Category: Fiction Page 314 of 351

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.

—–

4 Stars

Opening Lines – Hot Lead, Cold Iron

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On May 28, 2014

In Blog Series, Currently Reading, News/Misc., Opening Lines, Quotations, Urban Fantasy

We all know we’re not supposed to judge a book by its cover (yet, publishing companies spend big bucks on cover design/art). But, the opening sentence(s)/paragraph(s) are fair game. So, when I stumble on a good opening (or remember one and pull it off the shelves), I’ll throw it up here. Dare you not to read the rest of the book

—–

I really feel that fewer of modern society’s bits and pieces are sadder—more banal, I guess—than a big office. It’s kinda like, once mankind perfected the assembly line, there was nothing left to do but live on it. Desk after bulky desk, endless rows reaching into the distance like railroad tracks to nowhere; constant monotonous clacks and dings of typewriters and adding machines; tacky marble floors—and maybe columns, in the swankier joints—trying to echo the glories of ancient temples and libraries, and miserably failing at it. Honestly, I dunno if it’s more depressing or more boring.

Unless someone’s trying to rub you out in one of ’em. Then I’m pretty damn confident in telling you it’s a lot more depressing than it is boring.

Right that minute, I wasn’t looking at the desks, or the typewriters, or the pillars, because I was staring blearily at the growing puddle of red soaking into the piss-yellow carpet between my scuffed Oxfords. (Yeah, carpet. This was the second story, so no marble flooring here.) It wasn’t a whole lot of leakage, not yet, but the brick-fisted galoots flocking around me seemed right eager to help me add to it. We were having a friendly little get-together, me and the four of them, wherein I was helping them to relax by massaging their knuckles with my cheeks and my gut. Repeatedly; they musta been really tense. But hey, at least the coppery scent in my nose kept me from gagging on the mixed bouquet of old sweat, typewriter oil, and carpet shampoo.

from Hot Lead, Cold Iron by Ari Marmell

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.

—–

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.

—–

2 Stars

Dusted Off: Dragon Precinct by Keith R.A. DeCandido

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On May 19, 2014

In Fiction

Dragon PrecinctDragon Precinct

by Keith R.A. DeCandido
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

What a great concept–take a typical D&D-ish city, filled with Elves, Half-Elves, Halflings, Dwarves, Magic Users, etc. and throw in a typical Law & Order-ish police force investigating a variety of crimes. Most notably, a serial killer knocking off legendary members of a band of heroes embarking on an epic quest.

Not the greatest fantasy novel I’ve read in the last few months–but such a fun one, I hated for it to end. The detectives (and most of the supporting cast) were a lotta fun, and I could spend a lot more time with them, just bantering at the tavern after their shifts, much less working their cases.

—–

3 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.

—–

4 Stars

Ready Player One (Audiobook) by Ernest Cline, Wil Wheaton

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On May 13, 2014

In Fiction, Science Fiction

Ready Player OneReady Player One

by Ernest Cline, Wil Wheaton

Unabridged Audiobook, 15 hrs and 46 mins
Random House Audio, 2011
Read: March 19 – 27, 2014

As much as I enjoy a good audiobook, I rarely have time for them, and I usually only listen to books that I’ve previously read. When my family needed something to listen to on a road trip last month, this was an automatic top contender — the printed version of this was probably my favorite book of 2011, and I was due for another read.

I’m so glad we picked this one, it was long enough (an important consideration for a road trip) and it was marvelously done. Wil Wheaton was an inspired choice to read this — not only is he an experienced, and accomplished audiobook performer (is that the right word?); but being who he is — an Internet/Nerd icon and a 1980’s child star — he adds a layer of authenticity and authority to the book.

I’m not going to talk about the book, I can’t. I’ve tried it before, and failed. But it’s just about perfect — funny, adventurous, immersed in pop culture (particularly from the 80’s, my formative years), smart, with heart — a lot of it.

So when you add one of the best performances of Wheaton’s career to that, you’ve got something worth spending 15 hours with. If only for his Sean Connery impression.* Wheaton captures the flavor, the pathos, the charm of the book and the characters that inhabit it. Go grab the book and give it a read. The audiobook’s almost as good. If you’ve read it, the audiobook’s a good way to revisit it.

—–

* There are several other “if only”s I could’ve used there, that’s just the first that came to mind. As Alan Sepinwall would put it, Deyanu!

—–

5 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.

—–

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.

—–

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.

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