First Annual BLOG BOOK CLUB: ALL THE PRETTY GIRLS

JT Ellison's ALL THE PRETTY GIRLS was the winner, and is now the first book to be featured on my monthly book club.

Here's how it'll work: After the jump, I've posted ten questions about the book. Answer them in the comments. Feel free to discuss spoilers. Have fun with the questions. I'll jump in when I can as well.

At the end of this week I'll post another three books for your guys to vote on.

Have fun!



1) How does Taylor Jackson’s past affect her work on this case?

2) Do the Southern Stalker’s victims (specifically Christina and Noelle) reflect aspects of Taylor’s character in anyway?

3) Does the pregnancy scare push Taylor in solving the case? Why or why not?

4) Talk about the revelation of the killer. Did you see it coming? Why or why not?

5) What are some of the relationships this book has to other serial killer novels? How does it separate itself from those other novels?

6) Does Taylor change throughout the book? If yes, how? If no, why not?

7) Why does Baldwin resign? Was it building or did it come specifically from this case?

8) Was Grimes suicide justified? Did that twist surprise you?

9) What was the most surprising plot twist in the book? Why?

10) What did you think of the book? Why?

New Jersey: The Promised Land--Pizza

In New Jersey, we are known for our food. I've mentioned Taylor Ham before. But, man, we have the BEST pizza.

You can get any kind you want. You can go to a pizza place and get a slice, not too think, not too thin. A good suggestion would be Pizza Town in Elmwood Park. They do really good hot slices. Kind of like you'd get in NY, but better because it comes from New Jersey.

Or you can get a deeper dish pizza. Thick crush, good toppings, soft and crunchy at the same time. Patsy's in Paterson is known for this... it's a place that's been around forever. It's almost a Chicago style pizza, but better... Why? Because it comes from New Jersey.

And then there's my favorite... thin crust pizza. So thin it's like pizza on a cracker. It's soooo delicious. There are so many places for this... Mario's, Pete and Elda's (eat a pizza get a t-shirt), Kinchley's, and my favorite the Emerson Hotel. It doesn't compare to any pizza I've ever had, and it's clearly the best.

You can't get pizza like this anywhere else. Especially not Massachusetts (#21). I've had pizza in Mass. Let me describe it for you.

Have you ever had Ellio's frozen pizza? You know, how it's... not good? Now imagine Ellio's, but instead of having tomato sauce and a decent crust on it, it's slathered with ketchup and instead of crust you get wonder bread. And that's being complimentary. It's really gross and slimey and mushy. I couldn't even call it pizza... It's an open faced sandwich. And it's lame.

You want pizza, you got go to New Jersey... And no where else.

Movie Review: INGLORIOUS BASTERDS

Quentin Tarantino is back with the story of secret Nazi killing Americans. You've all seen the preview, so we'll just get into my thoughts.

I love Tarantino movies. They are fun and usually full of character and heart. Inglorious Bastards is fun. And it has a message. I really liked it and need to see it again.

Because I really feel like I was missing something.

The movie hinges on a HUGE coincidence, which I felt was easy enough to be explained away, but as far as I can tell it never is. The coincidence was enough to take me out of the film several times.

However, everything else works about the film. It's compelling, it's shocking, and it's a lot of fun. Brad Pitt is great, as is Christoph Waltz.

And Melanie Laurent is great too, in a role that needed more meat. Her character is at the crux of the film, but is not given enough time for us to mine the character depth out of her needed to get rid of the coincidences.

Tarantino does a good job of trying to villainize the audience for enjoying the violence in the movie as well.

It just strikes me that, for this film, QT became more interested in the crafting of scenes than the crafting of an entire story. He tries as always to combine genres--war movie, western, James Bond/spy story, female revenge story--but this time forgets to tie everything together neatly.


It's a good movie. Probably the best movie I've seen this summer.

And perhaps I just blinked when the coincidences were explained. I did have an issue with my phone that needed to be taken care of. (I was the only one in the theater, so don't get on me for rudeness.)

But it doesn't match up well with Kill Bill (esp. Vol 2) or Jackie Brown, which both had depth of character.

BOOK CLUB REMINDER!!

Hope you're all catching up on JT Ellison's ALL THE PRETTY GIRLS. I'm about to dig into it now, hoping that I'll be able to get the questions up next weekend.

We will discuss the books in the comments then.

Happy Reading!

The 2009 Shamus Award Nominees

Congrats to all the other nominees! It is definitely an honor to be nominated! Here's the list (via Judy Bobalik):

PRIVATE EYE WRITERS OF AMERICA ANNOUNCES
2009 NOMINEES FOR SHAMUS AWARDS

The Private Eye Writers of America (PWA) is proud to announce the nominees for the 28th annual Shamus Awards, given annually to recognize outstanding achievement in private eye fiction. The 2009 awards cover works first published in the U.S. in 2008. The awards will be presented at the PWA banquet, to be held Friday evening Oct. 16, 2009, in Indianapolis, Indiana, during the Bouchercon World Mystery Convention.

2009 Shamus Awards Nominees


Best Hardcover
Salvation Boulevard by Larry Beinhart (Nation Books), featuring Carl Vanderveer
Empty Ever After by Reed Farrel Coleman (Bleak House Books), featuring Moe Prager
The Blue Door by David Fulmer (Harcourt), featuring Eddie Cero
The Price of Blood by Declan Hughes (Wm. Morrow), featuring Ed Loy
The Ancient Rain by Domenic Stansberry (St. Martins Minotaur) featuring Dante Mancuso

Best First PI Novel
Stalking Susan by Julie Kramer (Doubleday), featuring Riley Spartz
Swann’s Last Song by Charles Salzberg (Five Star), featuring Henry Swann
The Eye of Jade by Diane Wei Liang (Simon & Schuster), featuring Mei Wang
In the Heat by Ian Vasquez (St. Martins Minotaur), featuring Miles Young
Veil of Lies by Jeri Westerson (St Martins Minotaur), featuring Crispin Guest

Best Paperback Original
Snow Blind by Lori Armstrong (Medallion) featuring Julie Collins
Shot Girl by Karen Olson (Obsidian) featuring Annie Seymour
The Stolen by Jason Pinter (MIRA) featuring Henry Parker
The Black Hand by Will Thomas (Touchstone/Simon &Schuster) featuring Cyrus Barker and Thomas Llewelyn.
The Evil That Men Do by Dave White (Crown/Three Rivers Press) featuring Jackson Donne

Best Short Story
“Family Values” by Mitch Alderman (Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine, June 2008), featuring Bubba Simms
“Last Island South” by John C. Boland. (Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, Sep/Oct 2008), featuring Meggie Trevor
“The Blonde Tigress” by Max Allan Collins (Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, June 2008), featuring Nate Heller
“Discovery” by Kristine Kathryn Rusch (Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine, Nov 2008), featuring Pita Cárdenas
“Panic on Portage Path” by Dick Stodghill (Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine, Jan/Feb 2008), featuring Jack Eddy and Bram Geary.

-30-

PWA was founded in 1981 by Robert J. Randisi to recognize the private eye genre and its writers. Previous Shamus winners include Lawrence Block, Ken Bruen, Harlan Coben, Max Allan Collins, Michael Connelly, Robert Crais, O’Neil deNoux, Brendan DuBois, Loren D. Estleman, Carolina Garcia-Aguilera, Sue Grafton, James W. Hall, Steve Hamilton, Jeremiah Healy, Dennis Lehane, Laura Lippman, John Lutz, Bill Pronzini, S.J. Rozan, Sandra Scoppettone and Don Winslow. P.I. Guy logo by Terry Beatty.

Random Thoughts from People My Age

Okay, first thing's first... Over on Do Some Damage, I have a post about haters.

Secondly, I saw this meme or forward or chain mail on Facebook today and thought it was hilarious. I have about 7 or 8 of these thoughts a day. I wish I could give credit to whomever wrote it up... but I had to repost it. So here it is, after the jump:




-I wish Google Maps had an "Avoid Ghetto" routing option.

-More often than not, when someone is telling me a story all I can think about is that I can't wait for them to finish so that I can tell my own story that's not only better, but also more directly involves me.

-Nothing sucks more than that moment during an argument when you realize you're wrong.

-I don't understand the purpose of the line, "I don't need to drink to have fun." Great, no one does. But why start a fire with flint and sticks when they've invented the lighter?

-Have you ever been walking down the street and realized that you're going in the complete opposite direction of where you are supposed to be going? But instead of just turning a 180 and walking back in the direction from which you came, you have to first do something like check your watch or phone or make a grand arm gesture and mutter to yourself to ensure that no one in the surrounding area thinks you're crazy by randomly switching directions on the sidewalk.

-That's enough, Nickelback.

-I totally take back all those times I didn't want to nap when I was younger.

-Is it just me, or are 80% of the people in the "people you may know" feature on Facebook people that I do know, but I deliberately choose not to be friends with?

-Do you remember when you were a kid, playing Nintendo and it wouldn't work? You take the cartridge out, blow in it and that would magically fix the problem. Every kid in America did that, but how did we all know how to fix the problem? There was no internet or message boards or FAQ's. We just figured it out. Today's kids are soft.

-There is a great need for sarcasm font.

-Sometimes, I'll watch a movie that I watched when I was younger and suddenly realize I had no idea what the f was going on when I first saw it.

-I think everyone has a movie that they love so much, it actually becomes stressful to watch it with other people. I'll end up wasting 90 minutes shiftily glancing around to confirm that everyone's laughing at the right parts, then making sure I laugh just a little bit harder (and a millisecond earlier) to prove that I'm still the only one who really, really gets it.

-How the hell are you supposed to fold a fitted sheet?

-I would rather try to carry 10 plastic grocery bags in each hand than take 2 trips to bring my groceries in.

- I think part of a best friend's job should be to immediately clear your computer history if you die.

-The only time I look forward to a red light is when I’m trying to finish a text.

- A recent study has shown that playing beer pong contributes to the spread of mono and the flu. Yeah, if you suck at it.

- Was learning cursive really necessary?

- Lol has gone from meaning, "laugh out loud" to "I have nothing else to say".

- I have a hard time deciphering the fine line between boredom and hunger.

- Answering the same letter three times or more in a row on a Scantron test is absolutely petrifying.

- My brother's Municipal League baseball team is named the Stepdads. Seeing as none of the guys on the team are actual stepdads, I inquired about the name. He explained, "Cuz we beat you, and you hate us." Classy, bro.

- Whenever someone says "I'm not book smart, but I'm street smart", all I hear is "I'm not real smart, but I'm imaginary smart".

- How many times is it appropriate to say "What?" before you just nod and smile because you still didn't hear what they said?

- I love the sense of camaraderie when an entire line of cars teams up to prevent a dick from cutting in at the front. Stay strong, brothers!

- Every time I have to spell a word over the phone using 'as in' examples, I will undoubtedly draw a blank and sound like a complete idiot. Today I had to spell my boss's last name to an attorney and said "Yes that's G as in...(10 second lapse)..ummm...Goonies"

-What would happen if I hired two private investigators to follow each other?

- While driving yesterday I saw a banana peel in the road and instinctively swerved to avoid it...thanks Mario Kart.

- MapQuest really needs to start their directions on #5. Pretty sure I know how to get out of my neighborhood.

- Obituaries would be a lot more interesting if they told you how the person died.

- I find it hard to believe there are actually people who get in the shower first and THEN turn on the water.

-Shirts get dirty. Underwear gets dirty. Pants? Pants never get dirty, and you can wear them forever.

- I would like to officially coin the phrase 'catching the swine flu' to be used as a way to make fun of a friend for hooking up with an overweight woman. Example: "Dave caught the swine flu last night."

-I can't remember the last time I wasn't at least kind of tired.

- Bad decisions make good stories

-Whenever I'm Facebook stalking someone and I find out that their profile is public I feel like a kid on Christmas morning who just got the Red Ryder BB gun that I always wanted. 546 pictures? Don't mind if I do!

- Is it just me or do high school girls get sluttier & sluttier every year?

-If Carmen San Diego and Waldo ever got together, their offspring would probably just be completely invisible.

-Why is it that during an ice-breaker, when the whole room has to go around and say their name and where they are from, I get so incredibly nervous? Like I know my name, I know where I'm from, this shouldn't be a problem....

-You never know when it will strike, but there comes a moment at work when you've made up your mind that you just aren't doing anything productive for the rest of the day.

-Can we all just agree to ignore whatever comes after DVDs? I don't want to have to restart my collection.

-There's no worse feeling than that millisecond you're sure you are going to die after leaning your chair back a little too far.

-I'm always slightly terrified when I exit out of Word and it asks me if I want to save any changes to my ten page research paper that I swear I did not make any changes to.

- "Do not machine wash or tumble dry" means I will never wash this ever.

-I hate being the one with the remote in a room full of people watching TV. There's so much pressure. 'I love this show, but will they judge me if I keep it on? I bet everyone is wishing we weren't watching this. It's only a matter of time before they all get up and leave the room. Will we still be friends after this?'

-I hate when I just miss a call by the last ring (Hello? Hello? Dammit!), but when I immediately call back, it rings nine times and goes to voicemail. What'd you do after I didn't answer? Drop the phone and run away?

- I hate leaving my house confident and looking good and then not seeing anyone of importance the entire day. What a waste.

-When I meet a new girl, I'm terrified of mentioning something she hasn't already told me but that I have learned from some light internet stalking.

-I like all of the music in my iTunes, except when it's on shuffle, then I like about one in every fifteen songs in my iTunes.

-Why is a school zone 20 mph? That seems like the optimal cruising speed for pedophiles...

- As a driver I hate pedestrians, and as a pedestrian I hate drivers, but no matter what the mode of transportation, I always hate cyclists.

-Sometimes I'll look down at my watch 3 consecutive times and still not know what time it is.

-It should probably be called Unplanned Parenthood.

-I keep some people's phone numbers in my phone just so I know not to answer when they call.

-Even if I knew your social security number, I wouldn't know what do to with it.

-Even under ideal conditions people have trouble locating their car keys in a pocket, hitting the G-spot, and Pinning the Tail on the Donkey - but I’d bet my ass everyone can find and push the Snooze button from 3 feet away, in about 1.7 seconds, eyes closed, first time every time...

-My 4-year old son asked me in the car the other day "Dad what would happen if you ran over a ninja?" How the hell do I respond to that?

-It really pisses me off when I want to read a story on CNN.com and the link takes me to a video instead of text.

-I wonder if cops ever get pissed off at the fact that everyone they drive behind obeys the speed limit.

-I think the freezer deserves a light as well.

-I disagree with Kay Jewelers. I would bet on any given Friday or Saturday night more kisses begin with Miller Lites than Kay.

-The other night I ordered takeout, and when I looked in the bag, saw they had included four sets of plastic silverware. In other words, someone at the restaurant packed my order, took a second to think about it, and then estimated that there must be at least four people eating to require such a large amount of food. Too bad I was eating by myself. There's nothing like being made to feel like a fat bastard before dinner.

Rutgers Football Preview

College football is almost upon us! Training camp has started. So, I thought I'd give a little preview of RU's season, and try to make a prediction based upon that.

Of course, a lot of this depends on who RU's quarterback is. Can he manage the offense and not make mistakes? Will the new defenders gel quickly? Lots of questions this year, but lots of reasons for optimism as well.

So let's get to the schedule, shall we?

9/7 Cincinnati: Opening up the season and the Big East season with last year's conference champs. The Bearcats have lost a lot on defense, and we've lost a lot on offense. The renovated RU stadium should have fans pumped and loud. I expect a defensive barnburner, but I have a bad feeling about this game. Cincy 17 RU 14 (0-1, 0-1 BE)

9/12 Howard: A quick turnaround, but Howard isn't good. The new players click on offense against a subpar defense. Our defense causes a ton of TOs and scores on one. RU 35 Howard 10 (1-1, 0-1 BE)

9/19 Florida International: Competition gets a little better but not great. RU starts to find itself and wins pretty convincingly as the score is closer than the game. RU 27-FIU 14 (2-1, 0-1 BE)

9/26 Maryland: This is another game that scares me. We're going to need to play tough defense at this one, and limit mistakes. Hopefully the practice against the other two teams helps, but I still say we're a little far away from winning this game. Another close one--fans get a little nervous. Maryland 21 RU 17 (2-2, 0-1 BE)

10/10 Texas Southern: Texans can play football, but I've never heard of this team. RU gets one back. RU 28 TS 7 (3-2, 0-1 BE)

10/16 Pittsburgh: This is the team the Big East coaches picked to win the league. But we have them at home, the players have settled in... the d-line is clicking. We win. Big defensive stop in the last 2 minutes. RU 21 Pitt 14 (4-2, 1-1 BE)

10/23 Army: We play army all the time. Even when we were winning one game a season, that one game was against Army. RU 44 Army 27 (5-2, 1-1 BE)

10/31 UConn: I hate playing UConn. At UConn. There's a rivalry here. They always play us close... I don't know much about UConn this year. So I'll go on optimism... RU 33 UConn 20 (6-2, 2-1 BE)

11/12 South Florida: Another team that's good, but we have them at home. We beat them two years ago when they were #2 in the country. We're starting to roll. Our freshman are integrated. We win. RU 14 USF 10 (7-2, 3-1 BE)

11/21 Syracuse: OOOHHHH I can't wait for this game. I don't like 'Cuse... and as an athelete I don't like their new QB starter Greg Paulus... he's a former Duke hoops player. The new Cuse coach has some optimism in his program now. But not against the RU defense. RU 27 'Cuse 12 (8-2, 4-1 BE)

11/27 Louisville: Louisville is down. We're confident. We're looking at our first Big East Championship. Need to win this game. RU does, close... setting up a huge showdown with West Virginia next week. RU 17 'Ville 14 (9-2, 5-1 BE)

12/5 West Virgina: We never beat WVU. They beat us 80-7 once. They don't have Pat White anymore. But they're WVU and they're still good. We just don't have the horses in a classic. WVU 35 RU 32 OT (9-3, 5-2 BE)

Disappointing, but we're still winning. It sets up a big 2010 season when we have almost everyone coming back and battle tested. That's the year we win the Big East.

Thoughts?

Winner of the book club!

Okay folks, JT Ellison's All the Pretty Girls is the winner!

So, what's next?

Go out, pick up a copy and read it! In about two weeks, I'll post a list of questions about the book and we'll discuss it in the comments of this blog!

As for the rest of the books? Don't worry! Assuming this is successful, we'll do a book a month. Next time I'll put 3 books up for a vote and we'll decide. (Two of which will be EVEN and LOOKING FOR ALASKA, our two major runners up.)

Thanks to everyone who voted!

New Post and Idea:

Okay first off, I have a new post up a Do Some Damage today.

Secondly, I have an idea:



Here are some books on my TBR pile. I'd love to start a blog book club. The way I want to do it is this. We (in the comments) vote on one of these books from the pile and we read it. In let's say... 2 weeks (Labor Day Weekend?), I'll post some discussion questions about the books and we can discuss it over the weekend in the comments.

We will be able to talk about spoilers in the comments, though the questions will be largely spoiler free.

What do you guys think?

(If it's tough to see what the books are, they are: Looking for Alaska by John Green, The Secret Friend by Chris Mooney, The Gentlemen's Hous by Don Winslow, The Twelve by Stuart Neville, The 50/50 Killer by Steve Mosby, Paying for It by Tony Black, Old Flame by Ira Berkowitz, Half the Blood of Brooklyn and Every Last Drop by Charlie Huston, Starvation Lake by Bryan Gruley, Slammer by Al Guthrie, The Killing Moon by Chuck Hogan, The Strain by Chuck Hogan and Guillermo Del Toro, Even by Andrew Grat, A March to Madness by John Feinstein. ALSO not in the picture: All the Pretty Girls by JT Ellison, Person of Interest by Theresa Schwegel, and The Silent Hour by Michael Koryta)

Put your vote for the first book club book in the comments section, please.

Weekend Thoughts

-The Yankees swept the Red Sox to go up 6.5 games in the Division. The Yankees are starting to look like a special team, but since 2004 they've done things like this before. Gotta keep playing, gotta keep pitching, and then you have to win in October.

-Of course, everyone in the media is talking about the money they spend on the team. You wish your team spent like the Yankees do.

-Planning a wedding seems like it might be a lot of work. Hmph. Color me surprised.

-Rutgers football practice starts today. Expect a full preview later this week, but let's just say I'm very excited about this season.

-Mike Francesa just said the Red Sox won't catch the Yankees for the division this year. Mark it down, it will happen. That man is a HUGE (or as he would say, "YUGE") jinx.

-I've been doing a lot of revising. What also surprises me about this point in revision is the amount of work I can do while I type very little. I can read and stare at the screen for an hour and only hit the keyboard 3 or 4 times. It doesn't feel productive, but at times it is.

-I've started working out with weights again. I'm sore.

-I'm thinking about starting a book club on the blog. I'm working it out in my head how I'm going to do it, but keep your eyes here. I think it's something that could be a lot of fun. We'll use the comments section for discussion. I'll do a bigger announcement on it later this week.

My Friends are Gonna Find this post hilarious: DATING ADVICE FROM DAVE

So, after 29 years of singledom, I got on one knee the other night and got engaged (!!!). That's right people!!

Those who've known me for years are really happy with me. I tend to think they're more happy about not having to listen to me whine about women anymore.

I've had a lot of experience in dating. And a lot of it is bad experience...

So, I leave this gift to you... the single guys out there:

DAVE WHITE'S GUIDE TO DATING.

From 2001-2005 I didn't date. I didn't have any confidence. I didn't know what I was doing. When I would meet a girl, I'd get really nervous and manage to screw things up due to total inactivity.

Then, through a series of events, I finally decided to take hold of my dating life and went on Match.com. It was the only way, in my mind, where there wouldn't be any games (turns out there were games, just the rules were different). You knew you were going on a date. It wasn't hanging out with a friend. It wasn't anything else.

I cannot recommend Match highly enough.

It taught me how to date.

RULE #1: YOU ARE NOT LOOKING FOR THE LOVE OF YOUR LIFE. You are looking to meet someone interesting and attractive enough to go on a second date. One date does not mean you're getting married tomorrow. You are meeting someone. You're chatting it up. You're getting a few drinks, and having a few laughs.

RULE #2: HAVE FUN. I used to look forward to going on a date with the crazy girls as much as I looked forward to the good ones. It gave me something to talk about to friends for the rest of the week. I went on dates with girls who showed up in chocolate stained pajamas, called me fat, called me babe immediately, told me they loved me before we met in person... One after another, after another... They were a blast. And when the good dates happened, they were a please as well.

RULE #3: TELL THEM ABOUT YOURSELF. Don't lie. Don't try to look better than you are... be happy with who you are. I had stories up the wahzoo to tell. And I would rank them in order of how the date was going. If the date sucked, I pretty much told school stories. If it was okay, I talked about writing as well. And if it was going well, I told the Canada story. Basically I had a routine.

RULE #4: BE READY TO PLAY GAMES. I'm sorry, but it's just a part of it. Wait two days to call. Play hard to get. Girls, for some reason, like this. I don't understand why... it's counterintuitive, but it works. Sometimes you have to make a girl jealous. Come on, think about it... how would you feel if a girl told you she loved you before you met her? You'd freak out. Guess what? So do girls!

RULE #5: LISTEN TO YOUR FRIENDS. You are way too close to the situation. Your friends know. They'll either tell you to act like F'n Dave f'n White, or that the girl is CRAZY and get away, or they'll tell you to CALL HER!!!

RULE #6: IT'S A NUMBERS GAME. Go on dates. This is the most important rule. I would go on up to 3 dates a week. Get out there. Meet more than one girl. Have a lot of fun. Get on Match.

Remember.... dating is fun. You're meeting new people. You actually make new friends.

For the record, I did not meet my fiancee on Match (I met her through friends), but being on Match prepared me for dating her the right way.

Any questions?

Anyone have other advice? Post them in the comments.

IN OTHER NEWS: I am posting about blogging over at Do Some Damage today.

What I Did on My Summer Vacation Part 3: The Books

Last in an edition. I read three GREAT books on my trip.

Don Winslow THE POWER OF THE DOG: I love Winslow and I was saving this book for the right moment. Well, going to Cancun seemed to be the right moment for reading an epic novel about the drug war between the US and Mexico. I don't know exactly how to describe this book. It's huge, it had GREAT characters, and the usual wonderful Winslow style. It's a combination between HEAT, TRAFFIC, and THE GOOD SHEPARD. It's a book that moves. I was on the edge of my beach chair... honestly. And the emotion in the book twists your heart. If you haven't read it, go out and get it now. It's long... but...it's worth it. Plus, I learned a ton about the drug war... and more importantly a lot of Mexican swear words.

Chuck Hogan's PRINCE OF THIEVES: I've had this book on my shelves for a few years. I decided to read it when I heard Ben Affleck was making it into a film called THE TOWN, and when I heard about Hogan's co-work on THE STRAIN. The story of a Boston bank robber in AA who falls in love with one of his hostages. That's the simple version. It's actually more an exploration of Boston, friendship, rivalries, and the old neighborhoods. Yes, it has a very Dennis Lehane feel, which of course, is a huge compliment and huge shoes to fill. But I sat down by the pool to read this on a Wednesday. I finished this 600+ page novel on Thursday.

John Green's AN ABUNDANCE OF KATHERINES: Hilarious description of the months after high school. A child prodigy has been dumped by girls named Katherine (and ONLY girls named Katherine 19 times). In the throes of another dumping, he decides to find a theorem that will help predict relationships. A funny book, that reads fast. Green really knows the psyche of the teenage boy. Plus, this title is great for Green's "in your pants" game.



PS: Marcus's comment reminded me that I also wanted to mention THE AMATEURS, which I read the week before I left. It came out today (so I cheated a little), but I've always been a huge fan of Marcus's work.

It's a story of four friends who are down on their luck and decide to rob a gangster of money. Of course, things go horribly wrong. What sells this book are the four friends, characters who really jump off the page. Read it for the the first bar scene after the robbery alone. Brilliant, slow building tension. Nice job, Marcus. This one is up there with the rest of your books!

Order it from your local indie!

What I Did on My Summer Vacation, Part 2: Cancun

Have you ever seen Dr. No? You remember the early scene where Bond arrives in Jamaica and the woman wants to take his picture in the airport, Felix Leighter is following him, and about 89 people are around and harassing him?

That's what it's like getting off the airplane in Cancun.

First off, you go through customs, which involves a button. You press the button. If you get a green light you pass. If you get red you get searched.

I got green.

Phew.

Then you get checked for Swine Flu. Or at least you have to fill out paperwork that swears you've never had a fever in your life.

After that you go into a hallway and there are official looking men in blue shirts and ties. They are yelling at you. They are waving you to their tables. THEY ARE TRYING TO SELL YOU TIME SHARES. It's really annoying at 10 at night.

After that, things are pretty standard. I suntanned. I went to the pool bar. I went out for dinner.

And I went to Senor Frogs.

Where... um....

A Mexican guy, a UK guy, and me had to dance sexy (yeah, stop laughing), race to chug a (er... non alcoholic...cough) drink (I WON THAT PART!), and then unfold a frozen t-shirt, and put it on. I lost the t-shirt part to the UK guy (at least we won the Revolution!!)...

As a punishment I had to slide down a water slide into a lagoon. Rumor has it, the lagoon used to be the city's sewage system. See the post lagoon picture here:



It was fun.

Very fun week.

I got tan. I relaxed.

And I read a ton of books.

More on those books tomorrow....

-------------------------------------------------------

Also: I got great news today. I was a finalist for a Crimespree Award--Best Paperback Original! I didn't win, but it's great to be nominated! Thanks to all the readers who voted!

What I Did on My Summer Vacation, Part 1: The Flights

I made it.

To Cancun and back. On a plane.

Good on me.

We flew Continental, and we flew high class. First class.

It happened during my sixth panic attack (okay... six is a bit high, but still) on the day we left. My G/F went to check in our flight and saw there were two first class seats open. She asked if I wanted to upgrade. I kinda shrugged and we did. (I actually probably argued for it... The g/f didn't care where we sat as long as we got on the plane.)

Once upgrading we hit the airport, went through security, and hit the President's Club. Free drinks and snacks! I felt like I was in a James Bond film (More on that later, when we actually get to Cancun.)

Once on the plane, we were in the first row and I had a clear view of the flight attendants. During take-off (my least favorite part, I calm down after that), I was able to keep an eye on them. They remained calm. We got up in the air. I listened to a podcast or two as the movie was awful.

At one point, when we were being served, I thanked the flight attendant for being so calm. I told her I was a terrible flyer. She said, without sarcasm, "Really? You looked calm to me. I never would have guessed."

"I faked it," I said.

She smiled, and said, "Sometimes we do too."

Oh. Great.

We landed.

A week later, I made sure to upgrade again. We got the same seats, a different meal, and portable little TVs. I watched STAR TREK and half an episode of THE BIG BANG THEORY.

We got in to Newark and through customs about 20 minutes before we were actually schedueled to air. I think that's some sort of Newark Airport record.

TOMORROW: Cancun itself...(AKA being harassed for time shares, hoping for the green button, and pool swimming.)