The Risk Agent by Ridley Pearson

John Knox and Grace Chu are paired up in China to find Chu's relative that has been kidnapped and Knox's friend has been kidnapped as well. Chu is looking into the financial aspect of the kidnapping and Knox is the brawn. The pair of them have to sort through a tangle of information and keep themselves safe. And still rescue the two individuals that have been kidnapped.

This book started out a little slow for me but after about a third of the way through, I couldn't put it down. I loved the characters of Knox and Chu throughout the book. They seemed to compliment each other quite well. The suspense was developed nicely. I also like the format of the book with the dates and times listed as you read.

One of the issues that I found myself struggling with was that there were so many characters that it was hard to keep up with how they were all associated with one another. By the end of the book I was a little lost but I still enjoyed it and it didn't detract from the book too much.

I enjoyed the inserts about the Chinese history and culture. I felt that Pearson included enough information about China but did not go too overboard and bore the reader. I also like that he would write a word in Chinese but give the English translation. It brought the book to life for me.

Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Pearson did not disappoint me. I loved the suspense, the characters, the twists and turns, and the setting. I would love to see Knox and Chu come into play in a future Ridley Pearson novel.

(This book was received through LibraryThing Early Reviewers. ARC. Read August 2012.)

Don't Ever Get Old by Daniel Friedman

This is a story of a cantankerous old man named Buck Schatz. An old acquaintance from the war wants to talk to him before he dies. This man informs Buck that the soldier who tortured him during the war is actually still alive and that he took some gold from that soldier in order to give him passage out of the country. Buck is furious. This acquaintance betrayed him and now wants him to find the rest of the gold. Buck is going to ignore this death bed plea until more people start approaching him about the gold. Before he knows it, Buck is drug into the treasure hunt and he has brought his grandson along with him. Bodies start turning up and Buck could be one of them if he doesn't tread carefully.

This was an interesting book. I loved the humor throughout the book and it started from the moment I read Buck's name the first time. The author did a wonderful job with the character Buck. Buck has smart responses to everyone around him, including his wife. I think Buck is the type of character that most people want to become in their old age...cantankerous, witty, no nonsense, and still up for a wild adventure.

After completing the book, I realized that I found the book entertaining but that I didn't hang on to the plot as much as I did the humor and the characters. The story was not bad but I think it was overshadowed by the personalities of the characters. I was anxious to find out how Buck was going to get everything ironed out but I was also anxious to know how Buck was doing after everything was over. I would recommend this books as a humorous book with a mystery twist. 

(Please note that this book was received through NetGalley. Thank you, St. Martin's Press, for the opportunity to read this book. Read on Kindle August 2012.)

Deep Down by Lee Child

This is a short story with Jack Reacher as the main character. This story is a typical Reacher story...just a lot shorter. If you are not a Lee Child/Jack Reacher fan, this book will probably seem pointless and a waste of time. For Child/Reacher fans, it is always fun to read another story that has Reacher solving a problem in his unique way. I do not mind the short stories but I definitely like the full length stories more because Child is able to develop the story to keep you on the edge of your seat. The short stories do not have the same suspense and impact that is in the full length books. This book is worth the read if you enjoy Reacher. I would not recommend it to anyone who is new to Jack Reacher.

Maze Runner by James Dashner

I had seen this book mentioned many times by my friends who love young adult books. I decided to pick it up and see what they were talking about.

Thomas finds himself in a box and being lifted up in the box. When the doors are opened, there is a large group of boys looking in on him. Thomas doesn't remember anything of his past and he has no idea what is going on in the place in which he was delivered. He starts trying to ask questions and no one has a straight answer for him. Things are strange in this new world and before he knows it, things get even stranger when the first girl is brought into their world. Things continue to spiral out of control once she arrives and all of them have to figure out how to survive.

I found the beginning of this book a little slow and annoying. Thomas is constantly asking what is going on and the answers are vague or not given at all. I found myself as frustrated as Thomas with the lack of answers and how he was being treated by the other boys.

As the story continues, I found myself less irritated. I became anxious about how they would get through and survive the Maze. After about half way through the book, I couldn't put it down. I was so impressed with how Thomas fought through all the questions and persevered.

I felt like this book was different from many of the other young adult books I have read lately. It felt like it wasn't a "copy" of an idea from someone else. There could be other books out like it but I have not encountered any of them to date. I thought that the author was inventive and left you wanting more at the end of the book. I look forward to picking up the next book. 

(Library Book read Aug 2012)

The Second Son by Lee Child

This is a short story that gives an insight into what Jack Reacher was like as a child (around 13 years old). His grandfather is dying and his family has been relocated so they cannot contact his next of kin, which is his daughter, Josephine.  Josephine is Reacher’s mother. After getting moved into their new home, Reacher and his brother, Joe, encounter the bully kid of the neighborhood. Before they know it, Reacher’s dad, Stan, and Joe are both in some trouble. Reacher’s mom has to leave to be with her dad and it is up to Reacher to put things back together for the family.

This is definitely a short story but it is worth the read. You realize that Reacher’s behaviors have been engrained in him from a very young age. He can be hard headed but shows intelligence that amazes you. He is able to deduce what is going on more accurately than the adults around him. It is clear from reading this short story that Reacher was a fighter early on in life and that he knew he would have to prove himself everywhere he lived. Reacher learned how to use people as pawns and manipulate them through the experiences he encountered growing up. It is also clear that his mother and father trusted him and knew that he would protect his family at all costs.

This story is nothing fancy or unique to Lee Child. His writing style is the same as it is throughout the Reacher series. It just gives the reader a snapshot of what Reacher was like as a teen and how even at a young age, we was being molded into the man he becomes throughout the series.

Finished Reading on July 1, 2012
Format: short story eBook on Kindle (purchased)

Stranger In The Room by Amanda Kyle Williams

Stranger In the Room is Amanda Kyle Williams’s second book featuring Keye Street. The book starts out with Keye’s niece, Miki, facing an intruder in her home. Miki immediately calls Keye for help and Keye is leery after all of Miki’s past issues. While Keye is trying to figure out what is going on at Miki’s house, she gets hired to find a bail jumper. Miki joins her on the hunt and chaos and hilarity quickly ensue. Keye is also tasked with finding out why a family discovered dry cement and chicken feed in the urn that was supposed to contain a loved one’s ashes. Keye takes her computer guru, Neil, with her up to north Georgia to find out what is going on with the crematory that provided the remains. While they are gone, Miki finds herself in more trouble and Keye and Rauser (Keye’s boyfriend and Atlanta Police Department Lieutenant) start trying to figure out who is stalking Miki. Meanwhile, Rauser has his hands full with the murder of a young boy. Together Keye and Rauser work to put all the pieces together and get a murderer off the street.

I have to say that Amanda Kyle Williams did not disappoint with this Keye Street novel. I found myself laughing out loud in spots, which broke up some of the tension in a way that did not detract from the feel of the book. The banter between Keye and Neil is entertaining and builds the characters well. You really get a feel for who Keye and Neil are in their everyday lives. I found myself wishing I knew them as friends because they are funny, courageous, adventurous, and intelligent.

The author did a great job with her descriptions. When she was describing a setting, she would give you detail so that you could develop a picture in your mind but there was not so much detail that you tuned out. She gave you just enough but allowed the reader to have some imagination involved in the mental picture. She also described southern food in an enthusiastic and effective manner. The author also included creative analogies throughout the book. I found myself making notes of some of the analogies to share with friends and family.

What was interesting with this book was that there were two main stories and one minor story encompassed in the one book. The author effectively navigated the stories without confusing the reader. You clearly know the separate stories and do not get muddled together.  One of the stories seemed to evolve from a local story that occurred in Georgia over ten years ago, which could distract some readers; however, I felt that the author was able to take the basis of that story and develop it to where it was a new and fascinating look into what that case would have been like for investigators.

In Amanda Kyle Williams’s first book (“The Stranger You Seek”), you were given clues throughout the story to figure out who was the perpetrator and it was clear that it was a character you had been introduced to throughout the book. In this book, the reader is learning along with the characters and you get an in depth look into how a profiler develops the profile of a criminal. Although this was different from the first book, this style is just as effective for the reader and takes you on an adventure that you do not want to stop.

Overall, this book lived up to and superseded what I had hoped and expected to experience when I read it. Many times sequels can fall short of the original book but that is not the case in the Keye Street novels. The second book may have been structured slightly different from the first book but it was just as effective in keeping me hooked from the first few pages. I hope that Amanda Kyle Williams continues to write more of these books because I will continue to read them until she is finished writing about Keye Street’s adventures.

Read: June 2012

The Stranger You Seek by Amanda Kyle Williams

I thoroughly enjoyed this book!

Keye Street is an recovering alcoholic that has been released from the FBI and has started her own PI firm. She is best friends with Aaron Rauser who is a detective for Atlanta PD. Rauser contacts Keye about a serial killer that has sent a letter about the latest kill. Rauser wants Keye to help with the profile but Keye is nervous about helping. The last time she worked on a case like this, she used alcohol to help her through. Now she has to work the case sober. As the bodies and letters continue to turn up, Keye and Rauser are the chase of their lives and their lives are also at stake along the way.

I loved the writing style of Amanda Kyle Williams. She wrote with a wit and sarcasm that made me want to laugh even though I was on the edge of my seat with suspense. In the first couple of chapters I had my idea of who was responsible for the murders but by the last few chapters I was proven completely wrong and shocked at who was the real killer. I was impressed that Williams put in clues throughout the book and once you completed it, it all made sense. I love being challenged by the "who done it" in a book and this one sure challenged me.

I found myself putting post-it notes on pages that had paragraphs or sentences that really stood out to me. Williams describes what life is like for Keye when she has to basically start over. It described what I have been through in the perfect words. There were many moments that Williams described a scene/event/person so perfectly that I wanted to mark the page to be able to go back to it in the future. There are not many books that are that memorable to me.

Williams is definitely an author that I will keep my eye out for and continue to look for her future books.