PHANTOM by Jo Nesbo

 Finished the Kindle edition Tu 4/14/26

This was a novel that I got from the library on Kindle.

It was part of the Harry Hole series and it's a stand-alone novel, but it was a little confusing. It's the 9th book in the series. 

Harry is trying to find out who killed the son of an old lover. The reveal is that the kid who Harry thought was innocent was actually the murderer. 

A detailed recap of the book:

https://746books.com/2014/12/03/phantom-jo-nesbo/

From a reviewer at Amazon:  

""Phantom" by Jo Nesbo is an excellent book. I think this, even though I don't particularly like Police Crime novels. But Nesbo's stories are different: rich, engrossing, clever, brutal, full of carefully developed characters, even sentimental and loving at time, and astonishingly literary. The above title to my review is from Page 205 and is spoken by the ghost of the dead Gusto, one of the narrators in the story, a beautiful young man who is murdered. Wrongly accused of the murder, Oleg, the son of Harry Hole's erstwhile lover Rakel is already in prison awaiting prosecution. Harry, Nesbo's main police guy (or ex-police in this story), has returned from a 3 year hiatus in Hong Kong to save Oleg, believing him to be innocent of the murder. Harry has a troubled past (aptly illustrated in the long-running series), operates often as a loose cannon, doesn't really care what anybody thinks, and uses his long-established police and other Oslo connections to work his magic. Harry has long been Oleg's only father-figure. Harry loves the boy and puts his life on the line time and time again in his attempts to save him." 

THE LATHE OF HEAVEN by Ursula K. Leguin

 I didn't record when I finished the novel, but it was in early April of 2026. I've read the book several times since I bought it at the library booksale on Sa 2/7/04.

It's the story of a man who seeks psychological help when he realizes that his dreams are affecting reality. However, his therapist hijacks his ability and uses 'the changes' to implement what the counsulor feels should be 'real'. 

A take on the novel from 'sammatey.substack.com':

"That’s the book. It’s a really good book! From one perspective, it’s lost some of its punch these days because it’s very much “of its time” and can seem outdated: many people now worry far more about human population decline than human population growth, as fertility rates are dropping sharply around the world. But I would argue that as time has gone by, The Lathe of Heaven has actually taken on a whole new meaning that enriches the reading experience. As its featured fears receded into the past; it’s become a fascinating time capsule of what smart people in the mid-20th century were extremely worried about. The litany of horrors George dreams up really did seem like very plausible near-term futures in the 1970s. Reading books and articles from the time gives a sense of a broad-based horrifying feeling among many intelligentsia of the time that dystopian tradeoffs were inevitable, that we’d either have Malthusian mass famine or totalitarian control of all reproduction, and probably lots of both. The fact that we have a population of over eight billion humans as of 2024 would have seemed a sure indicator of apocalypse to many. Make Room! Make Room!, the 1966 science fiction novel that inspired the movie Soylent Green, posited that a population of just seven billion would have caused total environmental collapse, with only the infamous ration left as a food source for the starving multitudes."  ken

PRNETICE ALVIN by Orson Scott Card

 Finished We 4/1/26

This is a paperback that I had never read and I don't know why I ignored it for so long.

The novel is set in an alternative colonial period in American history. The colonies are different and there is no American federal government. The author is Mormon and his writing reflects his 'conservative' views on life. 

From Kirkus:

"Third volume of Card's Tales of Alvin Maker (most recently Red Prophet, 1988), set in an alternate America where magic works (people have "knacks") and a fledgling US peacefully coexists with various Crown Colonies, republics, and independent Indian nations. Alvin returns to the town of his birth, Hatrack River, to take up his apprenticeship with Makepeace the blacksmith; he will also, finally, meet Peggy, the "torch" (she reads people's futures, among other things), who has been Alvin's secret protector since his birth. Alvin hopes she can teach him the art of Making. But Makepeace turns out to be a harsh and mean taskmaster; worse, Peggy has disappeared (she loves Alvin, but can foresee nothing but disaster for them as a couple). Alvin, then, learns to extend his powers greatly, but does not yet discover what he needs in order to become a Maker. After various complications involving slavery (still institutionalized in the South), Peggy returns to Hatrack River magically disguised, to be the town schoolmarm. Alvin, furious with the unyielding Makepeace and inspired by the schoolmarm's gentle guidance (he still doesn't know who she really is), mingles iron and magic to craft a golden plow that, in some eerie fashion, seems alive. Finally, Alvin and Peggy reveal themselves to each other, then part once more, as Alvin—now secure in his knowledge of the art of Making—realizes that his true vocation is to teach the art to others. Another thoughtful, involving, immensely appealing yarn, bubbling with folksy charm: Alvin shows no sign of running out of steam." 

This novel is part of a series and I would like to read more of this 'fantasy fiction'. 

 

VICTIM by Gary Kinder

 Finished Tu 3/26/26: Superb Non-Fiction!

This is one of my ancient paperbacks that I bought at Forsyth old book barn on Sa 11/25/15 and I read it again and finished on Sa 1/23/16.

I said that "it's as good as they said it would be" and "leaves Anne Rule in the dust and easily compares to Truman Capote's 'IN COLD BLOOD'". 

This has to be one of the most gruesome 'botched robberies' ever recorded- The Hi- Fi Murders; Ogden, Utah; April 1974. 

I was surprised that the author never wrote any more True Crime books. However, he is a famous lawyer and is known for his software program that he developed. 

This would have made a terrific movie although it was done many years ago (not so good) and starred Richard Chamberlin. 

I loved the book and I've been hyping it to Janny. 

THE PURPLE BOOK by Philip Jose Farmer

Finished We 3/25/26

This is one of my ancient paperbacks that I had never read and purchased at the library book sale on Sa 6/9/18.

It's a short collection of novellas by Farmer.

The best (by far) is part of his novel, 'THE RIDERS OF THE PURPLE SAGE'. This is a pun on the Zane Grey novel and deals with an American future in which the government financially supports all citizens. 'Purple' was picked because the color invokes the richness of ancient Rome. 

The poor are housed in ovid shaped apartments located about 20 feet above the surface. Everything is paid, but the lifestyle is boring and people are moved randomly to protect against popular uprisings. I would have loved to read this interesting book because with the real threat of AI and complete automation it is not at all surprising that the government would initiate a 'standard minimum salary for all'. 

One novella dealt with C.B. Demille coming back and making a movie with The Devil and God. One dealt with Rip Van Winkle and the others were completely forgettable. 

I'd still read anything by Philip Jose Farmer because he was one of the best 'pulp fiction' writers who ever lived.    

MANHATTAN IS MY BEAT by Jeffrey Deaver

 This is a paperback that I bought at the Rochester Book Sale in 2023. I bought a bag of books for five bucks. Finished Su 4/23/23 and refinished on Su 3/8/26.

The story involves a young woman who works at a video store in NY city. She went to a man's apartment to pick up a video and the man had been murdered. It's a cute story with lots of twists. 

From AI Overview:

"Manhattan Is My Beat (1988) by Jeffery Deaver is the first book in the Rune trilogy, featuring a 20-year-old punk-styled amateur sleuth who works in a NYC video store. When her favorite customer is murdered, she investigates, believing a classic film noir holds the clue to a stolen fortune.

Rune is described as smart, witty, street-wise, and obsessed with old films, making her an unconventional heroine.

Plot: Following the murder of elderly customer Mr. Kelly, Rune uncovers a connection between his death and a real-life, unsolved bank robbery, drawing her into a dangerous investigation."

SUICIDE BLONDE by Darcey Steinke

 Refinished Th 3/4/26

This is one of my old trade paperbacks that I first read Th 7/23/98.

Not much of this novel stuck with me, but it was an enjoyable read.

From KIRKUS:

"After her relatively demure debut (Up Through the Water, 1989), Steinke turns up the heat for this episodic tale of kinky sex and all-out depravity. It's a bad girl's memoir of her descent into the netherworld of San Francisco's Mission District. In two weeks, pretty young Jesse (a woman always ``attracted'' to people who make her feel ``inadequate'') explores the seamy underside of modern life. Doing penance for her ``bland suburban past,'' Jesse ``dabbles in perversity.'' Her lover, a handsome actor named Bell, is busy mooning for his former boyfriend, soon to be married in L.A. Insanely jealous, Jesse confides in Madam Pig, an obese alcoholic for whom she keeps house. The reclusive old dame encourages Jesse to seek out a woman named Madison, who Pig claims is her daughter. In fact, Madison, Pig's ex-lover, is now a junkie prostitute who works from a bar in the Mission. From the moment they meet, Jesse is drawn to her sense of ease and power, and moves into Madison's apartment. Jesse's adventures begin: a trip to a live peep show; anonymous sex in a darkroom; sex with Bell in the presence of a trollish homosexual; masturbation with a statute of Christ in an empty church; a hand-job to a homosexual in a gay bar; turning a few tricks at Madison's whorehouse; smoking opium in a den run by a hermaphrodite; and witnessing Madison penetrate a john so violently with her fist that he dies. This last finally convinces Jesse that all ``relationships'' are ``sinister, violent, even murderous.'' As if all this weren't laying it on a bit thick, Steinke has Bell commit suicide at the very moment of Kevin's wedding. That's totally in keeping with the reductive psychology everywhere evident in this silly, violent book. So self-consciously seeking ``that exquisite kick of perversity,'' this callow fiction comes off as something along the lines of a much more sincere American Psycho. All the more pathetic. Expect the usual brouhaha: condemnation, then increased sales."