Saturday, June 09, 2007

Fiction with a slew of VIctoria Houston mysteries

Victoria Houston

Houston paid the Library a visit about three weeks ago and spoke about her work as an author and her experiences in publishing. We now have a collection of all the paperback editions of her Dead series.

In no particular order, those new copies are:

Dead Boogie
Dead Hot Mama
Dead Jitterbug
Dead Creek
Dead Water
Dead Angler
Dead Frenzy

Fiction

Freefire by C.J. Box. I read a review of this in the newspaper, maybe the Wisconsin State Journal, and it received a raving review. Former Wyoming game warden Joe Pickett is asked to investigate the murders of four campers in a remote part of Yellowstone National Park that has overlapping jurisdictions, none of which can charge the mass murderer with a crime. The Wyoming governor himself asks for Pickett's help after the murderer walks away from his murders in this freefire zone.

Spare Change by Robert B. Parker. Series lead Sunny Randall is asked by her retired cop father for help after the serial killer he hunted thirty years ago resurfaces.

On Chesil Beach by Ian McEwan. Newlyweds in 1962 England struggle on their wedding night to adjust to marraige and it's intimacy.

New DVDs

Apocalypto starring a bunch of Central American actors. Yeah, Mel Gibson is an angry drunk, but the movie is still good. Young guy Jaguar Paw is captured and taken to a Mayan city for sacrifice. He escapes and rushes home to protect his wife and child.

The Queen starring Helen Mirren, James Cromwell, Michael Sheen. The story of Princess Diana's death from Queen Elizabeth II's private viewpoint. It's funny how many different roles Helen Mirren has had. She was nude in several of them. Thank goodness we don't have to see the Queen in the buff. For a different interpretation of the Queen take a look at one of our Kids in the Hall DVD sets.

No Restraint starring Matthew Barney and Bjork. Artist Matthew Barney produced The Cremaster Cycle, three astounding and stunning motion pictures that showed at different art museums. No Restraint follows two characters, played by Barney and Bjork, as mysterious passengers on a Japanese whaling vessel filled with 45,000 pounds of petroleum jelly (one of Barney's favorite mediums). Speaking of nude actresses, I think Bjork appears nude in this one. She is married to Barney too.

Notes on a Scandal starring Judi Dench, Cate Blanchett and Bill Nighy. Mean, old teacher Barbara has a thing for popular, younger teacher Sheba. When Barbara finds out Sheba has been sleeping with one of her students she blackmails Sheba into a relationship. Creepy, huh? I don't know if either one is nude or not.

Painted Veil starring Naomi Watts and Edward Norton. The bored, beautiful and unfaithfull wife of Dr. Fane is spending most of her time in colonial Shanghai sleeping around. So, Dr. Fane gets a job in the hinterlands in a cholera ravaged town and brings her with him. Can she adjust? Will the marriage last? Watch and find out. Not sure of the nudity quotient but that Watts gal is a great actress. She was nude in Mullholland Drive.

Hannibal Rising starring Gaspard Ulliel, Gong Li, Rhys Ifans. Hannibal's life in post-war Europe and Paris and his turn into Hannibal the Cannibal. I bet there is cannibalism.

Seraphim Falls starring Liam Neeson and Pierce Brosnan. Three years after the Civil War: former Union Captain Gideon is pursued across the west by former Confederate Colonel Carver who is intent on revenge. Nudity? I don't know. But, if there is any I don't want to see it from those two dudes.

Monday, June 04, 2007

Favorites Authors and Chevy Chase

Mystery

Whack-a-Mole by Chris Grabenstein. The third John Ceepak mystery by Grabenstein. Ceepak is Mr. Straight Arrow. A policeman in the vacation town of Sea Haven, New Jersey, Ceepak's personal code is that he will not lie, cheat, or steal nor tolerate those who do. Ceepak once ticketed his partner, Danny Boyle for an illegal left turn. Boyle narrates the series and all of them have good humour about the straight-laced Ceepak. Ceepak loves quoting Springsteen and is an excellent investigator.

Requiem for an Assassin by Barry Eisler. I've read about three other Eisler books featuring assassin John Rain and all were quite good. I have a copy of this at home and have enjoyed the first 60 pages or so. Rain has been an international hitman for about 25 years and his paranoia and tradecraft have kep him alive, and lonely, all that time. Rain has recently retired but an enemy has kidnapped Rain's best and only friend, Dox, to coerce Rain into taking on a job. This will get ugly.
Author Bary Eisler will be making an appearance in Milwaukee on June 12th.

Fiction

A Thousand Splendid Suns by Kholeid Hussein. Hussein's Kite Runner has been very popular. Thousand covers thirty years of recent Afghan history seen by two generations of an Afghan family. From the Soviety invasion, Afghan resistance, through the rise and fall of the Taliban.

Sleeping Doll by Jeffery Deaver. California Burea of Investigations agent Kathryn Dance is assigned to interrogate convicted murderer Daniel Pell about a recently discovered murder. Pell is in prison for his copycat Charles Manson killings in Carmel for which he never talked about. When Pell escapes and goes on a killing spree Dance is in charge of the manhunt and pulls together Pell's former cult members and the one survivor of the Carmel murders to try and determine his purpose.

The Children of Hurin by J.R.R. Tolkien, edited by Christopher Tolkien. Christopher Tolkien pulled together and edited his father's writings and notes on the history of Middle Earth and presents a unified history that details Middle Earth history. Very well reviewed and well written by both Tolkiens.

Biography

I'm Chevy Chase...and You're Not by Rena Fruchter. Chase's authorized biography.