Farewell Stephen Cannell

PROSTITUTE’S BALL by Stephen J. Cannell

I’m practically crying over the demise of this author early in October. He is one of my top five writers and I happened to get this latest and last book on the day I found out about his death. It’s the end of Shane Scully, Alexa and Chooch and I wish it would last forever.

BAD BLOOD by John Sandford

Lawman Virgil Flowers is at his best in this fast moving murder tale with a crack opening and explosive conclusion. What is the reason that a well-liked, stable, high school football player brains a neighbor with a baseball bat and buries him in a mountain of soybeans? Is this murder and others related to a strange and secretive religion?


I, ALEX CROSS by James Patterson

Patterson annoys me by churning out books “with” so many other writers (which I won’t read just for the principle of it) but I can get into a good ol’Alex Cross on occasion. Somehow Patterson manages to make grisly subject s, e.g. Cross’ lovely niece chopped up in a wood chipper, palatable. And, perhaps another dear family member will not live to the end of the episode. I won’t spoil it for you. It is a fast read.


DOGS TAGS by David Rosenfelt

Like this guy’s style, characters, plotting, pacing. Fast read introducing Billy, the war vet who may figure into future stories. Great Milo and Tara, of course,


BODY WORK by Sara Paretsky

This dragged for me and did not always seem to make sense. Body painting artist performing in a bar, someone gets murdered, obscure connection to Iraq war. More poor war vets getting exploited by authors.


LAST WORDS of the Executed by Robert Elder

Freakonomics

FRAGILE by Lisa Ungar

Missing girl in circumstances replicating a crime of 30 years previous. Police chief in The Hollows is hiding a nasty secret.


THE ART OF RACING IN THE RAIN

Enzo the mutt recounts the story of his life and death in a hard to put down tearjerker.


KILLER INSTINCT by Zoe Sharp

The first of the Charlie Fox series presents a sharp female self-defense instructor with a terrible relationship with her parents. She’s been gang raped while in the British Special Forces, rides a Suzuki and spends a lot of the book fending off assaults by bullies and murderers. Good story.


CLAUDE AND CAMILLE

Fictionalized bio of Monet and his lover.


THE ROAD (dvd)

Viggo Mortenson is the father in this excellent portrayal of the Cormac McCarthy book. I enjoyed this.

Apes and other animals

APE HOUSE by Sara Gruen
Gruen, who wrote the wonderful Water for Elephants, has proved that she is not a one-book wonder. This well researched novel about the language studies being done with bonobos (great apes) is fascinating and well plotted. The exploitation of the animals is heart wrenching and the descriptions of their lives and interactions is amazing and touching.

I, ALEX CROSS by James Patterson
Patterson annoys me by churning out books “with” so many other writers (which I won’t read just for the principle of it) but I can get into a good ol’Alex Cross on occasion. Somehow Patterson manages to make grisly subject s, e.g. Cross’ lovely niece chopped up in a wood chipper, palatable. And, perhaps another dear family member will not live to the end of the episode. I won’t spoil it for you. It is a fast read.

DOG TAGS by David Rosenfelt
I just love these dog-involved crime stories. Andy Carpenter is a great character, as are Willie, Stanton, Laurie and others. Love Tara the golden, of course, and in this one Milo and Billy. Rosenfelt has a great writing style and treats his subjects much more gently than, for example Jeffery Deaver.

COMPULSIVE HOARDING and the meaning of things
by Randy Frost and Gail Steketee
Interesting case studies which include the Collyer brothers (of Marcia Davenport renown and one of my teenage favorites) and sheds some light on the psychology.

****STILL ALICE by Lisa Genova
This was a weeper for me. A 50-year-old Harvard professor loses her mind to Alzheimer’s in a painful journey that she herself documents. I am impressed with the author’s ability to see Alice and her disease from the inside out. I am also frightened for my future.

STAR ISLAND by Carl Hiaasen
Insanity reigns in this new Hiaasen Florida adventure, complete with the crazy former governor now known as Skink and an assortment of absurd characters - papparazi, bodyguards, agents and parents – whose lives revolve around a drug and booze addicted young rock star. Cherry Pye, formerly known as Cheryl Bunterman, can’t sing and passes out sexual favors indiscriminately, teetering hourly on the brink of disaster. Sounds eerily reflective of today’s rock scene.

ROLLING THUNDER by Chris Grabenstein
Very readable story about SHPD officers John Ceepak and Danny Boyle embroiled in a seaside murder and sex ring in their small tourist town.

SAVAGES by Don Winslow
Anti-heroes “Stan” vet Chon and “save the world” Ben are major marijuana growers who resist a bloody takeover by the Baja Cartel and try to rescue their shared girlfriend O. This guy has a different approach to dialogue. Short, choppy, dangling sentences. Somehow thoughtful in a violent way. Supposed to be a hot author.

THE MOUNTAIN BETWEEN US by Charles Martin
This was a surprise. First, this story had no villains, which is way out of the ordinary for me. Second, it was labeled Christian Fiction, which I would have avoided had I noticed it. Turned out to be a good story of two strangers stranded in the wilderness after a small plane crash. It was a page turner with a twisted and touching ending.

The Wild Zone

Everyone is watching the "wild" men in this one when they should be watching the wild women. Kristin the sexy bartender and Suzy the meek fragile damsel in distress - are they manipulating the men in their lives? The wife-beating bully, the Afghan vet, the charmer and his half brother all have their roles in this tale with a twist. This is not the Joy Fielding I remember from years ago. Good story, good characters.

If anyone out there is buying a baby present and has a wicked sense of humor, I just bought Baby's First Tattoo at The Book House. Hilarious book "for modern parents" who want to record strange events in their new child's life. Love it.

Also breezed through Adland by aa journey thru out branded world. I am fascinated with advertising, but th did not hold my interest.

Hoarding
Still Alice

This one deserves its own post

RESCUE INK is the fascinating story of a dozen or so burly tattooed Harley riders linked by their love of animals and their committment to animal rescue. Obviously, my cup of tea on several fronts. The cover of the book is an eyecatcher as these massive men are shown in various poses with baby kittens and dogs. Background info is provided on the guys themselves and touching stories about the animals - which include horses, ducks, pigs, birds, as well as cats and dogs - and the rescues. There is a lot of testosterone flowing here and crude humor underwritten with an amazing love of animals. What they do and how they do it is unorthodox and often made up on the spot and includes a fair degree of intimidation if necessary to save an animal from abuse. Based in Long Island, the guys travel by bike, van and plane wherever they are called, and are particularly good at and willing to track down stolen dogs. The organization is growing fast in only two years of existence and has been profiled on national TV. Google them. I loved it.

My Hero, JLB

THE GLASS RAINBOW by James Lee Burke
For Robicheaux fans, this was take-your-breath-away. Dave’s relationship with Alafair was particularly interesting to me, as he tries to protect her from a new romance. Clete was his stalwart, quirky, complicated self and their friendship a thoughtful highlight to the story. A real tour du force for JLB.

INNOCENT by Scott Turow
Can you have too much character development. Good courtroom scenes, but complicated emotional issues. Rusty Sabich again on trial for a woman’s murder, this time his wife. To complicate things further, his son is falling in love with Rusty’s ex-mistress.

HELL GATE by Linda Fairstein
This got way too political for me and I abandoned it.

SIZZING SIXTEEN by Janet Evanovich
Stephanie and Lula are trying to come up with $1,000,000 to rescue/ransom their boss Vinnie who is in deep trouble on a number of fronts. Craziness prevails, as usual. The original popcorn read. The multitudes of Stephanie Plum fans are gonna love it.

HAZARD by Gardiner Harris
This was a different setting for a mystery: the coal mines in Appalachian Kentucky. I learned a lot about mining operations, inundations, methane, ventilation, maps and other details (not that I always wanted to know). The most interesting aspect was the attitude of the owners, inspectors and workers, which is to protect the operations at all costs and make the most money.

THE BURNING WIRE by Jeffery Deaver
I have such admiration for Deaver’s skills as a researcher, as well as a raconteur. The forensic details in all the Lincoln Rhyme books are amazing. I don’t know how one man could know so much without spending hours in the field or in the library. Electricity as a weapon was the subject of this caper and I certainly learned things, some frightening, others worrisome. There was a surprise at the end of this one concerning the players, but I won’t give it away.

DAMAGED by Alex Kava
Rescue swimmer Liz Bailey recovers a cooler from the Gulf of Mexico filled with body parts. FBI agent Maggie O’Dell and her new squeeze are called in on two different cases which turn out to be connected to the lucrative business of selling body parts. This was a good one revolving (bad pun) around a major hurricane which hits Pensacola, FL.

ICE COLD by Tess Gerritsen
Excellent, excellent, even some real suspense in this one about Maggie Isles and Jane Rizzoli, who, my daughter informs me, are the heroines of a TNT television show. At a medical convention during a Wyoming winter, Maggie heads off on a spur of the moment ski excursion with some acquaintances and ends up snowbound and stalked in a deserted cult community.

THE DEVIL AMONG THE LAWYERS by Sharon McCrumb
This was really different. Learned a lot about reporting in the days before TV, the philosophy of which is still true today. Print journalists follow a murder story in the Appalachian Mountains in which the accused is a beautiful young schoolteacher and the dead man is her father.


Movies:

THE COVE Excellent documentary on dolphin massacre in Japan

THE WHITE RIBBON Waste of time, no conclusion, subtitled

GEORGIA O’KEEFFE (Jeremy Irons, yes!) Quite fascinating bio, loved Irons

UP IN THE AIR (George Clooney, Sam Elliott) Mildly good

Oscar and more in June

The THIRD RAIL by Michael Harvey
Despite prominently displayed accolades by Michael Connelly and John Grisham, I didn’t find this crime novel to be above average. Standard cop turned PI, working with the FBI on sniper shootings on Chicago’s El, all relating to his own background.

MINDLESS EATING
Some thought provoking stuff in here. You can lose weight by just cutting 100 calories per day. Seems like next to nothing.

LUCID INTERVALS by Stuart Woods
More mindless Stone Barrington antics, lightened by the inclusion of colorful Herbie Fisher.

The POACHER’S SON by Paul Doiron
Some meat in this one. A game warden in the Maine woods attempts to insert himself into the investigation for murder of his estranged father, jeopardizing his job, his life and his relationships.

SICK LIKE THAT by Norman Green
After PI Mary Stiles gets shot and paralyzed, two very different women team up to carry on his practice: Alessandra the ass-kicking Brooklyn girl and Sarah the meek receptionist. Not bad.

212 by Alafair Burke
I hate to complain because I love this woman’s father, but she just doesn’t compare to him when it comes to crime fiction. Not a bad read, but lacking his depth and descriptive powers.

GONE TIL NOVEMBER by Wallace Stroby
Deputy Sara Cross goes to the wall for her lover and former partner Billy Flynn in a questionable shooting death. Good character study of the good guys and bad.

MAKING ROUNDS WITH OSCAR by David Dosa, M.D.
This is not a cat book but a lose-your-loved-one-to-dementia-in-a-nursing-home book. The tears flowed from beginning to end. One of the best Alzheimer's memoirs I've read. Spot on.

MOVIE:

Crazy Heart DVD
Down ‘n’ out c/w singer (perfectly played by Jeff Bridges in Rounds with Oscar themovie) loses his life in the bottle and trails down the road knowing he will never reclaim the glory.

Burning Wire

I have such admiration for Jeffery Deaver’s skills as a researcher, as well as a raconteur. The forensic details in all the Lincoln Rhyme books are amazing. I don’t know how one man could know so much without spending hours in the field or in the library. Electricity as a weapon was the subject of this caper and I certainly learned things, some frightening, others worrisome. There was a surprise at the end of this one concerning the players, but I won’t give it away.

Finished a true oldie called WITHOUT MERCY by Gary Provost - a bizarre case in Florida in the 80's about the murder of a gay businessman and, subsequently, his elderly mother. The murderers took over the man's identity, his restaurant, his home, sold all his property and assets, and managed to get away with this for many months. The woman involved - a mother, a waitress, a very well-liked person - was sorely messed up and never considered herself a killer. Either the woman was an accomplish actress, utterly stupid or just plain constantly drunk,but in any case you have little sympathy for her. She died on death row. Intriguing study of human foibles. Provost is good.

DECEPTION by Jonathan Kellerman
There is no shortage of suspects when prep school teacher Elise Freeman is “iced” in her home bathroom and secrets of her life and background begin to emerge. Dr. Alex Delaware seems to be more of the sidekick to colorful detective Milo Sturgis in recent books, rather than the intrepid hero.

FALSE CONVICTIONSby Tim Green
Books were piling up and I didn’t feel compelled to finish this before moving on.

JUST LIKE FAMILY by Tasha Blaine
Inside the Lives of Nannies, the Parents They Work for and the Children They Love – pretty much sums it up. Followed three specific nannies. I learned some things. More than I wanted to know about the Nanny Association. Medium read.

Down and Out of it.

Just finishing my fourth Memorial Day weekend book. I have traveled no farther than between the bedroom and the deck for three straight days. The only time I've been without a book in hand is when the leash was in it. Okay, so I'm depressed, but I've done some good reading. I reached for an old friend - Jack Reacher in Lee Child's new 61 Hours. It was a barn burner and I raced through it. A bus trip halted by a mad winter storm strands Jack in a small South Dakota town in the midst of a good cop/bad cop scenario,a mysterious army installation, bikers and meth, a prison riot, a Mexican sadist and a stalwart old lady trying to do the right thing. An inferno of an ending leaves Jack's fate in doubt.

John Sandford'sStorm Preyfinds Lucas Davenport's surgeon wife Weather on the hit list after she glimpses the face of a killer. The intrigue heats up when another doctor is implicated in the robbery of the hospital pharmacy and death of a brave attendant. Weather meanwhile refuses to take precautions because of her participation in a rare proceedure necessary to separate conjoined twins. Where is Virgil Flowers when a real woman wants him?

Should be finished in the next hour with The Burial Place by Brian Freeman which I started this morning. Obviously a good read, involving a missing baby and a string of grisly murders, interesting cops, bad marriages.

Also finished today the Scent of a Dog by search and rescue trainer Susannah Charleson who adopts her own Golden Retriever puppy to train in the SAR field. Loved the dog relationship insights as well as the details of SAR ops.

Spent some time with The Essential Rumi, poet of love and separation. I'm feeling it. Working my pile down. Not manageable yet, but if I don't leave the house for another month or so, maybe.

Army Doc

I have a soft spot for military doctors and, although he is now a veteran suffering from PTSD and manning a mobile street hospital in D.C., Nick Garrity is a winning hero. Nick is carrying on a search for his best bud who saved his life in Afghanistan in the same disastrous suicide mission that killed Nick's fiancee. After four years, a slim clue surfaces that might lead him to his friend, and by following it, Nick and psych nurse Jillian Coates are embroiled with a psychopath in a complicated medical murder plot. The Last Surgeon by Michael Palmer was a thriller that delivered.

Crazy Heart

I love this title. It resonated with me before I even knew what the book was about. No, I haven't seen the movie, but I can see why they made a movie based on it and I imagine it is good. Thomas Cobb's Bad Blake is the quintessential c/w singer boozing his way through the honky-tonks and his life. I don't know if it is stereotypical or true to life but it certainly hits all the right buttons. Gritty and colorful and sad.

The Autobiography of an Execution by David Dow recounts true experiences of a lawyer who handles only death row appeals. Not meaty enough for me.

The Way We Get By (dvd-documentary)investigates the lives and motivations of the veterans and other greeters at the Bangor, Maine airport who bid hello and goodbye to the military personnel on their way back and forth to combat.

Our Lady of Immaculate Deception by Nancy Martin is a weak imitation of Janet Evanovich's Stephanie Plum. Didn’t finish it.

Saving Gracie by Carol Bradley is a heartbreaker and hopefully an eye-opener for pet lovers. True stories of puppy mills and one Cavalier King Charles spaniel who was rescued from a life of breeding. Informative, but tough to stomach.

How To Raise the Perfect Dog by Cesar Millan
This book was not very helpful and Millan is a jerk.

Whiter Than Snow by Sandra Dallas After reading The Rainmaker I’m beginning to fall for these sappy tearjerkers as a pleasant way to waste an afternoon. In 1920’s Colorado mining town, kids are killed in an avalanche; this recounts their parent’s sad backstories leading up to the tragedy.

A Thousand Cuts by Simon Lelic
Didn’t like it, didn’t finish.

Deep Shadows

This slam-bang thrill ride is the latest Doc Ford adventure by Randy Wayne White and I'm voting for best. Ford, sidekick Tomklinson, tough old Arlis Futch and a troubled Indian teenager leave Sanibel Island on an inland expeditiuon to search for Batista's missing treasure at the bottom of a Florida lake. What they find there is danger and deadly when they encounter a pair of runaway felons and a lake full of mysterious creatures. 90% of the story unfolds in a two-hour time span, much of it underwater and every minute of it perilous. Lots of info about scuba diving and marine biology. I could hardly put this one down.

Also watched The Way We Get By about the veterans who greet the incoming and outgoing troops at the Bangor Airport. It was sad and touching and heartwarming. I hate the war, but bless those young men and women - and these elderly people who are determined to make them feel appreciated.

I can write poetry.

The New Poet Laureate of Smith's Tavern, wearing my crown.

Wine Country

Erica Spindler wrote a good one here in Blood Vines, a whodunit set in the CA wine country and beginning with the discovery of a 25-year-old body - of an infant uncovered in an old grape planting. Plenty of suspects, secrets and motives. Fast read.

The Vogels

Herb and Dorothy (dvd - documentary)
Off the book record, I watched Dorothy and Herb today, a documentary about the librarian and postal clerk who married in the 60’s and starting buying cheap art. The Vogels became legends in the art world as their collection of modern art grew to astronomical proportions. They eventually donated the priceless collection to the National Gallery (which could not accommodate the entire body of works). Truly an interesting tale for the art appreciator. Also cat lovers, they Vogels had a flame point Himalayan who was so like my Oliver it brought tears to my eyes. I could feel my hands caressing him. Truly interesting story.

Every Secret Thing by Laura Lippman
Although this got good reviews, I found it to be plodding. I started because of the subject matter – two eleven year-olds who kidnap and murder an infant – and finished just to find out why they had done it, but it was disappointing.

Never Look Away by Linwood Barkley

I raced through this one, too. David Harwood's wife Jan disappears on a trip to a Lake George amusement park (6 Flags?)and his steadfast love for her makes him oblivious to the mounting evidence that not only was she not who she appeared, but that she skillfully framed him for her murder. THis plot was cleverly constructed, out of the ordinary, and ties up all the loose ends successfully. It was a true thriller and a non-stop rainy day read. I never did wash the kitchen floor.

30+ on tap

I am such a book hog. I have 30 - yes, more than 30 - books checked out to read, a mix of fiction and non-fiction, true crime and poetry, history, political, health and eating, dogs, favorite authors, recommends. I can't seem to pass one by. I am so afraid that someone else might grab something that looks interesting and I'd miss out somehow on reading it, that I just keep checking out and checking out. I am a madwoman. Well, this is the weekend I must sort and return all but the most desirable. Control, control.

Finally got and quickly read Vincent Zandri's Moonlight Falls. He has a strong new protagonist, Richard Moonlight(!), an ex-cop in trouble with the cops after an illicit sex affair with the alluring and beautiful Scarlet Montana, his ex-cop boss' now dead wife. Was it suicide, accident, did Moonlight kill her, or did the husband? Zandri writes very readable prose, full of twists and turns and set right here in good old Smallabany, which is fun. Zandri seems to be making ripples to a much larger audience than ever. Lots of promotion and good press going on.

Also finished Caught, another fast read by Harlan Coban who is the best at crime fiction. An attractive television reporter, a widow with an engaging teenage son, is being upstaged by a younger rival and then fired after outing a pedophile on national tv. The cops are investigating him in the disappearance of a high school girl when he is beaten and murdered and Wendy begins to question his guilt. The plot thickens, as they say, with the introduction of the Father's Club, a group of unemployed guys who hang out at a coffeshop. Everybody has secrets. Nobody writes a more entertaining tale than Coban. Whipped through this one and want more.

No Golden Retrievers

David Rosenfelt, my Andy Carpenter/golden retriever guy has produced a winner with another protagonist, Chris Turley, a newspaper journalist who is suddenly catapulted into the limelight when targeted by a madman to be the recipient of the killer's communications. But is there a special reason why Chris was chosen? Is there a connection between them that no one can figure out? Chris finds the FBI is doubting his veracity and considering that he might be the killer. As the reign of terror continues unchecked, Chris' life comes literally Down to the Wire.

Also really enjoyed Liar's Anonymous. Jessie Dancing, living under an alias, is one of the voices on an auto GPS system. When she answers an emergency call, she hears a frightening plea for help. Then the man in the car is found murdered, and because Jessie has been tried and acquited of a murder she actually committed, she becomes a suspect in the investigation.

Steven Cannell and James T. Hall

When Shane Scully was growing up abandoned in Huntington House, Walter "Pop" Dix became the closest thing to a father he would know. Early mornings at the beach, Dix would shepherd six youngsters out into the surf and give them life lessons along with teaching them how to ride the waves. Scully grew up to lead a successful life as a police detective with a smart, beautiful wife and a great son, but, ashamed of his painful beginnings, turned his back on the early years and the love he felt for the man who meant so much to him. When he learned that Pop had committed suicide, Scully was overwhelmed with remorse and guilt, especially when he found out that Dix had requested that Scully be one of his pallbearers. The other chosen five turn out to be colorful and well drawn characters whose determination to prove Pop's death was not a suicide bonds them in a fast moving plot. Stephen Cannell has been one of my favorite authors for years and I raced through this novel with characteristic enthusiasm. The Pallbearers is a definite winner.

I love Florida mysteries and I am fond of James Hall’s protagonist Thorn and his trusty sidekick Sugarman, a black/white relationship similar to Robert Parker's Spenser and Hawk. Thorn is abducted from his own ranch and spends a portion of the book trapped in a deserted pit terrorized by a pair of psychotics, resulting from his philanthropic attempt to designate a huge tract of Florida land as forever wild while Sugar and Thorn’s woman Rusty try to track him down. The Silencer is well worth a read.

I have read other Tami Hoags

but don't remember enjoying them as much as this one, Deeper than the Dead. Kept me guessing til almost the end. Semi-retired FBI profiler falls for school teacher involved in a gruesome set of torture murders when some of her students find a body. Suspects include some of the kids' parents, including a bad cop. Family secrets unfold and the kids are traumatized. Very readable.

Trying to catch up

I'll never catch up, but here are the good vacation books I just read in FLorida. More Vincent Zandri, Albany author with a great PI named Jack Marconi, plots good stories in familiar locations which I like. In Godchild, Marconi accepts the challenge of rescuing a beautiful journalist from a Mexican prison in the hopes that it is a connection to the man who killed his wife. Drug running, double crossing, and danger ensue to a satisfying and surprise conclusion. You can keep track of Zandri on Facebook and at local book signings of his newest book Moonlight Falls, which I haven't read yet.
Sailed through Dirt by Sean Doolittle, an author I learned about through Marcus Sakey (one of my new favorite who you can also follow on FB). This one starts off with a bang and never lets you off the hook as it romps through an expose of the funeral industry and its chicanery. Thoroughly enjoyable.
Involuntary Madness was more difficult to get through. Written by Nora VIncent, the lesbian who fed you the male perspective on women and dating by disguising herself and living as a guy for over a year and writing about it in Self-Made Man. Vincent subsequently suffered a breakdown and writes of her several committments to mental health facilities. Interesting. Enlightening. Depressing.
Finally got around to reading Confessions of a Shopaholic by Sophie Kinsella, which I had been meaning to read for years. It was a lighthearted gavort through the life of an empty-headed and superficial financial writer who can't control her own finances. I was quite fascinated by the woman's thought processes as she rewards herself with chocolate biscuits, lattes and cashmere sweaters, both to celebrate happy occasions and cheer herself up through hard times. Perfect beach read because you can doze off in the middle and not miss much. Don't think I'll waste time on another Kinsella, but this one was fun.
The last one I read on the plane home was another winner. PJ Parish, who is actually a pair of sisters, tempted me into buying The Little Death (we all know what that is, don't we?. It sucked me right in and I read straight thru getting my roots touched up today. The snooty women of Palm Beach are screwing the beach boys while their husbands are out making the big bucks. Problem: the gigolos are turning up dead in nasty ways, and three down-and-out investigators are attempting to solve the crimes. It was a great read and I am now going to finish the last chapter before bed and back to work tomorrow.

Something worth reviewing

Yes, yes, at last a book worth writing about - The First Rule by Robert Crais. I love Joe Pike and Elvis Cole and they have help in this one from Jon Stone, also a good character. Pike is out for revenge when his old mercenary friend Frank Meyer is murdered in his own home with his entire family. Altho he has not seen Frank in twelve years, the old loyalties are strong. The story leads to a complex web of intrigue which involves a Serbian mob, a kidnapped baby, a shipment of illegal guns and the mystery man responsible for the deaths, villain Michael Darko. The action is fast and Pike is superb, as always, and demonstrates an usual tenderness for the kidnapped boy. After two months of mediocre reading, finally a good one.

I just remembered Rainwater by Sara Dallas which I did read earlier this year and loved. It was a memorable book about a single mother in the 1930s who takes in a remarkable boarder who changes her life and the life of her autistic son.