Kemper’s books on Goodreads (2,247 books) (original) (raw)

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| ------------------------ | ------------------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------- | --------------- | --------------------------------- | ------------------------------ | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | ----- | --------------------- | --------------------------------------------------- | | ------ | | | checkbox | position | cover A Study in Scarlet (Sherlock Holmes, #1) | title A Study in Scarlet(Sherlock Holmes, #1) | author Doyle, Arthur Conan | isbn 0140439080 | isbn13 9780140439083 | asin 0140439080 | num pages 144pp | avg rating 4.14 | num ratings 462,453 | date pub Dec 27, 1887 | date pub edition Oct 01, 2001 | Kemper's rating liked it | my rating 1 of 5 stars2 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars add to shelves | review Sherlock Holmes is a dick. And I don’t mean that as a reference to the character being a private detective. Sure, he may be brilliant, but he’s also a Sherlock Holmes is a dick. And I don’t mean that as a reference to the character being a private detective. Sure, he may be brilliant, but he’s also arrogant, condescending, cold, rude, self-absorbed and generally an insufferable douche bag. If Watson wasn’t such a brown-noser, he’d have snapped and pimp slapped the shit out of Holmes about five minutes after meeting him. It’d been a long time since I’d read any of the stories, and I thought I’d check some out after watching Robert Downey Jr. play Holmes. And while RDJ’s version was an action hero that made Holmes purists bleed from the eyes and ears, at least he was a likeable rogue. Where as reading original recipe Holmes makes you want to jump into the book and strangle him just for being such a prick.But I guess that’s part of the mythos around the character as the cool analytical logic junkie. I may have liked him better if this was one of the stories where he was freebasing cocaine out of boredom because at least he would have come across as more human then.Holmes may be a key character in crime fiction, and while I actually found the mystery and detailed background of the motives in this pretty interesting, I was cringing every time Sherlock opened his mouth. ...more | notes Notes are private! | comments 0 | votes 64 | # times read 2 | date started not set not set | date read May 28, 2010 not set | date added Jun 20, 2023 | owned | format Paperback | actions view (with text) | | | | | checkbox | position | cover Ultimate Comics Spider-Man, Vol. 1 | title Ultimate Comics Spider-Man, Vol. 1 | author Bendis, Brian Michael | isbn 0785157131 | isbn13 9780785157137 | asin 0785157131 | num pages 136pp | avg rating 4.26 | num ratings 5,239 | date pub unknown | date pub edition Aug 14, 2012 | Kemper's rating really liked it | my rating 1 of 5 stars2 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars add to shelves | review What's up, danger?I’ve been meaning to read this title for years, but it took the utterly amazing Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse movie to finally m What's up, danger?I’ve been meaning to read this title for years, but it took the utterly amazing Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse movie to finally motivate me to get to it. And I’ve really been missing out.The idea of a new Spider-Man could have been yet another cheap gimmick. Yet the old Marvel Ultimate universe allowed them to take some chances like killing off Peter Parker for realsies, and then introducing Miles Morales as the new kid under the mask. It turns out that actual consequences make for good drama in stories. Who knew?Bendis did a great job of crafting a new character as well as coming up with a plot that mirrors the the classic Spider-Man origin story yet still has a fresh and original feel to it. Miles has many of the same qualities that Peter has, but he’s not just a clone of him. (Which is good because Spidey doesn’t have a great history with clones.) I was also surprised to discover that the new Marvel movie version of Peter Parker pretty much lifted the idea of Miles’ best friend who knows his secret. Only steal from the best, even when stealing from yourself.It’s a great take on Spider-Man, and I can’t wait to read more about Miles and his adventures.Merged review:What's up, danger?I’ve been meaning to read this title for years, but it took the utterly amazing Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse movie to finally motivate me to get to it. And I’ve really been missing out.The idea of a new Spider-Man could have been yet another cheap gimmick. Yet the old Marvel Ultimate universe allowed them to take some chances like killing off Peter Parker for realsies, and then introducing Miles Morales as the new kid under the mask. It turns out that actual consequences make for good drama in stories. Who knew?Bendis did a great job of crafting a new character as well as coming up with a plot that mirrors the the classic Spider-Man origin story yet still has a fresh and original feel to it. Miles has many of the same qualities that Peter has, but he’s not just a clone of him. (Which is good because Spidey doesn’t have a great history with clones.) I was also surprised to discover that the new Marvel movie version of Peter Parker pretty much lifted the idea of Miles’ best friend who knows his secret. Only steal from the best, even when stealing from yourself.It’s a great take on Spider-Man, and I can’t wait to read more about Miles and his adventures. ...more | notes Notes are private! | comments 6 | votes 50 | # times read 2 | date started Jan 20, 2019 not set | date read Jan 20, 2019 not set | date added Apr 11, 2023 | owned | format Paperback | actions view (with text) | | | | | checkbox | position | cover Adventures in the Screen Trade: A Personal View of Hollywood and Screenwriting | title Adventures in the Screen Trade: A Personal View of Hollywood and Screenwriting | author Goldman, William | isbn 0446391174 | isbn13 9780446391177 | asin 0446391174 | num pages 608pp | avg rating 4.12 | num ratings 7,878 | date pub 1983 | date pub edition Mar 10, 1989 | Kemper's rating liked it | my rating 1 of 5 stars2 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars add to shelves | review William Goldman was apparently good at two things, writing and holding grudges. With this book he gets to show off some of the writing skill while als William Goldman was apparently good at two things, writing and holding grudges. With this book he gets to show off some of the writing skill while also burning a whole lot of bridges by dishing out a lot of Hollywood gossip that make a lot of very famous people sound not so great. Along the way he also imparts some of the wisdom he picked up about movie making which really boils down to, “Nobody knows anything.”It's a fun book although it seems more than a little self-aggrandizing at times and like Goldman really enjoyed settling some scores. Since it was written in the early ‘80s there’s also a fun time-capsule quality to it, and while Goldman wasn’t 100% accurate when it came to predicting where the film industry would end up going, he was also right about a whole lot of things. ...more | notes Notes are private! | comments 0 | votes 36 | # times read 1 | date started Feb 18, 2023 | date read Feb 18, 2023 | date added Feb 18, 2023 | owned | format Paperback | actions view (with text) | | | | | checkbox | position | cover Ozark Dogs | title Ozark Dogs | author Cranor, Eli * | isbn 1641294531 | isbn13 9781641294539 | asin 1641294531 | num pages 312pp | avg rating 3.71 | num ratings 2,602 | date pub Apr 04, 2023 | date pub edition Apr 04, 2023 | Kemper's rating really liked it | my rating 1 of 5 stars2 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars add to shelves | review Eli Cranor delivers more top notch rural noir in his second book where old secrets and grudges in a small town lead to violence. | notes Notes are private! | comments 2 | votes 49 | # times read 1 | date started Nov 24, 2022 | date read Feb 18, 2023 | date added Nov 24, 2022 | owned | format Hardcover | actions view (with text) | | | | | checkbox | position | cover Fletch's Fortune (Fletch, #3) | title Fletch's Fortune(Fletch, #3) | author McDonald, Gregory | isbn 0375713557 | isbn13 9780375713552 | asin 0375713557 | num pages 256pp | avg rating 3.75 | num ratings 2,354 | date pub Apr 01, 1978 | date pub edition Mar 12, 2002 | Kemper's rating liked it | my rating 1 of 5 stars2 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars add to shelves | review Fletch gets blackmailed by the government to secretly bug and record journalists at a conference, but when an asshole media mogul gets murdered, Fletc Fletch gets blackmailed by the government to secretly bug and record journalists at a conference, but when an asshole media mogul gets murdered, Fletch ends up investigating that too. This is OK, but a little too cute for it's own good. Plus, it's really hard to believe that a supposedly smart guy like Fletch would be too dumb to ever pay his taxes. That's how they got Capone, ya know.... ...more | notes Notes are private! | comments 0 | votes 25 | # times read 1 | date started Nov 21, 2022 | date read Nov 24, 2022 | date added Nov 24, 2022 | owned | format Paperback | actions view (with text) | | | | | checkbox | position | cover Friend of the Devil (Reckless, #2) | title Friend of the Devil(Reckless, #2) | author Brubaker, Ed | isbn 1534318364 | isbn13 9781534318366 | asin 1534318364 | num pages 134pp | avg rating 4.31 | num ratings 2,740 | date pub May 04, 2021 | date pub edition May 04, 2021 | Kemper's rating really liked it | my rating 1 of 5 stars2 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars add to shelves | review Another great crime comic from Brubaker. Nobody does it better. | notes Notes are private! | comments 0 | votes 23 | # times read 1 | date started Oct 30, 2022 | date read Nov 24, 2022 | date added Oct 30, 2022 | owned | format Hardcover | actions view (with text) | | | | | checkbox | position | cover Confess, Fletch (Fletch, #2) | title Confess, Fletch(Fletch, #2) | author McDonald, Gregory | isbn 0375713484 | isbn13 9780375713484 | asin 0375713484 | num pages 192pp | avg rating 3.90 | num ratings 3,763 | date pub Mar 12, 1976 | date pub edition Mar 12, 2002 | Kemper's rating liked it | my rating 1 of 5 stars2 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars add to shelves | review Fun stuff although the character of Fletch on the page always seems to be more asshole than hero to me. Also thoroughly enjoyed the recent film based Fun stuff although the character of Fletch on the page always seems to be more asshole than hero to me. Also thoroughly enjoyed the recent film based on with Jon Hamm. ...more | notes Notes are private! | comments 0 | votes 29 | # times read 1 | date started Oct 30, 2022 | date read Nov 24, 2022 | date added Oct 30, 2022 | owned | format Paperback | actions view (with text) | | | | | checkbox | position | cover The Heron | title The Heron | author Winslow, Don * | isbn | isbn13 | asin B0B69N768T | num pages unknown | avg rating 3.71 | num ratings 1,130 | date pub unknown | date pub edition Jul 28, 2022 | Kemper's rating really liked it | my rating 1 of 5 stars2 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars add to shelves | review An accountant embezzled a bunch of money from a rich guy who is a major league asshole. Even worse, the accountant slept with his girlfriend. The acco An accountant embezzled a bunch of money from a rich guy who is a major league asshole. Even worse, the accountant slept with his girlfriend. The accountant ends up living quietly in a small desert town where the residents have nicknamed him 'The Heron' due to his odd body shape and distinctive walk. When the wealthy jerk learns where The Heron is, he hires a hit man to finally get revenge, but the rich guy wants to be there to see it done.This is an Audible Original story read by Ed Harris who gives a great vocal performance. It's only about an hour long, but Winslow's writing and Harris' voice made me wish it was a full blown novel so I could have listened to it for longer. It's a very solid crime story that morphs into a genuine tragedy at some point. Well worth checking out for crime fans on Audible. ...more | notes Notes are private! | comments 0 | votes 29 | # times read 1 | date started Sep 29, 2022 | date read Sep 29, 2022 | date added Sep 29, 2022 | owned | format Audible Audio | actions view (with text) | | | | | checkbox | position | cover Righteous Prey (Lucas Davenport #32, Virgil Flowers #14) | title Righteous Prey(Lucas Davenport #32, Virgil Flowers #14) | author Sandford, John | isbn | isbn13 | asin B09PQDNCML | num pages 416pp | avg rating 4.42 | num ratings 27,019 | date pub Oct 04, 2022 | date pub edition Oct 04, 2022 | Kemper's rating liked it | my rating 1 of 5 stars2 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars add to shelves | review _I received a free advance copy of this from NetGalley for review._A group of Bitcoin billionaires calling themselves The Five have appointed themselves _I received a free advance copy of this from NetGalley for review._A group of Bitcoin billionaires calling themselves The Five have appointed themselves to clean up America by personally killing people they think are ruining the country. Their first victims include a violent street criminal, a corrupt right wing congressman, and a rich woman who made herself richer by putting people out of work. Some might just call this asshole-on-asshole violence and be content to let it roll for a while, but it’s a bad idea to just let the billionaires move to their next natural phase of killing people because they’re bored. They’ll get there soon enough. With bodies dropping across the country followed by press releases from The Five bragging about what they’re doing, the inevitable media shitstorm has started. When the latest victim is killed in Minnesota, our favorite Sandford heroes, Lucas Davenport and Virgil Flowers, get called in to help the FBI, and the two cops end up following twisted trails across the US as they start running down The Five.This is once again Sandford doing his thing, and as usual, he does it well. It’s a solid page turner with an intriguing plot set-up, and there’s some fun character stuff with Lucas and Virgil as they entertain themselves by busting each other’s balls regularly. However, I’m still not sold on this idea of Sandford teaming up his two biggest characters and merging what used to be two books a year into one. I know the man has certainly earned a rest at this point, but it seems like splitting time between Lucas and Virgil does something to the flow of the story so that it doesn’t hum with quite the same energy that their solo books do.My other problem with this is one is that Lucas and Virgil don’t really do all that much. There’s a distinct lack of either of them coming up with any of their usual clever schemes or traps to draw out a bad guys, and most of their major breaks come from sheer luck. In fact, by the end of this one Lucas and Virgil seem like rubes who get caught flat footed again and again. Part of the appeal of the Sandford novels is that he has managed to take what could be outlandish action movie plots and ground them through the characters, so they don’t need to be heroes incapable of error. Both of them have made plenty of mistakes in their own books. It’s just in this one that they don’t really seem to impact the plot all that much other than just stumbling into a couple of things.Still, it’s a Sandford book, and those just make me happy so I won’t bitch too much. ...more | notes Notes are private! | comments 0 | votes 27 | # times read 1 | date started Sep 26, 2022 | date read Oct 05, 2022 | date added Sep 26, 2022 | owned | format Kindle Edition | actions view (with text) | | | | | checkbox | position | cover The Burglar Who Met Fredric Brown (Bernie Rhodenbarr #12) | title The Burglar Who Met Fredric Brown(Bernie Rhodenbarr #12) | author Block, Lawrence * | isbn | isbn13 | asin B0B4HM5C3G | num pages 292pp | avg rating 3.78 | num ratings 666 | date pub Oct 18, 2022 | date pub edition Oct 18, 2022 | Kemper's rating really liked it | my rating 1 of 5 stars2 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars add to shelves | review Bernie Rhodenbarr is not happy about the state of the world. As a used bookseller his business has been pretty much destroyed by Amazon, and that used Bernie Rhodenbarr is not happy about the state of the world. As a used bookseller his business has been pretty much destroyed by Amazon, and that used to be less of a problem because he made most of his money in his second job as a burglar. However, the modern world is now filled with surveillance cameras and various forms of electronic security that can’t be cracked with old school lockpicking. When a rich jerk buys a priceless diamond and brags about keeping it in a nearby penthouse, it’s a score that Bernie would have once jumped at, but one quick look convinces him that he wouldn’t even be able to get into the building.Bernie grumbles about all this to his best friend Carol over drinks one night, and after going home he then tries to take his mind off it by reading a book by Fredric Brown about alternate universes. Something strange happens the next day though.The world seems mostly the same, but Bernie’s Metrocard has now been changed to a Subway Card. Even weirder, his bookstore is now doing a brisk business and Amazon doesn’t exist. Bernie also quickly notices that there are far less security cameras and high tech locks around. Only he and Carol seem aware that there’s been any changes, and Bernie can only guess that somehow they’ve shifted to an alternate universe that is lot more hospitable to a guy who sells books and breaks into places. Maybe he could even now manage to steal a priceless diamond.Getting a new Burglar novel at this point feels like a real treat precisely because of what Bernie himself is saying at the start of the story. It’s nigh on impossible to be a bookseller who just runs an actual store or be a professional burglar in modern times. So when the series is oriented around those as key traits of the main character, you’d think it’d be time to retire or maybe set the book in the past.So it’s a delight that Lawrence Block found a loophole with the idea of alternate realities, and then just transplants the whole concept to one in which Bernie can not only exist, but thrive. It’s a little odd because Mr. Block isn’t really associated with sci-fi, and to just have this happen in a series that’s been set in ‘reality’ requires a regular reader to shift into a different gear. Yet it completely worked for me because the alt-universe thing isn’t the point, it’s just a way for Mr. Block to tell us a story with Bernie again. Not only that, the story eventually becomes a kind of meta-commentary in which Bernie starts to become self-aware about how a lot of his burglary jobs become complicated and involve him playing an amatuer sleuth. Most importantly, this still feels like a Bernie book with him having his conservations with Carol, trying to steal something, and solving a mystery in a low-key grounded kind of way.Mr. Block has said that he’s retired from writing novels, but fortunately we exist in a reality where a new book like this can appear. ...more | notes Notes are private! | comments 0 | votes 31 | # times read 1 | date started Sep 07, 2022 | date read Sep 07, 2022 | date added Sep 07, 2022 | owned | format Kindle Edition | actions view (with text) | | | | | checkbox | position | cover Heat 2 | title Heat 2 | author Mann, Michael | isbn 0062653318 | isbn13 9780062653314 | asin 0062653318 | num pages 470pp | avg rating 4.25 | num ratings 11,083 | date pub Aug 09, 2022 | date pub edition Aug 09, 2022 | Kemper's rating really liked it | my rating 1 of 5 stars2 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars add to shelves | review The 1995 film Heat is one of my favorite movies of all time so I was both excited and scared to check this book out. Sequels to things you loved decad The 1995 film Heat is one of my favorite movies of all time so I was both excited and scared to check this book out. Sequels to things you loved decades ago can go either way. For every totally awesome Top Gun: Maverick there’s an abomination like Ghostbusters: Afterlife. So how did Heat 2 do? Much better than Afterlife, but not as well as Maverick.Writer/director Michael Mann teamed up with veteran crime novelist Meg Gardiner to give us a story that is equal parts prequel and sequel. The story bounces between the '80s when professional thief Neil McCauley and his crew were pulling jobs while cop Vincent Hanna is desperately trying to stop another group of criminals conducting brutal home invasions that include rape and murder. The sequel thread that starts in 1995 involves one of the survivors of the original film trying to escape the cops and what happens in the subsequent years. An old loose end that ties the whole Heat story together eventually draws characters back into the same orbit, but none of them realize this at first.As just a crime novel, this works pretty well. Mann knows how to do stories about heists, and there’s a couple of great ones in this. There’s interesting background information we learn about the characters that adds some depth to them. The dialogue hits as it did in the film so that when a character speaks, you can hear the actor who portrayed them in 1995 saying the lines. This is particularly true of Vincent Hanna where it's very easy to imagine a younger Al Pacino belting some of these out with his own brand of gusto.The thing I thought didn’t work as well is what happens in the sequel portion when we jump forward to 2000. At this point the crime aspect isn’t about heists, it’s more about high tech black market computer gear with international organized crime.. That feels like it's borrowing elements from more recent Mann movies such as Blackhat or Miami Vice. There's interesting stuff here, but it felt like the book turned into something else then.Also, there’s no getting around the fact that Mann is a filmmaker so a lot of his appeal is visual in nature. Yes, he can create great characters who speak snappy dialogue filled with a lot of cool lingo, and he and Gardiner set the scene well. But I felt myself longing to see the action play out on a big screen with amazing locations, a killer soundtrack, and Mann’s distinctive screen style rather than just reading it. It also leaves a lot left hanging so it’s not entirely satisfying to wait almost three decades for a follow up that still has more to come.Still, more of this works than doesn’t, and I enjoyed it. It was a real treat to revisit this fictional world again. It’s 3.5 stars rounded up to 4. ...more | notes Notes are private! | comments 0 | votes 107 | # times read 2 | date started Aug 31, 2022 not set | date read Sep 26, 2022 not set | date added Aug 31, 2022 | owned | format Hardcover | actions view (with text) | | | | | checkbox | position | cover The Night Shift | title The Night Shift | author Finlay, Alex * | isbn 1250268885 | isbn13 9781250268884 | asin 1250268885 | num pages 312pp | avg rating 3.91 | num ratings 69,807 | date pub Mar 01, 2022 | date pub edition Mar 01, 2022 | Kemper's rating liked it | my rating 1 of 5 stars2 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars add to shelves | review On New Year’s Eve of 1999, several employees of a Blockbuster video in a New Jersey town were murdered at closing time. My prime suspect would have be On New Year’s Eve of 1999, several employees of a Blockbuster video in a New Jersey town were murdered at closing time. My prime suspect would have been somebody angry about the late fees.Fifteen years later there are people who have never gotten over that night. Ella was the sole survivor of the attack, and although she became a therapist herself, she can’t break her own patterns of self-destructive behavior. Chris is the brother of the prime suspect, Vince, who vanished and hasn’t been seen since. When several employees of an ice cream shop are killed in a eerily similar fashion, the first assumption is that Chris’ brother has returned and has picked up where he left off. FBI agent Sarah Keller is trying to find Vince and determine if the two crimes are linked, but she’s also dealing with being extremely pregnant with twins. As all of them uncover old secrets and connections, things get more weird and dangerous.This is a very solid page-turner with enough stuff to keep me guessing for most of the book, and it does an above average job of dealing with a character who had been through life changing trauma and how she dealt with it. It all builds to a satisfying climax although there were a few parts that reminded me of Fargo with a pregnant cop hunting a killer, and then the ending gets so close to another famous movie thriller that the book actually brings it up. Still, it had a twisty plot with enough creepy aspects to give it an edge. ...more | notes Notes are private! | comments 0 | votes 21 | # times read 1 | date started Aug 14, 2022 | date read Aug 28, 2022 | date added Aug 14, 2022 | owned | format Hardcover | actions view (with text) | | | | | checkbox | position | cover Real Bad Things | title Real Bad Things | author Ford, Kelly J. * | isbn 1662500084 | isbn13 9781662500084 | asin B09KLL1TKX | num pages 330pp | avg rating 3.56 | num ratings 8,267 | date pub Sep 01, 2022 | date pub edition Sep 01, 2022 | Kemper's rating really liked it | my rating 1 of 5 stars2 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars add to shelves | review It’s a good rule of thumb that you shouldn’t talk to the cops if you’re suspected of a crime, and you really should NOT confess to murder if they have It’s a good rule of thumb that you shouldn’t talk to the cops if you’re suspected of a crime, and you really should NOT confess to murder if they haven’t found the body yet.As a teenager Jane Mooney admitted to murdering her abusive step-father before the cops were even sure that he was dead, and she was released when no body turned up. Jane then fled the small Arkansas town of Maud Bottoms, and she left behind her angry mother, her brother, her best friend, and her girlfriend in doing so. Twenty-five years later, the stepfather’s body has finally been discovered, and Jane has returned home believing that she’ll most likely be arrested immediately. She finds that her mother is still angry, her brother and best friend seem to want nothing to do with her, and her old girlfriend, Georgia Lee, is now a married woman as well as on the town council. And for some reason, the cops don’t seem to be in any hurry to arrest her.Kelly Ford makes their most of the setting which feels lived in and authentic. From the trailer parks to the backyard barbecue of the more well-to-do folks, this nails all the traits of small town life. Against this backdrop we learn what actually happened with Jane, Georgia Lee and the stepfather back then as well as see how those events shaped their lives in the aftermath. Jane left and lived in other places as an openly gay women but has had a shadow over her adult life. Georgia Lee stayed in place and threw herself so fully into the role of a wife, mother, and local politician that she’s never bothered to ask the question of who she really is and what would make her actually happy, and Jane’s return forces her to finally address all of this.It’s an excellent character based crime story with solid twists and turns. ...more | notes Notes are private! | comments 0 | votes 26 | # times read 1 | date started Jul 28, 2022 | date read Aug 24, 2022 | date added Jul 28, 2022 | owned | format Kindle Edition | actions view (with text) | | | | | checkbox | position | cover The Fixer | title The Fixer | author Finder, Joseph * | isbn 0525954619 | isbn13 9780525954613 | asin 0525954619 | num pages 376pp | avg rating 3.73 | num ratings 7,776 | date pub Jun 09, 2015 | date pub edition Jun 09, 2015 | Kemper's rating liked it | my rating 1 of 5 stars2 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars add to shelves | review I don’t know how many times I gotta say this, people. If you find a bag of money then you should just leave it there. If you take it, bad things will I don’t know how many times I gotta say this, people. If you find a bag of money then you should just leave it there. If you take it, bad things will happen.But since we are a race of slow learners I guess it doesn’t hurt to go over it again.Rick Hoffman was once an investigative reporter with a promising career, but he left that behind to take a high profile job with a swanky magazine specializing in fluff pieces. Unfortunately, when the magazine downsizes Rick is left unemployed, in debt, and with zero career prospects. He’s so broke that he’s staying in his father’s house which has been falling apart after years of neglect since a stroke put his dad in a nursing home two decades ago.When Rick discovers over 3millionincashhiddeninoneofthewalls,hecan’thelpbutgiveintotemptation.Hestashesthecashandgoesonanill−advisedspendingspreeatfirst,butthenhe’ssuddenlykidnappedbysomepeoplewhothreatenhimifdoesn’thanditovertothem.Rickscramblesforanswersbydiggingintohisfather’spastasashadylawyerwhoactedasabagman/fixerforahugeconstructionprojectjustbeforethestrokelefthimcompletelyunabletocommunicate.ThemoreRickdigs,themoredarksecretscomeout,andthedangergetsworseallthetime.I’masuckerforbothstoriesaboutfindingillicitcashandsleazyfixerssothisshouldhavebeenrightinmywheelhouse,butIultimatelyfounditdisappointing.That’smainlybecauseIdidn’tcareforthemaincharacteratall.Yeah,IknowthatthisissupposedtobeanarcofRickstartingoutaskindofjerkwhooncehadpotentialtobesomethingbetteranddiscoveringhisbetternatureagain.Thiskindofstorydemandsthattheleadcharactereitherbesoflawedordesperatethattheyarethekindofpersonwhowouldtakemoneythatwillsurelybringtrouble.YetRickwasjusttoostupidformytaste.Hestartsoffprettywellinhisearlymovesofstashingthemoney,butwhenthedangerstartshebehaveslikeamoron.Sure,hedoessomemoveslikemovingaroundtodifferenthotelsandrentingdifferentcars,butthisisaguywhogetskidnappedandnearlymurderednotonce,buttwice.Butheneverdoesanythinglikegetaweapon,hirebodyguards,leavetown,oranyotherthingthathaving3 million in cash hidden in one of the walls, he can’t help but give into temptation. He stashes the cash and goes on an ill-advised spending spree at first, but then he’s suddenly kidnapped by some people who threaten him if doesn’t hand it over to them. Rick scrambles for answers by digging into his father’s past as a shady lawyer who acted as a bagman/fixer for a huge construction project just before the stroke left him completely unable to communicate. The more Rick digs, the more dark secrets come out, and the danger gets worse all the time.I’m a sucker for both stories about finding illicit cash and sleazy fixers so this should have been right in my wheelhouse, but I ultimately found it disappointing. That’s mainly because I didn’t care for the main character at all.Yeah, I know that this is supposed to be an arc of Rick starting out as kind of jerk who once had potential to be something better and discovering his better nature again. This kind of story demands that the lead character either be so flawed or desperate that they are the kind of person who would take money that will surely bring trouble. Yet Rick was just too stupid for my taste. He starts off pretty well in his early moves of stashing the money, but when the danger starts he behaves like a moron. Sure, he does some moves like moving around to different hotels and renting different cars, but this is a guy who gets kidnapped and nearly murdered not once, but twice. But he never does anything like get a weapon, hire bodyguards, leave town, or any other thing that having 3millionincashhiddeninoneofthewalls,hecan’thelpbutgiveintotemptation.Hestashesthecashandgoesonanill−advisedspendingspreeatfirst,butthenhe’ssuddenlykidnappedbysomepeoplewhothreatenhimifdoesn’thanditovertothem.Rickscramblesforanswersbydiggingintohisfather’spastasashadylawyerwhoactedasabagman/fixerforahugeconstructionprojectjustbeforethestrokelefthimcompletelyunabletocommunicate.ThemoreRickdigs,themoredarksecretscomeout,andthedangergetsworseallthetime.I’masuckerforbothstoriesaboutfindingillicitcashandsleazyfixerssothisshouldhavebeenrightinmywheelhouse,butIultimatelyfounditdisappointing.That’smainlybecauseIdidn’tcareforthemaincharacteratall.Yeah,IknowthatthisissupposedtobeanarcofRickstartingoutaskindofjerkwhooncehadpotentialtobesomethingbetteranddiscoveringhisbetternatureagain.Thiskindofstorydemandsthattheleadcharactereitherbesoflawedordesperatethattheyarethekindofpersonwhowouldtakemoneythatwillsurelybringtrouble.YetRickwasjusttoostupidformytaste.Hestartsoffprettywellinhisearlymovesofstashingthemoney,butwhenthedangerstartshebehaveslikeamoron.Sure,hedoessomemoveslikemovingaroundtodifferenthotelsandrentingdifferentcars,butthisisaguywhogetskidnappedandnearlymurderednotonce,buttwice.Butheneverdoesanythinglikegetaweapon,hirebodyguards,leavetown,oranyotherthingthathaving3 million in cash would allow you to do. Instead he just bumbles along while surviving mainly by luck. I also didn’t much care for the way he investigates all this. He’s supposed to be a former hot shit reporter who knows how to dig up dirt, and there is some stuff about him pulling records and finding clues. Yet his interactions with the people he tries to question are these incredibly lame efforts of him trying to trick them into believing he’s working on other stories, and yet when his flimsy lies collapse he just starts demanding answers which they have no real reason to give and usually don’t. Overall, it was OK as a crime story, but never came close to really getting me interested after the money was found. ...more | notes Notes are private! | comments 0 | votes 15 | # times read 1 | date started Jul 28, 2022 | date read Aug 10, 2022 | date added Jul 28, 2022 | owned | format Hardcover | actions view (with text) | | | | | checkbox | position | cover The Calculating Stars (Lady Astronaut Universe, #1) | title The Calculating Stars(Lady Astronaut Universe, #1) | author Kowal, Mary Robinette * | isbn | isbn13 | asin B0DLT1ZR1S | num pages 431pp | avg rating 3.96 | num ratings 35,044 | date pub Jul 03, 2018 | date pub edition Jul 03, 2018 | Kemper's rating | my rating 1 of 5 stars2 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars add to shelves | review None | notes Notes are private! | comments 0 | votes 0 | # times read 0 | date started not set | date read not set | date added Jul 07, 2022 | owned | format Paperback | actions view | | | | | checkbox | position | cover Things We Do in the Dark | title Things We Do in the Dark | author Hillier, Jennifer * | isbn 1250763169 | isbn13 9781250763167 | asin 1250763169 | num pages 352pp | avg rating 3.95 | num ratings 109,905 | date pub Jul 19, 2022 | date pub edition Jul 19, 2022 | Kemper's rating really liked it | my rating 1 of 5 stars2 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars add to shelves | review _I received a free advance copy from NetGalley for review._A wealthy actor/comedian named Jimmy Peralta is found dead in his bathtub with his much young _I received a free advance copy from NetGalley for review._A wealthy actor/comedian named Jimmy Peralta is found dead in his bathtub with his much younger wife standing next to him, and she’s covered in his blood with a straight razor in her hand.You wouldn’t think it would take Sherlock Holmes to solve this one.However, there’s a lot more to the story than it would seem at first glance, and Paris has more problems then just a murder charge to worry about. She’s a woman with secrets, and the publicity surrounding the celebrity death may expose them. Meanwhile, a true crime podcaster is digging into the story of a notorious murderer dubbed the Ice Queen who is about to be released from prison, and his investigation is very personal.This is the third Jennifer Hillier novel I’ve read, and like her others, I enjoyed it quite a bit. She has a real knack for coming up with plots that seem like they could be Lifetime movies, but she’s got the ability to ground them with enough realism and emotion to keep them from seeming silly. Hillier also doesn’t shy away from including some genuinely nasty edges in the work, and that gives it more weight than a similar story might have in lesser hands. She’s also good at distracting a reader by dangling an obvious twist but then revealing it early while keeping the bigger surprises hidden for later.It's another dark and tangled story from a woman who really knows how to write ‘em. ...more | notes Notes are private! | comments 1 | votes 36 | # times read 1 | date started Jun 30, 2022 | date read Jul 28, 2022 | date added Jun 30, 2022 | owned | format Hardcover | actions view (with text) | | | | | checkbox | position | cover Upgrade | title Upgrade | author Crouch, Blake * | isbn 0593157532 | isbn13 9780593157534 | asin 0593157532 | num pages 352pp | avg rating 3.81 | num ratings 103,527 | date pub Jul 07, 2022 | date pub edition Jul 12, 2022 | Kemper's rating liked it | my rating 1 of 5 stars2 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars add to shelves | review _I received a free advance copy of this from NetGalley for review._Here’s a book that has the basic idea that humans are hardwired to be pieces of shit, _I received a free advance copy of this from NetGalley for review._Here’s a book that has the basic idea that humans are hardwired to be pieces of shit, and that the solution might be to genetically upgrade us to be better. The first part is obviously true, but the second part has to be pure science fiction because even if you take a turd and sprinkle it with glitter and tie a pretty bow around it, it’s still a piece of shit.The official plot summary on this is fairly thin, and they’re are some twists and turns so I don’t want to give away much other than to say that it’s set in the near future where after a disaster caused by genetic engineering caused a massive famine that the world has cracked down on all aspects of DNA tinkering. A man named Logan Ramsey who has his own troubled past he’s trying to redeem is working for an agency trying to stop black market science when he gets dosed with something during a raid. While he initially seems to recover, Logan realizes that he is being improved. Hilarity ensues…I’m not the biggest Blake Crouch fan in the world, and like most of the other books of his I’ve read I found this to be fine. It’s got an interesting idea, and a well thought out world built up. His writing is OK enough, and there is some interesting discussion about the nature of humanity and why we refuse to acknowledge long term threats like climate change. However, while this is the kind of story that should be right in my wheelhouse it never feels like it elevates to that next level where I’m really excited about turning the pages, and once I’m done I feel a momentary sense of satisfaction and promptly start forgetting about what I just read. So hardcore Crouch fans will be probably enjoy as might any sci-fi/thriller fans who pick it up. I don’t regret reading it, but it didn’t have much of an impact either. ...more | notes Notes are private! | comments 1 | votes 64 | # times read 1 | date started Jun 09, 2022 | date read Jun 26, 2022 | date added Jun 09, 2022 | owned | format Hardcover | actions view (with text) | | | | | checkbox | position | cover City on Fire (Danny Ryan, #1) | title City on Fire(Danny Ryan, #1) | author Winslow, Don * | isbn 0062851195 | isbn13 9780062851192 | asin 0062851195 | num pages 384pp | avg rating 4.10 | num ratings 25,634 | date pub Oct 21, 2021 | date pub edition Apr 26, 2022 | Kemper's rating really liked it | my rating 1 of 5 stars2 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars add to shelves | review What we’ve got here is a good ole fashioned mob war.It’s 1986 in Rhode Island, and Danny Ryan is essentially a middle manager for the Murphy crime fam What we’ve got here is a good ole fashioned mob war.It’s 1986 in Rhode Island, and Danny Ryan is essentially a middle manager for the Murphy crime family despite being married to the boss’s daughter. Danny’s father also once ran his own outfit and was a key figure in establishing a peace that’s held for years between the Italian and Irish mob in the area. When the spoiled son of the Irish leader hits on the wrong woman, it’s seen as a grave insult that the kid manages to make worse and soon it’s all out war between the fwo factions. Danny becomes a key figure in the whole mess as he first tries to make peace and when that doesn’t work, takes an increasing role in the leadership of Murphys. Along the way we also find out the history of the mother who abandoned him who returns in an effort to try and make things right, and he continues to try and earn his rightful seat at the table.Like most Don Winslow books, this is a helluva page turner with a conversational style that makes you feel like some old Mafia guy is telling you the tale at a bar one night. Since it’s the first part of a new trilogy, you don’t get a lot of resolution although some things are settled. It’s sort of like watching the first season of a TV show that is setting up a lot of character and plots to circle back to later.Good stuff for any Winslow and/or crime fans, and I can’t wait to read the next part. ...more | notes Notes are private! | comments 0 | votes 42 | # times read 1 | date started Jun 08, 2022 | date read Jun 15, 2022 | date added Jun 08, 2022 | owned | format Hardcover | actions view (with text) | | | | | checkbox | position | cover Sea of Tranquility | title Sea of Tranquility | author Mandel, Emily St. John * | isbn 0593321448 | isbn13 9780593321447 | asin 0593321448 | num pages 259pp | avg rating 4.07 | num ratings 258,190 | date pub Apr 05, 2022 | date pub edition May 05, 2022 | Kemper's rating | my rating 1 of 5 stars2 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars add to shelves | review None | notes Notes are private! | comments 0 | votes 0 | # times read 0 | date started not set | date read not set | date added May 30, 2022 | owned | format Hardcover | actions view | | | | | checkbox | position | cover Don't Know Tough | title Don't Know Tough | author Cranor, Eli * | isbn 1641293454 | isbn13 9781641293457 | asin 1641293454 | num pages 336pp | avg rating 3.66 | num ratings 3,390 | date pub Mar 22, 2022 | date pub edition Mar 22, 2022 | Kemper's rating really liked it | my rating 1 of 5 stars2 of 5 stars3 of 5 stars4 of 5 stars5 of 5 stars add to shelves | review When a whole bunch of the writers you’re a fan of are recommending a book, you should probably read it. I did, and they did not steer me wrong. This i When a whole bunch of the writers you’re a fan of are recommending a book, you should probably read it. I did, and they did not steer me wrong. This is a great one.Billy Lowe is the star player of his high school football team in Denton, Arkansas, but he’s a dirt-poor kid with an abusive step-father, little understanding of social norms, and severe anger issues. When Billy assaults a teammate just as his team is getting ready for the state play-offs it puts Coach Trent Powers in a tough spot. Trent is a born-again Christian who screwed up his last coaching job in California so he’s brought his family to small town Arkansas to hopefully win big quickly and get a better job elsewhere. If Billy is suspended or arrested Trent has no chance of winning a state championship so even as pressure mounts he continues to insist that Billy can be transformed through reason and patience. Things get even more complicated when Billy’s step-father is found dead in their trailer.That’s an excellent set-up for a crime novel, but what boosts this one up to the next level is the outstanding character work that’s done. We get shifting perspectives, mainly from Billy and his coach, and the differences are stark. In some ways, Billy is little more than an abused animal who has gone feral. His entire family is viewed as trash by the town, and nobody thinks he is worth anything unless he's on a football field. For Billy, the only thing he puts any value on is toughness, and he has nothing but contempt for those around him he sees as soft. He has his own reasons for lashing out, but to anyone not any Billy’s head he just seems violent and dangerous.Powers isn’t exactly the win-at-any-cost type of coach you’d expect either. While he’s in a bad situation he also has his own tough background as a foster kid, and he tries to turn Billy into a decent young man by using the same sort of methods that worked on him. Yes, he’s rationalizing a lot to justify keeping Billy on the team, but he also seems to be buying what he’s selling even as everyone around him thinks he’s crazy to try because you can’t appeal to a rabid dog with reason. Instead of seeming cynical and opportunistic, Powers comes across as extremely naive. There are several other complex and well-developed characters, and the whole atmosphere of a small town that was happy to use Billy to win football games even as they all treated him like shit on their shoes is incredibly authentic. Overall, it’s a riveting character-based story that always zigs when you think it’s going to zag. ...more | notes Notes are private! | comments 0 | votes 64 | # times read 1 | date started May 06, 2022 | date read May 24, 2022 | date added May 06, 2022 | owned | format Hardcover | actions view (with text) | | | |

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