A Study In Scarlet by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

Lots of interesting bits here. This is the first book in the Watson Sherlock Holmes series and is longer than the stories that follow. Explained are how they met, came to live together, their first case, and what they were like as young men.

The Art of Seducing a Naked Werewolf by Molly Harper

This is such a 'chick' book but I enjoyed it. Second Harper book and she's funny. PW: Generations of werewolves have been secretly residing in a secluded valley a stones throw from Grundy, Alaska. So when a snooping Outsider comes to Grundy to investigate rumors of lycanthropic shenanigans in the area, the valleys pack alpha, Maggie Graham, resolves to chase him away, even if doing so takes a quick bite on the butt. What a pity that researcher Nick Thatcher turns out to be so drool-worthy, and that his kisses make Maggie want to sit up and beg. Maggie just cant seem to convince Nick to leave... and even worse, she cant convince herself to stay away from him.

Hunter's Moon (Doc Ford) by Randy Wayne White

I enjoy this Doc Ford series. It requires a definite suspension of reality, but it's fun. PW: Doc Ford saves a former President of the United States from assassination-and regrets it. Months ago, Kal Wilson's wife was killed in a plane crash. President Wilson is sure it was no accident-and he wants revenge. He needs Doc Ford to spring him loose from the watchful eye of the Secret Service, keep him alive, then get him home. Ford has just been picked for presidential duty- whether he likes it or not.

The Echelon Vendetta by David Stone

A promising debut. PW: Despite a title that doesn't exactly roll off your tongue, this is a smoothly written spy thriller. Micah Dalton is a CIA "cleaner," the guy who wipes away the mess after something goes wrong in the field. When his good friend apparently commits suicide in a particularly gruesome manner, and then the man's family is murdered, Dalton discovers that someone is killing agents who have knowledge of a certain top-secret intelligence operation. Stone, a veteran intelligence officer writing pseudonymously, packs the novel with the kind of nitty-gritty detail that draws espionage fans.

The Ape Who Guards the Balance (Amelia Peabody Mysteries) by Elizabeth Peters

I enjoy Peters a lot but this pleasant novel was too slow for me. PW: After eluding a kidnapper in London, an unperturbed Amelia Peabody accompanies her unconventional family to Cairo once more—only to be ensnared almost immediately in a web of stolen treasures and bloodthirsty cults. Villainy is running rampant in Egypt this 1907 archaeological season, but the members of the intrepid Peabody-Emerson clan have already proven themselves to be formidable adversaries. However, when a mint-condition papyrus of the Book of the Dead falls into their hands, and the corpse of an unscrupulous dealer in stolen antiquities is found floating in the Nile, the Emersons' prospects for surviving this excavation season unscathed appear increasingly dim.

A Conflict of Interest by Adam Mitzner

First book by the author and it was pretty good, worth checking out the next book. PW: Alex Miller is a criminal defense attorney and, at thirty-five, the youngest partner in one of the most powerful law firms in New York City. He's a man at the top of his game with the life he's always dreamed of. Then, at his father's funeral, Alex meets a mysterious and nearly mythic figure in Miller family history--who presents Alex with a surprising request: to represent him in a high-profile criminal investigation. As Alex gets involved and the facts come out, shocking secrets are revealed that threaten everything Alex believes in--about the law, his family, and himself...

The Litigators by John Grisham

Read this yet again in August of 2021 and it is excellent.

Excellent. Grisham is back. PW: The partners at Finley & Figg—all two of them—often refer to themselves as “a boutique law firm.” Boutique, as in chic, selective, and prosperous. They are, of course, none of these things. What they are is a two-bit operation always in search of their big break, ambulance chasers who’ve been in the trenches much too long making way too little. Their specialties, so to speak, are quickie divorces and DUIs, with the occasional jackpot of an actual car wreck thrown in. After twenty plus years together, Oscar Finley and Wally Figg bicker like an old married couple but somehow continue to scratch out a half-decent living from their seedy bungalow offices in southwest Chicago.

And then change comes their way. More accurately, it stumbles in. David Zinc, a young but already burned-out attorney, walks away from his fast-track career at a fancy downtown firm, goes on a serious bender, and finds himself literally at the doorstep of our boutique firm. Once David sobers up and comes to grips with the fact that he’s suddenly unemployed, any job—even one with Finley & Figg—looks okay to him.

With their new associate on board, F&F is ready to tackle a really big case, a case that could make the partners rich without requiring them to actually practice much law. An extremely popular drug, Krayoxx, the number one cholesterol reducer for the dangerously overweight, produced by Varrick Labs, a giant pharmaceutical company with annual sales of $25 billion, has recently come under fire after several patients taking it have suffered heart attacks. Wally smells money.

A little online research confirms Wally’s suspicions—a huge plaintiffs’ firm in Florida is putting together a class action suit against Varrick. All Finley & Figg has to do is find a handful of people who have had heart attacks while taking Krayoxx, convince them to become clients, join the class action, and ride along to fame and fortune. With any luck, they won’t even have to enter a courtroom!

It almost seems too good to be true.

And it is.

The Last Assassin by Barry Eisler

Very enjoyable, again. Eisler books keep getting better and better. PW: Japanese-American assassin John Rain would like to get out of the killing business in his fifth action-filled outing (after 2005's Killing Rain), see the son he's only just learned of and perhaps try to reconnect with Midori, the child's mother. But first there's the little matter of the Japanese gangster Yamaoto and Yamaoto's Chinese triad allies, who are watching over Rain's son in New York City, not to mention Delilah, the beautiful Mossad agent who shares Rain's occupation and his bed. Seizing the initiative, Rain enlists the aid of his super-sniper friend, Dox, in a campaign to remove Yamaoto. Rain and allies clash with their many powerful foes in combat scenes full of lovingly detailed descriptions of knives, guns and other martial paraphernalia. Amid the threats to life, limb and loved ones, Rain finds time to enjoy good food, better whiskey and even better sex. While most of the action takes place in Japan, Eisler handles all the story's locales, including Manhattan and Barcelona, with considerable aplomb.

Double Whammy by Carl Hiaasen

Outstanding. Probably the funniest book I've ever read, if not the funniest is by the same author. Times like this I'm grateful for a bad memory, cause I can't wait to re-read all of his books. PW: A Miami Herald reporter who struck a blow against corrupt entrepreneurs in Tourist Season, Hiaasen follows through with this acid satire, a real double whammy. Private detective R. J. Decker is hired to prove that TV host Dickie Lockhart cheats to win fortunes in Florida bass-fishing tournaments. The investigation makes Decker a prey to hired killers who have murdered other "snoops," but the detective also finds a strong if weird ally in a hermit who calls himself Skink. Along with two honest cops, Skink goes with Decker to the lake where a big tournament is under way and the four make a tremendous splash, to the dismay of the assembly. Hardest hit is Reverend Weeb, Lockhart's sponsor on the Outdoor Christian Network, whose generous supporters don't know that he's addicted to prostitutes, profanity and land-grabbing. The cast of bizarre characters and the suspenseful events confirm Hiaasen's reputation for creating singular villains and heroes.

By the Light of the Moon by Dean Koontz

This book was very original. It was very good except for one glaring problem. One of the characters is autistic and about a 1/3 of the book is him talking nonsense or people talking to him and being ignored. I don't think I'll read Koontz again because he needs too much editing. PW: s usual for Koontz, the novel opens at full throttle: a mad doctor invades a motel in Arizona, injects both itinerant artist Dylan O'Connor and struggling comic Jillian Jackson (strangers to one another) with an unknown substance that, he says, is his life's work and will have some unknown effect, then warns them to flee before his enemies kill them; soon after, the doctor is slain by heavily armed assailants. The rest of the story is an extended chase, as Dylan and Jillian, along with Dylan's high-functioning autistic brother, Shep, dart around the West, only steps ahead of the assassins. Within hours, the effects of the injections materialize: Jillian experiences portentous visions-a flock of birds, a woman in a church; Dylan is overcome by the need to rush to the aid of people in distress (among others, in an intensely poignant scene, an elderly man searching for his missing daughter); and Shep learns to teleport himself and others.

Agincourt by Bernard Cornwell

Much what you'd expect from Cornwell, interesting characters, description of the era, and violent. The violence was worthy putting up with because the characters are so interesting. The format and plot are very similar to the Sharpe's series. PW: One of the most dramatic victories in British history, the battle of Agincourt—immortalized by Shakespeare in Henry V—pitted undermanned and overwhelmed English forces against a French army determined to keep their crown out of Henry's hands. Here Bernard Cornwell resurrects the legend of the battle and the "band of brothers" who fought on that fateful October day in 1415. An epic of redemption, Agincourt follows a commoner, a king, and a nation's entire army on an improbable mission to test the will of God and reclaim what is rightfully theirs—an exhilarating story of survival and slaughter that is, at once, a brilliant work of history and a triumph of imagination.

Steve Jobs by Walter Isaacson

Very well done and very interesting. Was a gift from mom for my 50th and it was wonderful way to spend my birthday. Having followed Job's career and Apple very carefully since 1984, I was surprised that the read was so informative. Isaacson's organization was excellent.

Rain Storm by Barry Eisler

This was really fun, lots of back story about John Rain and how he meets Delilah and befriends Dox. This was the third book on the series, hope to read them all. PW: John Rain has fled to Brazil to clear his killing conscience. But his talents are still in demand. The assignment: take out an arms dealer in Southeast Asia. The upside: strictly finanical. The downside: crossing the path of an Israeli spy equipped with her own unique talents - for seduction, betrayal, and life-and-death games more sinister than any that Rain has encountered before....