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This is my review of the book Die Trying by lee Child which I have read recently. This is a Jack Reacher story. Jack is a tough no nonsense hero, and seems to be on a mysterious trip across America. At each place he ends up some form of trouble seems to fall upon him and it becomes a life and death challenge for him to solve. This story does not disappoint. He is acting as as a doorman in Chicago and is snatched up from the street along with a young woman in crutches that he was happening to be helping at the time. It turns out that the woman is an FBI agent, and gradually during a long journey across America trapped in the back of a van the real story of the kidnap comes out. The woman has multiple links to the ruling authorities and even the president so she makes the ideal pawn to trade in a kidnap situation. Being such a high profile hostage means that she gets a lot of attention from the authorities but the CCTV images seem to show Jack helping the kidnappers. Jack is faced with the challenge of saving the woman from the kidnappers and himself from the kidnappers whilst persuading the authorities that he is not one of the bad guys. A good enjoyable book that charges along at a pace. It has enough twists in it with double agents to keep me turning the pages over till the end. This was book 52 fiction 49 (audio books 14) non fiction 3
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This is my review of the book The Venetian Betrayal by Steve Berry, which I finished the other day. It caught my eye for two reasons firstly someone had left it in our holiday accommodation, and secondly it said on the front cover “The lost tomb of Alexander the Great could hold the key”. I don't believe I have read any of Steve Berry before, certainly not recently, so I thought I would give it a go. Having read the history of Alexander over three books in the last few months I was interested to see how this tied in with the plot line. Sadly having now read it I can see why it was left behind. What a contrast to my previous book Robert Goddard. Maybe that was the problem, I just could not relate to the characters or story line. I seemed to spend more time looking for the inconsistencies, and massive leaps in the story. So on the face of it it could have been am interesting book but just never quite hit the mark. There is not much more to say really. This was book 51 week 40 fiction 48 (audio books 14) non fiction 3 Friends,
This is my review of the book The ways of the World by Robert Goddard, which I have read recently. I have always enjoyed reading Robert's book and was looking forward to this one. I am pleased to say it did not disappoint, though did leave me slightly frustrated at the end but we will come to that later. Like so many books recently this is based around the Great War, but in this case it is in 1919. A period that I know very little about, but this did not matter. Robert some how manages interweave history and characters together in a way that makes the story line totally plausible. Without giving too much away the story line is all about the negotiations at the end of the Great War. Armistice was signed in 1918, but the war was still officially in place, all be it no fighting in the trenches, just the diplomats, fighting over who will get what. Add a murder and an ex-RFC flying ace James Max Maxted, our hero, give it a good stir of mystery and out comes a page turning mystery. Three quarters of the way through the book, I did think that there are a lot of loose ends here, and in fact new ones seem to be being added. How was it all going to come to an end. Well a few of the strands are drawn together but the majority are left open as it is book 1 of a trilogy, which I had not noticed when reading. So very frustratingly I will have to wait to read the next part of the story. Other than that this was a very enjoyable book. So this was book 50 week 39 fiction 47 (audio books 14) non fiction 3 Friends
This is my review of the book Mystery Mile by Margery Allingham. (I actually have two books on cd by Margery Allingham and thought I was listening to the one I had not heard before, but when I came to listen to it I realised that this was not the case. Still it was a number of years ago when I listened to it the first time and this did not spoil the story ) Having listened to it a second time and seeing my notes on the story there is not that much more to add, other than checking what you are listening to before you need to rush out of the door to the car. My previous review on this story can be found here So this was book 49 week 38 fiction 46 (audio books 14) non fiction 3 Friends
This is my review of the book The Sigma Protocol by Robert Ludlum which I read recently. I some times think that I should record somewhere how many pages a book is and even a rough estimate of how many words, as it varies so much. As you may have guessed this was a thick book, over 600 pages of tightly spaced text in the version I read. So again it has taken me a couple of weeks to read, as only manage to read a few pages first thing in the morning with my cup of coffee, before being up and working by 7.30am most mornings. This was an interesting book in so much as though I don't think it has been turned into a film or TV series, I had the distinct impression that the theme and plot lines have been used else where. It is a really exciting thriller that moves around the world, and uncovers one twist after the other. Without spoiling the plot too much there are two main characters – one Anna Navarro a US agent who is set the task of finding out why there has been a string of deaths across Europe, that could have been taken for old age, but are in fact murder. The second main character is Ben Hartmen an investment banker who whilst on holiday in Switzerland meets one of his oldest childhood friends, who then tries to murder him. Ben ends up killing his attacker in self defense, but then finds that all the evidence including the body has disappeared. The story then follows these two characters until they crash into each other and together they need to solve the mystery before they are killed themselves. A very good story and probably the best Robert Ludlum one I have read. So this was book book 48 week 37 fiction 45 (audio books 13) non fiction 3 Friends,
This is my review of the book Raven Black by Ann Cleeves, which I read recently. The observant will have noticed that there has been a slight gap between books. This in no small part has been due to not having time to read. The sun has shone, the rain has poured, the garden is growing leaps and bounds and we are fully booked with guests at the present, and I am building new websites for people which means not much time for reading. Anyway that is my excuse. This is my second Ann Cleeves book – in fact I have read them slightly in the wrong order. This was book one and the previous month I read the book two, but that did not spoil the story. It is all about murder in the Shetlands, and detective Jimmy Perez sets out to solve the case. Though I have never been to the Shetlands Ann manages to bring the characters and scenes to life, just as if I was watching in from a window. It is a complex story that goes back through a generation. Initially the loner and simpleton Magnus Tait is blamed for the crime, but as the story unfolds it reveals layer by layer a much more darker story. Amazingly Ann kept me guessing till almost the very end, which is always a good sign. I now need to find book three next and hope that that is as good as the first couple. So this was book This was book 47 week 35 fiction 44 (audio books 13) non fiction 3 Friends
This is my review of the book Dead Secret by Wilkie Collins which I listened to recently as a librivox recording. The secret was recorded by Sarah Mrs Treverton's maid as she lays dying. Sarah then hides the paper bearing the message in an unused room at Porthgenna Tower. Sarah leaves Porthgenna Tower rather than revealing the secret. The novel then jumps forward some twenty years. Rosamund has married the blind Leonard Frankland, who now owns Porthgenna Tower. Sarah, under an assumed name, obtains a post as servant to the family, and gives Rosamund a cryptic warning to avoid the room in which the Secret is hidden. This of course makes sure that Rosamund does all she can to find out what the secret is. - But I cannot reveal any more otherwise I would give the game away. The end of the story is a little protracted but all in all a good yarn to while away the miles on the road. This was book 46 week 33 fiction 43 (audio books 13) non fiction 3 Friends
This is my review of the book “The Blockade Runners by Jules Verne”, which I listened to recently as a librivox recording. This is an exciting story written about the time at the end of the American Civil War. The Southern cotton trade has been largely blockaded by the Unionists and this has created a fantastic demand for raw cotton. A Scottish merchant builds his own fast shallow draft ship that can break the blockade, and load up with cotton bales that are rotting in the wharves. What starts out as a quick there and back dash is complicated by the passengers that he finds on his ship. The passengers want to arrange a rescue mission for prisoners held by the rebels in Charleston. The ship has to get the cargo to pay off the enormous costs incurred during its building, but both sides have a very large number of cannon. Any stray cannonball could put an end to the mission in one blow. This is an exciting engaging fast moving story, full of adventure. Just perfect for taking ones mind from the queues on the road. This was book 37 week 28 fiction 34 (audio book 10) non fiction 3. Friends,
This is my review of the book “Rome The Art of War by M C Scott”, which I read recently. This is another new author for me, the book being on special offer in a supermarket and catching my eye. I enjoy reading historical novels and was looking forward to this one, and it did not disappoint. The book is set in the tight time frame of AD69 and details how Vespasian came to be emperor, through the eyes of various characters mainly Sebastos Pantera a Roman super spy. The story is believable, whilst being full of bribery, blackmail, double crossing and treachery. The plot is exciting, convincing and compelling. It is not just one long series of battles but puts the meat on the bone, and can be compared to any modern spy thriller. It is a story that though one is told the outcome at a very early start, one has no idea as to how this will be achieved until nearly the end of the book. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and will now look out other ones, as I gather this is part of a series about the super Roman spy Sebastros Pantera. This was book 36 week 28 fiction 33 (audio book 9) non fiction 3. Friends
This is my review of the book “Plague Ship by Andre Norton” which I listened to a while ago. As mentioned a couple of posts ago I am playing catch up with these reviews. I listened to this story as a librivox recording whilst travelling and then preparing our holiday cottage The Spinney in South West Scotland www.thespinneycottage for guests to stay the week. It was an enjoyable story to listen to and made the time pass by quickly as I traveled and then cleaned. It is a science fiction story continuing the tale of the ship the Solar Queen, which is a space trader. They land on the planet of Sargol, to trade, but find that their rivals the ruthless Inter Solar company is there already. The Solar Queen manages to beat their rivals and does the deal with the natives. On leaving the planet they quickly find that they have been stricken down with a plaque, that will threaten to destroy them. Somehow the crew have to remove the plaque, and get the ship cleared so that they can trade again. This involves some pretty major risks, as once named as a plaque ship they are open season to all to try and eradicate the plaque from the skies. A fun story that made the time pass by quickly as I was doing jobs. This was book 35 week 28 fiction 32 (audio book 9) non fiction 3. |
Tim Fuller
Dyslexic doodles on photography, food (growing, cooking & of course eating), faith and other fascinating things. This is a personal blog expressing my views. Archives
November 2015
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