Samyann's Blog, page 16
June 8, 2018
Don’t Let Go by Harlan Coben
New Jersey Detective Napoleon “Nap” Dumas is seasoned, cynical, and a bit snarky. You have to like his devilish humor. He doesn’t give a poop about what anyone thinks or says; he does his job. Single by choice, but has a close friend from high school. Fifteen years ago, in his senior year, Nap’s twin brother dies in a tragic accident. At the same time, Nap’s girlfriend disappears. Life goes on, until Nap is called on by local police to explain the fact that his old flame’s fingerprints are found in a stolen car – a car used during the murder of a fellow cop. The mystery begins.
Why I liked. Lot’s of suspects, investigating, twists. Fun guessing. Good narration. No trouble discerning who-says-what-to-who, a nice audiobook production.
Why I didn’t like. Stretch the imagination. Some of the coincidences are eye rolling, wouldn’t happen. But, hey, it’s fiction. Not great literature, not intended to be – just a nice mystery that will hold your attention.
I thought I’d figured it out, but Coben threw me a curve. No spoilers, enjoy your own sleuthing. There is a plot thread left hanging in my opinion. But, it didn’t spoil the story. Audiobook just under nine hours of listening, narrated by Steven Weber, released in September of 2017 by Brilliance Audio.
May 21, 2018
Amos Decker Series by David Baldacci
As of this writing, the Amos Decker Series by David Baldacci consists of four novels. The Memory Man, The Last Mile, The Fix, and The Fallen. This is a review of all four in audiobook format.
You’ll learn in Book 1, The Memory Man, that Amos was a star athlete – played for the Cleveland Browns. A severe football injury results in Amos having extraordinary memory skills – if fact, he remembers everything as if it happened moments ago. He forgets nothing. This bizarre ability thrusts Amos into the role of an investigator for the government; he’s a valued FBI investigator on a special task force. Amos solves the unsolvable.
Each of the four books will stand alone; you don’t need to read them in sequence. But, if you plan on reading all four, start with Memory Man. This story gives the background of Amos, and the horrible loss of his family. Subsequent stories will be more interesting for you with a more in-depth understanding of Amos Decker.
No sex, no language issues, clean reads. Don’t hesitate to give as gifts to anyone.
Typical of Baldacci, the stories are intricate mysteries, a a few near death events for Amos and his partner, much sleuthing and guessing. Narration is well done. Orlagh Cassidy reads the female characters throughout all four novels, male characters read by Kyf Brewer except Memory Man. Ron McKlarty reads this book. Personally, I prefer the McKlarty/Cassidy pairing, but either is fine. Transition between male/female voices is very smooth throughout. Baldacci books are almost like watching movies in your head, riveting stories. 
May 13, 2018
The Naturalist Series by Andrew Mayne
This review addresses the entire series, at this writing, two novels – The Naturalist and Looking Glass. The protagonist, Theo Cray, is a genius professor – a computational biologist. This sounds super complex, but not really. Theo has the logic of Mr. Spock and Data combined (SNG fans out there?). He’s smart, really smart.
Book 1, The Naturalist, has Theo conducting research in a rural, wooded area. Coincidently, a one-time student of his is found brutally murdered in the same vicinity. The two haven’t seen each other in years. Too much of a coincidence for the local police.
Book 2, Looking Glass, has Theo chasing down the murderer of small boys. The police are equally suspicious, but they’re using him as a scapegoat for their own imeptidtude, more than anything else.
In both stories Theo Cray is sleuthing through clues to the ultimate conclusion, fighting the skepticism of the police the entire way, finding himself in jeopardy from them, cellmate thugs, and the killer.
Why I liked. Murder mysteries are always fun. These are not so much who-done-its, but more unearthing clues to nail the bad guys. No inappropriate language, no sex scenes. Clean reads. Don’t hesitate to give as a gift to anyone.
Why I didn’t like. Some of the circumstances seem a bit contrived, stretching the imagination a bit too much to maintain credibility. But, hey. It’s fiction, so stretch.
I’ve the feeling a sequel will come … a little open ended conclusion to Book 2 … but it did end. Both novels are narrated by Will Damron … nothing extraordinary, no issues. These books are not great literature, they’re not intended to be … just fun mysteries. The Naturalist is 11.5 hours of listening released in October 2017, Looking Glass just under 9 hours released in March 2018. Brilliance Audio.
May 4, 2018
I’ve Got My Eyes on You – by Mary Higgins Clark
I’ve Got My Eyes on You is a police procedural, a character driven story. Parents arrive home to find a messed up house, evidence of a huge party, and the the body of their teenaged daughter floating in the swimming pool. Detectives show up, and we’re off and running with a murder mystery. This who-done-it is very typically Mary Higgins Clark, i.e., a good mystery that is also a terrific beach-read or super entertainment for a long road trip.
No explicit sex, no objectionable language, a clean read. Don’t hesitate to give as a gift, teens included.
Narrated by January LaVoy, short – just over six hours of listening in unabridged audiobook format. Released in April, 2018 by Simon & Schuster.
April 30, 2018
Total Control by David Baldacci
The original hardback version of Total Control was released in 1997. That’s got to be very early in Baldacci’s writing career, and it shows. This is not one of my favorites and I’m a huge fan of Baldacci.
Briefly, a guy is caught up in corporate espionage. His wife finds herself in the middle and a desperate search for facts ensues that endangers her life, the lives of her young daughter and, her parents.
Liked: The typical Baldacci story is here. It’s a page turner. 1997 technology is fun to read, no cell phones or WWW or Internet, but pagers, AOL’s “You’ve Got Mail”, and computers are the writer’s dream come true. We still read newspaper stories via old fashioned newsprint – not websites.
Did not like: Eyes crossed as the plot became extremely complex. Rewind hell to keep it straight. The author uses characters to explain details to each other, i.e., to you, the reader. As David Baldacci matured as a writer, this willy-nilly direction isn’t necessary. With Total Control, I felt as if he had a legal pad list and checked off details through the last two chapters, put a bow on it, declared it done. Just didn’t work well as a means to tie up loose ends.
Narration by Jonathan Marosz is fine, no issues. Close to 17 hours of listening in unabridged audiobook format. Released in 2013 by Hachette Audio.
This has many decent ratings, so….you may find it peachy. But, I’ll not recommend.
March 31, 2018
A. Shaw Series by David Baldacci
This review addresses the series, a total of two novels. The protagonist is A. Shaw, a soft hearted tough guy, Type-A, physically imposing, handsome, easy-to-root-for gentle giant. Shaw works as an operative for an organization so far into deep ops that it doesn’t exist. He eliminates bad guys. Kate James is a photojournalist struggling with alcoholism because she feels horrible guilt; she won a Pulitzer at the expense of a child’s life.
In Book 1, The Whole Truth, a wealthy narcissistic megalomaniac, using the the Internet, convinces world powers that war is imminent. They do exactly what he predicts, spend billions building up their armaments and military.
Book 2, Deliver Us From Evil, involves vigilante vengeance for WWII Nazi atrocities, human trafficking, nuclear weapons/war.
Liked: Typical of Baldacci audiobooks, these have special effects, music, are cinematic. Lots of action, mystery, no explicit sex, nothing objectionable, clean reads. Both novels are narrated by Ron McLarty. Baldacci has been using McLarty for years. No difficulty discerning who-is-speaking-to-who.
Didn’t like: Not much. These books are early in Baldacci’s career – he got better, but these are certainly okay. Book 1 starts a little slow, but if you’re a fan of Baldacci, you’ll have no trouble hanging in. Book 2 contains a few very explicit torture scenes that might make one queasy – ‘fast forward’ 
March 26, 2018
Children of Time by Adrian Tchaikovsky
Adrian Tchaikovsky is a British author, Mel Hudson a British narrator. Some of us across the pond find UK writing and/or narration a bit ‘off’. The word clerk is pronounced ‘clark’, the restroom is the privy or loo, etc. If you have trouble with the King’s English – take a pass. Also, if 3 meter hairy spiders give you nightmares, take a pass.
That said, if you’re a hardcore fan of bizarre space sagas, it has the elements. There are thousands of reviews that are stellar – you’ll have no trouble finding a detailed synopsis elsewhere. But, briefly – Children of Time is pure Sci-Fi. The book starts immediately in deep space, the terraforming of a planet, and sabotage. Following the sabotage, a lone survivor releases a nano virus that populates the terraformed planet with creatures of advanced intelligence. Did I mention the spiders are big. Really big? They have a war with ants. 
March 25, 2018
The Right Time by Danielle Steel
Alexandra Winslow is taught to love crime drama novels by her father; she was also taught that readers of the genre are predominantly male, and the readers wouldn’t buy a crime novel written by a female, let alone a young girl. Alexandra is orphaned by age fourteen. Sweet of temperament, she’s taken in by a convent of a few dozen nuns. Precocious is putting it mildly when it comes to her talent as a writer.
Published before age 20, Alexandra becomes a famous author under a pen name. She’s confronted with a myriad of challenges regarding her hidden identity. Thus is the thrust.
Liked: It’s a good story line. Didn’t like: Danielle Steel – esque perfect lead characters. Drop dead gorgeous, rich, beyond successful. Completely un-relateable. Saccharine and formulaic.
If you’re into chic-lit, go for it – otherwise, meh.
Narration by Victor Bevine is nothing special, but there is no difficulty discerning who-is-speaking-to-who.
About nine hours of listening in unabridged format, released in 2017 by Recorded Books.
Narrated by: Victor Bevine
Length: 9 hrs and 9 mins
Unabridged
Release date: 08-29-17
Language: English
Publisher: Recorded Books, Inc.
March 22, 2018
The Lost Airman by Seth Meyerowitz
Regardless of any opinion of this book, the true story of Arthur Meyerowitz is breathtaking, awe inspiring. There are not enough adjectives. He endured/survived through an incredible era of history.
That said, the execution is lacking. Although incredible, the story is dry. Sorry to say, it is terribly trite. Arthur is in an airplane over France, crashes, buries his parachute, is sheltered by the French Resistance, and makes his way to freedom. The same circumstance has been told in movies, books, etc., many times. There is no surprise, predictable with any knowledge of WWII history. The narrator is monotone.
The Meyerowitz family should be very proud, a wonderful story. A mediocre book, worth reading for the story itself, not the writing, not the narration.
The Lost Airman is co-written with Peter F. Stevens, 9.5 hours of listening in unabridged format, a 2016 release byRecorded Books.
March 20, 2018
Kane & Abel Series – by Jeffrey Archer
The first book in this series, Kane & Abel was original released in 1980, the last by 1982. At minimum, read Kane & Abel, it is super – an extremely popular 1980s book, made into a mini-series in 1985.
The story is a familial-character driven tale, spanning decades. Kane and Abel are both born on the same day in 1906. William Lowell Kane is heir to a banking empire in New York City. Baron Abel Rosnovski, aka Wladek Koskiewicz, is born to poverty and nightmarish violence in war-torn Poland. Abel makes his way to New York and is eventually refused a bank loan by Kane’s board of directors. Blaming Kane for this embarrassing shun, Abel makes his way to a pinnacle of success as a hotelier. This has only been possible due to anonymous financial backing. Decades of visceral hatred ensue, but it isn’t hard to guess the identity of the philanthropist. Narrated by Jason Culp, about 20 hours of listening, release by Macmillon Audio.
Book two, The Prodigal Daughter is the story of the descendants of William and Abel, Richard Kane and Florentyna Rosnovski. They meet by chance, fall in love, and flee to San Francisco to escape the wrath of their fathers. The first part of this book is a replay of Kane & Abel through the eyes of Richard and Florentyna. Exactly. Same-o-same-o, precisely, only a different point of view. Starting at about Chapter 23, the story of The Prodigal Daughter lifts off. Archer’s characters in The Prodigal Daughter are like those of Danielle Steele, i.e., drop-dead gorgeous, filthy rich, hearts of gold. Florentyna successfully opens dozens of her own boutiques, eventually manages her father’s hotel dynasty. The boutiques and hotels merge. Richard and Florentyna move on the bank just because they don’t want to buy one; Richard becomes bank chairman. The story steps further beyond credibility when Florentyna nearly becomes POTUS and accepts the VP slot. The two become astronauts and … that part’s a lie. Also Macmillon Audio, but narrated by Lorelei King. About 15 hours long.
Book three, Shall We Tell the President, a short audiobook, is less than eight hours in length. also Macmillon Audio, also narrated by Lorelei King. The story begins with Florentyna winning the position of POTUS, a roll she has fulfilled since the untimely death of her predecessor. An assassination is attempted and the story is off an running. Much better than The Prodigal Daughter. An interesting aside: When this book was written 1982, President Kane is confronted with gun control – and is concerned about ‘a house divided’ on this volatile issue. Sound familiar? Although the story is fiction, a British author pointed out in 1982 what we argue today, close to 40 years later. *sigh*
No issues with narration in any book.
General opinions: Kane & Abel is an excellent story, and highly recommended. The rest of the series is not. Archer should have started with Chapter 23 of The Prodigal Daughter and combined an abbreviated Shall We Tell the President. In summary, book one is great, book two a look into how the ridiculously wealthy live, book three is a decent who-done-it, albeit short for my taste.
