Book #61: Collateral Damage

Collateral Damage, by Stuart Woods. Unabridged audio.

This latest novel in the Stone Barrington series picks up where the last one left off, with a terrorist on the run after an attempt on the President Will Lee's life in Los Angeles. The lone survivor of that attack takes her reign of terror to both the UK and New York City.

In Woods' first 20 novels or so, he developed a range of series that all took place in the same world. One of the fun aspects of reading these books is that characters from other books were mentioned in passing, or events from one book would have consequences in a book from another series. But in the last ten books or so, he has brought all of his characters into the Stone Barrington series.

In this book, Barrington and CIA operative Holly Barker work with the Lees and the MI5 operatives from prior books to take on this latest case.His old buddy Dino Bichetti from the NYPD also plays an important role in the conclusion of the case, and his personal life takes a positive turn.

And these recent books have also moved away from the smaller-scale mysteries and adventures to more epic terrorism and espionage novels. Ths transition has been mostly smooth, as the later books have continued to tell exciting stories, with believable action and strong characters.

source: public library

Book #60: Frozen Heat

Frozen Heat, by "Richard Castle." Unabridged audio.

This is the fourth novel in the series, loosely based on characters from the "Castle" TV show. Actually, it is loosely based on the fictional novel that character Richard Castle wrote in the "Castle" TV show. Many of the characters on the show have analogs in the novels, and though the novels are strong on their own, knowledge of the show helps with the inside jokes and references.

One of the things I like about the series is that the direction is diverging from events of the TV show, of which I am a fan.The story starts with the discovery of a frozen body in a suitcase, and clues from that crime lead to opening an otherwise "cold case" -- the murder years before of Beckett's mother.

The murder of Beckett's mother in the TV show has been an overarching storyline on the show, and this book tackles the subject as well. But in this version, they have moved into a more espionage thriller territory, with spy agencies on both sides of the Atlantic being involved.

There were a few too many cutesy "Firefly" references in this novel, referencing actor Nathan Fillion. But most of the humor in the novel was spot on, and the anonymous author managed to capture the heart of the relationship between Castle and Beckett, disguised as Rook and Heat in the book's universe.

The particulars of this plot were wrapped up nicely, but there are definite openings for the series to continue from where this one left off.

As always, the audio version of this is wonderfully presented by Johnny Heller.

source: public library. 

Podcast Marathon

It is final exam season for me at work, and I didn't have any yesterday. This left me some extra time for listening to podcasts and audio books. Here is what I listened to yesterday:

The Tony Kornheiser Show: Daily sports (mostly) show, from a sports station in Washington, DC

Superman in the Bronze Age: Charlie Neimeyer is joined by podcasting luminary Michael Bailey to discuss the interesting story from the 1970s where Jonathan Kent returned from the dead.

Satellite Sisters: Interview show #102 (#2 actually), wherein Lian Dolan speaks with Ian Punnitt about his interesting new book.

Quarter-Bin Podcast: Episode 12. Yes, this is my own show, but I do listen to it when it comes out, just to verify that the sound quality is good, and that no disasters ahppened in the upload / download process. 

Frozen Heat, by "Richard Castle." Narrator Johnny Heller does an excellent job narrating this detective novel.

Revisiting Holmes: The Third Collection

Book #59: The Return of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. Unabridged audio.

After trying to kill off his famous literary creation in the story "The Final Problem," Doyle found himself pressured to bring the famous detective back from the dead. Which he does in the famous story "The Empty House." This story opens this collection.

I personally remember many of these stories from the Jeremy Brett adaptations on PBS. "The Norwood Builder," "The Dancing Men," and "The Solitary Cyclist" fit this bill. I appreciate the value of Holmes doing his work in London, but I prefer the stories where Doyle is able to get the detective to the smaller, rural areas of England.

There is little in the way of character development in these stories, for either Holmes or Watson, as Doyle seems to have settled into a formula for his short stories. That is not to say that the stories themselves are not strong, but the lack of an Irene Adler or Professor Moriarity is noticeable.

As a university professor, I enjoyed the plot (and resolution) of "The Three Students," although "The Golden Pince-Nez" and "The Second Stain" are among the most enjoyable stories in this collection.

Source: Unabridged audio via LibriVox, and BooksSHouldBeFree.Com, a site that records audio of public domain books. Despite the "amateur" status of the recording, the audio quality and narration is very strong. Surprisingly strong, as a matter of fact.

Podcasting Milestones

Three long-running (and excellent) shows recently reached very impressive milestones. These all put the 11 episodes of my Quarter-Bin Podcast to shame!

SQPN: The Break. Father Roderick's show recently hit the 900th episode. This is now a mostly-weekly show, having started life as The Daily Breakfast, and covers pop culture, movies & TV, and current events and Catholic Church news. Father Roderick, a parish priest in Holland, oversees an entire network of podcasts. SQPN includes shows that cover more specifically spiritual content, as well as the excellent "Secret of" series of shows, that examine the lessons that can be learned from pop culture content such as The Hobbit, Star Wars, Harry Potter, and Battestar Galactica.

Battleship Pretension. This terrific movie criticism podcast recently produced its 350th weekly episode. Hosts Tyler Smith and David Bax take a thought-provoking approach towards current and classic cinema. They don't do movie reviews, they do actual film criticism, and do it very well. They occasionally have a guest-host, but most of the episodes are just the two hosts. This is easily my favorite movie podcast.

 The Danger Room. This X-Men comic book commentary podcast recently his its 100th episode. Hosts Adam and Jeremy started at the beginning of this comic's history, and are already in 1979. They take a modern view on these alder comments, and make lots of fun of the sillier aspects of these stories.

Teaser Tuesday

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can
play along!
Just do the following:

Grab your current read.

Open to a random page.

Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page.

BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)

From the prologue of Rooted in Good Soil: Cultivating and Sustaining Authentic Discipleship, by Tri Robinson, author of Saving God's Green Earth and the founding pastor of the Boise Vineyard Church. 

"Life has a way of compacting and hardening the soil of our hearts. Life's hurts combined with the gradual accumulation of guilt and shame as a result of sin constantly weigh us down, causing our hearts to become like the soil in my garden after a long and harsh winter."

November Reading List

58. W is for Wasted (ua), by Sue Grafton
57. Left Behind The Kids #30 (pb), by Tim LaHaye, Jerry B Jenkins, & Chris Fabry
56. Left Behind The Kids #29 (pb), by Tim LaHaye, Jerry B Jenkins, & Chris Fabry
55. I Shouldn't Tell You This (pb), by Kate White
54. Inferno (ua), by Dan Brown
53. Guys Can Be Cat Ladies Too (pb), by Michael Showalter


Earlier in 2013:
52. Invasion (pb), by Jon S. Lewis
51. Callahan's Legacy (ua), by Spider Robinson
50. Severe Clear (ua), Stuart Woods
49. The Third Kingdom (ua), by Terry Goodkind
48. Gotham Central: In the Line of Duty HC (gn), by Ed Brubaker, Greg Rucka, and Michael Lark
47. Mockingjay (ua), by Suzanne Collins
46. The Shambling Guide to New York City (pb), by Mur Lafferty
45. The Hound of the Baskervilles (ua), by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
44. Guild of the Cowry Catchers: Book 4 (ua), by Abigail Hilton
43. The Big Cat Nap (ua), by Rita Mae Brown and Sneaky Pie Brown
42. Free (ua), by Chris Anderson
41. Iron Man: Legacy of Doom (gn), by David Michelinie,
40. The She-Hulk Diaries (pb), by Marta Acosta
39. Elizabeth the First Wife (Nook), by Lian Dolan
38. The Maze (nook), by Jason Brannon
37. The President's Vampire (ua), by Christopher Farnsworth
36. The Pope Who Quit (pb), by Jon M Sweeney
35. Memoirs of Sherlock Homes (ua), by Arthur Conan Doyle
34. More or Less (ua), by Jeff Shinaberger
33. Blood & Wine: Readings for Lent and Easter (pb), by various
32. The Children of Hurin (ua), by J.R.R. Tolkien
31. Atlantyx, (pb), by Chase Dalton
30. Callahan's Secret (ua), by Spider Robinson
29. Take Four (ua), by Karen Kingsbury
28. Skull-Kickers, Treasure Trove volume 1, by Jim Zub and various artists
27. The Dalek Generation (pb), by Nicholas Briggs
26. The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes (ua), by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
25. The Areas of My Expertise (pb), by John Hodgman
24. The Skin Map (ua), by Stephen Lawhead
23. Catching Fire (ua), by Suzanne Collins
22. Quitter (ua) , by Jon Acuff.
21. The Bone Bed (ua), by Patricia Cornwell.
20. Stop Asking Jesus Into Your Heart (hc), by J.D. Greear
19. Left Behind: The Kids #28 (pb), by Jerry B. Jenkins, Tim LaHaye, & Chris Fabry
18. Left Behind: The Kids #27 (pb), by Jerry B. Jenkins, Tim LaHaye, & Chris Fabry
17. Left Behind: The Kids #26 (pb), by Jerry B. Jenkins, Tim LaHaye, & Chris Fabry
16. Time Travelers Strictly Cash (aa), by Spider Robinson
15. The Devil's Company (ua), by David Liss
14. Deadly Straits (ua), by R.E. McDermott
13. Doctor Who: Paradise Towers (ua), by Stephen Wyatt
12. DC Universe Secret Origins (gn), by various writers and artists
11. The Gods of Mars (ua), by Edgar Rice Burroughs
10. Craving Grace (hc), by Lisa Velthouse
9. The Sign of Four (ua), by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
8. DC Dead (ua), by Stuart Woods
7. A Study in Scarlet (ua), by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
6. The Hunger Games (ua), by Suzanne Collins
5. Take Three (ua), by Karen Kingsbury
4. Mary Through The Centuries (hc), by Jaroslav Pelikan
3. Roil (ua), by Trent Jamieson
2. The Devil You Know (ua), by Mike Carey
1. Ender's Shadow Ultimate Collection (gn), by Mike Carey