Heat Rises

This is the third Richard Caslte novel. Like its predecessors, it presents fictionalized versions of the "real" people on the TV show Castle. The book is a solid piece of genre fiction, that I think an stand on its own. However, for me the fun is in the association with Castle. I love the show and the characters, so seeing how they are morphed to fit the crime genre is fun.In this installment we are treated to a more intimate portrait of Nikki Heat. Her vulnerabilities are at the fore throughout the story. She is uncertain about her relationship with Rourke. She is off of her game because of her relationship with her Captain. It is interesting to see the tension between her weaknesses and the tough as nails shell she projects.It is an interesting parallel to Bekett's development on the show. Outwardly, she is tough as nails and an emotional brick wall. Internally, as we've seen glimpses of throughout the series, she is a maelstrom of conflicting emotions. This season in particular is exploring the balancing act she plays to keep it together and the price she pays to do it.

The Last Jurist

While driving back from FL H and I listened to the John Grisham's The Last Juror. It is what you'd expect from Grisham. The writing is decent and the story is based around a court house in the south. Unlike Grisham's earlier works The Last Juror is a rambling behemoth of a narrative. It tells the tale of a small Southern town in the 70's through the eyes of a young newspaper man. The narrator becomes enthralled by a black family and this provides him with plenty of ammunition to preach about how backwards the South was and how unfair racism is. The presumptive driver of the narrative is a murder trial and its decade-long effect on the town. It is, however, pretty weak tea. The trial lacks any real drama. The middle of the book sort of just rambles. The last quarter of the book has some suspense, but the resolution leaves you feeling like you'd eaten cheap Chinese food. Full but unsatisfied and frustrated by the knowledge that you'll be more hungry in a few hours. As a way to pass 20 hours driving in a car, it is not the worst thing. As filler to read at a beach, it would suffice. As a pre-sleep book, it would work. For a good read, it is worse than bad pizza.