Friday, August 31, 2012

PARADISE FALLS by Jonnie Jacobs ***

As I was reading along, I had questions that I waited and waited for answers. For a mystery this writer doesn't delve much into the police work, so it's a struggle waiting for any information.
What was on the mysterious Ipod in the girls locker? Was that a clue? If so it needed to be heard, dusted for prints, whatever. That sucked. Then a video camera arrives as a gift, from who? How long does it take to finger print it? Do they find anything? Do they even try to see if a video of the missing daughter is on it? That sucked too.
Why didn't the police do their follow up work asking the last person to see Caitlin alive a LOT more questions? People IRL don't get off so easy as they do in this novel. So it was fair. I read it.
Nothing special except I found the descriptions of loneliness on the mark, and the marriage was headed for hell soon as the kid disappeared. I guess the family relationships were complicated and replaced police work in the novel.

Wednesday, August 29, 2012

The HUNGER GAMES by Suzanne Collins ****

Ah back to territory I understand, sci fi. In the future people are randomly selected from certain sections of  what was once N.America because they had a rebellion once. These people; a boy and girl between like 12-18 are chosen to enter a killing contest with children from other sections of the country until only one is left.

A girl Katniss and boy Peetah become the focus of the story and what they do to survive. Before the contest, you get to see how most of the people in the country are starving but some are foraging outside of the makeshift fenced districts and it's forbidden altho that's how Katniss has been living. Using a bow and arrow her father made long ago, she brings food to the table. Her mother is a useless lump of flesh since hubby died. The youngest daughter was selected for the games but Katniss volunteers to take her place which is ok with the game masters.

Most of the story is about the contest, surviving, liking people in the games that must be killed by each other. No matter how she dislikes the ruling factors for having these games nothing is really done about it. There isn't a means for her to figure out how to end it forever (writer's downfall here). As it is she and Peetah save each other with a love thing. Either Katniss and Peetah have a real romance going, one does or neither does and you won't know the answer to that question.

Since it's for teens I think more could have been done to show how someone CAN make a huge difference (independence, brains, intelligence) and actually end the stupid games forever. Which would have been nicer than allowing them back to their poor districts to live in wealthy houses surrounded by the poor starving masses while they get everything they could want. I think that's the reward.

Then again when you look at it as a reality TV show perhaps it's where our reality shows are headed except the stupid assholes idolized on TV (Kardashians, and like them) are too weak kneed and dumb to be in a contest like this one. They couldn't survive off the first step, lol and tit size has nothing to do with winning.

P.S. I had no idea this is a trilogy

Monday, August 27, 2012

THE VANISHERS by Heidi Julavits *

This is about a character named Julia. She starts off working for some weird dark woman who runs an institute for people who can read minds and see the future etc. So Julia kisses her when she's asleep and then things go downhill from there. She loses her job. So no more psychotic people that read minds, now you get psychotic people talking about how people want to get out of their lives without suicide. They make a good bye film, as if it were suicide and just wander away into a new life allowing family to believe they're dead or something.

So I'm at this "party" where a bunch of people are discussing some of these films they watched, they like quoting Sylvia Plath (but of course) and I just am so bored with it all. It's too elitist for me. I hate it.
I can't read it anymore, there seems to be no point to the story at all. Or if there is I don't know what the point is and I'm done at page 90. Kaput.

Sunday, August 26, 2012

12*21 By Dustin Thomason ****

This is about the Mayan prediction of the end of the world. Starting with a woman who is Mayan Chel Manu, a researcher meets up with a Dr. Stanton who studies prions and they're off on a chase to beat a disease that destroys brains sort of like mad cow disease.

They must locate the source of the infection someplace in a jungle in Guatemala, and find a way to penetrate the brain/blood barrier to cure everyone dying of this disease so at the end they're both in the jungle searching for a cure.

The disease entered the country on a man who loots old Mayan antiquities from the ground and the infection begins very confusing to everyone involved, is very active and moves quickly to people so they're all running around from town to town trying to avoid getting it. Panic everyone!

Read the book and see if a cure is found. It's readable, not something you can't put down but it's interesting and the writer sounds knowledgeable about his topic so you're learning while you read.

Not a bad library find.

Tuesday, August 21, 2012

The NEXT ACCIDENT by Lisa Gardner ****

I liked the book, it was quick, lots of murders, twists and turns. One suspect I did suspect the other one was mentioned in passing and then showed up for the finale. The lead character FBI Agent Pierce was likable but not very talkative and he lost a lot of family members in the process of finding the killer who was trying to ruin his life.
I guess since it had murder, was fast, not a lot of characters it was my sort of reading material, just a little on the simplistic side. I liked it, good find at a yard sale (it's ca 2001) for me-beach reading.

Saturday, August 18, 2012

A FATAL DEBT by John Gapper *

I got to about page 40 or so and closed the damn book. It's so boring. Sounded like a good read but as you enter the character's life MUST HAVE FLASH BACK grasshopper and boy it takes away the enjoyment of the story line.....if there is one.

He's in an office interviewing someone and goes off onto his own damn childhood from like 10 years old. I DO NOT CARE. Then he's riding in a car with someone and he's TELLING HIS DREAM to the reader. Nothing could be more boring than someone's dream, never mind a fake character's page long dream. I just couldn't take the boredom any longer. BYE.

So far nothing fatal. So far not care about anyone in story. zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

Friday, August 17, 2012

COPPER BEACH by Jayne Krentz ****

Main character Abby can read or get hot or something from crystals, so there's a hidden book the bad psi people want and she has been hired to get it for her new boyfriend Sam Coppersmith, also her new bodyguard. He guards her body when he's not screwing it.
Meanwhile there are a few people determined to kill others with crystals and esp type stuff in order to get to the book, that can't even be read without someone breaking the hidden paranormal locks or some such junk like that.
Not bad for a romance, beats stupid Shades of Grey by a mile and a half. At least this book is readable. Minor love and sex stuff so it's not overwhelming. For me...ok, nothing great but it was an easy read, quick, not too many people to memorize and it wasn't painful anywhere, at least for me. Good library find.

Tuesday, August 14, 2012

FEVER DREAM by Dennis Palumbo ***

A psychologist named Rinaldi is the main character and there are TONS of people in this story, practically an entire police force to learn names, more psychs, girlfriends, bad guys. More than one thing is going on at the same time and in between are boring stretches of idle time not adding much to the story line.

I read a lot. I knew immediately who the second bank robber was and was just waiting and waiting for the psych to guess instead of pampering her along. I got some questions, like how did Treva get out of the bank being robbed...like WHY HER? Everyone else was dead but the robber released her? WHY?  And no cop questions this? Then the second robber gets away thru the back door. Geez I wonder who that was.

At one place in the story the bad bank robber goes into the hosp holding a hostage and asks a doc to fix his shot broken arm. So why didn't that stupid ass doctor shoot him up with a drug to knock him out instead of standing there like a douche and doing as ordered? As if the bank robber idiot knew what drug was a local and which wasn't.

Why did Roarke kill Stubbs in the same room with Rinaldi but not kill Rinaldi? WTF? If a patient starts acting out and takes meds to fix that problem why are the docs and therapists so dumb they don't think he's not taking his meds as he's supposed to? Why he got bumped off is beyond me, he didn't know or do anything worth dying for.

There ya go. It was ok but left a lot of WTF's.

Friday, August 10, 2012

OFF THE GRID by P.J. Tracy ***

I thought the book moved rather fast, lots of characters without a protagonist, really. Most of the time you are left wondering why. Why why why. Or how. I don't think it sucks but it's not the best book I ever read. Lots of unexplained stuff goes on that you wait for answers to and don't get.

So the main character, I assume, is Grace MacBride but just about everyone in the story gets as much or more copy so I wouldn't swear to that. Supposedly she runs a computer company called Monkeewrench Software. What it does, I don't know. Designs firewalls? I don't know who they sell to. An FBI friend, John uses the software, switches it all around so not even a genius can figure it out then deciphers incoming bad people messages and learns where people live who are involved in human trafficking or are going to have a "mob" scene killing spree on Halloween.  And somehow broadcasts that info.

While Grace is out with her friend John on a sailboat enjoying nothing much 2 guys creep aboard and try to kill John. John acts all stupid like "I don't have any idea why I have enemies." Stupid ass has been decoding all the locations of murderers and sending to the FBI, think that might be it, ass?

One of Graces friends, Annie goes to work in a frickin feather dress? WTF is that? Bunch of hens get plucked before dinner and turned into a frickin dress? She's on a shootout in this rare and idiotic item.

Some Native American cop gets involved which involves tribe members who also were marines or in the service after some of the rez kids got kidnapped which is where dying Joe with cancer (also somehow involved) kills the kidnappers, moves along to a house full of bomb explosives and guns then gets shot after killing the people living there. Somalis I believe. He's happy he didn't die of the cancer. No one ever sees these poor kidnapped kids again, or their families. No concern there I guess.

Meanwhile at the end they're all hunkered around some cabin, natives in the trees or deer stands if you will, others in the house to fight off .... gee I don't really know who. People who think they ruined Halloween? I guess. And Mr.Brilliant John (remember went on the sailboat with Grace), says he'll watch the kitchen little darlin' and for her to go into the liv. room with the feather-dress girl. So Grace asking no questions goes along to get along and John the brilliant runs out the back door, gets shot immediately and bleeds to death before Grace figures out that John must have gone outside instead of protecting the house and his friends like he should have. Bye John.

I thought it moved along ok, can't understand how who knew what or why and how come this all took place to begin with. Lots of feather references. FBI were all over everything but never happened to be anywhere important until after people were all killed.
I read too much.




Wednesday, August 8, 2012

GIDEON'S CORPSE by Preston & Child *****

Had trouble putting this one down, it was very much a thriller. Lots of spies, end of the world destructive forces, Gideon had to find traitors, learn who to trust and keep the bad guys from destroying another country. It was very cohesive, I didn't get confused at all with all the people wandering in and out of the story.
If you enjoy the chase and like twists and turns you'll really like this story a lot. Holds your interest and you really don't want to drop the book for any reason, like the phone rings, I go 'what'...barely listening so I can keep the story ongoing in my head.
I just don't know why it's titled Gideon's Corpse as um....he's not dead. Hel-lo? So who's corpse are we talking about here? That's the only part confusing to me, the title. I even liked the mini romance.

Sunday, August 5, 2012

DARK MEN by Derek Haas ****

Very short and quick reading. Fast, you don't want to put it down. But it's a spy thriller, which for me isn't really a murder mystery so it's not something I'm used to reading.
Bunch of spies -assassins really, running round the country holding hostages so the other spy will show up at designated places.
This one spy doesn't like giving up on his prey and kills the spy who was after him creating the hiring factors to want him as their spy. It sort of was whoever lives gets to join the club.
The focus of the story; Columbus, had retired and was spending nice quiet days with his new true love. They get her involved as well and I'm not giving away the ending for you. I did enjoy reading it, but could go thru life without reading another spy novel. I just don't care about them. Killing people is killing people. They aren't 'nice' people to me. I prefer my main characters to chase killers, not to be them.

Friday, August 3, 2012

BLOOD STORM by Bill Brooks *

Thought I was getting a modern western with some serial murder but what this is turns out is a historical writer, so the story takes place like in the 1800s up in the Black Hills area. I read about 10 pages then tossed the thing aside. Yuck. Do not care. Gas lights, running baths 20 guys use the same water, rain so hard it flattens the cowboy hats. LOL
Not interested.

MIDNIGHT GUARDIANS by Johathon King ***

It was a sort of PI story about protecting a person who has info about illegal drugs and gun running etc from a supposedly non crooked guy. Her brother gets killed 2 secs after being warned, and Mr. Kool PI had just ordered the boss to send protection to their location. NICE JOB!! LOL
I didn't like it much I didn't hate it. It was so so. Lots of muscle building, cut and ripped pecs etc making everyone seem super strong after crap they had dealt with in their past.
Does it make you want to start pressing weights? No, it just makes you feel inadequate while you sit on your butt eating pretzels. These pretzels are making me thirsty.