5 stars out of 5
Totally engrossing. Riveting, even. Wow - what an amazing book! It's the first I've read by this author, and apparently it's a departure from her usual paranormal fare. If that's true, I hope she strays again and again - this one is extraordinarily good. Not to compare the stories, but from start to finish the style reminded me of "Where the Crawdads Sing," the best-seller by Delia Owens that without question is one of the best books I've read in my rather lengthy lifetime.
Aside from simply being an entertaining story, the character development is outstanding, as are the descriptions of the New Zealand surroundings that, before now, were totally unfamiliar to me (the author lives there, though, so I guess I shouldn't be surprised at that). Then there's the suspense; even though it's told in something of a matter-of-fact manner, at the end of every single chapter I'd glance at the clock and ask myself, "Do I have time for just one more?" For the record, if there was the slightest hint of doubt, my answer always was yes.
As the story opens, Anahera Rawiri, a classical pianist, has come home to her native Golden Cove, New Zealand, after living in London with her husband, who unexpectedly died. As she begins to touch base with old friends, she meets the new and only police officer in town, Will Gallagher. He's good-looking, single, and - of course - manages to get on Ana's bad side. But the two form a truce of sorts after Miriama, the beautiful and talented girl with a bright future who works in Ana's friend Josie's tea shop, suddenly goes missing. The search to find her brings together the townspeople, who roam the sometimes dangerous seaside cliffs and forests. Then it's learned that her disappearance may be tied into similar cases of missing young women in years past. It also conjures up memories of the good and not-so-good times Ana spent here with her friends - one of whom just may be a serial killer.
As readers learn more about the complex characters, we follow along and make our own assessments as to who might be guilty. For sure I did - and boy, did I ever guess wrong. But wrong doesn't mean disappointed; in fact, not getting it right led me to even greater respect for the author's writing talents. In the end, I have no reservations whatsoever about deeming this one of the top three books I read in 2019. Many thanks to the publisher, via NetGalley, for the opportunity to read an advance copy.
A Madness of Sunshine by Nalini Singh (Berkley, December 2019); 352 pp.
3 stars out of 5
With the possible exception of a book detailing the battles of World War II, I think it would be hard to find one with a body count as high as this one. If blood and guts in just about every chapter is your thing, you'll love everything about it. Honestly, multiple murders, no matter how gruesome, usually don't bother me, but too many happen here that just don't seem to be justified even if the victims are really, really bad guys.
In this case, they're members of rival Albanian and Ukrainian gangs who have made an uneasy peace running their loan shark and "protection" rackets in the smallish town where the bus carrying Jack Reacher to just about anywhere makes a pitstop. As he's about to step off, Reacher sees an about-to-happen robbery of an elderly man and steps in to thwart it. He then learns the man and his wife have borrowed money from the wrong people, resulting in dire consequences if it's not repaid pronto. Taking pity on the couple - who were victims of circumstances with which most readers would sympathize - Reacher decides to do what he can to take care of the problem. Temporarily, at least, his idea works - but it doesn't take Reacher long to realize he's put himself smack dab in the middle of a turf war with the take-no-prisoners gangs. If he's going to make things all better - even with a little help from a couple of brawny friends and one tiny but tough waitress - Reacher himself must adopt a take-no-prisoners approach.
In addition to the murders are numerous car chases, narrow escapes and, of course the wry humor for which Reacher (via the author) is known. One in particular tickled me, as he and the waitress drive the mob getaway car they've stolen (but not before loading three newly deceased mobsters in the trunk. As the back end of the car bounces into the road multiple times during their getaway, those extra 600 pounds, Reacher muses, were "Maybe never taken into account during the Lincoln's design process."
All told, the book is easy to read and entertaining, if perhaps a bit implausible (the extensive deductive reasoning of Reacher and his cronies alone is daunting, to say the least). If you like your heroes strong in mind and body and love constant knock-'em-down, shoot-'em-up action, this one's for you. For me, it was just a little too far over the top.
Blue Moon by Lee Child (Dell, October 2019); 359 pp.
5 stars out of 5
As a die-hard fan of this author - especially his Detective Erika Foster series - I was delighted to learn of his newest venture, of which this book marks the debut. I was thrilled when I snagged a copy through Amazon's First Reads program, and now that I'm finished, I'm over-the-top happy; in many ways, I like "new" heroine Kate Marshall even better than Foster.
Adding plenty of background "baggage" is, I'm pretty sure, Rule No. 1 in the Heroines 101 class; and to be sure, Kate has more than her share. A former police detective who was working on the case of the "Nine Elms Cannibal" some 15 years earlier, unsavory details about her personal life emerged, resulting in her leaving the force. Now, she lectures on criminology at a small university on England's South Coast; her parents have custody of her 14-year-old son. As the story begins, she's on her way home when she gets a call from her former boss, who tells her a girl's body has been found with bite marks and other similarities to the M.O. of the original serial killer. But it can't be him - he's still in prison ever since he was convicted 15 years ago.
Apparently, then, there's a copycat killer on the loose. But while he (or she) is successfully mimicking the original killer's techniques, further evidence is virtually nonexistent. Kate, though, is not about to walk away; enlisting help from her university research assistant, Tristan Harper, she sets out to put the bite on the copycat. But unbeknownst to her, those efforts may put her in the crosshairs of a murderer who is equally intent on taking a bite out of her.
Exciting, fast-paced from beginning to end, this is one of the best new-series entries I've read in a long time. Now I'm eagerly awaiting the next one, which, the author says, is titled "Shadow Sands." Bring it on!
Nine Elms by Robert Bryndza (Thomas & Mercer, December 2019); 392 pp.
5 stars out of 5
This may be one of the shortest books I've read in a while, but by golly, it's got more twists and surprises in it than one three times its length. That brought another plus: That meant I didn't want to put it down - and I didn't have to!
I'll give the author props for something else; all too often, with female characters in situations like this (more on that later), at least one of them is such a hand-wringing, self-doubting, paranoid person that all I really want to do is smack her upside the head. Not so here - even when Darcy, a single mother who's struggling from the devastating loss of her husband, disapproval from her late husband's family and trust issues with the new man in her life. Oh sure, she has her emotional ups and downs, but at no time did I yell into my Kindle, "Get a grip, woman - put on your big-girl pants and move on!"
Following some kind of mental breakdown after her husband died, his parents took custody of her two young sons. Now, she's trying to prove she's capable of taking them back to live with her. Early on, one of her sons suffers a severe asthma attack and his rescue inhaler is nowhere to be found. Enter George, a local doctor, who runs in to save the day. His good looks and single-parent status aren't wasted on Darcy (nor are hers on him), and - you guessed it - they start what Darcy hopes will be a beautiful relationship.
Shortly after she and her boys move into George's fancy mansion, though, she gets a bunch of flowers with a dire message. George claims they're from an ex-girlfriend who's now stalking him, but he's not forthcoming with details. Darcy is concerned that she's not getting the whole story, but she's reluctant to ask because, as it happens, she's got a few secrets she's not ready to share with George.
Plenty of other intriguing characters keep the pot stirred, including a long-time housekeeper who isn't happy that Darcy may be usurping her job and a woman who, shall we say, came between Darcy and her late husband. It all comes to an exciting end as new details are revealed, making for a book well worth the time to read. Many thanks to the publisher, via NetGalley, for the opportunity to read an advance copy.
Single by K.L. Slater (Bookouture, November 2019); 143 pp.
4.5 stars out of 5
After reading the first two books that brought together retired LAPD detective Harry Bosch and detective Renee Ballard - giving each 5 stars - I was eager to read this one. I loved it as well, albeit not quite as much as the other two. It's hard to put my finger on why, but I think for the most part it was because Bosch just didn't seem to have his whole heart in the game. Granted, he's nearly 70 years old with a couple of health issues, but somehow he lacked his usual enthusiasm for the tasks at hand.
Nonetheless, this is not to be missed if you're a fan of Bosch and Ballard; both get plenty of read time here, as does Bosch's infamous half-brother Mickey Haller (the "Lincoln Lawyer," remember)? Mix them all together, stir them up and you've got a winning recipe for an enjoyable book that holds attention throughout (well, mine, at least). It begins as Bosch attends the funeral of a former LAPD partner and mentor; his widow invites Bosch back to their home, saying her late husband had something she was to give to Bosch. It's a murder book that his old partner had taken home from him when he retired 20 years earlier (had stolen, actually). But looking through it, Bosch can't figure out why the book was so important; so he shares it with Ballard and enlists her help with figuring out what to do next.
Meanwhile, Ballard, who works the midnight shift, lands an official case of her own; a homeless man dies when the street tent in which he's sleeping catches fire. At first, it appears to have been an accident - but further investigation raises a real possibility of murder. So now, she must follow up on that case as part of her job, trying to follow up on Bosch's mystery as time allows (thank goodness she doesn't need much sleep)!
Although the three storylines are well thought out, as always, the main attraction is the interaction between Bosch and Ballard (and Bosch and Haller). All told, this one stands on its own quite well. Bring on the next!
The Night Fire by Michael Connelly (Little, Brown and Co., October 2019); 417 pp.
5 stars out of 5
If I ever made a list of my 10 favorite book "heroines," Josie Quinn would be in there somewhere. Yes, she's got emotional baggage as a result of an extremely abusive childhood, but unlike way too many other lead characters with similar backgrounds, she doesn't whimper and whine about it and gets on with her life in fine fettle (excepting perhaps those awful nightmares). That life, for the record, includes her duties as a detective in largely rural parts of Pennsylvania and Noah, a partner both professionally and personally (for the record, I like him a lot as well).
As this episode begins, Josie and Noah are called out when two bodies are found at a remote campground about half a mile from Cold Heart Creek. At first blush, it appears that they were poisoned - even, perhaps, in a suicide pact. But further investigation changes the outlook in two ways: They are murder victims, and there was a third camper at the site who is inexplicably missing.
The search for clues makes a significant stop at a fenced-in section of private property called The Sanctuary, a haven for societal misfits who, according to commune leader and property owner Charlotte, need to find themselves. Although all the residents are willing to answer questions, Josie and Noah are pretty sure they're not being totally honest. Then, on the drive home, Josie nearly collides with a very pregnant woman staggering out of the woods - who proceeds to give birth in Josie's car. When she's finally identified and hospitalized, the woman claims to have been kidnapped two years ago and held captive in some of the remote caves that dot the region. The plot thickens even more when a young girl Josie met at the commune turns up dead.
Admittedly, there are bits and pieces that stretch credulity a bit, but overall this is a book I really didn't want to put down and could have finished in a day had the facts of my personal life not intervened. And while I have read and enjoyed other books in the series, this one stands quite well on its own. I do thank the publisher, via NetGalley, for the opportunity to read and review a pre-release copy.
Cold Heart Creek by Lisa Regan (Bookouture, December 2019); 1969 KB).
5 stars out of 5
When it comes to carrying on the legend
of the late Robert B. Parker's Spenser, Ace Atkins hit the ground running from the git-go; almost always, I'm impressed with the similarities to the originals and always look forward to the latest installment. In this one, I'd say he's hit it out of the park in that regard.
Here, Spenser goes Hollywood, hired by a friend of his main squeeze, psychologist Susan Silverman, to find her missing daughter. Far from his familiar Boston haunts, Spenser hooks up with former apprentice Zebulon Sixkill, who headed about as far west from Massachusetts as he could to ply the trade he learned from the master.
The girl, Gabrielle Leggett, hasn't spoken with her mother in 10 days, and a search of her trashed apartment raises suspicions of foul play. Spenser and "Z" learn that Gabby had been dating a high-powered movie mogul, who in turn may have ties to a local Armenian mob and/or a shady self-help group with which Gabby has become enamored (willingly or not, that is the question).
None of this bodes well, of course, but despite threats of fates worse than death if they continue to investigate, the coastal private-eye pair keep on digging (with a little help from Chollo, another old friend. There are ups and downs, ins and outs, but in the end, they manage to get to the bottom of things as usual. I was especially happy to see more of Susan, who surprisingly gets personally involved in the investigation. Conspicuous by his absence once again is Spenser's loyal sidekick Hawk - perhaps my only disappointment because I love the guy. That said, he's the only character from Parker's books whose personality and dialogue Atkins never quite nailed down, IMHO, so maybe that's a good thing.
Bottom line? Well-written, intriguing story that serves the series well - so Spenser fans, don't skip this one. Many thanks to the publisher, via NetGalley, for allowing me to read and review an advance copy.
Robert B. Parker's Angel Eyes by Ace Atkins (G.P. Putnam's Sons, November 2019); 320 pp.
Totally engrossing. Riveting, even. Wow - what an amazing book! It's the first I've read by this author, and apparently it's a departure from her usual paranormal fare. If that's true, I hope she strays again and again - this one is extraordinarily good. Not to compare the stories, but from start to finish the style reminded me of "Where the Crawdads Sing," the best-seller by Delia Owens that without question is one of the best books I've read in my rather lengthy lifetime.
