THE MATCH

5 stars out of 5

I loved the first book in this series, The Boy from the Woods, so I was super excited to get my hands on a pre-release copy of this, the second (many thanks to the publisher via NetGalley). I certainly wasn't disappointed, although I must say I was never worried in the slightest - I've loved every single book I've read by this talented and prolific author. 

The central character, known as Wilde, is a grown man who, as a young boy, was found living in the Ramapo mountains of New Jersey. He has no memory of a family, or how he got to the woods - but he's managed to carve out a successful life that includes graduation from West Point. Still, he remains for the most part reclusive; and his closest friend, the son of feisty attorney Hester Crimstein, has died. His love interest is David's widow, Laila, but even to her, he's unable to make a serious commitment.

As this one begins, Wilde apparently has found his father through a DNA website. They meet, but the man - who has a wife and family and lives in Nevada - has no knowledge of fathering another child since, he says, he's always been faithful to his wife. Well, almost; it seems he sowed some wild oats while in the military stationed in Europe - basically one-night-stands with eight women whose names he doesn't remember.

As all this transpires and Wilde tries to decide where to go next, readers get a glimpse of an uber-clandestine group called Boomerang. The group keeps their identities top secret, even from each other; their mission is to exact vigilante-style payback on folks who have done nasty things to other folks. After careful consideration of proposals submitted online, they pick and choose which cases to follow up. 

Hester comes into play after her grandson, Matthew (David's son) tells her he's worried about not hearing from Wilde from far too long. Wilde, who's been laying low and focusing on finding out who he really is and why he was left in the woods, gets a text from a man who claims to be his cousin. That guy, as it happens, has made quite name for himself in the reality show business - and not necessarily a good one. The rest of the book follows Wilde's attempt to locate his real relatives and work on relationships with the people he loves as much as he's capable of (yes, he does reconnect with Matthew, Hester and Laila, but you'll just have to read it to get the details). Trust me, it's quite a ride that leads up to a bit of a surprise ending (nope, not gonna spill the beans on that, either). As for me, I just have to dial down my impatience level while I wait to get my hands on the next installment!

The Match by Harlan Coben (Grand Central Publishing, March 2022); 400 pp.

THE FINAL TWIST

4.5 stars out of 5

This action-packed adventure, the third in a series featuring Colter Shaw, begins as the self-described "reward seeker" is trying to follow clues left by his late father, Ashton, a well-educated man who, with Colter's mother Mary Dove and their children, left mainstream life to opt for a survivalist existence. Over the years, Ashton fought against what he considered to be corrupt corporations, including one named BlackBridge Corporate Solutions. One of that company's employees, it seems, not only turned up evidence of some kind of serious wrongdoing, but stole it; that man, now dead, apparently hid that evidence and Colter hopes to find it.

But almost before his investigation gets started, Colter is attacked by some very bad guys; on the verge of being killed and bringing the series to an abrupt end, he's saved at the last minute by a man who turns out to be his brother Russell. That comes as a total shock to Colter, who hasn't seen or heard from his brother in more than 10 years. The two of them meeting up after all this time and getting to re-know each other (well, as much as their secretive lives will allow) is a big part of the story that follows.

As all this is sorted out, Colter gets an assignment on his day job, which basically is a finder of missing persons; in this case, it's a daughter who's gone missing. The reward money is minuscule - the mother can scrape together $1,750 at most - but he sympathizes and agrees to take the case (thus providing a secondary storyline for the book). Most everything else is action, all underscored by flashbacks to the intense, hard-core survival training the brothers got from their late father. 

So what prompted me to give this book fewer than the five stars I gave the other two (The Never Game and The Goodbye Man)? Because for the first third or so it somehow felt disjointed - like I was missing something and couldn't quite figure out what. But then I realized it's been a while since I read the previous book - and if I'm honest, I have to admit that because I read so many books in a given year (141 in 2020), once I reach that final page and finish writing my review of any given one, I've forgotten most of what was between the pages. The good news is that I went back and reread those earlier reviews, and most of what I was reading now became much more clear. My advice, then, is this: If you haven't read at least one of the first two books in this series, do it before you tackle this one. You won't be sorry, because they're both terrific.

In the end, this one, too, is an exciting, well-written tale with an entertaining plot and intriguing characters that left me looking forward to the next installment. Thanks to the publisher, via NetGalley, for providing me with a pre-release copy to read and review.

The Final Twist by Jeffery Deaver (G.P. Putnam's Sons, May 2021); 416 pp.

THE LOST ISLAND

4 stars out of 5

There's no shortage of action in this, the third in the series featuring Dr. Gideon Crew - a thief turned scientist with a terminal illness that could take his life at any given moment. As one might expect, that means he's got nothing much to lose, so he's willing to go where no man has gone before.

And man, he does exactly that. I enjoyed it thoroughly - in some ways even more than the first two - but I warn that you'll need more than a modicum of creative imagination to get through it; some parts (make that most parts) cross over to the realm of fantasy. Still, it's fun, moves along quickly and, all in all, didn't dampen my enthusiasm for the series in the slightest.

This one begins as Gideon is brought in to steal a page from the Book of Kells, which is on display in New York City under seemingly impenetrable security. Of course, he pulls it off - only to deliver it to his "boss," the invalid Eli Glinn, who promptly dunks it in something to remove the text and drawings to reveal an ancient treasure map. But all that glitters isn't gold; rather, it's a long-hidden secret that could change the course of both Gideon and Glinn.

Together with a young, beautiful woman named Amy (with whom he was ordered to partner up), he sets off on a journey that traces those of ancient Greeks and takes them to never-before-seen territory. There, they discover - well, you'll just have to read the book to find out what - but suffice it to say the adventure nearly costs them their lives.

I wasn't sure whether a fourth book will be forthcoming, but after finishing this one, it's pretty clear there's one in the works. Count me among those on the waiting list!

The Lost Island by Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child (Grand Central Publishing, August 2014); 368 pp.

LOVE POISON

4 stars out of 5

Let's get the nitty gritty stuff out of the way first: I obtained this book free (Kindle version) because I promised to write an honest review. So it shall be - and here goes:


Overall, this is an enjoyable book that moves along quickly; it's part action/adventure, part mystery and part romance (the latter of which isn't even close to my "thing," but more on that later). The main characters, Amber Wilson and Mark Staunton (Amber's boss) work at GenFun Laboratory in New York at which, among other things, varieties of mushrooms are being tested. When Amber, a lab assistant, accidentally knocks over one of the containers while she's trying to escape an office party, she panics and stuffs the ones that hit the floor into her purse. Not long afterward, she bumps into Mark, who sees a silvery substance on her face and wipes it off (hmmmm, could this be the first clue to a budding romance? Bosses I've worked with simply would have told her to wipe it off herself or said nothing at all).

Almost immediately, Mark is transformed into a party animal; he shocks and awes Amber with hugs and a big smooch, after which she hightails it home (I should mention that she's got relationship issues). Mark hangs around and ends up doing his lovey-dovey thing with the company CEO's daughter - never a smart thing to do. This time it turns so ugly that Mark is fired from his job even though he claims to not remember a thing (aye, maybe there's the rub; what self-respecting boss's daughter wants to be forgotten that fast)?

When she learns what happened, Amber - ever the alert lab tech - concludes that Mark's actions must be a result of exposure to the fluorescent mushroom dust. Instantly, I was reminded of one of my favorite punny jokes: Why was the mushroom a popular party guest? Because he's a real fungi! I groaned - and groaned again when the red-capped 'shrooms were likened to a part of the male anatomy (no doubt you can guess which one that might be). That image also made me rethink my love of whole mushrooms, but on the other hand I suspect that next time I need to chop them up I'll be chuckling every slice of the way.

Amber doesn't escape the company's wrath, either; she's shown the door for "stealing" the mushrooms. As she and Mark commiserate on their job losses and the odd effects on libido and sense of euphoria the dust triggered, they begin to recognize the potential for further development of some kind of drug even though it has no apparent effect on women. Instead of marketing it as a sex drug - how repulsive -  they theorize that it might have potential as an antidepressant. 

Ultimately, Amber and Mark decide to pair up to start a company and find more of the plants for testing. It turns out they came from New Zealand where (coincidentally, of course) Mark spent many years and thus is familiar with the territory. So, they gather up cash, a credit card and about a day's worth of clothing and set off in search of the source.

And that's where the trouble begins. Early on, they learn that a tribe of Maori mobsters is running  its own love scheme involving the same mushrooms. Recognizing a good thing when they've got it, the Maori don't take kindly to Mark and Amber, considering them a threat to the much-tattooed tribe's thriving business. Things quickly go from bad to worse as dead bodies start piling up - as does the possibility that Amber and Mark may be next on the growing list of victims.

As an aside, along with enjoying the adventure side of this book, I happily learned quite a bit about New Zealand, a country that's been on my want-to-visit bucket list for years. I had no idea, for instance, that eucalyptus trees grow all over the place but there are no koalas to munch on their leaves. Go figure. 

If I'm less than delighted with anything, it's romance part (but keep in mind what I said earlier - I'm not fond of bodice-rippers). My objection isn't that it's intrusive - in fact, it's quite well done. But when Amanda goes into hand-wringing angst, over-analyzing every word Mark says and turning cow-eyed when she so much as bumps up against his elbow, it's a little much for me. Chalk it up to old age and being married for 53 years, but I prefer my heroines a tad less sappy when it comes to affairs of the heart. That said, the action makes up for it, and in the end all the threads (including the romance) get woven together quite nicely to make the story complete with no hanging chads.

Except maybe one. Shalimar perfume by Guerlain, once recorded in the Guinness Book of World Records as the most expensive perfume in the world, is Amber's signature scent despite the fact that she spent quite a bit of time caring for her dying mother and doesn't appear to have much money. I consider myself far from poor, but unless I planned to eat a Ramen noodles every day for a year, there's no way I could afford it - so I'd love to sniff out her secret.

Oh yes, one last thing: As I neared the end of the book, I was struck by the notion that, with a minimum of tweaking, this would make a terrific movie. Just off the top of my head, I'm thinking Matthew McConaughey as Mark and a red-wigged Reese Witherspoon as Amber. Why not read the book and see what you think?

Love Poison by Pete Barber (Red Adept Publishing LLC, September 2014); 324 pp.)