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2020 What are you reading and/or reviewing?
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PattyMacDotComma
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Feb 24, 2020 01:41AM
I thought I'd add a thread that should last all year for people to add books they're currently reading or have finished. Let others know whether you liked your latest reads and add a link to your review if you wrote one.
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The Good Turn by Aussie/Irish author Dervla McTiernan is her best one yet! Irish detective Cormac Reilly is trying to fight crime and his superiors (I use the term loosely) at the same time. 
5★ Link to my "Good Turn" review
Finished SADEs (SADEs) the latest in S. H. Jucha's Silver Ships adventures. A sentient race of insects has become the scourge of the civilized worlds, devastating everything in its path. Alex Racine and his entourage, including sentient beings from Dischyna and Crocia, work to remove the insectoids, known as the Colony, from the world of Pimbor. A collection of Federacy warships adds to the complexity of the situation. With help from his SADEs (Self Aware Digital Entities, think Commander Data of StarTrek) Alex deploys his forces to try and avert long term disaster. 4 stars for this one.Next in line is Andy McDermott's THE SPEAR OF ATLANTIS (The Spear of Atlantis ), a Nina Wilde/Eddie Chase archaeological mystery.
John
John wrote: "Finished SADEs (SADEs) the latest in S. H. Jucha's Silver Ships adventures. A sentient race of insects has become the scourge of the civilized worlds, devastating everything in its ..."So the cockroaches ARE going to be the last thing standing?
PattyMacDotComma wrote: "John wrote: "Finished SADEs (SADEs) the latest in S. H. Jucha's Silver Ships adventures. A sentient race of insects has become the scourge of the civilized worlds, devastating every..."Probably somewhere in the universe (New York City?), but not on the worlds that Alex Racine and his compatriots are dealing with.
I finished Pride, Prejudice, and Other Flavors by Sonali Dev. It is loosely based on Pride and Prejudice. In this version, a female Stanford neurosurgeon from a wealthy Indian-American family falls for a very talented mixed race chef from England who is barely scraping by financially as he tries to pay for his sister’s medical care. It tackles questions of what it means to be an American, racial and ethnic prejudice, assimilation, financial inequality, what we owe our families, and class issues. And of course it is also a romance. It was very well-written and I enjoyed it very much. 5/5 stars
Is anybody normal, or do we just think everyone else is? I recently read Sally Rooney's Normal People, which was longlisted for the Booker Prize in 2018. 
4★ Link to my review
Finished THE SPEAR OF ATLANTIS ( The Spear of Atlantis) by Andy McDermott. Nina Wilde and Eddie Chase, tracking down an archaeological mystery, again become involved in a demolition derby, this time involving cruise ships off the coast of Bahrain. At the rate they are going, there will be no 21st century artifacts for future archaeologists. Next in line is a dtb from my local library, Preston and Child's CROOKED RIVER (Crooked River). Everyone's favorite FBI agent, Aloysius Pendergast is at it again.
John
I finished Year of Wonders by Geraldine Brooks. It’s set in a small village in England during the 1600’s. When plague appears, the village residents agree to quarantine themselves from the rest of the world until the outbreak dies out. I’ve had it on my kindle for quite a while. The coronavirus inspired me to finally read it. Perhaps not the best idea if one is looking to sleep easy at night. But I’m glad I read it. Very well written. It’s fiction, but loosely based on a true event. 5/5 stars. 
I'm working on Inhuman Resources by Pierre Lemaitre and it's a very unsettling read just like his Blood Wedding which really put me on edge while reading it. They're both psychological thrillers and in the second book, you don't know what's real and what's not. It's far, far better than Gone Girl
Suze73 wrote: "I finished Year of Wonders by Geraldine Brooks. It’s set in a small village in England during the 1600’s. When plague appears, the village residents agree to quarantine themselves from ..."I enjoyed that one, too, Suze. Geraldine Brooks is a thorough researcher and an excellent writer. A winning combination!
Saving Missy by Beth Morrey is bound to be a favourite of many. Old lady, cute dog, new friends. 
3★ Link to my review
Finished CROOKED RIVER (Crooked River) by Preston and Childs. Aloysius Pendergast is at it again. With his very detached demeanor, he evaluates evidence, develops a plan of action (sometimes), and manages to unravel the strangest of mysteries. In doing this, he always manages to alienate his superiors, sometimes, it appears, intentionally. For CROOKED RIVER, he also has the help of FBI agent Armstrong Coldmoon, originally from the Indian reservation in Montana. Constance Greene, Pendergast's ward and sometimes confidant, again shows that, while she is normally very prim and prissy, she can also get "down and dirty" when the situation calls for it. All in all, this is an interesting, if a bit far fetched, story. A hundred pairs of shoes, with the feet still in them, floating around in the Gulf of Mexico and washing ashore at the same place. It does stretch the imagination a bit. John
Finished the book the lying game. Gave it 3 stars.
John wrote: "Finished CROOKED RIVER (Crooked River) by Preston and Childs. Aloysius Pendergast is at it again. With his very detached demeanor, he evaluates evidence, develops a plan of action (..."100 pairs of shoes with feet still in them - ACK!!!
PattyMac--the hallmark of all of the Aloysius Pendergast novels (CROOKED RIVER is #19) is a strange discovery, usually a body or bodies found in strange circumstances. John
John wrote: "PattyMac--the hallmark of all of the Aloysius Pendergast novels (CROOKED RIVER is #19) is a strange discovery, usually a body or bodies found in strange circumstances. John"
Ewwww....
Finally got around to reading The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas. Definitely 5/5stars for me!
Jan wrote: "Finally got around to reading The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas. Definitely 5/5stars for me!"you might be interested in The Black Count: Glory, Revolution, Betrayal, and the Real Count of Monte Cristo about Alexandre Dumas' father who was the inspiration for the The Count of Monte Cristo. It was very interesting especially since it dealt with the role of those of African descent in France around the time of Napoleon
I finished The Dutch House by Ann Patchett. What a good writer she is. It’s one of those books you completely lose yourself in because the writing is so good. It’s much more of a character driven book than a plot driven book. The story revolves around a brother and sister and the house they grew up in, a mother who abandons the family, a distant father, remarriage and the relationship fallout. 5/5 stars
Finished THE WARSAW PROTOCOL (The Warsaw Protocol) by Steve Berry. An egomaniacal president is determined to put anti-missile batteries in Poland. An information broker wants to auction off material that can make or break the deal. Cotton Malone is drawn into the situation by Stephanie Nelle, head of the Magellan Billet. Lots of action, lots of bodies, and some really hard feelings before this is over. Four stars for this one.Finished Robert Ludlum's THE TREADSTONE RESURRECTION (The Treadstone Resurrection) written by Joshua Hood. Adam Hayes is a "former" member of Treadstone, a super secret clandestine operations group that has given us agents like Jason Bourne. A cryptic message from an old friend, and a kill squad from the CIA, sends him off to South America to try to unravel the situation. A lot of bodies, internal political double dealing, and interagency conflict all add up to a very complicated situation. Four stars for this one.
Next it is off to deep space with ATTACK PLAN ALPHA (Attack Plan Alpha), the latest installment in Jay Allan's "Blood on the Stars" series.
John
I recently enjoyed the prequel (#.7) to Aussie-Irish author Dervla McTiernan's excellent Cormac Reilly mystery series. The Roommate is delightfully creepy.
4★ Link to my "Roommate" review
Loved Death in Delft, the first of a brand new historical mystery series from Graham Brack, (creator of my favourite Czech detective, Josef Slonsky)! Master Mercurius is already another favourite character. 
5★ Link to my "Delft" review It's on sale at AmazonUS for US59c and is available pre-order on AmazonAU for AUD 99c
CBRetriever wrote: "Jan wrote: "Finally got around to reading The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas. Definitely 5/5stars for me!"you might be interested in [book:The Black Count: Glory, Revolution..."
Thanks CBR! I will look into it!
Finished ATTACK PLAN ALPHA (Attack Plan Alpha), book 16 in Jay Allan's "Blood on the Stars" series. Tyler Barron, Andi LaFarge, Vian Tulus, Akella, Chronos, and their PACT allies continue to battle the Highborn, a domineering race who intend to subjugate all humans, wherever they may be. Monumental battles leave thousands dead, and massive fleets reduced to scrap metal as the two sides go head-to-head in the vast reaches of deep space. Can the PACT allies come up with something to give them an edge in a war where they are outnumbered and out gunned? Four stars for this one. Staying in deep space, THE TERRADOX QUADRILOGY (Terradox Quadrilogy: The Complete Box Set) by Craig Falconer is next in line.
John
I can't resist a visit to Canadian author Louise Penny's Three Pines, so I recently enjoyed The Long Way Home. Now looking forward to the next one!
3.5~4★ Link to my Long Way Home review
I recently read the perfectly titled Sweet Sorrow by David Nicholls. Young summer love, Shakespeare, and much ado about lots of things, romantic and otherwise. 
Link to my review
I finished Get a Life, Chloe Brown by Talia Hibbert, a British author. It’s a light, contemporary romance. A young woman from a wealthy family suffers from fibromyalgia. She decides to leave her family’s home, get her own apartment, and turn her life around by creating a list of things she’d like to do for fun. She enlists the aid of the apartment manager to check off some of the items on her list. He’s an aspiring artist with a broken heart. Sparks fly and misunderstandings ensue. It was a 3 and a half star book for me. 
Finished WINGS OF PEGASUS (Wings of Pegasus), by Jay Allan, a KOLL selection. This is a prequel to Allan's "Blood on the Stars" series which introduces Andromeda "Andi" LaFarge, a space ship captain whose primary function is searching for antiquities to sell, either on the legitimate market or the black market. The story involves Andi and her crew heading for Aquellos, water nation deep in the Badlands, to recover some Empire artifacts which may actually be critical to the ongoing defense of the Confederacy. Can space ships operate as submarines? Will environmental suits still function two kilometers under water? Check it out. Four stars for this one. John
Wrapped up the first two books in the TERRADOX QUADRILOGY while waiting out the coronavirus shutdown. TERRADOX (Terradox) is the first of the four books. This is actually a soap opera like you watch on Monday--Friday afternoon. The only difference is that is set somewhere near the planet Venus. Travelers to a facility orbiting Venus are "accidentally" detoured to a previously unknown, man-made world called Terradox. This is the story of how they survive and what their future holds. The second book FALL OF TERRADOX (The Fall of Terradox) continues the story. Book 2 is the continuing "soap opera set in space". Remnants of Roger Morrison's evil empire try to take over Terradox to extract revenge on those who caused Morrison's fall from power. Both of these are in the 2--3 star range, filled with larger than life heroes and heroines, the usual bad guys, and some help from unexpected sources.
Busy couple of days. A book I did a beta read on last fall has just been released, THE TIME SEER (The Time Seer) by Richard Phillips. This is the latest encounter between Lorness Carol Rafel, who possesses magical and mind-altering powers, and Kragan, a purveyor of demonic magic, as they pursue artifacts which are critical to the future of the world. Can Carol and her husband Arn link their powers in a way to prevent Kragan from gaining possession of all the elements of the shattered trident, and thereby become ruler of the entire world? This is a five star read.
John
John wrote: "Busy couple of days. A book I did a beta read on last fall has just been released, THE TIME SEER (The Time Seer) by Richard Phillips. This is the latest encounter between Lorness Ca..."John, do you post your reviews online so other readers can find them? I find it helpful when choosing a book to see who has liked it and why (or who couldn't stand it). :)
Elizabeth Strout deserved her Pulitzer Prize for Olive Kitteridge. Her characters are like nobody else . . . but really, they're like everybody. I loved her follow-up, Olive, Again
5★ Link to my 'Olive, Again' review
Finished THE LOST COLONY (The Lost Colony) by A. G. Riddle. This is the final installment in "The Long Winter" series. James Sinclair and Emma Jackson lead a group trying to establish a colony on Eos, a moon over 100 light years from earth. The story describes their trials, tribulations, and even some happy moments. There are several twists and turns as they work toward the resolution of their problems. Three stars for this one. John
I finished American Dirt by Jeannie Cummins. I needed to decide for myself about all the hype. It was a fictional story about a lady and her son who are trying to escape Mexico because of violent tragedy. Another story of the reason so many immigrants want to come to our country. I'm glad I read it. 4 stars.
Jan wrote: "I finished American Dirt by Jeannie Cummins. I needed to decide for myself about all the hype. It was a fictional story about a lady and her son who are trying to escape Mexico beca..."I really enjoyed American Dirt, Jan, and was lucky I read it before I knew about any controversy. I thought it was a terrific read and shows just what a woman trying to escape the vengeful cartel would be up against.
I reviewed it and there was quite a conversation about it in the comments, if you're interested.
Link to my review of "American Dirt"
Stoner by John Williams is one of those books I've been saving for a 'rainy day'. I figure a pandemic qualifies, and my goodness, I'm glad I had such a good one tucked away. Terrific!
5★ Link to my review of "Stoner"
Finished a wonderful book The Song of the Jade Lily————
Current Audiobook Prey
Current Kindle The Woman in the White Kimono
Wow I have read quite a bit this year already but I will put up my some of my favorite four and five star books. Going to work backwards with my most recent reads from April and March. April:
A Subtle Agency Omnibus by Graeme Rodaughan - 5 stars.My review:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Daylight's Deadly Kiss by Jay Raven - 5 stars.My review:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
March:
The Picture Frame by Iain Rob Wright - 4 stars.My review:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
The Seance in Apartment 10 by Ambrose Ibsen - 4 stars.My review:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Shadow Detective #1-3 by William Massa- 4 stars.
My review:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Immunity: A Novel of the Horrific Northwest by Jeffrey Caston - 4 stars. My review:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Finished PRICELESS (Priceless) by Zygmunt Miloszewski. An art historian in Poland is charged with tracking down a lost Raphael painting. What she isn't told is why this painting and some associated artifacts are so critical that countries are willing to kill to recover them. From the Tatra mountains in Poland to Scandinavia and back, the chase is on. Will Zofia Lorentz and her team find what they are looking for before the hit squads find them? Is there anybody they can really trust? Lots of questions, and some surprising answers. Three stars for this one. Next in line is EARTHERS (Earthers The silver ships Book 16) , the latest in S. H. Jucha's "Silver Ships" saga.
John
I am always happy to revisit Canadian author Louise Penny's village of Three Pines. Too bad that death is the price of admission. I loved The Nature of the Beast.
4.5★ Link to my 'Nature of the Beast' review
I finished The Bromance Book Club b Lyssa Kay Adams. This was a contemporary romance with a fun premise. A professional baseball player’s marriage is on the rocks. His athlete buddies help him out by pushing him to read romance novels to see things from a female perspective. The book had a lot of humor, but also a serious side as both husband and wife had to confront trauma from their pasts in order to save their marriage. 5/5 stars.
Marie wrote: "Wow I have read quite a bit this year already but I will put up my some of my favorite four and five star books. Going to work backwards with my most recent reads from April and March. April:
[b..."
I read [bookcover:The Picture Frame|23534113] as well. It was good. Definitely a gripper like you said.
Muthu wrote: "Guys have you read this novel already? I have been getting great response from my friends and close membershttps://www.amazon.in/dp/B0876R7B3D/r...
Do read and shar..."
Myself, due to the way you're spamming this forum, will never read one of your books. A lot of people feel the same way
Finished EARTHERS (Earthers The silver ships Book 16) by S. H. Jucha. Alex Racine and his band of space explorers are at it again. They are continuing their efforts to reclaim sentient worlds from the grip of the Insectoids. As usual, Racine is in the forefront of the battle, but he is slowly distributing his command and control functions to other sentient races and to the SADES. The "Silver Ships" saga has been captivating from the get-go, and continues to be so. One thing that shows up in EARTHERS that has not been present in previous stories is the equivalent of a Star Trek transporter to move people and objects. Four stars for this one.Next up is COSEGA SEARCH (Cosega Search) by Brandt Legg. This is an archaeology based story, but I am unfamiliar with the author, so I don't know what to expect.
John
Finished COSEGA SEARCH (Cosega Search) by Brandt Legg. Not sure about this one. Archaeologist Rip Gaines and his crew find a artifact supposedly eleven million years old. In a matter of minutes, their dig site in the Jefferson National Forest in Virginia is overrun by the FBI, CIA, NSA, VSS (Vatican Secret Service), and innumerable police and military units. Rip and journalist Gale Asher flee, pursued by all of the above. The body count is increasing at a rapid rate. Where are Rip and Gale headed, what is the significance of the artifact, and just who is calling the shots? These are all questions posed by the author, but the story doesn't end there. It just stops, a grinding, tire screeching stop, in Taos, NM, of all places. Two stars for this one, but I'm not sure that I will be around for whatever happens next.THE LOST SHIPS (The Lost Fleet: The Discovery of a Sunken Armada from the Golden Age of Piracy) by Barry Clifford and Kenneth Kinkor. This is a history of piracy in the Caribbean Sea and the Gulf of Mexico.
John
Several people suggested I'd like The Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman, and they were right! 
4★ Link to 'Ocean' review
Available in June.Ever wanted to drop out, disappear, become somebody else? The Last Flight by Julie Clark brings to mind the old saying "out of the frying pan, into the fire"!
4★ Link to my 'Last Flight' review
I finished American Spy by Lauren Wilkinson. What a terrific novel! It opens with a man breaking into a young black woman’s house in the middle of the night and attempting to kill her. She ends up killing him as her two young sons lay sleeping in their rooms. She takes her sons and escapes to her mother’s home in Martinique. The book is her journal that she writes for her sons, explaining who their father was and why they had to escape. She is a former FBI agent who was recruited by the CIA for a mission to take down an African leader that the US considered to be a communist. It doesn’t go as she had anticipated. It’s a fascinating story that takes on issues of race, sex, class, and America’s role in Africa. Very well written. 5/5 stars. 
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