High Profile by Robert B. Parker


My rating: 3 of 5 stars
Unflappable police chief Jesse Stone is back working a double murder in his town and trying to cope with his own personal problems.  Parker has written another chronicle of the evil that men (and women) do.  A good beach book, "High Profile" is a good read.

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True Detectives: A Novel by Jonathan Kellerman


My rating: 2 of 5 stars
The sibling rivalry and characatures of the bad guys are trifling.

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Night & Day

Enjoyed a nice evening with my son, Rob, last night.  We went to see Tom Cruise and Cameron Diaz in "Night & Day," a movie that kept us smiling throughout.  The stunts are nonstop.  The structure of the film brings the opening full-circle to the ending.  I loved the ending.  Cameron Diaz's spunky character and Tom Cruise's unlimited patience and time-outs to explain and give specific instructions to her are comic.  Their timing is very good.  It is fun to stretch believability with a smile.  

Karate Kid

...see it.  Didactic.  Editing - flawless.  Music - beautiful.  Sound effects - amazing.  Cinematography - artistic.  Sets - authentic, panoramic.  Characters - 2 main have depth and are well-developed.  Acting - Jackie Chan: never saw him in a dramatic role before, he CAN ACT; Jaden Smith - probably worked harder than he ever imagined to prepare for this role, a good lesson to learn so young.

THE MAGIC IS ALL THERE.  Breath taking.  Inspiring.  Enjoyed by all ages in the theatre.

More Michael Connelly sans Harry Bosch

The Scarecrow by Michael Connelly


My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Connelly makes Jack McEvoy, reporter, believable as he deals with losing his newspaper job.  The plight of newspapers is current and his assessment of print reporting currency, accuracy and standards vs. TV reporting is accurate.  That Jack uncovers the story of his career through great investigative journalism gives readers a plot that keeps them reading.

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Hooked on Michael Connelly

Harry Bosch is my new favorite detective. Immersed in an audio book binge since early April because Bosch is so hard to put down, "Nine Dragons" is my favorite book in the series so far.  I am not reading them in order. Len Cariou is one of the best audio book narrators working.  His recreations of the Bosch/Connelly series make listening addictive.

Kids.  They can really complicate life.  Harry's daughter complicates his in a twist at the conclusion that took me by surprise.  I do love late in the novel twists that create memorable endings. "Diggstown" and "The Usual Suspects" are films that I enjoy for that reason.

Downloading audio books through the Nutley Public Library subscription to ListenNJ is wonderful.