Rosebush by Michele Jaffe

"Jaffe manages the suspense marvelously while also unfolding Jane's emotional life...a winner." --Kirkus

From Amazon: Instead of celebrating Memorial Day weekend on the Jersey Shore, Jane is in the hospital surrounded by teddy bears, trying to piece together what happened last night. One minute she was at a party, wearing fairy wings and cuddling with her boyfriend. The next, she was lying near-dead in a rosebush after a hit-and-run. Everyone believes it was an accident, despite the phone threats Jane swears were real. But the truth is a thorny thing. As Jane’s boyfriend, friends, and admirers come to visit, more memories surface, not just from the party, but from deeper in her past . . . including the night her best friend Bonnie died. With nearly everyone in her life a suspect now, Jane must unravel the mystery before her killer attacks again. Along the way, she’s forced to examine the consequences of her life choices in this compulsively readable thriller.

From Me: I devoured this title – had to keep looking up from it tho to make sure I’d get off the train at the right stop! It’s cunning and thrilling, clever and devious and a very good teen read. It’s described by the publisher as Mean Girls meets Rear Window and that’s very apt. The suspense was very well played out and enjoyable even if it had me on edge for most of the night (I nearly hit the roof during one scene of S2 Mentalist finale - not cool. Laughable, but not cool).

There were a couple of moments when I went What??!! And another few I scoffed, but according to the resident teen it’s very realistic with regards to the almost compulsive need Jane has to fit in and be popular, and how she’s blinded to a lot of other things.

If you’re not or never have been one who feels a need to fit in this may not be the read for you, however Jaffe is now on our library list.

A Kiwi Night Before Christmas by Yvonne Morrison & Deborah Hinde

From the publisher: The much-loved poem by Clement Clarke Moore, originally released under the title 'A Visit from St. Nicholas' but better known as 'Twas the Night Before Christmas' is given a new slant in this Kiwi version. The weather is fine and hot and the family is staying at the bach for the Christmas holidays when a white-haired man in black singlet and shorts appears in the sky riding on a tractor drawn by six sheep. This is the ultimate read-aloud for Christmas in New Zealand. The rhyming text flows off the page and Deborah Hinde captures the colour of a truly New Zealand festive season. This new edition includes a full-colour press-out model of the beach bach that children can make for themselves, and a music CD!

The CD was still on rotation when I went up for my late night check on the boys, which should go to show that it’s still a favourite after a few years and readings. In this case the publisher’s blurb is completely accurate and the words just trip along. It was in this story that little Brian’s parents first appeared.

Here Comes Santa: Mini Christmas Pop-Up by David Pelham

From the publisher: It's Christmas Eve, and Santa Claus is ready to deliver toys and goodies to all of the lucky girls and boys. Join Santa in this fantastic mini pop-up as he guides his trusty reindeer through a sleepy town to bring cheer and laughter to all on Christmas Day!

Being from 2008, this one could be a little harder to get hold of that our usual books, but it has its beautiful moments. The scene with the child lying in bed, pretending to be asleep yet as you move the page you can see the eye move – genius construction. So delicate, yet so real! This isn’t one to leave unsupervised with the toddlers as the pages may be destroyed (Santa’s hat on the last page is slightly askew in our copy) but the rhythm and rhyme are gorgeous.

The Polar Express by Chris van Allsburg

I am, quite frankly, a square. I like to know who, what, where – so much so that my loving family call me “Paulapedia”. Sometimes it’s not said with affection, but there you go. Sometimes my curiosity leads us on to greater things – and our December Reads are one of these things. And no, we’re not going on about the other things right now. That would be wrong on so many levels.

So we watched Tom Hank’s Polar Express a few years ago (I think we were sweltering in Bali at the time. Not so apt). As part of the special features there was an interview with Hanks and his wife Rita, talking about their family traditions. One was that the children chose a Christmas-themed story each night and the family sat down to read it together. Of course it's an idea I had to steal. And share. Lots of sharing!

This year we’re close to the 23 books we need (we read from the Gospel of Luke on Christmas Eve). To add to the fun, I wrap them all individually and they go into a basket. This year Bran chose the first title and yay! It’s the Polar Express. A perfect start to the month.

The basics of the story is a young boy is staying awake, trying to hear Santa’s arrival. Instead he hears the brakes of a steam train – the Polar Express. He jumps on board and heads to the North Pole and a major adventure.

If you haven’t read the book, you can get a preview at Google Books. Polar Express Google Books

Nalini Singh - Angel's Blood

Nalini Singh seems the opposite to L&P – world famous, but not in New Zealand. A bit of research shows she’s been in NYT best seller lists; nine books in her Psy-Changelings series and soon to be three in the Guild Hunter series, plus a few others. She lives in Christchurch, has not a bad blog and a good website (warning – DO NOT go on this at work. J)

Anyway, as Nalini is signing at our Borders Armageddon stand, I picked up one of her titles, Angel’s Blood, the first of the Guild Hunter series. Christine Feehan raves about the author so if you like well-imagined paranormal, you should like the books.

Amazon description: Vampire hunter Elena Deveraux is hired by the dangerously beautiful Archangel Raphael. But this time, it’s not a wayward vamp she has to track. It’s an archangel gone bad. The job will put Elena in the midst of a killing spree like no other—and pull her to the razor’s edge of passion. Even if the hunt doesn’t destroy her, succumbing to Raphael’s seductive touch just may. For when archangels play, mortals break.

It’s been my “bus book” for a few days but I will admit to burning part of dinner last night as I had to finish it and know what happened. Cue protests from the kids. Overall, a solid 4 stars. Love how it’s in our world (like the Dark Hunter series, it’s a recognizable place, in this case, New York City), good plot, well written, leaves a bit to the imagination – I’m rushing onto book two now. And in case you were wondering, now that I've read this I get where LA Weatherly got her Angel idea from. But you already know how I feel about THAT book...

old favourites

Cleaning up in the garage this weekend I came across some old friends. Solid romance, lots of laughs. I wish she'd write some more!

The series starts when cat burglar Samantha Jellicoe finds out she's been double-crossed, and saves the life of (very hunky) English billionaire Richard Addison. With a strong supporting cast that flow thru the four books and one novella, it's fun and fresh to read. Love the Star Wars mentions.

But Not The Hippopotamus - Sandra Boynton

A family favourite is Sandra Boynton’s But Not the Hippopotamus. Poor Hippopotamus, she misses out on so many things – a dance in the bog, going out for a jog, trying on hats…will she always miss out?

The other favourites by this author are Moo, Baa, La La La (Mase shakes his head and chants at the “no, no, no!” part – not bad for 13 months) and the Going To Bed Book (for obvious reasons it’s Dad’s favourite).

Worth Dying For - Lee Child

I know what happens to Jack.



*evilgrin*