Cloak and Dagger Reading Challenge

The Cloak and Dagger Challenge is a new (to me) mystery book challenge. You can join at several reading levels but I will be selecting the Detective Level and will read between 16 and 25 books. The challenge runs the 2020 calendar year. All mystery genres/subgenres count for the challenge.

This challenge replaces the My Kind of Mystery challenge that I have participated in for several years. This challenge is not returning in 2020. 

The Other Woman

The Other Woman is the latest book in Dan Silva's Gabriel Allon spy series. I have loved this series from its inception but feel that with this installment of the series Silva's writing is slipping.  After reading 200 pages, nothing in the book remotely matched the inside cover blurb. This was almost the halfway point of the novel. Other authors who have written a series for decades have gotten bored with their characters and their writing suffered. With 21 books in the Gabriel Allon series, perhaps this is what happened here.

Here is the plot summary from the inside cover blurb: "In an isolated village in the mountains of Andalusia, a mysterious Frenchwoman begins work on a dangerous memoir.  It is the story of a man she once loved in the Beirut of old, and a child taken from her in treason's name. The woman is the keeper of the Kremlin's most closely guarded secret.  Long ago, the KGB inserted a mole into the heart of the West - a mole who stands on the doorstep of ultimate power.  Only one man can unravel the conspiracy - Gabriel Allon, the legendary art restorer and assassin who serves as the chief of Israel's vaunted secret intelligence service. Gabriel has battled the dark forces of the new Russia before, at great personal cost.  Now he and the Russians will engage in a final epic showdown, with the fate of the postwar global order hanging in the balance.  Gabriel is lured into the hunt for the traitor after his most important asset inside Russian intelligence is brutally assassinated while trying to defect to Vienna..."

At the halfway point in the novel, Allon's Russian asset Konstantin Kirov is murdered in Vienna. However, the reader does not yet know that Kirov is Allon's asset. The woman in the blurb was finally mentioned and her story was interesting. The plot began moving much quicker at the midway point but the resolution of the story did not fit the series. The bad guy didn't just get away after being caught. The bad guy was knowingly given away to the Russians by a western intelligence agency, leaving the world open to more malicious attacks.

The Other Woman was a disappointing read.

Can We Trust the Gospels

Can We Trust the Gospels is a short, 140 page, book outlining the reasons why Matthew, Mark, Luke and John can be trusted to be historically accurate. The author's intended audience are non-Christians. However, the arguments presented in the book are also encouraging for Christian believers.

The author uses the writings of non-Christians such as Tacitus,  with his Annals, and Josephus, with his Antiquities, to corroborate the gospels. He also tests the gospel writers' knowledge of geography, culture, names, and Jewish law. For example, all four gospel writers mentioned obscure, small towns and villages in Israel as well bodies of water.  They had to have been familiar with these places in order to write about them. If the gospels were written hundreds of years later or were forgeries, the writers would not have known the names of some of these places. They were not on any maps. Similar arguments are presented for Jewish culture, law and personal names.

Other details that demonstrate the authenticity of the gospels include what the author calls undesigned coincidences. In an undesigned coincidence, the gospels will give incidental details that someone without eyewitness information could not possibly have known about. For example, Luke and John give two different stories about the sisters Mary and Martha. However, the personalities of the two women are the same in both gospels. One is an activist while the other is contemplative. Thus, both Luke and John are describing real characters. There are a few more examples in the book.  In addition, questions concerning whether we have Jesus' actual words, whether the text of the gospels changed over the years, and contradictions are also discussed.

It is pretty amazing how much data is contained in this small book. The information presented is highly detailed, includes charts and tables, but it still easy to understand and is a quick read. The  topic was well-researched. I am interested in reading a few of the books the author referenced in writing his book. While this book is a good one for skeptics or for those new to the faith, it would be nice to delve more deeply into the subject. So, to answer the question that the title poses...can we trust the gospels? My answer is yes.

13th Annual Graphic Novel/Manga Reading Challenge

I am continuing this challenge in 2020 by signing up to read 12 graphic novels by the end of the calendar year. Since I already have 5 books in my Amazon wishlist waiting for my next payday for purchase, I thought about signing up at the next highest level. However, for me it's always best to lower my reading expectations or I get anxious and stop reading. I am looking forward to getting started on this challenge. It's one of my favorites.

2020 Christian Reading Challenge

I was not going to sign up for the challenge this year since I didn't read much in 2019. I am a sucker for challenges though. Of course, I am signing up at the lowest level, Light Reader, which requires that 13 books be read throughout the year from the above categories. If you fulfill that level then you automatically move up to the next level and continue reading. I will do my best but it is hard for me to find religion books that I will like. The popular Christian books do not interest me and the serious theology books tend to be too academic for me. Another issue is that I do not know how to write a review on this type of book. Writing the review is more challenging than reading the book. We shall see what 2020 brings.

Top 10 Books of 2019

I read 77 books this past year, a nice increase from the 52 books that I read in 2018. I found a new author this year that I love, P. K. Adams, and all three of her books are included in my top ten list. Graphic novels were strong in 2019. There were about seven of them that almost made the list but those historical fiction books just grabbed my attention more.

10: Saving Meghan, a medical mystery by Daniel Palmer

9.  Silent Water, a historical fiction novel by P. K. Adams

8.  Brewed Awakening, a cozy mystery by Cleo Coyle

7.  Genesis, a medical thriller by Robin Cook

6.  They Called Us Enemy, a graphic memoir by George Takei

5.  The Weight of Ink, a historical fiction novel by Rachel Kaddish

4.  The Blue, a historical fiction novel by Nancy Bilyeau

3.  The Column of  Burning Spices, a historical fiction novel by P. K. Adams

2.  The Greenest Branch, a historical fiction novel by P. K. Adams

1.  I Was Their American Dream, a graphic memoir by Malaka Gharib. This book made me think hard about what it means to be an American. Gharib is a first generation Filipino Egyptian whose ethnic childhood practices were quickly dropped when she became college aged. She then pursued everything "white."

Wrap-up of the Library Love Reading Challenge

I was required to take 12 books out of my public library to read and review for this challenge. I surpassed that requirement with 32 books as follows:

Brewed Awakening
Angel's Share
Kiss the Girls and Make Them Cry
The Burning Chambers
The Persian Gamble
The Kinship of Secrets
The Christmas Boutique
The President is Missing
Saving Meghan
A Far Horizon
Courting Mr. Lincoln
The Queen's Promise
The Bookworm
The Satapur Moonstone
The Persian Always Meows Twice
Broken Bone China
A Plain Vanilla Murder
A Body in Barcelona
The Bengal Identity
The Enemies of Versailles
The Rivals of Versailles
The Sisters of Versailles
The Gown
The Malta Exchange
The Island of Sea Women
Harvest of Secrets
Tombland
Kid Gloves
The Splendor Before the Dark
Memento Mori
Drawing Comics
Fear

Favorite Book:  The Sisters of Versailles, a historical fiction novel by Sally Christie

Second Favorite Book: The Malta Exchange, a spy thriller by Steve Berry

Least Favorite Book: A Far Horizon, a historical fiction novel by Brenda Rickman Vantrease

I have signed up for this challenge again in 2020 at the Thrifty Reader level. This level requires that 24 books be read from the library. Let's start reading!

Brewed Awakening

Brewed Awakening is Coffeehouse Mystery number 18. This installment of the series opens with a marriage proposal to main character and amateur sleuth Clair Cosi from her long time boyfriend Mike Quinn. Clare's life suddenly takes a turn for the worse when 2 months later she finds herself waking up on a park bench in someone else's clothes. She is not sure why she is in New York City when she lives in New Jersey but decides to walk to the coffee shop her former mother-in-law owns, the Village Blend. When she arrives there Clare is surprised to see her daughter Joy looking 11 years older and that coffeehouse staff whom she does not know seem to know her. Clare has amnesia!

A few pages later we find out that Clare witnessed a crime that she cannot remember. She had been missing for a week and when she woke up in the park her memory did not register anything that happened in her life in the past 11 years. Society wife and hotel owner Annette Brewster went missing alongside Clare when an armed and masked man forced them in a car but Bewster has never been found. Clare is the key to locating her, if she can remember.

I thought it was creative for the authors to use amnesia as a way to slowly reveal the clues to the crime. It certainly breaks up their usual way of telling a story and keeps it fresh for loyal readers of the series. Her compatriots at The Blend also commit a crime, removing her from a hospital against her crazy psychiatrist's knowledge, and are themselves laying low from the police. The psychiatrist is planning to take Clare to a private hospital in the north part of the state for treatment that he refuses to describe to her family for up to a year. We have the tension of two crimes here which made the plot more interesting.

Brewed Awakening may be the best book in the series to date. 5 out of 5 stars!

Genesis

Genesis is Robin Cook's 37th medical mystery novel. This particular novel delves into the use of commercial ancestry DNA kits to determine the paternity of a fetus in a murdered mother. Yes. It can be done. All those men who kill their pregnant wives and girlfriends are in for a good shock!

The inside cover blurb summarizes the book as follows:  "When the body of twenty-eight-year-old social worker Kera Jacobsen shows up on Chief New York City Medical Examiner Laurie Montgomery's autopsy table, at first it appears she was the victim of a tragic yet routine drug overdose. But for Laurie and her new pathology resident, the brilliant but enigmatic Dr. Aria Nichols, little things aren't adding up. Kara's family and friends swear she never touched drugs. Administrators from the hospital where Kera worked are insisting the case be shrouded in silence. And although Kera was ten weeks pregnant, nobody seems to know who the father was - or whether he holds the key to Kera's final moments alive.

As a medical emergency temporarily sidelines Laurie, impulsive Aria turns to a controversial new technique: using genealogical DNA databases to track down those who don't want to be found. Collaborating with experts at a start-up ancestry website, she plans to trace the fetus's DNA back to likely male relatives in the Hope's of identifying the mystery father. But when Kera's closest friend and fellow social  worker is murdered, the need for answers becomes even more urgent. Because someone out there clearly doesn't want Kera's secrets to come to light. . . and I'd Aria gets any nearer the truth, she and Laurie might find themselves a killer's next targets."

Wow! This thriller was spectacular. Robin Cook always writes a good book but he hasn't written anything this great in awhile. I thought perhaps my excitement was due to the thrill at now being scientifically able to catch all those men who kill their girlfriends because they become pregnant. It was much more than that though. Many pages were spent with characters describing the genealogical DNA process in layman's terms. I found that to be intriguing. The author had more unexpected twists and turns to surprise the reader than he has used in more recent books. The awkwardness between the two main characters, Jack Stapleton and Laurie Montgomery, in recent books was absent. A new, obnoxious character was introduced to keep the characters fresh. Cook has written a perfect thriller in Genesis!

Way over 5 out of 5 stars.

Wrap-up of the 12th Annual Graphic Novel/Manga Reading Challenge

I read 15 books for the 12th Annual Graphic Novel/Manga Reading Challenge.  12 were required at the level that I signed up for.  My books tend to be more serious novels, not the superhero type of comics that many other graphic novel fans read.  The books I read include the following:

• 'Til Debt Do Us Part

• Self Employee of the Month

• The Miracle of Creation

• Kid Gloves

• Where We Live

• Jane

• A Fire Story

• Where We Live

• Lady Killer, Volume 1

• Drawn to Berlin

• Irmina

• Japanese Notebooks

• I Was Their American Dream

• They Called Us Enemy

• Arab of the Future 4

• After the Spring

Again, as with other challenges, it is hard for me to select a favorite and least favorite book.  I liked all of these books.  With my rating system of 5 stars, I guess that my least favorite book would be a 3 star rated book.  That is the best that I can do for picking a least favorite book.

My Favorite Book:  I Was Their American Dream by Malaka Gharib

My Second Favorite Book:  They Called Us Enemy by George Takei

My Least Favorite Book: Where We Live edited by Will Dennis

I am planning to rejoin this challenge in 2020.  I love not only reading graphic novels, but enjoy the artwork also.  

Wrap-up of the Historical Fiction Reading Challenge

I read 30 books for the 2019 Historical Fiction Reading Challenge.  I signed up to read 10 books but have surpassed the challenge!  The books I read are:

Imposter
Silent Water
A Column of Fire
Publish and Perish
The Column of Burning Spices
The Greenest Branch
The Blue
The Widow's Guild
Death by Disputation
The Burning Chambers
The Kinship of Secrets
A Far Horizon
The Concubine's Tattoo
Mistress of the Throne
Courting Mr. Lincoln
The Bookworm
The Third Daughter
The Queen's Promise
The Satapur Moonstone
The Enemies of Versaille
The Gown
The Island of Sea Women
The Gondola Maker
Tombland
The Weight of Ink
Murder by Misrule
The Splendor Before the Dark
The Rivals of Versailles
The Sisters of Versailles
Memento Mori

Favorite Book:  The Weight of Ink by Rachel Kaddish

Second Favorite Books: This is a 4 way tie!  The Blue, The Greenest Branch, The Column of Burning Spices and Silent Water. I read all of these books in November.  It was a great month for reading.

Least Favorite Book:  The Concubine's Tattoo by Laura Joh Rowland

After the Spring

After the Spring, a Story of Tunisian Youth was created by Helene Aldeguer. It shows the disillusionment of young people in Tunisia after the 2011 Arab Spring. The back cover blurb summarizes the story:

"Two years after the 'Jasmine Revolution' Tunisia is unstable and facing economic hardship. Saif, Aziz, Meriem, and Chayma are among those who feel abandoned by the developing turmoil surrounding the government. Saif goes to college but worries about his younger brothers; Aziz struggles to find steady employment, hoping to gain approval from Meriem's family, while Meriem attends law school; and Chayma, after watching a man set himself on fire, considers emigration to France. As the situation becomes more serious and calls to activism in the streets get louder, each must consider in what direction their future lies."

I had this book on my wish list for six months waiting for its publication. When it finally arrived in the mail I couldn't wait to read it. However, it was not that exciting of a read. It was a quick read, but it was a little boring. The author was true to the historical facts in Tunisia but her characters were flat as was the dialogue. I have read many similar comics about war torn countries that were engaging with fully developed characters. After the Spring did not meet my expectations.

The artwork was done in black and white drawings on traditional comic book strips. With the color black being used to fill in many of the subjects drawn, the book's graphic appeal was rather dark. Personally, I like plenty of color but am not opposed to black and white drawings in general. These just seemed too dark for my taste.

3 out of 5 stars.

2020 Finishing the Series Reading Challenge

This is a new challenge for me. It is hosted by Celebrity Readers and runs during the 2020 calendar year. Only one book in a series is required to be read for the challenge so I think I will use this opportunity to finish the Francis Bacon Mystery Series by Anna Castle. I have two more books to read to finish the series. I will be joining this challenge as a C-List Series Finisher which requires me to finish 1 to 4 series during 2020. I will probably find a few other series that I have already began that I can work on next year so I think this will be a successful challenge for me next year.