wowee, November already, look you see. that whole "time / space is relevant to an individual" feels all the more true as i age, to be sure. but that's all in conversations you will have had with your friends, family or social circle; here we are for a look at some more books.
not one book, no, books. also, not three or four books, but the somewhat standard, now almost requisite two. with this in mind, the title of this post perhaps tells you all that you need to - or it will once you have seen the picture of the two. fortune has smiled on me somewhat, if not financially but in the selection of two really, really, really very good books to have read.
oh, great. on my side of the screen, or if you like this blog, between them that there google and that blogger have elected to rotate the image of the front of the books. well, it would be nice if they appear the correct way around on your side. if not, best of luck in seeing what's what.
anyway, a short-ish, spoiler free overview. Thirteen, or if you like Th1rt3en, by Steve Cavanagh is an excellent book that manages to be a very good legal / courtroom thing and a superb thriller at the same time. be warned in ways that i was not - the protagonist is one of them "recurring character" things, and this is deep into a series, but i had no knowledge of this prior to reading and got along just fine. Don't You Cry by Cass Green has no such "series" concerns and just gets on with being excellent.
yes, indeed, i shall do all that i can to avoid them, but from here on out please note, or if you will observe, that a *** POTENTIAL SPOILER WARNING *** is in place for the rest of this. a certain truth here would be that either, or better both, of these books are well worth your time.
provenance of my copy? actually i am not certain how bothered you are by such details, but fine, for the sake of consistency. i do believe this was the last time i disgraced myself in Tesco, where one could purchase a select title for £2 on the provision that they dirtied themselves by spending a further 50p on The Sun, a publication which for some reason is stored by newspapers in most retail outlets. recently they have bumped this up to £2.50, so i have given it a miss. especially as i seem to have a stack of unread books here.
would it be at all possible for me to get onto the plot? certainly. a lawyer called Eddie Flynn (who is the protagonist of the apparent series i mentioned) is hired by a big, powerful law firm due to his uncanny knack to discredit the police in court. he's required for a major celebrity murder case. whilst all lawyers representing the accused are convinced of innocence despite overwhelming evidence, what they don't know is that the real killer is not so much at large but on the jury......
now, when i picked this up i thought (i did) that's a pretty interesting premise, but i wasn't sure it could be prolonged across an entire novel without it feeling forced, contrived or drawn out. yes, i was wrong in the wasn't sure part. this is simply excellent. the "baddie" of the piece, and trying to not give much away but just to be clear not exactly like the comparison i am about to make, is one that i have been excited about in a way not experienced since Hannibal Lecter in the silence of the lambs and what have you. it is with caution and care that i tread there, and yes, i am sure i have said the right thing.
my only regret is perhaps it shall be pointless me reading the earlier (previous?) exploits of this Eddie Flynn. surely much of the tension will be gone knowing he will be around at the end. but, then again, such does not stop one from enjoying, say a James Bond every now and then. anyway, like legal? like thrillers? like ingenious, twist and turn, keeps you guessing sort of things? then read this with no hesitation.
and there was no hesitation whatsoever in me picking up to read Don't You Cry by Cass Green. should memory serve me right, as point of fact let me go and search my posts, yes, i did opt to say the previous one by her, In A Cottage In A Wood was my favourite book of last year. for those concerned, this one, i can tell you, has a less "horror" feel over it, more outright dramatic thriller. or thriller with some drama.provenance of my copy? Tesco. sadly, or alas, Tesco does not do a £2 or £3 book of the week, or 2 for £7 any more. they do have one every week or so for £3.50, and i think this was it that week. but, i would no doubt have paid a full £4, and perhaps i did, on the basis of how good the previous one was.
some plot details? surely. recently divorced Nina is on a date, and it is going ever so disastrously not well. fortunately, Nina is in requirement of life saving attention, which ends the date and is provided by the waitress. at home recovering from it all Nina is quite surprised by a knock on the door. she is even more surprised when it turns out the knocker is the waitress, with a gun, and soon followed by a gent covered in blood, holding a baby.......
if what comes to mind there is any of the versions, variations, rip offs or remakes of Desperate Hours, well, you are not wrong. the truth is there are what, only 35 or 36 recognised different plot scenarios or premises in this world. what matters is how the creator brings something different or of interest and appeal to it. and, as i think you can guess, perhaps, what Cass Green does with this - the way it is written, how the story goes - is nothing at all short of exceptional, brilliant even. whilst i wait for the next Cass Green paperback to come along i guess i had better try and find her ostensible debut, i believe an "ebook" only one called The Woman Next Door.
no, i am not going to say much more. just go and get this, or both of these books, read and enjoy. for the sake of clarity, i most certainly did.
so then yes, great, fine, that's that for this. and as usual, hopefully this set of observations or comments has been of some use to someone, somewhere.
next books? i will be getting stuck into one shortly. for the more regular sort of regular reader here, the next few weeks seem particularly busy for me. it might well turn out, or transpire, that posts are far and few between for a bit. nothing untoward or bad, as such, just time may not be of my own to do with it what i would. but yes, i will do what i can to write what i will as and when.
and with that, until the next time,
be excellent to each other!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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