Carr Books

I brought this book because of the reviews but once I got it, I realized besides the pretty pictures, there is no content to speak of. The book tells you nothing substantial about Mexican material culture or interior design. It is a fluff publication - nothing more.

I have checked out as many interior design books on Mexican style as I could find and being a researcher by profession that was a lot. This is my favorite--the colors of the rooms are warm and vibrant and exactly what I had envisaged in my mind's eye. I loved each page and would recommend buying this if you had to pick just one on this subject.

I have just bought a house in Mexico, and find this book most inspirational for my remodelling work and for any future building! Super authentic ideas.

I had high hopes for this book after picking it up from my local library. It had all the ingredients of making a wonderful "thriller" as it claims on the book cover. It started out ok, but then lagged on and on for what seemed like an eternity (the small print doesn't help matters either). I really began losing interest during the numerous flashbacks...which I normally would have nothing against, when used sparingly. Ms. Carr seemed to have spaced out however when writing them. She goes on endlessly about things we have either read previously during another flashback, or care nothing about altogether! I believe it took away whatever suspense there could have been. Also, not enough time was spent on the actual stalker. I felt like that character was lost in the woods somewhere while in the meantime, we get more than our fair share of the local townsfolk and their boring life stories. Who cares about them?! Focus more attention on the stalker and the intended victim. It seems Ms Carr was a little more interested in building up all the personal histories rather than concentrating on building up the actual suspense. To sum this book up in a nutshell...Don't waste your time.

I enjoyed this book having read it when it was first published and at that time, it was a thriller. Not too many novels were out about stalkers and the terror someone can create in one scene. I remember the bathroom scene and the heroine realizing "he" had been in her house because the toilet seat was up. Later, in the movie with Julia Roberts called Sleeping with the Enemy, she showed her terror with the towels being out of place. Robyn Carr was ahead of her time and that gives this book a four star rating to me.

I thought this was a great book. I strongly disagree with the reviewer who gave it 2 stars. It's hard to believe we read the same book. The flashbacks were not numerous, and were necessary to the plot, as was the fleshing out of the "local townsfolk." I felt the focus *was* on the stalker and his victim, and the story *was* suspenseful. I recommend you read this book and make up your own mind. Robyn Carr always spins a good story.

MONDAY'S CHILD is a terrific first suspense novel by Jody Carr. Ms. Carr takes "ordinary" people and places them in extraordinary situations. The characters are so real and complicated that you will feel as if you are experiencing their ordeals with them.

I look forward to Ms. Carr's next novel, LOST AND FOUND, due in March 2001. Bravo, Ms. Carr!

I find it difficult to believe that I read the same book as the reviewer above. I thought the dialogue was snappy and terrific, the characters warm and interesting, and the plotting smooth and believable. All told, a great read. I look forward to her next novel.

This attempt at a novel is unbelievably bad! The writer may have some promise, but desperately needs to hone her writing skills before foisting another book onto readers.(I note from the inside-cover blurb that she has written children's books; perhaps she is better suited to that.) I am utterly amazed that "Monday's Child", a story with such poorly conceived characters and jumpy, unbelievable plot development ever got past an agent, let alone an editor. Most of the characters are so ineptly drawn that they never became "real" for me. There are logic-defying leaps and turns in the plot, unrealistic dialogue, and a story line(as such) which became less and less believable as I read on....hoping it would get better. It didn't.

I've really enjoyed Jean Plaidy's books over the years, but hadn't read one in quite a while. Since they've begun to be re-published I decided to see what the library had to offer. I picked this up because I knew very little about the English Civil War and its principal players.

Jean Plaidy usually excels at drawing the reader into a specific historical period through excellent research and detailed description, but I found this book lacking. It felt like a first draft. Written in the first person, Henrietta Marie's voice is repetitious. All of the historical events presented feel shallow due to a lack of detail. King Charles' presence is barely felt as are her feelings toward him. The relationship--supposedly a great love match--never feels fully fleshed out. There's a lack of physical description that makes it hard to feel part of the scene. None of the other characters register as real people either.

Overall, it was a rather boring read. I did finish the book, because I was actually interested in the subject. This is the only fictional account of Henrietta Marie I've been able to find. I give it two stars for that alone.

Read this if you're curious, but I'd recommend any other of Jean Plaidy's books especially The Queen's Confession about Marie Antoinette (written under her Victoria Holt nom de plume) or The Lady in the Tower about Anne Boleyn.

This is the first volume in the Queens of England series of books by Jean Plaidy, who is also known to her legion of fans as Victoria Holt. It is a well written work of historical fiction that tells the story of the daughter of King Henry IV of France, Henrietta Maria, who went on to marry King Charles I of England.

Henrietta Maria, a Catholic, found herself married to Charles, a Protestant, living in a Protestant country, among a Protestant people. The English, at the time, viewed Catholics with deep suspicion, as the excesses of the Catholic Queen Mary, "Bloody Mary", the daughter of Henry VIII, were still not forgotten. A fervent Catholic, however, Henrietta would not put aside her religion, nor was she particularly discreet about her devotion to Catholicism, and, as such, was never fully accepted by the English people.

Henrietta Maria was an impetuous and pretty, young woman, fond of musical revels, fashionable clothes, and gossip. Her husband, Charles, a family man of principle and integrity, was devoted to her, and together they would go on to have a number of children. Their marriage of state, made for the purpose of maintaining a Franco-English alliance, turned out to be a true love match.

Henrietta Maria was also, however, a puppet of Rome, charged with leading Protestant England back to Catholicism. This was to cloud her judgment, at times, and cause much trouble down the road, and, ultimately, serve to pave the way for the rise of Cromwell and his Puritans. They would make her devotion to her religion and her influence over her husband a focal point for turbulence and civil war. Her loyalty and love for her husband was legendary, but not even she could keep him from the road that led to regicide.

Written in the first person, this is a wonderfully told tale of an enigmatic, little known Queen, who wielded great influence over her beloved husband. Rich with historical detail, it is an enormously entertaining novel that is rife with the political intrigues of the day. All those who love reading well written, historical fiction should enjoy it.

I got on an English Civil War kick a little while ago, and when I started to look around for some novels to read, one of the first I came across was Myself My Enemy, Jean Plaidy's 1983 novel about Henrietta Maria, wife to Charles I.

Myself My Enemy is written in the first person, and traces Henrietta Maria's growth from a headstrong young girl to a more reflective older woman, one with many regrets.

This isn't the best novel about the English Civil War I've ever read. Plaidy's prose isn't particularly memorable, and she always tends to tell more than to show. Nonetheless, Plaidy has a gift for getting inside her characters' heads and making the reader care for them, and I thought she did that well with Henrietta. Fiercely loyal to her husband, deeply committed to her Catholic faith, suffering myriad tragedies, and just as often doing the wrong thing as the right one, Henrietta is an interesting heroine, and Plaidy succeeds in making her an appealing one despite her manifest flaws, of which Henrietta is all too aware despite her best efforts to rationalize her actions to herself. Her wavering between self-knowledge and self-justification is depicted particularly well in the scene where Henrietta mourns her son Henry, whom she had alienated before his untimely death by attempting to convert to Catholicism.

Plaidy depicts Charles I sympathetically, without idealizing him, and the relationship between him and Henrietta is moving. Charles II, blithely ignoring his mother's advice, and not without good reason, is also well drawn.

Judging from the reading I've done since about Henrietta Maria, Plaidy seems to have researched Henrietta's life thoroughly and stuck to historical fact, a refreshing contrast to some more recent novels I've read about other historical figures.

All in all, an interesting introduction to a beleaguered queen, and one that got me scouring the library to learn more about Henrietta.

John Dickson Carr excelled at creating "impossible" crimes and then explaining how they occurred. To enjoy Carr's mysteries, you must like puzzles that have intricate solutions, and not mind that a few aspects may be difficult to follow. While Carr's solutions are clever, his best mysteries were written in the 1930s to 1950s, so there may be an occasional clue that doesn't hold up in today's CSI era. Though some will disagree, Carr's most entertaining mysteries are those that feature Sir Henry Merrivale (written under the name Carter Dickson).

PANIC IN BOX C features Dr. Gideon Fell. It was written toward the end of Carr's career (1966), when he suffered from a serious illness and lost much of his enthusiasm for writing. Some strengths remain: a murderer whose identity is surprising but logical, interesting characters, the corny but amusing romance that Carr often liked to include. The setting is entertaining (a community theater). And there is one fact I was pleased to learn: Although the bittersweet ending to "He Who Whispers" predicts the imminent death of a (single) character I really liked, Carr gave her a reprieve by mentioning her as happily married 20 years later on pages 16-17.

Carr's often excellent attempts at humor don't work well in PIBC. One male character uses slangy/rude pet names for his girlfriend that are more embarrassing than funny. Chapter 13, which for some reason is devoted to singing college songs at a bar, is a waste of time in a book that is already somewhat too long. The motive is less startling than other Carr mysteries. As is often the case, the method is somewhat of a stretch. (You have to be a bit forgiving with a Carr mystery.) And some ideas are recycled from previous works, such as the nicknames Punch and Judy, one character's personality flaw, and the importance of a crossbow.

PIBC is probably worth your time if you're a devoted Carr fan, but the first three Gideon Fell mysteries--"Hag's Nook," "The Mad Hatter Mystery," and "The Eight of Swords"--are much better. So are Carr's Sir Henry Merrivale mysteries.

One of the later, weaker Dr. Gideon Fell novels. The great detetcive is not much more than a shovel-hat and canes in the background. The magic of the great novels is missing. All we have here are the props of a mystery play. The story for the most part takes place in a theatre with a bevy of actors and actresses running around and doing Romeo and Juliet. I thought that the wrap-up in chapter 20 was pretty good even though the rest of the story was plodding. The supernatural element that of course turns out to be false in Carr's mysteries is missing except for a "goblin" mask that is not very effective or frightening to anyone. There is a ton of dialogue padding and some funny drunken bar scenes that are not really that funny. All of Carr's elements are trotted out on to the stage, but the scenes are for the most part dull and forgettable. An old Sherlock Holmes stage play starring Wiilliam Gillete plays a key role, so this one will be interesting to Holmes fans. If you happen to be an expert on Sherlock Holmes, you might even guess the ending!

This is a Gidéon Fell mystery with a theatre related plot.There is a great number of digressions.The gimmick is good,but it is quite similar to the one used in a previous March mystery (the silver curtain).It is also similar to the gimmick of the second murder in "les sept merveilles du crime" from Paul Halter ( for the ones who read French mystery writers ).I will recommend this book for the fans of the author:they will find a lot of remarks refering to the private life of the author.But it's not the J.D. Carr of the golden age.

I bought this thinking it was a cute love story. Boy was I wrong! I sent it back.

The Graham sisters collectively pool their money together so they can buy a pair of Pink Diamond earrings. The deal is each sister will take a turn with the earrings. After a month they will be passed on to the next sister. They belonged to a real life celebrity and each sister wants to experience the magic of the beautiful pink ice. Sabrina, Lindsey, and Nicole are about to meet the alpha men in their future and boy oh boy life won't be the same. They aren't the only ones that want these beautiful diamonds and one jewel thief is about to experience more than she ever planned.

This was a fun and very sexy read. Ms. Carr has written four short stories all revolving around the pink diamonds. Each sister gets her very own yummy and sexy hero with an equally steamy story. Oh and our naughty jewel thief gets her own story as well. With each story we are treated to a little bit of the legend surrounding the diamonds. Ms. Carr is indeed a highly creative author and this anthology is a perfect example of how you can pack a lot into very little. With sizzling chemistry and endearing characters this is a page turning effort that will entertain. For CK2S Kwips and Kritiques

Prologue. In Seattle at the Lia Dash auction, the three Graham sisters (Lindsay, Sabrina, and Nicole) all want to buy the pink diamond earrings, but not one of them can afford to bid. They make a quick deal to pool their resources and share the gems.

"Pink Champagne". Middle sister Sabrina wears the earrings when she crashes a party when security bodyguard Ian West notices her. He wants her, but thinks she is a thief especially with the diamond earrings she wears as someone has stolen jewelry from guests and wants Sabrina's jewels next.

"Touch of Pink". Oldest sibling Lindsay takes the earrings with her when she goes on vacation in Hawaii. Dominic Stark wants the diamonds and her, but knows he cannot have both.

"Pink Positive". The youngest sibling Nicole has the earrings on when she meets Alex Rafferty, supervising a tour of royal jewels that is currently at a local museum. She wants to join the expedition while he wants to join with her.

"In the Pink". Jewel thief Mercer Whitely-Cooke plans to steal the earrings when she attends a party hosted by Lindsay and Dominic. Detective Tony Jackson is working the gala to insure no felonies occur. However, when he and Mercer meet, he feels she stole his heart though he soon realizes he must prevent her from taking the earrings.

These are four superb interrelated erotic romantic suspense novellas starring likable protagonists and the diamond earrings mindful of the movie the Yellow Rolls Royce but much hotter and more exciting with thieving and no inhibitions being the themes.

Harriet Klausner

So what if this book isn't historically correct? Kids are too young to understand the real truth of Anastasia, and it's even more difficult for them to understand who's higher in ranks of royalty. This book is meant for kids to enjoy the wonder and beauty of Anastasia. It's based on the 20th Century Fox movie, and it is great. So please, STOP COMPLAINING ABOUT HOW INACCURATE THIS MOVIE OR ANY OF THESE PRODUCTS ARE!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Just let the kids enjoy what they see: more fantasy and adventure movies, less reality and action movies.

I haven't read the book, I couldn't get past the historical innacuracies in the description. The first mistake is the title. Anastasia was not a princess, but a grand duchess. A grand duchess outranked a princess. This may only be a minor detail, but if we're going to present this to kids as history it needs to be accurate. Unfortunately all of the Anastasia books I've looked at have similar and worse problems.

Okay, first things first! As a huge fan of Anastasia I of course purchased this book, and I see that all of these older people are giving anything Anastasia related a bad rap. I bet if it were a storybook for the 1956 version of Anastasia they wouldn't be so judgmental. This book has lush poem-like text and really beautiful breathtaking paintings/pictures that aren't reproductions but drawn special just for this book. The cover is also really beautiful and sparkly. It could be used as bedtime reading though it is a little short but anyone ANY age could read this and enjoy it too.
People need to look past the fact that this movie is based on the REAL Anastasia Nicholaievna Romanov {Who I know much about as well as her family!} And just accept the MOVIE itself for what it is, not it's true history, which it is not!

This book is currently out of stock. Inconvenient but nevertheless glad to here it has been in demand. I do hope you soon are restocked.

Thanks, Paula Brown

Although I see some of his points in his attempt to portray Nazism as a type of New Age Movement, his arguments are very lacking. The book reads like a bad,overly verbose bachelor's thesis. His style needs polishing. The whole Nazi era, as Carr sees it, was a spiritual struggle between good and evil. Some of his theories seem plausible to a religious person, like Hitler was demonically possessed. However, Carr goes about claiming that virtually all the world leaders at the time were demonically possessed. Hmmm. . .just because some leaders did not react to the Holocaust, it must mean that they're possessed. Wow, what an incredible piece logic.

This is a fantastic book. I highly recommend it. If you think you understood what was behind the third reich you know nothing until you read this book. There are powerful spiritual forces at work here and these dark forces continue to work their evil into the present age. The rise of monstrous dictators like Hitler, and the dictator that even Hitler knew would follow him, can not be understood apart from the spiritual warfare that is waged in men's souls. It's interesting that the atheist who reviewed this earlier remains blinded to the truth even after the evidence is presented to him plainly in this book. The same spiritual blindness will facilitate the rise of the antichrist no doubt.

This book is exhaustively detailed and reads as interestingly as any legal brief -- a snooze! It's like being in a history class where the professor thoroughly enjoys discussing every remote detail while the class is sound asleep. I am half-way through and will finish the book because I can find nothing more interesting about the court of James I. Too bad though because this could be an interesting story if not for the telling.

Much more about her husband rather than the supposed "tart" at the center of the conspiracy, Unnatural Murder leaves you wishing to know more about the Countess of Somerset. For a young woman living at a time when women had even less real power than the present, she made some difficult (and, admittedly, poor) decisions in attempting to wrest control of her life from the men around her. And apparently had the courage to take responsibility for those decisions. Tragic story.

Anne Somerset has written a comprehensive non-fiction account of the Overbury scandal that reads as if it were fictional narrative. The sources are exhaustive but not oppressive, so that this murder mystery turns out to be one of the best historical "whodunits" I have read. The plot is of the ages: the Countess of Somerset is young and beautiful; the Earl of Somerset is rich and powerful. In the Fall of 1615 the Countess and the Earl of Somerset were arrested on sucpicion of having murdered Sir Thomas Overbury. Does the passion, lust and greed
that lead up to their arrest turn the plot? This has it all.

The "political activist," obviously a poorly-educated person and a person with an agenda which forbids unbiased appreciation of another person's point of view, provides a misleading review of this book, which is a solid introduction to its subject-matter. Do not be fearful of divergent views which do not toe the party line. Enjoy this book.

I have read this book for a class, and was particularly unimpressed with the positions on civil rights (Chapter 11). Although the focus of this chapter(as with other chapters) was never how the authors personally felt about various issues and policy areas, reading this chapter alone would not tell you that. Ironically in a chapter about discrimination and stereotypes, there are plenty of generalizations.

Even though the authors grasped the idea of African American equality, they remark that "The creation of a more favorable public perception of efforts to alter the status of women is perhaps impede by the fact that the National Organization for Women (NOW) is regarded by many as being outside the American mainstream and dominated by extremists"(371)The authors then try and backpeddle by assuring readers that "In general, most major women's organizations do not take a negative stance against men"(372)The idea that the two verbatim quotes can actually be included in a professional allegedly netural work is beoynd disbelief.

Furthermore, the subsection on Disability is prefaced as victims. It fails to acknowllege that each of these subgroups (like women and African Americans) also had a role in their own respective struggles.

Key legislation and court cases concerning disabled children's right to a free appropriate public education is omitted, and the authors snidely reference "claims of learning disabilities"(378) Considering that the authors are teaching at public institutions, one must wonder what planet they have been living on for the past 20 years.

Gone completely is a discussion of the Asian American and Chicano rights movement. Native Americans and GLBT rights are squeezed in as an afterthought, which is particularly ironic given the current very visible presence of that movement.

I sympathize deeply with any student who has to read this textbook and urge you to do further research when you get to Chapter 10. I urge professors and faculty (if they have not do so already) to look for another book. While my public policy class turned out fairly well in spite of this book, others shouldn't have to repeat the same path if possible.