Thorn in My Side (Kindle Single) by Karin Slaughter

This is a really short book, or perhaps a long novella (I can't say I know the difference) that is narrated by a conjoined twin. The twins are in their late 30s or early 40s, and really don't like each other. The narrator is the smarter twin, he goes to church, he gardens. The narrator's twin is more deviant, picking up sketchy chicks at dance clubs and treating them poorly. The story picks up when one of the women that is picked up in a dance club is killed by the brother(s), and they're dealing with the fall-out.

It's a really bizarre and disturbing story. If it were any longer I don't think I would have read the whole thing; I didn't enjoy it at all.

2/10

My Exile Lifestyle by Colin Wright

This book is about Colin Wright's unplugging from traditional society. He whittled his stuff down to a double-digit number of items, and then packed up and went traveling. He moves to a different part of the world every four months, and the new location is picked by people on his website.

The writing in this book was not especially good, it seemed like a mix of content written for the book and journal entries, and was often (very) redundant. The idea of minimalism and untethering is an interesting one, but I think there must be people who are better at talking about it than this guy. Also, there seems to be a big emphasis in this book on all of the girls he's dated, which really didn't interest me very much.

I liked the idea, but really didn't like the execution of this book.

3/10

Dead Until Dark by Charlaine Harris (Sookie Stackhouse: Book 1)

This is the first book in the Sookie Stackhouse series, the series that the HBO show True Blood is based on. I read it for the first time ages ago, well before the show came out, and then again earlier this summer. Wanting a comfort book, I picked it up again this week. No, it's not that great of a book, but gosh it's entertaining enough for me.

Sookie, the main character, is a waitress in Bon Temps, Louisiana, a small town. Vampires 'came out' recently after the invention of synthetic blood, and are now working to integrate into society. Sookie has her own quirks - she's a telepath who has trouble blocking out others' thoughts. One day the first vampire she's met, Bill, comes into the bar she works at. She saves him from some 'drainers' (people who sell vampire blood, the new drug of choice), and is thrilled to discover that she can't hear his thoughts. Sookie and Bill begin dating, and small-town vampire and other supernatural drama ensues.

Of course the mystery is solved by the end, and you're interested enough in the characters to read the next book to see what they'll manage to turn up next. If you like not-too-challenging mysteries, like a good beach read, and don't mind vampires, this is a very entertaining book (and series).

8/10

Ishmael by Daniel Quinn

I guess the first thing you'd want to know about this book is that is chronicles a conversation between a guy (a writer) and a gorilla. The guy meets the gorilla after answering a newspaper ad: "TEACHER seeks pupil. Must have an earnest desire to save the world. Apply in person."

The book offers an alternative history (or creation story) for humanity, and how we got to where we are today. It explains why we are ruining the world, and what needs to change in order to prevent us from completely destroying it.

Really, this was one of the strangest books I've read, but I think I really enjoyed it. I'm not sure I completely understand the 'next steps' that I was supposed to glean from the book, but the ideas have definitely been percolating in the back of my mind. Reading the book definitely gives you an interesting alternative to human history (and certain Bible stories).

I recommend it, if you can get past the silent human-baboon conversation idea.

7/10

Naked Heat by "Richard Castle"

This is the second book in the Nikki Heat series, which is an offshoot of the TV show "Castle". Basically, if you like the TV show, you'll like reading these books. This particular book could have used a little bit more editing (at least in the Kindle edition), but I enjoyed it nonetheless. Some of the twists were predictable (for me, which is saying something), but, again, if you like the show, you'll like the books just as much.

I'm excited for the third book to come out later this year - it lets me imagine the TV series shows without actually watching TV. And it's always fun to imagine Nathan Fillion!

7/10

A Feast for Crows: A Song of Ice and Fire, Book 4 by George R. R. Martin

Oy. It was no joke that this book is just bonkers hard to get through. There's a note from the author at the end of the book, explaining that he had written a book twice as long, and "To tell the story that I wanted to tell, I was going to have to cut the book in two. ... The more I thought about that, however, the more I felt that the readers would be better served by a gook that told all the story for half the characters, rather than half the story for all the characters."

The story was interesting, but much too long, and followed all of the minor characters. Seven hundred pages of reading about the minor characters was a major slog to get through. I hope reading this to get to the fifth book was worth it!

3/10