Mysterious Book Report No. 353 – Black And White Ball

By |2018-11-05T06:14:45+00:00November 5th, 2018|Mysterious Book Report|

Black and White Ball by Loren D. Estleman Forge / Tom Doherty Associates, $25.99, 240 pages, ISBN 978-0-7653-88476 There must be something in the air, water . . . or maybe an unknown isotope emanating out of the ground at night, that germinates world class crime writers in, around and about Detroit, Michigan.  From the late great Elmore Leonard, to the much-lauded Steve Hamilton, to the indefatigable, prolific and

Mysterious Book Report No. 220 – Palace Of Treason

By |2016-10-12T06:58:55+00:00October 12th, 2016|Mysterious Book Report|

Palace of Treason by Jason Matthews Scribner/Simon & Shuster, $26.99, 468 pages, ISBN 978-1-4767-9374-0 Is there any doubt amongst well-informed people, that the tectonic plates of government spheres of influence are being shifted these days in ways we couldn’t even imagine as little as twenty-five years ago? Would you have thought for example, back in 1990 when the Soviet Union was collapsing and the U.S. led coalition was busy

Mysterious Book Report No. 133 – Spirit of Steamboat

By |2016-05-12T07:01:44+00:00May 12th, 2016|Mysterious Book Report|

Spirit of Steamboat by Craig Johnson Penguin, $20.00, 146 pages, ISBN 978-0-670-01578-8 Have you ever seen the hit drama series Longmire, on the A&E television network?  If so, maybe you, like me, are a fan of the hard-working Wyoming Sheriff named Walt Longmire.  Whether you’ve seen the show or not, read any of the series of books about him, or not, you’re in for a real treat with this

Mysterious Book Report No. 129 – Suspects

By |2016-05-10T07:10:24+00:00May 10th, 2016|Mysterious Book Report|

Suspect by Robert Crais Putnam, $27.95, 309 pages, ISBN 978-0-399-18148-3 Post-traumatic stress disorder, PTSD is a mental condition suffered by some individuals who’ve been subjected to intense, loud and life-threatening situations.  Anyone who’s been in a life and death situation can suffer from it.  The US Armed Forces have for years denied the existence of PTSD, labeling sufferers of the condition as malingerers, or shirkers, refusing treatment and shunning

Mysterious Book Report No. 122 – The Shanghai Factor

By |2016-05-02T07:48:46+00:00May 2nd, 2016|Mysterious Book Report|

The Shanghai Factor by Charles McCarry Mysterious Press-Grove/Atlantic, Inc., $26.00, 292 pages, ISBN 978-0-8021-2127-1 Here’s a true confession: I have been fascinated by spies, espionage and tradecraft ever since the 1950’s when I read that first issue of Mad Magazine and was introduced to the iconic Spy vs Spy cartoon strip with it’s two identical antagonists, battling to a constant and eternal draw.  From then on, I have read

Mysterious Book Report No. 90 – Prague Fatale

By |2016-03-29T07:51:03+00:00March 29th, 2016|Mysterious Book Report|

Prague Fatale by Philip Kerr Marion Wood Putnam, $26.95, 400 pages, ISBN 978-03969-15902-2 All my life, I’ve had a fascination with and a thirst for knowledge of the great conflagration and tragedy known as World War II.  Could be it’s because I was born just a year after the end of it . . . and perhaps because my father and most of his generation, the fathers of friends

Mysterious Book Report No. 88 – The Stockholm Octavo

By |2016-03-28T07:19:32+00:00March 28th, 2016|Mysterious Book Report|

The Stockholm Octavo by Karen Englemann Harper-Collins-ECCO, $26.99, 421 pages, ISBN 978-0-06-199534-7 After the wild ride we took with last week’s cultish thriller, (Gun Church, MBR 87)  I wanted to find another equally compelling novel, but one that’s the polar opposite in content, style and focus.  Dame Fortune smiled and sent all of us a beautifully-written debut novel that’s historical fiction at it’s very best.  It combines history, romance,

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