Category: Thriller

boo?

Posted on by Greig

The Name Of The Star

Maureen Johnson

The Name of the StarThis is a thoroughly enjoyable YA supernatural thriller.
Rory, an American girl, has moved to London from Louisiana for school while her parents teach in Bristol.
On the day of her arrival a murder very much in the style of Jack the Ripper is discovered.
Just as she begins to make friends and starts to adjust to living in a strange country she finds herself caught up the murderous events.
This book is really entertaining and I’m looking forward to reading the sequel even though I’ve heard rumours that it has the worst cliffhanger in the world!

Rating: B+

clockwork?

Posted on by Greig

The Sacred Art of Stealing

Christopher Brookmyre

sacred art of stealingThe second book featuring Officer de Xavia and the first with her as the lead character.
In bad political odour after saving the day at Dubh Ardrain in A Big Boy Did It and Ran Away and hitting her thirtieth birthday she finds herself involved with an unusual bank robbery and with an even more unusual bank robber.
I reviewed this book on the blog before in 2003 and in 2005 but to be honest I think I enjoyed it more this time round.
I recommend Brookmyre’s work without reservation.

Rating: B+

enochian?

Posted on by Greig

The Apocalypse Codex

Charles Stross

the-apocalypse-codexThe latest Laundry book finds Bob Howard on the middle management fast track and in a whole heap of trouble in the United States.
The mashup of Lovecraftian horror and spy thriller still works to excellent effect.
The introduction of a Modesty Blaise style super spy/magician and her ex-soldier colleague gives the series a bit of fresh impetus.
I recommend the whole series wholeheartedly – Stross has a tendency to over egg the darkness that he keeps in check with the Laundry books.

Rating: A-

wren?

Posted on by Greig

Mockingbird

Chuck Wendig

MockingbirdThe sequel to Blackbirds takes a while to build up steam but once it hits the meat of the story it easily meets the standards of the first book.
Miriam Black is a very interesting character and it’s good to see Wendig making her more complex and nuanced with every book.
I think you really need to have read the first book to get the most from this one (though I think it would work as a standalone to some extent). I would recommend it just as much as Blackbirds.

Rating: B+

shovel?

Posted on by Greig

Blackbirds

Chuck Wendig

blackbirdsMiriam Black can see your death. A single touch of her skin on yours and she will see how and when you’ll meet your maker.
Unable to change the events that she forsees, she has become profoundly cynical – a drifter using her gift to be present when others die and scavenging their money and personal effects before moving on down the line.
The events of this book find her gifts getting her in trouble with genuinely evil people and putting her sanity and safety at risk.
This is a really enjoyable book with a lead character that you quickly become invested in despite her obvious flaws. I can’t wait to read the sequel.
I’ve classified it as fantasy but apart from Miriam’s real psychic ability this could be just an excellent example of a hard boiled thriller.
Recommended if you like thrillers or urban fantasy.

Rating: B+

racquets?

Posted on by Greig

Fletch

Gregory Mcdonald

FletchIM Fletcher is a reporter. While under cover as a beach bum investigating a drug ring he’s approached by a wealthly stranger with an unusual proposition.
This is a well constructed and sardonically funny thriller.
Fletch is the epitome of the likeable asshole and the central mysteries remain compelling right until they’re wrapped up in a satisfying fashion at the end.
Recommended if you like entertaining, fast-paced comic thrillers.

Rating: B+

estate?

Posted on by Greig

The Rook

Daniel O’Malley

the rookI’m reading a couple of fantasy books at the minute but I’m struggling to get into them. So to change the pace I picked this up and immediately got sucked into it.
I’ve read it before and I think I enjoyed it slightly more this time.
It’s really entertaining supernatural spy romp with added amnesia to give it a twist.
Recommended to anyone looking for a nice piece of genre escapism.

Rating: A-

licked?

Posted on by Greig

The Rook

Daniel O’Malley

the rookI first came across this book in a Big Idea piece on John Scalzi’s website.
If I had just seen it in a bookshop I would have dismissed it as mining the same territory as Charles Stross’ Laundry books but the author’s piece on the book made me intrigued enough to want to read it.
The key hook is that the lead character (the awesomely named Myfanwy Thomas) has been robbed of her memories and has to navigate her former life in the supernatural secret service and find out why her memories were taken using the notes left behind by her previous self.
It’s a really fun and quick read. It plays with the supernatural and mocks bureaucracy with equal verve.
While I thoroughly enjoyed the book I’d be a bit worried if sequels were to arrive as I can’t see how they could do anything other than bring diminishing returns.
Recommended if you’re looking for an entertaining romp.

Rating: B+

went?

Posted on by Greig

Codex

Lev Grossman

I really, really loved The Magicians by Grossman when I read it last year and so when I discovered that my local library had a copy of an earlier book by the author I just had to give it a go.
Codex tells the story of a talented high finance guy who, in the break between jobs, gets involved with the search for a possibly apocryphal text credited to a medieval monk.
The main story/puzzle is well set up and the subplots are intriguing but somehow the book kind of peters out and ends without ever really being satisfying for the reader.
It’s obvious from the book that Grossman is a really talented writer, but that he wasn’t fully formed yet. The Magicians saw him fulfil a large part of that promise.
It’s a pretty capable thriller and depending on your viewpoint you may find the ending less disappointing that I did.

Rating: B