The Traitor and the Thief

By Gareth Ward

My book club was held at the Wardini Book shop. Where the resident author and his wife hold court. We all have a fabulous evening. Sharing the latest read and being entertained with discussion around the latest finds the couple had discovered.  I'm sure if it was the intended plan, but I bought a copy of this book for my boy. He polished it off in 4 hours and loved every minute of it. I try not to be jealous when I'm still pouring over it four weeks later.

Synopsis

"If you join us, you too may die, but your sacrifice will save the lives of millions. COG does not fight for the Empire; it fights for humanity."

Discovered thieving at Coxford's Corn Market, fourteen-year-old Sin is hunted across the city. Caught by the enigmatic Eldrich Moons. Sin is offered a way out of his life of crime: join the COVERT OPERATIONS GROUP (COG) and train to become a SPY.
At Lenheim Palace, Sin learns spy craft while trying not to break the school's CAST-IRON RULES. Befriended by eccentric Zonda Chubb, together they endeavour to unmask a traitor causing HAVOC within the palace. After an assassination attempt on COG's founder, Sin realises that someone close to him could be the TRAITOR.
Sin is forced into an ALLIANCE with the school bully, Velvet Von Darque. But can he trust her? And will COG try to bury him with the SECRETS he discovers?

Author 

Gareth Ward, a.k.a. The Great Wardini is a magician, hypnotist, storyteller, bookseller and author. He has worked as a Royal Marine Commando, Police Officer, Evil Magician and Zombie. He basically likes jobs where you get to wear really cool hats – as writer and compere of Napier City’s inaugural Steampunk murder mystery evening he wore a rather splendid bowler.... More.

Novels by the Author

The Traitor and the Thief

The Narrows

By Michael Connelly

Another wonderful piece by Connelly. He continues to dig the the depths of what makes Harry, Harry. At the same time we follow a case that grips you by the throat and never lets you go until the very end. It seems that the Poet has returned and is out to get the beautiful profiler, Rachel Walling. Unfortunately for the Poet, Rachel happens to be someone close to Harry Bosch and that will be his downfall, I'm sure of it.

Synopsis

Harry Bosch confronts a villian who's long been in hiding... he's called the Poet.
Former FBI agent Rachel Walling has recieved the call she's been dreading for four years. The Poet is back. Has has not forgotten her. And he has a special present for her.
Harry Bosch is adjusting to life in Las Vegas as a private investigator and a new father. He gets a call, too, form the widow of a friend who died recently, someone who worked on the famous case tracking the killer known as the Poet...

Author 

Michael Connelly began writing for the Los Angeles on the Crime Beat. He turned out his first novel in 1992, Bill Clinton was spotted purchasing Michael’s third novel, Concrete Blonde, in 1994 and he never looked back. 26 novels later and he’s still going. On a personal note, with the title “The wrong side of goodbye” I’m a little nervous about reading the 2016 novel for fear of Harry dying off… no comments giving that away people, I’m hoping to address that demon over Christmas.

Books by the same author

There are so many novels he's written, a full list can be found here. But I'm going to focus on what I consider to be the most significant in terms of Harry Bosch's character development.

The Black Echo (1992)
The Last Coyote (1995)
A Darkness More Than Night (2001)
Nine Dragons (2009)
The Drop (2011)
Switchblade (2014)

Storm Peak

By John A. Flanagan

I was looking for further reading material for my boy, who was a huge Ranger's Apprentice fan, when I discovered that Flanagan had become a new series for an youth/adult market. I just had to order them both. There was this one Storm Peak and Avalanche Pass, which I will be sharing here soon. They follow the protagonist, Jesse Parker. A broken Denver detective looking for a quieter life away from the high murder count of a state capital. But, when he returns to his childhood home he finds its really not as quiet a backwater as he would like.I really enjoyed read. It moved along at pace that matched his earlier writing but with a relate-able lead which I hope whose character will deepen as the series continues.
Synopsis
Ex-Denver, police detective Jesse Parker has returned home to Steamboat Springs, Colorado, to spend the winter working ski patrol and forgetting about his past. But somewhere out in the snow, a killer has other ideas.
It begins when a skier is found brutally murdered. Local Sheriff Lee Torrens asks her old friend to help out with the investigation, and Jesse finds himself reluctantly dragged back into the world of violence and murder he thought he had left behind.
As Jesse and Lee work together, the memories of what they felt for each other long ago resurface - even as a madman strikes again and again, leaving no clue or trace as to identify or motive. For the killer, there are more important things to do than lead the authorities on...

Like choosing who will die next. 

Author

 John Anthony Flanagan is an Australian fantasy author best known for his children's books. His best-known work is the Ranger's Apprentice medieval fantasy novels and companion series Brotherband Chronicles. He also writes novels for adults.
His bestselling Ranger’s Apprentice adventure series originally comprised twenty short stories, which John wrote to encourage his twelve-year-old son, Michael, to enjoy reading. Michael was a small boy, and all his friends were bigger and stronger than he was. John wanted to show him that reading was fun, and heroes weren’t necessarily big and muscular. Now in his mid-twenties, Michael is six feet tall, broad-shouldered and powerful – but he still loves The Ranger’s Apprentice.

(Wikipedia and WoJF)

Other Titles by this author

Storm Peak (2009)
Avalache Pass (2012)

Nine Dragons (Harry Bosch #14)

By Michael Connelly

Nine Dragons, certainly for me, is one the top five Harry Bosch books when it comes to looking more deeply into the protagonists soul. When I started the series I figured, though the writing was good, the stories would weaken. I mean, how much stuff can happen to one guy? In one lifetime? Really? But the way Connelly writes, the depth of his characters, the interactions between them is remarkable. I don't feel like I'm reading a novel, more like experiencing it. Another good Connelly, Bravo!

Synopsis

Detective Harry Bosch is called to investigate the murder of a store owner in a tough LA neighbourhood. For Harry, it's a trip down memory lane:he's been to Fortune Liquors before and remembers Mr Li - a man who offered him santuary during LA's notorious riots. Now the debt must be repaid.
Mr Li left a clue to his murderer's identity, a clue that leads Harry into a parallel criminal universe ruled by the Triads. But as he gets closer to this shady underworld, the Triads send Harry a devastating message - they have taken something of his, something he holds very dear. As Harry's life implodes, he must risk everything to track a killer who knows how to get under his skin...

Author 

Michael Connelly began writing for the Los Angeles on the Crime Beat. He turned out his first novel in 1992, Bill Clinton was spotted purchasing Michael’s third novel, Concrete Blonde, in 1994 and he never looked back. 26 novels later and he’s still going. On a personal note, with the title “The wrong side of goodbye” I’m a little nervous about reading the 2016 novel for fear of Harry dying off… no comments giving that away people, I’m hoping to address that demon over Christmas.

Books by the same author

There are so many novels he's written, a full list can be found here. But I'm going to focus on what I consider to be the most significant in terms of Harry Bosch's character development.

The Black Echo (1992)
The Last Coyote (1995)
A Darkness More Than Night (2001)
Nine Dragons (2009)
The Drop (2011)
Switchblade (2014)

Holes

By Louis Sachar

Back in 2002 I read this book  to my class and we talked about friendship and the importance of family. It was one of the early books, after Harry Potter, that I read to my Year 5 class. They thoughly enjoyed it. The following year the movie came out and we loved that too. Since then there have been any number of resources available for novel-study. I can highly recommend thi book as a novel study, especially for those older primary school children.

Synopsis

Stanley Yelnats isn't too surprised to find himself at Camp Green Lake, digging holes in the dried-up lake bed, day after scorching day. After all, his family has a history of bed luck.
The boys at Camp Green Lake must dig one hole each day, five feet deep and five feet across. But waht are they digging for? Why did Green Lake dry up? And what do onions and lizards have to do with it all? The answers lie in Stanley's own past...
Holes is a funny, surprising and deliciously suspenseful novel, weaving past and present into a plot that tangles and untangles to a thrilling end.

Novel Study

This novel study for Holes by Louis Sachar contains 108 pages of resources, including comprehension, vocabulary, Common Core activities, assessments, and more!
You will find that this study's layout is student-friendly, and that the questions and activities are easily adaptable to every learner. All Common Core activities have the Common Core code listed in the bottom corner, keeping both you and your students focused.
This is a well-rounded, no-prep novel study that will engage your students and sharpen their reading skills. Perfect for whole class, small group, or even independent study.
UPDATE!
♥BONUS digital version included, which works with Google Drive and contains eye-catching color versions of all resources.
♥Use the paper or the digital version; BOTH are included with your purchase!

Movie Tie-in

Holes (2003) A wrongfully convicted boy is sent to a brutal desert detention camp where he joins the job of digging holes for some mysterious reason.

Author  

Louis Sachar is an award-winning author of twenty-five books for children and young adults. His book, Holes, won the prestigious National Book Award and the Newbery Medal.

Other Books

• Sideways Stories from Wayside School (1978)
• Johnny's in the Basement (1981)
• Someday Angeline (1983)
• Sixth Grade Secrets (1987)
• There's a Boy in the Girls' Bathroom (1987)
• The Boy Who Lost His Face (1989)
• Wayside School is Falling Down (1989)
• Sideways Arithmetic From Wayside School (1989)
• Dogs Don't Tell Jokes (1991)
• More Sideways Arithmetic From Wayside School (1994)
• Wayside School Gets A Little Stranger (1995) 
• Kidnapped at Birth? (1992)
• Why Pick on Me? (1993)
• Is He a Girl? (1993)
• Alone In His Teacher's House (1994)
• Holes (1998) 
• Class President (1999)
• A Flying Birthday Cake? (1999)
• Super Fast Out of Control! (2000)
• A Magic Crystal? (2000) 
• Stanley Yelnats' Survival Guide to Camp Green Lake (2003)
• Small Steps (2006) 
• The Cardturner (2010)
• Fuzzy Mud (2015)

The Miniaturist

By Jessie Burton

Book Club this month left me with this book. A story of secrets, of deception. Not of spies and treachery but of the everyday life of society-family living in Amsterdam in the seventeenth century. I was intrigued to think of the mirrors of this family with how we, in today's world, project an image of ourselves, of our lives. Yes, our lives may be laid bare on Facebook or Instagram but are they really? the photos, the comments, the replies all go through that filter of "What will people think of me?" "How can I portray my best-self?"

Synopsis

There is nothing hidden that will not be revealed…
 On an autumn day in 1686, eighteen-year-old Nella Oortman arrives at a grand house in Amsterdam to begin her new life as the wife of wealthy merchant Johannes Brandt. Though curiously distant, he presents her with an extraordinary wedding gift: a cabinet-sized replica of their home. It is to be furnished by an elusive miniaturist, whose tiny creations ring eerily true.
As Nella uncovers the secrets of her new household she realizes the escalating dangers they face. The miniaturist seems to hold their fate in her hands – but does she plan to save or destroy them?

Author

Jessie Burton was born in 1982. She studied at Oxford University nd the Central School of Speech and Drama and has worked as an actress and a PA in the city. She now lives in south-east London.

Other books

The Miniaturist (2014)
The Muse (2016)

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (Potter #3)

By J.R. Rowling

1999 was the second year of my teaching career and I read a review in the Times Educational Suppliment about the this new author whose books were taking the world by storm. I began that year with my first reading of Harry Potter and the Philospher's Stone. My students were gripped and we continued reading through all three of the pubished books into 2000. In my opinion The greatest thing that any author has done, save for Roald Dahl, for eight to ten year old boys was when Rowling wrote the Harry Potter series of books. Arguably, the biggest thing that happened to counter that was when Rowling sold the movie rights. But I guess this is part of the reason I've started these novel-studies and structured them around available resources, including the movies inspired by them.

Synopsis

Harry Potter, along with his best friends, Ron and Hermoine, is about to start his third year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Harry can't wait to get back to school after the summer holidays. (Who wouldn't if they lived with the horrible Dursleys?) But when Harry gets to Hogwarts, the atmosphere is tense. There's an escaped mass murderer on the loose, and the sinister prison guards of Azkaban have been called in to guard the school...

Author

Born in Yate, England, on July 31, 1965, J.K. Rowling came from humble economic means before writing Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, a children's fantasy novel. The work was an international hit and Rowling wrote six more books in the series, which sold hundreds of millions of copies and was adapted into a blockbuster film franchise. In 2012, Rowling released the novel The Casual Vacancy.

Books by the same author

• Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (1997)
• Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (1998)
• Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (1999)
• Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (2000)
• Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (2003)
• Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (2005)
• Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (2007)

Other novel studies on this site

Study Unit

There are a raft of study units for supporting literacy through Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban.

But here is my favourite:

This novel study resource is This includes the assignment page, rubric, character tracker, glossary, and chapter pages. This is meant to be printed double sided and the stapled into a booklet.

This is a companion to Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, Can be used for the whole class or small literature circles.

Movie tie-in

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (2004) - It's Harry's third year at Hogwarts; not only does he have a new "Defense Against the Dark Arts" teacher, but there is also trouble brewing. Convicted murderer Sirius Black has escaped the Wizards' Prison and is coming after Harry.

Available for purchase: 

Mighty Ape

Amazon

 

Mind Hunters

by John E. Douglas, Mark Olshaker 

I've always been interested in Criminal Minds the TV series. I think its one of those series that has never lost its edge. But this is not that. Rather it tells the story, through the dramaisation of interviews and discussions held with those first FBI agents who were charged with researching those murders that we later come to know as 'serial killers' in fact it is this particular fledgling department that creates such terms. The Netflix series was quiet and 'ploddy' but well written and produced as it explored the minds of the killers and the hunters.

Synopsis

He has hunted some of the most notorious and sadistic criminals of our time: The Trailside Killer in San Francisco, the Atlanta Child murderer. He has confronted, interviewed and researched dozens of serial killers and assassins, including Charles Manson, Richard Speck, John Wayne Gacy, and James Earl Ray - for a landmark study to understand their motives. To get inside their minds. He is Special Agent John Douglas, the model for law enforcement legend Jack Crawford in Thomas Harris's thrillers Red Dragon and The Silence of the Lambs, and the man who ushered in a new age in behavorial science and criminal profiling. Recently retired after twenty-five years of service, John Douglas can finally tell his unique and compelling story.

Authors

John E. Douglas heads the FBI Elite Serial Crime Unit and is widely experienced in the field of serial killers. This work explores psychology and motives in this area of crime.

Mark Olshaker, author of four novels and producer of the Emmy-nominated The Mind of a Serial Killer, lives in Washington DC. 

Other titles

Mindhunter (1995)
Journey Into Darkness (1997)
Obsession (1998)
The Anatomy of Motive: The FBI's Legendary Mindhunter Explores the Key to Understanding and Catching Violent Criminals (1999)
Broken Wings (1999)
The cases that haunt us (2000)
Law & Disorder: The Legendary FBI Profiler's Relentless Pursuit of Justice (2013)

The Last Cyote (Harry Bosch #4)

By Michael Connelly

This must have been the first Connelly novel that started a decade-long obsession with the Harry Bosch character. One of the things that I think makes this novel one of the top five is the emotional depths that we explore of the main protagonist. If Connelly wrote an 'origin story' for Harry Bosch his, surely, is it. This for me is, by far my favourite Harry Bosch novel.

Synopsis

The binder contained the case file on the October 28, 1961, homicide of Marjorie Phillips Lowe. His mother.
Suspended from the LAPD pending psychiatric treatment, his house condemned and his girlfriend long gone, Harry Bosch has time on his hands...
With nothing better to do, Harry opens the ancient file on his prostitute mother's murder and is irresistibly drawn into the shadowy past. Confronting his personal shame at his mother's profession, he discovers a trail leading to the high-ups in the Hollywood Hills and finds that the flames of ancient passion don't die, they kindle fresh fires.

Author 

Michael Connelly began writing for the Los Angeles on the Crime Beat. He turned out his first novel in 1992, Bill Clinton was spotted purchasing Michael’s third novel, Concrete Blonde, in 1994 and he never looked back. 26 novels later and he’s still going. On a personal note, with the title “The wrong side of goodbye” I’m a little nervous about reading the 2016 novel for fear of Harry dying off… no comments giving that away people, I’m hoping to address that demon over Christmas.

Books by the same author

There are so many novels he's written, a full list can be found here. But I'm going to focus on what I consider to be the most significant in terms of Harry Bosch's character development.

The Black Echo (1992)
The Last Coyote (1995)
A Darkness More Than Night (2001)
Nine Dragons (2009)
The Drop (2011)
Switchblade (2014)

Zoo

By James Patterson, Michael Ledwidge 

Even though by the time most of you will read this the Hastings District Libraries reading programme will well and truly over I still want to share this post. In fact the category listed as a reading challenge “Watch a movie or a TV programme based on a book or vice versa” has made me consider this new category of TV/MOVIE as something I want to expand now that the initial challenge is over.

Being on holiday has really given me a chance to catch up on not only my reading but binge watching some series on NetFlix. I’ve come across this programme Zoo, based on the James Patterson/Michael Lewridge collaboration. I’ve just finished the first season and I was propelled through it with ferocity of an Alex Cross novel. But now I’ve reached season 2 and I don’t know if I’ve tired of the concept or if the second season has strayed too far from the original idea. Either way, I’ve slackened my pace. It’s still good but… not quite the same somehow.

Synopsis 

All over the world, brutal attacks are crippling entire cities. Jackson Oz, a young biologist, watches the escalating events with an increasing sense of dread. When he witnesses a coordinated lion ambush in Africa, the enormity of the impending violence becomes terrifyingly clear. With the help of ecologist Chloe Tousignant, Oz races to warn world leaders before it's too late. The attacks are growing in ferocity, cunning, and planning, and soon there will be no place left for humans to hide.

Author 

James Brendan Patterson (born March 22, 1947) is a prolific American author and philanthropist. Among his work are the Alex Cross, Michael Bennett, Women's Murder Club, Maximum Ride, Daniel X, NYPD Red, Witch and Wizard, and Private series, as well as many stand-alone thrillers, non-fiction and romance novels. His books have sold more than 300 million copies and he was the first person to sell 1 million e-books.

Michael S. Ledwidge is an American author of Irish descent. He wrote his first novel, The Narrowback, while working as the back elevator operator for a Park Avenue Coop apartment building. His novel, Bad Connection was written while working as a lineman for the telephone company in NYC.

Other novels 

Haunted (Michael Bennett, #10) (2017)
Chase (Michael Bennett, #9.5) (2016)
Bullseye (Michael Bennett, #9) (2016)
Alert (Michael Bennett, #8) (2015)
Burn (Michael Bennett, #7) (2014)
Gone (Michael Bennett, #6) (2013)
 Zoo (2012)
I, Michael Bennett (Michael Bennett, #5) (2012)
Now You See Her (2011)
Tick Tock (Michael Bennett, #4) (2010)
Worst Case (Michael Bennett, #3) (2010)
Run for Your Life (Michael Bennett, #2) (2010)
Daniel X: The Manga, Vol. 1 (Daniel X: The Manga, #1) (2010)
SeungHui Kye Step on a Crack (Michael Bennett, #1) (2007)
The Quickie (2007)
The Dangerous Days of Daniel X (Daniel X, #1) (2007)

The Thirty-nine steps

By John Buchan

This week's reading challenge was to tackle a classic. 'Classic' is defined as a book more than 50 years old. I think it safe to say 1915 is more than 50 years old. I loved this book, though the language in it is quick tricky to follow in places, especially as Buchan attempts to write in a Scottish accent.
I often feel I was born in the wrong era, I think I would have liked to have 'had dinner at the club' or 'sat in the reading room with the paper'. It's certainly a romantic notion of mine.

I much prefer Buchan's writing to Joesph Conrad's Secret Agent. It has a better momentum to it. But don't know if that is more to do with the authors' writing style or the reader's lack of book-learning.

Synopsis

When Richard Hannay returns from a long stay in Africa, he becomes caught up in a sensational plot to precipitate a pan-European war.
After the discovery of a corpse in his flat, Hannay flees the attentions of both the conspirators and the forces of the law, and the pursuit turns into a thrilling manhunt.
Set against the hot summer which precedes the outbreak of the First World War. The Thirty-nine Steps is one of the finest and most highly admired thrillers ever written.

Author 

After a brief legal career, Buchan simultaneously began his writing career and his political and diplomatic careers, serving as a private secretary to the colonial administrator of various colonies in southern Africa. He eventually wrote propaganda for the British war effort in the First World War. Buchan was in 1927 elected Member of Parliament for the Combined Scottish Universities.

(Wikipedia)

Other novels

Prester John (1910)
The 39 Steps - Richard Hannay, #1 (1915)
Greenmantle - Richard Hannay #2 (1916)
Mr. Standfast - Richard Hannay #3 (1919)
The Three Hostages - Richard Hannay #4 (1924)
The Island of Sheep - Richard Hannay #5 (1936)

The Big Sleep

By Raymond Chandler

Being a big fan of Michael Connolly I discovered that he enjoyed reading Raymond Chandler and the darker side of LA society portrayed within the pages of his numerous books. But it really wasn't until I go some vouchers for Christmas did I think to get myself a couple of his books.

As always, I much prefer to begin at the start of a series, though I don't think it really matters too much as each Philip Marlowe adventure is pretty much stand alone.

"The Big Sleep" has been turned into a movie back in 1946, starring Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Becall. But I haven't seen the movie, the book however, was a great read.

Marlowe is a detective, contemporary to 1940's/50's. He's employed by a retired old general who is being extorted. But the general has two wayward daughters who cause Marlowe more and more trouble as the detective delves deeper and deeper into their lives.
A I was reading I could picture each seen vividly in the film noir style... a style that some might even say these novels, and the movies that they spored, defined.

Synopsis

Los Angleles PI Philip Marlowe is working for the Sternwood family. Old man Sternwood, crippled and wheelchair-bound, is being given the squeeze by a blackmailer and he wants Marlowe to make the problem go away. But with Sternwood's two wild daughters prowling LA's seedy backstreets, Marlowe's got his workcut-out - and that's before he stumbles over the first corpse.

Author

Raymond Thornton Chandler was a British-American novelist and screenwriter. In 1932, at the age of forty-four, Chandler became a detective fiction writer after losing his job as an oil company executive during the Great Depression.
 
Other Books by the Author
The Big Sleep (1939)
Farewell, My Lovely (1940)
The High Window (1942)
The Lady in the Lake (1943)
The Little Sister (1949)
Trouble is My Business (1950)
The Simple Art of Murder (1950)
The Long Goodbye (1953)
Playback (1958)

The Spire

By Richard North Patterson  

I came across this author years ago but didn't really enjoy whatever book it was. That was 20 years ago, now I was looking through a variety of authors as I was perusing through the library waiting for my boy to choose a couple of books. I came across the author again, but it was the combination of recognising the author and finding a book about about a school. It intrigued me.  It's been a while since I enjoyed a murder mystery book like this. It's the story of Mark who is invited back as president to clear up a financial crisis but he's draw into investigating afresh the murder that took place years ago when he was at the school as a student. There were so many twists and turns. It kept me turning the pages, right through the Christmas holidays.

Synopsis

Mark Darrow grew up in a small Ohio town with no real advantages beyond his intelligence and his athletic ability. But thanks to the intervention of Lionel Farr, a professor at Caldwell, the local college, Dallow became an excellent student and , later, a superb trial lawyer. Now Farr asks his still-youthful protege for a life-altering favour. An embezzlement scandal has threatened Caldwell's very existence - would Darrow consider becoming its new president?
Darrow accepts, but returning to his alma master opens old wounds. Sixteen years ago, on the night of his greatest triumph as Caldwell's star quarterback, he discovered the body of a black female student named Angela Hall at the base of the Spire, the bell tower that dominates the leafy campus. His best friend, Steve Tillman, was charged with Angela's murder and sent to prison for life. But now, as Darrow begins the daunting taskof leading Caldwell, he discovers that thecase against his friend left crucial questions unanswered. Despite his new obligations - and his deepening attachment to lionel Farr's beautiful though troubled daughter - Darrow begins in own inquiry into the murder. Soon he becomes convinced that Angela's killer is still at large, but only when another mysterious death occurs does he understand that his own life is at risk.

Author

Richard North Patterson is an American novelist of legal thrillers. Before he was an author, Patterson practiced law until he retired to become a full-time writer in 1993. By that time, he had already written several novels. Mr. Patterson studied fiction writing with Jesse Hill Ford at the University of Alabama at Birmingham; his first short story was published in The Atlantic Monthly; and his first novel, The Lasko Tangent, won an Edgar Allen Poe Award in 1979.

Other novels by the author

Christopher Paget
The Lasko Tangent (1979)
Degree of Guilt (1993)
Eyes of a Child (1995)
Conviction (2005)

Tony Lord
Private Screening (1985)
Silent Witness (1997)

Kerry Kilcannon
No Safe Place (1998)
Protect and Defend (2000)
Balance of Power (2003)

Martha's Vineyard
Loss of Innocence (2013)
Fall From Grace (2012)
Eden in Winter (2014)

Other novels
The Outside Man (1981)
Escape the Night (1983)
Caroline Masters (1995)
Dark Lady (1999)
Exile (2007)
The Race (2007)
Eclipse (2009)
The Spire (2009)
In The Name of Honor (2010)
The Devil's Light (2011)
The Final Judgment (2011)

Dark Matter

By Blake Crouch

I've spent quite a long time on this book. But not quite as long as deciding whether to publish a review of a book here that I did not like. This blog is supposed to be reflection on good reading material, for students, teachers, parents and generally everyone. Once people have read a few of the posts here I think they'll get a sense of the types of books I like, and if you tend to like the same sort of reading material I hope you'll stick around, or keep coming back (pick your metaphor).

But my question to myself is "Do I publish a review of a book I did not like?"

I am not going to waste time giving you a run down of why I didn't like. I read the blurb, thought the premise was interesting then was very disappointed with the style and tone the book had. I will still share the blurb, perhaps you can dwell on it for a moment and see what it was that perked my interest.

Synopsis

"Are you happy in your life?"

Those are the last words Jason Desson hears before the masked abductor knocks him unconscious.
Before he awakens to find himself strapped to a gurney, surrounded by strangers in hazmat suits.
Before the man he's never met smiles down at him and says, 'Welcome back.'
In this world he's woken up to, Jason's life in not the one he knows. His wife is not his wife. His son was never born. And Jason is not an ordinary college physics professor, but a celebrated genius who has achieved something remarkable. Something impossible.
Is it this world or the other that's the dream? And even if the home he remembers is real, how can Jason possibly make it back to the family he loves? The answers lie in a journey more wondrous and horrifying than anything he could've imagined - one that will force him to confront the darkest parts of himself even as he battles a terrifying, seemingly unbeatable foe.

Author

Blake Crouch is best known for the Wayward Pines trilogy, which has sold more than a million copies, been translated into thirty languages, and adapted into a prime-time event series on FOX. He lives in Colorado.

Other books by the author

Pines
Wayward
The Last Town
Desert Places
Locked Doors
Break You
Stirred
Serial Killers Uncut
Run
Abandon
Snow Bound
Famous
Eerie
Draculas
The Pain of Others
Sunset Key
Grab
*69
Remaking
On the Good, Red Road
Shining Rock
The Meteorologist
Unconditional 
Perfect Little Town
Hunting Season
Fully Loaded
Thicker than Blood

The Racketeer

 by John Grisham

John Grisham's The Firm brought me back to reading when I was in University.
I remember traveling an hour on a bus each way, off on Teaching Practice. I wasn't sleeping well because I couldn't get the whole experience out of my head. Learning groups, IEPs, planning, resource making, observations and so on swam around and around my head. I needed to do something about that. It was two-hours a day, every day, for 6 weeks. That's a lot of time that I could fill with reading.

Since then I've always kept pace with Grisham novels...until a few years ago. When I got the Racketeer out I scanned down the list of his books at the front. It seems I've got some catching up to do.

I enjoyed The Racketeer. It felt a little like The Partner lite. The Partner is by far my favourite Grisham novel. There just seemed to lack a bit of meat to the story. One I got to the end I read that Grisham did very little research, the story is clearly a work of fiction but it seemed that it had little basis in real case law. Perhaps there was a depth, a meatiness, that comes through a Grisham novel when the laws a accurate, the events are a little better researched.

Synopsis

Given the importance of what they do, and the controversies that often surround them, and the violent people they sometimes confront, it is remarkable that in the history of this country only four active federal judges have been murdered.Judge Raymond Fawcett has just become number five.Who is the Racketeer? And what does he have to do with the judge’s... Read More

Author

John Ray Grisham, Jr. is an American bestselling writer, attorney, politician, and activist best known for his popular legal thrillers. His books have been translated into 42 languages and published worldwide.  - Wikipedia

Here is the full list of Other books by the author but below is a short list of books I consider that are among his best.

• The Firm
• The Pelican Brief 
• The Client 
• The Runaway Jury
•  The Partner
• The Street Lawyer 
• A Painted House
•  Skipping Christmas 
• The Associate 
• The Litigators

Which are your favourite John Grisham novels? 

Fehrenheit 451

by Ray Bradbury

Its been a few years now since I read this book. I joined a book club some years ago and bought this book as one of the first ones we read together. It was part of the Vlogbrothers' Nerdfighter book club.

In which John discusses Part 1 of Ray Bradbury's Fahrenheit 451, "The Hearth and the Salamander," including discussions of Guy Montag, Clarisse, the complicated relationship between technology and nature, and more. Huzzah for the Nerdfighter Book Club!

Fehrenheit 451 is set in one of those ‘alterative universe’ kinda places. The main protagonist is a guy called Montag whose job is a fireman – A fireman not in our traditional sense but rather in this universe it is one who sets fire for the greater good of humanity. More specifically it is the job of the fireman to seek out books and torch them, arresting those who harbour these texts that remind us what asses and fools we are.

Montag is happily married and been working as a fireman for quite some time. His wife suffers from terrible dreams and sucicidal tendencies. This seems to be managed by some sort of vacuum contraption carried by the EMTs which literally sucks out these thoughts along with any memory of the incident itself. Montag is not unhappy just becoming tired of this somewhat limited existence.
Finally several incidents collide, causing him to call his profession into question: 

• firstly, he happens upon a 17 year old girl, Clarrise who world view is somewhat broader than his own and she opens his eyes to new possibilities such as the simple delight of tasting the rain
• secondly, Montag, hios captain and the squad on assignment when a library is discovered. It is their job to clear the house, pour Keresene, and light it up. Only the old lady whose collection it is refuses to leave, instead she strikes the match herself, flames engulfing along with her books.

Montag begins to question, choosing to save and read a few books here and there. I won’t spoil the ending for you, simply to say he begins to seek out like minded people as he reflects on how:

The sun burned every day. It burned Time. The world rushed in a circle and turned on its axis and time was busy burning the years and the people anyway, without any help from him. So if he burnt things with the firemen, and the sun burnt Time, that meant that everything burned!

All is focused around Montag however it is Faber I connect with. He’s the wise old professor who has been safe guarding books by reading and memorising them. Montag seeks his help but Faber is weary of him, with being a fireman and the questionable change of heart, is it a set up? That mix of eagerness and caution toward change I find I am able to relate to. Too often I think we, and when I say we I really mean I, allow caution to paralyze me into inaction or perhaps eagerness and enthusiasm run away with me. There should be some carefully considered balance in my decision making.

Which classics did you have to read at school? 

Synopsis

Set in the twenty-fourth century, Fahrenheit 451 introduces a new world in which control of the masses by the media, overpopulation, and censorship has taken over the general population. The individual is not accepted and the intellectual is considered an outlaw. Television has replaced the common perception of family. The fireman is now seen as a flamethrower, a destroyer of books rather than an insurance against fire. Books are considered evil because they make people question and think. The people live in a world with no reminders of history or appreciation of the past; the population receives the present from television.

Teacher Notes 

The NEA Big Read Reader Resources deepen your exploration with interviews, booklists, time lines, and historical information.
Fahrenheit 451: A Teacher's Guide teaches various aspects of Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury.
Teacher Vision: Fahrenheit 451 Teacher's Guide deepens students' understanding of Ray Bradbury's dystonia novel with these pre-reading resources and activities, discussion questions, reader response quotes, post-reading activities, and projects. 
My Unit: Fahrehenheit 451A collection of pdfs and images that offer teachers support in the teaching of this dystonia novel.

Author

 Ray Douglas Bradbury was an American fantasy, science fiction, horror and mystery fiction author. Widely known for his dystopian novel Fahrenheit 451 as well as his science fiction and horror stories.

Books by the same author

Fahrenheit 451
The Martian Chronicles
Something Wicked This Way Comes

Inferno

Having been put onto the book depository I figured I’d take the opportunity to get the latest Dan Brown novel Inferno. The movies out and a friend has asked to borrow the book from me as soon as I’ve finished. Pressure’s on now to get it finished.

I must say that I have really enjoyed the Robert Langdon novel series. Not a great fan of the movies but not for any other reason than the usual one for movies… they loose so much detail in trying to jam 600 pages into a couple of hours. Which is why I must always read the book first.

Having  bagged on movie versions I was somewhat disappointed that The Lost Symbol never made it to the movie. I read somewhere that the plot as too similar to Nicholas Cage vehicle National Treasure.

I really enjoyed Robert’s fourth outing. It’s the usual intellectual treasure hunt we’ve come to expect, with twists and turns along the way. A really good read once you’re resigned to the fact that Robert is suffering from amnesia due to a gunshot wound the head from the opening of the book.

There are clues in the text of Dante’s Inferno, the Florentine basilicas and Venice’s 400 year old infrastructure serves as the backdrop behind the hunt.

Highly recommended for the Dan Brown fan. Well worth reading before the movie. 

Have you read the novels? Have you watched the movies? Which do you prefer? 

Synopsis

Robert Langdon wakes up in a Florence hospital with no clue how he got there. But another attack on his life makes it very clear – someone wants him dead. And fast. To survive, Langdon must work out who it is. And then he must answer the next question – why?

Dan Brown

American author of thriller fiction who is best known for the 2003 bestselling novel The Da Vinci Code. Brown's novels are treasure hunts set in a 24-hour period, and feature the recurring themes of cryptography, keys, symbols, codes, and conspiracy theories. His books have been translated into 52 languages, and as of 2012, sold over 200 million copies.

Books by the same author

Angels & Demons

Da Vinci Code

The Lost Symbol

Inferno

Playing with Fire

 This is the fifth outing for Daniel Jacobus. I feel like I should have started with his first novel Devil’s Trill as, joining the story at this point I felt that I had missed some key information about Daniel’s background and some in jokes along the way. 

 

 

I am a gentle mystery fan. I like Colin Dexter and I enjoyed Castle TV series. This mystery is a mixture of both. It reads like a Morse mystery with its educated and ‘Times Crossword whizz” kinda tone. What I found interesting was Daniel’s perspective on the world. His bitterness and sorrow comes through the text, its done very subtlety. But also, with Daniel being blind the description of the world around him still leans heavily on sound and touch rather than sight, despite the story being written in the third person.

I have not played an instrument since giving up the cornet in primary school, much to my mother delight. But it has been interesting to enter the world and music of Daniel Jacobus. I’ve enjoyed listening to the music talked about in the book, Vivaldi’s Four Seasons for example.

I’m looking forward to going back to the beginning of the series of novels. Follow the principal leads and see if the depth of understanding of the characters and the music works better that way.

Synopsis

" When an anxious phone call from obscure violinmaker Amadeo Borlotti disturbs Daniel Jacobus’ Christmas Eve festivities, he and his dear friends Nathaniel and Yumi make light of it. A seemingly humble practitioner of his craft, Borlotti preferred the quiet life in the country away from the limelight. He even found love at an advanced age. But his larceny, which began as a typographical error in a bill for a violin repair, grew incessantly. In the end he became a helpless captive of his past indiscretions and was consumed by it, and it is up to Jacobus and his team to find out how, and why."  The Return of Daniel Jacobus.

Gerald Elias

Gerald Elias

Is a distinguished concertmaster and solo violinist. He learnt violin at 8, was concertmaster under MartinDreiwitz for the Long Island Youth Orchestra.

He taught and played as part of the Boston University Tanglewood Institute , has traveled the world, settled at Utah university for a while before returning to Boston. His first novel, published in 2009, Devil’s Trill was honoured by Barnes & Noble who wrote: “Rich in music detail and featuring a fabulously roguish cast, Devil’s Trill will delight music lovers and mystery fans alike. Danse Macabre, featuring the same roguish cast, was released in September, 2010.”

Books by the same author
Devil's Trill (2009)
Danse Macabre (2010)
Death and the Maiden (2011)
Death and Transfiguration (2012)


Next book: The Boys on the Boat by Daniel James Brown