Rigged by D. P. Lyle

Jake Longly, a retired baseball star, Nicole his ravishing and humorous girlfriend, Pancake his enormous best pal and Ray his condescending father are the main characters in this series.   This time the private eye agency is drawn into a double and then quadruple murder just up the road in Alabama.  

Lyle does a good job with Tammy, Jake’s demented ex-wife.  Her character adds some light humor.   Jake’s self-depicted inadequacies are a bit tiresome.  You’d think that someone who pitched in the bigs would be more confident.   He and Nicole’s relationship reminds me of Parker’s characters of Spencer and Hawk except the sex part.  

The story was entertaining, light fare and good to get the mind off of the horrific aspects of the current year.

I enjoyed it and recommend the series.

This book may have been received free of charge from a publisher or a publicist. That will NEVER have a bearing on my recommendations.

The Names of the Dead by Kevin Wignall

 

This was a violent rendition of soul searching.   Wes, a former CIA agent, is incarcerated for a crime that although he committed was not planned.   Mia, the daughter of a war-lord becomes his special needs side-kick.

Wes is the classic trying to clear his name protagonist with a very sharp and violent edge.   Mia is an almost gender neutral, socially awkward person who Wes learns to trust.   The plot of going country to country seeking retribution for a murder and the search for a lost child provide the rest of the plot.

The story was compelling, the author provides a reasonable rationale for Wes’s behavior.

I enjoyed the book and recommend it.

 This book may have been received free of charge from a publisher or a publicist. That will NEVER have a bearing on my recommendations.

Spotlight on The Journalist: Life and Loss in America's Secret War By Jerry A. Rose and Lucy Rose Fischer

In the early 1960s, Jerry Rose, a writer and artist, travels to Vietnam to teach English and gather material for his writing. Almost accidentally, he becomes one of America’s most important war correspondents.  He interviews Vietnamese villagers in a countryside riddled by a war of terror and embeds himself with soldiers on the ground—the start of a dramatic and dangerous career. Through his stories and photographs, he exposes the secret beginnings of America’s Vietnam War at a time when most Americans have not yet heard of Vietnam. His writing is described as “war reporting that ranks with the best of Ernest Hemingway and Ernie Pyle.”

In spring 1965, Jerry agrees to serve as an advisor to the Vietnamese government at the invitation of his friend and former doctor, who is the new Prime Minister. He hopes to use his deep knowledge of the country to help Vietnam. In September 1965, while on a trip to investigate corruption in the provinces of Vietnam, Jerry dies in a plane crash in Vietnam.

Now, more than half a century later, his sister, Lucy Rose Fischer, has drawn on her late brother’s journals, letters, and other writings to craft his story. She has written this memoir in “collaboration” with her late brother—giving the term “ghostwritten” a whole new meaning.

Buy it at Amazon or Barnes and Noble. 

#thejournalist #vietnam

This book may have been received free of charge from a publisher or a publicist. That will NEVER have a bearing on my recommendations.

The Finders by Jeffrey B. Burton

Dog people will find this book irresistible.  I like dogs, I’ve had three over the years but I am not really a dog person. Dog people live and breathe for their “children”.   Mason Reid is a dog trainer; his specialty is cadaver dogs.   He loves dogs and is a bit of a social isolationist after is marriage failure.   Vira, his golden retriever and Kippy Grimm a dog loving cop, combine with Mace to track down a serial killer.

The author either is a dog lover or did really good research because Mace and Kippy are clearly portrayed.   The plot was solid and the human and canine interaction was well done.

I recommend the book and I enjoyed it!

This book may have been received free of charge from a publisher or a publicist. That will NEVER have a bearing on my recommendations.

Blind Spot by Reed Farrel Coleman

This is actually Robert B. Parker’s Blind Spot but since Parker is deceased, Coleman is writing about Jesse Stone, Police Chief of Paradise.   Jesse’s past haunts him in the form of Vic, whose bogus throw knocked Jesse out of bigs contention and Kayla who Jesse thought loved him.  They are drawn to Paradise by a murder and a ponzi scheme.

Coleman does a good job with Jesse Stone.  The plot was intricate and the characters given enough depth to be believable.   Jesse, once again, struggles with his past.

This was a good story and I recommend it. 

This book may have been received free of charge from a publisher or a publicist. That will NEVER have a bearing on my recommendations.