Review: Jack the Theorist by Jon Hartless

First an admission. I like the whole Jack the Ripper thing. It's rather fascinating. A serial killer running loose in the Whitechapel district of London in 1888, preying on prostitutes, committing at least 5 murders and as many as 11, depending on the theory. And he was never found, but theories abound as to who he was. Jack the Theorist by Jon Hartless starts with the first killing and follows two men, a ripperologist, Professor Wolf, and his friend Sir Arthur Smythe, a paranormal researcher, as the entire town follows the story, horrified and obsessed, and the media fuels the speculation. "Your paper printing the lurid accounts again and again, and putting up huge billboards showing half-naked women being stalked by a madman with a knife, had no part to play in creating this climate of 'public hysteria'?" "We cannot be held responsible for the credulous nature of the public," replied Sideways, disdainfully. (77 %) Wolfe himself is making good money by writing articles...
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Review: Nicholas St. North and the Battle of the Nightmare King by William Joyce and Laura Geringer

Ever wonder who Santa was before he was Santa? He was a bandit, talented no doubt, but a thief and treasure hunter nonetheless. Nicholas St. North was his name, and he was only concerned about himself until the fateful day he ended up in the village of Santoff Claussen. He expected to find treasure, but instead he found a village terrorized by Pitch, an ancient evil, and his Fearlings, rulers of the night, bringers of nightmares. Nicholas St. North and the Battle of the Nightmare King by William Joyce and Laura Geringer tells how Nicholas grew from being a self-centered man to the caring, magical person who will one day be Santa. We follow him and his mentor, a great wizard, and a young girl named Katherine as they fight to protect the children of the world. I read this one aloud with Amber (11) during December. She made sure to tell me that if I review it to say she liked...
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Mailbox Monday

It's the first Monday of a new year!! Hope 2012 is starting out great for all of you! Mailbox Monday this month is hosted by Alyce at At Home with Books. Head over there to see what other received and to share your own goodies. I received a bunch of books throughout the month of December, but none were actually under the tree. The Landlord's Black-Eyed Daughter by Mary Ellen Dennis (Won at Tif Talks Books. Thanks, Tif!) The Borrowers by Mary Norton (Thanks, Tif!) The Secret of the Sacred Scarab by Fiona Ingram (For a Pump Up Your Book! Blog Tour) Graveminder by Melissa Marr (From Harper Collins) Sleigh Ride: A Winter Anthology (Won from Booking Mama. Thanks, Julie and author, Malena Lott!) Behind the Beautiful Forevers by Katherine Boo (ARC from Random House) Strange Flesh by Michael Olson (ARC from Simon and Schuster) A Cold Creek Secret by RaeAnn Thayne (From Harlequin Ambassadors) Cinder by Marissa Meyer (ARC from Feiwel and Friends) Dakota Christmas by Joseph Button (Purchased) Broken Resolutions by Cheryl...
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End-of-the-Year Book Meme

I like having an end of the year post that summarizes my reading for the year. Jaime, at The Perpetual Page-Turner, posted this great survey that really helps highlight some of the good ones, and bad one, of the year. 1. Best Book You Read In 2011?  It's so hard to pick a favorite. This is my top-ten, in no particular order. Have Gun, Will Play by Camille LaGuire Alphabeasts by Wallace Edwards In the Woods by Tana French The Brutal Telling by Louise Penny The Butterfuly Cabinet by Bernie McGill The Crossing Places by Elly Griffiths The Devotion of Suspect X by Keigo Higashino The Egypt Game by Zilpha Keatley Snyder The Honey Month by Amal El-Mohtar Yesterday's Tomorrow by Catherine West 2. Most Disappointing Book/Book You Wish You Loved More Than You Did? Room by Emma Donaghue. It had gotten so much hype that I expected it to be truly amazing. Turned out that all the build-up had told me all the things that made the book special. I already knew the...
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Review: Died in the Wool by Ngaio Marsh

Ngaio Marsh is an author I just discovered this year, thanks to Bev's Vintage Mystery Challenge (which she's hosting again, by the way. Sign up here.) Died in the Wool is the third I've read by her, although the first that takes place in her native New Zealand. It's reminiscent of an English country manor mystery, although it takes place on a sheep farm. Florence Rubrick, a member of parliament and the owner of the sheep farm is found murdered after missing for three weeks, encased in a bale of her own wool. Roderick Alleyn, Marsh's series detective, is called in by a family member to investigate after the local police have gotten nowhere in over a year. Apparently Roderick is a distant relation to the dead woman. Also, he is doing War duty in England and there is some suspicion that the death is connected to a case of espionage. Died in the Wool was first published in 1945, right at...
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Review: The Brutal Telling by Louise Penny

The Brutal Telling by Louise Penny is fifth in the Inspector Gamache series, which I've been listening to in order, so, yes, it's revisiting a town, Three Pines, that I've grown to love and catching up with the characters I feel like I know, but beyond that it's about relationships and lies and greed and the power of words. "Chaos is coming, old son." The peace of Three Pines has once again been shattered by murder. A stranger's body is found in the bistro and Chief Inspector Gamache is called in, along with his team, to investigate. They soon discover that the man is a hermit who lives in the cabin in the woods surrounded by priceless antiques. There are several suspects, most new introductions to the series, but one, Olivier the bistro's owner, has been a main character from the first book. All of them are hiding secrets and lies, but which of them is the killer? What kills can’t be seen,...
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