Another Book Thread

[Kepler]

Re: Another Book Thread

Current list; hopping about on mood:

Consider Phlebas, Iain Banks (book 1 of the Culture series)
The Plague, Albert Camus
Finnegan's Wake, James Joyce
The Prisoner In The Mask, Dennis Wheatley (book 8 -- 1st chronologically -- of the Duke de Richleau series)
The Underground Man, Ross Macdonald (book 16 of the Archer series)

Joyce is an aspirational read -- I'm never, ever going to read it all. But it's really fun to read a couple pages now and then for the brain-melting complexity.

[solovsfett]

Re: Another Book Thread

Trying to catch up on reading. Just finished The Plot To Seize The White House by Jules Archer (about the Wall Street putsch or business plot of 1934), very good book, highly recommended. Major General Smedley Butler should be a household name. Also a very incisive anecdote from General David Shoup regarding what “national security” means. If only Senators Sam Dickstein and John McCormack had a bit more courage to dig into the $ behind the putsch we might have a very different country. The notes at the end are critical.

Now reading:
Codename Villanelle by Luke Jennings (I love Killing Eve!). Not heavy reading but quite fun and I love Villanelle! About 1/2 through now and will read the rest in the series.

Family of Secrets by Russ Baker. 37 pages in and i’m stunned by just how much of Poppy Bush’s life has been obscured or omitted in media when, if dissected like Baker is doing, this guy would never have become president or Vice President before that. So far a thorough dissection Of Poppy’s rise and the Bush clans ties to the Dulles brothers going all the way back to Samuel Prescott Bush (Remington Arms Co.), Prescott Sheldon Bush then HW. 460 pages to go and i’m Excited to see what Baker has uncovered. The notes at the end are extensive and vital thusfar.

[Kepler]

Re: Another Book Thread

CUrious to see Good Reads year-end stats this year

If you get to Christmas 2020 without reading something you've "always wanted to read," you are never going to read it.

<img src="https://i1.wp.com/www.raptisrarebooks.com/images/47681/ulysses-james-joyce-first-edition-1922-3.jpg?fit=1000%2C800&ssl=1" height=300>

[Bill]

Re: Another Book Thread

Just listened to Preston and Child- Crimson Shore. Had never read any of this series. I have a feeling I was missing bits and pieces that referred to things happening in the past. OK read but could be pretentious.

There are a lot of Preston and Child Pendergast books, starting with Relic in 1995. So yes, there are a lot of missing bits and pieces about the characters when you start with some of the more recent books in the series.

[dxmnkd316]

Re: Another Book Thread

CUrious to see Good Reads year-end stats this year

[leswp1]

Re: Another Book Thread

Currently reading the Obsidian Chamber by Preston and Childs. Pretty good so far

[DonaldD]

Re: Another Book Thread

I've been currently reading Homo Sapiens

[Probert]

Re: Another Book Thread

Probert... agree about Women's Murder Club. 19 was the last straw for me. I've given up on it before 20 comes out. Not gonna read it.

I read a lot of Patterson some are good, some are ok some are bad. If I couldn't read them in 1 day, or in the case of a bookshots novel lunch, I would probably be a little more selective. The early Women's murder clubs written by Andrew Gross were better than the Maxine Paetro ones but even the ones she writes have gone downhill

[leswp1]

Re: Another Book Thread

Probert... agree about Women's Murder Club. 19 was the last straw for me. I've given up on it before 20 comes out. Not gonna read it.

I came in the middle of these. Listened to one which was OK but a bit fuzzy. The second one I read was even less concise. Gave up.

Just listened to Preston and Child- Crimson Shore. Had noever read any of this series. I have a feeling I was missing bits and pieces that referred to things happening in the past. OK read but could be pretentious.

[mookie1995]

I don't have Netflix. Mark Wahlberg... I can see him as Spenser. Interested to hear how it is.

Was all over the place.
Loosely (very loosely) based on Atkins wonderland.
However Mookie is a sucker for all things Spenser

[jen]

Re: Another Book Thread

Probert... agree about Women's Murder Club. 19 was the last straw for me. I've given up on it before 20 comes out. Not gonna read it.

[Probert]

Re: Another Book Thread

Recent reads

The Renegades (Michael Parson & Sophia Gold #3) by Tom Young This is the 3rd book in the series and in my opinion not as good as the first two. Sophie and Michael are still in Afghanistan when a serious earthquake strikes. They are tasked to bring supplies to the villages and people effected and along with other groups find themselves under fire. An offshoot group of the Taliban is targeting the relief efforts and kidnapping boys to use as soldiers to boot. Ok read.

Cornwallis And The War Of Independence (Cornwallis #1) by Franklin B. Wickwire As I continue reading books about American Revolutionary War figures this book on Lord Charles Cornwallis is the latest pick. This is actually only vol 1. Of his life but it covers the part I was most interested in up to and including Yorktown. It tells the story of his family and how he came to join the army along with his early service in Germany and other parts of Europe. The main part of the novel deals with his part in the Revolution. He starts as the #3 man in America behind Howe and Clinton and after Howe resigns he is #2. The early part where he participates in the fighting around NYC is okay but the Southern campaign where he was lead General with only minimal influence from Clinton is the most interesting. It tells of his relationship with Banaestre Tarleton, the infamous cavalryman. The battles with partisans like Thomas Sumter and Francis Marion and his attempts to keep the people of South and North Carolina loyal to the crown. The in depth analysis of the battles of Camden, Guliford Courthouse, Kings Mountain, Cowpens and Yorktown is excellent. They also go into details on other battles like Waxhaws and Green Spring Farm that aren’t nearly as well known. Excellent read

Partner in Crime (J.P. Beaumont #16) by J.A. Jance The first J.A. Jance Book I read was a later Brady/Beaumont crossover. This is the first one where a young artist turns up dead in Bisbee Arizona. When Sheriff Brady calls the number for her next of kin she finds that she is a protected witness from Seattle and then send JP down to oversee this hick Sheriff in Arizona. Pretty good effort combining her two best known characters.

Blue Moon (Jack Reacher #24) by Lee Child Another Reacher stop in a town where Reacher acts to save an innocent. In this case he gets off the bus to stop an older gentleman from being robbed. He inadvertently finds himself in the middle of a gang war. I find it interesting that as he weaves a path of destruction against the two gangs he never ever comes into contact with the cops despite killing numerous people, firing guns, assaulting people and burning buildings to the ground including many lesser crimes. It kind of really stretches reality even if the whole police force is corrupt how could they not respond when someone is gunned down in public. If you suspend reality it’s an ok read but not the best of the Reacher series.

Lethal Agent (Mitch Rapp #18) by Vince Flynn, Kyle Mills I always enjoyed Mills novels so while he isn’t Vince Flynn I think he has done an admirable job of continuing the Mitch Rapp series. This book finds Mitch infiltrating a Mexican drug cartel to try and stop them from smuggling a biological weapon into the US for ISIS. Mitch and Irene are under political assault by the front runner in the US Presidential race who wants nothing better than to humiliate them and send them to jail. A good book but if it had stretched out another 100 pages or so it would have allowed him not to rush some of the plot lines.

Bloody Genius (Virgil Flowers #12) by John Sandford That F’n Flowers returns in another effort from Sandford. This book finds Virgil in the Twin Cities not as he usually is somewhere out in the wilds of Minnesota. I thought this book meandered a bit too much as he and the Minneapolis detective he is working with follow multiple leads trying to find out who murdered a University professor. It’s kind of justified in the end but felt the ending of the book was a little rushed.

Redemption (Amos Decker #5) by David Baldacci The 5th book in the Amos Decker series finds him back in his hometown. He is approached at his families gravesite by someone he sent to prison who claims he is innocent. As Amos and his former partner start to investigate he finds himself drawn back in to many of the problems and history of his former life. The Memory Man has been slacking off the last few novels and this one has a storyline similar to the 1st in the series.

Into the Fire (Orphan X #5) by Gregg Hurwitz Another good Orphan X novel which finds him helping out a man Max who is holding damaging information left to him by his cousin. The black sheep of the family, he reaches out to Evan for help. Each time Evan thinks he has extricated Max from his situation he peels back another layer of the onion. Good read

The 19th Christmas (Women's Murder Club #19) by James Patterson (Goodreads Author), Maxine Paetro The Women’s Murder Club continues it’s down spiral. Occasionally these Patterson series find their way out of the funk and become interesting again this has not. Basically, the only 1 who has anything to do with the main case is Lindsey. Claire puts in a token appearance and Cindy and Yuki have a side story about immigration that is rushed and never explained. The main plot is about this super-duper robber Loman who is getting the cops running all over SF at Christmas time trying to find out what he is going to rob. After reading the book I still don’t know what he intends to rob and how he was going to make a ton of money that necessitated the whole plot. They skip over large parts of the story, Yuki running to court to help Cindy with her story then they skip the courtroom and have Yuki explain it in 4 sentences to Brady rather than actually writing a chapter or 2 drawing out the plot. Also as I said above you never figure out what the final grand robbery scheme is.

To Die in Mexico: Dispatches from Inside the Drug War by John Gibler This is an interesting book about the narco wars in Mexico. It mainly deals with the ineffectiveness of the government, or as the author states for the most part openly sides with the Sinaloa cartel. It also deals with the great challenges that the press has to face when reporting on the war. There are some good parts to the book but it also tends to meander from point to point and place to place.

Exit Wounds (Joanna Brady #11) by J.A. Jance Another good effort from Jance as the Sheriff finds herself involved in a triple homicide that spans multiple jurisdictions. She struggles to solve the case while dealing with her re-election and finding out she is pregnant. I always like the interaction between the cast of characters and I like how she keep people around from prior novels and they pop up from now and then like Junior at Daisy’s.

Undone (Will Trent #3) by Karin Slaughter A pretty good Will Trent book where he and Faith are trying to hunt down a killer who takes women and holds them while gradually starving them to death. As they struggle to find the link between the women can they find the killer before more people die.

Memoir of Col. Benjamin Tallmadge by Benjamin Tallmadge My continued quest to read books on lesser know Revolutionary War figures brings me to this autobiography of Benjamin Tallmadge. In the current time he is best know for running the Revolutions best known spy ring the Culper Ring. The Ring is mentioned very briefly twice in the book and even then it is very vague. He tells the story of how he came to join the Continental Army and the engagements he fought in which encompassed the entire war. Except for his Long Island raid/battle his accounts are fairly brief and to the point. He does give a nice description of Washington’s farewell to his officers at Faunces Tavern as Washington is preparing to depart for Mt. Vernon. His description and detail into the capture and hanging of John Andre is good as well. His son then gives a short account of his service after the war, serving in Congress. All in all a good short read.

Form Line of Battle (Richard Bolitho #11) by Alexander Kent Another good effort as Bolitho takes command of his new ship the Hyperion. The French Revolution is just underway and they are fighting against the British. The book has several naval engagements along with several land battles as well. Bolitho comes across and old foe and meets and old friend as well.

Heartbreak Hotel (Alex Delaware #32) by Jonathan Kellerman The latest Delaware novel finds he and Milo investigating the death of an almost 100 year old woman who had recently asked Alex for advice. As they try to find out who killed her they must delve into the past of Los Angeles history. Good read

The River Murders (Mitchum #1-3) by James Patterson (Goodreads Author), James O. Born I had previously read the 1st two Mitchum books so only got this to read the 3rd one Malevolent. It was pretty unbelievable and not that realistic. Luckily it only took me an hour or so to read.

[geezer]

Re: Another Book Thread

The Overstory by Richard Powers is completely captivating. But I’m currently an MS Forestry student and I feel like it fits my daydreams like a glove. Curious if others love it as much.

[jen]

Re: Another Book Thread

Did Jen see Netflix is premiering a Spenser flix on 6 March? Mark wahlberg. They are taking liberties, but mookie will watch.

I don't have Netflix. Mark Wahlberg... I can see him as Spenser. Interested to hear how it is.

[mookie1995]

Re: Another Book Thread

Did Jen see Netflix is premiering a Spenser flix on 6 March? Mark wahlberg. They are taking liberties, but mookie will watch.