July 2018 Continuing Reading Update and My Ongoing Author's A - Z

It was an all round poor sporting day yesterday. Everyone that we had high hopes for ended up losing.. I won't get into specifics because it'll just depress me again. So let's talk about books instead. I've finished two more books since my last update and have, of course, started two more.

Just Finished

1. Occam's Razor by Archer Mayor (Joe Gunther #10).












"Occam's Razor is the 10th book in the Joe Gunther mystery by Archer Mayor and the 2nd book in the series that I've read (I have only managed to find a few books in the series so far).

Gunther is a police lieutenant based out of Brattleboro, Vermont and head of the detective department. This story starts off with Gunther and his team called out in the middle of the night to attend to a body discovered on the train tracks. It appears like murder as the body was placed strategically on the tracks; with head and hands on the tracks so that the body couldn't easily be identified. As they investigate the case another murder is discovered; that of a prostitute who has been stabbed to death and also of her baby, who has died of exposure in the house.

Thus begins a meandering, at times, investigation of the murders, that might somehow be linked and might involve illegal Hazmat disposal, political intrigue, etc. We get an excellent view of the government in Vermont, and of the state itself. The story delves into the lives of the investigators and we get to know more about them.

I like that the case doesn't get resolved in two or three days but that we get a long realistic investigation, as clues dry up and then others come to the forefront so the investigators can move in other directions. As well, there is an interesting look at a move by the government to update the whole policing structure of Vermont.

All in all, even though at times I got somewhat lost in the story, it was so very well written and described that I enjoyed it very much. Mayor is an intelligent writer who keeps the story moving and holds your interest. Most enjoyable and I look forward to continuing to explore Gunther's life and investigations. (4 stars)"

2. Haven by Kay Hooper (Bishop/ Special Crime Unit #13 - Haven #1).

"Haven by Kay Hooper, the first book in the Haven trilogy is my first exposure to Hooper's writing. It's a mix of psychic investigators and mystery. The Haven trilogy is a small part of a bigger series by Hooper, that being the Bishop Files.

Bishop is an FBI 'investigator' responsible for the Special Crime Unit (SCU), which consists of varied agents who possess a variety of psychic abilities'; mediums, empaths, telepaths, etc. Haven is a privately funded group run by multi-billionaires, John and Maggie Garrett who often assist the SCU in their investigations. In Haven, one of Haven's investigators, Jesse Rayburn, returns to her hometown, Baron Hollow, North Carolina, to visit her sister, to try and make sense of a terrible incident from her earlier years (which she'd buried in her subconscious) and to investigate possible murders. Also in Baron Hollow are Jessie's sister, Emma, who runs a local inn. Emma is having nightmares about missing women; she may have developed psychic powers when she had a concussion. You will also meet another Haven agent, Nathan Navarro, who is there undercover at Maggie's behest. Throw a team of psychic investigators from Bishop's SCU who also happen to be in the mix and you've got quite a few people getting into each other's way.

While Jessie tries to break through the walls that hide what happened so many years ago, there is also a serial killer on the prowl, kidnapping women hikers from out of town and torturing and killing them. These various women are sensed by all of the various psychics who seem to be working on their own as they try to discover who the killer might be.

As you can guess it's a somewhat convoluted story. Every body seems to be working in isolation of the others (a frustrating story line for me, as these things never end well). The story does move along nicely, with plenty of action, but it's far from perfect. I thought the concept was interesting but wasn't totally thrilled with the overall story. I do have another of Hooper's stories on my shelf and I'm interested in seeing how the various organizations and characters might be fleshed out. (3 stars)"

Currently Reading

1. Plain Murder by C.S. Forester (My Decades Challenge / 1930). I've read a few of Forester's books, especially his Horatio Hornblower stories. But I've also enjoyed his early mysteries.










"Morris is a bully who gets his buddies to do his bidding because he's more charming, more intelligent and more cunning. He has no conscience, he suffers no guilt. In short, Morris is a psychopath.


When he and his mates are caught in a two-bit scam, Morris decides quick murder is an easy fix. But murder leads to nightmare and before it is over, Morris turns on his friends, who know what they can expect from him."

2. Caught by Lisa Moore (Canadian Content Challenge). Jo and I enjoyed a CBC dramatization of this book that came out this past season. It starred Paul Gross and Alan Hawco and was quite excellent. I hope the book is as good.










"It’s June, 1978, and David Slaney can be sure of only one thing. He can’t get caught; not this time. He’s escaped from prison and has got to make good on the heist that went wrong, win back the woman he loves, and make a big enough profit to buy himself a new life. First, though, he must get himself across a vast country full of watchful eyes, booby traps, and friends who might be foes.

Here are bravado and betrayal, bad weather and worse seas, love, lust, undercover agents, the collusion of governments, innocence and the loss thereof, and many, many bales of marijuana. Here, too, is the seeming invincibility of youth and all the folly that it allows."

Bill's Author's A - Z

James Fenimore Cooper

1. James Fenimore Cooper (1789 - 1851). Over the course of his life, American writer wrote many books. He might be best known for his Leather-stocking Tales, a collection of 5 novels. So far I've read The Deerslayer, which was the last published but in fact represented the earliest novel chronologically. The five novels were -

a. The Deerslayer (published 1841, covering 1740 - 1755)
b. The Last of the Mohicans (published 1826, covering 1757)
c. The Pathfinder (published 1840, covering 1758-59)
d. The Pioneers (published 1823, covering 1793)
e. The Prairie (published 1827, covering 1804)

I've read The Deerslayer and have the second on my book shelf.

a. The Deerslayer.










"The Deerslayer by James Fenimore Cooper was the last book in the series that Cooper wrote, but chronologically, it is the first book of the Natty Bumpo series of five books. It introduces us to the Deerslayer, also known as Hawkeye.

The Deerslayer and his acquaintance, Hurry Harry, another frontiersman to Glimmerglass Lake to meet his friend, Delaware Indian Chingachgook and help him save his love, Hist, from a band of Huron Indians.  He as well meets a family, Tom Hutter and his two daughters, Judith and Hetty, who live on the lake in a floating house.

Various adventures take place during the course of this novel, Hurry and Tom are taken prisoner by the Huron when they invade the camp for the purpose of getting scalps (a bounty has been offered by the English authorities; the Huron being an ally of the French in Canada. Deerslayer must work to try and get them back and also try to help free Hist. Deerslayer is later also taken prisoner and from their the story progresses to a somewhat satisfying ending.

I enjoyed the story overall; one that I've never considered reading before. It does portray the early settling and struggles of the English trying to conquer and settle the North American continent, even if just from the limited area in New York that this story follows. I liked the characters for the most part; Hurry and Tom Hutter are after money and whether trapping or acquiring Indian scalps, they don't really care. We find out more of Hutter's past as the story progresses.

Judith is described as a beautiful woman, who Hurry, amongst many others (such as soldiers from forts and villages some distance from the lake, all want. She is smart and headstrong and falls for the Deerslayer when they meet. Hetty is described as a young woman who does not possess her full wits, although she often seems to be the most rational person of the group. She misses her mother, who is buried in the lake and is very religious.

Natty Bumpo is a frontiersman with a strong moral code, but also at times, seemed to me to be a bit of a dumb-ass; when it comes to dealing with women, especially. It is for that reason that I found the story somewhat frustrating and the ending not totally satisfying. All in all, though, it was an interesting story. I found it easy to put down for a day or two, but as I got into the story more and more, I did find myself spending more time with it and then not putting down until I discovered how it would end.

Lots of talking and moralizing, but still relatively easy to read and enough action to keep the story moving along. (3.5 stars)"

b. The Last of the Mohicans.












"It is 1757. Across north-eastern America the armies of Britain and France struggle for ascendancy. Their conflict, however, overlays older struggles between nations of native Americans for possession of the same lands and between the native peoples and white colonizers. Through these layers of conflict Cooper threads a thrilling narrative, in which Cora and Alice Munro, daughters of a British commander on the front line of the colonial war, attempt to join their father. Thwarted by Magua, the 'Indian runner', they find help in the person of Hawk-eye, the white woodsman, and his companions, the Mohican Chingachgook and Uncas, his son, the last of his tribe."

Michael Cordy

2. Michael Cordy. English writer, Michael Cordy, was born in Ghana and spent much of his life in East Africa, India and Cyprus. Since 1997 he has written 6 thrillers. Even though his first novel was published six years before Dan Brown's Da Vinci Code he has been criticized for imitating Brown. I have his first novel awaiting my attention.

a. The Miracle Strain (1997). It has also been published under the title, The Messiah Code.












"At the moment of his supreme triumph, a man of science dodges an assassin's bullet and loses everything that truly matters in his life. Now only a miracle can save Dr. Tom Carter's dying daughter: the blood of salvation shed twenty centuries ago.

In the volatile heart of the Middle East, amid the devastating secrets of an ancient brotherhood awaiting a new messiah, Tom Carter must search for answers to the mysteries that have challenged humankind since the death and resurrection of the greatest Healer who ever walked the Earth.

Because suddenly Carter's life, the life of his little girl, and the fate of the world hang in the balance ... After two thousand years, the wait is over ..."

The other books that Cordy has written are -

a. The Crime Code (1999)
b. The Lucifer Code (2001)
c. The Venus Conspiracy (2004)
d. The Source (2008)
e. The Colour of Death (2011)

Bernard Cornwell

3. Bernard Cornwell. Cornwell is an English writer of historical adventures. Some of his series include The Warlord Chronicles, The Grail Quest novels, the Saxon Stories, etc. I am enjoying his Sharpe series. My wife and I have watched the complete TV series based on the books and I've enjoyed the first 12 books in the series. There are currently 24 books in this series. I'll highlight 3 of my favorites so far.

My Sharpe Books

a. Sharpe's Tiger (#1). Published in 1997 it covers the Siege of Seringapatam in 1799, one of the Indian War novels.

"Sharpe's battalion, along with the rising star of the general staff, Arthur Wellesley, is about to embark upon the siege of Seringapatam, citadel of the Tippoo of Mysore.

When a senior British officer is captured by the Tippoo's forces, Sharpe is offered a chance to attempt a rescue, and escape from the tyrannical Sergeant Obediah Hakeswill. But in fleeing Hakeswill he enters the exotic and dangerous world of the Tippoo, and Sharpe will need all his wits just to stay alive, let alone save the British army from catastrophe."

b. Sharpe's Havoc (#7). Published in 2003 it covers the French invasion of Portugal, Spring 1809.

"As always, Cornwell has crafted a gritty adventure, featuring his hero/ anti-hero, Lt Sharpe. Sharpe and his men have been lost behind French lines in Portugal and have been tasked to rescue an English girl. These orders are superseded by an English 'gentleman' and they end up having to stay behind enemy lines, betrayed by a supposed ally and having to fight for their lives. Often gritty, but an entertaining read, I enjoyed this very much."

c. Sharpe's Fury (#11). Published in 2006, this story covers Battle of Barrosa, March 1811.

"As always the Sharpe books are an entertaining and exciting adventure series. This is the 11th book in the series and I enjoyed it very much. I like the historical aspects of the story, the British battle at Barrosa in 1811 and how Cornwell fits Capt Sharpe and his riflemen into the action. There were excellent supporting characters, including Sir Thomas Graham, who I liked very much. There is always a slight romantic interest but not quite so prevalent in this story. Sharpe has to contend with a plotting, vicious Spanish priest and a French Colonel, Vandal, who doesn't play according to the rules of war. If you like a page turner and well-crafted historical adventure, try the Sharpe books."

I try to read at least one a year and a Sharpe book is always enjoyable and action-filled.

Well, there you go. It's almost time for Jeopardy and then maybe a Blue Jays' victory (ha ha ha ha) over the Boston Red Sox. Your weekend is almost here. Enjoy!