Oregon Books

I bought this book based on the wonderful reviews of Herter's first novel, Ceres Storm. That novel is described on the dust jacket of Evening's Empire as "a stripped-down thrill ride some 10,000 years in the future." It's hard to believe this book could have been written by the author of a stripped-down thrill ride. The plot meanders slowly. The main characters don't reveal much of themselves. (Russell has lost his wife and does not know when to seek medical attention. He struck me as kinda dumb in that regard. Megan has also suffered a loss and does not know when to get out of town. She struck me as kinda dumb in that regard.) There is much uncertainty about what may really be happening, but not a lot of actual tension. The plot feels contrived. The "bad guys" seem a lot more like a PTA gone wrong than a dangerous cult.

Finally, as a fan of Charles de Lint and a reader of Gene Wolfe, I think it is unfair to compare Evening's Empire to the generally high level of their work. Herter has not gotten there yet. Not recommended as a fantasy novel or as straight fiction.

If you have read the other reviews you already know that "Evening's Empire" has a disappointing end. There is a masterful slow, chilling buildup of tension, which in the last chapters is inexplicably diffused without a real closure or resolution.

If it was any other book, it would have mattered more.

This book is unique in that it evokes not only pictures, but sounds. The hero, Russel Kent, is a composer, a synesthete who perceives all sound as color. He is comissioned to write an opera based on Jules Verne's "2000 leagues under the sea"; he composes sketches of music haunted by dreams of death and memory. Kent's opera is born in front of our eyes out of the dark secrets of the sea and the fear that lives in small towns on the coast; it is born out of storms and tremors of the earth. It speaks of drowning, and of people who walk under the water, of strange cities abandoned yet active under the pressure of water and ground. It is the music dreams are made of, and nightmares. I know very little about musical theory; yet this book was for me a unique experience of music in greens, blues and greys.

I found most of the fantasy elements in this book redundant, added as if an afterthought to the plot. The written musical pieces never come together as a complete oeuvre, and neither does the book. The opera project is put on hold. Only some of the score is written.

In real life, I guess, we rarely hear about such abandoned projects, even if they are works of genius. Herter lets us listen to Kent's unfinished masterpiece. It may sound strange, but I hope that in Herter's imaginary world, the project is someday completed. I wish I could see this opera performed; I guess I'll console myself with Reimann's Lear.

Needing closure by burying the specter of his wife who accidentally fell off the cliffs near Empire, Oregon, Russell Kent returns to the village with plans to compose an opera focusing on Jules Verne's Captain Nemo. However, ghosts haunt his sleep as he dreams of his deceased spouse as well as the town and its residents.

Feeling a bit guilty, Russell has an affair with Megan Sumner, the owner of the bed and breakfast he is staying at. He also begins to meet many of the residents, but feels uneasy as he senses everyone shares a dark secret except him. Russell finds a thirst to learn the undisclosed as he starts questioning anything and everything for everyday occurrences here in Empire seem slightly off center or eccentric.

This is a strong fantasy suspense thriller that builds the tension to extremely high levels as readers accompany the hero with a need to know the truth. The story line is loaded with action and filled with an assortment of characters that manage to make the everyday appear eerie. However, the climax feels abrupt as a series of inexplicable disclosures with few or no real clues occur in a very short stretch as if a page limit barrier was hit. Still, David Herter displays his talent to keep the thrill at its acme and the need to know even higher in this powerful fantasy suspense tale.

Harriet Klausner

If you want to write a best-selling fantasy novel, you should probably not

a) make the protagonist a modern classical composer struggling to write an opera based on 20,000 Leagues under the Sea.

b) make the villains the owners and operators of a cheese factory.

c) wait for over a hundred pages before introducing the first hint of supernatural phenomena.

d) leave the fate of many of the secondary characters unresolved.

This novel is encumbered by all of these obstacles. It starts very slowly, and concentrates on character more than your typical fantasy novel. Personally, I enjoyed it immensely. As for the ending, the ending of 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea leaves the fate of several characters hanging, just like the ending to Evening's Empire. There is an important difference, in that in 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea there is no possible way for our heroes to find out what happened next, whereas in Evening's Empire the presumption is that the characters will discover what happened in a few months. Somehow, this makes the ending much more unsatisfying. Unfortunately, Herter seemed to miss this distinction.

Russell Kent had been commissioned to write an opera based on Twenty Thousand Leagues Under The Sea. He traveled to the Oregon coast, a town called Evening. A year before, Russ had lost his wife, Anna, in Evening. She had fallen to her death from a cliff, a freak accident. In Evening Russ planned to face his past ghosts and create the opera. What he found was a chance at love anew by the owner of the local B&B, Megan Sumner.

The town of Evening had a secret. Something everyone kept quiet about and secretly worked on, unknown by the rest of the world. Quietly, the population of Evening hid a fantastic secret in a cavern beneath the town and only referred to as "downstairs". After many decades of work, and several deaths, the secret was about to be revealed!

This story seemed to flow as smoothly as mellow music. A small bit of curiosities to begin with, followed by a constant undercurrent of tension. The story kept me guessing as to what the big secret was. Even as my imagination ran wild, I never came close to the truth. David Herter has masterfully created a novel that will keep its readers on the edge of their seats! Recommended!

Read Ms. Gerritsen's books with a highlighter so I can underline and not forget my favorite one liners. She is positively astonishing and I can't wait to get The Bone Garden because I just finished The Mephisto Club and didn't move until the last word. I have read all the rest and I am deeply disappointed that I only have one left until the next Jane/Maura thriller comes out. Four years ago I was walking by another employee's cubicle and saw "The Surgeon" lying on her desk, so I picked it up to read the first few pages. I was hooked and on my way to the bookstore after work. And I spend more time after finishing each book researching and reading about the fascinating stuff in the books - mythology, religion, medicine. For someone who loves books and loves to read, these books are delicious!!!!!

If you are attracted to Tess Gerritson's novels of medical suspense, then this book is not for you. It was written well before her newer releases like The Sinner, The Apprentice, Gravity, etc. While a good effort at combining the suspense of a woman on the run from a mad bomber, this novel falls flat of creating any emotional connection to the characters. The heroin, Nina, is being stalked by a bomber, after being left at the alter by her horrendous fiancée. You'd think she'd have a lot on her mind, yet she still finds time to fall for the bomb squad investigator assigned to protect her. The book goes on to detail her thinking as well as his in a pathetic tennis match of who loves who, who doesn't love who, whose too scared to love who, etc. Ultimately, at the end of the book where I would normally be turning pages awaiting the climax, I found myself not caring whether Nina did get out of the whole mess alright, and was frankly irritated by the whole romantic banter part of this book. Bottom line, if you like The Sinner, The Apprentice, Gravity, Bloodstream, etc stick to Gerritson's newer work and stay away from Keeper of the Bride.

This was an okay book, it wasn't bad but it wasn't good either. If I like a book I can usually finish it in a day or two this one took a couple of weeks for me to read it didn't hold my attention. The book starts with a wedding were the bride has been stood up at the altar. When she leaves the church it is blown up by a bomb that was set to go off in the middle of the ceremony. Who was it meant for and why is the main theme of the book. I found it to be a really slow read and didn't really care what happened to the characters.

Since I have only read Ms. Gerritsen's newer works such as "The Surgeon" and "The Apprentice" it was fun to read one of her earlier works and to see how far she has come as a storyteller.

This is the story about Nina Cormier who is a ER nurse from a very affluent but dysfunctional family. The story opens with Nina being left at the alter. To add insult to injury while she is sitting in a car waiting to go home the church blows up. And still in the same day someone tries to drive her off the road. Why is this all happening to her?

Bomb detective Sam Navarro is called to the scene of the latest bombing and ends up questioning the bride to be. Sam has his own problems from the past and really has no plans to ever share his life with someone else. Now he finds himself drawn to the witness and there is still the huge mystery as to how Nina fits into the puzzle of the recent bombing, and other murder attempts.

The chemistry between these two people was great and Ms. Gerritsen shows her potential as a suspense novelist. You don't want to miss this one.

My gosh, what a book!!!This is my first time reading Tess Gerritsen, she is as good if not better than Patricia Cornwell. I literally could not put this book down, there are so many twists and turns and surprises. A must read.

I just got this book for Memorial Day Weekend, and it saved our trip! The spot we'd planned to go was full, but we were able to not only find another spot real easy for the night, but it ended up be better than where we'd planned to go. Great book! Saved my butt! Will always take it.

I wouldn't dream of roaming around Washington or Oregon without this book -- simply would never get stuck for the night ever again.

General introduction provides humorous, informative camping tips for beginners. Listing of Oregon and Washington campsites with notes on their features, facilities and good directions. Maps included for each region in the Pacific NW. Recently revised for 1998.

I was depending on this book to direct me to the best campgrounds in the area. However,without a rating system, the book is only half as good. I use the California version as a bible for camping and was disappointed to find this missing for Oregon/Washington.

My husband and I enjoy spontaneous traveling in our Motorhome. We plan our vacations by selecting how long we will be gone and what direction we will head. This is the freedom afforded by having a Motorhome and being empty nesters.

This book is fantastic. We have marked it with highlighters, "Post-It" flags, and even different colored stars. "Sea Perch" campground near Cape Perpetua in Oregon, is marked with a gold star. It is literally on the ocean, clean, friendly, and has beautiful scenery.

Since we travel year-round, I like the information on campground openings and Motorhome size limits, facilities, etc. The quadrant maps, detailed driving directions, and "Trip Notes" are invaluable.

I am a skeptic when it comes to ratings in books; to me, quality of an area is determined by personal preference. The descriptions in the "Trip Notes" provide an excellent overview to make personal selections.

We have shared this book and recommended it to MANY people.

I purchased this edition for a class. While the quality of the binding, layout of the actual play, typeface, etc. are solid and what I expected for the price and the type of book I was purchasing (paperback); the introduction is disappointing. Extensively written and extremely boring, it made me want to give up on the book altogether before I even began reading the play (and I'm a Shakespeare fan!). The author brings up multiple interpretations by others as validation for his views, but also takes pains to point out why all the other interpretations aren't as good as his own. This introduction is detailed and not intended for anyone but Shakespeare scholars. For someone who has studied Shakespeare's life and era in the past, this edition will provide lots of information connecting and comparing this play to what you already know and can be very educational.

I know readers who claim to prefer this play to Chaucer's "Troilus and Criseyde"--which tells you something either about their inability to read Chaucer or their jaded sense of humor. Shakespeare's version of the story is every bit as dark and sardonic as Chaucer's is light and satiric. In fact, this must be the Bard's blackest comedy, too strained, disconnected, and unfocused to pass muster as "tragedy." In fact, if we take seriously Ulysses' oft-quoted speech on "degree" (accepting one's limits as a requirement for cosmic order) and Troilus' confirmation of an up-ended moral universe ("the bonds of heaven have slipped!"), there's no longer room for the heroic or tragic in the modern world Shakespeare has created in this play.

Despite containing some of the playwright's most memorable and eloquent speeches, it's the cynical tone and absurdist context, not story or character, that we remember from the play. Somewhat like Hitchcock in "Rear Window," Shakespeare places the reader in the position of deviant-voyeur, subjecting him to both the testimony and proof of Thersites' recurring reminder that, where heroism and love are concerned, all is "war and lechery." If we decide to stay the course, we're rewarded at play's end with Pandarus's speech to the audience, promising to bequeath us with "his diseases." It's shocking that Shakespeare got away with such material in a pre-penicillin era, but no less noteworthy is the audience's masochistic compliance (in itself, a potential commentary on the degradation that Shakespeare forcefully exposes and criticizes in this play).

The play often scores with modern audiences because productions opportunistically go "over the top" with exaggerated visual and verbal bawdry. The textual version is necessarily five stars because nothing can touch Shakespeare (except perhaps in this case Chaucer). Still it's a good thing that the guardians of public morality aren't better readers or this one might not make the cut in some venues where Shakespeare is performed. In fact, that situation could soon change if acting companies continue to substitute for Shakespeare's language gross and attention-getting stage antics, using the master wordsmith as a license for selling sensation.

The first thing you will probably notice about this play is that it seems longer than his other plays. But if we are willing to look past this, it is a rather good play that explores the theme that personal dissension is the root of chaos and the unreliability of romantic love. This play deals with the last stage of the Trogan War. It begins with Trojan Troilus expressing his love for Cressida to her uncle Pandarus. Pandarus (who for now is Cressida's guardian) consents to Troilus's quest. In the next scene, Cressida will not admit to her uncle Pandarus that she likes Troilus, but she later reveals to us she does. (Some nice comedy.) 1.3 is a rather well drawn scene where the Greek King Agamemnon is frustrated because Greece has not been able to defeat Troy after all this time. Part of the reason may be civil dissension in Greece. The Greek warrior Achilles is more after his own glory than performing his duties. Because of this, when an invitation to fight Hector to decide the outcome comes, Agamemnon chooses the less able, but more modest Ajax. Onto Act 2. Act 2 Scene 2 emphasizes the theme of this play yet again. Priam and Hector honestly feel that the Trojans should just give back Helen to the Greeks and end all this. It makes sense does it not? But Troilus (like Romeo) is a romantic and not a rationalist, and he persuades Priam and Hector to hold onto Helen. (By the way, we can forget about any valuable input from Helen. She shows herself to be an airhead. Or as the great Isaac Asimov puts it: "She appears as a vain, silly woman with an empty head unaware (or uncaring about) what she has caused, and incapable, apparently, of making an intelligent remark." Onto Act 3. Troilus and Cressida confess their love for each other, and for now they are happy. (Along with Cressida's uncle Pandarus.) But this is not to last. Cressida's father (of Greece) wants his daughter Cressida back and Agamemnon is willing to give Troy back their Anteor in return. Agamemnon continues to show contempt for Achilles and his swollen ego, and there is a comical scene where everyone ignores Achilles. The less effective but more modest Ajax continues to win praise. Onto Act 4. 4.2 has the sad scene where Troilus and Cressida realize that they must part, but with a gleam of hope, Troilus plans to see Cressida behind enemy lines. The parting in 4.4 is well drawn. Onto the battle between Hector and Ajax. It takes place, and the battle ends with the 2 praising each other with respect. Perhaps things can even come to a peaceful conclusion, but Achilles and Hector express their contempt for each other, and peace looks less likely. Onto Act 5. Troilus sneaks behind enemy lines to see Cressida, but to make a long story short, he sees that she no longer feels anything for him. Troilus leaves in a bitter rage. (Such is a short romance.) Act 5.3 is a memorable scene where Hector's wife tries to convince Hector to stay home, but like Calpurnia, she can not convince Caesar to stay home. (Even when Hector's father and sister try to help.) And now, the fire flies. War breaks out. The balance of power swings back and forth. Hector kills Achilles's friend Patroclus and when Hector's vanity leaves him vulnerable, Achilles kills Hector in a less than honorable fashion. Troilus survives, but he fears with the loss of Hector, Troy will fall. If you like this story, you may wish to read Marlowe's "Dido Queen of Carthage." That play focuses on Aeneas and the surviving Trojans as they plot their next move.

One of his lesser known works, Shakespeare's Trojan play is also one of his most intriguing. Not quite a burlesque, 'Troilus and Cressida''s lurches in tone, from farce to historical drama to romance to tragedy, and its blurring of these modes, explains why generations of critics and audiences have found it so unsatisfying, and why today it can seem so modern. Its disenchanted tone, its interest in the baser human instincts underlying (classical) heroism look forward to such 20th century works as Giraudoux's 'The Trojan War Will Not Take Place' or Terry Jones' 'Chaucer's Knight'; the aristocratic ideals of Love and War, inextricably linked in this play, are debased by the merchant-class language of exchange, trade, food, possesion - the passionate affair at its centre is organised by the man who gave his name to pimps, Pandarus, and is more concerned with immediate sexual gratification than anything transcendental. The Siege of Troy sequences are full of the elaborately formal rhetoric we expect from Shakespeare's history plays, but well-wrought diplomacy masks ignoble trickery; the great heroes Ajax and Achilles are petulant egotists, the latter preferring the company of his catamite to combat; the actual war sequences, when they finally come, are a breathless farce of exits and entrances. There are a lot of words in this play, but very few deeds.

Paris, Prince of Troy, has abducted Helen, wife of Menelaus, King of Sparta. Led by the latter's brother Agamemnon, and his Machiavellian advisors Ulysses and Nestor, the Greeks besiege Troy, demanding the return of Helen. However, Achilles' dissatisfaction at the generals' endless politicking has spread discontent in the ranks. Within Troy, war takes a distinct second place to matters of the heart. While Paris wallows in luxury with his prize, his youngest brother Troilus uses Pandarus as a go-between to arrange a night of love with his niece, Cressida. When one of the Trojan leaders is taken prisoner by the Greeks, the ransom price is Cressida.

There is only one character in 'Troilus' who can be said to be at all noble and not self-interested, the eldest Trojan prince Hector, who, despite his odd interpreation of the quality 'honour', detests a meaningless war, and tries to spare as many of his enemies' lives as he can. He is clearly an anachronism, however, and his ignoble slaughter at the hands of a brutal gang suggests what price chivalry. Perhaps the most recognisable character is Thirsitis, the most savagely cynical of his great Fools. Imagine Falstaff without the redeeming lovability - he divests heroes and events of their false values, satirises motivations, abuses his dim-witted 'betters' and tries to preserve his life at any cost. Written in between 'Hamlet' and 'All's Well That Ends Well', 'Troilus' bears all the marks of Shakespeare's mid-period: the contrapuntal structure, the dense figures, the audacious neologisms, and the intitially deferred, accelerated action. If some of the diplomacy scenes are too efective in their parodic pastiche of classical rhetoric, and slow things down, Act 5 is an amazing dramatic rush, crowning the play's disenchantment with love (with an extraordinarily creepy three-way spaying of an infidelity) and war.

The New Penguin Shakespeare is the most accessible and user-friendly edition for students and the general reader (although it does need updating). Unlike the Oxford or Arden series, which offer unwieldy introductions (yawning with irrelevant conjecture about dates and sources) and unusable notes (clotted with tedious pedantry more concerned with fighting previous commentators than elucidating Shakespeare), the Penguin's format offers a clear Introduction dealing with the play and its contexts, an appendix 'An Account of the Text', and functional endnotes that gloss unfamiliar words and difficult passages. The Introduction is untainted by fashions in Critical Theory, but is particularly good at explaining the role of Time ('When time is old and hath forgot itself...And blind oblivion swallowed cities up'), the shifting structure, the multiple viewpoints in presenting characters, and Shakespeare's use of different literary and linguistic registers.

Troilus and Cressida is one of Shakespear`s many romances, and, like most of his romances, is a tragedy. Since time immemorial, Shakespears` works have been used as plays, literature and (least often) just casual reading. While Troilus and Cressida is one of the less known plays, it is no less a good one. It is based in Troy(as the name might imply)during the much renowned Trojan War. The valiant Troilus, son of the Trojan king is enamoured of Cressida, also of Troy. Meanwhile, the Greek hosts have laid siege to the city, and the warrior Achilles refuses to fight, encouraging further interaction between the two sides. Cressida, however, is the daughter of a Greek sympathizer(if that is the correct word)and may not be able to honour her commitment to the Trojan prince...

Boyfriend Darren proposes marriage and Barbara is on soul search solo vacation where she run in to a mother and son who disappeared. There is an ex-husband, a family business, patent stealing and a billion-dollar company sell. The woman shows up in Barbara's town and gets shot to death or does she? The boy is missing and the ex-family is running crazy. Barbara, with the help of dear ole Dad & Baily solve this tangle with all of its twist and turns to save the day. Excellent story and the some of the best character ever.

I read almost half of this book and just gave up - I didn't care! Nothing much happens and what does is so obvious it's silly. Did anyone NOT get who the dead body was????? REALLY slow

Lawyer Barbara Holloway is on a retreat after her personal life takes a complicated turn. Little did she know that the peace and serenity of her surroundings on the Oregon coast is an illusion. Barbara discovered the abused and battered body of a young woman along with they woman's frightened young son. By the time Barbara gets back to the scene with help the woman and boy are gone. There are many conflicting stories as to who would want to harm the woman hiding in the woods. People jump to the conclusion that Barbara was helping her escape and before long she is immersed in a murder investigation.

I've always enjoyed the characters of Barbara Holloway and her father Frank. They have such an endearing father/daughter relationship that I feel drawn in. I was really hooked on this story from page one even though there are several eye-rolling moments. For instance, wouldn't a motive be good if someone were to be accused of a murder, and the almost untouchable power of some of the characters was a little over-the-top. The villains were more caricatures than real people, but for all the faults, I read the book in one afternoon. So even though much of this story is unbelievable, it's still a good read.

Thirty-four year old Elizabeth Kurtz is a woman in distress in Kate Wilhelm's "A Wrongful Death." Her ex-husband, Terry, barges into her office one day to announce that his father is dying. Terry wants Elizabeth to help him find an important document that will mean a great deal of money for them and their son, Jason. If Terry's malicious mother, Sarah, were to find the paper first, she would immediately shred it, and Terry, Elizabeth, and Jason would end up with nothing. Elizabeth reluctantly agrees to assist in the search, but much to her shock, she comes across a thick folder with contents so potentially explosive that she hurriedly grabs it and leaves town with her son. Her impulsive actions come back to haunt Elizabeth when she realizes that someone is willing to kill her to retrieve the stolen files.

Oregon-based attorney Barbara Holloway is at a turning point in her life. She is disillusioned with the law and is seriously considering giving up her practice. She also has qualms about accepting a proposal of marriage from the man she loves, Darren Halvord. Barbara's therapist advises her to "confront what it is you fear; only then can you resolve it." She retreats to a secluded spot to consider her options. While walking along the beach one day, Barbara is suddenly accosted by Elizabeth Kurtz's hysterical son who tearfully informs her that his mother has been hurt. Barbara takes the boy back to the cabin where he and his mother have been staying; she finds Elizabeth Kurtz lying on the ground bleeding from a head wound. After Barbara makes the injured woman comfortable, she locates the caretaker and returns with him to the cabin, only to discover that Elizabeth and Jason have both disappeared.

Much to her consternation, Barbara unwittingly becomes embroiled in a case involving a bitter family feud, greed, corporate fraud, insanity, and murder. Fortunately, Barbara's father, Frank, a respected criminal defense lawyer, and Bailey Novell, a crackerjack private investigator, are on hand with much needed advice and support during the grueling months to come. The police suspect Barbara of lying when she insists that she has no connection to Kurtz and does not represent her. Although she would prefer to wash her hands of the Kurtz matter, Barbara decides that she has no choice but to investigate this dysfunctional family.

"A Wrongful Death" is a convoluted, talky, and far-fetched story that requires a great deal of exposition to clarify all of the players and their roles in what turns out to be a messy and protracted domestic melodrama. Cozy scenes of Barbara eating her father's scrumptious meals and enjoying his loving concern alternate with brainstorming sessions in which Frank, Bailey, and Barbara try to figure out what is really going on. Wilhelm has written a pedestrian mystery hampered by stilted dialogue and cardboard characters that rarely come to life. The police detectives are incompetent, the villain (who is telegraphed from the beginning) is a one-dimensional monster, and Barbara is never in any real danger. A few twists bring the book to life briefly, but "A Wrongful Death" is a mediocre thriller with too few thrills.

Attorney Barbara Holloway only wants a little time, a little peace, in which to contemplate some personal and career moves. Should she marry? Should she teach? Her solitary sojourn in the mountains is interrupted when she bumps into a child alone and in distress. Naturally, she is moved to assist him, and the following day finds that this simple scenario has exploded into a convoluted mystery. There are few enough characters in this novel to make guessing who the perpetrator is a relatively easy task. It can't be Barbara, although the police consider her their prime suspect, and with her father she sets out to solve the mystery and clear her name. Until that occurs, Barbara is prevented from determining which direction her life will take.
This is an interesting enough tale, but with only one surprise and little suspense or excitement, there is little to raise it above the norm for the genre.

I found this book interesting, obviously well-researched and containing much information I didn't know about the early explorers of my own state of residence. Mr. McCartney did an important work in presenting history and in paying tribute to his gutsy ancestor within the same accounting.

This expedition followed the Lewis and Clark Corp. of Discovery by only a few years, long before Fremont made his journey into Wyoming. They were conducting the exploring of passageways for trade of all kinds, but for the moment, the fur trade - for John Jacob Astor, one of the most astute businessmen of that century. While Lewis and Clark made mighty discoveries, but didn't hit the jackpot with the intended waterways due to the imposing mountains, it was Stuart who discovered an equally important "northwest passage" in the South Pass route, far to the south which is really where the mountains meet the plains - the gentle ending of the Wind River mountain range - allowing the vast traffic West to begin to pass through. And pass they did, the natives watching astounded as they were pushed aside in the tidal waves of emigrants that followed. I couldn't help it - the naughty thought occurred to me that Fremont, while indeed serving his country in his travels, was primarily the son-in-law of a politician wishing to make a name for himself after the real work was done.

It does have controversy, of course - any great discovery is subject to it in the course of hashing out history. John Colter may have crossed it after he split from the L&C expedition - it has been suggested - I'm not enough of a scholar to question some of it but for certain, this man was of the first white men to see it, and documented his journey.

The list of names, rivers and landmarks bring it vividly to life for me, as they are dear, familiar places that I visit on a regular basis, thinking all the while of these men who came before. The Platte, Bessemer Bend, Independence Rock, the Snake river, Henry's Fork of the Snake, Fort Hall; the people of Stuart, Hoback, McClellan, Hunt, all of these people live on vibrantly in our country here - with the landmarks memorializing them. For them, life was to be lived - or lost - in the trying. I doubt that many of them aspired to the greatness they achieved - it was simply answering the call of the wild and unknown, reminding me of yet another free spirit - Robert Service - who said it all in his poem "The Men Who Don't Fit In."

One scenario I found difficult to believe was the part where the explorers were close to death from starvation. Men with firearms, ammunition, should have had no trouble feeding themselves. The country abounds with game even to this day, and it was abundance of twenty fold then. Even if the big game had become scarce in certain areas due to migrations, there were certainly rabbits, even in the winter. It made mention that they "were reluctant to fire their weapons" for fear of attracting the hostile Crow back to their whereabouts, which had to be the most of it, even though it didn't actually come out with the reason. Our Native people are, at long last, taking their rightful place in history too - this book demonstrates it too - for it was their homes that were being invaded and one can scarcely blame them for being insulted.

A mass paperback tale it is not. I thoroughly enjoyed this book, found it scholarly enough without being dry, well-conceived, well-written, and am glad I found it. I'm also thankful for the reviews given it, which helped me decide to read it. It has a well-deserved place in my personal library.

I thought this book was excellent. I thought it was very similar to undaunted courage, but I felt it moved a bit faster, and spent less time on all the minute details of the Astorians' adventure. Maybe my review is higher than the book deserves due to my interest in the subject matter, but I haven't read a historical book cover to cover for along time, and the author did a good enough job that I breazed throught he 270 pages.

This book had a lot going for it, I thought. The writer lives part of the time in the wonderful wild country he's writing about, he graduated for Yale and is an award-winning journalist with work published in many prestigious magazines. He had access to private letters and diaries from the expedition. The expedition itself was dangerous and exciting. The topic was one of my favourites. This, I thought would be a really good read.

Well, it was O.K. The book seems to be accurate, factual and comprehensive. But it's the dullest book about an exciting adventure I've ever read. It lacks a sense of adventure, any depth of understanding of the country, the circumstances and any empathy with the feelings and interactions of the men. It seemed like just a journalistic exercise in getting all the relevant information and setting it down in a coherent sequence.

Robert Stuart appears to have been a remarkable young man and his expedition was hugely important in the development of the region. Both deserved better than this.

This book had a lot going for it, I thought. The writer lives part of the time in the wonderful wild country he's writing about, he graduated for Yale and is an award-winning journalist with work published in many prestigious magazines. He had access to private letters and diaries from the expedition. The expedition itself was dangerous and exciting. The topic was one of my favourites. This, I thought would be a really good read.

Well, it was O.K. The book seems to be accurate, factual and comprehensive. But it's the dullest book about an exciting adventure I've ever read. It lacks a sense of adventure, any depth of understanding of the country, the circumstances and any empathy with the feelings and interactions of the men. It seemed like just a journalistic exercise in getting all the relevant information and setting it down in a coherent sequence.

Robert Stuart appears to have been a remarkable young man and his expedition was hugely important in the development of the region. Both deserved better than this.

An interesting story of Robert Stuart, the white explorer who learned from natives the existence of the South Pass through the Rocky Mountains and used the Pass in 1812 on a West-to-East trip. (South Pass is the only wagon-friendly route through the Rockies.) The purpose of Stuart's trip was basically a management report on a private company's progress. The trip was through largely uncharted territory, and dangers were encountered, but this is not a compelling read. Here's the most frustrating part: John Jacob Astor, Stuart's boss, elected to keep secret the existence of South Pass. So this critical piece of geographical info was not used until the Pass was re-discovered in 1823 by William Ashley, who publicized it, leading eventually to the Oregon Trail. Astor never used his "trade secret." That makes Stuart's trip an interesting historical footnote, not the landmark discovery it could have been if Stuart and Astor had publicized the existence of South Pass.

Living in Vancouver, I used this book many times to impress various women and have to say that although the places this book digs up are not inexpensive they are certainly romantic. Without it, I would never have found the most amazing on hill house in Whistler where I was able to propose to my wife to be. I thought this book was awesome and have recommended it to many people.

On checking the local listings, I had already been to every place listed in this book and the winery listings are very out of date. The Jewel this book listed for Prosser, ,WA is probably the ugliest winery in the Yakima Valley.

Other listings appeared to be fairly accurate but not very well researched. Overall the book would still be pretty useful. Title should be changed to *Good Places....* because the Best Places aren't listed.

This is a terrific travel guide for true romantics. I have used it on many trips and have never been disappointed. A great companion book to take along is The Romantic's Guide: Hundreds of Creative Tips for a Lifetime of Love.

If you read Best Places: Northwest you do NOT need to buy this book, which is far inferior. Many of the same locales are covered, but the author chooses to stick to the same term throughout: "romantic." Seldom does she choose another adjective. It didn't inspire me to kiss my new husband any more; it angered me that I had bought a dumbed down version of the Northwest books I already have.
Looking for less expensive places to have a "romantic" interlude in the NW? Don't look here. I don't know about the rest of the US, but my honey and I can't go to $$$ or $$$$ places.
Re-write the book to include real people who want to know things we haven't already read in your other books.
Don't buy it. Check it out at the library, but don't waste your hard-earned cash. And come up with true romance that doesn't cost a fortune. That should be the focus.

As the contributing editor for "Oregon" on Suite101,com, I'm always on the lookout for great books about Oregon. Best Places to Kiss in the Northwest is great for what it includes and should probably be broken into three separate books so that more places in Oregon, Wasington, and British Columcia can be featured.

I agree wholeheartedly with the picks included. There are just so many great restaurants and B abd B's that are missing.

An entry in Bend, Oregon states that Bend is known better for outdoors kissing spots than cozy restaurants, yet I can name Kayo's Dinner House, Le Bistro, and McGrath's Fish House right off the bat that are left out.

In addition, I don't know if this would be considered a best place to kiss in other people's books, but growing up in Bend, the two best kissing spots were on top of Pilot Butte (might be closed to cars now) and Pioneer Park. Neither were included.

In Washington, Centralia's got a very cozy B and B I'd love to go back to visit (no Centralis entries) and Ocean Shores isn't even mentioned.

That said, the most annoying factor of the book is its organization. Within each section, (e.g., Vancouver and environs) towns are listed all higgledy piggledy! Ladner comes after West/North Vancouver, which is followed by Tsawwassen, then Point Roberts. It took me longer than it should have to find what I was looking for.

The write-ups are fair and show little bias. It is very journalistic, without any real personal stories. I really wanted to know why each spot was chosen.

What's there is good and even great for some areas. It's too bad there are gaps.

Who knows whether I'll actually push the pedal that begins a coast to coast bicycling trip but having read Donna Lynn Ikenberry's "Bicycling: Coast to Coast," I now know what to feel, smell, taste and enjoy along the journey. The sunshine pours through her scenic descriptions and your legs ache during her climbs. As she comes close to each day's destination you can feel the anticipation of soothing well-used muscles. This is a guidebook to prepare for the trek as well as take along for reference. Buy two and leave one with someone responsible for knowing your itinerary.

This book goes the wrong way, namely East to West. The book follows the old 1976 Bike Centennial trail that is well described and updated at the Adventure Cycling website. I followed this route, East to West. It would have been a lot better to have gone East to West. The wind gets pretty strong and it blows West to East; so, if you are riding East to West, you have to work much harder than if go would go the other direction. While I enthusiastically recommend the route, I suggest that it would be better to start in the West.

Donna Ikenberry's "Bicycling Coast to Coast" is a well laid out, day-by-day guidebook for a bicycle trip across the country. From maps, to sights to see, to places to camp and eat, this book has everything you need to get across the country and not get lost.

The only thing I wish this book included was trip preparation hints (of which it has very few). However, this book along with Steve Butterman's "Bicycle Touring - How to Prepare for Long Rides" make a great cross country bike touring set.

I biked the TransAmerica trail last summer and I used this book for pre-trip planning and as a guide while on the road. The vast majority of the route Ikenberry takes is along a trail that was first ridden in 1976 and was designed by Adventure Cycling. If you just need maps of the roads to take, you'll be much better served by getting them from Adventure Cycling. If you want to use this book as a companion to the maps, you should realize that this book was written for westbounders. If you are riding from west to east (like i did) get ready to learn what dyslexia feels like as you try to decipher all the directions backwards.

The book is thin on trip planning info and simply points readers to other sources for info on bike touring. In general, most of this book merely describes points of reference along the TranAm trail (ie: mile 1 - You'll pass a convienence store on the left; mile 2.3 - You'll see a lake with picnic benches to the right). I felt that it lacked a real focus (sometimes it reads like a diary, sometimes it reads like a guidebook, etc) & was full of superfluous fluff (the state flower of virginia is blah blah, a family in kansas fed me cake, etc) that only made my saddlebags that much heavier.

Overall though, it's not my objective to dissuade you from buying this book... as unbelievably it seems to be the only guide written about riding the TransAm trail. Ikenberry's book certainly has some usefullness - perhaps mostly so in providing info on places to sleep along the way. But even then, she fails to mentions whether these places have showers or food on numerous occasions. It's worth the 15 bucks... but the book could (& should) have been so much better... (for example: there is no mention anywhere of suggestions on what kind of bike to use, gearings, tires - nothing even remotely technical)

I used this book this summer, riding from Florence, OR to Yorktown, VA (yes, the book goes from east to west, so I was reading "backwards"). For my purposes, I used the book to help figure out how large towns were and what services they offered. 9 times out of 10 the book gave fairly accurate assesments of services. There were times when "full-service" towns were no longer in existance and the grocery or restaurant we had been relying on was nowhere in site.

That said, I would NEVER bike the Trans Am, or even a portion of it, without consulting Adventure Cycling first [on their web site]. Their maps are indespensible and when used in conjunction with their up-to-date addendums, they are incredibly accurate. Ikenberry makes it pretty clear that she is using the Adventure Cycling maps as her guide as well.

I also found it odd that Ikenberry only biked the Trans Am once. She makes comments on terrain and areas which are purely cicumstantial (such as mentioning "dog-prone" areas in Kentucky - where we had no more dogs than any other day - and areas with mean drivers.) It was sometimes hard to tell whether her descriptions of places were based on one pass through or fact. Plus, I would have trusted her judgment of "steep" and "trafficky" had I felt more confident in her bike touring past.

On the plus side, Ikenberry does offer some nice background information on historical areas which the Trans Am cyclist may not otherwise recieve.

Overall, I am glad I lugged the extra pound on my tour. It was helpful and since I wasn't relying on it for accuracy, I wasn't affected at all by the closed services. It would be great if someone would update the book! Some towns in the book are no longer on the Adventure Cycling route. Also, she breaks the route into 70 different biking days. Some are rediculously long. She must have had some serious tail-winds at some points! Again, had she biked the route several times, I am sure her days would have been more "normal" in some instances.

In any case, bike the Trans Am since it is awesome and contact Adventure Cycling for your most accurate information. If you have [any money] left over and some room for a medium-sized book, squeeze Ikenberry into your pannier.

Debbie MacOmber's story was fine but not great. Basically, it was just an excuse to meet up with all those people from her previous books. Judith Bowen's story was also entertaining, although I disliked the theme of a heroine who disguised her appearance, then having a hero who fell for the disguise and couldn't figure out who she really was. But Janice Johnson's story definitely made up for the rest of the anthology. Her story sparkled with humor and romance. It's a must-read for all romance fans!!!

I loved this book as most of Debbie Macomber's are high on my reading list. It had a very good story line. You won't want to put it down.

Debbie MacComber's short story was lacking compared to the rest of the Midnight Son's series. It was nice to hear what happened to the rest of our favorite characters from the other books (in fact it was more interesting than the Scott/Chrissie main plot). I didn't buy Scott's "troubled teenager" character at all because of who MacComber painted him to be in the earlier books. Scott would have talked things out with his family instead of internalizing and running away.

The other two stories were good reads especially Promise Me Picket Fences but I felt that the stories moved too quickly and didn't develop characters. For example, I would have liked to learn more about Angie and about Hannah's sister Emily (who sounds more interesting than Hannah herself).

I have reread Janice Kay Johnson's story Promise Me Picket Fences over and over again. It is worth the price of this collection. The other two stories have major problems as far as I'm concerned. But Picket Fences was complete with a too-die-for hero and an endearing heroine. I enjoyed the story as well as the romance. Buy Born in a Small Town today! Janice Kay Johnson's story is lovely and makes it all worthwhile.

I asked for this book for my birtday, because I had read the previous six books over the summer that proceeded the first story in this book. This story was a good follow up to those books. A quick read. I enjoy Debbie Macomber, and that is the only reason I got this book. I couldn't get "into" the other two stories, however, and moved on to better books!

This $3 booklet is the size of a greeting card. There are 24 "fantastic facts" on 43 pages. The postage is $3.99. Buyer beware.

This is a quaint little book that is full of interesting facts. My fifth graders have enjoyed listening to the unusual stories. The entries are quick and easy and great for filling those 5 minute gaps or introducing a lesson.

I purchased this book for my daughter who is 9. It is a really good book for children and for adults. There were quite a few interesting things listed in the book that I did not already know. A real fun book, but dont expect a doctoral thesis.

Ms. Keefer needs to improve her spelling, especially if she is a 4th grade teacher (see her review). I live "on" the Oregon Trail, in Pocatello, Idaho. My wife and I visit Oregon Trail sites (especially visual "ruts") whenever we can. Michael Trinklein is a well-respected historian; this book is a keeper!

Although this book is not intended to (and won't) gove you a comprehensive overview of the history of the Oregon Trail, this is still a very good book to read if you are interested in the era. I learned quite a bit about it, and found it fascinating. Some great facts. Definitely worth reading.