After by Claire Tristram

After by Claire Tristram
208 pages
Finished 3/9/08













I am so, so glad that I got this book as a bargain book on amazon.com. It was actually a book that I had wanted to read for quite awhile. It's basically about a widow whose husband died as the result of a terrorist act made by Muslim extremists. On the one year anniversary of her husband's death, she takes a lover - a Muslim man. The book basically follows their 24 hours together at a hotel.

The premise for the book is way better than it actually was. The book was supposed to be both dark and erotic, and it was neither. I'd classify it more as disturbing and boring. It got a little interesting near the end, but it wasn't enough to make me care about either of the main characters.

One lame-ass star.

Skylight Confessions by Alice Hoffman

Skylight Confessions by Alice Hoffman
262 pages
Finished 12/15/07






There was a sticker on the cover of this book that claimed "If you like Jodi Picoult, you'll love Alice Hoffman." I like Jodi Picoult OK (although the last two books of hers that I read, Vanishing Acts and The Tenth Circle were not very good), so I thought I'd pick this one up. Plus, I've read at least one of Hoffman's books, and while I don't remember loving it, I certainly don't remember hating it.

And hating it is exactly how I felt about this book. It was bad from page one. Her writing style drove me nuts, and the characters all were so weak and unbalanced. I barely finished it - I basically just started skimming and reading every few pages, and then, with about a quarter of the book to go, I skipped to the last 20 pages or so and read them. Turns out I didn't miss much.

One star.