tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21090317519682581312024-03-14T23:08:37.295-07:00COL'S CRIMINAL LIBRARYcol2910http://www.blogger.com/profile/06422138069939709043noreply@blogger.comBlogger2708125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2109031751968258131.post-62891740252093239792024-02-17T07:37:00.000-08:002024-02-17T07:37:38.126-08:00PETER FOLEY - RED SHIFT (2022)<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCitM682Xc_5boZuqZm4d66zJNB4IHruneMT4Wz4i2KFGsB_LsUiARVyQQijdLE1jTK9UXCU84TI-ObpDPTYATg6oBH72Xy-Kj585Ed0dqIAh33jMFMBErqf3ZgJJ7GP2AgWFYmb5Bx0b6Sm6jdUfFRFLJgU_X1ioY1MSSByzfNQbsHegDaBlF955DuyAu/s500/REDSHIFT.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="313" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCitM682Xc_5boZuqZm4d66zJNB4IHruneMT4Wz4i2KFGsB_LsUiARVyQQijdLE1jTK9UXCU84TI-ObpDPTYATg6oBH72Xy-Kj585Ed0dqIAh33jMFMBErqf3ZgJJ7GP2AgWFYmb5Bx0b6Sm6jdUfFRFLJgU_X1ioY1MSSByzfNQbsHegDaBlF955DuyAu/w250-h400/REDSHIFT.jpg" width="250" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p>Synopsis/blurb...</p><p><b><i>Fukushima: when a series of disasters devastate Japan, three criminals are presented with the perfect opportunity for a jailbreak.</i></b></p><p><b><i>Last year I released a novel called Mika Ito and it told the story of love and dark secrets in the midst of a series of epic disasters. However, I really thought Mika’s father, Shinsuke Takahashi, deserved to have his side of the story told.</i></b></p><p><b><i>Giving Shinsuke the limelight in the original Mika Ito would have been wrong: it was Mika and Dylan’s story. But I kept returning to the idea, extending it to all the villains in the Mika Ito universe, and I made a promise that one day I would tell their story.</i></b></p><p><b><i>That day is today.</i></b></p><p><b><i>Red Shift is a novella that begins on the day of the Fukushima disaster and follows the Mika Ito timeline, but it tells the story exclusively from the villain’s point of view. It's both an exciting stand-alone novella and a companion to Mika Ito.</i></b></p><p>An okay story of villain's escaping from custody during an earthquake and an attempt by the leader of them to reconnect with his estranged daughter.</p><p>I think my main issue with the story was a lack of empathy for any of the characters and as such nothing that happened to any of them affected me as I read it. My overwhelming feeling was indifference.</p><p>If I had read the longer, connected novel - Mika Ito, perhaps I would have gotten more from the story, but maybe not. There were a few plot points in this tale which required a slight stretch of credibility to believe in, but as it was only a relatively short piece of writing as opposed to something that required more of a time investment I could overlook them without too much irritation.</p><p>Overall okay, but not great. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg16qREyaSZ2WD9CacDIeAcxqoWXTnC1xEA61iiqobRxqbcg9E8EA3qND_d1JMcmXeNnjrxYvX0ITcmElgw0L12oFVrJq9byibfiU_u5kCblmOH00uaurNBP-FwopkSjJYzxCPImzd92lS5lpKRQdDLNo57uMniIojK0fwa6DmceQKyiIfAU1_5QG2uWUWw/s300/peterfoley.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="300" data-original-width="300" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg16qREyaSZ2WD9CacDIeAcxqoWXTnC1xEA61iiqobRxqbcg9E8EA3qND_d1JMcmXeNnjrxYvX0ITcmElgw0L12oFVrJq9byibfiU_u5kCblmOH00uaurNBP-FwopkSjJYzxCPImzd92lS5lpKRQdDLNo57uMniIojK0fwa6DmceQKyiIfAU1_5QG2uWUWw/w200-h200/peterfoley.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p>2.5 stars from 5</p><p>Read - February, 2024</p><p>Published - 2022</p><p>Page count - 79</p><p>Source - copy from author courtesy of email sign-up to his page</p><p>Format - Kindle</p>col2910http://www.blogger.com/profile/06422138069939709043noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2109031751968258131.post-36838935693840502602024-02-14T22:42:00.000-08:002024-02-14T22:42:11.093-08:00JAHMAL MAYFIELD - SMOKE KINGS (2024)<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhapNXrBOniu4ytY_0gOz5g7An62af7U_jUugMOuz8AIrAZ6j-R_yTRApLHcdAIHa1AbhyIMY2jkG31qNDKPWQ9ccEj6_jpICnOjP5HnyIW3_YSzi0ApdWy8WXKf1euFmlh9kfO8zXn73voXGAGhs-y25bEhiGDAS8hG2zyNlt7nH5hPfPzahbnbxLkaJbN/s2313/SMOKEKINGS.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2313" data-original-width="1550" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhapNXrBOniu4ytY_0gOz5g7An62af7U_jUugMOuz8AIrAZ6j-R_yTRApLHcdAIHa1AbhyIMY2jkG31qNDKPWQ9ccEj6_jpICnOjP5HnyIW3_YSzi0ApdWy8WXKf1euFmlh9kfO8zXn73voXGAGhs-y25bEhiGDAS8hG2zyNlt7nH5hPfPzahbnbxLkaJbN/w268-h400/SMOKEKINGS.jpg" width="268" /></a></div><br />Synopsis/blurb...<p></p><p><i><b>"A fresh and fierce new voice to crime fiction...a stunning book that takes the reader on an intense and harrowing journey that is truly unforgettable. Consider me a big fan."— Don Winslow, New York Times bestselling author of The Cartel, The Force and City on Fire</b></i></p><p><i><b>In the vein of GET OUT and RAZORBLADE TEARS, a powerful and propulsive noir thriller - with an unforgettable cast of characters - asks us to consider what would happen if reparations for African Americans were finally charged and exacted..... by force?</b></i></p><p><i><b>Nate Evers, a young black political activist, struggles with rage as his people are still being killed in the streets 62 years after Emmett Till. When his little cousin is murdered, Nate shuns the graffiti murals, candlelight vigils, and Twitter hashtags that are commonplace after these senseless deaths. Instead, he leads 3 grief-stricken friends on a mission of retribution, kidnapping the descendants of long-ago perpetrators of hate crimes, confronting the targets with their racist lineages, and forcing them to pay reparations to a community fund. For 3 of the group members, the results mean justice; for Nate – pure revenge.</b></i></p><p><i><b>Not all targets go quietly into the night, though, and Nate and his friends' world spirals out of control when they confront the wrong man. Now the leader of a white supremacist group is hot on their tail as is a jaded lawman with some disturbingly racist views of his own.</b></i></p><p><i><b>As the 4 vigilantes fight to thwart their ruthless pursuers, they’re forced to accept an age-old truth: "Before you embark on a journey of revenge, dig two graves."</b></i></p><p>Early days in 2024 and I've probably just read one of the best books I'll encounter all year.</p><p>Powerful, topical, exciting, thought provoking, angry, and - as we track the last hours of young, love struck Darius - upsetting.</p><p>Smoke Kings was an addictive read. I didn't want to put it down. From the get go I was drawn in to the tale and got slightly irritated when life interfered with me discovering what was going to happen next.</p><p>This tale had a bit of everything.... love, loyalty, secrets, trust, tension, ignorance, anger, history, violence and at its core; ugly, brutal, incomprehensible racism.</p><p>Great characters, fantastic writing, a compelling story, decent pace, and a fantastic outcome. It's a book that I want to press into the hands of other keen readers. Highly recommended.</p><p>Kind of hard to believe this is a debut novel from author, Jahmal Mayfield. I'll definitely be looking out for his next book. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXEWThXx8svd5FYCZcRFAb5oy6N2N7XcRaLK-JuANOBtSAOSoEElVBC17TVYNjLTonnsdBy2mb0YT8AgZvCQrJzcmcR-uAux36sqr6xJQV_gGXxAmcJhffmTLofIM-sgbfNW7AKnd9AY1q7JjSxB7RuIKTOTQB6-Z6dZt-jOfOZcxsC2LLP5eGHFsW6Gc8/s6000/Jahmal.Mayfield.profile.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="6000" data-original-width="4000" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXEWThXx8svd5FYCZcRFAb5oy6N2N7XcRaLK-JuANOBtSAOSoEElVBC17TVYNjLTonnsdBy2mb0YT8AgZvCQrJzcmcR-uAux36sqr6xJQV_gGXxAmcJhffmTLofIM-sgbfNW7AKnd9AY1q7JjSxB7RuIKTOTQB6-Z6dZt-jOfOZcxsC2LLP5eGHFsW6Gc8/w133-h200/Jahmal.Mayfield.profile.jpg" width="133" /></a></div><p></p><p>5 stars from 5! </p><p><br /></p><p>Read - February, 2024</p><p>Published - 2024</p><p>Page count - 402</p><p>Source - review copy from publisher, Melville House</p><p>Format - Paperback ARC</p>col2910http://www.blogger.com/profile/06422138069939709043noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2109031751968258131.post-76067190447616847082024-02-11T22:10:00.000-08:002024-02-11T22:10:13.384-08:00STACY WOODSON - THE CADILLAC JOB: AN EPISODE OF THE CHOPSHOP CRIME SERIES (2024)<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjh3SgBy33bVTgcLnKPTtrxB2ec4yVgwvSPYakKT-pVo9bNpNdLeh4c6BG-rm_wMEGxoPPWuYfzfhbgZomZtOrjr5BLCgmqTNX07GwTelS5k12DQp4Mm-RTGyb8mmn7jd2nZ9XEFADN43QhJYtEa-8GF3pPaSw7Q5olqDz1L1v-zU2EFy7up1_2t58eqzDV/s466/THECADILLACJOB.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="466" data-original-width="302" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjh3SgBy33bVTgcLnKPTtrxB2ec4yVgwvSPYakKT-pVo9bNpNdLeh4c6BG-rm_wMEGxoPPWuYfzfhbgZomZtOrjr5BLCgmqTNX07GwTelS5k12DQp4Mm-RTGyb8mmn7jd2nZ9XEFADN43QhJYtEa-8GF3pPaSw7Q5olqDz1L1v-zU2EFy7up1_2t58eqzDV/w259-h400/THECADILLACJOB.jpg" width="259" /></a></div><br />Synopsis/blurb ....<p></p><p><b><i>Car thieves and the chop shop that buys from them combine to create high-octane stories of hot cars, hot crimes, and hot times in Dallas, Texas.</i></b></p><p><b><i>In “The Cadillac Job,” loyalty beyond the battlefield sends Carly and Knuckles on one last mission to save a dying teammate.</i></b></p><p><b><i>When Carly isn’t slinging drinks at the local VFW, she boosts cars—a job much like the one she had on a vehicle recovery team in Afghanistan.</i></b></p><p><b><i>Except her team isn’t the same.</i></b></p><p><b><i>Sweets is dying. And the last time Knuckles scouted for a Mustang, he ended up at a dude ranch off highway 175.</i></b></p><p><b><i>Her commanding officer is different, too.</i></b></p><p><b><i>She no longer answers to Captain Shrader. She answers to Huey, and the consequences for disobeying orders are deadly.</i></b></p><p><b><i>Determined to save Sweets, Carly steals cars to pay for a lifesaving surgery. But progress is slow, and Sweets is running out of time—until the Cadillac Job. The payout is big. So are the risks. If Carly succeeds, Sweets lives.</i></b></p><p>My kind of story here. Our main characters; a tight group of ex-military who served together, stealing cars to order to raise funds for a life-saving transplant operation for one of their own. Added pressures of time, with the clock running down on Sweets, leading to some ill-judged choices. I'm a sucker for a story where the main POV or sympathies are with the outlaw or villain; where necessity leads a decent person down the crooked road.. </p><p>Great writing, tight, lean prose. Hardly a wasted word with no extra padding or fluff. I was engaged throughout and the finale didn't let me down.</p><p>An enjoyable 90 minutes or so's reading!</p><p>4 from 5</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdryDcTPgsAKvkNTCb2vrIGESXZ6Gcdi2dznGx3SYe9d0ZTp1Y3kRhdf-3VXpv0AX_JzQ_ZoK6wuISSmwt2AOPFO4feyKDEZ12OrXvzIkHhVDheLOwdKruQWeBujt8EYjeFiZXHAx4SkYTEKgQe-gSqu448Xazp0OTkkuxWBjBZgphPD4uKNtTmJZ3c5ww/s450/stacywoodson.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="450" data-original-width="450" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdryDcTPgsAKvkNTCb2vrIGESXZ6Gcdi2dznGx3SYe9d0ZTp1Y3kRhdf-3VXpv0AX_JzQ_ZoK6wuISSmwt2AOPFO4feyKDEZ12OrXvzIkHhVDheLOwdKruQWeBujt8EYjeFiZXHAx4SkYTEKgQe-gSqu448Xazp0OTkkuxWBjBZgphPD4uKNtTmJZ3c5ww/w200-h200/stacywoodson.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>Note to self. <p></p><p>Try and cross paths with more from <b>Stacy Woodson</b> and get stuck into the second in the <b>Michael Bracken/Down and Out Books' Chop Shop series</b> - <b>Joseph S. Walker</b> and <b>Run and Gun</b>.</p><p> <br /></p><p>Read - February, 2024</p><p>Published - 2024</p><p>Page count - 69</p><p>Source - Kindle Unlimited</p><p>Format - Kindle</p>col2910http://www.blogger.com/profile/06422138069939709043noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2109031751968258131.post-37056731749613618952023-08-30T22:56:00.001-07:002023-08-30T22:56:47.590-07:00STELLA BLÓMKVIST - MURDER AT THE RESIDENCE (2023) <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgz042NKSeA0QEPr3Iur2lBnYYfCMZ9yeoLNObcJKer08xW7c3QTrjnjYg7RwV74LYoACQoQC8-BiCqBcwreri1uj19kIFU5uG05184N5xn1Wk2nm7EAxckPkceRWo6hoASOWB1IRZXvbT8jezEIq_JKtb9Y3WhPUibGiD-LTtrW4AuLf6XlcNnPw79rFJQ/s1500/MURDERATTHERESIDENCE.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1007" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgz042NKSeA0QEPr3Iur2lBnYYfCMZ9yeoLNObcJKer08xW7c3QTrjnjYg7RwV74LYoACQoQC8-BiCqBcwreri1uj19kIFU5uG05184N5xn1Wk2nm7EAxckPkceRWo6hoASOWB1IRZXvbT8jezEIq_JKtb9Y3WhPUibGiD-LTtrW4AuLf6XlcNnPw79rFJQ/w269-h400/MURDERATTHERESIDENCE.jpg" width="269" /></a></div><br /><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Synopsis/blurb....</span></p><p><i><span style="color: #0b5394; font-size: medium;">It’s New Year and Iceland is still reeling from the effects of the financial crash when a notorious financier is found beaten to death after a high-profile reception at the President’s residence.</span></i></p><p><i><span style="color: #0b5394; font-size: medium;">The police are certain they have the killer – or do they? Determined to get to the truth, maverick lawyer Stella Blómkvist isn’t so sure.</span></i></p><p><i><span style="color: #0b5394; font-size: medium;">A stripper disappears from one of city's seediest nightspots, and nobody but Stella seems interested in finding her. A drug mule cooling his heels in a prison cell refuses to speak to anyone but Stella – although she’s never heard of him. An old man makes a deathbed confession and request for Stella to find the family he lost long ago.</span></i></p><p><i><span style="color: #0b5394; font-size: medium;">With a sharp tongue and a moral compass all of her own, Stella Blómkvist has a talent for attracting trouble and she’s as at home in the corridors of power as in the dark corners of Reykjavík’s underworld.</span></i></p><p><i><span style="color: #0b5394; font-size: medium;">Stella Blómkvist delivers an explosive mix of murder, intrigue and surprise, and is one of Iceland's best-loved crime series.</span></i></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Murder at the Residence was a really enjoyable murder mystery, set in Iceland at the time of their financial crisis. There's an intriguing blend of cases for maverick lawyer Stella Blómkvist (our protagonist shares the same name as the author, though our author's true identity is a literary secret).</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">A missing woman; a murder of a high profile banker with a convenient patsy for the police; an incarcerated drug smuggler; a teenage rebel with authority issues and a decades old family secret which has been buried. Stella has her hands full picking through this little lot. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Murder, drugs, pimps, politics, social unrest, police corruption, bankers, politicians, a priest, violence on the streets, the Reykjavik criminal underworld, friendships, alliances, secrets, media pressure, and amongst the busy case load a bit of time for some sex and possibly something more.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Great setting, an intriguing main character who I would like to read more about. She's gutsy, determined and capable, I like how she isn't intimidated by powerful forces. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">The writing was smooth and an easy read, which is testament to the translator's skill (hats off to Quentin Bates). The different strands of the plot were easy to follow and I enjoyed how they all came together, with only a smidgeon of coincidence to bind a couple of the elements. It's a busy book for 270-odd pages and there's a decent pace to the story without anything ever seeming rushed.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Overall - very satisfying and one I'd recommend to fans of Icelandic crime fiction.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">One minor gripe, Stella's car - a Merc - is constantly referred to as a silver steed. I was irritated by the repetition of the phrase by the third occurrence. Another ten or so occasions just managed to properly annoy me. Why not call a car a car sometimes?</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">4 stars from 5</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Read - August, 2023</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Published - 2023</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Source - review ARC from publisher Corylus Books</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Page count - 270</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Format - paperback</span></p>col2910http://www.blogger.com/profile/06422138069939709043noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2109031751968258131.post-73478614066040610222023-08-28T03:27:00.000-07:002023-08-28T03:27:05.289-07:00A BIT OF EXCITING SCANDI CRIME.... MURDER AT THE RESIDENCE by STELLA BLÓMKVIST (translated by QUENTIN BATES)<p> </p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNNmn06M_mn9ttG6aBmxmY43LI162Egsvpg_hTX3uKy5URbYWkBlvERjGdNpFq5_--4XBvEy2MUx-05JkefWpv-l_HriWE-3j-oEsVWP9eotaSHIVA_MknvmMISNimQ1e-BWEH3Vk89aPdY8fVDYeJaN6r5eqHBbw6GyCo8D9XYnMB1ASTaBK5JzsYdN08/s1500/MURDERATTHERESIDENCE.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1007" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNNmn06M_mn9ttG6aBmxmY43LI162Egsvpg_hTX3uKy5URbYWkBlvERjGdNpFq5_--4XBvEy2MUx-05JkefWpv-l_HriWE-3j-oEsVWP9eotaSHIVA_MknvmMISNimQ1e-BWEH3Vk89aPdY8fVDYeJaN6r5eqHBbw6GyCo8D9XYnMB1ASTaBK5JzsYdN08/w269-h400/MURDERATTHERESIDENCE.jpg" width="269" /></a></div><br /><b><br /></b><p></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Translator,<b> Quentin Bates </b>ruminates on the mystery of this Icelandic author's identity....</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">The 25-year
mystery of Stella Blómkvist<o:p></o:p></span></i></p><p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"> How do you
keep a secret like this for twenty-five years in a country where one of the
national pastimes is making sure that closely-guarded secrets are blown wide
open in record time?</span></i></p><p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">But the
writer (or writers) behind the mysterious Stella Blómkvist have managed to keep
themselves out of the limelight since the first in the series appeared way back
in the nineties. It’s a hell of an achievement. Even Stella’s editor claims to
not know the identity of the writer they’re dealing with.<o:p></o:p></span></i></p><p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">It goes
without saying that there’s been plenty of speculation about who writes these
sharp, compact crime stories featuring the tough, smart lawyer with her
frequently morally flexible approach to life and work.<o:p></o:p></span></i></p><p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">At one time
there was a rumour going around that the then-Prime Minister could be the power
behind the Stella Blómkvist tales, but that one doesn’t add up. The names of
one or two other public figures have been mentioned as potential candidates –
possibly because people assume that politicians have all the free time needed
to write novels when they should be working.<o:p></o:p></span></i></p><p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">It doesn’t
help that Iceland is a remarkably literate country. There’s no shortage of
possibilities. So let’s narrow it down… The books have been appearing since the
late nineties. In fact, the first Stella story appeared in the same year that
Arnaldur Indriðason’s first novel was published, that’s back when there was
nothing cool in Iceland about crime fiction. How times have changed. These days
you can hardly throw a brick in Reykjavík without hitting a crime writer.<o:p></o:p></span></i></p><p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Before you
ask, no, I don’t believe it’s likely that Arnaldur is Stella...<o:p></o:p></span></i></p><p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">But whoever’s
behind Stella has been doing this for 25 years, so it’s likely to be someone in
their fifties or older. This is a person who knows their history and literature
– and who also knows their onions when it comes to hard-boiled crime fiction.<o:p></o:p></span></i></p><p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">There’s
hardly a writer in Icelandic who hasn’t at some point or other been suspected
of being Stella Blómkvist – and this little country has a lot of writers, so
there’s a big field to choose from. The suspects have ranged from literary
heavyweights – such as Guðbergur Bergsson and Auður Haralds – to those at the
crime fiction end of the spectrum.<o:p></o:p></span></i></p><p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">It’s
something that pops up every time a new Stella novel is published. The
speculation gets into gear on social media and then spills over into the
mainstream media for a while – sometimes with a few new names floated – and
then it all dies away again.<o:p></o:p></span></i></p><p>
</p><p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="color: #2b00fe; font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">To start
with, I was curious. I wondered who Stella Blómkvist’s creator could be. But
now, a couple of books in (now that the next in the series has also been
translated ready for next year) I’ve changed my mind.<br />
Right now, I’d prefer to Stella to stay mysterious.<o:p></o:p></span></i></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p><b><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Corylus Books PRESS RELEASE</span></b></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Corylus Book is a new venture aiming to publish exciting new voices translated into English.</span></p><p><b><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">THE BESTSELLING ICELANDIC CRIME SERIES WRITTEN BY AN ANONYMOUS AUTHOR</span></b></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Murder at the Residence</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Stella Blomkvist</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">28th August 2023 | Paperback/ eBook | Corylus Books | £9.99/£3.49</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Available for the first time in English, Quentin Bates has translated the </span><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">first book in the second wave of Stella Blómkvist novels, Murder at the </span><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Residence.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Perfect for readers of Henning Mankell, Arnaldur Indriðason, Gunnar Staalesen and Jussi</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Adler-Olsen.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Iceland is still reeling from the effects of the financial crash when a notorious financier is </span><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">found beaten to death after a high-profile reception at the President’s residence.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">The police are certain it’s an open and shut case and that they have the man responsible – </span><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">maverick lawyer Stella Blómkvist isn’t so sure…</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">The more she investigates, the murkier it all becomes. Secrets are uncovered that powerful </span><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">people want to keep hidden, and a seedy trail of sex, murder, and blackmail leads Stella </span><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">into a twisted maze of ruthless corruption at the very heart of government itself.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Stella Blómkvist is a hard-nosed, quick-witted lawyer with a dark past and a taste for </span><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">whiskey and easy money. She will be plunged her into a violent political conspiracy which </span><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">threatens Iceland’s very future…</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">ABOUT THE AUTHOR</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">It has been twenty-five years since the first Stella Blómkvist story was published and this long-</span><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">running series continues to be a consistent bestseller in Iceland. What’s remarkable is that in a tiny </span><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">community such as Iceland, the identity of the Stella Blómkvist (the author) who writes these </span><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">sharp, sassy tales of the exploits of Stella Blómkvist (the lawyer) has remained under wraps.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">The first book appeared in 1997 and the series continued for six books up to 2006, </span><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">when Stella Blómkvist seemed to have retired. Then in 2012, Stella was back, angrier, more mature </span><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">and better formed as a character in a continuation of the series. The latest appeared in 2022, </span><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">bringing the total to thirteen to date.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Corylus Books PRESS RELEASE</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Corylus Book is a new venture aiming to publish exciting new voices translated into English.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">There has been endless speculation, and longstanding rumours that Stella is a leading politician, a </span><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">well-known public figure, a much-loved children’s author. There’s hardly a writer in Iceland who </span><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">hasn’t at some time or other been suspected of being Stella.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">ABOUT THE TRANSLATOR</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSIuZxbnb3Q6csoQLFb_E2twz7j4zoDJ0hETSRpJpsTO1yvvk9bigefCa54BtCT9xMXXDR9dAECl8GP63b9rM1Oq0zswX6Um7z9JsaRne_8rRj-mqb6LVdWu-WATTl6Xcag7qu0gwSm0atTtfSy2uTy1cr26smHUIjAbhPs95j_2EpAs4OyijxTZdRA81H/s1084/quentin-bates-sh.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1084" data-original-width="900" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSIuZxbnb3Q6csoQLFb_E2twz7j4zoDJ0hETSRpJpsTO1yvvk9bigefCa54BtCT9xMXXDR9dAECl8GP63b9rM1Oq0zswX6Um7z9JsaRne_8rRj-mqb6LVdWu-WATTl6Xcag7qu0gwSm0atTtfSy2uTy1cr26smHUIjAbhPs95j_2EpAs4OyijxTZdRA81H/s320/quentin-bates-sh.jpg" width="266" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><br /></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Quentin Bates (or Gráskeggur ‘grey beard’ as he’s affectionately known </span><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">in Iceland) is one of a handful of British authors writing Scandi Noir set </span><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">in Iceland, and who has a deep understanding of the country and its </span><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">people. Having lived there for long periods and being married to a local </span><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">for forty years has given him a deep insight into and affection for </span><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">Iceland, all of which makes him more qualified than most to write about Iceland.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">He’s one of the founders, with Yrsa Sigurdardóttir and Ragnar Jónasson, of the Iceland Noir crime </span><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">fiction festival. As well as his own fiction, he has become increasingly busy in the last few years as </span><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">the translator of Lilja Sigurðardóttir, Sólveig Pálsdóttir, Ragnar Jónasson and Óskar Guðmundsson – </span><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">and now the mysterious Stella Blómkvist.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">For further information, please contact Emily Burns | PR Director | 078709787611</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">emily@brandhive.co.uk</span></p>col2910http://www.blogger.com/profile/06422138069939709043noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2109031751968258131.post-61955633074693249492023-05-30T08:20:00.000-07:002023-05-30T08:20:00.979-07:00DANIEL WEIZMANN - THE LAST SONGBIRD (2023)<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRNlr76VtCZzsfn26DA9nwz4zsMmVGap5fOENvdbQpW_QiEEDw755FhvBYiVUBfh7L5XpyU2YW-nDJvq-aQAWLd3dbqX2EWKlzlS8NB8YfadtfpWDRTsQw9RAjYSNMtwkefyxdguzPXs6l2gG1_4uwFmHcuzx7MSDvh1b8SwPfwXRAmi1oNgNY1EUQIA/s2781/The%20Last%20Songbird.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2781" data-original-width="1841" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRNlr76VtCZzsfn26DA9nwz4zsMmVGap5fOENvdbQpW_QiEEDw755FhvBYiVUBfh7L5XpyU2YW-nDJvq-aQAWLd3dbqX2EWKlzlS8NB8YfadtfpWDRTsQw9RAjYSNMtwkefyxdguzPXs6l2gG1_4uwFmHcuzx7MSDvh1b8SwPfwXRAmi1oNgNY1EUQIA/w265-h400/The%20Last%20Songbird.jpg" width="265" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Synopsis/blurb ....</span></p><p><b><span style="font-size: medium;">A gritty, fast-paced neo-noir that explores the consumptive nature of fame, celebrity, and motherhood through the lens of a driver lost in the gig economy.</span></b></p><p><b><span style="font-size: medium;">A struggling songwriter and Lyft driver, Adam Zantz’s life changes when he accepts a ride request in Malibu and 1970s music icon Annie Linden enters his dented VW Jetta. Bonding during that initial ride, the two quickly go off app— over the next three years, Adam becomes her exclusive driver and Annie listens to his music, encouraging Adam even as he finds himself driving more often than songwriting.</span></b></p><p><b><span style="font-size: medium;">Then, Annie disappears, and her body washes up under a pier. Left with a final, cryptic text— ‘come to my arms’— a grieving Adam plays amateur detective, only to be charged as accomplice-after-the-fact. Desperate to clear his name and discover who killed the one person who believed in his music when no one else in his life did, Adam digs deep into Annie’s past, turning up an old guitar teacher, sworn enemies and lovers, and a long-held secret that spills into the dark world of a shocking underground Men’s Rights movement. As he drives the outskirts of Los Angeles in California, Adam comes to question how well he, or anyone else, knew Annie— if at all. </span></b></p><p><b><span style="font-size: medium;">The Last Songbird is a poignant novel about love, obsession, the price of fame and the burden of broken dreams, with a shifting, twisting plot that's full of unexpected turns.</span></b></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Intriguing, engrossing and entertaining. My reading mojo has vanished of late, but this one from Daniel Weizmann has gotten me back on the right path.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">We have a captivating murder mystery in which the main character, a washed up, failed musician, Adam Zante investigates the death of his employer-cum-'friend', the 70s musical icon, Annie Linden. Zante spends as much time discovering who Linden was, as he does trying to unravel the circumstances of her death.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">While he digs, Weizmann had this reader musing on the meaning of family, from both the perspective of our victim and the investigator, and by extension what it means to myself. The whole gamut of emotions are explored.... love, pain, regret, mistakes, callousness, indifference, anger, secrets, power dynamics, pettiness, punishment, connectivity and ties and bonds or the lack thereof and memories.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">As well as an opportunity to indulge in some reflective naval gazing, Weizmann had me invested in discovering who did what and why. Zante's drip-fed discoveries, the little information nuggets were exposed credibly and had me believing in his abilities as a decent sleuth. I have my fingers crossed that Weizmann may have more Adam Zante books in the pipeline.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">There's jeopardy in our main player's his quest. He is attacked and threatened several times, as are some of the other parties, who are privy to some of Linden's confidences. So there is some violence, another fatality and a level of danger and action which ramps up the stakes a little bit more, before a fitting concusion.</span></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_JrQl_3aHXvAgmmZDfYx82aujtTi4OmZ5prIRHqRIpVebNTWXFUQ71hs1U2b8RWyCiE5--cEAsTjY_eAmcQSjWIEA_BAzOc0sUlaFDkx7pLn83-noxvboFymrZH_Ngdy6iZgpM4s59VWt95zd-GiUK5-vvVH1RC1ru_UkiyQwzge20ZaMfW0NFF70rg/s5375/Daniel%20Weizmann.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="5375" data-original-width="4045" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_JrQl_3aHXvAgmmZDfYx82aujtTi4OmZ5prIRHqRIpVebNTWXFUQ71hs1U2b8RWyCiE5--cEAsTjY_eAmcQSjWIEA_BAzOc0sUlaFDkx7pLn83-noxvboFymrZH_Ngdy6iZgpM4s59VWt95zd-GiUK5-vvVH1RC1ru_UkiyQwzge20ZaMfW0NFF70rg/w151-h200/Daniel%20Weizmann.jpg" width="151" /></span></a></div><span style="font-size: medium;">Overall I really enjoyed this one. It had all the ingredients I like in a book. Pace, plot, a sympathetic main character, a decent setting and a believable outcome.</span><p></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">4.5 stars from 5</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Read - May, 2023</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Published - 2023</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Page count - 336</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Source - review copy from publisher, Melville House</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Format - paperback ARC</span><span style="font-size: medium;"> </span><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></p>col2910http://www.blogger.com/profile/06422138069939709043noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2109031751968258131.post-39955848255669623762023-02-02T05:50:00.000-08:002023-02-02T05:50:04.644-08:00RICHARD PAOLINELLI - RESERVATIONS (2015)<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibPFDNZSE6yOJH7cR9cTZzG3sqW5lTWbfdY7_3xvsLeFAoedaj5wcQ2tr-L_eHd3cGeR56y9JWHZkXWv_ZunWXCQHylwatsgXCHtVCCY7Swm9qxTqBe_vjv87cLEKyss-LyFxATYVubfR5KoNk2uYYTuePTX1Fne8XPdHA-kU9ovx1tvEIqzKUtLdk5A/s500/RESERVATIONS.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="500" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibPFDNZSE6yOJH7cR9cTZzG3sqW5lTWbfdY7_3xvsLeFAoedaj5wcQ2tr-L_eHd3cGeR56y9JWHZkXWv_ZunWXCQHylwatsgXCHtVCCY7Swm9qxTqBe_vjv87cLEKyss-LyFxATYVubfR5KoNk2uYYTuePTX1Fne8XPdHA-kU9ovx1tvEIqzKUtLdk5A/s320/RESERVATIONS.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Synopsis/blurb ...</span><p></p><p><b><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">DEATH STALKS THE RES</span></b></p><p><b><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Who – or what – is killing members of the Navajo tribe? RESERVATIONS, the first book of the Jack Del Rio political mystery/thriller series, is set near Gallup, New Mexico, where the Navajo, Hopi and Zuni reservations lie adjacent. Three tribal leaders have been murdered - murdered in a fashion that suggests the deeds were carried out by COYOTE, a legendary supernatural evil trickster feared by many Native Americans.</span></b></p><p><b><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">The tribal president contacts an old friend in the FBI for assistance in solving the crimes and preventing more murders. Star agent, Jack Del Rio, is dispatched to New Mexico where he finds a situation tangled in political intrigue. Jack must work his way through those issues on his way to solving the mystery. Sparks fly as Navajo police officer Lucy Chee is assigned to assist him in his quest.</span></b></p><p><b><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Question is can Del Rio and Chee solve the mystery and find the killer before he strikes again? Because the killer is on the hunt and he has his sights on Del Rio himself.</span></b></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Enjoyable enough, but not amazing.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Interesting setting, informative backdrop with Navajo characters, customs, history and culture at the heart of the mystery. Decent main character, an outsider who operates in the environment sensitively. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">I enjoyed the story, it's quite pacey without feeling rushed. There is more than one murder to be solved and time is crucial before too many more victims are created. The ending was credible and satisfied me, answering all the questions previously posed. The motive for the murders held up.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">I did have some minor gripes. I found the raison d'etre for the main tribal leader withholding information from the investigator initially unconvincing. And I found the main character's back story involving events occurring previously in London and involving the Queen, eye-rolling and near vomit inducing. I think the author went a bit OTT regarding his credibility. He could easily have been shown to be a capable and competent agent without resorting to a gimmick.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Otherwise lots to like about it, including a well sketched support cast of characters, a touch of romance and overall a satisfying multiple murder mystery. This one is the first in Paolinelli's Jack Del Rio series and I wouldn't be averse to trying another one in the series when time allows.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">I liked the narration from Theo Holland - one of the best in the business in my opinion.</span></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYNBCUvxqCYC-anBC4VBWbdujoo6PxoO-n0UAiLpGZDSAsGnk0PJ-sfE5YJDDvdBJRX5AFueKyACVsH-awDBmO0IWSfcjMCOrmnAzbTzlNzWijPVeCnWeZ3RATituDmM0dEpRP-XayRvgBriKoF50r5YkHmg3sa1ISUB2s4zn2l81mk3Mu3d-7hG172w/s266/richardpaolinelli.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="266" data-original-width="178" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYNBCUvxqCYC-anBC4VBWbdujoo6PxoO-n0UAiLpGZDSAsGnk0PJ-sfE5YJDDvdBJRX5AFueKyACVsH-awDBmO0IWSfcjMCOrmnAzbTzlNzWijPVeCnWeZ3RATituDmM0dEpRP-XayRvgBriKoF50r5YkHmg3sa1ISUB2s4zn2l81mk3Mu3d-7hG172w/s1600/richardpaolinelli.jpg" width="178" /></span></a></div><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">3.5 stars from 5</span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Richard Paolinelli's work has been enjoyed before - <a href="http://col2910.blogspot.com/2022/09/jim-christina-and-richard-paolinelli.html">The Last Lonely Trail</a>, co-authored with <b>Jim Christina</b>.<br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Read - (listened to) January, 2023</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Published - 2015</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Page count - 350 (6 hrs 46 mins)</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Source - Audible purchase</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Format - Audible</span></p>col2910http://www.blogger.com/profile/06422138069939709043noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2109031751968258131.post-35048008398343689022023-01-23T05:40:00.000-08:002023-01-23T05:40:02.634-08:00HEIDE GOODY and IAIN GRANT - SEALFINGER (2021)<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxAxzYCL2iXvcGg5Rr-yluHYrD1bGeSa1CtrEq6y6vRFzfr0xgmI1hJcf7NzdslbfnJsnoERZS7pg9x733e-Xx8osA-SstnV19DjadAIpezIla8ICYGNjqhRI1KTiFRrrmNjEe1VLwLRmcKWOBBRX6RB8NQxRNHbLTFNG9ncT6pRSpToHJrEYKrvFQUw/s475/SEALFINGER.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="475" data-original-width="317" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxAxzYCL2iXvcGg5Rr-yluHYrD1bGeSa1CtrEq6y6vRFzfr0xgmI1hJcf7NzdslbfnJsnoERZS7pg9x733e-Xx8osA-SstnV19DjadAIpezIla8ICYGNjqhRI1KTiFRrrmNjEe1VLwLRmcKWOBBRX6RB8NQxRNHbLTFNG9ncT6pRSpToHJrEYKrvFQUw/w268-h400/SEALFINGER.jpg" width="268" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Synopsis/blurb ...</span></p><p><b><span style="font-size: medium;">Meet Sam Applewhite, security consultant for DefCon4’s east coast office. .</span></b></p><p><b><span style="font-size: medium;">She’s clever, inventive and adaptable. In her job she has to be.</span></b></p><p><b><span style="font-size: medium;">Now, she’s facing an impossible mystery.</span></b></p><p><b><span style="font-size: medium;">A client has gone missing and no one else seems to care.</span></b></p><p><b><span style="font-size: medium;">Who would want to kill an old and lonely woman whose only sins are having a sharp tongue and a belief in ghosts? Could her death be linked to the new building project out on the dunes?</span></b></p><p><b><span style="font-size: medium;">Can Sam find out the truth, even if it puts her friends’ and family’s lives at risk?</span></b></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">A bit of quirky comedy crime fiction which there was more to enjoy than not. That said, some of the humour was a bit hit and miss and there were no outright belly laughs.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">A seal, an alligator, a property deal in jeopardy, an elderly parent, a cactus for a work companion, an old flame reappearing, a new friend, a useless cop, a missing woman, a couple of crims - one dim, one not so. An amateur investigation.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">The book grew on me as the story progressed, as early stages it was a bit like swimming through treacle. I wasn''t really vibing the story. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">By the end I was enjoying things. Decent storyline, eccentric cast of characters, multiple character POVs as the reader was privy to events the main character Sam wasn't. Interesting setting of Skegness and the surrounding area. Satisfying pay off. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">3 stars from 5.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Sealfinger is the first in the co-authors' Sam Applewhite series. I think there are three more in the series. Not rushing to any more of them if I'm honest. Too many other books are demanding my attention. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Read - January, 2023</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Published - 2021</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Page count - 412</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Source - Kindle Unlimited</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Format - Kindle</span></p><p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjScz3y50NuI12Ao2Te2x0YhV9SQ7a6u26K9HaQMVP6HdSzUs5N7d09r4xjBtKdwT44kUJCaGxwMpipV4wzSigal9tOuY1bqaA-aOdYthMFuml8dFGUFzidj6MS07VxRrnnZf1W73ejS3Nh2Pk6uPgHxbqI6RA37y6ZJJ3nBRjIdBXazIAEGM_XHDmHWA/s600/heidegoode.jpg" style="clear: left; display: inline !important; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="583" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjScz3y50NuI12Ao2Te2x0YhV9SQ7a6u26K9HaQMVP6HdSzUs5N7d09r4xjBtKdwT44kUJCaGxwMpipV4wzSigal9tOuY1bqaA-aOdYthMFuml8dFGUFzidj6MS07VxRrnnZf1W73ejS3Nh2Pk6uPgHxbqI6RA37y6ZJJ3nBRjIdBXazIAEGM_XHDmHWA/w194-h200/heidegoode.jpg" width="194" /></a></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhV32LF3GfwjB4DdoxObtgGpFhNUg_sfBBrbbUZZ8EdLWOTWTOqPbD1Lt7JPGFNR_ZtlvpQvUCDVtQ94tVPCGQak7t844wggwiwGi_6CHOykzfQLHbkbCTAILS_M3zYaYSQDdB0q-X9tLoRQI2he-iLAJZ0ylLAbFRmxIIuNcZ4mQQJxnQV_hpiajFwvw/s765/iaingrant.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="510" data-original-width="765" height="133" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhV32LF3GfwjB4DdoxObtgGpFhNUg_sfBBrbbUZZ8EdLWOTWTOqPbD1Lt7JPGFNR_ZtlvpQvUCDVtQ94tVPCGQak7t844wggwiwGi_6CHOykzfQLHbkbCTAILS_M3zYaYSQDdB0q-X9tLoRQI2he-iLAJZ0ylLAbFRmxIIuNcZ4mQQJxnQV_hpiajFwvw/w200-h133/iaingrant.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><br /><br /><b><br /></b><p></p><p><b><br /></b></p>col2910http://www.blogger.com/profile/06422138069939709043noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2109031751968258131.post-42219765794723152192023-01-20T22:18:00.000-08:002023-01-20T22:18:03.931-08:00HARRY CREWS - THE HAWK IS DYING (1973)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyc1KsiPiCpMT0oQVpXhea6ApPNnXY-eQVbIpXgX_11y5C-1w8_N-2E5mc_towAKH_7dJKptUuNt3wYOKMa7OidPEoJ55JOq-f4kvgLMQLzlukt1YIlp9YVy4DKo8wAAv3502GePl531ECYbH0fA4v5numTUm31wAinj4I-0lyNGtiH495jQo8gTibjg/s640/hawk1.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="480" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyc1KsiPiCpMT0oQVpXhea6ApPNnXY-eQVbIpXgX_11y5C-1w8_N-2E5mc_towAKH_7dJKptUuNt3wYOKMa7OidPEoJ55JOq-f4kvgLMQLzlukt1YIlp9YVy4DKo8wAAv3502GePl531ECYbH0fA4v5numTUm31wAinj4I-0lyNGtiH495jQo8gTibjg/w300-h400/hawk1.jpg" width="300" /></a></div><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Synopsis/blurb ...</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-size: medium;">At the heart of the book is George Gattling of Gainesville,
Florida, fighting the boredom, the excruciating unimportance, of his existence.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-size: medium;">He has a successful custom-seatcover business, a family of
sorts – his sister Precious, who lies in bed reading aloud the “Ask Them
Yourselves” questions in <i>Family Weekly; </i>her son Fred, who every now and
then utters one word like “cork” or “toe” and is definitely either retarded or
a genius; and Betty, a psychology major whose actual study is copulation.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-size: medium;">And he has his hawk.</span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-size: medium;">The hawk is the mirror for all of George’s held-in passions.
It goes with him everywhere – to breakfast, to Betty’s bed, to a funeral home
at four in the morning. When the hawk at last springs from his arm, prompted by
the thought of freedom, swooping for its prey, life will become exciting, animated,
tumultuous.</span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-size: medium;">In a story filled with scenes that are funny and touching
and wonderfully bawdy Harry Crews has superbly described the search of a man
for release into a world where the senses are quickly awakened and emotions are
unrestrained.</span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: medium;">Enjoyable, interesting, informative on the art of trying to train a hawk, funny and sad.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: medium;">The main character is eccentric, obsessional and unwilling to live according to other people's expectations. He cares deeply for his nephew and values the times they spend together. He probably cares more for his hawk though. There's a real battle of wills as he seeks to dominate it. I enjoyed the history lesson Crews serves up in respect of the history of falconry through the years.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: medium;">Our main character, George suffers a grievous loss in the book, an incident that is by turn funny, horrific and absurd. Ditto the follow up scene when he visits the funeral parlour. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: medium;">I've not read any Harry Crews for a fair few years. I'm minded to dig out some of the other treasures in the collection.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDwYLlNts3NM4CDfb5ttkf-mzUR50xAXwVdlbObhj8YCLQA9chxclfI4rBhCn46uTmfI58lsn5eyWYOIUV7P9V4bQtv-_ju6aA91vgiGbwUgt1JXWvrm2JyHqVWJBV4SC6PzH5TnlSM7NkjargUgkhRlFqZOAxoR6kYYdnJ9t5OY0jHqDRmhxUlLXeYQ/s320/harrycr.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="320" data-original-width="240" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDwYLlNts3NM4CDfb5ttkf-mzUR50xAXwVdlbObhj8YCLQA9chxclfI4rBhCn46uTmfI58lsn5eyWYOIUV7P9V4bQtv-_ju6aA91vgiGbwUgt1JXWvrm2JyHqVWJBV4SC6PzH5TnlSM7NkjargUgkhRlFqZOAxoR6kYYdnJ9t5OY0jHqDRmhxUlLXeYQ/w150-h200/harrycr.jpg" width="150" /></span></a></div><span style="font-size: medium;">4 stars from 5</span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: medium;">Read - December, 2022</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Published - 1973</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Page count - 244 </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Source - owned copy</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Format - Hardback (Secker & Warburg)</span></p>col2910http://www.blogger.com/profile/06422138069939709043noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2109031751968258131.post-42063222546502894902023-01-19T21:27:00.002-08:002023-01-19T21:27:37.923-08:00PETER ROBINSON - GALLOW'S VIEW (1987)<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibjFt3PEBI2xf2S3lnliULCHThTkw6GZPFwnXDqucYSOyi-XQBaSRvCFTi4Bb4nQ0QFpo4nAqraTTLZsydbol6pgNtw8JhWye36hjortuIpnxEmr73fBYPzGdn0VzjShIcA4vjc4BypQ-bYHJ-d8Te5Mb9HQrS_SrCcCxphFuwL5tNtxwFVqjfjoW9aw/s479/GALLOWSVIEW.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="479" data-original-width="316" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibjFt3PEBI2xf2S3lnliULCHThTkw6GZPFwnXDqucYSOyi-XQBaSRvCFTi4Bb4nQ0QFpo4nAqraTTLZsydbol6pgNtw8JhWye36hjortuIpnxEmr73fBYPzGdn0VzjShIcA4vjc4BypQ-bYHJ-d8Te5Mb9HQrS_SrCcCxphFuwL5tNtxwFVqjfjoW9aw/w264-h400/GALLOWSVIEW.jpg" width="264" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-size: medium;">Synopsis/blurb ...</span><p></p><p><b><span style="font-size: medium;">In this first Inspector Banks novel, a peeping tom is frightening the women of Eastvale; two young thugs are breaking into homes; and an old woman may or may not have been murdered. Inspector Banks investigates these cases, which weave together as the story reaches a tense climax.</span></b></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Judging by the fact that I could find books numbered 2 to 18 from this series in my collection, it's probably a safe bet to assume I've read this one before. Long enough ago that I couldn't remember anything about it.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Enjoyable, interesting, multiple cases going on, hence quite a busy book. I quite liked the main character. I was curious to see if he would succumb to temptation with the attractive profiler he is working with, in respect of the peeping tom situation. Banks is married with two children, but inevitably the job gets in the way of family life.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Enjoyable setting of Yorkshire, albeit a fictional town and a decent cast of supporting police characters, both underlings and an understanding boss.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">All three cases get solved. Solid detective work closes one, a rash act solves another and a bit of luck combined with a hunch from Banks completes the set.</span></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfnKnzKmm5qHQMfRNKCRIh7rcOzwkxWYuOdr8CqgFjHvH_zMENtzxe8QewrZiZ1XRM9__F4lvc9DoEjs2k7TGiSL4f3SF0aXdMGncjYGsg4UXX2KDgNb2PrMczmfMaWJ-fA9jDTNbpveFXndk8__oBJ2Y_sA6_p2V4uP9_YiOAxXck07k5M8jJH9cojA/s200/peterrobinson.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="200" data-original-width="159" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfnKnzKmm5qHQMfRNKCRIh7rcOzwkxWYuOdr8CqgFjHvH_zMENtzxe8QewrZiZ1XRM9__F4lvc9DoEjs2k7TGiSL4f3SF0aXdMGncjYGsg4UXX2KDgNb2PrMczmfMaWJ-fA9jDTNbpveFXndk8__oBJ2Y_sA6_p2V4uP9_YiOAxXck07k5M8jJH9cojA/s1600/peterrobinson.jpg" width="159" /></span></a></div><span style="font-size: medium;">I've been enjoying the TV adaptations of the books recently which inspired me to pick this one up. I must have fancied reading them at one time, otherwise why hoover up so many. Hopefully I'll read the next one at some point this year.</span><p></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">4 stars from 5</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Author Peter Robinson sadly passed in 2022. His shortish offering <a href="http://col2910.blogspot.com/2021/11/peter-robinson-seven-years-2018.html">Seven Years</a> was enjoyed back in 2021. <br /></span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Read - January, 2023</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Published - 1987</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Page count - 321</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Source - Kindle Unlimited</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Format - Kindle</span></p>col2910http://www.blogger.com/profile/06422138069939709043noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2109031751968258131.post-75413308759876103612023-01-19T00:03:00.001-08:002023-01-19T00:03:34.443-08:00BRANDON BARROWS - ABOVE WATER: A RURAL CRIME STORY (2021)<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzUs86d_twk5zPJz2ypddyf1A0TovmW_DwMjQQmMCbH60QVxI0U6ej3ne2y96C3tcBCUjfYFkaEIhjOjqVlwF9DYvV3Lewr79R7OeOqXFioyrptkqOkoydMVC92A-PkOAkzuyjJyEup8R7y6lUaS4OewIJvp2_FOKrecuSYg3cnpJikiOOcOHux5UpOg/s500/ABOVEWATER.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="314" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzUs86d_twk5zPJz2ypddyf1A0TovmW_DwMjQQmMCbH60QVxI0U6ej3ne2y96C3tcBCUjfYFkaEIhjOjqVlwF9DYvV3Lewr79R7OeOqXFioyrptkqOkoydMVC92A-PkOAkzuyjJyEup8R7y6lUaS4OewIJvp2_FOKrecuSYg3cnpJikiOOcOHux5UpOg/w251-h400/ABOVEWATER.jpg" width="251" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p>Synopsis/blurb ...</p><p><b>Morgan needed a little help, just something to keep his head above water, but tight-fisted old Uncle Mike wouldn't hear of it. If Morgan didn't get that money, they'd kill him, so else could he do but take matters into his own hands?</b></p><p><b>Includes an excerpt from BURN ME OUT, the newest, 5-star rated novel by Brandon Barrows!</b></p><p>50% story, 50% preview of Barrows' latest book, Burn Me Out - something which sits on the TBR pile.</p><p>I enjoyed both, though I think I might have crossed paths with Above Water before - one of those stories that oozes familiarity but has a certain don't know where, don't know when vibe.</p><p>Violence, shame, desperation, frustration, family, loss, poor choices, generational differences, uncontrolled anger, and a certain inevitability about the outcome. Our main character isn't the sharpest tool in the box.</p><p>I liked it.</p><p>4 from 5</p><p>The excerpt was less explosive but interesting. An older career criminal, basically a low level messenger/gopher/employee/collector type seems to be tiring of his occupation. Retirement isn't always an option. </p><p>Read - January, 2023</p><p>Published - 2021</p><p>Page count - 29</p><p>Source - Kindle Unlimited</p><p>Format - Kindle</p>col2910http://www.blogger.com/profile/06422138069939709043noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2109031751968258131.post-31759961023810728282023-01-08T00:04:00.001-08:002023-01-08T00:04:07.974-08:00BOOKS I'M LOOKING FORWARD TO IN 2023<p><span style="font-size: medium;">Despite a wish to cut down on acquiring new books and to read more of the ones I've already acquired, I don't think I will be able to go a whole year without some fresh blood into the collection.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Here's six I'll be keeping an eye out for.......</span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;"><b><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Stephen Solomita - The Wrong Side of the Grass</span></b></span></p><div style="color: #222222;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAgDTMbwdIlFnvpHrLtPefxvjsYTSslkKeXVblYduy_3jiSFdCZQbtXVWgnzpMK759O-I_3B5Utmo1d4BsErbVZsUKTYLw1Ujb6a3VX9FJGJFiYQF-SQWwwmuxVApR_QUsBc97VsAH6JgGbnB18JDYe3tfzKYwS_v-1uAbML6AIcYmKBN10D8Gb9HFUg/s482/thewrongsideofthegrass.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="482" data-original-width="316" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAgDTMbwdIlFnvpHrLtPefxvjsYTSslkKeXVblYduy_3jiSFdCZQbtXVWgnzpMK759O-I_3B5Utmo1d4BsErbVZsUKTYLw1Ujb6a3VX9FJGJFiYQF-SQWwwmuxVApR_QUsBc97VsAH6JgGbnB18JDYe3tfzKYwS_v-1uAbML6AIcYmKBN10D8Gb9HFUg/w263-h400/thewrongsideofthegrass.jpg" width="263" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><i>A truck hijacking on a New York street goes badly awry in this new novel from an author who writes “top-notch hard-boiled crime fiction” (Booklist).<br /> <br />It was a sure thing. A truck with a thousand cartons of cigarettes, at a wholesale price of sixty dollars each. Mike Tedesco had thought through the foolproof plan for the early-morning hijacking. The only tricky part was disabling the GPS system that enabled the owner to track the truck and its valuable contents. He brought along the expert who swore he could do it in three minutes. He couldn’t, so Tedesco shot him dead in the middle of the rainy street in uptown Manhattan before fleeing the scene.</i></span></div><div><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><i><br /></i></span></div><div><div><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><i><span style="color: #274e13;">NYPD Detective Dante Cepeda is called in and quickly decides he can solve this one—his great joy—as he explains to the attractive redheaded sergeant who works the case with him. The hunt leads Cepeda to a Russian mafioso, Tedesco’s gorgeous girlfriend, a curse that needs a blood sacrifice, and a scarred pit bull who’s survived a life of dogfights. A gritty tale of greed and casual violence, the latest crime novel from the Hammett Prize nominee is realistic, shocking, and relentlessly compelling.<br /> <br />“Solomita knows his city and his people, and he writes with both muscle and sensitivity.” —Los Angeles Times<br /> <br />“A keen observer of humanity.” —Publishers Weekly<br /> <br />“A master at capturing on paper the flavor of streetwise cops and robbers and their victims.” —Library Journal<br /> <br />“Solomita has Elmore Leonard’s flair for letting you view the world through his character’s eyes, no matter how narrow or how bloodshot.” —The New York Times</span></i><br /></span></div><div style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="color: #222222;"><b><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Thomas Perry - Murder Book</span></b></div><div style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="color: #222222;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhx6MbyWK-SzdJr-N2AGu6IDAxt5aXQVZMitI7MYnjUErhb14vPM8T0TMIaPXujr6u4GIGGNsImIU-fXVq2FRs9zeGBFsu0PcyeWoLh1bgNSnbCvOS5e32-3TKISQxbNWrie1hExZ2KeEvdO7aRDlzA3NZo2khc9n2Rd_IaV6p0jX4gBagALtEMlNt_PA/s474/murderbook.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="474" data-original-width="316" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhx6MbyWK-SzdJr-N2AGu6IDAxt5aXQVZMitI7MYnjUErhb14vPM8T0TMIaPXujr6u4GIGGNsImIU-fXVq2FRs9zeGBFsu0PcyeWoLh1bgNSnbCvOS5e32-3TKISQxbNWrie1hExZ2KeEvdO7aRDlzA3NZo2khc9n2Rd_IaV6p0jX4gBagALtEMlNt_PA/w266-h400/murderbook.jpg" width="266" /></a></div><br /></div><div><div><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><i><span style="color: #274e13;">An ex-cop takes on a widespread criminal organization targeting midwestern towns in this new thriller from the author of The Old Man<br /><br />When a sudden crime wave hits several small midwestern towns, the U.S. Attorney for the region calls on Harry Duncan to investigate. An ex-cop known for his unorthodox methods, Duncan is reluctant to go up against a widespread criminal organization—but the attorney in question is Ellen Leicester, the wife who left him fifteen years earlier, and to her, he can’t say no.<br /><br />Initially brought in as a consultant to determine if the racketeering is severe enough to require an all-out investigation by the FBI, Duncan quickly finds himself in conflict with a syndicate far more violent than first suspected. As the investigation develops, he begins compiling a “murder book,” the notebook in which a detective keeps records, interviews, photos—everything he needs to build his case. But his scrutiny of the gang soon makes Duncan a target. And Ellen, too.<br /><br />A thrilling and suspenseful tour of crime-addled midwestern towns, Murder Book is signature Thomas Perry, with characters you won’t soon forget, crisply-described action sequences, and breathlessly-tense plotting that will keep you racing through the pages.</span></i><br /><br /><b style="color: #222222;">Mick Herron - The Secret Hours</b></span></div><div><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><b style="color: #222222;"><br /></b></span></div><div><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6v9IMYQ6D_DzNXbMHWXvOMpQJ-jCxj6gXL2cPzikE0tlpjdxfGLEW4F1UGaVwo31SV7KlMvImsb9YkXZY5PXUQY0c1CRLYbT0wAS3wl9VSoRRp4Zcg-z6oLJaqloFIMeZ3kYIDD1wSJJ4POI0-1A0dWg_iNQ30xjzqe8arY4eHP90m7Fi1KAVZau34w/s485/thesecrethours.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="485" data-original-width="316" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6v9IMYQ6D_DzNXbMHWXvOMpQJ-jCxj6gXL2cPzikE0tlpjdxfGLEW4F1UGaVwo31SV7KlMvImsb9YkXZY5PXUQY0c1CRLYbT0wAS3wl9VSoRRp4Zcg-z6oLJaqloFIMeZ3kYIDD1wSJJ4POI0-1A0dWg_iNQ30xjzqe8arY4eHP90m7Fi1KAVZau34w/w260-h400/thesecrethours.jpg" width="260" /></a></div><br /><b style="color: #222222;"><br /></b></span></div><div style="color: #222222;"><i style="color: #274e13; font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">The standalone spy thriller Slough House fans have been waiting for</i></div><div><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><i><br />By the author of SLOW HORSES, now an Apple Original series streaming on Apple TV+ starring Gary Oldman and Kristin Scott Thomas.</i></span></div></div><div><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><i><br /></i></span></div><div><div><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><i>Monochrome is a busted flush—an inquiry into the misdeeds of the intelligence services, established by a vindictive prime minister but rendered toothless by a wily chief spook. For years it has ground away uselessly, interviewing witnesses with nothing to offer, producing a report with nothing to say, while the civil servants at its helm see their careers disappearing into a black hole.<br /><br />And then the OTIS file falls into their hands.<br /><br />What secrets does this hold that see a long-redundant spook being chased through Devon’s green lanes in the dark? What happened in a newly reunified Berlin that someone is desperate to keep under wraps? And who will win the battle for the soul of the secret service—or was that decided a long time ago?<br /><br />Spies and pen-pushers, politicians and PAs, high-flyers, time-servers and burn-outs . . . They all have jobs to do in the daylight.<br /><br />But what they do in the secret hours reveals who they really are.<br /></i></span></div><div><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="color: #222222;"><b><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Dietrich Kalteis - The Get</span></b></div><div style="color: #222222;"><b><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></b></div><div style="color: #222222;"><b><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLuiZ1RchkwgxGE9r15qMfh1l80WyY3GIGRXxFaTS-bjmENAj2m3vv4h-kwpc0vkqk_CluXQetc_USroMDBrLWzMHqi-OlZvyM41AnTsuDBrD6t7rrAEaz82sUN0JAVTVjT5_YimboYttKUZlKEg_tA4B-52ogQcqMgAEP9Ixqzz1fE9sIwKJOMeyRDg/s482/theget.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="482" data-original-width="316" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLuiZ1RchkwgxGE9r15qMfh1l80WyY3GIGRXxFaTS-bjmENAj2m3vv4h-kwpc0vkqk_CluXQetc_USroMDBrLWzMHqi-OlZvyM41AnTsuDBrD6t7rrAEaz82sUN0JAVTVjT5_YimboYttKUZlKEg_tA4B-52ogQcqMgAEP9Ixqzz1fE9sIwKJOMeyRDg/w263-h400/theget.jpg" width="263" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></b></div><div><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><i>A surefire plan that will end his marital and money problems in one swoop … what could go wrong?</i></span></span></div><div><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><i><br /></i></span></div><div><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><i>Lenny Ovitz has plenty of secrets, and his wife, Paulina, has become a liability. His life would be so much better without her in it.<br /><br /></i></span></div><div><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><i>It’s the mid-’60s in Toronto, and Lenny works for a ruthless gangster whose travel agency is a front for a collections racket in the Kensington Market area. Lenny’s days are spent with his partner, Gabe, terrorizing the locals into paying protection on their shops and their lives. On the side, Lenny and Gabe co-own a tenement block that they bought with dirty money borrowed from shady individuals. Overextended, Lenny plans to pay them back with more borrowed money from other loans and by re-mortgaging his house, without the knowledge of his wife.<br /></i></span></div></div><div><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><i><br /></i></span></div><div><div><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #274e13;"><i>Tired of his lies and scheming, Paulina demands a divorce. Lenny is certain she’s going to take him for everything, leaving him unable to pay the debt on the tenement block. And that’s likely to get him pitched off one of his own rooftops. Lenny would rather get than be gotten, so he comes up with a surefire way to end both his marital and money problems — Paulina’s going to have to get whacked.</i></span><br /></span></div><div style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="color: #222222;"><b><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Alan Parks - To Die in June</span></b></div><div style="color: #222222;"><b><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></b></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; color: #222222; font-weight: bold; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9cRe2wK0i4tXD1r49cyrZ9_tn3R0GCjkkUqraoyEwctwcjzMeqZv2L4mpPwBPJscafEVyuW1oLCmzstxL0jpVSkMKndcUSi72KOtH9RClIn6JNs0f2a2fGESquYgspeRGCy6nALyi6mbj6OHZbChDZC5giAvXyFLIWwcyoLWmA7R65h6NxvW_kmxWtw/s474/coming-soon.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="474" data-original-width="316" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9cRe2wK0i4tXD1r49cyrZ9_tn3R0GCjkkUqraoyEwctwcjzMeqZv2L4mpPwBPJscafEVyuW1oLCmzstxL0jpVSkMKndcUSi72KOtH9RClIn6JNs0f2a2fGESquYgspeRGCy6nALyi6mbj6OHZbChDZC5giAvXyFLIWwcyoLWmA7R65h6NxvW_kmxWtw/w266-h400/coming-soon.jpg" width="266" /></a></div><br /><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><i>Details? Nada</i></span></div><div><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><i><br /></i></span></div><div><span style="color: #274e13; font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><i>It'll be the sixth Harry McCoy ....</i></span></div><div style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="color: #222222;"><b><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Lawrence Block - The Autobiography of Matthew Scudder</span></b></div></div><div style="color: #222222;"><b><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></b></div><div style="color: #222222;"><b><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVwKASQ3NrZ1xEjYpqCExZsK9I9Vl5RvcQL4BObGhXdXkvS7YjhUJdMpOa9li2qcJrWttymV1QpCzn7NGEJTJQ7nEyGclhy14WwFtX9yJ4LXqt9nEDc3XK6mjSldabESzDTKmfMdef4th4-oDnhkEMrjM_JuRfY_haak47_k_pwTg6AATfD0u4tAKcsg/s474/coming-soon.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="474" data-original-width="316" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVwKASQ3NrZ1xEjYpqCExZsK9I9Vl5RvcQL4BObGhXdXkvS7YjhUJdMpOa9li2qcJrWttymV1QpCzn7NGEJTJQ7nEyGclhy14WwFtX9yJ4LXqt9nEDc3XK6mjSldabESzDTKmfMdef4th4-oDnhkEMrjM_JuRfY_haak47_k_pwTg6AATfD0u4tAKcsg/w266-h400/coming-soon.jpg" width="266" /></a></div><br /></b><i style="color: #274e13; font-size: large;">Details? Nada</i></div><div style="color: #222222;"><i style="color: #274e13; font-size: large;"><br /></i></div><div style="color: #222222;"><i style="color: #274e13; font-size: large;">Only a heads-up from the man himself via a recent newsletter. Roll on June ...</i></div><div style="color: #222222;"><br /></div></div>col2910http://www.blogger.com/profile/06422138069939709043noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2109031751968258131.post-83239748856245615162023-01-06T05:46:00.003-08:002023-02-08T05:32:42.385-08:00JOHN HARVEY - NEON MADMAN (1977)<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQVt1HfRt5aCptDEMVxNO3OuvH6t43t1aDQ39comysaWryZ66sED-FG9nZv0UjKOmyT5NeSblSty-D9Oz0dMf_NSB3dFgPvCH8PwgAXaduFPC5Q9GbnnUpsrvfo1D7K1SZdT5qyTil2GEn1PxQo758fTTXxLaOueKs-45zCySDwmIFdMBLBnQrrPQ5Pw/s640/neonmadman.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="480" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQVt1HfRt5aCptDEMVxNO3OuvH6t43t1aDQ39comysaWryZ66sED-FG9nZv0UjKOmyT5NeSblSty-D9Oz0dMf_NSB3dFgPvCH8PwgAXaduFPC5Q9GbnnUpsrvfo1D7K1SZdT5qyTil2GEn1PxQo758fTTXxLaOueKs-45zCySDwmIFdMBLBnQrrPQ5Pw/w300-h400/neonmadman.jpg" width="300" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Synopsis/blurb ...</span></p><p><b><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">THE END OF THE ROAD?</span></b></p><p><b><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Kind-hearted Mitchell they called me, the private eye with the soft centre. Only this time I wasn't living up to my name. It had become a case of the survival of the fittest and I was determined that if I had to go down, I'd go down fighting.</span></b></p><p><b><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">As it turned out I had very little choice. Pollard had hired me to see if his wife was cheating on him and it didn't need Sherlock Holmes to find that she was. The guy's name was Murdock, that much I knew. But when I tried to find out more I came up against a brick wall at every turn. A brick wall and a face full of fist. It was the fist that made me realise that, if I wasn't careful, I could end up in a very unpleasant situation. Or to put it another way, dead ...</span></b></p><p><b><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">NEON MADMAN is the fourth of Scott Mitchell's violent-action private eye adventures. Don't miss</span></b></p><p><b><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">AMPHETAMINES AND PEARLS</span></b></p><p><b><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">THE GERANIUM KISS</span></b></p><p><b><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">JUNKYARD ANGEL - all available in Sphere Books </span></b></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Another book that has probably sat on my shelves ignored for about 10 years or more. Well worth the wait in fact, as unlike other previously encountered British PI mysteries, this one seemed authentic and not an imitation of the type of book more readily set in the US.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Interesting story, interesting main character, London setting, plenty of tough guy action with our main character mainly on the receiving end of threats and intimidation, after accepting a case.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">A few months on from reading it, a lot of the finer details have vanished from the memory banks, but what I can recall is being absorbed by the story, the outcome, the characters and the fast pace of the book. At under 150 pages it probably only took me a day or two to blow through it. Mitchell is definitely a character I would like to read more about.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">John Harvey is an author who I have read very little from. I've collected most of his Resnick and Frank Elder series books without dipping into them. I did try and hoover up the Scott Mitchell series, of which this is the last, without success. Very scarce and very expensive - when I looked back in the day. When having another look, post-consumption of this I see to my delight that they have been republished in the past few years by Mysterious Press. Maybe I'll get to catch up with the other three in the series. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Previous encounters with this author were in the days before the blog - <b>Trouble in Mind</b> (a novella, May 2010) and <b>Bluer Than This</b> (poems, June, 2011) </span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkvXQyc8BpjbhTnC53n_ZMqpXoLJiNrg92l6wHCOxZx_Gm8YPycdMkJcoxAMnASGwaD8j_142vr2z5Z35qxcinh8REBFMepk21nRWrpsBdFbT3TDWhOzdVAaoQv6F9xndx9q3atqcw5HUKX0WE1F8VQtCwBDm49QVHeFPIffeFB6UxiDCyUNAEpzVPSg/s154/johnharvey.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="154" data-original-width="139" height="154" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkvXQyc8BpjbhTnC53n_ZMqpXoLJiNrg92l6wHCOxZx_Gm8YPycdMkJcoxAMnASGwaD8j_142vr2z5Z35qxcinh8REBFMepk21nRWrpsBdFbT3TDWhOzdVAaoQv6F9xndx9q3atqcw5HUKX0WE1F8VQtCwBDm49QVHeFPIffeFB6UxiDCyUNAEpzVPSg/s1600/johnharvey.jpg" width="139" /></span></a></div><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><br /></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Overall 4.5 stars from 5</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Read - September, 2022</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Published - 1977</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Page count - 144</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Source - owned copy</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Format - Paperback</span></p>col2910http://www.blogger.com/profile/06422138069939709043noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2109031751968258131.post-70982868920698066052023-01-05T02:26:00.002-08:002023-01-05T02:26:12.370-08:00JAKE HINKSON - THE LONG DROP (2012)<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpBCXDe1Z6I2TFUT6VNHke9fAm-waz65TN6xNSBoUnRudESX1O8gHxIM31-dbYjysqpwTGYOzr5hJKixsKyr-eadZToQPM7BvvuOIHvkEySujTkNrEDsNaP-qFIqGJ-2gOOtMQAhHnvlXomvt_gTOw7lzCNNu0vYTGLSfA5aF1VlNrqkJGQSaO3HNFLg/s267/thelongdrop.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="267" data-original-width="180" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpBCXDe1Z6I2TFUT6VNHke9fAm-waz65TN6xNSBoUnRudESX1O8gHxIM31-dbYjysqpwTGYOzr5hJKixsKyr-eadZToQPM7BvvuOIHvkEySujTkNrEDsNaP-qFIqGJ-2gOOtMQAhHnvlXomvt_gTOw7lzCNNu0vYTGLSfA5aF1VlNrqkJGQSaO3HNFLg/w270-h400/thelongdrop.jpg" width="270" /></a></div><br />Synopsis/blurb ...<p></p><p>None. </p><p>A short story that was published in the <b>BEAT to a PULP: Superhero</b> anthology back in 2012. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijDpKPYFbBakgbtvo6sHEYnuyY_RAmsgPbTFefYbZWXCaZwIulc92ke0halBE3grqidw-HFOUlz2QFYSD3FbSoPrVybb_M4J3yNaRh7og3DdbLBmjRzgsqygxQmfLB5f5ewzAD20Q_pUjAwmEdEHgK--GpFEqV9sJ7t6eMmR01k2Q9gQoXoi5I4CJJAA/s500/beattoapulpsuperhero.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="333" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijDpKPYFbBakgbtvo6sHEYnuyY_RAmsgPbTFefYbZWXCaZwIulc92ke0halBE3grqidw-HFOUlz2QFYSD3FbSoPrVybb_M4J3yNaRh7og3DdbLBmjRzgsqygxQmfLB5f5ewzAD20Q_pUjAwmEdEHgK--GpFEqV9sJ7t6eMmR01k2Q9gQoXoi5I4CJJAA/s320/beattoapulpsuperhero.jpg" width="213" /></a></div><div><br /></div><b>What makes a superhero? Someone with special powers ... Ordinary people doing good deeds ... Anyone with sophisticated technological gadgets and incredible agility? Superheroes can spring up from the most unexpected people in the most unusual places, and BEAT to a PULP: Superhero has gathered some of the best hardboiled and noir crime stories with a superhero bend. Billy Mitchell, the six-year-old "Red Avenger" in Kevin Burton Smith's tale, has an innocence and a special something that draws us to want to don a mask and tie a towel around our necks. Steve Weddle dissects the reality of a world in which super-powered "others" walk in the midst of normal people who tend to quote only parts of the Bible. And James Reasoner's story is set in a time not usually associated with superheroes -- the American Revolution -- yet Patrick Mainwaring finds the classic essence of a superhero. Other top contributors include Jake Hinkson, Garnett Elliott, Liam Jose, Sandra Seamans, Jerry Bloomfield, Thomas Pluck, Keith Rawson, Court Merrigan, Benoit Lelievre, and Chad Eagleton. If you like the work of Frank Miller or the recent Dark Knight films directed by Christopher Nolan, then you'll enjoy the grit of these thirteen tales in BEAT to a PULP: Superhero.<br /></b><p>Don't know where I originally located this story to read, probably from the website listed below.</p><p>I've enjoyed Jake Hinkson's work before, probably not as much of it as I would have liked to have read, but that's a familiar theme for most of the authors whose work I cross paths with and admire. <a href="http://col2910.blogspot.com/2013/07/jake-hinkson-hell-on-church-street.html">Hell on Church Street </a>was enjoyed back in 2013, <a href="http://col2910.blogspot.com/2014/02/jake-hinkson-saint-homicide.html">Saint Homicide</a> in 2014 and <a href="http://col2910.blogspot.com/2020/05/jake-hinkson-big-ugly-2014.html">The Big Ugly</a> in 2020.</p><p>Apparently this story was a re-read, as I enjoyed it as part of my short story a day month back in <a href="http://col2910.blogspot.com/2018/09/august-2018-31-days-31-shorts.html">August 2018</a>. Funny but I don't remember reading it before.</p><p>Enjoyable, interesting, entertaining, a decent set-up and a satisfying pay-off.</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgay-3IGgyTkVUy-R0iwOYkREQOcYQvJnCgzLdxZZ0wTxojJJuPpbXq826ZASoviyG2hfe9JzAtc6R7o3Poki5WwKAcQ_fKd3oM6-Ecp9RO4ZFBWfIk9jWenoJ-cticD33j4RIf9k-eCasy8gGKSb8PP5ruWpCA93q2QmSVOD4bQdU1s341nCVIBzXKGw/s259/jake%20hinkson.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="259" data-original-width="194" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgay-3IGgyTkVUy-R0iwOYkREQOcYQvJnCgzLdxZZ0wTxojJJuPpbXq826ZASoviyG2hfe9JzAtc6R7o3Poki5WwKAcQ_fKd3oM6-Ecp9RO4ZFBWfIk9jWenoJ-cticD33j4RIf9k-eCasy8gGKSb8PP5ruWpCA93q2QmSVOD4bQdU1s341nCVIBzXKGw/w150-h200/jake%20hinkson.png" width="150" /></a></div>Top marks for imagination, character, and a mystery element, with a puzzle created and solved in the space of a 20 minute read. I think I like reading about Superheros more than I enjoy seeing them on the big screen. At least we get where we are going a lot quicker.<p></p><p><b>Dry County</b>, <b>The Deepening Shade</b> and <b>The Posthumous Man</b> still sit on the TBR pile.</p><p>Overall 4 stars from 5</p><p>It's a shame that the anthology that this one appeared in no longer seems to be readily available. Oh well, I'm not hurting for books.</p><p>Read - January, 2023</p><p>Published - 2012</p><p>Page count - 17</p><p>Source - <a href="http://www.beattoapulp.com/wz20140810-jh-thelongdrop.html">Beat to a Pulp website</a></p><p>Format - PDF</p>col2910http://www.blogger.com/profile/06422138069939709043noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2109031751968258131.post-29650281464210718472023-01-04T05:07:00.003-08:002023-01-04T05:07:24.588-08:00JOHN GRANT - THE CITY IN THESE PAGES (2008)<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJsPlOBH8GamfQHEUurAuQPN011T7yLkU0J4_44QDic1CV3w-mhAeEyqGnQnlormvJ7-sjEqcMUhihuwMSSMxW5pHH1ajuR9K3VgRpeJeMleMsGVuMLW13r-r3m_BC3HVKPGuGEMcrcWlsjG3zKUwpMEnNR4stMKDqQcwfF3RHkLec_eIpEjMIRUKGrA/s475/thecityinthesepages.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="475" data-original-width="317" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJsPlOBH8GamfQHEUurAuQPN011T7yLkU0J4_44QDic1CV3w-mhAeEyqGnQnlormvJ7-sjEqcMUhihuwMSSMxW5pHH1ajuR9K3VgRpeJeMleMsGVuMLW13r-r3m_BC3HVKPGuGEMcrcWlsjG3zKUwpMEnNR4stMKDqQcwfF3RHkLec_eIpEjMIRUKGrA/w268-h400/thecityinthesepages.jpg" width="268" /></a></div><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5Elh-WCuiSUTpl3zW4hJ8-j4hYD9tzjeAivzKEYHv5A478f7S3I1ms7Wmuv9XSHx40dZ7JS-Xf4M4LL4HlIeqt_kp3REovHjBo2BEza8AUQYwyMDK8ZIIN6zTyD19p0Q7m_viqvLrEDXGkbRUPx3EpYKLPgrXq1WWxDTPVxx-BJxCcoHTcafhIxUpqw/s640/thecityinthesepages.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="480" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5Elh-WCuiSUTpl3zW4hJ8-j4hYD9tzjeAivzKEYHv5A478f7S3I1ms7Wmuv9XSHx40dZ7JS-Xf4M4LL4HlIeqt_kp3REovHjBo2BEza8AUQYwyMDK8ZIIN6zTyD19p0Q7m_viqvLrEDXGkbRUPx3EpYKLPgrXq1WWxDTPVxx-BJxCcoHTcafhIxUpqw/w240-h320/thecityinthesepages.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><br /><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Synopsis/blurb ...</span></p><p><b><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">City Hall is on Lewis-and-Clark Street, so it was the 14th Precinct that got the call, and very soon the 14th Precinct, in the persons of Detective Sergeants Moto and Pincus, was on the spot, bending down and looking into the car at the condom-shrouded figure of Ratty Scarlatti but not touching anything because the m.o. and the scene-of-crime crew hadn't gotten here yet, being stuck in the traffic jam on Eighth thanks to the burst sewer there...</span></b></p><p><b><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">It might seem like just another case for the gallant boys of the 14th but, as the days progress and Moto (look, just don't make any jokes about his name, okay?) and Pincus delve deeper, the body count rises inexorably, with each murder reaching a new height of ludicrous surrealism – if not downright impossibility. It seems there's an avenger on the loose in the enigmatic city.</span></b></p><p><b><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Yet is the unknown perpetrator truly seeking vengeance? Is the motive instead to patch up this version of reality in the least implausible fashion possible before its inhabitants begin to suspect there's something fundamentally awry? Or are there operators moving at an even deeper level than reality? </span></b></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">An homage to Ed McBain's 87th Precinct with a really enjoyable mystery which kind of wanders into other world territory before returning to familiar ground.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">I enjoyed the story, the absurdity of the murders, the interactions between the two main detectives and the police hierarchy, Detective Pincus and his family and also the support CSI with the chemistry between her and Moto. I liked the respect between Pincus and Moto underlined by Moto'swithheld knowledge regarding Pincus's wife's background.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Great fun overall. Really entertaining. A cracking read for an hour or two. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: large;">My one regret is that I didn't read it while friend of the blog, John Grant was alive. Bless him. I miss his reviews, his emails and his visits to this page.</span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6pYbatOP75TeEpmPVvaUCuw2M6u4JLZQ4yWW4My2wer_uxyrZAJSn4mw8SkwImO23rYEVpX2NC9zdDmR_EzSlFSZh-n57KZjuLFMpal2Xjz2fR_ebBj1LVskewpcI1OdG-IkELV9Sj9hTn6tKuZYR9Whvc-iKNltoC47Tzh0sd8JergRkVg-I86fx7Q/s329/johngrant.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="329" data-original-width="269" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6pYbatOP75TeEpmPVvaUCuw2M6u4JLZQ4yWW4My2wer_uxyrZAJSn4mw8SkwImO23rYEVpX2NC9zdDmR_EzSlFSZh-n57KZjuLFMpal2Xjz2fR_ebBj1LVskewpcI1OdG-IkELV9Sj9hTn6tKuZYR9Whvc-iKNltoC47Tzh0sd8JergRkVg-I86fx7Q/w164-h200/johngrant.jpg" width="164" /></span></a></div><p></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">4 from 5</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Read - January, 2022</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Published - 2008</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Page count - 91</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Source - copy received from author</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Format - PDF</span></p>col2910http://www.blogger.com/profile/06422138069939709043noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2109031751968258131.post-61488439950394294562023-01-03T10:40:00.000-08:002023-01-03T10:40:48.038-08:00DELEON DEMICOLI - LES CANNIBALES (2017)<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFg8v4ChhiU7quZ6bfCeqWKnjOvRbya1zjpVSL67n91bkecbgJaEe7PaDBY5EqHCpwH0u4J5yYYIErBP8Tx1y-ti3HMfFqmDT1ql8PPcFlRNrscTSX4YX8xWHxWRJhwYp4ig1-io8efMwfWQrgJX5c-CRILxV8ndQhx-zjugqaQ5UKOMrPTNf5sHBngA/s400/LESCANNIBALES.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="400" data-original-width="250" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFg8v4ChhiU7quZ6bfCeqWKnjOvRbya1zjpVSL67n91bkecbgJaEe7PaDBY5EqHCpwH0u4J5yYYIErBP8Tx1y-ti3HMfFqmDT1ql8PPcFlRNrscTSX4YX8xWHxWRJhwYp4ig1-io8efMwfWQrgJX5c-CRILxV8ndQhx-zjugqaQ5UKOMrPTNf5sHBngA/w250-h400/LESCANNIBALES.jpg" width="250" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Synopsis/blurb ...</span></p><p><b><span style="font-size: medium;">During a robbery, Blinky sees police activity down the street. His crew assumes cops have the art gallery surrounded, unaware of their true presence, which is responding to a car accident that has left one man dead. The thieves shoot at responding officers and take hostages. When Detective Reynolds arrives on the scene, he identifies the dead man involved in the car accident. This becomes his main lead to hunt down the thieves' true identities and work out a peaceful resolution before S.W.A.T moves in.</span></b></p><p><b><span style="font-size: medium;">Each thief has a story explaining why he chose to take the job. Inky is a con artist repaying an old debt, Blinky is a stuntman in need of quick cash, Pinky is an enforcer that's looking to move up in the ranks and Clyde is a sociopath / art aficionado that loves to steal. When S.W.A.T teams get the "go-ahead" to overtake the gallery, it's dog-eat-dog as the gunmen plan their escape.</span></b></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Enjoyable. Good not great, slightly confusing with the number of characters I had to keep tabs on, not helped by three of them being called Inky, Pinky and Blinky. I don't know why the fourth member of the gang was called Clyde, the author might as well have gone all in and called him Winky IMO.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">We have an art heist which goes wrong, due to an unforeseen accident on the street outside - which involves another gang up to no good. Our bandits never really get back on track after that .... confusion, chaos, mayhem, violence, death, a falling out among thieves, conflict, danger, cops, a SWAT team, a rushed investigation, some backstory and tangetial details and an outcome which I liked.</span></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-QpxWht2x0SId1KdklrGSWTK3C6pks0X93-ZqlDOSs6EfhpOB3SjmgwOl-VWVNSVlzNY8LNlqlslTESNHMuB1oDBzDVFNer5Jflvx0VU3lF6qsQAt5CtJBdpAKy4s0s0CGMa2rmLC0YO8rKt8VUKDtuBRFlnWBVe56i3kgG5LV7IooiGm_Fl96xBQcQ/s266/deleondemicoli.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="266" data-original-width="200" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-QpxWht2x0SId1KdklrGSWTK3C6pks0X93-ZqlDOSs6EfhpOB3SjmgwOl-VWVNSVlzNY8LNlqlslTESNHMuB1oDBzDVFNer5Jflvx0VU3lF6qsQAt5CtJBdpAKy4s0s0CGMa2rmLC0YO8rKt8VUKDtuBRFlnWBVe56i3kgG5LV7IooiGm_Fl96xBQcQ/w150-h200/deleondemicoli.jpg" width="150" /></span></a></div><span style="font-size: medium;">More to like than not. Plenty of short, snappy scenes most of which were confrontational. Decent writing and with the constant, fast-moving action and incident I was never bored.</span><p></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">3.5 stars from 5 <br /></span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Read - January, 2023</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Published - 2017</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Page count - 140</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Source - purchased copy</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Format - Paperback</span></p>col2910http://www.blogger.com/profile/06422138069939709043noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2109031751968258131.post-75484709145912945532023-01-01T23:32:00.000-08:002023-01-01T23:32:02.538-08:00MATTHEW DUNN - COUNTERSPY (2014)<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgToTqouv9qHLeRSHtG_qH_U5eiv8FvPLu1ZCV35gtGmG62_q6PgMhLV_sNtR8f7Odu8RKVuT6wG1ESFiOMOo5INGmbjc8EUFBWKCNu9bvtgNAHEfsUI7iUcbWH3a4dx3AelgB-NzOX6DV27QtGVRqMdDlxp96lD1L1Gz2eNyQ-914zlAtcOXnqNOd76A/s500/COUNTERSPY.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="309" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgToTqouv9qHLeRSHtG_qH_U5eiv8FvPLu1ZCV35gtGmG62_q6PgMhLV_sNtR8f7Odu8RKVuT6wG1ESFiOMOo5INGmbjc8EUFBWKCNu9bvtgNAHEfsUI7iUcbWH3a4dx3AelgB-NzOX6DV27QtGVRqMdDlxp96lD1L1Gz2eNyQ-914zlAtcOXnqNOd76A/w248-h400/COUNTERSPY.jpg" width="248" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-size: medium;">Synopsis/blurb ...</span><p></p><p><b><span style="font-size: medium;">MI6 agent Will Cochrane is living in Washington, D.C. when a dangerous terrorist, codenamed Trapper, escapes from a top secret CIA military base. Trapper comes after Will—saying he is the one who killed his leader—but Will knows there has to be more to this story. Will gets close enough to shut the man down, but when he does, that act opens the door to yet another, much more dangerous surprise . . .</span></b></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">A 50-50 book. Half of it is a novella which introduces the reader to Will Cochrane (though it's not the first Cochrane story Dunn has penned) and gives his history and back story as an agent. Half of it is a 50-odd page preview for Dark Spies, a full length novel in the series - number 4 of 7.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">I think I actually preferred the preview section to the novella which kind of ends a little bit abruptly for me, without a real conclusion in this Trapper-Cochrane confrontation. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">There's action, character development, a story with conflict, power, control, manipulation, history and an ending which didn't really satisfy and left more questions than answers. Cochrane's lovey-doveyness with his agent babysitter seemed a bit unlikely and not especially convincing. Conclusion apart, I enjoyed the other elements with a decent set-up and hook to draw me in. Maybe one of the later books in the Cochrane series brings things with Trapper to a proper conclusion. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">The first few chapters of Dark Spies kind of hooked me and has me wanting to see what happens next. Cochrane disobeys orders to save a CIA agent and finds himself on the outside of his organisation and a hunted man. Without actively seeking out the book (the 2023 resolution to rein in the book buying is holding firm on day two), I'll keep an eye out for it should I cross paths with it in the wild. </span></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4UNK19hNo5zKKKnGm-Q5fkSEfBUyivNYr7wVQRv8Q_qt0Kgp5YHGYUk395X23qsD6RmxR-6lQa9MQWX83DJDLK1KoYJkytW0g6KVWe3ahlmV8V0H0oFJhCmmbllofauOgLkiDW9UrtpzfCIc0LuHXrKFNukKV06qA_uHQ_iIqQDoiB54c9LkqpsNQrQ/s208/matthewdunn.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="208" data-original-width="140" height="208" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4UNK19hNo5zKKKnGm-Q5fkSEfBUyivNYr7wVQRv8Q_qt0Kgp5YHGYUk395X23qsD6RmxR-6lQa9MQWX83DJDLK1KoYJkytW0g6KVWe3ahlmV8V0H0oFJhCmmbllofauOgLkiDW9UrtpzfCIc0LuHXrKFNukKV06qA_uHQ_iIqQDoiB54c9LkqpsNQrQ/s1600/matthewdunn.jpg" width="140" /></span></a></div><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>The Spycatcher</b> - the first in the Will Cochrane series - is in the collection somewhere (<a href="http://col2910.blogspot.com/2015/12/logging-library-part-fifty-eight.html">tub 58</a>), maybe I'll dust it off as I'm currently on a bit of an espionage/spy reading spree. <br /></span><p></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">3 stars from 5</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Read - January, 2023</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Published - 2014</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Page count - 118</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Source - purchased copy</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Format - Kindle</span></p>col2910http://www.blogger.com/profile/06422138069939709043noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2109031751968258131.post-48904479970223343252022-12-31T01:35:00.001-08:002022-12-31T01:35:25.527-08:00LEN DEIGHTON - THE IPCRESS FILE (1962)<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgD38Hafm4UxVlQhtfrH3kZbqm0xv3Fu4OE_i431T84eDfZ81NGmVclVrAi_NXmF6nb-PkjfpQSrKgcK2Za90BZrfw9Wdmo7CR-dECOQSTMv-azzNh7R4NpQAxhWNT5sJoqUsOYIjkX1-UOZTATa80vwIscGyw0Jlm9QC7fZrNvqioV7ewdmCHIsyd5sA/s500/THEIPCRESSFILE.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="311" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgD38Hafm4UxVlQhtfrH3kZbqm0xv3Fu4OE_i431T84eDfZ81NGmVclVrAi_NXmF6nb-PkjfpQSrKgcK2Za90BZrfw9Wdmo7CR-dECOQSTMv-azzNh7R4NpQAxhWNT5sJoqUsOYIjkX1-UOZTATa80vwIscGyw0Jlm9QC7fZrNvqioV7ewdmCHIsyd5sA/w249-h400/THEIPCRESSFILE.jpg" width="249" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-size: medium;">Synopsis/blurb....</span><p></p><p><b><span style="font-size: medium;">When a number of scientists mysteriously disappear in Berlin, what seems to be a straightforward case rapidly becomes a journey to the heart of a dark and deadly conspiracy. It is a conspiracy that takes Len Deighton's working-class hero on a journey that will test him to the limits of his ingenuity and resolve, and call on him to prove himself as a spy at the very top of his game.</span></b></p><p><b><span style="font-size: medium;">'A STONE COLD, COLD WAR CLASSIC' - THE GUARDIAN</span></b></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">A book I mostly enjoyed but not as much as I had hoped to. The plot was a bit of a mess IMO, and what started out as an interesting premise, kind of fell by the wayside and morphed into something else.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">I liked the unnamed protagonist and hero at the centre of the story. I enjoyed his interactions with his fellow British agents and support team. There's a wry humour in some of the exchanges with Alice and Jean. The salary of a British intelligence agent obviously isn't that great and our man is constantly trying to secure backpay and outstanding expenses from his boss.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">There is plenty of action along the way here, at home and abroad with lots of danger for our man and like most espionage tales there's a question mark over people's true motives and trustworthiness which kept me (and our man) guessing.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Everything ties up at the end and makes sense, but I guess I must have missed something that The Guardian spotted. Enjoyable, but not up with the very best of Cold War fiction. Not that it has put me off hopefully reading more from this series in 2023.</span></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSNmYt5MHPa0jY1dZL5io7fnfifVNqSXtn6WiGFpGwJJSGkMa-JmXtC8xXu8wbmuo8MQojgqV-szG2WGlUALaPkrenQGbgT_s1p-LX4vA7XpDIKte9yshO4KQA7flZClSrIA1EjffAyRxR0J6x9tcWQpU2InUHjzVTZtmUjvh3RsNKqgGEE9cXHGvvkQ/s1488/lendeighton.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="904" data-original-width="1488" height="121" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSNmYt5MHPa0jY1dZL5io7fnfifVNqSXtn6WiGFpGwJJSGkMa-JmXtC8xXu8wbmuo8MQojgqV-szG2WGlUALaPkrenQGbgT_s1p-LX4vA7XpDIKte9yshO4KQA7flZClSrIA1EjffAyRxR0J6x9tcWQpU2InUHjzVTZtmUjvh3RsNKqgGEE9cXHGvvkQ/w200-h121/lendeighton.jpeg" width="200" /></span></a></div><span style="font-size: medium;">At some point I also hope to watch the film version with Michael Caine and the recent TV adaptation. Maybe they will prove a tad more satisfying. <br /></span><p></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">3 stars from 5</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>Declarations Of War</b> is my only previous encounter with Deighton's work, back in 2012. My only memory relating to that was it was a bit of a drag.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Read - December, 2022</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Published - 1962</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Page count - 368</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Source - owned copy</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Format - Paperback</span></p>col2910http://www.blogger.com/profile/06422138069939709043noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2109031751968258131.post-47111336229102424022022-12-27T20:59:00.003-08:002022-12-27T20:59:39.949-08:00THOMAS PERRY - THE BOOK OF THE LION (2015)<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEho3niAaPcpoQRnbN_Hj3c5EI3Ww7vi451eGvv_slE4iqCCQCtslEpDH2AhL_q6Mf2pCi4wAXFLHUhZPRZiOgTdtTXQ4qJnXfodv2RsOE-1srOUMZjpzfVjTg9wz5LnbAMWD-N9HBjdDme7ZYH3q11L0BpR8RjEwXU45A0S-Zlq1cCvH70psRo-zhuflg/s445/thebookofthelion.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="445" data-original-width="290" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEho3niAaPcpoQRnbN_Hj3c5EI3Ww7vi451eGvv_slE4iqCCQCtslEpDH2AhL_q6Mf2pCi4wAXFLHUhZPRZiOgTdtTXQ4qJnXfodv2RsOE-1srOUMZjpzfVjTg9wz5LnbAMWD-N9HBjdDme7ZYH3q11L0BpR8RjEwXU45A0S-Zlq1cCvH70psRo-zhuflg/w261-h400/thebookofthelion.jpg" width="261" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-size: medium;">Synopsis/blurb ....</span><p></p><p><b><span style="font-size: medium;">When Professor Dominic Hallkyn receives an anonymous phone call late one night from a voice claiming to possess a priceless Chaucerian manuscript presumed lost forever, he doesn't know how to react. Such a find could irrevocably alter the history of literature, as well as his career, and yet, he can't know if the caller is legitimate or merely a student playing a prank.</span></b></p><p><b><span style="font-size: medium;">Hallkyn soon finds himself on a mad dash through the twisting streets of Boston, scrambling to meet the caller's demands. In a struggle for this unique historic artifact, Hallkyn must risk his life to save a work that may be doomed to disappear from history... this time for good.</span></b></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">An enjoyable one-sitting read from Thomas Perry, an author I would like to read more from. But then there's probably a couple of hundred or more that I could say the same thing about.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">We have a long short story set in the world of books. This one is part of a long series of book related stories by talented authors mostly commissioned by Otto Penzler (I think). </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">The story is about half of the 96 pages, the rest is a preview chapter for Perry's The Boyfriend - a book I've read and enjoyed before - and a reminder of other books in the 30 plus long <b>Death Sentences</b> series.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Medieval literature, Chaucer, a lost work, the world of academia, a sense of responsibility, culture, friendship, money, a wanting and a needing, vulnerability, an understanding of human psychology, a tease, a ransom, and a Boston recovery mission. An outcome - successful or not? Read it yourself and find out.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Enjoyable, satisfying and entertaining. Decent character development for a shortish piece and I'm a fan of book themed stories. A decent reminder of an author I like, but who I kind of neglect to read.</span></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfwjMfz_oybSDfWymQ8oYlkks_TNuARKbPmkK8WavPinu7BVcuC4AkseN2i1y2kwkzNDVBzyriuV-O__WYfjw_gHBzZy-FoobPW4u_N1Q5vg0Tp2i2iyqT63p_pucz7SuNs87GX0nSXj00BqqbgZ_-Gwd0WpjIxguL3xUT5-xM3ZR_ZMQf6tfi2i0XTA/s149/thomasperry.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="129" data-original-width="149" height="129" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfwjMfz_oybSDfWymQ8oYlkks_TNuARKbPmkK8WavPinu7BVcuC4AkseN2i1y2kwkzNDVBzyriuV-O__WYfjw_gHBzZy-FoobPW4u_N1Q5vg0Tp2i2iyqT63p_pucz7SuNs87GX0nSXj00BqqbgZ_-Gwd0WpjIxguL3xUT5-xM3ZR_ZMQf6tfi2i0XTA/s1600/thomasperry.jpg" width="149" /></span></a></div><span style="font-size: medium;">4 from 5 </span><p></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Perry's <b>The Butcher's Boy</b>, <b>Metzger's Dog</b>, <a href="https://col2910.blogspot.com/2013/08/thomas-perry-boyfriend.html">The Boyfriend</a> and <a href="https://col2910.blogspot.com/2019/01/thomas-perry-burglar-2019.html">The Burglar</a> have been read and mostly enjoyed previously. <br /></span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Read - December, 2022</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Published - 2015</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Page coumt - 96</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Source - Kindle Unlimited</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Format - Kindle</span></p>col2910http://www.blogger.com/profile/06422138069939709043noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2109031751968258131.post-41668782064126268932022-12-06T22:21:00.001-08:002022-12-07T05:22:19.702-08:00RON McMILLAN - DON'T THINK TWICE (2022)<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGM8AIVqOzbTlQFV1frRWRLwhCEX_M0xoZ41Xk0L_PgzgjNOWvgpShotTfsqo9gQUp07NFxFhDiXxGN2u0wTjpP_a7WWuwqsqVEktcM8YgoSBlnR_W9LppWUNPCTzkGJsRL-eEaluzDv_yi-RNq9iyTG4WfpNiCfiNZtmqcSPWKUByOogbPo9PCxtt-g/s475/DONTTHINK%20TWICE.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="475" data-original-width="297" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGM8AIVqOzbTlQFV1frRWRLwhCEX_M0xoZ41Xk0L_PgzgjNOWvgpShotTfsqo9gQUp07NFxFhDiXxGN2u0wTjpP_a7WWuwqsqVEktcM8YgoSBlnR_W9LppWUNPCTzkGJsRL-eEaluzDv_yi-RNq9iyTG4WfpNiCfiNZtmqcSPWKUByOogbPo9PCxtt-g/w250-h400/DONTTHINK%20TWICE.jpg" width="250" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p>Synopsis/blurb ...</p><p><b>Ever since 1971, when he arrived in Glasgow as an eleven-year-old fresh off the plane from India, Rabinder (call me Rab) Singh has struggled to fit in.</b></p><p><b>When we join him in 1993, Rab is a plain-clothes Detective Sergeant in Glasgow. And he still doesn’t fit in, not least since his estranged Scottish wife is an Inspector in the same station. After he throws a punch at superior officer Ken Malloy, Rab barely avoids being sacked. Instead, he is posted to the small coastal town of Dunoon.</b></p><p><b>He leaves behind a workplace shamed by its failure to solve the disappearance of fourteen-year-old Ashna Gupta. Ashna’s and Rab’s parents were friends. Four years after she went missing, and on the day Rab is exiled to Dunoon, the case features on BBC’s Crimewatch.</b></p><p><b>Calls come in that implicate Rab’s father Baldeep, who died of a heart attack shortly after Ashna went missing. Rab’s mother Ruby, who guards Baldeep’s memory ferociously, interferes with the investigation, and Rab is warned that if he gets involved, he will lose his job.</b></p><p><b>Meanwhile, in Dunoon Rab faces the disappearance of teenager Zoe McCusker in a case that quickly has the media drawing parallels with the Ashna disappearance. Soon, Rab becomes a suspect in both investigations.</b></p><p><b>Zoe remains missing, the Dunoon station is barely functional, and the Ashna investigation continues to be led by Detective Inspector Ken Malloy, who is desperate to settle scores with Rab, who is barred from both investigations.</b></p><p><b>Thirty years ago, not many Scots were ready for a man in a turban turning their lives inside out, but Rab won’t let that stop him being a good detective. His career and the family name depend upon it.</b></p><p><b>In that order. Never mind what his mother says.</b></p><p>Lots to like with this one. A 90s setting, Glasgow, and an intriguing clash of cultures with a likable Scots-Indian detective in temporary exile from work and his marriage, looking into the case of a missing teenager on his new patch - Dunoon, while developments break in a high profile, four year unsolved other missing person case back in Glasgow - with the added twist of the missing girl, being the daughter of Rab Singh's parent's friends. </p><p>I enjoyed this one. I really liked the main character. We get to see Singh, both as a detective and a father and errant husband. A one night stand has see difficulties arise in Singh's marriage. His wife is also a ranking police officer and despite the hurt Rab has caused her, they still care for each other. She runs the risk of harming both their careers by sharing developments in the Glaswegian missing teenager case, as a new lead casts suspicion on Rab's dead father. Rab is warned to leave well alone, but obviously can't.</p><p>I enjoyed how the two cases unfolded, with the author skillfully blending both story elements into the narrative. It's quite a busy book .... football, family, mistakes and regrets, teenage rebellion, father-daughter tensions, an absent mother, Indian culture, expectations and suffocation, the importance of community and appearances, the role of the matriarch, racism, work tensions, small town gossips, police investigations, the pressure of the press, competition, point scoring, conflict and loyalty.</p><p>There's a decent pace to the book. Nothing is rushed but we don't hang about getting to where we are headed. There's lots of humour in the conversations and situations, which adds to the enjoyment of the tale. Interesting characters and relationship dynamics - personal and professional and sometimes both at the same time.</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZyKPeKAuvks04fdH6RUTCo-2aS0Fi21l3VJGGclymCcVCmH9vU-9p3itayIimTOXEXvwPNBH4FX5C8eWvDP5cc4NG51hBMglwrku-UdZzzUbojxqNOd7lBKyc94Y45_xtVowXv1Vl4aGslw3Qd4dlSvCievx8szOwwXm1v0f8TRBpBnKY5bO7zK5tsA/s320/ronmcmillan2.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="320" data-original-width="252" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZyKPeKAuvks04fdH6RUTCo-2aS0Fi21l3VJGGclymCcVCmH9vU-9p3itayIimTOXEXvwPNBH4FX5C8eWvDP5cc4NG51hBMglwrku-UdZzzUbojxqNOd7lBKyc94Y45_xtVowXv1Vl4aGslw3Qd4dlSvCievx8szOwwXm1v0f8TRBpBnKY5bO7zK5tsA/w158-h200/ronmcmillan2.jpg" width="158" /></a></div>The ending tied up nicely and there's a resolution to both cases, which mostly satisfied. If I had a criticism of the book, maybe the outcome was just a little bit too neat and gift-wrapped.<p></p><p>Overall - really really good. This could be the start of a cracking series. <br /></p><p>4 stars from 5</p><p>Author Ron McMilan's work has been enjoyed before - <a href="http://col2910.blogspot.com/2017/04/ron-mcmillan-bangkok-belle-2016.html">Bangkok Belle</a> - back in 2017.</p><p>Read - December, 2022</p><p>Published - 2022</p><p>Page count - 184</p><p>Source - review copy from author</p><p>Format - ePUB read on laptop</p>col2910http://www.blogger.com/profile/06422138069939709043noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2109031751968258131.post-84277511834100334292022-11-29T05:42:00.001-08:002022-11-29T05:42:55.030-08:00DAVID SIDDALL - THE GIRL FROM RIGA (2022)<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkiLWJp2ykjqtEFlrwdnchZSe-jqg2OfEgemPOen5DzZxyKneHhRMQY2NUwEaWoFylI-EZ-lScyN31Ho8wyuYJMWixFvCcPyC6WYHC4hvyFXMf6cybQQtWj5HDNYyYFaftlOOd2hjPOvlYXU_tEOc1d5wn9sL3_qVtVClQfj-xd1yDEFt-IGRRzKZ4HQ/s500/thegirlfromriga.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="323" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkiLWJp2ykjqtEFlrwdnchZSe-jqg2OfEgemPOen5DzZxyKneHhRMQY2NUwEaWoFylI-EZ-lScyN31Ho8wyuYJMWixFvCcPyC6WYHC4hvyFXMf6cybQQtWj5HDNYyYFaftlOOd2hjPOvlYXU_tEOc1d5wn9sL3_qVtVClQfj-xd1yDEFt-IGRRzKZ4HQ/w259-h400/thegirlfromriga.jpg" width="259" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9C4gfvBXxpaDU_qdq50G3hGhApFTZKZpMA95fLNbTLMovtsiVO9exYPFxjAc_rnap_ODGhto0sIoDYJk7VaE_iYXXgYCPVgf3_FCIDpYuCzNZvfvrSj1TtEpaDyU0oHhCq9f8cq-vb99eIZcCRcq7mlMYNL6EBTsw1tXUst1kTnd-_TsCG0egHic9mA/s640/THEGIRLFROMRIGA.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="480" data-original-width="640" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9C4gfvBXxpaDU_qdq50G3hGhApFTZKZpMA95fLNbTLMovtsiVO9exYPFxjAc_rnap_ODGhto0sIoDYJk7VaE_iYXXgYCPVgf3_FCIDpYuCzNZvfvrSj1TtEpaDyU0oHhCq9f8cq-vb99eIZcCRcq7mlMYNL6EBTsw1tXUst1kTnd-_TsCG0egHic9mA/w400-h300/THEGIRLFROMRIGA.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Synopsis/blurb ...</span><p></p><div><div><b><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">An honourable man in a dishonourable profession.</span></b></div><div><b><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></b></div><div><b><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">When Aidan Asher – right hand man to Liverpool gang boss Irvine King – counsels against a deal with drug lord Emir Ercan, he is pushed to the periphery of the organisation and detailed, along with his brother Neal, to babysit Valentyna, King’s latest girl.</span></b></div><div><b><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></b></div><div><b><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">When the deal goes south and King’s money disappears, Asher is brought back into the fold and ordered to retrieve the cash and exact retribution on the perpetrator.</span></b></div><div><b><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></b></div><div><b><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Double crossed, pursued by Ercan’s men and discovering Neal plans to abscond to the continent with Valentyna, Aidan must decide where his loyalties lie – with King and with honour – or will blood prove thicker than water?</span></b></div></div><div><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Mayhem on Merseyside and The Med! An ex-Military man serves as a loyal lieutenant to a big wheel gangster, until his brother throws a spanner in the works.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">This one's a really enjoyable outing with multiple settings, criminal gangs at home and abroad, two brothers, a kept woman and a ganglord with ambition and a devious untrustworthy underling. Chuck in some serious Turkish drug dealers, feared and respected throughout Europe and it's a heady combustible mix.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Betrayal, lust, infidelity, schemes and plans, family, tested loyalties, money, power grabs, flight, conflict, resettlement, new opportunities, new enemies and eventually former friends reconnecting back in Liverpool.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">I really liked the dynamics between Aidan and brother Neal. Aidan isn't too sure about Neal's love choice, Valentyna but blood is thicker than water. Money is taken, pride is wounded and Liverpool is soon too hot for the trio. A decamp to Spain seems to offer a chance for prolonging their life expectancy. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Like flies attracted to shit, our trio soon find more bother abroad. I like the peripheral characters we cross paths with in Spain. We get a view of a not-so-idyllic lifestyle abroad amongst an ex-pat community, where muscle and power, influence and fear are the currency of the day. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">There's a sense of marking time in Spain, that the events they've fled will catch up with them one day. The present is temporary, the past will come calling and the future will be unpredictable.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">I liked Aidan's tenacity, his strength of purpose, his background, with his time in the military equipping him with confidence and a sense of calm in the face of danger. I liked his loyalty to his brother and his sister living back home and not part of the 'life.' I enjoyed the situations and the serious scrapes he found himself in with his cohorts. I liked his intellect, his problem solving, his risk assessments and his abilities.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">I enjoyed Valentyna's role in the drama. She's always seems to keep something back. There's a cunning and a secret side to her and a sense that she isn't totally trustworthy. She seems to possess an uncanny knack for falling into the brown stuff and coming up smelling of roses. She's one of life's survivors. </span></div><div><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnYLxPQ9hCCsz81kEQvZjor2tCw9ZV1GKF79kJbaCfxD7hep8jwpiyBl18CPv0kM13X1mIGSMvdJRM3yOkry9H19UixjUM0uUhd0h4LpxMggO5KIQCRVHx_Zan_dFWozbLz1mcbf5Ia5rZvv9Ues2mZy8blqheZR8Wz92_uOykIqVUgdVfEVW3QOCIQg/s230/davidsiddall.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="230" data-original-width="230" height="230" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnYLxPQ9hCCsz81kEQvZjor2tCw9ZV1GKF79kJbaCfxD7hep8jwpiyBl18CPv0kM13X1mIGSMvdJRM3yOkry9H19UixjUM0uUhd0h4LpxMggO5KIQCRVHx_Zan_dFWozbLz1mcbf5Ia5rZvv9Ues2mZy8blqheZR8Wz92_uOykIqVUgdVfEVW3QOCIQg/s1600/davidsiddall.jpg" width="230" /></span></a></div><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">I enjoyed the storyline with the twists David Siddall served up. Tension builds up to an inevitable reunion where you know things will explode and lives will be altered and ended. The only question being who survives? </span></div><div><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Very, very good.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">4.5 stars from 5</span></div><div><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">David Siddall's work has been enjoyed before - <a href="http://col2910.blogspot.com/2020/04/david-siddall-man-alone-2014.html">A Man Alone</a> - back in 2020. <br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Read - September, 2022</span></div><div><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Published - 2022</span></div><div><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Page count - 347</span></div><div><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Source - review copy from author</span></div><div><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Format - PDF read on laptop</span></div><div><br /></div>col2910http://www.blogger.com/profile/06422138069939709043noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2109031751968258131.post-82017814167027375372022-11-16T06:39:00.002-08:002022-11-16T06:39:49.023-08:00LOREN D. ESTLEMAN - EVIL GROWS & OTHER THRILLING TALES (2012)<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjlsblHf7F34gUfp99wuctdm9BW7pHwEvYHPB1dN_9KRY-_43aqr1X5ATHV_N5Z37STm3BfuJIgHqkQ6Dp2htvGjCgkYpeYl7_lKPEg2x0EX_nJ1MLzetQgKhZzE_-LwwFY5ojluAVw22ZhJFWmMS5TcueVKErBJ7NaNuthw60B177eV5ank6WyjKkcQ/s500/EVILGROWS.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="500" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjlsblHf7F34gUfp99wuctdm9BW7pHwEvYHPB1dN_9KRY-_43aqr1X5ATHV_N5Z37STm3BfuJIgHqkQ6Dp2htvGjCgkYpeYl7_lKPEg2x0EX_nJ1MLzetQgKhZzE_-LwwFY5ojluAVw22ZhJFWmMS5TcueVKErBJ7NaNuthw60B177eV5ank6WyjKkcQ/s320/EVILGROWS.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-size: medium;">Synopsis/blurb ...</span><p></p><p><b><span style="font-size: medium;">Loren D. Estleman has been writing and publishing books and novels since 1976. His fiction includes westerns, mysteries, thrillers, and historical thrillers. Along the way, he's written a number of crime stories. Stories about the darker side of life, broken hearts, swindles, double-dealing and just plain evil men and women who define the title of this collection. No matter how many times you put it down...Evil Grows.</span></b></p><p><b><span style="font-size: medium;">In this collection of twelve tales, you'll find killers, cheats, liars, detectives, and more twists and turns than a country road. Contents include:</span></b></p><p><b><span style="font-size: medium;">Introduction</span></b></p><p><b><span style="font-size: medium;">Evil Grows</span></b></p><p><b><span style="font-size: medium;">Flash</span></b></p><p><b><span style="font-size: medium;">How's My Driving?</span></b></p><p><b><span style="font-size: medium;">Saturday Night at the Mikado Massage</span></b></p><p><b><span style="font-size: medium;">The Pioneer Strain</span></b></p><p><b><span style="font-size: medium;">The Used</span></b></p><p><b><span style="font-size: medium;">The Tree on Executioner Hill</span></b></p><p><b><span style="font-size: medium;">Lock, Stock, and Casket</span></b></p><p><b><span style="font-size: medium;">Bad Blood</span></b></p><p><b><span style="font-size: medium;">State of Grace</span></b></p><p><b><span style="font-size: medium;">Diminished Capacity</span></b></p><p><b><span style="font-size: medium;">Cabana</span></b></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Another Audible enjoyed (with a decent narration by Paul Heitsch) collection of short stories from an author who I've been meaning to read for a long time, just never got around to. I've a few Estleman novels on the pile - the Peter Macklin hitman series, Gas City and the odd Amos Walker PI novel. I may actually have read an early Amos Walker novel, though if I did it kind of feels like it was in a previous life, as zero memory remains of the book title or contents; only the lingering suspicion that it wasn't amazing, as I never picked up another by him soon after.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Two months on, I can't remember much about the stories, only that I wasn't bored. Ergo - I enjoyed the collection and the narration didn't annoy me. If it had, I would have remembered that at least.</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">The Mikado Massage story stands out when flicking through the table of contents, so I guess that one was the most memorable. A close second would be The Tree of Executioner Hill, which had a twist at the end, which I saw coming. I didn't enjoy the story any the less for that. The others - good, bad, indifferent? Probably good, maybe indifferent and perhaps the odd one which I didn't vibe.</span></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpNk9dOW2gboWBPrJqNMaHNmvPjXRYAvCEdC6VYD21d44HHYtP7wB40hO8rxOu-u7PXR4KG3voivt4xUcu15G_0wzP0pfr3kbmHzlGHg17E66mbdw2CRVVdOnYPC1nbS4e0PXObHI2KzQ0y_oVOQNbmeQY17iGGqqVPiAG-1RQBLj4YWLfPyhsQTdfzw/s262/loren.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="262" data-original-width="193" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpNk9dOW2gboWBPrJqNMaHNmvPjXRYAvCEdC6VYD21d44HHYtP7wB40hO8rxOu-u7PXR4KG3voivt4xUcu15G_0wzP0pfr3kbmHzlGHg17E66mbdw2CRVVdOnYPC1nbS4e0PXObHI2KzQ0y_oVOQNbmeQY17iGGqqVPiAG-1RQBLj4YWLfPyhsQTdfzw/w147-h200/loren.png" width="147" /></span></a></div><span style="font-size: medium;">Time to try one of his novels.</span><p></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">3 from 5 <br /></span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Read - (listened to) September, 2022</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Published - 2012</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Page count - 124 (4 hrs 39 mins)</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Source - Audible purchase</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Format - Audible</span></p>col2910http://www.blogger.com/profile/06422138069939709043noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2109031751968258131.post-31677420226299154862022-11-15T05:24:00.000-08:002022-11-15T05:24:08.487-08:00RALPH DENNIS - A TALENT FOR KILLING (2019)<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-kgR4Itz6TNPyEnn21du8z8xKCWwAn_WmHLDoLLtOwXsHZ0ne7p4hyDZBzeZi9cmsyZUf0RirIByquFD-gkmyp0iFEKv-PnDGWIDFpIV_UcvFp-FPZMFi46LqFByk16OBc9gQ6t2uVEvWcZc5Nm71fPFyI8imGwq8EKviPQg0UQFGP1U_nZgALkIJSA/s500/ATALENT.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="500" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-kgR4Itz6TNPyEnn21du8z8xKCWwAn_WmHLDoLLtOwXsHZ0ne7p4hyDZBzeZi9cmsyZUf0RirIByquFD-gkmyp0iFEKv-PnDGWIDFpIV_UcvFp-FPZMFi46LqFByk16OBc9gQ6t2uVEvWcZc5Nm71fPFyI8imGwq8EKviPQg0UQFGP1U_nZgALkIJSA/w400-h400/ATALENT.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /> <p></p><div><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Synopsis/blurb ...</span></div><div><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><div><b><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Kane was a top CIA assassin until he suffered traumatic physical and psychological injuries in a mission that went horribly wrong. The Agency wiped his memory, gave him a new identity, and retired him to a life of mundane, anonymous domesticity. But his training, and his talent for killing, came back with a vengeance. He created a new life for himself as a killer-for-hire, righting wrongs for people who can't find peace or justice any other way. He doesn't know that his memories are fiction, or that he is always being watched, or that he's been targeted for death by a rogue faction within the Agency.</span></b></div><div><b><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></b></div><div><b><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">A TALENT FOR KILLING</span></b></div><div><b><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></b></div><div><b><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">In this brutal, fast-moving thriller from Ralph Dennis, the author of the legendary Hardman series of crime novels, Kane finds himself caught between the mob, Cuban revolutionaries, and his own government as he seeks retribution for a man murdered for uncovering small-town corruption...and justice for another man on death row, falsely convicted of raping and murdering a child.</span></b></div><div><b><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></b></div><div><b><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Praise for Ralph Dennis</span></b></div><div><b><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></b></div><div><b><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">"There are times when Dennis' writing touches on the inspired. He knew how to ride the zeitgeist....if not get ahead of the game. A TALENT FOR KILLING is a really exhilarating action thriller that springs a couple of surprises." NB Magazine UK</span></b></div><div><b><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></b></div><div><b><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">"Like Chandler and Hammett before him, Dennis was trying to do something different with what was thought of as throwaway literature." Joe R. Lansdale</span></b></div><div><b><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></b></div><div><b><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">"Ralph Dennis has mastered the genre and supplied top entertainment." New York Times</span></b></div><div><b><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></b></div><div><b><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">"Exceptional characterization, strong and vigorous prose." Mystery Scene Magazine</span></b></div><div><b><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></b></div><div><b><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">A portion of this book was previously published in 1976 under the title Deadman's Game</span></b></div></div><div><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">A busy book much of which can be explained by Lee Goldberg's input in combining a lost unpublished manuscript with an earlier release featuring main character <span>Kane. There's plenty of story to get your teeth into here.</span></span></div><div><span><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Spies, CIA types - rogue and straight, a hitman with a wiped memory and some conflict. Kane works his contracts with his handler, unaware that his previous employers are taking a keen interest in his new career. Some elements want him removed from the board permanently. This arc mainly picks up in the second half of the book. The first half sees Kane cleaning up a dirty town.</span></span></div><div><span><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Interesting, exciting, entertaining. The storyline is a bit dated and a bit of a stretch, but I had a good time reading it, even though on balance there might be a wee bit too much going on for the one book. I would have probably enjoyed it a bit more as two separate stories. </span></span></div><div><span><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">I enjoyed seeing the story from two angles - Kane's perspective and those in the agency.</span></span></div><div><span><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></span></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjj8hROFW8ncEHx5YGSg1WSoNvFFSEbbbKItvue7TU3KccKFtTG4wzMVO3eP0fIsL83jrOANzVpxNM4KxBxeK6V9wvxz-DeE_hsQ7-q8dxXb2ssbGS8-wp_yyoIcolCpaWHqoxYKZKPa_g3Ge7aGOy4R32f_tVMTCYIjSNH0A6r3uTzhzEFOvP83jhclQ/s285/ralphdennis.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="285" data-original-width="215" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjj8hROFW8ncEHx5YGSg1WSoNvFFSEbbbKItvue7TU3KccKFtTG4wzMVO3eP0fIsL83jrOANzVpxNM4KxBxeK6V9wvxz-DeE_hsQ7-q8dxXb2ssbGS8-wp_yyoIcolCpaWHqoxYKZKPa_g3Ge7aGOy4R32f_tVMTCYIjSNH0A6r3uTzhzEFOvP83jhclQ/w151-h200/ralphdennis.jpg" width="151" /></span></a></div><span><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">4 stars from 5 </span></span></div><div><span><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Ralph Dennis has been enjoyed before and will be again. <br /></span></span></div><div><span><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><a href="http://col2910.blogspot.com/2019/04/ralph-dennis-atlanta-deathwatch-1974.html">Atlanta Deathwatch</a> and <a href="http://col2910.blogspot.com/2019/04/ralph-dennis-charleston-knife-is-back_82.html">The Charleston Knife is back in Town</a> - the first two in his Hardman series were enjoyed back in 2019. Time to get back on that horse.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Read - (listened to) September, 2022</span></div><div><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Published - 2019</span></div><div><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><span>Page count - 299 (9 hrs 29 mins)</span><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Source - Audible purchase</span></div><div><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Format - Audible</span></div>col2910http://www.blogger.com/profile/06422138069939709043noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2109031751968258131.post-82327299214532320322022-11-08T05:30:00.000-08:002022-11-08T05:30:07.016-08:00RODDY DOYLE - JIMMY JAZZ (2013)<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVdD9qMcbkgJvDy98dbruqt-5lY_1UKq1NWKdC6_y5V_2I3rSPuYNZfAgYFqyaewC1gsukiAEEUHAGLBW11fWY-EQywrRj0YKxghgUpMnehhApRCx0E5lB_bSFM4MlpFneb9q7_kZtZ7kknDbmkXSivtz8Zifjro5aCmfSkCPVnLsmiqagtBYn1P97JA/s486/JIMMYJAZZ.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="486" data-original-width="316" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVdD9qMcbkgJvDy98dbruqt-5lY_1UKq1NWKdC6_y5V_2I3rSPuYNZfAgYFqyaewC1gsukiAEEUHAGLBW11fWY-EQywrRj0YKxghgUpMnehhApRCx0E5lB_bSFM4MlpFneb9q7_kZtZ7kknDbmkXSivtz8Zifjro5aCmfSkCPVnLsmiqagtBYn1P97JA/w260-h400/JIMMYJAZZ.jpg" width="260" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Synopsis/blurb ...</span></p><p><b><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Jimmy Rabbitte hates jazz, always has. But his wife Aiofe loves it, and Jimmy loves Aiofe. So when, in attempt to convert him, she buys him two tickets for a Keith Jarrett concert he decides to take Outspan, former member of Jimmy's band The Commitments, who has come back into his life after a chance meeting in the cancer clinic. Jarrett is famous for being intolerant of any noise at all - a cough, a sneeze, a wheeze - from the audience, stopping playing and shaming the perpetrator. And Outspan's diagnosis is lung cancer, it's pretty bad, and he needs an oxygen cylinder to breathe properly.</span></b></p><p><b><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Will Outspan create havoc? Will Jimmy learn to love jazz at last?</span></b></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Late 80s, early 90s Roddy Doyle was on a growing list of authors whose latest books I just had to have. I had more than a few laughs reading The Van, The Commitments, The Snapper. Like a lot of authors I fell away from his work, choosing to follow newer kids on the block and having my head turned this way and that. Enough affection for the author and his books remained that they survived several culls of the collection over the past thirty years, in the optimistic hope that I'd re-read them one day.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Moving on, the next best thing I suppose is that I read a short offering that I picked up about 9 years ago for my kindle.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Family, friendship, ill health, sacrifice, jazz, the things you endure for love and a few smirks and chuckles - always to be welcomed on a rainy autumn morning before heading off to work.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Really enjoyable, a real mood lifter and a timely reminder of how much his work resonates with me. I love the Dublin vibe, the people, the setting, the chat, the cussing, the banter and the attitude. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">4.5 from 5 </span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQqbmJhFXtiew4g08CLAbMcBA9WF4BBS-_DQTEy2S-x1ZaT7s6bHw-ana4M9RuuFAD7kSledanGqpRlaf2Sn539pzP-MO71Im_sU6Qa-FBMIHCTRe_IjG7YsL04pwDcmhrCl9oqRAh6mxxCOJ4hGZjVpArc_74S0LKMEE0YvCUXklu0JKCLvlLG1CpiQ/s182/RODDYDOYLE.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="182" data-original-width="140" height="182" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQqbmJhFXtiew4g08CLAbMcBA9WF4BBS-_DQTEy2S-x1ZaT7s6bHw-ana4M9RuuFAD7kSledanGqpRlaf2Sn539pzP-MO71Im_sU6Qa-FBMIHCTRe_IjG7YsL04pwDcmhrCl9oqRAh6mxxCOJ4hGZjVpArc_74S0LKMEE0YvCUXklu0JKCLvlLG1CpiQ/s1600/RODDYDOYLE.jpg" width="140" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><br /></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">I'll be trawling the collection soon, looking for something else by Doyle.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Read - November, 2022</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Published - 2013</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Page count - 22</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Source - purchased copy (probably for ZERO pence)</span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Format - Kindle</span></p>col2910http://www.blogger.com/profile/06422138069939709043noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2109031751968258131.post-22405475273971794352022-11-03T09:12:00.000-07:002022-11-03T09:12:24.552-07:00KRONOS ANANTHSIMHA - A SHOT TO KILL (2021)<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIsslaqz6B6J1kyIVNkGcBpkHXVrwOb4PFY0Vf4foQ3rjYOW39ODGLxmTl5N4tWjaJD8WbZS-GL6ERSFRdwCjCRCJe6yQfP1LbSiFiBRuo7CIH0NtAQeI3ub3DQF83Et7Q6vlzQXjx13sjy-_oDX8ktJCiFQAbyDmA966zPOwmasS1EyQLrbiWvPrAdQ/s475/ASHOTTOKILL.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="475" data-original-width="298" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIsslaqz6B6J1kyIVNkGcBpkHXVrwOb4PFY0Vf4foQ3rjYOW39ODGLxmTl5N4tWjaJD8WbZS-GL6ERSFRdwCjCRCJe6yQfP1LbSiFiBRuo7CIH0NtAQeI3ub3DQF83Et7Q6vlzQXjx13sjy-_oDX8ktJCiFQAbyDmA966zPOwmasS1EyQLrbiWvPrAdQ/w251-h400/ASHOTTOKILL.jpg" width="251" /></a></div><br /><br /><p></p><div><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Synopsis/blurb ...</span></div><div><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><div><b><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">A Shot To Kill</span></b></div><div><b><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></b></div><div><b><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">A Vengeful Assassin</span></b></div><div><b><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">A Treacherous Asset</span></b></div><div><b><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">A Paranoid Target</span></b></div><div><b><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></b></div><div><b><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Slade Heller, a young assassin, works for a private intelligence company called the Elysium Group. He’s sent to Florida to eliminate a drug cartel’s violent enforcer with just one shot. The operation is burnt from the beginning. A traitor at Elysium has sold Slade out to the target. The hunter is now the hunted.</span></b></div><div><b><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></b></div><div><b><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Fueled by his rage and determination, Slade dives deeper into a fiasco where deadly criminals are after his head. Risking his own life to kill the traitor at Elysium Group, a criminal who didn’t take his redemptive second chance at life, Slade’s also hunting his target before innocent lives are lost. Captured, then on the run without any backup, Slade Heller has to use all his wits, cunning, and brutality to survive and get the job done by any means necessary.</span></b></div><div><b><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></b></div><div><b><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Fans of action-packed dark comedies, antiheroic assassins, Dexter Morgan, Sterling Archer, Victor the Assassin, Deadpool, John Wick, and twisted spy thrillers will enjoy this first in a series of fast-paced, short, standalone thrillers. Scroll up and buy it now!</span></b></div></div><div><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">An okay read, enjoyable upto a point but not especially stand-out or memorable.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Some of the writing and sentence arrangements seemed a bit clunky to my eye and I found myself re-reading at a bit of a slower pace, as it wasn't particularly smooth and rolling. This kind of eradicated any momentum that may have been building up.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">The story itself was alright. A man on a mission, where true to form things don't go to plan.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Action, conflict, imprisonment, escape, violence.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0pSmUMXxouWYn_VzMuuyCn2RqggOV1tuAbglp3ZV-bd2Hsh862e01pZDhkoLFd0ql3sRxcsN1W4H-AQd5z3sIDDBcwJcIhsdqJtVbbLXd-keo326m2ScaM8Ecc9ItnNOuC-qhyLpth-nhWObanrM_DYj2ZjuLNNk1pHH7DhvH08nJKsMHKtumP48Oxg/s450/kronos.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><img border="0" data-original-height="450" data-original-width="450" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0pSmUMXxouWYn_VzMuuyCn2RqggOV1tuAbglp3ZV-bd2Hsh862e01pZDhkoLFd0ql3sRxcsN1W4H-AQd5z3sIDDBcwJcIhsdqJtVbbLXd-keo326m2ScaM8Ecc9ItnNOuC-qhyLpth-nhWObanrM_DYj2ZjuLNNk1pHH7DhvH08nJKsMHKtumP48Oxg/w200-h200/kronos.jpg" width="200" /></span></a></div><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">A Shot to Kill is the first in a series of five Slade Heller novellas. There are some short stories as well featuring the same character. I have one other on my Kindle, which I'll get to at some point. No busting rush. Hopefully the second encounter will be the charm, which encourages me to dig deeper into the author's canon of work.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">I like the premise, I'm a sucker for discovering new authors and giving them a go. I am partial to a hitman/assassin story.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">3 from 5 <br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Read - October, 2022</span></div><div><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Published - 2021</span></div><div><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Page count - 49</span></div><div><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Source - purchased copy</span></div><div><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: medium;">Format - Kindle</span></div>col2910http://www.blogger.com/profile/06422138069939709043noreply@blogger.com0