Archive for October, 2014

Review: Gold Digger – Frances Fyfield

Tuesday, October 28th, 2014
Paperback: 320 pages
Publisher: Witness (July 15, 2014)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0062305476
ISBN-13: 978-0062305473
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Characters:

Diana Quiqley – Young wife, heiress and former thief.
Gayle – Daughter of Thomas Porteus
Beatrice – Another daughter of Thomas Porteus.
Edward – Gayle’s Husband.
Patrick – Gayle & Edward’s son.

Synopsis:

A man named Thomas Porteus dies leaving his young wife a fortune in paintings. His two daughters, along with a conniving son-in-law are convinced that the man’s wife, Diana, a former thief, murdered him and that the paintings rightfully belong to them.

Review

This was a very difficult story for me. Each chapter began with descriptions of a painting. That description was a short synopsis of what would occur in that chapter. However, in the beginning stages of the book, I found myself confused, and usure of what exactly was going on. The writing style just made it very hard to get into.

As I progressed, since I’m not the type to give up on a book, I noticed it was less about the plot and more about the characters. As a character driven story, I found the characters to be very richly created. I just felt like they were dropped into a storyline that tended to go nowhere at times.

In the end, I liked the story, but it took a while to get to that point. I’d definitely recommend it only to the hard core mystery/psychological thriller readers out there. Ms. Fyfield is indeed a great writer, and I may check out her other novels, it just turns out that this one wasn’t quite my cup of tea. If you grab a copy of it, and read it, drop back by to let us know what you thought.

About the Author

*Disclaimer* A special thanks goes out to at for a review copy of this book. It in no way influenced my review. You can discuss it here or join my facebook page and discuss it there.

Review: The Hydra Protocol – David Wellington

Thursday, October 23rd, 2014
Hardcover: 448 pages
Publisher: William Morrow (May 13, 2014)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0062248804
ISBN-13: 978-0062248800
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Characters:

Jim Chapel – American Spy
Nadia Asimova – KGB Spy

Synopsis:

Jim Chapel is pulled into a secret mission with a Russian counterpart. They must infiltrate and destroy a Russian built computer program that if left to run, may set off all of Russia’s nuclear missiles.

Review

This was a great story. It was the second Jim Chapel story I’d read, and he’s quickly becoming one of my favorite spies. This story takes us around the world, through the desert, and pits him against all sorts of enemies. Some of these enemies are human, and some are the local animals. There’s plenty of twists, turns, and romance. Just what you’d expect out of a good spy novel.

If I had one complaint, it’s that Jim seemed to recover just a little too quickly from his broken relationship, and dive into the arms of another woman. I’d expect someone to be a little more shaken up, and not ready to just jump into another person’s bed, but of course this is the spy world.

Overall, a great spy story that keeps me looking forward to the next entry. Grab a copy, give it a read, and drop back by to let us know what you thought.

About the Author

David Wellington was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The acclaimed author is most famous for his online serialized zombie novel, the Monster Island trilogy, later published by Thunder’s Mouth Press. In 2006, he began serializing Thirteen Bullets, a vampire novel. He lives in New York City. His previous Jim Chapel missions include Chimera and Minotaur.

*Disclaimer* A special thanks goes out to Ashley at Harper Collins for a review copy of this book. It in no way influenced my review. You can discuss it here or join my facebook page and discuss it there.

Review: The High Druid’s Blade – Terry Brooks

Tuesday, October 21st, 2014
Hardcover: 320 pages
Publisher: Del Rey (July 8, 2014)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0345540700
ISBN-13: 978-0345540706
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Characters:

Paxon Leah – Descendent of the prince’s of Leah and holder of the Sword of Leah.
Chrysallin Leah – Paxon’s Sister.
Arcannen – Dark Magician with ambitions to take over the Druid Order.

Synopsis:

A young man is drawn into adventure when his sister is kidnapped by a dark wizard. Unknown to him, he is about to awaken some long dormant powers that are a legacy of his family.

Review

I’m a huge fan of Terry Brooks and with each book release I look forward to it with eager anticipation. This book was no exception. It varied slightly from the normal formula. No Wizard convincing the average person to take up an adventure. This time the hero takes on the adventure of his own accord, in order to rescue his sister. Along the way, the story follows the classic mythological/fantasy pattern. The young man discovers his own dormant powers. Along the way he also forms his own little group of adventurers.

This was a fun fantasy novel,that once again took me to a world I love to visit. While a lot of the plots have been revisited, the characters still feel fresh and appeal to me. I look forward to Mr. Brooks next release.

If you’re a fan of Fantasy, or of Mr. Brooks writing, then you definitely want to check this book out. Be sure to drop in and let us know what you thought.

About the Author

Terry Brooks is the New York Times bestselling author of more than thirty books, including the Dark Legacy of Shannara adventure Wards of Faerie; the Legends of Shannara novels Bearers of the Black Staff and The Measure of the Magic; the Genesis of Shannara trilogy: Armageddon’s Children, The Elves of Cintra, and The Gypsy Morph; The Sword of Shannara; the Voyage of the Jerle Shannara trilogy: Ilse Witch, Antrax, and Morgawr; the High Druid of Shannara trilogy: Jarka Ruus, Tanequil, and Straken; the nonfiction book Sometimes the Magic Works: Lessons from a Writing Life; and the novel based upon the screenplay and story by George Lucas, Star Wars:® Episode I The Phantom Menace.™

His novels Running with the Demon and A Knight of the Word were selected by the Rocky Mountain News as two of the best science fiction/fantasy novels of the twentieth century. The author was a practicing attorney for many years but now writes full-time. He lives with his wife, Judine, in the Pacific Northwest.

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Classic Corner Review: The Big Four – Agatha Christie

Thursday, October 2nd, 2014
Paperback: 224 pages
Publisher: William Morrow Paperbacks; Reissue edition (July 1, 2014)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0062364618
ISBN-13: 978-0062364616
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Characters:

Hercule Poirot – Famous Belgian Detective.
Arthur Hastings – Companion to Poirot and narrator.

Synopsis:

Poirot faces a challenge in four powerful foes bent on controlling the world.

Review

This was an interesting tale of Poirot. I’m used to the more typical mysteries, and this felt more like a thriller than a mystery. The majority of the story has Poirot and Hasting trying to uncover the identity of a mysterious master of disguises.

The story is fast paced, the plot is convincing, and the characters are entertaining. Poirot manages to always pull himself out of danger with some masterful trick.

While it was a departure from what I normally read from Christie, I found myself enjoying it very much. It may not suit the taste of all readers, as some of the language is old fashioned and modern readers may have a bit of trouble. I’ve found though, that if you stick with it, soon enough it all falls into place and the language differences disappear.

This would definitely fall on my recommend list for all you mystery fans out there, particularly fans of the classic authors such as Ms. Christie. Grab a copy, give it a read, and drop by and let us know what you thought.

About the Author

Agatha Christie was born in 1890 and created the detective Hercule Poirot in her debut novel, The Mysterious Affair at Styles (1920).

She achieved wide popularity with The Murder of Roger Ackroyd (1926) and produced a total of eighty novels and short-story collections over six decades.

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