Veronica Mars: The Thousand Dollar Tan Line by Rob Thomas and Jennifer Graham

Well yes, I was quite late coming to the Veronica Mars party. Embarrassingly late, in fact. The very passion that prompted fans to fully fund the Kickstarter for the film in record time was enough to convince me my pop culture education was lacking, though.

And so I binged it. BINGED!

And then watched the movie. And then, after all of that, bought the first book with bday money :)

After her reunion, Veronica decides to pass on the NYC lawyer gig and stick around Neptune as a PI. Cases have been slim, but when a college coed goes missing during spring break and the sheriff blows it off, the Chamber of Commerce steps in requesting Mars Investigations's assistance. With Keith still out convalescing, that means Veronica's on the case. And when a second girl disappears, Veronica makes a surprising discovery. 

How can you not love a Veronica Mars book if you love the show, right? You kind of can't. And all of the nods to the show are there. All of the characters we know and love are here. There are little references back to old cases. There's even some revisits to unresolved little story lines.

My only complaint is minor and it's  pet peeve of mine: the recaps. Every time a character is introduced they come with their backstory from the show. It felt a little like when I was a kid and every Babysitters Club book had the same catch-you-up-to-speed how-the-BSC-was-founded info dump. Fortunately these little recaps were pretty small. They just felt a bit unnecessary all things considered.

The Thousand Dollar Tan Line is definitely a plot worthy of Veronica's investigative skills. I'd heard it was originally to be the plot of the movie, but I think it worked out better this way (with the movie what it was and with this being the first book). And I'm SUPER glad that the books are giving us more Neptune and more Veronica! Of course the second book is due out very shortly here and I've got plans to dive in pretty immediately now.

Rating: 4/5

(Definitely recommended for fans, not recommended as a starting point if you missed the show.)

City of Liars and Thieves by Eve Karlin + a Giveaway

Hi, everyone! Today I'm a stop on the TLC book tour for Eve Karlin's City of Liars and Thieves. There is a tour wide giveaway on this one, so be sure to read through to the end to enter.

On a cold and snowy night, young Elma Sands set off supposedly to wed her sweetheart. But when he returned home alone, claiming they'd not had plans that evening, Elma's cousin, Caty, becomes concerned. As days pass with no sign of Elma, some claim she may have run off or even tried to kill herself. But Caty knows her cousin would do neither of those things. No, Caty fears something much more sinister. 

And twelve days later her fears would prove to be correct.

I was immediately intrigued by the fact that this book is based on an actual case. As the author outlines on her website, it's said to be "the first recorded murder trial in US history..." and of course it also involves two of the most famous personalities of the time: Alexander Hamilton and Aaron Burr. The case is referred to as the Manhattan Well Murder. There are various pieces about it online, but I found this one particularly interesting as the famed well is still in existence. It's a macabre tourist attraction, that's for sure.

Eve Karlin's spin on the historic murder (one I'd not heard of before) is an intriguing read. The story unfolds via Caty's perspective, making the tale both suspenseful and emotional. Caty's fear, remorse, and frustration can be felt intensely throughout the tale. The theory set forth by the author in her imagining of the murder isn't without merit and Karlin does a great job weaving together her fictional accounts with actual historical ones. As an added bonus, Karlin's afterword does outlines various historical references and the fates of many of the real life players in the case. It's a quite interesting read (as is the book for that matter).

I would have liked for certain aspects of City of Liars and Thieves to have been further fleshed out. The time leading up to the murder moves by quite quickly and a little more time and attention to the characters' lives and motivations would have been welcome. Even without that, though, the book proves to be a pretty darn good read.

Rating: 3.5/4

To see more stops on the tour be sure to check out the official TLC tour page here. For more on Eve and her work, you can find her on the web here. You can also like her on Facebook.

And now for the giveaway.

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Island Fog by John Vanderslice

Good morning, everyone! Today I'm a stop on the TLC book tour for John Vanderslice's short story collection, Fog Island.

John Vanderslice's collection features eleven tales centered around the island of Nantucket and the people who live there. The first half are historical, the rest are set present day (more or less) and all of them excel in giving the reader a strong sense of the island and its residents.

From early whalers and their widows, Quakers, Congregationlists, and Native Americans to a widowed plumber, an expectant father, and more, Vanderslice offers up snapshots of life through the eyes of a variety of Nantucketers. Stories like "On Cherry Street" and "Morning Meal" offer up nice parallels - in the former, a wife resigns herself to widowhood and finds that she's maybe not as stricken about it as she should be. In the latter tale, however, a man reexamines and possibly refuses to accept the realities of his own widowhood.

I liked some stories more than others - "Guilty Look" was a personal favorite - but all of them are strongly character driven. Even the island itself becomes a character of a sort as the overall theme and connection between each piece.

Island Fog feels a bit voyeuristic in its offerings (like peeking through a neighbor's window or reading someone's diary). It's also a thought-provoking read, especially in the case of stories like "King Philips War." With the collection, Vanderslice proves he is a strong writer with a talent for connecting his readers to his characters.

To see more stops on the tour be sure to check out the official TLC tour page here.

Top Ten Tuesday: Books I Meant to Read in 2014

I've decided to jump on board with Top Ten Tuesday, hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. This week the topic is: 2014 titles I meant to get to but didn't.

A Fine Summer's Day by Charles Todd

War is on the horizon but for Ian Rutledge of Scotland Yard it's business as usual. Almost. The Inspector has just proposed and is experiencing the early days of wedding parties and planning in addition to his work for the Yard. 

Rutledge is called to investigate a number of odd cases - all of them in different villages throughout England and none of them seemingly connected. Or at least not at first. In each case a man has died under mysterious circumstances. The men vary in age and background but they all have one thing in common: it seems each death can be blamed on a laudanum laced glass of milk. In spite of his superior's opinion, Rutledge is set on discovering the connection between these cases, certain that once he finds it he'll be able to solve them all. But pressure for swift closure and growing concern over his family obligations cause Rutledge to doubt his chosen path.  

I loved this book! And for more than one reason. The primary reason is that it serves as something of a fresh start for readers like me who haven't been with the series from the very beginning. A Fine Summer's Day takes readers back to the start of WWI and a Rutledge so far free of the scars of that battle. (Undoubtedly a welcome look back to this early Rutledge for fans of the series as well!)

This Rutledge is still introspective, but his concerns here are with regards to his fiancé, his future family, and his obligations towards his sister. He finds himself becoming concerned that policing - a job that is causing him to be away quite a bit of late - might have been a selfish choice. His frustrations lie in being unable to be there for his sister (who is still struggling with the death of their parents) and with his boss who is so unimaginative (as one character puts it) that he seemingly can't see what Rutledge sees in his cases. War is on the midst but still so far beyond Rutledge's reality that it hasn't yet really dawned on him to be a concern at all. 

My second reason for loving this book is the care and attention to detail - something I've noticed in each of the Charles Todd titles I've read so far. Characters are incredibly well drawn, the plot is tight and complex, and the setting is well established and supported by both grand and subtle elements alike. With A Fine Summer's Day, the authors succeed fully in immersing the reader in pre-WWI England and in Ian Rutledge's early life. 

If you're looking to start a new series and can't get enough of WWI-era England, I suggest snatching this one up ASAP!

As a bonus, if you're in the Denver area the mother and son team that are Charles Todd will be at the Colfax Avenue Tattered Cover this Wednesday, January 14! Event dets can be found here. 

New Releases 1/13/15

Some of the new titles hitting shelves this week are:

The Devil You Know by Elisabeth de Mariaffi

An Appetite for Violets by Martine Bailey

The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins

The Ice Queen by Nele Neuhaus

The Just City by Jo Walton

The Deep by Nick Cutter

Cold Cold Heart by Tami Hoag

The Magician's Lie by Greer Macallister

Gretel and the Case of the Missing Frog Prints by P. J. Brackston

The Last American Vampire by Seth Grahame-Smith

In Some Other World Maybe by Shari Goldhagen

The Unquiet Dead by Ausma Zahanhet Khan

Near Enemy by Adam Sternbergh

Unbreakable by W. C. Bauers

The Providence of Fire by Brian Stavely

Saint Odd by Dean Koontz

Bonita Avenue by Peter Buwalda

Amnesia by Peter Carey

The Curse of the House of Foskett by M. R. C. Kasasian

West of Sunset by Stuart O'Nan

Done in One by Grant Jerkins

Wild Cards IV: Aces Abroad ed by George R. R. Martin (new edition)

Conspiracy of Us by Maggie Hall

New on DVD:
Gone Girl
Jessabelle
A Walk Among the Tombstones
Men, Women & Children
Young Ones

New reviews at Bookbitch.com:
I Hunt Killers by Barry Lyga
Game by Barry Lyga

Bred to Kill by Franck Thilliez + a Giveaway

So you might recall that last week I reviewed a little book called Syndrome E. And I was totally blown away by it. Well, this week marks the release of the follow up title, Bred to Kill, and thanks to the publisher I'm able to offer up a copy of that new release to one of you!

In the year since their investigation of the mysterious Syndrome E, Sharko and Hennebelle have dealt with some huge emotional blows. Shortly after coming together, they were separated by a tragedy neither of them will likely ever overcome. Sharko has taken a voluntary demotion, which has placed him back on the streets. His latest case involves a grad student found dead at a primate research facility. The only witness - and suspect - is a chimp trapped in the pen with the dead body. Before Sharko can solve the murder, though, it becomes clear that he'll have to delve into the mystery of the student's research as well. And it's precisely this that brings Sharko and Hennebelle together once again.

At one point Franck tells Lucie that they are both cursed and when Syndrome E ended it surely seemed that way. The beginning of Bred to Kill picks up immediately after and explains what's happened before jumping ahead one year. Readers new to Thilliez can read on without fear, you can certainly start Bred to Kill without having read Syndrome E.

Once again, Thilliez presents a weird and fascinating premise - evolution and violence in this case - and again backs up the plot with enough science based theory to make the story seem believable. (I certainly don't have the chops to confirm or disprove it.) It makes for a meaty thriller, the kind you can sink your teeth into and really savor!

Thilliez isn't afraid of gore or violence - I probably should have pointed that out in my coverage of Syndrome E - so if any of you are feint of heart and took a chance with it, ending up grossed out as a result, I do apologize. For any of you who don't mind dark, twisty, and bloody I highly recommend both books!

This author is a bona fide new favorite of mine. I hope it doesn't take another two+ years for another of his titles to be translated and released Stateside. But I'll be waiting patiently even if that does turn out to be the case.

Rating: 5/5

And now for the giveaway: to enter, simply fill out the Rafflecopter below before Monday, January 26. (Open US/Canada only and no PO boxes, please.)

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