What Else I Read in July

Since I didn't talk a lot about books, my list is a little long this month.

All ratings are on a scale from 1 (bad) to 5 (great).

RUN AFOUL by Joan Druett - 2
Wiki Coffin gets caught up in a murder just before the Exploration Expedition docks in Brazil in 1838. And once in the harbor, the expedition runs into his father, literally. This book got so bogged down in the history and historical detail that it forgot all about the mystery, which was actually pretty easy to solve. It's the third in a series, and disappointing after the first two.

TALES FROM THE HOOD by Michael Buckley - 5
The Grimm family is on the edge of finally freeing Sabrina and Daphne's parents from the sleeping spell they are under. Meanwhile, their friend the Big Bad Wolf is being tried for his crimes. This entire series is lots of fun, and it provides some nice twists to the familiar fairy tale characters. Aimed at kids, any adult will enjoy it.

STORK RAVING MAD by Donna Andrews - 4.5
Meg is eight and a half months pregnant with twins, but that doesn't stop her from investigating when a member of Michael's tenure committee is killed in their overcrowded house. This book wasn't as funny as some of the earlier books in the series, but it was still amusing. And the mystery was great as always.

MR. MONK IS CLEANED OUT by Lee Goldberg - 4
When Monk is fired by the SFPD, Natalie tries to find them both jobs. Meanwhile, Monk is obsessed with proving a man under house arrest for his ponzi scheme is also guilty of murder. The set up was a bit too familiar since it was also used a couple of books ago. A few of the characters also seemed over the top. Minor complaints in another great tie in novel.

HOW TO CRASH A KILLER BASH by Penny Warner - 4
Thanks to Penny, I got an ARC of this book, due out next week. Presley Parker is hosting a murder mystery to raise money for San Francisco's de Young museum when the play's victim dies in real life. The final quarter seemed a little bumpy with Presley being over shocked by things I thought were obvious. The climax still surprised me and kept me turning the pages.