Happy Reading

Toni's bookshelf: read

The Godfather of Kathmandu (Sonchai Jitpleecheep, #4)
Ape House
The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest
Operation Napoleon
Walking Dead
The Sentimentalists
The Heretic Queen
The Midnight House
Cross Fire
Peony in Love
Absurdistan
Nefertiti
Finding Nouf: A Novel
City of Veils: A Novel
First Daughter
A Place of Hiding
Amagansett
Peter Pan


Toni Osborne's favorite books »
}

Friday, March 15, 2024

"Once Upon a Villa", by Andrew Kaplan



Adventures on the French Riviera

This is a LOL hilariously funny true account written by Andrew Kaplan telling us what it was like when he, his wife and two year-old son decided to leave everything behind and live the fantasy life on the Cote d’Azur. In the French Riviera the Kaplan matched wits with French bureaucrats, searched for the perfect French cuisine, met with con men, eccentric ex-pats, Monaco’s royals, attended Onassis’ parties, made friends with a police chef and had adventures with the rich and famous.....as the story goes....pour yourself a glass of wine and enjoy this wise, warm and witty story.

For most parts I loved this account. It is written to bring us into his world and makes us feel we are sharing a meal, playing at the casino, partying with the rich and famous along with him. Also interesting is the journey getting to the Riviera and the struggles to find housing and trying to fit in. The Kaplan did well and even managed to rent Roman Polanski’s estate. Of course being in France it is inevitable the French language is spoken and Mr. Kaplan makes great use of his knowledge and seasoned his thoughts throughout with words and long sentences. If you know some French, you will feel right at home.

It is evident that rubbing shoulders with the upper class Mr. Kaplan is well-off and is used to the finer things. But ¾ into, I lost interest in the excessive partying, drinking, eating, and the name dropping of designer clothes and of famous people.....enough was enough. Mr Kaplan is clever, along the way why not promote his other books and he did so with finesse simply slide this in during a conversation....Ok...I am interested.

The author touches panoply of subject that happened during his stay that brought back events that happened a long time ago: ex. the Challenger disaster and Chernobyl and the bombing of Libya. He expresses mostly the widespread sympathy from people around him.

It is a good book although the beginning was by far much more captivating then the last ¼.

This ARC was provided by The Book Whisperer via Netgalley for my thoughts.

Saturday, March 9, 2024

"Watching the Dark", by Peter Robinson



Inspector Banks #20

I dung out an old book hiding deep into my library “Watching the Dark” was first published in 2012, it was far time to give it a go. This book is my introduction to this author and now I know why people say he is a grandmaster of mystery fiction. Everything is smoothly said and the story immediately pulls you in. This installment was an excellent place to begin.

It kicks off with the murder of a policeman DI Bill Quinn convalescing at a treatment center and found dead on the grounds, pierced through the heart with an arrow. Bank is brought in to investigate and soon discovers compromising photos of Quinn with an underage woman....Working the case not only with his partner DI Annie Chabot but also imposed to him is the enigmatic Joanna Passero from the Professional Standards...her presence is anything but welcome....One search brings another and DI Bank ends up in Estonia to unravel not only this mystery but also one that crossed his path decade ago and has haunted him ever since.

I zipped through this story in no time; it is very active and moves along without needless violence and meaningless sex scenes. The mystery develops bit by bit and teases us along while offering several clichés of people in high places. Well a bit of humour well placed is refreshing. The author has written a very believable scenario of human trafficking and immigrant slave labour into an intriguing police procedural and has set his drama both in the UK and in Estonia. As a Canadian some expressions was a challenge at first but I overcame this and soon was immersed into this excellent story and enjoyed every moment.

In brief: An excellent story, great characterization and well described settings.


Tuesday, March 5, 2024

"Chained Guilt", by Terry Keys




Hidden Guilt book #1

This is the kind of page-turner thriller I love to pass my time with. It pulls you in from the start and never let’s go. Some even say this story is in the tradition of James Patterson., it may be so but Mr. Keys has his own style and as a first time reader of his, I definitely could say he has penned a very captivating story peppered with twists and turns and provided us with suspense galore to satisfy the most committed thrill seekers. What a drama he gave us. The characters are realistic and well- developed. The prose makes everything flow smoothly and in a logical manner.

There is nothing complicated in what is said, so I let myself be transported into the world of Detective David Porter as he come to face the harsh reality that a loved one is missing. As a Detective is primary task is chasing a cunning serial killer who brutally murders every child he could get his hands on. So his skills are put to test in this fast-paced cat and mouse game. But the killer was an expert....

I love this story but leaving us hanging at the end so we buy the sequel is something that annoys me to no end....

Saturday, March 2, 2024

"Embers in the London Sky", by Sarah Sundin



If you want a WW11 historical fictions with mystery, lots of suspense and a little bit of romance you will enjoy this one.

Germany and London in 1940

As Germany invades the Netherlands Aleida Martens escapes to London to wait out the occupation. In the confusion she has been separated from her three year old son, Theo, who was born with a congenial limb defect. In London Aleida finds a job at the ministry of health which brings her in contact with Hugh Collingwood, a BBC correspondent. Hugh is determined to tell the human stories of the Blitz and the heartbreaking search for the missing Theo. Thus a romance starts.....

With the war raging in the background, this story tells more about the life of two individuals trying to do their best under the harsh circumstances. Aleida does all that she can to locate her son. She knows he has been taken to London but where and how to find him takes most of this story. Her struggles and her disappointments are heartbreaking, very poignant. Crossing path with Hugh was what she needed. As a correspondent he had contacts and wanted to help and be with her. But he had his own story to say and does it with interest. With time they came closer even fell in love. The plot doesn’t leave us without having some of the characters murdered and looking for the killer also took a good part of this captivating story, the tension left me on the qui vive till everything wrapped up. The story is very well-said and well-done.

Thank you Revell and Netgalley for the opportunity to read and enjoy this book.

Monday, February 26, 2024

"Rio", by Ty Patterson


Zeb Carter, book # 13


The story in a few words parts I have copied from the overview.

Zeb and his team are unwinding in Rio during the carnival. Their vacation is upended when the parades are disrupted by a deadly shooting. What was a well-deserved R&R in the most welcoming city in the world turns into a deadly race for survival against the deadliest assassins in the world.

My thoughts:

Although the suspense could have pulled me through the streets of Rio with its beautiful sceneries, this story if there was one lack in depth, apart from endless action and the presence of powerful criminal gangs, Cartels and Bondes and gloom and core with endless shooting, kidnapping and wild action scenes such as leaping from branches and off roof top, we have total nonsense. After 12 thrillers of action packed Zeb Carter and his team doing extraordinary tasks I think enough is enough time to put more efforts into a plot with less action and more diversity and give us a story that won’t be forgotten the moment we reach the last page.

Yes I am harsh in my assessment but I do give the author high marks for the action scenes he knows how to pen them with aplomb and doesn’t hesitate to shock us at every pages. So to be fair I will stay on the fence with this one and hope that the next Zeb carter will be more to my taste.

Some story are meant to please and other not so much.