Review of False Memory (Mass Market Paperback)

To me, Dean Koontz has always been a writer who is either on again or off again.He has written books that are outstanding in the suspense field (Intensity, Dark Rivers of the Heart), and those that are largely a mess (Sole Survivor, Tick Tock).False Memory falls somewhere in between.Thisnovel of mind control and nefarious conspiracies has several scenes ofheart-pounding suspense, but often times it plods along as the author dragsout situations through several chapters that would have been much moreeffective if they had been compacted into a shorter space.For example,one of the main characters, Martie Rhodes is mysteriously afflicted withsevere autophobia (the fear of one's self), which results in her irrationalfear that she will attempt to murder everyone she loves.Unfortunately thereader has to suffer through chapter after chapter after chapter of Martierunning madly through the house trying to dispose of every item that mightpotentially be turned into a weapon, and it gets really boring really fast.This is not to say that the whole book is bad; in fact it's quite good attimes. The novel's villain is viciously evil and very well crafted.Theauthor is especially good at honing his characterizations as well asmaintaining that almost undefinable trait that only the best writershave--he makes you want to keep reading. Special note: I found it prettyamusing that one of the characters who appears late in the novel is anarcissistic writer who spends a great deal oftime writing phony reviews to make his own book seem better than it is, and phonynegative reviews of his most serious competitor's book.I assume Koontzdoesn't need to do this, because he really is a terrific writer.



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Review of The Truth About Fire: A Novel (Hardcover)

Gillian Grace is a professor of modern German History who ends up teaching in rural Michgan to avoid her separated but un-divorced husband--with her troubled mixed- race daughter in tow.A graduate student talks her into helping him as he pursues the Far Right who may be responsible for the murder of his friend.Alternates with sections written from the point of view of Lucy Wirth whose husband has unwittingly allowed the Sons of the Shepherd to use his sporting goods store to stage their arms build up and plans for biological warfare.Interesting parallels between her relationship with her husband and with the graduate student--where the tables are turned and she now becomes over involved with a student.Fascinating development as she realizes that the student is as crazed as the neo-nazis he pursues.The bioterrorism angle seems too far removed from the action of the story for me to really care, but the characters and the struggle to understand evil are compelling enough to make up.



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Review of The Wrong Side of Brightness (Paperback)

A fast-paced, well plotted, and hip treatment of a believable contemporary moral dilemma and how it is resolved.



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Review of Go Fast, Go Crazy (Paperback)

Appealing and quirky characters, a real sense of place, and genuine suspense are all present in Smith's sophomore novel. Smith makes you laugh, both with and at his finely developed characters, as they make their way along a journey of discovery. You can see and almost smell the desert landscape that Smith describes -- a lonely place where kids, and adults, don't have a lot of obvious options. And the ending will have you guessing.Will decisions made and secrets revealed lead to disaster or redemption? A great read!

Product Description
Set in 1995, in the southwestern desert, known as the Four Corners, Go Fast, Go Crazy is the suspenseful cross-generational story of one family's secrets and the redemptive value of discovering painful truths. The novel follows the trail of Cliff and Jimmy, two inseparable twenty year olds with uncertain futures. Feeling persecuted by the local sheriff, they steal their '68 Camaro from the police impound lot and cruise into the desert where they meet the beautiful Monique, a French tourist with a camera and car problems. After joining forces, the trio play a dangerous cat and mouse game with the police as they go on a small time crime spree, until they take refuge at crazy Uncle Milo's ranch, where they discover all is not as it seems. In the final showdown with the police, everyone must make decisions that will affect them all forever. If the truth does set you free, the road to the truth can exact a heavy toll. This explosive second novel deals with some of the uncomfortable legacies of the 1960's on today's youth, from a fresh and contemporary perspective. It is a rite of passage from which there is ultimately no escape.

About the Author
Lory Smith is a writer, artist and filmmaker. He was one of the founders of the Sundance Film Festival, author of his twenty year memoir of the event, Party In A Box. (1999) His first novel was the comedic Something For Nothing, about the last town to get television. (2005) His 1995 short film comedy Three Things I've Learned was in 13 international film festivals and was considered one of the most successful short films of the year. His artwork is in over 75 collections and can be seen at www.lorysmith.com. He lives in New York City and in Cold Spring, NY with his wife Andrea Torrens and their two cats.

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Review of Carrington House (Paperback)

This book kept my interest from the beginning.It's scary to think that something like this could happen, but the way it is presented, it is very believable.Very good book.

Product Description
Carrington House takes place in a prestigious New England boarding school. Through a suspensful chain of events, hazing and harassment give rise to a personal vendetta between students. One particularly nonconforming student is unable to cope with the abuse and strikes back by attempting to poison the seniors. His action attracts the attention of the nation's top pathologists, attention undesired by the school.

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Review of A Wind Through Paradise (Hardcover)

In A Wind Through Paradise, Harmyk introduces an immediacy and a novelty to the world of suspense and political intrigue. Harmyk's writing style ushers you breathlessly from the opening pages to the very last, lending unique and very personal voices to all of his characters. As exciting a read as it is entertaining, A Wind Through Paradise comes highly recommended.



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Review of The Hancock Boys (Mass Market Paperback)

This book was one of the best thrillers in years. I am not sure why it has not been the most talked about book this year. The characters are stimulating and the suspense is riveting. It may not be literature but ifyou want to relax and be taken away from reality for a short time, curl upwith this book.



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Review of The Closer (Mass Market Paperback)

This book seems like the movie The Punisher, at first.But the more you delve into the book, the more mysterious it becomes.I don't want to give a full synopsis of the book and the plot; you can read that for yourself on the description section.

Instead, I'll tell you why I liked this book.
- It seemed familiar, yet unique; reminiscent of The Punisher movie, yet totally new
- It was brilliantly written, with enough suspense to keep you interested from cover to cover
- It was creepy, sort of like the aftermath of a car wreck that you don't want to see, yet you're curious about
- It was long enough to be a good value, but not too long so as to be boring

If you liked books like Red Dragon or The Silence of the Lambs by Thomas Harris, you'll love this one.

Product Description
METHOD

He is the Closer--a remorseless executioner whose modus operandi is terrifying in its brutal simplicity. He captures his prey, tortures them until they confess their sins, and disposes of them as they deserve. His victims have only one thing in common: theyare all serial killers.

MOTIVE

Accompanied by a hardened ex-prostitute who lost her closest friends to a twisted murderer, the Closer is closing in on his ultimate quarry: an ingenious psychopath known as the Patron who must be stopped. For behind the fa?ade of the Closer is atortured man whose family the Patron slaughtered.

MADNESS

But even as the time for his revenge approaches, the Closer may be turning into what he despises most. Because with every violent act of retribution, he fears that he's no longer killing in thename of justice....

HE'S KILLING BECAUSE HE LIKES IT.--This text refers to the Kindle Edition edition.

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Review of Bannerman's Ghosts (Mass Market Paperback)

Hey, if you're going to steal, at least steal from the old masters...they're not around to complain. That opening does, however, demand a list, so here it is:

(1) The characters - John R. Maxim's characters are as real as any in popular fiction. You finish one of his books with the feeling that you really know these people, or at least would like to know them. (I personally would love to meet 'Uncle' Billy McHugh, the man formerly known as Bannerman's Monster who has now evolved into a personable, chatty bartender who just happens to be capable of incredible mayhem!) In this book Maxim brings together his popular Bannerman people, adds in the cast of his book 'Haven,' and then seasons it with the main characters from 'Whistler's Angel.' It's like going to a great reunion, meeting up with people you really liked and catching up with their lives and activities. The updates on the lives of Bannerman's people (including homes, businesses, hobbies, spouses and children) are worth the price of the book by themselves!

(2) The plot - Maxim's books in general, and his Bannermans in particular, feature enough twists and changes of direction to hold your complete attention without lapsing into 'complication for its own sake.' He also frequently has a theme for a book. In 'The Shadowbox' it was counterfeit pharmaceuticals, and the eerily prescient 'Haven' (in 1997) presented a plot where Islamic terrorists tried to mount an attack on American soil with a dirty bomb. His plot here involves bio-terrorism in a way that can make you lose sleep. As usual, Maxim presents enough realistic detail that you know he did his homework long before he started writing.

(3) The timeline - While Maxim has introduced characters from one book into another previously, here he's even dovetailing his plots. We last saw Elizabeth Stride (from 'Haven') settling into a peaceful life on Hilton Head Island. 'Whistler's Angel' came to its dramatic (and noisy and smoky) conclusion on Hilton Head Island. So how could a pro like Stride have missed such brouhaha so close to home? She couldn't. The main portion of the 'Bannerman's Ghosts' story picks up literally on the day 'Whistler's Angel' ends!

(4) The humor - For a serious book with a serious plot about very serious people, Maxim sprinkles in a healthy dose of laughs along the way. It's impossible to quote anything here, since establishing a context would take way too long. Trust me on this: you'll have a lot of fun reading this book.

This list could go on and on, but here's the bottom line: 'Bannerman's Ghosts' is great reading.



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Review of Run (Paperback)

Douglas Winter updates and deconstructs - nearly vivisects - the chiaroscuro of the classic noir style.The protagonist is gunrunner along Interstate 95.When a big shipment to a NYC gang goes haywire, anadrenaline surge propels the book - through the unraveling of scheme afterscheme - to the necropolis of its cataclysmic conclusion.For goodmeasure, a baroque quantity of minutia concerning firearms is pepperedthroughout.Suspenseful, stark, and startling, 'Run' includes the keyhallmarks of the noir genre: taut, rapid-fire prose and an overarchingexistential nihilism.Like Highsmith's 'The Talented Mr. Ripley,' Goodis's'Down There,' and Thompson's 'The Grifters,' Winter's neo-noir deserves tobe put on screen, but get a copy of the book first - copies aredisappearing faster than a pack of smokes at an AA meeting.



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Review of The Likeness: A Novel (Hardcover)

There will be no spoilers in this review.

As in her first novel, In the Woods, Tana French has created another sensuous, lyrical, haunting, suspenseful story.Although it is considered a mystery, it is much much more than that.It is a story of identity in all its literal and metaphorical forms.It is a social commentary (but never sententious) and it is also about fear and flight and love.

Casie Maddox and Sam O'Neill are detectives from In the Woods.Although Operation Vestal (from In the Woods) is mentioned several times, these books can be read in any sequence without ruining it for the reader.The setting is again Dublin, Ireland.

Cassie is the star attraction of this story as she goes undercover to live with four liberal arts doctoral candidates whose housemate, Lexie Maddox, is found dead from a stabbingin an abandoned cottage.Lexie Maddox looks exactly like Cassie, and the name is her last undercover alias, which adds to the mystery.The housemates will be told that she survived the stabbing.

It isn't necessary to give too many plot details. What is more important is the response from reading.This is a generous, gorgeous, thoughtful, poetic story.The tone is almost elegiac at times, especially during her descriptive paragraphs, and the author's use of the extended metaphor is prolific and often profound.At the end of the novel, I looked up hawthorn (the tree, flower, bush) on Wikipedia and had a chill run up and down my spine.Her descriptions, turns of phrase, elegant passages and graceful unfolding keep me fastened and fascinated.What I love about Tana French is that her novels are both character-driven AND plot-driven.She does not sacrifice one for the other.With most mysteries, I only read them once.But The Likeness can be read again just for the aesthetics. Also, there is no deus ex machina here.The story is excellently paced with a well-timed delivery of its climax.

Tana French is no lightweight, but she makes the story accessible to anyone who enjoys reading.She has that gift to appeal to a variety of readers-- even readers who look for largely escape mysteries.But this is not escape reading; it is the kind of reading that makes you ponder.It is philosophical and it echoes.It has shadows, swirls, hollows, heart,humanity,tension, suspense, whispers, hawthorn, hawthorn, hawthorn...

I look forward to the third book that Tana French is working on, with Frank Mackey (from The Likeness) as the main protagonist.



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Review of Diary of a Serial Killer (Mass Market Paperback)

Twenty years ago Alan Lombardo, accountant to the mob boss George Heinrich, was convicted of killing nine people.He swore he was innocent, but nobody believed him.Now after two decades in jail, he hires law partners Zack Wilson and Terry Tallach to find a loophole that will get him a new trial.They reluctantly take the case.They think they have found an opening when they learn who originally defended the convicted CPA; as Zach's father was on two payrolls with Alan and Heinrich both paying him.His father, now a respected judge, could get disbarred if his conflict of interest goes public.

Complicating their ethics dilemma is that the attorneys begin to believe their client is innocent even before a serial killer begins a series of murdering using the same MO as the Springfield Shooter did.The pinky of each victim is cut off and the phrase "Welcome to my World" is left with each victim.That information was never made public.Back then the police barely looked at author Malcolm Ayers as their serial killer because Lombardo fit so perfectly; however evidence points towards him being the "Eternally Yours" killer except lead detective Vera Demopoulos has doubts as everything is to simply perfect making her wonder about a frame, but proving it without dying is quite a task.

DIARY OF A SERIAL KILLER is appropriate titled because it was Lombardo's journal that ultimately convicted him.Readers will feel sorry for the mild-mannered obsessive-compulsive convict who does not come across as a psychopath.The cat and mouse game between the cop and the killer will fascinate the audience who will obsess over deciphering clues from the present.Ed Gaffney has a hit series with this fine thriller as an indication.

Harriet Klausner



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Review of A Knife Edge (Hardcover)

As the recovery ship Natusima waited, the Shinkai underwater research vessel is as deep any human had ever gone while exploring a Pacific trench off Japan.Dr. Hideo Tanaka and Professor Sean Boyle discover a frightening bacterium that each fear could devastate the planet.Soon afterward Tanaka is dead a victim of a shark attack.

Air Force Special Investigations Vincent Cooper is now assigned to the Department of Defense on DC.His on and off relationship with Anna Masters is off again as she feels he takes nothing serious; even when they worked together on THE DEATH TRUST case.However, he quickly found solace with a terific heated tryst with his superior officer, Lieutenant Colonel Clare Selwyn.The brass sends Vin to Japan to investigate the "accidental" death of the scientist.Before he finishes his Tanaka inquiry, as only the military could do he is assigned to investigate the parachute jump death of Master Sergeant Ruben "Wrong Way" Wright who became road kill in Florida; they served together in Afghanistan.

The frustrated Masters explains why the Vin Cooper CID procedurals are so much fun; he takes nothing serious as he quips and jokes even when facing deadly adversaries.In reality, Vin does believe his inquiries are usually important and tries to resolve them, but also feels strongly one can work diligently and hard, but have fun doing so.Fans will enjoy his antics in Japan, Florida and especially DC.

Harriet Klausner


Product Description
In this latest internationally bestselling thriller from David Rollins, author of The Death Trust, a bizarre murder leads an ex-Air Force special investigator into a shadow world of conspiracy, cover-up, and military secrecy where the difference between friend or foe is thin as...

A scientist meets a grisly end when he falls from a military research ship and is attacked by a two-ton white shark off the Japanese coast. By the time Special Investigator Vin Cooper reaches the scene, there's literally very little left to prove that the death wasn't an accident. But Cooper's instincts tell him that he's looking at murder and that in assigning him to this case someone might just as well have shoved him, too, into shark-infested waters.

What kind of top secret project could the military be engaged in that would require the services of a foremost marine biologist and a genetic researcher? The possibilities are ominous, but not as ominous as the truth. And then the unthinkable tragedy that everyone feared since 9/11 explodes with a terrifying sense of déjà vu-in San Francisco.

Suddenly, with a second scientist presumed dead, an unidentified charred body in the morgue, and the "accidental" parachute death of a friend in a Florida training field, Cooper is following a trail as narrow and as dangerous as a knife-edge-a trail that leads to what we all fear most: a secret "government" within our government whose sworn duty is to kill anyone who opposes them.

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Review of The Next Accident (Mass Market Paperback)

What would you do if someone has targeted you for the ultimate revenge?

This is the question that plagues FBI Special Agent Pierce Quincy. Quincy's daughter Amanda has been killed in an automobile accident, and the official story is while driving drunk she crashes her car, killing herself and an elderly man. Although Mandy had alcohol problems in the past, Quincy is not convinced this was an accident. Mandy had been clean for awhile, and all the events leading up to the accident don't add up, and Quincy wants answers, the only person he can turn to for help is Rainie Connor, an ex-cop haunted by a case that almost destroyed her.

Quincy, and Rainie not only had a professional relationship, but also a personal one, that is why Quincy knows he can trust her to find out what happened to his daughter.

As Rainie begins her investigation into the accident, a killer is slowly beginning his plan to destroy all the loved ones in Quincy's life.

While shocking new discoveries prove Mandy was killed, a second murder is committed, leaving Quincy as the lead suspect.

Desperately trying to prove his innocence, Quincy will enter into a twisted game with a psychopath with only one thing on his mind...revenge. And the next victim will be Quincy's only surviving daughter Kimberly.

Non-stop suspense, and masterful plot twists keep the pages turning in `The Next Accident'. Lisa Gardner has crafted a hot shocker with nail biting tension, and explosive action, peopled with engaging characters. No reader will be able to put this book down once begun. From page one the terrifying plot grabs you and doesn't let go.

After a string of EXCELLENT bestsellers, Ms. Gardner has given us a masterpiece of suspense, her best yet.

A MUST read!

Nick Gonnella



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