Wednesday, August 4, 2010

Recommendations from Julie


Curse of the Spellmans by Lisa Lutz
Isabel is on the loose investigating her new neighbor and getting arrested numerous times; Ray runs over her best friend; Dad and Mom are taking many disappearances . . . what's going on? The Spellmans are a fun family to keep up with. The audiobook is also very good.

The Serialist by David Gordon
This book started out very funny--something I would recommend to anyone, but it turned into a dark, grisly crime novel only for the less squeamish reader. David Gordon does have a way with words though. Every once in awhile I'd come to a paragraph I would have to reread several times it was so good. I loved the talk of writing, writers and readers.

Let the Dead Lie by Malla Nunn
I loved this book. Malla Nunn is a great writer. All of the pre-apartheid stuff is fascinating--I had forgotten what South Africa was like at that time. The detective, Emmanual Cooper, is an interesting and complicated character. The people you meet in the book are all very different; different social strata, cops vs. crooks, different racial or ethnic group. I'm going to go back and read her first book now.