I received a free kindle copy of Lost in the Ivy by Randy Richardson, published by Eckhartz Press from NetGalley in exchange for a fair review.

 

I gave this Chicago Cubs fan mystery four stars.

 

Charley Hubs walks into a diner & describes it like this. "With its cool black & white veneer aglow in neon, the diner's exterior looked like it came off the canvas of an Edward Hopper painting. Inside, rock 'n' roll played on the jukebox."

 

Charley has amnesia. He does have flashes of the past.  "Why couldn't he just let it go? Why couldn't the past just stay in the past?  Why couldn't he start anew? Why? Why? Why?  So many questions haunted him.  Too many of them unanswered. So he ran."

 

It was a convoluted story with many twists & turns. It was not always clear what was real. But it was interesting.

 

Link to purchase: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00JPST4LY

I received a free copy of this book from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review, thank you!

 

Perhaps this book is filled with the most wonderful baseball metaphors. If so, they are completely lost on me, as I don't know anything about it. 

 

To me, this book reads like a complete mess. It's already a revised edition, but still it looks like the story needs a lot of work. It's just completely unbelievable. Everything is too easy, illogical or plain stupid. There's insta-love if I ever saw one. I mean, I hadn't noticed the main character was suffering from amnesia till the last third of the book! And another plot line doesn't really start till the last fifty pages, which made me feel cheated. 

 

To give an impression of the stupid, insta-love reactions of the characters in this book. The main character needs help in doing something illegal. He doesn't have any friends but remembers a girl he's met months earlier (who suffered a strange attack during the one time they met). He walked out on her that same day but when he calls her after all this time without any kind of explanation and no time to think about it, of course it's completely normal to answer 'Yes' if he asks her to help him. *facepalm*

 

The writing wasn't all bad, but the ending was weak. And there were some points in the story that seemed to be written to be funny, only they weren't. Like the main character's cover story of a profession as a male exotic dancer, or the frequent (awkward) visits to gay (drag) bars. I think this revised edition could use some more revision...

The second Crimson Empire volume explores the darker reaches of espionage and treachery, focusing heavily on Imperial sympathizers and the reluctant alliance of Kanos and Sinn. As the two soldiers learn to trust one another, they face the harsh realities that neither can trust their allies, and may, in fact, have to sacrifice more than their lives to survive. Personal honor and integrity play a heavy role in this series, as does guilt and associative fault; Kanos slowly becomes more human in this volume, beginning to regret his past actions, while Sinn role as a commander and military leader gives her confidence and a reason to try to convert Kanos to her cause. While perhaps not as refreshing as Volume One, the political angle is on heavy display in the second volume of Crimson Empire, and offers a delicious slice of "Star Wars" life that die-hard fans will love sinking their teeth into.

Espionage, new lore, and a classic antihero set this post-original trilogy story into high gear, showcasing the duty-bound red guard, Kir Kanos. Expanding upon the mysterious and intimidating guards glimpsed briefly in 'Return of the Jedi', the Crimson Empire saga explores the power vacuum left in the wake of the emperor's death, and offers a slightly different take on the rebel forces, especially in the reluctant commander, Mirith Sinn. A fantastic start to the trilogy.