Seven Wonders by Ben Mezrich - Book Report #335

 

When I read that Simu Liu was attached to a new television series based on Seven Wonders, I went straight to my local library and borrowed the book.

Lets face it, it is derivative of The Da Vinci Code and National Treasure.  As a matter of fact, I watched National Treasure while reading the book.

That's not to say it wasn't fun, because it was and I enjoyed it.  With Liu in my imagination, I found the protagonist charming.

It will make terrific television since the adventure spans the world and involves the Seven Modern Wonders of the world.

The joy in stories like this is how they can spark an interest in history, which is never a bad thing.

One thing I did learn was that the Christ the Redeemer monument, in Rio, Brazil is much older that I thought.  Construction started in 1922 and was completed in 1931.

I'm glad I read it but I would not recommend it.

It's just that there is nothing really new about this adventure.

James Bond 007: Hammerhead by Written by Andy Diggle, Art by Luca Casalanguida - A Graphic Novel Review

This book was a spot-on delivery of what we've expected from Bond over the years.

There is action, humour, style and cutting-edge technology.

I found the art and the depiction of violence, in particular, to be cinematic.  In that, it wasn't overly gratuitous.  In the past couple of books I've reviewed, I've found the blood, guts and gore splattered on walls a bit too self-serving.

I am sure the body count is about the same but it was handled with a more practiced hand here.

The story was spot on and I was happy to see Diggle bring out the secondary characters, proving they are in positions for more than their typing skills.

And this was a classic plotline; a new weapon is developed to replace ageing infrastructure.  However, what is good for national defence is also good for organized crime and a race is on to control the Hammerhead weapon.

An excellent entry in Dynamite Entertainment's Bond series.

Andy Diggle's website - http://www.andydiggle.com/

Art by Luca Casalanguida

Book Report #88 - The Last Quarry by Max Allan Collins

Book 12 of 52

Page count - 201

Now this was more like it!  A fun a quick read; I read it in two sittings.  Max Allan Collins is the kind of author who continually publishes novels at an incredible pace.  I've found, if an author can produce this much, he doesn't waste time describing the colour of the paint on the walls.

Quarry is a retired hit man, enjoying a quiet, secluded life in Minnesota lake country.  On a sleepless night Quarry drives to the local convenience store for a snack run.  There he notices a man he knows, an enforcer for the Mob.  Curiously the enforcer is buying a box of Tampax.  This arouses Quarry's curiosity and he decides to follow him.  He quickly learns the enforcer is holding a young woman for ransom.

Quarry could well have left things alone but doesn't because, for one thing, he just doesn't like the enforcer.

There are some wonderful twist in the story that really grabbed my attention.  You find out quickly that Quarry is no one you want to mess with but you also discover that he has a soft spot for women.

The narration is crisp and personal, like he's talking directly to the reader.

I've pulled all the Quarry books in my Hard Case Crime collection and will be reading them very soon. 

Collins' website is HERE.

Max Allan Collins

Book Report #87 - Ice Station Zebra by Alistair MacLean

Book 11 of 52

Page count - 254

After the revalations from Command and Control, I thought I'd give Alistair MacLean one more try. 

I didn't doubt the plot; the operations of the fictional US Navy nuclear submarine Dolphin, the plausibility of Dirft Ice Station Zebra and the downing of a satellite payload.  According to Wikipedia many very similar events actually took place, so the book was definitely a pretty accurate description of the times. (Go HERE to read about the actual events.)

I just found the writing to be stiff and tiring to read.  I found myself putting the book down for days at a time and dreading picking it up again. The narrarator, Dr. Carpenter came off as incredibly arrogant and I simply did not like him.  The Commander of the Sub, Swanson, however was great; I kept seeing Scott Glenn, the sub commander in the movie, The Hunt for Red October, and that pleased me very much.

Scott Glenn - The Hunt for Red October

Overall, I found the book tedious.  Probably, to a person living in 2014, nothing here is new.  When this was published, 1963, it would have been as earth shattering as some of Tom Clancy's novels were in the 80's.

However, I believe, that if a book is well written it will stand the test of time.  Unfortunately, for me, MacLean's writing does nothing for me.

I have some other of his titles on my bookshelf, I don't think I'll be reading them any time soon.

Book Report #40 - Drive by James Sallis

Drive

by

James Sallis

 I was searching for a movie to watch, not long ago, when I saw the Ryan Gosling trailer for Drive; now THIS looked like an intense movie.  Unfortunately we didn't watch it - it was not what we were looking for at the time.  But the story stuck in my head and I  searched for it on the web and discovered the movie was based on a novella by James Sallis.  Coming in at 158 pages this is the kind of crime novel not seen in decades.  I was happy to see it available as an ebook and downloaded it to my Kobo Vox.

I loved how Sallis toyed with the time line; starting in the middle and flashing back and ultimately forward in the story made it very enjoyable.  I was not able to read it in one sitting, although it felt possible, and I did suffer a bit of confusion when I put the book down for a couple of days then tried to remember where I was when I picked it up again.  So I would suggest giving yourself plenty of time to sit back and enjoy the story.

This is a wonderful example of neo-noir, gritty, scary and very, very interesting.  The story revolves around a gifted Hollywood stunt driver who moonlights as a get-away driver for criminals in his spare time.  In time the life of crime is more alluring to him and he is slowly drawn in to the world completely.

I've always been fascinated by stories like these; how can a normal person turn to a life of crime?  I found myself rooting for him to make the right choice only to watch him spiral further into a world he can't control.  It was great stuff.

I'll be watching the movie this week, for sure.

Book Report #35 - Pacific Vortex by Clive Cussler

Oh my God - what fun!

Clive Cussler has a special place in my heart.  I read him a lot when I was a teenager (sadly a long time ago) and I grew out of his books in my mid 20's.  With my interest in pulp fiction it didn't take long to rediscover good 'ol Cussler who has not slowed down one bit.

This guy is in his 80's now and is only increasing his output by teaming up with all kinds of authors including his own son, Dirk.  The authors he's teamed up with are, Paul Kemprecos, Craig Dirgo, Jack Dubrul, Justin Scott and Grant Blackwood.

The basic story goes like this:  There is an area in the Pacific, north of Hawaii, called the Pacific Vortex, that has, for decades, has been known for ships disappearing with out a trace, just like the Bermuda Triangle.  Along comes a newly built American nuclear submarine and it too goes missing.  Our hero, Dirk Pitt, finds the captain's log capsule floating in the ocean and takes it directly to the US navy.  Thus begins the adventure and with the weight of the US navy the mystery of the Vortex is uncovered.

Pacific Vortex was the first Dirk Pitt adventure written by Cussler but was the sixth in publication order.  This is like American James Bond stuff!  Complete with an evil overlord in a hidden fortress of doom!  There are many tropes that Cussler uses that, like the James Bond films, if they are not present the book feels incomplete.  There is always a beautiful woman who falls, usually tragically, in love with Pitt, there is his best friend and partner Al Girodino and there are the cars.  Oh, the cars are wonderful and sadly the cars also come to tragic ends as well.  But not in this story  Here Pitt drives an AC Cobra into the sunset with nary a scratch on her.  Whew!

This was pure pulpy fun!  Knowing that it was written in the 70's and published in 1983 the story actually stands up very well.  There are no glaringly obsolete technologies mentioned and the story feels just like a James Bond movie.  If you like action, adventure, exotic locations, beautiful babe, humor and men being men - you really can't go wrong with this book.

Book Report #31 - Jack Wakes Up

Jack Wakes Up

by

Seth Harwood

I've been following Mr. Harwood's career for a long time.  He's very big in the podcast world and has made this novel (and others) available as an audio download.

The coolest thing about a podcast novel is that it is a complete throw back to the early days of radio.  Harwood himself  reads one chapter at a time and it builds into a serialized story.  When the novel was first podcasted I'd have to wait a week between chapters.  Now you can listen to the whole thing as quickly as you like.

The reason he put it out on the Internet, free for anybody to listen to, was to generate interest and to build a fan base.  By having hard numbers (the amount of times the book was downloaded) he could show a publisher that he had a number of fans who would also turn into buyers of his book.

It worked and Jack Wakes Up was published by Three Rivers Press, in 2008, as a paperback original.

I always knew I wanted to read the book more than I wanted to listen to it.  So I only listened to the first third and waited for the book to be published.  Then I bought it as soon as it was available - then it sat on my shelf for nearly three years - and now I've read it!

It was a very polished and quickly paced first effort.  This guy has got some chops. Harwood can certainly take you into the darkest, seediest, and scariest corners of San Francisco.  This is my kind of stuff.  

The story is about a drug buy.  A big drug buy.  So you know there are going to be some scary characters all over the place.

The book reads like an action movie and some of the scenes, especially in the clubs, I could feel the music thudding in my chest.  Harwood can write a tough guy like the best of them.  His action sequences are thrilling to read.

Did I like the book? Oh, yea, baby!

I only had one bit of trouble with the book.

Palms is an ex-action hero movie star, a one hit wonder.  His career is all but over when a friend calls him up to help smooth over the drug transaction.  Circumstances change early in the book and Palms has to complete the task on his own. Jack's a smart guy but what I had trouble understanding was how he had the experience to pull off a buy that was going so dangerously wrong.  Maybe I missed something early on in the book (and that's very likely) but any rational person would have walked away.  Although he was in financial difficulty I never felt like that was the only motivation for Jack.

With that bit of negative news assided I can tell you that Harwood had my heart racing a few times through the book.  Visit this guy at his website, download one of his free audio novels and give it a try.  If you like crime fiction, suspense and action you can't go wrong with this first effort.

Book Report #11 of 26

Potshot

by

Robert B. Parker

The late grate Robert B. Parker!

There is only one author that Sue and I truly share in admiration.  The books of Robert B Parker and his Spenser series especially, were one of the first things we shared when we first started dating.

The first Parker novel I ever read was Crimson Joy  the murders in the story were brutal and I was surprised Sue suggested the book to me.  But what really came through was the character of Spenser; ever confident, strong and funny.  The humor of Parker's books never come out of the plot but always through the dialog between the characters in the story.

If you get in to the Spenser series you will find that, in the end, you won't remember the plots nor will you care about them because what you loved the best was the dialog and the relationships that Spenser has.  His best friend and sometimes partner Hawk is one of the best characters in mystery fiction - ever.

Potshot itself was not one of Parker's best stories.  As stories go, not much really "happens" until the very end.  This book would be a real treat to a serious fan of the series. Parker gathers around Spenser and Hawk all the other tough guys that Spenser has met throughout his long career to help him discover what is wrong in Potshot CA

Give this one a pass until you've read at least 10 of the novels prior to this one.

But was it any good?  Well, it was only okay. But reading Parker is always easy; his words fall right off the page and once you've realized you've read 335 pages you'll swear it felt like a short story of 25 pages.

Save this book until you're really in to the series then it will be much more enjoyable for you.

Book Report #8 of 26

The Bloodstained Man

by

Christopher Rowley

Book 2 of the Netherworld trilogy.

Another fast-paced read. We follow agent Rook and Plesur into the wilds of the uninsured territories of New Jersey still being chased by unknown forces who are trying to kill Plesur and the knowledge that is locked in her brain.  Along the way we pick up two new characters and we get to learn more about the past of this near-future.

The text and art still work well together although I found the story dragged on a bit.  Part of the reason was just the nature of a book 2 of 3.  The second book tends to delve into the background a bit more and the plot usually slows down until book 3.  Learning about the Emergency and how pleasure models came to be was interesting but where the story nearly lost me was in the endless chases and escapes. They felt like they were there just to fill pages.  Because the author had the benefit of an artist he did not have to spend too much time describing the settings which made wading through this second book manageable.

The new characters, the military robots and the use of "ear backs", chips that can be inserted behind the ear to add intelligence, skills and new personalities, were fresh ideas that I liked.  Alas, the situations our four characters find themselves in seemed all too familiar which made for a book that was a bit of a let-down from the first.

Book Report #5 of 26 - The Bobbly Gold Stories by Anthony bourdain

The Bobby Gold Stories

by

Anthony Bourdain

This was an interesting novel suggested to me by my sister Janick.

Anthony Bourdain is a world-famous chef.  He's been on the Food Network and now the Travel Channel and is best known for eating outrageous foods from around the world.  He's very charismatic and, I'm sure, pisses many, many people off.  He's obviously very intelligent and self-confident to the point of arrogance.  But he's also very compelling to watch.

My sister told me, a few weeks ago, that he is also an author of crime fiction.  "You've got to be kidding. He's a cook!.  What could he possibly write about?"  I already knew that he'd written a few memoirs but fiction is another kind of writing. 

The Bobby Gold Stories is his third novel. It could easily have been published by Gold Medal Books if this were the 50's.  The book is short, 165 pages, and the first two chapters will grab you by the throat and shake you around the room.  The pacing is lightning fast and the atmosphere is so authentic you can hear and smell the locations the book is set in.

Set in modern times, in New York City, the book follows Bobby Gold from prison to being an enforcer for a small-time crime boss named Eddie Fish.  Fish owns a night club that Bobby runs security for, Fish is also a loan-shark and Bobby has to sometimes "encourage" payment from his customers.

Bobby Gold is good at what he does, even though he doesn't like the job as much any more.   But Bobby's life is about to change when he meets Nikki; a cook in the night club.

The story is fun, the dialog jumps off the page and the story is interesting in that it does not go where you'd expect.  One of the things I like about the book is what it leaves out; you can be in the middle of an action scene and Bourdain just fades out and skips ahead a few months.  This has the combined effect of keeping you reading to find out how things ended up and you get the feeling that Bourdain was thinking, "You know how this goes, blah, blah, blah.  Let me tell you what happens next."  But the effect was a good one; the story was told in a fresh way which I enjoyed.

The best moment, for me, that set the tone of the whole book was chapter 2.  Oh my God!  That was tense.

Book Report #4 of 26

Kiss Her Goodbye

by

Allan Guthrie

 Wow! 

This was N-O-I-R. 

Nice and dark; filled with interesting characters.  

Joe Hope is an enforcer for a loan-shark named Cooper.  The phone rings and Joe's world turns upside-down when he hears that his daughter has been found dead, an apparent suicide.  To make maters worse, on the heels of this news, he is also framed for a murder.

Joe must find out who did this to him and why and he'll do it on his own terms.

The book is set in modern times, it's not a reprinted pulp from the 50's but a contemporary thriller set in Edinburgh, Scotland.  

At the final climax of the story my heat was racing and I had to put the book down for a few minute, make myself a pot of coffee and catch my breath before I could finish the story.

This book was a lot of fun and you can bet I'll be looking for my from this author.

Book Review - Plunder of the Sun by David Dodge

First published in 1949 Plunder of the Sun by David Dodge has been newly published (2005) by Hard Case Crime (HCC - 010).

The Hard Case crime website describes the book like this:

"Al Colby should never have agreed to smuggle the package from Chile to Peru. Now one man’s dead, two beautiful women have betrayed him, and a couple of gunmen are hot on his trail. All because of an ancient Quechua manuscript pointing to the hiding place of a priceless hoard of gold, lost for centuries. Now the race is on — by train, by plane, by motorboat and by mule — first to find the treasure and then to escape with it alive..."

It was a good read. However, the main character, Colby, was a bit of a putz: he was double crossed, beaten, tied up and otherwise outwitted at just about every turn. He certainly was tenacious but the amount of times he came out the looser in situations made it a bit distracting. Indiana Jones her certainly was not.

Still, I never lost interest and that is the real test of a book.

Deep Black: Dark Zone by Stephen Coonts and Jim DeFelice

Back in June of 2006 I started keeping a list of all the books I've read.

So I'll share some of these with you.

The first was from Stephen Coonts. Like Tom Clancy Coonts started to co-write an adventure series: Deep Black.

This one took place in Paris and involved a terrorist plot to destroy the Channel Tunnel.

I found it a bit difficult to get into but once the plot lines started to merge it was quite a page-turner. A good summer beach read.

Deep Black: Dark Zone

The Destroyer #8 by Richard Sapir and Warren Murphy

Last night was a long one; poor Sue is quite sick and had a hard time sleeping so, consequently, so did I. I gave up and moved to the couch where I not only began my blog but also finished reading The Destroyer #8, Summit Chase. Published in 1973 Pinnacle this was a quick, fun read about how Remo Williams and Chiun stop criminals from forming their own crime country in Africa.

Always fun with wonderful dialog between Remo and Chiun these early books are a treat.

The book series was once filmed in the attempt to create another action adventure film hero. This was during the Indiana Jones era and did not have any success. It stared Fred Ward and Joel Grey, filmed in 1985 it took advantage of the restoration of the Statue of Liberty in New York harbor and used it as a set for a chase sequence.

The movie was called Remo Williams: The Adventure Begins.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0089901/