She's a good knitting designer too. I'm not that great a knitter (havent followed a pattern yet) but I've been looking at some of her knitting patterns and wishing I was a more advanced knitter.

I've got samples of one of her novels on my Kindle. I'm just trying to get thru my backlog of reading material to get to the sample to see if I want to buy the full book yet.

Jodi Picoult
 

I just finished "Handle With Care". Her books are always interesting and usually have a unique twist at the finish. This one did not disappoint.

I am almost done with The Cemetery Dance by Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child.(their newest one)

It is rather cheesy, but engagingly cheesy! Thriller thing.
They did the Relic...which was made into a movie.

It has recurring characters, but does not have to be read in sequence. I've read all their books. They are masters of action and quasi scifi/crime stories. Good escapism. There is some science in the stories too. This one has a supernatural theme as well.

I just finished City of Thieves by David Benioff and I loved it. Considering it takes place during the siege Leningrad in WWII, you wouldn't expect it to be thrilling AND gently humorous but it is. I recommend it.

I'm currently reading 2666 by Roberto Bolano and seriously, I can't even put the plot into words. I'm not even sure I know exactly what it's about. I alternately love it or hate it, depending which page I'm on. I'm halfway through it ....weirdest book experience I've ever had but I think I recommend it. ;)

"The Hour I First Believed" by Wally Lamb is fantastic and really long (I think that's a bonus since it takes longer to read :)). Any of his books are really good. I read tons of books so I buy a lot of them used. I get most from half.com or amazon. Just make sure the seller has a good feedback rating. I've never had any problems.

I just finished Dennis LeHanne's "Shutter Island". Really, really, REALLY amazing! I could read it again already :). I'll be buying or borrowing all of his other books soon.

I read many different genres but I don't like historical fiction or romance novels. I do read some chick-lit though occasionally to break up my thriller habit :D.

I've read at least one of Wally Lamb's books so I have to keep that in mind. I don't usually like historical fiction either, but I read "An Inconvenient Wife" (don't recall the author's name) but was set around the mid 1800s and high society New York. It was excellent! :)

I'm going to revive this thread again so we can all update with any good reads.

I've personally had a drought of good stuff to read and got really bored of everything until...

Michael Conolly, The Scarecrow. Gripping, thrilling stuff. He went off the boil last year but has come back a treat.

And Lance Armstrong, the Comeback 2.0. I've only read it in a bookshop as yet. Still saving up for that one.

Okay, kind of a story here..Just read The Complete Approach by Barry FitzGerald and Dustin Pari. Not my usual fare, but kind of interesting.

Had the thing with DGD seeing the old lady knocking on my door, remember? I think it was Kitty, advised me to contact one of the paranormal investigators, as seen on tv. Well, I tried a couple. Only one responded - Barry FitzGerald (GHI). I ended up getting the book and some good info. He's such a nice guy, very helpful!

We emailed back and forth a couple times. Maybe his rep proceeds him, cuz the activity in my house has amped up since, lol. Are *They* afraid ghost hunters are coming?

:D

I am in the middle of Eat, Love, Pray. it came at the perfect time in my life. This book has truly fed me. She has a new book called Committment that just came out too.

btw, I still do the audio books free from my local library. its an online service that NH uses to download audio books to your computer, or your Ipod. I am in love that I can hear books again. Reading it out of the question with my vision and cog dysfunction, but this has saved my sanity.

We listen to books on tape in the car. :cool:

I have been swamped by work, but the most recent three I have been reading are "Pirate Latitudes" by Michael Crichton, "Control of Nature" by John McPhee (re-reading it for about the 3rd time), and "Going Rogue" by Sarah Palin.

Pirate Latitudes was apparently a "complete" manuscript found by Crichton's family or friends after his death. I put complete in quotes because while it is a quick and engaging read like most of Crichton's books, it seems to me like he was trying to experiment a bit with the "historical thriller" genre which was somewhat different than many of his other popular works that were more in the "techno thriller" genre. The characters are typical of any pirate story, and the reading is fast paced...but I can't help but think maybe it was previously unreleased because Crichton didn't feel like he was quite done with it yet. While it was a good story and kept me entertained, it just didn't have that zip you expect from Crichton.

Control of Nature is one of my favorites. It is non-fiction and details various examples of mankind battling to control nature in places like New Orleans (vs. Mississippi River flooding), Iceland (vs. lava flows from a volcano), and California (vs. debris flows on mountain slopes). McPhee does a good job of pointing out our many follies in presuming we can defeat nature, but also highlights examples where we have won at least temporary victories (i.e. Iceland). After reading it the first time many years ago, I came away from it betting on the Mississippi to win in New Orleans.

Going Rogue was a good read. I will leave out my feelings about the politics involved to avoid starting debates here and just say that it reveals a picture of Sarah Palin that is at odds with what the media created in the campaign. Her life story has had many twists and turns in it and I came away from it seeing her as a very genuine person who believes in trying to do what she believes is right, even if that takes her outside of what is popular or easy. Very little of the book is actually about her race as VP in 2008...and the part that is really stays focused on her path, not on the politics between the parties. Give it a try, I doubt you will be disappointed.