The Secret of Secrets by Dan Brown

Description from Amazon:

Accompanying celebrated academic, Katherine Solomon, to a lecture she’s been invited to give in Prague, Robert Langdon’s world spirals out of control when she disappears without trace from their hotel room. Far from home and out of his comfort zone, Langdon must pit his wits against forces unknown to recover the woman he loves.

But Prague is an old and dangerous place, steeped in folklore and mystery. Little can Langdon know that he is being stalked by a spectre from that dark past. He must use all of his arcane knowledge to navigate a shadow city hiding in plain sight, a city which has successfully kept its secrets for centuries and will not readily give them up...

 

I had stopped reading Dan Brown novels for a while. The first couple were really clever but then they started being “samey” so when I saw this doorstop of a book, I figured why not. Okay the title is rather daft. I know it gets explained in the book but it’s still really silly.

The content is heavy. Truly cerebral stuff. And you have to concentrate super hard on what they are saying most of the time just to understand the sentence, let alone the contents.

So Katherine was about to publish a book that could have put a lot of people in danger / brought scientific discoveries to light that should not have been let out. And we all know there are people on levels above other people who pull strings and keep things quiet. So the powers that be swoop in in an elaborate scheme to protect their experiments while eliminating threats. And these have been years in the making.

The addition of The Golem and the ether experienced along with the stories behind Prague made for some good historical reading. All the descriptions were lovely and vivid and truly transported you to other times and places.  

But the book itself. Yikes. Too many clues trying to be cryptic. Too many side plots on side plots. Too much information on the subject matter itself (and repeated over and over) that it was beginning to feel like a journal article. I hate it when reading a book becomes slogging through it, but I pushed ahead as the chapters were not too long and he cut them in places where you did really want to find out what would happen. But with ludicrous parts like Langdon seeing and smelling something that was described in a dream and running back to his hotel, then setting off the fire alarm, and jumping out of the hotel window into an icy river, well then, you know ludicrous it shall be the whole way through.

That’s it for Dan Brown for me! You join my pile of “no more”...

Fearless by MW Craven

Description from Amazon:

Five million reasons why Ben Koenig had to disappear. Only one to bring him back . . .

Ben Koenig is a ghost. He doesn’t exist any more.

Six years ago it was Koenig who headed up the US Marshal's elite Special Ops group. They were the elite unit who hunted the bad guys – the really bad guys. They did this so no one else had to.

Until the day Koenig disappeared. He told no one why and he left no forwarding address. For six years he became a grey man. Invisible. He drifted from town to town, state to state. He was untraceable. It was as if he had never been.

But now Koenig’s face is on every television screen in the country. Someone from his past is trying to find him and they don't care how they do it. In the burning heat of the Chihuahuan Desert lies a town called Gauntlet, and there are people in there who have a secret they'll do anything to protect. They've killed before and they will kill again.

Only this time they’ve made a mistake. They’ve dismissed Koenig as just another drifter – but they’re wrong. Because Koenig has a condition, a unique disorder that makes it impossible for him to experience fear. And now they’re about to find out what a truly fearless man is capable of. Because Koenig’s coming for them. And hell’s coming with him . . .

 

I’m honestly not sure about this one. It’s a stark contrast to his Poe books and we have to take that into consideration so as not to compare them. But having read the cerebral workings of the Poe books and how the evidence was put together, this book relied on brute force. Do not read if squeamish, as Koening (since he can feel no fear), has no issue inflicting all sorts of violence on people.

The plot was rather far-fetched (The solar panels? And the convenient fall? Really?) and while I enjoyed the reasons he remained hidden and how he hid, it was like doing a Reacher series with a bigger and badder hero. I might read the second one just to see where this is going but this one was long, filled with a lot of technical stuff that made it difficult to keep of, and while there was a lot of violence (I wasn’t too fussed with it), was it all really necessary?

It was an average book and aimed generically.

Dead Ground by MW Craven

Description from Amazon:

Detective Sergeant Washington Poe is in court, fighting eviction from his beloved and isolated croft, when he is summoned to a backstreet brothel in Carlisle where a man has been beaten to death with a baseball bat. Poe is confused - he hunts serial killers and this appears to be a straightforward murder-by-pimp - but his attendance was requested personally, by the kind of people who prefer to remain in the shadows.

As Poe and the socially awkward programmer Tilly Bradshaw delve deeper into the case, they are faced with seemingly unanswerable questions: despite being heavily vetted for a high-profile job, why does nothing in the victim’s background check out? Why was a small ornament left at the murder scene - and why did someone on the investigation team steal it? And what is the connection to a flawlessly executed bank heist three years earlier, a heist where nothing was taken . . .

 

Initially I was taken aback as I had just finished The Impossible Fortune, where they were arguing over who the best James Bond was and this book opens with a bank robbery where they are using James Bond masks!

This wasn’t my favourite one in the series and I hate saying that because all the elements are there but it seems that some of the literary stretches we might accept are now being pushed even further and are a bit harder to fathom.

Poe is still fighting to keep his croft with Tilly representing him (can she do this?) when he is called out on a case he really has no business being at. Other people introduced to the investigation clash with Poe and the way he does things (surprise) but have an integral part in the outcome of the story.

When the victim is found to be involved in something that happened years ago in Afghanistan, where a team may have been part of something off the books, the evidence leads to an astonishing theft. Now, without giving spoilers, you find yourself at this point in the book going what? All of them? And how on earth was this navigated from the mental and physical position the person was in? I guess you will have to read it to find out what I mean!

What annoyed me was the book being over and then an extra bit coming in to explain even more about the theft that seemed an add on. And too many of our usual characters had such small roles to play in this book! And Tilly – since when has she learnt the art of subtle nuance and is able to use it in eyebrow-raising contexts? This was also, unfortunately, the worst one in the series where it comes to the reader not being able to figure out how or who but having to wait until the author decided to reveal it all.

I really hope that the next one in the series goes back to the formula that works for these characters and has us concentrating on the intricacies of the plot and not trying to figure out what is going on. I have another by him in a different series so let’s give Fearless a go and see what that is about so long.

The Impossible Fortune by Richard Osman

Description from Amazon:

Who’s got time to think about murder when there’s a wedding to plan?

 

It’s been a quiet year for the Thursday Murder Club. Joyce is busy with table plans and first dances. Elizabeth is grieving. Ron is dealing with family troubles, and Ibrahim is still providing therapy to his favorite criminal.

But when Elizabeth meets Nick, a wedding guest asking for her help, she finds the thrill of the chase is ignited once again. And when Nick disappears without a trace, his cagey business partner becomes the gang’s next stop. It seems the duo have something valuable—something worth killing for.

Joyce’s daughter, Joanna, jumps into the fray to help the gang as they seek answers: Has someone kidnapped Nick? And what’s this uncrackable code they keep hearing about? Plunged back into action once more, can the four friends solve the puzzle and a murder in time?

 

I read the previous four a while back but didn’t do reviews on them – naughty me. And then I found this in the library! Two more Craven books and then I must go back to indie publishing as those are where the reviews are needed!

Honestly, these books just let you turn your brain off and enjoy a rollicking good read. I did watch the movie about the first book too and thought it was relatively close to the book. Bogdan was way off though and Pierce Brosnan as Ron? Nope. I’ve seen Mobland but he still can’t pull off what Ron was. Actually, neither can Tom Ellis as Jason – sorry, guys!

However, when Ron gets asked who his favourite James Bond is and he says Pierce Brosnan, I will say I had a good giggle.

Two gripes about the book: I felt a bit let down by the explanation behind the Bitcoin code and what happened to it. It fitted the book but I guess I was looking for something else. And the other was the focus on Joanna but leaving Suzi without a bigger voice. I completely understand it was about Nick and Holly and the fortune in the bunker and it’s a comedy mystery, but when Suzi disappeared because of Danny’s domestic violence and the threat against her, it would have been good to see something from her POV.

But getting to know Kendrick, Suzi’s son, was a blast. What an entertaining nine-year-old! Far too smart for his own good, but a kid with good prospects.

I liked how Osman continued the story with Elizabeth still trying to get over Stephen dying, how Joyce just want to be involved with everything and is keen to be more in Joanna’s life, how Ibrahim is just the solid rock for everyone (and him trying to help Connie mentor someone was so funny), and Ron learning that even he is getting old but can still protect his family but in his own way.

The writing just makes you keep wanting to turn just one more page and it’s like a warm hug when the last page is done. Next book, please!

The Curator by MW Craven

Description from Amazon:

Nothing says Christmas like severed fingers

 

It’s December and a serial killer is leaving body parts all over Cumbria.

Called in to investigate, the National Crime Agency’s Washington Poe and Tilly Bradshaw are faced with a case that makes no sense. Why were the victims killed in such different ways? Why is their only suspect denying what they can irrefutably prove but admitting to things they weren’t even aware of? And what could the cryptic message left at each scene - #BSC6 - possibly mean?

When a disgraced FBI agent gets in touch things take an even darker turn. Because she doesn’t think Poe is dealing with a serial killer at all; she thinks he’s dealing with someone far, far worse - a man who calls himself the Curator.

And if you think you know what’s happening, you’re exactly where he wants you to be...

 

Two things: yes, I’m still on the Craven train and have two more waiting to be read on my side table, and the second thing... what is going on with all these generic AI reviews at the moment? I’m seeing so many reviews about books I’ve read where nothing specific is actually said about the plot and things that should be mentioned are not. Or something like nail-biting suspense when it’s a romance. Or the favourite start: this book offers... it’s compelling... add layers of depth... and other such nonsense. You can tell it’s fancy but says nothing. Okay... rant over.

So... the curator. Bit of a nasty person this one. Again my gripe about this book is that you wouldn’t have figured it out as a reader, as Poe is privy to a secret conversation and things are added that are not clues for us. But it’s still a really good book. And the fact that it has a real-life connection is actually quite scary.

Once again we have Poe, Tilly, and a heavily pregnant Stephanie investigating a case of severed fingers and the clue of #BSC6. But it seems the person behind this may not have the motive they all assume. When a discredited former FBI agent tries to warn Poe, they realise that there is a possibility that someone is being hired to punish enemies. But the way it’s being done is bizarre as it seems to go in stages of violence. Cue a tiered worldwide challenge that goes from so-called harmless pranks to full-on murder where collateral damage is the norm.

This is definitely one where the ending is not expected, and Tilly, yet again, is genius with her deductions (she doesn’t play as big a role in this one but her offering about the car is a doozy). The element that Poe might either lose his house or have to spend money to restore it to a historical setting is also looming, so there are plenty of side plots to the story.

Another fabulous offering from the author and I am thoroughly enjoying Poe and Tilly’s ride.

Black Summer by MW Craven

Description from Amazon:

Jared Keaton, chef to the stars. Charming. Charismatic. Psychopath . . . He’s currently serving a life sentence for the brutal murder of his daughter, Elizabeth. Her body was never found and Keaton was convicted largely on the testimony of Detective Sergeant Washington Poe.

So when a young woman staggers into a remote police station with irrefutable evidence that she is Elizabeth Keaton, Poe finds himself on the wrong end of an investigation, one that could cost him much more than his career.

Helped by the only person he trusts, the brilliant but socially awkward Tilly Bradshaw, Poe races to answer the only question that matters: how can someone be both dead and alive at the same time?

And then Elizabeth goes missing again - and all paths of investigation lead back to Poe.

 

Okay, you’ll have to indulge me with this author. After all, I have only just discovered him, and since the first book was so good, I have to read as many as I can get my hands on!

The book opens with an appalling food scene. And by appalling I mean I really hope it’s made up and not some awful practice somewhere. You have Jared Keaton – supposed food magician but also crazy-as-a-loon chef. He is meant to have murdered his daughter, Elizabeth, and Poe managed to put him behind bars. Elizabeth has resurfaced to prove she is alive, but then goes missing again. So now Keaton could be freed and Poe entirely discredited. But Poe is still convinced Keaton is a psychopath.

So begins a tale of a twist on a turn on a twist. I love how the author takes you on a ride you never expected, and there are so many clues leading to each other or bouncing off each other that sometimes it’s quite something to keep track of it all. I think that might be the only thing about these books that doesn’t sit well. The fact that normally with a thriller the reader is given the clues, albeit scattered, and then we all go “Oh I didn’t see that coming.” But with these books, Poe (and my awesome supersleuth, Tilly) connects something and only later do we as readers get told what the connection was. It all makes sense in the end but we aren’t allowed to piece the puzzle together ourselves. It doesn’t stop me enjoying the books though!

I liked the introduction of Estelle (whoops, I might have gotten her name wrong but I’ll get it right in the next review) in the mortuary, and the way she is described and the processes she uses are highly entertaining. She’d probably kick my butt with her heels for that.

The investigation Poe undertakes to try to refute the blood draw proving Elizabeth is who she says she is makes every stumbling block he encounters ingenious. And creating Keaton’s timeline and linking it back to his cooking had me exhausted. I love how all the characters work so well off each other and that by now Poe and Bradshaw’s relationship is cemented in that easy to predict what you need kind of way. And bringing Poe’s dog, Edgar, into it? Yes, please!

Great story, great writing, great idea, great investigation and reworking what needed to be reworked, great reading. Next one, please!

The Goodbye Man by Jeffery Deaver

Description from Amazon:

In the wilderness of Washington State, expert tracker Colter Shaw has located two young men accused of a terrible hate crime. But when his pursuit takes a shocking and tragic turn, Shaw becomes desperate to discover what went so horribly wrong and if he is to blame.

Shaw’s search for answers leads him to a shadowy organization that bills itself as a grief support group. But is it truly it a community that consoles the bereaved? Or a dangerous cult with a growing body count?

 

Since the last one I’d read in the series was not too bad, I thought I’d try another. Deaver is trying to get Shaw to be the action version of Rhyme and it’s good but not quite there. There are a few too many fortuitous moments, and things that are explained away by him being a survivalist or having amazing instincts or his dad imparting some knowledge to swallow.

The story initially seems farfetched, but since so much is probably not shared in real life by authorities about what goes on in cults like these, I wouldn’t be surprised. Shaw is trying to infiltrate this grief group after one of the people he was trying to find for the reward landed up killing himself. It could have been Shaw’s fault but something doesn’t feel right. So Shaw enters the group and is forced to maintain a façade as he learns about the levels and what they want to accomplish.

The charismatic leader (isn’t there always one?) sees potential in Shaw and elevates him to a position where he sees all the illegal parts happening and figures out the endgoal that the final level requires. But... he could be exposed either through his actions or others who have taken note of him.

Lots of intriguing twists and turns here and I enjoyed the competition between him and a fellow reward seeker who has no problem taking out his competition (permanently by accident).

The facets to the story do keep you guessing, and even though you sometimes have to just accept the story, it’s probably still within the realms of credibility. Even though reading Shaw and reading Rhyme are like reading two different ways of writing, there is still enough Deaver in both to keep the reading comfortable and fast. The novel goes by quickly and leaves enough to want to find out more, even though it’s not my favourite series. If I find others, I’ll keep them for rainy days.