Innocent in Death by J.D. Robb

Yup, already finished this one up. And boy was it good. We actually got some real tension in Roarke and Eve's marriage, but since this is ultimately a romance, they are just stronger in the end for it (come on, you knew that going in). But wow, it's good.

The storyline this time has a well-liked teacher at an expensive private school murdered with poison. Eve has to figure out who on earth would want to kill a man who really does seem to be just an ordinary man.

But added into the fray is the appearance of Magdelena, a woman who left Roarke over a decade ago. She's everything Eve is not, someone who travels with ease through Roarke's world and is a stunning woman, to boot.

It was great to see how Eve and Roarke handle everything (and mishandle). It's the first real trouble they've had in their marriage as far as I can remember. Anyways, if you're a Robb fan, you have to read this one. And the killer....freaky. Although I did figure out who it was early on, just because that was the freakiest thing Robb could do.

Lost in Translation by Edward Willett

Kathryn was a human empath whose world and life had been destroyed when, as a very young child, she'd watched helplessly as the alien S'sinn slaughtered her parents before her very eyes. Only the Translators, an elite guild of empaths, had been able to free her from the trauma and give her a new life.


Jarrikk was a young S'sinn, an unproven warrior who'd seen his flight mates slaughtered by the humans who'd sought to colonize his world. Crippled so that he could never fly again, he would have chosen death, but he wasn't allowed the choice. Instead he, too, was trained to be a Translator. And as humans and S'sinn found themselves poised on the brink of a war that could not only destroy their own species but could disrupt the delicate balance of the multiracial Commonwealth, these two Translators--who had every reason to hate one another--had to work together to find a common ground and avert catastrophe. But whether their Translators' oath and training could overcome the enemies leagued against them was very much in doubt...

Title: Lost in Translation

Author: Edward Willett

Year published: 2006 (paperback edition, 2005 hardback Five Star edition)

Why I picked up this book: Liked the cover, then the back blurb sounded interesting.

Do I like the cover? Yeah

Is this part of a series? I don't think so. It certainly stands alone.

What I enjoyed about the book: I liked that it had a distinctively SF feeling, but wasn't overly technical. And the characters were interesting. It shows the events that lead up to the two of them meeting and how each side isn't all evil or all good. There are lots of shades of grey. It's not a deep book, but I'm glad I read it.

What I didn’t like about the book? Not much. It was a good read. Not something I will probably read again, but I enjoyed it.

Is this a new-to-me author and would I read something by this author again? new to me author and I do think I'll read more if something comes along that looks interesting.

Am I keeping it or passing it on? Passing it on. It was good, just not a keeper.

Orphans of Chaos by John C. Wright

Synopsis stolen from this Wikipedia entry:

Five orphans who have spent their lives living in a strict secretive British boarding school begin to discover that they are different from the other children that they so rarely see. As the story progresses, these five discover that the patrons of the school and their own guardians are not the English lords that they have claimed to be. Instead these adults represent strange powers from far removed locales. Their curiosity is further peaked when they learn that they themselves possess unique paranormal abilities.

The story largely concerns the main characters investigations and discoveries about an otherworldly power struggle, and their place within it.

Title: Orphans of Chaos

Author: John C. Wright

Year published: 2005 (paperback Oct. 31, 2006)

Why I picked up this book: I liked the cover. Was an impulse buy at the bookstore.

Do I like the cover? Yes, it’s the reason I picked the book up.

Is this part of a series? Yes, it’s the first in a series.

What I enjoyed about the book: I liked all the mythology that’s woven in and the way that you really don’t quite know what’s going on. I purposely stayed away from any information on the book so that I wouldn’t get any spoilers. It’s a bizarre book, yet I really enjoyed it. It’s told in first-person from Amelia’s point of view, but because of how the story is, you’re never quite sure what’s real and what isn’t because things really aren’t as they seem. Or aren’t what they seem to not be. Overall I liked much of the book. Enough to try to read the sequel someday.

What I didn’t like about the book: Well, it does rather end on a cliff-hanger and it can get slow and overly wordy at times. I would imagine it might be more confusing to someone who wasn’t very up on their mythology, but I knew enough to get a lot of it, perhaps most of it.

Is this a new-to-me author and would I read something by this author again? This author is new to me and I was intrigued enough to read more.

Am I keeping it or passing it on? I’m going to keep it for now.