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travellingcari's reviews
876 reviews
Gray Mountain by John Grisham
4.0
Grisham leaves behind the Mississippi Delta for the coal fields of Appalachia. Luckily, he brings his well-developed characters with him.
Set within the context of the 2009 Recession, Samantha Kofer is furloughed from her Big Law job and takes an internship deep in the heart of Appalachia where she's forced to become a "real lawyer" with human cases. And she draws close to some of these client, which makes it easier to ignore Big Law's siren song. All was not well in Appalachia, including will issues, black lung and sabotage that draws the Feds.
I forsee a sequel coming as too much of this - Jeff Gray, the Crumps - was left unresolved
Set within the context of the 2009 Recession, Samantha Kofer is furloughed from her Big Law job and takes an internship deep in the heart of Appalachia where she's forced to become a "real lawyer" with human cases. And she draws close to some of these client, which makes it easier to ignore Big Law's siren song. All was not well in Appalachia, including will issues, black lung and sabotage that draws the Feds.
I forsee a sequel coming as too much of this - Jeff Gray, the Crumps - was left unresolved
14th Deadly Sin by James Patterson
3.0
A book in a day, I love James Patterson at times. That said, I don't really love this series anymore. Partially it's my own fault-I've watched too much Rizzoli and Isles and now am back to only seeing Angie Harmon as Boxer. So doesn't work with her being blondie.
Much like Patterson's other long running series, this has gotten formulaic. Lindsay in trouble, Joe in danger. Women's Murder Club in danger. All survive, because otherwise there's no series.
My actual issue with this title aside from the Patterson factory (and their obsession with italics. ITALICS) is that there was no timeline. Yuki went from the DAs office to a settlement in a few chapters and there was no sense of what period this occurred over. Same issue with Cindy's book tour and the Windbreaker cop case. Could do with more editing. And more Club, less Lindsey.
I did like the references back to Fish though
Much like Patterson's other long running series, this has gotten formulaic. Lindsay in trouble, Joe in danger. Women's Murder Club in danger. All survive, because otherwise there's no series.
My actual issue with this title aside from the Patterson factory (and their obsession with italics. ITALICS) is that there was no timeline. Yuki went from the DAs office to a settlement in a few chapters and there was no sense of what period this occurred over. Same issue with Cindy's book tour and the Windbreaker cop case. Could do with more editing. And more Club, less Lindsey.
I did like the references back to Fish though
NYPD Red 3 by James Patterson
3.0
the James Patterson machine is slowly infiltrating this once interesting series. It's predictable with "twists" you can see coming a mile away. That said, the adventures of Kyle and Zach are always a fun, light read. I liked the humanitarian undercurrent of the Chevaliers.
Is That a Word?: From AA to ZZZ, the Weird and Wonderful Language of SCRABBLE by David Bukszpan
3.0
While not as good as Word Freak or Letterati, this was a good book. I enjoyed the way it mixed Scrabble's history with new words. While he makes the point that a good Scrabble player doesn't necessarily need to know the word's meanings, I like that he included them.
Track of the Cat by Nevada Barr
4.0
A friend recommended this series and I read the first one in two days.
Although dated now-and somewhat amusing to read a book where the hero had to go to a laundromat to make a call on an iPad-but a good story that holds up.
An imperfect heroine in Anna who seems well schooled in getting herself into messes. I look forward to reading the rest of the series but hope the other endings are better
Although dated now-and somewhat amusing to read a book where the hero had to go to a laundromat to make a call on an iPad-but a good story that holds up.
An imperfect heroine in Anna who seems well schooled in getting herself into messes. I look forward to reading the rest of the series but hope the other endings are better
Ill Wind by Nevada Barr
3.0
Frederick the Fed seems to be Ranger Pigeon's kryptonite.
A good read where I was left guessing not only by the who, but the what. NPS meets Contiki Tour when Anna lived in the dorms. Once again the scenery and the park is as much as character as the humans.
A good read where I was left guessing not only by the who, but the what. NPS meets Contiki Tour when Anna lived in the dorms. Once again the scenery and the park is as much as character as the humans.
Firestorm by Nevada Barr
3.0
I didn't love this one as much as the first three, mostly because I formed no connection with the characters. As far as I was concerned, they could all be guilty of murder and that was OK because they were annoying. While I enjoyed the scene that Barr painted, fire scares me and I think Lassen is a place I'd definitely like to avoid. I hope we've seen the last of Jennifer Short as she's definitely not growing on me
High Country by Nevada Barr
3.0
I found this book confusing. I think it was because all of the aliases. I also felt -- mainly because Anna spent so much time getting hit/run over/run down that the scenery didn't play as big a role as it normally does in Barr's books. I found myself wanting to know more about Yosemite.
Overall, a good read like all others in the series, but nothing special
Overall, a good read like all others in the series, but nothing special
Winter Study by Nevada Barr
2.0
The first of the Anna Pigeon books that I really did not care for. There were too many characters that I didn't like - and not enough info about those I did. At one point I may have wanted the Wog to eat them all. I think I need a break from Anna for a bit. Her poor ankle. Did someone break Nevada's?
Borderline by Nevada Barr
4.0
A one-day beach read. Love those.
An interesting story that was a quick read despite the number of melding plotlines. I liked the consistency in the characters' traits, even if they weren't overall good ones. Barr's writing usually makes me want to visit the national parks, but not sure she sold me on Big Bend
An interesting story that was a quick read despite the number of melding plotlines. I liked the consistency in the characters' traits, even if they weren't overall good ones. Barr's writing usually makes me want to visit the national parks, but not sure she sold me on Big Bend