Archive for August, 2011

“New York to Dallas,” J.D. Robb

Thursday, August 25th, 2011

Pros: Interesting bad guy and race against time; some great side characters; we get to see the original case that made Eve the cop she is
Cons: Too many coincidences; too much small world syndrome; too much Eve trauma
Rating: 2.5 out of 5

Review book courtesy of Penguin Group

 

Way back when Eve was a rookie, she had the misfortune to stumble across a gruesome crime scene—and the good fortune to rescue the victims of a madman. That madman has spent the years since then behind bars—until now. Somehow he escaped, and the prison was too busy trying to cover its ass (excuse me, “conduct an internal investigation”) to notify Eve. Now he wants revenge on the cop that stopped him so many years ago, and he’s decided that the city of Dallas, scene of Eve’s own most horrific memories, is the place to achieve that goal.

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“Archangel’s Blade,” Nalini Singh

Wednesday, August 24th, 2011

Pros: Wonderful tale of two fascinating characters and an unlikely relationship
Cons: Not as removed from everyday paranormal romance fare as the other books have been
Rating: 4.5 out of 5

Review book courtesy of Penguin Group

 

Dmitri is the Archangel Raphael’s right-hand man—or rather, vampire. He has a reputation as a ruthless, cold son of a bitch, so old that no one is even sure when he was born. And that makes him very, very powerful. In his work for Raphael he has come across a severed head with a distinctive tattoo on the cheek, a tattoo that seems familiar to him—so he calls in a Guild expert on ancient languages, Honor.

Honor is terrified of vampires ever since the several months during which she was captured, held, and tortured by them, but it’s time for her to leave the safety of the Guild’s complex and get back to work. She wasn’t expecting to work with Dmitri himself—a vampire she used to be nearly obsessed with, and one whose power and sexuality threaten what peace she’s managed to stitch together for herself.

Things take a turn for the strange as soon as the two meet. Dmitri becomes obsessed with hunting down the vampires who harmed Honor. Honor finds herself able to elicit details of Dmitri’s past that no one else knows of. And both of them find each other strangely familiar.

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Vacation

Tuesday, August 9th, 2011

I’m on a bit of a vacation this week and next. I might drop a review or two in if I get the urge, but otherwise there’ll be a short break. See you soon, and I hope you’re having a great year!

“Modernist Cuisine,” Myhrvold, Young, and Bilet

Friday, August 5th, 2011

Pros: Stunning collection of information, techniques, diagrams, photos, tables, recipes, and more!
Cons: Very expensive; many of the recipes and techniques also require expensive, difficult-to-obtain, or space-hogging items or ingredients; complex techniques and recipes are not for the casual cook!
Rating: 5 out of 5

NOTE: The folks involved with Modernist Cuisine were kind enough to give me temporary online access to the set for review purposes. If I (hopefully!) end up eventually picking up a physical copy, I’ll try to come back and comment on the physical quality and characteristics of the books as well. For now, I’ll just point out that according to Amazon, this set spans nearly 2500 pages and has a shipping weight of 50 pounds! Also, since the set is so large and expensive, you’ll have to put up with a longer-than-usual review!

 

Most magazines reviewing Modernist Cuisine: The Art and Science of Cooking (by Nathan Myhrvold, Chris Young, and Maxime Bilet) will undoubtedly review it as a curiosity, as a coffee table set, or as a guide for culinary professionals and would-be professionals. I wanted to tackle it from a different direction: at what level might it be worth buying for a non-professional cooking enthusiast/hobbyist? Or would it at all?

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“The Ideal Man,” Julie Garwood

Friday, August 5th, 2011

Pros: Fun characters & story
Cons: Some aspects to the writing that pull me out of the story a bit
Rating: 4 out of 5

Review book courtesy of Penguin Group

 

Dr. Ellie Sullivan, a trauma surgeon, has just finished her residency at a major hospital. She hasn’t even figured out where she’s going next, however, before she witnesses the shooting of an FBI agent. Witnesses around this particular set of criminals have a tendency to go missing, and before long Agent Max Daniels finds evidence that Ellie is in danger. He follows her to South Carolina, where she’s visiting family for her sister’s wedding. It doesn’t take long before everything goes to hell: Bullets fly. An old classmate of Ellie’s who stalked her years ago puts in an appearance. Ellie and her sister clash over everything. And as for Max and Ellie—well, there are sparks of a different kind between them! He might not match her image of the ideal man, but somehow they just can’t stay away from each other.

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“The Snow Queen’s Shadow,” Jim C. Hines

Friday, August 5th, 2011

Pros: Gripping, emotional story of the princesses we’ve come to know and love
Cons: Make sure you’re familiar with the previous books to get the maximum emotional impact
Rating: 5 out of 5

Review book courtesy of Penguin Group

 

Queen Beatrice is dying, but Snow has a plan to save her. Unfortunately, such powerful magics are more than a little dangerous, and a shattered mirror sets off a chain of events that will alter the lives of the princesses forever. The demon it sets loose upon the world distorts the vision of those it touches, causing them to see only the worst in everything around them. Soon even best friends and spouses are set against each other, and whole kingdoms are in peril. Worst of all, the first person to fall under the demon’s spell is Snow White, and she takes a special interest in young prince Jakob.

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“Cooking for Gracie,” Keith Dixon

Wednesday, August 3rd, 2011

Pros: Lovely, engrossing memoir-with-recipes
Cons:
Rating: 5 out of 5

Review book (published 2011) provided by Random House.

 

I’m not a parent. Yet after reading Keith Dixon’s Cooking for Gracie: The Making of a Parent from Scratch, I feel as though I have at least a little of the taste of what all those insane changes to your life are like. Keith’s daughter Gracie was born five weeks early, and her unexpected early arrival threw her parents’ lives into chaos in more ways than one. The thing that Mr. Dixon kept coming back to, however, was his cooking.

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