Christopher's bookshelf: read-in-2018 en-US Sat, 02 Mar 2024 14:13:12 -0800 60 Christopher's bookshelf: read-in-2018 144 41 /images/layout/goodreads_logo_144.jpg <![CDATA[Jersey Tough: My Wild Ride from Outlaw Biker to Undercover Cop]]> 26113663 The only patch-wearing outlaw biker to become a sworn police officer � and live to tell his tale

In 1977, Wayne “Big Chuck� Bradshaw was Jersey tough. He was a member of the outlaw Pagans bike gang, a One Percenter, and had earned his colours in a world of boozing, bloody bar fights, and high-stakes crime. But after getting too close to extreme violence, Bradshaw made the life-threatening decision to change his path.

The toughness Bradshaw used to survive biker life led him to a distinguished and heroic career as an undercover narcotics officer for the same New Jersey police department that had once arrested him. Bradshaw tells his story with the truth of the streets, from his time in the U.S. Army to his decision to join the Pagans, to the wild adventures of working narcotic stings. He rode with truly dangerous criminals and then returned to those same places as a cop. He tracks down fugitives in Jersey’s toughest neighbourhoods, risks his life rescuing dozens from a fire in a seniors� residence, and volunteers in the aftermath of 9/11.

Jersey Tough is an unflinching memoir of personal struggle, of battling with darkness, and ultimately of redemption.]]>
336 Wayne "Big Chuck" Bradshaw 1770412611 Christopher 0 read-in-2018, biker-books 4.07 2016 Jersey Tough: My Wild Ride from Outlaw Biker to Undercover Cop
author: Wayne "Big Chuck" Bradshaw
name: Christopher
average rating: 4.07
book published: 2016
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2024/03/02
shelves: read-in-2018, biker-books
review:

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<![CDATA[What the Dog Saw and Other Adventures]]> 6516450
In the past decade, Malcolm Gladwell has written three books that have radically changed how we understand our world and ourselves: The Tipping Point, Blink, and Outliers. Now, in What the Dog Saw, he brings together, for the first time, the best of his writing from The New Yorker over the same period.

Here you'll find the bittersweet tale of the inventor of the birth control pill, and the dazzling creations of pasta sauce pioneer Howard Moscowitz. Gladwell sits with Ron Popeil, the king of the American kitchen, as he sells rotisserie ovens, and divines the secrets of Cesar Millan, the "dog whisperer" who can calm savage animals with the touch of his hand. He explores intelligence tests and ethnic profiling and why it was that employers in Silicon Valley once tripped over themselves to hire the same college graduate.]]>
444 Malcolm Gladwell 0316078573 Christopher 3 read-in-2018 3.85 2009 What the Dog Saw and Other Adventures
author: Malcolm Gladwell
name: Christopher
average rating: 3.85
book published: 2009
rating: 3
read at:
date added: 2018/03/27
shelves: read-in-2018
review:

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<![CDATA[Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking]]> 40102 The Tipping Point a classic, Blink changes the way you'll understand every decision you make. Never again will you think about thinking the same way.

Malcolm Gladwell redefined how we understand the world around us. Now, in Blink, he revolutionizes the way we understand the world within. Blink is a book about how we think without thinking, about choices that seem to be made in an instant - in the blink of an eye - that actually aren't as simple as they seem. Why are some people brilliant decision makers, while others are consistently inept? Why do some people follow their instincts and win, while others end up stumbling into error? How do our brains really work - in the office, in the classroom, in the kitchen, and in the bedroom? And why are the best decisions often those that are impossible to explain to others?

In Blink we meet the psychologist who has learned to predict whether a marriage will last, based on a few minutes of observing a couple; the tennis coach who knows when a player will double-fault before the racket even makes contact with the ball; the antiquities experts who recognize a fake at a glance. Here, too, are great failures of "blink": the election of Warren Harding; "New Coke"; and the shooting of Amadou Diallo by police. Blink reveals that great decision makers aren't those who process the most information or spend the most time deliberating, but those who have perfected the art of "thin-slicing" - filtering the very few factors that matter from an overwhelming number of variables.]]>
296 Malcolm Gladwell 0316010669 Christopher 4 read-in-2018 3.97 2005 Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking
author: Malcolm Gladwell
name: Christopher
average rating: 3.97
book published: 2005
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2018/03/27
shelves: read-in-2018
review:

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<![CDATA[The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference]]> 2612 The tipping point is that magic moment when an idea, trend, or social behavior crosses a threshold, tips, and spreads like wildfire. Just as a single sick person can start an epidemic of the flu, so too can a small but precisely targeted push cause a fashion trend, the popularity of a new product, or a drop in the crime rate. This widely acclaimed bestseller, in which Malcolm Gladwell explores and brilliantly illuminates the tipping point phenomenon, is already changing the way people throughout the world think about selling products and disseminating ideas.]]> 301 Malcolm Gladwell 0316346624 Christopher 4 read-in-2018 4.01 2002 The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference
author: Malcolm Gladwell
name: Christopher
average rating: 4.01
book published: 2002
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2018/03/27
shelves: read-in-2018
review:

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Don't Let Go 34001659 WithÌýunmatched suspense and emotional insight, Harlan CobenÌýexploresÌýthe big secrets and little lies that can destroy a relationship, a family, and even a town in this powerfulÌýnewÌýthriller.

Suburban New Jersey Detective Napoleon “Napâ€� Dumas hasn't been the same since senior year of high school, when his twin brother Leo and Leo’s girlfriend Diana were found dead on the railroad tracks—and Maura, the girl Nap considered the love of his life, broke up with him and disappeared without explanation. For fifteen years, Nap has been searching, both for Maura and for the real reason behind his brother's death. And now, it looks as though he may finally find what he's been looking for.Ìý

When Maura's fingerprints turn up in the rental car of a suspected murderer, Nap embarks on a quest for answers that only leads to more questions—about the woman he loved, about the childhood friends he thought he knew, about the abandoned military base near where he grew up, and mostly about Leo and Diana—whose deaths are darker and far more sinister than Nap ever dared imagine.]]>
351 Harlan Coben 0525955119 Christopher 4 read-in-2018 3.95 2017 Don't Let Go
author: Harlan Coben
name: Christopher
average rating: 3.95
book published: 2017
rating: 4
read at: 2018/01/01
date added: 2018/03/09
shelves: read-in-2018
review:
Same old Coben. Terrifically paced, exact same frame/plot as 90% of his other books.
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<![CDATA[The Midnight Line (Jack Reacher, #22)]]> 33378951 So begins a harrowing journey that takes Reacher through the upper Midwest, from a lowlife bar on the sad side of small town to a dirt-blown crossroads in the middle of nowhere, encountering bikers, cops, crooks, muscle, and a missing persons PI who wears a suit and a tie in the Wyoming wilderness.

The deeper Reacher digs, and the more he learns, the more dangerous the terrain becomes. Turns out the ring was just a small link in a far darker chain. Powerful forces are guarding a vast criminal enterprise. Some lines should never be crossed. But then, neither should Reacher.

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368 Lee Child 0399593489 Christopher 4 read-in-2018 3.95 2017 The Midnight Line (Jack Reacher, #22)
author: Lee Child
name: Christopher
average rating: 3.95
book published: 2017
rating: 4
read at: 2018/01/01
date added: 2018/03/09
shelves: read-in-2018
review:

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Strip Tease 13074
When a deranged Florida congressman falls for a gorgeous but virtuous stripper, he dedicates himself to pursuing this tasselled princess. Not only is she a real beauty, she's a damsel in distress. The effects of his quest will ripple through the spotlights of the strip joint, the sugar cane fields of south Florida, and some powerful political careers. Fueled by innocent lust and dizzy miscalculations, this story will keep you howling with surprise.

George Wilson's colorful narration is the perfect vehicle for Carl Hiaasen's twisted fairy tale.]]>
464 Carl Hiaasen 044669567X Christopher 4 read-in-2018 3.86 1993 Strip Tease
author: Carl Hiaasen
name: Christopher
average rating: 3.86
book published: 1993
rating: 4
read at: 2018/01/01
date added: 2018/03/09
shelves: read-in-2018
review:

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Sleeping Beauties 34466922
If they are awakened, and the gauze wrapping their bodies is disturbed or violated, the women become feral and spectacularly violent; and while they sleep they go to another place.

The men of our world are abandoned, left to their increasingly primal devices. One woman, however, the mysterious Evie, is immune to the blessing or curse of the sleeping disease.

Is Evie a medical anomaly to be studied, or is she a demon who must be slain?]]>
702 Stephen King 150116340X Christopher 3 read-in-2018 3.71 2017 Sleeping Beauties
author: Stephen King
name: Christopher
average rating: 3.71
book published: 2017
rating: 3
read at: 2018/01/01
date added: 2018/03/09
shelves: read-in-2018
review:

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Anansi Boys 2744 God is dead. Meet the kids.

Fat Charlie Nancy's normal life ended the moment his father dropped dead on a Florida karaoke stage. Charlie didn't know his dad was a god. And he never knew he had a brother.

Now brother Spider's on his doorstep -- about to make Fat Charlie's life more interesting... and a lot more dangerous.]]>
387 Neil Gaiman 0060515198 Christopher 5 read-in-2018 4.03 2005 Anansi Boys
author: Neil Gaiman
name: Christopher
average rating: 4.03
book published: 2005
rating: 5
read at: 2018/01/01
date added: 2018/03/09
shelves: read-in-2018
review:

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<![CDATA[The Wicked Dead (The Tome of Bill, #7)]]> 27832140
Bill Ryder has a powerful destiny. He just never expected it to involve an amnesiac bloodsucker, a bunch of D&D dorks, and a hormonal witch. It's time for the gamer, geek, and legendary vampire to embrace his fate. Ordered to storm the vampire stronghold in Boston, Bill must approach the doorstep of the invincible undead warlord he's destined to face. It's his only chance of stopping Armageddon.

As his enemies stand in his way and his allies falter, the vicious beast inside of him wants out. If he stands tall and faces his fate, the world might just have a chance of surviving. If he fails, an unquenchable evil will destroy everything Bill knows and loves.

Why can't the end of the world ever be easy?]]>
Rick Gualtieri Christopher 0 read-in-2018 4.23 2015 The Wicked Dead (The Tome of Bill, #7)
author: Rick Gualtieri
name: Christopher
average rating: 4.23
book published: 2015
rating: 0
read at: 2018/01/01
date added: 2018/03/09
shelves: read-in-2018
review:

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Beacon 23 (Beacon 23, #1-5) 26771521 247 Hugh Howey 1516865871 Christopher 4 read-in-2018 3.78 2015 Beacon 23 (Beacon 23, #1-5)
author: Hugh Howey
name: Christopher
average rating: 3.78
book published: 2015
rating: 4
read at: 2018/01/01
date added: 2018/03/09
shelves: read-in-2018
review:

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Childhood’s End 414999
But at what cost? With the advent of peace, man ceases to strive for creative greatness, and a malaise settles over the human race. To those who resist, it becomes evident that the Overlords have an agenda of their own. As civilization approaches the crossroads, will the Overlords spell the end for humankind . . . or the beginning?]]>
224 Arthur C. Clarke Christopher 5 read-in-2018 4.12 1953 Childhood’s End
author: Arthur C. Clarke
name: Christopher
average rating: 4.12
book published: 1953
rating: 5
read at: 2018/01/01
date added: 2018/03/09
shelves: read-in-2018
review:

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The Island of Dr. Moreau 29981 Librarian note: An alternative cover for this ISBN can be found here.

Ranked among the classic novels of the English language and the inspiration for several unforgettable movies, this early work of H. G. Wells was greeted in 1896 by howls of protest from reviewers, who found it horrifying and blasphemous. They wanted to know more about the wondrous possibilities of science shown in his first book, The Time Machine, not its potential for misuse and terror. In The Island of Dr. Moreau, a shipwrecked gentleman named Edward Prendick, stranded on a Pacific island lorded over by the notorious Dr. Moreau, confronts dark secrets, strange creatures, and a reason to run for his life.

While this riveting tale was intended to be a commentary on evolution, divine creation, and the tension between human nature and culture, modern readers familiar with genetic engineering will marvel at Wells’s prediction of the ethical issues raised by producing “smarter� human beings or bringing back extinct species. These levels of interpretation add a richness to Prendick’s adventures on Dr. Moreau’s island of lost souls without distracting from what is still a rip-roaring good read.]]>
160 H.G. Wells 0553214322 Christopher 4 read-in-2018 3.73 1896 The Island of Dr. Moreau
author: H.G. Wells
name: Christopher
average rating: 3.73
book published: 1896
rating: 4
read at: 2018/01/01
date added: 2018/03/09
shelves: read-in-2018
review:

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It Can't Happen Here 11371 Main Street, Babbitt, and Arrowsmith, It Can't Happen Here is a cautionary tale about the fragility of democracy, an alarming, eerily timeless look at how fascism could take hold in America. Written during the Great Depression when America was largely oblivious to Hitler's aggression, it juxtaposes sharp political satire with the chillingly realistic rise of a President who becomes a dictator to "save the nation." Now finally back in print, It Can't Happen Here remains uniquely important, a shockingly prescient novel that's as fresh and contemporary as today's news.]]> 400 Sinclair Lewis 045121658X Christopher 4 read-in-2018 3.77 1935 It Can't Happen Here
author: Sinclair Lewis
name: Christopher
average rating: 3.77
book published: 1935
rating: 4
read at: 2018/01/01
date added: 2018/03/09
shelves: read-in-2018
review:

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<![CDATA[Half a Prayer (The Tome of Bill, #6)]]> 22549202 Terror lurks below and it’s about to surface.

The end of the world is rapidly approaching, but Bill Ryder - gamer, geek, and legendary vampire - finds himself with more pressing matters to worry about: the women in his life. Sidelined from action, he’s forced to reevaluate his feelings. Sadly for him, it’s a luxury he can ill afford.

An unstoppable terror from the dawn of time has awoken deep beneath the Earth and is headed his way. To make matter worse, he’s been deemed a traitor by those he thought to be his allies. Now he finds himself fighting off enemies from all sides while warring with his emotions. Talk about sucky timing for introspection.

As the world crumbles to pieces around him, Bill must muster his courage, master his powers, and rise to the destiny he’s been trying so long to deny - because if he doesn’t, his love life will be the least of his worries.

***

Half-a-Prayer (the Tome of Bill, part 6) is 130k words of foul-mouthed Urban Fantasy by Rick Gualtieri, author of Holier Than Thou and Sunset Strip]]>
Rick Gualtieri Christopher 0 read-in-2018 4.17 2015 Half a Prayer (The Tome of Bill, #6)
author: Rick Gualtieri
name: Christopher
average rating: 4.17
book published: 2015
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2018/02/07
shelves: read-in-2018
review:

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<![CDATA[Goddamned Freaky Monsters (The Tome of Bill, #5)]]> 17845725 There are reasons we fear the night. Now he's trying to stop them.

Three months have passed since the fateful encounter in New York City that ended with the disappearance of Bill Ryder - gamer, geek, and legendary vampire. Now he's back - reawakened halfway across the globe with no allies, clothing, or clue as to how he got there. The only thing he's certain of is that his captors plan to use him for their own nefarious ends and don't care how much blood they spill in the process.

Escape might be the least of his worries, though. Civilization teeters on the brink of chaos. Mythical beasts, once thought the stuff of fantasy, are breaking through the veil, intent on waging war against mankind. At their forefront stands an ancient evil, the last remnant of a people thought long dead, and it's about to cut a swath of destruction through the world not seen since biblical times.

Bill's only chance is to reclaim his life, reconcile with his friends, and muster every bit of attitude he can - because if he fails, Hell on Earth will become far more than just a corny saying.



Goddamned Freaky Monsters (the Tome of Bill, part 5) is 105k words of foul-mouthed horror hilarity by Rick Gualtieri, author of Holier Than Thou and Bigfoot Hunters]]>
Rick Gualtieri Christopher 0 read-in-2018 4.06 Goddamned Freaky Monsters (The Tome of Bill, #5)
author: Rick Gualtieri
name: Christopher
average rating: 4.06
book published:
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2018/02/02
shelves: read-in-2018
review:

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Namaste: The Whole Story 19549293 Peace Comes From Within. Death Comes From Without.

Amit is a member of the order of shadow monks, his every waking moment is spent training his body and mind to the peak of human ability - and beyond. But the order is pacifist, a repository for deadly weapons with their safeties permanently set to "on." Until everything is taken from him, and Amit decides that turning the other cheek is no longer an option. Now, every ounce of his training will be put to the test. His epic quest for revenge will see wrongs righted - or see Amit forgotten in an unmarked grave.

Namaste includes Prelude, as well as the rest of the adventure. Join Amit as he chases Nisha's killer from boss to boss, all the way to the last place he ever expected. He will fight, and die if he must. What will be, will be. It's a Zen thing.

˃˃˃ Readers Love Realm & Sands. Here's What They're Saying About Namaste

"Having read just about everything that these guys have written (separately and together), I absolutely loved it! Suspense, mystery, mysticism, monks, murder, love, fear, blood, revenge...just about anything you could imagine (all crammed into this one episode!). I'm still trying to wrap my brain around Amit. Do I love him? Do I hate him? Is he justified in his actions or a man gone over the edge? Knowing Sean and Johnny, no matter what I decide, they'll blow it out of the water! Can't wait to read more. Well done guys!"

"Screw these guys. I have things to do but I decided to load this just to check out a serial on kindle and now I'm hooked. My dogs need to be fed, I need to change the oil in my car and I'm not sure where my infant son is. But I know where I'll be for the foreseeable future: sitting on my ass reading the sequels."

"Sean Platt, Johnny Truant, and David Wright are masters of their craft. They excel at taking all that is good and fun from episodic t.v. and monthly comics and crafting well written stories. Namaste is no exception. A tale of love, loss, and vengeance with their special skewed vision. Like the Punisher main character Amit is almost instantly likable and even before you learn his reasoning you know that he is justified in his pursuit. Like all of the authors books I look forward to the continuing adventures of Amit."

"In Namaste, Platt and Truant deftly sketch out the background, setting, and characters of their latest serial with minimal description and brief snatches of dialog, keeping the action at a fever pitch in a high-intensity Hong Kong cinema style thriller. Punctuated by scenes of graphic violence, the experiment in non-linear storytelling is effective for this short action-oriented installment. Over the course of a longer story, the back-and-forth narrative flow might grow tedious or confusing, but here the approach lends a filmic flair to the introduction of "a pacifist monk on a rampage." Fans of Chow Yun Fat or John Woo films looking for a literary equivalent should appreciate this latest Platt & Truant effort."

˃˃˃ WARNING: Namaste is the most violent thing Realm & Sands has so far written.

An Unlikely Tale of Vengeance Like Nothing You've Read! ]]>
197 Sean Platt Christopher 0 read-in-2018 3.68 2013 Namaste: The Whole Story
author: Sean Platt
name: Christopher
average rating: 3.68
book published: 2013
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2018/01/31
shelves: read-in-2018
review:

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Chomp 12081467 Ìý
When Wahoo Cray’s dad—a professional animal wrangler—takes a job with a reality TV show calledÌý ExpeditionÌýSurvival!, Wahoo figures he'll have to do a bit of wrangling himself to keep his father from killing Derek Badger, the show's inept and egotistical star. But the job keeps getting more Derek Badger insists on using wild animals for his stunts; and Wahoo's acquired a shadow named Tuna—a girl who's sporting a shiner courtesy ofÌý her Ìýfather and needs a place to hide out.Ìý

They've only been on location in the Everglades for a day before Derek gets bitten by a bat and goes missing in a storm. Search parties head out and promptly get lost themselves. And then Tuna's dad shows up with a gun . . .

It's anyone's guess who willÌý actually ÌýsurviveÌý Expedition Survival . . .Ìý
Ìý

“Only in Florida—and in the fiction of its native son Carl Hiaasen—does a dead iguana fall from a palm tree and kill somebody.� � New York Post
Ìý
� Chomp is a delightful laugh-out-loud sendup of the surreality of TV that will be enjoyed by readers of all ages.� � Los Angeles Times
Ìý
� Chomp shines in its humorous, subtle tweaks on pop culture. . . . The real satisfaction, however, is not so much in the book’s humor but in its truth.� � Time Out Chicago Kids]]>
290 Carl Hiaasen 0375868429 Christopher 0 read-in-2018 3.93 2012 Chomp
author: Carl Hiaasen
name: Christopher
average rating: 3.93
book published: 2012
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2018/01/30
shelves: read-in-2018
review:

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<![CDATA[Digging Up Mother: A Love Story]]> 28589336 After enjoying early success as co-host of The Man Show with Joe Rogan, the past twenty years of Doug Stanhope's career can be seen as a subversive insider attack against the "bro-code" he helped to launch. Following a very singular career arc, Stanhope turned his back on Hollywood and toured relentlessly for years, performing up to 200 shows a year. He's a giant cult comedian with a fiercely loyal audience. His material is abrasive and often offensive, but it also relies on a bullshit-free, hardcore, outraged, truth-telling perspective in the tradition of the late Bill Hicks. Stanhope's memoir is sure to rub many the wrong way, but not without causing fits of uncontrollable laughter in the process.
Ìý]]>
308 Doug Stanhope Christopher 0 read-in-2018 4.30 2016 Digging Up Mother: A Love Story
author: Doug Stanhope
name: Christopher
average rating: 4.30
book published: 2016
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2018/01/25
shelves: read-in-2018
review:

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