite funny and this was a nice easy read that was very enjoyable. (NOOK)

Good Things-Living Simply Isn't Simple by Mia King

What a fun and lighthearted book.  Deidre has it all.  Her own TV show and a life style that she loves.  She also has a wonderful apartment that she is sharing with a life long friend.  Then, in one fell swoop, it is taken away from her.  Now she had to re-group and figure out what to do.  She had no clue as to where to start and what she would do next.  She ended up in a cute little town in the middle of no where and her life started to turn around.  Things kept getting better and better and her life was going to be going in a completely different direction than what she would have thought.  I really enjoyed it, a fast and easy read, nice and light and it made me laugh.  I look forward to reading more of her books!

While I Was Gone by Sue Miller

I am not sure how I feel about this book.  I was about a woman who kind of ran away from her life and lived a double life in another city with another name and another back story.  She learned more about herself and who she was and what she wanted, but told many lies along the way.  Going forward in time she is married with a family and good business.  Someone from her past shows up again and makes things confusing for her and her family, creating much stress.  The book flowed nicely and the characters were well developed and had depth.  Some things were predictable, but not to the point to make it not worth reading.  At times I just found it unsettling, and I am not sure if it is on a moral level or and ethical level when it comes to lying about your past to make yourself into someone you are not and what do you really gain by it all.  I would like to read more of Miller's books to see if they are all like this and if I feel the same way. 

The Pawn by James Stevens

What a great thriller.  Lots of twists and turns that keep you jumping all the time.  An agent, Patrick, gets pulled into a case at a time that may not have been best for him or his family.  A couple of  really sick and twisted guys take there way with women for different reasons and it was interesting how they knew each other and ended up playing off of each other.  There was much history for the characters that was all tied together beautifully by Stevens.  The depth of the story and the characters flowed very well together and makes me anxious to read more.  This is the first in a series!!