A Dangerous Fiction by Barbara Rogan - Book Review

Book: A Dangerous Fiction: A Mystery

Author: Barbara Rogan

Genre: Mystery 

Publisher/Publish Date: Viking Adult / July 25, 2013

Source: ARC courtesy of publisher

Pages: 336

Rating: 4.5/5

GoodReads  •  Amazon

I received a free copy of this book from the publisher, but it in no way effects my review of the book.

So good! But an understated good, if that makes sense. I read quite a few ARC's, so it's always great when I get to read one I enjoy so much. And this one was published in July, so if you like a good mystery novel, go buy this or get it from your library.

The tone of the novel harkens back to classic crime novels, i.e.: "It was a dark and storm night," from Paul Clifford. Literary Agent Jo Donovan has lead a tough life, but she's a fighter and has come out on top. She runs on of the best literary agencies, although widowed, had a wonderful relationship with a renowned author, and has some great close friends.

But an ambitious writer threatens to ruin it all, when he starts stalking her and attacking those around her. At the same time, and ambitious author working on a biography of her late husband, starts digging around, causing Jo to question if her memory is as accurate as she thinks.

And of course there needs to be a little romance, as an old fame who is now a NYPD detective takes her case, and tries to help her track down who her stalker is.

As I said above, I really enjoyed it and it was hard to put down (which is my favorite type of book). The plot is neat, and ties up loose ends, which I appreciate. And the characters are complex and true to life.

The author's page on GoodReads mentions this is the "first in a new mystery series set in the high-stakes world of big publishing," so I'm excited to hear there may be more. I could see this becoming a really great movie. A triller with heart.

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Book Review: Disco Bloodbath (aka: Party Monster)

**spoilers ahead**

A few months ago a rabbit hole of internet searching lead me to look into the movie Party Monster, which lead me to this book, that the movie was based on. Not sure exactly what I was getting myself into, but I enjoy true crime stories so I thought I'd give it a try.

The author, James St. James, a NYC celebutante in the mid 80's, was a cofounder of the Club Kids, a group of young clubgoers, with his friend Michael Alig, and is still in the news sometimes and was on a few seasons of America's Next Top Model. Though I gave a spoiler alert, the main plot point is spilled in the first few pages of the book. One day, Michael tells James that, under the influence of drugs, he, along with his friend, Freeze, murdered Angel Melendez. It supposedly happened during an arguments over a long-standing drug debt.

The story, told often in stream of consciousness, then goes back in time to tell of the arrival of Michael to the NYC party scene. James gives us a window into the inner workings of the club scene, how to get yourself known, and how to best work room. He introduces us to the who's who of NYC in the late 80's to mid 90's and presents the key players of the crime that unfolds.

What's really fascinating is what happens between the time of the murder and when Michael and Freeze actually get arrested. Slowly gossip columns and news articles start leaking the story of a missing drug dealer and hinting at who may be involved. Angel's brother comes to town looking for him, and eventually, eight months later, the body is found. The police, who have been accused of not caring about the death of a drug dealer, eventually arrest Michael Alig and Freeze, leading to their convictions.

One great thing about true stories is that you can actually watch the shows they reference in the book, so if you are interested in learning more, you can watch the Club Kids on the Donahue Show. Also, there is a Documentary, Party Monster: The Shockumentary, and the feature film Party Monster, based on this book.

While not a deep novel, it was facinating, and easy to read.

Have you read it? What did you think?

Review: 3 out of 5

Book Review: The Mole People: Life in the Tunnels Beneath New York City

Lesson learned, don't do internet research in the middle of reading a book. Maybe at the beginning, or at the end, but not so good in the middle.

The reason I say this? I was enjoying this book about the homeless living in the tunnels under the city, even though I knew it was written in 1993 and a bit outdated, and then I read this note on wikipedia: "The book has met with criticism, primarily for the inaccuracy of geographical information, compounded by numerous factual errors and an apparent reliance on largely unverifiable claims. The strongest criticism came from Joseph Brennan, a New York subway enthusiast who declared that 'Every fact in this book that I can verify independently is wrong.'"

Hum ... not sure what to think about this. And once I started reading it again, it was hard to see it as anything more than a narrative, based on stories Toth heard as she spent time with homeless people she meet on the street. She tells of a gentleman taking her into the tunnels, which have barely any light, and looking at the photo of her on the book jacket, young, female, really young (as in, she could pass for 14), you wonder how she safely made it down there and back alive, and why.

Most of the story is non-proven repeating of stories she either experiences herself in the tunnels or those told to her by some people who she blatantly says often lie or inflate their stories. There are some facts thrown in, but they don't always hold their weight, and aren't always explained in a way that really makes sense.

So, I stopped reading at page 199. Yes, the stories were interesting, but now that there was a doubt in my mind as to their legitimacy, they didn't hold the weight they did before. And since things change over the years, who knows the status of the "Mole People" today. While I believe there could and very well might be people living under the subways in NYC, I am very uncertain that this is an accurate picture of their lives.

Review: 1 out of 5

Book Review: Bossypants

I had heard a lot of good reviews of this book, so was very excited when I finally got a copy to borrow from my public library (if I bought all the books I read it would take over my apartment, I'm very grateful to the library).

Honestly, while I didn't know what I expected, I felt the books started out a little too heavy on the satire, and a little light on reality. Yes, it was funny. And yes, I do enjoy Tina Fey's sense of humor. But I was interested in knowing more about her life, while enjoying a funny book.

Luckily, as the book continues, the writing does become more serious, specifically when she starts to talk about her comedy career and how she got on SNL and later how she created 30 Rock. The behind-the-scene parts, and the insights to how she got 30 Rock up and running, for example how they got Alec Baldwin on the show, were fascinating to read. In true form, Tina Fey has written an enjoyable, sassy, smart and humorous book, with a nice balance of life stories and lol's.

Rating: 4.75 out of 5

Book Review: The Know-It-All by A.J. Jacobs

The Know-It-All: One Man's Humble Quest to Become the Smartest Person in the World. What really defines intelligence? Book smarts? Street smarts? Problem solving smarts?

An interesting look at what A.J. learns about the world, and himself, as we reads through the entire Encyclopedia Britanica. Woven between random facts - The serrated edges on coins were created as a deterant to criminals who shave the metals off old coin - he shares stories of how what he is learning is impacting his life, in good ways and bad. At times humorous, he is more likely to remember the odd and off-kilter facts, as opposed to tiny rivers in Namibia. Making it both an educational and enjoyable read.

(I also highly recommend another book by A.J. Jacobs, The Year of Living Biblically: One Man's Humble Quest to Follow the Bible as Literally as Possible)