Well, we made it through another calendar year. There were family highs and lows, and national disasters and tragedies. But, at this time of year, we tend to count our blessings and look forward to the New Year. Here's this months selections.
Series
Think of a Number - John Verdon ($7.99/$.50, copyright 2010, 497 pages, Paperback)This is what I believe to be the first of a series. The hero here is Dave Gurney, a retired NYC detective who can't seem to relax in retirement. Gurney is a criminological genius but his personal life sucks. He gets involved with an old acquaintance who’s been getting some threatening mail - whoever sends it asks him to think of a number, then he’s to open the smaller, enclosed envelope which amazingly - reveals the same number. Then the guy gets killed and the killer‘s footprints seem to lead into the middle of a field, then disappear. Unfortunately, this has taken me 136 pages to get here and it takes me another 30 pages or so to see Gurney finally get asked to join the case. By now, I couldn’t care less how the killer pulled off the number trick or the murder. To me, it was taking too long and I just lost interest. Simply put, this new character just isn’t interesting to me. This one goes back on The Pile.
Brother Odd - Dean Koontz ($7.99/$.50, copyright 2006, 430 pages, Paperback)This is the third book in the Odd Thomas series. Odd was a short order cook who happens to see dead people. The operative word here is “see”. They don’t communicate with him. They just seem to hang around with him until he figures out what they need. In this one, he’s taken refuge in a monastery to get away from things that happened in the first two books. . Of course, that never actually works out. He winds up dealing with the monastery staff, a resident ghost who likes to ring the bells, creatures made of bone, a federal agent, and a nut case - all while trying to protect some children in the monastery’s school shortly before Christmas. I enjoyed the first book, I think because the character was new. The second was a little weirder, but the character of Odd rang true. I didn’t enjoy this one as much but the ending leads me to believe that there will be a fourth volume and maybe the Odd character will find some closure. Then again, sometimes, you can take a character a little too far. I’ll have to wait and see. It was OK.
Killing Floor - Lee Child ($7.99/$.50, copyright 1997, 407 pages, Paperback)This is the first of the Jack Reacher novels. Since Tom Cruise is starring in a movie about the character, I decided to check him out. Reacher is a former military policeman who, having left the army, decides to drop off the grid. He carries no ID and travels only by bus, rail, or simply walking. In this book, he’s arrested for a murder just after he enters a town. There’s something going on but he tries not to get involved until it becomes personal. Child builds the plot nicely, mixing in several other murders (some of which Reacher commits), a criminal undertaking that seems far-fetched but is reasonably explained, and an upcoming deadline. Reacher is an interesting, intelligent character (although I'm not sure how Cruise will do). I liked it.
Miscellaneous
The Avengers :Too Many Targets - John Peel & Dave Rogers ($8.95/$.50, copyright 1990, 181 pages, Paperback)These are not the Marvel Universe Avengers. These are the one’s from the BBC. John Steed, Emma Peel, Tara, Mother, etc. Every one of them true to life and a story that plays to their strengths. Someone is killing British agents. They suspect it's someone on the inside. Steed is supposed to believe it is Mother. Mother is supposed to believe it is Steed. The action is spaced out nicely so as to bring the major characters together. The dialog is fun to read. And there's robots. Jolly good fun. I enjoyed it.
Graphic Novels/Comics
Showcase Presents: Rip Hunter, Time Master - Various ($19.99/$5.00, copyright 2012, 511 pages, Trade Paperback) This is one of those collections that I mentioned last month. Rip Hunter is a “B” list character in the DCU who pops up whenever they have a crossover event that involves time travel. In effect, he’s the man. This volume includes Showcase numbers 20, 21, 25 and 26, and Rip’s own magazine numbers 1 through 15. This covers a time period from May 1959 through August 1963 (published bimonthly). They were all written by Jack Miller, one of the unsung bullpen members and includes artist Neil Caddy, Alex Toth, Bill Ely, and Ross Andru. Here, most of the action takes place in the past - the Stone Age, Ancient Egypt, etc. - with some futuristic aliens mixed in every now and then. The cast includes Rip, his good buddy Jeff Smith, his girlfriend bonnie Baxter, and her kid brother Corky. (This seems to have been a theme back then, a girlfriend who’s tough buts gets into trouble and a kid brother.) Again, these become repetitive if read in a single sitting so I spaced them out to 1 a week. I enjoyed it.
That's it for this month - and this year.
I wish you all health and happiness in the New Year.
Keep reading!
