Category: Mystery/Detective Fiction/Crime Fiction/Thriller Page 136 of 153

Wake of the Bloody Angel by Alex Bledsoe

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On May 30, 2014

In Alex Bledsoe, Authors, Eddie LaCrosse, Fantasy, Fiction, Mystery/Detective Fiction/Crime Fiction/Thriller

Wake of the Bloody Angel (Eddie LaCrosse, #4)Wake of the Bloody Angel

by Alex Bledsoe

Paperback, 350 pages
Tor Books, 2012
Read: May 28, 2014

I looked up at the stars. Finding one pirate after twenty years was a lot like picking one star out of this sky. Just when you thought you had it, a cloud slid by and you had to start all over when it passed.

Yet that’s just what Eddie LaCrosse sets out to do — find the unfindable, track the untrackable. For those of you who don’t know — Eddie lives in a fairly standard fantasy realm, and makes his living as a “sword jockey” — what we’d call a P.I. in our world. These books are first person narratives and read a lot like good detective novels — but with swords, horses and the occasional dragon or whatnot.

Eddie doesn’t go alone on his search for a pirate — he brings along his old friend/colleague, Jane Argo. Jane’s a former pirate turned pirate hunter turned sword jockey and is as tough as that résumé suggests. Having her come along on this adventure as the Hawk/Joe Pike figure was a great addition to a series that I didn’t think required it. But now, I want more of her — back in Eddie LaCrosse #6, or in Jane Argo #1. I could be pleased either way, as long as it’s soon.

There’s adventure, piracy, sword-play, banter, friendship, and a bit of betrayal. Enough to keep you engaged, if not turning pages as quickly as you can. Every now and then, in the middle of this fun read, Bledsoe reminds you he can do more than tell a fun action story, and drop a sentence, or phrase that shows he’s just a good writer, period. One such line that stood out to me, and I’ve tried to find excuses to use in the last couple days is:

Hawk’s been called many things over the years, but you know what captures him best, in my opinion? That he’s simply a shiver looking for a spine to run up.

You get a real clear idea about this Hawk guy, the image is pretty creepy in and of itself, and yet, it looks and sounds breezy unless you think about it. I like Eddie and the rest of his world plenty — but it’s that kind of thing that keeps me coming back to Bledsoe.

Part of me is glad I read Lynch’s Red Seas Under Red Skies before this, if I hadn’t, I’d have spent too much time comparing the pirate-y bits between the two while reading — and I think Lynch would’ve come up short. Bledsoe did a great job of nailing the life of a ship (says the guy who gets too seasick to even contemplate a day-long voyage) — both the tedium of day-to-day and the excitement of the boarding.

The last thing I can think to note, is that this book briefly features the creepiest little girl I can remember since Let the Right One In. I really can’t talk about her without ruining too much, but let me just say that absolutely loved the way that Bledsoe used her.

I couldn’t have seen the ending coming, nor the details it revealed. But it worked, it absolutely worked both as an interesting plot development, and as strong character moments. So well done. Shame on me for putting this off for so long — not a mistake I’ll make again.*

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* and I mean that — book 5, He Drank, and Saw the Spider came out this year, and is on my hold list at the library.

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4 1/2 Stars

The Chase by Janet Evanovich and Lee Goldberg

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On May 29, 2014

In A-F, Authors, Fiction, Fox and O'Hare, Janet Evanovich, Lee Goldberg, Mystery/Detective Fiction/Crime Fiction/Thriller

The Chase (Fox and O'Hare, #2)The Chase

by Janet Evanovich and Lee Goldberg
Series: Fox and O’Hare, #2

Hardcover, 320 pg.
Bantam, 2014
Read: March 20-21, 2014

Nicolas Fox and Agent Kate O’Hare are back in action — better yet, Janet Evanovich and Lee Goldberg are back and better than ever. This time their target is none other than the head of a multinational security force/private army owned by the former White House Chief of Staff. Easy pickings, right?

This is just the ticket for readers who miss The A-Team or Leverage — clever schemes improbably pulled off by team of pros to take down a real scoundrel. This team gets around a bit more than the others do (better budgets in books than TV shows) — they globe hop from D.C. to Shanghai, to Montreal and more — even the Scottish hinterlands. The shenanigans in Montreal, in particular, were hilarious and ever so smooth.

I enjoyed The Heist (my review) — a lot, actually — but this was better. Everything — the interplay between the characters, the plot, the crazy schemes that Fox & O’Hare cooked up (individually and together), the new guys, the villains — all of it worked better this time out. If these two are this polished on book two, I can’t wait to see what Evanovich and Goldberg are like by the time they get to five or so.

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4 Stars

The Warrior by Ty Patterson

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On May 27, 2014

In Fiction, Mystery/Detective Fiction/Crime Fiction/Thriller

The WarriorThe Warrior

by Ty Patterson

Kindle Edition, 153 pg.
2012
Read: May 9 – 10, 2014

This short debut thriller packs a wallop. Yeah, there are flaws — notably, an opening chapter that just didn’t click for me, with fight mechanics that seemed . . . off somehow; and a final sentence that would’ve caused me to toss a paperback across the room (but a Kindle edition is safe from that fate). But the stuff between? Good, testosterone-y fun.

It’s a pretty straight-forward tale of vengeance, the lone crusader tracking down some despicable criminals, kickin’ butt and taking names along the way. Not that Zeb’s as lone as he thinks he is — former colleagues, friends, fellow-soldiers, handler, sister, and an almost-obnoxiously cute kid. Patterson knows his weapons, knows his martial arts (at least some forms), knows how to get that information across to his readers (most of the time). All the makings of a good, action read.

As I said, it’s a short novel. Goodreads tells me it’s 153 pages, and that seems about right. But the novel could’ve used another 100 pages or so. There was a lot that seemed rushed or under-developed. Some of the relationships developed so quickly it strained disbelief — and in these kind of books, it should be the heroics that strain disbelief.

On the whole, I liked the characters, and Patterson’s treatment of them. Many of them were variations on the typical action hero types, but nicely drawn. Although, I do think a few times with Zeb that Patterson aimed for enigmatic and hit ill-defined. The more citizen-y characters, worked as well — but I could’ve used more details with them, why did they take so well to this rag-tag band of adventurers?

I honestly didn’t see a lot of the end coming, and initially wasn’t thrilled with it. In retrospect, not only did I see why Patterson made the choices he made, but understood the story he was trying to tell — not the one I thought he was telling.

A fast-paced, enjoyable read — full of action and all the right kinds of characters for this sort of book. It’s commendably ambitious, just not as good as it tries to be. Still, I look forward to seeing more from Patterson.
—
Note: I was graciously provided a copy of this book by the author in exchange for a review. Hope he doesn’t regret that.

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3 Stars

Dusted Off: Harry Lipkin, Private Eye by Barry Fantoni

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On May 26, 2014

In Fiction, Mystery/Detective Fiction/Crime Fiction/Thriller

Harry Lipkin, Private EyeHarry Lipkin, Private Eye

by Barry Fantoni

Hardcover, 224 pg
Doubleday, 2012
Read: July 27, 2012

This book was quite the change of pace, a very “cozy” mystery feel with a teeny-tiny touch of hard-boiled flavoring. An odd PI with an offbeat approach to things, along the lines of Paul Tremblay‘s Narcoleptic Detective or Rick Yancey‘s Highly Effective Detective. Lipkin’s an amusing enough character and the robbery suspects he’s investigating are fairly interesting, but the mystery’s pretty flat and the novel doesn’t have a lot going for it.

In the end, it was a nice enough diversion for a couple of hours, but that’s basically it.

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2 Stars

Dusted Off: Fifth Victim by Zoë Sharp

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On May 19, 2014

In Fiction, Mystery/Detective Fiction/Crime Fiction/Thriller

Fifth Victim (Charlie Fox Thriller, #9)Fifth Victim

by Zoë Sharp

Hardcover, 448 pg.
Pegasus, 2012
July 5 – 7, 2012

Zoë Sharp gets better and better every time.

Reeling from the events of Fourth Day, Charlie Fox is tasked with preventing the kidnapping of a young socialite. Recently, a few of her peers had been kidnapped and tortured, and the client wants to prevent that from happening to her daughter. Drama ensues pretty much the way you’d expect it to in this kind of novel.

There’s a character development and a greater emotional depth than you’d find in a Jack Reacher novel (the only thing I can think of to compare these to), but the action is just as gripping, the chase scenes as riveting, and the plot as (if not more) complex than you’d find there. Best use of a horse I can think of in recent memory.

To get the full story, it’d be best to have read the series at least from First Drop–but this book would be a great way to meed Charlie for the first time.

Minor quibble: I’m so over the little device of starting the novel with a tense moment from about the middle of the novel, getting to a cliff-hanger and then jumping back to the beginning. I get that it’s Sharp’s schtick, but…ugh.

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4 Stars

Dusted Off: Bloody Mary by J.A. Konrath

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On May 12, 2014

In Fiction, Mystery/Detective Fiction/Crime Fiction/Thriller

Bloody Mary (Jack Daniels Mystery, #2)Bloody Mary

by J.A. Konrath

Hardcover, 307 pg.
Hyperion, 2005
Read: July 8, 2012

What a great mix–funny, gruesome, drama and a touch of pathos. The murderer at the center of this novel is one of the creepiest I’ve run across, and it’s best not to visualize the crimes in too much detail. But thankfully, there are some laugh-out-loud lines and visuals to counterbalance the grisliness.

Overall, I think the police work, and the interplay between Jack and the other police was superior in the first novel; and some of the legal maneuvering was a little too slick–but the strengths of the novel far outweighed the weaknesses. This one’ll be parked out in my subconscious for quite a while.

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4 Stars

Dusted Off: King City by Lee Goldberg

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On May 12, 2014

In Fiction, Lee Goldberg, Mystery/Detective Fiction/Crime Fiction/Thriller

King CityKing City

by Lee Goldberg

Paperback, 246 pg.
Thomas and Mercer, 2012
Read: July 4-5, 2012

One part Jack Reacher, one part Jesse Stone, this first installment in Lee Goldberg’s new series reads like a Western set in the 21st century.

Tom Wade, a rigorously scrupulous cop is assigned to a part of King City so crime and poverty-ridden that city officials pretend it doesn’t exist. He’s sent there because the police force is overly-politicized where it isn’t overtly corrupted, and they can’t fire such an upstanding cop–but maybe his new post will lead to him being killed.

Wade is fully aware of this, but accepts his new post with gusto–he has a chance to make a difference and sets out to do so in as splashy a way as possible.

This isn’t a subtle book with complex characters–and doesn’t try to be. The characters are pretty much the dictionary definition of “stock,” the good guys are good, the bad guys are really bad–and that’s that. A fun, straightforward testosterone-y action book. Hopefully the first of many.

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3 Stars

Saturday Miscellany — 5/10/14

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On May 10, 2014

In Books, Harry Dresden, Jim Butcher, News/Misc., Robert B. Parker, Spenser

Odds ‘n ends over the last week or so about books and reading that caught my eye. You’ve probably seen some/most/all of them, but just in case:

    I’m sure there were plenty of good books released this week, but I didn’t notice any of them, because for me, there’s only one:

  • Robert B. Parker’s Cheap Shot by Ace Atkins — Atkins’ 3rd outing at the helm of this series, and I can’t wait to get my hands on it. Sadly, couldn’t find time this week. Another week will not pass without that being fixed. Read a little Q&A about the book.

Shovel Ready by Adam Sternbergh

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On May 9, 2014

In Fiction, Mystery/Detective Fiction/Crime Fiction/Thriller, Science Fiction

Shovel ReadyShovel Ready

by Adam Sternbergh

Hardcover, 256 pg
Crown, 2014
Read: May 1 – 3, 2014

It’s the near future, NYC has been rendered nearly uninhabitable by terrorist attacks and most of those that are still there aren’t really in NYC — they’re permanently jacked in to a virtual reality, kept alive by IV feeding bags. (think of a dystopian vision of Ready Player One‘s OASIS)

One of the few not hooked to the VR world is Mr. Spademan, a hitman. He doesn’t care who, he doesn’t care why, as long as the money’s right and he’s given a name, he’ll take the job. Once he’s taken the job, you might as well consider it done, he never fails, he never quits.

Well, until this job. Otherwise, it really wouldn’t be much of a story now, would it? Something happens that keeps Spademan from doing what he does — and the aftermath is pretty deadly. Spademan, his friends/allies, and those around them will be fighting for their lives before long as they plunge into a world of the ultra-rich, ultra-pampered and pseudo-religious.

The voice that Sternbergh employs is strong — you want to hear this guy tell his story. It’s a little heavy-handed from time to time — particularly at the beginning. But there’s a purpose for it, I think — at first I thought it was just a product of this being his first novel, but that’s condescending, and blind. Sternbergh knew exactly what he was doing — persevere through the heavy-handedness and you’ll understand why it was there.

A great mix of noir, SF, and suspense — with a little extra thrown in. It’d be easy to just chalk up this book to a fun combination of style, setting, and premise. But it’d be a mistake, there’s real heart here. Heart, genuine suspense, and a good story (yeah, and style, setting, and premise).

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3.5 Stars

Notorious Nineteen by Janet Evanovich

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On March 12, 2014

In Authors, Fiction, Janet Evanovich, Mystery/Detective Fiction/Crime Fiction/Thriller, Stephanie Plum

What?! A second post? Yeah, trying to make up for yesterday.

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Notorious NineteenNotorious Nineteen

by Janet Evanovich
Series: Stephanie Plum, #19


Mass Market Paperback, 302 pg.
Bantam, 2013
Read: Dec. 24 – 25, 2013

When this one gets serious and creepifying…it gets really serious and creepy. Even better, Evanovich restrains the goofiness. Leaving this a moderately suspenseful, witty and charming book. Even Grandma — who has a significant role here — isn’t as cartoonish as she often is.

There are two major cases that Stephanie has to deal with — the Ranger case is pretty fun, if a little lean. The major case, dealing with the missing embezzler, is more intricate than usual. I don’t know that I was convinced by Stephanie’s methods to solving it, but I applaud the complexity of the case and hope that Evanovich is willing to stretch like that again.

Not much else to say at this point — it’s a Stephanie Plum book, and a pretty good one. That’s pretty much all that a Plum-head (Plumb-er?) should need.

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3 Stars

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