Up in Honey's Room

Up in Honey's Room, by Elmore Leonard. I snatched up this title as soon as I saw it on the "New Books" shelf at the library, because Leonard is a modern master of the mystery and the thriller. This book, however, proved a little disappointing. It's a well told tale, but it's set during World War II and deals with Nazi spies in the United States. Not an inherently bad subject, but it lacks the snap and sparkle of Leonard's more contemporary tales. Grade: B

Blonde

Blonde (2000) by Joyce Carol Oates. Dramatized, partially imagined telling of the life of Marilyn Monroe. Interesting, but Oates' writing style is at times pretty heavy going. This book is 750 pages long, and it's quite a grind to get through it, especially the first half. Made me curious about Marilyn, though. Grade: B