Rising Sun (31)

Rising Sun
Michael Crichton
Read 7/24/07

A beautiful girl is found dead in a conference room of a new Japenese office building. The book is more about Japanese relations and how they are taking over the world. There is little about the murder.. the security tapes show them who did it.. but it becomes a onion.. peeling back the layers to find out why.
One thing I noticed in Crichton's books is that there is a LOT of confrontation.. more than is really necessary. The book also has long passages that don't really have to do with the murder.. but add background to the 'Japan is buying America' theme of the book. At one point the lead character listens to other men talk while he is in a waiting room about how Japanese are buying up ranches in Montana.
Crichton is an interesting author.. and even though this book is fiction there is a biblography... you are encouraged to did deeper into this Japanese "problem". Honestly I'm not really worried about the Japanese... I have better things to worry about :)

Nightfall (30)

Nightfall
Isaac Asimov
Robert Silverbert
Read 7/19/07

I am not a big SciFi fan, but had this book. It is based on a 1941 short story by Asimov. The premise is a world that has 6 suns.. and their planet is never in darkness. Several things happen at once.. and you finally figure out the significance of all the events. The world is going to have an eclipse with will last about 14 hours.. problem is that the world has never been in darkness (the eclipse only happens every 2000 years). The people freak out.. lose their minds and riot. In hours civilization is lost.. The book follows several of the scientist from the beginning to see how they make out in the post-apocalyptic world.
There are some interesting premises in the book. It is a world similar to Earth.. yet they seem to have a very limited view of science.. They believe their world is only a few thousand years old.. and that they and their 6 suns are all that is in the world.. and that the universe is only a few dozen light years in size.
Their views are put to a test as the world goes dark and they see stars for the first time and not a few as they thought... but countless thousands....
The story isn't bad and some of the ideas (people could not live on a world that was in darkness 1/2 of the day) are interesting and give you something to ponder.

The Eighth Commandment (29)

The Eighth Commandment
Lawrence Sanders
Read 7/16/07

I have not read Sanders in a while.. he is a guilty pleasure.. I have always enjoyed his books... This one is based on a girl, Dunk who is an appraiser of rare coins. She oversees a shipment of coins to the auction house she works for.. only to discover the most valuable coin in the lot is stolen in shipment. So she sets off to find out who did it... A story full of rich people leading spoiled lives. As with many of Sanders books there is a great deal of detail concering the fashions that everybody is wearing, and what they are eating.. his books always make me hungry :) Dunk is working with the police detective, and the insurance investegator. She has romantic involvment with each.. and toward the end each ask her to be with them.. one in marriage.. one in sin
In the end she find out who did it... but she picks the wrong guy to be with :P

Sahara (28)

Sahara
Clive Cussler
Read 7/13/07

Another Dirk Pitt adventure.. this one strangely takes place in the desert. Again everything is over the top.. from the main problem... run away red tides (algae) will use up all the oxygen on earth and kill everybody.. to enemy.. .to Dirks adventure... he walks for days in desert covering hundreds of kilometers with no water.. a day after being rescued he is on a commando raid... after being shot he goes on to get the bad guys... The stories are good.. and don't need all the super human (and unbelievable) antics of Pitt to make them interesting.. Rather than adding to the story they detract from it... ALthough I keep reading them... as I say.. they ARE good yarns.

Sin City (27)

Sin City
Harold Robbins
Read (7/5/07)

This wasnt actually written by Robbins, but was edited after his death from notes he left. Seemed very much like a Robbins book, but maybe slightly updated. Kid from the streets makes good and moves up to be a big wheel in Las Vegas, and finally puts together a deal to build the biggest casino ever on the strip. To do this he must sell his soul to a Chinese "businessman' that he has dealt with periodically during his life. The sex, violence and hard lives of the main characters are all over the top.. and yet they do blend nicely into the story line...

Manhattan Nocturne (26)

Manhattan Nocturne
Colin Harrison

A couple of summers ago or more Mens Health recommended Colin Harrison books. I picked some up at the library and had not gotten to them. They start a bit slow.. it is *heavy* on his thoughts and observations.. reminded me of the Mickey Spillane type novels of the 50's only updated today.. It was not cheesy, just verbose.. It takes a while for the story to develop.. but it is a good mystery... Beautiful woman whose successful movie directors husband is found dead. She asks a newspaper columnist for help.. in he comes in the middle of the police, and his billionaire boss who are all interconnected in a strange way.
And enjoyable book, and I do have more of his novels and will work though them some time.

Hey and with this book I am officially back on track with my book a week goal. 26th book in the 26th week of the year. :)

The Bounty Hunters (25)

The Bounty Hunters
Elmore Leonard

This was the first book Elmore Leonard wrote, published in 1953. His oldest, western books are hard to find, but my library had several of them. This one came in a volume with 2 other of his western novels.
The story was good and worked on the character development nicely. I have never been much of a western fan.. but it was a good book. Well done for his first novel. Although I really do not see the link between this and his newer works.. Perhaps some of his newer Western novels will...
Recommended for people who like westerns, or the die hard Elmore Leonard fans (like me :)

A Coyote's in the House (24)

A Coyote's in the House
Elmore Leonard


This is a children's book written by Elmore Leonard for his grand children. So I picked it up for my son, and read it also. I was very excited that my 8 yr old son was reading Leonard.. and he really enjoyed the story.
It is about a Coyote who starts hanging out with some domestic dogs and he can't understand why they live like they do... and the old German Shepard who wants to run free in the Hollywood Hills.
The story if very much Leonard.. the Coyote is young quick and like the street characters in many of his other books. It is like any other Leonard book except the characters are animals :)

Be Cool (23)

Be Cool
Elmore Leonard

This is the 'sequel' to Get Shorty. It picks up with Chili Palmer after he became a Hollywood producer with the smash Get Leo, and the no so great sequel Get Lost. Chili has a new problem now and get involved in the music business and he sees the events happening before him as a movie plot and tries to figure out how the screen can mimic real life. Another great book with some great twists... this is a sequel that is every bit as good as the original!

Get Shorty (22)

Get Shorty
Elmore Leonard

HEY! Look at ME!
I got this book (hardcover) soon after it came out in 1990. I great story about Chili Palmer, gangster/loan shard turned Hollywood producer. This was later made into a movie by the same name. Leonard also wrote a 'sequel' to it called Be Cool. I really wanted to read Be Cool, but decided I should re-read Get Shorty first so I was up on the story. Good thing too, because I had forgotten most of the story. A great Leonard story!

The Billion Dollar Brain (21)

The Billion Dollar Brain
Len Deighton

A book that is older than me ;) Written in 1966, this is the 4th of 4 books that Deighton wrote about a nameless British spy. This is an excellent Deighton style book. Low key spy who doesn't want to be there. Book has some interesting twists and turns as you try to figure out which side everybody is working for.

The Naive and Sentimental Lover (20)

The Naive and Sentimental Lover (20)
John LeCarre

I am slowly working my way through all of John LeCarre's books, and I have been reading them in order after the first couple. His books are usually easy to find, but I had trouble finding this one. After reading it I know why. It is the only book LeCarre has written that is not about espinoge. This deals with Aldo Cassidy a rich inventor who becomes involved with an erratic writer and his wife. The book is somewhat slow to develop and is very confusing in parts.. he day dreams a lot and it is hard to tell fantasy from truth.. although I am sure that is what he wanted.. and the character sometimes has trouble telling what is real.
If you believe what you read on the Internet this book is roughly autobiographical about LeCarre's first divorce, and the other 2 people in the book each wrote their own accounts of what happened.
It is written in the classic LeCarre style.. slow to develop, confusing in parts.. long sections where the main character just thinks.. but a very engaging story. Not my favorite, but not my least favorite either. If you are a LeCarre fan you should read this.. if not.. you might skip it in favor of some of his better works.

In general I enjoy LeCarre although all of his books are hard reading and some of them are nearly impossible - lol. I do enjoy his style and the complexity of his book and will keep working my way through his catalog.

Eaters of the Dead (19)

Eaters of the Dead
Micheal Crichton

A bizarre book that is the tale of a 10th century Arab who encounters the Vikings while on his travels and joins them (somewhat against his will) on a great journey to the North.

The book is told in narrative form by Ibn Fadlan, who is a real person who encountered the Viking in 921 AD. The first three chapters of the book are from his writings, the rest is fiction created by Crichton. A really well done book in the classic Crichton style. You never know what you are going to get when you read one of his books, but you can be sure it will be well done and entertaining!

Rose (18)

Rose
Martin Cruz Smith

A book by Smith set in 19th century England in a small mining town. The lead character wants to return to Africa, but needs the support of the local Bishop. The Bishop first wants him to go to Wigan to look into the missing priest there.

The story is engaging and reminds me of Renko. The lead is somewhat of an outcast, he does not want to be there, yet keeps on the trail even when others say he should stop. In the process he gets beat up a few times... just as Renko always seems to do.

And excellent book written with Smiths attention to detail and character. In other news Martin Cruz Smith has a new book coming out in June, Stalins Ghost, which will be the sixth book in the Renko series.. I am SO excited!!

Sole Survivor (17)

Sole Survivor
Dean Koontz

I do enjoy Dean Koontz books.. but never excited about starting them.. He grabs you quick and pulls you in. His books always have such outlandish plots and ideas.. but what makes them great is that the main character is always as skeptical as you are about whatever is going on. This was a neat book, where you could not figure out what the F*** was going on...
My main complaint with Koontz is he spends too much time building up the story and the mystery.. and they reveals it and wraps the book up too quickly.

This book reminded me of Zaphod and the total perspective vortex... I wonder if that was a source of inspiration for it :)

Treasure (16)

Treasure
Clive Cussler

This is a book I started long ago and never finished... I picked it up and started over.. and I only remembered a few parts.. which was good. Another fabulous Dirk Pitt adventure. I like these books, but Pitt is a bit over the top... James Bond-ish stunts and such.. to me they take away from really good stories.
This one was good.. with a neat discovery in the end.

A Whiff Of Death (15)

A Whiff Of Death
Isaac Asimov

A professor finds one of his graduate students dead at in his lab, and the mystery begins. Was it an accident, suicide, murder? The professor tries for find out what really happened while playing University politics.
This was not quite what I expected from Asimov, renowned sci-fi author. It is basically a mystery, heavy on the science... although the solution is on in science, but in good old fashion human pride. A decent book.. just not what I expected.

Well.. it has been quite a week of reading with 3 books in 5 days.. that will help the totals for the year :)

Ernest Hemingway Fished Here (14)

Ernest Hemingway Fished Here

This is a collection of short stories about Northern Michigan, mostly set around the Traverse City area. Entertaining stories, probably more interesting if you are familiar with the Traverse area. Stories range from the 1860s to the 1960s and include fishing, ship wrecks, lumbering etc.

Cannery Row (13)

Cannery Row
John Steinbeck

It has been a long time since I read a book in 1 day, as I did with Cannery Row. In the early 1990's my mother went on a vacation to the Monterey area of California. While there she picked up Cannery Row which is set in this area. My mother passed away last fall and I came across this book when cleaning out her house. Monday was her birthday, and I picked up and read the book on that day.
An engaging story.. just following several groups of people, Mack and the boys, Lee at the store, the Doc, and the girls of the 'sporting house' as they go about their lives. It almost has the feel of an old black and white film, yet you can help but be entertained by it!

Cat's Eye (12)

Cat's Eye
Margaret Atwood

After The Handmaid's Tale I decided to read the other Margaret Atwood book I had. This was a wonderful book that is hard to describe.
Elaine is a middle aged artist who is back in Toronto for a retrospective of her work. She lives in Vancouver, but grew up in Toronto. The book isn't a remembrance, but rather looks at pivotal moments in her life as they happened. The book is brilliantly written, so that you look at events, but Elaine does not recognize or remember some of the significance of what has happened in the past. Most pointedly when in college she visits her former best friend, and they discuss antics of their childhood, but she does not quite remember things. As the reader you recognize having read the account of what happened, so it is almost like a memory for you also. Toward the end of the book when Elaine is looking at her paintings you realize some of the significance of them from things that she experienced in her life.
It is a wonderful look at how events shape our life, sometimes without our knowledge. And also a pained look at relationships and loss. I was struck deeply at points about what she had lost... both in terms of friends she did not keep in touch with, people who had an impact on her life.. but she has no way of knowing their whereabouts (teachers, neighbors etc). And also her family, the death of her parents... One of the few constants in her life seems to be her ex-husband whom ages has mellowed, but she can still see what she loved, and hated about him.

I enjoyed this book a lot.. but it is hard for me to say exactly why... it was a good story, well told. I will have to look into more of Atwood's work!