Killing Floor

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When Jack Reacher suddenly decides to ask a Greyhound bus driver to let him off near the town of Margrave, Georgia, he thinks it's because his brother once mentioned that the famed blues guitarist Blind Blake died there. But it doesn't take long for the footloose ex-military policeman to discover that there are plenty of strange--and very dangerous--things going on behind Margrave's manicured lawns and clean streets that demand his attention. This first thriller by a former television writer features some of the best-written scenes of action in recent memory, a crash course in currency and counterfeiting, and a hero who is just begging to be called on for an encore.

Customer Reviews:

Killing Floor.......2007-10-13

If I could give this book 3 1/2 stars I would. I felt like the first 1/2 of the book moved too slow for me. However, I do like how Jack Reacher gets the bad guys in the end. Lots of action and killing throughout the book, of course -- If that is your cup of tea, you'll love the book.

Much to Recommend Despite the Flaws.......2007-09-07

While on a cruise recently I started talking books and authors (especially mysteries) with an Englishwoman who I met one day at the breakfast table. When I mentioned I am a Michael Connelly fan, she suggested Lee Childs. Having heard his name before, I gave him a try. Always on the lookout for a new series, I picked The Killing Floor, the first installment of the Jack Reacher books.

Having finished this book, I am impressed with Lee Childs' writing ability potential. It hits the ground running with Jack Reacher, a military police officer, who recently left the service to wander about the country in a hobo-like existence. When a brutal murder is committed in a small Southern town, Reacher finds himself in the wrong place at the wrong time, hauled into the police station, and then thrown into jail despite what (as the reader knows) his obvious innocence. Things are harrowing there for a while, but he does get out and then puts his experience into action as he joins in on the investigation, finds a romantic interest too and continues his adventures. Jack Reacher is a very unique, interesting, and promising character with a macho, loner, wise-guy, and cerebral persona that always does well in the mystery genre. Terrible things are happening in this town and who is on the good or bad side keeps the reader guessing.

At this point, Childs was off to a great start and I was excited to have found a winner. Unfortunately, this five-star setup does not live up to its promise. As many others reviews have stated, The Killing Floor is full of plot holes, situations, relationships that are not credible, and incomplete character development. These flaws multiply and accelerate as the plot moves on to its conclusion and I felt as if I was being led by the nose and manipulated. However, my time with The Killing Floor was not wasted. Despite all my criticism, I did enjoy it and intend to read the next installment of the Jack Reacher series. Although full of annoyances, The Killing Floor has a spark that may turn into a great series for me. This review has gone on far longer than I originally intended and I find it difficult to find concluding words. I will simply leave it by stating that The Killing Floor was a book that I could not stop enjoying despite its many flaws.

Killing Floor.......2007-08-05

Jack Reacher roams from place to place and this time he's come to a small town in Georgia on a whim. He's eating breakfast when the town's finest blow in and arrest him for murder. It's a case of being in the wrong place at the wrong time. It's a shocker for Jack when he discovers the identity of the guy he's supposed to have killed. People keep dying and it's becoming a blood bath. Jack sticks around to see justice done, but it's a scary ride all the way.

Re-Reading Reacher.......2007-08-03

We walk with Reacher down a new road. No baggage. No hassles. Striding out happily with the big man, who yearns only to be invisible, craves solitude, anonymity, a loner who can fit his possessions into a zip loc bag.

This is the first Lee Child novel, and having read virtually all the Jack Reacher thrillers, I revisited this road again, thinking I would reread the book that turned me on, that excited me to start with, The Killing Floor.

Lee Child weaves action, suspense, mystery, raw power and a killer plot into his debut novel. Still on the Amazon best seller list, which begins as Reacher, a drifter, six months out of an elite military police unit, gets off the bus in Margrave, Georgia with only a vague plan, a whimsical pilgrimage to discover the roots of a long dead guitar player named Blind Blake. He finds an old lady who sang with him. And a whole lot more he didn't bargain for.

An almost dozen books later, I'm more than acquainted with the man who simply calls himself, Reacher. This book is the beginning. Maybe the best in the series, and a good place to start. Maybe years from now, after reading Reacher a couple dozen times, you will reread this first novel too, forgetting how good it was that first time.

Great debut novel introducing a hero for the ages.......2007-08-02

Killing Floor was Lee Child's first book featuring ex-military cop and all-around hero Jack Reacher. Published in 1997, Child's debut novel (and especially his rugged-individualist protagonist) struck a nerve with audiences in the U.S. and in his native England and established him as a new force to be reckoned with in the emerging thriller genre. Even a decade later, anyone reading this book will immediately see why.

Jack Reacher is the consummate thriller hero. He's the ultimate man's man--unflinchingly brave, an unapologetic warrior for justice, street-smart, handsome, and huge (six-five)--and with just enough of a soft, sensitive side to capture any woman's heart. He's John Wayne meets Jack Bauer meets Dirty Harry, a literary hero whose exploits and adventures (and misadventures) are just plain fun to read about.

And the hero is far from the only thing to enjoy about Lee Child's writing. From its opening line ("I was arrested in Eno's diner"), Killing Floor is engaging and intriguing. The first-person narrative with short sentences and a strictly linear plot make for fast, enjoyable reading, and the setting (small-town Georgia) seems familiar enough to put the reader right into the action. In some ways the novel is a formula book (the lone gunman rides into town, identifies injustice, defeats it, gets the girl, and rides off into the sunset), but the writing is good enough that it doesn't matter. Child allows the suspense to build throughout the story and provides a real sense of small-town community, politics, and corruption.

The story opens with Jack Reacher's arrest in Margrave, Georgia, for a crime he knows he didn't commit. Right away the reader is treated to Child's evident research as Reacher silently critiques the arresting officers' mistakes in apprehending a man they believe to be a murderer. As the local authorities rush to put together the pieces of what happened outside of town, Reacher must clear his name and then track down the real criminals. Along the way, he teams up with a veteran detective and a beautiful female police officer to apprehend a villain who turns out to be much closer than anyone could have predicted.

Killing Floor is exceptionally entertaining, and though it does contain some fairly graphic descriptions of brutal violence (the cover art is a bloody handprint) and a few rather modest sex scenes, there is hardly any foul language, and the overall worldview is one of good over evil and justice for all. It is without question an "R-rated" book, but it's more like Die Hard than Quentin Tarantino. There's no spiritual content to speak of, but the underlying morality of the central characters could present opportunities for discussion. Highly recommended for readers who can enjoy a thriller with a conscience, set in a purely secular world.

The Killing Dance (Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter: Book 6)

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The Killing Dance
Surprising...
Super Reader
Still liking this series a lot.
short review

The Killing Dance (Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter: Book 6)
Laurell K. Hamilton
Manufacturer: Jove
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback

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ASIN: 0515134511

Amazon.com

Anita Blake, vampire hunter, is now herself a hunted woman. Who put the $500,000 price on her head--a man or a monster? It's not just her own skin she needs to save; the rivalry between her werewolf boyfriend, Richard, and Marcus, the other alpha werewolf in his pack, has come to full boil. And there's always Jean-Claude, the vampire who's been waiting for just the right moment to slip inside Anita's head and heart. Don't assume anything, though--Hamilton's probably got a few more surprises in store.

Book Description

Dating both a vampire and a werewolf isn't easy. But just to complicate Anita's already messy life, someone has put a price on her head. Love cannot save her this time, so she turns to Edward, hitman extraordinaire, for help. But finding the person behind the threat won't be easy, because as both a vampire hunter and zombie reanimator, Anita has made a lot of enemies-both human and otherwise.

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"The first hit man came after me at home, which should be against the rules. Then there was a second, and a third. Eventually, I found out that the word on the street was that Anita Blake, preternatural expert and vampire killer extraordinaire, was worth half a million dollars. Dead, not alive. So what's a girl to do but turn to the men in her life for help? Which in my case, means an alpha werewolf and a master vampire. With professional killers on your trail, it's not a bad idea to have as much protection as possible, human or otherwise. But I'm beginning to wonder if two monsters are better than one ... "

Customer Reviews:

The Killing Dance.......2007-10-17

Another excellent book in the Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter series. Anita is such an exciting, complex and strong female character. In this installment, things really heat up between Anita and the two men in her life, and results in a surprising conclusion. This book series is definately not for the faint of heart, but if you like a good nail biter and modern-day fantasy with an element of horror, this series is worth your time. These books are not, however, stand alone, so I recommend you read them in order, starting with Guilty Pleasures.

Surprising..........2007-09-26

This series is the best! It is only getting better and better. I don't want to give to much away but the end of this book brings something I dind't expect. I am starting to like Jean-Claude's character a lot more as I read farther into the series..

Super Reader.......2007-08-26

Anita becomes more and more involved in the supernatural world, and it is actually spelled out here, where her relationship with the vampire and the werewolf is given, and the mutual defence pact that is undertaken.

Some of the human characters point this out, too, and her change in attitude towards vampires and others.

This book makes a beginning of a change of focus for the series, as Anita decides to give into to the whole vampire horizontal mambo mating dance.

More werewolf politics as Anita disposes of some she doesn't like, and Richard becomes the boss of the local lupines.

She has basically decided she likes the dead guy and what he can give her more than the one that is human most of the time.

After this, you will see the titles of the books becoming 'softer', presumably as an indication it is moving away from the monster stomping theme as a focus, and more towards erotica.

Still liking this series a lot........2007-08-01

Laurell K. Hamilton, The Killing Dance (Berkley, 1997)

I keep getting farther into the are where the Anita Blake books are supposed to suck, and it keeps not happening. As with Bloody Bones, I started out The Killing Dance with some trepidation based on what I'd heard, but after fifty or so pages, I was sucked in to the point where I invented new breaks at work, stayed out for long lunches, etc., in order to keep reading. It's as compelling as any of the others in the series; Hamilton's quality of readability hasn't slipped a whit.

That said, there was one naked, pulsing flaw in this book: Harley. He's the first character ever to appear in the series who just screams "prop." Sure, some of the characters in the books have been props previously (and, as Hamilton has noted in an afterword or two, some of those props have grown into full-fledged characters over the course of a few books), but Hamilton was always a little more subtle about it. Harley, despite being an exceptionally intriguing character every time we see him, and the kind of person who has a chance to grow into something big in the series (one wonders if Hamilton meant to set him up as one of the main villains a few books later), gets to the point where it's revealed that he exists only to prove a point. (Thankfully, Hamilton gains a few notches in the right direction because Harley is meant to prove a point to the characters, not to the readers.) That's not only frustrating, it's puzzling; I can understand authors who don't do this much planning and background work with their characters throwing in cardboard cutouts now and then, but Hamilton, in a few lines, creates Harley as a rich, detailed character who hints at mysterious powers we haven't yet seen in these books. It's impossible to say why without a major spoiler, but by the end of The Killing Dance, we know for certain that Harley's potential, and his interesting powers, will not be fascinating us in subsequent volumes, and he doesn't get enough screen time here to even make him into an intriguing minor character.

I'm obviously going to reserve judgment until later in the series, but this first chink in the armor, combined with the almost uniformly awful reviews of later books in the series, does have me somewhat worried. I like these books. I don't want to stop liking them. And that's probably a better review than anything else I've said here. *** ½

short review.......2007-07-24

In this installment anita has a death contract from a mystery person. Also laurel k. hamilton focuses on anitas problem with choosing between jean claude and richard and a suprise awaits you with that! I was disapointed that my favorite subcharachter,gabriel dies. :(

Average customer rating:

LOVE IT
Disturbing
Looking for Bonnie
my new favorite book
Not as Good as "The Face of Deception" but entertaining

The Killing Game
Iris Johansen
Manufacturer: Bantam
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback

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ASIN: 0553581554
Release Date: 2000-05-02

Amazon.com

Eve Duncan returns as the popular heroine of Iris Johansen's latest suspense thriller, The Killing Game. After the murder of her daughter Bonnie and years of work as a forensic sculptor, Eve had hoped to find some solace in semi-retirement. But when her friend Joe Quinn informs her of the unearthing of multiple bodies, including those of children, Eve cannot resist getting caught up. Those bones may be Bonnie's, and somewhere out there is a dangerous serial murderer. With Joe's loyal help, Eve grimly sets out to find a killer.

Determined to remain objective, Eve begins to reconstruct the face of one of the victims. But the killer wants her to become involved, and manipulates Eve's life like a puppeteer. Terrified of the killer but spurred on by her memories of Bonnie, Eve takes a gamble with her life. She will do whatever the murderer demands: she will be the bait, betting her life for the chance to save others.

As a great suspense novel should, The Killing Game keeps the action and the plot twists coming. Eve's job as a forensic sculptor is the perfect profession for a suspense heroine: she has official access to technical information and the emotional flexibility to react to the drama. Eve's grieving over the loss of Bonnie--and over her romantic complications--helps keep the story complex and appealing. Turn on all of the lights and keep the phone nearby--you won't want to be alone in the dark while reading this one. --Nancy R.E. O'Brien

Book Description

A merciless killer on the hunt...an innocent child in his sights...a woman driven to the edge to stop him...

The killer knows Eve Duncan all too well. He knows the pain she feels for her murdered daughter, Bonnie, whose body has never been found. He knows that as one of the nation's top forensic sculptors she'll insist on identifying the nine skeletons unearthed on a bluff near Georgia's Talladega Falls. He knows she won't be able to resist the temptation of believing that one of those skeletons might be her daughter's. But that is only the beginning of the killer's sadistic game. He wants Eve one on one, and he'll use his ace in the hole to make sure she complies. And he won't stop playing until he claims the prize he wants most: Eve's life.

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A merciless killer on the hunt... an innocent child in his sights... a woman driven to the edge to stop him...

The killer knows Eve Duncan all too well. He knows the pain she feels for her murdered daughter, Bonnie, whose body has never been found. He knows that as one of the nation's top forensic sculptors she'll insist on identifying the nine skeletons unearthed on a bluff near Georgia's Talladega Falls. He knows she won't be able to resist the temptation of believing that one of those skeletons might be her daughter's. But that is only the beginning of the killer's sadistic game. He wants Eve one on one, and he'll use his ace in the hole to make sure she complies. And he won't stop playing until he claims the prize he wants most: Eve's life.

"Johansen is at the top of her game... an enthralling cat-and-mouse game... perfect pacing... the suspense holds until the very end."
   PUBLISHERS WEEKLY

Customer Reviews:

LOVE IT.......2007-03-09

I LOVE IRIS JOHANSEN!!!! ALL OF THE BOOKS I HAVE READ OF HERS ARE GREAT!!!!! READ THEM, YOU WON'T BE DISAPOINTED!

Disturbing.......2006-11-28

A mad serial killer with a "score" of hundreds of brutal killings, mostly children, has taken the life of Bonnie, the daughter of forensic sculptor, Eve Duncan, and is now taunting her with messages and phone calls, threatening to kill another little girl who resembles Bonnie to a great degree. In a search for the bodies of the victims, Sarah Patrick uses her exceptionally clever sniffer dog, Monty, to locate the bodies and comes under great danger herself from this deranged madman. This is a very exciting, if disturbing read, with many insights into the warped mind of a monster who is totally without conscience or human feelings and made me horrified that such creatures probably DO exist in this world.

Looking for Bonnie.......2005-08-31

The killing Game is a sequel. I have not read the first book, but you can tell the writter expects you to have. Though I found not knowing all that transpired before was not an impediment to enjoying the book.

The heroine is Eve Duncan who is an foresnic sculpter. We learn that she has two men that would do anything for her. Quinn, the homicide detective, that gets her invloved in our story, by letting her know of the uncovered body of a young girl. A girl that may be here dead daughter. And Logan, a Bill Gates type, that wants only to shelter her. And has done a good job of it by having taken her to a private island in the pacific.

The numerous bodies found of course makes the news. And the killer not only see's that some of his kills have been uncovered. But that Eve is being brought in to help reconstruct one of the faces. Of course the reconstruction is to be of the little girl she thinks may be her daughter. But the killer steals the bones and calls Eve. He calls himself Dom and this is where the sick game begins.

Dom explains to Eve that he was the killer of her daughter. And that he was going to kill anther girl who could be her daughter reincarnated...It is a race. Can Eve solve all the puzzles that Dom sets for her and keep him intrigued. Or will he just kill the girl and her.

This book is a page turner and will keep your interest.

my new favorite book.......2005-07-03

This book is one of the best crime books I have ever read. It is exciting and thrilling.

Not as Good as "The Face of Deception" but entertaining.......2005-06-28

"The Killing Game" is the sequel to "The Face of Deception" (easier the most intriguing book of the series), which is actually the 2nd part in a longer series by Iris Johansen.
The novel is about foresnic sculptor Eve Duncan. Eve's daughter Bonnie was killed by a serial killer named Fraser who was executed a number of years ago, and the body of her daughter has never been found. After uncovering a political conspiracy in TFOD, she now lives with John Logan away from the public eye. When a friend of hers,
homicide detective Joe Quinn, finds the body of what appears to be a young girl, he brings Eve back to Atlanta to perform a recontruction on the skull. When she arrives, however, she discovers the skull has been stolen, then she recieves a call from a man who calls himself Dom. He tells Eve that he has stolen her daughters skull and that he in fact killed her and Fraser was a copy-cat killer who took the blame for it. Then he tells her about a young girl he wants to kill named Jane and now Eve feels that she must protect the girl (who bears a remarkable resemblance to Bonnie). Johansens "Eve Duncan" novels are interesting and intriguing. Like I said, TFOD was better than this, but this is an interesting and entertaining read. B+.

Average customer rating:

Killing at its Best!!
Fourth Book in the Series
One of my favorites!
Boring detail
A dynamite book!

The Killing Hour
Lisa Gardner
Manufacturer: Bantam
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback

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ASIN: 0553584529
Release Date: 2004-09-28

Book Description

Each time he struck, he took two victims. Day after day, he waited for the first body to be discovered--a body containing all the clues the investigators needed to find the second victim, who waited...prey to a slow but certain death. The clock ticked--salvation was possible.

The police were never in time.

Years have passed; but for this killer, time has stood still. As a heat wave of epic proportions descends, the game begins again. Two girls have disappeared...and the clock is ticking.

Rookie FBI agent Kimberly Quincy knows the killer’s deadline can be met. But she’ll have to break some rules to beat an exactingly vicious criminal at a game he’s had time to perfect.

For the Killing Hour has arrived....

From the Hardcover edition.

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The police were never in time.

Years have passed; but for this killer, time has stood still. As a heat wave of epic proportions descends, the game begins again. Two girls have disappeared... and the clock is ticking.

Rookie FBI agent Kimberly Quincy knows the killer's deadline can be met. But she'll have to break some rules to beat an exactingly vicious criminal at a game he's had time to perfect.

For the Killing Hour has arrived....

Customer Reviews:

Killing at its Best!!.......2007-09-27

I loved this book. I had not read a book in years. Not until my wife kept talking about this book, and eventually going out and buying all of the Lisa Gardner books. My wife insisted that I read the book. Well, as you can see, I picked up the book and simply could not put it down. Next thing I know, I'm taking my wife's other Lisa Gardner books and reading those as well.

This is a great read. If you really like a suspenseful thriller, you certainly will enjoy this book.

Fourth Book in the Series.......2007-08-22

Lisa Gardner sold her first novel when she was just 20 years old. In 1993 she graduated magna cum laude from the University of Pennsylvania with a degree in international relations. She lives in New Hampshire.

It may seem strange, but the residents of Atlanta are not too keen on hit summers. For the last three years every time the mercury hit's the hundred out comes a vicious killers. On each occasion he takes two girls and leaves the residents terrorised. Each day, he waits for the first body to be discovered. That body contains all the clues the police need to find the second body. The second victim waits, prey to a slow but certain death, because the police are never in time. When another heat wave descends the game begins again . . .

One of my favorites!.......2007-06-17

I love murder mystery novels and this is by far one of my favorites!! Ms. Gardner wrote a fabulous, suspenseful novel that keeps you turning the pages. I read the book in under a day and as excited as I was to read it, I was bummed that I had finished it so quick! :) I definately would recommend this text.

Boring detail.......2007-03-18

The only thing that prevented my stopping at about page 70 was the story line. I wanted to find out how it ends. But it was hard slogging having to read every detail of what biologists, geologists and -ologists one has never heard of have to say about their fields. I think the author is much too proud of the fact that she does research and wants the reader to be impressed.

A dynamite book!.......2007-03-14

I love this book and recommend it to all those who love a good crime novel. The characters are interesting and solid and the plot has lots of good twists. Several people I have recommended this book to have loved it as well and are now reading more Lisa Gardner novels. Start it and it will keep you up all night until you are finished. Great mystery!

Average customer rating:

second reading = me being even more impressed than before
Bizzare
Mr. Connolly does it again
Truly scary!
There is Evil in the World

The Killing Kind
John Connolly
Manufacturer: Pocket Star
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback

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ASIN: 0743456378

Book Description

John Connolly's Every Dead Thing and Dark Hollow were international bestsellers. Now the "compulsively readable" (Publishers Weekly) Connolly returns to heart-pounding form with a crime novel that combines sinister menace with superb style.

THE KILLING KIND

When the discovery of a mass grave in northern Maine reveals the grim truth behind the disappearance of a religious community, private detective Charlie Parker is drawn into a violent conflict with a group of zealots intent on tracking down a relic that could link them to the slaughter. Haunted by the ghost of a small boy and tormented by the demonic killer known as Mr. Pudd, Parker is forced to fight for his lover, his friends...and his very soul.

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His two previous novels, Every Dead Thing and Dark Hollow, were international bestsellers. Now the "compulsively readable" (Publishers Weekly) John Connolly confirms his position as one of our leading crime novelists with a story of superb menace and style. The body of Grace Peltier, a brilliant Ph.D. candidate, is found in the front seat of her car on a back road in northern Maine. No one wants to believe it was suicide - not her father, not former U.S. senator Jack Mercier, and not private detective Charlie Parker, who has been hired to investigate the young woman's untimely death. But when a mass grave is accidentally discovered nearby, revealing the grim truth behind the disappearance of a religious community known as the Aroostook Baptists, Parker realizes that their deaths and the violent passing of Grace Peltier are part of the same mystery, one that has its roots in her family history and in the origins of the shadowy organization known as the Fellowship. Soon Parker is drawn into the dark world of this zealous religious group that has already consumed every person who has dared confront it. When a relic is discovered, one capable of linking the Fellowship to the slaughter of the Aroostook Baptists, Parker is forced into violent conflict with the Fellowship and its enigmatic leader. Haunted by the ghost of a small boy and tormented by the demonic killer known as Mr. Pudd, Parker is forced to fight for his lover, his friends...and his very soul. "This is a honeycomb world. It hides a hollow heart," writes John Connolly. In The Killing Kind, he has once again created a world of love and hate, of tenderness and violence. Hailed by critics as "one of the best of the genre" (Toronto Sun), his intense, poetic prose and his terrifying clan of characters are sure to thrill even the most discerning suspense reader. "

Customer Reviews:

second reading = me being even more impressed than before.......2007-06-11

This is the third book in Connolly's Charlie "Bird" Parker series, and it's a great read. So great, in fact, that I literally ran all over town on a stiflingly hot and humid day, trying to find another copy of it (I had given my first copy away a few years ago) so that I could immediately start it after finishing Dark Hollow.

I disagree completely with the reviewers who say it's not as good as the first two. I think it's just as good, and even better in some parts.

It picks up after the events of the second novel in the series, starting the action approximately 2 years after the murder of Parker's first wife and child. In this one, Parker is (as usual) trying to solve multiple mysteries at once. He is trying to find out what happened to Grace Peltier, a young woman who was researching a religious group that mysteriously disappeared into thin air decades earlier. He takes this job on in spite of the fact that his life has finally begun to take on some of the trappings of normalcy. He has been working cases that don't demand he find true justice for victims of violent crime, and as a result, he's pretty stable, very much removed (at least it seems so) from all the horror and blood he previously found himself mired in. He may not like some of the jobs he takes on (he feels a bit slimed by what he's asked to do, but none of it is life-threatening or illegal, and none of it involves finding justice for dead people), but he is relatively clear of horrible dreams and ghostly visitations, and he is trying to start his life over without the haunting memories of his dead wife and child foremost in his mind. Normalcy. He seems to want that more than anything.

Normalcy, at least the kind you and I might experience, is not in the cards for Parker, however. He might resist taking on the cases that bring out who he really is, but ultimately he can not refuse them.

Here, as he tries to build a relationship with Rachel Wolf AND do the job his soul craves for him, he finds himself dealing with Mr. Pudd, whose fascination with spiders is creepy at best and downright horrifying at worst. The violence in this one is particularly difficult to stomach, and at many points throughout the novel, I found myself feeling a tiny bit of the revulsion, soul-sickness, and almost-paralyzing fear that Parker was feeling in the course of his investigation.

As always, Louis and Angel are there to both cover him and provide comic relief at moments of great tension. But this time, for the first time that I can recall, part of the horror involves them directly, and Parker must not only solve the mysteries he finds but also try to save the life of one of these friends. This novel also sets up the tension that drives much of the fourth novel, The White Road, in the series when Parker, confronted with possible damage to his own spirit and sense of morality, makes a decision that creates distance between himself and the people he most trusts to help him stay alive.

While this book is funny throughout (with Parker's wit and the influence of his two "sidekicks" making even the toughest moments opportunities for humor), it is also bleak and almost unrelentingly dark.

All in all, this book is worth more than one read. I know that I like it even more the second time around.

Bizzare.......2006-07-06

I found The Killing Kind an interesting read.I was intriqued, at first,to see where the author was going, but towards the end was looking forward to the book ending.

Mr. Connolly does it again.......2006-03-29

I am slowly making my way through John Connolly's books for the simple reason that I don't want to "run out" before he writes/publishes a new one. So yes I am a fan. This is the third installment in the Charlie Parker series, a retired NYC cop who is now a PI - with a dark history. (Although not necessary I would suggest reading this series in chronological order - recurring characters, references to the past, etc.) Charlie is coaxed out of his self-imposed mundane grind to investigate the suspicious suicide of a graduate student and before you can say Raymond Chandler, Parker finds himself embroiled in the 40 year old mysterious disappearance of a cult-like religious group, Maine politics, a current day quasi-religious group which appears to be somewhat shady and a string of what may be sanctioned killings around the country. He is also being hounded by a pair of psychopaths who get under your skin like fingernails on a chalkboard. And oh yeah - Charlie sees dead people. A quick note on Mr. Connolly's style/prose - the above may sound confused, convoluted, dark, dreary, gruesome and depressing - and trust me this book will give you a few shivers, especially if you don't like bugs and spiders in particular - the good news is that this author has the knack/talent to balance/combine all this with believable characters, focus, great dialogue, and wit. This is an excellent novel which happens to be a "thriller".

Truly scary!.......2006-02-28

It takes a lot to scare me, but this book kept me up at night. I know that sounds cliche, but it's true. I think Mr. Pudd was the most disturbing villian I've read in years. If spiders creep you out, be prepared to have nightmares after reading this one! Great book for horror, thriller, or crime fans. Not for the weak of heart.

There is Evil in the World.......2006-01-10

In the book The Killing Kind, John Connolly does a fantastic job of keeping readers on edge while showing there are things in the world that are not so good. When Grace Peltier found dead, investigator Charlie Parker is hired to find the real cause. While doing his job, he discovers things about an organization called the Fellowship that Grace found out and that the organization does not want to reach the world. The organization's killer, Mr. Pudd, is sent to stop Parker before he can uncover the whole truth about the group. Connolly uses many things to build excitement about the plot. It seems that at every turn Parker is finding bodies of people killed by Pudd. It is a race to the finish line at the end, where Parker meets Pudd for the final time, and he learns what real evil looks like.

Average customer rating:

They didn't mean it ...
Killing Mr. Griffin
Killing Mr. Griffin Review
fun summer read
Cold Blooded Students

Killing Mr. Griffin
Lois Duncan
Manufacturer: Laurel Leaf
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback

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ASIN: 0440945151
Release Date: 1990-08-01

Book Description

High school can be tough. But with teachers like Mr. Griffin it can seem impossible.

They only planned to scare him. But sometimes even the best-laid plans go wrong.

Customer Reviews:

They didn't mean it ..........2007-09-05

I first read this book when I was in junior high school. It really was great youth literature for a future lover of horror and suspense. I just didn't know it then, despite the title.

We've all had a really hard nosed teacher like Mr. Griffin. Unyielding, a stickler for the rules and regulations, nothing you could do or say could please them. They were out to get you, in the arrogance and vainity of youth you can only have hate for this man who's bringing your grades down, preventing you from participating in extra activities (ex. sports), and just doesn't respond no matter how much you try to appeal to their human side. Looking back, as these kids will no doubt do, he was just doing his job, disciplining you for the rat race that is the adult world. And what a great cast of characters, the prime examples of vain, self centered kids who are really out to get Mr.Griffin.

Susan is the center character, the lonely, awkward outsider who feels left out at home and school, who is in his class trying her best to do her best. It's such a struggle to have to face a regular school day. All the while she is looking at the beautiful people, the popular kids who she really wants to be accepted by. They might like her if they just gave her a chance. I remember that feeling so well. Mr.Griffin's class is hard for her, but she seems to be ernest enough that she is the one and only benefiting from his stringent ways. In her class is Jeff, the basketball star, who resents Mr.Griffin because he won't give him a break on game nights and if he doesn't maintain his grade in his class he might be suspended from playing. His girlfriend Betsy also has her problems with Mr.Griffin, because she can't use her natural "look how cute I am" feminine charms on him when she can on everyone else. David, the student body president and all around "nice guy" doesn't really not like Mr.Griffin, but he is resentful of the one poor grade he is getting that will keep him out of scholarship running for the colleges of his choice; and thinking about the father who abandoned him and his mother, leaving them with his frail grandmother who they are the primary caregivers to makes David feel another kind of hate for this tough teacher. And Mark. Silent, cunning, snake charming Mark sits in Mr.Griffin's class, stewing in his own juices. Mark, deciding to take out his revenge for a cheating instance he was caught in the year before, rounds up David, Betsy and Jeff to kidnap Mr.Griffin. They're just going to scare him, he says. And they'll use Susan, the lonely girl, as the decoy. Sure enough, Susan, wanting to be part of them, agrees to this, and Mr.Griffin is taken away to a remote wooded location.

Of course, it all goes terribly wrong. Mr.Griffin has a heart condition that he wasn't able to take his medication for, and when Susan later returns to the kidnap hideout to free him, he's dead. What are they going to do now? Tell one lie to cover up another. Ditch cars, evidence, bury the body. They're time and luck is going to run out, especially for Susan, because she was just the plant. The one honest person who will turn on them.

A great suspense story. You can feel the building tension between the kids, feel the police coming in closer and closer and knowing that they can't keep lying. And the sadness. They didn't know Mr.Griffin could have a wife at home, pregnant with their first child and awaiting the happy arrival. He couldn't have been human, he couldn't have had a family or enjoyed normal things that other people do. He only got joy out of making them suffer. Mr.Griffin was trying to teach our youth, going down to the high school from the university level so he can better educate. Shame on them.

Killing Mr. Griffin.......2007-08-05

I really really enjoyed Killing Mr. Griffin. Since i'm not really into suspense novels i didn't think i would like this book. But once i started reading it i couldn't put it down. My favorite part of the book was at the end of chapter two. When Jeff was talking about the first time he met Mark in junior high. It says "It was a transformation Jeff had come to recognize. He had seen it for the first time back in junior high school, on that day they had met each other the time Mark had set fire to the cat." and boom the chapter was over. My least favorite part had to be when they realized that Mark had killed before.
The only reason i wouldn't recommend this book to a person is because at some parts it can be a little darker than some reader might like.

Killing Mr. Griffin Review.......2007-07-13

I really enjoyed reading Killing Mr. Griffin. Mystery books are my favorite and Killing Mr. Griffin kept my interest. My favorite part was when Mark, Jeff, David, Betsy, and Susan found out Mr. Griffin was dead. David said, "He's not asleep, he's dead." End of chapter. I had to keep reading. My least favorite part was when one of the characters almost died. "It" was my favorite character. I would highly recommend this book to anyone who likes mystery books because things happen that you wouldn't expect to happen and I love that about this book. I can't think of anyone who wouldn't want to read a nail-biting book like Killing Mr. Griffin because it's a book that you just can't put down.

fun summer read.......2007-06-09

We've all had a teacher like the eponymous Mr. Griffin who, by refusing to contribute to grade inflation and massage his students' self-esteem, contributes to years of future therapy. Most of us, as a rule, though, do not respond by kidnapping said teacher and inadvertently killing them.

Mr. Griffin may have good reason for his teaching policies, but his students are still too young to see things from his side. All they know is that English is no longer the breeze it was last year. So a group of students, the charismatic but sociopathic Mark, class president David, star athlete Jeff, and Queen Bee Betsy decide to teach the man a lesson. They enlist class geek Susan McConnell to be a decoy, which complicates things because she out of the entire group has a conscience. Eventually, things fall apart due to both poor planning and sheer bad luck.

Unlike some teen books, this one attempts to give the various adults' viewpoints as well as the students. It raises some questions about nature or nurture, but can be read simply for entertainment.

Cold Blooded Students.......2007-06-08

Mr. Griffin is not a popular teacher in his high school. He teaches English, and he is extremely demanding of his students, requiring them to think beyond any other teacher has ever required. He doesn't give out good grades, and if a student fails his class, he makes that student take the class over the next year. He is infamous in the high school, hated by many, especially Mark, whom he failed for copying a term paper and made beg to be allowed to retake his class.

Some of Mr. Griffin's students are fed up with him. Mark, in his second year of this class, is still holding a grudge. Jeff, a basketball player and Betsy, a cheerleader, have always been able to cruise through school without much problem, but Mr. Griffin doesn't let them get away with passing in lousy work. David, the president of the senior class, is getting his first bad grades, which won't help his chances at getting into good colleges. And Sue is getting good grades but not what she is used to. More importantly, she is in love with David, who doesn't even seem to notice her.

Mark is the one who comes up with the plan. He and Jeff and Betsy and David will use Sue as bait to keep Mr. Griffin after school. When he walks out to his car at the end of the day, they will kidnap and blindfold him. They will take him to a remote location and scare him enough that he will never forget it. And, perhaps, he will rethink his ideas about teaching.

When the students kidnap Mr. Griffin, though, things go terribly wrong. Sue is shaken up when Mr. Griffin shows concern for her safety instead of his own. Then Mr. Griffin refuses to act sorry or scared. The students decide to simply leave him for a few hours to think about his situation. But when they return later that night, Mr. Griffin is dead. Will these teenagers be able to get away with murder?

This book was well written and believable. Each character had a background that was made clear to the reader, and each one was in danger of being found out at any given time. I liked Mr. Griffin and his rationale for the way he taught his class.

This book was terribly sad, though, especially the parts with Mrs. Griffin in them. I didn't like that these normal high school students could so easily turn into killers. I didn't like that the other students were so easily manipulated by Mark, and that they turned out to be so cold-hearted about everything that was going on.

Average customer rating:

Another Quick CSI-Based Read
Another good CSI mystery
A great Read
Original Characters
Not as strong as you'd hope

Killing Game (CSI)
Max Allan Collins
Manufacturer: Pocket Star
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback

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ASIN: 0743496647

Book Description

The machinations of a new supervisor may have altered Gil Grissom's team of skillful CSIs, as Catherine Willows, Nick Stokes, and Warrick Brown are reassigned from the graveyard shift to the swing shift. That doesn't mean, however, that their paths will never cross. During the course of their separate investigations, the teams must unite again to investigate two distinct murders -- atrocities that are oddly aligned as they share much of the same collective evidence. Despite the different M.O.s, the CSIs are uncovering two wildly imperfect crimes that could possibly add up to an almost perfect one...

Customer Reviews:

Another Quick CSI-Based Read.......2007-05-14

KILLING GAME is another enjoyable CSI story, although I found the actual plot to be a bit too predictable for my taste. However, I finished this story in a day, and was happy with the advanced character-development that this particular story held. If you enjoy CSI as much as I do, you won't be disappointed in reading these serialized novels.

Another good CSI mystery.......2006-02-08

I enjoyed this book - I have been reading the series in order and can't wait for the next one to come out. You don't need to read them in order, though, and if you are just starting to read them, while this one is good, I would suggest "Binding Ties" -- it's better.

A great Read.......2006-02-07

Wonderful descriptions and a great plot for all those who love the show. Characters are amazingly defined and seperated by thier thoughts.

Original Characters.......2005-12-19

While I enjoyed it, I thought that Max Allan Collins once again put too much emphasis on his original characters. Why not use the characters (like the lab techs) that exist in the CSI universe instead of creating new ones like the computer genius he's so enamoured with?

Not as strong as you'd hope.......2005-11-21

Any fan of CSI will like this series of novels, but with this one, you will be a little dissapointed. The last couple of novels were very strong, but this one puts the plot on the backburner and works more on character development. The way Collins describes the characters, their thoughts, and their attitudes is dead-on with the characters we've grown to love from the show. The plot, about two seemingly unrelated murders, is nothing innovative or ground breaking, but is very indicative of what you see on the show. The only problem I have is that the show CSI is about forensic detective work and it seems as though the forensics aren't in play all that much in this novel.

The plot is very by the numbers and I'm sure by the end of the book most people will have figured out who did it. Check it out if you're a CSI fan, but if this is your first CSI novel, you may want to go back and read Binding Ties instead.

Average customer rating:

teenage book

The Killing (Cherub)
Robert Muchamore
Manufacturer: Simon Pulse
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback

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ASIN: 1416924590

Book Description

CHERUB agents are all seventeen and under. They wear skate tees and hemp, and look like regular kids. But they're not. They are trained professionals who are sent out on missions to spy on terrorists and international drug dealers. CHERUB agents hack into computers, bug entire houses, and download crucial documents. It is a highly dangerous job. For their safety, these agents DO NOT EXIST.

Leona is a small-time crook with big money. When the cops call in CHERUB, James's mission looks entirely routine: make nice with Leon's kids, dig up some leads, and infiltrate his home. But when James suddenly unravels a much larger plot, the mission becomes anything but ordinary. Unfortunately, the only person who might know the truth is a reclusive eighteen-year-old boy -- who happens to have died more than a year ago.

Customer Reviews:

teenage book.......2007-03-27

I purchased this book for my 14-year old son. He loves this series. Read each book in a couple of days because he couldn't set it down.

The Killing Song: The Dragon Below, Book 3 (The Dragon Below)

Average customer rating:

Convoluted, yet serviceable
Nothing new fromt he other two books - just average

The Killing Song: The Dragon Below, Book 3 (The Dragon Below)
Don Bassingthwaite
Manufacturer: Wizards of the Coast
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback

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ASIN: 0786942436
Release Date: 2006-12-12

Book Description

Sealed away for ages, a forgotten horror reaches out for new power.

Three heroes know the danger. In the City of Towers, a tormented mystic and a soldier-wizard try to thwart a monstrous scheme. In the Shadow Marches, a disgraced warrior summons an ancient sect to battle.

As a dragon rises, can their struggle succeed? Or will they fall to madness and the music of the Killing Song?

The thrilling conclusion to The Dragon Below trilogy!

Don Bassingthwaite is the author of numerous fantasy and dark fantasy novels. His latest books are The Yellow Silk, Mistress of the Night (co-authored with Dave Gross), The Binding Stone, and The Grieving Tree. Don lives in Toronto, surrounded by gadgets, spice jars, and too many books.

Customer Reviews:

Convoluted, yet serviceable.......2007-03-01

The Killing Song is the third book in the Dragon Below Series by Don Bassingthwaite. The end of the saga finds the group of companions an a mission to stop the Dragon Dahmir from completing his mission to create slave minions out of Kalashtar for the Master of Silence.

The story picks up after Dahmir has successfully procured the ancient binding stones and has gone to the floating tower city of Sharn along with his mad servant Vennet. Dahmir has been punished by the master of Silence who has taken away his ability to take form as a human, leaving him only his dragon form, and that of a bird. It is in Sharn that Dahmir expects to kidnap a number of Kalashtar and complete his mission for his master.

The companions have split up with Geth the changeling,Orshok the Orc druid, and Ekhaas the Hobgoblin mystic heading to the Shadow marches to warn the Gatekeepers of Shadowmarch. The wizard Singe, Dandra the Kalashtar, Natrac the Orc, and Ashi the dragonmarked Bonetree hunter travel to Sharn to try and stop Dahmir.

The story thus alternates between the two groups of companions as they each try to accomplish their missions.

Don Bassingthwaite is a talented author however his talent for description and metaphor is not enough to overcome the relatively confusing storyline. The actual plot is simple enough, with the character missions fairly straightforward, but there are so many evil characters and plot devices, and then again those plot devices are hard to understand. Understandably, character development can be a rarity in these novels as the focus is on the action, but it was notably absent here. The characters are one dimensional and repetitive. I got tired of reading Geth exclaim "Grandfather Rat" and Dandra with "Light of Il yannah" as though these statements alone are enough to establish individual personalities.
I also found it fairly annoying that one of the big mysteries of Geth's past is dangled throughout the series and then left unexplained in the end.

All in all, the book has a decent pacing, well described scenes and a fair amount of imagination, but in the end this imagination may have been a little too overwrought.

Nothing new fromt he other two books - just average.......2006-12-31

The Killing Song by Don Bassingthwaite is the third, and final, book in The Dragon Below trilogy set in the world of Ebberon. In this book Mr. Bassingthwaite starts up right where he left off with the previous book The Grieving Tree. He follows the familiar characters of Singe, Geth and the rest of the gang. If you are considering reading this book, you really do need to read the other two the first being The Binding Stone and the second, as mentioned above, being The Grieving Tree. Only then can you fully understand the entire story.

When I reviewed the previous two books, I noted some things that I thought would have made the books better. Such as more character development, bring the characters from the 2-D cutouts that they seemed to be, and develop sub-plots to add to the books overall feel. Each of these were addressed in this book, but only very little. This book was frustrating for me to read, because I saw great potential for a very good story, but the lack of depth in the characters and how their situation was portrayed greatly lessened the effect this book had on me. Instead of caring about the characters and the outcome of the story, I was left with more of an "I wonder how this ends" type of attitude.

The characters in this book, and trilogy, for that matter all have good potential to be good memorable characters. Especially with a name like Singe, yet there is such little character development that once you move on to another book you forget about them. One very frustrating part for me was at the end of the book when two characters are talking about an issue that has traversed all three books and it is left as a `mystery'. If you truly wanted character development, this would have been a great opportunity to add something. Yet, when I look back on the book, the characters remain mere 2-Dimensional cut outs of other characters I have read about in the past. There is very little in the way of `newness' for the characters in this book.

The plot of this book is the culmination of the trilogy so I expected some big things. There is no longer another book to wait for, this is it. For the first two thirds of the book, I found myself wondering how this could possibly end, as I didn't see any type of resolutions occurring. So, once I got to the last third I felt very rushed as it seemed the author realized he had to finish the book, and trilogy. Now, don't take that the wrong way, there were pieces of the ending that made sense and fit the story very well. I just wish I didn't have to read about it at warp speed and feel like I missed something. I think this also plays into the idea that the characters were so forgettable that I didn't really feel like I had much vested interest in the outcome. That is another thing that frustrated me. The entire plot idea, of the song, of the Master of Silence etc is a very good idea. I just think the execution was not done as well as it could have been. There were also a couple times during this book that the characters would say something and it felt like the author was telling me, as the reader, "Hey, hey, this is important don't miss this." Personally, I don't like being `slapped' into remembering something. It's the author's job to get me to remember it, but making it interesting not just telling me.

Overall, I can't rate this book as anything other than average. Throughout this trilogy I was hoping things would progress and grow. Yet, I was disappointed to see that they remained the status quo and didn't veer far from what he had done before. Fans of Eberron should probably read this book to learn about the Master of Shadows and the Killing Song and a couple other tid bits of information, but casual fans may want to steer clear of this until you know for sure you want to invest some time and energy into the Eberron world.

Average customer rating:

By far, best book in the Org Crime Trilogy

Killing Heat (Executioner)
Don Pendleton
Manufacturer: Gold Eagle
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback

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ASIN: 0373643101

Customer Reviews:

By far, best book in the Org Crime Trilogy.......2004-12-01

I really wish this three-book set would've been condensed into a SuperBolan. Admittedly, that would've meant trimming the plot down a bit, but as it stands the first two books in this trilogy were, in my opinion, a bit tedious. I certainly didn't think the premise, about a group trying to overthrow the rule of a small island, worthy of a trilogy, and I have a sneaking suspicion that the only reason this was made into a trilogy wasthat Gold Eagle wanted something grandiose to foollow the Conspiracy Trilogy of a couple years ago, which was, so far as I know, the last appearance of Johnny Bolan Gray before this trilogy.

Having said that, this book was quite good. Rare for a Bolan trilogy (at least according to my albeit limited experience), the second book ended on a cliffhanger with Bolan having been captured by the enemy. This book begins with Johnny and Keely Ross and Jack Grimaldi trying to find him, and things don't let up for the entire book. The problem of finding Bolan differentiates this from the "point-and-click" feel of the rest of the trilogy; "Find the next target, fight them; find the next target, fight them, etc. etc. ad nauseum..." At any rate, as good as this conclusion is, it isn't quite good enough to be worth slogging through the other two books in the set ... but it's much better than I'd figured after reading those books.

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