NEVER LOOK AWAY (Linwood Barclay) - April 19/13

This fast-moving thriller from Barclay is as readable and entertaining as I might've expected, although I did figure out the central twist at least a hundred pages before it was revealed. This in no way affected the entertainment value of the book, as Barclay astoundingly ends virtually every chapter with a cliffhanger and/or twist. Good stuff. *** out of ****

NINETEEN MINUTES (Jodi Picoult) - April 13/13

This typically compulsively readable novel by Picoult feels at least twice as long as it needs to be, and yet I was pretty much riveted from start to finish. The overlength is a problem in the middle, though, especially as Picoult lays on flashback after flashback. The end result is a striking yet erratic novel that feels, admittedly, awfully familiar (ie it possesses all of Picoult's trademarks, from the climactic court case to the twist ending, though the latter was telegraphed way too early this time around), but the book was certainly a breath of fresh air after the last few duds. ***1/2 out of ****

ROLE OF HONOUR (John Gardner) - April 8/13

I think I've had this paperback copy for something close to 30 years, so I was interested to see if it was worth holding onto all this time. It's not. This is an extremely generic James Bond adventure that boasts few elements reminiscent of the series, and I found myself glazing over most of the novel. There are a few highlights - the appearance of SPECTRE being the most obvious example of this - but on the whole, this is a boring adventure that doesn't seem to possess the thrills, humor, or escapism of the movies. *1/2 out of ****

FIRST DAY ON EARTH (Cecil Castellucci) - April 1/13

This short and consistently readable book is admittedly rather strange and does take a while to get going, but Mal, a loner and an outsider, eventually does become quite a compelling protagonist. There's also the mystery of whether or not Hooper is an alien - he is, apparently - and I enjoyed the road trip in the book's final stretch. I was a little disappointed that the book ended where it did - Mal goes into space but decides to come back - as I was rooting for a relationship/friendship between Mal and Posey. Still, it's very brisk and entertaining, and I can see why it was namechecked in The Fault in Our Stars. *** out of ****