KILL THE MESSENGER by Tami Hoag

Finished very early on the morning of Su 10/11/20

This is a hardback that Janny loaned me. She is also a fan of Tami Hoag and so am I.

Her books are plot driven and a fast and satisfying read.

This was one of my favorite books by the author, although I didn't like the ending. The very last part of the book so lame that it reminded me of an Agatha Christie novel. It seemed like a random person was behind the murder, but not the kidnapping so I guess this is a little bit more interesting.

Jace Damon (JC) is a bike messenger in contemporary LA. He is living beneath the radar because he is slightly underage and supporting his ten year old brother, Tyler. If they become known to the authorities Tyler will end up in foster care and JC made a promise to his dead mother that he would always be there for Tyler. 

JC is called after hours to pick up a package for a lawyer. When he goes to the address to drop the material he is attacked and almost killed. 

So JC must uncover what's going on and do it without anyone's help because he would risk loving Tyler.

However, both boys do have a kind of mother in Mrs. Chen. She is a matriarch and runs a fish store in Chinatown. This is where the boys live.

A better synopsis than mine from Goodreads:

"With this new thriller, The New York Times bestselling author Tami Hoag delivers her own message to suspense fans everywhere: Don't turn off the lights, and keep reading if you dare. From the gritty streets of Los Angeles to its most protected enclaves of prestige and power to the ruthless glamour of Hollywood, a killer stalks his prey. A killer so merciless no one in his way is safe—not even the innocent.

At the end of a long day battling street traffic, bike messenger Jace Damon has one last drop to make. But en route to delivering a package for one of L.A.'s sleaziest defense attorneys, he's nearly run down by a car, chased through back alleys, and shot at. Only the instincts acquired while growing up on the streets of L.A. allow him to escape with his life—and with the package someone wants badly enough to kill for.

Jace returns to Lenny Lowell's office only to find the cops there, the lawyer dead, and Jace himself considered the prime suspect in the savage murder. Suddenly he's on the run from both the cops and a killer, and the key to saving himself and his ten-year-old brother is the envelope he still has—which holds a message no one wants delivered: the truth.

In a city fueled by money, celebrity, and sensationalism, the murder of a bottom-feeding mouthpiece like Lenny Lowell won't make the headlines. So when detectives from the LAPD's elite robbery/homicide division show up, homicide detective Kev Parker wants to know why. Parker is on the downhill slide of a once-promising career, and he doesn't want to be reminded that he used to be one of the hotshots, working cases that made instant celebrities of everyone involved. Like the case of fading pretty-boy actor Rob Cole, accused of the brutal murder of his wife, Tricia Crowne-Cole, daughter of one of the most powerful men in the city, L.A.'s latest "crime of the century."

Robbery/Homicide has no reason to be looking at a dead small-time scumbag lawyer or chasing a bike messenger...unless there's something in it for them. Maybe Lenny Lowell had a connection to something big enough to be killed for. Parker begins a search for answers that will lead him to a killer—or the end of his career. Because if there's one lesson he's learned over the years, it's that in a town built on fantasy and fame, delivering the truth can be deadly."

 

 

BLESSINGS by Anna Quindlen

 Finished We 10/7/20

This is a hardback that Janny loaned to me. I was somewhat familiar with Quindlen, but I was really surprised by how well written this novel was. I really loved the book!

A baby is left on the steps of a country estate in upstate Mount Mason, New York. This changes the lives of numerous people and uncovers deep and dark secrets.

The baby was left on the porch of the young man who was the handyman for the estate. He recently was released from the county jail for his part as the driver in a robbery. He didn't know that he was part of a robbery scheme, but thought he was just out for a ride with some questionable friends.

Skip Cuddy (Charles) bonds with the little girl that he names, Faith. 

Lydia Blessing is the 80 years old and has lived on the estate only with her housekeeper, Nadine. A Korean war bride with a teenage daughter, Jennifer.

Lydia learns of the baby and also bonds with Faith.

Skip and Lydia become 'parents'.

The Sub-Plot is that Lydia's brother was gay. The man that Lydia married was actually Skip's lover, Benny. 

During WWII Lydia became pregnant by an acquaintance, Frank, but this was never acknowledged.  

The Blessings family basically kept Lydia cloistered at the estate.

In the end, the girl that left Faith comes back to claim the baby.

Lydia dies and leaves the garage apartment to Skip. In the apartment is nearly a hundred thousand dollars in cash that Lydia's father had left for her, but she never paid it any attention. 

Skip starts a lawn care operation and Lydia's daughter sells the house, but decides that the name 'Blessing' should be left on the estate.

From Bookbrowse.com:

"... begins when a teenage couple drives up, late at night, headlights out, to Blessings, the estate owned by Lydia Blessing. They leave a box and drive away, and in this instant, the world of Blessings is changed forever. Richly written, deeply moving, beautifully crafted, Blessings tells the story of Skip Cuddy, caretaker of the estate, who finds a baby asleep in that box and decides he wants to keep her, and of matriarch Lydia Blessing, who, for her own reasons, decides to help him. The secrets of the past, how they affect the decisions and lives of people in the present; what makes a person, a life, legitimate or illegitimate, and who decides; the unique resources people find in themselves and in a community—these are at the center of this wonderful novel of love, redemption, and personal change by the writer about whom The Washington Post Book World said, "Quindlen knows that all the things we ever will be can be found in some forgotten fragment of family." 

I really loved the novel and have alerted Janny to see if she has more books written by Quindlen. 

METHUSELAH'S CHILDREN by Robert Heinlein

 Finished Sa 10/3/20

This is one of my ancient paperbacks that I have apparently never read. I learned that this novel is the first in a series featuring Lazarus Long. The story was released as serialized fiction to an early 40's SciFi magazine and published as a book in the early fifties. 

The Federation vs. The Foundation. The story is set in the future and The Federation is the government of Earth and The Foundation is a collection of families that have realized that people who live extraordinary long lives should only breed with others who have a genetic tendency for long life. 

The government believes that The Foundation is keeping the secret of Long Life from  the rest of the world. This is not true, but it is clear that The Foundation family cannot stay on Earth because the rest of the population would resent the fact that they could live for so long. 

A crooked bargain is made where The Federation will allow The Foundation families to leave if they reveal the secret.

The Families head out on a stolen space vehicle and search for an Earth-like planet.

Jockaira- These are the 'people' that they meet on their first planet that they find. These creatures are 'man-like', although they are nearly eight feet tall and their faces are split vertically from the mouth. The humans are 'rushed' into becoming part of the Jockaira's religion. 

It's not a real religion, but the Jockaira are actually kept as pets by beings of this religion. The humans leave.

They go to another planet where the creatures are all connected telepathically and look somewhat like upright rabbits. The climate is perfect and the creatures are able to 'grow' whatever kind of food that the humans might like to eat.

Lazarus Long and the leaders decide that they should go back to Earth and see if they can try to live again. 

The mid section of the novel was kind of slow, but once they arrived at the first planet, things picked up.

Lazarus Long's page at Wikipedia:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lazarus_Long

An easy read, but 'STRANGER IN A STRANGE LAND' it is not!

LEGION by William Peter Blatty

 Finished Tu 9/29/20

This is one of my ancient paperbacks (released in 1983) and there is notation when I bought it or if it has been read. The book is a sequel to THE EXORCIST. 

I was surprised to learn that there have been five movies in the 'Exorcist Franchise'. 

A young black mute paperboy is brutally murdered. The killing looks like it was done by The Gemini Killer, but this man was murdered twelve years before. The kid was crucified on rowing oars.

A  priest is decapitated and another priest is murdered.

Lt. Kinderman is the detective in charge. He distinctly Jewish, near retirement and given to posing questions about the nature of reality and why does God act the way he does. 

The best parts of the novel are the philosophical discussions that Kinderman (A kinder man?) has with the other characters.

There is an eye-opening quote from Charles Darwin in which he says that he believes in a creator.

An Interesting Point of View:

"Let There Be Light" might actually mean "Let There Be Reality".

I guess that the novel makes the case that the murders have been committed by an angel who was mad at the original exorcism. 

From a review at 'deadendfollies.com':

"...it's not REALLY a horror novel and not REALLY a mystery either. It's a literary novel that tries to address the possibility of religious dogma being true in the most realistic possible way. I supposed you can say it's a novel about demonology? It may seem austere and maybe it is a little, but I thought it was a lot more convincing than the flying demon/battling angel type of supernatural horror."

I liked the book and would read more by Blatty.

I noticed that the film, 'EXORCIST 3' was available on Amazon Prime and I made it today's Morning Movie:

Although Blatty wrote the screenplay the ending is radically different from the novel. Kinderman has a 'Exorcism Struggle' with the man in the padded cell who claims to be Kinderman's friend, the priest. This exorcism seemed very tacked-on, and according to one of the YouTube video reviews, it was. The bit about the carp living in his bathtub is still in the film and one of the highlights; George C. Scott, Brad Dourif, and a very small role for a very young Kevin Corrigan.

A WOMAN AT WAR by Molly Moore

 Finished We 9/23/20

This is one of my hardbacks that I don't know when I bought it and apparently had never read.

This is NOT a story of 'a woman in a man's world', but it's more of a blue print on what went down during Desert Shield and Desert Storm. It was only a three day war and thousands of  Iraqi soldiers surrendered during the first minutes of the attack. 

There is an excellent 'wrap-up' beginning on page 315.

Many military and government officials do not want reporters to be anywhere near the frontlines for fear of giving away the generals' battle plans. But, Molly reminded them that the generals on the frontlines were more than willing to get their plans 'on the record'. And, modern battles move so fast and the 'front' is so wide ranging that even if 'secret' information was released it would no longer be relevant. 

So much of the information that was gleaned from American intelligence agencies was just flat-out wrong. They over stated completely the strength of The Republican Guard and how many enemy soldiers were actually on the field of battle. Moore seems to believe that this was done for political reasons and none other. 

The biggest 'reveal' was that the 'new' battle plans were largely ineffective and tanks and 'boots on the ground' fighting is what carried the day. 

Communication was the biggest problem at the frontlines. During the battles generals had no idea what was going on....Just like Vietnam, WWII, and the Civil War. 

From the back cover of the book:

"During the Gulf War, most journalists were confined to media pools. But not Molly Moore, the senior military correspondent of The Washington Post. Moore was the only reporter to accompany a senior commanding general as he led his troops into battle in Kuwait. This is her eyewitness account of the war as she lived it by the side of the top Marine general, Walter E. Boomer. There has never been a book quite like Molly Moore's, for hers is the unique story of what a woman experienced inside the Gulf War military machine - in a male-dominated military amidst an Islamic culture in which women are on a level with the family pet. Molly Moore offers a detailed account of the buildup toward war in both Washington and the Gulf, and reveals the heroism as well as the calamity of the battlefield - the miscalculations, the failed communications, the distress and disarray among the troops and their officers. With an appealing combination of chilling authority and a warm understanding of the human dimensions of battle, she provides a frank and unprecedented view of the war planning councils as the action escalates. Here, too, are the tensions and exhilaration of daily life in a war zone - what it was like to wait for days for a gas mask when everyone else was well protected; how it felt to live in the desert, where, among other hazards, freezing winds made it impossible to take out a pair of contact lenses, and lack of privacy left women on duty with few choices about bathroom facilities. A Woman at War showcases as well the fresh and exciting new voice of Molly Moore herself, the first woman Pentagon correspondent in the history of The Washington Post. For its unusually candid and graphic depictionof men - and for the first time, women - in battle, A Woman at War will be highly valued and long remembered."

  

THE BIG FIX by Roger L. Simon

 Finished Th 9/17/20

This was one of my ancient paperbacks that I had apparently never read. There is also no date when I bought the book.

This is a very well-written novel with a somewhat confusing and convoluted plot-line.

MODERN PREMISE:

A Democratic candidate for the California legislature gets endorsed by a former Leftist Radical. This could ruin his chances to have his name tied to a violent Socialist. Then, the Leftists issue a press release that the are bombing a secret section of the Los Angeles highway system in the name of the Democratic candidate.

They are probably too many characters and numerous red herrings, but I guess this style of novel is very popular. 

On Saturday, 9/18 I watched the movie of 'The Big Fix' on YouTube. I thought that the movie did a far superior job of telling the story. Although the film was still very complex, it made sense in the end.

 Richard Dreyfuss, John Lithgow, and F. Murray Abrahams looked so young that I almost didn't recognize them. Once I heard their voices, I knew who they were.

The film's page at Wikipedia which also gives a fair rendition of the story-line. 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Big_Fix_(1978_film)

Roger L. Simon's page at Wikipedia

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roger_L._Simon#Moses_Wine_Series

THE KEYS TO TULSA by Brian Fair Bekey

Finished Su 9/14/20

Last week I watched the movie with James Spader and Eric Stoltz and was confused, but I thought that the idea was great. I found the book on Amazon and ordered and I'm glad that I did. I'll watch the movie again (Amazon Prime) soon. 

Set in Tulsa, OK during the early 80's- The Reagan Years. The Tulsa Race Riot of 1921 is mentioned. I watched two YouTube documentaries about this incident of American genocide. May 31st, 1921 the white townspeople burned down the entire successful Black area of the town. Greenwood was destroyed and hundreds of blacks were murdered. In a town of 100,000, three thousand people belonged to The Ku Klux Klan. 

"Redneck Film Noire"

Richter Boudreau is a boozed up, drug addled newspaper reporter. He's barely hanging on to his job and writes movie reviews when it's convenient. He also teaches a college film class. He was born rich, but now has sunk to the bottom.

He falls under the spell of an old girlfriend, Vicky Stover. When he was in high school he was friends with Vicky's brother, Keith. Keith is now a morbidly obese man who does nothing but drink and drug. He is very rich and lives off his inheritance.

Vicky is now married to Ronnie. He's an over-aged juvenile delinquent who has come up with kidnapping plan. He knows a stripper who witnessed the murder of another stripper by a wealthy and well-connected white man. He wants to hit them up for over a million dollars in blackmail.

The book is about how Richter tries to get a handle on 'the plan and the players'.  

The review at Publishers Weekly:

"Berkey's manic and wildly raunchy debut novel is not likely to be warmly received by the Tulsa Chamber of Commerce. He takes us on a seven-day out-of-control grand tour of this Western city's extensive seamy side. Berkey leaves skid marks on Oral Roberts University and racist country clubs, and rampages through the red-light district with quick pit stops in striptease parlors and drug dens. The company is less than wholesome: hookers, heroin addicts, a murderer or two, extortionists, millionaire prairie preachers and yahoos galore. It's as if the cast of Taxi Driver were to invade the set of True Grit ; a sort of redneck film noire. And it succeeds smashingly. Richter Boudreau, the novel's central character, is the ultimate scamp. He's a wisecracking Berkeley graduate in deep trouble with gangsters and the police. Not the least of his concerns is that he owes a lot of money to a temperamental drug dealer involved in blackmailing some of Tulsa's leading citizens. Richter's love life--by turns absurdly romantic and unbelievably sleazy--only complicates the mess. One of the most fiendish characters is Richter's very own mother, a glorious manipulator bent on straightening out her errant son. Mixed up in the story is Richter's partner in vice, journalist George Brinkman, who is investigating the death of a topless dancer, the novel's main mystery. Berkey's only bad habit is his continual mockery of the characters' cornball accents. It's the one note of condescension in a novel of great sympathy and enjoyment. The keys to Berkey's Tulsa unlock a raucous and exciting world."

From the book:

"Tulsa was a sociopolitical jerkwater, an isolated pocket of oilmen, defense contractors, racists, Republicans, and religious fanatics a place forgotten by time, like one of those tiny hamlets in the Appalachians where they still spoke Elizabethan English. Heterogeneous opinion was inappropriate; you spoke the common language or you kept your mouth shut."

I would love to read more by this author, but apparently this was his only book. Too bad, I would have loved to read more.