Book Review- Ridley Pearson- Chain of Evidence

Ridley Pearson- Chain of Evidence (Hyperion 1995) 3.75 Stars

After ignoring evidence in a previous case, detective Joe Dartelli is now finding out that it may be coming back to haunt him. In a previous case he labelled what may have been a murder, a suicide. Now more people are dying by suspicious suicides and the evidence is bringing his former mentor under suspicion. Now he must dig into the suicides to find out if they really are murders. Is this sabotage, a vigilante, or just suspicious suicides?

This was an interesting book. The parental abuse factor was a little tough to deal with, but the crime scene sections were very well done. This book grabbed my attention and did have slower parts, but never lost my attention. The plot was good, did not really have any shocking moments or huge twists, but was well done. It certainly ended with a bang! I loved the concluding chapters! The characters were well-crafted and although the relationship stuff was weak and unnecessary, I still enjoyed the character side of the book. I found the evidence gathering parts were great and I found it fascinating to learn about. I would recommend this book to those who like a good thriller/mystery.

For more of my book reviews check out my website, www.tonypeters.webs.com

Tony Peters

Kids on a Case: The Case of the Ten Grand Kidnapping

http://authortonypeters.blogspot.com/

Book Review- Avi and Rachel Vail- Never Mind!

Avi and Rachel Vail- Never Mind! (HarperCollins 2004) 4.5 Stars

Meg and Edward are twins, and are complete opposites. When their parents decide to send them both to different schools, they both see it as an opportunity. Meg wishes to get into a High Achievers Club at her new school and be in with the “important” crowd, and Edward wants nothing more than to stop that from happening. Listening into her phone conversation he knows exactly what he must do, the question is how can he possibly do it?

I was very impressed with this book. Normally when you see co-authored books they lack the quality of a single-authored book, but not so with this one. They do a wonderful job of creating two separate points of view and you see them get caught in their own tangled webs of their own weaving. I loved the humour in this book, it was witty and out right hilarious. I think I would have found it more so if I was a twin. Reading about these two siblings try to derail each other is very amusing. These two characters are complex and it was good to watch them grow/learn about themselves. We see a battle of wits and how much trouble lies can get you into. I think that young teens will find this book amusing and should have no problems relating to these two characters. The plot was not deep, but it was certainly entertaining. In the end we see them discover that they may be more alike then they had thought. I would recommend this novel to anyone wanting a good laugh.

For more of my reviews check out my website, www.tonypeters.webs.com

Tony Peters

Kids on a Case: The Case of the Ten Grand Kidnapping

http://authortonypeters.blogspot.com/

Book Review- Robert Vaughan- Vendetta Trail

Robert Vaughan- Vendetta Trail (HarperCollins 2005) 2.75 Stars

Mason Hawke is a drifter who loves playing the piano. He has a history of violence that he is trying to avoid, but somehow it always winds up chasing him from town to town. Now he is in New Orleans and once again his troubled past has caught him, this time it comes through Rachel Brubaker, a woman who is running for her life. Now they are fleeing New Orleans and running across the country. Hawke has sworn to protect her and he will kill any man who tries to harm her.

I had high hopes of enjoying this western as it started off great. I love the character of Mason Hawke as he was skilfully crafted. The plot itself was kind of helter-skelter though and didn’t really come about until about halfway through. I did not like how many coincidences this book employed, things just fell into place a little too easily and it would have been nicer to see the author mould this differently. The action scenes were intense, though again not realistic and too coincidental. It was an easy quick read with not a lot of depth, so if you are looking for a book not requiring much thought than this is the book for you!

For more of my reviews check out my website, www.tonypeters.webs.com

Tony Peters

Kids on a Case: The Case of the Ten Grand Kidnapping

http://authortonypeters.blogspot.com/

Book Review- Nancy Yi Fan- Swordbird

Nancy Yi Fan- Swordbird (HarperCollins 2007) 3.25 Stars

Stone-Run Forest is being torn apart by a war waged by blue jays and cardinals, but are there deeper forces at work here? Trapped in a war none of the birds wish to be in, they are looking to a legend for the restoration of peace. Swordbird seems to be the only hope for the forest to return to what it should be. Can they call up this mythical hero, before it is too late?

I must say that I may have enjoyed this book more if I was twelve or younger. It still was not a bad book, considering it is not the usual type of book that I read. It definitely is a juvenile read, intended for a younger audience. The author is now seventeen, but at the time that she wrote this she was only twelve. Taking that into consideration she has done a great job and I am impressed. I will be looking out for her in the future. The characters were interesting and well-created; maybe a little more depth would be something to work on as she gets older. The plot wasn’t deep, but it was still enjoyable. It also had its intense sections that will captivate young readers. Nancy has quite an imagination and I hope that she is able to put it to good use in the future. I would recommend this book to young readers.

For more of my reviews check out my website, www.tonypeters.webs.com

Tony Peters

Kids on a Case: The Case of the Ten Grand Kidnapping

http://authortonypeters.blogspot.com/

Book Review- Elmore Leonard- Last Stand at Saber River

Elmore Leonard- Last Stand at Saber River (Dell Publishing 1994) 3.25 Stars

After being wounded during the Civil War fighting for the Confederacy, Paul Cable has returned home with his family, but everything seems to have changed. A one-armed man now runs Denaman’s Store, while two brothers and their men have taken Cable’s land in the name of the Union. Cable does not intend to take this sitting down; he is going to have his land back, even if he must kill every man in his way.

I did not mind this western, although it wasn’t fantastic. Leonard creates amazing characters, complete with background stories. This certainly helps this novel considering that not all the situations were all that likely, they just happened a little too easily. The plot was not complex, but was not bad. I did enjoy the action in this novel, and how the main character tried to avoid it at all costs, but he certainly would not back down when pushed. I especially loved how tough his wife and kids were. Overall I would not likely recommend this book unless you are an Elmore Leonard fan.

For more of my reviews check out my website, www.tonypeters.webs.com

Tony Peters

Kids on a Case: The Case of the Ten Grand Kidnapping

www.eloquentbooks.com/kidsonacase.html

Book Review- Robert Louis Stevenson- Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde

Robert Louis Stevenson- Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (Washington Square Press 1995) 2.75 Stars

I do not think I need to explain this novel as you should all know the basic idea of the book, so I will go straight into my thoughts. This was my first time actually reading this book, and I was not overly impressed by it. I found that there was not much point to the book. The plot did not have a lot of depth to it. I always imagined that we would see more of the inner struggle between Jekyll and Hyde, but we don’t learn about it until the final chapter where Jekyll explains everything via a letter. The perspective was kind of a surprise for me, not sure what I expected, but it certainly wasn’t like that. Not saying it was a bad perspective, it just wasn’t what I expected. I did like the characters, although we don’t learn a lot about any of them in particular. This one kind of made me scratch my head and wonder just why it has become a classic.

For more of my reviews check out my website, www.tonypeters.webs.com

Tony Peters
Kids on a Case: The Case of the Ten Grand Kidnapping
www.eloquentbooks.com/kidsonacase.html

Book Review- James Patterson- 1st to Die

James Patterson- 1^st to Die (Little, Brown and Company 2001) 3.75 Stars

When brides and grooms start dying and normal police procedures are getting them nowhere, four women decide to take matters into their own hands. Lindsay Boxer is a police officer who is leading the investigation into the murders and she has brought in her friends, Claire Washburn who is a medical examiner, and Jill Bernhardt an assistant D.A. Cindy Thomas, a reporter, has also joined the Women’s Murder Club and will get the inside scoop on the murders. To the killer this is a sadistic and ruthless game in which there can only be one winner.

I had been told that this series was good and this was not a bad start. I loved how we saw Lindsay struggling with a brutal serial killer as well as a deadly disease. It gave her much more depth. The plot was pretty good and was certainly fast-paced. It did have its moments when I felt things could have been made stronger with a little more work. If Patterson would take a little more time before pumping out a new book his books would be a lot better. Maybe this would be a good idea rather than hurrying to get several books out each year. That being said this book was a nice refresher from Patterson’s Cross series. I enjoyed the twists in this book, they were well done and some were very surprising. I did know who the killer was about halfway through, although it didn’t end up playing out quite the way I had though it would. I would recommend this book to anyone who likes Patterson or thrillers.

For more of my reviews check out my website, www.tonypeters.webs.com

Tony Peters

Kids on a Case: The Case of the Ten Grand Kidnapping

http://authortonypeters.blogspot.com/