POWER HUNGRY (Howard Weinstein) - May 28/11

I'm not sure why I haven't read any of my Next Generation books until now, because this was quite an enjoyable little novel. The storyline basically feels like a padded-out episode of the show, and while the narrative does drag in places, the final stretch is actually a lot more exciting than I might've anticipated. It was just nice enjoying another adventure with my beloved Next Generation characters. *** out of ****

THE PILOT'S WIFE (Anita Shreve) - May 24/11

This entertaining yet overlong book tells the story of one woman's efforts at discovering the truth after her husband dies in a plane explosion. I wonder what the experience of reading the book would have been like had I known the twist (Jack has another family), as Shreve doesn't reveal it until well past the halfway mark. The ending is confusing, but a quick search on Google shows that other folks found it equally baffling. Still, it's a solid read. *** out of ****

BLACK FRIDAY (James Patterson) - May 20/11

This serviceable thriller offers up several exciting interludes and a smattering of memorable characters, yet Patterson diminishes the book's impact by padding out the story to an almost absurd degree. The book is probably 200 pages longer than it needs to be, and by the end, I was starting to glaze over paragraphs describing who was doing what and why they were doing it. **1/2 out of ****

SUBMARINE (Joe Dunthorne) - May 17/11

This passable coming-of-age book is certainly a brisk read - I started it two days ago - but it's just so uneven and so weird that I found myself glazing over certain overly descriptive passages. Dunthorne's odd style - the dude loves short sentences - took some time getting used to, and the super deadpan narrative from the main character just seems needlessly odd until you realize that the kid is probably autistic. (I kind of admire the fact that there wasn't a single reference to this.) So, yeah, pretty entertaining but nothing special. **1/2 out of ****

THE KITE RUNNER (Khaled Hosseini) - May 9/11

I certainly enjoyed this a lot more than I thought I would, though the movie is much better. The problem is that Hosseini spends too much time on things that aren't terribly interesting; like the movie, the book features an overlong opening 100 pages devoted to the childhood exploits of Amir and Hassan. Unlike the movie (I think), the book also suffers from a fairly needless final 70 pages revolving around Amir's efforts at getting Hassan's son into America (with the kid's suicide attempt especially pointless). But the book's middle is incredibly engrossing and entertaining, with the confrontation with Sohrab's kidnapper especially suspenseful. And yeah, I choked up a few times. But still, the book is just much longer than it needs to be, which diminishes its overall impact. *** out of ****