"Macbeth", by Jo Nesbo

A Hogarth Shakespeare tragedy

Ms. Nesbo is the latest bestselling author to have been commissioned to retell a tragedy originally written by Shakespeare and to spin the tale in a modern way for the a 21st century audience, he chose Macbeth.

“Macbeth “is a thriller about the struggle for power. In Mr. Nesbo’s version the main character “Macbeth”, is the leader of a Swat team in a coastal city where crime is rampant. After a drug bust that went terribly wrong Macbeth and his team must clean up. Power and money becomes the main character’s ambition. He is soon plagued by hallucinations and starts to unravel. In order to get what he thinks is rightfully his, Macbeth does the imaginable….

Nesbo’s revamp is an intricate and dark plot weaved in intrigue, passion and the fallibility of the human mind. It is also a gripping drama that enfolds out of guilt, ambitions and moral conflicts. The story is well-written as a police drama the author is known for. It is a hard book to get into with its multiple characters to get to know and a story that is filled with conspiracies and murders to track of; it is not an easy read. It took quite some time before I managed to piece everything together but mid-way without even realizing it I was totally hooked and I could not put this book down so intrigued to see what would come next I kept pushing forward and I could honestly say that by the end I enjoyed this tragedy.

This dark and gritty crime noir fiction is an excellent addition to join the list of books retelling Shakespeare’s plays by well-known authors.

I received this ARC from Crown Publishing via NetGalleys

"Deadly Partnership", by Richard Gardner

Murder, Blackmail and Voices from the Spirit World

At first I was leery reading this book after all voices from the other world is not my kind of excitement and by far not my cup of tea. Was I ever wrong thinking this and so glad I said yes to Mr. Garner’s request to review his book. This was a very captivating read.

Right from the opening page I was hooked by this dark and clever storyline. The author feeds his story and builds suspense in calculating steps, drop by drop. It begins with an introduction to the main character with Paul Jenkins decisions to live with his sister Julie in their child-hood home after retirement….this may not have been a wise decision. Our first meeting with the spiritual world comes when Julie attends a séance.

After moving in Paul’s idyllic life turns into turmoil when he comes face to face with a burglar, his reaction to this intrusion had tragic consequences. It is not the first time Paul has taken matters in his own hands and it seems that those who have disappeared in the past are not completely gone….from then on we have strange occurrences, medium visits and more murders.

I enjoyed this book. It has a cracking great story with characters easy to connect with. The story provides surprises after surprises and the medium aspects are at its bare minimum. What kept me glued was wondering the outcome, what will Paul do next, who will squeal on him, will he get caught, what about his son, his sister, old friends and the riffraff Paul associates himself with, what’s next…..This story is very well-written with enough suspense to have us flipping the page at a rapid rage…that good.

"Finding Grace:Captured by a Cult", by Warren Adler

What would you do if your loveable child is in the clutches of a notorious cult? Would you question yourself: where did we go wrong, was our child unhappy, did our chattered life had a terrible effect on her…etc. a million questions and very few answers….The novel gets to the heart of brainwashing and its power to control. It also highlights how far parents will go to get their child back, even if that child is an adult.

Mr. Adler is a master in creating drama with visual scenes and building upon relationships. At first blush, the book seemed to be of Grace and the parental attempts to find her but it soon morphed into an overwhelming sexual obsession between two self-centered characters: Harry and Paulie, Grace divorced parents. The story jumps back and forth from the present and go back in time as the characters often reminisce about their life together. At one point, their romance is rekindled and this completely takes over the plot. These two characters did not fully won my heart… but their quest and the drastic measures taken to turn Grace around and bring her home is where this story excels in delivering its message.

This easy and fast read set some decades ago moderately dabbles into the cult mindset and their persuasion techniques. Although the premise is more about the efforts and courage needed to find and bring Grace back home we nevertheless have a look at this young woman who has been sucked into a cult and is now under their firm grasp.

As with all of Mr. Adler’s work, the narration flows smoothly and his powerful prose leaves a whirlwind of emotions. After-all having your child under the spell of mind control who shuns your love can only be but devastating.

An emotional read