52 Weeks 52+ Books - THE HIGHWAY and MAYA'S NOTEBOOK - Week Ending August 5, 2012

Both of the books I read this week had evil long distance truckers--is this a popular trend these days?

THE HIGHWAY by C.J. Box

I usually enjoy this author's books, especially the Joe Pickett series, but there was too much darkness and little surprise in The Highway. 

"When two sisters set out across a remote stretch of Montana road to visit their friend, little do they know it will be the last time anyone might ever hear from them again. The girls—and their car—simply vanish.  Former police investigator Cody Hoyt has just lost his job and has fallen off the wagon after a long stretch of sobriety.  Convinced by his son and his former rookie partner, Cassie Dewell, he begins the drive south to the girls’ last known location.  As Cody makes his way to the lonely stretch of Montana highway where they went missing, Cassie discovers that Gracie and Danielle Sullivan aren’t the first girls who have disappeared in this area.  This majestic landscape is the hunting ground for a killer whose viciousness is outmatched only by his intelligence.  And he might not be working alone....." ~ From the Publisher 

MAYA'S NOTEBOOK by Isabel Allende

It's hard for me to believe that this is the first book by Allende that I've read, but it won't be the last.  She's a masterful storyteller and lyrical writer, and the tale she weaves is filled with family drama, teenage angst, and the possibility for redemption.  
 
"This contemporary coming-of-age story centers upon Maya Vidal, a remarkable teenager abandoned by her parents. Maya grew up in a rambling old house in Berkeley with her grandmother Nini, whose formidable strength helped her build a new life after emigrating from Chile in 1973 with a young son, and her grandfather Popo, a gentle African-American astronomer.

When Popo dies, Maya goes off the rails. Along with a circle of girlfriends known as "the vampires," she turns to drugs, alcohol, and petty crime--a downward spiral that eventually leads to Las Vegas and a dangerous underworld, with Maya caught between warring forces: a gang of assassins, the police, the FBI, and Interpol.

Her one chance for survival is Nini, who helps her escape to a remote island off the coast of Chile. In the care of her grandmother’s old friend, Manuel Arias, and surrounded by strange new acquaintances, Maya begins to record her story in her notebook, as she tries to make sense of her past and unravel the mysteries of her family and her own life." ~ From the Publisher