Book Notices | Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore by Robin Sloan / Before He Finds Her by Michael Kardos / Killer Move by Michael Marshall

Robin Sloan, Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore

Amazon   This book falls in the just okay category for me. I liked the earlier part of the story, when our hero, Clay Jannon (whose name I had to look up despite just finishing the book, which suggests something about my level of commitment to it), gets a job at Penumbra's store and begins to realize how weird it is: Odd characters drop in, and the store is more lending library than profitable business. But then it all turns into an unlikely quest that I ultimately didn't care very much about, with a bunch of characters that I also never really cared about. So it was okay, but not a memorable read for me.

Michael Kardos, Before He Finds Her

Amazon   Before He Finds Her by Michael Kardos tells the story of Meg Miller, aka Melanie Denison, who has lived in hiding with her aunt and uncle for 15 years. She has had to live a cloistered life—mostly homeschooled, no internet—because her father is out there somewhere and wants her dead. Ramsey Miller killed his wife years earlier, didn’t succeed in killing his daughter, and disappeared. On the cusp of adulthood, Meg decides to disobey the rules she’s lived with for as long as she can remember. She leaves home to try to find her father, to take the fight to him, so that she can stop living in fear. In a few short days away from her guardians’ strict oversight, she winds up discovering a lot more than she bargained for. This book was worth the ride (though I bet some readers will figure out the big reveal early), but I didn’t enjoy it quite as much as another book I’ve read by Kardos, The Three-Day Affair (my review).

Michael Marshall, Killer Move

Amazon   Bill Moore is a real estate agent in the Florida Keys with grand plans and the self discipline to match. He's all about developing positive habits to maximize his potential and kissing up to higher ups. Things in his life are in order and on track...until they're not. Bill finds out that his computer's been hacked, and things go downhill from there. Someone's out to destroy him, and his carefully orchestrated life spirals out of control very quickly. For part of the book Bill's story is intertwined with another—a powerful figure is kidnapped by an ex-con. We don't immediately understand how the two are connected, but it eventually becomes clear. I was annoyed by Bill's initial reaction to his troubles, which seemed to me both unhelpful and uncharacteristic—wallowing in drink. Also, it's kind of hard to buy the story as a whole, what's behind what's happening to Bill. But if you can suspend disbelief, it's a fun read.