Yet Another Taker

Hot on the heels of Mom's Thumb Reviews (see here) comes this one from Hong Konger Laura Besley (here).

Miss Besley, who also read my first novel, Toe the Line (here), says of this one:

On the Edge is almost two books for the price of one: present Joe and past Joe.

and

These two threads of the story are cleverly woven together and feed into the ever-building climax at the end. 

And finally, this . . . my favorite part:

Overall this is an enjoyable thriller and is recommended for people who enjoy murder mysteries.

I'll take that. Didn't get a five star review on Goodreads, but five star equals "It was amazing." Four star equates to "Really liked it." I'll take it and use that missing fifth star as motivation to finish Vapor Trail.

Lastly

Savvy readers of this blog know that I compile a list of "last lines" (see here) as a counter-punch to my first lines (see here) compendium. Secondly, it helps me remember which books I've read and what I thought about them. That being said, today's latest addition is below.

I sighed and went into the bedroom to phone. I had two calls to make. The first to Al Georgio, telling that estimable man that no, I would not marry him. The second to Jack Smack, telling that flighty tap dancer that yes, I would move in with him. 

You can be logical about other people’s lives, but never about your own.

Sanders, Lawrence - The Eighth Commandment

It's a slight twist at the end. I expected the protagonist to choose Al. It's fun to see that she didn't.

As I said before (see here) I love Lawrence Sanders' McNally mysteries and I am loving reading his older material even more. There's more seriousness, more gravitas, and the stories are more fleshed out. This was the first I've read of his where he got into the mind of a femme and I have to say I think he did it quite well. I wish he had written more.

Next First Line

This is a new one for me. I thought I had read all of Dick Francis' work, . . . nope . . . looks like I missed one.

I intensely disliked my father's fifth wife, but not to the point of murder.

Dick Francis -  Hot Money

Based on the comments, it looks like this is out of print, so thank goodness for the ole Kindle.

Readers might also note that I've reading a lot of first person, genre mystries. I'm trying to get the mindset right for finishing up Vapor Trail, my third novel. I wouldn't call it "writer's block" so much as "writer's ennui." It works though. The more of the style I read the more I think, "Hey, I can do this. I can knock this out."

Still, glad to be reading something new at the same time.

A First

Some books and authors just resonate with me immediately (see other first lines here). Lawrence Sanders is a reseonater apparently. I'm surprised I'm compelled tor read on, but I am.

MEN TREAT ME WITH amusement, women with sympathy. My name is Mary Lou Bateson, but the nickname “Dunk” followed me from Des Moines to New York City. I am almost six-two— in my bare feet. When I wear heels, I loom— or so a man once told me. 

“Don’t worry about it, Dunk,” Daddy advised. “People look up to you.”

That will give you an idea of his quirky sense of humor.

Sanders, Lawrence - The Eighth Commandment

I'm Big Into Flowcharts . . . But . . .

I write a lot of flowcharts for work, and I understand their abilities and the need, but this one . . . not a huge fan of the style, but I love the outcomes (see here).

I'm sorry I can't properly reference where I got it, I found it on a reddit site and I can't refind it. I'll let the title speak for itself, but I was surprised by how many of the books I've actually read! A more pleasant surprise, there are still a lot more to be read.

My favorite, Vernor Vinge (see here) is on the far right side of the chart, right near my other favorite, Asimov (here for more).

Well worth a click see (here) if you're a sci-fi or fantasy reader.

King Rat no King

Having written my own first novel (here) . . . and seen how much better (even marginally) my second novel is compared to that first one . . . its good to see that other novelist's first also screamed "FIRST TIME NOVEL!"

By no means am I equating myself to James Clavell, but King Rat, although good, was nowhere near the mind blowing epic that Shogun was (you can see my review of Shogun here) then again Tai Pan wasn't as good as Shogun either. King Rat was not only not as good as Shogun, but it had all the hallmarks of being a first novel. Somewhat clunky, plot lines that got lost, the feeling of "wow . . . it would have been better had he done such and such rather than that."

That being said, it was still quite good. It reminded me of Catch-22 in many ways, but with far more heart. The ending was tragic to read, and the come-uppance by the main character interesting. I love the foil he used, it reminded me in that way of The Great Gatsby. But there was alot that Clavell left on the table. 

The last line? A tad trite. He describes what happens to the rat breeding program.

And Adam ruled, for he was the King. Until the day his will to be King deserted him. Then he died, food for a stronger. And the strongest was always the King, not by strength alone, but King by cunning and luck and strength together. Among the rats. 

Clavell, James - King Rat

Sometime the Title Grabs Ya

Many people love noun groups like Murder of Crows or Wisdom of Owls. I was perusing Goodreads when I ran across this one.

I don't know if I would have used the term "Rapture" for a group of Nerds. Or perhpas he means "rapture" in the biblical sense. If it is the first case I would have thought "a class of nerds" or "a study of nerds" would be more apropos.

Still, probably won't read it.

Cons: None . . . I'll Take It

Cons: None. Pros: well written, great plot, realistic fiction, realistic characters. Her Rating: Thumbs Up.

All of these I will gladly take in regards to the book review I just received from Mom's Thumb Reviews for my book On the Edge (still available here for a super discounted price!).

The review (here) which was posted on the 20th, is yet another not too bad one. Keep in mind that I asked Miss Carr to review my previous effort, Toe the Line (even more discounted here) as well as others (here and here), so she's a bit of a fan. But this time I think she too thinks that I've gotten a bit better at writing.

His imagination is colorful, artistic, creative, and detail oriented.  He creates fiction stories and spins real life examples into his novels for a great adventure for all of his readers. 

I agree with her.

Diagramming First Lines

Anyone who reads this blog even sporadically will know that I enjoy logging the first/opening lines/passages that I come across. I organize them all for quick reading by linking to there (here). I've even started categorizing good vs bad lines and have a listing of last lines (here) and lines about the morning (here).

I ran across a post on Metal Floss that has 25 first lines diagrammed out. The post, 25 Literary Opening Lines Diagrammed on One Giant Poster by Hannah Keyser is fun to check out. I haven't diagrammed anything in years, probably not since eighth grade, but seeing these first lines blocked out like this, really is interesting to see.

My favorites?

I'll leave it to you to de-diagram out these first lines to determine whose and from which books these first lines come, or to follow the link and see it first hand.

My Modern Met

I was tooling around My Modern Met the other day and ran across these two posts that caught my fancy. The first one, Terry Border Brings Old Books to Life with Wire is described this way:

Artist Terry Border gives new life to old books in his latest series titled Wiry Limbs, Paper Backs. The artist, who is no stranger to breathing new life into inanimate objects, utilizes his handcrafted technique of bending wires to serve as limbs and combines it with a great sense of humor. Each whimsical creation in the ongoing project is a sculptural work that stands on its own, reflecting its respective text.

My favorite piece is this one, but the whole series is worth looking over:

That little suitcase is a perfect bridge to this second link, Artist Transforms Books into Exciting Sculptural Stories which I also found on My Modern Met.

Ships, monsters, and mermaids pop out of books handcrafted by Delta, Pennsylvania-based artist Jodi Harvey-Brown (aka wetcanvas). Taking inspiration from the materials themselves, each three-dimensional scene the sculptor constructs reflects popular works of fiction. Whether it's a calm depiction of an outing from The Wind in the Willows or a rigorous struggle from The Old Man and the Sea, there is a sense of motion in the simulated waves.

Although these don't speak to me as much as Terry Border's work, these are still fun to look at too. This, from Return of the King, particularly was fun to see.