Jake – Page 120 – Cannonball Read 17

It’s All A Conspiracy, Baby!

Voodoo Histories: The Role of the Conspiracy Theory in Shaping Modern History by David Aaronovitch

July 30, 2019 by Jake Leave a Comment

A couple of years ago, a friend of mine who is not politically astute sent me a text asking if anyone ever got arrested for that “pizza thing.” I had no idea what he was talking about so I pressed him. He said, “You know, that child sex ring.” Oh yeah. That. Granted, he sent me this text two months after some gun-bearing idiot had gone to that pizza shop looking to solve things for himself. My friend, again who is not politically conscious, was referring to […]

Jack the Stripper

Bad Penny Blues by Cathi Unsworth

July 29, 2019 by Jake Leave a Comment

Billed by no less than bestselling author David Peace as the English answer to The Black Dahlia, Bad Penny Blues has a lot to live up to. For the most part, it met the hype. There are two concurrent stories going on here, both of which brush against each other in the setting of Swinging 60s London. One is a rising star detective who is trying to figure out what’s behind the brutal murders of random women, most of the prostitutes. The other is an up-and-coming clothing designer […]

Um…Hockey?

Amazons: An Intimate Memoir by the First Woman Ever to Play in the National Hockey League by "Cleo Birdwell" (Don DeLillo)

July 27, 2019 by Jake Leave a Comment

Well then. I’ve wanted to read this book for a long time and I’ve tried many times. I’m a diehard New York Rangers fan and I thought a fictional take on what it would be like to be a female Ranger would be a blast. But after 10 pages, I soon realize that’s not what “Cleo Birdwell” (aka Don DeLillo) is going for here. This book is really about sex. Lots and lots of sex. Sexual exploration, etc. Which is fine. I’m not a prude. […]

The Star On the Train

Dread Journey by Dorothy Hughes

July 25, 2019 by Jake Leave a Comment

I enjoyed Gone Girl well enough but those hailing Gone Girl and the female-written female-driven thriller novel that has become en vogue should do a little cultural excavation. Women have historically dominated the thriller market, especially in the 30s through the 50s. And one of the greats, indeed perhaps the greatest of these was Dorothy Hughes. I haven’t read a lot of Hughes and that’s my mistake. Her most popular work is In A Lonely Place, which inspired the Humphrey Bogart movie that’s drastically different from the book. But she’s […]

Hawaii Five Whoa

Repo Shark by Cody Goodfellow

July 25, 2019 by Jake 1 Comment

I thought I had given up on that kind of testosterone-driven crime thriller featuring a drug-addled antihero and a thin plot. This was my go-to in the 90s until my tastes evolved. But Repo Shark, which I culled from a list of unusual crime novels from the indisposable crimereads.com, proved me wrong. And it’s yet another reminder that good writing can paper over a multitude of sins. The plot is straightforward: guy goes to Hawaii to repossess a motorcycle, things aren’t what they seem, hijinks ensue. […]

The Way The Music Died

Chaos: Charles Manson, The CIA, and the Secret History of the Sixties by Tom O'Neill, Dan Piepenbring

July 23, 2019 by Jake Leave a Comment

Read as part of CBR11 Bingo: Beach Read I view conspiracy theories the same way agnostics view God: if a conspiracy existed, it would have to be quite large and involve an incredible amount of competent people who are both good and lucky and have incentives to keep their mouths shut. Thus, that makes conspiracies unlikely…but not impossible. I don’t submit to 9/11 conspiracy theories but even now, I still can’t fully accept that Lee Harvey Oswald was a lone gunman. I don’t know. Anyway, […]

Zirza on A Gothic Classic for a ReasonIt's one of those wish-you-could-read-it-again-for-the-first-time books. I loved it.
Emmalita on “It came to something when you found yourself hoping that the footsteps you heard were ghosts.”I loved the ending! I don’t think it’s been out long enough to talk about why though.
Dixie on Track Her Down by Melinda LeighI am just starting Track Her Down and I have read them all in order till now and thought I...
Roland of Gilead on How can you give us the gift of a crazy character named Rando Thoughtful and then just as suddenly take that gift away? We need to talk, Uncle Stevie.I came across this randomly years after it was written because I was searching "Random Thoughtful. But I have the...
Emmalita on “Only you, Em, would refer to heartbreak as a distraction. I think I would have a more sympathetic response if I asked to marry a bookcase.”Oh my goodness, Gallifrey was beautiful. I’m sure her mittens were gloriously murdery.

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