Tag: Book review

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Book Review: First Drop by Zoe Sharp

First Drop (Charlie Fox Thriller, #4)First Drop by Zoƫ Sharp
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

As a new dad, there are a few sentiments expressed by Charlie Fox – the hero – about kids that feel spot on. There is nothing more annoying than a baby interrupting you reading a good book, especially during the final 50 pages! The annoying kid Charlie was protecting rang a little too true for me.

Zoe has certainly got all the right thriller ingredients. But she has also managed to mix them together into a great blend that is interesting and exciting. From go to arrhythmia, there is no let up, with Charlie trying to stay alive and figure out who isn’t trying to kill her. If I had one quibble, it was with a chance encounter that was rather important to the plot, I would have preferred it to be done a little different. But then again, I forgive this in Lee Child, Zoe is no less a writer, so it is an easily overlooked point.

If you haven’t read any of the Charlie Fox thrillers, do so soon.

NB: This review was written whilst trying to calm a baby who hadn’t slept all day and was having the grumps.

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Book review: Assassin by Tara Moss

Assassin (Makedde Vanderwall, #6)Assassin by Tara Moss
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Trying to read with a newborn in your arms is tricky. You try to get them to sleep and then realise you haven’t been reading all of that time. You try to feed them and realise that Zaphoid was right, a third arm does come in handy. This all adds up to making it hard to enjoy a good book.

The fact that I did enjoy this book shows just how good it was, because my reading has been very interrupted. Mak is back in what appears to be the finale in the Vanderwall series. Since the last book, Mak has been hiding out in Spain, but it isn’t long before assassins get wind of her location and she is headed back to Australia.

If this is the end of the series (I’m going by the novel, I haven’t heard Tara mention anything on this) then I think it ended appropriately. Some authors, TV shows and musicians drag out a series for too long. Tara has avoided that nicely. Now the only question is, will she continue in the crime genre, or will her paranormal novels be the focus now?

NB: This was a signed copy. Book fans may appreciate that detail.

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Book Review: A Wanted Man by Lee Child

A Wanted Man (Jack Reacher, #17)A Wanted Man by Lee Child
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This book arrived on my doorstep from the lovely people at Booktopia, just in time for me to read over the weekend. Unfortunately last weekend also coincided with the arrival of my son, damn stork was early, so my reading was interrupted. Normally a Reacher adventure can’t be put down, but my new bub showed that sometimes you have to.

Reviewing Lee’s new novel is hard, my interrupted reading, sleep deprivation and cuddle time has clouded my impression of the book. Reacher still kicked arse, the story was decent and Lee’s characteristic tight plotting was on display.

I’m only giving this 4 stars for now, with the intention of re-reading it sometime after I’ve had a decent nights sleep.

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Book Review: Long Lost by Harlan Coben

Long Lost (Myron Bolitar, #9)Long Lost by Harlan Coben
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This is my first Harlan Coben book and I’m not sure what to think. Well, I know what to think, how to think and thinking is something I like to do to keep me from watching reality TV. My opinion of this book, however, is rather undecided.

Myron seems like an interesting enough character, the character of Win is a scene stealer, and the mystery is interesting enough. About half-way through the book, the pace picks up and things change around a bit. Even so, I’m still left unsure as to whether I enjoyed the book or not.

I think this may be that this book is number nine in the series and is written with Myron fans in mind, rather than fresh readers. As such, the Myron character feels a little flat and sappy. It might also be that the plot twist is a little improbable and pointless – as another reviewer pointed out, using an expensive procedure rather than just kidnapping is a bit silly.

Might have to try one of the earlier Myron Bolitar novels to see if I enjoy Harlan’s work.

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Book Review: Stalking the Angel by Robert Crais

Stalking The Angel (Elvis Cole, #2)Stalking The Angel by Robert Crais

My rating: 4.5 of 5 stars

A good book shouldn’t take any effort to read. The second Elvis Cole adventure is definitely an effortless read. The wit and plot flow seamlessly and make it easy to forget lunch.

The only thing I really have to say about this book is that I’m looking forward to reading the next instalment in the series.

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Book Review: Blood Moon by Gary Disher

Blood Moon (Inspector Challis, #5)Blood Moon by Garry Disher
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I’m known for being on the cutting edge, for having my finger on the pulse; for example, I just bought a smart phone. It isn’t really surprising to learn that I’ve only recently discovered Gary Disher’s work, despite him having been an award winning author since before I entered highschool.

The first novel I read of Gary’s was Wyatt, after hearing him speak at the Sydney Writers’ Festival. I enjoyed that novel and now have plenty of good novels to catch up on.

This is my first Challis and Destry novel set in a small seaside town in Victoria Australia. It follows the assaults, rapes, murder and sex lives that keep the local police busy. The intertwining characters and investigations are deftly handled by Gary to give an engaging crime novel.

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Book Review: The Running Man by Stephen King

The Running ManThe Running Man by Stephen King
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I have so much admiration for Stephen King. There are few authors who have managed to be as enduring and successful as he has. The Running Man is a great example of his ability to write an enthralling novel outside of his normal genre.

I’m a very late addition to the Stephen King appreciation society. I blame the movie IT. Scared the crap out of me as a kid and made me fear reading King novels. I’m a big boy now so I’ve started to buy up a few of his books (ebooks and DTB)and will be diligently reading them.

Which one should I read next?

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Book Review: One Shot by Lee Child

One Shot (Jack Reacher, #9)One Shot by Lee Child
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

There is something really great about Lee Child’s novels. There is also something about Jack Reacher that we all just know Tom Cruise is not going to be able to deliver on screen.

The last book I read took me 10 days to read. That is a long time for a thriller. This one took me 2 days to read. Clearly Lee serves up a more engaging and involving story, a novel that I will actually make excuses to stay up and read, rather than check my email and go to bed.

It will be interesting to see how Tom Cruise and Hollywood adapt this story for the big screen. This isn’t the sort of plot that would be easy to adapt unless you left half of it out. Not that I would accuse Hollywood of butchering just about every book to movie project they have every done. Never.

Read this one before Cruise brings his step-ladder and this novel to the big screen in December.

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Book Review: Jurassic Park by Michael Crichton

Jurassic ParkJurassic Park by Michael Crichton
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Is Michael Crichton always this preachy?

This is the second Crichton thriller I have read and the second time I have come away noticing his anti-science rants and preachy tone. This time the anti-science diatribe was delivered by the character of Malcolm, who only seems to be in the book for his chapter long anti-science rant. I’ve heard Crichton is even worse with this novel State of Fear.

The book itself is a decent techno-thriller. It was enjoyable and moved along swiftly. One thing I did notice, though, was a tendency to weigh the story down with details. I didn’t really need to know what lines of computer code came up on the screen unless it was relevant – it wasn’t. I didn’t really need to see the DNA sequence typed out.

So you can see that I was less than impressed with Crichton again. The book was entertaining, but from this scientist’s point of view, Crichton should have spent more time writing and less time preaching.

Also, before anyone comments, yes, I am aware that this is fiction. The perils of scientific meddling have always been the cornerstone of sci-fi and techno-thrillers. There is a difference between the “what if” fictional supposition and the “look at my reference list and opinions spouted as facts” tact Crichton uses. Fiction is meant to be fun, not didactic.

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Book Review: King City by Lee Goldberg

King CityKing City by Lee Goldberg

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Another fantastic Lee Goldberg book. It was a hard call of whether this was a four or five star book, so 4.5 stars it is.

There is a lot to enjoy about this book. It moves at a reasonably fast pace, it has some interesting characters, there is a bit of humour thrown in for good measure and it harkens back to the westerns and Dirty Harry. You really do get the image of the tough guy pulling up his collar against the cold as he strides across the street.

I think the easiest thing to say about this book is buy it. Anyone who is a fan of the crime thriller genre will enjoy this, and I’m going to keep an eye out for more Tom Wade adventures in King City.

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Book Review: The Increment by Chris Ryan

The IncrementThe Increment by Chris Ryan
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This is my second Chris Ryan novel and definitely not my last, good 3.5 star book. Chris and Andy McNab are both authors, both ex-SAS, both drawing upon their experience doing this thriller stuff for real. If I had to pick between the two authors, I’d have to say that I didn’t really want to piss either off. Chris is the better writer, but one thing I’ve noted is that both of their novels have an element of luck involved in the protagonist’s success.

I’m guessing the reason for this is down to experience of combat. I’d love to hear from combat vets and their thoughts on this. I suppose being shot at would feel random as to who doesn’t get hit.

This adventure hasĀ Matt Browning finding that no-one ever really quits doing work for the intelligence services. The reason for this not getting a 4 star is that the story is a little clichĆ© and somewhat predictable. Still plenty of plot twists to enjoy.

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Book Review: Blind Eye by Stuart MacBride

Blind Eye (Logan Mcrae, #5)Blind Eye by Stuart MacBride
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

My first Stuart MacBride novel, as read by Stuart MacBride, with funny voices by Stuart MacBride.

My wife and I had this book on CD for our holiday driving, following the adventures of Logan McRae. My wife felt the story was dragged out a bit too much, I felt that Logan really needed to go postal on his bosses.

This was quite a good novel, but would only really appeal to the crime genre fans. If you don’t like the drama of the investigation *cough* my wife *cough* then this story won’t interest you. If you currently feel like hitting your boss repeatedly over the head with office stationery, then this book will make you even more inclined to do so, as you empathise with the protagonist. If you prefer straight-forward plots, once again, not for you. If you like Scottish accents, you’ll love this book.

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Book Review: Vodka Doesn’t Freeze by Leah Giarratano

Vodka Doesn't Freeze (A Detective Jill Jackson Mystery #1)Vodka Doesn’t Freeze by Leah Giarratano
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I’m really unsure whether to rate this a 4 or a 5. Lets call it 4.5

It was only just over a day ago when I gave up on a book. I found I was putting off reading, a clear sign that the book sucked. So I moved on, moved on and picked up Leah Giarratano’s first novel. This book was just what I needed.

I met Leah at the Perth Writers’ Festival. Aside from being one of the nicest people you will meet, she is also a very good crime writer. Lots of people agree with me, as she is a best-seller here in Australia. She draws on her background in psychology to delve into the dark corners of the Australian underworld. She spoke of this book being a catharsis from her day job and when you read it (yes you will go out and buy it and read it, I’ll wait here) you will notice that in the story.

The first book I read in the Jill Jackson series was the most recent, Watch the World Burn. I can’t wait to read the books I’ve missed in the series. Currently Leah is publishing some young adult books (Disharmony: The Telling, comes out later this month) so Jill may not be having a new crime to solve for a year or so.

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Book Review: Beyond the Shadows by Brent Weeks

Beyond the Shadows (Night Angel, #3)Beyond the Shadows by Brent Weeks

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

You know that feeling you get when you’ve just finished reading a really good book? The joy, the sorrow, the need for the bathroom because you couldn’t stop reading for the final 100 pages. Well this book wasn’t one of those, it was three of them: the Night Angel series by Brent Weeks.

I read this series back to back, buying the second two on my Kindle immediately after finishing the first (a curse on the publishers who decided to charge a ridiculous price for them). It was a good thing too, since each book was about double the size of the thrillers and crime novels that make up the majority of my reading, no way I’d feel comfortable killing that many trees. There are many advantages to long books and to series. Long books can be more entertaining, a series can give you more value for reading. But the disadvantage is that authors who write long books often try to pack a lot of filler into the books. The thing that I liked about each book in this series, and the series as a whole, was the lack of filler.

So, if you haven’t read the adventures of Kylar Stern – the Night Angel – I suggest you start with the first book, The Way of Shadows.

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Book Review: The Way of Shadows by Brent Weeks

The Way of Shadows (Night Angel, #1)The Way of Shadows by Brent Weeks
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I tried to like Robert Jordan’s Wheel of Time series, tried but couldn’t help but feel the story was being dragged out far too much. This series, by Brent Weeks, had called to me from the bookstore shelves. Every other book in the fantasy section had all black and red covers, usually with a dragon or girl, or girl riding a dragon. This promised what I had looked for in The Wheel of Time series.

So did it deliver? No. It gave me something else completely, which I enjoyed more.

With a fantasy I was expecting elves: nope. From the cover art I was expecting ninjas: not really. From the blurb I was expecting a Karate Kid story line: thankfully not.

This was a very enjoyable, whilst dark, fantasy novel that had me hooked from about page 10. Normally my reaction to finishing a book is to think about how much I liked or disliked it. In rare instances I immediately jump online and order more books by the author (Lee Child, Matt Hilton, Robert Crais, Matthew Reilly: noticing a pattern there?). The only question now is, do I read the rest of the series right now, or space it out between a few other novels?

Expect reviews of the rest of the series soon…

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Book Review: The Broken Shore by Peter Temple

The Broken ShoreThe Broken Shore by Peter Temple
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I was having a chat with a friend at a party when Peter Temple came up as a must read author recommendation. I’m rather naive when it comes to new and established authors, I don’t seem to have the inside scoop on Aussie writers the way I do with overseas talent. It wasn’t long afterwards that Peter Temple was mentioned again at the Perth Writers’ Festival. So I bought two of his books, Truth (ebook version) and The Broken Shore.

Now the recommendations for Peter Temple came from literary people, people whose recommendations I try to avoid like trips to Canberra and prison showers. But these recommendations carried weight, as one of them was a Lee Child and Michael Connelly fan. I can see why Peter is an award winning novelist, but I can also see why he is highly regarded amongst authors – like I said, naive. This is a crime novel, but not quite like most crime novels. I’d put Peter in the same category as James Lee Burke, Ian Rankin and Michael Connelly, except his work is more literary.

Also, it is sad that Peter isn’t as internationally recognised as those authors I have likened him to. This book was equal to any of those authors. So read Peter and make sure his work hits the international market, where it belongs.

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Book Review: Hell’s Kitchen by Jeffery Deaver

Hell's KitchenHell’s Kitchen by Jeffery Deaver
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

There is something about a mystery novel that can be either entertaining or dreary. Ultimately you want the mystery and suspense; but not too much. If the mystery is too simple, then *yawn*. If it is too complicated then you start to think it is all too hard or that the author had finished the mystery and realised they had another 200 pages to fill.

This is my first outing with Jeffery Deaver and I can see why he is so highly regarded with his mystery writing. He treads that fine line between too much and too little with a cool hand. There was much more to this story of catching a fire-bug for hire, with the climax really pulling me in.

Part of the balance came from Jeff’s use of Hell’s Kitchen as the setting and the local residents as layers of story. For the most part the exposition felt necessary and served the larger mystery.

The version I listened to was read by Paul Birchard who did as many accents as an American can in his reading.

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Book Review: Double Dexter by Jeff Lindsay

Double DexterDouble Dexter by Jeff Lindsay
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Dexter, how I love thee.

It hard to find some reading time these past two weeks. When I did find the time, what better way to spend it than reading a Jeff Lindsay novel.

If there are authors I would like to emulate, Jeff Lindsay and Robert Crais – with their wit, humour and thrilling plots – would be at the top of my list. This outing sees even more of the witty insights into Dexter’s world, my favourite being the final exclamation by Astor, Dexter’s step daughter.

I can’t give this book five stars, because it isn’t as strong as the others in the series. Crunch time hits in the plot about page 200 and is the taut and witty Dexter we know and love. I don’t normally say this about books I read – as I object to it myself – but sticking with this Dexter outing is well worth it.

Also worth mentioning is that Jeff signed my copy of Double Dexter. I asked him about the difference between how Dexter sees himself as “big brained Dexter” and yet exhibits traits that counter this statement. Jeff had some very interesting insights into the psychopath mind that he shared with me on this topic, summarised as “They are never as smart as they think they are.”

Read and enjoy.

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Book Review: Raylan by Elmore Leonard

RaylanRaylan by Elmore Leonard
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Raylan: “What did he want to know?”
Art: “Whether you’d shot anybody this week.”

I remember reading Elmore’s rules of writing and fixing upon his rule “leave out the stuff people skip”. This novel is a testament to that rule; there is nothing you want to skip in it. This is one of those books that feels like you are immersed in a world, something that Elmore has been widely praised for.

This novel, Raylan, is not really a novel. Think of this work as three novellas held together with some overlap, like, say, a TV series. I think it is fair to say that you can see entire plot and character arcs from seasons two and three of Justified in this book. Clearly this isn’t a coincidence, with Elmore joining the writing team for Justified in the second season.

Far from being a criticism, the similarities between Raylan and Justified actually makes this book a cool compendium companion to the series. Just be warned, Boyd is not quite the devious and intelligent character you want to see succeed, as you do in Justified.

For fans of Justified, you will no doubt have your Morgan Freeman and Sean Connery moment, as you read all of the book with the character’s voices.

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Book Review: Parallax by Jon F. Merz

ParallaxParallax by Jon F. Merz
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The paranormal is an interesting genre for me. As some of you may have guessed, I’m a scientist and skeptic. Basically this means I want evidence of claims, not some beliefs and suppositions. Prove it to me.

When it comes to entertainment, the assumption would be that anything other than realistic fiction is not going to grab me. The key word here is fiction. Just as Lt. Shane Shcofield’s adventures are as realistic as Abraham Lincoln being a vampire hunter, the paranormal can be just as entertaining to this scientist and skeptic.

This is the second of Jon’s books that I have read. Parallax was a very entertaining read that reminded me of some of the earlier paranormal works I read that combined the paranormal with the crime or noir genres. This novel works as a straight crime story, the mental link between the two main protagonists serving as a twist on the formula.

Worth checking out if you like a tale about hitmen having to redeem themselves.

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