Isaac’s Storm (2000) is not Larson’s best book.

BUT it’s still worth reading if only to learn the history of weather forecasting. If you think it’s bad now, imagine how little they knew in the 1800s.

The people of Galveston had no warning. Few people evacuated to the mainland.

When it happened, the weather service mostly went into ass covering mode.

The 1900 Galveston hurricane was the deadliest natural disaster in United States history and the fifth-deadliest Atlantic hurricane, only behind Hurricane Mitch overall. The hurricane left between 6,000 and 12,000 fatalities in the United States …

In 1915, a storm similar in strength and track to the 1900 hurricane struck Galveston … but only 53 died mainly due to a 10 mile long seawall that had been built after the first disaster.

The book tells the story from the point of view of Isaac Monroe Cline (October 13, 1861 – August 3, 1955), chief meteorologist at the Galveston, Texas office of the U.S. Weather Bureau, now known as the National Weather Service, from 1889 to 1901.

But I never got interested in his personal life, nor the rivalry with his brother, Joseph.

Smart. Well written. A psychological thriller where everyone has secrets.

And it’s a modern book with a plot shaped by pandemic. The police using social media to track suspects.

Ciara and Oliver meet in a supermarket queue in Dublin and start dating the same week COVID-19 reaches Irish shores.

56 days later detectives arrive at Oliver’s apartment to discover a decomposing body inside.

… What happened?

3rd in the enjoyable John Puller series.

Baldacci’s best series for me, so far.

John Puller’s older brother, Robert, was convicted of treason.

His inexplicable escape from prison makes him the most wanted criminal in the country. Some in the government believe that John Puller represents their best chance at capturing Robert alive, and so Puller must bring in his brother to face justice.

But Puller quickly discovers that his brother is pursued by others who don’t want him to survive. Puller is in turn pushed into an uneasy, fraught partnership with another agent, who may have an agenda of her own. …

davidbaldacci.com

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

Wow.

This is intense.

Audra just wants to reach California. She’s finally found the strength to flee her abusive husband and make a fresh start for her two children.

With little Sean and Louise in tow, she has carefully made her way across the country, taking back roads and avoiding attention. 
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So when an unsettling local sheriff pulls her over in the middle of the Arizona desert, Audra works to hide her nerves and keep calm. She has to. But then he pulls a bag of drugs she’s never seen before out of her trunk, and nervousness turns into panic. She thinks the worst has happened. …

haylenbeck.com

It gets worse. Much worse.

To Cut a Long Story Short is a 2000 short story collection.

… 14 riveting tales of elaborate confidence tricks, political chicanery, immoral behavior, and dangerously illicit affairs …

I don’t read many short stories. BUT Archer is so good at making an entertaining story easy to follow, that I enjoyed this one very much.

The Forgotten (2012) by David Baldacci is the second instalment to feature John Puller, a former Army Ranger who served at Iraq and Afghanistan and now works for the U.S. Army’s Criminal Investigations Division.

I like the character John Puller.

The plot is over-the-top excessive, as usual for Baldacci, but I do recommend the series.

A picture-perfect town on Florida’s Gulf Coast, Paradise thrives on the wealthy tourists and retirees drawn to its gorgeous weather and beaches.

The local police have ruled his aunt’s death an unfortunate, tragic accident. But just before she died, she mailed a letter to Puller’s father, telling him that beneath its beautiful veneer, Paradise is not all it seems to be.

davidbaldacci.com

Zero Day (2011) is the first of the John Puller series.

An Army detective, Puller has been compared to Jack Reacher (sometimes unfavourably). A large, tough man, whose peak physical fitness is matched only by his intellectual superiority.

Puller is now working for the US Army’s Criminal Investigations Division (CID).

He partners in this tale with police sergeant Samantha Cole. An appealing couple.

I’ve often criticized Baldacci for his dumb over-the-top plots — and this one is dumb. BUT I do recommend this book. It’s entertaining. And I really got to like Puller and Cole.

First half of the book is far better than the rest.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.