Review 689: Five

Five by Ilona Bannister
My rating: 3 of 5 stars



A different sort of thriller type book. Takes place in the underground tube of London and the reader is told one of these five main characters are going to die with the next train coming into the station in five minutes.

The five characters are a mother with her uncontrollable child, and a man approaching her, who appears to be shady. Later we find out they do know each other very well. The other two characters are an older lady who ends up having a heart attack and a young man who helps her. There are several other characters in the train station, several others that help out of the catastrophe not just of the woman on the ground, as several people end up on the tracks.

Most of the book is the backstory of each of the five main characters, while in-between is the current moment at the tube station where there is quite a lot of action going on. The book poses morality question for the reader, which of these characters do you want to die? All have flaws that may have the reader rooting for one character to not make it.

With the way it was presented and the author breaking the fourth wall too often, I wasn't much of a fan of the style. It was a quick read.

Review 684: Before I Go to Sleep

Before I Go to Sleep by S.J. Watson
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Memory is always an interesting topic to me since it is ever changing and often two people will remember the same event differently to some extent. But what if you can’t remember much at all. This book is about someone who loses most of her memory entirely. Who are you if you don’t remember what happened yesterday, or last year, or the last twenty years?

Christine has that problem. She wakes up and is confused, shocked by where she is and who is sleeping next to her. Her husband has to tell her his name, they are married, and the other basics of her life.

Now Christine is keeping a journal, writing down what she learns. She doesn’t remember so her doctor calls her early every morning and tells her where to find her journal. For now, the doctor treating her and the journal are secrets from her husband. As Christine is slowly realizing, he lies to her. Something isn’t right.

The book moves fairly quickly, and I was propelled along with it, wanting to know what is going on. I figured some of it out much earlier than the book let on, so the last portion was a bit drawn out for me. Overall, it was a decent read.

Review 335: Upgrade

Upgrade by Blake Crouch
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Having read this book some months ago, I found it has stayed with me. While part of the premise of the book may be similar to “Flowers for Algernon” it is a vastly different book. One may say the question this book is attempting to answer is: what happens when humans become super-intelligent?

The book is fast-paced, and I read it quickly. There is a bit more “preachiness” than one would want, and there are some similar tropes, or formula to the overall arc of the book. Yet, there are a couple of themes that can be pulled out and are concepts worthy of deeper consideration. 

The obvious one, yes, what if humans become super smart, would we lose our humanity, our emotional connection to others? This may be pertinent as we approach technological advances, with computer AI and possible integrating humans with computers. Also, one could ask: why allow something to happen to others that would vastly change their life without their consent? Even if it is for the better? And ultimately, is it better?

The end may leave an opening for a sequel, but we shall see. If there is one, I will definitely grab that book.

Read in March, review posted in July.

Review 323: The Quantum Spy

The Quantum Spy by David Ignatius
My rating: 3.5 of 5 stars

This is a full-on spy novel, and not what I typically would read. I pulled this out of my bookshelves a few days ago looking for a quick read, and it definitely was that; fast paced and intriguing. Yet the language style felt somewhat stilted at times, more like what a reporter would write instead of a novelist. That said the realism of the spy world was totally believable.

The basis of the story is the Unites States and China both trying to get a working quantum computer first. The positive development in this area is firmly in the United States (according to this book), while Russia went down a dead-end and is still looking for a way out. China has been advancing due to a mole in the CIA. The small US/CIA team is trying to figure out and catch the mole, while also doing serious damage to the Chinese Ministry of State Security. One of the main characters is Harris Chang an American with Chinese ancestry, whose background plays an extremely important role.

For my own reading this book helped pull me out of a slight reading slump, which is exactly what I hoped for.

I received a free copy of this book at a library conference. I was not required to write a review, but felt like it and, of course, the above opinions are my own.

Review 302: Hummingbird Salamander

Hummingbird Salamander by Jeff VanderMeer
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I haven’t read any of VanderMeer’s previous books, but I’ve heard of them, being some weird ecological horror type book maybe. This one seemed less horror-like, I guessed from the brief descriptions. Basically didn’t know what I was getting into. Perhaps that didn’t help, but the book itself was keeping you in the dark about what is going on, so I was confused for much of the book, and didn’t really enjoy that.

At the end the book felt like a thriller, or quest type book, where one clue leads to the next, and you have to be ahead of the bad guys that keep trying to kill you or those around you because they think they know something. Somewhat strange book for me. But I kept going trying to figure this thing out.

In the preface the main character says, “you can call me Jane. Jane Smith. If that helps.” She seems to be a typical suburban woman; married, one teenage kid and a job. The job is in a male dominated area, being a manger in the security industry (not fully defined) which helps companies be more secure. This brings along a level of knowledge and paranoia about privacy and tracking that most people likely don’t have. Add in her unusual size being tall, bulky, lots of muscle, an ex-wrestler turned weightlifter, maybe Jane isn’t so average.

Jane follows these clues to the detriment of her job, then her family. Then things get even worse. There were some interesting bits that remained with me, like how she named inanimate, yet important objects, like the huge purse had the name shovel pig and a burner phone named bog. The book seemed to have some statement on the upcoming environmental disaster but was so vague, difficult to get grounded into that.

Not sure if the style of this book is typical of VanderMeer, if it is I’ll likely avoid any future book. Didn't like the being confused nearly the entire time.

Review 135: Tear Me Apart

Tear Me Apart by J.T. Ellison
My rating: 2 of 5 stars


When picking up this book I didn't expect much, but got even less than that. It was good for a quick read, but it was very predictable. Some of the relationships didn't seem all that real to me, it was off. The book was also much longer than it needed to be, some of the details were just not needed and so many pages could have been taken out. The end of the book talked about how this book took a long time to write, was rewritten many times, and I'm sure this version is a much improved one, but it needed more work.

I probably should have ditched this book, not finished, but decided to stick it out to the end. You never know with this genre if there's some weird twist at the end, or something that makes it all worth it. Not really here. There's an attempt at a twist, but wasn't surprising and wasn't all that much anyway.


I received a free copy of this book at a library conference. I was not required to write a review, but felt like it and, of course, the above opinions are my own.

Review 121: Our House

Our House by Louise Candlish
My rating: 3 of 5 stars



I was looking for something to take my mind off the latest developments in the world. Things have been a bit crazy! This book did that job to some extent. It did help me to relax. And at times I became engrossed in the story. I wouldn’t say this was a great book, and the middle of the book really bogged down for me. It felt like the book easily could have cut out 100 pages and would be a better book. At times I only continued on reading, not really out of interest in the story, but solely due to the location, taking place in London. Silly reason!

The way the story is told in three view points. There is current time, Bram’s story as word document, and “Fi’s story” as a transcript for an episode of The Victim. The format is okay, but at some point I wondered if it would be a good read to just get her story first, as if you are the one listening to a show. I guess if the book was really good, that would be an interesting exercise, but no way now.

The ending of the book did not disappoint, so there’s that.



I received a free copy of this book at a library conference. I was not required to write a review, but felt like it and, of course, the above opinions are my own.

Review 89: Every Stolen Breath

Every Stolen Breath by Kimberly Gabriel
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Wow, this book is a fast paced nail bitter. The main character, Lia is trying to finish what her Dad started, and got him killed. She wants his killers brought to justice. Chicago is under the threat of The Swarm, who attack seemingly random tourists by a mob of teenagers beating up a person to death. Lia's wants to prove her dad was killed in retaliation in trying to find the out who at the head of The Swarm.

Before we come to the conclusion of the book more people will die, Lia is convinced she is next, yet trying to figure them out before they take another victim, or herself.

This is the type of book you don't want to put down. While it was exciting and full of tension, I often wanted to scream at Lia. She makes poor choices, she gets herself into situations that perhaps more rational people would not be in. Yet, with the PTSD going on, you can almost forgive her. Add in a unique quality to the book, the level of Lia's asthma. It makes you think she would take it easier in life, but she doesn't let anything hold her back.

If you like thrillers, this is not a book to miss.

Review 80: The Flicker Men

The Flicker Men by Ted Kosmatka
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This was a somewhat decent science novel that became a thriller. At that point it also became a little odd, introducing characters that weren't of this "world." Some parts I had really suspend the believably factor. (Categorizing for my gr shelves me has been difficult.)

There were parts that become predictable to all thriller type, running away from the bad guys who seem to be from a shadow organization with all of the abilities, money, etc at their disposal. No way that our main character could fight against them, there is nowhere to hide, and yet...

Well, anyway, I enjoyed the story and the physics and intrigue. The first part of the book is the better written part. And I was disappointed by the ending, yet the book was better than many. I would look for another book by the author, especially if it has a science "problem" at it's core.

I listened to the audiobook and enjoyed the narration.

Review 56: The Glass Woman

The Glass Woman by Caroline Lea
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This was a quick read! This book took hold of me and wouldn't let go until the end. Caroline Lea certainly wrote the tension right. Yet I didn't feel that the characters were true to themselves throughout the book.

This was an atmospheric book. Set in 1686 in Iceland during the last few months of that year. We have Rosa who is newly married and her husband that demands and expects with harsh looks, but doesn't hit. Yet Rosa cowers.

This is a time of changing religions, the old ways must be put aside now known as a crime of witchcraft with a punishment of burning. Yet the comfort is hard to let go.

All is not as it seems on the surface. There were a few turns in the story I found were nearly unbelievable. Perhaps I was expecting too much. Certainly it read fast, yet my experience felt discordance with portions, which amplified at the end.


I received a free copy of this book at a library conference. I was not required to write a review, but felt like it and, of course, the above opinions are my own.

Review 31: The Never Game

The Never Game by Jeffery Deaver
My rating: 3.5 of 5 stars

This is a fast paced action mystery book that takes place in Silicon Valley. Colter Shaw is the main character, who also is a mystery to most who meet him. Colter’s line of work is collecting rewards when offered for missing persons mostly. He’s not a bounty hunter or a private investigator, nor has he ever served in the military or police, yet he’s been trained very well. His father, Ashton Shaw home schooled his three children and taught them survivalist tactics.

The book starts about finding a missing college girl that the police think is more a runaway than kidnapping. Shaw finds the girl, and the police finally take it serious, particularly when another kidnapping happens in a similar way. They turn out to be reenacting a video game called The Whispering Man.

The author Deaver is not new to writing books. With over 30 books to his name, the most popular may be The Bone Collector. Deaver knows how to write a fast paced book. At first the writing style seemed clipped to me, short, too abrupt, almost like writing short-hand. I wondered if this is due to the many books he’s already written that some parts become tedious or seems to him not necessary. This was most pronounced with early conversations. Like the characters all spoke in the same clipped way. It didn’t feel natural to me.

By the end of the book I was hooked and could hardly put the book down, wanting to know what happens next. There were a few misdirection and teases so I was a little surprised by the end. We also have a set up for an ongoing personal mystery of Colter’s, which surrounds his father and his death. This book can easily stand alone, but also is a good set up for a new character to follow and a series.

This was the first book I've read by Jeffrey Deaver. While he may write good thriller/mystery books that is generally not my preferred genre. People who enjoy these types of book may well enjoy this one, likely more than myself.

Thanks to G.P.Putnams' Sons/Penguin Random House and NetGalley for an uncorrected electronic advance review copy of this book.

Review 22: Reamde

Reamde by Neal Stephenson
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

What compelled me to read this book is the billing of a gaming world with some intrigue. I've played video games, but not very much and even less on online multiplayer games. This book has in the center a fictional one T'Rain that is modeled after World of Warcraft, although designed to be friendly to gold farmers and the ability to turn that into real world cash. The designer of this game and company 9592 is Richard Forthrast, who is mega-rich.

Soon after the opening of the book and the family annual reunion gathering, Richard's niece Zula gets caught up into a huge mess. It starts with her boyfriend Peter, while she is in the middle of breaking up with him and gathering her things, the Russian mob show up due to a virus called Reamde (think read me with the letters mixed). The Russians then start a hunt for who created this virus and they go around the world, kidnapped. Not long into the book the bigger threat comes from jihad terrorists determined to kill as many westerners as possible.

The book has a cast of characters that grows as the book progresses, although sticks with a core group and you get a good sense of who these people are and their motivations. The fictional game T'Rain does play a part in the book but it's more about the terrorists and their goals, along with the goals of stopping them and finding Zula, meanwhile Zula is trying to stay alive.

It's got some humor and intrigue, but it really doesn't need over 1,000 pages to tell this story. Lots of extra descriptions and asides that are basically known to anyone. It became a marathon book and one to strive to finish. The payoff in the end isn't as grand as one would like for the epic nature of the book, but there is some interesting passages near the end.

Book rating: 3.5

Review 18: The River

The River by Peter Heller
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This was a wild ride. The book starts out slow enough, but soon you know things are going to go amiss for these two good friends taking a long summer to paddle through lakes and a river to the Hudson Bay. The first major sign is the smell of smoke. After climbing up a tree to get a look they discover there is a massive forest fire that will become a problem for them. Soon after they run into another couple of guys taking it easy, with whiskey and a motor on their small craft. It makes you wonder if the book is going into a deliverance type direction. But it keeps shifting.

That is what surprised me most about this book, it kept shifting like a river might. You suspect on thing is going to happen, or where this going, then it changes. There is definite action and a little suspense, but this is mainly a thoughtful book. With very little dialogue between the two friends, Wynn and Jack, they are both meditative. We get most information from thoughts in their heads.

One problem I did have with the book is the two main characters are hard to differentiate at first, since the book shifts point of view frequently. It's disorientating at times, particularly when you are trying to learn about who is Jack and Wynn. I was a good way in before I really could distinguish their different personalities and backgrounds, which is why the book rating went down slightly for me. Despite that this was a good book. I could see myself reading it again, now that I know the full story. It's one of those books you can re-read. A mark of a good book.


Thanks to Knopf Publishing and NetGalley for an uncorrected electronic advance review copy of this book.

Review 13: Beautiful Bad

Beautiful Bad by Annie Ward
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

I entered this book with very little information on what it was about, except I knew it would be a "thriller". At first I was surprised by the two girls, Maddie and her best friend Joanna, living abroad in out of the way countries: Bulgaria and Macedonia. Soon Maddie meets her future British husband at a fund raiser. I started to think we'd have Eastern European travel type story, no the reality of the book was quite different.

The book starts in "present time" where there was a domestic disturbance, a 911 call. When the police arrive there is blood, lots of blood.

Then we go to ten weeks before and start counting down towards the present, interspersed with the story line of back when Ian and Maddie first meet. Ian was in the British Army at the time there was instant attraction. In the countdown to present time we learn early on Ian has a hard time with what he's seen being a soldier, and Maddie seems to have anxiety about many things, which started after he head being smashed. The story of how that happened is part of the mystery, the other part is what happened that made that 911 call necessary.

There is a lot of shifting, between time lines, and we have Ian's perspective a few times, although not many, it is mainly Maddie's. Her friend Joanna plays and important role as well, since she was a good friend when Ian comes into their lives, yet not in the present time living in Kansas. I wished to hear from Joanna.

I had several problems with the book. The shift in time lines wasn't a problem per se, but it was distracting at times. There was a continuity error, later in the book. Hopefully this has been fixed (I read an advance review copy). Seemed like there was some repetition, and yes the book was longer than it needed. It felt that cutting out some of the material would have been a tighter, better book. Another problem for me was Joanna. Her story was important but we get so little of what was going on, it was frustrating. And then there was Maddie herself. It felt so off her behavior while younger, then even when she goes back home to New York.

Finally was the ending, which I will not reveal anything. I will just say that it seriously downgraded the book for me. The telling wasn't necessary, and then added more strangeness really. In the end we may find out who these characters are, or not. It felt actually unresolved. Perhaps the characters weren't fully developed on the page. I just left unsatisfied in so many ways.

This is being billed as the "2019 Thriller of the year", but I think it missed the mark by a long shot. Certainly there will be some people who enjoy this book, just not me.



Thanks to Park Row Books/Harlequin and NetGalley for an uncorrected electronic advance review copy of this book.