Staff Recommendations These recommendations come from library staff and patrons. You can also find more recommendations from the Library Director in her book blog,
All About the Book. You may also be interested in joining our
Online Book Club, where you receive a new chapter of a popular book every day for a week. If you like what you read, you can request the whole book from the library system.
You should also check out the
Good Books section on the Monroe County Library System website for some great recommendations.
Breathtaker by Alice Blanchard.
review written by Anne Marie BasilePromise, Oklahoma may not be much, but it is ground zero for storm chasers, an eccentric mix of meteorologists, amateur scientists, and plain old crazies who stalk tornadoes like kids stalk ice cream trucks. Police chief Charlie Grover is assessing the damage from a recent storm when he discovers the Pepper family. Husband, wife, and teenage daughter all killed -- presumably storm victims. However, Grover suspects a serial killer among the storm chasers. In the background is widower Grover's struggle with single parenthood and his new romance with a scientist fascinated by violent storms. The first two-thirds of the novel are excellent as Grover sifts through forensic evidence and desperately tries to profile a killer who hides among the chaos of tornadoes or may even have his killing rage released by the storms. The extended conclusion screams "big-budget movie" and in fact rights have already been sold to a major studio. The conclusion runs counter to the moody thoughtfulness of the rest of the book. On balance, it is a well-crafted thriller. In the wake of the tornadoes that came right after reading this book, it just made it come alive. I loved this book. Well written, fast paced, keeps you interested through the entire book. 5 stars!
The Death and Life of Charlie St. Cloud review written by Anne Marie Basile This book tells the haunting story of a young man who narrowly survives a terrible car wreck that kills his little brother. Years later, the brothers’ bond remains so strong that it transcends the normal boundaries separating life and death. Charlie St. Cloud lives in a snug New England fishing village. By day he tends the lawns and monuments of the ancient cemetery where his younger brother, Sam, is buried. Graced with an extraordinary gift after surviving the accident, he can still see, talk, and even play catch with Sam’s spirit. But townsfolk whisper that Charlie has never recovered from his loss. Into his carefully ordered life comes Tess Carroll, a captivating, adventuresome woman training for a solo sailing trip around the globe. Fate steers her boat into a treacherous storm that blows her back to harbor, to a charged encounter with Charlie, and to a surprise more overwhelming than the violent sea itself. Charlie and Tess discover a beautiful and uncommon connection that leads to a race against time and a desperate choice between death and life, between the past and the future, between holding on and letting go. Luminous, soulful, and filled with unforgettable characters, The Death and Life of Charlie St. Cloud is one of those rare, wise books that reveal the mysteries of the unseen world around us, gently transforming the worst pain of loss into hope, healing, and even laughter. Suspenseful and deeply moving, its startling climax reminds us that sometimes tragedies can bring about miracles if we simply open our hearts. I could not put this book down. It's an easy read but more it is a must read. The characters are so well depicted and the descriptions so sharp that you could almost feel their warm breath. I was so wrapped up in this book that I literally felt transported to this small fishing town walking right along with them, sharing their pain, sorrow and a few laughs. Although it is somewhat predictable it is a fabulous story!
After Caroline by Kay Hooper
review written by Anne Marie Basile Joanna Flynn and Caroline McKenna have more in common than their age, 29, and slim, fine-boned beauty. Though separated by 3000 miles, each suffers a fatal accident at exactly the same moment. Joanna instantly returns to life, however, surviving electrocution by a downed power line in Atlanta, while Caroline sleeps forever in a Cliffside, Ore., graveyard. Or does she? Bits of her seem to have taken up residence in Joanna, who now feels an inexplicable urge to wear skirts instead of pants and has a sudden hankering for secondhand cigarette smoke. More tellingly, she finds her own sleep wracked by a recurring nightmare that delivers a haunting message. I thought this part was interesting. Caroline's young daughter, Regan, is in danger, (I was at the end of the book and still couldn't’t figure out what all the fuss is about with this little girl. Nice kid but …danger? ) and only Joanna can save her. The premise makes for harrowing good fun, and Joanna is appealingly plucky and true to her mission as she gallops into Cliffside to probe the mystery that was Caroline. Was the dead woman good, bad or an unsettling mix of both? Did her husband love her or hate her? Was her death an accident or murder? Romance bonds Joanna to handsome Cliffside sheriff Griffin Cavanaugh, despite mutual suspicions. Alas, Hooper (Amanda) relies on sentence fragments to suggest drama, question marks to promote uncertainty and italics to invoke the processes of consciousness. So, though they will shiver and shudder, readers won't enjoy the chill as much as they might have. I don’t think she researched the psychic realm quite enough. Except for the sexual content it could be a read in Young Adult Fiction. All in all- it’s pretty shallow. Not bad but a little lacking in suspense and a lot lacking in the supernatural.
The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd
review written by Anne Marie Basile One of my favorite books this year was “The Secret Life of Bees.” Living on a peach farm in South Carolina with her harsh, unyielding father, Lily Owens has shaped her entire life around one devastating, blurred memory - the afternoon her mother was killed, when Lily was four. Since then, her only real companion has been the fierce-hearted, and sometimes just fierce, black woman Rosaleen, who acts as her "stand-in mother." When Rosaleen insults three of the deepest racists in town, Lily knows it's time to spring them both free. They take off in the only direction Lily can think of, toward a town called Tiburon, South Carolina - a name she found on the back of a picture amid the few possessions left by her mother. There, an eccentric trio of black beekeeping sisters named May, June, and August takes them in. Lily thinks of them as the calendar sisters and enters their mesmerizing secret world of bees and honey, and of the Black Madonna who presides over this household of strong, wise women. Maternal loss and betrayal, guilt and forgiveness entwine in a story that leads Lily to the single thing her heart longs for most.I was moved by the resilience of Lily Owens. The author portrays her characters her characters so well that you can feel the pain Lily feels when she is forced to kneel and walk on her knees on dry rice for punishment; The sweat from the sun of the southern heat as it permeates Rosaleen, the pain, anger and sweetness of the characters in this book. You just have to read it! No sleeping between THESE pages!