Another great, hilarious, fast-paced fantasy adventure.
Stone Barrington somehow buys 2 huge new historic estates in England.
AND 2 new expensive motorcars — as you and I would do. 😀 Bentley AND a Porsche.
As usual, beautiful women fall into his bed almost immediately.
The bad guys are particularly inept in this one.
This is #36 in the series.
On the Hippie Trail: Istanbul to Kathmandu and the Making of a Travel Writer (2025) is selections from 23-year-old Rick’s 1978 journal on the “Hippie Trail“.
It was no “Magic Bus” experience. They did this trip the hard way — independently.
They didn’t have the first Lonely Planet guide, rather only the first BIT (“Bible of the East”), a free half a dozen or so duplicated foolscap sheets stapled together with no cover.
Rick’s posted travel photos of himself and best pal Gene reflecting on how the journey through Turkey, Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan, India, and Nepal changed his life.
My own travels in Europe 1976 in an orange Volkswagen van were a piece of cake compared with the Hippie Trail. I had no interest — though a High School friend, Ian Baird, did end up in Kathmandu drinking Chai and eating pie on Freak Street. He got quite sick as did almost all the westerners who tried that adventure.
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I enjoyed the first 2 books in this collaboration:
So was enthusiastic about The First Gentleman (2025).
I’d say it’s the best of the three. And it would make a good TV mini-series.
The President of the United States is up for reelection. Her husband is on trial for murder.
Is the First Gentleman a killer?
A pair of investigative journalists set out to answer that burning question about the NFL star-turned-political spouse.
Another great book by one of the best authors working today.
Void Moon (2000) is the ninth novel by American crime author Michael Connelly.
… the third of Connelly’s books not to follow the character Harry Bosch.
It was also his first novel to feature a female protagonist, Cassidy “Cassie” Black, and a protagonist who is a criminal instead of an investigator of criminals. …
She had served five years in prison for conspiring with her previous partner-in-crime, Max Freeling, to steal the winnings of casino visitors while they were asleep. …
Cassie decides she needs just one more big score to disappear overseas with her daughter.
A good Stone Barrington novel.
Millions of dollars from a long ago robbery were never recovered. Until now.
Standup Guy (2014) is #28 in the series.
After giving some legal advice to a walk-in client, Stone Barrington thinks he’s done with the man.
But several people are keenly interested in John Fratelli’s activities and how they relate to a long-ago crime…and some of them will stop at nothing to find the information they desire.
On a hunt that leads from Florida’s tropical beaches to the posh vacation homes of the Northeast, Stone finds himself walking a tightrope between ambitious authorities and seedy lowlifes who all have the same prize in their sights.
The 2025 murder mystery from Shari Lapena is pretty good. It kept me guessing.
Bryden and Sam have it all – thriving careers, a smart apartment in a luxury condominium, supportive friends and a cherished daughter.
The perfect life for the perfect couple.
Then Sam receives a call at his office. Bryden – working from home that day – has failed to collect their daughter from daycare.
Arriving home with their little girl, he finds his wife’s car in the underground garage. Upstairs in their apartment her laptop is open on the table, her cell phone nearby, her keys in their usual place in the hall.
Except Bryden is nowhere to be seen. It’s as if she just walked out.
How can she have disappeared from her own home? And did she even leave the building at all?
With every minute that passes – and as questions swirl around their community – Bryden and Sam’s past seems a little less perfect, their condominium less safe, their friends, neighbours and relatives no longer quite so reliable . . .
Doing Hard Time (2014) is the 27th book in the Stone Barrington series.
A good one.
Stone Barrington is a rich New York lawyer who, over the years, has become increasingly adept at eating at fancy restaurants and spending huge amounts of money on airplanes, cars and houses. Also sleeping with every beautiful woman who comes along.
Best in this novel is the return of arch criminal (or maybe he’s really a good guy) Teddy Fay.
Teddy is on the run from just about everyone, having killed a number of people he felt deserved an early exit from their time on earth.
Stone’s son and his 2 friends are on their way to Hollywood to make a feature film. Teddy saves them in a typically insanely unlikely way.
The book is mostly set in L.A.
A Russian mafia boss from the past starts sending hitmen after Stone and family.
Entertaining, as always. An easy read.
A better than average Stone Barrington novel.
Unintended Consequences (2013) is #26 in the series.
An easy, entertaining read.
Stone finds himself in Paris, France. With amnesia.
What happened?
Seems a French billionaire wants to buy one of his companies. And a Russian oligarch disagrees.
Michael Cavacini is an award winning writer. Yet STILL enjoys the silly Stone Barrington novels. As do I.
Not bad.
Severe Clear is #24 in the Stone Barrington fantasy series.
This one includes the Presidents of the United States and Mexico.
Stone Barrington is in Bel-Air, overseeing the grand opening of the ultra-luxe hotel, The Arrington, built on the grounds of the mansion belonging to his late wife, Arrington Carter.
The star-studded gala will be attended by socialites, royalty, and billionaires from overseas…and according to phone conversations intercepted by the NSA, it may also have attracted the attention of international terrorists. To ensure the safety of his guests—and the city of Los Angeles—Stone may have to call in a few favors from his friends at the CIA…
Strangers in Time: A World War II Novel (2025) is excellent historical fiction.
I’m surprised as Baldacci is mainly know for best selling suspense novels and legal thrillers that you immediately forget once getting to the last page.
But his 2025 book is serious literature. This could be nominated for major awards.
… set in London in 1944, about a bereaved bookshop owner and two teenagers scarred by the Second World War, and the healing and hope they find in one another.
Fourteen-year-old Charlie Matters is up to no good, but for a very good reason. Without parents, peerage, or merit, he steals what he needs, living day-to-day until he’s old enough to enlist to fight the Germans. After barely surviving the Blitz, Charlie knows there’s no telling when a falling bomb might end his life.
Fifteen-year-old Molly Wakefield has just returned to a nearly unrecognizable London. One of millions of children to have been evacuated to the countryside Molly has been away from her home for nearly five years. Her return, however, is not the homecoming she’d hoped for as she’s confronted by a devastating reality: neither of her parents are there.
Without guardians and stability, Charlie and Molly find an unexpected ally and protector in Ignatius Oliver, and solace at his bookshop …
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Rick McCharles 