Books – Page 10 – RetiredGuy

Category: Books

Echoes of Sherlock Holmes

Posted on November 1, 2016 by Jack

Echoes of Sherlock Holmes: Stories Inspired by the Holmes Canon edited by Laurie R. King and Leslie S. Klinger is a good collection of short stories.

The short stories in Echoes of Sherlock Holmes are not necessarily about Holmes. The authors were just asked to write a story inspired by Holmes.

I’m over half way through now and I’ll take a little break in reading this book now since I have other things to do but that is the good thing about short stores. You can read one or 2 at a sitting and put the book down for days or even weeks without a thought to losing the flow of the story.

I found some stories to be better than others but this is to be expected in anthology such as this.

Doors by Daniel Brako, again

Posted on October 25, 2016 by Jack

This is a repeat of my review of Doors by Daniel Brako.

I sometimes review books here. Sometimes it is library books, sometimes a book I bought, sometimes it is a book I borrowed from a friend but most of time it is an Advanced Reading Copy (ARC) from Netgalley.

I reviewed this here over 3 years ago and I’m preety sure I told NetGalley about it but this morning they are asking for my review. So here is a repeat –

First, I requested this advanced reading copy for review since the write-up on Netgalley sounded like it might be interesting but I wasn’t sure about that.
Continue reading “Doors by Daniel Brako, again”

Colum McCann

Posted on October 9, 2016 by Jack

One of my favorite authors is Colum McCann. I’ve read several of his books (and reviewed two of them here). The books often move in unexpected ways and the author has a gift for the memorable and thought-provoking phrase or sentence.

The illustration is a line from “Thirteen Ways of Looking” which is now in paperback. My other review is of “TransAtlantic”. “TransAtlantic” made such an impression I wrote about it twice.
Continue reading “Colum McCann”

The Last Days of Night – Edison-Westinghouse feud

Posted on August 11, 2016May 4, 2024 by Jack

Graham Moore certainly starts by getting your attention. First there is the quote and you wonder how that is related to this story of the Edison-Westinghouse feud. Then there is the man on fire. The promise of an interesting read.

I saw The Last Days of Night on Netgalley. It was set in late 19^th century New York City which caught my interest. And it was about the Edison-Westinghouse feud over the merits of direct current (DC) and alternating current (AC). I knew a little about this AC/DC dispute but I was very fuzzy on the details. So this historical novel had two points of interest in its favor.

I decided to give The Last Days of Night a try and I’m glad I did. This review is based on my Advance Reading Copy (ARC) from Netgalley. The book will be published on 16 Aug 2016. .

I did not know that Edison v. Westinghouse was a big lawsuit for patent infringement. Edison was suing Westinghouse for a billion dollars. That is a lot of money. It was even more in the 1880s. The outcome of this would determine the course of the electrical revolution. But if this was so important, why did George Westinghouse pick an inexperienced lawyer?

As mentioned before, Graham Moore gets your attention right off. Then he weaves a wonderful story which both enlightens and entertains. He takes a story which could have been a rather dry recitation of the technical side of the electrical revolution and the associated legal maneuvering and turns it into a most interesting tale.

In Graham Moore’s notes at the end he clearly explains that this is a work of historic fiction. He tells us how he parted from or rearranged some historical facts and why he did it that way. He talks about the unknown history between the facts and how he filled in those gaps and why he thinks his assumption are reasonable.

I was even more impressed after I finished reading and looked on the Amazon page to get the image of the book and link for this review. I learned that Graham Moore is the Oscar-winning screenwriter of The Imitation Game and his previous book was a best-seller.

The Last Days of Night is a wonderful book and I highly recommend it

Shadows of the Stone Benders

Posted on July 1, 2016July 1, 2016 by jack

I liked Shadows of the Stone Benders by K. Patrick Donoghue much more than expected. I occasionally enjoy science fiction and rarely like fantasy. Yet the write-up I saw on Netgalley was interesting.

The publisher compared it to the books of James Rollins and Steve Berry. I’ve never tried James Rollins but I have read and liked several books by Steve Berry. So I thought I would give it a try. Continue reading “Shadows of the Stone Benders”

Poverty Industry Problem

Posted on June 29, 2016 by jack

This is an important book. This is also a shocking book. The full title is “The Poverty Industry: The Exploitation of America’s Most Vulnerable Citizens”. The author Daniel L. Hatcher is Professor of Law at the University of Baltimore. Continue reading “Poverty Industry Problem”

The Lewis Man by Peter May

Posted on June 16, 2016June 16, 2016 by jack

The Lewis Man by Peter May is the second novel of The Lewis Trilogy. I had read the first after a friend had suggested I might enjoy it. I liked it very much as is apparent in my review of The Blackhouse.

In The Lewis Man several of the main characters are back but not necessarily in the way expected. Detective Fin Macleod is back. Detective Macleod grew-up on the remote Isle of Lewis in the Outer Hebrides. But in this story he is no longer with the police but has moved back to Lewis. Continue reading “The Lewis Man by Peter May”

Dystopian thriller

Posted on June 13, 2016January 24, 2017 by jack

I liked The Punishments by J.B. Winsor but thought it could have been better. Given the current political climate I think this dystopian thriller is very timely.

Author J.B. Winsor writes about a United States where the government is taken over by Christian fundamentalists. The situation in the county is not unlike that today.

Continue reading “Dystopian thriller”

The Blackhouse by Peter May

Posted on May 18, 2016July 2, 2019 by jack

The Blackhouse by Peter May. is the first novel of The Lewis Trilogy. The prologue sets the scene which will become important as the book progresses. Although chapter 1 gets off to a start in Edinburgh where Detective Fin Macleod is dealing with personal tragedy, much of the story takes place on the remote Isle of Lewis in the Outer Hebrides.
Continue reading “The Blackhouse by Peter May”

New York City Exposed

Posted on May 11, 2016 by jack

The full title New York Exposed: The Gilded Age Police Scandal that Launched the Progressive Era was a bit long to fit as my title. The author is Daniel Czitrom. The history of New York City is an interesting one. At least, I find it interesting.

The story is set in gilded age New York City. It was 1892 and the rich were very rich, the poor were very poor, the police and the city government were corrupt, and Tammany was in charge of it all. Continue reading “New York City Exposed”

Scottish Military Disasters

Posted on April 2, 2016May 8, 2016 by jack

Near the end of my post for yesterday on the Battle of Moore’s Creek Bridge I cited a book called Scottish Military Disasters by Paul Cowan. I had read the chapter on the battle and the role of Flora MacDonald. It did seem rather an unlikely coincidence but it appears to be true.

Anyway I liked what I had read and that evening starting looking around to see if I could find more about the book. Well, learning about the book Scottish Military Disasters was my starting point. I learned a bit that was expected and some that was totally unexpected.
Continue reading “Scottish Military Disasters”

The Steel Kiss by Jeffery Deaver

Posted on March 30, 2016 by Jack

I like Jeffery Deaver’s books. I know I have read several and enjoyed them immensely, especially the Lincoln Rhyme novels. So when I saw an Advance Reading Copy (ARC) of The Steel Kiss by Jeffery Deaver on Netgalley, I immediately requested it. I was reading another book at the time which I planned on finishing and had several others in line to be read but this one jumped to the front of the “to be read” line.

The Steel Kiss by Jeffery Deaver is the latest Lincoln Rhyme novel. I had high expectations and this did not disappoint. Continue reading “The Steel Kiss by Jeffery Deaver”

Irish Revolutionary and American Hero

Posted on March 18, 2016March 18, 2016 by jack

Those of us with an interest in Irish history often read about many an Irish Revolutionary. The English held onto Ireland for 8 centuries. The Brits treated the Irish so poorly there were many attempts to throw off the English yoke. Finally in 1916 some of those Irish Revolutionaries had partial success.

By the way, the label does depend on your perspective. To those who believed Ireland should rule itself and the Irish should have rights, these men were Irish Revolutionaries. If you were English or believed England should rule the Irish, these men were rebels or traitors. Continue reading “Irish Revolutionary and American Hero”

Crazy, Useless, Shafted

Posted on January 30, 2016February 7, 2016 by jack

I called this book review Crazy, Useless, Shafted. That seems to cover it in a few words. The full title is The Party Is Over: How Republicans Went Crazy, Democrats Became Useless, and the Middle Class Got Shafted but that seemed a bit long for a title.

The book is by Mike Lofgren who spent 28 years has a Republican Congressional staffer. His start was with John Kasich who in the 1980s was on the House Armed Services Committee. Mike switched from national security to the House Budget Committee when Representative Kasich became chairman. He retired from the Senate Budgetary Committee in 2011, frustrated by the ridiculous debt ceiling debate and the lunacy and terrorism of the Republican party.

Why I read this book

Continue reading “Crazy, Useless, Shafted”

Free Kurt Vonnegut short story

Posted on January 22, 2016January 22, 2016 by jack

I downloaded a free Kurt Vonnegut short story a few days ago. It was free then and free when I just checked so I’m guessing it will be free for a while but check.

The story was “2 B R 0 2 B “ which does seem like kind of an odd title but it makes perfect sense when you read the story. Well, I really enjoyed it. It reminded me of an older short story of his called Continue reading “Free Kurt Vonnegut short story”

Category: Books

Echoes of Sherlock Holmes

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Doors by Daniel Brako, again

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Colum McCann

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The Last Days of Night – Edison-Westinghouse feud

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Shadows of the Stone Benders

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Poverty Industry Problem

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The Lewis Man by Peter May

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Dystopian thriller

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The Blackhouse by Peter May

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New York City Exposed

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Scottish Military Disasters

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The Steel Kiss by Jeffery Deaver

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Irish Revolutionary and American Hero

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Crazy, Useless, Shafted

Why I read this book

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Free Kurt Vonnegut short story

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