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.
Tuesday, May 17, 2011
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.
Sunday, March 27, 2011
Nothing to Fear by Karen Rose 2011 - 21
As director of an inner-city woman's shelter, Dana Dupinsky safeguards many secrets. Some are new identities; some are new addresses; and some are even hidden truths about herself. Passionately dedicated to Hanover House and the women she protects, Dana has always been reluctant to look for love. But now, just as a case puts her and a child in mortal danger, it seems that love has come looking for her.
Security expert Ethan Buchanan learned to stalk men in the Afghan desert. Now he vows to track down the ruthless woman who kidnapped his godson-and falling for Dana is not in the plan. Yet her very presence seems to chase away the ghosts that haunt him, and her skillful evasion of personal questions raises his hunting instincts. For there's a deadly new secret at Hanover House. A brutal killer is weaving a web of revenge with a stolen boy at its center. And Dana is the next victim on the list...
My Review: Really enjoyed the book. Lots of unexpected twists and turns and just the right amount of romance.
Security expert Ethan Buchanan learned to stalk men in the Afghan desert. Now he vows to track down the ruthless woman who kidnapped his godson-and falling for Dana is not in the plan. Yet her very presence seems to chase away the ghosts that haunt him, and her skillful evasion of personal questions raises his hunting instincts. For there's a deadly new secret at Hanover House. A brutal killer is weaving a web of revenge with a stolen boy at its center. And Dana is the next victim on the list...
My Review: Really enjoyed the book. Lots of unexpected twists and turns and just the right amount of romance.
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.
Hide In Plain Sight (Three Sisters Inn Series) by Marta Perry 2011 - 18
Completed February 2011
Book 1 of the Three Sisters Inn Series. When Andrea Hampton returns to her Amish community when her sister Rachel is injured in an accident. She is forced to stay to help with the opening of the Three Sisters Inn (B&B) and becomes entangled in a series of strange happenings. Carpenter Cal Burke who is a renter of her grandmother comes to her aid in more ways then one.
My Review: Very good book. Look forward to reading others in the series.
Book 1 of the Three Sisters Inn Series. When Andrea Hampton returns to her Amish community when her sister Rachel is injured in an accident. She is forced to stay to help with the opening of the Three Sisters Inn (B&B) and becomes entangled in a series of strange happenings. Carpenter Cal Burke who is a renter of her grandmother comes to her aid in more ways then one.
My Review: Very good book. Look forward to reading others in the series.
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