Almost Moon by Alice Sebold

When I read "The Lovely Bones," I couldn't put it down. That book hooked me from Page 1, and it was a page-turner right until the end. When I saw this book, by the same author, I had such high hopes. This book was an enormous disappointment. I couldn't even finish it, and I very rarely put a book down without finishing it.

It's the story of a woman who goes to visit her elderly mother, who lives alone. Mom has dementia and is very difficult to deal with. So she kills her. Yes, that's how it starts. Then she does a few random, unconnected things that really were never explained or developed. It's like a bizarre list of tasks that someone does and you don't know why, nor do you care. I finally just gave up. Maybe she tied it all together somehow, but I was more than 100 pages into it and still hadn't even figured out why the mom was killed let alone why everything else happened. And, when there's no point or no emotion behind the story, it's just too hard to stay motivated.

Two thumbs down.

Cross by James Patterson

One of the things I love about James Pattersons' books is the short chapters. They're usually 3-4 pages long, which makes it ideal for traveling or for reading on the beach.

This book is a continuation of the Alex Cross series. Alex is a smart detective in Washington, DC. He's raising three children without a partner. Two of the children are without their mother because she was murdered years ago. This story is about who makes claim to that murder and what Alex does as a result.

I love all of these books, and this one was a great read as well. Highly recommended summertime book.

Perfect Match by Jodi Picoult

My love affair with Jodi Picoult continues. This is the story about a family with a mom, dad, and a 5-year-old son. The mom is an assistant district attorney, specializing in prosecuting child molesters.

She discovers her son has been molested.

That's how the book begins. The real story is who molested him and what happens as a result. The book has a couple of HUGE surprises in it, things I never saw coming. It was a quick read and a book that I did not want to put down.

The Glass Castle by Jeanette Walls

What a story. Jeanette Walls spent many years writing for such things as MSNBC.com and magazines. She's got a wonderful style of writing, and I read her column for years without knowing that she had written a book.

"The Glass Castle" is her life story, and oh, boy, what a story it is. It begins with her in a limo, leaving her Park Avenue apartment to head to a party. As they're stopped at a stop light, she looks out the window and sees a homeless woman digging in a dumpster. It's her mother.

This story is about how her parents raised Jeanette and her siblings, with virtually no money and no ambition. It's at the same time heart breaking and hopeful, showing that no matter how bad things are, there's always a way to make your life better if you have that desire.

I highly recommend this book. It's one you won't be able to put down.

Sundays at Tiffany's by James Patterson

Wonderful, wonderful story. The cover says, "What if your imaginary friend from childhood was your one true love?" That's really the whole story. Told from both the perspective of the child/woman and of the imaginary friend, the story unfolds in a beautiful, believable way. As with all of Patterson's books, the chapters are only a few pages, so this makes the book easy to get through in an afternoon.

I really liked the story and liked where he went with it. As much gore and violence as Patterson usually does (and I love that as well!), I do like it when he steps into more heartfelt fiction, like this. A great book for a cold winter afternoon.... or to throw in for some easy beach reading. Loved it.

Vanishing Acts by Jodi Picoult

Another great story by Jodi Picoult. This book is about a daughter and father's adult relationship which is tested to its core when the father is arrested for kidnapping the daughter 27 years ago.

The arrest, trial, and outcome are complicated by the fact that the daughter insists that her fiance' act as her father's defense attorney, and their best friend is writing a story about the entire ordeal for the local paper.

The story is compelling and keeps you guessing. In typical Picoult fashion, she has a different "voice" for each chapter, meaning one chapter is "told" by the daughter, the next by the father, the next by the fiance', etc. I really enjoy this writing style, as it gives the reader an opportunity to really step into the shoes of different characters and see why they do what they do.

Great book. Another home run by Jodi Picoult.

Eclipse by Stephanie Meyer

After loving the first two books of the "Twilight" series, I couldn't wait to start this one, "Eclipse." It took me more than three months to finish this book. I just couldn't get into it. I couldn't figure out why. It's the same characters, same type of story, so why didn't I like it?

I think it's because of the movie.

When I read the first two books, I used my imagination about the characters. They were great stories. Then, as I was starting this book, I saw the movie based on the first book. The movie was awful, and it reminded me that these were teenagers I was reading about. Suddenly the whole thing seemed so juvenile. Now I just can't get into it the way I did before, and that really makes me sad. I'll probably go ahead and read the fourth book just to finish the series, but I'll wait a while.

So, my advice is that if you love these books, stay away from the movie. Stick to your imagination - it's much better than the big screen!