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Mark @ Carstairs Considers (2072 KP) rated Right to Remain Silent in Books

May 2, 2021 (Updated May 2, 2021)  
Right to Remain Silent
Right to Remain Silent
Penny Warner | 1998 | Mystery
9
9.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
I Won’t Remain Silent About This Book
Sparkle Bodie was declared dead, but then came back to life at the funeral home. She’s rushed to the hospital where she dies for real – smothered by a pillow. The sheriff thinks that Sparkle’s son, Caleb, is responsible for her murder – the son that is deaf and has had very little interaction with anyone else. Connor is asked by Sparkle’s other son to try to communicate with his brother and find out what really happened. That is proving to be a challenge even before someone lets Caleb out of jail. Can she prove he is innocent?

This is a strong third book in the series. Connor being deaf herself makes her a unique main character, but I love how she navigates life. The other characters, series regulars or suspects, are strong and help make the book compelling. The mystery contains enough red herrings to keep me guessing. I did feel the climax was a bit convoluted at first, but the more Connor explained things, the more it made sense. The paperback originally came out in the late 1990’s, so there are some dated elements in the book, and since that’s what I read, I don’t know if the ebook was updated. As long as you know that going in, you should be okay. There’s a smattering of foul language, but this is worth noting in passing. I’m glad I’m finally reading about Connor and am hoping I can continue the series soon.
  
The Outlaws Daughter is the third book in the Haywire Brides Series by Margaret Brownley. It can be read as a standalone (I haven’t read the other in this series yet and got along just fine), I will be going back and reading the rest of the books in this series though.

     I loved Texas Ranger Matt Taggert in this book! His balance between doing his job and his feelings for Ellie-May was interesting to see. I thought that there was good chemistry between the two main characters and that Matt showed respect for everyone involved. Ellie-May is a great southern Momma (at night when she hears a noise, her first thought is to reach for her shotgun under her pillow!), she is a well-behaved lady who takes care of those around her, and she loves her kids. She is someone I would love to meet in real life. The plot of this story was interesting, it had fast-paced scenes and slower-paced scenes, and I liked the western feel to the town. It kept me engaged throughout the story. I liked the small town where everyone knew everyone, which is not always a good thing, but it was cool to see the town interact with the characters.

I give this book 4 out of 5 stars for the fun characters, the cool western town, and the storyline
  
The Last Templar
The Last Templar
Raymond Khoury | 2006 | Thriller
6
8.0 (3 Ratings)
Book Rating
It's an O.K. Read, But...
...but. It's not riveting. I had no problems putting it down and going to do other things. In fact I stopped for a day half-way through and read an entire other book. That said, I had no problems picking it up again.

The writing style is a bit unsophisticated. It seems to swing between slightly out-of-synch passages of 'Historical Travelogue' and 'Something That Was Written With The Movie in Mind' - screaming Hollywood-esq car chases, murderous priests etc.

In it's favour the theory it puts forward is intriguing and over-all the story is well-paced and well presented. Unfortunatly parts of the plot only stand up if you read them with one eye shut, from behind a pillow, and some of the arguments are highly dubious to say the least (e.g: people can only be good, kind and charitable if inspired to be by religion; Christianity was the first religion to preach love not hate)

All in all, it's not a bad read but if you have to budget your 'book allowance' I'd suggest getting it from a library or borrowing it from a friend.
  
All About You (Love & Hate, #1)
All About You (Love & Hate, #1)
4
4.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Contains spoilers, click to show
Let me just say, I'm so freaking pi$$ed! First off, I gave the book a 2 star rating because I felt like the writing was bad. I trudged through the first 2-3 chapters because I've realized that, sometimes it takes a book a few chapters to "loosen up". Unfortunately for me, the storyline was too interesting to stop reading. When I first understood what was happening, I was instantly angry. I know entering college doesn't make a person automatically mature, but do people seriously still continue to bully at that part of their life? At first, I didn't care for India, because she bullied Oliver; I felt awful when I found out what Christian had done to her, but I still don't feel like that excused the way she treated Oliver. Anyway, I was glad she wanted to apologize and make amends, though it's easier to say you forgive someone than to actually forgive them when it comes to bullying. So, I was literally sick of watching India get tortured and made fun of -do these kids not have anything better to do with their lives?? I kept reading because I wanted Oliver to shove his foot up his rear when he found out what his brother did to her. Then they became friends. I was immediately, like, "No, no. India, don't do it. No!" Of course, a book character can't hear the reader screaming at them, so she didn't listen. By the end, after Oliver's final attempt to tear India down and break her spirit, I had to do one of two things: gently set down my tablet and bite my pillow or throw my tablet against the wall and scream bloody murder. I love my tablet too much to abuse it, so my pillow took the brunt of my anger. Heck, I'm still angry and it's been 6 days! Part of me doesn't want to spend the money on the next 2 or 3 books in this series - like I said, I didn't care for the writing. But, at the same time, I HAVE to know what's going to happen. I don't know about India, but Oliver could save her life and I still wouldn't forgive him.