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Editorial Review

From Publishers Weekly
Hail the return of Kinsella's airhead heroine, Becky Bloomwood, now married, pregnant and working as the head personal shopper for a brand-new London boutique. In this latest installment of the Shopaholic franchise (Shopaholic Ties the Knot; Shopaholic Takes Manhattan; etc.), the commercially insatiable Bex shops for two in every upscale baby shop and catalogue in London, snags a celebrity ob/gyn and leverages a pair of the moment's "most coveted" boots to negotiate a home purchase. Complicating an otherwise uneventful pregnancy, Becky suspects her husband, PR biz-wiz Luke Brandon, is having an affair with her hot doc (who also happens to be Luke's ex-girlfriend), so she hires a gumshoe with predictable madcap results. For chick lit lovers with babies of their own, or for those who covet one, Kinsella mines a rich vein by tweaking 21st-century glossy mag obsessions: from sonograms to the hottest baby strollers to tricked-out birthing rooms. Kinsella's ode to baby blues is both sly and slapstick—and for now, at least, Becky is more lovably Lucille Ball than annoyingly Paris Hilton. (Mar.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Review
“Becky never loses her spark, making this fifth entry in the Shopaholic series every bit as delightful and hilarious as its predecessors.”—Booklist

“Kinsella’s ode to baby blues is both sly and slapstick.... [She] mines a rich vein by tweaking 21st-century glossy mag obsessions: from sonograms to the hottest baby strollers to tricked-out birthing rooms.”—Publishers Weekly

Book Description
Becky Brandon (née Bloomwood) is pregnant! She couldn’t be more overjoyed–especially since discovering that shopping cures morning sickness. Everything has got to be perfect for her baby: from the designer nursery . . . to the latest, coolest pram . . . to the celebrity, must-have obstetrician.

But when the celebrity obstetrician turns out to be her husband Luke’s glamorous, intellectual ex-girlfriend, Becky's perfect world starts to crumble. She’s shopping for two . . . but are there three in her marriage?

About the Author
Sophie Kinsella is the author of the bestselling Shopaholic series, as well as The Undomestic Goddess and Can You Keep a Secret? She lives in England.

By Andrea Swanson


I thought I had a shopping problem. Then I read Confessions of a Shopaholic. Becky Bloomwood, the main character, takes shopping to a whole new level, namely addiction. Although I have occasionally succumbed to the temptation of Prada handbags and Hermes scarves, I haven't nearly bankrupted myself, at Becky has.
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Becky is a financial journalist who hates her job and shops way beyond her means. The item doesn't matter, she buys it all, from luggage to picture frames to journals and cookbooks. As she gets farther and farther into debt, it depresses her, so she shops to cheer herself up. Even her efforts to earn extra money end up costing her more than she makes. When everything crashes in around her, Becky hides out at her parents' house, inventing a cover story so they won't think she is a failure. But she has to come out of hiding to help a friend in need.

Sophie Kinsella has done an excellent job of creating a really likeable, honest, realistic heroine. Becky makes friends easily at press launches and publicity events. She fibs a bit on her resume, which comes back to haunt her. She never realizes quite how high her credit card bill is until she opens it. She buys gifts for Guy from Accounting and others who are leaving for another job. And the story is not just about shopping. There is also friendship: her co-worker Elly, her roommate Suze, her parents' neighbors, and the lengths that friends would go to for each other.

The story was unique and hilarious. I found myself alternating between laughter, the feeling of having been in Becky's shoes myself, and the desire to physically restrain her from spending any more money. This book is definitely a must-read for any woman who covets Kate Spade shoes and owns five pairs of black pants. You're in good company. This book is also great for frivolous summer reading on the beach or on an airplane.

COPYRIGHT 2004 Midwest Book Review
COPYRIGHT 2004 Gale Group

By Rick DS

With the increasing popularity of audiobooks, due to the greater awareness, speed and ease of been able to download, there are now many places to buy the audio book of your choice via the Internet.

You can search for the exact audio book you want, check out the cost and order it without leaving the comfort of your home or office, which prior to the Internet the only option was to physically visit the bookstores or order via phone or mail.

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- Amazon: It has become virtually impossible to talk about books, offline or online, without mentioning Amazon.com, whether the book is a hardcover, paperback or even audio book.

Amazon is undeniably the biggest book market place in the world, online or offline. To locate the audio book of your choice, visit Amazon and search for the title of the audio book or author's name.

- Spoken Select: is undeniably becoming one of the market leaders when it comes to audio books. This downloadable audio book marketplace contains thousands of book titles in many varied categories.

You can visit the website of SpokenSelect and easily locate the audio book you desire. Their search features are very easy to use and save users an incredible amount of time.

- Barnes & Noble: This is another very popular and highly visited audio book market place on the Internet. Like Amazon and Spoken Select, you can visit the website and use the search feature to pinpoint the exact audio book you desire.

There are several other audio book websites, but the 3 mentioned above are the most popular and most secure from which you can buy your audio books. Buying your audio book from any of these audio book stores gives you complete peace of mind, as you won't have any fear of being defrauded.

Apart from these audio book stores, there are other audio book stores in specific categories such as business, motivational, fiction, etc.

However there are still some basic questions that may need to be clarified.

1. What is an audio book? An audio book is simply a book in audio format. Instead of receiving a physical hardcover or paperback book that you have to read, you will receive a CD, cassette or MP3 version of the book.

2.What formats do audio books come in? Audio books come in normal cassette formats, CD formats and MP3 formats which can be played on cassette players, cd players or MP3 players respectively.

3.What is an MP3 audio book? MP3 is simply a compression technique that makes it possible for reduction to be made to audio books so that they use less space (sometimes as little as 80%) compared to that of cassettes or CDs.

4.How can MP3 audio books be played? MP3 audio books can be played on any new version of CD players that support the MP3 technology - mostly those that can accept a 4.75 diameter disk. They can also be played on any PC that has Microsoft's Windows Media Player or other related software.

5.What is an unabridged audio book? An unabridged audio book is one that was narrated word for word. In such an audio book, nothing was removed from the printed book. It has the exact content with that of the printed book, albeit in audio format.

6.What is an abridged audio book? An abridged audio book is one that is shortened and doesn't contain the exact word for word narration as the printed book.

7.What is a dramatized audio book? A dramatized audio book, as the name implies, is a dramatized "play-life" version of the printed book, with usual full cast, music and sound effects.

So to recap anyone can easily search for and locate the many websites catering for audio books including Amazon, SpokenSelect and BarnsandNoble who all offer a full range of audiobooks that can be quickly and securely downloaded together with a safe payment process.

Article Source: http://www.articlecube.com

David Rickinson is involved with a variety of Internet businesses including JV Internet marketing. He has recently become a Spoken Network partner after realizing its potential. www.spokenselect.com www.ratingshub.com/invite/rickd1.html

The popularity of Deaver's novels about quadriplegic police detective Lincoln Rhyme and his legwoman Amelia Sachs depends mightily on their personal stories (i.e., their romantic relationship, their struggles with depression and physical impairments) and the ingeniously twisted crimes they solve. Both elements have been served better in the past. While the plot is properly perplexing (why is a 16-year-old Harlem high schooler being stalked by a ruthless killer?), fans will be baffled by Deaver's decision to move series supporting player NYPD lieutenant Lon Sellitto closer to center stage, thus significantly limited Rhyme's presence in the story. Boutsikaris, an accomplished theater and film actor, and one of the better audio performers, provides a crisp narrative that moves the story quickly enough to build and maintain a fair amount of suspense, even through several lengthy plot recaps. He exhibits both versatility and imagination in finding the right voice for most of the characters, from the impatient, almost fussy Rhyme to the gruff and emotionally conflicted Sellitto.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to the Audio CD edition.

From AudioFile
While the plot of Deaver's most recent Lincoln Rhyme thriller strains credulity, Dennis Boutsikaris's narration makes it a winning hand. Rhyme must find out why a seasoned killer is attempting to kill a 16-year-old Harlem girl. Geneva is researching a one-hundred-forty-year-old mystery concerning a disgraced ancestor. Rhyme and his sidekick, Amelia Sachs, have always been an engrossing pair. The trouble is there's not enough of them. Boutsikaris's glib narration saves the day, propelling listeners through the twists and turns of the complex plot. Boutsikaris also comfortably handles the street talk of Geneva and her friends. While Deaver's latest isn't all aces, because of Boutsikaris's performance, it's not a pass either. A.L.H. © AudioFile 2005, Portland, Maine-- Copyright © AudioFile, Portland, Maine --This text refers to the Audio CD edition.

From Booklist
A new Lincoln Rhyme novel is cause for excitement among fans of twisty-turny thrillers. This time out, Rhyme, the quadriplegic forensic investigator, is trying to find out why a man was stalking a high-school student. Turns out it might have something to do with the death of one of the student's ancestors nearly 140 years ago. Deaver, who must have been born with a special plot-twist gene, somehow manages, in every book, to pull two or three big surprises out of his hat. He also has a knack for drawing us immediately into the story. For some readers, it's his detailed description of investigative techniques; for others, it's Rhyme himself, the crusty, bad-tempered (but secretly lovable) detective who, with the help of his protege (and lover), the beautiful Amelia Sachs, solves crimes that most other investigators couldn't begin to crack. The Rhyme novels are among the cleverest of contemporary detective fiction. It is disappointing, however, to report that this one has a rather noticeable flaw. He attempts to render the dialogue of an African American character, in a kind of written Ebonics ("'S'up, girl?") that is very distracting to read and pulls us right out of the story. One of Deaver's strong points has always been his ability to write flowing dialogue; the awkward effort here to translate oral idiom into written language is an unfortunate slipup. Aside from that, though, it's a typically well-written, suspenseful story. David Pitt
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

Review


"A master of ticking-bomb suspense."

-- People




"Deaver's Lincoln Rhyme novels . . . are masterpieces of modern criminology."

-- Philadelphia Daily News



"Deaver's labyrinthine plots are astonishing."

-- The New York Times Book Review



Book Description


Unlocking a cold case with explosive implications for the future of civil rights, forensics expert Lincoln Rhyme and his protégé, Amelia Sachs, must outguess a killer who has targeted a high school girl from Harlem who is digging into the past of one of her ancestors, a former slave. What buried secrets from 140 years ago could have an assassin out for innocent blood? And what chilling message is hidden in his calling card, the hanged man of the tarot deck? Rhyme must anticipate the next strike or become history -- in the bestseller that proves "there is no thriller writer today like Jeffery Deaver" (San Jose Mercury News).


Download Description
"Bestselling master of suspense Jeffery Deaver is back with a brand-new Lincoln Rhyme thriller. To save the life of a young girl who's being stalked by a ruthless hit man, Lincoln and his protégé, Amelia Sachs, are called upon to do the impossible: solve a truly ""cold case"" -- one that's 140 years old. The Twelfth Card is a two-day cat-and-mouse chase through the streets of uptown Manhattan as quadriplegic detective Lincoln Rhyme and Amelia Sachs try to outguess Thompson Boyd -- by all appearances a nondescript, innocuous man, but one whose past has turned him into a killing machine as unfeeling and cunning as a wolf. Boyd is after Geneva Settle, a high school girl from Harlem, and it's up to Lincoln and Amelia to figure out why. The motive may have to do with a term paper that Geneva is writing about her ancestor, Charles Singleton, a former slave. A teacher and farmer in New York State, Charles was active in the early civil rights movement but was arrested for theft and disgraced. Assisted by their team, Fred Dellray, Mel Cooper and Lon Sellitto (suffering badly from a case of nerves due to a near miss by the killer), Lincoln and Amelia work frantically to figure out where the hired gun will strike next and stop him, all the while trying to determine what actually happened on that hot July night in 1868 when Charles was arrested. What went on at the mysterious meetings he attended in Gallows Heights, a neighborhood on the Upper West Side of Manhattan that was a tense mix of wealthy financiers, political crooks like Boss Tweed and working-class laborers and thugs? And, most important for Geneva Settle's fate, what was the ""secret"" that tormented Charles's every waking hour? Deaver's inimitable plotting keeps all these stories -- the past and the present -- racing at a lightning-fast clip as we learn stunning revelations that strike at the very heart of the U.S. Constitution and that could have disastrous consequences for today's human and civil rights in America. With breathtaking twists and multiple surprises that will keep readers on tenterhooks until the last page, this is Deaver's most compelling Lincoln Rhyme book to date. "