Category: B

5/5, AUTHOR, B, Book Review, Fiction, RATING, Read in 2011, READING CHALLENGES 2011, SERIES, The Camel Club

2011.34 REVIEW – Hell’s Corner by David Baldacci

Tara

Hell’s Corner
by David Baldacci

Copyright: 2010
Pages: 572
Rating: 5/5
Read: July 6 – July 16, 2011
Challenge:  TwentyEleven Challenge
Yearly Count: 34
Format: Print

First Line: Oliver Stone was counting seconds, an exercise that had always calmed him.

Blurb: John Carr, aka Oliver Stone – once the most skilled assassin his country ever had – stands in Lafayette Park in front of the White House. Inside, the British prime minister is being honored at a state dinner. Then, just as the prime minister’s motorcade leaves, a bomb explodes in the park, and in the chaotic aftermath Stone is given an urgent assignment: find those responsible. British MI-6 agent Mary Chapman becomes his partner in the search for the unknown attackers. But their opponents are elusive, skilled, and increasingly lethal. Worst of all, the park bombing may have been only the opening salvo in their plan. With nowhere else to turn, Stone enlists the help of the only people he knows he can trust: the Camel Club.

Review: This was such an exciting and thrilling roller coaster ride type of book. There were many twists and turns. I really enjoy the characters involved in the Camel Club. Plus Adelphia made another appearance with a very surprising revelation. I found Mary Chapman’s character to be very interesting, and I hope that we see her again, especially after what was revealed at the end of this book. This is not really a series that would read very easily as stand alones, so if you haven’t read this series, I would definitely start from the beginning. But overall, I felt like this was another really strong installment in this series that naturally left me waiting for the next one!

4/5, AUTHOR, B, Book Review, Fiction, RATING, Read in 2011, Review Book

2011.25 REVIEW – The Eighth Scroll by Laurence Brown

Tara

The Eighth Scroll 
by Laurence Brown

Copyright: 2008
Pages: 354
Rating: 4/5
Read: May 10 – 19, 2011
Challenge: No challenge
Yearly Count: 25
Format: E-Book

First Line: When death approaches, your life will play before your eyes.

Blurb: Stirring the flames of age-old controversies, The Eighth Scroll by Laurence B. Brown draws on the three Abrahamic faiths of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam to create an unbelievably dynamic and powerful story. Set in a world that teeters between orthodoxy and heresy, this thriller is packed with intrigue and adventure. When a Roman Catholic scholar involved in the Dead Sea Scrolls Project hides one of the scrolls because of there heretical message it contains, no one is the wiser until decades later, when a prominent archaeologist discovers reference to the scroll in an archaeological dig. This discovery spurs the world religions into a dangerous game of cat and mouse, in which all who seek the hidden scroll are mysteriously silenced, leaving the salvation of humankind to a father and son, who must either find the hidden scroll … or die trying.

Review: This e-book was sent to me courtesy of Gatekeepers Post for review. This is a little out of my comfort zone, I don’t read a lot of books that have religious aspects. Of course I’ve read The DaVinci Code (who hasn’t?) and I’ve seen this book in the book blog world has been compared to The DaVinci Code. Personally, I think this book was better. It was absolutely packed with action throughout the book. But I did have some issues with keeping up, I’m not sure if my mind was wandering while I was reading or what, but I found myself confused quite a few times. I wouldn’t recommend this book to everyone based on the religious aspect to the book and how it could affect people’s overall beliefs. Otherwise, I think it’s a great thriller and worth reading.

4/5, AUTHOR, B, Book Review, Fiction, RATING, Read in 2011, READING CHALLENGES 2011

2011.20 REVIEW – Killing Her Softly by Beverly Barton

Tara

Killing Her Softly
by Beverly Barton

Copyright: 2005
Pages: 404
Rating: 4/5
Read: April 17 – 22, 2011
Challenge:  TBR Dare; What’s in a Name 4
Yearly Count: 20
Format: Print

First Line: Lulu Vanderley was rich, blond and beautiful.

Blurb: The woman has been waiting impatiently on her satin sheets. Her lover knows exactly how to satisfy her. But this time, he has something else planned … something that will really take her breath away. In the courtroom, defense lawyer Quinn Cortez has a reputation as a ruthless predator who always gets what he wants. In the bedroom, it’s no different. Quinn is an accomplished seducer with a long list of conquests. But now, someone has brutally slaughtered one of them, and Quinn has no memory of the night he was found in her home. Annabelle Vanderley wants justice for her murdered cousin, and if Quinn Cortez swears he can find the true killer, she’s willing to give him the benefit of a doubt. But then another body is discovered … and another … each victim an ex-lover of Quinn’s. Now, consumed by dread, Annabelle wonders just how close she may be to a twisted psychopath for whom her pain would be the ultimate pleasure.

Review: I have mixed feelings about this book. I rated it a 4 out of 5 based solely on the plot line. However, there was more romance than I prefer in my books with a woman who falls head over heels in love with a suspected murderer almost immediately. (I believe it was last month when there was a Top Ten Tuesday that dealt with pet peeves and stupid women who fall in love made the list. Yeah, you can re-visit that post here.) Other than that one issue with this book, I really enjoyed this. I spent the entire book trying to figure out who the bad guy was. I went back and forth countless times trying to figure it out, and honestly, I didn’t get it until it was revealed. So I really enjoyed that aspect of the book. It was very suspenseful. I know this book is listed as romantic suspense, but I’ve read other Barton books and have never been that bothered by the romance, maybe this book had more than usual – either that or I just never liked Annabelle’s character. It also didn’t help that I wasn’t real fond of Quinn Cortez’s character either, he was too much of a slimy womanizer – although in the end he was definitely reformed. I don’t know, the best way I can really describe my opinion of this book is that I’m torn.

4/5, AUTHOR, B, Book Review, Cotton Malone, Fiction, RATING, Read in 2011, READING CHALLENGES 2011, SERIES

2011.19 REVIEW – The Alexandria Link by Steve Berry

Tara

The Alexandria Link
by Steve Berry

Copyright: 2007
Pages: 485
Rating: 4/5
Read: April 8 – 17, 2011
Challenge:  TBR Dare; TwentyEleven Challenge
Yearly Count: 19
Format: Print

First Line: George Haddad’s patience ended as he glared at the man bound to the chair.

Blurb: “You have something I want. You’re the only person on earth who knows where to find it. Go get it. You have 72 hours. If I don’t hear from you, you will be childless.” Cotton Malone’s teenage son has been kidnapped, and an anonymous e-mail from those responsible proves they will stop at nothing to get their hands on a coveted prize: the legendary lost Library of Alexandria, which vanished 1,500 years ago. Within that vast reserve of 500,000 manuscripts, one holds the key to ultimate power – a revelation so shocking it could fundamentally alter modern geopolitics. Pursued by a lethal mercenary, Malone crosses the globe in search of this vast bounty of wisdom. His quest will lead him to England and Portugal, even to the highest levels of American government – and the shattering outcome, deep in the Sinai desert, will have worldwide repercussions.

Review: The last 200 pages of this book made the first 300 pages that I suffered through made this book entirely worth it. There were spots that were just too much for me. I am not a religious person and I found myself skipping over whole passages discussing the Bible and the Holy Land and how the Bible was fundamentally changed in translation. However, I still enjoyed this book. And honestly, I loved the conspiracy part of the book. And once the climax occurred, the book flew by for me. It was just getting to that point that was a little difficult to me. But I toughed it out because I remembered how much I enjoyed the first Cotton Malone book, The Templar Legacy, and I was just patiently waiting for the break-neck thrill ride that I know Steve Berry is capable of writing to happen. I’m glad I stuck with it, because it was honestly a great ending. I already have the third book in this series on my shelf and I hope to get to it quicker than I got to the second book after the first. I would highly recommend this series to anyone who enjoys fast-paced thrill-packed adventure!

5/5, AUTHOR, B, Book Review, Fiction, RATING, Read in 2011, READING CHALLENGES 2011

2011.6 REVIEW – Divine Justice by David Baldacci

Tara

Divine Justice
by David Baldacci

Copyright: 2008
Pages: 523
Rating: 5/5
Read: Jan. 28 – Feb. 2 , 2011
Challenge: Mystery & Suspense Challenge 2011 ; TBR Dare
Yearly Count: 6
Format: Print

First Line: The Chesapeake Bay is America’s largest estuary.

Blurb: Known by his alias, “Oliver Stone,” John Carr is the most wanted man in America. With two pulls of the trigger, the men who destroyed Stone’s life and kept him in the shadows were finally silenced. But his freedom comes at a steep price: The assassinations he carried out prompt the highest levels of the U.S. government to unleash a massive manhunt. Yet behind the scenes, master spy Macklin Hayes is playing a very personal game of cat and mouse. He, more than anyone else, wants John Carr dead. With their friend and unofficial leader in hiding, the members of the Camel Club risk everything to save him. Now as the hunters close in, Stone’s flight from the demons of his past will take him from the power corridors of Washington, D.C., to the coal-mining town of Divine, Virginia – and into a world every bit as bloody and lethal as the one he left behind.

Review: SPOILERS POSSIBLE. This is the fourth book in the Camel Club series. I must say: the trouble that Oliver Stone manages to find himself in book after book is just amazing! He might have been on the run in this installment, but no one with luck like Oliver could have ever ended up in a town like Divine, Virginia! I must admit when the entire Divine storyline began, I was confused. I didn’t understand where in the world Mr. Baldacci was going. But in the end, I really enjoyed the storyline. It made the book so much more believable. I loved the introduction of a couple of new characters who could possibly make an appearance in the next book (and possibly more books?). I will be very interested in knowing what happens between Oliver and Abby. I have devoured this series these past couple of months. The latest book, Hell’s Corner, is available at my library (with a small waitlist), but I have vowed to read only from my TBR pile until April, so it will be a while before I can get to the next one in this series, but I’m axiously awaiting that! Definitely looking forward to more of the Camel Club!

4/5, AUTHOR, B, Book Review, Fiction, RATING, Read in 2010, READING CHALLENGES 2010, SERIES, The Camel Club

REVIEW: Stone Cold by David Baldacci

Tara

Stone Cold
by David Baldacci

Copyright: 2007
Pages: 511
Rang: 4/5
Read: Dec. 7-16, 2010
Challenge: 2010 100+ Reading Challenge; RYOB 2010
Yearly Count: 64
Format: Print

First Line: Harry Finn rose as usual at six-thirty, made coffee, let the dog out into the fenced backyard for its morning constitutional, showered, shaved, woke the kids for school and oversaw that complicated operation for the next half hour as breakfasts wer gulped, backpacks and shoes grabbed and arguments started and settled.

Blurb: Oliver Stone, the leader of the mysterious group that calls itself the Camel Club, is both feared and respected. Keeping a vigilant watch over our leaaders in Washington, D.C., the club has won over allies, but it has also made some formidable enemies… Annabelle Conroy, an honorary member of the Camel Club, is the greatest con artist of her generation. As an old, powerful mark hunts her down and the Camel Club tries to protect her, a new opponent suddenly arises. One by one, men from Stone’s shadowy past turn up dead. Behind this slaughter stands one man: Harry Finn. To almost all who know him, he’s a loving father and husband who uses his skills to keep America safe. But Finn is also an unstoppable killer who now sets his lethal bull’s-eye on Oliver Stone. And with Harry Finn, Stone may well have met his match.

Review: This is the third installment in the Camel Club series. These books just keep getting better and better. I can’t get enough of them. This book, in particular, was really good. I was glad that the readers were finally given more insight into the man behind Oliver Stone – “John Carr.” What I found really surprising was that this book raised just as many questions as it answered in regards to Oliver and his shadowy past. But that’s okay with me – I love the intrigue behind Oliver’s character! It was very sad to see one of the founding members of the Club not make it in this book, but I think that that really opens up things into regards of where the next book will go from here. The ending is especially intriguing, because it is really a big question mark ending – and I love those! It always makes me wanting more … and with this series, I want more right now! I already have the next book in this series, Divine Justice, waiting for me on my shelves. I know it won’t be very long until I get around to it, simply because I’m eager to see where the Camel Club goes next. What kind of trouble will they get into? What kind of trouble will find them?!

4.5/5, AUTHOR, B, Book Review, Fiction, RATING, Read in 2010, READING CHALLENGES 2010, The Camel Club

REVIEW: The Collectors by David Baldacci

Tara

The Collectors
by David Baldacci

Copyright: 2006
Pages: 511
Rating: 4.5/5
Read: Sept. 20-Oct. 5, 2010
Challenge: 2010 100+ Reading Challenge; Countdown Challenge 2010; RYOB 2010
Yearly Count: 52

First Line: Roger Seagraves walked out of the U.S. Capitol after an interesting meeting that, surprisngly, had had little to do with politics.

The assassination of the Speaker of the House of Representatives has rocked the nation. And the Camel Club has found a chillingly interesting connection between his death and the death of the director of the Library of Congress’s Rare Books and Special Collections Division. Oliver Stone, the Camel Club’s unofficial leader has found that someone is selling secrets to some of America’s worst enemies. When Annabelle Conroy, the greatest con artist of her generation breezes through town for the funeral of the Library of Congress’s director, her ex-husband, she intrigues Oliver Stone for many different reasons. But she will eventually join forces with the Camel Club in order to find out who is behind the murder. The Camel Club will need all the help they can get because the people that they are up against have no intentions of being caught or leaving any witnesses.

I thoroughly enjoyed The Camel Club when I read it a few months back, and this book, the second in the series, was just as good in my opinion. I have really taken to the characters involved in the Camel Club, and I also really enjoy David Baldacci’s writing. I don’t really have any bad things to say about this book, I’m interested in continuing this series to see if we learn more about who Oliver truly is (or was, I should say). I highly recommend this series to anyone.

4/5, AUTHOR, B, Book Review, Fiction, RATING, Read in 2010, READING CHALLENGES 2010, SERIES, The Camel Club

REVIEW: The Camel Club by David Baldacci

Tara

The Camel Club
by David Baldacci

Copyright: 2005
Pages: 593
Rating: 4/5
Read: May 1-7, 2010
Challenge: 2010 100+ Reading Challenge; Countdown Challenge 2010; Random Reading Challenge;  RYOB 2010
Yearly Count: 22

First Line: The Chevy Suburban sped down the road, enveloped by the hushed darkness of the Virginia countryside.

There is a secret club in Washington. It’s members are four rather eccentric guys who study conspiracy theories and try to find out the truth behind certain governmental actions. They are led by Oliver Stone, a very mysterious man. Their efforts have very little impact on current events until they witness a murder. Determined to keep themselves alive and solve the murder, they have to work together with a somewhat disgraced Secret Service agent in order to keep the country from spiraling into an uncontrollable war of unimaginable proportions.

This is my first time reading David Baldacci (even though I have like 6 or 7 of his books.) This is a book that I’ve had on my shelf for more than a couple of years now and one that I have actually picked up and put aside twice before. The third time was definitely a charm for me and I am so glad that I was finally able to read this book because I did enjoy it. I must say that overall I enjoyed this book. However, I thought that it had a slow start (which might explain why I had previous trouble getting into this book). I also had trouble with all the flip-flopping back and forth between the different story lines in the beginning of the book. It took me about halfway through it before I was really able to get a good grasp on what exactly was going on and who all the characters really were. But I must say I was intrigued by the storyline itself, it was a very good plot in my opinion.

4/5, AUTHOR, B, Book Review, Fiction, RATING, Read in 2010, READING CHALLENGES 2010

REVIEW: Carved in Bone by Jefferson Bass

Tara

Carved in Bone
by Jefferson Bass

Copyright: 2006
Pages: 317
Rating: 4/5
Read: Apr. 24-27, 2010
Challenge: 2010 100+ Reading Challenge; Countdown Challenge 2010; RYOB 2010
Yearly Count: 20

First Line: I picked up the hunting knife with my left hand and tested its heft, then shifted it to my right hand to compare.

Anthropologist Dr. Bill Brockton has spent his career building the Body Farm. But now he’s being called upon to solve the murder of a young woman in a remote mountain community. This community is very insular and are not pleased when Brockton comes around investigating. A long-buried secret will come to a head when Dr. Brockton’s investigation threatens to open doors that most people would prefer to keep closed.

This is the first in the Body Farm series. Overall I enjoyed it, but I really did have a few issues with the technicality of it all. First of all, at one point Dr. Brockton, is essentially processing a crime scene. I had a bit of a problem with that because Dr. Brockton is an anthropologist, not a CSI or police officer. Also the overall character of Dr. Brockton seemed a little underdeveloped to me. I’m sure it will come together better in later books in this series, but it did bother me a little bit. Overall though, I enjoyed this book and am looking forward to continuing on with this series, but I think it could have been better.

4/5, AUTHOR, B, Book Review, Fiction, RATING, Read in 2010, READING CHALLENGES 2010

REVIEW: The Dying Game by Beverly Barton

Tara

The Dying Game
by Beverly Barton

Copyright: 2007
Pages: 440
Rating: 4/5
Read: Apr. 9-13, 2010
Challenge: 2010 100+ Reading Challenge; Countdown Challenge 2010; Random Reading Challenge; RYOB 2010; Thriller & Suspense Challenge 2010
Yearly Count: 17

First Line: The intensely bright lights blinded her.

It’s the ultimate game. The rules are simple: to win, you have to kill. To lose, you will have to die. The victims are former beauty queens who are found brutally murdered. Lindsay McAllister was a rookie detective when her first case was the murder of Judd Walker’s wife. The murder shattered Judd and really affected Lindsay as well. Now, years later, Lindsay has to tell Judd that his wife’s murderer is killing again. As the body count continues to rise, Lindsay realizes that the only way she will ever stop this killer is to play the game herself.

I’ve only read one other Beverly Barton book a few years ago, but I have had this one on my shelf for some time. I was definitely not disappointed. I really fell in love with the characters – I’m intrigued by who Griffin Powell is and what is in his past. I thought that the plot was really interesting. I don’t know how all these authors can come up with so many different plots, it’s really awesome for people like me who devour mysteries as often as I can! Overall, I would really recommend this book. It’s not for the faint of heart, but it wasn’t too gruesome either. I’m really looking forward to getting more into the Griffin Powell series and reading more Beverly Barton books in the future!