Tag: Thriller (Page 8 of 16)

BOOK REVIEW: Darkness, Take My Hand (Kenzie & Gennaro #2) by Dennis Lehane

September 15, 2015 / Chelsea / 0 Comments

Darkness, Take My Hand (Kenzie & Gennaro #2)
by Dennis Lehane
Purchase on: Amazon, iBooks
Add to: Goodreads

Synopsis:
The master of the new "noir," Dennis Lehane magnificently evokes the dignity and savagery of working-class Boston in this terrifying tale of darkness and redemption.

Patrick Kenzie and Angela Gennaro's latest client is a prominent Boston psychiatrist running scared from a vengeful Irish mob. The private investigators know something about cold-blooded retribution. Born and bred on the mean streets of blue-collar Dorchester, they've seen the darkness that lives in the hearts of the unfortunate. But an evil for which even they are unprepared is about to strike as secrets long-dormant erupt, setting off a chain of violent murders that will stain everything--including the truth.

“Eviscerate them, Patrick. Kill them all.”

I can’t say that I went into this book series knowing what I was going to be reading. I also can’t say that it was what I would expect it to be. Thought provoking, beautiful writing is a high point in this series, and I’m ashamed to admit I was shocked that that was the case. From page one of book one, I have been enamored with the depth of these stories and the amazing writing that pulls you in whether you want to be sucked in or not….but maybe my largest praise goes to how Lehane gets base emotions out of me that rarely are touched in crime/thriller novels: Protectiveness, heart-break….fear.
I felt something clench in the center of my chest and then just as suddenly unclench and fill with a gust of chilled air which seemed to hollow out my insides like the flick of a spade.

Yeah, I’ll admit it: This book, no matter what I tell people, scared the living shit out of me. And, the funny thing is, Anna warned me. See, this story was centered around a serial killer. Now…I don’t know about you, but I am obsessed with this plot in books and was ecstatic to find out that the second story was not only an investigation….but a stalker-serial killer type story…ummm yes please? It’s no secret I am in love with these intense, pulse-pounding books. And I thought I had it handled….but I was wrong.
“He can’t kill us both. No one’s that good. If he gets to you before me”-she leaned back a bit so her eyes could meet mine-“I’ll paint this house with his blood. Every last inch of it.”

Anna said that this one got deep in your head, that she had nightmares where someone was following her…and I thought, eh, I don’t think it’s that creepy. But, keep in mind, I was reading in such small increments during the week (damn my week day curse!!) and in the daytime that I had no clue-none. And just as I told her this, my perception changed. I got into bed and something miraculous happened-I actually had time to read!!!!! But with the lights off, the tv flickering in the background, and a stalker watching through the window (in the book, but hey, I swear it was me-I SWEAR….even though the blinds were drawn…), my world was obliterated.
patrick,
don’tforgettolockup.

My breath hitched as I read, every flicker of the tv was a shock to my system, and I couldn’t help looking over the side of the bed and into the closet-repeatedly. And it’s so simple. SO, SO simple. And the worst thing in the world is when you are finally scared again by a book (for me lol)…It’s like all these stories you’ve repressed into the recesses of your memory come back in a massive montage of horror, cruising past my periphery at the speed of light. I keep seeing all these books popping up in my head that I had long since forgotten-and I wanted to keep it that way. It’s all in my subconscious-I just find it so odd how the brain works. Mine is more fucked up than most, though, mind you.
I guess my impulse had something to do with growing older, with looking back and seeing very few innocent violences committed against the young, in knowing that every tiny pain scars and chips away at what is pure and infinitely breakable in a child.
Or maybe I was just in a bad mood.

It’s so funny that once you draw out that base fear, all your worst terrors come to life…all of a sudden you can’t breathe and you can’t sleep and the covers have to be covering every inch of your body and you can’t lay on your side or let your hand go past the side ledge of the bed or-oh yeah, that’s just me lol. The human mind is a crazy thing. And that’s the ability of an amazing author. They have the ability to write a story that slips under you skin, seeps deep into your pores, to make their story the one that stays in your mind long after you’ve finished reading for the day or night….it’s a lingering touch you can’t seem to shake-and that’s just how I felt. I, inexplicably, couldn’t shake the feeling that I’d been touched by something wholly evil and vile.

“It’ll eat us eventually,” Angie said. “The violence.”
“I always thought we were stronger than it.”
“You were wrong. It infests you after a while.”
“You talking about me or you?”
“Both of us.”

But that’s enough about how bat shit crazy I am….I wana talk about the characters, now. But I’m guna do it in reverse, I think. Bubba is first up. I don’t know if it’s because a couple of my friends are in love with him so it brought out all the best thoughts of him or if I’d have came to the same conclusion myself, but, no matter the cause, he cracks me up.

Being the object of another’s hate is relative. If the person who hates you is an advertising exec whose Infiniti you cut off in traffic, you’re probably not going to worry much. If Bubba hates you, though, putting a couple of continents between the two of you is not a bad idea.

Loyal? Check. Friendly? Check-well, only to Angie and Patrick. Crazy? Check-Check. Need a deadly piece of artillery? He can help you. Need to take someone out? He’d love to. So, all in all, I’d say Bubba is pretty badass….and crazy, don’t forget crazy.
Well, I was sick of their violence and their hate and my own codes of decency, which may have cost people their lives in the last month. Sick to fucking death of it all.

And then Angie. Ahhh Angie. I certainly loved her way more in this one, I have to admit-and I even loved the developments of Phil, too. But I can’t linger on him. Now, while I did love Angie in this one, I still can’t see why Patrick is head over heels for her-or so the story boasts from time to time. I’m still waiting on that, really. Why? I mean, near the end, I saw it, but all throughout the book and last book? Nah. But what they do have, that I believe, is a beautiful friendship, and that’s what this story is about-love, loyalty, and keeping those you cherish most close-Doing everything in your power to keep them safe. And I love that-for now.
When I was a boy, I loved my father, and he just kept hurting me. He wouldn’t stop. No matter how much I wept, no matter how much I pleaded, no matter how hard I tried to figure out what he wanted, what I could do to be worthy of his love instead of victim of his rage.

Drum roll please?? Patrick. Ahhhh Patrick. He finally got me in this one!!! Allllll the feels! From his tortured glimpses into his terribly sad past, the abuse from the hand of his father, and his desperation to keep all those he loves safe, Patrick touched me deeply. I even got some ‘broken voice’ parts….umm favorite!!! And I loved-in the beginning, that is-that he was in another relationship in this one. I think it helped keep him happy, sane. It was an adorable touch (you’ll see why) and added to the intensity near the end-in more ways than one. But, and you’ll find this out as well, what happens when you have more people you love? There are more targets to take out. Just sayin’. Yeah yeah…I know. Broken record.
I don’t think I’ve ever felt anything like this.
When I tried to speak, my voice was shaky and hoarse and the words were strangled in my throat. My eyes felt wet and my heart felt as if it were bleeding.

So, anywho, those are my crazy thoughts. I truly wish I could go back in time and slap myself-why in the ever loving you-know-what did I start this one on a Monday???? I’m notorious for ruining the best books because I read them during the week when they deserve time and attention….and I basically spit on them by saying, yeah, you’re not good enough for a weekend read! But that’s not it-I just could’t wait to start book two! These people get under your skin, and even if you get a teensy bit bored, you never realize how great they truly are until you’re separated-But I just couldn’t wait, and I payed dearly for it. It’s a blessing and a curse, being so obsessed with books. Luckily, though, I got my head out of my ass for the last 40% and finished all at once. So, what I’m saying is, read it…but give it the time it deserves. I didn’t…but I’m dumb like that.

“How do you live with yourself, Patrick?”

**********************************

Oh dear, oh dear. I do so love a serial killer thriller with a tortured male lead…

And this was spectaculaaaarrr.

Eeps! Review to come!

BOOK REVIEW – Sacred (Kenzie & Gennaro #3) by Dennis Lehane

September 13, 2015 / Anna

Sacred (Kenzie & Gennaro #3)
by Dennis Lehane
Purchase on: Amazon, iBooks
Add to: Goodreads

Synopsis:
Dying billionaire Trevor Stone hires private detectives Patrick Kenzie and Angela Gennaroto find his missing daughter. Grief-stricken over the death of her mother and the impending death of her father, Desiree Stone has been missing for three weeks. So has the first investigator Stone hired to find her: Jay Becker, Patrick's mentor.

Patrick and Angie are led down a trail of half-truths and corruption into a world in which a therapeutic organization may be fronting for a dangerous and seductive cult, a high-tech private investigation firm may be covering up lethal crimes, and a stolen cache of millions in illegal funds may be tied to both disappearances and a tanker full of heroin. Nothing is what it seems as the detectives travel from the windblown streets of Boston to the rum-punch sunsets of Florida's Gulf Coast. And the more Patrick and Angie discover, the more they realize that on this case any wrong step will certainly be their last . . .

Snappy dialogue, explosive action scenes, and original characters have become Dennis Lehane's trademarks. With Sacred, Lehane confirms his status as today's hottest young author of first-rate mysteries that are also smartly written literary novels.

“Everyone is suspect. Everyone is suspect.
It was starting to become my mantra.”

I’ll tell you this : Read this series, because it’s basically awesomeness in a bottle.

You’ve got Patrick, sarcastic and clever detective who stole my heart (I mean – just marry me already), Angie, his partner who shows more and more strength, Bubba, their psychotic friend who’s always there when action starts (and blows off things), Cheswick, the coolest lawyer ever (yes, I quote)… and several really interesting new characters, including Jay, Patrick’s mentor (hehe). I missed Oscar and Devin, though, because these cops are all kinds of awesome (most of the time).

Angie and Patrick? BEST. TEAM. EVER.

Even if this book isn’t as incredible as Darkness, Take My Hand (but let’s face it : there aren’t many), I found the story compelling and really greatly created, as in : you better follow all the clues because there’s no such thing as a plot hole here.

Nobody can be trusted, layers must be unraveled, and again, you’re blown away by the inherent darkness of the plot who shows perfectly the wickedness of human nature… But there’s love, too. So much love, I may grow a second heart or something.

If you have a thriller series to read, it would be this one. As for me, I’m going back to school and the kiddos so, you know, it will probably be the only “review” this book gets. Sorry, Patrick, I know you deserve better. I still love you.

BOOK REVIEW: A Drink Before the War (Kenzie Gennaro #1) by Dennis Lehane

September 10, 2015 / Chelsea / 0 Comments

A Drink Before the War (Kenzie & Gennaro #1)
by Dennis Lehane
Purchase on: Amazon, iBooks
Add to: Goodreads

Synopsis:
Patrick Kenzie and Angela Gennaro are tough private investigators who know the blue-collar neighbourhoods and ghettos of Boston's Dorchester section as only natives can. Working out of an old church belfry, Kenzie and Gennaro take on a seemingly simple assignment for a prominent politician: to uncover the whereabouts of Jenna Angeline, a black cleaning woman who has allegedly stolen confidential Statehouse documents. But finding Jenna proves easy compared to staying alive. The investigation escalates, implicating members of Jenna's family and rival gang leaders, while uncovering extortion, assassination and child prostitution extending from bombed-out ghetto streets to the highest levels of state government. With slick, hip dialogue and a lyrical narrative pocked by explosions of violence, A Drink Before the War confronts a city in which institutionalized bigotry and corruption are often the norm, and the true nature of 'racial incidents' is rarely clear. Dennis Lehane's remarkable debut is at once a pulsating crime thriller and a mirror of our world, one in which the worst human horrors are found closest to home, and the most vicious obscenities are committed in the name of love.

Once that ugliness has been forced into you, it becomes part of your blood, dilutes it, races through your heart and back out again, staining everything as it goes. The ugliness never goes away, never comes out, no matter what you do. Anyone who thinks otherwise is naive.

There have been so many books I’ve read and fallen in love with, lately. I’d love to say I’m just that good at picking out books and taking extraordinary leaps to try new and exciting genres and different authors…but that’s rarely the case. Yes, I have gotten so picky nowadays that I don’t generally find many stinkers…but I don’t usually take many risks. But I guess that’s what I can count on one of my best friends and co-bloggers for-In the last year, I can attribute about, hmm, 80% of my favorite/absolute favorites to an adventurous alien named Anna. She takes risks I never would have had the guts to go through with, ie I Hunt Killers, This is Not a Test, Pines, etc. As you can see, she is my proverbial guinea pig, if you will.
I looked at the grenades. Didn’t have a clue what to do with them. I had the feeling that if I left the house, they’d roll off the bed, take out the entire building. I picked them up, gingerly, and put them in the fridge. Anyone broke in to steal my beer, they’d know I meant business.

My point in saying all this, if you haven’t guessed, is that she has helped me find some amazing books that I never would have tried. And with this gift, I have began to really expand my horizons, to really open my eyes wider to greater, grander stories. Do you realize how nice it is, how very very nice, to not be pigeon-holed to one genre? I LITERALLY go through moods and mercurial spurts for months on end where I don’t know what the fuck I’ll be in the mood to read. Meaning, it could be three months of fantasy, and then, inexplicably, all of a sudden I just HAVE to try a contemporary, or a dystopian (when done right, still my favorite), or a paranormal or whatever I feel like, really. I never have a clue, month-to-month, day-to-day, what I will want to read. That’s why, when in the mood, I hurry to devour the very genre I’m obsessed with because I have no clue-literally none-when I will be in the mood for it again.

Vanity and dishonesty may be vices, but they’re also the first forms of protection I ever knew.

As it is-I’m obsessed with tortured boys and thrillers right now. It kind of goes hand in hand that I’m so obsessed with this genre, though. What’s not to love about peril, mystery, and young men who are ambiguous in character and tortured within? Whoops. Did I say that out loud….Yes, okay, I’m a sick little weirdo-get over it! You know this, if you read any of my reviews. I love flawed characters that long for a better life, for the girl they can’t have, etc. etc. I don’t know, call me crazy, but I just can’t seem to get enough of these types of books.
I’d been a punching bag for my father for eighteen years, and I’d never hit back. I kept believing, kept telling myself, it’ll change; he’ll get better. It’s hard to close the door on optimistic expectations when you love someone.

I guess, even if just briefly, I need to talk about the book and it’s characters right? Patrick…boy have I heard a lot about this Patrick ;). He and Angie, his partner….okay. Never mind. ~~I don’t know how to do this!!~~

I ran my hands through my hair, felt the grit and oil from the last day, smelled the trash and waste on my fingers. At that moment, I truly hated the world and everything in it.

They get cases. They investigate crimes. They turn the people in when they find them (to their clients). Patrick has been in love with Angie since the third grade. Angie is married to an asshole. Patrick doesn’t like the asshole….so he puts him in his place, every now and then, in sensible ways with sensible objects….sensibly.

L.A. burns, and so many other cities smolder, waiting for the hose that will flood gasoline over the coals, and we listen to politicians who fuel our hate and our narrow views and tell us it’s simply a matter of getting back to basics while they sit in their beachfront properties and listen to the surf so they won’t have to hear the screams of the drowning.

In this story, they are hired by real top-of-the-class types who have lost some documents after the maid up and left with them. What was supposed to be a simple case turns out to be deeper, scarier, more deathly than they ever could have imagined. And it is only opening them up to what I’m sure will be a very exciting series.
My gun is, as Angie would say, “not a fuck-around thing.” It’s a .44 magnum automatic-an “automag,” they call it gleefully in Soldier of Fortune and like publications-and I didn’t purchase it out of penis envy or Eastwood envy or because I wanted to own the goddamned biggest gun on the block. I bought it for one simple reason: I’m a lousy shot.

Bahaha this is all I thought about-

I wish I had gotten more time to read this because I know I ruined many parts because I was so tired. I would pick up the book, totally excited, and then only get 10% done when I would start to nod off-seriously, my puppy is psycho. And I’m not so stupid as to think this book was boring-it wasn’t. I would just be getting somewhere, something happening, and then BAM-my eyes started to close. Ugh. ARGHHH! So aggravating. So, a 3.5, I think, is fair. I can’t say for sure it wouldn’t have been higher or lower…but, from what I read, I liked that I felt deeply…and everyone knows I go based on feelings. I got good vibes from this one.
I looked at Angie again. I wasn’t worried about her; I was considering what would happen to my business if my partner shot the dicks off a barful of people in Lansington. I wasn’t sure, but I didn’t think we’d be able to keep that office in the church.

All in all a wonderful addition to add to my list of ever-growing Anna wins. I only hope the series continues to grow on me. I hear great things about this wonderful cast of complex and flawed characters, making me excited to dig deeper into their world. I’m 10% into book two, and I already have a 5 star sitting pretty and ready to go…I figure it couldn’t get any lower, right?? RIGHT?! Sigh. Guess I’ll see!
Angie once said, “Maybe that’s what love is-counting the bandages until someone says, ‘Enough.'”

Maybe so.

****************

Didn’t even read the blurb.

Don’t need to because Anna said….Patrick.

BOOK REVIEW: The Last Town (Wayward Pines #3) by Blake Crouch

September 9, 2015 / Chelsea / 0 Comments

The Last Town (Wayward Pines #3)
by Blake Crouch
Purchase on: Amazon
Add to: Goodreads

Synopsis:
haha nope.

Epic.
Unforgettable.
Gripping.
Intense.
INSANE.

I will come back and read this someday…and it won’t be soon enough.

GAHD I loved this. I wish I could un-read this series so I could go through the epicness again….Thanks, Dark Pup. For real.

Ethan!!!!! I’ll miss you, ya surly little shit. Until we meet again.

BOOK REVIEW – Darkness, Take My Hand (Kenzie & Gennaro #2) by Dennis Lehane

September 9, 2015 / Anna

Darkness, Take My Hand (Kenzie & Gennaro #2)
by Dennis Lehane
Purchase on: Amazon, iBooks
Add to: Goodreads

Synopsis:
The master of the new "noir," Dennis Lehane magnificently evokes the dignity and savagery of working-class Boston in this terrifying tale of darkness and redemption.

Patrick Kenzie and Angela Gennaro's latest client is a prominent Boston psychiatrist running scared from a vengeful Irish mob. The private investigators know something about cold-blooded retribution. Born and bred on the mean streets of blue-collar Dorchester, they've seen the darkness that lives in the hearts of the unfortunate. But an evil for which even they are unprepared is about to strike as secrets long-dormant erupt, setting off a chain of violent murders that will stain everything--including the truth.

Tell me, what are all-time favorites made of? Perhaps we all have a different definition for them, but mine? I read so much that a great, even amazing book can get sidelined if it doesn’t leave a mark on me. On the contrary, a flawed one can earn its stripes if the emotions it makes me feel are unforgettable.

I’d say that if there were one lesson to be learnt from this experience, is that Darkness, Take My Hand will linger. Oh, yes, it will.

➊ a fucked-up male lead I grew to adore and for whom I care so much it hurts : multi-layered, morally ambiguous, sarcastic, wounded, loyal – he’s everything I want in my favorite characters. EVERYTHING.

➋ a kickass heroine I want to hug, because, really, Angie, you rock.

➌ a frightening and captivating suspense in an investigation where nobody is innocent and everyone can be guilty…. See, I’m not easily frightened. A clown, a doll and I’m hiding under the blankets, but a serial-killer? Nope. Darkness, Take My Hand, though? It was chilling.

Just a thing : DON’T FUCK WITH MY FEARS. Like, really – there was an expected twist that scared me to death.

➍ Secondary characters I’m not supposed to like but… I do anyway, because of reasons, I guess.

Yeah, I saw this gif and I thought… Oh, Bubba. You psycho. How in the world can I like you? *hides in shame*

➎ a writing whose ability to express both depth and sarcasm blew me away.

➏ a ending that made my jaw drop on the floor… But unfortunately I guessed who the mastermind was around 50%. It didn’t prevent me from enjoying the book, not really, but it did annihilate a great part of the intended shock factor, and for a moment there I thought that it would cost it its fifth star.

But the fact is, Darkness, Take My Hand deserves its 5 stars nonetheless, because of the impact this book had on me. Here I am, staring at the wall, disturbed in my own core feelings, and I know that I would never forget this book.

See you, friends. I’m going to hug myself now.