Damaged by Alex kava

In Penascola Beach, FL, the Coast Guard braces for Category-5 hurricane that has entered the Gulf of Mexico. During a routine patrol of the waterways, the aircrew pots a massive fishing cooler floating a mile offshore. Inside, the find it filled with body parts. Criminal profile Maggie O'Dell is sent to investigate. Eventually, Maggie is able to trace the torso in the cooler back to a man who mysteriously disappeared week earlier after a hurrican hit Port St. Lucie on the Atlantic side. Can Maggie solve this before the hurricane hits Penascola Beach. I really like reading Alex Kava. They keep your interest all the way through. Pat M

Ice Cold by Tess Gerritsen

Medical examiner Maura Isles is in Wyoming for a medical conference when a group of friends invite her on a skiing trip. Stranded in a storm, they stumble upon a deserted town in a mountain valley. No phone service, no electricity, no one knowing where they were, the small group prepare to either wait out the storm or try to get some help. Days later, Maura's friend Boston homicide detective Jane Rizzoli receives word that Mara's burned body has been found at the scene of a vehicle accident. Jane, struggling for answers as to why this happened, persists in investigating her disappearance. This reader found Ice Cold an intriguing, suspenseful book, hard to put down. A great read. Sandy Penton

Pray for Silence by Linda Castillo

Pray for Silence is Linda Castillo's second book. The first book, Sworn to Silence, was great. You don't have to read it first, but I would recommend it. It has the same main characters. This book is about Kate Burkholder, chief of police of Painters Mill, OH. She grow up in an Amish family, but she left. The book begins with the discovery of a family of seven who has been slaughtered on their family. They are a Amish family who just moved from Lancaster, PA. She must figure out who would do such a thing. State Agent John Tomasetti, who was in the first book, returns to help with the case. I couldn't put the book down. I hope to writes many more books. Pat M

Thief of Words by John Jaffe

Annie Hollerman has spent 20 years trying to run away from a past mistake. Now a successful literary agent in Washington, DC, her best friend coerces her into a lunch date with journalist Jack DePaul, opening a whole can of worms leading to the past she is fleeing from. Jaffe writes a funny, thoughtful, engaging little novel of romance that the reader found hard to put down. You will like it. Sandy Penton

The Aloha Quilt by Jennifer Chiaverini

Bonnie Markham of Elm Creek Quilt Camp is taking a break. Getting a divorce from husband, Craig, she is off to visit college friend Claire in Maui to help her establish a quilter's retreat in a bed and breakfast. A lot of Hawaiian history and information about Hawaiian quilting. I found it slow going. Sandy Penton

Betsy's Return by Wanda E Brunstetter

Betsy Nelson returns home to care for her ailing father, minister to a small church on the canal. When Reverend William Covington arrives to fill her father's pulpit, Betsy fears for her and her father's future. Taking in laundry to earn money, Betsy is determined to provide for herself and her father. A story of love and forgiveness, Brunstetter writes a compelling tale. Sandy Penton

Dangerous by Diana Palmer

Winnie Sinclair 911 operator, is attracted to Kilraven, who seems to resist getting involved with the opposite sex. Read several chapters, unsolved murders seemingly connected to Kilraven, still couldn't get interested in it. Put me to sleep. Sandy Penton

The Lonely Polygamist by Brady Udall

I understand HBO sitcom Big Love is loosely based on this book. Golden Richards, husband to four wives and father to twenty-eight children is having a midlife crisis. #1 wife Beverly aspires to rules the roost but things can be pretty much described as chaos. Golden spends most of the week away in another state at his work site (for a brothel, no less) and the wives are getting testy. The kids are running amok. The first part of this novel is pretty humorous given the situations Golden and his family gets embroiled in, but then things take a turn for the worse. This was a very interesting book to read and I would recommend if you can take polygamy with a grain of salt.

The General Custer Story by Lauran Paine

Published in 1996, Paine writes a compelling and well-researched biography of Custer and the Battle of the Little Big Horn. Well worth the read, especially if you are a history buff. Sandy Penton

The Zero Hour by Joseph Finder

FBI Special Agent Sarah Cahill is drawn into a murder investigation involving ex-husband homicide detective Peter Cronin. Meanwhile, across the ocean, charismatic terrorist operative Zero converses with Malcom Dyson, fugitive financier, who is hiring him to make a "hit." Sarah conducts an intense, secret manhunt for Zero, with no knowledge of his appearance. Finder again composes an intense thriller with believable scenarios, much to this reader's delight. A good read. Sandy Penton.

High Crimes by Joseph Finder

Criminal defense attorney/Harvard law professor Claire Heller Chapman is leading the perfect life with daughter and husband Tom Chapman, she thinks. One day a trip to the mall with her family is all it takes to throw a monkey wrench in the works. As they stroll through the mall, her husband is suddenly accosted by two men who address him by another name and accuse him of murder, at which point he flees midst the crowds leaving a theatre. Claire finds herself question- ing Tom's identity, his past, and wondering what else he has lied about. Finder writes a thrilling court-room drama, military style, keeping the reader's interest through the surprise ending. I could not put this book down. Sandy Penton.

White Hot by Sandra Brown

The Hoyle family is Destiny, Louisiana. Huff is arrogant, controlling, cruel and has raised his first- born to be exactly like him. Youngest son Danny has just been found, an apparent suicide and sister Sayre has returned after an absence of ten years. Sayre just wants to pay her respects to Danny and leave town but when questions are raised regarding Danny's death, she decides to stay and do some investigating. Brown writes a thrilling page-turner, this reader could not put it down. Sandy Penton

Hannah's List by Debbie Macomber

Dr. Michael Everett is grieving his wife who passed away a year ago. Hannah's brother gives Michael a letter she had written before she died to give to him stating her wishes. Stunned, Michael finds she has picked out three women for him to consider marrying. Macomber writes a tale of recovery from different types of grief as each individual is suffering heartache of their own. I really liked the positive outlook the reader is given. I would recommend this book to anyone. Sandy Penton

Love Finds You in Homestead Iowa by Melalnie Dobson

Times are hard in Chicago in 1894. Jacob Hirsch, whose wife died less than a year ago leaving him with a young daughter, has been laid off from the Bank where he worked. Penniless and no job prospects, he buys tickets to Washington hoping to find a job there. When Jacob and Cassie arrive at the train station, there is an angry mob milling about. When told to get on the train as quickly as he can, he and Cassie end up riding in an open box car, due to the violence of the mob.

Arriving in Iowa instead of Washington, Cassie is very ill and Jacob is advised to get off the train at Homestead to seek medical help for her. Thus begins a heart-warming story of a father's love for his daughter and what he endures. Falling for an Amana woman, he seeks to join the colony. I found this novel very interesting and hard to put down. A really great read. Sandy Penton

Secrets of Eden by Chris Bohjalian

A morbid drawn-out tale of a minister who has lost his faith, his congregation and his lover. Just did not like this book. Sandy Penton

Domestic Affairs by Eileen Goudge

The story of three women who come from different walks of life and how their lives merge and they are changed. Goudge does a great job of creating her characters, bringing them to life and painting a possible view of life in today's world. A rags to riches, riches to rags story. If you like Delinsky, you will like Goudge. Sandy Penton