Mister Grisham is back where he feels most comfortable with The Appeal, in the courtroom suing the rear end off a multinational corporation. In this case, the naughty Krane Chemical Company who have been polluting the countryside for years with the equivalent of wholesale fly-tipping. People get sick, people die. Other people get annoyed. They would, wouldn't they? Step in the lawyers and off we go.

   The boss of Krane, Carl Trudeau and his trophy wife, strike me as interesting characters, not to mention Abused Imelda, I am saying no more on that one, you will have to read the book to find out, but rather puzzlingly they rarely appear again, which is a shame as I wanted to know more about them than some of the others.

   In parts this book comes across as something of a true life exposé when in fact it is Mister G's 20th published work of fiction. Perhaps that is the man's true genius; his creations always seem so lifelike, so believable.

   I note that it has become something of a national sport to be deeply critical of John Grisham's books. You will not find me in that van. It is the easiest thing in the world to stand on the sidelines and throw sludge at others. Perhaps there are more than a few green eyes on parade when it comes to his staggering sales statistics and that other awful phrase, "units shifted". That's life I am afraid, a small penalty for being so hugely successful and I don't suppose he is unduly bothered.

   The ending of the book particularly seems to have riled a few people, and perhaps it does come across as a trifle rushed, but may be, just may be, JG is leaving it fairly open ended with a view to Carl T and his weird cronies making a return visit, though somehow I doubt it.

Do I think The Appeal is one of John's best? No I don't, but neither is it one of his weakest, and not even Charles Dickens wrote his best stuff every time he sat down and scratched his head and sharpened his pencil. Enjoy it for what it is. I certainly did.

   If you enjoy John Grisham's books you will definitely want to add this one to your collection.

Dancer By Colum McCann - Book Review

   What a terrific book this is. It tells the story of the Russian Tatar dancer Rudolf Nureyev. He was purportedly born on a train, rumbling down the trans Siberian railroad, and somehow that encapsulates his wandering life.

   The story opens with the boy Rudi entertaining the mentally and physically scarred troops returning from the Nazi front. His father returns too, a political officer who takes a mighty dim view of his son's chosen career path, something that dogs Rudi's progress at every turn.

   Yet he is not to be denied and slowly eases his way up the greasy rungs, and he is not beyond the occasional dirty trick to help him on his way. He is quickly marked out as a rebellious character and is subsequently carefully watched. But not carefully enough it seems, for he manages to defect in Paris from under the noses of the KGB officers. Rudi is on his way, hurtling toward the hedonistic lifestyle of New York, London and Paris.

   Personally I found the passages set within the Soviet Union of far greater interest than those in the West. The book moved me to tears on several occasions; such is the power of Mister McCann's writing. It often comes across as a biography, but as he is at pains to point out, this is a work of fiction. Sometimes you have to remind yourself of that, though it never once detracts from the enjoyment it offers.

   The book is written in the first person and some people have found that irritating because that first person often changes with every chapter, and sometimes on every page. It is a device that keeps the reader on their toes, yet is does not hinder the writing, or the enjoyment.

   It does not matter if you have little or no interest in ballet or dance, or the Soviet Union, or the Cold War, or the Sixties, or World War II, or homosexuality, for this book has the power to grip the reader whatever their interests.

I have just taken a peak at Amazon's ranking for this title. Amazingly it was 486,350! If that is true there is no justice in the world because this is the best book I have read this year. The work in hardback form can be bought for the cost of the postage alone, and that is ridiculous.

   Do yourself a favour and read this book, heck, go one step further, treat yourself, and buy a copy. The book and the writer deserve it, and so do you.

Nothing To Lose by Lee Child - Book Review

   This is the latest (April 2008) Jack Reacher thriller and just as in the previous eleven, Lee Child has written an easy to get into thriller, and one that will have you busting a gut to get through.

   There is no doubt there is an element of "Been here before - read this before" to this one, but as someone else wrote, Lee Child could not write a bad book if he tried.

   Two towns in Middle America, Hope and Despair, Hope's good, Despair is decidedly odd, and of course Jack cannot depart without investigating why. Throw in the usual pretty woman, this time the policewoman herself, and if you are an avid Jack Reacher reader, you will get the picture.

   So it starts, and the writer begins spinning his web.

   I admire greatly how every single fact mentioned is later carefully entwined into the story. Mister Child is a very good writer indeed, and one to be studied closely by anyone aspiring to progress as a thriller-type writer.

   I know for a fact that Lee Child is responsible for bringing a whole host of new readers to the reading watering hole with this series of books, and anyone who can persuade non-readers to become so, is fine in my book.

   If you have read the other Reacher novels I am sure you will like this one too. If you haven't, may be there are better ones out there that you might prefer to begin with, but hey, who cares, once you start reading one, you will want to read more. Either way, this is still a cracking read and money well spent.

Blood of Victory By Alan Furst - Book Review

   Set in the early years of World War II before Russia and America are in the war, but after France has capitulated to the Germans, Blood of Victory follows the fortunes of the Russian émigré writer now working for the British, I. A. Serebin.

   The scene switches from occupied Paris to Belgrade to Istanbul to Bucharest to London and back, amid turbulent countries in turbulent times. Some of the nations are already in the war, some are thinking of getting in, while others strive desperately to keep out, while still more switch sides - more than once if need be, desperate to back the winning team, as civil wars rage through their own streets and squares and bars.

   Mister Furst is a past master at describing the darkened European cities of the time, where food and safety are hard to come by, true love almost as difficult to find, a continent dancing to the tune of sirens, and where just about everyone is frightened to the marrow of their bones. They have plenty to be frightened about. The devil is at the gates. Survival is the name of the game, that, and winning.

Running through the book like a bulging vein is the mighty Danube River and it is here that much of the later action takes place.

   I liked the book a lot, I learned stuff too, always a nice little bonus, and it wasn't too long a read. It was very easy to read though, and I would recommend it. If you enjoy espionage based thrillers, especially those set in the middle of the last century, then Blood of Victory has a lot to offer, and much to commend it.

The Mission Song by John le Carre  - Book Review
  

   As a long time John Le Carré reader I admire the way he casts around the world's trouble spots with an eye to seeking out new conflicts, disputes and wars that may be viewed through a different angle.

   The Mission Song opens with an introduction to the main character, one Bruno Salvador, Salvo to you and me, who, perhaps inevitably, is recruited into the Service, whatever that might be. Bruno's talents are in the interpreting field; he is half African, and more particularly Congolese. He speaks more languages than he cares to remember, and many of those are little more than tribal dialects, a fact that is best kept secret, for now.

   The talent is a more than useful when secretly listening in on African warlords and their sponsors and a goodly portion of the book is taken up with listening in to other people's conversations. For some reason, this is something many of us find fascinating, earwigging, and for me this was the best part of the book. I guess I must be just like everyone else in that respect.

   Of course, people who secretly listen to others, inevitably end up learning things they would rather not know. In any event, Bruno is being paid a goodly sum to do just this, or why else would he do it, though of course he discovers information he cannot let pass without action, bringing on a conflict in his head as to what he should do for the best.

   I enjoyed the book immensely, even if I found it a trifle slow in places. It isn't one of John le Carré's very best offerings in my humble opinion, but anything new from this wonderful writer, is to be read, loved and cherished. If you like John Le Carré's works, you will love this.

Lisey's Story by Stephen King - Book Review

   This is a big book, 564 pages in hardback formula, and it did take me a long time to finish, partly because I am a slow reader and partly because I had to keep going back and re-reading a page. This was due to my mind wondering, and sometimes I simply did not understand what was going on.

   It's about Scott Landon, author of horror and hellish books, an author whose hair keeps flopping over his forehead. Sound familiar? Well, there are many parts of this book that come over as semi-autobiographical and only the author will know for sure how much of that is true.

   The book is told from the standpoint of his wife, and that set me thinking as to whether this book might have been the brainchild of the writer's wife, (a novelist in her own right) perhaps she even wrote the darn thing. Nothing would surprise me after reading this.

   Scott Landon is shot by a loony nutter, who clearly belongs in the loony bin (not my words), a kind of John Lennon scenario, Mister King tells us that, but his wife saves him from further bullets by laying into the assailant.

   The book explores self-harm, mutilation and mental illness, not to mention the parts that fall into other worlds. If you are a Stephen King aficionado then you will love this, though if you are new to his writings, (are there any such people left in that situation?) then you may well choose to begin somewhere else. It is not the easiest book to read, but it is worth persevering with.

   Overall, Lisey's Story surprised me, first by the fact that I did actually finish it without skipping a beat, and secondly because in the end I actually did enjoy it. I know that now, because I miss it, and still think about it.

Promise Me by Harlan Coben - Book Review

   This is (apparently) the eighth book from Mister Coben to feature his character Myron Bolitar. Myron is a crocked former basketball star, now private investigator.

   The book centres around two teenage girls going missing, Myron is the last person to see one of them, but are they kidnap victims or runaways, or worse? They both draw cash from the same New York ATM machine, coincidence or what? They attended the same school, though they didn't appear to know one another, so what has happened to them, and where are they?

   The characters are well portrayed, the story rattles along at a good pace, there are twists and turns aplenty right up till the very end, (no small feat that) and the story hooks the reader pretty damn quick. It might help if you knew some of these characters already, so you may prefer to try one of his earlier books first. The regular references to rock bands and singers always give it a contemporary feel, though that could also make it date rather quickly.

   Some of the dialogue is humorous and witty, but at other times some of the slick and silly ripostes began to annoy me. Even one of the characters at one stage says, "stops trying to be funny", or words to that effect and I could sympathise with that. I am not sure how long this book will live in the memory either, surely the true test of any book.

   That said, I enjoyed it a great deal, it was easy to read, and to get into in the first place, and I will certainly be reading more from this interesting writer.

Promise me by Harlan Coben

ISBN: 075287439x

Sir Bobby Charlton The Autobiography My Manchester United Years - Book Review

   This new autobiography was written with James Lawton, the respected Independent newspaper journalist, who also cooperated on the biographies of Nobby Stiles and Joe Jordan among others.

   The book inevitably opens with the Munch tragedy and unsurprisingly revisits that dreadful event of February 1958 on several occasions. Bobby Charlton somehow survived that catastrophic plane accident when so many of his young teammates perished. He came to, still strapped in his seat, fifty yards away from the crumpled Elizabethan airliner.

   An event such as that is certain to affect anyone's life, how could it not, and yet somehow it encapsulated the spirit of Manchester United Football Club. It took ten years to re-build the team under their charismatic manager Sir Matt Busby, to sufficient strength to compete for and eventually win the European Cup on that memorable May night at Wembley in 1968.

   The book is filled with interesting stories that will not just be of interest to supporters of Manchester United but to football fans everywhere. Of his upbringing and family difficulties, of his famous footballing forebears, and of how he would beg tickets from Bill Shankly for Liverpool FC's early European glory nights, and would regularly trek down the East Lancs road to the Anfield Stadium to take in the spectacle, only to be warmly welcomed on his arrival there by everyone.  How things have changed in areas such as this, and not always for the better.

   The book is a moving portrait of England's record goal scorer ever. Of his times playing with Duncan Edwards and George Best and Denis Law, of his admiration for Eric Cantona, Bryan Robson and Roy Keane, of how he first came across David Beckham as a young schoolboy on one of his children's football courses. There is praise too for the current manager Sir Alex Ferguson, a manager that Bobby has supported at every turn since his appointment way back in the mid eighties.

   At the end of the book you will find his selection of the best Manchester United eleven from 1955 to the present day, and that makes very interesting reading, and includes one or two surprises.

   If you are interested in football, regardless of whether you follow the reds of Manchester, you will find something here to warm you on a cold winter night. Poignant, memorable, thrilling, are just three of the adjectives that spring to mind that belong to those amazing times. I've read it once in record time, and I shall read it again before the year is out.

Rabbit At Rest by John Updike - Book Review

   This book really intrigued me. It tells the story of Rabbit Angstrom, the last in a series of books about this character apparently, a one-time basketball hero, and latterly, a car distributor for Toyota, though the business is never truly his, much to his chagrin.

   I like the easy way that John Updike writes, the sardonic way he notices the tiniest of things that are passed by, by so many of us. If you are a budding writer, or have any ambitions to become one, you could do far worse than go to school on John Updike.

   They say that to become a good writer you must first become a good reader, and this series of books about the life and loves and troubles of Rabbit Angstrom is as good a place to start as anywhere. My guess is that you will come out a better writer for reading books such as this, without even noticing it.

   Somehow he makes the most ordinary things, the most mundane of chores, become interesting and riveting. One word of warning though, if you suffer from heart disease of any kind, or imagine that you might do, the increasingly detailed scenes regarding Rabbit's failing heart, autobiographical one wonders, and subsequent hospitalisation may test your resolve to the limit.

   Other than that, read it, and soak up the craftsmanship of a man at the peak of his career. It made me laugh out loud on more than one occasion. Though this is the last in the series, many judges say that this is a good place to start. I am not going to argue with that, I thoroughly enjoyed it as the, sometimes sad, story of the latter part of Rabbit's life and times slowly unfolded.

 

 

The Fish Catcher by David Carter - Book Review

 

There are several cliches that come to mind while reading this murder/mystery, 'what goes around, comes around,' 'there are skeletons in everyone's closet.'  You will have to read this novel to understand the full impact of what I mean.

   In September 1939, massive evacuations of England's major cities began with pregnant women and children.  During this devastating occurrence in history, how often do we think about the children?  Their lives were forever changed, their thoughts molded for ultimate survival.

   Based on several young evacuees, banished to rural areas to escape the bombings in England, we are treated to an inside and well researched version of the possibilities that may have occurred while they were supposedly in the care of 'Evacuee Wardens.'  Torn from their homes and loved ones, these children of World War II were abruptly thrown into a foreign world.

   Fiction combined with truth keeps this story flowing.  The reality and personal insight into bombings and devastation of houses, which were actually the homes and lives of real families, mixed with the logic behind two fictional murder cover-ups, entices the reader to a rational understanding of each story.

   The author, David Carter has accurately described the devastating effect of bombings and opened the imagination to the plight of an evacuee's peril, yet understanding the need that 'life goes on.'  It is truly a powerful story of how children bond together to protect each other in order to survive personal upheaval.

   David Carter is a well-established English author who also has an extremely interesting web site with published articles varying from writing tips, the sport of cricket to identity theft.  Obviously multi-talented I am sure we will hear more from him in the future.
   

   A well-written mystery with a fascinating touch of historical fact.  A novel suitable for both older children and adults, which I would Highly Recommend to both generations. Reviewer:  Cheryl Ellis, Allbooks Review

   Available through order by bookstore or from Amazon.com

ISBN-13:     978-1847539304
Pages:          236

www.thefishcatcher.co.uk

On Writing by Stephen King - Book Review

There have been hundreds of books written purporting to show the reader how to improve their writing, be it novels, short stories or whatever. Most of these books have been written by people who have achieved a modicum of success in one field. Afterwards they fall back on relying on “How To” books, no doubt boosting their book sales in the process.

 

That isn’t the case with this book. This one is written by Stephen King, yes that Stephen King, the man whose books have sold chillions of copies the world over, and whose films, (or films from his books), have become known everywhere, such as The Green Mile, Shawshank Redemption, Carrie and The Shining, to name but four.

 

With a provenance like that, this book deserves to be taken seriously, and it is. The work is partly autobiographical, and is all the more readable for that. It contains a limited number of exercises for budding writers, and finally, it contains chapter and verse of his horrific accident, if that is the right word for it, when while out walking one afternoon, he is mown down by a drunk driver paying too much attention to a dog in the cabin.

 

If you like Stephen King books, you will adore this book. If you don’t like King’s work in any shape or form, but are still interested in improvingyour own writing, then you will still love this work. I literally could not put it down, and am so glad I came across it.

 

Next time you see a copy of Stephen King’s On Writing, buy it and do yourself a favour. It is a super book, one I found truly uplifting.

 

 

On Writing by Stephen King

ISBN: 0340769963

Subject: Playing for Pizza by John Grisham - Book Review

 

Methinks Signor Grisham has fallen in love with all things Italiano. After The Broker, set primarily in Bologna, here we have Playing for Pizza, set mainly in Parma.

 

The story revolves around American Football player Rick Dockery, chased out of Cleveland for throwing away the ball and losing a vital match. Rick pitches up in Parma to play for the local Panthers before a few people and their dogs.

 

Along the way we are treated to pages and pages of detailed information on Italian food, information that drove me regularly to the refrigerator, pages on Italian architecture, the churches and castles and civic buildings that clearly impress Signor Grisham greatly. There is even a section on how to start, drive, and park a Fiat Punto vehicle, startling information that shares with us that the car actually possesses a clutch pedal, and how to use it, and god forbid, wind down windows too. Though perhaps the most starling revelation is the fact that most, if not all the churches in Parma are catholic. Goodness gracious me. What would Martin Luther make of that?

 

Somewhat predictably, Rick falls in love with the local young and glamorous opera singer, or does he, for she soon disappears and is never heard of again, and just as soon as we are introduced to the Panthers’ rivals, the horrid Bergamo Lions, I was able to see the ending. There are some poignant, humorous and moving moments too, mainly revolving around Franco’s gluteus muscles, but we won’t go into that any further thank you very much, but nothing to compare with what might be found in say, The Painted House.

 

The book is a pleasant enough read, even for someone like me who cannot understand, nor has any interest in American Football. It is not a book for the slightly overweight, for the long descriptions of ham and cheese will drive you bananas. Perhaps it should come with a government health warning.

 

Playing with Pizza does give the impression it was written in something of a hurry, perhaps to please the marketing persons, (get another one out for Christmas Johnny!) utilising many of Signor Grisham’s latest holiday notes. For all that, it will appeal to his legions of loyal fans, though whether it will attract too many new ones, is a moot point. It isn’t edgy, particularly moving, ground breaking, that exciting, or unputdownable, though there is nothing wrong with it at all. Make no mistake, I enjoyed reading it, and many others will too.

 

If I might be so bold as to make a prediction, I’ll wager that next time Signor Grisham will revert to his first love, The Law. After all, there are many gentlemen in Italy who could do with a good lawyer, allegedly, and I can see it all now, mobsters being successfully defended by a renegade American lawyer with a dodgy past, with lots of…ham…and cheese.

 

Could Playing for Pizza be the Christmas number one seller? I doubt it, for there are much better books out there to pick from just now. Perhaps we should Skip Christmas this year…though that is another story entirely.

 

Playing for Pizza by John Grisham

ISBN: 978-1846053689    

Subject: The Ghost by Robert Harris - Book Review

 

Adam Lang is a former British prime minister who took Britain to war in the middle east in support of American allies. Sound familiar? Well, it’s supposed to. Robert Harris’s disenchantment with New Labour is well documented and it is impossible to read this book without regularly thinking of another ex-prime minister. Lang also possesses a pushy wife, yet oddly I never once equated her with another.

 

Lang’s memoirs are being produced by a ghost writer; a process that is rudely interrupted when he is found washed up on the beach at Martha’s Vineyard. Step forward the replacement writer, who, writing in the first person, I couldn’t help imaging was Robert Harris himself. Not for the first time in this book the lines between fact and fiction were becoming blurred. That can be dangerous.

 

One can only speculate at the real reason behind this book. Surely Robert Harris is beyond needing some form of controversy, forced or otherwise, to sell his superb books. I did get the impression it had been written in something of a hurry, and released in a similar vein.

 

All that said though, The Ghost serves once again to remind us that Mister Harris has few equals when it comes to writing this genre of book. I loved all his previous works and read this one in record time, for me. The pace is bordering on the reckless, and it really was difficult to put down, even when my eyelids were demanding to be closed.

 

If you read and enjoyed Harris’s previous books, you will probably enjoy this one too. If you are new to Robert Harris and his creative imagination, I would start with something else. That is six novels I make it from this gifted writer, but good though it is, I would still rank it at number six, which says more for the quality of his previous work, rather than any weakness to be found here. It is a very good and enjoyable book, and streets ahead of many of his rivals.

 

The Ghost by Robert Harris.

ISBN: 978-0091796266

 

The Man in the High Castle by Philip K Dick - Book review

You may never have come across the work of Philip K Dick before, indeed you may know nothing about this writer, but then again, if you have seen the film Blade Runner, perhaps you have. Blade Runner is a movie that was based on another of Mister Dick’s work: Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?

The Man in the High Castle suggests that the Axis forces won World War II. The United States is split into three, the western part, now the Pacific States of America is Japanese dominated, while the eastern section has become part of Greater Germany, as indeed has Great Britain and all of Europe. Only the central part of the USA retains some form of freedom. Ultimately a recipe for conflict between the two superpowers and in that conclusion you would be right.

The book is set in the early sixties and you might think it owes something to Robert Harris’s Fatherland, until you notice that this book was in fact first released in 1962. Perhaps it was the other way round as far as that is concerned. Hitler is still alive, but locked away in an Asylum suffering from Alzheimer’s, leaving the way clear for yet another power struggle between the equally awful wannabes.

Some of the hellish results of this possible outcome to World War II act as a timely reminder of just why it was so important that this imagined result never came to pass. I came to this book through the 2001 re-release, and I am so glad I did.

Mister Dick lived a turbulent and all too short life, passing away aged just fifty-three in 1982. He somehow managed to fit in five wives and write more than thirty-five novels, (only one of which sold well during his lifetime), despite bouts of serious depression and periods of drug dependency. He craved success, as so many writers do, and no doubt he would have gained great satisfaction from the worldwide sales his books boast today.

If you enjoy novels about World War II where the writer imagines different scenarios to those that actually took place, or indeed if you like “What ifs” about any historic event, then The Man in the High Castle will not disappoint you, or may be it will, but then again…

I thoroughly enjoyed it. If you have the opportunity, read it, and make up your own mind.

The Man in the High Castle
Philip K Dick
ISBN: 0141186674

Flying a Flag for Hitler - Book Review

“Flying a Flag for Hitler” tells the story of the young Elsbeth Emmerich growing up in Nazi Germany during World War II. This is a superb little book written by Elsbeth herself.

Of how her Daddy reluctantly goes off to war to fight and never comes back from the snowy wastes of Leningrad. Of how her mother loses her job as an athletic’s coach because she refuses to join the party. Of her how her granddad is repeatedly taken away by the Gestapo for not flying the swastika flag.

What particularly struck me was how similar her memories are compared to my own mother’s, as Elsbeth was evacuated from the city to the country, just as my mother was from Liverpool to North Wales. The photographs Elsbeth shows us of herself in school are almost identical to the ones I have of my mother from the late nineteen thirties.

I particularly found the day they were finally conquered/invaded/liberated by the Americans particularly moving. They had been told they would be tortured and shot. Elsbeth and her brother and sisters, terrified of what was about to happen, hid in an old washing tub. Her words describe what happened next far better than mine ever could.

“I became so happy and totally relieved and exhilarated when I realized that the Americans were not “the enemy” as I had been taught, but normal human beings, friendly and generous. No one was being shot and no one was being tortured. I didn’t have to plead for my mother or sisters’ lives. I cannot remember ever feeling happier or more relieved than I did after the Americans came to our little village.”

This is a marvellous little book. I have read hundreds of books about the Second World War, both fact and fiction, and I have no hesitation in recommending this one. 

Flying a Flag for Hitler, My childhood in Nazi Germany by Elsbeth Emmerich. ISBN: 034090268X

Book Review for "Big Money in Books" From the MILL ADVERTISER - Home Business Magazine

I often have books/publications and home business opportunities arrive at my desk for my perusal and normally accompanied with a request for a favourable review and recommendation. Regretably, most, in my opinion, do not offer genuine business opportunities and many instances quite honestly are not even worth serious consideration.

However every now and then something arrives which for those that are really serious in making a success of a new business venture not only needs a second look but positive action will undoubtedly reap rewards.

I am referring to a new publication written and published by David Carter on how to start and run your own online bookstore, titled Big Money in Books.

The book covers every aspect of the business, over 200 pages of information and 'how to' guidelines including Starting Up - Acquiring Stock - What and What Not to buy - Where to Sell - Pricing and Listing - Books to Look For - Free Colour Printing - Free Stock - Contact Lists - Questions & Answers.

The above are just a sample of the many informative sections of the book along with web and email addresses of suppliers and the like.

I have no reservations whatsoever in recommending this publication to all those seriously dedicated to achieving success in the home working industry.

Priced at just 11.95 sterling for a hard copy or 7.95 for a download version, you have little to lose but much to gain.  www.bigmoneybooks.co.uk

Subject: Prescription For Murder. The True Story of Mass Murderer Doctor Harold Frederick Shipman

What an extraordinary book this is, very well researched by Brian Whittle and Jean Ritchie. It tells the story of the infamous mass murderer Doctor Harold Shipman, known to his “friends”, as Fred.

Doctor Shipman was tried and found guilty of fifteen murders in 1999. Latest research suggests he may well have killed 250 people, and possibly even more than that. That makes him Britain’s worst known mass murderer and puts him right up there in the first division of evil. Most of his victims were elderly women. Trusting women. Vulnerable women. Only too keen to accept a “vitamin” injection from the friendly GP, or a “flu jab”. It will do you good dear. Give you a tonic.

The man had a fascination with morphine. He watched his own mother dying of cancer, helped by morphine. He developed a morphine habit of his own, and killed his victims using morphine, a particularly stupid method, seeing as morphine is so easily traceable. “Stupid”, was favourite word of his. He considered himself above mere mortals and loved to belittle “stupid” underlings. That says a lot about the man. He avoided detection whenever possible by having the bodies cremated.  For years no one thought to challenge him. You just don’t think badly of the hard working family doctor, do you? At least people didn’t, back then.

This book published in 2000 refers to him as being on suicide watch in Manchester’s Strangeways prison. What the writers didn’t know at the time of course was that he would indeed commit suicide on the eve of his 58th birthday on 13th January 2004.

I particularly liked the coverage of the early years, the sixties, as he was growing up and courting and marrying. Surely the roots of his crimes were growing there. And where exactly the writers obtained such detailed accounts I have no idea, but the resulting work is a monumental achievement. Excellent and poignant photographs too.

For anyone studying crime, or the psychology of murderers, this book is an essential requirement. It isn’t pretty and it isn’t cheerful, but it is a compelling account of the tragic events that unfolded in Cheshire town of Hyde. Hyde will recover, the last sentence in the book. I will second that.

ISBN: 0751529982
By Brian Whittle & Jean Ritchie

The Bear and the Dragon by Tom Clancy - Book Review

This is a beast of a book, 1028 pages in the hard backed edition in a smallish point type. Don’t even consider tackling it unless you have lots of spare time, good eyes, and plenty of stickability.

When I set out on the road of The Bear and the Dragon I did not expect to complete it, I have never been a great Tom Clancy epic lover you see, but it surprised me. It unfailingly hooked me, and I stuck with through to the end.

Briefly, China threatens Russia, the U.S. through her superior all-knowing intelligence gathering networks (is anyone as confident in American intelligence gathering today as they once were?)  forewarns Russia and invites “Ivan” into the NATO fold. Ivan, surprised and duly slobbering at the mouth, bites off the invitation, which allows American troops into Russia. Does that sound plausible? Possible perhaps, but likely - may be not.

As per normal Mister Clancy demonstrates a thorough knowledge of all things armament, which may interest many readers, bored me I have to say, though I found the human stories contained within this book far more interesting and readable, and if they are un-Clancy-like, well perhaps TC ought to concentrate more upon those, though I guess in that case half his readership would disappear in a multi-megaton. Size isn’t everything you know, so they say.

Would I read another Tom Clancy doorstep novel? Yes I would, without hesitation, especially if he could be persuaded to write more about people, and less about obliteration. 

ISBN: 071814337X

Bad Luck And Trouble – the NEW Jack Reacher Adventure - by Lee Child - Book review.

Bad Luck and Trouble is the new Lee Child blockbuster featuring his alter ego Jack Reacher.

Word comes that some of his old unit are in trouble, serious trouble. Worse still, dead. Tossed from a helicopter high over the Mojave desert. Nasty way to die; but is someone sending out a message? Of course it is enough to put the remaining members of the old squad back together, back in harness, and on the trail of the bad guys. You wouldn’t want to be hunted by Jack Reacher, not unless you had a death wish.

After two books that for me didn’t quite live up to his usual high standard, Mister Child’s Bad Luck and Trouble is right back in the groove. I found BLT unputdownable, and raced through it. It is a real page-turner, the dialog is as crisp and realistic as ever, and the technical details always come across as spot on, not that I am any great expert on firearms. What is it the movie posters usually say? - Unmissable - or Stunning - or perhaps – Sensational. Yep, that’s about right, they’ll all do for me.