Killer Triggers: Murder Comes Down to Sex, Drugs, or Money by Joe Kenda

 

Book: Killer Triggers: Murder Comes Down to Sex, Drugs, or Money

Author: Joe Kenda

Release date (if applicable): March 9, 2021

Synopsis: Kenda is back with stories from his career. This title focused on murders which occurred due to what Kenda calls the three causes of murder...sex, drugs or money. 

My rating: 4.5 Stars

My opinion: I found I didn't enjoy this book as much as I enjoyed Kenda's first book I Will Find You: Solving Killer Cases from My Life Fighting Crime. As I did a deeper dive into the book, I figured out why I wasn't warming up to it like I did his first work. 

First, anyone who is a Homicide Hunter fan and has watched the episodes several times (hangs head) will recognize most (if not all) of the cases from the show. Do we get a deeper understanding of what was going through Kenda's mind? Yes, we do, but it still felt like a "been there-heard that". 

Second, we didn't get as much Kenda/Kathy as we did in the first book and I missed that. Kenda/Kathy stories are as hysterical as the tidbits of sarcasm Kenda gives from his cases. Let me give an example. Kenda has been doing a lot of publicity for his new Discovery+ show, AMERICAN DETECTIVE. A fantastic show that Kenda fans will go gaga over, by the way, but I digress. He recently did the podcast Small Town Dicks and told a story about Kathy making him go out with friends from her job. Kenda realizes the stepfather of Kathy's friend from work is sexually abusing the daughter of the friend and ends up having to arrest the guy. As I was reading the book at the time, I said to myself this would be a perfect story for the book! 

Third, I read a digital ARC. There is NOTHING like a Joe Kenda narration. Hands down, my absolutely favorite narrator. While I could hear him narrating in my mind, there is nothing like the real deal.   

Source: Blackstone Audio via Netgalley 

Would I recommend? Duh. Of course! Following my opinion, though, I recommend investment in the audiobook version. Blackstone Audio is one of the largest publishers of audiobooks, so I'll bet dollars to donuts there will be an audiobook version with our favorite Lt. narrating. 

I will say this will more than likely be the last Kenda book I request to review. I will wait to purchase an audio copy and review from that. While I realize I only marked it down a half star, I don't feel I walked into the reviewing process with what I felt I needed to do to give the review all that it needed. For that, I am to blame. 

Stand Alone or Part of a Series: Stand Alone

Pioneering the Vote: The Untold Story of Suffragists in Utah and the West by Neylan McBaine

 

Book: Pioneering the Vote: The Untold Story of Suffragists in Utah and the West

Author: Neylan McBaine

Release date (if applicable): Published

Synopsis: Pioneering the Vote takes a deep look at the Suffragette movement in the Western states, but particularly in Utah, the center of the Mormon religion. How would the home of a religion that practiced polygamy and preached a woman's subservience to her husband respond and react to a movement that demanded differently?

My rating: 5 Stars

My opinion: This book was BRILLIANT! Forget that it was chock full of well researched history that is little known to those who do high level research on the women's path to voting rights. The author took what could be considered a dry non-fiction writing and partnered it with fiction. This gave the figures much more "life" than simply writing about their accomplishments. At first, I wondered how it would work out and would it be cheesy. The author pulled it off masterfully.  

Source: Publisher for review through Netgalley

Would I recommend? Absolutely. Pioneering the Vote gave readers interesting insight into the movement from a specific region and the struggles they needed to work through. For those of us who have really focused on reading high level books on the movement, this book gave a nice deeper, bird's eye view to what was happening in a specific region, particularly one that could have been very difficult to convince . 

Stand Alone or Part of a Series: Stand Alone

Life with the Afterlife: 13 Truths I Learned about Ghosts by Amy Bruni

 

Book: Life with the Afterlife: 13 Truths I Learned about Ghosts

Author: Amy Bruni

Release date (if applicable): October 27, 2020

Synopsis: Ms. Bruni, who any fan recognizes from her work on Ghost Hunters (the original) and Kindred Spirits or even paranormal research conventions, brings thirteen lessons she learned about ghosts in her decades of ghost hunting. Chapters are done in sections based on paranormal research and her own experiences in ghost hunting. Ms. Bruni also throws in tidbits about the go behinds of the shows Ghost Hunters and Kindred Spirits, as well as personal accounts in Amy's life that fueled her passion for the field. 

My rating: 4 Stars

My opinion: This book captured my attention IMMEDIATELY. I enjoyed the format of weaving in paranormal research, show accounts and personal experience. In my humble opinion, it gave the book a bit more personality rather than straight research or straight personal account, which comes off to me as more "one man syndrome" vs. a respectable scientific source. To me, it made the book very warm, approachable and readable. 

I have to say, personally, I enjoyed the "behind the scenes" of Ghost Hunters most. I absolutely loved the show Ghost Hunters and was obsessed with being at my television to watch it faithfully until the departure of Grant Wilson. I continued to watch it until about season 9 as I could, but really enjoyed Amy's involvement with the team as highly professional. Each year, Ghost Hunters Live achieved the same level of celebration as Chicago Bears Sofa Tailgating Sunday. 

What I loved most of this book was Ms. Bruni's skepticism and criticism of the field, including some major names such as the Warrens (whom I have my own issues with) and not accepting findings as gospel. Her final chapter even addresses the topic of question everything and embrace skepticism, even from her. There was a sense of humility in that for me. 

One criticism I would have for the book is that I would have enjoyed photos included in the book. Now, I was given an egalley to review, so these may be included in the published book, but I did not see them in my galley. 

Source: Grand Central Publishing for honest review

Would I recommend? Yep! How much did I enjoy this read? I read it in 2 days and a girl has gotta work! I would read this book before I went into work, after I went into work and even during my lunch hours. It was just a good, inviting reading that read quickly. 

Stand Alone or Part of a Series: Stand Alone

A Libertarian Walks Into A Bear by Matthew Hongoltz-Hetling

 

Book: A Libertarian Walks Into A Bear: The Utopian Plot to Liberate an American Town (and Some Bears)

Author: Matthew Hongoltz-Hetling

Release date (if applicable): 09/15/2020

Synopsis: Grafton, NH becomes a truly run Libertarian city. This story shows the impact both positive and negative to a city run as a "free state" where its citizens basically do, pay and act as they feel. 

My rating: 3.5 Stars

My opinion: I enjoyed this read. Quirky characters, bears and a will to live in a "free state" and the lasting consequences made this a really unique read. The writing was inviting and fun. 

Source: Netgalley for Publisher

Would I recommend? Yes. Overall, I felt this was a cute read. Beware of the underlying bias, but read for the unique story. If you are a political junkie or enjoyed non-formulaic books, be sure to check this one out. 

Stand Alone or Part of a Series: Stand Alone