Tag: Lee Goldberg

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

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

The Heist by Janet Evanovich & Lee Goldberg

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On June 26, 2013

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

The Heist
The Heist by Janet Evanovich and Lee Goldberg
Series: Fox and O’Hare, #1

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Despite being a big fan of Lee Goldberg and Janet Evanovich, the prequel to this (Pros and Cons) left me apprehensive about The Heist. But I’m, so, so glad that I went ahead and picked this up.

Kate O’Hare’s a top-notch, driven FBI agent, cream of the crop type, who’s obsessed with bringing down Nick Fox, an equally driven and top-notch con man. After years of trying, she finally gets the cuffs on him, only to find herself thrown into an unwilling alliance with her target in an off-book mission to bring down some of the FBI’s most-wanted and most-difficult to catch. And then the globe-trotting hijinks ensue.

There are a few moments that are pretty heavy-handed, and early-on the humor is a little broader than it needed to be. But on the whole, this is a fun read. I was initially tempted to go over some of the laugh and/or smile generating lines and try to guess which author came up with them, but soon gave that up and just enjoyed them (I’m still pretty sure I could get 70% or better on a test of them).

The temptation would be to focus on Fox, O’Hare and their target. But Evanovich & Goldberg are sure to give the reader a decent amount of supporting characters — providing other people for the protagonists to react to, other perspectives for us to see the protagonists through, as well as people whose possession of skills Fox/O’Hare don’t have keep them from being total super-hero types. They need a team of experts to get them through this mission, and thankfully, the experts here are pretty amusing. I’m not sure I need to see most of them again — I’m not opposed to it, but it would be interesting to have an ever-changing team working with them. Other than O’Hare’s father, anyway — it’s clear he’s sticking around, as he should.

I’ve seen a few reviews on Goodreads compare this to USA’s White Collar — and I get that (tho’ Neal and Peter have a very different chemistry). But this feels more like Remington Steele to me — a tough, no-nonsense female investigator and a suave and debonair con man with an historic pop-culture obsession thrown together in an uneasy partnership with more than enough sexual tension to spare.*

Fun story, fun characters, with good action (and yet no one has a car get blown up!!), and some laughs. Promising start to a new series, I’m coming back for more!

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* Only thought of the Remington Steele comparison when I was about halfway through this, and now I’m pretty sure I’m going to be seeing Stephanie Zimbalist and Pierce Brosnan in my mind next time I read one of these.

Mr. Monk Gets Even by Lee Goldberg

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On June 4, 2013

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

Okay, so I could post this, earlier this morning I posted the (surprisingly) few other reviews I’d written on this series. Not sure why I don’t have all 15 up here. Who knows, maybe another time. But for now, at least, we have the last entries in the series covered. Concluding with one of the best and most enjoyable, Mr. Monk Gets Even.

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Mr. Monk Gets Even (Mr. Monk, #15)Mr. Monk Gets Even by Lee Goldberg

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I put off reading this book for a couple of days after receiving it, I just didn’t want the ride with Goldberg at the helm to end. Since Mr. Monk Goes to the Firehouse, Goldberg has taken the (great) characters from the TV show and given us sides/dimensions to them that the show didn’t have time or opportunity to develop. This is particularly true after the finale episode where Goldberg didn’t have to worry about contradicting the show’s canon, but was free to grow the characters…to add new ones, to make significant life changes and so on.

And when it comes to serialized detective fiction — no matter the medium, it’s the characters that count. Yes, the plots and mysteries need to be enough to hold your interest — and you need a laugh or two when the series is along the lines of Monk; and Goldberg can do that just fine. But what brings viewers and readers back again and again.

Mr. Monk Gets Even handles the character stuff flawlessly. To send himself off with a bang–Goldberg brings back Dale the Whale, larger and more preposterous than ever; Stottlemeyer’s career and life are in jeopardy; Monk may be wrong; Ambrose (I’d pay for Ambrose books written by Goldberg) reaches another major milestone; and, of course, Natalie is at a crossroads, too. And that’s just the major points. Shouldn’t forget some of the most prominent use of Julie Teeger in any medium.

Goldberg does it all with panache, respect for the characters, a lotta laughs, and just the right emotional moments to bring his time with the series to a close.

Great read.

Dusted Off: Mr. Monk on the Couch by Lee Goldberg

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On June 4, 2013

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

Mr. Monk on the CouchMr. Monk on the Couch by Lee Goldberg
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Not at all surprisingly, Goldberg delivered yet again. It seems the man can’t write a bad book–which is fine with me.

This book is more about Natalie than usual, about her growth as an investigator–spurred by her work with Monk. As such, it’s probably one of the more emotionally satisfying of this long series. We also get some good development of the new lieutenant brought in by Goldberg to replace Lt. Disher following the TV series’ finale.

I can’t think of much to say about this that doesn’t fall into spoiler territory (or is a rehash of the backcover copy). Funny, good whodunit, and some nice character moments. All you can ask for.

Pros and Cons: A Short Story by Janet Evanovich & Lee Goldberg

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On May 31, 2013

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

I spent the better part of an hour writing a different review this morning — it wasn’t as good as I wanted it to be, but I’d worked on it a lot. And then I lost it. One stupid, wrong and mostly stupid click of the mouse and …poof. Didn’t have time to try to recreate it, but wanted to post something new today. And hey, I just purchased the Evanovich/Goldberg short story, Pros and Cons. Perfect! That’d fit the bill. Right? well…

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Pros and Cons: A Short Story (O'Hare and Fox, #0.5)Pros and Cons: A Short Story by Janet Evanovich and Lee Goldberg
Series: Fox and O’Hare, #0.5

My rating: 2 of 5 stars

I’ve been eagerly awaiting The Heist since it was first announced — I’m a big fan of both Janet Evanovich and Lee Goldberg, so when this short story prequel was released I couldn’t resist.

I probably should have found the will power. This, at best, was not bad. Amusing at times, but most of the humor felt forced. Even then, the humor was overly broad most of the time. Worse than that, the story was chock-full of exposition dumps that are almost worthy of Dan Brown.

That said, I’ve read almost 30 books by these two over the years and have no doubt that the novels are going to be better. The primary characters — Agent O’Hare and scoundrel Fox, are promising and chock-full of potential. Sure, I’m a little less enthused about The Heist than I was yesterday, but I’ll get over that once it’s in my hot little hands.

Short version: Skip this tease, come back for the real thing.

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