Mystery/Thriller Reading Friends discussion
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Carol's June Reads
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Sherry wrote: "big month for you, carol!"Yeah, that surprised me too since it was a super-stressful month at work with layoffs that I had to implement. Guess it was helped by 3 shorter books and great weather enabling me to take some long walks.
I thought Ace Atkins out-Parkered Parker, since he brought the series back to being a full fledged mystery.
Had thought about the Lehane book, but comparing it to Shutter Island, even if a minor comparison, is enough for me. I'll stay FAR away! LOL I agree with Barry about Atkins' take on Spenser. The mysteries have returned to the original form of the the series.
Melodie wrote: "Had thought about the Lehane book, but comparing it to Shutter Island, even if a minor comparison, is enough for me. I'll stay FAR away! LOL I agree with Barry about Atkins' take on Spenser. The ..."
Yes, I worried that my comparison would turn off those of you fairly ensconced on the anti-SI bench. Will be interesting to here if others who read both agree with me
Melodie: I agree with Carol that Since We Fell has some plot mirrors and misdirection but it is still quite different. It was also almost like two books in one so if the first half turned you off the back half might grab you in (as it did for me) or vice-versa. I have still been thinking about it weeks later (partly due to the group read discussions) and that is fairly unusual. Carol/Bonadie wrote: "Yes, I worried that my comparison would turn off those of you fairly ensconced on the anti-SI bench. Will be interesting to here if others who read both agree with me "
Melodie wrote: "Had thought about the Lehane book, but comparing it to Shutter Island, even if a minor comparison, is enough for me. I'll stay FAR away! LOL "
Carol: Nice month! It's good you got in some relaxing walks during the stressful month. I started I, Robot and then ran out of time. I'll have to try to squeeze it is again. I like Val Mcdermid too; I need to get back to her books. What series is this one?
Edit I looked it up, and I read this one too. The Karen Pirie series. Lol I only read book two myself.
Ann wrote: "Carol: Nice month! It's good you got in some relaxing walks during the stressful month. I started I, Robot and then ran out of time. I'll have to try to squeeze it is again. I like Va..."
Ann, I'm listening to the first one now, The Distant Echo and it has caught me up already. I can't unremember the murderer, but McDermid is so skillfully unveiling the story and characters that I almost don't care that I already know whodunnit. I'm glad to see there are a few more in the series; I suspect I will keep going in a row, as I did the Carol Jordan/Tony Hill series.
LOL Carol:Look at you, leaning towards reading out of order is ok sometimes.Just teasing you!
I know that now when it is easier to see if there is access to read in order I prefer it too. My earlier reading habits were "grab what looks good on the shelf" each week. I kind of miss those days sometimes but they did lead to my UOOOR willy-nilly order of book consumption.
Carol/Bonadie wrote: "Ann, I'm listening to the first one now, The Distant Echo and it has caught me up already. I can't unremember the murderer, but McDermid is so skillfully unveiling the story and characters that I almost don't care that I already know whodunnit."
Ann wrote: "LOL Carol:Look at you, leaning towards reading out of order is ok sometimes.Just teasing you!
..."
LOL Ann. It actually isn't so bad. Of course every time the eventual murderer appears my mind shouts out "I know it's you!" but McDermid's crafty plot development has so many other interesting things going on that it isn't a big deal.
I think Ace Atkins does a very good job too. Can't wait to read this one!
I agree I think Ace Atkins does a good job.
Mystery/Thriller Reading Friends
Books mentioned in this topic
The Distant Echo (other topics)I, Robot (other topics)
I, Robot (other topics)
Since We Fell (other topics)
Robert B. Parker's Little White Lies (other topics)
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A so-so entry in the romantic mystery genre by usually reliable Amanda Quick. This felt like a mosh of previous plots and characters. A personal assistant to a murdered boss is on the run with a stolen notebook, and she lands in a hotel hideaway run by a disgraced magician and the temporary residence of a Hollywood biggie. More dead bodies, and romance, follow.
This has been on my TBR for years. Once I got over the fact that this has nothing to do with the movie starring Will Smith, I settled in and really enjoyed this foray outside my genre comfort zone. It’s the future (but not that far from now) and a woman robo-psychologist is the centerpiece of several vignettes describing the development of robots from mechanical non-speaking helpers to reasoning “beings” with sometimes eerie, even threatening, results.
This thriller took a little to get into but once on board I enjoyed the twisty ride with a blockbuster ending. This book was reminiscent of Lehane's Shutter Island and Peter Swanson’s The Kind Worth Killing because of its twists and turns and characters whose motive weren’t clear until the end... and maybe not even then.
It’s unusual to have a main character who is a paid assassin, and I enjoyed the story of this unnamed assassin on the run and the FBI agent who appears to be on his trail. Kramer’s narration was a little dry but I got used to it.
Ifemelu and Obinze grow up together in Nigeria but are separated when Ifemelu goes to the U.S. to go to school. A love story and a fascinating glimpse from a unique perspective -- a Nigerian woman who comes to the U.S., then returns to her native Nigeria where she is considered “Americanah”... an Americanized Nigerian. The observations on African-Americans by a visiting person of color are interesting and insightful.
Susan refers a client to Spenser. Before he knows it he is caught up with a flim-flam man who steals money from women he romances for every-changing scams. The usual witty repartee and Spenser-isms, and plenty of Hawk. Ace Atkins has settled into the mantle of Spenser; I can hardly tell the difference between his writing and Parker’s. Except for the occasional mispronunciation of a Boston locale Montegna’s narration was spot on.
A Scotland detective head of cold cases investigates two from twenty years back, one a kidnapping gone wrong, the other the case of a missing miner. Val McDermid is a master at thrillers with a dark twist and this one does not disappoint. This was a rare out-of-order read for me as I didn’t notice this was a series. Luckily it is only #2 and I have #1 on the TBR. I liked this so much I may even read it next, even though I know the outcome of that case because it played a small part in the unravelling of one of these crimes. Wonderful narration by Fraser.