The Rembrandt Affair by Daniel Silva

You'd think I would be sick of Gabriel Allon books by now, but I find them as interesting now as the first one I read.

Having retreated to the windswept cliffs of Cornwall with his beautiful wife, Gabriel Allon's seclusion is interrupted by an eccentric London art dealer with a problem. An art restorer has been brutally murdered and a portrait by Rembrandt stolen—and only Gabriel can find it. But as he pursues the masterpiece across the globe, Gabriel discovers there are deadly secrets connected to the painting—and even deadlier men who will do anything to keep them.

Another great book in this series. 5/5 stars. Highly recommended.

The Defector by Daniel Silva

This is a second book in which Russian arms dealer Ivan Kharkov is set to destroy Israeli spy and assassin Gabriel Allon and it picks up where 'Moscow Rules" left off.  Grigori Bulganov once saved Gabriel Allon's life in Moscow—and Allon always repays his debts. So when the former Russian intelligence officer vanishes, Allon gathers his team of operatives to go after those responsible. But, in a running battle that rages across the globe, Allon soon realizes that his enemy may already hold the key to victory. And that if he continues, it will cost him more than he can bear...

Another great Daniel Silva novel.  5/5 stars.  Highly recommended.

Until the Ice Cracks

This book is about a near future set in a town in what could be Iceland.  I found it hard to read and ultimately not enjoyable.  3/5 stars, not recommended.

Moscow Rules by Daniel Silva

I enjoyed this book and marveled at Silva's ability to write a great thriller, time after time.

Moscow is no longer the gray, grim city of Soviet times. Now it is awash with oil wealth and choked with bulletproof Bentleys. But in the new Russia, power once again resides behind the walls of the Kremlin. Critics of the ruling class are ruthlessly silenced. And a new generation of Stalinists plots to reclaim an empire—and challenge the United States.

One of those men is Ivan Kharkov, ex-KGB, who built a financial empire on the rubble of the Soviet Union. Part of his profit comes from arms dealing. And he is about to deliver Russia’s most sophisticated weapons to the United States’ most dangerous enemy, unless Israeli foreign intelligence agent Gabriel Allon can stop him. Slipping across borders from Vatican City to St. Petersburg, Jerusalem to Washington, DC, Allon is playing for time—and playing by Moscow rules.

Highly recommended. 5/5 stars.

The Secret Servant by Daniel Silva

Another great novel in a great series, 'The Secret Servant' is a gripping thriller, first rate in all ways.  The Gabriel Allon books by Daniel Silva are among the best in the thriller genre and this one is no exception.

While in Amsterdam, Israeli intelligence officer and master art restorer Gabriel Allon discovers a plot that is about to explode in the middle of London. The daughter of the American ambassador is to be brutally kidnapped. But Gabriel arrives too late to save her. And when he reveals his face to the plot’s masterminds, his fate is sealed as well.

Drawn once more into the service of American intelligence, Gabriel desperately searches for the missing woman as the clock ticks steadily toward the hour of her execution. The search will thrust him into an unlikely alliance with a man who has lost everything because of his devotion to Islam. It will cause him to question the morality of the tactics of his trade. And it might very well cost him his life…

Do yourself a favor and read this novel today; you won't be sorry.  Highly recommended. 5/5 stars.

The Messenger by Daniel Silva

I'm currently rereading some of the Gabriel Allon books of Daniel Silva and enjoying every minute.  'The Messenger' is one of his most exciting books and I highly recommend it.

Gabriel Allon—art restorer and spy—is about to face the greatest challenge of his life. An al-Qaeda suspect is killed in London, and photographs are found on his computer—photographs that lead Israeli intelligence to suspect that al-Qaeda is planning one of its most audacious attacks ever, aimed straight at the heart of the Vatican.

Allon and his colleagues soon find themselves in a deadly duel of wits against one of the most dangerous men in the world—a hunt that will take them across Europe to the Caribbean and back. But for them, there may not be enough of anything: enough time, enough facts, enough luck.

All Allon can do is set his trap—and hope that he is not the one caught in it.

If you enjoy the thriller genre, read this book; you won't be sorry.   Highly recommended.  5/5 stars.

Prince of Fire by Daniel Silva

Prince of Fire is Danial Silva's fifth book in the Gabriel Allon series.  My experience is that every one of Silva's novels is good; among the best you can read in fact.  I'm not sure how he does it, but I've never been disappointed.

After an explosion in Rome destroys the Israeli embassy, Gabriel Allon makes a disturbing discovery—the existence of a dossier in terrorist hands that strips away his secrets, and lays bare his history. Drawn into the heart of a service he’d once forsaken, Allon finds himself stalking a master terrorist across a bloody landscape generations in the making. But soon, Allon will wonder who is stalking whom.

When the final showdown comes, it won’t be Allon alone who is threatened with destruction. For it is not his history alone that has been exposed...

A great book.  Read Silva's books, they're the best.  5/5 stars. Highly recommended.

Pieces of Her by Karin Slaughter

This was an excellent book that had that somewhat rare quality of grabbing you as a reader and not letting go until the end of the book.  This is the second book by Slaughter that I've read and I've enjoyed both immensely.

Andrea knows everything about her mother, Laura. She knows she’s spent her whole life in the small beachside town of Belle Isle; she knows she’s never wanted anything more than to live a quiet life as a pillar of the community; she knows she’s never kept a secret in her life. Because we all know our mothers, don’t we?

But all that changes when a trip to the mall explodes into violence and Andrea suddenly sees a completely different side to Laura. Because it turns out that before Laura was Laura, she was someone completely different. For nearly thirty years she’s been hiding from her previous identity, lying low in the hope that no one would ever find her. But now she’s been exposed, and nothing will ever be the same again.

The police want answers and Laura’s innocence is on the line, but she won’t speak to anyone, including her own daughter. Andrea is on a desperate journey following the breadcrumb trail of her mother’s past. And if she can’t uncover the secrets hidden there, there may be no future for either one of them. . . .

Well worth reading and an excellent choice for the beach.  Highly recommended. 5/5 stars.

Killing Commendatore by Huruki Murakami

I'm a big fan of Haurki Murakami; I've read just about all his books.  In particular I liked '1Q84' and 'Kaftka on the Shore.'  This book is in the same class as them.  Murakami writes magical realism, so his books always have some fantastic element to them and this one is like that also.

A portrait artist whose marriage has just broken up moves into his friend's father's hose and finds a painting by the man in the attic.  The painting is entitled 'Killing Commendatore' and as an artist it fascinates him.  Gradually he is led by a series of events to discover that some of the elements of the painting have their own life and affect him directly.  By the end of the book, we have taken a trip into the fantastic world of magic written by Murakami.

At times, like always, I had a hard time swallowing the magical realism of the book; this kind of thing always confuses me, but I can say that I read this book straight through without putting it down.  It is that gripping of a novel and I have to say one of Murakami's best.  His compelling narrative style always engages me and compels me to read on.  I can't recommend this book enough, a real winner.  Highly recommended. 5/5 stars.

HTML & CSS For Complete Beginners by Ikram Hawramani

This is a textbook currently availble from Amazon that very clearly explains HTML and CSS programming languages.  I had a great deal of fun going through the examples and building my first web page.  The example are clear and geared to those that have no programming experience.  This is a great first book if you are interested in web design.  Highly recommended.  5/5 stars.

Love You Gone by Rona Halsall

This book really turned me off at first.  A great deal of the story is told in flashback, and I hate flashbacks.  Once I got over that, this turned out to be a really good book, a gripping thriller/mystery that reminded me of Agatha Christie.

Luke is a army veteran with two children who is meeting his wife Mel for a two week getaway in the mountains of Wales.  Only when Mel arrives, Luke and the kids are gone having left a note that they went on a hike.  Later, after it gets dark, Mel calls mountain rescue and tells them that her family is missing.  A search ensues, Mel is questioned by the police, and it is a mystery where Luke and the kids have gotten to.

At this point, the story goes into flashback (I almost didn't read on) and tells the story of Luke and Mel's marriage before the incident.  What got me was the fascination I had for their relationship; they are two genuinely interesting characters.  Gradually we realize that there is more to the disappearance than we thought and the game is afoot. 

'Love You Gone" is a well-written and fascinating mystery and suspense thriller that will keep you compulsively interested to the very end.  Highly recommended.  5/5 stars. 

Out of the Dark by Gregg Hurwitz

This was a fascinating book written on the premise that the US had a "orphan" program in which young orphans were trained from the time they were young children to be covert operatives, living weapons.  I thought the book was very interesting and well-written.  I highly recommend it.

Evan Smoak is 'Orphan X', a deadly covert operative who has gone rogue on the US government.  He decides that he must kill the President of the United States who was a former boss at the defense department in charge of the Orphan Program.  In a side project, Evan is also helping a young man whose family was murdered by a drug kingpin.  Evan moves through his projects like an expert, gradually turning up the pressure on the President and culminating in a well-planned hit.

Orphan X is portrayed as an ultimate weapon, an expert at weapons and covert operations, and he kills almost without effort.  I found him believable despite the long odds he often faced in his operations.  He is a compelling character, as are his secret-service adversaries and the operatives of the drug underworld he challenges.  Highly recommended. 5/5 stars.  Read this and other upcoming reviews at bookgeist.blogspot.com. 

Publication date: January 29, 2019

Spy Master by Brad Thor

This is the latest Scot Horvath action-thriller and it does not disapoint.  Scot is part of a NATO response group trying to counter moves by the Russian Federation as a prelude to an invasion of the Baltic countries.  Scot is the original bad-ass, busting butt and taking names, and even though I knew he would come out on top, I was spellbound by Thor's ability to write compelling action scenes.  Highly recommended. 5/5 stars.

Currently in publication.

Judgement by Joseph Finder

Joseph Finder is a widely read author in the thriller genre and "Judgement' does not disappoint.  I found this book compelling and I highly recommend it.

Juliana Brody is a judge in Boston and is sitting on a demanding case:  a uber-like startup, Breezi, is being sued for sexual harassment by a former female employee.  While at a law conference, Juliana makes a bad decision and sleeps with a man who unknown to her is working for Breezi.  Their rendezvous is videotaped and Breezi threaten to expose her if she does not rule favorably in the case.  The blackmail takes a new dimension when she discovers that the Russian mafia are the real owners of Breezi.  Does she compromise her principles and give in to the threats to her and her family, or does she resist?

Juliana is a complex character; a wife, mother, judge and plain determined woman.  She does not give in to some really scary people and tries to disentangle herself for the web of blackmail around her. A strong woman character, Juliana is really threatened; so much so that I winced at times at what a bad position she was in.  This book will grab you and not let go.  Highly recommended.  5/5 stars.

Publication date: January 29, 2019

Court of Lies by Gerry Spence

"Court of LIes" is a courtroom drama book where most of the story takes place in the Jackson Hole, Wyoming courthouse.  As a book, I found it fascinating to read about the back and forth between prosecution and defense attorneys, and the judge involved in the cases, John Murray, who is the point of view character in the book, shares his personal perspective as well.

Lillian Adams, a widow who is accused of murdering her rich husband, is on trial for her life.  The prosecutor is notoriously dishonest, willing to twist the truth to win his cases.  Lillian has defense attorney Coker, who is a fiesty lawyer who vigorously defends her.  The principle conflict in the story is between Judge Murray and the Prosecutor, who conspires to impeach the judge and have him arrested if he does not rule in the prosecution's favor.

I enjoyed the tension of this courtroom drama.  If you like the courtroom drama genre, this is a good book for you.  Highly recommended.  5/5 stars.  Read this and other reviews of upcoming books at bookgeist.blogspot.com.

Publication date: February 19, 2019

To Destroy Jerusalem by Howard Kaplan

This was a good book, a thriller full of twists and turns in the plot and filled with interesting characters.  I can't recommend it enough for those of you that like thrillers.

Shai Shaham is the head of an Israeli intelligence team that learns that a Palestinian scientist working at UCLA has purchased plutonium from a source in Brazil, and Shai fears that he intends to build a nuclear weapon.  The story follows Shai and his team from the sale in Brazil, to Los Angeles and then to London in pursuit of the plutonium and the scientist who wants to assemble a bomb in Israel.  There are many close calls, almost successes and the action doesn't end until the last pages of the book.

This was an expertly written novel with lots of setting research.  We are taken to the holy land through Lebanon and I really felt like I was in the camps with the Palestinian terrorists and in Jerusalem with the perpetrators.  There is a completely believable explanation on how the atomic bomb is built, in addition to great description of the process the Palestinians must go through to get the materials for the bomb.  I felt like I was reading David Balducci at times, so good is the tension in the book.  And Shai as a character is not your typical svelte international agent, but a dedicated Israeli with a weight problem.

This book will entertain you for hours.  Highly recommended.  5/5 stars.

Publication Date: October 23, 2018

When the lights go out by Mary Kubica

This book came highly recommended with a number of good reviews and, apparently, in demand, selling well.  Imagine my surprise when I read this book and was supremely disappointed.  Not only is this book poorly plotted, the ending is extremely bad.

As the book starts, Jessie Sloan's mother is dying from cancer, and Jessie, we later find out, is an insomniac.   After Jessie's mother dies, we are lead through one mildly interesting scene after another as Jessie deals with her mother's death.  Soon Jessie finds that she has no social security number or driver's license or birth certificate for that matter and that she is in limbo as a identity.   So the mystery becomes, who is she really?  An why did her mother hide her identity.  The rest of the book is told slowly, as Jessie, because of her insomnia, becomes an increasingly unreliable narrator. 

This would be only bad if she was going through insomnia, but in the end we find out she is dreaming the night before her mother dies and 75% of the book is actually a dream.  I felt stupid for reading this and the author must take the reader as a fool.  Definitely do not read this book.  0/5 stars.

Already in publication.

Last Light by Helen Phifer

This was a enjoyable book with a protagonist that was well-drawn, complex, and interesting.  Overall I liked the book and highly recommend it for a bedtime read.

Detective Inspector Lucy Harwin has just been promoted and begins the book by arriving at a gruesome murder.  A woman of questionable character has had her throat slashed, and she has been hung up on an inverted cross.  Clues in this murder are scarce and the investigation stalls until a second murder, and a third murder occur, indicating that there is a serial killer.  Lucy leads the investigation while navigating problems with her teenage daughter, her husband, who has left her for a woman old enough to be her daughter, and her assistant Mattie, who is leaving on vacation just when the murder investigations are beginning to ramp up.

I found Lucy very interesting to read about; she has the indomitable character that is needed to push through the complexities of the cases and come out ahead on the other end.  As lead characters go in mysteries and thrillers, she is refreshingly different, and I found myself sympathetic toward her.  Recommended. 4/5 stars.  

Publication date: November 16, 2018

Stealing life by Antony Johnston

This is a soft science fiction book that is actually a caper story.  As science fiction stories go, there is not much science; it's more of a science fantasy story.  I enjoyed this book and had no problem staying interested.  It was written by the author of "Atomic Blonde" and this initially made me want to read the book.

Nicco Salarum is a thief in the fictional world of Azbatha; he is approached by a wizard named Xundus (yes there are wizards in this book) to steal a precious necklace from his rival, Werrdun, the governor of Hurrunda.  The caper begins; Nicco accepts an apparently impossible task of stealing the necklace and then, quite cleverly, pulls off the caper.  After he is paid, he learns that the necklace kept Werrdun alive (he is 90+ years old) and his death will bring political instability to Hurrunda.  So, the powers that be put pressure on him, and to survive, he must steal the necklace back.

The plot has twists and turns and, although extremely clever, Nicco gets in some jams he has a hard time getting out.  It is an enjoyable read that science fiction fans will enjoy.  Recommended 4/5 stars. 

Publication date: November 1, 2018

Cyber Attack by Tim Washburn

This book by Tim Washburn has its exciting moments, but overall I was not impressed by the book.  Part of this is because of the somewhat shallow characterization of the main characters, and also the repeated massive deaths caused by a group of hackers, which seemed excessive to me and came at the cost of an interesting plot to find them.

A 737 airplane explodes on a runway.  The accident is unexplained and while FBI special agent Hank Goodnight and a computer specialist, Paige Randall rush to the scene, a nuclear power plant explodes and a dam fails killing thousands suddenly make it clear that a national emergency is in progress.  While I was excited to read through the first third of the book, the author repeatedly shows us disaster and disaster with death and destruction, over and over.  After the third or fourth disaster, I grew weary of reading them and wondered what Paige and Hank were doing to solve the problem and catch those responsible.  As it turns out, very little.  The go to one scene after another, look at some computer code, and basically discover nothing.  The break that allows the capture of the hackers seemed like serendipity to me.  Without active participation by the principals of the book, I was left cold.

To be fair, the pace of the book is fast and the disasters well-researched and well-written, but it wasn't enough for me the recommend the book.  Not recommended. 2/5 stars.  Read this and other reviews of upcoming books at bookgeist.blogspot.com.

Any Means Necessary by Jack Mars

 


















This was a heart stopping thriller that kept me riveted from the first page.  It is very much like a Brad Thor or Vince Flynn book with action, action, action!  I have to admit that I just finished the book and my pulse is still elevated.

Luke Stone is a leader of the SRT (special response team) of the FBI and as the book begins, he has just fallen asleep at 2 am when he gets a call from his boss.  There has been a theft of radioactive materials from a hospital in New York, apparently by Muslim radicals that want to make a dirty bomb.  Luke springs into action and before he is done, the white house explodes, there is a coup d'tat of the president, and nuclear war with Russia looms.  It seems pretty ambitious for one novel to pull all of this off, but Mars does so nicely.

The only thing that I didn't like about this novel was the ending, which seemed to me to be premature and unsatisfying.  Not all the loose ends are tied up at the end, and instead the novel bleeds over to the second book in the series, 'Oath of Office.'  This is okay is you already have the second book so you can read on, but I was only going to read the first, so I don't get to find out how things turn out.  Still, 'Any Means Necessary' is a good read.  Highly recommended.  5/5 stars.

The Forgotten Child by Melissa Erin Jackson

This is the debut novel for Melissa Erin Jackson, and it is a fun novel, marginally a mystery story and more a paranormal novel with seances and spirits and a murder or two thrown in.  I enjoyed this novel and recommend it as a light book for bedtime reading.

Riley Thomas is a waitress in Albuquerque, New Mexico and has a history as a 10-year-old of being a medium for spirits that want to manifest themselves.  She is invited to go spend a weekend at a ranch where a series of gruesome murders occurred in the 1980s, and where there is a history of paranormal events.  She doesn't want to go, afraid that the spirits will manifest themselves through her, and that is exactly what happens.  During the manifestations, she realizes that she has information that can solve several of the ranch's unsolved murders.  How can she use her ability as a medium to solve decades-old murders?

Riley is a pretty good supernatural sleuth and, with the help of her newly-discovered boyfriend Michael, gradually sets about solving the cold-case murders.  Riley as a character is believable as a medium.  Although I am sure such things do not happen in life, I was able to suspend disbelief and immerse myself in her seance and visitations by spirits, who often give her the next clue to solve the murders.  Although the novel reads like a first novel, I enjoyed it and I think you will too.  Recommended.  4/5 stars.

Publication date: October 10, 2018

The woman in the window by A.J. Finn

This was a captivating book, well-written, suspenseful; a real thriller/mystery.  It was on the NY Times besstseller list for weeks and has received notable attention, and it is well-deserved.

Dr. Anna Fox suffers from agoraphobia, a mental illness in which the patient cannot leave their house.  How she got this illness is revealed later in the book, but for the first 100 pages we get a taste of how her life is limited by the disease.  She witnesses a murder across the street from her house and when she contacts the police finds that a woman she knew and saw murdered was replaced by an entirely different woman.  He credibility with the police suffers and she tries to discover the truth, limited as she is by her illness.

I thought the writing technique in this book was outstanding.  The style of the author creates a tense, almost agoraphobic view of this woman's world, barely letting the reader come up for air.  As a mystery it satisfies, although the author does setup the reader a little by limiting the descriptions of the characters (author manipulation of the reader, my favorite gripe. DL)  Still, I had a herd time putting down this story and wass thrilled to the epilogue.  The author grabs the reader and doesn't let go until the end.  Highly recommended. 5/5 stars.

Currently in publication. 

And then you were gone by R. J. Jacobs

I had a hard time reading this book.  When I thought about it, I realized that I didn't sympathize with the main character.  Although well-written, the characterization of the principals in this book made me wince.  I'm afraid I can't recommend it. 


The main character is a psychologist who is bipolar and somewhat needy.  She has a boyfriend who works in  medical research on influenza, an important, potentially devastating pathogen.   She awakens on a boat after she spends the night on the water with her boyfriend, and he is gone.  Disappeared into thin air.  Interesting, right?  The police are suspicious of her, but let her go; later her life falls apart after the loss of her boyfriend and a DUI accident, which gets her arrested; she loses her job and almost loses her license.  Later she is contacted by a coworker of her boyfriend who claims he was murdered because he uncovered a conspiracy in the lab to weaponize the influenza virus.  This coworker is then murdered and again she is suspected by the police. 


The bipolar psychologist drinks too much and has poor judgement as she stumbles from one event in the case to another.  I found it almost painful to read what she does next, digging a deeper and deeper hole for herself.  Since I couldn't identify with the main character, couldn't identify with her struggles, and couldn't sympathize with her problems, I was left cold by the story.  There may be fans of this style of writing but I am not one of them.  Not recommended. 2/5 stars.  Read this and other reviews of upcoming books at bookgeist.blogspot.com.

The Aladdin Trial by Abi Silver

The was an enjoyable book, complex and with great characters, and an excellently constructed plot.  The first half of the book grabbed my interest, and then for the last half I could not put it down until I had finished the story.  As murder mysteries go, this was a great one, really top notch.

Barbara Hennesey is in the hospital for a routine operation when she is found dead, apparently having been thrown from the twelfth floor of the hospital.  A Syrian refugee, working at the hospital as a custodian, is suspected and eventually arrested for the crime.  Constance Lamb is appointed as her lawyer and embarks on his defense, trying to determine exactly who murdered Ms. Hennesey.  In the process many characters are interviewed and and presented as possible culprits: Joe Hennesey, her son, the sleazy car salesman; Janice Hennesey, the somewhat inattentive daughter who inherits a million pounds from the estate of her mother; Barrister Brian, Ms. Hennesey's lawyer, who seems to have a private agenda; and Dr. Wolf, who performed her operation and seems to have something to hide.

I was reminded of Agatha Christie when reading such was the interwoven complexity of the plot and characters.  The author has a deft touch with characterization of the main characters, making them more than interesting, and the hard-hitting plot kept me guessing until the very last pages.  After taking half the book to set up the crime and the characters, the story turns into a courtroom drama, so there is that tension to add to the solving of the crime.

I found this book utterly gripping and a top-notch mystery.  One of my top ten books of the year.  Highly recommended.  5/5 stars.  Read this and other reviews of upcoming books at bookgeist.blogspot.com.

Publication date: September 20, 2018

The Levanter by Eric Ambler

This is a political thriller which has been available for several years now; it satisfies and has a fascinating story in its own right.  I found the book compelling and was glad I had read it.

Michael Howell is a businessman operating a family company in the Levant: Syria, Cyprus, Egypt, and other Middle Eastern countries.  In 1970, he has kept his family's business enterprises going through a decade of wars, takeovers, and revolutions, thanks in part to his office manager, Teresa, who is also his mistress.  One late night in the office, they discover men working overtime--producing unauthorized bombs for the Palestinian Action Force.  Worse, this terrorist group is not deterred by his discovery--rather the enlist Howell and Teresa's unwilling help in carrying out their plan.

The story is told through several points of view, Howell's, Teresa's, and Mike Prescott's, a journalist who tells some of the story.  The story is fascinating as it gives an insight into how businesses are run, the considerations they have, and the problems they face.  The unwilling cooperation of Howell as a 'comrade' in the PAF carries the threat of personal danger for Howell and Theresa, and requires, no matter how difficult, that they do something to stop the PAF.  This story is told with clarity and suspense and makes for a first rate political thriller.  Recommended. 4/5 stars. 

Currently available.

Buried Lies by Chris Collett

This is the next book in the DI Mariner series, entitled as 'lies,' in this case, Buried Lies.  I had no trouble reading and finishing this book, and it is a good book as crime and mystery titles go.  There are murders, more that one, and DI Mariner is right in the middle of them.  Although this is a good book, it's not one of my favorite.

DI Mariner leaves on a walking holiday in Wales, and soon ends up in the middle of a murder investigation.  There is a long and involved set-up where we learn about the people and places of Caranwy, Wales; I thought the novel was a little slow in getting to the point.  Once the murders start, the search for suspects provides for interesting reading; eventually the answer came from a direction I least suspected, and I was taken by surprise, which is always good in a mystery/thriller.

'Buried Lies' is the sixth in the DI Mariner series by Chris Collett, and these novels usually rate four-and-a-half stars on amazon.  Since this is the first one I read, I was not privy to what was going on in previous novels.  There are number of scenes in the book that address issues brought up in previous books.  I felt a little annoyed at not being given enough information to understand these scenes, but this is a small gripe.  Overall, this is a worthy novel and well worth reading.  4/5 stars.

The Word is Murder by Anthony Horowitz

This was a delightful book.  From the very beginning it grabbed my interest and didn't let go.  By the time I finished, I didn't realize how long I had been reading as I was thoroughly entertained.

Diana Cowper is a old, rich, retired woman who goes into a funeral home and arranges her own funeral.  Strangely enough, she was murdered only hours later.  Did she arrange for her own murder?  Anthony (Horowitz), the author, writes this book in first person, inserting himself as a central character.  He is approached by Hawthorne, a true crime detective, to write a book about his investigation of Dian Cowper's murder.  What results is a story of a criminal murder investigation from the very beginning, with all the details and red herrings, to the revelation of the murderer.  I wasn't able to figure out who did the murder, but all the clues were there.  I didn't feel manipulated at all.  If I was clever enough, I could have picked out the murderer myself.

Hawthorne the detective is a complex, interesting character who has incredible insight that rivals Sherlock Holmes.  Time and again I was amazed at the logical deductions he makes about potential suspects and witnesses.  The final solution was surprising and quite unexpected. And Horowitz writes the first person author with zest and a little self deprecation.

You won't be disappointed with this book.  Make sure you have plenty of spare time before you start reading.  Highly recommended.  5/5 stars.

Past Tense by Lee Child

 

This is the 22nd Jack Reacher novel, and this one doesn't disappoint. Reacher novels all pretty much have the same structure and story line:  Reacher hitchhikes; he investigates a problem that is of only minor interest to the reader, but of major interest to Reacher;  he runs afowl of some nasty characters who he beats up; then his investigation leads to saving the day with some tangentially related characters.  In the end, Reacher resumes hitchhiking.

Still, despite the hackneyed plot structure, "Past Tense" remains an interesting and compelling read.  You can't publish a boring book 22 times; in this one Reacher is searching for information about his father in New Hampshire (on the way from Maine to San Diego) and runs across a criminal conspiracy involving hunters of human beings.  I won't say more, except that the story is captivating and interesting in only the way a Jack Reacher novel can be.  Highly recommended.  5/5 Stars.  Read this and other reviews of upcoming novels at bookgeist.blogspot.com.

Publication Date: November 5, 2018

Beautiful Bad by Annie Ward

I thoroughly enjoyed this book and read it virtually nonstop from beginning to end.  This book has that extra something that grabs the readers attention and doesn't let go until the end.  Unfortunately, when I got to the end I was just a little bit disappointed, but more on that later.

Maddie (Brandt) Wilson is portrayed by a narrative that jumps around to three points of view:  Past young Maddie in the Balkans, near past Maddie in Kansas with her son Thomas, and the present in which a murder has been committed, seemingly her own.  The narrative device works well; we get some fascinating background of Maddie in the Balkans as a travel writer and teacher who often visits her friend Joann in Macedonia.  The time is around 9/11/01 so the Balkans are only a semi-safe place to be.  Here she meets the love of her life, Ian Wilson, who is a military contractor and over the course of the book we learn he is a burnout with PTSD.  In the near past, Maddie has been horribly injured, and we are not sure but suspect that Ian was the culprit.  Most of the book follows Ian and Maddie's relationship until the climax where there is a murder.

I loved reading this book but when I got to the end, I realized that the author had manipulated me.  We only get to see the part of the story that the author reveals to us, and the story up to the climax led me to a particular view of the characters and their world;  after the climax, the author presents Maddie, Ian and Joann in a vastly different light.  There was no way to know this was going to happen.  I felt manipulated by this;  portraying the world one way and then completely changing the world after the climax.  I felt cheap and used.

I was happy I read this book, but disappointed in the manipulation by the author.   Nevertheless, it is a great book and well worth reading.  Recommended.  4/5 stars. 

The Forbidden Door by Dean Koontz

If you like action, this is a good book for you.  This is the fourth book in the Jane Hawk series by Dean Koontz and if anything, it is more action packed with thrills than the first three.  I literally could not put down the book for the first half of the story, compelled as I was by the action.

Jane Hawk is trying to expose a conspiracy by a group called the Arcadians, who want to rule the world by injecting nanobot devices into people to control their minds.  The story in this installment revolves around Jane's son, whose hiding place in Borrego Springs, CA is suddenly exposed.  She must retrieve him; but he surrounded by Arcadians posing as FBI and Homeland security agents.  How can Jane get to her son without being exposed as the fugitive as she is?

The action begins when Jane is spotted by an Arcadian who wants to take her in by himself.  When she shakes him there is the thornier problem of getting her son out of Borrego Springs.  Also, the Arcadians go after Jane's parents in Texas, hoping to inject them with mind control devices so they can reveal his hiding spot.   In a two-tracked plot, the chase is on for Jane and for her parents.

Although I enjoyed this book, there came a point about three-quarters in where the plot devolved into a frenzied free-for-all.  There seemed, to me at least, an overuse of gore and gratuitous sex that made me wince.  I made it through this rough patch, but I have to admit, it turned me off the book.  As the story ends, there is more excitement, but by this time, there is no question that the book will have a happy ending and the bad guys will all be punished.  So, for me, the end was anticlimactic.  Also, it seemed to me that the Jane Hawk Series was being drawn out deliberately so more books could be sold.

If you enjoy Koontz, this book is for you, especially if you read the first three Jane Hawk novels, but if not, I suggest you start at the beginning with the first Jane Hawk novel, "The Silent Corner,' which was a great book.  3/5 stars. 

Broken Ground by Val McDermid

This book was a rich source of entertainment.  The novel contains some of the best writing I have seen in a mystery, and its characters, particularly DCI Karen Pirie, the protagonist, were full and complex characters that seemed very much like real people.  I thoroughly enjoyed this well-written book, the thirty-second from Val McDermid.

Detective Chief Inspector Karen Pirie is the head of the 'Historical Crimes Unit' or HCU in Edinburgh, Scotland.  As the book begins she and her sidekick, Jason, are actively searching for a car which was seen at a series of rapes twenty years ago.  A new member of the HCU, McCartney, arrives and is, in reality, a spy from her boss who is trying to fire her.  As the three pursue leads from this cold case, DCI Pirie is called in when a body is found in a bog in the wilds of Scotland.  She is able to date this well-preserved body to 1995 as soon discovers he was a strength athlete who went missing all those years before.  Since he has two bullet wounds in the chest and neck, this was obviously a murder.

The investigation leads to some unlikely places.  One of the interesting things about this book is how far-fetched the leads in the case are, so as a reader, I was surprised when some of them actually pan out.  The investigation at times seems unlikely, but then the author ties the loss ends up logically so that the result is an interesting story.  The plot is complicated by the constant sabotage of the new member, McCartney and the intrusion of DCI Pirie's new boss (affectionately named 'The Dog Biscuit').  Throw in a Highlander love interest, who may or may not be involved in the murder, and the intersection with the rape cases; the book is wonderfully complex and interesting.

One of the devices used in the book to put the reader ahead in the mystery is the flashbacks to WWII where the crime of the murder had its origin.  Subsequent flashbacks occur to let the reader see the origin of the actions that led to the cold case.  At first I was like 'what? how is this related?' but this is part of the wonderfully woven story of this murder.  The effect is to let the reader see what DCI Pirie suspects was the case twenty years ago.

This was a great book and well worth the reading time.  I'm now looking for more Karen Pirie novels to sink my teeth into.  Highly recommended.  5/5 stars.

Dark Tide Rising by Anne Perry

This book is another of the William Monk mystery series by Anne Perry.   As historical fiction, it does not disappoint.  I had never read any of the books in this series, and I was a little put off by the setting, mid-19th century London.  I generally don’t read books with this type of setting.  But as I read, I began to greatly enjoy the pace and the plot of the book, which has a number of plot twists that made for entertaining reading.

William Monk, the chief of the Thames River Police in mid-19th century London, is visited by Rathbone, his lawyer friend and confidant.  Rathbone has been approached by a friend, Exeter, a rather rich developer, for help from the Thames River Police.  It seems that his wife has been kidnapped and a ransom, which he can barely raise in time, is to be delivered in.a particularly nasty neighborhood.  Would Monk oversee the exchange.  Monk does and is waylaid by the kidnappers as are his men who he brought with him.  Exeter and he are separated during the exchange, and when Monk finds him, his wife is dead and the ransom is gone.  Monk soon realizes that one of his men must have tipped the kidnappers off, and so begins an investigation into murder and betrayal.

The characters of this book are well-drawn; Hooper, Monk’s right-hand man, is a former sailor with a dark secret.  He falls in love with Celia Darwin, one of the witnesses to the kidnapping.  Hooper does much of the investigation along with Monk and his other men.  Just when I thought I had nailed the murderer, the plot twisted and new possibilities were presented.  I was never sure about the culprit to the end of the book, and I have to say it was a surprise. 

This is an entertaining book and well worth reading for any fan of mysteries.  Highly recommended, 5/5 stars.

Tales of the Astonishing Black Spark by Charlie J. Eskew

This is a science fiction/fantasy title in the genre of comic book superhero novelizations except that it is written by the Black Spark himself (Donald McDonald) in first person as if he were telling you a story on the bus.  I found this book a change of pace from your typical SF/F titles because it is written tongue-in-cheek and mostly makes fun of itself.  I enjoyed the novel and found the characters engaging and exciting, particularly the Black Spark himself.

Ronald McDonald, first of all, is black.  This makes the novel refreshing in itself as there are so few black characters written as superheroes.  Spark, as he call himself, is hit by lightening that should have killed him (like the Flash!) but somehow survives and retains the ability to control and propagate electrical charges from himself.  At first, he doesn't know how to control this power, but he manages, in a stumbling manner, to defeat the 'Maverick Moralist,' who is an evil superpower hero who preaches people to death (I love it!), and he gains notoriety on You-Tube.  He continues on to discover his powers with Nick, who later turns out to be a villain, design a costume with Kat, his best friend from grade school, and gradually join the only Avengers-type group in this world called the 'American Collective for Resolving Overtly Negative Yowled Misconduct.'

The book winks at itself during the story and probably its strongest point is the snappy, snarky narrative of Donald telling us the story of his life.  Here is an example of the snappy dialogue in the book:

     "Okay, well I need your help," I said plopping down on her couch.

     "How can a mild-mannered woman possibly be of use to the Midwest Marvel?"

     "Mild-mannered?  Where is she?" I said.

     She tossed a pillow at my face.  "You should be less of a douche to people your asking favors from."

The narrative is also laced with interrupting commentary in the form of "The tales of..."  For example, "These are the astonishing tales of Finding X brand of napkins at X location on X day" and "These are the astonishing tales of Yahtzee."  I found these interruptions amusing at time, but also tiresome at times.  It is the author interjecting himself into the narrative, and it works, but just barely.  

On of his pals in the "American Collective..." is Patches, the Boy Band-aid.  His name alone is a reason to read on.  Patches has the ability to heal anyone of anything, but only once a day.  Patches also like to smoke weed and there are some funny scenes of Donald stoned trying to control his electrical powers.  Other characters, GRAVI-tina (who can control gravity), Asper (Who can fly), and the villain Nick (who can also control electricity) make for some funny reading.

Overall, this is an entertaining book and a change of pace for anyone bored with reading a standard SF/F book or a mystery/thriller.  Recommended.  4/5 stars.  Publication date: September 4, 2018.

An Anonymous Girl by Greer Hendricks and Sarah Pekkanen

This was an interesting book; it is the follow-up by Greer Hendricks and Sarah Pekkanen to 'The Wife Between Us'  which was an enormous critical success.  This book, as a mystery and thriller novel, has the same suspense and plot turns and, if it is possible, is more suspenseful and captivating.

Jessica Farris is a make-up artist who works in Manhattan for 'BeautyBuzz', a company that books make-up do-over appointments for her.  She learns through slightly illicit means that there is a psychology study available that that will allow her to pick up a quick $500 by participating.  When she enters the study, she comes into contact with Dr. Shields, an intense, intelligent, and slightly twisted psychiatrist.  One thing leads to another and soon Jessica is performing 'tests' for Dr. Shields that have more to do with Dr. Shield's marriage than with the study.  Jessica is well paid and so she doesn't question the somewhat unusual requests by Dr. Shields.  The 'tests' soon lead to a controlling and predatory relationship by Dr. Shields with Jessica, and Jessica soon is looking for any means of escape.

There were times when I could not put this book down, and times where I was so uncomfortable with the tension and suspense in the novel that I had to put it down for a while.   The story is told from two points of view:  Jessica's and Dr. Shield's.  Dr. Shield's chapters are written in the 2nd person, which is rare in literature, and this POV device dramatically ratchets up the suspense in the novel.  Here is an excerpt where we read from the POV of Dr. Sheild:   

"You disappoint me deeply, Katherine April Voss.  You were invited in... Then you made the revelation the shattered everything, that put you in a completely different light; I made a mistake.  I slept with a married man ... You were told you would never be welcomed into the townhouse again..."   

This use of the second person POV by Dr. Shields is truly creepy and paints her as a twisted, almost psychotic personality. 

If you like mystery and suspense thrillers, you'll be hard-pressed to find a better one than 'An Anonymous Girl.;  Highly recommended.  5/5 stars.

The Burglar by Thomas Perry

Publication Date Jan 18 2019

This was an utterly fascinating book to me.  Elle Stowell, the protagonist, is a skilled burglar and the book makes it clear that she is so good that her ability is almost a superpower.  I was captivated from the first page onward and only put the book down when it was finished.

The book starts with some glimpses of Elle being a superb burglar.  I have to admit that her job is fascinating.  The author goes into considerable detail on how to break into a wealthy person's house, search and find the goods, and then extract the well-hidden jewels or cash, and then leave just as she is about to be caught.  The narrative is excellent in creating that sense of danger that a burglar must feel; we feel it too as we read hoping she will not be caught.

When she breaks into a house where she finds three bodies, a triple murder as of yet undiscovered, the book turns mostly from a caper novel into a murder investigation.  The murderers know who she is and try to kill her several times before she get a handle on what the murders are all about.  She pursues leads as only a burglar can using illegal methods to gain information on the culprits.

The character of Elle Stowell comes from the best place of characterizations.  The book is told in first person, so the reader gets to pursue the mystery of the murders from her point of view, learning what she learns in real time.  I can't say enough about the tension in the story; I literally had to pause to relax while I was reading.  The sense of danger that you would have if you were robbing a place comes through perfectly and it drove me to read to the end in one sitting.

This is a superb book.  Thomas Perry, the author, has written around 25 books, and definitely shows he knows how to write a thriller/mystery.  Highly recommended.  5/5 stars. 

The Consuming Fire (excerpt) by John Scalzi
Available August 16, 2018

This was an exerpt of the first six chapters provided to me by Netgalley.com.  I am a long time fan of John Scalzi; I read his entire 'Old Man's War" series, two of the 'Lock In' books and the first book in this series, 'The Collapsing Empire.'  This new book, 'The Consuming Fire' is a worthy addition to the series.  I only read the six-chapter excerpt,  but this book picks up where 'The Collapsing Empire' left off.

The story starts off with the Emperox, Grayland II declaring that she has had mystical visions of the demise of the FLow, the flowing energy stream which connects the worlds of the Empire.  This is apparently a ploy, since she has this information from her scientist friend Marci, a ploy so she can prepare her people for the coming changes.  In the first six chapters of the book, we are taken through the political action of the Emperox, a speech by Marci, in which he finds out that some new streams may be forming, and the political machinations of the family Nohamapetan, who in the first book were the main opposition to the Emporox.

From what I read, this book has the pulse driving excitement and political intrigue that made the first book so enjoyable.  The Empire is beginning to collapse and this make the story exciting.  Recommended 4/5 stars. D. Lowrey