#The Didymus Contingency | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

theintellectualchaos · 7 years

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thriller filler

As my previous post suggested, I was very busy these last couple of weeks. Today, however, I handed in my term paper and now I may enjoy 5 days of freedom till a new semester begins..... and since I am still far, far behind with my book reviews, I’m gonna sum up some of them and give a short account on 5 thrillers I’ve been reading in 2016 - none of them leaving me in awe, so I guess it is alright to throw them together in one mash-up review. I’ll keep it short and simple. There might be quotes (if I found anything worthy of quoting) and I made sure there are no spoilers.

19.2016: Jeremy Robinson - The Didymus Contingency

If you could go back in time, and witness any event, where would you go?

Tom Greenbaum and David Goodman have discovered time travel and go on a journey through time and space to Jerusalem, the Twelve Apostel, and Jesus. As in any time travelling story, our protagonists are about to observe and change (Christian) history, facing dangers and threats from the past, present, and future. Sci-Fi meets thriller meets religion. Not a complete waste of time but not a page-turner either. Maybe if you’re into that kind of stuff.

20.2016: Marc Elsberg - Blackout

A worldwide terrorist attack causes a total blackout and within hours and days, mayhem ensues and the world as we know it collapses without electricity. Elsberg has written a fast-paced thriller that manages to feel real to a certain extent, in a way that you could actually believe it to happen if the scenario was played out. Neat and nicely done and well researched.

21.2016: Harlan Coben - The Woods

Twenty years ago, four teenagers at summer camp walked into the woods at night. Two were found murdered, and the others were never seen again. Four families had their lives changed forever. Now, two decades later, they are about to change again.

And so we follow county prosecutor Paul Copeland as he has to (literally) dig up old corpses in the woods and fiind skeletons in the closet to finally bring closure to him and all the others involved in this brutal tragedy. The more I write the more I have to spoil so I won’t. It’s suspenseful, it’s full of twists and turns and reveals a rather complex background story. Paul is a very likable protagonist and if you’re looking for a well-written, high-paced thriller, look no further. I couldn’t put it down. You’re welcome.

Favourite quotes:

She drove, enjoying the time alone. She listened to Tom Waits sing that he hoped he didn't fall in love, but of course, he does.

Raya Singh worked at an Indian restaurant called Curry Up and Wait. I hate pun titles. Or do I love them? Let's go with love. [so very relatable]

“Ground control to Major Cope.” It was Muse. She hadn't said the words – she sang them, using the old David Bowie tune. [I’m definitely singing it, too]

The first sip of beer on a hot day is like that first finger-dip when you open a new jar of peanut butter. I enjoyed what could only be called God's nectar. [true]

Margot was the camp va-va-voom, and man, did she know. [Va-va-voom!]

Barry McGuire's classic 1965 antiwar anthem, “Eve of Destruction,” was playing. Troubling as this song was, it had always comforted Lucy. The song paints a devastatingly bleak picture of the world. He sings about the world exploding, about bodies in the Jordan River, about the fear of a nuclear button being pushed, about hate in Red China and Selma, Alabama (a forced rhyme, but it worked), about all the hypocrisy and hate in the world – and in the chorus he almost mockingly asks how the listener can be naive enough to think that we aren't on the eve of destruction.

So why did it comfort her?

Because it was true. The world was this terrible, awful place. The planet was on the brink back then. But it had survived […] We always seem to be on the eve of destruction. And we always seem to get through it.

22.2016: Tess Gerritsen - Playing with Fire

Puuuuuuh. Tess Gerritsen. I never really got into her. Dee, however, told me to read it and advertised it as: “The protagonist is a violinist named Julia and her daughter wants to kill her.” Teased like that, I had to see what was happening to my musical namesake. The novel is focused on Incendio, a composition Julia buys in an antique store in Rome. As she practices it, the music seems to have some dangerous effect on her daughter. In order to protect her family, Julia goes on a quest to find out about Incendio’s origins and uncovers the music’s dark secret.... The problem I had with this book was how it started and how it abandoned its originial plot completely throughout the second half. Don’t get me wrong - both storylines on their own are perfectly valid. I just didn’t like the above described onset to introduce the ‘revelation’ and a then somehow rushed resolution to Julia’s evil child problems. So no recommendation from me. Sorry.

Favourite (only) quote and actually a really nice sentence:

He sees the world in mathematical terms, and even the way he moves has a precise geometry to it, his tie swinging an arc, criss-crossing into a perfect knot. How different we are! The only numbers I care about are symphony and opus numbers and the time signatures on my music. Rob tells everyone that's why he was attracted to me, because unlike him, I'm an artist and air creature who daces in the sunshine. I used to worry that our differences would tear us apart, that Rob, who keeps his feet so firmly planted on the ground, would grow weary of keeping his air-creature wife from floating away in the clouds.

23.2016: Jilliane Hoffman - Cupido

Nasty, gruesome story about a rapist-clown, a young law student and their reunion in court when she has to face her former perpetrator but keep it cool to make sure he’s gonna rot in prison... I used to like stuff like that but I’m more kinda grossed out by it these days. I guess I’m getting old...

Favourite quote and - I speak from experience - great life hack!

“Möchtest du ein Glas Wein oder bist du noch im Dienst?”

Er folgte ihr. “Ich dachte, du hättest Kopfschmerzen?”

“Habe ich auch”, antwortete sie und öffnete den Kühlschrank. “Wein ist gut gegen Kopfschmerzen. Man vergisst einfach, dass man welche hatte.”

After this little marathon I have only got so many more books left to review. I’m almost glad I hardly found time to read this year (not even 3 books yet!!). And then there’s Janacek and some more music to review and admire. And recipes to share. And places I’ve been to tell from. I’ll keep you posted, cheeky promise!

Now off to enjoy a well-deserved Feierabendbeer in the spring sunset on my balcony. Cheers!!

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