MobileRead February 2010 Mobile Read Book Club Vote

[pilotbob]

Help up choose a book as the February 2010 eBook for the Mobile Read Book Club. The poll will be open for 7 days. We will start the discussion thread for this book on February 24th. Select from the following books.


Gone with the Wind by Margaret Mitchell
Sometimes only remembered for the epic motion picture and "Frankly ... I don't give a damn," Gone with the Wind was initially a compelling and entertaining novel. It was the sweeping story of tangled passions and the rare courage of a group of people in Atlanta during the time of Civil War that brought those cinematic scenes to life. The reason the movie became so popular was the strength of its characters--Scarlett O'Hara, Rhett Butler, and Ashley Wilkes--all created here by the deft hand of Margaret Mitchell, in this, her first novel.

The Accidental Tourist Anne Tyler
Scarred by grief after their 12-year-old son's senseless murder (he was shot by a holdup man in a Burger Bonanza), Macon and Sarah Leary are losing their marriage too. Macon is unable to cope when she leaves him, so he settles down "safe among the people he'd started out with," moving back home with two divorced brothers and spinster sister Rose. Author of a series of guidebooks called "Accidental Tourist" for businessmen who hate to travel, Macon is Tyler's focus here, as she gently chronicles his journey from lonely self-absorption to an "accidental" new life with brassy Muriel, a dog trainer from the Meow Bow Animal Hospital, who renews and claims his heart.

Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte
Published a year before her death at the age of thirty, Emily Brontë's only novel is set in the wild, bleak Yorkshire Moors. Depicting the relationship of Cathy and Heathcliff, Wuthering Heights creates a world of its own, conceived with an instinct for poetry and for the dark depths of human psychology.

Shadow Game by Christine Feehan
The classified experiment is the brainchild of renowned scientist Peter Whitney and his brilliant daughter, Lily. Created to enhance the psychic abilities of an elite squadron, it can transform their natural mental powers into a unique military weapon. But something goes wrong. In the isolated underground labs, the men have been dying-victims of bizarre accidents. Captain Ryland Miller knows he is next. When Dr. Whitney himself is murdered, Ryland has only one person left to trust: the beautiful Lily. Possessed of an uncanny sixth sense herself, Lily shares Ryland's every new fear, every betrayal, every growing suspicion, and every passionate beat of the heart. Together, they will be drawn deeper into the labyrinth of her father's past…and closer to a secret that someone would kill to keep hidden.

It Happened In Egypt by Charles Norris Williamson (1859-1920) and Alice Muriel Williamson (1869-1933)
Lord Ernest Borrow and Captain Anthony Fenton think they know a secret – a secret that could make them both rich. En route, they are sidetracked by Sir Marcus Antonius Lark, a woman who thinks she’s Cleopatra reincarnate, a Gilded Rose of an American Heiress, and Mrs. Jones, a mysterious Irish woman with a past. Will they find the secret? Or will the trip up the Nile on the Enchantress Isis net them another discovery altogether? (summary by Sibella Denton)

Dead Until Dark by Charlaine Harris
Dead Until Dark is the first book in Charlaine Harris's series The Southern Vampire Mysteries / Sookie Stackhouse novels. In this first installment, the author introduces the character of Sookie Stackhouse, a young telepathic waitress from the fictional town of Bon Temps, Louisiana, and her world, an alternate history where vampires, shapeshifters and other supernatual beings coexist with humans. In Dead Until Dark Sookie begins a romantic entanglement with her vampire neighbor and is faced with a series of murders in town.
Magic Bites by Ilona Andrews. It's a romantic mystery / urban fantasy. It's actually written by married couple. It has an e-book version.

His Robot Girlfriend by Wesley Allison (HistoryWes)
Mike Smith's life was crap, living all alone, years after his wife had died and his children had grown up and moved away. Then he saw the commercial for the Daffodil. Far more than other robots, the Daffodil could become anything and everything he wanted it to be. Mike's life is about to change.

The House of the Seven Gables by Nathaniel Hawthorne
In a sleepy little New England village stands a dark, weather-beaten, many-gabled house. This brooding mansion is haunted by a centuries-old curse that casts the shadow of ancestral sin upon the last four members of the distinctive Pyncheon family. Mysterious deaths threaten the living. Musty documents nestle behind hidden panels carrying the secret of the family’s salvation—or its downfall.

Lord of Scoundrels by Loretta Chase
Tough minded Jessica Trent's sole intention is to free her nitwit brother from the destructive influence of Sebastian ballister, the notorious Marquess of Diain. She never expects to desire the arrogant, amoral cad. And When Daines reciprical passion places them in a scandously compromising, and public, position, Jessica is left with no choice but to seek satisfaction...
Damn the minx for tempting him, kissing him...and then for forcing him to salvage reputation! Lord Dain can't wait to put the infuriating bluestocking in her place -- and in some amorous position. And if this means marriage, so be it -- though sebastian is less than certain he can continue to remian aloof...and stell his heart to the sensuous, head strong lady's considerable charms.

Romancing Mr. Bridgerton by Julia Quinn
Penelope Featherington fell madly, hopelessly in love with Colin Bridgerton two days before her 16th birthday. Unfortunately, Colin has always seen Penelope as the plump, shy best friend of his younger sister. By the time Penelope is 28 and a seasoned member of the English ton, she's accepted that her love for Colin is destined to remain unrequited and she shall be a spinster forever. Fate, however, has other plans. When Lady Whistledown's Society Papers announce that Colin has returned from his nearly nonstop travels, Penelope is blissfully unaware that her life is about to change dramatically. Colin is equally unaware of the turn his life is about to take. He's not surprised that his beloved mother is determined to marry him off, but he's rather astonished to find himself inexplicably drawn to Penelope. Her dry wit and intelligent mind are delightful, and Colin soon finds himself joining forces with her to deflect his matchmaking mama's good intentions. Together, the two will thwart their mothers' iron wills, face the formidable Lady Danbury, confront the gossips of London society, and resolve the lovely dilemma of falling in love. And, oh yes, there is that matter of the true identity of Lady Whistledown. Will the twosome unmask the elusive journalist? Or will their efforts be doomed to failure like so many others' before?

[WT Sharpe]

His Robot Girlfriend by Wesley Allison (HistoryWes)
[need abstract][/QUOTE]

Here's the writeup from Smashwords:

Mike Smith's life was crap, living all alone, years after his wife had died and his children had grown up and moved away. Then he saw the commercial for the Daffodil. Far more than other robots, the Daffodil could become anything and everything he wanted it to be. Mike's life is about to change.

The author's own writeup can be found here:

https://www.mobileread.com/forums/showthread.php?t=47708&highlight=robot+girlfriend

[lilac_jive]

Oh man, so many good choices! I don't know what to vote for!

[pilotbob]

Originally Posted by lilac_jive

Oh man, so many good choices! I don't know what to vote for!

I thought you would choose Gone with the Wind?

BOb

[JSWolf]

Originally Posted by WT Sharpe

His Robot Girlfriend by Wesley Allison (HistoryWes)
[need abstract]

Here's the writeup from Smashwords:

Mike Smith's life was crap, living all alone, years after his wife had died and his children had grown up and moved away. Then he saw the commercial for the Daffodil. Far more than other robots, the Daffodil could become anything and everything he wanted it to be. Mike's life is about to change.

The author's own writeup can be found here:

https://www.mobileread.com/forums/showthread.php?t=47708&highlight=robot+girlfriend[/QUOTE]

Wasn't there a recent movie about something like that?

[WT Sharpe]

Originally Posted by JSWolf

Wasn't there a recent movie about something like that?

Not to my knowledge, but I'm not a big movie buff.

[pilotbob]

Originally Posted by JSWolf

Wasn't there a recent movie about something like that?

There's Weird Science... but that was 1985.

BOb

[WT Sharpe]

Originally Posted by pilotbob

There's Weird Science... but that was 1985.

BOb

I did see a bit of that and it bore little resemblance to His Robot Girlfriend. Weird Science was geared more toward teenagers while His Robot Girlfriend followed the main characters through several years of their relationship, their struggles with his family, and their legal difficulties.

[lilac_jive]

Originally Posted by pilotbob

I thought you would choose Gone with the Wind?

BOb

I probably will But there's an awful lot on this list that I want to read!

[JSWolf]

Come on and vote for Dead Until Dark and if it wins, I will definitely be reading it. So give a vote and I'll read some romance.

[Tattncat]

I went for Shadow Game, it is written from his point of view as well as from her point of view. Since the story is told in both the male and female viewpoints. I think the men in our group will find it more palatable. Meanwhile most of these, if not already read, have been added to my TBR list.

[WT Sharpe]

Originally Posted by JSWolf

Come on and vote for Dead Until Dark and if it wins, I will definitely be reading it. So give a vote and I'll read some romance.

HRG! HRG! HRG! HRG!

C'mon, Jon. Surely you can get into a book about amorous androids!

[lilac_jive]

I've decided to vote for "Gone With the Wind." I figure I won't get around to reading it for a while unless we read it on here. I also really want to read "His Robot Girlfriend," but I can read that one on my own.

[pilotbob]

Ohh.... I see there's going to be lots of campaigning this month.

BOb

[WT Sharpe]

Originally Posted by pilotbob

Ohh.... I see there's going to be lots of campaigning this month.

BOb

Perhaps, but in the final analysis, I think lilac_jive's comment about having "so many good choices!" was spot on, as the British like to say. There will be no losers this month.

Except perhaps Jon.


Jon!