Triller & Suspense Reading Challenge 2010 - FINISHED!

I signed up with another challenge since I've read a few thriller/suspense books. This challenge is hosted by Carolyn over at Book Chic City. We have to read at least 12 books in 2010 (1/1 - 12/31).

Nonetheless I finally finished the last challenge for 2010. I already signed up for next year. Yeay!




1) 24 Hours by Greg Iles
2) The Eleventh Commandment by Jeffrey Archer
3) Mary, Mary by James Patterson
4) A Prisoner of Birth by Jeffrey Archer
5) Buying Time by Pamela Samuels Young
6) Chill Factor by Sandra Brown
7) Memories of Midnight by Sidney Sheldon
8) The Other Side of Midnight by Sidney Sheldon
9) First Impressions by Jude Deveraux
10) The Smoke Jumper by Nicholas Evans
11) The Guardian by Nicholas Sparks
12) Damaged by Pamela Callow
13) French fried by Chris Dolley
14) The Red Church by Scott Nicholson

i heart new york by lindsey kelk

Title: I Heart New York
Author: Lindsey Kelk
Pages: 305
Rating: 3.5/5
Source: Borrowed from Poo

Summary (Goodreads):

When Angela catches her boyfriend with another woman at her best friend's wedding, she's heartbroken and desperate to run away. With little more than a crumpled bridesmaid dress, a pair of Louboutins, and her passport in hand, Angela decides to jump on a plane for - NYC! Settling into a cute hotel and quickly bonding with benevolent concierge Jenny—a chatterbox Oprah wannabe with room for a new best friend—Angela heads out for a New York makeover, some serious retail therapy, and a whirlwind tour of the city. Before she knows it, she's dating two sexy guys and blogging about her Big Apple escapades for a real fashion magazine. But while it's one thing telling readers about your romantic dilemmas, it's another working them out for yourself. Angela has fallen head over heels for the city that never sleeps, but does she heart New York more than home?

My Say:

I never read chic lit much, but sometimes, I do corner my direction of reading to something lighter and quick. Reading I Heart New York is a very great choice when you want something light, quick and funny. Let us meet Angela, a naive, sweet and indecisive woman. What happened to her could happen to anyone on earth nevertheless it sounds quite unreal when she started her journey to New York. Maybe I think it's illogical, but proves me wrong if; 1) I runaway as far as to another continent (not a country!), 2) I get a best friend who is very a stranger to you that would do anything to cheer you up in a whim in less than 24 hours, 3) I can date two hot guys at a time! For me, it sounds like that is NOT what a normal/wise people would do. But who knows, maybe there's actually someone did that when they've been cheated by their boyfriend.

All in all, I'm not saying that I dislike it, I do like it because it brings out the impossibilities that I've reasoned. I wish I can be like her; not to get dumped of course but to have all the fun she experienced. And all those shoes! It's actually a good book to enjoy and I think I will her other two books in the series as well, but not so soon.

the notebook by nicholas sparks

Title: The Notebook
Author: Nicholas Sparks
Pages: 224
Rating: 3.5/5
Source: Borrowed

Summary (Shelfari):

Set amid the austere beauty of coastal North Carolina in 1946, The Notebook begins with the story of Noah Calhoun, a rural Southerner returned home from World War II. Noah, thirty-one, is restoring a plantation home to its former glory, and he is haunted by images of the beautiful girl he met fourteen years earlier, a girl he loved like no other. Unable to find her, yet unwilling to forget the summer they spent together, Noah is content to live with only memories, until she unexpectedly returns to his town to see him once again. Allie Nelson, twenty-nine, is now engaged to another man, but realizes that the original passion she felt for Noah has not dimmed with the passage of time. Still, the obstacles that once ended their previous relationship remain, and the gulf between their worlds is too vast to ignore. With her impending marriage only weeks away, Allie is forced to confront her hopes and dreams for the future, a future that only she can shape.

My Thought:

I just can't ignore that I like the book even though it's quite predictable and yes, cheesy. It has a very simple plot line which we can easily find it in most romance novels. However, what I like most is character's passion of devoting his love to someone he loves dearly. Noah and Allie are great character, their relation holds the chemistry and I'm easily connected to them. I've read the book after I watched the movie, and normally, I always love books better than movies. However, this one doesn't work that way. The movie was absolutely growing on me and everything was portrayed better compared to the book. I was hoping the book would be that great like the movie. Although, there's some moments that are very thoughtful and quite sad which both of the book and movie share together. Whenever I think of Noah and Allie, I think of how tight their chemistry bonds, even it reached the worst part when Allie was diagnosed with Alzheimer. It's heart-torturing and feel so sad to know that Noah never give up to read her a story of them. I can't imagine how that feel. Overall, it was good story. But, just a little warning, it is better if you read the book first then watch the movie. Or maybe, only watch the movie. So far, I think everyone have watched the movie!