Angel Eyes

Rating:
Summary: A wonderfully immersive book that I could hardly put down
Review: After being introduced to the intrigingly complex and fascinating worlds capable of being created by Eric Lustbader by reading "The White Ninja", I just *had* to read another one of his books. It just so happened my father also had Angel Eyes on his book shelf.
The first thing that came to mind when I read the little description on the inside flaps was "Bond Film". Angel Eyes is filled with all the espionage, sleuthing, exotic/dangerous locations, and, yes, sex that the latest bond flick had. And, just like a Bond movie, I read this book with the acceptance that all the characters are intelligent, rich, beautiful, and extremely pivotal to world events. This is a given. If you can't swallow that idea, this isn't the book for you. But, unlike any Bond movie, the characters' pshychology, morals, and inner conflicts are all laid out with extreme detail by Lustbader. There really are no bad or good guys in this book, only well-developed shades of gray. Also, since the story is enormously interwoven, I find myself stopping and thinking of the different paths all the characters separately take and for what reasons. In the end the pieces fit together like a puzzle and it blows me away.
I have to admit another appealing factor of Lustbader's works are the heavy Japanese influences on the story and characters. I've found his utilization of Japanese settings and customs to be very interesting since I am intrigued by Japanese society.
The only thing keeping me from giving it 5 stars is the weak bit about supercocaine, which I just couldn't believe, and some other stuff which would spoil the story if I told.

Other than that little nit-picking, this is Great read and I recommend it to everyone! I can't wait to read another Lustbader book :)

Rating:
Summary: A wonderfully immersive book that I could hardly put down
Review: After being introduced to the intrigingly complex and fascinating worlds capable of being created by Eric Lustbader by reading "The White Ninja", I just *had* to read another one of his books. It just so happened my father also had Angel Eyes on his book shelf.
The first thing that came to mind when I read the little description on the inside flaps was "Bond Film". Angel Eyes is filled with all the espionage, sleuthing, exotic/dangerous locations, and, yes, sex that the latest bond flick had. And, just like a Bond movie, I read this book with the acceptance that all the characters are intelligent, rich, beautiful, and extremely pivotal to world events. This is a given. If you can't swallow that idea, this isn't the book for you. But, unlike any Bond movie, the characters' pshychology, morals, and inner conflicts are all laid out with extreme detail by Lustbader. There really are no bad or good guys in this book, only well-developed shades of gray. Also, since the story is enormously interwoven, I find myself stopping and thinking of the different paths all the characters separately take and for what reasons. In the end the pieces fit together like a puzzle and it blows me away.
I have to admit another appealing factor of Lustbader's works are the heavy Japanese influences on the story and characters. I've found his utilization of Japanese settings and customs to be very interesting since I am intrigued by Japanese society.
The only thing keeping me from giving it 5 stars is the weak bit about supercocaine, which I just couldn't believe, and some other stuff which would spoil the story if I told.

Other than that little nit-picking, this is Great read and I recommend it to everyone! I can't wait to read another Lustbader book :)

Rating:
Summary: A Missing Person With A Twist
Review: This is the second book featuring private detective Amos Walker and in this story we are treated to a perplexing missing persons case. The case is even more perplexing than usual because Walker's client is also the missing person and she hires him before she goes missing, knowing her disappearance is about to take place. Curious, no?

Amos Walker is your typical hardboiled detective, working alone out of a rundown office, drinking liberally from the whiskey bottle in the bottom drawer of his desk and ever ready with the wise cracks when confronted by the police. As well as this, he's just as capable with his fists as he is with a gun and is prepared to use either as is demonstrated to great effect throughout the book.

As is promised, Walker's client disappears, compelling him to commence the search for her. What he isn't prepared for is the number of dead bodies that he keeps tripping over along the way. There is also a question mark over his client's past, how she figures in the life of two important men: a dead judge and a leading union official. The case takes on a life of its own revealing a few unexpected twists on its way to a tremendous ending.

This is the kind of story that all private detective story readers would love and Amos Walker is the kind of private detective that keeps you coming back to the series. It's a well-put together story featuring a likeably hard-bitten protagonist.

Rating:
Summary: A hard-boiled mystery, masterfully narrated
Review: When go-go dancer Ann Maringer disappears it's up to Detroit-based private eye Amos Walker to find her. But this is no ordinary missing persons case, not when Amos must deal with a union boos, a corrupt judge, a vengeful son, and a concerned mistress! Loren Estleman's Angel Eyes is a superbly written, 360 minute, 4 cassette, hard-boiled mystery which is masterfully narrated by Alan Zimmerman.