Summer Reading

Welcome to Summer Reading 2011!  At the end of 10 weeks we had 368 people signed up. This week, 3 new people participated and 31 people read 138 books, which brings the totals for the summer to 173 people and 1438 books.  A banner year!

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From Barcelona, with Love By Adler, Elizabeth 2011-06 - St. Martin's Press 9780312668358 Check Our Catalog The author of the bestselling "It All Began in Monte Carlo" returns with favorite characters Sunny Alvarez and Mac Reilly, who take readers from the Hollywood hills to the streets of Barcelona in this stunning beach read. HPL patron: Filled with Adler's trademark lush descriptions, twisty plots, and decadent luxery, 'Drom Barcelona, with love' will transport you. …More

Here to Stay By Anderson, Catherine 2011-03 - Center Point Large Print 9781602859890 Check Our Catalog Mandy Pajeck feels responsible for the accident that took her younger brother's sight. When she meets handsome Zach Harrigan and his mini guide horse, Mandy thinks she's found the ticket to her brother's happiness--and maybe her own. HPL patron: Great story line. …More

The X-Files: Ruins By Anderson, Kevin J. 1997-02 - HarperEntertainment 9780061057366 Check Our Catalog In the most ambitious and exciting "X-Files" to date, Mulder and Scully fly to the Yucatan jungle to investigate a missing team of archaeologists. Their exploration leads to a strange electronic signal emitting from beneath ancient ruins--a signal aimed upward, at the stars. HPL patron: Excellent book, fast read.  I couldn't put it down. …More

Don't Throw It Out: Recycle, Renew, and Reuse to Make Things Last By Baird, Lori Author Yankee Magazine 2007-12 - Rodale Press 9781594865770 Check Our Catalog The editors at "Yankee" magazine have honed ingenuity to a fine art, and now they show off their considerable talent for making things last longer and work better. HPL patron: Ideas for everything/category in your home on how to care for things to make them last longer or new uses for old things.  Wished it had more re-use ideas than it actually had, but was full of practical information. …More

The Sixth Man By Baldacci, David 2011-04 - Grand Central Publishing 9780446573108 Check Our Catalog Sean King and Michelle Maxwell dig into the past of an alleged serial killer, but the more they investigate, the harder it is to separate fact from fiction. Each new revelation pushes them to the limit, and this deadly case might be the one that leaves the duo permanently parted. …More

Blood Lure By Barr, Nevada 2002-02 - Berkley 9780425183755 Check Our Catalog District park ranger Anna Pigeon is forced to reexamine her "spiritual connection" to God's creatures when she works on a project that has her hanging out bloody lures to attract grizzly bears in Glacier National Park. Although she manages to snatch an occasional moment of solitary communion with nature, there's no time for meditation when a rampaging bear attacks the researchers' campsite. …More

Borderline By Barr, Nevada 2009-04 - Putnam Adult 9780399155697 Check Our Catalog Bestseller Barr skillfully blends sticky border issues, marital strife and politics in her exciting 15th novel to feature National Park Service ranger Anna Pigeon. …More

Dead by Morning By Barton, Beverly 2011-06 - Center Point Large Print 9781611730906 Check Our Catalog Maleah Purdue is tough, outspoken, and completely dedicated to her work at the Powell Security Agency. But her fearless exterior shatters when a madman begins killing her colleagues one by one, mimicking a notorious serial killer already behind bars. Working with profiler Derek Lawrence, Maleah will do anything to find the killer -- even if it means playing a psychopath's twisted mind games. No one connected to the agency is safe. No one is beyond suspicion. Because as Maleah and Derek piece together the clues, they uncover a chilling legacy of lies and brutal vengeance -- and a killer who has been hiding in plain sight. …More

Agatha Raisin and the Terrible Tourist By Beaton, M. C. 1998-07 - St. Martin's Press 9780312965662 Check Our Catalog The tough and brassy Agatha Raisin goes to north Cyprus to track down her ex-fiance. Instead of having a honeymoon, the two witness the murder of an obnoxious tourist in a disco. Two sets of terrible tourists surround the unhappy couple, and Agatha won't rest until she finds the killer. Unfortunately, it also seems the killer won't rest until Agatha is out of the picture. Martin's Press. HPL patron: Agatha as usual is obsessed with James-on following him to Cyprus-not long and she is involved with murders.  James and Charles help.  M.C. Beaton is a cozy read and she describes landscapes nicely- you feel like you're there. …More

A Spoonful of Poison By Beaton, M. C. 2008-09 - Minotaur Books 9780312349127 Check Our Catalog After a festive church event becomes the scene of two murders, Agatha is charged with getting to the bottom of the crime. HPL patron: Agatha is yet again in the thick of things.  She's feeling old and a little sesitive about her young employee while also trying to attract yet another no-good man. …More

Death of a Chimney Sweep By Beaton, M. C. 2011-02 - Grand Central Publishing 9780446547390 Check Our Catalog In the south of Scotland, residents get their chimneys vacuum-cleaned. But in the isolated villages in the very north of Scotland, the villagers rely on the services of the itinerant sweep, Pete Ray, and his old-fashioned brushes. Pete is always able to find work in the Scottish highlands, until one day when Police Constable Hamish Macbeth notices blood dripping onto the floor of a villager's fireplace, and a dead body stuffed inside the chimney. The entire town of Lochdubh is certain Pete is the culprit, but Hamish doesn't believe that the affable chimney sweep is capable of committing murder. Then Pete's body is found on the Scottish moors, and the mystery deepens. Once again, it's up to Hamish to discover who's responsible for the dirty deed--and this time, the murderer may be closer than he realizes. …More

Death of a Witch By Beaton, M. C. 2009-02 - Grand Central Publishing 9780446196130 Check Our Catalog Beaton's bestselling trilogy--as rich and warming as fine malt whiskey, and every bit as addictive ("Houston Chronicle")--continues as Hamish Macbeth, Scotland's most laconic and low-tech policeman, investigates the death of a woman with seemingly unearthly powers. HPL patron: Hamish McBeth mysteries are always a good read.  You get a good idea what it would be like to live in the village if it were real.  M.C. Beaton writes good mysteries that don't take you forever to read.  They do not go all over from one subject to the next like a lot of books. …More

Holy Ghost Corner By Bowen, Michele Andrea 2008-06 - Grand Central Publishing 9780446197069 Check Our Catalog Theresa Elaine Hopson has been looking for love all her life. Then she decides to listen to God, and what she hears soon brings a smile to her face with the realization that the Holy Ghost has been in her love corner all along. HPL patron:  Fresh, passionate, laugh out loud funny, cast is delightful.  Bowen writing humorously explores familiar terrain for anyone who has witnessed church politics. …More

Alaska Bride on the Run By Bridges, Kate 2010-07 - Harlequin 9780373295999 Check Our Catalog Bar owner Harrison Rowlan gets more than he bargained for with his new bartender, Willa Somerset. …More

Money Can't Buy Love By Briscoe, Connie 2011-06 - Grand Central Publishing 9780446534840 Check Our Catalog After overcoming the shock of her lottery win, things finally begin to turn around for Lena. As her life comes together, Lena notices that the things she has held dear are beginning to fall apart and she wonders if her life really has changed for the better, or if things are actually worse than they were before. HPL patron: I didn't really like this book because of how the character acted.  You could figure out how it was going to end before it ended. …More

March By Brooks, Geraldine 2005-03 - Viking Books 9780670033355 Check Our Catalog Winner--2006 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction A BookPage Notable Title From the author of the international bestseller Year of Wonders comes a powerful love story set against the catastrophe of the Civil War. From Louisa May Alcott's beloved classic Little Women, Brooks has taken the character of the absent father, March, to portray the moral complexity of war and a marriage tested by the demands of extreme idealism. …More

The Viking Funeral: A Shane Scully Novel By Cannell, Stephen J. 2002-12 - St. Martin's Press 9780312983437 Check Our Catalog LAPD Detective Shane Scully is convinced he has just seen his best friend and former colleague Jody Dean. But Jody committed suicide three years ago. Is his mind playing tricks? Shane soon becomes obsessed with finding the truth about Jody and taps into a corrupt, high-level conspiracy among L.A.'s finest that will put Shane and everyone he loves in harm's way. Martin's Press. …More

The Crystal City By Card, Orson Scott 2003-11 - Tor Books 9780312864835 Check Our Catalog A BookPage Notable Title Watch and ListenThis long-awaited title in the Alvin Maker Tale series continues the story of Alvin and his wife Peggy as they work to create The Crystal City. "With delicacy and insight, incorporating folk tales and folk magic with mountain lore and other authentic details, Orson Scott Card has evoked a vision of America as it might have been."--"Greensboro Tribune-Review. …More

Ender's Game By Card, Orson Scott 2006-10 - Tor Books 9780765317384 Check Our Catalog Winner of the Hugo and Nebula Awards, one of the most beloved science fictionnovels is now available in a special gift edition. …More

Broken Pieces By Cassidy, Carla 2008-09 - Signet Book 9780451224897 Check Our Catalog After surviving a brutal attack as a teenager, Mariah Sayers ran away. She returns 16 years later with her daughter to make peace with her past. Just as she rekindles old friendships and even an old flame, she learns a girl has been killed. Original. …More

Every Move You Make By Cassidy, Carla 2008-03 - Signet Book 9780451223432 Check Our Catalog On her 30th birthday, Annalise Blakely gets a strange package. Inside, along with one of her company's hand-crafted dolls, is a cryptic note. Annalise puts the package aside, but her cop boyfriend reveals someone is murdering women and dressing them up as Blakely Dolls. Now the killer is stalking Annalise. Original. …More

Burned By Cast, P. C. Author Cast, Kristin 2010-04 - St. Martin's Griffin 9780312606169 Check Our Catalog This highly anticipated seventh book continues the House of Night series in a chilling fashion. P.C. and Kristin Cast once again prove their talent in telling a tale filled with all the normal teenage angst compounded with becoming a Vampyre ("Paranormal Romance Reviews"). …More

Wrecked By Clark, Carol Higgins 2010-04 - Scribner Book Company 9781439170250 Check Our Catalog "New York Times"-bestselling author Higgins Clark delivers the 10th installment in her increasingly popular Regan Reilly mystery series. …More