This book starts out bloody. A serial killer with a yearning to get his hands wet and dirty dispatches a truck driver with a gun and then a knife, leaving a gruesome crime scene for Tampa detectives Sergio and Carly. The reader experiences the kill from the killer’s point of view, and that continues through … More Double Blind, by Dan Alatorre

The story of the meteoric rise and spectacular fall of the start-up blood testing company, Theranos, and its precocious young founder, Elizabeth Holmes, is an amazing story.  If it weren’t true, you’d never believe it.  Telling that story in a coherent and entertaining fashion is a herculean task that journalist John Carryrou has done wonderfully … More Bad Blood, by John Carryrou

It’s not easy to take a character as (usually) dynamic and interesting as Jack Reacher and write a whole novel from his point of view that is dull, plodding, and lacking in suspense, emotion, or action.  But, somehow Lee Child – perhaps on deadline to push out another Jack Reacher “bestseller” – has managed it.  … More The Midnight Line by Lee Child (Jack Reacher #22)

This is an engrossing, suspenseful mystery that literally kept me up until the wee hours of the morning. I couldn’t get to sleep before finding out what happened!  A really well-written and well-constructed story from the twisted mind of Bruce Perrin.  The author drops sufficient clues for the reader to eventually figure out the mystery … More Mind in Chains (The Mind Sleuth series, book 3), by Bruce M. Perrin

Daedalus Combat in the next short installment in Mr. Williscroft’s Daedalus series, which is based on the concept of a “slingshot” space launch system and the Navy SEALs who staff the project.  I’m a fan of the series and recommend the full-length novel, “Slingshot.”  Mr. Williscroft has another short story set in the Daedalus world, … More Daedalus Combat (SWIC Combat Drop from Low Earth Orbit), by Robert G. Williscroft

The Diplomat and the Desperado Stories is branded by “PanOrpheus,” a pseudonym that makes sense because the author should not want to put his own name on this collection of episodes in the existence of the two titular characters, who exist in “Noirtown,” (a non-Earth-based realm that exists only in black-and-white) and who make sojourns … More The Diplomat and the Desperado Stories, by PanOrpheus

                Christian Romance Thriller is a genre very difficult to pull off well. My rating for this book (call it 3.5 stars, but 4 because amazon requires a whole number rating) is based entirely on the assumption that you (the potential reader) are specifically looking for a Christian faith-based inspirational story that will reinforce your … More No Regrets (Angel of Hope Book 1) by Vickie Fisher

Lethal Agent, a “Vince Flynn” novel by Kyle Mills Mitch Rapp saves the world.  It’s a familiar theme.  Vince Flynn died 16 years ago, but the publisher has continued to crank out Mitch Rapp stories written by Kyle Mills.  This installment is at times exciting and fun to read (or in my case listen to), … More New Mitch Rapp story, Lethal Agent, is pedantic, predictable, and yet . . . still fun.

Music boxes is a pre-teen adventure with a little horror. It is a fairy tale with a wicked witch, a magic amulet, and clear good and evil.  One should not spend too much time picking at the logical consistency of a fairy tale .  To a young reader, which is certainly the target audience, the … More Music Boxes, by Tonja Drecker

The End, by justine Avery, is a novella that starts out with great promise, but ultimately disappoints due to an ending that is muddled, confusing, and unintentionally (I think) ambiguous.  On the plus side, the novella starts out reading a bit like an episode of The Twilight Zone.  The story follows Trevor, a man described … More The End, By Justine Avery