Steve Manke
13 is a fantastic adventure that weaves together different historical events and personalities in fascinating ways. I couldn't wait to see where the story took the characters next, or which historical figure was tied into the tale. It all combines to form a thrilling first book for a series I can't wait to read more about. And the characters? I couldn't get enough of them! By the end of the book, I just wanted more. What happens to them next? Where do they go from here? I can't wait to start the next book.
I have so many things that I want to say but I can't because I don't want to spoil this amazing novel for anyone. So no spoilers here. It's enough to say that this book takes the team, and a couple of characters in particular, to some very interesting and unexpected places. Adding to the fun, Omega takes what we know about the series so far— and some of the characters— and just turns all of that on its ear. There's some really brilliant stuff that you wouldn't expect to see surface this far into a well-established series.
Of course we get the requisite gun toting, ass-kicking that we expect from our favorite special-ops team, and a few things are revealed that threaten to make us look back at the earlier books in an entirely different way.
If you're a fan of the Chess Team/Jack Sigler thriller series, you don't want to miss this book. And if you haven't taken a look at the earlier books yet, what are you waiting for?
This is my favorite episode of the series so far. Something about the 1st person perspective and Jacobs point of view as he leads a mission to rescue Pia. The last episode had such an amazing cliffhanger and this dovetails with it so nicely that it kept me at the edge of my proverbial seat. Some great fight sequences and some interesting progress on the overall mystery. I can't wait for Episode 5!
Merged review:
This is my favorite episode of the series so far. Something about the 1st person perspective and Jacobs point of view as he leads a mission to rescue Pia. The last episode had such an amazing cliffhanger and this dovetails with it so nicely that it kept me at the edge of my proverbial seat. Some great fight sequences and some interesting progress on the overall mystery. I can't wait for Episode 5!
This has got be the most frenetic, breakneck paced book in the series so far. If you don't strap in at the beginning, forget it, you're gone. This book takes off at the very beginning and then there's no stopping it. Add to that all of the staples of a Jack Sigler (Chess Team) thriller, great characters, nasty monsters, creepy locations, witty dialog, and at least two dashes of sci-fi for flavor. A five star read, no doubt in my mind. Loved it.
I picked up Warbirds of Mars: Stories of the Fight without knowing exactly what to expect. It's a collection of short stories that are all set in the same world, each written by a different talented author. Additionally, the book contains some outstanding original artwork that was inspired by each story. Together they make for a unique and engaging experience. And while I wasn't sure what I was getting into when I started reading this nearly 500 page novel, it was a book that surpassed even my wildest expectation.
Warbirds of Mars began as a web comic. Stories of the Fight marks a substantial change in format for the content, but one that serves the story at least as well as any comic. Warbirds of Mars takes place in a world where an alien force invaded Earth in the middle of World War II. At that point, history as we know is shifts from all that we know to have been true. Nazis side with the alien invading force while much of the free world struggles to remain free from enslavement or outright extermination. Along the way, a resistance force rises up to bring the battle to both the Martians and the fascist regime. They call themselves the Martian Killers— a larger than life, comic book like group of resistance fighters who champion mankind's rebellion against an enemy equipped with superior technology and manpower.
What makes this book particularly interesting is the collaboration of a group of disparate and talented authors and artists. Each one bringing his or her own style and flair to subject matter. As a result, every chapter of the book is unique in content and tone. For fans of genre fiction, this is nothing less than a unique and thrilling experience. No single author could've created a story with such scope and diversity. Some of the perspectives chosen by the authors border on brilliant. Some stories offer seat of your pants action and thrills, others offer chills, while at least one will bring a smile to your face and a tear to your eye.
If you're not familiar with the Warbirds of Mars web comic, don't worry. Prior to reading this book, I had only seen a few issues in passing. The good news is that this book is standalone and entirely self-contained. A reader can pick it up without any familiarity with the subject matter.
I really enjoy the change in the point of view in episode two. Seeing things through Jacob's eyes is a great twist! There's a lot to learn from this perspective and it's really amping up the tension as we realize Pia is not infallible. What greater mystery to solve than trying to find your missing boss and save her butt? Add some high quality a$$ kicking... I call it a win!
This is a fantastic launch for a follow-up series. Episode one has all the action I hoped for after the first novel, and the overall mystery has me guessing. Particularly the parts involving the State Department... And, child trafficking is exactly the sort of case I would expect Pia to sink her teeth into with ceaseless remorse.
The way Pia conducts herself at the meeting is brilliant! I can't wait to see where things go from here!
Book two in the series is a roller coaster ride of highs and lows for the protagonist, Aingeal. She was on top of the world when a catastrophe undermines everything she loves about her life. She had accepted her experience from the first book and made peace with it. But now everything changes as she accepts her new life, realizing she was meant to be the person she became in the first book. After that, if you've done something to wrong the women of her city, watch out!
This is the classic story of a woman pushed too far, and a woman more than willing to push back. But when she pushes, she takes it to the extreme. The writing really shines in the way the author takes us on the slippery emotional ride Aingeal experiences while she struggles to right many wrongs and fights to find her place in the world.
This book covers Aingeal's highest highs and lowest lows, taking the reader along every step of the way. The author, Carol Brearley, does an amazing job of putting the reader in Aingeal's shoes and letting us share in her personal experiences. This makes for a very engaging and emotionally draining reading experience.
This episode is more hard-core! Pia proves that she can make mistakes and she may have gotten herself into a little more trouble than she can deal with on her own. This release is darker than the first part of the series, and I like that. The series is driving awareness of child adduction and trafficking. Doing that shines some light in some dark corners that are inhabited by some very shady characters.
This episode has it all, the dark corners, hard choices, desperation, and one heck of a really nasty antagonist running it all. It's a pedal to the metal ride that leaves you wanting episode 4 really, really bad!
This was an amazing addition to the series. Good old Harry manages to get himself into more trouble than ever before— which is saying something.
This book was, hands down, a fun and thrilling read. If you're a fan of the Dresden series, you will love Cold Days. As is the case with the entire Dresden series, you must read the books in order if you want to get the full impact of the events detailed within.
This book reads is if it were written by an author in the mid-1900's. This is made all the more fun, knowing that Sean Ellis is a modern day thriller author who has effectively revived genre fiction from a nearly forgotten age.
Shadow the Falcon's Wings was fun and unique in so many ways. First of all, it's a period adventure taking place in an unspecified time, apparently circa 1930's or 1940's. Secondly, it's clear that Mr. Ellis had a great deal of fun with the technology of that time period while playing with what would've been considered futuristic technology to the people of that time. All of this plays out in a thrilling and fun adventure that is steeped in extreme creativity that is nothing short of riveting.
I'm almost at a loss for a way to describe the book without giving anything away. Put simply, I'm looking forward to the next book in the series.
Some people actively avoid books written in the first person. Those folks are missing out if they skip this book. Primal Thirst is written from this point of view and it's a stronger adventure for it. It helps capture the dry sense of humor of the protagonist and it paints the transpiring events with great color and flare.
Additionally, Primal Thirst was a rip-roaring tale of adventure but, more than that, it was a well-crafted, fun thriller. This is a classic Indiana Jones or Tomb Raider type tale with a bit of the X-Files mixed in for good measure. In short, this book was a heck of a lot of fun to read and one that I will readily recommend to anyone looking for a fund adventure novel.
Every once in a while I come across a book that is pure genre fun. Being a big fan of classic monster movies, I've been disappointed at the way vampire fiction has devolved in recent years. The target audience appears to have shifted and with it the content and quality of the fiction has degraded. Whatever happened to classic vampire fiction? I want the really old school stuff like Bram Stoker's original novel, Dracula— or the low budget Hammer Horror films. The current trend in vampire fiction is enough to turn me off the topic altogether.
If you've been feeling like I have, there's great news! Kane Gilmour's, The Crypt of Dracula, is a novela that is just what we've been waiting for. It's the tried and true vampire story that gets your heart pounding and once again brings life to the things that go bump in the night. This is the kind of story Bram Stoker would write if he were still alive and kicking. Very much in the same vein (sorry, it had to be done) as Stoker's original Dracula tale, this is a period story which takes place in Transylvania. A grieving stone mason is hired by a mysterious Count to repair his damaged and neglected castle located outside a remote village populated by troubled, xenophobic farmers who have come to fear the night.
I think you can see where this is headed. The story is true to vampire lore in the classic sense. It goes back to a time when vampires were evil and horrifying; when the concept of a vampire wasn't commonly understood by all who farmed the land. A time when people were superstitious and fearful, suspicious and vengeful.
In short, this is a classic vampire story that does the lore justice just as it does Bram's Stoker's original vision proud. Can Kane Gilmour fix everything that's wrong with vampire fiction in its current form? Sadly, no. But with more books like this, old school vampire fans like myself might yet live to see another sunrise.
The Emerald Scepter is one of those rip-roaring adventures that I didn't see coming. It was a book that I found intriguing after reading its description online. But it turned out to be one of those books that will never have a description that can do it justice. We're talking a 500 page novel that is cover to cover action and suspense. The characters and interesting and engaging while the plot leaves the reader with a constantly evolving understanding of the protagonist's past and present.
All of this is an exceptional treat for fans of the thriller genre as many will recognized Paul Kemprecos's name from his collaborative work with Clive Cussler on The Numa Files (the Kurt Austin series). And while it comes as no surprise that Paul is a gifted story teller, The Emerald Scepter proves that he has saved his best work for his solo career.
I started reading The Emerald Scepter looking for a solid summer action thriller. By the time I closed the figurative back cover (it was an ebook after all), I realized I had selected an exceptional summer adventure. The characters of this book are so powerful and enjoyable, I can only hope this turns out to be the start of a new series.
An unpredictable series of events are trigger when hardware store owner, Bill Ferguson, interferes with the kidnapping of a teenage girl from a local highway rest stop. The would be kidnaper turns out to be an elusive serial killer/kidnaper who has been eluding the FBI for nearly three years.
When Ferguson prevents the abduction, he puts himself and his family in the crosshairs of the deadly fugitive. From there the story takes off as an FBI manhunt spares no manpower in the search for the famed “I-90 Killer.” But it's the direction the story takes after this that will keep readers on the edge of their seats.
Folks squeamish to child violence might be sensitive to parts of this book. That said, the author has done a masterful job of navigating a very delicate line. Both with his prose, and with the plot. This is a story about a sadistic kidnaper and killer but it's also the story of a hero and a man willing to do absolutely anything to protect his family. So those sensitive should be warned but they should not dismiss this book outright. This is one of those visceral empowering storys of good vesus evil but it's one you can have confidence in the outcome. This is worth your time. The resulting anxiety is well developed and properly rewarded. It's the sort of writing that makes for a successful thriller, and that is exactly what Allan Leverone has done.
The plot takes some unexpected and very interesting twists. All of which lead to a very rewarding ending that is difficult to anticipate. That said, once you reach the end of the book you will see that there were hints at the final outcome scattered along the way. They were there, just cleverly hidden... as they should be.
The Lonely Mile is a riveting thriller and a great summer read.
A few years back, a series of books made an international splash. The central thread of the trilogy was a young woman who was mistreated and abused in a horrific fashion. And throughout the three book series, the central character ultimately had her revenge. That series was ultimately known as the Millennium Trilogy and was written by Stieg Larsson. Many know the series better by the title of the first book, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. It was an international smash hit and, at its core, it dealt with a woman who had been horribly wronged.
Fans of the Millennium Trilogy are likely to appreciate the visceral drama at the heart of Rise of the Dark Angel. Only where Stieg Larsson literally spent hundreds of pages slowly spinning his tale and taking lengthy side trips, Carol Brearley tells a tale that is much more on point while equally gritty and engaging. It's the story of Aingeal, a young woman living in New York City. The story opens strong and hits the reader hard as we experience how Aingeal is wronged first hand, through her eyes.
In many ways, this is one of the things that makes this story so powerful. It's told in the first person. The reader experiences everything through the character's eyes. The fear, the pain, the need to heal, and ultimately the thirst for revenge. The author, Carol Brearley, puts the reader there, front row for the roller coaster ride that is both Aingeal's pain and her road to recovery.
While I liken the tale to Larsson's Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, the parallels I see are strictly in theme and tone. Rise of the Dark Angel is a story absolutely unique. It stands entirely on its own. It's dark, it's gritty, and it's about the horrible experience of a character and how that twist of fate ultimately threatens to crush her. How she chooses to deal with what has happened will either lead to her future or her end.
What Larsson did at the slow pace of a writer planning something of epic scale, Brearley has accomplished at the much more gratifying pace of a thriller author. The story moves quickly and the plot charges forward, constantly focused on character and her circumstances. And since this is only book one of the trilogy, it absolutely leaves the reader wanting more...
Robinson comes through again with another great action/thriller. While the chilling danger faced by the characters of this novel is fiction, shockingly it is grounded in fact. The infamous Unit 731 was obviously the inspiration which fueled this novel. And while the book shines a light on many outrageous atrocities, few readers are likely to realize how many historic references are factual.
Island 731 is a chilling thriller and a troubling cautionary tail warning of what might happen scientific advancement is put ahead of human decency and morality.
Every great character needs a great origin story. The first book in the Quinn series hints at a powerful backstory but leaves the reader to wonder. Becoming Quinn was a masterful look at the origins of a character with great depth. It answers many questions about Quinn and completes an already solid foundation for the Quinn series.
This was a very interesting look behind the curtain of an American dynasty. Scandalous and disappointing, they could have done so much more if they had tired. This was worth the read. A full book on the subject would have been far too depressing. This gave me just what I need to know without making me wallow in the miserable end of an American icon.
Sick is book one in the Project Eden series, and after reading it I can't wait to dig into book #2. Though this book is a lunching point for a series that currently features four novels, thankfully it's a fully fleshed out and complete story in its own right. Packed with action and unending suspense, the book starts with a scare and the wild ride only continues from there.
The book centers around the character of Daniel Ash, an officer in the Army who has recently taken his family and transferred to a base that has just been taken out of mothballs. As the story opens, he wakes in the middle of the night to tragedy and finds himself in the center of a fantastic conspiracy. As the story unfolds, Ash fights for his life and the lives of those he cares for.
I like to say the book centers around Daniel Ash because many parts of the story involve beautifully illustrated peripheral characters who enhance the story and pull us, as readers, into the wider implications of events as the plot unfolds. The secondary cast of characters adds great depth and emotion at every turn.
I particularly enjoyed how we learn about the antagonist(s) slowly over time. The slow dissemination of information regarding the group behind the conspiracy adds to the tension as we realize the overall reach of the antagonist organization by the end of the book.
By the end of the story, things are brought to a satisfying conclusion but there are many questions left unanswered. And there should be. There are three more books in the series right now. And there may be more to come. There are many questions, dangerous villains and even shadowy saviors who leave us wanting more. Perhaps best of all, there is more to be had. Answers are just one book away. It's nearly impossible to finish reading Sick and not dive directly into Exit 9, the second book in the series!
Pandora's Temple is my first experience with one of Jon Land's books and I am impressed! This is a classic tale of high stakes adventure where the hero is literally fighting for the fate of the world. The book is the latest is a series that features Blaine McCracken, now approaching the age of 60. But the man hadn't lost a step. I give Land credit for writing a book that features a protagonist that some might consider past his prime. As part of the plot, McCracken wonders himself if he might have outlived his usefulness. That only adds to the adventure as he faces his personal concerns and looks back at the eventful life that brought him this far.
As McCracken contemplates some of his past experiences, the reader gets a hint at the history this character has experienced throughout the series. But Land doesn't dwell on McCracken's back story. He drops just enough references to make things fun for fans of the series. And his references have me thoroughly hooked. I can't wait to start the series from the beginning. Land's writing is just that that engaging and his McCracken character is so richly nuanced that I want to experience the series from the start.
If you are a fan of the series, you have to read this book. If you haven't read any of the McCracken books, this is a fantastic place to start. It was my first exposure to the series and I am nothing short of impressed!
Cursed Blessing by J.M. Leduc: The Endowment, a responsibility passed down through time to protect what we known as the fountain of youth. This was a very good book with a great plot, suspense, and action. But I offer a word of warning. The book goes on something of a Jesus bender starting at about the 33% mark. All of a sudden nearly all of the characters start talking or thinking about their savior and praying a lot.
So, this would be the kind of thriller ideal for a church book club or a reader of very similar faith. For others, the shifting of gears might be a little jaring.
That said, the plot and characters are strong and a lot of fun. There is a strong backstory that grows and expands to strengthen the present day plot. Woven together, this shows J.M. Leduc's skill as an author. Perhaps best of all, this is just book one in the series. So, if you like it, there's plenty more where that came from!
