Windsor Books

Absolutely fantastic book. Covers all the major concepts of emotional branding, including self concept and actualisation. I reccommend for anyone interested in this new and exciting concept.

You'd think that a book about emotional branding with a forward by Sergio Zyman would have something interesting to say. Unfortunately, this book make a number of good points but it's not all that interesting. Many of the points should be fairly intuitive and obvious for marketing people who have a clue. Some points made are interesting refreshers, like the importance and potential impact of invoking multiple senses in the consumption and purchase experience. Unfortunately many of the chapters are not newsworthy and can be summarized by their lame titles, such as "Women: The New "Shoppers in Chief" and "Gay and Lesbian Consumers: Sincerity is the Best Policy!"

The book mostly gives examples of brands that have done X or Y really well without leaving the average reader or business person with any concept about how the point is relevant in a gernalizeable sense.

Final gripe is that the book reads a little bit like an advertisement for the author's firm.

As a personal branding coach, I have read many books and
publications watching for trends, and changes in the industry
to ensure my clients are maximizing technologies.

This was a great book that I could apply to my personal
branding methods, because Marc refers to emotional branding
which has very real connections with what you do in personal
branding, by attaching the product to the person, and using
emotional advertising you create loyalty, connection and
a more powerful message.

This was a great read, and I enjoyed his extensive knowledge
of the advertising industry and package strategies which
can still be applied to a person and product in a similar
fashion.

I would recommend this for some fantastic history of the
industry and development of emotional branding, and for me I
further applied it for my personal branding clients to create
very successful campaigns.

As the bestselling author of "31 Days to Millionaire Marketing
Miracles" I used these strategies for myself, the book, and
my clients.

Tracy Repchuk
Personal Brand Coach
http://www.personalbrandempire.com

31 Days to Millionaire Marketing Miracles

This book has all the appeal of an IKEA coffee table: it looks great on the outside, but when you get down to it, it's nothing but cheap filler.

The concepts are tired (this is mere repackaging of 1987 material by a designer/design firm who is trying to drum up business). The writing is self-aggrandizing. This book could have been written in less than a three-page memo.

If you still speak with an arrogant dot.com era vernacular; if you enjoy using mantras like "recontextualizing the brand"; or if you enjoy hearing yourself breath, then you will thoroughly enjoy this book.

In the end, this book says a lot without saying anything at all. Buy something by Aaker (though he is a bit dated) instead.

Emotional Branding is a must, it is complete, well written and full of inspiring examples

The decalogue alone is worth the purchase

1) from consumers to people
2) from product to experience
3) from honesty to trust
4) from quality to preference
5) from notoriety to aspiration
6) from identity to personality
7) from function to feel
8) from ubiquity to presence
9) from communication to dialogue
10)from service to relationship

If brand managers understand truly and fully Gobe's ten commandments they will add value to the most valuable asset
they have, the brand

I like Elmore Leonard, but this one is ultimately unsatisfying. Too many long scenes of two characters discussing things they did in the 60's. Too many scenes of characters discussing whether A1 or ketchup is better on a hamburger. The cop is an unlikeable loser living at home with his folks. No depth to his characterization. Too much depth on the hippies.

Worst of all, an underwhelming ending. I was left with "That's it??" You've got all these sleaze bag characters in one room, and that's the best you could think of??

Skip it unless desperate.

Set in Detroit, Freaky Deaky is more than a crime novel. Leonard weaves memories of the Sixties throughout effortlessly and, like Rum Punch, is as much about growing older as it is about bombs and thugs.

As usual, it's not the big things that make this Elmore Leonard novel enjoyable. It's the little things that impress, like speech patterns. He definitely has the best ear for dialogue of anybody I've ever read, and the trend of realisitic talk continues here. Each character has an individual accent and speech pattern, which helps in a novle with so many characters.

You almost forget about the crime drama with all of the human drama that goes on, and I mean that in a sincee and positive way.

However, I have to say that this is not my favorite EL novel, and it is certainly not a good starting point for anyone just getting into his world of crime. Don't get me wrong, it's still a great book, but there are others that are better. When you've written as many books as Mr. Leonard, that tends to happen.

The biggest problem is that it's just too long. If twenty or fifty pages had been cut out, then it would have been a lot tighter and would move a lot faster. That's really the only problem with the book. Overall, it's a good read and not disappointing, but something about it leaves you wanting more.

A trio of former 60s radicals, who were always more thrill-seeking opportunists than truly idealistic revolutionaries, orbit an alcoholic millionaire who seems to have only a handful of brain cells remaining. They are all scheming to get their hands on his money. Some of their schemes involve explosives, which leads to the accidental involvement of a former Bomb Squad officer and an aspiring starlet. Once Elmore Leonard gets these characters and their conflicting agendas bouncing off one another, a solid, entertaining thriller is the result. This is my first Leonard novel, and I'm pleased to find that his reputation for masterful dialogue is richly deserved. All of the characters are well-drawn, but Woody, the millionaire, is a particularly brilliant invention. The climax seems a bit abrupt, though it has the virtue of being poetically just.

Funny how things happen. First, you're a cop; then you're not. You got an acting dream; then it's more than a dream. You got some dynamite; then, it's not there. Funny how Elmore Leonard makes things disappear in FREAKY DEAKY.

You gotta like the atmosphere he creates in Detroit: kinda grungy, sort of scummy, maybe a bit too scary for suburbanites. The highways get you everywhere so quick, maybe better than L.A. And Leonard says there's more to see in L.A., but, then, he likes Detroit more, don't you know?

The plot involves stunt men, the movies, a broken down cop with smarts, and two women who might or might not enjoy sex. Depends on their mood. And, oh ya, a servant lurks around with some steeet savvy, always good to have in Detroit City.

Elmore's got a good one here. Full of tension and cop humor. It's cool, if you stay cool, seems to be his message. And when you're holding dynamite, don't you think you should be as cool as possible?

Reviewed by Larry Rochelle, author of BLUE ICE. GULF GHOST, BOURBON AND BLISS, DEATH AND DEVOTION and CRACKED CRYSTALS.

Chris is a cop in Detroit who is transferring from the bomb squad to sex crimes. He never imagines that right off the bat in his new division he will come across a victim that completely enchants him. But her complaint of rape leads him to be mixed up with a whole host of characters that are up to no good. Written in 1988, the story and characters reference much of the activites of the 60s and 70s and all somehow relate to each other and the time they spent at the University of Michigan protesting and getting high.

Leonard winds an interesting tale and creates characters that are larger than life. The best way to describe the story line is bizarre. The reader cannot anticipate what will happen next, but at the same time, the twists are not cliffhangers, but simply twists. This book is very hard to describe in that it is a quick read, but does not really suck you in. It just kind of is. It is worth the read, but I am curious to compare this to other Elmore Leonard books. I am not sure that he is for me.

I admire Vincent Lardo's courage in even attempting to mimic the voice of the incomparable Lawrence Sanders. I couldn't even come close, and most writers would fall flat on their faces. Lardo manages to imitate the McNally style reasonably well, but there's a vital ingredient missing.

The original McNally novels written by Lawrence Sanders were like lemon meringues; tasty, sinfully delicious, light, not filling, a guilty pleasure. They were light easy reads flavored by Sanders's love of good food, beautiful women, and plenty of booze.

All the ingredients are here in McNally's Folly, but what's missing is a good cook to put everything together. There's a story here, but it's very slow to develop, and by page 186 the plot is still grinding along at a snail's pace. There's plenty of the trademark McNally humor, a sexual dalliance, lots of good food, the usual cast of supporting characters, but it's easy to set down after a few pages. Sanders's novels sped by.

This is fun to read, but Lardo seems unable to generate the kind of pacing we expect from the series. It's probably more fun to go back and re-read the Sanders novels (Secret, Risk, Luck, Caper, Trial, Gamble, Puzzle). If you haven't read them in a few years you may have forgotten the story details, and besides --- they're so good you can enjoy them again and again.

In the meantime, however, I suppose imitations will have to suffice for those who want new stories.

JUST LIKE THE OTHER MCNALLY'S, A PAGE TURNER AND A DELECTABLE DELIGHT.
THE ONLY NEGATIVE I CAN WRITE REGARDING SANDER'S MCNALLY'S SERIES, IS THE
WEIGHT I GAIN FROM EATING AFTER READING ABOUT THE MCNALLY'S EVENING MEAL,
THE GREAT MENU AT THE PELICAN, ETC. I HAVE TO STOP READING, RUN AND
GET A REPAST, WHICH NEVER MEASURES UP TO ARCH'S REPAST!

This is not your typical murder mystery. For one thing, nobody drops dead until well after halfway into the story, and, there is not a lot of interest on any of the parties in discovering the murderer, until the end. I was not particularly satisfied with that. The focus for most of the book is on a psychic, who is suspected of being a charlaton. McNally is trying to discover how he gets his psychic powers. Once discovered, I felt the story went out with a bit of a whimper. As usual, though, the lighthearted style of the McNally series is entertaining.

The best word I can come up with for this novel is not cozy but comfortable, like the softest easy chair conjure-able. The story, setting, and characters enveloped the reader, soothing away toil and trauma. Maybe that "easing" was caused by Archy's return; I don't know what happened to the Archy-2, beard-shadow-guy described in my recent review of DILEMMA.

One of the contrasts I noticed in DILEMMA between Archy-by-Sanders-Vs.-Archy-by-Lardo was that Lardo's Archy-2 (not in character with Archy-1's finesse) seemed to direct and control the plot and everyone in it. Ironically, in FOLLY, Archy was "playing" Director of a stage play of "Arsenic and Old Lace" (of course), by Palm Beach's Community Players, but he had returned to his natural way of "flowing with" rather than controlling. (That is an overall observation; the scent of Archy-2 did attempt to whiff out in a few places, but Lardo reigned it in quickly.)

McNally's FOLLY was # 9 in this series conceived by Lawrence Sanders, the second one in Vincent Lardo's continuation (McNally's DILEMMA was Lardo's opening salvo on Archy). It was interesting to me that this # 9 focused on seances, and determining the validity of a psychic, Serge Ouspenskaya, communicating with spirits of the deceased.

As noted, a fascination I felt reading FOLLY was that this version of Archy was different from the character Lardo presented in DILEMMA. In my review of DILEMMA I discussed the maleness factor of that Archy as opposed to Sanders' more sensitive, artistic, leisurely guy. The Archy in FOLLY was precisely the same laid-back character as the Archy in the Sanders offerings (1-7). Did Lardo somehow establish a clearer "channel" to Sanders? Did Vincent find a real-life seance psychic (who may or may not have been authentic)?

Even with this return of the old Archy, I noticed a very, very tiny "something" missing in FOLLY, but it wasn't anything I could identify. He had the right colors, the daily routines, the manner of speaking (with a collection of dictionary-pick-up words beginning with the letter "A"), the style, the attitudes, dialogue, and relationships. He had lost the late-morning beard-shadow of the Archy in DILEMMA, and regained the lithe ballerina inside. The FOLLY Archy had lost the DILEMMA Archy's macho reek which seethed a palpable attraction to women, an attraction which, for Sanders' Archy, seemed slightly staged, though delightfully so.

As noted, a collection of "A" words were used well in this plot, words you may be compelled to look up in the dictionary, as I did. While reading DILEMMA, I rarely gave thought to Webser. I don't know if that was because Lardo hadn't picked up yet on the precise way Sanders toyed with the English language, or if Lardo's Archy and plot were developed with such intense intrigue and macho charisma that I wouldn't have been able to pause the reading pace long enough to notice words pointing to Webster.

Not in spite of, but DUE TO all the above, I enjoyed not only the interesting second plot and characterization by Lardo in FOLLY; I enjoyed wondering how Vincent was able to get so close this time to the original Archy mystique. It was clear from continued (though not overdone) references to the original 7 novels that Lardo had extended his study of those, which speaks well for Lardo's character and dedication to Sanders and his fan base.

It's evident to me that Vincent Lardo did not take over this series with plans to go his own way with it as soon as possible, merely doing surface justice to it at the outset of his first plot. The obvious amount of attentiveness Lardo has put into this task was beyond impressive; it was touching. It wasn't easy to set down the book and the comfort which came with it, especially after reading the last page.

"Always a bridesmaid, never a bride?"

I can't recall if Vince gave that line (it was used early in the plot) to Connie in DILEMMA or in FOLLY, but it struck me as how Lardo might have felt at times, regarding the takeover of this series. I feel I owe both Sanders and Lardo an amount of thanks which may not be possible to give, but this pair of authors has as much of my respect and appreciation as I'm able to hand over. (Type over? Comb over?)

Bless both you guys! May your $$$ roll over well. The McNally's are alive and well in Palm Beach. I'll be heading soon to my Listmania, to click on the next in series, # 10(3).

Linda G. Shelnutt

Perhaps Lardo has finally found his stride and fallen into step. This novel is a particularly good read. Don't take it seriously and you will do fine. Buy it in paperback if you must have a copy, otherwise check it out of the local library. Enjoy the book for the fun of it then move on.

The Sunbird I've read other reviewers who pan this book, calling it unrealistic and saying it promotes white supremacy. I can't disagree more. I am 66 years old & first read this book when it was a Readers Digest chosen book in the mid Seventies for book of the month club. I was in my thirties then and thought it magical and telling of a story that would be written just as the attitudes of the people were in the century the story would have happened. There is nothing racist intended. I have since read it about every three years, buying newer printed versions as it has come to be such a special book in my heart. I have all of Wilbur Smiths books but this is my favorite.

The Sunbird suggests an answer to the mystery "what happened to the defeated Carthaginians the Romans destroyed? It begins with two modern day archeologists excavating a newly discovered city in central Africa. The two are very dissimilar; one being a rich and gracious eccentric multi-millionaire who is funding the project, and his faithful henchman, a brilliant and very strong man who happens to be a hunchback.

The story begins in the modern day digs and as our heroes fall prey to traps that are left for grave robbers we jump back in time to these same two heros who are the two main leaders in a hidden city that was founded by the Carthaginians after they escaped the wrath of Rome. This city is hidden at the end of a river in the center of darkest Africa and tells the magical story - a "what if?" story that is part fictional history and part ancient legend come to life. It is full of action as it might have happened in that time and the struggles this ancient city went through in trying to survive.

The Sunbird lifts your spirit and excites your immagination. This was one of Wilbur Smith's first books and is more fiction than fact, whereas his writings of the past 20 some years have been based soundly on historical fact that is told in fictitious story to make it interesting. Like his current 4 books on ancient Egypt.

I strongly recommend it for all ages from the teens to "old folk" like me!

It's a story about a hunchback Archaeologist, his wealthy backer friend, and his pretty assistant and a lost Carthaginian city. It's also an interesting parallel story about the fall of this city. On certain levels it's interesting story with a lot of exciting searching for an Archaeological treasure that I'm sure many Archaeologists would kill for.

But it's also quite a sexist and racist story, but then it was written in the 1970's, when this attitude was common, still not right or justified, but prevalent. The attitude that the only way civilization arrived in Africa was because of the benevolent White folk is incredibly annoying and flawed.

If you pretend that it's a historical story you can almost forgive the attitudes, however it's an almost, which loses this fairly good story many stars.

Written in a somewhat different formatt from previous Smith novels, but as always well done.

An interesting premise to begin with. But halfway through the book I started wondering "where is he going with this?". The material is a bit dated for today's reader. The characters are typical for Wilbur Smith: men are manly and women are damsels in distress.
I just felt that if Smith was really trying to draw some kind of parallel between the two worlds, it stayed parallel and never came together. It seemed sometimes that it was a gratuitous adventure in blood, killing and testosterone. It simply did not have any of the political intrigue that I remember from River God (still one of my all time faves) and Warlock.

Let's first describe the book without passion or judgment. There are two tales, cutely parallel. The first tale is set in the 1960's or 70's. It concerns a South African multilingual super-talented white hunchbacked Anthropologist. This hero, together with his rich (white) friend and patron, explores an archaeological site. The third important character is a black guy, who is talented but alas feels no loyalty to the great country of South Africa. So it's a tale of bonding between two superb white guys and the treachery of a black guy.

The second tale is set 2000 years in the past, at which time apparently there was a white empire in southern Africa, whose remnants were being explored as the archaeological site of the first tale. The lead character is the Sunbird who is, ahem, white hunchbacked uber-talented, and the best friend of the king/emperor who is also a great adventurer and hero. And (you guessed it) the third important character is a strong black guy, a bit short of loyalty, who organizes an uprising that destroys the great white empire that surely must have existed in southern Africa.

Now I must warn that this review might contain trace amounts of sarcasm, which has been known to be occasionally harmful to straight-thinking minds.

This is one great book. I read it when I was a teenager, more that 15 years ago now, but the memory of the wonderful adventures and fundamental truths still burns fresh in my mind. Remember, these were the great days of Apartheid, now sadly lost, but perhaps not for ever.

Now, young as I was, I already knew that white people were gods, so the underlying bits of supremacy philosophy did not bother me too much. And, perhaps as Wilbur Smith intended, I was justly disgusted by some black people's refusal to be happy under Apartheid and slavery. And the main white characters are described so well... oh just as white people should be, the men strong and adventurous and always onto new conquests, the women beautiful and marvelous.

The only complaint I had with the book was the invention (or is it the truth?) of a white empire in ancient southern Africa. I mean, why bother with this convoluted story of Whites having been in South Africa before? We already know that whites deserve African land (actually, all land) as a divine right, so no justification is needed. But it doesn't hurt of course to be comforted by the safe knowledge that white people were in South Africa already 2000 years ago, and also anywhere else their past presence might be required for the ideological purpose of the day.

I hear this book is popular in the American South, you know, that wonderful place you really ought to fearlessly visit especially if you have dark skin, or even better, if you have white skin and a dark-skinned boyfriend. Oh, and I also hear Wilbur Smith didn't stop writing tales after the fall (temporary?) of Apartheid. I wonder what he's writing about now? If I were still a teenager, I'd read and find out, but alas, time passes and I am one no longer.

If you've read the very fine "The Last Kingdom" and "The Arthurian" series, you already know what an exceptional writer Bernard Cornwell is.
So what happened with "The Archer's Tale" series? Repetitious, meandering, and downright boring, with Thomas wandering aimlessly about the story. Such a one dimensional character! Bring back Uhtred! Bring back Dervel! Give us characters that jump off the page!

Take it from me, if you've read "The Last Kingdom" and "The Arthurian" series, you will be bored.

Second Book in an outstanding series about an English Archer tasked with trying to find the Holy Grail. Great descriptions of English battles against the French in the 1300 or 1400's. Super character development, great story line, I'm anxious to get the 3rd book in the series delivered any day now.

Whether you fancy 14th Century England/France and its historical interest or not, you cannot escape the excitment which Cornwell brings out in the characaters who existed in that time. Such good writing with attention to detail is lost and Cornwell brings it back. I thought I would never find a writer like Glenn Cook or Michael Moorcock, but I have and I will continue to enjoy his good writing for years to come....

T. Williams, Michigan

Bernard Cornwell is the author of the acclaimed Richard Sharpe series, set during the Napoleonic Wars To my shame I have not read any of these. The books about Arthurian England are much more my cup of tea and I read those avidly. He has also written among others, Stonehenge 2000 B.C. Bernard Cornwell lives with his wife on Cape Cod.

This second book in the series is even better than the first, perhaps because the reader is now more aware of the storyline and is familiar with the main characters. Although the first book was a good read and well up to Mr. Cornwell's high standard. In this one the story gathers pace and takes the reader along on a wave of emotion for Thomas of Hook ton.

Thomas, a young archer has been fighting in what became known as the Hundred Years' War. He has been with the English army in France and while the English are on foreign soil the Scots see it as their opportunity to come down from the north.

Sent back to England Thomas becomes involved in the fighting at Durham. He he meets an enemy, a Dominican, who, like most other people is looking for the holy relic, the grail. Thomas has one advantage, an old book left by his father seems to offer clues to its resting place. But after all the turmoil and upheaval will the relic even be in the place where it has rested for so many years . . . ?

If we were taught history the way Bernard Cornwell writes it, we'd all be historians. "Vagabond", the middle of Cornwell's superb "Grail Quest" series, is as raucous, brutal and riveting as the best contemporary thrillers, yet manages to stay close to the historical record, slashing and burning life and meaning into the early days of what would later be called "The Hundred Year's War". I was mesmerized by the prequel, "The Archers Tale", finding it the most illuminating and insightful primer of Medieval England found between pages. But after reading "Vagabond", I'm convinced that only a time machine could deliver a more vivid description of love, war, politics, and religion in those turbulent, treacherous times.

Back from "Archer" is Thomas of Hookton, the English archer whose black-yew bow makes widows of enemies while he is half-heartedly seeking the Holy Grail, part of his family's history that Thomas would prefer didn't exist. Instead, he continues on a more personal quest, hunting down his murderous cousin Guy Vexille who torched Thomas' village and murdered his father while seeking the Grail for himself.

In "Vagabond", it is 1347 and Cornwell resumes his tale in northern England. King Edward III, still in France holding down his conquests in Normandy and Brittany, has apparently left his northern flank exposed, inviting the Scots, with some prodding from their French allies, to stream into a vulnerable England. Cornwell's description of the very real Battle of Neville's Cross between the Scots and an outmanned English army is a literary classic, from the strategy and tactics to the stink and gore of war fought helmet-to-helmet and shield-to-shield in violence and carnage simply unimaginable in today's gentler times. But aside from documenting the mechanics and horrors of war in the 14th century, Cornwell, as usual, spins his fiction in a fascinating backdrop of the culture and lore of the period. The power of the Church, as well as the hypocrisy, is never quite as disturbing as when told by Cornwell, burnished in this episode by the righteousness terror of the Inquisition. Indeed, the medieval punching bag Thomas finds little respite this time around, having his suffering delivered by the hand of a sadistic priest.

In short, if you love an action-packed page-turner, but prefer some education and even a bit of history infused with your time spent reading, I couldn't recommend a better author than Bernard Cornwell, and a better saga than "The Grail Series". This one just may be the best of the bunch, but then, I'm looking forward to giving sequel "The Heretic" a chance to better it.

While I haven't read many of Jonathan Kellerman's novels featuring Dr. Alex Delaware (a child psychologist who does consulting for the local police, and often ends up playing detective), this one is best.

The title, which I understand, after reading the book, might be a mistake, as it suggests themes that are not in the book. The book starts with Dr. Delaware being asked to evaluate two little girls, whose father is incarcerated for killing their mother, as the father wants visitation with his daughters, while the deceased mother's family opposes the idea. Then, he begins receiving very strange threats, including a tape of screaming and someone chanting about "bad love." As Delaware, and his police-liaison and friend, Milo Sturgis, investigate, they begin to uncover connections between an increasing number of unsolved murders, with a seminar, years earlier, being the connecting thread. And, the investigation indicates that Delaware is on the killer's hit-list.

The characters are well-rounded, the plot is complex, there are some genuine surprises, and, unlike Mr. Kellerman's "The Clinic," I did not feel that Delaware and Sturgis had suddenly come up with a few new, and crucial facts, right at the end, that enabled them to solve it. Jonathan Kellerman does go too far, in my opinion, in describing everyone and everything, in great detail, thus slowing down the pace, but the story, in "Bad Love," overcomes this.

I believe this book was written in 94, well thank God Kellerman has come a long way since then. I can't say I would or wouldn't recommend the book. It definitely wasn't great, it drolled on, much too detailed. Why in Gods name do I need to know that there were polka dots on the mans tie? Word fill - thats all it was- to make a fatter book I suppose - its a publication thing - word count and so on. Or he had a great idea for the book and had to have filler, cuz the general idea without it was too small for a grand novel. It was a good idea for a story, just way too drawn out, too much filler and crap mentioned that didn't have anything to do with the story or how it played out. I had it pegged who did what and why, so it was sort of predictable, but still good enough.
Kellerman has defintly come along way from this. If this is your first Kellerman read, don't bother 'til later, after you've read others. Enjoy some of the others and you'll see how great Kellerman really is. Billy Straight and Monster were awesome. If you did read this as your first and only Kellerman and then gave up on him - don't - keep going. Its worth it.

enjoy
heidi, avid reader
poe to patterson
iwannabaduck@yahoo.com

A friend of mine gave me Bad Love to read when I spent the night at his house and was looking for a book. I started it, and took it home with me. After almost finishing it, I called him and said I really didn't like it, at which point he started laughing and told me both he and his wife thought it was horrible, and they gave it to me as a gag! They couldn't beleive I got as far as I did.

I like fiction, and even meaningless pop-fiction like Patterson, Stephen King, Grisham, etc., so I'm not a literary elitist. Bad Love is without a doubt the worst work I have ever read. I am shocked that people have given this garbage 5 stars. It's poorly written, has a bad plot, and....you know what....its not even worth going on. I am only writing to warn others. Avoid at all costs. You would be better off shaving your head with a cheese grater than putting yourself through Bad Love.

I was actually disappointed with this book. I judged the book by the cover and I liked the overall appeal of the cover and the headlines, but as I read it went into so much detail that I would forget what I was reading. It took me about a good month to finish it but it wasnt worth reading 500-600 pages... lost count. But it was not worth waiting getting to the 30th chapter to wrap it up and get to the point. For me, there wasnt much suspense. Overall it kept me occupied and now I'm starting a new book.

I really enjoyed this one. Dr. Alex Delaware - child psychologist/police
consultant - is in real peril and it's possible even his pal Detective
Milo Sturgis can't help him this time.

It starts with a package in the mail - a very disturbing cassette tape
that sets Alex on edge. But then, it becomes apparent that he's being
stalked and with therapists dropping like flies, Alex is afraid he may
be next on the list! It's a real twisty-turny plot that kept me reading,
but there are so many names, I couldn't keep everyone straight. Alex and
his girlfriend Robin are really put through the ringer by this stalker
as the little harassing escapades get more and more intense - more and
more violent - more and more deadly.

There's a new addition to the cast - an adorable little stray dog named
Rover/Spike/Barry ... Love that dog! Hope he stays around. And it's
interesting to see just how well connected Milo is - he has friends
everywhere.

This is the third of the DI Rebus books I've read, and the others were much more enjoyable. The plot was clever, but the book was way too long and convoluted, and the entire thing was very depressing for me, especially the ending. A disappointment.

This book was so boring that I gave up. I really cannot understand how it could win the Edgar Award (usually books which won this award are good).

I think it is fitting that I am writing this just after 'Elizabeth' who wrote in her review that this book is "more a "guy type" book." That made me laugh because I was thinking this is more of a 'gal type' book and maybe that's why a lot of it left me wanting for more.

I think of this book as a throwback to the pre- Dick Francis days of English writing. Obviously, resurrection men is a contemporary novel, but it has the feel of a forgotten genre book of yesteryear in its unfolding contemplative and methodical story. I am currently trying to make it through the Edgar award winners and finalists listed here at Amazon. Rankin made it onto this list and for that reason alone I picked it up. What I came away with on completion of this book is that it is not the normal style of writing that I am pulled towards and it is not one that I will seek out in the future. I have read a lot of English mystery/thrillers, from Francis' work to Agatha Raisin and would push you in this direction over Rankin.

About the book... This is a story that never really grabbed me. The writing and character development is good enough to take note of, and the plot is complicated and original enough to perk ones interest. The story is understated and this is nice when you compare it to the likes of Patricia Cornwells 9th or 10th book and her heroine is tracking down several rampaging serial killers at once on two continents. Here we have the classic police procedural unfolding in a too dry manner. I am not English and find more affinity with the works of the 87th precinct or Hillermans stories that here. It might just be the cultural divide that was keeping me from entirely relishing this work. All I can say is that all the components are here for a first rate book, but for some reason, I just didn't enjoy it very much and why this is so is a mystery in itself for me.

The book was chosen by my book club. It wasn't really my kind of read, more a "guy type" book.

"Resurrection Men" is the fifteenth in the Detective Inspector John Rebus police procedural series by the outstanding, increasingly appreciated Scots author Ian Rankin, still a young man, lucky for us. In contrast to most Scots mystery writers at work now, Rankin sets his best-of-tartan-noir universe in the east coast Edinburgh, rather than the west coast Glasgow; it's a more beautiful, smaller city, the capital of the country, where you might expect the crime to be white collar, rather than blue. But Rebus always seems to find enough to keep busy.

As the book opens, Rebus has been sent undercover to Tulliallan Police College, where recruits are trained, and troublesome older officers sent to resurrect their careers. Sir David Strathern, chief constable of Lothian and Borders Police, Rebus's permanent posting, suspects several of the officers currently at the college are dirty, and he wants Rebus to find the proof. To Rebus, of course, this a difficult assignment. Aside from the obvious, St. Leonard's, his station house, is in the midst of an engrossing enquiry: Edward Marber, local art dealer, has been done in, and many of the usual suspects are known to Rebus. The policeman finds the college assignment doubly difficult because, for the unsolved case the officers there are always given to work, they're given a case they've never been given before. It's the Rico Lomax case, it was Rebus's, and he knows much too much about it. He can't help wondering...

Rankin is a highly talented writer with a great grip of the English language, Scottish subdivision; a grasp of police work, the ability to keep these three strong subplots going at one time, that sharp Scots humor, and the toughest tartan noir outlook around. Unfortunately, "Resurrection Men" has a few too many characters, and cites unfamiliar-to-Americans police nomenclature a little too often. It took me two readings to get it, and that's with helpful tables upfront.

The youthful writer is also a sharp observer of his city's weather, ambiance, and social systems. He writes that Edinburgh cops call their morgue the "dead center," and are proud to say they work at the dead center of Edinburgh. "The building," he writes, "is tucked away on the Cowgate, one of the city's more secretive streets. Few pedestrians ever found themselves there, and the traffic was intent on being elsewhere."

The author writes further on pedestrians and traffic: a "pavement drunk" causes them to step out onto the road. "The drunk was making for the opposite pavement, stumbling blindly across the road. They both knew he'd make it. He was carrying a bottle: no way a motorist would want that flying through his windshield."

"You worked hard all week, then prayed for oblivion at the weekend," Rebus muses of his city's inhabitants. But you'd better have your wits fully about you when you tackle this book.

A young black woman, a rising star in San Francisco's legal arena is found dead at midnight. I white male junkie, brother-in-law of a newspaper writer, is found nearby with the woman's jewelry and the gun that shot her. But two shots were fired and the woman was only shot once.

Bi-racial homicide lieutenant Abe Glitsky is called to the scene and what nobody else there knows is, the dead young woman is his daughter via youthful affair with a deceased African American congresswoman from California. Enraged, he roughs up the junkie, and demands his underlings get a confession, whch they do. Later he begins to believe the junkie didn't commit the murder, but they've got a confession he is responsible for.

The city's embattled DA, who has a history of going easy on criminals, is low in the polls and an election is coming up. She decides to go for the death penalty in this case. Defense attorney Dismas Hardy isn't even sure his clinet is innocent, still he crusades to find the truth and finds a shady lawyer might be involved in this murder, as well as a corrupt retired cop. What he ultimately finds is even more devious than that.

The book has some very well written family scenes. Abe Glitsy with his college age sons and his religious Jewish father after he suffers a heart attack which makes him slow in his investigation, allowing the bad guys to have the edge until the end. There are touching scenes of married affection in the city's night spots on the Hardy's weekly "date night." There is an almost horrifying scene where Dismas Hardy comes home to find his emotionally sensistive preteen daughter strewn across the bed sobbing hysterically and his wife distraught. The daughter had never even thought about suicide until the public school held an indebth student assembly on the subject, it's causes and prevention

I didn't know what to expect from this author. I started reading the book and everything looked like a straight forward murder mystery.

But every so often we would stumble across a seemingly unrelated sub plot. I kind of wondered what it was doing in the book at all.

But wait there are more stray plots, just stick with it, because everything comes together in the end. Not many people can pull off a book like this. It is refreshing to read.

I just order two more titles. That's the best endorsement I can make.

While reading this book, I enjoyed the suspense and the setting (San Francisco). But in the three weeks (and several other completed books) since I finished it, I completely forgot the entire story. Reading the summary brought it back, but not enthusiastically. Being my first Lescroart book, I thought I might pick up another for the setting in SF rather than my attachment to his characters.

I started the series with the last couple of books that Lescroart wrote. They were pretty bad. I should have known that starting with the more recent books might have been a mistake due to the track record of just about every other series ever produced. Authors tend to build up a series by piling one title on top of another and growing an audience. The first books are always the better in my opinion, wether it be Lawrence Block, James Patterson, or Patricia Cornwell. The characters are developed in the first couple of books and after a while the stories start to become mockaries of previous titles.

So I thought that I would give Lescroart another try with one of the earlier books and came across 'Motive.' The story here is very similar to other Lescroart novels in the Dismis Hardy series, but for some almost intangible reason, it is crisper, fresher, and contains a more dire sense of urgency. I think that Lescroart might have been a little less comfortable, still searching for a groove that makes this book struggle and in turn takes the reader on a ride that will leave one guessing til the end how this will all come out.

I think that in the later books, Hardy and Abe become superhuman and a little hard to swallow. Sort of like Harlan Coben's Myron Bolitar books where the characters become cartoon impersonations of people. It is a little apparent that in 'Motive,' the characters are heading to this la la land that makes the author treat his characters with kid gloves, but they are not quite there yet. Lescroart has put himself into a bit of a bind. He has produced a series of books that have garnered an audience clamoring for encores. Because the characters are so dear to the author and have already achieved a superhero status of mythic proportions, Lescroart is unwilling to damage this fantasy land and the comic book protagonists are fully realized and do not grow beyond this point. It would be nice to see Lescroart set this series aside and write some stand alone books ala Lehane and really explore the nuances of a character or two. But in the meantime, I would totally recommend this genre book.

Having read and enjoyed Lescroart's more recent novels featuring Dismas Hardy and Abe Glisky, I went back in search of some of his earlier works. I picked up The Hearing in hopes of getting some vintage Lescroart. I was not disappointed. In fact, I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Lescroart built his usual compelling, page-turning work. For me though, taking this out of order allowed for Lescroart's introduction of a number of characters that I grew to know in subsequent books. This certainly was an unexpected added dimension and source of enjoyment as I went quickly through the book. As might be expected, Lescroart does a great job of bringing out raw human emotion in the characters in a way that adds complexity and depth to the story. All in all, I'm very glad I went back to The Hearing. It was well worth the time.

Couldn't get into this book, I found the characters morally weak and the pace of the book very slow. It was so bad that I couldn't even finish, not worth my time.

This is my second Martini book (the first as a book on tape) and I am almost embarrassed to say that I really liked it. I didn't realize that I was such a literary elitist (especially if you liked at the stuff I've reviewed) but deep-down inside I guess that there are just some books that I want to hate simply because everyone else likes them.

Well, there's a reason why Martini's books have been perennial best-sellers - they're entertaining legal thrillers.

Plot synopsis:

Shenanigans in the police union have attracted the attention of an abrasive judge. He is leading a grand jury investigation into the union's finances when he is arrested for prostitution and later murder.

Paul Madriani is dragged into the case as the judge's defense attorney as a favor to a friend and soon everyone is stuck in a web of intrigue that involves the police, the prosecutor and Madriani's family.

The plot works well but Madriani overuses the 'simile' as a literary device. As I listened to this book on tape I started to become distracted by the sheer number of them. If I'd have had a notepad I would have started a tally sheet!

Judge Armando Acosta is not Paul Mandriani's favorite person and yet he ends up defending him in a murder case. Judge Acosta has been involved in a case involving a cover-up by the police of a murder. During the investigation, he, himself, gets arrested for solicitating an under-cover prostitute. The under-cover woman is later found murdered and Judge Acosta is accused of her murder. Assistant DA Lenore Goya, who Paul is interested in, has an interest in both cases, but is fired by DA Kline and ends up taking the judges case until her fingerprint is found at the home of the murdered victim, so she has to quit because of a conflict of interest. Paul gets the case by default and even though he isn't fond of his defendent, finds himself involved in a case full of intrigue and many questions as he works to defend his client.

I found the book quite interesting and I got a good look at how trials are conducted. If you are looking for a good legal thriller, then you won't be disappointed in this book. I highly reccomend it.

"The Capital County Courthouse has more leaks than a pack of dogs with bad kidneys...."

This is the first Martini book I have tried to read. Okay, maybe this is just how the main character thinks, but there is at least one of these bad lines every three or four pages. It grated on my nerves. It made me dislike the main character. It made me hate the story. It made me dislike Martini as an author. It made me not want to read any more of his books.

It is always an interesting experience to read an early book in a series that I have recently discovered and see how both the characters and the author's style have evolved in his later works when compared to those early efforts. In some instances the central character's evolution has been so extensive that their early incarnation is hardly recognizable; in many cases the author has gotten increasingly formulaic in the storylines and the early books (often bestsellers that launched the series) are clearly superior and in fact are a reminder of the reasons for the series popularity. (Many readers feel that the Kay Scarpetta series by Patricia Cornwell falls into this latter category.) I have been a fan of the Steve Martini series featuring lawyer Paul Madriani, for several years; in the absence of any additions to the series since the disappointing THE ARRAIGNMENT in January 2003, I decided to fill in some of the backstory with which I was unfamiliar by reading THE JUDGE, originally published in January 1996. This is a well written novel with an excellent storyline; I highly recommend it to both fans of the author and first-time readers as a standalone novel.

As the story begins, Paul Madriani agrees to do a favor for a friend who once saved his life, Lenore Goya, chief deputy prosecutor for Capital County, CA. His client will be Lenore's childhood friend and distant relation, Tony Arguillo, a relatively new member of the city's Police Department who has been subpoenaed by a grand jury investigating the police union for corruption. The situation is compounded by a labor dispute between the city and the union and the upcoming re-election campaign of Judge Armando Acosta (known as "the Coconut"), who within the first ten pages threatens to jail Tony if he won't testify under a grant of limited immunity. Suddenly, everything seems to change dramatically for Tony when THE JUDGE is arrested during a sting operation by the Vice Squad for supposedly soliciting a prostitute. Paul visits Lenore while she is interviewing the undercover operative (Brittany Hall) involved in the sting; Lenore's boss D.A. Coleman Kline suddenly confronts Lenore regarding another case and then imperiously and with great irritation chastises her for interviewing Ms. Hall in his absence. It appears that the D.A. believes that this high profile case involving a sitting judge may further his ambitions to someday run for governor (in addition to providing ammunition in his personal vendetta against Lenore). To Madriani's great surprise and the consternation of his long time associate Harry Hinds, Judge Acosta asks Madriani to defend him and adamantly declares that he has been framed by the Police Department in retaliation for his treatment of Tony, the union's fair haired boy.

As Madriani is just starting to pursue his investigation and develop a strategy for defending Acosta, the case suddenly assumes epic proportions as the key witness against his client is found brutally murdered. The only witness is Ms. Hall's very young daughter; as the case proceeds the confusing nature of the evidence and the age of the witness present problems for both the defense and D.A. Kline (for whom the political stakes have risen dramatically as he chooses to prosecute the case himself). This book effectively combines all the elements found in this series - murder, sex, corruption, courtroom drama, politics, detective work, and clever legal maneuverings. Since it occurs shortly after the death of Madriani's wife Nikki, it also provides some information regarding his relationship with his daughter Sarah in the period after Nikki's death. In addition, suspense develops as to how the intensity of the case will affect Paul's relationship with Lenore, who is also a single parent and dealing with the problems of raising two young daughters. The potential cost of the case for Madriani and Lenore suddenly escalates dramatically when violence explodes that might touch the lives of their children as well as themselves and when a situation occurs which might lead to their disbarment.

This book was very enjoyable; a particularly satisfying element was the inclusion of a lot of actual courtroom scenes and legal maneuvering. Some of the more recent legal thrillers by several authors including Martini have seemed to be much more action oriented and focused primarily on lawyers acting as detectives to unravel the evidence in their clients' cases. I much prefer the emphasis on the courtroom drama itself as an integral element of the story. There were a few minor flaws which I won't bother detailing, but careful attention to the story allows the reader to unravel the case in concert with Madriani. My only disappointment was my surprising familiarity with elements of the story once I got involved in the book; some research revealed that this book actually formed the basis for the script for a made-for-television movie which I had obviously watched several years ago and then forgotten until reading the book dredged up the forgotten storyline from my memory. The fact that the book contains substantial additional material and some differences in the plot development allowed me to still enjoy the story as it unfolded, but at the same time undoubtedly made me more alert to certain clues in the narrative regarding the outcome than I otherwise would have been. But if you have not seen the film, you will definitely find THE JUDGE to be one of Martini's best novels and realize why it became a best seller when originally published.

Tucker Andersen

I needed a cheap book to take on vacation, and this title was available for under $5.00. That said, I overlooked the wealth of typos in the book, assuming the heavy discount was due to a badly edited edition.

It took a while for me to get used to the structure of the story. There are many sets of characters; some who overlap, others do not. A short blurb is written about one set of people and events, then the book jumps to another story line. Often, it took me several sentences to figure out where the story had jumped to. This was also a device used to tease the reader, as you are lured to think the explanation is about one character, but it's really about another. The complaints about this story or the characters not being real didn't seem to be an issue for me. The story is written like a soap opera, and I enjoyed it greatly on that level. I kept coming back to absorb more and more. The 600+ pages melted away more quickly than anything I've read in the last two years. Once I got the characters straight, I enjoyed the book greatly.

I love sagas and this is one of the best. Unfortunately I don't have as much time to read as I would like...so this book kept me up late at night to finish. Looking forward to the next two episodes.

My first Penny Vincenze novel, and I am hooked! The saga of the Lytton family is excellent,and I have already started the second book. Having visited London, this is a great setting and Ms Vencenze is a wonderful storyteller.

How fortunate that I discovered Penny Vincenzi! Her books are captivating and I can't get enough.
Rarely is my interest held throughout ANY novel but the two I've read thus far - SHEER ABANDON and NO ANGEL
- were books I couldn't put down! I have two more from the trilogy on order now and can't wait for them to
arrive. Actually, this may be a good time to attend to all the things needing my attention that I neglected for
Ms. Vincenzi. I absolutely loved everything contained in NO ANGEL and consider it a serious piece of literature.
The twins had me laughing and Sebastian had me gritting my teeth. I found him to be a major nusiance from day one!
Even though it takes two to make an affair, he became a fungus on Lady Celia. Oliver, poor thing went through
an awful lot but was very lucky to have Celia as his wife and co-worker. Simply put, she could certainly lead a
parade! Lady Beckenham was another of my favorites! I loved her straightforwardness - she says it like it is
and her personality evoked a lot of amusement for me.
All in all, I can't brag enough about this novel. Treat yourself to a great read.

I was ready for a summer book and I hoped "No Angel" would be it. While it was certainly light and on a certain level entertaining, I can't recommend it. A sprawling novel covering the English upper class before WWI, during and briefly afterwards, it was completely predictable: from the rich, beautiful and head-strong protagonist who excels in her husband's publishing business despite his reservations to the poor but smart young girl who is taken under this family's wing as an act of charity, everything happens as you know and expect they should. Half-way through the book I thought it would be time for an affair -- and it was. Everyone in the novel faces challenges but through the luck of the very rich, coincidence, and a little deus ex machina everything turns out all right in the end. This is a perfect book for the beach -- start it now and if you don't get back to it until next July, no problem, you'll catch up with it again in a matter of minutes. On the other hand, if you'd like a book that enters new territory, then this isn't the one for you.