Our Favorite Reads For 2014

As usual, we both read a lot of good books this year.  Those we both liked a lot are listed with links to our reviews, but we each chose our top favorites to include in our videos.  If you want to read a review of one not listed below, you can search for it using the search box in the upper left corner at the top of our blog.

There were quite a few books we both liked a lot which we highly recommend.  Here's that list with links to our reviews:

Think Twice and Keep Quiet by Lisa Scottoline (Karen's favorites)
That Night by Chevy Stevens (Karen's favorite)
The Winter Horses by Philip Kerr (Karen's Favorite)
Big Little Lies by Liane Moriary (Both our Favorite)
Belzhar by Meg Wolitzer (Both our Favorite)
What She Saw by Sheila Lowe (Karen's Favorite)
A Letter to My Dog by Robin Layten (Gerard's favorite)
Rain Reign by Ann M. Martin
Five Days Left by Julie Lawson Timmer (Gerard's Favorite)
A Dog Named Slugger by Leigh Brill (Must read for dog lovers!)
Weekends With Daisy by Sharron Kahn Luttrell
Heaven Sent Rain by Lauraine Snelling (Karen's Favorite)
Eyes on You by Kate White (Gerard's favorite)
Tuesday Tucks Me In by Luis Carlos Montalvan (children's book) (Karen's Favorite)
Graduation Day by Joelle Charbonneau (Karen's Favorite)
Those Who Wish Me Dead by Michael Koryta (Karen's Favorite)
In the Blood by Lisa Unger (Gerard's Favorite)
 
Karen read 88 books this year and many were very good. Here is a video showing her top favorites in fiction and non-fiction categories.



Gerard read 120 books in 2014.  This video shows his top 16 fiction and top 12 non-fiction:


Correction:
I included the wrong bible in Gerard's video by mistake.  It should be this one:

Feel free to share your link to your favorite reads for 2014 in the comments. Read on in 2015!

"In Doubt" by Drusilla Campbell Lacks Action

In Doubt by Drusilla Campbell is about a young girl who takes a case of a young boy who shot the governor in California.  This book digs into the background of Donny, the young boy, who was the shooter.  I found it to be okay, but would have loved a little action.
(Gerard's review, 3.5 stars)

Have you read this one? What did you think of it? If you reviewed this too, feel free to share your link to your review in the comments. Happy Reading!

Teaser Tuesdays: 3 This Week

Since MizB over at Should be Reading is taking a break for the holidays and not posting the teaser meme, feel free to leave your link to your teaser post in the comments here.

Gerard's:
  
She dropped the phone and ran to the window in time to see the governor collapse.  In the park there was a moment of stunned silence, and then the screaming began.

From page 35 of In Doubt by Drusilla Campbell.

Karen's: 

Yet even in such moments she didn't doubt that God existed.  She just sometimes wondered whether He remembered that she did.

Pg. 33 from The Inheritance by Tamera Alexander.

For me, Jack was worry and constant work.  He was also adorable and sweet, but the former far outweighed the latter.

From Loc. 1109 on Kindle, pg. 86 from The Dog Next Door:  and Other Stories of the Dogs We Love edited by Callie Smith Grant.


Happy Reading!

"4th of July" by James Patterson

4^th of July by James Patterson is about Lindsay, a good San Francisco cop who is charged with wrongful death, using excessive force, police misconduct when she shot two teens in self-defense.  Sara died immediately and her younger brother was paralyzed from his neck down.  The trial was very good!  While suspended, she goes away and solves more murders in another town where her sister lives, including the unsolved murder that haunted her for many years.

 

I liked the trial part of this book a lot with the story line of the good cop being accused of wrong doing but after the trial, the book focused on a string of murders that Lindsay, the "super cop" manages to solve by herself.   It's an interesting read if you like super detectives and murder mysteries.  I was surprised at the ending and it moved along quickly.
(Karen's review, 4 stars)

Have you read this one? What did you think of it? If you reviewed this too, feel free to share your link to your review in the comments. Happy Reading!

"The Dog Next Door" - A Book for Dog Lovers!

The Dog Next Door edited by Callie Smith Grant is a collection of short true stories about people with dogs they love and why their dog meant so much to them.  It is by no means a “page-turner” but it is a heartwarming, relaxing read that shows how strong the bond can be between owner and dog.  I recommend it to any dog lover. 

(Karen's review, 4 stars)

Have you read this one? What did you think of it? If you reviewed this too, feel free to share your link to your review in the comments. Happy Reading!

"Leaving Time" by Jodi Picoult

Leaving Time by Jodi Picoult is about a young girl named Jenna who is searching for her mom.  She enlists a psychic and a detective to help her.  Her mom worked with elephants.  As the story leads back to why her mom is missing, you learn a lot about elephants.  I found the information about the elephants interesting, but the story about her mom missing was good too.  I liked it but didn’t love it.  

(Gerard's review, 5 stars)

Have you read this one? What did you think of it? If you reviewed this too, feel free to share your link to your review in the comments. Happy Reading!

Unbroken: An Olympian’s Journey From Airman to Castaway to Captive by Laura Hillenbrand

Unbroken:  An Olympian’s Journey From Airman to Castaway to Captive (The Young Adult Adaptation of Unbroken) by Laura Hillenbrand is an amazing and fascinating non-fiction novel.  With never a dull moment, Louie Zamperini’s adventurous story kept my attention from beginning to end.  Just when you think things couldn’t possibly get any worse for him, they do!  It’s hard to believe he actually survived drifting on a life raft in the Pacific ocean for 47 days and then being tortured and humiliated as a POW. 

I highly recommend this to anyone!  It is well researched and very informative, giving me insight into a life of a POW that I had no clue about.  Unimaginable horrific things actually happened to our POW’s during World War II.  I was afraid this was going to read like a history book, but it really doesn’t.  It is very well written and stayed on my mind long after I put it down.   I found it astonishing that Louie lived to be 97 after all he went through. 

(Karen's review, 5 stars)

 

Have you read this one? What did you think of it? If you reviewed this too, feel free to share your link to your review in the comments. Happy Reading!