Monday, November 19, 2012

Autumn reading (short review #2)

A Rush to Violence (The Top 100 Best-Selling Thriller) (The Fifth Avenue Series) by Christopher Smith

You have to face it: Mr. Christopher Smith is one heck of a storyteller. I have to admit that after From Manhattan with Love: A Novella (The Fifth Avenue Series) I had my doubts... the author seemed to dispose of his heroes all too lightly. That's why I really dug for his new MC, Detective Marty, and his family. In A Rush to Violence, Mr. Smith shows he's not only a fine wordsmith but also a passionate and conscientious person who desperately wants good to win - in his books if not in reality. His new heroes - Marty and his wife Jennifer, Camille the assassin and her daughter Emma - are described with so much love and understanding that you find it hard to finish the book because you don't want to part with them!

A Rush to Violence is a fine thriller in every respect. The author's timing is perfect resulting in scene after scene of unputdownable reading. Mr. Smith is a fine writer with a lot of attention for detail that makes the story literally jump off the page. He does tend to go a bit over the top in places but he does it with so much panache and describes even the most implausible events so realistically that you have to agree that truth can be stranger than fiction. Honestly, I'm quite happy he's so prolific so I can look forward to more of the same.

I'd recommend this book to all lovers of dark, gritty, noir fiction inhabited by larger-than-life characters doing incredible things in the name of love and justice.

Monday, November 12, 2012

Autumn reading (short review #1)

From Manhattan with Love: A Novella (The Fifth Avenue Series) by Christopher Smith

This is indeed a novella: as others have said, an appetizer for the rest of the series. It is expertly written and I found the main characters of Carmen and Alex likeable and really vulnerable in their feelings for each other. The action scenes are well-executed and reminded me a lot of the film, The Towering Inferno. Overall, an entertaining read that offers some food for thought.