Category: Fiction Page 332 of 349

This was the fifth Hemingway novel I’ve read this year, and by far the most ambitious in length, scope, topic, and style. This classic follows Robert Jordan, American Spanish professor turned Republican Demolition officer in the Spanish Civil War as he leads a small guerrilla band to destroy a bridge that will play an important tactical role in an upcoming battle (as will its destruction). This classic has been analyzed, reviewed and studied far more intensely and deeply than I do around here, so I’ll stick to some general impressions/observations.

First, this took me a long time to read — sure, it’s chock-full of Hemingway’s deceptively simple prose, but something about this one took forever to slog through. I’m not sure why — and what it says about the quality of the book — but this took 4-5 days longer than I thought it should to read.
Hemingway didn’t pull any punches at all with foreshadowing, pretty much every plot point is predicted within the first 50 pages or so. And then you’re hit over the head with them for the rest of the book.
Even though this is a third person narrative, it felt far more personal and intimate than his previous novels — even those that were told in first person.
The part of the book where Pilar describes how she, Pablo and others took over their hometown from the Fascists? Horrific, totally believable and it’ll stick with me far longer than any of the shenanigans regarding the bridge will.
Oh, hey, finally know where the silly phrase, “the earth moved” (and the interrogative form) comes from. Speaking of that, is it just me, or does it take people longer to fall in love in a Nora Ephron script than in a Hemingway novel? Sure, whatever, it’s war . . . things are more intense, things happen faster, yada, yada yada. Not buying it. Forever and ever, amen love should take more time than it does to brew a cup of coffee.

Dusted Off: Holmes on the Range by Steve Hockensmith

By HCNewton

On July 11, 2013

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

Holmes on the Range by Steve Hockensmith

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

You just have to love this concept. An illiterate cowboy in 1890’s Montana hears about Sherlock Holmes due to the republication of some of Watson’s accounts in American periodicals. He’s drawn by what Holmes does and sets about getting his hands on all of Watson’s reports he can. And then he makes his brother read them to him over and over and over so he can learn how to do what Holmes does. At some point he thinks he’s learned enough to start, and puts himself in a situation to put his skills to the test. And presto, you’ve got yourself a novel.

So much for the concept–how was the execution? Ehhh, not as good. It was dull, downright slow, filled with a bunch of cliched Western types. It was interesting enough to keep me reading, but man, did it get sloggy in parts. I’m glad I persevered, because the conclusion was satisfying (even if it’s pace was 200% of what preceded it) and the central characters were amusing.

These brothers offer a great take on Holmes/Watson, and I’m sure I’ll get to the sequels pretty soon. Hoping that now that the series has been set up, the next ones will pick up a little faster.

Clean by Alex Hughes

By HCNewton

On July 10, 2013

In Fiction

Clean by Alex Hughes
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

This was a totally adequate book. This is a futuristic police procedural featuring a telepath who acts as an interrogator, a case of “You’ve got Urban Fantasy in my SF,” “No, you’ve got SF in my Urban Fantasy.”

The telepath in question is a recovering drug addict on his last second chance — and that was pretty well done. I work with a log of people in Recovery, and this rang true. But beyond that, he was sort of a stock PI-type down on his luck. The same goes for his tough, driven and beautiful Homicide detective partner, and the various superiors they have — even his sponsor. They’re all characters we’ve seen dozens upon dozens of times before. To an extent, that’s forgivable in a first novel in a series, you’re building a world, setting up everything, you can skate by with mostly stock characters, as long as you flesh them out later. But there wasn’t a single original character.

The plot wasn’t much better once you strip away the Mindspace parts of the equation.

At the end of the day, for all it had going for it, Clean just wasn’t all that well-written. Too often it read like something I’d write on my best day (and I’m fully aware of my limitations) — sure, it its moments, and the last 40 or so pages, really delivered. But that was more plot than execution, by that point, as long as she wasn’t being incoherent, it would work — it was just getting to that point that was the struggle. It was the setup and curiosity that got me to that point.

It wouldn’t surprise me a bit if one day I really liked Hughes’ stuff, but today wasn’t that day.

One Dog Night by David Rosenfelt

By HCNewton

On July 9, 2013

In Andy Carpenter, Authors, David Rosenfelt, Fiction, Mystery/Detective Fiction/Crime Fiction/Thriller, P-U

One Dog Night by David Rosenfelt
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Everyone’s favorite Golden Retriever-aficionado, who practices law when he absolutely has to, is back. At this point in the series, the trick is coming up with something compelling enough to get Andy to take a case — this book just might have the strongest motivating factor in the series.

From there we get one of the more gruesome and devastating crimes in this series (but thankfully, we’re years removed from it, so we don’t have to read much about the details), and one of the more widespread and reaching conspiracies this side of Robert Langdon (but in a book that’s far better written and entertaining)

The gang’s all here, even if Willie’s only seen briefly and off in a storyline all his own (not sure I got the point of it, but it didn’t detract from the main story), and I’m getting used to Andy’s new co-counsel (though I don’t think he’ll truly replace the last one). This may contain Sam’s greatest moment — only to be eclipsed a couple of chapters later by something greater (alas, minor spoiler: no song talking). The courtroom antics were solid and entertaining — even when things aren’t going Andy’s (or the client’s) way. The twists and turns kept coming, resulting in an ending I never saw coming.

In Medias Res: The 5th Wave

By HCNewton

On July 6, 2013

In Authors, Currently Reading, Fiction, In Medias Res, News/Misc., Quotations, Rick Yancey, Science Fiction, YA/MG/Children's Books

trying something different here . . . as the title implies, I’m in the middle of this book, so not a review, just thoughts mid-way through

—–

The 5^th Wave by Rick Yancey

Wow. WOW! This is everything it’s been hyped. Spine-tingling. Paranoia-inducing. Keeps you on the edge of your seat. Disturbing. This is messing with my mind, in a very good way. Loving this.

Suzanne Collins, Scott Westerfeld, Veronica Roth — not that any of your works are lacking, mind you — and anyone else looking to write YA action, the bar has been raised.

Killer Ambition by Marcia Clark

By HCNewton

On July 5, 2013

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

Killer Ambition by Marcia Clark
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Hmmm, wonder where Clark got the idea and experience to do a novel about a case with ties to Hollywood, celebrity and an all-invasive press corps trying the case outside the courtroom while putting all the details of the attorney’s lives on display for all the world. . . These parts of the novel worked so well — obviously, her own experiences and role as commentator since that one case have equipped her to tackle these things.

The relationships between Rachel and her friends/coworkers/romantic entanglements remain strong — although I think it was a bit more in the background this time around, and the book suffered for it.

I could be wrong, but I’m pretty sure we spent more time in court in this novel than the two previous. Which is good, on the one hand, because these are supposed to be legal thrillers, so it’s good to have the courtroom proceedings. On the other hand, these are supposed to be legal thrillers, and on the whole, the pace and momentum of this books comes to a standstill in the details of the trial. Now, maybe this is just me — after my Perry Mason phase in high school, most of the courtroom depictions I’ve read have been by David Rosenfelt or from Paul Levine‘s Solomon & Lord series — and while Clark has a fun, light touch — she’s nowhere near as amusing as these two. Similarly, she doesn’t have the gravitas and talent of Michael Connelly — by the time Mickey Haller gets to court, the brakes have failed and there’s nothing to slow the runaway freight train of tension, suspense and energy. I’m not saying I want Clark to turn into a clone of any of these gentlemen — I’m just saying that until she improves, her readers are better served with Rachel & co. doing the bulk of their work in the field.

In the end, it was worth slogging through the slower portions, for the resolution to the mystery as well as to see how it all played out in the lives of those related to the case — I particularly liked the storyline involving the Lindsay Lohan-ish character. Now that she’s had her say about media circus trials and life under the microscope, I do hope that Clark gets back to the sorts of cases/victims that made the earlier books so much fun to read.

Indexing, Episode 4: Blended Family by Seanan McGuire

By HCNewton

On July 4, 2013

In Fiction, Indexing, Seanan McGuire, Urban Fantasy

Wow. Read the episode and am writing about it within two days of release? Yay me.

—-

Indexing by Seanan McGuire
Series: Indexing, #1.4

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Episode 4: Blended Family
McGuire’s feeling confident enough in this world she’s created to throw out her typical approach to this episode (it feels weird to say things like that about a 4th installment, but I’ve been reading this long enough now, that it feels like more). She plays with time, POV, structure and her reader’s expectations.

The result is a very strong episode. We get a much better idea of what makes’ Sloane tick, how her mind works in abeyance, the struggles she faces as someone in that state. We also get to see a Narrative Intrusion handled in a way we’re not used to (and we’re not the only ones who think that way).

Best of all, the ending sets up a potentially very exciting episode or more for the future. Possibly even the bulk of the series. Unlike the last episode, I thought this one displayed the strengths of this episodic method of story telling, and I’m looking forward to Episode 5 with a larger sense of anticipation than I have the rest of the series.

Sizzling Sixteen by Janet Evanovich

By HCNewton

On July 4, 2013

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

Sizzling Sixteen by Janet Evanovich
Series: Stephanie Plum, #16

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

When it comes to books in a series — particularly one that I’ve read more than 3 of (so the Plum books qualify several times over) — I don’t bother to read the back cover, I just want to read whatever’s next. So I had no idea how tough a sell this book would be for me until I got a few pages into it.

Vinnie Plum is probably my least favorite character in the Plum books (well, other than Joyce Barnhardt, now that I think of it). His character isn’t that interesting, almost never contributes anything to the story that couldn’t be handled by someone less-skeevy, say, Connie. So when the big story of the novel is going to be about rescuing Vinnie, I’m not going to be that invested. Actually, I’m going to root against Stephanie and her crew saving the day. A happy ending to this book would be Vinnie getting capped and Connie taking over. Or, fine, if he has to live — he’s so shaken by the experience that he sells his business to Ranger.

Of course, I knew that this is a Stephanie Plum novel, so the odds of that happening are pretty low, if not non-existent. Typically, everything resets at the end of the novel, and that status is quo going forth.

So, I had to seek fulfillment elsewhere — how many cars will Steph blow up? (her car’s in the shop for mechanical difficulty, of all things, when the book starts) Will Lula’s diet and the breaking of it annoy me? (not too bad, really) Will Stephanie’s efforts to bring in a pretty easy FTA or two be stupid flops, or actually funny? (eh, not bad…not as funny as they could’ve been, but not annoyingly stupid) Will Grandma Mazur’s antics seem like they’d be a better fit for The Nanny‘s grandmother than a crime novel? That kind of thing.

And overall, Evanovich pulled it off. This isn’t her at her best, but it’s her doing her thing. It’ll satisfy long-time readers, but probably wouldn’t win a first-timer. Pleasant enough way to spend 300 pages.

Death Wore White by Jim Kelly

By HCNewton

On July 3, 2013

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

It’s one of those nights where sleep has been dogging my steps, and there’s a part of me that’s not sure how coherent this will be (I’ve read and reread and rewritten a few times to help with that, but it wouldn’t surprise me if I missed the mark a time or two. Hope not!

—–

Death Wore White by Jim Kelly

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

At the end of the day, there was a lot more going on here than there is in a typical detective novel — police procedural or not; British police or American police — most just don’t have as much happening. This makes for a richer, although not necessarily more satisfying, police procedural.

Like most mystery novels, there are really 2 things going on here — you’ve got a character story, and a mystery storyline. In this case there are five mysteries, technically — and it’s unclear for most of the book just how related they are (or if they are). Sure, given the fact that three bodies are found with suspicious causes of death in pretty much the same area within a day or two of each other, odds are pretty good they’re at least semi-related, but one can’t be sure until everything has been solved — another body shows up after the investigation has gone on a day or two. Each method of killing is radically different, there are doesn’t appear to be any tangible connections between the victims, adding another puzzle. I briefly lost the thread on a couple of the murders a time or two, but I think that’s more my fault than Kelly’s (although, he could’ve worked a little harder to prevent that).

The fifth mystery is really tied into the character story. DI Peter Shaw is a very (almost too) talented and by-the-book detective, recently partnered with DS George Valentine, a more experienced detective still laboring under the weight of scandal and infamy due to his not-so by-the-book ways. It should be noted, that DI Shaw’s equally scandal-ladened father used to be Valentine’s partner. While trying to solve the other crimes, these two men try to decide if they can — and how they can — work together, and maybe even trust and rely on each other. This is where the weight of the book lies. Eventually, Shaw will try to reopen the case that forever altered the careers of his father and Valentine.

Kelly weaved a very complex story — maybe a touch on the too-complex side, but not so far as to render this unenjoyable. Not a laugh-a-minute type of enjoyable, but a good puzzle or five to figure out.

There were a lot of extraneous materials added into this book — which points to Kelly’s intention to make this into a series, more than it does a weakness. He’s making sure the main characters, as well as the supporting characters, are well-rounded, with complex back-stories that he both establishes and draws upon here. This is a real strength of the novel, although you’re frequently wondering “who cares?” to some of this — it slows the narrative a bit, and occasionally seems extraneous. Which is kind of is, and Kelly just doesn’t care. This time out, anyway, it works. I’m not sure it would every time.

It’s not the strongest procedural, or mystery novel in general, that I’ve read this year — but it did what it was supposed to, and introduced the readers to what I bet will be pretty interesting series, populated by characters that seem real enough that you’d be half-tempted to expect to see at the police station in the flesh.

Dusted Off: Play Dead by David Rosenfelt

By HCNewton

On July 2, 2013

In Andy Carpenter, Authors, David Rosenfelt, Fiction, Mystery/Detective Fiction/Crime Fiction/Thriller, P-U

Play Dead by David Rosenfelt
Series: Andy Carpenter, #6

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

In any PI/Legal/etc. mystery novel, there’s always the question of whether or not you like the client. Sure, you’re always rooting for the hero, that’s why you picked up the book. But the client’s frequently a question. Not so in this case–Rosenfelt goes right for the heart straightaway, having Andy defend a Golden Retriever from a certain death. How can you not fall in love with that client? The dog then leads Andy to help out his owner–wrongly convicted of murder. You’re all-in, no two ways about it.

Like most Andy Carpenter books, I spent about 1/3 (or more) of it, wondering why Andy wasn’t looking into a couple of the most obvious lines of investigation. But, oh well, even when he’s being frustratingly dense, it’s nothing but fun spending time in his world.

Solid mystery, some good tense scenes, and plenty of laughs. Great read.