Category: F-J Page 21 of 27

by Benedict Jacka
Series: Alex Verus, #7

Mass Market Paperback, 326 pg.
Ace, 2016

Read: April 25 – 26, 2016

Right now I was not wandering around and seeing the sights, for three reasons. First, it was dark. Second, the city was in the middle of a civil war. And third, I was supposed to be conducting surveillance on the inhabitants of the building across the street. Which was why, instead of enjoying the experiences of travel and new cultures, I was crouched on a dusty rooftop, hiding behind a parapet, shivering in the cold, and trying to make sure that no one on the other side could see me, since from looking into the futures I already knew that they had assault rifles and were following a policy of shooting first and asking questions later.

In case you’re wondering, this isn’t an especially unusual night for me. Sometimes I really question my life choices.

Reading Burned, you almost get the idea that Benedict Jacka’s been holding back on us — at least, he’s just been getting warmed up over the last 6 novels. Either one is saying something, considering how good the series has been since it’s debut.

Jacka waits all of 6 paragraphs before getting things moving, and things don’t stop moving. The first 100 pages are great and contain more action than most Verus novels — and the rest? Just better. Marking this one as a 5-Star was a no-brainer.

So here’s the hook — someone, for reasons beyond his ken (though he has many, many theories initially), has made some political moves and Alex is going to be declared a criminal and given the death sentence in a week. Not just him, either — but those who are his dependents (Luna, Anne, Varium). The four of them are going to have to tackle this situation in very creative ways to get the sentence changed.

In the meantime, there’s a very eager group of people trying to take care of things before the deadline. To say that they’re determined would be an understatement.

To survive, to have a hope of surviving, Alex has to call upon every friend, every ally, every one-time-friend-now-something-else, every trick up his sleeve. He does it, he actually grows as a character, too.

But will it be enough to save any of them?

I want to say more, I really do — but I don’t know how to. It’s just one of those books that to talk about you really have to talk about everything. So we’ll leave it at that.

I’ve seen people call this the Changes of the Alex Verus series — and it absolutely is. I’d also call it the Staked in terms with the protagonists coming to grips with the effects that his being in the lives of his nearest and dearest has on their life, and what that means for his future involvement with them. Which is not to say that Jacka’s latest feels anything like Butcher’s or Hearne’s books — it feels like Verus just turned up half a notch. It’s just such a great read — it grabs you on page 2 and drags you along wherever it wants to take you right up until the “He is not actually doing this” moment — which are followed by a couple more of them.

There are now two things I have to look forward to: the next Alex Verus novel — and whatever novel we’ll soon be calling the Burned of ____ series.

—–

5 Stars

Shadow Rites by Faith Hunter

By HCNewton

On May 13, 2016

In F-J, Faith Hunter, Fiction, Jane Yellowrock/Soulwood, Urban Fantasy

Shadow Rites

by Faith Hunter
Series: Jane Yellowrock, #10

Mass Market Paperback, 348 pg.
Roc, 2016

Read: May 6 – 11, 2016

Here in the tenth Jane Yellowrock novel, Hunter ties the story in to events of the first (and a few others) in a way that makes you wonder just how long she’s been planning it. But you’ll have to dig into that part yourself.

The novel begins in the last days before a large Witch Conclave, at the end of which, they may sign a peace treaty (of sorts) with Leo Pellisier and the vampires he leads. Naturally, things aren’t going to go well — and this starts with a magical attack on Jane’s house. Things get really bad, really quickly after this, and they don’t get better for almost 350 pages.

We didn’t get nearly enough Alex in this book. But we got plenty of Angie Baby, Evan, Molly, Eli and Bruiser. There’s a few changes to Jane’s house that will take some getting used to — for her, as well as her readers. More importantly, things with Bruiser are progressing in a way that things with LeFleur didn’t. So basically, personally, things are going as well for Jane as her professional life is in trouble.

But really, when hasn’t her professional life been trouble?

She spends a lot of the novel focusing on the wrong things — or at least the things that aren’t as important — which comes back to bite her in the end. It’s pretty frustrating, too. Thankfully, Eli has her back. I’m really liking him more and more all the time. There’s something going on with Angie as well that will be most interesting.

I’d be game for a Eli/Angie novella, now that I think of it.

I really enjoyed Jane transforming into a bloodhound (and Beast’s opinion of the move) and her observations about smells, they really made me chuckle. There’s a danger that Jane faces with this transformation, which adds a nice touch to things — unless I’m mistaken, there’s not been an inherent hazard to her taking on a form that’s not the Puma concolor.

I hope that as the series focuses on the European Vamps’ visit/invasion that we can move away from witches. Something about the way that Hunter describes magic just doesn’t click with me — I can’t put my finger on it, and I admit it’s probably my problem (but I’m going to blame her, because it’s my blog) — Hunter’s were-whatevers, vampires, vampire attendants, skinwalkers, private security guys — all those work just fine, but magic? Something just doesn’t translate beyond whatever Molly and Angie Baby do (except in combat, then they’re just as bad as the other witches). Which is a problem in books like this.

That aside, this is one of the more complex novels in the series — probably the most emotionally fulfilling, while occasionally frustrating. More than usual, I’m eager to see what Hunter’s got in store for this group.

—–

4 Stars

Waylaid by Kim Harrison

By HCNewton

On April 8, 2016

In F-J, Fiction, Kim Harrison, Science Fiction, The Hollows (Rachel Morgan), The Peri Reed Chronicles, Urban Fantasy

Waylaid

by Kim Harrison
Series: The Peri Reed Chronicles/The Hollows

Kindle Single, 87 pg.
Pocket Star, 2016

Read: April 5, 2016

In her Foreword, Harrison says, “Waylaid still reads like self-made fan fiction to me, ” thereby denying book bloggers and other amateur reviewers the opportunity to use that label. Which is a shame, because that’d be a great way to sum it up. Thankfully, it saves us all from making the same joke.

In a move as classic as Uncle Jesse visiting Los Angeles to say “howdy” to Enos^*, Harrison brings much beloved Rachel Morgan into the new, awesome, and in much need of publicity world of Peri Reed. Set sometime after the main events of The Witch with No Name (but not necessarily the last chapter), and before The Drafter, Waylaid will serve as a great introduction for fans of Morgan’s series.

A drunken mishap, inspired by a silly Urban Fantasy TV show (that I’d totally watch), results in Jack summoning Rachel in to Peri’s apartment. Jack and Peri assume she’s a counter-agent who’d been waiting for them to return to attack. Rachel has no clue who they are other than nitwits who summoned her away from a date and started attacking her. It doesn’t take her long to realize that her magic doesn’t work, and wherever she is, it’s a world she doesn’t recognize — Detroit still exists, people have technology she can only dream about, and the ley lines are deader than Arizona back home. The clock’s ticking and Peri and Rachel have to team up to get Rachel back home.

It’s silly, it’s fun — it’s pretty faithful to both series, it hopefully helps boost sales of The Drafter and its sequel.

I don’t really a lot to say without getting pretty heavy into spoilers, but I thought it was worth the pittance I spent on it, probably a little more. Fans of Harrison should give it a shot.

^* I just revealed my age there, I know. I also know there are older examples, but that’s the first in my memory.

—–

3 Stars

Staked by Kevin Hearne

By HCNewton

On February 4, 2016

In Authors, Dogs, F-J, Fiction, Iron Druid Chronicles, Kevin Hearne

Sigh. This was supposed to post yesterday morning…been one of those weeks. I have been working on blog-content, though, just nothing for you to see quite yet.
—

Staked

by Kevin Hearne
Series: The Iron Druid Chronicles, #8

Hardcover, 310 pg.
Del Rey, 2016

Read: January 27 – 29, 2016

The Timmie’s on York Street sported a garish green-and-yellow-striped awning, a fire hydrant out front in case of donut grease fire, and a convenient signpost pointing the way to public parking. “What kind of ungodly breakfast meat do you want from here?” I asked Oberon as I tied him up to the sign.

<The religion of the meat doesn’t affect its taste,> my hound replied, a pedantic note creeping into his voice.

“What?”

<Godly bacon and ungodly bacon taste the same, Atticus.>

“Bacon it is. Now be nice to people who look scared of you while I’m in side. Do not pee on the hydrant, and no barking.”

<Awww. I like to watch them jump. Sometimes they make squeaky noises.>

Of course I approach the penultimate novel in one of my favorite Urban Fantasy series with mixed emotions — on the one hand, I’m excited to join Atticus, Oberon, et al. for the first time since June, 2014; on the other hand, penultimate is too close to the end for my taste — I’m going to miss exchanges like the quotation I opened up with if nothing else. Still, it’s Hearne, so it was bound to be a good time, my messed-up feelings notwithstanding.

Once again — the inclusion of a “The Story so Far” introduction — a multiple page summary of the series (wittily recounted) to help readers get re-oriented is just golden and should be a requirement for any series over three books long. Seriously, make this happen publishers.

One thought I keep coming back to while thinking about this book (and the series, I guess, as we approach the end) is what the series would be without Oberon. His personality, his canine-ness, and his relationship with Atticus is what set this apart from everything else early on. Would the series have gone on as long as it has — would Hounded have earned a sequel without him? I’m not so sure.

Anyway, that’s a thought for another time, let’s focus on Staked. There are so many plates spinning in this one that I’m going to spend a little more time than usual on plot.

What Hearne said about the entry in Three Slices being vital? That wasn’t hyperbole. I would’ve been so lost without it. Get it.

Atticus and Oberon are busy, busy bees. They tried to take care of Atticus’ relationship with the Olympians, which mostly worked out. Atticus helped out a ghost. “Merely” helped prevent a genocide, which will have a big impact on the brewing conflict with Loki et al. Then there’s the vampire situation — things are getting worse in Theophilus’ war against the Druids and Atticus decides it’s time to end it all. Thanks to the intelligence he gained in Three Slices, he has a plan. Obviously, given the title of the book, this is his focus. We’ve seen Atticus in some pretty violent situations, but his face-offs with vampires and their helpers in this book might just take things to a different level. There’s some diplomacy for Atticus on various fronts, too — but mostly we get a lot of Atticus as Jack Reacher.

Then there’s Granuaile and Orlaith. I don’t have a lot to say about Orlaith — she’s amusing and I like her, but she’s no Oberon. These chapters are the low-point of the book for me. Granuaile is off running some mini-quests, starting with things that are a result of her confrontation with Loki in Three Slices make sense, and even some of what she does as sort of a spin-off from that, I can understand (but honestly, she could delay them). But there’s a couple of pet projects of hers that seem like things she could put off. It seems selfish and foolhardy of her not to be more involved with Atticus’s problems (not that she’s fully aware of the extent of them, but that’s another issue). I’m not saying that the little missus needs to be at her man’s beck-and-call or anything, but her activities are more long-range in focus, the vampire menace is immediate and large (as we get serious demonstrations of). Actually, a lot of what she does seems foolish and doesn’t work out the way it ought. But I’ll complain more about Oberon’s Clever Girl in a bit.

Owen is starting to settle in to his new time, making plans and starting a life — that’s great, but probably something he should’ve back burnered for a month or two, because he’s also got a pretty big problem in Tír na nÓg that he should be more focused on, there are going to be significant consequence to his half-hearted efforts in that regard. But hey, we got this little bit of wisdom from the Archdruid:

I know that when ye think o’ love you’re supposed to think o’ kissy faces and scented soap and hummin’ happy songs together, but there’s another vital part to it that people rarely admit to themselves: We want somebody to rescue us from other people. From talking to them, I mean, or from the burden of giving a damn about what they say. We don’t want to be polite and stifle our farts, now, do we? We want to let ’em rip and we want to be with someone who won’t care if we do, who will love us regardless and fart right back besides.

It was great to see the Hammers of Zion again — and in a different role, too. We see that the vampires have more tricks up their sleeves than anyone was expecting — as befits a race that’s survived as long as they have. The Sisters of the Three Auroras are back as well, and I’m not so sure it’s wise to be as fully trusting of them as certain Druids seem to be.

I spent most of the book dissatisfied. I understand the need/desire for the three druids to be off on their own, pursuing their own destinies or quests or what have you. But it was just a bit too disparate for my taste. They’re all adults, they’re independent creatures — but fer cryin’ out loud, they should be interacting with each other more. Two of them are supposed to be in a relationship — silence for as long should raise an eyebrow or something, right? Owen’s still learning his way around, and it’s irresponsible to just dump him on Greta. As big, as life-altering (if not life-ending), as important as what Atticus is involved in, he needs to call in backup. Sure he’s been on his own for centuries, but he’s not anymore. How many of the horrible consequences of his war on the vampires could’ve been avoided if he’d just brought in the team?

Whatever my problems, whatever complaints I had, the questions I had about where this book/series were going were wiped away in the climatic battle scenes. Sure, we had to ignore a whole lot of spinning plates that are starting to wobble to get to it, but — Wow! That was just great. From the hirsute magic, the vampires cutting loose, the druids opening up cans of Whoop Ass, to the glamour keeping the muggles oblivious to the bloodbath around them — and all points in between. Just wow. One day, that bit deserves a beat-by-beat breakdown.

Towards the end of the book, Atticus evaluates the state of his relationship with Granuaile, and reaches conclusions that I (and probably many readers) have as well. I’m not sure I’m as at peace with the direction it’s headed in as he is, but it’s probably for the best. Honestly, I’m not so sure I expect Atticus to make it out of Book Number 9, so my misgivings might be moot. Also, for the last couple of books, I’ve stopped enjoying reading Granuaile. While she was a bartender or an apprentice, she was a hoot. Now that she’s moved up to being a full-fledged Druid, I dunno, all the joy’s been sucked out of her character and her interactions with Atticus for me. I think her evolution, her growth, maturation (whatever you want to call it) has been organic and makes sense, I think Hearne’s been honest with her as a character, but it wasn’t necessary for it to go that way. Still, I trust Hearne’s treatment of her, she’s just something I put up with now, rather than enjoy.

So, now the wait begins for the final book — and, I assume, Ragnarok. Because why wouldn’t a series that started with conflict in the Tuatha Dé Danann end with the Norse apocalypse (with a side dish of Olympian revenge, maybe?)?

—–

4 1/2 Stars

Three Slices by Kevin Hearne, Delilah S. Dawson, Chuck Wendig

By HCNewton

On January 27, 2016

In Dogs, F-J, Fiction, Iron Druid Chronicles, Kevin Hearne

Three Slices

by Kevin Hearne, Delilah S. Dawson, and Chuck Wendig; Galen Dara (illus.)
Series: The Iron Druid Chronicles, #7.5

Kindle, 166 pg.
2015
Read: January 25 – 26, 2016

No man who is master of his fate should ever reek of cheese.

Criminy Stain’s observation may seem a bit out-of-place given the authors and characters in this anthology. Shouldn’t it be more visceral or blood-related than cheese? Actually, no. Kevin Hearne explains:

I can’t recall precisely where I heard that tyromancy was actually a thing, but methinks it was during the summer of 2012. As soon as I knew it existed I knew I had to write about it, the way some people have to climb mountains or crack safes once they see them. And if I could find another couple of authors brave enough to do it, maybe we could produce the world’s first tyromancy-themed anthology. So my quest began and now here is the spiffy MacGuffin: THREE SLICES, or rather three stories where somebody along the way predicts the future via the coagulation of cheese.

So, he got a couple of other writers to contribute a story et voilà, they’ve got themselves a pretty unique book. Honestly, I think if I knew the theme, I’d probably have picked this up earlier, rather than waiting until the release week for Hearne’s Staked (and really only then because he insisted his story was “vital” to read before the new book).

A Prelude to War

This happens within a week of Shattered (and ends a few hours before Staked, I think). And yeah, it turns out to be pretty vital for starting the latter. Sure, you could’ve pieced things together, I think (I’m only on page 10, so that’s a guess) — but why work that hard, when you could just spend a little time with Atticus, Oberon, Granuaile and Orlaith (especially Oberon, always especially Oberon)?

I sorta want to talk about all of it, but the story is so short, I’d end up spoiling too much. So let me just stay that this is fun, it’s exciting, and the table it sets for Staked looks great.

Not My Circus, Not My Monkeys

It took me a little work to really get a handle on what was going on here in this Blud story (and I’m pretty sure I only achieved B+ level of comprehension). I’m not sure if this is prequel-y or if it fits into the continuity of the series — but it feels prequel-y.

It was creepy, dark, and moody. The tyromancy fit into a Twilight Zone-like part of the book. Then Criminy got into one of the more disgusting (appropriately so) fight scenes that I’ve read in the last few years.

On the one hand, I wouldn’t object to spending more time in this world, but I can’t see myself expending a whole lot of effort, either. Just not my thing. I think I’ll stick to the Hit books for now.

Interlude: Swallow

Good, ol’ reliable Chuck Wendig — he can write dazzling sentences, character descriptions that I will dwell on for days, and yet I can barely stand to read him. I keep waiting for the lightning bolt that will change things and he will become one of my favorite readers. But I can’t even get a static shock to make him someone I want to read — particularly Miriam Black. Interlude: Swallow ain’t gonna change that. Sorry, Mr. Windig. (I did chuckle mightily at Miriam’s quoting Ralphie Parker). Miriam’s rants about mornings, and then her comments on breakfast and then breakfast sandwiches probably made the time I spent worthwhile.

Overall, for me, this was really only worth the effort for Hearne’s story — but fans of Dawson’s Blud series or Miriam Black should have plenty of reason to pick this up, too. If you happen to be a fan of all three series, you’ll probably love this book.

—–

3 Stars

Dry Bones by Craig Johnson

By HCNewton

On December 7, 2015

In Authors, Craig Johnson, F-J, Fiction, Mystery/Detective Fiction/Crime Fiction/Thriller, Walt Longmire

Dry Bones

by Craig Johnson
Series: Walt Longmire, #11
Hardcover, 306 pg.
Viking, 2015

Read: December 5, 2015
So, possibly the largest Tyrannosaurus rex skeleton ever discovered is found in Wyoming (which is apparently a pretty good place to find them, who knew?), and there’s a battle brewing over who it (and the very large price tag that’ll surely be attached to it) belongs to. There’s enough drama there, but you don’t pick up a Walt Longmire novel for paleontological wrangling, you need a dead body or two. Thankfully, one shows up not too far away, and Walt’s old friend, Omar finds it.

Johnson’s pretty good at keeping several plates spinning, but this time he seems to have outdone himself — we’ve got a controversy over who gets custody over the T. Rex, with three different parties; a runaway; dealing with FBI and a Deputy U. S. Attorney looking to make a name for himself; Double Tough’s recovery from A Serpent’s Tooth; Vic’s continuing recovery from the same book; a visit from Cady and her daughter; oh, yeah, and the murder. About halfway through I actually stopped and wrote them all down, and asked myself “how’s he pulling this off?” I’m honestly not sure, but he did.

Which does mean he pulled it off flawlessly. It didn’t take too long to figure out where the Deputy Attorney story was going — aside from the running source of comedy. But honestly, I think we needed a couple more scenes to make it worthwhile. We got to see Lolo again — which was nice, but she didn’t get enough to do. Still, just glad to see she’s still in this world. I do think the skeleton controversy vanished a bit (understandably) in the middle, when I think it could’ve kept going.

But overall, this was a fun, quick ride, with Johnson (and Longmire) firing on all cylinders, and I can’t wait for the next one to see how the events of this book impact our friends going forward.

Oh no! I’m all caught up (other than the short story collection) with the Longmire books — whatever shall I do? Actually that’s a really good question, I’m going to miss my monthly visits to Absaroka County.

—–

4 Stars

Review Catch Up: The Rosie Project; Where’d You Go, Bernadette; The Rosie Effect; Funny Girl

By HCNewton

On November 27, 2015

In Authors, F-J, Fiction, General Fiction/Literature, Nick Hornby

I’m hitting another block when trying to talk about the last few books I’ve read, because here’s another batch of very overdue takes on some good books (and one not).
—

The Rosie Project

by Graeme Simsion
Series: Don Tillman, #1
Hardcover, 304 pg.
Simon & Schuster, 2013
Read: November 6, 2013

This was charming, witty, and had plenty of heart — even without the romance, which just took it all to another level. It was just plain fun to read.

Don Tillman is just a great character — he’s likely someone with Asperger’s, if not fully Autistic. Which is mentioned once or twice, and then not brought up again. He’s then treated as a stubborn, curious, character with behavior patterns no one can seem to understand, but most people in his life figure out hot to cope with. Sometimes they laugh at him, sometimes they get frustrated or angry. What he’s not treated as is someone with anything. He’s not treated by his symptoms, he’s just treated as this guy. Simsion’s treatment of Don reminds me of Abed Nadir, from Community (which is high praise from me).

The only complaint I had was that the last chapter wasn’t really needed, and maybe would’ve been best left to the imagination. But, setting that aside, it felt rushed, while the rest of the book was so well done, it just stuck out like a sore thumb.

Still, whatever — one of my favorite books of 2013, and still one of the best RomComs I can remember.
5 Stars

Where’d You Go, Bernadette

by Maria Semple

Hardcover, 330 pg.
Little, Brown and Company, 2012
Read: January 01 – 02, 2014

Do you get seasick? People who don’t get seasick have no idea what it’s like. It’s not just nausea. It’s nausea plus losing the will to live.

I should get that embroidered on something.

This starts light and breezy, a little strange, a little typical “these crazy (white) suburbanites with too much money”; but you know it’s going to get dark eventually — probably nasty dark, but first it’s going to lull you into a false sense of fun. I don’t think it gets as dark as it felt like it could’ve, it didn’t need to, and I’m glad it didn’t — but there was a whole lot going on that the whacky beginning didn’t indicate.

You don’t have care about the story because these characters are strength enough to carry your attention for quite awhile with nothing happening — and Semple’s style is just as strong. But there is a story here, a story of a daughter discovering just who her mother was — as is — a story about a talented woman who ended up loving a life she’d never have expected or picked for herself or her family. So you do care about the story — especially the way it’s told, in bits and pieces, jumping back and forth through time, from multiple perspectives — particularly when you get two or three perspectives painting a picture of an event — as Bee digs into her investigation.

Fun story, quirky characters, well-told story, with plenty of heart — and too many quotable lines. I jotted down a few that I can’t resist sharing, even in this abbreviated post.

You probably think, U.S./Canada, they’re interchangeable because they’re both filled with English-speaking, morbidly obese white people. Well, Manjula, you couldn’t be more mistaken.

Americans are pushy obnoxious, neurotic, crass — anything and everything — the full catastrophe as our friend Zorba might say. Canadians are one of that. . . To Canadians, everyone is equal. Joni Mitchell is interchangeable with a secretary at open-mic night. Frank Gehry is no greater than a hack pumping out McMansions on AutoCAD, John Candy is no funnier than Uncle Lou when he gets a couple of beers in him. No wonder the only Canadians anyone’s ever heard of are the ones who have gotten the hell out. Anyone with talent who stayed would be flattened under an avalanche of equality.

Really, who wants to admit to her daughter that she was once considered the most promising architect in the country, but now devotes her celebrated genius to maligning the driver in front of her for having Idaho plates?”

4 Stars

The Rosie Effect

by Graeme Simsion
Series: Don Tillman, #2

Hardcover, 352 pg.
Simon & Schuster, 2014
Read: January 12 – 13, 2015

“To the world’s most perfect woman.” It was lucky my father was not present. Perfect is an absolute that cannot be modified, like unique or pregnant. My love for Rosie was so powerful that it had caused my brain to make a grammatical error.

Don and Rosie are living in New York, getting used to married life, and expecting a kid. None of which goes well — so, of course, Don tries to tackle things the same way he did in the last book. Instant sequel, just add water.

This sequel was written with the same wit and skill as The Rosie Project, but the story wasn’t there — and more importantly, neither was the heart.

Mostly, I think, because Rosie wasn’t around for a lot — and when she was there, she wasn’t a character, she was an obstacle.

Other than really liking the occasional line (maybe more than occasional), I just didn’t like how Rosie or Don were written, the plot was shoddy and contrived, and I was just glad to be done with it so I could move on.
2 Stars

Funny Girl

by Nick Hornby

Hardcover, 452 pg.
Riverhead Books, 2015
Read: February 7, 2015

How on earth could he love her? But he did, Or, at least, she made him feel sick, sad, and distracted. Perhaps there was another way of describing that unique and useless combination of feelings, but “love” would have to do for now.

Everything I know about this era of British culture and TV comes from The Hour and An Adventure in Space and Time, so I just have to trust that Hornby did his homework on this. I thought the behind-the-scenes stuff was great, it felt real — it felt like the kinds of conversations that writers and actors should be having anyway.

The love story turned out a lot different than I was sure it would – thankfully. Actually, most of the book did. This wasn’t the rags-to-riches-to-wreck story that it seemed like it was going to be, but a story of some people with dreams and talent doing what they could to get going in a cutthroat business. Dreams were chased, many were caught, others changed/grew — as did the dreamers.

In the midst of the discussions about the nature of their show and the stories they told — both during the making of the show Barbara (and Jim) and in later chapters where it was being looked back at, I kept wondering if tucked away in all that was an apologia for light fiction like Hornby writes? If so, I appreciated it. (it also reminded me of some similar comments John Cleese has made lately, after coming to terms with being someone who makes people laugh, and not saving the world or something grander)

Thoughtful, heartfelt, charming — this is Hornby at his most confident and mature. I can see why some aren’t liking it, but it really clicked for me.

4 1/2 Stars

Any Other Name by Craig Johnson

By HCNewton

On November 18, 2015

In Authors, Craig Johnson, F-J, Fiction, Mystery/Detective Fiction/Crime Fiction/Thriller, Walt Longmire

Any Other Name

by Craig Johnson
Series: Walt Longmire, #10

Hardcover, 317 pg.

Viking, 2014

Read: November 14 – 16, 2015

“I want to warn you that if you put Walter on this you’re going to find out what it’s all about, one way or the other.” Another pause, and I could imagine the face that was peering down at her, a visage to which I was accustomed. “You’re sure you want that? Because he’s like a gun; once you point him and pull the trigger, it’s too late to change your mind.”

There’s the problem, isn’t it? Walt won’t stop for anything once he starts. A perennial conflict in the Longmire series is Walt’s devotion to his friends/Cady and his duty as a sheriff (often more felt than real), part of its recurrence is because it always works as a plot device (as tired as it may feel — which is part of the whole thing, it’s just as tired for Cady as it is for the reader). Part of that is because I expect that it’s a strong reflection of reality (unlike, say the beating that Walt takes in this one and then the near super-human feats he accomplishes shortly thereafter).

Detective Gerald Holman shot himself — and did so in a fairly unusual manner. That aside, it’s a pretty cut-and-dried suicide. But his widow doesn’t buy it. Which isn’t that unusual, but because she doesn’t buy it, their old friend Lucian Connally doesn’t buy it — he’s just not that kind of guy. So Lucian drags Walt to the next county and gets him to investigate it — the sheriff there doesn’t see the need, but isn’t going to stop him. Lucian gives the widow the warning up above, and she agrees to it, as does Walt — even with the birth of his grandchild just days away in Philadelphia.

Along the way, Vic and Henry show up — as does a very unlikely friend of Walt’s from a couple of books back. Vic’s recovered physically from A Serpent’s Tooth, but the rest of her has a bit to go. Henry’s just Henry — and I’m pretty sure that’s all he’ll ever be. Walt befriends/drafts a local police officer, who also comes through for him in a pretty big way. Actually, meeting Officer Corbin Dougherty was one of my favorite parts of the book:

… he looked vaguely familiar….

“You date my daughter?”

“I did.” He blushed up to his blond crew cut. “The first time I came to pick her up you tossed me a shotgun shell.”

“I did?”

“Yeah, you said they went a lot faster after eleven o’clock.”

I nodded. “I used to think I was a tough guy.”

I liked this exchange for a few reasons: 1. It’s amusing, 2. It reminds me of one of the best exchanges between Raylan Givens and Wynn Duffy on Justified, 3. It illustrates the difference between Walt and Raylan. I don’t know if Raylan will ever get to the point where he could say that last line and mean it, but you know Walt did (and is probably embarrassed that he ever said it in the first place — Raylan may have rued uttering that to Wynn because of the fallout, but he sure wasn’t embarrassed).

The kinds of criminal activity that Walt turns up during his investigation of the suicide and Holman’s last cases that probably led him to it makes a guy miss Absaroka County and its apocalyptic cults, generations-long feuds, drug smuggling, serial killers and whatnot. But throughout it all, you know that Walt and his posse will bring justice to those who drove Holman over the edge.

To be honest, the ending of this one felt rushed — Walt had a hard deadline to meet, and so he had to rush things a bit on his end — and it felt like Johnson did, too. There was no cheating on the final reveal of his investigation — Johnson’s too careful for that, and he’s not one for red herrings, so you know the detail that leads Walt to the conclusion was important when you saw it the second time. But, I didn’t think it was well explained, the clues fit, but I didn’t see the motive working — at least not as given. It didn’t ruin the experience for me, but it took a little shine off of it.

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3 Stars

X by Sue Grafton

By HCNewton

On November 11, 2015

In Authors, Fiction, Kinsey Millhone, Mystery/Detective Fiction/Crime Fiction/Thriller, Sue Grafton

this is rushed, I’m having Internet shortages this week (long story, don’t ask), so I want to get this posted while I can. I may end up polishing it up within the day, if there are problems/typos/incomplete sentences, etc. — leave a comment
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X

by Sue Grafton
Series: Kinsey Millhone, #24

Hardcover, 403 pg.
Marian Wood Books/Putnam, 2015
Read: October 28 – 30, 2015

I’d forgotten how slow these books start, if I didn’t have confidence in Grafton built over 23 previous novels, I don’t know if I’d have kept going. By page 100, I was curious about both mysteries, engaged enough to keep going – but still no serial killer, no interesting crime — a lot of X’s in character names and whatnot — enough that you know Grafton intended them. The highlight had been meeting Cheney Phillips’ mom, fer crying out loud! You’d think with just three books in the series remaining, Grafton would be pulling out all stops to make this dazzle the readers, but nope. This book is possibly the most subtle, where the actual mystery, the heart of the book is lost in the midst of the mundane — not unlike actual life. Really, most of this book was the Adventures of Kinsey Millhone, Busybody with Too Much Time on Her Hands.

By this point, if we know nothing else, we’ve learned that you do not move into Kinsey and Henry’s neighborhood. If Kinsey decides she doesn’t like you, your life is going to be pried into, turned upside down, and — ultimately — you’ll find yourself living somewhere else. Gladys Kravitz has nothing on Kinsey. Now, whether it’s a gold-digger sniffing around Henry, an insane nurse, or what have you, Kinsey’s gut has been right — but she can’t bat a thousand, can she? Still, Henry gets some new neighbors who get him to run all over town on their behalf while he obsesses with a potential drought and water rationing — and by obsesses, I mean he turns in to Adrian Monk. Kinsey sees them taking advantage of Henry and steps in. I really didn’t like this storyline — Kinsey came off as a shrew (and, yes, I get it — part of this series has always been showing her warts and all — still, I want to expect more from her), no matter how rude and manipulative and possibly worse these new neighbors may be.

There’s another storyline that’s kicked off in the Prologue — I noted after reading it that we wouldn’t return to that for 300 pages or so. I was off by about 100, a mistake I’m willing to make. But it didn’t come back in the way I expected. Kinsey is hired for a job, and after completing it, she’s visited by the police, and she learns that she wasn’t working for who she thought she was — and that’s just the beginning of the problems — so she starts digging into her client, and what that client wanted her to accomplish anyway. This is one of the strangest, and possibly the most pointless, mystery Kinsey’s reported to us. With an oddly sentimental ending.

Pete Wolinsky, investigator of dubious morality from W is for Wasted (and Kinsey’s early days as a P. I.) turns up again. His widow, Ruthie, is facing an IRS audit and asks Kinsey to look through the papers she still has of his laying around for any financial records. Kinsey gets around to it eventually, and in the process finds some well-hidden materials and a coded message. Henry, puzzle-writer extraordinaire, decodes it and comes up with a list of names — some of which have a connection to one of Pete’s cases that Kinsey was aware of, but the rest are a mystery. This starts needling at Kinsey’s curiosity (which is already purring along thanks to the mysterious client above), and she starts going over Pete’s tracks, trying to see what was so important that he would feel compelled to leave notes in a code. Not only does this involve going back over Pete’s case, but decades before — and then back to the present. The rocks she turns over reveal a good deal, and maybe even help Kinsey learn to appreciate Pete in a way she should’ve while he was still with us.

We do check in with Jonah Robb, Robert Dietz, and the aforementioned Cheney Phillips, but nothing happens at all even approaching romance. Which is fine by me, Kinsey on her own is more interesting than Kinsey trying to make things work with a guy. Naturally, we spend a little time at Rosie’s and see William make a bold fashion choice. Yeah, it’s just that exciting a book.

There’s a character early on that the reader (and Kinsey) pegs as the major villain of the piece, but he’s never focused on to the exclusion of all the other moving pieces, so that when things get serious and dangerous, it’s almost as much of a surprise to the reader as it is to Kinsey. I think the way Grafton pulls off handling the storyline, letting the danger get hidden in the shuffle is what made me rank it so high. Actually, as I write this I’m wanting to rank it lower, but I’m going to trust my initial judgment on this (but honestly, I’ve read a couple of 2 star reviews for this that I wholeheartedly agree with). It was nice going back to Santa Teresa to spend time with the old gang, but I’m really hoping Grafton makes these next two a little more worth the effort.

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4 Stars

A Serpent’s Tooth by Craig Johnson

By HCNewton

On October 20, 2015

In Authors, Craig Johnson, F-J, Fiction, Mystery/Detective Fiction/Crime Fiction/Thriller, Walt Longmire

A Serpent’s Tooth

by Craig Johnson
Series: Walt Longmire, #9

Paperback, 335 pg.
Penguin Books, 2014
Read: October 17 – 19, 2015

So it seems that Craig Johnson had some things about religion that he wanted to get off of his chest. It almost felt like that came first, and the story came second — maybe not, maybe he just took the opportunity that the story gave him, what do I know? Raised by a Methodist mother and an atheistic/agnostic/irreligious father, Walt and Martha repeated that pattern once he came home and married (although it appears Walt attended services fairly frequently with her), after her death, he’s left the Church behind. As he told Henry, he’s spent more time in Indian religious ceremonies than Christian since Martha.

So, he’s in a jaded state of mind when he encounters a LDS splinter group — add in Vic’s lapsed Catholicism, and the Absaroka County Sheriff’s Department spends a lot of time almost offending a few World Religions. It helps (both the insulting, and insulating Walt/Johnson from giving actual offense) that this particular splinter group is a little more unhinged than normal.

On the one hand, there are comic elements involving the cult — a senior citizen of indeterminate age claiming to be a historic figure over 200 years old, a yet-older nude sunbather who builds spaceships in his backyard. There are also heart-tugging elements, the teenager who’s never seen a television or movie before (and becomes obsessed), him and other teens being cast out of their homes/families and left to wander, the little girl with a developmental disability abandoned on the roadside for entire days to sell baked goods. But, at least for Walt, more importantly there suspicious elements surrounding a Texas-based cult that moved to South Dakota and now seems to be expanding in a handful of Western and Mid-Western states — and the missing mother of the movie junkie. And guns, lots of new, expensive guns.

In addition, we get a lot of good time with the citizenry of Absaroka County (not as much time in the diner as usual), learn a little bit more about the youth of Walt and Henry, see things move along for Walt and Vic, and see a major shakeup for the Sheriff’s Department. Throw all this together, and you get a solid, satisfying read.

Absolutely nothing here did anything to remove the worries Walt has for Cady thanks to Virgil’s warning/prophecy/vision from Hell is Empty. Hoping that gets resolved soon, if only so Johnson stops teasing.

Not Johnson’s best, but there’s nothing to complain about here, and plenty to enjoy.

—–

3 Stars