false 3 108 105 true 5787206 read 1 true 5264621 currently-reading 2 true 5264620 to-read http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/79468550 The Way Home (Hardcover) by George P. Pelecanos
bookshelves: to-read
]]> http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/79368228 Inherent Vice (Hardcover) by Thomas Pynchon
bookshelves: to-read
]]> http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/77721358 to: L.A. Outlaws (Hardcover) by T. Jefferson Parker
I read this after reading Parker's "The Renegades" which I really liked. "Outlaws" really should have been read first since the characters and setup are the basis for "Renegades" so it kind of spoiled it knowing what would happen to the characters. This book concerns an LA County Deputy Sheriff, Charlie Hood, who comes across a woman who is in the vicinity as a possible witness of a gang jewel heist gone bad. What he doesn't realize is that she is also a colorful local stick up artist who operates in disguise under the name of Allison Murrieta the great, great, great grandaughter of the legendary robin hood thief of Old California, Juaquin' Murrieta and that she had earlier stumbled on to the scene and made off with the diamonds herself. What follows is a romance and series of double dealing attempts on her life from another person who is also after the diamonds.

I really like Parker's writing. The characters are all colorful and the dialog is great. This story had a fairly believeable plot and good action. I rate it better than Parker's "Storm Runners" but not as good as "Renegades" ]]> http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/78366387 The Increment: A Novel (Hardcover) by David Ignatius
bookshelves: currently-reading
]]> http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/77886401 to: The Possession of Mr Cave (Hardcover) by Matt Haig
Interestingly written story of obsessive behavior of a father towards protecting his daughter from the world after loss of her twin brother and earlier death of his wife. His behavior is affected by his feeling of guilt due to the negligent affection he had for his son in favor of his daughter. The book is mostly a narrative description of the father's thoughts about his perception of his daughters actions and gradually give way to hallucination. This is an interesting twist at the end. ]]> http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/77140492 to: Shadow Country (Modern Library) by Peter Matthiessen
First let me say that this is an extraordinary book. The writing is masterful. The characters are colorful and the sense of who they are is right on. This book is a collection of first person vignettes about the legend of a person named E.J. Watson who settled along the southern gulf coast of Florida around the turn of the 20th century to become a wealthy planter. Depending on who's telling the story, he was either a saint who helped his neighbors or the devil who was ruthless and who pretty much got everything he wanted by fear, intimidation, and (probably) murder. The book was revised by the author to shorten the original three books to a single three part book of over 800 pages. Therein lies the problem with my appreciation as I struggled to finish the first part at the end of which Watson receives his comeupance. it was hard to imagine how the author could come up with 600 more pages to describe how Watson got his reputation. While each vignette was extremely interesting in describing how Watson got his reputation, I quickly lost count and track of who all the various story tellers were and how they were related so that each one seemed to be disconnected, even though I could see that they were supposed to be related. It would have been helpful to have a family tree kind of listing for who all the characters were and how they were related.
It is difficult to rate this book because I can see how it could be either a 2 or a 5 depending on how patient and determined the reader is in keeping track of who each story teller is and reading episope after episode about how he got the reputations that were his legend. I'll simply say I was impressed by the quality of writing but didn't love it enough to concentrate my way through all three parts. ]]> http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/60412679 to: The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo (Millennium, #1) by Stieg Larsson
Interesting but overlong mystery about a long missing girl in Sweeden. A disgraced investigative journalist is hired by the patriarch of her family to solve the mystery and is joined by a young female Goth computer hacker in his quest. The journalist seems to bed every female in sight along the way. ]]> http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/72955374 to: Tijuana Straits: A Novel (Paperback) by Kem Nunn
Interesting but wordy story of a "Big Lebowski" type surfer dude/worm farmer living by the beach along the California Tijuana border who finds a Mexican woman, Magdelena, fleeing for her life after her activist legal confrontation with polluting factory management in Tijuana. The action really picks up in the last half of the story.
All of Nunn's characters (Protagonist/loser Fahey, heroine/activist, Magdelena, and the pathetic killer, Armando) are wonderfully developed and interesting. His writing has a real feel for the atmosphere he creates. ]]> http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/60411142 to: The Art of Racing in the Rain (Hardcover) by Garth Stein
Heart warming story of a dog's love for his master as told by the dog. This book had me in tears. ]]>