The Naturalist by Andrew Mayne
My rating: 3 of 5 stars
Theo Cray is trained to see patterns where others see chaos—he is a computational biologist. When one of his former students is found apparently mauled to death by a bear, things about the case don’t add up. He sees things the cops missed, or refuse to see. It bothers him enough that he starts investigating similar events and is able to discover the victims’ bodies where no one else could or, if they could, no one ever bothered to look for the victims. He is determined to prove to the cops the deaths were not due to bear attacks, but to a serial killer.
Another novel that just ended. Nothing about what happened following the ending, which was pretty hard to believe as it was. A whole major character just disappears. The statistics, if true, were interesting though sad. The science behind his “discoveries” was interesting as well, if the science is valid. I haven’t had time to do any research to see if any of it is even valid. Patterns are my thing, so it might be that it is.
So much of it was far-fetched. I find it hard to believe that all of the cops in Montana are so stupid or corrupt, even the one Theo Cray decided is smart. Even the FBI guy that suddenly appears is an asshole.
It was really easy to figure out who the killer must be—not exactly an original concept (saw it on “Criminal Minds” not so very long ago). It was a compelling read—and I’m glad I chose it as my September First book. But after I finished it the plot holes and “science as magic” aspects of it keep bugging me. I will say I was glad to see the Frog in the Pot of Water myth shot down. And I’m wondering why Theo didn’t end up brain damaged from all of the times he gets beaten up (even a beatdown by a cop he deliberately provoked).
So, it was promising. If the second Naturalist book doesn’t cost much, I may even give it a shot when it’s published. Maybe one of his magic-centered books would be interesting—but I don’t know since I’m not very interested in magic.
On Tyranny: Twenty Lessons from the Twentieth Century by Timothy Snyder
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
This book is a primer on how to avoid letting the United States (and any other democracy) fall into tyranny. He uses the many lessons of the 20th century to demonstrate how easy it is to let democracy slip away. If you don’t think it can happen here, Professor Snyder points out: “The European history of the twentieth century shows us that societies can break, democracies can fall, ethics can collapse, and ordinary men can find themselves standing over death pits with guns in their hands.”
His prescription isn’t easy. It involves actual thinking and avoiding knee-jerk reactions to every outrage, real or imagined. It involved paying attention to what’s real and ignoring the distractions thrown up by would-be tyrants to obfuscate the real issues. It involves not tolerating bigotry, discrimination, and bullshit, and calling them out wherever one sees it. It involves supporting the real press, the investigative journalists, and other truth tellers.
Snyder points out that tactics employed by Trump during is rallies are precisely the same tactics Hitler used in his rise to power. He cautions that the rise of a paramilitary echoes the SS. And he stresses that so many people allow tyranny to take root because it’s the easy way.
It’s a deeply disturbing book. And painful to read. But also inspiring—there are things we can do to help avoid our slide into tyranny. I wish more people would read it.
When Will There Be Good News? by Kate Atkinson
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
This book introduces a character I like even more than Jackson Brodie: Reggie, a smart, loyal, and resourceful 16-year-old girl strives to do the right thing while dealing with the worst circumstances.
This novel, like the earlier two in the series, is far from perfect. Sometimes there are just too many details and too many characters, sometimes there’s not enough detail about the characters who drive the plot. Not every thread is wrapped up or resolved—you can only hope things are resolved in the next JB novel (which I will read as soon as I can download it from the library) or, hopefully, the one after that. (These really are not standalone books—you’ll get very lost if you don’t read them in order.)
I love the humor of the characters. I love learning more about the characters—even the ones that are, really, unnecessary to the plot, such as Louise (she was introduced in JB2, and was unnecessary there, too) other than getting Jackson out of a sticky spot or two. (I like her, and hope it ends up well for her—she deserves a happy resolution.)
The story revolves around a 30-year-old massacre of a family leaving one survivor, a killer, a train wreck, an orphan, and fierce loyalty to loved ones. There are very sad events, some brutal events, and plenty of humor and hope. It left me wanting to know what happens next.
One Good Turn by Kate Atkinson
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
This is what happens after “Case Studies,” with two the same characters: Jackson Brodie and Julia (who has become Jackson’s sort-of girlfriend). Brodie has moved to France, but gives the impression that he’s kind of bored with it. He’s in Edinburgh for a festival because Julia is performing in a play. While there, he witnesses a road rage incident, which spins out to having all sorts of repercussions.
In the meantime, a very rich but very criminal home developer who is about to be taken down for fraud has a heart attack while with a woman providing “favors” and his wife, Gloria, decides she doesn’t want to be bothered by his employees and minions so tells them he’s off somewhere. This appears to be a side story, but ...
Jackson, while doing a bit of sightseeing, comes across the body of a drowned woman, but loses it (the body, I mean) as he’s trying to pull it away from the incoming tide. This sets up a the introduction of Louise, a Scottish cop (and her son, Archie, and his bad friend, Hamish). And very interesting character, though it’s hard to see what she ads to the actual plot. Even after everything is resolved, Louise seems to be a set-up for a future Jackson Brodie book. Which is fine—I like her, just don’t see the point of her character in this particular tale. Events involving Louise and her son just kind of hang. Unresolved threads here. Maybe for the next JB novel (which I will download next).
A central theme revolves around matryoshka (the Russian dolls that stack inside each other), and indeed the entire plot is matryoshka. It all makes sense in the end, though it’s kind of dizzying while in process.
What I enjoy a lot about the way Atkinson spends a lot of time with the inner stories of many, but not all, of the characters. Some people say it bogs down the plot too much, but I think the characters’ development is the point of Atkinson’s Brodie books and not so much the plot, and I enjoy this.
There was one reference to “Case Studies” that did bother me, and that was in reference to one of the characters in that novel, her ultimate fate—seemed gratuitous and pointless. I won’t get into it because I don’t want to spoil “Case Studies” for anyone.
The main problem I have with this, and with “Case Studies,” is the plots do not quite resolve. Things are left hanging; some answers are just assumptions the reader draws based on hints. I don’t know yet if this is planned or if it’s just weak storytelling (or laziness) on Atkinson’s part. Or I’m just nitpicky. Maybe this novel ties up in the next ... ?
Case Histories by Kate Atkinson
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
This is not your usual detective novel—it’s more of a series of character studies, I think, several stories that somehow all get connected. After I read the case histories (there are three in the beginning, and one more further in), and I was getting into the story, I was a little confused at first. But I like the “hero,” Jackson Brodie, and I especially like the way Atkinson draws you into each character when she limns their inner dialogues, the real thoughts that show who the person really is. It reminds me a lot of Stephen King’s writing, where he managed to make the characters seem like real people, people you actually know.
In this book, the stories of the survivors are more important than the whodunnit and really, much more interesting. And funny, and in some cases, sad.
I liked it so much I downloaded the second Jackson Brodie novel from the library.
A Criminal Defense by William L. Myers Jr.
My rating: 2 of 5 stars
Well-written and interesting, but ultimately preposterous. Much too convoluted and contrived and too many things had to fall perfectly into place for the resolution to work. But it’s well-written and it kept me reading because I wanted to see how it all resolved.
We’ve been watching Planet Earth II—and it’s just as beautiful as Planet Earth, first aired back in March 2007 in the United States.
My only quibble is sometimes the music gets twee—I loathe that. I like David Attenborough fine as the narrator, though I would be just as happy with Sigourney Weaver as narrator as she was in the 2007 US version of Planet Earth. I also like that they are pointing out the effects of climate change and encroaching development on the habitats.
In the first episode, Islands, the flight of the baby marine iguanas in Fernandina, Galápagoes to reach their parents without being eaten by waiting racer snakes was very exciting—better than a car chase by far. And in episode 2, Mountains, the flamingoes in the Atacama Desert was my favorite part. In the most recent episode, Jungles, I loved the Wilson bird of paradise mating ritual in West Papua, Indonesia. I’m looking forward to the next episode, Deserts, on Saturday.
The Sleepwalker by Chris Bohjalian
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
The Sleepwalker a really good read Probably 4.5 stars. An interesting mystery centered around a disorder I knew almost nothing about. I really liked the characters, the pacing, the layering on of clue after clue.
My only quibble is probably unfair as I wanted to know more about what happened afterwards, details and not just broad strokes. I won’t say any more as I don’t want to inadvertently spoil it for other readers.
My rating: 2 of 5 stars
Interminable. This took sooo loong to get through—it’s like reading a series of press releases. Raised a lot of interesting ideas, to be sure, but damn it’s a repulsive book with an even more repulsive “heroine.” Technology as psychopathy. The problem is Eggers beats you over the head with it, with a really stupid ending. The worst part is the premise is not that far-fetched.
A Death in Sweden by Kevin Wignall
My rating: 3 of 5 stars
Very enjoyable reading despite a number of flaws.
It’s hard to root for the Good Guy when you understand his profession, which is someone who works for intelligence agencies and governments to find people and send them off to one of those secret CIA prisons or two whatever venue his boss desires. For a lot of money.
The flaws are things like dialogue: it’s difficult to figure out who’s speaking as the punctuation is so badly done. There are rules for punctuating dialogue and they’re used for a reason.
And flaw of the premise: the Bad Guy, some Berlin-based station chief for the CIA, is systematically having former freelancers who worked for the CIA killed for no apparent reason. All of Good Guy’s friends, and of course, he is on the list. He has to figure out how to get off the list—which is one thread of the story. Bad Guy has to keep hiring freelancers because so many are getting killed—seems like kind of a bad policy for getting things done—I mean, sooner or later the pool of available hit men is going to dry up when it shakes out of the grapevine that if you work for Bad Guy, you’ll get murdered.
The other thread is that Good Guy is sent to Sweden to investigate the death of a guy in a bus crash. Turns out this guy wasn’t who everyone claimed he was. He was hiding in the woods of Sweden for years, and part of the plot of this story is to find out who he really was, why he was hiding, what he was doing—and finding this all out, solving the mystery of why he was doing it. Which is fine—this is the interesting part.
There is, of course, a Swedish bombshell involved (I guess a Good Guy would only fall for a bombshell, not a non-bombshell but intelligent woman, or maybe only bombshells work for the Swedish version of the CIA or whatever it’s supposed to be. Such a cliche—getting really tired of it.)
Just wonder, too, why bodies dropping all over Europe, cars being blown up, etc., never seem to get the attention of the local cops or newspapers. Also, there is no apparent rationale for several of the murders done by our Good Guy. And there is his current boss, Patrick, not sure at all where he fit in or what his company initials stand for. Best I could tell is he’s the placement guy for the Mercenary Spy Temp Agency.
I won’t go into much more about it, but I just wonder if some of the people in this story never heard of the internet or YouTube. You will figure out the answer to the mystery—that too is a bit of a cliche.
This is not to say I didn’t enjoy reading this—I did. It was well-written enough for me to really get into it, and I will probably read more by Kevin Wignall.