Please visit monthly to read reviews of our favorite books!
Carolyn's Pick:
"The Art of Hearing Heartbeats"
by Jan-Philipp Sendker
If i swoon,,,forgive me. What a wonderful read! It is definitely for the warm cozy night in front of the fireplace.
It starts out in contemporary USA and transitions to impoverished Burma. A young woman is looking for her father who had abruptly left their family when she was young. She ends up in Burma to hear the story. Oh, my this is so good! It is part incredible romance and part father-daughter story. It is like reading poetry, you are forced to stop and listen to the rhythm.
Paperback Fiction
$14.95
Alex's Pick
"The Girl Who would Speak For The Dead"
By Paul Elwork
A very well written story about two siblings left to their own devices, trying to have fun whilst simultaneously discovering and deciphering family secrets. Sad and awe-inspiring at the same time.
Fiction
Hardcover $24.95
Alex@sagebookstore.com
Alex's OTHER pick!
"Sanctus"
By Simon Toyne
An Engrossing adventure that spans the globe! You'll be rooting for the heroes and loathing the villians long after you've finished the book.
Fiction
Hardcover $25.99
Marissa's Pick
"Pete The Cat" by Eric Litwin (illustrated by James Dean)
With a one year old, full time college classes & my awesome job here at Sage, lately I’ve found it hard to read anything but Dental text books! When it came time to write a new review I was stopped dead in my tracks thinking “what the heck have I read lately?!” Thank goodness Carolyn came to my rescue with Pete the Cat, I Love My White Shoes. That evening I took the adorable book home and read it to my son over and over. He loved the pictures and I would ask him “Where is Pete the Cat?” and he would point to Pete and show me his shoes.
But lets talk about the book…I love children’s books that teach simple, yet very important lessons to our kiddos. Pete starts out with a white pair of shoes, and as he is walking along, and singing his song, he comes across different sticky situations and his shoes change from white, red, blue to brown and then they get wet! But no matter what color Pete’s shoes may change, he still keeps trecking and as Pete would say “It’s all good”.
Hardcover $16.99
marissa@sagebookstore.com
Sue's Pick:
"Kill Alex Cross" by James Patterson
So, the Boss and her Main Minion recently attended a book conference in New Orleans. James Patterson allegedly addressed the crowd, saying something along the lines of "Obviously, I am not a factory!" Well, he should be.
Kill Alex Cross is the latest in the Alex Cross series, about the intrepid (love that word) detective for the Washington, D.C police department. While the title of this book MAY be misleading, it does justice to the entire series. Plenty of action, plot movement, a secondary story line and yes, mystery. I find myself hoping that Mr. Patterson continues producing, however he makes it happen.
Hardcover Fiction $30.99
Terry's Picks
"Wild Thing" by Josh Bazell
If you read 2009’s "Beat The Reaper," you’re familiar with Josh Bazell’s "Dr. Peter Brown," a former mafia hitman turned ER doctor, now in the Witness Protection Program. In "Wild Thing," Pietro "Bearclaw" Brnwa has a new name, and is sent to the Minnesota Boundary Lakes region to accompany a scientist in her investigation into reports of a strange creature. What’s in it for him? Maybe a way to keep the mob off his back for good. Bazell writes like Michael Crichton possessed by the spirit of Quentin Tarantino, so readers who can handle pervasive foul language and violence will be treated to a compelling and even humorous escapade. This is definitely not a by-the-numbers sequel to "Reaper," and Bazell’s coarse and fast-paced style should keep fans of the first book happy.
Hardcover $25.99
Bill's 
Pick
"The Power Of Six" by Pittacus Lore
Remember this name: Setrakus Ra. He is the supreme commander of the Mogadorians, out to extinguish any hope of the Loriens to re-establish control over their own world. I am sure that in time, he will assume a greater role in the hunt for the Nine legacy children.
In The Power or Six the story line of "I Am Number Four" picks up where it left off with John, Sam (his best human friend), Six and Bernie Kosar, a Chimaera (a shape shifting animal from Lorien) running from the police, FBI, the US military; all while evading the Mogadorians, too. John, Sam and Bernie Kosar split from Six to retrieve both his and Six's "legacy" chests from the Mogadorian headquarters in a West Virginia cave. John and Sam infiltrate the Mogadorian cave, cause all sorts of bedlam and free Nine who had been captured. Six travels to Spain to defend/protect/rescue/save a recently identified legacy child named Marina (Number Seven). While there, Six also finds out that there's an additional Tenth Lorien named Ella!
The Power of Six is a fitting sequel to I Am Number Four. More of the personalities and histories of the characters are revealed and the fast pace of the story never lets up. Can't wait for the third installment (I wonder how many there are?)!
Juvenile Fiction
Hardcover $17.99
bill@sagebookstore.com
Mary Ann's Pick:
The Odds: A Love Story by Stewart O’Nan
What better read in the month of love than a novel about Valentine’s Day, Niagra Falls, a honeymoon suite and a married couple? Oh. I forgot to mention the couple has been married 30+ years, they are both unemployed and they are on the brink of losing their home ~ a bit of a “welcome to the real world” of 2011.
Art and Marion Fowler are broke and desperate; they are also revisiting the place they spent their honeymoon, with their last available cash to try their luck at the local casino and play the odds. What are the chances they’ll win big, their marriage will survive and all will be well vs. losing it all?
I loved the premise of this book, O’Nan’s writing is as clean as ever and the added touch of the statistics presented at the beginning of each chapter add to the underlying possibilities: “Odds of a U.S. tourist visiting Niagara Falls: 1 in 195 ; Odds of a U.S. citizen filing for bankruptcy: 1 in 17” and so on.
At just under 200 pages this is a quick read, and you’ll find yourself mentally standing behind them at the roulette wheel, cheering them on. As characters go, I was not particularly enamored of either of these two (though I preferred Art’s pragmatism over Marion’s whining), but still cared to know what might become of them. What are the odds that you might, too?
Hollie's Pick
"A Need So Beautiful"
By Suzanne Young
Carolyn (my boss) came up to me last night with this book and said, “This looks like something you would like to read, doesn’t it?” I took it and flipped it over to read the back. Thinking it sounded interesting, I put it in my bag to take home. I was home doing the “stuff” we all get busy with; i.e. Kids, homework, dinner, etc…completely forgetting about the book. After putting the house to bed I grab the book, climbed in bed myself and began to read. I got started and thought to myself this is pretty good. By chapter 5 I couldn’t put it down. Needless to say, I’m super tired this morning because I stayed up reading the entire thing! I love it when this happens…you find a book or get given a book you know nothing about and it turns out to be an amazing read.
So……
The book is about a girl named Charlotte. Charlotte's destiny is to be forgotten. Charlotte's best friend thinks Charlotte might be psychic. Her boyfriend thinks she's cheating on him. But Charlotte knows what's really wrong: She is one of the Forgotten, a kind of angel on earth who feels the Need, a powerful and uncontrollable draw to help someone, usually a stranger. But Charlotte never wanted this responsibility. What she wants is to be a normal teenage girl. To just hang out with her best friend and boyfriend. But as the Need grows stronger, it begins to take a dangerous toll on her and who she is and who she will become, her very existence could be in jeopardy of disappearing completely.
Charlotte will be forced to choose: Should she embrace her fate as a Forgotten, a fate that promises to rip her from the lives of those she loves forever? Or is she willing to fight against her destiny….no matter how dark the consequences?
Young Adult Fiction
Hardcover $16.99
Guest Reviews:
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Marcia Clark's “Guilt by Association”
The prosecutor who rose to fame during the OJ Simpson trial has her debut novel, featuring Rachel Knight, an LA prosecutor whose murdered colleague is tainted by the case he was involved in. Rachel takes on his case and the effort to clear his name.
Paula L. Gardiner's review:
"Good story!
Held my attention from page one... Annoying Randy when he wanted me to turn off the light.
Was fun to read about the “inside” of how the DA puts a case together...
Of course, it could all be made up.... BUT, because it was Marcia Clark I figured she was telling at least “kind of” the truth.
Thanks for letting me read it!...."
And thank YOU, for your review, Paula!
Hardcover fiction, $25.99
"CLEANING NABOKOV'S HOUSE" by Leslie Daniels
A woman living in an upstate New York house once occupied by Vladimir Nabokov (author of "Lolita") finds a manuscript possibly written by the famous author.
Sally & Leslie Johnson reviewed it and say:
(Leslie) "...a good read. What happens when a life isn't planned, but tumbled into... about being willing to lose everything... to gain more than you dreamed possible. The author encourages (you) to look beyond limitations."
(Sally) "I enjoyed this book very much. In fact, I read it over again. Many truths about...relationships."
Hardcover Fiction, $24.00