Book of the Month for January 2010

My fiction recommendation for January 2010 is Cover Your Assets by a new author named Patricia Smiley.

The main character, Tucker Sinclair, is a smart and sassy woman who isn't afraid to risk her life to discover who killed her ex-lover, Evan Brice.

Years prior, she and Evan were an item until her best friend Cissy stole him away. Now that Evan is dead and Cissy is the main suspect, Tucker tries to salvage her old friendship by helping her friend sort things out.

Tucker Sinclair is certainly braver than I am but her lack of common sense for her own safety made this novel interesting to read and somewhat unpredictable. Patricia Smiley succeeded in writing a fun mystery novel.

My non-fiction book for January 2010 is The Guide to Astrology: Understanding the Secrets of the Stars and Planets by Lori Reid.

Astrology is a very complicated art. If you've ever browsed the astrology section of your bookstore, you have probably seen the large books that describe how to draft your birth charts and more.

While this knowledge would certainly be useful and interesting to have, I don't have enough time to learn that much about astrology. That's why I really enjoyed this short 96-page book with lots of illustrations.

The book starts with a brief overview of the houses and birth charts, then proceeds to thoroughly describe each sign along with its compatibility with other signs, relationships, ideal careers and likes and dislikes. The content was definitely true or enlightening in many instances.