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AN UNACCEPTABLE DEATH by Barbara Seranella: One time drug addict, prostitute, and motorcycle mama, Munch Mancini is about to become a wife and she and adopted daughter Asia will have a more normal existence. But first Munch's fiancé, detective Rico Chacón, has to take care of the little matter of a bounty put on Munch's head by the newly reformed Satan's Pride Motorcycle gang (whom Munch had helped take down years back). In the process he is shot dead by other cops in a drug bust gone bad. To compound matters, the police department is withholding Chacón's pension from his family, claiming that he was corrupt. Determined to clear his name and to get revenge, Munch sets out on a dangerous investigation of her own. It just doesn’t get any better. Thank you, Barbara. 04/06 Jack Quick UNCOMMON GROUNDS by Sandra Balzo: A mystery set in a coffee shop - I grabbed a latte and started reading. Three women form a partnership and open a trendy coffee shop in a small town, but on opening day, one of the partners is found dead, electrocuted by the espresso machine. A hunky new sheriff in town adds a romantic spark to this first novel filled with gentle humor and easy pacing. 05/05 THE UNCOMMON READER by Alan Bennett: Bennett’s novella is a delightful book for any reader. An unnamed current queen of England happens upon the Westminster traveling library, and decides to check out a book. Although she found the book a little dull, she returned it and checked out another upon the advice of the librarian and a young man from the palace kitchen, Norman. Soon, the queen is addicted to reading, and Norman has been moved up from the kitchen to the library. The queen’s new passion isn’t well-received by some of the palace staff, but the shrewd woman finds a way to continue her new hobby. Other book addicts will enjoy watching the queen grow to appreciate books, authors, and her discoveries. She surely is an “uncommon reader” in this enchanting story. 01/08 Lesa Holstine THE UNDEAD KAMA SUTRA by Mario Acevedo: Felix’s latest adventure begins with the death of the alien who has been masquerading as long-time friend Gilbert Odin (see Nymphos of Rocky Flats for more on this particular case). The alien more or less hires Felix to find his killer, cryptically telling him to find Goodman and save the women of Earth before giving Felix a set of coordinates for disposing of his remains and finally dying. Felix complies with the disposal part and then, thoroughly confused, resumes his search for an ancient manuscript that is said to have the ability to psychically heal vampires. His search for this book, The Undead Kama Sutra, was what led him to Florida in the first place. He tracks rumors of the manuscript back to Carmen Arellano, leader of the Denver vamps, who has been recreating and translated the ancient work. As it turns out, Carmen is also missing a chalice – a human who willingly gives blood to vampires. The woman in question turns up in the local morgue, dead as a result of a blast from one of the aliens’ own weapons. Felix is back on the case and even manages to track down the mysterious Goodman. Where the case leads next, though, is completely unexpected. Readers who are not familiar with Acevedo’s quirky series should definitely begin at the beginning. There is history between Felix and the aliens, all laid out in the previously mentioned Nymphos. Fast plots, strange occurrences, and conspiracy theories are par for the course with any Acevedo title, when you combine that with his twisted sense of humor, you end up with a pretty great paranormal PI series that I highly recommend. 03/08 Becky Lejeune UNDER A RAGING MOON by Frank Zafiro: Ed McBain had his 87th precinct in Isola. Zafiro has created River City, Washington and a group of very human cops who police it. But whereas McBain’s people were able to generally stay above the fray, these cops get right down into the gritty, dirt ugly world. In this case, they are dealing with a serial gunman who is robbing convenience stores. With each stickup he becomes more violent and dangerous. Unless he’s taken down soon, it’s going to really get nasty. Chisolm,. McLeod, Kopriva and Ridgeway, along with the rest of the gang, are determined to make it happen. Not McBain caliber yet, but a lot of potential here. 08/06 Jack Quick UNDERTOW by Peter Corris: Cliff Hardy is hired by an old friend, retired senior policeman Frank Parker, to look into a case from early in his (Parker’s) career involving two doctors, one of whom was convicted of hiring a hit man to kill the other and was found guilty of the crime. The convicted, now dead doctor may have been innocent, and Parker had been the lover of that doctor's wife. As Hardy begins to track down the now ageing names and faces, he uncovers more than he or Frank ever suspected, and there are still those who are trying to hinder the search for the truth. Classic PI, well written with interesting characters and an unusual premise. My first Peter Corris, but I am looking forward to many more. Does Aussies really say fair dinkum? 09/07 Jack Quick Underworld by Don DeLillo: Follow the bouncing ball from the Brooklyn Dodgers through the 20th century. A whole lotta book here. UNFINISHED BUSINESS by Barbara Seranella: Our ace mechanic, Munch Mancini, is upset when a customer is found dead on the side of the freeway with electrocution marks on her body. The details resemble a rape case that Mace St. John, her cop friend, is working on. Then a third victim, who is also a customer at Munch’s garage, shows up and the rapist begins to make threatening phone calls to Munch. Delightfully twisty and yes, good does prevail at the end. 03/06 Jack Quick UNHOLY DOMAIN by Dan Ronco: Very interesting techno-thriller based on the premise that the conflict between fundamental religious extremists (the Church of Natural Humans) and those pressing for technological expansion, particularly in the areas of bio-medicine, artificial intelligence, robotics and nano-technology will eventually lead to open warfare between the two. The year is 2022 and the world is still feeling the effects of the Internet shutdown in 2012 allegedly caused by software expert Ray Brown. Brown’s son David has undertaken an investigation to clear his father’s name while Brown’s sister Claire has become a “showcase” member of the Church of Natural Humans. The creators of illegal technology, the Domain, have decided to take over the government. Who will prevail? This is the second book of a proposed trilogy; so don’t expect a “final” solution. 09/08 Jack Quick Unpaid Dues by Barbara Seranella: Munch Mancini is not the typical heroine of a murder mystery. For one thing, she's a mechanic - a grease monkey, and she's a recovering drug addict, clean for several years. Her best friend is a cop who's not happy that she's also having an affair with another cop - who's involved with someone else. And did I mention she has a young daughter? All in all, there's some heavy baggage here which makes for a very real, very interesting protagonist. Unfortunately, the story isn't quite as interesting. A woman is murdered and dumped in a storm drain, and in trying to identify her, Munch's name comes up. Turns out they share some history, the woman in question was part of the crowd Munch ran with in her druggie days. Then another piece of history ends up on her doorstep in the form of the teenage son of another addict friend, and Munch has to deal with more of her past than she ever wanted to. There's a nice twist at the end but this gritty saga lagged. This is the sixth installment in the Munch Mancini series, but my first crack at it and I will be back for more. THE UNRAVELING OF VIOLETA BELLl by C.R. Corwin: The third Morgue Mama Mystery is the best in the series yet. Maddy Sprowls is the curmudgeonly newspaper librarian for an Ohio paper. She seldom suggests stories, but when she does, and murder follows, Maddy follows the trail. Four women hired the same cab driver every Saturday to take them to garage and estate sales. When one is killed after the story runs, Maddy is asked to investigate on behalf of the cabbie. Who was the victim, Violeta Bell? Was she killed because of a newspaper story? Or is there a connection to the antiques she used to sell? What about her claim to the Romanian throne? It’s a complicated case, but much of the appeal of this latest mystery lies in the character of Maddy, a librarian with a tough exterior, a heart of gold, and a mind for crime. 05/08 Lesa Holstine THE UNTHINKABLE THOUGHTS OF JACOB GREEN by Joshua Braff: This almost-coming-of-age story follows Jacob Green's life from age 10 through 15 as he attempts to deal with his learning disabilities and his dysfunctional, Orthodox Jewish family in 1970's suburban New Jersey. Jacob idolizes his older brother Asher, an artistic rebel, but is scared to death of his tyrannical father. His mother is so busy trying to escape her life that she has almost no presence in her son's life. Jacob expresses himself well, especially in his thank you notes for his Bar Mitzvah gifts and his letters to Meagan, the babysitter whose seductive ways leave a lasting impression on Jacob in this funny yet poignant novel. 05/05 UNWRAPPING CHRISTMAS by Lori Copeland: Copeland is best known as a Christian fiction author, and her latest Christmas story heavily emphasizes the faith of the main character. Some readers will appreciate that in this story of one woman who let her religious activities overwhelm her life. Rose Bergman firmly believed in serving the Lord, and, to her it meant saying yes when she was asked to take casseroles to a shut-in, work the Thrift Shop, and write the Advent history for the church. She had a harder time talking to a woman whose son was on drugs, and a friend who was worried about her husband’s health. Most of all, she failed to realize she wasn’t there for her own family, putting everyone else’s needs first. It took an accident to stop Rose in her tracks, and make her go back to the basics of family life, and Christmas. Heavy on the religion, it’s still an enjoyable story for the holiday season. 11/07 Lesa Holstine UP FROM ORCHARD STREET by Eleanor Widmer: This is the story of the Roth family, headed by the beautiful and talented cook/matriarch, the Bubbe, Manya, who has managed to raise a rather self-centered son who marries a very self-centered wife, leaving the Bubbe to raise their daughter. Lots of anecdotes about life on the Lower East Side of New York during the early 1900's, but not a whole lot of plot here. This is the author's first novel, and her last. She was 80 years old when this very autobiographical work of fiction was published, and she has since passed away. 02/06 Stacy Alesi, AKA The BookBitch Up in the Air by Walter Kirn: Interesting story about a man with an unusual quest; to garner one million air miles. Along the way he collects women, collects relationships and collects words, which was my favorite part. USER I. D. by Jenefer Shute: Protagonist Vera de Sica is a risk-averse, single, 38-year-old from New York and antagonist Charlene Cummins is a 38-year-old Southern Californian with an abusive con-man boyfriend, a bad credit rating and a penchant for living on the edge. The two women come together when Charlene's boyfriend, Howard, steals Vera's rental car finding enough information to max out Vera's credit cards, draw cash advances and open bank accounts. The psychological interplay between the victim and victimizer is intense as each develops fantasies about the other. As the story unfolds, it raises interesting issues about what is identity and the degree to which we control it. 02/06 Jack Quick UTTERLY MONKEY by Nick Laird: Mis-titled. Should have been: Utterly Boring. Laird, a poet, former lawyer and husband of Zadie Smith, probably should focus on his day job and leave the mysterious to those who do mysteries. In this debut, Danny Williams is a well-paid lawyer at a prestigious London firm. Geordie Wilson, his boyhood chum from Northern Ireland, is "officially an unemployed labourer" who's just showed up on Danny's doorstep desperate for a place to stay. Geordie's in trouble with the Ulster Unionists back home, primarily because he has a sack full of their cash. There should be a plot here, but all I could think of was Katherine Hepburn starting a car on a cold morning. You know, urrrrrrrrrgh, uurrrrrrrrrrrrrgh, urrrrrrrrrrrrgh, urrrrrrrrgh, urrrrrrrrgh. Would that this book could be that exciting. 01/07 Jack Quick V by Thomas Pynchon: I kept reading and reading, waiting for some semblance of a plot to emerge but it never did. I didn't care about the characters either. My guess is with Pynchon you either you love him or you hate him. I forced myself to finish it, drudging though every page. Sorry to disappoint all the literati, but did I mention I hated this book? THE VALLEY OF JEWELS by Mary Saums: Is there anything more southern than homemade biscuits and country ham? How about a for real killing in the midst of a civil war reenactment? Willi Taft has returned to north Alabama for a summer job teaching at Faulkner College but it turns out to be music and mayhem as first her department head is stabbed to death during a reenactment and a singer who Willi has always admired receives threatening notes. Mix in the KKK, a romantic interest, and the still wet behind the ears former singer and now part-time private eye has her hands full. Think Southern Fried Kinsey Millhone or an early Sharon McCone on a treasure hunt and in peril. Recommended. 05/05 ~This review contributed by Jack Quick, Alabama boy and connoisseur of the South. VAMPYRES OF HOLLYWOOD by Adrienne Barbeau and Michael Scott: Scream queen Ovsanna Moore is a Hollywood film legend – in more ways than her fans could ever imagine. Ovsanna is one of the vampires of Hollywood. She is also the top vamp in LA. Lately, though, someone has been using her creations for vampire target practice. Enter Detective Peter King. He was raised on celluloid dreams, but in spite of his mother’s hopes he followed in his father’s footsteps and became a cop instead. Now he serves and protects Hollywood and its denizens and the case of the Cinema Slayer has landed smack dab in his lap. When the pieces all come together, Ovsanna seems to be the most common link between the victims, especially when one of her special effects crew is killed next. Peter knows something is up, but he’s in for a real surprise when he discovers what it is. It seems someone has declared war on Ovsanna and she must team up with Peter to discover who or this role may turn out to be her very last. Fun and entirely original! Barbeau, a scream queen in her own right, teams up with Michael Scott to create a smart and amusing mystery that is addictive reading. Vampyres is unlike anything else I’ve read of late. 07/08 Becky Lejeune VANISH by Tess Gerritsen: A group of young girls smuggled into the U.S. for a sexual slavery ring are massacred. Thus opens the newest thriller from Gerritsen and the action doesn't stop until the last page is turned. Dr. Maura Isles has the dubious distinction of finding a living body in the cooler of her morgue. "Jane Doe" is moved to the hospital where she proves to be one tough patient to keep in a bed; she manages to take several people hostage. Detective Jane Rizzoli is also a patient in the hospital because her baby is over due, and she won't stay in her bed either. While she goes wandering, looking for her doctor, she ends up as one of the hostages. The Boston police and the FBI get involved, including Rizzoli's husband, FBI agent Gabriel Dean, and the tension just continues to mount as Rizzoli goes into labor during the hostage negotiations. Then the word "terrorist" is uttered, National Security starts pulling strings and Agent Dean, feeling supremely frustrated, decides to do his own investigation and uncovers a conspiracy that he wasn't supposed to find. Vanish is a very topical, very tense, top drawer thriller, summer reading at its finest. Don't miss it! 08/05 THE VANISHING ACT OF ESME LENNOX by Maggie O’Farrell: Imagine being locked in an asylum for most of your life. Imagine if the reason for this imprisonment is nothing more than being a headstrong teenager in a time when women were supposed to be submissive creatures bred to please their husbands. Now, imagine that your whole family has forgotten about you. This is what happens to Esme Lennox. At sixteen, Esme was committed to Cauldstone, a psychiatric facility that is on now on its last leg. Esme has two remaining relatives, her sister Kitty, and Kitty’s granddaughter Iris. When her grandmother is diagnosed with Alzheimer’s, Iris Lockhart is assigned power of attorney making her the primary contact now that Cauldstone’s closure is imminent. Iris is reluctant to take on the burden of a certifiable relative especially considering the fact that she had no idea Esme even existed. Is she a danger to others? Is she a danger to herself? Why would Kitty have kept her only sister a secret from her entire family? The story unfolds from three points of view. Iris is a constant and reliable narrator, but she has her own personal demons and will never know the full extent of the story. Kitty’s choppy memories reveal the ultimate of betrayals. Esme’s own version bridges the gaps between the two as she herself discovers the real reason she was erased from her family’s history. I loved this book - it’s a sort of family drama with a taste of gothic undertones. O’Farrell’s prose will rouse in readers an almost desperate need to know the truth. 12/07 Becky Lejeune VANISHING ACTS by Jodi Picoult: A story that is literally about finding oneself. Delia, along with her bloodhound, Greta, does search and rescue work. She lives in a small town in New Hampshire with her four year old daughter, Sophie and her father, Andrew. One night she has an odd dream about planting a lemon tree, and mentions it to her best friend, a journalist. He starts doing a little digging and the next thing you know, Delia's whole world is turned up side down. Her father is arrested, and she finds out the mother she thought dead is very much alive. The story istold in the alternating voices of half a dozen of the main characters, a format that mostly works here. The story does get bogged down a bit with Native American folklore and tales of prison, but all in all this is what Picoult does best; another compelling story ripped from the headlines. Stacy Alesi, AKA The BookBitch VANISHING POINT by Marcia Muller: Sharon McCone and boyfriend Hy Ripinksy finally take a few days to go to Reno for a tasteful (no Elvis impersonators) wedding but its quickly back to work for both. McCone is hired to follow up on a cold case of a woman missing over 20 years. The initial evidence she and her team turn up indicates the woman may not have been the devoted wife and mother that her daughter remembers. Another excellent McCone outing, which reads easily and continues the string of McCone successes. It’s probably not all coincidence that Muller’s real life husband is Bill Pronzini and that both are among the best for contemporary mystery fiction. 08/06 Jack Quick VENDETTA’S VICTIM by Alex Matthews: I am not anti-cat. I am anti-psychological animals with extraordinary powers that make us humans look really dumb. Matthews’ cats have no super powers, but they are everywhere, to the point of interfering with what otherwise is a well-written mystery. Chicago psychotherapist Cassidy McCabe learns that a man using her name is going around injecting HIV positive blood into at least two women. After Cassidy is unable to get the victims to go to the police, she and boyfriend reporter Zach Moran set out to find the perp who calls himself Cliff Connors. Crisp pacing and realistic Chicago ambience remind you of Sara Paretsky and Robert Campbell. Unfortunately Cassidy is not as hard-boiled as V.I. Warshawski, or as laugh out loud funny as Jimmy Flannery. Still, all in all, an excellent effort, recommend for anyone without cat allergies. (Third in the series). 10/06 Jack Quick THE VENETIAN BETRAYAL by Steve Berry: All the characters we met before when secret agent-turned-bookseller Cotton Malone was chasing the Templars are back in The Venetian Betrayal. This time they're after the long lost tomb (and body) of Alexander the Great. And it's as much of a tour de force as we've come to expect from Berry, though he manages here to one-up himself in terms of spectacular scenery and exotic locale, as everyone ends up somewhere to the Northeast of Samarkand. My favorite character is the bad guy, who in this case is a woman, and whatta woman! Described as a sort of cross between Genghis Khan (a possible ancestor) and Rosie O'Donnell, Irina Zovastina heads up a Central Asian Federation that makes so much sense, I wish we really had one. Maps are provided, a thoughtful touch since the fictional federation covers countries that have been so troubled for so long that hardly anyone goes there, i.e. countries ending in -stan, such as Uzbekistan etc. Since I adore Venice and its complex history, I had hoped for more of that. But no matter, Steve Berry has given us another winner. For someone who tells us he tried for 12 years, with 85 rejections of 5 different manuscripts before selling his first book, his persistence is being rewarded. As are we, the readers, who get to come along on his fast, historically fascinating rides. 12/07 Dianne Day THE VENETIAN BETRAYAL by Steve Berry: The latest release by the master of action and suspense finds Cotton Malone and company on a desperate search for the lost tomb of Alexander. Legend has it that Alexander may have discovered an ancient cure-all, a draught whose secret followed him to his grave. The leader of the Asian Federation, Supreme Ministre Irina Zovastina, has plans for Alexander’s draught that do not include saving the world. She and her cohorts have been working to develop the ultimate virus to be used in biological warfare and secure her place and the helm of this new empire. Her efforts would have impressed the great Alexander himself. Malone, along with Cassiopeia Vitt, Henrik Thorvaldsen, and Stephanie Nelle must discover Alexander’s final resting place before Zovastina gets her hands on it and succeeds in becoming the world’s most powerful dictator. Berry never disappoints. His use of important modern day issues and the mystique of unexplained and strange historical events are the secrets to his success as a great novelist. Readers who pay close attention just might catch Berry’s nod to fellow author James Rollins and his own Sigma series. 12/07 Becky Lejeune VENETIAN HOLIDAY by David Campbell: Cat burglar and art thief Kate Fujimori is in trouble at two levels. Her attempt to steal a phony Mona Lisa from a gallery in Venice is interrupted by two other thieves after the same painting. Kate blames her planner, Freddy Doloreux. Although he had nothing to do with this debacle he has sold her out to a mobster who wants payback for a theft she committed earlier. Throw in a police inspector with a voodoo-practicing ex-girlfriend, a pair of monks looking for the corpse of their abbot and all you’re lacking are a couple of animal acts. A fast and fairly pleasant read. Too violent to be considered a cozy, it brings to mind the 1999 Sean Connery, Catherine Zeta-Jones movie – Entrapment, but not as slickly done. Overall, a bit gimmicky. 09/06 Jack Quick THE VENGEFUL VIRGIN by Gil Brewer: Hard Case Crime #30 is a reprint of a 1958 classic. Bill Pronzini calls it one of his favorites, so how could it not be good. Shirley Angela is 18, but far from sweet and innocent. What she wants to be is rich, and she has a plan for that – all it takes is bringing in the right man. Jack Ruxton had his eyes open as well as….well, lets just say he and Shirley Angela worked very closely on how to rob the old man of his life and his money. At least that was their intention. Thank you, Hard Case Crime, for another golden oldie. 04/07 Jack Quick THE VENUS FIX by M. J. Rose: Dr. Morgan Snow, a sex therapist with a list of clients drawn to mayhem and murder, is back in her third outing in this terrific series. Morgan is treating clients with Internet porn addiction to live web cam performances. One is a powerful judge who has been hiding his identity, until he ends up being a suspect when the girls he is watching start dying live on camera, one after another. Patient confidentiality puts Morgan at odds once again with Detective Noah Jordain, and their relationship is feeling the strain. Creepy letters from the serial killer are interspersed throughout the book, escalating the tension to the riveting finale. The Venus Fix is one twisted, terrific thriller. 07/06 Stacy Alesi, AKA The BookBitch Vernon
God Little: A 21st Century Comedy in the Presence of Death by D. B. C.
Pierre: I suppose that it is hard to argue with a book that won the Man
Booker Prize, but here goes. VGL is a teenage Benny Hill TV episode set in an
Englishman's idea of Texas. If you like that sort of thing, fine. But it ought
not to be winning prestigious awards. Particularly in a year when The Curious
Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time should be winning everything in sight.
Read that first. A View from the Roof – Lessons for Life & Business by Calvin Mackie, Ph.D.: Willie Mackie, Sr., a roofer in New Orleans, passed on lessons of hard work and the importance of education to his three sons. Calvin Mackie collected those ideas, with the help of stories by his brother Willie, Jr., to celebrate the core philosophies, lessons and values of their father. Their father had high expectations for his children. The inspirational advice that Mackie relates can be used for success in life and careers. There’s a great deal of philosophy in this short book that makes it difficult to absorb all the information at once. Mackie, Sr. was a wise man, and his son, Calvin, has flourished and written a thoughtful book based on his father’s wisdom. This book is a keeper, one to return to for inspiration and the opportunity for reflection. 01/06 Lesa Holstine VILLAGE AFFAIRS by Cassandra Chan: Chan’s latest mystery brings back Scotland Yard Detective Sergeant Jack Gibbons and his wealthy friend, Phillip Bethancourt. The sequel to The Young Widow takes the investigative team to a small English village due to the death of a wealthy widower. However, no one in town seems to have realized that he was wealthy, or who his secret girlfriend was. Gibbons and Bethancourt unravel a web of secrets in this traditional mystery. As with so many traditional mysteries set in small villages, it features a vicar and his wife, a mysterious artist, a couple of celebrities, a reclusive brother and sister, and the obligatory housekeeper. It’s a welcome addition to the mystery field for anyone who misses Agatha Christie. 02/07 Lesa Holstine
VINNIE’S HEAD by Marc Lecard: When you are having a bad time, and
Johnnie LoDuco is definitely having a bad time, sometimes it helps to go
fishing. But if your fishing line hangs up on a severed head, and when the head
is (was) that of your good friend - no former friend - Vinnie, well a bad day
just got worse. Not only for Vinnie McCloskey-Schmidt, a computer-savvy con
artist who had recently promised to bring LoDuco into his business, but said
friend LoDuco and Vinnie’s girlfriend Jennifer. Arguably this book contains some
of the funniest violence ever as well as a complicated plot and some first rate
writing like this exchange between Vinnie and Johnnie: VIOLENT SATURDAY by W. L. Heath: Even if you miss the 1955 publication date, the language tells you quickly that this one has been around for a while. Morgan, Alabama is like most small towns on Friday night - a little innocent flirting, some outright adultery, drinking both legal and illegal, even a little larceny. All this gets swept aside on Saturday afternoon when three strangers carry out their intentions of robbing the Bank of Morgan. Some altered plans yield violent death, unusual heroism, and profound change for the sleepy little town. An easy read. 08/06 Jack Quick VIOLET ON THE RUNWAY by Melissa Walker: Thoroughly enjoyable if implausible fairy tale about Violet, the 6'1" high school senior who's embarrassed about her height and naturally thin body. That is, until she is "discovered" while working in the local movie theater by a high powered New York agent who's always looking for the next IT girl. Shy, wallflower Violet is whisked away to New York City, given a makeover and hits the runway, finding that popularity she's always wanted, not to mention free Prada boots. But while success brings its rewards, it also brings a snarky bitch of a bulimic roommate with a coke addiction, difficulty in dealing with her two best friends back home, and a sharp dose of reality. Geared toward the teen crowd, so buy it for your teen, then borrow it for yourself. 10/07 Stacy Alesi, AKA The BookBitch A VISIBLE DARKNESS by Jonathon King: In this second outing, former Philadelphia cop Max Freeman spends much of his days and nights driving his pickup truck down the seedier streets of West Palm Beach, instead of the Everglades. He is looking for whoever is knocking off a bunch of very old African-American ladies who sold off their insurance policies early. Freeman's lawyer chum, Billy Manchester, a genius who stutters in public, is back along with a new love interest, a sad-eyed lady cop. It is interesting to see the subtle evolution of Freeman as he transitions from a policeman, whose life was shattered by a shootout that left him wounded and a young man killed by one of his bullets, into someone who has found at least some peace with himself. 05/07 Jack Quick Visions of Sugar Plums by Janet Evanovich: If you haven't read Evanovich, I beg you not to start with this one; if you don't know the characters, you will be lost. Stephanie's latest bail jumper has the unlikely name of Sandy Claws, and he owns a toy factory. There's no Ranger, but there is a mysterious hunk named Diesel who appears at will, adding additional havoc to the already over-wrought love life of our heroine. Grandma Mazur has a new "studmuffin" who emits electrical charges and Valerie is throwing up regularly, courtesy of Albert Kloughn. I read this on my lunch hour - there's not much of a plot, no real laughs and an overload of cavity inducing sticky-sweet-cuteness. I hate to say it, but bah humbug. What a disappointment. VIXEN by Ken Bruen: In this follow-up to The White Trilogy Inspector Brant must match wits with Angie James, “the Vixen”, a female psychopath who gets her jollies from setting off bombs and ruthlessly manipulating men and women. Brant is on a tear and it is a race to determine which implodes first - Brant, the Squad, or Ms. James. With each outing, Bruen just gets better and better and if his prose becomes any more spare and stark, he will be producing single page novellas. 10/05 ~This review contributed by Jack Quick. VOLK’S GAME by Brent Ghelfi: In Ghelfi’s debut novel, he paints the underbelly of Moscow with the same monochromatic palette and broken brushes that Andrew Vacchs has used with great skill to depict New York City’s worst elements. Ghelfi is not yet a Vacchs but shows great potential. If you like Vachss’s Burke or Martin Cruz Smith’s Arkady Renko, then you will likely relate to Alekei "Volk" Volkovoy, a brutal killer maimed in Russia's war against Chechnya who is a powerful gangster with a hand in virtually all underworld rackets. He is also a covert military operative who monetarily supports a group of military widows who would likely otherwise not survive. The basis for this outing is the attempted theft of a previously unknown Da Vinci painting, Leda and the Swan, which has been concealed beneath another painting in a St. Petersburg, Russia museum. The action is dark, dirty, and plentiful, with shifting allies and unknown enemies. Volk says its best at one point, “Every part of me hurts, but the worst is my heart. It feels as if it’s fracturing into a million pieces of shrapnel:” Let’s hope Ghelfi can come up with some more challenges for Volk. I think he is a keeper. 07/07 Jack Quick VULTURE CAPITAL by Mark Coggins: Venture Capitalist Ted Valmont is informed that the brains behind a biotechnology start-up he's funded called NeuroStimix is missing. Valmont engages PI August Riordan to help find the missing man and we soon learn that the disappearance is part of a larger conspiracy to use NeuroStimix technology for dastardly purposes. To complicate matters, the missing man is Valmont's buddy and Valmont's own brother, as a spinal injury patient, would benefit from the NeuroStimix discovery. Co-founder of a failed Internet start-up, Mark Coggins injects lots of local color into his work, even dedicating the book to the Pets.com Sock Puppet. 12/05 ~This review contributed by Jack Quick. Back to Top
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