Today’s blog post is about those dreaded books that we purchase or acquire and then they just sit upon the shelf collecting dust for whatever reason. My sincere apologies go out to these five books. I had the best intentions. Honest.
Second Glance by Jodi Picoult
Published March 2004 by Washington Square Press
Description from Goodreads.com:
“Do we love across time? Or in spite of it?A developer has slated an ancient Abenaki Indian burial ground for a strip mall, and now strange happenings have the inhabitants of tiny Comtosook, Vermont, talking of supernatural forces at work. Ross Wakeman is a ghost hunter who’s never seen a ghost — all he’s searching for is something to end the pain of losing his fiancee, Aimee, in a car accident. He tried suicide — any number of times. Now Ross lives only for a way to connect with Aimee from beyond. Searching the site for signs of the paranormal, Ross meets the mysterious Lia, who sparks him to life for the first time in years. But the discoveries that await Ross are beyond anything he could dream of in this world — or the next.”
Why didn’t I read this book?
I think I acquired this book from my Mom, my sister, or my sister-in-law. It’s been so long, I can’t even remember. I believe I got my first Nook shortly after, so this book got pushed aside while I played with my new toy.
Buy Second Glance from Amazon.com today!
Fired Up by Jayne Ann Krentz
Published December 2009 by Putnam Adult
Description from Goodreads.com:
“More than three centuries ago, Nicholas Winters irrevocably altered his genetic makeup in an obsessionfueled competition with alchemist and Arcane Society founder Sylvester Jones. Driven to control their psychic abilities, each man?s decision has reverberated throughout the family line, rewarding some with powers beyond their wildest dreams, and cursing others to a life filled with madness and hallucinations.
Jack Winters, descendant of Nicholas, has been experiencing nightmares and blackouts?just the beginning, he believes?of the manifestation of the Winters family curse. The legend says that he must find the Burning Lamp or risk turning into a monster. But he can?t do it alone; he needs the help of a woman with the gift to read the lamp?s dreamlight.
Jack is convinced that private investigator Chloe Harper is that woman. Her talents for finding objects and accessing dream energy are what will save him, but their sudden and powerful sexual pull threatens to overwhelm them both. Danger surrounds them, and it doesn?t take long for Chloe to pick up the trail of the missing lamp. And as they draw closer to the lamp, the raw power that dwells within it threatens to sweep them into a hurricane of psychic force.”
Why didn’t I read this book?
Where I work, many people bring in books when they are done with them and leave them in the dining area for others to help themselves. I found this book in the pile one day and thought it sounded interesting, so I took it home. I was reading another book at the time and this ended up on the bookshelf, and I just forgot about it.
Eldest by Christopher Paolini
Published March 2007 by Knopf Books for Young Readers
Description from Goodreads.com:
“Darkness falls …Despair abounds …Evil reigns …Eragon and his dragon, Saphira, have just saved the rebel state from destruction by the mighty forces of King Galbatorix, cruel ruler of the Empire. Now Eragon must travel to Ellesmera, land of the elves, for further training in magic and swordsmanship, the vital skills of the Dragon Rider.
It is the journey of a lifetime, filled with awe-inspiring new places and people, each day a fresh adventure. But chaos and betrayal plague him at every turn, and Eragon isn’t sure whom he can trust. Meanwhile, his cousin Roran must fight a new battle back home in Carvahall – one that puts Eragon in even graver danger. Will the king’s dark hand strangle all resistance? Eragon may not escape with even his life.”
Why didn’t I read this book?
I had read Eragon and really liked it, but this second book in the series was not due out for nearly a year after I finished it. I pre-ordered it online. In the meantime, my husband (at the time) read Eragon and love it. When Eldest finally came, I was reading another book so my he read it first. Shortly thereafter I got divorced, sold the house, and everything got packed up and moved. I never did get around to reading it.
Buy Eldest (Inheritance Cycle, Book 2) (The Inheritance Cycle) from Amazon.com today!
The Historian by Elizabeth Kostova
Published February 6th 2006 by Sphere
Description from Goodreads.com:
“Late one night, exploring her father’s library, a young woman finds an ancient book and a cache of yellowing letters. The letters are all addressed to “My dear and unfortunate successor,” and they plunge her into a world she never dreamed of – a labyrinth where the secrets of her father’s past and her mother’s mysterious fate connect to an inconceivable evil hidden in the depths of history.
The letters provide links to one of the darkest powers that humanity has ever known – and to a centuries-long quest to find the source of that darkness and wipe it out. It is a quest for the truth about Vlad the Impaler, the medieval ruler whose barbarous reign formed the basis of the legend of Dracula. Now one young woman must decide whether to take up this quest herself – to follow her father in a hunt that nearly brought him to ruin years ago, when he was a vibrant young scholar and her mother was still alive.
What does the legend of Vlad the Impaler have to do with the modern world? Is it possible that the Dracula of myth truly existed – and that he has lived on, century after century, pursuing his own unknowable ends? The answer to these questions cross time and borders, as first the father and then the daughter search for clues, from dusty Ivy League libraries to Istanbul, Budapest, and the depths of Eastern Europe. In city after city, in monasteries and archives, in letters and in secret conversations, the horrible truth emerges about Vlad the Impaler’s dark reign – and about a time-defying pact that may have kept his awful work alive down through the ages.
Parsing obscure signs and hidden texts, reading codes worked into the fabric of medieval monastic traditions – and evading the unknown adversaries who will go to any lengths to conceal and protect Vlad’s ancient powers – one woman comes ever closer to the secret of her own past and a confrontation with the very definition of evil.”
Why didn’t I read this book?
I had gone to a neighborhood yard sale and I kept seeing this book for sale at each person’s house. Finally, I asked about it and one woman told me they have a book club and this was one of the books they read. She said they all loved it, so I bought it. It’s a huge book, and I never got the courage to start it.
Buy Eldest (Inheritance Cycle, Book 2) (The Inheritance Cycle) from Amazon.com today!
A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini
Published May 2007 by Riverhead Hardcover
Description from Goodreads.com:
“A Thousand Splendid Sunsis a breathtaking story set against the volatile events of Afghanistan’s last thirty years, from the Soviet invasion to the reign of the Taliban to post-Taliban rebuilding, that puts the violence, fear, hope and faith of this country in intimate, human terms. It is a tale of two generations of characters brought jarringly together by the tragic sweep of war, where personal lives, the struggle to survive, raise a family, find happiness, are inextricable from the history playing out around them.
Propelled by the same storytelling instinct that made The Kite Runner a beloved classic, A Thousand Splendid Suns is at once a remarkable chronicle of three decades of Afghan history and a deeply moving account of family and friendship. It is a striking, heart-wrenching novel of an unforgiving time, an unlikely friendship, and an indestructible love, a stunning accomplishment.”
Why didn’t I read this book?
I had heard a lot of good things about this book so I picked it up. But whenever I mentioned reading it everyone asked me if I had read The Kite Runner. I had not. So many people said they liked that better, I felt like I wanted to read that first. I never did pick up that book so I never got around to reading this one.
Buy A Thousand Splendid Suns from Amazon.com today!
Read The Kite Runner!