Completed July 2011
Just hours before the KEY News crew arrives for their broadcasts from Newport, the skeleton of a socialite who disap-peared fourteen years ago is found in a dank tunnel beneath a famous mansion. When one of the KEY interns is killed in a car accident and another disappears, this year’s crop of fledgling journalists are targets, including Grace Callahan, who must face the real danger that lies hidden in an otherwise idyllic town. But can she uncover a murderer who does not want the secrets buried beneath the city’s fabled mansions to come to light.
My Review: Reading this book out of order was a little confusing but what a great story line in the Key to America series. LOVE LOVE LOVE this series.
Showing posts with label Suspense Fiction. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Suspense Fiction. Show all posts
Monday, July 11, 2011
Dying for Mercy by Mary Jane Clark 2011 - 34
Completed July 2011
Attending a lavish gala at her friends’ estate, Pentimento, in exclusive Tuxedo Park, New York, Eliza’s host is found dead -- a grotesque suicide that is the first act in a macabre and intricately conceived plan to expose sins of the past involving some of the park’s most revered citizens. Eliza and her KEY news colleagues discover that Pentimento holds the key. The mansion is actually a giant “puzzle house,” with ingenious clues hidden in its fireplaces, fountains, and frescoes leading the “Sunrise Suspense Society” from one suspicious locale to another -- and, one by one, to the victims of a fiendish killer.
My Review: Another great story in the KTA mystery series. Had me guess almost up to the end.
Sunday, June 26, 2011
Close to You by Mary Jane Clark 2011 - 32
Completed June 2011
Smooth is the word for this expert thriller by CBS producer and writer Clark (Let Me Whisper in Your Ear, etc.). Moving along effortlessly and unhurriedly, acquiring characters and subplots as it goes, and always focusing on the climax the reader knows will come when the killer finally makes his move, Clark's tale delivers the goods. Eliza Blake, anchor for the KEY Evening Headlines, is a 30-something celebrity, beautiful, smart and good at her job; she is also a single mother determined to be a good parent. As the novel begins, she has just vacated her New York apartment for a house in the suburbs, intent on escaping memories of her husband's death by cancer. Unfortunately, just after she moves, she begins to receive a fresh crop of threatening phone calls and letters. Hate mail is an occupational hazard for a new anchor, it seems, not to be taken too seriously unless, as in this case, the ante gets raised. Eliza finds herself threatened by several obsessives, two of whom may be dangerous, one of whom has killed before. These people are clever, not easy to detect or to catch. Clark's depiction of the stalkers who plague celebrities disturbs and convinces, and her characters come alive on the page: criminal, sick, genuinely evil, or simply flawed and very human. This is an excellent psychological thriller that will keep readers pleasantly bound to the page. Author tour.
Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.
My Review: This is a GREAT storyline. It keeps the reader turning the page trying to decide exactly which one of the "bad guys" truly is the actual "bad guy". Loved the story! Another great Mary Jane Clark book. I'm hooked.
Smooth is the word for this expert thriller by CBS producer and writer Clark (Let Me Whisper in Your Ear, etc.). Moving along effortlessly and unhurriedly, acquiring characters and subplots as it goes, and always focusing on the climax the reader knows will come when the killer finally makes his move, Clark's tale delivers the goods. Eliza Blake, anchor for the KEY Evening Headlines, is a 30-something celebrity, beautiful, smart and good at her job; she is also a single mother determined to be a good parent. As the novel begins, she has just vacated her New York apartment for a house in the suburbs, intent on escaping memories of her husband's death by cancer. Unfortunately, just after she moves, she begins to receive a fresh crop of threatening phone calls and letters. Hate mail is an occupational hazard for a new anchor, it seems, not to be taken too seriously unless, as in this case, the ante gets raised. Eliza finds herself threatened by several obsessives, two of whom may be dangerous, one of whom has killed before. These people are clever, not easy to detect or to catch. Clark's depiction of the stalkers who plague celebrities disturbs and convinces, and her characters come alive on the page: criminal, sick, genuinely evil, or simply flawed and very human. This is an excellent psychological thriller that will keep readers pleasantly bound to the page. Author tour.
Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.
My Review: This is a GREAT storyline. It keeps the reader turning the page trying to decide exactly which one of the "bad guys" truly is the actual "bad guy". Loved the story! Another great Mary Jane Clark book. I'm hooked.
Mobbed by Carol Higgins Clark 2011-31
Completed June 2011
PI Regan Reilly and her husband, Jack, head of the NYPD Major Case Squad, plan to spend the weekend at the Jersey shore with her parents. Regan’s mother, suspense writer Nora Regan Reilly, will be celebrating her birthday on Saturday. But Regan’s weekend gets off to an early start when she receives a phone call from her mother asking if she’d hop on a train right away.
Regan had just finished delivering bad news to a high school classmate. Hayley Patton is a successful New York City event planner, who had become suspicious that her beau, Scott, was seeing other women and hired Regan to follow him. When Hayley got the lowdown on Scott’s treachery, she vowed revenge with such vehemence that Regan is worried that Hayley might go too far.
Turns out Nora had also just spoken to an agitated high school classmate. Karen Frawley Fulton, who lives in San Diego, called Nora after learning her mother’s plans for the day. To Karen’s shock, Edna Frawley just sold their home at the Jersey shore and is having a garage sale to end all garage sales. Everything the beautiful young actress Cleo Paradise left behind when she recently rented the house is up for grabs. The irrepressible Edna even rented a plane to fly over the beach touting the sale, using Cleo’s name as bait. Karen’s heading East but asks Nora to please go to the house and, she hopes, curtail any other outrageous antics her mother probably has in mind. Nora agrees and asks Regan to join her.
Regan and Nora arrive at the Frawley home to find a mob of garage-sale junkies waiting at the front gate. Regan is astonished to see Scott’s brand-new fiancée, who quickly makes herself scarce.
Once inside the house, Regan becomes increasingly suspicious about why Cleo left so many belongings behind when she vacated Edna’s home unexpectedly. Was she in that much of a hurry? Regan wonders. “Where did Cleo go?” is a question too many people are suddenly asking. But no one has the answer. It isn’t long before Regan finds herself searching for Cleo, whose next hours may be her last.
http://www.amazon.com/Mobbed-Regan-Reilly-Mystery-Mysteries
My Review: A fast paced mystery with lots of twists and turns. Many interrelated story lines made it a little too complicated. All around a good story.
PI Regan Reilly and her husband, Jack, head of the NYPD Major Case Squad, plan to spend the weekend at the Jersey shore with her parents. Regan’s mother, suspense writer Nora Regan Reilly, will be celebrating her birthday on Saturday. But Regan’s weekend gets off to an early start when she receives a phone call from her mother asking if she’d hop on a train right away.
Regan had just finished delivering bad news to a high school classmate. Hayley Patton is a successful New York City event planner, who had become suspicious that her beau, Scott, was seeing other women and hired Regan to follow him. When Hayley got the lowdown on Scott’s treachery, she vowed revenge with such vehemence that Regan is worried that Hayley might go too far.
Turns out Nora had also just spoken to an agitated high school classmate. Karen Frawley Fulton, who lives in San Diego, called Nora after learning her mother’s plans for the day. To Karen’s shock, Edna Frawley just sold their home at the Jersey shore and is having a garage sale to end all garage sales. Everything the beautiful young actress Cleo Paradise left behind when she recently rented the house is up for grabs. The irrepressible Edna even rented a plane to fly over the beach touting the sale, using Cleo’s name as bait. Karen’s heading East but asks Nora to please go to the house and, she hopes, curtail any other outrageous antics her mother probably has in mind. Nora agrees and asks Regan to join her.
Regan and Nora arrive at the Frawley home to find a mob of garage-sale junkies waiting at the front gate. Regan is astonished to see Scott’s brand-new fiancée, who quickly makes herself scarce.
Once inside the house, Regan becomes increasingly suspicious about why Cleo left so many belongings behind when she vacated Edna’s home unexpectedly. Was she in that much of a hurry? Regan wonders. “Where did Cleo go?” is a question too many people are suddenly asking. But no one has the answer. It isn’t long before Regan finds herself searching for Cleo, whose next hours may be her last.
http://www.amazon.com/Mobbed-Regan-Reilly-Mystery-Mysteries
My Review: A fast paced mystery with lots of twists and turns. Many interrelated story lines made it a little too complicated. All around a good story.
Tuesday, June 21, 2011
Gun Lake by Travis Thrasher 2011-30
Completed June 2011
A strong scene as five escaped felons hold up a Louisiana sporting goods store. Sean, Wes, Lonnie, Kurt and Craig continue to spread murder and mayhem in their wake as they head for Gun Lake in Michigan. Ossie Banks, an ex-con-turned-Christian from Chicago, ends up along for the ride and shares his faith with the "Stagworth Five." Meanwhile, Norah Britt leaves an abusive boyfriend to make a new life in Gun Lake, and in yet another subplot, Michelle Meier takes her rebellious teenage son, Jared, from their home in Illinois to Gun Lake to straighten him out. At Gun Lake, yet more story lines are introduced: an older man is haunted by a past that he'll have to face all too soon; the deputy's wife has left him, and his passion for the bottle puts his job in jeopardy. The lives of this dizzying cast of characters will converge, of course, but the many points of view, background stories and extraneous information make for challenging reading.
My Review: This was a overly complicated book with too many subplots. The book was very difficult to continue reading.
A strong scene as five escaped felons hold up a Louisiana sporting goods store. Sean, Wes, Lonnie, Kurt and Craig continue to spread murder and mayhem in their wake as they head for Gun Lake in Michigan. Ossie Banks, an ex-con-turned-Christian from Chicago, ends up along for the ride and shares his faith with the "Stagworth Five." Meanwhile, Norah Britt leaves an abusive boyfriend to make a new life in Gun Lake, and in yet another subplot, Michelle Meier takes her rebellious teenage son, Jared, from their home in Illinois to Gun Lake to straighten him out. At Gun Lake, yet more story lines are introduced: an older man is haunted by a past that he'll have to face all too soon; the deputy's wife has left him, and his passion for the bottle puts his job in jeopardy. The lives of this dizzying cast of characters will converge, of course, but the many points of view, background stories and extraneous information make for challenging reading.
My Review: This was a overly complicated book with too many subplots. The book was very difficult to continue reading.
I'll Walk Alone by Mary Higgins Clark 2011 -29
Completed June 2011
Who has not read about—or experienced—with a sinking feeling the fear that someone else out there may be using your credit cards, accessing your bank account, even stealing your identity.
In I'll Walk Alone, Alexandra “Zan” Moreland, a gifted, beautiful interior designer on the threshold of a successful Manhattan career, is terrified to discover that somebody is not only using her credit cards and manipulating her financial accounts to bankrupt her and destroy her reputation, but may also be impersonating her in a scheme that may involve the much more brutal crimes of kidnapping and murder. Zan is already haunted by the disappearance of her own son, Matthew, kidnapped in broad daylight two years ago in Central Park—a tragedy that has left her torn between hope and despair.
Now, on what would be Matthew’s fifth birthday, photos surface that seem to show Zan kidnapping her own child, followed by a chain of events that suggests somebody—but who? Zan asks herself desperately, and why?—has stolen her identity.
Hounded by the press, under investigation by the police, attacked by both her angry ex-husband and a vindictive business rival, Zan, wracked by fear and pain and sustained only by her belief, which nobody else shares, that Matthew is still alive, sets out to discover who is behind this cruel hoax.
What she does not realize is that with every step she takes toward the truth, she is putting herself— and those she loves most—in mortal danger from the person who has ingeniously plotted out her destruction.
Even Zan’s supporters, who include Alvirah Meehan, the lottery winner and amateur detective, and Father Aiden O’Brien, who thinks that Zan may have confessed to him a secret he cannot reveal, believe she may have kidnapped little Matthew. Zan herself begins to doubt her own sanity, until, in the kind of fast-paced explosive ending that is Mary Higgins Clark’s trademark, the pieces of the puzzle fall into place with an unexpected and shocking revelation
My Review: This is one of MHC's best books. This is a great story that keeps you hanging.
Who has not read about—or experienced—with a sinking feeling the fear that someone else out there may be using your credit cards, accessing your bank account, even stealing your identity.
In I'll Walk Alone, Alexandra “Zan” Moreland, a gifted, beautiful interior designer on the threshold of a successful Manhattan career, is terrified to discover that somebody is not only using her credit cards and manipulating her financial accounts to bankrupt her and destroy her reputation, but may also be impersonating her in a scheme that may involve the much more brutal crimes of kidnapping and murder. Zan is already haunted by the disappearance of her own son, Matthew, kidnapped in broad daylight two years ago in Central Park—a tragedy that has left her torn between hope and despair.
Now, on what would be Matthew’s fifth birthday, photos surface that seem to show Zan kidnapping her own child, followed by a chain of events that suggests somebody—but who? Zan asks herself desperately, and why?—has stolen her identity.
Hounded by the press, under investigation by the police, attacked by both her angry ex-husband and a vindictive business rival, Zan, wracked by fear and pain and sustained only by her belief, which nobody else shares, that Matthew is still alive, sets out to discover who is behind this cruel hoax.
What she does not realize is that with every step she takes toward the truth, she is putting herself— and those she loves most—in mortal danger from the person who has ingeniously plotted out her destruction.
Even Zan’s supporters, who include Alvirah Meehan, the lottery winner and amateur detective, and Father Aiden O’Brien, who thinks that Zan may have confessed to him a secret he cannot reveal, believe she may have kidnapped little Matthew. Zan herself begins to doubt her own sanity, until, in the kind of fast-paced explosive ending that is Mary Higgins Clark’s trademark, the pieces of the puzzle fall into place with an unexpected and shocking revelation
My Review: This is one of MHC's best books. This is a great story that keeps you hanging.
Thursday, June 9, 2011
The Second Thief by Travis Thrasher 2011 - 28
Completed June 2011
When Tom stepped onto the plane, he knew he was making a choice that would change his life. But he had no idea how much. The author, Travis Thrasher, tells us: 'The Second Thief is a story about a man who survives a plane accident and has a second chance at life. As he runs from his present mistakes while making amends for past ones, he comes to grips with his own lack of faith.'This fast-moving, unpredictable story asks the question: Is it ever too late to redeem past mistakes? Its central character, Tom, realistically represents the skepticism and doubt of many people today who simply don't 'buy into' Christianity. Faced with a new opportunity and a chance to change, what will be his decision?Readers of all ages will enjoy the suspense of Tom's journey and its unexpected, dramatic conclusion.
My Review: A well written Christian fiction novel.
When Tom stepped onto the plane, he knew he was making a choice that would change his life. But he had no idea how much. The author, Travis Thrasher, tells us: 'The Second Thief is a story about a man who survives a plane accident and has a second chance at life. As he runs from his present mistakes while making amends for past ones, he comes to grips with his own lack of faith.'This fast-moving, unpredictable story asks the question: Is it ever too late to redeem past mistakes? Its central character, Tom, realistically represents the skepticism and doubt of many people today who simply don't 'buy into' Christianity. Faced with a new opportunity and a chance to change, what will be his decision?Readers of all ages will enjoy the suspense of Tom's journey and its unexpected, dramatic conclusion.
My Review: A well written Christian fiction novel.
Thursday, June 2, 2011
It Only Takes A Moment by Mary Jane Clark 2011-25
Completed May 2011
New York City news anchor Eliza Blake, now back at the morning TV show KEY to America, pays a price for her high media profile in this riveting novel of suspense from bestseller Clark (When Day Breaks). When kidnappers seize Eliza's seven-year-old daughter, Janie, and Eliza's Hispanic housekeeper on their way home from camp in New Jersey, Eliza's comfortable life turns into a living nightmare. The FBI, local law enforcement and Eliza's news team work around the clock to discover the identities and locations of the kidnappers. When a psychic arrives at Eliza's doorstep, claiming to know details of the kidnapping that weren't released to the press, Eliza is convinced that the psychic can help find Janie. Suspicious letters, ransom notes and mysterious clues heighten the suspense. A multitude of red herrings will keep the reader guessing to the shocking conclusion.
My Review: Great suspense fiction. The first book in a long time that had me all the way to the end of the book. Really enjoying reading this author.
New York City news anchor Eliza Blake, now back at the morning TV show KEY to America, pays a price for her high media profile in this riveting novel of suspense from bestseller Clark (When Day Breaks). When kidnappers seize Eliza's seven-year-old daughter, Janie, and Eliza's Hispanic housekeeper on their way home from camp in New Jersey, Eliza's comfortable life turns into a living nightmare. The FBI, local law enforcement and Eliza's news team work around the clock to discover the identities and locations of the kidnappers. When a psychic arrives at Eliza's doorstep, claiming to know details of the kidnapping that weren't released to the press, Eliza is convinced that the psychic can help find Janie. Suspicious letters, ransom notes and mysterious clues heighten the suspense. A multitude of red herrings will keep the reader guessing to the shocking conclusion.
My Review: Great suspense fiction. The first book in a long time that had me all the way to the end of the book. Really enjoying reading this author.
Tuesday, May 17, 2011
Eleven Days by Donald Harstad 2011-24
Completed May 2011
In a mesmerizing debut, cop-turned-author Donald Harstad uses real-life events to paint a jarring picture of crime in America's heartland--where two-stoplight towns no longer offer refuge from modern-day brutality.
Life in Maitland, Iowa, is usually predictable, even for a cop. But all that changes the day Deputy Sheriff Carl Houseman's dispatcher receives the terrifying 911 call. The day cops find the mutilated bodies at a remote farmhouse. The first of eleven days Carl will never forget.
As hotshot investigators fly in from New York, Carl and his fellow cops use old-fashioned detective work to piece together clues. But to turn suspicions into suspects, Carl must search among his closest friends to find a killer who has shocked and bewildered cops who'd thought they'd seen it all. And before it's over, Carl will be forced into an unrelenting spiral of chaos, coming face-to-face with evil he never dreamed could exist in Maitland...or anywhere else.
My review: This was a very good book. I enjoyed the fact that it wasn't "obvious" in the whodoneit department. The police codes became a little confusing and would have been better understood by explaining when used the first time.
In a mesmerizing debut, cop-turned-author Donald Harstad uses real-life events to paint a jarring picture of crime in America's heartland--where two-stoplight towns no longer offer refuge from modern-day brutality.
Life in Maitland, Iowa, is usually predictable, even for a cop. But all that changes the day Deputy Sheriff Carl Houseman's dispatcher receives the terrifying 911 call. The day cops find the mutilated bodies at a remote farmhouse. The first of eleven days Carl will never forget.
As hotshot investigators fly in from New York, Carl and his fellow cops use old-fashioned detective work to piece together clues. But to turn suspicions into suspects, Carl must search among his closest friends to find a killer who has shocked and bewildered cops who'd thought they'd seen it all. And before it's over, Carl will be forced into an unrelenting spiral of chaos, coming face-to-face with evil he never dreamed could exist in Maitland...or anywhere else.
My review: This was a very good book. I enjoyed the fact that it wasn't "obvious" in the whodoneit department. The police codes became a little confusing and would have been better understood by explaining when used the first time.
Saturday, April 23, 2011
Act of Treason by Vince Flynn 2011 - 23
Completed April 2011
Tom Clancy fans who have not yet discovered bestseller Flynn (Consent to Kill) and his maverick, do-whatever-it-takes hero, CIA operative Mitch Rapp, will find this page-turner right up their alley. When an al-Qaeda–style bomb attack on the motorcade of the Democratic presidential candidate, Georgia governor Josh Alexander, in Washington, D.C., a month before the November election kills the candidate's wife and several Secret Service agents, Rapp uses all the tools at his disposal to investigate the claim of the now discredited head of the protective detail that a mysterious figure in a red baseball cap set off the fatal bomb. Rapp soon finds that the motive for the outrage may be personal rather than political. While the underlying plot elements require a great deal of suspended disbelief, Flynn will pull most readers along with his taut writing and plausible vision of the real work of the intelligence community. Author tour. (Oct.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
My Review: This was a great book. The subject matter was very intriguing and the storyline kept the reader wondering. I really liked our "hero" Mitch Rapp and his attitude. I look forward to reading more by Vince Flynn.
Tom Clancy fans who have not yet discovered bestseller Flynn (Consent to Kill) and his maverick, do-whatever-it-takes hero, CIA operative Mitch Rapp, will find this page-turner right up their alley. When an al-Qaeda–style bomb attack on the motorcade of the Democratic presidential candidate, Georgia governor Josh Alexander, in Washington, D.C., a month before the November election kills the candidate's wife and several Secret Service agents, Rapp uses all the tools at his disposal to investigate the claim of the now discredited head of the protective detail that a mysterious figure in a red baseball cap set off the fatal bomb. Rapp soon finds that the motive for the outrage may be personal rather than political. While the underlying plot elements require a great deal of suspended disbelief, Flynn will pull most readers along with his taut writing and plausible vision of the real work of the intelligence community. Author tour. (Oct.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
My Review: This was a great book. The subject matter was very intriguing and the storyline kept the reader wondering. I really liked our "hero" Mitch Rapp and his attitude. I look forward to reading more by Vince Flynn.
Thursday, April 7, 2011
Nowhere to Run by Mary Jane Clark 2011 - 22
Completed April 2011
Botulism, anthrax, smallpox, plague. As the medical producer for television's highly rated morning news program Key to America, Annabelle Murphy makes her living explaining horrific conditions to the nation. So when a colleague dies with symptoms terrifyingly similar to those of the latest scourge, she knows the panic spreading through the corridors of the Broadcast Center is justified. As one death follows another, Annabelle's coworkers look to her for assurance, but she finds it hard to give comfort. To her, the circumstances of the infections begin to suggest that they may be diabolical murders. And when the authorities lock down the Broadcast Center with the identity of the killer still unknown, no one can be sure who to trust, and neither the victims nor the murderer can escape.
My Review: A good story line, however, I found the bouncing around in the numerous chapters a little confusing. Good job in keeping the mystery going clear to the end of the story.
Botulism, anthrax, smallpox, plague. As the medical producer for television's highly rated morning news program Key to America, Annabelle Murphy makes her living explaining horrific conditions to the nation. So when a colleague dies with symptoms terrifyingly similar to those of the latest scourge, she knows the panic spreading through the corridors of the Broadcast Center is justified. As one death follows another, Annabelle's coworkers look to her for assurance, but she finds it hard to give comfort. To her, the circumstances of the infections begin to suggest that they may be diabolical murders. And when the authorities lock down the Broadcast Center with the identity of the killer still unknown, no one can be sure who to trust, and neither the victims nor the murderer can escape.
My Review: A good story line, however, I found the bouncing around in the numerous chapters a little confusing. Good job in keeping the mystery going clear to the end of the story.
Saturday, March 26, 2011
Immoral by Brian Freeman 2011 - 20
Completed March 2011.
A Harlan Coban–esque murder/psychological suspense structure and some uninspired writing ("He saw urgency written in her face") add up to a mildly interesting but unsurprising thriller for first-timer Freeman. Called to investigate the disappearance of beautiful teenager Ruth Stoner, Duluth, Minn., police detective Lt. Jonathan Stride is haunted by the disappearance of another teen, Kerry McGrath, 14 months earlier. Stride's an honest, likable cop, full of angst over the cancer death of his beloved wife. He has a great working relationship with diminutive partner Maggie Bei, who's been in love with him for years. As Stride and Mags investigate, the only aspect of the case that becomes clear is that everyone involved with the crime—the victim, her family and her friends—is guilty of something. Tweezing apart these strands of guilt and trying to connect them to the missing Ruth occupies Stride for more than three years. Finally, in an extended denouement, the pieces fall into place, and Stride is able to solve not only the mysteries of both Ruth and Kelly, but mend his own fractured life as well.
My Review: Excellent new author I have never read before. This book was great. It kept me guessing all the way to the final chapter.
A Harlan Coban–esque murder/psychological suspense structure and some uninspired writing ("He saw urgency written in her face") add up to a mildly interesting but unsurprising thriller for first-timer Freeman. Called to investigate the disappearance of beautiful teenager Ruth Stoner, Duluth, Minn., police detective Lt. Jonathan Stride is haunted by the disappearance of another teen, Kerry McGrath, 14 months earlier. Stride's an honest, likable cop, full of angst over the cancer death of his beloved wife. He has a great working relationship with diminutive partner Maggie Bei, who's been in love with him for years. As Stride and Mags investigate, the only aspect of the case that becomes clear is that everyone involved with the crime—the victim, her family and her friends—is guilty of something. Tweezing apart these strands of guilt and trying to connect them to the missing Ruth occupies Stride for more than three years. Finally, in an extended denouement, the pieces fall into place, and Stride is able to solve not only the mysteries of both Ruth and Kelly, but mend his own fractured life as well.
My Review: Excellent new author I have never read before. This book was great. It kept me guessing all the way to the final chapter.
Thursday, March 3, 2011
Long Lost by Harlan Coben 2011 - 19
Completed March 2011
#1 New York Times bestselling author Harlan Coben’s blistering new Myron Bolitar thriller takes Myron—and his millions of fans—where they have never gone before Myron Bolitar hasn’t heard from Terese Collins since their torrid affair ended ten years ago, so her desperate phone call from Paris catches him completely off guard. In a shattering admission, Terese reveals the tragic story behind her disappearance—her struggles to get pregnant, the greatest moment of her life when her baby was born…and the fatal accident that robbed her of it all: her marriage, her happiness and her beloved only daughter. Now a suspect in the murder of her ex-husband in Paris, Terese has nowhere else to turn for help. Myron heeds the call. But then a startling piece of evidence turns the entire case upside down, laying bare Terese’s long-buried family secrets…and the very real possibility that her daughter may still be alive. In grave danger from unknown assailants in a country where nothing is as it seems, Myron and Terese race to stay a step ahead of Homeland Security, Interpol, and Mossad. Soon they are working at breakneck pace, not only to learn what really happened to Terese’s long-lost little girl— but to uncover a sinister plot with shocking global implications.
My Review: Another great Myron Bolitar mystery. This one had even more unexpected twists and turns.
#1 New York Times bestselling author Harlan Coben’s blistering new Myron Bolitar thriller takes Myron—and his millions of fans—where they have never gone before Myron Bolitar hasn’t heard from Terese Collins since their torrid affair ended ten years ago, so her desperate phone call from Paris catches him completely off guard. In a shattering admission, Terese reveals the tragic story behind her disappearance—her struggles to get pregnant, the greatest moment of her life when her baby was born…and the fatal accident that robbed her of it all: her marriage, her happiness and her beloved only daughter. Now a suspect in the murder of her ex-husband in Paris, Terese has nowhere else to turn for help. Myron heeds the call. But then a startling piece of evidence turns the entire case upside down, laying bare Terese’s long-buried family secrets…and the very real possibility that her daughter may still be alive. In grave danger from unknown assailants in a country where nothing is as it seems, Myron and Terese race to stay a step ahead of Homeland Security, Interpol, and Mossad. Soon they are working at breakneck pace, not only to learn what really happened to Terese’s long-lost little girl— but to uncover a sinister plot with shocking global implications.
My Review: Another great Myron Bolitar mystery. This one had even more unexpected twists and turns.
Promise Me by Harlan Coben 2011 - 17
Completed February 2011
New York Times bestselling author Harlan Coben returns with PROMISE ME--a searing new thriller and a story of how far we will go to protect our own…. It has been six years since entertainment agent Myron Bolitar last played superhero. In six years he hasn’t thrown a punch. He hasn’t held, much less fired, a gun. He hasn’t called his friend Win, still the scariest man he knows, to back him up or get him out of trouble. All that is about to change...because of a promise. The school year is almost over. Anxious families await word of college acceptances. In these last pressure-cooker months of high school, some kids will make the all-too- common and all-too-dangerous mistake of drinking and driving. But Myron is determined to help keep his friends’ children safe, and so he makes two neighborhood girls promise him: If they are ever in a bind but are afraid to call their parents, they must call him. Several nights later, the call comes at 2:00 am, and true to his word, Myron picks up one of the girls in midtown Manhattan and drives her to a quiet cul-de-sac in New Jersey where she says her friend lives. The next day, the girl’s parents discover that their daughter is missing. And that Myron was the last person to see her. Desperate to fulfill a well-intentioned promise turned nightmarishly wrong, Myron races to find her before she’s gone forever. But his past will not be buried so easily - for trouble has always stalked him, and his loved ones often suffer. Now Myron must decide once and for all who he is and what he will stand up for if he is to have any hope of saving a young girl’s life.
My Review: Great new mystery series for me to read. I really enjoy the unexpected twists. Look forward to reading more Myron Bolitar novels.
My Review: Great new mystery series for me to read. I really enjoy the unexpected twists. Look forward to reading more Myron Bolitar novels.
Edge by Jeffrey Deaver 2011 - 3
Completed January 2011
Detective Kessler is a Washington, D.C. cop, sidelined to routine investigations. So it's a surprise when he's targeted by a 'lifter,' a person who 'lifts' information from people by whatever means necessary. And this lifter is one of the most terrifying: he prefers to get an 'edge' on his target by kidnapping or endangering their family. While the FBI and other organizations race to learn which of Kessler's seemingly insignificant cases is making somebody so uneasy they've called in a lifter, the task of safeguarding the cop, his wife and daughter, falls to expert in personal security, Corte. What ensues is a deadly contest between Corte and the lifter as each tries to outmanoeuvre the other - and a surprising conclusion that even Deaver fans won't see coming ...
My Review: The book was very difficult to get into at first but picked up about halfway through.
Detective Kessler is a Washington, D.C. cop, sidelined to routine investigations. So it's a surprise when he's targeted by a 'lifter,' a person who 'lifts' information from people by whatever means necessary. And this lifter is one of the most terrifying: he prefers to get an 'edge' on his target by kidnapping or endangering their family. While the FBI and other organizations race to learn which of Kessler's seemingly insignificant cases is making somebody so uneasy they've called in a lifter, the task of safeguarding the cop, his wife and daughter, falls to expert in personal security, Corte. What ensues is a deadly contest between Corte and the lifter as each tries to outmanoeuvre the other - and a surprising conclusion that even Deaver fans won't see coming ...
My Review: The book was very difficult to get into at first but picked up about halfway through.
Tick Tock by James Patterson 2011 - 2
Completed January 2011
A bomb set in one of New York's busiest places is discovered before it explodes. But relief turns to terror when the police realize it is just a warning of greater devastation to come. The city calls on Detective Michael Bennett, pulling him away from a seaside vacation with his ten adopted children and their beloved nanny, Mary Catherine--leaving his entire family open to attack. Bennett enlists the help of a former colleague, FBI Agent Beth Peters. His affection for Beth grows into attraction and then something stronger, and his relationship with Mary Catherine takes an unexpected turn. Another horrifying crime leads Bennett to a shocking discovery that exposes the killer's pattern--and the earth-shattering enormity of his plan.
My Review - Excellent Book. Well worth the wait. I am looking forward to more Detective Michael Bennett books.
A bomb set in one of New York's busiest places is discovered before it explodes. But relief turns to terror when the police realize it is just a warning of greater devastation to come. The city calls on Detective Michael Bennett, pulling him away from a seaside vacation with his ten adopted children and their beloved nanny, Mary Catherine--leaving his entire family open to attack. Bennett enlists the help of a former colleague, FBI Agent Beth Peters. His affection for Beth grows into attraction and then something stronger, and his relationship with Mary Catherine takes an unexpected turn. Another horrifying crime leads Bennett to a shocking discovery that exposes the killer's pattern--and the earth-shattering enormity of his plan.
My Review - Excellent Book. Well worth the wait. I am looking forward to more Detective Michael Bennett books.
Tuesday, January 19, 2010
Swimsuit by James Patterson and Maxine Paetro
Completed Reading: January 2010
Features
Review
A good storyline with great characters. Book drags on a little in sections and ties up the story rather abruptly and quickly at the end. An enjoyable book to read but not one of Patterson's best work.
Features
- Ben Hawkins (Former LA Cop turned Reporter/Author )
Review
A good storyline with great characters. Book drags on a little in sections and ties up the story rather abruptly and quickly at the end. An enjoyable book to read but not one of Patterson's best work.
The Edge ~ Catherine Coulter
Completed Reading - December 2009
The 4th Book in the FBI Series
Features
- FBI Agent Ford "Mac" MacDouglas
- Jilly Bartlett
- Cameo Roles by FBI Agent Couple Dillon Savich and Lacey Sherlock
A thriller based on the bizarre behavior of Jilly Bartlett that brings her brother Mac to Oregon following a bizarre psychic connection between the two. A bizarre story of deceit and murder surrounding a new addictive drug. In Coulter style, there is a romantic element between characters.
Review
A good read! Not Catherine Coulter's finest work but a solid myster that keeps the reader intrigued and guessing until the end of the book.
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