Some recent favorite reads

Hey gang, if you have managed to somehow stay with this thing from time to time, I salute you. I have been getting more time to read of late, and thought I would share with you some writers that I have really enjoyed. The first is J.A. Konrath. He is a wonderful writer, and even more, he is someone who remembers The Beginning. He remembers the rejection letters. He remembers the classes, the writing, the writing, the writing. He remembers wondering if he would ever get a book published and finally, he remembers those of us who still labor under these conditions.

He writes a series of books in which the title character is named Jack (Jacqueline) Daniels, a female police detective. She is not a one dimensional 'fad' character, she is fully fleshed out, and Mr. Konrath writes her warts and all, and the cast of characters that surrounds her is just as enjoyable as she is. Bloody Mary, Whiskey Sour, Rusty Nail, do you see a pattern here? Great series, great author.

Another author of enjoyable reads, is James Swain. He isn't as polished an author as Mr. Konrath, but the Tony Valentine books are really fun. Swain is a former card magician, and his past is put to great use detailing the many ways that Tony Valentine catch casino cheaters in his job as a consultant. Another great cast of characters, once again not as strong as Konrath's but fun nonetheless.

My latest find are the books of Harlan Coben. I have been mowing through them making up for lost time, and I am really enjoying his characters. I suppose my interest in these recent offerings is that all of the authors hearken back to my days of devouring the writings of John D. MacDonald and his Travis McGee series. It is my version of a warm afghan, I suppose. Give them a chance, and see if they don't get under your skin, too.

Mark