The Yiddish Policeman's Union

By Michael Chabon

Another lovely book from Michael Chabon, I think I actually liked this one better than "The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay", which I read last year. This one's quite a bit shorter, and based in an alternate world where the Jewish people were sent to Alaska after World War I instead of Israel. Meyer Landsman is a policeman in the Jewish state of Sitka, who tries to solve the case of a murdered chess-playing junkie. Chabon has created a whole society, complete with Jewish gumshoe lingo (which I found a bit hard to get my head around, but no more than actual gumshoe lingo), a bit of sass, a brooding atmosphere and snappy dialogue. Minor quibble in the presence of chess, which I think annoys me because it turns up in quite a few novels as some kind of plot device, but handled here so much better than all the others. At least Landsman also hates chess. Go on, read it...reeaaaddd itttt...

Rating: 9 out of 10

Deal Breaker (2006)

By Harlan Coben
Well, I have to say I really quite liked this book. A classic it ain’t, but the hero, Myron Bolitar (ex star basketballer and FBI agent turned sports agent) is really quite good – he’s always got a smart line with which to annoy the bad guys. Myron’s newest star is footballer Christian Steele, who, on the cusp of a very profitable NFL contract, receives evidence that suggests his dead ex-girlfriend might not be dead at all – and so of course Myron has to investigate. It helps that Christian’s ex-girlfriend was the sister of Myron’s ex-girlfriend, with whom Myron is keen to reconcile.

Myron is assisted in all of this by his best friend and business partner Win (short for Windsor Horne Lockwood III) who is a sort of cross between Richie Rich and a sociopath with a black belt. Apart from some amusing banter with Myron, I wasn’t sure I approved of Win; he kills too many people and seems to enjoy it.

Another author to remember for a good holiday read though.

Rating: 6 out of 10

Hot Six (2005)

By Janet Evanovich
I went off Janet Evanovich and her sassy bounty-hunter heroine Stephanie Plum for a while, because I thought I detected the emergence of the dreaded LOVE TRIANGLE erupting between Stephanie and the two eligible bachelors around town, Joe Morelli (cop) and Ranger (fellow bounty hunter and general entrepreneur), at the end of “High Five”. And I really hate love triangles, I mean I REALLY hate them. They go on forever, they can’t possible have a happy ending, there’s way too much useless inner turmoil around and they’re just dullsville in general, man. Case in point: Dawson’s Creek, where there seemed to be several love triangles going on all at the one time. Oh, the agony! I thought I would kill someone. Fortunately, I remembered in time that watching Dawson’s Creek was an optional activity.

Anyway, the book. The eleventh adventure of Ms Stephanie Plum has just come out, so I am really behind the times with number six here, but I am pleased to report that, despite a little bit of love triangle action, this book is thoroughly enjoyable. (In brief, it’s about Stephanie Plum trying to help get Ranger off the hook for the suspected murder of a member of one of the local crime families). I think Evanovich’s skill is that her books really are fun – they’re not heavy, man. So I will get back on the Stephanie Plum train, which is a bit exciting really because I know I’ve got another five books to enjoy before I have to wait another year for the next one. I hope they will be just as reliably entertaining as all her previous books.

Rating: 7.5 out of 10
Good fun. Warning: May make you want to eat doughnuts.