Sacred Stone by Clive Cussler and Craig Dirgo (The Oregon Files, Book 2)

I was a bit concerned when I started this as many of the reviews commented on it being disjointed and hard to follow due to the large number of characters but I actually found that it worked well. The storyline was structured with multiple discrete episodes that each was pulled into the main storyline as needed.

The story itself was a fun, easy read with spy action and thriller components. I am looking forward to getting to know the crew of The Oregon better as I definitely see the people, and their various talents/personalities, as a major strength of the series.

The only significant issue I've had so far -with both books - is the the endings are a bit anticlimactic as the mission is completed.

Rating:  3.5 Stars

Golden Buddha by Clive Cussler and Craig Dirgo (The Oregon Files, Book 1)

A new Clive Cussler series for me. Different from the Dirk Pitt books I'm most familiar with, this has an ensemble cast. Yes, it still has the classic cars and the detailed technical descriptions, but you don't get the same character building. I am guessing that will happen as I get to know the members of the team better in later books. In any case, it was an interesting, enjoyable read that I would recommend to readers who enjoy action adventure (or as my favorite used bookstore labels it, Men's Fiction...lol)

Book Description: Juan Cabrillo's first adventure with the Oregon-a state of the art spy ship disguised as a nondescript lumber hauler-takes him and his crew into dangerous waters, as they try to put Tibet back in the hands of the Dalai Lama by striking a deal with the Russians and the Chinese.

Rating:  3.5 Stars

No Second Chance by Harlan Coben

This is the first Harlan Coben book I've read. His writing style was interesting and well-paced. The story generally unfolded naturally and didn't need the author to hurry it along or insert clues that the characters would have been unable to discover on their own. The storyline was good and kept me reading - not so many red herrings as to become frustrated. I will read more Harlan Coben.

The book desciption from Amazon:  Dr. Marc Seidman has been shot twice, his wife has been murdered, and his six-month-old daughter has been kidnapped. When he gets the ransom note - he knows he has only one chance to get this right. But there is nowhere he can turn and no one he can trust.

Rating:  3 Stars

Childhood's End by Arthur C. Clarke

The story line was interesting initially but I was actually really unhappy with the ending...

The interaction between the Humans and the Overlords was the best part of the story. The control they exerted without violence -- just the threat (or the show of what they COULD do if they chose to) was enough to make the humans fall into line. Even the "rebellious humans" were tame in what they tried to do.

The book and writing were good enough for me to rate it a 3 but that's the highest I could go. The book was a little over 300 pages and it still took me 15 days to read it.

Rating:  3 stars

Polanksi Brothers: Home of Eternal Rest by Dakota Cassidy

I've been reading Dakota Cassidy's Accidental Friends Series and the Hell Series and decided to check this book out when I saw it come up as a recommendation. It was a quick easy read - one where you saw the bad guy coming from a mile off and knew the ending by mid-way but still read to the end because it was light and cheesy and you wanted to make sure you were right. The sex scenes seemed a bit more explicit than usual but, in general, it was the typical witty paranormal fun that you can expect from a Dakota Cassidy book.

A bit of the book description from Amazon:  Take a walk on the wide side with USA Today bestselling author Dakota Cassidy’s Polanski Brothers: Home of Eternal Rest. Vampires, a funeral home, and a sleepy little town set the stage for murder with a whole lot of laugh-out-loud fun to keep you turning the pages. Detective McBride has his hands full as he tries to catch a murderer while dealing with the voice in his head…a deliciously sexy voice that has his libido working overtime. The voice of a vampire and maybe a murderer!

Rating:  2 Stars

Monster Island by David Wellington (Monster Island, Book 1)

I read Frostbite - the first of David Wellington's werewolf trilogy - and really liked it. I did not enjoy this one nearly as much. The addition of a more supernatural aspect to the Zombie premise was a bit too much. I would have preferred to stick with the straight-up zombie story rather than adding in Mael and his band of mummies.

The characters, other than Ayaan, are not really very likable and don't make you anxious for everything to turn out okay for them.

I will read others by Wellington -- and may even finish this trilogy as I think it was his earliest one and that may account for the issues in the first book. Unfortunately, it will be later as there are others in the queue that have been more interesting/enjoyable lately.

Rating:  2 Stars

The Female Man by Joanna Russ

This book was absolutely awful. The writing style was difficult to read; the characters were both uninteresting and unlikable; and there was too much of a "feminist" slant to the story. If I hadn't had to read it for a challenge, I would have given up after the first 25 pages.

Rating: 1 Star

Impulse by Frederick Ramsay

Frank Smith, famed writer of murder mysteries, is attending his 50th class reunion at Scott Academy. Twenty-five years ago at Scott, a group of young boys walked from the campus into the woods -- and disappeared. Frank is asked to look into the now long cold mystery. While Frank is in Baltimore investigating the disappearance of the boys, Detective Ledezma is in Arizona investigating the highly suspicious disappearance of Frank's wife into apparent thin air four years ago. Officer Ledezma is convinced that Smith has killed her and buried the body.

Ultimately, the story proved to be interesting but it took me the first third of the book to actually get into it. The main character, Frank, is not very likable early in the book. He has confrontations with his daughter who, though suspicious as to Frank's involvement in her mother's disappearance, wants a large favor from Frank. He also has run-ins with the school and his former classmates over their treatment of his brother and his own history at the school. The school administration is scheming to get Frank to leave a large "gift" to the school. Detective Ledezma is running a lazy - almost inept - investigation into Frank's wife's disappearance. Once Frank's investigation into the boys' disappearance begins, the story gets much better and I warmed up to Frank a bit more.

Rating: 3.75

Corsair by Clive Cussler and Jack du Brul (The Oregon Files, Book 6)

Corsair is the sixth book in the Oregon Files series by Clive Cussler and Jack du Brul. The Oregon Files follows the adventures of the Oregon, a seemingly dilapidated ship packed with sophisticated equipment and a wide array of weaponry, which is crewed by the best and brightest – all overseen by Juan Cabrillo, an ex-CIA officer with a flair for the dramatic.

The US Secretary of State’s plane has crashed on the way to a peace summit in Libya. It is initially assumed that she has died in the crash but there are indications that she may still be alive. The CIA hires Juan Cabrillo and his crew for an “off book” mission to locate and retrieve the Secretary.

This was not the strongest book in the series but it was an enjoyable read and delivered the usual mix of adventure, scheming and derring-do. I will definitely be continuing with the series, following the Oregon on its many adventures.

3.75 Stars

The Dry by Jane Harper (Aaron Falk, Book 1)

“Luke lied. You lied. Be at the funeral.”

Aaron Falk has returned to Kiewarra, his hometown that he hasn’t seen in 20 years. His best childhood friend, Luke, has apparently killed himself and his family in a murder-suicide and Falk has come to the funeral to pay his respects….as well as to find out what Luke’s father meant by that note he sent insisting that Aaron attend the funeral.

Twenty years ago, teenage Aaron and his father fled the small town of Kiewarra to get away from the threats and small-mindedness of the people who thought Aaron had killed a teenage girl. Now living in Melbourne, working as a Federal Agent investigating fiscal crimes, Aaron has left Kiewarra behind – or at least he thought he did. As soon as he showed up at the church for the funeral, the tongues started wagging and the sidelong glances were quickly cut away when Aaron met their eyes.

Luke’s mother is convinced that her son did not murder his family and has asked Aaron to stay around for a few days to look into it. Aaron reluctantly agrees.

The Dry takes place in Kiewarra a small town that has been ravaged by drought. The landscape is dry as tinder and livestock is slaughtered rather than wait for them to die of starvation and thirst. There is a sense of hopelessness and desperation in the people of the town as one after another, local farms are lost, small businesses are shuttered and there is no relief in sight. The author, Jane Harper, did an amazing job of setting the location of the story as I could envision the dead and dying fields, the haunted eyes of the people.

This is a great debut novel and is set to be the first in a series featuring Aaron Falk. I will definitely be looking for more from this author.

Rating: 4.5 stars

The Girl In The Ice by Robert Bryndza (DCI Erika Foster, Book 1)

A young woman is found frozen in the ice of a pond. Erika Foster is brought in to handle the investigation. Unfortunately for Erika, the young woman is the daughter of a well-connected English lord, making this a politically charged and high profile investigation.

As Erika begins to dig deeper into the life of the young woman and the circumstances of her death, she starts to connect the murder to that of 3 prostitutes - causing embarrassment for the socialite's family and consternation for her superiors in the police force. In addition, as Erika is chasing leads and hunting for the killer, the killer is stalking Erika.

Rating: 4 Stars

Catching Christmas by Terri Blackstock

Sydney Batson, a 1st year law associate, is juggling her career and taking care of her ailing grandmother, Callie. When her grandmother’s doctor’s appointment is scheduled for the same time Sydney has to be court, she arranges for a cab to take her grandmother to her appointment.

Cab driver, Finn Parrish needs to make the last of his rent money and hopes to catch some decent fares at the airport. However, his dispatcher sends him to pick up Callie for her appointment. When he arrives, he realizes that this fare may require more work than usual as the wheelchair bound woman appears confused and is prone to falling asleep at the drop of a hat.

Callie reminds Finn of his mother who he let down in the last days of her life and finds himself unable to say no when Callie keeps calling him for rides. Although Callie appears to need rides to run errands to finish her Christmas shopping, he soon realizes that her “errand” is to find her granddaughter a date for Christmas.

Catching Christmas is a cute story with interesting and lovable characters. Miss Callie is amazing and soon has Finn wrapped around her little finger doing things that he never would have thought to do. It definitely makes you remember what Christmas is all about.

Rating: 3.5 Stars

The Last Hours by Minette Walters (Black Death, Book 1)

It’s 1348 and the Black Death is moving across England. The people of Develish in Dorsetshire must band together to avoid the disease as well as to protect each other and the demesne from marauders.

Lady Anne’s husband, Sir Richard, has travelled to Bradmayne to broker a betrothal between its Lord and their daughter, Eleanor. While at Bradmayne, the residents and many of Sir Richard’s guard begin to fall ill. Fearing the worst, Sir Richard leaves for Develish. Upon his return, he finds that his wife has moved all of the serfs into the manor and has barred the door to any and all currently outside the walls. This turns out to be a wise choice on Lady Anne’s part as Sir Richard and his guards are soon taken by the plague.

Lady Anne, her daughter and their 200 serfs are safe behind the walls of the manor and surrounded by a moat. But are they really? Tensions rise as Lady Anne alienates her daughter and her steward with her decision to protect the serfs; the serfs become ill-tempered due to the enforced inactivity; and soon it is determined that the food supplies will be depleted within the month. However, the worse is yet to come when the body of a young serf is discovered.

The Last Hours is the first book in the Black Death series and while it could be read as a standalone, it definitely leaves the reader waiting for the next installment. That’s okay with me as I enjoyed the book and definitely plan to read the next when it is available.

I would like to thank Net Galley, Minette Walters and Allen & Unwin for the opportunity to read this story in exchange for an honest review.

Rating: 4 Stars