Book Review. Dark Sacred Night by Michael Connelly

Dark Sacred Night (Renée Ballard, #2; Harry Bosch, #21; Harry Bosch Universe, #31) 
by Michael Connelly (Goodreads Author), 

Christine Gingerich‘s review 

Jan 09, 2019  ·  

Some folk are put off by prolific writers as they often glaringly writing to a recipe, tried and true. This is not the case with Connelly. I first encountered Harry Bosch briefly when I was introduced to the Lincoln Lawyer, first as a movie, then the book.
There is a reality in the lives of Michael Connelly’s characters which guarantees no ‘happy ever after’, but which brings to life people you find yourself thinking about through out the day. Struggle, progress, success, failure, mistakes, humanness. All these things interwoven. 
Bosch forms a somewhat casual partnership with Ballard to solve another Cold Case. Justice for the long dead becomes an honorable venture.
Bosch’s relationships with past partners and associates, and family weaves a strong tapestry through each and every book, and they show up here and there, just like real life.
When I pick up a new Bosch book, it is with great anticipation, not just of a current adventure but wondering who will wander in with ties to a past story. Cisco, Lourdes, Mickey? Everything is connected and therein lies the deliciousness.

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Junkie by Robert P. French

Book Review

Junkie
Robert P. French

Junkie is the first book in a series about Cal Rogan. I admit to some reluctance to read a book where our hero was in fact a Junkie. Encouraged by my friend Judith Baxter I turned to the first page and was hooked.

What’s makes Cal our true hero is the clear crisp writing, realistic and believable, without any of the self pity and whining and moaning often associated with first person addiction stories.

His path from functioning valued member of society to loss, homelessness, and recovery of sorts, whilst solving obvious and less obvious mysteries makes this a story difficult to put down.

His love/hate relationship with himself and those around him, particularly Roy, and his dead best friend whose relationship with him may or may not have been what he interpreted it as, strikes a chord of the reality we live with every day.

French puts a human face to a population in the shadows. Successes, failures, and in this case mysterious deaths.

The easy path to substance addiction is chilling and leaves one with a ..there but for the Grace of God…type of reaction, and an awareness that all that can change in a moment.

His relationship with his daughter and ex, his desire to be more, to be better is woven through out, partnered with the inability to succeed.

This is a story about perseverance, struggle, being right, being wrong, succeeding and failing. Failing is not the end of the story. This story is more than anything, about HOPE. The thing that drives all of us.

The humanness of the tale, and the characters, the truths both recognized and not recognized are the the truths of our own lives.

French is an excellent story teller, weaving suspense and surprise twists in a delicious fashion that is sublime.

Lockstep

I loved the first book, Junkie, and will catch up with this ASAP after Christmas! Thank you!

Books&morebooks2017

I’ve just finished Lockstep the third novel in the Cal Rogan series, and it was every bit as good as the other two.

Cal Rogan is an ex-detective and recovering heroin addict. He has left the Vancouver Police Department and with his friend, another ex-detective who is now wheelchair-bound following an incident in their last case together has set up a PI company, Stammo and Rogan.

Rogan has entered into a contract with Rebecca Bradbury to find her eight-year-old daughter who has been missing for several days. Ellie, Rogan’s daughter attends the same school as Ariel, the missing girl.

Meantime, Stammo has agreed to help a friend, yet another ex-cop, find his teenage son hasn’t been in contact for some time.

There is a third case that Rogan is working on that of a candidate who has received death threats.

Political blackmail, drug peddlers, paedophilia along with his desire for…

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Finally

Has the president of the United States finally confirmed the suspicion that he is an agent of Russia? Putin is very happy with his boy tonight.

Talking to the Trees

From a friend of many years who lives what is only fantasy for most of us. Originally written a few years ago.

Source of Inspiration

Sometimes I feel so weary.
Life seems hard to bear.
I take long walks in the floresta,
and share my sadness with the trees.
They sway with understanding,
pat my cheeks dry with new leaves,
shelter me as I nap beneath
loving outstretched boughs,
only to awaken renewed and
peaceful once again.

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Yes, It’s Me, Back Again

Wonderful!

I choose how I will spend the rest of my life

Well, where have all the months gone since my last post? I must tell you that each week I say that I will start blogging again and each week passes without a blogpost.

So today is the first day of the rest of my life.

Yesterday when I opened this post from Elizabeth at  Laughing  Cow in France, it took me back two years to when I had that awful misadventure. I hastened to assure Elizabeth that life does go on after a major accident, even if at a lesser pace.  Elizabeth then continued the next day with part two. It is well worth reading and reminds us how quickly life can change and how lucky we are to live in countries where medical assistance is readily available.

And my tale tells how very good our bodies are at healing themselves even if sometimes they need a little…

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Yes, I Suffer From TDS

TDS…sigh

This, That, and The Other

Trump Derangement Syndrome (TDS) is a mental condition in which a person has been driven effectively insane due to their dislike of Donald Trump, to the point at which they will abandon all logic and reason.

I admit it. I suffer from Trump Derangement Syndrome. But it’s not because I’ve abandoned all logic and reason. It’s because I’m still clinging to logic and reason.

You see, I think any rational, thinking person should, as I do, believe that Donald Trump is a threat to our American democracy. I see disturbing connections between how fascism and authoritarianism took hold in other countries and what is occurring in the United States at present. And it scares the shit out of me.

And apparently I’m not alone. The American Psychological Association noted in a recent survey that 57% respondents said “the current political climate” was a top source of angst in their lives. More people…

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A Blog Tour

Judith this is a wonderful post! Thank you for introducing me to Zoe!

I choose how I will spend the rest of my life

Those of you who have followed my blog for some time, know that I am a fan of Zoe Sharp,  and particularly her protagonist Charlie Fox. Well, now Zoe has created and published a stand-alone novel, “Dancing on the Grave” If you would like to read an excerpt from the book, click here.

I looked forward to reading this book and must thank Ayo Onatade for inviting me to join the tour and to Zoe for providing an advance copy of the book for review

There are 11 other bloggers in the tour. Here’s the programme.

All of these bloggers are new to me, but won’t be for long. What a good group Zoe and Ayo have put together.

Note – If you are having problems reading the sites, email me, or leave a comment, and I will send you a word doc.

My review of the book will be…

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Judge not…

The path to self-improvement, self-awareness, or whatever you want to call it is rocky, winding, convoluted, strewn with obstructions (I suspect of our own making), and littered with shiny objects designed to distract us, and keep us from reaching truth.  I don’t know why it is this way.  I just think it is.

For truth is where improvement lies.  And of course you all know by now what I think of truth.  It like ‘fact’ is merely a perception.  So is truth that personal a thing?  Truth or the perception of truth is so personal that it can only be my truth, and not necessarily your truth?

I am seventy-one and no closer to wisdom than the day I was born.  Is truth wisdom? Or does wisdom lead us to truth?  I think of these things every time I learn something new about myself.

Recently I discovered that under the guise of love I have been judgmental.  Judging the actions of those I love, but not realizing it was judging, rather thinking it was love mixed with ennui and fear?

How did this epiphany occur?  By discovering that those who love me (give your head a shake if necessary, I am not talking about romantic love) have in fact been judging me.  This all came about because of a decision I made about something, that, while it did not impact my nearest and dearest caused them to make a judgement. About me.  “Well she shouldn’t have done that.”

When this came to me through a conversation designed to explain concern my initial reaction was, “??”

I mentally objected that my nearest and dearest were judging me.  There is no question that they love me.  And they think their concern is in my best interest.

That’s when it hit me.  The awareness really had nothing to do with them but it acted like a mirror.  That’s when I realized that I sat in judgement of those I loved.  It did not change my love for them.  But I discovered a few uncomfortable things:

1. When you sit in judgement of anyone, you place yourself above them.
2. You may think you are loving them, but when you judge, that is not love. It is judgement.
3. To truly love you must not judge but must accept. Right or wrong you accept.
4. Your love provides a safe place. You are the rock.
5. We are all human. We make the worst decisions at times.  And at those times those who love us never stop.
6. There are no conditions to love. (If you do this and don’t do this I will love you)

The most difficult thing is to realize that no matter how old you are there are always lessons to learn.  And even more humiliating is the realization that so many others recognize the Truth long before you.

I know one thing;

I will never again judge those as right or wrong, those whom I love.

This is not about me.

Trump Sessions Neilson

No matter what the outcome the damaged 2000 children’s souls shall weigh forever on these three agents of evil. History will remember. Let’s hope the voters will too.

Shame on you.