Tag Archives: action

Killing Floor by Lee Child (1997) – BR00036 (2004) – 🐸🐸🐸🐸⚪

The PolyBlog
October 5 2004

Plot or Premise

The plot is relatively confusing at the start. Jack Reacher is a drifter who gets picked up by the police in a small town as a suspected murderer. He knows he didn’t do it, so he is fairly cooperative with the lead detective. But when it starts to appear that some of the other people don’t particularly care if he did it, he is a little annoyed that their laziness is going to cost him a weekend in jail with someone else who confessed to the crime. Jack starts to draw on his past skills as an MP in the army to help out the investigation, and then it starts to get personal.

What I Liked

From the word go, Jack Reacher is a solid character. He comes with a lot of history and no baggage, which I understand is how the rest of the series unfolds as well. The characters read a little more stream-lined than perhaps a Robert B. Parker novel, without as much soul-searching, and the action keeps going.

What I Didn’t Like

There is a major “coincidence” in the novel, and I really hate novels that hang on coincidence as a major plot device to move the story along. Happenstance is one thing, such as Jack being in the town and subject to being suspected. But when it turns out that Jack knew one of the victims, in a town where he doesn’t know anyone, and there’s no reason for either of them to be there, it’s a bit of a stretch.

The Bottom Line

Great intro to a series.

Blunt Darts by Jeremiah Healy (1984) – BR00039 (2003) – 🐸🐸🐸🐸⚪

The PolyBlog
October 9 2003

Plot or Premise

John Cuddy is asked by a grandmother to investigate the disappearance of her grandson, a prominent judge’s son…even though the judge doesn’t seem to want people looking for the boy. Cuddy goes looking anyway, even when a corrupt Sheriff tries to direct him away rather forcefully.

What I Liked

A huge cast of characters, with a couple of the series regulars just beginning to be fleshed out a little.

What I Didn’t Like

A few of the characters were one-dimensional, fifth business to the storyline – only there to pass along a vital clue, and it was usually pretty obvious that the author was trying to slip it by, since Cuddy himself doesn’t catch it.

The Bottom Line

A great story.

Double or Nothing by Peter David (1999) – BR00026 (2001) – 🐸🐸🐸⚪⚪

The PolyBlog
March 4 2001

Plot or Premise

This is the fifth in the series about a vengeful attack on the universe by an “unknown” assailant who uses biological weapons to wipe out races in the Federation. This book puts Riker on the Excalibur, dealing with Shelby et al; Mackenzie on a secret undercover mission to infiltrate the assailant’s lair; and, Picard undercover to do the same thing, eventually linking up with Mackenzie.

What I Liked

There are a series of one-liners with Shelby and Riker that are occasionally funny, Mackenzie’s infiltration is really interesting at the start and his character is great, and there is an interesting interplay between Admirals at one point.

What I Didn’t Like

The Riker and Shelby section is not very well-written, Mackenzie’s infiltration becomes repetitive at the end, and when Picard and he link up, it makes little to no sense for most of it. However, my real problem with this story is the sequencing…up until now in the series, you haven’t known why the assailant is doing what he is doing, or even who it is. This one reveals all, and the motives are kind of a cliché. The New Frontier portion stays true to form while the rest of the interactions with The Next Generation universe is more of a caricature than reality.

The Bottom Line

Readable.

The Mist by Dean Wesley Smith and Kristine Kathryn Rusch (1998) – BR00025 (2001) – 🐸🐸🐸⚪⚪

The PolyBlog
March 4 2001

Plot or Premise

This is the third in the series dealing with the bar called “The Captain’s Table”, a bar only for Captains across time and space. Sisko is in need of some rest, so he visits Bajor and finds the bar. And finds that the interesting aspect of the bar is that everyone gets to tell a tale. His tale is of a group known as The Mist. Centuries before, the Mist shifted themselves and their worlds out of normal space into a phased sub-space. Having left normal space behind, they have been excluded from the trials and tribulations of the Federation, the Klingon Empire, the Romulans and the Cardassians. However, they lure Sisko into their space to help them fight an apparent revolt by subversives who are going to phase-shift DS9 and use it in Mist space to attack other worlds.

What I Liked

The story is interesting enough, particularly some of the new-to-the-Star-Trek-universe characters, and good involvement of the Klingons.

What I Didn’t Like

The story jumps back to “normal” time too often to show the bar, when the story Sisko is telling is far more interesting. The characters and Klingon involvement are good, but are either not well-integrated in the main plot or just not developed enough. Plus, Kira comes off as some cartoonish clone of her real character.

The Bottom Line

Worth a read but not a “must read”.

Deadly Decisions by Kathy Reichs (2000) – BR00024 (2001) – 🐸🐸🐸⚪⚪

The PolyBlog
March 4 2001

Plot or Premise

In this third installment in the Dr. Temperance Brennan series, there are biker gangs in Montreal, and they are killing each other. Most of it happens in Montreal, which is an improvement over the bopping around in previous books.

What I Liked

The story is interesting, and Reichs is still above average.

What I Didn’t Like

Some of the characters are fast becoming clichés. And if you don’t figure out a sub-plot (spoiler alert!) about her love interest being a dirty cop, you need to take Mystery Fiction 101 again. Temperance also gets to play Mommy again, this time to a nephew, but it isn’t particularly exciting. More of a Scarpetta rip-off. Again, too, Reichs plays fast and loose with a couple of clues that make Brennan look like an idiot to any intelligent reader and really detracts from the story. The final ending is almost surreal, and reads more like a script for an action TV series than reliable fiction.

The Bottom Line

Not up to the standards of the first book.