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3.85 AVERAGE
3.85 AVERAGE
This is the second Amos book I’ve read and I didn’t like this one. Was a little to complicated with what seemed to be a million plots and people and twists!
3.5 stars
I’m an avid fan of the Amos Decker series, but I found this book less satisfying than most. While there is a surprise crossover character from another of Baldacci’s series who livens things up some, Amos’s trademark quirks and unusual abilities played less a role in the story, diminishing what makes his character so interesting and special. There also, in the past couple books, has been some indication that these quirks may be disappearing, changing the flavor and direction of the series. In addition, there were too many subplots going on in this small North Dakota town, some of which could have been eliminated and made the story tighter and more cohesive.
Will I read the next book in the series? Yes, definitely. But my love for the series may wane if the next story does not return to the things that first drew me to it.
I’m an avid fan of the Amos Decker series, but I found this book less satisfying than most. While there is a surprise crossover character from another of Baldacci’s series who livens things up some, Amos’s trademark quirks and unusual abilities played less a role in the story, diminishing what makes his character so interesting and special. There also, in the past couple books, has been some indication that these quirks may be disappearing, changing the flavor and direction of the series. In addition, there were too many subplots going on in this small North Dakota town, some of which could have been eliminated and made the story tighter and more cohesive.
Spoiler
Frankly, the whole using the station as a secret Guantanamo could have been left out. It added little to the story and having so many major plots taking place in one tiny location strained credibility even for fiction.Will I read the next book in the series? Yes, definitely. But my love for the series may wane if the next story does not return to the things that first drew me to it.
I listened to the audio book, and the narrators were quite good. Otherwise, it would be a 1 star book.
Billed as an Amos Decker book, but not even close! In fact, Amos Decker is just an inept FBI agent in this, and Jamieson is "that" female who talks a good game, but doesn't perform. No Decker quirks in this book, no light comedic touch, just nothing endearing about these 2 at all.
The book starts out as a basic murder mystery. A woman is killed and the FBI are called in. They're not sure why.
Which brings me to my second complaint: The ongoing "Wikipedia" moments. The novel is set in North Dakota, and we have several pages of information on fracking. This actually comes into play in ONE paragraph at the very end of the book. Honestly just a bunch of page filling words! Oh, and to top that all off, we get Baldacci's political views on the matter (I'm not American and couldn't care less).
OK.. Complaint #3 (you can see how this book is going): Will Robie and Blue Man appear. The book veers from a murder mystery to something else altogether! Now we have Guantanamo Bay prison stuff happening, and Will Robie defeating dozens of armed men all on his own, and his sidekick Jessica appearing at the end of this shoot-out with her sniper rifle to save the day. Just very cartoonish.
So now, Decker and Jamieson are off to save the world from biological warfare because they need to be the face because of course Will and Blue Man aren't supposed to operate in the States. This is where the paragraph on fracking finally comes in, as they have to use some of the equipment.
Remember the beginning of all this? The murder mystery? Yeah, I forgot too. It does come back at the end, and gets solved, but there's nothing very surprising about the whole ending, except for the body count. Ho hum.
This was a really bad book from beginning to end, and I'm very disapponted that Amos Decker has vanished as a really interesting character.
Billed as an Amos Decker book, but not even close! In fact, Amos Decker is just an inept FBI agent in this, and Jamieson is "that" female who talks a good game, but doesn't perform. No Decker quirks in this book, no light comedic touch, just nothing endearing about these 2 at all.
The book starts out as a basic murder mystery. A woman is killed and the FBI are called in. They're not sure why.
Which brings me to my second complaint: The ongoing "Wikipedia" moments. The novel is set in North Dakota, and we have several pages of information on fracking. This actually comes into play in ONE paragraph at the very end of the book. Honestly just a bunch of page filling words! Oh, and to top that all off, we get Baldacci's political views on the matter (I'm not American and couldn't care less).
OK.. Complaint #3 (you can see how this book is going): Will Robie and Blue Man appear. The book veers from a murder mystery to something else altogether! Now we have Guantanamo Bay prison stuff happening, and Will Robie defeating dozens of armed men all on his own, and his sidekick Jessica appearing at the end of this shoot-out with her sniper rifle to save the day. Just very cartoonish.
So now, Decker and Jamieson are off to save the world from biological warfare because they need to be the face because of course Will and Blue Man aren't supposed to operate in the States. This is where the paragraph on fracking finally comes in, as they have to use some of the equipment.
Remember the beginning of all this? The murder mystery? Yeah, I forgot too. It does come back at the end, and gets solved, but there's nothing very surprising about the whole ending, except for the body count. Ho hum.
This was a really bad book from beginning to end, and I'm very disapponted that Amos Decker has vanished as a really interesting character.
I didn't like this Baldacci book as well as others. It was hard to keep the characters in mind of who was who. Fracking was explained in detail but the bad things about it weren't touched on.
2021 ATY Challenge - a mystery or thriller
I always love David Baldacci's books. And a surprise combination of two of his protagonists? Even better.
I always love David Baldacci's books. And a surprise combination of two of his protagonists? Even better.
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
This book had an interesting synopsis but I had a hard time getting into it. The characters seemed shallow and problems seemed to be solved inexplicably. But this is my first Baldacci book and people seem to like his other books better so I'd be willing to give another one a try. I also had a hard time keeping track of all the characters because the author and characters switched back and forth between first and last names on the same page. And I found the plot to be confusing with multiple big mysteries that seemed to build up to nothing.
5 star - Perfect
4 star - i would recommend
3 star - good
2 star - struggled to complete
1 star - could not finish
4 star - i would recommend
3 star - good
2 star - struggled to complete
1 star - could not finish
Bestselling author David Baldacci charts another adventure for the Memory Man, Amos Decker, and his partner, Alex Jamison. Walk the Wire is Baldacci's sixth installment in the popular series.
This time, the two are dispatched to a little town where all the residents know each other, the major local business enterprises are controlled by a few powerful citizens, and the town is undergoing the latest in a series of booms and busts. The current economic growth is the result of fracking, the process of injecting liquid at high pressure into subterranean rocks, boreholes, and the like in order to force open existing fissures and extract oil. Because of it, London, North Dakota, is like "the California Gold Rush of 1849, only on steroids." And "the ordinary rules of civilization don't necessarily apply . . ." Against that backdrop, Decker and Jamison set out to determine why a beautiful young woman named Irene Cramer was targeted by a killer.
Decker is eager to uncover the secrets that motivate the folks in London, among them the local coroner/mortician who examines Cramer's body but omits salient details from his report, and the two most successful and prominent businessmen in town. Arch rivals and competitors, their mutual dislike is legendary. Both have survived family traumas, including tragic accidental deaths and suicides. There's an Air Force station housing a radar array not far from town, outside of which ambulances are lined up. No one seems to know why so many emergency vehicles might be needed or why the state of North Dakota needs two such stations within its borders. It's adjacent to land owned and occupied by The Brothers, a branch of the Anabaptists. Their lifestyle is somewhat akin to that of the Amish, except they use some modern technology such as vehicles and heavy equipment. But like the Amish they live communally and operate their own school. Cramer was working as a teacher in that conservative environment by day, and serving as an escort by night.
Decker is shocked when he encounters his brother-in-law, Stan, who is working in the oil field. It seems that Decker's sister, Renee, who resides in California, did not notify Decker about her divorce. But Decker is not good at communicating with his family members. Stan's presence in the narrative serves two purposes. First, he provides assistance to Decker and Jamison as their investigation intensifies and expands. More importantly, he permits Baldacci to delve further into Decker's personal life. In prior volumes, Decker's loss of his wife and child have figured prominently in the story. Decker continues mourning them, even though in Redemption, the fifth book in the series, Decker returned to Burlington and, while visiting their graves, made a conscious decision to live in the present. He still experiences guilt on occasion, acknowledging that with the passage of time, the old adage that "life goes on" is proving to be true. His job keeps him busy and he has made a few new friends. He questions whether he is betraying Cassie and Molly because he "promised them while standing over their graves, that they would be the center of his life until he joined them." The introduction of Stan and Renee was, according to Baldacci, "a device allowing me to show another side of Decker.”
Once again, it is Decker's uncanny skill at noticing details and inconsistencies that escape most people, that propels the investigation forward. Decker has hyperthymesia, the ability to remember everything and the inability to forget anything. As a young professional football player, he sustained a traumatic brain injury that left him comatose. In addition to attaining perfect recall, his personality was altered. He has trouble expressing emotion and dealing with people, missing social clues. Additionally, he has synthesthesia because his sensory pathways commingled. He sees colors associated with things like death and numbers. Normally, he sees an area where there is a dead body as electric blue, but Decker has noticed his brain beginning to change recently. He has been forgetting things -- only momentarily -- and as he views a dead body, the room is not blue. "My brain keeps me guessing and I don't much care for it. No, I hate it," Decker laments.
Baldacci again demonstrates his ability to deftly meticulously plot a story full of surprising twists, unexpected revelations, and connections between characters that keep readers guessing. The story advances at a steady, unrelenting pace, and is populated with a cast of colorful characters. It is also timely, given the controversy surrounding fracking, a process that Baldacci explains in some detail as he describes the area in and conditions under which the work is performed. Gas flares dot the countryside as pure methane is burned and fills the atmosphere with C02 -- to the consternation of environmentalists. But Baldacci's approach is even-handed, never permitting the narrative to become judgmental or preachy.
Readers of Baldacci's other series will be surprised and delighted when other beloved characters appear to assist Decker and Jamison when they need it most. Their appearances ramp up the action, and provide a seamlessly logical addition to the intricately imagined tale Baldacci tells.
Walk the Wire is full of intrigue delivered in Baldacci's signature straight-forward style. Short chapters and snappy dialogue, especially between Decker and Jamison, partners and roommates who know each other well and always have each other's back, punctuate a thriller that is action-packed, replete with complicated small-town relationships, and completely entertaining.
It is also poignant and touching. Decker continues to be relatable and likable; despite his quirks, he is empathetic because the devastation and loneliness of loss is universally understood, as is hope. "Time did not heal all wounds for him. It barely touched them, in fact. It was like pouring iodine on a cancerous tumor." But Decker has made a decision to move forward and keep living, even as he never forgets.
The Memory Man saga does not end with Walk the Wire. Baldacci says, “I don’t want to pull the curtain on this guy completely open, because the magic tends to fade." Fortunately for Amos Decker fans, there is more magic to come.
Thanks to NetGalley for an Advance Reader's Copy of the book.
This time, the two are dispatched to a little town where all the residents know each other, the major local business enterprises are controlled by a few powerful citizens, and the town is undergoing the latest in a series of booms and busts. The current economic growth is the result of fracking, the process of injecting liquid at high pressure into subterranean rocks, boreholes, and the like in order to force open existing fissures and extract oil. Because of it, London, North Dakota, is like "the California Gold Rush of 1849, only on steroids." And "the ordinary rules of civilization don't necessarily apply . . ." Against that backdrop, Decker and Jamison set out to determine why a beautiful young woman named Irene Cramer was targeted by a killer.
Decker is eager to uncover the secrets that motivate the folks in London, among them the local coroner/mortician who examines Cramer's body but omits salient details from his report, and the two most successful and prominent businessmen in town. Arch rivals and competitors, their mutual dislike is legendary. Both have survived family traumas, including tragic accidental deaths and suicides. There's an Air Force station housing a radar array not far from town, outside of which ambulances are lined up. No one seems to know why so many emergency vehicles might be needed or why the state of North Dakota needs two such stations within its borders. It's adjacent to land owned and occupied by The Brothers, a branch of the Anabaptists. Their lifestyle is somewhat akin to that of the Amish, except they use some modern technology such as vehicles and heavy equipment. But like the Amish they live communally and operate their own school. Cramer was working as a teacher in that conservative environment by day, and serving as an escort by night.
Decker is shocked when he encounters his brother-in-law, Stan, who is working in the oil field. It seems that Decker's sister, Renee, who resides in California, did not notify Decker about her divorce. But Decker is not good at communicating with his family members. Stan's presence in the narrative serves two purposes. First, he provides assistance to Decker and Jamison as their investigation intensifies and expands. More importantly, he permits Baldacci to delve further into Decker's personal life. In prior volumes, Decker's loss of his wife and child have figured prominently in the story. Decker continues mourning them, even though in Redemption, the fifth book in the series, Decker returned to Burlington and, while visiting their graves, made a conscious decision to live in the present. He still experiences guilt on occasion, acknowledging that with the passage of time, the old adage that "life goes on" is proving to be true. His job keeps him busy and he has made a few new friends. He questions whether he is betraying Cassie and Molly because he "promised them while standing over their graves, that they would be the center of his life until he joined them." The introduction of Stan and Renee was, according to Baldacci, "a device allowing me to show another side of Decker.”
Once again, it is Decker's uncanny skill at noticing details and inconsistencies that escape most people, that propels the investigation forward. Decker has hyperthymesia, the ability to remember everything and the inability to forget anything. As a young professional football player, he sustained a traumatic brain injury that left him comatose. In addition to attaining perfect recall, his personality was altered. He has trouble expressing emotion and dealing with people, missing social clues. Additionally, he has synthesthesia because his sensory pathways commingled. He sees colors associated with things like death and numbers. Normally, he sees an area where there is a dead body as electric blue, but Decker has noticed his brain beginning to change recently. He has been forgetting things -- only momentarily -- and as he views a dead body, the room is not blue. "My brain keeps me guessing and I don't much care for it. No, I hate it," Decker laments.
Baldacci again demonstrates his ability to deftly meticulously plot a story full of surprising twists, unexpected revelations, and connections between characters that keep readers guessing. The story advances at a steady, unrelenting pace, and is populated with a cast of colorful characters. It is also timely, given the controversy surrounding fracking, a process that Baldacci explains in some detail as he describes the area in and conditions under which the work is performed. Gas flares dot the countryside as pure methane is burned and fills the atmosphere with C02 -- to the consternation of environmentalists. But Baldacci's approach is even-handed, never permitting the narrative to become judgmental or preachy.
Readers of Baldacci's other series will be surprised and delighted when other beloved characters appear to assist Decker and Jamison when they need it most. Their appearances ramp up the action, and provide a seamlessly logical addition to the intricately imagined tale Baldacci tells.
Walk the Wire is full of intrigue delivered in Baldacci's signature straight-forward style. Short chapters and snappy dialogue, especially between Decker and Jamison, partners and roommates who know each other well and always have each other's back, punctuate a thriller that is action-packed, replete with complicated small-town relationships, and completely entertaining.
It is also poignant and touching. Decker continues to be relatable and likable; despite his quirks, he is empathetic because the devastation and loneliness of loss is universally understood, as is hope. "Time did not heal all wounds for him. It barely touched them, in fact. It was like pouring iodine on a cancerous tumor." But Decker has made a decision to move forward and keep living, even as he never forgets.
The Memory Man saga does not end with Walk the Wire. Baldacci says, “I don’t want to pull the curtain on this guy completely open, because the magic tends to fade." Fortunately for Amos Decker fans, there is more magic to come.
Thanks to NetGalley for an Advance Reader's Copy of the book.
You know books where the author thinks complicated and convoluted make for great literature? Well, unfortunately, this was one of them. The one great thing was that I finally met Will Robie.