The Water Keeper by Charles Martin ( Murphy Shepherd #1)

The Water Keeper by Charles Martin
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I loved this book. Great writing, great storyline and engaging characters.
I have never read a book by Charles Martin, but I will be from now on. The Water Keeper was tremendous.
It also dealt with the very real problem of sex trafficking and the worth of souls.

Looking forward to The Letter Keeper and more of Murphy Shepherd.



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The Island by Ben Coes ( Dewey Andreas #9)

The Island by Ben Coes
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

The Island rocks! A caution though.. DO NOT start this book unless you intend on finishing. Besides being a very good thriller, this book is a cautionary tale about those who would do us harm and just how easy it would be to cause total chaos in our country.
Coes has really done an amazing job of ratcheting the tension. The first third of the book take place at a pretty sedate pace, then wham! The last 2/3rd covers just a few hours on a morning in Manhattan as Hezbollah attacks in a massive way.
The President is giving a speech at the UN and it is the perfect opportunity to take him out, but first they need to cut off the island of Manhattan. Not only that, not content with just those plans, there is also an attack on the Fed which would cripple not only the US but the worlds financial markets. It's a very ingenious plan, except for one thing. Dewey Andreas and Rob Tacoma.
Sowing even more chaos are hundreds of embedded Iranians, who, when the sign is given, go from being your friendly Uber driver or neighbors, to killing everyone in sight.
The summer's must read.
Take a trip to the island. You'll never think of New York the same.

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The Ruin of Kings by Jenn Lyons ( A Chorus of Dragons #1)

The Ruin of Kings by Jenn Lyons
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Many thanks for the opportunity to have an advance reading copy of this book. I have heard a lot of buzz about The Ruin of Kings by Jenn Lyons and the hype is well earned. I found The Ruin of Kings fresh, something new that will resonate with readers of epic fantasy. The most interesting thing I found with this book is that it flew by.. Highly readable with hints of mystery, made the pages turn.
The story is told from two different points of view, both relating past events. Our narrators are a demon jailer named Talon, and it's prisoner, Khirin, who may or may not be much more than what he seems. The world building is first rate and well as well fleshed out characters.
No spoilers here, but read this book, you will find yourself waiting for book 2, very impatiently.

This is an addition to the review. I guess back in 2018 I just read a large teaser of this book, because once I saw the book in the stores it was pretty big and I felt I must have missed something and boy did I.
This initial entry to the series in very well done and meaty. This is well worth the read and should be given a place on every epic fantasy readers shelf. If you are in mourning over the Wheel of Time being done and Game of Thrones taking a lifetime, read this. The author has i believe the first 4 out, so no waiting!!!



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Over the Woodward Wall by A. Deborah Baker ( The Up - and - Under #1)

Over the Woodward Wall by A. Deborah Baker
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

On a lark I picked this book up and I was really surprised. This was a very good little book. It has the feel of The Wizard of Oz. But, the writing is just beautiful. It's magical in all the right ways and is the perfect book to read to your kids or grandkids. (Do people still do that?)

Here's a synopsis:

If you trust her you’ll never make it home…

Avery is an exceptional child. Everything he does is precise, from the way he washes his face in the morning, to the way he completes his homework – without complaint, without fuss, without prompt.

Zib is also an exceptional child, because all children are, in their own way. But where everything Avery does and is can be measured, nothing Zib does can possibly be predicted, except for the fact that she can always be relied upon to be unpredictable.

They live on the same street.
They live in different worlds.

On an unplanned detour from home to school one morning, Avery and Zib find themselves climbing over a stone wall into the Up and Under – an impossible land filled with mystery, adventure and the strangest creatures.

And they must find themselves and each other if they are to also find their way out and back to their own lives.

Looking forwards to the next one!

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The Breaker by Nick Petrie ( Peter Ash #6)

The Breaker by Nick Petrie
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Holy hell can this man write.! What is even more disturbing or I guess great, is that each book is better than the last. Even though I loved The Drfter ( Peter Ash #1), the next 5 have been better.
Peter Ash is one of those everymen characters that you just identify with and love all the more because he isn't perfect. He cares. He tries. And maybe that's all we can ask as well of ourselves.
In The Breaker, in typical Peter fashion, on a nice day at an outdoor market in Milwaukee, Peter and Lewis notice something strange in the crowded marketplace/eatery. A gunman.
In the course of trying to stop the gunman, many chain reactions occur. First, this isn't your typical psycho gunman. Instead of looking to cause destruction, this one is looking for one person only and upon meeting him, only takes his phone, then runs after Peter shows up.
Peter's girlfriend, June, recognizes the phone owner from years previously in the tech world.
From here the book just moves. It has it all. Megalomaniacal tech tycoons, a brilliant young woman who could change the future, an eerie and sadistic smiling serial killer, shadowy government actors and a killer pet robot named Harry.
Needless to say, Nick Petrie is the real deal and is worth the price of admission.
Read this series today! Go.. !

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Win by Harlan Coben ( Windsor Horne Lockwood III #1)

Win by Harlan Coben
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

A special thank you to NetGalley for a copy of this book. This is not a paid review.

For years we have been enjoying the Win effect in the Myron Bolitar series and now finally we get Win in all of his glory all by himself and boy is it worth it.
Windsor Lockhorne the Third or just Win, is one of those classic sidekicks in thriller fiction. Elvis Cole has Pike, Gabriel Allon has Christopher Keller and Myron has Win.
All three are worth the price of admission, but Win is really special.
In Win, Coben is at his best. All of the snarkiness, pompousness and well snobbery is there in all it's glory.
Win, starts with a murder of a hoarder in a penthouse in NYC. So, you may ask. Well, this particular hoarder is in possession of a priceless Vermeer that was last seen 20 years ago, which along with a Picasso, were stolen from an exhibit that the Lockhornes had loaned both pieces.
Not is all that it seems as Win is questioned by the FBI if he knows said hoarder. Win doesn't, but, the hoarder also has a piece of monogrammed luggage bearing Win's initials in his possession as well. A piece of luggage that was in possession of Win's cousin, Patricia, who at the time was kidnapped and brutally raped for months before escaping her captors. Throw into the mix a group of college students in the 60's called the jane Street Six, who accidentally killed people during a demonstration and you have the plot of one heck of a book.
Coben, tell a deft story and is always in control, just as is his protagonist, Win. This book will make you laugh out loud and surprise you. And leave you wanting more . Soon.. There are twists and turns and even some heart strings being tugged. Well worth the read.

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Fool Me Twice by Jeff Lindsay ( Riley Wolfe #2)

Fool Me Twice by Jeff Lindsay
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I discovered Riley Wolfe #1, Just Watch Me, last year and I was hooked. So, I've waited.. and waited.. patiently waited for his return. Which is here and was it worth the wait!
Riley is one of those characters that you fall in love with. Arrogant, cocky and rich while still a momma's boy at heart.
In Fool Me Twice, after a successful heist of a Faberge Egg, Riley is making his escape, flush with success, when the tables turn. His getaway boat driver has sold him out and everything goes black.
He wakes up on another boat, heading who knows where with a taciturn French thug as his guide.
In short order he arrives at The Isle of Cabbage, yes, really, and is thrown into a dungeon by biggest arms dealer in the world, Patrick Bonniface who also happens to be a connoisseur of pretty things especially art.
So, in exchange for his life, he must steal something, that is REALLY impossible. A fresco attached to a wall in the Vatican. With Bonniface's, sadistic henchwoman Bernadette the prize if he fails.
So, Riley is in deep doodoo.
On the way back to civilization, he is kidnapped again by the 2nd largest arms dealer, Mason Stone who, of course wants to be #1. Who convinces Riley, through blackmail in the form of the life of his crush, the masterful art forger Monique, to keep Stone in the loop so that when Riley delivers the fresco, he can take the Isle of Cabbage and Bonniface. Oh, I failed to mention that the Isle of Cabbage has teeth, missile batteries, mines and a heavily armed contingent of baddies.
So, now Riley is in even deeper doodoo.. Steal what can't be stolen and keep himself and Monique alive in the process. Not mention the persistent efforts of FBI Agent Frank Delgado in trying to capture the elusive Wolfe.
This book is FUN.. It moves swiftly and is an absolute blast. No spoilers here.


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