October: Scary Good Books

Don’t Let’s Go To the Dogs Tonight by Alexandra Fuller
Alexandra actually lives how we all dream of as children – little or no parental supervision in a wild country filled with animals and open spaces to explore. If even half of it is true she’s lucky to have lived through it. ♥

Faith by Jennifer Haigh
No matter what I write it doesn’t do justice to the story. So, the basics -- Art is a popular pastor and finds himself in the middle of some unsavory accusations. Faith is a sharply-written book about family and how far loyalty goes. ♥

The Abbey by Chris Culver
Ash Rashid is almost ready to retire, when his niece is killed and he’s forced to look at a case that doesn’t stack up.

The Buddha in the Attic by Julie Otsuka
Every once in a while there comes along a book written in a way that is so fresh and new that describing it will not only NOT do it justice, but sound so different and weird as to actually drive potential readers away. So…know this is a wonderful book with the force of poetry and a story that is steeped in culture, sadness, lightness, and hope. ♥♥♥

The Descendants by Kaui Hart Hemmm
Full disclosure: I read that this was a soon-to-be-released motion picture with George Clooney so I simply had to read it. Set in Hawaii, the King family, descendants of Hawaiian royalty are deciding to sell a huge chunk of the islands. Unfortunately Matthew King’s wife Joanie, lies in a coma after a boat-racing accident. ♥♥♥

Unsaid by Neil Abramson
During Helena’s career as a vet, she had escorted thousands of animals to the other side. But newly dead, she’s not doing so well and is basically haunting her husband. She not only leaves him a houseful of animals, but a not-so-loving mysterious life as an animal researcher. Enter Cindy-- a ‘signing’ chimpanzee who is scheduled for a research experiment that will undoubtedly kill her. Quite possibly the best book of the year. ♥♥♥♥

When the Emperor Was Divine by Julie Otsuka
Julie Otsuka’s debut novel (2003) is about the Japanese internment camps. See full glowing review about her style above. ♥♥♥

White Heat by M.J. McGrath
Set in the Arctic, White Heat is the story of half Inuit and half outsider, Edie Kiglatuk – who makes her living as a guide. When a man is shot and killed on one of her "authentic" adventures she is suspicious of the events and tries to discover what actually happened. ♥

HOT September. HOT Books.

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
Holy cow this trilogy is so good it’ll be a movie soon! Panem is the Capitol of twelve districts who long ago were very bad and tried to overthrow said Capitol. So to keep order, each year every district must send one boy and one girl between the ages of twelve and eighteen to participate in the annual Hunger Games. No, it’s not about how many hot dogs you can stuff in your starving little mouth, but a fight to the death on live TV. And we thought our reality TV was cut-throat! Sixteen-year-old Katniss Everdeen volunteers to represent her district in the Games to save her little sister. Read this book first. ♥♥♥♥♥

Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins (second: Hunger Games Trilogy)
Thanks goodness for wireless delivery via Kindle. Read this book next. ♥♥♥♥♥

Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins (third: Hunger Games Trilogy)
Ditto above at midnight last week. Read this book last. ♥♥♥♥♥