I stayed up late last night to finish

SWEETHEART by Chelsea Cain, 2008.

The pages just flew by in this thriller, which is a follow up to Heartsick. I just could not read it fast enough, I was so totally enthralled and wanted to find out the ending. And of course, Cain leaves it open for the next book, which is due out this fall. Storyline concerns Portland, Oregon, detective Archie Sheridan, who is obsessed with the creepiest serial killer ever, Gretchen Lowell, who was caught and imprisoned for life (in the previous book). In return for revealing info on the locations of her murdered victims (some 200 people), she is imprisoned & Archie visits her monthly. Now Archie is trying to put his life together, has sworn off visiting her, and move on. A woman's dead body found in a park gets him involved in another murder case, which ends up being tied to Gretchen, plus reporter Susan Ward, anxious to get notoriety for her crime reporting. Things heat up again when Gretchen manages to escape and threatens the safety of everyone he cares for. Top-notch entertainment, a real thrill ride that keeps moving. I don't read a lot of this type novel, but occasionally they just hit the spot. Cain keeps the plot moving at a pace and delivers the goods so you're not disappointed. If you're into crime thrillers, this is an excellent choice.

Finished on 7/14/09:

THE BLACK TOWER by Louis Bayard, 2008.
An excellent historical mystery concerning the son of Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette, who was incarcerated in the Black Tower, and after his parents' deaths, allegedly died there a short time later. This story, set in 1818, involves Vidocq, the chief of the Parisian plainclothes police force, who is on the trail to find out if this prince has somehow survived death. A murdered man has been found with a paper on him containing the name of Hector Carpentier, and that's where Vidocq's search begins. This Hector is the son of another Hector Carpentier, who was the prince's sympathetic physician in the tower. These two characters become involved in a dangerous and tangled quest to find out the truth of what actually happened to the prince: is he dead or alive? Where is he? Who is he? And who is behind the series of attacks and murders against those who are out to either discover or conceal the truth of the matter? Great details of Restoration France, intriguing historical premise, fast paced narrative, and colorful characters (Vidocq is definitely interesting), make this a good read.

My wife and I watched a little indie film last night called "Junebug". It was a quirky, odd, entirely character driven movie set in North Carolina. Amy Adams, Alessandro Nivola, and Celia Weston starred; Adams made this before she became famous ala Disney's hugely popular and successful "Enchanted". This movie involved the homecoming of a young married couple to NC from Chicago; the wife (Embeth Davidz) is chasing down a NC folk artist she wants to represent and is meeting her in-laws for the first time. Amy Adams, as the very pregnant, cute, and somewhat childish Ashley is the only family member to welcome her openly, and she nearly steals every scene she's in. There's lots of family issues like love, jealousy, anger, fear, loss, etc., and the idea of one son being the "golden boy"(Nivola, in this case). The new wife struggles to understand his family and their ways and tries to fit in, and all the while trying to sign the artist she's after; the husband seems to quickly revert to the old environment. There are no easy or pat answers to some of the issues and not everything gets resolved. It is well written and realistic, with interesting camera work, and very well cast. Shot in and around Winston-Salem, NC, which adds to the realistic feel. Worth a look and discussing afterward, as we did.

Finished on 7/8/08:

BOUND by Sally Gunning, 2008.
A thoroughly entertaining and researched novel concerning a girl named Alice Cole, who at 7 years old, arrived in Boston with her father in 1756, after losing her mother and brothers to death while at sea. Her father sells her as an indentured servant to work for Mr. Morton for 7 years, then disappears from her life forever. Morton treats her well, raises her with his own daughter, Abigail. But when Nabby marries Emery Verley, Alice goes with them as a gift, is sexually abused and humiliated by Verley and mistreated by Nabby, and finally runs off, stowing away on a ship in Boston harbor. She ends up in Satucket on Cape Cod, taken in by Widow Berry and Mr. Freeman. The novel explores Alice's further trials and tribulations, including the consequences of running away, an unwanted pregnancy, attraction to the widow's grandson, alleged murder, and the unsettled political climate of the times. Great detail, interesting, informative narrative, an intriguing heroine, and about a topic that is probably often overlooked: indentured slavery. Recommended.

Finished reading 7/3/09:

CITY OF THE SUN by David Levien, 2008.

Swiftly moving thriller about the taking of an 12 year old boy, Jamie Gabriel, while on his paper route one morning. To the police and his parents, he has vanished without a trace. The father, Paul, hires Frank Behr, a p.i. with police connections to track him down and find out what happened to him, as the parents want some kind of closure. Behr, working with the slimmest of clues, begins the hunt. Paul wants to be more involved in the investigation, and Behr and Paul form a kind of uneasy bond and work together to solve the case. The whole investigation leads them down paths no one wants to follow.

The unsavoriness/seaminess of the subject matter could be a stumbling block: it is repellent, but at the same time intriguing and makes for a thrilling story. Definitely a page-turner.