Jenn's Review: Inside Out

Summary: Torture. Ghost detainees. And a massive cover-up that continues even today. This is the propulsive thriller that only former CIA operative turned bestselling novelist Barry Eisler could write.

Marooned in a Manila jail after a bar fight fatality, black ops soldier Ben Treven gets a visit from his former commander, Colonel Scott Horton, who explains the price of Ben’s release: Find and eliminate Daniel Larison, a rogue operator from Ben’s unit who has stolen ninety-two torture tapes from the CIA and is using them to blackmail the U.S. government.

But other players are after the tapes, too, and to find Larison, Ben will have to survive CIA hit teams, Blackwater mercenaries, and the long reach of the White House. He’ll also have to find a way to handle Paula Lanier, a smart, sexy FBI agent who has her own reasons for wanting the tapes and is determined to get them before Ben does. With the stakes this high, everyone has an angle—everyone but Ben, who will have to find the right alliance if he wants to stay alive.

Review: Both Julie and I loved Fault Line so I was thrilled to find out Barry Eisler's new novel was a sequel, though quite able to function as a stand alone. It starts out with a brawl and snowballs into a full scale conspiracy.

This one is a little heavier than Fault Line, probably due to the fact that Ben's brother Alex has been taken out of the mix. This was a little more along the same vein as the John Rain series which I've started, but not finished. It was the family connection that originally drew me into Fault Line more so than his John Rain series, but I think I'm more attached to the character of Ben because Eisler set up roots for the character so well in the first book.

The plot is terrifyingly realistic, ripping it's facts from the headlines and creating it's own account of the details surrounding it. One of the quotes Eisler uses was quite definitive for Ben:

‘There are different kinds of truths for different kinds of people. There are truths appropriate for children; truths that are appropriate for students; truths that are appropriate for educated adults; and truths that are appropriate for highly educated adults, and the notion that there should be one set of truths available to everyone is a modern democratic fallacy. It doesn’t work.’ ~ Irving Kristol

Ben has become increasingly disenfranchised through his recent experiences (In a way, he kind of reminds me a little of Seeley Booth) and he's starting to become more aware that everyone has an agenda and their own version of the truth to back them up. This is something that Ben will continue to struggle with, as there is no easy resolution for him. It's messy, but I imagine the real world of spies and assassins is messy.

There is a little more 'alphabet soup' with all of the government agencies being involved in this one and sometimes it took a minute for me to juggle the acronyms and remember who's who. The action, however is phenomenal and well worth any minor acronym confusion on my part. It took twists and turns I didn't foresee and was wrapped up without being too neat and tidy, leaving plenty of room for continuing the story throughout the series.

I've read some flack in other reviews for this novel regarding one-sided political agenda, and here are my thoughts on the matter: if you don't like Barry Eisler's politics, you probably aren't going to like his books, but that goes without saying for any author and their views, be they political, worldly, or other-worldly. And at no time did I feel that Eisler was pushing an agenda ~and I can't say that for just any other author. It certainly gave the reader a lot to think about and consider.

Eisler even worked the character of John Rain into this series via name dropping by other characters. I think it will be fascinating to see how he incorporates Rain into this series further down the road... it will also motivate me to move the rest of the John Rain series closer to the top of my ToBeRead pile.

Final Take 4.0/5

Julie's Review: Trust No One

Summary: Hurwitz (Last Shot) blasts new life into a well-worn theme—the prominent politician trying to hide a dark incident from his past—in this intelligent thriller. Late one night, the Secret Service snatches 36-year-old Nick Horrigan, who's led a quiet life since making a fatal mistake in his teens, and whisks him to the San Onofre, Calif., nuclear plant. There a terrorist threatens to set off a bomb unless he can talk to Nick, who hasn't got the slightest idea why he's been summoned. After the terrorist gets his head blown off, Nick realizes this and subsequent events are connected to the death years earlier of his Secret Service agent stepfather. Working with his homeless pal, Homer, and his computer whiz ex-girlfriend, Induma, Nick pieces together a string of clues that point to a paternity case against either the U.S. president, Andrew Bilton, or Sen. Jasper Caruthers, Bilton's opponent in an upcoming election. While more astute readers may intuit the bad guy, Nick's ethical dilemmas, girlfriend dramas and sleuthing provide plenty of excitement. ~amazon.com

Review: This book has been sitting on my nightstand for a few months. It's not that I didn't want to read it, but I had other things I wanted to read first. Trust No One is a fast-paced political thriller without making it about politics. I've read some reviews where they compare Caruthers to Obama but I don't see it. Sometimes characters are just characters. Nick Horrigan has been carrying some massive guilt. He feels responsible for his step-dad's death 17 years prior and has been on the run since. He was forced to leave his grieving mom so that she wouldn't be hurt in this massive plot to blame Nick in his step-father's death.

So 17 years later Nick gets pulled into a situation where he's called in to deal with a terrorist because the terrorist asked for him. This starts his on a search for why he was wanted at the nuclear plant and how this all link's back to his step-dad's murder.

I really can't say much else without giving away the plot but it's really an excellent plot. Nick Horrigan is someone you cheer for right from the start. You feel that he's been dealt a wrong hand for the last 17 years and is about to make it right. There is a whole cast of characters where you don't know who to trust. Mr. Hurwitz does a very good job of making you guess the ending up until the end.

I would put Mr. Hurwitz in company with Michael Connelly and David Baldacci regarding style and ability to keep you guessing.

If you are looking for a good thriller that calls into question our need for political heroes, then pick up Trust No One.

Final Take: 4/5

Jenn & Julie's Review: The Lost Symbol

Summary: As the story opens, Harvard symbologist Robert Langdon is summoned unexpectedly to deliver an evening lecture in the U.S. Capitol Building. Within minutes of his arrival, however, the night takes a bizarre turn. A disturbing object--artfully encoded with five symbols--is discovered in the Capitol Building. Langdon recognizes the object as an ancient invitation... one meant to usher its recipient into a long-lost world of esoteric wisdom.

When Langdon’s beloved mentor, Peter Solomon--a prominent Mason and philanthropist--is brutally kidnapped, Langdon realizes his only hope of saving Peter is to accept this mystical invitation and follow wherever it leads him. Langdon is instantly plunged into a clandestine world of Masonic secrets, hidden history, and never-before-seen locations--all of which seem to be dragging him toward a single, inconceivable truth.


Julie's Review: The Da Vinci Code is probably one of my all time favorite books. I loved the way it unfolded and how the story was told. It was a thriller and adventure but it made you think. While my ending rating isn't as high as Da Vinci Code, The Lost Symbol is in no way a let down or disappointment. In fact, I enjoyed most of the story about the Freemason's but in my opinion, that is not the true focus of the book. I know a lot of the hype for the book has been on the Secret Society of Freemason's but in the last 100 pages of the book you come to realize that is not the purpose. The Freemason's served their purpose in the book and in the mystery. What the book is about is knowledge. That's all I'll say so I don't ruin it. I'm sure in some ways this book disappointed Conspiracy Theorist.

Of course Robert Langdon is fantastic in this book. It amazes me how he always knows a lot about a lot of subjects. Is there such a things as "Jack of all trades, Master of all of them?" If so, this would be Professor Langdon. Amazingly even though I saw Tom Hanks play Langdon, that isn't who I picture. I think that's a good thing though. It doesn't mean I think Tom was a bad Landgon but he's not whom I see when I read the books.

As is typical with Dan Brown books you don't know who to trust and I certainly didn't. I was definitely focused on one character that I didn't believe to be trustworthy. In fact, I think I questioned the trustworthiness of all the characters except for Langdon and Peter Solomon. It is a whirlwind of an adventure. There is so much thrown at Langdon and the reader that you do have to pause and pull your thoughts together.

I really don't want to give a lot away with this book since it was kept under secrecy for months but I will say there was one twist I didn't see coming and it was a "duh" moment. Although I would have hated if I had guessed it. If you want an adventure but one that will make you stop and think, go and grab The Lost Symbol.

Final Take: 4.75/5

Jenn's Review: Another great Dan Brown novel. There was plenty of suspense and lots of twists and turns. (I did see the final twist coming, but Brown had me convinced that I was wrong for a while, which is something.)

Also, I always forget how easily Brown will kill off characters and he got me a couple of times. No one is safe and no one can be trusted. His new characters are all interesting and there is plenty of symbology and historical references to please his avid fans. My grandfather was a Mason and I always find a Masonic theme fascinating. I'm glad Brown didn't go the conspiracy route with it, because, as 'Langdon' is quick to explain, there are a lot of misconceptions out there.

Brown also brings to light Noetic science, the study of mind and intuition and its relationship with the divine intellect, which I found intriguing. (For more information on this, visit the website for the Institute of Noetic Sciences.)

Julie's right it's hard to review this without giving things away, so suffice it to say:

Though I loved Da Vinci Code, Angels & Demons is by far my favorite Brown novel, and I am placing The Lost Symbol a close third to Da Vinci Code.

Final Take: 4.5/5

Julie's Review: Eclipse

Summary: This stellar legal thriller from bestseller Patterson (Exile) both informs and entertains. On the eve of getting a divorce, Damon Pierce, a 40-year-old partner in a huge San Francisco, Calif., law firm, who specializes in international litigation, e-mails Marissa Brand, a woman he was once in love with in college, to update her on his life. Marissa is married to Bobby Okari, a firebrand reformer whose Nigeria-like country, Luandia, is awash in oil. With these riches come the usual scenarios: ecological disasters, a brutal dictator with murderous henchmen, a rapacious foreign oil company and an oppressed populace. After everyone in Okari's village is slaughtered, Bobby is arrested for the lynching of three oil workers. Damon, because he's a good man and because he's still in love with Marissa, signs on to defend Bobby from the bogus charge. Patterson has exerted all his considerable skill in creating a nightmare atmosphere that will cling to readers long after the last page is turned. ~amazon.com

Review: Dear God, I can't finish Eclipse. Let me start by saying that I don't mind politics as long as it's not in your face and this is in your face. Oil companies and American politics are bad. We are all money hungry fools who are blind to other areas of the world. First of all as an American I can say that I'm not a money hungry fool and while I wasn't happy with the last 8 years I didn't think it was the worst time in history either. That being said. Even putting the politics aside, I just didn't care about the characters. Bobby Okari is a flat, 2-dimensional character and I really didn't care about him and if he lived or died. I did find that the movement of the Akari people to be fascinating and I felt for their plight. His wife Marissa was a weak woman whose cause was her husband's and she was there to support him. Now I have no problem with that if that's the path you chose BUT don't make that the main female character in your book. Then there's (Damon) Pierce...he's in love with Marissa and agrees to defend her husband, since his speciality just happens to be International Law. I mean I didn't even finish the book and I could tell where this was going.

I was over 1/2 done when I decided that I couldn't take it anymore. I used to love Richard North Patterson but probably won't be reading him again unless he goes back to his non-political thrillers. If you want to read a really good book by him try Eyes of a Child.

If political thrillers are your thing and you don't mind the author's politics being shoved down your throat from page one....Eclipse is for you.

There are too many other good books waiting to be read.

No final take since I didn't finish it.