Book: Deja Dead

 Book: Deja Dead

Author: Kathy Reichs

Pages:560

This is my 83rd read for the year

This is the story of Temperance Brennan.  She is a forensic anthropologist who has recently moved to Quebec after her marriage ended.  A dismembered femal corpse is found in a trash bag, and Temperance starts relating this find to a few past cases in the last few years.  She sees a pattern, but the police department think she is wrong.  She takes it on herself to find the killer before he attacks someone else.

This book was okay.  I was interested in trying it because I did like the show "Bones" which this book series is based on. However - the book isn't like the show.  That isn't good or bad - it just is.  I actually found the book very dry.  It was a long book that was overly wordy.  I love a good murder mystery book (I am a big Patricia Cornwell fan), but Reichs book just didn't do it for me.  I struggled with this book for over 2 weeks, before finally finishing it.  

I know this was her first one.  Maybe I should try another in the future?  We shall see.  The writing just wasn't good.  Too much overly describing the mundane.

Stars: 3

2022 Challenge: A Book Part Of A Series: Castle In The Air

 Book: Castle In The Air

Author: Dianne Wynne Jones

Pages: 400

This is my 82nd read for the year

This is the story of Abdullah.  Abdullah is a carpet salesman who owns a modest booth in the desert.  One day, a stranger comes by and sells him a magic carpet.  Abdullah doesn't know what to make of it, but finds that when he falls asleep on the carpet he ends up in the courtyard of a beautiful princess.  Abdullah - thinking it is a dream - falls asleep each night on the carpet hoping to return to Flower-in-the-Night until one day, a djinn kidnapps her and Abdullah realizes it wasn't a dream after all.  Thus starts an adveture to save the princess.  A soldier, cats, a genie, and a castle help Abdullah find Flower-in-the-Night on an adventure he could never have imagined.

This is the second book in the Howl's Moving Castle series, and it was just as good as the first.  We have the Folio Society edition, and the artwork is incredible.  The story flows nicely, and is well written.  Howl and Sophie make an appearance at the end of the book, and for awhile I thought this was more of a stand alone book than a sequel.  And I still feel that way - while Howl and Sophie tie Howl's Moving Castle into this book in the end, it truly isn't about them.

A good book and I am looking forward to reading the third.

Stars: 4.5

Book: The Hike

 Book: The Hike

Author: Susi Holliday

Pages: 266

This is my 81st read for the year

This is the story of 2 couples who take a hiking trip to Switzerland.  They wanted a chance to reconnect after some estrangement between all of them - even husband and wife.  As they hike, tensions arise and tragedy strikes.  A trecherous trip back down the mountain to talk to the police leads to more questions than answers and suspicions arise.  Those who survived the hike back down the mountain aren't telling the whole story.

This book was fine.  I really didn't like any of the characters.  All of them were terrible people.  The author did another thing that I loathe about books - kept the reader in the dark for no reason to try to propel the story forward.  She gave snippets of "troubles" and "reasons" that things were happening before the hike even started, but it just left me wanting more.  When I got to the ending I really didn't even care what was happening, and it wasn't surprising at all which direction it took.

Eh - it was a Prime First Reads, and I should have stopped reading it.  But it is a short book, so I pushed through hoping it would get better.  Sadly - it didn't.

Stars: 2

Book: The Long Walk

 Book: The Long Walk

Author: Stephen King

Pages: 319

This is my 80th read for the year

This is the story of Ray Garraty.  He and 99 other young men are about to start an annual stamina test called "The Long Walk".  The boys cannot go slower than 4 miles and hour and cannot stop for any reason - not even to sleep.  If they stop, they get a warning.  3 warnings and they are shot on the spot.  The winner - and there can only be one - gets whatever he wants for the rest of his life.  There is no finish line - it is whomever is the last one standing.  

This book was just okay.  I honestly do not understand the 5 star reviews, but to each their own.  I am a huge King fan, but this one was a miss for me.  It was a lot of rambling and then it just.....ended.  All this build up - 300 pages of these young men walking and nothing really getting explained as to WHY they chose to participate - just so I could see who the winner was AND what he was going to claim for his prize.  Maybe see into the future a bit on how the walk affected our main character, etc.  Kind of like Hunger Games.  Where the games was just the beginning.  That was not true in this book.  The last page was such a let down.  

This is a King I would skip.

Stars: 3

Book: Zak George's Dog Training Revolution

 Book: Zak George's Dog Training Revolution

Author: Zak George

Pages: 240

This is my 79th read for the year

Zak George is a dog trainer with a newer approach to a happy dog.  His book covers the basics of dog training from the time you bring home your puppy - and even before as you decide what breed might be the best fit for your family.  His technique of positive reinforcement and training your dog from the inside out is a newer approach to the training world.  

This was a great book.  We have had a dog before, but it has been 11 years since we had a puppy.  My husband always had dogs growing up, and the techniques that he used and we used with our first dog are different than the newer approaches.  Science and research is starting to show that positive based training from the inside out to get the behaviors out of your dog is a much more effective, long term way to train your dog to fit your family.  I learned a lot in this book and from watching many of his videos that made me decide this was the approach we wanted to take with our new puppy.  Great advice in this book.

Stars: 4.5

Book: Bernedoodle: A Head To Tail Guide

 Book: Bernedoodle: A Head To Tail Guide

Author: Sherry Rupke

Pages: 192

This is my6 78th read for the year

A Bernedoodle guide written by the person who started the breed in the United States.  Sherry gives an indepth look on the history of the combination of this breed, what it means to have a doodle, and how to care for them successfully.  She talks you through deciding if this breed is right for you through picking your breeder, your vet, your puppy, your trainer, and beyond.  

This is a well written book.  Of the two I read about Bernedoodles, this was my favorite.  She has clear language and I learned a lot about the breed and what it is going to mean to care for a Bernedoodle.  It gave me some good insight while we wait for our puppy.

Stars: 4.5

Book: The Complete Guide To Bernedoodles

 Book: The Complete Guide To Bernedoodles

Author: David Anderson

Pages: 140

This is my 77th read of the year

This is a guide book for the care of Bernedoodle dogs.  The author interviewed the top Bernedoodle breeders to give the reader tips and tricks to raising these dogs.

As you can imagine - we picked this one up because we are getting a Bernedoodle puppy.  I thought this books was pretty great.  It has a wealth of information about the breed, training, grooming, and what it means to have this breed of dog.  We are not new to Doodle dogs, but this is our first doodle mixed with a Bernese Mountain Dog, so we were grateful for some tip and tricks.

Stars: 4.5