Gods Without Men

Searching. A rock formation called The Pinnacles provides the backdrop to the action in Hari Kunzru’s novel, Gods Without Men. Kunzru presents a story of a search for meaning capitalizing on the desert journey experience used for millennia of stories, and adds a quirky UFO dimension for modern interest: the role of the Ashtar Galactic Command. While Kunzru uses various time periods to present the story of our ongoing search for meaning, the part that gripped me most was the modern story of the search for a missing child. Readers looking for a well told but somewhat odd story are those most likely to enjoy this novel.

Rating: Three-star (Recommended)
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History of a Pleasure Seeker

Yield. When Piet Barol, the protagonist of Richard Mason’s novel, History of a Pleasure Seeker, finds himself offered the chance to indulge in any form of pleasure, he yields to the opportunity with delight and enthusiasm. Set mostly in Amsterdam in 1907, Barol is hired as a tutor to the son of a wealthy hotelier. The house is packed with beautiful objects and people, the food and service outstanding. Barol is handsome, talented and charming, and uses skills and wits to achieve what he desires. Readers who like period novels and atmospheric sensuality are those most likely to enjoy this novel.

Rating: Three-star (Recommended)
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V is for Vengeance

Pacing. The latest and twenty-second novel in the Kinsey Millhone series from Sue Grafton is titled, V is for Vengeance. For the past thirty years, Grafton has rewarded patient readers with entertaining episodes in the life of a California private detective. Grafton’s pacing in the novel and in the series proceeds at a moderate rate, allowing fans to savor every page. In the current offering, Kinsey stumbles on a crime ring and pursues resolution with vigor. Readers who like detective fiction can start here or anywhere and find pleasure.

Rating: Three-star (Recommended)
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How It All Began

Accidental. What I enjoyed most about Penelope Lively’s novel, How It All Began, was the cast of charming and endearing characters. Lively frames her plot around the notion of how a single accident can lead to considerable consequences for characters that at first seem unconnected from one another. For those readers who like to read about a wide range of behavior, enjoy witty dialogue, and have any interest at all in chaos theory, this novel will deliver the goods.

Rating: Three-star (Recommended)
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Coming Apart: The State of White America, 1960-2010

Class. Any reader interested in the current state of American society will benefit from reading Charles Murray’s controversial book, Coming Apart: The State of White America, 1960-2010. Murray’s premise is that our society is divisible by class. There is a new upper class and a new lower class, and he explains why that matters. To eliminate the “noise” he focuses on white America, since some readers may see our class divide as racial. This book carves up a lot of numbers, and he draws conclusions with a libertarian point of view. His passion on this topic comes from the question about whether or not American exceptionalism can survive. Whether one agrees with Murray or not, his concerns about how we may be coming apart the seams are worth considering.

Rating: Four-star (Highly Recommended)
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Stay Awake

Lost. There are twelve short stories in a new collection from Dan Chaon titled, Stay Awake. The characters in these stories are people facing disorientation, loss and situations that are weird. Readers who like psychological tension in fiction are those most likely to enjoy this collection. Life is messy, bad things happen, and the story ends. Readers are left uncertain about resolution. The unsettled nature of the story also leaves the reader somewhat unsettled. Try a story or two. If you like one, you’re likely to enjoy the others.

Rating: Three-star (Recommended)
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Taken

Trafficking. Robert Crais sets his latest Elvis Cole and Joe Pike novel on the Mexican border and uses the current headline issue of human trafficking as the backdrop for the fast-paced action in Taken. Crais moves us backward and forward in time from the perspective of multiple characters, and that device increases the tension a reader feels. A young woman and her boyfriend are kidnapped, and the woman’s mother hires the man she read about as “the world’s greatest detective,” Elvis Cole, to find her. Elvis asks Joe Pike to protect his back, and things get more than a little complicated when plans don’t turn out as expected. Fans of action thrillers or this particular series are those most likely to enjoy this novel.

Rating: Three-star (Recommended)
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