Category: Books-Fiction

James Rollins – Grant Blackwood – The Kill Switch – a Tucker Wayne and Kane thriller!!

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The Kill Switch by James Rollins & Grant Blackwood

I’ve been a James Rollins fan ever since I picked up Map of Bones (Sigma #2) back in 2005. Since then, I’ve read every Sigma Force novel (except the very first) along with three of his early stand-alones — and every one of them has been a winner.

What keeps me hooked? The science… no, the action… no, the political twists… honestly, it’s the whole package!

As the Associated Press once put it:

“The science reads like the best of Michael Crichton.
The machinations of government read like the best of David Baldacci.
And the action and thrills read like the best of Clive Cussler. Rollins takes the best of all of these and creates an amazing thriller unlike any other.”

A New Series Begins

Rollins’ novel The Kill Switch — co-written with Grant Blackwood — has all those familiar ingredients, plus something fresh: two new heroes, one man and one canine.

Meet Tucker Wayne, a former U.S. Army Ranger, and Kane, his loyal Belgian shepherd. When Sigma Force director Painter Crowe calls on them for what seems like a simple mission — extracting a defector out of Russia — things quickly spiral out of control.

The defector is Abram Bukolov, often called the “Steve Jobs of Russia’s pharmaceutical industry.” And the Russians don’t intend to let him go without a fight. Soon Tucker and Kane are hunted by Russia’s military, its intelligence services, and a deadly sniper named Felice Nilsson.

The Plot Thickens

So why is Bukolov really on the run? His research centers on LUCA — the Last Universal Common Ancestor of all life on Earth. In the right hands, LUCA could transform medicine and agriculture. In the wrong hands, it could unravel the planet’s ecosystem.

The trail leads to the mountains of Namibia, where botanist Paulos de Klerck may have discovered evidence of this elusive ancestor. Tucker’s mission quickly expands: find LUCA before Russian General Kharzin does.

But there’s another danger — a traitor inside Tucker’s team, feeding intel back to the Russians. With Felice Nilsson close on their heels, Tucker and Kane must fight, track, and survive to protect Bukolov and keep LUCA from falling into the wrong hands.

Final Thoughts

With The Kill Switch, Rollins has given us two new characters you can really root for. Tucker Wayne and Kane are a dynamic duo who bring grit, loyalty, and heart to the chaos. Their journey takes you from a simple rendezvous in Vladivostok, through the rugged landscapes of South Africa and Namibia, and finally to a pulse-pounding showdown on the shores of Lake Michigan.

It’s a great ride — action, science, politics, betrayal — all in true Rollins style.

I, for one, can’t wait for their next adventure. Until then, I’ll be diving into Rollins’ latest Sigma Force novel, The 6th Extinction.

Return to Author’s PAge
Return to Branches Author’s PAge

Rediscovering the Books of Richard Hoyt – Fish Story leads to his new book Crow’s Mind!

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Revisiting Richard Hoyt – From Fish Story to Crow’s Mind

Fish Story

The first year I started keeping fairly detailed notes on my reading was 1988. I didn’t record exact start and finish dates until March, so my January and February reads are just listed by month. But I do know that the first book of the year was Richard Hoyt’s Fish Story, the fourth book in his John Denson mystery series.

John Denson, Seattle private eye, teams up with his darts-throwing Cowlitz Indian buddy, Willie Prettybird, to investigate a Cowlitz claim to Native American salmon fishing rights. A judge is murdered and dismembered parts show up in Seattle’s Pioneer Square.

Denson is an ex-intelligence agent turned Seattle private eye, and Fish Story is the first of his cases on my Goodreads shelves. I don’t think it was my first Denson book, though — I’m pretty sure that honor goes to Book 2: Siskiyou.

Hoyt’s Denson books were, for me, short, quick reads with likable, quirky characters. I especially remember enjoying Willie Prettybird’s character.

Beyond Denson – Enter James Burlane

Before Fish Story, I had already read Trotsky’s Run, the first in Hoyt’s James Burlane series.
There was a six-year gap between Fish Story and the next Denson mystery (Who?), and somewhere in there I lost track of Denson until 1996 when I picked up Book 7, Snake Eyes.

Then came another long pause — eight years — before 2003’s The Weatherman’s Daughter, which I also read and enjoyed.

A New Detective in Town – Jake Hipp

Crow's Mind

On visiting Richard Hoyt’s website, I discovered a newer book, Crow’s Mind, introducing private investigator Jake Hipp. Here’s how Hoyt describes him:

I shrugged at the odds and moved on from my much-admired detective John Denson to create a private investigator truly for our times and for readers tired of reading formula mysteries. No world-weary grimacing bead of sweat narrates this story. Pothead Jake Hipp lives green. His American Indian partner, Willow Blackwing, thinks she is a shape-changing trickster Raven. (Maybe she is).

You can find Crow’s Mind at Amazon.

Praise for Richard Hoyt

  • “Hoyt has a fresh, invigorating style that grabs the reader immediately. He is a master.” – The New York Times
  • “Hoyt is an adroit and zestful writer.” – Minneapolis Star-Tribune
  • “Hoyt is a delight to discover and a treat to read.” – Library Journal

Where I Stand with Hoyt’s Books

Hoyt has given readers:

  • The John Denson mysteries
  • The James Burlane thrillers
  • Now, the Jake Hipp PI series

I still have gaps to fill in both Denson and Burlane — and now a whole new series to start. Sounds like a good problem to have.

Next Up in My Hoyt Reading

Looks like my next stop will be the very first John Denson novel, which I just discovered sitting in my Kindle library. Time to start at the beginning and see where it all began.

Past Reads: May 1987 – A First Encounter with Loren Estleman’s – Amos Walker!

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A Throw Wayback Post: From Dumas to Detroit
So yesterday I discovered two things:

The Amos Walker series is now up to Book 31!

And I will never again question whether an older author is still writing—Loren Estleman is a year younger than me!

Well, in honor of that realization, let’s all go…


Wait. No. Not Dumas Walker—we’re talking Amos Walker, not some honky-tonk in Kentucky, you duma-ass!

Back to the Beginning
Motor City Blue

When I looked back at my old Book Journal, I saw that the very first Amos Walker book I recorded was Estleman’s Motor City Blue, released in 1980. By then, Estleman had already published six books, but I made sure to start at the beginning.

Apparently, I wasn’t blown away, but still intrigued. Here’s what I wrote at the time:

“Amos Walker is looking for the missing foster daughter of a mobster. Estleman does well, maintaining excitement chapter to chapter.”

Pretty concise. Clearly, I was in full-on “efficient journaling” mode.

Goodreads Says…
“Amos Walker, a tough-talking Detroit detective, will delight mystery buffs. Loren D. Estleman has written a series of fast-paced mysteries which occur in the Motor City where murders are committed nightly within full view of the glittering Renaissance Center.”
— Goodreads

And Amazon Adds…
“If I see my name in tomorrow’s paper yours will be in the next edition. Bordered in black.”
— Thus begins Amos Walker’s first case: finding Marla Bernstein, the teenage ward of a semi-retired mobster. A pornographic photo is the only lead—and it draws Walker into Detroit’s seedy underworld of blue movies and even darker secrets.
— More on Amazon

That description actually is jogging my memory! And it reminds me why I kept coming back—at least for a while.

My Amos Walker Timeline
Looking at my Goodreads shelf, I see I read eight of the first ten Amos Walker books. Then—cue the familiar refrain—a seven-year gap between 1990’s Sweet Women Lie and 1997’s Never Street. What happened?

You guessed it. My ADD brain wandered off to chase other series.

Still, I’ve revisited Amos from time to time—most recently in Book #20 The Left-Handed Dollar. I also own Book #16 Poison Blue, still waiting patiently on my TBR shelf.

Is It Time for a Return Trip to Motor City?
Maybe it’s time to reconnect with Amos Walker. After all:

He’s still in Detroit.

He’s still grizzled.

And somehow, he’s still going—thanks to Loren Estleman, who, as I said, is younger than me and still going strong.

So here’s my advice:
If you’re a fan of classic PI mysteries and you haven’t read Amos Walker?

Shame on you.

Go fix that. Immediately.

Amos Walker book shame on you!! Get reading!!

Tell No Lies – Gregg Hurwitz – “Simply Brilliant”? – It’s True!

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STell No Lieso in keeping with the thought that one should write short I will give you my review of Gregg Hurwitz’s book Tell No Lies using the words of Anne Rice……“Simply Brilliant!”

So check it out of the library, buy it on Kindle, now you can by it in paperback just get you hands on it and see if you like me yell at Daniel Brasher  – “Don’t do it – Wait for the police!! But you see Daniel is the kind of guy that will not do that – he has to go for it, never, is he half in, never does he sit back and rest, he needs to be out there doing. He could just be sitting back and living the life of luxury like his filthy rich mother, but no he gave that life up and became a counselor to violent criminals, a position that he is about to leave to move into private practice.

Until a letter appears accidentally appears  in his work mailbox, threatening the lives of two people, telling them if they don’t “admit what they have done they will bleed for it” After Daniel reads that the first victim has been brutally slain, and the clock is winding down to the deadline for the second victim, who lives only blocks away from Daniel’ to admit what she has done, Daniel takes off to save her life! And you the reader know – this is not going to end well! True to form it doesn’t and soon……  there are more threats, including one directed at Daniel. So many questions, so little time…… could it really be one of his patients??  how are these seemingly random victims  related?  what are they to admit to, and does it all connect to Daniel?? All questions Daniel has to answer before his time is up!!

So now that I’ve used too many words to tell you about the book, I may as well give you the whole Anne Rice quote….

“Simply brilliant. Tell No Lies is infinitely more than a thriller, yet thrilling to the last page. Psychologically rich and often beautiful…A true page turner in which every phrase, every character, every little incident counts. Stylish, elegant, and absolutely riveting! An unforgettable read.” –Anne Rice, author of THE WOLVES OF MIDWINTER and INTERVIEW WITH THE VAMPIRE.

Yep, it is that good, it was one of those books that I didn’t want to put down. The characters are great, the plot is terrific and the book works on several levels. The themes that the book addresses are real! I don’t really want to say what they are because they deal with the whole storyline!

I read my first Gregg Hurwitz book in 2004 The Kill Clause the first Tim Rackley book. I read the second Rackley book The Program and then three of Gregg’s stand-alones. It seems I read one about every three years. It also seems that has to change!! (Memo to self – get on the stick – take that Trust No One off of your to be read shelf, and get reading!!) So go grab a Hurwitz novel and get cracking and if you don’t like regular novels try Graphic Novels, he writes those to including Batman:The Dark Knight. Bye, I’m off to Trust No One…..

Book 15 of 2014

Book 14 of 2014 – Crissa Stone # 2 – Kings of Midnight by Wallace Stroby

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Kings of MidnightSo yes, as listed under Currently Reading on my webpage, I am still reading Subversives!  I am now more than 65% of the way through the book, Reagan  just became governor of California, so the battles rages more fiercely! But while reading that, I am still reading mysteries, and just finished Book 14 for 2014, Kings of Midnight from Wallace Stroby.

Kings of Midnight is the second book in the Crissa Stone series, and  in it , Crissa, the criminal you root for, is battling to recover,  some of the millions, that now dead mob boss Joey Dios hid from a robbery thirty-five years ago!! Crissa needs the money after the profits of her latest heist, were lessened by a crook that was trying to launder the money for her.  Crissa needs to get back some of that money and maybe make one big score to help her boyfriend get out of prison, and to get her daughter back. So Crissa, is all ears when Jimmy Peaches sets  her  up with Benny Roth, a lower level member of Joey’s crew, who just may know where Joey hid the money. Only problem is that other mobsters are on the trail of the money too!

The book’s plot seemed rather simplistic, but Stroby’s writing style, and the characters he creates keep the action moving, and the pages turning right up until the last page of the book. Crissa is a character, that while a criminal, you still can root for her to come out on top, and this time , well actually like the last, she’s up against some pretty tough mobsters! So it was a quick fun read, and I’m looking forward to moving onto the next caper!!

Here’s what others say about Stroby’s books….

“Just when you think that you can’t be surprised anymore, a writer like Wallace Stroby ups the ante” – Laura Lippman

“Another fast, taut, winner from Stroby. As for Crissa, she may be crime fiction’s best bad girl ever” – Kirkus Reviews (starred review) on Cold Shot to the Heart.

So check out the Crissa Stone series!

2014 Reads – How to Write Short has an impact on reading Daniel Woodrell’s Winter’s Bone!

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Winter's BoneLast night with music from the Hank Mobley Quintet playing in the background, I finished Daniel Woodrell’s great novel Winter’s Bone. While the book is not classified as a mystery, the plot of the novel centers around a big one. Where’s Jessup?  Jessup is the meth cooking father of the book’s central character, 16 year-old, Ree Dolly. Ree has a big problem, if her Pa doesn’t appear for a court date, Ree and her two brother’s, and Ma could lose their family home,  which Jessup posted as collateral to make his bail. So Ree sets out, braving the bitter Ozark winter, searching the hills for her father. But many of the tight-lipped inter-related folks, who live in the hills, live on the wrong side of the law, and would rather fight than give up their secrets. But Ree needs to push on, for her home and the ones who are in her care,  but will she be able to live with the answer??

Now I could go on and on about the wonderfully  drawn-out characters in the book, from Uncle Teardrop to Ree’s Mom, and the various themes, but I want to focus on another aspect of the book and that is Woodrell’s prose.

I started reading Winter’s Bone (Book 12 of 2014)the day after I had finished Roy Peter Clark’s book How to Write Short: Writing ShortWord Craft for Fast Times.(Book 11) Clark’s book focuses on the need to write short in today’s fast paced world, of Twitter, Facebook and the rest of social media. The book is filled with examples of short writing including; tattoos, advertising slogans, epitaphs and Tweets! The first Chapter is Collect Short Writing, which I had no problem doing while reading Winter’s Bone. Throughout the book, I marveled at how Woodrell packed so much punch, in so few words! My awe started with the book’s opening sentence….

Ree Dolly stood at the break of dawn on her cold front steps and smelled the coming flurries and saw meat.

So what did that sentence tell me. First, it’s morning, it’s cold, it’s going to snow and I’m somewhere meat hangs on trees, “Toto, I don’t think we’re in Kansas any more!!

Several of the examples of writing short that I noticed opened chapters….

She became ice as she walked.

The needed skill was silence.

Hillsides knit with ice came apart.

Then there were longer sentences that just blew me away….

A picnic of woods fell from Gail’s mouth to be gathered around and savored slowly

Ree waited kneeling for several minutes, kneeling as raised hopes fell to modest hopes,slight hopes, vague hopes, kneeling until any hope at all withered to none at all between her pressing hands.

I guess the question is would I have noticed these short gems, had not just read How to Write Short. probably not, so thank you Mr Clark!!

Summarizing, great book, full of unforgettable characters, and fine writing, read it!!  If you do read, it be on the lookout for those powerful short sentences

NYPD Puzzle by Parnell Hall -(Puzzle Lady #15)

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NYPD Puzzle by Parnell Hall – (Puzzle Lady #15)

NYPD Puzzle

Through the years, one of my favorite mystery series has been Parnell Hall’s Stanley Hastings books. Looking at my Goodreads shelf, I see there are 18 in the series — and I’ve read all but one! (Note to self: finally read Caper — I could have sworn I had??) That’s not the case with Hall’s Puzzle Lady series. There are 15 entries, and I’ve only read three (#1, #8, and #15). The most recent for me was NYPD Puzzle, which also became book #11 on my 2014 reads list.

Why Fewer Puzzle Lady Reads?

I’m not really sure. Maybe it’s because I felt a little resentful that Parnell seemed to forget Stanley and preferred the Puzzle Lady, Cora Felton. Between 1987 and 1998, Hall wrote 13 Stanley Hastings mysteries. Then, starting in 1999, the Puzzle Lady books appeared annually throughout the 2000s, while there were sometimes four-year gaps between Hastings novels. Probably the Puzzle Lady was just more popular — and more profitable. (It’s the same reason Linwood Barclay abandoned Zack Walker in favor of standalones, which I grudgingly admit turned out better. But what do I know…)

The Mystery

NYPD Puzzle is a quick, fun cozy mystery. Attorney Becky Baldwin hires Cora to accompany her to New York to meet a new client. When they arrive, they find the man dead with a crossword puzzle on his chest. Cora hears the killer in the next room, barges in, shoots, misses, and watches the suspect escape out a penthouse window — leaving her standing with a smoking gun. Is it the murder weapon? The police can’t prove otherwise — the bullet is too badly damaged to rule it out. Suddenly, Cora’s a prime suspect.

Cora, along with NYC Sergeant Crowley and others, sets out to clear her name. The killer plays cat and mouse, leaving crossword puzzles and even some Sudoku (created by Will Shortz!) between New York City and Bakerhaven. Another body drops — the Bakerhaven Town Clerk, with whom Cora just happened to argue. The twists and turns pile up as Cora fights to prove her innocence and unmask the murderer.

What I Enjoy

Cora Felton is a fun character, always ready with a wisecrack. Hall’s humor shines through her dialogue, and the supporting cast — Sergeant Crowley and Chief Harper of Bakerhaven — provide plenty of friction and comic relief as they bicker over protecting Cora. She isn’t worried, though. After all, she has her guns… but will that be enough?

Bottom Line

NYPD Puzzle captures exactly what makes the Puzzle Lady books fun: witty dialogue, cozy mystery pacing, and playful puzzle tie-ins. It’s not as dear to me as the Stanley Hastings series, but it’s still a lighthearted, entertaining read that fans of humorous mysteries will enjoy.

NYPD Puzzle captures exactly what makes the Puzzle Lady books fun: witty dialogue, cozy mystery pacing, and playful puzzle tie-ins. It’s not as dear to me as the Stanley Hastings series, but it’s still a lighthearted, entertaining read that fans of humorous mysteries will enjoy.


← Back to Parnell Hall Author Page

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Stone Cold – C J Box -Nate’s Out for Blood!

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Stone Cold - C.J. Box

C.J. Box — Stone Cold (Joe Pickett #14)

Some writers take pages to hook you. In the latest Joe Pickett novel, C.J. Box does it in the first paragraph: Nate Romanowski shoves a drift boat into the Bighorn River and heads downstream toward the mansion of the man he intends to kill.

If this is your first Pickett, you’ll admire the crisp, descriptive prose. But if you’ve read a few (in my case, all but one of the first fourteen), you have the same “uh-oh” reaction I did: “Nate is going to murder someone.” That’s not going to end well.

Nate is Joe’s shadowy friend—he shows up when Joe needs him most—but he’s also on the run from the feds. Is that why he’s rowing toward a kill?

The Joe Pickett Connection

Meanwhile, Game Warden Joe Pickett gets a special assignment from Governor Rulon: look into billionaire Wolfgang Templeton, who’s buying up Medicine Wheel County and may be running a murder-for-hire ring for the ultra-wealthy. Joe is told to observe, not get involved (sure, Jan). It turns personal when a grainy video from a victim’s home seems to show… Nate.

On the home front, Joe’s daughter Sheridan, an RA at the University of Wyoming, calls about a resident: a mysterious guy in a long black coat who spends all night on violent, shoot-’em-up video games.

So Joe heads to Sand Creek Ranch, with Templeton on one side of the board, Nate on the other, and Sheridan giving him one more reason to worry.

The action is fast and the pages fly, as they do in the best Pickett novels. The characters keep evolving (fourteen books in), and Joe’s moral compass still points true. Nate’s? Not so much.

Should you read it?

  • Hook: Cold-open with Nate on a kill mission.
  • Plot engine: Billionaire land grab + possible contract killings.
  • Series payoff: Joe/Nate relationship tension turned up to 11.

Tip: New to the series? Read a few earlier books first so you can fully appreciate the Joe and Nate dynamic.

Author’s Website
Facebook
Twitter
Goodreads
Goodreads:Joe Pickett Series

C.J.Box

About C.J.Box

Charles James Box Jr. is an American author of more than thirty novels. Box is the author of the Joe Pickett series, as well as several standalone novels, and a collection of short stories.

Visit C.J.Box page

If you like the family and character connections in this series…

You might also enjoy:

William Kent Kreuger
Michael Robotham
Michael Robotham
Peter May
  • William Kent Krueger — the Cork O’Connor series blends crime with family, history, and a strong sense of place
  • Michael Robotham — especially the Joe O’Loughlin books, where personal lives are always part of the story
  • Peter May — the Lewis Trilogy, where past, family, and landscape are tightly woven together

Book No. 8 of 2014 – Wallace Stroby’s Cold Shot to the Heart (Crissa Stone #1)

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Cold Shot to the HeartOh Boy! I finally read a book quickly and increased this years book’s read total all the way to eight!! (He says with a sarcastic sneer on his face and tone in his voice). The book was Cold Shot to the Heart  and is book #1 in the Crissa Stone series from Long Branch, New Jersey native Wallace Stroby. They always say that you should write about what you know and what would a former writer for the Newark Star-Ledger know better mob related crime! (typed with Jon Stewart’s mob voice ringing in my ears!)

See Crissa is not a PI or a cop rather she is a career criminal. When the reader meets Crissa, she and her crew are robbing a store whose sign reads – CHECK CASHING MONEY TRANSFERS PAY DAY LOANS, a fine upstanding facility doubt!  The job went well but the take was not what her team expected. When she comes home to New York City, she learns that her lover and partner Wayne, who is three years into a seven-year sentence is coming up for parole He may gain his parole, if Crissa can get 250 grand in the hands of Texan, who may be able to grease the wheels enough, to make it happen.

So when Crissa is asked to join a three-man crew to boost an illegal poker game in Miami, that may have a million dollars on the table, it seems like a no-brainer. And up until Crissa money in hand, hears gunshots coming from the room that she just left  it was and then, all hell breaks loose in the form of Eddie the Saint, a hit-man recently released from prison, who is soon on the trail of the money. Bodies start to pile up and Crissa is in for the fight of her life!!

This was a quick read, with some well-developed characters, i.e. Crissa, and plenty of action to keep the pages turning. When I finished the book I was ready for book two Kings of Midnight. So check it out!

Links

Wallace Stroby at: Goodreads
Amazon

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The Best Mystery Authors – Part One – The Ranker List – What Do You Think??

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Ok so I have visited the Ranker site before, but today and yesterday, I spent some time on the site looking at various list that would pertain to this blog. The following list is one of them. I am in total agreement that Agatha Christie is the greatest mystery writer of all time, but many of the writers that I have read over the years are not even on the list!! and if they are they are well below where they would be on my personal list of the best mystery writers of all time. So I will break this post down into two posts, this is the first, duh! and in it I am presenting the Ranker listing and would ask for your thoughts or comments! The second list will be the Me, Myself and Mysteries list. But you will have to wait until after my 6 and 1/2 hour break! So for now the question is What Do You Think??? No James Lee Burke??

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