"Lust of Life", by Sean-Paul Thomas

I have been giving an updated version of this book by the author for my thoughts, thank you Mr. Thomas, this is the way I see it....

The story in a few words:

A young man diagnosed with terminal brain cancer gives death and treatments the finger (the cover picture says it all) decides to rebel against society and go out with a bang by living his wildest fantasies before the lights go out...

My thoughts:

Ouf.....graphic sex scenes, bad language, Scottish dialect and violence galore not a book all would enjoy and one that took me out of my comfort zone by a long shot. The first part I didn’t enjoy I contemplated abandoning it but a promise is a promise I had to read it till the end. Glad I did in some ways, things turned around page 70, Liam’s sexual sprees tapered down and the story became more interesting when our protagonist falls in love with a beautiful young lady who turned out to be a high end escort and decided to go all out to impress her. While Ian goes about his escapades around Edinburg the author meticulously and vividly presents us with the topography of the city. I enjoyed this average Joe turning into a vigilante who gets involved with the seedy side, his comical storming of a church disrupting the preacher, his revenge on his step-father and how he fooled the car salesman. Some well-put together stories where Ian didn’t have to think about the consequences of his actions.... but looming in the background is the terminal illness that haunted him and kept re-emerging throughout the book. Facing a Doomsday outcome what would one do?

Of course the story is so ludicrous it made me laugh more then I want to admit but did I like passing time reading it...hum debatable...Sorry Sean-Paul maybe next time...and to answer your request...both endings are good with me...:)

"A Matter of Life and Death", by Phillip Margolin

Book# 4 in the Robin Lockwood series

This legal thriller brings Robin Lockwood to defend Joe Lattimore accused of murder after burglarizing a house. The victim was the wife of prominent Judge Anthony Carasco. Lattimore fingerprints and bloody gloves were discovered at the scene, an airtight case for the District Attorney. But Robin is not convinced at all, she suspects that her client has been framed...now she needed to prove it.

This is one legal thriller I put at the top of my list for its presentation. It focusses more on how the accused came to get into hot waters and less the interactions in the courtroom. I love passing time reading it and had such a hard time setting it aside to do my chores. The story is action packed and very gripping from start to finish. The Lattimore’s troubles all started after he agreed to fight in a no-holds illegal bar bout where his opponent died leaving him at the mercy of the fight’s organizers who took advantage of his situation...big time.

The plot is strong and moves along at a steady pace. It is clearly written to depict courtroom drama without overdoing it, not a simple task but Mr. Margolin did this expertly making his book a real pleasure. Every word is simple and uncomplicated. The police work is smoothly blended in to add suspense and to bring us into the bowels of the legal system: fingerprints and DNA, evidences that can incarcerate someone whether responsible or not.

I also appreciated how the author has incorporated in his suspense interesting insight into gender reassignment and the struggles the person caught in this dilemma goes through. Subdued and well done.

Although I picked up “A Matter of Life and Death” at this point I didn’t feel lost at all, it reads beautifully as a stand-alone.

In a few words:

Well-plotted drama vividly said and played out by a cast of wonderful characters.

I received this ARC from St-Martin’s Press via Netgalley for my thoughts, this is the way I see it.

"Her Silent Spring", by Melinda Woodhall

A Veronica Lee Thriller book#4

Although part of a series “Her Silent Spring” can be read on its own so no worries to start here. But be warned once into the story you will be held captive till the very last page. This latest is an attention grabber from start to finish and an excellent continuation of the series.

Veronica Lee is a “She Wolfe” on a hunt and will not give up when human traffickers, predators or killers are connected somehow to someone she knows or come anywhere close to Willow Bay. This latest starts with the discovery of a body in Skylake, the victim is Skylar’s mother who had disappeared a long time ago. Skylar is Veronica’s half-sister daughter of the evil human Donavan Locke.

The plot is tightly written and moves back and forth from Willow Bay Florida to Skylake Kentucky seeking for answers. Veronica is not alone she has her sidekick Hunter to help things move along. Both are invested in finding the truth but this came at a cost....friends got hurt and others died....What makes this read captivating is that I kept trying to outguess who could the real killer be knowing too well that Ms. Woodhall wouldn’t open her cards that easily to her readers . Boy did she do a good job at outwitting me with this one...lol.

I said this before:

This drama covers a lot. It is a very well developed storyline. Smoothly said and packed with excellent characters...I simply love this book and I am looking forward to read more from Ms. Woodhall.

I received a free copy of this book and I leave a voluntary review, opinions expressed here are unbiased and entirely my own.