Death Never Sleeps by E.J. Simon

This was included in the box of books I got from Get Red PR.  I had high hopes for this book as I liked the premise of the novel but it fell a bit flat for me.

Alex Nicholas is a bookie and loan shark living in New York City.  He leads a life that crosses over the moral and legal limits continuously and that life eventually gets him killed.  His brother Michael is the exact opposite; pillar of society, happily married man and successful businessman.  After Alex’s untimely death, Michael is pulled into his brother’s life in an effort to clean up his messes and provide for Alex’s family.  The problem is that Alex is not as dead as Michael thinks he is!

This is a story about family, values and artificial intelligence.  It should be a fascinating read and in some parts it is.   There is good information about the development of AI (artificial intelligence) and how it could impact society over time.  But the story didn’t really flow for me.  Each scene seemed to be set in a different restaurant in New York or Paris; there is lots of eating and drinking in this book!  There is an over -abundance of swearing in my opinion.  I just don’t think it’s necessary to portray every bad character with a curse word.   At times it felt a bit one dimensional; like reading a script.   There needed to be some life put into the conversations and action.

This is Simon’s first novel so some of the flatness could just be inexperience.   I’m sure that this will be a series so I’ll read the next book and hope that the writing improves somewhat.

The Pawn by Steven James

The Pawn introduces us to Patrick Bowers; an FBI agent specializing in geographic profiling of violent crimes    He’s back at work after his wife of 5 months has passed away from cancer and left him with a teenage stepdaughter and a lot of emotional baggage to work through.

The case he is involved with is a serial killer who is crazy smart and always seems to be one step ahead of them.  Patrick’s job is to make sense of the patterns before he kills again but the bodies are piling up and the killer seems to be targeting him and his family as well.

This is a well written thriller that actually had me scared sometimes.   The themes are good vs. evil, choices and family ties.  There is an understated Christian message that has the main character questioning God, the problem of pain and suffering and the problem of good vs. evil. 

I’m always happy to discover a new author and especially happy that this is the start of a series.  I’ve already downloaded the Rook, the second in the series and look forward to reading it.  But first I have to do some housework as I almost didn’t put this book down until I was done.

The Confession by John Grisham

John Grisham is well known for his legal thrillers.  Tackling corrupt juries, judges and lawyers is the fodder of most of his novels.  He has also attacked issues like prejudice, vigilantism and in this latest book he takes on the death penalty.

Wrapping up a counselling session, Reverend Keith Schroeder reads a quick email from his wife who is covering the office that day; the email says “there’s a convicted felon out here who says he must see you.”  Not realizing what he’s getting into the pastor allows Travis Boyette into his office and hears his confession. 

Meanwhile, Donte  Drumm is sitting on death row about to be executed for a crime he supposedly committed 9 years earlier.  He has always maintained his innocence.  His lawyers believe him and have been frantically filing last minute appeals to get a stay of execution.  But Texas is a state that loves its death penalty and so far every appeal has been denied.  Throw in a couple or three corrupt police and government officials and you have the recipe for a cover up.

  Once Keith Schroeder realizes that he has the real murderer in his office; the quest to stop the execution begins and no one’ s life is ever the same.

The story is told in the 3^rd person  and this gives us the ability to see into the thoughts and minds of all the main characters.  Often I prefer a 1^st person story but in this case it really helps to be able to see all sides of the story.    The story is not centered on the court room drama as so many of his books are.  Instead the action is in the lawyer’s office and the debate as both sides of the death penalty are discussed.   This could have been a preachy novel but Grisham manages to avoid that and it is a harrowing but entertaining look at a very divisive issue.

Wherever you land on the death penalty debate I highly recommend this book but don’t expect to get anything else done while you’re reading it; it is hard to put down.

The Paradise Prophecy by Robert Browne

This novel was sent to me by Penguin Publishers for a review.

Robert Browne’s novel is based on the story of John Milton’s Paradise Lost. To refresh your memory, Paradise Lost is Milton’s epic poem about the final war in Heaven when God casts Satan and his followers out of heaven.

Browne’s version focuses on Satan’s followers and their attempt to turn earth into a hell for Satan to come back and rule. With current events as a backdrop and ancient secrets as the momentum this story is a fast-paced fantasy-thriller.

This book is definitely not written with a Christian world-view in mind so it’s best not to try and figure it out theologically. He did a great job of keeping me guessing whether or not good would actually win over evil.

I don’t usually give the synopsis from the book jacket but it’s the best way to give you an idea of what the book is about. So here it is.

The Myth
When God cast the archangel Satan into Hell, ending the War in Heaven, peace prevailed on Earth. Until the fallen angels took revenge in the Garden of Eden. Ever since, mankind has been in a struggle between good and evil, paradise and apocalypse: the fall of Rome, The Crusades, World Wars, nuclear proliferation, the Middle East Crisis... The War in Heaven never really ended-it just changed venues. For millennia, God's angels have been fighting Satan's demons on Earth, all in hopes of bringing about Satan's greatest ambition, the Apocalypse.
The Reality
Satan has never been closer to his goal than right now.
Agent Bernadette Callahan is a talented investigator at a shadowy government organization known only as Section, on the trail of a serial killer with nearly supernatural abilities. Sebastian "Batty" LaLaurie is a religious historian who knows far too much about the other side- and that hard-earned knowledge is exactly what Callahan needs. This unlikely duo pair up for a race across the globe, decoding clues left in ancient texts from the Bible to Paradise Lost and beyond. In the process they stumble upon a vast conspiracy-one beyond the scope of mankind's darkest imagination.

I enjoyed this book and am looking forward to the sequel. If you like paranormal/fantasy type writing and can remember that this is a story and not a theological essay then you will also enjoy this book.