Tag: book

The Blue Hour, by T. Jefferson Parker

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Cover ImageFinished 7-1-08, rating 3/5, thriller, pub. 2000

“Use the years to live well.”    Chapter 35

Retired detective, Tim Hess, is asked to come back to work as a consultant.  Hess is taking chemo and radiation treatments and will be forced to take orders from a young, brash detective that has just sued her last partner for sexual harassment.   He takes the job and is hoping to pass on his years of wisdom to his partner, Merci.  Merci, for her part, is an ambitious woman who has not yet figured out how to play well with others.  They are tracking a serial killer and using the time to learn what each other has to offer.

I liked Hess, but not Merci.  I thought the mystery was good and moved fast.  I did not really like the last chapter, it didn’t seem to fit in with the rest of the book.  I didn’t love it, but it was good.  This is the first in a series just about Merci and I’m curious to see if she softens enough for me to really like her as the series progresses.  We’ll see.

Skinny Dip, by Carl Hiaasen

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Cover ImageFinished 6-7-08, rating 3.5/5, fiction, pub. 2004

“At the stroke of eleven on a cool April night, a woman named Joey Perrone went overboard from a luxury deck of the cruise liner M.M. Sun Duchess.  Plunging toward the dark Atlantic, Joey was too dumbfounded to panic.

I married an asshole, she thought, knifing headfirst into the waves.”   –First three sentences of the book

Chaz throws his wife over the side of the cruise ship that they happen to be on to celebrate their 2nd wedding anniversary.  He has planned and thinks that he has done everything right, the perfect crime.  Only Joey is rescued by ex-cop, Mick.  Revenge is sweet and Joey, instead of going to the police decides to play dead and drive her husband crazy.

Chaz has no redeeming qualities, except in bed, but even that skill has abandoned him after he kills Joey.  He is also a man on the take and his benefactor gets nervous and sends a bodyguard named Tool.  The detective on the case knows something is wrong, but can’t prove anything.  Chaz slowly unravels and tries to commit another murder and then one after that. 

I enjoyed this very much.  It was fun and zany and had all of the crazy characters you’d expect from Hiaasen.  I only wish Joey had more depth.  Tool was the character with the most growth and that was  an interesting choice for Hiaasen to make.  Not a bad one, just a little unexpected.  This is my second Hiassen novel and while I preferred the first one this one is good too.

Red Leaves, by Paullina Simons

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Cover ImageFinished 5-30-08, rating 4/5, fiction, pub. 1996

“This world isn’t a black amoral hole where your actions have no meaning, and where nothing you do matters.  Did you ever think of the people you hurt?”

“They weren’t strong.  I didn’t ask them to be hurt.”                                Chapter 9

 This book has been on my bookshelf for so long that I can’t even remember why I picked it up in the first place.  There is a two paragraph blurb on the back that did not do the book justice and, in fact, seems to misrepresent the book itself.  So, with that said, I LOVED this book and encourage you to put it on your reading list.

Kristina, Conni, Albert, and Jim were a foursome since freshman year at Dartmouth.  They were seniors now and the fractured friendships were showing signs of wear.  Kristina and Jim were having problems and Conni was convinced that Albert was sleeping with Kristina.  Kristina just wants to start over with a clean slate and thinks maybe meeting detective Spencer O’Malley is her chance.  This description only covers the first fourth of the book or so, but to say more would ruin it.

The layers of mystery and intrigue are perfectly done.  I was so wrapped up in Kristina, Spencer, and the murder that I couldn’t put it down.  The players in this drama were so full of themselves and it was fascinating to see the character flaws that led them to do questionable things.  Only Spencer remains seemingly untouched by the dark side of human nature.

If you love mystery and drama with all the trimmings of money, greed, envy and love, you will love this book.  Highly recommended.

Enemy Combatant by Ed Gaffney

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Cover ImageFinished 5-9-08, rating 4/5, fiction, pub. 2008

Defense Attorney Tom Carpenter is a man who believes in the law.  His father was a prosecutor and Tom has made a living of keeping the system of justice in balance by providing an excellent defense for even those who may not deserve it.  So, it is no surprise that he is suddenly defending Juan Gomez, enemy combatant.  Juan finds himself charged with the greatest act of terrorism since 9-11 and Tom is positive that he is fighting a losing battle.

Tom comes to the realization that all is not as it seems with the case against Gomez when he and his family are repeatedly threatened.  Tom is held at gunpoint, shot at, shot (all at different times by different people) and finally considered an enemy combatant himself.  His family is depending on him and time is running out for Tom and Gomez.

I could not put this book down.  I kept telling myself that I’d stop after one more chapter, but couldn’t seem to follow through.  This is an edge of your seat, timely thriller.  The themes of justice, terrorism, and government post 9-11 are scary and make for a compelling thriller.  You will be drawn in from the very first chapter.  Highly recommended.

Hot Stuff by Janet Evanovich and Leanne Banks

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Cover ImageFinished 5-6-08, rating 3/5, fiction, pub. 2007

I love Janet Evanovich, but sometimes she tries to make the characters  so unique and entertaining that they just end up being ridiculous.  So, when I was introduced to Pugg in Chapter One I was prepared to ignore his antics, but a wonderful thing happened.  I really enjoyed the other characters and the story so much that by the end I sorta even liked Pugg.

Cate is from a loving family and she is going to school to become a teacher.  She is subletting a room from Marty, a cross dressing singer when bad things begin to happen.  There are weird hang-ups, annoying visitors, and Marty’s disappearance to contend with and that’s before the guard dog, Beast shows up at her door.  At the bar where she bartends she meets Kellen and is unwillingly drawn to him as he begins to charm her.  Circumstances arise that throw Cate and Kellen together and a whirlwind love affair begins.

This was a fun and fast read and I really liked it.  I loved Beast and Cate’s family.  It made for a very enjoyable few hours.

On The Run: A Mafia Childhood by Gregg & Gina Hill

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Cover ImageFinished 5-6-08, rating 4/5, non-fiction, pub. 2004

“My father is the single most irresponsible and uncaring person I’ve ever known.”  Gregg Hill, Chapter 2

When I read (and reviewed) Gangsters and Goodfellas by Henry Hill I found a man who thought very highly of himself and who liked to skip over details that he didn’t think were important.  I decided to follow up that book with this one written by his children about their lives with their father and I am so glad I did.  This is the story of two kids still in hiding from the Mob who have had their lives irrecoverably changed by their father and his choices.

Gregg and Gina spent their childhoods with parties in their house full of drugs, sex, and mobsters or when Henry was in jail, visiting him.  Gregg never really had a close relationship with his father.  He saw what was going on and wanted no part of it.  Gina idolized her father and it wouldn’t be until much later that she saw him for what he was.

When Henry decided to enter the Witness Protection Program with his family, Gregg and Gina viewed it in different ways.  Gregg thought Henry was being selfish and Gina was grateful that Henry wanted the kids with him.  Their first stop was in Nebraska, where they only made it two months before being shipped off to Kentucky for a little longer, and then on to Washington State where they would both finish school.  These moves were necessitated because Henry could not quit breaking the rules and putting them in danger.

There was violence, alcohol, drugs and more arrests to mar the way to adulthood, but it seems that Gregg and Gina have turned out okay.  The book is thoughtful, heartbreaking, and full of harsh reality.  This was a great read and a real look inside the family life of a Mobster who didn’t really want to escape from his past, but his kids did.