Saturday, July 30, 2011

The Ocean Dark - Rogan, Jack

The Ocean Dark is a novel about a danger lurking in the dark the Caribbean waters. The container ship Antoinette is making an unscheduled stop when it's lured to an uncharted island. What the crew discovers, or what discovers them, is something out of a nightmare.



The crew of the Antoinette knows that some of the ships stops are off the books. This voyage the ship is going to rendezvous with a fishing boat to pick up some guns. They don't know that the FBI is tracking them. What neither the crew nor the FBI knows is that they're all going to be fighting for their lives from a danger they never imagined exists. This is one book I couldn't put down. Very highly recommended.

Friday, July 29, 2011

Eyewall - Bernard, H.W. "Buzz"

Eyewall is a story about a fictional hurricane named Janet. Janet starts out as a category 1, but by the time she's done she's setting records. Bernard does an excellent job of making this hurricane more than a lot of wind and rain. Too bad this is Bernard's only book. I hope there are more to come.



What do a burned out meteorologist, a retiring air force pilot, and a family vacationing on St. Simons Island have in common? Their lives are about to be changed forever because of hurricane Janet. They will all end up fighting for lives, in some cases their own, in this suspenseful weather thriller. Very highly recommended.

Thursday, July 28, 2011

Darkness on the Edge of Town - Black, J. Carson

Darkness on the Edge of Town is book one in Carson's Laura Cardinal Series. If the rest of the series is as good as the first book I'm going to be reading more of Carson's work.



Laura Cardinal is an investigator with the Arizona Department of Public Safety. It's her job to assist local law enforcement when they need more resources then their department can provide. The abduction and murder of a young girl in the small town of Bisbee starts Laura down the trail of a serial killer. This trail will lead to some answers about a murder that has haunted Laura since she was young girl. This book proves there are some very good novels out there for only 99 cents. Very highly recommended.

Monday, July 25, 2011

Accidents Waiting to Happen - Wood, Simon

Accidents Waiting to Happen is one of the few books I just couldn't make myself finish. The characters are not interesting or likable. The story drags at a snails pace. The novel is filled with useless and annoying introspection. I gave up a little over half way through. At 99 cents this book is still overpriced.



Josh Michaels cheated on his wife, took a bribe for lying about a building inspection, and is paying blackmail to his ex-secretary. And he's the hero of this book. There are lots of positive reviews for this novel if you dig, but not mine. Don't waste your time or money.

Wednesday, July 20, 2011

Hounded - Hearne, Kevin

Hounded is the first book in a series called The Iron Druid Chronicles. It's yet another supernatural series with werewolves, vampires, demons, gods, witches, and so forth. But this story's hero is a druid. The last druid actually, and a pretty interesting character.



Atticus O'Sullivan, at least that's the name he uses this millenium, tries to live a quiet life in Arizona with his Irish wolfhound Oberon. But Atticus is the last druid and he's got a sword that someone else wants. Since that someone is a god it's going to be hard for Atticus to hang on to it. I really enjoyed this book and will be reading more by Hearne soon. Very highly recommended.

Monday, July 18, 2011

Mortal Pursuit - Prescott, Michael

Mortal Pursuit is a novel about a young police rookie who finds herself in a desperate situation with no help in sight. If she's going to come out if this alive it's going to be up to her.



Officer Trish Robinson is just in her second week on the job, and on routine patrol with her training officer, when a suspected prowler call comes in. Trish became a cop for a reason that's buried in her past. That reason is going to confront her tonight and she will need every ounce of skill and training she has to make it out alive. This was a book I couldn't put down. It keeps you glued to the page with every turn. Very highly recommended.

The Bamboo Chest - Graham, Cork

The Bamboo Chest is a true story about a teenager's capture and imprisonment in Vietnam. The author tells his tale with introspection and humor, but that wasn't enough.  I don't typically read non-fiction and this book reinforced that decision.



Graham clearly thinks very highly of himself. There is some self-deprecating humor in this book, but entirely too much time is spent on how insightful and clever the author was.  This in spite of the author agreeing to look for Captain Kidd's treasure with a man that he shouldn't have trusted after knowing him only a couple of days. The story was worth finishing, but it didn't capture my interest and took me some time to plow through. Not recommended.

Friday, July 8, 2011

Beneath the Dark Ice - Beck, Greig

Beneath the Dark Ice is a novel that takes place in Antarctica. The suspense makes this one hard to put down. There's a lot going on — rescuing previous search parties, prospecting for oil, fighting off rival teams, and the monster from the past that begins to relentlessly stalk all the human food it can find.




Beck has imagination enough for two authors. This book starts off at a sprint and keeps running full speed all the way to the end. A plane crashes in the Antarctic and instead of hitting snow and ice it plows right through the roof of a cave. It's what's in that cave that makes this story. The first rescue party completely disappears. The second is in a race for their lives. Very highly recommended.

Monday, July 4, 2011

The Fifth Witness - Connelly, Michael

The Fifth Witness is a Mickey Haller novel. This time the Lincoln Lawyer is working foreclosures because crime isn't paying. Then one of his foreclosure clients ends up in jail for murder.



Mickey's client is accused of killing the banker who's trying to take her home away. The evidence is there. Can Mickey provide enough wiggle room to create reasonable doubt? It looks like it, but this case has lots complications, and some of them are dangerous.  The ending has an interesting twist.  Very highly recommended.

Saturday, July 2, 2011

Mockingjay - Collins, Suzanne

Mockingjay is the final book in the hunger games trilogy.  Katniss becomes the heroic figurehead for the rebels, but the question is, is one power hungry leader any better than the other?  To what lengths will either leader go to ensure victory?



Katniss is forced into acting on her own when both the rebels and the capitol seem to want her dead.   When that happens, she finds she has more loyal friends and followers than she imagined. The ending was surprising, but I was satisfied. Very highly recommended.