An Interesting Invitation! ?HOTEL STORIES?

I received an email from Amy Hills, Literary Manager of The Art Cannot be Damaged, Inc. Ms. Hills graciously invited me ( yeah me) to a release party in New York at the Carlton Arms Hotel, 160 East 25th Street at Third Avenue, Friday, February 29, from 6pm- 9pm for Mike Tyler's new book, a collection of stories titled Hotel Stories.

Sorry Ms. Hills, but I will not be able to attend the party, but I would like to read and review the new book. The gracious Amy said yes and I received Hotel Stories today! Thanks Amy for the chance both to read and report on a new author and his book.

Rest of the story coming soon!

Sunday Salon - The Assassin - Andrew Britton

Andrew Britton's political thriller sets up a reality that may distract some readers from a decent if unremarkable plot centering on terrorist plans to attack the U.N. and leave clues pointing to the Iranian government.

Dennis Hastert is Speaker of the House, and the American political leadership is debating whether to withdraw troops from Iraq, but the U.S. president is David Brenneman not George W. Bush, who's facing a fierce re-election opponent in California governor Richard Fiske, who's surely not Arnold Schwarzenegger.

The characters, including Jack Ryan-clone Ryan Kealey and the action-from the discovery of a high-ranking mole to the obligatory under-fire romance-offers nothing new. The path by which Kealey uncovers Vanderveen's subterfuge and ultimate trail moves a bit slowly at times during the book's first half, though much of this is due to Britton's painstaking insistence on getting his world right.

To his credit, he does not take intellectual shortcuts or talk down to his reader. If anything, it gives us time to catch our breath between flash fires and explosions, which are more than plentiful in THE ASSASSIN. 

It's exciting to watch someone of Britton's talent build a career from the ground up. This is the first Andrew Britton novel for me having not yet read his first, The American.

Sunday Salon - Ballybucklebo - Fact or Fiction

What is that you say, Ballybucklebo? Are you sure? You must be making that name up! Surely no one would live in a place called Ballybucklebo!

Yes here we are just down the road from Kinnegar in the rustic countryside of Ireland. I'm sure you have heard of Belfast, well we are a long way from there.

Dr. Barry Laverty arrives at the home/office of Dr. Fingal Flahertie O'Reilly ready to take his place in the medical world. Fingal is literally throwing a patient out the door as Barry gets out to meet his new boss.

This very entertaining novel is aglow with humorous exploits as both doctors confront all manners of man and animals in this eccentric town.

Barry being fresh out of medical school is taken back by many of the methods, white lies, and crude jokes used by Dr. O'Reilly to both heal and/or put his patients at ease.

This is my first Patrick Taylor novel, and hope it will not be my  last. The compassion and loony ways the doctors use are deeply moving and hilarious. Great reading on a dark, rainy, and windswept Sunday Salon day!

        

Sunday Salon - Meet Me in Venice - Fact or Fiction

Something different for me to read, a love/mystery/thriller by Elizabeth Alder. Notice the word love! I usually do not read this type of novel, but hey even I can be different sometimes.

Meet Me in Venice was an intriguing teaser with several sub-plots. Life-styles of the jet set were given glamorous descriptions as well as the exotic places they frequent.

Precious Rafferty, an American antiques dealer working in Paris, is drawn into a ruse which involves a cousin in Shanghai also in the antiques business. Lilly Song has inherited a one of a kind necklace and her co-worker Mary-Lou Chen is out to steal the valuable piece from Lilly.

Bennett James gets in on the plot and then decides to meet Precious and steal her money, by killing her wealthy aunt and marrying her. But Bennett founds out the aunt's will is to be given to charity and stands Miss Rafferty up at the altar.

Preshy (Precious) is devastated and meets a mystery novelist who tries to help. Sam Knight takes her mind off Bennett for the moment, but Mr. James has getting the necklace on his mind. He talks to Mary-Lou and they arrange to kill Lilly, only to find she has shipped the piece to Preshy.

Bennett calls Preshy and tries to apologize for his actions and asks her to meet him in where else but Venice. I will leave some for you to read. Ms. Alder is adept at keeping the story filled with twists and turns. A very good read.

Did anyone decide on time and place for our convention? Sunday Salonists?

Sunday Salon - The Overlook - Michael Connelly

Wow is it Sunday again? And have you seen how many Sunday Salon members there are now? We are really getting to be a group or is that a flock? Come join us as we read, from all over the world, good books on Sunday's! Should we plan a convention? Just food for thought.

Reading again from my birthday books, The Overlook, by Michael Connelly has fulfilled my weekly desire for a good mystery/thriller genre novel.

In his first case since he left the LAPD's Open Unsolved Unit for the prestigious Homicide Special squad, Detective Harry Bosch is called out to investigate a complex murder that may have terrible consequences for our national security.

A certain Dr. Stanley Kent is shot twice in the back of his head while on his knees Bosch discovers as he leads the crime scene examination. Why? Not two blocks from his home...

Harry notices the the doc's car looks as if something very heavy was taken from the trunk as there are indentations to indicate four "feet" marks. He also finds id cards from most of the local hospitals. Why?

Because Dr. Kent, a physicist, had access to radioactive isotopes his well being had previously been brought to his attention by the FBI. Home Land Security thought it best to warn him of possible terrorists threats so the Dr. bought a 22 pistol.

The material Kent was handling was cesium which is for cancer patients, but can be made into suitcase bombs.

Kent's wife is found at home, hysterical, hog-tied, and urine drenched in their bedroom.

Detective Bosch smells a rat and the plot really turns into a maze wrapped in a possible apocalyptic attack.

This is enough for you to discover the end of this entertaining book, if you want.

Michael Connelly is good!