The Arranger

By L.J. Sellers

http://ljsellers.com/

Step into the world of tomorrow. America is experiencing dark days with 21% unemployment, very high inflation, $8 per gallon gas, millions homeless, extra lax gun laws, shrinking federal government, and people wanting better jobs because of health insurance. Reality television has hit a new level with an annual competition for the best in America, but a killer lurks in the background.

Plot
It is the year 2023. Lara Evans, a freelance paramedic in Oregon is entered into an annual televised contest of strength, intelligence, and ingenuity, called the Gauntlet. However, the other competitors are not her only worry. She’s trying to outwit a gunman who almost killed her and the federal employment commissioner and has followed her to the competition.

Months before The Gauntlet, federal employee Paul Madsen wants very much to impress a pretty coworker. To get the funds to improve himself cosmetically he arranges for individuals to be hired into lucrative positions. However, his intended really would like to be the next federal employment commissioner, who oversees the Gauntlet. For that to happen, the current commissioner might have to die.

I want to compare it to The Running Man, but it might be Running Man Light. It’s a typical questions authors receive, but I’d be interested to learn how this plot originated. It’s an interesting view on the world of tomorrow.

Characters
Lara Evans: 42, 5’5”, brunette, former police officer now a freelance paramedic, kick, boxes, marathon runner lives in Eugene, Oregon, allergic to perfume, estranged parents live in Alaska. She was a juvenile delinquent. She has survived a rape and assault and a knife attack. Since leaving the department, she hasn’t been able to eat solid food and throws various food into a blender.

Paul Madsen: federal government worker in Personnel and Payroll Management, highly intelligent, photogenic memory, lonely, average looks, owns a Lhasa-poo dog. Was a foster child.

Camille Waterson: 33, Paul’s coworker, beautiful, blonde, looking to move up in the world

Thaddeus Morton: federal employment commissioner, bisexual

Jason Copeland: Ex Marine, firefighter, lives in Illinois, self-assured, almost cocky

Kirsten Dornberg: 24, blonde, lives in Florida

Unique characters. Sellers gets into depth with only Lara and Paul, but that’s okay, the others are just for support. There has to be a cop involved as well as typical personalities of the other competitors

Dialogue
Concise, no long soliloquies. Conversations are to the point with no wandering into left field. POV is, for the most part, from either Lara or Paul.

Writing
Sellers writes a tight top notch novel with plenty of action and suspense. This one moves fast and does not let down the reader one bit. No extraneous detail. A few unnecessary instances of profanity and a couple of errors but nothing to detract from the enjoyment of the novel.

My ranking:

Blue Belt

The Judas Gospel

by Bill Myers

Plot
What if Judas asked Jesus for another chance? “You know, if you had done it my way, you could have ruled the world. Give me a chance to show you what I can do.” In “The Judas Gospel,” the former apostle gets his chance. This books combines a little bit of mystery, the supernatural, murder, religion, and shows the highs and lows of human nature…and don’t jump on my case if I say…aspects and adventures also found in the Bible.

Judas Iscariot, refashioning himself into marketing mogul Jude Miller, is in Los Angeles to bring a new prophet to the world. Nineteen year old Rachel Delacroix, whose father is the pastor of an inner city storefront church, has been recovering from a stay in a mental hospital. She feels responsible for causing a fire that killed her mother and sister. Plagued by dreams of murders with connections to classical painters, she is soon suspected of killing L.A. police officers. She has also discovered she can heal afflictions with her hands. Miller proceeds to market God’s new gift to the world, making each of Delacroix’s appearances splashier and headline grabbing than the last. Can she cope with her new ‘power,’ while trying to stay out of the hands of police…and what evil lurks around the corner awaiting its next opportunity to strike?

I love the modern tale with the extra murder mystery thrown in and the biblical parallels throughout.

Characters
Jude Miller – Judas Iscariot ‘redesigned’ so to speak, reserved, but ready to deliver the holy ‘punch’ to promote the new sensation

Rachel Delacroix – Pure innocence fighting personal battles. Unsure of what to expect from the world. Loving daughter

Sean Putnam – Single father with Down’s Syndrome child. Rookie cop who gets thrown into the mystery of Rachel on his first day on the job. Only wants to provide for his son and ends up falling for Rachel.

Reverend Delacroix – Minister struggling to hold together his little inner city church. Can’t stand to see his daughter exploited

The host – Absolute devilish bad guy. Satan’s legion of demons inhabiting a sociopath.

Each character, from the doctor trying to analyze Rachel to the homicide cops trying to solve the murder has a distinct, defined personality. Actually, Jude should get second or even third billing. He’s not a throwaway character, since the story takes places because of his instigation, but he’s definitely not the prominent persona.

Dialogue
Fitting to each character. The worst language is ‘jackass.’

Writing
This book is highly enjoyable from the first page to the last. Yes, there is religion laced throughout, but it’s shown from two opposing sides of the spectrum. There is the pastor struggling to deliver the truth of God’s wisdom and love while Miller and his PR machine seek to put Rachel upon an altar for the world to see. You feel the emotion in the cries for responsibility, for humility, and reason, next to the flashy, high tech ‘ministries’ and marketing campaigns of the modern age. The story never drags and is not complex. I don’t like books that are heavily influenced with philosophy or self discovery. The story holds a message for all of us while showing some insight to how people think in the 21st Century, but it’s tempered with action and intrigue. This is a very well written novel.

My ranking

Black Belt

The Cut

By George Pelecanos

http://www.hachettebookgroup.com/features/georgepelecanos/

Plot
Ex Marine and Iraq vet Spero Lucas works as an investigator for a Washington, D.C. defense attorney. He also has a sideline business finding lost items for people. Drug runner Anwan Hawkins, in jail awaiting trial, hires Lucas to find two shipments of marijuana stolen from drop-off sites.
Lucas discusses the problem with Hawkins’ employees, who are laid back and easy going. The picture quickly changes. Lucas must use his intelligence and various contacts because the stakes have been raised and the people he’s up against are serious about keeping him from receiving his ‘cut.’

It’s a basic plot, but so are many of Pelecanos’. There’s nothing new here, but there’s nothing worth dismissing either.

Characters
Spero Lucas: 29, Marine who fought in Iraq. Investigator for a defense attorney. He was adopted by Greek parents. Low key. Intelligent. Respectful.
Troubled by his father’s death.

Anwan Hawkins – drug runner, thirty-something. Not a crime boss, not a gang boss, just does a low key business.

Larry Holley – Washington D.C. officer in Narcotics and Special Investigations. His ex cop father, who left when Larry was a child has returned and sucked Larry into illegal dealings. Larry, okay with the small time drug business, is upset when his father condones murder to take care of business.

They’re basic, but I don’t mean they’re flat. Without knowing quite how or why, I kind of understand the characters without really knowing them, or needing to know them too in depth. Pelecanos scrapes below the surface to show you a little of what’s underneath. Every good guy has little faults and every bad guy knows the potential consequences of his choices.

Dialogue
Basic, to the point. No long soliloquies or philosophizing.

Writing
If you’ve read Pelecanos before you know what to expect. Straight forward, no extraneous detail. The urban culture is presented as ‘It is what it is.’ He puts a lot of emphasis on music, food, alcohol, and books. The details are basic and not lavish. There’s no hype, no flash, no sensationalism, but with “The Cut” you don’t mind. If the protagonists from his stories all gathered in the same room, you’d find many similarities. I tend to view Pelecanos’ stories as ‘A Day in the Life of’ or time elapsed snapshots of a chapter out of the lives of the characters, with a little flavor and spice added to keep it interesting.

My ranking:

Blue Belt

Deadly Currents

By Beth Groundwater

www.bethgroundwater.com

Plot
In the whitewater rapids of Colorado’s Arkansas River, Tom King falls out of his raft. Mandy Tanner, ranger and river guide rescues him but King dies anyway. Mandy subsequently finds out King died from poisoning. Who killed him? The suspects are numerous. The wife had motive because Tom cheated on her. The mistress hated that Tom wanted to go back to his wife. The son Tom refused to help financially. The environmentalist who was against Tom plans for a golf course. The realtor in competition with Tom for land and water rights. Maybe it was one of Mandy’s own crew of river guides. She navigates her way through the list while also dealing with her uncle’s failing rafting business. Soon, she finds the water isn’t the only danger she has to face.

A nice cozy set in a small Colorado tourist town. A different setting than a typical big city mystery. This has your usual slate of suspects and characters.

Characters
Mandy Tanner: Arkansas Headwaters Recreation Area Ranger and river guide at her uncle’s rafting business in Colorado. Both parents dead. Likes peanut butter and jelly sandwiches

Steve Hadley: Mandy’s supervisor

Gonzo Gordon: Another river guide.

Victor Quintana: Sheriff’s Detective

Rob Jaurez: An owner of a competing rafting outfit and Mandy’s boyfriend

Cynthia Abbott: bartender, Mandy’s good friend, likes to tell blonde jokes

Bill Tanner: Mandy’s uncle. Widower, no children. Wants Mandy to take over his business when he retires.

David Tanner: 30, Mandy’s brother. Blond with freckles. Accountant.

As I mentioned a standard cast for this type of mystery. Everyone is well defined and Groundwater doesn’t go into to too much depth with anybody except Mandy.

Dialogue
Standard. Rob doesn’t use any Spanish except mi querida when talking to Mandy

Writing
Easy read. I must mention, however, about the cool and appropriate name of the author. What else but a river adventure would you expect someone named Groundwater to write? She did some excellent research to bring a lot of aspects of life on the river, the dangers, and the technical know-how. This is a cozy with a few instances of foul language, but not enough to turn you off. The author did a nice job of keeping the story moving with each chapter.

My ranking:

Blue Belt

Game Plan

By Charles Wilson
http://www.amazon.com/Game-Plan-Charles-Wilson/dp/0312974434/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1332136020&sr=1-1

Plot
Mississippi doctor, Spence Stevens investigates the death of a mentor and runs afoul of a government conspiracy. Years ago, scientists implanted human lab rats with computer chips, giving them enhanced knowledge and abilities.

An interesting plot worthy of a Syfy movie. This is another story about the power of government against the little guy in an effort to control the world. You could throw just about any hero into the midst and the story would still work.

Characters
Spence Stevens – Research scientist out to solve the problem of blindness. Single.

Walter Quinlan – The antagonist. The controller of the troops of chip implanted warriors. He ‘sees’ what his underlings see and commands them to act.

I’d mention the detective I thought would be paired with Stevens, but (and I’m sorry for the spoiler) he dies early on. This is unfortunate because he’s a likeable guy and you get to know his history but I was disappointed when he turned into a throwaway character. In fact, I felt after this death, the other roles didn’t matter too much. There’s a little bit of mystery near the end of which one of Steven’s female acquaintances is the traitor, but by that time, I didn’t care. Nobody is really strong except for Quinlan and I would have liked to have seen him even stronger and ‘badder.’

Dialogue
Nothing complex. The mild profanity sounds forced.

Writing
A little confusing in the opening chapters. I tried to make a connection between the prologue and the opening scenes with the first death that gets the story started. I enjoyed the scenes in Montana in the secret government lab. Those were the most intriguing and enjoyable. The merciless power of the bad buys is typical, but still gets you into a ‘love to hate’ mood.

My ranking:

Green Belt

The Legend Of Rachel Petersen

by J. T. Baroni
(Baroni is gentleman on the left. Just in case you thought it was the furry creature in the lower right.)

www.jtbaroni.com

Plot
Christian Kane is a sports writer for a Pittsburgh newspaper. On the night of the annual awards banquet the paper celebrates the retirement of a long time veteran and Kane is expecting to be promoted. He is not. Disgusted, he quits the paper and he and his wife use what money they have to move to a rural house where Christian plans on writing a novel. He is unable to come up with a worthwhile plot until he and his wife stumble upon an old grave out in the woods. Buried in the grave is a young girl, Rachel Petersen, who died during the Civil War. Inspired by this grave, Kane then proceeds to write the following story:

In 1950, two brothers, Thaddeus and Seth, are out hunting deer. They finally managed to bag the prized buck but the deer is lying on an old grave, the grave of a little girl whose ghostly legend is popular in the area. Come Spring, Thaddeus digs up the grave and releases the spirit of the girl.
Everyone assumes the story of the little girl who reportedly killed her uncle, aunt, and cousins, then hung herself is true. Everybody uses the legend as a way to scare others because Rachel supposedly returns haunt area folk, wielding the knife used in her slayings. However, Thaddeus and Seth are encouraged by the Rachel's spirit to discover the truth behind the girl's death.

This is a story within a story involving a paranormal mystery. There is a little bit of the classical revenge-of-the ghost story here, too, but I really got into it because I happen to enjoy these types of stories. I wasn't too sure at first how the story within a story would work, because the Kane's story takes up the majority of the entire book. I think it works pretty well, though.

Characters
Christian Kane: 6'2”, fit physique, late thirties, sports reporter for the Pittsburgh Post Gazette, doesn't wear a watch or like electronics such as new computers, likes ESPN, drives a BMW, likes the Steelers

Shelby Kane: Christian's husband, fit physique, late thirties, secretary for law firm

Rachel Petersen: 12, redhead, mother dead, father unable to care for her, taken to Pennsylvania in 1863 to live with uncle and aunt

Some good characters here. Pretty well defined. I enjoyed Kane's rebuffing of modern technology even to the point of not wearing a watch. Nobody was forgotten or left behind; in other words, I didn't feel there was any character needing more attention.

Dialogue
A good effort at bringing voices of the different time periods into play. No long speeches or unnecessary filler.

Writing
If it weren't for the excessive profanity and a rape scene this would have been a great YA story. It had that type of feel to it. It's a fairly quick read (only about 142 pages in the pdf file and part of that is intro and promotion of other books at the end). Good use of period products and factoids (a young Roy Clark at the Grand Ol' Opry, for example). I had mixed feelings about what happened after Kane's story ended. I thought Baroni rushed to get to the end and everything seemed to fall into place for Kane rather systematically, quickly, and unbelievably. Then, I received the first surprise (which I won't tell you because it'll ruin the book) and I groaned audibly wanting it not to be so. However...the very ending and the next set of surprises wrapped the story up nicely and I had a good satisfied chuckle. I think you will, too. Not because the story is belly laugh humorous, but because of the sly eeriness with which Baroni finishes it off.

My ranking:

Blue Belt

Dear Air 2000

By Terry Ravenscroft

http://www.amazon.com/Dear-Air-2000-Terry-Ravenscroft/dp/1905529694/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1319525472&sr=1-1

Plot
Terry Ravenscroft, former factory worker turned comedy writer, tackles the airlines. In this collection of humorous letters to various airlines foreign and domestic he describes various ‘complaints’, inquires about cultural affairs, and requests accommodations and/or reassurances for a whole host of ‘problems’ which may or may not occur during the flight or during his vacation. He begins by requesting a supply of lasagna from Air 2000, inquiring about special arrangements from Britannia Air for his extra large body size, and wanting to buy a stewardess uniform from Air UK. From there his requests and questions become stranger and funnier with each letter. Some of the replies are notable, too, for what they DON’T say. For instance, Olympic Airlines (Greece) referred Mr. Ravenscroft to their cargo department in reply to his request for information on ferrying back an urn, never mentioning the fact he’d be stealing a Greek artifact.

Similar to Dear Coca-Cola, this is a collection of humorous letters and replies.

Characters
None, other than the authors various self depictions. He presents himself as an obese man, deaf, mute, blind, or suffering from different ‘diseases’ and ‘afflictions’ which may cause problems for the airline.

Dialogue
The replies from the airlines remain professional and even acknowledging some of the humor in the author’s letters.

Writing
I did find this book a bit more humorous than Dear Coca-Cola for some of the outrageous requests and ‘complaints’ listed. However, I felt the author did push the envelope a little. Sometimes the number of letters re-covering the same ground was too much. Plus, on many occasions he threw in some mild insults to the host country, which to an airline representative, would tend to result in less assistance offered even though, to their credit, they remained professional. In many ways, the author comes across as one of those customers who will not be satisfied no matter what is said or done and in many instances, I can understand the airline’s termination of communication.

My ranking:

Green Belt