Mic Breaks Only discussion

I flew through the ending of The Woman in the Window and it did not disappoint. I'm sheepish to admit that I did not correctly deduce the killer because I carelessly disregarded the most reliable of characters - the family pet. Nonetheless, the story was enjoyable even though I failed the Nancy Drew test. I was slightly irritated that Anna the child psychologist also failed to see the same signs until it was almost too late, but I suppose this makes for an exciting ending. The novel culminates with an angina inducing rooftop showdown and the creepy setting is improved with horrible weather and a deluge of rain. I'm definitely going to check out the movie version of this novel when it comes to the big screen. This book has also inspired me to add more Hitchcock films to my life.

I finished A Beautiful Poison and there were a good many things I liked about it. The setting is New York in 1918 and we see how both the haves and the have-nots live in this great city. The book has a steampunk feel with glitz and glamour juxtaposed with the grittiness of industrialism, World War I, and a major outbreak of Spanish influenza.

At its core this is a murder mystery that reconnects three estranged childhood friends. Allene Cutter is a socialite and the first murder happens at her very fancy engagement party. Birdie used to live at the Cutter household until she and her mother abruptly left under suspicious pretense several years ago. Jasper came from a well to do family, however his parents' suicide and financial problems have left him destitute and struggling for survival.

The plot held my attention. There are several murders via poisoning and the trio of friends use science and analytical reasoning to investigate clues along the way. There are strange letters sent from the killer that keep our protagonists on edge as they wonder who will be the next victim. As mysteries go, the ending held an excellent twist and was one that I couldn't predict. This book goes very dark places and the final gruesome murder and the motivation behind it highlights the depths of horrors that ensue when evil men of means take advantage of those less fortunate.

I read Green River Killer: A True Detective Story. The story follows Detective Tom Jensen who worked on the Green River Killer case for nearly two decades. At one point he was the only detective working on the case for 9 years. In 2001 the suspect Gary Ridgway was apprehended and detectives, including Jensen, interviewed him for six months.

My favorite part of this graphic novel is that it was written by Jensen's son which gives the story an interesting perspective and a lovely personal touch. Jeff Jensen does not shy away from the effects, both good and bad, on his dad who worked tirelessly to solve the murders of over 50 women. The art is simple and stark in black and white images. Kudos to artist Ramon K. Perez who created a wonderful complement to the narrative.

I started Bandwidth which is set in the not too distant future where everyone's news feeds are biologically integrated. The details about how or why this happened are never really explained. The story opens with the successful assassination of a Mexican political figure who was a former pro athlete and a client of lobbyist Dag Calhoun.

Dag Calhoun is difficult to like. He seems vapid, materialistic and preoccupied with power. If this story was a made for TV movie, he would be played by someone douchey like Miles Teller. I'm hoping time will reveal some more endearing character traits as I move further into the plot. Dag lives in San Francisco and considers himself part James Bond. I'm not convinced he has many skills that would lead me to draw that same parallel. He represents opium warlords, Big Oil, and a business called Commonwealth who controls the world's digital infrastructure via "the feed".

While drowning his post assassination sorrows in tequila, he meets a Korean woman who is "exactly" his type. The future looks bright for Dag after an invitation to meet in the mystery woman's hotel room. Upon entering the room, Dag discovers he is alone with a wall of photos of himself. It seems his new female friend is a little more Carrie Mathison and a little less his perfectly idealized one night stand.