The Mastermind has targeted him as his next victim! And James Patterson's clever police detective/psychologist Dr. Alex Cross has his hands full in his latest episode “Roses
Are Red.” And while his titles may reflect a “simple” line of nursery rhymes, this book (and all its
aspects) is far from simple. The Mastermind, twisted and evil psychopath that he is, taunts
the police with his phone calls and letters. He has thus far foiled police efforts as he has
successfully managed to rob banks (using the families of the robbers as hostages, whom he
executes if anything goes wrong!), and creating other evil scenarios. As with other Cross
books by Patterson, the estimable doctor has his own agenda of personal problems as
well--his divorce, his daughter's illness, his relationship with Christine, his lover, and
working with his FBI partner--the beautiful Ms Cavaliere. Fast-paced as usual, “Roses Are
Red” crescendos into an explosive climax and fans of Patterson will not be disappointed!
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Synopsis (from back cover): A is for Mrs. Ascher – fatally attacked in Andover. B is for Betty Barnard – strangled on the beach in Bexhill. C is for Sir Carmichael Clarke – now a corpse in Churston. If nothing else, the murderer knew is ABCs. But the alphabetical assassin would need to know more that that to outwit the world’s cleverest detective…Hercule Poirot!
Review: This is the first Agatha Christie story I have read, although I am familiar with the Hercule Poirot series on television. This was also my first foray into this genre; most “mysteries” I have read are actually gory crime thrillers. It was refreshing to have a main character, the dapper Poirot, instead of some gritty detective with emotional problems. Poirot is brilliant, polished, and funny. He’s even well-adjusted. I also appreciated the fact that the story was told from the perspective of Poirot’s friend, Captain Hastings, meaning that I was left out of Poirot’s thought-processes, so every twist and turn was a surprise.
The story starts out with the arrival of a teasing letter at Poirot’s home. It warns of something happening in Andover on a specific day. When Alice Ascher is found dead, it’s obvious that the murderer is engaged in a lethal game with Poirot. The cast of characters keeps expanding as more murders occur, including family members and distraught boyfriends. Although everyone is a suspect, there are mysterious chapters interspersed throughout the book that feature a strange man named Alexander Bonaparte Cust…A.B.C. Who is this man? What is his connection to the murders?
As the police are scrambling to try to find A.B.C. and to prevent these murders from happening on their appointed days, Poirot is using all his mental powers to try and figure out why these murders are happening. Even when it seems that the case is all locked up, Poirot still tries to understand the underlying reasons behind the crimes. It is this reason that finally blows the case wide open and provides a stunning twist at the end.
This book is a classic of Christie’s and really demonstrates her skills as the premier mystery writer. It will obviously appeal to all mystery fiction fans, but also to anyone who is curious about this classic genre. I am looking forward to reading more of Christie’s books, and especially those featuring this comically brilliant detective.
Reviewed by Sarah
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Reviewed by Linda L. Richards
If Frank Herbert had come of age in the era of cyberpunk, his worlds might have looked like this, with a layer of Raymond Chandler thrown in for good measure. An intelligent, complicated and deliciously convoluted novel, Chasm City reminds the reader again and again that fiction isn't only about the destination. For a book to really work on all levels, the journey must be fascinating, as well.
In Chasm City the journey is riveting. Alastair Reynolds has reason to know space more intimately than most novelists and he doesn't stint on the details. The resulting story is richly imagined and beautifully realized: elements of the very best science fiction novels of all time stewed to perfection by Reynolds' own rich imagination and experience. A satisfying blend.
Professional solider Tanner Mirabel doesn't even remember his name, let alone his mission, when he wakes up in a space hospice after a 15-year journey spent in cryosleep. This amnesia is common to "slush puppies" he's told. And, in most cases, at least functional recall will be possible, if only he rests. Rest isn't in the cards, however, as he begins to remember the reason for his journey: He's come this almost unthinkable distance to kill Argent Reivich, the man responsible for the death of his employer and his employer's wife back on their home world, Sky's Edge. Mirabel feels that it's likely Reivich came on the same vessel as Mirabel, but was thawed and made his way through the hospice more quickly. To track his man, Mirabel needs to get underway before the trail grows too cold.
Bothersome, at least, is the fact that, since his reawakening, Mirabel has been having disturbing dreams about the crucified anti-hero Sky Haussmann, the historical figure who did the unthinkable in order to be the first to bring his ship from Earth to the then-uninhabited planet later nicknamed Sky's Edge. The most unsettling element of Mirabel's dreams is the fact that they contain data not included in historical records. The sum total of the facts creates a chilling picture of Haussmann and leaves even more unanswered questions for Mirabel.
The dream sequences create the novel's major subplot. They begin in Haussmann's childhood and continue in chronological order every time Mirabel closes his eyes. After awhile Mirabel's sleep isn't even necessary: the dream episodes imbed themselves in waking moments.
To complicate Mirabel's mission still further is the fact that Chasm City, and the whole Epsilon Eridani system, has been terribly altered in the time it took for Mirabel to travel there. Seven years prior to Mirabel's arrival a technological catastrophe -- the Melding Plague -- caused the once conspicuously affluent city to become an almost comic parody of itself. The plague was "... not quite a biological virus, not quite a software virus, but a strange and shifting chimera of the two." The society that the Melding Plague attacked was "supersaturated by trillions of tiny machines. ... They swarmed tirelessly through our blood. ... They clotted our brains, linking us into the Demarchy's web of near-instantaneous decision-making. We moved through virtual environments woven by direct manipulation of the brain's sensory mechanisms. ... We forged and sculpted matter on the scale of mountains..."
The Melding Plague, of course, changed all of that. Millions died and those that remain have been forced to reinvent every aspect of their existence. As a result, Chasm City is a brooding shadow of its former golden glory. The socially elite physically separated above the rest of the city in an area known as The Canopy: a place you generally don't get to without an invitation. And, of course, it's the place where Mirabel must follow Reivich in order to kill him, without an invitation.
The plot is intricate and, as promised, convoluted. However, Reynolds manages its unraveling with dark and gritty charm. As intricate as the plot, however, are the worlds Reynolds invents with such fluidity. Wholly imagined distant worlds filled with the wonders that might rationally separate us from our descendants half a millennium -- and a couple of galaxies -- into the future.
Born in Wales in 1966, Reynolds is an astrophysicist who works with the European Space Agency in Holland. Clearly, Reynolds knows space as well as anyone has a right to and his writing is not at all what you'd expect from someone with a Ph.D. in astronomy. Reynolds' prose is elegant and smart, the pacing in Chasm City is brilliant and the action is nonstop.
Chasm City is Reynolds' second novel. The first, Revelation Space, is set in the same well-imagined universe, but Chasm City is in no way a sequel. You will recognize some place names, the family names of some aristocrats, some of the technologies and the noirish qualities prevalent in this universe, but reading the first book is not required to understand what's happening in the second. A third book, Redemption Ark, is completed and will be published in the United Kingdom in 2002 and will follow with a US publication in 2003. Alastair Reynolds is well on his way. | January 2002
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It was the perfect crime.Three crooked judges were doing time in a federal prison. They called themselves The Brethren and unofficially handled inmate disputes within the fences. They needed to earn some income for their eventual release so they began placing tiny ads in the back of magazines:SWM in 20's looking for kind and discreet gentleman in 40's or 50's to pen pal with.When the letters came in, they were screened to see if any respondents were wealthy. Those that qualified received a letter from one of the judges. The supposed author was a good-looking young man on the verge of completing drug rehab. The judges conned the pen pals in to thinking the young man was eager to meet and start a relationship.Correspondence continued until the judges could get the true identity of the pen pal. Their crooked lawyer on the outside provided assistance. Once the pen pal's true identity was confirmed, an extortion letter was sent. The pen pals were usually wealthy, prominent, married men with a lot to lose if their secrets were revealed. The letters from The Brethren asked for X dollars in return for not outing the pen pal. When the money was received, it was deposited off shore for future use of the judges.The scheme could go in continually, since the wealthy men couldn't report the crime. Doing so would out them and ruin their families as well.The Brethren cast a wide net, conning men across the country. This would prove to be the beginning of the end. You see, the judges conned the wrong man, and now the government is watchingready to con The Brethren in return.It started out as the perfect crime, but how will it end? Every involved party has a great deal to lose, including the con men and the government officials themselves. When all is said and done, will there be a winner?It takes only a few chapters for the reader to realize that The Brethren is not the standard Grisham novel. This is not a legal thriller. Rather it is a story of three white-collar con men and a government conspiracy. There is no final showdown in the courtroom, and that may disappoint some Grisham fans.If read with an open mind, however, The Brethren can prove to be somewhat entertaining. Grisham describes the scam in interesting detail. The only reason it works is because all of the players don't seem to be playing with a full deck and everyone is breaking the law in one way or another.The one drawback to The Brethren is the ending, or lack thereof. Several questions were left unanswered. I found myself searching the blank end pages for the magic paragraph that would close the story. No Dice. Prepare for the vague conclusion and you won't be disappointed. Perhaps you could make up your own ending. Who knows?That being said, The Brethren is an entertaining book. It is a good book, not a great book. The story is found in the actions and not the characters themselves, so don't expect to get lost within the pages of this Grisham work. It is better classified as light reading.All in all a good effort by John Grisham, but I've seen better.You can download this novel from link below
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"A fancy photo of Joel Backman in the black Italian suit, impeccably tailored and detailed and groomed and looking at the camera with as much smugness as humanly possible. The hair was longer and darker, the handsome face was fleshy and wrinkle free, the waistline was thick and spoke of many power lunches and four-hour dinners. He loved wine and women and sports cars. He had a jet, a yacht, a place in Vail, all of which he'd been quite eager to talk about. The bold caption above his head read: THE BROKER – IS THIS THE SECOND MOST POWERFUL MAN IN WASHINGTON?"
The quote above accurately describes what was the essence of the main character in this novel six years ago. But things have changed a lot for Joel Backman; when the narration starts he is in jail serving twenty years for treason. His luck is about to change though, since the wheels are turning in the White House. The outgoing president, Arthur Morgan, is in the final hours of his mandate after suffering a catastrophic defeat in the recent elections. Now he is deciding which pardons to grant and is receiving pressure from the CIA to liberate the Broker. In the narration of these early events we get a first glimpse of what Grisham is capable of achieving, since he catches the reader's attention through the use of a couple witty jokes and the portrayal of the corruption associated with the process of granting pardons.
The CIA interest in liberating Backman originates in the fact that the Broker is in possession of secrets that can seriously compromise national security. The agency's plan is to release the traitor, relocate him overseas to a foreign country and then provide the groups that want to kill Backman with information regarding his place of hiding. In that way, not only will they achieve the objective of keeping him silent, but the CIA will also see which group is most eager to kill the Broker. As the plan is set in motion, we start to get glimpses of Backman's previous life and information on the reasons why he ended up in jail. This is intertwined with the present, in which we find a changed person, who is fighting to survive and concurrently take advantage of this chance at a new beginning.
The Broker is transferred to Bologna upon his release, and Grisham spends a considerable amount of time describing the Italians, the life in this beautiful country, the luscious food, impressive scenery and seductive language. I perceived this as a break from the author's usual pattern of fast-paced action, when the level of suspense is high at all times. In this case, he focuses more on providing the reader with a comprehensive vision of the main character, allowing us to understand what drives the Broker's actions and how his previous experiences have changed the man. The interesting descriptions found in this part of the novel add a very particular flair to the story and help create a level of eagerness on the reader, who will be looking forward to the point in which the action will rush towards the end.
The other important difference this novel presents compared to other works by Grisham has to do with the genre. The author is characterized for writing thrillers in a legal setting, but in this case we are in the presence of a book that belongs in the espionage category. Grisham tried to change genres before, for example with Bleachers, where the main topic is sports, but in my opinion this attempt was not successful. But Grisham will not give up, and it seems to me that he is trying to prove to himself that he can write great books in other categories. In this case even though the quality is not excellent, as it was in The Firm or A Time to Kill, Grisham delivers a powerful novel that will satisfy those that are looking for something more than nonstop action. The only reason why this novel is not excellent in my opinion is that I felt the ending was a little rushed. If this section of the book had been better developed, the experience would have been even more satisfying.
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Title :Dumb Witness By Agatha Christie
Publisher : Compass Press Large Print, (2001)
ISBN: 0-7531-6589-9
Genre: Mystery
How do you solve a murder when the only witness is a dog, who may also be the murderer? For most this would be an impossible task. But, as Agatha Christie is quick to point out, this can be done quite easily when the person working on the crime is none other than the indomitable Belgium detective, Hercule Poirot. In this case he is meritoriously assisted by Bob, a wire-haired terrier who seems to want to prove his innocence and to point out to Poirot the real culprit of the crime - if only he can get Poirot to understand him. Together, they work to clear Bob's name, and to discover who really killed Emily Arundell, Bob's mistress. Although he seems to take a backseat to Bob in this mystery, Captain Hastings, Poirot's long time assistance is also on hand to help Poirot massage his little grey cells.
This is one of Christie's more 'fun' books. The idea of the uncompromising Poirot working hand-in-hand with a dog is almost preposterous - yet Christie has woven the story line so well that it all seems remarkably natural. Emily lived in Littlegreen House with Bob and her companion Miss Minnie Lawson, and it was here that Emily died. As with most of Christie's mysteries, this one offers the reader a host of likely suspects, including Emily's nieces, Bella and Theresa, her nephew Charles, Bella's Greek husband, Dr. Tanios, and Theresa's fiancee, Dr. Donaldson.
Poirot arrives on the case at the behest of Emily, a request that he received from after she is already dead! Before her death, Emily had sent a letter to Poirot detailing her suspicions and the fact that she thought that her life was in danger. Mysteriously, it took eleven days for the letter to reach him. By that time it was already too late to save Emily - but not too late to solve the mystery surrounding her death.
Why are there so many suspects in this case? The answer is simple, just before her death Emily changed her will to name Lawson as her sole beneficiary, thereby disinheriting all of her kin. As Poirot pries into the histories and the motives of the various players in this mystery, he uncovers numerous skeletons and multiple reasons each one may have wanted to see Emily dead. As well, he discovers how the deed was carried out, and the real reason behind why Emily 'had to die'.
This delightful mystery has been published under a variety of names, including Dumb Witness, Poirot Loses a Client, Murder at Little Green House, and Mystery at Little Green House. No matter what title you find this book listed under, you're in for a marvelous time as Poirot and Bob the Dog track down the wily killer of Emily Arundell.
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Published : June 1st 1984 by Berkley (first published 1937)Details : Paperback
Characters : Hercule Poirot
ISBN : 0425067998 (ISBN 13: 9780425067994)
Miss Emily was old, rich, and afraid--and now, she's dead. Her terrified plea to Hercule Poirot came a little too late. All that's left is a house full of greedy heirs, and a very strange letter that could solve the mystery--or add to it.
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