The Next Book On My List

The Fireman by Joe Hill                 The official name for the infection was Draco incendia trychophyton but most people simple referred to it as Dragonscale. You can see it on the skin, black lines swirling across the body with gold flecks. It becomes really apparent when someone has it if they happen to burst into flames or simply start smoking. The first burner Harper saw was outside of the school where she worked as a nurse. School closed after that incident. Then Harper decided to volunteer at the hospital which was severely understaffed after the outbreak. It wasn’t until after Harper found out she was pregnant that she saw the black lines on her own body. Her husband Jakob was disgusted with the thought of contracting the infection and even more disgusted with the idea of Harper keeping the baby. He leaves furious and returns with the twisted notion to take both of their lives. The Fireman ...

I Know This Much Is True by Wally Lamb                 Dominick and Thomas, the twins. Different in so many ways. Identical in nature and yet opposites in life. Dominick the teacher turned house painter. Thomas the paranoid schizophrenic that cut off his right arm in a public library to try and stop a war. This is Dominick’s story, his narrative, his examination of how his life turned out the way it is. Failed marriage, the guardian of his crazy brother, the man who never even knew who his father was. Dominick is the man still fighting for answers and to fulfill his last promise to his now deceased mother, to protect her favorite and to watch over him. But at what cost! Was he supposed to sacrifice his own sanity after fighting so hard to not be Thomas?                 From the very first page of this novel I was hooked. Dominic...

Ghosts From Our Past: Both Literally and Figuratively: The Study of the Paranormal by Erin Gilbert and Abby L. Yates with Andrew Shaffer                 Erin and Abby have come a long way since being known as “Ghost Girls” at their high school. They want you to know just how far that is. In Ghosts From Our Past: Both Literally and Figuratively: The Study of the Paranormal Erin and Abby start from the beginning of their fascination with the paranormal to their current standings. This newly revised and somewhat updated version included their current finding and techniques while still holding true to the information in the original publication.                   I’m not sure what I was expecting from this movie tie-in but at the very least I was entertained. This book “written” by the characters of the 2016 film “Ghostbus...

Dark Matter by Blake Crouch                 Have you ever wondered what your life could have been if you changed one simple thing? If you hadn’t taken that class, went to that bar, introduced yourself to the person who would be the love of your life? Jason Dessen has had those thoughts and wondered about how different life may have been. But he lives a good life now with his wife, Daniela and his son Charlie. But all that is taken away from him. He had simply went to meet an old friend of his and on the way home was forced into a car at gunpoint and made to drive to a location he didn’t even know existed. He awakes to find himself in a warehouse where everyone has been anxiously awaiting him. No one had seen him in 14 months and there are so many questions? But he doesn’t know any of these people. He has never met any of them in his life. His home is completely different than the way he left it and it...

The Red Tent by Anita Diamant                 Many people have heard the biblical story of Jacob, the man who fled from his home after stealing his brother’s blessing. He fled to his mother’s family and met Rachel by the well. He offered to work several years for Rachel’s father, Laban, in exchange for her hand in marriage. He would eventually sire many children through many wives but it was Rachel’s only child Joseph who would eventually be sold by his brothers into slavery, rise in the ranks to eventually become an adviser to the king. This story is the one that is known. The Red Tent is the story people don’t know. This is the story of Dinah, Jacob’s only daughter and the last child of his first wife Leah. But this is not only the story of Dinah, it is the story of her mother, her aunts and the many other women she met while sitting in the red tent. The tent where women gathered with the changing m...

Angela’s Ashes by Frank McCourt                 Francis McCourt was born in America to his mother, Angela and his father Malachy. His father was a drunk who would spend any money he made in bars and leave his wife at home with the kids. Eventually they would have to move back to Ireland where both of Francis’ parents were from. But the cycle of his father’s drunken stupors continued and the children would live in unbearable conditions. This is the childhood of Francis McCourt, Frank. His story is sad but his experiences speak of time when many others new loss and it was a struggle to survive and many children would never make it to adulthood. Told through the eyes of Frank himself we see his story unfold.                 This novel was full of lows and blows. It starts off unveiling the devastating circumstances of a horrible...

From Potter’s Field by Patricia Cornwell                 From Potter’s Field is the 6 th book in a crime series revolving around forensic pathologist Dr. Kay Scarpetta. In this novel an old foe by the name of Temple Gaunt is back to haunt and terrorize Scarpetta. The first body is found in Central Park on Christmas Eve. From there the bodies continue to add up and the connection between the case, Gaunt and Scarpetta continues to add up. Not only his her life in danger, but that of her niece who developed an artificial intelligence computer system known as CAIN. Scarpetta must work quickly to catch Gaunt before she finds herself or her niece in harms way.                 This started off really strong. Scarpetta was in a high powered position, well respected, good at her job and was a character with a lot of wit and humor. I ...