MO

I picked this book up on the strength of the remarks on the back cover. I enjoy off-the-wall humor and especially word play,puns and interesting characters.Before I started to read the book,I glanced at the Customer Reviews and was really anxious to get at it,expecting a great read by a highly touted author, who was new to me.
Man,what a disappointment.I plodded through to page 137 and gave up.All we got was a bunch of uninteresting losers going aimlessly about their mundane lives.There was nothing about any character that made you want to read more.As for humor;a little 3-year old spouting foul language hardly qualifies. This may seem humorous to linguists,but I can't imagine it would tickle too many funny bones.Once again,I thought I would skip to the last few pages,it didn't get any better.At that point ,I was glad I quit when I did.
So, why did others think the book so good? I have no idea.I returned to the Customer Reviews,intending to check out a few (see more about me)'s and Lo! and Behold,of the 6 reviewers ,there were none. I asked myself, who I knew might enjoy this book,but couldn't think of anyone.Then a light flashed!I checked to see who published the book.Oh! Oh! there it was "Work on this novel was supported by a Fellowship from the University of Missouri Wendon Spring Fund.".I usually check for this sort of thing first,as I rarely find books that get written and published using the crutch of a grant,to be very good.I guess these groupes who give these grants look down on the 'trash' that is put out by the authors and publishers who must earn their keep,and want produce their own for themselves.

I picked up a copy of this book at our library, actually because I liked the cover (sad but true!). I'd never read or heard of David Carkeet, who is a linguist and author of two other works. Reading reviews of his novels, one might be dismissive because of the "highbrow" linguistic tones they take. This book is actually a delight even if you don't care about his use of language and the effects it may have on the plot itself.
The reason I enjoyed this book was really two fold. First, it was great to read something about domestic life from a male protagonist point of view that was actually written by a male. Secondly, the plot itself is just full of wonderful little ironies and threads that weave themselves together beautifully at the end. While some passages are a bit stuffy and seem "full of words" (that lingustics thing again, I guess) for the most part I absolutely loved everything about the story. I am definately going to read his other two works now.

Carkeet was my History of the English Language professor two semesters ago, so I picked up this book out of curiosity when I saw it advertised on the UM-St. Louis English Department "Recent Faculty Publications" board. Am I glad I did. This book is very funny and very true to life. And the best part is that I can actually hear Carkeet's voice in there. Having taken one of his classes, I think, has given me a lot of insight into the book I might not have had otherwise, but I think that a lot of people can relate to this book, especially when it comes to the relationships between the characters.

At first I was bored with the "Silence of the Lambs" theme. Then, somehow, I became engaged with PJ and Leo. They did seem like "real" folks...I especially found it refreshing to find a female main character who is not reed thin and actually likes to eat milkshakes, coffeecake and burgers and fries!! But.....was anyone else disturbed at the lack of concern she seemed to have over her home being burgalized and vandalized??? She didn't change the locks? Get a security alarm put in or at least beef up what little security she had (Leo could have helped her there)? I found that highly unrealistic. ANNNNDDDDDD..... she's home all alone after the break-in, and there's a knock on the door. Does she go to the door and ask who is it? No. Does she go to the door and look through the peephole? No. Does she peek out of a curtain? No. What does she do? She stays put and yells, "it's open!"

Stupid, stupid, stupid.

For a first in the series this was a pretty good book. The characters are likable, we all know a cafe owner/waitress like Millie, we all know a sexist cop like Schultz and we know the divorcee-new career-new single parent Mom like PJ. We, if we are lucky, have not met any serial killers like Pauley Mac, The Dog. Although Dr. PJ Gray is supposed to be a computer whiz psychologist and Leo Schultz is supposed to be a 20 year veteran cop, they miss clues that play, dance, hum and hang before their eyes. The killer stands across the counter from them and hums the "Star Spangled Banner" in the same note he did on the crime scene video, and they don't notice. They discuss the case in detail while eating the food he has prepared for them, and considering he lives on a diet of victim's, brains you would think PJ and Leo would be more careful about who cooks for them.

Her orignal in her great series! Don't miss her 4th in the series of P. J. written under the name of Avery Morgan titled Act of Betrayal!

This book , from a scholar's stand point is abstract and odd. From a person close to the author, the book hits a nerve. The characters in the book strongly eariely resemble real people in the author's life. The book appears to be a metorphoric plea for forgivness, a plea to those he hurt along his way. Could it be that this man has a deep ladien subconcious guilt? The tormenter is none other then the author him self. The boy, his eldest daughter. The young wife,is none other than her mother, his first wife. Reader, he seeks this forgivness in vain. He would not recieve it in life, and now in death, he is yet to earn it!

What is the legacy of a man? Did Ray Self's book The Wicked Current leave one? I hardly think so. It was written by my father, I am his oldest(confirmed)daughter, (though I do have older siblings both in Texas I beleive, and in Vietnam).
I am writting this reveiw both as a way of having the final good-bye to my father, a good bye I was denied by his second wife,and his editor, Amy A. Hoback. I loved my father. I still do. To think that all I have left of him now, aside from a silky lock of hair from the coroner, is this disjointed, slightly demonic little paperback book. That is sad. But do I have more? I finally have a forum to speak out in, a forum to be heard in, both about my opinion of his last act, his legacy to his daughters, this silly little "Book", and about what kind of author the author was. An author, really, if you sum it all up, is a man, a man and all his life experience, and the ability of himself to be able to tell others about it through fact or fiction. So, what is my legacy then? Just this book? Since Amy Hoback called me up, shortly after his passing, and asked me to choose sides between her, and my mother, his first wife,(who, by the way, multilpe readers have now seen the strong correlation between my mother and the leading female charecter in his book). I was called up and dis-owned, told I would not be welcome at a funeral for him, told I could never again set foot in his house in Tennessee. That had been our home,the same home that I handed him nails for as he pounded them into the walls with his own two hands. I beleive my true legacy is something different, it is no a book, or even an rugged house with a gambrel roof, no those are not part of my father's legacy to me. It is instead Him. I have him in me, through his DNA. I might not have gotten his spare change, or his spare time, but I got his keen sense of smell, his blood coursing through my veins I get to see his gorgeous aqualine nose everytime I look in the mirror, (looks pretty good on me too I might add),I have something better than a rocky hunk of land in Hohenwald TN. I have his legacy, his true legacy, it is in me, and Verity, and Araminta, and through virtue of parenting her, Jonnie B. too, in fact dad named Jonnie after some woman he knew in Vietman. There are more stories to be told, and a lot more interseting too, I would stand to wager, if my sisters and I just sat down and put the pen to paper, we could show you that Ray is not dead at all..he is very much alive. He might be gone, true, and he is not comming back, ever, but it is like he never left at all when I hear Araminta's deep gravelly voice, and realize she got it, naturally, from her Pa. And furthermore, I don't know what my sisters plan to do with their locks of dad's hair, but I plan to have mine buried with my mother, his first true love, cluthched in the palm of her hand, and held tightly to her breast, and there won't be a damn thing you can do about it AMY! You may be able to keep us, Amy, from visiting the former home of our father, or of ever getting any of his ashes, but, you can't extract his D.N.A. from every cell in our bodies, and our grandkids. If there is going to be a sequal to my father's book, it is his children, not you, who should edit his manuscripts that remain. we know him, because we are him, a wife is one flesh, til' death do you part, a child is a part of you forever. This is no mystery woman, this is his daughter, Felicity Ray Purcell (yes, formerly Felicity Self), of Boise Idaho. And to any readers who might chastise me for using this forum for free speech, I ask you, what would the charecter Adam, from my dad's book have said to you, I know exactly, but then I knew the creator of Adam, exactly!

Though I must confess, I have not fully finished the book, what I HAVE READ IS TRULY MY FATHER. I am proud that my father finally followed through with a promise. He wrote a book for us. the book is a great legacey of my family's history and a fascinating journey into his physci. I hope to follow in his footsteps one day and write of his daughters and our life with and without him... I miss you daddy I miss the way you made me laugh, I miss your gruff, yet comforting voice... I can have the laughter and the voice in your book; that is where it will always live.

Riders on the Storm is an autobiography written by, the drummer of the Doors, John Densmore. This autobiography goes in depth of John's life as a jazz loving teen catholic schoolboy through present times. The main focus on the book is the years of the Doors, and odd life of Jim Morrison in particular. John's descriptive writings on the controversial rock band makes it an interesting read for any Doors fan. John puts a lot of emphasis in his writing about his personal life, He wrote a quite a bit about his struggle to maintain a relationship with his schizophrenic brother and with women in general. John wrote quite a bit more about the love-hate relationship between the self-destructive Jim Morrison and all the troubles with keeping the band together. Densmore's crafty writing style uses some of Morrison's lyrics to portrait him as a tragedy rather than a worshipped idol as many put him out to be. Riders on the Storm is a great book, those who like happy endings should stray far from this book.

This is well written book of John Densmore's experience growing personally and as a drummer, and his life with Jim Morrison and the Doors.
John bravely reveals his fear, his pain and his guilt over Jim's self-abuse and ultimate demise. Definitely worth the money and the time for any Doors or rock-n-roll fan. Thank you John.

I enjoyed this book immensely. Densmore has a personable, clear, consise style of writing and expresses himself very well. I felt I was there as he described events that happened 30 years ago. I laughed out loud at certain anecdotes in the book, especially when he describes avoiding the draft. For being the "uptight" one in the Doors, Densmore does have a sense of humour that comes through in his writing. He neither trashes Jim, nor does he gloss over Jim. He just tells it like it was. I never sensed any jealousy, just frustration, intimidation, fear, anger, but also admiration and brotherly love. Complex feelings. Clearly that's what Densmore is trying to get through, he wants to explain himself and isn't trying to hide or gloss over. There are many great anecdotes in this book, some funny, some sad, some plain scary! I could understand why Densmore felt the way he did at any given time, he explains it so well. The Doors were 4 very different personalities, obviously. I don't see any of them as being "the bad guy", but they obviously bumped heads due to personality clashes. That's life! Densmore was a teenager when he joined the Doors, so he pretty much grew up with them as well. That's another thing I found so interesting, Densmore sharing his growing-up with the reader, the things he learned along the way. He often addresses Jim directly in the book, telling Jim he learned integrity from him. I couldn't put this book down, very addictive reading.

...P>Tess Boone, a disillusioned celebrity journalist, returns back to her hometown in the Ozarks to interview her first love Buck Campbell, now a famous (but also disillusioned) country western singer.

Tess left Buck to pursue her dreams and please her father who wanted bigger things for his baby girl. In the process she stomped all over Buck's heart. Heartbroken he turned to booze and women. Headed straight for Hell, he was saved by Georgina, an older woman who saw his potential and made him a singing sensation. She molds him into the man the public sees and he marries her even though he'll never love her.

When Tess and Buck meet up again (years later) the sparks fly and they realize what empty lives they've been living. In a few short days their love is reborn. Only now there are two big obstacles in their way: Georgina (for starters) and Buck's good-guy persona. Will they sacrifice their careers or their hearts? Will I care when they do? (The answer to that one would be NO)

Ms. Garrett has a beautiful way of describing the Ozarks and her vivid imagery breathes life into this familiar story of lost love. Despite her lyrical writing I thought the heroine was self-centered and very difficult to sympathize with. The hero never came alive for me because we mainly see him through the heroine's eyes and learn his feelings via his song lyrics. This did not work for me. I would've enjoyed a hundred or so more pages of the hero's viewpoint. And (finally, you say?) I thought the ending was way too vague and pat.

If you're looking for a great romance, this is it! Tess and Jamie have and always will be in love, but there is just one person standing in their way of total bliss.... "Buck Campbell" Jamie's imaginary character, and his evil wife.

I have started reading a number of romance novels in the past several months but none has held my attention the way "Angel" did...I couldn't put it down. In fact, before all was said and done I was so spellbound by the story of Tess and Buck that I read the book three times. This is a very real story of true love, torn apart by the desires of a third party. Tess did what her father wanted her to do, and sacrificed the love of her life in the process. I've seen this book compared to The Bridges of Madison County, but I think this book is miles apart!!

As a professional Child Counselor, I recommend this book and own it. The reason for this book, is to teach children how to use the restroom in a polite way. Eating, sleeping, and using the bathroom are learned behaviors.

The author writes very simplistic, and the pictures are eye-catching. Wonderful book

I think this could be the very first book about going number 1!The art, the story, the subject matter -- all beautifully put together. Educational, rewarding and even comes complete with fantastic and fun stickers to use in the encouragement of your child's learning process (mine's not there yet, but with the help of this book I know she will be soon!). This is more than just a learning tool, it is a great book and one I foresee reading together for many years to come. A Classic!

We're using this book during a potty training marathon with our rather willful 2-year old. It has helped him put words to the positive feeling he gets when he succeeds ("I feel proud", he says, beaming.) The text is presented in a fun way, in the form of celebratory signs and banners paraded by supportive mice. His older brother enjoys sounding out the words, so it's nice to have a book they both can enjoy. I haven't used the stickers and chart yet (he's not to that stage yet) but I remember hand-making something similar for his older brother when we were working on consistency -- it worked like a champ!

If there were ever a "Forrest Gump" of the sports world, it's Slo Mo. I overheard Rick Reilly talk about this book on the Jim Rome show and purchased it a month later. A lot of the stories are based upon true NBA stories that Reilly had heard, and he didn't need a shoe horn and mounds of super glue to fit them into the short NBA career of Maurice Finkerstein, better known to the world as "Slo Mo."

Forget the fact that the real characters involved have never been affiliated with the team (Charles Barkley, Bryant Reeves and Phil Jackson aren't associated with Houston, Vancouver or Chicago/LA like they were in real life), it's a great read from start to finish. The first 2/3rd of the book based on funny stories... and the last 1/3rd you don't want to put the book down.

At 7'8", rookie Maurice (Slo Mo) Finsternick is taller than Chuck Nevitt, Shawn Bradley, and Manute Bol! He has a deadly sky-hook that he can shoot left-handed or right-handed from the 3 point line! This innocent teenager grew up among a cult of cave dwellers and he has never eaten a McDonalds hamburger. Do he and his New Jersey teammates, Charles Barkley, and Bryant "Big Country" Reeves have a chance to make the playoffs? Team owner, Donald Trump and head coach Phil Jackson are counting on it!

Sound like a tall tale? It is, and Rick Reilly pulls it off with style mixing whacky fictional characters together with whacky real-life cahracters! Will former cave-dweller Slo Mo lead the Nets to the brink of an NBA Championship? Read the book and find out for yourself!

A funny book with a great ending!

THIS BOOK WAS FANTASTIC. I READ IT IN ONE DAY. I USUSALLY READ A BOOK IN ONE MONTH. EVEN NOW I PICK IT UP, OPEN TO A PAGE AND EVEN THOUGH I HAVE SEEN THAT PAGE A MILLION TIMES BEFORE, THE LAUGHS STILL COME. NEED A LAUGH? RIGHT HERE. ANY SPORTS FAN MUST HAVE THIS BOOK ON THEIR SHELF.

This is a book of ideas more than plot or character--or at least, I get the distinct impression that Richard Dooling is much more interested in ideas than the usual novelistic ideals. The protagonist is a computer savy young lawyer whose life takes a turn when he gets assigned to a hate crime trial. Dooling clearly knows law and presents a lot of clever legal and social thinking diguised as witty dialog. It's interesting that he sets his court scene in the appellate court--this puts his case in a very different light from a jury trial. There's a truely memorable kinky sex scene early on and enough red herrings to feed a seal, but the book didn't gell for me.

And in a real way, the politics of the book are offensive. None of its characters were particularly sympathetic and many were downright repugnant. There's a tendency for some authors to use the N word as a device for setting a gritty, real-world tone. Dooling definitly over-uses this two-edged sword. Moreover, he sets up all this racist sensibility, but never really provides any counter argument. It's like he's saying, "Look at all these racist pigs. Ain't they kooky, but you know, they might just have a point." Whoa! Ya gotta do better than that, Dick.

Despite all my misgivings, I found myself enjoying the pace of the book, the original humor, and some of the turns of plot. Read it with a grain of salt. When it rains, it pours.

...Dooling has made a serious attempt to show how poorly the law reflects the workings of the human mind. Changes must be made and the changes must be based on firmer understanding.

A story of a struggling lawyer isn't unusual, although this one is tempered by a grasping wife and her Big Money father, a lush suburban house and a position with the city's leading law firm. The case itself seems simple. A vocal racist is accused of murdering a "African American" [the "scare quotes" are an essential facet of this book] - who happens to be deaf. There are heavy implications in this event, not the least of which is conviction for a provable "hate crime" invokes the death sentence. How is a young lawyer, with neither criminal law nor trial experience to cope with the enormity of this situation?

The legal issues are more than words in the statute books. Dooling's knowledge of science and technology introduces some fresh twists. The circumstances, convoluted enough, become even more intricate as Joe Watson becomes mired in trying to understand the new "hate" legislation permeating American law. How is "hate" defined? As he researches the case, he meets neuroscientist Rachel Palmquist [whose name becomes an essential factor in their relationship]. Palmquist tries to educate Watson on the latest findings in human cognition as part of her efforts to seduce him. Watson is better at cognition than seduction, as you will likely be as you follow her lectures on why we lack free will and what happens when electrodes are used to stir emotions. All this cognitive studies material is, of course, the basis for the book's title.

The issue in this story isn't attorney Watson's struggles with morality nor the respective merits of corporate or criminal law. What's really at stake is how the law defines and treats "hate" crimes and other politically correct issues. Dooling's point is what laws are now on the books and the prospects for future legislation. He wants proposed laws to consider the recent advances in behaviour studies. Can the cure be implemented before the symptoms come to light? Dooling, through his projection Watson, examines the science, the implications and the possible outcomes. We are shown how some of the studies are done, not always a pleasant vista, but with human and legal implications. Reading this book, it's easy to dismiss Watson as an over-focused simpleton. When you realize he's speaking for lawyer Dooling, however, who likely went through much of the introspection Watson relates, this book gains in importance as a social statement. Dooling uses several good sources for material for this book, although you have to go to his web site to discover who they are.

Dooling has given us an entertaining view of law and science brought in conjunction. How good a job he's done depends on your tastes. This is certainly not escapist crime fiction. His concentration on legal and neuroscience issues far outweighs the specific crime involved. His characters try fervently to express the many concepts this book deals with, but fall short of the mark. The one success is Federal Judge Stang, whose seniority and astute understanding of law and lawyers make him the star of the book. If you want "mysteries", go elsewhere. ...Dooling's ideas and discussions of practical issues, however, are an excellent start in either direction. Read it, but don't stop here.

Richard Dooling's new book "Brainstorm," is a roller coaster ride of a young attorney in an appointed case that he cannot win. The book delves into America's obsession with political correctness, finding someone to blame and our expectation that between government and science all of societies problems should be fixed without us lifting a finger.

Dooling's sardonic style and cynical wit come through again and again in all of his characters but ecpecially the Federal Court Judge who is presiding over the young lawyers case. Dooling's Judge dispenses wisdom, wit and occasionally justice in a manner that makes you smile as he makes the lawyers squirm. The authors unspoken commentary on our judicial system, though sometimes heavy handed is always amusing and his characterization of life in a large law firm will strike home with anyone who has ever dealt with the creatures that are the product of these firms creation.

Although I preferred "White Man's Grave," this book is a more than adequate follow up to that National Book Award nominee and I would suspect that this book could be one of this years sleepers. Do not miss it.

If you don't know about internet stock "gurus" like Tokyo Joe and Amr "Tony" Elgindy, this is not a bad place to learn (and take warning).

These two colorful hustlers with a knack for self-promotion and disregard for ethics are the most interesting aspect of the book. But there is far too much space devoted to fluff that was barely interesting at the time (Big Dog's single-digit IQ, Janice Shell's recipes...) and is not worth preserving in print.

And there's no mention of any of the good guys, people with integrity who share investment insights online - yes, they are hard to find, but they do exist! I've been a member of Silicon Investor since 1996, I watched most of what is described in this book as it happened, plus a whole lot more. I got a true investment education from what I read there, but none of my "teachers" is mentioned in this book.

And where are the little guys who lose money by buying when Tokyo Mex and Big Dog are selling? I'd like to hear their stories.

There is a moral to the story, Emshwiller does make it clear how the internet is a boon to the sleazy side of the capital markets, and how the SEC is strangely unwilling to devote more than token resources to clean up the dirt. But I doubt many people will hurl this book down in outrage and call their congressman.

John Emshwiller's book Scam Dogs and Mo Mo Mamas is fine effort to introduce the reader to the little known world of internet pumping and dumping, and insider stock manipulation using cyber space as a tool to get it done. But with this book that's as far as it goes. Mr. Emshwiller missed a key part of the story when it comes to the myth that has been built around alleged cyber snoop, and consumer advocate Janice Shell. Mr. Emshwiller never does seem to get the story right about the "Two Ricks," and who Janice Shell and Rick Marchese really are. He seems to take Ms. Shell's word for who she really is, and does little or no real research into the allegations Ms. Shell is really Janice Evans living in Milan, Italy under the alias of Janice Shell without the knowledge of the Italian Government. There is much more to be found on the subject of Janice Shell and her friends, and the reader is encouraged to use this book as only starting point.

I wasn't sure what to expect on picking up a book with the title "Scam Dogs and Mo-Mo Mamas," maybe me-too Tom Wolfe or a study of dancing soccer Moms. What I encountered on reading is a work I suspect will become classic study of a turning point in investment history and regulation.

Imagine, if you will, a bright-eyed diarist among the tulip traders of 17th century Holland, a long-lived Samuel Pepys privy to the shenanigans of the South Sea Bubble, or a wit among the Wall Street brokerages as mining stocks soared and crashed in the 1890's. That's the role Emshwiller fills here with the story of some of the most influential (and colorful) characters to the new Internet trading world.

Scam Dogs isn't an all-encompassing or definitive tale of the boom market of the 1990's--that has yet to be written. It isn't about billions sloshing in the Ciscos, Intels, and Microsofts or the fortunes flushed down to cockamamy dot.coms. It's brilliant marginalia, a richly-described world of trade in stocks that are often meaningless at best or fraudulent at worst by figures far beyond the core of Wall Street. These are "marginal men" (and women) who first grabbed and understood the trading implications of the Internet precisely because they lacked the levers that established investment dealers possessed. These were the elves dancing at the leading edge, and, unlike a Salomon or Goldman Sachs swinging weight in a T-bill auction, these tiny folk can individually or in concert can kite or tank only the most rinky-dink of stocks. Such is often the unseemly stuff of revolutions. It is a revolution that government was and still is slow to grasp, as Emshwiller portrays with rich annecdote and history at the SEC. That slow grasp has meaning for us all.

Emshwiller, a writer for the staid Wall Street Journal, seems to have a natural wit and an eye for stories that often doesn't make it beyond a newsroom water cooler. He's unafraid to include himself in the tale, to admit that after a night of drinking with a trader he "wouldn't want to drive the bar stool I was sitting on," and that he was endlessly tempted by the possibility of making money from Internet trading, the very same greed and gull that drove what he was writing about.

There's wonderful material here that lies on the cutting room of too many first-rate financial journalists. Here is not just the first, easily-grasped annecdote, nor the second. But the third and fourth more subtle tale of TokyoMex in full throes of an emotional speech in which he tells fans and fellow traders "don't be schmucks," or of 400-pound fat man "Big Dog" complaining that though he is worth millions on paper at the moment, "I have no structure in my life," or of the protection-minded short-seller's guard dog who "is either having a very tense morning or appears ready to pounce," or of an ltalian Renaissance scholar and prolific poster bragging of "perfect Eric," her cleaning man from Sri Lanka that "I do have to hide my pantyhose after they're washed or he'll iron them, but that's his only fault." Such is daily life in this revolution.

This is wit and insight of a rare sort. To lodge a complaint or so of Scam Dogs: its extracts of sometimes-funny-but-inane emails are occasionally overly protracted; I'd like to have seen earlier some exploration of regulatory disinterest or neglect of Internet touting and trading (Emshwiller does it with great anecdotal familiarity mid-book and then thematically at the end.) And I'd happily have opted for a slightly more elaborate setting of the rocketing market for real-life Intels and Microsofts with real-life balance sheets making possible the fanciful dreams of undiscovered riches from companies most of us--thank heavens--have never heard of. But setting these complaints aside, I found Scam Dogs a brilliant read, a penetrating analysis, and a likely classic look at the era.

Peter Quintle, New York

I was very disappointed in this, the fourth book in the Heaven Lee Series.

I disliked the first book, "Death By Rhubarb" and hated the second book, "Revenge Of The Barbeque Queens". But the third book, "A Stiff Risotto" was good and I had hoped that it was a turning point and the series and would improve even more.

I was wrong again. Although better than the first two books, it was no where near as good as A Stiff Risotto.

4 Times Divorced, Once widowed, disbarred lawyer, former stripper and current resturant owner Heaven Lee is excited when the Artos (Greek for Bread) convention is in town. All she wants is to get some helpful hints on how to make great bread, but as ususal, death seems to follow her around.

I had disliked Heaven in the first two books, but enjoy her a little more. I really like her supporting cast, when they're in the story. And that's what's wrong with this one. Only Murrey, the former New York Times Crime Reporter is in this story.

Unfortunately, the character I haven't liked from the previous books, Heaven's 20 year younger boyfriend, Hank has a large part in this book. These two people have absolutely no chemistry between them.

To make things worse, Heaven's daughter, by her rock star second husband, Iris is added to the cast. I find Iris unlikeable. Once again, I think the author is going for excentric instead of a real life person. Why would a girl, who is supposed to be so intelligent pick for her boyfriend, a former drug addict, old enough to be her father, member of her father's band. Didn't she learn anything growing up with Heaven as a mother?

As with her relationship with Hank, I don't get the feel of any real closeness between Heaven and her daughter. She says she's upset with her daughter's choice of boyfriend. She says she's upset that her daughter is going to live in England instead of coming home. She says she's upset that her daughter might be in danger. She says everything, but there are none of those little touches you have in books that show you that there is a real relationship between people. The fact that Heaven has to keep saying that she cares comes across to me as she doesn't really care that much. You get those little sparks of chemistry, the humor between her and the supporting characters who work at her restaurant, but not with the character's that she's supposed to love.

I learned more about sourdough, wheat, rye and every thing you could possible want to know about bread. I didn't want to know it. I felt like I was in high school science class.

One improvement. They have moved the recipes to the front of the chapter instead of just dropping them into the middle of the story.

I don't know why the great characters like Murrey, Chris, Joe, Mona - who runs a store that sells everything for cats, are not used more in the stories. And Bo Morales, her best character isn't even in the book.

Better than the first two but not as good as the third. I'm still hopeful on this series.

Onward to the Cornbread Killer. I love cornbread and am hoping to get some recipe idea's.

I live in the KC area, and I have found the series fun and exciting. I am giving this book a 3 only because there are too many loose ends that were not explained, otherwise, I found it to be well written.

I had one big problem with this book(Bread On Arrival). In the beginning, General Mills, Ernest, Patrick and Dieter(who lives in Germany) all find 3 loaves of bread either at their home or offices. Maybe I missed this, but how did the bread get there(and who put it there...I assume it was the killer, but how did he get it there)? Also, I believe(and the reader should know for sure, not have to guess) it played a roll in the death of two of the above people mentioned(and I felt the deaths came too late in the book...I kept waiting and waiting), but this aspect was never explained(at least not that I saw).

Most everything else was wrapped up in the end, except the 3 bread loaves and how they got to their victims. Considering this bread played a role in the death of two people, I feel it is important to explain how it got there and what role it played in the deaths.

Also in the beginning when introducing Paul, there is a "mystery woman" in his office who is giving Paul and assigment at work that he is not real thrilled about. Who is this woman? I don't think she ever appeared in the book again(and because of all the mystery surrounding her first appearance, I expected her to show up again). Why not say she is Jane Doe, Patrick's nasty supervisor or something if she would only appear this once? Why make her a mystery person?

Like I said before, maybe the 3 loaves were explained somewhere in the book(I never saw it), but considering they played a role in the deaths of 2 people I think that information is crucial to the reader. Who put it there and how(especially the loaves in Germany).

I will say, I am glad that Lou Jane Temple has moved her recipes from the middle of a chapter, to a page of their own. I found it distracting to try and find where the recipe left off and the chapter begins(the recipes all look wonderful!).

I found this book to be well written(and I will continue to purchase more in the series). I would just like to see the clues make sense at some point.

I have read several other Heaven books. I wasn't much impressed by the others but I found this one to be better constructed than the others. There were enough red herrings to keep one guessing, interesting bread facts and good recipes besides to make a satisfying whole.