Day of Reckoning by Jack Higgins is the eighth book in the series featuring Sean Dillon - an ex-IRA enforcer who now works for British Intelligence.
Sean Dillon has worked with his US counterpart, Blake Johnson, on past jobs. So when Johnson's ex-wife is murdered, Sean is there to help avenge her death. A video she left for Blake in case of her death tells them about a story she was writing to expose the new face of the mafia - Jack Fox - a man who looks like a legitimate business man.
In response, Sean and Blake plan to ruin all of the aspects of Fox's business - everywhere he operates in the world. They will target his casinos, arms deals, and cash flow with the help of Brigadier Ferguson, Superintendent Hannah Bernstein, and some friends on the other side of the law who owe Dillon a favor.
Higgins's books just keep getting better. Read them all!
Higgins, Jack. (2000). Day of Reckoning. New York: G.P. Putnam's Sons.
Crocodile Tears by Anthony Horowitz is the latest book featuring Alex Rider - a fourteen year old James Bond who works for MI6.
It has been months since Alex has seen anyone from MI6. And he does not miss them. He would love to never work for them again. But when a reporter comes to him and threatens to expose him, Alex is trading favors with MI6 once again.
His assignment seems simple, at first. Smithers, the Q of the series, has some great gadgets that will help Alex break in to the office of the head of a bioreseach lab. His school is going on a tour of the facility and he should be able to sneak away for a few minutes and download the information MI6 needs.
Of course if everything went according to plan it would not be a very long book - or an Alex Rider adventure. By the end of the book Alex is in the thick of thing and is the only person who can save thousands of lives.
Horowitz has created a fast-paced, exciting series that readers will devour. Any James Bond fans should read this series. The action is so intensely written you will not move until you are done reading.
Horowitz, Anthony. (2009). Crocodile Tears. New York: Philomel Books.
The White House Connection by Jack Higgins is the seventh book in the Sean Dillon series - an ex-IRA enforcer turned British Intelligence agent.
At the beginning of the peace process in Northern Ireland, British Intelligence was told to share all information about the area with the White House. The British team in charge of the information soon found themselves with a whole group of dead undercover agents. After that they only sent information that could be found in a newspaper.
Three years later, the mother of one of those killed, has found out the actual events that lead to her son's death. She knows that a group calling itself the Sons of Erin was responsible. Now this older woman will take out the cell that caused his death - including a notorious London criminal who Sean Dillon and Brigadier Ferguson have been after for years.
In his best Dillon book yet, Higgins weaves together stories from both sides of the Atlantic into a novel you will not be able to put down.
Higgins, Jack. (1999). The White House Connection. New York: G.P.Putnam's Sons.
Ink is an independent film by director Jamin Winans, starring Soren Kelly, Quinn Hunchar and Jessica Duffy.
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This movie is battle between good and evil. When we sleep there are two forces that guide our dreams. The one side, called storytellers, guide us through dreams of joy, hope, and desire. The other side, the incubi, guides our nightmares of fear, shame, guilt and despair.
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Ink is a man who has lost all hope. He is on a quest to become an incubus. In order to do so he will steal the soul of a young girl and deliver her to the others. The storytellers, aided by a pathfinder, will fight to save her.
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The pathfinder can feel the music of the world and can, therefore, see the links in the chain reaction of life. Through his manipulations events may be changed to save not only the little girl who was stolen, but break someone else out of a cycle of despair.
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The cinematography of Ink is gorgeous and at times has the surreal quality and richness of Pan'sLabyrinth. The fight scenes between the two forces are as good as the fighting in movies like The Matrix. The message hidden within the story is profound. Ink has all of the hallmarks of a great film, but due to its independent status missed the big box office exposure.
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See Ink. It is worth time and it will leave you thinking.
The President's Daughter by Jack Higgins is the sixth book in the Sean Dillon series - an ex-IRA enforcer how now works for British Intelligence.
The is a shadow organization that has infiltrated the highest levels of intelligence in both the US and Britain. Their current operation involved kidnapping and blackmail. If the president of the United States does not sign a treaty that will unleash nuclear weapons on the enemies of the group, the hostage will be killed.
Sean Dillon is lured into a trap because he has access to the president. The plan is to make him deliver the message and then have him killed. Members of the organization will know if any FBI, CIA, NSA, MI5 or Scotland Yard databases are searched for their leader's identity.
But the leader of this group overlooked one thing - Dillon is not so easy to best. He will fight back with everything at his disposal to free the hostage.
Warning: Higgins' books are addictive. If you read one you may have to read them all!
Higgins, Jack. (1997). The President's Daughter. New York: G.P. Putnam's Sons.
Drink with the Devil is the fifth book in Jack Higgins' Sean Dillon series. Dillon is an ex-IRA soldier who now works for British Intelligence.
Higgins has done what most readers of fiction series fail to do - he has gone back into the past of his main character to give us a look at where Dillon came from.
The book starts in 1985 in Belfast. Dillon is still with the IRA and he is assigned to infiltrate a plot by the Protestants to steal enough gold to start a civil war in Northern Ireland.
In the second half of the book - 1995, Dillon is called upon in his Intelligence work to look into a gold heists from ten years ago. None of the reports linked him with the theft, but he has inside information that will help the operation.
Drink with the Devil is another great book by Higgins. He creates characters that are likable (sometimes in spite of their actions), plots that keep readers staying up late to read, and a series that is addictive. Do not read the first book unless you are ready to commit to all seventeen.
Higgins, Jack. (1996). Drink with the Devil. New York: G.P.Putnam's Sons.
The Jericho Pact is the third book in the Office 119 series/trilogy by Rachel Lee. (I am guessing there will be more books in the series even though the current situation has been resolved.)
By this third book all of the plot lines are merging. Europe is in trouble and a man who is following the same set of plans as Hitler is at the core of the trouble. Muslims are being relocated - supposedly for their safety. A leader in opposition to the relocation has been killed by an assassin.
The office 119 team is trying to put together the facts about who is behind the unrest. They start to realize the the president of the EU is behind the chaos when one of their own is arrested for tackling a man who threw a Molotov cocktail into a crowd of Muslims - and the man turned out to be on the EU Security Force.
Lee (a pseudonym for two writers working together) has created a fascinating, suspenseful look at how easily history can repeat itself if the leader of the plot uses media and fear to control populations. This trilogy is a must read for anyone who is interested in history, politics, human rights, or reading great books.
Lee, Rachel. (2007). The Jericho Pact. New York: Mira Books.
The China Study by Dr. T. Colin Campbell will change the way you eat. Backed up by dozens upon dozens of lab tests, Dr. Campbell shows that people who eat a typical Western diet of meat and dairy and over processed foods are more likely to develop diseases from cancer to obesity.
I am not a follower of fad diets, but this book is not a diet - it is a lifestyle change. The basic premise is eat real food, mostly plants. Campbell is saying that the creations made in chemical factories to stimulate our taste buds are not the real food our bodies need to thrive. Humans need real food not lab experiments.
When one of his studies compares two meals one meat and dairy and one vegetables, the nutrients in the vegetable meal far out weigh the meat meal (including beta-carotene, fiber, vitamin C, folate, iron, vitamin E, magnesium, and calcium). And the fear people have about not getting enough protein with vegetables was proved baseless - the veggie meal had only 1 gram less protein. The only categories the meat/dairy meal won were cholesterol and fat.
The book if filled with studies that prove over and over that the healthiest diet is made up of plants - vegetables, fruits, nuts, and grains. Most of what he says is common sense that has been suppressed by corporations trying to sell us something. Campbell presents the evidence in easy to understand terms - if you eat more healthfully you will have a lower risk of getting ill from any of the main killers in our society - from cancer to heart disease to stroke. Read this book if you have any desire to live to a ripe old age!
Campbell, T. Colin. (2004). The China Study. Dallas, TX: Benbella Books.
Angel of Death is the fourth book in the Sean Dillon series by Jack Higgins.
After 25 years of war, there is a strong chance for peace in Northern Ireland. But there are still groups fighting. A new group - January 30 - has been assassinating people Catholics, Protestants, KGB, and even CIA.
Brigadier Ferguson, Sean Dillon, and Chief Inspector Hannah Bernstein will lead the investigation to track down January 30. So far every agency that has tried has failed to find any information about January 30.
Though I have loved each Sean Dillon book, this is my favorite (so far). The complicated plot and characters leave readers guessing until the last page. Throw in a bit of Irish history and Angel of Death is a great novel.
Higgins, Jack. (1995). Angel of Death. New York: G.P. Putnam's Sons.
On Dangerous Ground is the third Sean Dillon book by Jack Higgins.
A dying man confesses to knowing about a treaty that, if recovered, will extend British control on Hong Kong for another one hundred years. Not only is the Prime Minister interested in finding the document, but so is an Italian family that is heavily invested in Hong Kong and stands to lose millions of dollars when China takes over.
Sean Dillon, an ex-IRA soldier who now works for British Intelligence, will have to use much of his extensive knowledge and skill to find the treaty before the mafia. And he will have to do it while recovering from an injury that would send the average man into retirement.
Higgins is a great suspense writer with characters that are captivating. Read this series.
Higgins, Jack. (1994). On Dangerous Ground. New York: G.P.Putnam's Sons.
Thunder Point by Jack Higgins is the second book in his Sean Dillon series.
When Henry Baker retired and moved to St. John he thought his life would be relaxing. He learned to scuba dive and generally did what he wanted. It was on a dive, just after a hurricane, that Henry discovered a Nazi submarine. He had just enough time to pull a briefcase from the boat before he had to surface.
Inside the briefcase were documents about Nazi loyalist in England and the US. Henry immediately takes the case to his friend in London who can read German.
Sean Dillon, ex-IRA soldier and hired assassin/terrorist, will be recruited by British Intelligence for his skills as pilot and master diver. Together Dillon and Brigadier Charles Ferguson hope to find the submarine before the information falls into the wrong hands.
Jack Higgins' Sean Dillon series is a must read for any fan of adventure, espionage, politics or suspense. He is a master.
Higgins, Jack. (1993). Thunder Point. New York: G.P. Putnam's Sons.
The Crimson Code by Rachel Lee is the second book in the Office 119 series - a group of law enforcement agents who have been recruited to become part of a covert UN intelligence group tasked with stopping terrorism worldwide.
On Christmas a synchronized attack across the US and Europe was carried out. Most targets were Catholic churches and cathedrals during mass. Other targets included no civilian casualties on strategic military and economic targets.
Retate Bachle is convinced that a sinister society that operates under the cover of international banking funded the attacks. With the help of Lawton Caine and others from Office 119, they will track down the terrorists and get one step closer to exposing the secret society at its core.
This multi-layered plot will suck in any readers of suspense novels. The first two books are building toward a culmination of events that started with Moses and will end in the near future - the building suspense is addictive.
Lee, Rachel. (2006). The Crimson Code. New York: Mira Books.
Eye of the Storm is Jack Higgins' first Sean Dillion book (a series that now includes seventeen novels).
Sean Dillion is a ghost. All European intelligence agencies have heard of him but not one picture of him exists. He is an assassin trained by the IRA. Since leaving the IRA he has worked for various other terrorist/political groups including the PLO.
Now (1992) Dillion has been hired by Michael Aroun, an Iraqi man who would like to boost the moral of Saddam Hussein's army by pulling off an attack on the British.
After an ambush on former prime minister Maggie Thatcher fails, Dillion sets his sights on a new target - the current prime minister John Major and his entire War Cabinet at 10 Downing Street.
Higgins is a master storyteller. His character may rival the skill and creativity of Daniel Silva's Gabriel Allon, though he usually plays for the opposite team. Any readers of suspense or espionage would love this series.
Higgins, Jack. (1992). Eye of the Storm. New York: G.P.Putnam's Sons.
Arch Enemy is the final book in Frank Beddor's Looking Glass Wars trilogy - the truth about the story behind Alice in Wonderland.
Alyss Heart is the queen of Wonderland. But due to an attack by Arch - king of the Boarderlands - she is without imagination. Without imagination she is more susceptible to further attack.
The Club family is plotting openly against imagination - stating that life is better without it. Their soldiers are beginning to round up those who disagree and hold them in camps. King Arch and Alyss's aunt Redd are plotting to take over Wonderland. And Alyss's heads of security, Homburg Molly and Hatter Madigan, are secluded in the wilderness in morning.
In spite of her lack of imagination, Alyss must do what she can to help the people of Wonderland. And this third book will decide once and for all who controls the Heart Crystal - the source of imagination.
Athough Beddor's second and third book are entertaining, the first book (The Looking Glass Wars) is brilliant. Even if you choose not to continue with the story, read the first book. All fans of Alice in Wonderland will be amazed at his attention to detail as he describes the true story of Alyss's life.
Beddor, Frank. (2009). Arch Enemy. New York: Dial Books.
Pirate Latitudes is the final book by Michael Crichton.
Port Royal, Jamaica was traditionally thought of as a port for pirates, though the sanctioned pirates were called privateers. Jamaica was a British colony, but so far removed from the crown - and in Spanish territory - that there was little order imposed by the governor.
In 1665, Captain Charles Hunter learned of a Spanish ship El Trinidad carrying treasure taking refuge at the island of Matanceros. It was separated from the other treasure ships on their way back to Spain from the colonies. Though Matanceros was thought to be impenetrable, Hunter devises a plan to capture ElTrinidad.
Found as a complete manuscript after Crichton's death, Pirate Latitudes is a swashbuckling adventure. Though if he had had more time, it would have been a great novel. In spite of its shortcomings, it is a worthy read for any pirate or sailing fans.
Crichton, Michael. (2009). Pirate Latitudes. New York: Harper.
Liar by Justine Larbalestier is a book that is hard to describe.
Micah Wilkins is a compulsive liar. She lives in NYC and goes to a private high school. Everything else in the book could be true or it could be one of her many lies. She is an admitted liar whose family has been telling lies for generations.
I do not know what to say about this book since it is hard to tell what is true and what is made up (ignoring the fact that it is all fiction). It could be that Micah is telling her whole story from a padded cell somewhere or it could be that the stranger parts are true.
Larbalestier has done a great job in writing a book that will leave readers thinking. There is likely more than one opinion of what really happened.
Larbalestier, Justine. (2009). Liar. New York: Bloomsbury.
Dead Heat by Jacey Ford is the third book in her Partners in Crime series - three ex-FBI agents who start their own security firm.
Daphne Donovan has been able to find people all of her life. She was even a specialist at in the FBI. Now that she is with Partners in Crime, she takes the cases where someone is missing. In her latest case though she is hired to find out if a bank exec's girlfriend is cheating on him.
She would not have even taken the job if her company didn't need the money. What she really wants to do is stay in Manhattan near ground zero. After tracking a suspect whom her bosses at the FBI would not let her arrest, she was on a flight to catch him when he high jacked a plane and flew it into the Trade Center. That was the day she no only quit the FBI but started to blame herself for not stopping the terrorist attack.
While on assignment in Florida she will have a chance to find another dangerous person - something not expected from a case of following a cheating partner. She will also meet a man she cannot intimidate, one who understands how she feels about 9/11 and she will have an opportunity to being the healing process - if she doesn't talk herself out of it.
Ford's three books are good reads, but this volume of the series is by far the best. The complexity of the plot, especially when it is set up as a simple case, captures readers and makes them stay up way past their bedtimes. The only thing I find odd about her books is that she never describes what her characters look like - I can understand wanting to leave some up to the reader's imagination, but I have no idea what Daphne Donovan looks like except her hair and eye color. That being said it is still well worth the time to read this book.
Ford, Jacey. (2006). Dead Heat. New York: Berkeley Sensation.
I Spy by Jacey Ford is the second book in the Partners in Crime series – three ex-FBI agents who have set up their own security firm.
Aimee Devlin has gone undercover in the aeronautics industry. McConnell Aerospace is developing a new propulsion system that would allow a fighter jet to travel around the globe in about an hour and a half. McConnell hired Devlin to find a corporate spy.
The first employee she tracks – Race Gardner – turns out to be with the CIA. The CIA thinks that the spy is not from another aerospace company, but a foreign arms dealer. Together, Aimee and Race, will track the plans from the company, through the thief, to the buyer, and ultimately to the arms dealer.
When Aimee goes undercover she is taking her life in her own hands. She will have to use every skill she learned with the FBI, as well as some of her natural charms, to convince Nic Sabre not to kill her. If she can succeed, it is possible that the dealer along with many of his buyers will be taken down. If not, she will never get to know the man with whom she is starting to fall in love.
Ford (a pseudonym for Beverly Brandt) is a master of taking characters worlds away from each other and having their stories seamlessly come together.
Ford, Jacey. (2005). I Spy. New York: Berkeley Sensation
Sharp Shot is the third adventure in the Jade and Rich Chance series by Jack Higgins and Justin Richards.
With their dad away on an assignment, Jade and Rich are surprised one evening by gunfire. And old friend of their father needs help, and he needs it fast. Luckily, Rich was just looking at old photos in his father's desk so he recognized the man who crashed through their door.
Rich and Jade help him get away from the men chasing him. A wild adventure through rural England changes when the three realize that they need to find a crowd to hide in - and what better place to find a crowd than at an amusement park?
I cannot say more without revealing a twist, but the book (and the series) is worth a read. Higgins and Richards can pack a lot of adrenaline into an easy to read, relatively short YA book.
Higgins, Jack. (2009). Sharp Shot. New York: G.P. Putnam's Sons.
Thirteenth Child by Patricia C. Wrede is the first book in her Frontier Magic series. It is sort of an alternate history with magic of the old west.
Eff (short for Francine which she hates) is the thirteenth child born to her parents. Her twin brother, Lan, is the seventh son of a seventh son and thought to be a natural magician and full of good luck. But superstition says that Eff will take her magical abilities and turn bad.
In the city where they were born that may have become a self-fulfilling prophesy - most of her extended family had her convinced that she was bad when she was being a normal kid. When her father was offered a job teaching at a magic college in the far west, all the way to the Mammoth River where the line of magic that protected people from the wild was set up.
As Eff grows from nine to sixteen, the book tells of her study of not only the dominant magic of Avrupa, but some of the techniques of Aphrikan and Hijero-Cathayan as well. She becomes a young woman who is afraid of her potential and must learn how to control her magic.
Wrede has created a world that is both magical and has the feel of frontier life. Magic makes everyday chore easier but some feel that magic is used as a crutch. I cannot wait for the next book in the series!
My only less than enthusiastic comment is that I find it odd that with all of the other changes from our own history, the people in the book still celebrate Christmas and read the Bible. Is it because Christianity was so prevalent in our own settlement that it felt authentic to the plot or that Wrede lives in a part of the US where people forget that there are other faiths? It does not detract from the story in any way, it just surprised me when all of a sudden, with no noticeable religion before, it was suddenly Christmas in the story. It may also be that as a member of a non-Christian religion in a predominantly Christian country I am already sick of seeing Christmas decorations - it is only mid-November. Any thoughts on this part of the book would be welcome.
Wrede, Patricia C. (2009). Thirteenth Child. New York: Scholastic Press.
Death Run by Jack Higgins and Justin Richards is the second book in the Chance series.
Rich and Jade have adjusted to living with their father John. After their adventures in the first book, they are glad to be going on holiday. Of course, when your father is a secret agent, holidays are not as relaxing as they are for other families.
The Chance family is put in the middle of an international crime ring when John rescues the accountant of the most notorious criminal in Europe. Once again Rich and Jade will have to prove that they are as creative as their father when it comes to survival.
Higgins and Richards have created a fast-paced series that will appeal to a wide variety of readers, including being a good pick for reluctant readers.
Higgins, Jack. (2007). Death Run. New York: G.P. Putnam's Sons.
Dangerous Curves by Jacey Ford is the first book in her Partners in Crime series featuring three ex-FBI agents who open their own security firm.
Raine Robey is trying to get back on her feet after being driven out of the FBI when she was investigated for the murder of a suspect. Her own boyfriend, Calder, chose protecting his career over helping clear her name. One year later, her security firm has just signed its first contract.
Raine will be working for Calder on a case that the FBI does not have enough evidence to follow. Calder's hope is the case is going nowhere but that it will give Raine a chance to get her business on it feet - while keeping her out of danger.
His plan backfires - in a twisted plot that seamlessly bring together about four stories - Raine finds herself in the middle of a situation that will use all of the skills she learned as an FBI agent and some of the skills she learned from her father - an alleged famous jewel thief.
Ford creates a story with plot lines that readers will not see connecting until the author reveals the twist. Though I would have like a bit more character development early on in the story, by the end of the book I was a Jacey Ford fan.
Ford, Jacey. (2004). Dangerous Curves. New York: Berkeley Sensation.
Going Bovine by Libba Bray is a road trip novel with a twist.
Cameron Smith is a teen who is sliding through high school trying not to be noticed. He is totally unpopular and has only a few friends - opposed to his twin sister who hangs with the most popular kids.
But soon, Cameron will be a bit more interesting. At first he is not sure what is going on - he is having hallucinations and his muscles are not always doing what he tells them to. Once his parents notice that there is something wrong and he is not just being a teen, they take him to the doctor.
Cameron is diagnosed with Creutzfeldt-Jakob, or Mad Cow, disease. Knowing he has only a short time to live, he takes the advice of a angel (who may be a figment of his imagination) and goes on a quest to find the one man who may be able to cure him.
On his journey, accompanied by a classmate, he will encounter a cult, a famous jazz musician, quantum physicists, spring break in Florida, and a Viking god trapped in the body of a yard gnome.
Libba Bray is obviously mad herself, and her personality comes through in this novel which is the story of a young man learning how to really live for the first time in his life. It is both laugh-out-loud funny and surprisingly heart wrenching.
Bray, Libba. (2009). Going Bovine. New York: Delacorte Press.
Day of Reckoning by Jack Higgins is the eighth book in the series featuring Sean Dillon - an ex-IRA enforcer who now works for British Intelligence.
Liar by Justine Larbalestier is a book that is hard to describe.
