Drew's "Rte. 66 Challenge"

[Drew]

Good week on vacation, finished one, read three others:
26. Cari Mora Disappointing! Just OK, but Thomas Harris should always do better than just OK.
27. They All Fall Down This has a lot of mixed reviews, I liked it, good vacation read.
28. The Perfect Wife Hmmm... I wrote in a review that I can't say much because there isn't much to say without spoiling. I'd love to know what other people think after reading it, and I hope you do read it. It's enjoyable, but there are some narrative flaws I'm having trouble getting beyond.
29. The Plotters A korean novel about a hitman and the organizations pulling the strings behind the scenes. A great character reveal more than a plot, although there is also a good plot. It's about him, not the job, and I really enjoyed this. I also salute the translator, it reads smoothly in English and I can only assume it is true to the author's intent.

[Drew]

30. Keeping Lucy Very emotional, set in 1969 - 1971 as a young mother tries to stand up to the system, and the men in her life, as everyone around her decides what's best for her daughter, born with Down's Syndrome. Actually a very quick paced plot, I couldn't put it down, except to remind myself that I was reading about fictional characters, not real people. It was that impactful.

[Elyse, Moderator]

Drew wrote: "Good week on vacation, finished one, read three others:
26. Cari Mora Disappointing! Just OK, but Thomas Harris should always do better than just OK.
..."

I'll hopefully be reading The Perfect Wife soon. Super intrigued by your spoiler-free review!

[Drew]

31. The Swallows I liked it, even though the ending could have packed a bit more punch. I gave it a 4/5, interesting that the reviews are all over the place with this one. It's got a unique narration - several first person points of view - that I really like, some don't though.

[Elyse, Moderator]

Drew wrote: "31. The Swallows I liked it, even though the ending could have packed a bit more punch. I gave it a 4/5, interesting that the reviews are all over t..."

I was pretty indifferent about her book The Passenger but I did get this one from NetGalley to try out.

[Drew]

32. Neon Prey Boring. I still really enjoy the Virgil Flowers series, and have counted on Sandford to deliver interesting plots in the Davenport "Prey" series, but Neon Prey falls short. I like the characters well enough, but I can't but into a 350 page chase of the bad guy, who although pretty bad, lacks the intelligence and creativity of so many other bad guys/gals in this series.
I'll keep reading, but I hope he picks it up, and retiring Lucas Davenport wouldn't be the worst thing to happen.

[Drew]

33. The Cleaner I liked it. It's the first in a series, I'll read the second to see if the character and plots are a little more well developed. I'd be interested if anyone else has read these (John Milton is the name of the lead character). The guy is a secret government assassin who is trying to leave the job, but apparently that's not allowed, and he also finds trouble as he tries to help people he stumbles upon.

[Drew]

34. One Good Deed 3/5 stars. I wanted to like it more. It starts well, but takes a lot of liberties and shortcuts with police work and legal processes, either setting it in 1949 was an excuse to do so, or he really thinks that's how it worked. Either way, it was distracting.

[Drew]

35. The Long Call First book by Ann Cleeves that I've read. Enjoyed the plot, really enjoyed the characters. It's advertised as first in a new series, I'm looking forward to more.

[Andrea, Moderator]

This looks interesting! I might have to give an Ann Cleeves book a try.

[Elyse, Moderator]

Drew wrote: "35. The Long Call First book by Ann Cleeves that I've read. Enjoyed the plot, really enjoyed the characters. It's advertised as first in a new seri..."

I gave this one 3 stars. It was really slow. My first Cleeves book also.

[Drew]

36. The Runner, by Thomas Perry.

[Drew]

37. The Turn of the Key Another very good book by Ruth Ware. The first part moves along quickly and is almost formulaic, you'll know what I mean when I read it, but the last 50 pages takes the reader on a wild ride of twists and turns leading to a sudden plot twist on the very last page.
38. Ice Cold Heart If you read Tracy's Monkeewrench series you will like this installment. Much better than the last two.
39. Deadline Saw this on a Crimereads list, a series set in Maine, the lead character is a smalltown newspaper editor, but it's not quaint. Dark and somewhat violent.

[Elyse, Moderator]

Drew wrote: "37.The Turn of the Key Another very good book by Ruth Ware. The first part moves along quickly and is almost formulaic, you'll know what I me..."

I still have to read The Turn of the Key. Too many books!!! lol. Glad you liked it.

[Drew]

40. A Small Town NetGalley ARC by a favorite author of mine, really liked this book. not believable, but fast paced and exciting plot.
41. Cycle of the Werewolf Wanted to read something for King-tober. I wonder if this started as an outline for a longer epic, or if he always intended for a short book with this.

[Charleen]

Cycle of the Werewolf actually started as an idea for a calendar, with a super short story for every month. But I guess King found the format to restrictive, and just started doing his own thing. Personally I liked the last half a lot more than the first half, and it felt to me like he was enjoying himself more in the writing.