"Picture "The View," with the wisecracking, sympathetic sweethearts of that ABC television show replaced by a panel of embittered, suffering or enraged Arab women" -the Times review of Black Eyed
I read the book before I saw the movie, even though the movie had been out for years. But whatever.
Salve, Regina, Mater misericordiae
Vita, dulcedo, et spes nostra
Salve, Salve Regina
Ad te clamamus exsules filii Eva
Ad te suspiramus, gementes et flentes
O clemens O pia
Jason--I agree that THE TALISMAN starts off really slow, but I strongly recommend giving it another try. After he starts going into the "Territories" and sets off on his adventure, it gets REALLY good and you don't want to stop reading.
"They're eating her and then they're going to eat me. OH MY GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOD!!!!" -Troll 2
I find that everytime I read a Tess Gerritsen book, I put it down to discover that my fingernails have been mysteriously gnawed to the quick.
Especially "The Surgeon"...*shudder*
Also, Stephen King's "Desperation". EGADS!
Suzanne: I never use catalogs. I'd rather go in the store and see all the salespeople groveling and sucking up to you.
Julia: Pardon me, I never knew they were so solicitous at the K-Mart.
^^ I agree, Michael Crichton's books are always great. Prey stands out in my mind as edge-of-the-seat.
There is also a trilogy of books that are cheesy but very exciting reads. They're about these children who, as the result of a "government experiment", have wings, and this veterinarian and rogue CIA agent are trying to protect them. I think they were written by a fairly popular author. Does anybody remember the title of these?
iHeartMyGeek: But Pittsburgh also has many good qualities too! ahmelie: Are you implying that twinkies and lesbians are bad? BITCH!
Yup, Timeline popped into my head, I did nothing until I finished it...
The Stand caught me too.
So I was sitting in my cubicle today, and I realized, ever since I started working, every single day of my life has been worse than the day before it. So that means that every single day that you see me, that's on the worst day of my life.~Office Space
I got about 200 pages into Talisman and was disappointed - I actually loved the premise, but jumping in the Territories just got old so quickly for me. It seemed like there was about 50 pages or so there where nothing new was happening - he would jump, get attacked, and jump. And then the same thing again and again. Maybe someday I'll try it again since there have been several other King books (The Stand, Misery, and Needful Things especially) that I really enjoyed. Though it's not a book, the story Apt Pupil is one of the creepiest, scariest things I've read in my entire life.
Most of Jodi Picoult's books left me hanging each time I had to put one down. They're very gripping reads--good characterization, interesting storylines, intricate courtscenes, etc.
I would say....Perfect Match was gripping from the start. The very first chapter left me hanging and I wanted to know more--and exactly how we came to that point in the story. The Pact also started off with a bang (and you may have seen it as a Lifetime movie, though the movie twisted the book heavily and isn't even told from the boy's point of view!). My Sister's Keeper is my absolute FAVORITE of her books--you'll feel like you're on a rollercoaster chock-full of emotions with that one. I'm currently re-reading my second-favorite book by her, Keeping Faith, and while it isn't "edge-of-your-seat-gripping," it's a really intriguing read and looks at all of these different viewpoints and leaves you second-guessing a lot of stuff. *THINKS* Salem Falls was a really good, gripping read that I liked a lot. A lot of people think that Plain Truth (also a Lifetime movie that was highly acclaimed as the best cable movie of the year for..2004?2005?...they did a good job, but they left stuff out and it wasn't as intense in movie form) and Second Glance (has ghost-hunting and stuff in it) are gripping reads, though they aren't as high on my list as the above titles.
Ah, she has a lot of books! If you want to see a synopsis for the above books and more or read the first chapter in each book, Jodi has her own website. www.jodipicoult.com. She even has an excerpt up for her new book, Nineteen Seconds, which is coming out next March/April. It feels like it's going to be yet another gripping read!!! She also has info up on the book for the following year, which also sounds highly intriguing to me...
I don't know if this is gripping the way you meant--it isn't scary or a thriller anything. It's more..mm, just...build-up, what's going to happen, feelings for the characters, etc. I'm always on the edge reading her stuff---I'm really rooting for something or I'm trying to figure out what's happening or I'm looking at all of the ways that the story is coming together in her 'courtroom books' [at least half of them wind up there].
Jodi's books are also good if you are the type of person who enjoys WRITING, because you'll be able to really appreciate her use of words and the beautiful structure of her sentences. She has so many gems that are just...gorgeous.
Anyway, I recommend her to the moon and back--she's my favorite author for a reason!! <3
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