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A review by butcept
China Lake by Meg Gardiner
2.0
This is another Edgar Award winner novel, this time for Best Paperback Original. I'm not sure why there is a category for this because if it was in hardback first, shouldn't it have won then? A new format makes it a winner? I don't understand.
If you read the previous review, then you know that I haven't been thrilled with mystery novels lately. On top of that, I am not a fan of mystery novels with the same 'detective'. You know, series of novels. And this one is not just 'China Lake by Meg Gardiner', it's 'China Lake: An Evan Delaney Novel'.
So I seriously thought about not reading the thing because, just by that, I was instantly turned off. But I was on vacation and I thought 'screw it' and read the darn thing anyway.
And it wasn't bad. I would say this one and the previous one are more of a summer read...not the romance type beach reads, but I feel that it's the same type just different genre. Shallow-but-fun reads.
This one had the religious cult edge to it. Evan Delaney and her BFFs are at a funeral for one of her BFFs mom, who has died from AIDS. There is a protest from an extreme religious cult, the Remnant. And these folks are outright WACKOs.
They are more involved with Evan Delaney than she thinks because her ex-sister-in-law is now part of the cult. This matters because the ex-SIL is the mother of her nephew, who she has been taking care of.
AAAANNNNDDD...Evan's brother is a fighter pilot in the military -- father to the nephew (of course) -- and the Remnant are conspiracy theorists that believe the military is responsible for biological warfare on ordinary citizens.
Definitely NOT MY CUP OF TEA but I read it to the end nonetheless. I didn't think I would like Evan Delaney, those stereotypes of strong women who fight evil but she wasn't too bad.
But not good enough, probably, for me to pick up another novel in which she fights crime.
If you read the previous review, then you know that I haven't been thrilled with mystery novels lately. On top of that, I am not a fan of mystery novels with the same 'detective'. You know, series of novels. And this one is not just 'China Lake by Meg Gardiner', it's 'China Lake: An Evan Delaney Novel'.
So I seriously thought about not reading the thing because, just by that, I was instantly turned off. But I was on vacation and I thought 'screw it' and read the darn thing anyway.
And it wasn't bad. I would say this one and the previous one are more of a summer read...not the romance type beach reads, but I feel that it's the same type just different genre. Shallow-but-fun reads.
This one had the religious cult edge to it. Evan Delaney and her BFFs are at a funeral for one of her BFFs mom, who has died from AIDS. There is a protest from an extreme religious cult, the Remnant. And these folks are outright WACKOs.
They are more involved with Evan Delaney than she thinks because her ex-sister-in-law is now part of the cult. This matters because the ex-SIL is the mother of her nephew, who she has been taking care of.
AAAANNNNDDD...Evan's brother is a fighter pilot in the military -- father to the nephew (of course) -- and the Remnant are conspiracy theorists that believe the military is responsible for biological warfare on ordinary citizens.
Definitely NOT MY CUP OF TEA but I read it to the end nonetheless. I didn't think I would like Evan Delaney, those stereotypes of strong women who fight evil but she wasn't too bad.
But not good enough, probably, for me to pick up another novel in which she fights crime.