Jenn's Review: The 8th Confession

Summary: As San Francisco's most glamorous millionaires mingle at the party of the year, someone is watching--waiting for a chance to take vengeance on Isa and Ethan Bailey, the city's most celebrated couple. Finally, the killer pinpoints the ideal moment, and it's the perfect murder. Not a trace of evidence is left behind in their glamorous home.

 As Detective Lindsay Boxer investigates the high-profile murder, someone else is found brutally executed--a preacher with a message of hope for the homeless. His death nearly falls through the cracks, but when reporter Cindy Thomas hears about it, she knows the story could be huge. Probing deeper into the victim's history, she discovers he may not have been quite as saintly as everyone thought.

As the hunt for two criminals tests the limits of the Women's Murder Club, Lindsay sees sparks fly between Cindy and her partner, Detective Rich Conklin. The Women's Murder Club now faces its toughest challenge: will love destroy all that four friends have built?  ~blurb

Review:  It's a little crazy but I've been off the Women's Murder Club since Rizzoli & Isles aired. WMC's Lindsay has always been Angie Harmon to me, even before the short lived series and even though she doesn't fit the physical description in the book, she is Harmon's wit and sarcasm to a T.  Somehow the character of Jane Rizzoli is jarring to my vision of Lindsay Boxer.

What I had forgotten, however, is the wonderful balance of the stories around the WMC women. It was amazing how fast the characters came flooding back to me... and it was welcome.  Although we know the culprit for the main case, it is interesting to see the case unfold. I had no idea how or where the second case fit in, but I found that I loved its resolution.  Also melded seemlessly into the storlyline are the lives of the girls, complicated and intertwining.   I was glad that there was some resolution reached in Lindsay's life. It's been toyed with a little too much for me.

It was silly to have avoided my WMC for so long and it certainly won't be long before I revisit them.

Final Take:  4.75/5

 

2012 Criminal Plots Challenge: Jenn's Wrap Up

...and with The 8th Confession, I've also completed Jen of Jen's Book Thoughts 2012 Criminal Plots Challenge.  I read thrillers almost as much as YA, so this one wasn't a stretch for me.  Here's what I read:

1. Novel with a weapon in the title:  A Hoe Lot of Trouble by Heather Webber  - Reviewed 7/23/12
2. Book published at least 10 years ago:  The Black Echo by Michael Connelly - Reviewed 4/11/12
3. Book written by an author from the state/province/etc. where you live:  Murder On The Mind by L.L. Bartlett.  - Reviewed 1/31/12
4. Book written by an author using a pen name - Heat Rises by Richard Castle  -Reviewed 9/18/12
5. Crime novel whose protagonist is the opposite gender of the author - The 8th Confession by James Patterson.  Reviewed 12/30/12
6. A stand-alone novel written by an author who writes at least one series:  Ransom River  by Meg Gardiner - Reviewed 12/5/12

I don't know if she will be hosting another one, but I'll surely join in if she does!

Group Review: Ransom River

Summary: A stunningly complex and atmospheric crime novel from Edgar Award–winning author Meg Gardiner, Ransom River features a deeply flawed, compelling heroine, a murder trial, and the long-unsolved mystery it exposes.

Rory Mackenzie is juror number seven on a high-profile murder case in her hometown of Ransom River, California. It’s a place she vowed never to visit again, after leaving behind its surfeit of regret and misfortune and the specter of a troubled past that threatened to disturb the town’s peaceful façade.

Brilliant yet guarded, Rory has always felt like an outsider. She retreated into herself when both her career aspirations and her love affair with a childhood friend, undercover cop Seth Colder, were destroyed in a tragic accident.

While most of the town is focused on the tense and shocking circumstances of the trial, Rory’s return to Ransom River dredges up troubling memories from her childhood that she can no longer ignore. But in the wake of a desperate attack on the courthouse, Rory realizes that exposing these dark skeletons has connected her to an old case that was never solved, and bringing the truth to light just might destroy her.

Departing from her popular series novels, Meg Gardiner has gone deeper than ever into the utterly convincing lives and compelling pasts of her characters. Ransom River is an intimate crime thriller with a dark mystery at its heart—one that will keep readers breathless until the very last page. ~blurb  

Jenn's Review:  Oh, how I love Meg Gardiner's books!  She writes fantastic suspense novels with edgy, strong women.  I don't know why it's taken me so long to get around to reading this one... except that reading it means I only have one unread Meg Gardiner book on my shelf and I do like to save them to savor.

The book begins with a snippet of Rory's childhood.  I was actually a little worried about where things were headed at first, but I shouldn't have been.  It is just one piece in the twisted jigsaw puzzle that is Rory's past.  From the outset, the attack on the courthouse seems ...wrong.  Honestly, I was just as surprised as Rory when things turned ugly at the police station.

 And then we meet Seth.  I love the way Ms. Gardiner can take two people, rip them apart, mangle them, and then see how or if they fit back together again.  Life is messy.  Things happen.  It's how you pick yourself up and move on that matters... and sometimes people can move with you, and sometimes circumstances make them move back towards you.  This is Ms. Gardiner's greatest talent... next to writing thrilling, suspenseful, parts that won't let you stop turning pages.  Seth and Rory have a history and it's ugly, and though Rory may think she's left it behind, her current situation leaves her no choice but to revisit.

Truly, I had no idea where things were headed.  It's awesome that Meg Gardiner can still keep me guessing after all this time.  There is twisty surprise after twisty surprise and very few that I saw a few things coming.   I've learned not to jump to conclusions and just let things play out, because nothing is ever quite what it seems.   I think things were more neatly wrapped up than most of her other novels, but that is probably because it's currently a standalone.  Yes, there is enough loose thread at the end to pick up and keep going, but it also feels perfectly all right that things are left as they are.

We gush about Meg Gardiner around here.  We do.  (Fact:  I did not read Julie's review before writing mine.)  I can count on one hand the number of authors whose works I feel that way about.  I can't encourage you enough to pick up one of her novels.

Jenn's Final Take:  5/5


Julie's Review: Meg, thank you for writing another strong yet emotionally scared woman. I absolutely adored Rory. I loved how she fought back against the allegations that were going to come at her but she didn't put herself in situations that she couldn't handle.

In the beginning of the book, because you aren't yet familiar and trusting of Rory, you do wonder if she's involved the courthouse attack. It's not too soon after that you figure out that it is what it seems, wrong place wrong time. Until of course you walk the plank with Rory and figure out that it is much, much more than that.

What Ms. Gardiner does extremely well is she keeps you guessing about everything plus she add a little of electricity between Rory and Seth to keep that subplot humming. Seth is everything you want in a sexy, bad boy except he's not really a bad boy. He only seems like it and perhaps he's a little reckless but that's what makes him appealing. The problem is that he was reckless when Rory was with him and it caused her a lot of pain. It is what made her leave Ransom River.

This is a fast-paced mystery/thriller that keeps you guessing until the final pages of the novel. There is a definite cast of characters who are both crazy and evil; some of them are related to Rory. I did guess a couple of the twists that were coming but again it didn't diminish the story for me. I couldn't wait to see how Ms. Gardiner would unravel them. I don't want to say too much to ruin the novel for you guys, so I'll just stop here.

Again, if you haven't read a Meg Gardiner book, (why haven't you!?), Ransom River is the perfect one to start with since it's a stand alone novel. Although, this reader is hoping to read about Rory and Seth sometime in the future.

Julie's Final Take: 5/5


Julie wants to thank Dutton Publishing Group for her copy of the novel.

Jenn's Review: Heat Rises

 Summary:  The bizarre murder of a parish priest at a New York bondage club is just the tip of an iceberg that leads Nikki Heat to a dark conspiracy that reaches all the way to the highest level of the NYPD. But when she gets too close to the truth, Nikki finds herself disgraced, stripped of her badge and out on her own with nobody she can trust. Except maybe the one man in her life who’s not a cop. Reporter Jameson Rook.

In the midst of New York’s coldest winter in a hundred years, there’s one thing Nikki is determined to prove. Heat Rises.

Review:  Although I had a hard time getting into the third Nikki Heat novel, Heat Rises turned out to be my favorite from 'Richard Castle' so far.  The beginning had me wondering if they'd changed ghost writers, though because Castle's voice just wasn't coming through for me.  But as the story pressed on, it became a lot clearer.

I think the other problem I had getting into it was backtracking Heat and Rook's relationship back to where Castle and Beckett were in Season 3 of the show which was frustrating.  However Heat and Rook's relationship blew by where we finished Season 4.  I actually think Heat Rises gives a nice glimpse of where we are heading with Castle and Beckett, at least, I hope it does (no, I can't bring myself to use the shipper term Caskett even though I fully admit to being a shipper).  Though the echos of their television show counter parts were there, the characters in the books took on a life of their own for me for the first time and I liked it.

The plot itself was fantastic.  Eventually I picked the threads of the Castle episodes that it drew from, but they didn't seem to overpower the story line as they have in the previous books.  There were some twists I definitely didn't see coming as well as some role reversals.  Though I must say [SPOILER ALERT] the death of the captain was just as sad to read as it was to watch.

I love that these books are a stopgap for the show being on hiatus.  Though I usually am able to hold off reading them, I have a feeling I will be jumping into the newly released Frozen Heat soon because I want to know more of their story... not just Castle's.

Final Take:  4.5/5

 

Jenn's Review: A Hoe Lot of Trouble

Summary:  Nina Collette Ceceri Quinn’s business, Taken By Surprise--a landscaping firm specializing in surprise garden makeovers--is the only thing in her life that seems to be thriving. Her marriage to adulterous police detective Kevin Quinn has wilted. Her anti-social stepson Riley is spreading trouble around like pungent manure. Even her gardening tools are disappearing, including a rather valuable set of hoes. Worst of all, the delightful old man who first introduced her to the joys of horticulture is dead--and not by natural causes. Something evil has taken root in Nina’s Ohio small town, and the local police--including dearly unbeloved Kev--are baffled. But it’s amazing what a resourceful gardener can dig up when she puts her mind to it--though, by sticking her hands too deeply into this fetid, fertile soil, Nina might well end up planted beneath her own petunias.  ~goodreads.com

Review:  I love Heather Webber's Lucy Valentine series and her new Wishcraft series published under the name Heather Blake, so I thought it might be fun to read some of her earlier works like A Hoe Lot of Trouble. Here you can see vestiges of the Heather Webber I've come to love

I don't read many cozy mysteries, because I find them rather predictable. I have to say even though it isn't a heavy read, Heather Webber had me completely fooled. Apparently, plot twists are something she has always done well. I'm still a little flummoxed about why Nina stuck her nose so far into an investigation in the first place, but, such is the nature of a cozy mystery. And while I found some of it a little frivolous, it held my attention straight through.

I also enjoyed her characters; it's hard not to like Nina. She's strong and spirited and a lot less vulnerable than many of Ms. Webber's other female leads. Nina is going to take the bull by the horns, even of it is in the middle of a china shop. I always find myself thinking her characters would make great friends and Nina is no different. I also found it refreshing that there was no formulaic love interest such as you find in so many cozies. Not to say that Nina isn't on the rebound and looking, but she's okay with that.

A Hoe Lot of Trouble is the beginning of a series of Nina Quinn garden mysteries, and I'm pretty sure I will be reading them all. This is a perfect beach read. I will enjoy seeing how the series progresses and what other kinds of trouble Nina can get herself into.

Final Take:  3.75/5

Jenn's Review: The Black Echo

Summary:  For LAPD homicide cop Harry Bosch — hero, maverick, nighthawk — the body in the drainpipe at Mulholland dam is more than another anonymous statistic.  This one is personal.

The dead man, Billy Meadows, was a fellow Vietnam “tunnel rat” who fought side by side with him in a nightmare underground war that brought them to the depths of hell.  Now, Bosch is about to relive the horrors of Nam.  From a dangerous maze of blind alleys to a daring criminal heist beneath the city to the tortuous link that must be uncovered, his survival instincts will once again be tested to their limit.

Joining with an enigmatic female FBI agent, pitted against enemies within his own department, Bosch must make the agonizing choice between justice and vengeance, as he tracks down a killer whose true face will shock him.

Review:  Up until now, my only contact with Michael Connelly's work has been through Julie's reviews and his guest appearances on ABC's Castle. I've been meaning to get around to trying his novels for years, so between a low e-book price and the 2012 Criminal Plots Challenge, this was the perfect opportunity. 

The Black Echo is the first novel in the Harry Bosch series and was written in 1992. I only point this out because you can't get through this novel without marveling at how much has changed in the last twenty years.  One rarely reflect on how much evolving technology has affected the way things are done. With, detectives and agents alike checking their pagers and constantly using pay phones to check in, it's amazing anything was accomplished!  Also, the plot revolved around Vietnam vets which was a constant reminder that Detective Bosch is my father's age, which gave things a skewed perspective for me.  So many fictional detectives are timeless, that it was a unusual to have the reality anchor thrown in. 

Connelly has a clinical style of writing, but it isn't off putting.  Nor is it heavy or full of a jargon.  I found it easily accessible and more than compelling.  As for the characters, I don't know if I ever truly connected with any of them.  Harry Bosch is not an easy character to like, I was certainly routing for him, but he is so rough around the edges that I kept waiting for a glance of a soft inner center... perhaps Bosch just doesn't have one.  I love that he doesn't stick to the book or the party line, and I understand why that could be an issue, but with his results I don't understand why it's as much of an issue as it is... maybe it's generational.  The murder-bank heist plot was good and twisty.  I guessed part of the solution, but not all of it and Connelly definitely threw in enough curve balls to have me second guessing myself and formulating wild theories.   

I would like to continue reading the Harry Bosch novels, though the sheer volume of the series is a little daunting.  It will be interesting to see the character develop and change with the times.  I hope I will be able to shift the The Black Ice closer to the top of my TBR pile. 

Final Take:  3.75/5

Jenn's Review: Murder on the Mind

Summary:  Jeff Resnick hardly knew his well-heeled half-brother. But after suffering a fractured skull in a vicious mugging, he reluctantly accepts the fact that he has a long and brutal recovery to face—and his closest of kin can provide him with the time and place to do it. 

Now, Jeff is haunted by unexplained visions of a heinous crime—a banker, stalked, killed, and eviscerated like a ten-point buck. When Matt Sumner’s murder is discovered, a still-recovering Jeff realizes this was what he had seen. Jeff must not only convince himself of his new-found psychic ability, but also his skeptical brother Richard Alpert. Since Sumner was Richard’s banker, both brothers have a stake in finding out what happened. With Richard’s reluctant help, Jeff’s investigation leads him to Sumner’s belligerent family and hard-nosed business associates, none of whom want him snooping around. 

When Jeff discovers a second victim, he knows he must relentlessly chase his quarry even if it means risking his brother’s life.

Review:  There aren't a lot of books set in my home town of Buffalo, NY so I was terribly excited when the ladies The Cozy Chicks for bringing brought it to my attention. I wasn't quite sure what to expect, but I was hoping it wasn't going to portray Buffalo in a bad light. This is a touchy issue for me, as I'm a proud Buffalonian.  We get enough bad press on our own (sports, economy, snow, etc.).

It was actually kind of strange reading about a fictional killer in my own town. There were fictional places juxtaposed on real places, making it kind of jarring for me to read. However, if you aren't overly familiar with the Buffalo area, I'm sure it wouldn't disturb you in the slightest. Both Jeff and Richard have just moved back to the Queen City for different reasons and both of them have bitter memories of their different but equally difficult childhoods in Buffalo. Neither of them is thrilled to be back, but they slowly learn that Buffalo isn't as bad as they remember (I loved Brenda's line, "Richard, you never told me there's a ton of great stuff to do in Buffalo."). While Jeff and Richard are relearning the city, they are also trying to reconnect with each other.  But it's hard to get beyond their childhood grudges when Jeff's insistent that his head injuries have caused him to start having psychic visions ...and those visions are pulling all of them into the middle of a murder investigation.

L. L. Bartlett wastes no time jumping into the mystery of it all. It caught me a little off guard. The mystery is interesting. The reader is not tasked by trying to figure out the culprit but by how Jeff will prove his visions, thus proving to his half-brother he's not crazy and catching a murderer. I'm not sure it was entirely plausible that Jeff wasn't arrested on several occasions for obstruction of justice at least, but it was easily forgiven because the story was intriguing. Little by little we learn what drove the brothers apart. Richard takes a leap of faith, Jeff learns to trust and let go. And the reader learns what motivates a murderer.

In a way, this is sort of the male counterpart to Heather Webber's Lucy Valentine series, which I adore. Although the lack of plot exposition at the beginning was surprising, I enjoyed the way Ms. Barrett wove it into the story instead. Some family secrets are revealed, and I'm sure there are more to come. I found all of Ms. Bartlett's characters fascinating and I want to get to know them a little better.  I'm particularly curious about Sophie, a minor character that floats in and out of Jeff's new found life as an investigating psychic. I can't wait to see where each of the characters decides to go from here, as they all seem to have a grasp on what they want out of life ...for now.

This will be a fun, light mystery series for me, I think, especially once I get used to reading about my home town.  I look forward to starting book two of the Jeff Resnick series, Dead In Red.  In fact I'm moving it closer to the top of my TBR pile right now.

Final Take:  3.75/5

PS.  I love that L. L. Bartlett's website features a photo section of some of the Buffalo-type things she mentions.

Julie's Criminal Plots 2012 Challenge List

Thanks to two Jennifer's (GJR's Jenn and Jen of Jen's Book Thoughts), I will be doing yet another challenge this year! Dang! For someone who didn't do any challenges until 2011, I'm doing quite a lot.   My reasoning being that I will definitely be reading more than six crime/thriller novels this year, so it shouldn't be hard to meet the criteria:

1. Novel with a weapon in the title:  TBD
2. Book published at least 10 years ago:  L.A. Dead (Stone Barrington) by Stuart Woods
3. Book written by an author from the state/province/etc. where you live:  The Two Deaths of Daniel Hayes by Marcus Sakey
4. Book written by an author using a pen name - TBD
5. Crime novel whose protagonist is the opposite gender of the author - 10th Anniversary (The Women's Murder Club) by James Patterson
6. A stand-alone novel written by an author who writes at least one series - Tell No One: A Novel by Harlan Coben

Rules of the Road:

• You can read the books in any format you choose: print, audio, e-book, etc.
• You can read books from any sub-genre of crime fiction: hardboiled, P.I., police procedural, cozy, thriller, etc.
• You do not need to have a blog to participate.
• You can use the books for other challenges but one book cannot count for more than one category in THIS challenge.
• Books do not need to be pre-determined. You can choose them at any time throughout the year. And you can read them in whatever order you choose.
• At the conclusion, each participant that completes the challenge will be entered for a chance at one of three prize packs.

I think I can do that.

Jenn's Criminal Plots 2012 Challenge List

Well, knowing how much I don't like having a reading list, I am surprising myself by taking on another book challenge for 2012 (I know, I need my head examined), this one hosted by Jen of Jen's Book Thoughts.  My reasoning being that I will definitely be reading more than six crime/thriller novels this year, so it shouldn't be hard to meet the criteria:

1. Novel with a weapon in the title:  A Hoe Lot of Trouble by Heather Webber -ok, the hoe is stretching it a bit, but it can be used as a weapon! - Reviewed 7/23/12
2. Book published at least 10 years ago:  The Black Echo by Michael Connelly was already on my TBR list because Julie loves his books so. - Reviewed 4/11/12
3. Book written by an author from the state/province/etc. where you live:  Murder On The Mind by L.L. Bartlett.  Not only does the author live in Western New York, but this series is set in my hometown of Buffalo, NY.  (Many thanks to The Cozy Chicks for bringing this series to my attention!)               - Reviewed 1/31/12
4. Book written by an author using a pen name - Heat Rises by Richard Castle.  I would not dare to suggest Richard Castle isn't a real author, but as any fan of the show will tell you, that is not his given name.  -Reviewed 9/18/12
5. Crime novel whose protagonist is the opposite gender of the author - The 8th Confession by James Patterson.  I'm behind on my Women's Murder Club books, and this will give me that little push I need to catch up.
6. A stand-alone novel written by an author who writes at least one series - okay I haven't made up my mind here. It will either be Kathy Reichs' I'd Kill For That (written under a pen name) or one of Tess Gerritsen's medical thrillers (either The Bone Garden or Bloodstream) ...I've got some time to decide on that, I think. EDITED 7/12:  Meg Gardiner's Ransom River  

Rules of the Road:

• You can read the books in any format you choose: print, audio, e-book, etc.
• You can read books from any sub-genre of crime fiction: hardboiled, P.I., police procedural, cozy, thriller, etc.
• You do not need to have a blog to participate.
• You can use the books for other challenges but one book cannot count for more than one category in THIS challenge.
• Books do not need to be pre-determined. You can choose them at any time throughout the year. And you can read them in whatever order you choose.
• At the conclusion, each participant that completes the challenge will be entered for a chance at one of three prize packs.

I think I can do that.