Reading for Me

Since my work as a traveling minstrel musician is in full swing again, I returned to audio books to help the miles pass a little faster. Gone was an exciting story featuring Detective Michael Bennett. Bennett and his large family are in the witness protection program because of threats from the criminal that Michael had helped to apprehend. The crime boss escaped custody and has declared war on southern California…..and hopes to annihilate Bennett in the process. This thriller is packed from beginning to end with scandal, intrigue, mystery, and pulse-raising suspense.

I especially enjoyed the descriptions of familiar locales from my days in southern California; Patterson’s words vividly paint with broad, colorful strokes. Because of the genre, the thriller contained a lot of violent scenes as well. Normally I’m not of fan of these scenes, but Patterson had me by the throat with his story. Perhaps I was just intrigued by the story, but I never felt as though the violence was overly graphic. The use of vulgarity was minimal; when foul language was employed, its impact was undeniable and appropriate for the scene. Once again, we see the power and artistry of Patterson’s use of words.

All in all, I was surprised that I enjoyed the book as much as I did. I don’t know that I would have enjoyed “reading” the book itself, but I found myself looking forward to my time in the car to find out how this tangled plot line was ultimately going to work out.

Last week, I decided to take a mini-vacation. Since summer is upon us and baseball season is under way, I chose the short novel Calico Joe for the drive to northwest Arkansas. I have seen the audiobook on the shelf many times, but always opted for other stories. I’m not sure why either. I enjoy Grisham’s novels, but wasn’t sure that a book about baseball was what I was looking for.

Calico Joe is the story of a baseball player from Calico Rock, Arkansas who makes his way into the major leagues as a player for the Chicago Cubs. His rookie season is nothing less than magical and the entire baseball world watches with fascination, including a young boy in suburban New York. The boy is fascinated with the skyrocketing success of Calico Joe. Requests for autographed pictures are sent to the young athlete — much to the distress of the boy’s father, a pitcher for the rival New York Mets. Calico Joe and the Cubs find themselves facing the Mets with the disgruntled pitcher on the mound. The infamous game that results will forever change the men’s careers, the lives of their families, and baseball itself. Calico Joe examines how a single moment in time can forever alter our destiny while exploring the healing power of the restoration of broken relationships.

Next time you find yourself on the road, consider picking up a copy of this short novel (roughly 4 hours in duration) and lose yourself in the game again. You’ll be glad you did.

I’ve gotten behind in my reviews and need to catch up. I actually finished listening to this book while driving back and forth during one of the last weeks of the semester. There was a lot of time on the road and a lot of time to listen.

I found Safe Haven a difficult book to listen to since it told the story of a woman who had run away from her abusive husband. To add to the irony, her husband was a police detective — one who was charged with protecting victims! I wasn’t fully aware of the subject matter when I selected the book. I am especially sensitive to the topic because domestic abuse has rocked the lives of members of my family. My sister and her two daughters suffered at the hands of an abusive monster for nearly 5 years before getting out. (Since many of my Christian friends read these posts, I’ll refrain from calling Gregory Prince her ex-husband the names that he truly deserves. Just understand that I feel that any man who fails to pay court-ordered child support is about as worthy of mercy as the cockroach I squashed under my sneaker. Perhaps someone in the Tennessee Department of Child Welfare will stumble across this post and actually investigate. A guy can hope anyway. Hey….it’s my blog and my opinions!)

Without revealing too much of the plot, when the abusive cop finally chases down his victim in her new home, I was frantic for her to get away from him. I drove extra miles out of my way to get her to a safe place in the story…..I couldn’t leave her hanging! When the animal got exactly what he deserved, I cheered out loud in my car. I was only saddened that he couldn’t suffer more.

It’s a riveting story. It didn’t bring out Christ-like mercy, grace, or forgiveness in me. It certainly felt good to see the bad guy get what he deserved though.

A movie adaptation was released earlier this year. I haven’t seen it and given my emotional response to the book, I’m not sure I want to see it.

John Puller is back in this exciting novel.  We first met the character of Puller in Zero Day. This time the Army special agent finds himself in Paradise, Florida to visit his aunt because of a mysterious letter she sent John Puller, Sr. Puller arrives in Florida to discover that his aunt has died, tragically drowning in a shallow pool in her backyard. As Puller investigates his aunt’s death, he discovers that things are not as they seem in Paradise and that several other senior citizens with connections to his aunt are also dying.

Opposite powerful, witty, and insightful John Puller is the character of Mecco, a Bulgarian giant-of-a-man who is in Florida defending the honor of his family and village. The two men’s paths cross in a most unexpected turn of events. Is Mecco a friend or foe?

Once again David Baldacci provides an intelligent thriller with plenty of exquisitely developed characters and enough plot twists and turns to keep your head spinning while you read this fast-paced thriller. You won’t be able to put it down without knowing what happens next! Wonderfully written as usual, Mr. Baldacci!

Lots of driving again has resulted in lots of reading…..of audio books, that is! I had to insert the humor right away as I don’t have a rave review of this book.

In Daniel Silva’s The Rembrandt Affair, the story revolves around a newly-rediscovered painting by the renown artist. The work’s history leads us back to the Nazi invasion of Holland and the atrocities enacted against the Jews of the nation. The painting is now being sought by international thugs who want to use its hidden secrets. The story was fast moving and intriguing. Sadly, I’ve just read a lot of works in this vein recently and it didn’t stand up to the other novels in keeping my attention.

From the master of thrillers comes this tale of a government assassin whose path unexpectedly crosses a 14-year-old girl running for her life after witnessing the brutal murders of her parents. As the multiple scenes unfold early in the story, it is easy to forget that we are dealing with Baldacci and assume that the images are completely irrelevant. An exploding bus, a ordered hit gone wrong, and the assassination of a Middle Eastern prince propel this fast-paced story to its unexpected conclusion.  It wasn’t my favorite book of the year, but once again this audio book made the miles pass without a moment of boredom.

I must be honest. I've always viewed the writing of James Patterson as second rate novels with mass market appeal that lacked any real substance. When I selected Private Games from the audio rack, my expectations were quite low. I discovered a well-wrought novel with lots of thoughtful writing and highly developed characters.

Private Games is set against the backdrop of the 2012 London Olympic Games. Just before the Opening Ceremonies, a member of the organizing committee is brutally murdered. A sports reporter at the Sun receives a letter signed by Kronos (of Greek mythology fame) taking responsibility for the homicide and claims that he is cleansing the Olympic Games of all manner of corruption. The Games are plagued with attacks by Kronos — including the poisoning of the American flag bearer and murder of Chinese gymnastic coaches during a medal ceremony — leading up to the fury of the Closing Ceremony. No event is safe. No security plan seems to be impossible for Kronos to infiltrate.

A private security expert is hot on the case. Through ever twisting plot developments and new revelations, Patterson's novel keeps you guessing until the book's stupendous conclusion. Even when Kronos' identity is revealed, the mystery continues to unravel and grips the reader with intrigue. Now I understand why Patterson's works are considered page turners! I'm not sure I would invest the time to read one of his books in the traditional manner, but as an audio book it was certainly a lot of fun and passed the miles quickly. I found myself looking for excuses to get back in my car and find out what was going to happen next!

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