What I'm Reading

Yesterday I finished reading The Hard Way by Lee Child. I believe that’s his latest one. It’s just come out in paperback. It’s a typical Jack Reacher novel. By that I mean, it’s got action, Jack remains a loner and a fighter, and he had a woman by his side – not a damsel in distress, but a strong partner, at least for the length of the book. By “typical” I also mean “good.” Lee Child’s books, so far, are good reads. I have noticed though that the last few books haven’t been as action-filled as the earlier ones. The first couple were action from start to finish. The last couple have been action at the end, but it seems to me that the middle of the book involves a lot of searching, walking, going here and there looking for answers. Not quite the page-turners as the earlier books, at least for me, anyway. I’ll most likely keep reading the Reacher novels, though.

Now, I’ve started the first in the series by Karen MacInerney, called Murder on the Rocks. Her second in the Gray Whale Inn Mysteries is called Dead and Berried. It’s on my list of to-be-read, but I thought I’d start at the beginning of the series. I’m not far into Murder on the Rocks, but it’s a good read. I can see already why it’s been nominated for an Agatha Award for Best First Novel. This is a cozy so it’s in sharp contrast to Lee Child’s series.

I have to admit that I probably read more “hard boiled” than cozies. When I’m on a plane, I like something that moves fast and keeps me turning pages. But I’m liking MacInerney’s book. It’s relaxing. I read it and am taken back to the bed and breakfast my husband I stayed at on an anniversary trip. This is not to say nothing happens in the book – just that you’re not so tense reading it as you are with a book filled with action and suspense. It’s a really nice change of pace.