DOMINANCE by Will Lavender ***

Ok for a library find. I spent most of the time reading it confused. There were 2 murder events that took place 20 years apart with some of the same players. Back and forth 1982, 1994 & Present Day. With most of the same players you just get so confused you don't know which direction you're facing.

Some guy gets acquitted of the first pair of murders by a Dr. Alex whatever so he holds some kind of class from jail AS IF that could happen, half the time he's having a seizure. Everyone in the room is a suspect, even the cops guarding Mr. Criminal. Someone wrote some books, stupid students think they have a secret message and pretend to act it out OR SOMETHING I don't really know it wasn't clearly explained as most of the novel. Threads and missed loops here and there.

Reading it makes you wonder WTF you're bothering for. It's just so internal, self centered, for the select few only to understand and the reader isn't one of them. It's a mixed stew and if you think you're game enough to separate years, people and killers read on. Don't forget to keep a score card. I was lost in space.

A DOG'S PURPOSE by W.Bruce Cameron ****

Not a bad library find, guess he has more friends than other authors and knows how to sell himself. Sometimes it sounds like he read Backyard Dog which is much more intuitive than his book. The 'purpose' is up in the air for me, so is a dog supposed to be reincarnated until he returns to his original owner? Dogs start their lives without any previous knowledge or we'd have puppies as knowledgeable as adults. The reincarnation thing doesn't work for me, as the puppies telling their own life stories in Backyard Dog, outlining the lives of a litter of 10 puppies. A much better angle to the subject.

If I had to choose between 2 similar writings I would definitely go with Backyard Dog, the author has much more history and experience with dogs and it shows in the writing. Clearly this author likes dogs but he just isn't there inside them the same way Benzel is.

SANTA FE EDGE by Stuart Woods ***

There are a lot of people involved. Most of them are all fucking each other or strangers they meet during their various travels. It's not romance, it's more gratuitous fucking. So between all the fucking is a murderess running around loose after she escapes a Mexican prison. Her husband Ed Eagle put her there but Barbara has other ideas. There have been past murders (of just about everyone she's met) and she runs around from one fucking relationship to another trying to have Eagle killed. Eventually; even with his 2 non-body guards he gets shot. At the end of the book, one of the bitch's dead husbands has his will changed in her favor, she gets billions of bucks. Eagle decides to go after her and there's the end of the book. But not before the evil murderess marries a man she met in one day. LOL Must be love.

Most of the people have simple personalities and similar ones at that. They are sometimes hard to tell apart. There's no satisfaction in any of the little vignettes because no one ever gets killed who deserves it, no one catches anyone else and no one goes to jail, no one is punished for any illegal activities and all are rewarded with airplanes, Bentleys, mucho fucking, sucking and other bodily -ings. I wasn't crazy about it but it wasn't a difficult read. I could do without another Woods book.

The LAST LIE by Stephen White *

Ok, so you wanna write a novel and your objective in the first page, first line even is to engage the reader. Get them right into the story. Shove the story hard and fast so they want to finish the book. Am I right?
Then tell me why a cop meets a woman outside a cop station and it takes 10 pages, an entire chapter before she says "I was raped." WTF?

Author: You didn't get my interest. You bored me. Returned to library.

DELIRIOUS by Daniel Palmer ***

It was about a high tech guy who begins to think he's losing his mind, has a crazy (as in psychotic/hearing hallucinating) brother and mom to care for. Goes downhill from there. He loses his job, he starts to hear voices (specifically controlled device aimed at his ear only and no one else in the vicinity can hear it) stuff like that. Sort of "OHHHHH, one of THOSE why didn't I think it was ONE OF THOSE. I'll tell ya why cuz THEY DON'T EXIST that's why. A lot of that going around.

So on and on and on this goes. He keeps thinking he's crazy, his brother helps him get out of trouble along with his therapist. And this could be a better short story but it just rambles on and on. I found it not a stinking bad story but a boring not page turning one. The ending is so so. Didja think one of the dead people did it? Well think again Agatha.

LIVE WIRE by Harlan Coben ****

Very good story telling. At first tho I had trouble figuring out what the 'mystery' was that was being solved by Myron and his detective agency. Lots of family crap. His bother is missing, SIL a heroin addict, dad in and out of hospital and meantime people are being shot in the head over the mysterious musician who seems to be missing. For like 15 years and now is causing all sorts of mayhem with people's lives.
Keeps your interest altho it's like reading an obit. The whys and wherefores. I didn't think it was the hottest book I ever read but it's a good library find for sure.

The DEVIL SHE KNOWS by Bill Loehfelm **

I really gave it everything I could.  I read more than half. Some girl sees some guy giving blowjobs to a candidate wannabe (not president or he'd not be in this rinky dink town -or book to begin with). So suddenly the blowee Dennis turns up dead. The rest of it is mostly threats to our alcoholic smoking over sexual heroine Maureen from Mr. Candidate-Sebastian. For seeing a blowjob in a bar? WTF? Now suddenly there are tapes which are being hidden around which she never knew about until the big "THREAT" occurred. Also there are over stuffed bras, skimpy clothing.....o it's so hard to tell a guy is writing this, whoda thunk?

I don't know why some candidate is trying to intimidate or threaten Maureen over a blowjob and I read far enough into this crap to have been told of another reason if there is one by now. Cuz now it's too fuckin' late and I don't care anymore. I have  been bored with her moving around from her friends house, her friend's boyfriends house, her moms house, her car, someone else's car, the bar, someone elses bar. Her make believe tough girl attitude who calls the cops anytime she sees a shadow. This has taken me days on end to read also. Slow, monotonous, boring and I just don't have time for this shit when I have other books.

PACIFIC HEIGHTS by Paul Harper *****

Masterfully told story. All the characters are believable and vulnerable. Two women from a therapist are being stalked and manipulated. Marten Fane a former intelligence officer is hired to figure out what's going on and why.

The women are given different fake names by the stalker (Kroll), he seems to be reading their minds and at first they're flattered at the interest then become more and more fearful.

Lots of twists and turns, page turning psychological thriller keeps you right in the story and not wanting to quit. Very good novel, good writing, no boring parts for me at all. Really liked it a lot.