The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time

Author: Mark Haddon
Paperback: 280 pages
ISBN: 978-0099450252
Recommendation: wouldn't recommend


Christoper is autistic, which affects his view of the world around him in ways that even he admits can seem strange. When his neighbour's dog is killed he sets out on a journey to discover the perpetrator. Having been told to leave it alone by his father and the police he decides to stop at nothing to solve the crime, even leaving the safety of his own street on his own for the first time.

2 comments

Wild Fire

Author: Nelson DeMille
Series: John Corey, Book 4
Paperback: 659 pages
ISBN: 9780751538274
Recommendation: have read before


The Custer Hill Club looks, from the outside, like any other private members club for the rich and powerful. It isn't until an federal agent, tasked to do routine surveillance on the club, disappears that John Corey and his wife, FBI agent Kate Mayfield, decide to take a closer look. Of course John's smart mouth gets them into trouble, but not as much trouble as the world will face if they don't stop the Custer Hill Club from initiating project WILD FIRE.

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Manhunt

Author: James Barrington
Series: Paul Richter, Book 1
Paperback: 486 pages
ISBN: 9780330462709
Recommendation: would read again


After 20 years in the Navy Paul Richter is looking for a job, but he hadn't planned on getting mixed up with a deniable branch of the British security establishment. Unfortunately he needed the money and the job seemed straightforward. Unfortunately it isn't long before Richter realizes his new job doesn't have long term prospects as in reality he is the expendable bait in a complex trap involving British and Russian security services. Can Richter outsmart both sides and survive?

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Shroom

Author: Andy Letcher
Paperback: 348 pages
ISBN: 0571227708
Recommendation: enjoyed


Until the law was changed, in July 2005, it was perfectly legal to buy and sell magic mushrooms in England. Overnight this naturally occuring hallucinogen had gone from a recreational drug like alcohol to a mushroom the possession of which could get you arrested. This fascinating book takes us on a magical mystery tour from the use of magic mushrooms in indigenous ceremonies to more modern abuses. From the science behind the main active ingredient psilocybe to well documented historical intoxication. If you want to know about the history of magic mushrooms then this is the book to read.

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Payback

Author: James Barrington
Series: Paul Richter, Book 6
Paperback: 463 pages
ISBN: 9780330462693
Recommendation: would read again


Paul Richter was quietly enjoying being on an exercise with the SAS when he is called back to work in order to investigate a man who appears to be able to predict terrorist attacks. What should have been a quick trip to Dubai to expose a hoax turns into a race against time to uncover a terrifying plot to destabilize the Arab world.

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Did I Like That Book?

When I first started this blog I made the decision not to give a star rating or any other classification to the books. It's not that I was being lazy but rather that rating a book in such a way is such a subjective task and I wasn't sure how relevant my ratings would be to anyone else. My hope was that my enthusiasm (or lack of) for a book would come through in the wording of the blurb I wrote. This probably works reasonably well for non-fiction, but it's harder to do when writing a blurb for a novel.

From now on I'm going to rate each book I write about, however, I'm still not going to use a star rating. Books will now be categorized as either; wouldn't recommend, enjoyed, would read again, or have read before. Hopefully these broader categories will be more transferable to other people than a star rating system, especially as it will be easy for me to decided which category a book should fall into. Hopefully this will please those readers who want to know more about what I felt about a book, but if you think I should use different categories or have any other suggestions then please do leave a comment.

1 comments

Jack The Ripper: Letters From Hell

Authors: Stewart P. Evans and Keith Skinner
Paperback: 300 pages
ISBN: 075093770X


Between August and November of 1888 six prostitutes were murdered and mutilated in London's East End. Whilst Jack The Ripper was never caught a large number of letters purporting to be from the killer were sent to newspapers and the police. For the first time this book collects together all of the Ripper letters along with expert commentary. A fascinating look at one of the worlds most famous unsolved cases.

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Timebomb

Author: James Barrington
Series: Paul Richter, Book 5
Paperback: 444 pages
ISBN: 9780230014749


After two operations to arrest terrorists in Geneva and Stuttgart go badly agent Paul Richter discovers that the terrorists are being tipped off. Unfortunately after the incident in Stuttgart Richter finds himself on the run from a murder charge. Can he discover what links these apparently separate terrorist cells before any other operations are compromised, or worse the terrorists succeed in their plans.

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Fallen

Author: Karin Slaughter
Series: Georgia Stories, Book 11
Hardback: 400 pages
ISBN: 978-1846057946


Special Agent Faith Mitchell, of the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, has left her baby daughter Emma with her mother, Ex-Atlanta Police chief Evelyn Mitchell, while she attends a training course. Faith arrives back at the house to find it has been ransacked. There is plenty of blood but no sign of her mother, while Emma has been locked in the outside shed. Can Faith and her partner Will Trent unravel Evelyn's past to find her before it is too late?

4 comments