First, I’ll apologize for my sparsity of posts. I’ve been thinking about this blog and meaning to sit down to finish up some posts I’ve started but third trimester tiredness (less than 5 weeks to go!) as well as pregnancy-induced carpel tunnel (limiting my cooking and computer time) has gotten in the way. Rest assured, while I might be slowing down, I will be back. Just a little less frequently, and probably with more book reviews for a while.
This past week, I lost myself in a couple of older mysteries. I’ve always enjoyed Iris Johansen’s romantic suspense novels, but these two had a different feel to them.
Book Review:
Silent Thunder & Shadow Zone
By Iris Johansen & Roy Johansen
Silent Thunder (2008): Submersible designer Hannah Bryson and her brother Conner are evaluating the safety of a Soviet submarine (the Silent Thunder) before a museum opens the submarine up to the public. Minutes after the two discover a set of plates with strange engravings on them, Connor is killed. Hannah dodges attacks against herself while chasing after Connor’s murderers, with the help of both the CIA and Soviet submarine captain (and occasional CIA asset) Nicholas Kirov.
Shadow Zone (2010) : Hannah and Kirov return in this sequel. Hannah is in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean mapping the lost underwater city of Marinth. Her research has uncovered so much about the people’s lives, leaving only the city’s downfall in question. Just as her mission comes to an end, she discovers an artifact that may be the key to uncovering the truth about the city’s demise. When the artifact is stolen by a weapons dealer, Hannah teams with Kirov to recover the artifact on their own, despite offers of assistance from the U.S. government. What they didn’t expect, however, was to get in the way of a grande ecoterrorism scheme.
Review: These have been the first books that have hooked my attention in quite a while. I actually finished one and within an hour, drove to the library to get the other. They are by no means great literature, but I enjoyed the mix of Johansen’s usual romantic suspense with the scientific adventure that reminded me of a Clive Cussler book. The big difference is that Johasen’s books are a much quicker read than most of Cussler’s and glaze over the scientific details that Cussler goes into. I’m more than ok with this. 🙂
If you’re looking for a light read – something to curl up in front of the fireplace with, or perhaps a beach book – this pair will easily hold your interest.
Grade: B+