Family Album

Family Album, by Penelope Lively; Viking Adult Publishing, 2009

Reviewed by Sarah Fairbank

Penelope Lively's Family Album features a large, lively family with some secrets. The main character wants a blissful childhood for her six children--a real "old fashioned" family life. But there are cracks in the facade. The father is distant, and the mother has inexplicable emotional outbursts. All is not well. The now-grown children have tried their best to maintain the ''blissful" illusion--each at a cost--with lingering effects on their adult lives. I found this novel less convincing/compelling than many others the author has written. But the book's family was definitely amusing; with dysfunctional, interesting characters. The Sunday Philosophy Club, by Alexander McCall Smith, features Isabel Dalhousie, an editor for a philosophical magazine. Isabel writes long passages about ethics, death and suicide. There are four other fun characters, including a housekeeper, fox, a girlfriend/niece and a young man she has the hots for. I found the nonfiction book Derek Jarmen's Garden to be very beautiful and moving. This is the story of a young filmmaker/artist with AIDS who purchases a fisherman's cottage in Dungeness, Kent, in England--a location that has the least rainfall and the longest growing season in Britain. This journal is full of plant choices, garden images, and moving stories. It is a joy to read and learn from.

Worst Case

Worst Case, by James Patterson; Grand Central Publishing, 2010

Reviewed by Tina Lakenes

Author Patterson chooses an unlikely character as his serial killer in Worst Case: Francis X. Mooney, a 'do-gooder' lawyer who believes in changing the world for the better. He believes in rescuing people from poverty, donating to humanitarian causes, and increasing social equality. Mooney kidnaps wealthy young adults, then kills them when they are not socially aware. Detective Bennet teams up with FBI agent Emily Parker--an 'abduction specialist' to catch the killer. Jen Lancaster, author of Such a Pretty Face, her personal experiences in weight loss in with a fictional character. Jen's main character has tried many different directions--Jenny Craig, Weight Watchers, surgery and hiring personal trainers. Does she finally find a comfortable 'success'? Yes. At what cost? This book covers a plethora of weight loss and health issues, and is not for the faint of heart. The Search by Nora Roberts is an intriguing yarn about a woman ("Fiona") who is the 'escaped' near-victim of a serial killer. That situation may be harrowing enough, but Fiona is now targeted by another serial killer who is taking revenge for the capture of the original killer.

Night Fall

Night Fall, by Nelson DeMille; Grand Central Publishing, 2007

Reviewed by H. Payson

Now here is a book that's well worth reading. In my opinion, Night Fall is DeMille's best, from beginning to end--and what a satisfying ending it has. Conspiracy theorists will love it. The book's premise is controversial, concerning an investigation of the July 1996 crash of flight TWA 800, a Boeing 747 bound for Paris which exploded off the Atlantic coast of Long Island, killing all 230 passengers and crew members. There are 200 eyewitnesses who swear they saw a missile lift into the clear night sky and bring down the airplane, a charge dismissed by the CIA as an optical illusion. DeMille's fictional detective tracks down the facts and the witnesses, culminating in a climax that is truly thought provoking. For a change of pace, try Dear Money, by Martha McPhee. Every author or wannabe writer needs to read this book. It's not often you can get a dual perspective from a single character. Juli Zeh's murky In Free Fall, is a wonderful, scientific murder yarn, set in Eastern Europe is a very different detective story. Highly recommended.