Monday, July 19, 2010

Lost in Booklandia (Part 1)

Talking about Bea's collection actually reminded me that I have my own collection too. Lots, in fact! LOL!!! I'm talking about my book collection. As long as I can afford it, I have this thing for collecting books in a series, esp. if I find the book's character and author entertaining. Of course, due to the size of my collection, I need to write this in parts.

I've been into books since my mom actually introduced me to book reading and bought me Sweet Dreams books when I was eleven. From then on, I have loved reading fiction. Well in the course of time, my taste did change from liking teen romances to adult romances and later to my fave to this day -- mystery suspense genre. My faves are mostly female leads written by female authors. The reason is perhaps I can relate more to female characters.

Featured author: Nancy Pickard

I first encountered Nancy Pickard when I bought a book in her Jenny Cain series. This series is also one of the first series that I collected. It's been awhile since I last read a Jenny Cain book, but I do remember liking it so much that I bought all the titles within a span of a few weeks.

No Body (1986) was the first book I read. It wasn't the first in the series, but since it really got me so interested in the life of philanthropic foundation director Jenny Cain, I sought out all the books just to get more of Jenny, her life and work.
No Body (Jenny Cain Mysteries, No. 3)
Book Summary:
Bright and beautiful Jenny Cain, director of the Port Frederick Civic Foundation, was dying of curiosity. A hapless visitor had slipped in the mud at the town's historic cemetery--and fallen right into an empty grave! When Jenny discovered that all the graves were vacant, it was the beginning of murder. Now Jenny has to dig up some answers, and fast--before the killer leaves her silent as a tomb!
Generous Death (Jenny Cain Mysteries, No. 1)
Generous Death (1984)
Book Summary:
As director of the Port Frederick Civic Foundation, Jenny Cain is privy to the charitable intentions of the town's wealthiest citizens. And when some of these donors end up murdered, Jenny Cain must find the killer--especially since a rhyme placed at the crime scene states that Jenny will be the next victim.
Say No to Murder (Jenny Cain Mysteries, No. 2)
Say No to Murder (1985)
Book Summary:
Someone is sabotaging the Liberty Harbor Restoration--first with fire, then with murder. As director of the town's Civic Foundation, Jenny Cain should have been glad when the police made an arrest. Unfortunately, it was the one person she believed innocent!
Marriage Is Murder (Jenny Cain Mysteries, No. 4)
Marriage Is Murder (1987)
Book Summary:
Jenny Cain and police detective Geof Bushfield already had pre-nuptial jitters. Then a sudden wave of domestic violence puts their future together in jeopardy. The curious thing is that none of the wives are confessing--and none of the murder weapons can be found.
Dead Crazy (Jenny Cain Mysteries, No. 5)
Dead Crazy (1988)
Book Summary:
Cain finds herself following the trail of a possible paranoid schizophrenic slasher--only to uncover clues that put her squarely in the sights of a cold-blooded murderer!
Bum Steer (Jenny Cain Mysteries, No. 6)
Bum Steer (1990)
Book Summary:
From witty, suspenseful, sexy mysteries featuring the charming and complex amateur sleuth, Jenny Cain. In Bum Steer, a mysterious murder and a strange bequest send Jenny to the wild, wild West.
I.O.U. (Jenny Cain Mysteries, No. 7)
I.O.U. (1991)
Book Summary:
When an anonymous voice among the crowd of mourners offering her their condolences at her mother's funeral whispers to Jenny, "Forgive me. It was an accident," the young woman must try to find the truth behind the death she had thought was an accident.
But I Wouldn't Want to Die There (Jenny Cain Mysteries, No. 8)
But I Wouldn't Want to Die There (1993)
Book Summary:
Jenny Cain is back to take a bite out of the Big Apple. When Jenny's friend Carol is killed while jogging in New York, the police write it off as another Manhattan mugging. But Jenny soon discovers that the story of Carol's life and death is full of dark and unexpected twists.
Confession (Jenny Cain Mysteries, No. 9)
Confession (1994)
Book Summary:
Jenny Cain would never forget the hot Massachusetts summer day fate knocked at her door. Fate was a teenaged boy with rumpled clothes, a motorcycle, and a shocking but credible story: Jenny's husband, Geof, was his biological father. The boy, David Mayer, wasn't looking for an emotional reunion, but he did have an agenda. His parents -- and he was quick to make the point that Geof was nothing to him -- died earlier in the year, a murder/suicide according to the police. The cops were wrong, David said, and Geof was a cop, and he owed it to David to prove that Ron Mayer did not kill his invalid wife and then himself.
 
As David lured Jenny and Geof to carefully placed clues, including two bizarre videotaped confessions of "sin," another murder was committed. And Jenny knew that no matter what the truth was about David Mayer's parents, her own life and marriage would be altered forever....
Twilight (Jenny Cain Mysteries, No. 10)
Twilight (1995)
Book Summary:
Set amid the coziest of New England traditions, a festival on the town common, Twilight drives deep into the darkness of the loves, fears, and hatreds that motivate us all - sometimes even to murder. The fortunes of the Port Frederick, Massachusetts, community are riding on the upcoming Autumn Festival, sponsored by The Judy Foundation: founder and director, Jenny Cain. As if running a fair on Halloween weekend for almost 15,000 people isn't enough of a challenge, Jenny's life and her own fortunes become much more complicated when a newly widowed young woman, Melissa Barney, walks into her office.
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For those mystery/suspense lovers, I would indeed recommend reading Nancy Pickard. To date, I have yet to complete her Marie Lightfoot series. Plus, I found her website and saw that she has written yet another award-winning novel that I hope I can get my hands on. Nancy Pickard remains to be one of my favorite female authors.

Well, that was fun to blog. I look forward to doing more of this Booklandia series. Come back for more next time around. For now, ta-tah! Have fun reading and enjoy your week ahead! ^_^

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