author: Jimmy Buffett
name: Matthew
average rating: 3.90
book published: 1989
rating: 4
read at: 2018/06/10
date added: 2018/06/10
shelves:
review:

Rum-soaked romance on the sandy shores of the Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean Sea, Buffett’s Tales from Margaritaville reads like the lyrics of any one of Buffett’s albums. It’s a must for any parrothead, so pull up a hammock, crack open a bottle of your favorite, and dream away!

Pick up a copy on Amazon (affiliate link)

author: Michael Crichton
name: Matthew
average rating: 3.74
book published: 2002
rating: 3
read at: 2018/06/07
date added: 2018/06/07
shelves:
review:

One of the many technological anxieties of the late 1990s comes to life with Michael Crichton’s Prey, a lackluster science fiction romp through the speculative world of nanotechnology disguised as a middle-aged engineer’s retrospective account of his involvement in the nightmarish logical extreme of technology gone awry. One might call the plot  “Jurassic Park with nanotechnology” except that would be doing a disservice to Jurassic Park.

Prey is the literary equivalent of a 90s popcorn flick: bold imagery, an action-packed plot, and a cautious warning message about the dangers of emerging technology loosely slapped on top. It’s not terrible, but it is vastly improved if you pretend it was written by Chuck Palahniuk about a man’s schizophrenic delusions justifying the murder of those around him.

Pick up a copy at Amazon (affiliate link)

author: J.A. Jance
name: Matthew
average rating: 3.72
book published: 2000
rating: 0
read at: 2018/06/03
date added: 2018/06/03
shelves:
review:
I picked this volume up as an advanced reader copy over a decade ago as the title seemed interesting. I’d never heard of Jance or the Walker Family series. I’m not even a particular fan of the genre, preferring the science fiction, fantasy, and adventure genres to the sprawling murder mystery. After finally reading the book, I was pleasantly surprised. The characters are well-developed and the action is tense–especially toward the climax of the story. Unfortunately, this volume in particular suffers through “extended universe syndrome” wherein every character has a complex back-story that could stand alone as its own novel and these back stories are often dropped into the middle of a scene, breaking up the action and making the casual reading wonder where the hell he was when the scene picks back up. I understand the need for believable characters with plausible motivations, but Jance takes it all a bridge too far. If you’re patient and have the time, go for it, but if you’re not emotionally involved with a well-to-do and politically-connected family in Tucson, AZ, you might ought to skip it.

Pick up a copy at Amazon (affiliate link)

author: Steven D. Levitt
name: Matthew
average rating: 3.81
book published: 2014
rating: 5
read at: 2018/05/29
date added: 2018/05/29
shelves:

The gentlemen behind the bestseller Freakonomics series are at it again–this time with a collection of stories and studies to subvert “conventional wisdom” and encourage the reader to think “like a freak”. The titular freak, in this case, is one who looks at the world from the lens of an outsider. The freak is a data-driven student of human weakness that can understand that our most common sense understandings are inherently flawed and the best course might actually be the obvious one! The freak isn’t necessarily successful (in a monetary sense), but the freak is usually happier and more satisfied with life–unencumbered by the stigma of social pressures.

The freak doesn’t necessarily lead a better life, but certainly a more interesting one!

Pick up a copy at Amazon (affiliate link)