Category: F

4/5, AUTHOR, Book Review, F, Nonfiction, RATING, Read in 2010, READING CHALLENGES 2010, Review Book

REVIEW: Defending the Enemy by Elaine B. Fischel

Tara

Defending the Enemy: Justice For the WWII Japanese War Criminals
by Elaine B. Fischel

Copyright: 2009
Pages: 383
Rang: 4/5
Read: Dec. 17-21, 2010
Challenge: 2010 100+ Reading Challenge
Yearly Count: 65
Format: Print

First Line: 1946. World War II had ended and the United States was to occupy Japan.

Blurb: From 1946-48, Elaine B. Fischel worked in Tokyo alongside the American attorneys assigned to defend the Japanese war criminals held responsible for the torture and deaths of millions of civilians and prisoners of war. She recounts the post-WWII transition in Japan to the country’s occupation by their former enemy, and the subsequent surprise on the part of the Japanese citizenry that the U.S. allegiance to democracy meant providing a fair trial even to the men considered the most evil perpetrators or atrocities. In letters to her family at the time, the author as a young woman tries to explain her relationships with the defendants and her own surprise at the growing fondness she felt for many of the “villains” of WWII – particularly prime minister and general Hideki Tojo, known during the war as “Razor.” Defending the Enemy is also the story of a young woman who wants to make the most of her time in a country so full of beauty. Fischel interweaves the activities and intrigues of the trial alongside her tales of travel throughout Japan, her social engagements with high-ranking military and civilians, and her unique enduring relationships, such as her friendship with Emperor Hirohito’s brother, Prince Takamatsu. In doing so, Fischel illuminates the paradoxes inherent during this period in history.

Review: This book was sent to me for review by Phenix & Phenix Publicity. As a history major in college, I was intrigued by this book when it was pitched to me via email. World War II is not a point in our history that I have studied a great deal on, so I was immediately drawn in with the chance to learn something about this time period. I do not read a lot of memoirs, either, so I was also looking forward to getting out of my comfort zone. Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I liked how the author was able to include portions of her letters home to really tell the story of her time in Japan. Ms. Fischel must have been a prolific letter-writer during this time period, but that is great for readers like me who enjoy reading about what life was really like through primary documents, such as letters. I did have two slight problems with the book, though. First, I tired rather quickly about hearing how many men she “dated” during this time span. It seemed like every single letter that was quoted, she was talking about a different man, and how good looking he was. This was fine at first, but like I said, it got to be a little bit repetitive. I understand that she was one of very few women over there, but I’m not sure the point had to be hammered home as often as it was throughout the book. Second, I sometimes felt as if the author switched topics with lightning speed. At one point, on page 117, the author went from attending fancy parties to horseback riding with no real transition paragraph (or sentence!). This was always a big no-no when I was writing papers in college, so it’s something that sticks out whenever I read now. However, those two issues really didn’t take away from my overall enjoyment of this book. One thing that I really want to point out is how the author really had to handle her feelings toward the defendents in the case. When she was writing letters home to her parents, she had to pretty much conceal her true feelings towards the Japanese because public opinion of the Japanese back home in the United States was so poor. But at times, her true feelings would show through and she would try and explain to her family why she felt such a connection to the people she interacted with on a daily basis. I enjoyed seeing how she tried to explain to her family her thoughts and opinions. Overall, I would definitely recommend this book to any history buff. It’s a really interesting read.

AUTHOR, Book Review, F, Fiction, Read in 2009, READING CHALLENGES 2008

REVIEW: The Piper’s Sons by Bruce Chandler Fergusson

Tara

The Piper’s Sons
by Bruce Chandler Fergusson

Copyright: 1999
Pages: 424
Rating: 3/5
Read: Aug. 1-8, 2009
Challenge:  2009 100+ Reading Challenge; A Well-Rounded Challenge; RYOB 2009; Random Reading Challenge
Yearly Count: 40

First Line: Would I have gone after the girl if my own daughter, Emma, were still alive?

Paul Sinclair is a haunted man. His brother disappeared many years before. His daughter, Emma, died years ago. But there’s more … there’s a terrible secret in his family. It’s a secret that he will only begin to scratch the surface of, starting with the unexpected death of his father. In his family history is a man called the Pied Piper – a brutal killer who was never caught and was presumed dead. But is he? He seems to be getting closer to Paul and his wife and son. And it’s Paul who is determined to find exactly what is in his past, even if it means losing his family in the process.

Okay, so this was really a strange book. It started out great and had me hooked from the first page. Then I got to the middle and it kind of lulled. Then it picked up again and I was really starting to see what Paul was seeing. But then, in the last 100 pages it hit another lull and I felt bogged down by a lot of unimportant descriptions that seemed more like filler to me than anything of real importance. I just don’t know what to think about this book. I mean, it wasn’t bad, but it was definitely kind of weird. I had a lot of issues with the way Fergusson kept changing who was talking, I had trouble keeping up sometimes. Now I will say this, I hadn’t expected the ending. I was surprised by who the Pied Piper ended up being, but after I finished the last sentence and set the book down and tried to make sense of everything that happened in the last third of the book, I will admit – I was confused. I must have missed something because I never did see how he ended up with the ending he did. But overall it was an okay book, just a little weird that’s all.

AUTHOR, Author Debut, Book Review, F, Fiction, Read in 2009

The Osiris Alliance by Jack Ford

Tara

The Osiris Alliance
by Jack Ford

Copyright: 2009
Pages: 287
Rating: 5/5
Read: May 6-11, 2009
Challenge:  2009 100+ Reading Challenge; Countdown Challenge
Yearly Count: 22

First Line: The big bolt on the cell door slammed open, echoing like a thunderclap in the silence of the prison hallway.

When the US government gets wind of a possible nuclear arms smuggling deal going down, federal prosecutor Adam Stark opens an investigation. But when he begins to run into dead ends, he finds help from an unlikely source – television reporter Megan Delaney. Her own investigation into rumors surrounding the arms deal has led her to the Osiris Corporation, but she doesn’t know where it goes from there. Pairing up, they discover a small time crook who has an interesting piece of the puzzle – a stolen diary that gives all the answers and then some. But the diary’s owner wants his property back, and will go to great lengths to get it returned to him before Adam and Megan get their hands on it.

I received this book from Shelby Sledge with Phenix & Phenix Publicists to review. I have to admit that I was very excited to get this opportunity. I have seen the author, Mr. Ford, on television numerous times (I’m a former Court TV junkie!) and figured by the description of the book that this would be a really great read. I have to say, I was NOT disappointed!! I thought that the writing was concise and well done, the plot was intriguing and well thought out and the overall book was immaculate. I was entertained from start to finish – and let me tell you, I really enjoyed the historical twist to the book. I truly enjoyed this book and highly recommend it to anyone who wants a good read and I look forward to any future books that Mr. Ford writes.

AUTHOR, Book Review, F, Fiction, Read in 2009

Heartstopper by Joy Fielding

Tara

Heartstopper
by Joy Fielding

Copyright: 2007
Pages: 565
Rating: 4/5
Read: March 15-22, 2009
Challenge:  2009 100+ Reading Challenge; RYOB 2009; Celebrate the Author Challenge 2009
Yearly Count: 16

First Line: The girl is waking up.

Most people would argue that the most dangerous predators in Torrance, Florida, are the alligators. However, that was before a serial killer appeared to have arrived in town. No one really noticed when a runaway teenage girl disappeared; however when the pretty and popular Liana Martin is found murdered, the town goes into a panic. As the Sheriff, John Weber, digs into the cases he does not like what secrets he is finding out about his little town.

This is the first book by Joy Fielding that I have read, and trust me, this will not be the only book I ever read!! I really enjoyed this one a lot!! And believe me, when you get to the end you will be pleasantly surprised by who the bad guy is in this book!! I really can’t say enough good things about this book – give it a try if you haven’t already!!  🙂

Alex Cooper, AUTHOR, Book Review, F, Fiction, Read in 2009, SERIES

Final Jeopardy by Linda Fairstein

Tara

Final Jeopardy
by Linda Fairstein

Copyright: 1996
Pages: 310
Rating: 4/5
Read: Jan. 15-23, 2009
Challenge: 2009 RYOB Challenge; 2009 100+ Reading Challenge; 1st in a Series Challenge
Yearly Count: 4

First Line: I sat on my living room sofa at five o’clock in the morning with a copy of the mock-up of the front page of the day’s New York Post in my hand, looking at my own obituary.

When Alex Cooper wakes up one morning to find her obituary in the morning newspaper, she is stunned. But what really throws her for a loop is the fact that the body of a friend and Hollywood actress, Isabella Lascar, was misidentified as that of Alex’s and caused all this confusion in the first place. Isabella was shot while driving towards Alex’s vacation home. Was Isabella the target, or was it Alex? Alex knows that she has to get to the bottom of this and has a feeling that Isabella’s recent brush with a stalker is what is at the heart of this case, but her curiosity and innocence will land her squarely in the sights of a crazed killer.

I really don’t know what to think about this series. I have previously read Entombed which is about, I don’t know, the 6th or 7th in this series. But honestly, I’m not impressed nor unimpressed. I’m still undecided on what I really think about this series. This book was not as good as Entombed was. I’m sure I will continue reading this series, I’m just not in any real rush. I would recommend giving this series a try, but it’s not one that I would rave on and on about either.

AUTHOR, Author Debut, Book Review, F, Fiction, Read in 2008

In the Woods by Tana French

Tara

In the Woods
by Tana French

Copyright: 2007
Pages: 429
Rating: 3/5
Read: Nov. 3-9, 2008
Challenge: No challenge; personal read

First Line: Picture a summer stolen whole from some coming-of-age film set in small-town 1950s.

When Katy Devlin, a 12-year-old girl who is an up-and-coming dancer, is found murdered at a local archaeological dig, Detectives Rob Ryan and Cassie Maddox get the case. But what they find is harrowing at best. There are strange similarities between this case and a 20 year old case involving the disappearance of two young children from the same neighborhood. But what really makes this case difficult, is that for Ryan, those two kids from the previous case, were his best friends. It will take a lot out of these two Detectives to piece this case together and find the killer, and it will fracture their friendship and working relationship before Rob is technically forced off the case because of his connection. But when they finally figure the case out, it will be a shocker.

I wanted SO MUCH to love this book. But in the end, I just didn’t. I was disappointed. I tend to not like a lot of fluffy and pretty words, and I felt like this book had a lot of them. Just give me the story – I don’t want any long flowing descriptions that are pointless in the end. And I felt like this book had that problem. And the ending, oh my goodness … it was such a disappointment, it really and truly was! Maybe that’s because there really was no ending. I just wasn’t impressed by this book.

3/5, AUTHOR, Book Review, F, Fiction, Read in 2008

The Disappearance by J.F. Freedman

Tara
The Disappearance
by J.F. Freedman

Copyright: 1998
Pages: 486
Rating: 3/5
Read: July 1-8, 2008
Challenge: Initials Challenge

First Line: The weather had been raw and miserable virtually every day for two months; this was the worst winter in a couple of decades, way worse than those of ’95 or ’82, a continuous, relentless, El Nino-driven hard-falling rain from right after Christmas all through January and February, torrential sheets of cold piercing needles crashing down days at a time without cessation, soaking the ground past saturation, waterlogging everyone and everything.

When fourteen-year-old Emma Lancaster vanishes from her bedroom one night everyone panics. The daughter of a prominent media tycoon, something like this was not supposed to happen to their family. But when her body is found eight days later, all hell breaks loose. Although their are no immediate suspects, her death rips her family and friends apart. A year later when a close family friend is arrested after incriminating evidence is found in his car, it looks like an open-and-shut case. But it will end up being far from that. Defense attorney Luke Garrison has a funny feeling about this case and not even an assassins bullet will stop him from trying to discover the truth.

This book was okay for me. It was extremely slow in the beginning. But it picked up the pace. I found that about 200 pages into it was when it really picked up. The ending was twisted, I never would have guessed which way the author was going to go. I enjoyed the ending a lot. But like I said, it was just an average book.

4/5, Alex Cooper, AUTHOR, Book Review, F, Fiction, Read in 2008, SERIES

Entombed by Linda Fairstein

Tara
Entombed
by Linda Fairstein
Copyright: 2005
Pages: 500
Rating: 4/5
Read: June 21-24, 2008
Challenge: No challenge; personal read

First Line: I looked at the pool of dried blood that covered the third-floor landing of a brownstone on one of the safest residential blocks in Manhattan and wondered how the young woman who’d been left here to die yesterday, her chest pierced by a steak knife, could still be alive this afternoon.

Manhattan ADA Alex Cooper is horrified when she realizes that the Silk Stocking Rapist is back on the streets raping women. But she’s mystified when the skeleton of a young woman is unearthed standing upright in a wall in a Greenwich Village brownstone where Edgar Allan Poe once lived. It’s a scene that Poe could have written. It will take a lot of strength and patience in order to get to the bottom of this case. It takes Cooper and her coworkers to the Bronx Botanical Gardens where a secret society of Poe fans may hold all the answers to this macabre story.
This was my first Alex Cooper experience. While I enjoyed it, I felt it could have been better. The story line was great but in some places I found myself struggling to keep up. It seemed to me that she used way to many descriptions in some places where I really didn’t need them. I know that sounds weird, but I just want things to be plainly spelled out for me, I don’t need elaborate descriptions or anything and that’s what I got out of this book. Will I be looking more into this series, of course, but I also hope that it improves some.
4/5, AUTHOR, Book Review, F, Nonfiction, Read in 2008

Murder in Greenwich by Mark Fuhrman

Tara
Murder in Greenwich: Who Killed Martha Moxley
by Mark Fuhrman
Copyright: 1998/1999
Pages: 401
Rating: 4/5
Read: Jan. 18-21, 2008
Challenge: Triple Eight Challenge – True Crime Category; What’s in a Name challenge (Place category)
First Line: Although she had lived in Greenwich for only a little more than a year, Martha Moxley had made many friends.
Mark Fuhrman goes into great detail about the Martha Moxley murder case. In this book he really goes into how the Greenwich police bungled the case practically from day one. To say that they were unprepared and inexperienced for such a case would be quite an understatement. Fuhrman’s book really tore the case wide open. He made the world look at the case in a new light and made them want to solve this case regardless of what it took. He clearly states that Michael Skakel is the murderer and that suspicion needs to rest on him rather than the other suspects. I enjoyed this book. I’m glad that he took the initiative to dive into a case that was long cold and also something that most Greenwich residents wanted to forget about completely.

3/5, AUTHOR, Book Review, F, Nonfiction, Read in 2008

Laci by Michael Fleeman

Tara

Laci: Inside the Laci Peterson Murder
by Michael Fleeman

Copyright: 2003 – update 2004
Pages: 250
Rating: 3/5
Read: Jan. 4-5, 2008
Challenge: Triple Eight Challenge, True Crime category

First Line: ” ‘Hi, Mom.’ It was Scott Peterson on the line.

Michael Fleeman delves into the story of the Laci Peterson murder. In the short 250 pages the reader reads all the information that had already come out during the investigation itself. This book was a slight disappointment for myself. After reading Catherine Crier’s book, A Deadly Game and Sharon Rocha’s book, For Laci, this book was not up to par. There was no secret, hidden information like in Crier’s book. There was no heartrending, tear-jerking recollections like in Rocha’s book. This was just a straight repetition of the facts. It was dull in places, and never really grabbed my attention. For those who watched the events fold out on CourtTV and other stations, you already know everything in this book. It was just okay for me.