Noah Boyd’s life makes up for a remarkably authentic background for this book. His own life was a former FBI agent and his character of Steve Vail, aka Bricklayer was derived from his father’s occupation.
As I did not read his first book, this is my thought of where Bricklayer came from. He was a disenchanted FBI agent and rules got in his way of doing his job effectively. Therefore, Steve Vail becomes a nomad with the skill of an officeR of the law but none of the stops. Despite this, it does stand on its own without having read the first book.
Kate Banning starts the story as someone who knows something or has something someone wants. The first pages get you hooked. You do not have to wait until page 100 to get into this story. The story moved up, down, and sideways. When you think that is it, something else pops up to grab your attention.
The book is very readable. , Even though Steve is a superman hero, his has Clark Kent’s romantic skills with Kate and as a result the romance falls flat in the story.
The cover is quite eye catching and would make a great Mark Valley movie!
My first thought of this book was that I liked it. The tempo was just right, not to slow but not too fast. However, I think what I liked most was it has a Hero.
The lead character is a Macgyver. Dr. Ben Payne (a touch of whimsy) is smart, good-looking, compassionate, with some impulsiveness thrown in, Sport Medical Doctor.
His partner in this adventure is Ashley Knox, an attractive, successful journalist and on the way to her wedding rehearsal dinner.
As a snowstorm cancels the flights out of Salt Lake City, these two travelers end up chartering a flight to Denver to get them out of the storm’s path. Grover, the pilot, and his dog load up to fly the travelers to Denver. Grover has a heart attack and they crash in the snow-covered mountains. Ben with broken ribs, Ashley’s leg fractured and with the dog, the adventure begins in the below freezing temperature for weeks. Ben journals to his wife every night with a recorder and we get a sense that is something not right but we do not know what it is. The ending is a surprise ending and we do not see it coming.
People is wise ‘cause they get out in the world and live. Wisdom comes from experience—from knowin’each day a is gift and accepting it with gladness. -----But ain’t no book in the world gonna make you wise.
Beth Hoffman has written a feel good story that has a delightful cast of characters amid the loss of a mother in mind and then body.
CeCe is a smart 12 year old and by today’s definition was abused as a child and her mother is nuts in a fuuny sad way. Her mother, Camille, is a Georgia belle rotting in the cold of Willoughby Ohio and keeps reliving her glory days as an Onion Queen. The father is unable to cope with his wife’s illness or CeCe so he becomes mostly.. absent. This all takes place in the 1960’s.
As her mother’s illness results in her death, CeCe goes to Savannah, Ga to live with her wealthy great, great aunt Tootie Caldwell. and her household help Oletta Jones. This is where the fun and adventures begin.
I am not sure why anyone lumps this book together with THE HELP except they are both in the South in 1960. It is more poor girl to rich girl with the good and evil witches along for the ride. Once you meet Violene and Thelma, that is all you need to fully enjoy this book complete with a cat fight at a posh garden party.
I may have missed the author’s intent in this book. I never really connected to the characters but the energy of the TV show Pushing Daisies with splashes of Alice in Wonderland did keep me turning the pages looking for that elusive moment. At times I missed the quotation marks that were nonresistant.
The story is divided into four parts. It is the story of a girl with a gift, from eight years old into her twenties. Rose lives with her father, a fact only lawyer, the fanciful mother, and the brother, Joseph, with his own weird gift. It is a story of a dysfunctional family with each person having a part that is just not typical.
Rose’s gift is the’ gift of food tasting’ but not just the flavor of the food, but the growing, marketing and finally the cooking. All of the steps it takes from beginning to end. She can tell you the local it was grown, how it was marketed, and what the cook was feeling it was prepared. This is not all good.
The phrasing was wonderful and I would stop and just re-read sentences.
‘A name so vague I never remember it.’
‘Out the window, the breezeless stillness of a desert spring.’
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(31 of 80 readers found this comment helpful)
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sallyann has commented on (7) products.
1Q84 by Haruki Murakami
sallyann, October 19, 2011
I have never read a book by Haruki Murakami but from comments, I believe I have missed a good author!(2 of 11 readers found this comment helpful)
Agent X by Noah Boyd
sallyann, February 25, 2011
Noah Boyd’s life makes up for a remarkably authentic background for this book. His own life was a former FBI agent and his character of Steve Vail, aka Bricklayer was derived from his father’s occupation.As I did not read his first book, this is my thought of where Bricklayer came from. He was a disenchanted FBI agent and rules got in his way of doing his job effectively. Therefore, Steve Vail becomes a nomad with the skill of an officeR of the law but none of the stops. Despite this, it does stand on its own without having read the first book.
Kate Banning starts the story as someone who knows something or has something someone wants. The first pages get you hooked. You do not have to wait until page 100 to get into this story. The story moved up, down, and sideways. When you think that is it, something else pops up to grab your attention.
The book is very readable. , Even though Steve is a superman hero, his has Clark Kent’s romantic skills with Kate and as a result the romance falls flat in the story.
The cover is quite eye catching and would make a great Mark Valley movie!
The Mountain Between Us by Charles Martin
sallyann, January 29, 2011
My first thought of this book was that I liked it. The tempo was just right, not to slow but not too fast. However, I think what I liked most was it has a Hero.The lead character is a Macgyver. Dr. Ben Payne (a touch of whimsy) is smart, good-looking, compassionate, with some impulsiveness thrown in, Sport Medical Doctor.
His partner in this adventure is Ashley Knox, an attractive, successful journalist and on the way to her wedding rehearsal dinner.
As a snowstorm cancels the flights out of Salt Lake City, these two travelers end up chartering a flight to Denver to get them out of the storm’s path. Grover, the pilot, and his dog load up to fly the travelers to Denver. Grover has a heart attack and they crash in the snow-covered mountains. Ben with broken ribs, Ashley’s leg fractured and with the dog, the adventure begins in the below freezing temperature for weeks. Ben journals to his wife every night with a recorder and we get a sense that is something not right but we do not know what it is. The ending is a surprise ending and we do not see it coming.
Saving CeeCee Honeycutt by Beth Hoffman
sallyann, November 19, 2010
People is wise ‘cause they get out in the world and live. Wisdom comes from experience—from knowin’each day a is gift and accepting it with gladness. -----But ain’t no book in the world gonna make you wise.Beth Hoffman has written a feel good story that has a delightful cast of characters amid the loss of a mother in mind and then body.
CeCe is a smart 12 year old and by today’s definition was abused as a child and her mother is nuts in a fuuny sad way. Her mother, Camille, is a Georgia belle rotting in the cold of Willoughby Ohio and keeps reliving her glory days as an Onion Queen. The father is unable to cope with his wife’s illness or CeCe so he becomes mostly.. absent. This all takes place in the 1960’s.
As her mother’s illness results in her death, CeCe goes to Savannah, Ga to live with her wealthy great, great aunt Tootie Caldwell. and her household help Oletta Jones. This is where the fun and adventures begin.
I am not sure why anyone lumps this book together with THE HELP except they are both in the South in 1960. It is more poor girl to rich girl with the good and evil witches along for the ride. Once you meet Violene and Thelma, that is all you need to fully enjoy this book complete with a cat fight at a posh garden party.
The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake by Aimee Bender
sallyann, July 19, 2010
I may have missed the author’s intent in this book. I never really connected to the characters but the energy of the TV show Pushing Daisies with splashes of Alice in Wonderland did keep me turning the pages looking for that elusive moment. At times I missed the quotation marks that were nonresistant.The story is divided into four parts. It is the story of a girl with a gift, from eight years old into her twenties. Rose lives with her father, a fact only lawyer, the fanciful mother, and the brother, Joseph, with his own weird gift. It is a story of a dysfunctional family with each person having a part that is just not typical.
Rose’s gift is the’ gift of food tasting’ but not just the flavor of the food, but the growing, marketing and finally the cooking. All of the steps it takes from beginning to end. She can tell you the local it was grown, how it was marketed, and what the cook was feeling it was prepared. This is not all good.
The phrasing was wonderful and I would stop and just re-read sentences.
‘A name so vague I never remember it.’
‘Out the window, the breezeless stillness of a desert spring.’
(31 of 80 readers found this comment helpful)
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