NAKED HEAT (NIKKI HEAT BOOK 2)
by Richard Castle
4 stars

In collaboration with the ABC series "Castle".

When Jamison Rook, famous author, gets involved in a murder of a gossip columnist, he is once again teamed up with NYPD Detective Nikki Heat.
As the case progresses, so does the romance between these two past lovers.
Just when you think you know how the case will end and whodunit., the final twist is set.

Enjoyable, funny, and easy to read. Relaxing.

THE YEAR'S FINEST FANTASY 1978

by Various Authors

Edited by Terri Carr
3 stars

There are 10 stories in this book. Many are worth the couple of minutes they take to read. A few are disappointing. A couple are memorable and stick with you long after reading them.

My favorites are:
The Cat From Hell (Stephen King) - of course anything from King is memorable. I am a cat lover, so                                                           this was great. A cat gets revenge for wrongs done to his kind.
 
Jeffty Is Five (Harlan Ellison) - The story of a boy who refuses to grow up, literally. Interesting tale                                                     of the supernatural, mind over matter and time. Ended by stupidity of another.

Growing Boys (Robert Aickman) - 2 young mischievous boys? 2 boys without parental structure? 2                                                            monsters? You decide!!

My least favorites are:
Black As The Pit, From Pole To Pole (Steven Utley and Howard Waldrop) - Too long, didn't hold my                                                       interest. The senseless journey of Frankenstein's monster.

Manatee Gal Ain't You Coming Out Tonight (Auram Davidson) - Boring, uninteresting. I couldn't                                                   take the lousy Jamaican accent that was supposed to be portrayed.

I would be remise if I didn't mention Probability Storm by Julian Reed. The story of a disembodied gentleman in a bar. The tale is weird and confusing, but interesting and likable.

THE TALISMAN (THE TALISMAN SERIES BOOK 1)
by Stephen King and Peter Straub
4 STARS

Jack Sawyer is on a quest to save his mother's life. The journey will take him through two worlds, many dangers, and test his heart and grit to survive.
Jack will meet friends and enemies, old and new.
Is he destined to complete the task, or will his Uncle Morgan Sloat/Morgan of Orris along with Sunlight Gardner/Osmond end Jack's and his mother's lives.

Sometimes hard to follow, but worth every second.

PET SEMETARY
by Stephen King
4 stars

The death and resurrection of the family cat leads to other deaths in the story of the supernatural.
Dr. Louis Creed and his family move into a new home, which is next to a road busy with semi truck traffic.
First his daughter's cat is run over and then his toddler son.
Once Louis is shown a way to bring back the cat, how can he resist resurrecting his son? Even though he realizes it really wasn't the cat the came back.

CHRISTINE
By Stephen King
4 stars



Lonely boy, picked on in high school, controlled by parents.

Arnie finds love, acceptance, and power with his new car. He is also protected by this cursed car.

I like the story, but it just didn't grab me the way it did years ago. It seemed to drag along for too long and was very repetitive for the first half of the book. But once Christine got rolling and the action really began, it was great.

SHADOWS 4

by Various Authors
Edited by Charles L. Grant
3 stars

Collection of 17 short stories. Most are less than 20 pages, one is 45 pages. Most of them are so short there is no time to grasp the meat of the tale, it is all set up.

I liked The Man Who Would Not Shake Hands, Hearing is Believing, and Need. I did not care for Threshold, Echoes From a Darkened Stone, or Waiting For a Knight.

DIFFERENT SEASONS
by Stephen King
5 stars

There are 4 stories within these covers. All are within 100 - 200 pages, which gives you enough to sink your teeth into and enjoy the taste. None of these stories are horror driven, they are more suspenseful.
Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption - Condemned for the murder of his wife and her lover, Andy Defresne is serving a life sentence in one of the country's hardest prisons. Day to day life now includes rape, helping guards and the warden cheat the system, and hope for freedom.
After 27 years, Andy gets his freedom. The how is as exciting and unexpected as the rest of the story.
Shawshank Redemption was made into a movie.

The Apt Pupil - When a 13 year old boy discovers a Nazi war criminal living in his neighborhood, he blackmails him into telling about the war, the camps, and all the horrible things he has done.
Partway through you begin to wonder who is worse, the Nazi or the young boy. Both begin to have nightmares over the stories.
The Apt Pupil was made into a movie.
The Body - 4 boys go on a trek to see and claim fame over a dead body. The journey is filled with more adventure than any of them expected.
The Body was made into a movie called Stand By Me.
The Breathing Method - An unwed mother is determined to have her baby, despite public opinion and other issues. There is a supernatural element to this one.