5 comments about Over the Edge: The True Story of Four American Climbers' Kidnap and Escape in the Mountains of Central Asia.

1. In Greg Child's book, the four climbers from California go to Kyrgyzstan to climb a type of wall found only there and in Yosemite. They grew up in typical middle class American homes, never having experienced true suffering, hunger or war. While in Kyrgyzstan they are kidnapped and thus confronted with some harsh realities of life for many people in this world.
   
   They read the State Department's warning on travel to that paritcular region of Kyrgyzstan and one of the four climbers was scheduled to go to that country earlier in the year and had his trip canceled due to danger in the area. Despite these red flags, they go to Kyrgyzstan anyway, showing themselves to be the willfully ignorant, self-absorbed, spoiled brats we will come to know throughout the book.
   
   At least one Kyrgyz soldier loses his life (no doubt the sole bread winner in his family supporting their meager existence.) Poverty-stricken villagers show the climbers much hospitality. The four climbers receive a lucrative book deal for their ordeal. Do they share any of the royalties with the suffering Kyrgyz or any of the unfortunate families who had to pay a terrible price for their stupidity? Not a penny.
   
   It is nearly impossible to feel any sympathy for Beth's Post Traumatic Stress Disorder or the broken freindships within the group in the face of their total refusal to accept any responsibility for their kidnapping or any sympathy for the Kyrgyz people. They point their fingers at the Kyrgyz government, individual soldiers, their travel company and the U.S. State department but never, ever indicate that they should have take the responsibility for finding a safe vacation destination themselves.
   
   In light of people like these climbers, I understand why much of the world views Americans as stupid and self-centered. Some of us actually do have a clue as to what's going on around us but unfortunately these fools' stories sell more magazines.
   
   Greg Child's book is interesting to read but also infuriating. He never asks the questions that matter. Did the climbers think they had any culpability for their kidnapping? How has their view of the world and America's place in it changed? Are wealthy American climbers entitled to travel the world to dangerous, back-of-beyond spots and expect the locals to pay the price for getting them out safely? Also, they seemed to have lied about part of their ordeal and Childs goes to great lengths to defend them. I think that Childs doesn't care as much about the truth as he does selling books.



2. As a development worker who lived and worked in Kyrgyzstan during the kidnapping, I can tell you that many parts of this so-called "True Story" are very questionable. One part is true: Four ill-prepared and reckless climbers got kidnapped. The rest of the story is based on their version. Another version puts it this way: They got kidnapped, the kidnappers were not prepared to babysit four climbers and did not have enough food or water for everyone. They got no support from local villagers so they let the climbers go. End of Story.
   
   The climbers say they pushed a kidnapper to his death and then ran the equivalent of a marathon across mountainous terrain with no food or water, after having had no food or water for days.... not likely. In Kyrgyztsan at the time, most ex-pats had the same opinion of these four: "Stupid rich kids in over their heads who greatly exaggerated their story." That's it. Not all that special really.



3. This is one of the Few or maybe Two true storys i have really gotten into.
   This and Lost In A Mountain In Maine .
   
   This book was obviously well written with 4 different points of veiw because there were four climbers. The story's quite amazing and it was soo suspensful i could hardly blink.
   
   One minute they aren't being feed and they are stuck in this weird cave trying to get away , the next they are climbing a steep and most dangerous cliff , the next they are recaptured and put back into the clutches of the enemies , then the NEXT they are throwing the enemies off a cliff. Who could predict what happens?
   
   It's not one of those books that you already can tell what happens or you alreday know everything's going to turn out Happily Ever After.
   Along with the details and Maps givin in the story you really understand where they are and how hard it was for them.
   
   Worth reading! i recommend it to ages 13- and up up up (although i was probably 11 when i read it. Surprisingly i've always been in a high reading level.)



4. I really wanted to read this book because I am interested in the story. But Child's use of the present tense (inconsistently, at that), finally was so irritating that I stopped reading midway through the book. Child is definitely off my author list.



5. I really liked this book. It was an interesting account of the climbers experiences. I only gave it 4 stars because I thought it was overly dramatized at times. Overall, a worthwhile read.

5 comments about The Great Corgiville Kidnapping.

1. This is a superb children's book. The artwork and the test are engaging and full of details. Young readers will be fascinated by it many times over. Well worth the price!



2. How nice to have the residents of Corgiville back including Caleb, a fabulous rooster, and a clever crow. They are joined by some wily raccoons to bring a delightful story to us all.



3. Thought this was an extremely amusing book. She's got the corgi nature down pat. Have read it several times and think the artwork and story are great. It's sitting on my living room coffee table at this moment.



4. This is a good story for children who loves Corgis. I read this story to my grandchildren with my Corgi next to me so they can relay to the story. Sometimes I personalize the story as "Copper was a great detective...



5. An entertaining story that appeals to all ages. Funny and engaging, it's a great children's story. However, the artwork is not as clear and focused as in Corgiville Fair. In spite of this, it is still a great book!

5 comments about Poised to Kill.

1. Author has turned out a fast paced mystery/thriller novel that keeps you on your toes trying to figure out the twists and turns of the plot. Highly recommend!



2. Lutterman has a gift for keeping the surprises coming until the reader is certain the puzzle has been solved, only to find one, last piece of the puzzle which causes the story to fall satisfyingly in place, just a different place than originally thought. The detailed settings put the reader "in" the story and provides a satisfying framework for the fantastic storylines. If you're not already a Lutterman fan, you will be by the end of this book! When is the next one coming??!!



3. I really enjoyed this book....the character was memorable and interesting. The plot had a number of twists and turns - with an unexpected ending. A bit of romance always adds something to a book as well. Great read...I coudnt put it down.



4. Poised To Kill is the gripping story of corporate executive Hal Dwyer. His twelve-year-old daughter has been kidnaped and the ransom is a top secret anti-missile software. If Hal doesn't steal the software from his defense contractor employer or his daughter will die. The action takes Hal from the corporate boardrooms of California to the wilderness backcountry of Minnesota. Author Brian Lutterman has proven himself to be a master storyteller in this masterfully woven tale of tycoons and terrorists. Poised To Kill is highly recommended reading, especially for enthusiasts of contemporary action/adventure thrillers.



5. "Poised to Kill" is a fine story, very well written and excellent in pacing. Lutterman is well in command of his plot and characters. Very satisfying read!
   
   Allen J. Hubin

2 comments about Polly Klaas: The Murder of America's Child.

1. This is the most inaccurate piece of literature I have ever encountered. As someone who was involved in the Polly Klaas case, I was able to find 13 inaccuracies in the first 5 pages of the book. The tabloid-style sensationalism that this book embraces not only emphasizes it's poor quality, but is offensive to Polly's legacy.



2. I think the book was ok.I wish they would have spoke about the girls life a little more.It is tragic that those kind of things happen in the world today. It makes you feel that your not safe anywhere.

5 comments about Flying Too High (Phryne Fisher Mysteries).

1. this second in the series is even better than the first. and it features airplanes.
   
   the characterizations are first rate, the plot is nicely paced, the resolution satisfying, the information about bi-planes enough to send anyone out to find and fly one.
   
   phyne's situation develops and characters who will continue in the series are introduced. this book could still be read without reference to the first, as there is enough backstory to bring a reader up to date.
   
   this series is a must for any mystery lover, but any read could enjoy them for the writing, the humor, the history of australia, and, of course, for phyrne.



2. In the three months that the Honorable Phyrne Fisher has lived in Australia, she has made a name for herself as an investigator who always solves her cases. She solved a case for a woman who travels in high society circles and that woman gives Phyrne's business a glowing recommendation to her friends. Her latest client Mrs. McNaughton is afraid that her son will kill her husband because he refuses to lend his son money to go on an airplane adventure. At the airport Phyrne talks to Bill McNaughton and tells her about her mother's fears and he tells he was never intending to kill his father. Bill's friend Jack Lawton is amazed as he watches Phyrne fly Bill's plane with much skill.
   
   The next day Phyrne learns that Mr. McNaughton has been murdered and Bill has been arrested. When he is released on bail he hires Phyrne to find the real killer. While she works that case Candida Maldon is kidnapped and held for ransom. Jack convinces the family to hire Phyrne, who she devises a plan using Bill's plane to find and retrieve the kidnapped girl. Solving Bill's problem is a piece of cake in comparison.
   
   Kerry Greenwood is one of Australia's most talented mystery writers. Her heroine is a woman who would be at home in the twenty-first century but since she lives in the 1920's she is careful to project a proper image while still doing what she wants. The wily, spunky heroine somehow makes the audience believe she is smart enough to easily solve two cases in a matter of days while the exotic locale will please armchair travelers.
   
   Harriet Klausner



3. The second book in the series takes place only a few months after "Cocaine blues" ends and with it returns its bright and luminous Phryne Fisher. Many of the secondary (if you can call them that) characters return which adds a nice touch. I liked this book even more than the previous one. Phryne seems to have found her grove in this story along with moving into her new, fashionable domicile. She has to solve two cases at once, the murder of a cantankerous, generally disliked husband and father and the kidnapping of a little girl. Phryne handles both cases with her normal aplomb, intuition and style along with a little wing walking and flying. I especially like Greenwood's use of language and how it reflects the times; this adds another layer of fun and effervescence to these stories that makes me look forward to the next one. I recommend this book highly.



4. In my review of the first in Kerry Greenwood's Phryne Fisher series, Cocaine Blues, I wrote this:
   
   "The Phryne Fisher series came highly recommended by a man not usually given to Affirmative Action crits, but I can't help feeling that if this had been written by a bloke . . .
   
   "Female readers may well enjoy the anachronistic cheap shots at Twenties' inequalities, and God knows there could be worse heroines for the Noughties. (Or do we call the present decade the Oh-Ohs?)
   
   "Lovers of crime fiction will surely be disappointed, and not only by the fact that the King of Snow was obvious from the start. This is an amateurish effort, best illustrated by having the members of a White Russian noble family speak French when alone with each other in private (rather than Russian) the better to be eavesdroppedupon by our French-speaking heroine.
   
   "It's not bad wordsmithery, as you might expect of a lawyer who moonlights as an author, but I'm guessing most male readers will not find this enough."
   
   I figured I should give Greenwood the benefit of the doubt (legal pun there, or perhaps a cricketing one) since as an Aussie I had my own bit of Positive Discrimination going. And I'm sure those who know Melbourne better than me take great pleasure in the "local" settings, albeit displaced 80 years into the past.
   
   So I turned to this one, which adds Geelong (and indeed Queenscliff) to its Aussie locales. It also adds precocious kid (and an array of loveable urchins) to its stock of clichéd characters, but I'm guessing that's a chick lit thing.
   
   It also adds to the scale of Phryne's derring-do, having her walk out on the wing of a Tiger Moth minus parachute (with a man she has only just met and never flown with before and who is completely unprepared for this stunt, left at the reserve controls) just so she can prove she is one of the boys.
   
   I don't want to give the solution to the mystery away (although I'm not sure these novels are really intended for lovers of that genre, the plots are way too weak), but my jaw dropped even further than the murder weapon at how much could turn on not one of the cops bothering to look over the fence!
   
   It's worth half a star more than Cocaine Blues, but since I still can't work out how to award half stars (and Cocaine Blues was only worth 2.5 anyway, IMHO), this one gets three.



5. Having read all of Kerry Greenwood's Phryne mysteries I cannot say which one I like the best. But, I love them all and when I get jaded from reading some of the "modern" mysteries full of sex, four letter words and blood and guts I settle down with one of these before bedtime. Let me say I am in love with Australia and would live there if I could--too old to move and my wife would never go. We were fortunate enough to visit several years ago and loved every minute.
   Greenwood has developed a very likeable and superlative heroine. The supporting cast is well drawn and interesting in their own. These are truly "cozies" and I find them very enjoyable reads, rationing them carefully lest I run out.
   If you like Australian mysteries I would heartily recommend anything you can find by Arthur Upfield, who wrote in the period after WW II. His hero is an Australian police detective "halfcaste" who specialized in solving mysteries in the outback and rural areas of Australia. Great flavor and good story telling!

5 comments about Escape Artist.

1. Rarely does one read a book that "stays" with you. This was one such book for me. Ms. Chamberlain writes a beautifully, poignant story of one woman's journey to overcome adversity. One cannot help but feel compassion and support for the main character, Susanna as she's always looking over her shoulder wondering if and when law enforcement will find her; as well as her inner, personal struggle in becoming a strong, self-reliant, woman, especially at the climatic end of the story.



2. Ms. Chamberlain writes a beautifully, poignant story of one woman's journey to overcome adversity. One cannot help but feel compassion and support for the main character, Susanna as she's always looking over her shoulder wondering if and when law enforcement will find her; as well as her inner, personal struggle in becoming a strong, self-reliant, woman, especially at the climatic end of the story.



3. The Escape Artist was my third book by Chamberlain and a very quick read. I live in the Annapolis area, which made the book even more interesting to me, as Chamberlain describes the scenes downtown near the waterfront.

   This is a story of a Susanna, a single mother's fight for her only child as she looses custody to her ex-husband and his new, child hungry, unable-to-bear-children wife. Unfortunately, the theme is all too relevant today in our society, with courts awarding custody not to the parent who can provide the most loving, stable, and balanced home, but instead to the parent to has the most money and can "buy" the child. I could relate to Susanna totally and could not condone her actions, nor can any other mother reading this book! The reader is able to feel her terror and fear as she formulates her plan and carries it out. Yet it is in the day-to-day activities, in which we feel Susanna's fear and her loss of Linc. Susanna sacrifices her own happiness and her chance for love for her only child.

   This book was similar to the other Chamberlain books I have read, in that there were a lot of little subplots going on, each a mystery in themselves!! I thought that the characters showed depth, emotion, and portrayed a very real believable element in the plot. Chamberlain writes of very strong female characters, who seem to push out of their paradigms and prove to themselves that they are capable, despite what family and society seems to say about them.

   This book will keep you guessing to the very end and the ending once again, will take the reader completely back! I love the way Chamberlain completely fools the reader at the end, when the reader thinks they have it all figured out!! It is not what it appears to be!

   Another good story from Chamberlain!




4. This is another amazing story from Diane Chamberlain. This time she takes a young womans life which is turned upside and brings it right side up only turn it around and around again. The ride was great, I loved this book.



5. Susanna Miller has just lost custody of her son, Tyler, to her ex-husband and his new wife (the other woman). Unwilling to give up taking care of her son, she runs off with him in the middle of the night, leaving behind a brokenhearted lover, Linc, her son's distressed stepmother, Peggy, and an indifferent ex-husband, Jim. She begins to make herself a new life in Annapolis, MD, light-years away from her former home in Boulder, CO. Yet she feels as though her whole existence is temporary and is constantly looking over her shoulder. Enter artist Adam Soria and his sister Jessie. Adam's wife and two children were killed seven months prior in a drunk driving accident. He and Jessie have been overcome by grief ever since, but with the introduction of Susanna (now known as Kim) and Tyler (now known as Cody) into their lives, things seem to be looking up.

   Yet strange things are happening. Two bombings have occurred in Annapolis and Kim's new computer had a file on it with a list of the locations where the bombings occurred as well as more locations for apparent bombings-to-be. She returns from a trip only to find that her apartment has been broken into and her computer left on. Her brakes are tampered with. Obviously, someone knows Kim has the file.

   Though this book contains many elements of romance, there is lots of suspense to flesh out the plot. It took me a while to get started, but then once I was into the book, the pages seemed to turn themselves. I am not sure if I will read more by Ms. Chamberlain or not because I was over halfway through the book before I was sure I would finish it. However, it was a good read.

4 comments about Child Lures: What Every Parent and Child Should Know About Preventing Sexual Abuse and Abduction.

1. I am sorry that I am not using this space to review this book. I have read it and would recommend it to any parent with children. I would also tell anyone who has the opportunity to see Kenneth Wooden speak take the time and go. He is wonderful to listen to and has a lot of valuable information.

   I am writting because I have a close friend who has two children that have been abused by their father. She can't find any reading material on this topic. If anyone knows of a good book please let me know so I can pass the information on to her.

   Thank-you very much.

   trgconstruction@voyager.net




2. The author does an excellent job in presenting the information needed to protect our children. We are presenting a child safety fair, and this book will be used as a door prize to those attending. Some of the information is frightening, to think that such monsters can exist in our society is unsettling. (Read the section concerning pedophile groups, you will understand!) It's time to make a stand against those that would corrupt our kids. This is a great place to start learning how. Read it & live it! Your kids just might be at stake! Thank you.



3. I have been in the helping professions for over thirty-five years, most of which has been in Child Protection and Family Advocacy. Kenneth Wooden's book, Child Lures, was a Godsend in protecting not only children, but adults. The hour or more that it takes for you to study it, could very easily save your life, or the lives of your children. It works, I have seen it first hand. Parents love it, abusers and abductors hate it.



4. This book is written so that parents and their children can interact while reading it. There are portions directed at children and portions directed to adults, with "tips" for each. By breaking the lures into categories it's easier for children to recognize them if they ever encounter one. And the "what would you do if..." scenarios are a good way for kids to discriminate between safe situations and those that might be harmful. Adults will,sadly, recognize some of the real-life predators mentioned throughout the book as they are matched with the type of lure they commonly used. One of the best books I've seen on this topic!

4 comments about Out of the Shadows Into the Light.

1. Don't start this fast-paced book in the evening, because you won't be able to put it down until the wee hours of the morning.
   
   It is a must read.



2. I thought I was going to read a few chapters and I had read the whole thing before I knew it!
   Intriguing, rollercoaster ride of a romance that satisfies the heart. Fast action entertains while the reader really gets involved in Caroline's quandaries.
   Surprising twists and lyrical phrasing left me wanting to read the next book right NOW!
   Highly recommended!



3. This book was a great delight to me. It was refreshing to read with the values I believe in as a Member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. Yes there is mystery, intrique and the drug cartel smack in the middle of it, but it also has the tenderness of a pure and true love that took my breath away. It definitely is a must read and you won't want to put it down.



4. Right off the bat, you find out that the main character's son has been kidnapped. We're still on the first page, and we find ourselves pulled into the action by our eyebrow hairs. Page after page of action, interspersed with a very believable and sweet romance, and then back to the action before you can even blink. I stayed in bed all day to read it, nursing a cold -- and after my Nyquil kicked in, I pretended to still be sick so I could stay in bed and finish. I can't wait for the sequel.

2 comments about Secuestrada (Kidnapped): Una historia de la vida real.

1. Hace que uno revalue lo que tiene o lo que no tiene en la vida. Lo que uno piensa que es grabe y lo peor, para otros en diferentes situaciones es solo un juego, o una vanalidad. El libro es muy real, es como estar ahi, viendo todo, sintiendo cosas similares.

   Esa nina es una berraca!




2. El diario de leszli kalli es muy interesante,revelador y a la vez conmovedor. Con solo leerlo puede uno convertirse en un mejor ser humano ya que la autora refleja objetividad, aún en sus circunstancias cuando describe situaciones con sus captores sin reflejar odio pero sí coraje.
   
   Recomiendo que sea leido, para que se conozca la otra Colombia que existe por más de 15 años "gobernada" por el Ejército de Liberación Nacional.

5 comments about Chasing the Dead: A Novel.

1. A phone call suddenly grabs Sue's attention when the caller informs her that he has her daughter and if she doesn't follow his specific instructions she will never see her daughter again. This isn't your typical "kidnapped book", it takes a bizarre twist midway through that has you turning the pages very quickly. Quite a few "ohh" and "yuck" moments, but still a good read.



2. I just finished this book and let me tell you, i couldnt put it down! i read it one sitting! The reviews in the book say this: "decaying zombies, serial killers, a centuries old mystery, and sadistic ghosts. What more could you ask for?" they are 100% right it had all that and more. I am about to start "Eat the Dark" by Mr. Schreiber and i hope it is juat as good, i will be going to get my hands on everything this guy writes!



3. Sue doesn't expect her daughter to be kidnapped the day before a big, potentially job-altering meeting. Veda and her nanny, Marilyn, have been kidnapped by a psychopath who's bent on getting one thing, and that's something that Sue's afraid of.
   
   This review's going to be shorter than my other reviews, because Chasing the Dead is the kind of book that you can't really review without giving too much away. For it's size (roughly 190-somewhat pages,) it's a quick read, but it's also an enjoyable read. I found myself drawn into the plot, as it spans an entire night. The story being told in one night is what drew me to buy the book, and I was not disappointed.
   
   Chasing the Dead gets four stars because of a cliffhanger ending. I don't know if Mr. Schriber has anymore books that follow after this one, but a cliffhanger ending like that bothers me, mostly because I was so happy that Sue got out of that whole mess.
   
   Chasing the Dead is a book you will want to check out, at the very least.



4. This fast paced horror novel starts from the first page and takes the reader on a terror filled ride until the very end. A short read at only 250 pages, this novel never lets up. The author puts you right in the drivers seat as Sue Young makes her perilous journey during a late night December snowfall in rural Maine. Heading east from town to town, Sue desperately tries to to stay on track and piece together this horrific puzzle to spare the life of her young daughter. Don't miss out on this one. It's sure to please!



5. I bought this book because my daughters name is Veda, and we lived in Massachusetts until 2 1/2 years ago. Being this was a "Bargain Book", I didn't Have all that great of expectations. As I started I thought that my original opinion was correct for the first few minutes of reading, but I was pulled into it very quickly.
   So, in conclusion, this is worth any amount of money you have to spend to acquire it. Do not be surprised if you sit down and do not get up until it is finished and the only thing you can do is hit the internet and start looking for more of his writings.
   Correction, the internet will not be the only thing your able to do...... staying awake due to terror is another HUGE possibility!!