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Jen N. - Reviews

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An Accidental American
An Accidental American
Author: Alex Carr
Book Type: Paperback
  • Currently 3.2/5 Stars.
 7
Review Date: 11/7/2009


a good quick book about middle east and american relations in one family. a novel about an american french lebanese christian raised in france then moved to lebanon as a young child. she moved w/grandparents to france shortly after the american embassy bombing in the 80's. this novel takes place in three different time periods one of birth and childhood her first years in france & lebanon, as a young adult in love w/a muslim man in portugal right before the american invasion of iraq after 9/11, then last in france again as she is sent on a mission by a mysterious american gov't agent to find her old flame. it does jump around but it is not confusing - like some novels that have used this techinique. the author is very careful not to foreshadow to much so you dont know the ending or reasons for characters behavior until it fits the narrative. theres also another story in there about her relationship w/her american father. it is more spy/adventure novel w/relationships thrown in and how they complicate the mission.


All That Matters
All That Matters
Author: Stef Ann Holm
Book Type: Mass Market Paperback
  • Currently 3.8/5 Stars.
 105
Review Date: 8/21/2009


good comtemporary romance about family, big and small business, and widowhood


The Barbecue! Bible
The Barbecue! Bible
Author: Steven Raichlen
Book Type: Paperback
  • Currently 4.3/5 Stars.
 20
Review Date: 12/26/2018


The recipes are interesting but it was a let down that there are no pictures of the final products! I'm a visual person so while I can imagine what the end result might be from reading the recipe when making the recipe it can help to see what the final look should be also presentation on the plate! This recipe book has everything from alcoholic & nonalcoholic drink recipes, dessert recipes, side dishes, dips & marinades, salads and of course meat and veg main course recipes. It's just vastly disappointing that what looks like in the cover a passel of pics is not that way on the inside of the book. Also due to the way it's bound like a typical book it doesn't stay open unless you crack the spine (a small crime in my opinion).


The Blind Side: Evolution of a Game
The Blind Side: Evolution of a Game
Author: Michael Lewis
Book Type: Paperback
  • Currently 4/5 Stars.
 75
Review Date: 6/8/2010


its a great read - about a kid born to a set of parents who never learned to care for themselves and could not/would not care for their many children - this kid managed to get a lucky lotto ticket and meet a family that was willing to care for him, love him, see to it that his best interests were looked after - I enjoyed the book for the family story but its very heavy on the football strategy - I may know the pro team names but I know little of how to play let alone the strategy involved - so that part of the book was certainly educational but i could have done without it


Blue Smoke
Blue Smoke
Author: Nora Roberts
Book Type: Paperback
  • Currently 4/5 Stars.
 682
Review Date: 10/10/2009


book is much better than the tv movie - much much better
fast pace - very readable in an evening or holiday weekend
its a story about stalking and revenge and sure romance too
not normally a nora roberts fan but this was a good one


Boy Genius: Karl Rove, the Brains Behind the Remarkable Political Triumph of George W. Bush
Review Date: 8/6/2009


A book that gives you a good understanding of how the Rove machine got started and how it took Bush to the biggest job promotion.


Christmas Tales
Christmas Tales
Book Type: Hardcover
  • Currently 3/5 Stars.
 1
Review Date: 8/25/2009


a cute little book full of christmas short stories; every other page is a photo of a beautifully decorated table or mantle christmas theme


Cold Hit (Alexandra Cooper, Bk 3) (Audio CD) (Abridged)
Review Date: 4/7/2015


Story: Billionaire's estranged wife is found murdered in the water. She was murdered while out for a run, she owned an art gallery. She met her husband after winning a beauty queen contest and going to Italy to study art. The husband comes from a wealthy family who it is speculated gain its wealth from obtaining art/paintings thru nefarious means, possibly from the Nazis'. She was his third wife and was a few decades his junior. Her death also made him a thrice widower, his 2 previous wives also passed away under mysterious circumstances. Her best friend was her husbands first wife's daughter (by her first husband, who left her)that he made her abandon in order to be with him (follow that?!). Her business partner is a suspect in a bondage murder who the police were not able to prosecute due to lack of evidence. Needless to say this was a jam packed 5 cd's, it says abridged but it didn't voice that way. It was a "good book".


Comedians
Comedians
Author: Arthur Grace
Book Type: Paperback
  • Currently 3.8/5 Stars.
 3
Review Date: 8/25/2009


features some of the greatest comedians in a photo essay format - robin williams, whoopi goldberg, billy crystal, george carlin, george burns, jerry lewis, richard pryor, joan rivers, steve martin, lily tomlin etc... - its behind the scenes of comedy photos , the families, the dressing rooms, the backstage antics etc..


The Complete Job Search Organizer
The Complete Job Search Organizer
Author: Jack O'Brien
Book Type: Paperback
  • Currently 4/5 Stars.
 1
Review Date: 3/2/2010


this book is great for those about to enter the job force - college grad - there is a focus on what do you want to do with your life type questions - little side notes about famous persons and their education or job path - answers alot of questions for those unsure for where to start their search


Container Decorator: Boxes, Baskets, Pots, and Pails-25 Easy Transformations (The Interior Focus Series)
Review Date: 8/25/2009


how to make containers or how to decorate them with seashells, stamping, tin punching, paint, cloth, wire, string and chains - easy to adapt the how-to with a design that fitted my decor


Dark Dreams: Sexual Violence, Homicide and the Criminal Mind
Review Date: 12/13/2009


series of short true stories of violence written from an behaviorial investigators point of view - opens your eyes to how little resources the police have and how because of those few resources it sometimes means there are more victims - very disturbing


The Darwin Awards: Evolution in Action
The Darwin Awards: Evolution in Action
Author: Wendy Northcutt
Book Type: Hardcover
  • Currently 3.8/5 Stars.
 58
Review Date: 10/22/2009


short stories, many only a few paragraphs long that tell the true stories of how human stupidity has killed/harmed many a person in a darwinian fashion. it's very funny not gruesome at all.


Dead Ringer (Audio CD) (Abridged)
Dead Ringer (Audio CD) (Abridged)
Author: Lisa Scottoline
Book Type: Audio CD
  • Currently 4/5 Stars.
 15
Review Date: 7/29/2016


This book is part of a series, though it can be read by itself without feeling as if you need to go to the other books. The narrator Kate Burton does an excellent job, as always. The change in voices is not distracting or annoying, but pleasant and distinctive. As to the story I wasn't a huge fan, I guess due to the good quality of the author's other books were so good I expected more from this one. As to the story.... The owner of a law firm, has issues with her credit cards, wardrobe, colleagues thinking she was somewhere she wasn't, that she acted in a less than professional manner, etc... Leads her to discover her twin is trying to take her identity. The mayhem ensues - a little to unbelievable (I know, I know its fiction, its a story, not real life, but...)that those around the lead character are a little to susceptible to my way of thinking or are also not very observant of their surroundings. Soon all is tied up in a neat little bow and the devious, rotten, wayward, devil of a sister is forgiven. Ugghhh


Dog Man (Captain Underpants: Dog Man #1)
Dog Man (Captain Underpants: Dog Man #1)
Author: Dav Pilkey
Book Type: Hardcover
  • Currently 4.1/5 Stars.
 10
Review Date: 11/19/2017


My 5yo nephew is in love with this series. He is just learning to read and this is above his reading level but he is still in love. The book tells the story of a police man and his police dog who are involved in a bomb explosion and the medics place the dogs head on the police mans body so both can live. Dog man then fights evil cats like Petey. Trust me the book and story is not gruesome. Don't use your adult imagination for the story use a small child's who is writing and drawing his own comic book. Small boys love this series. My other nephew who is 9 is also in love with this series.


Final Appeal (Audio CD) (Abridged)
Final Appeal (Audio CD) (Abridged)
Author: Lisa Scottoline, Kate Burton (Narrator)
Book Type: Audio CD
  • Currently 3.9/5 Stars.
 38
Review Date: 7/29/2016


This not part of a series, this is a stand alone book.
It's a fast paced story about a single mother who is re-entering the working environment. She takes a job with a Federal Appeals Court Judge which should allow time for her to spend with her daughter but soon the situation devolves into crime and intrigue. The judge who hired her commits suicide but she doubts that conclusion, his wife has just won a contest for the Senate, and the three law clerks are all too ambitious and naïve for there own good. Along the way she attempts to get to know the man (judge) outside of his office, who was he, what he meant to others, what he had hidden from those close to him - is all very different from the image that is portrayed to his subordinates and colleagues. She is also trying to build a relationship with her mother after many years of discord and a father who left the family when she was a child - she wants better for her daughter (this side of the story is a good distraction but it also adds to the intrigue of the case). The narrator Kate Burton does an excellent job conveying the voices without it being distracting or jarring.


Finding Your Mojo
Finding Your Mojo
Author: Stephanie Bond
Book Type: Paperback
  • Currently 3.8/5 Stars.
 100
Review Date: 10/1/2009
Helpful Score: 1


this book is part of series - i was a little lost in the beginning as the author does not establish the characters - the series does not have the same flow as the "body mover" series its not as funny or suspenseful - but its still a good read

its about a lawyer in the witness protection program after her parents witnessed crimes by their employer - shes been on the run from her old life for decades and longs for connections to her past - especially her high school boyfriend - who just happens to be the police chief in the new town she has just arrived (moved) in - the person she is hiding from is still searching for her family so she must continue the charade and not show her true self to the police chief while they are both suddenly witnesses to a series of crimes they may or may not be connected to her old self


Foul Play
Foul Play
Author: Janet Evanovich
Book Type: Mass Market Paperback
  • Currently 3.8/5 Stars.
 429
Review Date: 8/26/2009


u cannot go wrong with evanovich - hysterical w/a little crime thrown in - great beach read - be warned if u read in public you will have to explain to strangers why you are doubled over laughing


Girl Waits with Gun (Kopp Sisters, Bk 1)
Girl Waits with Gun (Kopp Sisters, Bk 1)
Author: Amy Stewart
Book Type: Paperback
  • Currently 3.5/5 Stars.
 23
Review Date: 6/20/2017


If you enjoy Jacqueline Winspear books, then this series is also your jam.

Female protagonists, female detective, set in early 1900's but in America vs Winspear series set in England.

Highly recommend, if you are also into historical novels how things were when, kinda thing.
Instead of some books that take modern morals and inplant them into historical novels in order to shame those of the past.


He Was Her Man
He Was Her Man
Author: Sarah Shankman
Book Type: Paperback
  • Currently 3.6/5 Stars.
 13
Review Date: 9/17/2009


a grown southern evanovich type novel - its good a laugh
its about sam adams (a female not the beer) who breaks it off with cheating boyfriend and travels w/her friend to another friends engagement party on the hopes that the impending marriage will be a few laughs at her friends expense as she doesnt care so much for this person - instead she encounters a mystery a kidnapped/missing groom and con men and women - it looks to be part of a series but it was easy to follow the relationships - looking foward to reading other books by shankman


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