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If you've seen an episode of the t.v. show Monk (and who hasn't?) you'll understand why I love its title character so much.  Adrian Monk, especially as portrayed (to perfection) by the incomparable Tony Shalhoub, is quirky, fun, hilarious and just all-around charming.  If you're not familiar with OCD-afflicted Detective Monk, never fear, you can watch the series on Netflix.  If you've seen every episode and still can't get enough, no worries, you can check out the 15 Monk mysteries Lee Goldberg wrote.  Bummed that Goldberg's moved on?  Not a problem.  Hy Conrad, one of the original writers of the t.v. series, has taken over where Goldberg left off.  Mr. Monk Helps Himself is the first of Conrad's Monk novels and, guess what?  Reading it is just as delightful as watching Monk solve cases on the small screen.  

Like the other Monk novels, this one is narrated by Natalie Teeger, Monk's assistant.  Having returned from a sojourn in New Jersey, she's back in California helping Monk keep his OCD in check long enough to aid the San Francisco Police Department with their toughest cases.  Determined to become more than just Monk's babysitter, she's studying for the exam that will make her a licensed private investigator.  Once she's legal, Natalie will become her boss's partner.  Until then, she's the "unlegendary, underpaid and overworked ... assistant to a brilliant and very stubborn six-year-old" (2).  

To get a little breather from her hectic life, Natalie sneaks off to a seminar led by a successful self-help guru named Miranda Bigley.  She purposely lies about her whereabouts so her boss won't pester her to dust his already spotless lightbulbs or call fifty times to moan about his newest phobia.  And yet, somehow, he finds her.  Monk's raving about cults when Miranda walks right off a seaside cliff, plunging to her death.  The police call it a suicide, but Natalie knows better.  How could someone who spent her life helping people find happiness be miserable enough to kill herself?  It makes no sense.  No one else seems to care about poor Miranda, especially not Monk, who's hard at work trying to catch a serial killer.  Natalie won't give up on it, though.  She's going to find her heroine's killer if it's the last thing she does.  With two cases to solve, an exam to study for and Monk to hand-hold, Natalie's got a lot on her plate.  Can she do it all and pass her P.I. exam, too?  Or is she destined to be Monk's babysitter forever?

As you can probably tell, the book remains true to the lighthearted tone of the t.v. series.  Not that it doesn't have its gory parts.  It does.  But, overall, Mr. Monk Helps Himself is a quick, enjoyable read that won't tax too many of your brain cells.  If you're looking for a complex, nuanced mystery, look somewhere else.  If, on the other hand, you simply want a funny, upbeat story, well, you've found your next read.  Whether you're an old Monk fan or a new one, chances are, you're going to enjoy the ride.     

(Readalikes:  I haven't read them, but I assume the Monk mysteries by Lee Goldberg are very similar)

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If this were a movie, it would be rated:

 for brief, mild language (no F-bombs), violence, and sexual innuendo/references to sex

To the FTC, with love:  I received a finished copy of Mr. Monk Helps Himself from the generous folks at Obsidian (a division of Penguin) via those at Premier Virtual Author Book Tours.  Thank you!

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Bessica Lefter just wanted a new look for the first day of sixth grade.  That's all.  The 11-year-old never thought she'd lose her best friend, Sylvie Potaski, over one unfortunate haircut.  But Sylvie's mother has declared Bessica a bad influence and enrolled her daughter at a different school.  Left to figure middle school out on her own, Bessica's not exactly adjusting well.  She can't get her locker open, let alone deal with the psycho-bullies who torment her daily.  It doesn't help that her grandmother, the one person she can always talk to, is off on some cockamamie, six-week long RV trip with her dorky boyfriend.  Bessica's miserable—why aren't her parents and her beloved grandma getting this?  No one seems to understand.  If only she could convince Sylvie's mother to let the girls hang out again, or find some way to sabotage Grandma's trip, or find a way—any way—to fit in at her new school.  Joining the cheerleading squad seems to be the way to go, but what if that ends up just as disastrously as everything else?  Can Bessica find a way to survive middle school?  Chances are not looking good ...

I picked up The Reinvention of Bessica Lefter by Kristen Tracy because it looked like a quick, cute read.  And it was, just in kind of a generic, been-there-read-that kind of way.  Bessica's a fun narrator and sympathetic—at least to a point.  After a while, though, her constant misery starts to get old.  As she continues to wallow in her own self-pity, never reaching outside herself for a solution to her unhappiness, she just gets more self-centered and whiny.  In a character-driven novel, an annoying heroine is not a good thing.  In the end, The Reinvention of Bessica Lefter teaches a valuable lesson about finding your own way, but the uplifting message wasn't quite enough to counteract the book's irritating main character.  

(Readalikes:  Hm, I can't think of anything.  Can you?)

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Sarah Zorn and Curtis Schwenk (yes, he's one of the sports-obsessed Schwenks from Catherine Gilbert Murdock's Dairy Queen series) are such good friends that people tease them all the time about being boyfriend and girlfriend.  They're not.  No one else needs to know that, though, so they pretend to be madly in love.  It's their "Brilliant Outflanking Strategy."  The only problem with the plan is that 14-year-old Sarah's played her role a little too well—she's developing some real, but definitely inconvenient boy-liking feelings for Curtis.  Her out-of-whack emotions are messing with her head.  Good thing her zany Grandma Z just presented her with a blank journal in which to chronicle all her adventures (which, so far, only exist in her imagination).  She'll use it to figure out her wonky relationship with Curtis, her best friend or maybe more-than-a-best-friend (although that one might be an only-in-Sarah's-dreams kind of thing, too).  

When Grandma Z begs Sarah's parents to let Sarah accompany her on a vacation in Rome, she's a little nervous.  As fun as her grandma is, even Sarah knows she's not the most responsible adult in the world.  Plus, Curtis worries like no one's business—will her BFF (or maybe-more-than-a-BFF) survive without her?  In the end, she goes despite her concerns, deciding the trip will offer her not just an adventure, but also a chance to clear her head without Curtis around to mess with her pinballing thoughts.

As it turns out, though, she's just as confused in Rome as she is in Red Bend, Wisconsin.  Her grandma's acting strange—well stranger.  Which isn't helping Sarah figure anything out.  But, as she delves into some deep family secrets, she learns a lot about her grandmother and herself.  Maybe the answers to her problems with Curtis are in there somewhere, too.

If you enjoyed the Dairy Queen books (like I did), you'll find lots to love about Murdock's newest YA novel.  It's geared toward an older middle grade/younger teen audience than the other books, so it's tone is a little bit lighter.  Nonetheless, it's full of Murdock's signature upbeat, witty style.  Sarah's a fun, enthusiastic narrator, one to whom it's easy to relate.  Heaven is Paved With Oreos is a quick, appealing read that's sure to please Murdock's many fans while gaining her legions of new ones.   

(Readalikes:  Reminded me of Murdock's Dairy Queen novels [Dairy Queen; The Off Season; and Front and Center) 

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To the FTC, with love:  I received a finished copy of Heaven is Paved With Oreos from the generous Catherine Gilbert Murdock.  Thank you!

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When her father, the king, dies, 4-year-old Isabella of Castille is cast out of the royal residence along with her mother and brother.  Her much-older half brother, Enrique, takes the throne.  The crown supports Isabella's family, but only just.  They're given a new residence, but live in relative poverty, wholly dependent on King Enrique for living expenses.  Not that Isabella's complaining—she enjoys living at Arévalo, where she rides horses and pals around with Beatriz de Bobadilla, her feisty lady-in-waiting.  Some believe she's the rightful heir to Castille's throne, but Isabella's content with her less dramatic lot in life.

Isabella's summoned back to court when she's 14.  King Enrique, it seems, now desires to know his estranged family.  While Alfonso, Isabella's younger brother, is delighted with this turn of events, Isabella's less enthusiastic.  She's not impressed by "the gilded deception of the court, the furtive whispers, barbed glances, and constant plotting that made the alcazar seethe like a viper's nest" (211-12), especially when she realizes she is only a pawn in a much larger game.  With King Enrique's (probably) illegitimate daughter set to ascend the throne after her father's death, pure-blooded Isabella's got a viable claim to the throne.  She doesn't want it—until, after years of being pushed around by the kingdom's different factions, she's ready to take control of not just Castille, but also of her own future.

By the time Isabella ensures her place as Castille's next queen, her kingdom is falling apart.  Beset by corruption, violence and war, it's quickly running out of money and lies vulnerable to invaders from every corner.  Isabella must somehow unite her people, while protecting Castille from enemies both within and without her kingdom.  Heartbreaking, difficult decisions must be made in order to keep Isabella on the throne—just how much will she risk to keep her position?  Everything.  And more.

The Queen's Vow, C.W. Gortner's second book about Spain's queens (The Last Queen concerns Isabella's mother, Juana) is, like his other novels, rich with historical detail, rife with courtly drama and intriguing in its every facet.  Not only does Gortner know how to make a setting come to life, but he is especially skilled at portraying history's great queens as, above all, complex, passionate, flawed human beings.  It's impossible not to feel for Isabella, who manages to carve out her own destiny despite all the forces that try to control her, silence her, imprison her, dethrone her and even kill her.  Her story's an exciting one, perfect for readers who enjoy compelling, well-written novels based on royals who really lived and breathed.  

(Readalikes:  Reminds me of Gortner's other novels, especially The Last Queen)

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