Read Gun Control in the Third Reigh (Halbrook). Very interesting read, especially living in NJ. Didn’t change my perspective on gun rights, but definitely glad to read more into how “common-sense gun legislation” can bite us in the ass a few years down the line...
Next book is Wyatt Earp Speaks... not the Lake one that likely has some embellishments, but one edited by Stephens. Been on my shelf for some time, but figured I’d try to knock it out next.
If your reading tastes are varied, there is no better site online than https://fivebooks.com/
They interview an expert in a particular field and have them choose five books that best represent the topic from their point of view. I end up buying a book recommendation from there at last a few times a month.
"Blood on the Snow," by S. M. Belser. (One of our own here on the PF)
A young hunter has been killed by what is first called a hunting accident. His parents can’t accept that it was an accident and contact PI/Lawyer Yelena Sergeyovna Smirnova. Yelena (Lena) quickly decides there is more to the case and soon begins to suspect connections with other “hunting accidents” going back almost twenty years. She eventually builds a sufficiently sound case to get the Sate Police interested. She has a law enforcement background so the State Police hire her as a consultant. She joins the task force as they hunt for the killer before he can kill again.
— — —
This is another intellectual journey by one of Belser’s characters. I like this one because of the strong female protagonist. The action takes place somewhere in the northwest. The author belabors the point that all locations are fictional and I don’t recall her mentioning a state, but it must surely be in a place like Montana, maybe North Dakota. She does mention that they are close to the Canadian border and the weather if crazy cold. There is a bit of a “Longmire” feel to attitude of her characters.
Belser again does what she does so well in that this is a cerebral exercise. She focuses on the who-done-it side fo the story without the gory details of gratuitous sex and violence.
Belser’s knowledge of firearms, the law, and aviation allow her to craft a believable story, very probably extremely accurate in the depiction of legal and investigative proceedings. It makes Leana’s world realistic and easy to enter.
This is a page turner that is hard to put down and will leave you sad to finish. The good news is, there are other books by this author.
One of his better. He was a complete idiot, but a great writer.Originally Posted by NEPAKevin
I read "Hell's Angel: The Life and Times of Sonny Barger" by Sonny Barger. It was interesting in that it gave you a view into his twisted mindset. I'm a biker, but not a 1%. I've been at events with those guys, and even ridden with some of them in non-club events. I'm far from an expert, but what little I've seen gave credence to the picture Sonny paints of the way those guy see themselves.
All of the past murder victims in the book at the time I wrote it were members of Avsig, or, at least, the iteration referred to as "Sig II" Others appeared in Aluminum Rain.
At the time, thanks to the Avsiggers who bought Blood on the Snow, it made the Kindle crime novel bestsellers list. Considerng how few sales it took to do that, I said at the time that making that bestsellers list was like being a champion weightlifter in the Lollipop Guild.
Last edited by Stephanie B; 08-16-2018 at 07:36 PM.
If we have to march off into the next world, let us walk there on the bodies of our enemies.
Well crap!!! That doesn't bode well for my expeditions. I want to be a billionaire, famous best seller based on one novel. Are you telling me there is hard work involved in gettin there?
For the hikers in the group: Just finished “Where you’ll find me” by Ty Gagne, a nonfiction account of a hiker who died on a solo winter hike in the NH Presidential range and of the rescue attempt. It’s a good companion to “Not without peril” by Nicholas Howe.
A cell phone, satphone, GPS, and PLB were not enough to make up for bad decisions and bad luck. It made me think about my own decision making, and how I might avoid some of the same traps.
As an aside, the potential hazards of the Presidential range are often underestimated by folks who have made much bigger climbs. But Mt. Washington is at the intersection of three major North American weather paths, and “some of the worst weather in the world” is not an exaggeration.
The last time I went up Mt. Washington on Washington's birthday, three lives were lost on the mountain that weekend. (Not in my party.) Not a good place to find out you aren't prepared.
There's nothing civil about this war.
To be fair, if you haven’t lived with the stories it’s hard to imagine how fast the conditions can change up there. And most folks have never experienced how cold you can get from wind and rain on a summer day.
A cotton t-shirt and shorts seemed fine at the trailhead a couple of hours ago when it was 70 and sunny. Who needs a pack? But it’s been clouding over as you climb, and when you break out of the treeline it’s suddenly 40 with hard rain and 60mph wind. Damn! But it’s not far to the hut, right........?
Winter is even less forgiving of mistakes.
Last edited by peterb; 08-16-2018 at 09:30 PM.
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