Mini review: The Devil’s Company by David Liss

· Hardcover: 384 pages

· Publisher: Random House; First Edition edition (July 7, 2009)
· Language: English
· ISBN-10: 1400064198
· ISBN-13: 978-1400064199
· Genre: historical fiction, thriller
· Target audience: adults


Synopsis (partially from the back cover):

It is the third historical thriller featuring Benjamin Weaver (after A Spectacle of Corruption and A Conspiracy of Paper, reviewed by me not so long ago).

1722, London. Benjamin, still earning his living as a ruffian for hire, a thieftaker and a master of disguise, is forced to cooperate with a mysterious mastermind – a man named Cobb – nobody knows anything about. To keep unwilling Weaver in line, Cobb has bought a lot of debt notes belonging to Weaver’s ill uncle, Miguel, and two other close friends of his, practically holding their lives in the balance (and we speak about times when you could spend many years in a debtor's prison if you didn’t manage to pay your dues). To protect the people he cares about Weaver must stage a daring robber from the headquarters of the ruthless British East India Company. Although he manages to do so, it is just a thin end of the wedge. Next, he is ordered to work for that very company in a rather dubious capacity to find out the real reason of death of a certain Absalom Pepper – a closet inventor, a ladies’ man and much much more. Soon enough, against his better judgement, he gets involved in a dangerous game of secret plots, corporate rivalry and foreign spies. Navigating a labyrinth of greed and treachery he will get acquainted with a corporate life resembling very much that of our contemporary great companies.

What I liked:

The plot was as action-packed and full of twists and turns, as I like. I didn’t have one minute of boredom while reading this one.

Vivid period detail is rendered so it can actually make you interested in history, even if you didn’t like the subject or the era before. This time Mr. Liss provides some interesting glimpses into the Rules of the Fleet – a law-free area around Fleet Prisons where debtors could live free from arrest and clandestine marriages took place without banns or license. After reading about it if you ever visit that area in London you will never treat it as just another part of the city again.

The narrative voice of  our main hero never ceased to amuse me - Weaver has a biting, sarcastic wit, and he had me laughing at many places in the novel. Apart from that, once again the author did choose the right amount of archaisms to make the book era-believable but not to discourage contemporary readers.

What I didn’t like:

I know it is difficult to keep a series of novels based on the same formula on a high level it was started; small wonder the third part I found somehow lacking.

First of all, in this book we meet a Celia Glade who is supposed to be the next love interest of Benjamin. I did want more romance but now I suppose our main character fell in love again too early – to be honest I found Miss Celia one of the weakest female characters in Liss’s trilogy so far. Not only she doesn’t feature often enough to be close to a fully-fledged heroine you can relate to but she remains surprisingly two-dimensional to the very end, despite the fact that she is supposed to be a splendid actress and a mistress of disguise herself. I don’t say she is not amendable because undoubtedly she is (providing that the author plans a fourth book). I just wish we were given more proof of it.

I was also a bit disappointed that Mr. Liss neglected to explore the inner workings of the British East India Company in greater detail; I would love to read about it even if it meant a slightly bulkier book. I did enjoy his rants about the evils of big corporations and capitalism, though – a very contemporary topic and always close to my heart. Here, I end this section in a positive way - it means the book wasn't totally bad. :-)

Final verdict:

If you enjoy historical fiction with a strong background of conspiracy, economics, technological development and a tad of romance, and with much of the action taking place in 18th century London, this trilogy is for you. I admit I found the third part the weakest but, overall, I don’t regret buying and reading it. After two such brilliant installments you simply must read the third even if deep down you know it might be a tad worse.

Silent Sunday - let's shop!

Friday Flash Fiction

Amy C at Romance Book Wyrm and Dottie atTink's Place have come up with the idea for a Monday Morning Flash Fiction challenge. Each Monday a new picture prompt will be posted and if you choose to participate - you publish your Fiction Flash  on Friday - 350 words, give or take. Below you can find the picture posted last Monday:

And here goes my story...

It was one of these forbidden books her father has never allowed her even to touch, let alone read. Not that they were naughty or inappropriate, far from it. They were simply dangerous or so he said. Lil never understood that: how a work of fiction could be dangerous? Did it have teeth to bite you or claws to maul you like a wild animal? Anyway, if these books were truly, really as dangerous as her father claimed why he kept and treasured them so much? Shouldn't he have destroyed them long time ago, before he settled down, took a wife and had children?

The temptation to solve that mystery was like a burning piece of charcoal inside her - sometimes barely felt, sometimes hot and uncomfortable, almost painful, but always present inside, always gnawing at her. When her father had to go away to help a friend with some weird problem she decided it was the right time to satiate her hunger. At last. Of course her father had asked her not to go inside his secret library time and again and yes, she had promised that much with the most solemn face and downcast eyes but deep inside she knew what would happen, despite her shame and pangs of conscience. After all she tried so hard to be a good, dutiful daughter most of the time. One lapse from the straight and narrow wasn't that bad, was it?

The very next day she accosted a stable boy named Mark who used to be a burglar. She told him in no uncertain terms that she would reveal some of his other crimes she was in the know about, crimes comitted by him already under her father's roof, if he didn't help her breaking and entering the secret library. Blackmail - an ugly word indeed but she didn't care. Mark was a bit sullen at first, then he looked at her thoughtfully and agreed to pick the right lock for her and keep mum about it as long as she did the same.

 Right after the dinner they met at the library's door. Mark had the tools of his trade with him and Lil brought some candles and a bottle of wine as he had asked. He took a swig and start working on the lock in complete silence. It was drudgery. After two hours of frantic efforts and swearing he managed to open the door without destroying the lock but he was covered in sweat and rather uneasy. Finally he addressed her for the first time:

"Listen, little Miss..."

"That's Miss Lilian or mistress Lilian for you, Mark. Do not presume upon my goodwill," she interrupted coldly. How dared he. It was true she was the youngest child in the family but she was also of age and he was barely two years older. Nobody called her "little Miss", her childhood moniker, anymore. Jerk.

Mark smirked but corrected himself instantly:

"I beg you pardon, Miss Lilian, my lady and mistress. Please, don't be offended, no harm meant. I just wanted to say that t'was the most difficult job I've ever done. Ever. Cross my heart. I'm still surprised I actually managed to open these damned door for you at all. One thing's certain - if anybody got such a lock for a door they sure as hell meant the door to remain closed, no matter what. You're a clever, nice girl, Miss, even if a bit sneaky and ruthless...and of course too curious for your own good..."

"Your point being?"

"Don't enter this room. Leave it be."

She was quiet for a moment, too stunned to find the right answer. This little ex-burglar and criminal, her father's stable boy for goodness' sake, had the cheek to tell her what to do. Her anger started burning inside her and finally she found the right words which were, in her opinion, worth of a lady.

"Thank you for this piece of advice, Mark, you can go now."

He narrowed his eyes leaning against the wall as if too tired to stand straight.

"You will enter, no matter what, won't you, Miss?"

She stiffened.

"Sorry  but I see I must be quite blunt with you, my lad. I don't need you, make yourself scarce. Here, take the bottle, it's almost full, and go, be merry with your friends."

"Miss Lilian, please..."

She turned and etnered the library, closing the door firmly behind her although his voice sent a shiver down her spine. He sounded as if he really cared. Honestly...what was he thinking, pleading whith her so much? The room was dark but she managed to notice walls lined with countless books. Some of them lay on the floor like scattered leaves. She took the first book she could grab. It was late, the lock-picking job took much longer than she'd anticipated and her candle was flickering - soon she won't have any source of light. She opened the book and a warm, golden glow shone out of it. She gasped, totally surprised. Are books supposed to glow in the dark on their own? The light was pretty, enticing, making her more confident. She wouldn't need a candle anymore.

 Lilian giggled with pleasure and started reading. It was a novel set in an enchanted fairy forest and all of a sudden she not only read about that place but  also was in a forest - a real one. She was sitting on soft, thick grass under a high, old beech. And she couldn't stop reading.

Mini review: The River Panj by David Raterman

Author: David Raterman
Title: The River Panj
Genre: thriller
Form: e-book
Target audience: adults


Why I read it: I was contacted by the author and he was kind enough to offer me his book free of charge in exchange for an impartial review. That fact didn't influence my opinion in any way.

Synopsis

The narration takes place during the 09/11 attack on the World Trade Center but the place of narration is not in America but on the border between Tajikistan and Afghanistan so in the very heart of darkness so to speak. A young American emergency relief worker, Derek Braun, all of a sudden finds himself in a very precarious situation. Not only his life is in grave danger, like that of all his Western colleagues, but his Tajik fiancée, Zarina, and one of his co-workers, Henry Ames, were abducted by unknown terrorists who, apparently, work closely with al-Qaida and also some corrupt Russian soldiers. Derek has to pay ransom of one million dollars if he wants to see  both kidnapping victims alive. He doesn’t have such an amount of money and nobody seems very interested in helping him. He decides to stay and find Zarina on his own against all odds. He can’t count on anybody and he is in a land of ruthless enemies – the Talibans – and a land where different mafias fight for their share in narco-business. Will it be his suicide mission? Will he prevent another  suicide mission in Chicago?

What I liked:

• It was a gripping story with plenty of interesting details. It is obvious the author was there, saw horrible atrocities along with remnants of a great culture and decided to describe them. I am impressed that he knows Russian as it is a difficult language to learn.
• I do agree that relief workers deserve more spotlight, facing really dangerous conditions, getting little recognition until there‘s a war or natural disaster of relevance to Americans and other Westerners. It’s good somebody thought and wrote about them.

• We are shown here really difficult life of different people native of the Central Asia region. Some scenes were really gut-wrenching, like two pregnant women fighting for flour. It was eye-opening and it can put all your problems into a quite new perspective.

• The political situation was described spot-on and the lack of help Derek faced was truly believable. That’s what usually happens when not important people are kidnapped by terrorists.

• Clash of cultures is there, shown from both sides with all the ugly underbelly of human trafficking, drug smuggling and darker sides of American culture.

What I didn’t like:

• The main characters were a bit too two-dimensional - I sympathized with the fate of Derek and Zarina but somehow they failed to move me deeply. I wish they could.
• The narrative voice didn’t manage to keep me riveted to this book although the premise was interesting enough to make me finish it.

Final verdict:

I am glad I read this book but I wish it was better-written. The topic truly deserves it.

Mini review: The Egyptian (Dominic Gray 02) by Layton Green

Book form: e-book, Kindle edition

Language: English

Genre: thriller, mystery, 

Target group: adults

Synopsis (with some spoilers concerning the first part, sorry):

It is the second part of the Dominic Gray series, started by The Summoner, reviewed by me not so long ago. It can be easily read as a stand-alone but starting from the beginning doesn’t hurt J.

Dominic, now living in New York, is recovering from his stint in Zimbabwe and from a broken romance with Nya. Not being able to come to terms with her ordeal, she asked him to leave and so he did but he could't get over it. A broken-hearted guy needs an employment badly – anything to stop thinking about, well , his sad and solitary life and the rest of his blues. After a while he finally gets what he was wishing for. An Egyptian businessman and scientist called Al Miri contacts him through his current boss, Victor Radek, and wants him to find out what  happened to a silver test tube suspended in hydraulic stasis which had been stolen from his bio-tech company in Cairo, Egypt. Apparently a rival firm had managed to persuade one of Al Miri's workers to steal the tube and sell it to them. All traces lead to a shady Bulgarian scientist who dabbles in the occult to find a source of eternal youth in the most literal sense.

 Soon enough Grey and Viktor are joined, against their better judgment of course, by an investigative reporter, Veronica, a specialist in tracking rogue biomedical companies and exposing their ugly deeds. Then they meet Jax, a former mercenary, who got mixed up with the whole business for money and now regrets every moment of it, having far more trouble than he bargained for. All of them will have to sift through science, myths, and murderous rogues  to uncover the truth behind the Egyptian and his sinister biotech – preferably before that truth kills them.

What I liked:

Have I mentioned that I am a real sucker for alchemy? If I haven’t, here it is – I make it official. It’s enough a book mentions Hermes Trismegistus, Prester John, golems, the Fountain of Youth, the Philosopher’s Stone, Emerald Tablets and Nicolas Flamel (not necessarily in this order) and it can win me over in a sec. This novel mixed all these ingredients together and the author did it in a clever way, apparently backed up by some serious research. I loved every second of it; in fact I wouldn’t mind having more.

The character development didn’t disappoint me either, at least in most of cases. Grey is perhaps still a bit too serious and taciturn but in the second installment it is apparent that he can think and feel, not only do jujitsu. We see less of Nya (good move imvho, she became a wet blanket a bit too soon) and a new girl, Veronica, is introduced. Overall I liked her better. She was perhaps a bit too much like one of these annoying Bond girls (you know the drift: intelligent but not overly so, very pretty, very sexy, definitely in need of a strong, manly arm) but I hope she will gain more depth later. I liked the fact that she fell in love and, despite her best efforts, it remained rather unrequited.


 I also liked the idea of adding another new character- Jax the mercenary – to the mix. Jax is very selfish, neither completely good nor totally bad but, maybe because of it, very likeable. He brings his ironic sense of humour and almost complete lack of scruples on board. Well, in the whole narration whirlwind I missed some humour in the first part too. Indiana Jones's type of humour. Let’s face it: Grey is a dour kind of guy and while I understand the reasons behind it, his constant pining for Nya and reminiscing his harsh childhood and teen years can get tiresome after a while; Victor is even more sour from time to time, not to mention the fact that he is an absinthe addict (an original addiction, I grant you, but not exactly a sociable one). Veronica can be catty in an amusing way but, as she is now seriously in love with our long-faced Dominic, she is not exactly a ray of sunshine either. Jax, with his sexual innuendos, zest for life and witty remarks was like a whiff of fresh air in a stuffy room.

The setting was once again interesting. Perhaps not as exotic as Zimbabwe but interesting enough. The pace of narration, as in the first part, could leave you breathless (or, more precisely, reading greedily far longer than you had planned) so doing exactly what a real thriller should do to you.

What I didn’t like:

I could list here different minor quibbles (some scenes, like the just-in-time rescue of Veronica, were rather cheesy, fortunately not too many of them)  but there was one major drawback. Baddies. I noticed an improvement but not enough. Is it really that difficult to make your evil guy handsome, clever and enticing, at least for a moment or two? Apparently it is – in this part every baddie was physically repulsive in his own way so you knew at once when you read their descriptions what and who you were dealing with. Cliché. It’s good some of them (Al Miri) at least showed some higher feelings.

Final verdict:

I must visit Egypt and maybe also Bulgaria – if not this year then the next one. Going there, I will gladly reread this one. Or the next part, if available. It is really good and intelligent as far as thrillers go, not to mention the entertainment factor. I wouldn't be surprised if the series was adapted for the screen in the near future.

A bottle of absinthe with a lovely Tiffany lamp. Enticing but dangerous.

Silent Sunday

Alphonse Maria Mucha: Autumn

Source: http://www.paintinghere.com/painting/Autumn_3753.html

New poem of the month is here...

I know, I didn't change the July poems. It was not the case of poor memory, I was very busy in August. Sorry if anybody noticed and cared. This month I managed to find something special for a change. A poem written by a writer who is not known as a poet but is rather well-known as a novelist. Just go there, read it and tell me what you think! I must say I was charmed instantly by the honesty of that one and yes, the pic below is kind of related :)