Thursday, August 06, 2015

Kristopher Zgorski's Book Shelf



 















What books are currently on your nightstand?

Since I don’t keep books on my nightstand, I’ll go with my “working” table for my book review blog. Currently, you will find: The Guise of Another by Allen Eskens, What You See by Hank Phillippi Ryan, A Pattern of Lies by Charles Todd and Stan Lee’s The Zodiac Legacy Book One.

Who is your all-time favorite novelist?

I’d probably have to say William Faulkner. I am a sucker for a good Southern Gothic tale. In a long list of fictional places I wish I could go, Yoknapatawpha County is very near the top of the list. It’s interesting that in thinking of this question, I realized how important “place” is to my reading love. Thinking of Yoknapatawpha caused me to also think of Louise Penny (Three Pines), JK Rowling (Hogwarts), Ann Cleeves (Shetland Islands), and Lisa Unger (The Hallows).

What book might we be surprised to find on your bookshelves?
There are a number of romance novels that I am sure people would be surprised that I cherish. Among them: Diana Gabaldon’s Outlander series, JR Ward’s Black Dagger Brotherhood paranormal series and the entire oeuvres of Jackie Collins and Judith Krantz.

Who is your favorite fictional character?
Harry Potter. From the moment I read that first book, I could relate to Harry. He never really fits in with any one social group, but he has a core collection of very loyal friends for whom he will do just about anything. Harry makes mistakes, but always with the best of intentions at the core of every decision he makes. And he can do MAGIC!

What book do you return to? 

The Secret History by Donna Tartt is a book I try to read every year or so.  I think it is the perfect example of how to write a crime novel that is not really about the crime.  It’s a coming of age story and like any good story of that sort, I think re-reading at different ages reveals new wonders to behold. On any given day, The Secret History is likely to be at the top of my favorite novels of all-time list.

Book Reviewer Kristopher Zgorski is an avid reader devoted to crime fiction who presently works as a Production Coordinator for Johns Hopkins University Press and is also the founder of the mystery and crime fiction book review blog BOLO Books (http://www.bolobooks.com). His reviews have also appeared in Crimespree Magazine and the UK Ezine Shots.

2 comments:

Charles Gramlich said...

We agree on Harry Potter. I loved those books. We disagree on Faulkner. I can't read his novels, although I haven't minded his shorter stuff.

Anonymous said...

I love the look of that bookcase! And you got me with Louise Penny - I love her Armand Gamache series :-)