The Innocent Man by John Grisham

The Innocent Man: Murder and Injustice in a Small Town  --5 Stars

I'm not sure if it is completely possible to be enthralled with a book but infuriated by it as well. If this is indeed possible then I am in those shoes. In 1983, a lovely young woman was found brutally murdered in her apartment in Ada, Oklahoma. The police and prosecutor knew who committed the crime, they just had to prove it... by whatever means necessary. The prosecutor didn't care that he actually needed evidence to convict, the confessions heard by jailed prisoners would be plenty. Give him an attorney who didn't defend and his fate was sealed with prison bars.

Ron Williamson and his friend Dennis Fritz were innocent of the murder of Debbie Carter, as they stated throughout the "investigation". The entire thing was not merely injustice but a severe miscarriage! I was appalled that no one seemed to notice that the confessions, so called, were illegal; the prosecution failed to convince beyond a reasonable doubt that either man was even seen with the victim prior to her death, let alone in her apartment; the defense missed that Mr Williamson was obviously not competent enough to stand trial.

I do believe that if you commit the crime then you must serve the time for it. But what if you are indeed innocent? Twelve years of legal maneuvering and two men are finally free but forever changed. I know I just gave it away, but the so does the synopsis. Getting to the end is the trial, if you'll forgive the pun.

John Grisham has not before, nor since, delved into the world of true crime or non-fiction. "Writing fiction is just too much fun," he says. His style, though, is clear throughout. The Innocent Man reads almost like a work of fiction. Indeed, I hoped that it was, instead of some cruel imprisonment for two men. This book has been on my shelves for some time and once started, I found it difficult to put down.

The 39 Steps By John Buchan

1 Star--
Oh my.. this marks a first on Quill and Ink, I didn't bother to find a cover and I will not be posting a link for purchase. I cannot tell you how disappointed I was in this novel. First, we find our protagonist, a bored London socialite, bemoaning his life. He is quickly met up with murder and mayhem, outrunning Germans who want to kill him before he tells the authorities of their plans, which will ultimately bring about World War II. The fact this man manages to out run and out smart the German secret service in the moors of Scotland is not even remotely believable. The author realizes that he is pushing the limits of the imagination and cuts out ten days, since the man has to run for three weeks, to speed up the story.

Really, this is one of the worst novels I have ever read and so far the worst of 2012. I am glad that the author didn't write too many books. His lack of talent saddens me.

Shoeless Joe by W. P. Kinsella

Shoeless Joe -5 Stars

"If you build it, he will come." One of the most famous lines in both film and literature. We, as readers, are dropped square in the middle of Iowa with Ray and his family on his small farm. The place is mortgaged to the hilt and he starts to hear an announcer and see visions. He knows what he has to do without being given any specific instructions. Build a ball field, ease an author's pain, going the distance... all in hopes that he can see one person again.

Throughout the story, we are regaled with purity of baseball. I don't care how many players are using steroids, the game always has a purity to it. A stadium always smells like hotdogs, beer, dirt and fresh grass. Baseball is the smell of summer, the feeling of joy that brings even the biggest men back to a small boy if only for a few hours. Dreams are baseball.

Now I am lover of the game. I can't give you statistics or tell who won what series on what year. I always love to watch the game though. Even minor leagues, there's a local minor team in my home town and I can never get enough of there games. Shoeless Joe reminds all of what its like to dream again, even if it seems impossible, we are reminded of simple joys like the sound of ball hitting a bat with a whack and not a ping.

I wish I could put into words how wonderful this novel was. It may go off on a tangent here and there, but its always coming back to baseball. "The one constant in America has been baseball."

The Scarlet Pimpernel by Baroness Orczy

The Scarlet Pimpernel  -- 5 Stars

A story that caught me from the beginning and did not let me go! I was struck by how wonderful this novel was. The French Revolution, 1792: People are being offered to the guillotine daily, sacrificed in the name of liberty. Aristocrats in particular are being slaughtered; they are called "traitors" simply for being wealthy. One man risks his live to save them, men women and children, from their engagement with Madame La Guillotine. He is called The Scarlet Pimpernel!

He is a cleaver man, who has a small band of his English companions to help him save these poor souls from death. He risks everything to go back to France again and again. No one knows who he his and one man, Chavelin, will do anything to catch him red handed in smuggling people across the Channel. Chavelin employs  woman to find the identity of the Pimpernel. What will she do? Give him up to his enemies and death, or risk her life for his?

I love the mystery that goes throughout the novel, never truly knowing who the Pimpernel is until the final chapters. I was disappointed by another French novel not long ago and was dread to read this one. Oh how glad I am I did! What a wonderful mystery! Full of royal court life, high society and intrigue.

This book is on the challenge to read twelve books that have been on my shelf for a year or more and I believe 1001 Books To Read Before You Die.

Review Request

Just in case anyone was wondering, yes I will do read requests. I was indeed asked to read a title, by the author himself. John Michael Cummings sent me a request, through my Drood review, to read a title called Ugly To Start With, a collection of short stories. I did reply, though rather late, and was unable to reach the author. I will, however, check the title at my local library. If I can find it, the title shall be read and reviewed.

Please, if you, my dear Readers, have any titles you'd like reviewed, please send me a message. Thank you for reading.

Promises To Keep by Charles De Lint

Promises To Keep --5 Stars

All right, so I'm partial. I love Charles De Lint!! His novels always take me to a new place, a new adventure. In this case, my favourite character, Jilly Coopercorn, is in her early twenties. She has only just cleaned up her life and is attending Butler University, studying Fine Art. Jilly is given an invitation to see a band preform and so walks through a doorway to an afterlife.

I say "an afterlife" because, as the book says, there could be several. Jilly is given everything she was denied in her life. She is safe, has money, no one is wanting to pimp her out for cash... In short its the perfect life. The only problem is that she feels she's in the wrong place. She is making a life in Newford and wants to earn her happiness, not have it simply handed to her.

Problems really start when Jilly is told she can't home to the "World As It Is". Since she accepted the wealth offered, she has to stay. Jilly wants to go home. But how?

Beautifully written. This is a recent novel, but tells the early history of a character that I have grown to care very much about. I have loved Jilly since I first read of her in The Ivory and The Horn. Of course that was the De Lint novel that started this whole Newford obsession. When compared to the other book I finished that day, this one was a joy! And yes, I read all 192 pages in a single day. I couldn't stop myself. 

The Phantom Of The Opera by Gaston Leroux

The Phantom Of The Opera -- 1 Star

All right, I have seen the film starring Gerard Butler and listed to the same sound track a hundred times. I do enjoy the story... on stage! The novel, however, was a chore to get through. Christine is a tease, as we would say today. She strings poor Raoul along and leaves him hanging any number of times. The dialog is excrement! And I was left sorry I even started the book in the first place.

This book was on my reading list, and I've had it on my shelf for some time. I should have left it that way. I just could not believe such a renown novel could be so lousy! Honestly, it felt like a French version of Gone With The Wind. I had to speed read to get through this.