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alexcarbonneau's reviews
349 reviews
Witness to a Trial by John Grisham
4.0
No matter how good or mediocre the story is, which in this case leans strongly in the first category, Witness to a trial got me thinking.
Every novel should now be published alongside a short story setting up the universe, the characters and the backstory.
Ace Atkins did it with the Nick Travers series and The Last Fair Deal Gone Down and probably numerous authors as well. It's a great way to add complexity to the story and setting the whole thing up.
Liked the story, love the concept.
Every novel should now be published alongside a short story setting up the universe, the characters and the backstory.
Ace Atkins did it with the Nick Travers series and The Last Fair Deal Gone Down and probably numerous authors as well. It's a great way to add complexity to the story and setting the whole thing up.
Liked the story, love the concept.
Poisonfeather by Matthew FitzSimmons
5.0
Fitzsimmons is in..
He is. No really, he's already, after two novels, one of "Them".
A huge, H-U-G-E thank you to Netgalley for an advance copy of Poisonfeather in exchange for a fair review.
So Fitzsimmons, in my opinion, is already in the mix of the top "Thriller authors".
I have to be honest, this novel felt like it was written by a John Grisham of the good ol' days. A John Grisham on steroids writing with passion and not because a publisher is pushing you and breathing down your neck.
Gibson Vaughn is now one of the top new characters in thriller novels, a not so perfect but oh-so-likable protagonist, easy on the sarcasm and someone you will root for, but probably not want your daughter to date. Way more interesting and complex than Robert Langdon, Dewey Andreas or Mitch Rapp (although he's not a Marine anymore).
If you really want me to compare Vaughn to someone, I'd have to say that Nick Travers (Ace Atkin's first protagonist) would be the closest one that would fit the bill. Good heart, jaded, sarcastic, good instincts and easy on the eyes. He's the only character in Poisonfeather that I can't think of a movie actor who'd make a fair impersonation. Because yes, this novel will be adapted into a movie, as soon as The Short Drop will, and you can read it with ___insert favorite actors_____ in mind for all the parts of the book....except for Vaughn that is....
So yes, Poisonfeather is a great read. No, you don't really need to read The Short Drop to enjoy it, but you should. Yes, there will be more Gibson Vaughn novels (if it was only up to me....but im pretty confident) and we can't wait for them.
And here is my "who are you to say this or that" part.
I gave The Short Drop a 4 star rating based on the premise that it was a little predictable and I felt like the whole novel was supposed to end up on a big "OH MY GOD I DIDN'T SEE THAT COMING". I might be wrong, but it's what it felt like to me. Four star because it was so well written and narrated that you didn't care if you knew how it would end, you just wanted to see how he would get you there, a little like an Hitchcock movie.
Poisonfeather deserves a 4.5 because the writing of Fitzsimmons got that little something more. It felt like confidence to me but could feel like something else to you. Either way, it was a notch above his debut novel in my opinion.
All in all, a great story, well told, that leaves you wanting for more, right now.
He is. No really, he's already, after two novels, one of "Them".
A huge, H-U-G-E thank you to Netgalley for an advance copy of Poisonfeather in exchange for a fair review.
So Fitzsimmons, in my opinion, is already in the mix of the top "Thriller authors".
I have to be honest, this novel felt like it was written by a John Grisham of the good ol' days. A John Grisham on steroids writing with passion and not because a publisher is pushing you and breathing down your neck.
Gibson Vaughn is now one of the top new characters in thriller novels, a not so perfect but oh-so-likable protagonist, easy on the sarcasm and someone you will root for, but probably not want your daughter to date. Way more interesting and complex than Robert Langdon, Dewey Andreas or Mitch Rapp (although he's not a Marine anymore).
If you really want me to compare Vaughn to someone, I'd have to say that Nick Travers (Ace Atkin's first protagonist) would be the closest one that would fit the bill. Good heart, jaded, sarcastic, good instincts and easy on the eyes. He's the only character in Poisonfeather that I can't think of a movie actor who'd make a fair impersonation. Because yes, this novel will be adapted into a movie, as soon as The Short Drop will, and you can read it with ___insert favorite actors_____ in mind for all the parts of the book....except for Vaughn that is....
So yes, Poisonfeather is a great read. No, you don't really need to read The Short Drop to enjoy it, but you should. Yes, there will be more Gibson Vaughn novels (if it was only up to me....but im pretty confident) and we can't wait for them.
And here is my "who are you to say this or that" part.
I gave The Short Drop a 4 star rating based on the premise that it was a little predictable and I felt like the whole novel was supposed to end up on a big "OH MY GOD I DIDN'T SEE THAT COMING". I might be wrong, but it's what it felt like to me. Four star because it was so well written and narrated that you didn't care if you knew how it would end, you just wanted to see how he would get you there, a little like an Hitchcock movie.
Poisonfeather deserves a 4.5 because the writing of Fitzsimmons got that little something more. It felt like confidence to me but could feel like something else to you. Either way, it was a notch above his debut novel in my opinion.
All in all, a great story, well told, that leaves you wanting for more, right now.
Billion-Dollar Ball: A Journey Through the Big-Money Culture of College Football by Gilbert M. Gaul
3.0
The Broken Places by Ace Atkins
4.0
A solid 4 stars.
Excellent episode in the life of Quinn Colson and the good (and not so good) people of Tibbehah County.
What I found interesting in this one is how Atkins focused a little more on the other characters of the book and gave them a little more playing time, allowing the reader to put itself in the shoes of almost all of the cast of "The Broken Places", but without denaturalizing his storytelling and the general feeling you can get out of a "Quinn Colson Novel".
As usual, Atkins nails the ending and leaves us wanting more.
All-in-all, a very good novel that I feel Atkins used to set up a lot more of Colson Novels (haven't read the remaining 3 yet...)
Excellent episode in the life of Quinn Colson and the good (and not so good) people of Tibbehah County.
What I found interesting in this one is how Atkins focused a little more on the other characters of the book and gave them a little more playing time, allowing the reader to put itself in the shoes of almost all of the cast of "The Broken Places", but without denaturalizing his storytelling and the general feeling you can get out of a "Quinn Colson Novel".
As usual, Atkins nails the ending and leaves us wanting more.
All-in-all, a very good novel that I feel Atkins used to set up a lot more of Colson Novels (haven't read the remaining 3 yet...)
The Short Drop by Matthew FitzSimmons
4.0
Now that is a first novel i would have loved to write.
Very solid work in his genre where Fitzsimmons takes the reader in a techno-ish/crime thriller with nice and believable characters... for the most part.
The plot twists might be a bit predictable but it doesn't make the story any less good.
I will definitely give a go at Gibson Vaughan #2 when it comes out in october.
Very solid work in his genre where Fitzsimmons takes the reader in a techno-ish/crime thriller with nice and believable characters... for the most part.
The plot twists might be a bit predictable but it doesn't make the story any less good.
I will definitely give a go at Gibson Vaughan #2 when it comes out in october.