REVIEW: The Finders

The Finders
Author: Jeffrey Burton

I have a soft spot in my heart for mystery novels with K-9 units in them. When I saw this first book in a new series, I jumped right on reading a review copy. I'm glad I did. I thoroughly enjoyed this book! I can't wait for more of this series!

Mace Reid trains cadaver dogs. He's had a rough year. He lost a dog and got divorced. He adopts a new dog, Vira, and starts training her. Just as he is getting to know his newest dog, a serial killer begins targeting women in the area,  and Reid finds himself, and his dogs, on the trail of a gruesome, cruel killer.

This book is well written and kept my attention from start to finish. I love how close Mace Reid gets to his dogs. The other characters are well developed and interesting. The mystery itself was paced perfectly, with suspense and surprises to keep readers engaged. I can tell this is going to be a standout series!

I can't wait to find out what's in store for Mace Reid and his dogs next! This is the first book by Jeffrey Burton that I have read. I will definitely be reading more!

**I voluntarily read a review copy of this book from St. Martin's Press. All opinions expressed are entirely my own.**

REVIEW: Still Knife Painting

Still Knife Painting
Author: Cheryl Hollon

Miranda Trent is an artist. She loves the house she inherited from her uncle. It's right in the middle of Daniel Boone National Forest in Kentucky. Her new business -- Paint & Shine -- caters to tourists. It mixes cultural adventure tour, painting class, fine dining and moonshine tasting into a unique experience for visitors to Red River Gorge. Things are going perfectly until.....the murder.

This book is a promising start to a new cozy series! I enjoyed the characters, the setting and the premise. A cultural adventure tour company that mixes art with local cuisine is an interesting premise! I wish Paint & Shine was a real business -- I would drive to Kentucky to join in! I think I would pass on the moonshine part -- but the rest sounded like a lot of fun (minus the dead body, of course).

The mystery moved along at a good pace. There was a nice mix of character/setting development and sleuthing. There wasn't a long wait before the dead body appeared and things heated up for Miranda. Miranda is a strong person....an intelligent and capable main character.

Fun, enjoyable cozy mystery...plus yummy recipes at the back of the book!

I will definitely be reading more of this new series. Great start!!

**I voluntarily read a review copy of this book from Kensington. All opinions expressed are entirely my own.**

REVIEW: The Big Four

The Big Four
Author: Agatha Christie

For years I wanted to read everything Agatha Christie wrote....every book, every short story and each play. But life is always so busy....and Christie wrote more than 60 detective novels and 14 short story collections. I came to love Christie's books when I was 9 and bought my first Hercule Poirot books at a garage sale. For years, I carried a tattered list of her books I didn't already own in my purse, buying titles to fill in my collection when I could. But I never found time to read most of them.....and in the pre-internet age it was difficult to keep track of them all. Some books were published under one title in the UK and another in the US....or some stories weren't available in the US at all. And book listings in the front of paperbacks were not necessarily in order. It just became too Herculean a task .....and life whirled me away in other directions.

Until now.

Armed with the internet, digital library offerings, and my own book collection, I have finally started my Christie quest. And I'm loving every minute of it!!

The Big Four was published in the UK and the US in 1927 and features one of Christie's most popular characters, Hercule Poirot. I was excited to reach this title in my quest because this is my first reading of this Poirot mystery!! I own a tattered paperback from the early 1980s, but never read it. I'm sure I picked up the copy at a thriftshop, garage sale or used book store somewhere and was delighted to cross the title off my Christie shopping list...but then the paperback joined the collection on my shelves and was never enjoyed. I have now happily rectified that situation! I'm really not sure how I missed out on reading this book. It was published just weeks after Christie disappeared for 11 days (December 3-14, 1926). Public interest in her disappearance and eventual discovery at a hotel in Harrogate caused sales of The Big Four to skyrocket. I never knew this interesting fact until now. If I had, I might have read this book long before 2020! As it is, knowing a bit more about the background (the internet can be a wonderful learning tool!) of the story and its timing, made this an even more enjoyable audio book for me. 

The audio version I listened to is narrated by Hugh Fraser (Harper Audio). Fraser gives a great performance. The unabridged audio is 5 1/2 hours...so it's a relatively easy listen.

The Big Four is actually a mashup of several earlier published short stories centering around the diabolical antics of a international group of four criminal masterminds. The stories were first published in the Sketch magazine in the UK from January - March 1924. US publication in Blue Book Magazine followed in March 1927 - January 1928. The 12 short stories are: The Unexpected Guest, The Adventure of the Dartmoor Bungalow, The Lady on the Stairs, The Radium Thieves, In the House of the Enemy, The Yellow Jasmine Mystery, The Chess Problem, The Baited Trap, The Adventure of the Peroxide Blonde, The Terrible Catastrophe, The Dying Chinaman, and the Crag in the Dolomites. Each story was worked into one or two chapters of The Big Four. The stories are all interconnected and assembled as a novel the tales actually flow pretty well. I would never have known the story started out as different short tales had I not learned as much while doing pre-reading research into the book. I can see why Christie went this route.....her personal life at the time was in tatters. Her mother had died, she was deeply depressed, her husband left her for another woman.....who can write a new, glorious murder mystery while perhaps having suicidal, dark, depressed thoughts? She cobbled together prior stories that work perfectly well together....and granted herself some time to work on her personal life. Kudos, Agatha!

The book was adapted by the television series Poirot in its final season.

The basics: Poirot gets a surprise visit from an old friend, Captain Hastings. But, they don't get to have a relaxing reunion.....the two are pulled into international intrigue as a group of 4 mysterious criminals attempt to further their attempts to gain world dominance. While the concept of taking over the world through nefarious means is now a cheesy plot, back when this book was written the plot wasn't cliche. There were a couple times as I listened to this story that my mind pulled up visions of Dr. Evil, Mojo JoJo and James Bond villains.....but all in all, it is an enjoyable Poirot adventure. A bit dated....but enjoyable.

There were spots in this tale that I found a bit .....   racist isn't the term I'm looking for really. Let's say...racially or culturally insensitive. The plot pretty much jumps right into the concept that The Bad Guys must be affiliated with American criminals, Russians or the Chinese. And a few antiquated terms (like coolie) are used. But, the book is nearly 100 years old. Political intrigue tales just don't age very well. The cultural concepts of 1920s England just seem a bit cheesy, cliche and insensitive in 2020. Even so, I still enjoyed Poirot and Hastings sleuthing out the identities of these 4 sneaky, international masterminds. They tried to trick, out maneuver and even kill the master detective. Silly ploy....they were the Diet Coke of Evil....not quite evil enough. ha ha. 

So glad I finally read this book!! I wish I could read the stories in their original format.  I'm going to do some sleuthing of my own and see if I can't ferret out the original tales online just so I can say that I read them. Moving on to the next novel: The Mystery of the Blue Train! (Another Christie novel I haven't read before!)

REVIEW: Relatively Dead

Relatively Dead
Author: Sheila Connolly

After finishing this audio book, I mulled this review over for an entire day before writing this review. I wasn't quite sure what to say. I read a lot of books every year and review each one. It's a given that occasionally I'm going to run across a book or series that just isn't for me.

I did not enjoy this book. That doesn't mean it isn't a good book or that I feel nobody should read it. The story and the characters were just not what I enjoy. And I'm going to explain why.

The plot seemed muted. Abby Kimbrell moves to New England with her boyfriend....and starts seeing dead people. She has strange visions of long-dead families and feels their emotions about family tragedies.  She isn't afraid of them....there is no interaction with the dead. She just sees them. The only emotion felt by Abby seems to be the recycling emotions of these long-deceased people. Instead of being suspenseful and exciting....the episodes got repetitive and even boring. The paranormal incidents followed by research at the library just never gelled into a compelling plot for me. I get that genealogy was meant to be the focus of the plot line, but it just had no umph to it. It dragged along for me with really no direction.

The main character spent most of the book whining about her obviously bad relationship. The boyfriend character was little more than a caricature of a self-centered jerk to move the plot towards Abby finding her strength to change her life. But really -- Abby showed no emotional investment in Brad. She showed no interest in meeting his friends. She showed little interest in doing anything with him -- never wanted to join in on his activities or relationships. She did a lot of whining about his lack of interest in her and what she enjoys -- while she showed little interest in him either. Toxic relationship for both of them.  Brad is a flat, undeveloped male character.....whose only purpose is to antagonize the main character. Bleck.

The writing itself is not bad. The story just never developed into anything compelling or suspenseful. Emily Durante gave a great performance as narrator. Her skilled reading kept me listening to the entire book, even when the plot really wasn't totally engaging me.

This series is just not for me. Others might read it and enjoy the premise, the characters and the plot. But I'm stopping my reading of this series at book one. So many books....limited time. I'm sticking to things that work for me. I have three other series by this author on my to-read shelves....and I'm going to try her other books. I have heard great things about Sheila Connolly's Museum, Orchard and County Cork cozy mysteries. Moving on.....

REVIEW: The Mermaid, the Witch and the Sea

The Mermaid, the Witch and the Sea
Author: Maggie Tokuda-Hall

When an orphan girl takes on a male persona and boards a pirate ship, adventure, danger and even romance are a given. Throw in a witch, a mermaid and pirate antics and you have an entertaining and fun read.

Note: the main characters in this book are queer, so if you are one of those people that does not enjoy queer romance stories or LGBTQ fiction, give this one a pass.

I enjoyed this story. It was a fun, entertaining read. I love anything with pirates, so this was an easy plot to enjoy. At times the main characters were a bit hard to like. They both have a tendency to be selfish jerks at times. But the cool, magical world filled with mermaids and pirates pretty much carried the story past any personality issues.

Nice mix of magic, adventure and romance. Fun read! The front cover art is amazing!

**I voluntarily read a review copy of this book from Candlewick Press. All opinions expressed are entirely my own**

REVIEW: The Girl and the Witch's Garden

The Girl and the Witch's Garden
Author: Erin Bowman

The Girl and the Witch's Garden is a magical but dramatic middle grade children's story. Piper Peavey is sent to spend the summer with her grandmother. Piper has a lot to deal with -- her father is dying, her mother abandoned her, her grandmother is eccentric....the estate is filled with foster kids who claim magical abilities. It's a weird situation. Piper is an awesome main character. She isn't perfect....but she seems real. She lies and manipulates others when necessary, but also shows great strength, resilience and kindness as well.

This story is magical, but has a hard edge of blunt truth to it as well. I think that made the story seem magical, but real at the same time. A fairy tale with a bit of bite to it.

This is the first book by Erin Bowman that I have read. I'm definitely going to read more. This story was enjoyable and well-written. Very though provoking. I'm not sure as a child I would have had the strength that Piper or the other children have. I don't think I would have liked a summer at the Mallory Estate or that I could have weathered the storms that Piper had in her life.

*I voluntarily read a review copy of this book from Simon & Schuster. All opinions expressed are entirely my own.**

REVIEW: The Southern Book Club's Guide to Vampire Hunting

The Southern Book Club's Guide to Vampire Hunting
Author: Grady Hendrix

For me this book was like Steel Magnolias or Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe mixed with Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Southern women pulling together to rid their town of a menace. Well....caricatures of southern women, anyway.

While I enjoyed this story -- the premise was just too fantastic and fun for me, as a midwestern woman transplanted to the south not to enjoy it -- I found myself having to suspend my sense of reality multiple times. Not just because a vampire victimizing children is an impossibility, but because men and women just don't act as depicted in this book unless they are either completely narcissistic, abusive or stupid. And probably not even then. I asked my husband a few questions about male behavior before writing this review just to make sure I was not off the mark. There are some male behaviors and actions in this book that are particularly piggish and ridiculous....from spousal abuse because women are discussing books to disbelieving an eyewitness account of a crime as women imagining things. The men are mostly caricatures of sexist jerks who are more fixated on making money than being human beings. While sexist jerks do exist, a majority of southern men are NOT pigs -- not even in the 80s and 90s when this book is set. A lot of the actions of the male characters seemed contrived....sexism at the speed of plot. Same with the women. More caricatures.....and actions that intelligent women would not do...or put up with.The recipe for southern women from this book seemed a pinch of fake tv women from the 50s and 60s, a bit of 80s movie nostalgia, frosted over with a glaze of a man's idea of how women would think and behave.   It was cringeworthy in some places.

But......the vampire carried the day. The monster aspects of the plot kept me listening to this audio book, even as I cringed my way through ridiculous dialogue and overly sexist melodrama.

My final thoughts -- I enjoyed this book and I'm going to read more by this author because I like his style and ideas. Although the characterizations in the book are problematic for me, those depictions were purposeful to get me into the right emotional frame of mind to be a part of the story. I had to be a bit annoyed and angry to buy into southern women ganging up on an evil lurking right in their own neighborhood. The devil in their own backyard.  While they dealt with some of the nightmares from their own lives as well. Every household has secrets. But at times, the personal lives of the characters seemed like bad plots from the Lifetime Channel.

I listened to the audio book version of this story. Narrated by Bahni Turpin, the audio is almost 14 hours long. An enjoyable listen....Turpin does a great job reading. Great voice acting skills and her accents/depictions of the characters are very well done. Entertaining performance.

A solid 3 stars from me. Would have been a solid 4 or maybe even a 5 if the characters hadn't seemed so contrived and ridiculous to me. 

REVIEW: The Murder of Roger Ackroyd

The Murder of Roger Ackroyd
Author: Agatha Christie

Agatha Christie has been my favorite author since I was 9 years old and bought a box set of Hercule Poirot paperbacks at a garage sale. Those five books were the first "adult'' books I ever read. The print was so tiny and it took me awhile to read each book. I spent an entire summer completely mesmerized by Poirot, his moustache, and the little grey cells. :) That summer launched my strong love of books....and my lifelong enjoyment of Agatha Christie.

I have always wanted to read every book, short story, and play she wrote in publication order. When I was younger this was almost impossible as there were so many, and our small town library did not have them all. And the small town I grew up in did not have a bookshop. I had a written list in my purse with titles I owned marked off. I was always trolling yard sales for Christie books I didn't have. Then life got in the way....I married, had a son, got divorced, worked full time.....reading took a back seat to life. Now that the kids are grown, and life is a bit less hectic, I have more time to pursue things I find interesting. And it's so much easier to find books now....between public libraries, bookshops, online ordering, web sites and ebooks/audiobooks...I can access any book I want quickly and easily! I still work full time, and I have a household to run....but I manage to find time to enjoy books now that I don't have little ones to tend to. So, I decided this year was The Year. I was finally going to start: Agatha Christie in publication order. Everything. Every word I could possibly dredge up. I won't finish this year....but I have started and I am LOVING it!!

I was so excited when I finally got to The Murder of Roger Ackroyd in my Christie quest. I can still remember the first time I read this book. The ending caught me completely by surprise and I was just caught up in how perfectly Christie had totally tricked me! :) Reading this book was like visiting an old friend that you haven't seen in a long time. I listened to the audio version. Hearing the story unfold just added another layer to a superbly written mystery novel!! The Murder of Roger Ackroyd -- even though it was first published almost 100 years ago -- is still one of the best mystery stories ever written. It is seen by many to be her masterpiece....although I think And Then There Were None might just have the edge on that title. Either way, Christie's superb writing in Ackroyd had a profound effect on the mystery genre.

The Murder of Roger Ackroyd was first published in the UK and US in June 1926. The book was adapted into a play and also had several radio performances, plus a television adaptation by ITV in 2000 and in graphic novel format in 2007 (HarperCollins) The television adaption was enjoyable, but made too many changes to the story line for my taste. David Suchet is superb as Poirot as usual...but the script deviated from Christie's original a bit too much. The story is perfect as it is.....why mess with it??

The audio book I listened to was very enjoyable. Narrated by Hugh Fraser, the audio is just shy of 7 hours. Fraser gives a good performance. Definitely entertaining!

On to the next -- Next up another Poirot novel: The Big Four!

REVIEW: Wicked Autumn

Wicked Autumn
Author: G.M. Malliet

I have had the Max Tudor mystery series on my TBR pile for some time. I am sure most fellow reading enthusiasts will understand exactly what I mean when I say my TBR is ponderous and it takes quite awhile for great books to find their way to the top. I wish this series had found its way out of the chaotic lists of my "to read'' pile much much sooner! I very much enjoyed this first book in the series!

The basics: After a career with MI5, Max Tudor decided he wanted to follow a totally different, less violent, calling. He became a Vicar. Placed at St Edwold's in the village of Nether Monkslip, he expects his former career as an agent is far, far behind him. When a member of the local Women's Institute is killed during the annual Harvest Fayre, the Vicar realizes he has to pull together the skills he honed as an agent to help catch a murderer.

The plot and characters in this book have a bit of Agatha Christie flavor to them. Idyllic English village. Simple folk. Secrets hiding. I really felt sympathy for Max as he had to eye each village resident with suspicion, even if he really wanted the killer to not be a local villager. The mystery moved at a good pace. There was plenty of character and place development. And the suspense held up to the very end. This story definitely kept my attention from start to finish. I will definitely be reading more of this series!

I listened to the audio book version of this story. Narrated by Michael Page, the audio is just over 8 hours long. Page reads at a nice pace, and has a pleasing voice. Very entertaining audio book! I already have book 2, A Fatal Winter, checked out on Hoopla! I want to know what happens next in Nether Monkslip!

REVIEW: Little Creeping Things

Little Creeping Things
Author: Chelsea Ichaso

She never meant to kill anyone. She doesn't even remember setting the fire, or anything about that fateful day. But the town Cassidy Pratt lives in has never let her forget that the fire killed her neighbor. She is labeled a murderer, and has to live with it. When a local who bullies her about her past disappears, Cassidy's life is once again thrown into chaos. She had just joked about the perfect way to rid herself of Melody before the disappearance....  She can't go to the police. She will just look guilty. And then there's the chilling text message she received. I'm glad we're in this together......

This book was an exciting and fun read. Nothing new here, but an enjoyable, suspenseful story nonetheless. The plot moves along at a perfect pace....revealing just a little bit of the truth at a time until the very end. Nicely done. Very atmospheric and creepy cool.

Well written and entertaining. I look forward to more by this author.

**I voluntarily read a review copy of this book from Sourcebooks. All opinions expressed are entirely my own.**

REVIEW: Pulp

Pulp
Authors/Artists: Ed Brubaker, Sean Phillips
Colors: Jacob Phillips

1939. New York. Max Winter is an aging writer, penning pulp stories of the Old West. There's a reason why he pens great stories about cowboys and the Old West....in the 1850's he was an outlaw. Stealing. Rustling. Killing. Always one step ahead of the Pinkertons. But he's getting older...and it's getting harder to make a living. He decides he wants to do one last robbery to leave his widow enough money to live after he's gone.....but he gets a more interesting offer.

This graphic novel is definitely a new twist on the Old West theme. I liked it! The art is great...the story is engaging, creative and interesting. I liked the shifts in time, and the thoughts Max Winter has about how his life has changed, how his past still effects him and the challenges he faces as he ages. He wants to go out on his own terms...to feel like his former self, not like a dying old man. The ending is perfect!

Great story. Great art. This is the first time I've read anything by Ed Brubaker or Sean Phillips. I'm definitely going to read more of their work!

**I voluntarily read a review copy of this graphic novel. All opinions expressed are entirely my own.**

REVIEW: Hell is Empty

Hell is Empty
Author: Craig Johnson

The Walt Longmire series is one of my favorites. I'm reading through the books slowly, savoring each story. I like the characters, the setting and the plots. I was a huge fan of the television show, but I like the books even more. The characters are a bit different and the plots are richer. I view the show and the books as two different visions of the same characters/plots and enjoy each for what they are.

Hell is Empty is the 7th book in the series. Three dangerous convicts escape from custody. One of them confessed to killing a 10-year old boy years before and burying the body in the surrounding Big Horn Mountains. The convicts disappear into the mountains during a snowstorm, forcing Longmire to track them into the Cloud Peak Wilderness Area. The final showdown just might be Longmire's last....

Another great book in the Longmire series! The plot is a little bit similar to a previous book (Longmire trapped in a life-or-death situation in the snow and aided by tribal spirits), but I didn't mind. The situation was different enough that it didn't seem like a needless plot recycle. I loved the ending. The showdown with the bad guys was awesome....and the little supernatural nuances added to the suspense.

I listened to the audio version of this book. George Guidell always gives an outstanding performance! He voices Longmire perfectly...and gives Vic the proper attitude. The audio is just over 8.5 hours long and a great listening experience!

I'm reading and listening my way through this series slowly so I can savor each book. I was so sad when the television series ended, so I'm avoiding catching up with the author on this series. I don't want to have to wait a year or more for a Longmire fix....I prefer to have a trip to Absaroka County available on-demand. So taking my time. :) I'm glad I am not impatient. This series is great....so there is always a waiting list for each audio book on my library's digital site. I finish one...and then put the next book on hold. It all works out! :)

REVIEW: Two Bites Too Many

Two Bites Too Many
Author: Debra H. Goldstein

I love cozy mysteries. Sometimes I just need an escape....and reading for pure entertainment and enjoyment is the perfect escape for me. The cuter and fluffier the cozy, the happier I am....I just curl up in bed with my chihuahua and one or more of my resident cats and fall into the story. This series -- The Sarah Blair Mysteries -- fits what I enjoy in a cozy perfectly. Cute animals. A slightly kooky main character. Quirky side characters. A bit of a love interest. And a fun, interesting subplot. All boxes ticked....love this series!

Two Bites Too Many is the second book in the Sarah Blair series. With her divorce and first unexpected jump into amateur sleuthing behind her, Sarah is forging ahead. Not quite sure what she wants to do with her life, she is trying to settle into her new life with her siamese cat RahRah. Things take a bit of a turn when she's pulled into town politics, fundraising and her twin sister Emily's quest to open a restaurant. When a local banker is killed and Sarah's mother is a suspect, once again Sarah finds herself hunting a killer.

Loved this second book! I have a weakness for siamese cats...so love RahRah. Another cute fluff makes an entrance in this book as well...perfect! The mystery moves along at a nice pace, with plenty of suspects and twists. One portion of the subplot had me shaking my head a bit as a main character made a pretty foolish decision -- but don't we all at times? I just had to shake my head a bit and keep reading. The ending was well executed. I sort of figured out the killer....but wasn't quite sure of the motive. Nice finish!

I listened to the audio book format of this book. Narrated by Emily Beresford, the audio is almost 8 hours long. Not a bad listening length. Beresford gives a great performance. It took me a few minutes to warm up to her voice when listening to the first book in this series, but it wasn't long before I was enjoying her performance.

Very enjoyable book! At the time I'm writing this review, I have a digital ARC of the third book -- Three Treats Too Many -- coming out in August 2020. Can't' wait to read it! Love this series!

REVIEW: The Watcher

The Watcher
Author: Ralph Tedesco
Artwork: Victoria Rau

Erica is the daughter of a Catholic Deacon. Her parents are very strict and pretty much never let her out of their sight. They don't like her friends. They don't trust her. She just feels....trapped.  And the nightmares don't help make it better. Almost every night she sees the frightening entity in her room...she finds strange symbols carved in the floor....and her creepy next door neighbor always watching... 

Very creepy story! Excellent graphic novel!

This story reminds me so much of movies I loved when I was a teenager in the 80s. Teenage girl....trio of friends....scary supernatural stuff going on....gruesome murders in suburbia. Perfect entertaining horror premise as far as I am concerned!

I enjoyed the story. It was a nice mix of teenage life/angst at growing up and supernatural horror. The artwork is awesome! The story line kept up the suspense and horror until the very end. The ending wasn't really a surprise as I've been reading and watching this type of horror tale for decades now. But, it was very nicely executed! Very enjoyable horror graphic novel!

REVIEW: Thunderstruck

Thunderstruck
Author: Erik Larson

Sensationalism. It's nothing new. If it's shocking, scandalous, or over-the-top, it sells. Sometimes it's nefarious deeds that make a story compelling....sometimes it's celebrity status that makes humanity follow every move some people make. More than 100 years ago, the lives of several very disparate people combined both those elements into the biggest news story of 1910. A quiet, passive man. A young woman in love. A failed, difficult actress. And, an egotistical but determined inventor. One violent action would intertwine the lives of these people. Murder. It made the career of one....and ripped apart the lives of all the others. And the public ate it up.

Thunderstruck tells the story of how a new invention -- the Marconi wireless -- helped catch a murderer.....and how the sensational arrest of that murderer and his lover was the ultimate, very public test Marconi needed to prove his wireless technology worked. The pursuit of Dr. Crippen was one of the first instances of instant news. The public was able to follow the story as law enforcement literally chased Dr. Crippen across the ocean. Because of wireless messages sent from the ship they were on, the public knew what books Crippen and  his lover Ethel LeNeve were reading, what they ate, that she was dressed as a boy, their activities....and that they had absolutely no idea police were in pursuit and would arrive in Quebec ahead of them. It was all exciting, scandalous and completely new.

What a story! It is so true that sometimes truth is stranger than fiction!

I have read two of Erik Larson's other nonfiction books -- Dead Wake and The Devil in the White City -- and completely loved both of them! Larson goes into great detail when he relates a story, but does so in an interesting, compelling way. But, a word of caution -- these books are narrative non-fiction. Larson goes into minute detail about every aspect of his subject. The stories aren't fictionalized depictions, but a factual account of the lives and events he is writing about. For readers who don't enjoy nonfiction, these books might be tedious or too drawn out. But for those of us who love a true story, Larson's books are a gold mine of awesome information! Just be forewarned --- there is lots of detail,  copious amounts of background on every key player involved. If you enjoy that, these books are for you. If not -- best move on, as Larson's books will not be enjoyable for you.

Going into Thunderstruck, I didn't know much about Marconi and wireless telegraphy. Or the details about Dr. Crippen, his wife Cora and Ethel LeNeve. I knew the bare minimum about Crippen and the crime he was hanged for. I found the story incredibly interesting and compelling.

Awesome book! Larson never fails to entertain me. He is a master of narrative non-fiction! I listened to the audio book version of Thunderstruck. The audio, narrated by Bob Balaban, is just under 12 hours long. Balaban reads at a nice pace and he has a pleasant voice. All in all, an excellent listening experience!