Creepy Irish ghost story...

Three dead women are found by the postman in a house at the end of a lane, in a small town just outside Dublin. One woman died from having her head bashed in, presumably by the shovel found upstairs, next to the emaciated bodies of her two nieces who had been imprisoned, fed rat poison, and slowly starved to death. Shortly after the grisly discovery, Niall, an aspiring graphic artist who works at the post office, finds an unclaimed package in the dead letter bin, mailed by Fiona Walsh (one of the dead girls) to "anyone at all" in the post office. It turns out to be Fiona's diary, and once Niall opens the book and begins to read, he is dragged into a world of fairy tales and evil. Fiona and her sisters grew up in a town in West Cork, and Niall goes there to follow the story.

How much of the tale is fanciful or exaggerated? How much is just a romantic telling of something very real and horrible? Fiona and her sister are dead -- and so is their Aunt Moira. They all had been involved with a traveling storyteller named Jim. And it is Jim's story that forms the spellbinding tale which leads to the final chapter of doom.

Read this one with the lights turned down low -- to get into the mood of horror and things-that-go-bump-in-the-night. Or keep all the lights on to their full brightness so you won't get too freaked out. I give this book 3 1/2 stars for spinning such an intriguing yarn.

A new year for sharing about books

Stop by the RB Library to pick up a book for those odd moments when you have a free moment. Or for a weekend's relaxation. Or for an SSR requirement assigned by a teacher. The librarians would be happy to help you choose a book you would enjoy.

Did you read any good books this past summer? I did. (though I also had a great time camping, biking, and spending some quality time with my kids - one got married, two moved to Chicago, one has a beautiful son that I spend time with whenever I get a chance) But I escaped into some great books, too. See my summaries below. (and share YOUR favorites in a reply comment!)

The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest is the third book in the series about the mysterious Lisbeth Salander, multiply-tattooed computer hacker who was featured in Girl with the Dragon Tattoo and The Girl Who Played With Fire.

Faithful Place is the third book by Irish author Tana French, who previously gained worldwide fame with her thrilling mysteries In the Woods and The Likeness. This one is her best so far. It tells the story of Frank, who has for years distanced himself from his "crazy" family - only to be pulled back into their midst when the body of his old girlfriend is discovered in an abandoned house on his childhood street, called Faithful Place. He had always believed that the girlfriend had dumped him and run off to England alone. As an experienced detective, he is prepared to run an investigation - but is he prepared for all the drama and trauma his family brings to the situation?

Jerk, California is one of the Abraham Lincoln High School Book Award nominees for 2011. What I liked about this one is that I felt like I gained some understanding of Tourette's Syndrome beyond the stereotypes. Sam experiences uncontrollable twitches, which sometimes build up to seizures. His stepfather is ashamed of his condition, and continually

berates him and tells him that his father was a deadbeat deserter. But then Sam meets George, who knew his father, and he begins to learn the truth about his past - including the fact that his real name is Jack. And he is launched on a cross-country journey of discovery.

There are many more summer books to write about - stay tuned for regular updates!

I'm addicted . . .

As promised in my earlier post, I will first finish telling about In The Woods. WOW! I have discovered a new author that I want to keep reading til all hours of the night. As I already mentioned, we were challenged to find out who killed the 12-year-old girl, and as Rob and Cassie investigate, various members of her family become suspects, along with neighbors, some of the archaeologists working on the dig where she was found, and even Rob himself, as he is connected to this area and to the unsolved crime - the disappearance and possible murder of his two best friends 20 years ago. I'd better not say anything more - but the depth of the characters in this novel, the beautiful writing that urges you to re-read some passages over 2 or 3 times, the realistic descriptions of a new (to me) culture in modern-day Dublin, and the unlikely turns in the story make In the Woods a definite 4 out of 4 stars.

So . . . when I finished, I immediately went out and got The Likeness. In this story, Cassie Maddox reappears (about 6 months after In the Woods finished up). She is called to the scene of a murder by startled detectives who fear that she has died -- because the dead girl is a "dead ringer" (sorry) for Cassie. Years ago, when Cassie was just getting started in her career, she worked an undercover operation at Trinity College, under the name of Lexie Madison. And the identification on the body of the dead girl is --- you guessed it --- Alexandra Madison (aka Lexie). There is no evidence - so the police don't know whom to suspect or why. Cassie is persuaded to go back undercover as Lexie - people are simply told that Lexie was stabbed, but recovered. The dead girl had been living with four other 20-something graduate students in a big old house that one of them had inherited from a rich old uncle. After a week of intensive study of her new character, Lexie/Cassie falls seemingly naturally into her new identity - and takes up the relationships with her housemates. There are strange vibes among them - she discovers that none of them is allowed to talk about their past, and they all speak as if they are a family, and they all inherited the house. When she takes her nightly walk, she feels as if she's being watched -- and why shouldn't she? Someone DID stab Lexie, after all, and that someone is still out there. This is another nail-biter. I'm busy checking my public library to discover what else Tana French has written, and if there's nothing, I just can't wait til she finishes her next book!

Another 4 out of 4 stars!

A great mystery!

This story takes place in contemporary Dublin, where a 12-year-old girl has been murdered; her body was found by archaologists - she was laid out on an ancient stone used for sacrifices centuries ago. In this same location about 20 years ago, three 12-year-old kids went into the woods and disappeared. Well, two of them did -- the third was found hours later with his arms wrapped around a tree, his shoes filled with blood. He has no memory of what happened. This boy became a policeman when he grew up, and he is one of the detectives trying to solve the crime of the current murder. Perhaps he'll also be able to find out what happened to his two friends, who were never found.
He realizes that he probably shouldn't even be connected to the case because of his personal involvement, but only his partner knows his story, and she leaves the decision up to him.
I'm only about halfway through this story, but I LOVE the mystery, the description of the characters and their relationships, and the just-slightly-different culture that is Dublin. And I'm being good - I haven't read the end of the book yet, and I'm trying really hard not to. I will update in a week or so when I finish, but so far, I would highly recommend this one.

Four stars

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