Barry Finlay

I don't often pick up books of this genre, which is really silly because every time, I'm glad I did. This is no exception.

I'm no stranger to Finlay: I've read and thoroughly enjoyed three of his novels, so I needed no persuasion at all to read this.

This is a collection of a handful or so people's life-changing challenges. The people are very diverse: age, circumstance, colour, nationality. The contrast to their diversity is their one commonality: they have a goal, or rather, a 'mountain to climb', a summit to reach, all of which require a great deal of strength (mental and physical) and gritty determination.

Interesting and inspiring though they are, what I enjoyed just as much was the author's own mountain to climb: a literal one, as it happens! That and some background of his life, along with what steered him along the authorial path after a completely different career, are as fascinating as the stories of inspiration.

A truly wonderful read.… (mer)

I'm a bit late to the Marcie-Kane-thrillers party. This is number 5; I don't usually dive in without reading forerunners, as I'm too worried I've missed too much. However, this was completely (and skilfully) stand-alone.

I reckon this isn't a thriller to be read if you have a heart condition. My heartbeat was raised a level or two throughout, not to mention the palpitations! Gripping, compelling, edge-of-your-seat stuff right from the start. My kind of thriller.

It's one that also embraces the very distressing condition of PTSD. Here, the victim is Nathan, Marcie's husband. As an FBI consultant, he's seen and experienced danger and horror, and it finally catches up with him. Nipping it in the bud is the route to recovery. Terminally ill Owen Strand is a drone hobbyist and, having nothing to lose, uses his custom-made drones to kill people he considers responsible for all that's gone wrong in his life. An FBI colleague reckons Nathan is well enough to handle the case. But someone very close to Nathan is in Owen's flight path. Nathan has to fight his demons to get to Owen before another tragedy occurs. The balance between the PTSD story line and the crime are perfectly balanced.

I really couldn't put this down. I read so many crime thrillers and weapons of choice are usually knives, guns, poison, hands, but this was my first drone thriller! What a modern, contemporary and original choice of attack. It was all the more fun, as I'm married to a drone hobbyist, who knows just about everything there is to know about drones and (UK) flying regulations.

I'll certainly be adding more of this author's books to my TBR.… (mer)