This is another addition to the long-running Kay Scarpetta book series about a forensic medical examiner. The newest release starts out with a reminder of one of the memorable characters in the series–a diabolical character who makes you think she is always a step ahead of our heroine, Dr. Kay Scarpetta, a woman of many talents and skills. Although not a practicing lawyer, Scarpetta has a law degree in addition to a medical degree. She’s a certified scuba diver, as well as a gourmet chef. She has her own forensic business now and lives in a posh neighborhood in Cambridge, Mass. with her handsome, highly intelligent FBI agent husband, Benton.
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Bone Tomahawk (a movie review)
This is a Western film with some graphic scenes and dialogue that make you think it’s from that golden era. The pace feels right and the acting is great from the likes of Kurt Russell, the town sheriff; Patrick Wilson, a husband hobbled from an accident; Robert Jenkins, the deputy back-up; and Matthew Fox, a man you wouldn’t expect had so many Indian kills.
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Playing with Fire by Tess Gerritsen (a book review)
This is a bittersweet story about two violinists from two different time periods—contemporary and between pre-Nazi-occupied Italy and 1943. Their tales are told in every other section of the book. Professional violinist, Julia Ansdell—whose story is set in contemporary times—brings into her life a mysterious music composition she finds inserted in a music book she purchases in a small Italian antiques shop. Upon finishing a performance, she decides to shop for souvenirs and buys the book before flying back to the U.S., where she lives with her husband, Rob, and three-year-old daughter, Lily. Continue reading
The Stranger by Harlan Coben (a book review)
This story observes suburban life pretty well. It’s about a seemingly happy family whose life gets disrupted after a stranger tells the husband something he didn’t know his wife did two years before. After confronting her about the revelation, the story starts taking different twists. It is suspenseful and engrossing, especially in the middle of the book when things start to become “curiouser and curiouser,” as Alice in Wonderland would say. Continue reading
Silent Creed by Alex Kava (a book review)
This is the second installment of a new book series that features Ryder Creed, a former dog handler for the K9 Unit in the Marines. He was traumatized from the war in Afghanistan, almost taking his life, but is saved by Hannah Washington, a single mother with two sons. She helps him see his natural talent in handling dogs. Together they open a search-dog business called “K9 CrimeScents.” Hannah handles the business part, while Creed does the fieldwork. Their dogs are mostly those that have been cast aside and that Creed has trained. They offer their services to the public, the police, and the local and federal government. Continue reading
Code of Conduct by Brad Thor (a book review)
This is the 15th book in a thriller series about a super-agent of an NGO (nongovernmental organization) that frequently takes on covert assignments for the U.S. government. The organization is headed by Reed Carlton, a former CIA operative, who has recruited our hero, Scot Harvath. A human version of Superman, Harvath is fortysomething, extremely fit, highly intelligent, greatly resourceful, and truly patriotic. He is a former SEAL, who had served as a Secret Agent at one time, to a former U.S. President. He was so indebted to Harvath for saving his daughter that he gifted Harvath a lifetime residence at a historical site in Washington, D.C. You should read the prior 14 books first because it’s more enjoyable to know the sequence of events. Also, the story lines become more incredible. This last one is quite epic. Suffice to say it has the same theme as the movie Kingsman: The Secret Service. If you haven’t seen that movie, then I will say this is about controlling of the masses. I originally wrote something else, but I think it would be a spoiler. Continue reading
The Fixer by Joseph Finder (a book review)
This is a thriller set in Boston with references to the Big Dig, a fiasco of a highway/tunnel project that ran way behind schedule (try over 8 to 10 years, depending which viewpoint you take) and racked up the cost to over $20 billion (still not fully paid to date). Although that in itself is criminal, there are many other criminals in the story. Much of the story is about Rick Hoffman, a thirtysomething journalist who finds himself out of a high-paying job and homeless. He goes back to his family home, which has become a big fixer-upper because his father has been in a convalescence facility for 18 years due to a stroke that left him unable to speak or care for himself. His mother has long been deceased and his only sibling, a sister, lives in Seattle. Continue reading
Memory Man by David Baldacci (a book review)
This book has the makings of a new book series. The hero is Amos Decker, a middle-aged, 6’5”, 350-lb., former police detective whose mind is like a DVR. A football accident that happened during his first college football game as a freshman resulted in giving him more than a concussion. His brain somehow got knocked in the right places to give him the ability to recall all his memories at will. His size is metaphorical of the heaviness of life events that will follow later. One of such events is the inexplicable murders of his wife, daughter, and brother-in-law. The murders go unsolved and his life spirals down until many years later he is roused from his lackluster existence. Continue reading
Kingsman: The Secret Service (a movie review)
This is a tongue-in-cheek explosive movie starring Colin Firth, Michael Caine, and superbad Samuel L. Jackson, who is always good as a villain because he seems to enjoy playing such roles. His enjoyment makes you intensely dislike him (in character of course), and in this film he is quite the psycho with a civilized façade. His assistant is an amputee with bladed prosthetic feet and furtive martial moves. Continue reading
Solitude Creek by Jeffery Deaver (a book review)
Solitude Creek is the fifth of a series on body language expert, Kathryn Dance, a widowed mother of two, working as an agent for the California Bureau of Investigation. We find her here solving two different cases, with one of them being a sting operation and I will not go on because I wouldn’t want to spoil this good read. I will reveal that one of the culprits is a person that sets up situations leading to crowd panic, resulting in violence and ugly scenes. As always, author Jeffrey Deaver delivers a good plot and engrossing characters. Continue reading
Karina Pinella 
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