Daily Archives: August 2, 2010

Lee Child’s the “Killing Floor” (Jack Reacher 1) book review

Posted on August 2, 2010
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In the “Killing Floor”, Lee Child’s introduces us to Jack Reacher the ex military cop and army major who is now a nomad travelling from state to state seeing America at his own pace.

Margrave, a sleepy little town in Georgia hasn’t seen a homicide in 30 years but when Jack Reacher jumps off a bus and walks fourteen miles in the rain things are about to change. Little does he know it but Reacher has walked into a hornet’s nest of corruption, deceit and money laundering. Lee Child’s Website

Reacher is a victim of circumstance. Wrong place, wrong time – Simple. Sitting quietly in the local diner he is arrested and taken to the police station and charged with murder. Needless to say he’s innocent but has a hell of a job proving it.

The police force is corrupt and it doesn’t take Reacher long to figure out things aren’t what they appear to be. He doesn’t know who to trust but he has no choice but to figure out who is involved, if only to clear his name.

As he investigates, secrets leak out and the body count mounts.

The book is faced paced, a true page turner in every sense. With a great blend of horrific violence, conspiracy and intrigue the novel is an emotional rollercoaster from beginning to end. Reacher receives news that makes the situation intensely personal. One thing is for sure, the crooked cops and town folk picked on the wrong guy in Reacher.

Forget Arnie; Reacher is the all American Action Hero and with an eye for the ladies, the book offers a softer side to the ex-Major hell-bent on revenge.

The supporting characters are incredibly well balanced and play a huge role in a very successful novel. The book is …

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Bradman And the summer that changed cricket – Book Review

Posted on August 2, 2010
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Bradman And the summer that changed cricket : Christopher Hilton | JR Books

I’ve been fortunate enough to have read and reviewed two previous books by Christopher Hilton (Cricket’s 300 Men and The Birth of the Ashes) and one thing Hilton could not be accused of is lack of research and depth in his books. His latest offering, “Bradman and the summer that changed cricket” pushes the boundaries even further with an impressive, almost statistical, ball by ball account of the matches in the summer of 1930.

The series would change the way England approached a series and in its very next series encounter saw Douglas Jardine command a small army of soldiers to Australia to recapture the Ashes in 1932-3, Bodyline. Buy Now

If you are looking for a comprehensive account of the 1930 tour then this is most certainly the book for you. The trip begins with a build up in Tasmania and Western Australia, the smallest of details recounted in black and white. It was on this tour that Sir Donald discovered he suffered from debilitating seasickness.

Accompanying the match reports and scene setting accounts are newspaper reports of not only the matches but the pomp and ceremony that followed the young cricketer on their long journey beginning in March and ending in October 1930. Bradman only missed four matches in the whole tour, three against weaker sides expected to prove little competition. The book includes scorecards from the matches he missed including Essex, Nottinghamshire, Warwickshire and Sussex.

Australia’s tour of England was not expected to be a major success given the lack of experience and make up of the team. With this in mind and the lack of expectations, the departure, certainly in press terms, was rather muted and cautious.

Bradman’s first run outside …

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Lee Child’s “Die Trying” Book Review

Posted on August 2, 2010
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Ex-military policeman Jack Reacher is back in Lee Child’s second instalment “Die Trying”. Following on from his first novel and critically acclaimed “Killing Floor” Child is not only back on form but is better than ever!

In the “Killing Floor”, Jack Reacher stumbles upon a web of corruption, murder and money laundering. Unable to escape due to corruption at the highest level of the local police Reacher is hell-bent on proving his innocence and bringing those guilty to his own unique level of justice.

Similarly in “Die Trying” Reacher is minding his own business when he walks past a small dry cleaners in Chicago and bumps into Holly Johnson, an attractive FBI agent new to the agency. Holly, recovering from a knee injury sustained while playing soccer, stumbles and Reacher is on hand to stop her from falling. At that very moment the pair are hurried into a waiting car, kidnapped at gunpoint and taken far away.

Reacher is once again a victim of circumstance but once he gets to know Holly he commits to the “relationship” and is determined to look after the rookie agent.

Child’s is at his descriptive best, effortlessly filling in Holly’s back-story as their journey unfolds.

We discover the truth about Holly and her family, why she is critical to Borken’s master plan of destruction and why despite kidnapping her he is adamant that no harm comes to her. Beau Borken is the enemy. There’s something different about his character, as a reader you want to side with Reacher (and you do) but I can’t help thinking some level of admiration for the cult leader for his ingenuity and guile. Borken is a clever but ruthless enemy who will stop at nothing to achieve the end game.

Full of twists and …

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Sherlock’s “The Blind Banker” Episode 2 review

Posted on August 2, 2010
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It’s all about the Orient! From the very beginning, you could tell “The Blind Banker” was going to be another slick episode of Sherlock Holmes from the Oriental tea making to Watson’s troubles with the self-shopping aisle hurling abuse at the machine when faced with an annoying automated voice. The Sherlock DVD is going to be unmissable.

“Item not scanned, item not scanned, please scan item again”, Watson slightly embarrassed at his lack of shopping experience replies “can you please keep your voice down?” and to top it off when he finally manages to scan his last item of shopping  the machine has another go….

”Card not authorised please use an alternative payment method, card not authorised please use an alternative payment method” to which he quips “alright I get it” and storms out without his shopping! All the while Sherlock is back at Baker Street fending off a masked swordsman hell bent on killing the detective!

Ratings for episode 2 follow this review.

If you missed tonight’s episode then catch it while you can on the BBC iPlayer in HD.

On his return to the flat he informs Sherlock he failed to get the shopping telling him he had a row with a chip and pin machine! Haven’t we all Watson, haven’t we all!

The real story begins when Sherlock and Watson visit a high end bank in the heart of London. One of their offices has been broken into overnight and the intruder has left a calling card of yellow graffiti. Nothing appears to have been stolen. Sherlock investigates in a way only he can. Following on from “A study in Pink” Benedict Cumberbatch gives a stellar performance with his amazingly quick dialogue. How this …

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