What I Read in December

And here's the list of books I read in December.

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

DISNEYLAND THROUGH THE DECADES by Jeff Kurtti - 3

I was expecting this book to be filled with vintage pictures of the park, but most of the pictures were from the past 5 years or so.  I did find the behind the scenes essays interesting, however.

THE TWELVE CLUES OF CHRISTMAS by Rhys Bowen - 5

Lady Georgie is looking to escape her family castle and lands herself a position helping with a Christmas house party.  But amidst the old fashioned Christmas, she finds the members of the village dying off one by one.  Is there a pattern to the deaths, or are they the tragic accidents they appear to be?  I made a connection early on that Georgie missed, but once she made it the book took off and never quite let go.  I really enjoyed this one.

PETER AND THE SWORD OF MERCY by Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson - 5

The authors take their Peter Pan prequels to the era we know best as Peter much team up with Wendy to save Molly, George, and all of England from a new threat still after the star stuff.  If you've enjoyed the others in the YA series, you'll certainly enjoy this one.  The multiple plots actually seemed to compliment each other, and I always had a hard time putting the book down.

NAUGHTY: NINE TALES OF CHRISTMAS CRIME by Steve Hockensmith - 5

All nine of these short stories have been previous released, but I got a kick out of them because I hadn't read them before.  From a murder at the North Pole to a suspicious mall Santa and a murderous fruitcake, this one has it all.  Some humor and light crime - what could be more perfect at Christmas?

MRS. POLLIFAX AND THE GOLDEN TRIANGLE by Dorothy Gilman - 4

Mrs. Pollifax and her husband Cyrus are hours away from a vacation to Thailand when Bishop shows up asking if they could possibly make one small detour for the CIA.  Of course, things go wildly wrong when Cyrus is kidnapped and Mrs. Pollifax has to hunt for him with a man she doesn't trust.  The plot to this one is a little different.  The scenes with Bishop and Carstairs drive it more than Mrs. Pollifax's action does.  As a result, it's not as good as the classic books in the series, but it's still fun.

TALES OF A SIXTH GRADE MUPPET by Kirk Scroggs - 4

Danvers hates his life, especially since no one appreciates his attempts to create stunts that his idol, Gonzo, would love.  But one morning Danvers wakes up as a Muppet.  What is happening?  And how will his life change?  I found the book to be a very fast read, the large number of pictures certainly helped.  Yet, I also found it quite funny.  Any fan of the Muppets will enjoy it, down to the elementary school target audience.

THE MYSTERY AT MEAD'S MOUNTAIN by Kathryn Kenny - 4

Trixie and her friends are spending the week between Christmas and New Year's at a ski lodge in Vermont.  But when they are greeted by an ominous warning, it appears there is more happening here than meets the eye.  The plot is great with some twists I didn't expect - at least the first time I read it.  The characters are their true selves as well.  The pacing of the book could be better, but it's still one of the better of the later books.