Jane Austen's Charlotte

Jane Austen's Charlotte, Julia Barrett, 2000, M. Evans & Co., Genre: Fiction. 240 pages. Finished

3/16/14.

LesOpinion: When Jane Austin died in 1817, she left behind a scrap of a novel, tentatively titled Sanditon. Fast forward to the 20th century where writer and scholar, Julia Barrett, gets her hands on it, finishes it off in a fashion that would make the esteemed Austen proud, and publishes it under the title, Charlotte.

The story of an unknown Sussex seashore town in England's post-Napoleonic era trying to strike it rich as the Next Big Thing to hit fashionable society, Charlotte is classic Austen in its skewering of social climbers, posers, and dilettantes. It's also classic Austen in that it isn't written for the contemporary reader, making it a bit of a slog, language-wise.

Circumstances under which I recommend this book: You like Jane Austen and think there's really nothing better than settling down with one of her books.

Nevada Barr's Anna Pigeon Series

High Country, Nevada Barr, 2004, GP Putnam's Sons, Genre: Mystery. 323 pages. Finished 2/6/14.

Hard Truth, Nevada Barr, 2005, GP Putnam's Sons, Genre: Mystery. 324 pages. Finished 2/8/14.

Blood Lure, Nevada Barr, 2001, GP Putnam's Sons, Genre: Mystery. 320 pages. Finished 2/12/14.

Hunting Season, Nevada Barr, 2002, GP Putnam's Sons, Genre: Mystery. 322 pages. Finished 2/16/14.

Flashback, Nevada Barr, 2003, GP Putnam's Sons, Genre: Mystery. 387 pages. Finished 2/21/14.

Winter Study, Nevada Barr, 2008, GP Putnam's Sons, Genre: Mystery. 370 pages. Finished 2/25/14.

The Rope, Nevada Barr, 2011, Minotaur Books, Genre: Mystery. 357 pages. Finished 3/2/14.

LesOpinion: Nevada Barr's outdoorsy heroine, Anna Pigeon, is a ranger for the National Park Service. Like most popular sleuths in serial mystery novels, she finds herself in a new and frightening position with each new posting with the NPS. The books are well-written, fast-paced, and have the kind of main female character I fall for: she's smart, physically strong, unapologetically aging, and (best of all) unafraid to hit back.

Bonus points: I read these novels in random order and never felt lost, so adept was Barr at making each story stand on its own without relying on the previous novels.

Circumstances under which I recommend these books: You are not backpacking or otherwise in a wild and lonely place where the stories of backwoods assailants might creep you out. Read them safely at home. Then brush up on your self defense skills before you hit the back country.

The Sense of an Ending

The Sense of an Ending, Julian Barnes, 2011, Knopf, Genre: Literary fiction. 163 pages. Finished

2/2/14.

LesOpinion: A short book telling a small story about big things, The Sense of an Ending is a slowly unfolding mystery and a meditation on memory, loss, and the life we think we're living. British schoolboys, jealousy, and the prisons we create for ourselves all come together to create a mournful tale best read on a rainy February day.

The Somnambulist

The Somnambulist, Jonathan Barnes, 2007, HarperCollins, Genre: Mystery. 353 pages. Finished

2/1/14.

LesOpinion: I really wanted to like this debut novel. It's literate, amusing in its cleverness and detail, and ambitious in its scope. But it's also all over the place, lacks character development, and can't decide what it wants to be when it grows up. The post-Victorian London created by Jonathan Barnes is a dark, foggy, ugly place filled with miscreants, murderers, and drug addicts. There are bearded ladies, albinos, and giants. Also, utopians, a human fly, and S.T. Coleridge as a dripping zombie. If you enjoy genres that include fantasy, steampunk, or Victorian mystery, this might be for you. If not, give it a pass.

The Accident

The Accident, Linwood Barclay, 2011, Bantam Books, Genre: Suspense. 386 pages. Finished 1/25/14.

LesOpinion: A beloved wife and mother causes her own death in a drunk driving accident, taking two other motorists out with her. Her husband spends the next few months flailing around in his grief and disbelief, bumping up against the seamy underbelly (is there any other kind?) of his suburban Connecticut community.

This delicious domestic thriller by an adept writer restores my faith that good writers get published, too. Twists, turns, heartbreak. Wish there were more Barclay on the shelf.

Damn You, Baldacci!

The Mighty Johns, Edited by Otto Penzler, 2002, New Millennium Press. Genre: Collected short

fiction. 316 pages. Finished 1/22/14.

LesOpinion: Just when I thought I was freed from bad Baldacci, this short story collection appeared on the shelves of the S. White Dickinson. Alas, 60 pages of the most hellish and poorly edited Baldacci, yet. The title story in this collection is a Baldacci novella that is the only reason any library has this book on its shelves. Unfortunately, the Baldacci story is the worst of the lot. The real gems are the (all football-themed [!?]) mysteries by some of the best contemporary suspense writers working: Lawrence Block, Dennis Lehane, Brad Meltzer, Anne Perry. Every single other one of these stories deals an embarrassing blow to Baldacci's hackneyed prose.

The Library, er, The Baldacci Quest

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The Innocent, David Baldacci, 2012, Grand Central Publishing. Genre: Spy

Thriller. 422 pages. Finished 9/2/13.

Absolute Power, David Baldacci, 1996, Warner Books, Genre: Suspense. 469 pages. Finished 9/13/13.

Total Control, David Baldacci, 1997, Warner Books, Genre: Thriller. 517 pages. Finished 9/20/13.

The Winner, David Baldacci, 1997, Warner Books, Genre: Thriller. 513 pages. Finished 9/30/13.

The Simple Truth, David Baldacci, 1998, Warner Books, Genre: Thriller. 470 pages. Finished 10/6/13.

Wish You Well, David Baldacci, 2000, Warner Books, Genre: Fiction. 399 pages. Finished 10/9/13.

Last Man Standing, David Baldacci, 2001, Warner Books, Genre: Thriller. 548 pages. Finished 10/14/13.

Saving Faith, David Baldacci, 1999, Warner Books, Genre: Thriller. 451 pages. Finished 10/19/13.

The Christmas Train, David Baldacci, 2002, Warner Books, Genre: Mystery/Humor. 258 pages. Finished 10/24/13.

Split Second, David Baldacci, 2003, Warner Books, Genre: Thriller. 404 pages. Finished 10/28/13.

Hour Game, David Baldacci, 2004, Warner Books, Genre: Thriller. 437 pages. Finished 11/6/13.

The Camel Club, David Baldacci, 2005, Warner Books, Genre: Thriller. 435 pages. Finished 11/17/13.

The Collectors, David Baldacci, 2006, Warner Books, Genre: Thriller. 436 pages. Finished 11/20/13.

Simple Genius, David Baldacci, 2007, Warner Books, Genre: Thriller. 420 pages. Finished 11/25/13.

Stone Cold, David Baldacci, 2007, Grand Central Publishing, Genre: Thriller. 388 pages. Finished 11/30/13.

The Whole Truth, David Baldacci, 2008, GCP, Genre: Thriller. 401 pages. Finished 12/3/13.

Divine Justice, David Baldacci, 2008, GCP, Genre: Thriller, 387 pages. Finished 12/7/13.

First Family, David Baldacci, 2009, GCP, Genre: Thriller, 449 pages. Finished 12/11/13.

True Blue, David Baldacci, 2009, GCP, Genre: Thriller, 454 pages. Finished 12/14/13.

Deliver Us From Evil, David Baldacci, 2010, GCP, Genre: Thriller, 406 pages. Finished 12/19/13.

Hell’s Corner, David Baldacci, 2010, GCP, Genre: Thriller, 438 pages. Finished 12/27/13.

Sixth Man, David Baldacci, 2011, GCP, Genre: Thriller, 416 pages. Finished 1/2/14.

One Summer, David Baldacci, 2011, GCP, Genre: Schlocky Fiction, 333 pages. Finished 1/4/14.

Zero Day, David Baldacci, 2011, GCP, Genre: Thriller, 434 pages. Finished 1/9/14.

The Forgotten, David Baldacci, 2012, Genre: Thriller, 422 pages. Finished 1/13/14.

LesOpinion: The David Baldacci Slog had a slow start. His first 10 books are among the most poorly written of the entire Quest (in his first novel, Baldacci refers to a baseball as "the white orb." The prosecution rests).

To be fair, Baldacci was clearly learning the ropes and working at the mercy of a tenderhearted editor (one too soft to point out that thrillers written with an abundance of the word "suddenly" could benefit from a bit more subtlety). There is a direct correlation between a lowering page count and the books getting better. By the time Baldacci switched publishing houses (from Warner to Grand Central), his books became worth reading (for the most part).

Look, the man tells a good story in a made-for-the-big-screen kind of way. You can't go wrong picking one up for a ride on the train or a day sick in bed. This reviewer's recommendation is to start with books written after 1998 and never, under any circumstances, read the schlocky fiction he writes to take a break from his action-packed thrillers. Take it from me, Gentle Reader, you will much prefer a hot stick in the eye.

The Little Giant of Aberdeen County

The Little Giant of Aberdeen County, Tiffany Baker, 2009, Grand Central Publishing. Genre: Fiction. 341 pages. Finished 8/30/13.

LesOpinion: This is a book about beauty, love, and family ties. It's also about what it means to be ugly, silent, and selfish. It's also quirky, weird, eccentric, bittersweet, and crazy-making. Read it.