Just Completed
(I've completed 7 books since my last update)
"Miami Blues, the first Hoke Moseley mystery, by Charles Willeford was my first exposure to Willeford's writing. I've had the book for a couple of years now and I'm so glad that I finally got around to trying it. It was excellent. Miami Vice without the glitz. More in the Elmore Leonard vein, maybe. Well, let's just say, it's Charles Willeford.
Hoke Mosely is detective Sgt in the Miami police department. He's pretty well broke, supporting an ex-wife and two kids. He lives for free in an old apartment building, living outside of his jurisdiction, which is a no-no. But he gets his shabby room free because he provides onsite security when he's there. His partner is Sgt Bill Henderson and they work together pretty effectively, it seems.
The story starts with an ex-con from California, Freddie Frenger Jr. Freddie has just flown into Miami from California where he has been released from prison. He's committed a number of crimes before his departure and is now armed with various wallets, credit cards, a packet of money and left behind at least one murder victim. Arriving at the airport in Miami, he steals a suitcase from a lady and her child, is harassed by a Hari Krishna (he grabs the young man's finger and breaks it... and empties his pockets of his lose money)
Freddie gets a room at a downtown hotel and begins to plan how he will live in Miami. He meets a young lady, Susan Waggoner... in fact, he gets her sent up to his room... and coincidently she is the sister of the Hari Krishna at the airport. He takes half the money he makes from people at the airport. She drives up each day and collects it. They bank the money because he wants to open a Burger King in their hometown upstate. Freddie is unaware of this and he begins to plan how he can use Susan to get himself established in Miami. She is part time hooking at the hotel for the doorman, Pablo and also taking night courses at the local community college. Freddie arranges to meet her at the college and afterwards she will show him the city...
We finally meet Hoke and Henderson back at the airport where they've been called to investigate the death of a Hari Krishna. It seems he died of shock when his finger was broken. This is just one of a few cases the two are working and it seems this one might be closed fairly easily. The young man's father tells Hoke that his daughter, that being Susan Waggoner, can identify the body. He doesn't want to come down from Okeechobee to do it. So Harry finds out that Susan is at college and he goes to get her. And that's how Hoke, Freddie and Susan meet.... and the story moves on...
Freddie begins a crime 'spree' in Miami, muggings, petty robberies. He creates a number of locations as possible hidey holes, develops his relationship with Susan and so on. Hoke and Henderson investigate the murder of two Colombians, a maid and a small child, amongst other things. At some point Hoke decides to visit Susan again because he's kind of suspicious of Freddie. And that's where things take off..
It's a fascinating, well-written story. It portrays all of the characters so nicely and also creates a fantastic picture of Miami of that time (1984). Hoke is an interesting character. His partner is also neat and both Freddie and Susan are well-developed. The story draws you in so easily. It flows smoothly from scene to scene, from character to character and wends its way to the very satisfying conclusion very nicely. I totally enjoyed it, just a great story and mystery. New Hope for the Dead is #2 and conveniently, it sits on my bookshelf. Check this author out! (4.5 stars)"
"Abandon Galaxy! by Bart Somers is the 2ne and last book in the Commander Craig Sci-Fi adventure series. It's a misogynist space adventure, which was silly, silly, silly but easy to read. 😎
Commander Craig is an agent for the Empire and is definitely bigger than life. He's first called upon to stop LOOT, an interplanetary gang of thieves from stealing an artifact from the Rim Worlds that's on loan at an Empire Museum. Relations are extremely fractious between the Rim and Empire and the loss of this treasured artifact will probably cause war between the two regions. And LOOT will be there to pick up the pieces and make themselves even richer.
After he solves that one, Craig is granted a vacation on the Pleasure Planet.. any kind of pleasure and it's filled with women (& men, too) willing to provide it. Unfortunately for Craig, he's advised by his boss that LOOT is planning to blow up the planet, with both Rim to be blamed... and thereby causing the self-same war. It's up to Craig to discover who the LOOT agents are and to stop them from detonating the bomb. Got it? That's it, folks. The rest of the story is how heroic Commander Craig and a woman he 'wins' in combat, one Mylitta, an expert in providing satisfaction from another planet, run down the enemies and save the universe. Do you think they will?
As I said, it's a full-blown space adventure. Commander Craig is James Bond+ and every woman wants him. Remarkably when he's on a mission, he shows great restraint. It's full of danger, with a neat little deadly chess game where he and his opponent are the pieces, trying to survive, and many other hazards thrown his way. If you want pure adventure, it's an easy, quick, action-filled read. (2.0 stars)"
"Broken by Karin Slaughter is the 4th book in her Will Trent mystery / thriller series. It's also a combined Trent / Sara Linton story. Sara Linton, who was the main character in the Grant County series, has moved to Atlanta to work as an ER doctor following the murder of her husband Jeffrey, who was sheriff of Grant County.
In this book, Sara has gone home for Thanksgiving, with some misgivings though. Lena Adams, a Grant County deputy, who Sara blames for her husband's death (it was at the hands of Lena's abusive lover) still works for the police force. Sara doesn't want to meet Lena.
A body has been discovered in the lake, near a community college. The girl was stabbed and carried out into the lake weighted down with bricks. Alison was a student at the college. Lena and the Acting Sheriff, Frank Wilson, an alcoholic, attend the crime scene with another deputy, Brad Stephens. As they begin their investigation, they end up at Alison's residence, a decrepit garage turned into a small apartment. They discover Tommy Braham in the apartment when the open the garage door. A series of clumsy events; Lena is knocked over, drunk Frank Wilson slips and his gun goes off, grazing Lena's hand, and Tommy runs out carrying a letter opener. Brad takes off after him, when Tommy turns, he runs into the letter opener, which embeds itself in Brad.
After this calamity, Frank leaves Lena to interrogate Tommy. When Lena leaves Tommy alone, he kills himself in custody. This brings Sara Linton into the situation, asked by Frank. All of her feelings towards Lena come bursting to the surface. She basically blames Lena for everything that's happened. She also calls the head of the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, asking that she send an agent down to take over the investigation, that agent being Will Trent, with whom she has worked in previous Will Trent books.
Trent has to work with both Lena and Sara, separately, and finds himself in an untenable situation. Not only is the weather vile, the local police resent his intrusion and he has to deal with Sara's feelings about Lena. It all makes for a tense, awkward and even dangerous situation for Trent, who also deals with his dyslexia and is without his capable partner, Faith, who is back in Atlanta, about to give birth. She does provide a link with Trent until she has to give birth.
It makes for a fascinating and grim story. There will be other death(s) and so much tension; between Trent and the police force, between Sara and Lena, between Lena and her boss, etc. It makes for a fascinating story and as the tension builds, Will begins to find the inconsistencies in the various stories, to piece together what happened. All in all, it's well worth reading. Slaughter knows how to craft an excellent mystery thriller. Broken is just another fine example. (4.0 stars)"
"Barking! is the 4th book in the PI Grace Smith mystery series by English author Liz Evans. The series is set in the coastal town of Seatoun where Grace plies her trade working for Vetch and his small agency. Also the agency includes his partner and Grace's best friend, Annie and their 'in 'capable personal asst, Jan.
Grace is hired by a local junkyard operator, Arlene to look after her bulldog, Waterloo, after Grace returns him from a midnight jaunt. Arlene needs to have eye surgery so she asks Grace to stay in her cottage and look after Waterloo while she's away. This is a boon for Grace, she'll be paid, have a place to stay that's nicer than her rundown flat and oh well, she'll also have a companion, farty Waterloo.
When Grace is trying to rescue Waterloo from the cliffside walk, she meets Stuart. Stuart is an accountant. One of his clients is a rock singer, much married and purported to be quite rich. Stuart wants to hire Grace. He's been seeing a hypnotherapist to cure him from sleep walking and also from a fear of flying. Since he's seen this therapist, he's had disturbing visions of what appears to be a murder(s) that took place 30 years ago. (Stuart isn't that old) Grace is hesitant to take the case but agrees and accompanied by flatulent Waterloo, she begins to investigate.
It's a meandering story and I readily admit that I did at times forget who was who in this story. (My fault for putting it down, not the authors for not writing it well enough). Grace, in the course of her investigation, begins to search the nearby area to find locations mentioned in the tapes (Oh yes, Stuart provided her with taped conversations he had with his therapist, when he was under hypnosis). Grace and Waterloo end up at the estate where Rick, the musician, and his new wife, Christine, have taken up residence. As they arrive, their little girl, Emilie Rose, falls into a pond and Waterloo, with Grace's assistance, rescue her.
So now Grace's investigation brings her into more regular contact with this fractious family. Grace's buddy, Annie, begins to have a relationship with Stuart. Grace makes trips to London to let Waterloo spend time with his Mumsie. Her investigation into Stuart's visions makes her wonder about whether he is who he says he is. It's all very convoluted (a bit anyway) but entertaining. I like Grace very much, she's outspoken, funny and a good detective. I like her friends. I liked Waterloo. The story is interesting, moves along nicely and is well-written. I've enjoyed every book in the series so far. Unfortunately, Liz Evans only wrote six books in the series so I'll have to make sure I don't finish them too soon. (3.5 stars)"
"I've been enjoying various graphic novel series by Brian K. Vaughan. I'm almost finished the Saga series, have just started Paper Girls and now have read the 1st volume in Y: The Last Man, Vol. 1: Unmanned. Basically, something happens on Earth and every man (human and animal) die. (Except for Yorick, a shiftless magician and his monkey, Ampersand, who he has taken in to be trained. Yorick is practicing an escape trick in his apartment and talking to his girl friend who is in Australia.
The story moves around to just before the disaster to the moment thereof and follows on with the world trying to adjust to this new situation. Yorick and Ampersand must wander around in disguise, wearing a gas mask, while he tries to find his sister, Hero, who was last seen working as an ambulance driver in Boston. Life is changing drastically. America is trying to sort out the political leadership, with the Secretary of Agriculture now the President and the GOP representatives' wives demanding to be able to take their seats in Congress and the Senate. Plus there is a rogue group of women who now have revived the Amazons, even to the trick of removing one of their breasts.
Oh, there is also an Israeli group looking to come to America to find a woman scientist who has worked on cloning and thinks her work might have caused the disaster. Yorick makes his way to DC where his mother is a Rep and where the President has him go to try and find the scientist, accompanied by an agent of some secret group, Agent 355. He also wants to find his sister and his girlfriend.
Lots going on in this first volume, which contains chapters 1 - 5. Lots of action, lots to soak in and just an entertaining Sci - Fi / dystopic future graphic novel. An entertaining start to the series. I have Vols 2 & 3 and look forward to trying them as well. (3.0 stars)"
"The Honjin Murders by Seishi Yokomizo is the 1st book in the Detective Kosuke Kindaichi mystery series, set in Japan and also my first look at his writing. I'm glad I have the next book in the series, The Inugami Curse, as I enjoyed this 1st exposure very much.
I won't get into the story too deeply as I don't want to ruin it for you. Suffice it to say, it is a traditional closed room murder. The narrator compares it to various mysteries of that style throughout the story which adds a nice touch to the story. Kenzo and Katsuko are about to be married. Kenzo's family aren't thrilled with the marriage as they come from ancient land owners whereas Katsuko comes from tenant farmers. But Kenzo is determined they will be married so the wedding takes place as planned.
Tragically, on their wedding night, both are murdered by samurai sword. The police are called in and are confused as the murder seems to have taken place within a locked room! Katsuko's uncle, Ginzo, a wealthy man in his own right, isn't satisfied with the police investigation so he cables to a young man whose career as a private detective he helped mentor and asks him to come and help solve the murder. That young man is of course Kosuke Kindaichi who shows up about half way through this book.
The main suspect is a wandering 'hobo' with a scarred face and who is missing two fingers in his right hand. All evidence seems to point to him, fingerprints within the locked room, and many other things. It's up to Kosuke with the assistance of the local police, who don't seem to mind his assistance (Kosuke has gained a bit of a reputation after solving another murder that made it into the papers) to solve the case. Murder mysteries will play a part in the resolution of the case as one of the family members loves reading them and the family library is filled with both Japanese and translated mysteries. I'll leave it there and let you enjoy the mystery and its resolution.
The story is an nice, flowing, easy read. The characters are all interesting. Kosuke is interesting, a bit wild and different and his mentor, Ginzo plays a nice Doctor Watson type assistant. And the police aren't stupid. Their investigation is well conducted and they work well with Kosuke. And the group of suspects, while not fleshed out in too much detail, still add to this entertaining mystery. An excellent first story that will make you want to continue exploring Kosuke Kindaichi. (3.5 stars)"
"The Real Cool Killers is the 2nd book in the Harlem Cycle, featuring Harlem police detectives, Coffin Ed and Grave Digger Jones, by Chester Himes. I have to say, lots of action in this story. Some of Himes' books have been turned into movies, including the 6th book in this series, Cotton Comes to Harlem.
The book definitely starts off with a bang. At the Dew Drop Inn in Harlem, the folks are having a grand time, dancing to the music, singing along. In the middle of this group is a large white man, just standing there, enjoying the scene. He appears to be a Cola distributor. Suddenly, a skinny Negro man approaches him brandishing a knife and threatening him. This starts an amazing violent chain of events. The white man is slashed with the knife and runs out. The bartender grabs the man with the knife and is slashed for his efforts and then he lops off the knife wielder's arm with an ax. Whew!
In the meantime, the white man is now being chased down the street by another man, high on marijuana, brandishing a pistol. The crowd follows along. Sitting on an outside staircase are a group of teenage boys, all garbed as Arabs, the Real Cool Moslems, and they also take off after people chasing the white man. A call is put into the police precinct warning of the events taking place.
Cotton Ed and Grave Digger Jones now make their appearance. Driving on patrol, the hear the police call out and head to the scene. By this time, the white man has been shot, and the duo discover that he is dead. They hand cuff the young man with the gun, Sonny and then are harassed by the Real Cool Moslems led by the Sheikh. One of them farts at the two cops and then another tosses a liquid in the face of Cotton Ed. It seems that Cotton had previously had acid thrown in his face, so he reacts instinctively and angrily and shoots the young man... dead.
Whew, I repeat. So after this beginning, Ed is sent home and Grave Digger begins his investigation. As well, the whole precinct is working door to door trying to find Sonny and the Moslems. The story moves from Grave Digger, to the other police to the Sheikh and his group, who have Sonny with them. The story moves along at a brisk pace and there is plenty of action as Grave Digger follows his own way of gathering information. It's all very interesting and action filled. Himes paints a colorful, fascinating portrait of the people and area. It's dark and gritty but also full of life. I have enjoyed the 1st two books and #3 is on order. (3.5 stars)"
Currently Reading
"Four men were in the room -- Chambers himself; Craven, the scientist; Arnold Grant, head of Interplanetary's publicity department, and Harry Wilson! Wilson's voice came out of the screen, a frantic, almost terrified voice. "I've told you all I know. I'm not a scientist. I'm a mechanic. I've told you what they're doing. I can't tell you how they do it." Arnold Grant leaned forward in his chair. His face was twisted in fury. "There were plans, weren't there?" he demanded. "There were equations and formulas. Why didn't you bring us some of them?" "I tried," pleaded Wilson. Perspiration stood out on his forehead. The cigarette in his mouth was limp and dead. "One of them was always there. I never could get hold of any papers. I asked questions, but they were too busy to answer. And I couldn't ask too much, because then they would have suspected me." Half a continent away, the men they were speaking of -- the very men that Wilson had been hired to spy upon -- were watching everything that was said. They were not pleased."
"Set at the time of the North Sea oil boom, The Big Payoff marks the debut of Anna Peters, the witty, cynical character Booklist called "among the most complex, fully drawn female leads in crime fiction" and whom the New York Times lauded for her "sweetly unscrupulous deals". In The Big Payoff, Peters is employed in the research department of New World Oil Company, a position that suits this now reformed blackmailer. Happy with her lover, Harry, Anna has abandoned the seductive intellectual and psychological game of blackmail for the straight and narrow. But mysterious deaths among New World's British contacts convince Anna that something is wrong in the executive suite. Worse, she is soon blackmailed by a British secret service agent who's following the same trail. Anna reluctantly bugs her boss's phone and copies company files, but when her British contact turns up dead, Anna finds that she and Harry are in mortal danger. Her old skills come in handy as she tries to keep ahead of ruthless killers, first in Washington, D.C. and then in the north of Scotland. The Big Payoff has been issued in British, Danish and Japanese editions and was a selection of the Detective Book Club. It was an Edgar Award nominee. Look for more of Janice Law's Anna Peters mysteries to become available in the near future."
"Charlie Higson's The Enemy is the first in a jaw-dropping zombie horror series for teens. Everyone over the age of fourteen has succumbed to a deadly zombie virus and now the kids must keep themselves alive.
When the sickness came, every parent, police officer, politician - every adult fell ill. The lucky ones died. The others are crazed, confused and hungry.Only children under fourteen remain, and they're fighting to survive.
Now there are rumours of a safe place to hide. And so a gang of children begin their quest across London, where all through the city - down alleyways, in deserted houses, underground - the grown-ups lie in wait.
But can they make it there - alive?
This edition contains the first chapter of the second book The Dead."
Since a nuclear war decimated the human population, the remaining humans began to rebuild their future by interbreeding with an alien race -- the Oankali -- who saved them from near-certain extinction. The Oankalis' greatest skill lies in the species' ability to constantly adapt and evolve, a process that is guided by their third sex, the ooloi , who are able to read and mutate genetic code.
Now, for the first time in the humans' relationship with the Oankali, a human mother has given birth to an ooloi Jodahs. Throughout his childhood, Jodahs seemed to be a male human-alien hybrid. But when he reaches adolescence, Jodahs develops the ooloi abilities to shapeshift, manipulate DNA, cure and create disease, and more. Frightened and isolated, Jodahs must either come to terms with this new identity, learn to control new powers, and unite what's left of humankind -- or become the biggest threat to their survival."
Originally published in 1932, Brave New World is one of the most revered and profound works of twentieth century literature. Touching on themes of control, humanity, technology, and influence, Aldous Huxley's enduring classic is a reflection and a warning of the age in which it was written, yet remains frighteningly relevant today.
With its surreal imagery and otherworldly backdrop, Brave New World adapts beautifully to the graphic novel form. Fred Fordham's singular artistic flair and attention to detail and color captures this thought-provoking novel as never before, and introduces it to a new generation, and countless modern readers, in a fresh and compelling way."
Collects Y: The Last Man issues #6-10"
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