Hobby Stash

May 17th, 2009

First Degree by David Rosenfelt

Who dunnit with a comedic twist…and second in Rosenfelt’s Andy Carpenter series. Carpenter, an irreverant wise cracking lawyer, whose dry wit makes me chuckle out loud, is tasked with saving his girl friend, Lauire, who is being framed for murder.

My Rating:  

Posted in Comedy, Crime/Detective, Legal Thriller
By Linda

February 12th, 2009

Eclipse by Richard North Patterson

Wow. This  is one of those novels that really grabbed me. It is not your typical legal thriller. Patterson interweaves African atrocities into the novel via his fictionalized country of Luandia, which he patterned after Nigeria. It was also enlightening in its coverage of America’s greed for world oil and the consequences on third world nations that provide the oil. The graphic violence in the novel  unfortunately reflects real world atrocities. The only down side to Eclipse was Patterson’s attempt to educate me came across as preachy…but then again, he did educate me.

My Rating:  

Posted in Legal Thriller
By Linda

January 1st, 2009

The Brass Verdict by Michael Connelly

Harry Bosch takes on a supporting role in this novel as Michael Holler, an L.A. attorney, serves as the main character.  Connelly intertwines the two characters beautifully and this novel is his usual “can’t put it down” read. It delves into the fallacies of our legal system while incorporating the usual who dunnit plot. I thoroughly enjoyed it and look forward to seeing more of the two characters together in future novels.

My Rating:  

Posted in Crime/Detective, Legal Thriller
By Linda

December 13th, 2008

Cold Case by Kate Wilhelm

I picked this novel up based on its description during an Audible sale. I suspected it was part of a series as I listened, but did not verify that fact until after I had finished the novel.

Although I enjoyed the novel, the characters were not fleshed out enough (which sometimes occurs when the author assumes the reader is already familiar with the character backgrounds). Because of that I suspect the novel was not as enjoyable as it might have been had I known a little bit more about the various regulars.

But having said that, I enjoyed it. Barbara Holloway is a defense attorney who is hired to defend a man charged with two murders, one that occurred current day and one that occurred decades ago. Are the two murders related? You’ll have to read the book to find out.

My Rating:  

Posted in Legal Thriller
By Linda

October 15th, 2008

Open and Shut by David Rosenfelt

I promised myself I would go back and read some earlier novels from this series after reading Dead Center. I wasn’t disappointed. This is the first in the Andy Carpenter series and provides the background I was missing in Dead Center. I enjoyed the laugh-out-loud humor (a rarity in novels) and will continue this series as I find the time.

My Rating:  

Posted in Comedy, Crime/Detective, Legal Thriller
By Linda

August 13th, 2008

Dead Center by David Rosenfelt

I love the irreverant wit of Andy Carpenter,  a lawyer and the main character of this novel! And the fact that he’s devoted to his golden retriever doesn’t hurt either. The plot centers around a small town in Wisconsin with a closed society whose citizens all belong to the same religion. When two teenage girls from the town are murdered, Carpenter is called in to defend a teenage boy from outside the town charged with the crime.

This is definitely not high brow fiction but I so enjoyed the witty writing and the likable characters, I’m definitely planning to read some of the earlier novels in this series.

My Rating:  

Posted in Comedy, Crime/Detective, Legal Thriller
By Linda

May 24th, 2008

Salem Falls by Jodi Picoult

Wow. This novel delves into several different topics for thought…rape, small town dynamics, wicca and witchcraft, drugs, and incest. I don’t know how much more Picoult could have crammed into this novel!

Disturbing as some of it was, yet again I couldn’t find myself putting it down. A very good read!

My Rating:  

Posted in Family & Relationships, Legal Thriller
By Linda

May 3rd, 2008

The Appeal by John Grisham

This year’s presidential campaign has seen ridiculous amounts of money raised for each candidate as the candidates fight to win their party’s nomination. I personally find it disheartening that it takes so much money (a waste in my opinion) to run for office. This novel’s subject matter, rigging an election, is both timely and compelling.

But I honestly can’t say it is one of John Grisham’s better works. His earlier novels were full of plots and twists with full character development. The Appeal fell way short and the ending was lazy. It left me feeling like Grisham had generated the appropriate number of pages so he signed off and said good bye.

However, the subject matter was great and had a lot of potential. Our judicial system is becoming quite political and this novel really brings that trend to the forefront. I wish Grisham had worked a little harder at this one…it had so much potential.

My Rating:  

for story line and character development

My Rating:  

for subject matter (judicial system elections/punitive damage awards)

My Rating:  

overall…ho hum

Posted in Legal Thriller
By Linda