Book Review- The Drop by Michael Connelly

The Drop is the 24th novel by American crime author Michael Connelly, and the fifteenth novel featuring Los Angeles Police Department detective Harry Bosch. The book was published on 22 November 2011.Wikipedia 

This is the first book I’ve read/heard by author Michael Connelly. I listened to the audio version and it was performed well. The character of Harry Bosch was well portrayed as were other characters.

I felt the story took off slowly, but it worked well for the story to do so. It was much like the detective/protagonist building a case. When it got going the story couldn’t be put down.

The story intertwines the hunt for the truth in a case that waffles back and forth between suicide and murder as the cause of death. Each waffle had me convinced that was the truth.

Simultaneously Bosch works a twenty-year-old cold case that ends with…

Detective Bosch is made very believable as the single parent of a fifteen-year-old daughter, and by his relationship with a woman he meets during the course of his investigation. Relational dynamics between he and his partner keep tension throughout.

I will be reading more books by Mr. Connelly and gave it a solid four stars.

Trivia from Wiki
In March 2011, Connelly auctioned off the naming of a character in The Drop on eBay. The fundraiser will benefit the DeKalb County Public Library Foundation. The bidding ran until 13 March 2011, at which time, after 65 bids, the auction closed at $2,917.00. The name of the winner has not been disclosed

Book Review- The Hook by Donald Westlake

The Hook by Donald Westlake

Combination Crime and Writer’s Drama

Bryce Proctorr is a successful writer, well-known wherever he goes. His wife is famous only for being married to him, and she’s dragging him over the coals in an ugly divorce. 

Bryce is stuck with a bad case of writer's block, and an impending deadline. His chance encounter with an old college buddy and fellow writer, Wayne Prentice, generates an evil idea, and Proctorr has a proposition: If Prentice gives Proctorr his unsold manuscript to be sold under Proctorr's name, they will split the book advance fifty-fifty. There's just one small catch to the deal.... and that is what drives the entire story.

The story moves amazingly well but gets hung up two-thirds through and spends a great deal of time in internal dialog about the angst within both writers. The story was still so good I was afraid to put it down. Nevertheless; the inner workings of each writer are a point of empathy. If you are a writer, you will recognize the thought schemes from your own.

The story provides lots of surprising twists and turns. The ending though is anticlimactic and leaves you hanging.

It is a worthwhile four-star read. I listened to it as an audio book, and it was well performed.

If you'd like to leave a comment and find the form tedious you can comment on my twitter feed @mikeyznsacto or Facebook M. Matheson

Life Better Lived Dead

Life Better Lived Dead, that's the tagline of my second novel twisting in the grinder of the editing and revision process. I can’t recall how those words first emerged from the loamy earth, but I immediately liked the taste, smell and sound. That short phrase encapsulated the message of, ‘FLATLINE’.

It’s a crime novel, a fun little read, 90,000 words plus of bullets, blood, splattered brains, and big – make that – HUGE knives slipped from hidden sheaths between the shoulder blades of Goliath-sized cartel soldiers.

Can a book like that have a message to edify one's soul?

All books and stories have a lesson, moral or message – for someone. I'm a believer. Every book I've read had something to say.

Stories, like primeval notes stuffed in bottles, are penned, corked and set adrift upon stormy seas just waiting to land on some foreign shore in the hands of its next reader. This happens by chance and providence alone. Or, how else would they find us? Or, we find them?

Every year for Christmas, Nichole, one of my five daughters, has given me a book. Not a one of those has failed to spark some big shift in my psyche. They arrived exactly on time. She had no idea what was swimming in my soul at the time, and we never discuss books since she is not a big reader. Even our tastes and styles run divergently to one another.

Asked how she picked them, she responded, “Oh, it just looked like something you would like.”

By the same process, 'Life Better Lived Dead' came to life. If I were to think on it much longer, I might wonder if it would stir some controversy, but then again, it may drive some people away. Perhaps it was not in the stars for them to read this book.

How do those words strike you? What do you think of me as an author for penning “Life Better Lived Dead?" Does it bring up thoughts of suicide or vampires, or a biblical verse you once read or heard?

Suicide:

Do I think suicide would be a better option than a living breathing above ground existence?

Not on most days, no. This story and that line are not a lead into a discussion on assisted suicide. I have strong thoughts on that, but would rather leave them where they're at for right now.

Vampires and the Undead:

Am I a vampire or am I promoting the life of the undead as some better option than what most of us have here? Or, on the other side of the same coin, do I have something against the undead or a vampire’s lifestyle?

I’ve enjoyed reading vampire tales, but it doesn’t stir a belief in them. The original Dracula tale might come close, but is definitely more Christian than my story. Dracula was chock full of Christian truths in a metaphorical battle of good against evil.

Looking for the correct words to describe my experience with Dracula, I searched the internet and found Mike Duran’s tremendous blog and comments. His well-worded explanation for what I found during my read of the original Dracula was better than I could have come up with.

“For one, Christianity is portrayed in a positive light throughout Dracula. The protagonists pray, quote Scripture, seek God’s guidance, and ultimately prevail. If Count Dracula is meant to symbolize the devil, then it is clearly Stoker’s intent to show that the evil one is resisted through the power of God. And unlike much contemporary vampire fiction, Christianity is not minimized or mocked. Rather, our heroes display an unabashed reliance upon the God of Scripture and His Son, Jesus Christ.”

“Life Better Lived Dead,” should be better explained…

In my novel ‘Flatline,’ Troy Bittles is retired from decades as an enforcer for the world's most notorious motorcycle gang. He sees his best years behind him. Life was once a constant flow of blood, bullets, and fists which never stopped flying. But those wild times have slowed to a nonexistent trickle. He and Sam, his Bulldog, go from one day to the next in a snails-paced progression towards the end…

All in one day, Troy moves from bemoaning his flatlined existence to tumbling headlong into a mad dash of crime and murder across two states and three countries. Troy is strong-armed into using his former skills in the killing arts to perform for a mystery organization. These deeds run counter to his newly formed set of values, but his only choice is kill or be killed. The only reason Troy finds to go through with it is one faint sliver of hope that he can redeem himself from an old dark regret that looms over his life.

He pours his life into that purpose rather than keep his life to himself. And, in that sense, his life is better lived dead.

“If you cling to your life, you will lose it; but if you give up your life for me, you will find it.” (Matthew 10:39 NLT)

When Jesus said this, there were no churches, so he meant more than church attendance and missions service. What he meant was, if you pour your life into his cause, you will find your life.

Jesus’ cause was people, not necessarily their comfort, but their life.

Our lives scream for a purpose, a cause to throw ourselves into, a cause outside of our own small world. When we chase that cause, it brings us life. Hence, our life is better lived dead.

You could read Flatline, ignore its message, and still enjoy it, but, why the hell would you waste your time like that?

I’m on my second pass of revisions. My next pass is to print it and read it aloud to the cat before turning it over to an editor.

Hopefully, it will be done by the end of 2015.

Review of 'Wish You Well' by David Baldacci

For hardcore Baldacci fans, this novel is a departure from his taut legal, crime and spy thrillers full of bullets, large burly heroes, and villains. But even they will not be disappointed by this tale of wonder and hope launched from a childhood tragedy.

The year is 1940.
Twelve-year-old Lou and her seven-year-old brother Oz are plucked from New York city after a car accident kills their father and leaves their mother Amanda in a catatonic trance. Set down in the hills of Virginia on a farm with neither phones, plumbing or electricity, the stories best workings are found in the children as they overcome the shock of a new deprived existence. They have no choice but to fall into the sunup to sundown rigor of chores to keep the farm in working order.
The character of Lou’s namesake great-grandmother Louisa will stay with you throughout your life. You’ll both wish you’d had a grandmother like her and at times be glad you didn’t.
The children’s first best friend Diamond Skinner, a barefoot preteen Daniel Boone scraping out his own existence and spinning towering tales along the way, is as stunning a character as any of Baldacci’s spies and gunners.
Cotton Longfellow is a lawyer and friend of the family, but not the coal company trying to steal the farm. Perhaps he’s never made it as a lawyer due to his lofty principles.
Villains abound in grimy men of the hills and sharp-suited coal company men.
Any reader of fiction would regret missing this story.

Wikipedia entry

Amazon
Goodreads

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If you'd like to leave a comment and find the form tedious you can comment on my twitter feed @mikeyznsacto or Facebook M. Matheson

'Flatline' The heroes of this story are NOT the good guys.

My next novel, (which I initially expected to publish in 2015) started as a speculative fiction piece intended to be a short story. But, the characters and events got loose, and I was never able to corral them into the seven or ten thousand words I originally intended. They wanted a crime novel, and I became their galley slave.

Despite its cry for guns, guts, blood and violence, it is a clean and fairly flinch-free read. Flinching as you duck the bullets and brains.

The protagonist, Troy Bittles, is a retired enforcer for an infamous worldwide motorcycle club (gang). In retirement, he has turned his former exploits into fodder for a semi-successful writing career. He lives alone with an aging English Bulldog, Sam.

Life seems good, but the monotony is not all he thought it would be. Stacked against his former action-filled life, as an enforcer amongst outlaws, his current life is a definite flatline. For a while, he finds peace with the life he yearned for, yet one haunting deed he never can shake, the accidental murder of a child, continues to haunt his mind and heart. The hit was never supposed to go down that way. The boy was not expected to be in the house. On law enforcement logs, the child is still listed as missing, likely kidnapped.

While out for a routine walk with his dog, Troy is rat-packed by a group of street thugs. Initially, it seems unplanned although provoked by Troy. A much older outlaw shows up to help. Silas Parker, who in the spectrum of organized gangs, is the polar opposite of Troy's world. The only thing the two have in common is violence and murder.

Silas' help comes with a bite, though, as both men are propelled headlong into a series of calamitous events filled with hitmen, murder, drug cartels and runs from the police. Within these developments, Troy sees a dim chance at redemption for the one deed he felt had doomed him to a life of torment.

The story winds its way through California, Arizona, Mexico, Central America, and Brazil. In Recife, Brazil they are killing killers, the death squads preying on children whose only real crime is poverty. The story took a turn I could never have imagined, and redemption for the protagonists remains in sight but just out of reach.

The ending flabbergasted me and made me flinch.

Flatline is a crime novel. A wanton wild tale with a cast of strong, colorful characters that ride with impunity through violent circumstances mostly of their making.

The heroes in this novel are not the good guys.

Look for Flatline's release by mid-2016.

Advanced Searching - Who would believe you could do that?

Greetings,
I hope your writing, promoting and building of your social media platform is going well.
Keep the creative flow in your writing. Don't let the flame flicker and die. It's so hard to get going once it is snuffed out through the cacophony of life or inattention. Without your creative gift released into the world, we are all less. Without your craft, there is nothing for you to promote and no reason to build a platform from which to disseminate your work.

If all you want is activity on social media for social media's sake, you can do that. But, as an author or marketer, there is a greater purpose to it all. If you spend countless hours pushing tweets and facebook posts and responding to same, your flame may flicker and die as you lose any room for any real creative flow of your gift.

But, if you are interested in becoming proficient, effective and productive in your efforts. If you desire to build not just a large number of followers, but ones that are interested in the things you are interested in; Followers that will engage in conversation, share their lives and work and in turn you share theirs, synergy will happen and an organic growth of engaged followers and friends.

To accomplish this though, you will need help. By help, I don't mean turning your account over to a BOT that will retweet your followers posts while you sleep, leaving you with nearly no original content. Now, you will have lots of time, but no engagement, only a big fat worthless account. And, the help that I absolutely refuse is buying followers. The proliferation of offers to sell thousands of followers for a few dollars tells me people are buying... It would be like paying people to hang out with you, and then bragging about how many friends you have. Would they care? Would they share? What is that relationship really worth.

Okay, back to the help. We need sincere, informed help to accomplish real growth and engaged relationships. My help is Hootsuite, a Social Media Management System. To make it very clear, I am not a Hootsuite employee. I am an unpaid volunteer Brand ambassador. I feel so strongly about Hootsuite being the most comprehensive and best performing system that I find it a pleasure to promote the brand.

A system could be the greatest in the world, but useless if you are not trained in its features. In comes Hootsuite University. Thanks to Hootsuite they offer a comprehensive social media education that not only trains you in the Hootsuite Dashboard, but best practices and social media strategies.
Through Hootsuite University, I became a Certified Professional. Give it a try, in the first thirty days free trial you can become an expert and up the level of your game. After the trial period, the cost is $21.00 per month. Invaluable.

Besides teaching you all the features of the Hootsuite Dashboard, which is powerful and extensive to say the least. Hootsuite University offers courseware and video teachings to up your game and your career.

The one video and course segment I most valued was 'Advanced Listening.' I learned how to create streams that filter out what people are talking about, when and where they are talking about it. If I want to know all the people talking about coffee within, say, five miles of my home, I can have a search stream for that. Of course, that is only an example. I can then engage these people in conversations about my product, book or campaign.

The single most valuable feature of the Hootsuite platform is bulk scheduling. I can send up to 350 posts at one time to each account I have.

Also, powerful apps within Hootsuite bring me top notch content I can share through my accounts.

It is difficult to hold back and not keep going, but both our dinners are growing cold.
Please check my other posts that cover some of these things in more depth.

Have you seen Owly? Hoot! Hoot!

Hootsuite Certified Professional

The Three Stages of Building Social Community

These and many others are things I learned from Hootsuite University

Browse my other posts and you'll find still others with great tips on using social media.

Peace,
Mike



If you'd like to leave a comment and find the form tedious you can comment on my twitter feed @mikeyznsacto or Facebook M. Matheson

The 3 Stages of Building a Social Media Community

Hootsuite continues to be not only an invaluable tool for managing social media, they provide education on so many different levels. From the basic how to use the program to more in-depth articles on engaging customers, building a brand and how build a terrific following.

I just finished reading and watching a presentation, 'The 3 Stages of Building a Social Media Community' by Evan LePage a Hootsuite Author.

Stage 1: Building a Foundation for Social Media Community A foundation is critical to any enterprise whether you are building a life, a house or an online presence. This could be easy to miss for someone building a social media presence. The temptation could be to just put posts and pictures and leave it to marinate.

But, Evan pointed out that, 'The foundation of social media community is built on two-way communication."

One-way communication is no communication at all. 
All interactions such as follows and retweets on Twitter or comments in Facebook need to be acted on swift and positively. That is a key to building any relationship and is the backbone of a strong community.


Stage 2: A Growing Social Media Community is what everyone wants, but less of those are willing to do the work, often signing the elbow grease away to strange computers for $29.95 a month. That may gain you a truckload of uninvolved followers, but what we want is engagement.

The reality is, not all followers are created equal. The reason you shouldn’t simply go buy 100 followers is because they likely won’t be engaged or get involved in your community, and they might not even be real. Earning 10 engaged followers yourself is a far more valuable use of your time.

You build an online community the same way you build a flesh and blood community, one heart, one handshake and one good deed at a time. Not only acknowledge what people do for you, but do them similar good deeds.

But it's not enough just to grow a community, you must maintain them and keep them engaged.



Stage 3: Leveraging Your Social Media Community
Ultimately we're all in business to make a profit, and we must leverage (not a bad word) the community to achieve our goals, but Evan reminds us,

...never ignore the principles on which you built this community. You don’t want to throw everything you’ve built out the window for a quick sale.

Collect feedback: You want people's honest opinions This can only help us grow. Whether it's my wife's honest opinion about my haircut and shirt choice or a customer's distaste for our slogan. We need to know whether we look like a doofus or not.

Crowdsourced Content: Answers to polls, photo contests and other user-generated content is one of the greatest benefits to your social media community.

Amplify your content: Let your crowd tell the good news. Ask them for help and tell them what you need them to do. This is what a true community does, a good one anyway.

If you'd like to leave a comment and find the form tedious you can comment on my twitter feed @mikeyznsacto or Facebook M. Matheson