Category: Book Reviews

The Accident – Linwood Barclay

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The Accident
by Linwood Barclay (Goodreads Author)

Edmond Gagnon‘s review – Jun 10, 2023 

Reading the intro on the back of this book, I was leery, thinking it would be a yawner with a ho-hum plot. But thankfully, I was wrong. I guess what put me off was that the story was about Joe Citizen investigating a car accident that caused the death of his wife.
As I tread cautiously into the first few chapters, Linwood Barclay’s mastery as a story teller quickly grabbed my attention. What appeared to be a common tale told by a common man, slowly evolved into a good whodunnit mystery thriller.
Our protagonist in this story is not a super hero or even a dogged police detective. He is the guy next door who has a natural curiosity about his wife’s death. He has questions. And in seeking answers to the ones that keep him up at night, he starts to unravel a complex and complicated plot that keeps readers guessing throughout the whole book.
Kudos to fellow Canadian author Linwood Barclay for a very good read.

The Eye of God – James Rollins

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The Eye of God (Sigma Force, #9)
by 

James Rollins (Goodreads Author)

Edmond Gagnon‘s review

Jun 01, 2023  ·  edit

really liked it

The Eye of God (Sigma Force, #9)
by James Rollins (Goodreads Author)

Edmond Gagnon‘s review – Jun 01, 2023  

An entertaining read, action-packed and fast paced, but all too predictable.
The familiar story…an elite special force sets out to save the world, getting hunted, shot and or stabbed along the way. Count on at least one or two of the secondary characters getting bumped off but the mai characters save the world at the very last minute (not really a spoiler alert) and live happily until the next mission comes along.
Rollins is a good author but he’s relied on the tried and true method of telling the same old story to secure readers. Personally, I prefer something out of the ordinary to pique my interest.
Having said that, I did enjoy the material about matter from outer space and the many things we really don’t know about our own universe.

Greenwood

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Greenwood
by 

Michael Christie (Goodreads Author)

Edmond Gagnon‘s review

Apr 27, 2023  

This book has received great reviews from other readers, and it’s probably worthy of 4 or 5 stars, but I just couldn’t do it. Granted, I only read the first 115 pages so maybe I’m being unfair.
Regardless, this book moves slower than watching a tree grow. Starting in the future, the story covers several decades, revealing more as time reverses itself. Kind of a cool concept I thought, but it only led to confusion as I tried to wrap my head around new characters introduced and the piles of back story for each and every one of them.
In my opinion the book could have been easily reduced by 100 pages, but that’s just me.
Please read other reviews posted for this yawner since it has appealed to many other readers.

Skim – by Steve Byrne

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Skim: Milk, Money & Murder
by Steve Byrne

Edmond Gagnon‘s review – Apr 04, 2023 

What a great novel for author Steve Byrne’s first time out.
Skim is a prohibition era yarn, set in the City of Windsor during it’s nefarious rum-running days.
The story is about one man, a war hero, who wants to do better by his family and chooses to get involved with local gangsters who are tied into the renowned Purple Gang, and their illegal whiskey business.
Maurice “Moose” Ducharme uses his milk route to deliver black market Canadian Club whiskey to his booze-thirsty clients, taking a big risk by getting in deep with the local crime syndicate.
Being a bit of a Winsor history buff, the story kept me turning pages and routing for the underdog.
For anyone interested in local history, prohibition, and Windsor’s dark past, this book is must read.

85 Grams – Art Williams: Drug Czar

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85 Grams: Art Williams: Drug Czar
by Daryl Ashby

Edmond Gagnon‘s review

Jan 04, 2023 

Being a retired police officer who spent five years in narcotics, some of that time working with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, I found this book interesting and somewhat comical at times. The story takes place a few years before I was a Narc, but the good guys vs the bad guys scenario that played out in the plot rang very true to me.
Granted, most of the drug dealers I had contact with where nowhere near as smart and cunning as Art Williams, the Mounties main target. I was blown awaybyt the lengths he went to stay under the radar, yet taunt the police at the same time. It was like he was always one step ahead of them.
The story contains personal accounts from various people who knew Art Williams before he ‘disappeared’ under mysterious circumstances.
I don’t want to give away the whole story but can easily recommend this book as and entertaining read.

Camino Winds – John Grisham

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Camino Winds (Camino Island, #2)

John Grisham (Goodreads Author)

Edmond Gagnon‘s review Nov 08, 2022  

As far as I’m concerned, this novel doesn’t live up to Grisham standards. It was a slow starter and not what I’d call a page turner. But if you’re looking for a book that you can pick up and put down every other day or so, Camino Winds is a decent story.


The plot tries to accelerate and get you to the conclusion quickly but falls short and is more of a police procedural, with average citizens taking on investigative rolls, while trying to solve their friend’s murder.


The story combines the fury of a level 4 hurricane with the curiosity of a local group of authors and a book store owner. Use your imagination to fill in the blanks.

A Measure of Darkness – John & Jesse Kellerman

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A Measure of Darkness (Clay Edison, #2)
by Jonathan Kellerman, Jesse Kellerman

Edmond Gagnon‘s review, Oct 03, 2022  

I gave up reading this novel after 220 pages but I should’ve stopped way earlier. Nothing was happening and I didn’t see a satisfactory ending in sight.
I’ve read Jonathan Kellerman before and like his Alex Delaware character, who gets a phone cameo in this yarn. Maybe it’s just this story but I found the Clay Edison character a bore. Even his job as a Deputy Sheriff who’s main job was to discover the identity of murder victims. Boring.
The story started with a bang and several murders which seemed like plot would blast off from there, but then it fell flat as Edison spends hours searching the internet and making phone calls to track down a murder victim’s identity. I didn’t quite get all that and I’m a retired cop.
Maybe it all comes together at the end and he actually helps solve the murder case. Guess I’ll never know. I can live with that.

The 6:20 Man – David Baldacci

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The 6:20 Man by 

David Baldacci (Goodreads Author)

Edmond Gagnon‘s review – Sep 19, 2022 

I’ve read Baldacci before but not with the protagonist Travis Devine. I liked the character, he was real and easy to relate to, not a super hero by any means, just a good guy trying to do the right thing.
The story was different; a murder in the financial district, obviously committed to cover up something illegal. But the plot is not that simple.
Baldacci keeps us guessing as to who done it, then adds in a few more murders to confuse us even more. A few twists and turns of events and late surprises keep you flipping pages right until the end.
The pace was quick and the story was interesting. A good read.

Hell From the Heavens – The U.S.S. Laffey

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Hell from the Heavens: The Epic Story of the USS Laffey and World War II’s Greatest Kamikaze Attack
by John F. Wukovits

Edmond Gagnon‘s review Sep 08, 2022  

An excellent read for any war buff or even those slightly interested in World War II and naval actions. Very few novels can evoke emotion from me as this book did, while the author describes the triumphs and horrors of war from the perspective of soldiers on the front lines.
Hell from the Heavens gives us a look at the every day life of sailors aboard the USS Laffey, a ship that saw action in all the major amphibious landings in the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. Not exactly knowing the difference between a destroyer, cruiser or battleship, I learned how powerful yet vulnerable ships like the Laffey were.
I learned just how destructive the Japanese Kamikaze pilots were on the navy and particularly to the Laffey when they were attacked by 22 of them in 80 minutes. Often wondering where I’d rather be in the military, whether in the air, sea, or on land, this story has me reconsidering my choices.
I had the pleasure of meeting the author at a local book show and he told me the book rights have been purchased and a movie is in the works with Mel Gibson and Mark Wahlberg. I can’t wait to see this story on the big screen.

Say Nothing

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Say Nothing: A True Story of Murder and Memory in Northern Ireland
by Patrick Radden Keefe

Edmond Gagnon‘s review Aug 10, 2022  

I should say something about Say Nothing.
I began this book last winter and have picked it back up a few times after and in between other reads, but after getting half-way through it I’m giving up.
Not that it’s bad by any means, just way too thick and slow for me. Loaded with tons of real-life drama about the Irish Republican Army, the story jumps around between a mother of ten who goes missing from her home, and various leaders and participants in the on-going struggles in Ireland.
Say nothing is a true story of murder and memory in Ireland, according to the book’s cover.
Read it if you dare.