Let the Devil Sleep Review

From Goodreads

Let the Devil Sleep
by John Verdon
From Goodreads:

In this latest novel from bestselling author John Verdon, ingenious puzzle solver Dave Gurney puts under the magnifying glass a notorious serial murder  – one whose motives have been enshrined as law-enforcement dogma - and discovers that everyone has it wrong.
 
The most decorated homicide detective in NYPD history, Dave Gurney is still trying to adjust to his life of quasi-retirement in upstate New York when a young woman who is producing a documentary on a notorious murder spree seeks his counsel.  Soon after, Gurney begins feeling threatened: a razor-sharp hunting arrow lands in his yard, and he narrowly escapes serious injury in a booby-trapped basement.  As things grow more bizarre, he finds himself reexamining the case of The Good Shepherd, which ten years before involved a series of roadside shootings and a rage-against-the-rich manifesto.  The killings ceased, and a cult of analysis grew up around the case with a consensus opinion that no one would dream of challenging  -- no one, that is, but Dave Gurney. 

Mocked even by some who’d been his supporters in previous investigations, Dave realizes that the killer is too clever to ever be found.  The only gambit that may make sense is also the most dangerous – to make himself a target and get the killer to come to him.

To survive, Gurney must rely on three allies: his beloved wife Madeleine, impressively intuitive and a beacon of light in the gathering darkness; his de-facto investigative “partner” Jack Hardwick, always ready to spit in authority’s face but wily when it counts; and his son Kyle, who has come back into Gurney’s life with surprising force, love and loyalty.

Displaying all the hallmarks for which the Dave Gurney series is lauded -- well-etched characters, deft black humor, and ingenious deduction that ends in a climactic showdown – Let the Devil Sleep is something more: a reminder of the power of self-belief in a world that contains too little of it.

Midnight Thoughts 

~Every time I read a thriller like this one, I ask myself, why do I read any other type of genre? 

~Although this is the third novel in the series, it was my first.  Before I started this blog reading a series out of order would not have happened on purpose.  I've since discovered that when the author is good, and knows what s/he is doing, it doesn't hurt the reading experience.

~ John Verdon managed to catch me up and make me as invested in the main character as I would have been if I'd already read the first two books.

~Main character, retired NYPD Dave Gourney, is a little bit older than most thriller's mcs (that I read), but he's also a little bit wiser, a little bit more warped by all the things he's been through in his long years.  And you know I like my characters with a little damage.

~Gourney is still dealing with injuries he received from the previous novel.  He didn't magically heal both physically and mentally, and it's made him a little grumpy.  Not quite to the level of Hugh Laurie in House, but Gourney is definitely not a Positive Polly right now.

~The supporting characters help this book, and Gourney, so much.  His wife, Madeline, is a saint and they actually have a good relationship, even if it's a bit strained right now.  So many books with cops, retired cops, detectives, etc, feature fractured, damaged relationships.  Although...

~Gourney's son joins in the mystery, and there is a some distance between him and his father.  But they both love each other so much, and its so obvious. 

~The entire time I was reading this book, I couldn't help but picture it as a tv series or movie.  If I can connect actors to book characters then it means I'm thinking a lot about the book.  This is always a good thing. 

~Gourney's friend Hardwick is easily my favorite character, mostly because I pictured him as Adam Baldwin (from Chuck and Firefly).   I want a friend on the force like Hardwick for the next time someone in traffic makes me mad. 

~I also pictured Gourney as Stellan Skarsgård, thus allowing me to picture his son as Alexander Skarsgård .  This is always a winning combination.  Plus there is a lot more potential in the father/son dynamic in this series, so I'm sticking with it.

~Kim was annoying.  I didn't really like her, and I found her character hard to understand.  She's like the chick in a horror movie that refuses to move out of a house even though she hears noises in the attic.  Eventually I was kind of rooting for the bad guy to get her. 

~However, I did think her idea to interview the family's of the victims of the Good Shepard to be a good idea. Too often tv and news reports on murders and focuses on the killer.  The victims often get lost, and their families definitely are largely ignored by the media. 

~I really liked the killer in the book.  It was creepy, how smart, how invasive he was. 

~I didn't like that The Good Shepard went after people in luxury cars.  I myself would like to own one someday and not get shot while driving it.

~The whole theory that The Good Shepard is murdering rich people in order to bring attention to his political beliefs was a bit unsettling considering the current political climate.  That aspect alone would make this a good book to discuss in book clubs, a rarity among thrillers.  Way to bring the social issues elements, John Verdon!

~I didn't figure the killer out until near the very end, and even then I wasn't sure until the reveal.  This book truly kept me in suspense. 

Let the Devil Sleep gets a Midnight Book Rating of:

**Disclaimer: I was sent a copy of this book by Wunderkind PR in exchange for my honest review.  All opinion, snark and wit are my own, and in this case, shaped by the thousands of hours of Criminal Minds, Deadly Women and Law & Order: SVU I have watched over the years, and am probably watching right now as you're reading this**

Boy's Life Review

From Goodreads

Boy's Life
by Robert McCammon
From Goodreads:

 Zephyr, Alabama, is an idyllic hometown for eleven-year-old Cory Mackenson — a place where monsters swim the river deep and friends are forever. Then, one cold spring morning, Cory and his father witness a car plunge into a lake — and a desperate rescue attempt brings his father face-to-face with a terrible vision of death that will haunt him forever.

As Cory struggles to understand his father's pain, his eyes are slowly opened to the forces of good and evil that are manifested in Zephyr. From an ancient, mystical woman who can hear the dead and bewitch the living, to a violent clan of moonshiners, Cory must confront the secrets that hide in the shadows of his hometown — for his father's sanity and his own life hang in the balance...

This tale of an 11-year-old's struggle between innocence and evil begins with the discovery of a gruesome murder and ends with the revelation that, even in Zephyr, Alabama, life is not safe and simple--and most things and people are not what they seem to be. "Recaptures the magic of being a child in a world of possibilities and promise. . . ."--Atlanta Journal Constitution.

My Thoughts:  This was an amazing read!  This is only my second McCammon book, but his writing just blows me away and I know that he'll have a place amongst my favorite authors of all time. A very, very special thanks to Midnyte Reader who not only got me this book, but got it signed by Robert McCammon himself!  And thanks to Stephen King, who recommended McCammon's book The Five last summer.  I love finding great authors by simply reading what you're favorite authors are reading.

Boy's Life is a coming of age story, but there is so much more involved!  The town of Zephyr still holds a bit of magic for young Cory and his friends, magic they desperately need as a year of bullies, outlaws, ghosts, water creatures, fallen ladies, death, racism, nose picking girl named Demon, nazis, neo-nazis, carnivals, amazing pitcher named Nemo, nightmares, visions and story telling. 

I know, it seems a lot for just one book, but McCammon weaves it all together seamlessly.

It's awful, because I already know that I am not going to do enough justice to this book.  I know that some of you are going to write this book off simply because McCammon's novels fall under the horror category.  But his writing is just amazing!  There were so many lines I was copying down in my little quote book, so many times the book had me laughing, or crying, or just plain scared and worried for Cory and his friends.  I really felt like I was part of the town of Zephyr, like maybe I was Cory's nosy neighbor. 

I was not expecting this book to be so filled with magic, but once I got into the book it became my favorite part.  Some of the magic simply came from a young boy's imagination.  A magic most people put away when they grow up.  But writers don't, and I don't think us rabid readers do either.  I think we still have the touch of magic that we had as kids, and books help us tap into it now and then.

Here's some of my favorite quotes from the book:

 “See, this is my opinion: we all start out knowing magic. We are born with whirlwinds, forest fires, and comets inside us. We are born able to sing to birds and read the clouds and see our destiny in grains of sand. But then we get the magic educated right out of our souls. We get it churched out, spanked out, washed out, and combed out. We get put on the straight and narrow and told to be responsible. Told to act our age. Told to grow up, for God's sake. And you know why we were told that? Because the people doing the telling were afraid of our wildness and youth, and because the magic we knew made them ashamed and sad of what they'd allowed to wither in themselves.”

 “I'd like to be everybody in the world' I said. 'I'd like to live a million times.'
'Well'--and here my father gave one of his sagely nods--'that would be a fine piece of magic, wouldn't it?”

“I had always wondered what Reverend Lovoy meant when he talked about "grace." I understood it now. It was being able to give up something that it broke your heart to lose, and be happy about it.”

  “Maybe crazy is what they call anybody who's got magic in them after they're no longer a child.”

Boy's Life is that kind of book.  It'll help you tap into the magic.

Boy's Life gets a Midnight Book Rating of:

**My copy of Boy's Life was gifted to me by the amazing Midnyte Reader, so all opinion, comment, and snark are completely my own.**

Pool Side Reads

The best part of apartment life (and really, one of the few perks at all) is our swimming pool!  This summer is even better because I'm working less hours and the creepy pool guy from last summer is gone.  Yay!
I am not much of a sun worshiper since my skin is pale and prone to burning and freckling bad enough to make me look diseased. But I do love swimming and sitting in the shade and reading.
Now pool reading is not quite as much fun as beach reading, mostly because some of my neighbors prefer to use the pool area as a babysitter for their noisy broods, but I have always loved reading outdoors... as long as it's in the shade and mostly bee free because bees scare me... 

So what have I read this past week at the pool?

The Genesis Code 
by John Case

From Goodreads:

A phone call in the dead of night brings Joe Lassiter shattering news. His sister and young nephew have died in a fire in their home near Washington, D.C. Yet Lassiter soon learns a chilling fact: His loved ones were brutally murdered before the blaze was set. . . .The mysterious suspect's identity only raises more questions. Then Lassiter uncovers another crime--another innocent mother and child murdered. The more he unearths, the larger the web of conspiracy grows, as his search for answers leads him on a dangerous international chase toward a truth that will shock him--and the world--to the very bone. . . .

My Thoughts:  I was not sure I was going to like this book at first, because it opens up in Italy and there's much Catholic church inner workings and my eyes were glazing over a bit. Lucky for me, I managed to process enough of the information to help me when the book started to pick up, which it does as soon as the story switched to Joe Lassiter and his journey to uncover the mystery of the deaths of his sister and nephew.  There is a lot of action, and it was cool to read the action parts that took place in my birthplace of Northern Virginia.  You get to visit a lot of cool places with this novel, and Joe is a pretty cool guy- he's not quite Jason Bourne but he's no slouch in the area of kicking butt and getting answers.

My friend Susan brought this book to our book club swap meet awhile back, and the Hubs ended up with it.  He rarely reads, being more of a computer guy, so it helped me stick with the book despite the initial misgiving.  I was weary of it because I thought it was going to be too much like a Dan Brown novel. Not that I've actually finished a Dan Brown book, I haven't.  I guess the hype of the Da Vinci Code scared me away (plus all the people who were either outraged by the novel or totally convinced that it was all really true), and normally I'm not big on conspiracy plots.  And while I think the Catholic church has lots of problems and issues (that may be an understatement), they do seem to be the go-to bad guys in movies and books nowadays.  I realize that I was just limiting myself by not reading these books- I love thrillers, I love the action and trying to figure out who's going to make it and if good will ultimately triumph over evil. 

Will I be reading more John Case books?  Absolutely- the Hubs is already reading another book by the author (which is actually two authors writing under a pseudonym).  The Genesis Code gets a Midnight Book Rating of 11pm!  It's a great pool side read :)

And when the noise gets unbearable I listen to Discovery of Witches on my iPod- yes, I am STILL listening to this book.  I love the book, I really do, but I usually can only listen to audio books in my car, and I just haven't been driving much these days.  I have come thisclose to just buying the darn book so I can finish it, and I know I'll cave someday simply because I would like to own a hard copy of it.

Next up: 

Love You More
by Lisa Gardner

This is the book I'll be taking to the pool today.  It's hardback, and I normally prefer to read paperback whenever I'm near water but I've had this sitting on my tbr pile for awhile and I'm itching to get to it.  I read the first four books in this series in a bit of a fever, which I tend to do when I find an author I like. 




Other Pool Side Reads Planned:

The Night Season by Chelsea Cain
The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie by Alan Bradley

So what are your pool side recommendations?  I obviously prefer reading mysteries and thrillers, but do you have a particular genre you like to read while relaxing outdoors?