Category: Challenge

Review Gods and Fathers by James LePore

 

GODS AND FATHERS BY JAMES LePORE
Published by The Story Plant
ISBN-10: 1611880297
ISBN-13: 978-1611880298
At the request of The Story Plant, an ARC EBook Edition was provided, at no cost to me, for my honest opinion.

Synopsis (from publisher): Matt DeMarco is an accomplished Manhattan attorney with more than his share of emotional baggage. His marriage ended disastrously, his ex-wife has pulled their son away from him, and her remarriage to a hugely successful Arab businessman has created complications for Matt on multiple levels. However, his life shifts from troubled to imperiled when two cops – men he’s known for a long time – come into his home and arrest his son as the prime suspect in the murder of the boy’s girlfriend.

Suddenly, the enmity between Matt and his only child is no longer relevant. Matt must do everything he can to clear his son, who he fully believes is innocent. Doing so will require him to quit his job and make enemies of former friends – and it will throw him up against forces he barely knew existed and can only begin to comprehend how to battle.

My Thoughts and Opinion: To be completely honest in reviewing this book, I feel I should start with a caveat. I don’t usually read novels that have espionage, government intelligence and/or spy plots. And from reading the synopsis, I did not think that this book held those elements. However, as I was caught up in the story, and then when international terrorism was introduced into the story line, I didn’t know if this was going to be a good book match for me. Another factor was the many different agencies and the long list of characters. This novel was definitely out of my comfort zone.

But I had already been pulled in right from the start of this book.   How could a young man be accused of murder and rape of his girlfriend and facing the death penalty have anything to do with international relationships of terror?   And why are those that are investigating or close to this case being killed?   How is this all tied together? As I said, the characters are many, but through Mr. LePore’s writing style, he reminds the reader as to who the character is and/or the agency he/she works for. Because the characters are all flawed in some way, it was had to determine who could be trusted.  Who were the good guys?  Who were the bad guys?  How was the plot all tied together? That’s why I had to keep turning the pages!!.  With an ending that I never saw coming!!!!

Even though this was a book outside of my comfort zone, I thoroughly enjoyed it.  I would have missed out on an exceptional read had it not been for a requested review. Mr LePore, with his excellent detailed writing ability, whereas I could create vivid imagery, and his masterful story telling, has transformed my thinking on espionage novels. Well, at least his.  Kudos Mr. LePore!!

DISCLAIMER
I received a copy of this book, at no charge to me,
in exchange for my honest review.
No items that I receive
are ever sold…they are kept by me,
or given to family and/or friends
(2012 Challenges: EBook, ARC, Mystery/Suspense, Off The Shelf, Free Reads, Where Are You, A-Z, Merely Mystery, 52 in52, Outdo Yourself, 100+)

Read-A-Thon

 

HUGE FAVOR TO ASK:  Due to the move to WordPress, I had to re-register my account with NetWorkedBlogs.  If you are interested in following me in that manner, please join (right sidebar).  If you had followed me through NewWorkedBlog, you need to rejoin as it is a different feed.  I would greatly appreciate it.  Thank you.

 

Not good.   At 11:30 am, I had all my blogging issues done for the day, grabbed my book, coffee, and fleece thrown and settled in my reading chair.  Turned to page 106 and started reading.  WooHoo..I was going to make a dent in my book today!!!

Page 160….sound asleep.  This bronchitis is knocking me out.  So the plan today….is to try again.

Hope everyone else is doing better than me!!!

 

Wicked Winter Read-A-Thon Update

HUGE FAVOR TO ASK:  Due to the move to WordPress, I had to re-register my account with NetWorkedBlogs.  If you are interested in following me in that manner, please join (right sidebar).  And if had been following me via NetWorkedBlog in the past, you will need to rejoin as it is a new feed.  I would greatly appreciate it.  Thank you.

 

The hosts for the wickedly wonderful weekend of reading are
Rebecca From Kindle Fire
and
April of My Shelf Confessions.

Progress:  Friday  Subtotal  (approx 6 hours)

Yesterday I did get some reading done and since I am determined to read more this year, these mini read-a-thon challanges are perfect for me.  So if you hear of any that are being held, I would greatly appreciate if you would let me know.   Last year was such an awful year for me that some months I was lucky if I even finished one book a month and I did really miss escaping into a book.

This weekend I am reading an ARC from Meryl L. Moss Media, The Legacy of Eden by Nelle Davy, who will be a guest on February 20th.  You may want to stop by as there will also be a giveaway.  So far this book is a good one.

Good Luck to those who are participating and thank you Rebecca and April for hosting!!!!

Aloha Friday

HUGE FAVOR TO ASK:  Due to the move to WordPress, I had to re-register my account with NetWorkedBlogs.  If you are interested in following me in that manner, please join (right sidebar).  If you had followed me this way in the past, you will have to rejoin due to a new feed.  I would greatly appreciate it.  Thank you.

Hosted by An Island Life

From An Island Life:
In Hawaii, Aloha Friday is the day that we take it easy and look forward to the weekend. So I thought that on Fridays I would take it easy on posting, too. Therefore, I’ll ask a simple question for you to answer. Nothing that requires a lengthy response.
 If you’d like to participate, visit An Island Life answer the question and then post your own question on your blog and leave your link below. Don’t forget to visit the other participants! It’s a great way to make new bloggy friends!

QUESTION:
What book are you reading?
Answer:
Killer Bytes:  A Novella of Intrigue by Alan Williams then on to The Legacy of Eden by Nelle Davey.  I signed up for a weekend Read-A-Thon so hopefully will get a lot of reading done these next couple of days.

The hosts for the wickedly wonderful weekend of reading are
Rebecca From Kindle Fire
and
April of My Shelf Confessions.

I have signed up for another Read-A-Thon starting today.  And it’s perfect timing.  I am a bit under the weather with bronchitis, so I plan to get nice and comfy with my fleece blanket, my hot coffee and read.  There is still time to join up, just click above. Good Luck to those that are participating.  I will be  checking in to see what’s going on in the neighborhood but if I don’t respond right away, I’ve gone to where my book has taken me.

Read-A-Thon Progress

Hosted by Michelle from The True Book Addict

Progress:  22.5 hours

Congratulations and WTG!! to those that participated and accomplished their goals during this Winter Respite Read-A-Thon.  And a HUGE thank you goes out to Michelle for hosting it.  She did a WONDERFUL job!!

For myself, I am pleased with the amount of hours I put in.  I would have been happier with more but whenever I sign up for one, it never fails, RL always interferes.  But these past few days I was able to put in more hours than I expected to.   Yesterday in and out of my reading chair, I put in 8 hours of reading.   The fact that the book that I am reading, Love Thy Neighbor by Mark Gilleo, has turned out to be a page turner, was another reason I didn’t leave my reading spot.

Another good day yesterday!!  Two days in a row!!  That never ever happens when I sign up for a read-a-thon.

Sat

Hosted by Michelle from The True Book Addict

Progress:   Sub Total  14 1/2 hours

Yesterday was a good day for reading.   With a combination of bronchitis and pain from working on my mother’s house the other day, I spent a good amount of time in the recliner reading….6 1/2 hours.  Hoping to get more hours in today.

Booking Through Thursday

CONGRATULATIONS TO ELIZABETH FROM SILVER’S REVIEW

Elizabeth has been selected as a nominee for the Top Writing Blogs Award!  If you aren’t a visitor of her blog, you may remember her when she was showcased one Sunday as a Shining Star. (which I hope to eventually bring back).  Elizabeth and I met online and seriously think we may be distant cousins, so much so, that we call each other “Cuz”.  Voting started yesterday and I would love it if she won as she is definitely deserving of this award.  So I ask if you could take a few minutes out of your days and do the following:

http://blog.ecollegefinder.org/writing-blog-award/

Voting for the competition began yesterday, January 24, 2012!

Visitors may vote as many times as they’d like during the voting period, which will continue through February 3, 2012, at 5 PM EST. 
 
Please click on the button in the top right corner to get to the voting page or click on the button at the top of this post.  
Once you get to the voting page, you will see a list of nominees.  
Please put a check mark in the box next to my blog name:   
Silver’s Reviews…..and press the VOTE BUTTON.

Thank you, from both my cousin and I.  I’m off to vote, once, twice, , ok a few times, I really want her to win!!!!!

http://btt2.wordpress.com

Today’s question:
What’s more important: Good writing? Or a good story?
(Of course, a book should have BOTH, but…)

My answer:
This took quite a bit of thinking, and yes, both are needed.  But I think if the story or the premise is not there to grip you, no matter how well it is written, it won’t make for an enjoyable read.

Hosted by Michelle from The True Book Addict

Progress To Date:  7 1/2
Wednesday’s:  2 1/2 hrs
Previous Days’ Hours:  5  hrs

Oh well..another not s0 good reading day.  Yesterday was an appointment with a lady who assists with liquidations of houses which I am still in the process of with my Mom’s house.  Not an easy task for those who don’t know and for those who do know, understand.  Both physically and emotionally draining as you go through memories of your life.

Monday Memes

 

Hosted by Miz B at Should Be Reading

Today’s question:
Why do you think that the Young Adult genre is so popular with even the adult readers? Do you read YA books, yourself?
My answer:
Ironically, I have been thinking the same thing myself over the past few weeks.  As some of you know, I am a partner in Partners In Crime Tours, a virtual tour PR company for authors of mystery, suspense and crime novels.  We have become very busy, which is a good thing, however, because of that and not wanting to over work our awesome hosts, I have been visiting a lot of blogs to read their policies to see if  they might be interested in the genre we represent to send an invitation,

And I am AMAZED at how many YA blogs there are.  It’s like a whole different neighborhood, community,state, planet of blogs.  I, for one, do not read YA only because I have this preconceived notion that Iwould not be able to relate to the characters or premise of the books.  I have, however, like the question states, wondered why so many adults do read this genre.  Am I missing out on some good reading because it is out of my comfort zone?  But then I look at my TBR bookcase and think, I have enough books that are in my comfort zone just waiting patiently to be chosen to be my “current read”.

 

January is being hosted by At Home with Books 

Mailbox Monday was created by Marcia of A girl and her books and is now on tour.

According to Marcia, “Mailbox Monday is the gathering place for readers to share the books that came into their house last week. Warning: Mailbox Monday can lead to envy, toppling TBR piles and humongous wish lists.”
                
 
                           The Story Plant                                 Author (WOW)
Hosted by Michelle from The True Book Addict
I am participating in the Winter Respite Read-A-Thon of 2012.  Wish me luck because it never seems to fail that whenever I sign up for one, real life tends to interfere, matter of fact it already has.  Of course, life’s obligations are  always a priority over hobby, but I will try to do my best.  I will keep a daily approximation of how many hours I put into my reading.   Want to join?  Click on above and it will bring you to Michelle’s sign up post.  Read-A-Thon starts today and ends Jan 29th so that gives us a lot of time to read and make dents in those TBR piles.  Good Luck if you have already signed up.