This review is written with a GPL 4.0 license and the rights contained therein shall supersede all TOS by any and all websites in regards to copying and sharing without proper authorization and permissions. Crossposted at WordPress & Blogspot by Bookstooge’s Exalted Permission
First, I’d like to say that this particular post is being shared over at the Irresponsible Reader. He didn’t steal this, or clonk me over the head and hold it hostage. I willingly and of my own free will let it be cross posted. Just so we’re clear. None of you need to take vengeance on my behalf or boost his Lamborghini or steal all that money he’s got squirreled away. No, I can do all of that on my own, thank you very much. But I appreciate your willingness to do such nefarious things on my behalf, I really do. Ok, on to the actual book review.
I first read a Mrs Pollifax story back in 2000. I labeled it a “mystery” and accidentally thought it was written by Agatha Christie. I went close to two decades thinking Mrs Pollifax was just another version of Miss Marple and as such, I avoided the series. It wasn’t until I was getting the Hotel Bookstooge in final order that I realized that Dorothy Gilman was the author and that it wasn’t really a mystery series at all. I eventually tracked down the series and added it to my tbr pile.
Imagine my surprise when I found out this was a series about a little old lady named Emily Pollifax and that she works for the CIA. That immediately threw it out of the cozy mystery genre and straight into the cozy thriller genre. Only, as I read the book, it really wasn’t that cozy, so I decided Mrs Pollifax deserved to go straight to the big leagues and just get the “Thriller” label. I mean, she gets kidnapped by Chinese Commies, escapes their remote fortress and makes it out to sea to get rescue. AND she fulfills her original mission of picking up some super secret ultra superdooper important info. She does all of this without turning into the Black Widow and doing crazy acrobatic stunts that no real person could possibly do.
There are moments of genuine threat and while Emily doesn’t go all Black Widow on the situation, neither does she break down and fall part. She’s what I’d describe as a tough old bird. The world needs more people like her. I thoroughly enjoyed her as a character and am looking forward to see what else Gilman has in store for her creation.
This is also a good time capsule of the times and I enjoyed seeing what the 60’s were like from a non-commie-hippy viewpoint.
★★★✬☆
From Wikipedia.org
Mrs. Pollifax is an elderly widow who has come to find life dull and is almost ready to end it all out of sheer boredom. Inspired by a newspaper profile of an actress who began her career in later life, she decides to fulfill a childhood ambition and apply for a job as a spy at the CIA. Meanwhile, Carstairs at the CIA is looking for an agent who can pass as a tourist in order to pick up an important package in Mexico. Due to a slight confusion, he thinks Mrs. Pollifax is one of the candidates and decides that Mrs. Pollifax is ideal; Carstairs decided this assignment carries so little danger that even one who is relatively untrained may be sent. So with minimum explanation, Pollifax is ushered off to Mexico City to meet a bookstore owner/secret agent, exchange code phrases, and leave with the package. The courier mission does not go as planned, and Mrs. Pollifax finds herself imprisoned in the Socialist Republic of Albania, facing harsh questioning and possible torture. But she proves to be unusually resourceful, and with her companion’s assistance, manages to outwit the enemy and save the day.
This review is written with a GPL 4.0 license and the rights contained therein shall supersede all TOS by any and all websites in regards to copying and sharing without proper authorization and permissions. Crossposted at WordPress & Blogspot by Bookstooge’s Exalted Permission
Title: Northanger Abbey Series: ———- Author: Jane Austen Rating: 4 of 5 Stars Genre: Classic Pages: 175 Words: 81K
For this read through, I did my best to peer past the parody asides that Austen threw in and just see the romance story she had written. It was a pretty plain jane, vanilla flavored romance. It was also very much a coming of age story. Catherine is a sheltered young woman and this story was more about her seeing a wider world and the evil side of people, which she hadn’t been exposed to at home, than it was about her meeting and eventually marrying Henry Tilney.
It was also a good reminder of just how insecure and unsettled young people are. Catherine wasn’t confused, she just didn’t know enough to react properly to her so-called friend Isabella’s actions. She had to learn by experience. Overall, I’m a pretty confident guy and it can be hard for me to remember that not everyone else is the same. I have a feeling I’d fulfill the role of General Tilney (Henry’s father) and intimidate Catherine without even realizing it. I know I mock the idea of “special snowflakes” a lot, but I am aware that kids do need a little bit of care in handling, sometimes, but not often.
The other thing I noticed was just how much of a role letter writing played. It is in all of Austen’s stories, but here it just made me think. I am a texter and I write on my blog and I journal, so I’d like to think that I would have been a great letter writer back in the day. But there is a big difference between typing and writing. And there is a HUGE difference using a gel pen and a quill and ink stand. Upon reflection I suspect that I would not have been a huge letter writer unless I had an amanuensis to take dictation for me. If that was the case, I’d probably be sending letters every day 😀
You get a letter, you get a letter, everybody gets a letter! (well, except for you!)
Overall I enjoyed this more than my previous times and I suspect it had as much, if not more, to do with my appreciation of good writing than just having a good time with a story.
★★★★☆
From Wikipedia.org
Synopsis – click to open
Seventeen-year-old Catherine Morland is one of ten children of a country clergyman. Although a tomboy in her childhood, she is “in training for a heroine” and is fond of reading Gothic novels “provided they [are] all story and no reflection.”
The Allens (her wealthier neighbours in Fullerton) invite Catherine to accompany them in their visit to the city of Bath and partake in the winter season of balls, theatre and other social activities. Shortly after their arrival, she is introduced to a young gentleman, Henry Tilney, with whom she dances. Mrs. Allen meets an old school friend, Mrs. Thorpe, whose daughter, Isabella, quickly becomes friends with Catherine. Isabelle introduces Catherine to Ann Radcliffe’s 1794 Gothic novel Mysteries of Udolpho. Mrs. Thorpe’s son, John, is a friend of Catherine’s older brother, James, at Oxford University where they are both students. The two young men come to Bath, where John is then introduced to Catherine.
The Thorpes are not happy about Catherine’s friendship with the Tilneys. They correctly perceive Henry as a rival for Catherine’s affections even though Catherine is not at all interested in John Thorpe. Despite Thorpe continually attempting to sabotage her relationship with the Tilneys, Catherine tries to maintain her friendships with both the Thorpes and the Tilneys. This leads to several misunderstandings, which put Catherine in the awkward position of having to explain herself to the Tilneys.
Isabella and James become engaged. James’ father approves of the match and offers his son a country parson’s living of a modest sum, £400 annually, but they must wait until he can obtain the benefice in two and a half years. Isabella is dissatisfied, but to Catherine, she misrepresents her distress as being caused solely by the delay, and not by the value of the sum. Isabella immediately begins to flirt with Captain Frederick Tilney, Henry’s older brother. Innocent Catherine cannot understand her friend’s behaviour, but Henry understands all too well as he knows his brother’s character and habits.
The Tilneys invite Catherine to stay with them for a few weeks at their home, Northanger Abbey. Once at Northanger Abbey, Catherine and Eleanor Tilney, Henry’s and Frederick’s younger sister, get to know each other better on a personal level.[7] Catherine, in accordance with her novel reading, expects the house to be exotic and frightening. Henry teases her about this as it turns out that Northanger Abbey is pleasant and decidedly not Gothic. However, the house includes a mysterious suite of rooms that no one ever enters; Catherine learns that they were the apartments of Mrs. Tilney, who died nine years earlier due to a serious illness,[7] leaving Mr. Tilney with three children to raise by himself.[8] As General Tilney no longer appears to be affected by her death, Catherine decides that he may have imprisoned her in her chamber, or even murdered her.
Catherine discovers that her over-active imagination has led her astray as nothing is strange or distressing in the apartments. Henry finds and questions her; he surmises and informs her that his father loved his wife in his own way and was truly upset by her death.[9] She leaves the apartments, crying, fearing that she has lost Henry’s regard entirely. Realising how foolish she has been, Catherine comes to believe that, though novels may be delightful, their content does not relate to everyday life. Henry does not mention this incident to her again.
James writes to inform her that he has broken off his engagement to Isabella and implies that she has become engaged instead to Captain Tilney. Henry and Eleanor Tilney are sceptical that their brother has actually become engaged to Isabella Thorpe. Catherine is terribly disappointed, realising what a dishonest person Isabella is. A subsequent letter from Isabella herself confirms the Tilney siblings’ doubts and shows that Frederick Tilney was merely flirting with Isabella. The General goes off to London, and the atmosphere at Northanger Abbey immediately becomes lighter and more pleasant from his absence. Catherine passes several enjoyable days with Henry and Eleanor until the General returns abruptly in a temper in Henry’s absence. He forces Catherine to go home early the next morning in a shocking and unsafe mode that forces Catherine to undertake the 70 miles (110 km) journey alone.
At home, Catherine is listless and unhappy. Henry pays a sudden unexpected visit and explains what happened. General Tilney (on the misinformation of John Thorpe) had believed her to be exceedingly rich as the Allens’ prospective heiress, and therefore a proper match for Henry. In London, General Tilney ran into Thorpe again, who, angry at Catherine’s refusal of his earlier half-made proposal of marriage, said instead that she was nearly destitute. Enraged, General Tilney, (again on the misinformation of John Thorpe), returned home to evict Catherine. When Henry returned to Northanger, his father informed him of what had occurred and forbade him to think of Catherine again. When Henry learns how she had been treated, he breaks with his father and tells Catherine he still wants to marry her despite his father’s disapproval. Catherine is delighted, though when Henry seeks her parents’ approval, they tell the young couple that final approval will only happen when General Tilney consents.
Eventually, General Tilney acquiesces because Eleanor has become engaged to a wealthy and titled man; he discovers that the Morlands, while not extremely rich, are far from destitute.
This review is written with a GPL 4.0 license and the rights contained therein shall supersede all TOS by any and all websites in regards to copying and sharing without proper authorization and permissions. Crossposted at WordPresss & Blogspot by Bookstooge’s Exalted Permission
Title: Green Eyes Series: The Shadow #15 Authors: Maxwell Grant Rating: 3.5 of 5 Stars Genre: Crime Fiction Pages: 158 Words: 48K
For whatever reason, I really enjoy when the Shadow goes up against a Chinese villain. Part of it is that those villains tend to be extremely smart and clever and aren’t reliant on guns and muscle alone (like many of the mob bosses the Shadow regularly takes down). They have a brain and they use it. At the same time Grant (the author) isn’t promoting the “Oldskool Gangsta” lifestyle. The badguys get theirs every time. But it feels like a battle between almost equals instead of just the Shadow mopping everything up like a janitor.
In this story, the Shadow is on the West Coast of the United States, in that most evil and iniquitous state called California. The Feds are hot on the trail of a supposedly pacifist Chinese cultural movement that plans to start a new empire. Massive drug smuggling is involved and the Shadow is captured, good and proper. Sadly, the Mastermind falls into the typical villain hubris and doesn’t immediately kill the Shadow. Remember kids, if you’re going to be a villain, kill the good guy immediately! No gloating, no monologues, no torture. Just kill him. Or else he will escape and get you. It always happens that way, and it happened that way here too. Of course, I was rooting for the Shadow, so that was a good thing.
My one big disappointment was that Green Eyes did not end up referring to a Femme Fatale. I was picturing some sort of Shadow’ized Catwoman’ish lady who could take on the Shadow and then fall hopelessly in love with him. Nope. Green Eyes simply refers to a guy who can mesmerize people with his eyes. Poop to that!
But the cover. Ohhhhhh, that cover. Pure Awesomesauce! Twin automatic .45’s, the only thing better is an assault shotgun.
★★★✬☆
From the Publisher
There is a criminal empire being run by a mad genius out of San Francisco’s Chinatown. Nobody knows who they are or when they will strike again. Only one man can bring down the vicious criminal operations. The Shadow!
This review is written with a GPL 4.0 license and the rights contained therein shall supersede all TOS by any and all websites in regards to copying and sharing without proper authorization and permissions. Crossposted at WordPress & Blogspot by Bookstooge’s Exalted Permission
Title: Mary Poppins Series: Mary Poppins #1 Author: Pamela Travers Rating: 3.5 of 5 Stars Genre: Middlegrade Fiction Pages: 159 Words: 43K
An absolutely delightful book. Absolutely delightful! I had seen the Disney movie/musical way back when and enjoyed it as a child but even then I felt that Julie Andrews was simply too saccharine sweet and thus had no desire to ever explore the books, as I figured they would be more of the same, if not even sweeter. But as the years have gone by and I have learned just what “Disneyfied” means, I wondered if perhaps the books weren’t quite what the movie portrayed. Then some people I know were doing an amateur play production and I decided that now was the time to check things out.
I am very glad I did. Mary Poppins was not the saccharine character in the movie. She was extremely competent and yet, she was sharp as glass and boy, could she cut. She was vain, always looking at herself in mirrors or windows. She was sulky, refusing to talk to the children if they had done something she didn’t like. She was vindictive, giving the children “exactly” what they wanted when she didn’t want to. It was wonderful seeing an adult treat the kids like kids instead of acting like they were helpless snowflakes who would melt at one hot word.
Each chapter was one adventure. It was perfectly paced and when the story was done, it was done. I like that kind of finality. Also, Mary Poppins literally blew in on the wind and then the book ends with her blowing away. Perfect book ends.
It was just plain invigorating to read this and I’m looking forward to the rest of the series.
★★★✬☆
From Wikipedia
Synopsis – Click to Open
The first book introduces the Banks family from Number Seventeen Cherry Tree Lane, London,[a] consisting of Mr and Mrs Banks, their children Jane and Michael, and baby twins John and Barbara. When the children’s nanny, Katie Nanna, storms out in a huff, Mary Poppins arrives at their home, complete with her travelling carpet bag, blown in by a very strong east wind. She accepts the job (agreeing to stay “till the wind changes”), and the children soon learn that their nanny, though stern, vain and usually cross, has a magical touch that makes her wonderful. Among the things Jane and Michael experience are a tea party on a ceiling with Mr Wigg, a trip around the world with a compass, the purchase of gingerbread stars from the extremely old Mrs Corry, a meeting with the Bird Woman, a birthday party at the zoo among the animals, and a Christmas shopping trip with a star named Maia from the Pleiades cluster in the constellation Taurus. In the end, in what is perhaps the most iconic image associated with Mary Poppins, she opens her umbrella and the west wind carries her away. She leaves behind a note letting the children know that they will meet her again someday.
He walked downstairs in his socks, wearing a simple gray, long sleeved BU Hockey T-shirt, and jeans that hid the rugged athleticism of his six feet one-inch frame. Anton arrived at the front door just as the doorbell rang for the third time.
He opened the door; before him stood the most beautiful woman that he had ever seen in his life.
She was tall, nearly the same height as Anton, brunette with vivid blue eyes, flawless complexion, wearing a professional black business pants suit with a short jacket, and a translucent scarlet silk chiffon shirt that displayed the round curves of her breasts within a stylish black bra.
Just standing still, she was a seductive mix of poise, elegance, and class, with a face that demanded attention.
I started A Subtle Agency, by Graeme Rodaughan, the first book in the Metaframe War series. I know it involves vampires, but that quote from the first chapter does not bode well. I swear, if “rippling abs” make even ONE appearance, I’m dnf’ing this like it has the bubonic plague.
This review is written with a GPL 4.0 license and the rights contained therein shall supersede all TOS by any and all websites in regards to copying and sharing without proper authorization and permissions. Crossposted at WordPress & Blogspot by Bookstooge’s Exalted Permission
Title: Lady Killer Series: 87th Precinct Author: Ed McBain Rating: 3.5 of 5 Stars Genre: Crime Fiction Pages: 99 Words: 43K
With a threatening anonymous note saying the writer will “Kill the Lady”, the detectives of the 87th Precinct have a mere 9hrs to figure out who the lady is and how to prevent her death. Is the lady a high class whore, is she an actress, is she a dog? Of course, it’s nothing so obvious as that.
I had no idea what was going on the entire time and I loved it. I was as confused as the police and man, it was a great thrill ride. And with it being such a short book, I felt like I jumped into the police cruiser, jammed the sirens on as loud as they could go and went tearing down the highway at 120 miles per hour, slammed the brakes on, performed a vehicular military exfil and shot the perp dead with my SWAT issued automatic assault shotgun. It’s no nuclear bazooka, and Hawes is no Mitch Rapp, but I take what I can get. Nuclear bazookas come and go, but an assault shotgun is forever. Kind of like love in fact.
Awwww, look at that wittle cutie! Just makes you want to cuddle it, doesn’t it?
★★★✬☆
From the Publisher
Detective Cotton Hawes of the 87th Precinct scrutinizes a tip-off letter that says “I will kill the lady tonight at 8”–giving him nine hours to find the victim and the killer in a city of eight million people.
