Michael Connelly
Book 6 in the Harry Bosch Series
This story is the primary plot inspiration for season 4 of the TV series Bosch. A high profile defense attorney is found murdered on the Angels Flight trolley a couple days before opening a high profile trial against the LAPD for abuse of a murder suspect. Since the everyone involved in the trial has an obvious conflict of interest, Bosch and his team are called in to take the case. Bosch is not sure whether a "solve" is actually wanted by the chiefs, but that is what he plans to give them. This is a great "return to LA" and the setting of a few years after the Rodney King and OJ trials gives the political tension a truth. And of course, Bosch is politically irreverent in his pursuit of truth, which is part of the fun.
3 stars (out of 4)
Sunday, August 26, 2018
Friday, August 24, 2018
Trunk Music
Michael Connelly
Book 5 in the Harry Bosch Series
Coming off a suspension, Harry is back in Hollywood on the homicide desk with a new boss and new team (Edgar and new team member Kiz Rider). Catching his first case, it is seemingly a classic mob hit with a body found in a trunk above the Hollywood Bowl. The leads take the investigation to Las Vegas, where nearly the entire book takes place, and reintroduces us to Eleanor Wish (love interest from Book 1 The Dark Echo). In all, this was a strong detective story, but since it was not LA, I found it only moderately engaging. Or actually, engaging but pining for LA.
2 stars (out of 4)
Book 5 in the Harry Bosch Series
Coming off a suspension, Harry is back in Hollywood on the homicide desk with a new boss and new team (Edgar and new team member Kiz Rider). Catching his first case, it is seemingly a classic mob hit with a body found in a trunk above the Hollywood Bowl. The leads take the investigation to Las Vegas, where nearly the entire book takes place, and reintroduces us to Eleanor Wish (love interest from Book 1 The Dark Echo). In all, this was a strong detective story, but since it was not LA, I found it only moderately engaging. Or actually, engaging but pining for LA.
2 stars (out of 4)
Sunday, August 19, 2018
All the Birds in the Sky
Charlie Jane Anders
Laurence and Patricia are lifelong friends, having met in middle school. They were each the oddball, and so by default gravitated to each other. But Laurence was tech and Patricia was nature. The first third of the book develops their world and sets the stage for the relationship. Unfortunately, it almost lost me in clearly YA tone. That is, I felt like the writing was intentionally geared to appeal to youth. Which is different that YA that is written with themes that appeal to youth, but written to treat the youth as adult minds. So strike one. But after that introductory third, the story gets engaging enough to hold me in. This becomes a battle (albeit mostly of ideas) between tech and nature, and really becomes a treatise for how it is not either, but both, that we must learn how to navigate. A nice little allegory.
3 stars (out of 4)
Laurence and Patricia are lifelong friends, having met in middle school. They were each the oddball, and so by default gravitated to each other. But Laurence was tech and Patricia was nature. The first third of the book develops their world and sets the stage for the relationship. Unfortunately, it almost lost me in clearly YA tone. That is, I felt like the writing was intentionally geared to appeal to youth. Which is different that YA that is written with themes that appeal to youth, but written to treat the youth as adult minds. So strike one. But after that introductory third, the story gets engaging enough to hold me in. This becomes a battle (albeit mostly of ideas) between tech and nature, and really becomes a treatise for how it is not either, but both, that we must learn how to navigate. A nice little allegory.
3 stars (out of 4)
Wednesday, August 15, 2018
The Bourne Objective
Eric Van Lustbader
Book 8 in the Jason Bourne series
Lustbader went full Dan Brown with this one. Hopefully this is not the new trend for the Bourne series. Previously the intrigue for Bourne is based on his getting pulled into political/national security/national intelligence scenarios that are complicated by the Treadstone training and his amnesia. This story inhabits that world, and those characters take part, but the story is pure illuminati. Disappointing. I give hime another try, hoping this is an aberation.
2 stars (out of 4)
Book 8 in the Jason Bourne series
Lustbader went full Dan Brown with this one. Hopefully this is not the new trend for the Bourne series. Previously the intrigue for Bourne is based on his getting pulled into political/national security/national intelligence scenarios that are complicated by the Treadstone training and his amnesia. This story inhabits that world, and those characters take part, but the story is pure illuminati. Disappointing. I give hime another try, hoping this is an aberation.
2 stars (out of 4)
Wednesday, August 8, 2018
The Bourne Deception
Eric Van Lustbader
Book 7 in the Jason Bourne series
Bourne is living the dream in Bali when he is nearly assassinated. He uses the attempt on his life to be "dead" and find out who is hunting him. Meanwhile, the US Intelligence community is involved in an investigation of potential Iran terrorists trying to start WWIII. Of course Bourne's pursuit of his hunter leads directly to the Iran crisis and puts him right in the center of conflict again. And all the characters (Marks, Moore, Trevor, Arkadin, Karpov, Maslov, Halliday, etc.) continue to be helpful/traitorous as Bourne navigates his life.
3 stars (out of 4)
Book 7 in the Jason Bourne series
Bourne is living the dream in Bali when he is nearly assassinated. He uses the attempt on his life to be "dead" and find out who is hunting him. Meanwhile, the US Intelligence community is involved in an investigation of potential Iran terrorists trying to start WWIII. Of course Bourne's pursuit of his hunter leads directly to the Iran crisis and puts him right in the center of conflict again. And all the characters (Marks, Moore, Trevor, Arkadin, Karpov, Maslov, Halliday, etc.) continue to be helpful/traitorous as Bourne navigates his life.
3 stars (out of 4)
Monday, August 6, 2018
Calypso
David Sedaris
I love David Sedaris. He is funny and poignant all at the same time. In Calypso, he basically tells the story of his family relationships, and in true form, some of his stories are told such that they MUST be exaggerated or made up. But at the same time, he tells them is such a way, that they are completely believable as 100% true. So you have to just read and enjoy. And along the way, you are pulled into the Sedaris family as he reflects honestly on love and disappointment and failure and guilt and crazy fun that all families experience at different levels for different times. I do think that my enjoyment was even greater since I listened to the audio version, read by Sedaris. This is a great memoir.
4 stars (out of 4)
I love David Sedaris. He is funny and poignant all at the same time. In Calypso, he basically tells the story of his family relationships, and in true form, some of his stories are told such that they MUST be exaggerated or made up. But at the same time, he tells them is such a way, that they are completely believable as 100% true. So you have to just read and enjoy. And along the way, you are pulled into the Sedaris family as he reflects honestly on love and disappointment and failure and guilt and crazy fun that all families experience at different levels for different times. I do think that my enjoyment was even greater since I listened to the audio version, read by Sedaris. This is a great memoir.
4 stars (out of 4)
Friday, August 3, 2018
The Bourne Sanction
Eric Van Lustbader
Book 6 in the Jason Bourne series
The CIA, NSA, DOD interagency squabble continues and now we add in private contract organizations. Lots of subterfuge and power grabbing. Bourne is brought into the story through the back door as he investigates a secret society that is still hanging around from WWII and is somehow related to a plot to blow up a target in the US. His David Webb identity mentor is involved and his potential new girlfriend Moira Trevor. And eventually his nemesis, the other Treadstone trained rogue agent Leonid Arkadin. I enjoyed the 4 seemingly independent threads weaving and intertwining to make a single story.
3 stars (out of 4)
Book 6 in the Jason Bourne series
The CIA, NSA, DOD interagency squabble continues and now we add in private contract organizations. Lots of subterfuge and power grabbing. Bourne is brought into the story through the back door as he investigates a secret society that is still hanging around from WWII and is somehow related to a plot to blow up a target in the US. His David Webb identity mentor is involved and his potential new girlfriend Moira Trevor. And eventually his nemesis, the other Treadstone trained rogue agent Leonid Arkadin. I enjoyed the 4 seemingly independent threads weaving and intertwining to make a single story.
3 stars (out of 4)
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