Book #5: The Hunter

Re-posting my review from Un:Bound

There are two sides to Donald E. Westlake, the grand master of mystery and crime writing.  He could deftly pull off light capers with ease, as his series of Dortmunder books proved time and time again.  But the need to step into the darkness, to stop pulling punches and just get violent, to dole out retribution in the coldest, most calculated manner has proven to be too strong a lure, and so for those instances Westlake slips into another persona, and inhabits another character to exact revenge in a manner his lighter characters would never dream of, let alone execute.

Enter Richard Stark, and the Parker novels.

Even if you've never read The Hunter, the first in the Parker series, you may have come across its basic plot on the silver screen.  It was twice adapted for the screen, first in 1967's POINT BLANK, starring Lee Marvin as the Parker character, and then much later in 1999's PAYBACK starring Mel Gibson (both are pretty fun films and definitely worth a look).  But neither film really gets into the head of Parker, a cold slab of granite out to get even with the people who double-crossed him during a robbery.  The fact that he was going to double-cross them before it happened doesn't matter, nor does the fact that one of the people who betrayed him was his wife.  Everyone has to pay.

The book is very methodical, going over Parker's particular code of ethics and conduct as he almost casually settles himself into New York after breaking out of prison (for vagrancy, and how that charge came out of the whole robbery and double-cross is wonderfully done) and begins to hunt down the people who betrayed him.  The violence, when it occurs, is fast and matter-of-fact.  The dialog is vintage Stark/Westlake, and wouldn't feel out of place in some of the best film noir on the 40's and 50's.

For a book that is 100% unapologetic in its actions, and as a prime example of the best that crime fiction has to offer, The Hunter is an ideal book, the kind you pick up and don't put down again until it's finished.  The new editions from the University of Chicago Press are really nice looking, keeping a sharp, visual themes between the different covers.  The first six novels are available now, with more (hopefully) on the way.  if you need a quick crime fix, you could do a hell of a lot worse.

Book #4: Run for Your Life

*Please note an advance copy of the novel was received courtesy of the Hachette Book Group.

James Patterson has sold millions of books over the years, and has come to master a particular type of writing: fast paced, action-oriented books peopled by broadly drawn, instantly recognizable characters: the sadistic killer, the hero who's a combination regular joe/specialist in his field, and smart, sexy women who either help or hinder him, all with a healthy dose of sexual charge.

So for his millions of fans, it's probably a good thing to know that his latest book, Run for Your Life (co-written with Michael Ledwidge) doesn't stray far from the course. It's the second book in a new series featuring NYPD Detective Mike Bennett, a former FBI agent who's mourning the loss of his wife while trying to handle the sudden flu strike that has afflicted his ten adopted children. Low on sleep and still stinging from a disasterous hostage negotiation, he's forced into overtime to track a twisted killer calling himself the Teacher, who has taken it upon himself (for reasons made clear in the book) to educate the New York upper crust in a series of brutal and fatal lessons.

The novel's brief chapters alternate between 1st person narration by Bennet and 3rd person omniscient sections focusing on the Teacher, but occasionally venturing out to encompass some of the victims. In fact Run For Your Life feels cut together much like a television movie: breaks and cuts in the short, self contained action have eerie echoes (in style, not actual content) to episodes of 24 or similar shows. There's little in the way of logic or nuance, but you're not really watching Jack Bauer shoot a guy for the nuance, you know?

So even if there's not much new to Run For Your Life, it certainly fulfills the expectations set upon it by Patterson's fan base: lots of action, disturbing moments of violence, and a tied up ending that leaves little question as to whether or not another book in the Mike Bennet series is forthcoming.

The Outlook War

In the end, it would take almost 40 hours for the smoke to clear enough to allow the emergency vehicles enough visibility to sort through the wreckage and look for any survivors.  But I wasn't hopeful: it was a long and bloody battle, and if history has taught us anything, it's that Microsoft is loathe to leave anyone alive to tell the tale...

And that, boys and girls, is a rough summary of event and their effect on me after I was, finally, "successfully" migrated from Lotus Notes to Outlook at the office.

Soothing Voices

Giving credit where it's due.  I came across this courtesy of Kevin Rose's blog.  It's AT&T Lab's Text-to-Speech Demo.  There's a 300 character limit, but it's more than enough for interesting and humorous voicemail messages, as Kevin demonstrates in his post.

You can use different punctuation to modify the tone a bit.  My own meager example of what is now my cell phone voicemail message is below:

Secure in the Universe (.wav)

Make the Most of the Day

In the second post to focus on days, today is Friday the 13th.  Please be sure to wear your mask when you're out there stalking coeds, campers, or other assorted objects of your obsession, and remember: sharpen your machete on both sides.  You'll get a cleaner cut, and the chances of the blade gettung stuck in bone are much slimmer.